Just a Quick Recap

So for those of you who actually take time to come to my page, an average of 32 seconds, I thought I would give you a quick recap of the last couple weeks. Please to enjoy!















I am a huge Cardinals fan, meaning that over the past 15 years I have been a sadistic freak who loves inflicting pain on himself. This year, they started out with two wins and no losses. I was on a high. The last two weeks however, the Cards have fallen back into form and lost on turnovers. 3 interceptions, 5 fumbles...a team has a hard time coming back from that. So, my euphoria is being slowly extinguished, but I'll stick with my team. Get the Bills next week...Go Cards!












The chess team participated in the Ash Fork tournament two weeks ago. We went in as 6th and finished as 5th. It was a decent tournament as we played a jv player on board 4 and had to move up two others spots. We also forfeited a board automatically as we only had four players attend.

I'm excited! I think the team can do really well this year. I also beat Jack Burden once and drew him twice. This is my hero on the chess board and I feel like I'm getting close to scraping out a game every once in a while.















Of course, I am still teaching! I feel like I'm getting close to losing it as more and more piles onto my list to do. I start a class today where I get to teach people how to use a Smart Board. It will be fun, but it cuts into the time that I already feel is gone.

For all of those who are stressed, excited, and happy...keep going. We'll make it!!!

Clowns Have Nothing on Carnies!

As you may have read, in Amy's blog, we attended the Navajo County fair on Friday and Saturday. Ah the fair...filled with wonderful food, amazing rides that go "whoosh", and....oh yeah, SCARY CARNIE FOLK!!! It doesn't matter where you turn, there one is. Tattooed, pierced, glaring, daring to cheat you out of your money, and willing to cut you for a nickle...yes Carnie people are scary.

I have nothing against tatts and piercings, unless you are a Carnie person. Seriously, go watch them sometime. They don't look at you like a customer, they look at you like prey. Their eyes grow wild as you approach with excitement. Their mouth turns up at the corner, knowing that a sucker is born every minute. All they have to do is tear you away from the friends, and then the persuasion begins. They call your "name" out, "Heyya Beautiful, win a prize...everyone's a winner". "Look at those arms! Come on over Stud and show your lovely wife how strong you are". "Four Eyes are good for something! Get your tooshie over here nerd and show us how well you can shoot." Once they have you, its over!

You know what else hunts like that....Hyenas!!! Laughing, tricky hyenas who can actually make "human" noises to draw away their prey....how wonderful. Carnies are comparable to flesh eating Hyenas....makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside.





















This year they found a new way to make me miserable! I blame getting sick on the nachos. I was loving the rodeo! Sitting with Amy, watching hot, sweaty cowb......mustangs buck off their riders and then watching the riders run for their lives. It was awesome. Then the nachos hit and I couldn't get home fast enough! The rest of the story shouldn't be published on a blog...so I'll leave it there.


















In short, I had fun at the fair with Amy. We walked, we talked, we laughed.....we ignored the scary, nacho poisoning, hyena Carnies that could whoop clowns in a scare contest, and we will do it again next year because it is just that much fun spending two nights out with my amada!

Awesome Weekend!!!

I just had a great weekend...of course that was three days ago. The Chess Team, which I have coached for the past four years, went to Tuba City for our first tournament. In a year that I thought I would barely be able to field a team, I had 9 newbies show up for practice. In this game I was able to take 6 people. Four of my returning team from last year and two newbies. In a field of 6 Varsity teams, we took 3rd. We lost four more games than second place and only lost to the two top ranked teams in the region. Much better than I expected. Our first board, Jacob, took 5th place overall! He only lost to the top ranked player in the region, who incidently took first in this tournament. Not a bad outing. One of my newbies took 5th in JV. He only lost to the players who took first and second in the tournament and earned a varsity spot in the next tournament. Another part of the weekend that rocked came in Fantasy Football. I know, chess and football don't really mix, but I'm that sporty nerd that loves both. Amy and I are both playing this year and we both did really well in the first game. I beat my opponent by 10 points for a record of 1-0-0. Amy lost by 4 points, for a record of 0-1-0. I feel bad because I gave her bad advice that would have allowed her to win. One of the team's websites had bad information on it and they played the second string running back. :( Overall....great weekend. The chess team has a good chance of making state for the third year in a row. Jacob and maybe Riley have an awesome chance of going to state individuals. It should be an exciting year.

Tim Gunn, Eat Your Heart Out!!!

In the wonderful fashion of Project Runway, I have had my students create their own designs and fit them to their bodies. The assignment was clear. They were to use tissue paper, construction paper, tape, glue, and other classroom materials to replicate a specific Native American style. The tribes were seperated and they went forth and conquered. I could get away with this because the lesson was later used to show them the how the differences in region affect lifestyles. The students had an awesome time, and I got to say, "Make it work!", so I'm happy. Please to enjoy!!!

Territorial

So, Abby is becoming very territorial. She has been obsessed with the cricket lately, one of Amy's scrapping machines. Everytime I come in the house she is laying right there, cuddling with this hunk of plastic.....in fact I just got up to feed them, right now, and she is laying there with the cricket. It is very disneyish in thought. The cat and the cricket....anywho....I just thought this was weird.

But that isn't it! When we get home, she'll tear herself away from the cricket and lay on the rug by the door. She hasn't done this for a year, and now she can't stop. It is kind of wigging me out...but thus is the life of a crazy cat.

Canning the Green

So for the first time in two or three years, Amy and I were able to get hold of a bag of green chile. For those of you who know me well, you know I have many loves of food. One of those is this wonderfully flavorful plant that provides heat and taste. It makes everything better and goes great with rootbeer. Yes, I was excited to get a hold of this bag...

Then we started canning the green chile.......pictures to come. For now just know that I began prepping the chile on Thursday evening, finishing around 9:00. Tonight Amy, the parents, and I have been at it for 6 hours. I've started falling asleep, so I began to blog instead. Dad is falling asleep on the couch across from me...trying to make it look like he is still watching "Return of the King".

.....We finally finished at 2:30 in the morning. Jeeze! I didn't realize that it would take that long, but it was fun spending time with Amy and the parents. All together we got almost 90 cans of chile, ranging from mild to hot in flavor. It was quite the process, and for more on that I would read Amy's blog. She really put in the details.

Just a little bit of the aftermath for you to ponder. Enjoy!

Only 176 Days Left!!!

The first week is over! The students have survived one of the hardest times of the year as I have had to set the precedent in class. There has been blood, tears, sweat, and fear as students try to see how far they can push me, and they haven't been too happy with the results. This year I was determined to be quick to correct any misbehavior, and so far it has been the best start to any of my years. Of course, it also allows me to loosen up and have fun when I know that I can fall back on Eldon the Barbarian.

I'll keep you posted on all of the funny stories. I have been staying late at the school and haven't posted for a while, so I'm really going to try to make sure you hear more.



(Activity of the Week) Archeology! I dug out a large rectangle, buried different types of candy, and covered it up. I then sectioned it off and the kids dug and plotted the spot where they found the candy. We returned to the classroom, compared information, and then the students had to describe/draw the layout of the "House" that we dug up. Each type of candy represented soemthing that you would find in the house, giving them the clues as to where each room might be. Great success!!!