secret admirer?
My roommate recently swapped his gas guzzling truck out for a fuel efficient Scion. Not 48 hours after making the purchase he left his car at an area Walmart and carpooled with a group of sports fans to the Ranger’s game. Upon his return, he found this affectionate letter on his car. There’s much debate as to the letter’s origin, but we all agree that he should be happy the only thing the writer did to his car was leave a note.
the journey of job searching
I walked out my front door, shirt tucked in, pants a little too long and resumés in tow ready to show the local school district that I was undoubtedly the person they most wanted to fill their teacher vacancies. When I sat down in Skylar’s bucket seat and turned her key, a familiar and soothing voice bade me a sincere welcome to The Everglow. It was bound to be an enjoyable journey.
I approached School One with my resumés in one hand (to sell myself) and my pant legs in the other (to prevent them from dragging the hot concrete). I walked in and found my way to the Main Office where Secretary One greeted me with a smile that songs get written about. I handed her my resumé, exchanged niceties, and went on my way, not necessarily feeling as though I would be hearing back from School One’s administration, but confident and amiable nonetheless. Secretary One’s smile was too pleasant, and Someone Else’s Arms was too nostalgic to feel any other way.
It took no more than 30 seconds of banter at School Two to hear the less-than-encouraging statement, “We’ve already filled all our positions for this school year…” from the secretary. I offered a sincere but disappointed “Congratulations!” knowing that their gain was very much my loss. I humored Secretary Two with Texas A&M University talk for a while, but it seemed The Network wasn’t strong enough to pull though this time. I walked back out to Skylar making sure my pants weren’t getting frayed prematurely, and as the AC cooled down my parking-lot-hot body, This is the Countdown reminded me that hearing secretaries tell of their lack of need for teachers may be something I needed to get used to. I assured myself, however, that it only takes one school that does need a teacher…
School Three required a door bell to be rung before any visitor could enter. As Staff Member Three answered the door she stood in such a way that made it clear I was welcome to talk, but not enter. The air conditioning escaping from that cracked door was all I would get. That, and a “I’ll give this to the secre… principal”. I cordially thanked her and retreated back to always-welcoming Skylar who sang The Ocean, and gently reminded me that I truly did need [Him] there tonight like the oceans need the waves.
Moments after Secretary Four took my resumé and poked her head into Principal Four’s office, she handed me my resumé and said that he wanted to speak with me. This, I thought, could be the one of “it only takes one” fame. Principal Four came out and greeted me with the menacing, “We’ve already filled all our positions…” to which I again replied, “Congratulations!”. Cover Me carried me to my next stop, bringing to mind all sorts of Ecclesiastical thoughts of life’s meaninglessness.
The secretaries at Schools Five and Six shared with me the now familiar “We’re full”. I congratulated each of these administrations on their success, each time a reminder to myself of my lack thereof. At this point I no longer made any effort to keep my pants’ hems from dragging the floor, rather I felt it quite fitting for them to do so.
As The Sun and the Moon came to a close and that familiar and soothing voice again greeted me and hoped I’d enjoyed my journey. I knew that insofar as she was concerned, I truly had, but apart from my very faithful friend The Everglow, it was a completely disappointing morning.
50 things I like like
Nearly two years ago I authored a post creatively entitled “75 things that make me smile and/or things I like“. After a bit of thought, I decided that there was no way revisiting that topic was going to hurt anything. As such, I’m revisiting it under the new title of “50 things I like like”. And that “like like” is the same as the “like like” in the conversation below:
Guy 1: Do you like her?
Guy 2: Yeah man, I do.
Guy 1: Whoa. Do you like like her??
Guy 2: Yeah man… I do.
That said, on with the list (there will be duplicates between this list and the previous one… and I refuse to apologize for that).
- Andrew Peterson
- Store brand Vanilla Creme Sandwich Cookies
- Milk
- Dads disregarding perceived thoughts of “cool” by playing with their children in public.
- Sarong Sundays
- SYTYCD and the gatherings it puts into motion.
- Sunsets
- Toddlers all bundled up in winter clothes
- Knowing people well enough that you can just stop by their house unannounced… and it not be weird.
- Summer Salsa, July Jazz, and Symphonic Saturdays
- Waking up, and realizing that you get to go back to sleep.
- Getting emails from people (as opposed to corporations)
- (Speed) Scrabble
- The (capital “R”) Roommates
- LOST
- Quality time spent with people who are dear to my soul.
- online diary for the masses (lame, I know).
- Sleeping under a warm blanket in a cold room.
- Partly cloudy, high of 70
- Taking pictures.
- Singing
- Realizing you have less than an hour remaining at work when you thought you had at least two to go.
- Clean kitchens
- Industrial strength toilets
- Free ice cream
- Conversations that you can’t stop thinking about for days thereafter.
- The Internet
- Riding my bike to work
- Truth
- χαρις
- Soft shirts
- Handstand contests
- TV on the Internet
- New guitar strings
- Laughing so hard that you cry, and sometimes fall on the ground.
- Clicking “Check Spelling” and seeing “No Misspellings Found” in reply.
- Bookshelves
- Musicals
- Thinking about my next tattoo
- Falling asleep within 60 seconds of the head making contact with the pillow.
- Hugs (Guys, girls, little kids… all excellent)
- Deep Thoughts by Jack Handey
- Tabbed browsing
- Chacos
- Creating musical fusion with people more talented than myself.
- Putting on a freshly laundered shirt that smells so nice.
- Listening to talented pianists play (my/the) piano.
- Watching people do what they are excellent at.
- G-Chat
- When people enjoy things that are dear to me (see number 10 for an example).
I could go on, but 50 seems to be a pretty nice number and its taken me several days to get that far, so I’ll leave it at that. I’m very thankful for these things, and the pleasure they bring me, no matter how small, on a semi-regular basis.
Songwriting Club: Truck Driver Song
It’s time once again for another unveiling of a Songwriting Club product. This round’s topic was none other than “truck drivers”. I’ll offer two points before divulging the lyrics.
Point 1: I know many (read: three) of you have requested that I record these songs and share them with the masses. I’ve decided that I’m entirely for that idea, but I don’t currently have the mic necessary to do so. That said, as soon as a mic turns up (and I have some time), I’ll go back and post recordings of these songs for all to… well, hopefully enjoy.
Point 2: This round’s song turned out a little depressing. I really didn’t intend for that to happen, but it’s the turn the lyrics took and I just went with it. It is imperative that you know — before, during and after reading the lyrics — that they are in absolutely no way autobiographical. Truly. If it were not so I wouldn’t have told you.
Out on the Road
His dad drove a truck over forty hours a week
Up and down 35 for thirty years at least
His dad’s occupation would keep him from home
And the boy grew up while dad was out on the road
His sister was older and didn’t seem to care
How dad was gone most the time, how he wasn’t there
She always had boyfriends to carry her load
And the girl got pregnant while dad was out on the road
His mom full of strength, love, hope and grace
And beauty unfading in her aging face
She fought it but she could not stand being alone
And their marriage grew apart while dad was out on the road
One day the boy went to church with a friend
And heard about a Father whose presence wouldn’t end
He thought and he prayed about it all the way home
And the boy wrote this song while dad was out on the road
His dad drove a truck over forty hours a week
He wanted to meet all his family’s needs
But he didn’t call or come home enough to know
His family fell apart while he was out on the road
all I need are minds for molding
As I endure this season of job searching (one of life’s evilest necessities) for a teaching position, a question of the teaching variety has come to my mind on multiple occasions that I thought I’d bring to the odfm table for discussion:
What should I teach the public school, junior high population of [whoever hires me] Independent School District?
I’m not talking about what subject to teach. I already have a pretty good hold on that (Thank you Judy Stringham, 11th Grade Pre-cal, Martin High School). I’m more concerned with the hard to measure life lesson gems that I hope to impart on my students.
So far I’ve been able to come up with three things that, if I can really get into my student’s heads, I will feel as though I’ve succeeded as their teacher.* They sound like this (read in my voice)…
1. Think. Don’t let peers or MTV or Fox News or CNN think for you. Think for yourself. You have a completely able mind. Think!
2. “Cool” is an absolutely man-made, not-real idea. There is no such thing as cool. Magazines, movies and music do not define cool, despite their hardest attempts to convince you otherwise.
3. You have worth, regardless of whether you feel like it or not, whether you hear it all the time or this is the first time in your life to hear it, you have worth.
Having said that, I’m sure there are many other important lessons that middle school kids need embedded into their impressionable minds from all sides — teachers, parents, and coaches alike. That’s where you come in.
Tell me what you think 13 to 15-year-old kids need to be hearing.
Or,
Tell me what you wish you’d learned during your middle school years.
Or,
Tell me what you were taught by a teacher or coach during those critical years that helped you on your journey of discovering yourself.
I really do want to know what you, my wise and faithful readers, think on this matter. Think of it as your opportunity to shape the minds of America’s youth, all by leaving a simple blog comment. And if you write one, and later think of another, come back and share that too. This post isn’t going anywhere. Just look for the cute kids** staring straight into your heart and you’ll know you found the right post.
So seriously, please, think about this and comment so I can reap the benefit of that which I did not sow (your life experiences). I promise it is for the greater good. If I end up writing a best-selling book on my first year as a teacher, I’ll be certain to give credit where credit is due, because really, it’s all for the kids, right?
* I realize that I’m extremely idealistic on this matter, and that reality might find me struggling to make sure my kids pass the TAKS, let alone learn important life lessons, but please let my experiences smash my idealism, don’t take that liberty yourself.
** I won’t be teaching kids this age, but I absolutely adore this photo, so I used it, compliments of Andrew Ryan Shepherd, whose flickr page can be accessed by clicking the photo above, a click you will not regret.
How To Be Cool*: Issue 1
There was a time, and it wasn’t too long ago, when all you needed to do to ensure everyone knew you that you were cool was to take your laptop to the local coffee shop with your iPod headphones and a classic novel in tow inside your messenger bag. It would be preferable for said messenger bag to be homemade and rugged looking, or even better, hand-made by a bag maker in an African village.
However, these days it takes more than that to be cool. If you get lost in your classic novel at the coffee shop and your laptop goes to the screen saver of your “My Pictures” folder… that’s just not cool enough anymore. Even if you have nothing but very cool pictures, I’m afraid it’s just still not going to cut it. And in case you are really behind, 3D Text, Window’s Logo and Scrolling Text aren’t exactly the hipsterest options either.
Today, to be very cool, you need to download the iTunes Album Art Screen Saver (mine is pictured above… very cool). If you equip yourself with this screen saver and a scarf, you’ll be cool for another month or two from the date of this publication. Oh, and if Bob Dylan isn’t popping up on your new screen saver, then add some of his album art into your Album Art folder… again, very cool.
*The author of this post knows nothing about being cool, or what it takes to be cool. Do not let anything in this post convince you otherwise.
Pray for Ava
Tonight I had the immense privilege of praying with a family I’d never met on behalf of their sweet baby girl, Ava.
Many months ago Ava was diagnosed with an extremely rare and life-threatening disease called Moyamoya. Since then, (from my understanding) she’s needed to see a specialist but hasn’t been in good enough condition to leave Children’s Medical Center here in Dallas, until now (praise Jesus). So tomorrow, July 9th, Shane, Jill and Ava (dad, mom, daughter) will fly to Boston so Ava can undergo surgery by one of three doctors in the US who specializes in treating this disease.
Ava’s surgery will be nearly all day on Monday the 14th. If you are the praying type, I ask that you’d lift this precious little girl up to the Father who is absolutely able to heal her. If nothing else, just pray for her now before you scroll down to your next unread blog on your Google Reader.
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Scores of people showed up on this, a traditionally non-church night to pray over this family. Of all the people in that building tonight, I was quite possibly the least qualified to pray with these people. I love the Body, and I love corporately interceding for its members. It is a beautiful thing. Since leaving the church I have not been able to get this sweet family out of my head. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to bless this family. Please.
10 Ways to Improve Your Internet Surfing Skills
Over the past several months, I have fallen deeper and deeper in love with certain things on the Internet. As a result of these strong feelings about particular sites, browsers and the like, I’ve found myself (strongly) recommending to friends various alterations to their existing Internet surfing behavior. Some of these friends have requested that I, instead of verbal admonishments, make a list of these suggestions. A list in order of priority (1 being the most important) that they can be followed at the user’s own pace. I figured if I were making such a list, I might as well share it with the masses, so without further ado: 10 Ways to Improve Your Internet Surfing Skills(or, 10 ways to make the time you spend on the Internet more efficient, organized, enjoyable, and street-credible).
1. Forget Internet Explorer, Download Firefox. I’ve made mention of this on multiple occasions in the past but I happen to know that over half of you are still using IE (and 40% of that half are still using IE6… more on that later). In not using Firefox 3.0 you are truly doing yourself and your computer an immense disservice. Download Firefox 3.0 and you’ll soon see why. It is faster, less memory-intensive, and safer than IE, and you can customize it to function however you want.
2. Get Add-Ons for Firefox. There are hundreds of different ways to customize your firefox browser. Themes allow you to mix up the way your browser looks (color schemes and buttons, things like that). More importantly though, are the extensions. These provide a very wide variety of functions, many of which you’ll not be interested in the least. But some… some will change your life. I recommend (as a staple) Adblock Plus, which will block 99.9% of ads on the Internet. No more Shoot the Monkey Win an iPod or… well, I don’t have any examples. I haven’t seen ads in a long time. Other than that, just browse the extensions page. See what piques your interests.
3. Set up a Gmail account. I know it is hard to believe, but some people still haven’t done this. When you set up a Gmail account you not only now have access to the best web-based email interface in the world, you also have an account with Google which gives you easy access to other things you might want, but don’t even know about yet.
4. Get an RSS reader. I’ll not beat this any further into the ground than I already have, but you really should get one of these. It saves untold amounts of time, especially if you are a blog reader (which you probably are if you’re here). RSS readers are not limited to blogs, however. You can subscribe to nearly any site. Just look for the RSS icon.
5. Use tabbed browsing! If you don’t know what I mean when I say “tabbed browsing”, please do me a favor and press “Ctrl+T” (or “Command+T” for you Mac folks). Isn’t that excellent? See, now you don’t have to fill up your taskbar will five different Internet windows. One window, five tabs. It’s really a much better way to do things. With firefox you can set it up to open new links in new tabs as opposed to new windows. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I cannot imagine life without tabbed browsing. (A little over dramatic, sure, but really… tabs are great).
6. Sign up for Facebook. Gone are the days when facebook was only for college students. Facebook is now (and has been for a while) open for anyone with a valid email address. This is an unbeatable way to stay connected with current friends who are spread out all over the world, and to reunite with old friends with whom you’ve not spoken in decades. If you don’t want to put the effort into staying connected with friends, at least join facebook so they can stay connected with you. You won’t regret it.
7. Take advantage of all the free things Google offers. Now that you have a gmail account, you also have a Google account which opens many doors you probably weren’t even aware of.
- Google Reader is a very easy to set up, user friendly RSS reader with super sweet keyboard shortcuts.
- Google Docs provide you with basic word processing, spreadsheet, and presentation software that can be worked on by multiple people from multiple computers at one time.
- Google Calendar is a calendar that can even be synced with your Outlook calendar if you’re so calendar savvy as to have one.
The major perk in using these features over a RSS reader or a calendar that is on your hard drive is that you can access these from any computer with the Internet. That may seem like a small thing, but it really is very handy.
8. Online bookmarking. There are absolutely no shortages of venues through which you can bookmark webpages online. Again, the perk to bookmarking your favorites online is that you can access them from any Internet-ready computer, not just your own personal compy. Most of these sites are set up as social bookmarking sites, allowing others to see what sites you bookmark. You can choose to make your account private (as far as I know) if you’d rather not have everyone see your bookmarks. Some of the more popular options are del.icio.us (which has an excellent firefox extension to go along with it), Digg, reddit, and StumpleUpon.
9. iTunes and Podcasts. This almost doesn’t fit under the Internet surfing skills heading, but I figured since you have to have the Internet to download podcasts I’d add it. I’m sure most everyone knows about these two items already, but for those who don’t… now you do. iTunes is a media player that organizes and plays all of your music and videos. Podcasts are things you can subscribe to through iTunes and when a new one is published iTunes will download it for you. Anything from fake news to real news to Car Talk to sermon audio to learning a new language and everything in between… you can get it all for free via podcasts.
10. PLEASE get rid of Internet Explorer 6. If, for some ungodly reason, you are still not convinced to stop using Internet Explorer, please, I implore you, at least update your IE from version 6 to version 7. Are you unsure which one you are currently running? There are two ways to tell. First, you can go to the Help menu and click “About Internet Explorer” and it’ll tell you. A faster way to find out is this: when you visit odfm, do you have to scroll down to the end of the sidebar to see the blog content? That means you’re using IE6. That’s how bad of a web browser it is (and how amateur a web designer I am… but firefox gets me, ok?).
Alright. That’s it. My humble opinion (that I’ll push on to you as best I can) of ways to make your time on the Internet more efficient and enjoyable. I do hope that you found this informative, and that you learned something new during your stay here. If I had to add a number 11, it would probably be this: Leave comments on the blogs you read. The people who write those blogs appreciate them more than you know.
the seven o two
I found this gem on a recent photography outing to Old Downtown Carrollton, and I’m pretty happy I did, because it provided me way more opportunities for good shots than did the entire downtown square. Feel free to see a sampling of the 702 at the ol’ flickr page.
behind the frontline
“Assistance to fontline” was the call.
And a strikingly common call at that. Dozens of times daily do REI employees hear frontline assistance being beckoned over the intercom. Those who are able (and willing to boot) answer, allowing the line of (im)patient customers to efficiently make their way out the door. Only this time two things were different: nobody was helping, and for the first time in my history with the co-op, I was able.
In an effort to break the monotony of removing should-be-folded pants from hangers and rehanging those that were hung incorrectly, the newly register trained D.O. answered the call. I traipsed down the stairs in my green-vested glory fully confident that all of those practice transactions days ago with the imaginary customer prepared me well for anything these patrons could throw at me.
I made my way to the next available computer, logged myself in, and proclaimed with both triumph and cool, “I can help the next in line right here.”
The customer walked up with five items — one of which he was returning — and a sheet of paper containing the product number of a special order he wanted to make. It was immediately apparent that I was sorely ill-prepared for this transaction.
After a comedy of errors on my behalf, and having scanned his credit card and requested his membership card more times than either of us would care to remember… we were about half way done.
A few moments later the same customer was (still) standing across the counter from the freshman with “Derrick” on his nametag. The well-intentioned(?) customer inquired, “Do you have any idea why this is taking so long?”
Without skipping a beat, I assured him, “Oh, it’s definitely me. I’m really slow. It’s not the computer.”
A couple minutes and zero eye contact later, I sent him on his way, having stapled all three of his receipts from our encounter together.