An Empty Classroom....

Today is "Take your Kid to Work Day" up here in ol' Canada - (at least in Manitoba - not sure about the rest of Canada) - and that means there something missing from my classroom today - My Students! You would think it would be a nice break for me. Getting the classroom to myself seems like it would be a nice treat... a day where it's quiet, and I can get caught up on planning, marking, and clear my head and all kinda of nice things like that - but to be honest it's kinda not as nice as I thought it would be. It's kinda lonely, and I kinda miss them! Hm... go figure! Guess that means they have not yet stressed me out enough! haha. Teachers tell me that by Christmas I'll be VERY READY to have some away time from the kiddies... but to be honest right now I kinda wish they were here. Even with all the over-sugared-behavior! - Hm... guess I'll have to drown my loneliness with more coffee!

I'm not a Cashier... BUT...

So generally it is pretty dumb of someone to write about how someone else should do their job when they themselves are not in the same line of work. Yeah, cuz usually that comes across as pretty arrogant. BUT - today I will tell you something about someone elses' line of work. This one is for Cashiers.... Cashiers, listen up. There are two ways you can give someone their change. The correct way, and the incorrect way. When you give someone change that involves a bill and coins please DO NOT give them the cash with the coins piled on top. (as seen above) This is dumb and causes people to dislike you. Please, from now on - please give people their change (coins) first, then hand them the bills. Chances are they do not want to fold their change up in the bills and stuff it in their pockets. If you do it the correct way - coins first - they can hold onto it without it falling all over and then when you give them the bills they can hold that with just a thumb and one finger - trust me... it's better this way. Plus if you give people their change in the same way as you see picture above there is a greater chance of the coins falling all over the place. What's pictured above is BAD BAD BAD. Don't do it, or I'll dislike you - a lot.

what have I done!?

So tomorrow at lunch I'll be running a workshop for other teachers at the school where I teach. I'm a first year teacher. Hm... something about that doesn't seem right.... Well, turns out that googling me reveals that I have some "internet presence." Turns out my administration AND other staff have discovered that I am a blogger. This of course led to questions like "How can you use your internet presence as a benefit to your classroom" etc - It also led to questions like - could blogging be used in the classroom as a tool to help student learning? Well turns out it can be used and IS used in classrooms all over. So, since the school wants to make sure other teachers know about this opportunity they decided to do a lunch hour workshop on how blogging could benefit teachers and students, and how it can be used effectively in the school and classroom. Guess who they asked to lead the workshop on blogging? Yep - Me. And guess who AGREED to this? Yep - Me! So, what's the problem here? - a TON of other teachers have signed up - a TON of EXPERIENCED teachers. This freaks me out. Sure, I can teach them how to set up a blog, how to maintain it, and show them what kind of features are built in - but the rest of it freaks me out. The part where I talk about possible uses in the classroom, how it can benefit students and aide in student learning, etc... That part seems like it should be coming from someone who has not only been blogging for a while but also TEACHING for a while. Not from me. I am however flattered that I was asked to lead it - and I DO know the answers to all these questions - but seriously - it just seems wrong somehow! Good thing my materials look totally top-notch! (YAY DESIGN SKILLS) - so hopefully if my delivery sucks they will be mesmerized by my handouts - (and by the food) - Yes, there will be food - mmmmm (oh yeah! THAT'S why I agreed to do this! Now I remember.... freeeeeee fooooood! :) Anyway, wish me luck....

Stop! Press Pause!!!

So I know that life is busy for everyone! But Wowweee! Life has seemed to get crazy for me these days (which is why I havn't posted much on here in a while!) - Just how busy am I? Well because I'm super smart and have determined through scientific methods that you desperately want to know I will tell you.

Leave the house at 7:45, get to work by 8:00. Spend from 8:00am until 8:50 photocopying materials for class, setting up demos, filling out school related paperwork, Answering work related e-mails, and making lists of what else needs to be done during the day.

Then, from 8:50 - 12:00 I'm teaching.

Then lunch time. Which is taken up by the Guitar Workshop I'm leading, Math/Graphics extra help session(s), Movie Making Club, and somewhere eating lunch. After lunch I hide away in the staff room to prep my butt off for the next day, and when I finally finish work at 2:20 I usually find I have enough to do to stick around until 4. Then, when I get home, make dinner, play with daughter, put her to bed, and then I work on freelance design work.

So that's my usual life. Also added to my plate these days are the following: Prepping for the guitar workshop, prepping for a Lunch & Learn session where I'm teaching a session on how blogs can be used as an assement tool for student learning, Band Practice, Home Renovations (which have now officially gotten the green light), cleaning the house.

What also needs to fit in my life somewhere is time for myself. My hobbies and passtimes - (which there are many of) - I need more time to cycle, to watch movies, to read blogs, to take pictures again, to do some painting (artwork), to read, to golf, to visit friends, etc.

Life just gets kinda crazy sometimes! Aaack! I need a giant PAUSE button so I can just catch up on life (and sleep)

So, am I complaining? Actually no - not at all. I love my busy life, and I love all the things that take up my time (if I dind't I would make sure they were not something I had to do) - I just wish there was more time, or that things didn't take so long! hehe - So please, someone press pause! I need catchup time!!!

Stupid people... that's always a fun topic

So I went to the Metallica concert last night. It was awesome. What was not awesome was the general stupidity of the crowd. See, when you go to a concert you have a seat... it tells you which one on your ticket. Everyone sits, and watches the show - the rowdies usually get floor tickets so they can jump around and beat each other up - but the rest of the people tend to rock out from their seats... in a seated position. BUT - lately it seems that people are standing.. which is fine - (for a song or two) but what's the point of standing if everyone is standing... for the entire freaking show? It's not like you're getting a better view all of a sudden. If everyone is standing it's pretty much exactly the same as sitting! right? - so people, come on - take a freaking seat... I do not like the idea of standing in a single spot for a 4.5 hour show. Not cool. Yeah, maybe I'm too old to be at a rock show - but whatever. I wanna sit. I get if a song is really good and you feel the need to get up and rock out... but eventually the feeling will pass... and that's when you should sit back down...Heck, I even bought nosebleed tickets so I could sit and enjoy the show. But now - I stood - for 4 hours or so (2 hours of opening bands, and 2.5 hours of Metallica) So next time you're at a show, and everyone is sitting, and you stand up to rock... enjoy yourself - but also have a seat again soon. If you stand to long the people behind you will stand up so they can see, and eventually everyone is standing. It's just dumb. So, if you're standing, and nobody in front of you is standing, and everyone behind you is standing, SIT DOWN :) cool beans? yeah - cool beans... thanks.

Give thanks... for the crap too....

It's that time of year again - thanksgiving! At least for us Canadians. So the deal usually is to thank for the good stuff. But I like to do things differently. Some of you know how this works from previous years...

Here goes.

This year I'm thankful for the health problems I've had - because they have shown me the value of life. I'm thankful for the stress of a new job because it has pushed me to stretch my abilities, and hey - also, it's a new job! That's a good thing. I'm thankful for the times my wife has been upset with me because it has taught me something about my own behaviour and shown where I can make personal improvements. I'm thankful for the car trouble, because if It reminds me I'm blessed enough to be able to own a car in the first place. I'm thankful for the bills I have because it reminds me that I have a lot to be thankful for. I'm thankful for the lack of sleep I have because it reminds me I have a busy and good life. I'm thankful for everything that happens in my life, be it good or bad - because I truly believe that finding joy in the crap is the real way to live life. Finding the joy in the things we usually complain about makes those situations easier, and also puts a lot of the complaints of life into perspective.

So my challenge to all of you... be thankful for life.... the good, the bad, the happy, the sad - all of it shows us just how much we have in our life. When you lose something you can take joy in knowing you once had it. When you are sick you can take joy in the better days, and hopefully value them a little more. When you have too much to do, remember some people have nothing... and have nothing to do. When your kids are stressing you out and causing your hair to grey early, remember - you have been blessed with children... When you step away from your computer after reading this, look around and realize just how well off you really are. I don't care if you're "poor" - you're still a lot richer than literally most people in the world. Hey, if you have access to a computer with Internet you're in pretty good shape.

So, in closing, Happy Thanksgiving... give thanks for everything - and maybe lets start being thankful everyday - not just on thanksgiving.

2 years ago...

So one of my favorite things about my blog is going back into my archives to see what I did in the past. See, in my old age it gets hard to remember what I did last week.... heck, there is NO WAY I can remember what I did a couple years ago. So, my blog is really nice at telling me what I did... lets say almost exactly 2 years ago. I think it's kinda cool to go back... re-read my posts and try to remember what my attitudes/beliefs were... and compare them to where I am now. Am I where I thought I'd be? - Um... no. (not in a million years would I have thought 2 years ago that'd I'd be teaching high school today!!)

Anyway, take a peek... here's me two years ago... I seemed to be fairly content at my job (even though deep down I knew I wasn't) - but yeah - seemed fairly content, seemed to like my office life - and wrote a blog about the candy dish on my desk and how people complain about the TYPE of candy I have.

Check it out... then go back 2 years on your own blog (if you have one) and see what you were doing 2 years go - did you think back then that you'd be where you are now in life? - I bet not! It's a fun game to play from time to time!

The link.... me 2 years go....

CLICK HERE

My Thoughts on the News!

So it turns out that there are a lot of people who write a lot of stuff about what they see or hear in the news. They get heated about something in the press, and decide that they need to vent and set the record straight. I decided to try this. I grabbed the newspaper sitting here on the table and flipped through it… hoping to find fodder for my blog. I needed a topic, and I figured - hey, I'll do what the rest of the world does and write about what I read/hear in a very opinionated and heated way and people will love me for it."

So I flipped it open :Death Plot Admitted…old news, Injured Zapped Man was Combative… who cares… Fire forces 4 from home… sucks, but whatever… Van Inadvertently runs over cop… got the whole story from the headline on that one, Skull not Hitlers… well if it's not his, who cares? Handyman found guilty of murder… who cares, it wasn't here.

Turns out there is nothing worth writing about in the news. It also turns out that most of what's written in the paper is "filler" and in most cases the story can be told with the headline alone. So much for my idea about writing heated things relating to the news. Even the letters to the editors. Most of the time I read them and think. Wow, you wasted your time writing that! Seriously. Everyone has their opinion, and every one has a different one… so what do "Venters" think they will actually achieve?! Who knows - Crap - Guess this realization doesn't help me either! I was hoping to have something heated to write about. Hmmmm

a bit of news....

Peanut Butter and WHAT?!!

Yes... you are seeing a Peanut Butter and Cucumber sandwich here... and If you're like MOST people this is strange to you. So why Peanut Butter and Cucumber? - Well today I was sitting in the staff room at work having a conversation about sandwiches. (not sure how we got on that one, but we did) and someone mentions that a certain teacher at school eats Peanut Butter and Cucumber sandwiches! After a few initial sounds of disbelief and shock from other staff a dialogue started about just how weird this was. At that very moment that particular teacher walks into the staff room and gets questioned about his choice of food. So after some discussion about why this combination is no less strange than perhaps a Ham and Cheese sandwich and just less common I agreed to try it once I got home from work. My pseudo-journalistic personality kicked in strong and I agreed to not only try it but also to review it in a public setting ... my fantastic blog!

So, I decided for this craziness I should start with a SMALL piece of bread. I spread a liberal coating of glorious peanut butter over the bread and after gently setting it on the table I proceeded to chop the cucumber. Next I gingerly placed the slices of cucumbers on the peanut butter, thinking at the same time... "eeewww." - Then came the big moment... the first bite. I lifted the odd creation to my mouth, opened wide, and took a big bite.

hmmm....

Crunchy.... Juicy... peanut buttery... cucumbery... hmmm... good? Yes... Good.... Yes! Good! Wow...REALLY Good!!

And just like that I realized that the Cucumber and Peanut Butter eating teacher was in fact NOT nuts, and perhaps a genius instead! The sandwich was amazing, so tasty, and possibly the best peanut butter sandwich I've ever had. If you have not tried this and think it's gross, try it. I would bet money that you'll be pleasantly surprised!

Peanut Butter and Cucumbers... who knew?!

Kids These Days!!!!

Kids are not interested in school. They only want to socialize, and that only because they are legally required to be in school in the first place. All students really care about is lunch, and getting good enough grades so they don't get in trouble from their parents. It's a shame, but thats how it is.... Right? Right? - WRONG!

The general "belief" is that this really is how most students are. I can assure you that this is NOT the case. Along with my Graphics class I also teach a section of Math. During my Math class the students are often pretty anxious to get out of there. This may be due to a number of factors, including the preconceived notion that math is too hard, or that math is boring. Whatever it is, some students do not like math. But what I've noticed is that even though some of them "fear" or "hate" math the majority of students actually WANT to learn it. Sometimes that "want" is buried behind behavioral issues, but It's there. I noticed it today when I was teaching. There were some students that have just kind of given up on math because they feel it's something they can't do. However, after a little pushing they started to realize that they can in fact do this "math" thing. What surprised me most was that students seem to act out as a way to deal with the frustration of not understanding the content. Once I was able to look past that I saw very quickly that they just needed a push in the right direction. I was surprised that students asked to stay after class during their lunch hour in order to get help. I was surprised that some of them even apologized for being a little crazy during class. And then... during my lunch time tutoring session they actually started to get it. So much for the cookie cutter student who doesn't care or want to learn huh?

a quick update re: teaching...

For those that have been asking, let me fill you in... Teaching is going very well! I'm having so much fun and I'm loving every moment of it. I had one day where I was wondering if I'm gonna be any good at this teaching thing, and there I was scratching my head trying to figure out an easier way to teach the content thinking to myself... crap, so many blank blinking eyes today... not good! But then an Educational Assistant who works with one of the students in my class hunted me down and found me hidden in an empty classroom to give me a HUGE HUGE HUGE compliment on how I was handling the math class I'm teaching and just like that I felt better. The blank blinking eyes were there, but what she noticed and what I didn't notice were the eyes showing understanding. She said a bunch of other really nice things as well and told me "do not change anything about what you're doing...." Anyway, so I'm ready to take on another week... have a few new strategies to try in order to help students understand the content a little easier and we'll see how it goes. So the quick summary: Teaching is going well, I'm loving every moment, and I'm seriously regretting not making this career switch several years ago! Well, hope you all have a great great week. I know I will...

The Happiness Tomato!

So my last post was kinda... uh... deep. I don't want a cloud hanging over my blog, so I'm introducing a new "Character" on my blog. Presenting... The Happiness Tomato. Why a tomato? Well In general people like tomatoes, and if they don't, well I'm sure they don't dislike a tiny tomato with a smile! How could someone dislike that!? Right? Research shows that people like small versions of larger things, ESPECIALLY when they feature smiling faces drawn on either with marker or photoshop (in this case I used photoshop, because I decided to eat this tomato, and I did NOT feel like eating marker) - ANYWAY, so it's Thursday today - which just happens to be the best day of the week - and together with this happiness tomato you can say with great confidence that this is a happy day/post. "Well, uh... work was crappy today, my car got stolen, my dog bit the neighbor, I lost my job today, I got stung by a bee, I ate a rotten apple, I forgot my lunch at home, I'm broke... " - you might say all these things to try to TELL YOURSELF that today is not a happy day. But you're wrong. You're reading this blog, you're alive, and well that is at least 2 things you've got going for yourself that some do not. *guess what, some people are dead, and dead people can't read this blog* - ANYWAY, If you are having a crappy day, cheer up muffin... it's a good day today. The tomato says so.

does this mean I'm finally growing up?!

Who knew that once you're 30 you realize you have wasted a lot of time in life being an idiot. I've wasted years trusting in people whom I thought really cared, I've wasted years doing selfish things that just ended up hurting those that really matter, I've wasted time on friendships and relationships that ended up being empty and pointless, and in the end only damaging to myself and my own personality. I've wasted years buying crap I don't really need, and racking up debt. I've wasted years living beyond my means trying to be someone I'm not. I've wasted so much time trying to fulfill my own desires realizing now that fulfilling those desires did nothing but harm. I've wasted years being selfish, years living for myself and my own gains rather than building up those that really need it. I've wasted years mistreating the people that I should have honored and respected the most, and I've wasted years telling myself I'm a good person when really I'm just as selfish and self centered as everyone else. I've wasted years putting on a show for people, wasted years lying to people about who I really am, wasted years keeping secrets I shouldn't have had in the first place... wasted years sacrificing true happiness for momentary satisfactions...

realizing that kinda sucks.

Time to change... for real. I'm not ashamed to tell my secrets anymore, not ashamed to let people know I'm not perfect... screw pride. Time to live for those that really matter. Time to let go of the past... move on, forget, reboot life so to say. Guess this is what "growing up" feels like. Odd.

Answers!!!!!

So Finally the video is here! I had some MAJOR technological problems with this one. First, YouTube FAILED to upload my video properly. It either timed out, or did some weird stuff to the Audio. Sooooo - to aid youtube I re-rendered the video to make it smaller... well, now I had imovie issues! for some reason imovie would NOT output the video correctly anymore! Everytime i tried the audio would be out of sync! Well, finally I have it more or less worked out. I had to change a couple of the edits/effects I'd put in the original, but here it is - a less-than-fancy video containing the goods you wanted... answers! Enjoy!

I will be doing this again sometime, cuz it was fun - but hey - next time ask me some hard questions! hehe -

Technology Fail

The Answers Video Blog is done - but for some reason YouTube is being difficult... please stay tuned... it's coming!

Questions and Answers!

So I decided I'd try a little something something here... Could be fun... or embarrassing, or well I dunno - we'll see!

Here's the deal-y-o... you, my trusty blog readers can ask me a question - anything you want. Ask me what my favorite colour is, what my favourite food is, ask me what my shoe size is, ask me deeper questions too if you want. Anything goes. I will answer pretty much every question!!! If you want to ask something but don't want people to know it was YOU that asked, leave an anonymous comment, or just ask me in an e-mail... (zigt@mts.net) - Seriously - ask a question! I don't want to have like only 2 questions to answer! - that would hurt my ego! Question period will be open until... um... let's say Tuesday at midnight.. or heck, even Wednesday morning. - I will post a Video Blog with all the answers to your questions sometime on Wednesday... to be honest it will probably be Wednesday evening - but yeah - sometime on Wednesday questions will be answered!. Exciting stuff hey?

So Ask away! What is it that you've always wanted to know about the infamous misterzig? Here's your chance to ask!

Why do schools keep complaining about lack of money?! Don’t they have enough!?

So during my entire adult life I’ve been hearing that schools need more money. I’ve heard public outcry about politicians cutting school funding, and I’ve heard teachers voice their frustrations about the lack of money for schools. I’ve also heard the opposite... I’ve heard people complaining about paying school tax when they don’t even have kids in school. I’ve heard people saying schools have too much money, and teachers get paid too much, and they don’t really need anything else. I’ve heard people say things like: “Why do schools need more money and more stuff!? Back in my day we learned everything in a room with desks, a black board, and a teacher that knew the content - why do schools need so many computers, gizmos and gadgets?!”

Well, I finally understand. I’m officially a teacher now, and I’ve been setting up my classroom this week and I’ve noticed that there are a lot of things that a teacher really does need, but all of those cost money. A Lot of it. I think that realistically every classroom could benefit from an immediate chunk of cash above and beyond their regular operating budget.

So what about those that question the validity of this need by comparing the new classroom to the classroom of their day? Well, sure - we could teach everything with a blackboard, chalk, and hours of lecture. But why not engage students and let them discover the content in a vividly interesting way? This type of discovery has a way of letting students realize they have a lot more potential than they might think.

Bottom line, schools need money - lots of it. Too many people think of school as a cheap daycare system that will contain their kids until they get home from work. True learning is not always the top priority for parents. This is unfortunate.

Hey, how do you teach a graphic design class without computers capable of running the current graphic design software? How do you teach science without microscopes? Sure, we could teach theory about design, or show pictures of cells, and micro-organisms, but it’s pretty obvious that technology will benefit the students most of all.

I guess I'm a little biased about this topic now because here I am - a week away from a flood of students arriving in my classroom.

Two years ago I couldn’t care less about about schools and money for schools. Even though my wife is a teacher and i heard her struggles - it didn’t mean much to me. Hey, carpenters need hammers to build. In schools money buys hammers, computers, resources, and materials.... all required to build strong knowledge in the younger generation.

The Keys~ The Keys~

So I got my classroom keys the other day - Kind of another step to making this career switch from designer to teacher real! I blogged a while ago how getting my teaching certificate in the mail made it all seem kind of real - and it did. But when I got my own classroom keys it added that next step of "realism." So - now I'm armed with a key for my Graphics classroom, and a key to my Math classroom. The only thing missing is students... and they will come on September 9th. I"m crazy excited to get started! Got my first chunk prepared and ready to go for both Graphics and Math - and for math, well I feel as prepared as I'm ever going to be... (First Unit - Circle Geometry! fun hey?!) - Anyway, yeah - I'm ready to go. I kind of feel like a race horse held back by the gate... crazy energy... just need to be let loose on the kiddies to bombard them with my awesomeness!!

An old man that's still got it.... why don't I?

So I went to see AC/DC in concert this weekend. It was absolutely amazing. But this post is not exactly a concert review... It's more about the old guy in the pic. Angus Young. AC/DC has never been known to have complex music, but regardless of their fairly simple chord structures they have managed to inspire thousands to try their hand and some good ol' guitar rock & roll. I am one of those. I have enjoyed AC/DC for a long time. I can't even remember what got me started on AC/DC, but I still remember hurting my neck once in junior high while headbanging with my friend Ray to Thunderstruck. Anyway, here I am - years later.. and I now play the guitar. The reason? I wanted to learn how to play AC/DC songs. I have to admit that once I started playing guitar I actually learned very few AC/DC songs. I can pretty much only do the same things everyone else does... the intro to hells bells, back in black, and of course a weak version of thunderstruck. Anyway, I'd say I'm a pretty decent guitar player now, and I'd say I'm a lot younger than our friend Angus from AC/DC... but WOW, this old guy can rock! At the concert he literally rocked out non-stop for 2 hours! Sweat pouring down his face... his hair looking like he had escaped some sort of institution... but there he was... only wearing shorts, playing rock and roll like a 16 year old who had consumed a 3 pound bag of sugar. I get tired when I rock out hard on one song with friends, or in a band setting. My fingers hurt after trying a 2 minute solo!!! This guy - Angus - did a 15 minute guitar solo - while running up and down, going up lifts, laying on his back, playing over his head, jumping in the air... He is 54... I am 30. Something wrong here... I guess that's his gig, and he's been doing it for so long that it might not seem that hard for him. But he DOES look like his ol' ticker is gonna give out at any moment.... but still he goes on and on... I think I'd be a pretty good rockstar if I was given the opportunity... But I guess I'd have to start doing cardio or something so I could build up some rock stamina! Otherwise I'd be a pretty boring guitar player... standing in one spot, bobbing my head.... Hm... if he can rock out crazy at 54 I still have time to become a famous rock star.

*Special thanks to Sarah Jane for the picture... Sarah Jane is a fellow blogger, and twitterer who was fortunate enough to have much better seats than me at the show*

about doctors theses days....

So I realize I'm finally at the age where professionals (in this case doctors) are starting to be younger than me. This sucks.

See, yesterday I went to see a neurologist about some twitching in my leg muscles and in my hand and several other places. I've been "twitchy" for over a year and have been through a gazillion tests... My twitches have been similar to those that you sometimes get in your eye when you're tired... Anyway - so I had this appointment to see a neurologist. I went to the appointment and waited for my turn. Finally this boy peeks his head around the corner and says "Mr Thiessen? - Hi, I'm Dr. B" - What!? seriously?! to be honest I was expecting a man in his 50's... not someone still paying off their tuition! This Neurologist was probably actually just over 30. I'm guessing 32 maybe, but WOW did he look young. If it wasn't for the knowledge I have of how long it takes to become a Doc - let alone a Neurologist I would have guessed MAYBE 25. I guess I just figure someone that is gonna be a neurologist needs to have a lot of years of understanding under his belt. Hm... I guess this guy had about 10 years of schooling... just for me! Maybe I was even his first patient. His office did seem a lot neater than most docs I know.

Anyway, I started thinking about this. I realized it's about now that others too will be younger than I am, and know a lot more than I do. Chances are Paramedics coming to my rescue would be younger than me, It could very well be the cops the pull me over for speeding are going to be younger than me... the Pharmacists, Lawyers, Heck, even shrinks... all these types of people will start being younger than me. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Kinda strange. I guess its how it is. I just never thought about it. For some reason in my head those that are in these types of jobs always seemed like they would be older than me. Bizarre.

Guess this means I'm getting old.

Oh, and the results of the test from the neurologist... Apparently I have benign fasciculations... Baby Neurologist tells me that there is nothing to worry about and that I just have hyper nerves that tend to fire without reason when I'm a little too stressed, too caffeinated, or lacking too much sleep. He also tells me that less coffee and more sleep might not even help and that some people just get these. (hm... I wonder if he remembers the page number of the text book that covered this when he was in school) - Anyway, so yeah - I guess my new nickname will have to be Twitchy. Guess I don't have a future in surgery... or sharpshooting... or tattooing...

A Question of Morals...

I enjoy a good cup of coffee... In fact I enjoy MANY of such cups of coffee a day. What bugs me though is If I make a good cup off coffee and for some reason I have to let it sit and it gets cold. This is always sad. It has come to my attention that some people out there use the microwave to re-heat their coffee. This always seemed wrong to me. Kind of like a sin. For me coffee must be made in a press, using beans freshly ground. Then, it must be had black... no cream, no sugar. Just glorious coffee. Anyway, so about this reheating business... I've recently discovered that some of my coffee aficionado friends reheat their coffee that has gone cold. In fact, I've discovered that some even empty the last half cup, or full cup of cold coffee from their carafe or coffee pot into another container to be reheated later! So my question is this... is it morally wrong to re-heat coffee? Is there something special about a re-heated cup of coffee? Why did it surprise me that some hard-core coffee lovers nuke their coffee?

So tell me - what do you think? - Is it morally wrong to nuke a cold cup of coffee?

or - is it completely acceptable.... And if acceptable, what are the rules? How long can coffee sit out and still be OK for re-heating? Please help me ladies and gents! What's the answer here?!

Summer is ending...

Ok, I know I won't get much sympathy here... simply because most people have to work all summer and I've been off since June 12th! But regardless, here is my lament... Summer is coming to a close and I feel like it's just barely begun. I know it's only August 17th, but in a week from today I will start heading into school on daily basis to set up my classroom and stuff. I will probably go in pretty steadily from Monday until classes officially start. So basically this is my LAST week of summer. No more beaches (unless a weekend comes that is actually sunny), No more trips for a week to the Lake, No more sleeping in, no more afternoon naps (those will have to wait until I get home every day), No more spontaneous 3 hour long cycling adventures with my wife, No more deciding that instead of being productive we will watch like 4 movies in a day.... Nope, it's back to working for a living. A concept I have not had to deal with for... well over a year! (School last year was work, but it was hardly "working for a living") - So anyway, this rainy Monday I sit here in sadness... mourning the end of the summer, and although I'm very excited to officially start of my teaching career and forever leave behind the corporate gig, I am still sad that this summer, and past year of "easy going" is over. It went by so crazy fast! Sniff Sniff... perhaps a big bowl of ice cream will make me feel better!

Fun week, but CRAZY storms!

So this past week I went to the lake - we rented a cabin for a few nights and had some good times. We also had some good storms. I hear the storms in the city while we were gone were pretty crazy too - but nothing like what we experienced in our little cabin. First of all, the weather was fantastic for our entire stay. The rain and storms only came during the night and by mid-morning the sun was back letting us enjoy the outdoors. Anyway, so they always say people are so small when compared to our planet - kind of like ants on a giant ant hill. Well I usually don't feel like an ant, nor do I ever really feel all that small. But I did this past week. The lighting storm was so intense and crazy that I actually felt helpless and at natures mercy. At one point the lighting struck with a big ball of light right outside our cabin door! It was so loud my ears rang, so violent all the dishes bounced around in the cupboard, and so bright I saw spots afterwards. All night long the cabin shook and trembled, and the sky sounded like it was being torn in half! This picture was taken from my bed. I just pointed it at the window and took a picture. I only had to take 3 to get a pic with the sky lit up. It was like the entire sky was a strobe light... for the entire night! I loved it, but at the same time I do admit that I was kinda scared! I am usually not scared of storms at all, but this storm was extra crazy!! Anyway, so if you missed me while I was gone, that's where I was - trying not to get struck my lighting!

Haircut Review

Got me a haircut... here's the review... you too might want a haircut after this....

What's the truth about swine flu?

So the big thing these days is swine flu. Luckily here in Canada the government is working hard and spending like 400 million dollars to create 50 million vaccines for the 30-something million Canadians. Ok, I get this thing is bad and stuff - but um... in Canada to date there have been 62 deaths related to swine flu. As most people are hearing, most of these people have had underlying medical conditions, or they died from something else while they had swine flu... (sorry, H1N1 - but swine flu sounds better, and it was easier to find a graphic for that one!) Anyway, yes - H1N1 is bad. BUT WAIT. Did you know in Canada approx 2500 people die each year from the regular flu? That's like 208 people per month in Canada that die of the regular flu. Yes, the regular flu. The one we've all had. In Canada to-date there have been 62 deaths attributed to swine flu - the first being on May 8, 2009. Thats 3 months ago. That's about 20 people per month. Yes, I know this is still bad - but what is it exactly that's freaking everyone out? Is it the fact that this is the NEW H1N1 virus? (yes, there has been one before) - I dunno - and now with the news talking about mass inoculation and showing news clips of thousands and thousands of little bottles filled with vaccine being produced it just seems all to crazy! Mass inoculation seems like something from a movie. Ok, everyone take the medicine, then OOPS! We inoculated you with alien DNA, and you are all part of a giant experiment now! or wait, this could be their chance to implant us all with nano-chips in order to control our minds! mwuahahaha - lalala, conspiracists rejoice! - Plus "inoculation" just sounds so sci-fi... Anyway, I gotta admit - I'm a little worried about it. I know many people who have recently been affected by the death of someone that had H1N1, and that is very sad - but I also wonder if part of this crazy fear is generated by our media and their ability at being kick-ass fear mongers! I'm seriously not trying to down-play the severity of this situation, but really - are there not WAY WORSE things we should freak out about? Perhaps we're letting the media influence us a little tooooo much? I dunno - I'm not a doctor - perhaps there is something I'm missing here. If so, please fill me in! But isn't anyone questioning this new vaccine? Isn't anyone worried about just trusting someone else to inject you with something that hasn't really been tested yet? - Like I said, not trying to downplay it, just trying to understand it!

A challenge accepted! - GUEST POST - (sorta)

Hi everyone! Say hi to Ted, Maureen, Shannon, and Nolan! So remember a while back I did a week of "unpluggedness?" - and remember I put the challenge out there for others to try it? Well friends of mine decided to do it with their family - which is an even bigger challenge than my week was because they have teenage kids that joined in with them on the challenge! My hat goes off to them! Here is the "report" I received from them via e-mail earlier today! Enjoy!!!!

Dear Zig

To start off we all entered this challenge with our own things we would miss. Mine was the computer, Ted's was the news and weather channels, Shannon's was music and Nolan's was the PS3. It was a real challenge to say the least when it seems that everything you do revolves around some form of being plugged in.

The first few days starting from midnight on Thursday were spent at the cottage where we have electricity but no phone, no cell phone reception and no cable. Before we took on the challenge we were taking movies to watch, but that all changed when the challenge was upon us. We spent time together as a family. We played games together, went for walks together and the kids went swimming. We prepared by going to the library and getting some books so we were set for reading. It was a really nice thing to be away from everything. But we also knew that the real challenge would come when we were back in the city.

When we came back, the hardest thing for me was to walk past the computer room without going in and vegging in front of the screen. For Ted I know the weather was a big thing. Every time he looked up to the sky he wanted to track the weather on the net or watch the weather channel. But we did survive. We had fires together, played cards together, talked and spent some quiet time reading. We felt closer and even talked about that, how we have spent more time in the last days doing things together, than we can remember in the past.

We survived the week without blood shed :) Toward the end of the 7 days there was tension in the air though. I think it was slowly taking its toll on all of us. We have definitely talked about doing it again, but this time on a shorter more regular basis. Maybe 1 weekend a month, where the family is doing unplugged things alone or quiet things together instead of everyone scattering and being attached to PS3 or computers or TVs.

It was a really neat experience, one that, on reflection was really good. As parents we do regret not spending time with God as a family though. Next time, that will be a bigger part of the time we spend together.

Thank you Zig for this really cool unplugged experience. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to get away from it all. If you think you can't do it, think again. Anyone can do it. Give it a try and see how much fun it is.

Ted, Maureen, Shannon and Nolan

SO when are YOU gonna take on the challenge?

Those church people are strange, hey?

Bet ya know someone that goes to church. Bet you give them a friendly smile and hope they don't talk about Jesus hey? - Yeah, you're not alone - most people are like that. I find it kinda strange! - Why does everyone diss on church-goers? There are a lot of other non-christian beliefs that people believe in and when they express their beliefs people generally respond with "Oh, cool!" or "never heard of that! what is it?" etc - but Christian Church goers get a raw deal. Church people believe in something that's pretty common. So why do they get so much heat? It's kinda bizarre hey? Just think - these church people generally want to live a good life. They want to live honestly, and be good moral people - yet for this they get hated on. Weird huh? Even funnier is people that get mad when they find out people believe in God. So what if someone believes in something you don't believe in? Why get mad? It's not like they are Nazis or something! If they were then, sure - get mad! But come on, Christians? Oh, yeah - Christians are hypocrites, and have done a lot of evil in the world throughout time, right? Well sure, some Christians are hypocrites, and sure a lot of evil has been done in the world in the name of Christianity, but why judge current Christians? Did that guy across the street that packs up his family every Sunday morning to take them to church start the Crusades? Hardly. Is he responsible for abuse of aboriginals being forced into christian residential schools? No. He probably agrees with you that Christians in the past have done some stupid things. But... but... I see him yelling at his wife, drinking beer in his garage and yet he still goes to church and says he's a christian. First, there is nothing saying Christians can't enjoy a beer. And so he sometimes yells at his wife... Christianity doesn't mean they are PERFECT citizens... they are after all people and make mistakes. So why hate on Christians? Doesn't seem to make sense... hating on a group that is generally really trying to do good. Just because some people make mistakes within a religious group does not mean that the entire population of that group is the same way. Perhaps it's time to stop hating on those weird church people and instead lets hate on the actions of the criminals in your community. Lets hate on the suffering in the world and do something about it instead shaking your head and those whacky Christians.... Hey, I bet if you talked to that guy across the street he'd even offer you a beer... a nice cold christian beer.... why not?

everybody loves a quicky!

It's Friday and it's not good to end a week without a quick wrap-up. I tweeted and facebooked a topic request today... got some interesting stuff. Most likely some of it will appear on my blog next week.

Speaking of twitter... I love twitter! I love "getting to know" all the cool people! I love the instant responses to posts, love the different personalities, and love the support I get from my "tweeple." Yes - I totally did just say tweeple. Get over it.

Speaking of getting over it... I'm gonna get over my bad eating habits... next week. A friend of mine is working on a cleanse. Seems crazy. Drinking whacky stuff for ages and ages. Instead I will just choose to improve my eating habits next week. Don't know how long it will last, but hey - even just one day will make a difference.

Speaking of making a difference... I think columnists have a kick-ass job, and can make a difference. They write about stuff that happens, and people react. It's cool. I'd like that job. There is a local guy Doug Speirs - I think he's local - anyway, he writes for the Winnipeg Free Press, and has the coolest job. - and his column is pretty damn good! I don't really know what else he does besides column writing - but I image he gets up in the morning, makes coffee, cracks open his laptop, browses the net for some cool material... then writes his column. It seems like writing a column is like writing a blog - only you have to pay attention to grammatical stuff, and actually have a point (sometimes). I'd like to take Doug Speirs' job from him. Sorry Doug - I want your job. But don't worry, I'm not nearly ambitious enough to take it from you! (I'll take Gordon Sinclaire Jr.'s too if you wanna help me!) Anyway, being a columnist would be sweet! Perhaps that should have been the direction I took my career instead of into teaching. Oh well. I guess my blog will have to be my column for now. A column without direction, opinion, or purpose. Crap... not much of a column is it. Oh well

It's Friday... time for a snack and a nap!

Maturity Fail...

So I'm 30. You'd think I should have reached some form of mental maturity by now... But I realize I have NOT. Yeah - I have not reached a maturity level that I assumed I would have by now. Here's the evidence....

When people say things like "It's your duty to bla bla bla" I only hear - "It's your doody" - and I think, Nope it's not - I use a bathroom! hahahahah

And, that is just the icing on the cake for my immaturity - there is a whole cake of immaturity underneath that icing! I admit - potty humor is funny! I admit - I think bodily functions are funny, and I think words like Bowel Movement, and Urination are freaking hilarious. When I hear docs talking about bowel movements i don't know how they do it with a straight face. Yeah - I'm immature. I constantly hear sexual innuendos - even if none were intended... Everything everyone says is somehow twisted into something funny in my mind. I can't help it. Luckily however I have passed "social behavior classes" with flying colours and I am able to hide the fact that inside I'm always cracking up. There is another one... Crack. Oh, this mug has a crack! (ahahaha, so does your bum!) - Even normal words - that should not be "funny" are - Member, Junk, Bits, Can, the list really is endless... I should be ashamed - but I'm not. Sorry. So next time we talk and you're telling me a story and you see a smile being forced back it's probably because you said something funny without knowing it. Yeah - I'm that guy. Sorry to disappoint :) - Anyway, time to get to my duty as a new teacher and do some lesson planning... (ahahaha DOODY!)