Oct 28, 2013

I was in for my favorite Spanish class at Lakeside today. Not really. I don't know what it is about this particular class, but no matter what year it is and what new students come through, they always seem to be the worst classes. I have been there when the teacher is in the room and the kids are still being assholes, so I'm guessing it has something to do with that. In any case, they had work to do, and they didn't want to do it, so I had a fun time moving people around and yelling at them to get back to work. Happy Monday!

I spent the night online, some parts wasting time reading random things, looking at videos, and stumbling, but I also spent some time researching which lens I want to buy and deciding I want the most expensive one that will hopefully last me a very long time and get great shots. I also spent an hour or so watching an online engagement photo critique. It was really interesting and informative hearing critiques of others' work that I think could help inform my own. There were some really awesome shots on there too. I want to watch more of the tutorials and crits they have on there. That was really my night, and I'm okay with that.

Oct 27, 2013

I was up early and it was nice out so I drove to the parking lot for the lake trail loop at Belleplain State Park and got ready for a run. Since I haven't run as much lately I wasn't sure how I would do. Once I got started I felt great. I knew I could keep going and I did. The mental aspect of running has always been the struggle for me. My body can do it, and I rarely if ever give out physically. Normally the ennui kicks in before I start, but once I get going I'm good. I ran 5 miles through the beautiful autumn forest whose trail was blanketed with crunchy leaves and whose trees waved red and yellow flags to mark the season. 'Twas a great run.

When I got home I guess I hadn't had enough because I biked up to Vineland to meet Ryan for a round of disc golf. I just wanted to keep being outside. We had a great game and then decided to take a walk around the lake while we were there. After that I biked home. I had lunch, a shower, and a nap. It was a nice afternoon. Later I went to Kate's and had a few beers that were leftover from previous outings. Thus concluded my day of excitement.

Oct 26, 2013

I slept as long as I could in the morning and met the crew downstairs for a quick breakfast. I finished getting dressed and dragged all my gear downstairs to the truck and we headed to the arena. There was a lot of traffic coming into the parking garage when we got there so we jumped out early and took the gear in while Derrick parked. Our setup wasn't bad. We put up a backdrop on either side of the stage, put the cameras and flashes together, taped our marks, and then tested everything out. It went pretty smoothly and then we just had to sit and wait for the first speakers to go through their speeches before the graduates started coming up.

The whole room seemed smaller than I expected. The graduates came down the line, one by one, stepping up in front of the backdrop and I shot them quickly and they moved on. It was a well-oiled machine and it worked out perfectly. It seemed like we got through the whole crowd really fast and suddenly it was time to break down. Pretty easy and still fun. After breaking down, we headed back to the car, said goodbye to Kevin and Max, and were back on the road to PA.

We dropped Rena off at home once we were back in Maryland then Derrick and I stopped for something to eat in the car for our remaining few hours. We made good time until we got to 476 in PA, of course. There was an insane amount of traffic on a Saturday afternoon for some reason and we inched along, knowing that if it was clear we could be at the office in twenty minutes. Finally, we made it back and unloaded the gear and took it upstairs. Then I was home free.

I listened to a few podcasts on my drive home and then fell happily into my computer chair where I remained for the evening until I was ready for bed. The long drive really took it out of me even though I wasn't behind the wheel. It was just nice not being in a car seat for a while.

Oct 25, 2013

I got to sleep in a bit in the morning, but I still was not looking forward to the drive to the Legacy office. I got there on time, but, as I figured, everyone wasn't there or ready yet. We had to wait for Derrick to get there, and then we had to wait for Dave to get there with his car because he didn't realize we were leaving that early or something. Once all our gear was packed, checked, and stowed in the back of Dave's Volvo though we were ready to hit the road. After a stop at Wawa of course.

The drive wasn't bad. I enjoy conversations with Derrick so that helps the time go by much more quickly. Plus I can occupy myself on my phone when there is nothing being said. That's the nice part about being a passenger. We picked up Rena at her place in Maryland and continued down Route 13 to the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel. I remember being much more enamored with it in the past. I think the idea of it was always cooler than the actual experience. Or maybe I just want to see it from above or on the water. You can't see it that well when you're driving it.

We stopped briefly at the rest area in the middle of the bridge as the sun was going down. Kevin and Max were right there with us in their car somehow. I thought they'd be way ahead. When we got to the Aloft Hotel, I was eyeing up my coworkers, wondering who I'd be rooming with. To my surprise I saw five keys being handed to Derrick and then he distributed them at random. I had my own room! A wonderful surprise. Too bad we weren't really staying long enough to enjoy it. We headed to our respective rooms, which are super nice, and took a short time before we headed out to get dinner.

We went to Carrabba's, where I got a tasty Sam Adam's Oktoberfest at the bar while we waited to be seated. Beer tastes better when it's paid for by the company card. So does the food. We had some great food and good conversations at the table. Rena and I have a lot in common, especially when it comes to skiing. She told me about how different skiing in Colorado is on fresh powder. One day I'll find out for myself. Maybe this year...? We hung out there for a while after we finished our meals and then spent a little time at the hotel bar before retiring to our rooms for the night. The bed was really comfortable and I wish I didn't have to set an alarm...

Oct 24, 2013

Go ahead, read the bold, underlined part. Yeah. All I can say is that the classes were actually pretty well-behaved. I didn't expect that since this teacher's classes last year were terrible. And that's even by Lakeside standards. Sadly, they just worked on their test and packets for the whole class. I usually expect him to leave a Bill Nye video and I always enjoy that. It was a pretty long day.

After work Kate, Chuck, and I headed down to Cape May Brewery. They were having an "industry night" with specials. Apparently I don't know what that is because when I got there I was told it's only specials for people from the bars that serve their beer. After showing a few pieces of NJCB identification we were granted the discount anyway. We used our sample chips to do a flight of all the beers on tap. The Pale Ale and City to Shore Double IPA were both quite tasty. The Stout was good, but the Avalon Coffee Stout was great. Overall I can usually take or leave their beer. I used to like the atmosphere there a lot more, but now that they've expanded it seems less friendly beer guys pouring and chatting with you than a hip brew pub. Oh well. So it goes.

After we came home I had some food before heading back out to meet Davonne at the movie theater to see Runner Runner. I hadn't seen her in a while and we had been talking about seeing a movie for some time, but we rarely have similar schedules or similar taste in movies. The movie was quite good. I like Justin Timberlake as an actor and of course I like Ben Affleck so the pair was a win for me. A busy and fun day, it was. Good prelude to sleeping.

Oct 23, 2013

I didn't get a job for the morning and neither did Kate so we got food and complained about no work and the shitty weather then watched Brew Dogs. I did end up getting a job for the afternoon at Barse Elementary in Vineland. I figured I may as well do something. The class was okay, but there was not really any work for them to do so I had to wing it and make things up. I had them playing games on the computer by the end of the day just to keep them occupied.

I met Chuck and Matt at Applebee's later for Quizzo. We were off to a good start and Matt killed the Super Bowl-themed matching round where you had to pair the year with the Super Bowl champions. Our waitress, who actually knew what beers were on tap, told me about the Just IPA by the Just Beer Project that was recently tapped so I gave it a try. New favorite IPA. It's so good. It's a session beer and it's really smooth and full of flavor. It tasted like another beer. So I had one. It was a good night to order some beers because we dominated the game and came in first so we offset our final bill by $25. It felt good to finally win again.

Oct 22, 2013

I passed on jobs last night hoping a full day Millville job would come up this morning, but it did not. So I ended up waiting and taking a Special Ed job for the afternoon in Vineland just so I had something. Their Special Ed "Life Skills" program is pretty sweet. They have a separate section for the students where they do copying, printing, collating, and other office jobs for the Board of Ed. They also have a kitchen area where they cook and serve coffee and snacks for the teachers in the morning. I like that they are teaching them by doing actual jobs and I think that helps the students feel a sense that they are helping people too.

This being my first experience with Vineland High School (and Vineland subbing in general) I wasn't thrilled on their procedures. They didn't have a teacher's folder for me with any information like a building map, emergency procedures, behavior referrals, or emergency lesson plans. They left that up to the teacher. But as a first-time sub in a new building, I have no idea where things are or what the usual procedures are. The people in the office were also very unhelpful, and even though I was done at 2 and my class had left the building to go get their bus, I was told I had to stay until 2:23 because that's when subs can sign out. Like I was literally supposed to just sit on my ass in the office until the big hand went around 23 more times as I do nothing at all. Needless to say, I did not stay until 2:23.

Instead, I went over to South Vineland Park and went for a quick run around the lake before I met Scott and Bill for a round from the yellow tees. I played about average for me as I watched them nail putts with ease that I would be ecstatic to make. I did make quite a few good shots myself. One thing I can say about playing with them is that they genuinely enjoy the game and are very encouraging with the praise even if my shots aren't as good as theirs. It's just fun to play with multiple people too. After Bill left I played another 9 holes with Scott from the white tees this time and then headed home.

I came home for dinner, then I relaxed for the evening waiting for a job to come up for tomorrow.