It's 7:30 PM on a Saturday night, and I'm watching the Three Stooges. I love the Stooges. Before I met Sarah, watching old TV on Saturday nights would be a regular thing for me to do. She's at her mom's now, working on some things for the wedding shower.
And that's what is prompting this blog posting. A year ago, watching the Stooges was just another habit I had. A routine for the weekend, usually after a day of building the set for the show or doing yardwork. But oh how much can happen in the course of one year. A year ago I had only begun dating Sarah, and at about this time I was thinking that maybe, just maybe, she was the one for me. As I write this I am less than three months (84 days to be exact) from walking down the aisle and taking her as my wife. The planning is done, and the shower is November 1. But it's starting to feel real now, and though I'm enjoying the day and evening by myself, it makes me realize how much I love having her around. And no, Sarah, I don't just keep you around to cook for me; that's just an added bonus!
Just as exciting is the fact that in just over a month (or earlier if God wills it!), I will be an uncle. My sister told us she was pregnant in March, but I am amazed at how quickly the time has gone by. I'm just excited to be an uncle! Hopefully all will go well in these final weeks and God will bless us with a healthy child! Don't ask what the sex of the baby is, though, because they don't know. Stephanie and Jay elected to be surprised, so everything they are doing for the baby is done with this in mind. So in addition to the excitement of a baby in general is the excitement of not knowing what kind of baby they will have!
This new arrival, in addition to my mom's wedding and my own coming up, have really made this year exciting! I am starting to get sad for it to end!
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Coming Up for Air
Well, after two full weeks of school, I'm coming up for air. Ok, so it's not too terrible. I have my tech classes starting up this fall, and in addition to that I get to teach senior composition and speech. So the schedule is good, except I don't get a plan period with Brandi or Sarah (my Sarah, not Carrie's Sarah!).
I'm all my enthusiasm, however, I swamped myself with a lot of written work in ALL of my classes at the beginning of the semester. So when I came in on Tuesday this week facing a pile of work to go through, I knew I needed to get down to business. I busted my butt all day at school and brought papers home at night. I'm to the point now where I can finish the rest of the work at school, thank goodness. So tonight I'm sitting here just relaxing, listening to the rain outside and waiting for Senator McCain give his acceptance speech at the RNC. Not that I'm supporting him (though he's not a bad guy), but Sarah sat with me during the DNC, so I am repaying the favor tonight.
And whatever your affiliation, get out and vote this November 4!
I'm all my enthusiasm, however, I swamped myself with a lot of written work in ALL of my classes at the beginning of the semester. So when I came in on Tuesday this week facing a pile of work to go through, I knew I needed to get down to business. I busted my butt all day at school and brought papers home at night. I'm to the point now where I can finish the rest of the work at school, thank goodness. So tonight I'm sitting here just relaxing, listening to the rain outside and waiting for Senator McCain give his acceptance speech at the RNC. Not that I'm supporting him (though he's not a bad guy), but Sarah sat with me during the DNC, so I am repaying the favor tonight.
And whatever your affiliation, get out and vote this November 4!
Saturday, August 9, 2008
Jury Duty
For years I've said that I wanted to be called for jury duty. Well, the day finally came on July7 21 when I had to report to the East Chicago courthouse for jury duty. On that day numbers 1-70 had to show up. Well, only 23 people came. Do I really think that 47 people were excused? NO!
Since this was a civil trial, only six jurors and one alternate were picked, and I ended up being one of them. More interesting was the fact that in the group of people called to be questioned for jury duty were two former Lake Central students. Too bad they didn't get picked! However, one of the jurors grew up down the street from Sarah and another has kids at Lake Central.
The trial lasted three days, including deliberations. It involved allegations of neglect by the City of Gary when they demolished a building. Apparently the demolition process damaged the building right next to it. The two buildings were built right next to each other, and the evidence pretty clearly indicated that Gary didn't do enough to prevent this from happening.
I served as the foreperson of the jury, which didn't mean much except signing the verdict paper and standing when the judge asked me to and give the verdict paper to the bailiff. I guess now I should be careful when I go through Gary since I was the leader of the group that found them liable! It was pretty exciting to help come to the conclusion that the plaintiff was entitled to about $150,000.
Probably the most humorous moment of the trial was during the closing arguments when the attorney for the City of Gary called the plaintiff's theory that the city had caused the damage the "single crane theory" because one crane had caused all that damage. Because the lawyer looked like Johnnie Cochran, it was hard for us not to laugh and compare it to the infamous glove of the OJ trial.
Though I lost three days of prepping for school, the experience was thrilling. The judge and bailiffs were courteous and friendly. The only drawback was that the trial was rescheduled from Crown Point, and the judge had to take recesses to conduct other hearings. But it was rewarding to fulfill my civic duty, and I hope that after two years, I'll get the chance to do it again. Maybe a criminal trial next time :).
Since this was a civil trial, only six jurors and one alternate were picked, and I ended up being one of them. More interesting was the fact that in the group of people called to be questioned for jury duty were two former Lake Central students. Too bad they didn't get picked! However, one of the jurors grew up down the street from Sarah and another has kids at Lake Central.
The trial lasted three days, including deliberations. It involved allegations of neglect by the City of Gary when they demolished a building. Apparently the demolition process damaged the building right next to it. The two buildings were built right next to each other, and the evidence pretty clearly indicated that Gary didn't do enough to prevent this from happening.
I served as the foreperson of the jury, which didn't mean much except signing the verdict paper and standing when the judge asked me to and give the verdict paper to the bailiff. I guess now I should be careful when I go through Gary since I was the leader of the group that found them liable! It was pretty exciting to help come to the conclusion that the plaintiff was entitled to about $150,000.
Probably the most humorous moment of the trial was during the closing arguments when the attorney for the City of Gary called the plaintiff's theory that the city had caused the damage the "single crane theory" because one crane had caused all that damage. Because the lawyer looked like Johnnie Cochran, it was hard for us not to laugh and compare it to the infamous glove of the OJ trial.
Though I lost three days of prepping for school, the experience was thrilling. The judge and bailiffs were courteous and friendly. The only drawback was that the trial was rescheduled from Crown Point, and the judge had to take recesses to conduct other hearings. But it was rewarding to fulfill my civic duty, and I hope that after two years, I'll get the chance to do it again. Maybe a criminal trial next time :).
Monday, July 21, 2008
I'm still alive!
Wow, I thought summer would be a relaxing time for me to blog, but apparently not! A few people have insisted that I keep blogging, so here goes. Let me tell you what's kept me away from the blog (though not the computer) for the past seven weeks!
Grad Class
I'm still plugging away at grad school. I enjoy taking the classes, but thinking about how I've been doing this now for two full years, and that it'll be another two years before I finish can be a bit depressing. This summer it's a course on poetry writing. I'm not really a poet, nor do I teach poetry writing much, but the class has really helped me to analyze poetry better. Not that I didn't know how to teach it before, but now I feel as though I have a better sense of it because I've been writing some. The poems are decent, but as I said, I'm not much of a poet.
The Writing Project
For the second year I served as Technology Liaison for the Northwest Indiana Writing Project. We held our Summer Institute for four weeks from June 16-July 11. I worked with the fifteen teachers on how to do electronic research, using Google Docs, and how to create wikis. In fact, the participants posted their research projects on the wiki, which you can see here. I also did a presentation for our Advanced Institute, a one-day program for our alumni where they can get up-to-date information on writing. While it wasn't a huge time commitment, planning the presentation was a little time-consuming. However, I love the writing project!
Our Town
This is our summer show. We opened it on July 18 and it performs on July 25 and 26 at 7 PM. Sarah has taken over most of the technical directing for this show since my grad class overlapped the rehearsals some, and she'll be the technical director for the fall show. Everything looks good, though, and it has given us a chance to use our new lighting system!
This is our summer show. We opened it on July 18 and it performs on July 25 and 26 at 7 PM. Sarah has taken over most of the technical directing for this show since my grad class overlapped the rehearsals some, and she'll be the technical director for the fall show. Everything looks good, though, and it has given us a chance to use our new lighting system!
Fests, Weddings, Etc.
In between all of this, Sarah and I have been planning our own wedding, going to local fests and the Taste of Chicago, doing projects around the house, attending a wedding, and....
Getting a Dog!
Yea, Sarah and I are the proud parents of a greyhound named Frieda. She came to us from Sarah's cousin who was unable to take care of her anymore. She's a quiet yet adorable dog. I can't believe we ever didn't have one because she's fit in so well here! She loves running around the big yard, chasing me on the tractor, and digging up her beds in the house.
So you can see that I've been quite busy. School starts back up in less than a month, and as things die down for the summer, I'm starting to get excited to get back to the classroom and start teaching again. I promise to be better about posting to the blog and providing pictures where appropriate! Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
the whole bloomin' yard
When I bought the house in 2006, there was some decent landscaping in the front yard (to give some curb appeal no doubt), but nothing in the back. So last summer I spent some time digging out grass for a couple of beds near the house. I figured that not only would it make the back yard look more inviting, but it would cut down on a bit of the lawn-mowing that I would need to do (especially around a tree and swing). It was a lot of work, and since I really didn't have the money to buy any plants for the beds, they laid empty.
Sarah, when she saw these beds, laughed at me because I had dug out empty beds. But she has a landscaping fetish, and as soon as the weather began getting warm she started buying plants. Sarah soon realized the inadvertent gift of empty beds that I had given her. All she had to do was dig out the holes, throw some plant soil in them, and plop the foliage in the ground.
The transformation has been amazing. Though the backyard feels somewhat secluded because of the privacy fence and all the trees, her plantings have really made it an oasis from the world. Check out some of the pictures of what she has done! They really don't do justice to what it looks like in person, especially since the old playground equipment went away this weekend as well! I think we'll have to have a little get-together to show off her work!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Wedding Bells Are Ringing...
No, Sarah and I didn't elope! But today is my mom's wedding day. Just over a year after meeting Rick, they are tying the knot. Growing up in a loving, two-parent household, I had heard of kids seeing their parents getting remarried, but I never thought it would happen to me. Even today, just under eight hours away from walking her down the aisle, it still seems surreal. In just under eight hours she will become Barbara Parker. In just under eight hours I'll officially gain two new sisters (gee mom, you couldn't find someone with at least ONE son?!??!), a sister-in-law, and a future brother-in-law (if he gets around to popping the question)!
But how much will things really change? I doubt it will change much. Today is really much more of a formality, as the two of them have been acting like a married couple for at least nine months, and I feel like I know Liz and Sarah for a much longer time. The big changes this weekend are meeting the rest of Rick's family, including actually meeting Sarah, Pat, Chad, and Rick's parents, who because of distance have not been able to visit until now.
So this year is quickly becoming a year of new beginnings for my family. A new beginning for my mom and Rick, who have found each other and are dedicated to spending the rest of their lives together. My sister is expecting her first child this November. And just before the new year rings in, Sarah and I will be tying the knot. May God watch over all of it and bless us all!
But how much will things really change? I doubt it will change much. Today is really much more of a formality, as the two of them have been acting like a married couple for at least nine months, and I feel like I know Liz and Sarah for a much longer time. The big changes this weekend are meeting the rest of Rick's family, including actually meeting Sarah, Pat, Chad, and Rick's parents, who because of distance have not been able to visit until now.
So this year is quickly becoming a year of new beginnings for my family. A new beginning for my mom and Rick, who have found each other and are dedicated to spending the rest of their lives together. My sister is expecting her first child this November. And just before the new year rings in, Sarah and I will be tying the knot. May God watch over all of it and bless us all!
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Getting My Ducks in a Row
So spring is here and the weather is getting nicer. That means two things this year. One, I'm swamped with the musical, even though we are already up and running. The idea of being inside on some of the greatest weather days of the year can be depressing. Two, the kids at school are getting antsy. I can't blame them either; I'm just as eager to get outside.
A few weeks ago Sarah bought a birdfeeder and birdseed. Since then we've watched squirrels do acrobatics to snatch some food, and I've seen some amazing looking birds. Some of the birds are rather domesticated. We've been eating outside and have had birds walking within several feet of us.
But tonight beat all. We witnessed DUCKS under the feeder eating off the ground. Well really it was the female duck eating while the male kept watch. But how cool is it to see ducks waddling around the yard so up close? Check out the pictures!
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