Category Archives: School

Things I Don’t Get

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A few things to ponder this beautiful Saturday morning…

  • Why do normally modest women, women who wouldn’t dream of hitting the beach in a bikini, buy formal dresses that flaunt their boobs? (not a complaint, just a question) And why is significant cleavage considered appropriate in a formal setting but potentially questionable or even slutty in other settings, such as work or school?
  • Why do we still observe daylight savings time in most parts of the country? Do you know anyone who thinks it’s a good idea? And for that matter, why are we still the Neanderthals who use the English measurement system instead of metric?
  • Why are donut shops around here run almost exclusively by Asians? (again, not a complaint, just a question)
  • Why am I willing to contribute to Baylor’s new on-campus stadium campaign but not to its scholarship fund? If I remember correctly, I went to maybe three football games as a student, but Baylor convinced me to enroll with a generous scholarship package. Seems like I got a bit more benefit from the latter.
  • Why is obesity skyrocketing in our country? And why do so few people seem to care? We’re gradually ostracizing and limiting the smokers enough to force people to quit, which is awesome, but as a society we’re taking the opposite approach with obesity.
  • Why does $25 buy a cheap sit-down dinner for two in America but nearly a month of food for a child in Africa?
  • Why do baseball players, fans, and managers continue to tolerate the wildly inconsistent strike zone used by the various umpires throughout the league? The Hawk-Eye technology used in tennis could solve that problem right now, but it seems that everyone prefers not knowing where the strike zone actually is on a given night.
  • Why is it legal for men to run around without a shirt but not for women (except in New York City and some other places)? Many men have bigger boobs than many women. They’re called moobs. They’re not cool, but they happen. Without the hairy chests, you might not be able to tell the difference.
  • Why does the US government still mint pennies? I’d rather have everything rounded to the nearest nickel. Pennies get on my nerves.
  • Why do so many people, especially in Texas, hate Obama so much? I can understand disagreeing with some of his views. So do I. But it’s amazing to me how quickly people label him a foreigner, even though he’s published his Hawaiian birth certificate, and a socialist, even though many of them don’t even know what that term really means, and a Muslim, even though he’s been a documented member of a Christian church for decades, and even the Anti-Christ, even though that term (as they understand it, in the Left Behind sense) is an product of the American evangelical church rather than the Bible itself. I guess people just believe what they want to believe.
  • Why roaches? (I’m looking at You, God.)
  • Why do so many people use Christianity as an excuse to hate and look down upon people who disagree with them?
  • Why do labor contract negotiations in the airline industry generally take 2-5 years?
  • Why don’t we have the ability to vote online? (this article tries to answer the question, but I still think the explanation is flimsy)

What about you? What exactly don’t you get?

Les Miserables in Flower Mound

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One of our good friends is a teacher at Flower Mound High School. Several months ago, she shared some great news: her school was staging Les Miserables in January. I’ve seen it done twice by professionals, but never by a high school. The creators published a school edition of the show that shortens some songs, adjusts the range in a few places, and cleans up the language a bit. Even with those changes, not many high schools attempt the show, probably because it’s such a demanding production. It’s long, requires several great voices, has a complicated set including a rotating stage, and requires a large cast with many costumes.

Our friends, Jenny, and I attended Flower Mound’s performance tonight and were very impressed. At least three All-State Choir members had major roles, and many of the other singers nailed their parts as well. For me, Enjolras, Valjean, and Eponine really stood out vocally. The guy who played Enjolras (Andy Eaton) took first chair in state, probably as a baritone or tenor 2, and sounded really close to the amazing Marius from the original London cast. The guy who played Valjean blew me away with his gorgeous version of “Bring Him Home,” one of the most difficult songs in the show. The technical crew shocked me by actually using the turntable stage, which is a great device for showing motion and passage of time while letting the stagehands change sets in the background. An army of costumers created beautiful period costumes, and the barricade set in particular looked great.

Congratulations to everyone involved on a great show!

Leaving College for the Pros

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Imagine you’re a junior in college with a year left until graduation. You’ve met lots of friends, studied hard, and excelled in your major. School has been great, and the end is in sight. You also happen to be a college athlete. But not just any athlete – the kind that NFL analysts and scouts praise as one of the best prospects ever, the kind that get offered ten-figure contracts. What are you going to do next year?

This was the question for Stanford quarterback and 2010 Heisman Trophy runner-up Andrew Luck after winning the final game of his junior year: spend his senior year at Stanford and graduate, or drop out and enter the NFL. The NFL team that will have the number one pick in the 2011 draft, Carolina, had already said they would pick him. His contract would have give him more than enough money to sustain him and his family for a lifetime, as high as $80 million by some estimates.

But Luck said no. He chose to return to Stanford this fall and finish his degree in architectural design, presumably entering the NFL draft next spring.

As some critics have pointed out, Luck is taking a big chance by postponing the NFL to finish his degree:

  1. Luck risks getting injured during his final year at Stanford, potentially reducing his draft position or even ending his career. (sure, things have worked out OK for former Oklahoma quarterback Sam Bradford after his season-ending shoulder injury in 2009, but still…)
  2. Luck risks having a less successful season next year, which could also reduce his draft position and potential income.
  3. Luck risks losing millions of dollars due to the proposed rookie salary cap that could be in effect by the 2012-2013 season.

Obviously, all three of those arguments ride on money. Luck apparently values other things more highly. Surely he understands that one day his football career will end and the rest of his life will begin. Perhaps he really enjoys his major or the college atmosphere. Perhaps he wants to work in architecture someday and understands how difficult it could be to return to Stanford later to finish his degree if he takes a break now. Sure, the extra millions Luck would make by going pro this year would eliminate the need to work ever again, but he decided it was worth it to stay in school. Or perhaps he simply wants the satisfaction of completing his degree and thinks a Stanford diploma would look good on his wall.

Hall of Famer Emmitt Smith, who left the University of Florida for the NFL in 1990 after his junior year, returned to Florida during the offseasons to finish. It took him six years. One of the main reasons he even went back was a promise he made to his mother that he wouldn’t buy a house until he finished his degree.

Do you agree with Luck’s choice? Is finishing college that important, even for someone who could make tens of millions guaranteed in the NFL? Or is Luck making a bad decision? What would you do in his situation?

Although I definitely respect Luck’s decision and dedication, I would probably take the money and run to the pros, promising my parents that I would go back and finish like Emmitt did. Sorry, Mom!

Gap Year After High School?

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I found an interesting article in Time that resonated with some of my friends, so I thought I would post it here. It’s about a new trend among young adults that some call a “gap year,” a transition period between high school and college when they work, volunteer, travel, intern in their field of interest, or try other activities that might be impossible later on. One girl set up solar power in India. Another immersed herself in Spanish by spending months in Guatemala. The point is to take a break from school to try some other things, mature a bit, recharge, and become better prepared for college.

Plan the Work, Work the Plan

My path through my bachelor’s degree was pretty traditional – 12 years of public school followed immediately by four years of college, exactly like my parents and I had planned. I never even considered not going straight to college. I worked every summer after starting college, but I never took off a year or even a semester from school. After graduating, I had a few weeks off and then went to work at Southwest. My sister’s path was very similar.

I committed to Baylor as an education major, planning to be an English teacher like my beloved high school English teacher, Mrs. Picquet. However, while sitting in my first education class, something just felt wrong, as if I wasn’t supposed to be there. So I switched majors to English. The next year I switched again to professional writing, thinking I might become a technical writer. Junior year I added a computer science minor, thinking it would help me get a job as a tech writer, which it probably did. Finally, after two changes of major and one addition of minor, I graduated and went to work.

Soon I discovered that I didn’t like tech writing.

The company was great. My coworkers were great. The pay and benefits were great. But I just didn’t like the work. Fortunately, through that job I discovered what I really wanted to do, which is dispatch flights. So it all worked out, but…

Change the Plan?

What would have happened if I hadn’t gone straight from high school to college? What if I could have deferred my enrollment and scholarships and done something else like the young people in the Time article did? I actually thought about taking off the spring semester of my freshman year and interning with a Christian drama ministry in California, the one with whom I’d toured the previous summer. Unfortunately, it probably would have cost me my scholarships, so I didn’t do it. But given the option, I might have joined them during my gap year.

Or I might have written another novel or other works and tried to get them published. Or volunteered in Africa as a missionary. Or traveled extensively. Or tried for a writing internship somewhere or simply worked in a normal job, maybe even throwing bags for Southwest. Or been a ski bum at Copper Mountain. Or immersed myself in my chosen foreign language of Latin in, um, I guess the Vatican (oops). Obviously, it would have been much easier to have some income, especially if my parents weren’t supportive of my weird plan, so some of these ideas are more practical than others.

As a result of whatever I chose, I might have ended up in the same place or a much different place.

Others’ Experiences

One of my friends at Baylor spent four years in the military between high school and college. I was impressed by his maturity, focus, and work ethic, and I’m sure his military experience played a big role in developing those qualities. Now I also hear from others who went straight to college after high school but don’t feel they were ready. Taking some time off to work, volunteer, or travel would have helped them get focused and mentally prepare for college, they say.

Society expected them, at 18 years old, to know what they wanted to study and “become” AND to be willing and ready to do whatever it took to get there. However, not everyone works that way. Perhaps most people don’t work that way. How many 18-year-olds really know for sure who they are and what they want to do for the rest of their lives? Many of my friends didn’t. My wife didn’t, either. It actually took Jenny until her thirties, after she had our first child, to figure out what she really wanted to do as a career.

What do you think? Is a “gap year” a good idea or a waste of time? Do you have any experiences that shape your thinking?

Brenden the Scholar

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Thursday was Brenden’s first day of school at Colleyville Christian Preschool. By all accounts, he had a blast! I stayed up late after work to go along. We arrived a bit early and looked around outside, checking out the playground’s array of jungle gyms, seesaws, and tricycles. I tried to take pictures in front of the school, but he was more interested in looking around at all the cool stuff at the school than in posing for Daddy. He’d already been there a couple of times before and knew right where he wanted to go once I opened the front door: the train set in the central play area.

Jenny visited with his teacher, Miss Jennifer, while I chased him down and took him back to his room. Miss Jennifer is very nice and very tall. She reminds me of my sister’s lifelong friend Brittney, who teaches elementary school. Once in his classroom, he didn’t waste time with teary goodbyes or whining. Instead, he went straight to the Magna-Doodle and began to draw. His classroom is filled with the things you’d expect for a preschool classroom: short tables, tiny chairs, a tiny toilet in the attached bathroom, lots of toys and posters. Brenden seemed right at home, so engrossed that he pretty much forgot we were there. No drama this time on either side!

Pics from B’s First Day of School (and Fingerpainting)

Afterward, Miss Jennifer said he’d been very good and had a great time. He played well, ate most of his lunch (a concern of ours, since he can be picky), got along with the other kids, and even napped on the nap mat that YaYa made him. Our main fear was that he wouldn’t nap. After he left babyhood, he never napped with other people in the room, so we didn’t know how he would handle naptime in an exciting room full of toys and other kids. We sent Chilly, his stuffed polar bear, with him, and Chilly did the trick. He came home asking when he could see his “boys” again, so I guess he made some friends. We are very thankful that Brenden had such a good time and for such a great school.