Oooh! Now I've gone and done it!

It's official - my resignation from work has been accepted by the school board with regret, which made me feel pretty good - somebody will actually miss me and apparently appreciated my time and efforts (the details behind that statement will be offered at a later time). Ninety percent of my being feels a sense of pride, relief and ultimate confidence that everything will work out meaning I will have to find new work now (preferably with health insurance as a benefit as $900 a month is a bit hard to swallow) and will. I do have a few months' cushion to relax and recover (after all, 31 years in a classroom does things to people), but an online friend suggested I start looking immediately, which I will be doing once school's out - not just for the summer but forever (didn't Alice Cooper have something to say about that?)!

Anyhow, there's the other ten percent of me, which is a twelve-year-old kid screaming, "Oh, no! What have I done!?!?!" That part of me is pictured on this page in the Edvard Munch masterpiece, which I "borrowed" from the Internet. I know I have many wonderful qualities any business would want (along with an "old-fashioned work ethic)! Really! All I have to do is find a business (or start one) that will utilize those admirable offerings. I am, after all, trustworthy ... loyal ... helpful ... friendly ... courteous ... kind ... obedient ... cheerful ... thrifty ... brave ... clean... and reverent (and, while I was a Cub Scout, never even made it to the Boy Scouts. I came by those qualities in other ways). I will certainly keep you posted!

Later.

Picture This!

There was a time when I didn't think we'd ever be rid of the snow (snowiest in 100 years). We came within a few inches of an all-time record, but we fell a bit short. I'll be back to the picture on the right a bit later.

Right now, however, I'd like to mention The Week's recent (May 16th issue) half-page collection of views of the death of Eight Belles at the Kentucky Derby. ESPN.com's Pat Forde wrote, "As the racetrack and millions of TV viewers watched in horror, Eight Belles was euthanized by injection, apparently the first horse ever to have died at the Kentucky Derby." Apparently, according to the Washington Post's Sally Jenkins' citing of statistics, experts estimate 1.5 fatal horse injuries for every 1,000 starts. Of course, people are renewing the call for the banning of horse racing or at least major changes to lessen the numbers of injuries and deaths. That is nothing new, but with awareness raised by the massive coverage of the valiant efforts to save Barbaro, another horse very publicly injured at the 2006 Preakness, Eight Belles' killing was yet more powerful ammunition for those who want the sport ended. In my case, hearing about these two horses was bad, but seeing it was enough for me to never want to see another horse race again. With two horses peacefully grazing on the Berman homestead and a third boarded not far away, I am around horses enough to realize what wonderfully beautiful creatures they are, and to highly risk their lives with the goal to make money for others is unacceptable to me. Yes, Life happens (as does Death), but to see it up close and in living color is not what I want. I am sure there are many who feel the same way.

That said, I am going to take a leap of faith here and relate an interesting story. A couple of years ago, one of my students brought me a CD slide show to look at. As I was between classes, I put it in and looked at as much as I could. The pictures were taken by his father, who had returned intact (as much as one can) from Iraq. The first picture was of the giant hands holding the more giant crossed swords in Baghdad. The second shot was a building of some sort - typical Iraqi architecture. The third, however, was as far as I got. It was a picture of a leg wound; that's pretty much all I remember, and that's a good thing! Trust me on that one. Now we get to the point. Go to google and select images. Turn off the SafeSearch and type in Iraqi war wound. The first page of results should be enough. You have to see up close and personal the results of the war. My thought is that if seeing two horses ending up dead results in a call for the end of horse racing, seeing the results of the Iraqi war might just have the same effect - it certainly should! The current administration is doing an admirable job of not showing returning wounded and flag-draped coffins (about the only thing it's doing well).Some wars are better than others; this is not one of them! If more people saw what's really happening, maybe our politicians would hear from them and finally get the message.

By the way, the picture at the top? Would that make you want to live in New Hampshire? I didn't think so.

You Win!

Okay, okay, you win. Yes, I have been delinquent in posting here (and I'm no juvenile), but I didn't think anybody really read this. Well, I was wrong. I have heard lately how little I have posted, so obviously someone is stopping by to check out the ol' blog on a regular basis. That's nice to know - it encourages me to do more and do better, which I intend to do. I could plead that I have been in quite a busy stretch (which I have), but when I really want to do something, I usually can make time. Back in February, I wanted to learn a bit about finances, so over the school vacation week, I read books and incessantly surfed the web to find out about investing, etc. When the week was over, so was my education in the world of higher finance. I learned two major things: (1) there is one heck of a lot to learn making it virtually impossible for the average guy to do well (unless he's really lucky), and (2) with a little research (well within my capabilities), I can probably pick stocks and funds as well as the next guy (if not better). (Random Thought Alert: at dinner tonight, celebrating my good friend's birthday, it was mentioned that I don't have to be quite so self-censoring in a few weeks when I walk out of school for the last time. As a result, I can use words stronger than "heck." I just thought I'd slip that in.)

Anyhow, I will try to do better in the future, but these last few weeks of school are pretty all-encompassing. My final teacher day is June 12th (final as in FINAL - my retirement went through!) I actually have no trouble finding things about which to write - it's just sitting down and doing it. Perhaps a book is in the offing??? Stay tuned.

Later.

My Day at the Horse Show.

As some of you may know, I am the faculty "adviser" for my high school's equestrian team (really a liaison). At the first show this year, I spent the entire day hanging around watching and trying to be encouraging and was only slightly helpful. At the second show, I volunteered to help open and close a gate with another volunteer and was somewhat more helpful. Today, I really earned my keep. I opened and closed a double gate for both practice and indoor events, called riders to enter the ring, be on deck, and be ready to be on deck, let the judges know who the riders were and which school each represented, and kept the gateway clear (where horse and rider enter and exit the ring).

I was pretty much on my feet and busy straight through from 8am until about 5pm. I sometimes had someone help, but for the most part, I didn't. I did the work of three people, but my pay reflected the extra work! I was paid three times what I would normally have gotten (3 x 0=0). For the first four hours or so, the weather could only be described as raw. The rest of the day was just chilly until the end of the show when the temperature shot up to about 52. There are many other volunteers who make a day like today successful, but I only know what I did. I am still aching even as I write this. The good news is that my school's team did pretty well - seventy-five percent qualified for the state-level show (that's three of four riders). For their first year in interscholastic competition, that's really impressive.

As my daughter won't be on the team until next year, she took some pictures and helped my wife at the food booth. Usually at a horse show where my daughter does ride, all she has to do is ride her horse and look great as is illustrated in the picture above. I don't do much except take pictures and schlep water, and, you know what? Overall, I wouldn't trade it for the world!

Later.

Paging Dr. Howard, Dr. Fine, Dr. Howard!

Maybe I'll become a doctor.

While it has not yet been formally accepted, I submitted my letter of resignation from the teaching job I have held for thirty-one years. Assuming there are no problems, I should be officially retired in about six weeks. Unfortunately, the New Hampshire retirement system doesn't make it easy for me to really retire, so I will be seeking another job. Even if it was easier to step aside and take it easy, continuing my health insurance is the killer! I should be getting a stipend from the state to help me along, but even that doesn't come close to covering the ridiculous premiums insurance companies are charging. Yes, the system is out of control and needs some care. I realize that oh too well.

Regarding my retirement, the official story is that uncertainties in the state's retirement policies helped me make my decision to retire now instead of a year or two from now. The unofficial story is fodder for another time.

Ideally, I would like to find something that would allow me to work from home. I have a lot to offer as a worker; I possess the positive qualities that many people today simply don't have. If employers realize that, I should have an easy time finding something. The realities of the workplace, however, may quash my idealism. I have time to look around, and I know I will benefit whoever takes me on. I just need to find someone who understands that. I will certainly keep you posted.

Paging Dr. Berman.... I like the way that sounds.

Later.