is slap someone (metaphorically of course)

A group of kids across the Lower Mainland have created a youtube video for anti-bully day.  They dance to Lady Gaga's "I Was Born This Way", a song encouraging the acceptance of others.

Sounds great, right?

Well not according to a group of parents in Burnaby who think the song sends the wrong message. They think that some of the kids involved may actually watch the Lady Gaga video and see (horrors!) simulated sex scenes.  One person actually said that the lyrics may offend atheists because of the chorus :

"I'm beautiful in my way, 'cause God makes no mistakes, I'm on the right track, baby, I was born this way."

Note to group.  I am an atheist and I am actually offended that you would think I would be offended by those words.

But worst of all is the comment of one of the spokespeople.  Here is the link to the CTV story.

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20120228/bc_gaga_born_this_way_video_parents_voice_120228/20120228/?hub=BritishColumbiaHome

At the 1:00 mark, some guy actually says that the anti bully message might have a hidden agenda.  That it is saying "Hey.  Gay is OK" 

You said What?  Slap!  What?  Slap!  What?  Slap!

And just to make the story even worse, we get to see Miss Photo Op dancing with the kids.  When asked about the controversy she ducks.  Instead of taking the unequivocal position that being gay IS OK and she does not support that particular parent group, she claims that she doesn't pay attention to the lyrics.  (Yes Dick Clark I am giving a 10/10 because it has a good beat.)  Lame, Christy.  Very Lame.

And just to be clear, I am not opposed to this group expressing their opinion.  I am a strong believer in free speech even the stuff that I am totally against.  But in this case I relish their comments.  I honestly believe that the more often they spout their stupidity, the more quickly we can get over the poisonous stance they take.  

is appreciate a different route

On Sunday, the Learn to Run group decided that running around the track would not be safe because the snow had frozen unevenly and the risk of twisted ankles and pulled muscles was increased.  Instead we ran around the block from the bowling alley to Sherman GM which was actually a pleasant change.  It was still a circle, but a different circle.  And, despite the extra cold weather, I didn’t notice the wind the same way that I notice the wind at the track. 

I also noticed how much easier it was to run for the three minutes compared to our first three minute runs on Tuesday.  On Tuesday, I was looking forward to the end of each three minute run.  On Sunday, I had to force myself to stop.

On Monday night while watching the snow drift, I wondered what it would be like running (trudging?) through a couple of inches of snow.  No need to worry.  On Tuesday, we ran along Wantage Road from the Lester Centre parking lot to the maintenance shed.  This was another pleasant short route.  I can see the value of running the track.  You are never far from your parked car and it is almost impossible to get lost.  But these short routes break up the monotony of the track and still give us the sense of an end that is not far away.  Even though we are focusing on time rather than distance it is still feels good to get to one end of the road and then turn around knowing that the its not all that far to the other end.

is make a prediction

As a semi-detached observer of the teacher job action, I have noticed a couple of things.  Teaching and learning have not stopped.  Teachers are working just as hard as they ever did.  If they are not spending that hour or two a month in a staff meeting, they are using that time to do other things that need to get done.  (As an aside:  For the last dozen or so years before retirement, my extra-curricular time was spent four days a week with a couple of other teachers running the after school “homework club”.  The only time we ever closed the room was on staff meeting days.  That would be true for other activities.  Instead of a staff meeting, many teachers are spending that time working with students or planning lessons.

So far two sets of high school report cards have been missed and one set of elementary report cards.  But that does not mean that parents are unaware of their child’s progress.  Interim reports have gone home and parents are always able to see a teacher.

The fact that BCPSEA had the audacity to suggest that teachers should be docked 15% for work not done was an insult of the highest magnitude.  Not only are teachers continuing to teach a full workday, they have continued to do all the extra voluntary activities that make school more than just a place of learning.  (In fact, teachers would have a better case asking for extra money for the increase workload from the illegal gutting of the contract in 2002.)

OK so my prediction.  Watching - again as someone who is not completely involved – there appears to be three issues that are not being successfully negotiated.  (While you will likely be able to guess, I will leave the discussion of the blame for this lack of success to someone else.) 

 The first is a salary increase that the teachers say is deserved.  They can make a case for the increase on cost of living and comparisons to other provinces.  Whether they get what they are asking for is part of the negotiating process but when the other side says that they will give nothing then negotiating seems pointless.

The second problem is the cuts to the contract in terms of seniority rights, evaluation reports, posting and filling etc that the government negotiators are demanding.    While the BCTF has said that everything is negotiable, it seems kind of pointless if one side is saying we are giving you nothing but expecting you to give up all of these rights that you have gained in the past.

The third item involves the illegal gutting of the contract through Bill 27 and 28 in 2002.  During the 1990’s teachers took virtually no salary increase in return for contract language that guaranteed class size and treatment of special needs students.  When the language was stripped from the contract, the government saved around $300M a year.  

So what will the government do when it presents its legislation to end the teacher job action? 

Worst case:  two years of zero increase, contract language that takes away seniority rights, and very little in compensation for the loss in funding from Bill 27 and 28.  Teachers obviously escalate their job action.  The government sees this as an election issue as they show how they can take on big unions.  Bitterness lingers especially at the school and local level as teachers become less co-operative with school and board administration.

On the other hand I predict (and I will not call this a best case because it really isn’t), the legislation will be a two year rollover of the current contract.  And there will be a token amount of money given to rectify Bill 27 and 28.  The government will not try to buy off the teachers before next year’s election.  That is a no-win for them.   At the same time, I can’t see them being overly draconian as that would lose public support regardless of how teachers respond.  I believe that the Liberals know they will lose the next election so they want to make it as difficult as possible for the NDP.  Either the NDP will have to correct the problems with the current round of negotiations and be the bad guys to the public by raising taxes and paying off friendly supporters or they will have to play tough with the BCTF resulting in the loss of a powerful ally in the 2017 election.  Either way the Liberals hope that will result in a one term NDP government.

We’ll see next week.

is regain stamina

Not having run in almost three months I am not surprised at how slowly I am regaining my stamina.  On Tuesday, the Learn to Run group did three minute runs followed by two minute walks (seven times) and I was looking forward to the whistle that ended each three minute run.  It was a bit easier tonight with two minute runs and two minute walks.

However, I am surprised (but perhaps I shouldn't be) at how much teaching stamina I have lost.  Right now, I am half way through a six day teaching assignment.  The classes are good.  I have a small, very quiet Law class.  My biggest challenge is getting them to talk about the case studies.  I have a block that I spend helping in the Opportunities Room.  I have latched on to three kids in three different levels of Math.  They are pleasant and willing to accept my help.  In the afternoon, I have two SS 9 classes.  One has a few girls who are not at all interested in school and a handful of boys who are attention seekers with a ready audience but they are no where near the worst class I have ever encountered.  The other group is a surprisingly well mannered group of Grade 9s.  In other words, I can't complain about the classes.

The teacher left clear topics for me to follow and while I am not completely familiar with them (I never taught Law or SS9) it doesn't take me too long to organize myself so I can teach the lessons. I collect small assignments which I mark, but nothing that requires a whole lot of after school time. I don't have any of the other responsibilities or stresses of the regular classroom teacher.

SO WHY AM I EXHAUSTED AT THE END OF EACH DAY??

I know as an ex-teacher it might sound self-serving to describe how difficult it is to be a teacher, but I am beginning to wonder how I managed for 34 years. 

is describe the evolution of a song

I am not musical but I am always interested in where songs come from.  When I heard K'naan's version of Bob Dylans "With God On Our Side" I was fascinated by how he had not just covered the Dylan song but had taken the theme and the melody and turned it into an entirely different song much like Dylan did with a song called The Patriot's Game.  In fact K'naan's song is less of a copy of Dylan than Dylan's is a copy of Patriot's Game.

Here's The Patriot's Game a song about an IRA rebel.  (You don't have to listen to the whole song to get the idea.)

Now the Dylan version which asks whose side god is on in various conflicts.

and K'Naan's version. Unfortunately I can't find the entire song but this is a short sample.  When you link to the site you have to click on play sample.


http://www.amazon.com/With-God-On-Our-Side/dp/B006W5JPSU

is stay positive

On Sunday, within a couple of hours of returning from Vancouver after seeing the specialist, I ran the track for about half an hour (one and two minutes of running followed by a similar time walking) and I went to the gym for about an hour on Monday.  Needless to say, I am not where I was when I last ran on Nov 30.  However, I am well ahead of where I was last spring when I first started to run so I have to keep things in perspective.

I am impatient when it comes to my own shortcomings.  Too often when I want to learn or do something new, I expect to be good well before I have given myself much of a chance.  Expecting early success and failing leads to frustration and ultimately to giving up.  When I started to run last spring, my biggest problem was trying to run too far too fast.  Learning to pace myself and run more slowly actually allowed me to run for longer periods without having to quit.  I also learned my limits so I took breaks when I needed and stopped earlier than I was hoping without feeling that I had failed.

The Learn to Run group is perfect for anybody beginning to run, but I am really glad that I joined even though I had been running before my eye injury.  By starting at their pacing, I can gradually work my way back to where I was.  If I was doing this on my own, I might have expected more from myself resulting in further injury or quitting in frustration.  With Learn to Run, there are not only trainers that are keeping us at a reasonable pace (not to mention their invaluable advice) but there is the positive energy and enthusiasm of the entire group.

is tell you about my adventures in Vancouver

While waiting in the very busy eye clinic, the guy across from me pulled out his cell phone and for the next 30 minutes discussed sports with someone who clearly wasn’t as up to date as my “friend”.   I am curious (snoopy?), his voice was loud, my book wasn’t all that good, and the challenge of figuring out a one way conversation was too much, so I listened.  

“Yeh they’re trying to get the guy from Philadelphia.”  (The Canucks?  The Blue Jays?)

“He scored a bunch of goals last year.”  (Gotta be the Canucks.)

“He’s 33.  Still has 4 or 5 good years left.”  (Who? Who?)

“No! No!  The French guy.”  (Briere?)

“Lenarduzzi  was saying...”  (Lenarduzzi! He's talking about freaking Soccer.  I tuned out.)

Then the lady beside me who was about 75 took out some gum and offered me a piece.  I said no thanks, telling her that I already had some gum.   She then proceeded to tell me how good the flavour was and insisted on my taking one.  I felt obliged to offer one of my sticks and when she asked me the flavour I had to take my glasses off to read the label.  She laughed and told me about her eye problems (cataracts) and I told her about my retina.  Go figure: Two old people chatting about health issues.   Much better than freaking soccer!

Leaving the skytrain station at Granville Street I noticed a woman sleeping close to the wall of the Bay building.  Seeing people asleep in public often makes me sad.  (And this from the guy who nodded off in staff meetings and hasn’t yet found a waiting room that didn’t droop his eyes.)  I think it is my experiences in nursing homes where it is the setting and the circumstances rather than the sleeping that triggers my feelings

This one didn’t bother me so much because she was rather young and on second glance I noticed that her partner who was against the wall was also asleep with his right arm tucked under her neck and his left arm draped across her body.  Spooning on Granville!   But they were not wasting time while sleeping.  A cap was beside them accepting coins. 

Navigating along Granville to get back to the hotel was an adventure.  Half the people insist on using umbrellas even when it is barely dripping.  You have to bob and weave to avoid contact. 

Finally I was surprised at how many people in Vancouver eat on the run and I literally mean on the run.  It was just after noon and the number of people wolfing down hot dogs and burgers and slurping drinks was staggering.  Sit down for a couple of minutes.  You can’t be that busy.

All I Really Want to Do is Run

I was never a runner.  I hated running.  A few years ago I joined The Gym and went there regularly to walk (fast mind you and with an incline) on the treadmill.  I actually enjoyed doing this.  I lost some weight and I felt better.  And because I was walking instead of running, I could read at the same time which made the whole process much easier to manage.

BUT, after several years of doing this and thinking I was in pretty good shape, I was challenged one day by a Grade 8 girl to try the beep test while I was subbing at PRSS.

The beep test is where you start running the width of the gym after a beep and you have to make it to the other side before there is another beep.  You keep running back and forth until you fail to reach the other side before the beep.  Stamina is obviously involved, but the real challenge occurs when the beeps get closer together meaning you have to speed up while you are tiring out.  I did lousy!  I reached 4.9 which is a fail for Grade 8 students.  I figured I had to be able to pass Grade 8 PE so I started a simple running program at The Gym as well as running with the Grade 8 class on their weekly outdoor runs.  That was last April and by the final exam for the Grade 8's, I scored 6.0 on the beep test which - forget about Grade 8's - was above average for someone my age.

At that point I was running for most of their outdoor runs which was about 4K.  I still needed a break in the middle and I still walked some of the hills but I found that I was walking less each time.  I decided on a goal of running 5K at the Cannery Run and I spent much of the summer running the track and along the waterfront and along the highway.  At the Cannery Run, I completed the 5K in 32 minutes.

My next goal was to run 10K at Glory Days and I found a simple eight week program for people who had run 5K and wanted to increase their distance.  I was doing fine until I detached my retina. (Randomly, not caused by running!) I was told that I couldn't run or lift anything heavier than a grocery bag for at least eight weeks.  The end of the eight weeks almost coincided with the start of the Learn to Run program.  I spent the first two weeks walking.  But I just saw the specialist and he has told me I can run again.

When I saw the advertisement for the Learn to Run, I had to join because it offered three things.

1. to regain whatever stamina I had lost.  I want to get back to at least 5K and hopefully 10K.
2. to get outside more often.  Running on a treadmill is mind-numbingly boring.
3. working with other people to achieve my goal.  When I was running with the Grade 8's I found it easier and more enjoyable to push myself while running alone gave me opportunities to give up.

I am looking forward to this Tuesday when I can run with the group.

All I Really Want to Do is create a blog

As a joke, I told my daughter that I would update my facebook status every single day in 2011.  I managed to complete that frivolous resolution and when I stopped this January I realized that I missed writing about things that I had read about or observed. 

I named the blog after the Dylan song thinking I could title each post All I Really Want to Do is ... and I found a youtube video of Dylan singing the song at the Newport festival in the early 60's which I embedded into my post.  The next morning when I went to finalize the post before publishing, I discovered that the video had now been deleted by the user.

So now All I Really Want to Do is find out why it got deleted forcing me (sort of) to post this video instead.  Gotta love Sonny!