What I have been reading....

Over the last few months I have been reading a number of books on success and achievement inspired by the Malcom Gladwell's The Outliers.  It has become a bit of an obsession with me as I find connections to my work as a teacher, my involvement with youth soccer as a coach and board member and as a father of two youth sport obsessed boys.



What has really struck me is how the research (admittedly all of these books reference each other and others of a similiar point of view)  all brings us back to an old school belief in the value and importance of good old fashioned hard work and dedication.  ...... I have written, edited, deleted and rewritten the following paragraphs and decided that I really have too much to say on this subject and at this point it all ends up as a rant so I'll leave it for you to read the books yourself and see where the ideas may apply to your own life.

On a lighter note if you liked the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo check out the following book.

Can't wait for summer

The calendar says July 31 but the weather says October 31.

What happened to Spring?

We are now a week into summer and after a Canada Day soccer tournament in St. Albert and several days of long neglected household chores it finally feels like we are getting a bit of a break.  This is our first Saturday without soccer since we were in Mexico and it feels nice to just look at each other and ask "what are we going to do this afternoon?" without an immediate answer.

Of course the break also means we have time to notice that it is supposed to be summer and we are stuck in what has been several months of cold and wet weather.  So much for our plans to head to the cabin and enjoy the lake.  I can't wait for soccer!

St. Patrick's Day Mexican Style

This year we are in Mexico during the week of St. Patrick's Day.  In Mexico St. Patrick's day is a big deal and consists of week long festival.  This goes all the way back to the Mexican-American War of 1846-1848 and the  Batallón de San Patricio.  


A bit of Background:  The San Patricios were an army battalion in the Mexican Army made up largely of Irish immigrants (there were other nationalities as well, including Canadians) who came to the U.S to escape the Irish Potato Famine and joined the U.S. Army as a path to citizenship.  During the war many of the San Patricios would face their Mexican "enemies" all week long. On Sunday, however, they would put down their guns and cross the border into Mexico to go to church and play soccer with their fellow Catholics, the very same Mexicans with whom they were at war. 

Eventually, many of the Irish deserted and joined forces with Mexico. Those who did so before the war broke out were considered deserters. Those who fought for Mexico after the war broke out were defectors. When the war ended, each San Patricio was arrested and given a court martial trial. The deserters were branded on their faces with a "D." The defectors were hung in what some say is the largest mass execution in U.S. military history. To honor these brave men, whom Mexico calls heroes and the U.S. calls traitors, there are two celebrations held in parts of Mexico: Sept. 12, the anniversary of their execution, and March 17, St. Patrick's Day.   http://adage.com/article/the-big-tent/mexicans-celebrate-st-patrick-s-day/125694/


Barra de Navidad is about 5 minutes away from what is commonly knows as Melaque and is a populary snowbird destination for Canadians.  Melaque is actually three towns, Melaque, Villa Obregón, and San Patricio, seemlessly joined together.  With St. Patrick being the patron saint of San Patricio Melaque hosts one of the biggest St. Patrick's day celebrations with nightly fireworks in the town square.  


All week people we had met in Barra had asked us if we had been to the fireworks yet so we figured if we were ever to embrace Marla's Catholic roots what better time than on St. Patrick's Day in Mexico.  


We arrived about 8:30 pm and the town square was buzzing with midway that would do the PGX proud and random fireworks being shot into the crowd just to add some atmosphere.  I was disappointed that I had not done a little more research into the appropriate dress for the occasion as Marla obviously stood from the other women in their skinny jeans and 6 inch heels.  (As I said there were moments I thought I was 16 again at the PGX)   After waiting several hours which included a growing crowd staking their observation spots, Mexican dancers in costume opening the evening Mass, setting up of the fireworks tower and the St. Patrick's Day band warming up the crowd the 9:00 pm fireworks went off right on time at 11:15 pm.


The Fireworks were, as advertised, nuts!  The large tower burst into light with shapesof animals and saints spinning and whistling, showering the crowd with sparks.  Kids put pieces of cardboard over their heads and ran through the sparks under the structure.  Things got really interesting when the fireworks began shooting into the crowd. (I am assuming this is the part that was to pay homage to the soldiers in the war.)  Luckily we had taken a que from some French Canadians near us and used a Palm tree as a bit of protection as fireworks landed all around us.  Just when I didn't think it was going to get any crazier the top of the tower lite up and shot a huge structure into the air with the illuminated word FINI on it.  It quickly became apparent that this was not a structure meant to fizzle out in the air as it quickly descended to earth and crashed into a tree a few feet from us lighting it on fire.  Ya, Crazy but in Grame's words AWESOME!!

St. Patrick's Day Band

Tribute to San Patricio

Grande Finale

Difference a Day Makes....

March 12, 2011

March13, 2011

Steaming through February

Wow, where did January go and when the heck is February going to be over?  It seems like just last week we were taking down the Christmas tree (perhaps that is why the decorations are still piled up in the garage) and now we are starting to get organized for Mexico.  February must be the least appreciated month of the year, a month to just get over with and onto brighter and warmer days.  As we move through the middle of the month it is impossible to not look ahead to spring.  Mexico is just around the corner, soccer for the boys will crank up, the cabin will start to thaw out and hopefully we will see some grass by Easter.  At the same time we tend to ignore all that February has to offer.  Basketball is winding down and we can actually see the improvement another season has brought to the boys, skiing is in full swing, a new semester has brought a fresh outlook to work (even without a prep).  It is amazing when I look through our family pictures how few pictures I actually take in February.  It seems like every year we skip right from Christmas to Spring Break.  I would like to think that this year would be the year I slow down and enjoy every bit of time for what it is worth but in a February where we are playing soccer 6 days a week (between Marla, the boys and myself), I have just come off my prep and am in my 4 block semester, just found out I am teaching another TRU course this semester, 2 boys in basketball and Marla and Melanie trying to buy a condo in Phoenix all I can think about is that in 27 sleeps I will be on a beach in Mexico with a Margarita in my hand.  Maybe next year will be February's year.

 Great Day in February

Merry Christmas 2010

As I sit in the glow of our Christmas tree looking out at the frost covered trees I am reminded that it is time for the 2010 Lewis Christmas letter.  Of course there is also Marla buried in wrapping paper and ribbons asking me if I have done the letter yet and letting me know that I could always help with the wrapping to kick start me (It is not that I don't want to help with the wrapping she is just a lot better at it than me ;-)

With that said here it is, the Annual Lewis online mass Christmas blog posting.  No friend requests, no pokes, no wallpaper, no chat, no apps, no games, just plain old fashioned Christmas Greetings.

2010 was a great year for us.  Of course, as I think about what we did this year I realize it is much like the last several years, school, Sayulita, Gabriola, Purden lake, running, soccer and generally a lot of play time.  While all of this does not make for a very dynamic Christmas letter, it sure is a nice life.

We had a great winter last year with lots of snow so the skiing was fantastic.  We went to Smithers for Marla's birthday with the Martins and the boys fell in love with Hudson Bay Mountain.  As a result, in true Lewis fashion we are going back there this year for Marla's birthday with the Martins.  (We kind of follow the philosophy of if it was good once it must be good twice, or three or fours times.)  Locally we are hoping to have another good year on the slopes but so far the weather is not cooperating as we need a nice dump of snow to get the PG hills in decent shape.

Snow Bunny and her boys

Casting not Catching

Of course one of the best things about last year and a winter with tons of great snow was that it was gone by the time we got back from Mexico at Spring Break.  We went back to Sayulita with Marla's parents and her sister for spring break and had a great time.  Yes, we stayed in the same house, ate at many of the same restaurants, occupied the same spot on the beach... hey don't judge us, if it ain't broke why fix it.  And just so you know we are going to a new place this year, Barra de Navidad, so see we can mix it up.

Mexican Stand off

The Spring ended up being pretty crazy for us as it was a bunch of great times and experiences surrounded by a bunch of really crappy stuff.  Along with going to Mexico, the spring was my first on the soccer board and was very busy for me and my eager assistant (Marla) which meant along with coaching several teams and running basketball at my school we were spread a little thin.  We were also involved in a huge battle over school closures and a proposal to move French Immersion out of our school which would have meant the boys would have had to change schools ( we won but it left us pretty drained and bitter).  At the same time JP and I got the opportunity to go to San Diego for a conference so Marla and Marnie came along and we spent a week in San Diego and had a great time.  All of this meant my running season kind of died before it got started and I couldn't really afford the time to go to Boston so I decided not to do the marathon and instead go this year (and of course it filled up in record time and I missed the registration so I have to wait another year but that is a whole other posting).  Let's just say when summer came we were even more ready for it than usual.

Super Fan!

We kicked off the summer with a trip to Seattle with the Martins (you will notice our pattern of staying with things that work does not just extend to places we visit but also to traveling companions) to watch a baseball and soccer game.  We had an unbelievable time watching the Mariners beat the Yankees with a Grand Slam, watching the world cup final in a packed restaurant and the kids finding out we had unlimited access to the concession at the Sounders game.

Loving the cheap seats

A little more subtle than Connor

Slurpee Cup, Kamloops

The rest of the summer was basically soccer, sun and water.  Graeme and Connor have both become soccer crazy over the past year.  Graeme had a chance to play on a more competitive team this year and went on a few out of town tournaments while Connor become obsessed with Spain and the World Cup.  As a result it seems that a lot of our time is organized around soccer but not to worry it will all pay off if Connor can follow through on his plan of playing for soccer for Barcelona and in the off season running a cake shop in Spain.  (Seriously, he must get this stuff from his mother)

The weather this year was fantastic so it meant a lot of very hot days at the lake and once again we were lucky enough to have our friend Val let us use her place on Gabriola Island which we happen to hit during a heat wave.Connor even finished off the summer in style running his first 5 km with his mom in the Labour Day classic. Yes it was a very good summer!

Yes, those are star fish!

Lots and lots of skim boarding

Proud Winner

Graeme had another good cross-country season and is really doing well in basketball but he is really all about the soccer at this point.

All in all another great year with a little bit of work just to break up our sports and leisure activities.  The best part is as great as 2010 was 2011 is shaping up to be even better.  Even though we might not get to visit and talk to everyone as often as we would like to we do think of all of you often.

We wish you all a Merry Christmas and hope 2011 finds you healthy and happy.

Love the Lewis'

Enough Said

Unloading

Wow.... take a break from posting and see what happens.  The reality is after a spring filled with fighting the closure of my sons' school, working through the politics of youth soccer, dealing with program cuts at my own school and coaching pretty much every waking moment of the day the last thing I could think of was even talking to people let alone blogging about what was going on.   Of course despite the fact that no one actually noticed that my last post was 6 months ago I am undaunted and am forcing myself to resume posting.

Despite being in a general mental funk regarding work and the direction of society in general I had another spectacular summer focused on family and friends. This of course has only made it more difficult than ever to return to work or should I say to return to the management of schools.  Teaching is great, my classes and students are great.  What is already draining the life out of me is the outside noise, such as emails, planning sessions and staff meetings that seem to have little purpose and less value.  Maybe it is simply a function of getting older or that my kids are getting more and more enjoyable to be around so my bitterness at things that pull me away from them is growing.  On the more positive side professionally side I have taken a position within School District #13 that has been most rewarding.

On Mexican Time

Few things are better than watching your kids rush out in ocean upon arrival.

Merry Christmas 2009

Well, here it is mid-December again and we (and by we, Marla means I) have missed our Christmas card mailing deadline. So once again I turn to the power of the Blog (you see I really maintain it all year for this one posting that someone other than Kev, Glen and JP might actually might read). I am not sure what that actually says about myself, Kev, Glen and JP but that is a topic for another posting. Anyways here it goes, the reason you all have high speed internet, The Lewis Year in Review.



2009 has been a great year for us. We did a lot of running as a family, Marla and I did several races and both Graeme and Connor took part in their first "official" race during the labour day classic. Connor had a great race sprinting his way through the 1 km kids run and Graeme finished 8th overall in 5 km run.












Graeme and Connor had a lot of fun in soccer (Marla had an awesome time coaching Connor's team, just ask her sometime). Graeme is still playing basketball and Connor has decided he is a tennis player. Oh to be young again, when through unstructured play and the absence of scorekeeping, anyone can feel like Roger Federer or Steve Nash.
Graeme and Connor both had a fantastic year in school and have really enjoyed Grade 5 and 2 so far this year. Connor has become the "serious" student, even if he is a bit of a stalker. (We are trying to explain that making one card for your teacher is cute, making 30 is a illness.) We (and again here, by we I mean Marla) spend our time telling Graeme the get out his homework and Connor to put his away. Seriously, they are both loving school and doing great. We are continually amazed that they can speak and read in both French and English, however, we are bracing for the day they start to talk back in French and we have to go look what they said before so we can figure out how upset we should be. Marla and I has also had a great school year. Lots of the same old same old but it has been fantastic.

Of course the best part of work is holidays and 2009 was another in a string of best years ever. We returned to Sayulita and it was awesome, went back to our friend Val's place on Gabriola and it was awesome and we had a hot, hot summer at the lake and it was awesome! (If you have a chance when a heat wave hits your province make sure you are on an island somewhere.) It is actually kind of ironic that Marla and I enjoy our jobs so much but we really, really enjoy when we are not working.

The only real concern Marla and I seem to have is the pace at which time seems to be passing by. Funny how for a great part of your life you wait for time to pass to get your driver's license, finish school, get a raise etc. and then you have kids and it is like the fast forward button has been pressed. The boys are just so much fun that every year brings a little bit of sadness that they will never be that age again (not to mention that we will never be that age again). The consolation so far has been that every new year has really been better than the last so we are hoping that trend continues for a while.
With 2009 coming to a close the outlook for 2010 is looking good already. The ski season should be awesome with a ton of snow already, our holiday to Sayulita is already booked for March, Marla and I heading to Boston in April for the Boston Marathon and before you know it we will be into summer vacation. (Again, not that we don't like our jobs, we just really, really like when we are not working.)

We hope that this Christmas season finds you all healthy and happy and that 2010 is a great year for all of you. Have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Love the Lewis'

PS. If you really have some time on your hands this holiday season and would like to check out some more photos visit our flickr site here.

Raising Men

With two young boys I often think about the type of men I hope they grow into. (A combination of Archie Andrews, Thomas Magnum, Bobby Orr, William Wallace and Leonardo Davinci comes to mind.) As my boys grow older it comes clearer and clearer to me that I cannot shelter my children or control their social, emotional interactions as there are just too many influences out there and eventually they will find my boys. My hope is that my wife and I have provided a set of core values that guide our children's actions and provide a framework to lean on as they navigate the murky waters of adolescence. The closest thing I can provide as a parenting strategy is the following poem by Rudyard Kipling.

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!

The meaning of Minutes

This past weekend I ran in the Kelowna marathon. This was the culminating race of my running season and I was aiming to run a personal best time beating my previous 3:19 mark.

It was a chilly day, -10C, in Kelowna which made for a cold start but ended up being very nice to run in. My plan was to set out on a 3:10 pace and see what I had left in the last 10 kms for a push to 3:06. I had a great race and held a steady 3:10 pace for 30kms but when I looked for another gear at around 32kms it just wasn't there. I was still happy as I was cruising on my 3:10 pace and feeling good. At the 40 km mark things went sideways as the course kind of disappeared and we were sent down a wrong road and ended up running over a 1/2 km too far. I finally crossed the finish line in 3:15, which I was very happy with, but I was confused as to what had happened since I was on pace for 3:10 right up to the last 2 kms.

In the end there were several problem with the course, including the two leading runners getting lost on the course and having to drop out. Since the race the running discussion boards are filled with some very upset people, especially those who missed their Boston Marathon qualifying time by seconds. As a result the organizers are looking at trying to adjust people's times to reflect the extra distance run. Read about the issues here.

This has gotten me thinking about how powerful things in print can be. I must admit, I would like them to adjust my "official" time to reflect that there was a screw-up but really whatever they do will be a rough estimate that I could do myself. So why do I care if they change it? I can probably do a better estimation myself so why can't I just tell people that I was around 3:10 or 3:11 and leave it at that? Why does that feel like cheating but if they change it in print it feels more legitimate even though I know that no matter what is done the time will not be a true marathon time. It is weird that after running for 3+ hours a few minutes would make a difference. I am happy with a 3:15 time but I am also disappointed that my finish line to finish line race was compromised after months of matching kms to seconds. I am more disapointed that it actually matters to me.

For race results click here.

Update:
I have just received an email that my time has been adjusted according to IAAF standards and my "official" time is now 3:12:30. After all is said and done it is somewhat less satisfying knowing that it was the result of some calculator work and not speed work but I'll take it.

Poking and Proding

I was recently asked to speak to the teachers at South Kamloops Secondary School about "what I do" in the classroom. Now "what I do" is nothing new or particularly unique. It is not even stuff that lots of other teachers aren't already doing. So why would I be asked to speak? Good question, the best answer is that the principal is a friend of mine and he knows I can talk on and on about educational practice and theory once I get going.

Originally I was asked to do a "short" session for the staff. This quickly turned in "Oh by the way, we've set aside the whole day for you". I must admit when I found out that I was expected to be the entire day's pro-d for the staff of a large very accomplished school I was a little anxious. Not nervous or afraid I couldn't fill the time, like I said I can talk and talk and talk, but I thought about how I would react to listening to some guy I didn't know talk at me for an entire day on "what he does". Considering that I am`a fairly harsh critic of poorly done pro-d this concerned me.

With the help of some friends, over beers in Barkerville but that is another post, I designed what I thought was a pretty solid mix of personal testimony, educational theory, professional reflection, practical examples and hands on activities. I had a mix of digital material to illustrate and entertain, I had samples of student work, I had templates and highlighters and discussion material and inspirational quotes and examples of research. It was all coming together.

Upon arriving at South Kam I walked into the library and to my horror looked upon a tiny overhead screen with rows upon rows of chairs set up in a lecture style arrangement. No speaker's table or podium just a space in front of the chairs for me to stand and talk. Ok, this would be a challenge but I was used to rolling with the punches as if you learn anything as a teacher it is nothing ever goes according to plan. I hooked up my computer to the projector they provided, it didn't work, so soomeone quickly went to retrieve a new projector. Again, no panic, if you present enough you are used to these small glitches. I tried to hook up my laptop but no wireless and the ethernet cord they had was too short. No problem, I could do without the internet it would just remove some of the more dynamic elements of my plan. Once the new projector arrived the same helpful person ran off to find me a longer cord. Excellent, I am back on for internet use. The new cord arrived and I quickly discover no connection and no one knew the proxy settings. Internet back off unless I use one of their laptops so I quickly transfer my files. Teachers are now arriving and it is time to start and my plan is already unravelling.

We all know as teachers once class starts you can't sweat the samll stuff as you just have to get on with things. I must admit despite the challenges of the seating and technology arrangements I started off on fire. Nice intro, good jokes, it was a tight 20 mins, of course the first session was an hour and a half. During my intro it also became clear that using the laptop, which was attached to a pedestal like tower with the projector, would require me to turn my back on the audience every time I used it. When I did bring something up the screen it was so small that you couldn't really see it anyways so I decided to abandon much of the visual element of my presentation. No problem, I could talk them through the examples and get to the first activity, an exercise in developing common language and understanding. When I turn it over to the staff they were fantastic. They dove into the exercise and generated some great discussion but it also become clear to me that some of my other activities were going to be very awkward without tables to spread out material and work on. No problem it was coffee and I had time 15 minutes to adjust.

During coffee I quickly revamped the order of my presentation, cutting out the examining school practices activity in order to get straight into reflecting on classroom practices. No problem, this was a solid midstream adjustment.

Well, what happens when you zig? Someone zags. Once we started up again I asked for any questions or comments and the rest of plan went out the window. People began asking very specific questions related to my classroom practices and school structures. People seemed to want to know how "it worked". As a result the next hour and half saw me lay my educational soul bare to be examined by a bunch of strangers.

Lunch finally came and I was really exhausted from what was for me a very mentally active morning. After lunch I was scheduled to do an hour session on using technology to end of the day. This is something I have done dozens of times for many different schools but once again I was faced with the fact that the tech and room issues were essentially going to result in me "talking to" the group about using technology with very few examples and no opportunity for hands-on. I waded in and did the best I could to try and give some practical applications for technology but by this time I was really tired of talking so I imagine they were really tired of hearing me talk. The staff, however, was great and at least feinted interest well.

People have asked how the day went I really can't answer that. I wouldn't say it was bad but it wasn't anywhere near what I wanted it to be either. It was a surreal experience to spend hours taking about your individual educational ideals and practices and be questioned on them. I take pride in the fact that I could provide answers and I hope that at a minimum the staff at South Kam saw me as a person who has thought about what and why his classroom is the way it is.

I would like to thank the staff at South Kamloops as they were an unbelievable audience, much better than I could have been sitting and listening for that long. My friend always brags to me about how great his school and his staff are and he is right their professionalism and passion is obvious as I hope was mine.

By the way, a little advice. Never facilitate and entire day of pro-d and then immediately get in your car and drive 6 hours by yourself. There is just way too much time for reflection.

Mirror Image

Admit it we are fascinated by look a likes, why else would that Cher impersonator turn up so many places, seriously not that many people are into Cher. While some people resemble others there are some that are freakishly similar. Take Andy Roddick and Stiffler (Seann William Scott). I actually have a hard time separating the two they look so similar. The entire time I watched the Wimbleton final this year I kept watching for Roger Federrer to throw out a comment about Stifler’s mom to throw Roddick off his game.


Then there is the just the plane old creepy morphing into the same person. Like Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson or Dianna Ross or Farrah Fawcett. Yes, Farrah Fawcett! Seriously check it out, the bone structure, the hair, the eyes and they both mysteriously die on the same day, coincidence??? Makes you wonder if Michael was lightening his skin or if Farrah was darkening hers. The proof will be if Ryan O’neal becomes involved in the custody case for the Jackson 3 (Paris, Prince and the little Tito).



I know we have all wondered either secretly or aloud who we look like, hoping that people see a link to the Brad Pitts and Christy Brinkleys (I don’t care how old she is she is still hot) of the world. As for myself here are some of the people I have been told I look like, I’ll let you be the judge.