Summer of '69... Errr, I Mean '07
It's been too long to have a traditional post, so back by popular demand... bullets! (or if you're the narrator to Zombie Revenge... Boo-lets!)
-Summer school teaching gig came to a satisfying close. My final seemed to challenge the students JUST enough, and everybody passed my class. Granted I had to bump two students up by a single percentage point, but considering that they were already taking this class a second time, to make them repeat it a third time for the lack of a single percent seemed dumb. All in all it was a great experience that really changed my perspective on what teaching is like. More on that in a sec.
-Most hurtful thing from teaching summer school?
A student asked a classmate what we learned whilst he was absent. The students answer? "We don't learn anything in here. We just do stuff." I don't know if he knew that I heard, but I felt slapped in the face, and not in the playful Jennie-Kristal kind of way.
-Most inspiring?
The assistant principal approached me and said that she thought the English chair made a "huge mistake" in not hiring me for the fall. That and several students put flowery notes on the back of their finals telling me how much they will miss my class and how I made summer school fun.
- So teaching... Yeah... Still haven't found a job for the fall yet, and the semester begins in less than a month. I've kind of made a personal decision to myself. I have an interview on Tuesday for Arroyo Seco and prospects at Granada and Rio Norte. I none of those follow through I think I'm just gonna sub for a semester/year. Teaching summer school four hours a day EXHAUSTED me. It feels like a defeat to say this, but I don't know if I'm ready for a full day of all that. Must remember to call Steve about sub-ing advice.
-Comic Con! Woo to the Oot! This was without a doubt the best con I have ever attended. Here are the highlights.
I confessed my love for Jewel Staite loudly, albeit anonymously, during the Stargate Atlantis panel. She said "Thank you" and the moderator told me to "Calm down guy." She seems like a real sweet person, even if you ignore her heavy involvement in the animal rights movement.
Stan Lee called me a super-hero and let me shake his hand during the Who Wants to Be a Superhero panel. I was so excited my entire body was shaking and I thought I might cry. Shaking his hands was on my "Die Happy" list, and now I can proudly strike my pencil through that one.
I got to ask Tyler Mane (aka Sabretooth) a question at the Rob Zombie panel, and despite his intimidating stature he acted real sincere and grateful to his fans. He even told one guy to "Scream for me."
Kristal, Jennie, Bryan, and I all participated in a Zombie Walk Friday afternoon. In full zombie make-up (torn clothes, fake blood, grayed face) we shambled in-character from Seaport Village all through downtown San Diego and ended up at the convention center. As Jennie said in her blog, I too was surprised at how many bystanders snapped pictures, but the whole crowd (about 50-70 zombies total) really got off on it, and I think the positive attention improved our performance. People were either thrilled, annoyed, or confused by our presence, and it felt like a great big social experiment just seeing so many different reactions. It was also great to go with friends, since I could spontaneously take a big ol' bite out of Bryan's shoulder and really get some surprised reactions. All in all, sooooo much fun. Big Thank You's go out to Kristal for getting us all involved and Jennie for doing our makeup. Picture shall be posted shortly.
While still in full zombie attire, I stumbled into a Ray Harryhausen panel and asked him who would win in a fight between King Kong and the Kraken from Clash of the Titans. I was saddened when he gave a cop-out "I don't know" answer. To be fair, I think my appearance threw him a bit off guard.
The Eye of Judgment... Two words: Holy cow! Have you heard about this thing? It's a game for the PS3 that basically recreates Yu-gi-oh-esque card battles. You throw an actual physical trading card down on a 3x3 grid and on screen the card magically comes to life in a very impressive looking 3D graphic. You can even pick up the card and view your little creature from different angles. It makes you feel more than a little like God, and the experience is truly unique. If they market this right and include enough expansions, this could be the PS3's killer app it so desperately needs right now. Gimme!
I bought a whole bunch of cool DnD goodies for real cheap. Wacky dice, a wet-erase play mat, and more. I can't wait to break it in.
Won a free DVD at the Browncoats (Firefly fan club) Meeting and got to meet Jess, which was my older brother's old squeeze. And if either Jess or Justin ever read this post, I deny ever using the word squeeze. You read it wrong. Seriously.
Sunday was kinda awkward since I basically was a dick and pissed everybody off the whole day. We made reasonable time coming home though, and everything seemed better when I got back in my own bed, and even more so when I got to see Mr. Mike again. So many of my friends have been traveling this summer, it's really nuts!
Overall the hostel gets a thumbs up. Here are the pros and cons.
+ Amazing location. 3-4 blocks from the con, supermarket, trolley station. Very convenient.
+ Private rooms were very clean and cozy.
+ Stupidly affordable. The whole week of Comic-Con for less than $300. I will be booking again.
+ Friendly activities and facilities staff.
+ Public kitchen was very well-stocked and had plenty of seating.
+ Easy access to fresh towels, blankets, sheets, etc.
- Shared restrooms were pretty awful (dirty floors, cockroaches, broken showers)
- Staircase AND elevator both in desperate need of repair.
- Manager was noticeably grumpy and called the Comic Con crowd "a bunch of dip-shits"
Im sure there's a bunch of stuff I'm forgetting, but it was all so much to take in. Very glad to be home, though. Viva San Diago!
-Summer school teaching gig came to a satisfying close. My final seemed to challenge the students JUST enough, and everybody passed my class. Granted I had to bump two students up by a single percentage point, but considering that they were already taking this class a second time, to make them repeat it a third time for the lack of a single percent seemed dumb. All in all it was a great experience that really changed my perspective on what teaching is like. More on that in a sec.
-Most hurtful thing from teaching summer school?
A student asked a classmate what we learned whilst he was absent. The students answer? "We don't learn anything in here. We just do stuff." I don't know if he knew that I heard, but I felt slapped in the face, and not in the playful Jennie-Kristal kind of way.
-Most inspiring?
The assistant principal approached me and said that she thought the English chair made a "huge mistake" in not hiring me for the fall. That and several students put flowery notes on the back of their finals telling me how much they will miss my class and how I made summer school fun.
- So teaching... Yeah... Still haven't found a job for the fall yet, and the semester begins in less than a month. I've kind of made a personal decision to myself. I have an interview on Tuesday for Arroyo Seco and prospects at Granada and Rio Norte. I none of those follow through I think I'm just gonna sub for a semester/year. Teaching summer school four hours a day EXHAUSTED me. It feels like a defeat to say this, but I don't know if I'm ready for a full day of all that. Must remember to call Steve about sub-ing advice.
-Comic Con! Woo to the Oot! This was without a doubt the best con I have ever attended. Here are the highlights.
I confessed my love for Jewel Staite loudly, albeit anonymously, during the Stargate Atlantis panel. She said "Thank you" and the moderator told me to "Calm down guy." She seems like a real sweet person, even if you ignore her heavy involvement in the animal rights movement.
Stan Lee called me a super-hero and let me shake his hand during the Who Wants to Be a Superhero panel. I was so excited my entire body was shaking and I thought I might cry. Shaking his hands was on my "Die Happy" list, and now I can proudly strike my pencil through that one.
I got to ask Tyler Mane (aka Sabretooth) a question at the Rob Zombie panel, and despite his intimidating stature he acted real sincere and grateful to his fans. He even told one guy to "Scream for me."
Kristal, Jennie, Bryan, and I all participated in a Zombie Walk Friday afternoon. In full zombie make-up (torn clothes, fake blood, grayed face) we shambled in-character from Seaport Village all through downtown San Diego and ended up at the convention center. As Jennie said in her blog, I too was surprised at how many bystanders snapped pictures, but the whole crowd (about 50-70 zombies total) really got off on it, and I think the positive attention improved our performance. People were either thrilled, annoyed, or confused by our presence, and it felt like a great big social experiment just seeing so many different reactions. It was also great to go with friends, since I could spontaneously take a big ol' bite out of Bryan's shoulder and really get some surprised reactions. All in all, sooooo much fun. Big Thank You's go out to Kristal for getting us all involved and Jennie for doing our makeup. Picture shall be posted shortly.
While still in full zombie attire, I stumbled into a Ray Harryhausen panel and asked him who would win in a fight between King Kong and the Kraken from Clash of the Titans. I was saddened when he gave a cop-out "I don't know" answer. To be fair, I think my appearance threw him a bit off guard.
The Eye of Judgment... Two words: Holy cow! Have you heard about this thing? It's a game for the PS3 that basically recreates Yu-gi-oh-esque card battles. You throw an actual physical trading card down on a 3x3 grid and on screen the card magically comes to life in a very impressive looking 3D graphic. You can even pick up the card and view your little creature from different angles. It makes you feel more than a little like God, and the experience is truly unique. If they market this right and include enough expansions, this could be the PS3's killer app it so desperately needs right now. Gimme!
I bought a whole bunch of cool DnD goodies for real cheap. Wacky dice, a wet-erase play mat, and more. I can't wait to break it in.
Won a free DVD at the Browncoats (Firefly fan club) Meeting and got to meet Jess, which was my older brother's old squeeze. And if either Jess or Justin ever read this post, I deny ever using the word squeeze. You read it wrong. Seriously.
Sunday was kinda awkward since I basically was a dick and pissed everybody off the whole day. We made reasonable time coming home though, and everything seemed better when I got back in my own bed, and even more so when I got to see Mr. Mike again. So many of my friends have been traveling this summer, it's really nuts!
Overall the hostel gets a thumbs up. Here are the pros and cons.
+ Amazing location. 3-4 blocks from the con, supermarket, trolley station. Very convenient.
+ Private rooms were very clean and cozy.
+ Stupidly affordable. The whole week of Comic-Con for less than $300. I will be booking again.
+ Friendly activities and facilities staff.
+ Public kitchen was very well-stocked and had plenty of seating.
+ Easy access to fresh towels, blankets, sheets, etc.
- Shared restrooms were pretty awful (dirty floors, cockroaches, broken showers)
- Staircase AND elevator both in desperate need of repair.
- Manager was noticeably grumpy and called the Comic Con crowd "a bunch of dip-shits"
Im sure there's a bunch of stuff I'm forgetting, but it was all so much to take in. Very glad to be home, though. Viva San Diago!