The silence between the notes

Like many teachers who have moved to an online format in the last few weeks, I’ve found myself in days of back-to-back Zoom meetings , and I’ve lost track of how many hours I’ve had to squint through my aching eyes at all my multitasking screens . On the bright side, I’ve found inspiration and creativity in imagining my classes and student interactions in new ways. But on the painfully bright side, these screens really do hurt after a while! So I’m going to keep this list of tips short and simple…because I want to go close my eyes and I’m betting you do too! To combat your increased time with online teaching and conferencing: 1)       Schedule breaks between your meetings. Over the course of a day, a few 15 minute breaks can make a big difference in your physical and mental endurance! As teachers, we’re not used to taking short breaks but this is a necessary shift now that you’re homebound! Stand and walk around your house, open your posture, stretch yo...

  I'm an incredibly private person when it comes to my inner questions and fears and ideals. I've only ever shared those with a short list of individual confidants. Although I doubt that most people in my world really realize that there's so much they don't know about me...because I'm also an unusually philosophical and reflective person, and I DO SHARE those reflections sincerely and authentically with my friends/coworkers/etc. when I feel it's important to our purpose or our working relationship. But it's also likely that there are more sensitive, even controversial topics hidden deep below the surface of what I'm comfortable sharing...Until someone manages to open the floodgates and establish themselves as trustworthy enough to handle the rest...then since all of my ideas somehow relate to one another, I can't seem to stop until I explain all of them at once to the poor unsuspecting soul who offered to listen for the first few minutes. ...

As you've probably heard by now, I've been preparing for an exciting fundraiser for the Spokane Christian Youth Theatre: Dancing with the Celebrities!  I'll be performing tomorrow, April 25th at 7PM at the Bing Theatre with my celebrity partner, the uber-entertaining reporter Casey Lund.  Casey and I have taken on some fun challenges in our mashup of a routine: Salsa, aerobics, kick, swing, hip hop, partner stunts, and plenty of comedy!  You're welcome to check out our promo video for a sneak peek.   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LMPiNpptaRg     But in addition to practicing our skills for a solid performance, we're also hoping to help raise funds for Spokane's CYT.  The couple who raises the most money will be announced as the WINNER of the competition, so any little bit you can give will help the theatre AND help US! Even if you can't join us tomorrow night, you're still welcome to donate to us on-line: Just be sure to select our n...

Full disclosure: most of the letters, emails, lesson plans, and blog posts I've written recently have not actually been "written" in the traditional sense. Since working on electronic devices has been causing more eye pain and headaches lately, I've put down the keypad and picked up the microphone. I have been using talk/text, voice memos, and my new best frienemy, Siri, for almost everything. Likewise, I've taken to listening to most of my entertainment. Sometimes I listen to the usual audio entertainment (Pandora, iTunes, radio, etc.), but other times, I want something more engaging. T wo of my new favorite activities include listening to books on YouTube and listening to my favorite Netflix TV shows. S ince my laptop might otherwise lure me into TV viewing temptation, I've started using the "pic mute" function. (I.e., I turn my screen to black so that I don't accidentally start watching.) Ironically, that means I really have no idea wh...