Pressing Puzzles

This posting is kind of a sequel to the last posting dealing with Self-Image #47. I mentioned in that post that instead worrying about your appearance, maybe you're better off trying to show others what you can do rather than concerning yourself with appearances. Being able to go out and help others is called the mission field...or basically glorifying God. If you simply do something helpful to someone else and not boasting about it then you're giving God the glory. It doesn't mean you have to go to some foreign country and hand out bibles to be on a mission. In many ways, my classroom is my mission field. I see hundreds of students every day and there are a few times when religion is brought up by the students and I'm able to talk with them about it. I will be honest and tell you that there are times when I wish I could do more than just be in the classroom, but I realize this is where the Lord wants me to be and I'll just have to deal with it. So...You never know...

Here's a real tough issue that I've semi addressed in a blog or two. Before I was taking medication for my mood stabilizer, I rarely had given self-image a lot of thought. As I've mention before, I was teased a lot when I was younger and they tried to demoralize the way I looked, dressed or spoke; but I didn't give it much creed. I believe a little push with self-image can be beneficial if it improves your life. The Lord does say that our body's are a temple and we to take care of it, but we can't obsesses over our imagine. It wasn't until I was a little older that I tried a little harder to make myself look better for the girls.  I guess if I allowed the tease to really affect me then I might have been typing this blog as we speak. Society seems to believe that most females have the hardest time with self-image. To be honest, this is a concept that I'm still gaining a real understanding for how girls get their image. Is it the words I say? Is it my ...

I might have Asperger's, but I can still swim. I know of too many kids who are full blown teenagers and still don't know how to swim. When I was growing up, I always seemed to be near water, and I'm not referring to the bathtub! We didn't have a pool, but when summer hit, we were off to the lake. Most of the time was spend at Stockton Lake which is located in the center of Missouri. I have lots of memories from my time down there. We used to have a unique boat. My dad called it a squirt boat, but I think it went by a different name; basically the boat didn't have a regular propeller, it would suck up water and shoot it out as propulsion. The boat was actually pretty cool. There as one summer when I was a kid and my dad and I were going to go get my brother who was at the lake shore. As my dad and I walked pass a pickup truck a German Shepard jumped out from under the truck and attacked ME! I was bitten in the back of right leg. In all honesty, I don't remember ...

I never thought of myself as a good test taker. I mean, tests like the ACT and SAT test are only good for finding out how well you can take a test. I remember having to take all kinds of tests. MMAT, ACT, C-BASE, Finals for college classes, and of course those wonderful teaching tests. As a teacher, I had to give the MAP and EOC tests. I realize the value of a test, but I think it doesn't always show a true comprehension of the material. With my Asperger's, it's difficult for me to remember anything...especially stuff for a test! Not all tests are just ones for a school, college or professional life. There are many times when a test can become personal. One real open observation I've noticed is that women, like my wife, will throw out a comment, question or scenario and see what the man's response would be. They're testing us to see where we stand or how we react to the set-up. I'm saying this is a little unfair to the man, but there are times when gettin...

I'm sure the first thought after reading the title is "this isn't one of those weird poem things you'd hear at a coffee place is it?"; I can safely say no to that answer, but there is a deep meaning behind this. On Monday April 15, 2013 I was walking to my car to go home for the day after teaching. I was really tired and as I walked, I wasn't really paying any attention on where I was trending. I was crossing a small grassy area when suddenly I felt an odd thing as I stepped down on my right foot. At once this little baby rabbit screeched out of pain from me stepping on it. It startled me at first, but I kept going and the baby was crying like an irritating car alarm. I turned back to take a quick look, but I did nothing else to help it. I continued to head back to my car and I could still hear the wailing of the rabbit in the distance. I knew that the rabbit was only being instinctive and staying still so predators wouldn't find him was correct, but that...

If " November " was going to be the title of my autobiography then " April " would be the sequel. If you've been reading the blog for a while, you would understand why I would do this. But, for those who are new here are the reasons. To start, my beautiful wife's birthday is in April. Back on April 13, 1989, I took Jaimee out on a date for her birthday. We first caught an early movie then we went to the Pepper Corn Duck Club ( Which sadly isn't there anymore! ). The Duck Club was one the best restaurants in Kansas City. ( By the way, I did have their duck .) It really was a perfect evening, but that was nothing in comparison to the finale of the night. After we were done with dinner, I took Jaimee to a park near one of the fountains that we have all over the city. ( KC is known as the city of fountains...no kidding! ) I sat Jaimee on a bench and then I knelt now and asked her to be my wife. The whole proposal thing was really tricky because I wanted it ...

Being a teacher as long as I have and seeing thousands of students over the years, I have a terrible habit of trying to remember names. There have been times when I run into a former student and I want to so badly try to remember their name, but dejectedly I usually end up having to be refreshed on their name...and many times which school they attended! I really feel disappointed when the student is looking at you in hopes that I would remember everything about them. I guess I can remember when I was younger and I'd see my former teachers and some of them would remember my name (though I'm not sure if that's a good thing or bad thing). Although, I have had other teachers not remember my name, but they remember me by my face. So to all my students that I've had or will have, I apologize if I can't remember your name, but understand I will probably recognize you by your appearance. I have noticed that as my wife has gotten older, many people don't realize it...