I did not melt

Well here we are, the end of the semester! I made it, scratch that, I DID IT!!!! One who thought he could never go back to school, thought he would fail, thought I knew what I needed to know for life. I have learned a lot from this English class, some very useful, some not so much (for me). There are things that I will use going forward, for the rest of my life. I have started reading more, I am much more aware when I am sending e-mails to clients, and co-workers. I feel a since of education, when you are one of the few that do not have a college education it ways on you when people are consistently talking about it. When I have a member that asks which college I graduated from, and have to tell them I didn't go to college, they look at me like they are crazy taking financial advice from me. Although when it comes to life and financials, most people cannot learn about it, you are either good or not! (my opinion!) I am happy I started this adventure, and excited to continue, this summer I am going to take orienteering, I love to hike and be in nature. I have found a new respect for writing, but I am hoping there is not a lot of that in this class!

Spring break

Spring break is what it used to be for me. It was nice to have a week off from school and the homework. A week to spend with my family, a week to go to bed before midnight. I did appreciate it, but the work didn't stop, I still had to work every day, there were still chores everyday, bills still had to be paid! I remember when I was in high school and most of my friends went some where with there family, or even with a group of friends. They always came back with stories, and pictures that I was envious about. My family did not have the money to send me, or take me. My spring breaks consisted of me picking up extra hours at work so I could get ahead on my insurance payments, gas money, lunch money, or just to have some extra cash in my pocket. It was not what I wanted for spring break, but it was what I had and I dealt with it. There should be a mandatory spring break at every place of business, even if it were Friday through Monday, imagine what the employee attitudes would be like! I would find great comfort in my company giving me some time off in the spring to party it up, or clean house or what ever I wanted to do!

College?

I never liked school, I was never good at it. When I graduated from high school there was never intention to ever go back to what seemed the biggest struggle of my life. There was things to be done in the world, things to be changed, places to go, money to be made. I did just that, I have so many experiences that if I had sat in a classroom they would have never happened. I learned how to manage not only spending, paying bills, but investing at an early age. I bought my first house when I was 19, 2 years later turned that into a rental, and bought another one. I had drive to be successful, not every kid coming out of high school has that, so they need to go to college to figure that out. I always wondered why people spend so much money on learning things that most people will never use in the "real world". I am a banker, while I have learned many things from this English class, it is highly unlikely that I will use the majority of it, I do numbers not words! When I decided to go back to school, or should I say when my wife decided that I should go back to school, I was not excited to take on this adventure at all. There was a lot of feet dragging in the beginning, but as I got deeper in to the process it slowly transformed in to a good feeling. I am opening my mind to somewhat of an evil spirit from my past, and showing myself that I can be a good student, I am smart enough to earn a degree. I am showing my children that it is never to late to face the fears in our life, and take on the world. I am not sure that school will get me ahead in my career nor do I care, this is for me and my family.

Discipline

When it comes to disciplining children everyone has an opinion. I am a firm believer that spanking is part of discipline. It should not be used in the place of teaching a lesson, and it should also be used sparingly. I have two children, my daughter needed a spanking one time, my son is a whole different story. We never spanked to hurt, we don't beat our kids, but sometimes you need to get the attention when all reasoning has been tossed out of the window. Our son was extremely difficult from the age 2-4, most boys are at that age. We tried several different techniques when he would go in to his tantrums, and most did not hold up. The worst is when you are out in a store and it comes on, what do you do? Some experts say you should leave and that is punishing the child. To me that is a punishment to the parent, because now you have to make another trip. I was at Target one day when my son was three, and he started to throw a tantrum, so I gave him a swat on the butt and told him to knock it off, to which he did. When I looked up there was a lady staring at me like I  just committed a horrible crime, so I politely asked her if she wanted one next! When it comes to ignoring your child's bad behavior, please do this at home, nobody enjoys watching and hearing your kid scream and throw a fit in the store or restaurant. There are discrete ways of dealing with it so do it! If you are not going to parent your child, or teach them to respect who will? Teachers hands are tied, because they can no longer discipline without getting in trouble. There is nothing wrong with a good ol fashioned spanking, done in good taste.

The Glass Castle

Jeannette Walls, author of the book, does a great job explaining her life. Walls keeps you wanting to read more. I had a hard time putting this book down, everyone can relate to this book in some way or other. Whether you grew up poor like the Walls family, or rich, we all went to school with someone who was less fortunate then ourselves. I would like to see this book in middle schools, in hopes that it could prevent a lot of kids picking on the less fortunate. It is amazing to me that there are people out there that are still living like the Walls family. Granite we have child services, that I believe is more involved in the child's welfare then when Jeannette was growing up. I believe neighbors, schools, family, and just plain strangers are less tolerable of child neglect. Jeannette Walls is a strong and courageous woman. Not many people are willing to lay it on the line to get out what needs to be out. I would highly recommend reading this book, it will make you grateful of the roots you come from, and what you have in life.

What is fun without dysfunctional

I believe that every family has some dysfunction in it. Who says what is right and what is not when it comes to being a family and how you act. I do believe there is a healthy dysfunctional, and a destroying dysfunctional. In my opinion it is the ones that try to cover it up or cant talk about it that is the destroyer. When you are able to talk about it, and admit that you are not perfect or better then any other family, that is when it becomes a healthy dysfunction.
I have a very large family, with uncles, aunts, cousins nieces and nephews there is 87 of us. In that mix there is Hispanic, African American, Asian, white, and American Indian. I have an aunt who is a lesbian, an uncle that is gay. My Grandpa married my grandmas sister, when she died, it was her dying wish! There is blue collar people, white collar people, business owners people, stay at home people, do nothing people, we have them all. When we get together it is 5 generations of pure chaos, you find yourself screaming at some points just to carry on a conversation with the person next to you.
To me this is what a healthy dysfunctional family looks like, we don't hide it, we wear it proud. We do not judge, we invite you in when you have know where to go for holidays, or you want to go to a bar b que but you just moved to town and don't know anyone. I believe that to have any fun in this short time we have on this planet, you need to be a little dysfunctional.

Spring fever

Maybe it is because the lack of winter we are having, but spring fever has started. This weekend I had a hard time keeping myself on track and motivated. I am excited for my daughters traveling soccer to start, even though when it comes, the driving will drive me crazy. I am excited to go on long bike rides with my son, who learned how to ride a bike last year. I am excited to go for walks with my wife where she is not freezing cold the whole way and complaining about Minnesota's longest season. We bought a new house about a year and a half ago, and have not had time to build our garden. We have been doing a potted garden, which the veggies do not turn out as good. I am more then ready to not have to wear a jacket to tend to the grill or my smoker. We have two kids and three dogs, so at this point in the year we are anxious to get the windows open, and for the dogs to lay around out in the soft green grass. I am ready for mother nature to awaken the trees, the flowers, all the animals and bugs that have down for the long rest. I am still not ready for the allergies, however I will take the bad with the good.

Facebook Generation

If my parents had a facebook page, I would surely except an invitation from them. It would be another way of communicating with them. If you asked me this question back when I was in junior high, my answer would be much different. I think if I would have had facebook back then, it would have been trouble! My daughter, who is 13 has a facebook account, and we are her friends, this was part of the deal so she could have one. I feel monitoring her account is very important, just as monitoring who she hanging out with or where she is going.
I do notice that kids who have grown up with facebook, and text messaging have a hard time with caring on conversation face to face. When my daughter has a friend over they spend half the time facebooking or text messaging. Now while I find this to be rude, their generation finds this acceptable, almost mandatory. I often think I was lucky to not have this growing up, although it would have been easier to find the keggers on Friday and Saturday nights, it would not had been as challenging and you were forced to actually seek out information and talk to new people.
Technology is great, my wife and I share a facebook account, which is rarely used. It is nice to see what are old friends are up to, and pictures of their families. Facebook does play a part in my life, it just does not control it.

Super Bowl Saturday

I enjoy the Super Bowl game for one reason, it is the only game of the year that my family sits down and watches together. I have often thought that having a game of this magnitude on a Sunday is kind of silly. Why wouldn't they have it on a Saturday. I think more people would travel, more business at the local taverns, more food sold at restaurants, just plain more money to be made. Not to mention the whole not feeling all that great at work on the following Monday; if they had it on Saturday, people would have a day to recover, so they would be more productive starting out the week. Although I do recognize that it would be taking business away from establishments on the Sunday, I think more people would be out and about Saturday to more than make up for it.

Favorite quote (week 3)

"What Descartes did was a good step. You have added much several ways, and especially in taking the colours of thin plates into philosophical consideration. If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants."  Quoted by Issac Newton 1676

The part that stands out to me the most is "If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants."  I have always been a leader, and have always looked at every person around me as a giant who has made me a leader.  You can not win a war with just a captain.
It was just this past year that this quote has been inbeded in to my way of life.  My best friend Justin, wife (Karen) was diagnosed with a rare cancer.  They had a 1 year old son, when they found out.  It came as a shock, because she is a very healthy woman.  What I saw them go through, mentally, physically, and financially is enough to bring anyone down to rock bottom.  I watched day by day, week by week, month by month, as their strength as a family grew to beat this cancer.  They taught me who I want to be as a husband, a father, and a friend. "If I have seen a little further it is by standing on the shoulders of Giants."

As for Karen, she kicked the cancers Butt!!!

Reine Marie Tupper (Dube`)

This name represents a large part of who I am today.  She was and always will be my Grandmother and Guardian angel.
She met my Grandpa when he was in the air force, World War 2.  She was born and raised in Quebec, Canada, and had 19 brother and sisters.  When she moved to Rochester, MN with my grandpa, she did not know how to speak much english, and he did not know much french.  She was a very courageous and strong young woman.
One of my favorite memories of my Grandma is her artistic abilities.  The countless hours of sitting in her art studio, at a park, in the woods, at a lake, any where that inspired art, watching her paint, or her teaching me (at least trying).  The smell of the fresh cut canvas, stretched on the easel; combined with the smell of the oil paints squeezed out on her painting palette, can be compared to the smell of freshly cut grass.  Watching her paint was such a mystery, I used to wonder how she did it, how could she see what she was looking at and put it on a canvas so perfectly, and with such grace.
I am not huge fan of art, nor am I any good at it, however I find myself standing in art galleries often trying to catch the scent of a freshly painted oil painting to give me a picture of my Grandma.
R.I.P. Grandma 

Lots of work to be done!

I am back, my wife and I have been in the Southern Caribbean for the last week.  It has been a planned trip for a long time, so when I decided to come back to school I knew it was going to be a lot of catch up.
I took an extra day off so I can get all caught up on work.  We had very limited Internet, however I was able to do some reading (in-between the Margarita's)!  I have a plan on how to get all caught up, and this is my first step, looking forward at trying to start this essay!

Why I am going to College

It started because I was turned down for a job promotion (because of not having a degree).  My wife, Tiffini, who is in school for her Masters, loves school and is very good at it, she has always wanted me to go back.  With another chance at getting a promotion, I decided these were good enough reasons to sign up for some classes and see how it goes.

Since I have started this process my reasons for going back to school have blossomed into much more.  I do believe this is going to make me a better man, I do believe this is going to make me a better role model for my kids, nieces and nephews.  Most importantly I am allowing to prove to myself that I do have what it takes to go to College and get a Degree.  Who knows maybe keep going to a four year!