Ah, Summer!

Written on 7-5-15.

    We are on vacation.  Phew!  June is over.  We made it to July.  With The First Tee, the Bisti Writing Project, and the Santa Fe train the trainers training, June was a hectic month.  And, I’m supposed to be retired?  Mostly it was The First Tee that made it so busy, but that was definitely a work of joy and love.  It all was.  To celebrate, Belinda and I spent the night at a brand new Hampton Inn in Cortez yesterday.  It had literally been open for exactly one week, according to a lady who looked like she was in charge. 
    We chose Cortez in order to stop at the cabin on our way home to spend the night here tonight.  The Edgertons had the cabin for the 4th of July, so we waited until today after they had left to spend our one night.  Danielle left the Edgertons and the cabin to come hang with us yesterday, though, and we chose to go to Mesa Verde.  We stopped...

The First Tee Carnival and the Dynamic Duo

6-30-15

    Two days left before the end of our first summer session, and for that matter, the first ever session of The First Tee here in Aztec with yours truly as coach.  It’s been spectacular.  I have joked that it’s like setting up a carnival, but that’s not too far from the truth.  What follows is a list of just some of the materials/supplies I have bought and/or used for this session: soccer balls, frisbees, foam noodles, decorative duct tape, cones, hula hoops, Nerf footballs, plastic baseball bats and small foam baseballs, badminton rackets and birdies, small nets, and more.  I have also utilized the SNAG equipment on more than half of the days. 
    A typical day includes...

Guy and Herndon, Work for The First Tee, and Robbie Ward

Written on 6-11-15.

    I’m sitting in the CTX at San Juan College, here for the purpose of drafting a proposal for how our Bisti Writing Project could help surrounding districts, their teachers, and therefore their students, too.  It’s lunchtime, but I have some time to do some writing before we reconvene.

On to golf…

    Guy and I had a blast at the Herndon Centennial Golf Course.  Like always, we teed off on #1 and then we were putting out on #18 a few seconds later.  That’s how it always goes, it seems.  I told him after our round that I wish we could play again tomorrow, and then play again on the weekend, but Belinda and I flew away from the east coast on Tuesday instead, and I will be playing this Saturday at Riverview.  That will be fun, of course, but it won’t be a round of golf with my brother.  I titled my last post, A Rare Treat, and that’s how it is when I play with Guy and we are all alone; it just doesn’t happen very often. 
    We chose to work cooperatively.  I thought we could shoot an 85 or better with our best ball score.  Par was 71, so I thought we could keep it from going over +14. 
    We didn’t get to play...

Becca's Birthday and R and R in Reston

Written on 6-8-15.

    Happy birthday, Becca!  Becca would smile knowing she has made her way into my golf journal again.  Today is her 19th birthday.  Our other baby is continuing her adventure into adulthood by taking part in an immersive Spanish class that is in Costa Rica right now.  We are so proud of all of our children.  Kyle started an exclusive internship as a hardware engineer today, James is in New Zealand and loving life for his business/marketing major, and Danielle is working hard at her new job as crew leader to earn tons of money this summer.
    I am back on Guy and Annmarie’s deck/patio, but this time I am all alone.  Guy took ShyShay to violin practice, Annmarie has her cousin and client Tara over for a workout downstairs, and Belinda is taking a walk around the neighborhood.  We fly out of here tomorrow at 12:32 to head back to Denver and then on to Durango where Danielle will pick us up, I hope.  It will be great to see her again.
    It’s been a...

A Rare Treat

Written on 6-6-15.

    This is a rare treat.  I am sitting on Guy and Annmarie’s back patio, under their large pale green umbrella.  Guy is inside starting dinner.  Belinda is on the opposite end of the corner shaped couch I am also sitting on.  Wait, she just got up; she has left to go help Guy with dinner.  To my right, out on the lawn on their oversized hammock, ShyShay and Annmarie rock ever so gently to and fro, as easily as the treetops that are swaying back and forth with the mellow breezes above us.  Above those treetops, an unidentified bird rides the wind, coasting out of view in an instant.
    I have just completed my Level 1 training as a First Tee Golf Coach in Baltimore.  It was a laid back, entertaining, busy, activity-filled, and motivating three days.  We enjoyed a pleasant mixture of sitting down to learn from presentations and getting out to observe or take part in actual lessons. 
    This morning, I took the lead with our Blue Group’s lesson on courtesy and targets and alignment, and it all went swimmingly.  We got some extremely positive feedback from the group that observed us and from the trainers/coaches themselves. 
    I can do this.  I was in my element, and I am in my element as a First Tee coach.  The teacher in me was shining through brightly.  I look forward to conducting my own sessions and lessons back in Aztec.  The First Tee is right for me, because it involves golf, my favorite sport, and I’ll be helping children to learn values and golf skills.
    My right foot is soaking in some soapy water.  I cut my big toe’s toenail a bit too short the other day, and it feels like an ingrown toenail is beginning.  Then I just stubbed/scraped the pad just below that same big toe when stepping up to Guy’s wooden deck.  Ouch!  I pray the toenail corrects itself quickly and doesn’t get infected.  The goal and hope is to play golf while I am here, of course.  I was just tortured for three days watching other people play a gorgeous golf course, Pine Ridge, while I attended my training.
    Oh, and this is the first trip EVER for Belinda and me as we begin our new adventure as “retirees.”  I use quotation marks because we have not really retired; it’s more of a rewirement, Guy’s term and a term I really like to use to define where we are now and what we are doing.  We are not retiring form working, only from public education in Aztec.