Summer Accomplishments?

[bobbob1313]

My only accomplishment this summer is that I got "promoted" to full time at the Miami Herald, which actually means that instead of just designing pages three days a week, I'll be designing pages three days a week, be in charge of the Sports section of the web site one night a week, and be in charge of the rest of the web site the rest of the week.

 

So it's kind of a lateral move, except I get more hours per week, and I seem to be impressing people with my desire to take the initiative and learn new skills, so that's good.

 

So, between that and moving into a place with just my wife, and learning how to balance a household budget and all of the various things that go along with not having a parental safety net anymore, I guess you could say I kind of became an adult over the summer.

 

Of course, I still stay up until 6 am on occasion, but still. Adult. Ish.

[uncool2pillow]

An exciting time to be working in Miami sports media.

[virtualreason]

This summer has been focused on three things: getting a lot better at my job, training for a marathon. and writing music.

 

1. I can leave the job starting in April and, while I'm starting to enjoy northern Wisconsin, I really need a bigger city. The goal is to get a job in Madison, and to do that, I need to get on top of my game. I have a feeling I'll be able to do it.

 

2. I've always wanted to get in shape, and this is how I'm going to do it. The training began in May and the marathon is less than a month away. I was never a runner before this, so I was definitely starting from scratch. In July, I finished a half-marathon in 1:59....just 30 minutes before they stopped runners because it was so hot and humid. My goal for the marathon is 4 hours.

 

3. Another thing I've always wanted to do was make some music. I've been writing all summer, and I have a good 8-10 songs so far, and I'll be finishing more in the next month or two. I still don't have much confidence in my voice, but that is coming along.

 

Other miscellaneous things: started eating as much organic food as possible, visited Detroit for the first time, went to Door County for the first time in over a decade (and subsequently slept in my car because it's so damn expensive), and went storm chasing a few times--no tornadoes, just a lot of damage and hail.

[moxiebean]

Ok, I should've figured that this was Indian. I knew I'd heard of it before. It sounds really, really good. I wonder if I'll have to get the asafoetida and maybe the fenugreek from an online source? But if I search a bit I should be able to find it locally I think. How long do you fry the mustard? Just until aromatic? Oh, and the dried red chilis...is there a specific variety?

 

See why they call me The Question Authority?

 

(Actually nobody does that)

Hee Hee.

 

Yeah, just fry the mustard until aromatic - I usually use powdered mustard & it seems to work fine. Dried chilis are for heat, so whatever you have on hand is fine too. You can get Asafoetida online or at an Indian grocery. It's truly nasty stuff (uncooked it smells like the first syllable of it's name..) but adding a pinch & frying it with mustard just adds that something-something. I've bought a bag of all of the other ingredients premixed as Rajwadi Pickle Masala (pickling spices) at our local Indian grocery. We have two Indian groceries in Savannah but only one Indian restaurant. Go figure.

[u2roolz]

Well, another summer almost in the books and Debbie Harry still hasn't found me or got me yet.

[radiatortunes]

Accomplishments: New job.

Big End-of-Summer Plans: Keep new job.

 

 

Me, too! I hope your's is going well.

 

 

2. I've always wanted to get in shape, and this is how I'm going to do it. The training began in May and the marathon is less than a month away. I was never a runner before this, so I was definitely starting from scratch. In July, I finished a half-marathon in 1:59....just 30 minutes before they stopped runners because it was so hot and humid. My goal for the marathon is 4 hours.

 

 

Great story. If you finished a half last month in under 2h under tough conditions, I think you'll do fine. I've been running since first year university, after having put on the "freshman 15." I was never a good runner and always had to train really hard just to be mediocre. Never did attain my sub-4 goal (did I mention I'm a mediocre runner!) but had a lot of fun trying. Good luck next month. Which race?

[virtualreason]

Great story. If you finished a half last month in under 2h under tough conditions, I think you'll do fine. I've been running since first year university, after having put on the "freshman 15." I was never a good runner and always had to train really hard just to be mediocre. Never did attain my sub-4 goal (did I mention I'm a mediocre runner!) but had a lot of fun trying. Good luck next month. Which race?

 

The half was the Rock 'n Sole half marathon in Milwaukee. The full is the Fox Cities marathon.

[welch79]

this summer, while not teaching, i rode 1500 miles on my bike (my annual goal is 2011 this year).

 

took some kids on a ten day tour through europe: germany, austria, liechtenstein, northern italy (the lakes!), and switzerland.

 

celebrated my 10th anniversary with my wife on a wonderful weekend trip to charleston, sc where we ate our way through town (great culinary tour).

 

prepared myself to begin a year at school where we have adopted a one-to-one ipad initiative in grades 4-12. kinda exciting...kinda scary. after one week in, it feels like i've been back a month.

 

all in all: greatest summer in recent memory.

 

ready for fall and cooler temps. and a week in oct in which i'll see wilco twice, fleet foxes and the avett bros.

[virtualreason]

prepared myself to begin a year at school where we have adopted a one-to-one ipad initiative in grades 4-12. kinda exciting...kinda scary. after one week in, it feels like i've been back a month.

 

What lucky school district is this?

[Sweet Papa Crimbo]

My only accomplishment this summer is that I got "promoted" to full time at the Miami Herald, which actually means that instead of just designing pages three days a week, I'll be designing pages three days a week, be in charge of the Sports section of the web site one night a week, and be in charge of the rest of the web site the rest of the week.

 

So it's kind of a lateral move, except I get more hours per week, and I seem to be impressing people with my desire to take the initiative and learn new skills, so that's good.

 

So, between that and moving into a place with just my wife, and learning how to balance a household budget and all of the various things that go along with not having a parental safety net anymore, I guess you could say I kind of became an adult over the summer.

 

Of course, I still stay up until 6 am on occasion, but still. Adult. Ish.

 

Congratulations Kiddo! Having been in the newspaper business for 15 years, I can say that I have seen a WORLD of changes. Sports Departments are now a mix of old warhorses and energetic kids with potential. Doing more with less, and then push for more.

I hope you keep plugging away.

[bobbob1313]

The average age of our Sports department is probably 37, but there's almost nobody within 13 years of that age, I think, so I definitely know what you're talking about.

 

Luckily, I started working the same week we made an institution-wide change to a new content management and production system, so I learned everything on the fly like everyone else, so I haven't been too out of place.

 

And yeah, picking up new skills is the only way I'm going to survive in this industry. Thankfully, everyone seems really happy with what I've done so far.

[welch79]

 

What lucky school district is this?

 

we are a small independent k-12 day school in knoxville: webb. enrollment around 1100 in the entire school. lovely little place.

[The Inside of Outside]

 

prepared myself to begin a year at school where we have adopted a one-to-one ipad initiative in grades 4-12. kinda exciting...kinda scary. after one week in, it feels like i've been back a month.

 

 

The school district I work in has had 1:1 laptops for grades 7-12 for six or seven years now. It is amazing how much it changes student learning, teaching, and what goes on in school. Much of it in a good way.

 

Good luck with the ipads!