End of Summer and Other Stories

Well, this weekend is it.
No big plans.

Work in the yard today.
Mow and clean the house tomorrow.

A rather uneventful summer.

Mom is coming up and we are going to finish my classroom on Monday.
Tuesday, ironing and other preparations.
Wednesday and Thursday are institute.
Friday, first day for students (1/2 day).

It will be nice to return to some sort of schedule.
How tight am I going make it? I do not know.
Things I need to do; Things I want to do.

Ending the summer with so many unfinished projects, I do not want to set myself up for continued failure. Still, I have to get things together.

As for the school year, I am a bit excited, but also nervous. Maybe more so the later.
This year I am planning to run a 'tighter ship' and I am not quite sure how to do it without being somewhat of a jerk.

Other things.....

I've been watching the summer Olympics. This year, Beijing has put on quite a show. They spent somewhere between 45-80 billion. As anticipated, there have been issues:

1. Parts of the opening ceremony were digitally enhanced. Some stations stated this during the ceremony, while others did not. Not much of a big deal. In this 'techno-age,' why not.
   
2. A child soloist (singer) during the ceremony was not the child who actually sang the song. The actual child was deemed "unattractive."
3. Various judging issues, with some saying there is a bias against the U.S. The same performance by two different athletes seems to result in the U.S. receiving a lower score.
4. Judging complaints from other countries as well, with one athlete tossing his bronze medal on the floor- a Swedish wrestler; he was stripped of the medal afterwards for poor sportsmanship.
5. Age of the female gymnasts. The rule is 16 to compete, but there are conflicting reports of the ages of the girls on the Chinese team.

Medals so far:
The U.S. has won the most thus far, 54, but China leads with gold medals, 27.

I think the medals are unique and really beautiful. I like how they incorporated the circle of jade into the medal.

And then, of course, there is "Phelps Phever."
Michael Phelps has won seven gold medals for swimming, equaling the number won by Spitz in '72. He has one more race to go, and will probably make eight- the most won by an athlete in an Olympic season. Already, he has won the most medals for any athlete (swam in previous Olympics). I did not watch the Athens 2004 games. There is so much media coverage on him, that I almost feel compelled to watch.

He is breaking record after record. Yesterday, he won the 100m butterfly by 1/100th of a second.

During interviews, he seems rather nice, down-to-earth. Still, he is somewhat odd, at least the media is playing him to be this way.

Previous report of his diagnosis of ADD as a child. His mother directed his energies into sports. He found his knack in swimming.

Also as a child, he was picked on by other children. He does have protruding ears and a strange under-bite/ jaw alignment. Also, he is somewhat 'gangly' (tall and thin). Along with behaviors associated with ADD, I'm sure he was a target.

These two things define him as an 'underdog,' which people love to hear and associate with.

In addition, the media have scrutinized his body:

• His legs relate to someone who is 6', whereas his torso relates to someone who is 6'8". He is 6'4" (I think), with an arm span of 6'7." Somewhat dismorphic, but has the advantage of strong legs and a long stretch.
  
• He is double-jointed in his knees and elbows, giving him more flexibility.
• Some say his ankles and wrists are the same. His hands and feet are somewhat over-sized.

It will be interesting to see what happens after the games.
I guess he made 25 million from endorsements after Athens. How much more can he make?

Back to my life....

Money worries already. I am estimating my gas expenditures based on $4/gallon, so around $65/week ($130 a pay cycle). I was paid yesterday. After paying Citibank loan, Rockford college loan, and Toyota loan, I ran my bi-weekly trip to Target and Woodmans. I narrowed the lists while I was shopping. I have $140 left. I will be out of cigarettes today and I wanted to get my car washed. We shall see.

I applied for after-school positions, and spoke with the athletic director. She asked me about doing the sports tutoring after school and being a timer/score-keeper. It does not pay much, but it is something.

I will try to squeeze in Spanish tutoring as well.

Still, I am still somewhat hesitant and disturbed from the phone call. Seeing a few students this week, it has been interesting to hear what they are saying- what students have said about me over the summer. This, among other things, just adds to my unsettled feeling.

I need to make a plan.
So I returning, once again, to my goal-planning cycle.
I've been here time and time again; It is tiresome.

Where do I want to be in five years, and how am I going to get there?
Lots to think about.