Cabin Fever

Come on, Spring! What are you waiting for? I'm completely sick of cold, windy, wet, snowy, icy, yucky conditions!  To make it worse, I've been watching the Travel Channel every time there's a program about Florida, and I've been watching fishing shows on The Outdoor Channel.  Spring training has started for the MLB teams, and I'm ready for warmer weather!

Scholar Bowl

Congratulations to the Scholar Bowl teams on completing their successful seasons.  Both Varsity and Junior Varsity teams performed well during the regular season and during the NTC Tournaments. Also, several of our students were recognized as being top scorers in the NTC Conference.  Nice job!

Trivia Night

Booster Club Trivia Night is this Saturday, and the Wolverines are in it to win it!  I also respectfully suggest that the Booster Club institute a Team Spirit Award.  If we can't beat the other teams on the Trivia portion, we should have a lock on Team Spirit.

WOLVERINES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Informative Speeches

Seniors start delivering their second speech today. This time, they will be giving research-based informative speeches.  Topics range from a variety of health conditions to Abraham Lincoln's burial issues.  It should be an interesting couple of days listening to these presentations.

Winter Weather?

Will it hit us or will it miss?  If it gets us, how much snow will we get?  How much ice?  Will we have to dismiss early today?  Will we have a snow day tomorrow?

I don't have any answers, so I guess we'll just have to wait and see.  Personally, I'd rather not have the nasty weather. First, I'm always concerned about the safety of our student drivers, as well as the safety of my co-workers and everyone else on the road. Second, I'd rather not use the Emergency Days and be able to have the days off in nicer weather. Third, I hate being cold!

Email Problems

The regional email server is down, and has been for several days. If you've been trying to contact me via my school email address, I apologize for the inconvenience. Feel free to call me at the school if you need to get in touch quickly.

Scholastic Bowl

Saturday, Mrs. Ludwig and the NHS Scholastic Bowl team, with the help of many local lodge members, hosted the Masonic Scholastic Bowl Tourney.  I was a scorekeeper in one of the competition rooms, working with Mrs. Brown who was the moderator.  Congratulations to Mrs. Ludwig and the NHS team for finishing third!

Spicy Food?

Do you like it spicy?  Does it have to be hot enough to melt your face off?  You betcha!  If you like it spicy, you should try out the Thai Noodle restaurant in Mattoon.  It's on Broadway, next to the old Time Theater.  I recommend ordering the Ginger Chicken. I usually ask for it "medium" spicy.  OOF!!! I can't imagine what the hottest version is like. Either way, the food is incredible, and this is one of my new favorite restaurants. You should try it sometime.

LLC Guest Speaker

Thanks to Tim S. from the LLC Library for coming to visit the dual-credit Speech students at NHS.  He showed them a lot of information and research tips/techniques via the LLC Library Website.  He did an excellent presentation, and the students should benefit from the sharing of his knowledge.

Wild Oats Records

"Back in the day . . ." my former band, Shotgun Alley, signed a recording deal with Wild Oats Records in Nashville.  If you're interested, here's a link to the Wild Oats site featuring the old band.  I looked a lot thinner and younger in 2001!

http://www.wildoatsrecords.com/ShotgunPhotoLink.html

Et tu, Brute' ?

Students in English II just read the assassination scene in Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for Caesar to recognize his best friend among the assassins, and I can't imagine how difficult it must have been for Brutus to decide between his loyalty to his best friend and his loyalty to his country.  The other assassins, I believe, acted out of jealousy, not out of a sense of higher purpose.

And the Winner is . . .

Cayla B!  She gets the guitar, two t-shirts, a pack of Fender picks, and her choice of designs for the custom-painted hard shell case!  Thanks to all who participated.  The fundraiser was very successful, and the Art/Poetry Club should be able to go on a good field trip with these funds.

EIU Observer

Erin D. came from EIU to observe my classes today.  A prospective English instructor, she had the opportunity to witness my unique approach to teaching Shakespeare to high school kids.  Someday, I'm sure she'll have the chance to enlighten young minds in regards to the genius of Ol' Bill!

Variety Show Planning

Variety Show will be here before you know it, and the students have started plans and preparations.  I heard several entertaining ideas this morning; if these ideas actually come to life, this could be a stellar show.  I would still love to see and hear a group of 20+ students perform an acoustic version of the Foreigner classic, "Say You Will."  Check out this link.   I  wish I could sing half as well as Kelly Hansen does in this video.  As always, I'm not responsible for any inappropriate content on Youtube.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2i481jiOkkM

Raffle Update

The guitar raffle concludes Saturday night when I draw the winner at half-time.  We've only sold about 75 of the 300 tickets, so your odds are pretty good!  Last night, I played the guitar at the ticket table during the game, and it sounded really good!  It plays really well, too.  The highlight of the evening, though, was the two or three times that Victor L. came out and sang a few tunes.  That boy's gonna be a star someday!

Today, I've started on some designs for the custom-painted case.  Whoever wins the guitar will have a choice of five or six designs and various colors for most of the designs.

Strange Dream

Last night, I dreamed that someone left seven baby kitties in my classroom.  I like kitties, but I don't need seven of them in my room, especially since there is no litter box.

Cultural Expectations

I suppose I'm expected to be yammering about the Super Bowl, right?  Everyone seems to have something to say about the event and/or its associated madness.  So, for once, I'll go along with these expectations and share my thoughts.

1. I liked the Doritos ad with the goat.

2. I strongly disliked the Go Daddy and Calvin Klein ads.

3. I can't fathom why Beyonce, or anyone for that matter, would want to go out in front of that many people with so little clothing.  Whatever happened to modesty?

4. The highlight of the game was the kickoff return for touchdown early in the second half.

5. I ate too much junk food.

So, there you have it.  Hopefully, my thoughtful insight has contributed to the philosophical and intellectual improvement of the countless readers of this publication.