Turning Myself In

Okay, I've been on hiatus see. On the lamb. Gored by a change of situation, work, and play.

The economy has me wrapped up and pinned down not unlike many out there in the blogosphere I suppose. But we're making the best of it.

I took a new job October first---well an additional job. If you've looked at my profile you may have noticed I'm a builder (and carpenter) of custom homes on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Our company name is Outer Banks Homes, Inc. We've been building here for just about 30 years. This is where I learned to build in fact. Our work has always included remodeling and repairs and now our schedule is filled by these type projects.

Several new home projects are circling in orbit around us but seem to have much inertia to overcome before we could begin construction. You know the owners have other properties to sell, etc. So the scale of our jobs are smaller in dollar volume and scope now, their approaching rhythm slower with gaps between starts.

So I received an offer to teach Construction Technology at our new high school, First Flight High, one mile from the Atlantic Ocean and about 1000 yards from the site of the Wright Brothers' first powered aircraft flight at Kill Devil Hill. The original teacher walked out after only 5 days. Wonder why? Yeah I did too, but I took the position anyway. With a sagging, maybe even sinking local building economy, it seemed I could handle both work obligations. Yes we continue to remodel, and now I am part lion tamer part teacher. There'll be more on this later. You'll be entertained as I have a degree, but not a teaching degree. I'm making it up as I go.

You see I have a B.A. in English literature along with my years experience as a carpenter/builder. These kids have had a head-on collision with the strangest animal they could ever imagine. Consequently they are required to learn to build and communicate concentrating on the written word. Educators call this teaching across disciplines and it has immense value.

This is translated to this particular audience in this way: "Unless you want to be someone else's "boy" in whatever you choose to do the rest of your life, you must learn to communicate effectively. You must have the ability to recognize and use the appropriate voice in whatever context you find yourself." Many of them are getting it. I'll let you know how it goes though. The challenges are larger than one teacher. Of this I am certain.

So now I have two jobs. Don't get me wrong, this is a happy misery as I have two kids in college. I'm happy to find additional work bike-riding distance from home. But until I'm more sure of the teacher side of myself, this has put a crimp on surfing and just playing in general. The coastal adventure continues. Christmas is almost here again. Meanwhile a chest to head-high glassy wave breaks on the local bars in 52-degrees of salty wetness. More later.