The Future is Theirs

My daughter graduated 5th grade today and I was really blown away by what some of these kids have planned for the future. Brain surgeons, authors, athletes, aid workers and more. The ceremony was terrific and despite me having very bittersweet feelings about seeing my daughter graduate, it was a really good day.

Earlier this year, I taught a Junior Achievement class to my daughter's 5th grade class. It was my 4th time doing this sort of volunteerism, and I continue to really love the experience. As with most volunteer activities, I started out thinking this would be a great way to give something back. In the end though, it's me that gets the most out of the time I think.

This year's class wrote me notes after our sessions ended. While it's always nice to get a thank you, these notes really went over the top. I feel so lucky to have had the chance to show some of these kids more about business and to get them excited about their own futures.

Stephen wrote "It was cool to see how much of a difference unit production and mass production worked. Thank you so much for talking with us about business."

James wrote "I learned that you can find ads almost anywhere."

Anthony wrote "I never knew there were different typs of advertising. I just thought advertising was advertising!"

Jen wrote "When I grow up I want to be a sole proprietor and open a nail salon called Jen's Tens."

Alison wrote "I really enjoyed the toy store lesson because it showed me how a business really needs a lot of different people and equipment. I found the advertising lesson interesting because now when I see a commerical on TV I try and figure out what type of ad it is."

Not only do I think Junior Achievement has a great model, I think it's a super way to bring real world expertise and really rich extra content into the classroom. I can't wait until next year...

Kids Say (and Write) the Darndest Things

My 10 year old wrote this poem for a school project. As I was reading, I was getting more and more alarmed. Had I misread her? Am I a bad parent? Read the poem, and then find out what it's really about at the end.

Over the Wall

The world was spinning
Around and around and around
It left me behind.

The tragedy crashed down on me
Like rocks falling in an ocean.
It broke the surface and stayed below.

Waves lapped against the shore
As people tried to mend my heart

While sadness twisted it
Into crazy shapes.
As pretzel. I'm still confused.
A worm. I don't understand.
A bird. I try to fly above my depression.

It's like a wall, a great looming wall.
It crushes my heart.
It crushes my dreams.

Over the wall I climb.
High, high, high, until the wall is nothing but a memory.
If I fall, I go right back up.
High, high, high.
Into the sky.

So I'm reading this (it was printed and mounted on a purple piece of construction paper) and thinking oh my god, my baby girl has some real issues. When I asked her what the poem was about, she told me it was about her grandfather, who recently died.

I just about fell apart myself and hugged her, thankful that she is in fact, a superb human being.

Wow, I Love Being a Coach

I'm excited beyond reason because it's softball season again... and once again, I'm coaching! I want to coach kids full time someday. I love it that much. I think sometimes I was actually born to be a camp counselor.

In any case, I usually send out an e-mail to parents with some guidelines every season to help orient parents to my coaching vibe and style. This is part of the email I just sent.

Also, it's worth mentioning that the girls will get a chance to play most positions this year except for 1B and Pitcher. We have to be careful about who plays 1B to avoid injuries. As for pitching, if your girl wants to pitch and hasn't before, please talk to one of us. First time pitchers are going to have to earn their way onto the mound by practicing at home and before games. If they want to pitch, they are going to have to earn it!

While we do keep score in this league, please do remember that it is mostly instructional and not competitive. Yes, we'll try to win, but that's not the focus. My personal goal each year is to help the girls get to understand the game and to want to come back and play next season.

Finally, please do not address the umpires for making bad calls during the season. If you feel that there was a bad call, come talk to one of the coaches quietly. The umps do a terrific job and the best they can - again, it's not a competitive league, so there should be no reason for harassing them at any point.

Please do enjoy seeing your girls grow as ball players, it should be a fun year!

Opening day is this Saturday, sweet!

I Had an "AH-HA" Moment

By now, you should have probably figured out that I'm reading Eckhart Tolle's "New Earth" and following the online class with Oprah. Yea, yea, I know.

I've posted a few times on Tolle - here and here.

In any case, I actually had an "ah-ha" moment that has been hard to explain, even to myself. While on vacation last week the galaxy seemed to click into place for me. We were all sitting around the dinner table talking, looking out over the ocean and suddenly I was awash in the most wonderful, amazing feeling. I felt like my entire body started to float up over the table and I was looking down on my family and myself. I felt totally connected to them at that moment and even managed to catch myself aware of the feelings as it was happening.

Can't explain it much further than that. It was a special feeling and totally unexpected. The world is a wonderous place and quite hard to explain at times.

More Greenscreen fun!

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Originally uploaded by msirkin

Our latest fun with greenscreens. See all of my greenscreen pics including Battlestar Galactica, American Idols and more!

The technique isn't that hard, but it does require great lighting (which is tricky at best) and software that makes it easy to drop out the green background. I'm using an old version of Express Digital's Sport and Event software (leftover from when I ran a photography company), but you could use Photoshop as well.

5th Graders Have Mad Skillz

My 5th grader recently did a report for Social Studies and decided to use Google Maps, along with a fictional diary to illustrate Ponce de Leon's journey and life. I think in 5th grade, all I could do was stutter around girls and play with my baseball cards.


View Larger Map

My Kids and Wife Are Away

And I'm sad about it. Come home soon!

Mr. Mom

Be afraid kids, very afraid.

My wife is headed to Florida next week for some family stuff and is leaving me to tend for my 2 kids all week.

I'm going to blog about my week as Mr. Mom as best I can starting on Sunday night if possible. Here are a few of the things I'm going to have figure out:

- laundry (haven't done laundry I think since college)
- dinner every night (hey, I do cook every so often, but not every night!)
- putting kids to sleep on time (and not watching an extra episode of The Simpsons with them instead)
- getting kids to school on time
- girls hair
- girls clothes
- hell, anything to do with getting girls ready to go out into the world
- snacks
- checking homework
- picking up and dropping off of various kids
- showering myself
- getting some sleep
- getting to work and then home without forgetting the kids schedules
- softball games
- lacross practice

OH MY FRICKEN GOD.

This can't possibly end well.

Stay tuned.

HELP

I'm in trouble, big trouble. My 9 year old is an e-mail fool - emailing everyone she can get her hands on - including me. We even have "code names" for each other - she's "Red Fox (RF)" and I'm "Pop Goes the Weasel (PGTW)." Names are deleted for privacy, as if that actually existed at this point.

Yesterday, we left her alone for less than 20 minutes in the house. When I checked my e-mail I read the following:

Subject: HELP

pgtw,
here is the latest news report:
a girl named [name deleted] Sirkin (age 9) had been practicing lacrosse outside
with her younger sister, [name deleted] , who was just learning. Soon [name deleted]
had to go to real lacrosse practice and her parents left her at home.
her dad was out golfing, and had promised to come back soon. her mom
wouldn't be back 'till [name deleted]'s lacrosse practice was over. after 11
minutes she called her mom but her dad's voice came on. "sorry but i'm
busy right now. please leave a detailed message and i'll get back to
you as soon as you can. thanks for calling." [name deleted] left a message
asking when he would be back so they could get over to softball
practice. minutes passed. no call. so [name deleted] decided to send a message
to her dad. here is what she wrote:
pgtw,
here is the latest news report:
a girl named [name deleted] Sirkin (age 9) had been practicing lacrosse outside
with her younger sister, [name deleted] , who was just learning. Soon [name deleted]
had to go to real lacrosse practice and her parents left her at home.
her dad was out golfing, and had promised to come back soon. her mom
wouldn't be back 'till [name deleted] 's lacrosse practice was over. after 11
minutes she called her mom but her dad's voice came on. "sorry but i'm
busy right now. please leave a detailed message and i'll get back to
you as soon as you can. thanks for calling." [name deleted] left a message
asking when he would be back so they could get over to softball
practice. minutes passed. no call. thanks for reading her story.
rf

Funny eh?

Kids Questions for Santa

My kids are asking some interesting questions this year of the man in red...

Syd's Questions (she's 7):

1. Why do you wear a red suit?
2. Why is Xmas day on the 25th
   
3. Is Rudolph in good shape?
4. How are the other reindeer?
5. Is Rudolph still head of the team?
6. Do you like to be Santa Claus?
7. Does Rudolph talk?
8. How did you get the name Kris Kringle?
9. How did you become Santa?
10. Is Meister Burger real?
11. Is it chilly out there?
    

Ju's Questions (she's 9)

1. Why did you choose to be Santa?
2. When did you start?
3. How did you find Rudolph?
4. Is it cold up there?
5. Do you need special coats, like the red one?
   

I wonder what his answers will be?