Somedays I'm Glad I Didn't Go To Law School

Like most English majors I knew, I was thisclose to law school.  It was that or teaching, since the goal of (I assume) most English majors - writing professionally - can seem woefully unrealistic and out of reach when walking past the podium bearing the university's official seal.  Once crossed, I opted for teaching.  I'd been substitute teaching throughout undergrad, and on the days that teachers left me actual lesson plans instead of a movie, I would drive home ecstatic, (except for that day in the kindergarten glass - between the crying, the pottying, the penguin play, and the fisticuffs over stickers - I almost kicked in the door to the playground to run away screaming). 

Today I had to wake up early for what is termed "food run Friday."  At 9AM I go to one of our sites in East Austin to get on a moldy bus, drive to Capital Area Food Bank, and pick up boxes and boxes and boxes of canned food, frozen meat, drinks, etc, to deliver to all of our other sites so that the kids can have dinner and snacks for the upcoming week, (every staff member does this one Friday a month). 

omg these boxes are heavy

Capital Area Food Bank also delivers.  Every Friday morning that I've pulled up to our East site, CAFB has had a large truck parked on the lawn, folding tables set up, and a long line of people waiting to get a few free bags of groceries.  I am always overwhelmed by the urge to ditch the warehouse-to-kitchen delivery, and instead jump behind a table to help pass out the grocery sacks. 

Now before I begin to enter Polyanna Sunshine Vomit mode, let me talk about a few of the things that make me really cynical about my job:

1) I hate it when loads of logistics and administrative work go into giving our kids free things, and there is not a thank you in sight.  For example: we are able to give free, BRAND NEW expensive tennis shoes (they seriously gave away the same pair of New Balances I bought for $160 last year), to kids through the Shoes for Austin program.  Rather than look happy, there were some kids who complained they didn't like the style of shoe they got.  I wanted to throw a shoe at them. 

2) Sometimes we are able to give away daily bus passes to kids to get home after programming.  Bus passes, even though discounted for our program and AISD, are still expensive.  Yet once word gets out that we have a fresh batch, there are ten kids surrounding me, stating that they need a bus pass, now, as though sleeping at school is the only other option.  The stipulation for getting one is having participated in one of our programs.  If they haven't met this requirement by my standards, then all hell and whining breaks lose, and sometimes a helpless chair gets shoved around in anger.

3) Free dinner, three times a week, and snacks on the non-dinner days.  How many plates of food have I had to go around and throw away because they were left throughout our facility?  Um, lots.  It's gross, and I get quite bitter about it. 

4) Ok, is my point made?  Trying to be giving isn't always easy, cheerful, or fun.  But that's true of everything.  If I was to stand on my cyber soap box and talk about how beautiful it is every day to work with disadvantaged populations, I'd hope everyone would label my writing as one-sided, false, and (dare I write it) falling into, in literature, what we call the "noble savage" syndrome, which would be a disgusting viewpoint. 

Now that I've got reality in check, I do want to talk about how awesome my job is sometimes, and how no amount of money can pay for the feeling that comes along with seeing someone else become empowered in a positive way. 


Girls Rock Camp is close to my heart and a perfect example.  Last night they had ten girls, most of them shy and nervously giggling, get set up with a drum set or a guitar, possibly for the first time in their lives.  No boys were allowed, despite several of them begging for a chance to come in during the girl's time, and (brace yourself for what sounds like cheese but isn't), the smiles on the girls faces when they had their instrument in hand was a month's paycheck.  Having been (still am?) a shy girl, I knew exactly what they were feeling when being told that they are talented, even if that talent hasn't been fully developed yet, they have a right to make noise, and have a supportive and eager audience of peers and adults.

Emily Marks, Heather Webb, and the other ladies of GRC really do rock! 

The "I Can" attitude is what we try to instill in all the programs we run.  "I Can" make good choices, "I Can" succeed at something constructive and beneficial, "I Can" interact with people who have my best interests in mind, "I Can" move beyond whatever has felt limiting in the past, "I Can" solve conflicts without self-destructive behavior or straight up quitting everything.

The difficulty is getting the kids to participate in programs - as we often compete with sports, babysitting, jobs, and the beyond-comprehension allure of walking around and doing nothing in the academic off hours.  Regardless, it's amazing how seeing ten girls with an instrument for the first time, ten boys excited about having an open forum of communication with an adult they admire, ten kids learning to knit because it looked like fun, ten people who really need food and are thankful to get just two bags of it early on a Friday morning, can make me glad that I'm not at a different job.  (Let's just not talk about the massive amount of paperwork, deadlines, and non-profit [quite literal] pay check for now...).

I don't read the bible much anymore, even though I keep meaning to sit down and do so, (and the Koran, and the Talmud...), but there is a verse from it that I try to remember when my kids are being especially moody, rude, or just all around difficult.  While not verbatim, it goes to the gist of Jesus saying to treat everyone you encounter - beggars, mean people, your mother in law - as though they were really him in disguise. 

Essentially, love all, and be patient with all, even if it's hard.   (Sometimes it's really hard.)

I know everyone is focused on helping Haiti right now, but if there's anyone looking to keep up that spirit and help out in Austin, here a few excellent places to start:

• Frontsteps - working to end homelessness.  Lennon and I plan to sign up as weekend volunteers.
  
• Capital Area Food Bank - helping Austin's hungry.
• Girls Rock Camp - empowering girls through music.
• The Salvation Army - they do a lot for homelessness in Austin.
• The United Way - in addition to helping fund my paycheck, what don't they do?
• Volunteer Healthcare Clinic - they do office work if you don't draw blood or stuff like that.
• Yellow Bike Project - this is brilliant.  I wish I'd thought of it.
• Tree Folks - Urban forestry.  Do you like clean air?  I do.
• Helping Hands Home for Children - right in Hyde Park!
• Animal Rescue - At Buffalo Exchange, I give my token to the puppies.
• Humane Society - see above.

And of course...

• The Boys and Girls Club of Austin - you want to volunteer?  You can go to this website, or you can also call me.  I'll put you to work!  And by work I mean playing soccer, pool, arts and crafts...

Arturo weeding fruit trees at Tree Folks

 LBJ Kiddo with a wheel barrow at Tree Folks

 Me!  With dirt!  And no shower yet!

What causes do you like to contribute towards?  Are there any Austine and/or national organizations that I left off?

I'm also curious how other Austinites feel about the people with signs who stand by the highways.  Do you give them money?  Or food?  I never have, and I get this horrible feeling in my gut because a) I don't want to roll down my window because I'm paranoid, b) there are homeless guys outside my apartment who sit and drink beer from large cans all day and c) I give a little money to my church, and they put a lot of their finances towards charity, including homelessness.  Somehow, I still feel like crap.

The Trouble With Time & Setting Schedules

Now that the holidays are over, the hard part of keeping New Years Resolutions comes into play.  I'm going to post three versions of my schedule, and see if I can figure a way to rectify them in to a desirable, productive, healthy routine:

Typical Schedule One, Pre-Holiday:

10:00am: wake-up, breakfast (unless I had a 9AM meeting).
11:00am: shower, dig through laundry I never fold to find matching socks, mascara.
12:00pm - 8pm: work.
8:00pm: home, grump at my work-from-home roommates if they made a mess, read books or the interwebz for 1 -2 hours.
9/10pm - 2am: any combination of the following - blogging, movie, guitar, board games, or cobbled together dinner because it's "too late to cook."

Schedule Two, Holiday:

11:00am: wake-up, turn on computer for the blog-o-sphere and NY Times.
2:00pm: shower
4:00pm: go out in the world.
8:00pm: cook dinner
9/10pm - 3am: any combination of the following - blogging, movie, board games, and possibly Walgreens runs for chips and salsa.

Schedule Three, in which I incorporate all of the things I resolve to do:

7:00am: wake-up, run.
8:00am: shower, breakfast.
 9:00am- 10am: google reader
10:00am - 11:00am: read an actual book
11:30am: pack incredibly healthy lunch
12:00pm - 8:00pm: work
8:30pm: cook healthy dinner with pre-planned and pre-bought ingredients.
9:30pm: blog for next day
10:30pm: movie, guitar, board games or working on my brand new UFO club membership.
11:30pm: work on other writing projects
12:30am: sleep.

Aside from the fact that at least twice a week I have meetings in the morning, the real problem with following this ideal schedule is the amount of time I enjoy spending in bed.  It also doesn't help that I do not transition well from one task to the next.  Ask Lennon how long it takes me to get out of the car after we pull up anywhere.  So perhaps the only two resolutions I need are the following:

1) Don't sleep so much.
2) Don't waste time between one task and the next.  I'm looking at you, Facebook!


Way easier said than done!  I'd be very open to taking advice on how to motivate myself out of bed in the morning, and how to shuffle myself quicker between projects.  My inability to transition is one of the reasons I'm a less than punctual person - which is terrible professionally, (my friends hate it too). 

I also plan to stop wearing jeans and t-shirts to work - I probably look like one of the kids!  This skirt is my favorite of all time - elastic waist, so I never feel fat, and swirly. 

Skirt: Forever 21
Cardigan: Old Navy
Tank top: Wal-Mart
Apple locket necklace: Francesca's (can you tell I loved being a teacher?  Just not waking up!)
Brooch: my grandmother's
Mary Janes: Nurture from Dillards

What I really need is one of these:

Last challenge to worry about: how to ride my mountain bike more when resolved to wear skirts!?

Michelle Lang, Danny Pearl, Dan Eldon & Lives Well Lived

Aside from the innate tragedy of losing people, it stands out to me, especially, when stories hit the news of soldiers dying, since I'm from an army family with friends in every branch.  Or, when stories hit of journalists - writers - who have died in their profession.

Michelle Lang, a Canadian journalist and blogger in Afghanistan, was killed a few days ago from a land mine explosion on a routine surveillance ride around Kandahar, along with four young Canadian soldiers.

The perils of journalism are not unfamiliar territory, especially after the book and movie A Mighty Heart, chronicling the kidnapping of American and Jewish journalist Danny Pearl, by his wife, Mariane Pearl, was released.

The part in the movie that broke me was when Angelina Jolie, as Mariane Pearl, was asked what she wished to tell her husband's kidnappers.  She had her hand on her belly and said simply, "I'm pregnant."  The story is like the Titanic, in that, the viewer knows he's not going to make it home, and their baby will never meet his dad, and they won't get to raise the child together.  It's impossible not to speculate that these are the fears going through her mind, and to not suffer knowing that those fears became actualized.

Not long ago, I was laying in bed reading when my roommate, Eirik, came upstairs to visit.  He noticed a book of Lennon's on the shelf, pulled it out, and told me I needed to put down what I was reading and start on this book instead.

The book was The Journey is the Destination, a collection of journals and art by Dan Eldon, compiled posthumously by his mother and sister.  Being a huge fan of art journals and not knowing anything about this guy, I liked the book immediately when I saw that the pages were vibrant collages of writing, photography, clippings, and paintings.

Eldon was a British citizen who grew up in Africa, and developed an intense compassion for people suffering from hunger, war, displacement, and lack of medicine.  He loaded up his friends into a land rover and drove across the continent to deliver food and supplies to people in refugee camps, (twice), and documented everything he encountered through words and art.  Not long after, (when one dies at 23, there's not enough time for things to take long), he was hired as a photojournalist, and traveled to the scene of a bombing to document the destruction and the effect on the people.  A mob turned on him and several others, and they were all stoned to death. 

This is one of his photographs:

A movie about his life is in the making, and I believe that Harry Potter's Dan Radcliffe will be portraying Dan Eldon.  I can not wait to see this, and I certainly hope that Hollywood doesn't muck it up.  I want to share a few of his journal images that I found online:

  

"The most important part of vehicle maintenance is clean windows, so if you are broken down, you will enjoy the beauty of the view." - Dan Eldon

The thing I want to take away from this is the reminder to be brave.  In travel, in art, in career choice, and in the practice of compassion.  It seems a fitting memorial, that when someone who lit up the world with their work disappears, to amplify our own lights, both out of necessity and in their honor.  The saddest thing of all is the thought of the world going dimmer each time someone with a strong heart goes out of it too soon.

Before I wrote this post I was starting to clench my muscles and jaw over past relationship drama, but letting things like that darken my day would not be putting their lessons into practice, and what good is inspiration if it is not acted upon?

I'm intensely curious to know: who inspires you?

Early Resolutions: Abandoning Slob-dom & Welcoming the Austin Cheap Chic

When I first got out of graduate school and started teaching, I took outfit photos almost every day to remind myself how to put together the pieces I had in my closet. Ten new pounds and two years later, I have long since abandoned this habit and suffered from a case of "the sloppies," which I partially attribute to the weight gain.  A lot of my "cute" clothes no longer fit or were donated to Goodwill before the big move to Texas.

Working in after school programming facilitated a jeans and t-shirts phase of my life, one I am now completely bored with and ready to abandon.  One of my favorite discoveries about Austin is the over-whelming enthusiasm for vintage stores and clothing, which is way more affordable than the sorority-boutique-look that was/is popular in Arkansas, and also allows for way more creativity in dressing.

I believe one of my first orders of business for 2010 should be to adopt the creative mindset, and as much as I love my solid, Target t-shirts, perhaps I should not wear them the moment they are out of the dryer...

One of my first super-exciting thrifted finds: Seven jeans from Buffalo Exchange for $18.00.  I love bell bottoms, and I love designer jeans.  I'm not so sure if I love how much longer my hair has gotten since my self-portrait days, but I'm too cheap to cut it.  And yes, I also love orange, (and Target, that shirt and cardigan... and oh, my sparkly One Star shoes, are from there). 

Anyway: 2010, bring on the cute outfits!  And do it for cheap!  I've got my camera ready and I might even dust off my high heels.

50 Of The World's Best Design Blogs

The Times Online posted a list of their picks for the top fifty design blogs on the interwebs.  If you're girly, domestic, or just visual like me, then you'll probably find more than a few blogs you'll want to follow from here on out.  I poked through a few and my eyes are still sore from stretching to take in all of the lovely photographs.  I'm including a few teaser pictures of all of the delicious images and ideas there are to peruse from the blogs on this list.

 Dinner under the gum tree and open bird cages

Country Style via Delight by Design

Frank Juery via Please Sir

Thai paper lotus flowers photo by Ellie Snow at Mint

Can we talk about how much I want the "paper" crane pendant?

Collage by Oh Hello Friend

 Kane Longden photo via Bliss

Collage by Pia Jane Bijerk, partially based in Amsterdam.  Her Amsterdam photos are dear to my heart as I lived in the Netherlands for three years, (Never Never Land, according to my 1st grade self).

I admit it.  I like blurry pictures of pretty girls staring off at things.

Photo by Daydream Lily

After watching Marie Antoinette on the home theatre screen, I'm feeling a renewed passion for turquoise.

Photo from 1st-Option via Lobster and Swan

(although I love this blog, I want to poke fun at the name, as well as the Snail and Cyclops - another I love - and start my own mishmash-named-blog called "Lice & Prawns."  Don't copy!)

Starry eyed, photo by Dress, Design & Decor via Frolic!

Apparently, I'm not the only one who felt the need to dig up Marie Antoinette for it's lush imagery.  Apartment Therapy did, too.  I feel stylish now.

The Marie must still be in me, since I was instantly drawn to these lovely cake stands.  That, or I've always felt affectionate for vintage tableware, mint green, and peony pink... if you need more proof, see the invitations from my wedding that were never mailed.

Photos from BBC Homes & Antiques via Tea For Joy, the compiler of the Time's list.

With that, I'm going to go survey my own messy domain, maybe reach for a vacuum.  Maybe.

Flightless Bird - sort of...

If you've been with me for a month or so, you'll know I abandoned trying to play guitar and sing at the same time during my weekend at Ladies Rock Camp, because it was too darn hard.  Well, I've managed to learn a song!  Sort of... if we ignore that I miss the very first chord, can't always match the tune to the chord that I'm hitting, have to concentrate really really hard on where to put my fingers next, and I don't deviate from the same simple strum pattern, then we can say: ok, I learned the song.  I learned a song!


So, if I've ever given you crap about anything, I suppose this is fair turn around.  My goal is to know a different song, better, by one week.  And in this goal, I will actually practice, and actually learn to play, (ideally).  Singing is another story - practice can't fix everything. 

Pole Dancing Escapes the Strip Club + Brass Ovaries, Austin

Sarah & Natasha

A few weeks ago, I signed up for an introductory pole dancing class held at Forbidden Fruit on Wednesdays.  Before getting into the dancing, one of the first things that the two instructors addressed were the stereotypes and stigmas that surround pole dancing.  According to The Flying Studio, pole dancing didn't even enter strip clubs until the 1980's, and the dance traces it's lineage through yoga practice, the Victorian May pole, Chinese acrobats, up through Barnum and Bailey. 

The class was set up in the store, with all of the racks pushed back to the walls.  It was well populated by college students, two strippers, one wife getting ready to give her husband a sexy birthday present, some army personnel, a day care worker, a few returnees, the clerk at Forbidden Fruit, and of course, myself. 

One thing I learned from my first step up to the pole, (which was not unexpected), is that it's HARD, and relies heavily on upper body strength.  Exposed skin aided in sticking to the pole, but it still wasn't enough to merit not needing a spotter on most of the tricks they showed us.  I never feel tall until I try to find the ground behind my head, starting from a standing position, and then the ground suddenly seems quite far away.   

The class was a good introduction to the challenges of pole dancing, but not a place to hone skill or keep up a sweat since turns had to be taken.  The sponsoring studio, Brass Ovaries, does open studio practice, as well as private lessons for 1-3 people at $60/hr. If I had the money, I would totally start going, and I'd never lose an arm wrestling contest again.  Ever. 

The Friday after the class I got sore and stayed sore for the duration of the weekend.  I didn't immediatley experience the feminine empowerment that some of the returnees attested to, but I am writing this article, and I enjoyed myself, so perhaps this is the outpouring of those empowering stirrings.  Either way, who's up for splitting $60?

Austin Rugby: The Huns, and Lessons on How to Take a Hit

One of the things Lennon was most excited about when coming to Austin was rugby.  Our first visit out to Burr field was to watch a Hawaiin shirts vs. skins game, (after we finally found the field while humming the banjo tune reminiscent of Deliverance during the dirt road drive). 

The Austin Blacks are the team of the Austin Rugby Club, but this weekend we watched the Austin Huns play at Burr against the Dallas Harlequins.  I don't have much interest in rugby beyond the cuteness of the striped polo shirts that comprise the traditional uniform, but Lennon is quite the enthusiast, and now that he has a new 9-5 job, he has no excuse not to start getting his butt kicked by cleats during evening practices. 

Despite my lack of interest in most sports, there is something to be gained, though, from watching men (or women) run full throttle into each other sans padding.  So, as a non-competitive sport viewer, I offer up the universal lessons that rugby has to offer for all people:

How To Take A Hit Like A  Champ

1) One must always know what they are in for.  Observe a situation before stepping into the foray.  This is the equivalent of studying a play book, or taking a deep breath before the buzzer sounds in a race.  If you're going to get the wind knocked out of you, make sure you've got wind to spare.

2) Avoid friendly fire.  Ther's nothing more frustrating than being knocked out by your own team.  Be aware of the location of all your chess pieces at any given time. 

3) Kick like you mean it.  Punting is for chumps.  I used to punt in PE class during dreaded kick ball games so that I could outsprint the person going for my one-inch kick to get to first base.  This wasn't a strategy - it was a fear tactic.  I didn't want the ball thrown at my face.  If you've seen the movie Julie and Julia, then I advise you to take away this one mantra: "No fear, Julia." 

4) Even when you're in the game, remember the outside world.  Sometimes what seems most important at the moment is put into perspective when you stick your head up above the squall-of-work bubble for just a minute.  Clarity often ensues.   

5) Team work.  Nothing pads a hit like a good team mate, (although, refer to point number two), especially if the guy in front of you has a really cute butt to look at.  Maybe this isn't applicable to all people... 

6) Don't hedge the field.  If the ball is your target, go for it.  In first grade I stood in front of a field kick during a pee-wee league soccer game and blocked the ball with my belly button.  From that point on I never went near that nasty thing.  Thank goodness for participation trophies.  Regardless, I never made a single goal; I was too infatuated with the risk. 

7) Get a leg-up.  Go further, read more, study harder, get up an hour earlier... however much you can push yourself to get ahead of where you were before - do that - but not more than that.  Review point number four. And if you fall from your vantage point, get up gracefully. 

8) Remember, it takes patience to get where you are going.  So don't rush the field if you aren't ready, and don't brawl just because something doesn't go your way.  Some things are a long way off but very few things (on this planet, at least) are in the distance of infinite. 

Useful Procrastination

This weekend, my church's choir appropriately sang Rutter's Requiem on Dia De Los Muertos, along with a winds accompaniment, which makes me wish I still played the clarinet.  No one ever told me that my clarinet could be so much cooler than a marching version of Louie Louie would allow.  Afterwards, having spent thirty minutes before the service trying to secure a parking space downtown, (always frustrating), it seemed wasteful to just go home, so Lennon and I walked towards the capital to see the Texas Book Festival.  It was warm and the tents were crowded, so I didn't stop to explore books or talk to authors like I would have liked, but it was a beautiful day and I was eager to go home and find a sunny spot to nap.

Sunday also marked the kick off of NaNoWrMo.  Being the world's worst procrastinator, I didn't open a word document until 11:33PM, after which I only wrote 600 words, a bit short of the 50,000 goal.

So, in case anyone out there has similar procrastinating problems, I thought I would point out a few of the ways in which procrastinating can be productive.  Thus, I offer up the following list of useful procrastination tasks, and yes, reading the list counts as one:

1) Start a blog.  Seriously... picking your favorite template, finding pictures for your banner, all set up a perfect blank canvas on which to project your ideas.  And if you already have a blog, then go post in it.  Writing a few paragraphs for a blog is much easier than trying to think up a thrilling novel plot, with instant publishing gratification.

2) Clean.  I can't work with the apartment in a certain degree of messy.  And while I may not categorize the memorable moments of my life as the ones I spent vacuuming and cloroxing when I'm on my death bed, those moments certainly make all of the others more pleasant.  So do vanilla scented candles.

3) Build your perfect modern author outfit on Polyvore - then post it to your blog!  If you're procrastinating writing, you could also build outfits for the characters you create - then post it on your (new) blog!  Visual stimulation helps spark my muse. 

4) I've always wanted to take a few lessons in vocal harmonies.  Now seems like a good idea to go research if classes like that are offered around Austin, and then consider signing up for one.  Or maybe there's a massage therapy class, or ceramics.  Can't hurt to check...

5) Write a poem in the voice of one of your characters.  Preferably a spoken word piece.  And then come read it at the Independent on Wednesday.

6) Go about making plans the old fashioned way.  Get some index cards, brightly colored pens, tell the dog not to step on you, lay on the floor, and jot notes on the cards.  Then rearrange them to make different stories until you find one you like.  Feel free to doodle on the cards.

7) Cook!  Urged on my procrastination, I made dinner for the first time in two weeks tonight.  So, for your culinary pleasure, here is my procrastinator-perfect Broccoli Rice Cheese Casserole:

Ingredients:

3 cups cooked rice (I like to mix white and brown)

1 stick of butter

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 broccoli crowns, chopped and steamed

1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup + 1 cup fat free sour cream OR 2 cans cream of mushroom soup

1 bag of shredded cheddar cheese

salt & pepper to taste

                              

1. Cook rice with 1 part rice to 1.5 parts water for fifteen minutes, covered while oven preheats at 350

2. Chop onion and mix with garlic, sauté in butter

3. Steam broccoli

                              

4. Mix rice with soup and sour cream in a large bowl

5. Add onions, garlic, broccoli, and most of the cheese

6. Spread into a large casserole dish, top with cheese and bake at 350, covered in foil

7. Take off foil, and keep baking for ten more minutes.  Then, yum!

      

Now that I'm fed, have tidied up, and watched several reruns of House on DVD, I should pull out my index cards and get back to my non-existent novel. 

Girls Rock Friday: Rock Camp Day One & Rosie Flores

Today was Day One of Ladies Rock Camp Austin. I'm signed on to a quartet as the singer and one of two guitar players - I have no idea how an original song will be formulated and ready to play by Sunday, (at Nomad! At 7pm! Come cheer!) but the organizers obviously know what they're doing, so I'll go forth trustingly.  Each band has their own coach and a practice space, and standing in front of a microphone to sing is one of the most empowering feelings I've ever experienced. 

We started today with icebreakers and a performance by Rosie Flores, then had a song writing workshop, then split up into our instrument groups for music instruction.  I got to learn a Le Tigre song on guitar, then went with the voice teacher to practice scales. 

After dinner, one of the Girls Rock campers and her brother came and performed for us - she's eleven, and he's eight - and they were amazing.  They performed three original songs.  What was I doing when I was eleven?  Watching Animaniacs and Full House reruns after school?

In high school, I was in a band for all of a week as the guitar player, but not having a drummer or any thing resembling a mentor caused an early break-up of the never-named group.  After moving to Austin, I auditioned to be in a band as a harmony singer on a whim.  I don't really sing harmony, at least not without lots of coaching, so I wasn't exactly first choice.  Nonetheless, I'd count those two hours in their practice space in front of a mic amongst my top ten well-spent hours of all time.  My entire body was rebelling against me even walking in the door, but I somehow maintained control of my feet and made it through the rehearsal.  I'm not delusional enough to think that I have a future rock career in front of me, but I am happy to know I can live the rest of my life being a little more aware of the stamina of my guts. 

Camp met today in the chapel of the Sri Atmanada School, and then moved over to the Griffin School.  Again, can someone please tell me where these types of programs/curriculums were when I was in grade school?