Bump & Run

So I finished this wonderful book, Bump & Run by Mike Lupica.  Holy crap what a great book!  It's (generally) about a Vegas casino host who inherits half of an NFL team when his father passes away.  But it's so much more.

It starts with you meeting the "Jammer," a casino host who can get you a girl for the weekend, but make it look like you spent the whole time either at the buffet, on the golf course, or relaxing at the spa.  By the way, he can also make your life a living hell, if you cross him.  Fast forward to the Jammer getting the news, via casino gym TV, that Big Tim Molloy has suddenly died.  The Jammer hops a flight to NY to play nice with all of the fellow Molloy's he'd left behind him years ago.

It isn't until big Tim's will is being read by family lawyers, that the Jammer, Jack Molloy, has inherited half of his dad's team, the New York Hawks.  The other half went to the "evil twins,"  Jack's step sister and brother from Big Tim's second marriage.  From here follows the ups and downs of Jack and his newfound profession:  owner of an NFL team.  

With the story comes allegations of gambling, betting, cheating (on sports and on women), inside jobs, and internal family affairs of all sorts.  Not to mention the various introductions to Billy, the Vinny's, Johnny, Mo Jiggy, and Donyell.  These, uhh, upstanding gentleman do anything they can to make sure that Jack is not voted out of the league in his first year.  

Overall, I enjoyed every single page of this book.  I even sometimes neglected my job just to finish a chapter (yes, the bell would ring and instead of dismissing the students or walking them to the door, I'd just wave them out, sometimes not even doing that).  Anyways, I'm off to pick up the sequel, Redzone, tomorrow from Tom.  I should finish that one by the end of the month.  I be back then to let you all know how it went.

Guilted into reading...kind of

So if anyone knows my wife or reads her blog at all, you know she has this newfound obsession with reading. It started out simple; reading at night, occasionally on the weekends, no big deal. Then my newest arch nemesis was released...Twilight (ugggghhh). First off, I'd like to thank Kim and anyone else who took part in Katie's cult-like following of Edward, Bella and the rest of the gang.

Anyways, over the past few weeks, she has been hounding me (yes, Katie, I said hounding) about why I don't read. I told her because that takes thought and concentration. I teach all day, I don't want to come home and think more. I just want to be mindlessly entertained. Turns out my buddy Tom (PE teacher and fellow coach at school) is also an avid reader. Every now and then he will toss a new book my way. I let two or three pile up on my desk before I realized something. Lucy is in a stage now where she watches and copies us now more than ever. It dawned on me that I don't want her to grow up with the notion that staring at a TV screen all evening long is OK.

So I picked up the latest book that Tom gave me (Bump and Run by Mike Lupica). What a great read so far; it tells the story of a Vegas casino host who inherits an NFL team from his millionaire father (whom he hasn't spoken to in a half decade). I'm halfway through it with plans to finish it by the weekend. I think I'll give Tom the last book I read, A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole (it's a Pulitzer winner, so at least I can say I've read one of those). To be honest, I think it took me almost two years to finish it. Granted I read it for only a week or so at time, but at least I read it all.

So here I am, a teacher of five years, married to a librarian, and raising a toddler who loves to read. Guess I should jump on the book-reading bandwagon. Hell, I might even like it.

World's Longest Week

Holy Hell...I've just made it through, in my opinion, the longest week of my teaching career. I guess I just got used to my "new" schedule over winter break. My nights got longer (sometimes staying up until the wee hours), and not getting up until 8 or 830. I'm sure Katie hated the fact that I got to sleep in, seeing as she was the one who got up early (Tommy doesn't yet know the meaning of "sleeping in"). Her extra couple hours came in the form of a midday nap while the kids took theirs.

Now I'm paying the price. I've never been a morning person as it is. If the sun is down, so should my eyelids. Getting up and moving in the dark on a winter morning and actually being productive just goes against everything I stand for. And now I have to automatically not only be productive, but be productive ALL DAY LONG. No grace period, no warm-up time. Just right back to it. Spending more time with 110 students and other teachers than I do with my own family.

As much as I love my job, it takes its tolls. I hate those people who think that teachers have the easiest job in the world. Apparently they have never experienced the pleasure of spending half of their day entertaining/controlling/educating 11 year olds.

Wow...this blog just went from "I had a long week" to "People don't know what I go through on a daily basis." Now it seems like I'm bitching about my job. I better quit now. I swear it's just been a long week. 85 days until summer vacation! But who's counting?