The Cooper River Bridge Run 2012

Over the last school year, Jackson and I have been stuck in a routine. Work during the week. Work on the weekends. Crash when we can. We decided that we needed to spice things up. A few months ago, Jackson got a wild hair and decided we needed a goal and signed us up for The Cooper River Bridge Run - a historic 10K race in downtown Charleston. We began training and started to look forward to our trip. Our training was quickly replaced by our routine (see above), and before we knew it the race was upon us.

While we were not quite as well trained as we originally planned we had a fabulous weekend. We drove down on Friday afternoon and picked up our registration garb at a huge convention center. Over 43,000 people registered for the race and it was invigorating to be surrounded by the buzz and activity of a major event.

We stayed with some friends from Jackson's mission and woke up at 4:00 am the next day. We were on a transportation bus by 5:30 that took us over the bridge that we were soon to run across. The race was supposed to start by 8:00 am, but it was delayed and we waited around for until 9:00, observing as the area became overwhelmed with mobs of eager racers.

Waiting for the race before dawn

At the starting line, long before the gun was fired

Did I mention there were over 43,000 racers???

Waiting in line for the port-a-potty before the race

The crowd grew restless as the start time came and went...

Yep. Still in line.

Jackson, in the pre-race zone

A view from the bridge

Did I mention the run up the bridge was over a mile long?

Jack and I at the end of the race

Needless to say, we were pretty wiped out after the race. We crashed for a few hours and then spend some time visiting some of Jackson's old hotspots from the mission. The trip was relaxing and fulfilling and a welcome break to the monotony of our daily routine. We've already started to talk about doing the race next year. Let me know if you are interested in joining us!

UNC Chapel Hill 2.0

Two years ago, I took a group of students to visit the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill. Shoot, it was so dang fun that I decided to do it again.

UNC is the flagship school of our state. Sure, there's Duke, N.C. State, and Wake Forest, but they all really live in the shadows of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels. After all, it is the Tar Heel State (for reasons only history nerds would care about). A lot of my students are die hard UNC fans, which makes this trip so fun.

Kids playing games at "The Pit".

This year had a couple of upgrades. We got a sneak peak at the inside of Kenan Memorial Stadium where the Tar Heels play football, we got to go inside a museum dedicated solely to UNC Basketball (how many schools have one of those, right?), and we had a professor from the Congo come and teach my kids how to speak basic Lingala. We also got to hear from my buddy Pat O'Shea, who used to be a teacher at HMS before taking a job at UNC's dermatology clinic.

The activities, tours, and lectures were great, but if you asked my kids, many of them would say that the day's highlight came when we ate lunch at the Ram's Head dining hall on campus. All you can eat pizza, cheeseburgers, french fries, ice cream and cookies - now they ALL want to go to college!

Seriously though, the best part of the day came when we were finally back at HMS, and everyone was getting off the buses and returning to class. One boy sought me out. His name is Marcus, and he hasn't exactly been a star student this year. He's a little behind developmentally, which has made him frustrated with school in general. As a way to deal with being behind, he's become a class clown and a major distraction to teaching. But Marcus came up to me today in all soberness and just said, "Thank you, Mr. Olsen. I'm glad you let me come today."

"Me too, Marcus," I responded.

Then he gave me the special African-American-hip-homie handshake, a true sign of camaraderie and trust in the black community, and walked away back to class. He's the only student that came back to say thanks, and it made my day.

Sitting outside the Dean Smith Center, the Holy of Holies of college basketball. The kids were given these shirts as a parting gift, but some didn't want to wear them. Can you pick out the Duke fans? Can you say "sore losers"?

The full photo album can be viewed at my new Facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/Eminolsen

The Art of Losing It

I am an emotional wreck. Surprisingly, it’s not because of my job – that breakdown came yesterday, but I really don’t feel a need to elaborate or beat that dead horse any further. No, today I’m an emotional wreck for an entirely different reason.

It started this morning when I went opened my computer. I went to see what was happening on Facebook, and the first thing I saw was a picture posted by my sister Holly. The picture was of my two darling nieces, Olivia and Ruby, snuggled tightly into the backseat of their car with toys, electronics, games, and headphones up to their necks. The caption at the bottom of the picture said, “And so it begins!” I knew this day was coming, but I didn’t realize it would come so quickly. My sister Holly, along with her husband Adam and three beautiful children, are moving to Connecticut today.

It’s been a tough transitional time for my sister and her family. Adam’s been practically living in Connecticut for the last two months anyway because of work (which is why they’re moving in the first place), leaving Holly alone with three needy girls. Olivia, the oldest, has a very sensitive soul, and has had a few breakdowns of her own leading up to this moment. Ruby and Sonoma are a little too young to care (Ruby is 4, Sonoma almost 2), but a cross-country move is a big deal for just about anyone.

Holly and I are very close, and have talked on many occasions about the move. While she’s thrilled to be leaving Utah (and moving to a state where your vote actually counts), she’s expressed a lot of anxiety for her girls, especially Olivia. She’s been under a lot of stress packing and holding down the fort without her husband. It’s been a lot for her to handle, and much could be said about her strength and resiliency.

So when I saw that picture with that caption, looking into the eyes of my smiling yet nervous nieces, I couldn’t help myself. I balled. I cried like a child. I cried like my nieces should have been crying. Yet somehow they were able to compose themselves and smile, leaving the 26-year old man to look like the child.

After this outburst of emotion, I quickly got myself together and called Holly, who was by that point on the road somewhere, probably still in Utah or maybe Wyoming. As her phone rang and rang all the way to her voicemail, I could feel the emotions within my bosom welling up again like a rising tide. When it came time for me to leave a message, I was back at it, crying uncontrollably, throwing an occasional word into the receiver and then choking on it. One minute and thirty-five seconds of inane babble.

You’d think by that point I’d be over it with an empty tear clip, but twenty minutes later while chowing down on my morning bowl of shredded wheat, Holly called me back, and my inability to suppress my emotions shined brighter than ever. Holly was clearly worried about me, and kept asking, “Jack, what’s wrong?” followed by "I couldn't understand your message. Is everything okay?"

By this point I was laugh-crying, repeating aloud how ridiculous this was. Finally I breathed deeply and apologized to Holly for my estrogen-infused breakdown, and told her that I loved her and her husband and girls so much, and that I was thrilled for them to be joining Celeste and I on the East Coast. That's all.

Perhaps I should have just sent her a text message.

Read-A-Thon!!!

Students reading the morning of the Read-A-Thon during breakfast

(before the competition started!)

Henderson Collegiate (where I teach) is a literacy based school - we believe that, in the education world, the achievement gap is a literacy gap. This was truly manifested at my old school. A lot of my high school students could not read very well and less than 5% of my students read for fun. This creates deficiencies in vocabulary, grammar, writing, and in reality, a child's ability to learn. At my new school students are taught from day one how important it is to be a reader. Every night they read for 35 minutes (and have a parent sign off that they read, the number of pages, and then book that they read), every day at school students read whenever they have extra time. They read during breakfast, some of them during lunch, after finishing classwork and when waiting in line to use the bathroom.

Pre-competition interviews. That's right - sweatbands and headbands.

Yesterday, we had a 4 hour Read-A-Thon. Students sought out sponsors who agreed to pay them for the amount of time that they read - anywhere from $1-$3 an hour as a fundraiser for our reading department. They came dressed in sweatpants (some of them sweat bands too), a pillow, and armed with a pile of books. The rules were clear - you stop reading, you're out. This included looking away from a page for ANYTHING (blowing their nose, teachers dancing and singing trying to distract them, switching positions, etc.) or for falling asleep.

Mr. Carson scanning the room for kids to tap out

A student "in the zone"

(side note - the only white student in the 5th grade)

Amazingly, over half of the students at our school read for the FULL 4 hours. Never looking away from their book, always reading (even when switching to a new book, shifting positions on the cold floor, or raising their hand for a tissue). I know you probably get tired of me saying it, but my kids are AMAZING!!!

Students reading during the Read-A-Thon - notice the hard floor

Mamma always told me...

If you don't have anything nice to say, don't say nothin' at all.

The Most Amazing Essay...EVER!!!

I know I've said it before, but kids at Henderson Collegiate really are amazing. They work hard and they are starting to understand life lessons. It so neat to actually witness the evolution and development of their minds.

Recently in writing class the kids wrote essays on a time in their life when they were disappointed. As they were finishing up the final draft I happened to see an exemplar essay from one of our top students about how she failed a science test. I have included the essay below, if anything else, take a look at the cover page. Amazing.

Top 11 of 2011

2011 was an interesting year. If I had to sum it up in one word, it'd be...UNEXPECTED(ING). For example, I didn't expect to abandon plans to attend law school again. Celeste didn't expect to teach a third year, and she didn't expect she'd leave her school and find a new one. I certainly didn't expect to stay in education - that surprised even me. I didn't expect (and I don't think anyone did) that the USU football team would have a winning season and go to a bowl game. I didn't expect Mission Impossible 4 would be so disappointing, or the Sherlock Holmes sequel to be so...uh...appointing. And while the world around us seems to be expecting (sisters Sarah, Bonnie, and Jen), we are....(drum roll, please)....UN-expecting. (And I'm not expecting a dog any time soon, either).

So with that as a tantalizing backdrop, I reveal to you the Top 11 of 2011, the 4th part in an ongoing series of blog entries highlighting the biggest and the best stories (in no particular order) from our lives over the past twelve months. Enjoy.

1. Mamma Britt Comes to North Carolina

When Cindy Britt turned 38 last year, her husband (who poses as a paleontologist but secretly works for Obama's re-election campaign) decided to get her the greatest birthday present of all time - a trip to visit her favorite daughter and son-in-law in North Carolina. The week was filled with magic and wonder. For starters, we ate at Cookout, a glorious experience on its own. Then we took Cindy on a tour of fancy Henderson and our luxurious schools. Then we spent the weekend at the Emerald Isle Coast lazying it up on the beach in the hot summer sun, and topped it all off with a Durham Bulls game. I can't wait till Obama is re-elected so Brooks will get that "victory bonus" and send Cindy out again.

2. Meeting a Hero

In February, I attended Teach For America's 20-year Anniversary Summit in Washington, D.C. It was a star-studded event. That is, if you consider political, educational, and social leaders "stars." During the 3-day summit, I met and heard from some very famous and influential people (TFA founder Wendy Kopp, Michelle Rhee from "Waiting for Superman," author Malcolm Gladwell, and U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan). But the highlight of the summit came on day two when I had the opportunity to listen to, then MEET John Lewis.

That name may not ring a lot of bells - John Lewis is a current member of the U.S House of Representatives. But what makes him a hero of mine is not what he's done as a politician, but what he did as a young activist in the Civil Rights Movement. He participated in sit-ins and Freedom Rides, he spoke at the March on Washington and helped to start SNCC, the student arm of the movement. He was a close personal friend of Dr. King, and is probably the most underrated contributor to racial equality from those turbulent years in American history. On top of all that, he's the author of one of my all-time favorite books, Walking With the Wind.

3. No-go Lawyer, Yes-go Principal

In 2009, I turned down the opportunity to go to law school to pursue a wild experiment in public service with Teach for America. In 2011, that wild experiment was supposed to come to an end, and return me to my previously chosen path of becoming a lawyer/bigshot. But the fates wouldn't allow it, and in 2011, with the same law schools offering me admission (and a few new ones as well), I turned away from the path of law once again to pursue a master's degree in school administration. I am currently in my first year of something called the Northeast Leadership Academy, which is basically like a special fellowship program within N.C. State's College of Education that puts emerging education leaders on the fast-track to becoming principals.

So how's it going so far, one semester into this new wild experiment? When people ask me if I like the program, I tell them "No....I LOVE it." And I do.

4. The Strange New World of HENDERSON COLLEGIATE

After two years of teaching in Vance County, Celeste and I were well-accustomed to breaking up fights, dishing out failing grades, and recognizing the all-too-familiar aroma of reefer. And while I'm still in the midst of the aforementioned elements, Celeste has entered a strange new world of teaching where students greet you with a handshake, tell you what year they graduate from high school, and where they plan on attending college. Celeste took a new teaching position this year at Henderson Collegiate, a charter school in the same town we've been working in for two years.

Henderson Collegiate is amazing. It's just a great school. Celeste is also amazing. Therefore, the marriage between the two has been, well, amazing. Celeste's kids ADORE her. Seriously. They ache for her approval. They get giddy if they're assigned after-school tutoring. When she asks a question, virtually every student puts their hands in the air. You heard me. Hands. Two of them. It's like it's American Idol in there and Celeste is David Archuleta.

5. La Republica Dominicana - En Vivo!

This trip was amazing, both for the fact that the DR is an incredible place to visit, and because we had gone three months without a day off from school. It was as good as morphine to wash away the pains that come from life in the education trenches.

While staying at an all-inclusive resort is nice, our favorite moments from the trip came when we adventured away from the all you can eat bacon and virgin pina coladas. Whether it was taking a motorcycle taxi to downtown Puerto Penasco, riding ATVs through the jungle, or cliff jumping down the 27 Charcos de Damajagua, we always came away with a smile.

6. Welcome to Wake Forest

After two years of living in the quiet rural town of Oxford, NC, this summer we moved to Wake Forest to be closer to N.C. State for my graduate program. Wake Forest, a suburb of Raleigh, is a GREAT place to live. Just the other day I told Celeste while driving through the historic district, "I heart Wake Forest."

Wake Forest itself was a big improvement, but moving from a tiny apartment to a cute little house has probably been the single biggest factor in the improvement in our quality of life over the last twelve months. The house itself isn't much, but it's a beautiful thing to have neighbors, a lawn to tend, and to not have the smell of stale cigarettes seep through the drywall every time you use the dryer.

7. The Unlikely Success of Aggie Football

We watched or listened to every single Aggie football game this season. And while six of those games ended in classic Aggie heartbreak, seven of them went in our favor, and that is something for us USU fans to celebrate.

The Aggies first winning football season also allowed me to go to the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. The game itself didn't end well, but it was worth it to see my family, including my new niece Sadie and my sister Josie, who had recently returned from her mission in Oakland, California. Sitting next to Josie at the bowl game was hilarious. About halfway through the game she confessed to me that she had absolutely no idea what was going on, and that she just cheered or booed when the rest of us did. It's funny how different we are in that way. By that point in the game I had already suffered three minor heart attacks, and had lost several clumps of hair.

8. Divorcing Dessert

Ten days into 2011, I came to a very simple conclusion: I consume too much sugar. Like, way too much. Like, unless someone is there to stop me, I will "accidentally" eat an entire plate of brownies by myself. It's ridiculous, but not surprising, as I was raised by two well-known sugar addicts.

So, in an effort to curb my dependence on the white gold, I issued myself a challenge: no candy or dessert for rest of the year (except for a single piece of birthday cake). As of today, I have yet to indulge on a single Skittle or slice of pie, but that will all change tonight when I break my confectionary fast. CAN'T WAIT!!!

9. Summer in the Wild West

We had a great trip out west over the summer. We spent time in Utah, Oregon, and Washington. It was filled with wakeboarding (my favorite), family reunions, rock climbing, and anxious hours of being a passenger in a car piloted by this man:

The best part of the trip was definitely the Oregon Coast. After a few hiccups with a mighty hailstorm and a few bouts of car-sickness, the Britt family descended upon the overcast beaches of the Pacific Northwest like ants on a discarded Twinkie. We tested our hand at cheerleading, played in the sand dunes, and even raced crabs in the low tide. But let's be honest, folks. 90% of the trip was dedicated to and focused upon Lynlee, our princess niece who exceeds the traditional definition of "cute" or "adorable". She is angelically precious, and precociously hilarious, and unquestionably in charge.

10. Autumn in Appalachia

"I want to see mountains again, mountains Gandalf!" Now there's something we and little Bilbo Baggins have in common (that and the feet). Mountains are one of the things we miss the most about Utah. But luckily, the Appalachians aren't far, and for Halloween this year, we took a trip with our good friends Pat and Sarah O'Shea to see them. And not only did we see them, but we saw them at the peak of the fall colors, and that was a truly picturesque experience. There was something magical about being there, like the mountains were speaking to our souls.

11. A New York Christmas

A tradition now two years running, we spent Christmas with our New York family this year instead of going to Utah (only because we're going out there in March for Josie's wedding. Huzzah!) Dan and Jeanne Cooper, Celeste's uncle and aunt, could easily win awards for hospitality. We ate like kings, slept like babies, and were spoiled like an only grandchild.

After a few days in upstate New York we headed south and endured two exhausting days in the city, spending time sightseeing and hanging out with my cousin Danny. It was a great time, but sometimes I wonder how I could have idolized the Big Apple like I did when I lived there as a brash and naive 18-year old. After the claustrophobia of Times Square and a subway car decorated with homeless people and scented with urine potpourri, we were both very happy to return to the Tar Heel State.