It's probably actually the Mets year.

          My uncle passed away last night, the culmination of a long battle with brain cancer. The last weeks were hard...he deteriorated; first slowly, then rapidly losing all the elements that made him who he was. And he was a wonderful man, a wonderful father and husband, and a wonderful friend.

          But I sit to write not because I lost a beloved family member, but because I lost a great friend. A drinkin' buddy, a fishin' buddy (not that those two things were separate of one another), a man I always looked forward to seeing. I'm blessed to have spent so much time with him throughout my life; Friday nights at his parents and later my parents, and Saturday nights around the table at Mom and Dad's. He was a friend, and a good friend, of my Dad for almost 40 years and a huge part of why our family was always so close when I was a kid. My dad's best friend was my mom's brother. Unique, to say the least.

          The stories are many, and they're all sweet, or funny, or irreverent. They're aided by a shot of rye, a sip of bourbon, a cold beer on a hot day, a martini in honor of his father. He was a man who boiled down to three things: he loved his Mets, he loved his family, and he adored his girls. I can think of times, kicking back in the July sunshine with his boat swaying gently in the ocean, where he would get lost in stories of his daughters, his wife. We would be smiling and laughing anyway, but how he would beam when he spoke of them! The unspoken truth, however, was that he had four girls. He looked up to, admired, and loved his big sister just as much. What he came down to, and will continue to come down to, I guess, is not three things, but one. Love. Few and far between are the people who just want to love and care for people the way he did.

          He was a great conversationalist. He could, and would, sit and talk with anybody. I learned from him that the key to a great conversation is two fold: 1) there are two sides, and 2) it's all about asking questions. He would draw stories and jokes and personalities out of everyone he spoke to. You felt funny, and important, and interesting when you spoke with him.

I could tell a million stories of my own (in which my father plays Best Supporting Actor) about the man who taught me about baseball, the man who threw too hard for me to catch, the man whose rib I broke that one time (not my fault), the man who was generous and kind (and would never seek to be called that to his face), the man I saw Bryce Canyon and Zion National Park with, the man who was always quick with a kind word (generally disguised as a very transparent insult). The man I was lucky enough to call my uncle and my friend.

I just can't shake this image that climbed into my head last night. I can't help but feel that. somewhere, the great and powerful Bette Ann is hugging him and saying

"Ah, hell, Billy. It's too soon."

And she's exactly right.

Oh. Hey there.

Hey.

I’ve missed you, and it’s my fault.

It has been a crazy time in my life. Since last we spoke (May...MAY?!) my life has changed SO MUCH.

I left you in Tennessee last time, so I’ve added a summer in New Jersey, a move to Richmond, VA,  a brand new job and a marriage. All of those were wonderful, and amazing, and a ton of fun. I live near old friends and I’m making new. I married an amazing human being with such love for the world she lives in, such compassion and care for others that it blows me away everyday. We had a beautiful ceremony that feels like a blur because I was REALLY FOCUSED on not screwing up. We had a blast at the reception which included 10 different styles of craft beers from the places we have lived: Arizona, Louisiana, New Jersey and Virginia. I decorated (applied Colleen's ideas) the reception hall with Sean and Eric while Colleen picked up friends from the airport, and not only did I not screw it up, IT LOOKED AWESOME. I've been blessed enough to join a wonderful, welcoming family. I have lived some of the greatest times of my life since we chatted last.

I’ve struggled, too. I’ve left a job I loved. I’ve lived with the concern and struggle of not having a job (a very stressful handful of months that included interview after interview). I’ve moved twice in 4 months, one 2500 miles and one over 300. I’ve adjusted to a new home, a new routine, a school laden with technology. I’ve changed my way of doing things in the classroom to meet cutting edge educational practices and technologies while retaining what I think made me effective. I’ve seen my uncle’s health fail.

A word on that. My uncle, a man who gets as much credit (blame) as anyone for me being who I am was diagnosed with brain cancer in the spring of 2012. I firmly believe that his very existence makes this world a better place. Cancer really sucks.

I’ve had days where I’ve come home on fire with excitement about my students, and their progress, and their successes, and days when I’ve been unable to do much more than sit on the floor.

My biggest mistake, in all of this, was not taking you all along for the ride. I have lived the highest of highs in my life so far, and struggled through some deep valleys. Consider this my promise to take you along with me next time, and not just tell you about it afterwards.

"Alligator bit smoothies"

Day three: Ridiculous

A ten hour drive from Amarillo to Houston. LONG. I took the doors off the cat cages to allow them room to move and stretch…Red slept under her blanket, as usual, and Palo napped on my lap for a while before he went off to sleep in his box. They’re handling the crazy of the move very well.

We discovered an In N Out in Dallas, so of course that’s where we stopped for lunch. For dinner, we went to Taco Cabana (I wish I was kidding) and stayed at a Baymont Inn hotel in Houston. Well the first room was flooded…which might be nicer than the second room. The second room…just generally gross. But it’s one night, and you make due.

Observations from the road:

1.       Never again, Baymont. Never again.

2.       Never again, Taco Cabana. Never again.

3.       Cows. So many cows.

4.       Tons, also, of horses.

5.       Some deer? I guess.

6.       The changing landscape from the Texas Panhandle to Southeast Texas.

7.       Texas. It’s far too large.

Song of the day:

                Summer Girls, LFO.

Tomorrow: 351 miles and 5 hours and 46 minutes to New Orleans, Colleen, and two relaxing nights.

New Orleans:

My car is cleaner than it’s been in years, from the open skies of New Orleans, and I thoroughly enjoyed the rain. Sick and tired of Texas, it was a relief to get to New Orleans and to see Colleen. It always is. Too short this time…but only 9 weeks to go. It was a blast meeting Colleen’s friend Heather…we all had a great time together.

A quick summation:

What a great time. Jambalaya. Crawfish. Oysters, both raw and charbroiled. Walking the French Quarter with Colleen, Sean and Heather. Alligator sausage with andouille sauce. Enjoying an evening on the fly by the Big Muddy, and getting caught in a downpour. Hiking the Barataria Preserve in an epic downpour while listening to the Pig Frogs (HogFrogs) and watching the snakes and alligators. Walking the French Quarter with Sean and Heather while Colleen gave a presentation, and ducking into the nearest establishment when the skies opened up. Live music in the French Quarter on Thursday night and live music at the Jolly Inn in Homa on Friday night.  Ridiculous conversations. You think Sean and I are bad? Throw in Colleen and Heather and see what happens. It was fantastic.

Palo being really fancy and making everyone love him. Red doing some of her highest class hiding.

Road kill alligators. Weird. 

It’s a city with fantastic charm, and one I haven’t gotten a chance to explore enough.

Tonight, I sit in a hotel room in Kingsport, Tennessee after driving close to 700 miles through Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. The cats are really handling this chaos well, but I can tell it’s beginning to stress them out.  Tomorrow we finish out the drive, 580 someodd miles, 9ish hours and Beachwood at the end of the day.

Song of the day:

Mashup of “Fancy”, “Happy”, “Turn Down for What” and “Talk Dirty to Me”. And the entire mix Colleen made of 90’s tunes that started our day. She didn’t give us the play list so every song was “….OH I REMEMBERTHIS ONE!”

One more day. Then Mom can try to steal my cats.

RedScare!

Day two closes on us finding a sweet room in Amarillo. I had booked rooms the other day, and this one, while out of the way (not as far east as an identical hotel) is fantastic. Currently, Sean is giving Palo a ton of crap for being a cat and cleaning himself on the table while Sean tries to write. And at least Red has climbed out from under the box spring, where we couldn’t find her. It seemed like she had disappeared. RedScare, Amiright?

We drove through the Petrified Forest this morning, a winding bumpy road that leads from Rt. 180 to I-40, and set us up beautifully for the ride to Amarillo from Holbrook. Except Palo gets carsick. He tried to warn us too, becoming more active and noisy in the box before he threw up. Poor guy. I gave him some water and threw out the old clothes he was sleeping on, and he rebounded quite nicely.

Highlight of the day: Albuquerque’s anti-DWI logo looks something like a bat of sorts. Which lead to a long conversation about how bats could be used to prevent or arrest people driving under the influence. Suffice to say it was ridiculous and I laughed, very hard. Also, we couldn’t find any tacos in New Mexico. Really, NM? You dropped the ball.

Observations from the road:

1.       Rocks that used to be trees!

2.       A man walking down the side of I-40 dragging a cross over his shoulder.

3.       The cross had a wheel on it

4.       A man with a bike sitting on the ground in the shade of an overpass on the side of I-40

5.       Big Texan Steakhouse (again)

Song of the day: Semi-Charmed Life, Third Eye Blind

Tomorrow:  600ish miles to Houston, TX. 

I ain't got a dime, but what I got is mine

So the first night of Sean and Mike’s crazy roadtrip has fallen. We made it, over the last several days, from Las Vegas to Bullhead to Havasu to Bullhead. Today, we headed from my (former) apartment to the Grand Canyon to Holbrook, AZ. This is Sean’s first time out to this side of the country, and definitely not my last. It’s weird to be gone…like when I left New Jersey the first time. Tons behind me, but tons ahead, as well. 

After we finally finished packing, we drove to the Grand Canyon. The cats had settled down (Red having finished her sad solo aria) and the drive was smooth. When we arrived at the Canyon, we clearly couldn’t leave the cats in the car….so out they came. Sean carried RedCat in the small airport carrier I have, and Palo…well…I carried him. In my arms. He was leashed, but I carried him. People stared. At least one pair of tourists took his picture. A pair of British tourists asked me if he was “pedigree”.  He let a 4 year old girl pet him. Now Palo is settled in next to me on the hotel bed. They’re resilient little critters.

Observations from the road:

1.       Prairie dogs!

2.       Tumbleweeds

3.       Mule deer

4.       Pronghorn

5.       2/3 of a coyote

6.       A squirrel standing on his hind legs in the middle of the road asking to be hit by a car

7.       Guy with a parakeet on his shoulder

8.       A parakeet on a guy’s shoulder that was eating McDonald’s French fries.

Song of the day:

Rick. Freaking. Astley.

Thanks for coming with me again. I’m glad to have you all along.

Tomorrow brings Amarillo, TX, the Big Texan Steakhouse, and another hotel stay. I like hotels because they have beds, which my apartment did not this weekend.

"with 10 miles behind me, and ten thousand more to go"

To whom it may concern:

                I wanted to take this opportunity to thank you for your trust in me. You took a chance on an East Coast kid, and gave him an opportunity to sink or swim on his own merits. I like to think that I swam (more like I did in the 100 Fly or the 200 IM and less like I did that ONE time I attempted the 500 freshman year). Unfortunately, life is such that continuing here at Mohave Valley Junior High is not a feasible option for me, and I will be moving on from my 7^th Grade Language Arts position after this school year. I hope that you will accept this as my resignation, effective at the end of the 2013-2014 school year.

                To swim, in this sense, has been more like a swim meet or a relay than it has been an individual event. Surely, what I do in the classroom is individual in the sense that I am the one in charge of the atmosphere and the content at any given moment. But, in reality, I am never the sole voice in the classroom. What I am, and what I do, is greatly influenced by the wonderful people I’ve had the opportunity to work with.  Our 7^th grade team has been so supportive, so helpful, so open with one another. That discourse, and suggestions from experienced teachers, and group thinking about how to deal with challenges we face on a daily basis have helped me to grow both personally and professionally. Any and all of my success can be directly attributed to two things: hard work and the lunchtime combination of problem solving and blowing off steam that we did every day. From the very bottom of my heart, I thank you for that Miller, Price and Stobbs.

                I can remember my interview with Ms. Stahl, when she asked me what I wanted in an administrator, what I thought was important for people in charge. I asked for support. And I have received it in spades. I know that I came here with a lot to learn, and I know that I am leaving here with at least as many, if not more, questions about how to be better at my profession. I can stand tall knowing that those questions are different ones than I arrived with, and that I have come a long way in my two years in Mohave Valley.

                Leaving here is both exciting and sad for me. If there is one thing that I have known since my first day here it is that my students deserve better than they often get. My kids are great kids. They make me proud to be their teacher more days than not with their humor, intelligence and resiliency. Many of them face extreme challenges on a daily basis and rise above them. I see it daily in the classroom or in athletics. I coached three seasons, not for me, but for the kids. I had never coached volleyball. I had never coached basketball. But if I didn’t this year, who would have? My kids deserve the chance to be involved in after school activities, to learn from one another through athletics and clubs. I’ll admit that I love sports. And that I think there is a lot of value in being a part of a team because of the life lessons you can learn from winning and losing (too campy? Too bad).  I am proud of the strides each of my teams made as they learned to work and play with one another and be supportive of one another.

                So that’s why it’ll be difficult. I have great coworkers who are great at their jobs and better people. Great support from good people in administration. Fantastic students who I really feel like I did my best for, both in the classroom and on the court/field. Students and athletes who I learned a ton from. This place has impacted my life and changed it. Even in leaving, a part of me will stay here. 

But moving on is also something I am looking forward to. I am going to marry a wonderful human being before I turn 29. My next tax return will reflect a move (or two) a marriage and a new job. Part of marrying Colleen means we get to live in the same state (at least). I am long since tired of the separation in our geography. One of the things I love most in this world is Colleen being happy, and she has totally kicked ass and taken names during her time in Louisiana. I could not be happier about her enjoyment and happiness at gaining experience and working with and for amazing people. I am excited about our future.

So my life is changing. Zxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx (thanks, Palo, that was helpful).  I am not big on change. This is one that both terrifies me and excites me. It’s hard to walk away from a career and a community that I respect and appreciate. It’s hard to walk away from people I care a great deal about. It’s hard to walk away from what is a burgeoning softball program at MVJH.  But it is far harder to stay. The distance from my family. The distance from Colleen. We hope to have a family. It is far, far better to raise them in proximity to our families than here.

I don’t want to be another adult who has walked out on these students. I want them to know that I gave them 100% of what I had while I was here. I believe in them.  It has been my pleasure to teach and coach them, to maybe learn them something about what an East Coast attitude is. To set an example with a New Jersey work ethic.  So thank you, students and parents. Thank you, administration and coworkers. Thank you, mom and dad and Colleen for your endless support and encouragement. I am very, very lucky for all of the love and support that has gotten me through my two years in the desert.

While the circumstances of my life lead me forward and onward from the desert, know that I deeply appreciate all that it has done for me. So, cheers. Raise a glass. Lift a longneck. I appreciate you far more than I can express.

Sincerely,

Mike Hennessey

115 degrees. Ummmm...Nope.

While I will post a specific “moving on” related entry later this weekend, Colleen’s great description of things she sees/loves about south Louisiana got me thinking about things I’ll miss in Arizona. My time here is growing short quickly (Dad says I’m so short I can’t see over my shoelaces), and while I am excited to head back east and see what that brings, (the same state as Colleen, maybe? Please?) there are things here I’ll miss. So, in no particular order:

1.       Roadrunners. They’re ridiculous, and Price seems to be a roadrunner whisperer of sorts (see: that time on the golf course when he called one and it came).

2.       Baby quail. THEY’RE SO LITTLE

3.       7% humidity being a lot

4.       Being able to see from the mountains to the other mountains

5.       The way the desert smells after it rains

6.       Being able to drive 27 miles in 27 minutes

7.       The amazing scale of the west. Everything is just farther away from everything else

8.       The relative proximity to so many national parks

9.       Burritos (baby burros. Ha! That one’s for Colleen)

10.   Burritos (the food. Carne Asada.)

11.   Making jokes like “If you made a wrap out of a baby burro, would it be a burrito burrito?

Things I will not miss:

1.       115 degrees. Nope.

2.       “But it’s a dry heat” Still hot. Also, that’s like asking someone from New Jersey what exit they’re from…mildly amusing the first time, then it gets old fast.

3.       The lack of greenery

4.       Everything that lives here wants to kill everything else that lives here

5.       115 degrees. Still nope.

As an aside, boy did Red Dead Redemption nail the look of the desert.

350 hours until Opening Day!

Maryvale!

Over the last two days, I had another fantastic baseball experience. Planning to spend two days in Phoenix to enjoy three Cactus League games, I left Saturday morning and arrived at Maryvale Baseball Park to enjoy the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers. This was a park we didn’t go to last year, so it was nice to walk around a new ballpark (they’re all great, just varying degrees of great). I enjoyed a brat (it is Milwaukee’s home park, after all) and a beer, and hung out by the Reds bullpen. We had pretty solid success with that last year (re: Brock’s conversation with Bronson Arroyo) and this year was pretty great also. I got to watch Aroldis Chapman warm up! He was like 8 feet from me! Also, I said this to a few people, namely Colleen and my Dad, but watching major league players toss baseballs to kids is never not the best thing ever.

Aroldis!

After that game, I was going to check into the motel I had booked and then head to the Dodgers and White Sox. Well…the hotel was, um, sketchy? I didn’t feel comfortable staying there, so I cancelled my reservation (and got refunded) and figured I would head down to the night game and then head back to Bullhead.

The night game was sold out.

Oops. Headed back to Bullhead and was home at a reasonable hour last night. Score one for a great experience at Maryvale and disappointment elsewhere.

This morning, I drove up to Las Vegas to see the Mets and Cubs play at Cashman Field, where the Las Vegas 51’s play. The 51’s are the Mets AAA affiliate, and I was struck by the ballpark. The Phillies A affiliate in Lakewood play in a nicer facility. The walls were high (to combat winds? Because they didn’t want to spend the money to grow grass to have a berm in the outfield? Because Vegas?) and not padded, and the park only sat about 9,000 fans.

The party area and field at Cashman

But the Mets brought mostly starters to the desert including David Wright, Travis d’Arnaud, Curtis Granderson (who struck out…Mets fans need to get used to that) and defensive whiz and center fielder Juan Lagares and the Cubs brought a lineup filled with guys trying to latch on and top prospects. So I can say I’ve seen the Mets play this year (AAA jokes, anyone?) and seen some of the top prospects in the Cubs organization, including Javier Baez and Kris Bryant.  And I scored a baseball! Mostly because I was alone in my section. Bearded guys always lose out to kids.

 

So it wasn't what I had planned, but it was pretty great anyway. Some observations from the road in no particular order:

1.       Two tumbleweeds

2.       A plastic bag blowing around that blew right into a trash can

3.       A guy facetiming and driving

4.       Someone parasailing out the back of a pickup truck on a dirt patch off the highway

I got a cap!

Last year was more fun, because these things are always more fun when you have friends to share them with. But I’m pretty pumped I got to do it again. 

"Slowing Down driving in...

I can finally breathe again"

        -Jason Aldean (Water Tower)

Had an opportunity to be home for a crazy, whirlwind of a tour of a weekend. It was a fantastic opportunity to enjoy a really beautiful wedding (and a couple great parties!) and continue the research that Colleen has asked me to do at the last two weddings we have been to:  watch it not with a critical eye, but with an eye toward our own party that is now roughly 8 months away.  Considering how many weddings she has been to since college (10+) and how many I have been to in my life (4) it’s easy to see why I need to pay a little extra attention to the details! Especially if I am going to be of any use for the next several months of planning. 

The weekend started off with Katy picking me up at the airport, and an immediate trip to Pats and Genos Cheese Steaks in Philly. We bought one cheesesteak from each place, cut them in half and had a taste test. I can’t swear to it, but I believe Pat’s won in my mind. Then we acquired Katy’s cat, Yeti, and headed to Beachwood. Yeti spent at least part of the ride on my shoulder like a parrot.

A brief stop home and then a trip to Malvern, PA, for the rehearsal and party, and wedding.  A truly fun and beautiful ceremony, and a couple of fantastic parties later, it was back to Beachwood.  Colleen went to celebrate Julie’s wedding shower with the female portion of the family, and I was lucky enough to spend time with Dad, Smithbauer, Morgen, and Mr. Byrnes, drink some Yuengling and eat some meat on a stick. That evening, we got a chance to look in on the hall where our reception will be held, and were thrilled with it. The owner was flexible, helpful, excited about what he does…really a great opportunity for us.

The final day of my trip home was Monday. I got to take my favorite (almost) 7 year old to school. It started simply enough, Morgen letting me in, and a quiet 45 minutes before it was time for Jay to wake up.

Then his door was locked. And he was reluctant to help me open it. I played his “look for the lock thing” game for a minute, and we had a five minute back-and-forth about whether he would let me in.

Then he decided to let me in.

By slamming the door open and tossing himself on the bed. My man has 13 year old girl DOWN. Once he realized I was not his brother, it was like a switch flipped. He was fantastic.  He showed me his Cub Scouts Merit Badge. He showed me his Pinewood Derby trophy. He showed me the Batman stuff that Grandma and Grandpa got him in New York. He got dressed and brushed his teeth and we got him off to school on time.  I also got to have a lovely lunch with Colleen, her Grandma, Gram, and Aunt Mary Ellen. Then it was off to the airport and back to Bullhead City.

Another airport goodbye with Colleen, a 2:15 AM arrival time, and a negative report from the substitute made today a challenging day. But a productive softball practice and two happy cats at home made it a positive one.

Looking forward to the next trip back. 

Prepping to start Quarter 7 in AZ

A whirlwind of a break is coming to an end with me on the couch in front of the NFL Playoffs. The apartment is clean, two cats are asleep, and I’m refreshed and ready to start the third quarter, and all the schedule changes and challenges that will go along with it.

Break started with a trip home, a ride from Sean and Morgen and a stop at Amy’s Omelet House in Cherry Hill. That afternoon was fun as family and friends got together and ate pizza and had some cold beers at Mom and Dad’s, then we went to the Office Lounge and the Toms River Diner.  That catapulted me into a few days of working at The Candle Shoppe again, a couple of Wawa Gobblers (!!) and several Porkroll Egg and Cheese sandwiches from Bayside Bagel in Silverton.

Christmas Eve was a blast; watching Jayden and Ryan play together is really what Christmas is about. Prior to the party, Colleen and I helped Jayden paint birdhouses for Grammy, Julie, Katy, Grandma, and his mother. He was a riot, telling Grandma when she walked in that “Don’t worry about these, Grandma, these are just for random people.” This was after he pointed out that it would be “awkward” if Grandma walked in while we were painting hers.  He also read me a book. He’s getting so big!

Christmas Day was wonderful, too. Colleen and I spent Christmas Morning at Mom and Dad’s, which included some AWESOME hot sauce on the tasty egg thing that Mom made. Then we spent the rest of the day with her family, which was great. Her family is wonderful, wonderfully welcoming to me, and we were able to share lots of laughs. I even got to help out in the kitchen, as Colleen and I helped prepare dinner.

Then, for reasons unknown to me, we got onto the longest flight of all time (it just would NOT END) and landed in Vegas again on the 26th…and didn't get into the hotel until late. Though standing in line for the shuttle to take us back to my car in the Economy Lot was amusing, it also took forever. We spent the night in Las Vegas (which included our neighbors in the hotel coming in at ? o’clock screaming the lyrics to What Does the Fox Say?) and then drove the six hours to Salt Lake City, Utah. There was a time change we forgot about, and we stopped extra times because we were both exhausted, so the trip effectively took 8 hours, and because of various other delays we lost out on naptime prior to the rehearsal dinner for Patrick and Hilary’s wedding, which was a lot of fun.

The wedding day saw Colleen off early for bridesmaidy things, and me with a four hour marathon of Bar Rescue. Cool. I even got it together enough to walk across the street to SubWay for a pastrami sandwich (any port in a storm, folks). The wedding ceremony was very nice, and afterward, I wound up in a college bar in downtown SLC with another boyfriend of a bridesmaid while they did pictures. OK! The reception afterwards was a ton of fun, really a great party, and I got to spend it with good people. Colleen set me up with a few of her college friends while she was occupied. It was a fun time.

Then it was back to Bullhead, lunch with Paul and Robin, and a stopover at Price’s. Colleen was supposed to leave Wednesday morning…another quick turnaround in a break full of them. Somehow, her flight was switched to Friday, which allowed her to be there when we picked up our new cat. 

Really a good break, but an exhausting one, and the fact that I got a couple of extra days with Colleen at the end was fantastic.  Back for a quick trip in February to celebrate another wedding. Can’t wait!