S7s: April 17- Feeling clean

1) After almost 6 weeks of being without one, I own a working washing machine! I swung by Best Buy after Nora's birthday party. I've been looking on Craigslist to no avail. I figured I go new and take advantage of Best Buy's no interest financing. On the floor was an open box that they said was used as a display. It was over $200 off retail and they offered me another 20 percent off. So I took it. It's a Whirlpool Cabrio HE top loader. The reviews are mixed on the the High Efficiency washers, but I'm going with the idea that the new ones have evolved for the better. First load in the machine right now, so we'll see. At least I don't have to go to the laundromat or do my wash at school anymore.

2) Governor McCrory has issued an Executive Order clarifying HB2. It's a step in the right direction, but probably the damage has already been done. He wants to change the legislation to allow North Carolinians the right to sue for discrimination in state courts (my biggest gripe) as well as clarify some of the language. It may be too little too late. Many businesses are still not stepping back from calling for a full repeal. He's feeling the heat, though he is getting a lot of love from supporters of the bill. I think he regrets signing a bill that was so hastily written (1 day) and had so many flaws. The bill reminds me of when I would throw together a project at the last minute: sure I got it done and met the criteria, but when you looked closely it was full of errors and mistakes.

3) Some of this stems from "religious liberty". That's what Mississippi passed, that if you have religious convictions you can deny service to a gay couple. I guess I wonder whether I could deny services to someone of a different race or gender based on my religious convictions. I really do have mixed feelings on all of this. I don't want anyone to be discriminated against. But if someone is a bigot or hates homosexuals, they should be allowed to do so happily as long as they are not hurting anyone and they own a private business. They should advertise their position and let the market take care of it. Obviously, a restaurant that did not serve Asians would not welcome me, but I bet most of my friends would also not frequent that business. I sure wouldn't want to go there anyway. And if you really cared, you could take note of friends, neighbors and public officials that did go to those places and decide if you still want to be associated with them.

4)  My favorite news story of the week:

5) Also from NPR, I found this interesting. I have long told my students that writing things down helps you learn. Now, I have science behind me!

6) NBA Playoffs: I'm pulling for the Spurs. I don't know if they can beat Golden State, that team is special. So fun to watch. 

7) Lady Knights Track finished 3rd at the County Meet. The boys won! We had not county champions, but Lauren Francis finished 2nd in the 300 hurdles and our 4x100 and 4x400 finished second. We also celebrated our seniors.

S7s: 3 Apr- Bye, Break

1) Spring break is ending. Tomorrow, we're back for nine weeks left of the school year. Family and weather dictated that I stay close but I had a great week that included:

• My niece, Suelee, was in town for the week. She had her two kids. I hung out with them a bunch. Eva is pretty stinking cute.
  
• Went to Jack of the Wood for Trivia with some of the Enka crew. I learned that Charlotte is the second largest city in the Southeast after Jacksonville, FL. Atlanta metro is bigger, but the city itself is smaller. 
• Had drinks with Michael Hodges. He's an athletic trainer in Buncombe County and he's doing the Great Divide this summer. I'm so excited for him. And jealous. It was fun getting to share advice and reliving the journey.
• Cleaned the house a little. Got a bunch of stuff delivered to Goodwill and the recycling facility.
• I learned that I need a new motor for the washing machine. Not going to happen. This one is going trash and I'm shopping for a new one.
• I went camping in Turkeypen along the South Mills River. Just me and my hammock and some reading stuff. It was great to be solo and disconnected from technology. It was going to be two nights, but weather forced me to do just one. 

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2) This is Shawn Evans. Today is is his Birthday. Shawn is a new friend of mine, but a great guy. He hired wrestlers last year when he had to move and paid them well. He's a heck of a biker, he joined me for a few days of the Great Divide last year. We also got a ride in today. And yesterday, he brought me a refrigerator because I had posted on Facebook that I was looking for one. They had an extra. 

3) I learned in my reading last week that the human hand may have evolved for combat. We are the only hominid or primate that can close our hands into a fist. The human jaw may have evolved to better sustain blows. Interesting. Look it up.

4) I've been reading a little more about HB2. I stand by my position that it is not about bathrooms. I learned that in addition to stripping municipal governments of local control it also has moved all discrimination lawsuits out of state courts. That means if I feel like I am being discriminated against because of my ethnicity, I cannot legally sue within the state court system. I must file a federal suit, that can often take longer and be more costly. It's as if the state of North Carolina does not want to protect its citizens from discrimination.

5) I am starting to get into better riding shape from the winter. Rode the Davis-Evans loop on Monday, climbed Elk Mountain to the Blue Ridge Parkway on Friday and then hammered 43 miles with Dan and Derek over Jeter Mt and out to Etowah yesterday. Finished that with a ride today and I'm almost at 90 miles this week!

6) Opening Day of baseball today. I'm interested, but not that much. I love Clayton Kershaw. I get bored of baseball though. Shorten the season! I am excited that this is Master's Week!

7) Special congratulations to Josh Blatt. After finishing 7th in Greco in Fargo last summer and winning the State Championship in February at 106, he went to the NHSCA Nationals and placed 2nd! That's amazing. Mitchel Langford placed 4th two years ago, that tells you the depth of these tournaments. Great job on being an All American.

We also had three other kids go to Virginia Beach... all our state placers. Morgan King, Will Baldwin and Paul Searcy all went 2-2. They won against some tough kids and lost some close matches. We were always competitive and hopefully this experience will help us for next season. Knights Wrestling has some high expectations. 

S7s: March 27: Break

1) Spring Break has begun. I have no plans really, I am going to the be at the track a few days. Suelee and her kids are in town for the week. She's transitioning between jobs. I'd like to camp, backpack or get out of town for a few days, but who knows. There's lots of stuff that needs to get done around here too: yardwork, fix washing machine, sort clothes and other things to give away. My big hope is that I and my students mentally recharge and my athletes heal up from their injuries and afflictions.

2) Today is Easter. This day means everything. It gives purpose to my life. There is a purpose. There's a seat for us as the table and we are not chained by our sins.

3) One of my favorite paintings is Caravaggio's Supper at Emmaus as told in Luke 24:13-35. The painting has so many gorgeous aspects, but perhaps my favorite is that it is an invitation. There's a open spot for us. We are welcomed at the table.

4) NC Passed House Bill 2 this past week. Basically, it's the state's response to Charlotte's city ordinance that allowed transgendered people to use the restroom of the gender that they associate with, not necessarily the gender they are born with. The framers of HB2 say it is about protecting women and children but the bill does seem overreaching and has implications that go beyond just bathrooms and who gets to use them. It overrides all local ordinances that protect certain individuals. I do have some issues with the bill, mainly:

• It will get challenged in court and cost the state lots of money.
• They called special session that costs about $42,000 just for this bill. It was that urgent?
• I don't think it's just about bathrooms.
• It runs the risk of affecting many people adversely, not just gay, lesbian and transgendered people.
• Written into the bill was also a stipulation that local communities could not set a minimum wage higher than the federal minimum wage. 
• For a party of small government and local control the GOP in NC sure is legislating a lot and taking away the ability of local municipalities to craft local ordinances that are good for their communities. 

5) Terrorists attacks in Belgium on Tuesday and Pakistan yesterday. Tragic and heartbreaking, as it always is. I don't want to write much because I don't know what to write. What else do you say. I'll share this link from NPR because the photos tell a much better story than I do.

6) NCAA Basketball tournament is down to four: UNC, Villanova, Oklahoma and Syracuse. I have no preference. I still don't know if the upsets are a result of parity or poor seeding.

7) Went on an epic bike ride with Stephen Willis, Robert Duggan and Robert's friend David yesterday. We started at Andrews Geyser and rode up to Ridgecrest. Then we went up Rattlesnake Trail and hit the Toll Rd. Rattlesnake was super steep and hard. I pushed. The Toll Rd was not too bad, just long. At the top, the rocks became loose and larger, so it was hard pedaling sometimes.

After almost 16 miles of climbing, we reach Heartbreak Ridge. What a fun downhill! Long and mostly rideable. It was a great time! We were so tired though from the slog. We thought that we'd shuttle Kitsuma, but I was hungry and everyone agreed, so we went up to Black Mountain and had food and drinks at Fresh Wood Fired Pizza. It was pretty good. Great route, I can't wait to ride Heartbreak again.

Spring break means brutal climbs, fast descents and geysers. #giantbikes #geyser #mtbike

A photo posted by @heanguy on Mar 26, 2016 at 11:29am PDT

S7s: Feb 21- State Championship Edition

1) This is my 16th year as the head coach of North Henderson Wrestling. I always tell my kids that our goal is February. We've had a great February so far with a conference championship and Regional Runner-up. We qualified six wrestlers to the state tournament, held this past weekend.

What a weekend it was for us. Our team finished tied for 2nd overall and we had four state placers. Josh Blatt fought his way to overtime in the 106 Championship finals. We were down by two with 30 seconds left and took our opponent down. In overtime, we were able to catch our opponent on his back and secure the fall. That ended up being huge. It moved us ahead of Piedmont for second place. The only team that could catch us was Hickory Ridge. Their 113 pounder was down most of the match and, in dramatic fashion, got a takedown and back points late in the third period. The win bumped Hickory Ridge into a tie with us.

Paul Searcy took 3rd at 145, Will Baldwin was 4th at 138 and Morgan King was 5th at 113. Considering our 220 was scratched at weigh ins, I'm really proud of the effort of the Knights. We were only 3 points behind Enka and we had opportunities to catch them. But our guys battled, showed character and excelled when it was demanded of them. We're excited to be returning all our state placers and we'll be shooting for that goal of a championship next year.

2) Lots of great memories from the weekend, but this photo is going to be talked about for years. Wayne Nock is now internet famous. This was right after the pin was called in Josh's match. Priceless. We were stunned, you can say...

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3) Cele, our 220 pounder, was disqualified because of a cold sore. It was truly a heartbreaker. This is a kid we really love and who loves his teammates. I took him home after practice every day his freshman year and most days his sophomore. He started off as an mediocre wrestler but stuck with the sport and became one of the best in the state. I hate he did not get a chance to compete for a state title. I think that he hates knowing that his points could have earned us a state title as a team. 

All things happen for a reason. I don't know what the reason is here, but I trust that God has great things in store for Cele, our kids and myself through this experience. 

4) Last week was my birthday week. The people at school were really nice and made me feel special without embarrassing me. I had a small dinner after practice with some friends and some of my favorites.

5) I didn't love To Kill a Mockingbird, but I can appreciate the importance of Harper Lee's novel. We've lost another American icon.

6) Oh, South Carolina. Nice job in the primaries. I still can't believe that people follow Trump, but I understand it reflects a part of the American soul that we've kept hidden. There is a lot of fear and hatred still in us. That said, I believe that Cruz is much more dangerous than Trump. 

7) I'm tired. But I'm grateful for what I do. We teach and mold. We challenge and shape. We laugh and cry. Moments like this weekend remind me that I get to be a part of something special. 

S7s: Feb 6

1) Sunday Sevens is Saturday Sevens this week. Tomorrow is the Super Bowl Sunday, I doubt I'll be blogging much tomorrow. That said, I'm hoping for a good game. I think the final score will be 27-24. I have no idea who will win.

2) Knights Wrestling fell in the first round of the State Duals this week. We lost to Piedmont 31-30. There were several opportunities for us to make up at least that one point, if not more. Piedmont wrestled really well and they're a great team, nothing bad to say about them. They earned the win.

• I do wish the NCHSAA would seed the dual team state playoffs. Tournament is already paired, we knew a month ago we'd get Piedmont and I believe that both teams are among the best in the state. That's the luck of the draw. In another pairing, two teams with losing records met in the first round.
• Enka and Piedmont met for the West Championship (State Semifinals). We lost to both teams by a combined 5 points. Between those two teams, they won 14 matches and we won 14 matches.
• Congratulations to Enka and Mitchell for making the state finals. They both lost to formidable opponents, but getting there is a feat.
• We beat Mitchell and dropped a 4 point loss to Enka. We also beat 2A Regional Finalist Chase. Our team has been challenged and wrestled up to the challenges. 
• Regional Tournament is at North next weekend.

3) I got a bike ride in today. 30 miles out to Etowah and back. I am not as fit as I want to be. Sean and Robert really hammered a strong pace and I couldn't keep up. Two more weeks of wrestling and hopefully I'll get more bike time. Maybe by then, the trails will dry out a little also.

4) I have been an opponent of gerrymandering for years, no matter who does the gerrymandering. I often here Republicans use the argument that the Democrats did it when they were in control. It doesn't matter. It's wrong and not democratic. And the fact is, North Carolina is the most gerrymandered state in America. Map below is NC in 2003 and then 2013.

This week, a federal court invalidated two of North Carolina's congressional districts, the 1st and 12th. In Congress, Part of Buncombe County is in a district that stretches to Gastonia! Representatives have no accountability since they are often in districts with little or no competition. And we let it happen over and over. Hopefully, this is change.

5) Near tie in Iowa for the Democrats. Bernie probably takes New Hampshire, so does that make the race interesting. Sanders has a lot of momentum. I wonder if he's electable in a general election. His best chances are probably against Cruz, who though he won Iowa, I don't see as electable as a Rubio or even Bush. I still like Kasich. Cruz is just so unlikeable. He's most popular with the far right, which doesn't necessarily make a great general election candidate.

6) Is this Martin Shkrelli the most hated man in America? Maybe. His smirk makes me want to punch him. His testimony and the reason it's going on is an example of what's wrong with our health care system. Insurance and big pharmaceuticals have pushed costs higher. Hospitals bill what insurance will pay and we pay more in higher premiums. The leading cost of personal bankruptcy is health care costs. You don't have to like Obamacare, but please don't tell me the system is fine.

7) We're in February! Black History month. Birthday Month. President's Day! Regional and State Wrestling. Beginning of track! 

State Champion!

This past weekend was the NCHSAA State Championships and it was a great weekend for North Henderson. We left the tournament with two state placers, including the 2A State Champion at 103 pounds!

Colby Langford is a sophomore wrestler at North Henderson. The kid was not even a starter at the regional tournament last year as he wrestled behind some kids he could not quite beat out. This year, he had a great opportunity and made the most of it. Colby finished with a record of 52-3. In the state tournament, he had pins in 3 out of 4 matches including the finals match. No only did he collect a fall in the third period of his finals match, he avenged a 5-4 loss from the finals of the regional tournament the previous week.

Colby finishes the season tying the North Henderson school record for wins in a season with 52. The old record was held by our last state champion, Brett Williams (2006). He also set a new record for pins with 36. Best of all, Colby is a great kid with a great attitude. He's a terrific student (even if I had to make him take my honor's class), has a supportive family and has taken ownership of this team as a sophomore. Pretty cool that we get him for two more years.

Colby sported the old Edneyville (the school North replaced) singlet in the finals

I don't want to leave out German Ramirez. German finished 4th in the state. Wish you could have met the kid as freshman. He's one of the greatest success stories that I've had as a teacher and coach. German had just moved to the United States and spoke no English but somehow ended up on the wrestling team. We had to translate everything (luckily, we had some Hispanics since my Spanish is nonexistent).

Now look at German. He speaks great English. He's an excellent and admired young man. He's a terrific and tough wrestler. He's a wonderful teacher. He'd be a great wrestling coach someday...

Tennessee

Middle and Eastern Tennessee wore me out. Sunday got off to a bad start because I wasn't three miles into the day and I ran over something that cut a 1 inch gash in through both the tire and tube of the trailer. Replacing the tube was easy, but the tire was an issue. I glued and taped the tire together to try to create something that would hold a shape until I could get to Cleveland.


Sunday was brutal. It was hot and there was a lot of climbing as made my way to Smithville. In Sparta, I made a decision that I would kind of regret. I decided to push to Fall Creek Falls State Park. It was another 30 miles or so and would put me closer to Cleveland in the morning. I did not realize that there was going to be a climb of over 2200 feet to slow me down. By the time I got to the turn off for the park I was toast. I stopped at an inn and had dinner with a family from Greensboro. My plan to camp across the street in the community center was spoiled by a sketchy car parked there. So I rode the 4 miles to the campground at Fall Creek Falls-- in the dark. I never like to ride after dark, even though I have lights. But I made it. The campground was nice enough and the park has lots to offer-- waterfalls, a golf course, hiking and backpacking.



Monday was more of the same. I got an awesome downhill to come out of the Cumberland Plateau and a break in Pikeville, but then it was more climbing (photo below)to get to Dayton. 6 miles, 2000 feet and lots of heat. From Dayton, it was about 30 miles to Cleveland. I had to hustle because I wanted to get there before the bike shop closed. I spent all my energy trying to make it to the shop, which I did. They were super nice at Scott's Bikes and let me hang out and cool off. And I got to replace that tire on the trailer.


Yesterday was another day that involved lots of climbing. And descending. And then more climbing. I followed the Ocoee River, which I've rafted a few times and which hosted the whitewater competition during the 1996 Olympics. Did you know it was the first Olympic competition held on a natural river? The ride was fine, it was the traffic that was bad. The trucks gave me no room, I was run off the road twice! I've gotten comfortable being passed by 18-wheelers, but these trucks far surpassed my comfort level. They literally scared me off the road.


But I did break into North Carolina. It was nice to smell my homestate. I love the Smokies. I wasn't in North Carolina for long. Dropped down US 19 towards Blairsville, GA. My third state of the day. More up and down. Luckily, my brother found me along the road. He took the trailer and panniers off me and it's amazing how much more efficient I am without the extra weight. I met him down the road at a campground where we set up for the night. Vogel State Park is an excellent park that I would highly recommend to anyone looking for a nice outing.

"Let it Snow"

In honor of the recent snowstorm, here's a rap video from some of the locals (who happen to be former students). Probably funnier and seemingly more artistic if you know the people and places featured in the video, but hilarity ensues nevertheless.



Here's the original:

Here's some good news!

No drought in NC for first time in two years

HB 593

HB 593

I'm a fan. Basically, it says that schools can start as soon as August 8 each year. The current law, pushed by the tourism industry and many parents, mandates a start no earlier than August 25.
Here are some reasons why I am emailing my Representative:

1) Local control. Each district should be able to choose the calendar that's best for them. NC is too diverse a state geographically and economically to box us all into the same package.

2) Snow days. The current schedule makes it difficult to make up snow days.

3) Fall sports. Our football, soccer, volleyball and cross country coaches start on August 1. That's three weeks of practice they have before the first day. That's three weeks out of their summer and out of the athletes' summers.

4) Exams. Final exams for high schools on the block schedule will be before Christmas break instead of that odd period the second or third week of January.