Blog No. 231
I just had another school visit at the start of this week. I’m not sure what number that one is, maybe five, maybe more. I do know that every visit has been drastically different from the last. Some times the kids are super excited and at least some are interested and engaged (the others are just happy to not have math to do). Other times it has been like reading to a painting. No interest, no questions, no excitement. The teachers are exactly the same. Some are just happy to have a distraction for the kids so they can desperately try to catch up on work, others are just as into it as the kids. I’m not making judgement calls either way. My very limited experience in teaching has taught me that every school, teacher, and class is different for a multitude of reasons and most people are doing their best. I’m just lucky enough to have the opportunity to go and spread the good word of books. I even get invited back sometimes.
This latest one was a case of the kids not responding very much. I did get a couple questions, but mostly surface stuff about the cliffhanger I gave them with my reading. I went with Vanessa Shields. She fared a bit better, but she also has more experience and a 
wider variety of stuff to share with the kids. Thankfully, the teachers seemed appreciative and I think the door is open for future visits. Maybe next time I’ll have something more up the student’s alley. Or not. Best you can do is try.
I don’t have any other school visits planned, but I have been hard at work on Flags and High Fives. I put a tab up on top of this page, but it has it’s own real website courtesy of my co-host Arvin Singla. You should go see it. Especially since Episode Two is out. It was a mad dash to get it finished, edited, and posted. Somehow, we made it work. I’m really happy with this one. It was difficult to make, but I had a lot of fun recording it (as did Arvin I’m sure) and it comes through in the episode. We also got a little more loose and off script, which is appropriate since that was part of the episode’s subject. It’s also a bit shorter too (by a few minutes) and I attribute that to it being a bit tighter. Plus, I learned how to get rid of some of the background noise (thankfully since I was breathing into the mic like I was Darth Vader).
Already, we’re working on episode three. Even with a monthly schedule, it feels like there isn’t enough time to get the next one done. That’s likely due to the writing and editing piling up on my desk, which is because of my day job needing me to come to the rescue an awful lot this month. It sucks that I’m not getting my writing and editing done, but I am pretty desperate for that cash, especially if I want my novella to come out this summer. Though, I’ll have a hard time getting it out with all the extra hours I’m working. Time or money. The age old riddle. In the mean time, I’m plugging away and getting as much as I can done from now until the next event (which is Shock Stock on the first weekend of May). I’ll go into more detail on that one next week since I’ll be leaving for it the day after that post. For now, it’s get as much of everything done as I can. All hands on deck!
Ben Van Dongen 