Summer time

School is out and it's officially summer vacation.  It's been a day and I've already caught up on every show I missed in the past few months.  So, you know, definitely not going to be a long two months or anything.  I'm sure I can find other stuff to do.  Paint the house, learn a new language, literally anything that gets me moving before I die of boredom.  We'll see what happens I guess.
The end of the school year was quick and a little depressing actually.  This was the longest year ever, but I really didn't want the 5th grade class to graduate.  It was such a great group of kids and I really don't anticipate any other class living up to that for a while.  Now, of course, as a teacher, you're not supposed to have favorites, but of course, we all do.  This group just happen to have pretty much all of my favorites in it.  And yes, my overall favorite in the whole school was in this class too, so that's probably a part of it.  Sure, Ryan thinks I'm way crazy for having a favorite and missing him that much, but it's just something you can't understand if you're not a teacher I guess.   Particularly this student.  He came to us at the beginning of last year with a report so bad you would have thought that he was swinging from the lights and dancing on the desks at his old school.  Hey, maybe he was, I don't know, I wasn't there.  So, from the beginning I was asked to keep an eye on him, you know, make sure he wasn't going to run away or cause problems in the classroom.  He's had a real tough life for a kid, and I wasn't really sure what to expect out of him.  Two years later and I can proudly say that he was nothing like the report we got.  He is a kind-hearted, funny, (sometimes fidgety), friendly young man. I like to think I had a part in that, but who really knows.  I do know that after all he's gone through, to have those qualities makes him very special and I truly hope he doesn't change when he gets to middle school.
Anyways, you spend a lot of one on one time with certain people and they tend to grow on you.  Throughout the school year you connect with the students, learn about their lives, interests, likes and dislikes, and eventually grow to love them each as your own.  Some more than others, sure, but it's hard to let them go when you know you're not going to see them anymore.  After all, they're going to middle school now.  It's a whole new world over there, and a lot of growing up takes place, so really, this is the last time you really see them as children and not young adults.  It's kind of sad.  Once again, this is really something that you can't explain to non-teachers, you just have to experience it to know what I'm trying to explain.
Well, that's basically it.  Nothing new happening in running, so that's the end of that.  Here's a bunch of pictures from the end of the year, so enjoy those.

This is a homework assignment from my little buddy.  I particularly liked his 3rd sentence, as I have the same condition. The 4th sentence made me sad because, spoiler, his mom didn't come to graduation.  Like I said, he's had a rough life.

We made this on the side of the school to cover up some inappropriate graffiti before we held our flag day celebration.

First in Math trophy.  The school was in 1st place for almost the entire year.

Months worth of awards for being in 1st

A reading bulletin board. We had a contest to see who made the best one.  Can you believe I didn't win!?

Running selfies, I ran Horn Pond Mountain to check out the view.

I know the view doesn't look that good in the picture, but it was much prettier in person.

Beefsteak festival.  It was awesome.

Table long flip cup contest

Bread stacking contest, we won.

Beefsteak Betty!

Got my sweatshirt for coaching this year.  It's pretty awesome.

This is the card my buddy gave me.  I know it's only one sentence, but it means the world to me.  That picture is supposed to be me, from the back, as a superhero. Seriously. How could I not love this child?

End of the (school) year madness

If it wasn't for all those snow/hurricane days, tomorrow would be the last day of school!  Alas, instead, we are working until next Thursday.  I'm not sure which is worse, knowing that we would've been out of school tomorrow but still having to come in to pack up, or being in school and having to pack up the entire school before next Thursday.  So far we've gotten as far as wrapping up bookshelves in plastic wrap and turning in the handbooks/emergency procedures from September.  What I'm saying is, there's still a ton of work to do and a very small window of time left to do it.  Most of the craziness of the end of the year is what has been keeping me from updating you on my exciting running life.
Let's see.  The Lynn Woods run on Wednesday was ok but it was quite muddy in some places.  I'm a little nervous about this week, because there are scattered thunderstorms and just regular rain storms rolling through the state for the next two days.  Mud and rocks don't mix well when you're trying to run.  Plus it's a 7.7 mile run.  There's also an option to arrive at 6 and do a 12 - 13 miler, but I'm not ready for that kind of trail running yet.
However, running the woods has helped improve my flat ground running time.  On Friday I went for a 3 miler around Wakefield Lake and had my best time ever.  I did my first mile in 7:03! My second and third miles were done in 8:03, so clearly I started off a little TOO fast.  I still did 3 miles in 23 minutes and some seconds.  Not bad, especially for running alone.  Now if only I can slow down my first mile by 30 seconds, I can make my overall time even a little bit less.
Yesterday I did the Lazy Lobster virtual 10 mile for My Team Triumph.  My Team Triumph is a charity group that raises money to provide people with disabilities the opportunity to participate in events such as running.  Perhaps the most famous example is the Hoyt family.  The father runs the Boston Marathon every year, pushing his adult son in a type of stroller.  I found out about the race through Morty's mom, and of course I had to sign up.  The best part was that it was virtual, so I was able to run the 10 miles around me, instead of trying to make it to Wareham on the day of the race.  The people that set up the race even sent the race t-shirt and finisher medal to all virtual participants.  It was pretty awesome.  My time for the 10 miles wasn't that great, 1:40, but I know it could've been better.  The people I was running with had to stop a couple of times and since I wasn't entirely sure of where I was going, I couldn't keep my pace and leave them behind, so I slowed down a bit a few times. Even slowing down, it wasn't a terrible pace, I just know I can do better.
So, there you go, that's my recap.  Maybe I'll go for a run tomorrow if I can find time between rainstorms.  I'll leave you with some pictures of a rainbow, just because I can.