Levi's STFs are the Best

 I bought my first pair of Levi's 501 Shrink to Fit Jeans in the middle of December. And today I washed them for the first time. I am looking forward to seeing the results for my three months of toil. 

I think everybody should have a pair, so hear is how it works. 

STEP 1: Go to any department store and buy a pair of Levi's 501 Shrink to To Fit jeans. Size is important. They shrink in the legs so make sure the pair you purchase is at least 2 inches longer than normal. I like a cuff, so rather then my usual 31X32 I bought a 30X36. This measurement achieves several things: one, it gives me the cuff that I want (cause what's a pair of Levi's without a classic cuff?) and two, it keeps the pants slim through the hips and legs, which is key, you don't want saggy butt. Be sure to try on several pairs in the store, each pair is different. Save the tags and recites. If you don't like the way they shrink they will take them back. 

STEP 2: Put them on and jump in a tub of nice hot water. That's right it's the only way to get that custom fit. I sat and read for a solid half hour and enjoyed my book immensely.

When the half hour is up, drain the tub and just sit for another ten or fifteen minutes to let your jeans drip dry a little so that you don't end up with blue stains all over your carpet. I go commando simply because the feel of wet boxers is very uncomfortable and I think they dry faster if you don't ware them (the underwear that is). 

STEP 3: Once out of the tub do some deep knee bends to get some nice creases behind the knees and on the front. Then wear them till they dry. I did mine in the middle of December and was fine. It is really not as uncomfortable as you might think. Be sure to wear black socks and a dark colored shirt, otherwise the dye from the jeans will ruin them. Go for a walk or bike ride. The results are awesome and they only get better with age. They are the best jeans I have ever bought hands down. 

STEP 4: Wear them a while without washing them, you have got to let your sweat and oils work into the denim.  

Some Pluses of the Levi's 501 STF:

-You can not beat the button fly.

-The weight of the denim is thicker than the average jean on the market resulting in longer life. I think it is around 120z, compared to the 9oz most jeans are. 

-The fit is 100 percent custom tailored to you.

-The look is classic and timeless. 

-And finally, to be given the chance to journey through life with a single, one-of-a-kind pair of pants that you had your hand in creating.  

Enjoy. 

Cell Phone Etiquette

Yesterday I had the privilege of chaperoning 100 some-odd students to Ashland to see Macbeth. In all, it was a great trip; no one snuck alcohol on the bus and got trashed, nothing promiscuous happened in Lithia Park, and no one was left behind. Mission accomplished. 

The play was good, not great; but what can you expect for a matinée' given to a bunch of high schoolers. I am sure the energy on stage was low, as it would be hard to keep up intensity when your audience is laughing and whispering at inappropriate times (uncultured swine!). Lady Macbeth was stellar, Macbeth himself was close to being less than satisfactory. He was floppy on stage and delivered his lines in an odd syncopated rhythm that became increasingly distracting. He also failed, I felt, to capture Macbeth's disheveled, wild and psychotic state at the end of the play--his inward turmoil was unsuccessfully manifested in an outward fashion. However, other elements of the play were fantastic, the cyclical nature of power and war was one such theme that was expertly addressed via the set design, which was built on a mangle of bronzed corpses symbolizing how Scotland had been erected through bloodshed. 

But what of the cell phones mentioned in my title? Well, one went off during one of Macbeth's famous monologues. It rang and rang and rang, broadcasting a grating melody throughout the theater. I cursed under my breath and a spectacular vision took shape in my mind. Macbeth, without breaking character, leapt of the stage with sward in hand--chucking bodies out of the way as he searched for the incessant ringing. The culprit was quickly located, and with booming voice and bulging biceps Macbeth picked the audience member up by the throat and verbally ripped him to shreds in perfect iambic-pentameter. The crazed Macbeth then took the phone, and with a ferocious jolt violently fed the device to the perpetrator. As the criminal attempted banal cries of apology he choked to death. I laughed with glee and the audience applauded. Macbeth, not yet satiated, decapitated the wrongdoer and thrust the bloody head onto the point of his sward resulting in a standing ovation. The head (cellphone still lodged in mouth) was then mounted outside the theater as an example to those who time and time again fail to understand the words "Please be polite and turn off your cell phones."  

We are more than a decade into cellphonedom, it is time a no tolerance approach be taken. 

 

Redding Marathon '09

I Finished my marathon in 3:28:06. I was 28th overall and second in my age group, granted there was only 170 people in the race and most of the runners were 35 and older which means I got trounced by a bunch of 40 year olds. For the complete break down see the results page here. The course went from Vista point above the damn, over the damn and onto some rail trail that ran for 11 miles. At mile 15 we hooked up to the River Trail, did one loop around and then finished at the Sundial Bridge. It really was a great course and the first 15 miles were absolutely stunning. Linz and Carter saw me twice during the race, as did Evan, Nance, Zach and Kelly, who caught me at great places along the river trail. Noah and Sarah caught me at mile 18.4--all were a huge encouragement--thanks guys, I could not have done it without you!

The first 18 were a breeze and really fun. I met Mike from Washington DC (pictured below) in the first mile of the race, we ran together and chit-chatted  till about mile twenty. He did his best to drag me along the last six but I just could not hang and he finished about 7 minutes ahead of me--great Guy--I would run with him again any day. Through that section our mile pace fluctuated between 7:15 and 7:30, a pace that put our finishing time around 3:15. The above picture is me feeling great at mile 15. 
This pic is at 18.5. A mile and a half after this picture my pace dropped to somewhere in the nines and it was all I could do to run sub tens. At mile 22 my legs began to cramp severely and continued to cramp off and on till the finish. I have never felt anything like it. I became road kill for the more experienced old dudes and dudettes who whizzed by me at quickened pace, for they had run a young 24 year old into the ground and were proud of it. 
Me at the finish where Linz, Carter, and great friends awaited. After the race, in an attempted to explain the pain, I equated the last four miles to the pain of birth, Linz laughed and said, "Not even close honey, but nice try." 
Me and my new friend Mike--the camaraderie  at these races is incredible.
A hug and a kiss never felt so good. Thanks all for your support.

In Brief

1. Student teaching is amazing. 

My master teachers (mentors) that I am paired with could not be better. 

Some signs that I am in the right place:

I don't feel like a fish out of water, being in front of a class seems as natural as breathing (I have got a lot to work on though--they tell me the craft is never mastered and I believe them), I sincerely and genuinely care for the kids in my class, and finally, I feel more myself then I have felt in a long time.

2. Marathon tomorrow. nervous. excited. hydrated and hungry.

3.  I am teaching the The Great Gatsby to my Juniors. Every one should read it again because it is unbelievably good. Fitzgerald succeeds in giving us pure poetry out of the mouth of Nick his humble and witty narrator. If you read it and don't like it, try it again because it is even better the third time. I am 1/3 of the way into Grapes of  Wrath, put that on your "to read" list too. It is blowing me out of the water and it reads faster then I ever could have imagined. 

4. The Best for last. Carter is turning into a human, not that he never was one, but now he crawls, claps, eats some solid foods, climbs into my lap, gets into trouble (see my wife's blog) and loves me.  

January Will Be Great! Like the rest of 09

For Christmas I got the flu. It came with some great features like chills, cold sweats, the usual fever and a soar throat. Medication was sold separately and like batteries was overpriced. I was sick for a solid five days, five days that were to be a critical component of my marathon training. Oh well, in the words of that nineties pop wonder Chumbawamba, I get knocked down but I get up again. The flu took more out of me then I expected. I did a 19.3 mile run on friday, it hurt, I am sore and now nervous about the race. However, I can not blame it all on the flu, I did slack a little and skip out on two or three big runs. My demise will be the result of a team effort by Flu and Apathy. We will see how it all pans out, I got two weeks to recover and taper my training. . . Giddy-up! 

I also start student teaching at Shasta Hight School this tuesday. I have two remedial freshman classes and a junior english class. It is a relief be making the final steps to a career. I would love to be hired by Shasta High come fall and my plan is to make myself a vital part of the school community, that way when hiring time comes they will say to themselves, what would SHS be without Mr. Tyler?--hire that man!

I am pumped for 2009

Under the Banner of Heaven: A Review that turned into a reflection

“Your just gotta have faith” is what the old George Michale song tells us. Faith has always been a positive value within society. Within religious communities persons whose faith is the strongest are venerated and looked to as an example. The community essentially has faith in the person’s faith, trusting all along that the venerated speak words of truth and wisdom and that their connections with God are authentic. But what happens when faith is perverted—when one’s belief becomes an unmovable force and the voice of “god” ostensibly whispers in their ear to commit atrocious, violent actions in "his" name.

John Krakauer’s Under the Banner of Heaven is a mesmerizing and tantalizing read. By putting Mormon Fundamentalism under the microscope Krakauer launches a full-blown exploration into the dark fanatical underbelly of religion. Krakauer uses the violent murder of a mother and her child committed by Dan Lafferty as a launch pad for his exploration. Lafferty, a member of a fundamentalist Mormon sect, still believes to this day, some 20 years since the incident, that he was d0ing gods bidding when he slit the throats of his own brother's wife and her baby daughter.

This is disconcerting to say the least, especially for one who holds to a christian belief system; a system that allows for one to communicate directly with God. As a Christian it is not uncommon for me to hear a fellow believer say something to the extent of "I feel that God is telling me to do this or do that." I too have used this line myself, I hope with sincerity, to justify my actions--but so did the zealot/murderer Dan Lafferty who, incidentally, is not insane.

I believe most assuredly that the voice Lafferty was listening to was not God, however, Lafferty would vehemently disagree. Yes, he subscribes to a cookey brand of fundamentalism that places him narcissisticly as a central figure in Christ's second coming, but the question still must be asked, How do we know we are listening to the voice of God? I feel like all the indicators for what is and is not the voice of God are entirely subjective. The Holy Spirit? Theology? Both these things can be tweaked by listeners and hearers alike to line up with the voice. Problematic? Yes. Do I have any answers? NO.

All I can offer myself at this juncture is that I have to have faith in faith. I must believe in belief. One bad apple does not ruin the bunch right?

Anyway, the book is a quick read and is definitely worth a looksey

My Attitude Sucks Today

Today Blows. My apathetic self is back--if it was a living thing I would shoot it after I slit its throat and spit in its face. But it is not, so I can't--I kowtow to that SOB inside me every time. Today I am a failure--maybe tomorrow I will be the victor. I feel better any how after typing the above.