Posted Previously Under Learning
Posted by derrick on
May 9, 2008

Found out this morning
There’s a circus coming to town
They drive in Cadillacs
Using walkie-talkies, and the Secret Service
- talking heads
This week I had my first two sea kayaking classes of the new season and both of course had their own personalities. The first was loose and laid back. We covered a lot of the points I wanted to cover and yet, driving home I could pinpoint bits and pieces that I wanted to do differently or that I felt I overlooked.
Posted by derrick on
May 6, 2008

Oh the minute I put them on
I knew I had done something wrong
All her gifts for the dance had gone
Its the red shoes, they cant stop . . . .dancing
- k. bush
Experience is a funny thing. It puts education in perspective. You learn that some things you were taught as rules are really guidelines at best, and many things you were never exposed to should have been part of the program. In religion it’s sometimes suggested that a young minister will focus on the law and the old will focus on forgiveness. Such is the nature of experience. This of course is why teachers need experience with their subject, and not just experience teaching. Such are the thoughts that come to my mind as I get ready for my first class of the new season.
Posted by derrick on
May 1, 2008

Ohhh, but are you experienced?
Have you ever been experienced?
Not necessarily stoned, but beautiful
- hendrix
Sorry if I’ve been a bit quiet lately. From the blog it could seem as if there was a lull, a quiet moment. Of course the quiet here has much more to do with the craziness of the offline world. I’m looking forward to next week when again I get back to instructing. Tuesday and Thursday I’ll be at Rutabaga in Madison for a couple cold water sessions. May is a tough time to coach. The combination of cool water and air temperatures usually make it too uncomfortable to spend too much time with students out of their boats and in the water, so you tend to cut a few things a bit short.
Posted by derrick on
April 22, 2008

I’m gonna be, got to be ready
When the chariot comes
(When the chariot, when the chariot comes)
Said I’m gonna be got to be ready
When the chariot comes
- b. Mcknight
Symposiums and big groups are lots of fun of course. In addition I really enjoy teaching private lessons. For the last couple years I’ve been doing more and more of this at my local lake. Of course with my busy summers it can be really hard to make the time. On the other hand, spending summer morning or sunny afternoon helping someone polish a roll or working with young couples who just want a new activity to do together is really a great experience.
Posted by derrick on
April 18, 2008

And they were all impressed with your Halston dress
And the people that you knew at Elaine’s
And the story of your latest success
You kept ‘em so entertained
- billy joel
So this morning I sit here drinking Starbucks coffee from a mug with a fancy Venetian theme. Now that would be all fine and dandy if not for the fact that I also realized that the dark roasted Starbucks coffee in the bag bears an amazing resemblance to that dark loam you get your worms in for fishing.
Posted by derrick on
April 11, 2008

And I have a lesson
That I must impart to you.
Its an old expression
But I must insist its true.
Jump up, look around,
Find yourself some fun,
No sense in sitting there hating everyone.
No mans an island and his castle isnt home,
The nest is for nothing when the bird has flown.
- tull
What I know I know. What I don’t know, I don’t. That was a real clear message in my BCU Coach training last year. Of course they have a different way of expressing it. Something like “at your level you are not qualified to teach such and such. . .” No wonder the pub is full after the class! All the students were feeling stupid. . Oh wait, maybe I was drinking alone!
Posted by derrick on
April 10, 2008

JB of Milwaukee shows off a draw
This always cracks me up. The first time I ever rolled because I actually HAD to roll was the result of being silly. I was doing a simple draw or as I like to say, “pulling my boat sideways”, and I brought my paddle in right next to my hull and SPLOOOSH! I didn’t know the solution to that little predicament was the simple art of letting go!