A Day of Good, Bad, and Ugly

Perhaps if one looks hard enough, one can find good, bad, and ugly in every day.  I try my darndest to focus only on good, but today, there were three big things that happened to me, one from each category.

The Good
Many months ago, I heard of a tuition reimbursement program that was made possible by a proposition from Governer Dave Heineman and the passing of LB1071 in the Nebraska state legislature.  On the very day the application was made available, I applied and had that manilla envelope postmarked.  I received an e-mail today which told me that I was awarded $2,975 for this calendar year.  What an amazing blessing!  Financially, come to find out, Masters degrees aren't cheap.  Thank you Governer Heineman and Nebraska state representatives for believing in the importance of well-educated teachers in our public schools.  I can assure you that I will work very hard to put our state's stimulus money to good work in the classroom.

Perhaps with the newly imparted knowledge that my Masters degree will bring, we will be doing less of this:

And more of this:

Just kidding.  I assure you that I can provide a rationale for what is happening in both of the above pictures.


The Bad
Another one bites the dust.

We received an e-mail from the Special Education teacher on our team telling us that she has taken a position at another school and will not be with our team next year.

I don't handle change well.  Especially sudden change.  It takes me a good deal of time to wrap my head around things and to mentally process all the implications that come with whatever change is occurring.  We just went through a round of interviews for Taylor's position, we might have to do more interviewing for Adam's position, and now there will be even more for Patty's position.  More than the inconvenience of interviewing, though, is the fact that there will be a new person to whom we will need to adjust.  I got really comfortable with the way things were, and it's hard for me to imagine what differences will come as a result of this change.

I firmly believe, however, that everything happens for a reason.  Therefore, I trust that Patty's new position is the right move for her.  I also look forward to meeting our new team member.  Perhaps this person will be an even better fit with our team.


The Ugly
I am a hard-core Husker fan.  And today, my beloved Huskers have opted out of the Big 12 Conference.

http://huskersgameday.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Big12map.png

And into the Big 10 Conference.

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Again, I don't do so well with change.  But I call this ugly because I think that things are going to get really messy back in Big 12 Land.  

I am not a sports analyst, so I do not have any credibility in terms of what predictions to make with what will happen with other programs in the Big 12 Conference.  By my calculations, however, I suspect that Nebraska basically just made a decision that will leave Kansas, K-State, and Iowa State hanging out to dry.

I suspect that the other big programs like Texas and Oklahoma will be just fine.  They will maybe move over to the SEC which, frankly, might be a more fair match for them.  In the Big 10, Nebraska will be a shoe-in for a conference title, I think.  We will be in the western division, which, I think, will make Iowa our biggest competition.  And I feel good about being able to take care of Iowa.  I might even be persuaded to purchase tickets to go watch my Huskers play a game in the Big House, a stadium which I have always wanted to see.  A game at Ohio State's Horseshoe might also be fun.  I've done the Texas thing and the Oklahoma thing, so some new scenery might be nice.

Academically, I think the Big 10 will be a good challenge for us, and in other sports, we might have a chance in the world to excel.  Our baseball team might even win a game or two up North, although they will be playing in cold temperatures until May.  Men's basketball isn't likely to have much of a chance anywhere we go (unless we would bump down to NAIA status or something), but the Lady Huskers, if they continue to do well, might be able to put up a fight.  The volleyball ladies will continue to be challenged, I think, but I don't anticipate that recruiting will slow down for them because of this move.  I do think that recruiting for other sports might pose a challenge for us.

I don't know what will come of all of this, but I do know that Big 12 or Big 10, I will always be a Husker!

GO BIG RED!