Our educational system is broken.  At least that’s what parents and the government believes. (I’m not saying they are right… I’m not saying they are wrong).

Up to this point there has been some disagreement about how to fix it.

I have the solution.

Best of all I’m not going to charge a dime for it.

After all, I’m here for the kids (and summers, but that’s a different blog).

As an added bonus we don’t have to throw money at the problem or add more testing (although I’m still in favor of grade level exit exams, but that’s also a blog for another time).

Here’s my plan.

It’s so simple it’s seems almost too good to be true. 

Did I mention it’s free?

The one thing upon which parents, teachers, administrators, and the government can agree (actually it’s the only thing upon which they can agree)… we all want our students to perform better.

Here’s my plan.

Teachers teach students.

Ipso facto, to get higher performing students, we need better teachers (and administrators).

So how do we get better teachers?

Easy.

Train them better.

How do we do that?

Easy.

Train them like plumbers.

Problem solved.

Teachers go to college for 4 years (or 5, possibly 6, sadly 7 in some cases).  They take a laundry list of classes in which there are two primary goals.

The first goal is to have them sit quietly for 3 1/2 years and listen to professors talk about what makes a good teacher.  Then they get to student teach for a few weeks.

The second goal is for colleges and universities to make boatloads of money by holding students hostage for 4 years in their education programs.

This type of training works in some instances, but too often we produce young teachers who aren’t prepared.

You know whose training works?

Plumbers.

Here is an example from a plumber training program:  The term of the plumbing apprenticeship consists of five years of not less than 8,000 hours in which a minimum of 500 hours is spent in paid-related classroom instruction and 260 hours of unpaid-related instruction with a minimum 80 percent attendance.

Plumbers not only take classes, but they work with master plumbers who teach them the skills on an actual job site.

They train with plumbers to become plumbers for 8,000 hours.

Think about that.  8,000 hours.

A typical school years is less than 1,400 hours.

And that’s not counting field trips, testing, snow days, lunch, and recess.

Student Teachers “teach” for 12 weeks (?).  At 5 days a week (?) for 7 1/2 hours a day (?).

That’s 450 hours.

Who’s better prepared?  A new teacher or a new plumber?

We need new teachers to spend more time in the classroom learning, tutoring, and getting hands on experiences before we throw them to the wolves. 

And by wolves, I mean students, parents, colleagues, administrators, and school boards.

They would be much better off working under a “Master Teacher” for a good portion of their 4 college years than just learning about “educational theories”.

New teachers should spend years learning their profession, not weeks. 

If we did a better job at preparing new teachers, they would do a better job teaching which would benefit the students.

Problem solved.

Again, no charge.

All of my ideas are free… because they are of no real value.

Comments: 25
Tags: college education departments, education system, plumbers, student teachers

Are resumes dead? 

If your answer is NO, you can stop reading (thanks for stopping by and please tip your waitress).  If you said YES, am I under any obligation to notify the next of kin?

You can probably guess I think paper resumes have outlived their usefulness.

You can also probably guess that I’m not comfortable delivering the unfortunate news of death (but that’s a whole different blog).

Email (along with texting for you crazy kids) is replacing snail mail.  Land lines are being put out of commission by cell phones (how I miss the rotary phone and the party line).  Newspapers are getting crushed by the internet.  And the Kindle seems to be every librarian’s worst nightmare.

Since technology seems to be changing every facet of our lives, why should resumes be any different?

Maybe it’s time to lighten my mailman’s load.

Maybe it’s time to stop killing so many trees.

Maybe it’s time to stop wasting money on stamps.

Maybe it’s time to shift the focus from fancy resume paper and cool fonts to what a candidate has really accomplished.

Maybe the new resume should be electronic.

Maybe it should be a personal website, wiki, blog, a series of podcasts, or even a summary of a candidate’s online presence.

Maybe this could be a mandatory class in every college education program.  Just think, we could produce graduates who understand technology and how it can be used in schools to benefit students (a novel concept I know, but call me a dreamer).

I haven’t worked out the details (don’t worry, they are just details), but resumes should be more than a phone number, an address (snail mail… it’s dead people, move on), an odd sounding objective statement, embellished job history, and three references.

While the classic resume drives me crazy, nothing angers me more than the three references at the bottom of the page (yes, I said one page… don’t even think I can wade through 5 pages of your resume… I’m just not that into you).

Who’s idea was the whole reference thing?

When did this become the standard end-of-the resume space filler?

When did we convince ourselves that it was so important to ask potential employees to name three people who think they are great?

I get it, your pastor loves you.

Your pastor loves everyone.  That’s why they are in the pastor business.

Your pastor might even like me (okay, that’s just crazy talk but you get my point).

Do we actually believe people who are desperate to find a job will list references who think they are lazy, incompetent, and don’t deserve to make a living wage?

I know resumes are simply a way to narrow down a group of candidates into a manageable number of interviews, but how great would it be if you could just get online and learn a candidate’s personal history.

To me, knowing someone’s technology ability is far more important then if they were on their high school swim team or a member of swing choir.

I can Google a person’s name and find drunken inappropriate pictures of them, but I can’t access their technology skills online.

It just doesn’t seem fair.

Or very 2010.

As an added bonus, electronic resumes mean less paper cuts.  And I don’t care who you are, that’s always a good thing.

Comments: 10
Tags: Google, resume paper, resumes, snail mail

It’s getting closer to that special time of the school year.

No, not summer (because that is beyond special… and there are days when I feel it will never get here).

It’s almost Interview Season.

Teachers retire, quit, or move on to bigger and better things.

This also means I will have a dull headache for the next 6 months.  It’s the exact same feeling I get when I eat too much sugar.

Openings to fill.  Resumes to sort through by the hundreds (please stop telling me there’s a teacher shortage).  And reference checks to be made.

Work, work, work.

Which isn’t a bad thing.  Actually it’s job security.

Even so, Interview Season = Dull Headache just Cookies in the Lounge = Dull Headache.

I enjoy meeting new teachers during interviews.

They are so young.  So enthusiastic.  So upbeat and positive.  So desperate for a job that pays them actual money.

There’s just so many of them.

After about interview #47, I start to show my age.

I get confused and disoriented.

There comes a time when I can’t remember if I’ve asked a question or even for the candidate’s name.

Who am I kidding?  At a certain point I can’t remember my own name (sadly this happens way before interview #47).

Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind interviewing (see:  job security).  I just wish I had a special huge red button to push the second I know it’s not going to work out.

Sort of a “Thanks for playing our game… now GET OUT!” button.

This isn’t true.  Or nice.

What I need is a giant lever to pull.

If this sounds unduly harsh, it’s because it is.

In my defense, interviews are like first dates.  You know within 2 minutes if it’s a match.

I don’t want to embarrass the person interviewing, I just want to pull the lever and have them fall into a giant abyss (just to prove I’m not mean, I want the abyss to be deep enough that I don’t hear their crying and screaming as they fight for a final breathe… because there’s no need to make things worse).

Think about it.  Within 120 seconds you know if you want to hire this person, but yet you feel like it’s only fair to spend at least 30 minutes interviewing them.

Actually, now that I think about it this may be worse than pulling the lever.

Maybe, interviews should be shorter.

Maybe, it’s a disservice to drag them out when they aren’t going well.

Maybe, I would be doing everyone a favor by pulling the lever.

Or maybe not.

Interviews remind me of a game show.

Think about it.  A school gets 100 resumes.

We pick out 5 to play the game.

They are then brought up on stage (the interview) and asked a series of secret questions.

No one knows the correct answer, so the candidates do their best to guess what the school/interviewer wants to hear.

At the end of the game a winner is chosen and the losers (not really “losers”) have no idea why they didn’t win.

It’s a game show without the lovely parting gifts.

People are so excited to get chosen to play the game and so disappointed when they don’t win.

No job.  No car.  No boat.  No vacation package.

It’s a game show without any of the good parts.

And of course, I don’t have a lovely sidekick, a bad suit, big hair, or a long microphone.

Alex, I would like “Student Discipline” for $100.

Comments: 18
Tags: game shows, Gene Rayburn, Interview Season, interviewing, Interviews

When schools face financial difficulties it’s easy to get bogged down.

How?

By complaining (I mean complaining more than usual… not that this ever happens in the teacher’s lounge or at administrators’ meetings).

It’s easy to blame politicians for our troubles in education (I personally enjoy this a LOT).

Constant complaining seldom makes things better.

Our focus has to be on the students.  Our job as educators is to provide kids with the best education possible.

Sure, we may have to do this on a budget, but that’s okay.

During difficult times comes innovation (I know I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating… mainly because I have a garage full of bumper stickers that I need to sell).

We will have to make improvements on the cheap, but any progress is good progress.

Schools may be struggling financially, but we still have a job to do.  Busses will arrive and the first hour bell will ring, so education will continue to move forward (that is if the electric bill gets paid…).

I really believe schools will rise to the occasion as they face the biggest of challenges.

Certain types of pressure brings out the best in people.

Like the threat of losing your job.

In this age of cutbacks, I think you will see teachers, administrators, and school employees doing even more than usual.

This can only benefit students.

It may mean longer hours and more responsibilities for school employees, but it has to beat unemployment.

Educators will be quick to volunteer.  Quick to make themselves as useful as possible.  Quick to take on any and all extra duties.

We are moving from an era of people having their “Hands Out” to one where everyone will have their “Hands Up”.

It is no longer what can you do for me, but what can I do for you?

To quote Tom Brokaw… “It’s easy to make a buck.  It’s a lot tougher to make a difference.”

I hate to admit it, but the title for this blog came from all people…  a politician.  Sad, but true.

Comments: 5
Tags: bumper stickers, politicians, school administrator metings, teacher's lounge

Why does it take schools so long to change?

Why do I feel the need to write so many blogs about change?

The answer to the first question is we’ve been allowed to rest on our laurels.  Question number two, I’m either obsessive compulsive or just weird.  Could go either way.

Whatever it is, you have to admit it’s like pulling teeth to get a new idea implemented in education.

Educators growl like frightened cats when they hear the word Change (yes, this is an excuse to use a wacky animal picture in a blog).

Everyone seems to believe that we should teach our students in the same ways we were taught 20 or 30 years ago (I know, I’m dating myself).

Worse, we continue to teach the subject matter we were taught.  To compound the problem, we use the same techniques we learned during student teaching
(can anyone say chalkboard, overhead, and worksheets?).

I’m here to propose some changes.  Again.

Big changes.

So go ahead and growl, hiss, and spit.

Get over it, because as always, we are here for the kids.

Now take a moment to compose yourselves.  And stop crying.  It’s sad.  And pathetic (plus, you don’t want to drip tears on your keyboard).

When I’m done please feel free to tell me what you think. Just keep the cursing to a minimum.

Here we go.

One, we need to get rid of penmanship, keyboarding, memorizing state capitals, and cutback on spelling.

And that’s just a start.

Am I crazy?

Possibly, but more likely I’m just slightly paranoid with some anger issues (it’s all about the proper medication).  But that’s a whole different subject.

Penmanship is rarely used by most adults.  Unless they are signing their name, so spending hundreds of hours teaching children how to make the perfect “Q” in cursive could be a waste of time.

We don’t have time to teach students a skill they will one day use in writing thank you notes.  If they need to produce such a note they can print them (by hand or a computer… I really don’t care).

Keyboarding?  Haven’t we progressed past the point of controlling our students by making them sit straight up and down with both feet on the floor while they type?

I don’t know of any former students who have computer skills and weren’t hired for a job because they didn’t type fast enough or use the proper technique.

Last time I checked, most elementary students know their way around a keyboard.

Let’s just agree the “Home Row” isn’t life or death.  Enough with typing “asdf gh jkl; fall gall hall lass” a thousand times.

Stop with the memorizing state capitals.  I’ve said it before and I will say it again, it was fun in the 1950’s, it can be Googled in 2010.  If you find yourself desperately needing to know the capital of Delaware… look it up.  There’s no need to spend the entire 4th grade year forcing students to learn where Montpelier and Salem are located. 

Lastly, what’s with all the time on spelling?

Do we really need to know how to spell in this day and age?

Can’t we just come close when we are typing and then let the computer correct us?  During the typing of this blog, I misspelled 12 words.  Maybe it’s my keyboarding skills, maybe I’m just stupid.

Either way, it took me 1.3 seconds to fix them.

This is just a start.  I haven’t even gotten to the Periodic Table, poetry, and our obsession with dictionary skills.

Once, we get these things out of the curriculum, schools will have time to address skills needed in this century.

Like foreign language starting in elementary school.

Not as an elective, but mandatory (might I suggest Chinese?).

And computers, computers, computers.  We can’t keep pushing technology skills to the background because Grandma the 3rd grade teacher is afraid her students might break the printer or download a song.

Why is it that it’s embarrassing when we don’t know math, history, science when we stand in front of our students, but it’s okay to be clueless about technology (in the interest of full disclosure I stole this from someone on Twitter and I’m also on steroids so I can blog faster…).

As Ben Franklin said, “When you’re finished changing, you’re finished”.

And I don’t think any of us employed by a school should be done.

Comments: 52
Tags: Ben Franklin, change, foriegn language, Google, keyboarding, Montpelier, Salem, state capitals, Twitter

I think I’ve just found the title for my next book (which for those of you scoring at home… will be my first book).

When I said “found”, I meant stolen. I ripped the title off from my good friend Mr. Harrison Ford.

By “good friend”, I mean I’ve never met the man.

You may remember him from the Star Wars and Indiana Jones movies. Or maybe the movie where he played the President of the United States and beat everyone up on Air Force One.

I don’t know about you, but I like my Presidents to be able to hold their own in hand-to-hand combat with bad guys.

Harry (that’s what I call him) tells the story about working for a Russian architect when he was a young actor/carpenter.

This circumstance relates to everyone because who amongst us hasn’t worked for a Russian architect at one point or another?

That’s what I thought. We all have.

During a course of a building project he told the architect they needed to change a dimension by half an inch.

The architect responded by saying “No limit for better.”

This made me think of education.

Who am I kidding, everything makes me thing about education (summer vacation starts when???).

We should have the same attitude as the architect, but I think all too often we take the opposite approach.

In too many cases we aren’t interested in making even the smallest of changes.

In the last 30 years, far too many educators have taken the stance of improving conditions in schools as it relates to their jobs.

This is the opposite of what we should be doing. We should constantly be looking for improvements in practices that relate to students.

Whenever a new circumstance presents itself at school, our first reaction inside our heads is… “How will this affect me?”

And it should be “How will this help students?”

The question is how do we change the way we think?

And can we make the necessary changes before others do it for us?

Comments: 16
Tags: Harrison Ford, Indiana Jones, President, Russian architects, Star Wars

Up to this point in my blog/website career, I have turned down request after request to hawk educational items on this blog.

Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not being a martyr.  I just haven’t been offered enough money.

I’m easy.  I’m just not cheap.

I guess I did sell out that one time when I got a sweet sweet shirt.

Since then, my tastes have gotten more expensive.

It amazes me how many people want to jump on the runaway train of success that is PrincipalsPage.com (millions and millions… or at least a couple).

Before I completely make a money grab (and mark my word, I will… one day this will be the Tostitos PrincipalsPage or maybe the Doritos PrincipalsPage – I smell a bidding war!), I wanted to do something positive for my readers.

I want to recommend 4 books that I think can make the lives of educators better and more importantly help students.

You will find all 4 under the Book Tab.

They are:  Finding Middle Ground in K-12 Education, The Perfect School, Teachers Change Lives 24/7, and What Every Superintendent and Principal Needs to Know.  All are written or co-written by Mr. Jim Burgett.

He is president of The Burgett Group and an educator who has been recognized nationally for his ability to lead, motivate, inspire, and teach. Jim has received dozens of awards for his teaching, his ability as an administrator, and his service to many professional organizations. He was twice named the administrator of the year in Illinois. Jim has been a popular speaker and presenter for over twenty years.

I know this because I copy and pasted the last paragraph from his website.

My goal when I started PrincipalsPage was to help (in a very small way) other administrators, especially those brand new to the profession.

These books will do just that.

How do I know.

I’ve read them.

And before you can email or tweet me, yes I can read.

Not well, but good enough to become a school administrator (teachers are laughing at this joke… laughing hard… laughing a little too hard if you ask me).

You will not be disappointed.  In fact, I’m so sure of this fact that I could offer a money back guarantee.

I’m not going to, but I could.

If you are interested, click on the Book Tab next to my cartoon wife.

Then you have two choices: order with same day shipping or download the book immediately.

I love technology.

And you will love these books.

Addition from the Publisher: We will offer a money-back guarantee on the printed book! Just mail it back to the address on the package within 30 days and we’ll give you the book cost back on your credit card.

I told you the were great books.

Comments: 4
Tags: Doritos, Jim Burgett, PrincipalsPage.com, The Burgett Group, Tostitos

Embracing change is a gift.

As educators, we don’t seem to have this gift.

That’s the bad news.

The good news is if you are an elementary teacher you are now a proud owner of at least 17 new coffee cups with apples on them (Merry Christmas everybody!!!).

And a variety of lotions.  But that is a whole different blog.

I think the world of education is about to change in a very big way.  It is also very likely that I have no idea what I’m talking about.

But I have a blog that constantly needs content, so here’s my theory.

Change is happening right under our noses and most educators don’t even see it coming. 

The bad economy, advances in technology, and higher expectations for administrators and teachers leads me to believe that we are all headed in a new direction.

Some of this is related to finances and some is just the general public believing that schools can and have to do better jobs.

And who better to lead us in this quest of excellence?  The federal government.

Sigh.

I just got a migraine.

Or punched in the throat.

Which is bad.  But it’s better than the Swine Flu that was going to get me earlier in the semester (will we ever hear about the dreaded pig flu again???).

What I do know is it’s a bad time to have a career with tenure, especially when the rest of the country is struggling to keep their jobs.

As educators, I don’t think we have a good grasp on how the rest of society perceives us.

Our only hope is people will continue to hate bankers and won’t turn on educators (so keep up the bad work, Wall Street!!)

The old rules about education and educators are about to be tossed out the window (but again, what do I know other than this blog needs content like Buddy needs dog food… and a back rub).

State governments are in fiscal trouble and they are going to be forced to make difficult decisions.  Many of these will involve K-12 Education.

I’ve also noticed the Obama Administration has a pattern of doing things in a very big way.

Health care is the latest example (am I the only one who gets the feeling our premiums are about to skyrocket and no doctor will ever schedule another appointment to see us…).

It can only be a matter of time before the good people in the White House tackle schools.  And testing.  And teachers.  And administrators.  And tenure.  And evaluations.

Only time will tell if this new path is a productive one.

Change is often discussed at school, but almost never embraced.

My assumption is this time will be no different.

Except this time I don’t think we will be able to ride the changes out.

I think they may be big.  And I think they may be uncomfortable.  And I think they will be permanent.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saying this is all bad.

I am just saying we probably should have paid more attention when President Obama ran under the slogan of “Change.”

Because I don’t think educators necessarily thought he was talking about us.

Comments: 7
Tags: Buddy the Dog, change in education, federal government, K-12 education, President Barack Obama, swine flu

My last blog (the one before this one) inspired several people to point out I had fallen off the Sarcasm Train.

I don’t mind saying that hurt.  Falling off a train almost always stings.

I pride myself on my ability to be sarcastic.  Without being too hateful (practice makes perfect).

Or maybe I’m hateful.  Whatever.  Makes me little difference.

I’m here for my own amusement, not to entertain the people who should be focusing on their work instead of cruising the internet and reading my blog.

Maybe the last blog wasn’t sarcastic.  Maybe I was expanding my writing techniques.  Maybe I had a head cold.  Or maybe I just happened to be in a good mood that particular day.

Actually it was none of those.  I just took a day off from the sarcasm. 

Even Tiger Woods has a bad day once in a while (cocktail waitresses Tiger???… did you really expect them to keep a secret for the next 50 years considering you are 1 of the 10 most famous people in the world???).

Our friends at Wikipedia define sarcasm as a rhetorical device of using a characterization of something or someone in order to express contempt.

I almost feel giddy just typing it.

Education is ripe for this type of contempt.  There is always something or someone who needs slapped down in the educational world.

And I’m more than willing to do my part.

If nothing else, I’m a team player.

There is a problem with sarcasm though.  Most people don’t get it.  Many think it’s mean or stupid.

But I’m okay with that.

It makes me smile.  And by smile I mean roll my eyes.

There is an even larger problem.

I’m writing (?) for a  very finite group.

Readers tell me they don’t blog because no one would be interested in what they have to say.  I think this is dead wrong.  There are lots of crazy people who think just like they do (and they are out there… trust me).

All blogs are niche blogs.  Take mine for example (and it is for sale if anyone is interested).

You have all of the blogs in the world.  Get rid of the 99.42% that don’t deal with education.  Then take all of the educators in the world and get rid of the 99.42% who don’t read blogs.

Then lose the 98.37% of blog reading educators who don’t read this blog.

And then scrap the ones who hate sarcasm and think I’m an idiot (nearly 100%).

That’s how you come up with my readers.

Not a huge group.

Somewhere in the vicinity of .000000000027345% of people who have internet.

But lucky for me, it’s a loyal group.

On a monthly basis it’s thousands of people who have an interest in education, schools, teachers, students, administrators, technology, sarcasm, and evidently mediocre writing.

It’s quite obvious what they like.

Sarcasm.

And lot’s of it.

So I’m returning to my roots.

No more intelligent, thought-provoking blogs about parenting and the effects it has not only on schools, but our society.

I’m going back to the tried and true.

Anger, disgust, and contempt for all things that bother me.

And of course my love of Buddy the Dog. 

Comments: 6
Tags: Best Buy, Buddy the Dog, Circuit City, education blogs, educators, niche blogs, sarcasm, Tiger Woods, Wikipedia

For the last several weeks we have been looking for a new couch.

Why?

Because we sold our “old” couch (which we sat on about 12 times). The mancave looks pretty bare without furniture.

Plus, it’s no fun to watch TV while standing.

It’s almost as bad as when I was a kid and had the responsibility of turning the channels (all 4 of them).  By hand.  The horror.

I feel really good about selling the “old” couch since we got nearly 30 cents on the dollar.  This couch was the essence of buyer’s remorse.  From the moment we got it, I knew it wasn’t right.

Mainly because it wasn’t a couch.  It was more like three recliners screwed together.

Great for watching movies (which we don’t), but terrible for taking a nap (which Buddy and I do… and as always, don’t judge us because you don’t understand the specialness of the man/dog relationship).

The search for a new couch has taken us to every furniture store within 100 miles.  The only thing we’ve found is there is some really ugly furniture out there (who is buying all of this plaid???).

Actually that’s not true, we have also found that furniture salesmen can be slightly creepy (aka:  borderline stalkers).

Note to salesmen:  I’m quite capable of walking around a store and staring at couches by myself.  I really don’t need you following me.  Especially when your face is within 2 1/2 inches of mine (it’s called personal space, please abide by it).

At Thanksgiving, my wife’s brother suggested we stop by a local discount store.

Discount store?

We thought this may have been the craziest idea since the 4th judge on American Idol (only to be topped when they booted Paula Abdul off the show… sure she’s nuts, but she was our nut).

Needless to say, we had no plans to swing by the discount store (home of the $9.99 fake Christmas trees… lights and ornaments included).

Then we went to yet another high-end store only to be stalked and overwhelmed by the sight of hideous furniture (seriously, who is buying these plaid loveseats???).

We decided just for laughs to stop by the discount store and see what had  fallen off the train/semi truck this week.

As soon as we walked in (past the piles of silly puddy, Star Wars cards, Yo-Yo’s, and 99 cent picture frames)  there it was.  It was an epiphany.

The couch we’ve been looking for.

The couch we thought we’d never find.

It was perfect.

It was cheap.

It was in a discount store.

Who knew?

As an added bonus, our salesman was the nicest, most polite, most professional person we’ve met on our furniture journey.  My best guess is he’s about 35 years old, but he looks over 50. 

He’s the guy that hasn’t cut his hair since he was 12.  Probably cut classes in high school.  Maybe enjoys an occasional cigarette (and so much more).  I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s the parent who wants a better life for his kids than he thinks he has.

He was very particular about his work and wanted to make sure we knew exactly what we were getting.  The total cost.  The hidden fees.  What time he would call us so we could pick up the couch.  How he would help us load it when we arrived.

He was thorough.

All of this help without being a stalker.

Who knew you could get such good service in a discount store (not to mention such a nice couch for a low low price).  I wish you could get this kind of service (and low low price) in a regular furniture store.

This got me thinking.

I bet the man who helped us wasn’t the teacher’s pet in school.

I think it’s more likely that he drove his teachers crazy.

He probably didn’t work up to his potential.  He may not have understood the importance of Algebra or English.

Some people might even look at him (and the 25 year old pony tail) and think he’s not successful.

I think they would be wrong.

I would consider him very successful at his job.  He has skills (including people skills) that should be envied.

Success comes in all shapes and sizes.

And on this day, we found it at a discount store.

Comments: 4
Tags: American Idol, couch, discount stores, furniture salesman, mancave, Paula Abdul, Star Wars cards, Yo-Yo's