Noticed

I love climbing. I wish I could do more of it. I wish I was better at it. There's something about the challenge. Some games are mental, some physical, but nothing is as all-encompassing of a challenge as climbing. Its a puzzle, test of strenght, and measure of mettle. Yah.

I have a few climbing heroes. Tenzig Norgay, Edmund Hillary, and David Breashears. Norgay and Hillary were the first to summit Everest. What a combo. In a climbing climate of rich and famous summitting Everest, Hillary and Norgay were symbols of climbing. Both came from common backgrounds; Hillary a beekeaper, and Norgay a Sherpa.

Breashears at first seems like the misfit of the group. He wasn't the first to ascend a 8km mountain. In fact his most famous first ascent is on a slab of rock in Colorado simply called "Perilous Journey." An understatement if there ever was one. It was a flat wall with almost no outcroppings and a singular 1cm crack.

I first picked up Breashears book while dieing in Grad school. During long nights at the library I'd browse the biography section. The book that caught my attention the most was "High Exposure," about Breashears life of climbing and the call to Everest. He's a photographer and climber. He even did some of the filming for Stalone's "Cliffhanger." I never really had time to sit down and finish it. I got to chapter three. I bought a copy in NZ when I was there over break and finished it in four days. Brilliant.

I'll just cut it short and say I really really really admire Breashears. He has my dream job. He gets paid to climb. He was lead on the IMAX Everest film. And it was during that episode that he managed to help save a number of people who'd gotten trapped in bad weather. Sorry I kept going.

The other day I was on Facebook. On the advertisements on the right I noticed a group "David Breashear: Why we climb." I joined emmediately. I was #30 in the group. I thought for a while about posting. It's so much pressure. What if I say something dumb? Eventually I posted a question on the wall for Breashears about the situation in Tibet.

No answer. I was crushed. For almost a day I had one of three wall posts on the ever-expanding group, but no answer. He even took the time to reply to another question, but not mine. Acckk. But then yesterday I checked again and he, The David Breashears, answered my question. Wow! I'm still stoked.

Paul "can I get an autographed wall post?" Murphy

A new distraction to the educational experience

Math class 8:35-
I went to the restroom to blow my nose. On the way back a student interupted me.

"Hey, there's like a rat back here"

"Where?"

"Oh its gone now, but it was huge. I thought it was a puppy that got in the school."

"Oh that sounds like Peety. He's probably gone now."

Yes we have a rat hanging around school and a student decided to name it.


Math 8:45-
I went to blow my nose in the restroom.

"Hey Mr. Murphy, I've got the rat spotted. See it tail?" - pointed at the nasty rat tail.

"Ummm. Ok." -What exactly am I supposed to do?

"Lets catch it" - oh something manly. ok

"ok"

We then armed ourselves with brooms and an emty trash can. After banging around the lockers we spotted it many times. After a few minutes it we cornered then scared it out. It took off straight for me. I dodged its snarling teeth and managed a manly attempt at boxing it with the trash can. It ran into the bathroom. So me and two of my students went in after it.

Hiding behind the trashcan the rat was between the wall and me. It chose me. One student hit the t-can with his broom to scare the rat out. It took off toward the other one. They managed two good swipes with the brooms and I hadn't yet found my rhythm with the t-can. At one point they kicked it airborn. Eventually it scampered back to the locker room.

"Can we have a break" - Block periods cause students to want to not work on math for 2 hours straight.

"ummm, ok" -we'd become a spectacle.

After scrounging around the locker room for we'd managed to recruit some more help. Again we scared the rat out and it took off straight for me. I finally found my stride and boxed the rat with the t-can.

What do you do with a rat in a trash can? Put it in a bag and slam it against the road was the answer we came up with. So we took it to the street and a student brought a bag. Unfortunately when I lifted the cardboard covering the rat supermanned out and ran away. Oh well.

Paul "Rat-1 Murphy-0" Murphy

On the surface

So I stumbled across this website the other day
www.biblicalpolygamy.com

Now honestly I'm not into the idea of polygamy. I have enough trouble as it is. That and on the salary I make I don't think I'll be able to afford two mail-order brides.

On the other hand we could synergize. And the website does make some interesting points.


Thoughts commments whatever.

Paul "twin, full, queen, king, J. Smith" Murphy