Life in DC

Well it’s been a year.  A year since I packed up my condo, sold my car, and left Memphis.  I moved to Memphis in 1989 to attend Rhodes College. I would have never guessed I would live there for twenty plus years.  I love Memphis, I could write a manifesto on how awesome the city of Memphis and its people are.  Why leave? Change is not only good but necessary.

Long time ago (1989)

I can’t speak for everyone but I need a good swift kick in the ass and/or punch in the gut from time to time.  This move was that.  Professionally, I believe that Hutchison had reached its benefit from my and I vice versa for me.  I’ve been luckily enough to go to and leave jobs at the right time for me.  I went from teaching nothing but Middle and Asian Studies to 8^th grade girls to teaching world history, English, and math (yes, math) to 6^th grade boys.  It became less about WHAT I taught and more HOW I taught. Think of it like, going to boot camp for teaching strategies.  I’m not sure if I’ll ever go into educational admin/leadership if I do this was very necessary.  It was tough and I second guessed my decision to leave Memphis and Hutchison more than few times. Change is tough, challenging, and so great for renewal of you personal and professional soul.

Views of STA

     

I was moving into a house of a great friend of mine from college when I moved from Memphis. To DC.  No lease, no signing up for utilities, no worries….. Sort of.  Unfortunately he was trapped with arguably one of the least deadline driven contractor of all time.  The initial move in date was August of 12’, actual date, March 13’.  So I became the most comfortable “homeless “  teacher in history. I stayed a month with one of my best friends from HS, his wife, and their three kids ages, 1.5 to 5.5.  I got to be Uncle “Grubby” (long story, but a nickname from HS) and hopefully helped out to justify my extended stay.  In December I moved to the Commonwealth of Virginia and took advantage of the hospitality of a friend in DC who I became friends with over the course of my summers in DC.  He’s another western PA. guy and the headmaster of my HS was his parish priest in Sharon, Pa, the world is small and fun.

 Sunset in Bloomingdale

I now live in a neighborhood in DC they are calling Bloomingdale. Those familiar with DC may know it as the area of town, north if Union Station, south of Howard U, east of Shaw, and just west (one street) of North Capital Street.  It’s a fun neighborhood, and even though the contractor lacks deadline awareness he makes up for in general craftsmanship. The hood’ trends towards hipster.  What does that look like? Think single gear bicycles, fedora hats, black rimmed glasses, skinny jeans, and lots of discussion about the lack of “farm to table” and “green friendly” places to eat.  There are new restaurants and bars opening up weekly.  I need only walk a couple of blocks in any direction to buy great beer. These are things that I need. 

Things that make life easy/happy for me in DC; CapitalBikeshare, the new Google Maps App, my WMATA Smart card, free lectures at various think tanks, my Reader Identification card  from the Library of Congress, the view of the Jefferson Memorial at twilight, the view from the Lincoln Memorial at sunrise,  a cup of coffee on my patio in the morning, and a cold beer on patio on the same porch in the evening, and my old and new friends.  

Jefferson Memorial 

 View from the Lincoln Memorial.

Bishop's Garden

Here are a few views of Spring on campus. The bottom two photos are of the Bishop's Garden. The garden changes colors every week with something else that is blooming.

Awesome moments from the first Bruins v. Sabres game the day after the Boston Marathon bombing

Here is a video that was played in the stadium



Here the stirring national anthem.  Well done Boston.

I run for Boston

As I wait for the bus home I see the Flag outside of the National Cathedral flying at half mast out of respect. The somber beauty of working on the campus of such a beautiful church.

Ending 2012 in style.

My view of rural Virginia from this weekend. Great friends, food, and fun. Smoked various meats on a Big Green Egg all weekend and drank a little bourbon. Lots of change in 2012, this weekend bodes well for 2013.

Pulitzer Prize winning photos at the Newseum

The students of SPS and I went to the Newseum this morning. Among the numerous educational and informative exhibits was one on Pulitzer Prize winning photos. The photos were often accompanied by stories and/or interviews about the photo, the photographer, how they got the shot, etc.

The were many others but these happen to catch my eye today.

Memorial Day in Arlington National Cemetery.

The World Trade Center at the moment the second jet hit the second tower.

Refugees of the Rwandan Genocide fleeing into Tanzania by the thousands.

A family being reunited with their serviceman father.

Class, Bike Rides, Food Trucks, and a nap

Started the morning out by leading a discussion over the article, "The Unpopular Mandate" by Ezra Klein. The just of the article is that there are many positions that politicians flip flop over to suits their needs. Great discussion. Like to article here

http://m.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/06/25/120625fa_fact_klein

After that I hit the road for a long bike ride through the Rock Creek Trails and then the national mall. I eventually met up with some folks at Franklin Square for some food truck lunch. It was a beautiful day so it was quite crowded (I took this pic after we had lunch).

I had a shrimp po' boy from the Bayou Bros. Truck. Not bad at all. A big sammy and a drink for $11. a decent price by DC standards.

The bike ride home was 3 x as difficult but enjoyable none the less. St. Albans School is in the NW of DC and owes the fantastic views of the city to the fact that it's one of the highest points of the city. That's great for views but bad for fat guys riding their bike, namely me.

It's now nap time.

Old School 4th July Celebration

How does an elite public and foreign policy for high school students celebrate our nation's birthday? That's easy. 

Morning - Extended sleeping in. They are high school kids. 

Afternoon - "Olympic games"

 "Steak of the Union" cookout done by yours truly

Evening - We all head out to the Walkersville, MD Carnival hosted by the Walkersville Volunteer Fire Dept. 

http://www.walkersvillefire.com/carnival.shtml

Sent from my iPhone

Monument Tour on the National Mall

One of my favorite things to do in DC is taking the students of SPS on a monument tour of the National Mall at dusk. The normally inspiring views plus a ridiculously beautiful evening made for some great photos.

Gorgeous Day in NW DC

I woke up this morning with open windows and a distinct chill in the air. The temp will top off at @83 today.

I taught a class this morning a out Gideon v. Wainwright. The students were a bit quite but certainly engaged. It's fun teaching when the students are all prepared and there aren't things to grade.

Tonight we are headed to tour the monuments on the National Mall. The combination of great weather and grand sights should make a nice combination.

If anyone is interested on the particulars of the program that I'm working for, the St. Albans School of Public Service check out the link below for photos and summaries of our activities.

The photo is a view of the National Cathedral that anchors the campus. Not bad.

The many Memphis homes of John Stephany - Hawthorne

The Hawthorne house

At the beginning of my third year in Memphis a group of us moved from the friendly confines of Rhodes' campus to a duplex a short distance from Rhodes.

Stacy, Jimmy, Greg, and myself rented the upstairs of a families home. Probably not the best idea for either group but it worked out fine. I mean why could possibly go wrong with four 19-21 yr. olds living above an elderly couple?

It was much cheaper to live off campus and Rhodes was feeling a housing crunch from its growing enrollment so they actually threw in some incentives such as parking and free lunches.

There were a lot p great memories. Listening to Greg and Devan practice their music, always an easy ploy to entice the fairer gender to our abode, watching Ren and Stimpy with Rojo who would walk over from Rhodes on the weekends. Many of held part time jobs for some extra cash. Stacey worked at the Squash Blossom and I started working at Fino's (Jo Ann hired me even though I showed up with a recently acquired Mohawk inspired by a dare at Mardi Gras).

The owners of Fino's, Terry and JoAnn, gave me a job and a home away from home. I worked their all through my college days and even on and off for a few more years as it helped finance my semesters abroad and multiple travels. JoAnn and Terry started as employers but quickly became friends and family. Terry accurately predicted the professions of myself and Rojo despite our ardent protests of his prognostications.

Yes, there were some epic "celebrations"; it was college, use your imagination. We all did a lot of growing up at the Hawthorne house. The friendships of the residents and our frequent visitors grew stronger. I even met one of my future co-workers over a decade before we would work together when she used to date one of the lads, proof that Memphis is the biggest small town.

We lived on the second floor. The place seems to have held up pretty well.

The Many Memphis homes of John Stephany - Townshend

The term sophomore means "wise fool". That explains a lot as Jimmy and I migrated across campus to Townshend Hall. The fact that it neighbors the freshmen girls dorm was merely a coincidence.

Stacey took a year off so Jimmy and I scored a triple to ourselves for the first semester and we welcomed Greg to our merry band of idiots.

I will always cherish afternoons when we cranked up the stereo, sat on the ledges of our 3rd floor window sills, and enjoyed ourselves. Fortunately or unfortunately the campus tour passed underneath our watch on a regular basis. I maintain we helped Rhodes enrollment more than we hurt it.

We hosted the greatest Christmas party in dorm history, made some Wonderful "eel" juice, hosted a "pro-stud" (prospective student) who scolded our behavior, and had many a great memory.

Other highlights were the reciprocal visits of Chip, Stephen, and Ronald, waking up to Allen installing a second phone line for his adjacent single room, our many visitors planned and unplanned. Good times..., good times.

BTW, we did go to class but they blend in. The daily life burns in your memory.

The Many Memphis homes of John Stephany - Glasselll Hall

As I was leaving town for my move to DC, a friend asked me how places I've lived in Memphis. The answer a lot. So forgive the numerous upcoming posts but I have a 3 hr layover in Chicago and this will pass the time.

My first "home" in Memphis. 23 years ago I moved into this dorm knowing no one in Memphis. I left Glassell with life long friends.

Some random memories.

The chairs attached to the ceiling, watching the Berlin Wall coming down from the social room, Mrs. Daughdrill walking into that same social room on a Saturday morning after she had redecorated (the green pleather couches were back the next Monday), throwing Coors light Party balls down the hall, the loud mix of Beastie Boys on bid day night/morning when Charles barricaded himself in the dorm, the late night talks with Jimmy and Stacey (roommates became life long friends), the rescue/acquisition of Ronald at mid-term (we are a still a real life Seinfeld Episode), Art's "100 beer" weekend, and just the general buffoonery thy occurs in a dorm that house nothing but freshmen boys.

Glassell is coed now, I can't even imagine. I guess for all intent and purposes it was then also.., unofficially of course.

Things I'll miss about Memphis.

Rollin' into random bars (Green Beetle) and being entertained by old students jamming music.

Shack Up Inn and great friends

Wonderful weekend with great friends old and new in Clarksdale, MS. If you've never been to the Shack Up Inn, go. You won't be disappointed.

Senior Prank and saying goodbye

When one thinks of senior pranks lots of really good and bad ideas come to mind. I went an all boys school, we skipped class, went to the beach, and made poor choices. Fun stuff.

This is my 9th and last year at Hutchison, an all girls school. Each year the seniors cause some good clean mayhem on one day near the end of the school year.

The Class of 2012 has a special place in my heart. I taught many of them in the 7th and 8th grade. I coached them in basketball in the 7th, 8th, and 12th grade and numerous years in middle school and varsity track & field..., we spent A LOT of time together of the years.

Back when they were in the 8th grade there was a great debate over the proper name for a popular candy. They maintained it was Starburst, I said they were "fruit chews". It's my job to annoy them.

Over the years we have pranked each other with the candy hidden in various places. The photo below is what's found on my car senior prank day.

Sunset over the Mississippi River

The maiden voyage (sort of) of the American Queen

The American is a massive riverboat that will now docked in Memphis on the river in Memphis. We walked down to the river to catch it as rolled up the river.

I biked over to Jack and Ashley's for some oysters and mudbugs this evening.

Very nice.

Things I will miss about Memphis

As some of you know I'll be leaving my beloved Memphis in about two months for our nation's capital for a new job and another adventure.

There are countless things I'll miss about Memphis. The people, the places, the BBQ!

So over the next couple of months I'll be posting some of those things in no particular order.

Here's one thing I'll miss. The best porch in Memphis.

I'm dog sitting for Kath and Truk. So this morning I'm enjoying a cup of coffee on this great porch with Jake by my side. Jake and I go way back, 13 years in fact. His parents and I go back even farther. Truk was my roommate freshman year at Rhodes, and back then we were called freshmen not first years. Kath and I go back nearly as long. She a girlfriend briefly and has been a great friend ever since.

The porch is nestled in the heart of Midtown Memphis in close proximity to Rhodes College with views of Evergreen Pres. Church and Snowden School.

I can't count the number of meals, cups of coffee, beers, and conversations I've enjoyed on the porch with friends new and old.

I will miss the tranquility that this porch brings. As the Buddhist prayer flags gently flutter in the cool morning breeze my mind wanders about my past and future journeys.

I'm surrounded by the flowers that Kath dutifully tends. The fragrances of the flowers and the smell of fresh brewed coffee calm me as i sit in the mornjng sun. The sounds of children playing soccer across the way mix with the constant stream of planes overhead that only notice because I'm trying to capture this time and place in my memory. A seasoned midtowner stops hearing the planes within a month or two.

The fact that the porch is in close proximity to Rhodes College helps connects my memories past and present of Memphis. My mind wanders to an 18 year old John Stephany walking on campus. So many memories and great friends.

Enough of that.

I'm so excited to begin a new chapter of my life at St. Albans and in DC but it tempered by leaving Memphis. But as many people have said, "You never leave Memphis. It's always a part of you."

Thanks porch.

Things I'll miss about living in Memphis

The view of the Mississippi River from my condo roof.