Ramblin

There's something about this time of year, the clouds get darker, the weather cooler, I can just feel fall coming to michigan. This is both my favorite time of year, and one of my most dreadful times of year. It is during the fall that I think michigan is at it's most beautiful, the leaves turn into the most vibrant colors I have ever seen, the air dries out and becomes crisp, and I can wear sweaters, but don't yet need a jacket. This season also always brings stress. School begins again and I worry about classes and the future, the sun starts appearing less and less and I feel the effects of seasonal depression. I look forward and see the many many months of winter ahead of me and begin to prepair what I will need to get through. 

Late summer and fall also bring an entirely unique feeling to me, I want to call it the need to travel, or "wanderlust" as so many Facebook posts call it, but to me it feels more like the need to run, or as Zepplin and the Allman brothers put it, the need to ramble. Whenever I drive anywhere this time of year I get this deep urge, from a place that only primal and base instincts come from, to just continue driving as far as I can go. I'm not sure if it's an urge to escape the winter, or just the want to explore, but it's happened every year, and I think one of these years, when I have the means, and the time is right, I'm going to see where it takes me.

Peace

What am I doing here.

Happens every semester, I question what I am doing. Is this what I want to do with my life and my career? I'm not sure honestly most of the time. I appreciate the importance of this career, I enjoy it, but I feel as though it's pretty crappy most of the time. As teachers we're forced to force students. They have to learn from a particular curriculum, they have to follow these certain rules. I feel like this profession is dying from over standardization. There are stupid rule that must be followed and so many important experiences that students don't get anymore. I want to be able to just take students outside and learn from the earth. I don't know what I want to do. When I'm working at the climbing gym I "have to" make students follow these certain rules, and I "have to" be rigid with them when I'm working with this certain person. It's exhausting. When I let the kids enjoy their time there and we just work on projects (What most climbers do at the gym anyway) the kids have so much more fun. yeah we do some technique and drills, but it's so much better to just let the kids climb! That's what they're there for! I guess I feel the same way about education, when we let students explore what they want to then they take ownership of their education and really run with it. Think about it, if you have to write a persuasive essay, and it has to be about whether cookies or brownies are better. Ok, if you really love cookies or brownies you might make a good paper. however, if I ask you to write a persuasive essay about why I should try out your favorite hobby, something you are passionate about, you are going to write an amazing paper.
I guess it seems to me like so much of school and life is just (excuse my french) bullshit, we have to do certain things even though everyone knows they suck and are pointless, but we still have to do them.
I just want things to change. The status quo isn't working anymore and we need to find a new way.  

Once again I love comments, if you have something to say or thoughts on any of my infrequent posts please share them. I love discussion.

Rambling.

why do I keep feeling like there is a. certain way I am supposed to dress. I feel like I don't dress well and I have no style, but I also don't have a lot of money for clothes and would rather spend it on something else, and tend to prefer comfort over being high fashion.
I think I dress alright.
Lately I feel like I have been shooting for "Alright" lately.
I'm tired of school.

I'm wearing an alpaca sweater today.

Didn't even have to use my AK

It feels like a good day, I feel like I'm getting my life together lately, I'm making good progress in school, I'm handling my finances like an adult and keeping my apartment clean.  Everything feels good. I was going to post a picture with my cat in my lap and coffee in my hands but he moved. So here is me on the way to teach yesterday.

Don't Sweat The Big Stuff

I've tried to write this post like three times and I keep getting distracted.  this week has been pretty great, it's been nice getting back to the routine of school, and realizing that the semester is almost over (as terrifying as that feels).  I was really stressed the last week, I think I was thinking about to many things. I've been thinking about Maslow's hierarchy of needs, I feel like inside each section of needs there are subdivisions, I've been focusing on the more basic things lately, food, school, and work.  it's been helping a lot, I'm more focused, I'm doing those things better and as they turn into routine then I can start adding things in in the middle.
That's all I have for today, I wish people would comment on some of these. I wouldn't mind knowing people's thoughts on these things.
Things I'm Thankful For:
Days off
Clean kitchens
Soft cats
Soft beards
Coffee
Simple healthy food
Pinterest
Slippers that look like space shuttles.

Not too much I want to talk about today. Life gets stressful and hard, I'm happy to have good strong friendships and relationships that keep me grounded and keep me moving when I don't want to. Even when they're oceans away.
P.S. the guy across from me at the coffee shop I'm in is talking about his company that 3D prints prosthetic limbs.  SO COOL
Things I'm Thankful For

• Friendships
• Relationships
• Music
• Coffee
• Oatmeal Rasin Cookies
•  Science
• Facetime
• Good coffee shops to work in
• cozy sweatshirts
• FINALLY seeing the sun
• Ability to graduate college debt free

2/17/15 Life Gets Hard

For a moment, Just now, I smelled spring.  I'm inside, I don't know where it came from, but it filled me with such hope and lifted my heart so high. Winter is so hard in so many ways, school is intense, my bank account is still trying to recover from the holidays while coping with spending more on utilities because it's so bitter cold.  Things have been rough lately, tickets, and just life has made me start to see my bank account dwindle and that stresses me out.  I'm not struggling, I still have over $500 in my account, and I get paid Thursday, but it stresses me out. I kind of made the decision to move home next year, I'm not sure if it's the right one. I wonder if I need to survive on my own. I wonder if it will ever get easier, will I feel more secure with a better job, or will I just have different worries and struggles? Can you ever be comfortable in this life and society we have created? I guess I'm really just worried that I won't get to go on climbing trips this summer.  I guess I can't know until I get there. I should also remember that the summer is cheaper. I guess that my reserve money just did what it was supposed to these last few months.  I just need to cut back and let it build back up.
Things I'm Thankful For

• Paczkis
• coffee
• good hip hop
• understanding friends
• a job I enjoy even if I wish I made more money
• nice libraries  

Real adults

Merritt said today that when you wake up at 6 and are just on and doing everything, that is when you're a real adult.  Sometime I can't believe the society we create for ourselves.  We work so hard for so seemingly little.  Then I think about how much it would suck to have to worry about being killed by wild animals, and I realize that modern societ isn't THAT bad

Things I'm thankful for

Laundry

Breakfast

Car washes

Shovels

Summer

Verners 

P.S.

I hate when professors assign something to me where I have to get a kid to do an activity.  I don't have access to children, and if you are not providing me with access you should not expect me to be able to do this.

2/3/15 The Homestead

I'm at my Mom's house tonight because Ellen and I couldn't find parking on her street.  Today felt like a pretty great day.  My classes were canceled so I laid in bed until about 11, then Ellen and I made breakfast and cleaned the house which felt AMAZING! That house had been such a mess.  It felt so good to have a clean kitchen and living room.  After that we ran to Target because I had a $10 gift card.  I ended up getting some headphones to use for running which I'm pretty excited about.  I was looking at some of their dress shirts and ties but I'm still a little strapped for cash.  I do need to get some new dress clothes for when I have to go into classrooms for my practicum class.  Last night was pretty fun, Ellen and I went to watch the Super Bowl at my friend Tyler's house. We ate some great wings and chili and then got to drive home in this blizzard.  Ellen's Subaru handles the snow like a champs, I'm a little jealous.  when we got back to my house and heard that school was canceled today we walked to the liquor store and bought a bottle of Jack, Vernors, and Ellen got some pop rocks, then we went home and stayed up and watched twin peaks with Merritt and Emmet.  All in all it was a great night.  I'm getting pretty tired tonight so I'm going to wrap this up.  I hope you all have a good night.
Peace
Nate
Things I'm Thankful For
Target gift cards
Snow days
Oatmeal
fireplaces

Avoiding Homework

Today has been pretty chill so far, I'm partly writing to avoid my homework.  I missed Sunday school because the roads were pretty bad, but Ellen managed to come over and now we're both sitting in the loft doing homework after eating a breakfast of potatoes and eggs.  pretty good day so far. I think I'm going to change my essential question for my curriculum class.  I was originally asking "How does privilege effect white males?" but while I think this is an important issue for students to understand I'm having trouble tying it to a common core English and math standard.  I think I'm going to change my question to "What does it mean for everyone to be treated equal?" I still don't love this question.  I need to work on the phrasing.  Any recommendations would be much appreciated.
Peace
Nate

1/31/15

I'm not really sure what to write about today, but I missed yesterday and I want to try and continue to write here.  Today was LONG.  Work was crazy, I had a birthday party with a bunch of kids, and then I was one of 4 people teaching lessons and both the ones I taught were 8 or 9 person lessons.  Whew.  At least I got off early and got a chance to climb a bit.  I sent the 5.10D I had been working on for lead, I also on sighted a 5.10b and climbed a chill 5.10a.  I'm pretty tired at this point and really just want to crash.  This week is gonna be crazy and I feel the need to rest up and get prepared.  I'm hoping I can find my motivation tomorrow to knock out my homework.

Peace,

Nate.

Things I'm thankful for 

Oatmeal

Tea

Nice mugs

Kitty cats

More leftover Chinese food

Being from michigan and knowing how to drive in the snow 

Memories 

1/29/15 I Don't Know

Today was an alright day.  I finally got to go grocery shopping with Ellen.  I managed to get a healthy amount of groceries and things I needed for under fifty bucks, so that was a pretty good feeling.  then I managed to get to work early enough to climb a little bit, and sent my project I had been working on (first 5.11A on lead, WOOO!!). Work was crazy though, crank night always is, I never leave Thursday nights not feeling exhausted. Ellen wanted to hang out after but honestly I just wanted to get home and go to bed.  Jake is laying in my lap getting pets while I write this in bed.  I thought a lot today about perseverance. It makes a big difference how much time and effort you're going to put into something, and how long it takes before you just say fuck it. I think my generation has a lot of perseverance.   We realize how fucked up the ways society works are, and know it needs to be changed, but we are also aware of how little we can actually do.  So we wait, we bide our time, we are preparing, learning about the world, I bet we will be the most knowledgeable generation of any before us.  We have access to everything in the world.  We find niche little things and create groups of people who all like these same things.  What I'm getting at is we are all perfecting our craft at one certain thing, and when the time comes for us to take the reins of the world, we are going to make big changes.  I am very proud of what my generation is and will do.  We know we get laughed at the our parents will judge our choices, but we wait, we bide our time, we persevere.
Things I'm thankful for

• cats, 
• climbing partners
• close friends
• potatoes
• leftovers, once again
• melted ice cream
• mittens knitted by friends 

1/29/15 today was a good day

It's so strange how life is.  It's a new adventure, and I know that's tacky and played out but that's exactly how it is.  Each day I completely different from the one before it and the more effort you put into it, the more enjoyable it will be.

Today I'm greatful for:

Old and good friends

Ways to express myself

New and good friends

Leftovers

Cozy sweatshirts

Good night everybody

Oh, hi there!
So I have decided to start a blog in order to get myself to write more and to keep friends and family in the loop of my life.  I'll try and write a little bit each day and post a picture or two of my day.  I'll start out with a little about myself. My name is Nate Polich, I live in Michigan where I work at a local rock climbing gym, and study elementary education.  I have a cat named Jake, he's the other name on this blog.  I hope whoever reads this enjoys it and I hope my day to day isn't too boring.
Peace,
Nate

This is Jake and I.