Where have I been?

It's been It's been almost 4 months since I've made a post and of that I am actually quite embarrassed. I think I've forgotten how to write, so bear with me while I take a few posts to get back into it. Where have I been?

I was relived to finish my first (and maybe only) year of teaching in June. It was a fantastic time full of trials, tribulations, and also some successes too. The colleagues, students, and sense of community made the experience the most fulfilling. Well once I finished I had one week to get home, unpack, and repack for my trip for a four week trip to China and Thailand with Charissa, a friend from college. If you'd like to know more about that check out my PICTURES here: http://picasaweb.google.com/margiehatch

There were a few weeks of domestic downtime here in MD and then it was off to Maine for a week of boat driving, teaching skiing, and rediscovering my spiritual center at family camp (www.newfound-owatonna.com). From there I went southwest 5 hours back to Troy, NY and got to work with the varsity volleyball team as their head coach. What did I do with all my time during the day?: agonizing over practice planning, building sandcastles, hide n seek, and changing diapers for 2 yr. old Eli, researching graduate schools, settling on Peace Corps Masters International program through School for International Training - phew!

Coaching I came to realize quickly, was much like teaching because it is a much more demanding position (if you want to do it well) than most make it out to be. I spent hours planning my practices mulling over little details like what announcements to make and when and how. How do I do this drill with my team of 11 when it calls for only 6? How do I work on more difficult drills with the starters and not keep the bench warmers stagnant and without opportunities for progress? Are they really capable running this much? When do I do water breaks and for how long? Should we do sprints every day? Oh no! Two of my best players have gone down with injuries in practice! That means I need to completely rearrange my drills for tomorrow! And what about Thursday's game? What tone do I want to set with practice (strict and down to business or educational and more accepting of mistakes, or will this be a fun practice to let them let loose the tension of the day, or should practice be a combination of both? Oh man, it was incredible how much I labored over the details. In addition to this, I wrote summaries after each match (). Um, yeah, not feeling the writing bug at this moment. Will include more if so inspired.