Congratulations All Around

Three reasons to celebrate this week:

1. Kendall got a permanent teaching job in JeffCo! She's a great teacher-- and I'm not just saying that because she's my sister-- but all the funding cuts in Colorado (apparently we are #48 out of the 50 states for education funding) have made permanent positions scarce. She had to re-interview for her job every year for the past 3 years, and last year she had to switch schools. The uncertainty over whether you'll have a job next year combined with the low pay makes me wonder how anyone sticks with teaching. But Kendall is now a tenured teacher and can slack off for the rest of her career. Instead, however, she is staying up all night writing grants to get iPads for her classroom and organizing science fairs and designing class websites (https://missz.21classes.com/weblogCategory/1sc21chr53d8z) and taking all her continuing education classes and doing all the other things teachers do for next to nothing. I hope Logan is lucky enough to have teachers like her. Congratulations Kenny!

2. And then... Andrew got a job this week too! He will be working at Haynes Group, a construction company with materials, construction management, and real estate development divisions. We think he's going to be supervisor at a quarry. It's either that or sales. Either way, it sounds like a great company (I've scoured their website), with lots of opportunities. And it sounds like a good fit for Andrew-- he'll get to spend some time outside and I think he'll be a great supervisor with all his people skills. I can't wait for him to open the Colorado division so he can give me deals on landscape supplies and manage my home remodel for me.

3. And finally, Mark has reached a new level in climbing-- he is a sponsored athlete! He's part of Trango's 2012 Grassroots Athlete program (http://www.trango.com/team). In return for a bunch of free gear, Mark will: 1. Represent Trango at 5 events; 2. Provide pictures and videos for their marketing materials; 3. Encourage people to admire, desire, try, use, and buy Trango products; and 4. Be personable and approachable. Mark's got plans for #1 & 2. I figure we take care of #3 when we send out Mark's Christmas list every year with a long list of eGrips climbing holds on it (one of Trango's brands). As for the personable/ approachable part, I think that can be Logan's job. He's pretty good at waving and saying hi to people.