Popular

Grant was never popular during his high school years. So he should have been extremely suspicious near the end of his senior year when he was invited to a party by one of the beautiful people. But he was too excited to turn down the invitation.

It all seemed innocent enough. Becky had approached him while he grabbed some books from his locker. While Grant had trouble talking to most of the popular kids, Becky was different. She was a lot nicer, for one thing. She'd never given Grant a hard time for skipping two grades. She'd never made fun of him for being so small compared to all the other kids in the senior class. She'd always seemed to make an effort to let him feel like he was actually a part of the Jefferson High student body.

"Hey, Grant! What are you up to this weekend?" she asked in that excited, bubbly voice for which she was so well known.

Grant thought for a moment. The truth was, he planned to spend a lot of his time reading. He also expected to help his mother in the yard. He was sure it would be nothing compared to the excitement that Becky would experience. Instead of the truth, he just said, "Nothing much, why?"

"There's a party at Vanessa Duke's house. You know her, right?"

"Yeah," said Grant, hesitating. Of course he knew Vanessa Duke. Everyone knew Vanessa Duke. Head cheerleader. Student body president. Homecoming Queen. Yearbook editor. She was the high school girl that they made movies about. Not that Grant had a crush on her or anything. He knew that a girl like Vanessa was way out of his league, so he never wasted a second thinking about her.

Grant was confused. Why would anyone, even Becky Freeman, invite him to a party at the home of the most popular person in school?

"So does that mean you'll go? You can even ride with me if you want," Becky said, trying to sweeten the deal.

For some reason, Grant agreed to go. He even took Becky up on her offer to go with her. He didn't imagine that it was a date. He just assumed Becky was being nice again. Something the other popular kids wouldn't know how to be if someone paid them. Not that they needed the money.

Saturday night came and Grant was nervous. This was his first high school party. Being so close to graduation, it would likely be his only high school party. Maybe it would be good practice for all the college parties he was bound to not be invited to.

Becky picked him up at his house at 8, just like she said she would. "Nervous?" she asked as he climbed into the passenger seat.

"How can you tell?"

She didn't have to say anything. She just pointed to his quickly bouncing right knee. He put his hand on his leg to make it stop. Now he was a little embarrassed. A nice addition to his anxiety.

They arrived at the party and Becky took Grant by the arm to lead him through the crowd. Soon after they got to Vanessa's, Becky excused herself, promising she'd be right back. That was when everything went wrong.

Vanessa walked up to Grant and was sickeningly sweet to him. By this point, Grant wondered if he was dying of some disease and no one had told him about it. Vanessa had never been nice to him in his life. Here she was welcoming him to her home and offering him something to drink. Grant didn't want to act like he was suspicious of her behavior.

"Just go on into the kitchen, I'll be right behind you," said Vanessa, pointing Grant in the right direction.

Grant opened the swinging door that separated the kitchen from the dining room. By the time he realized a bucket of water had been propped above the door it was too late. He was drenched by five gallons of water. He turned back toward the crowded dining room in time to hear the laughter and see several of the athletic guys high-fiving each other.

A part of him wanted to laugh it off. He didn't want to show these jerks that they had gotten to him. But he wasn't feeling that brave. He pushed his way through the laughing crowd and yanked open the front door. He didn't bother to close it behind him as he stormed off into the night. Grant wanted to go home and that meant he had a long walk ahead of him.

He was fuming. As he walked, he plotted his revenge. He didn't have many ideas. How could he get back at the entire senior class? He had a thought. Something that might just work. But it would take a lot of work, and he didn't have a lot of time to prepare.

When Grant was three blocks away from Vanessa's house, he heard footsteps behind him. "Grant!" It was Becky's voice calling his name.

He turned on her, furious. "I thought you were different than those other guys! I never would have thought you'd set me up like that!"

"Grant, you have to believe me. I had no idea Vanessa and those guys were planning to mess with you like that," Becky said. Grant could tell she was sincere, but he wasn't willing to forgive her at the moment.

"Just leave me alone!" he yelled as he turned to walk away.

"At least let me take you back home," Becky offered.

Grant didn't stop. He didn't respond. He just kept walking.

Passionate Student

I would be remiss if I did not mention that this week was Teacher Appreciation Week. If you didn't take the opportunity to let your kids' teachers know you appreciate them, it's not too late. In fact, it's never too late or too soon to show your appreciation for what teachers do. There are a whole lot of teachers out there who work very hard to make sure children receive a quality education, despite the difficulties and pressures placed on them by the powers that be.

On the other hand, there are also some teachers out there who seem to do what they do just to get a paycheck. Why they remain teachers is beyond me. After all, the paycheck, as everyone knows, isn't that great when one is a teacher. This week, a video made the rounds featuring a high school student making an impassioned plea to a history teacher who seemingly doesn't teach, but only hands out information on photocopies, expecting the kids to basically teach themselves.

I don't know the whole story. I don't know if the accused teacher ever got a chance to defend herself. I'd like to hear her real response. In the actual video, she's very passive. There are two sides to every story. I would hope that the teacher in question generally does more than passively sit at her desk while her students read worksheets day after day. Whatever the case, the kid is passionate about his belief that a teacher should inspire the kids to want to learn. In my opinion, he's not wrong.

Remembering Bluefield: Gertie

Okay, Gertie isn't a Bluefield College graduate. But she should at least be an honorary alumna. She has been a fixture for Bluefield College students for many years. She's the beloved night shift waitress at the Omelet Stop in Princeton.

Back in the day, the restaurant was known as the Omelet Shoppe. During those college years, there weren't a lot of places to go in the town of Bluefield if you were hungry in the middle of the night. The short drive to Princeton provided us with the all-night diner. It was the perfect place to load up on grease and coffee and cigarette smoke at 3am. Come to think of it, it was the only place to load up on all those things.

Gertie was our favorite waitress. She saved my life once. I'll never forget that. She made such an impact on the kids that some of us created an intramural flag football team and named it in her honor. I say "we," but I really mean my friends. I wasn't allowed to play. I shouldn't have to remind anyone of this, but I'm a dropper.

A few years ago, I remember hearing that Gertie had passed away. I don't remember exactly where I heard this information or from whom. But I'm not the only one who remembers hearing that news. Mark and Brandon can back me up on that. There's even a Facebook group titled "Remembering Gertie."

As I was pulling out of the elementary school parking lot yesterday afternoon, I got a call from Brandon. He asked what I was doing last night. "Nothing, really. Probably just catch up on some reading."

"Wanna meet me and Mark at the Omelet Stop at 10?"

"In Princeton?"

"Yeah!"

I sighed. Loudly. "You know it's a school night, right?"

"Come on!"

When the offer to pay for my meal was put on the table, I had to agree to go out. How could I pass that up? A late night trip for some greasy food with two of my best friends in the world? Life's too short not to. Screw the Murtaugh List.

We sat and ordered our food. While we waited, we spent time catching up. Then a strange thing happened. A woman who looked eerily familiar walked into the restaurant. Brandon said, "That lady looks a lot like Gertie."

Mark and I both turned to look. Sure enough, the resemblance was uncanny. We were all stunned. As I said before, we'd all heard that she had died. How could she be sitting at the Omelet Stop before our eyes? I offered to walk by and attempt to accidentally bump into her, just to see if she had corporeal form. Maybe she was a ghost.

We weren't the only ones who could see her. She was having a conversation with a guy at the counter. For a while she disappeared. For a while, we thought we'd imagined that we had seen her. But we couldn't have. Brandon got a picture of her with his phone. She was real.

At the end of the night, she rang us up at the cash register. She spoke to us and had Gertie's same accent. She took our money, proving that she did, in fact, have corporeal form. She was no illusion and she was no ghost. If she recognized us, she didn't let on. But it sure was good to see her again.

Obviously, rumors of her death have been greatly exaggerated.

The Single Guy and the Esteemed Panel

A couple weeks ago, the Single Guy got a phone call from one of the church leaders. Over the phone, he was presented with the opportunity to sit on a panel of experts for an open forum on relationships.

A note of explanation. The Single Guy, as has been mentioned a number of times, is part of a small group that meets at least once a week. That small group is part of a larger group within the church known as GAP (Graduates and Professionals). Once a month, the larger group gets together for various activities. The Single Guy has only been a part of this group and the church as a whole since January. So he's only been around for a few of these monthly get-togethers.

Back in January, before he got involved with the group, they met for a game night (?), which served as a kick off for the upcoming semester of small group Bible studies. In March, they joined up for a service project, hanging drywall and taking care of various other small construction projects at a local church with whom we have a strong relationship. April's big group centered around a cookie making competition, which in turn became a service project when the cookies were wrapped up and given out to graduate students at Virginia Tech.

This month, the big group would meet to hash out the details of what the word "relationship" was really all about. This is what the panel was being put together for. That panel would sit in front of an audience and answer questions about relationships, which had been submitted by GAP folks. The Single Guy was asked to represent the Singletons. When he was asked, he said he would have to think about it. But he knew right away that he would say yes.

The panel also consisted of Newlyweds, a Married with Children couple and a woman married to a non-believer. These people would represent a wide range of opinions and were willing to dispense the knowledge and wisdom that they had accumulated over the years. Not that the Single Guy really imagined that he had accumulated a great deal of wisdom. Nor did he consider himself to be anything close to an expert. But, being single for his entire life did give him the practical experience that may have been necessary to sit in the comfy seat at the front of the auditorium.

Okay, he hasn't been single his whole life. There was that short time during preschool when he was engaged to a girl named Angie. It wasn't meant to be. By the way, the "meant to be" mentality was sort of touched upon.

There were a lot of really good and really tough questions that were asked. The Single Guy felt a little out of his element. Not because he felt uncomfortable answering questions about being single. But he has little to no experience being in a relationship of his own. So he was a little afraid that his expertise would be called into question.

The night before the event, the Single Guy kind of had a bad dream about the whole thing. He envisioned himself sitting at a long table behind a microphone. He was answering questions intelligently and throwing in a handful of witty comments here and there. Things were going well. And then the audience participation began. A girl sitting in the front row stood up to address the panel. The Single Guy couldn't recognize her. She wasn't from his small group and he was fairly certain he'd never seen her at church before. Looking directly at the Single Guy, she accused him of being a fraud. She asked how he could possibly answer these questions when he's never been in a relationship. She asked how he could stand to sit there smugly in front of all those people when he's never even been beyond a second date. Then she called on her fellow audience members to revolt. They began launching rotten vegetables at the Single Guy. Thankfully, before the first tomato could strike his face, he woke up in a cold sweat. It had just been a dream.

The real life relationship panel went pretty well. At least, that's what he was told by the folks that ran the show. It's possible they were just being polite and sparing the Single Guy's feelings. But he's fairly certain these people wouldn't lie to him. As it turned out, he wasn't nearly as nervous as he thought he would be. Looking back, the whole event is kind of a blur for him. But it was fun. And he'd be more than happy to participate in a similar panel in the future.

To the Future

Today I did an activity with the kids where I had them write letters to themselves in five years. Looking back, I probably should have said 10 or 15 years. They didn't really have a good concept of time. Most of them will still be in the preteen phase, but they wrote letters regarding marriage and careers.

It was interesting to see how the kids' imaginations would shape their futures. What began as a therapeutic activity for the kids got me thinking about my own future. So I decided to write a letter to my own future self. And because I love my Carp Dime followers so very much. I'm sharing it here.

Dear Future Aaron,

What's it been? 20 years? How are you holding up? I hope things are going well for you. Or me. Whatever. You're 53 now. I'm sure I don't have to remind you, that's how old Dad was when he passed away. For both our sakes, I hope you've been taking care of yourself as far as your health goes.

If things have gone according to my current plan, you'll be wrapping up your 18th, maybe 19th year teaching. How's that going? Are the kids of the future behaving themselves any better than the ones I'm dealing with in 2013? It's hard to imagine behavior getting worse, though I'm sure it can. Probably has. But I hope you're enjoying being in your own classroom, shaping the minds of the future leaders.

Here's the big one that I would get tired of hearing if I were you. Which I am, but I'm gonna ask anyway. Are you married? If not, that's cool. No judgments here. If you are, here's hoping she's even more awesome than I've imagined. And you better be treating her like a queen. If you're not, I'm gonna find a way to travel into the future and kick your decrepit butt!

Speaking of time travel, is that even possible? If it is, would you mind finding a way to send back this week's winning Powerball numbers? The jackpot is up to $222 million. Not that money is that important. I'd end up giving most of it away. I'm just saying it would be helpful during those days when school gets cancelled. 'Cause remember, back when you were a counselor, snow days were unpaid. I assume you made it through those days unscathed, now that you're teacher of the year and all. By the way, the specific date for those winning numbers should be 5/8/2013. Just give it some thought.

What about the whole writing thing? Did anything ever come of that? Did you ever get a book published? That would be super. How about the blog? Still keeping up with that? I have no doubt you are. Blogging is a trend that will probably never die. And if it ever does, you better be the last hold out.

And what about running? I've set a goal to do a half marathon next year and maybe even a full marathon someday. Did you manage to get that done? I hope so. It would be cool to look back at 53 and say I've run a marathon before.

Okay, last question. Did they ever manage to create a Justice League movie that could rival the success of The Avengers? You know what? Don't answer that. I'm sure I'll just be disappointed.

All right, old man. See you in 20 years. Take care of yourself.

Sincerely,
Past Aaron

How To Be Perpetually Early

The other night, I found myself involved in a conversation debating the merits of showing up early or late to any given event. I happened to mention that I have this tendency to arrive perpetually early to just about everything. A friend of mine said that she would like to have that problem. I'm here to tell you, being early to everything is as much a curse as it is a blessing.

It may not be so bad for the half of the population that considers themselves extroverts. For an introvert, such as me, arriving early can provide a plethora of awkward situations. This is particularly true if I don't know a single person that's already there.

Another problem comes when one's patience is tested. If you're impatient, boredom can quickly overtake you as you wait for other people to arrive. For the impatient, boredom can lead to irritation and frustration which, if you're not careful, can be misdirected at those you perceived to have kept you waiting. Not the best way to make friends.

Don't get me wrong, being early has its up sides. After all, you're sure not to miss anything important. If food's involved, you'll have the chance to get the good stuff while it's still warm. And you can avoid the embarrassment of making a scene and calling attention to yourself when you make a late entrance. Unless that's something you're going for. Like I said, I'm the introvert, so I usually try to avoid that kind of spotlight. Usually.

Some of you may be asking, "Aaron, how can I be perpetually early?" Well, I'm not sure that it's something I can teach. For me, I think it's an innate trait. I really don't like being late. In fact, in college, if I knew I'd be even five minutes late to class, I'd have rather not gone. But let's give this a shot.

• Set your alarm for an hour before you actually think you need it. This is particularly helpful at the start of the day after waking from a decent night's sleep. It also helps to be a morning person. This, I've discovered, is a very hard thing to become. Most of the time, you either are or are not comfortable with the early morning. I believe anyone can train themselves to become morning people, but it's very difficult and requires a great deal of discipline. And possibly caffeine.
• Figure out, on average, how long it takes for you to get ready. Don't worry, I won't make a broad generalization and claim that men always get ready faster than women. I've known a number of women who can be ready to go in 15 minutes or less. I've also known men who take an hour and a half trying to make their hair look like they just rolled out of bed. However long it takes, learn your get ready schedule and stick to it. Then you'll know the absolute latest you can begin getting ready to leave. To be safe, add an extra 15 minutes.
• Determine if you have incentive to arrive early. As I mentioned earlier, food can be an incentive to get to your destination early. Maybe seeing a particular person is enough to make you get to where you're going. Maybe you want to get to a party early because you want to talk to a girl you like. Or, for the introvert, you want to give her a chance to come talk to you as you stand awkwardly in the corner praying that either no one notices you or at least she does.

There you have it. Not an elaborate list, I know. But I said it's likely it can't be taught. You either tend to arrive early or late. People will come to know this (whatever the case) about you and love you for it, ridicule you for it, or both.

Question of the Week: Books

If you could choose one book as a mandatory read for all high school students, which book would you choose?

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. This is, in my opinion, the best work of fiction to be found. I love this book and have read it more than a dozen times. It's a truly American fairy tale that's a lot deeper than people usually give it credit for. Most would look at it and see a simple children's story. L. Frank Baum may not have known at the time that his story would become a timeless classic. But I'm sure he enjoyed the public response and the call for further adventures in Oz. If high school literature teachers can pull out hidden meanings from The Red Badge of Courage, they can certainly do the same with The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Fuzzy

"How are you feeling?" asked Jason as he poked his head into Naomi's cubicle.

She had just finished blowing her nose and felt a little embarrassed at having Jason witness the act. There was no way around it though. Naomi was sick. Nothing serious. Just a cold. It was more of an irritation than a problem, really. Annoying enough to make her feel awful, but not bad enough to allow her a day off work.

"How do you think I feel?!" she snapped as she tossed a tissue into the wastebasket. She hadn't meant to snap at Jason. He had simply asked a question. And he'd done so with genuine concern in his voice.

"Sorry," Jason said as he turned to walk away.

"No, I'm sorry," Naomi said, "I didn't mean to snap at you."

"It's okay. I've been there. Just a couple weeks ago, actually."

"Yeah, I remember," she said as she turned to cough into her elbow. "To answer your question, I feel like crap."

"Are you taking anything?" he asked.

"I am. But it's making my head all fuzzy, you know?"

"Why did you come in today?" asked Jason, "Don't you have any sick days saved up?"

"I thought about calling in, but I've just got too much to do. These reports aren't going to file themselves," Naomi said as she sighed, looking at the pile of paperwork on her desk.

"If you need a hand with anything let me know."

"Thanks," Naomi said softly before turning back to her computer.

She stared at the screen for a few minutes until her vision became blurred. According to her watch, 15 minutes had passed. That medication was really messing with her today. Maybe Jason was right. She should have taken the day off. In the state she was in, she wasn't sure that she would be able to spell her own name correctly, much less wade through the mountain of paperwork she had to do.

Naomi got up from her desk and walked to Jason's cubicle. "I'm gonna leave," she said.

"Good idea," Jason said as he looked up at her. "Do you want me to take care of anything for you?"

She gave him a strange look and he realized that came out wrong.

"No! I meant work! I mean, do you have any paperwork I can take care of for you?"

She laughed, "I think it will wait 'til tomorrow."

"All right. Feel better. Hopefully you won't feel so fuzzy tomorrow," said Jason, receiving another strange look. "I'm just gonna stop talking now."

Summer Movies That Might Be Worth Seeing

Summer is a happy time. The days are longer. The air is warmer. The sun is shinier. School is out. And the movies get a little more explosive. And dramatic. And funny. Or maybe it's just that Hollywood pulls out the stops and makes the movies seem like all of those things have gotten better. In some cases, they get it right. It's definitely not always the case. Some movies that are expected to be blockbusters become box office bombs. No one sets out to make a bad movie. Except for the Wachowski brothers when they decided to make the Matrix sequels. Here are some movies that I'm looking forward to in the months ahead.

In theaters this weekend (May 3):

Iron Man 3

I saw this today. It was really good. I might do a more in depth review later. For now, you'll just have to be happy with my statement that I thought it was the best of the three.

Coming Soon...
May 10:

The Great Gatsby

Never read the book. Never saw the older films. But it looks good.

May 17:

Star Trek: Into Darkness

The last one was just about awesome. The follow-up looks just as good.

May 24:

The Hangover Part III

Okay, the second one wasn't great. Actually, it was real disappointing. But you can't see the first two parts of a trilogy and not stick around for the final act.

May 31:

After Earth

M. Night Shyamalan's more recent stuff has been kind of disappointing. But I like some sci-fi. This looks decent.

Now You See Me

This one I don't know a whole lot about, but the trailer has me intrigued enough to want to take a look.

June 7:

The Internship

Good to see Owen Wilson and Vince Vaughn working together again. Wedding Crashers is a classic, maybe this will recreate that same kind of magic.

Much Ado About Nothing

William Shakespeare meets Joss Whedon? Yes, please.

June 14:

Man of Steel

Does the word "duh" mean anything to you?

June 21:

Monsters University

Like most of what Pixar has to offer, I loved Monsters, Inc. Why wouldn't I give this one a shot?

World War Z

A zombie movie where the zombies move like rabid wolves rather than shambling corpses that are falling apart? Should be a little more exciting than the average zombie movie. Honestly, it wouldn't take a lot to be more exciting than the majority of the last couple seasons of The Walking Dead.

July 5:

Despicable Me 2

If you saw the first one, you'll understand why this is a must see: the minions.

July 19:

Red 2

If you saw the first one, you'll understand why this is a must see: actually, I don't have a good one for this. I just thought the first one was really clever.

July 26:

The Wolverine

Come on, it's Wolverine.

August 9:

Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters

Being a fan of the Percy Jackson book series, I was enormously disappointed with the first film adaptation. But this trailer looks a little better than The Lightning Thief. Here's hopin'.

August 23:

The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones

This book series is on my list of things to read, assuming I can ever find time to get around to them. The movie looks pretty good.

Remembering Bluefield: Mark Hipes

It's Friday again! Some would call it the best day of the work week. They usually mean it's the best day because it's the last day before the weekend. What they should mean is that it's the best day because it's time for Remembering Bluefield here on the Carp Dime. And this week we focus on a guy that was my roommate not once, but twice. And I'd split the rent with him again if the opportunity presented itself. Ladies and gentlemen... Mark Hipes!

Name:
Mark Hipes

What year did you graduate?
2003

What degree did you earn?
Bachelor of Arts in Christian Studies

What drew you to Bluefield College?
I transferred to BC after completing my associates degree at Dabney S. Lancaster Community College. It was the people involved with the BSU at Bluefield College and meeting Janice Bishop at a college fair that made me desire to check out Bluefield. Once I set food on campus, it was my college.

What kept you there?
I guess because I was a transfer, I never thought about transferring. I loved my time at Bluefield.

Is there a class that changed your life? If so, what?
I don't know that I could pinpoint one class that changed my life. Colloquium my senior year may be my favorite. It was team taught by the entire Christian Studies department. It was a discussion type of class and we really got to pick each others minds. My brain was exhausted when I left that class.

What teacher had the biggest impact on you? Why?
Dr. Stepp and Dr. Lyle. From the theological conversations to the conversations on relationships and life.

Did you live on campus or commute?
Campus all 3 years.

Who were your roommates?
Brandon Caldwell my first year. The second year, Brandon Caldwell, Dereck Harris and Aaron Peck (until he got scared and left). My third year, Andy Berry, until the "divorce."

Share an epic roommate story (if you have one).
There are so many... I loved living in Rish Hall. That first year, second floor Rish was a great place to be. I loved hanging out with the guys and listening to Celebrity Jeopardy, Eddie Murphy, Brak, Arj and Poopy, the Naked News, and the first social network... TheSpark.com. Two of the guys on the floor even managed a few relationships off of the Spark. Great platform, ahead of its time.

What's your most cherished Bluefield College memory?
Not just one memory but many. I loved BSU and some of my favorite memories are trips to Eagle Eyrie and times spent together in worship. From my first BSU retreat at Camp Laurel when I was selected for the "red hen" club (or whatever it was called) to that last year of BAM.

Where are you now?
I am in Bluefield, WV.

What are you doing?
The Director of Admissions at Bluefield College. In August I will become the Director of Alumni Relations and the Annual Fund.

Does that mean you're using your degree?
Yes, that is the beauty of a liberal arts degree... I also believe my work is my ministry.

Are you where you pictured yourself being when you were in college?
I didn't really have a picture. At least, I can't remember it. I never thought I would be in my current position and I consider myself privileged to serve an institution like Bluefield College.

Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Finished with my masters, living in either Richmond or Roanoke. Working in either higher education fundraising and advancement or working as a financial planner. Or in vocational ministry. Married.

What's your greatest post-BC accomplishment?
Working as the Director of Admissions at Bluefield College.

What's your fondest post-BC memory?
Becoming an uncle. Travel, competition, and life with the "Four Fathers." And, November 10, 2012, the perfect date.

If you had it to do all over again, would you change anything?
Yes, but life doesn't work that way... wouldn't be any fun.

For the record, I didn't get scared while living with Mark, Brandon and Dereck. I'm just the kind of guy who enjoys his alone time. There's no such thing as alone time when you have three roommates sharing one bedroom. Don't get me wrong, I love those guys like brothers. But Aaron doesn't share a room. Thanks again to Mark for playing along this week. Do I have a volunteer for next week? Let me know in the comments if you'd like to get personal!