Seattle Day Five - July 31, 2017

On Monday morning, Leo and I picked up Carolyn from her hotel. We had a quick coffee at Issaquah Coffee Company before sending Carolyn to SeaTac for her return trip back home.  Leo and I went to downtown again. This time, we explored the Columbus Building, where I learned that we can visit the 73rd floor's Sky View Observatory. It was brilliant. The observatory was quiet, spacious, and provided a great view of the city on a clear day. Later, We walked around downtown, enjoyed Top Pot donuts and Rachel's Ginger Beer before having lunch with Leo's nephew at The Crab Pot by the ocean bay. 

I again visited a Starbucks Reserve for another drink, this time it was the Cold Brew Float. Thanks to the cute barista for the photo bomb. Leo and I also walked to a running store to pick up a Seattle running shirt for Carolyn.

In Bellevue, Leo and I hung out a bit at a mall and rested a bit, we discussed what we would do with our future lottery winnings. We ended the night with a visit to my friend Prakash and his family. It was great to see them enjoying the city and having a fresh start to their careers in Washington.

Seattle Day Four - July 30, 2017

We all woke up super early (as in 4am-ish) and met up at the parking lot to board the buses. I had to say a temporary goodbye to my friends since the full marathon and half marathon had different starting points. The bus dropped me and other half marathoners at a point where we would need to hike about 1.5 miles to the course. It was a beautiful short hike, a great warm up for the race. Temperature that morning was a very comfortable 50-60s. I watched the half marathoners take off at 6:30am and I patiently waited for the marathoners to reach the half way point. The leaders were flying, they reached the halfway mark in about 1 hour 22 minutes. I enjoyed cheering on the runners as they passed the 13.1 mark. I also saw Jerry pacing very comfortably for his 3:30 group, he is a fantastic runner.

Carolyn came in at the right pace, with Leo and CC2 only steps behind. She paced the first half flawlessly. She looked very focused. I jumped right in and talked to her as calmly as I felt I should. I've never paced anyone before, luckily Carolyn and I have run many miles (and watched many Cowboys games) together, so have a great friendly chemistry. I guess we were both excited to see each other, our first mile was about 30 seconds faster than Carolyn's goal pace. Thereafter, we focused on our pacing and enjoyed the beautiful Northbend forest.

In short, Carolyn ran a fantastic race, it led to a phenomenal Personal Best. She focused on running her own race and completing the 26.2 with a strong finish. Mission accomplished. We were all very happy for her breakthrough performance. Jerry, CC2, and Leo also ran a great marathon. 

We celebrated with a Mediterranean lunch before showering and trying to enjoy the rest of the beautiful day on sore legs.

Knowing that she was returning home the next morning, we wanted to take Carolyn to Seattle's downtown. We went to Pikes Place and had Ellenos yogurt. It was delicious, thanks Susan for the recommendation! 

We also visited Kerry's Park and the Space Needle Center.

Naturally, we visited Starbucks Roastery for my second affogato (which we called Sharknado Avocado). This one was my favorite. It was vanilla ice-cream with espresso poured over and a touch of mint syrup.

One of the unplanned surprise visits was our impromptu trip to Bainbridge Island. Thanks Karin for the tip! It was a beautiful and calm island. We walked the boardwalk trail and had a nice dinner at the Harbour Public House. Our ferry ride back to Seattle allowed us to see the city's night skyline.

Seattle Day Three - July 29, 2017

On Saturday morning, Leo and I had breakfast at Issaquah Coffee Company. Since we had a couple of hours to spend before lunch, I decided to check out the Starbucks Roastery and the flagship REI. I had my first of many Starbucks Reserve drinks that morning. I had an affogato that morning. Just before noon, Leo and I had brunch with Daisy and her family in Bellevue, where there happened to be an arts festival.

After picking up Carolyn from SeaTac, we went to get her bib from the Nike Store. They waited for me as I stayed in line in an attempt to get a bib for Sunday's half marathon, in which I intend to run the second half of Carolyn's marathon with her. At 5:15p, I was able to get a bib, allowing me to run the race on Sunday!

We were joined by Jerry and CC2 for a nice dinner Saturday night. All of us were excited for tomorrow's race. It will be a long day.

Seattle Day Two - July 28, 2017

After a morning run, I picked up my pal Leo. We visited Pike Place Market for brunch before checking into our Air BnB in Issaquah.

From Issaquah, we went to pick up his marathon bib in a Nike Outlet in Northbend. That Friday afternoon, I wasn't able to buy an entry for the Sunday morning race. We would have to try our luck again the following day. For our night entertainment, we watched the Mariners play the Mets.

It is a beautiful stadium with many enthusiastic fans.

Seattle Day One - July 27, 2017

I enjoyed a wonderful vacation in Seattle. The main goals were to visit old friends, to site see, and to support my running friends at the Jack & Jill Half/Full Marathon in Northbend, WA.

 

On my first day in Seattle, shortly after checking into my smelly Motel 6, I went for a short run around the memorial park across the street. Later, I took the Link train to Pike Place Market. I loved it and it would be a place that I visit several more times that week.

This China Town Station had neat origami themed displays. Overall, public transportation in Seattle was very convenient, inexpensive, and clean.

From Kings Station, I took the Sounder Train to Mukilteo. The train ride from downtown to Mukilteo went along the Seattle coastline and provided a great ocean view for about 45 minutes. It was great seeing my friends Daisy and Garth with their beautiful daughters. We had a relaxing dinner at Mukilteo as we watched commuters board the local ferries at the adjacent terminal. In all, it was a great first day for me in Seattle.

Reconnect with My First Dept. Chair

One cool finisher's "medal".

I have been very active over the last few summers. Aside from a few professional development opportunities, I take advantage of my time off to train as a runner and as a weekend athlete to the best of my physical abilities. This past Friday, I entered a 12K trail race in Pasadena. Just moments from the start, Mr. Mulfinger saw me. He was the department chair and mentor teacher during my first year as a teacher in Pasadena in 2004-05. We have kept in touch a few times over the years, but really haven't seen each other much. Mr. Mulfinger only just retired this past June. He looked great and ran an amazing race on a warm afternoon. I was very happy to be able to catch up with him. At the finish line of the race, we continued our chat over our passions of math, statistics, and education. We both strive to keep running trails and enjoying this sport.

Pre-Race silly photo.

ASAP - Mile 33

A Shoe Adoption Project Update: Thank you to my good friends Joyce and Brent for their donations to this charity project. One hundred percent of their contributions will go directly towards buying new shoes for children in need. Earlier this month, I reached out to both lead case managers from Foothill Family Shelter in Upland and Inland Valley Hope Partners in Pomona. Both sites have new homeless families that just moved in. They will give me the ages and shoe sizes soon. I strive to deliver the shoes by the start of the academic year for these children, so that they can look fly and kick off the new year with confidence. More to follow.

AP Stats 2017 Results

We had much success on this year's AP Stats exams! The released national pass rate is around 50% this year while I have two-thirds of my students passed. Also we had three students earning the highest score of a 5. I am proud of my students' performance, they are intelligent and applied their critical thinking skills on this year's challenging questions. 

This was my seventh year teaching the course. I had always sought to improve as an educator. Although the exam pass rate is not the only goal, it is an objective measurement. I attribute a large part of this year's success to my AP exam reading experience last summer. The professional development that I gained as an AP reader helped my instructions tremendously. I strive to keep up with the rigor of this course and at the same time provide the students with a valuable experience in learning statistics.

Just Do Math

My new math geek shirt.

Thanks, Vinny and Anthony

Thanks, boys, for the letter and the kind words. I had Vinny for Geometry two years ago and for Pre-Cal this year. He is a key member of the culinary program on campus and have baked me many treats over the years. It my first time having Anthony, he helped produce a beautiful yearbook this year. They are both great kids who are always eager to help.

Day 8 - Departure Day

Special limited-edition button. Thanks, Thomas.

On a relatively cool and dry morning, I went out to grind through a slow 10-miler in a hilly area. I went north to the river walk for a 5-mile loop, then I ran south to the World War I Memorial for a second 5-mile loop. As I walked to cool down, I ran into Tim and we decided to get breakfast at the farmers market. We each had a crepe with loads of nutella and bananas, he also shared with me a beignet. I rehydrated with a mange peach smoothie as well. We walked around the farmer market briefly and took the KC Streetcar back to the hotel. 

After Tim boarded the bus, I checked my carry-on suitcase at the lobby and watched Wonder Woman at the Alamo Drafthouse Theater. I had Protein House for lunch and got a couple more postcards at Raygun before retrieving my suitcase and Ubering to the airport.

It was a long returning trip with minor delays and crying babies on planes. But I enjoyed my second year in Kansas City as much as I did a year ago. My friends Tim and Daryl and I explored more of the city. We didn't have the stress of preparing for the acorn skit. Overall, it was a week spent with great people as we combined our efforts to successfully score over 1.3 million questions.

KC humble brag #1

KC humble brag #2

KC humble brag #3

(AP Reading, Kansas City)

Day 7 - Funstravaganza

Our one-of-a-kind distance sticker

We gradually wrapped up some more boxes of folders of exams in the morning. It was encouraging as some of the readers receives breaks when the room is not receiving any more boxes. We were told to bring our belongings to lunch and meet at a hall as a group at the convention center. During lunch, I attended a briefing of Question 5. The meeting after lunch gave each of the six question leaders a chance to share with us some of the things that students did well and didn't do so well. The end of the meeting concluded our reading and we were excused thereafter.

Tim and I did some shopping at Raygun, a local novelty shop.  We also stopped by the Rally House before returning to our room for a quick rest prior to dinner and the Funstravaganza. The Funstravaganza was great fun. The new readers (Acorns) put together some humorous skits. Other skits include Family Feud, Holy Son of the Majestic One, What Goes on Downstairs in the Alternative Test Grading Rooms, and Fun Run Awards Presentations. At the end of the night, Tim, Daryl, and I enjoyed a great conversation. We wish Daryl the best as he begins his new journey to earn a doctorate in statistics at Ohio State University.

A street sign nearby after shopping at Raygun

(AP Reading, Kansas City)

Day 6 - Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art

Kansas City collectibles.

I ran with Nick (a computer science principle reader) and other morning runners to the river for a solid 5 miler. Tim, Daryl, and I are understandably somewhat drained mentally from this week's scoring. Today was my third day of grading question 4. On my walk to lunch, I caught up with my table leader Jennifer from 2016. I thanked her for being the an inspiration for me to improve as a classroom instructor. I also attended a debriefing of Q2 during lunch. By the end of the day, we enjoyed our dinner at the cafeteria and took a break at the hotel. Daryl enjoyed a presentation at Professional Night. Tim and I visited the The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. I've been wanting to go see the badminton shuttle sculptures as they were a part of the main attractions. Unofficially, the shuttles are symbols of Kansas City. We weren't much in the mood for the arts galleries inside, but appreciated the building nonetheless.

We Ubered our way back to the Union Station, our driver played some interesting music of choice and warned us to not stay at the WWI Memorial past 10pm.  As we approached the Street Car Station, Thomas gave me the "Finding Normal" button! It was a complete surprise. I've been wanting the button since I first saw it. It was a limited edition button. Thomas won the Fun Run drawing and got an extra one the next day. We chatted briefly the day before and he remembered to save it for me. I feel so lucky. Tim and I walked back to the supermarket and our hotel. At the social lounge, I chatted briefly with Daryl and Sam as they shared their experiences at the Professional Night presentation.

Birdie # 1 of 4

Birdie # 2 of 4

Birdie # 3 of 4

Birdie #4 of 4

Tim and I exploring a different side of Kansas City

The museum staff was preparing for a special evening event

(AP Reading, Kansas City)

ASAP - Mile 32

A Shoe Adoption Project Update: Six more pairs of shoes will go to Kenya this summer. As of this writing, that's a total of 15 pairs that we will send to children who are starting their own soccer program. I'm in Kansas City this week for AP exams reading. I plan to deliver these to Christ's Church of the Valley or have Emily, the student leader of Chosen Children of Promise, pick these up from school next week. Thank you to all of the donors, supporters, and friends of this project.

Diadora Monaco Evo in Kids Size 1.5

Diadora Monaco Evo in Kids Size 2.5

Adidas F5 TRX FG in Women Sizes 6.5 and 10

Nike JR Bravata FG-R in Kids Size 13.5

Lotto Campione in Kids Size 10

Day 5 - Prediction Fun Run

This year's Fun Run shirt

It was our second full day of grading Question #4. I also attended Tabor's Question #6 briefing during lunch. Most of us skipped dinner since it was the Fun Run at 7pm. Tim and I walked to the River Walk by the Missouri River as warm up. In a normal distribution, about 95% of the data fall between 1.96 standard deviation below and above the mean.

Erica is amazing, she spearheaded this Fun Run and organized all the necessary details to ensure that we had fun. It was a blast. A time of 13:01 was my ambitious prediction on a hot 90+ degree day with humidity. (I later found out that 13:18 was my official time. I under-performed by 17 seconds.) Since we modified the race last year because of extreme heat, this was a new experience for year one and year two readers.

On this evening, we're lucky that there was an overcast with a nice breeze. The shade bought the temperature down to the 80s to the lower 90s and the humidity more bearable. I thought I had came in 6th. Volunteer Gina told me that I had finished 9th. I read the finisher's card upside-down. That tells you how coherent I was at the end of the hard run.

Tim and I ventured to the Power and Lights District and walked by a country music concert with a solid crowd. We decided to have a burger at BUGR for dinner. It rained a little with heavy wind on our way back.

Tim and I on the right, Daryl on the left.

(AP Reading, Kansas City)