This Compelling Life

 Well here we are in week 2 the numbers are still going up but hopefully there maybe some light at the end of the tunnel with the possibility of slowing numbers in China.  The one thing that we all need to do is look to God and seek his guidance in this time. Go to the Bible and read his words, follow and trust them and do not look back or second guess his guidance.  I encourage everyone that reads this, if you do not have a church to attend, to watch the facebook live broadcasts of Parkview Baptist Church in Tuscumbia, AL. You can find them at 10:15 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Sundays and 6 p.m. on Wednesdays. Also, once this quarantine is over join us at the Church for our services and class times. till next week D. Pounders  

     Well it is day two of the quarantine, aka social distancing, but it is day one with the kids. Even though I am a teacher but there is something different about keeping you own kids. They can get on your nerves more but you also Love them more too. As I right this sitting on the couch I am watching as my kids watch Toy Story 3 on Disney+ and are currently being good. That could change in 2 seconds though. So even though this is an extremely different situation that we are in just remember that if you still have kids at home cherish the times that you have and teach them something that they will use for the rest of their lives. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders Join Amazon Family 30-Day Free Trial Shop Amazon - Best Sellers in Grocery

     Well spring break is over to an extent but then again it is not. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus and everyone losing their minds school has been cancelled for another week. It is also possible that if everyone follows the CDC's recommendation that it will potentially end the school year. If you ask me this is the beginning of the end of education and possibly everyday life as we know it now. It may also cause a fall in the world of sports. Which we as a society pay way more attention to then we should and may also cause us to focus on things that we should more like our salvation in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and also being kinder to each other and to quit fighting each other on things that don't really even matter in the grand scheme of our lives. Jesus should be our sole focus and purpose in this life and the faster we realize that as a society the better off we will be. till tomorrow, D. Pounders

     Today is the last day before we (teachers and students) get freedom for a week. I don’t know who thought up the time to have Spring Break but they made it at a very appropriate time on the year. The kids and teachers both need the break and it lets us all recharge and finish out the year strong. Thank you to our administrators here for doing such a great job with everything. I know they juggle a lot of things at one time and keep things running smoothly on a daily basis. Thank you to all of my fellow teachers for stepping in to help whenever it is needed to watch a class or help in any other way. I do so greatly enjoy it here at Iuka Middle and would not trade thins place for anywhere else. With all that said I look forward to finishing out the year strong and preparing for next year here. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders  

     A Coaches life on game day can be hectic with teaching class, taking pregame meal orders and putting in the order/ picking it up, making out lineups and figuring out pitching, making sure everyone one is at school and can play that day, etc. The little things add up and time can get away from you quickly if you are not careful. Also, with so many little things that have to done or gotten together it is easy to forget something, so if you can delegate things to other coaches (if you have any) then it is always better to do that and take some of the load off of yourself.  Today’s game has the possibility of being rained out but it is looking good so far that we will be able to play. It will be Burnsville, MS at their place so we are hoping for a good outcome but definitely not overlooking anyone. Always play to dominate your opponent and strive to be mistake free. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders

        This week may drive me crazy or really close to it.  Testing time for a PE teacher is the worst because you get all the students that are not testing or have already tested due to some special circumstance. Not to mention I also get my regular classes if they are not testing on that day or if they have already finished. So what that means is that sometimes me and one other teacher are watching a room, slightly larger than a basketball court, with 100+ students in it and if it is not during certain periods I don’t have anyone else but me in here.  I also have had to eat my lunch while watching students the last few days, so no rest for the weary. Needless to say it is Wednesday and I feel like I have worked 2 weeks in just this one half of a week. Spring Break is next week and it can’t come fast enough. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders

     Today is the day that several States hold their primary elections. I live in the State of Alabama which has several decent candidates for Senate on the Republican side. The top 3 are probably Jeff Sessions, Bradley Byrne and former college football coach Tommy Tuberville.  I honestly think it will be a close race between those three and in the general election I believe that any of those will run away with it against Doug Jones. He has proven that he will just jump in with the existing Democrats in this country and follow along instead of stepping up and being a leader against the Status Quo.      Also, in Alabama we will be voting to determine whether our State Board of Education will be appointed or elected from now on. I believe that if they are appointed that the State Government will only go ahead and put in a bunch of “yes” men/women that will do whatever they are told. This is why we need to keep these positions as elected instead of appo...

              Spring Break is next week but this week is 9 weeks testing. So, for me that basically means watching all the kids that have already tested or are not testing that day. It is basically controlled chaos to some extent. Also, today was supposed to be game three of the baseball season but the rain has stopped that again. Even though the rain has stopped us from doing a lot we have done well in the games that we have played so far. I have been pleased with the effort and will to win from the players. Their ability to do some of the things that they do at this age is somewhat impressive and we want to build on that for the High School Level. I cannot wait to see what the rest of the season holds for us. Till Tomorrow, D.Pounders  

Saturday:      Well its always fun to go shoe shopping with the entire family. Especially when the kids need a nap about half way through but we did it anyway. The rest of the afternoon was pretty rough considering once we got home the kids would not even think about taking a nap and the whining and crying continued. Sunday:      This morning we got up and all made it church in one piece. This seems like a miracle after after the Saturday. God must have put his hand on us for this one. Everything was great and even got to get some more of the linoleum up that we are replacing upstairs, in the renovation. So ready for the bulk of this Renovation to be over with and we really haven't even started. Hopefully the big things will get started next week while I'm off on Spring Break. Coming Up:      Tomorrow we are supposed to be playing Tishomingo at home at 5 but guess what it is supposed to rain again. Till Tomorrow, D. ...

     Game 1 was yesterday and it went very well with us winning 7-0. We only had a few miscues but that or worse was expected for the first game of the season, so no big deal. Today is Game 2 still playing against Alcorn Central at 5 but it is a Home game today. We will hopefully have a similar outcome to what we did Yesterday. There is not a lot of bad things I can say about these boys on the field, although they do play around a little to much at times at practice, but come game time they pay very good attention to what is happening in the game and the situations. That is not so much a credit to me as it is to their past coaches and their parents for keeping them around the game and helping them to become students of it.  Thank You to the parents that have helped at the field the last few days helping to get it ready to play today. You do not know how much that means and what a load it takes off of me, especially on game day. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders...

    Baseball season is here, finally. It may have stopped raining but in typical baseball season fashion it is still cold. High at game time is 48 low will 31 for the day, so hopefully we can still feel our fingers and toes at the end of the game tonight. Heading to Alcorn Central to play one game with a pretty talented group of boys just hope our lack of time on the field doesn’t effect us to much. Most Baseball parents already know what to do for cold weather situations but just in case here are some suggestions. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders

   I know that all teachers are counting down the days until their spring break week. I have 7 more school days left until (not counting today) my break starts. Also, for me that maybe when my contractor can get started on the remodel for our kitchen and upstairs den. Right now those rooms are subfloors with stud walls. Luckily we live downstairs right now and don’t have to look at it all the time. So, one of the things going on in my part of the Shoals Area is the beginning of the development of Inspiration Landing, a multipurpose complex for public and private use. This is very exciting for the Shoals Area because it gives us a new revenue stream that can really help area schools and bring in people for different events. It also brings newer forms of entertainment to the area for locals. I personally can’t wait to see what it does for my property value. So along with my renovations and the Development of Inspiration Landing the future could be looking good in my neighborh...

     Well, baseball season did not get started yesterday it will now start on Thursday, Hopefully. I hope that we are ready especially with how little we have been able to get on the field. We do get some things done in the gym but we are very limited. If we could get to an indoor cage to hit it would help out a lot but the only one available is at the high school and the baseball and softball team there is in it fairly late every night.     Today is a clear day and is pretty nice out so far but it has rained so much in the last 3-4 weeks the field is still very wet. Like I stated earlier, I hope that we will be able to play this week if not Thursday then on Friday because next week it looks like rain again. On another note maybe we will be getting started on the redo of our Kitchen in the next week or two. Everything will be torn out by next weekend and we can actually get started. So ready to have a working kitchen again. Microwave and Airfryer really...

         Today is opening day for the Chieftain baseball team but it is raining. So, our first game will likely be on Thursday instead.  We are not really ready simply because our time on the field has been very limited due to the large amounts of rain we have had in the past month.  Regardless of that we do have some talented middle school players and seem to have a lot of pitching. Another thing that we are blessed with is some really supportive parents that will come out and do whatever is needed in order to help with the field or anything else that may be needed regarding the team.  I would also like to point out that even though my assistant coach has not been able to be at practice, due to him having to teach during that time, he has been a great help with sending out some messages and helping with forms and other types of communication with the players and parents.      Well with all that said I hope that everyone will ge...

      Weekends at hour house are mainly for two things. Saturdays are for renovating numerous things at the house. Sometimes it is painting a number of different things, fixing closet organizers, moving boxes, building a mantle, or tearing out a kitchen. This weekend was pulling down paneling in the upstairs den and the beginning of tearing up flooring in the kitchen and den. The next step will be getting the contractor in to start fixing everything that has been ripped out.      Sunday is for Church and worshiping our Lord and Savior. It is also for rest from everything else that has been going on at the house or at work during the week and right this minute we are nearing Sunday nap time. This time is very crucial on the weekends when you have two young children that get cranky if they don't get their nap. Hopefully you have had a great weekend. Next up this week is Game 1 of the baseball season as long as it doesn't get rained out. ...

      The season is here and our first game is on Monday, just one problem, there’s an 80% chance of rain that day and it is supposed to rain the day before also. So, the chances of playing are very very small. It has been this way for the last two years and major flooding so bad that a lot of fields are completely  underwater or have become temporary swamp lands. Some of the problem is a lack of proper drainage that has never fixed or fields, when they were built years ago, were built in the flood plain cause no one paid attention to what was being done. So, if you are a coach that is having similar problems I am going to put a link in for some products that may help get rid of some water. Till tomorrow, D. Pounders

     How many of you remember the Friends episode where Joey moves out and has the glass that water runs down to look like rain. That is what about everyday feels like right now. It is definitely making practice harder with having to be inside everyday but today, to try to lighten the mood, I am going to let them pick teams and play whiffle ball inside.      Tonight after practice we will be at the school until about 7:30 for Parent/Teacher conferences. It will be a long day but on occasion you do get to speak with some parents about somethings that maybe going on with their child. Sometimes they are good and sometimes they are bad but nevertheless it is good to speak with the ones that show up.      So, in closing today maybe we can get some relief from this rain sometime soon and possibly get a game or two in before we leave for spring break in 2 weeks. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders

Baseball is here but of course with the rain we can’t really get a lot done. Most of our days have been spent indoors in the gym at school and we can get somethings done but not a whole lot. With that yesterday we are practicing in the gym again and in the middle of one player throwing a bullpen the lights go out. My initial thought was it was just in the gym. Then upon further investigation it is the entire school. So, I asked the resource officer and come to find out it was not just the school but the entire city and some outside of the city. So, for the last 20 minutes of practice we sat in the dark gym waiting on the power to come back on and when it didn’t it was time to go. This season has been somewhat crazy already and we haven’t even played a game yet. At this rate we either need a swim team or start an indoor waffle ball league. Till Tomorrow, D. Pounders

Rain, Rain Go Away Come Again Another Day.       Baseball season is here and I have a new school and a new team. Even though this time it is a middle school team they have still surprised me in many ways. Some have shown me a knowledge of the history of the game that I didn’t expect from this generation and others have shown me an ability to play the game that is above their level. Unlike, some of the stops I have made when players that had no business on a field thought they were the best players anybody had ever seen. The players at this stop have the ability to play well and expect to play great and continue to push themselves to be better. Now let’s not forget that they are middle schoolers and can get off track from time to time and be silly but they all Love the game and expect to win. When players are willing to see themselves as a work in progress and don’t think that they know everything about the game then they can be better and compete at a high ...

      This post will get us caught up on the renovations for the time being. Right now we are getting ready to get the Kitchen and Den done upstairs. First though there has to be some demolition done in both areas. The kitchen us completely gutted and the wall that separates the dining room and kitchen has come down. The paneling in both rooms has to com down as well. It is taking me a little while to get everything cleared out but I am doing most of it alone with a little help from my son (3yrs. Old) and his plastic hammer and screwdriver. The best tools for this job are Saws All, Sledge Hammer, Circular saw, DeWalt Wrecking Hammer, Square Shovel, Crow Bar and Drill. You will also need caps for the water lines when you pull out the sink, dishwasher and refrigerator.       Now on the other hand today is Presidents Day. A day to remember those men that have come before us and shaped this Nation into one of the greatest that the world has ever se...

      Part 2 of Renovation stories will be more of a tutorial. In the "new" house we have solid core interior doors, which come to find out are worth about $250-$600 each depending on brand, size and so on. So instead of throwing them out and starting over with today's more common hollow core doors we decided to sand and paint them to reuse them in the house. Now when using old doors we quickly found out that the door knob size in the 1960s is significantly smaller than the standard size now. So we had to figure out a way to make the knob hole bigger. When doing this you pretty much have 2 options. 1. Buy the entire door knob hole drilling kit.  2. Or if you are like me and have the hole saw for the correct size already then you can use it with minimal prep to set up. With option #2 you need 5 things: 1. A drill 2. Hole saw for 2 1/8 inch size 3. Spare piece of wood 4. 2 small clamps 5. Door      First, take the drill and hole saw and...

Today is the day to go get your taxes done, at least for me it is. We won't talk about that though cause that's to boring. Instead we will start the discussion about what my wife and I started when we bought our new house (new to us) in June. So, we bought this house not to far from our old one that needed fixing up but was double the size of our last house and nearly the same price. We went on a cruise only a week and a half after buying it which was fun, but like I said the house needed work. So, when we got back hired a contractor started to work on the basement. Ripping out old floors and a basement bathroom, adding a wall for a dedicated laundry that would vent outside. The biggest parts of this project were studding out the exterior block walls and having the whole house rewired because of the old paper wiring that had no ground to it. All of this with new flooring, paint, trim work, new windows downstairs and adding a kitchenette. Took about 3 months. ...

      As a teacher I see about 250 students a day (give or take). Most days are fairly good with no problems but there are days when you wonder what in the world just happened and how did I keep my sanity. I was fully expecting Valentine’s Day to be one of the days but for the most part everything went well this year. even though the kids where hopped up on sugar they managed to hold things together. A lot of that credit can go to administrators and parents for holding the students accountable if they misbehave. Thank you to all of you.      Now before leaving home My wife and I gave our kids a small Valentines Day present and a card to tell them how much we Love them. They were both dry excited about their candy and a small gift. It is always so much fun to see the look on their faces when they get something.     Tonight though my wife and I will spend the evening at the church listening to ways to eliminate debt through a livestream. I ...

      Alright, so lots of people do this and get great feed back and some even make lots of money from home. Many of you out there have probably even tried blogging yourself but since this is my first go at it I figure that I better introduce myself. My name is Dustin Pounders and I am a Christian, Husband, Father of 2, Middle School PE Teacher and Coach (Middle School Football and Baseball). With those titles many weird and interesting, sometimes horrifying things come my way daily.        So on this blog I will share some of the stories and adventures that come my way. With those I will also give my take on many other situations as they pertain to the world and how I see it. My views may not line up with yours but if nothing else we can agree to disagree on some things. If there is a topic that you wish to discuss or want me to give my take on then please comment and If I don’t know about it then I will do a little research and try to give you an op...