I’m in a good mood today. It’s my fourth day in a row without biking (we had a 6-mile ride yesterday, but I rode in the car 😎). These last days have provided us with a much needed respite – time to rest our muscles, ice our knees, apply topical creams, nap, call friends, and lie on the ground. There are still things to do, but for the first time in a while, there’s time to just sit and relax. I feel truly relaxed for the first time since the start of the trip.
After a quick breakfast, we arrived at the Christa McAuliffe Space Center, ready to teach. Aja, Joel, and Sophia’s workshops came first. While those three taught, Parth ran Ody (the team’s Honda Odyssey) to the shop to get its muffler fixed. For the last few days, Ody has been growling like a Harley Davidson when it accelerates, so a small tune-up was in order.
While the others taught, Katherine and I hung out in the break room, a converted conference room, and worked on our lessons. I brushed up on some slides from old computer science classes, which got me amped up and reminded me why I’m teaching this topic in the first place.
In Ely, we taught up to forty students at a time ranging in age from 5 to 13. Today, our classes were smaller ranging from 1-10 students, ages 9-13. This made teaching much easier. I had six students in my workshop, and I really appreciated having the time to answer every question and to give each student personal attention. It’s exciting going back and forth with a student over a challenging topic and watching them chip away at it slowly, question by question, until it finally clicks.
While I was teaching, Sophia, like the hero she is, picked up In-n-Out for Parth, Joel, and me. After my workshop I helped Vincent clean up and then enjoyed a delicious meal of animal fries and grilled cheese in the Space Center parking lot.
This evening wasn’t very eventful. Katherine took advantage of our host’s kitchen to cook a fancy meal, Parth napped, Sophia did some writing, and I spent about an hour jumping on our hosts’ trampoline.
Before wrapping up, I’ve included another short and sweet interview segment:
What was the highlight of the last four days?
Parth: Starting The Three Body Problem. It’s been a really good book so far. And teaching!
Joel: Hanging out in the treehouse, eating meals outside, lounging around.
Sophia: Reading in the treehouse alone in the morning.
Aja: Reuniting in the car after we almost died in the river. (Me: The parents are going to read this.) After we all had so much fun in the river! And Gemma [our hosts’ nineteen year-old cat].
Katherine: Making food. Yummy. (Katherine: Make sure to include “yummy.”)
Vincent: Seeing everyone at the end of the river adventure. And the meal after was very good.
What was the low point of the last four days?
Parth: I am tempted to say that my low point was losing my phone. But I think that my low point happened today. A lot of my friends are not going through great times.
Joel: The morning before we moved over here I was really enjoying staying at [our Lindon, UT hosts’ house]. It was like getting everything we don’t get on this trip for three days.
Sophia: Timothy keeping me up asking me weird questions. [It’s 10:12pm.] Also, leaving the Asian Mart. [Lindon, Utah has one pan-Asian grocery store called Asian Market Utah.] (Katherine: Can you attribute that to me too?)
Aja: Dropping Joel’s [2-liter] soda bottle on my toe.
Katherine: Sitting around waiting to move six miles to [our host's house in Pleasant Grove].
Vincent: Walking along the railroad tracks looking for Katherine and Sophia without finding them.
That’s all for tonight! Tomorrow we’re riding 90 miles to Deschesnes (?? I think I spelled it right) so we need to get up bright and early.
Till next time,
Timothy