Three Jobs Everyone Should Work

I started working for someone other than my parents when I was 14 years old and got a job doing whatever my neighbor’s dad was doing at the time. Since that time, I have probably worked for about ten different companies doing all sorts of things to ensure that I had the money to pay my bills and live comfortably.  Yesterday, I went to a job fair in Raleigh (a little bit of a bust unless I wanted to sell cell phones or insurance) and as I drove the three and a half hours home, I had time to reflect on what I have learned from each job that I’ve worked. As I reflected, I realized that there are three types of jobs in particular that have shaped how I interact with workers on a daily basis. I believe that if everyone at worked these jobs at some point in their lives, it would yield a much more calm and understanding community of people who are more genuine when they say “have a good one” before leaving a store.

1. Serving

The Job: I have served in environments ranging from high class restaurants to casual bars and have found one commonality in all my serving jobs: sometimes customers are jerks. In every place that I have worked, servers make just enough money on their paychecks to cover the taxes that have to be paid; if you aren’t making tips, then you aren’t actually making money. So many things can slow a server down, from the kitchen making a mistake on an order because they are overwhelmed to a hostess double (or triple) seating you; that is giving you multiple new tables at the same time. I have only ever worked in one restaurant that had strict “sections;” an area in which all your tables are sat so that they are conveniently located near each other. In the other places that I have worked, my tables could have been anywhere in the restaurant. If a table on one side of the restaurant needs ranch for their fries, a table on the other side of the restaurant just got sat and needs their drink order taken, and the food just dropped for the table upstairs, it is easy to find the weeds.

Quick Notes!

Wonderful readers, I regret to inform you that today’s post will be a few hours late! I spent most of Tuesday (aka writing day) in Raleigh at a job fair, and when I finally got home the quality of my writing was not up to my own standards. As soon as I get home tonight, I will be editing what I wrote and posting it! Sincerest of apologies for the tardy posting!

Additionally, the name of the blog will be changing tonight to “Scrumming with Shakespeare.” While I have loved writing for “Rucking English,” not enough people know what a ruck is and it sounds too much like a naughty word. Since the secondary purpose of this blog is to showcase my writing, it behooves me to not potentially turn off employers. My twitter account (if you follow me or are interested in following me) that I have had for a whole week will also be changing to “Shakespeare and Scrums.”

Thanks for the support and understanding!

The Three Things I’ll Miss the Most About Teaching

Depending on the source you believe, between 40% and 50% of teachers will leave the classroom in their first five years. In just over a month, I will be adding to that particular statistic by leaving teaching, possibly permanently. This will have been my fifth year teaching and the decision to change careers has not been one that came easily. It seems like each year there are more and more articles published in which former teachers and soon-to-be former teachers explain all the reasons why they are leaving teaching. At this point, it has all been said, often by professionals more eloquent and intelligent than I am.  If you want to know some of the reasons that so many teachers are leaving, Google “Why teachers quit” or check out this article, or this one, or this one. While those three articles range from informative to regretful to scathing and all have some viewpoints that I have shared at one time or another, I would rather end my tenure by reflecting on the three things I’ll miss the most.

1. The Kids (Most of the Time)

First off, it is time to admit that not all students get along with all teachers. Just like with adults, there are people you like and people you do not like. However, for the most part, I really like a lot of my kids, especially the ones who fly under the radar. By that I mean the kids who show up, do their work, laugh at my corny jokes, and are generally successful. Those are the students I feel bad for as I have to stop what I am doing and discipline the same students for the eighth time in a week.

This is what you get for assigning homework.

Realistically, even some of the students who are “problem children” are some of my favorites. As a grown up ADHD kid, I fully understand the ones who are bouncing off of the walls and need to roam the classroom a bit more. Teaching primarily freshmen over the past five years has allowed me to see some very bright and interesting young people (especially the problem children) mature and develop into impressive young men and women. I will really miss trying to push kids out of their comfort zone and helping guide the ones who are willing to take that push and run with it.

Why Your Kid Should Totally Play Rugby

With rugby a year away from making a return to the Olympics, it is time for United States to embrace the sport as another opportunity to dominate (or at least partake in) international competition. “But Benn,” you say, “What does that have to do with me?” Well, person-who-doesn’t-read-the-title-of-blogs, you can help by getting your kid involved with a local club. I have been involved with rugby as a player and a coach for the last decade, starting within a week of my arrival at Christopher Newport University. In that time, rugby has had a major influence on my life, from helping me find a group of solid friends in college to helping me help kids fit in at the high school I teach.

It’s Football without Pads! 

Except that it’s not. Sure, there is an odd shaped ball and there is tackling, but that is about where the similarities end. Parents regularly ask me about this and I tell them all the same thing: football is a game of position and rugby is a game of possession. In rugby, the best tackle is not necessarily one in which you lay out the other player or prevent his forward progress, but rather a tackle that allows you to get back into the game quickly. If that means that a 300 lb prop is running with the ball at a 175 lb wing, no one faults the wing for performing a slip tackle; essentially tripping up the opposing player and allowing him to gain the extra yard in exchange for ensuring a tackle. The wing certainly appreciates the opportunity to get up quickly enough to steal the ball and make a scamper up the sideline.

Additionally, to coach tackle rugby (the younger ages are typically touch rather than tackle), a coach must be level 200 certified. A level 200 certification requires a concussion course, a course on the basic rules of rugby, and a class in which coaches are taught the basics of safe rugby tackling and coaching. Safe tackling is one of the first things that I teach players and I do not allow players to participate in any full contact drills until I or another level 200 certified coach have given the player direct instruction and have seen the player tackle safely. The way in which rugby players are taught to tackle caught the attention of one of the more arguably forward thinkers in the NFL, Pete Carroll, several years ago.

Surely the lack of pads would cause more unsafe play and an increased number of injuries though, right? Well, according to the National Safety Council, not so much. Even if you allow for the difference in the sheer number of participants in both sports, rugby has a much lower rate of injury in the United States than football. The presence of a helmet and pads can lend a feeling of invulnerability that just is not present without pads. The lack of a helmet also takes away a potential weapon as Hines Ward, commonly viewed as one of the toughest receivers in the history of the NFL, states in an interview.

There are strict rules against unsafe tackling in rugby. Penalties include the oft reprimanded high tackle, tackling without an attempt to wrap, and dump tackles and can result in anything from a warning to a red card. According to the International Rugby Board, high tackle can be called if the player attempts to tackle an opponent “above the line of the shoulders even if the tackle starts below the line of the shoulders.” A tackler must also wrap up the other player, rather than delivering a spear or the flying shoulder/helmet combo often seen in football. A dump tackle can be called any time in which a player’s opponent is lifted off of the ground and opponent’s feet are failed to be put back on the ground before the rest of his/her body. All of these rules ensure that safety is of paramount importance, especially at the youth level.