Well, it’s 9:40 PM Central Standard Time, and I just woke up from sleeping straight up on the couch! I guess it’s time to get my slice done!

#oops

It’s been a good start for the school year, but all my brain power is being used to work with our new math curriculum, Illustrative Mathematics. It is new to our district and it’s been a struggle because it’s a new way for our students to think about math. Lots of conversations, sharing of thoughts, and sharing with the class. For a classroom of full of English Language Learners, that’s tough! And we are planning all the time.

#ick

We’ll be better off as we get through it, but it’s tough, as my sleeping sitting up might imply!

However, my slice today is not about math, it’s about the Hennyville Art & Music Festival 2024!

#groovy

You know it! As I wrote about last year, we just kind of showed up after doing errands. This year, the plans were made WELL in advance. It became a two day event, so of course, we were there both days. The first night, we ended up with a group of friends, talking and listening to the music. Saturday night, we just chilled together, running up front a couple of times to dance and groove with the people here.

Someone asked us what was played and our answer: Everything!

We had blues, some banjo, rock, rap, a DJ playing some good techno and house music. All in all, the variety will always bring us back! The fact you can go an hour and get something completely different was definitely a draw for us!

The highlight of the night, they had the massive tye dyed tapestry on the main stage. It was huge! The guy who created it was donating it to the festival to raffle off, and giving all his profits back to the festival.

#verycool

We ran up and got a couple of raffle tickets because I never win anything. Sure enough, I won! My wife just rolled her eyes because she, being the practical one at times, knew there was no place in our house where this would fit. Honestly, it will be a stretch to find anywhere to hang it, so it may become a quilt or a cover of some sort.

#againgroovy

When I went over to pick it up, a former student handed it to me, saying when he heard my name announced, he had to just say hi. Sometimes, you don’t realize the impact you have because you don’t get to see it. This student said he had a great job, was married, and had built a new house with a full-service salon that his wife was developing. That 5 minute conversation made my day.

As I said in my Facebook post, “It just shows you don’t need to run to a larger city for a great festival! You need a vision and people who believe!” People have bought into this festival and I only see good things in the future!