"GIRAFFE"

This might be one of the goofiest ties I own. I didn't think I would wear it, but circumstances dictated I should. One of our amazing secretarial staff has a giraffe print purse. I expected to take a picture of it to share with the blog, but she has moved out of that purse and into another. (Why do women do that? I buy a computer bag and use it until it drops to the ground in shreds from wear and tear. I wear my shoes until they separate into more than three pieces. I currently have a pair on their third set of laces and second bottle of super glue.) I kept telling her I would wear this tie to match her purse. It is, as you can see a "Save the Children" tie. I think TIM-AGE 11 did a great job on the design. Except there are a lot of people that ask what it is. I imagine that is a first glance thing -clearly it is a giraffe. It seems to be missing it's nose.

When I first came to teach in Pratt County, I worked with a small group of middle school teachers that had a collaborative time set up in their schedule to meet as a team and plan activities, strategies and lessons for the students. The theme was based on Advisor Based teams where the students were in "homeroom" groups led by the teachers. We did some great things as part of that time and I felt it was beneficial to the district. One of the neatest activities took place just before my time, however. Each group picked a person that they admired who had "stuck their neck out" in some manner. They had taken a chance at failure and gone ahead and risked doing what they thought was right. The main example that comes to mind was David Pelzer of "A Child Called It." The groups wrote letters thanking these individuals for sticking their neck out. The giraffe was used to symbolized that award.

Recently, I received an award from the Ark Valley KNEA Uniserv District called the "Stick Your Neck Out Award." This one was represented by a crazy-eyed, crazy-haired ostrich. I loved it -and now I need a an ostrich tie. It was a nice surprise as I had not expected anything of that manner. Another close colleague of mine received one as well and I thought they were much more deserving. I may even have to award some sort of "Stick Your Neck Out Award" on this blog...