A Teacher's Influence

I grew up in Vineland, NJ and just joined a Facebook group of the same name.  While I'm waiting to get added to the group, I want to write about one of the first posts I read.

Suzanne Piccone wrote that she had recently seen Gene Agrons a retired biology teacher from VHS. I was surprised and delighted to hear that he was still around, because our 50th reunion is coming up in October.  I guess he must have good genes. 

Bad pun aside, it does make an appropriate segue to this blog enty.  He was my biology teacher, but more than that, he was a role model. I went on to be a biology major in college.  I taught science, math, and computers and consulted with schools for for 35+ years.  My two years with Mr. A., freshman biology and senior advanced biology, helped set the foundation to my career.

Things that happened in that advanced class and as a result of that class, are as clear today as they were back in the 60's.  I want to tell you about three incidents that stand out in my memory.

Let's start with the fact that people say he was a tough teacher.  Well he was, but after 35 years of teaching, I can tell you that ALL good teachers are tough.  Sure he was tough, but he was good, he taught well, and demanded nothing less than your best.

It was during my freshman year in college that I realized just how tough and how good he was. I attended Temple U. and had biology as my freshman year science.  During the first half of the semester, I hardly ever opened a book, something that I have been known to do in the past.  It wasn't because I was lazy, even though I've never been accused of being a book hound. I was always a hands on kinda guy.  I didn't have to open the book because, everything was already familiar to me from my senior year in high school.

When the midterm exam came around, I aced it while almost 2/3 of the class failed it.  That's  how good Gene Agrons was. Oh, I forgot to mention, that I never even finished Advanced Biology.  I dropped it near the end of the second marking period, but two marking period with Mr. A. was all that was needed to get me through college biology and make a lasting impression on me. I didn't drop it because of anything that Mr. A. did.  You can chalk it up to the fact that it was and elective and studying during a grueling senior wrestling season was going to be too much.

Now let me tell you of two other incidents that speak to his character and teaching style. It was just before Xmas break and we were setting up term projects for advanced biology.  My project involved studying the genetics of fruit flies. Of course to do that, you need fruit flies.

After everyone had long since departed for places unknown, Mr. A., my lab partner and I stayed late to brew up the medium of Kero syrup and ripe bananas that would be the food on which the fruit flies would grow over the winter break.

We finished up as dark was approaching, putting the last fruit files into the dozens of bottles of medium, and carefully plugging each one with a cotton wad.  We turned out the lights and heading home.

When we returned to the lab, apparently I wasn't as careful with one of the cotton wads, because there were literally thousands of fruit flies all over the lab.  Unlike some teachers who might have gone ballistic, Mr. A. took it all in stride.  I had a LOT of fly catching duty, but it was a wonderful life lesson.

I wasn't a model student, but I wasn't a trouble maker. I can only remember being sent out of class twice.  Once was in 9th grade for shooting a rubber band, and the other was in Advanced Biology, because of the text book Mr. A. had chosen for the class.  Unlike other text books, I actually read this one, because the author had a sense of humor.  For example, once while reading a genetics chart that dealt with the color of feathers in chickens, I noticed that the percentages didn't add up to 100%, but then I noticed the asterisk, with the notation that said, "Numbers have been rounded off to avoid the absurdity of counting fractions of chickens."

It was shortly after reading that item that I got in trouble.  I started browsing the book and came across an interesting chart in one of the appendices. As I read it, I began to chuckle and then almost fell out of my seat, laughing uncontrollably. Mr. A. tried to settle me down a few time, but I just couldn't stop. He finally asked me to leave the room and not come back until I collected myself. 

About 10 minutes later, I walked back in and with as much control as I could muster, I showed him what had set me off.  The appendix was titled Maximum Speed of Land Mammals.  Of course it listed animals such as the horse and cheetah, two standards, but it was three other entries that set me off. 

Massai warrior in full war garb 20 mph
Rhinoceros   25 mph
Massai warrior in full war garb, being chased by a rhinoceros 26 mph

While not exactly politically correct in today's world, the entry none-th-less reflects something I learned in that class.  Just when we think we have reached our limit, along comes a rhino, or teachers like Mr. A., who pushes us to go a little farther.

Thanks, Mr. Agrons!

I went to Jared, but never again!

Who do you know that would charge someone $35 for less than one minute's work?  Now I'm not talking doing brain surgery, lifting heavy objects, or doing anything that requires any special skills.  I'm talking about doing something simple and easy, something that I would be embarrassed to even ask someone for a cup of coffee in return. 

In the past two years, I've purchased three pieced of jewelry from Jared in Manchester, NH.  I really have no idea of whether I over paid and I don't really care that much.  Jill loves the pieces and that's what counts.  I'm not dissatisfied with the jewelry, it's the after sale experience that has left a bad taste in my mouth.

A bracelet I bought about 6 or 7 months ago had lost a link that holds the clasp to the bracelet.  We went back to Jared to see about getting it fixed.  Jill also had a silver necklace that had broken.  In this case, it wasn't a clasp link.  It was a break in the middle of the chain, and it was a very find chain.

When we spoke with the sale woman, she said that the repair of the chain would cost nearly as much as buying a new chain and asked if we would rather do that, which we did.

Then we got around to the bracelet.  I'm not a jeweler, but I knew the repair was no big deal.  All they had to do was take a standard clasp link, slip it on, and clamp it down with some needle nosed pliers.  I was guessing that they would just do it while we waited and send us on our merry way, but I was wrong.

She wrote up the repair ticket which included a $35 charge. Since we hadn't paid for the lifetime repair insurance, that's what it was going to cost us. At that point, I told her we would not be getting it repaired.

Maybe if I had made an issue of it, things would have been different, but there is no reason on earth I should have had to do that.  During our conversation, it was clear that we had purchased more than one item from them and that this particular item was less than a year old.

I came home, took a necklace that Jill doesn't use, grabbed some needle nose pliers, and magnifying glass, and headed to my workbench in the basement.  Less than a minute later, the bracelet was as good as new.

We could do silly math like calculating that $35 per minute equals $2100 per hour.  It's nice work if you can get it, but that's not the point.  The fact is we bought items in the past and we just purchased a necklace.  The repair was so trivial as to be laughable. The idea of charging anything is a sign that I'm not a valued customer.  The only thing of value Jared sees in me is my wallet.

The right thing to do was to repair the bracelet, charge us nothing, and have us leave the store as two happy customers who would be back to make another purchase on another day.

Sorry, Jared.  I will visit no more!

UPDATE 1:00 PM - July 7 - If nothing else, Jared customer care is quick.  I posted this link to their web site earlier today and received a reply.  I will continue to update until this exchange is done.  Here's their reply and my response.

On 7/27/2012 12:38 PM, jaredccs@jewels.com wrote:

Dear Arthur Wolinsky, 

Thank you for your email to our Jared website. I appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns regarding our repair prices. 

I apologize for your dissatisfaction with our repair prices for items not covered under the Extended Service Plan, our lifetime repair warranty. Once past the 30-day exchange period, the warranties, if any, cover the jewelry. Our obligation under this warranty is to repair the jewelry to a wearable condition. Unfortunately if you did not purchase the Extended Service Plan for your wife's bracelet and necklace, there is a charge to have them repaired. I am sorry if you feel the repair charge is excessive. 

Mr. Wolinsky, we value you as a customer and appreciate the opportunity to respond to your concerns. In order to ensure fairness to all of our customers, we must be consistent in applying our policies. Unfortunately we would not be able to repair your wife's bracelet at no cost, since you did not purchase the Extended Service Plan. 

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us via email or by phone, at 1-800-527-8229.

Sincerely, 
Lori K.
Customer Care

 Dear Lori,

Thank you for your prompt reply.  However, it contained nothing that I did not already know and did nothing to address my feeling that Jared is interested only in my wallet.  Any company that is so inflexible as to not look at individual cases that may warrant a departure from policy needs to rethink it's policy.

Can you honestly look me in the eye (virtually) and tell me that you think spending 30 seconds to replace a simple link that connects a clasp to a bracelet justifies a $35 charge?

Art Wolinsky

UPDATE 6:30 PM - July 7  - Well the exchange is getting interesting.  I received another response, which went over the same things I already knew, and avoided answering the question I posed.  Below is that response along with my reply and an attempt to have them deal with my specific question.

Dear Arthur Wolinsky, 

Thank you for your response and I apologize if you are dissatisfied with my reply. 

Again, I am sorry that you are dissatisfied with the repair charge to repair your wife's bracelet. The bracelet was purchased in November of 2010 and you did not purchase the Extended Service Plan. If there is no warranty on the merchandise and our jewelers are performing a repair, there is a charge for this service, materials and the workmanship.

If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to contact us. 

Sincerely, 
Lori K.
Customer Care

Dear Lori,

There seems to be misunderstanding as to the question I am posing. 

Here are some facts:
1) I am aware that I did not purchase an Extended Service Plan.
2) I am aware that there is a charge to repair the bracelet.   
3) The price of the single link is pennies
4) The nature of the repair is such that anyone with ANY mechanical ability could do it.
5) I put it on myself in under a minute.

Here's my opinion:
In light of these facts, I feel that your company needs to reexamine it's policy and give your employees some credit for having brains. Allow them to make a decisions that result in a happy customer AND a fair profit for Jared.  I would have been happy to pay $5, and probably wouldn't have balked at $10, but NOT $35.  I feel that as it stands, your policy is so inflexible as to result in gross over charges to customers in cases such as mine.

So I'll repeat my question:  Do you think the facts above warrant a $35 charge?

OK, let's be honest.  I can't imagine that ANYONE would think $35 to put a link on a bracelet is a fair charge.  That being the case, I know if you agree with me in writing, there will be hell to pay, and it's not my goal to get you in trouble.  So here is what I would like you to do.  If you feel I have a valid point, please pass this thread on to someone who might be able to do something to prevent this kind of over charge in the future. 

I look forward to your response.

Art Wolinsky
http://tlrr.blogspot.com


UPDATE 9:52 PM - May 11, 2019 -  It is now almost seven years later and my 30 second repair is still holding, but I'm updating this because I just responded to a request for a jeweler recommendation on the Fremont Area Community Facebook page with a link to this article. I never did get a response to my last message to Jaret, but by coincidence, last week this very same bracelet broke in a place that requires some delicate torch work and a very small link, something I can not do and that will take more than 30 seconds. I took it to Jambs and it is being repaired for $39.

Grandma's Hungarian Stuffed Cabbaage

This is the family recipe for Hungarian stuffed cabbage.  I watched my grandmother teach it to Mom.  There were no quantities, just a little of this and some of that. It was never just the way grandma made it  Mom taught it to me, but it lacked a little something.  Over the past few batches, I've made adjustments to the quantities and have restored it to its former glory.  This was the best batch since grandma last made it over thirty years ago.

The Father's Day Gift That Changed My Life

Let me begin by saying happy Father’s Day to my wife and children. If that seems a bit backwards to you, let me explain.

Call them coincidences, accidents, serendipity, fate, or whatever you like, but it seems as if my life has been filled with events that have taken me down paths that I could never have imagined, let alone planned.

In the winter of 1980, I was teaching in Long Beach Island. One day I went to the mailbox and saw a Technology for Children flier meant the shop teacher who had the mailbox above mine. It was offering him a two-week loan of a TRS-80 to see what computers were all about.

I asked him if he was interested in it. When he said no, I filled out the form. A few weeks later the computer was delivered. I set it up in the dining room, opened the manual and began to read. In no time at all, I had typed in my first program, which printed my name on the screen. It was nothing short of magic!

Here was a machine that would do MY bidding. It was love at first byte. I kept it home for that first week, spending every waking minute writing all the code I could. By the second week, I had it in class and was using it with my 5th graders.

When I had to send it back, I didn't want to let it go. It was like losing my best friend. I said to Jill, "I'm 35 years old, and I finally figured out what I want to be when I grow up." However, we had recently moved into a new house and with two kids and a mortgage, a computer was not in the budget, and I had no idea how I could do it.

Even though I couldn't afford a computer, I began reading anything I could get my hands on, particularly magazines and periodicals. I began saving and scheming how to get my hands on a computer. It looked like the only way that was going to happen would be if I could save enough to get a Sinclair ZX-81 kit and build it from the ground up. At that time, they were about $150. That was like $500 in today. That’s an expensive "toy."
The months past and as the school year ended and Father's Day came along. I received a gift that was not only a surprise; it was life changing. Jill and the kids chipped in order to buy me the kit!

It became my passion. I subscribed to Sync Magazine, which was devoted to the computer and had an amazing following of hobbyists and engineers who were trying to push the limits of the computer. You have to realize that this computer had no disk drive or internal storage of any kind and only 1K of RAM, but that didn't matter. It was enough to get me started, and you would be amazed at how much you could do with 1K.
Soon thereafter, they came out with a 16K memory pack. I bought it and was walking on air. Back then, 16K of RAM was more than I could have hoped for. I began writing programs for the classroom. One of my first major undertakings was a math drill program for addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. Built into the program was a crude arcade game that sent a flying saucer across the screen and gave the user a chance to shoot it down.

In 1982, Timex bought the rights to the computer and began selling them in stores. As soon as they came out I went to the store to see what Timex was doing as far as software was concerned. They had a program called SuperMath, which like my program, was a math drill. They were selling it for $19.95. Adjusting for inflation, today that would be about $50.

It killed me to lay out that much money, but I had to see how it compared to what I did. I wanted to see how much work I would have to do to compete with what they were selling. After loading it, I was flabbergasted! My program was significantly better than the one Timex was marketing.

Later that week, I was telling my best friend, Howard, about it. At that time, he was the VP of Qualco Automotive, a company that sold a large line of aftermarket products for cars. I said I wished there was a way I could get my programs out there. He told me there was. All I would have to do is come up with the art work for the packaging. He would have his printer run it off and let me use two of his blister packaging machines at no cost and give me anything else I needed at his cost. How could I NOT take the chance?

A few days later, on a road trip with the family, we began brainstormed a name for my company. We settled on Memory Master Software. I knew that I had about three or four programs that I could sell, but if I was going to do anything, I would need more.
There were literally hundreds of programs you could buy from guys like me who advertised in Sync, Computer Shopper, and other magazines. When they arrived, they were usually in a zip-lock bag with a typed or hand written set of instructions. No one had anything suitable for sale in stores.

I took out a half-page ad in Sync magazine, which basically said that Memory Master was accepting programs suitable for mass market. Royalties would be paid based on sales. I never expected what happened next.

Over the next few weeks, I received somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 programs. Some were little more than a collection of bugs and poor code, but others were surprisingly complex, but it boggled the mind to see what people thought would appeal to the mass market.

An engineer from Czechoslovakia sent a program on bridge stress analysis. A farmer in Iowa, sent me a program that tracked hog feeding and breeding. These were not the things you would typically see in K-Mart.

I signed contracts for about a half dozen programs and set up my "factory," which was a pool table in my garage. I bought a few hundred cassette tapes and labels. I purchased ten cassette recorders from Crazy Eddie's and daisy chained them together so that I could make nine programs in each run.

My family became my assembly-line workers, and by the time the truck rolled up to my house with the boxes, I had things ready to go. All I had to do was sell them, which was not going to be an easy task.

Whenever I could I made calls and visited buyers, would hear basically the same story. Timex made them commit to three months of purchases. Then they failed to deliver during the first two months. I was visiting buyers during the second month, and they told me that they were receiving three months’ worth of merchandise the following month and there was no way they could purchase from me.

Others who were attempting the same thing I was doing, were losing their shirts. I was luck. I told them that they could afford it, because my price was so low, all they would have to do is sell a few, and they would make a profit.

They couldn’t believe it when I told them I could supply them with a line of a dozen programs at $1.50 each. Realizing that they could turn around and sell them for $19.95 each, I could make sales where others were failing. Even at $1.50 each, I was making 100% profit, because it was costing me 75 cents a program.

It became obvious that Timex had botched the marketing of the computer, and it would not be around long. Seeing the handwriting on the wall, I decided to try to make my money back and get out of the software business.

I was lucky to have a family and friends support me allow me to keep my cost low and spirits high. I made my money back with a few buck to boot, but the experience of doing it was worth a million dollars.

I now knew for sure that I wanted to be involved in computers and technology for the rest of my life. However, I was a realist. I knew I couldn't give up teaching, but I could become a technology teacher. That became my focus from that point on, and the rest is history.

On this Father's Day, I want to thank the secretary who accidentally put the TRS-80 flier in my mailbox. I want to thank Howard from making it possible for me be one of the very few Timex-Sinclair software companies that didn't go belly up, but most of all I want to thank my family for their support, for their love and for giving me the Father's Day gift that truly changed my life.

Jill told me early on in our marriage that when it came to working, I could do whatever I wanted, and that she would support me. She has stayed true to that promise every day since we were married, 16,647 days ago! There is no way I would be where I am today without you! For that I will be eternally grateful.

I love you, Jill and it seems completely appropriate for me to say. Happy Father’s Day to you.

Why I Became a Teacher

Vicki Davis, one of my Facebook and Google+ education friends posted a question asking folks to tell why they became a teacher. Because my story is neither typical nor short, I decided to blog about it and just provide a link from Google+ to here.

Forgive me if there are more typos and run-ons than my usual posts. I'm writing this pretty much as a stream of consciousness, or stream of semi-consciousness as I often call my ramblings.

As a student, I slid by on my ability, often asking teachers, "When will I ever use this?" Even in junior high school I questioned the value of much of what we were being taught. However, I wasn't a rebel nor a trouble maker. So I just cruised along with a C average right through college.

Because I received a 4 year grant at the end of my freshman year of college, not because of my academic ability, but because of my performance on the wrestling team, I stretched my college career into 5 years and took classes that I would not normally have been able to fit in my schedule.

In my senior year, I only had classes three days a week. An injury prevented me from wrestling and I took a part time job on the other two days. I was a substitute teacher in the projects in Philadelphia. My experiences there were makings of a small book. It was an entirely different world than I had experienced up to that point and it gave me a hearty respect for the dedicated souls who tried to provide these students with an education.

I graduated from college with a liberal arts degree, but didn't go into teaching. I took a job as a management trainee for Rickel Lumber, the Home Depot of the 1960's. I didn't really care for the politics or the organization in general, and so I went to work for the newly formed Pathmark Supermarket Corporation as a warehouse management trainee.

After about six months with them, I got drafted (into the Marines), and I have a story that would rival Arlo Guthrie's tale of White Hall Street and the Group W bench, but that's for another blog. To make a long story short, I got out at the last minute, because of my wrestling injury.

That night, at the end of August 1969, my friends and I were celebrating the fact that I would not be going to Viet Nam. I mentioned that I wasn't really crazy about warehouse life. As far as they knew, I was in the army and I could take a week and look for another job. One of my friends said, "Hey, there's new middle school opening down the road. Why don't you try there?"

That Monday I walked into the Sayerville Middle School and ran into a man in jeans who was pushing a large cart of books. I asked if he needed a hand and he answered that he could use one. I helped him move the books and put them away. Then I asked him for directions to the Principal's office. He asked why I wanted the principal, and after telling him, he informed me that he was the principal.

We went down to the office and chatted. He told me that they were fully staffed, but with a large young staff, he expected to lose people to draft. He said he would go to the board to see if they would hire me as a permanent substitute in the building.

The board agreed and thus began my teaching career. The two years I spent in Sayerville were absolutely amazing. The first year I as a permanent sub, I made it my mission to teach things the way "I" thought they should be taught. Whenever I encountered a sub plan that would have had me asking, how will this every help me in life, I tried to change it so that it had some relevance.

At the end of that first year, the Assistant Superintendent asked me if I was interested in a special class. I asked what he meant and he told me I would have the 14 worst discipline cases in the 9th grade in a self-contained classroom. I would have full control and answer to no one by him. Other than that, they would be mine. I could send them to regular classes if I felt they could handle it and I would deal with discipline and parents. The only time he wanted me to come to him would be if they did something that was a police matter.

I was interested, but still had a few questions. What about curriculum? Would I be constrained? What would I do about teaching material. To the first question, he answered, that aren't learning anything now, so anything I could teach them would be a bonus. As to the second question, he reached into his pocket, handed me the master key to all the classrooms and told me to take anything I needed.

That sealed the deal and thus began what was unquestionably the toughest, most challenging, and most rewarding years of my life. I don't know how much the kids learned from me, but I know that by the end of that year, I had learned more about teaching and about life than I had learned in the previous 20+ years. It set me on a path that I followed for the next 30 years and will follow until the day I die.

Toward the end of those 30 years, I was conducting a WebQuest workshop with Tom March. At the end of the workshop a participant came up to me and asked how I made the change. I asked her to explain what she meant by "the change". She said, "You know, from the sage on the stage to the guide on the side."

My answer was simple. I told her that I never made the change. I've been doing the same thing for 30 years. The only thing that changed was the labels, which prompted her to ask me what I meant by the labels. I told her that 30 years ago, I was labeled a radical nut and the other day someone called me a visionary.

Thanks for asking the question, Vicki. I brought back a wonderful flood of memories.

Solid Gold Stupidity

It's amazing how greed equates with stupidity. I'm sure you have seen the ads to purchase a proof solid gold clad coin originally designed to sell for $50, for the amazing low price of $9.95. It is clad in 14 mg of 99.9999% pure gold! If you haven't, take a minute to visit this site and then come back here to do a little math with me.

It sounds impressive and the fact that they run numerous TV ads is testimony to the fact that they are selling like hotcakes, but let's take a look at a few obvious red flags and a few not-so-obvious ones.

Yesterday I went out in the rain "clad" in my rain coat. And this coin is CLAD in 14 mg of gold. That is 14 thousandTHS of a gram. It would take 71 of these coins to make just one gram of gold, and it takes 31 grams to equal a single ounce. (Gold is measured in troy ounces.)

Gold is currently about $1720 an ounce. When you do all the math, you find that the $50 coin you just got at a bargain price of $9.95 (plus shipping) contains a whopping 77 cents worth of gold.

It would appear that you have been overcharged by just a bit, but never fear. If gold ever makes it to $22,360 an ounce you can sell your coin to someone for $9.95 and make your money back (as long as you also charge shipping).

That, my friend is the mathematics of greed and stupidity.

NOTE: I'm no math wizard. I rounded some fractions and may have even made a mistake along the way, which I would be happy to correct, but the bottom line is that if you are buying these coins as an investment, don't do it. I have some beach front property that I can sell you that is a better deal. Just plan on seeing it at low tide.

DirecTV

In August we went to live with my parents in NJ to help my father recover from a stroke. They have DirecTV, but no DVR. Knowing that we would be there for a while, I called them up to add a DVR to their account for the month or two we expected to be there. They were more than happy to do it, but it required a two year agreement. I explained about the stroke, that my parents were both 90, and that there was no way I wanted to tie them to a two year contract.

Nothing I could say or do could make them waive the two year contract. Finally, after the rep mentioned that there were conditions under which they would waive the fee when the contract was closed, I relented and figured I would fight that battle later on down the line.

One month ran into two, which ran into three, which ran into four. We were in NJ until December. My parents were now in assisted living, the house was sold and the closing was the 14th. It was time to close the account and I prepared myself for the upcoming battle.

I called to have the service stopped and explained the reason. The first thing they asked was whether they have DTV at the assisted living facility. I explained that they did not and could not subscribe from there. At that point, I was pleasantly surprised when the rep went through the process and near the end said, (without me asking), "Under the circumstances we will waive the early cancellation fee."

The account was closed and I was relieved and thankful that I didn't have to do battle. DirectTV had scored some points with me, but alas, it didn't last that long. Just yesterday, I was checking my father's credit card statement and saw a $10 change from DirectTV. It was a charge that had never appeared on the card before. I called to find out about it and told it was a charge for canceling the equipment protection plan.

Now I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth. Now it may be that if I complained and explained, I could get the $10 fee removed, but they did waive the early cancellation fee and it wasn't worth raising my blood pressure over $10. I just asked for confirmation that the account was closed properly and that this would be the last charge I would receive from DTV. The rep confirmed it and I bid him a good day.

Overall, I have no major complaint, but it galls me that they have been a customer for year and apparently paid for the protection plan on a monthly bases and then are hit with a fee to cancel the protection. I just left a bad taste in my mouth.

Up here in NH, we have Comcast. I'm not at all happy with their pricing. My wife and I were thinking of looking into DTV up here, but after the $10 charge, that's less likely.