Alex, Helen, LearnClix

In the past few weeks I've been spending a lot of time with my brother Dave, helping him put a new roof on his house. Yesterday I had a chat with him during our lunch break, and we were talking about his son, Alex (who is heavily into sports, particularly baseball). He failed Chemistry because he didn't do any homework, and he got a 57 in Math. Once I tutored Alex in Math, but Dave said tutors aren't much use if the student is completely unmotivated like Alex. Dave said Alex needs to get some work experience, so his boss will bug him just like his parents bug him. Dave even has trouble getting Alex to help him work on the roof. Over dinner at Swiss Chalet, Dave said Alex (who starts Grade 12 in September) will go to Junior College for a year (halfway between high school and community college). Then he might go to community college (or university, although that seems unlikely, given his poor grades). Alex might be a little like my other nephew, Jesse (my sister's son), who also didn't do well in high school. Jesse ended up being a filmmaker, but I think Alex lacks my sister's and my own creativity genes (as a child Alex took piano lessons, but I don't know if he still plays the piano).

At Swiss Chalet I might have made a minor faux pas. Previously Dave would buy takeout food for his helpers, and it would have been silly for us to offer to pay Dave for the food. But at the restaurant I should have offered to pay my share, instead of just keeping mum when the bill came. At least I paid 2 dollars towards the tip. I'll see Dave on Monday, and I might admit to him my faux pas (or maybe not, as it's not really important). I'll say: "At Swiss Chalet I made a faux pas. It would have been a nice gesture if I had offered to pay my share of the meal. Sorry."

On Tuesday I have a date with Helen Posno at Tim Horton's. In a recent email she wrote that she doesn't really have time for dating in her life. So on Tuesday I'll ask her if it's over, or can I see her monthly at Tim Horton's. If I can't see her monthly I'll ask her if I can send her an email once a month. If I can I will let her know that if she doesn't reply to a given email, I will stop emailing her until she replies.

On Monday evening or Tuesday morning I will send a 2-page proposal to William, my supervisor at Back to Basics (a program of Fred Victor), along with a 2nd, more technical document (I haven't written the 2nd document yet). I ran my proposal past Ralph, my ex-brother-in-law, who suggested I remove the last paragraph, but in general gave it his blessing. Last Friday William met with his supervisor, and they discussed my LearnClix idea (a web site that links tutors with students). Those 2 documents I will send to William are about LearnClix. I previously sent William a 15-page proposal which was all over the map, but my present 2-page proposal is much more concise and to the point. I hope to partner with Fred Victor in order to develop my LearnClix.org web site. If they reject my proposal, or even if they accept it and then cancel the deal during the 6-month trial period, I will do a mass-emailing to 600 consumer/survivor programs and organizations, in search of an organization to partner with. I need to eventually hire and pay 2 managers: the Project Co-ordinator and the Human Resources person (who oversees the tutors), so I need to tap into the relatively deep pockets of an established nonprofit organization. Fred Victor has been around for 107 years, and they know how to write grant proposals and do fundraising.

Last week I was depressed a lot, but the depression lifted on Friday when I got William's email, requesting me to summarize my LearnClix idea. I don't mind at all helping my brother when I'm not depressed (although I'm not too fond of putting old shingle fragments in the wheelbarrow and disposing of them, which I didn't have to do yesterday, and the weather cooperated as it wasn't too hot). So I guess I will get busy soon and write my 2nd LearnClix document. After I write it I will have a 3rd cup of coffee (I might print out this post if it fits on one page, retire to the couch, and then have coffee), and I must buy groceries today, as I need frozen dinners, spaghetti, and cookies. It's a Wonderful Life here in T.O., the birthplace of LearnClix. To all you proud Canadians out there, enjoy the rest of your Civic Holiday long weekend, don't let the bedbugs bite (my previous 2 tutoring jobs were in bedbug-infested buildings), and good night or good morning, whichever the case may be.