Patrick

Hey all, I met up with KF member jdash (James) yesterday and gave him my personal quick tour of Hollywood! He hasn't been active in a very long time, but maybe a few long-timers will know the name. James to the right! Hollywood sign somewhere behind our heads. http://www.karateforums.com/img/photos/patrick-and-jdash.jpg

I'm still on Batman: Arkham Knights, lol. But we're getting closed to the end. After that, we are eyeing Dead Island 2. It's funny because it is set in Los Angeles, so I think I might be killing zombies in my neighborhood.

Thank you for sharing your story, John. I appreciated the opportunity to read it. When I talk to people about homeschooling, they may have a preconceived notion of it because of some media portrayal or an anecdotal experience or two or just how they think of the idea. Homeschoolers can be the butt of a lot of jokes. Ultimately, homeschoolers are a pretty diverse group, especially in 2023. Adding to what John said, DarthPenguin, I'd just say that teachers teach curriculum, teaching takes many forms, and there is more to teaching than having a degree. There are amazing teachers out there, and bad teachers, and everything in between, and I respect the profession. As John's story illustrates, it's a big world with a lot of people with a lot of needs. In the best light, homeschooling is a way to tailor education to a student's strengths, as opposed to a standardized approach that maybe doesn't work as well for some, and they are graded as such. I think homeschooling can be great. I think homeschooling can be bad. I think public education can be great. And also bad. And I think the same of most other forms of education. You'll find great stories and horror stories of all of the above. I am the oldest of 3. I was homeschooled K-12, graduated high school a year early, and was already working in online community, moderation, trust, and safety, and just dove in. I have a high school diploma from an actual accredited school where we sent my work off to. I took the SATs. I know you didn't mean anything like this, DarthPenguin, but just to say... my parents didn't do a poor job because I don't have a master's. Anymore than public education did poorly with a student who decides not to go further. Ironically, I have spoken to classes at several major universities. My parents did a great job because they offered me flexibility and encouraged me to find what I was interested in. Even if they didn't always understand why I was on the computer so much, they supported me. I never felt pressure to go to college or to just go get any job. Just to share a bit more of the differences, my middle brother used Penn Foster's program for high school (they send you the curriculum), and has a BA from a major university. My youngest brother also did Penn Foster, but opted not to go to college. My wife, who was not homeschooled, has a BA from a major university and a master's degree, too. I respect the commitment and dedication that required. I have a 1 year old, and we're leaning toward public education but we have a couple of years. We'll see where life takes us! Again, big world. I'm pretty flexible on this stuff. I had a lot of the flexibility John expressed, but I'm also different in some ways. For example, I used to take end-of-year standardized tests to gauge where I was. And depending on where we lived, I would go to the school and meet yearly with someone at the local school just to satisfy their general interest that I was moving along. For a time, I went to gym at my local public school, because I enjoyed it. I also took art and music for a while in elementary school. Though my Mom did get mad when the art teacher said I used colors in the wrong order once. Personally, I loved the flexibility and freedom. To be able to be done with school in a much shorter time and move onto other things... like starting KarateForums.com. This place almost certainly wouldn't exist if I hadn't been homeschooled. It's funny because I just met in-person with James Dasher (jdash here, member #2), who was also homeschooled for a time. And we talked about homeschooling while I gave him my quick, personal tour of Hollywood. But it's not for everyone. Anyway, this got way too long. Hope you find it worthwhile. Thanks for asking.

I decided to go ahead and split this off into its own conversation. My initial first post above was from the PS5 thread, where Zaine had said: I was homeschooled and would go to the church my mom worked at during her work day. My siblings and I would do our school work and then spend most of the day playing video games in the youth room that had a set-up which included many tvs and consoles for use. On Tuesdays, my mom had a 2 hour meeting and I would get to play D2 on her computer. I always thought it was funny that I was playing it in a church.

Nothing is jumping out to me, but I feel like it has to be one of the endearing, if cheesy lines around the bro-friendship between Daniel and Johnny.

I was also homeschooled. I don't think I knew that about you, John.

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. We recognize one member every month as the KarateForums.com Member of the Month for their positive contributions to this community. Our honoree for June is... Zaine for the third time! Congrats! Thank you for the incredible mark that you have made on KF over the years! Thanks, Patrick

Thanks for the replies and kind words, Brian, John, Bob, DarthPenguin, Ken, and KarateKen!

Welcome aboard, nine1whiskey. Patrick

Sorry Bob. I am not sure what else to suggest there. That's frustrating. No worries, DarthPenguin. No need. Thank you, though!

Hello, It was 22 years ago today that I launched KarateForums.com, and when I write these yearly birthday posts, it becomes harder and harder to grasp the passage of time and the impact that the community has had – the impact you have had on your fellow members. You rarely know the full impact of a kind hello, a thoughtful question, a reasoned answer, or the simple act of creating space for another person to share. Each time you post at KarateForums.com, you impact someone else (and usually more than one person). I always tell people: Write like someone is going to read it. Because they will. This community embodies that thinking, full of thoughtful people who consider their words and realize this is not just another place on the internet, it’s not just a place to toss words into the void. Thank you for that, and for the role you play in it. Of course, our community doesn’t maintain its path without thoughtful moderation, and I am grateful for the team that works behind the scenes to make that happen, past and present. Thank you to our current group of bushido_man96, Wastelander, sensei8, Nidan Melbourne, and aurik, for their careful attention. I hope that KarateForums.com makes your life better. If it has, and you’re comfortable sharing, we always love to hear those stories, so please feel free to share them here. Thank you for reading and for being a part of KarateForums.com. Patrick

Hey Bob, Sorry to hear that. I just checked and I can definitely hear the audio clearly at modest levels. I have YouTube's audio volume setting to 100% but my computer's audio only to 20%. So, it should be listenable. Patrick

Thanks DarthPenguin! Okay, I have made some adjustments. I recorded a video (you can hear the baby interrupt me around the 2 minute mark, haha) showing everything I did. Bob, please give it a watch as it'll probably be helpful. I also selected the right mic so the audio is better. Quick accounting of what I did, as you can see in the transaction history: Moved JD Martinez to IL. Added back Oneil Cruz and Carlos Rodon. Both moved to IL. Added back Logan Webb. Added Justin Steele Added Pablo Lopez, dropped Ke-Bryan Hayes. Added Bo Bichette, dropped Jeff McNeil. Optimized starters. I would say at this stage it makes sense for anyone who wanted any of the players Bob dropped (including you, Bob) to go ahead and pick them up. The leftovers include: 1B C.J. Cron LF Tyler O'Neill SP Joe Musgrove OF George Springer RP Ryan Helsley 3B Jordan Walker C/OF Daulton Varsho I don't know that I am actually interested in any of these, but even if I was, just in fairness because of the conflict of interest, I won't pick any up for at least 3 days from this post. I think that's it. DarthPenguin, could you remove me as manager for Bob's team? I couldn't find a way for myself to do it, although I am sure it is there. Thanks, Patrick

Hello, Thank you for visiting KarateForums.com. We recognize one member every month as the KarateForums.com Member of the Month for their positive contributions to this community. Our honoree for May is... KarateKen! Congrats! Thank you for all of the contributions that you have made to our community so far! Thanks, Patrick

Updated my first post to reflect an error: I had said Drew was honored for the first time, but it is actually his first. Sorry about that. Patrick

Still happy to help, Bob. Did you see the option to add a second manager?

Welp, that's me then. Haha.

Thanks DarthPenguin. Sure, will give it a day or so. And after that, will screen record a video of what I do just to show Bob, which will also serve for transparency. In the meanwhile: Bob, it looks like you've added some folks back, but you still have 1 open roster spot, plus a person who should be on the IL. You could have also put Rodon on your IL and kept him. (You can still do that now, as he's cleared waivers). While I think the other players you have left are debatable, the one you should definitely keep is Bichette. But of the players you have, you have the C, 1B, an OF, and the UTIL spots open. You also don't have enough pitchers to fill the 7 pitcher slots. So, what I'll do is pick up Rodon, put him on IL, pick up Bichette, and then pick up 3 pitchers (1 starter, 2 closers). To do that, I'll need to drop 2 offensive players. Ke'Bryan Hayes and Hunter Renfroe are the two least rostered guys, so I'd probably drop them. And then set it so that you have starters set up. If that all sounds good, there is a top of this page Bob (I think that link should work) that says "Add 2nd Manager." Can you find it, click through it, and see if you can add my email address (patrick@ifroggy.com) somehow? I won't make any adjustments until a bit over a day has gone by, just in case anyone raises any concerns. Also, after we have this settled, if anyone wants any of the players left that have already cleared waivers, I'll stay away from them for a day, just because I know Zaine and DarthPenguin both had a higher waiver priority than me at the time. Thanks, Patrick Patrick

The Rangers went up 2-0 and proceeded to get absolutely crushed in the next 3 games. Game 7 tonight. *shrug* We'll see!

No worries, Bob. I see you have added Semien back, but there are others still out there, and your team is missing a starter in 11 positions. If it seems like too much, if it's cool with DarthPenguin (no pressure), you could temporarily add me as a second manager, and I could record what I did (with the proper mic selected), and maybe that would help you keep the team organized in the future. And then you could remove me as second manager just because it creates a conflict of interest. Thanks, Patrick

Sorry Bob. Even if it's just for a few seconds, it sounds intense.

Hey Bob, my pleasure, and sorry if the audio on that video is terrible. I had the wrong mic selected. I can re-record it. That said, I noticed you dropped nearly your entire roster and now have positions without starters. I think you probably did this by mistake - especially in dropping Semien, Bichette, Olson, Realmuto, Strider, Webb, Rodon, and Musgrove. Those are all players you should be holding onto. I am going not going to put in a waiver claim on any of the players you dropped, just to give you the opportunity to get them back. That said, you are only 4th in the waive order, and there are two managers (Zaine, DarthPenguin), who may have already put in a claim. Still, I would pick them back up.

Hey Bob, It's really all about roster management. You should be moving players around every day (you can do this every 3-4 days, as you can set days in advance). For example, if I were you, here is what I would do (obviously, just my opinion, but maybe it'll give you some ideas: 1. You have two injured players on your active roster. When you are on your roster page, click "Manage IL" and move them both to IL. Though it is debatable whether or not you should keep Oneil Cruz. He is out for 4 months, and when he comes back, there are likely going to be better shortstops available to you. So, I'd put Rodon in IL, drop Cruz, and maybe pick up a couple of IL players to stash. You can find IL players by going to the free agents and selecting "IL-Eligible" under "Health." For example, you could stash Giancarlo Stanton and Yoan Moncada to sure up some spots where you are weak (more on that in a second). Add each of them (or whoever you want) one by one, and add them to your IL the same way you did with Rodon. When you are done with the IL, you will have 2 roster spots open. 2. You have a few players who I don't believe are worth having in a league this small because every team is sort of stacked with great talent. I'd say Jordan Walker and Tyler O'Neill fit this description. I'd consider dropping both. At 3B, Max Muncy, Yandy Diaz, and Alec Bohm will all give you more bang for your buck. In the OF, there are numerous guys you could pick up. Steven Kwan, Brandom Nimmo, and Alex Verdugo all make sense. Cody Bellinger has been hot, too. 3. Daulton Varsho is worth having, but he's probably not worth playing as an everyday OF unless other players are off that day. That's just my opinion. 4. You still have plenty of roster spots to play with here, so you could choose to pick up an SP (Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan, Drew Rasmussen) or go a little harder at holds and saves by picking up a reliver or a closer. There are plenty of closers available, like David Robertson, Clay Holmes, and Paul Sewald. 5. Once you have your roster optimized, you might want to check in a game day before games start, if you can, because players who are starting are marked with an S, and players who are not are given a red exclamation point. This allows you to make last minute switches to maximize stats. Anyway, that's a lot, but hopefully helpful. I made a quick video here walking through some of it visually: If you have any questions, just ask here in the thread, and I'm sure that we'll be able to help! Patrick

Congrats!

Good (re: the last paragraph). Obviously, it's something to worry about, but hopefully that alleviates some of it. Thanks for the update. Patrick