I'll Be the Judge of That!

Last Saturday, I drove to Glyndon, MN to judge the speech contest for MN Section 6A's Subsection 23. Today, I drove to Alexandria, MN to judge the speech contest for MN Section 8AA. Both days were a fun return to the world of high school competitive speech. About 13 years ago, I was an assistant speech coach to Judy Sheridan, who was head speech coach and still is my English-teacher colleague at East Grand Forks Senior High School. About four years ago, I resigned from speech coaching after having spent about three years as head coach, following Judy's retirement from doing so. Since then, I have judged the occasional speech contest and one-act play contest, but that is absolutely nothing compared to the hectic schedule I kept as a speech coach. It's kind of fun to just show up--in my own vehicle, not a school bus--to judge. There is always food served in the judges' lounge, and the paychecks + mileage are nothing to sneeze at.

My schedule at Glyndon was to judge two rounds and a final. My schedule today was to judge three rounds, a semi-final, and a final! But I got paid more to do that today. Section 8AA competition is intense, because of both the students and the coaches. They're very serious about advancing to state!! I did hear some very good speeches today, including poetry in the final round, at which point all the competitors are the best of the best, having made it through three rounds and a semi-final. Storytelling in the semi-final was a mixed bag, and earlier in the day I heard speakers ranging from excellent to . . . um, shall we say "novice"? . . . in humor, prose, and discussion. Still, it was fun, and I got lots of thinking and public radio-listening done in the vehicle on the way down and back (about a two-and-a-half hour drive one way).

Tonight I got home and relieved Susan of parenting duties so that she could join some colleagues from Central Middle School (where she has been long-term subbing) for curling! That's the first of several activities sponsored by the wellness committee in our district, so Susan's going to go get well (and visit and eat snacks, etc.) by learning how to curl.