👨🏻🏫 Work
I’m currently working as a teacher at a Viennese secondary school. My subjects are English, History and Civic Education as well as Digital Literacy. Not only do I teach, I also act as a class teacher and treasurer, as well as a participant in our school’s development and gender/diversity groups.
Additionally, I am enrolled in an advanced education course in Digital Literacy, which has been introduced as a new school subject in Austria in 2022.
🌿 Personal Improvement
When it comes to personal improvement and achieving new skills, I’m currently focusing on these aspects as often as my day job as a teacher allows me to:
Get fit and keep fit: With some health concerns raised by my general practitioner during a medical checkup regarding my liver and thyroid gland, I had to make the active choice of getting fitter in order to prevent further issues in the future. Right now, I focus on regular exercise ( Fitness+ workouts at least three times a week) and some dietary changes (e.g., drinking less sugary drinks and more water - which is supported by the recent purchase of an air up bottle). I don’t mind being a burly guy 🐻, however, a shift from fat to muscle mass is my goal.
Learn Italian: While being on an ERASMUS mobility with students in Firenze in November 2023, I made the spontaneous decision to learn Italian. Starting off with Duolingo, I quickly came to the conclusion that this app is not for me (knowing how to say that the cows are drinking water did not get me anywhere), and moved on to Babbel. As a language teacher myself, I thoroughly enjoy the structured way of learning the new language. Let’s see where my skills will get me this year.
Learn how to use HTML and CSS: Starting this blog and trying to be more concise with my posts and how I present my content made me realize that some general understanding of HTML and CSS couldn’t hurt. Right now, I base my learning on Mimo as well as Jon Duckett’s HTML & CSS book. I’m proud to say that I have already included some of my new skills on this very page!
Other personal improvement goals:
- continue working on a more minimalistic lifestyle
- gain some basic knowledge in Python and Swift
- share some useful teaching resources (watch out for a new menu button in the future)
✒️ Writing
Let me be honest with you: I have always imagined myself as a writer, making up stories, characters, and settings. However, most writing I partake in nowadays relates to my teaching profession, focusing on lesson planning and worksheets.
This blog’s aim, on the one hand, is, of course, to share ideas with others and participate in a great global community. On the other hand, however, I want to use it as a tool to hold myself responsible for my writing, sharing microfiction, general thoughts as well as snippets from bigger projects. One of those is a queer fantasy story on which I have spent thought on for several years, but not produced anything other than inconclusive mind maps, snippets and fragmented bits and pieces.
I hope that in sharing my intent with a public audience, I finally find the courage and motivation to carve out a block of my schedule to actively focus on writing. If I don’t, you have my permission to give me shit about my laziness.
