Day 31: The Professor

Write about a teacher that has influenced you.

I had an English teacher in high school who I connected with a lot. We loved talking about books, music, writing and just life in general. I thought he was SO COOL. He had tattoos on both arms that he had to cover up because he was a teacher and some piercings. 16 year-old me was like OMG HE'S THE COOLEST DUDE EVER.

He was the Yearbook advisor and really helped spark my interest in design. I had spent most of high school with the determination that when I went to college I was going to pursue a Journalism degree and I did. But working on the yearbook and taking design classes made me interested in a world beyond writing. Which led me to eventually minor in Communication Technology which has in turned helped me develop skills that I use to this day in my work.

A couple of friends of mine and I would always talk to him about music. We were big into punk rock and hardcore (our generation's version of it anyway) and he always recommended new things to us, well new to us, old to him. We were all about August Burns Red and The Used and Alkaline Trio and he was like what about The Clash (I think?). He had a huge impact on the kind of books I read and music I consumed.

Ultimately, he was awesome because he treated us like we were smart almost-adults and not annoying, stupid kids like most teachers would. I appreciated him never insulting my intelligence and treating me with respect. I have had a huge problem with authority my entire life, so a teacher that didn't treat me like a juvenile delinquent was welcome.