Interview with Mr. Farnen
by James Farnen
September 29, 2009
What is your favorite quote?
My favorite quote comes from the book Chimera by John Barth. It goes like this: “Heartfelt ineptitude has its appeal... So does heartless skill. But what you want is passionate virtuosity.” So you can do something you really like that you’re not particularly good at, or you can do something especially well that you don’t really like, but what a person ought to strive for is finding the thing they love, the thing that makes them hum.
Who inspires you?
I am inspired by many people every day. The people who inspire me most are those who go out of their way to do for those around them without an ulterior motive. That’s inspiring. And people who still believe in the genuine goodness of humanity, and that everyone deserves kindness and respect and the benefit of the doubt just because, and for no other reason. Those people inspire me too. There’s a lot of them around here.
Tell about your family.
I have four sisters (Andrea, Marie, Beth, and Liana) and a brother (Neil) who died at the age of sixteen. I have two step brothers (Alan and Bob), one half brother (Lucas), and one step sister (Nicole). My father is Jim Farnen, my stepmother Pam. Everyone lives in or around Kansas City. My mom, Julie, is no longer living.
Where did you go to school?
I graduated from Houston High School in Memphis, Tennessee in 2001, came back home to Kansas and became an avid Jayhawk. I graduated from the University of Kansas with my bachelors in English in 2005, trekked up to Fairbanks, Alaska with my wife and new baby that summer, and attended the University of Alaska at Fairbanks as a graduate teacher in composition and a full time student of creative writing. Family misfortunes brought us back home to Kansas early and after half a semester in KU’s writing program I had to withdraw to work full time so I could help raise my family. Currently I am a student of Emporia State University. I am working to earn my Restricted License, a path to full licensure for folks like me who realized, too late, that they should have gotten that degree in education in the first place. I should be finished by the end of summer 2010.
Have you had a teaching position prior to coming to HHS?
I taught composition to college freshmen at the University of Alaska in Fairbanks.
What is your goal as a teacher at HHS?
My goal at HHS is to find the students who don’t believe in themselves or who have already given up on themselves and make them believe. I believe there is untapped potential in everyone and that scoring high on tests doesn’t always, or often, have much to do with that potential. There are many different kinds of success, and my goal is to see all the students of HHS realize that success.
What do you do in your spare time?
Most of my spare time is spent with my wife and kids because they are my joy, but if I am by myself I like to write (stories and essays), read, and play my guitar. I write songs and sing them horribly, but my youngest likes them well enough. He also likes processed meat in tiny jars, though, so maybe I should worry.
Do you have a family?
My wife, Debi, and I have three children. Breck Caelan is four and has just started preschool. He has also recently discovered the joy of Pacman (when mom is not hogging the controller). Emilynn Rose is two and a half and feisty like a cage fighter. James Liam (we call him Liam) is ten months old and likes attention for its own sake. We are expecting another bundle sometime in May of 2010. Our plan is to have one child for every household chore. Right now we have one for the lawn mowing, one for dishes, one for sweeping/mopping, and one coming who can take care of the laundry. Now all we need is a child to dust and do light cooking and we’ll fulfill our dream of free housekeeping.
Do you live in Hiawatha?
Yes, we have lived in Hiawatha since the end of July.
What is one thing you don’t like about HHS?
There is not much that I don’t like about HHS. The students are great, the faculty has been incredibly helpful and supportive, the administration does an outstanding job, it is by far the weirdest looking school I’ve seen (and weird is my thing), and the community is close knit and will be a wonderful place to raise our family. Probably my only complaint about HHS is Mr. Little. What’s with his ties?
Describe your daily routine.
My daily routine? I wake up, brush my teeth, shower, get dressed, make coffee, drink coffee, drink more coffee, try desperately to tie up the loose ends of the day, fail, concede defeat as graciously as possible, eat breakfast, forget to pack a lunch, walk to school, remember that I forgot to pack a lunch on my way to school, get to school, check my mailbox, go to may classroom, settle in, drink more coffee, teach, go to the bathroom (too much coffee), try again during my planning period to tie up the loose ends of the day, fail again, teach more, and then return home to have dinner and read some books to the kids before bed.
What are the challenges of teaching both 9th and 11th grades?
The challenge of teaching both 9th and 11th grade is remembering when I’m teaching which. The intricacies of the block schedule still elude me occasionally. But it is an exciting opportunity. I get to focus on writing with the juniors, which I think they and I will both enjoy immensely. The freshmen are new to the school, like me, and so we connect that way. Together we will learn much and, hopefully, have a few laughs in the process.
Why did you come to HHS?
I was happy to accept a position at HHS for a number of reasons. Perhaps most important, I met Principal Jeffery, Superintendent Severin, Mrs. Dunn, and Mrs. Davis during my interview at the school and was right away taken by how genuine they all were. They had nothing but good things to say about the faculty and students of the school, and if you have the chance to surround yourself with good people you’re a fool not to jump on it, so I did. Also, Debi and I saw the opportunity for our family to become a part of a community where people know one another and where the concept of “friends” doesn’t necessarily involve Facebook. But really I did not choose HHS. HHS chose me, and I am sincerely grateful for the opportunity to know and learn and become a part of this amazing community of students, teachers, and staff members.
What is one misconception people have about you?
One misconception I think people might have about me that I’d like to clear up: I am NOT diagramming your sentences in my head as you’re speaking to me. Yes I am an English teacher, but that doesn’t mean that I’m not permitted to think that the best kind of English is the kind where we share good stories and get to know each other. Who cares about the dangling modifiers of conversation? And sentence fragments.
