Disclosure

About Me

I am a teacher in a Minnesota high school who values what I learn from others. My job is teaching high school students how to read critically, write precisely, and speak clearly. I supplement this income by doing handyman jobs and annually building the school’s prom sets. I love being married and having two children under 3.

Origin and purpose of the site

This blog was originally started to meet requirements for a technology class for a masters program at Boise State University. I planned to just meet the minimum requirements and close the site after graduating. However, within the first two weeks of the class I realized that maybe there are topics I’d actually like to write about: the same ones I frequently read about. The creation and design of new, attractive materials is my passion, whether it be my classroom layout, photography, DIY projects around the house, etc. All these things I can spend hours investing in. In the blog, I share experiences in the broad field of whatever I am learning about or creating. The title reflects the topics I plan to cover most frequently: film, photography, and light construction.

With the title, I am not aware of any other sources with the same name; it came to me while washing dishes the night of June 26, 2014.

Disclosures

Business ties: none

Media ties: none

Stocks: I do not own stocks.

Religion: Because people’s experiences--good and bad--so heavily influence their perception of a religious label, I hesitate to say simply “Christian” or that I attend “X” church. I oppose narrow or unsophisticated thinking about complex issues, whether from a conservative or liberal perspective. To me, Jesus has been invaluable to the well-being of my life, my family, and my job. I value the forgotten Jewish roots of Christian faith and have been influenced by both Jewish and Christian writers such as David Flusser, Marvin R. Wilson, and Brad H. Young.

Politics: I have voted for both Democrat and Republican presidents various years. I am thankful to be in a democratic country and will always vote, but I am often frustrated with politics. Although I consider myself pro-life, I am not a single-issue voter; the novel Unwind by Neal Shusterman has led me to see multiple perspectives on that topic.

A Few Questions

1. Please list your other current employers, whether full time or part time.

Barefoot Landscape Construction

Lakeview Landscapes

Minnetonka Senior High School

2. For what other employers (consulting) have you worked in the last three years?

None

3. What sort of volunteer work do you do regularly, if any, and for whom? (Please include any public relations, advocacy or advisory board involvement.)

I volunteer at a local church running and designing intelligent light systems and recently begun working with their video production team.

4. Do you do any work paid or unpaid in politics or government? Have you done any lobbying of governmental bodies?

No

5. Do you have any financial investments or financial ties that may limit your ability to cover specific topics free of conflict, and if so, what are the topics?

No. I pay with a credit card or cash.

6. Although we don’t regulate the activities of spouses, partners or immediate family members of our contributors, do any of their professional or personal involvements or any of their financial investments or ties make certain topics inappropriate for you, and if so, what are the topics?

No, my wife is a nurse and does not have political or financial ties to organizations.

7. Have you accepted any free trips, junkets or press trips in the last two years? Have you accepted any substantial free merchandise or discounts from people we might cover?

No.

8. Has anything you’ve written later resulted in a published editor’s note or retraction for deliberate falsehood or plagiarism or become the subject of a lawsuit involving allegations of deliberate falsehood? (If yes, please include details about the publication and your role in the article or story. If a lawsuit, please describe the disposition of the case.)

No. Any mistakes pointed out to me are corrected in my blog.

Disclosure prompts & questions come from Jeff Jarvis at Buzz Machine.