Feliz Navidád desde Roatán, Honduras

Yo pasé el primer Navidád sin mi familia en la isla de Roatán aquí en Honduras. Aunque extrañe mi familia, me sentí feliz para estar con mi amiga Erin y su familia en un lugar tan bonito; relajando y tomando el sol por las playas blancas. Les deseo a todos mis amigos un feliz navidad y prospero año nuevo. Nos vemos en 2009!

El arbol navideño artificial que llevamos al hotel. Santa nos visitó!

Final Days in El Progreso

I arrived in Honduras in August planning to stay one month. Now after five months in El Progreso I will be leaving in January for Mexico City.

Earlier in December I said goodbye to my teachers and students at Best American school and on the 20th I spent my last day as an OYE volunteer. OYE held it's "Entrega de Becas," a welcome event for our new crop of scholarship students which brings our group to a total of 75 youths.

At the event, my radio students provided me with one of my proudest moments at OYE. The group planned their 6th radio show to be a year-in-review and also coverage of the scholarship event. With only a little prompting from me, the radio crew scoured the room for interviews with new students, parents, and OYE staff members, and interviewed themselves about their experiences in the program. The group of audio editors took care of the sound and our music group presented their top 5 songs of the year. After months of teaching them what I know about radio (in Spanish, which was no easy task) I was overwhelmed to see them put it into practice with such ease.

The OYE radio group

There were times when the radio students struggled to keep their focus and when our weekly meetings were not as productive as I would have hoped. But on my last day I could feel the energy and passion of the kids and I wish that I could spend another five months helping them towards the goal of a live over-the-air radio broadcast.

OYE was what brought me to El Progreso and although i also found a job teaching at a local high school in the mornings, OYE was where my heart is, and I will miss my radio students the most.

Last Day of School

After four long, hard, fantastic, challenging, frustrating, joyous, and certainly interesting months teaching at Best American School in El Progreso, Honduras, I now arrive at my last day of school! Tomorrow I will say goodbye to my students and fellow teachers and leave behind a community that I never imagined I would find here in Honduras.

Riding the x-ray bike at the San Pedro Sula Plantetarium with BAS

Since my first day of work in early September I had to overcome plenty of hurdles for example:

a lack of textbooks, no prior curriculum, no teacher guidebooks, zero experience teaching high school on my part, 200 energetic P.E. students from pre-kinder to 11th grade, communication problems within the school, and apathetic 10th-grade students doing their best to resist my efforts to communicate why sociology and psychology (and later physics and chemistry) are worth studying.

But the joys have outweighed the hardships:

wonderful teachers to help me along, $7,000 Lempiras/month to help pay my expenses and extend my stay here in Honduras, 200 energetic P.E. students from pre-kinder to 11th grade, slowly learning the name of each of my students and then greating each one when I see them throughout the day, running into teachers, students, and parents everywhere I go in downtown Progreso, my wonderful 11th graders,reliving high school (albeit it from the view of a teacher in a central american country), and experiencing all the things that make Honduran culture different, vibrant, and alive.

It has been an experience that I will never forget.

Stephanie and Dulce (in the background) on the bus to Zizima water park

Two of my 10th-graders, Ivis and Noam

OYE el Ritmo update

Every afternoon I arrive at the OYE office to help with homework, give English lessons, and just do whatever is needed. But Fridays are when the action really gets going with the weekly meetings of OYE el Ritmo, OYE´s youth radio program. I am the head of the project--teaching the art of radio to 15 scholarship students and helping them put together internet radio programs. So far we have a total of 5 pilot episodes and the students are starting to make visits to a local radio station to get aquainted with live radio and even join the DJ on the air.

Two weeks ago I planned an audio scavenger hunt for the class. The students split into two groups, each with an audio recorder and a list of 30 sounds to find, ranging from a dog barking, to a toilet flushing. On the OYE blog you can read (in Spanish) the students´ own accounts of the ¨busqueda de tesoros¨ plus see some of the pictures they took as well. In addition, on the right hand side of the blog, you can listen to streaming audio of our pilot episodes!

The OYE blog: oyehonduras.blogspot.com

Progress in Progreso

Some photos from recent happenings in Honduras.

The last day of school for one of my best friends in El Progreso, Alicia. She got me the job teaching at the Best American School and left for her hometown Chicago, and then Portugal. Her 10th graders now have me as their chemistry and physics teacher.

Because I am now teaching 10th grade science I am no longer the school´s P.E. teacher! I´m going to miss my kindergarten class but not so much the roudy 1st and 2nd graders...

Nima (in the black shirt) worked with OYE in 2007 and came back for a month this summer to help out with the transition process into 2009. Nima speaks 5 languages, is originally from Iran but his family lives in Sweden, and he was basically broke after traveling around Brazil for 4 months. So he decided to enter a baleada (Honduras´s official snack food) eating contest to vie for a prize of 500 Lempiras. He managed to eat 4 1/2 in 2 minutes but the big guy on the right ended up winning with a 3 round total of something like 23!

I was a bit politics obsessed (just ask my roommates) for the last months of this year´s election. Although we dont have cable in our house, my fellow volunteers andI used a projector and an internet connection to watch the live feeds of the presidential debates and of course the election night coverage!

Best American School

According to my original travel plans, by now I should be standing on the sidelines of a high school football game in New Jersey. But the cool thing about traveling by yourself is that you can go where fate takes you. I first came to Honduras in August planning to volunteer for a month and a half with a youth program. But after being here for a bit, I realized I wanted to stay longer and I found a job as a teacher at a bilingual school here in El Progreso. So at least for the time being I have made the switch from TV sports reporter to sociology, psychology, physics and P.E. teacher.


The school is called ¨Best American School,¨ a private bilingual school with about 200 students. I teach all of my classes in English--psych, physics and sociology to the 10th grade and P.E. to the entire school including kindergarten. This could turn out to be one of the toughest things I¨ve done. The hours are long and early: I wake up at 5:30am every day to be at school by 7:00. Classes end at 1:00 and then I work with the OYE radio program from 2:00-5:00. And the job is demanding: i'm teaching subjects I haven¨t studied for a long time, plus trying to get 22 1st graders to pay attention to you in P.E. class in a second lesson is a challenge to say the least.


But Im happy I made the decision to stay longer. Not everyone gets the chance to just put everything back home on hold and although I miss everyone back in the states, I know I made the right choice.

First Pilot

Let´s see if this works

OYE la Radio

OYE Radio is on the air!

I arrived in El Progreso, Honduras on August 9th and last friday I helped the OYE radio program record their second pilot episode. The broadcast included an interview with famous Honduran singer Guillermo Anderson, commentary on the Honduran education system, local news, national and international sports, and the top 5 songs in Honduras.

We have about 20 kids in the program, including a handful learning the production and editing side of radio. I helped the sports department write their report, tought proper vocal delivery and a few warmup exercises to the news and commentary crew and gave my perspective on how to put together a radio broadcast. It's amazing to find a way to volunteer with something that I am so familiar with, but there are times when I wish I could express what I want to say in English!

The kids are all very dedicated and have lots of talent. We'll be recording an episode every two weeks and by mid September we should be ready to make our debut on Radio Progreso, the local radio station, and on the internet.

The OYE sports department

More from Guatemala

I spent 5 weeks in Quetzaltenango learning spanish with 4 amazing Spanish teachers. (from left to right, Mariela, Angel, Mariana, and Juan Ramon) On my last day they handed me a certificate of graduation from my school, El Nahual. It definitely doesn't mean i'm fluent--i'll be practicing even more during my month in Honduras--but it was a concrete sign of my progress. None of my teachers knew more than a few words in English which made my 4-hour, 1-on-1 classes challenging but all the more rewarding. Each had their own strengths, accents, teaching styles, and topics of conversation. Overall, I couldn't have asked for a better team to learn from!

OYE! ...In Honduras

Mayan ruins in Copan, Honduras

I have left my friends and Guate-family behind in Quetzaltenango and I am now in El Progreso, Honduras.  I will be here for at least the next month volunteering with OYE's many projects here in Progreso, mainly their radio program.

The first thing I noticed about Honduras is that it is HOT.  During the day it is consistently about 95 degrees with humidity.  Sweat, sun, and heat are a part of life although somehow the Hondurans manage to wear jeans, shoes and long sleeve shirts while I soak through my shorts and t-shirt.  It will definitely be a transition from the

 cool climate of Xela.

But so far I love the culture, the food, and the people here in Honduras.  There is a lot of work to be done with OYE and I can't wait to dig in.

Reggaeton group performing in San Pedro Sula, one of the biggest cities in Honduras.  The group was promoting positive messages and safe streets in Honduras.

The sign that greeted me when I entered a bank in Copan, Honduras.

3 hours, 1.5 liters of water, and 10 tortillas after we started, some friends and I scaled the tallest volcano in Quetzaltenango, Santa Maria. The peak is about 2 miles above sea level so we were all struggling to catch our breath and had to make several rest stops along the way. From the top we had amazing views of Xela, surrounding towns and mountains plus we watched as a live volcano nearbye erupted. Well worth the sore legs the next day.

A few more fotos of my familia

Luisito, my guatebrother, is in the spiderman outfit. Yoshi, and his other cousin are usually over at our house playing on the terrace.

¡Buen Provecho!

In Spanish, ¨buen provecho¨ basically means bon appetit! This phrase involves one of my favorite customs in Guatemala. At the dinner table, when you´re done eating you say, ¨muchas gracias¨, and everyone else responds ¨buen provecho.¨ Everyday at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, I´ll thank my family for the meal, and they´ll always respond with ¨buen provecho!¨

Also, in Guatemala, lunch is the main meal of the day. At about 12:00, the streets are full with kids returning home from school and people walking from work to make it home in time to eat with their family. Stores close for a few hours and everyone sits down for a big meal. Then at about 2:30, things go back to normal. It is a bit like the Spanish siesta, but people actually do go back to work here.

The picture is of a food cart near Xela´s soccer stadium. (I was going to post a picture of an entire roasted pig, but figured this one was a bit more vegetarian friendly) I ordered a plate that came with tortillas, carne asada, grilled onions, salsa and a Gallo (Guate´s national beer) and it all cost about 30 Quetzales, less than 4 bucks.

My Guatefamilia

While I may have left behind my family in California (hi mom!) I was lucky enough to meet an amazing Guatefamilia here in Quetzaltenango. As part of my Spanish studies, I am living with a Guatemalan host family: Elyda, 30, Luis, 29 and their two kids, Ale, 10, and Luis, (above) 5.

In many ways, they are similar to a typical American family: Luisito loves to play soccer and videogames, Ale watches Disney channel religiously, while Ely and Luis give homework help, cook delicious meals and send the kids off to bed.

However with current economic conditions in Guatemala, my family, like others here, still struggles to pay the bills. The $40 per week that I pay for food and lodging is the main source of income. Luis, though very qualified, has trouble finding consistant work, while Ely stays home to care for the kids, cook, and take care of the house.

My Guatefamilia is well-off compared to others. They have a nice TV, stereo, computer, and a three story house (I share the top story with two other language students). But despite the nice things at home, my family can´t afford to go out to eat, see a movie, or take weekend trips.

At first, with my rusty Spanish, I felt like an outsider but now after two weeks I´m more like the American cousin. Ale and I watch ¨Patito Feo¨ together (on Disney Latino channel) and Luis, Luisito, me, and a group of neighborhood kids play fùtobol in the street every weekend. I still have a bit of trouble decifering Luisito´s spanish but otherwise I am right in the middle of the daily dinner table conversations.

Hasta luego!

From high school football to Fùtbol Guatemalteco

While most of the SportsTime crew is busy preparing for the upcoming high school football season, I am in the middle of the Guatemalan fùtbol season. To be more precise, I´m in Guatemala.

This summer I am traveling through Central America with month-long stopovers in Guatemala and Honduras.

Currently, I am in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala´s second biggest city, brushing up on my Spanish, eating plenty of frijoles with my host family, and volunteering as an English teacher at a local high school.

On August 8th, my next adventure begins in Honduras.

I will be working for OYE, Organization for Youth Empowerment (www.oyehonduras.org), as a volunteer with their after school soccer, art, health, and most exciting for me, radio programs!

In order to participate in Honduras I need to raise $1,000. OYE relies on private funding and requires all volunteers to help them in their fundraising endeavors. A $25 donation would be a tremendous help to the Guatemalan youth that OYE serves.

Tax deductible donations can be made payable to “Organization for Youth Empowerment” and sent to 3351 18th Street N.W.Washington, DC 20010. Please note “Carl Nasman” on the memo line. You can also donate on-line at oyehonduras.org

Also, check back here for updates, pictures, and stories from my summer in Central America.

Bergen Baseball tournament--quarterfinals

Below are highlights from two of last weekend's quarterfinal games: St. Joseph Regional vs Ramsey and Ramapo vs Lyndhurst.

A few observations from the weekend...

>Emerson high school is a bandbox. It's the Minute Maid Park of Bergen high school fields. It couldn't be more than 350 feet to straight away center field and with the wind swirling on Saturday, the ball was flying out.

>Don Bosco deserves the hype. This team is good. They've got power throughout the lineup and 4 or 5 legit starting pitchers. See highlights of their quarterfinal game in an earlier post.

>Why can't we keep the balls? I know that putting on a county tournament takes money, organization, and tons of volunteer manpower and the BCCA does a great job every year. But wouldn't it be great if all the young kids that attend the games could keep the foul balls and home runs? Instead, after every foul ball, the P.A. announcer would tell the crowd to "return all balls to the scorers table." I say find a sponsor for the baseballs and let some young fans go home happy.



>Oh, and I forgot to mention that I said Brian Lobban instead of Brendan Lobban in the SJR highlights. Sorry about that Brendan.

Unbeatable Bosco

The Bergen County tournament quarterfinals were my first chance to see the Don Bosco baseball juggernaut in person. The Ironmen are ranked #1 in the nation and have yet to lose a game this year. After their performance against New Milford, they look like they'll finish the year with that unblemished record intact.

Win or go Home--State Baseball Playoffs

The Ridgefield Royals toiled through a tough season in a tough league and were rewarded with the 2nd seed and a first round bye in the North 2 Group 1 New Jersey state baseball playoffs.

The Royals have what it takes to challenge for a sectional title but a trophy must've seemed a long way off when they fell behind 6-1 against their 2nd-round opponent, Hudson County Prep. Could Ridgefield rebound? Find out below.

The Maroon Machine--Ridgewood wins first Bergen County Title

Ridgewood won only their first Bergen County title on Sunday. But the Maroons are no newcomer to county lacrosse--it's just that this was the first time they've even bothered to enter the tournament!

Ridgewood has always been one of the premier programs in Bergen County and in the state of New Jersey. But on Sunday Ridgewood had to prove it on the turf against a talented and streaking Don Bosco team.

Gross-out! Bergen County Baseball chat

Is Bosco beatable? Who can challenge the Ironmen for the Bergen County title? How do teams figure out when to start their ace pitcher in the postseason? Watch the Bergen Record's Andrew Gross give me his take on the local baseball scene.

What a game! IHA vs Ridgewood Lax

This was hands down the best lacrosse game I have witnessed all year, and that's even with the driving rain and howling wind.

The Ridgewood girls lacrosse team has never lost to a Bergen County opponent. Immaculate Heart Academy was peaking at the right time. Both have stellar offensive weapons in IHA's Maggie Meyers and Ridgewood's Casey Bakker.

This one was for the Bergen County title and it needed extra lacrosse to determine a winner.

Bergen County baseball--#21 Elmwood Park vs #12 Ridgefield

We had a great one in the opening round of the Bergen County baseball tournament! Elmwood Park had to go on the road to face a Ridgefield team that has had a great season in the tough BCSL Olympic. Ridgefield sent sophomore pitcher Anthony DeEsposito up against EP's undefeated junior ace, Jared Forestieri. Ridgefield was in the counties for the first time in 5 seasons, EP hadn't won a county game in almost 2 decades. Check out the highlights below...

Plays of the Month--April

The best plays from the month of April. Disagree on our choices? Drop me a comment...

Ridgewood vs Northern Highlands--Girls LAX

Ridgewood has a terrific boys lax program, but they're girls aren't half bad either. Watch their win over Northern Highlands below, then go see them for yourself as the Maroons play IHA for the county title on Sunday, May 18th.

IHA Girls Lacrosse

By popular demand, here are the highlights of IHA's Bergen County tournament semifinal win vs Ramapo high school.

For all you HS lax fans out there, the county finals should be a lot of fun. Drive on up to Ramapo high school this Sunday, May 18th for the boys and girls title games.

BCCA Lacrosse Highlights

Hello all,

I know I promised a lot of people that I would post highlights from last weekend's Bergen County Lacrosse tournament quarterfinals. Well, I've finally gotten the time to put them up.

Here's highlights from two of the four games: Don Bosco vs Fair Lawn and Glen Rock vs Indian Hills. Plus you get bonus highlights of some local baseball!

I'll be at the semi's this Sunday so be sure to say hello! (I'll be the guy with the huge TV camera) And check back here for highlights of those games within a few days.

Bergen vs Essex Softball Highlights

I had a great time at Immaculate Heart Academy over the weekend checking out the Bergen vs Essex County Softball Challenge. Boy was it cold, but saw some great softball!

Here's the highlights from three of the days games. Essex County won the tournament 3 games to 2.


IHA vs Livingston



Dwight-Englewood vs Newark Academy



Cedar Grove vs St. Mary (Rutherford)

pillow fight video

For video of the pillow fight, check out Jack Cognetta's blog

The City that Never Sleeps

Yup, no one sleeps in New York City because apparently they use their pillows as weapons! Saturday was international pillow fight day. Video to follow...

Wrestling in the Stands

I had an amazing time in Atlantic City for the NJ high school state wrestling championships! Here's one of the stories I came away with...

Is the action more intense on the wrestling mats or in the stands? I show the ways two parents cope while their sons are in action on the floor. Plus we have our cameras on 3 Bergen Catholic wrestlers for state wrestling highlights!

Meet the Greeter!

The warmups are over. The P.A. announcer has microphone in hand... the starters are being introduced...who's that kid on the court high-fiving and chest-bumping each player?

Meet "The Greeter."

High school basketball wouldn't be the same without him and his signature greetings for every starters.

I meet the greeter for Palisades Park and put him to the test with my own handshake. Take a look at the video below.





Leave a comment: what would be your handshake?

Taylor Tallies 1,000

Taylor Wootton joined teammate Jacki Mann in the 1,000 point club during a road win at Fort Lee on Thursday night. Taylor came into the game just 7 points shy of the milestone. She collected the first four points on shots in the paint, then scored 998 and 999 on free throws. The Rutherford junior had a chance at a putback for 1,000 late in the first quarter but was fouled and took care of business at the charity stripe.

Taylor finished with 14 points--so its 1,007 and counting...

Check out the video below. Congrats Taylor!

Jamboree Selection Show

What's the noise you hear? It's the buzz surrounding SportsTime's latest and greatest production: The 2008 Bergen Jamboree Selection Show!

We reveal and breakdown the Bergen County boys tournament brackets, interview coaches and players, and even tell you who will win! You can view it here: NJSportstime.com

Let us know what you think! Drop me a comment here or email us at twsportstime@gmail.com

My prediction this year is Don Bosco Prep. Who's your pick?

Boy, is she good!

Last Thursday, Julia Schneider made history at Dwight-Englewood, pouring in her 1,383rd point to set a new all-time school scoring record. The old record was held by Josh Williams who played on the great 2000 and 2001 Bulldogs teams. Yup, Julia Schneider took away the school scoring record from a boys team member. Anyone know how many schools' scoring records are held by a female baller?




Congratulations to Julia, who truly deserves the honor.

Athlete of the Week

Congratulations to Lawrence Jackson Junior, our latest local athlete to garner Athlete of the Week honors from The Record.

Junior bowled his first career perfect game last week against St Mary (sorry Junior, we got the school wrong on the show). He followed that performance by leading Leonia to a win against Weehawken. Thanks to Junior, Leonia has picked up right where it left off last year, and looks like a favorite to repeat as BCSL Olympic champions.

Here's a refresher on what Lawrence can do: