Mariano Velez

INKBLOTZ

  • Big Willy

    Memory has a way of stretching summers, of making small yards feel like stadiums and ordinary bats feel like legend. Football is over, and spring baseball is here. Reliving last year’s fall classic through highlights is in the air. Talk… more ›

  • We Don’t Travel Alone

    Funny thing, that tradition of naming vessels… and now pieces of tech, pets, toys, nicknames for each other — even drinks. This thought seed was planted some time ago while taking my son to Starbucks. It’s crawled its way into… more ›

  • Earned Perspective 

    The calm that comes from having seen enough to know this moment isn’t the whole story. That’s a powerful phrase. Earned Perspective isn’t something you’re handed.It’s something you survive long enough to understand. After decades in classrooms, hallways, press boxes,… more ›

  • Not Just Here, But HERE

    It started as an observation. Not a complaint — at least I don’t think it was. Why do we write referrals for things that could be solved with a conversation? A student taps a pencil too long.Another mutters under their… more ›

  • Somewhere Between a Label and a Memory

    I was asked a curious question recently. It came without warning. No drumroll. No academic panel. Just a simple, almost casual inquiry that landed like a stone in still water: “Do you consider your book a piece of Chicano literature?”… more ›

  • Speaking Into Silence — That’s Faith with Wi-Fi

    There’s a specific type of crazy needed to be a content creator. And I mean that in the most loving way possible.  Think about it…. You sit there, just you and a camera (usually a phone) and talk to it… more ›

  • Internal Mayhem. External Excellence.

    I’ve been told — by a handful of my closest souls — that they’ve often wondered how my brain is wired. How it works. “It’s not normal,” they say. I’ve wondered the same thing. I’ve always known I’m different, though.… more ›

  • A Conversation with That Guy in the Mirror

    There are some days — not often — when I need expert advice. Or at least someone intelligent enough to argue with me without filing a complaint. It doesn’t happen much. And I don’t usually tell anyone when it does.The… more ›

  • Instructions Not Included

    Parenting might be the only job on the planet where they hand you a freshly hatched human being and say, “Good luck,” and then just… leave. No orientation. No handbook. No laminated troubleshooting card tucked into the diaper bag.  You… more ›

  • Like Therapy – No Appointment Required

    Life is a journey—and what a messy, beautiful one it is. There are peaks that make you feel invincible, and valleys that make you question if you packed the right shoes.  Triumphs feel like fireworks; failures feel like stepping on… more ›

  • Anxiety: The Ultimate Inside Job

    When Worst-Case Scenarios Go Rogue… and Happen Only in Your Head I heard this today and it stuck….made me laugh a little if I’m being honest. Anxiety is a conspiracy theory against you… A self imposed conspiracy. That’s actually a… more ›

  • Factory Settings: Old Model — Advanced Operating System

    I’ve mentioned my ADHD before. My over-caffeinated brain monkeys have made cameo appearances in more than a few of these pieces. For those who know me, you know I’m driven by a motor. My “slow” setting is probably illegal in… more ›

  • Eight Days and Counting: The Monkeys Found the Wi-Fi Password

    Is there such a thing as over-writing? We’ve all heard the term overeating. Some of us have lived it. No point in lying about it. Just accept it and move on.  There’s over-drinking. Over-exercising. Overworking. Over-seasoning (no one asked for… more ›

  • Yeah, I Told You So

    There’s a side of being an educator we don’t talk about much. At least not in staff meetings. Maybe over coffee. Definitely in therapy. It’s not just about caring. It’s about pattern recognition.  It’s a very human thing. And God… more ›

  • That Confident, Wet Bean

    I don’t “drink coffee.” I experience origin stories. You see, most people think coffee is just… a beverage. A tool. A caffeine delivery system. A brown emergency. I find that reductive. Coffee is an agricultural narrative. These are not “beans.”… more ›