Dust Bowl Dreamers play a gig at the 21st Co-op for SXSW.
Abby Hollander of Dust Bowl Dreamers playing a solo with her mandolin.
Tick-tock.
Tick-tock.
Only a few more moments until the bell rang and Spring Break began. She was trying not to stare at the clock. A while back she discovered that the key to passing the time was to focus on work. Tick-tock. Only a few minutes standing between her and a week off.
Abby Hollander is no stranger to the anticipation that accompanies the mere thought of Spring Break. Yet, the 24-year-old admittedly had no idea that a week off from school is just as exciting to teachers as it is to their students.
Miss Hollander teaches second grade at Graham Elementary in Austin. Her school is predominantly Hispanic so in addition to the usual history, arithmetic and writing lessons, she helps them polish their skills in English. Most students rarely consider what is going through the mind of their teachers as the clock gets closer and closer to declaring Spring Break.
"Very simply, spring break means freedom. Freedom from routine, from early mornings, and freedom from the heavy responsibility that is educating seventeen economically disadvantaged 7-year-olds," Hollander said.
But for Hollander, it means a little more than the freedom from hard work. Spring Break gives her an opportunity to indulge in her other passion: music.
Hollander grew up in a musical family. Her mother and father were singer/song writers in Woodstock, New York. Fran Hollander's voice and Brian Hollander's guitar licks have been heard around the small town since they started dating more that 25 years ago. Fran's first son Jonah is a skilled banjo player who tours with a band all over the country. Blue grass and folk are the Hollanders' creed, but Abby has focused in on jazz through most of her singing career.
Hollander's desire to do something bigger influenced her to help form a band that brought her back to her folk roots. Dust Bowl Dreamers bring an infusion of complicated guitar licks, fiddle playing, and spot-on harmonizing to make a completely unique sound that is reminiscent of the 1960's band The Band. Rehearsing, song writing, playing gigs and teaching have left Hollander with a lot on her plate, but you won't hear her complaining.
Teacher Jennifer Williams, also of Graham Elementary, uses the break to recover from the demands of being a teacher. "(Spring Break) means rest. We had so much work to do, and so many things to turn in on the weeks leading up to Spring Break, that by the time Friday came, I was exhausted," Williams said. Hollander admits to using the first part of her break to catch up on some much needed sleep. "I know it seems like I’d want to party and let loose right off the bat, but Friday afternoon for me consisted of my couch and DVDs from about 4:30 p.m. until I went to bed around 10:30 p.m. Then I slept till 11 a.m. or so the next morning," Hollander said. Larry Frier, another bilingual teacher, uses his time to prepare for the upcoming weeks, “I’m holding out for summer to relax. I want to make sure I have a head start for class next week to minimize the amount of catch-up time," Frier said.
For most Austinites spring break is all about music. Austin's music festival South by Southwest is one of the largest in world with more that 2,000 bands performing from 52 countries.
Teacher Patricia Garcia spent her spring break hosting a band from Scotland. In return for her generosity, Garcia was given a badge getting her into any show for the duration of the music festival. "Spring Break is South by Southwest. It's the opportunity to see a bunch of up and coming musicians show their stuff," Garcia said. Dust Bowl Dreamers had three gigs lined up for the festival. Hollander reunited with her father and her brother who flew in from New York to play gigs of their own.
The idea of the older teacher wearing horn rimmed glasses and a jumper while menacingly gripping a yardstick is long past. Teachers are younger, cooler, and in the Austin scene. They take their work seriously, but a lot of them play seriously too.
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