Game of Thrones returns tonight! AWESOME!
That's really about all I have to say today. Not much for this weekend. Saw the cousins on Friday, watched some movies on Saturday to try and forget that I helped clean up 15 gallons of dog dookie from the back yard. Today, Game of Thrones.
Oh, and today is Easter. Eric orchestrated the creation of an Easter basket for Jasmine. We hid it and had her find it when she got home this morning around a quarter after midnight. It was fun. So, Happy Easter, I suppose. If that's your thing. It's not my thing.
Sunday, March 31, 2013
Saturday, March 30, 2013
Assumptions
It amazes me how many assumptions people make. They make them about all sorts of things. They think they know the way something is going to go, so they don't bother listening to what people actually have to say. For example you may get someone in a store who thinks they know what question you're going to ask so they go ahead and start to answer it even though that's not what you want to know or what you were going to ask. And if they would just shut up and listen rather than assuming they things would go more efficiently.
Another one I hate is when someone takes something you do or say and put their own spin and meaning on it that was never intended, said, or implied even. But there they go, reading between lines that don't exist, then they get all bent out of shape when it was all their doing to begin with. Now that's not to say there aren't times when indeed there is subtext and cues that you can pick up on. Sure, that's the case, like if someone is telling you some bullshit and there are things they are saying or stressing that tip their cards and you can tell it's all bullshit.
One example of assumptions I love is that many people assume I'm an atheist. Now I'm not saying they're right or wrong, but that's what many people assume. However, the fact is I've never said one way or another. I've bashed religion, I've insulted the church, I despise the right wing crazies with their bibles. However, I've never said anything about god, or my beliefs of what happens when you die. However people assume they know because of the few things I've said about religion and the religious. Again, I'm not saying they're wrong, but I'm not saying they're right. What I'm saying is I've never said anything but if you polled everyone who knows me they'd feel they had a confident answer for that.
I think it really gets people bent when I point out that they don't actually *KNOW* something, but rather have assumptions about it. There's a huge difference between knowing something and assuming something. You see it all the time with religious debates, because people insist that they know something, when in fact it's just a belief, or an assumption based on whatever decision making process they have. That doesn't make them right or wrong, only time will tell, but I think people really should calm down because they make these assumptions then build off of them and before you know it there are crazy policies, unreasonable stances, and positions that make no logical sense. Yet, all of these possibilities are built on the sand of assumptions. Just because you believe something doesn't mean it's true, and just because you don't believe something doesn't mean it's false.
And remember, when you assume it means you're an asshole. HAHA! Wait, what? I always screw those sayings up.
Another one I hate is when someone takes something you do or say and put their own spin and meaning on it that was never intended, said, or implied even. But there they go, reading between lines that don't exist, then they get all bent out of shape when it was all their doing to begin with. Now that's not to say there aren't times when indeed there is subtext and cues that you can pick up on. Sure, that's the case, like if someone is telling you some bullshit and there are things they are saying or stressing that tip their cards and you can tell it's all bullshit.
One example of assumptions I love is that many people assume I'm an atheist. Now I'm not saying they're right or wrong, but that's what many people assume. However, the fact is I've never said one way or another. I've bashed religion, I've insulted the church, I despise the right wing crazies with their bibles. However, I've never said anything about god, or my beliefs of what happens when you die. However people assume they know because of the few things I've said about religion and the religious. Again, I'm not saying they're wrong, but I'm not saying they're right. What I'm saying is I've never said anything but if you polled everyone who knows me they'd feel they had a confident answer for that.
I think it really gets people bent when I point out that they don't actually *KNOW* something, but rather have assumptions about it. There's a huge difference between knowing something and assuming something. You see it all the time with religious debates, because people insist that they know something, when in fact it's just a belief, or an assumption based on whatever decision making process they have. That doesn't make them right or wrong, only time will tell, but I think people really should calm down because they make these assumptions then build off of them and before you know it there are crazy policies, unreasonable stances, and positions that make no logical sense. Yet, all of these possibilities are built on the sand of assumptions. Just because you believe something doesn't mean it's true, and just because you don't believe something doesn't mean it's false.
And remember, when you assume it means you're an asshole. HAHA! Wait, what? I always screw those sayings up.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Focus
The last few blogs have been a bit stream of conscious. I really probably should plan them out better. When I have a clear topic I can keep it together a bit better. When I have a vague thought that I want to rant about then it gets a little more messy.
I think overall the idea that I want to get out there is that we don't have a lot of time to live, so don't be an ass. Be kind to those around you, be kind to yourself. Don't make things bigger than they are. Enjoy the little things in life, because that is what life is, a series of little things that you build up into little towers. Don't turn a small pebble into a rock so large you can't lift it, and it'll roll over you and crush you to death. Don't be so dead set in your ways, life is fluid, so you need to move and bend with it. Stop trying to impress people. Anyone who cares so much about such things probably aren't worth much, and anyone who loves you won't care. What matters is those you care about, the relationships you build, the life you live, the impressions you make on the world (and by that I mean more in the imprint way, not in the feeling or opinion way).
Golden rule, glass houses, all that stuff. People need to remember this isn't American Idol, and the people in your life aren't contestants. It's not fun to watch you be an ass to them, to be mean for entertainment. It's not entertaining, and then you look like a dick. As Bill and Ted say, "Be excellent to each other."
I think overall the idea that I want to get out there is that we don't have a lot of time to live, so don't be an ass. Be kind to those around you, be kind to yourself. Don't make things bigger than they are. Enjoy the little things in life, because that is what life is, a series of little things that you build up into little towers. Don't turn a small pebble into a rock so large you can't lift it, and it'll roll over you and crush you to death. Don't be so dead set in your ways, life is fluid, so you need to move and bend with it. Stop trying to impress people. Anyone who cares so much about such things probably aren't worth much, and anyone who loves you won't care. What matters is those you care about, the relationships you build, the life you live, the impressions you make on the world (and by that I mean more in the imprint way, not in the feeling or opinion way).
Golden rule, glass houses, all that stuff. People need to remember this isn't American Idol, and the people in your life aren't contestants. It's not fun to watch you be an ass to them, to be mean for entertainment. It's not entertaining, and then you look like a dick. As Bill and Ted say, "Be excellent to each other."
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Yesterday...
Ah, The Beatles.
Alright, here's the deal, yesterday was a bit of a rant because sometimes people just drive me insane, especially when they talk about things they don't know anything about. I spew a lot of feelings on my blog, but that's all it is, just some feelings. That doesn't really express what I'm thinking or my opinion all the time. Or at the very least it's not my full opinion. A lot of these things are very complex and would require a full conversation to get the full scope. So people making judgements based on incomplete information really chaps my ass.
I think the other problem is that from what I can tell 95% of people in this world (totally made up stat) can't seem to understand that people don't think and feel like they do. Yes, they feel and think, but not everyone processes, reacts, and brains in the same way. I get it, it's hard to understand and put yourself in the shoes of someone else. And often when you do that it's tainted by how YOU would react in that situation, not how that person did. People can experience the same things but walk away with totally different understandings, feelings, and reactions to the same thing. My sister and I lived basically the same childhood, and we came out as diametrically different people. We took experiences and processed them in totally different ways.
We need to remember that just because one thing would have influenced us a certain way, it doesn't mean that someone else is going to go down the same path. Infinite diversity in infinite combinations, people. Every person is going to deal with things in different ways. Some people seem to feel the need to carry everything with them forever. They never let go and just cling to things that bother them, or never get over it. I'm not that person, I do not hold anything that I can't control. Things and events I didn't influence I can't change, so why should I hold on to it. In fact why should I hold on to most things? By this I mean bad things. I'm not going to hold on to bad things and let them infect my mind, thoughts, and heart. I don't have time for that kind of shit.
The way I look at it is most likely sometime over the next 100 years I'll die. Why should I fill my life holding on to anger, hate, and pain. It's not mine, I didn't cause it, why should i keep it? I get an ugly sweater for christmas, I take that shit back. It's not that I'm sweeping it under the rug or keeping it in some box somewhere where it'll blow up later. And I'm not saying that it doesn't bother me when it does happen. What I'm saying is I let it go. Yes, things in my past have hurt me, they bothered me, I felt ways about things. However, I don't continue to carry them with me. They happened in the past, so they get to be left by the side of the road and I get to move on. I don't repress it, I don't ignore it, but I don't continue to let it drag me down because why should I?
I think the issue is that I say "It doesn't matter" a lot. But that's the thing, it really doesn't matter. It DID matter at the time, but it doesn't matter any more because it can't hurt me, it can't bring me down, it can't have any negative effect on me unless I ALLOW it to. I look at where I am now, and where I'm going. I look forward not backward. I've still got my map of where I've been, I marked down where all the bumps in the road were, I learned what I needed to, but I don't need to take all that baggage with me.
The point is, I understand that it's hard for some people to understand how my brain works, just like it's hard for me to understand how other people's brains work. I hear people explain their thought process on things and I totally can't relate. I don't understand nasty people, and have no concept of how they can be that way. However I recognize that I don't understand people, and I don't expect them to think or feel the way I do. People just need to recognize that, and be patience with others and not expect them to conform to their beliefs, thoughts, or habits. I think the world would be better if we'd recognize this, and perhaps it would remove a lot of the misunderstandings people have.
The further point is, it really doesn't matter. We can dwell on sorrow and the bad luck of life, or we can look ahead and move forward. I can cry about my past, and think the world has something to owe me, or I can go out there and make the future what I want it to be. We have the choice of how we move forward and what we will feel and do. I choose love, happiness, and kindness. I choose to be there for others, to love them unconditionally, and to move forward. I don't choose to let the choices of others in the past to stop me from anything. You've only got this life guaranteed, don't waste it being bogged down from things that are done and gone. Make the most of what you have, and don't waste your life with things you can't control.
Alright, here's the deal, yesterday was a bit of a rant because sometimes people just drive me insane, especially when they talk about things they don't know anything about. I spew a lot of feelings on my blog, but that's all it is, just some feelings. That doesn't really express what I'm thinking or my opinion all the time. Or at the very least it's not my full opinion. A lot of these things are very complex and would require a full conversation to get the full scope. So people making judgements based on incomplete information really chaps my ass.
I think the other problem is that from what I can tell 95% of people in this world (totally made up stat) can't seem to understand that people don't think and feel like they do. Yes, they feel and think, but not everyone processes, reacts, and brains in the same way. I get it, it's hard to understand and put yourself in the shoes of someone else. And often when you do that it's tainted by how YOU would react in that situation, not how that person did. People can experience the same things but walk away with totally different understandings, feelings, and reactions to the same thing. My sister and I lived basically the same childhood, and we came out as diametrically different people. We took experiences and processed them in totally different ways.
We need to remember that just because one thing would have influenced us a certain way, it doesn't mean that someone else is going to go down the same path. Infinite diversity in infinite combinations, people. Every person is going to deal with things in different ways. Some people seem to feel the need to carry everything with them forever. They never let go and just cling to things that bother them, or never get over it. I'm not that person, I do not hold anything that I can't control. Things and events I didn't influence I can't change, so why should I hold on to it. In fact why should I hold on to most things? By this I mean bad things. I'm not going to hold on to bad things and let them infect my mind, thoughts, and heart. I don't have time for that kind of shit.
The way I look at it is most likely sometime over the next 100 years I'll die. Why should I fill my life holding on to anger, hate, and pain. It's not mine, I didn't cause it, why should i keep it? I get an ugly sweater for christmas, I take that shit back. It's not that I'm sweeping it under the rug or keeping it in some box somewhere where it'll blow up later. And I'm not saying that it doesn't bother me when it does happen. What I'm saying is I let it go. Yes, things in my past have hurt me, they bothered me, I felt ways about things. However, I don't continue to carry them with me. They happened in the past, so they get to be left by the side of the road and I get to move on. I don't repress it, I don't ignore it, but I don't continue to let it drag me down because why should I?
I think the issue is that I say "It doesn't matter" a lot. But that's the thing, it really doesn't matter. It DID matter at the time, but it doesn't matter any more because it can't hurt me, it can't bring me down, it can't have any negative effect on me unless I ALLOW it to. I look at where I am now, and where I'm going. I look forward not backward. I've still got my map of where I've been, I marked down where all the bumps in the road were, I learned what I needed to, but I don't need to take all that baggage with me.
The point is, I understand that it's hard for some people to understand how my brain works, just like it's hard for me to understand how other people's brains work. I hear people explain their thought process on things and I totally can't relate. I don't understand nasty people, and have no concept of how they can be that way. However I recognize that I don't understand people, and I don't expect them to think or feel the way I do. People just need to recognize that, and be patience with others and not expect them to conform to their beliefs, thoughts, or habits. I think the world would be better if we'd recognize this, and perhaps it would remove a lot of the misunderstandings people have.
The further point is, it really doesn't matter. We can dwell on sorrow and the bad luck of life, or we can look ahead and move forward. I can cry about my past, and think the world has something to owe me, or I can go out there and make the future what I want it to be. We have the choice of how we move forward and what we will feel and do. I choose love, happiness, and kindness. I choose to be there for others, to love them unconditionally, and to move forward. I don't choose to let the choices of others in the past to stop me from anything. You've only got this life guaranteed, don't waste it being bogged down from things that are done and gone. Make the most of what you have, and don't waste your life with things you can't control.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
Dr. NO
I'm getting a bit off subject here, the thing that really is grinding my gears is that people get online and think they can do things that they can't, or worse, that they shouldn't. More specifically the world of health, and even more specifically the world of mental health. I'm sorry people, but WebMD is not good enough. Reading some article and self diagnosing that that funny pain in your left ventricle probably is going to lead to your heart exploding I don't care if you've decided to switch to an all fish and green beans diet, including your morning salmon and bok choy smoothy. You also don't get to sit there and decide to diagnosis everyone in the world's mental stability. Oh look at that person having a bad day, they must be clinically depressed. Oh, this person has some little habits, they must be OCD. Well that lady sure is moody, she must be bipolar.
Yeah, just stop right there. Yes, people exhibit traits or things all the time. I have little things I do that make me go, "oh dear, that's so OCD." But I'm not OCD. I just recognize that I took some basic psychology classes and know relate it back to what I learned. Good for me for remembering, but I'm not qualified to diagnosis anyone, and just because I can see things that resemble what I've read about doesn't mean I'm qualified to open my mouth, or even that I exhibit some amazing skill and perhaps I should have been a doctor. It's more than just recognizing things, there's a lot that happens after that. Just because I can name a color doesn't mean I should be a painter, or because I can cook a decent meal that I should be a chef.
Going to a more personal level, some people may read my blog, or talk to me about certain subject and walk away thinking I'm this terrible depressed person that's about to be sent to a padded room with restraints so I don't harm myself. Well, thanks Dr. Dipshit, you're diagnosis is just so wonderfully helpful, you should be a real doctor. Unfortunately that's not the case. I am displeased with where my life is right now, I am not happy about things, but I am not in anyway depressed. I am immensely frustrated. I'm frustrated because I know what I want, I know what I need to do, but there's no progress, there's no opportunities, and that wears on a person and makes them feel a number of emotions among them is anger, frustration, sadness, etc. That doesn't mean people need to be medicated, this isn't some sort of chemical imbalance making someone annoyed, it's the situations of life becoming tiresome and unyielding and the struggle to find ways around these obstacles resulting in no success.
The point is, even when you talk to people, or hear them talk about what the CHOOSE to tell you about, doesn't mean you have the full picture. People need to stop with the know-it-all be impressed by my ability to remember some bullshit from Psych 101, or my googling and WebMD skills, and learn to just be good friends. Sometimes someone just needs to rant a little, be irritated, vent, and then be done. Sometimes all you need to hear is, someone saying, "yeah, that sucks, I totally feel you I can relate to that." You don't need advice, you don't need someone telling you what you should do, you CERTAINLY don't need someone telling you that you should be medicated. This isn't necessarily a problem I have, I have some very decent friends that let me rant, encourage me to keep at it, and recognize that I'm just stuck. Or friends that band together to address an exceptionally bad day.
The point is, perhaps people should chill out on the telling everyone else how they should live their life, and trying to diagnosis others. There's always a level of "I know better" or layer of condescension in it. Chill the fuck out people. Stop being turdmuffins.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
What? No. I Was Dead At The Time
I hate when I think up something for a blog and then later I'm like, "Hey brain, what were on about with that thing for the blog?" But then my brain is all, "What? No. I'm not sure what you're talking about. Were we talking? I don't recall that." So then I have to get all stern and say, "Brain, you tell me what you were doing right now." But then it pulls a, "What? No. I was dead at the time. I was on the moon, with Steve. Don't know what you're talking about.
Long story short, I had around 8 good ideas for a blog, but instead of writing them down I decided I'd just remember what they were. Then I didn't get around to blogging for a bit and forgot what they all were. I think I still have one in mind, which I could be writing now, but instead I'm writing this story about how I forgot everything. WIN!
Long story short, I had around 8 good ideas for a blog, but instead of writing them down I decided I'd just remember what they were. Then I didn't get around to blogging for a bit and forgot what they all were. I think I still have one in mind, which I could be writing now, but instead I'm writing this story about how I forgot everything. WIN!
Monday, March 25, 2013
Who Reads This Shit?
The stats features on Blogger can be a lot of fun. I wrote a little while ago about how somehow I was getting traffic from a porn site. What?! It looks like that traffic source is no longer sending people to my blog, though I'm not entirely sure why they would be to begin with but whatever.
One thing I have been noticing lately is that someone is reading random old blogs, which is weird. I mean, my blog isn't that interesting, but someone is reading random old blogs now? Who is reading this shit? I mean, I don't mind, obviously since I'm posting it all up online, it just amuses me that someone is.
I guess the thing is that I write this simply to write it and get some thoughts out of my head. I don't expect people to actually read it because I don't promote it, post it, or tell people to read it. I know some people do regularly read it, as I can see that I get about 300 views per month. I think half of those are Becky just checking to see if I've posted anything new. And I know I have a few other regular readers, but like I said, I just use it as brain vomit because sometimes it's good to get things out of your brain hole.
Well, anyway, whomever you are reading the old posts, I hope you are enjoying. Find the one where I measure snow using household items... like my cats.
One thing I have been noticing lately is that someone is reading random old blogs, which is weird. I mean, my blog isn't that interesting, but someone is reading random old blogs now? Who is reading this shit? I mean, I don't mind, obviously since I'm posting it all up online, it just amuses me that someone is.
I guess the thing is that I write this simply to write it and get some thoughts out of my head. I don't expect people to actually read it because I don't promote it, post it, or tell people to read it. I know some people do regularly read it, as I can see that I get about 300 views per month. I think half of those are Becky just checking to see if I've posted anything new. And I know I have a few other regular readers, but like I said, I just use it as brain vomit because sometimes it's good to get things out of your brain hole.
Well, anyway, whomever you are reading the old posts, I hope you are enjoying. Find the one where I measure snow using household items... like my cats.
Sunday, March 24, 2013
The Book Of Mormon
As for the show, it was everything I wanted and more! It was super offensive to anyone without a sense of humor. It was funny but not mean, while poking a little fun at Mormons, but more religion in general especially when considering things like missions to Africa where surely the people have better things to worry about than Jesus. The blocking and effects really enhanced what I already knew about the show from listening to the sound track, and all in all it was just a fantastic show. I think it's certainly in the top three best theatre experiences that I've had so far, right up there with Sutton Foster in Anything Goes, and Daniel Radcliffe in How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying.
The ride home was just filled with people laughing and quoting their favorite lines, mine were things lines. It was a a wonderful evening, it was great to get everyone out to an event together and enjoy some wonderful theatre! Next year the season doesn't look quite so good, but I'm sure we'll go to a few of them. Miss Saigon probably at the very least.
Saturday, March 23, 2013
Busy Bowling Birthdays, Batman!
Today was pretty freaking busy. After runnign all over the place to get some errands done, and then lighting a cake on fire with a food torch (don't worry I was supposed to... sort of... not really, but it was just a tip of the meringue so it's fine) we headed downtown to have some dinner with Sean who celebrates his birthday tomorrow! WOO DINNER! Well turns out Red Hawk sucks and won't seat a party of 8 and so we ended up at Mongolian. I have to say the food didn't really sit well with me for a while. I think I just don't get along with Mongolian anymore, I used to love the place. It doesn't really matter though because it was for the company anyway and I'm not really picky.
After that we headed over to go bowling, and that was actually a lot of fun. I don't recall the last time I went bowling, but it's been a while for sure. We decided to split it up boys vs. girls, and I have to say that the first game was super competitive. The superstars were certainly Becky and Sean who both tied for the high score, and in the end the boy team won by a matter of something like 4 points. So going into the second game there was a lot of competition. I actually did really well the second game, but in the 8th frame I got a strike, which was great, but then in the 9th frame I got another strike, and that was exciting. Then the 10th frame came around and I got a third strike. Well when you get a strike on the 10th you get another 2 balls, and on my 1st I got a 4th strike in a row. WHAT?! That's insane! So then my final ball goes, and it's looking really good, it hits, and knocks over 9 pins. I MISSED 5 IN A ROW BY 1 PIN! Who cares, 4 in a row is still awesome.
So, long story short, tonight was a great time, and tomorrow we have The Book of Mormon with 32 of our closest friends and family, HAHA!
After that we headed over to go bowling, and that was actually a lot of fun. I don't recall the last time I went bowling, but it's been a while for sure. We decided to split it up boys vs. girls, and I have to say that the first game was super competitive. The superstars were certainly Becky and Sean who both tied for the high score, and in the end the boy team won by a matter of something like 4 points. So going into the second game there was a lot of competition. I actually did really well the second game, but in the 8th frame I got a strike, which was great, but then in the 9th frame I got another strike, and that was exciting. Then the 10th frame came around and I got a third strike. Well when you get a strike on the 10th you get another 2 balls, and on my 1st I got a 4th strike in a row. WHAT?! That's insane! So then my final ball goes, and it's looking really good, it hits, and knocks over 9 pins. I MISSED 5 IN A ROW BY 1 PIN! Who cares, 4 in a row is still awesome.
So, long story short, tonight was a great time, and tomorrow we have The Book of Mormon with 32 of our closest friends and family, HAHA!
Friday, March 22, 2013
Hey Winter
Why don't you piss off!
Seriously, someone needs to tell the weather that spring started on Wednesday. It needs to warm up, get some flowers, leaves starting to bloom, you know the normal spring like things. I'm done with winter, it can go away. Of course now we're getting the morons out there that think just because the WEATHER is cold that suddenly there is no global warming because they can't understand the difference between climate and weather. (Queue Fox News).
Anyhow, I'm ready for spring, so lets get on with it.
Seriously, someone needs to tell the weather that spring started on Wednesday. It needs to warm up, get some flowers, leaves starting to bloom, you know the normal spring like things. I'm done with winter, it can go away. Of course now we're getting the morons out there that think just because the WEATHER is cold that suddenly there is no global warming because they can't understand the difference between climate and weather. (Queue Fox News).
Anyhow, I'm ready for spring, so lets get on with it.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Insulated
Yesterday I spoke about a report I read discussing schools and accountability. It was a very interesting report and if you didn't get a chance to read my blog or the report and you're interested you can find it here.
One thing from the report that did stand out to me was a quote from a parent. The section of the article was on parent involvement and how some parents may not be involved enough and prepare their students for school. The report also discussed the idea of society values, and the disruption individual students could cause in a classroom if they haven't been taught how to act, to be respectful, etc. However, the quote in question really jumped off the page when I was reading. A parent said, "I personally don’t like [my son] going over to friends’ houses. . . . I’m personally not ready for him to be at other people’s homes. As I said, they might not have the same values as I do"
Now I'm totally giving this parent the benefit of the doubt, that they are a good parent, they do all the right things to help encourage their education, to support their student, all that jazz. However when you have a discussion about education, talk of values, and say you don't want your kid around other people because they don't have the same values, well that just makes my head start ringing. That's a lot of what you hear when the crazies pull their kids out of public school for home schools. Then the next thing you know it's field trips to the creationist museum, attacks on science, reason, and logic, and dinosaurs with saddles.
I'm not necessarily talking about the comment, or the situation here, but rather the sentiment that you don't want your kid around other "values" that are different from your own. Now maybe it's just me, but if you have instilled the values in your children, you really shouldn't be afraid that the values of someone else will override yours. That is, unless perhaps you are insecure about your values? I don't know, I'm just very much against that sentiment. I am not in any way a supporter of home schools, in fact I don't really even like the idea that they're allowed, especially on ground of religion. I'm all for your hokey religions and going to Sunday school, etc. But I don't think you should have the option of putting your head in the sand and insulating yourself from things that are different.
The world is full of people that are different, and teaching children the lesson that you should stay away from things that are different, and shield those from things that aren't like you is half the reason we have so much bullshit in the world. STOP! THAT PERSON IS DIFFERENT! BEAT THEM TO DEATH WITH A TIRE IRON! SHUNNNNN! SHUN THE NON-BELIEVER!!! SHUNuh-nuh-nuh-nuhnnnnn!
Seriously, the world is a place full of different beliefs, ideas, opinions, cultures, etc. You can't insulate yourself or you children because you're doing a huge diservice to the kid as well as all of humanity because you're perpetuating an idea that different people are a problem, and giving a bad example of how you deal with diversity. While the original quote doesn't necessarily explicitly say this as it is an out of context quote, the ideas set off all sorts of stuff in my head. I'm just saying that we can't hide from things that are different, everything is different. You need to learn to deal with that otherwise you'll probably grow up to be a giant cockface.
One thing from the report that did stand out to me was a quote from a parent. The section of the article was on parent involvement and how some parents may not be involved enough and prepare their students for school. The report also discussed the idea of society values, and the disruption individual students could cause in a classroom if they haven't been taught how to act, to be respectful, etc. However, the quote in question really jumped off the page when I was reading. A parent said, "I personally don’t like [my son] going over to friends’ houses. . . . I’m personally not ready for him to be at other people’s homes. As I said, they might not have the same values as I do"
Now I'm totally giving this parent the benefit of the doubt, that they are a good parent, they do all the right things to help encourage their education, to support their student, all that jazz. However when you have a discussion about education, talk of values, and say you don't want your kid around other people because they don't have the same values, well that just makes my head start ringing. That's a lot of what you hear when the crazies pull their kids out of public school for home schools. Then the next thing you know it's field trips to the creationist museum, attacks on science, reason, and logic, and dinosaurs with saddles.
I'm not necessarily talking about the comment, or the situation here, but rather the sentiment that you don't want your kid around other "values" that are different from your own. Now maybe it's just me, but if you have instilled the values in your children, you really shouldn't be afraid that the values of someone else will override yours. That is, unless perhaps you are insecure about your values? I don't know, I'm just very much against that sentiment. I am not in any way a supporter of home schools, in fact I don't really even like the idea that they're allowed, especially on ground of religion. I'm all for your hokey religions and going to Sunday school, etc. But I don't think you should have the option of putting your head in the sand and insulating yourself from things that are different.
The world is full of people that are different, and teaching children the lesson that you should stay away from things that are different, and shield those from things that aren't like you is half the reason we have so much bullshit in the world. STOP! THAT PERSON IS DIFFERENT! BEAT THEM TO DEATH WITH A TIRE IRON! SHUNNNNN! SHUN THE NON-BELIEVER!!! SHUNuh-nuh-nuh-nuhnnnnn!
Seriously, the world is a place full of different beliefs, ideas, opinions, cultures, etc. You can't insulate yourself or you children because you're doing a huge diservice to the kid as well as all of humanity because you're perpetuating an idea that different people are a problem, and giving a bad example of how you deal with diversity. While the original quote doesn't necessarily explicitly say this as it is an out of context quote, the ideas set off all sorts of stuff in my head. I'm just saying that we can't hide from things that are different, everything is different. You need to learn to deal with that otherwise you'll probably grow up to be a giant cockface.
Wednesday, March 20, 2013
School Accountablity
Last week I had a number of blogs on schools and discussed that I felt education was in a critical failure. I then discussed troubles I've seen working in public schools, and my general grumpiness related to how things are versus how they could be. Today I was reading through some of my normal blogs when I came across this report on accountability in schools.
The study was done by The Kettering Foundation and Public Agenda, and it focused on the idea of school accountability which has been a bit of a topic since No Child Left Behind passed in the early years of the Bush Administration. The idea that schools should be more accountable is surely not a bad idea, however this report discussed how different groups view accountability and where leaders and parents both agree and diverge in their opinion of it. I will say that a lot of the information from the research didn't surprise me, but I wasn't necessarily expecting some of the views that were also presented from parents, which focused a lot on their role in the system and how they too needed to be accountable.
One thing that immediately jumped out was the statistic that only 29% have a good deal of confidence in public schools today, this is compared to the 58% that held these views in the 1970s. I think this is really an important part of the puzzle because I don't really think that the school systems have really gone in such decline since the 1970s, if anything the increased focus on schools could only increase performance. Perhaps this has more to do with the perception of schools than the reality. For years now we have heard people hammer the schools as failures, terrible, awful, not preparing students for college. What has really changed in schools since the 1970s, especially given that the argument has been "we can't do it the way we've been doing it." So, if the old way was so bad, why did so many people have confidence in schools? I'm not saying the old way was better, but I am saying the constant attacks on education, educators, and public schools I believe have pushed people to this negative perception, and I don't think it's an accurate view of the schools.
I absolutely agree that schools need to do better. I am a huge critic of our public school, I don't believe it prepares students for college properly, I don't believe it challenges students, I don't believe it provides the best education available. However I do have confidence in the system, and I do believe it can be improved. Just because I have high standards about what the school should be, doesn't mean the system itself is a failure, it merely has opportunities to improve and provide a better education. In all reality students graduate, they can read and write, they can do basic math, they are aware of science and history. They may not be perfect, but they are not completely uneducated.
One thing that immediately jumped out was the statistic that only 29% have a good deal of confidence in public schools today, this is compared to the 58% that held these views in the 1970s. I think this is really an important part of the puzzle because I don't really think that the school systems have really gone in such decline since the 1970s, if anything the increased focus on schools could only increase performance. Perhaps this has more to do with the perception of schools than the reality. For years now we have heard people hammer the schools as failures, terrible, awful, not preparing students for college. What has really changed in schools since the 1970s, especially given that the argument has been "we can't do it the way we've been doing it." So, if the old way was so bad, why did so many people have confidence in schools? I'm not saying the old way was better, but I am saying the constant attacks on education, educators, and public schools I believe have pushed people to this negative perception, and I don't think it's an accurate view of the schools.
I absolutely agree that schools need to do better. I am a huge critic of our public school, I don't believe it prepares students for college properly, I don't believe it challenges students, I don't believe it provides the best education available. However I do have confidence in the system, and I do believe it can be improved. Just because I have high standards about what the school should be, doesn't mean the system itself is a failure, it merely has opportunities to improve and provide a better education. In all reality students graduate, they can read and write, they can do basic math, they are aware of science and history. They may not be perfect, but they are not completely uneducated.
I also agree with the finding that parents feel that their role has a huge impact as well. I think that is a huge argument and wedge issue in the entire reform movement. Teachers are attacked, they are judged by how a student learns, their jobs and livelihoods are in jeopardy and a lot of the variables are outside of their control. Yes, I completely agree that an effective teacher can do great things, and an ineffective teacher should either improve, or be removed. However, this method often will lead to tension because it creates an adversarial stance because teachers feel they are being judged for things they don't have total control over, and those who do have a good portion of the control can't be held accountable. Though it seems that perhaps many parents agree with that and there is room for some bridge building. One mother in Detroit said, "I think so many people depend on the school to do everything. There's a lack of accountability... with parents... [They] feel like "I'm just going to send my kid to school from 8:00 to 4:00 every day" and let the teacher deal with it. You know what? The teacher has 30 other students."
Another mother from Detroit also commented on other items that our outside the control of a teacher, stating, "What about the rest of the stuff going on in the school? . . . I mean it depends on what they came into. How are the books? How are the—how are the—what’s the class sizes? I mean there are so many other things other than test scores."
Other parents focused on the things I talked about last week. They felt that society had a part to play in the current situation because we don't value education, but rather we value money, things, fame, rather than hard work, doing what you're supposed to do, and being a good person. One parent from New Orleans noted that he, "blame[s] the society more than the individual teachers [for not preparing
kids] because we have a culture that doesn’t honor hard work, reading, exercise, and all of those things [that] I think interact" The report summarized that, "many believe that they face an uphill battle trying to raise children in what they see as a toxic culture—one that glamorizes materialism and
self-indulgence. Many parents seem to be looking for answers and looking for allies. How can educators, parents, and other adults work together to instill the values that will help children flourish in school and beyond?"
I think this highlights the important fact that perhaps both sides of the discussion have far more in common than it seems. That perhaps the wedge that is being driven for what I feel are political purposes, is damaging to schools, teachers, parents, and students. Education can be better, and I think both sides need to find a way to communicate and build bridges. Communication is key, and from my experience one of the skills that is severely lacking, and causes a lot of damage, distrust, and lack of confidence.
Anyhow, I thought it was an interesting report and thought I would share it and my thoughts on some of the findings.
I think this highlights the important fact that perhaps both sides of the discussion have far more in common than it seems. That perhaps the wedge that is being driven for what I feel are political purposes, is damaging to schools, teachers, parents, and students. Education can be better, and I think both sides need to find a way to communicate and build bridges. Communication is key, and from my experience one of the skills that is severely lacking, and causes a lot of damage, distrust, and lack of confidence.
Anyhow, I thought it was an interesting report and thought I would share it and my thoughts on some of the findings.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Potter Musical!
Nothing special today except on Friday A Very Potter Senior Year was posted on YouTube. So here you have it: Part 1. And the other two if you haven't seen them.
The First one:
The Sequel:
Monday, March 18, 2013
Music Video Monday
The other day I did a blog on the music videos that were popular back in 1999. It was a lot of fun, and since I like music videos, I thought that perhaps I'd post some more that were popular back in THE LAST CENTURY! Hey, technically it's true people, it's from the last century. Get with it, you're old.
So, here we go in no particular order what so ever.
Harvey Danger - Flagpole Sitta
Really, I think I just like the song, because there's nothing all that special about the music video, but either way here it is.
Barenaked Ladies - One Week
This is a case where I like the song and the video. Thought watching the video I have to conclude that surely they were on drugs, because WTF!? But still, it's weird, it's fun, it is peppy, and there's a sweet car hood slide, and everyone loves that. So, all around a fun one.
Aerosmith - I Don't Want to Miss
A Thing Ok, this one gets super high marks on the cheesy factor, but what do you expect with Steven Tyler, he's so over the top. But you also get the cheesy boost with the clips from Armageddon, which is a silly move, but what do you expect it was a summer action flick, and it did its job by blowing things up and was all around entertaining. The song is meh, but I remember this was on MTV ALL the time.
The Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
I really like the Goo Goo Dolls, and this was probably the first song I heard from them, as prior to that my music tastes were a big different. I loved the video for this one, I liked how they hinted at the movie that the song was connected to, but did blatantly highlight it. I think it worked well for the song as well as the movie.
Aaliyah f/ Timbaland - Are You That Somebody? So, this really isn't my normal style of music, but I enjoyed the song. The video was your typical late 90s video where people are standing all facing one direction and dancing at the camera. Just look at any Backstreet Boys or 'N Sync video from the time and you'll see the same thing. It was the style apparently. I don't know what is typical now, perhaps that's still a thing?
Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
I'm not sure if the video is trying to tell a story or something, or what exactly is going on. I also like how they didn't do the radio edit for the song, but they still edited it, but kind of in a weird spot.
Everclear - Father Of Mine
This one went with a clear story telling option, but then again the song is kind of a story telling song. This isn't my favorite Everclear song, but I do like it. I guess some could say I relate to it as I had an absent father, but not in that "OMG, THIS SONG HITS ME RIGHT IN THE FEELS!" It's more of a "yeah, I get you."
The Offspring - Pretty Fly
This one just cracks me up. I really don't think I have to say much about it. Though I will say that we made a parody song of this in Drama called Pretty Fly For An Old Guy. I don't remember any of the words, but I remember the title and that we had quite a few verses to it.
Madonna - Frozen
The other day Jasmine said "Music Videos from the 90s were weird." Well, here you go. This one was weird, but then again Madonna is kind of weird now days too.
Boy Band Meadley
Well of course boy bands were super popular at this point in time. There were a ton of them and they all had the same kind of music. So take your pick of your favorite of them below.
So, here we go in no particular order what so ever.
Harvey Danger - Flagpole Sitta
Really, I think I just like the song, because there's nothing all that special about the music video, but either way here it is.
Barenaked Ladies - One Week
This is a case where I like the song and the video. Thought watching the video I have to conclude that surely they were on drugs, because WTF!? But still, it's weird, it's fun, it is peppy, and there's a sweet car hood slide, and everyone loves that. So, all around a fun one.
Aerosmith - I Don't Want to Miss
A Thing Ok, this one gets super high marks on the cheesy factor, but what do you expect with Steven Tyler, he's so over the top. But you also get the cheesy boost with the clips from Armageddon, which is a silly move, but what do you expect it was a summer action flick, and it did its job by blowing things up and was all around entertaining. The song is meh, but I remember this was on MTV ALL the time.
The Goo Goo Dolls - Iris
I really like the Goo Goo Dolls, and this was probably the first song I heard from them, as prior to that my music tastes were a big different. I loved the video for this one, I liked how they hinted at the movie that the song was connected to, but did blatantly highlight it. I think it worked well for the song as well as the movie.
Aaliyah f/ Timbaland - Are You That Somebody? So, this really isn't my normal style of music, but I enjoyed the song. The video was your typical late 90s video where people are standing all facing one direction and dancing at the camera. Just look at any Backstreet Boys or 'N Sync video from the time and you'll see the same thing. It was the style apparently. I don't know what is typical now, perhaps that's still a thing?
Third Eye Blind - Semi-Charmed Life
I'm not sure if the video is trying to tell a story or something, or what exactly is going on. I also like how they didn't do the radio edit for the song, but they still edited it, but kind of in a weird spot.
Everclear - Father Of Mine
This one went with a clear story telling option, but then again the song is kind of a story telling song. This isn't my favorite Everclear song, but I do like it. I guess some could say I relate to it as I had an absent father, but not in that "OMG, THIS SONG HITS ME RIGHT IN THE FEELS!" It's more of a "yeah, I get you."
The Offspring - Pretty Fly
This one just cracks me up. I really don't think I have to say much about it. Though I will say that we made a parody song of this in Drama called Pretty Fly For An Old Guy. I don't remember any of the words, but I remember the title and that we had quite a few verses to it.
Madonna - Frozen
The other day Jasmine said "Music Videos from the 90s were weird." Well, here you go. This one was weird, but then again Madonna is kind of weird now days too.
Boy Band Meadley
Well of course boy bands were super popular at this point in time. There were a ton of them and they all had the same kind of music. So take your pick of your favorite of them below.
Sunday, March 17, 2013
Soda Ban
New York decided that they wanted to place an upper limit on the size of "sugary drinks" that can be sold in the city. Pretty much they decided that a 128oz (the team gulp from 7-Eleven) beverage may be a bit too large, and set a limit at 16oz. Now, 16 is actually still a lot, but it's a more reasonable size really because to give you some perspective a 128 oz cup is nearly 4 liters. A judge struck down the law, but the city is appealing it.
Honestly I didn't really care much about the ban, I don't live there and it doesn't influence me, so whatever. But as I thought about it, I don't think there's anything wrong with it. In fact I think I may support it. The sizes have gotten bigger and bigger, and I think people have forgotten what and ACTUAL reasonable size is, so bringing the sizes back to a reasonable level doesn't really seem like that big of a deal. Especially considering that these excessively large drinks are only a few buck, and any kid could afford one and not really think that they are getting more calories/sugar in that drink than they really need in like a week (clearly and exaggeration, but you get it).
Now, the "nanny staters" will say that it's your right as an American, and your freedom to buy what you want and we don't need the government telling us what to do. It's the job of the parent to tell kids what they can and can't buy. First, if you really want 128oz, you can still buy that much, you'll just have to buy 8 large sized drinks to get that much. Yes, that might make you look stupid, but you looked stupid with a 128oz cup anyway, so it's no different. Next, you aren't being told you can't buy something, in fact "you" aren't being told anything. The city is telling restaurants that they can't use the obscenely large cups. So, no one's freedoms are being taken away.
Furthermore, for those who say people will just get around it, etc. People will get around ANY law if they want. Does that mean we shouldn't have any laws? Yes, it's not actually stopping anyone from buying 8 glasses of soda instead of 1 giant glass. But perhaps the bigger win is it will reset what people think of as an acceptable size. If you give people a bigger spoon and larger plate they'll serve themselves more food. It's a subconscious thing. So if you give them a smaller plate and a smaller spoon they'll think a portion size is smaller. Give them a smaller cup and they'll think the correct size is the smaller amount. It probably will do more to reground the image of the correct size, and that will be healthy.
Finally, can we really stop diluting the idea of "freedom" to nonsense like "IT'S MY RIGHT TO BUY A TON OF SODA, STOP TAKING AWAY MY FREEDOM!" It's like calling wolf, eventually people won't realize when their actual freedom is being eroded. If you want to complain about freedom let's talk about illegal wire taps, killing US citizens with drones, the utterly only for show and doesn't really keep us safe pageantry of airport security. There are plenty of ways freedom is being encroached upon, the resizing of soda from comically large to just overly large is hardly one of them.
Honestly I didn't really care much about the ban, I don't live there and it doesn't influence me, so whatever. But as I thought about it, I don't think there's anything wrong with it. In fact I think I may support it. The sizes have gotten bigger and bigger, and I think people have forgotten what and ACTUAL reasonable size is, so bringing the sizes back to a reasonable level doesn't really seem like that big of a deal. Especially considering that these excessively large drinks are only a few buck, and any kid could afford one and not really think that they are getting more calories/sugar in that drink than they really need in like a week (clearly and exaggeration, but you get it).
Now, the "nanny staters" will say that it's your right as an American, and your freedom to buy what you want and we don't need the government telling us what to do. It's the job of the parent to tell kids what they can and can't buy. First, if you really want 128oz, you can still buy that much, you'll just have to buy 8 large sized drinks to get that much. Yes, that might make you look stupid, but you looked stupid with a 128oz cup anyway, so it's no different. Next, you aren't being told you can't buy something, in fact "you" aren't being told anything. The city is telling restaurants that they can't use the obscenely large cups. So, no one's freedoms are being taken away.
Furthermore, for those who say people will just get around it, etc. People will get around ANY law if they want. Does that mean we shouldn't have any laws? Yes, it's not actually stopping anyone from buying 8 glasses of soda instead of 1 giant glass. But perhaps the bigger win is it will reset what people think of as an acceptable size. If you give people a bigger spoon and larger plate they'll serve themselves more food. It's a subconscious thing. So if you give them a smaller plate and a smaller spoon they'll think a portion size is smaller. Give them a smaller cup and they'll think the correct size is the smaller amount. It probably will do more to reground the image of the correct size, and that will be healthy.
Finally, can we really stop diluting the idea of "freedom" to nonsense like "IT'S MY RIGHT TO BUY A TON OF SODA, STOP TAKING AWAY MY FREEDOM!" It's like calling wolf, eventually people won't realize when their actual freedom is being eroded. If you want to complain about freedom let's talk about illegal wire taps, killing US citizens with drones, the utterly only for show and doesn't really keep us safe pageantry of airport security. There are plenty of ways freedom is being encroached upon, the resizing of soda from comically large to just overly large is hardly one of them.
Saturday, March 16, 2013
Schools
Being in the field of education I have long supported teachers, argued against things like linking pay to student performance, and other ideas. I'm generally one to defend teachers, as they are often the punching bags, and having worked with teachers I know the view isn't accurate when people bash teachers and schools.
That being said, I'm going to bash my school district that I live in. I have to say without a doubt it does not prepare students for college, and I question if it really teaches them anything. I'm not one to blame teachers first, but the teachers in that district need to go, and not one or two like most schools, I'm talking the majority. Having a student in the district and being a teacher I look at the work that comes home, the assignments, and hear how an average day goes in class and I'm appalled. There is not real learning going on, the questions asked are low level things that don't even scratch the surface, much less get into the meat of the issues that they should be learning.
When I subbed in this district I was disgusted by the idea of "just get through the day" that pretty much every teacher was telling me about. I couldn't stand the way the teachers talked about the students in such negative terms. I heard it with my own ears. I've sat in staff meetings, ate lunch with other teachers, discussed students after class, but in no way was it what I hear out of our district. All I hear is negativity, where as in my experience it was all a more positive, "pull yourself up" sort of discussion. It's no wonder that there is an attitude of "That's Lincoln" when you have teachers telling students they have no chance of passing because none of them are smart enough to follow directions.
It's no wonder students are unprepared when the questions they ask have nothing to do with the themes and topics, but rather simply check to see if they read the material. Who cares what color the kid's shirt was, or if you answered "town" when the book said "village". What you should be talking about it how the character coped with something, and how you can compare and contrast that to issues today. A senior in high school should not be filling out worksheets for every class. And that's the homework I see every day. Worksheets. WORKSHEETS! How about essays, papers, presentations, group projects, biographies, analysis, labs.
How can we expect our students to become good citizens, how do we expect them to achieve, how do we expect them to meet their full potential when we are failing them every single day. They deserve better than this, and we refuse to change it, or don't have the will. It needs to change.
That being said, I'm going to bash my school district that I live in. I have to say without a doubt it does not prepare students for college, and I question if it really teaches them anything. I'm not one to blame teachers first, but the teachers in that district need to go, and not one or two like most schools, I'm talking the majority. Having a student in the district and being a teacher I look at the work that comes home, the assignments, and hear how an average day goes in class and I'm appalled. There is not real learning going on, the questions asked are low level things that don't even scratch the surface, much less get into the meat of the issues that they should be learning.
When I subbed in this district I was disgusted by the idea of "just get through the day" that pretty much every teacher was telling me about. I couldn't stand the way the teachers talked about the students in such negative terms. I heard it with my own ears. I've sat in staff meetings, ate lunch with other teachers, discussed students after class, but in no way was it what I hear out of our district. All I hear is negativity, where as in my experience it was all a more positive, "pull yourself up" sort of discussion. It's no wonder that there is an attitude of "That's Lincoln" when you have teachers telling students they have no chance of passing because none of them are smart enough to follow directions.
It's no wonder students are unprepared when the questions they ask have nothing to do with the themes and topics, but rather simply check to see if they read the material. Who cares what color the kid's shirt was, or if you answered "town" when the book said "village". What you should be talking about it how the character coped with something, and how you can compare and contrast that to issues today. A senior in high school should not be filling out worksheets for every class. And that's the homework I see every day. Worksheets. WORKSHEETS! How about essays, papers, presentations, group projects, biographies, analysis, labs.
How can we expect our students to become good citizens, how do we expect them to achieve, how do we expect them to meet their full potential when we are failing them every single day. They deserve better than this, and we refuse to change it, or don't have the will. It needs to change.
Friday, March 15, 2013
The State Of Education
Education in this country is in critical failure. However, that comment won't necessary mean what you think it means. This isn't to be confused with the struggle public education is having right now. I'm saying education is in critical failure. I will even go so far to say that school actually do a decent job, as most people in our country know how to read, can do math, have a basic understanding that the earth revolves around the sun rather the other way around, and we know that lightening isn't caused because Zeus has his panties in a bunch from getting herpes from some human chick he knocked up. I'm not saying schools are perfect, but we'll get to that later.
What I'm talking about is the idea of education, how we approach it and what we think about it. In a country that is becoming more and more partisan education is becoming a wedge issue that separates "them" from "us". From the districts that remove undesirables like Thomas Jefferson from curriculum, white wash slavery as simply the middle passage of triangle trade, attack proven science, to disparaging those who are educated as being the "elite" or not like "us" the effect is the value of education is being eroded. Worse it is almost as if being uneducated is becoming a source of pride in some circles.
Further it is under attack from every person who treats it as a means to an end. For these people education is there simply for you to get a job, make money, then buy things. Get a big house, get that fancy car, take those trips, buy those TVs, fancy clothes, jewelry, invest it to make people even better off than you more money. The job of a schools is to prepare you for the work place, to prepare you for a job, so why take calculus or biology because you're not going to use it in a job ever. Don't major in anything unless you'll get a job out of it. Philosophy, English, Theatre, or any other liberal arts majors, hope you enjoy flipping burgers and wasting money on that diploma.
It's become a consumer commodity where people want to be the customer, and fire the "poor performers" based on arbitrary benchmarks from those not even involved in education or who have never set foot in a classroom. You're buying a product, which is your diploma, not building your mind. The only thing that matters is the grade, so you can get that diploma, receive the endorsements of being a graduate with "high honors" and once you've unlocked that achievement you can dump everything you "learned". It's a means to an end, and that end is a product not an experience and an expansion of your understanding.
The very idea of education is under attack and in critical failure because we've politicized, commercialized, and monetized it. But education isn't about getting a job, or creating political clones. It's not about earning endorsements and "winning the game" so you can move on to the next level. Education is about expanding your knowledge, and the knowledge of society and civilization. It's about learning to think critically, expose yourself to new ideas, understand and appreciate complexity. Education is about exploring the world and understanding the universe. It's about improving yourself and society by making you a better citizen.
We fall behind in world rankings, we attack ideas to expand education programs as being "too expensive", we let our classrooms fall behind, students with no books, outdated technology, crumbling buildings. We don't value education, which is obvious because we don't fund it. We spend over 4 times more per inmate in prison than we do per student in school. We do not value education, and as such education is in critical failure.
What I'm talking about is the idea of education, how we approach it and what we think about it. In a country that is becoming more and more partisan education is becoming a wedge issue that separates "them" from "us". From the districts that remove undesirables like Thomas Jefferson from curriculum, white wash slavery as simply the middle passage of triangle trade, attack proven science, to disparaging those who are educated as being the "elite" or not like "us" the effect is the value of education is being eroded. Worse it is almost as if being uneducated is becoming a source of pride in some circles.
Further it is under attack from every person who treats it as a means to an end. For these people education is there simply for you to get a job, make money, then buy things. Get a big house, get that fancy car, take those trips, buy those TVs, fancy clothes, jewelry, invest it to make people even better off than you more money. The job of a schools is to prepare you for the work place, to prepare you for a job, so why take calculus or biology because you're not going to use it in a job ever. Don't major in anything unless you'll get a job out of it. Philosophy, English, Theatre, or any other liberal arts majors, hope you enjoy flipping burgers and wasting money on that diploma.
It's become a consumer commodity where people want to be the customer, and fire the "poor performers" based on arbitrary benchmarks from those not even involved in education or who have never set foot in a classroom. You're buying a product, which is your diploma, not building your mind. The only thing that matters is the grade, so you can get that diploma, receive the endorsements of being a graduate with "high honors" and once you've unlocked that achievement you can dump everything you "learned". It's a means to an end, and that end is a product not an experience and an expansion of your understanding.
The very idea of education is under attack and in critical failure because we've politicized, commercialized, and monetized it. But education isn't about getting a job, or creating political clones. It's not about earning endorsements and "winning the game" so you can move on to the next level. Education is about expanding your knowledge, and the knowledge of society and civilization. It's about learning to think critically, expose yourself to new ideas, understand and appreciate complexity. Education is about exploring the world and understanding the universe. It's about improving yourself and society by making you a better citizen.
We fall behind in world rankings, we attack ideas to expand education programs as being "too expensive", we let our classrooms fall behind, students with no books, outdated technology, crumbling buildings. We don't value education, which is obvious because we don't fund it. We spend over 4 times more per inmate in prison than we do per student in school. We do not value education, and as such education is in critical failure.
Thursday, March 14, 2013
The Future
"Above all things I hope the education of the common people will be
attended to ; convinced that on their good sense we may rely with the
most security for the preservation of a due degree of liberty."
Thomas Jefferson to James Madison, December 20, 1787
Thomas Jefferson talks a lot about the need for people in an democracy to be informed and educated. He felt that those in power will turn badly if the people don't have the sense enough to take care of them, but the only way to make sure people had any sense was to make sure they were educated. He worked in education at the end of his life, and many discuss his views regarding education and the need to make sure citizens are educated to avoid the republic falling victim to tyranny.
During my time teaching I realized that this is very true, and nothing illustrated it more than in my unit on World War II and specifically on Executive Order 9066, which relocated U.S. citizens into concentration camps simply because they happened to be Japanese (even though the same wasn't done to German-Americans). In this unit I had a test question asking them to discuss 9066, and I was shocked to find that many agreed with the order. They thought that the imprisonment of American citizens who had done nothing wrong, there was no evidence of wrong doing, and no indication that criminal activity would happen was perfectly acceptable.
I was reminded of this earlier in the week when talking about the cannibal cop who was arrested and charged with planning to kidnap and eat someone (apparently, I haven't read much on this case, but that's the facts as I know them). Speaking with a student they questioned why this person hadn't been locked up, and why we need to wait for someone to do something bad before we lock them up. Of course I pointed out that under than argument that everyone would be in jail for thought crime. But that got me thinking, what are schools teaching? Are they reading 1984, and discussing thought crime, are they studying our founding documents, reading the words of the great thinkers?
How can a republic survive when the citizens are uneducated, and willing to give up a little freedom for a little "security", and then more freedom for more "security", when does it stop? Does it stop? Or will we all end up in chains? Sure that may be hyperbolic, but illegal wiretaps went unpunished, the Attorney General argued that "due process" is not the same as "judicial process", the government can kill its own citizens with little overview, corporations buy power, and citizens sit home and ignore their civic duties.
Is this a failure of education? A failure of families to instil values necessary to preserve a republic? A failure of the media to develop good citizens? A failure of corporations by treating each person as a potential profit source and ignoring anything but the bottom line driving citizens to desire only things and entertainment? Or perhaps it's the entire system failing.
Wednesday, March 13, 2013
I Can Wear A Pope Hat
Despite not being a Catholic, I like many people around the world took some time to watch the news when I heard that the white smoke was seen above the Sistine Chapel. I'm not religious, but I find this sort of thing very interesting because this is not something that happens often. However I also find it kind of strange that the entire system is strange. I mean the leader of the church, the person chosen by God, is actually elected. Cardinals vote for the Pope. That just seems really kind of bizarre that democracy chooses who has been designated by God. I mean surely the religious will say that God made it so, or whatever, but really, it's a vote from people. It all seems kind of silly. Though if you think about anything long enough anything seems silly.
But there you have it, Pope Francis the First.
But there you have it, Pope Francis the First.
Tuesday, March 12, 2013
Mars
Yesterday NASA announced that they discovered that the conditions on Mars were once capable of supporting life. That's right people, once upon a time on Mars there could have been life. Can we think about that for a moment? I mean, I know a while back when the latest Mars rover took some pictures back of the surface of Mars I got all geeked out at the thought that we are at a point in civilization where we can actually know what a rock looks like on the surface of Mars. What it looks like to stand on Mars and look out at the horizon. It really is amazing that I know what a rock on another planet looks like. But I digress.
So, NASA confirms that life once could have been supported on Mars. That's a big deal in itself to know that the planet was once habitable. I mean, think about that for a minute. We found another location in the universe that was in a position that life could have happened. Not only did we find it, but we found it in our own solar system. It was RIGHT NEXT DOOR! And then look up at the stars, and realize that there are billions of them out there, and if we had 2 places in our own solar system that could have supported life, then that means that there is no way that there are not other places that could, and then that means that there must be other places where there is life.
Now sure, we're looking for microbes, bacteria, little life things on Mars. I don't expect them to find anything substantial, but life is life. And any life found on Mars would say to me that there is life other places as well, we just haven't found them yet. That then leads to the idea of more advanced life out there somewhere, and the question of "are we alone". I mean, the answer has to be "no".
What happens if actual evidence of life is found on Mars? I say if, but really I feel like it has to be when. I mean it really is just a matter of time, isn't it. There's no way we are the only place ever where life happened. But IF they find it on Mars, how will that change things? Will that alter the way people think about the world, the universe, and life? People kind of think they're special, and seem to think we are it in the Universe. God created us, here, etc. So what happens if life is other places too, and we find it? How does that influence the story? "And on the the 14th day, God decided to put bacteria on Mars, because really, why not?"
I'm just saying, it's an interesting development, and worth taking a few minutes out of your life to consider what it means, and all that.
So, NASA confirms that life once could have been supported on Mars. That's a big deal in itself to know that the planet was once habitable. I mean, think about that for a minute. We found another location in the universe that was in a position that life could have happened. Not only did we find it, but we found it in our own solar system. It was RIGHT NEXT DOOR! And then look up at the stars, and realize that there are billions of them out there, and if we had 2 places in our own solar system that could have supported life, then that means that there is no way that there are not other places that could, and then that means that there must be other places where there is life.
Now sure, we're looking for microbes, bacteria, little life things on Mars. I don't expect them to find anything substantial, but life is life. And any life found on Mars would say to me that there is life other places as well, we just haven't found them yet. That then leads to the idea of more advanced life out there somewhere, and the question of "are we alone". I mean, the answer has to be "no".
What happens if actual evidence of life is found on Mars? I say if, but really I feel like it has to be when. I mean it really is just a matter of time, isn't it. There's no way we are the only place ever where life happened. But IF they find it on Mars, how will that change things? Will that alter the way people think about the world, the universe, and life? People kind of think they're special, and seem to think we are it in the Universe. God created us, here, etc. So what happens if life is other places too, and we find it? How does that influence the story? "And on the the 14th day, God decided to put bacteria on Mars, because really, why not?"
I'm just saying, it's an interesting development, and worth taking a few minutes out of your life to consider what it means, and all that.
Monday, March 11, 2013
You Are Not Important
You will die, you will become nothing more than a memory to those who knew you. In time you will even fade out of memory, and your life will be unknown to anyone. The things you do, the bullshit beliefs you hold, the mundane and inconsequential things you pass your time doing mean nothing. You will die, you will be forgotten, and no one will even know you existed. You are not important. You are not unique. You are not special. In fact, most likely very few people actually care about you, about what you think, about what you do. You are a miniscule speck in the universe no more important than a cell on a donkey's balls.
I think it's important that people remember how unimportant they are every so often. The world is full of class A asshats who have an absurdly high opinion of themselves. They think they are some sort of force to be reckoned with, that they have some sort of power or control, that they are of such esteem and worth that all around them should feel themselves privileged to be in their presence. They flout their "knowledge" in an effort to show how important, clever, and intelligent they are, but in truth they are nothing.
Some people may read that and think that's a really negative point of view, that I must need help to believe that, or some other nonsense. But it's really not negative, it's the facts of the universe. Eventually there will be no humans left. Stars will collapse, our planet will be gone, the universe will contract, explode, or do whatever it does at the end of time. Far from seeing this as a terrible, morbid, or depressing thought, it's rather a grounding. It reminds you that perhaps what you're getting worked up over really isn't that important. That perhaps you should let something go, turn the other cheek, not be a asshole because you've got a short time of life in the scheme of the universe and there is no point wasting it. I find it helpful to remember than in 100 years you will be completely forgotten and that puts a lot of things in perspective and allows you to really pay attention to the things that matter.
You have control over what you choose to decide is important, about how you interact with others, about the kind of person you want to be. Do you want to be the small, petty, insignificant asshole? As far as anyone knows, this is the only life you have. Don't waste it being a prick.
I think it's important that people remember how unimportant they are every so often. The world is full of class A asshats who have an absurdly high opinion of themselves. They think they are some sort of force to be reckoned with, that they have some sort of power or control, that they are of such esteem and worth that all around them should feel themselves privileged to be in their presence. They flout their "knowledge" in an effort to show how important, clever, and intelligent they are, but in truth they are nothing.
Some people may read that and think that's a really negative point of view, that I must need help to believe that, or some other nonsense. But it's really not negative, it's the facts of the universe. Eventually there will be no humans left. Stars will collapse, our planet will be gone, the universe will contract, explode, or do whatever it does at the end of time. Far from seeing this as a terrible, morbid, or depressing thought, it's rather a grounding. It reminds you that perhaps what you're getting worked up over really isn't that important. That perhaps you should let something go, turn the other cheek, not be a asshole because you've got a short time of life in the scheme of the universe and there is no point wasting it. I find it helpful to remember than in 100 years you will be completely forgotten and that puts a lot of things in perspective and allows you to really pay attention to the things that matter.
You have control over what you choose to decide is important, about how you interact with others, about the kind of person you want to be. Do you want to be the small, petty, insignificant asshole? As far as anyone knows, this is the only life you have. Don't waste it being a prick.
Sunday, March 10, 2013
Daylight Saving Time
Hooray, today is the day where you get to sleep in and realize that you didn't sleep in but in fact the clocks just got pushed ahead. I never mind the fall switch because and extra hour is wonderful. The the spring forward sucks. I also don't like it because the past few weeks it's been getting very bright in the mornings when heading off to work, and now it'll be dark and blah in the mornings instead of bright and sunny. Sure that will mean it's brighter out in the evenings, so I guess that's something. Oh well, happy hour loss day!
Saturday, March 9, 2013
1999
Last week while driving we entered the time warp that is Pennsylvania where they were playing some nice old music that you generally don't hear on the radio since it's not the 1990s anymore. As such we started talking about music, and MTV, and such. I have to say I used to watch MTV a lot, and loved the music videos. I know as a economic model it doesn't work to air it but that's what we have the internet for I guess. I'd rather watch it on TV, but whatever. So as such I decided that today I'd pull the records from MTV to see what videos were on March 9th the first year TRL was running (which in this case was 1999). So here you go, the top ten music videos on March 9, 1999:
Number 10 - Sugar Ray "Every Morning"
Number 9 - No Doubt "New"
Number 8 - Monica "Angel of Mine"
Number 7 - 2pac "Changes"
Number 6 - Eminem "My Name Is.."
Number 5 - Orgy "Blue Monday"
Number 4 - Britney Spears "Baby One More Time"
Number 3 - 98 Degrees "Hardest Thing"
Number 2 - Korn "Freak On A Leash"
Number 1 - 'N Sync "(God Must Have Spent) A Little More Time On You"
Number 10 - Sugar Ray "Every Morning"
Number 9 - No Doubt "New"
Number 8 - Monica "Angel of Mine"
Number 7 - 2pac "Changes"
Number 6 - Eminem "My Name Is.."
Number 5 - Orgy "Blue Monday"
Number 4 - Britney Spears "Baby One More Time"
Number 3 - 98 Degrees "Hardest Thing"
Number 2 - Korn "Freak On A Leash"
Number 1 - 'N Sync "(God Must Have Spent) A Little More Time On You"
Friday, March 8, 2013
The Internet Is For Stalking
Today I was thinking about how I haven't taught in almost two years, and that made me think of my first two years of teaching and how much I enjoyed it. I also began to think about my students that I had that first year of teaching, and realized that my freshman that year are seniors this year, which means my sophomores are not graduated and off to college. There are a lot of them that I still remember, I mean I'd probably remember all their faces but I'm not great with names for the most part. But I am good with some of the names of students that I worked with a little more often, who were either trouble makers or very bright. So naturally I wondered what they are doing, where they ended up after high school, and since the Internet really enables stalking, I decided to troll around to see if I could find some of them. Of course I did, and was happy to see things like they are now at UM, or they're studying a certain subject that is perfect for them. I was surprised by a few who are at WCC, which isn't bad but I kind of expected them to end up at a bigger college so that interesting.
Mostly, I hope they're all doing well, being successful and are having great experiences. I think about a lot of people and wonder what they're off doing, former students, people I used to know and haven't talked to in years. I hope they're all well. I moved around a lot, so I don't have very deep roots, but sometimes I wonder if anyone wonders what happened to me. I kind of doubt it, but who knows.
Mostly, I hope they're all doing well, being successful and are having great experiences. I think about a lot of people and wonder what they're off doing, former students, people I used to know and haven't talked to in years. I hope they're all well. I moved around a lot, so I don't have very deep roots, but sometimes I wonder if anyone wonders what happened to me. I kind of doubt it, but who knows.
Thursday, March 7, 2013
Running
I decided to go for a run tonight. It was just around the block which is about one mile, and I took Ronan with me. I usually tried to avoid running in the cold because it seems like it messes up my lungs, but today went pretty well. I haven't really run in months, I don't even recall the last time I went for a run. My time wasn't that great, I did the mile in about 12 minutes and 48 seconds. Though, in my defense Ronan decided that he had to stop and take a poop, which I then had to clean up. That did kill some time, but I don't think it killed too much. I actually felt pretty good after the run, and I planned to start layering the running in next week to my daily fitness routine. I'm thinking of starting at a few days a week and then ramp it up to more regular runs, but we'll see how it goes. It's always easier when it's warm out, so the first few weeks are going to suck more, but it should be good.
Wednesday, March 6, 2013
Wait, What?
Today Rand Paul decided he was going to filibuster the nomination of John Brennan, who is up for the head of the CIA. Now, I'm not a fan of Rand or Ron Paul, they pretty much are on the opposite side of the political spectrum from me, or at the very least around the curve to where I can't see them. I think Rand Paul is a moron who's even worse than Ron Paul, who I'd categorize as a dumb ass. They're positions I generally find to be absurd, their ideas insane, and all around I find them to be nuts.
So, I find it a little strange to be agreeing with Rand Paul on his filibuster because his issue stems from the Drone Program and the Obama Administrations apparent belief that they can kill US citizens with them. This all stems from the assignation of Anwar Al-Awlaki in Yemen who is a radical, terrorist type person, and who happens to be an American citizen. He was taken out by a drone if I recall, and I believe that Eric Holder claimed that the constitution allows you "due process' not "judicial process". And so here I am with Rand Paul calling BULLSHIT! I'm sorry, but I don't believe that any government has the right to kill its own citizens, I'm against the death penalty, and I even don't think killing OBL was the right choice. I believe in the process of courts, laws, and juries. If someone is guilty of something then they face that in a court room.
Now the argument is that there's a "war on terror" and these people are out to get us. Yes, I get that, but this is not a "war" in the sense of war that we're talking about. This is criminal activity. Terrorists are criminals not soldiers. They are committing mass murder, and chaos, but they aren't a part of an army, they aren't on a battle field, they are CRIMINALS. Criminals are arrested, tried, and go to jail. I don't know if I can take the leap of "for national security" we have the right to blow you up. Yes, the administration has said that it can't do that here, or that it's in "extraordinary circumstances" but these things evolve over time, tyranny doesn't just pop out of thin air. Freedom is slowly taken away, and often with the ideas of "national security" or for the safety of the empire, or whatever the example is.
So, there you have it, I support Rand Paul's filibuster, and I'm against governments murdering its own citizens.
So, I find it a little strange to be agreeing with Rand Paul on his filibuster because his issue stems from the Drone Program and the Obama Administrations apparent belief that they can kill US citizens with them. This all stems from the assignation of Anwar Al-Awlaki in Yemen who is a radical, terrorist type person, and who happens to be an American citizen. He was taken out by a drone if I recall, and I believe that Eric Holder claimed that the constitution allows you "due process' not "judicial process". And so here I am with Rand Paul calling BULLSHIT! I'm sorry, but I don't believe that any government has the right to kill its own citizens, I'm against the death penalty, and I even don't think killing OBL was the right choice. I believe in the process of courts, laws, and juries. If someone is guilty of something then they face that in a court room.
Now the argument is that there's a "war on terror" and these people are out to get us. Yes, I get that, but this is not a "war" in the sense of war that we're talking about. This is criminal activity. Terrorists are criminals not soldiers. They are committing mass murder, and chaos, but they aren't a part of an army, they aren't on a battle field, they are CRIMINALS. Criminals are arrested, tried, and go to jail. I don't know if I can take the leap of "for national security" we have the right to blow you up. Yes, the administration has said that it can't do that here, or that it's in "extraordinary circumstances" but these things evolve over time, tyranny doesn't just pop out of thin air. Freedom is slowly taken away, and often with the ideas of "national security" or for the safety of the empire, or whatever the example is.
So, there you have it, I support Rand Paul's filibuster, and I'm against governments murdering its own citizens.
Tuesday, March 5, 2013
Thoughts
Today was one of those days when I didn't have much to do so my mind started to wander. I actually was watching a Ted Talk a few days ago that linked mind wandering to dissatisfaction. It was all about how we have the skill of being able to simulate in our minds how something is going to turn out, and how that's helpful, but at the same time it's a bit of a double edged sword because then our minds can wander to other things and consider how things should be or could be or whatever, and then that's something that can make people less happy. I think that's really one of my biggest problems because I can see how things could be, or even how I think they should be and it's not like that. I should be in a classroom, I should be doing something more than making coffee, copies, and reserving rooms. I mean, I don't even use any skills in this job like Excel or PowerPoint, and I do nothing creative. It's really a sucky situation.
At the same time I start to think about how people say "you shouldn't spend your day doing something you hate" which it turns out they might forget that people have to survive at the same time as not doing what you hate. I mean I took out a lot of student loans so that I could NOT do something I hate, only to find that I couldn't do that, and now I DO have to do something I hate because I have to pay for the ability to NOT do something I hate, even though I actually can't do that thing, so yay for that. But it's true, as far as I know this is the only life you get, and when you die you're not going to get another shot, there's a good chance there's nothing after this, and what's the point of wasting your life doing things you hate only to die and have spent an entire life doing something you hate. What is the point of that. It was hard to not just walk out and disappear to some beach or mountain cabin or who knows what.
I need a long term plan, otherwise I'm going to go insane.
At the same time I start to think about how people say "you shouldn't spend your day doing something you hate" which it turns out they might forget that people have to survive at the same time as not doing what you hate. I mean I took out a lot of student loans so that I could NOT do something I hate, only to find that I couldn't do that, and now I DO have to do something I hate because I have to pay for the ability to NOT do something I hate, even though I actually can't do that thing, so yay for that. But it's true, as far as I know this is the only life you get, and when you die you're not going to get another shot, there's a good chance there's nothing after this, and what's the point of wasting your life doing things you hate only to die and have spent an entire life doing something you hate. What is the point of that. It was hard to not just walk out and disappear to some beach or mountain cabin or who knows what.
I need a long term plan, otherwise I'm going to go insane.
Monday, March 4, 2013
Goal Update
Another month gone, two down ten to go. Not that I'm in a hurry to get to the end of the year, in fact the middle part from April to September are generally my favorite time, so if we can get there and then slow it down that would be great.
But, with another month down I think I'll update where we are on the goals list.
Goal Number One - Get A New Job: Pretty much dead in the water on this one. No new jobs applied to, nothing that looks promising, just sitting here with no leads. Still working ont he HTML CSS learning, though I feel like it may be way over my head, but who knows. I think I really need to just get in there and try it . I'm a hands on learner, and reading doesn't always do much for me. I've considered going back to school, because I don't want my teaching certificate to expire and to do that I need to take some classes and renew it. I've also thought about adding another endorsement like Math or English or something. That would make me more competitive for middle school teaching. I don't even know, it's all a giant pain and really stressful.
Goal Number Two - Read At Least 12 Books: I've read two plays this year so far, Little Women and The Odd Couple. I'm still working on the CSS book, it's really slow going. I haven't read anything else. I would like to once I finish the CSS book.
Goal Number Three - Go Out West: Hasn't happened, no plans yet, but it's still winter, and there's not been a good time to take some vacation yet. We'll keep looking into it. Though the question is where out west? There's the Pacific Northwest. There's the Southwest. There's the Northern California/Wine country, there's the LA area, there's Yellowstone, Glacier, Arches, Grand Canyon, and everything in the basin area. So many options.
Goal Number Four - Be Consistently Active: Great news on this one, I've been getting up 5 days a week to do a little exercise routine. I'm doing the OnDemand stuff, and it's not a lot of time, usually only 15-20 minutes, but I'm in the habit of doing it. Today was day 26 of my 30 day goal! I'll hit my 30 day goal on Friday, and I'll start again next week with a new 30 day goal, but I'm thinking I'll start layering in additional goals, like a few days of my yoga again, and some running with the dog who needs to burn some energy anyway. So, doing really well this year so far!
Goal Number Five - Consistently Log Meals: Still at 100% on this. It's good because I'm really starting to notice that when I do X then the result is Y, so it's been very helpful.
Goal Number Six - Digitize My Photos: Haven't touched this at all. My computer is also having some trouble, I mean I should expect as much when it has 2 full drives, a third drive that's half full and the thing is like 5 or 7 years old or something (I don't recall exactly when I bought it). I need to get on it though.
Goal Number Seven - Have Seven New Experiences: Still at 2/7 on this one, which is still good after 2 months since that means I just have 5 more to go, and I know we'll get a few more as the year goes. Perhaps I should look into things and actually plan out some new items. Any suggestions of things I should try?
So there we go, month two and that's where we're at.
But, with another month down I think I'll update where we are on the goals list.
Goal Number One - Get A New Job: Pretty much dead in the water on this one. No new jobs applied to, nothing that looks promising, just sitting here with no leads. Still working ont he HTML CSS learning, though I feel like it may be way over my head, but who knows. I think I really need to just get in there and try it . I'm a hands on learner, and reading doesn't always do much for me. I've considered going back to school, because I don't want my teaching certificate to expire and to do that I need to take some classes and renew it. I've also thought about adding another endorsement like Math or English or something. That would make me more competitive for middle school teaching. I don't even know, it's all a giant pain and really stressful.
Goal Number Two - Read At Least 12 Books: I've read two plays this year so far, Little Women and The Odd Couple. I'm still working on the CSS book, it's really slow going. I haven't read anything else. I would like to once I finish the CSS book.
Goal Number Three - Go Out West: Hasn't happened, no plans yet, but it's still winter, and there's not been a good time to take some vacation yet. We'll keep looking into it. Though the question is where out west? There's the Pacific Northwest. There's the Southwest. There's the Northern California/Wine country, there's the LA area, there's Yellowstone, Glacier, Arches, Grand Canyon, and everything in the basin area. So many options.
Goal Number Four - Be Consistently Active: Great news on this one, I've been getting up 5 days a week to do a little exercise routine. I'm doing the OnDemand stuff, and it's not a lot of time, usually only 15-20 minutes, but I'm in the habit of doing it. Today was day 26 of my 30 day goal! I'll hit my 30 day goal on Friday, and I'll start again next week with a new 30 day goal, but I'm thinking I'll start layering in additional goals, like a few days of my yoga again, and some running with the dog who needs to burn some energy anyway. So, doing really well this year so far!
Goal Number Five - Consistently Log Meals: Still at 100% on this. It's good because I'm really starting to notice that when I do X then the result is Y, so it's been very helpful.
Goal Number Six - Digitize My Photos: Haven't touched this at all. My computer is also having some trouble, I mean I should expect as much when it has 2 full drives, a third drive that's half full and the thing is like 5 or 7 years old or something (I don't recall exactly when I bought it). I need to get on it though.
Goal Number Seven - Have Seven New Experiences: Still at 2/7 on this one, which is still good after 2 months since that means I just have 5 more to go, and I know we'll get a few more as the year goes. Perhaps I should look into things and actually plan out some new items. Any suggestions of things I should try?
So there we go, month two and that's where we're at.
Sunday, March 3, 2013
The Lion King
As expected there were also additional songs that were added to the show, however these I didn't love. For example I really like the adaptation they did on Beauty and the Beast, the songs they added were really good, and I may like the musical version better than the cartoon. Unfortunately the same isn't true for the Lion King, because I just didn't find the songs all that great musically. There really wasn't anything special about them, it was like bad ideas that should have been cut. I also felt that there were huge pacing issues with the show where it wasn't flowing well and at times seemed to drag. I think this was most noticeable in Act I. I will say the Mufasa in the clouds effect was cool, but they could have improved it a bit with some by giving him a mane, adding some fog, and lighting. As it was it was a bit flat and I expected more in a show like that.
Overall, it was a fun show, and totally worth it to see the amazing costuming and set. I will say I felt like a lot is lost by sitting in the balcony because a lot of animals enter through the house, and I'm sure the rising sun effect is a lot cooler. So, if you get a chance see it, and try to get seats on the orchestra level.
Saturday, March 2, 2013
Release The Kracken From Lady Bracknell's Handbag
My last blog got a little long so I decided since we drove all day today that I'd save my Eddie show review for this blog. The location of the show was the Cultural Project, which is further south on Manhattan than I've really been. I mean I've been to Battery Park, the Statue, and WTC, but we took subways/cabs to get there, so really I don't count it as visiting there since it was only in transit and we didn't stop. It was a very small venue with probably only around 200 seats to it, and they didn't open the doors until about 10 minutes before the show, which was really stupid since the restrooms were through the theatre which meant they held the show for about 20 minutes because people were lined up for the can.
The show itself was good, but pretty short, only about 75-90 minutes, and there was a lot of old stuff that he was trying to build up on or convert. It seemed like perhaps he had an idea for a joke based on another joke and wanted to see how it went. One example was taking the cafeteria part of the death star bit with Darth Vader, but instead putting I think it was Jesus into it (I really can't recall who he sent to it, but it was amusing if not totally original).
There were a lot of new things I really liked though, on in particular was a bit about the Lord of the Rings where a dwarf being 2/3 of a man, and a hobbit being 1/2 a man trying to figure out how much of a man they make up since it's fractions, then he added an elf with a different fraction and had to figure it out. It was quite funny. He also had a nice bit about the wise pipe smokers and how they react to situations, in comparison to the way a cigarette smoker is more of a person who will swear and be more brisk about it. There was also a nice bit about how if praying really worked people would do it more, and how Steve prayed for 20 minutes and got the steering wheel to his Ferrari, so he'll pray more later to get the rest. Nice stuff.
Finally there was the joke that will probably never be seen again because I think only about a dozen people got it, but he went on this thing about Liam Neeson being a god in The Titans movies and how he released the Kraken, but it was kept in Lady Bracknell's handbag, which he then said "A handbag!?" There was actually a good deal related to gods, and religion, but it wasn't super harsh or anything. Overall it was a fun show, very short, and I'll be interested to see what he does for the tour. It was also fun becuase he got off on this tangent about getting caught for stealing makeup and how it was a true story that wasn't part of the show and how he'd tried to get away with it. Very fun.
Anyhow, WOO EDDIE
The show itself was good, but pretty short, only about 75-90 minutes, and there was a lot of old stuff that he was trying to build up on or convert. It seemed like perhaps he had an idea for a joke based on another joke and wanted to see how it went. One example was taking the cafeteria part of the death star bit with Darth Vader, but instead putting I think it was Jesus into it (I really can't recall who he sent to it, but it was amusing if not totally original).
There were a lot of new things I really liked though, on in particular was a bit about the Lord of the Rings where a dwarf being 2/3 of a man, and a hobbit being 1/2 a man trying to figure out how much of a man they make up since it's fractions, then he added an elf with a different fraction and had to figure it out. It was quite funny. He also had a nice bit about the wise pipe smokers and how they react to situations, in comparison to the way a cigarette smoker is more of a person who will swear and be more brisk about it. There was also a nice bit about how if praying really worked people would do it more, and how Steve prayed for 20 minutes and got the steering wheel to his Ferrari, so he'll pray more later to get the rest. Nice stuff.
Finally there was the joke that will probably never be seen again because I think only about a dozen people got it, but he went on this thing about Liam Neeson being a god in The Titans movies and how he released the Kraken, but it was kept in Lady Bracknell's handbag, which he then said "A handbag!?" There was actually a good deal related to gods, and religion, but it wasn't super harsh or anything. Overall it was a fun show, very short, and I'll be interested to see what he does for the tour. It was also fun becuase he got off on this tangent about getting caught for stealing makeup and how it was a true story that wasn't part of the show and how he'd tried to get away with it. Very fun.
Anyhow, WOO EDDIE
Friday, March 1, 2013
Seven Miles
Quite a busy day today. With our traveling last night after work we of course didn't make it all the way to New York, but instead stayed at a lovely Holiday Inn Express in Pennsylvania that is only two hours outside the city. So, we got up at a reasonable hour, and headed into the city so we could spend some time before our Eddie show. It was quite a day of moving around the city, and while we didn't *do* much we saw a lot. Jasmine has never been to NYC, so we had to get in some of the major sites so she could see what's what. We started by getting lunch and checking into our NJ hotel, then took the normal bus into the city.
Once we made it to the city we decided to head up toward FAO and Central Park since they were on the list of "must see", and of course we walked through Time Square. I'm not entirely sure but it seemed like Time Square was open to more vehicle traffic than I remember last time we went. Though last time I was too busy hating that it was such a pain in the ass to get around and there were way too many people, so I may not have noticed all the traffic. But we got to walk through Time Square, they still had the 2103 ball up (though I thought it was on the other side of the square, apparently I'm getting confused in my old age.
After that we kept walking up to Rockefeller Center where Jasmine proceeded to geek out because "no big deal" that's just where they film things and she's seen it on TV. It was actually pretty funny, in a good way. We stopped to take a look at the ice rink which they were just reopening when we arrived so we got some nice empty photos before people started using it again. There were some people also doing photo shoots and they seemed like maybe they were professional skaters. They didn't do any jumps, but I was hoping. After that we kept walking and stopped by St. Patrick's but unfortunately we didn't get a nice view of the outside because they're doing some sort of renovations on it. But, we went inside to take a look. I've actually never been inside past the entry way before, so it was interesting to walk through it. It was also interesting because I had a chance to compare and contrast with the cathedrals we visited in Europe. It's like a pretty newer version of them, though I definitly prefer the old ones of Europe.
We finally made it down to FAO Schwarts and walked around the store fore a bit. I don't think I've ever really made it all the way to the back corner where they keep all the Legos before, but we did this time. Of course there were a few life size Lego things like this Clone Trooper, but there was also the Statue of Liberty as well as Batman. So that was a good time. Also since we were in the area we took a walk down the street to visit a restaurant/store from Serendipity. I wasn't really familiar but Jasmine was kind of excited by it, so it was all in good fun. Finally we made our way to the corner of Central Park and walked around a little bit. Nothing major since we didn't have a ton of time, and there was already a lot of walking done, and our next stop was going to be Macy's which was about 30 blocks south of where we were at (yes we walked it).
So, not bad for a one day trip to the city, and really we only had from noon until 10 in the city before Eddie's show, but getting to see Time Square, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick, FAO, Central Park, Macy's, Tiffany's, and the general city of New York was pretty good. I think my favorite was that Jasmine thought that it was all just great, even the horns honking and the dirtiness of it. I mean, those aren't thing that I really find enjoyable about the city, but she did and I like that. After taking a break at Macy's we then decided to walk down to our theatre (which was way down by past where the streets have numbers (about another 35 blocks south of Macy's). We decided to walk to see if we could find somewhere to eat. We did not find somewhere to eat, but we did get super tired. I don't know why we always have such a hard time finding food in New York, but it is always an ordeal. Anyhow, that was our day in NYC, I did the Google map of it and it says we walked a little over seven miles. WOO EXERCISE. My feet hurt. Good night, few more pictures below.
Once we made it to the city we decided to head up toward FAO and Central Park since they were on the list of "must see", and of course we walked through Time Square. I'm not entirely sure but it seemed like Time Square was open to more vehicle traffic than I remember last time we went. Though last time I was too busy hating that it was such a pain in the ass to get around and there were way too many people, so I may not have noticed all the traffic. But we got to walk through Time Square, they still had the 2103 ball up (though I thought it was on the other side of the square, apparently I'm getting confused in my old age.
After that we kept walking up to Rockefeller Center where Jasmine proceeded to geek out because "no big deal" that's just where they film things and she's seen it on TV. It was actually pretty funny, in a good way. We stopped to take a look at the ice rink which they were just reopening when we arrived so we got some nice empty photos before people started using it again. There were some people also doing photo shoots and they seemed like maybe they were professional skaters. They didn't do any jumps, but I was hoping. After that we kept walking and stopped by St. Patrick's but unfortunately we didn't get a nice view of the outside because they're doing some sort of renovations on it. But, we went inside to take a look. I've actually never been inside past the entry way before, so it was interesting to walk through it. It was also interesting because I had a chance to compare and contrast with the cathedrals we visited in Europe. It's like a pretty newer version of them, though I definitly prefer the old ones of Europe.
So, not bad for a one day trip to the city, and really we only had from noon until 10 in the city before Eddie's show, but getting to see Time Square, Rockefeller Center, St. Patrick, FAO, Central Park, Macy's, Tiffany's, and the general city of New York was pretty good. I think my favorite was that Jasmine thought that it was all just great, even the horns honking and the dirtiness of it. I mean, those aren't thing that I really find enjoyable about the city, but she did and I like that. After taking a break at Macy's we then decided to walk down to our theatre (which was way down by past where the streets have numbers (about another 35 blocks south of Macy's). We decided to walk to see if we could find somewhere to eat. We did not find somewhere to eat, but we did get super tired. I don't know why we always have such a hard time finding food in New York, but it is always an ordeal. Anyhow, that was our day in NYC, I did the Google map of it and it says we walked a little over seven miles. WOO EXERCISE. My feet hurt. Good night, few more pictures below.
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