Miscellaneous Missives

As many know, the first time I voted was for Jesse Ventura. I was proud to have voted in an election in which an Independent was voted governor until I watched him govern. Recently I watched this interview with Keith Olbermann. IMHO, it shows Ventura as an intelligent well spoken individual. Maybe politics wasn't his venue, but his latest interviews make me understand my initial vote.

A friend visited this evening. We have been trying to get together since I moved in last summer, but we haven't been able to make it work. Over FB we were finally decided to meet this evening. It was wonderful to converse and "get caught up." She also brought the most wonderful housewarming gift that she made for my new place. Almost 11 months later, and I'm still receiving housewarming gifts. Life is good!

Today for the second time this year, our middle school sent all of the children out into the community to volunteer. In the fall my group of students helped at the elementary schools. This morning they traveled to Feed my Starving Children. Before we went, I showed this video and explained that when they went to the elementary schools, they changed someone's life for a day; today they would changes someone's life forever. I understand this was a little melodramatic, but I wanted them to understand the importance. When the came back from the elementary schools, they had the "instant gratification" because they were able to feel the hugs and view the smiles. Our discussion upon the return proved that they understood the importance of volunteering and realized they did make a difference. I feel privileged to work at a school that cares...

Allergies and perhaps a cold have left me debilitated. Sleeping, drinking fluids, and blowing my nose have become my life for the last three days. My evening will include watching liberal television and sleeping. Although I had to take a minute to post when I heard this on MSNBC. RNC= Rush (Limbaugh) - Newt (Gingrich) - Cheney (Dick-- what a perfect name!) I was humored. It must be difficult to be a sane Republican these days. Oh, there are sane Republicans... right?

In language arts we are working on the writing process. I am trying to take my students through the steps of writing (prewrite, rough draft, revision (major changes), editing (smaller changes), and final draft). Each student is at a different step in the process which is aggravating since it's the end of the year, and many students are not being productive. Most students are supposed to be on the editing although some students are still working on their rough draft. This afternoon after a harrowing day, I was looking at a boy's paper with him. M- "Are you going to put an apostrophe in lets?" S- "No, it's lets." M- "Yes, let's stands for let us." S- "No it doesn't" M- "Really? Yes, it stands for let us" S- "That doesn't make sense it's not a question." I get what he meant by the question since he is thinking of let as, "Is it OK?" The conversation continued although he still didn...

Yesterday I listened to James Lawson . Lawson was jailed in 1951 for refusing to be part of the draft for the Korean War. He was later expelled from Vanderbilt University in response to his nonviolent organization during the times of segregation. This 80 year old man captivated the audience for 60 minutes. Many went down after to have breakfast with him and continue the conversation. Of course I was impressed because he studied with Gandhi and helped Martin Luther King Jr. His message is nonviolence which is fitting for Memorial Day. As he answered one question, he reminded us that war has not worked for hundreds of years. Why do we think it will work now? As Ellison had mentioned the week before, we need to work together to end the violence and promote peace. Part of his message highlighted what has worked in America (suffrage movement and civil rights movement). Although this was meant to give us the hope that we can end war, I wonder if Americans are too lazy to organize mo...

Today I planted parsley and chives from seeds and some cilantro. They are next to their lettuce, spinach, and basil counterparts. Planting, placing, and watering was a breeze. I also planted three cherry tomato plants and one slicing tomato plant. Although the planting was easy, the placing and watering was difficult. These plants are 144 steps up to the deck. By the time they were placed and watered, I was exhausted. This does not say anything good about my aerobic exercise routine. Maybe after I haul two containers of water up the 144 steps for a couple of weeks, I'll be able to do it without breathing heavy.