d.i.a.b.

if you didn't already notice, take the poll at the top of this page on what i should dress up as for the halloween parade at school. fun! (i know: i should go as mr. garcia...!!! maybe next year...) since you already know what i look like in a DEV-O radiation suit, here's a picture of my colleague from stevenson, (and member of the whittier masters cohort) mr. r. and me dressed as the d. in a box guys from the SNL skit. (warning: adult language)

shout out to ms. velez for the fun halloween party friday night. thanks for letting us share our "gifts" with everyone!

4 electric seconds

not really related to teaching (although i did bring in my drums this past week to share with my students), i just realized i hadn't posted a video from 4 electric seconds. at the end of 2005, operator! went on a long-term hiatus due to many reasons, not the least of which was that the lead singer and lead guitarist were having a baby. i had just joined the thingz (after being unceremoniously kicked out of sexytime explosion), and was looking to play in another band with a more "modern" sound. that's when 4ES began. here's a song called "lawrence, kansas," named after the hometown of the band we copied in this song. (bonus points if you know the name of the band!) video courtesy of c.s.

his heart

today, an amazing, inspiring "teaching moment" occurred in my classroom! no, it wasn't when my principal observed me for 45 minutes. nor was it during my algebra "review" (from 4th grade). and sadly, it wasn't during one of my favorite writing lessons (figurative language).

it was when i shared a song by the old 97's that related to our open court unit 1 theme: cooperation and competition. here are the song's lyrics:

Alone So Far

I watch, as it stops for a girl,
A moment, elaborate and weak.
I am easy in her midst,
Why elaborate, when there's no need to?

But I do, all night,
My words ring like money off a bar.
But she's here, asleep now,
One can only go alone so far.

One can only go alone so far.

I dream of a deep dark grave,
Seven feet below Saint Augustine.
And she's so easy in her breathing,
Why fall in love, when there's no need to?

But we do all night,
Sleep like spoons, forget whom we are.
But she's here, and she's wound down now.
One can only go alone so far.

One can only go alone so far.

after i played the song on my guitar, i talked about how it related to geese that fly in a V formation--they can fly farther, cooperating in a group than they can flying alone. one can only go alone so far.

since we've been studying pronouns, i asked what the rather ambiguous "it" was that "stops" in the first line of the song. i told them i thought "it" could be a car, a bus, a train, maybe time. one of my students raised his hand and set me straight:

i think "it" is his heart.

my heart stopped too, when i heard that!

just to recap: today a "teaching moment" occurred when a 10 year-old taught me what a song lyric i showed him could mean!

same as it ever was...

thanks to the wonders of online advertising, the new york times' paid subscription service is now a thing of the past. (thank you pop-up ads!) today, one of the only reasons to read the paper--paul krugman--wrote an excellent op-ed about the historic failures of the conservative movement. here's one of my favorite parts:

KRUGMAN (10/8/07): People claim to be shocked by the Bush administration’s general incompetence. But disinterest in good government has long been a principle of modern conservatism. In “The Conscience of a Conservative,” published in 1960, Barry Goldwater wrote that “I have little interest in streamlining government or making it more efficient, for I mean to reduce its size.”

this is incompetence through self-fulfilling prophecy. to wit: conservatives don't believe government works, therefore it doesn't work. (see FEMA under bush versus clinton. it's true: "heckuvajob brownie" probably knew more than james lee witt about arabian horses!)

at the end of his piece, krugman gets big props for referencing one of the great "american rock bands," the talking heads:

KRUGMAN (10/8/07): Now, as they survey the wreckage of their cause, conservatives may ask themselves: “Well, how did we get here?” They may tell themselves: “This is not my beautiful Right.” They may ask themselves: “My God, what have we done?”

But their movement is the same as it ever was. And Mr. Bush is movement conservatism’s true, loyal heir.

come on: everybody who's seen the video--sing and karate chop your arm at the same time!

same as it every was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...same as it ever was...

anniversary pt. II

today is the 1 year anniversary of my first blogpost!

...and el cumpleanos de mi padre tambien.

...yard duty and mi padre...

that's cool with me...

tambien.

anniversary

today is the anniversary of my birthday.

...and jimmy carter's, too!

...me and jimmy carter...

that's cool with me.