Well, hello out there!
How're things going?
Yeah? Oh, that sounds nice!
So, it was a great weekend.
We went to KC for a couple of reasons. On Saturday morning, I had my first job interview in the KC area. I thought it went swimmingly, and I'm really looking forward to hearing about it in the next week or so. (They send out a letter.) Stay tuned!!!
Sunday, finally, we got to meet with our midwife. That was awesome. She told us that everything is going along well, and that she thinks things are fine. We listened to the heartbeat again, and she said that she thought it sounded like a boy's. (We're not finding out, so this isn't definite, but, well, it sounded awesome. (c; )
Then we came back to Kville and we have five days left til Spring Break. We're going back to KC to look for a house. Busy, busy, busy. (c;
Still reading the Counterinsurgency Manual. I'm on the appendices, so it shouldn't be too long now. What are you reading now?
Thanks for stopping by...
Tommy
Monday, February 26, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Won't Get Fooled Again!
Hey everyone! I am still alive and kicking. Things are going well here in the 'ville.
Tim, I got your message today, and I didn't get a chance to call you back. I'd love to hang out sometime soon. Let me know when you're coming up.
This weekend was a great one. Friday night I worked at Il Spazio, and Bibi was going to go back to KC for the weekend, but Friday night it started snowing, and snowing, and snowing and then it just kept right on snowing. So, Bibi did not go back to KC. After work, we hung out and called it a night fairly early. Saturday we got up and Bibi went to a meeting called "Birth Circle" for women who are recent mothers or mothers-to-be. She had fun; I, in the meantime, got some dishes done and read. (More on that later.)
Saturday night I worked again, and Sunday was a LAZY day. We watched some shows that we have taped, and just hung out. Monday I hung out at Java Co, read, and hung out with some friends. (It was wonderful.)
Last night--Monday night--Bibi and I wanted to try out a new recipe, so we got out one of our cookbooks, and made a traditional Irish dish called Colcannon. It was deli-wait for it!!--cious.
All right. So, now on to the literary updates.
Apparently the book that I talked about last time, the Newberry Award winner, has caused quite a stir on the internet. And, as it's getting a lot of buzz, I don't feel too bad naming the book here. It was called "The Higher Power of Lucky" by Susan Patron. And, if you google it, you'll find all manner of arguments regarding its value as a book because of it's use of the word scrotum. Now, I don't know if I stated my feelings clearly enough last week, so I'll say them again here....the word scrotum is not what I have a problem with. The fact that this book was recognized as the best of the best for children's literature is what I have a problem with. (It's just not that good.)
And, what am I reading now, you may ask? (Ok, so, maybe you don't care what I'm reading now. If not, then why in the world are you still reading? That's what this blog is about!) I just picked up a copy of Lt. General David Petraeus' "Counterinsurgency Manual" for the United States Army. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the name, he was just made the head honcho of all the troops in Iraq, and last summer he wrote a new version of the counterinsurgency manual for all the armed forces. I thought I would check it out, as he has some pretty revolutionary theories on fighting the insurgency in Iraq (i.e.: making the Iraqi people secure is a task that will require something more than just bullets and tanks, and that in order to successfully complete the tast ahead of our troops, our number one goal is to put the Iraqi people in charge of their own future.) In know...wild, isn't it?
All right, so let me leave you all with a thought: Last week the House of Representatives debated (fairly pathetically) the issue of whether or not to pass a non-binding resolution against President Bush's troop surge plan. The senate wasn't even able to debate it, and the proposed vote failed. Now, here are my questions: 1) What the hell good is a "non-binding resolution?, and 2) Isn't it the job of the American people to protest when they disagree with the actions of their government, and isn't it the job of the government to, you know, actually DO something about it, instead of attempting to pass purely symbolic, and in reality absolutely meaningless "resolutions"?
Your thoughts....
(Thanks for stopping by!!)
Tommy
Tim, I got your message today, and I didn't get a chance to call you back. I'd love to hang out sometime soon. Let me know when you're coming up.
This weekend was a great one. Friday night I worked at Il Spazio, and Bibi was going to go back to KC for the weekend, but Friday night it started snowing, and snowing, and snowing and then it just kept right on snowing. So, Bibi did not go back to KC. After work, we hung out and called it a night fairly early. Saturday we got up and Bibi went to a meeting called "Birth Circle" for women who are recent mothers or mothers-to-be. She had fun; I, in the meantime, got some dishes done and read. (More on that later.)
Saturday night I worked again, and Sunday was a LAZY day. We watched some shows that we have taped, and just hung out. Monday I hung out at Java Co, read, and hung out with some friends. (It was wonderful.)
Last night--Monday night--Bibi and I wanted to try out a new recipe, so we got out one of our cookbooks, and made a traditional Irish dish called Colcannon. It was deli-wait for it!!--cious.
All right. So, now on to the literary updates.
Apparently the book that I talked about last time, the Newberry Award winner, has caused quite a stir on the internet. And, as it's getting a lot of buzz, I don't feel too bad naming the book here. It was called "The Higher Power of Lucky" by Susan Patron. And, if you google it, you'll find all manner of arguments regarding its value as a book because of it's use of the word scrotum. Now, I don't know if I stated my feelings clearly enough last week, so I'll say them again here....the word scrotum is not what I have a problem with. The fact that this book was recognized as the best of the best for children's literature is what I have a problem with. (It's just not that good.)
And, what am I reading now, you may ask? (Ok, so, maybe you don't care what I'm reading now. If not, then why in the world are you still reading? That's what this blog is about!) I just picked up a copy of Lt. General David Petraeus' "Counterinsurgency Manual" for the United States Army. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the name, he was just made the head honcho of all the troops in Iraq, and last summer he wrote a new version of the counterinsurgency manual for all the armed forces. I thought I would check it out, as he has some pretty revolutionary theories on fighting the insurgency in Iraq (i.e.: making the Iraqi people secure is a task that will require something more than just bullets and tanks, and that in order to successfully complete the tast ahead of our troops, our number one goal is to put the Iraqi people in charge of their own future.) In know...wild, isn't it?
All right, so let me leave you all with a thought: Last week the House of Representatives debated (fairly pathetically) the issue of whether or not to pass a non-binding resolution against President Bush's troop surge plan. The senate wasn't even able to debate it, and the proposed vote failed. Now, here are my questions: 1) What the hell good is a "non-binding resolution?, and 2) Isn't it the job of the American people to protest when they disagree with the actions of their government, and isn't it the job of the government to, you know, actually DO something about it, instead of attempting to pass purely symbolic, and in reality absolutely meaningless "resolutions"?
Your thoughts....
(Thanks for stopping by!!)
Tommy
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Easy like Sunday morning....
Greetings readers!
The end of the week was good. Thursday night Bibi and I made chocolate chip cookies and they were good.
Friday was good as well. I went to work (I'm back at Il Spazio) and then Bibi and I went to a get together for some of her sorority sisters, and that was fun. Saturday we just hung out with a friend who came over to work with me on my iPod. (Good stuff--thanks Dan!!). Then, we cleaned up a little around the house, and I went to work again. It was a really weird, slow night.
During all of these things, I was reading a new book. On Friday I finished "You Suck" by Christopher Moore, and it was succulent. (Har dee har har.) However, I needed a new book, and so I went to talk to my school librarian. She was excited to see me, because we often talk about new kids books and developments in the realm of children's lit. So, here's the deal...
There's this new book. I don't want to be too specific, but it is the 2007 Newberry Award winner. (That means that it is being acknowledged as the best of books written specifically for children.) However, in the first page there are references to decidedly un-childlike topics. And, on page nine, the entire page is dedicated to that same topic. At first glance, having only seen those two pages, I was chagrined and taken aback. See, I'm not for censorship AT ALL. However, common sense has to play a huge part in determining whether or not a given reading material is appropriate for a specific age group. I was really, really torn. There are a lot of factors to consider: value of the rest of the piece, importance of the questionable material in context, and the literary "worth" of the piece as a whole. For example, I feel that Huck Finn, an unbelievably excellent book, is important as a whole because the use of the controversial "n word" is purposeful and designed to highlight the hypocracy of racism in general, and slavery specifically.
So, I read the book. And, here are my conclusions: While the book deals with some excellent topics, i.e.: abandonment, death, belonging, redemption, family, finding one's "higher power" and making responsible decisions, just to name a few, it does so in a way that does not redeem the use of the questionable material. It's good, but...it's not THAT good. I think that it is appropriate for older kids, and since my kids are the oldest kids in my school, and the book would be available to younger, less emotionally mature kids, it probably isn't the best option to put it in our library, but placing it at the middle school would be a good choice.
So, here's my question for you....
Censorship...a necessary evil, or needlessly draconian administrative micromanagement tool? And, are there any books that you've read that should, or should NOT have been censored?
Discuss....
The end of the week was good. Thursday night Bibi and I made chocolate chip cookies and they were good.
Friday was good as well. I went to work (I'm back at Il Spazio) and then Bibi and I went to a get together for some of her sorority sisters, and that was fun. Saturday we just hung out with a friend who came over to work with me on my iPod. (Good stuff--thanks Dan!!). Then, we cleaned up a little around the house, and I went to work again. It was a really weird, slow night.
During all of these things, I was reading a new book. On Friday I finished "You Suck" by Christopher Moore, and it was succulent. (Har dee har har.) However, I needed a new book, and so I went to talk to my school librarian. She was excited to see me, because we often talk about new kids books and developments in the realm of children's lit. So, here's the deal...
There's this new book. I don't want to be too specific, but it is the 2007 Newberry Award winner. (That means that it is being acknowledged as the best of books written specifically for children.) However, in the first page there are references to decidedly un-childlike topics. And, on page nine, the entire page is dedicated to that same topic. At first glance, having only seen those two pages, I was chagrined and taken aback. See, I'm not for censorship AT ALL. However, common sense has to play a huge part in determining whether or not a given reading material is appropriate for a specific age group. I was really, really torn. There are a lot of factors to consider: value of the rest of the piece, importance of the questionable material in context, and the literary "worth" of the piece as a whole. For example, I feel that Huck Finn, an unbelievably excellent book, is important as a whole because the use of the controversial "n word" is purposeful and designed to highlight the hypocracy of racism in general, and slavery specifically.
So, I read the book. And, here are my conclusions: While the book deals with some excellent topics, i.e.: abandonment, death, belonging, redemption, family, finding one's "higher power" and making responsible decisions, just to name a few, it does so in a way that does not redeem the use of the questionable material. It's good, but...it's not THAT good. I think that it is appropriate for older kids, and since my kids are the oldest kids in my school, and the book would be available to younger, less emotionally mature kids, it probably isn't the best option to put it in our library, but placing it at the middle school would be a good choice.
So, here's my question for you....
Censorship...a necessary evil, or needlessly draconian administrative micromanagement tool? And, are there any books that you've read that should, or should NOT have been censored?
Discuss....
Wednesday, February 07, 2007
It's been awhile...
Hey everyone. Sorry about the lapse in posts...I don't really have a good excuse....so, I'll make one up.
Space monkeys. Space monkeys came and messed with our internet connection. There were wires and fiber optics and little bits of space monkey everywhere. Very messy.
Anyway, I'm back!
Let's see...so, last time I posted I talked about my new music plan for my classroom. So far it's been really cool. My class enjoyed Pachelbel's Canon in D, and now they're enjoying Beethoven's 14th Sonata, better known as the "Moonlight Sonata." I've also really enjoyed getting the suggestions from those of you who have made comments. I think I've got a bit more than I bargained for--there is a LOT of very significant music out there, you know? (c;
Last night, after watching American Idol, which we love, Bibi and I had a BLAST doing the dishes. I know, I know, we're such dorks, but we were rocking out to James Brown in the kitchen doing ridiculous little dances and just all and all having a blast. It was really fun. (It's an amazing thing when you get to spend your life with your best friend!!!)
On the literary front, I've read quite a few books in the hiatus. I read a book called, "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Toll. VERY interesting book. It's about spirituality, reality, time, evanescence (the quality, not the musical group) and the nature of our existence. Very interesting book. I'd recommend it highly.
After that I read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. It's a very interesting and skillfully crafted tale about a Greek family that came to the US in the 1920s. It follows the family line through three generations while exploring issues such as national pride, war, politics, sexuality, gender, family, adolescence, and the value and importance of death as it relates to life. The narrator is a hermaphrodite born and raised as a girl who then realizes that he is actually male. The author, Eugenides, does an amazing job of allowing the narrator to "sound" feminine as a child and preteen, conflicted as all teenagers are as a teenager, and then masculine later in life.
Very well told story. Again, I'd recommend it.
I also read a book on the Bradley Method of childbirth. That was really interesting. I learned SO much about childbirth, labor, the female body and the miracle of life. Even if you're not going for a natural childbirth, I'd recommend it as a refresher for that unit during high school on human reproduction. (c;
And, now, I'm reading the new book by Christopher Moore. It's called....(wait for it...) "You Suck: A Love Story". It's a sequal to Moore's comedic smash, "Bloodsucking Fiends", also a love story. (With vampires.) So far, hilarious. At one point, Moore refers to someone who gestures wildly with his hands as having "ASL Tourettes". (c;
All right. That's all. Hope you're all having a great time out there. Anyone else counting down to Lost's return tonight?!
Congrat's to Matt and Courtney...(don't forget...I'll perform the ceremony if you'll let me!!!!)
Thanks for stopping by ya'll!
Tommy
Space monkeys. Space monkeys came and messed with our internet connection. There were wires and fiber optics and little bits of space monkey everywhere. Very messy.
Anyway, I'm back!
Let's see...so, last time I posted I talked about my new music plan for my classroom. So far it's been really cool. My class enjoyed Pachelbel's Canon in D, and now they're enjoying Beethoven's 14th Sonata, better known as the "Moonlight Sonata." I've also really enjoyed getting the suggestions from those of you who have made comments. I think I've got a bit more than I bargained for--there is a LOT of very significant music out there, you know? (c;
Last night, after watching American Idol, which we love, Bibi and I had a BLAST doing the dishes. I know, I know, we're such dorks, but we were rocking out to James Brown in the kitchen doing ridiculous little dances and just all and all having a blast. It was really fun. (It's an amazing thing when you get to spend your life with your best friend!!!)
On the literary front, I've read quite a few books in the hiatus. I read a book called, "The Power of Now" by Eckhart Toll. VERY interesting book. It's about spirituality, reality, time, evanescence (the quality, not the musical group) and the nature of our existence. Very interesting book. I'd recommend it highly.
After that I read Middlesex by Jeffrey Eugenides. It's a very interesting and skillfully crafted tale about a Greek family that came to the US in the 1920s. It follows the family line through three generations while exploring issues such as national pride, war, politics, sexuality, gender, family, adolescence, and the value and importance of death as it relates to life. The narrator is a hermaphrodite born and raised as a girl who then realizes that he is actually male. The author, Eugenides, does an amazing job of allowing the narrator to "sound" feminine as a child and preteen, conflicted as all teenagers are as a teenager, and then masculine later in life.
Very well told story. Again, I'd recommend it.
I also read a book on the Bradley Method of childbirth. That was really interesting. I learned SO much about childbirth, labor, the female body and the miracle of life. Even if you're not going for a natural childbirth, I'd recommend it as a refresher for that unit during high school on human reproduction. (c;
And, now, I'm reading the new book by Christopher Moore. It's called....(wait for it...) "You Suck: A Love Story". It's a sequal to Moore's comedic smash, "Bloodsucking Fiends", also a love story. (With vampires.) So far, hilarious. At one point, Moore refers to someone who gestures wildly with his hands as having "ASL Tourettes". (c;
All right. That's all. Hope you're all having a great time out there. Anyone else counting down to Lost's return tonight?!
Congrat's to Matt and Courtney...(don't forget...I'll perform the ceremony if you'll let me!!!!)
Thanks for stopping by ya'll!
Tommy
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