since arthur's out for the weekend, lyris and i supervised Hosanna's program: Fear Factor. i ate some very incongruous food items. the worst, by far, was the banana mash with kiwi, raw onion bits swirled within a mixture of vinegar. it looked like snot and tasted like vomit.
when the girls cleaned up their stations, they got washcloths to wipe the table and brush crumbs and particulate matter into the plates for disposal.
when the guys cleaned up their stations, they got half a stack of paper towel and created lovely piles of used paper towel on the table and on the floor. then they rubbed them in each other's faces.
also titled: "Objection Overruled", or "If things don't work out, you can always go to law school"
By Taylor Mali
a fellow student shared this with my english class.
read-along! since it is transcribed, the structure is probably not as he wrote it, but my best approximation given what i might have done if i were the author.
He says the problem with teachers is, "What's a kid going to learn from someone who decided his best option in life was to become a teacher?"
[laughs]
He reminds the other dinner guests that it's true what they say about teachers: That those who can, do; those who can't, teach.
[laughs]
I decide to bite my tongue instead of his and resist the urge to remind the other dinner guests that it's also true what they say about lawyers, Because we're eating, after all, and this is polite conversation.
"I mean, you're a teacher, Taylor, Be honest. What do you make?"
And I wish he hadn't done that (asked me to be honest), because you see, I have a policy about honesty and ass-kicking: which is, if you ask for it, then I have to let you have it.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids work harder than they ever thought they could. I can make a C+ feel like a Congressional medal of honor and I can make an A- feel like a slap in the face. "How dare you waste my time with anything less than your very best."
You want to know what I make?
I make kids sit through 40 minutes of study hall in absolute silence. "No, you cannot work in groups." "No, you can't ask a question, so put your hand down." "Why won't I let you go to the bathroom? Because you're bored and you don't really have to go, do you?"
You want to know what I make?
I make parents tremble in fear when I call home at around dinner time: "Hi, This is Mr. Mali, I hope I haven't called at a bad time, I just wanted to talk to you about something your son did today. He said, 'Leave the kid alone. I still cry sometimes, don't you?' And it was the noblest act of courage that I have ever seen." I make parents see their children for who they are and who they can be.
You want to know what I make?
I make kids question. I make'm criticize. I make'm apologize and mean it. I make'm write, write, write, and then I make'm read. I make'm spell definitely beautiful, definitely beautiful, definitely beautiful, over and over again, until they will never misspell either one of those words again. I make them show all their work in math. And then hide it on their final drafts in English.
I make'm realize that if you got this [points to head] then you follow this, [points to heart] and if someone ever tries to judge you, based on what you make, you give them this! [brandishes finger]
Let me break it down for you, Let me break it down for you, so you know what I say is true: I make a [gorram] difference! Now, what about you?
the beginning of the school season also marks the beginning of the television season and the hockey season; it also marks the beginning of my descent into academic purgatory on account of all the above.
anyway, here is a list of the stuff i am watching, or will be watching, in case you are interested (since i have good tv taste, right?).
Avatar: The Last Airbender - Book 3: Fire Genre: Animated Action/Comedy though it is aimed at the under 18 demographic, the show's depth, excellent writing, spot-on character voicing and stellar animation sets it a cut above all other kids shows. season 3 was originally slated to be the final act of the 3-part story, but it looks like there will be 3 more seasons following this one as well as a live-action movie trilogy helmed by M. Night Shyamalan.
Dexter - Season 2 Genre: Live-action Thriller/Drama/Comedy the heavily serial nature of this show makes it difficult to watch part way through a season as themes, motifs and story arcs run season-long. but it also makes this show difficult to put down once you've started. i watched season 1 straight through in about 3 days. it walks a fine twisted line between the darkest abyss of human savagery and slightly off-beat black humour. unlike Avatar, i would not watch this with kids.
Pushing Daisies - Season 1 Genre: Live-action Fantasy Drama/Comedy/Procedural this show just premiered last week and it has already hooked me. it might have something to do with the whacky premise. it might have something to do with the fantastic colours. it probably has a lot to do with the way it reminds me of Amelie. there was even a scene in the pilot episode ("Pie-lette") that had a song from Amelie playing in the background. the lead actress, Anna Friel, reminds me of the canceled Standoff's Rosmarie DeWitt.
Smallville - Season 7 Genre: Live-action Action/Soap Opera this is one of my guilty pleasures. the writing is crappy and sappy. half of the acting is pretty sucky. and again, the writing is REALLY REALLY crappy. but still i watch it. because it's Superman, pre-flight.
The Office - Season 4 Genre: Live-action Comedy this show has almost everything i've ever wanted in a show: smart writing, humour (ranging from flagarantly crude to subtle snark), eye-candy, witty dialogue and videography, and characters that i care about. the only thing that's missing is action (but there is some of that).
come January, some other shows will be coming back: Battlestar Galactica - Season 4 Genre: Live-action Science Fiction Action/Drama this show can take you to moral, ethical, political, legal, social, and personal places you couldn't possibly grasp on your own. just because it is set in space does not mean they don't deal with racism, elitism, discrimination, love, justice, violence, etc. the dialogue is... not memorable, but the fully developed characters are. sometimes you'll find yourself saying, "Admiral Adama would not have allowed that," when watching the politcal reports on the news. sadly, season 4 will be the last one.
Psych - Season 2 (second half) Genre: Live-action Procedural/Comedy you know all those shows that have cropped up recently that are based on Sherlock Holmes? let me refresh your memory: House, Monk, Bones, CSI, blah blah blah... anyways, Psych is the funny version. it reminds me very much of Scrubs. it is a very self-aware comedy that is not afraid to poke fun of itself and the genre of police procedurals.
i've been meaning to write about this topic, but haven't been able to articulate myself to any degree of satisfaction. this is because it is part of a larger socio-psychological theory that i am currently trying to synthesize that requires a bit of background with the kinetic-molecular theory, the wave-particle theory, the resonance phenomenon, Heisenberg's Uncertainty Principle and Vygotsky's theory of social transmission. at the moment, i do not have time to elaborate enough on all of them in any cohesive manner, and as such, you all remain woefully deprived of my brain-barf (in writing at least; i can probably speak about it).
today, however, i was shown the following video, which touches on what i wanted to say more succinctly and powerfully.
basically i've been noticing that we often make decisions for ourselves without really considering what affect it might have on those around us. my generation has been brought up not to worry about what others think of us (individually), but this only applies in the context of preserving self-esteem in the face of bullying. to extend this idealogy to all facets of life would be a mistake.
each and every person (that reads this blog at least) has someone in his or her life that respects him or her; that is to say that you all have an influence over someone or many someones. influence is a responsibility. so when you decide to do a big something, you have to remember that someone is watching what you do, without the benefit of knowing why you are doing it. this doesn't only apply to physical 'seeing'; your online actions, as well as your actions transmitted through hearsay, are also equally scrutinized. this is not to say that the Pharisees had the right idea about acting holier than thou art; their problem was that of hypocrisy -- it was all only an act.
though it is just a throwaway line that has become a catchphrase for a tertiary character in a long-running cartoon,
"Won't somebody please think of the children?" - Mrs. Lovejoy
last Thursday, a lady from student services at the school came to our class to brief us on what to expect for our practice teaching placements (practicums). much of it was usual stuff like police clearance to work in a vulnerable sector, checking with school administrators about parking situations, dress code, what to do if you get an associate teacher (the mentor) who foists all of his or her workload on to you from the get go, etc.
we were also warned about online issues. Facebook users were encouraged to set their profiles to private because students will inevitably look you up wherever they can (students who google me up will be in for a rude/pleasantsurprise. i will probably have to lock down this blog for a brief period of time). instances of cyber-bullying have occured, among other things. we are also not to give out personal email addresses because some students will try to contact you out of adoration, or malice, depending on what sort of teacher you are. in her own words, "i remember falling in love with a student teacher when i was fifteen," so that made me feel icky for the rest of the day. so now, in addition to learning how to plan lessons, units, curricula and deal with the office politics and social situations that occur in school, i must also train myself to deflect misguided hormone missiles teenage puppy-love. i should get some bowling shirts.
What you do speaks so loud that I cannot hear what you say.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
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marveling at the ingenuity of the U2410's adjustable stand. The stand's monitor holder is spring loaded on a tilt axis as well as on a vertical slider. They have just the right amount of spring force that the mass of the monitor itself puts the system into an equilibrium at whatever height or angle desired, obviating the relics of monitor adjusters like screws and knobs and position locks.
