Marc
There are two great powers, and they've been fighting since time began. Every advance in human life, every scrap of knowledge and wisdom and decency we have has been torn by one side from the teeth of the other. Every little increase in human freedom has been fought over ferociously between those who want us to know more and be wiser and stronger, and those who want us to obey and be humble and submit. -- from The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman
One. Fine, Jesse. I'll bite. The above quote is from the second book of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy. It's a modern re-telling of Milton's Paradise Lost and -- believe it or not -- a young adult fantasy book at the same time. For most people, the word "fantasy" turns them off, but I'm here to tell you something -- these are probably some of the most interesting books I've read in a really long time. I don't see how kids would get them, to be honest. But here's the coolest part -- They have a lot to do with free will and choice, in kind of the same way that Paradise Lost deals with the same issues, but more on the opposite side of the spectrum. The professor for the class was even considering having us watch The Matrix in class, because again, the same issues are at play -- choice, free will, fate, destiny, etc, etc. I had a midterm conference with her on Tuesday and somehow convinced her to watch not just The Matrix, but also The Matrix Reloaded as well. That's right. We're going to be watching movies for the last few weeks of class, all on account of my dizzying intellect.
Two. I've also been teaching quite a bit, recently. I've discovered two things about myself through the experiences: one, I don't fear teaching anymore. As in, I don't lay awake the night before thinking of the things that could go wrong, and how the kids won't get what I'm saying, and so forth. I've gotten comfortable sitting in front of the classes, despite the fact that I have block scheduling and my periods are 80 minutes long. And, two, I cannot stop myself from saying "word" to my students when I think that they've hit on a good point. It's unbelievable. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me. Student: Hey, Mr. H__, I was thinking that maybe ___ really just wants to ___ because ____. Me: Word. Entire Class: Did he just say 'word'? (giggles)
Three. The Cubs. I've tried to post a couple times, but every time I try I start to write something about the Cubs -- much the same as right now -- and I start to get really upset. I was even telling Jesse on the phone a week or two ago about how the world seemed like a better place for those two weeks that the Cubs were in the playoffs. People were smiling and excited and (Scooter will love this part) holding doors open for one another and even saying "thank you" as they walked through. It was just real nice to be in either Normal or Chicago at the time. If you were wearing a Cubs hat -- and believe me, most everyone was wearing something with a Cubs logo on it -- it was almost as if you were in some sort of secret, though not secret at all, fan club, and you were rewarded with passersby being kindly to you. I enjoyed it until the day after Game 6 of the NLCS. It was over at that point, and everyone knew it. Even my internship professor, who by all accounts is interested in nothing but urban history, said to me on the eve of Game 7, "I've heard, I think, that last night's game was ... what's the word ... epic! Are you okay?" Now everything in Normal is, quite sadly, back to normal. Fucking Cubs.
Four. I challenge every one else to post today. I'd actually just like to hear how everyone's doing. Besides Zach, I haven't had the chance to see anyone in quite a while. Scoot and Matt, Rick's been talking to John about going to his studio to do some recording over the course of a weekend around Christmast or New Year's. I'm totally down, mostly because I think it would be fun to sit around with beer and guitars and dudes and hang out for a while. Zach, we should also probably get you to lay down your most famous work, "The Care Bear Song." Whaddayasay, fellas? Now ... post.
Up Next: KEXP Acoustic Set by Ben Gibbard; The Californian by Sunday's Best; and, Deloused in the Cormatorium by the Mars Volta.
Tomorrow: blog?
There are two great powers, and they've been fighting since time began. Every advance in human life, every scrap of knowledge and wisdom and decency we have has been torn by one side from the teeth of the other. Every little increase in human freedom has been fought over ferociously between those who want us to know more and be wiser and stronger, and those who want us to obey and be humble and submit. -- from The Subtle Knife by Philip Pullman
One. Fine, Jesse. I'll bite. The above quote is from the second book of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials Trilogy. It's a modern re-telling of Milton's Paradise Lost and -- believe it or not -- a young adult fantasy book at the same time. For most people, the word "fantasy" turns them off, but I'm here to tell you something -- these are probably some of the most interesting books I've read in a really long time. I don't see how kids would get them, to be honest. But here's the coolest part -- They have a lot to do with free will and choice, in kind of the same way that Paradise Lost deals with the same issues, but more on the opposite side of the spectrum. The professor for the class was even considering having us watch The Matrix in class, because again, the same issues are at play -- choice, free will, fate, destiny, etc, etc. I had a midterm conference with her on Tuesday and somehow convinced her to watch not just The Matrix, but also The Matrix Reloaded as well. That's right. We're going to be watching movies for the last few weeks of class, all on account of my dizzying intellect.
Two. I've also been teaching quite a bit, recently. I've discovered two things about myself through the experiences: one, I don't fear teaching anymore. As in, I don't lay awake the night before thinking of the things that could go wrong, and how the kids won't get what I'm saying, and so forth. I've gotten comfortable sitting in front of the classes, despite the fact that I have block scheduling and my periods are 80 minutes long. And, two, I cannot stop myself from saying "word" to my students when I think that they've hit on a good point. It's unbelievable. I don't know what the hell is wrong with me. Student: Hey, Mr. H__, I was thinking that maybe ___ really just wants to ___ because ____. Me: Word. Entire Class: Did he just say 'word'? (giggles)
Three. The Cubs. I've tried to post a couple times, but every time I try I start to write something about the Cubs -- much the same as right now -- and I start to get really upset. I was even telling Jesse on the phone a week or two ago about how the world seemed like a better place for those two weeks that the Cubs were in the playoffs. People were smiling and excited and (Scooter will love this part) holding doors open for one another and even saying "thank you" as they walked through. It was just real nice to be in either Normal or Chicago at the time. If you were wearing a Cubs hat -- and believe me, most everyone was wearing something with a Cubs logo on it -- it was almost as if you were in some sort of secret, though not secret at all, fan club, and you were rewarded with passersby being kindly to you. I enjoyed it until the day after Game 6 of the NLCS. It was over at that point, and everyone knew it. Even my internship professor, who by all accounts is interested in nothing but urban history, said to me on the eve of Game 7, "I've heard, I think, that last night's game was ... what's the word ... epic! Are you okay?" Now everything in Normal is, quite sadly, back to normal. Fucking Cubs.
Four. I challenge every one else to post today. I'd actually just like to hear how everyone's doing. Besides Zach, I haven't had the chance to see anyone in quite a while. Scoot and Matt, Rick's been talking to John about going to his studio to do some recording over the course of a weekend around Christmast or New Year's. I'm totally down, mostly because I think it would be fun to sit around with beer and guitars and dudes and hang out for a while. Zach, we should also probably get you to lay down your most famous work, "The Care Bear Song." Whaddayasay, fellas? Now ... post.
Up Next: KEXP Acoustic Set by Ben Gibbard; The Californian by Sunday's Best; and, Deloused in the Cormatorium by the Mars Volta.
Tomorrow: blog?
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