Monday, August 31, 2015

Three Words of Wisdom for New Professors

I was asked to attend the new faculty orientation and offer words of wisdom about teaching our students. I gave them three great words to use in the classroom and I'll share them here: “I don’t know.” It’s liberating to say "I don't know" in the classroom.

There are lots of times I'm caught off guard and there are many times I just don't have the answer. So I say things like "I have to think about that" and "I’d have to read up on that before I give you a clear and confident answer." None of us knows it all, so I take the pressure off myself by not pretending to be a know it all.


Sunday, August 30, 2015

Kleenex Commercial Accurately Points Out That Boys Care About Feelings

This commercial caught my eye this morning. A boy gives a brief sociological speech about how boys aren't all about being loud and immature. In fact, he explains, boys care about feelings. He proves it by handing a tissue to a girl who is crying about the first day of school. Not bad. I might have written the commercial a different way. Imagine the boy handing a tissue to another boy--that would have been a welcome image. As the actual commercial plays out, it could be read as a young fella helping out a young damsel in distress. It's not a perfect commercial by any stretch, but what commercial is without its flaws and critics? This one isn't bad because it acknowledges the simple truth that boys care about feelings.

Tuesday, August 11, 2015

Song of the Day - "Mystery" by Boxed In

I like this song. Especially the drums and piano.

"Inspiration comes from the most unfamiliar places" - very good line.

"What will be, will just be" - also a good line, and probably true.

Click here for background about the song or here for analysis of the lyrics.

I like how this song captures the early phase of a relationship ("Back to the place where we went slow").

"Mystery" in this song can mean lots of things -- a person's vulnerabilities, their naked truth, their naked body. When you fall for someone, you want to see everything about the person. You want to be with the person, totally. If you stay together long enough, you grow together and hopefully look back to your early days as a couple with happy memories. In times of trouble, it might even help to look back to when you first met and believed you were at your best.