"Walking on Sunshine", I wish.
Ok, well, today marks the 5th day in a row that we have had unseasonably cold weather, semi-persistent precipitation and NO sun. I feel like I'm living back in Northern Michigan. Summer came to an abrupt end this past Saturday evening. It was quite a shock after having gone to the BC soccer game with my "lil' bro", Sam, and sweating a lot - which, obviously, required ice cream afterward.
Anyway, the next day we skipped any seasonal transition and went right into late autumn. This, mind you, is not a bad thing. We had a pretty hot summer (Arkansans, hush, I left there partially to escape the unbearable heat, so I *know* how hot it is there as compared to here) for Shenandoah Valley standards, thus the cold isn't the issue as much as the cloudiness.
In fact, this morning driving to work and having to occasionally use my wipers to clear off the spittle that was infrequently coming down (reminded me of a conversation with Wegley!! HA!! kidding!!). I thought to myself, "It's no wonder I'm so tired and it seems so difficult getting going this morning, it's been 5 days with no sun!" Now, that is one thing (of many) that I liked about Arkansas, and, for the most part, Virginia, the amount of sunny days. I never really realized until I had them, just HOW much sun makes one feel better.
I know that this post is kind of random, but . . . guess what??? WE HAVE SUN!!! It made a much needed reappearance about an hour ago!! Consequently, my attitude is much better about all of the papers that I have to grade and committee work that I have coming due. I wasn't planning to post anything today, but when the sun came out, my spirit, much like the clouds, lifted and opened. It's interesting how much natural occurrences such as these can actually have a physical and/or psychological effect on us.
So, yah, I thought I'd say so.
p.s. I think that it also helps knowing that it's nearly the weekend. As well, I'm going to see a Cajun group perform on Friday night, they're called Beau Soleil (Beautiful Sun) - - Coincidence, or not!?!?! ;-)~
Thursday, September 14, 2006
Monday, September 11, 2006
We all have a "first".
Ok, this is my first post.
I was drawn to this site by Mark & Angela and their insistence that I come and see. Come and see pictures of their wonderful children who have adopted me as "Uncle Charlie" and whom I've greatly missed since my move from SEArk to the Shenandoah Valley 2.25 years ago. I love the title and I love being a part of their family!
Anyway, for the past several months I have enjoyed reading their blogs (a word about which I am less than thrilled), heckling them with my typically snide remarks, and, on occasion, praising them for their insight and honesty. Due to my pestering, Angela even busted me out with a photo and surprisingly kind description. This, perhaps, to prod me into doing a blog; unsuccessfully so. Finally I noticed a comment on one of Angela's site from "The Zoo Keeper" and it lead me to Valerie's site (which I didn't know existed until my investigations). Wanting to bolster her hard work, I had to comment. However, it wouldn't allow me to post unless I had an account - intelligent safety setting. Therefore, I succumbed to their temptations and signed up in order to comment. For this reason alone, I did it without much hesitation.
I had decided that I wasn't going to post anything myself, basically because I'm not into the idea of putting my thoughts out there to be critiqued. Nonetheless, I am here. I've decided to post because last Wednesday, the 6th of September, I was lucky enough to be invited to a dinner with documentary film maker Heather Courtney. Coincidentally, she grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; a fellow homelander. As part of our "Convocation series" at Bridgewater College, where I teach Spanish & French, there was a showing of her documentary "Letters from the Other Side". I have to believe that nearly everyone there experienced a VERY moving event.
Fortunately for me, this film was very a propos as I teach a class at Bridgewater called, PDP 150. It's a freshmen required course in which they're taught transistional skills from high school to college and, most important, the skills of critical thinking, reading, and writing. This is the initiation to a career-long process of the Personal Development Program at BC. My approach, or theme for the class, if you will, is to always know the other side of anyone or any issue before making any judgement. I believe that we can only truly have understanding by experiencing, to some degree or another, what others go through before we can criticize. This film fits perfectly into my approach. It demonstrates, via a series of video letters, over a period of a year plus, how the illegal immigration issue affects families on both sides of the border. It's **very** well done, quite powerful and delivers a clear, unbiased message. I encourage you to see it. Arkansans who may be reading this, I know that she is showing her film at the Hot Springs film festival in October. Perhaps, if you can't make it there, Mark can use his powerful persuasion techniques to have it brought to UAM as part of HSFF's outreach to SEARK.
Ok, this is my first post.
I was drawn to this site by Mark & Angela and their insistence that I come and see. Come and see pictures of their wonderful children who have adopted me as "Uncle Charlie" and whom I've greatly missed since my move from SEArk to the Shenandoah Valley 2.25 years ago. I love the title and I love being a part of their family!
Anyway, for the past several months I have enjoyed reading their blogs (a word about which I am less than thrilled), heckling them with my typically snide remarks, and, on occasion, praising them for their insight and honesty. Due to my pestering, Angela even busted me out with a photo and surprisingly kind description. This, perhaps, to prod me into doing a blog; unsuccessfully so. Finally I noticed a comment on one of Angela's site from "The Zoo Keeper" and it lead me to Valerie's site (which I didn't know existed until my investigations). Wanting to bolster her hard work, I had to comment. However, it wouldn't allow me to post unless I had an account - intelligent safety setting. Therefore, I succumbed to their temptations and signed up in order to comment. For this reason alone, I did it without much hesitation.
I had decided that I wasn't going to post anything myself, basically because I'm not into the idea of putting my thoughts out there to be critiqued. Nonetheless, I am here. I've decided to post because last Wednesday, the 6th of September, I was lucky enough to be invited to a dinner with documentary film maker Heather Courtney. Coincidentally, she grew up in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan; a fellow homelander. As part of our "Convocation series" at Bridgewater College, where I teach Spanish & French, there was a showing of her documentary "Letters from the Other Side". I have to believe that nearly everyone there experienced a VERY moving event.
Fortunately for me, this film was very a propos as I teach a class at Bridgewater called, PDP 150. It's a freshmen required course in which they're taught transistional skills from high school to college and, most important, the skills of critical thinking, reading, and writing. This is the initiation to a career-long process of the Personal Development Program at BC. My approach, or theme for the class, if you will, is to always know the other side of anyone or any issue before making any judgement. I believe that we can only truly have understanding by experiencing, to some degree or another, what others go through before we can criticize. This film fits perfectly into my approach. It demonstrates, via a series of video letters, over a period of a year plus, how the illegal immigration issue affects families on both sides of the border. It's **very** well done, quite powerful and delivers a clear, unbiased message. I encourage you to see it. Arkansans who may be reading this, I know that she is showing her film at the Hot Springs film festival in October. Perhaps, if you can't make it there, Mark can use his powerful persuasion techniques to have it brought to UAM as part of HSFF's outreach to SEARK.
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