The Big Move! (Complete w/ 3 exclamation points)

I finally got all moved in to my new office. It's kind of weird in that I'd been in the previous one since the fall of 2001, but the new, temporary home is really nice. It's roomy w/ more shelf space & it even has a shower! It's technically a dorm room w/ a bathroom connecting it to the one next door (where Tony is). Now I get to live out all my Revenge of the Nerds/Real Genius fantasies. It even has windows that actually open!

In which we discuss a few unrelated issues like mushrooms, baseball, and books

For your reading pleasure, we have 2 separate mushroom topics. The 1st in regards to the morels mushrooms in our back yard. When we looked @ this house for the 1st time in April of 2008, I found 2 & quickly pocketed them in case we decided not to move here. As it turns out, we did move in & each spring I've found a few more. Over the last week, I've found a grand total of 8 morels. I'll look around again this morning before I go to work, but the window seems to be closing. There are some great recipes for morels, but unless 1 has a larger quantity than 8, the best way to eat them seems to be simply sauteing them w/ butter & garlic. Prepared in this way, they are a lot like escargot. Delicious!In other morel news, I broke my morel coffee cup the other day while packing up my office for the big Pray Harrold move. The cup as my mom's when I was a kid. It had that sweet '70s mushroom pattern that looked all Allman Brothersy, but was really just a fad in 1976. I don't know why shrooms became a fad for people who never did them, but it was a cool cup none-the-less. The last thing I did was put the cup in a small box I was bringing home. Of course, I dropped the box as I went to pick up my phone & keys before walking out the door @ the cup broke into 3 big pieces & a bunch of little bits that made fixing it impossible. You may recall the time last September when I thought I'd lost it. Annette found it & all was good. My previous cup was a Kucinich 2004 cup. The 1 before that was a Women's Studies Program 25th anniversary cup. I get ridiculously attached to the cups so now I have to find 1 that will not only hold my tea/water, but also reflect my personality & socio/political beliefs. It's a hard life.While we're on the subject of Morels, I'd like to remind you that the morel is the state mushroom of Minnesota? How does this relate to anything, you ask? Well, yesterday, we went to the Tiger's game & they beat the Twins 3-0. It was a great game, & the kids had a blast. Solstice & Aiden absolutely love going down there, & even Isaiah watched the whole game w/o getting bored or fidgety. By far, my favorite play was Jackson stealing 2nd & 3rd to set up Damon's sacrifice fly. I'd never seen a 2 base steal in person before... it was sweet. Aiden was impressed by the double plays while Solstice seems to just love the atmosphere in general. Our seat were what 1 would traditionally call shit, but we actually liked them. For 5 bucks, we were in the farthest, highest section down the 3rd base line, but we could see really well, & the section only had 20 or so other people in it (including the weird dude w/ his kid & swastika tattoo). I can't wait to take them down there again, maybe w/ Elizabeth, Dan, & Sam. We're also thinking about a trip to Toledo for a Mudhens' game. Aiden & I had a blast last year, so I think we'll have to make that happen. lastly, we were talking about maybe a road trip to Cleveland or Chicago for an away game... anyone down?Finally, in other news of yesterday, I finished The Savage Detectives... at long last. According to this post, I started it on November 6th. It was hard going but well worth it. Roberto Bolaño was clearly a genius. He has a few other things translated 7 I think I'll have to make it my summer reading project to get through a couple more. 2666 is even longer & more convoluted than The Savage Detectives, but after a short break w/ some more simple stuff, I'll give it a go. I've also read A Mercy by Toni Morrison lately, a book my students absolutely hated, but it was actually really cool. It takes place on a small farm in the 1680s & '90s & each chapter is told from the perspective of a different person on the farm. Plus, it give us a nice look into the issues of religion & slavery in the early colonies... before slavery become the established system I am more familiar w/ in the 18th &19th centuries. Last week, I also read the first anthology in a series by Alan Moore I wasn't familiar w/ called Promethea. Like Watchmen, it's a fun post-modern story dealing w/ narrative structures & the construction of narratives & imagination. Give it a go if you're into comics... you won't be sorry... plus, there are some funny references to Helene Cixous... & who doesn't love a funny Cixous reference? You can get the books right here, or wander over to Nicola's & I can help you w/ them @ your friendly neighborhood bookstore this evening after 4:30.

African American Cinema Celebration

You, dear reader, may recall that on MLK Day there was a film presentation in the Student Center regarding the use of African American stereotypes in American cinema. You may also recall that I thought it was rather sub-par. It seemed like a basic reiteration of Ethnic Notions, Marlon Riggs 1986 documentary about Black Face & minstrel Shows, w/ a few more recent examples. In response, my African American Lit class & I decided that we should have a bi-weekly viewing of something from the African American film cannon.

1) We started w/ Ethnic Notions in order to get a background of the history & imagery. It's pretty standard fare for college campuses, but it's really good & none of them had seen it.

2) Our next film was Bamboozled, Spike Lee's awesome lampooning of Hollywood & pop-culture. If you haven't seen it... do so! It's intense & at times hard to stomach, but it's absolutely fantastic.

3) Next up was Daughters of the Dust. I hadn't seen it since I was in grad school, & I'm really glad we picked it. I wanted something different from what they're used to, & I also wanted to expose them to part of American culture w/ which they are generally unfamiliar. It worked. It's a really cool film w/ a sort of Virginia Woolf feel to it: multiple perspectives, internal monologues, & a women's story told in such a way that undermines the traditional masculine narrative structures of contemporary films. See it if you haven't.

4) We chose to move on to something a bit more bad-ass... Sweet Sweetback's Baadassss Song. When Melvin van Peoples made this in 1970, it was rated X in an attempt to keep it out of the main-stream theaters. That didn't work, however, as it went on to be one of the highest grossing independent films of all time. Plus, it motivated Gordon Parks to make Shaft a Black character. Apparently, he was planning to do Shaft w/ a white guy. Can you imagine how different the world would be? The sexuality was a bit tough for a few of my students, but in general, they loved it... it's certainly dated though. It's slower than Star Trek: The Motion Picture. A better editor, cinematographer, & lighting crew might have helped... but also might have taken away from its cult status.

5) This week, by request, we watched Shackles, an interesting, though completely predictable little story about an out of work teacher who takes a job @ Shackleton Prison in New York & inspires the inmates w/ poetry. It was like Dead Poets Society in jail... even down to the fact that it starred a comedian who I've never seen do serious stuff prior to this film (D. L. Hughley. Although the story is pretty straight forward, the editing & split-screen stuff is really cool & works well, as does the inclusion of the poetry... from the reading of "Howl" to the street poet to the stuff @ the Slams, it's all done well.

6) Next week is the last week, & we'll be watching another documentary @ the request of the class. This time it will be Good Hair, in which Chris Rock interviews musicians, athletes & entertainers about the history & traditions of African American hair styles. People like Al Sharpton, Maya Angelou, Paul Mooney, Ice T, & KRS-1 get questioned & it sounds pretty cool. Feel free to join us on Monday night @ 7:00 in room 320 of the Halle Library... bring a snack & a beverage!

What do Andre and Sandra Bullock have in common?

Earlier this week, I attended the EMU First Annual Celebration of Student Support. Students nominated professors who they feel made a difference in their college career & seeing as I've been teaching for 12 years but never nominated for anything, I figured I better show up because it could be another 12 years before I get nominated for something like this. There are people who get nominated for things like this all the time, & then there are people like Sandra Bullock & me... we're well aware that when we get nominated for things, we best be there.

The last award I won was "Mr. Pretty Legs in a Kilt." That was fun & drunken... this was interesting but w/o the booze. It was a nice ceremony, & I got a fancy certificate to hang on the wall. It's nice to know there is @ least 1 student out there whom I've actually affected in a positive way. In fact, I actually have a feeling there is more than 1, but I can't quantify that. In the previous incarnation of the award, they whittled all the nominees down to 1 winner based on an essay written by the nominating students. In their revamping, they (& I think rightly so) decided that a token for every nominee was better than a cash award for 1. In the end, about 50 of us (5 from the English Dept.) showed up to be recognized. We got a group photo, but I can't find it anywhere yet. In lieu of that, here's a photo of my major award.

Bruce Fans are Ugly as Shit (and other things learned from at the Palace last night)

1) I felt like I was back in Niagara, what w/ the way I was the most attractive person there. I'm not trying to suggest that I'm all that, but good God! It was like an army of Da Bears guys accompanied by 55 year old strippers. I don't understand why those women feel the need to bleach their hair & accentuate their catcher's mitt faces while wearing tight leather clothes & fuck-me-boots.

2) Bruce is more than willing to sacrifice the technical stuff to rock the crowd. I never saw Jerry Garcia throw his guitar around or let audience members screw w/ it... but then again, I never saw him surf the crowd from 1/3 of the way back all the way up to the stage. I never really saw him move at all... & neither did you.

3) When playing the Palace, feel free to sacrifice the sound for the energy because the sound is shit anyway. I suppose I always knew this, I hadn't seen a concert there since Phish in the fall of 1996, so I'd forgotten how bad it is. It's like they're playing in a basketball arena or something.

4) People will buy anything. They were selling bandannas, key chains, coffee cups, & of course, shit-ass watered down beer (not to mention the Clarence Clemons' book which may or may not be any good), & people were going nuts for that shit. There was 1 cool t-shirt that I would have gotten had I had the money or been a bigger fan... it was black w/ a 70s era scruffy Bruce on it.

5) There are too many cooks in the Palace kitchen. When we pulled in, we just said we were vendors & they let us through w/o checking anything. When we had to leave & get a beer because they weren't ready for us, we got in a 2nd time the same way. When the promoter forgot about us, we weren't sure we were ever going to get in, the car battery died as we sat for over an hour waiting to get the call to set up. We got in & had to wait for another hour while they tried to figure out what to do w/ us... the chaos was fun though & worked to our advantage.

6) We sold 103 of the 120 books we brought. Apparently, the average had been about 50 before last night, so we kind of rocked it. Then, our little sticker/passes got us into a great spot neI don't think I would have been willing to shed out the cash for this show, but being on the clock was great. However, considering the damage to my ear-drums, I guess I need hazard pay... plus it was pretty late so I probably deserve a shift premium. These are the sacrifices I'm willing to make to bring books to the masses. I'm doing my part! 1. Wrecking Ball
2. Prove It All Night
3. Johnny 99
4. Hungry Heart
5. Working on A Dream

Born to Run in its entirety:
6. Thunder Road
7. 10th Ave. Freeze Out
8. Night
9. Backstreets
10. Born To Run
11. She's the One
12. Meeting Across the River
13. Jungleland

14. Working on the Highway
15. Raise Your Hand
16. Ramblin' Gamblin' Man
17. Detroit Medley:
- Devil w/ a Blue Dress>
- Good Golly Miss Molly>
- Devil w/ a Blue Dress>
- C.C. Rider>
- Devil w/ a Blue Dress
18. Because the Night> Sweet Jam
19. Lonesome Day
20. The Rising
21. Badlands

Encores:
22. Hard Times (Come Again No More)
23. Born in the USA
24. American Land
25. Dancing in the Dark
26. Rosalita
27. Higher and Higher

We missed the 1st song but then the next 4 songs were really strong. After the 2nd one, he shouted, "Hello OHIO!" At that point, Little Steven ran up to him laughing an explained what just happened. Bruce's response was something like this:
"FUCK! Hello MICHIGAN! I can't fucking believe I just did that. It's every rock n roll front man's worst fear. Forty fucking years of nightmares just came to an end tonight. FUCK!" He was pretty embarrassed but dealt w/ it really well. He then proceeded to ask, "Where am I?" after every song. After "Raise Your Hand," he went around collecting signs w/ song names on them & then, one by one, held them up for the band as he chose which ones to play. I'm sure it's a canned routine, but it was cool none-the-less. This was the first time they played "Ramblin' Gamblin' Man" on this tour. I don't really like that song (or Bob Seger for that matter) but it was cool. He then held up a sign w/ something about Mitch Ryder on it & they went into the Detroit medley. Following the Seger tune & then closing w/ the Jackie Wilson was a cool Detroit music tribute. "Because the Night" was fantastic... I always forget he wrote that and associate it w/ Patty Smith.

The break between the set & the encore was almost non-existent. I wasn't even certain that we were watching an encore. They never left the stage. Then they went into an old Stephen Foster tune about economic and spiritual problems. It was a fantastic tune to lead into "Born in the USA" & then "American Land." I didn't know "American Land" beforehand, but I definitely dig it. "Dancing in the Dark" was fine & a woman was thrown off the stage for doin' some Courtney Cox thing. "Rosalita" was awesome, & then the Jackie Wilson song. Every single song as played w/ the intensity of an encore. I couldn't tell when it was going to end... & 3 hours straight ain't bad for those old dudes. From our seats 1 (The woman throwin' the metal sign was dancin' like a crazy-person... and then after 5 or 6 songs left to get sick and never returned. She was w/ her twin or her girlfriend... it was hard to tell [maybe both] but they seemed to have fetal alcohol syndrome or something... strange). Another shot from our seats

The Boss & the Big Man

Last spring, @ Nicola's books, I came across an advance of Clarence Clemons' memoir, Big Man, & wondered who would ever read such a book. I grabbed it for John, my boss @ Plum because he's a huge Springsteen fan, but I don't think even he ever read it. Fast-forward to a week & a half ago when people @ Nicola's were wondering who was going to work the "Bruce event." Here's how the conversation went:
Jack: "Who's workin' the Bruce event?"
Me: "Bruce who?" (by the way no one seemed to want to work it as it was going to be crazy w/ fans, I assumed that maybe Bruce Feiler, the Walking the Bible guy, was coming)
Jack: "Springsteen, The Boss, next week @ The Palace."
Me: "Yeah, right... seriously, Bruce who?"
Nicola: "Clarence Clemons is getting local stores to do his book events @ their concerts rather than contracting w/ a major company like Borders or Barnes & Noble. He asked us to do it."

As it turns out, the union rules @ the Palace state that only Palace employees can sell stuff, so my job is to bring the books out there, sign them over to the Palace people, hang w/ Clarence Clemons while he signs them, watch the show & then bring the extras back w/ a check for whatever sells.

Nicola: "Are you sure you want to do this? It's gonna be a pretty late night."
Me: "Um... yeah."
Nicola: "It's gonna be loud."
Me: Um...."

The most shocking thing about this is that it fell to me. I don't understand why no one else wanted to do this. I've never been a huge Springsteen fan, but I dig his politics, & everyone says his live shows are amazing... so it should be fun. Not to mention, he;'s written a few pretty decent songs too. In fact, tonight, he's apparently playing Born to Run in its entirety. I've never been a huge fan supporter of the "play an entire album" approach to live shows, but it should be cool. Even when Phil Lesh played a series of GD albums during his May '08 run @ the Warfield, when he played 2 albums a night (Grateful Dead & Anthem of the Sun; Aoxomoxoa & Live Dead; Workingman's Dead & American Beauty; & finaly Skull Fuck & Dead Set), I thought it took away from the spontaneity. Tonight should be a blast though. I'll report back tomorrow w/ a full review... pics & a set-list.

New Employee ID Card

For some reason, namely: I haven't taken the time to go to the Student Center & get it done, I've put off getting a new ID card for a long, long time. My old one dates back about 9 years I suppose. I remember when I got it; I was still teaching @ WCC. I think it was my 1st semester as a Lecturer. Its time had definitely passed though. I haven't been able to get things out of storage @ the library lately which is contingent on having as updated card. W/ that in mind, I decided today would be the day because I wanted a couple of old Halloween DVDs. Of course it had nothing @ all to do w/ anything even peripherally related to academia. Looking @ the old one & the new one side by side, there are a couple glaring concerns. It looks like my hair may have gotten a little shinier & my eyes seem a little more experienced. Regardless of the hair color, it's also clear that my hair style has been ridiculous for a quite a while. You can also note that the top is cracked off of the old one after sitting in my wallet for 9 years. The final thing I need to point out is that I've apparently gotten a promotion. Maybe I need to let the union know about this loop-hole in the contract... the old one says "Lecturer;" the new one says "Faculty." Circa 2000 Circa Today

2 Things Distract Me: Soccer & Teaching

It's rare that things really go wrong, but when they do, they really do. On Sunday, I had about 20 minutes between work & soccer to deuce & chill, & during that time I found out I'd been served papers regarding my car crash last summer. The guy I hit, who didn't have insurance or an injury, is suing me for $3,000. His 1994 Ford pick-up was probably worth about $800. With these factors in mind, I'm not too worried about the case, but I'd be lying if I said the time consumption & the fact that 3 grand is hanging on this didn't affect me @ all.

I found this out, freaked out for about 5 minutes, & then went to play. Even though this ridiculousness was in the back of mind my before the game started, once we started playing I forgot about it for 90 minutes. It's 1 of the 2 activities that can always help me forget my problems for a little while. Of course, afterwards, I grabbed a couple beers w/ Dan before going home to continue the earlier freak out. Soccer worked this way a few years ago too when Stephanie & I were going through our dark times. Clearly, this court case isn't as bad, but @ the moment, it's yet another distraction I don't need, & it's nice to have something to take my mind off of it once in a while.

Teaching has always worked the same way. Once I get my game face on, Skynet could be taking over & I'd still be alright. As I was just on my way back from class I realized how much I really like my job. When I get into the classroom, the problems, the distractions, the general bullshit falls aside, & I'm completely focused on what I'm doing. I was wondering how the Hell I was going to do this today w/ a 3 grand law suit in the back of my mind, but it never crossed my mind once I started talking shop. It worked the same way a few years ago too. Even when I'm sick, the classroom has some sort of recuperative thing going on. I've walked into class w/ a 102 fever, but after a few minutes, I've been focused & relatively clear. @ 103 the hallucinations start which makes for an interesting lecture, but even then it goes pretty well... then again, I wonder if the students really notice a difference. Teaching is pretty awesome.

"Skip Gates is a friend of mine"

Obama said that... I've never actually met him, but his 1st couple books were really influential on my approach to teaching African American Lit... just like they are on almost everyone who teaches the course.
A fun reading of a few "central" texts in the African American literary tradition. Each chapter addresses a different text w/ from a different theoretical standpoint.

A brilliant analysis of the literary tradition going back to Western Africa. A tradition that was brought over w/ slaves but is often overlooked while discussing the history of African American Lit.

Another reason to drink a Guinness today

Thanks to a couple of Facebook status updates, I was reminded that today is Bloomsday so put on your eye patch & go for a really really long walk. There had been some talk of a party to celebrate, but that never really got off the ground; however, if anyone wants to stop by tonight, drink a few Guinness, & maybe read a passage from Ulysses, that might be a great idea. I haven't read it in a few years, but I suppose I should give it a quick once over this afternoon.

In other book news, I need to report that since I finished The Time Traveler's Wife, I've knocked off a few other books on the list:
Three Bags Full: it's a great little story about a heard of sheep whose shepherd would read to them every day which made them really smart. When they find him murdered by the barn, they decide to solve the mystery themselves. It's sounds ridiculous, but it's really good but funny references to classic mysteries & animal tales like Animal Farm. This is also a fitting book for today because it takes place in Ireland & 1 of the sheep is hooked on Guinness.
If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things: This is a fantastic novel. I think I may teach it this fall. it was nominated for the Booker, but for some reason didn't make the short-list. It's about a young woman in Nottingham (or maybe London... it's not clear) who witnesses a boy get hit by a car & then 3 years later gets knocked up during a 1 night stand. It flashes back and forth between the day of the accident & her pregnancy... & you all need to read it.
The Secret of Morel: A cool novella by Adolfo Bioy Casares from 1941 about a fugitive on an deserted island where all sorts of crazy shit starts happening. It's yet another cool book I learned about via the Lostpedia book list.

After that, I diverged from the list & picked p a copy of The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafón. He's going to be @ Nicola's next week, & I'd heard so much about the book that I figured I'd take a look... it's sweet! It's like Borges meets Eco w/ a little Paul Auster thrown in for good measure. A kid finds an old book which turns out to be the last copy of anything by the author because some dude has been traveling around Europe setting all of his books on fire. At the moment, the kid has just been approached by the book burning dude. It's cool... read it.

It's time to discuss the reading process

While I was eating lunch today, I was read a bit of the book I've been reading but then got distracted as I began to think about my reading process & how it hasn't changed much in 15 years. For instance, there are certain places where I prefer to read: The Golden Egg on Washtenaw or the Fleetwood while eating breakfast, work while on my breaks, on the can while shitting (I know this is pretty common), in bed before I fall asleep (also probably pretty common), & outside while drinking a beer. If I had to pick 1 place though, it'd be the diners while breakfast. I can't think of many books I've read over the years that didn't join me for breakfast @ a diner. I think this started w/ Moby Dick @ Big Boys on Washtenaw in June of 1997.

Along w/ the reading locations, I also need a beverage & a pen. The bevvy can change based on the location, but only a handful of the books I've read remain un-underlined/written in. In fact, I've heard people suggest that they should write marginalia too, but I wish I was better @ not writing in the books. I could probably count the books I've read since high school that remained unscathed: Bunker Man, Treasure Island, Captain Blood, The Outlander books, a few Star Wars short story collections, & Sharpe's Rifles. Underlining means that I'm basically reading many things twice so the process takes a long time. The things I don't write in go much faster but I'm always afraid I may need to teach it some day so the marginalia continues.

While I'm an underliner, I'm also a page counter. I'm always more concerned w/ what I'm going to read next than w/ what I'm reading @ the moment. I have 190 pages to go in The Time Traveler's Wife & all I can think about is that I'll get to start something new soon. That's Ok though because I've been on a mission to read books I've owned for years but never read in an attempt to catch up & stop buying books for a while. It seems to be going pretty well, but I haven't been able to make it very far into Martin Amis's The Information yet. I must have started it 5 times over the years, but I just don't like it. What other books have I not finished, you ask? Wonderboys, The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay, Don Quixote, & War & Peace. I keep meaning to get back to Wonderboys & Don Quixote though... maybe this summer.

Other books I plan to read this summer:
The Island of the Day Before: Umberto Eco
Baudolino: Umberto Eco
Japanese by Spring: Ishmael Reed
If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things: Jon McGreggor
The Invention of Morel: Adolfo Bioy Casares*
Pierre: Herman Melville
Tom Sawayer: Mark Twain*
Three Bags Full: Leonie Swann
The Cardboard Universe: Christopher Miller
The Case of the Missing Servant: Tarquin Hall
The Namesake: Jhumpa Lahiri
The Leatherstocking Tales: James Fenimore Cooper*
* I don't own these yet so they're lower on the priorities list

RIP Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick

Odd timing when considered in relation to the Amazon.com situation this week. I 1st read Epistemology of the Closest in Grad School & have returned to it over the years whenever I've needed a refresher before teaching Melville, Wilde or James... or just whenever I needed to refresh my theory stuff in general. She was a good person.
The obit in The Nation is fantastic.
The New Yorker obit is brief but nice also.
The obit in The Advocate is brief and a bit cold, but interesting none-the-less.

Water Tower Story in the Echo

Check out this great April Fools Day article from The Eastern Echo. Who knew they were so clever?

Events of the Day

It turns out, "Friend of the Devil" went all the way to the top. Here's the video, but I can't find a video of the interview segment... or the O'Reilly segment. I didn't get to see it today because, while I was actually home & perched in front of my TV, The View was preempted by Obama's speech. I know I should have been more interested in what he had to say, but I just kept hoping it would end so they could get back to The View before The Dead were on.

In other news regarding my inability to see the big picture, 22 people died when a wall collapsed @ a World Cup qualifier in Cote d'Ivore this weekend. I heard about it on Arsenal.com w/ the headline "Tragedy Overshadows Qualifiers" w/ a picture of Kolo Toure (who plays for Ivory Coast & has been captaining Arsenal in Fabregas's stead until he returns from injury). Anyway, I saw the picture & assumed he'd gotten hurt. When I saw what actually happened, the 1st think to go through my head was, "Oh, good... it as just some random people." I'm not proud. Seriously, I'm pretty disturbed by my reaction.

Speaking of reactions, while the rest of the world was enjoying Oberon Day, I was @ Nicola's where I heard this rather one-sided conversation between a woman & her little kid. (By the front of the store, there's a bin of large 4-Square bouncy balls.)
"Hey, look at these balls!
"aren't these great balls?
"Do you like these balls?
"These balls are so soft and squishy!
"Come here and squeeze these balls!
"Don't you just love these balls?
"OOOHHHH, they smell nice too!
"Did you smell the balls?
"Come smell the balls!
"These balls smell so good."

I wanted to shout, "Stop saying balls!!!" but I decided I just had to go to the back of the store and get the Hell out of that situation. That MILF was lovin' balls!

A Wiki Week

In my comp classes, I have my students writing Wikipedia pages as part of their multi-genre project. They have to find something that isn't on there already and learn all of the conventions & formatting rules. As it turns out, this has also been a fun little learning project for me. To teach it, I obviously had to learn it & be able to demonstrate it... something I didn't really think about in December when I came up w/ the assignment. In trying to figure all of it out, I've come to a 2-fold realization:
1) It's a pretty fun site
2) I'm loving tweaking stuff & I've made a bunch of changes
* I cleaned up & expanded the Depot Town page .
* I added "The Mexican Slayride" to the Boilermaker page .
* I placed a picture of Isaiah in the Yawn page... mainly because I needed to learn how to add a picture & that's the 1 I had on my office desk-top .
* I created a page for the Michigan Elvisfest... it's still pretty brief, but it's a start & I've got about a week to double its size since I want my class to create pages about twice as long for their assignment.

Along w/ writing the page, they've been discussing the problems w/ the site & it seems that if more students looked into it like this, there'd be far fewer of them who see it as a legitimate source for research projects. The other new project I've got them doing this semester is blogging... if you're interested, there are links to all of their blogs on my class blog.

Holiday Post #3: Ho Ho Ho & all that Stuff

Last weekend, we made our traditional trip south to Ida, MI & the Matthes Evergreen Farm to get a tree & have some good old-timey cheer. We've been going there since 2002, & the kids love it. Aside from the "Cut Your Own" trees, they also feature a little craft area where Ida locals sell their fancy X-Mas stuff... Candles & Santas & Wreaths, oh my. In the main part of the barn, they have inexpensive snacks (including free hot chocolate, coffee & popcorn) & live X-Mas music. Of course, there's also the animals in the smaller barn... pigs, rabbits, goats, cows, horses, & (every ones favorite) some nervous looking sheep. Sheep always seem to have that "uh oh, here come some people" look associated w/ thousands of years of domestication that in turn led to thousands of years of anal rape. In class the other night, we were talking about "inner species erotica" & its relation to Paul Beatty's Slumberland, when someone asked why sheep are always the butt of those jokes. I had to explain the rather inconvenient positioning of their said butts, well, inconvenient for them but convenient as hell for those thousands of years of lonely shepherds who tended their flocks in pent-up frustration. While the account in Luke is a bit vague, I imagine the scene w/ the shepherds went something like this:
Shepherd: "oh yeah, baby... "
Angel: "Hey, what are you doing?"
Shepherd: "Um, ahh, nothing. It's not what you think."
Angel: "Put that away, there's a baby in that barn over there. What's wrong w/ you?"
Shepherd: "Baby? Really? I'm gonna go check that out... are there any, you know, animals over there too?"
Anyway, back to the tree place. In their "Wreath Shop," they have Santa. Not any old Santa. Not some 2nd rate "impostor, mall Santa" as Aiden put it, but a guy the kids swear is the 1 & only. Solstice, clearly, doesn't buy it any more, but Aiden is whole-heartily into it. Being that it was the Saturday after Thanksgiving, & therefore, the 1st Santa Saturday of the year @ Matthes, he landed in a helicopter across the street while a crowd of people stood & stared like gawkers @ a British car accident. solstice was too embarrassed to to get up close, & it was clear that Aiden wanted to. She refused to go up closer w/ him to which he responded by pretending he didn't want to either. I think that was the closest I've ever been to an in-flight helicopter. They circled the field a couple times while Santa waved to the crowd before landing about 40 yards way from us. I have to add "go in a helicopter" to my list of things I want to do in the air which also includes bungee jumping, sky diving, & pilot's lessons.Over all, we had a great afternoon. I found & fell the tree I record time... it was getting shaken & baled w/in 20 minutes of me parking the car. We got home, put up the tree, & then went to Red Robin & used the kids' coupons they got from the library last summer. I've spent the last 4 months stalling, because I'm not really a fan of that place, but it meant free food & after an afternoon of Santas & tree cutting, neither of us really felt like cooking. Unfortunately, we didn't get to see the Red Robin Red Robin like last time though. Be sure to tune in again for the story of our Tofurkey slaughter!

Searchin' for the ghost of Tom Joad

I went out on my lunch break today to score a couple tix for the Springsteen/Obama rally @ Oestrike Stadium this afternoon w/ John, the dairy buyer. We were only allowed 2 apiece, but his wife couldn't go so he gave me his extra which in turn meant both of my kids could get in. (As it turns out, they had extras outside so it would have been fine anyway.) We went straight from their school to the stadium & walked in while Kitty Donahoe was playing. Apparently, we missed Dick Siegle... I dig him, but it was not to be. After she finished & the sound dudes screwed around for a few minutes, some local minister said a prayer & then an ROTC guy led the Pledge. After that, the EMU Gospel Choir did an amazing rendition of The Star Spangled Banner... they are fantastic! Debbie Dingle spoke next... & not so coherently I might add, but then John Dingle topped her awkwardness w/ some strange claims about defense attorneys. Solstice & Aiden found some friends so they were running around in the outfield while everyone was talking. Next up was Diane HAthawy, a canidate for State Supreem Court. She seems super cool, so I'm going to take this moment to put up another Visions of Ypsi Endoresment... Vote for Diane Hathaway! By the time The Boss came out, I was checking my watch because Aiden's team had practice @ 5:30 We got to see a few songs though as I hooked up w/ more friends from work. There was even a nice scent of pot in the air. The set-list was fun, but Aiden refused to believe a guy w/ a harmonica & an acoustic guitar was playing Rock & Roll. He might be right, but even if he is an over the hill folkie, he's doing a damn good job getting people revved up... of course, between 5 & 7 students in each of my classes hadn't heard of him. Here's the Detroit News recap, which is basically just like my recap but quicker because Susan Whitall presumably didn't have to coach a soccer practice right afterwards. The practice was good though & I think these kids will become a good group of players if they stick w/ it. Which is kind of how I feel about Springsteen's songwriting... he shows promise, but the jury is still out.

The Boss @ EMU

I've never been a huge fan of Bruce Springsteen, but he's playing a free 1/2 hour Obama rally @ EMU's baseball stadium tomorrow afternoon so I think I'll drag the kids up there after I pick them up from school. I don't have tickets & doors open 45 minutes before I can get there, but I think we might @ least be able to stand outside the fence & hear him. He played Philly yesterday & here's the speech he gave before his acoustic performance:
"Hello Philly,

"I am glad to be here today for this voter registration drive and for Barack Obama, the next President of the United States.

"I've spent 35 years writing about America, its people, and the meaning of the American Promise. The Promise that was handed down to us, right here in this city from our founding fathers, with one instruction: Do your best to make these things real. Opportunity, equality, social and economic justice, a fair shake for all of our citizens, the American idea, as a positive influence, around the world for a more just and peaceful existence. These are the things that give our lives hope, shape, and meaning. They are the ties that bind us together and give us faith in our contract with one another.

"I've spent most of my creative life measuring the distance between that American promise and American reality. For many Americans, who are today losing their jobs, their homes, seeing their retirement funds disappear, who have no healthcare, or who have been abandoned in our inner cities. The distance between that promise and that reality has never been greater or more painful.

"I believe Senator Obama has taken the measure of that distance in his own life and in his work. I believe he understands, in his heart, the cost of that distance, in blood and suffering, in the lives of everyday Americans. I believe as president, he would work to restore that promise to so many of our fellow citizens who have justifiably lost faith in its meaning. After the disastrous administration of the past 8 years, we need someone to lead us in an American reclamation project. In my job, I travel the world, and occasionally play big stadiums, just like Senator Obama. I've continued to find, wherever I go, America remains a repository of people's hopes, possibilities, and desires, and that despite the terrible erosion to our standing around the world, accomplished by our recent administration, we remain, for many, a house of dreams. One thousand George Bushes and one thousand Dick Cheneys will never be able to tear that house down.

"They will, however, be leaving office, dropping the national tragedies of Katrina, Iraq, and our financial crisis in our laps. Our sacred house of dreams has been abused, looted, and left in a terrible state of disrepair. It needs care; it needs saving, it needs defending against those who would sell it down the river for power or a quick buck. It needs strong arms, hearts, and minds. It needs someone with Senator Obama's understanding, temperateness, deliberativeness, maturity, compassion, toughness, and faith, to help us rebuild our house once again. But most importantly, it needs us. You and me. To build that house with the generosity that is at the heart of the American spirit. A house that is truer and big enough to contain the hopes and dreams of all of our fellow citizens. That is where our future lies. We will rise or fall as a people by our ability to accomplish this task. Now I don't know about you, but I want that dream back, I want my America back, I want my country back.

"So now is the time to stand with Barack Obama and Joe Biden, roll up our sleeves, and come on up for the rising."

The setlist yesterday was as follows:
The Promised Land (not the Chuck Berry song)
The Ghost of Tom Joad
Thunder Road
No Surrender
Does This Bus Stop at 82nd Street
The Rising
This Land is Your Land

Livre de Poche

I just started reading the new book by Paul Beatty, Slumberland (check out the LA Times review here). Like his other stuff, it's fantastic & y'all should give it a whirl. I think I'm gonna to use it in African American Lit this fall, but the references to fisting are a bit more overt than in The White Boy Shuffle, his 1st novel, not to mention the nearly constant discussions of bestiality regarding a porn film which features a dude fucking a chicken. It's funny & 99% of my students will be fine w/ it, but I know someone will complain. I'll be sure to keep you all updated about that. I didn't log in to really plug a book though. The thing is, this is the 1st time in ages that I've read a hard cover book. In fact, I can't remember the last time I did this. I always wait for the trade paperbacks. I feel one can't really curl up w/ a hard cover, which is pretty stupid because I don't technically "curl up" w/ paperbacks either. My reading techniques involve sitting rather upright on the couch, laying in bed, sitting on the porch or reading @ work. I suppose the bed would allow for curling up, but I don't read in long enough chunks to really do that. Usually, about a 1/2 hour is all I do @ 1 sitting... I've got Hogan's to watch & soccer to play & Arsenal info to look up on-line & in a couple weeks, papers to grade. Anyway, what I'm wondering is what you, dear readers, prefer to read. Do you like the hardness of the newest cloth bound tomes or do you like the wrinkled old pages of a newly discovered mass market paperback edition of the novelization of Top Gun or Rambo (both of which I read... borrowed... but never returned... from my Grandfather... when I was in middle school)? As a side note, it turns out that Marty Schictman actually knows the guy, a Medievalist from Iowa. Apparently, he wrote First Blood & then sold the film rights to Stallone who gained the rights to write the sequel which the original author then novelized. Anyway, what's your poison?

Your Very Own LeVar Burton (w/o the shackles & chains)

It's a well known fact that I teach African American Literature, or at least well known by people who know me. I suppose, in comparison to the amount of people who know basic math, my job isn't really a "well known" fact, but for our purposes here, we'll assume you all know this. I think it's a fair assumption too because people are always suggesting books to me by African American authors. Along those lines, I must admit, I've never read anything by Zane although my students seem to love her. One book I did spend quite a while ignoring after multiple recommendation's is Paul Beatty's The white Boy Shuffle, after which I realized that it's a fantastic book and have since taught it many times. Along those same lines, I always knew I should read Go Tell it on the Mountain at some point, but just never got around to it. Well, I finally got around to it this week just in time to teach it yesterday & holy shit! It's awesome! Michael Ondaatje's little quote on the cover compares Baldwin to Van Gogh, but Joyce & Woolf seem like closer fits. In fact, I need to say how proud I was when a student even noticed the similarities to Ulysses. My student is reading Ulysses for Christ's sake! Anyway, Baldwin's narrative style is amazing. The way he's weaving the multiple stories together w/ the themes of time and redemption is brilliant. Read it!As you may notice on the sidebar, I updated my "Reading Profile" today for the 1st time in ages & included Fever Pitch again. W/ Arsenal perched rather precariously @ the top of the table in the Premier League & preparing for their trip to Milan this afternoon, it seemed like a good book to read this week... before they lose ground on Man U & get knocked out of Europe. I haven't read much else by Hornby other than High Fidelity, but based on what I've seen, he's spent the last 15 years trying to recapture what he did w/ his 1st book. Coincidentally, Go Tell it on the Mountain is Baldwin's 1st book too, but from what I've been hearing, his 3nd book, Geovanni's Room, is just as interesting. I've been meaning to read his 2nd novel, Notes of a Native Son since I was in high school but haven't gotten around to it. I remember my friend loving it & I think Stephanie read it & loved it too. I suppose I'll have to give those a whirl soon. Over all, Go Tell it on the Mountain is great... but don't take my word for it....