Category: Just me

Me and Kim Novak

 

 

If you’re not current, you don’t count.

 

I don’t want this to be the way of the world in 21st century America but I think it is. I saw the name Kim Novak at the top of a Yahoo search list and instantly assumed Kim Novak has recently died. My thinking was pretty simple. Why would Kim Novak be a hot topic right now? She must be dead.

 

Kim Novak has almost no meaning for me. I think she is (was?) an actress in Hitchcock movies and that makes me think she’s (she was?) blonde. I’m putting together some impressions I have of her but that’s all I got. It’s possible that Kim Novak is a) not at all who I am thinking, as in, an entirely different person b) the same person but famous for a totally different reason c) doing something that warrants an uptick in interest but I didn’t get to choices a-c until actively pausing to consider other options besides dead. Sad but true.

 

If you’re not current, you don’t count.

 

 

FDO

Teaching and Stretching

 

In exploring another school this week, on an accreditation visit, I am learning much more about my own. Specifically, I’m learning about the relationship between education and expectation.

 

I teach in the ways that make the most sense to me, for my students as I perceive them. I am already beginning to wonder if I should invoke a more aspirational model. What that would mean for me is steadily moving toward higher expectations for all my students. Some of my students feel as though my classes are already (too) difficult but they really aren’t tough. The genuine issue is that most of the kids at my school are unaccustomed to working without a teacher holding their hand, making sure they don’t stumble. Oh yeah, they are also unaccustomed to working hard.

 

Curse you, Professional Development!

 

FDO

 

HIV and Gay Marriage Rights

Last week someone showed me the first poll to indicate a narrow majority of Americans support gay marriage.  For the past few months, I have been talking and thinking a lot about our perceptions of HIV/AIDS. I teach US History and cover the 1980s including HIV, gay liberation efforts and the Reagan administration's reluctance to discuss AIDS or fund research efforts. In class, I read an excerpt from ‘And the Band Played On’ and the kids consistently flip out because they (incorrectly) assume their government would have been highly interested in, y'know, trying to stop a dread, communicable disease. It is always heartening to me that these young people almost uniformly reject anti-gay policies and prejudices, even retroactively. They are the ones who will consistently support laws, initiatives and politicians who advocate marriage rights for everyone.

 

In discerning the base level meaning of marriage, I think it is clear that for many people, the institution of marriage provides license for two people to have sex. This poll reveals significant change in attitudes concerning gay marriage and I am wondering if part of the reason more straight people are willing to support the public sanction of gay sex via marriage has occurred because our collective fear of gay sex has diminished tremendously since the gay people profiled in ‘And the Band…’ were just about the only people who knew anything at all about AIDS.

 

When Magic Johnson announced he was HIV+, I thought there was a good chance that my generation (I was 17, in college and LOTS of us were sexually active) had a new JFK moment. I was totally wrong though (it's still Challenger). Instead, Magic is so healthy, active, rich and visible that I know some people have (temporarily?) forgotten he has HIV. That's a little scary actually. AIDS is now the leading killer of Black women between 25 and 34. The most horrifying elements of that statistic, for me, is that these women have still not been educated enough to know that they are a) susceptible to HIV, b) perfectly capable of preventing their infection in almost every case and c) consistently late to receiving diagnosis and attendant care.

 

Our increasingly cavalier attitude towards HIV is another reminder that we have an amazing level of privilege in the U.S. In so many countries, HIV almost always becomes AIDS and almost always equals a death sentence. Now, early detecting Americans are likely to stay healthy for a very long time. Some of them, like Magic, will always carry HIV but never develop AIDS. The transition in our country from a) AIDS=Death to b) HIV= chronic, massive health concern gives me increased hope that some of the fears our society has long harbored about gay sexuality will continue to fade. The likely repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell is another step in that direction. (Baby steps to full equality, baby steps to full equality.)

 

While judicial decisions are critical stepping stones, it is ultimately the support of the American people that generates the permanent force of change. That change is occurring. Most people I suggest this to think I’m crazy but I believe that gay marriage will be legal in half the states by 2020. That's my hope and my prediction. We're on the way, people. Slowly but surely. We're on the way.

 

 

FDO

 

All I Wanna Say Is That…

… they don't really care about us. Here's the prison version of the video.

A friend of mine is in a wheelchair and as we were talking last week I noticed that the name of the company that made the chair is Invacare. I gasped a little because I immediately thought of ‘invalid care’. Isn’t that what I am supposed to think? Isn’t that problematic?

 

The word invalid strikes me as immediately negative. I mean, it’s ‘in valid’. There’s nothing helpful about using that word, especially since the people using their products are the ones indicated by it. Isn’t this simple?

 

 

FDO

 

 

 

 

I Need Some ‘splainin’

Thursday, I saw two kids skateboarding in the parking lot of a funeral home. There was pretty clearly a funeral happening at the time and who knows, maybe skateboarding is great grief therapy. To my crotchety eyes, the sight was disgustingly disrespectful. Maybe I should spend some dedicated time and attention to American funeral practices before feeling so bothered. Maybe this is part of a long standing ritual. Right?

Right?

 

FDO

Be Very Very Quiet, It’s a Police Car

On the way to the store I was stopped at the one traffic light on my route. At the front of the line, 2 cars ahead of me, was a police cruiser. When the light changed to green, nothing happened. Really nothing happened. Nothing happened for so long that a car opposite us at the light turned left.  It was several, maybe 10 seconds. I honked the horn and the police car began moving. I live in a part of town that has grown dramatically in the last few years. People are consistently impatient drivers and I often hear honking within the first half second of a changed light. Sometimes, folks honk simply because the lead car is not going fast enough out of the chute. I began wondering if the fact that it was a police car is what kept everyone (else) from using their horn. Do people fear the police enough that they believe they will have a negative consequence from blowing a horn at a police car?

 

 

FDO

Albert’s Mansion

This weekend I spent several hours at, in and around one of the largest houses I’ve ever been visited; it was palatial. It featured the kinds of staircases and rooms with multiple doors that immediately made me think of a Scooby-Doo mansion. At the same time, it is ultra modern including the kind of home theatre I’ve only seen on television. The owner of the house, I’ll call him Albert, seemed like a geuninely nice man who loves his family and has many similar priorities to mine. (This is based on less than 10 minutes of conversation but watching him interact with others during the course of these several hours.)

 

I had so many questions for Albert. What sacrifices have you made to reach this point in your life? Do you enjoy your job? Is your workweek stress level overwhelming? Do you interact with your family as much and in the ways you’d like?

 

I enjoy my job greatly and it provides many of the things work ideally would provide. Yet money is a constant concern. Even though I don’t want a house like Albert’s (and I might argue that no one needs one), I do want more. At least, the ability to do more. For myself and for many others. I would like to bring my wife’s grandmother to live with us but that’s just not feasible with our house. I’d like to feel confident that my son can make his college choice without finances being a determining factor, or at least, without having to bear a crippling student loan burden like the one I have.

 

So, I guess, I’m still wondering how much more like Albert I want to become. Or even can?

 

FDO

Presentation Struggles…

I’m presenting at an education conference next week. While I’m expecting to enjoy it, I’ve discovered an interesting challenge. My dual topics are the utility of horrific images and the value of exploring controversial issues.

 

In my upper level elective classes, we often watch very disturbing movies, look at disquieting pictures, read challenging articles, discuss uncomfortable propaganda and ask unanswerable questions. My brain understands the connections involved and the value of using material that sparks discomfort. During the course of a semester, my students understand what we’re accomplishing. They get it. Most of them give strong feedback and feel as though the grow from the way class is organized.

 

Even though I’ll be using some material from classes to demonstrate what I try to do and why we use material others shy away from, it’s going to be hard to translate a semester’s worth of resources, relationships and experiences into a half hour presentation. Challenge!

 

FDO

Suds Ahoy!

I'm just finished with an interesting documentary about the history of beer brewing in the US. I know many of the broad outlines but lots of the specific details are fascinating. For instance, it wasn't until the 1970s that beer was consumed at pre-Prohibition levels. It took 40 years!

Hmmm, I think all this new information means I need to head to Oaken Barrel sometime soon.

FDO

Ease on Down the Road

This morning a student told me that I featured in a recent dream she had. In the dream an old woman stole her purse and she didn't know what to do so she found me and I went and retrieved her purse. Not exactly the heroism I imagined for myself back in the day but considering my knee I think old ladies are about my speed!

 

FDO