1. Well, this was certainly a week. For those who are just joining us, last weekend I moved cross-country, from Michigan to Arizona to take up a teaching post. It was three days' driving, and a chance to see more of the country than I yet have. The route took us, among other things, right … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Moving Cross Country, History in the Making, and Dickens
Books
Saturday Flotsam: Moving, A Book, A Film, and Economics
1. Was packing yesterday and lost track of the time, so this is Saturday Flotsam again. 2. As of this writing, I still haven't gotten final confirmation on my apartment. Last time I spoke to them the application is in the final stages, but that was a day or so ago. I don't anticipate it … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Moving, A Book, A Film, and Economics
Friday Flotsam: Sacred Heart, Fr. Kapaun, More Japan
1. A blessed Feast of the Sacred Heart, and month of the Sacred Heart! This is one of my favorite devotions, partly on its own merits, partly because of its associations (though of course, these are not unrelated). What is the heart? It is the core of a man, the source of life, the seat … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Sacred Heart, Fr. Kapaun, More Japan
Saturday Flotsam: Hodge Podge and Northern Lights
1. My first school year is almost done; just one more day of classes, then field day and a few odds and ends. It was certainly a learning experience, and I'm glad to have at last found a job that I feel I could make an actual career out of. The big test, of course, … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Hodge Podge and Northern Lights
Friday Flotsam: Various and Sundry
1. The weather is warming up, which means my middle schoolers were extra rowdy this week. I am increasingly convinced that children are, in truth, reptiles. 2. For recreation I started re-reading The Ball and the Cross for the first time in quite a while. Chesterton's way with words is of the sort that is … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Various and Sundry
Friday Flotsam: World War II, Political Theory, and Tarzan
1. My US History class finished up the Second World War this week. There is really nothing like that event in all of history, certainly not in living memory. The whole world goes to war, and against an incredibly evil ideology on one side of the globe and what might be described as a civilization … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: World War II, Political Theory, and Tarzan
Friday Flotsam: US History, Nintendo Games, and Dialogue
1. My US History classes this week have been entirely consumed by summarizing the course of the Civil War, and we've only gotten to the end of 1863. That's after about two weeks of going over the lead-up to the war. There is just so much to go over, even from my relatively superficial knowledge … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: US History, Nintendo Games, and Dialogue
Commentary: When Good Characters do Bad Things
Another bit of storycraft commentary up at Noble Cobra Magazine. This time discussing some thoughts I had about heroic or righteous characters doing 'mean' or off-color things in fiction: pranks, unwanted jokes, nasty tricks, that sort of thing, and how it can be used for characterization purposes (and yes, more Fruits Basket, since that's on … Continue reading Commentary: When Good Characters do Bad Things
Saturday Flotsam: Recovering from Christmas, John K. King’s, and the New Year
1. Christmas week flew by in a haze of family engagements and with little to no progress. I'm trying not to let that bother me too much, as it is Christmas. 2. Though it occurs to me that learning how to feast properly is as much a skill as learning how to fast, and in … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Recovering from Christmas, John K. King’s, and the New Year
Friday Flotsam: A Lot of Variety and a Bollywood Clip
1. Ember Friday of the Third Week of Advent. Enjoy your fast and penance before Christmas! 2. It's been a pretty good week for me; I maintained my intended schedule, for the most part (I tend to fall off toward late afternoon, but I'm likening that to being out-of-shape and will trust that I'll get … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: A Lot of Variety and a Bollywood Clip
Serpent's Den 