1. My history book for sixth grade starts off its survey of the men of the Middle Ages with an account of the Norse gods, paralleling previous entries in the same series which started with the Greek gods to set the stage for famous Greeks and so on. The trouble is that, from what I've … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Teaching History, Kansas Context, and a Paradox
Friday Flotsam
Sunday Flotsam: More Teaching and Some Fire Thoughts
1. From today's sermon: St. Augustine said that, "Peace is the tranquility of Order." That's a line to build a frame of life on! And, as you can tell by the fact that this is going up two days late (again), I lack order in my life. Something I need to work on. 2. Back … Continue reading Sunday Flotsam: More Teaching and Some Fire Thoughts
Friday Flotsam: New Year and Such
1. First a happy New Year to all! 2. I'm not going to bother with New Year predictions; I don't have my finger on the pulse of anything enough for it to be worth it. 3. Well, I'll do one: America will (yet again) not acquire Canada. Considering that the current Canadian government acquired and … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: New Year and Such
Friday Flotsam: Christmas
1. When God comes among men, He comes not as a figure of awe and terror, but as an infant sleeping in His mother's arms. 2. I'm home in Michigan for Christmas; going back to Arizona for New Years'. It's nice to see rain again, though I wish it were snow (meanwhile, my sister in … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Christmas
Friday Flotsam: Kraven and Superman, Among Other Things
1. And my first full-time semester of teaching is officially over! Overall went pretty well, so far as I can tell. Very instructive, and I had a pretty good batch of guinea pigs students to work with. I have quite a few ideas for improvements next semester. 2. This has been a hard year on … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Kraven and Superman, Among Other Things
Sunday Flotsam: A Very Late Hodgepodge
1. I'm extra late this week. I wish I could say it was for a good reason, but no, it is mostly a matter of not wanting to do any work yesterday, I'm afraid. Been a while since I've gone all the way to Sunday. 2. It's been an extremely busy week of prepping the … Continue reading Sunday Flotsam: A Very Late Hodgepodge
Saturday Flotsam: Fairy Tales, ‘Heavy Rain’, Diplomacy
1. My first semester of full-time teaching is rapidly approaching its end. I'll be making exams this weekend. It's been an extremely educational experience for me, whether or not my students can say the same. 2. Is there anyone left in the world who doesn't know that the Brother's Grimm's fairy tales are generally more … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Fairy Tales, ‘Heavy Rain’, Diplomacy
Friday Flotsam: Thanksgiving and More 80s Movies
1. Happy belated Thanksgiving, everyone! 2. Yesterday was my first 'solo' Thanksgiving. My stuffing didn't turn out very well, but at least I had some turkey legs. Per tradition I opened the holiday season with a viewing of The Star Wars Holiday Special courtesy of rifftrax ("there's murder in his eyes; I like where this … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Thanksgiving and More 80s Movies
Friday Flotsam: Tiresome Internet Videos, Boxing, and ‘Star Trek’
1. I am extremely thankful that there is a break coming up: the last few weeks have been exhausting. Working with teenagers is no joke. 2. Ridley Scott really needs to retire. All accounts are that Gladiator II is...well, exactly as bad as you'd expect a 2024 sequel to a highly-regarded film from 2000 to … Continue reading Friday Flotsam: Tiresome Internet Videos, Boxing, and ‘Star Trek’
Saturday Flotsam: Mostly ‘The Hobbit’
1. I'm extra late this week. I wish I could say it was for a good reason, but it isn't. 2. My class finished reading The Hobbit this week (I pretty much gave two whole periods to almost nothing but reading because I'm realizing how little time is left in the first semester). As always, … Continue reading Saturday Flotsam: Mostly ‘The Hobbit’
Serpent's Den 