LitMag SuperStars

I have a GREAT staff this year. They are creative, yes, but they are also brilliant and loving and supportive and wonderful!! They are working on some great campaigns, not only to solicit submissions for the mag, but also to promote creative thought (with their "Lost Friend" campaign*). They are currently brainstorming/drafting posts for Communitas, our Website that promotes the spirit of community. There we post the good news that's happening in our community and beyond.
Here are some pics of them getting ready for homecoming, etc.:

I'm a lucky teacher.

* The "Lost Friend" campaign was an idea brought to us by the illustrious Arab/American poet, Naomi Shihab Nye. She told us that she was visiting a friend when she saw the curious "Lost Friend" posters all over the neighborhood. Ms. Nye later discovered that the posters were part of an art project. People sent their poems, pictures, etc. to the address listed at the bottom of the flier without knowing anything about the purpose. In the same way, we are promoting creativity and are hoping to receive some amazing projects from the folks in our community. The LitMaggers have decided to start with "Lost Friend," fliers and are currently creating "Where are we going?" ones. From there we're thinking about posting "New Perspective" or "Hope" or maybe just an image.. and then it's onward and upward to even more creatively brilliant inspiration sparkers! If you have an idea, feel free to share!

Hoops and Yoyo Talk About Manners

Maybe instead of wrangling with Boystown rules, we could use these to show our kids right from wrong:

click here for lesson 1: opening a door

click here for lesson 2: using a napkin

click here for lesson 3: blowing your nose

click here for lesson 4: asking to go out and play

click here for lesson 5: wash your hands!

click here for lesson 6: hallway "how are ya?"

click here for lesson 7: how to open a Christmas present

click here for lesson 8: the big SNEEZE

click here for lesson 9: talking with your mouth full

click here for lesson 10: be a good listener!

Is this wrong, OR is it genius?

In class today I used "The Colonel" as a model story for how my students will prepare for their research papers (pre-writing and whatnot)which happens to be literary analysis. As we considered the story and talked about striking images, I ate dried peach halves and made a spectacle of myself by doing so. Not only did I delight in seeing them make faces and squirm, but I laughed and laughed (with my whole body) at their disgust. Then I offered to share with them. Maybe it wasn't so much of a surprise that no one wanted to share with me.. But then, that's the way I roll (wink!). By the end, they'll love me... I hope.

The Colonel

by Carolyn Forche

What you have heard is true. I was in his house. His wife carried a tray of coffee and sugar. His daughter filed her nails, his son went out for the night. There were daily papers, pet dogs, a pistol on the cushion beside him. The moon swung bare on its black cord over the house. On the television was a cop show. It was in English. Broken bottles were embedded in the walls around the house to scoop the kneecaps from a man's legs or cut his hands to lace. On the windows there were gratings like those in liquor stores. We had dinner, rack of lamb, good wine, a gold bell was on the table for calling the maid. The maid brought green mangoes, salt, a type of bread. I was asked how I enjoyed the country. There was a brief commercial in Spanish. His wife took everything away. There was some talk then of how difficult it had become to govern. The parrot said hello on the terrace. The colonel told it to shut up, and pushed himself from the table. My friend said to me with his eyes: say nothing. The colonel returned with a sack used to bring groceries home. He spilled many human ears on the table. They were like dried peach halves.
There is no other way to say this. He took one of them in his hands, shook it in our faces, dropped it into a water glass. It came alive there. I am tired of fooling around, he said. As for the rights of anyone, tell your people they can go f--- themselves. He swept the ears to the floor with his arm and held the last of his wine in the air. Something for your poetry, no? he said. Some of the ears on the floor caught this scrap of his voice. Some of the ears on the floor were pressed to the ground.

Just a thought

I think that on a day like today, we need to carefully consider our hearts. Today should be a humble day, one of reflection and contemplation, on which we think about cause and effect, who we are as people as opposed to who we want to hate, and what we may become as a result of the decisions we make. Perhaps we need to be a little bit less celebratory, and at least think about our actions before we turn a tragedy into a Halmark type of patriotism that creates divison, as opposed to working toward cohesive solutions and understanding.

Three Amigos, Plus One.

"I love these guys! These are funny guys! Only kill one of them."

Surrounded by Smart People

These are definitely insightful and worth the read:
"I'm re-reading "Everything Belongs" by Richard Rohr at the moment (an absolutely incredible book which I highly recommend). In it he makes the comment 'All Spiritual Disciplines have one purpose: to get rid of illusions so we can be present'. Spiritual Disciplines are about Construction - a tearing down of false walls that separate us from our true selves. This construction seems a distraction from the presence of God, but it is in the very place of construction that we find the Divine. This Construction; which for most of us is mainly Destruction, is not a distraction from the Spiritual Life. It is the Spiritual Life"
-from "Under Construction," The Warp and The Weft (P-ta)

"I know, in some vague and distant way, exactly how my life should go. There will be a job involved, some kind of higher education (though this is actually surplus to my personal requirement and mostly an appeasement to everyone else), and submissions of things that I actually invest myself in. Beyond that, I have nothing else to say. I have a strong belief about how my life works (I'll let everyone else worry about their own lives). I don't know how to properly explain it. When I try it sounds like that stupid "Everything happens for a reason" line. It's not fate or the intervention of a invisible pink unicorn. It's just a flow. A natural order of my personality and the world around me interacting to produce the only possible outcome. "
-from "The Unholy Word Trio," Muther Wuther (Amira)

"It's amazing who has to take their dog to the groomers right after school when someone tries to call in a favor. That's what I love about the adult world... we've figured out catch phrases that will get us out of situations. We don't really have to be true to our word. We don't really mean what we say and say what we mean any more. I'm reminded of Jim Carrey's character in Liar, Liar (as he's forced to tell the truth) responding to his son who says "Real beauty is on the inside" and he responds with,"That's just something ugly people say."
-from "How can you tell if you're having an annurism?," Who was that guy? (Brooke)

It's Friday Night Salon Time!

The first Dallas Institute Salon of the season is upon us, and the topics this time are extremely accessible! I am already forming my points/opinions, but I need your help, as always. Feel free to comment on any and all of the following. Remember there is not a right or a wrong, and each idea is heard, not for debate, but for active consideration in an effort to achieve a better overall understanding. Here we go! :)

Discussion topics for September 7, 2007:
1. What underlies our unease about immigration?
2. Paris, Britney, J-Lo: why are we so fascinated?
3. Is "dumbing down" inevitable in a democracy?

See the rules of salon on the website bulletin board here.

Warm Fuzzies Are Worth It

Today when my first period class was ending and it was time to put away the Oedipus Rex books, the entire class simultaneously said, "Awww no! (sigh) Already?" I know! It sounds ridiculously Stepford sappy, and because I am more cynical than I am optimistic, I'm constantly looking behind me for the spoiler. I couldn't possibly have this cool of a class.. Right? And my other classes are almost as enthusiastic. In the other classes I hear things like, "Huh? Class went by fast today, Miss!" which is the equivalent of "Hey, Mrs. Haag, I am really enjoying this class and so time flew by. I appreciate that you made the lesson interesting."

Maybe it's just that I am really working on being positive. Some of the events of last year threw me into a shit-filled rut, and honestly I wallowed in said rut for months at a time. I did my job well enough - meeting the requirements and going through the motions- but I was so concerned with the shit in the rut that even when I reached for a hand-up, it was with a limp arm.

I think sometimes I forget that I have much more control over my emotions than I realize. I mean, most of you know that I struggle with anxiety and depression. I know that those are real chemical imbalances in my brain that I can't "just get over" as some have suggested. But most of the time, I can control my reactions and recognize when what's coming through is not who I want to be and therefore is not who I am. So when things are good and I still feel worthless or like it's directly my fault that the world is far from heaven, I try to recognize what it is that is making me crazy and I can focus on making the irrational more rational by celebrating the positive, little things like a class that isn't ready to go because they're enjoying the assignment. It was one small second of positive, but that one moment filled in part of the rut.

Sometimes celebrating the little things works and sometimes it doesn't, and either way it's a tiring battle. But I think it's worth the effort to have a good day, complete with a warm fuzzy or two.

The Ginger People said! And so it goes..

It occurs to me that Fergie was somehow involved with the ad campaign for this product in that the words sound seductive but make little sense in context:

Or it could be that the advertiser previously worked in the adult film industry.

OR perhaps they were simply describing ALL Gingers.. (!)

And NO, in case you were wondering, I did NOT pose for the packaging art! After having my picture made for my work ID, however, the ID maker said, "Well. I've seen you look worse. ." Stupid pictures. And at least it says, "handy travel package" and not, "handsy travel package."

And Scene...to be continued

So Mr. A, the principal of my school (my boss), walks into my room before the students arrive on the first day of school, as he does every first day of school, to have the same exact first day back conversation that we have every year. It's a bit and it goes like this:

Mr. A: Good morning, Ms. Haag!

Me: Good morning, sir. (large sigh) - (what? I'm allowed a sigh at freaking 7:00 A.M.) (AND I'm allowed as many stage directions as I want.)

Mr A: Don't you just love the first day of school?

Me: (pause before I carefully say) Mr A, I love the second semester.

(Mr. A grins at my smartassitude (probably because it's not unlike his own personality) and walks out of the room)

And scene...usually!

This year, the scene didn't end, as it ought to have done. In fact, the scene took a drastic turn for the worse in a way that happens only when the planets are disturbingly misaligned or when the 7th dimension devours the first and second ones in a spiraling wormhole of doom, leaving putrid detritus smeared on the walls of the subconscious mind. OK. I'm being dramatic. I don't think a 7th dimension exists. But if it does and if it decides to devour the first two leaving smeared detritus on walls and stuff, it would look something like this:

(On his way out of the room, Mr. A stops and glances at my peace corner (messages of peace from Einstein and Gandhi, in poster forms, and a huge rainbow peace flag that says 'pace' which is 'peace' in Italian - you know the one that my students consistently and "rationally" interpret as a banner homage to my adoration of gay picante sauce - ??). He stops, looks at me, points to my peace corner.)

Mr. A: There will never be peace, you know.

Me: (large gasp coordinated with a truly puzzled/horrified look on my face)

(Mr. A walks out of the room.)

Me: (turning to face the audience listening at home) But that's not how it goes! And what a shitty way to start the school year! Where's my coffee? Where's Christine?

And Scene... for reals, this time.

Because I knew I had to survive the first day of school, I put the conversation out of my mind until I could skip over to Christine's room for another rendition of the very popular, highly rated, and sometimes forced (as is the case on the first day of school) comedy hour called The Ginger and Christine Show. (We usually do the 'Ta da!" pose here, but alas, I am typing now which makes spirit fingers very difficult.) So, I go to her room and we decide to make the quarter of a mile trek (not kidding) to the main office to say hello to the office staff and because Mr. A's wonderful secretary told us that she had some money for us to pick up. Off we skip. (Loads of skipping happens in my school.. get it? skipping.. in high school.. HAHAHAHA. Dude. I promise. The only questionable substance in my body right now is Folgers medium/dark roast Colombian coffee with a shot of Cinnamon Vanilla Coffeemate.)

When we get to the office, I see Mr. A for the first time since he made that turbulent comment to me that morning. I poke my head into his office and we have this conversation:

Me: Mr. A, do you really think there can never be peace?

Mr. A: Actually I've thought about it and I think there can be peace.. (long pause) but only if we annihilate all of mankind.

Me: (intake of breath to say something, I'm still not sure what)

Mr. A: No wait. We'd have to get rid of all of the animals, too, because of that whole 'dog eat dog' thing.

Me: (grinning at my own discomfort with the understanding that he's doing this on purpose)

Mr. A: AND we'd have to get rid of all plants too. You know. Venus Fly Traps and what not. (smirks)

Me: (full on smile) So, you're saying that there will only be peace if we get rid of all living things, and the world is a cold, dead rock.

Mr. A: Or if everyone were naked. If everyone were naked, no one would want to fight.

Me: Why? Because they would be too horrified? Or is it because we would all be laughing, pointing at each other, and saying things like, "That can't happen!"

All: (laughter)

So now we have a new bit. Every time I see Mr. A, even in passing, we have a conversation about peace:

"Did you figure it out, yet?"
"Nope. You?"
"Well, what if..."

And I think it's good that we're working on it, even if some of the solutions seem sarcastic or unreasonable. In fact, I love that we're working on it. If only we all were.

And what a great way to start the year!

to be continued..