mrfadlan

My best friend and I took her kids to the Brooks Museum today to see the Art of Video Games exhibit, and though we only had a short visit, we loved it. It's definitely going to be something to repeat this summer.

The Pink Palace is running Superman on its giant screen on Saturdays, and we enjoyed the screening after the museum visit.

All in all, today was a good day.

I like the idea of journaling. I've no idea if I will stick to this or how public I'll make it, but I do like the idea. Yesterday, and very likely today, are about Charleston, SC. I no longer have the luxury of being able to simply state that I'll pray for the victims. But I am thinking about them and posting about them.

Comment and I will tell you:

1. Something random about you.
2. Which color you remind me of.
3. My first memory of you.
4. What animal you remind me of.
5. Ask you something I've always wondered about you.
6. My favorite thing about you.
7. My least favorite thing about you.
8. Challenge you to post this on your journal.

Last we spoke, I was preparing mentally for a six week assignment at Crump Elementary teaching Engish as a Second Language. A year later, and it appears substitute for ESL teachers exclusively. This is much to my liking. I've worked extended assignments at Crump, Kate Bond Elementary, Overton High School, Fairview Middle School and American Way Middle. At the moment, I spend my days at Shelby Oaks Elementary. I'm teaching two classes of 5th graders, two of 4th grade, and two of 2nd grade. This week was my first, and I'm finding the school pleasant. It took a few days for the faculty to warm up, but it's pleasant now. After school, I work in the parking lot as a crossing guard. I find this surprisingly pleasant. I did the job at Crump and loved it. Scenes from The Andy Griffith Show fly through my head each time I step into the lines of cars of Barny holding up traffic in his failure at the job. It's a great image and gives me a chuckle before i begin.

I'm reading more again, shifting between my first Japanese Manga called Deathnote and Stoker's Dracula. Also, I'm hoping to begin a writing group either IRL or online. A friend and I had been thinking of starting a book club but had begun to reconsider, thinking the constant purchase of new books might weigh on our finances. This will be cheaper and provide the support we both need to reclaim our pens. So if any of you have an interest, please send word. We're accepting beginners and veterans.

Either tonight or tomorrow, I'll begin my work for an online ESL class that focuses on assessments. i'm looking forward to it, but I think I really need to find my copy of Office so I'll be able to complete my assignments. My trial period has run out and my disc is playing hide-and-seek with me.

So I posted a status on facebook commenting on the update of the Doomsday Clock and got little response. This leads me to the question, am I the only one that remembers Time Magazine posting the Doomsday clock on their cover telling us how many minutes there are til midnight? For the most part I was too young to understand it at the time, but I did some research when i saw the story posted on monday and found it was created by the Bullitin of Atomic Scientists in 1947. Anyone else remember this old symbol of our self-destruction?

Hope all of you are well. I read still, even if I don't comment or update my own LJ. Take care!

I'm off for the next two weeks, which I'm very much enjoying. This is time for me to get my affairs straight for school starting next month. THis is also time for me to prepare for the subbing position I'll be starting in January. I was vying for an intirim position at South Park elementary, and, though I did not get that one, I have secured a similar position at Crump Elementary for the month of January and a week or two of February, which I'm looking forward to. THe teacher is going on maternity leave. This is the practice that I've been looking for for my certification.

I'm also planning to finish two books I'm reading now so that I'll have my plate clear when I have to begin reading academic books in January for the two classes I'm taking. I'm currently reading The Isis Papers by Dr. Francis Cress Welsing, which theorizes that the root of our national, and perhaps universal, racial tension lies in the fact that the white race feels a subconscious inferiority to those with pigmentation, as we are a genetic minority. She explores language, religion, sports and other facets of human life to make her point, and it is well-reasoned. I question some of the conclusions she draws, but, as a whole, I enjoy the debate spawned by the book's ideas.

The other book is Beyond the Indigo Children by Atwater who describes effectively the place of indigo children and future generations in society. For those who have an interest in the Mayan prophecy of the coming spiritual shift in the human conscious in 2012, this and others of its ilk are a good source of information.

At nearly eight this evening, my five day weekend is nearly at a close. It's been enjoyable. I stayed up til four saturday morning talking with a friend at his barn. We watched Half Nelson. Beautiful movie. Woke at twelve thirty and went home. At the moment, I'm watching The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford, so far excellent.

At the barn, there is a llama that sits calmly in the mornings and gives you the impression of great wisdom. He reminds me of Yoda. A horse stands vigil in the nights away from his kin, staying closer to the llama, goat, dogs, and meandering cats.

My tires are replaced, and I've a new pair of dress pants for work. I'm happy and I hope that you've had as pleasant a weekend.

So Frank the Goat has his own LJ...I didn't realize that until now. Hi, I'm back again...hopefully, it'll stick. My desire is that, through blogging more, I'll start writing other stuff again.

I've been having car trouble this month, and I think it's finally fixed now. I replaced my water pump, a hose, and my battery within these last two weeks. What remains is to put in a couple of turn signal bulbs so I can pass inspection and change out two tires. These work fine, but it'll be better after they're replaced. Last night, excited about having the use of my wheels once more, I drove to High Point Coffee in midtown and geeked it out with my laptop and a white bianca. Consequence: I didn't sleep until four this morning.

My grandmother had her Thanksgiving event at one this afternoon, so we had the morning to slowly crawl from our beds and take our time doing so. Three of the paternal family branches were there. My grandmother and her twin sister hosted. Present from my grandmother's lineage were my father and his brother, his wife, three of their children, my mother, and myself. My great-aunt's side included her daughter's husband, her daughter, their daughter, her husband, and their two children. Sixteen.

It appears that I may see an aunt enter into local politics by vying to be the mayor of the neighboring city of Southaven. I'm not yet certain how serious the plans are but I'll be eager to watch and support her. Between that and throwing berries from my grandmother's bushes with my cousins, I had an enjoyable time debating a possible end date for the universe in 2068.

I lay on my bed for a few when we returned home, and Mom and I went to her brother's house at five. Some extended family arrived shortly after. Uncle Dave's mother-in-law is a retired teacher and she wanted to speak to Mom and I about our new careers in the educational field. It was a very enjoyable evening.

The night has so far been relaxing, and I'm about to head to bed. I hope you all have had a stress-free Thanksgiving.

Mayor Herenton, arguably the most powerful mayor since Crump, will resign his office effective July 31.  Rumors are that he intends to seek his former role as school superintendant.  

We are again also hearing the rumors of his deal with Shelby County mayor A.C Wharton to step down after about two years in office to pave the way for a city/county consolidation.  

years ago, my dad asked me if I was a history buff, and, being the young school boy that I was, I was slightly offended.   However, seeing how excited I was to find a copy of Thomas Paine's Common Sense on the bargain rack at Bookstar, I'll have to switch my response to unabashedly so.

Actually, I did that years ago.  

The journal is open for business again.  :)