As usual, I'm behind.
I'm behind in my housework, I'm behind in my bills and I'm behind in school work. You know what they say about the best-laid plans...errr, right? Well, honestly, I don't know what they say, but I know it's something about how having the best plans does not always guarantee the results you expect.
But, it is what it is, so onward and upward!
John Wooden is known as being one of the greatest coaches of all time; he is one of my personal heroes, and you know I don't have many.
One of the things he is known for in his coaching and in his life, is the 7-Point Creed. See quote below:
John Wooden's Seven Point Creed,[1] given to him by his father Joshua upon his graduation from grammar school:
* Be true to yourself.
* Make each day your masterpiece.
* Help others.
* Drink deeply from good books, especially the Bible.
* Make friendship a fine art.
* Build a shelter against a rainy day.
* Pray for guidance and give thanks for your blessings every day.
If you don't know who John Wooden is, look him up--his story is quite remarkable. As I said, I deeply admire him and the things he has accomplished as a coach and as a human being. As you know, I don't say that about very many people.
In any case, your task for this week is to come up with your own 7-Point Creed and share it here. I know that I am asking a lot of you. I know that this is not something you can do in two days. And this is why I am extending the deadline until Friday night. You will really need to put a lot of thought into this. And because you are, you can be sure that this is not as assignment that will stand on its own; you will see this, in some way, again in the future.
If coming up with your creed proves difficult,ask yourself these questions to help you along:
What do I value?
What are my morals?
How do I want to be perceived by others?
What do I want my legacy to be?
What have I learned in my life?
What else do I want to learn?
Now, I certainly don't want you to answer those questions and consider that to be your creed. Remember, a creed is a sort of guideline for living, but it is also completely subjective. Look at Wooden's creed again. The statements there are kind of ambiguous and can be open to interpretation, don't you think? So, when you are doing this, try to keep that in mind. However, it is precisely BECAUSE the statements are ambiguous that you will have to explain what you mean by them, what they mean to you and why you chose them. Always the why.
What you are basically doing is creating a blueprint by which you can live your life. YOUR life. Nobody else's.
After all, who is more important than you?
substantive response/50pts
Monday, December 13, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
"I Am Whatever You Say I Am..."
Ahhh...the unwitting brilliance of Eminem. He's no Lupe or Jay-Z, but although, not my favorite rapper, I do honor him as a poet. His ideas are always worthwhile, and although many find his...verbiage, distasteful, offensive or unintelligent, I sort of welcome his viewpoints and his unique expressive take on the world at large. And the song the title references is pretty cool, so...
How many times have you said to yourself, and for that matter, to anyone who would listen--"I don't care what anyone else thinks...". I know I've said it at least once in the past month! In our heart of hearts, though, do we really believe that?
It seems an age-old question, but it is one that may not have just one answer: to what extent do other people's perceptions of you have an impact on the decisions you make?
Peer pressure, parental pressure, self-imposed pressure, all these outside, or inside, forces have the potential to make you act, or react, in ways that you normally might not if never exposed to those influences. My question is: Why? Why do we care? Why is it important? Why do other people's perceptions or expectations of who we are have so much of an influence on us? Or do they? Be honest with yourself when you answer. After all, it's just us.
(400 words/55pts)
How many times have you said to yourself, and for that matter, to anyone who would listen--"I don't care what anyone else thinks...". I know I've said it at least once in the past month! In our heart of hearts, though, do we really believe that?
It seems an age-old question, but it is one that may not have just one answer: to what extent do other people's perceptions of you have an impact on the decisions you make?
Peer pressure, parental pressure, self-imposed pressure, all these outside, or inside, forces have the potential to make you act, or react, in ways that you normally might not if never exposed to those influences. My question is: Why? Why do we care? Why is it important? Why do other people's perceptions or expectations of who we are have so much of an influence on us? Or do they? Be honest with yourself when you answer. After all, it's just us.
(400 words/55pts)
Monday, October 4, 2010
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Confucious Says: Words are the Voices of the Heart
Man, I love words.
Good thing I suppose, given my chosen and hard-fought-for occupation. Every time I sit down at a keyboard or have a pen poised over a blank sheet of paper, I feel overwhelmed with excitement, with possibility, with anticipation. With a few key strokes or swipes of a pen, you can find the right combination of words that can make someone LOVE you.
Conversely, you can break a heart, manipulate a mind or sever an allegiance…all with those same strokes or swipes. Think about that. Legends are immortalized because of words. Nations go to war over words. Couples are united in matrimony with words. Hearts and lives are shattered due to words. The power they wield is, in a word, awesome.
“Every time I come around the corner and see your car in the driveway I get sick to my stomach.”
I sat on the couch during yet another face-off with my mother when she let fly with that condemnation, effectively shattering any sense of comfort and belonging I may have been clinging to at the time. I was 17. I’m 38 now, and I can hear those words in my ear as clear as if they were uttered 10 minutes ago. I can’t say that it was those exact words that led to the eventual, unsurprising demise of my relationship with my mother, but I know it was certainly a huge chunk out of the already crumbling foundation. It stands, to this day, as one of the worst things anyone has ever said to me.
But, as I said, words are powerful. They can also have healing properties. Let me give you a scenario. I was visiting a friend at what is now, TCNJ (then it was Trenton State College). My boyfriend of about a year had just broken up with me, quite unceremoniously, at a party the night before. I was feeling kind of blue, just sort of moping around the campus waiting for my friend’s class to end. While aimlessly wandering through the bookstore, I saw an old friend from high school, a guy who graduated a year ahead of me. We got to talking about life after high school and what my plans were and all of that idle small talk, when he looked me right in the eye and said, “Well Cas, the thing is, I hear you’re an excellent writer.”
What followed is not a Cinderella-like ending of fairytale romance (this is me we’re talking about) between Matt Opacity (that was his name) and me,your English IV teacher. We didn’t fall into each other’s arms and swear undying love—it wasn’t even a romantic moment. He wasn’t trying out a brand-new pick-up line or even trying to soothe my bruised, dumped ego. It was a simple declaration that I am quite sure he would never even remember saying all these years later. But it’s impact on me was and is undeniable. Because of him, when I went back home, the first place I looked for a summer job was at a local newspaper called The Sandpaper. I landed a job as a stringer and at the tender age of 18, got my first ever piece of writing published. I even got paid for it! (It was an article on Tonkinese cats—don’t laugh!) Such is the power and the beauty of words.
So, that is the focus of this week’s blog question. I would like you to think about conversations you have had, arguments in which you’ve been embroiled, moments of bliss you have experienced. They all have one thing in common—WORDS.
The Yin: What is the worst thing anyone has ever said to you? Why do you think it was the worst thing? How did it make you feel?
And for the Yang (because there always is one): What was the best compliment you have ever received?
Who said it? Why do you think was it was the best compliment?
And finally, perhaps even MOST IMPORTANTLY, reflect on the fact that you highlighted these two particular comments. What do you think your choices of what was the best and worst thing anyone could say about/to you reveal about your you and your personality? Much to think about, I know. Don’t delay!! (500 words/80pts)
Good thing I suppose, given my chosen and hard-fought-for occupation. Every time I sit down at a keyboard or have a pen poised over a blank sheet of paper, I feel overwhelmed with excitement, with possibility, with anticipation. With a few key strokes or swipes of a pen, you can find the right combination of words that can make someone LOVE you.
Conversely, you can break a heart, manipulate a mind or sever an allegiance…all with those same strokes or swipes. Think about that. Legends are immortalized because of words. Nations go to war over words. Couples are united in matrimony with words. Hearts and lives are shattered due to words. The power they wield is, in a word, awesome.
“Every time I come around the corner and see your car in the driveway I get sick to my stomach.”
I sat on the couch during yet another face-off with my mother when she let fly with that condemnation, effectively shattering any sense of comfort and belonging I may have been clinging to at the time. I was 17. I’m 38 now, and I can hear those words in my ear as clear as if they were uttered 10 minutes ago. I can’t say that it was those exact words that led to the eventual, unsurprising demise of my relationship with my mother, but I know it was certainly a huge chunk out of the already crumbling foundation. It stands, to this day, as one of the worst things anyone has ever said to me.
But, as I said, words are powerful. They can also have healing properties. Let me give you a scenario. I was visiting a friend at what is now, TCNJ (then it was Trenton State College). My boyfriend of about a year had just broken up with me, quite unceremoniously, at a party the night before. I was feeling kind of blue, just sort of moping around the campus waiting for my friend’s class to end. While aimlessly wandering through the bookstore, I saw an old friend from high school, a guy who graduated a year ahead of me. We got to talking about life after high school and what my plans were and all of that idle small talk, when he looked me right in the eye and said, “Well Cas, the thing is, I hear you’re an excellent writer.”
What followed is not a Cinderella-like ending of fairytale romance (this is me we’re talking about) between Matt Opacity (that was his name) and me,your English IV teacher. We didn’t fall into each other’s arms and swear undying love—it wasn’t even a romantic moment. He wasn’t trying out a brand-new pick-up line or even trying to soothe my bruised, dumped ego. It was a simple declaration that I am quite sure he would never even remember saying all these years later. But it’s impact on me was and is undeniable. Because of him, when I went back home, the first place I looked for a summer job was at a local newspaper called The Sandpaper. I landed a job as a stringer and at the tender age of 18, got my first ever piece of writing published. I even got paid for it! (It was an article on Tonkinese cats—don’t laugh!) Such is the power and the beauty of words.
So, that is the focus of this week’s blog question. I would like you to think about conversations you have had, arguments in which you’ve been embroiled, moments of bliss you have experienced. They all have one thing in common—WORDS.
The Yin: What is the worst thing anyone has ever said to you? Why do you think it was the worst thing? How did it make you feel?
And for the Yang (because there always is one): What was the best compliment you have ever received?
Who said it? Why do you think was it was the best compliment?
And finally, perhaps even MOST IMPORTANTLY, reflect on the fact that you highlighted these two particular comments. What do you think your choices of what was the best and worst thing anyone could say about/to you reveal about your you and your personality? Much to think about, I know. Don’t delay!! (500 words/80pts)
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Chapter One
Hello, Seniors!! Welcome to your class blog. This is a place we will all go every week to talk about some of the important issues we discussed in class, OR talk about something completely different but equally important.
Remember that once you post your comment, you become a published author so all of your writing should be the best it can be--no typos and no "text-speak" (lol, lmao, wtf etc). I take serious points off if you do it, so don't. Your posts will have a SIGNIFICANT impact on your grade, so it is important that you take it seriously. Two missed blogs in a marking period can lower you ONE FULL LETTER GRADE.
Each week, I will post a question--it will never be the type of question that asks something like: "who said what to who, when and where?" because, quite frankly...who cares?? I know I don't and I'm willing to bet you don't either.
It will be more along the lines of something that urges you to think deeply about yourself, about the world around you and about your place in it. For some of you this will be hard--you're private, you're shy, you don't want everyone all up in your bizzzz etc. Yeah, well--shut up and get over it. It's here to stay, and once you start to get into it, those issues you had at first will all be gone. Trust me.
Are you ready? Here we go...
It is finally here--your SENIOR YEAR!! You have waited three very long years to get to this moment. But, before we move forward, let's look back a little bit. Allllllll the way back to when you were just a baby freshie. How were you different then? Includes differences in physical appearance, intelligence, emotions, opinions and ideas. What was the most important thing you learned about yourself during the course of your freshmen, sophomore and junior years?
Answer ALL questions as completely and with as much detail as you can. Failure to answer all of the questions will result in terrible things.Good Luck!
(300 words/25pts)
Remember that once you post your comment, you become a published author so all of your writing should be the best it can be--no typos and no "text-speak" (lol, lmao, wtf etc). I take serious points off if you do it, so don't. Your posts will have a SIGNIFICANT impact on your grade, so it is important that you take it seriously. Two missed blogs in a marking period can lower you ONE FULL LETTER GRADE.
Each week, I will post a question--it will never be the type of question that asks something like: "who said what to who, when and where?" because, quite frankly...who cares?? I know I don't and I'm willing to bet you don't either.
It will be more along the lines of something that urges you to think deeply about yourself, about the world around you and about your place in it. For some of you this will be hard--you're private, you're shy, you don't want everyone all up in your bizzzz etc. Yeah, well--shut up and get over it. It's here to stay, and once you start to get into it, those issues you had at first will all be gone. Trust me.
Are you ready? Here we go...
It is finally here--your SENIOR YEAR!! You have waited three very long years to get to this moment. But, before we move forward, let's look back a little bit. Allllllll the way back to when you were just a baby freshie. How were you different then? Includes differences in physical appearance, intelligence, emotions, opinions and ideas. What was the most important thing you learned about yourself during the course of your freshmen, sophomore and junior years?
Answer ALL questions as completely and with as much detail as you can. Failure to answer all of the questions will result in terrible things.Good Luck!
(300 words/25pts)
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