April | 2013 | teacher47

Trusting the World. Trusting Myself.

I'm very itchy. I won't go into details.

The only thing that made me happy yesterday, to the point where I forgot how itchy I was (I'm dealing with a lot of post-surgery issues - most of them are mental, of course), was writing. I'm working on a project that may or may not go somewhere, and it makes me happy. I lose time when writing, and I don't mind that.

And can writing get you places? Of course. Here's an example: Kelly Oxford was recently profiled in one of my magazines & I just saw her on The Today Show this morning. I bought her book two days ago on Amazon. She was "just" a blogger & tweeter. And now look what happened to her!

FJ: (B, 8am) FOUR pieces of awesome toast (raisin walnut bread with butter & honey; gourmet white bread with butter and rhubarb jam) + coffee. (S) don't know if I'll need one with that large of a breakfast? (L) leftover pizza (2 slices) + concoction. (S) mini Twix & mini Reese's cup + water? (D) leftover pizza (1 large slice) plus nachos with awesome salsa + water. (S) Skinny Cow frozen thingie & 10 M&Ms.
Afternoon Inspiration.
Disclaimer.

These opinions of mine are just that - mine. No one else's. Not my family's, not my campus', not my friends'.
Blue State, Red State, Who Gives A ...

In the middle of helping my online students do some research, I found some great articles about blue states vs. red states. A topic I would choose for this particular project I've assigned them.

Basically, the coolest article I found basically threw it in my face that we can't change anyone's mind who is "on the other side." It wasn't done in a harsh way, but I had always hoped - in my optimistic teacher viewpoint - that I could maybe tweak the minds of students who hate writing and creativity and homosexuality. People on campus, students, other bloggers, friends, etc. consistently try to argue against me on a variety of issues. They think they are right, I know neither one of us is, and then there's that standstill at the end... I end up still thinking that homosexuality is in our genes, that global warming is happening, and that all religions have a point probably so we shouldn't consider one top dog. They end up thinking I'm silly or stupid; I'm the former most of the time, but rarely the latter.

"Furthermore, both liberals and conservatives displayed ideological bias when assessing the validity of the cognitive reflection test. When climate-change skeptics were characterized as open-minded, Republicans thought the test was nifty. When skeptics were branded as closed-minded, more Democrats found the test results convincing. Ideology distorts both left-wing and right-wing thinking.

Were high scorers more or less likely to be politically polarized? The researchers found that the higher either conservatives or liberals scored on cognitive reflection, the more likely they were to judge the test as valid when its results supposedly confirmed their ideological views about climate change skeptics. People skilled at systematic reasoning use that capacity to justify their beliefs rather than seek the truth."
Idea Hoarder.

I guess I have to stop having ideas because no one wants them. Idea-makers should just keep to themselves. No one wants our ideas.
FJ:
(B, 8am) 2 Belvita biscuits with coffee. (S) Concoction (grapefruit juice, lemon lime diet water, coconut water) + other two biscuits? (L, meeting) Large salad + cup of chili + water. (S) three strawberry Pepperidge Farm cookies + concoction + water and baby Snickers bar at home. (D) leftover lasagna + water? (S) Skinny Cow frozen thingie (100 calories).
FJ:
(B, 8am) A bit of my concoction from last night to down my vitamins + coffee + 2 chocolate Belvita biscuits. (S, 11am) The other 2 Belvita biscuits + water + coffee. (L, 1pm-ish) lasagna leftovers = 3 cups (serving, according to the recipe is 4 cups) + water. (S, 2:30-3pm) water + 3 Pepperidge Farm strawberry cookies. (D) 3 cups of leftover lasagna (such a great leftover!) + bun with butter & honey (S) n/a
North Dakota Fail.

Remember when we were known for our "uber cold climate" and "low-paying jobs" and land so flat that no one wanted to visit us...??? Yeah. I kind of want THOSE days back. So sad, right?
Because check this out = http://www.examiner.com/article/what-s-the-matter-with-north-dakota-rise-of-a-male-dominated-dystopia

And there are other articles like this. Yikes.

We have the opportunity to be awesome. We have the chance to be the cool place (pun intended?) that people want to live in. But WOW... probably not going to happen. I'm disappointed in my little state; you've turned into a giant jerk ... like Texas (no offense?). So, um, maybe I should start a matriarchy? Who's with me?
Am I fooling myself?
Na.
Food Journal - Starting up again with this habit today!
(b) coffee + peaches/greek yogurt/granola/honey - didn't eat all of it... (s) 2pieces of toast w/honey. (Lunch) water + 2 pieces of pizza just toppings + 3 ckn kickers + 1/2 Easter cupcake. (Snack after nap & painting first coat in upstairs hallway) water + cheese/crackers.(d) three lasagna cups & concoction: coconut water, grapefruit juice & lemon lime juice.