farewell to a neighbor
11:10 PM
"One owes respect to the living; but to the dead one owes nothing but the truth."
-Voltaire
Sometime early Thursday morning, less than 30 feet from my bedroom, my neighbor Renee died.
Renee was one of two neighbors that have lived on our block longer than we have (15 years). She grew up in the brutal pre-WWII years in Germany and got out at age 17 after Poland fell.
Her husband was a gentle soul whose health was declining shortly after we moved in. He spoke little but was ready with a smile and a wave on his summer walks around the block.
My favorite memory of Renee is from Summer 2002. Wearing khaki shorts and a t-shirt, I sat on the concrete steps that lead down to the sidewalk just enjoying the afternoon. Renee saw me and slowly made her way with her cane down to say hello.
I gave her the update: I was laid off, had done some interviews and got close to something like my old job in product marketing, but decided to change careers and go into teaching. I was about halfway to my certification.
Renee was supportive and positive. Her husband (who had died about 7 years earlier) had gone through a similar career change and had come out fine. It was a splendid afternoon. I can feel the warmth radiating from the sidewalk and the sunlight playing in the leaves of the trees. I loved being a student again and knew that I was on the right path. It felt great to share that with a neighbor and to make the connection: you're not the first to lose a job -- everything's going to be o.k.
And that was a part of Renee that I'll always appreciate and remember.
But here is where the Voltaire quote comes into play. On balance, Renee was not a very nice person. A few years back, Cathy let a pet rat loose from our house. I don't exactly remember why, but she did. Renee somehow spotted it and that triggered her meltdown mode. She marched up to our house, confronted Cathy, and reprimanded her in front of our children using foul language.
I was shocked when Cathy recounted the tale for me. I figured that rats were some kind of special trauma for Renee and that a crazy old woman had just lost it once.
It turns out that most of the neighbors have numerous similar stories to tell. It was also common knowledge that she was estranged from her children.
And there you have it.
I am still saddened at her passing. She was sometimes nice, sometimes malevolent. But she was my neighbor.
March 22, 2006
why i heart mighty girl
09:37 PM
Trivial Pursuit: Drunk Edition
March 14, 2006
i hate what wal-mart has done to my country
07:04 PM
"What is more, the depressing effect of Wal-Mart's expansion on payrolls extends well beyond retailing. According to a 2005 analysis by economists at the Public Policy Institute of California, take-home pay per person fell by 5 percent across the board following Wal-Mart's entry into a county. The evidence "strongly suggest(s) that Wal-Mart stores lead to wage declines, shifts to lower-paying jobs (or less skilled workers), or increased use of part-time workers," the authors concluded."
-Tony Bianco
Author of Bully of Bentonville
March 12, 2006
why i love teaching
04:43 PM
I am reminded every day that I am a student first and a teacher second.
My business is learning.
White boards and overhead projectors.
Learning is doing. When I do the work of writing, I am a writer. When I do the work of a scientist, I am a scientist. When I do the work of a mathematician, I am a mathematician. I do, I am.
The more we learn about the brain and teach with that in mind, the more effective our teaching becomes and the better we learn.
Letters of appreciation for a classmate.
Markers and chartpaper.
A student so psyched to participate they start doing that "Oo!-oo!" Horschak thing.
Classroom jobs like paper passer, lunch basket carriers, and messenger.
The Preamble of the U.S. Constitution high up on the wall.
A life size cut-out of Albert Einstein.
Read alouds.
Spontaneous connections between stuff that happens in our lives and stuff that happens in books.
Passing the overhead marker to a student eager to solve a math problem.
Scholastic book orders.
Talented, eager volunteers.
A list made by your principal during an observation of a lesson of things you did well.
The lingering spirits of thousands of students and multitudes of teachers that have inhabited this particular classroom.
A fine mist and a wet sheen on the asphalt during a.m. break.
The lost & found song.
A drawing addressed "To the best teacher ever" because you know that for some students at some moments that year, it was true.
will the u.s. senate censure president for illegal spying?
04:17 PM
Senator Feingold of Wisconsin calls for the censure of Bush for illegally spying on Americans:
"We, as a Congress, have to stand up to a president who acts like the Bill of Rights and the Constitution were repealed on Sept 11, [2001]," Feingold said.
Give some love to the Senator from the great state of Wisconsin.
March 06, 2006
syllogism
09:30 PM
Napoleon Dynamite:Uncle Rico::Fed up Americans:W Bush
"I wish you'd get out of my life and shut up!"
-The Tao of Napoleon Dynamite
