By tuck 05 Jan 2002
to mention, there are many of these lame but chuckle-able pics from the night job, including one showing the aftermath of me throwing someone on a table of fruit. but i just assumed two were enough. let me know otherwise and i’ll mail them to you.
<p>also, now that i am armed with an ibook, i may actually begin posting things here. so. </p>
<p>be warned. beware. be sick. or whatever.</p> By tuck 05 Jan 2002
so, i got in trouble yesterday.
<p>for extra money i teach a high school english class for a couple hours each week. (also an elementary school class as evidenced by funny pics which should be visible in ‘journal’, and im also a wrestling gladiator sometimes as evidenced by the other funny pics. ok wipe the smile off your face, if you were offered as much mulla as i was youd be a gladiator too.) those of you who know me may shudder (or chuckle) at the idea of me in charge of instructing kids in anything. but, honestly, i had been taking the task rather seriously and actually planning neato lessons, homework and occasionally games. that is, <span class="caps">NON</span>-stupid games. possibly a first for a foreign language class anywhere in the world. and they responded well. in fact after the last few months of teaching, the school asked if i would teach english there full time. the answer was of course a big, smiling, whopping No. after all, i am in china for specific reasons and already feel loaded with stuff to do between training and language classes and keeping the guanxi growing and stable. </p>
<p>so heres where the problem began. over the last 7 weeks or so, the kids have been learning english as if their lives depended on it. the erudition became voraciously sought. they began practically snarling for words. its because i made it a life or death issue. not their own lives, but those of their characters. yep. ive brought tabletop, DM, GM, Vibro-Blade and Glitter-Boy role-playing to chinese high school; each item, story, mission and battle is born from my own will, interest and current mood. </p>ive found a level where the english is understandable but challenging and they have to study and repeat and really know what is going on if they want to survive, which they do. ive created a special english world for them based on my own deadly imagination. heh. gotta smile at that.
<p>anyway. they tore into it. </p>
<p>they went home with item lists. plans. teams. at first, most of the new vocab were things like bastard sword,delay grenade, lava spell etc. and i knew it was a problem. so the weapons and spells and non-everyday words have been severely limited. but even so, attendance has been 100% lately, and this is a sunday morning class. their attention on me and on the story is distraction-proof. they want to solve the mysteries, gain the power, be the victors. homework a couple weeks ago involved writing histories of their characters. every single student wrote. and wrote. some drew supplementary pictures. in class, everyone was eager to share. hands in the air. only english. i gave them an urgency to learn. so they did. they like to win and shock and be creative with their options and freedoms within the scope of learning and practicing english.</p>
<p>but the story-based interaction didnt go over well once word traveled the quick route from student to parent to department-head to principal and then back to me. i was yelled at. mostly i heard bu hao (not good) and now i think the adventure may be toast. game over. which is a real shame. obviously english here is boring. the kids want to learn it. they know they pretty much have to in order to be a candidate for university entrance. but the atmosphere is crappy. just like high school french in america. i had the class at 50% text book, 50% interactive english. but the interaction seems to have been snuffed or limited to: now well learn what to say at the post office! and other trashy crappola they can easily learn from their level 1 english books. they, like any 14-15 year olds, really hate role-playing as the shop owner or customer. its boring. its redundant. and it shows whenever they try do it. but put a puzzle in there that may involve imagined physical distress upon failure- and have them speak as characters that they are proud of, and they work hard to not only say things, but also say them correctly for the sake of their status and safety.</p>
<p>im taken down by the negative response despite the overwhelming successes of the technique. parents have told me how much more their kids studied english since this class began. (ok, only two moms told me, but still. heh.) </p>im pretty sure its done. outlawed from above. back to lists and drills and worksheets and memorization. oh how fun learning must be.
<p>i still think adventure based language learning is a worthy notion to consider. the books would be progressive. higher level books for higher level characters- which requires higher level english, naturally. it would work. myriad variations available. of course, i dont want to do this. but it would be neat. </p>
<p>ah well. to mention, i cant believe im actually teaching a class. not even exactly sure how this happened.</p> By anders pearson 03 Jan 2002
i got a bunch of cooking stuff for christmas: cookbooks, pots + pans, measuring devices, even a george foreman grill (i’m a vegetarian but i figure i can still grill vege’s on it; for that matter, i intend to grill anything i can damn well fit on it, whether it was intended to be grilled or not).
<p>so i’ve decided to try to just not resist the not-so-subtle hints from my family and try to get into cooking. my previous experience at cooking is pretty small; i had to help my mom occasionally growing up (my mom is a fabulous cook. the people in my office who are around when i open the occasional package of cookies from home can attest to this) and i had to get creative during periods where i was too poor to eat out (i know a thousand different things that you can make by combining in various permutations mac+cheese, ramen, eggs, tuna, rice, bread, and spices).</p>
<p>with that in mind i went grocery shopping today. since i have to carry everything i buy back to my apartment i only got a couple bags worth, but it was much different stuff than usual for me (beer, bread, mac+cheese, tuna, and cookies is a pretty typical shopping list for me). i felt really strange actually going into the produce section of the grocery store; a whole new world. anyway, this is what i got tonight:</p><p>probably a perfectly normal shopping list for anyone else but a whole new adventure for me.</p>
<p>of course it didn’t stop me from having mac+cheese with tuna for dinner when i got home (my cookbooks haven’t arrived yet)</p> By anders pearson 03 Jan 2002
once again, a fabulous new year’s party at jere’s.
<p>in attendance: jere (of course), ramon, myself, heather, matti, matt, nigel, teri, venice, kara, lani, jesse, erica, jeremy, and emile. </p>
<p>good food. good drink. good company.</p>
<p>so once again, thanks for having us, jere.</p>
<p>(and i expect people to post pictures this time)</p> By anders pearson 03 Jan 2002
back in nyc after another fine vacation.
<p>saw my family in maine for christmas and got a lot of rest. saw my friends in mass and got a lot of drunk. </p>
<p>now i have to clean my apartment (things got a little messy in the rush to pack and catch a train before i left), do some laundry and buy groceries.</p> By jere 27 Dec 2001
for those of you who don’t quite remember:
<p>***by train: from South Station in Boston, take the Franklin/Forge Park line (sometimes also they tack I-495 into the name). Norfolk is the third from the last stop (yeah, yeah, trying to count from the end is harder than from the beginning, but there I can’t help you because I’ve always got my nose buried in a book and they don’t always stop at all the stations).</p>
<p>***by car: **from 495-South. Exit 17, left at the exit ramp light. Counting immediately from that light, go through the next 3 lights and turn left at the 4th (Beaver St.). Continue straight at all intersections, until you come to a bunch of Y-intersections and you <strong>have</strong> to make a turning decision — left. Continue straight on this road, which brings you into Norfolk at a 4-way stop (Town Common, church, gas station). Keep going straight about the length of a football field, I am in the apartment at the far (east) end of the white house across the street from the police/fire station.</p>
<p>**from I-95-North: exit 7B (Route 140/Foxboro), Right at the exit ramp, this is 140. Stay on 140 through Foxboro center (there’s a wonderful rotary in store for you), until about three miles outside of town, turn right onto Route 115 (after you pass under a train trestle). Stay on Route 115 until you get to the 4-way stop at Norfolk center (Town Common, left; Church, right). Turn right, and I’m in the… across from police/fire station (see above).</p>
<p>**from 95-South: take Route 1 South exit (don’t remember the #). Continue on Route 1 until you get just past the Stadium. TAke a right where, I believe, the sign says Route 115, or maybe Pine St., but at any rate “Norfolk” (you just passed the Endzone Motel, and the Lafayette House restaurant is one your right). This is a little access road that leads you to Route 115. Take a right. Continue along as above (95-South).</p>
<p>Did I forget anything? Well, planes, I guess: get from Logan Airport to South Station — shuttle bus to blue line, transfer to red line at Downtown Crossing, going toward Ashmont or Braintree; it’ll be the next stop.</p>
<p>If you’re on foot, or in a hot-air balloon, or on horseback, you’re looking for adventure and can figure it out from the above directions yourself.</p>
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<p>I look forward to seeing you!!! Could you give me some idea of when you might be arriving, so I’ll have enough food?<cite>? Any requests</cite></p>
<p>Love, mwaa-ha-ha</p> By lani 26 Dec 2001
Science reprinted this article on a polymer physicist who dedicates his spare time to studying the crystal structure of breads, which mentions The Great Fruitcake Toss of Manitou Springs, Colorado. According to a Cinnabon Press Release, there are four different Cinnabon sponsored ways to toss fruitcakes and maybe even win a year’s worth of Cinnabon. For the “Toss” you have to build your own mechanical device, you can also rent or bring your own own golf clubs for the Drive Contest, or participate in the Derby Contest where you provide your own fruitcake derby car, or just participate in the “Hurl” where you can hurl a fruitcake using the “Official Great Fruitcake Toss Catapult”. and if you can’t provide your own fruitcake, you can always rent one for a quarter.
By sarah 25 Dec 2001
The menu bar that allowed me to see most recent things has gotten smaller and smaller. Not it is gone. And I’m helpless… like an undiapered baby with a wicked case of you know whats.
By anders pearson 25 Dec 2001
home for the holidays. don’t expect to hear much from me for a few days.
By lani 25 Dec 2001
i started this at work where the two topics have been occupying most of my thoughts. i’ve only been working six months and i’m already ready to throw myself back into school. and i think it’s because i lack a solid definition of when it’s going to be done. at least in school, you knew that if you pulled an allnighter or five, you’d be done for the semester, and after X amount of predefined credits you could graduate and have finished something…something. but things seem so infinite in the working world. when does it end? when do i finish? is it really about completion? the questions themselves go on and on.
the other complicaiton in my mind is Sept. 11. it was a glimpse into the finite. panick. turn around. going the wrong way. can’t cross the bridge. can’t get into a car accident. gas food water money news…and then the after effects. biosensor hype. <span class=”caps”>DARPA</span>. anthrax scares. people looking out the window everytime a helicopter flies overhead. flying.
so as someone lying in between atheist and agnostic, i find it difficult to find reasons to keep on ticking, which some of you may find trite…but something makes me feel like there is reason to re-examine it. can we run back to existentialism? does it still apply? and does it have the same context?
death and fame run hand in hand for me maybe because they are both ends. as well as topics surrounding my own question of self-motivation. and so, the solicitation.