and the emmy for most perfect month ever goes to...

Oh, my God...could this month have even been any nicer???

It just makes me realize even more how much I absolutely HATE winter.  (Can't it just stay August???)

PLEASE????

Ah well, before September slides in, here's one more blog entry:

E2CP: we discussed "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Caleveras County."  (Wait, check that: I discussed.  You sat there like lumps.  And that had better stop pretty darned soon or there will be essays.)  Tonight, read "An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.  (p.133)

E3H: we discussed Art Quotes A,B,C and D.  We begin tomorrow with E.  And go from there.  :-)

CW: tomorrow we're off to the races with a couple of Goldfish Bowl conferences (I'm open for volunteers) and then small groups!

Glee didn't win, but oh did they shine!

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workin' late

I'm trying to find everything!

I found all of the E2CP essays.  No prob. But I can't find some of the completed E3H ones.  Maybe they are on my home computer after all.

Oy.

I've emailed a bunch of them from here; I will check at home for the rest, then give up and (yes) redo those that have yet to be mailed.  Look for them in the next couple of hours.  (It's about 6 now.  9 at the latest.)

How I feel:

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working for the weekend!

UPDATE!  3H AND 2CP SEE AMENDED ASSIGNMENTS.  (FRI 7:30 PM.)

We made it!  Yes!!!

Everyone knows that the first week back is, by a mile, the longest week of the school year.  And you made it through!  (Give yourself a past on the back here.)

Before I go on, a message:

It has indeed been a long week, but I think it has been a good one.  I have enjoyed starting to get to know you and I've enjoyed listening to your discussions and reading your writing. (Please do not read anything bad into poorer scores on this early assignment, 3H-ers and 2CP-ers; I'm not even counting this thing at this time and may not at all.)  I know that the first week in any class is often hard--lots to digest--but I hope that you've found this one somewhat interesting and (dare I say?) even enjoyable. But in any case I want you to know this:

If ever there is a time when you feel overwhelmed about anything at all, please feel free to come talk to me about it.  I will always listen.  I will always try to accommodate reasonable requests.  It is never my desire to overwhelm you or to place undue burdens on you.  Courses may get tough at times--that is their nature--but I will be happy to work with you in times of stress to release some pressure.  And if you feel uncomfortable mentioning this in front of classmates, just drop me an email; I'll be glad to respond.

With that in mind, I want you to enjoy your first weekend, so nothing too heavy this time around.  However, there are a few things:

3H:   Review the returned essays and email me a response that says that either you understand what I mean or you want further explanation (in which case be specific, please).  And read carefully through the first level of  "What Is a Work of Art?" quotes (in black type) online.  You do not have to write anything about these, but make some notes for yourself about your thoughts on the main quotes and then scroll through the others (red type) to find some that you particularly enjoy for whatever reasons.  These will fuel small, pod, and large group discussions next week.  (BTW: Don't worry about your own definitions; I have decided that I'll hold these until later.)

Note about returned essays:  I will have them back to you by mid-day Saturday.  Anything highlighted in green is a concern.  Anything highlighted in blue is a strength.  Anything highlighted in yellow is a structural or grammatical issue. 


E3H AND E2CP,  FRIDAY EVENING:  I FEEL VERY STUPID, BUT I JUST REALIZED THAT THE ESSAYS I HAVE ALREADY COMMENTED ON ARE ON MY COMPUTER AT SCHOOL AND NOT AVAILABLE TO ME OVER THE INTERNET.  I AM SO USED TO THINGS BEING AVAILABLE ONLINE IT DID NOT OCCUR TO ME THAT THEY WOULD NOT BE UNTIL RIGHT NOW.  THEREFORE, SINCE I CANNOT RETURN EVERYONE'S ESSAYS THIS WEEKEND, I'M JUST GOING TO HOLD THIS UNTIL MONDAY.  DO ANYTHING ELSE THAT I HAVE ASSIGNED (which in the case of 2CP is nothing at all) AND HAVE FUN THIS WEEKEND.  YOU'VE EARNED IT!


2CP:  Review the returned essays and email me a response that says that either you understand what I mean or you want further explanation (in which case be specific, please). Otherwise...enjoy your weekend!  Our words this week were epiphany and serendipity.

Note about returned essays:  I will have them back to you by mid-day Saturday.  Anything highlighted in green is a concern.  Anything highlighted in blue is a strength.  Anything highlighted in yellow is a structural or grammatical issue.  


CW:  Review your returned pieces (I should have them back by mid-day Saturday) and comments I've written (which will be sparse).  Use these comments to see if you can try a second draft of the piece.  Use this guideline for a second draft:

1. Cross out anything you are going to delete, rather than simply deleting it. 
2. Use a new color (I suggest red) for anything in the new draft (including cross-outs).
3. Add a section to the top in which you record what color is attached to what draft, as in: Draft 1--Black, Draft 2--Red, Draft 3--Blue, etc.
4. For any new draft, add a brief statement at the top saying what kind(s) of changes you are focusing on.

Save the multicolor (rainbow) draft as a new file.

OK, everyone: final assignment:

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!!

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on a thursday...

Do you know that, if I had not gotten divorced in 1999, I'd have been married 32 years today?  Boggles the mind.

2CP: We'll talk a bit more about the Hemingway story, but your HW is to read Sandra Cisneros' "Barbie-Q."  It's so short: why not read it a whole bunch of times?

3H:  No new HW tonight, but here's where we are heading: on the E3H pages, you'll find a section called "What Is Art?"  If you wish to look ahead to the weekend, that's where to look. (And don't forget those journals!!!)

CW: No new HW here either, though you can always feel free to redraft anything you want.  :-)

So: Here's some art for ya:

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and so we move on

Here we are...Day Three:

Things settling in for you?  They are for me.  I have 120 papers to read and comment on already.  (Talk about falling behind from the starting line!)  And I think I'm about a day behind in sleep so far this week too.  Yep: seems like a normal school year to me.  :-)

A few class-specific remarks:

E3H: We will be discussing the Kafka story tomorrow whether I have finished your essays or not.  I do not intend to comment much on these ones.  It will be a more holistic grading, like the midyear finals.  Tomorrow's HW: Bring in a work of art.  If it's something inconveniently large (like a building), you may bring in a picture.

E2CP: We will be discussing the Hemingway story "Hills Like White Elephants" tomorrow.  Re-read this tonight and try to formulate a theory about what the man and woman are discussing.  No cheating: don't look it up!!!


CW: We will be discussing your first piece tomorrow, but tonight I want you all to bring in your essays that got you into this class in the first place.

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late night

Hi, all,

Late night back from Coe College in Iowa (Go Kohawks!) where I jave returned from leaving my daughter Julianne.  My eyes are raw--yes I cried--but this is a new adventure in her life and I desire nothing but the best from it for her.  It is the same wish I have for all of you: that you take from the opportunities given to you everything that you possibly can.  I can't generally control much of that, but I do have some say in the opportunity that you have in English class this year.  I vow to you that I will do everything within my power to stretch that opportunity in whatever way you need it to stretch to reach the goals you need to achieve so that soon--next year, 2012, 2013--when your parents too shed their tears in leaving you to learn and grow and fend for yourselves at some new institution, you'll be that much more ready to make the most of whatever comes your way.

/sappy philosophical verbiage.

Got your essays/pieces.  Have not counted them all to see if I got everyone's.  (I did just arrive home, after all.)  But I got them and I will be reading them throughout the school day tomorrow (Wednesday).  I may have done so before you even see this.

Right now I need to get to sleep: I slept about an hour in the hotel last night and about three hours the night before, and I've done a ton of driving in between, so I'm a tad exhausted.

:-)

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Hey, Creative Writing types...

Did you get your email?  I've only received four responses after four days.  Maybe check your school accounts?  :-)

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One More Week Until...

If you find this, it means you're checking things out.  Good for you.  And welcome.  Welcome to a new year.  I hope that you enjoyed this summer, which was so much better (at least i terms of weather) than last summer.  And now that I think of it, it was longer too: we didn't have the extra-long school year this time around because of construction.  What a joy!  And heck, until the last week or so, there were hardly any mosquitos.  This was one dynamite summer.

But all good things must end, and we find ourselves on the brink of returning to school.  Lady Gaga and Green Day and Arcade Fire have graced the lakefront in Chicago with their music, Vince Vaughn has skydived to cheering crowds at the air show, and the Cubs are sinking silently into the sunset as the Bears tickle us with hopes of a new season and the Blackhawks and Bulls are, as usual, unknown commodities.  And the Sox?  Well, they are the Sox.  They'll probably lose to the Twins in a one-game playoff.

I look forward to seeing all of you next week.  Watch this space for messages as the start of the year approaches; you never know when I might have some amazing words of wisdom to impart.  

Meanwhile...enjoy the sun!

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