The Median Sib

In my morning blog-reading, I came across this post at The Black Republican. The title is “A Slow Motion Train Wreck.” Whether you’re Republican, Democrat, Independent, or anything else, it’s worth reading.

And while it would help our business to have our competitors run their train into a pit, it is still sad that so many innocent, helpless, naive people will be taken down as well. It’s good thing for us I guess is that those who survive the wreck will think twice about riding a train driven by those people again. The bad part is that they may quit riding altogether.

I wrote a couple posts (here is one - I inadvertently deleted the other one) about James Frey and A Million Little Pieces. It was a fascinating book, and one that I couldn’t put down once I started reading it. Some of the things he wrote seemed unbelievable, though, and as it turns out, they were.

Today Oprah had Frey back on her show, and she wasn’t very happy about how he played fast and loose with the truth. Here is one account of the show and the controversy.

· In the book, Frey runs down a cop and a wild melee ensues. The police report tells a different story.

· Frey says he spent a week in jail following a 1988 drunk driving bust. A court docket sheet refutes his claim.

· Frey invented a role for himself in a train accident that took the lives of two female high school students.

· Frey claimed he was the chief target in an FBI probe into drug activity at Denison University. A police report has him as a minor player in a minor case.

· Employees of the Hazelden rehab center dispute Frey’s depiction of his treatment.

The Chicago Tribune also wrote about the show. Oprah told Frey:

“It’s difficult for me to talk to you because I really feel duped,” she told Frey. “I’m just wondering, why do you have to lie about that?” And so on. With Frey offering only weaselly justifications about lying being a “coping mechanism” and the like, and with Winfrey buying none of it, it was riveting.

Oprah told Frey, “I feel duped.” Yeah, me too.

Here are some other blogs that share their take on the story:
Box of Rain: “A Million Little Lies”
Random Words
Conservative Posts Blog
Freakonomics Blog
Reality Bites Back
GOP Bloggers
The Political Pit Bull

In a post entitled “Teachers capitulate to Gay Agenda” California Conservative tells how teachers at one California high school are now REQUIRED to hang posters in their classrooms advocating tolerance for gay students.

Well, maybe we’ll see some “freedom of religion” posters coming next. Seems
fair. Or how about “Safe To Be Conservative Space” posters. They could read: “It’s okay to speak your mind. Just because your teacher
is liberal, doesn’t mean she’ll give you a bad grade for expressing support for
Bush and Iraq.” One for every college classroom. So how about it?

That sounds right to me.

Why would a school advocate tolerance for a specific sexual orientation? Schools shouldn’t advocate ANY sexual orientation. Why not have posters that simply stress tolerance? Period. Don’t limit tolerance to gay students. Extend tolerance to ALL students - liberals and conservatives, atheists and evangelicals and gays and straights - and everyone in between. The only “advocacy” a school should be a part of is respecting and appreciating everyone?

Darren at Right on the Left Coast has a great post about this.

Scene: The school gym during morning bus duty

A fourth grader rushes up to me. His face is red and there is sweat on his brow. He looks anxious and upset. I immediately ask, “Carlton, what’s wrong?”

Then the words that strike fear in any teacher’s heart: “I just threw up in the bathroom!” (Which I admit is better than throwing up at my feet which has happened on more than one occasion over the years.)

I can feel his hot breath on my face as he spits out the words. I utter the appropriate words of sympathy (and I truly feel sympathetic - he’s obviously sick), and I send him to the clinic . . . while visions of the stomach virus germs in that hot breath dance in my head.

Thirteen Things That Carol SHOULD Do Before Monday (This will likely be the MOST boring Thursday Thirteen post ever!) 1. Go tent camping this weekend on the land where Ron and I plan to build a house 2. Attend church on Sunday 3. Babysit the grandkids for a few hours - I just enjoy being with them so much. We babysat them for awhile Wednesday evening, and it was just plain FUN! The best part was when we were sitting on the sofa, and Ron put his arm around me. Sunshine looked at him, moved his arm, cuddled against me and announced, “She’s MY Grandma Carol!” 4. Walk 1-3 miles each day. 5. Do crunches every morning - without fail! 6. Replace the burned out light bulbs throughout my house 7. Clear out my storage room - It’s a mess, but not for long 8. Take some boxes to storage 9. Buy some “for sale” signs for my house 10. Start working on a sales brochure for my house 11. Replace the shower head in my bathroom 12. Read some new blogs 13. Learn how to do trackbacks via Haloscan Links to other Thursday Thirteens! (leave your link in comments, I’ll add you here!) Joan Jen Uisce Janne Terrell Jane Caryn

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!

The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates a little bit better every Thursday. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! If you participate, leave the link to your Thirteen in others comments. It’s easy, and fun! Be sure to update your Thirteen with links that are left for you, as well! I will link to everyone who participates and leaves a link to their 13 things. Trackbacks, pings, comment links accepted!

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Okay - I just discovered a new blog, Infinitely Pie, that got me with the first few sentences. Here’s one:

My question is: if ignorance is really bliss, why is everyone so freakin’ pissy all the time?

Just think about it… I love it.

It’s Wednesday and that means that once again, the Carnival of Education (Week 51) is up at The Education Wonks. There are some great posts in all areas of education highlighted there - ahem . . . including one of mine.

Every day at school, I get so tickled - that’s Southern for “amused” or “entertained” - at the kids who pass me in the hall or who are bus riders waiting in the gym each morning. They’re just so funny! Before I explain what I find so amusing, though, I have to give some background, or it won’t make much sense to you.

Part of my responsibilities as a reading specialist is to work with second, third and fourth grade classes on reading comprehension strategies. The first lesson I teach each class is on metacognition - being aware of one’s own thinking. Usually I use the book Edward the Emu by Sheena Knowles as the literature selection for this lesson. I read the book to them (They love that!), stopping often to “think aloud” - modeling how I am metacognitive as I read the story. At the end of the lesson, I tell the children that when I see them in the hallway, I’d like for them to tell me if they’re remembering to use metacognition when they’re reading or doing their school work. However, I don’t want them to get into trouble for talking in the hallway. So, I show them how to make an “M” in sign language. Then IF they are remembering to be metacognitive, they should show me the “M” sign whenever they see me around the school.

The second lesson I do with each class is on making connections. For this lesson, I use Click, Clack, Moo! Cows That Type by Doreen Cronin. Great story - and great for making connections. Again, at the end of the lesson I ask the children to give me a signal if they’re making connections in their reading and school work. This time I show them the “C” in sign language.

The third lesson is on self-monitoring - asking questions to clarify understanding. The text for this lesson is The Empty Pot by Demi - another wonderful text that provides great material to model questioning for understanding: Where is China? Is an emperor the same as a king? I wonder why Ping’s seed wouldn’t grow. What did the emperor mean by “the empty truth”? For this signal, I just ask the children to shrug their shoulders with their hands up - palms out - in the classic “Who knows?” gesture. (Sorry - I looked and looked online to find a graphic for this, but was unsuccessful.)

Anyway, the funny story is that now, every time I see children in the hallway or elsewhere at school (the cafeteria at lunch is a good time), invariably some of them are frantically giving me the signs and gestures for “M”, “C”, and “questioning.” One sign after the other. If one child is showing me “M” then the next one over is showing me “C”. They’re just so funny! And this has been going on for months now! They very seriously purse their lips tightly to show they’re not talking, but then gesture wildly with their C’s and M’s to catch my attention - only relaxing when I sign back at them. I just love it!

At first I was afraid they might be making signals without really understanding what the signals meant. However, each time I go to the classrooms for another lesson, we review the previous lessons, and occasionally I’ll stop children in the hallway (if I know it’s okay with the classroom teacher) to ask them to tell me how they’ve been metacognitive or to tell me about a particular connection they’ve made and how it helped them understand something better. Most of the time, I get wonderful responses that show me that they’re learning to use the strategies. It’s working - and it’s fun.

The next lesson is on making inferences. I’ll start that series next week. I’m still thinking of what signal to use for that!

Bozette tagged me this morning, but I’ve been gone all day. So I’m just now responding. There are TWENTY-SEVEN questions!!!

1. When you looked at yourself in the mirror today, what did you think? At least it’s a good hair day.
2. How much cash do you have on you? $0… I have a little cash in my purse, but nothing on me.
3. What’s a word that rhymes with “TEST”? Rest
4. Favorite planet? Earth
5. Who is the 4th person on your missed call list on your cell phone? Larisa
6. What is your favorite ring on your phone? Fur Elise
7. What shirt are you wearing? A long-sleeve, striped t-shirt
8. Do you “label” yourself? Yes - too often
9. Name the brand of shoes you’re currently wearing now: Azaleia
10. Bright or Dark Room? The brighter the better
11. What do you think about the person who took this survey before you? She seems very nice - she always leaves interesting comments on my blog
12. What were you doing at midnight last night? Logging off the computer and heading downstairs to bed - about an hour later than I SHOULD have been.
13. What did your last text message you received on your cell say? I have only received ONE text message and that was last fall, and I wasn’t sure how to retrieve it. When I finally figured it out, it said ” site #7″ which was the camping site where some friends were camping last October - I was on my way to meet them there.
14. Where is your nearest 7-11? Wal-Mart (24-hr) is closer than any convenience store.
15. What’s a saying(s) that you say a lot? Oh? Really?
16.Who told you they loved you last? Ron
17. Last furry thing you touched? My fake fur vest.
18. How many days of school did you miss this week? None this week - one last week.
19. How many rolls of film do you need to get developed? one disposable camera from several months ago that I keep forgetting to get developed. Otherwise - I use a digital camera.
20. Favorite age you have been so far? Uhhhh - late-forties
21. Your worst enemy? myself
22. What is your current desktop picture? Ron, the two grandkids, and me
23. What was the last thing you said to someone? “Bye - see you tomorrow.”
24. If you had to choose between a million bucks or to be able to fly, which would you choose? A million bucks.
25. Do you like someone? I like lots of people.
26. The last song you listened to? “What a Wonderful World” - Louis Armstrong
27. Carmen Electra or Pam Anderson? Neither - both are too fake

I didn’t see any instructions on tagging anyone else - and so I won’t tag anyone. My end of this will stop here. (I can hear the sigh of relief from my family and friends).

If you’ve ever watched “When Harry Met Sally” you know that the question Harry and Sally discuss throughout the movie is whether or not men and women can be friends. Harry asserts that they can’t because the issue of sex is always there. Even if it’s not acted upon, it is there. Sally disagrees with him (of course - otherwise there wouldn’t have been a very good plot to the movie).

This morning I received a quote in my email. Here it is:

Between men and women there is no friendship possible. There is passion,enmity,
worship, love, but no friendship. -Oscar Wilde, writer (1854-1900)

I found a couple other quotes about men, women and friendship.

All love that has not friendship for its base is like a mansion built upon the
sand. -Ella Wheeler Wilcox

It is not a lack of love, but a lack of friendship that makes unhappy marriages.
-Friedrich Nietzsche

So, what do you think? Can men and women be friends?

Thanks to Ruth for sharing the Oscar Wilde quote with me this morning.

I guess the title should be “Reading and ADHD” to make sure it covers what this post is about. While surfing through some blogs on Blog Explosion, I came across “Red Monkey” and read THIS POST about reading. It’s a good post, and if you’d like to read about one person’s journey in reading and writing, check it out.

I just got home from a weekend in Georgia visiting my mother (Ruthlace). On Friday night my sister, Beth (Blue Star Chronicles) came over and we visited for awhile. Then on Saturday night, I was able to go with my mother to the city auditorium to see a local production of the musical “The Civil War” in which my brother, Terrell (Alone on a Limb), had a part. He sang beautifully, as always, and the musical was just awesome. This morning while my mother went to church, I prepared Sunday dinner for other family members. So after church, my sister Debi (no blogging for her because she’s busy making money with her writing - she was on a deadline to finish a book) and her son came over for dinner, along with Terrell’s family. Soon after the meal I headed home. It started raining about halfway - and rained the rest of the way…and it has been raining ever since. I went by PawPaw’s house to visit for a little while. We drove (in the rain) over to the land to look at building sites again. Then later I came on back to my place. I got home safe and sound - something I don’t take for granted. It was a good - but over too quickly - weekend.

I tried out two wonderful recipes this weekend I’ll share with you:

SWEET and SOUR Chicken (from my niece, Lyn)
8 oz. apricot preserves
8 oz. catalina salad dressing
2 pkgs. dry onion soup mix
4 - 6 chicken breasts
Mix the above ingredients well and pour over the chicken. Bake at 350, covered, for about an hour, uncover, and then bake an additional 30 minutes. Serve with rice. DELICIOUS!

Orange-Feta-Walnut-Field Greens Salad (From my friend, Becky)
1 ready-to-eat bag of field greens (or any salad mix you like)
1 small container feta cheese
1 small can mandarin oranges, drained
1 small package walnut pieces
Raspberry-Walnut vinaegrette (I like Ken’s - but any brand would work)

Dump the greens, cheese, oranges, and walnut in a bowl and toss. Serve with the vinaegrette. DELICIOUS!

Guppyman’s Rant Zone has a great post written by a soldier in Iraq. It is well worth the visit. It is good to hear about the war in Iraq by someone who is there and knows what is going on first-hand rather than from protestors who often have no clue what they’re protesting.

READER’S DIGEST is one of my favorite magazine, and it’s one of only two that I subscribe to regularly. In the February 2006 issue, they have a list of pickup lines (p. 170) that made me laugh. What do you think? Have you heard worse? or better?

Are you a parking ticket? ‘Cause you’ve got fine written all over you.
Do you believe in the hereafter? Well, then I guess you know what I’m here after.
Do you have a Band-Aid? Because I just scraped my knee falling for you.
Do you have any raisens? No? How ’bout a date?

I just read about a study by the Pew Charitable Trusts. The study looked at the skills of graduating students and found that

more than half of students at four-year colleges - and at least 75 percent at two-year colleges - lack the literacy to handle complex, real-life tasks such as understanding credit card offers. . .

Three types of literacy were studied: (1) analyzing news stories and other prose, (2) understanding documents and (3) having math skills needed for checkbooks or restaurant tips.

Without “proficient” skills, or those needed to perform more complex tasks, students fall behind. They cannot interpret a table about exercise and blood pressure, understand the arguments of newspaper editorials, compare credit card offers with different interest rates and annual fees or summarize results of a survey about parental involvement in school.

“It is kind of disturbing that a lot of folks are graduating with a degree and they’re not going to be able to do those things,” said Stephane Baldi, the study’s director at the American Institutes for Research, a behavioral and social science research organization. . .

Almost 20 percent of students pursuing four-year degrees had only basic quantitative skills. For example, the students could not estimate if their car had enough gas to get to the service station. About 30 percent of two-year students had only basic math skills.

Other posts on the topic: EducationWonks has other links.
Dr. Sanity discusses it, too.
Inside Higher Ed has a post about the study.