This semester I am not teaching any foreign language courses and it is wonderful. Last semester on Facebook, I completed the quiz “What kind of elementary school teacher are you?” with the result Funny and Friendly. You are a very funny and friendly teacher. You like to make your classroom a fun place to be. … More Academic Mondays: Funny and Friendly?
In Reeducation you were wrong. You were guilty of evil doing, and you were also a victim of evil doing by others. Not to be victimized was to exert inappropriate amounts of control, and not to be guilty was to be “in denial.” I went to Reeducation to learn how to deal with abusive people, … More Liar, Liar
While flying back from Brazil I was thinking of the amusing posts I could write reviewing the trip and different institutions I encountered upon it. I was also going to review the Miami International Airport including the restaurant La Carreta in its present state there, the city of New Orleans, and the Greyhound bus service … More A Late, Brief Review of My Brazilian Voyage
I like my work but not what I transfer onto it. The reason I wanted other work was so I could have work upon which I had transferred nothing. People believed one was destined for only one piece of work, the way they believe their spouses are their destined soul mates. I disagree with this … More Pain
I really like both of my projects and I really like research and writing. Really like them. I like them when I am not torturing myself about them or allowing myself to be tortured in the rest of life. I like them when I look at them, not at my directors and detractors. I am … More On Emerging
You have to put a lot of time into work, and you have to accept that it takes a lot of time. I have to reject the advice of that Emeritus Professor and several others, that one must work as superficially and as quickly as one can. That only translates to rushing, suffering, fatigue, and … More On Identity in Work and Play. On Pace. On Ignoring Mistreatment
This evening I went to a fancy movie theatre with a good, if small book store and a fancy café sharing its space. Suddenly I could tell I had been living too much in the slums because the upscale nature of everything was so unfamiliar. I was not quite sure I belonged at first. Lula, … More Lula, The Movie
In Reeducation we were to accentuate the negative. We were to find our faults and our weak spots. Admit, accept, confess, apologize, make amends, promise to improve, and on, and on. For me, though, that kind of negative approach makes improvement hard. History matters but fretting about it is pointless — although one of Reeducation’s … More Positively
Three reasons I am exhausted are: 1. The material situation, dealing with this house. 2. The psychological situation, dealing with the owner of the house and the caretaker. 3. The psychological situation, dealing with my “friend” who was going to pick me up from the airport. Since these situations began to wear upon me, my … More On Attitude
I have not gotten enough done these past two weeks, or enjoyed myself much, but I have learned something, perhaps, about vacation rentals; you really need guarantees and you must ask many apparently anally retentive questions because if not, you will lose. It is odd but the worst renter I ever had was someone I … More Caveat Emptor: On “Vacation” Houses
