If you were this person’s attorney, you’d probably want this social media blurb phrased a little differently. The headline attached to the story is clearer. Yes, the social media blurb is shorter, but I’d rather cut the “Twp” and make room for the unambiguous “and.” Derry man accused of assaulting female witness and attorney jailed…
Right now, I’m teaching “American Lit 1915-Present” for the last time. It’s the companion course to “American Lit 1800-1915,” which I’ll also never teach again. They are required courses for English majors who need to cover American Lit, but they were also designed to serve as electives. My colleagues and I have trouble covering the depth that we know our English majors need, without overwhelming students who are just looking to sample a bit of AmLit to fulfill a course requirement. So we’ve revamped both these courses, starting next fall. One new course will be “American Lit 1776-Present,” which will obviously cover fewer works than we can fit into 2 terms, but the benefit is we can be confident that any student who’s taken the course will have a clearer understanding of the scope of American literature. Another new course will be “Topics in American Literature,” which will allow us to go into some depth, without needing to cover a little bit of everything. I’m thinking of picking the focus “Literature and Government,” which could include “Rip Van Winkle,” All the King’s Men, To Kill a Mockingbird, Invisible Man (Ellison, not H.G. Wells) and Farhenheit 451.
“If you want to preserve democracy as we know it, you have to have a free and many times adversarial press… And without it, I am afraid that we would lose so much of our individual liberties over time. That’s how dictators get started.” — Republican Senator John McCain, in a Feb 2017 interview on…
The euphoria of getting my grades in Friday was short-lived. Similar:My son, volunteering at the local food bank.PersonalEnjoying a soul food dinner in honor of #blackhistorymonthPersonalGrades submitted.AcademiaWhen she isn't playing Hodel, she'll be dancing with a bottle.PersonalChapbooks — the latest assignment in my “History and Future of the Book” class.Students have already done a 400-word…
Similar:Alas for You (Godspell, Stage Right)Three weeks ago tonight, I got an email …DramaMy mother-in-law invited me to try out the 60- year-old tape machine that belonged to my f…My mother-in-law invited me to try out t…AwesomeThe girl is intrigued by the plot twists in _The Mayor of Casterbridge_.PersonalFriday night board game therapy. #startrek…
Similar:Misleading to suggest that because I have nothing left to mark that I have nothing to do, …PersonalThe Best Word Book Ever, 1963 and 1991.As a child, I obsessed over many Richard…BooksA Few Good Men at the Pittsburgh Public TheatreFantastic performances, powerful writing…CultureMy beautiful daughter says "Happy Valentine's Day" View t…AestheticsPrime Stage's THE OUTSIDERS…
Similar:The Current War (Quantum Theatre Musical)Waiting for The Current War to start. I …AwesomeCarnegie Science Center's Guitar ExhibitThis summer, I’m a “CSC Insider” — mean…Aesthetics"Know that I glory in this nose of mine."Was browsing YouTube for a few of my fav…AestheticsThe Future of Academic Style: Why Citations Still Matter in the Age of GoogleLooking forward…
Similar:Enterprise-D Blueprints As a newlywed, when my in-laws were …BooksMy 13yo homeschooler had no idea how to open a little milk carton. I had to show her.CultureBehind the bar in the officers' pub, from the #steampunk bedtime stories I used to tell my…AestheticsYeah natural born creative genius is a cool myth, but have you tried…
Similar:What’s My Cue? Let’s Talk Shakesepare with Andy Kirtland Virtural #BritsburghCultureThe chief engineer does not know where the floating lamps are coming from, but he looks gr…Aesthetics"The Nightmare of Prince Prezelsky"Leigh, Peter, Carolyn and I had fun reco…AmusingFinally — the pace at work subsides a bit.PersonalAnother section of a #steampunk control panel. Useful for a…
This clever freshman writing student created a project in Texture, which is designed for branching narratives (such as the Choose Your Own Adventure stories). In the next few screens, he put up nodes showing older and more recent writing samples, asked me to choose which one showed the better writing technique, and gave me feedback…
Peter looks forward to his Wednesday evening visits to the Monroeville Chess club. (Last one until mid-January.) Similar:Iconic 'West Side Story' still resonates todayCarolyn Jerz of Greensburg will be playi…ArtPrime Stage Theatre to end 2018-2019 season with Shakespeare comedy Twelfth Night, May 3–1…2019 Pittsburgh Public Theater Shakespea…Culture#AugustWilson #CenturyCycle Three week intensive course (whew!) All the…
I haven’t taught a developmental course at SHU, but when I teach freshman writing, I often encounter students who struggle with the transition from high school to college writing. Those who were praised all their lives as good writers can tell good personal stories, and they can deploy accurate summaries of non-controversial, “correct” facts. I give…
Saturday, Donald Trump tweeted that he knew Flynn lied, and that’s why he “had to fire” him. Critics immediately raised concerns, noting that if Trump did in fact know Flynn had lied, then Trump’s request that FBI Director James Comey “let this go” amounts to an obstruction of justice. Sunday, Trump’s lawyer John Dowd told…
Pop quiz for public relations 101. Scenario 1: You run a wildly popular app that incorporates video with a live host. You learn that a reporter is writing a personality profile of your host. Do you offer some cheerful quotes and then make a note to get your host to sign a new contract that handles…
Similar:Adam Bard shaves off half his hair and beard on opposite sides for unique driving licence …Something I might want to do one day, be…AestheticsAfter you finish your brass-polishing shift, join me at the Gear and Heart to swap stories…AestheticsYou're Doing It for the Exposure!! The Oatmeal on working for “exposure…BusinessIn a literature class, the…
Similar:I Love Books: A Campus Library EvolvesI love books. I love smelling them, t…AcademiaThey still need work but we have 2 weeks before classes start, so I feel pretty good.They still need work but we have 2 weeks…PersonalThe barbican at Mickelgate was pulled down in the 1800s but I made a rough approximation f…The barbican…
During the original run of Star Trek: The Next Generation, my college roommate and I invited our friends over to our duplex for Star Trek parties. Our local TV station ran the show at midnight Sunday, which was a terrible time, but we sometimes had 30 people over. Though we kept in touch virtually, I…
Yesterday, I asked my students, “How many of you spent $4 on a cup of coffee in the last month? How many have spent that much to support local news?” “If people don’t get local news, they don’t know what’s going on in their community. If they don’t know what’s going on in their community,…
Similar:Having a rough day. But in a span of about 24 hours, three former students reached out to …One former student said I’m the only adu…AcademiaYou cannot serve both…PersonalThe lighting doesn't really convey that this is supposed to be a slightly curved scroll of…Aesthetics"A Mushroom at Last… A Mushroom Forever"I asked my 10yo why she…
Similar:My daughter was five or six when she created the character “Moonbot” for the #steampunk be…https://youtu.be/GoWiNB_tlJ8 AestheticsTonight's Supermoon.AestheticsMy student journalists sport their fashionable “What Would Jerz Do?” wristbands.AcademiaA #steampunk control panel in context. #blender3d #design #aesthetics #blender3dartAestheticsI played hooky from work to see Wild Robot with my familyI played hooky to go see Wild Robot…