Free Write

Technology is great - I love it! There will always be people who will abuse the technology and use it for personal gain or crimes involving vouyerism, stalking, or the like. I admit that I have 'checked' on people on-line that I was too chicken to contact directly through other means.

There are many laws about privacy to the point that it is sometimes difficult to get one's own medical records, and yet, it's easier to gain access to other people's info. I think some of it is really backwards...

ran out of time...

Coke Adds Life

It seems odd to me that schools should be panting, hungry dogs while corporate sponsors dole out monies based on consumption levels. I feel that this undermines education and the school system's priorities. It confuses the primary goal of education. On the other hand, this collusion with the advertisers is indicative of a problem of financial solvency. I don't know if we'd be scraping that barrel if there were other alternatives - or it's just an easy fix. It seems like we are not looking before leaping, and I don't know if we are clear about the potential consequences.

The author of the Own This Child piece is concerned about the health of children and that it a valid concern. There has been much said about the effects of sugar and ADD in elementary school children.

I would like to hear more about what it means to accept the outside intervention of corporate sponsors and advertisers on the educational process from the standpoint of it's constant presence and potential to interfere. What if the Coke folks inserted themselves onto the board or directors or something?

Conviction

I am enjoying the variety of thought and experiences that are being expressed in the readings. I am practicing taking a standpoint and allowing it to be firm in the moment but not necessarily fixed in the bigger picture. It is nice to play with the ideas but not have to commit indefinately to them. I see myself taking a strong stance in the short essays but then having other thoughts and feelings throughout the week. It's a simple and yet almost revolutionary idea to 'let' things be unresolved and feel comfortable about it. Hesitancy and doubt are not reinforced qualities in our world and so for 'public' consumption it feels like I must choose, and yet I have private reserves of sifting time and I know that I have to freedom to change my mind or make addendums and I appreciate that freedom.

Pith

I am continuing to enjoy the collaborative aspects of our class - specifically, the discussions about the readings, the check-ins around the class itself, and the debriefings.

I have had a kind of on-going, how shall I say...difficulty, with brevity in my responses to large topics. Some topics seem to simply demand time and attention and output. My Philosophy instructor last fall notated on one of my papers: "Go for pith..." I didn't even know what the word meant. He went on to say that his class and these topics and minds we were to respond to required a simple, breathing forward motion - he said think of it like swimming - he said we wouldn't go much below the surface, and we certainly wouldn't get to the bottom of it.

I was taken aback: Pith and Aristotle. Pith and Camus. How can we apply pith to these people and this content?!!?

I took the "Go for pith." to mean: 'get down to it, - briefly, concisely, and then move on...

It is a revolutionary concept for me - and so again, I will say that I am making this my praxis this semester - These brief essays (readings), and I hope, brief responses will lend well to anchoring this idea of getting to the crux in a short or small space.

Reflection #2

Okay, so I see that I got carried away on my last blog, and it is no small wonder that no one responded. I found the Short Essay #1 challenging and I really liked the idea about picking a 'small' idea from the readings and "exploding" it outward in a kind of condensed way - I am not too good at roping myself in and so this will be a continued exercise in discipline and in narrowing down the field. I am pretty much happily availing myself to this experience because I think it is great practice, interesting subject matter, and very adept instruction - And, the class is prodding me to step up to some things that I resist or avoid if I have a choice. I feel more relaxed now and I am excited rather than frightened. I think I will continue to be pleasantly surprised and very much stimulated by this class...

Moving On...

These two first weeks have been interesting, to say the least. I already feel that I am playing catch-up with my schedule and getting my bearings all at once. My daughter and I have just moved from Healdsburg to Santa Rosa, specifically to centralize. For logistical reasons, we were not able to move in and get settled before school started, so our first couple weeks have been spent leaving one place and entering into another with various limbo spaces in between. We have been packing, moving, painting the living room, going to school, and working. I have been operating under the illusion that I need my home to be in a certain state of organization in order to be organized in other areas of my life. I say this is an illusion, because, it is not reasonable to have every, single thing done - I simply have to do the next thing and then the next.

I want my learning experience to be a kind of 'whole body' experience, as opposed to a task I must endure or get through. I notice that I have a number of tugs and pulls in various directions. I've decided that this is the way of life. The luxury of being entirely single-minded and singularly focused is a gift of time and space within life; in other words, we make our own experience, and how we approach a task is as important as the actual task. With all this talk we hear of multi-tasking, and all our efforts to master 'management,' we are encouraged to keep up and keep moving with little time to reflect. I find that what seems to be important is the act of showing up and of being present.

The thought of a community service project was initially overwhelming, and after much batting it around, I have arrived at a sense of willingness to participate in a different way. By this, I mean that I like the idea of interacting with other human beings in a way that can be illuminating, inspiring, or if nothing else, interesting. How can I impact others in a 'formal' or directed way? How might I be affected by taking part in such a process? I am curious to find out. Often times I find that the things I tend to resist, are the very things that yield something valuable. Stretching myself in this way, already seems to have a different quality than hurtling myself through ungraspable presents and futures.

Since we have moved, I have been able to bike to school. This is an entirely different experience, as I have been able to avoid parking gridlocks, and defer my book carrying to the saddle bags. I did not necessarily have 'green' motivations for biking to school, and at the same time, it is almost impractical to drive to school now, as we live only a mile away. This centralizing thing is already manifesting in positive ways and my bike is my steed - I can say that I feel 'back to nature' in an urban way. In spite of the state of my living room or the sea of boxes in the 'overflow' area, I am slowing down, getting more personally acquainted with the neighborhood, and with my surroundings.

I am excited about this term at school, and this class. I like our round-tabled classroom, as it reminds me of a real seminar class - another thing that has both intrigued and intimidated me: fear of exposure...So far, I am excited at the prospect of interacting on a group level, and practicing entering into new territory.

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