..........Merry Christmas!!!!

Beware of the Elephant in Tall Grass would like to wish everyone who reads this blog a very Merry Christmas. I hope you all find comfort and happiness being with your families during the celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. This is a Christian celebration - rejoice!!! The King is Born!!! Give thanks and be glad!!!

..........carrot, egg, or coffee bean?

I went to my wife's graduation at Appalachian State University yesterday. She received her maters degree in educational media (technology). Appalachian State is one of the top schools in the nation for the teaching profession. There were quite a few undergrads there getting their degree in education areas of some sort. As I watched them cross the stage in pride, I thought; "do they really have any idea what awaits them in the teaching profession?"Many of them have great ideals about "the way things are supposed to be"; or, the way in which their instructors have told them it should be. The reality is, nothing in the field of public education is the "way it is supposed to be". Everything I have encountered in the past 25 years has been on a sliding scale! Teachers who are really intent on doing the best job possible, must learn to focus on their situation and devise the best way to produce the desired product. I am no "over-achiever" - I'm not sharp enough for that. I have personal drive that keeps me going; but, sometimes that drive is compromised by the situation at hand. I often get frustrated, and sometimes, just plain angry that things don't work out. I see failure as no option at all. There is no excuse to fail in the business of education. The demands change constantly, and I will overcome all adversity to acomplish my goals. Success is the only option. That's my philosophy of teaching.

Here is something I came across the other day that says just what I feel. It makes me think that I'm on the right track......

There was once a teacher who became tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose. Frustrated, the young teacher went to his grandfather for advise. The wise, older gentleman took his grandson into the kitchen to talk. He filled three pots with water. In the first, he placed carrots, in the second, the placed eggs, and in the third, he placed ground coffee beans. He let them all come to a boil without saying a word. In about twenty minutes, the grandfather turned off the burners. He fished out the carrots and put them into a bowl. He pulled out the eggs and put them into another bowl. Then, he ladled the coffee out and placed it into another bowl.

Turning to the gradson, he asked, "Tell me, what do you see?" "Carrots, eggs, and coffee", he replied. The grandfather brought his grandson closer and asked him to feel the carrots. He did and noted that they were soft. He then asked the grandson to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, he observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, the grandfather asked him to sip the coffee. The grandson smiled, as he tasted the rich aroma. The grandson then asked, "What's the point?" The wise grandfather explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity - boiling water - but each had reacted differently.

The carrot went into the water strong, hard, and unrelenting. After being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg began fragile. Its outer shell had protected its liquid interior. After sitting in the boiling water, the inside of the egg became hardened. The ground coffee beans are unique. After the coffee beans went into the water, they actually changed the water, itself.

When we are hit with adversity, how do we react? If you are like the coffee, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hours are the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate to another level?

I think there is great wisdom in this example. Success in teaching is not beyond our grasp. Our success as educators is on many different levels. All of our children will not learn at the same level and each one will challenge all that we have learned and come to expect. I real educator will find the boiling water and change it. I can't wait until my next class gets here!!!

..........who would I be if I were not me?

Alright, it sounds like I have a little too much time on my hands. I've been watching movies again. I usually watch something with real true to life stories like the original Dirty Harry or something with a great storyline like Hamburger Hill. Last night I decided it was time for a good 'ole romance comedy! One of my favorite movies has always been The Four Seasons, starring Alan Alda and Carol Burnett. I like this movie partly for the music score. Antonio Vivaldi's Four Seasons is used, along with some Bach trumpet concertos. I love Baroque music (if it ain't Baroque, don't fix it). Baroque music appeals to me for the ordered structure. It makes me feel comfortable because I can predict it more. Wow, that really sounds insecure. Back to the movie - in this movie, there are three couples that go on vacations together during each of the four seasons. The men figures in the relationships are comprised of a dentist, an insurance salesman, and a lawyer. The dentist is always worried that something medical is wrong with him. The insurance salesman divorces his wife, dates, and later marries a very young attractive girl whom everyone resents. Alan Alda is the lawyer who is always analyzing every move the others make. I realized last night why I like this movie so much - I am the character that Alan Alda plays. It's really scarry how much I am like this character! I must be far more irratating than I thought! I analyze everything in my relationships with others. Maybe I need therapy? If you know me and you haven't seen this movie - watch it and let me know what you think.

I watched a couple of other movies at the beginning of the week while Lisa was away on a workshop. I watched Varsity Blues, a high school football movie about an overbearing coach who cares nothing about the players, and only about the championships he can win. This movie is not a heavy hitter with storyline. It is all about teenage hormones and good football. It was unrealistic in many ways. First, who would ever dream that a high school football coach would think more of himself and winning over the well-being of the young men on the team? The other part that was disturbing, is the depiction of teenage athletes (excuse me, atheletes) drinking alcoholic beverages to a state of being "out of control" drunk! Only in the movies, huh?

The final movie of the week thus far was one I have been avoiding. I swore I would not watch it. Well, it came on HBO this week, making it seem almost free. I decided to watch. Yes, I watched Brokeback Mountain!!! It really made me uncomfortable. There were several scenes that made my skin crawl. Am I a homophobe? If anything, this movie made me comfortable in my sexuality.

Okay, there it is. I have admitted to a more "touchy-feely" side of myself. This may not happen again in your lifetime; so, savor the moment. I think I'll watch the entire Godfather set this weekend to get me back on track. .........Michael Ricci, do you renounce Satan? (What a great scene!!!)

..........things that boggle my mind.

Many things boggle my mind - mathmatics, teenagers, the willingness of others (regardless of age) to work and play well together, American politics, and American business practices just to name a few. I want to address a couple of those.

I watched a local news report the other day out of Charlotte, and one of the stories was another plan closing. I say, "another plant closing" like it is common place any more. Well, it is. American manufacturing is not going well at all, in the traditional means we are used to. But wait, our economy is great! There are no problems with our economy. The Dow Jones Industrials are over 12,000 points, the NASDAQ and the S&P 500 make gains all the time. Why would anyone question our economy? Well, plant closings are a big part of that "question". Why are there so many plant closings with the economy going so well? Big business is making money and keeping those economic reporting scales high. They are keeping the scales high by sending jobs overseas where labor is cheap and profits are high. I have two examples of my discontent with our overseas business practices. 1) I recently went to a local hardware store that I knew carried bulk steel. I wanted a 2" wide x 2' - 0" piece of this steel. It was $8 per foot! I couldn't believe it! We make steel here in the US, don't we? That whole thing in Pittsburg with the steel mills, etc. No, the steel came from China. I stood there with my mouth wide open in disbelief. Americans import bulk steel from China. What about US Steel and other companies that made America what it really is - uh, was? I was also informed that this store would no longer be carrying bulk steel because it was to expensive. 2) This one really blew my mind. Per my local newscast; another furniture plant will close in January. The plant is located in Lenoir, NC - the furniture capital (former capital) of the world. It is the last of their plants to survive in Lenoir - the name - Broyhill. The Broyhill Company announced last week that they can no longer make the necessary profits to keep the plant open - the result - Broyhill will move their operations overseas, and displace another 500 American workers! This makes me so mad that I can hardly tolerate myself. We, the people, have let this happen. We have not bought into the whole "buy American" thing enough to make a difference. We have not told our government to stop this either. We have supported idiot economic programs like NAFTA to the extent that we are self-destructing. By the way, I don't dispute the efforts of Democrats like Bill Clinton in pushing the whole NAFTA program along. There are thousands of Americans out of work and trying to figure out what to do next because of big business and weak government action on trade with idiot countries like China. But, the economy is good - just look at the figures each night on the national news. Big business depends on high profit margins for stockholders and their corporate administrators. To keep these profits high, they must outsource and go overseas. I don't respect this practice in the least, and damn them all for doing it to America's workers and our economy. Have we not learned anything from oil? Evedently not. When we are dependant on other countries for our wellbeing, we are being held over a barrel, and we become a weaker society.

On to other stuff. The report on the strategies in Iraq come to the President today. All indications are that change for success is necessary. This comes from both Republicans and Democrats alike. The news folks can't distort the facts of the report. The fact is, we made a huge mistake because of "old school" thought and arrogance! What the hell is up with "Operation Iraqi Freedom"? Words do mean a great deal. I really don't care if the Iraqis are free or not. If they wanted to be free, they would have staged a revolt themselves. We have not been told the true reason for the war, and the real reason will never be admitted. I think Tammy Wynette said it best in, "Stand By Your Man". Well, that's exactly what our leaders did - they stood by "our man" - to help free the Iraqi people??? We are 2,900 soldiers dead, and now we determine that our mission is flawed. Are we safer as a result of Operation Iraqi Freedom - who knows? If the feedom of all who are opressed is such a big concern for us, why are our troops not heavily concentrated in Africa? Mass killings are going on daily all over the African continent with no end in sight. Why are we not there? Our foreign policy (to include our business interests) is making the entire world hate us to the point of killing us when the opportunity arrises. Yes, it does make a difference if everyone hates you and no one wants to be your partner when crisis comes. I'm sorry, but the British don't constitute enough support to help in a global struggle. We have got to make peace with some of our old friends and come to a compromise to have the world help us fight terrorism. It can be done; but, we may have to make some concessions. ........arrogance, arrogance, arrogance!!!

I think there are many reasons to question our leadership. I know we are not doing what is right for America in letting business go abroad and run with little or no restraint. Average, hard working Americans are suffering as a result. I know that the Iraq War is going poorly, and more Americans will die, and for what? I'm frustrated and angry, and I apologize if I offended anyone with this post. I love America, but I fear for her. Oh, and I really do like, but don't understand the teenagers. I hate mathmatics!!!

..........quotes concerning progressive innovations.

I thought these quotes were interesting concerning how far we have come in technology. Vision is the key to making innovation possible.

"Computers in the future may weigh no more than 1.5 tons."
-Popular Mechanics Magazine
1949

"I think there is a world market for maybe five computers"
-Thomas Watson, Chairman of IBM
1943

"There is no reason anyone would want a computer in their home."
-Ken Olsen, President, Chairman and founder of Digital Equipment Corp
1977

"This 'telephone' has too many shortcomings to be seriously considered as a means of communication. The devise is inherently of no value to us."
-Western Union internal memo (I think D. Rumsfeld may have leaked this to the NY Times)
1876

"Who the hell wants to hear actors talk?"
-H.M. Warner, Warner Bros. Studios
1927

"The wireless music box has no imaginable commercial value. Who would pay for a message to be sent to nobody in particular?"
-David Sarnoff's associates in response to his urgings for investment in the radio during the 1920's.

"There is no try. There is only do and don't do!"
-Yoda, Jedi Master

..........my second post today!!!

Wow, it's a "two-posting" day here at BOTEITG. In my last post, I mentioned that I trusted the media more thirty years ago. I still stand by that thought, and this is why..... First, Bob Woodward exposed Watergate to me when I was in high school. There is no doubt that the whole Watergate "thing" was criminal on many levels, but it made us lose confidence in our leadership. You mean, they would really lie to us? Of those "trusting Americans", yes it really did hurt. I'm really not sure if the media did something wrong then (except for the whole secret sources thing), but it made me dislike the media. This dislike has not gone away, nor has my distrust in our leadership. It doesn't really matter who is in power, I just don't have the trust that I once did. I grew up in the Vietnam War era, and became a college student in the wake of Watergate. Now, this distrust is not fully the fault of dishonest politicians - it has its roots in media presentation of the story. We forget, too often, that the mass media is there to make a profit, and controversy sells. What really made me want to post about this is a recent story from Iraq. I saw a segment last week on the news media in the Iraq War. I really don't know how this made it on the air; but, a soldier was asked about all the reporters that were in the field with them on a daily basis. The soldier (a young Army Infantry Sergeant - go 4th Infantry Division) stated that the media personnel mainly preferred to stay in the "green zone". In other words, "in the rear with the gear". He said they paid locals for most of the stories. This brings me to my point. Do you remember a report either last week or the week before, where some insurgents were reported to have set six Iraquis on fire in the street? There were no pictures available. The report was given to the media persons by someone named Jamil Hussein, a frequent adjunct reporter for the media. Oddly enough, this person claimed to be a member of the Baghdad Police force. He was never seen, only heard from on the phone. Hussein made many reports and countless stories were aired to the world on his words. Finally, someone decided to check-up on this guy. The Baghdad Police force have never heard of him. So what's the deal? Our own greed for selling stories and making a profit is our own worst enemy! We control such a massive tool for opinion with the media; yet, we are too greedy and stupid to use it for responsible efforts. many of our news reporters are fighting for the enemy and don't even care. Notice I didn't say "and don't even know it" in the last sentence. They know exactly what is going on, but the delay in checking the accuracy of sources is too costly for business. I wonder how many lives the media has cost us, and will cost us in Iraq? The sad truth to this whole issue is that there is little, if any, punishment for these spin doctors.

..........the good 'ole days of 1977.

This is kind of a follow-up on some thinking that my good friends over at "What's Crackalacky?" stated in a recent post about all the advancements made in our lives. The past thirty years were mentioned - I can't believe that I've been out of high school for thirty years! Advancements in technology are the most noticeable. Would we have ever believed in the 1977 that almost everyone would have a wireless phone at their fingertips, or that the internet would make information and communication so fast and easy? I can't even imagine what will happen in the next thirty years - I hope I'm around to write another post about it.

It's great to be positive about all our advancements, and I wish that I could do just that; but, "advancements" bring negative to us as well. I felt much safer in 1977 than I do now. I didn't worry about my identity being stolen and being thrust into financial ruin by computer hackers. Internet sex preditors were not an issue. Protecting your child from preditors meant making sure they didn't get into a car with strangers. The press was more believeable and, I think, more respectful (even though Bob Woodward started a reign of political issue terror that the US is still suffering from today).

Are we smarter now? With all this information and communication at our fingertips; shouldn't we be smarter and more wise? I think in many respects we are, but we have lost some of our innocence. We are so very cautious about our every move, and technology has made us that way. Protect your pin number to the debit card at all costs!! Do you remember the Sinfeld episode where George wouldn't give his pin number? There is always someone out there trying to discover a new and inovative way to steal from us.

There is no doubt that it is fantastic to have all the power of information right at our fingertips. I don't know how I would make it without internet communication if it were suddenly taken completely away. My wife recently got her Masters Degree in educational technology. One of her last classes had her on an internet discussion with an instructor from Australia!!! She was sitting next to me, and while I watched TV, she talked to Australia and worked on graphics on the computer. That wasn't going to happen in 1977! In fact, you would have probably been lucky just to have a clear phone connection to Australia then!

And then, the greatest advancement of all in the the past thirty years - blogs! Wow, what a great way to express your thoughts. I guess mine were somewhat negative in this post. I apologize for that. Thanks, "What's Crackalacky?" for some good reflection time. I still can't belive I graduated from high school thirty years ago!

..........ramble, ramble, ramble!

Today is Friday, and I have no organized thought pattern going on; so, I'll just share some of the things on my mind. Here goes....................

I was getting a little confused with the weather here in western NC lately. It was sunny, no wind, and in the mid to upper 60's most of the week. Thank goodness a front is coming through right now to get me back on track - it is currently raining sideways, with wind gusts between 30 - 45 mph, and the temp is expected to drop from the lower 60's to the lower 40's by lunchtime. I just hope we don't miss any school between now and the Christmas Holidays. Did I say the "Christmas Holidays" - that may not be PC when talking about holidays in the public schools - OK, it's Friday, and I'm not going to get political and serious.

So what's the deal with dump trucks on rainy days? What do they do? Where are they going? It seems to me that construction work that requires dump trucks will be a bit limited on a heavy rain day. If my theory is correct; then why the hell were they everywhere on the roads this morning while I was driving to work? My theory - all they do is drive around on rainy days, with their only purpose being to predict my every move and get in my way on a two-lane road. Oh, their top speed - 30-40 mph!

My wife tells me that I use my horn too much when driving. This morning, after an encounter with a dump truck, I got behind a line of about 4 other cars who were also not going to exceed 42 mph. I had enough and laid on the horn. Much to my surprise, the lead car was a NC Highway Patrolman without the lights on top of his Crown Vic! His break lights came on at the instant the horn blew - I thought I was dead meat! I dropped back and thought that I may need to listen more closely to my wife from now on!

I am safely at school now and getting ready to begin my usual paperwork in preparation for marching band class. We got our music for the Liberty Bowl yesterday. I have never passed-out such a horrible arrangement of notes to my students! We are to perform with LeAnn Rimes at the Liberty Bowl, and I forgot what a PITA it is to perform with an "artist". Of course, we have only accompainment parts - she and her band will have all the melody lines. To make matters worse the key is horrible - D Concert. Josh, you may know the arranger. He is from Bountiful, Utah. His name is Dr. Michael Huff (mainly a choral guy). I met him over the summer. He certainly thinks a lot of himself - not very humble, and loves to talk about his accomplishments. I think he is one of those University of Utah guys.

Oh well, it is still Friday and will be that way all day - I'm glad! Friday is a good day when there is nothing going on for the weekend. I'm really looking forward to some R& R. I hope all of you have a great Friday as well. Beware of the Tall Elephant In Tall Grass - OUT!!!