currently reading...

currently reading...
Crossing to Safety

favorite novels...

  • the brothers karamazov by fyodor dostoevsky
  • anna karenina by leo tolstoy
  • cry, the beloved country by alan paton
  • the inferno by dante alighieri
  • catch-22 by joseph heller
  • doctor zhivago by boris pasternak
  • for whom the bell tolls by ernest hemingway
  • the secret agent by joseph conrad

favorite short stories...

  • the death of ivan ilych by leo tolstoy
  • the enduring chill by flannery o'connor
  • revelation by o'connor
  • master and man by tolstoy
  • harrison bergeron by kurt vonnegut
  • greenleaf by o'connor

other english/language arts teachers...

a sports fanatic...

In addition to managing my own fantasy football league (The League of the Jackals), I am an addicted follower of various sports. I am fanatically loyal to my favorite teams: the Minnesota Vikings (www.vikings.com); the Denver Nuggets (www.nuggets.com); the Colorado Rockies (www.coloradorockies.com); and the New Jersey Devils (www.newjerseydevils.com).

Jimmy James Macho Business Donkey Wrestler

Jimmy James Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
News Radio's Jimmy James

Monday, October 22, 2007

a teachertube video....

Though this video deals with a concentration other than English or literature, this video by Jeremy Wetherhold is a brilliant example of a video created from still images and a limited number of sounds. A video of this format could be created in conjunction with any concentration using a program such as windows movie maker. PS I am currently in the midst of a video creation of my own...my directorial debut...and I will be sure to post it upon completion.....

Monday, October 15, 2007

interesting powerpoint presentations....

In searching Dana Huff's outstanding website (http://class.huffenglish.com/), I found a series of wonderful powerpoint presentations that she has created on such topics as Romanticism, the Fireside Poets, Emily Dickinson, Walt Whitman, Modernism, and Postmodernism. In order to access the links and the presentations, see the following link: http://class.huffenglish.com/?p=120. While this may be a simple use of powerpoint, it still is a wonderful use of some simple technology. These powerpoint presentations are available on-line, so students can access them before, during, and after, studying the given topics. Worth considering....

Monday, October 8, 2007

a vancouver sunset from creative commons....

When I lived in Vancouver, British Columbia (2003-2004), I was amazed by the sunsets. And while the beauty of Colorado sunsets regularly cause me to gaze toward the mountains while the colors change and the clouds shift, Vancouver's coastal location always left me with the feeling that sunsets may happen everywhere but "the sun sets in Vancouver." This public image of a sunset over English Bay was shot by Rod Templeton and made available through creativecommons. Perhaps it will give you a glimpse as to what inspired my conviction....