I teach special education students how to read. The "code" of our language is something that kids can learn, and they can recognize certain sounds within words. But, it is things like this that drive me crazy:
Tangerine = tangerEEN
Nectarine = nectarEEN
Clementine = clementINE
WHY, when these three words end in the same pattern of letters, and when they all are types of oranges, do we pronounce one of them differently?!?
Friday, July 26, 2013
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Temperature control
A few days ago, I saw a pregnant woman walking down the street. While I was sweating and squinting in the sun, she looked perfectly comfortable. Oh, it was 95 degrees. And she was wearing a SWEATER.
What is up with that??
What is up with that??
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Praying to the Ritz?
When I was in Paris recently, I stayed near the Opera, also near the Place Vendome. If you know anything about this area, you know that there are a bunch of expensive stores and hotels in this square - Cartier, Marc Jacob, Tiffany, etc. - and they all face a giant copper column with Napoleon at the top.
We walked past Place Vendome several times, and it always had the most bizarre thing going on. People stand in the open area in the middle of the square, in no apparent hurry to go anywhere. Some read, some listen to music, talk on their phone, eat, or sell candles. The strange thing is this: everyone, I mean EVERYONE, stands in a grid formation equidistant from each other. Even if they happen to start a conversation with someone nearby, they awkwardly maintain the 10 foot space between each other. They only stand on these larger square stones in the ground. And they all face the same direction. The kicker is this: it's not like they are standing and admiring a view or watching a performance. Almost everyone in the square stands facing the Ritz, which is undergoing construction.
Is it just me, or is this inexplicable?
We walked past Place Vendome several times, and it always had the most bizarre thing going on. People stand in the open area in the middle of the square, in no apparent hurry to go anywhere. Some read, some listen to music, talk on their phone, eat, or sell candles. The strange thing is this: everyone, I mean EVERYONE, stands in a grid formation equidistant from each other. Even if they happen to start a conversation with someone nearby, they awkwardly maintain the 10 foot space between each other. They only stand on these larger square stones in the ground. And they all face the same direction. The kicker is this: it's not like they are standing and admiring a view or watching a performance. Almost everyone in the square stands facing the Ritz, which is undergoing construction.
Saturday, July 20, 2013
That really just happened
I have been making a conscious effort lately to walk around with my head up. Literally. Texting, looking at pictures, and playing 94s while I walk around has become a bad habit. With my track record I surely will knock something over or walk into a wall. It can drain my phone battery. The biggest issue though, is what I could be missing!!
It is a terrible feeling to be missing something, and so my solution is to be more observant. It is amazing the things that my eyes can stumble upon. I've decided to keep track of some of the more interesting things I see. I'm curious if anyone else notices people doing ridiculous things, or if I am the only one that finds those things out of the ordinary. Let's find out.
It is a terrible feeling to be missing something, and so my solution is to be more observant. It is amazing the things that my eyes can stumble upon. I've decided to keep track of some of the more interesting things I see. I'm curious if anyone else notices people doing ridiculous things, or if I am the only one that finds those things out of the ordinary. Let's find out.
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