☕️ Awful Coffee, Abandoned Shopping Carts, and Fake Art
When Notes become a Scrapbook, does it count as a clip show?
Thoughts on Life
If you’re ever around me in person, I’m sure I’ll say “Simple things done well are pleasures, like a perfect cheese pizza.” (Thin crust, though!) So in starting a blog, posting my other common rant was inevitable:
Meanwhile, while we fight about so many things, society suffers because any minimum rules have gone out the window. We wear pajamas to Walmart, we shout at graduation, and dangit, we just don’t have class. So while the important folks debate politics—never once considering challenging their own views—I posted about the important stuffs.
Anyone else notice that YouTube no longer suggests random things? These days I feel trapped by my own viewing habits, which is fine if you never want to hear new thoughts again. Thank goodness Substack isn’t quite an echo chamber in that regard!
The Olympics
For years, I’ve complained that NBC should hand off Olympic coverage to executives who aren’t complete idiots. I remember watching the Atlanta games in 1996—TV made it easy. I remember watching in 2000 and 2004 without problems. Then, in 2008, I remember streaming the Beijing Olympics from my MacBook. For free. Without issue.
If not for the logistical hurdles with broadcasting across the planet, the Olympic games should be free for all to watch. But since those logistics aren’t free, something has to give. I remember not watching in 2016 and 2021. I just couldn’t figure out the streaming side. (Did it require a cable subscription? I don’t even remember the 2012 games.)
But this year was different. To start, the swimming trials were in Indianapolis. As a Hoosier and a former college swimmer, I couldn’t pass this up!
Then I figured out the streaming side on Peacock. And it seemed user friendly for a change. Since TV only cares about swimming once every four years, I packed year’s worth of sports TV into nine days.
However, after complaining to Substack, the ads just got better. So I just assume that the NBC executives subscribe to my blog. So I watched and watched and watched. Then one day, the events just dried up. Guess I won’t watch TV for another four years…
As for the opening ceremonies, yeah, that drag Last Supper was tasteless.
Thoughts on Art, AI, and Illustrations
The more I learn about dual coding theory, the more I celebrate beautiful book illustrations, both as art and (reading) aid. This summer I asked three main questions:
1. Is art more valuable when it's rare?
2. Who do I like better: Édouard Riou or Rockwell Kent?
3. Can AI help writing by concretizing mental images?
I wonder if I should explore that last thought in a full post?
Summer Teaching Conferences
These days I’ve started speaking at teaching conferences. Which for now means answering random emails, completing random applications, and learning through trial and error. This summer I presented on dual coding theory, which somehow answered many teaching questions I’ve had for years. Emerging on this side of my presentation, I hope I fill some gaps in my teaching framework.
Anyways, those were some random summer thoughts. Be sure to Share and Subscribe. Rather than ask for your money, I’d love to gain enough fame for a sponsorship from Raid Shadow Legends or Folgers or something.
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🏆 Most Popular Posts
While you’re here, check out some of my most popular posts so far.
1. Recently I missed a graduation reception and sketched a quick letter about “Ten Life Lessons I Wish I Knew at Seventeen.” My list might surprise you.
2. Ever feel fatigue at the last bell and think back to the statistic that teachers make many decisions per day? Decision fatigue is real, but the statistic is not. Check out “Teachers do NOT make 1,500 decisions per day*”.
3. Ever notice how teachers are the last to be interviewed about education? In “CBS won't interview teachers about teacher shortage,” I analyze several interviews that, somehow, don’t feature teachers.
Bonus! Ever notice how schools borrow quality control arguments from fast food and apply them towards children? You know, standardize our children for the standardized tests? Check out “Fast Food Workers of the Mind."
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