May 2004 Archives

Romanian wine is excellent! We had two delightful bottles (on two different nights) of this local wine. Afry turned us on to the first one, the second we got as a treat for Raz' mom. Our party has re-divided now, to reconnoiter back in Amherst come August, after myriad adventures (if only you know

Arad is a sweet town, and Raz and his mom are terrific hosts. :-) Andrea is spending most of her time sleeping - she told us she prefers 10 hours/night but her average so far is 13. :-) We're, of course, getting to know each other better. Both of them seem quite clear on the fact that even though I'm serious about most of what I do, underneath I'm often quite amused. (Dang - exposed!)

Raz' buddy Afry is an experience in and of himself. (Not to put any pressure on him to perform when he gets to the US this fall.) We talked about quantum physics yesterday and wouldn't you know he was online within hours looking up Weyl curvatures. He found some interesting stuff on whales too. ;-)

Tonight we're off to a neighboring town, and tomorrow I return to Budapest for a night and day before the flight back to Stockholm. Do I sound like a jetsetter or what?!!!

Not that I'm eligible, but what a landmark! Tears of Joy at First Marriage Licenses

I read all the Day 1 surveys today and started to identify illustrative quotes, figure out patterns, and basically get started on the analysis. I present in my Comparitive Inquiry coure tomorrow, so that is pushing me to at least get started. I'm also mailing back the copies tomorrow - I noticed that only half of the participants wanted copies back - that means something. What? That the process was "enough" and the writing was really "extra" for folks - they would have learned/benefitted as much without the writing? Or that the kinds of questions I asked didn't generate responses that they were interested in reviewing again? I'm just wondering if there is a way to make it feel more useful to individuals - so its not a matter of doing it "just" for the research process, but also for personal/professional benefit. If any of you want to post a comment explaining your experience of the writing and suggestions for how I could improve on that, I'd be grateful!

Here's the raw numbers I'm working with:

Day 1 ìIntermediateî
Informed consent forms 16
Surveys turned in 13
Surveys copied/returned 6
Evaluations 12

Day 2 ìAdvancedî
Informed consent forms 31
Surveys turned in 23
Surveys copied/returned 11
Evaluations 23

Now, I'm worried because I had 18 surveys to return, but when Hannah helped me address them this evening there were only 17. I am hoping to all the good spirits that I just overlooked one when I gathered them up this morning and when I get back to Carolyn's, it'll be there. I have no idea whose it is, as I've already done the separation of name from survey (and didn't pay attention to who wanted it back and who didn't anyway). Oh no... :-(

Well, I think my students rock. :-) Maybe it's only because they liked my presentation about my teaching philosophy? No, its not just that. Some of them still disagree. And they are standing up publicly and saying so - directly to me and in front of all their peers. Wicked cool.

Check 'em out if you're curious: http://com250s04.blogspot.com.

Those Alaskans know how to pull off a conference! Not only was everyone psyched to be doing professional development together, we also got to play around and practice juggling. Cathi really tried to get me to shift wide so my bean bags wouldn't collide but....old habits die hard. :-) Isn't that the way it is with everything? Maybe its only with the things we don't want to give up. Hmmm......

I've been "juggling" up a storm since returning. I'm not sure if I quite match Angela's list, but EVERY day there is a huge school project due and/or something with Ms. Hannah Mae and/or work (imagine!). Just interpreted Northampton's PrideFest, which was a blast. Big turnout as folks are energized about everyone who's going to start getting married on May 17th. It'll be interesting to see not only if, but how in the world the Massachusetts legislature thinks they'll be able to turn back the tide over the next couple of years. Of course they are going to try (sigh). I interpreted some of the political speeches (wicked fun) and a singer, Susan Bassett. She was fun, her own stuff and a couple of cover tunes, including one by the Indigo Girls. She was the very last performer so most of the crowd had dwindled, but me and my "audience" of about a dozen enjoyed the show quite a bit. :-) How much group dynamics can one do from stage? I pulled off a few....!