10.26.2009

Moving On

Hey! I know, its been a long time since I've posted here, and there are probably a gazillion cobwebs - lol.

With the new husband and new marriage comes a new blog, so I'm moving on. You're welcome to join me in my new spot - Welcome to Mrs. Smithville.

See ya on the flip side!

6.30.2009

FYI

Just wanted to let you know I imported my 5 or so posts from my class-required technology blog "I Heart Technology" a few minutes ago. For those of you that view the blog through a reader, I'm not sure if its going to show up as new posts. Wanted to let you know in case you see them around.

6.27.2009

Rep Yo State!

Normally, I'm anti wearing jewelry that represents your hometown. But this necklace definitely makes me reconsider. As a bonus, that little diamond can be placed anywhere along the coast. Nudge it a little north, and it would be perfect.

If you're interested, you can fabulously rep your own state here.

2.20.2009

Does Techology Make it Better?

This afternoon I was catching up on last night's Grey's Anatomy episode. In the event you aren't a fan, I'll spare you the details. However, one of the main subplots surrounded our Know-it-All Surgeon (KIA) in competition with an older Seasoned Surgeon. Essentially, Seasoned Surgeon was past her surgical prime and really needed to retire her scalpel.

What brought this all to a head was that the Seasoned Surgeon made a mistake. A mistake that KIA Surgeon surmised could have been avoided if she'd just used an arthroscopic technique. Arthroscopic techniques use lasers and small cameras inserted into the area of interest, rather than cutting you open. But Seasoned Surgeon was standing behind her surgical prowess - cutting the patient open. Arthroscopic techniques drastically reduce the healing time because they are far less intrusive than using a scalpel, and many surgeons will argue that the added technology allows you to be more precise.

That's the argument KIA Surgeon was making.
And then Seasoned Surgeon threw her a curve ball and asked her what would she do if she worked at a hospital that could not afford the technology.

KIA Surgeon was speechless. She had nothing.

Thankfully, most universities have the basics covered. Many classrooms have set ups that allow you to do show the PowerPoint slides we've slaved over, or at the very least have an overhead projector cart that we can wheel in to display our slides on.

But what if our classrooms didn't?
If we had to use the whiteboard (or chalkboard) what would you do?
How would it affect your class set up, your approach to the course content, your teaching?

The point is, I think that kind of situation would give all of us pause. We have been indoctrinated that the basic technological advances (since at one point, that's what they all were) are essential. Personally, I've given a few lectures (unintentionally) without "my slides" and it was rough. I was trying to simultaneously write on the board and read through my notes to ensure that I covered it all. My non-tech lectures were arguably effective, but perhaps not equally so.

KIA Surgeon came back at the end of the episode, equipped with a non-tech surgical approach. Seasoned Surgeon was impressed because KIA Surgeon was right. She had researched a non-tech approach that would have worked, AND illustrated that the technology would make the procedure easier. In some cases, better.

Would I make that same argument about my lecturing? Using PowerPoint (or any other technology) makes the learning situation easier for my students, but I wouldn't automatically infer it was better. Clearer? Yes. Organized? Yes? But better?

Maybe.

2.12.2009

Get it McDreamy!

I'm watching Grey's.
DVRd Grey's to be exact.

Did anyone else know neurologists were cowards by trade?

2.04.2009

Its the 4th of February

...do you know where your valentine is?

Just kidding. You know that was kinda funny. Just kinda though. Anyway, since its almost Thursday, now is an excellent time to start nailing down plans for the 14th. For all my single ladies (all my single ladies), I dont want to hear very much of your crap. Find someone to love on!

I'm sorry I didn't post a pic, even though I was thinking my default for Wednesdays (when I'm notoriously exhausted) would be to find one of the PHI and I. Nope, not even doing that tonight. Too tired. Just heading to bed. Yup. At nine twenty something.

2.03.2009

You've survived three...

...I know you have eleven more in you!

Here's a little motivation ♥

2.02.2009

2 down...

...12 days to go!
Found it here.

Living by the Girl Scout Law

{I started talking about this in response to a comment that Liz made last week and decided that I had some more to say about it.}

Today's I'd like to take a moment to talk about my mom. We'll call her MamaP.* MamaP was born in the 50s, has a bachelors and a masters degree (both completed in the 70s) and has spent a majority of her adult life working for a county agency. She's always volunteered her time and been active in the community. And for the last 14 years or so, she's had a computer in her home. But MamaP has a love-hate relationship with technology.

Just think, when MamaP was in college, if she wanted to meet with a professor, she had to go by their office (or call? idunno if they had phones in the offices). When she wanted to deliver information to her Brownie Girl Scout parents, in the early years she had to hand-write a newsletter** and then photocopy it. Despite owning computers at home (technically, they were mine), she wasnt forced to really sit and interact with one until she got one at her work desk in 1999. Most of the time they just stress her out. Especially when its time for some sort of upgrade. But she tries and over the years has made tons of progress. She even banks, makes reservations, and purchases online now. All skill she had to develop in her late 40s and 50s. There was definitely some resistance, and her progress was almost entirely an uphill battle. Lastly, MamaP usually requests help for new technology. Like the iPod she's planning to puchase when I'm home for Spring Break.

This isn't her fault. MamaP means well. She just doesn't have the experience I do with technology. Not that I'm a genius, but I (and most of my generation) have been interacting with computers and other forms of technology for as long as we can remember. And just think about our students. If you told them that back in the day, they wouldn't be able to email their professors about the exam that's scheduled to take place in 8 hours, they would probably blow a gasket. Do they remember having to learn without the Internet, WebCT and PowerPoint? Probably not.

Whats my point?

As some of us progress through our careers, we'll probably have the opportunity to deal with older learners. Not people who are resistant, but inexperienced. Just know that some of them may be like MamaP. They mean well, and are willing to try, but they often experience difficulty and request a good bit of assistance. They just haven't had the exposure that we have. Or the dependence. For them, email may still be considered a secondary form of communication. And we need to keep that in mind.

I know sometimes I take my experience for granted. Do you?

MamaP doesn't. To some degree, I'm sure its because I'm her only child. But she looks to me to trouble shoot problems with Word (over the phone!), advise her on websites to visit, and whatever other technological issue she thinks I may be able to help with. As a lifelong Girl Scout, she is using her resources wisely. Cant get mad at that.

...I may draw the line at Facebook though.


*yes, her name does actually begin with a P, like mine.

**MamaP has elementary school teacher penmanship. You know that handwriting that was meant for a chalkboard? I love getting mail from her. Even if its just my car insurance card - lol.

2.01.2009

1 down, 13 to go

{I don't remember Brew taking this photo.
Yup, were that couple that likes to kiss in public
...like were the only ones there}

OMG, I cant believe I almost forgot to address this. Its the first!

February has a special place in my heart because its the home of my favorite (non-birth related) holiday: Valentines Day*! I love Valentines Day because everything has hearts on it. EVERYTHING! And we all know how I love hearts unreasonably. I love Valentines Day despite all the meanies walking around hating on my holiday. Okay, so you dont have a Valentine. So what. You have friends dont you? You have a mom dont you? You still have you dont you? No excuses. Nope...not trying to hear any of them.

So, today marks the first day of my official countdown to Valentines Day. If you arent interested in counting down, you can just ignore these posts or check back with me in a couple. I don't have any special plans with the PHI, but Valentines Day is always a good day for me. So I'll continue to look forward to it. And scope out my 2009 heart-adorned acquisitions.

Last year I got dishtowels and a new doormat...
(toldya, everything has hearts on it)



*Its at this point that I always feel compelled to explain that I do not love Valentines Day because of something Hallmark (or the media) has implanted in me. Like Jill said: "Hate on me haters." Whatev.

1.27.2009

I'm on Facebook...and I assume you are too?

Yesterday I was perusing my GoogleReader and came across the latest David Noah post on the CTL blog. If you haven't seen the CTL blog, or read one of David's posts, you are definitely missing out. I don't know David personally*, but I do know that his posts will always point you in the direction of some fairly interesting reading.

My favorite article on that list is the last one he mentions called You Have No Friends, with the subtitle Everyone Else is on Facebook, Why Arent You. Essentially, the author starts out by discussing Facebook in general and the way he uses it (alot of times to keep in touch with extended family). He then goes into arguments he's heard from people holding out on joining Facebook, including my favorite (and shared) concern: not wanting other people to be all in your business.

I understand that the very nature of Facebook is that people are able to connect and keep up with you. But I still think its problematic. The way I deal is that I still am a member of Facebook nation, but I definitely do not let it run my life. I can go weeks without checking it and get (more than) a little annoyed when people expect that I check it more often than I do. I also severely monitor my Facebook image - I'm always untagging pictures and monitoring wall posts. I'm trying to walk the fine line of having a Facebook presence without having to feed a Facebook obsession.

Interestingly, Facebook has become so popular that its now normative! People are now surprised to hear when you dont have a Facebook account when I remember that it was only a few short years ago that Facebook did not even exist. Gasp! Facebook has now gone the way of cell phones, mp3 players, and Macs...they are awesome, everyone has them, and they assume you do too (and if you dont, you should).

Personally, I can easily see in the not so distant future disabling my Facebook account...and not looking back. We'll see how long it takes me to get there :)

You can find the article here.



*I really should stop in and introduce myself, especially since I know exactly where his office is and I'm over in CTL at least twice a month - lol. Oh! And the fact that I love reading his blog posts.

1.22.2009

Dear Shonda,

You know I am one of your biggest fans. We go way back. But I have to admit that I was a little resistant when I found out that Private Practice was moving to hang out with Greys on Thursdays. You don't know this, but Thursdays tend to be really long days for me, and by the time either of your lovely shows come on my emotions are a bit...wrecked.

Its okay. That is not your fault. I do too much alot of the time. Not enough hours in the day yadda yadda yadda.

However, I will attribute a couple grievances to you, as follows:

1. I CANNOT do both shows with ethical dilemmas on the same night. I understand that these are fictional doctors, and that this stuff happens every day, but I get both of your shows on Thursday and they are not allowed to happen on the same day in TV world.

2. I cannot do shows with brides. Period. They are off limits. Brides with a mom that means to world to her and no dad...DEFINITELY OFF limits. Hits too close to home. Cant deal.

That was all I wanted to discuss. I'm not sure how I feel about that crossover you have planned for 2 weeks from tonight, but I will hold on judgement until I view them....probably with a glass of wine. Or maybe I'll just DVR them.

No matter. Like I started, I love your work. I have been a faithful fan throughout your ABC tenure. And I understand if there is nothing you can/are willing to do about my grievances. Just because were cool like that, I thought you'd want to know.

Your fabulously loyal fan,
Miss Patti

1.20.2009

Strugglin.

So I've logged 4 books already this year. And I'm struggling on book #5...I really want to read Breaking Dawn again. But repeats won't count. Did I promise re-reads (within the same calendar year) don't count? I meant to - lol.

I have a couple un-read books that I'm willing to take a shot on. Both written by Gregory Maguire. So I guess we'll do one of those.

I guess...

1.18.2009

Buy-In

The other day, I was talking to Jennifer about how people seem to believe that technology is the golden ticket for education. In other words, that the addition of technology will improve teaching, increase student engagement, and influence recruitment and retention. And academics are not the only ones. At my job, whenever there is a discussion about improving a system or function, the first suggestion is always increasing the technological involvement. Its never "lets get to the root of the issue" or "lets re-evaluate the allocation of our resources," its always "what technology can we use to fix the issue?"

A passage I read this weekend in Effective Teaching with Techonology in Higher Education (Bates & Poole, 2003) further underscored that sentiment:
Another recurring feature of the development of educational technology has been an unwarranted optimism by business and government that each new technology would be a panacea for all the shortcomings of the education system. In the end, it has proved obstinately difficult to integrate technology into education, at least to the extent that its transforming or radically improving the cost effectiveness of education (page 8).
I think that we should approach incorporating new technology the same way we approach buying new clothes. Wait, lemme explain.

When we buy new clothes, we do it for one of two reasons: we want something new or we need something new. The exact reason isn't important because the following process is essentially the same. Then we do some research, try it on, and make sure it fits within the framework of our personal style (and budget). Technology, especially in the classroom should work the same way. We cant just throw technology at people, expecting them to know what to do with it and magically expecting it to fix them (I call this the What Not to Wear approach). We need to give people the chance to experience and try it on before they decide to buy.

1.16.2009

Like I need one more project this year

I read alot of books.

Not as many as I used to, but enough to legitimately claim it on my current list of favorite ways to spend my time, and definitely more than most other people I know. Yeah, I'm popping my coat collar...just slightly, cause its super cold outside these days.

Blame it on my self-induced commute twice-weekly. I do. MARTA and I share our quality time with whatever I'm reading at the time.

In actuality, I honestly have no idea how many books I read a year. I know I read alot, but thats all I got. So my plan for 2009 is to actually document what I've been ingesting. No, school books won't count. Just the "fun" stuff...the stuff I choose. Speaking of choosing, I randomly chose 50 books as the goal. I should probably just use this year as a baseline, and then set a goal for 2010.

Yeah, that sounds like a plan.
Ready to see how many books I can read this year?
Then lets go!

1.15.2009

Welcome

Welcome to my blog!

I don't claim to know a whole lot about technology, but I use techology, I'm learning more about it, and I like it. So in my mind that qualifies me to blog about it.

See ya soon, right?

Right. Soon.

1.11.2009

Signs of Breadmaking

I just read my third post today about baking bread. Three posts. Today!

I know its a sign.

Couple that with:
1. My filching Mom's Barefoot Contessa cookbook specifically because I wanted her Honey White Bread recipe (Merry Christmas* - lol)
2. The fact that learning/trying to bake bread from scratch (like, requires-yeast-no-breadmaker kind of bread) is on my list of things to bake before 2010.

See, toldya it was a sign. And yes, I have promptly bookmarked said recipes. Now, when am I going to have time to try bread. And can I get a few volunteers to taste test?

No Dani, I'm not mailing you and B.Kakes samples. You have to sample while they're warm...in person :)


*so for the most part, my Mama rarely purchases a Christmas gift for me in the traditional sense. What usually happens is that I come home for the holidays and leave with several of her things. After agreeing to let me have them, she usually says "Merry Christmas." Ever since I got into cooking (approx 2 years ago), she has gifted me a cookbook (or 2) and something for the kitchen. This year's take: my Barefoot Contessa cookbook, a Food and Wine Best of the Best Cookbook and a GreenPan Grill Pan. I have the best mom ever!

Drive By: 1/11/09

Why are there now 8 strangers on the Real World? Have there been 8 strangers for awhile and I missed it? Admittedly, I havent been watching it the way I used to...ah well.

1.06.2009

(Almost) Too Good to Be True Tuesdays: 1/6/09

I shop quite a bit. Note, I didn't say buy (I do my fair share of that too), but I spend alot of time just seeing whats out there...shopping. Frequent shopping is the best way to gauge whether "sales" are in fact saving me some money.

Anyway, often I score things for an obscene deal. So much so that you think its almost too good to be true how little I paid for something so great. Hence (Almost) Too Good to Be True Tuesdays was born. I cant promise I'll have something every Tuesday, but I should have something for you fairly regularly.

Today's subject is something near and dear to my heart. Something for the kitchen! I ♥ pots and pans, dishes, glassware, and especially bakeware. Yesterday I popped into Pier 1 Imports to see if they had anything worthy of purchasing in the after holiday sales (by far one of the best times to buy something), and what did I find? These lovelies:I love for things to coordinate rather than match (yes, I know sometimes matching and coordinating are one in the same), so when I saw these, I had to have them. The best part? A set of four only set me back $4.98. Yes, folks. Each one was about $1.25 before sales tax! Too good to be true? Almost.

I picked up 2 sets...for less than $10. The PHI and I need nice stemware since we both consume quite a bit of wine, and now we are on our way. We'll probably supplement them with some simple margarita and martini glasses. Mom swears she got hers from DollarTree. Anyway, these glasses were love at first sight, and when I realized they were in the holiday collection, and therefore 75% off, I fell in love again.

If you're interested, you can see them on the website here. But if you're really interested, what you need to do is pop by your nearest Pier 1 post haste. I imagine they wont be there much longer!

1.05.2009

Thankfully something helps

When you're spending your first day away from fiance, family and friends in 3 weeks, you feel a little sad inside. Seriously. I don't recommend you trying it. It kinda sucks.

But something told me to fix myself some coffee and crack open that delicious (looking) bread that Naima sent for the holidays...and now I feel much better. Maybe its the caffeine. Maybe its the sugar. Maybe its watching Eric Nies looking like a wierdo on that new Vh1 show. Idunno.

But I feel better. So what did we learn today?

Yummy coffee + yummy bread = a little slice of bridal bliss.