I See the Warmer Months Coming Around the Corner, and As I Broke Yesterday's Fast, I Couldn't Help But Look Forward to All the Summer Meals to Come

As I write Abu and Lossine daily, "I'm hungry, but I'm hyper-focused and paying attention to what matters most...like a good meal, appreciation for what I have, and how to ignore all the noise and chaos around me."

I couldn't wait for last night's salad, and was even more eager to get protein from the Crandall special. I learned from Chitunga that although he arrived, his furniture and packed belongings have not. They are a week late and lost them, but the recovered them with the promise of a 4 pm delivery today. 

Focus on what's important. Move in the direction of a better world. Be good to one another. Watch Ted Lasso and the Mandalorian. All will be well. 

Yesterday, I worked on two applications to get Literature for Young Adults aligned with signature elements. The University moved to a core curriculum where courses for social justice and writing in the discipline are on the radar of students. I applied for both and will look into writing across the disciplines and interdisciplinary connections in the future. Applying for the two I did was an all-day endeavor. Fingers crossed it will go through.

Speaking of, after several months, much chaos, and too many cc'd emails for any one's lifetime, I believe the course now has my name, the right day, and the right time finally up on the course scheduler. For weeks, it's been a man in interior design assigned to the class. Believe it or not, after all the chaos of trying to fix it, the one woman who never responded, ignored all the cc's, and (apparently) is rarely on campus, emailed to say, "Oh, that's my problem. I'm sorry I did that." Ugh to the YouGottaBeKiddingMe. 

I've spent my entire life holding myself accountable to what I need to get done, to the people I work with, to the students who depend on me, and to the country that relies on efficiency and excellence. I will forever be amazed by the many who cannot be counted on, are rarely held accountable, and make everything complicated for those who are doing the work. 

This all makes me think more about leadership. Perhaps one day I will transition to a leadership role so that I can go through a system and clean out the knuckleheads, the abusers of time, the all talk and no action types, who simply put up road blocks. I've always said I'd be a lousy leader because I can't tolerate the silliness that people pull over on their employers. It's just wrong.

We need to be there for each other, in support of one another, and behind a vision we all believe in (which is another reason I am thinking about one day moving into leadership). I definitely have vision, and it's unlike the lacking ones that have been before me at times. 

We all can do better. Even with my salad. tonight, I might add cranberries, too. 

Applauding the 76 3rd Graders, Their Teachers, Our 39 Undergraduate Students, the Center for Social Impact, and Kate Wellen for a Fantastic Day

"We're arriving early," they said a week ago, so I planned ahead. Then yesterday's text arrived and it read, "Okay, we'll be 30 minutes earlier than we thought." Well, then. Crandall-crazy to the rescue. How do we keep energetic 8 and 9 year olds focused until the big kids come to the arena?

All in all it was a tremendous success, where all the students wrote not just once, but twice (mapping out a space meaningful to the and we discussed the Fairfield University map). 

"Whoa! Y'all got robots!" 

That was the highlight of the day, and to be honest, they've become the norm. Kids across campus can order food from Gub Hub or the Tully, and the robots carry it to their dorms. Swear to God. Been mini-R2D2 creatures all over our campus giving the turkey a run for their money. They are pretty fascinating, actually. I'm intrigued and would love to learn more about them myself.

Special shout out to Keisha Biko (Elementary Education) and Latoya Lisle (Reading & Language Development / Connecticut Writing Project). They were the visionaries who wanted to cultivate geniuses with their young people on campus. Their administration was all on board!

Amazing teachers. Wonderful youth. Impressive undergraduates who stepped up for the day. A win-win-win for sure.

Ah, but fasting and the energy of 3rd graders. Phew. I don't know what my name is any more. But I'm up and at it for another day. We got this!

Bringing a Close of National Woman's Month, 2023, with 76 3rd Graders, 29 Undergraduates Exploring Education, and Tremendous Pride for Community Engagement.

The Kendall College and Career Academy of Norwalk Public Schools has been in partnership with the School of Education and Human Development's Exploration in Education course. In addition to Pequot Library, visits to ESL classrooms at Central High School in Bridgeport, and the stellar K-8 school in Norwalk, we also answered a request for a 3rd grade field trip to visit a college campus. These young people have been reading, writing, adding, subtracting, and thinking about the ways hard work in school leads to next steps in their lives. 

At the last minute, too, the Fairfield University Art Museum created magnificent posters of an exhibit they have in the Walsh Gallery at the Quick Center. Due to some of the content and the long distance to walk there in a short amount of time, educator Kate Wellen agreed to host one of the stations for the special trip between the young people and our undergraduate students. The exhibit features,

Women's Rights Are Human Rights is a very fitting title for an exhibition of women’s rights and advocacy posters, as it is a term used in the women's rights movement and was the title of an important speech given by Hillary Rodham Clinton at the United Nations Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. In her address, Hillary Clinton suggested that if the term women's rights were to be interchangeable with the term human rights, the world community would be a better place because human rights affect the women who raise the world's children, care for the elderly, run companies, work in hospitals, fight for better education and better health care. 

This exhibition features posters created by both men and women from around the world to celebrate and acknowledge the vital role that all citizens should play in protecting and promoting human rights.

There's much to occur from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. in the Dogwood, today, but it's all planned and ready to go. I'm excited to use Why Not You by Ciara and Russell Johnson (the first time I'm highlighting this book with a large audience) and I love the illustrations by Jessica Gibson. The book is perfect to launch conversations about career possibilities, dreams, and visions for the future - which is the total purpose of the Writing Our Lives event. It's all about the young scholars today.

I can't wait to process how this day goes. It's a great day when our campus opens its doors to the youngest learners and minds. And the best news is the 1 to 3 ratio of adults to kids! 

Celebrated a Dear Friend's 60th Last Night, Although She Couldn't Be There With Us. All Prayers For Her & Her Family

One of the benefits of an English major, I suppose, is reading and delving deeply into Greek and Shakespearean tragedies. Can you imagine this happening? What would you do if this happened? Of course, as tragic as those stories can be, the reality of living life can be equally as tragic. All life is struggle. The Buddhists have it right. Pain is part of the journey, and water falls from our eyes in equal force: when we are feeling deeply sad and when we are overjoyed by story and humor. Our emotions are triggered. 

The crews I hang out with always have a way to blend both comedy and tragedy. I think we need to, in order to survive. This is why we spent Shirley's 60th on FaceTime, letting her know we are here for her and feel so terribly for the life events of the past two weeks. She was supposed to be on a beach celebrating her time on earth, but a drunk driver killed her daughter-in-law, and she had to fly to Texas to support her son and the children. It is not how anyone wants to bring joy to their time on the earth. It's even harder to keep one's head up. 

This is why Leo created a paint-tape portrait of Shirls and we hung a banner. Someone even bought cake and we sang to her, letting her know this is what we would be doing (as always) if she was home with us. The emotions are heavy and the pain is even harsher. 

We all love our friend so much and would do anything to help her to ease the pain (it's why I told her that we all looked good from the table up (from where we passed the phone around), but were butt-naked from the waste down. It's hard to laugh...but we try. It's one way to find a cure, however shallow and ineffective. 

Another Tuesday is upon us and my night is late. Still, my mind and prayers will remain on those that are going through the nasty stuff right now....it seems to be everywhere at the moment. And we all need each other. 

Many Thanks to William & Jessica for Getting Me Out of the House to Break Fast at Cibus Dos - Yes, That Isn't Just a Bunny Rabbit

Whereas Saturday was a hot mess of winds, sleet, snow, and rain, Sunday turned into an almost 70, sun-shining day where I was able to not only get one walk in, but two. It was a day of grading, otherwise, until William and Jessica invited me for dinner at Cibus, a Latin fusion restaurant where the peppers, steak, rice (all served over French fries) were delicious. 

As we're leaving, I said to them, "I don't remember the Easter bunny greeter from previous visits," in which we soon laughed. That wasn't just a bunny rabbit...it was Santa Clause pretending he was Elvis Presley and hop-along-Cassidy. It was a nice touch to the evening gathering. 

Ah, but today is Monday, and the tire rotation and oil change of last week resulted in engine lights coming on two days later requesting an oil change and change of tires. So, back to Subaru I go (it was the soonest they could get me in). I hope they'll be able to make the electrical adjustments.

I also realize that Cibus uses way more salt than I'm used to intaking and I think I have more salt in me from that dinner than I usually get in an entire year. I'm still tasting it and I'm not a fan (even if the food was good). 

Okay, week...time to focus on all ahead. 

Was Looking for Me, Age 27, to Send to Chitunga, Age 27, and Dove Into My Brown School Boxes...This from 1999. 2nd Year of Full-Time Teaching

It was an interesting Saturday. A student from the class of 2006 reached out to work through her mid-30s, and wanted to touch base with people from her past. I've been nostalgic all week because it's always hard to put myself into the shoes of yesteryear, and I've been trying to think about who I was as a 27 year old. I remember we were partying like it was 1999, because it was 1999. I had a student group that was challenging, but also blossomed a year later into one of the best classes I ever taught. The 2000 crew, but I've been thinking about 1999: the poetry coffee houses we began, the basketball games, the DC trip, and getting my teaching legs (even with a student teacher, Kip). It was my 2nd year teaching and U of L gave me a student teacher.

I remember I met the Danes (the teachers and students) and vowed to take a crew to Roskilde (but that was between 1998 and 1999). The length of my hair is confusing, because I grew it out twice, cutting it twice, and I remember that I still hung out with friends from Indiana, but I was moving on...heading to spend more time with the teaching crew I worked with and severing ties with my drinking buddies (who actually took me to Coyotes to line dance - that was never my scene. Oh, Kentuckiana). 

Actually, I this is the class of 2000, so I'm guessing this is the 2nd half of my 27th year...the first semester. I'm not sure why it's black and white, and all these puppies are now in their 40s. I'm in the middle and look like one of the kids. 

When I left Brown, I boxed two shoe boxes with memories and left it at that. I don't go into it much unless someone reaches out and I am trying to remember. 1998-2007 blur, with the years becoming a blur. So much life occurred in those years and all the kids remain my heartbeat. My admiration for them grows even stronger as they've aged and continued to their share their life stories. And I'm laughing...the girl on the far right, Brandy, was one of the first Melinda and Bill Gates Scholars and I remember her receiving so much money from them that she bought a car. I was so proud to send in that nonination and to learn she received it. I love that kid, as I loved them all.

Zip Zap Zoom.

That's the snapshot of life. 

Participated with My First-Ever Vision Board...well, Collaborative Vision Board...and Like Everything, It Has Me Thinking (Frustrated) About Vision

I spent a productive few hours with colleagues who came for a day-long retreat for planning ahead. At one point we had to collaborate on thinking together about next steps, especially after naming the trees that blocked our way for the paths we feel most strongly about. The trees are many, and they can create quite an obstacle...especially since the institution of higher education, itself, is a tree blocking paths of what's good, possible, and pertinent. 

The theme that kept coming forward was, "It's not @%$#@ rocket science," as most of us have worked in numerous professional settings and have our world experiences behind us. We name what we need and it's not much, but as of date, the institutions haven't been able to help us.

Schools need teachers. Teachers need professional development and advanced degrees. Educators crave knowledge and opportunities, but institutions of higher education have sky-rocketed tuition costs to astronomical amounts, and who would want to take $200,000 in loans (a mortgage payment) to earn far less than that in their careers? Of course, teachers who are in schools would love to advance their knowledge (and appreciate it) but can't afford the investment, because graduate programs are expensive (as if they have life savings to pay for them). We've reached a place in U.S. history where the cost to become a teacher matched with the disrespect of teaching and teachers, coupled with the high stress of the teaching profession, and the testing, industrial complex have reached the summit. It's too much and it needs to change. As a result, programs to train teachers are hurting across the country, and administrators are desperate for teachers. It's a mess that could have been avoided. The same testing, Pearson-manipulated assessments that have ruined K-12 instruction are now at the epicenter to train teachers in higher education. It's mind boggling. 

Learning can't be a corporate endeavor, yet that is what it's become.

One by one by one, colleagues kept saying 50% (I heard 50 Cent) discount should be given to local, in-practice teachers, and we should partner with schools across the state to offer the best programs possible. This, however, does not align with late-capitalistic, for profit non-profits that are cloaked in higher education silks. The University wants money. It's not necessarily about reality and the world beyond the castles.

Still, we see our work as bridging reality of the United States, the K-12 public, parochial, and private schools we work with, with the esoteric nature of the castle where one must earn degrees. There's so much that can be done. Yes, we have fight in us like Rosie-the-Riveter, but we've been dying with zero support for almost 8 years now. We love what we do, we believe in inclusivity, and recognize that diversity is at the epicenter of excellence, yet work in environments that act counter to these goals. We live this in our community work every day. Yet, this doesn't match the way higher education operates with a different mindset. We need to be better bridges...We need to build better bridges...and we need to clean up the mess this nation has made.

Yet, the tree(s) stand in the way.

There's promise in summer work (as CWP knows) but faculty need summers to rejuvenate and, quite frankly, do their research and writing....so much gets piled on them during the year. 

And so this is where we are....with vision....but many trees blocking our way. Not an apocalyptic post, but one that sees through the trees and realizes the path ahead is blocked by the very map wanting us to find a path forward. Very frustrating.

But I love / to believe / in hope. It's all I got.