Education, The War on Dirty Jobs, and the Worst Advice in the World

Posted by Caleb Coy on

“Opportunity Is Missed Because It Is Dressed in Overalls and Looks Like Work”—anon.

Peripeteia: A reversal of circumstances
Anagnorisis: A critical discovery

Want to hear the worst advice in the world?  Let Mike Rowe present it to you.

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“The arts are not a way to make a living” -Kurt Vonnegut

Posted by Caleb Coy on

“The arts are not a way to make a living. They are a very human way of making life more bearable. Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem to a friend, even a lousy poem. Do it as well as you possibly can. You will get an enormous reward. You will have created something.” -Kurt Vonnegut

English “Thing” of the Day—A simple classroom atmosphere tool

Posted by Caleb Coy on

I started at the beginning of my teaching career, based on my belief that students need exposure to the world of language outside of instruction and assessment.  I got the idea from Billy Collins, who implemented a “poem-a-day” program in various public schools that involved a reading of a poem a day, without any required instructional connection whatsoever.  Mere exposure for the sake of it being something in our language.
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When It’s OK to Cover a Song

Posted by Caleb Coy on

Let’s settle it for all time.  When considering whether you should record a cover of another artist’s song for your new single or album, there is a list of principles to follow.

The criteria for when to cover a song:

  1. Your version is going to be nearly as good, if not as good or better than, the original.
  2. Your version will differ significantly enough to be a cover and not a discount replica.
  3. Your version is one the original artist would be proud to have heard.
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“Call Me Old-Fashioned”

Posted by Caleb Coy on

“Call me old -fashioned.”  You don’t hear that phrase very often, or maybe you don’t hear that phrase any more.  I guess it’s just…old-fashioned.  It sounds like a quaint little phrase some, not necessarily an older someone, will use as a way of expressing their values, values that are usually long-held by their family, the region, or the culture at large, but may be disappearing in the current age.
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Why English Majors Make Lousy Fundamentalists

Posted by Caleb Coy on

Why English Majors Make Lousy Fundamentalists

Why English Majors Make Lousy Fundamentalists

This is just an interesting read.  The more I learn about literature and language, the more skeptical I am of a strictly “fundamentalist” approach to all scripture, and yet the more understanding I am of why fundies see things the way they do.  Of course, the word “fundamentalist” conjures a range of labels, but most of them indicate to me a view of the Bible that attempts to honor it, but falls short of embracing its totality.  Like a fundy, I totally believe 2 Tim. 3:16 to be true.  But I’m going to understand it in a different way.  And even fundies disagree over interpreting the passages, so “taking everything literally” doesn’t solve all problems of interpretation and doctrine.  After all, Jesus didn’t literally produce wool from his body, swing on a hinge, or grow vines.  So when he says he is the lamb, the door, or the vine, he is no doubt being symbolic.  And although a fundy knows this is metaphor, this understanding is an important basis for how all else can be metaphor.

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this readers—especially the converse.  How can/how have “English majors” and other types misapprehended the scriptures?