Bwah, the expressions in that shot are priceless.

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Can I be excited for you and totally jealous of you at the same time?

Sure. Why not. It's a fun show and it's sounding good, so I'm happy with it. It's also a theatre I enjoy working for.

Done! I'm excited for you about the show. At the same time I'm totally jealous of the time you are having. Enjoy the job and the theatre.

Barb, Abby's teacher is nuts. I'm so sorry you are having to put up with this.

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There's a lot these parents expect in the name of getting the "best" education for their students. There were parents who were offended that the kids didn't use the computers that much last year in fourth grade. @@

Eh, well, I guess I'm hella different. I consider "best" as being able to do something totally unnassisted. The research stuff I can honestly see, being able to "search the stacks" electronically is a huge help. Especially in this day and age where one of the places seeing some of the most budget cuts are libraries. But then, they should have computers in the libraries to provide the research. I am cheap, hear me roar.

Plus, I just feel bad for the folks who live in the lower class districts without the tax support to offer these kinds of services. It makes the have/have not divide that much deeper. If they can't have computers because they don't have the money for it, then no schools should have computers. Fine, what a family has at home is what they have, but all students should have the same opportunities no matter where they live.

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Also, I'm sad to see that it runs through the 28th, which means you'll miss the Grapevine's anniversary party and Jon's mad BBQ skills.

I don't run the shows, I manage the department and get the equipment up and running. I can go to a bar-b-q!

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it would appear that the "searching the stacks" method of research is quickly going the way of the dodo bird.

This is breaking my heart. I still love to find information this way.

I became a great aunt again this morning at 5:40am. Savannah was a healthy 8lb. 5oz.

Congratulations!!! (one of my nieces is also names Savannah).

My sister-in-law is due in less than 2 weeks. We will finally know the gender and name of the "wee bairn"!

Meara, thanks again for the 'words of wisdom' for my baby dyke diver. She stopped by today to thank me again for being here for her. She said everything I've said (including advice from many of you) has really helped. She's still not ready to tell her family; however, my love andacceptance of her has gone a long way in helping her love and accept herself. Oh! and she adores the nickname "baby dyke diver".

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Especially in this day and age where one of the places seeing some of the most budget cuts are libraries. But then, they should have computers in the libraries to provide the research. I am cheap, hear me roar.

Sing it, sister. I certainly didn't expect to be buying the kids computers at this point, but at the same time, I'm grateful we can. And at home, we enact some pretty strict restrictions in terms of use. What's interesting too, about our district is that our corner of the county is the more privileged, but the rest of St. Johns is far less wealthy. So while we're paying some righteous property taxes, it gets spread across a very large area and even so, the county had to enact some district-wide budget cuts, including cutting the number of computers in school libraries.

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Also, a pet peeve of mine, students shouldn't be using advanced technology in school until they have mastered the basics. Which, sorry, a fifth grader has not. I got really pissed off when my daughter's sixth grade math class insisted on everyone having a calculator for class. BS. If a student doesn't know how to do the math without using a calculator you're not doing them any favors.

I kind of disagree with that, but then, that's part of my general distaste for how math is taught. I think the emphisis on arithmetic winds up turning a lot of people off (especially ones like me who have a hard time retaining the stuff) of math before they get to the actual useful and fun parts!

Signed, tends to side on the Reformed Side of the Math Wars.

...

I can't believe I have an opinion about this. It's just, well, when I got to the parts where I was allowed to use a calculator, I realized math was AWESOME. At least potentially. 'rithmetic? Still a chore.

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Plei is me on the calculator issue.

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arithmetic winds up turning a lot of people off (especially ones like me who have a hard time retaining the stuff) of math before they get to the actual useful and fun parts

Reminds me of that article someone linked to about the way English lit is taught and how it turns students off.

Still, I'm a bit of a...what's the word I want...someone who believes that if electricity/electronics disappeared overnight, we damn well better be prepared to live without it. If you only know how to build a bridge with a computer model and a calculator, you're screwed when your grocery store is across the river and you don't have a boat. Better to learn how to do all that without the crutches first, so you remember how to do it that way when they get taken away.

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I sucked at math with and without a calculator. Equal opportunity math hater. Oddly enough, I teach it well.

Nate is his father with math, in that he can get the right answer, he just sees no use in showing how he got to the right answer and gets incredibly frustrated having to show his work. Abby is completely analytical and math comes super naturally to her, especially the whacked out abstract stuff. Coupled with her love or art and her ability to see things with depth and perception makes me think if she's at all interested, she could do well in architecture.

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