Stardust the movie came out in 2007. It stars Claire Danes, Michelle Pfeiffer, Robert De Niro, Charlie Cox, Sienna Miller, Ricky Gervais, Jason Flemyng, Rupert Everett, Peter O'Toole, Mark Strong, Kate Magowan, Ian McKellen.
Its not my usual genre, its fantasy, with kings and witches and lightening powered craft but overall its very good. I was picking up performances by Claire Danes through Netflix and this one jumped up. I think that Clair Danes will be one of the most noted actresses of this era. This movie does not disappoint. She plays a star. Not just a movie star, but rather a celestial star that can make the difference in who will be chosen as king. This movie comes complete with a greek chorus of departed king wannabees. Its also has a romantic element that get redirected. An interesting part has Ricky Gervais, of Office fame, getting stabbed in the stomach and turned into a screech owl whenever he tries to talk. Robert DeNiro plays a credible part as captain of an airship powered by lightening. An absolute phenomenal make up job is done to Michelle Pfeiffer as she plays the wicked witch who uses supernatural powers to make herself "beautiful" and to capture the essence of the star, a diamond like stone that turns to ruby and allows the hero to become king of the fantasy kingdom.
Also on the docket this week was Like Crazy a movie from 2011.
Like Crazy is a romantic movie of love separated by the Atlantic Ocean and a visa. He is a art student, furniture designer. She is a writer and eventually a fashion editor in England. They met while going to school in LA. The classic student visa ran out and she still stayed in LA. When she wanted to return to LA from England, she was turned down because of her visa violation. The story is about their separation and their reunions. At different times in this movie, both of them are convinced that the other is the "one". Finally the girl's father has had enough of the cost of fighting the visa infraction and the transatlantic flights and suggests that they get married.
This movie has beautiful California, and British scenery. This movie has a beautiful couple and the movie works until the plot tries to interject some complications.
It won the grand prize for drama at the Sundance Film Festival.
The cast members include: Felicity Jones, Anton Yelchin, Jennifer Lawrence, Charlie Bewley, Alex Kingston, Oliver Muirhead, Finola Hughes, Chris Messina, Ben York Jones, Jamie Thomas King, Keeley Hazell, Natalie Blair, Edurne Ganem. It falls into the netflix genera of Emotional, Romantic, Understated.
Overall, both these movies were good ones to watch.
Friday, April 13, 2012
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Rhodies on the Rebound
The day before Easter we met with the bay area kids in Golden Gate Park. I have always remembered the huge rhododendrons planted in a hilly glen just east of the Academy of Science. It is a glen dedicated to the wonder planner, John Mc Claren who planned a gigantic green space where there once were miles and miles of sand dunes. Golden Gate Park is a major treasure of San Francisco. It is often missed by the tourists as they get captured by the bay front life of fisherman's wharf and the Embarcadero. Still the park is known for little treasures like the Rhododendron Glen. April is the key month to visit this showcase. The trees in the past were much taller than my height and often cascaded orchid like blossoms in exotic flows from their flat leaf sides to their torched centers. In full bloom these beauties were a site to behold. Many of the specimum came from exotic locations in Maylasia and indo china. They like the moist, protected climate of San Francisco. No frost ever. In the glen protection from winds allowed these plants to thrive. Wealthy patrons of the city tried to out do their neighbors in their donations of fabulous plant individuals. The start of this glen was 60 to 80 years ago. My memory of it was from 15 years ago. We took friends that came from Colorado out to Golden Gate Park for mother's day. The glen was in the last part of its botanical year. It was still spectacular. April is is really the best time so I was hoping for a major exhibition.
This year the display is not as fabulous. There were a few very striking plants, but for the most part the display is in regeneration. In the place of 12 to 14 foot specimens, 2 to 3 foot plants were planted. Very few of these plants had any flowers on them at all. So why has this grand glen seen better days. The internet and SF gate's archive on it provide some of the answers. This is a part of an article published in 2001 written by Carl Nolte on the glen and its reconstruction.
This year the display is not as fabulous. There were a few very striking plants, but for the most part the display is in regeneration. In the place of 12 to 14 foot specimens, 2 to 3 foot plants were planted. Very few of these plants had any flowers on them at all. So why has this grand glen seen better days. The internet and SF gate's archive on it provide some of the answers. This is a part of an article published in 2001 written by Carl Nolte on the glen and its reconstruction.
Sometimes the biggest pleasures in life are the smallest -- the smell of
bay leaves, a stroll in the park to see the rhododendrons in bloom.
April was when the rhododendrons bloomed in the McLaren Memorial Rhododendron Dell in Golden Gate Park -- a famous sight, "a fabulous display . . . a pageant," wrote Katherine Wilson in her guidebook about the park. "One of the great botanical treasures of the world," wrote Margot Patterson Doss in her book about walking in the park.
But this year, April is the cruelest month. The rhododendron dell is only a shadow this spring of what it was. The park's gardeners have scraped the dell nearly bare -- it looks like some kind of botanical redevelopment project. The gardeners say they had to do this because the dell was severely damaged by a storm.
The glory of the past is gone, and the future has not yet flowered.
Visitors are upset. One even wrote the newspaper complaining about "this destruction."
But spring is a time for hope, and the bedraggled rhododendron dell has not been completely destroyed, only damaged and replanted. Now, they say, is a time for waiting.
"It is going to be slow," said Joan Vellutini, a park gardener who was working on the rhododendron dell the other morning. "By next year it ought to look great," said Kevin Shea, who spent 38 years in the park as a gardener and supervisor. He retired on St. Patrick's Day and thinks of the park every day.
Many people who stroll through the park and along the paths that line the dell think Golden Gate Park is a natural thing, a gift from nature to city people. They are surprised, sometimes, to hear the park is really an artificial creation, built by the city on acres of blowing sand and brush in the 19th century.
The dell was carefully nurtured and shaded by big trees, cypress and Monterey pine. Then, rhododendrons from all over the world were planted 60 to 70 years ago. The park created a microclimate, shady and damp, and the flow thrived. It was dedicated to the memory of John McLaren, the father of Golden Gate Park.
"Nature didn't make this," said Vellutini, "gardeners did, and if you don't take care of it, it will revert to what it was."
"It was a specialty garden," said Doug Martino, who spent 18 years with the rhododendrons. "You could come in and work, and you could do real horticulture here." Like most gardeners, he and Vellutini call the plants "rhodies," as if they were small animals or children, needing constant attention.
Five winters ago, nature turned on the park with a fierce sustained windstorm that blew over perhaps 1,000 trees, smashed up the glass Conservatory of Flowers and wrecked the rhododendron dell.
Most of the big old pines and cypress trees that had sheltered the plants from the sun were knocked down, and so were some of the plants.
The rhododendrons, which were middle-aged, had lost some of the vigor of youth anyway. When the canopy of protection and shade was knocked away, they were burned by the sun. "It was quite a shock to them," said Martino.
In addition, the plants developed armillagria, a fungus in the soil. This brought a crisis: The famous rhododendrons were sick and dying.
People in the city know how it is: There is always a crisis in San Francisco -- the Muni needs fixing, there is a homeless problem, a housing crisis, gentrification, parking, assorted political bombshells, and on and on. The crisis in the dell seemed to the politicians pretty small potatoes.
The political problems pain the gardeners; they don't want to talk about it.
But there are fewer gardeners now than there used to be, and even in good economic times, the budget is tighter than it was.
But this spring, slowly and carefully, the rhododendron dell is getting new trees to provide shade, redwoods this time, not pines. Redwoods last for centuries, but they grow slowly, and the canopy of trees will not spring up this month.
The dell will come back, but later, not sooner. "But at least, it shows we care and are trying to do something," Vellutini said.
A couple, a man named David and a woman named Jade, stopped to talk to the gardeners the other day.
They were dismayed by the bare patch where flowers bloomed. Jade and David live in the Richmond District, next to the park, and come by often. "This is everybody's backyard," said Jade. "This is the backyard for city people, who may live on the fourth floor of an apartment building and be a long way from plants and flowers."
To these people, the small pleasure of a walk in the park was a big pleasure indeed. They walked through the dell, past where the flowers had bloomed, bright like the colors of sherbet. Maybe next year.
April was when the rhododendrons bloomed in the McLaren Memorial Rhododendron Dell in Golden Gate Park -- a famous sight, "a fabulous display . . . a pageant," wrote Katherine Wilson in her guidebook about the park. "One of the great botanical treasures of the world," wrote Margot Patterson Doss in her book about walking in the park.
But this year, April is the cruelest month. The rhododendron dell is only a shadow this spring of what it was. The park's gardeners have scraped the dell nearly bare -- it looks like some kind of botanical redevelopment project. The gardeners say they had to do this because the dell was severely damaged by a storm.
The glory of the past is gone, and the future has not yet flowered.
Visitors are upset. One even wrote the newspaper complaining about "this destruction."
But spring is a time for hope, and the bedraggled rhododendron dell has not been completely destroyed, only damaged and replanted. Now, they say, is a time for waiting.
"It is going to be slow," said Joan Vellutini, a park gardener who was working on the rhododendron dell the other morning. "By next year it ought to look great," said Kevin Shea, who spent 38 years in the park as a gardener and supervisor. He retired on St. Patrick's Day and thinks of the park every day.
Many people who stroll through the park and along the paths that line the dell think Golden Gate Park is a natural thing, a gift from nature to city people. They are surprised, sometimes, to hear the park is really an artificial creation, built by the city on acres of blowing sand and brush in the 19th century.
The dell was carefully nurtured and shaded by big trees, cypress and Monterey pine. Then, rhododendrons from all over the world were planted 60 to 70 years ago. The park created a microclimate, shady and damp, and the flow thrived. It was dedicated to the memory of John McLaren, the father of Golden Gate Park.
"Nature didn't make this," said Vellutini, "gardeners did, and if you don't take care of it, it will revert to what it was."
"It was a specialty garden," said Doug Martino, who spent 18 years with the rhododendrons. "You could come in and work, and you could do real horticulture here." Like most gardeners, he and Vellutini call the plants "rhodies," as if they were small animals or children, needing constant attention.
Five winters ago, nature turned on the park with a fierce sustained windstorm that blew over perhaps 1,000 trees, smashed up the glass Conservatory of Flowers and wrecked the rhododendron dell.
Most of the big old pines and cypress trees that had sheltered the plants from the sun were knocked down, and so were some of the plants.
The rhododendrons, which were middle-aged, had lost some of the vigor of youth anyway. When the canopy of protection and shade was knocked away, they were burned by the sun. "It was quite a shock to them," said Martino.
In addition, the plants developed armillagria, a fungus in the soil. This brought a crisis: The famous rhododendrons were sick and dying.
People in the city know how it is: There is always a crisis in San Francisco -- the Muni needs fixing, there is a homeless problem, a housing crisis, gentrification, parking, assorted political bombshells, and on and on. The crisis in the dell seemed to the politicians pretty small potatoes.
The political problems pain the gardeners; they don't want to talk about it.
But there are fewer gardeners now than there used to be, and even in good economic times, the budget is tighter than it was.
But this spring, slowly and carefully, the rhododendron dell is getting new trees to provide shade, redwoods this time, not pines. Redwoods last for centuries, but they grow slowly, and the canopy of trees will not spring up this month.
The dell will come back, but later, not sooner. "But at least, it shows we care and are trying to do something," Vellutini said.
A couple, a man named David and a woman named Jade, stopped to talk to the gardeners the other day.
They were dismayed by the bare patch where flowers bloomed. Jade and David live in the Richmond District, next to the park, and come by often. "This is everybody's backyard," said Jade. "This is the backyard for city people, who may live on the fourth floor of an apartment building and be a long way from plants and flowers."
To these people, the small pleasure of a walk in the park was a big pleasure indeed. They walked through the dell, past where the flowers had bloomed, bright like the colors of sherbet. Maybe next year.
E-mail Carl Nolte at cnolte@sfchronicle.com.
This article appeared on page A - 19 of the San Francisco Chronicle
Monday, April 2, 2012
Pharmacy Search
A group of subscribers including us were cut from the tether of our pharmacy roots. Like many subscribers with express scripts and medco and some groups within Anthem Blue Cross prescription service, were were denied our pharmacy of choice... Walgreens. A new agreement between the pharmacy and the plan was not accomplished. So... a new pharmacy had to be found.
Similar situations have occurred in the past as individual hospitals and their subsidiaries have not made their negotiated contract deadlines. We are denied in contract service. The buying power of the plan eventually brings them to their knees and we are once again allowed to use the facilities in Turlock or Stockton or Stanford. It doesn't effect most of the plan users as these facilities are only needed by a few of use in dire need at any given time. For pharmacy, this is a different story.
Our pharmacy plan does not look like it will get resolved anytime soon. Why? . Walgreens lost only 12 percent of its base in this snafoo as I have researched from internet articles. This could be a way they work their scale. Sometimes in business, doing too much business in a small spot can cost you more in the long run since you do not have the abilty to scale up. This 12 percent drop could equal the 12 gain in business that this company cannot maintain.
Our group insurance group, Medco was in the middle of a gigantic buyout from Express Scripts which didn't see it in their interest to complete a contract with Walgreens. Their suggestion was to take our business to a grocery store or Walmart.
Our Walmart became our pharmacy in this move since January. Its been a pretty rough journey. There have been missed communications on Walmart's part and more partial refills than I dare recount. This means multiple trips back to the store. The people working behind the counter are the next closest thing to heartless. Rough and tough, because of the reaction to the clientel, these clerks have to deal with all kinds of people and all the rigor of their company.. Its just a tough situation to sell pharmacy out of our nation's dime store.
So that brings us up to last Friday when I went to get a medication that my wife has been taking for a couple of years. Its one of those tough ones that the state requires you to get a paper order from the doctor, who has to have a copy put into your records. The paper document is made on special paper and the pharmacy must record your getting it with your ID. Walmart as of last week has decided that it would not carry this medication. Usually if a pharmacy is going to make such a bold move, it informs its people with a note, or an email or something. I got a complete no go because our pharmacy manager will not carry this medication any more when I put in for the meds. I asked about some notification... no response. The clerk suggested Costco.
So off I went to Costco. The pharm tech said that he would check to see if they had it.. a usual procedure in pharmacies because the pharmacist has to unlock the case that these are held and then verify the number and fill the prescription themselves. The response I got from Costco was that the they had the meds but could not release the meds until the other pharmacist who was on lunch break was back on duty and could tell if they were being held for another member. So we have what looks to me like a savie situation. You know that stuff that happens with older folks on a cruise ship. The advance group goes ahead and gets a seat in the showroom and then tries to save a number of seats in a row for a small group of people that may or may not show up. Its a crazy human phenomenon. Costco was playing savies with the drugs.
The next move was to a CVS pharmacy in the mall. We used to know it as Longs. The clerk that was running that one never came to the handicapped desk area to pick up the new drop offs.. so Sue in her power chair had to communicate for a four and a half foot barrier because this clerk did not want to leave her computer station to talk. When the same procedure was followed, catch the pharmacist eye, ask if he could see if we have these... the result was that no they were out. This was Sunday... when would they get some new in? Wednesday night. It was getting close to 5 o'clock on Sunday... where should we try next. I thought.. what about the CVS that was by Golden Valley High School.
Although it is about 4.5 miles away we decided to give it a try. Finally we got the paper in the meds were filled and it was before they closed down at 6 pm.
What a mess.
Similar situations have occurred in the past as individual hospitals and their subsidiaries have not made their negotiated contract deadlines. We are denied in contract service. The buying power of the plan eventually brings them to their knees and we are once again allowed to use the facilities in Turlock or Stockton or Stanford. It doesn't effect most of the plan users as these facilities are only needed by a few of use in dire need at any given time. For pharmacy, this is a different story.
Our pharmacy plan does not look like it will get resolved anytime soon. Why? . Walgreens lost only 12 percent of its base in this snafoo as I have researched from internet articles. This could be a way they work their scale. Sometimes in business, doing too much business in a small spot can cost you more in the long run since you do not have the abilty to scale up. This 12 percent drop could equal the 12 gain in business that this company cannot maintain.
Our group insurance group, Medco was in the middle of a gigantic buyout from Express Scripts which didn't see it in their interest to complete a contract with Walgreens. Their suggestion was to take our business to a grocery store or Walmart.
Our Walmart became our pharmacy in this move since January. Its been a pretty rough journey. There have been missed communications on Walmart's part and more partial refills than I dare recount. This means multiple trips back to the store. The people working behind the counter are the next closest thing to heartless. Rough and tough, because of the reaction to the clientel, these clerks have to deal with all kinds of people and all the rigor of their company.. Its just a tough situation to sell pharmacy out of our nation's dime store.
So that brings us up to last Friday when I went to get a medication that my wife has been taking for a couple of years. Its one of those tough ones that the state requires you to get a paper order from the doctor, who has to have a copy put into your records. The paper document is made on special paper and the pharmacy must record your getting it with your ID. Walmart as of last week has decided that it would not carry this medication. Usually if a pharmacy is going to make such a bold move, it informs its people with a note, or an email or something. I got a complete no go because our pharmacy manager will not carry this medication any more when I put in for the meds. I asked about some notification... no response. The clerk suggested Costco.
So off I went to Costco. The pharm tech said that he would check to see if they had it.. a usual procedure in pharmacies because the pharmacist has to unlock the case that these are held and then verify the number and fill the prescription themselves. The response I got from Costco was that the they had the meds but could not release the meds until the other pharmacist who was on lunch break was back on duty and could tell if they were being held for another member. So we have what looks to me like a savie situation. You know that stuff that happens with older folks on a cruise ship. The advance group goes ahead and gets a seat in the showroom and then tries to save a number of seats in a row for a small group of people that may or may not show up. Its a crazy human phenomenon. Costco was playing savies with the drugs.
The next move was to a CVS pharmacy in the mall. We used to know it as Longs. The clerk that was running that one never came to the handicapped desk area to pick up the new drop offs.. so Sue in her power chair had to communicate for a four and a half foot barrier because this clerk did not want to leave her computer station to talk. When the same procedure was followed, catch the pharmacist eye, ask if he could see if we have these... the result was that no they were out. This was Sunday... when would they get some new in? Wednesday night. It was getting close to 5 o'clock on Sunday... where should we try next. I thought.. what about the CVS that was by Golden Valley High School.
Although it is about 4.5 miles away we decided to give it a try. Finally we got the paper in the meds were filled and it was before they closed down at 6 pm.
What a mess.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Friday of the Week Before Easter
Locked solidly in the rhythm of growing up in the 50s and 60s all Easter vacations began on the week following Easter Sunday. Not so today.
The Starbucks that I frequent had an interesting mix of kids and teachers and parents that had a day off themselves even if the kids did not. Easter break or Spring break is celebrated here the week before Easter this year. The high school students have a minimum day today meaning that they will get out at 12:30. Elementary school students will get out for their vacation a little later in the the day. The college and all of its offices are off today in honor of Ceaser Chavaez day. One of my friends works at the university and so does his wife. They had dropped off their kids at school and were headed for Starbucks for a drop of coffee. There were not many open seats when they arrived as parents were treating their junior high kids to coffee at Starbucks and some of the little kids were their because there school was not in session. Starbucks was hitting the jackpot with their little cake pops, the preferred sweet of the younger generation.
Across the street I saw a water ski boat all set to go find a lake. One problem... a flat tire. It was probably caused by the construction zone that is scheduled to be there until September. They are adding two lanes at the intersection and widening to four lanes passing in in front of the intersection of G and Yosemite. In the meantime it looks like my walk intersections on all sides are undergoing a root canal. Can you imagine having one that took 6 months... mercy!
I got some good iphone photos to sketch from...so.. lets see if they turn out okay. You can check the people in sketch blog referenced on the right to see if they came out okay.
Have a great weekend! : ) Pat
The Starbucks that I frequent had an interesting mix of kids and teachers and parents that had a day off themselves even if the kids did not. Easter break or Spring break is celebrated here the week before Easter this year. The high school students have a minimum day today meaning that they will get out at 12:30. Elementary school students will get out for their vacation a little later in the the day. The college and all of its offices are off today in honor of Ceaser Chavaez day. One of my friends works at the university and so does his wife. They had dropped off their kids at school and were headed for Starbucks for a drop of coffee. There were not many open seats when they arrived as parents were treating their junior high kids to coffee at Starbucks and some of the little kids were their because there school was not in session. Starbucks was hitting the jackpot with their little cake pops, the preferred sweet of the younger generation.
Across the street I saw a water ski boat all set to go find a lake. One problem... a flat tire. It was probably caused by the construction zone that is scheduled to be there until September. They are adding two lanes at the intersection and widening to four lanes passing in in front of the intersection of G and Yosemite. In the meantime it looks like my walk intersections on all sides are undergoing a root canal. Can you imagine having one that took 6 months... mercy!
I got some good iphone photos to sketch from...so.. lets see if they turn out okay. You can check the people in sketch blog referenced on the right to see if they came out okay.
Have a great weekend! : ) Pat
Thursday, March 29, 2012
March Out like a Lamb?
We have had a couple of weeks of stormy weather this March. Usually March represents the tail end of the February storms. Not this year. February and the first weeks of March were storm free. Weather was saving itself for the end of March. The snow pack was less than 30 percent prior to the storms in the last part of March. We are still significantly lower than average for water in the hills. I think that we may get as much as 76 percent of our average. Last year we were at 150 percent of our average.
As for the front yard flower garden, the violas are doing just fine. The snapdragons are toast.. and have been removed. In their place I planted a half a flat of petunias that were not yet ready to bloom yet. It is rare to find flats that are not totally in bloom. I think that Color Spot of Salinas and used to be Albany/Richmond have trained us to go for the plants that are already in bloom for our flower displays. The inherent problem with this is that the plants do not have a chance to acclimate to the surroundings before having to produce big beautiful blooms. The consumer will know exactly which blossoms will come from that plant in exchange. When planting those specimens it may be noted that the roots are often bound and have to be spread out to have any success.
I met with the retired HS teachers today. A couple of them were living dangerously and ordered biscuits and gravy along with their eggs and hash browns. I am sure that if their wives were there the order would have been changed.... aw male independence.
I have been sketching along in Merced and Modesto recently. You may enjoy some of these "people" sketches in my new blog People in Sketch. Its fun to have something creative to do as you wait for things to happen ie Dr. appointments or someone to get out of the dollar store. My Starbucks has an interesting group of people that come by too. Some of them will be highlighted in future renditions.
Have a great day!
: ) Pat
As for the front yard flower garden, the violas are doing just fine. The snapdragons are toast.. and have been removed. In their place I planted a half a flat of petunias that were not yet ready to bloom yet. It is rare to find flats that are not totally in bloom. I think that Color Spot of Salinas and used to be Albany/Richmond have trained us to go for the plants that are already in bloom for our flower displays. The inherent problem with this is that the plants do not have a chance to acclimate to the surroundings before having to produce big beautiful blooms. The consumer will know exactly which blossoms will come from that plant in exchange. When planting those specimens it may be noted that the roots are often bound and have to be spread out to have any success.
I met with the retired HS teachers today. A couple of them were living dangerously and ordered biscuits and gravy along with their eggs and hash browns. I am sure that if their wives were there the order would have been changed.... aw male independence.
I have been sketching along in Merced and Modesto recently. You may enjoy some of these "people" sketches in my new blog People in Sketch. Its fun to have something creative to do as you wait for things to happen ie Dr. appointments or someone to get out of the dollar store. My Starbucks has an interesting group of people that come by too. Some of them will be highlighted in future renditions.
Have a great day!
: ) Pat
Friday, March 23, 2012
Personal Organization A Personal Battle
I think that I spent most of 2nd grade and most of 3rd grade not having a pencil to do the work in the classroom. Why? For some reason I could not leave the house with a pencil in my pocket. So what did the little kid do.. he faked it and tried to get through the day without asking for one. Why? So much fury would occur from impatient people who thought that they could "organize" me through aversive discipline. Do you think anyone ever learns from punishment? Common educational thought at the time and to a certain extent today.. says that if the kid doesn't have the tools to do the job, then humiliation and punishment will make it so that they surely will remember tomorrow to jolly well bring a pencil. It didn't work then and it doesn't work now. Somehow my "phonics" workbook got "lost" on the way home from school. That method of reading never has worked for me... a concept person rather than a detail person at birth, the details were never easy for me. You really must pay attention to details and planning if you are going to read through the phonics method.. it just didn't work for me. Back in the day, those kids that didn't thrive in school were warehoused in beginner teacher classrooms with kids that were destined to not graduate from high school. This destiny was forecast upon me in 3rd grade and in 4rth grade in ended up in an overall masculine class. 28 boys and 3 girls were attending class at Southwood Elementary School.In that group was a couple of students that decided to play a stunt on the kindergarteners. They found a box of Exlax chocolate laxatives at home. When the kindergarteners were out playing they passed out these little gems as candy. It wasn't long before there was a long line of little kids headed home. Sadly these boys didn't make it though high school.
I must say that I had some parents that went to bat for me. They stormed into the office and demanded that I be moved into a more appropriate classroom. They cited my standardized scores as clearly demonstrating that I didn't belong in the lowest quartile of the 5th grade classrooms. At that time there was a distinct separation of whole classrooms by their performance. They were content to place me in the lowest quartile (the lowest fourth class) based on the recommendation of my third grade teacher. Education in the classroom was basically dead for me there. I made it into a more challenging class and I rose to the challenge and never looked back. The first grading period yeilded me straight C grades. My parents felt that report card would not encourage me to do better. When they analyzed the situation they figured that the grades were really their purview and not mine. The offered me a dollar if I would turn in my report card to them without looking at it. I received the dollar and I still have no idea what grades I received in Mrs Peterson's 5th grade class.
In 6th grade I had my first male teacher. He was a retired pilot from the Berlin airlift. He kind of understood my personal organization difficulties. I was in the district's honor band playing trumpet. Once a week we would get out of class a little early to attend the district wide rehersal. I would head to the bus and about half way there I would remember that I needed to have my trumpet in its case. Mr. Sullivan would alert the class that I had forgotten my instrument once again. They would wait with baited breath as I made my way back to the classroom to get my instrument. You would think that such adverse response would help be remember to get it first... but no..
My main chore at home was to get the trash out on Sunday night. It needed to be put out on the curb so that the sanitation workers could jump off their trucks and hoist our can into the back as the truck slowly moved on. There were a number of very early awakings that Dad hauled me out of bed in the dark to get that chore done since I had forgotten to do it the night before. Do you think that this helped with my overall issue... nope.
So how did I conquer this as an adult. I was always looking for my keys to go to work. I had to make sure that all of my keys were on the same ring.. and that ring was needed to start the car. When they were not needed anymore.. they had to go directly in my pocket. When I was carrying a brief case at work I positioned the brief case so that I had to trip on it as I left. It would awaken me to the need to pick it up on the way out of the door.. otherwise I would leave it. I also developed lessons that I could use at a any given situations that didn't require the materials contained in the brief case.
I know that there are many people out there with my same issue. They go through life prosecuted and demeaned for this. I made up my mind early in life that I would be a supporter rather than a detractor for this students as they passed through my experience. I always had a supply of pencils and pens that I freely gave out to my students so that they would not be punished for not having the tools that they needed to do school. I helped them work out concept solutions to organization issues that they faced through their lives.
I must say that I had some parents that went to bat for me. They stormed into the office and demanded that I be moved into a more appropriate classroom. They cited my standardized scores as clearly demonstrating that I didn't belong in the lowest quartile of the 5th grade classrooms. At that time there was a distinct separation of whole classrooms by their performance. They were content to place me in the lowest quartile (the lowest fourth class) based on the recommendation of my third grade teacher. Education in the classroom was basically dead for me there. I made it into a more challenging class and I rose to the challenge and never looked back. The first grading period yeilded me straight C grades. My parents felt that report card would not encourage me to do better. When they analyzed the situation they figured that the grades were really their purview and not mine. The offered me a dollar if I would turn in my report card to them without looking at it. I received the dollar and I still have no idea what grades I received in Mrs Peterson's 5th grade class.
In 6th grade I had my first male teacher. He was a retired pilot from the Berlin airlift. He kind of understood my personal organization difficulties. I was in the district's honor band playing trumpet. Once a week we would get out of class a little early to attend the district wide rehersal. I would head to the bus and about half way there I would remember that I needed to have my trumpet in its case. Mr. Sullivan would alert the class that I had forgotten my instrument once again. They would wait with baited breath as I made my way back to the classroom to get my instrument. You would think that such adverse response would help be remember to get it first... but no..
My main chore at home was to get the trash out on Sunday night. It needed to be put out on the curb so that the sanitation workers could jump off their trucks and hoist our can into the back as the truck slowly moved on. There were a number of very early awakings that Dad hauled me out of bed in the dark to get that chore done since I had forgotten to do it the night before. Do you think that this helped with my overall issue... nope.
So how did I conquer this as an adult. I was always looking for my keys to go to work. I had to make sure that all of my keys were on the same ring.. and that ring was needed to start the car. When they were not needed anymore.. they had to go directly in my pocket. When I was carrying a brief case at work I positioned the brief case so that I had to trip on it as I left. It would awaken me to the need to pick it up on the way out of the door.. otherwise I would leave it. I also developed lessons that I could use at a any given situations that didn't require the materials contained in the brief case.
I know that there are many people out there with my same issue. They go through life prosecuted and demeaned for this. I made up my mind early in life that I would be a supporter rather than a detractor for this students as they passed through my experience. I always had a supply of pencils and pens that I freely gave out to my students so that they would not be punished for not having the tools that they needed to do school. I helped them work out concept solutions to organization issues that they faced through their lives.
Thursday, March 22, 2012
Away We Go, and The Big Year, Reign Over Me, and My Week with Marilyn
Sorting through the Netflix selections outside of the big hits there comes a couple of movies that I highly recommend.
At first the subject matter of these movies may not send you headlong into their selection. But these movies have some good writing and some effective cinematography.
Away we Go is a movie about a couple about to have a baby. They think that they will have this baby near a set of grandparents that will be a part of the new child's life. As it turns out the grandparents move to Brussels to start a new phase of their lives. Being of current generation where location and work are not mutually inclusive, the couple sets out to look for a location to raise their new child yet to be born. They travel to places where there are relatives and friends from pieces of their lives. They discover that each has a different and not so wonderful take on raising a child. The extra film that is included in the movie says that the entire movie was shot with a few exceptions in Connecticut. Florida is pretty hard to fake in Connecticut so they had to move there for the Florida scenes. Its a good solid movie. The soundtrack by Alexi Murdoch is appropriate for the film. He is a Scottish folksinger, songwriter. I tracked down the soundtrack in emusic and also picked up another album from my emusic allotment.
The Big Year has many well known stars. The direction is wonderful as it keeps Bob Black and Steve Martin on script. When they are on script and mostly do not improvise into their zany comedy sketches they do the best. I am sure it took a serious lid to keep them under control. The movie is about competitive bird watching. Its a very entertaining movie with a couple of love interests and the complete gamut of North American scenery. The bird enthusiasts take off on a year long quest to obtain "sightings" of as many species of birds as they can. The movie demonstrates the camaraderie among birders and also their competitive nature. Its got some good writing and some interesting prospective on the lives that affected by the people around them that are not birders.
For an off the wall performance by a well know actor.. try Reign Over Me. Don Cheadle, star of Showtimes house of Lies, plays an upper class dentist that meets his old dentist roommate who lost his family in 9-11 played by Adam Sadler. The Adam Sadler character has given up his practice over PTSD and is moving through New York Streets on a gas powered skateboard. So if you can picture Adam Sadler has a rain man type character caused not by Autism but from PTSD over losing his family in the airplane over 9-11 you start to get the premise of this movie. It is very well written and the other characters in this movie are big names as well but are basically in cameo form. It is a movie that is compelling in the acting of Don Cheadle and Adam Sadler.
If you need to pick up the shards of this year's oscars its hard not to check out My Week with Marilyn. What a portrayal of Marilyn Monre in the era that speaks volumes of British acting tradition and a star that didn't need acting to command the dominance of the camera. This is one that people will be talking about for years.
At first the subject matter of these movies may not send you headlong into their selection. But these movies have some good writing and some effective cinematography.
Away we Go is a movie about a couple about to have a baby. They think that they will have this baby near a set of grandparents that will be a part of the new child's life. As it turns out the grandparents move to Brussels to start a new phase of their lives. Being of current generation where location and work are not mutually inclusive, the couple sets out to look for a location to raise their new child yet to be born. They travel to places where there are relatives and friends from pieces of their lives. They discover that each has a different and not so wonderful take on raising a child. The extra film that is included in the movie says that the entire movie was shot with a few exceptions in Connecticut. Florida is pretty hard to fake in Connecticut so they had to move there for the Florida scenes. Its a good solid movie. The soundtrack by Alexi Murdoch is appropriate for the film. He is a Scottish folksinger, songwriter. I tracked down the soundtrack in emusic and also picked up another album from my emusic allotment.
The Big Year has many well known stars. The direction is wonderful as it keeps Bob Black and Steve Martin on script. When they are on script and mostly do not improvise into their zany comedy sketches they do the best. I am sure it took a serious lid to keep them under control. The movie is about competitive bird watching. Its a very entertaining movie with a couple of love interests and the complete gamut of North American scenery. The bird enthusiasts take off on a year long quest to obtain "sightings" of as many species of birds as they can. The movie demonstrates the camaraderie among birders and also their competitive nature. Its got some good writing and some interesting prospective on the lives that affected by the people around them that are not birders.
For an off the wall performance by a well know actor.. try Reign Over Me. Don Cheadle, star of Showtimes house of Lies, plays an upper class dentist that meets his old dentist roommate who lost his family in 9-11 played by Adam Sadler. The Adam Sadler character has given up his practice over PTSD and is moving through New York Streets on a gas powered skateboard. So if you can picture Adam Sadler has a rain man type character caused not by Autism but from PTSD over losing his family in the airplane over 9-11 you start to get the premise of this movie. It is very well written and the other characters in this movie are big names as well but are basically in cameo form. It is a movie that is compelling in the acting of Don Cheadle and Adam Sadler.
If you need to pick up the shards of this year's oscars its hard not to check out My Week with Marilyn. What a portrayal of Marilyn Monre in the era that speaks volumes of British acting tradition and a star that didn't need acting to command the dominance of the camera. This is one that people will be talking about for years.
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