tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-304400972024-03-07T06:26:40.981-03:30Curiosity & Joyabout teaching about writing about poetryCuriosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.comBlogger46125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-7206348703527922142009-04-06T21:15:00.004-02:302009-04-06T23:47:41.384-02:30Drums and WiresHere's Aloysius, age one.<br /><p></p><p><br /></p><p align="center"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzPbcJxqIxgvC72hxBKLLJmNEzMmjpW526TP5b0o9M2UGRgGzcfPVnkdVl-R4i3rEfM7SfjnIL3Gmk' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></p><p align="left">Cara and Llewellyn made a drum kit. He turns four on the 11th.<br /></p><p></p><p align="center"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxXm8XtXGZLMsNoJJi5pYvneMjqGvlRdBfNvDvVZa_I2-Myw1GqlDeSNYBScloGc1h3npc4DOKLOl4' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></p>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-54506449132389043112006-12-14T21:42:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:06.334-03:30Intern Journal<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiow8Yca0JAHkb0V6mqqnq_T1OtkkZVaGcYMtviUACWtNEjf23IMyp7SDKuZN2R_EkV2sODbFxd58LP_lXUkLq33HiZyPpZxOjF1lOo0nM00mNTVhbDKwD0WEUo3VfjctMK3y-w1w/s1600-h/art+175.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5008919333052319170" style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiow8Yca0JAHkb0V6mqqnq_T1OtkkZVaGcYMtviUACWtNEjf23IMyp7SDKuZN2R_EkV2sODbFxd58LP_lXUkLq33HiZyPpZxOjF1lOo0nM00mNTVhbDKwD0WEUo3VfjctMK3y-w1w/s320/art+175.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div><br /><div>I have always wanted to be a teacher. I used to joke that after being told all my life to sit down and be quiet, becoming a teacher would allow me to stand up and talk. I never really knew what grades I waned to teach I just knew that if I had any gift at all it was the ability to explain things to people. A few years ago I lead a poetry workshop at Holy Heart for World Poetry Day on a Friday and then taught in a graduate seminar the next Monday. The interesting thing was that I was essentially teaching the same thing (the materiality of language as revealed through concrete and sound poetry) but at wildly different levels. To put it another way, teaching isn’t about a canon of information but rather a canon of methods.<br /><br />To think back to the seven week mark of this internship I can use my personal online journal and discussions I had with other teachers that are archived in my Googlechat. By the middle of the internship things weren’t going well. I had received a good evaluation form my main cooperating teacher and my second cooperating teacher was already asking me for resources that I had developed but I still felt a bit lost in the school. I was, in fact, intimidated. Now, I am 6’4” and nearly 200 pounds but I still felt apprehensive in trying to discipline the students. I felt that I was having no effect on any of them. I had trouble remembering all of the names of one of my classes and I have to say that I was not feeling all that successful. I was just blown away by how rude the students were. The casualness of the profanity was startling. My wife says that I overestimated the students and I guess I was lucky in that in all of my previous classroom experience I was a guest so would be afforded some sort of courtesy. In my classes at Bishops it seemed that my inexperience with some of the course material provided the students with a license to be disruptive. I’m not a loud person. I told my cooperating teacher that in order for me to be aggressive I have to go some place outside of myself; much the same way an actor does.<br />I wasn’t sure that I had the temperament for the daily abuse that teachers seem to get. The teachers talked about having to get students removed from their classrooms as if it were nothing. This was totally different from my own high school experience where even though there were 1600 students in a building built for 1200 and a mix of social classes and languages, I always felt safe. I just didn’t feel at ease in the first part of my internship.<br /><br />I was also under a lot of personal stress as the decision to go back to school was a huge risk for my family and had created very serious financial hardship. If the decision to get my teaching license turned out to be a bad one then what had I put my family through for the past 20 months? I don’t know what I was expecting but after seven weeks I definitely had serious reservations about spending the rest of my working life in a Newfoundland high school. What compounded the frustration was that I had always prided myself on being able to get through to the marginalized kids. I volunteer with ‘at risk’ youth and have been able to engage some pretty hard young people in educational pursuits. I was also feeling frustrated by the material I was expected to teach. There were no curricular resources for one course as the teacher had just “taught it from [his] head for the last seven years”. So I had to develop materials as I went along. I know that it wasn’t supposed to be an enjoyable experience but I had no idea how depressing the whole thing was going to be.<br /><br />But, there was a light on the horizon. Unlike Paul whose epiphany occurred on the road to Damascus mine happened at a farmhouse near St. Marys, Ontario. This will all be discussed in my final journal entry.</div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-61264414839837172242006-12-19T10:46:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:06.119-03:30Llewstar<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBvdf-7BbW7CGQcWHLvu_Ymq5C63o8ExlyrWhv3gNaCgMrnciX5Y0w69kG4KOwJhWNNDl1RKWX0OZH4rMHiFLtdfX_I13WwoY33e8YdQWJIlB_e2nWSioyoQLcxmwBIMdQ2b2SgA/s1600-h/Llewstar.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5010242810044712402" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBvdf-7BbW7CGQcWHLvu_Ymq5C63o8ExlyrWhv3gNaCgMrnciX5Y0w69kG4KOwJhWNNDl1RKWX0OZH4rMHiFLtdfX_I13WwoY33e8YdQWJIlB_e2nWSioyoQLcxmwBIMdQ2b2SgA/s400/Llewstar.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I see a city that is illuminated by pure creative energy.<br />The beams of a thousand children<br />Reaching over the city like Cabot Tower’s star. </div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-34941014504786746912007-02-23T23:38:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:05.810-03:30The ATC and Writing<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGmKYaJW1gh8RAHwCDCmzcaKfF0QTwSQoKt3MEA55A2bg2dsf1JbzL_jOc0oKTFRyLepeiSy3TdjPeoaygZtfm5PSOpwghWpS8Ot8EciJs3lbzwllZm8DIiYXCnVxT9ZQcv4GGQ/s1600-h/artcamp-printing.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5034941648363376354" style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmGmKYaJW1gh8RAHwCDCmzcaKfF0QTwSQoKt3MEA55A2bg2dsf1JbzL_jOc0oKTFRyLepeiSy3TdjPeoaygZtfm5PSOpwghWpS8Ot8EciJs3lbzwllZm8DIiYXCnVxT9ZQcv4GGQ/s320/artcamp-printing.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div>I've been inspired by this site by Toronto poetry writer and teacher and advocate and all around inspiring person <a href="http://http://www.meadow4.ca/">Katherine Parrish </a>called <a href="http://www.meadow4.ca/imperfectoffering/">Imperfect Offering</a>.<br /></div><br /><div><br />So, I'm going to post some stuff from a writing workshop I did with <a href="http://http://www.theleytongallery.com/singh.html">Anita Singh</a>. Well, it's still going on but my three weeks are up. It's called Words and Imagery and this is the third time we've done it at the <a href="http://http://www.craftcouncil.nf.ca/education/annatempleton.asp">Anna Templeton Centre for Craft, Art and Design</a>.<br /></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Welcome to the<br />Words & Imagery Workshop<br /></span><br /><strong>What is Writing?<br /></strong>Week 1- (Feb. 3)<br /><br />WORD GAMES, WRITING EXPERIMENTS,<br />IDEAS FOR STORIES, FOUND SOUNDS AND OTHER RHYMES<br /><br /><strong>What are Books?<br /></strong>Week 2 – (Feb. 10)<br /><br />TYPES OF BOOKS, MORE WRITING GAMES AND EXPERIMENTS, PLAYING WITH POETRY, PLANNING FOR YOUR BOOKS<br /><br /><strong>My Book (or Books) will be…<br /></strong>Week 3 – (Feb. 17)<br /><br />WRITING STORIES, WILL I USE PICTURES? CHECKING SPELLING AND GRAMMAR, EVEN MORE EXPERIMENTS<br /><br />For the next three Saturdays, book artist Anita Singh will continue the workshop as you will create amazing books!!!</div><br /><div align="left"></div><div align="left"><em><strong><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></strong></em></div><div align="left"><em><strong><span style="font-size:78%;"></span></strong></em></div><br /><div align="left"><em><strong><span style="font-size:78%;">Brought to you by the Anna Templeton Centre for Craft, Art & Design, the number 2 and the letter L.</span></strong></em></div><br /><div align="left"></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-269878016854019722007-07-13T00:19:00.000-02:302008-12-10T12:22:05.620-03:30Rock Can Read<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKvyZzBk283LDfffAkUSWLfJ-MEQUWzldexA663pvYh1fN6pdK0JR369u3Mo1tJ_kYKpQrHhx9NBzuVuPpd5zMECBOlP4BO98N4FgGWbcBesDLjDdXfsCD-p3_ZKwUeFIoFz9giw/s1600-h/rockcanread+poster+700.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5086669559204222978" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKvyZzBk283LDfffAkUSWLfJ-MEQUWzldexA663pvYh1fN6pdK0JR369u3Mo1tJ_kYKpQrHhx9NBzuVuPpd5zMECBOlP4BO98N4FgGWbcBesDLjDdXfsCD-p3_ZKwUeFIoFz9giw/s320/rockcanread+poster+700.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcRU37BK_A1IGI4sCoF4FBKwe94vncZt_9j9KcsK1VYkbdpm4XwVNBCWeadL7z-3s5vyRLwPqi8awn4mMjaqY2zlcFGjqGwrG-xjfCKfV77nNtjdpFueWeDtM0zCzZcn0dV7A2eQ/s1600-h/rockcanread+poster+400.jpg"></a><br /><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihukfG08frmwSygMS-VCDl5X02DJcJJnN3sxrxD177lIirvaY3ru3Dx_-tl5vBzj_IoQDMn73GP7Cx4xpcuVh_gVJw0PeLy4_GIyEh-9skwCUcz01wTXPksPajV7CDoGlsC_0dVw/s1600-h/rockcanread+poster+500.jpg"></a><br /><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Press Release</span></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Contact Kevin Hehir <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="mailto:kevin.hehir@gmail.com" target="_blank">kevin.hehir@gmail.com</a> or Liz Solo ­ <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="mailto:lizsolo@nl.rogers.com" target="_blank">lizsolo@nl.rogers.com</a><br /></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:180%;">Rock Can Read</span></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>The Ship Sunday July 22, 2007 8:30 PM $8</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Dave Bidini, Anthony Brenton, Sean Panting, Andreae Prozesky, Liz Solo, Sara Tilley.</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Tickets on sale at Fred's Records and The Ship</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>Rock Can Roll Records and A Brace of Hehirs Productions present Rock Can Read - a night of words and music from the writers who are rocking our world. Hosted by Kevin Hehir. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div>FEATURING:</div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Dave Bidini</span> - a member of the prestigious and prolific Canadian independent band the Rheostatics. He is also the author of six books ­ including "On a Cold Road" - tales of the Rheos on tour with interviews of Canadian rock'n'roll personalities. His last book "The Five Hole Stories" was longlisted for the 2007 ReLit Award. Dave Bidini will be reading from his new work "Around the World in 57 and Half Gigs" as well as performing a set of music. </div><br /><br /><div><a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.davebidini.ca/" target="_blank">http://www.davebidini.ca/</a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Anthony Brenton</span> ­ a writer and musician well known to St. John¹s audiences as the vocalist in Local Tough and the seminal bass player for the band Trailercamp. Anthony has self-published two novels and regularly presents live readings of his work, frequently at the Old Book Shop in C.B.S., Manuels. He is currently working on a new spoken word recording, to be released by Rock Can Roll Records this year. Anthony will be reading from new work. <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.myspace.com/localtough" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/localtough</a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Sean Panting</span> - an accomplished musician and recording artist renowned for his sharp lyrics, unique guitar playing, hilarious storytelling, and brilliant three minute rock and roll songs. His first two solo albums - Lotus Land (2000) and Pop Disaster (2002) - were both MIANL award winners, and in 2005 he doubled his output with his rock and roll opus, Receiver, and the all-acoustic solo Victrola. </div><br /><br /><div><a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.seanpanting.com/" target="_blank">http://www.seanpanting.com/</a><a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.myspace.com/seanpanting" target="_blank">http://www.myspace.com/seanpanting</a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Andreae Prozesky</span> ­ a poet, she lives and writes in St. John's. Her poetry has been published in several Montreal-based journals and online. She has written radio commentary for CBC North and currently writes the Food Nerd column for St. John's fortnightly The Scope. <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://thescope.ca/?cat=16" target="_blank">http://thescope.ca/?cat=16</a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Liz Solo</span> - a performance artist, writer and musician now working on her first full length solo release - coming this Fall from Rock Can Roll Records. She continues to perform with her long-standing band the Lizband and side-project The Black Bags. Liz will be presenting new songs from her upcoming release and reading short excerpts from performance work. <a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.lizsolo.com/" target="_blank">http://www.lizsolo.com/</a></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;"></span></div><br /><br /><div><span style="font-size:130%;">Sara Tilley</span> ­ a writer, theatre maker, clown and Artistic Director of She Said Yes! Theatre Company. Her playThe (In)complete Herstory of Women in Newfoundland (and Labrador!) was chosen as part of the National Arts Centre's prestigious On the Verge Festival of New Works in 2006, Sara won both the 2004 Percy Janes First Novel Award and the inaugural Fresh Fish Award in 2006 for her first novel, Skin Room, which will be published by Pedlar Press in the spring of 2008. She is currently working on a second novel, DUKE. </div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div></div><br /><br /><div><a onclick="return top.js.OpenExtLink(window,event,this)" href="http://www.rockcanrollrecords.com/" target="_blank">http://www.rockcanrollrecords.com/</a></div></div></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-16654559231930678982007-07-20T13:44:00.001-02:302008-12-10T12:22:05.500-03:30The Telegram says<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhel7mMY3Z-TUfW8KdLYovqL3jqS73I_OlrRxdW2BxmFj4-9aLmMZQzDy-b7u7xvRnYKHe3x3BPJ1YDGS7Z8lEH7HegmkAkib-oR0or2ThuIpKQJvo5UnHLpepk09VIYqvxDAju0Q/s1600-h/telegram+article+500.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5089314163841898514" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhel7mMY3Z-TUfW8KdLYovqL3jqS73I_OlrRxdW2BxmFj4-9aLmMZQzDy-b7u7xvRnYKHe3x3BPJ1YDGS7Z8lEH7HegmkAkib-oR0or2ThuIpKQJvo5UnHLpepk09VIYqvxDAju0Q/s320/telegram+article+500.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-8186784802132316012007-07-27T17:47:00.000-02:302008-12-10T12:22:05.310-03:30Photos<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJknLDMk02a2rPkn683RIwyAoq5pQ7lbRnzSymK8Tb2uWdxMK23QKR_zT4lY2bqkG_EWlboL3k4krFZMeaoI06VzWhngg1L39hx_msGuQPY3duXdU-4sWeb8AYqVb27__vLoV_cQ/s1600-h/The+Ship4+July+22.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJknLDMk02a2rPkn683RIwyAoq5pQ7lbRnzSymK8Tb2uWdxMK23QKR_zT4lY2bqkG_EWlboL3k4krFZMeaoI06VzWhngg1L39hx_msGuQPY3duXdU-4sWeb8AYqVb27__vLoV_cQ/s400/The+Ship4+July+22.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5091974745405533858" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Here are some photos from the Rock Can Read event.<br />Photos by Jessica Butler<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fWVS2b38Qp31zxu-mZsB1LQz9x25wJ48wYK1m097LnFXaesLI8xkXbY3CF7CFsfpjDEsvnnO-nr7WHKWPLlguhGTCcxVUNEXVk9_GlVkXN0_LDUlnl1xCwjJFmtEUjwCluBdIA/s1600-h/Anthony+Brenton.JPG"><img style="cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3fWVS2b38Qp31zxu-mZsB1LQz9x25wJ48wYK1m097LnFXaesLI8xkXbY3CF7CFsfpjDEsvnnO-nr7WHKWPLlguhGTCcxVUNEXVk9_GlVkXN0_LDUlnl1xCwjJFmtEUjwCluBdIA/s400/Anthony+Brenton.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5091974492002463378" border="0" /></a>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-45607098459172595442007-11-06T16:09:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:04.726-03:30Eastern Edge Gallery<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0tlN5D-cGxR_vLPETD8A57AuE46Ae-TPV7lvAiVqfZnaYGl1xgbf3CWeLhb_XruODeyzYpWS4SSItS8HG0MhazTMXuKqEY-3iYnlq1EVyYvtRHsumHNNrpHRAKF-P_r78-jTZow/s1600-h/workshop+mount+pearl+senior+high+3.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0tlN5D-cGxR_vLPETD8A57AuE46Ae-TPV7lvAiVqfZnaYGl1xgbf3CWeLhb_XruODeyzYpWS4SSItS8HG0MhazTMXuKqEY-3iYnlq1EVyYvtRHsumHNNrpHRAKF-P_r78-jTZow/s400/workshop+mount+pearl+senior+high+3.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142060386509028386" border="0" /></a>I've got a contract with the <a href="http://easternedge.ca/">Eastern Edge Gallery</a>, an artist run centre that I think is the creative heart of the city. Here is a photo from the first of what will be a series of workshops where high school students will come down the gallery to meet a professional artist and make some art.<br /><br />The photo shows me interviewing local artist Kym Greeley about her work.Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-2807763799079490962007-12-03T15:53:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:04.483-03:30Humanities Seminar<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqJmC7e4r6dnI5bx0k_sRrFU3um1kTYzGTakt814XjdMowjxK3QjeERhKHQ9Jkuf9P4REr5xP0Xk7W4C_25T2mlCRleXm4_eeZb3pVPZgEW0s18G7HE56veJD_evLESR_hTo_oLw/s1600-h/turbine.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiqJmC7e4r6dnI5bx0k_sRrFU3um1kTYzGTakt814XjdMowjxK3QjeERhKHQ9Jkuf9P4REr5xP0Xk7W4C_25T2mlCRleXm4_eeZb3pVPZgEW0s18G7HE56veJD_evLESR_hTo_oLw/s400/turbine.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5142057014959701010" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Every term I lead a lecture in the <a href="http://www.mun.ca/humanities/home/">Humanities Program</a> at MUN. This is the program that brought me to St. John's in the first place and it gives me a chance to talk about whatever I happen to be into at the moment. I've done up a little<a href="http://www.freewebs.com/humanities6030/"> website</a> for the talk and I hope to make this a little more of a resource as it looks like I'll be doing more of these.Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-74784945268028121422008-01-08T15:15:00.000-03:302008-12-10T12:22:04.339-03:30another workshop<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTM7ZE2ZQ7y4XdbgM347ULlrX2RVnkNzOfDL0bHhLNK7A9HFqhAJ5elM_Hl17SeIOheb147v4ko41VdKWYO_cP5SqGi45RcMudvF7mgfzG1ifXdyD-oX5lqF9io5ODRueIs0r3tg/s1600-h/ATC_Writing_Workshop2-1resize%5B1%5D.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5159529569263054802" style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTM7ZE2ZQ7y4XdbgM347ULlrX2RVnkNzOfDL0bHhLNK7A9HFqhAJ5elM_Hl17SeIOheb147v4ko41VdKWYO_cP5SqGi45RcMudvF7mgfzG1ifXdyD-oX5lqF9io5ODRueIs0r3tg/s400/ATC_Writing_Workshop2-1resize%5B1%5D.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJOtvQvJX2NXAoOIjawaLh0SJMu4A9QfTB4SoD19rsqdP_C780B_3iFpVikoYIEzxyQ5_EfGa3i38eOCKvmj8D5fJS_HDoCHxhO4p0p61pmwRu76hlGURMwoHK1eOLsVIEImd43w/s1600-h/grainani.gif"></a><br /><br /><div></div></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-7275583367571466942008-08-24T22:28:00.002-02:302008-08-24T22:36:33.618-02:30Llewxyz<div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='265' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dxVkCUC-nxqwrP7JKmbqB2BZrMgTlxPIzYJdQXz1oGXIsyysxCMQvEpLye0WASbtn2GXZdgY4Nugg0' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br /><br />Llew entertains his brother Wish.<br /></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-38376278548887023722008-08-07T13:12:00.002-02:302008-08-07T13:20:09.481-02:30Still No Words<iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzjFLECoUR5LESsQd7T5pn-t6umZYnCd2IqhAkIcy-sH5k76xg3JQ3sVpwV757D5hMi3JcV6HlYzUg' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-83234015819025746342007-12-07T15:50:00.000-03:302007-12-09T15:52:10.733-03:30Substitute's Report - December 7<p>Hi X,<o:p></o:p></p> <p>A rather uneventful afternoon.<o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Period 4 English <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>I administered the reading tests and you will find the marked papers under this note. I took up all the tests and distributed them randomly for marking. The complained that they should get to decide who marks their tests but I said that they have to learn to trust each other. We started with a little discussion of symbolism and I assigned the subsets which are noted on the blank sheet that contains the tests. A good group. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Period 5 English <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>I went around and checked their work and all of them who were there had it done except X who didn't have his booklet with him. They read for a while and for a Friday afternoon treat I beat them at Hangman with the word 'aglet'. There were no problems and, for a Friday the day before the Semi, they were surprisingly on-task. <o:p></o:p></p> <p>Thanks X for the chance to get a few hours. I have enjoyed teaching your classes and I'm sure I'll see you soon.<o:p></o:p></p>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-68287996202956049382007-12-06T15:47:00.000-03:302007-12-09T15:50:07.782-03:30Substitute's Report - December 6<p>Hi X,<o:p></o:p></p> <p>I had a great day and I appreciate the thorough notes you left me. I recorded attendance in the book and on Winschool as you asked but when a student was absent I just left it blank in the book so you could enter the number of the absence. I see that you are keeping a running total for each student. Here's how the day went: <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Period 1: English <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>What a great class. We worked through the questions on the last page of the Study Guide as a class. We had a great discussion and I think that they have a better understanding of some of the terms (rhetoric, satire, juxtaposition, irony...), as we discussed examples from the book and from the 'real world'. Also to note that Allison copied and returned the notes you left for that purpose. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Period 2: Theory of Knowledge<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>Started with a discussion of Kuhn and made some connections to the History class I taught them yesterday. Essentially how the Enlightenment was a major paradigm shift and how this idea of linear progress still holds for many. The students took down the first page of notes and then we discussed each point. Sorry to not have gotten further into your notes but the discussion was good and I think that you will have a good base on which to develop the concept further as the kids seem to get it. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Period 3: Religion<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>You were right about this class not minding to take notes. After the first board of notes, which was the first two headings from your sheet, we discussed whether 'man' was essentially good or evil. The discussion was really good with a lot of students contributing. We never got back to the notes but I think that the class was well spent as we talked about the morality or responsibility we have to one another. So what is it that would lead one person to jump under a subway to save a stranger and another to take a picture with their phone as someone bleeds to death in the street. That kind of thing. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Lunch <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p class="MsoNormal">- Duty . Done.<b> <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p><b>Period 4: Prep<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p><b>Period 5: English<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>This class is a handful. I sent X out as he wouldn't shut up and was getting out of his desk. It was obvious that he was frustrating the other students. I let him after about 10 minutes but there was no repentance and I probably should have just kept him out there. Surprisingly we were able to go through all four themes on page 7 and I think that they students will do OK on their test. It's a weird mix as some of the students were really engaged and had good examples while others acted like five year olds. I have a 2.5 year old boy at home so I have lots of patience. So, in spite of the pockets of chaos we had a good review period. Also, X needed a copy of A Christmas Carol so I gave her one. The book number is 11692.<o:p></o:p></p> <p>So, a good day with a fair bit of learning happening. I apologize that I didn't administer as many notes as you might have liked but I think that the discussion was valuable in both cases.<o:p></o:p></p> <p>If you have any questions about my work with your classes please contact me at the coordinates below.<o:p></o:p></p> <p>Cheers,</p><p>Kevin<br /><o:p></o:p></p>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-70463401853496402122007-11-29T15:29:00.000-03:302007-12-09T15:47:05.660-03:30Substitute's Report - November 29<p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">Thursday, November 29, 2007<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p>Hi X,<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p>I had a great day and your detailed lesson plans made things go smoothly, so thanks for that.<o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p><br /><b>English </b><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">I administered the inclass essay and there were no problems aside from the expected whining about the idea that they may actually expected to demonstrate that they have read the material. There was a general unfamiliarity with the word 'secular' so I defined it for them. Also, as you predicted, I had to explain the questions to X. Once the tests were passed out the class worked silently and when students were finished they respected the others who were still writing. <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;">English </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">As with the class above there was a group kvetch about having to do the test. But, once I passed out the tests they got down to business. I gave out copies of A Christmas Carol and recorded the numbers on the sheet provided. There wasn't much time left in class so I introduced who Dickens was and the rise of 'people's art' in the 19thC. We had a very good discussion about the role of art in our common lives – empathy & escapism ... You can tell the class that I enjoyed our little discussion and I appreciated that they were able to listen to their classmates. <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p></o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;"> English</span><o:p></o:p></p><p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">I just followed your game plan and we had a good class. I filled in a few blanks and suggested where a certain term might be helpful on a test. The presentations were very thorough and the reception was positive. We got through questions #5, 7, and 9. So, #10 is still left to do. FYI – they picked their Secret Santa at the beginning of class. <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p></o:p><b>English </b><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p>Uneventful as I just passed out the tests and the students set to it. Again, I had to define 'secular' for them but they worked well and quietly once things got going. <span style="font-style: italic;">X</span> told me that you gave here the option of writing today as she has missed some classes. I believed here and she just worked quietly on other homework while the rest of the class expounded on Dracula. I hope this was OK. <o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p style="font-weight: bold;"> </o:p><span style="font-weight: bold;">English </span><o:p></o:p></p> <p style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;"><o:p> </o:p>A very energetic group and I remembered some of the students from last year (and them, me, which was nice). After reminding them of the upcoming assignments we just got into a circle and the pairs gave their presentations. We stopped along the way to discuss and clarify points. A really good group. <o:p></o:p></p>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1604478219233984392007-12-05T15:35:00.000-03:302007-12-09T15:46:23.890-03:30Substitute's Report - December 5<p><span style="font-size:10;">Substitute's Report for Kevin Hehir</span><o:p></o:p></p> <p>December 5, 2007<o:p></o:p></p> <p>Hi X,<o:p></o:p></p> <p>The day went well and your notes were helpful. You've got some great classes and I had a good day. Attendance was taken and submitted for all your classes. Here's a rundown:<o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>World History <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>The class settled down and got done the quiz pretty a quickly so I was able to start the DVD before 9:30. I believe that we stopped at around the 34 minute mark. Uneventful and the quizzes are clipped together and will be the first bundle after this note. What was impressive was how quiet the students were when they were done. I always expect the last few writers to be finishing amid hubub but that wasn't the case. You can tell them that. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Prep<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p><b>French <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>This class went off well too. I administered the freshly copied quiz and the class worked quietly on it. It seemed that the phrase <i>acceuille-t-il </i>caused some problems so you might want to review it. No problems here and the class was engaged while doing the worksheets. Nice bunch. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>History<o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>I had a good time teaching part of this group Macbeth for X last week so They were comfortable with me right away. They told me that they were on slide #109 and not #107 so we finished the unit from there. For review we just had an open jam session where I directed the students along the time-line of the Revolution and made some connections for them. I thought it would be a better way to harness their obvious verbal energy. Using their 'chattiness' for good not evil. This is a really bright group and I enjoyed teaching them once again. <o:p></o:p></p> <p><b>Canadian History <o:p></o:p></b></p> <p>This class was a bit harder to control. Since they weren't going to listen to the video I told them that they would have to sign and hand in their worksheets. Of course then I had to stop the keen from giving their completed sheets to the talkative. Anyway, we watched the first 20 minutes of the video twice as you asked me. I also just want to say that I had to have a little talk with X but after that he was best kind, however X's attitude threw me off and if it wasn't the last class of day I might have made more of an issue. <o:p></o:p></p> <p>All in all a great day. As I mentioned above, you have some really good classes. I should also mention that even though my teachable areas are English and Tech I am very comfortable teaching History. My undergraduate degree is in Comparative Lit and Culture which is the history of ideas from Plato to NATO. I also have done straight History courses on Totalitarianism, 20 <sup>th</sup> C History and American History (with a tilt towards the antebellum era). I also have an interdisciplinary Masters Degree in the Humanities where I took two History courses at the graduate level.<o:p></o:p></p> <p>Thanks again, if you have any questions about my work with your students you can contact me at the coordinates below.<o:p></o:p></p>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1163027341704774362006-11-08T19:01:00.000-03:302006-11-13T13:13:09.575-03:30Planet Chaos Theory<div><div><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger2/6817/3715/1600/Planet%20Chaos2.jpg"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger2/6817/3715/320/Planet%20Chaos2.jpg" border="0" /></em></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em> (An exerpt of this interview was published in Thursday, November 2,2006 issue of </em></span><a href="http://www.currentmag.ca/"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em>The Current. </em></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em>I highly recommend</em></span><a href="http://www.currentmag.ca/blog/_archives/2006/11/2/2468133.html"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em> this amazing article </em></span></a><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em>by </em></span><a href="http://blog.greglocke.com/"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;color:#ff6666;"><em>Greg Locke</em></span></a><span style="color:#ff6666;"><span style="font-family:verdana;font-size:85%;"><em>, I think that local media has been giving His Danness a free ride and Greg clouds the matter with a few facts.)</em></span><br /></span><br /></div><div align="left">I miss Spur tokens. I also miss Danny Keating when he hosts Planet Chaos every Sunday night at The Spur. The former due to nostalgia (which is reportedly the way of the future), the latter because it’s a school night for me. Planet Chaos has been on the go since November, 2002. I asked Danny a few questions about this Open Mic that is definitely not the Folk Club.<br /><br />1. How long has it been going on?<br /><br /><em>missed a few weeks but it has been pretty steady since november 2002<br /></em><br />2. How is it different from the other million open mics in the city?<br /><br /><em>an open mic is only as good as its performers... we have regulars that show up and bring solid sets of original music as well as finely chosen covers..staying away from the standard open mic fare the other open mics at the spur can boast this as well...<br /></em><br />3. Some times you record them. Why and are they available?<br /><br /><em>i like to document things. archive them...i don't do it nearly as much as i would like to. i have released one cd of an open mic night at planet chaos i felt weirdabout releasing other peoples performances so i just included my set its more a live cd than an open mic cd. im in the process of rereleasing some of my cds (all r very limited runs) the live at planet chaos cd came with a release i did called "</em>the boy who shouts<em>" which will be available real soon maybe by the time this is printed..will be at freds..open mics and available </em><a><em>dannykeating@hotmail.com</em></a><em> </em><a href="http://www.myspace.com/dankeating"><em>www.myspace.com/dankeating</em></a><em> </em><a href="http://www.myspace.com/theoriginofthesoundband"><em>www.myspace.com/theoriginofthesoundband</em></a><em> search for live clips of me at open mic on youtube..search dank eating"</em><br /><br />4. Have you ever thought about broadcasttng them live on the interweb?<br /><br /><em>i have though about doing live casts however i do not have the technology at my fingertips as of now...if anyone has the knowledge and tools to do this please contact me that wouldd be great</em><br /><br />5. Do you where special clothes when you perform<br /><br /><em>i dress up like barney the dinosaur sometimes (uhmm no)</em><br /><br />6. When i came to one you were reading lyrics from a song. Do you always work out new stuff?"<br /><br /><em>if i have new material i find its a good way to allow the song to get its stage legs..people are more forgiving in this kind of environment than say ashow with cover..i'd prefer if everyone who played brought the same mentality and this is often the case..some gems have debuted at planetchaos..over the years.</em><br /><em></em><br />7. How do you keep drunken assholes away?<br /><br /><em>i tell my friends to stay at home...just kidding..drunken idiots are just looking for attention most of the time..when you have musicians up there giving a great performance and debuting material a drunk is less likely to stick around to make a fool of him/herself ..that and i have a rather loud voice if i want to..and when i see them stumbling round ready to make themselves comfy the guitar volume goes up and the veins in my neck swell with scream<br /><br /></em>8. Why do you do it<br /><br /><em>i do it because i like it...we dont get huge crowds there isnt great deals of money involved.. the people who come out sing along and they play interesting music..its a good form of practice..and its a great way to meet and interact with different musicans..impromptu jams are fairly regular abeit for better or worse of the over all night it adds an element of improv that i really enjoy.<br /></em><br />9. How do you keep people from playing Neil Young all night? Are there rules?<br /><br /><em>there are no rules...and i have no control over what someone plays....I have had some Dick-tators of open mic hosts bash what i do and even remove the guitar from my hand cause i wouldnt play american pie or something..so i dont mind..however someone wants to express themselves..its ok with me...im just some guy with a guitar afterall..i happen to like neil young<br /></em><br />10. Poets and other writer types always complain that there are no venues for people to read their work. Is Planet Chaos open to that sort of thing?<br /><br /><em>planet chaos is an open mic...that , means the mic is open..generally its an audience decision what happens what doesnt..we will try anything...if it drives out performers or audience members then its obviously not a good mix....but i wont say anything...the artist will be able to figure out for themselves if they should continue in following weeks..bring on the poets..we have had them in the past we have had magicians, clowns tapdancing guitar players, metal/punk/rock/traditional/folk/hiphop/pop bands play so its open to just about anything. sometimes we have full band set ups available for people other times its stripped down and intimate one guitar and mics..people are more than welcome to bring there own gear and set it up. <a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger2/6817/3715/1600/sports.0.jpg"></a><br /></em><br />The last time I went, I was treated to the whistle blowing stadium anthems of the alt-jock rockers Sports. It was awesome. You should go to Planet Chaos. </div><br /><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger2/6817/3715/1600/sports.1.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger2/6817/3715/320/sports.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div align="left"><br /> </div><br /><br /><div><em>(<strong>Sports </strong>on the water photo courtesy of <a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/racheljeanharding">Rachel Jean Harding</a>)<br /></div></em><br /><br /><div align="left"></div><br /><br /><div><br />planet chaos sundays the spur </div><div>patrick canning open mic tuesdays the spur </div><div>dan galway open mic wednesdays the spur </div></div>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1158693884430646442006-09-19T16:38:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:34.549-03:30Vast Uplifters<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/Kliban"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/400/Kliban%27s%20Lewd%20Sister%20-%20Flash.jpg" border="0" /></a>I'm not sure if anyone looks here but if you are reading this, let me suggest that you go and have a look at Cara's new show <a href="http://www.carawinsorhehir.blogspot.com/">Vast Uplifters</a>. You can go down to the Rogue Gallery in the <a href="http://www.easternedge.ca/">Eastern Edge Artist Run Centre</a> and see the work live until Friday, October 6. Or, you can see the show on <a href="http://www.carawinsorhehir.blogspot.com/">her blog </a>until, like, forever.<br /><br />The work is quite stunning. There are pieces inpsired by a cartoon by <a href="http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=b.+kliban&meta=">B.</a> <a href="http://www.coldbacon.com/kliban.html">Kliban</a>. A cartoonist who can best be described as on the far side of the Far Side. In fact Kliban was a big influence on Gary Larsen. There is also a great piece inspired by a poem by <a href="http://www.math.buffalo.edu/~sww/clifton/clifton.html">Lucille</a> <a href="http://www.poets.org/poet.php/prmPID/79">Clifton</a>. Cara has a link to Clifton reading the poem too.<br /><br />The woman is talented that wife of mine!!Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1157937189105929702006-09-10T21:45:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:34.394-03:30On the third day...<em><a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/20lines.0.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: right; MARGIN: 0px 0px 10px 10px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/320/20lines.0.jpg" border="0" /></a></em><br /><em>(This article was published in St. John's newest entertainment weekly <a href="http://thescope.ca/">The S</a><a href="http://thescope.ca/">co</a><a href="http://thescope.ca/">pe</a>. To read this in all of its webtacular glory go <a href="http://thescope.ca/?p=296">here</a>. You can also see the fine illustration by Jonathan Adams that accompanies the piece. I should note that the original version wasn't so journalistic as I fully realize that I have no authority to give advice on writers' block because I'm not sure there is any way to overcome it. The byline published at the head of the piece also strongly implies that I actually did this. I did not. I spent the weekend at home with my family. )<br /></em><br />This Labour Day week- end is the 29th running of the <a href="http://www.3daynovel.com">3 Day Novel Contest</a>. From midnight Friday to midnight Monday writers are challenged to sit down and attempt to complete a novel using, according to their website, “any method, and in any location, anywhere in the world”. They do allow you to have some notes but all the actual writing must occur between the parentheses of those 72 hours.<br /><br />You may think that staying alert is the prime task when doing this sort of thing. So, I'll just lay down a couple of suggestions I learned from working nights at a grocery store stocking shelves. The head of the night crew was known as Pharmacy Frank. He probably didn't have his grade ten but he could regulate uppers and downers as well as any <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eufemiano_Fuentes">Tour de France team doctor</a>. He also counseled me to avoid using coffee and cigarettes as stimulants. THEY WILL ROT YOUR GUT LIKE BIKER ACID! Fruit juice and yogurt are much easier on the system so save the other stuff for the bender you go on after 72 hours of writing.<br /><br />To make a literary connection, the company I worked for was made famous in <a href="http://userpages.prexar.com/joyerkes/">John Updike's story</a> <a href="http://www.tiger-town.com/whatnot/updike/">"A & P". </a>That may seem like a bit of a dodgy segue but dodgy segues will become your best friend if you want to avoid writer's block. That is your main task really. You must keep that white screen from rolling out of your monitor and snowballing you out of your chair. You only have 72 hours remember. <br /><br />French writer <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stendhal">Stendhal</a> suggests that one way to overcome writers’ block is to write “twenty lines a day, genius or not”. American <a href="http://www.oulipocompendium.com/html/mathews_frame.html">Harry</a> <a href="http://www.centerforbookculture.org/interviews/interview_mathews_ashbery.html">Mathews</a> used this method to overcome his own block when he composed his fantastic novel <a href="http://www.centerforbookculture.org/dalkey/backlist/mathews.html#20%20Lines%20a%20Day">20 Lines a Day.</a> Since you only have three days and will certainly want to produce more that a three page novel you might want to accelerate the process and set a goal of 20 lines an hour. This is reasonable and ensures a submission of decent heft.<br /><br />I also imagine there are those of you who really have no idea what they are going to write about but just want to try it because it is there to be tried. Very well then, I would suggest Googling the <a href="http://www.poetryproject.com/">Poetry Project at St. Mark's Church</a>. There, you will find <a href="http://epc.buffalo.edu/authors/mayer/">Bernadette</a> <a href="http://www.writing.upenn.edu/pennsound/x/Mayer.html">Mayer's</a> legendary list of <a href="http://www.poetryproject.com/features/mayer.html">Writing Experiments</a>. Two of my favourites are, “write a work that intersperses love with landlords” and this exercise in style: Write twenty-five or more different versions of one event. If these don't help then you will have to adjust your medication (see note on pharmaceuticals above). Good luck.Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156819542500805942006-08-28T23:50:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:34.247-03:30Weapons of Mass Distraction<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/rt%20-%20pat%20and%20tim%20refit.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/320/rt%20-%20pat%20and%20tim%20refit.0.jpg" border="0" /></a>Weapons of Mass Distraction. 9:00pm Thursday, August 17, 24. <a href="http://rabbittowntheatre.blogspot.com/">Rabbittown Theatre </a>at the corner of Merrymeeting Rd. & Linscott St. / 709 739 8220. $5.<br /><br />Improv is risky business for an actor. Take Colin Mochrie. Whose Line is it Anyway?- good. CBC’s Carol Burnett Show spoof - bad. Improv comedy troupe, <em>The Weapons of Mass Distraction’s</em> show is a series of improvisational theatre games. Here’s the deal. Suggestions for settings, situations, famous people or whatnot are solicited from the audience. The boys then improvise a scene based on a set different rules or constraints for each game. Hilarity ensures. No, really, it does. Marc Nicolson has a voicebox full of accents. You’ll need a baseball glove to catch all Tim Ronan’s lines. Pat Demsey should be wearing a helmet and Andrew Halliday is a rubberface (in a good way). Ronan also acts as host and <a href="http://www.science.uva.nl/~robbert/zappa/albums/Joe_s_Garage/01.html">central scrutinizer </a>for crowd suggestions. The only thing I’d like to see them try is something that Calgary improv pioneers <a href="http://www.loosemoose.com/index.htm">Loose Moose Theatre </a>do; there, the audience is given sponge Boo Bricks that be can chucked on stage to stop the scene and put everyone out of their misery if the sketch happens to take the offramp to Suck. Of the nine games last Thursday I would have only tossed one, but it would have landed in St. Lawrence.<br /><br /><em>(Submitted Photo of Pat Dempsey and Tim Ronan of Weapons of Mass Distraction.) </em><br /><p>Published in <a href="http://www.currentmag.ca/">The Current </a>on August 17, 2006.</p><p><em> </p><br /><br /></em>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156817806624973682006-08-28T23:19:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:34.096-03:30Craft Council of Newfoundland & Labrador Annual Members Exhibit 2006<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/up%20from%20the%20pit,%20down%20in%20bay%20d"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/320/up%20from%20the%20pit%2C%20down%20in%20bay%20d%27%20spoir.1.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><em><a href="http://www.craftcouncil.nf.ca/">The Craft Council </a>Gallery presents an eclectic exhibition of member's work featuring a variety of mediums and techniques, celebrating excellence in contemporary craft.</em><br /><br /><br />Craft is often regarded as the poor cousin to fine art. But, if you think that a bowl is a bowl is a bowl then also think about the possibilities of reimagining the bowl with that conceptual constant as the starting point. The artists in the <em>Craft Councils’ Annual Members Exhibit</em> push the limits of design while using some accepted characteristics of craft (material, tool, making, function, tradition and skill) as a common referent.<br /><br />Of course, group shows are a bit like zoos. No particular piece is in its natural habitat but you get a pretty good idea of who’s interesting and who’s not. I was particularly taken by the felt sculptured vessels of <a href="http://www.craftcouncil.nf.ca/gallery/artist.asp?artist_id=47&show_id=66&page=1">Trine Schioldan</a>. They’re like alien pods dipped in fuzzy jam. The collaborative piece by <a href="http://www.craftcouncil.nf.ca/gallery/SearchResults.asp">Jason Holley </a>and <a href="http://www.tcr.gov.nl.ca/artsandletters/2006/jkimball.htm">Jay</a> <a href="http://www.craftcouncil.nf.ca/gallery/SearchResults.asp">Kimball</a>, “Up From the Pit, Down in Bay D’espoir” is also worth mentioning. The slow fade of the rings' colour combined with the more defined cast of the sun’s shadow (which is itself ephemeral) problematizes the received notion of chiascuro as only pertaining to painting and is just plain cool. You’ll be surprised and inspired. Craft is can be powerful. Google <a href="http://www.google.ca/search?hl=en&q=madame+defarge&btnG=Google+Search&meta=">Madame Defarge</a>, then go see this show.<br /><br /><em>(Submitted Photo of “Up From the Pit, Down in Bay D’espoir” by Jay Kimball and Jason Holley. Pit fired thrown bowl and hand built ceramics.)</em><br /><br />Published in <a href="http://www.currentmag.ca/">The Current </a>on August 17, 2006.Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156221335599842862006-08-22T01:58:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:33.935-03:30The Telegram says<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/telegram150.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/400/telegram150.jpg" border="0" /></a>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156220915426901462006-08-22T01:51:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:33.823-03:30The Telegram continues<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/telegramB150.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/400/telegramB150.jpg" border="0" /></a>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156220458958572742006-08-22T01:47:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:33.681-03:30The Current says<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/1600/current150.jpg"><img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; CURSOR: hand; TEXT-ALIGN: center" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/400/current150.jpg" border="0" /></a>Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-30440097.post-1156220222100528762006-08-22T01:40:00.000-02:302006-11-13T11:13:33.504-03:30The Express says<img style="DISPLAY: block; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 198px; CURSOR: hand; HEIGHT: 94px; TEXT-ALIGN: center" height="116" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1927/3265/200/xpress150.jpg" width="234" border="0" />Curiosity & Joyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01186734205756641243noreply@blogger.com0