2 New Origami Cranes

Origami Cranes

Recently I learned to make origami cranes. The act of making them is so calming and fun - and I love giving them away to people.

Here are two of my latest cranes:

My One-Sheet

Arnold's - A great place to eat.

Today we tried Arnold's on 8th avenue. I loved it. I have decided to eat there any time I feel homesick for Alabama. The people there are so nice and the food - well - the food is amazing. I suggest the cheese grits!

New Painting

I painted this using Mount Hagen organic instant coffee. I call it Morning Pain.  It looks pretty good hanging in my bathroom.

Great resources for students and teachers!

Everything online for students! Check out this site.

Librarian Chick is HOT

Check out this site for reference sources.

Everything in one sentence

One Sentence is about telling your story, briefly. Insignificant stories, everyday stories, or turning-point-in-your-life stories, boiled down to their bare essentials.

Tasty Tacos at Leticia's

Leticia's  (on Gallatin Pike) has some of the most amazing tacos I've ever had. (Their health department score is 98!) The place doesn't look like a 5 star restaurant by any means - but the food speaks for itself. Try it. (They also have cokes with REAL sugar!!)  I can't seem to find anything about them online and I don't know the address. I think they cater mostly to Spanish speakers, so they are not necessarily advertising to the masses. 

Growing Sprouts in Mason Jars

Growing sprouts indoors is really easy. I use mung beans (you can get them in a bag at almost any grocery store).  Here's the easy way to grow your own sprouts at home:


1.  Put a small amount in any size mason jar and soak for the first 8 hours in water.

2.  Drain in the morning.

3.  Every morning rinse out your beans.

4.  When the bean pods are all off and rinsed out of your jar, your sprouts are close to being ready. Put grown sprouts in the fridge and enjoy on salads, sandwiches, etc.

My Teaching Philosophy

I’ve had the pleasure of teaching in the classroom as well as the internet classroom; and both experiences have influenced my style of teaching today. In my composition classes, my aim is to choose real world materials and topics in conjunction with rhetoric, grammar, and logic to provide a modern, comprehensive trivium in which students develop critical thinking and writing skills. In my world literature and Shakespeare courses, my hope is to combine the required reading with my students’ interests by making the material relevant to their lives. My classes are interesting. My style is engaging. My students are my most important consideration.

I’ve always enjoyed scholarly inquiry and writing, but it would not be an exaggeration to say that teaching is my true passion. My philosophy might be best summed up in one word: Adaptability. I find out what my students read, what they don’t, what they like, and what they won’t. I learn where they’re from and what languages they speak. I encourage them to read newspapers not only for the editorials that might get their argumentative urges pulsing, but also to bring earlier literatures into modern events and perspectives. I use technology and the internet to my students’ advantage, not only connecting with them in a world they feel comfortable, but also to allow them to connect what they learn to the world around them.

A Feminist Call to Action

Feminist frameworks have been baseless because of the classification of a dichotomous sexual preference system. We must now move to a nullification of all feminist theory based on these systems.  They're the same as if we were using science based on the idea that the sun revolves around the earth. But now we must start over - only this time with the truth.

True feminism is honorable. The power of the feminine is not in the shadows or secret places - no, its true power is in the fearless examination of the real.

In the past, there was no such thing as heteronormity because there was no such thing as homosexuality. How convenient those labels became as people sought to control more and more of the population - and what better way than to judge and classify based on a false shame of what one does with one's genitals. (How very Victorian.)

It's because of this that the so-called Queer Theorists should have been initially regarded as conspiracy theorists - at least by those holding patriarchal power.

What was once called "Feminist Theory" disintigrates when held up to the light. Its ephemera is its very history - made of lies based on lies, based on lies.  We have to be transcendent and transversal to the old waves of feminism. We have to stop presupposing what a woman is or is not. The feminine is in everyone, everything. The feminine honors individuality; and it is in this that the feminine is the pathway to true power.

Now, living in the truth offers us great opportunities for transgression. When all rights become equal we can go back to being people who are judged on our character and not our holes.

Burger-Up in Nashville - My tummy is stuffed

We just had lunch at Burger-Up on 12th. Wow.

I had the L burger and some Tomato Basil Soup. YUM. I suggest you try it. I also liked the fries....the ketchup was a little sweet, but still good.

Water Main breaks at Big Red - Pics and Video

First day of 2011
Pics and a few videos of the event.