Tag Archives: nerds

An animated history of the English language

A friend of mine shared this video on Facebook earlier today, and it’s just so fantastically succinct and hilarious I had to post it here. It’s “The History of English in Ten Minutes”: My friend found it on a blog post at Milk And Cookies, but it’s pretty widely available. What’s particularly genius about thisContinue reading “An animated history of the English language”

NaNoWriMo in a comfortable sweater

I’m starting NaNoWriMo today, so I figure I ought to get comfortable. I have a lot of writing ahead of me. This is a sweater my mother-in-law gave me a few years ago. At the time, I was living in Wisconsin and renting a duplex from a wonderful couple who knew I taught at theContinue reading “NaNoWriMo in a comfortable sweater”

Reel Librarians

I write about libraries and librarians on this site a lot. Which shouldn’t come as any surprise to people who’ve been reading for a while, because I’m openly proud to be married to a damn fine librarian. Now that damn fine librarian has launched her own website and blog, all about librarians in cinema. CalledContinue reading “Reel Librarians”

Steve Jobs supports the humanities and liberal arts

About ten months ago, I came across an article about Peter Thiel, the college drop-out turned tech mogul, and his grand plan to pay college students to quit school. It set me railing against Thiel’s shortsightedness and ignorance, an irritation that stayed with me so strongly that I wound up referencing it again this past March,Continue reading “Steve Jobs supports the humanities and liberal arts”

A word about the delays in posts lately

Hello, gang. Chances are, if you’re one of the dozen people who subscribe to this blog, you might have noticed that some of the posts these past few weeks have been pretty long delayed in turning up online or in your RSS reader. That’s not WordPress’s fault. See, I’ve been on the road, driving fromContinue reading “A word about the delays in posts lately”

PCA/ACA: almost the end

The conference is over. I’m exhausted, mentally and physically, in the best ways. But it’s going to take me a couple of days to get around to writing a fuller account of my conference — the panels I attended, the ideas I heard or offered, the fiction I read, the friends and colleagues and scholarsContinue reading “PCA/ACA: almost the end”

PCA/ACA update, days 1 and 2

These have been some packed days. And for some reason, everyone is sending me to comics panels (no pun intended)! Not that there’s anything wrong with that — I love comics. But it’s starting to feel weird because today I attended a library panel (on defining the role of librarians through popular representations) and woundContinue reading “PCA/ACA update, days 1 and 2”

PCA/ACA: It begins

Today, the 2011 conference of the Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association begins. In just a few hours, I’ll be attending my first panel, and as the conference carries on over the next few days, I’ll be posting updates of the panels I’ve attended and the things I’m learning. To which end: the poll results (howeverContinue reading “PCA/ACA: It begins”

Compassion in education

People who know me or pay attention to my Facebook page or my website are probably familiar with one of my favorite quotes: “Pay attention not only to the cultivation of knowledge but to the cultivation of qualities of the heart, so that at the end of education, not only will you be knowledgeable, butContinue reading “Compassion in education”