he has 2 1st names, or, mayhaps, 2 surnames . . .

Stanley Jordan, Flying Home

This probably ain't in the top 10 of '80s instrumental guitar albums (you'll get those 10 later, I would think), but it's pretty good.

Worth it for the cover of "Stairway to Heaven"--which, let us all admit, takes a lot of guts--most of the album sounds like a soundtrack to a John Hughes movie.

Some great guitar, a lot of drum machine, & too much synth.

Dude is a crazy-great two-hand tapper, & he shows some of that here . . . but not enough.

So, take that for what it's worth.

Juniors:

Part 3 resonated w/ many of you, & that makes me happy.

It's challenging, it's eclectic (not "random," but, OK), it's durn funny, it's the best of the 4 to these eyes.

You had a chance to begin Part 4, "A Voyage to the Land of the Houfufhfhudbdfhhfnfnnfnms."

Or something like that . . .

(cue the '50s matinee machine)

TALKING HORSES!!

LOGIC v EMOTION!!!

ID v SUPEREGO!!!

STAY TUNED!!!


Sophomores:

We went over the "The Bet" theme essay again, & almost 1/2 of you completed the assignment that had been explained via teacher, TV-through-AVER key, & handout.

You were shown all the remaining details of the assignment, including due dates & point totals.

REMEMBER: you get many points for the preparation, & the remaining points for the final product.

If you pay attention to the directions, do all that is assigned, & proofread, you cannot earn less than a C.

So . . . let's do this!!!

You had your definitions returned, & you will submit synonyms tomorrow.

THURSDAY: unit 3 synonyms
FRIDAY: FORWARD!!!!
next MONDAY: OR 1.6
next TUESDAY: FINAL ESSAY, w/ all preliminaries
next WEDNESDAY: unit 3 completing sentences
next THURSDAY: unit 3 QUIZ!!!

be cool . . .

just cuz you're paranoid, it doesn't mean they aren't out to get you

Rob Lamothe, Above the Wing Is Heaven

This dude was in a one-near-hit-wonder band called Riverdogs many, many years ago. (Check out "Toy Soldier," which was that near-hit, but there are some really good songs on their self-titled album, including "Baby Blue" & "Big House.")

I bought their album because Viv Campbell was on guitar. (For those who care, he had been Dio's wunderkind prior, & later he joined & remains with Def Leppard. He has not played on any good Leppard records--just the we-need-more-12-year-old-girls-to-listen albums, but he has monster chops & is a darn good vocalist, too.)

Anyway, I checked out some youtube clips of Lamothe's solo stuff--mainly melodic mellow acoustic pop--& saw that this album had a cover of paranoid.

So I bought it (yep--bought it) that day.

& yes, that was a slow acoustic take on the Sabbath classic "Paranoid."

Highly recommended.

Juniors:
Swift & more Swift.

Today you re-opened the books & chose a passage that struck you in some way.

Really good stuff, as usual: the kings of Brobdingnag & Luggnagg, history &  politics all around, a tad of scatological humor, & jsut some darn good writing.

Bring in your "A Voyage to Laputa, etc." notes tomorrow, & read up through Part 4, chapter 3 by Thursday.


Sophomores:
A whole lot of notes on the TV.

Formal writing

(NO 1st or 2nd, NO contractions, YES to literary present & MLA formats)

The OWL, at Purdue

Incorporating quotations

Weaving said quotations

Argument

A "debatable" thesis

Collected the unit 3 definitions, & tomorrow you will submit your 1st drafts of writings about "The Bet."

I'm expecting good stuff, so let's do this.

be cool . . .

dare I say, "forward"? yes, I dare

Quarashi, Jinx


1st heard of these guys on Madden 2003.

Yep, it was a hip-hop/techno/funk/rock contingent from . . .

(wait for it)


(waiting for it)


(keep waiting for it, just a little more . . . )


(ANSWER DELETED)


Yup, that's where they were from.

Surprising, huh?

[NOTE: See the bottom of this post for the answer, should you still care.]

This is a really fun party-type album, but please note that parental advisory. Found it at Amoeba (my take on the true "happiest place on earth") for $2.95, & it's well worth it.

Oh, & some day you simply must ask me to see Cedric's "Baseline" dance . . . which is doubly cool, because Cedric is awesome & can bust a groove, & ALHS is located  on Baseline Rd.

Way, way cool.

Juniors:

FORWARD!!! You answered 7 questions, & your score will be tallied along w/ last week's participation points to make us all happy, grade-style. Most of you got 5, 6, or 7; a few did less well, & we'll chat about that.

Also, we drew lines in the proverbial sand, even though Sebastian says they do not exist in the realm of sarcasm.

Somebody said, "it's all or nothing."

Maybe.

Maybe not.

As a dad, I have to deal w/ these issues daily.

Well, as a teacher I guess I must, also. Every year someone gets offended by Swift.

But we still read him, because anyone who calls him- or herself an "honors" student must read certain writers, like Dickens, Lee, Joyce, Steinbeck, Swift, Morrison, Salinger, Shakespeare, Tan,  Eliot, & about 100 others, plus-or-minus 100 more.

& David Foster Wallace, the greatest of the great.

(IMHO--I have always wanted to use that "acronym"/internet-slang shortcut.)

Part 3: "A Voyage to Laputa, Etc" through chapter 8 for Monday!!! Part 3 done by Tuesday!!!

Sophomores:
FORWARD!!!!!

You took back last week's 20,000 Leagues page & did the 2nd part, filling in all boxes, including "Prove-Its" & bad answers.

FOR MONDAY: OR 1.5.

Come on--let's do this!!!

(Exclamation points provided by Redundant Punctuation, Inc.)

(NOTE: Quarashi from Reykjavik, as in "Iceland")


BONUS-POINT OPPORTUNITY
focused on juniors but sophomore-eligible, because we should all read it & take it to heart:

1. go to the teacherweb site (mine)
2. click "Links, Connections, Thing to See Online"
3. click "Supplemental Swift: 'Hate is a Waste of Time'" (yeah, that is a fantastically poignant title)
4. print out & annotate the article, then bring it to me before the expiration time
5. post a 200-word reaction here, or e-mail it to me
(note, I had previewed it to several of you by saying you'd e-mail, but since I added in the "printing-&-annotating" part, I'd like to see the discussion below . . . if you've already e-mailed, it's cool)

BONUS-POINT OPPORTUNITY expires at 11:59 PM MONDAY 27 SEPTEMBER 2010!!!