an apple for the teacher

it's been a long time since i've had anything of consequence to write on the blog. actually, that's not true, but i've gotten out of the habit of keeping track of the crazy life moments that i want to write here. last week, i had one such moment and promised myself that i would take the time to write about it on the blog. so, (deep breath) here it goes.

last week, my student, katja, came into my office to talk about some problems she was having on her paper. she walked in and said, "i know this is super cliche, but i have an apple for you (as she hands me said apple). my grandparents own a 1000 acre apple orchard, and they brought me some over the weekend."

precious. and so not cliche. i took the apple, glowing, of course, and showering her with thanks. in between my thank you's and smiles, katja told me that she had asked her roommate if she thought it was ok to give an apple to her teacher. her roommate said, "um, i really don't think that's a good idea. i wouldn't do it." katja thought for a second and said to her roommate, "no, you don't know brooke. i think she'll love it."

but, what happened next was even better. we discussed her questions and determined some things she could do to improve her paper (which was already well-written). as she stood up to leave, she said, "i've worked harder on this paper than any other paper i've ever written, and i've loved every minute."

it's moments like this that make me love teaching. this semester, in particular, i have had more students than usual who have had breakthrough moments. in those moments, i am happiest. nothing is quite so exciting as seeing a student recognize and conquer a weakness in his/her writing or having a student, like angel, who realized this semester that her perception of Middle Eastern culture has been unconsciously formed through the lens of 9/11 and is dangerously biased. so, as she put, she has formed a "bigger picture" or "an end game" for the rest of her work in this class, which is to look for and draw out the similarities between cultures rather than the differences.

yes. this is why i love teaching. and, this is why i loved katja's apple. because, in the deepest deep of my heart, i am a teacher. and there's nothing i would rather be.

background obsession

it's been a long time since i've blogged, as you all know. so this new blog template designer thing has my mind spinning and spinning. it also has me obsessed with trying new backgrounds for the blog...yeah, the one i never write on.

tonight, though, i think i found the winner. i love my new blog background, and i commit, here and now, that i will start blogging again for real, instead of just changing my background and teasing you all with pretend blog posts.

back to blogging

my blog sent me a message. it said it missed me. thank you, alexis, for delivering that message. i am currently sitting in my office at USC waiting for class to start. so, i thought i would take advantage of the time and at least get myself a new background. i figure that will make me more motivated to blog about my less-than-exciting life.

new background: check.
new font colors: check.
new font style: check.
something to write about. . .in progress.

see you all (and by all, i mean alexis) soon!

the thing i miss least about our old house

below please find pictures of the devil ice maker in our old house. it would randomly make buckets and buckets of ice for a couple of days and then stop for no reason for weeks. this was on one of the overload days. seriously? that much ice?

i am happy to report that in our new house, we have an ice maker that makes ice consistently--not too much--just enough to keep our drinks cold. cheers to the new pad.

usc/vanderbilt

last week travis came out to visit the south. we went to a USC game. i still can't get over how crazy these games are. they fans are so intense. it's louder and more insane than any professional or college game i've ever been to. all hail SEC football...and good friends.

hello the south

yes, this is a mobile church semi-truck. it was parked in a mcdonalds parking lot. i am basking in the rich cultural experience of living in the south. thought i should share.

braves v dodgers, a little late

back in the day (summertime) anna and i went to a braves dodgers game. it was great. we had awesome seats. it rained for the first couple of innings, but we were faithful fans and stuck it out. the dodgers won. and after the game we got a fireworks show.

we also went to the steak and shake and had some of the yummiest food ever. we drove back to columbia until 3 in the morning. then anna got on a plane to california at 5. it was crazy but it was worth it. please see crazy braves fan in costume.