Final Week of Summer Term

Wow, that was fast. One minute, you're trying to find the student services building to get your MCard, the next you're sitting in the grad library like you own the place, typing away at your final blog of the summer term. My, how time flies.
It's weird to look in "my documents" here on this MacBook, because there are so many documents and completed assignments in there, and it really doesn't seem like I've been in school that long!
If it were socially acceptable to tattoo the pharse "have some goshdarn foresight you a-hole" backwards on my forehead so I was forced to read it in the mirror every morning, that might be a good idea for fall semester and beyond. While my whole "do what's on the to-do list for today and don't worry about anything else" strategy has gotten me to this point, I've had my share of stressful moments that could have been avoided had I planned ahead a little bit.
At the risk of being labeled a "brown-noser," I've got to say I've really enjoyed this technology course so far. It's becoming apparent to me that I've kind of had a grumpy-old-man attitude towards technological advances and thought of the Internet as a vast wasteland of worthless, time-killing information and "adult" websites. But I'm starting to get an idea of just how great of an asset technology can be to education, given a little know-how and an open mind.

Changing My Mind About Tech

So, I'll be honest. I've never really been a big fan of technological advances. To me, new advances such as the cell phone and GPS systems, though they seem fantastic at first, have very ugly sides as well. Now if I get a text message from someone and don't respond in a somewhat prompt fashion, this person has a right to be upset with me and I find myself feeling guilty. Now, with the GPS deals, there will be an ongoing reduction in the percentage of human beings who know how to read a map or have any sense of direction whatsoever.
There's a big part of me that, in all truthfulness and honesty, wants to scrap all this BS and start a commune based on small agriculture and togetherness. It would be like Jonestown, only without the group suicide (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonestown).
I also plan on founding the Automobile Abolitionist Society in the next few years. I'll be a modern-day John Rankin, William Lloyd Garrison, etc. First, I'll need to secure a teaching job in a small country town. Then, I'll find a place to live nearby. After that, I'll decide whether it's best to ride my bike to work, or better yet, purchase a mule. Once that's taken care of, I'll "ghost ride" my Dodge Caliber off a cliff somewhere and collect the insurance money. That would be enough to get the AAS off the ground and make t-shirts and coffee mugs and stuff.
But when it comes to technology in the classroom, I can really see a benefit. Those wikis we learned about in 504 on Friday seem real user-friendly and beneficial. My skeptical mind has been working overtime trying to figure out the down side to such tools, and honestly, I've come up empty. Long live the wikis, long live EDUC 504, and LONG LIVE THE SECONDARY MAC!!!! (drop the mic and walk off the stage)

Up in the Stacks

So I found a pretty sweet study spot up in the stacks of the grad library. I'm sitting in this little private room with a window overlooking the diag and that big American Flag and that one tower. Not only is it a cool view, but it's nice and quiet as well.
It's cool to walk around town these days and watch everyone get set up for the big Art Fair. I've been coming to Ann Arbor for the Art Fair for as long as I can remember, and no, I've never purchased any art. My parents would always take me when I was little and we would see jugglers and slack-rope walkers and stuff like that. Nowadays, I like to just wander around and people-watch. There are always interesting characters and street-performers and such. If anyone's interested in checking out the Art Fair over the next couple days, let me know, cause I'm down!

My first ever blog!

Well, here I go with my first attempt at blogging. I missed the first EDUC 504 class due to some chronic back pain that flared up the day before class. I got a cortisone shot in my back on Friday morning which is supposed to get all the inflammation and swelling down to a tolerable level. Today is Sunday, and I can already notice a difference. I've had this disc issue since 2005, and most of the time the cortisone shot does the trick. I'm thinking once I get some health insurance, it'll be time to consider back surgery.
But enough about bad backs. I'd like to shift my focus to how exciting it is to be blogging for the very first time! Now, any time I feel necessary, I can express my views and opinions throughout the universe! While I'd love to express my disdain for the high volume of back-up beepers on construction vehicles on the U of M campus, I'm not quite sure of the guidelines of this assignment and I don't want to overstep my boundaries. But, rest assured, once I get the green light to blog away on things that irritate me, back-up beepers and the stalls in the second floor men's bathroom of the SOE building better watch out!