The Chamber of Secrets Looms Nearer

I’m going to be a teacher when I grow up. It’s kind of shocking how close I am to that nose dive! But the closer I get, (not too close. Still got a mission, don’t forget) and the more I read and learn, the more nervous and uncomfortable and appalled and surprised and perplexed I become, particularly pertaining to the effects of No Child Left Behind, on both students and teachers. (See above picture.)

I read this piece written a teacher in Kansas as he discussed No Child Left Behind, and I thought it was quite interesting:

“What other profession is legally held to PERFECTION by 2014? Are police required to eliminate all crime? Are firefighters required to eliminate all fires? Are doctors required to cure all patients? Are lawyers required to win all cases? Are coaches required to win all games? Of course they aren’t.

“For no other profession do so many outsiders refuse to accept the realities of an imperfect world. Crime happens. Fire happens. Illness happens. As for lawyers and coaches, where there’s a winner there must also be a loser. People accept all these realities, until they apply to public education.

“If a poverty-stricken, drug-addled meth-cooker burns down his house, suffers third degree burns, and then goes to jail; we don’t blame the police, fire department, doctors, and defense attorneys for his predicament. But if that kid doesn’t graduate high school, it’s clearly the teacher’s fault.”

There you go. Thanks to that lovely little act in 2002, children are getting left behind, and teachers are getting thrust into a pit of despair, with no hope of escape.

Music Ed

Hey guess what? I changed my major.

I declared Elementary Music Ed in 7th grade, after an interview with Mrs. Chantry for Person Progress. Plans took a turn when I decided to go to BYU Hawaii, which doesn’t have a Music Ed program. I contented myself with just plan old Elementary Ed, but I was so pleased that Music theory gave math credit that I had to plunge into the music program. A double major!

No such thing

But I convinced them, and off I skipped in two very different directions: The CAC (our miniature HFAC) on one end of campus, and the School of Ed building all the way on the other. A full 12 minute trek! However, this

But here I find myself today, working on a potential Elementary Music Ed degree, just as I dreamed of ten years ago.

Kindermusik

This is another Mommy Blog post. (Last advertised was Alexander’s Amazing Adventures.) If I was a mom and I was writing about how amazingly intelligent and musical my children were, and how yours too could be the same, I would credit it to this great program that I’d put them through.

We’re doing method reports for my piano pedagogy class, and I’m doing mine on Kindermusik. Oh my word. Genius! I love every bit of it.

This is what they say at the top of their website: “Kindermusik® is about kids, parents, and teachers—coming together and having a great time! It’s about helping you grow closer to your child. Enriching her environment and her development. Giving him a lifelong love of music and a foundation for learning.” Sounds pretty good to me.

This is cool: Psychologists, neuroscientists, and experts in early childhood development have demonstrated that music does more for children than bring them joy; it helps their brain cells make the connections needed for virtually every kind of intelligence, including the kinds that the right hippocampus assists in. Kindermusik’s curriculum is built on that research.

That’s awesome.

Want to know more? Go here to read all about it and SIGN UP TODAY!

Then you’ll have kids just like mine. (Patient, loving, musical, of good report, praiseworthy, obedient, popular, and beautiful.)

Winter 2012 Quotes

“I don’t know music.” -Lauryn
“Wait, Mozart was Classical, right?” Lauryn

“Did you know this was filmed in Hungaria?” -Madison

“Amber, I just spilled chocolate on my skirt. I know that’s what you’d do if you were here.”-Sophie

“Our ward is so handsome! I’m really glad I teach Sunday School so I can look out and say, “you’re hott. you’re hott. you’re hott.’ “
-Lauryn

“Is 1000 meters a mile?” -Madison

“Sometimes I just want to make Heavenly Father a plate of cookies. …” -Janelle

“That’s so Europe-esque.”-Madison

“Les Miserables changed my life. Well,the music was absolutely fantastic.” “The musical that changed my life was Wicked.” “The musical that changed my life was Sweeny Todd.” -Suan, Amber, Dan

“Have you ever just been sitting in your room, alone, not knowing what to do, and you just think, ‘I wonder how to blow up a dumpster.’ ?” -Shaun

“I wish my life was in sepia, because I look beautiful in sepia.” -Sarah Tovey

“Just go buy a smart phone.” “I’m too poor.” “Well, just have your parents buy you a smart phone!” “They’re too poor too. We’re all poor!” “Well, ask your grandma to buy you one. Oh wait, she’s dead.” “My grandma’s not dead!” -Amber and Madison

“We all agree that music is among the most delightful and pleasant things, whether instrumental or accompanied by singing, so one might from that fact alone infer that the young should be taught it…” ~Aristotle

“Listening to begining violin students is like getting a lobotomy.” -Katie K

“Dell. It never says in the Humpty Dumpty rhyme that he was an egg.” “I know! For all we know, he could have been a violin!”

“I’m just really hoping that no one else was thinking of asking me [to Winter Ball] because I would hate to have to tell him no. That would stink for the guy.” -Sarah C

“Who should we invite?” “Do we have any other friends? [besides Amber and Madison]” “No, I don’t think so.”

“I put Nathan in the friend zone right when I met him. But he took himself right out of it.”

“I don’t see the potential for either of us to be heartbroken anytime in the near future.” “I just want to have this playlist to I can give it to other people.” “I wasn’t aware we knew any other people.”

“Peanut butter and pie. That’s like you and Tessie in one human!” -Madison

“Red hair can get you places. It was the bane of my life when I was a kid, but as I got older, I found that people really respect those of us with red hair. You’d be surprised.” -Dr. D

“It’s the eye of the tiger, it’s the cream of the crop.” “Um, those aren’t the words.” -Lauryn

“Ian, don’t do anything you would do.” “Are you kidding? It’s Amber! She would kill me!” -Shaun and Ian

“How old is your husband?” “27.” “How old are you?” “I’m 24.” “Oh, so it’s not that big of an age difference.” “3 years. But you can totally tell the difference. He’s so mature, and I’m just this insignificant little girl.” -Hilary and Amber

“There’s going to be food there! Doesn’t that make you wish you could go?” “Well, I’m over food.” “WHAT? Food is what drives my life!” “I’m just done letting food drive me.” -A and Matthew

“If I looked at buff as I am, I would be ripped.” -Dan

“My uncle is the type that isn’t happy until someone’s crying. And he always tried to get kicked out of our family reunions.” -Clayton

“You should crash Cassie’s bachelorette party and spike the punch with Kava.” -Dan

“Oh man. I haven’t talked to [President Hinckley] in forever!” -Madison

“Make sure I like this [on facebook].” -Lauryn

“I don’t care if I bother people. I just scare if they bother me. Which usually isn’t an issue vecause I just move as far wasay form them as possible.” -Madison

“Go for it, Jonah!” “Um, she’s a black belt.” -A

“OH! I was trying to figure out why LMN was familiar. It’s because it’s in the alphabet!”

“Peeps are just diabetes in bird form.”

“You look like someone from a horror movie.” -Hilary to Amber C.

“Can you give me an example of a low pitch in your daily life?” “Darth Vadar.” -Mariko and Eve (piano pedagogy; Eve is 9)

“Lug, you taught me what a pet peeve is. You also taught me some swear words.” -A

“You’re not all bananas. You’re all fruits. Some of you are peaches, some of you are plums. Some of you are mangoes. And some of you are nuts.” -DB

“Chromatic trichord? That’s Satan’s theme!” -DB

“It feels so good when it’s right.” “I feel like that’s a song.” “It is, but it’s probably not talking about a kazoo.”

“The Second Viennese School loves the chromatic trichord.” “Did you go to that school?” -A and DB [the second viennese school is not a school. This was an extremely stupid question.]

“Oh my goodness! That’s OMG, right?” -Dr. B.

“You think Mozart makes babies smarter?” “That’s what my parents say.” “You throw this right back in their face: Zelda makes babies smarter.”

“If you see a person with a nose ring, you know they’re evil.”

“We are all walking-talking, ticking-tocking polyrythms.”

“A 12-tone matrix is really child’s play.”

“What do you call your mother-in law? Do you call her mom?” “No, I call her Louise.” “Oh, you’re one of those people?” “Her name is Mary. And sometimes I call her Gunther.” -A and DB

“Guys in tuxes just make me shiver. It’s not possible to not look nice in a suite.” -Suzy

“Do you have a question?” “No.” “Well, let me know if I can help, because I’d really like to help, as you’re doing your course evaluations.” “Now throw in a spiritual connection.” “You’re all going to Hell.” -BM

“I don’t like Ms. When I teach, I’m gonna be Miss Blair.” “But when you get married, you’ll be Mrs. Blair. Actually, you’ll never be Mrs. Blair. You’ll have to be Mrs. Blair-Schlniklefritz. You can hyphenate that.” A and DB

“I’ve never met a Matthew I didn’t like.” -Aria

“You look nice, Brooke!” “I didn’t try.”

“You have a ver adorable sneeze.” “Does anyone have tissues?” “I have an umbrella.” -DB, Amber C., Hilary

“As you can see, Milton Babbitt is quite old.” “He wasn’t always that way.” -DB and Aria

“You don’t have an oven? So you can’t make enchiladas or anything like that!” -girl in ed class

“You could do it like my wife and me and never date. We met at Institute.” -Dr. B.

“Think about David slaying the Philistines. When you play Liszt, you have to take off your toupee.” -Bro. McCarrey

“Don’t do anything rash like quite this class or punch your mother-in-law.” -DB

“I’m down with cheese and crackers.” “Your feet are down with cheese and crackers.” -Aria and DB

“Oh Jonah. Oh ye of little Putlocker knowledge.” -Madison

“Guys, my left hippocampus is just a trooper.” -Amber

Then and now: a glimpse of portions of the last twenty years

Leen and me. Aren’t we presh?

Leen and me. Aren’t we presh?

Lug and me. Original, self-designed, classy, fashionable, and organic outfits.

Lug and me. Semi-original, self-designed outfits

Me, Lug, and Leen. Already showing out gratitude and admiration for the pioneers.

Lug, me, and Leen. It’s kind of crazy how much we’ve matured over these twenty years!

California Rolls

I’m in the Seattle airport, and I have a 5 hour layover. As I was sitting and intently surveying the highly captivating scene of airplanes ascending and descending outside the window, this song just came to me. May I add that I have a strong dislike of the original.


Greetings loved ones,
Lets take a culinary journey!

I know a place,
Where the sushi is really better!
Warm, sweet and spicy,
There must be something in the recipe!

You could travel the world,
But nothin’ comes close,
To Sushi Sasabune*!
Once you there with u-us,
you’ll be fallin’ in love!
Oh oh oh ohhhhhhh!

California rolls, they’re unforgettable,
Cucumber, crab, sesame and vinegar on top!
Avacado,rice
So good they’ll melt in your mouth!
Oh oh oh ohhhhhhh!

California rolls, they’re undeniable,
Fine, fresh, fierce,
They got it on lock!
North Shore represent, now put your hands up!
Oh oh oh ohhhhhhh!

You could travel the world,
But nothin’ comes close,
To Sushi Sasabune*!
Once you there with u-us,
you’ll be fallin’ in love!
Oh oh oh ohhhhhhh!

Baked, Rolled, hot and ready,
Eat them up ’cause they’re gettin’ cold,
wild, wild, North Shore,
these are the rolls I love the most!
I mean the ones,
I mean like they’re the ones,
Smell them,
Taste them,
Gobble them up…

California! California Rolls.
California! California Rolls.

*Sushi Sasabune is a sushi restaurant on Oahu

I’m Thankful!

I made this for Thanksgiving, but I haven’t published it until now because I didn’t know how. And then I did it: I created a youtube account! I do believe congratulations are in order. This is 2012.

This is also looking back over 2011 and remembering all the great parts. (That would be the whole year, of course.) I’m thankful for my best year so far.

I forgot some quotes

“Although LInd, you would have DIED– I DISAGREED with someone. Yeah. Like I don’t think I’ve ever disagreed with someone more in my life. I actually had an opinion!” -Lug

“Okay, I love us. Remember how we couldn’t get over ourselves on our campout? I miss us.” -Me or Lug

“I quoted Brian in my Relief Society lesson today.” -Lug (obviously)

“Sometimes I’m tempted to change my facebook language back to English.” “I have NEVER been tempted.” -Lug and me

“Nice hair. Now you look like what’s-her-head.” “Medussa?” “No, Bellatrix.” -Maybe me and Madison? I never do know.

“For me, finals week is a week of bliss.” -Lug. [whoa there]