Catching the stars on a New Moon

A view of the southern Vermont sky in mid October.

Lie under the multitudes.

Or, as the kids say, “go touch grass.”

Last year I began seeking out camp sites where there was the least amount of light pollution within a 3-hour drive of my home in Western Massachusetts. I then used a moon phase map to identify nights when there was a New Moon, and began using Hipcamp (like Airbnb for tenting) to find sites that offered an unadorned view of the sky.

The effort has been worth it.

This October the stars literally aligned. We had a great spot. No moon. No cloud in sight. The result was stunning and stirring. Looking up, a foreign tableau of thousands upon thousands of glimmers and shimmers. Awing in the truest sense.

I’ve already got three sites reserved for New Moons happening in May, August, and October of next year. Perhaps on one of those nights you too will gaze upon a molasses sky and find wonder in the innumerable piercings.

Sprout

Buds sprout in soil
Seasonal shift upon us
Bring on the sunshine!

Proffed out

After sitting through a full day of professional development where I literally sat in a chair and read pages and pages of evaluator rubrics, it was nice to get out and take the dog for a walk. I decided to bring along my camera, as since reading Seth Godin's Linchpin, I've been feeling the need to "create art and ship," in Godin parlance.

Godin's book is inspiring and affirming. It speaks to our inner artist, and empowers us to stifle the lizard brain, put ourselves out there, and create something unique and important. I suppose it follows that in order to best help my students discover and cultivate their passions, I need to nourish and sustain my own.

I already do this by reading and writing. It's been a while, though, since I've picked up the camera and shot on a consistent basis. Taking pictures is something I love to do, and have for more than 20 years. It was in high school that I learned the basics of photographic composition, and first encountered a darkroom. There were few things I enjoyed more than using the enlargers to create photos from a fresh roll of film. There was something magical about the way the image burned onto the paper, made all the more special by the fact that I controlled the final product.

The photo below was taken at the end of our walk, just after the sun had set behind the horizon. I like the colors of the toys, and the warm glow from the Christmas lights in the background.

"Doggie toy bucket"  f/2, 1/30, ISO 1000, 20mm

Here are a few others:

"Toboggan" f/2, 1/30, ISO 1000, 20mm

"Bridge" f/2.5, 1/30, ISO 640, 20mm

 

"Mr. Fence Post" f/1.7, 1/30, ISO 100, 20mm

Snow day

Today we had a snow day. I got to catch up on some sleep, do some chores around the house, and take our dog for an extended woodland walk through the fresh snow. I was also able to take this picture and post it to the blog, two things (taking photos and writing in this space) I look forward to doing more of.

"Snow laurel" f/1.7, 1/250, ISO 100, 20mm

Surviving Sandy

At this time one year ago, a freak snowstorm caused massive damage to Western Massachusetts, resulting in the loss of power for an entire week. We've been much more fortunate this time around, maintaining electricity (and Internet) during the brunt of Sandy's blow.

Strong winds downed trees and sent debris everywhere, yet the electricity still flowed even as gusts approached 60 mph. Well-deserved props to the folks at National Grid for keeping the juice on during the turbulence.

The jury's still out on if we'll have school tomorrow. A handful of districts have cancelled, while a number of others have signaled it's all systems go. With college recommendation letters, an upcoming workshop at the New England Association of Teachers of English conference this Friday, and pieces to still pick up after being out two days last week to attend the 30th Massachusetts Computer Using Educators conference, I could certainly use another day "off" to make headway.

In addition, on Tuesday (or Wednesday) I'll resume control of my three ninth grade college prep English classes, as my practicum student from a nearby university concluded her placement in my classroom last Friday. She did a wonderful job introducing the students to PVLEGS, the acronym developed by educator Eric Palmer to help students remember the keys to speaking effectively: poise, voice, life, eye contact, gestures, and speed. After reading Laurie Halse Anderson's Speak, the students gave speeches where they made connections between events in their lives and the book. My practicum student was able to explicitly show the students how the PVLEGS skills can really make a difference when it comes to speaking effectively, and the students bought in.

The image at the top of this post was obviously not taken today; it was snapped up at The Flume in Lincoln, NH, over Columbus Day weekend. Rather than post an image of destruction, I prefer to remember this month for the gorgeous foliage and temperate afternoons, not the carnage from Sandy.

My studies through Boise State University's EDTECH program have kept me quite busy as I've made progress on my Master of Educational Technology degree. The coursework requires reflection and journal writing, much of which I've done on a separate blog just for graduate school. I am halfway through one of the two final classes I need to complete before I earn my degree this May. Once my coursework concludes, I look forward to bringing my voice back to the blogosphere. In the meantime, I've still been active on my Twitter account, although I don't read nearly as many tweets from the folks I'm following as I'd like to. For my friends on the East Coast, I hope you stayed safe during Sandy's passing.

Using Creative Commons Images from Flickr

I recently began using the screen capture program Screencast-O-Matic to create video tutorials for my students. Below is one I made about using Creative Commons images from Flickr. Enjoy!

Time...

...is always better when Chuck Norris is telling it.

Thoughts from Ft. Lauderdale

I've spent the last week at my grandmother's condo in the beautiful (and usually temperate) Ft. Lauderdale. As those of you in the New England area know, this week is February vacation, where students and teachers have a five-day respite from school.

This year my wife and I got together with my parents and sister for a rendezvous in Florida. The plan was to soak up some Vitamin D and enjoy a break from the frigid temperatures of Massachusetts. While it has been sunny, it's also been unseasonably cool. The average temperature for this time of year is a toasty 78 degrees. It's averaged about 65 since we've been here, which has been a bit of a bummer, but it's still been warm enough for us to get out and enjoy the surroundings.

The above photo illustrates the view across from the balcony at my grandmother's place. She lives in an area of Ft. Lauderdale that's divided by a series of waterways - a la Venice - and home to a number of gorgeous multi-million dollar residences. Most of the homes here easily start at $3 million. I've jogged around the area and have been blown away by the overt opulence. Beamer, Mercedes, Lexus, Porsche, Range Rover, and Lamborghini camp out in the driveways of these estates, many of which are behind iron gates.

To the right of my grandmother's balcony is a boat docked in the canal with the name "Insatiable." It's a fitting metaphor to describe the lavishness with which some of these people live. Would I like to one day have a residence on the water? Sure. But it would need to be modest, as there's a certain point where the accumulation of material goods becomes offensive.

The arc of our lives depends largely on the environment we're born into. The social norms of behavior, the availability of resources, the cultural and familial values, all of these are as important as one's work ethic. Am I a hard worker? Yes. Am I successful? Yes. But there are millions of Americans who work as hard as I do yet are floundering economically because they don't have a means of upward mobility.

Education truly is the great equalizer. However, millions lack access to fundamentally sound learning opportunities, and many of those who are so fortunate take it for granted. Life really isn't fair. Those who deserve more often have to give the most. And sometimes those who are undeserving are given the keys without any gratitude or appreciation for what they're able to drive. Knowledge is the ultimate key to rising in the system, but even that alone is no guarantee you'll be able to ascend to a respectable place.

As I sit on this balcony and appreciate the soothing sounds of water and the orange glow of the setting sun on the palm trees, I realize I'm fortunate. Yes I've worked hard to get to where I'm at, but I was also positioned to succeed. I was born in a safe and prosperous country to parents who took their responsibilities seriously and whose families valued education and its role in helping one become a happy and productive member of society. It was assumed I would go to college and eventually pursue an advanced degree. That was the norm of my family, and as such, it was easy to accept that as what my reality should be.

I think one of the greatest gifts an educator can bestow upon his students is the gift of vision - to help them conceive of a personal reality that stretches beyond the borders and limitations that have been placed on them or that they have placed on themselves. And one of the greatest challenges educators face is the sense of entitlement and infallibility that those who have been given the keys feel they've earned just for showing up. It's a constant challenge to balance the multiple personae necessary to motivate and educate a classroom of students.  On some days it's an impossible task, yet on others, when all parts are playing harmoniously, there is nothing more rewarding or satisfying.

Canon S90 Review

This holiday season I received a present that has rekindled my enjoyment and appreciation of photography, the Canon Powershot S90 digital camera. Ever since the digital revolution began at the turn of the century, my experience with photography has been limited to point-and-shoot cameras that had paltry manual controls. Given the high price of digital SLRs, I was content to compromise camera creativity and artistic freedom for portability and convenience. Well, with the S90, I no longer need to make that trade-off.

While the S90 doesn't have the image quality of true single-lens reflex cameras, it packs an above-average size sensor that's closer to those found on full-size rigs. It also has a fast f/2.0 lens that lets twice as much light in as most compact cameras. The larger sensor and wider (faster) lens provide greater image quality and better shots under low light conditions. But I did not decide on this camera just for its sensor and lens. What sets the S90 apart from other point-and-shoots is a fully programmable control ring on the front of the camera that allows the user to adjust shutter speed, aperture, ISO, focus, zoom, exposure, or white-balance.

The selection of the front ring's function determines the setting of a second control wheel located on the back of the camera. For example, I have my front ring set to control aperture. As a result, the rear wheel defaults to control shutter speed. And, as if that weren't enough manipulation, an easy-to-access programmable shortcut button allows me to change the ISO with the flick of a finger. In the days of film, a photographer would be stuck with whatever speed was in the camera. When I used to carry my Olympus OM-2 everywhere, I usually went with 200-speed film. It provided some flexibility in low-light situations, while also allowing for high-quality outdoor shots when lighting was optimal.

With the Canon S90, I now have the portability of a point-and-shoot with a full array of easy-to-manipulate manual controls previously found only in SLRs. While it's going to take me a little while to learn how to wield all of the camera's features to their potential, I'm looking forward to becoming acquainted with this new camera that's willing to let me be an equal participant in composition process.

If you're seriously considering purchasing this camera, I can't recommend enough Richard Franiec's S90 Grip. Aside from making the camera more sturdy to hold, it's also made it more enjoyable to use, as it really feels right on your fingers. Plus, it looks cool, and appears to have been part of the camera's original construction. The image of the S90 above features the grip. The first link in this post takes you to Canon's website where you can see the camera without the grip.

S90 image from lensmateonline.com, accessed 1/1/10

My classroom

Ever since I started this blog, I'd been meaning to post photos of my classroom. Well, here they are:

Above is the door to my room.

Here is the view once you walk inside.

My semblance of organization. Class handouts and important documents can be found on this desk.

The other side of the desk where I conduct my business.

My quad-core Intel i7 PC and sweet 23-inch LCD monitor, gifts to myself at the start of the new school year. Also pictured is a wide format color inkjet printer, an old HP LaserJet that still gets the job done, and, on the left corner of my desk, a netbook our assistant superintendent purchased for me to use with my students.

The back of my classroom, featuring nine fully networked, Internet-ready PCs. The one on the far right was purchased for my classroom by the school. The others I acquired secondhand over the last couple of years.

The Literary Treasure Trove, my classroom library.

The wooden Thai frog that I "play" to get students' attention when we're transitioning to a new activity.

Elegance in writing

Props to Bruce Schauble for this post on elegance. I also appreciated the Universal Intellectual Standards he referenced.

This year my school is focusing on (among other things) higher order thinking skills, so the above materials are timely and appropriate.

Thanks, too, for these Reading Response Moves. For those of you who haven't checked it out, Bruce's blog, Throughlines, is a must read.

I snapped the above photo in a state forest in Western Massachusetts with a Canon PowerShot SD750 this October.

The end of slideshows

I don't remember where I first learned of Animoto, a web-based program that allows you to upload photos and music to create a video animation, but I am excited about its potential for use in the classroom - as well as for fun with friends and family. I hope you enjoy the above images and tune.

The Africa pictures were taken in 1998 during a safari to Tanzania and Kenya. The shot of the boys playing catch in the ocean was snapped in St. John four years ago. I took the picture of the graveyard in my hometown back in the 90's, and developed it in my high school's darkroom. I would imagine that today, with the advent of digital developing, the darkroom no longer exists.

Despite the efficiency and affordability of computer-assisted photo processing, there's something I miss about using an enlarger to burn images onto slick white sheets of contact paper.

A few of the Africa shots in the animation were stylized using Adobe Photoshop. The tune is a jazz-inspired version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow." Click here for a soulful rendition by the late Eva Cassidy on YouTube.

Power and light

While out for a ride on my scooter this afternoon, I happened upon the above rainbow. As I sat in traffic waiting for the light to change, I took a moment to observe those around me. Many stood mesmerized by the natural light display. Some snapped photos with cellphones. It seemed that for the 60 seconds I waited at the light, all was well with the world.

My concerns - be they personal, professional, or worldly - ceased to exist. The apartment to clean, the essays to read, and student recommendation letters to write were forgotten. The heinous conflict in the Middle East and constant news reports about the destruction of the environment and the downward spiral of our country were temporarily out of mind.

Panning my head I saw happy couples sipping lattes at a local cafe and college students walking aimlessly down the sidewalk, all soaking in the colorful arc from above. I thought about civilizations that existed before science, and wondered what justification tribal leaders gave for such a brilliant phenomenon.

When the traffic light changed I pulled the throttle and accelerated through the intersection, another moment of my life gone, another experience relegated to memory.

Header beautification

Thanks to this helpful post from Paul Stamatiou, and this post from Tips For New Bloggers, I was able to crop a picture I shot from the Appalachian Trail of clouds floating above the Blue Ridge Mountains and paste it into my header as a background image.

The key was sizing the image correctly. To fit it inside the header boarders, I cropped the picture to 640 x 140, with a resolution of 180 pixels.

With only one week of school left, I will soon be able to dedicate more time to improving both the aesthetics and content of this blog. One of the things I'd like to do is upload the 12 or so newspaper columns I wrote about my attempted thru-hike of the Appalachian Trail in 2001. When all was said and done, I hiked for three months and traversed 1,000 miles.

I have about 1,000 to go. Last summer I hiked 45 miles in Massachusetts and Vermont. This summer a friend and I will be doing another 70 in Mass. It is my hope that I can continue to log 50 to 100 miles each summer for the next 10-15 years, and finish the trail by the time I'm in my (gulp) early 40s.

The value of photographs

Despite a penchant for the written word, I'm a guy who digs images. In high school I spent hundreds of hours in the photography class darkroom developing pictures. I carried my father's 1978 Olympus OM-2 everywhere, snapping shots of friends, nature, and random occurrences.

I like adding a visual element to my blog. I feel a blog post is best digested with an accompanying image. It's also possible for images to stand on their own.

Originally I was thinking I would create a separate blog page to post some of my stories, photos, and poems. Yesterday I deleted that page, and made the decision to post that content here, on my main blog page.

I'm trying to find the best way to balance and organize my blog. I'm also trying to appeal to a variety of audiences.

I hope you enjoy this photo. It was taken two years ago in Killington, VT, near the Appalachian Trail. Given that we're in for more snow this week, it seemed fitting.