October 2011
21 posts
5 tags
More stories a click away
Pardon the lull in blogging. Lately I’ve been turning out words for other online publications and preparing research for an upcoming conference.
You can find one of my stories — sort of like the newspaper columns I used to write — at this link for Elon’s employee newsletter. It’s about learning how to adjust to classroom teaching here at the University of the...
So hard and civilized: The final words
The English-language Tripoli Post ran some passages that elevated my heartbeat tonight as it reported on the end of dictator Muammar Gaddafi, spelled Al Qathafi in the Post.
First came reports that the former leader had been injured but perhaps was still alive. Check this brilliant quote from Mahmoud Shammam, the information minister of the National Transition Council:
“We are going to put him...
A courteous start for a visiting sensei
I’ve now talked my way through my first class sessions, one in American Culture & Society and another in Media English II. The students started arriving 20 minutes early and were kind enough to stay awake almost the whole time.
Actually, just one fellow nodded off, but he dropped the course. Which means I’m working with a group that is entirely alert as yet. And polite. Did...
September 2011
19 posts
Before classes begin, a bash of energy
Part of the routine here is for student clubs to hold a huge festival on the weekend before classes resume for the fall. Remember that in Japan, the school year starts in April. The first semester runs through the end of July or early August.
Then a break for hot weather. The University of Ryukyus starts later than most to wait out the worst of the typhoon season.
After a good-sized break...
