The New Semester

The new semester starts today. I have been here all spring and summer, but it still feels like a renewal. You know when you are tired beyond all things and then POOF, after a shower or a 15-minute nap you are relieved?

That is the feeling that the 4 true days of absolutely nothing to do (no grades to enter, no syllabi to copy, no theological reading to outline) has had on me. I am renewed, refreshed and revived. I am ready to hit this semester with both fists!

It may be a little jarring for my English 132 students tomorrow, but I am going in honest and straight-forward. It usually sends them "runningk for zee hillz" but we'll see.

So to all of those newly green freshmen, smart-ass sophomores, and beyond...happy fall semester. NOW GET TO WORK! I AM WATCHING YOU!

An Interesting Look at SE Ohio

Whenever I get to spend a few days back home, I always try to get down to the Ohio River to drive the routes along the river bank. The bank is peppered with little towns with fabulous little gems. In Gallipolis, if you are driving through the main square, there is a great little 50's dinner with an enormously diverse menu (for SE Ohio, that is). There are comfortable little side roads (off the main river roads) that will take you through coal reclamation country. Some hills are clear cut in attempts to bring in a little bit cash for the landowner (or developer/outside investor).

In one little hiccup of a town, Chesire, Ohio. The air is filled with smog and thick smoke (apparently toxic, thick smoke). The electric company (owner of the local coal-burning power plant), bought out most of the town's residents. They took some money with the promise never to seek retribution on the company, etc. (regular legal stuff). There are a few remaining residents who refuse to sell out and hold tight to what little is theirs, their property.

Well, there was a recent picture that captures the disparity of SE Ohio. Large house, coal stacks in the background and the smog forming. Check it out here.

Beliot College Mindset List for the Class of 2014

Imagine living in a world without the 30-minute Domino's Delivery Guarantee? Imagine never having known the joy of parental advisory-less television viewing? Now you have walked a moment in the shoes of this year's upcoming freshmen class. 1992 was the year that Gansta Rap and Grunge hit the musical scene. It was also the year of birth for these greenhorns.

On the upside, a quarter of these youngins have immigrant parents. This means that the country I grew up in is no longer here...I like it.

Read the list HERE.

As Bob Dylan reminds us:

"Come gather 'round people
Wherever you roam
And admit that the waters
Around you have grown
And accept it that soon
You'll be drenched to the bone.
If your time to you
Is worth savin'
Then you better start swimmin'
Or you'll sink like a stone
For the times they are a-changin'"