In the last year or so, the St Louis Symphony Orchestra (SLSO) has been designing new programs and series in an effort to attract new audiences into Powell Hall to support the musical endeavors of the SLSO. If you haven't checked out what they're doing this season, please click here. I guarantee that you'll find something that fits your style.
Last year, we bought season tickets for the Piwacket Theatre for Children which performs at the Black Cat Theatre in Maplewood. Piwacket is professional theatre that is informal and family-friendly. Each Piwacket production brings to life a classic, yet popular tale that everyone remembers from childhood (with a strong character education make-over). You and your kids will both give Piwacket a thumbs up because fidgeting, walking around, talking, and bathroom breaks during the production are not just acceptable, they're the norm.
The only company that we haven't had a chance to see yet is the Metro Theatre Company but we've heard great things about them. In fact, I think that a wife of colleague of mine is an actor with this company. Any others that I've omitted?
The main point of Olson's research can be summarized into one simple but enormously important sentence: Race is a social construct. If you'd like to know why or you disagree then I urge you to read Olson's book. Its well researched, well written, and well worth the time.
Hendrick Avercamp, Winter Landscape, late 16th century, Oil on wood
Pieter Bruegel the Elder, The Hunters in the Snow 1565; Oil on panel
Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Winter Landscape with a Bird Trap 1565; Oil
Since starting this blog in 06', I've never been at a loss of an adventure, an opinion, a photo, or any other reason to blog. But lately, I find myself with a serious case of the bloggin' blah's. I have suspicions why this is so, but I'll keep them to myself for now. In the mean time, here is a photo of two of my three favorite mammals.
12:04 pm, December 08, 2004. Willa Katherine Henske was born. 4 years ago today. Happy Birthday Willa!
The honeymoon period with Bob was great. His squawking was lovable, his tricks were funny and novel, and his obsessive pacing along on his perch was mesmerizing. Eventually, though, I got frustrated with the poop, the feathers, the seeds, and the countless number of Bill's shirts that were in need of repair (Bob could unbutton and button your shirt but he, unfortunately, would create new "button holes" with his beak creating a shirt that looked liked it had been visited by some hungry moths). And as much as those things bothered me, I might have been able to tolerate them had Bob not turned on me.
While things didn't work out between Bob and I, I still do consider myself to be somewhat of a bird enthusiast. As the seasons change, I enjoy birdwatching and bird-listening, whether it's on a trail or in my backyard. Seeing the beauty of a common bird or one that is harder to spot like a kestrel can be an amazing thing. Which is why I totally respect what the folks at the World Bird Sanctuary are doing in trying to rehabilitate injured birds and provide homes for those that cannot go back in the wild. I go there as often as I can to view the birds and give my support to the birds because, let's face it, we owe them. Afterall, we've destroyed a lot of their natural habitats for our own perogatives. Anyway, you should go. It's a quite drive. Plus, you can drive through Lone Elk Park and see the bison and elk herds.
I also love finding winter berries. What's the attraction? Quite simply, I think it's the spots of bright color juxtaposed against such enormous grayness. They just pop, pop, pop (to quote my principal) when you stumble upon them.
This weird neighborhood sign was spotted on my street, about two houses south of me. It's been affixed to a No Parking/Street Cleaning Schedule sign. 
It's the official beginning of the holiday season. Up first? Thanksgiving. Yep, time for family, friends, and feast. After you've eaten too much, watched too much of the football game, had one too many cocktails, you know, generally overindulged yourself, why don't you head on over to Heifer International and share the wealth. You'll feel good that you did!
Today was our first day of Thanksgiving Break. What a gorgeous day! So, after lunch at The Royale, we took my Dad, who is visiting from Texas, to the Botanical Garden. Normally, we're at the garden a couple of times a month but for whatever reason we just haven't gone much since the spring. I'm so glad that we decided to go today; we practically had the place to ourselves. No crowds, no human noise -- just the sound of nature. Ain't it grand? 
The Conclusion: When I got home, I did follow through. In fact, I even used the NeilMed. To my relief, it wasn't too bad. The solution was noticeably salty and, at first, a little easy to choke on as you squeezed the solution to your nostril (but easy to stop the choking too). The weirdest part was the very strange feeling of the mucus and sinus slime draining out of your nostril while, at the same time, also creating a blockage of that same said nostril. I didn't feel any immediate relief but did feel a little clearer and less congested the next morning. 
My friend and co-worker Dando has great Spidey-sense and knew intuitively that a pre-holiday, pre-progress reports happy hour was needed by all. So she sent out the invite, picked the spot, Nick's Pub in the city, and hoped that a few friends would show. My district is not very big but we owned Nick's that night (well, at least for the 3 hours that we were there). We had almost a full MS showing and the HS turn out was pretty good too. Shout out to the MS & HS Math peeps! You get the "Most Drunks in the Department" award by having 100% turn out.
Okay. Big election news. Sorry, Barack. This rant is not about you. In a bold, dramatic gesture, we elected our first black president thereby showing the world, at least superficially, that as a nation we are trying to put our racist reputation behind us. But, hey, world! Don't get too excited. Prop 8 passed. It amended the CA Constitution to legally discriminate against gay rights(i.e. human rights). According to this source and this source and this source and this source, it is purported that many of the same groups that showed up in large numbers, theoretically to support Prez Elect Barack Obama, also voted in favor of Prop 8 in CA. True? False? What about the Mormons? Unless they publish the election results by demographic, we'll never really know which groups overwhelming voted for or against Prop 8. 
Military service is, thankfully, not a tradition in my family. So, the only real memories of Veteran's Day that I have come solely from my childhood and having the day off school. And what American kid doesn't love having a day off of school? Woo Hoo! But seriously, I hate the military because I hate war. Hate it, hate it, hate it. No good reason for it either -- although I'd agree that going to war when the US is invaded might be justified as a temporary solution. Otherwise, I see very little evidence that problems can't be resolved without violence, i.e. peacefully, with sincere words and ethical actions. But, until everyone thinks the same way as me, I guess I have to live in a world where stopping violence or abuse or oppression with violence or abuse or oppression is the acceptable, even preferred, norm. Despite my personal feelings about war, and even military recruitment practices (that's another blog entry) I am still grateful for those Americans that have enlisted in the military, especially with the knowledge that they might be called to serve (and die). And I am grateful that we have a day reserved to honor people that have served and sacrificed. Both of my grandfathers served, Grandpa Dean in the US Army Air Corps and Grandpa Johnny in the US Navy. And while they have passed on, I am proud this Veteran's Day to put aside my personal beliefs about the war to remember and honor them for their service and sacrifice. 
Hopefully everyone got out there today, as I did, to cast a vote for our nation's next president. Wow! It felt good to vote. It felt good to throw my support behind a candidate that I hope will lead us away from debt, bullying, problem-ignoring, and embarrassment and toward domestic and foreign policies that not only help Americans immediately but that also work to eliminate the underlying socio-economic issues that cause the problems in the first place. I'll sign off for now. Got an election to watch. And, you betcha, I wouldn't miss that for the world. 
Despite still being one hacking cough and gasp away from the netherworld, I decided to go to the Mad Art Gallery to listen to Sarah Vowell read from her new book, The Wordy Shipmates with my friend, Colette. Much to my surprise, my loud, unproductive coughing did not lead to me being thrown out by security. And I'm glad for that because Vowell was very smart, very interesting, and very amusing. In fact, I think that I'm going to require that my incoming 09/10 AP kids read this book over the summer. 
Halloween is not a favorite holiday of mine. Sure, I enjoyed it as a youngster but not at all since I entered young adulthood. The costumes, the haunted houses, the parties, and the pranks are just not my cup o' tea. Now, because Willa has figured out Halloween, I have to pretend to like it, even if it's just for one night. So, last night we put on our smiles and took Willa out trick or treating with her friend Evan (more kids in their neighborhood than ours). She had a great time and, despite my initial apprehension, I genuinely enjoyed myself. My beef (and you know that I have one)? The rude behavior of the questionably costumed, suspiciously tall, totally aggressive, I'm stocking up for the cold season kids and their parents. I get that, for some kids, it's cool to try to "fool" candy-givers into thinking that you're 8 when you're really 15. Ha ha. Good one. Didn't see that coming. So, okay, I'll play the game--I'll pretend to not notice the gianormous hobo with the smooth beginnings of a 'stache when he approaches for a treat. But, in return, is it too much to ask that the kids with pubes not push my kid (or any one elses kid), cut in line, or demonstrate any other aggressive behavior toward the kids that have a right to be out there in the first place? And that their parents, yes, some of them actually did bring along their parents, be adults and agree. I think not. 
Eric Zorn is the columnist from the Chicago Tribune who made me a little nervous with his list of reasons that Obama would lose the election of Tuesday (see last post). Now, Zorn has submitted his thoughts on why Obama will win the election. I don't share all of Zorn's opinions, but did find myself very interested and, sometimes, in agreement.
Cult of Obama or not, what I do not want to see is McCain win. Maybe it's all the medication co-mingling in my system but I'm feeling a whole lot anxious and shaky about the upcoming election on Tuesday. To acknowledge the obvious = yes, I know that Obama leads in the most recent polls. However, as an informed citizen and teacher of history I know enough not to trust that this lead is nearly as strong as it needs to be to ensure a victory. I've also been obsessed with this map - watching it, studying it, waiting to see if colors will change as we head toward Tuesday. I know it's a numbers game, but look at all that red! Then, I read this article this morning, which expresses some of the same opinions and concerns that I have held about Obama since his acceptance of the Democratic nomination. Weird co-winky-dink? Probably. But it has me worried. And, very, very interested.
Can't fight it. Can't change it. It is what it is. Twice a year--October and April--I get horribly, horribly sick, and probably will for the rest of my life. It begins as a sniffle or a tickle or even a shiver. Then, like Hurricane Ike, it gains momentum until it quickly, but finally, reaches shore. And by that time, you can't stop it, you can only brace yourself for the ride. And, yes, if you haven't figured it out yet, I am sick. Truly sick. Deathly sick. I have only a squeak of a voice left, beat up bones and internal organs from a cough so violent and so relentless that it has registered on the Richter Scale, throbbing temples and a headache that won't quit, asthmatic episodes, and dry heaving. Insult to injury? Everytime I cough, I wet my pants a little. Sexy. 
It's a Wednesday Rep night for Bill and I so we're off to see Emma, A New Musical. Most of the time, I think it's a bad idea to mess with a really rich, really exquisite, and nearly flawless work of fiction (or a classic literary character like Emma) by turning it into a movie, musical, etc. But, in this case, I'm thinking that Emma and music seem like a good match. UPDATE: It was a terrific match....as Emma might say, "Well, it was just simply delightful." Very witty, very entertaining. This production is a perfect starting point for the Jane-curious. And, for the more Jane-expert, the musical is a perfect compliment to her written work. Emma runs through November 2, 2008 so go see it!
Welker, one of the other MRH history teachers, and I took our Freshman Humanities kids to the Center for Human Origins and Cultural Diversity at UMSL. This little known anthropology lab has four-45 minute interactive stations for the kids to explore human evolution. Teachers that teach topics that involve human origins and evolution should definitely find a way to bring their kids here. The kids had so much fun that they forgot that they were learning!
