Freedom Writers for free

If you are a teacher, you can see the movie Freedom Writers for free this week through Thursday at any AMC Theater. Sarah and I went to see it last night and enjoyed it immensely! The movie is a realistic view of a very tough inner city school where the teacher helps her students see the hope and humanity in life. In doing so, all of their lives are changed! It was inspirational to see the heart the main character had for her students and her dedication to her profession. Watching the movie made me proud to be a teacher.

Perhaps the coolest part is that the movie is based on a true story. Check it out!

Hope dunk!

A sweet dunk by my alma mater's bball team. If only they had played like this when I was in school!

Jason Cash with the play-by-play.

The Courage to Teach

The music director at Liberti gave me a book to read today. It's called The Courage to Teach, by Parker Palmer. He used to teach high school in Nashville at both public and private schools. He lent it to me after we talked about me teaching in West Philly. It looks really good, and Amazon's ratings were favorable. It's cool how God allows unexpected blessings to fall into the day's events. =)

Thrifty shopping

There are two dollar stores by my house: Dollar General and Dollar House. Dollar House is a true dollar store--each item in the store costs a dollar. Dollar General has, I think, suffered from inflation, and it has items costing $8 or higher...some of which exceed the price of the grocery store next to it! I think it's false advertising somehow. If you're a dollar store, stick with a dollar price! Don't claim that because all your goods cost DOLLARS that you can call yourself a dollar store! There really are a lot of products that are available at the dollar store that can save money. For example, today I bought some 200feet of plastic wrap, 6 sponges, and ziplock bags...all for $3 total! Certainly, there are some products that should not have quality compromised, but those things? I'll take the cheap stuff, thank you very much.

Word of the day? Eructation. (thanks Sarah!)

This week seems long for some reason. My theory is that I haven't had a full 5-day week in about 7 weeks! Either MLK Day, New Year's, faculty meeting, or some other reason has altered the schedule. So this is what it feels like to have a real job...

Monday night cooks

Seth and I have started cooking lessons with a friend from church named Kamil (or K-meal, as the sign in his kitchen says). It's been wonderful! We head over there with Murphy on Monday nights, and he teaches us how to make a dish from scratch. Our first night we made spaghetti--not just regular spaghetti...the REAL italian stuff! It was the best spaghetti I've ever eaten. Plus, he gives us cooking tips as we go about preparing the food. Kamil said he would love to be a regular chef, but the hour keep him from doing so. He's considering the option of offering his services to private parties, where the commitment is much less. His dad owned a grocery store as a kid, and his mom always made huge Lebonese meals from scratch. Now when he goes home, his mom begs him to cook! The guy has a lot of life experiences.

This week we made orange/herb stuffed chicken with breadcrumb fennel Another true success!!! Seth takes copius notes so we can whip up the delightful dinners at another time to impress our guests. Here are some pictures:

Democratic candidates

The top two democratic candidates for president announced their campaigns this past week, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. Interestingly enough, both of them chose to use video and the Web as a means of broadcasting their message. I believe--and this isn't just the computer teacher in me talking--that the candidate that will win over the most swing voters will be the one who harnesses the power of the Internet best. Speaking of such, here are the two videos I mentioned, curtesy of YouTube. (notice the blooming trees and flowers behind Hillary...where are trees blooming like that in New York? Did she tape this recently? Not that it really matters; I was just wondering)

Brotherly love in Philadelphia

Reese Cottage came to visit this weekend! Peter Van Wylen, Brian Mulder, and Scott Parrott braved the 13-hour drive from Michigan and came to visit the East Coast from Thurday to Sunday. Dan and Krista Carter came down from Princeton, NJ to share in the wonderful fellowship. We had a delightful time! We hung out at my house, visited my schools, toured Center City, ate Philly Cheese Steaks from Pats, meet Seth/Murphy/Pete, took pictures outside the art museum, and visited Sarah's apartment. It was so good to be able to share some of my life here with them. The main reaction to my house was that it was narrow (it is!), but they said they enjoyed experiencing my life here. As expected, the visit was too short, but we had a wonderful time.

Peter and Brian outside Cabellas on the drive down.

Outside the Art Museum.

Scarfing down one of Philly's classic meals. (although far from gormet!)

The gang! (minus Seth, who graciously provided his services as a photographer)