Vergil’s Coffee

I finished out the first week of running with a long run of 5 miles…nice run and I took the Bethany route and back.

Yesterday was the day of Jubilee…the one day out of 49 that the boys get to have as much computer time as they want. Yesterday’s game: Lego: Star Wars: Volume 1. Much fun.

Tonight is the Judson special NYEve celebration. Jeff is here and the last film of the evening: The Boy in the Plastic Bubble…yes the John Travolta running in the suit at the end made-for-tv film from back then.

Nothing beats good movies and friends and games and a bottle of Korbel to top off the end of the year. (BTW: We’re at the part where the father (Mr. Brady) is playing “catch” with through thick rubber gloves in the infant hamster trail for the Bubble Boy. (Oh wait, the tv crew is cover the “coming home”)).

Also, I need to clarify (oh, Tina just ran up to the Bubble Boy)…Mike Brady just got made at the tv crew and said “Hell” and that his son is not a “freak.” Anyway…I need to clarify “Korbel“: For a few years (especially my high school years) I grew up by the Russian River and I would travel through the Korbel vineyards outside of Guerneville every morning on my way to school. So, I drink a glass out of memory of those 3 years…beautiful drive through those fields.

Happy New Year! (BTW: The neighbors are visiting Toddy in his home hamster trail…and Tina is licking the bubble now…oh, go buy the film or better yet, buy it at a gas station…that’s where Bruce got this copy).

Your results:
You are Superman

Superman 70% Robin 62% Green Lantern 60% The Flash 55% Spider-Man 50% Iron Man 40% Supergirl 40% Catwoman 35% Batman 35% Hulk 30% Wonder Woman 25%

You are mild-mannered, good, strong and you love to help others.

Click here to take the Superhero Personality Quiz

I’ve run my maintence runs for the WEEK 1 of my training schedule and actually I haven’t had so much the “legs tired” or “lungs tight” as much as “why am I doing this?” I ran 3miles Monday, Wed, Thurs…mostly using the Millrace route for now and I’m planning to run the same routes next week until I get used to the whole running business.

Some updates: my mom called the day before she was to fly out and said that she was sick with the crud and now as we all look back at it, it might have been for the better (with all of the people lines at airports as a result of Denver being shut down for a spell). So, it was a Xmas of the boys and Ken and Doris and here are the pictures to prove it.

And now, as the Chess world is trying to find out why drug testing would help the sport, players are now being scanned for the Cheating Potential of Hats. Even the recent World Chess Championship yielded some accusations and it seems that if you are doing well, then you must be cheating.

I’m finishing the planning of a new blog entitled bashing education and I should be writing regularly there next week. I’m exploring the world of technology and education and how the two mix together as well as oil and water. What I mean is that in almost every state, a technology standard has been set in education, yet most of the policy makers and policy enforcers have not a clue on how one can use technology for learning. Most software and hardware makers have an educational angle, but rarely will you find that there’s much to back up their claims (a lot of generalizations and spin talk…much like listening to classical music makes your baby smarter). So, in this blog, I hope to reflect on where we are at in the technology-education dialogue and then possibly give some ideas for where we could head with the conversation.

Now, time to finish my second cup of Senseo coffee.

Here’s mine…still trying to figure out how to put it as a sidebar widget:

And I’m not what right I have to call it a “season,” but it works for me and my schedule.

Pretty cool running this morning (31 degrees F; 3 mile route). As in previous “first-days-of-new-season” post, my lungs are not just ready and my legs are a tad tired. (It’s been since the week or so after Columbus). I listened to some Xmas music (Sarah McLachlan and Celtic Woman…I know, smile and nod) along with some Bruce Hornsby. The run was fine and I wanted to get out a week before the training really begins.

This year I’m aiming at the Kentucky Derby Marathon in late April 2007 to begin with, which allows for an early June race, another in September and possibly end with Grand Rapids in October.

Until then, my 18 weeks begins Tuesday and my mom spends her first Christmas with us (she flies in tomorrow night).

Taking a break from decorating

Originally uploaded by vergil66.

Got the Easter Egg from Lifehacker (via Flickr).

From the “Oh, he must be a prudish English Teacher” dept.:

Folk:

Santa Claus is the person who gives gifts and likes to eat and likes happiness…

The Santa Clause is the Tim Allen movie.

Here’s a little discussion thread among teachers finding the misspell.

Following a “natural trend” because of perceptions: (From PEN)

MILWAUKEE POLICE TO BE STATIONED INSIDE SOME SCHOOLS
Milwaukee police officers will be assigned for the first time to full-time duty inside city public schools under an agreement between police and Milwaukee Public Schools leaders. The effort to improve school safety will begin small — with two pairs of officers in the spring semester, which begins in late January — but all involved hope that it will grow by next fall, provided that money can be found to do that. Mayor Tom Barrett said the pilot efforts to have police work as “resource officers” in schools should help curb school violence and are a step in the right direction. “Students, staff, parents and the community all want kids to feel safe going to school and want the schools to be safe,” Barrett said in an interview. An opinion poll shows strong public support for safety measures, reports Alan J. Borsuk. Asked what services were important for MPS to provide, city residents in the poll put three things connected to safety at the top of the list. The services — violence prevention, drug and alcohol use prevention, and improved safety and discipline — were each rated as “extremely important” by more than 80% of all people surveyed.