The Snail

To the gastropod, its glacial pace

is not from sloth, but imagined grace

but natural selections’s cruel portion

has arranged it through torsion

it must wear its own ass on its face.

WDS 2/25/2012

generic haiku

gerunding the noun

the subject verbed adverbly

subtle denouement

winter bird haiku

the bird in winter

sings to reassure itself

that it is alive

Old Custer

“Well, everyone knows Custer died at Little Bighorn. What this book presupposes is…maybe he didn’t.”

The crickets and the rust-beetles scuttled among the nettles of the sage thicket. “Vámonos, amigos,” he whispered, and threw the busted leather flintcraw over the loose weave of the saddlecock. And they rode on in the friscalating dusklight.

Some unsolicited advice for the President’s reelection campaign

Here’s an idea for a poster (too much for a bumper sticker)

OBAMA
Not as terrible as W was,
Not as disastrous as McCain would have been,
Not as awful as Mitt would be.

Because politics is a team sport, I feel confident (90%) that I will vote for Obama again, although if Romney is 5-6% ahead in Missouri going into the election, I’ll be tempted to acknowledge the mathematical and procedural reality of the electoral college by abstaining.

But… quit asking me for money.
I (we) donated (small potatoes) for a particular view of what our country should be. Instead, we have gotten status quo protection of the establishment. We’ve gotten center-right economics, diminishment of civil liberties, adoption of W’s monarchical signing statements, and the overriding priority of a second term over everything else. My wife (and smart friends) were right–I should have voted for Hillary.

As an aside… it is fascinating to watch many of those on the right continue to batter Obama with demonstrably false accusations — “socialist,” “counter-cultural,” “environmental radical,” “peacenik,” Muslim,” etc. etc. etc. So, one has to wonder what the motives (realized or not) are for their vitriol when Obama has practically governed as “one of them.”

And besides, Wouldn’t the lefty fringe be crowing about their ascendence if President Obama were really aiding their cause?

But alas, the confused and often hateful nature of many on the other side gives me no joy, no relief, no consolation.

So, my predictions from 9 months out:
Obama wins a relatively narrow 20-40 vote electoral college victory and 51% of the popular vote.
Republicans keep the house and take the Senate (52).
Divided government, gridlock, stalemate, sound and fury signifying nothing.

Ick

(bonus)
Clinton v. Ryan in 2016.

Wendell Berry – on the modern wealthy “Christian”

“Especially among Christians in positions of wealth and power, the idea of reading the Gospels and keeping Jesus’ commandments as stated therein has been replaced by a curious process of logic. According to this process, people first declare themselves to be followers of Christ, and then they assume that whatever they say or do merits the adjective “Christian”.”

A Powerful Mission: Providence St. Mel School (Chicago)

Providence St. Mel School Mission Statement

At Providence St. Mel, we believe.
We believe in the creation of inspired lives
produced by the miracle of hard work.
We are not frightened by the challenges of reality, but believe that we can change our conception of this world and our place within it.
So we work, plan, build, and dream – in that order.
We believe that one must earn the right to dream.
Our talent, discipline, and integrity will be our contribution to a new world.
Because we believe that we can take this place, this time, and this people, and make a better place, a better time, and a better people.
With God’s help, we will either find a way or make one.

I love the school I teach at, but we don’t have a mission. We have a mission statement, but that’s not the same thing. Before I’m done, I want to teach at a school like Providence St. Mel. I want to teach kids who have a hunger for something better, a discomfort with the ordinary and an impatience to get where they’re going. I want all of that for me, too.

We have all of these currents pushing and pulling us toward one reform or another, yet I’m not persuaded that any of them are headed where we need to go, or for that matter, are strong enough to move us out of the becalmed center channel.

Tomorrow, I start again. May I see my mission clearly, teach energetically and skillfully, and serve graciously.

Thanksgiving approaches

I know Thanksgiving is almost here because we are down to the dregs of the Halloween candy:

Smarties
Dum Dums
Cherry Twizzlers
Lifesaver Gummies
Laffy Taffy (lots of banana)
petrified bubble gum and Tootsie Rolls
Almond Joy (the only chocolate left in the house – protected by the very effective anti-herbivore chemical — coconut)

Happy Nigel Tufnel Day!

Turn it to eleven!

Bolivar Girls Tennis – State runner-up!

Congratulations to the Bolivar High School (Missouri) Girls Tennis team for their second-place finish yesterday in the Missouri Class 1 Team tournament. This program has been a quiet force in Southwest Missouri tennis for the past 12 years. Here’s a rundown of the way the past 12 years have finished for Coach Linda Roller’s teams (including 9 final fours):

2 losses in sectionals to the eventual state champion (Notre Dame de Scion)

1 State Quarterfinal

6 times 4th place

2 times 3rd place

1 time (yesterday) 2nd place

Congratulations again to Coaches Roller and Ware and all the Lady Liberators.