This semester in the UMass M.Ed Instructional Design program I’m taking a course on selecting and evaluating instructional materials. I was thrilled when the instructor of this course kicked things off with a bit of Marshall McLuhan. Ah, that Old Time McLuhan Religion… it brought back memories of sultry summer nights driving through downtown Montreal, listening to Dromotexte on CKUT [...]
Filed under: Career, Diversions, Instructional Design, Learning | 4 Comments »
You know how some people have, as part of their email signature, a little green tree/river graphic with the words “Please consider the environment before printing this email?” Well, we’re officially at peak Decorative Gourd Season, so I think I’m going to start inserting random decorative gourds at the bottom of my work emails. Things like this… [...]
Filed under: Diversions, humor, Uncommon Comestibles | Leave a Comment »
Over 150 students have enrolled in my “Word Power: Vocabulary Builder” course on SpacedEd. Try it out at: http://www.spaceded.com/DanSpira/courses/299-Word-Power-Vocabulary-Builder …it’s fun, fast, free, and colloquially expansive!
Filed under: Diversions, Jargon, Learning | Leave a Comment »
Last Friday an oral surgeon cut into my gums with a blade, then using a high-power saw, some clamps and brute force, cut and tore out two large teeth from the back of my jaw. They call them wisdom teeth because apparently when you have them removed, you’re supposed to be smart enough to give [...]
Filed under: Diversions | 2 Comments »
The Meme Menagerie will be returning from vacation in Japan shortly.
Filed under: Diversions, music | Leave a Comment »
What is it about the combination of food and government antics that send journalists into a pun-frenzy? Never mind the Europeans and their food regulations. Here’s what the news ticker looks like regarding the whole White House “Beer Summit” silliness: White House “beer summit” aims to quench racial flap Beer Diplomacy: The Red, Light and Blue [...]
Filed under: Diversions, Uncommon Comestibles | 1 Comment »
Dragon’s Eggs… they’re just like popcorn, only buttered with a magnesium-aluminum alloy… Tasty! Whistlers… or as D.E.S. would call them, Screaming-Slytherin-Quiddich-Players-From-Hello-Without-the-O Scrambling Comets… cf. Whistlers Salute… used for those grande finales, blinding-Titanium-white explosions of earth-shaking, ear-splitting, bowel-moving power The World’s Biggest Firework Shell… 48 inches of incinerating love… haven’t seen this one personally, but apparently [...]
Filed under: Art, Diversions | Leave a Comment »
