Books The book Paul Clifford is the source of the phrase “It was a dark and stormy night”. The full first opening line of the book is: It was a dark and stormy night; the rain fell in torrents—except at occasional intervals, when it was checked by a violent gust of wind which swept up…
Author: Penelope Gordon
Message in an vBottle
The following idea was triggered by the article “Return of a castaway” in the 2012 September 17 print edition of the Christian Science Monitor about students at a school in Maine who launch (wine) bottles which enclosed messages into the Gulf of Maine every year. A recent article on a school in Mass. that sends…
Bicycling
Checklist Helmet – Check the expiration date! The foam breaks down over time. Brakes and gears in good working order – A bike that hasn’t been ridden in a while probably needs lubrication inside the rear gear box as well as on the chain. Newer gears ‘bite’ the chain better but also cause the chain…
IT Workforce
Related CV Employees Nutriate blog post Return of on-the-job training (in factories) – article in the 2012 September 17 print edition of the Christian Science Monitor Coursera IT Professions The September 2012 experience of NFL games referred by replacements while the experienced professionals were locked out by the NFL owners (over a contract dispute) is…
Southern Folk Stories
Sister Tricksters: Rollicking Tales of Clever Females retells folk stories of the American South which feature female tricksters. As noted in the insightful introduction, these trickster tales should not be confused with morality tales: the tricksters don’t get their comeuppance for their amoral behavior, and they certainly are not repentant. That’s not to say that…
What's in a Box?
A balikbayan box is gift box sent by an overseas Filipino to family and friends in the Philippines. There are several companies specializing in the shipment of balikbayan boxes. The industry organization PASA (Philipino American Shipper’s Association) enables approved companies to more easily get shipments through inspections and to help senders avoid service problems. Bento…
What’s in a Box?
A balikbayan box is gift box sent by an overseas Filipino to family and friends in the Philippines. There are several companies specializing in the shipment of balikbayan boxes. The industry organization PASA (Philipino American Shipper’s Association) enables approved companies to more easily get shipments through inspections and to help senders avoid service problems. Bento…
Sustainability Metrics
SASB (Sustainability Accounting Standards Board) was founded in 2011 to report sustainability metrics alongside financial performance.
Teaching Grit
Teaching Social and Emotional Skills in Schools | MindShift. – 2012 September 20 “Back to School” on This American Life, Episode 474, first aired 2012 September 14 How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character by Paul Tough
“Jack of Fables”
The nine volume graphic novel series Jack of Fables written by Bill Willingham tells the story of the trickster Jack (e.g. Little Jack Horner, Jack the Giant Killer (from Jack and the Beanstalk), and Jack B. Nimble – with overtones of the Jackal from other mythologies), his son Jack Frost, sidekick Gary the Pathetic Fallacy…