2010 Engadget Awards

Don't feel bad, I haven't heard of this event either.  It was just my unexpected day off and on-line stalking that forced be to run across this topic.

Now, before I begin my dissection of this awards ceremony, I have to start out by saying I hat my 'Shift' key.  I have not been able to adequately record my frustrations of said keyboard attachment, but I really can't take it anymore.  It's severely busted, and every time I try to fix it (by constantly pressing the key) my computer whigs out with that noise I can only describe as the noise one would hear constantly blaring from the subwoofers of Hell.  I swear, no volume control setting made by man can stifle it and it is unpredictable as to when, in my shift pounding frustration, it will occur.  Which is nice, because then I only have to poop my pants sometimes.

Anyway, I found this article that discussed the different kinds of technologies used to assist us and how they are rated.  Now, me not being a technology buff, I only really recognize some of the categories, but I figured I would share with you the site at which you can visit to vote (useful information), and also my insight as to what some of the winners should be (not useful information).  Enjoy!


Cellphone of the Year - So this is obviously biased, but I'd have to say the Samsung Alias 2.  This is mainly because, in a fit of frustrated rage, I set mine on top of my car to fix my battery, and thus drove off in my car whilst the Alias 2 was flung off my vehicle into an unknown location.  It's like the person you dated, and then they left without having known how you really felt.  A very Nicholas Sparks-ish tale...

Smartphone of the Year - The BlackBerry, duh.  I believe they have taken it a step FURTHER than smart phone to actually a degree phone, because unless you have a degree you can kiss your chances of ever learning how to use a BlackBerry goodbye.

Desktop of the Year- I didn't know they still made these...

Laptop of the Year- Mac.  Mac.  Anything Mac.

Netbook of the Year- Mead, 3 subject, college ruled, blue cover with flaps on the inside.  Oh, that says Netbook....

Digital Camera of the Year- Anything but the Kodak CD33-1

E-reader of the year - I don't know, I know everyone loves these things and all, but what are we going to do to protest inappropriate texts in the future?  Burning Kindles is so NOT going to be as cool as burning books.

Game Console of the Year- Wii.

Game Accessory of the Year- The headset that has now allowed adults to CONVERSE with the children that beat us in Halo.


GPS Device of the Year- Anything that doesn't land me in a small African village while on my way to the mall will do.  They're all about the same...unless they've made one that can make a killer latte.

Home Entertainment Device of the Year- American Idol.  I don't think there comes a more valid form of Home Entertainment than watching the preliminary rounds of auditions.  "PANTS ON THE GROUND!"

Robot of the Year- Okay, this is kind of creepy.  A) What constitutes as a robot, and B) Who owns one?  Can I just say Bi-centennial man and move on?  Thanks.

Storage Device or Technology of the Year- Is it just me, or does this award seem to acknowledge two COMPLETELY different concepts?  Storage device- backpack.  Technology-Apollo 11.  Are these two things similar?  I think not.

Wearable Device of the Year- Any cellphone, because let's face it- nobody ever freaking puts them down.  They might as well have 50 Cent endorse some kind of ridiculous, tricked out chain for the newest line of phones, because I think the next step is just flat out strapping them to our heads.  Might as well make it a fashion statement while we do it.

So...don't let MY well-rounded and extremely thought out opinions influence your decision, vote for yourself!

Hot Topic #1

So...after about a 5 month hiatus (and some nitpicking about my lack of keeping up) I have a new post to share, hooray!  To be perfectly honest, my plate of  life has been excessively full (think Chinese buffet-style full) and I haven't had a lot of time to devote to the art of blogging.  I make no promises, but I am going to do my best to try and update this beast a little more frequently.

So, what now?  I hate writing without a purpose, so I didn't want to just ramblog (ramble-blog, and yes, I made that word up).  As much as I know you'd just love to hear about my progress with our high school musical preparations of Guys & Dolls, I figured I'd spare you.  What I would like to talk about are some current events that I feel affect not only the world, but myself and my life as well.  I hope you enjoy Hot Topic #1.

Teacher Suspended After Second-Graders Perform Sex Acts in Class

Yes, you read that correctly, and here's the link to the story:  Can I say I'm outraged?  No, not really.  Not that I'm not upset, but that's not quite the right word to describe it.  Disappointed, disgusted, perplexed- the list could go on and on.  As a relatively new teacher I have a fairly recent memory of the classes and training I received in order to get my Bachelor's degree, so my reaction to this is more of a: How?  How could any certified, reputable teacher not notice what is going on in his classroom?  That being said, this Monday is my third and final observation as a first year tenure-track teacher, and in my pre-observation meeting I mentioned that my classroom management is a concern of mine.  Before I become labeled a hypocrite, lets put these two situations into perspective.

As a chorus teacher, I often find myself doing two jobs at once: musician, and teacher.  Relying on purely voices to create the music in our class, guess who gets to portray (a really REALLY bad impersonation of) Beethoven at the piano?  Moi.  I love teaching and I love music, but I often find myself struggling to do both justice when faced with my 60+ students in senior high chorus.  I can't read piano music, turn pages, adequately listen, conduct, juggle flaming bowling pins AND be a fantastic disciplinarian at the same time.  If I could, I could probably have landed a fantastic time slot on America's Got Talent, but it's just not in the cards...

...back to my point.  Yes, I struggle to maintain a distraction-free environment while I'm working with my students, but when I see gum chewing- I address it.  When I see cell phones- I confiscate them.  I have trained myself to be able to know both my students and my environment to a degree that I can spot things while I am simultaneously sucking at piano and listening to my ensemble.  Can I also take the time to say that my students ROCK and they usually don't present any catastrophic sorts of problems for me to address in the first place.  Let's re-focus, though: 60 14-18 year old co-ed students going through puberty with an often times distracted teacher.  It could, at times, get ugly.

Now, let's fast forward to the situation at hand.  A second grade classroom  in Oakland, California.  There were TWO instances found of students performing sexual acts on each other.  Really?  REALLY?!  Like one wasn't enough?  The explanation from the teacher was that he did not see it happen, which in all honesty isn't that bad of a response when you think of what circumstances could have been, but is still not an excuse.  Not at all.  As someone who has willingly chosen to be an instructor, role model, and supervisor of young, impressionable minds it is his responsibility and job to make sure that things like this don't ever even have a foundation to begin, let alone occur in the classroom on two different occasions.  There is not one moment where any of those students should have been out of his supervision, and the fact that they were for a long enough period of time to "experiment" is just plain lack of responsibility.

Maybe the kids saw it at home.  Maybe they saw it on TV.  Maybe they really wanted to experiment because they were very curious.  All potentially true statements, however, the only definitive "maybe" in this situation is that just MAYBE, that teacher should have kept a close eye on his students.  "Not seeing it" is not an excuse. If I assess that there are students missing that should be present, a big 'ol red flag jumps out at me and I take the necessary measures.  I don't care how you spin it, he was just plain negligent and should be held responsible for not maybe what the students did, but that they had an opportunity to do so.

The word "teacher" is such an understatement.  As I was taught in my methods classes, we wear many hats.  We are teachers, but also disciplinarians, counselors, coaches, advisors, mediators, listeners, and supervisors.  Any person that thinks for a second that teachers (and their actions, for that matter) do not have a lasting impression on their students need to take a large dose of reality, because this is what we sign up for when we get our degree.  We help mold and shape our students to meet future challenges, (oh yes, I did just quote the General Brown mission statemet) and to be positive influences on society.  Any lapse in our vigilance, no matter how brief, can have an effect on our students, and I sincerely hope that this teacher takes his (paid!) suspension to start thinking about other career options.