The garden

grevillea
Originally uploaded by andrethegiant

With the election, school, hosting a conference... I've had a hard time getting out to the garden recently other than do grunt work. This weekend brought me some time to shoot a couple of pictures.

How to Collaborate Without Even trying

Luckily I work in a place that is generally friendly and collaborative.  In fact, we collaborate in our teaching, our research and our committees more than most places I've had the opportunity to observe.  That said, we don't always succeed, that is, we fail miserably.  As the new school year approaches, this post from the folks at lifehacker, might serve as a reminder that a little civility can go a long way.

Memorize the names of those with whom you work. Sounds so simple but many of us don’t even know the people in our department or division. Learning their names makes them seem somehow, more human.
Learn from those around you. No one person has the monopoly on the truth so learn from those around you. Is there an application that someone could help you use more effectively? Is there a policy or protocol that you are rusty with but the next guy is an expert?
Be likable. No surprise here- nice people get results. This is not to have you be a pushover at work but an ounce of niceness goes a long way.
Walk the hall. This is not a diversion to help you avoid your own work but an easy way to get to know people is just to pop by and ask them how they’re doing. You’ll also learn something from them by seeing how they work. You might also find that you have something in common with them simply by seeing their workspace.
Compliment with tact. A quality compliment can earn mileage long after the comment is made. During a meeting, in casual conversation or in an email, a quick one liner can build up your collaborative bank account.
The best thing about all of these suggestions is that they’re all free. Being collaborative doesn’t have to be difficult but it does take intentionality. Don’t get me wrong- I’m still competitive but now I see it as one lens of many that can be used at an appropriate time. It’s not necessarily the default for everyday life at home and at work.

Again, these are frequently employed by the good folks at Whittier, so maybe this is just a note to myself...

Brain Dead

Ok, people: enough! My brain is fried and, like you, I'm looking to summer. It's been a great year, but this semester has left me feeling like a baby seal in the clutches of a polar bear. I'm just glad to get out alive. (Oh, wait, I better not count those chickens [or baby seals] until they hatch [or escape from the jaws of the polar bear]. After all, there are still two days of school and some exams.)

But I'm thinking about summer. I've earned it too. I've taught overloads and I've been on more committees than you can shake a laser pointer at.

Without further ado, and in the fashion of the Pillow Book, here are some things I'm happy about:

• Giving money to Obama--more than I can afford, actually. I'll be Obama blogging more as the year goes on. Go Obama.
• Using Google reader. My daily news is much more closely linked to my brain now. How did it take me so long to get those RSS feeds coming in (and going out!). Rss is awesome. It provides for my glutonous cravings for news from France, Asia, and Africa; it brings Open Left and Firedoglake to my screen; it is seemless and fast; it is me; I am it.
• The Language Lab Photo Contest. We will have student art in the lab. So easy--why has no one ever done this before? (I'll put up a link to our web exhibit when I get the chance.)
• Working hard. I've worked hard.
• Moodle. I'll admit that I did not get to explore moodle as much as I wanted (because I was so busy), but, still, I've gained some insights into how to enhance some of my teaching.
• Not using moodle. That's right. There's a time and a place.
• Calling senators and congresfolk to lobby against torture and telecom immunity.
  
• Having the restraint not to buy a new computer.
• Walking to school.
• Inventing the word "disappointless."
  
• Going mostly vegan. (Ate meat last night. Emphasis on "mostly.")
• Neutering some stray cats.
• Several charitable donations.
• I really enjoyed my teaching this year even though I am worn out.

Things I am disappointed about:

• Not having the strength or insight to deal with personalities when the time was right.
• Working hard to no apparent end, as in "That was disappointless."
• Not talking to friends enough.
• Being holed up working all the time.
• Occasional endless pontificating in class.
• Being such a slow grader.
  
• Not writing enough. I have to carve out time more time for this activity.
  
• Not always setting an example of excellence for students.
• Not proofreading my blogging.
  
• Ever thinking that Hillary would end the primaries gracefully.
• Not getting enough exercise.
• The state of my office.

I'm sure there are more things I'm disappointed about, they are just not coming to my mind right now. Let's just call that a healthy attitude of denial.

L'été arrive enfin. I've got something like 3 conferences this summer, so that will keep me more than occupied. I will be writing (see list above). We've also got some good old-fashioned manual labor projects that should keep me busy too, and I need some of that to keep me sane and balanced... Expect to see lots of pictures from Morocco...

Child Labor

Besides saying that child labor is still practiced on a wide scale, I found this section of the article particularly salient:

[I]t is not inevitable that growth will drive child labour to the economic margins before rooting it out completely. As in the past, if associated with an unequal distribution of income [emphasis mine] and child-intensive production processes, economic growth can increase child labour rather than eliminate it.

And once in place, child labour can be difficult to uproot as child workers forgo schooling and apprenticeship and so grow up to be unproductive adults, who, in turn, cannot earn enough to support their children through education or training. It only takes one generation of child workers to trap an economy in such a low-productivity equilibrium.

Second, despite the spectre of avaricious parents, the children most at risk of early, hazardous, and even slave labour are those without adult kin. Where families have been broken up and denuded of prime-age adults by wars and epidemic disease, the prospects for preserving childhood look bleak.

Le rat des champs

It's been one of those days...



Here's more of her work:
http://www.elratondecampo.com