Comments for Literacy in the 21st Century http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340 Wed, 25 Nov 2009 10:54:40 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 hourly 1 Comment on walking the dog as a kind of literacy by jo http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=432&cpage=1#comment-136 jo Tue, 28 Apr 2009 19:24:31 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=432#comment-136 "'Not my Kid' gets us into another kind of literacy." This is worth spinning around in my mind for a little while. If I am in a a public place or gatherin which lots of little kids are around, I alawys feel "responsible" for all of them. I do the old lifegaurding routine odf scanning back and forth (lifegaurd, cylon, whatever) for "children in need" or "children in danger." If a takes a hard splat, I jog over to piclk him up after giving "the parent" a nanosecord to respond. However, I also swing the otherway and will let people know when a child who apears to be under my charge is "not mine." My nest friend gave birth to a real monster. He's gotten better, but from the age 4-7, I had no trouble looking a stranger or aquantaince in the eye and saying those words "not my kid." It can be played off as a one-liner to lighten a situation, but in the language of parents are care takers everywhere, "not mine" says I didn't create this, cultivate this, nor do I condone this behavior. I am not responsible for, you do not owe me explanation or excuse if, I'm not invested ... I don't know - - - I'm just thinking outloud . . . “‘Not my Kid’ gets us into another kind of literacy.” This is worth spinning around in my mind for a little while. If I am in a a public place or gatherin which lots of little kids are around, I alawys feel “responsible” for all of them. I do the old lifegaurding routine odf scanning back and forth (lifegaurd, cylon, whatever) for “children in need” or “children in danger.” If a takes a hard splat, I jog over to piclk him up after giving “the parent” a nanosecord to respond. However, I also swing the otherway and will let people know when a child who apears to be under my charge is “not mine.” My nest friend gave birth to a real monster. He’s gotten better, but from the age 4-7, I had no trouble looking a stranger or aquantaince in the eye and saying those words “not my kid.” It can be played off as a one-liner to lighten a situation, but in the language of parents are care takers everywhere, “not mine” says I didn’t create this, cultivate this, nor do I condone this behavior. I am not responsible for, you do not owe me explanation or excuse if, I’m not invested …

I don’t know - - - I’m just thinking outloud . . .

]]> Comment on Last Words by James Davis http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=421&cpage=1#comment-135 James Davis Tue, 28 Apr 2009 18:48:59 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=421#comment-135 I think it's a fairly natural desire for people to want to go off and live independent of the monster that is "civilized" America. I can ask nearly any one of my friends what their house in the wilderness would look like, and how they would survive--and they would have excited answers. For the moment, I want to take a look at one aspect of wilderness survival: clean water. This guide is based on the assumption that you are stranded with little gear. The problem with water found in the wilderness is that it contains lots of potentially life threatening parasites, bacteria, and other nasty bugs. Nothing like a little typhoid to foil your survival plans. Making that water fresh requires boiling, or purification with tablets. If you don't have tablets, boiling water in the wilderness can be a challenge. First, how will you make a fire if you don't have matches or a lighter? The stick-rubbing thing, amazingly, works, it just takes patience. Find a dry, medium sized split branch with a knot in it. You want it to be split lengthwise so you can set it in the dirt and get a good grip on it. Next you need to gouge a nickel-quarter sized pit in the medium stick. Another alternative is to find a large, fallen, dry log and gouge a pit in it so you don't have to concentrate on holding it in place. Now you need to find another smaller straight stick. The end of the second stick must fit with some room to spare in the knot. Then shred pieces of dry bark and milkweed or thistle cotton into the pit (don't use leaves, and try to avoid dry grass for the starting material--they make smoke but don't "burn" as well). Then prepare to push the limits of how long you can make that twig spin in the knot as fast as you can. After about a half hour, I can usually get something going. Once the wad of shredded bark and cotton lights, knock the cherry into your already constructed fire structure. This structure should be very carefully crafted. The more effort you put into building your fire, the better it will burn. Next you have the problem of a container to boil the water. One of the neatest solutions I have ever seen is to use a very hot rock from a fire and place it in a hat, or any other article of clothing that can be made to hold water. The rock boils the water without requiring you to put a fire to it, killing all of the parasites. Mmm, leather tea never tasted so good! If you have nothing that can hold water, your alternatives are slim. But there is one more. Find a fresh stump or section of large log, and build a small fire in one spot on it. As the fire burns in the center, begin to hollow the stump or log by carving away the carbon towards the center with a sharp rock or whatever you can find. Once you have created a bowl large enough to hold a decent amount of water, you must polish the inside of the bowl with a smooth rock to get as much of the free carbon off, leaving only about a quarter of an inch of char. Carbon, btw, is not poisonous - so a little in your water won't kill you. Fire makes wood dry, and drying wood expands, making the grain more dense (it's called tempered wood, a similar process to tempering metal, but they work for different reasons). The effect of this is a hardened surface that will actually hold water (not forever, but long enough for you to use the hot-rock method to sterilize the water). So that's just water. Arguably, you would have a week, once you got your water thing squared away, to figure out how to procure food--though I bet after a day or two of no food, your hunger would make it difficult for you to forage. But that's a whole other chapter. I think it’s a fairly natural desire for people to want to go off and live independent of the monster that is “civilized” America. I can ask nearly any one of my friends what their house in the wilderness would look like, and how they would survive–and they would have excited answers. For the moment, I want to take a look at one aspect of wilderness survival: clean water. This guide is based on the assumption that you are stranded with little gear.

The problem with water found in the wilderness is that it contains lots of potentially life threatening parasites, bacteria, and other nasty bugs. Nothing like a little typhoid to foil your survival plans. Making that water fresh requires boiling, or purification with tablets. If you don’t have tablets, boiling water in the wilderness can be a challenge. First, how will you make a fire if you don’t have matches or a lighter?

The stick-rubbing thing, amazingly, works, it just takes patience. Find a dry, medium sized split branch with a knot in it. You want it to be split lengthwise so you can set it in the dirt and get a good grip on it. Next you need to gouge a nickel-quarter sized pit in the medium stick. Another alternative is to find a large, fallen, dry log and gouge a pit in it so you don’t have to concentrate on holding it in place. Now you need to find another smaller straight stick. The end of the second stick must fit with some room to spare in the knot. Then shred pieces of dry bark and milkweed or thistle cotton into the pit (don’t use leaves, and try to avoid dry grass for the starting material–they make smoke but don’t “burn” as well). Then prepare to push the limits of how long you can make that twig spin in the knot as fast as you can. After about a half hour, I can usually get something going. Once the wad of shredded bark and cotton lights, knock the cherry into your already constructed fire structure. This structure should be very carefully crafted. The more effort you put into building your fire, the better it will burn.

Next you have the problem of a container to boil the water. One of the neatest solutions I have ever seen is to use a very hot rock from a fire and place it in a hat, or any other article of clothing that can be made to hold water. The rock boils the water without requiring you to put a fire to it, killing all of the parasites. Mmm, leather tea never tasted so good!

If you have nothing that can hold water, your alternatives are slim. But there is one more. Find a fresh stump or section of large log, and build a small fire in one spot on it. As the fire burns in the center, begin to hollow the stump or log by carving away the carbon towards the center with a sharp rock or whatever you can find. Once you have created a bowl large enough to hold a decent amount of water, you must polish the inside of the bowl with a smooth rock to get as much of the free carbon off, leaving only about a quarter of an inch of char. Carbon, btw, is not poisonous - so a little in your water won’t kill you. Fire makes wood dry, and drying wood expands, making the grain more dense (it’s called tempered wood, a similar process to tempering metal, but they work for different reasons). The effect of this is a hardened surface that will actually hold water (not forever, but long enough for you to use the hot-rock method to sterilize the water).

So that’s just water. Arguably, you would have a week, once you got your water thing squared away, to figure out how to procure food–though I bet after a day or two of no food, your hunger would make it difficult for you to forage. But that’s a whole other chapter.

]]> Comment on Burlington Literacy by jo http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417&cpage=1#comment-134 jo Tue, 28 Apr 2009 17:05:21 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417#comment-134 I loooove this and we should continue to add to it: Red Rocks Park: In the off season (mid-August to June), park outside the gate (no fee)and hike in. Ignore the signs warning against cliff diving and skip the beach. Head for the trails, hiking north and close to the shore. You will come to some well-worn paths in the woods the lead to the "red rocks." Unless you are crazy, SKIP the 78-footer marked with "78" in spray-paint, repainted year after year for at least 30 years. But the 50, 25, 10, and 5 are doable. The water is 84 feet deep here not much to fear except falling and drowning. Check out the video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9-yd2xeyyw&feature=related I loooove this and we should continue to add to it:

Red Rocks Park: In the off season (mid-August to June), park outside the gate (no fee)and hike in. Ignore the signs warning against cliff diving and skip the beach. Head for the trails, hiking north and close to the shore. You will come to some well-worn paths in the woods the lead to the “red rocks.” Unless you are crazy, SKIP the 78-footer marked with “78″ in spray-paint, repainted year after year for at least 30 years. But the 50, 25, 10, and 5 are doable. The water is 84 feet deep here not much to fear except falling and drowning.

Check out the video:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9-yd2xeyyw&feature=related

]]> Comment on Burlington Literacy by Jeff Dittmer http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417&cpage=1#comment-131 Jeff Dittmer Tue, 28 Apr 2009 03:14:54 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417#comment-131 i dig the post keyna...it's funny, I was just thinking about gravy fries yesterday. I was listening to a ween song and they mentioned gravy fries. I had never had or heard of them until I moved here and then, when hearing that song, it kind of slapped me out of the BTV (or could it be BVT or even BTVT?) world ive been in. i never thought of a town having a certain literacy but youre right (i too have had problems with the parking meters), they do. so, now you need to explain to us how to become multi-literate in BTVT (sorry, BTV). i will anxiously await yer response. ps: you forgot to mention the parking ban as a literacy...i cannot explain how much time ive contemplated another way to clean the streets. a few late night car moves will get one thinking! i dig the post keyna…it’s funny, I was just thinking about gravy fries yesterday. I was listening to a ween song and they mentioned gravy fries. I had never had or heard of them until I moved here and then, when hearing that song, it kind of slapped me out of the BTV (or could it be BVT or even BTVT?) world ive been in.
i never thought of a town having a certain literacy but youre right (i too have had problems with the parking meters), they do. so, now you need to explain to us how to become multi-literate in BTVT (sorry, BTV). i will anxiously await yer response.
ps: you forgot to mention the parking ban as a literacy…i cannot explain how much time ive contemplated another way to clean the streets. a few late night car moves will get one thinking!

]]> Comment on Burlington Literacy by Keyna http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417&cpage=1#comment-130 Keyna Tue, 28 Apr 2009 00:27:46 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=417#comment-130 Here's something really funny: for #8, I typed an 8 and then a ) like all the other numbers, inadvertently creating this: 8) yay for emoticons! Here’s something really funny: for #8, I typed an 8 and then a ) like all the other numbers, inadvertently creating this: 8) yay for emoticons!

]]> Comment on Class by Fran http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=411&cpage=1#comment-120 Fran Wed, 22 Apr 2009 00:57:39 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=411#comment-120 yeah I'm a huge Radiohead fan. That must have been awesome seeing them perform OK computer... I was about 12 when it came out and it is still one of my favorite albums ever. I haven't seen them play live, but it's something I need to do soon. yeah I’m a huge Radiohead fan. That must have been awesome seeing them perform OK computer… I was about 12 when it came out and it is still one of my favorite albums ever. I haven’t seen them play live, but it’s something I need to do soon.

]]> Comment on Links & Other Important Stuff by Richard Parent http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=395&cpage=1#comment-119 Richard Parent Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:50:09 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=395#comment-119 Um... ahem. Punch (the Maker-Killer) has been (forcibly) returned to the toy chest. I'll try to make sure that he doesn't get blogging privileges again. But who can say? He's a wily little devil. Um… ahem. Punch (the Maker-Killer) has been (forcibly) returned to the toy chest. I’ll try to make sure that he doesn’t get blogging privileges again. But who can say? He’s a wily little devil.

]]> Comment on Links & Other Important Stuff by Punch, the Maker-Killer http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=395&cpage=1#comment-118 Punch, the Maker-Killer Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:48:55 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=395#comment-118 Don't be nervous, Joanne. Be afraid. Be VERY afraid! BWA-HA-HA-HA!!!! THIS TIME I'LL TEAR OUT YOUR STUFFING, YOU ROTTEN LITTLE PUPPETS!!!! THIS TIME I'LL- Don’t be nervous, Joanne.

Be afraid.

Be VERY afraid! BWA-HA-HA-HA!!!!

THIS TIME I’LL TEAR OUT YOUR STUFFING, YOU ROTTEN LITTLE PUPPETS!!!! THIS TIME I’LL-

]]> Comment on Keyna & Jo have left the blog by Richard Parent http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=405&cpage=1#comment-117 Richard Parent Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:44:26 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=405#comment-117 Nice template at the new digs. I look forward to reading what you put up there. Nice template at the new digs. I look forward to reading what you put up there.

]]> Comment on Fluid Theory by Richard Parent http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=407&cpage=1#comment-116 Richard Parent Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:43:26 +0000 http://www.uvm.edu/~reparent/340/?p=407#comment-116 "Yet, every day, we walk around in complete ignorance of our fluids. We have been taught to live around them; pretend they are not there; that they are not important." I would submit that this willful "ignorance" requires so much policing and monitoring that it can never truly be called ignorance. We always know. We *have* to have complete awareness, to prevent the unthinkable... “Yet, every day, we walk around in complete ignorance of our fluids. We have been taught to live around them; pretend they are not there; that they are not important.”

I would submit that this willful “ignorance” requires so much policing and monitoring that it can never truly be called ignorance. We always know. We *have* to have complete awareness, to prevent the unthinkable…

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