Critter Crawlies & Senior Slides

This picture shows what happens when STAR WARS meets steampunk fashions ... Lucas wanted the droids to have a "used" look -- I think the model maker replicated it well. I almost didn't recognize the crew, especially with the changes for Obi-Wan. I can't quite see Alec Guiness in these exaggerated shoulder armor, though I guess they were inspired by the wide samurai plates -- although I think those were made of narrow pieces of lacquered wood fastened together to be more flexible ... and they didn't do much with Princess Leia's outfit, besides adding the usual reversed corset over her blouse. Ah, well, I guess someone can go in and build the retro weaponry that mark the real steampunk designers. After all, the light sabers and blaster combinations reflected the same mashup of past, present and future technologies that we saw in the original trilogy. (No, I do not count the prequel trilogy or CLONE WARS -- too much CGI trickery in one, and in animated series only the imagination can limit the designs. Either way, the practicality of the weapon never becomes an issue, just whether it looks good.) Maybe I should tune into the replay of League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. It's on today ... Yeah, Sean Connery as Alan Quartermain. I can handle that.

On a completely different note:

I almost made it through the fall TAKS season without tutoring a single senior ... Why, do you ask? Since I volunteered to "move down" to 10th grade, I'm no longer personally acquainted with members of the Class of 2011 -- at least, not most of the ones who need to take TAKS. My students passed the first time in the spring of 2011. (And it's not boasting, if it's a fact, as Beowulf would say.) However, none of the senior teachers want to take on the task, and when the asst. principal asked for recommendations, they gave my name ... SIGH. It's a pain when you're a "team player." I get stuck in a prayer room (2 long tables and 1 long pew) with various seniors ... many of whom aren't feeling the serious inspiration to get their thinking caps on and write the essay -- making a mere 2 our of 4 last March does not reassure me that they can repeat the deed in October. Several are more interested in their jobs than in their test for graduation . Ah well, we'll see how they feel next March when they have to take the test again ... and one guy who left to teach his hip-hop dance class wants to graduate in December; he needs to pass 2 sections. oh, well ...

If you ever want to find a place that has illusions of grandeur, Southlake is the place to visit. It's made having a middle class WASP neighborhood its mission -- along with a powerhouse football team that has qualified for more state championships than I can name. I swear that you won't find any non-whites out there unless they make $$$$. I've seen 1 or 2 Indians in the neighborhood, but I suspect that they have tech jobs somewhere ... The trio of ladies who own the house where I stayed have many, many critters; Joy's job this week is critter-sitting, so I used it as an excuse to mall crawl at Grapevine Mills ... We made the run down to Lancaster to check on our pets; the cockatoos and 'tiels welcomed Joy with wild tweets and jungle cries, a foreshadowing of the raucous welcome home she'll receive next Sunday.

Lancaster may be located less than 40 miles southeast of Southlake, but it could as well be in another country. (We ARE in another county: they're in Tarrant Co., we're in Dallas.) After the tornado in '94, the demographics have gradually shifted as Dallas residents have moved south, and the light industry has stayed north ... I think the 2 biggest employers in this town are Wal-Mart and Lancaster ISD. We're a commuter town -- which is difficult since we have no bus service. If you don't have a car, finding a job is tough. The city park and library complex north of us are quite beautiful -- alas, you have to drive there since Lancaster Road & Jefferson Street are too busy for pedestrians to traverse safely. Still, we have a ringside seat when there are fireworks displays or concerts ... all we have to do is pull out the lawn chairs.

Dance quote: "Your love for yourself is only shown when you are dancing freely." -- anonymous