SpitzerTech.com

The Federal Communications Commission today voted to continue banning cell phone use on airline flights!  Hooray for the quiet folks . . . I cannot imagine enduring a 2 or 3 hour flight having to listen to someone talking on their cell phone.

I once took Amtrak from Tampa to Orlando, Florida, and had to listen to a woman speaking on her cell phone the entire two hour trip.  It was nothing short of maddening!

Click here for CNN’s story on the ban and FCC vote.

Note though, that the FCC reserves the right to revisit the ban in the future if additional technical information becomes available. . . . so it’s peace and quiet . . . . for now.

OK, so I’ve taken a bit of a break with the ol’ blog so far this term. I can’t really say why I haven’t posted much, but I’m hoping to be “back in the blog saddle” over the next couple of weeks.

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As for my classes who are reading this as part of the quiz . . . this is not one of the posts you should respond to. Check out the entries under “edtech talk” and “teacher tools” or read some of the other posts under this heading, “general gabs”.

So we’re headed into Finals Week here at Indiana University South Bend and all its accompanying emotional ups and downs.

First, the ups . . .

• The Winter Break
  Students (and faculty, too!) look forward to a few weeks of “pressure’s off.” Of course, students find themselves catching up on all that’s been put aside for the last several weeks (or months? (laundry? cleaning out those green growing things in the back of the fridge?)), and faculty get a chance to dig into some serious writing that’s been neglected due to the demands of teaching and committee work piled on their plates since late August. It’s a time, though, of setting one’s own schedule and taking advantage of large blocks of uninterrupted time.
• A Clean Slate
  With the coming new semester, everyone gets a chance to start over . . . old habits developed over the past term can be broken with self-promises of doing things differently next semester. As a faculty member, I always look forward to the start of a new semester and a new group of students (not that I don’t like my soon-to-be former students!).
• Holiday Celebrations
  There’s a lot to be said for celebrating the holidays, whether you’re a lover of Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hannukah, or just a fan of celebrating family and those close to you. Building lasting relationships and celebrating those relationships seems to be much keener in our minds and hearts at this time of year. My wife and I will spend time with my family this year in Iowa, and I’m looking forward to that very much.

Of course, there are always some disadvantages to Finals Week . . .

• Stress . . .
  The media talk a lot about “high stakes testing” in public schools brought about (or made more critical) by No Child Left Behind. At the collegiate level, students find themselves pressured by high stakes testing every semester at this time. Faculty, too, find themselves stressed over grading work quickly so that grades can be submitted in a timely fashion (IU requires final grades within 48 hours of the final), yet grading thoroughly enough to make a competent assessment of students’ knowledge.
• End of Class
  I’ll admit it. I really like my students. I spent several years in corporate training and didn’t much like it. Why? Training sessions of 1 to 5 days didn’t allow for the types of relationships that are built when I see students over a 15-week semester; I really missed that. Now that classes are coming to an end, I wonder if my students know how much of an impression they’ve made on me? I hope they know how much I enjoy being their teacher, mentor, and guide.

Whether you focus on the ups or dwell on the downs, Finals Week is here . . . keep smiling, and think about Thursday, December 14. Sometime late that afternoon, it’ll all be over.

Today, I wore a blue shirt and blue jeans to work! Why not!?!? Democrats won a resounding victory and took control of the U.S. House of Representatives. What a great step for progressives in this country.

And if that wasn’t enough, just minutes ago, AP, Reuters, and CNN reported that Webb won the senatorial race in Virginia! That means a 51-49 vote majority for Democrats in the Senate.

So tonight, I’m headed out to do the grocery shopping and happen to tune in to the last few minutes of Market Place on our local NPR affiliate (WVPE, Elkhart-South Bend). Here’s a transcript of what I heard:

KAI RYSSDAL: There’s grist enough out there for days of poltical analysis about why the Republicans lost so decisively. But in the end it’ll all probably come down to just a couple of key issues. Iraq. Corruption. Or maybe the economy. Commentator Steve Moore offers his choice.

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STEPHEN MOORE: Yes, the Iraq war is very unpopular. And yes the parade of sex and money scandals of the past two years damaged the Republicans severely.But so did the busting of the bank. Republicans came into power in 1994 as revolutionaries promising to clean up the swamp in Washington. And as the old saying goes, they discovered it was a hot tub.

The real scandal in Washington is that conservatives waited 40 years for a Republican House, Senate and White House, and the GOP produced the biggest spending orgy ever. The budget is up nearly 50% over George Bush’s presidency.

Exit polls found that only one-in-five voters said Republicans will do a better job to “keep government spending under control” than the Democrats.

When the Republicans came into power there were 1,500 pork projects. This year there were 15,000. That $300 million Alaska bridge to nowhere is an enduring symbol of the 110th Congress.

Republicans can only win when they support tax cuts and smaller government — not Washington insiders.

Now to win back voters, they must enact a bold pro-growth, counter-agenda to that of the Pelosi Democrats. This agenda should include reform of the budget process, a flat tax, market-based health care, and protection of private property rights.

The Republicans were corrupted and seduced by power. They forgot why voters elected them. Perhaps now they will remember.

I couldn’t have said it better.

Today, I’m really proud to be an American citizen; and I’m really happy to be a liberal, progressive Democrat.

Yesterday, I took Transpo (the public transportation system in South Bend) to University Park Mall to get my hair cut.

The trip took 2 hours and 45 minutes. Here’s the breakdown:

• 8:45-8:50 – Home to the IU South Bend bus stop (a 3-block walk)
• 8:50-9:00 – Wait at the IU South Bend bus stop (bus was 5 min. late)
• 9:00-9:10 – Bus ride to South Street Station
• 9:10-9:20 – Wait at South Street Station*
• 9:20-9:50 – Bus ride from South Street to UP Mall via Notre Dame
• 9:50-10:00 – Wait for Master Cuts to open
• 10:00-10:20 – Haircut at Master Cuts (always a great cut, Jen!)
• 10:20-10:50 – Wait for bus at UP Mall (The #7 leaves the mall at :17 and :47 of each hour . . . couldn’t get a haircut and back to the stop in just 17 minutes.)
• 10:50-11:15 – Bus ride from UP Mall to South Street Station via Notre Dame
• 11:15-11:20 – Wait at South Street Station for the #9
• 11:20-11:30 – Bus ride from South Street Station to IU South Bend bus stop.

I’m not complaining about the time factor: I had the time to make the trip and I did some work proofreading some handouts on the bus (and listened to tunes on my iPod). But what struck me was that had I chosen to drive my own car, the trip would have taken under an hour!

So my post today isn’t about the lack of public transit, but my thoughts about those who absolutely must use public transit and how time in their lives is different than time in my life. If public transportation is the only means by which some people can navigate the city, how difficult it must be to coordinate with the bus schedules.

That I can choose to take the bus and that I have the time to do so, I am grateful. That I have a great bicycle and can choose to ride rather than walk or bus it, I’m also grateful (though in South Bend, there are places, many places, where bicyclists aren’t welcome). That I have a car and can afford the costs of keeping it and driving it, yeah, grateful too.

But yesterday’s experience also taught me that those might just be luxuries in our lives, and we should be thankful.

*What’s up with Transpo’s South Street Station?!?!? Posted all over the place are signs indicating there is to be no smoking on Transpo property. But while waiting for my busses yesterday I had to move twice to get away from someone smoking. People get off the bus with cigarette in mouth and as soon as foot hits concrete, they light up!  Come on Transpo! Enforce your rules! I deserve clean air!

I was moved to tears.  Literally. 

It generally doesn’t take much to raise a lump in my throat.  You know the feeling: that hard-to-swallow-pain-tears-welling-in-your-eyes feeling you get when something touches you deep inside.  Well, this video did just that.

Free Hugs on YouTube

Enjoy.

 

Those of you who know me know I love Chipotle!  And now, with one open in Mishawaka, a Chipotle burrito is just a few minutes away.

If you haven’t had one, get out there and get one!  It’s on Main St. right near The Home Depot.

Check ‘em out online: www.chipotle.com

So, what’s up with drivers in South Bend, IN???

Here’s the scoop:

• in South Bend, 35 MPH means it’s OK to drive 45;
• in South Bend, even though the traffic lane is marked for 1 lane, if 2 cars fit so be it;
• in South Bend, S-T-O-P means slow just a bit, then cruise through the intersection
• in South Bend, bicycles and their riders are road hazards meant to be ridiculed and threatened;
• in South Bend, yellow lights and red lights only apply the driver behind, but not me.

Never before have I lived in a place where traffic laws and regulations are routinely ignored by both civilians and police officers alike.

What’ll it take to wake people up and drive safely???