THING 2

Having tried blogging before, I'm convinced that it's a time vampire. Not only is it easy to let it drift into oblivion, it's easy to get lost wandering through other blogs, posts and links.
My main question is: how do I change the name of this thing. I mean, what was I thinking!?

Thing 2

Well, I have nothing to add to the marvelously insightful post I did last year when attempting this course. That said, please skip over my last blog to the next one, which is also titled "Thing 2"!

It comes as no surprise to those who know me, but my desk is (still?) a mess. Not as bad or as good as it has been in the past, but I always seem to have several projects going at once. Right now, for example, I am editing videotapes I made of my mother. These have to be sent out to many friends and family who attended her funeral. Apologies to all for how long this has taken me. In addition, I brought home several projects I was unable to complete at work this year. So now I have bags of papers that have to be sorted and punched before they can be returned to school. At times my living room looks like a recycling center, what with all the papers, trash, paper clips, stapler, and rubber bands. Fortunately, it has to be clean at least two days a week when I see clients.

More recently, the carpets were cleaned. This necessitated all the clutter I tend to accumulate (and, lo, this is legion) being put into the kitchen, laundry room, or up on something else. This hasn't been put back yet, because it's a perfect opportunity to go through some of this stuff and pitch or place it appropriately. Yet another project!

It's possible that these things will all be completed when I retire, but I doubt it. My mother had a closet-ful of unfinished objects. And now, so do I.

Thing 2

As has been so often mentioned in the things we've read for Twitter, it seems to be a program that grows on you. It's also a program in which you can easily lose yourself as you chain from one site to the next, looking at postings and finding new people to follow.

On a personal level, I'm more likely (at this point, at least!) to text message my friends and family. Those who would be likely to use Twitter would have the phone access to text. The others wouldn't be online anyway.

Professionally, I see the benefit of asking for and providing help/suggestions and/or a heads up to fellow searchers. This could be very useful if I happened to be looking for specific information. Having access to all these people really could prevent re-invention! The difficulty is having social networking sites blocked at school. It could be useful, I suppose, to contact parents with some immediacy. However, a phone call could be just as quick, especially since there is no blocking.

Pedagogically, it would be interesting to follow new trends in my fields (speech path and clinical psych), without incurring the cost of multiple journals and periodicals. Save trees, and all that.

As for fun, who wouldn't follow Ashton Kucher?! LOL

Thing 3

Blogging. Turns out I love it. Of course, it's all just extemporania for the moment. After all, I don't have particularly DEEP THOUGHTS! I enjoy hearing others' comments, although there have not really been many (or any, other than Jim's -- thanks, pal). Ironically, I haven't been particularly interested in reading blogs before, mostly for the same reason I like my own: there's not always a lot there. Alas.

One concern, should anyone actually read these things, is that my comments might be misinterpreted. Writing is not the same as reading, is not the same as conversing. Paranoid, I know.

I expect I'll play at it for awhile and see how it goes. It's an interesting way to fulfill my mother's dream of me becoming a writer. What goes around, and all that.

Woo-Hoo!

I'm done, I'm done, I'm done. I learned a lot of stuff. I'm smarter than the average bear. Knowing myself, I'll probably forget a ton of it. Le Sigh. That's why I'm going to print/copy/paste/abscond with as many of the directions as possible so I can continue to improve my skills. See you in the cloud, baby!!

Thing 23

This has changed my view of education, and excited me as to what is possible. It will take more than a few of us in any particular district to implement these Web 2.0 ideas and open the rest of the staff to what is possible. There is significant reluctance, in many cases, to spend the time on these things. Too many of us feel computer illiterate and afraid to make the attempt. Those of us who have these skills will have to "evangelize" and spread the word of how terrific this stuff is.

As for personal use, I love the blog world. Even if no one else sees it, it's fun to play at. Watch this space!