While editing podcasts recently, I had a thought. Am I doing the audio equivalent of Photoshopping the cellulite or wrinkles off a model? In some cases, the answer is an easy “no.” The dog barks and we have a laugh about it and I cut it out. The connection fritzes for a moment and I … Read more
In a podcasting workshop I took, the half-joke was that you’re not a real podcaster until you forget to hit record. I half-joke with my guests that I hope never to be a real podcaster. For the past few weeks, I’ve been trail running for the first time. (Typically, I’ve saved running for smoother surfaces … Read more
“Smart kids” tend to be held on a pedestal, and we overlook or misdiagnose their struggles. If they’re smart, they should be able to figure it out! And if they don’t, they’re lazy. Simply not true. I don’t like the “smart kids” label, but that’s for another day. An important detail I’ve learned about working … Read more
While teachers in general are underpaid and under-respected, I’ve long said that if only one little slice of us were to receive more cash and glory, it should be the kindergarten teachers. For one year, kindergarten classes took up half of my schedule as a traveling music teacher, and it was during this time that … Read more
From my Facebook memories: Aaaaaand another assessment tool that requires written student work as “evidence.” *sigh* I was an elementary band teacher, and while some knowledge of how notation works can be assessed using traditional paper-pencil tests, “before and after” student work is what we hear. My job was to teach them to play, to … Read more
In a conversation about calendars and keeping households collectively time-organized, we touched on personal planners. Mine is paper, next to my desk, and I designed the sheets. Details aren’t important because takeaway from the conversation was about flexibility, not planners. For many of us who are perfectionists in various stages of recovery, figuring out the … Read more
Annie Duke was the guest on an engaging episode of A Slight Change of Plans. The theme of the episode was quitting and it offered so many new thoughts to me. “If you think about the way that we process narratives, we don’t really see the quitters…The heroes are the ones who persevere beyond the … Read more
As a person estranged from my family of origin, I’ve been told many times that I am obligated to be in contact or spend holidays or whatever because they’re family and there are things that you overlook or put up with because they’re family. (I wonder how the family sounds in your head compared to … Read more
A note I made from an email I received maybe a year ago: “To be mean seems exhausting.” Jedidiah Jenkins (I just went and looked him up, because I didn’t know who he was/who I was quoting, and he seems pretty neat. His TEDx talk was interesting to listen to.) “Mean” is rooted in fear, … Read more
My standard advocacy for change is small, sustainable pieces. My eating habits changed that way. My exercise habits changed that way. My financial habits changed that way. (I do think there are situations where this isn’t the best, but it applies more broadly than cold turkey, in my opinion and experience.) Bits that are so … Read more