Safe Haven

 I saw a clip once recently of Jordan Peterson, talking about teaching. He said something like, “Teaching is not primarily about the transmission of knowledge; it’s about setting the intellectual frame, and dramatizing the act of learning.” And he’s right. If I could communicate on some level that what we’re learning is meaningful and important to me, that’s when I was most effective. I might be wrong in some respects about teaching primary students, but the goal for even them is eventually self-directed learning, with the ultimate meaning of the information determined by the students. I taught emerging young adults, and Peterson teaches young adults in university. A computer can correct a factual mistake, programmed correctly. A teacher tells the story of why the facts and data matter. It need not mean the same thing to the students as it does to the teacher, but if you tell them, “What you make of it is up to you,” and they believe you, you’re going to have enormously motivated s...

 I’ll try to be nice. Shouldn’t be that hard. I don’t think I’ve had any persistently negative thoughts about her. She’s beautiful. She is. I hadn’t fully decided to abstain from voting for president until very late that year she became the Democratic nominee, and I’ll just admit that I never minded seeing her on the TV. I’m just girl crazy, and that’s never going to change. I have been completely in love with three women in my life (possibly four) whilst having those feelings returned in some respect. Two out of the three were Black, or from the Indian subcontinent. Harris is both at once. I imagine that twenty years ago, she had most men tripping all over themselves. Mr. Emhoff has learned some grace for these guys (and probably some women) because unless Michelle Obama walks in, he’s the envy of the room. She seemed nervous on a national stage to me. I do think that potentially becoming the second Black president and the first woman president adds a special pressure that we coul...

 A friend from high school just celebrated 26 years. The husband has a great name: Jason. [You are the most self-involved person on Earth.—ed.] I know, right? My friends are close to being grandparents, at least some of them, and I feel a certain sadness about not being in the game, as it were. But this is your frequent reminder that great and cool people don’t find their person sometimes. So-called “inter-abled” relationships are really hard. I know. I honestly think That One Time didn’t work because of the intersection of disability, employment discrimination, and ableism. Do I think ableism and discrimination had something to do with losing my job as a teacher? Yes. Yes, I do. I won’t tell you who I worked for, but it rhymes with “Chesterfield County School District.” I’ve got your social media policy right here, you clowns. Anyway, Jesus said of marriage, “Anyone who divorces his wife and marries another woman commits adultery.” (Luke 16:18) Of course, some Christians use the l...