Tuesday, December 11, 2007

Christmas is coming...

Anyone who knows me should know that I am a nut for Christmas time. I can not get enough of the feeling, which should also let people know why I am still listening to Christmas music in March and then start again in July. It is a magical time.
I was privileged enough to get one of my presents early this year. My wonderful mother bought me the new Josh Groban Christmas CD. I've been asking everyone I know why he hasn't come out with a holiday CD until now...I just don't understand. One of the tracks is a song titled Thankful (which I just added to the song list). I really believe this one is awesome for Christmas time, when people generally take the time to think about what they have and also what they can do for others who may not be as fortunate. I also believe that it should resonate through the whole year. We as a people are truly fortunate, blessed if you will, with amazing prosperity. Just remember that it can almost always get worse. Being thankful for what you have makes the bad times in life seem insignificant.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

The West Wing

Maybe it's all of the media coverage of the 2008 presidential election or just the fact that I love the intricacies of politics. I absolutely love "The West Wing". This show reminds me that there are people out there who truly care about the state of our country. Every time I watch the show, I just yearn for a political candidate like Jed Bartlett. I would vote for him...no matter what party he belonged to. We need more of that intelligence and charisma in our elected officials. I honestly want to be a better person when I watch the passion that is thrown around the Oval Office. I would love to have my life have as much meaning and be able to help as many people as they do.
Getting up on my soapbox...we should expect more of our political candidates. We should not allow ourselves to vote for a candidate just because he belongs to the party we usually vote for. We have a duty to demand the best from our representatives. If we all continue to think that our voice in politics doesn't matter and isn't heard, then it won't be. I'll get down now...

Stand and Deliver/Freedom Writers

Watched "Stand and Deliver" for the first time yesterday. It reminded me a lot of "Freedom Writers" that I also recently saw. I was quite impressed with both movies. With teaching as my chosen profession I believe that there is something lacking in our education system and both of the teachers in these movies exhibited that quality/belief: that anyone has the potential to do amazing things. Conventional methods only bring out mediocrity in our students. These two teachers believed in their kids enough to change their methods and invest time in their future.