When we first moved to San Marcos, we expected to join the “Y” as we had in Austin, but it turned out that there is no “Y” in town. Instead, there is the San Marcos Activity Center, so Peter went to sign up to be able to continue his swimming practice. The charge, he was…

When I teach, I try to challenge students to pay attention to the world around them and bring examples related to our subject to class each week. The examples can be from the headlines or their own experiences. I’m trying to help them get in the habit of understanding their experiences in multiple dimensions. In my…

One of my professors in graduate school had previously taught at the War College. I think it may have been from him that I learned the idea that even the best plan doesn’t survive beyond the first encounter with the enemy. I have no doubt that’s accurate, but I much prefer the quote from the poet Robert…

“Education – the knowledge and development resulting from the process of being educated.” “Transform – a: to change in composition or structure b: to change the outward form or appearance of c: to change in character or condition.” “Transaction: something transacted especially: an exchange or transfer of goods, services, or funds.” (All definitions from Merriam-Webster Online.) As most of you know, I spent much of my…

Here’s a bit of trivia for this week. Yesterday, Tuesday the 19th was the day of the vernal equinox, the first day of spring. If that sounds wrong because we always think of March 20th/21st as the first day of spring, it turns out that leap year matters. That little calendar correction we make every four years…

In the summer of 1986, I was the third car at a stop light. When the light turned green neither of the cars in front of me moved, but the car behind me plowed ahead – right into me. The next morning, I learned what whiplash really was as well as the purpose of every muscle…

When I lived in Abilene in the early 80’s, I was wandering through a store and saw a Speak and Math on display. Both the Speak and Math and the Speak and Spell still exist but they were new then and certainly nothing I had used growing up. As I stopped to look at the…

Today on Facebook, I saw someone post anonymously to ask for help. They are struggling with all that is coming at them, and they were hoping for some guidance. I shared a short version of my story leading to a priceless moment of mentoring earlier in my career. It was somewhere in the 1992-93 academic…

High school in the 1970s was so very different from what students experience today. One difference was the dress code. Boys couldn’t wear their hair below a standard shirt collar. They could however tuck their hair under a cheap wig. Some of them hid truly beautiful hair underneath the cheapest, nastiest wig you ever saw,…