'I feel smarter already'

One of my favorite short story writers George Saunders won a genius grant. I'm still waiting for my call from the McArther Foundation.

Revamping Higher Ed

Here's my brilliant insight after grading papers all weekend, talking to my sister about SkyGirl's college plans, and reading Blackboard posts for the last two hours.

Undergraduate work should be available for free at state institutions, and perhaps heavily subsidized at private ones. (don't ask me how to pay for this, but stopping unnecessary wars might be a healthy start).

Any one can enroll at any age providing they achieve certain levels of proficiency in some standardized tests and/or provide a portfolio of academic work that achieves a high level of excellence (and yes this is also a vague category that would need to be hashed out in numerous committee meetings, I'm sure).

If you don't achieve this entrance standard, you can enroll when you reach the age of 22. By then, quite a lot of people have achieved a level of maturity that makes college meaningful and productive. Plus, after four years working, more people might realize that college isn't necessary for a good, productive life.

I'm really tired of unmotivated 18 year olds cluttering up my classroom.

Two weeks earlier

The Pynchon release has been moved up two weeks to Nov 21. Two weeks less waiting time. Whoo Hoo.

You can always tell when life here in the desert gets a bit crazy. The blog screams an echoing silence. The semester has started and with that, the Doctor's impending new business and SkyGirl's increasing demands for diversion has left very little time for idle musings.

All of you dedicated readers of L(iSE) can take heart in knowing that the time I would normally devote to you has been diverted to saving the youth of Arizona.

Fun typos from Freshman Comp

"The howl of the mind in your ears."

Worthy of a whole poem.