Better publicity

http://coehp.uark.edu/

Check out our smiling faces at the top of the COEHP website.

cg

Group Pix

in helping with your transition back from the Summer Invitational

http://www.mental-health-matters.com/articles/article.php?artID=469

monthly rants

For those interested and awake enough, this link should directly route to a repository of titillating outpourings of frustration and venom.

http://www.nwanews.com/columnist/?paper=bcdr&section=Editorial&columnist=Scott%20Sullivan&coltitle=Another+Look

Clip from Network: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90ELleCQvew

Tomorrow?

I am spent . . . and completely despondent.

What will I do tomorrow, without all of you to talk with, and laugh with, and CRY WITH?

I have had an amazing summer. I couldn't have asked to spend it with more creative, supportive, wonderful people than all of you.

I will carry each of you with me as I march toward the first day of school.

Thank you.

YoudistractionTube

This is absolutely a priceless clip of the late, great Donald Graves talking about how to start writing. Enjoy.

"OK, Don, how do you create a class of writers?"

"Well the first thing you do is you write yourself. When you sit down to teach the class, you write yourself. What do you write about? You write about the first thing that comes to mind..."


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZ_sXJKiiSA&feature=related

Live at Peabody Hall

I wish Sharla and Stephanie would use their inside voices...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ux-vpLtG_x4

a little preview

Raleigh Roudabush

This is my story. Watch for future productions of "Bigfoot Love"

"It is finished!"

I am so tired of looking at my Anthology Piece that I can't take it any more.

A True Chigger Story

I saw these two red bugs laying in the gutter, looking bleary-eyed and hung over. One of them was saying "Never again" in a high little voice. I was intrigued until these two wasps flew by and saw the little tired bugs. One wasp said tothe other one, "It goes to show you chiggers can't be boozers" Thank you. I'll be here all week.

How to know when you are writing excessively

Only one week remains of the '08 Invitational.  My writing hand may return to normal, but my mind and heart will never be the same.

Media Week

Hey kids, an update for next week. Can you believe its the last week? On Monday we should have T-Shirts and we would like to do a group picture for the paper. The NWA Times reporter is coming on Tuesday to ask questions about this amazing journey you have been on as a professional writer and teacher. Then on Wednesday Kyle Kellams from KUAF will be at 105 Peabody to interview you and hear some of your writing, he will be creating a news story for his radio show "Ozarks At Large" (I'll give you air times later) You do not have to read on the air if you so choose, but it is good publicity for the Writing Project and the teaching profession. as my parenthetical wife says "Just so you know" Continue writing; Anthologies due Monday. I'm writing about lawn mowing, dog washing, and the dangers of nude yard work.

Love ya Big Mike

Freezing Much?

Can anyone guess the identity of the masked lady?

And does anyone else think the higher ups

in CIED might be trying to freeze us out of Peabody? lol.

For all you cell phone addicts

Well... I made some microwave popcorn for dinner tonight... and decided to quick-check my email in between trying not to panic about the genre pieces I might/might not include next week. Anyway, a friend sent this to me and I couldn't resist but to pass it along. (I'm still working on my Southern dialect and colloquialisms.)
Hope you're able to click and get the link, otherwise copy and paste:
http://www.dailymotion.com/relevance/search/portable/video/x5odhh_pop-corn-telephone-portable-microon_news
I'm curious as to first reactions... I wavered between wanting to have a CTScan, throwing my cell into a bonfire (with popcorn kernels in a dutch oven), and/or trying it out at home--with a slutty martini or three, of course.
Hope the weekend is restful, yet creative!
k

Don't you people have OTHER stuff to do?

If you have time to post here, then Anne and I MUST NOT have given you enough to read! Don't make me come down there! : )

Shouldn't someone write from the point of view of a refubee?

Red Bug for Scott and WHO HAS A PHOTO OF SLOW BABY IN COCOMO TO POST?

Red Bug

Digger digger
I'm a chigger
Makin'red bumps
Bigger and bigger
Itchier and itchier

Crawlin from grass and weeds
Onto ankles, calves, and knees
Burrowin deep any place I please
Raisin' the temp twenty degrees
Chewin and spewin itchy coo-ties

Digger digger
I'm a chigger
Makin'red bumps
Bigger and bigger
Itchier and itchier

Purvis Hooper: Professional Chicken Whisperer (National Writing Purvis)

Earlier this week, the NWAWP group had the pleasure of Purvis (Scott, don't do it...out of the gutter)...I mean, Purvis pleasured us with his whispers...no, wait (Scott, I need you to focus on something else...no, some other something else)--Okay, what I meant was Purvis paid us a pleasurable visit. Okay, enough. (I don't think Scott is going to be able to handle this.) Maybe "pleasure" isn't a good word. No, it's a great word, but maybe I'll choose another more appropriate word for the job. (Come on, Scott! No, not that kind of job.)

I'm just going to start over. And regardless of whatever type of innuendo Scott imagines, the show will go on.

On Monday, July 14, world-renowned professional chicken whisperer, Purvis Hooper--a good friend of Mike's--stopped by for a visit on Mike's behalf . Unfortunately, according to Purvis, Mike couldn't be with us until later due to a sudden and violent attack of diarrhea--dying rear? Yes, perhaps.

Anyhow, decked out in full professional chicken whispering attire of straw hat, x-ray specs, and over-alls, Purvis Hooper quickly gained our attention. It was plain to us all that Purvis had come prepared to get right down to business. And that's just what he did.

Not only did Mr. Hooper entertain us with his highly-refined sense of humor and his own brand of clever wit, but he also enlightened and amazed us with heroic--and what I now know to be true--war stories of his many unbelievable feats of bravery in hen houses and cock coops across the nation.

Why, I recall one story in particular that had special meaning to me. A particular cock named... Willie, I think it was...Well, he was down, depressed real bad, hung his head, drooped around all the time, and no matter what they did, they couldn't get him to perk up. 'Til one day they heard about Purvis and called him in to see if maybe he could cure him with his whisperin' skills. And you know what? It worked! He was cured.

The old farmer asked him, "How'd you do it? What'd you say to 'im?"

And Purvis answered, "Well, sir, I can't give away my secrets, so I'll spare ye tha details, but I basically says to 'im...I says to 'im, 'Willie, when you're down and troubled and you need a helpin' hand...' You know, from that Jameson Taylor song...sometimes I intercourse music into my technique...so I kinda sings it to 'im...and then I says, I says, 'Willie, it's okay, son, just remember to always keep yer pecker up.'...an' I'll be dogged if he didn't immediately begin to erectify hisself and smile. So, that's all there is to it, really. Thank ye fer the call. Here's my card if'n you ever should need my services in the future."

Wow! I mean, doesn't that just put chicken bumps all up and down your arms? It does me.

Anyway, his visit was amazing, and afterwards I couldn't help but think how glad I was that Mike had the squirts that morning (no offense, Mike) because if he hadn't, we might never have had the opportunity to meet this great and wise and talented man.

At times, Purvis did come across as a little cocky, I know, but I don't think anyone will hold it against him in the end.

Purvis' list of accomplishments is quite long, so I won't list them all here at this time; however, if you have questions for him, or if you should need assistance with stubborn chickens; chickens with I.B.S.; loose goose-necked chickens; chickens with difficult feet; you name it...any kind of chicken troubles, you can e-mail him at chickenwhisperingprofessionalPurv@cockadoodledandy.com.

Please enjoy this video clip from his recent visit, compliments of Slow Baby Productions, Inc. (If the video does not upload correctly and appear below for your viewing pleasure, please be patient and know that we will work to erectify that shortly.)

Thank you and have a lovely cluckin' weekend,

- S.B.R.

Way down in Cocomo . . .

I'm not sure that the sight of Reese in that coconut bra will leave my consciousness EVER! : )

"Slow" Baby Finally Made it to the Party!

Woohoo!
Yep. I finally made it.
Am I the last one?
...or are there more stragglers?
Anyway, thanks for not givin' up on me.
And thanks to Angela for setting this up.

Looks like nothin' but fun goin' on here.
You folks are a hoot.
I'll be back.
More later...
S.B.R.

Mysteries

Henry's Demon (oh, I mean Demo) got me thinking... I wish there were some good low-level mystery books out there for the kids--I'm not sure the A to Z mysteries fit the bill. I have a couple of 5-minute and 2-minute mystery books/compilations in class, but the kids aren’t very excited about them. I am not sure if it is an attention span issue or if they simply can’t relate to some of the situations for the mysteries, but the kids don’t seem to like them much. I thought they would because they challellenge both inferences and assumptions, wrong assumption on my part. Anyway, this might be a fun book to create by local authors that kids in this area could get into. Know any author groups that might be interested? Or, does anyone know of any quick mysteries that are engaging--for middle school students?
Just a thought.
k

QuickWrite

I am not sure if I neglected to see a date or not, and I don't have my schedule at home with me... When is the QuickWrite due to Chris?
Thanks!

Common Grounds Aching Side

My long held theory continues to gain further support.  For years I have suspected that the NWAWP possesses some kind of unspoken power to draw attractive women, and yesterday afternoon's debriefing session at Common Grounds only furthered that hypothesis.  It wasn't simply an effect of the lighting and oppressively humid atmosphere (when I finally got home, I lamented leaving my giant container of Gold Bond at Peabody-thank heaven for the earlier lesson about "always have a back-up!").  The evidence was abundant.  NWAWP women, you weave powerful magic!

Encircling the several tables cobbled together on that patio were the most engaging, entertaining, and distracting beauties I have ever had to pleasure to meet.  I had carried to my car no fewer than a dozen hours of pressing reading/writing work aching to be completed in time for some alone time on my motorcycle, and I'll be damned if I could tear myself away from the tales of adventure, travel accounts, copious refreshments, snacks, and ribaldry even one minute before the group dispersed en masse.   How is it that from the far corners of the earth the threads of your lives have interwoven with my own?  How is it that you continue to spin yarns that suspend time and override my own imagination?  How is it that you seem always to slip an undetected hand below the table to stroke my thigh teasingly higher and higher until I am rendered incapable of enough concentration to string two syllables together, and you can do this without once drawing the attention of anyone else in the room?  Wait!  That was Mike. (never mind) 

Seriously, every gathering of NWAWP fellows has been and continues to be an love-in for me.  I learn from you things that force me to sharpen my own skills and draw from my students better performance than they knew could be possible.  I love that, but I must confess that you also charm me with your wit, your open laughter, the freedom of your unguarded smiles, the ready excitement with which you lean forward to add details to a story not intended for all of Dickson Street to enjoy, the way you lean back in your chair signifying that your satisfaction and gratitude of surviving a tough and action packed week of the Summer Invitational, and the salty familiarity with which you smoothly signal the wait staff that you are likely to down the last three ounces of your rapidly warming refreshment, and if she hopes to receive anything but a chastising tip, she better hustle her thoroughly-over-pierced ass back to the spigot to draw you another.  Truly, beauty and grace have never looked or sounded better, and the memories of you haunt my thoughts and dreams for days and weeks after every encounter.

It was a sweet afternoon and early evening I wouldn't have missed for the world, and I pity those who couldn't join us.  Fellows and spouses, you captivated me, and I can hardly wait for the opportunity to gather again.  Parting was such sweet sorrow, but the hope of 8:30 AM Monday morning is like the coming of a new dawn.  Well, actually, it is exactly that, the coming of a new dawn.  See ya there.

Peace,

SS

I'm Cold! I'm Not!

From Candy's Poem for Three Voices Quickwrite.

The air conditioning is freezing me!
Thank you Mr. Carrier for inventing AC.
Mr. Carrier didn't mean to duplicate winter with AC.
Ah! I love the thrill of the chill.
Does the testosterone make your sweat spill?
Ya gotta love tamper-proof thermostats.
Don't you see us shivering in jackets and hats?
Sorry Sis. Can't feel your pain.
Just like smokers when asked to stop, spewing the profane
You'd sing another tune if it was 90 degrees in here.
What sense does it make for icicles to appear?
Aw! Eat more and layer on some fat.
We'll be here with our hands on the dials when you die from that!

Acrostic Poem

I SERIOUSLY neglected to allow people to share their poems, and I am sure there are some great ones out there. Perhaps you'd be willing to type it up on the blog???
Sorry guys!

What Research Would You Like to Discuss?

Hello Fellow Writing Campers,
As you know, our time is tight, tight, tight, (like the almonds and chocolate on the snack table are making my pants!) but we have a set time the last week to discuss Because Writing Matters and Paradigm Shifting. However, we've some more time allotted for discussion of research next week. On Monday, I will ask everyone to vote on the ONE topic we discuss on that day. For now, I'd like some preliminary input on the readings you'd like to talk to others about. Possible topics include, but are not limited to, Teaching Show Not Tell, Voice, and Audience; Writing as Process; Teachers as Researchers; Teachers as Writers; Revision; Grammar; Responding, Evaluating, and Grading Student Writing; Peer Response Groups; and How a Writing Workshop Works.
Please feel free to discuss these topics on the blog Angela has so graciously provided as well. Come on. What else do you have to do?

Forrest Gump

I need the DVD; mine is missing. :( Can someone loan me a copy? Thanks!

Bloggers Unite

Can I just say that I am sooooo proud of everyone for blogging! ITS WONDERFUL. I also wanted to tell you that I spent our lovely three day weekend at Chilis dealing with the rodeo crowd. Wow! Do I have some great stories! Can't wait to see you all tomorrow. KEEP ON BLOGGING!

T-Shirts and Stuff

Ill say it again, What an amazing bunch of human beings. Thanks Gela for th blog!
Man that Reese can eat some "Nilla Puddin"
On the shirts is this correct, A W.P. shirt has to be correct grammatically.

Is this right?

"My write brain is what's left"

would it be better all caps?

"MY WRITE BRAIN IS WHAT'S LEFT"
and any Font preferences.....oohh who fonted?
Big Mike

Time Flies . . .

I've heard so many good comments from you "Fellows" this week. I'm glad that you are enjoying the Summer Invitational. One week down already!

I believe this Project has had the single biggest influence on me as a teacher, and as Lisa Darden told me once (2004 TC - one of MY "war buddies), "it teaches you how important it is to have a philosophy of teaching."

I hope that each of you gets SOME rest this weekend, and feels the DNA inside you starting to re-arrange. After all, that means you C-A-R-E!

Happy 4th!

Jamie

Writing Prompt

http://www.brightcove.tv/title.jsp?title=1438490562

I am not sure if this will come through.. ie., if you will be able to click on the link, but I think this would be an awesome writing prompt. View video, about 6 minutes. Be prepared for a slight sense of virtigo...
How far would you be willing to go to get where you wanted to be?
What are the limitations to how far we will push ourselves to reach our goals?
How does a person overcome fears to reach a goal?
How do you know when the roads you have traveled have led you to the outcome(s) you hoped to achieve?

Perhaps a little much for some kids, but my 6th and 7th graders generated some really great discussions from this!
Enjoy!
~k

A good question answered with more questions...

I am not sure Jameson. I was thinking about our internet culture mostly and wondering about the sub-culture Angie created here and how that could relate. A few questions I had and by NO MEANS does my opinion count for anything more than one person's opinion: Do we want to use this for writer response? What about putting links, videos, writings, etc. on here that would provide inspiration for other writers or just ourselves? Could we use something like this beyond July 24th to stay in touch with each other?

What other ideas does the group have?

Thanks for a great week! I am rejuvenated but don't know if I am ready to tackle two classes of MAT'ers Monday morning. Speaking of, better get back to syllabi creation.

G

What kind of parameters, Chris?

Thanks and First

Kudos to GA or the artist formerly known as Angela for putting this together. Thanks! You are making me too feel like I haven't been doing enough with technology.

To pose a question to the group, should we set any sort of parameters for our discussions on here? I hate censors and people who spend their days trying to find dirt on people like us but the reality is that they are out there. Any suggestions?

This has been a fun first three days. I regretfully will not be a full time participant after tomorrow but will attend when I can. Though it is tempting, I won't make this the grad school blog. I won't drown in their bog.

To pose another question to the TC's: What is your writing project story?

G

July 1, 2008

Public Log for July 1, 2008


It's 8:30. The only one who's missing is Reese, but wait, his lunch box is here.


Announcements by Anne and Jaime (and others who have something to say)

• Quickwrite copy reminder.
• Someone will always be here at 7:30.
• Book talk--Spark the Brain, Ignite the Pen
  

  



• Goering tells us again that the graduate school is still making progress and that it's always like this...Cycle of Incompetence. Anne mentions having "violent dreams of storming the grad school."



Sharla says Mike will do a snake write on Mon. 7th.

• Jaime says to Danielle "Fellows' choice is...a fellows' choice."
• Reese finally shows up.

Next activity, Anne gives review of her demo evaluations from yesterday and says with surprise, "These are really good."

Somehow we all begin to discuss the fact that Step Up to Writing Sucks!

Author's Chair

Anne reads two poems that both give me the chill bumps all over.

Chris approaches the chair and says to Mike, "Mike is a hot pepper today... But I can't talk about Mike being a hot pepper until the court proceedings are over."



He continues on to read the preface of his up and coming book, Finding Common Ground. This is where I get the idea to create a blog.

Highlight of the Day: Mike reads a portion of Bigfoot

My favorite parts are, "flat chested women are not my type." and "I
have been taken by the Bigfoot, Bigfeets, Bigfoots."

Cindy gets up to do her reading of the Public Log. She has written a parody of "Sam I Am" and dedicated it to Sam Totten. WOW and it's really good. She's really putting the pressure on for me to come up with something good...Damn.

Next, it's time for a quickwrite with Kelly! We create fictional stories using random words that we came up with from the alphabet. This activity shows us how sentence variety can be challenging for everyone and that it must be practiced in order to improve one's writing ability. Thanks Kelly!

"Too much teacher talk," Goering says as he introduces his demonstration. We are doing Socractic Circles. Yay! I love this stuff...seriously. I think it is very interesting to observe other people interacting, especially when they are as crazy as Group 1. lol.

First group:

• fired up about the lack of cited resources
• Mike scored on the 3rd grade level on the SAT
• Erin wishes she was a nice person
  

Second group (better of the two):

• polite and well-mannered
• listens to each other
• apparently, we need to be more aggressive

That's when I hear Kelly say something worth writing down..."I've been teaching for 10 years and I feel like a piece of s*%#!"

(Hilarious)

We all go our separate ways to our response groups. My group helps me with an idea. They are supportive and helpful--I can tell our group is going to be kick ass.

We go to lunch and then return to participate in Jaime's demonstration:

Defending an Outrageous Opinion

Where we learn that...

1. Smoking is good for you.


2. Tube tops should be worn by people over 500 lbs.


3. Trans fats are healthy.


4. Never wear your seat belt.


5. Make sure to always say hello to strangers.


6. Yellow snow is good for you.


7. Thongs are for your feet and your butt.


8. Run with scissors.


9. Goering insists that babies should always be breastfed.

Obviously these are all the opposite of what "everybody knows" and are going to be difficult to defend, but Jaime shows us how. She gives us numerous models and a strategic way to legitimize even the most ridiculous opinions. Now, we have a wonderful way to teach and model persuasive writing. Thanks Jaime!

Jaime also shares a few examples of Letters From a Nutt by Ted L. Nancy (intro by Jerry Seinfeld). Hilarious!

And this concludes Day 2 of the writing project. If you would like to become a contributing author to this blog, please create an username on http://www.blogspot.com/ and I will gladly add you as an author. EVERYONE SHOULD DO IT. Please email me at amccutch1@gmail.com

Please send all donations to:

ScottandReese@DeadSexySmokers.com

DanielleandCindy@welovehitchhikers.com

StephanieandGoering@Satanstraps.com