I have kind of a weird relationship with the idea of community and social networks. I think they are important. But I also feel like I’m pretty isolated from other professionals.
A lot of my work in church is to attempt to create community. I believe that musical performances in general create communities. This is also the theory for a lot of church: people who participate in singing are more unified and connected.
So it’s kind of ironic that I think of myself as so isolated.
Eileen has today off work. She gets every other Friday off and works every other Saturday. This morning she and I walked to the library, then to the coffee shop, then to the bookstore.
We passed a man on a ladder in front of the marquis for the Park Theater. We greeted each other.
I recognized him as Bob a local business owner who was instrumental in promoting the street musician program. He also sponsors concerts at the Park Theater.
His shop is Globe Design and Vision. I would patronize it but he sells designer eye frames that are a bit upscale and not of interest to me.
Then a block or so later we saw a woman who works at the Holland Downtown Development office. I remember when she first arrived in Holland. She was a member of the Catholic parish where I worked and sang in the choir under my direction. She greeted us.
I started musing on the fact that I actually am sort of part of a local community. I’m definitely connected more and more to the people at the church where I work.
Maybe I am part of a community.
**********************************************************************
The New Haven Experiment – NYTimes.com
A teacher’s union that is actually supporting standards of excellence for teachers.
*********************************************************************
This War Is Not Over Yet – NYTimes.com
This article made me think about the indefinite detention policy of the USA and it’s relationship to declaring recent wars at an end.
*********************************************************************
Sony Apologizes for Whitney Houston Price Hike in U.K. | Music News | Rolling Stone
Sony says it was an unfortunate mistake they raised the price on Whitney Houston albums to cash in on her death. Honest.
********************************************************************
The Death of the Cyberflâneur – NYTimes.com
I missed this article when it came out. I had not heard of the concept of flâneur before. I like the way this guys thinks about the internet.
The term flâneur comes from the French masculine noun flâneur—which has the basic meanings of “stroller”, “lounger”, “saunterer”, “loafer”—which itself comes from the French verb flâner, which means “to stroll”. Charles Baudelaire developed a derived meaning of flâneur—that of “a person who walks the city in order to experience it. [link to wikipedia article source]
*********************************************************************
The ‘Undue Weight’ of Truth on Wikipedia – The Chronicle Review – The Chronicle of Higher Education
I had reservations about Wikipedia when it first began. But then I became more comfortable when I realized how flawed most reference books are anyway. This story made me more skeptical of Wikipedia’s general accuracy and worth.
“Wikipedia is not ‘truth,’ Wikipedia is ‘verifiability’ of reliable sources. Hence, if most secondary sources which are taken as reliable happen to repeat a flawed account or description of something, Wikipedia will echo that.”
**********************************************************************
I often have comments, but feel they are non essential. So… I don’t. However, I have only one comment. I do not use Wikipedia as a source, but have used it as a way to validate a name or reference to something that I could not recall, anyway something along those lines. I also, do not allow my students to use it as a reference for the research papers.