Tuesday was Christmas

I hope everyone had a merry Christmas and happy holidays!
Best wishes for 2013.

NFL Picks ~ Week Sixteen

Hold the phone… a 12-4 week (finally!) brought me to within striking distance of .500, at 108-111-5.  Let’s see if I can keep the drive alive.  As I've done every week for over twenty years, and continue to do purely for fun, here are my picks against the spread for the NFL:

Atlanta giving 3.5 to Detroit
WIN
Atlanta 31 - Detroit 18

Green Bay giving 12.5 to Tennessee
WIN
Green Bay 55 - Tennessee 7

Carolina giving 8.5 to Oakland
WIN
Carolina 17 - Oakland 6

Miami giving 4.5 to Buffalo
WIN
Miami 24 - Buffalo 10

Cincinnati getting 3.5 from Pittsburgh
WIN
Cincinnati 13 - Pittsburgh 10

New England giving 14.5 to Jacksonville
LOSS
New England 23 - Jacksonville 16

Indianapolis giving 7 to Kansas City   
PUSH
Indianapolis 20 - Kansas City 13

New Orleans getting 3 from Dallas
WIN
New Orleans 34 - Dallas 31

Philadelphia getting 6.5 from Washington
LOSS
Washington 27 - Philadelphia 20

St. Louis getting 3 from Tampa Bay
WIN
St. Louis 28 - Tampa Bay 13

NY Giants giving 2.5 to Baltimore
LOSS
Baltimore 33 - NY Giants 14

Houston giving 8 to Minnesota
LOSS
Minnesota 23 - Houston 6

Denver giving 13 to Cleveland
WIN
Denver 34 - Cleveland 12

Chicago giving 5.5 to Arizona
WIN
Chicago 28 - Arizona 13

San Diego getting 2.5 from NY Jets
WIN
San Diego 27 - NY Jets 17

San Francisco giving 1 to Seattle
LOSS
Seattle 42 - San Francisco 13

WEEK SIXTEEN RECORD: 10-5-1

2012 - 2013 Record: 118-116-6
2011 - 2012 Record: 129-126-11
2010 - 2011 Record: 130-130-7
2009 - 2010 Record: 138-125-4
2008 - 2009 Record: 139-120-8

Holiday Songs I Need to Hear More Often

If you've been driving around in the car much this holiday season, you might have noticed the elelphant in the room. Actually, it's a hippopotamus. For Christmas. And I'm sure we've all heard "All I Want for Christmas is You" by Mariah Carey, "Wonderful Christmastime" by Paul McCartney, or "Santa Baby," by Eartha Kitt, Madonna, Taylor Swift -- or just about any woman with a microphone -- about a million times by now. With Christmas music taking over the airways the day after Halloween these days, there's only so much one can take of "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer" or "Domenic the Donkey," right?

Even with the constant bombardment of holiday cheer, limited radio playlists have left me with several songs I just haven't heard enough of this year. Here are my top ten underplayed songs of the season:

10) Stevie Wonder - "What Christmas Means to Me" (1967) - Christmas clearly means "soul" to Stevie Wonder.
9) Bing Crosby - "Hawaiian Christmas Song (Mele Kalikimaka)" (1950) - can't listen to this one without thinking of Chevy Chase in his kitchen in Christmas Vacation.
8) Colbie Caillat - "Mistletoe" (2007) - she's got a unique, warm voice to add cheer to the holiday season.
7) Trans-Siberian Orchestra - "Carol of the Bells" (1995) - so much better than that Mannheim Steamroller version!
6) Run DMC - "Christmas in Hollis" (1987) - It was either this one or the one by TLC, but I think the main riff for the theme song for the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air got lifted from this song. Watch out for those ill reindeer!
5) Jimmy Durante - "Frosty the Snowman" (1969) - It sounds like old Jimmy smoked about two packs a day. Maybe that's what happened to Frosty...
4) Aaron Neville - "Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow" (1993) - I don't know what's better, the organ playing, or the way he can put 16 syllables in the word snow (oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-oh-ow).
3) Jackson 5 - "Santa Claus is Comin to Town" (1970) - It's definitely not underplayed, but I could always hear more of this one.
2) Bing Crosby - "Silver Bells" (1951) - not nearly as frequently played as his other songs. And this (or anything by Sinatra, Buble, Crosby,) is what Christmas songs should sound like!
1) Andy Williams - "O Holy Night" (1963) - a great version, and not played as often as the other (also great) Andy Williams songs.

Seriously, no more "O Holy Night" by Celine Dion. Give "Do They Know it's Christmas" by Band Aid some well-deserved rest. Hall & Oates' "Jingle Bell Rock" doesn't really rock at all! And I was hoping last Christmas would have been the last Christmas for Wham's "Last Christmas." Don't even get me started on Springsteen!

The list above isn't comprised of obscure, hidden gems or anything. They're all pretty popular as well. I'd just like to hear a little more of these songs to give my ears a break from the same old 20 songs they play all day.

Have a merry Christmas.

NFL Picks ~ Week Fifteen

My worst season ever rolls along, and I keep offering up my weekly NFL picks. I’ll have to go on a huge run to finish this season with an even record. As I've done every week for over twenty years, and continue to do purely for fun, here are my picks against the spread for the NFL:

Philadelphia getting 5 Cincinnati
LOSS
Cincinnati 34 - Philadelphia 13

Chicago getting 3 from Green Bay
LOSS
Green Bay 21 - Chicago 13

Atlanta giving 1.5 to NY Giants
WIN
Atlanta 34 - NY Giants 0

New Orleans giving 3.5 to Tampa Bay
WIN
New Orleans 41 - Tampa Bay 0

Minnesota getting 3 from St. Louis
WIN
Minnesota 36 - St. Louis 22

Washington giving 1.5 to Cleveland
WIN
Washington 38 - Cleveland 21

Miami giving 7 to Jacksonville
WIN
Miami 24 - Jacksonville 3

Denver giving 2.5 to Baltimore
WIN
Denver 34 - Baltimore 17

Houston giving 8.5 to Indianapolis
WIN
Houston 29 - Indianapolis 17

Carolina getting 3 from San Diego
WIN
Carolina 31 - San Diego 7

Seattle giving 5.5 to Buffalo
WIN
Seattle 50 - Buffalo 17

Detroit giving 6 to Arizona
LOSS
Arizona 38 - Detroit 10

Pittsburgh giving 1.5 to Dallas
LOSS
Dallas 27 - Pittsburgh 24

Oakland giving 3 to Kansas City
WIN
Oakland 15 - Kansas City 0

San Francisco getting 5 from New England
WIN
San Francisco 41 - New England 34

Tennessee giving 2 to NY Jets
WIN
Tennessee 14 - NY Jets 10

WEEK FIFTEEN RECORD: 12-4-0
2012 - 2013 Record: 108-111-5
2011 - 2012 Record: 129-126-11
2010 - 2011 Record: 130-130-7
2009 - 2010 Record: 138-125-4
2008 - 2009 Record: 139-120-8

Tuesdays without Swindy

This week's Tuesdays with Swindy has been cancelled due to flu-like symptoms.

I plan on resting and drinking plenty of fluids.

Be well, everyone, and stay healthy this cold season!

NFL Picks ~ Week Fourteen

My worst season ever rolls along, and I keep offering up my weekly NFL picks. I’ll have to go on a huge run to finish this season with an even record. As I've done every week for over twenty years, and continue to do purely for fun, here are my picks against the spread for the NFL:

Denver giving 10 to Oakland
WIN
Denver 26 - Oakland 14

Washington giving 2.5 to Baltimore
WIN
Washington 31 - Baltimore 28

Cleveland giving 6.5 to Kansas City
WIN
Cleveland 30 - Kansas City 7

Pittsburgh giving 6.5 to San Diego
LOSS
San Diego 34 - Pittsburgh 24

Indianapolis giving 5.5 to Tennessee
LOSS
Indianapolis 27 - Tennessee 23

NY Jets giving 2.5 to Jacksonville
WIN
Jets 17 - Jacksonville 10

Chicago giving 3 to Minnesota
LOSS
Minnesota 21 - Chicago 14

Atlanta giving 3.5 to Carolina
LOSS
Carolina 30 - Atlanta 20

Philadelphia getting 7.5 from Tampa Bay
WIN
Philadelphia 23 - Tampa Bay 21

St. Louis getting 3 from Buffalo
WIN
St. Louis 15 - Buffalo 12

Cincinnati giving 3 to Dallas
LOSS
Dallas 20 - Cincinnati 19

San Francisco giving 10 to Miami
WIN
San Francisco 27 - Miami 13

New Orleans getting 5 from NY Giants
LOSS
NY Giants 52 - New Orleans 27

Seattle giving 10 to Arizona
WIN
Seattle 58 - Arizona 0

Green Bay giving 7 to Detroit
PUSH
Green Bay 27 - Detroit 20

Houston getting 3.5 from New England
LOSS
New England 42 - Houston 14

WEEK FOURTEEN RECORD: 8-7-1

2012 - 2013 Record: 96-107-5
2011 - 2012 Record: 129-126-11
2010 - 2011 Record: 130-130-7
2009 - 2010 Record: 138-125-4
2008 - 2009 Record: 139-120-8

Individual Chapter Presentations

This month, some of my students are reading A Tale of Two Cities. They are taking turns presenting one chapter each, individually, to the class.

Their presentations must include a visual component, such a web page, video, wiki, Prezi, PowerPoint, or Google Presentation. These must include pictures that symbolize important plot details, a complete summary of the plot, an explanation of the chapter title, three quotes that show the use of different literary devices, and an essential quote with an explanation of its relevance to the chapter. Students are assessed by a rubric that included points for all the aforementioned required elements as well as voice and physical aspects of public speech.

Each student took a turn presenting for five minutes. It has been a big success. We are now almost finished the book and we have collected excellent notes from the entire novel. These notes will be saved forever on the class website, and will aid students in studying for the assessments and final exam.

All in all, this was an excellent experience for the students individually, and one that greatly benefited the class as a whole. It has been excellent to hear an individual impression of each chapter, leading in to group discussions of ongoing themes, symbols, motifs, and literary devices. It was a great way to break down a very difficult text into manageable and meaningful segments of collaborative work, and is one I will definitely do again.