Susan, a recent blogging acquaintance, tagged me with a meme post. Thanks, Susan, and because it’s Christmas, here’s 5 things you might not (care to?) know ’bout me:

  1. I’m left handed. (I’ve been wondering how I was ever going to work this into a blog post.) Somehow - and maybe only other southpaws would know what I’m talking about - I believe we think differently from everyone else. At the moment, my left hand is broken and in a cast (until mid January) from a fall on the ice in front of my house. I am milking the situation to avoid as many responsibilities as I can.
  2. The only other time my left arm has been out of commission was 14 years ago when I crashed my bicycle to avoid hitting a black bear that walked onto the trail in front of me. I had two sled dogs harnessed to the bike, pulling me downhill. I remember lying on the ground in a helpless heap, trying to keep the dogs away from the bear by holding the bike with my unhurt arm. The bear crashed off through the brush. Turns out I separated my shoulder. I was a celebrity in the ER that morning.
  3. Speaking of celebrity, my grandfather, Curt Coleman, played baseball for the New York Highlanders in 1912. I used to play with his glove when I was a kid. Too bad nobody kept track of it.
  4. I’ve read - consulted - I Ching on an off for the last 30 years. Ever think about how useful it might be to have access to an oracle? Not very, it turns out, but it’s something to think about.
  5. I learn by doing - I figured out how to build a house by reading a book until I got to the roof, and needed a real carpenter; I learned to use a sewing machine by making a parka and anorak to wear winter mountaineering; I decided to become a blogger so that I could better understand how to use the internet with students.

tagging: Artichoke, Graham, Brian, Mark, Sarah

Merry Christmas. And a warm winter solstice to all. It’s -10 degreesF here today. We get 3 hours, 41 minutes and 30 seconds of official daylight.