God is not a white man & Earth is Yours by Gungor. A couple videos.

Best Religion Joke Ever?

In class tonight my professor told this classic Emo Phillips (what a creeper...loved that odd 80s guy) joke. Fantastic. Hypocrisy of Denominating, Todd?

Once I saw this guy on a bridge about to jump. I said, "Don't do it!" He said, "Nobody loves me." I said, "God loves you. Do you believe in God?"

He said, "Yes." I said, "Are you a Christian or a Jew?" He said, "A Christian." I said, "Me, too! Protestant or Catholic?" He said, "Protestant." I said, "Me, too! What franchise?" He said, "Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Baptist or Southern Baptist?" He said, "Northern Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist or Northern Liberal Baptist?"

He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist." I said, "Me, too! Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region, or Northern Conservative Baptist Eastern Region?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region." I said, "Me, too!"

Northern Conservative†Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1879, or Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912?" He said, "Northern Conservative Baptist Great Lakes Region Council of 1912." I said, "Die, heretic!" And I pushed him over.

Where the Magic Happens

School starts on Monday so I thought I'd share some pictures of my classroom. The desks are for some minilessons and individual writing and reading workshop. The tables are for group work and reading workshop. The back room is for peer writing conferences, the middle shelf for writing supplies, and the bookshelf for, well, books. Special thanks to Jeff Davis for inspiration for the small book board, where students will post recommended books.

It's not nearly as exciting as pictures of Switzerland and India, but it's my life. At least I get to hang with the President.

the Power of Disconnection

A challenging word:

"If your eyes are glued to your Blackberry and your ears stopped up by your iPod, it's hard to hear what might be going on inside you. Cutting back on these gadgets and not answering every single email and phone call right away may lead to a measure of calm...sometimes you have to disconnect to connect. Likewise, if you're completely absorbed in the electronic world, obsessively checking email and constantly returning phone calls, it becomes impossible to experience the quirky surprises in the world around us."

James Martin, SJ | The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything

switzerland!

Must See Photos from the 1930s & 40s. Stunning!