kinder do hands-on research
writing their observations and making conclusions in their notes
“words of wisdom are spoken by children at least as often as scientists.”
-james newman
Oct15
Category Archives: observations
Mar26
sonder.
sonder – n.
the realization that each random passerby
is living a life
as vivid and complex as your own.
—
THE DICTIONARY OF OBSCURE SORROWS – John Koenig
—
kerrytown, ann arbor, mi, usa – march 2019
Jan2
‘for the last twelve months we have all been living in one year and now all of a sudden it is another.’ – roald dahl
and it is upon us.
welcome it with open antlers.
—-
image credit: edgemagazine.net
Jun14
Sometimes, a winner is a dreamer who never gave up. – Unknown
while much of the globe is preoccupied with the world cup from june 12-july 13,
here is an alternative championship that could give fifa a run for its money.
the world toe-wrestling championships.
in 1976, when pubgoers in derbyshire, england grew bored with arm wrestling,
they began locking big toes and trying to pin their opponent’s foot to the ground.
rules state that competitors must yell out ‘toe much!’ if they want to throw in the towel.
competition is serious.
world champion, alan ‘nasty’ nash
has come home with broken toes nine times!
—
just play. have fun. enjoy the game.
michael jordan
—
credits: cameracrewgermany.com, bbc news, mental floss magazine
Jun12
balls: world cup day one.
it’s world cup time and team oz is ready.
these guys seem pretty unruffled.
and who needs shorts down under?
best of luck to team u.s.a.
let the games begin!
—
I say if you’re going to take a chance on something, you just go full balls to the wall.
Toby Keith
—
image credit: the kangaroo sanctuary Alice Springs
Jun7
the aussies are coming! the aussies are coming!
and i couldn’t be happier.
part of my family lives down under.
and soon
they will be up top with us for a while.
and i will have my dream
of all of the daughters
and all of the sons in law
and all of the grand babies
in one place at one time.
and it is sure to be an adventure.
—
Family faces are magic mirrors. Looking at people who belong to us, we see the past, present, and future.
Gail Lumet Buckley
Jun4
Children have neither past nor future; they enjoy the present, which very few of us do. ~Jean de la Bruyere
it is our last day today as a class.
and as we look back –
and look ahead –
we find
that a part of each of us
is still right here.
always has been.
and always will be.
—
Always jump in the puddles! Always skip alongside the flowers.
The only fights worth fighting are the pillow and food varieties.
Terri Guillemets
Jun3
What is food to one, is to others bitter poison. – Titus Lucretius Carus
back in my catering days,
we hosted a party in a very small, yet charming victorian house.
it was for a women’s group,
a lovely luncheon that began with tray-passed appetizers.
as i made my rounds through the rooms,
squeezing past people engaged in little groups,
i offered up tray after tray of beautiful bite-sized food.
and one woman ignored me the entire time
and continued her conversation,
she wouldn’t even look at me or make eye contact at all.
and never took one thing from me.
until finally –
she reached down and popped one into her mouth.
and i was sure she did it just to appease me
and hoped i would go away.
but –
she had grabbed the flower on the tray instead of the appetizer.
and it was not an edible flower.
and she put it in her mouth and chewed it.
and got a strange look on her face.
and delicately deposited it into her napkin.
and went back to her conversation.
and i hurried to the kitchen to let the chef know.
who asked if it was the woman in the pink sweater.
and i said yes and wondered how she knew.
and that was when she told me
that the woman in the pink sweater was blind.
—-
The food here is terrible, and the portions are too small.
Woody Allen
Jun2
that thing you do
—
image credit: ziggityzoom
Jan1
nerd play
happy new year to everyone who spends their life trying to somehow make the world a better place, including those engaged in the mysterious and exciting world of genetics.
one may assume that these bright souls are born with the gift of extraordinary brilliance and purpose, all at the expense of some other area of their humanity, such as a sense of humor. in reality, this could not be further from the truth. while their comedic approach to life may not be easily apparent, all it takes is a glance at the mark they leave on their work to see their strong sense of whimsy.
after listening to a recent npr interview with one such geneticist/scientist/self-proclaimed ‘nerd’ and hearing him discuss names assigned to individual genes and their mutations, it’s clear this group has found a way to do their research, stretch their intelligent ironic imaginations, and leave their legacies – all while embracing a sense of play in its truest form.
A RANDOM SAMPLING OF SOME OF MY FAVORITES:
radical fringe
lunatic
cheap date
maniac
one-eyed pinhead
INDY – I’m Not Dead Yet (makes mutant flies live twice as long – inspired by Monty Python’s ‘Holy Grail’
i thank you for this on so many levels.
I didn't have my glasses on.... 