Global issues and language, and a dog report

Today was a rather interesting day for me. Today was the first day I've ever had one of my children in my class. At first, I hesitated at the thought, but I think there will be some real advantages to it.

Today I gave my students their cd with Plan B 3.0 on it as well as various pdf files of IB MYP info. We discussed the long term plan for using the book and did a general overview of the course this term. Over dinner my son asked me: "Dad, if we spend all of our time dicussing global issues, when will we learn English stuff?" FANTASTIC!!! A totally appropriate and the perfect question to ask me. At that point we got into a discussion about analyzing the book as a text (Brown's use of language, vocabulary, etc.), but the question showed me that he is thinking about the class material and connecting it to what he knows his needs are as a student and as a person. I was pretty excited about the conversation.

It's been almost three weeks since we got the dog, and I couldn't be happier with the way things are going with him. He's an amazing animal, and I'm glad we made him a part of our lives. My day begins with an early morning walk under the stars; after work we go out and run and play and generally be hyperactive and silly (if you ask me, no one does this enough, regardless of age or pet ownership status), followed by endless hours of generally spoiling him with attention by both my son and me, ending the day with another walk under the stars. Yes, he is an incredibly spoiled dog, and he knows it (and loves it). Kyle's been taking on the responsibility well and helps out quite a lot, which makes my life easier and makes me pretty proud of him in general.

I once mentioned that going out for coffee or tea with a good friend or two was one of the simplest yet most profound pleasures of life... add to that the simple joy and peace found in taking a dog out for a walk (regardless of time of day) and the sheer wonder of having someone intensely happy to see you, even if you've only just gone out to the car to retrieve your coffee mug.

My fuzzy Valentine

Let me start out by saying that I’m a cat person. Now, I have absolutely nothing against dogs at all, but I’ve tended to prefer cats for a pet: quieter, cleaner, more independent. There have been plenty of dogs that I’ve liked and a few that I’ve loved; I even owned a beagle when I was in high school. However, when the subject of getting a pet would come up in my family, I would always say that I intended to get a couple of cats; last year I picked some carrier crates, dishes, litter boxes, and a big-ass tree thing for cats to play on/in, figuring I’d get a couple of felines before 2009 was out. So imagine my surprise when I came home with a dog on Valentine’s Day. The rest of this entry is here. I'll post more about our adventures with him later, including today's "But, Dad... I LIKE squirrels!" discussion. For now, it's time to take him out on another walk.