Any time I see someone online (mis)use the term “deconstruct” or some form of it in reference to their (often former) Christian faith, I paste this quote from J. Hillis Miller, “Deconstruction is not a dismantling of the structure of a text, but a demonstration that it has already dismantled itself. Its apparently solid ground is no rock but thin air.” I hope it reminds them of what shaky ground they are standing on as I deconstruct their text about deconstructing.

What if…

Blow up existing college football conferences and start over.

6 regional divisions of 10 teams in each.

12 regular season games, 9 within your division, and 3 outside of it. Top 2 teams from each division make playoffs.

Who gets “byes”? The top 4 division champs based on a formula too complicated to explain with human language.

I’m aware that there are like 130+ FBS teams, but seriously, does the bottom half even matter?

(I realize this has no chance of ever happening.)

As an instructor, I’m not a big fan of LMS’s. I have the most experience with two: Canvas and Brightspace.

Canvas has some advantages for the “grader”—especially one who uses an Ipad with apple pencil to mark up papers. Brightspace has nothing equivialent, and it’s a pain to annotate papers without annoying extra steps.

Brightspace has one feature that is a no-brainer: in the “overall feedback” text box, you have the full host of options for rich text editing, linking, embedding, etc.

Canvas has… a plain text box. So annoying not to be able to hyperlink to something.

But actually, you don’t really need to an LMS. Microsoft Teams with OneNote class notebook could do basically everything most people use Canvas or Brightspace for.

My favorite way of giving feedback would be directly in a locked OneNote page, where I can use my apple pencil to mark and then embed a Loom video or add an audio comment wherever needed.

I just watched the first episode of One Hundred Years of Solitude on Netflix.

I don’t tknow what it would be like to watch this without having read (and taught) the book many times. But having read the book many times, I can say, this is (so far) absolutely fantastic, as enjoyable a viewing experience as any I’ve had.

On my first reading of the novel, I thought to myself that it would be impossible to make movie of it. But the long form Netflix allows changes that.

If you’ve not read the book, go to the library, get a copy, and read it just so you can watch the first episode of this terrific film.

The only thing worse than using a rubric to grade a college level assignment is being forced to use an incredibly poorly designed rubric you have no power to edit.

Things seem to be more or less a disaster at our nation’s elite universities. In different ways, the massive open enrollment online universiters are a different sort of travesty.

Maybe somewhere in between those two disheartening extremes, some element of higher education still works, in spite of itself.

“When a population becomes distracted by trivia, when cultural life is redefined as a perpetual round of entertainments, when serious public conversation becomes a form of baby-talk, when, in short, a people become an audience, and their public business a vaudeville act, then a nation finds itself at risk; culture-death is a clear possibility.”

-Neil Postman. “Amusing Ourselves to Death: Public Discourse in the Age of Show Business”

1985. He saw it coming.

Shadows play a major role in this book. What is it about the concept of shadows and pairs that captivated you?

　　 The first person main characters in my novels are, to put a fine point on it, not the real me, but perhaps the me that might have been. I find it fascinating to pursue that multiplicity of possibilities, and it’s one of the real joys I’ve experienced as I’ve written novels over the years. We seldom have the opportunity in life, after all, to become someone other than ourselves.

Perhaps human beings aren’t single entities, but composite beings, constructed of different selves. And maybe it’s possible for the real self and the shadow to be interchangeable — a thought that often strikes me as I write my stories.

www.npr.org/2024/11/1…

“Othering” is the process of perceiving or treating individuals or groups as fundamentally different and alien from oneself, often leading to marginalization and inequality. It involves creating an “us vs. them” dichotomy, which can perpetuate oppressive systems and societal divisions.

Anybody else seeing a fair amount of this in their social media from people upset about the election results?

Doesn’t seem like a good strategy for winning people over.

I am thinking of starting a micro-podcast of “reveries” relevant for sharing with my students. Take a short quote from the text or from a favorite author, and then muse on it for less than five minutes. I recorded (garage band) one of these already. In the past it wa so easy to create a podcast using AnchorFM. But then that became Spotify for Podcasters, and suddenly that incredibly user friendly podcast editing studio went away. Which sucks.

So now I’m trying to figure out how best to do this, and my first shot was simply recording the content on Garage Band using my Ipad. The sound is good enough for what I’m attempting, but Spotify for Podcasters, I am finding, is not nearly as creator friendly as it should be.

Trying to figure it out, but I lament the loss of AnchorFM. It was awesome while it lasted.

I don’t know whether my students pay any attention to the required readings in this online English class that I teach. Or “teach.” I did not design the course. I do not get to choose the primary resources or readings for the course. All I get to do is participate in the discussion thread, the topics of which I do not get to choose. I get to post announcements, in which I am allowed to offer supplementary resources. I am quite sure students ignore these for the most part. And I get to grade and give feedback on their work.

Truth be told, it is this part, the feedback on their written work, where the real teaching in the class actually takes place. That is, if there is any real teaching in the class that takes place.

They insist that instructors have at least a masters degree in the subject area of the course they teach. I have a doctorate. Quite frankly, a below average high school English teacher who cared at all to do this job well could do it as well or better than most people who currently are doing it, I am quite sure.

The course seems intentionally designed to make it impossible for any student who completes the assignments—no matter how poorly—to fail. The course design makes it impossible to deliver a truly great course. But it probably also makes it impossible to deliver a complete clunker or disaster of a course.

Unless this is the only possible way for you to get a college education, I would not recommend it.

Walking the dogs into the woods today, I met an older gentleman who told me he was a pastor in town and was bringing some missionary visitors out to the woods later for some target shooting. He had permission from the owner of the land. Wanted to give the visitors from Egypt and Lebanon the rural Indiana experience, I guess. It dawned on me later, that though I am born and bred a rural Indiana person—a country boy fast approaching old age now at 54–I have never in my life fired a real gun. A toy Daisy BB gun given to me on my 11th birthday doesn’t really count, does it?

I’m looking for a service opportunity, something regular, something that fits who I am. The sermon this morning was a call to serving, and refreshingly it was not an appeal to be an usher or a nursery worker. It was a call to serve outside the church, and I have been feeling for some time like I am missing something. I’ve spent a lot of time alone, a lot of time in introspection, and as an introvert, I am really energized by my time alone. But with all that time alone, I now have a lot of positive energy stored up and God, I believe, has planted this longing in me.

I don’t know that I’m necessarily on the hunt for some holy enterprise, some Christian para-church organization to serve. Actually, probably not. I mean, I’m sure they need Upward Basketball volunterers like crazy somewhere.

Nor am I necessarily looking for manual labor—raking the leaves of the elderly in my community, for example. I’m not opposed to this, but I’m already in a job where my greatest gifts are not really utilized, and though I love being outdoors and working with my hands, I get more than enough of that with my job.

I don’t need to lead something, though I guess you could say organizing a book club is leading something that is service oriented. But I’m doing that more for myself than anything. I, selfishly, want to read those books and talk about them with others.

If the “Inner Light” offers a way of guiding my steps, is my approach simply to walk in the direction the light seems to shine? I feel like I’m too passive much of the time, waiting to be called upon by others to step in. I never pursued any job promotion or change in role—I was always approached and invited. Is it wrong to pursue opportunities for service?

I have thought of asking people where they thought I might best be used and see what comes of that. I have some energy and some time, is what I’m saying, but I’m low on ideas for where to plug in and help.

Am I the only one?

Read more books. Take more walks, preferably in the woods, in every kind of weather. Keep a journal, on paper, with a favorite pen or pencil. Rejoice always. Pray continuously. Play the harmonica with gusto, though it drives the dogs and spouse bananas. Shoot hoops in the driveway. Turn off the TV. Sit on the front porch as the sun sets. See how many pushups or pullups you can do. Ride your bicycle. Drink ice cold water from a giant cup. Laugh.

I have decided to start a new book club or reading group. This is not my first. Perhaps some of you will remember past iterations of reading groups or book clubs I hosted. The one where we read through Don Quixote. The one where we read through the collected fictions of Borges. The one where we read basically every novel by J.M. Coetzee up to Slow Man. And others where individual members of the group got to select a book they wanted everyone to read, and we did. And finally still others where we read random books based on my fancy.

Mostly, we read novels. Occasionally we read a memoir (does anyone remember reading House of Prayer, No. 2 by Mark Richard in the book club with me?).

This version of my reading group will be slightly different.

Here are the guidelines for my selections in what I’m going to call “Selected Christian Classics” or maybe “Lets Read Old Books by Christian Authors.” Not very catchy titles, I know.

• We will be reading old books. I define “old” as anything published before I was born (1970).
• The books are by Christian authors.
• The book still has something to say to us today, or at least others who have read the book testify that it is still worth reading (i.e. “A classic is a book that has never finished saying what it has to say.” -Italo Calvino).
• Since I’m organizing the group, they are books I want to read and discuss with other people
• I have some hope that reading and discussing the book can be spiritually formative for me and others.

I have a first book in mind, and then I have subsequent books in mind, but no subsequent order.

I want to start with Thomas Kelly’s masterpiece of Christian spirituality A Testament of Devotion. I want to start with this short book because, having read a brief excerpt from it many years ago, I know it has something to say to us today. I think I need this book.

For a book of that length, I propose reading it in its entirety prior to meeting for discussion. Participants in the reading group should read the book, and if so inclined, journal about the book ahead of any meetings they choose to attend. At the very least, each participant should come to the reading group with the following:

• Their copy of the book.
• A favorite passage they want to read aloud to the group and discuss.
• A personal connection to something from the book they are willing to share.
• At least one question inspired by the book they would like to pose to the group for discussion.

At this point, I’m thinking of meeting on the first and third Mondays of every month @ 7-8:30 p.m.

Given that books vary in length, some books may get more than one meeting.

There is no long term commitment necessary, but I will ask for RSVPs for each meeting, and will probably create some sort of text or e-mail reminder system for people who want to be a part. If you know anyone in the area who would be interested in this, please tell them and have them contact me.

Robby Prenkert: robbyprenkert@gmail.com

——-

A select list of possible future books:

• A Testament of Devotion by Thomas Kelly
• Purity of Heart is to Will One Thing by Soren Kierkegaard
• The Way of a Pilgrim (Anonymous)
• The Mind of the Maker by Dorothy Sayers
• Descent into Hell by Charles Williams
• A Diary of a Country Priest by George Bernanos

I’ll probably think of others, and will likely take suggestions from committed group participants.

Here’s to reading and discussing good books with friends.

Who knew that mid-September was so much like summer? Academia has always left me feeling like summer was over in mid-August, but outside the ivory tower, summer lasts far longer than that.

Here I sit at a picnic table for lunch, and there is nothing about today that would make me think it’s Fall. I’m ok with this, even if I miss being a teacher.

We walk in the woods, and a mosquito bites the back of my neck. Am I the only one who wonders, whenever this happens, if this is the mosquito that finally gives me West Nile Virus?

And then I think, “How bad could that be? Can’t be worse than the dengue fever I survived 27 years ago in Jamaica.”

I’m really hoping I don’t have to find out, though.

As summer fades and September arrives, you find yourself reflecting on the changes this month brings. For you, September has always been a favorite season, but this year, no longer bound to the rhythms of the semester, where time slipped past so quickly, you want to savor every moment.

Today was a reminder of the little hiccups that can disrupt our routines. After a good and drama-less day at work, you accidentally leave your phone in your pants pocket when you drop them in the laundry locker. you don’t realize this until you are a mile from home. So today you make another round trip to work. A minor setback, but a highlight of how easily a day can be thrown off course. The moment reminds you to slow down, be mindful in the now, here. You can be present nowhere else.

After the phone mishap you make space for 10 minutes of yoga and then a refreshing 4-mile run on the country roads, listening to 1960s music. These are sacred practices for you, body and mind, heart and head, a little nourishment for the soul through the inevitable chaos of life.

After your workout, you FaceTime chat with Syd, who delights you beyond words. The picture of the lovely meal she had for lunch that she sent you earlier, her own delight in her classes, the funny story about the doorknob breaking off as she tried to leave the bathroom, leaving her trapped and frantic to get to class–she make your insides smile.

Writing has become a holy practice for you, a means of grace, a sacrament. It’s a way you express in words and sentences a tiny fraction of what goes on in your head and your heart all day. So many times you have told yourself you will write more, you will start on that book, but this time you cannot shake the feeling that someone has called you to it. And if He has called you to it, will he not also provide you with things to say? Why worry.

As September unfolds, you wish to embrace and relish its beauty. You will walk slowly in the woods with your dogs who cannot walk at any other pace these days. You will take long runs. You will spend peaceful evenings on the porch with a good book. The crisp air and deep blue skies will remind you to slow down and appreciate the gift of the creation.

And you will write.

You are no prophet, but you sense that this September will be for you a month for reflection, growth, and connection. And wonder.

You wonder what your readers, if you have any, plan to do with their sacred September? You wouldn’t mind hearing from them.

P90X again

Today I commence on a journey through (some of) the P90X workouts. Only some because I run also. The most recent half-marathon has given me the itch to keep running, and definitely do more half-marathons, and maybe, try for my first marathon some time in the near future. I know what it will take, at least in theory, to train for the marathon, and the key for me is avoiding injury. I’m 54. I played a lot of basketball in this body, and my arthritic ankles and achilles tendons remind of this by mile 5 of every long run.

So why P90X again?

It’s worked for me to get core strength and especially lower body strength, most especially my glutes, which get weak for some reason when I don’t do the legs & back routine. I probably won’t do the plyometrics workout weekly and I won’t do the Kenpo or yogaX routines at all. I do short yoga inspired stretching of 15-30 minutes almost every day, so I don’t feel the need to do the 90 minute marathon he puts you through with yogaX.

Since I’m not trying to get ready for a marathon in the next 90 days, and have a much longer view in mind, I consider the training plan as base building. It’s possible I’ll run a half in late October or early November. I’ve not settled on anything as yet.

But, I will be much stronger by adding the strength and core routines to my 4-day a week running schedule, and I hope I will feel amazing.

Here we go.

I have not read all 530 blog posts I created over many years, but I did read some, and I have come to the conclusion that I should return to blog on this site, because the archive of these posts gave me a walk down memory lane, which was overall a real pleasure.

No one subscribes to a random blog these days. So what.

I have no social media anymore. So what.

Can I tell you something astonishing?

God told me something. I don’t know what to make of it. He told me to write a book a year every year for the next 20 years. 

He said nothing about readers. He said nothing about publication. He said nothing about content.

I wish I had some better ideas for what to write about. One hope: that beyond the many words I write in a journal day after day (two journals, to be more precise—the difference in purpose of those journals is unclear to me), writing something I publish on the web several times a week, and reading some of the other 530 posts I’ve made in the past, should surely give me a few ideas for what to write a book about.

-Robby

We are empty nesters, if you don’t count the two dogs. For the past 18 years my daughter was nearly omnipresent in our home, so it is strange to sit here on a Sunday evening knowing she is not in the house. There have not been many Sunday evenings the past 18 years when that was true.

I asked a friend, a father of four, what his experience with the empty nest was. He was a few months into it. He said, “Robby, it’s awesome!”

It feels quiet to me. Not that Sydney made a lot of noise or anything. But the place seems emptier. The dogs are quiet. Jeanie is quiet. The TV isn’t on. Only the dull hum of a fan on this hot evening and the tapping of my keyboard. No muffled sound of a Netflix show from the bedroom down. the hall.

Is it awesome? I’m not there yet. But it isn’t bad. More of my life will be spent living as an empty nester than not. Our marriage was 13 years of childlessness, and now 18 years with a child in the nest, and I hope many, many good years with the so-called “empty nest.”

On a run not long ago, I daydreamed about the arrival of grandchildren some day, Lord willing, down the road. I think I will like that. I think I might be an ok grandpa.

@RCP

I write something every day.

Most often I write by hand, most recently with my favorite sharpie retractable gel pens, black, 0.7. I write in notebooks. Since 1985, when Mrs. Yoder, my 10th grade English teacher made us, I have written nearly daily. We used spiral bound steno pads in that class, and she made us write a minimum of three pages a week. I think I always wrote more, sometimes making up stories, sometimes just write about my life and what was happening.

I write a lot about writing, and often about not writing, or more to the point, not writing a book.

I have to write. It’s how I think.

My journals for the past year have made their way also to OneNote, where I sometimes ebed photos, clip quotes, hyperlink to articles I like, and so forth. I don’t know why I keep two different kinds of journals with no discernible difference in writing style and no carefully articulated purpose for either.

I keep a little spiral notebook in my man-purse for times when I feel the need to write when I don’t have my regular journal or my iPad handy. I do not journal using my phone.

I like best the feel of the pen on paper. But typing also feels good, too. Especially in OneNote, the white letters appearing on the dark background.

So why blog?

All the hundreds of thousands of words I’ve written the past nearly 40 years have been for not audience at all. I haven’t actually imagined the audience a new blog might find. By facetiously calling myself an independent journalist, which is of course true, I aspire to some sort of story-telling on this site. How frequently or of what topics I will write, besides more meta-blogs like this one, I do not know.

I am creating a website, and this blog will be embedded in the website. The website will have other pages dedicated to other things.

But this blog, white background, simple black type, will be the primary place some of what I write for public consumption is published.

P.S. I take requests. Feel free to comment and make one.