May 08, 2008

Graduation Thoughts

In about two weeks, dear daughter and her friends graduate from high school. DD has always been a good student, and will be attending a university to study foreign language translation and political science. I know that I am lucky to have a kid who likes going to school, and lucky to have been able to provide her an upbringing that includes a house, two parents, and stability in all areas of her life.

I was thinking about the upcoming graduation the other day, and about a few of her friends who won't be there, because they dropped out over the past couple of years. One was from another country and just could never seem to overcome the language barrier; one dropped out because she came from an abusive home and made the choices she felt she needed to make to survive; and a third wanted to work full-time to help his struggling family.

According to this msnbc article, Cities cited for low high school graduation rates, 70 percent of high school students in the U.S. graduate with a diploma on time. But more than a million drop out each year. And there have been plenty of articles published online and in print lately about the drop-out epidemic (as some call it).

How do we fix this problem? Here's a good place to start: Solutions for America offers some ideas on Dropout Prevention.

Posted by L.C. at 11:35 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Filed under: News/Media/Studies | Parenting

April 30, 2008

Hello Yellow

It happened twice in the last month. I showed up to meet a friend (two different women on different days) and we were both dressed almost identically--in dark jeans and a bright yellow sweater. What is it about yellow this year? Has anyone else noticed that it's everywhere?

I think yellow has gotten a bad wrap over the years, and I guess I have contributed to this notion. Being olive-skinned, I always thought yellow was wrong wrong wrong for me, particularly the lighter shades. But this year, I decided to give it a shot, and went for this Cotton Rib Detail Scoop Neck Sweater from Ann Taylor Loft. So far, many people have told me I look good in it. And I may soon snap up this Garden Tote from Three Potato Four, for even a bit more yellow in my closet. It seems I am not the only one giving yellow my attention this season. Check out these features on the Web, celebrating the newfound popularity of yellow in fashion circles:

Posted by L.C. at 12:22 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Filed under:

April 28, 2008

Goodbye Baby Boy


My Golden Retriever died of cancer at 2 p.m. today.
Goodbye Dylan. Rest in peace. (1999-2008)

rings


Posted by L.C. at 01:58 PM | | Comments (1) | TrackBack (0)
Filed under: General 40ish | Health | Parenting

April 22, 2008

Do Reps Matter Anymore?

I've been thinking a lot about reputations lately. My thoughts were prompted by the news last week that a local high school teacher was arrested for his inappropriate relationship with a student. Then later that week, a boy I know got into some hot water because he (allegedly) had a little too much fun over spring break, while his girlfriend was back home.

A few weeks ago, I was speaking with dd (who's 18) about reputations and she said it's quite difficult to get a "bad reputation" in high school these days because no one really cares what you do. I don't really buy this argument, but what do I know? I graduated from high school almost 26 years ago. Perhaps times have really changed. Can a teenage boy who has a lovely girlfriend cheat on her and really have no one think badly of him? I doubt it. And after the teen years, reputation is more complicated. If it all turns out to be true, and who knows at this point, can a teacher who cheats on his wife and has a sexual relationship with a student really ever get his good name back?

I once had a boss who told me my biggest flaw was that I "wanted to be liked and have people think well of me." I looked at her and said, "who doesn't want to be liked? Who would choose to have people think badly of them?" When she turned and flew off on her broom (get it?) I suddenly got it: reputation is a concept that means different things to different people. When I worked for a large corporation, I did want to be liked, and also respected. My old boss didn't care about those things, and as a result, was quite disliked and not respected at all.

According to wikipedia:

Reputation is the opinion (more technically, a social evaluation) of the public toward a person, a group of people, or an organization.

wikipedia also states:

Reputation is known to be a ubiquitous, spontaneous and highly efficient mechanism of social control in natural societies.

Whoa. Social control? I hadn't ever thought of it like that, but it makes sense to me. Either way, I will continue to tell my kids that reputation does matter. Because I still believe that it's tough out there, and sometimes, your good reputation is all you have.

Posted by L.C. at 12:05 PM | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Filed under: General 40ish | Meaningless Gab | Parenting

April 18, 2008

Rules of Order

The other day, I was speaking with a friend who is going through a hard time. A relative is very ill, and might not make it. This is causing a lot of stress and disruption in her family's lives, of course, but something she said really stuck with me. When speaking of her situation, she said "and what makes it worse is that my house is a mess. And when my house is out of order, I feel like my life is out of control." I could have said these very same words, and I'll bet there are plenty of people who feel the same way. In times of stress or change or other events, I can often be found straightening, organizing, and cleaning. I learned this about myself just after my mother had her first stroke, and I spent a week at her home scrubbing it down and tossing things out. And even in low-stress times, you know that feeling you get, just after you've cleaned your home and filed away all your bills and organized your closet? Well for me, that's one of the best feelings ever.

So I went in search of support for my "organized is always better" theory and did find plenty of articles, but was also surprised to find some experts saying the very opposite. In Time's Messy is the New Neat, I read that some people argue that spending lots of time organizing can be counterproductive. And in CBS News' Being Messy Has Its Perks, I learned something I didn't know: that really messy people do actually know where their stuff is, so perhaps to them, the disorder (as we see it) is quite orderly.

So, am I convinced that being neat is a waste of time? No way. Perhaps it's my nature or just my preference, but I'll take a nice, neat room with shoes lined up in a closet and books organized by height over a messy one any day. It just makes me feel better. Life is hard enough, and I always like to know exactly where my new Justin boots, favorite University of Florida pen, and my favorite scissors with the pink handle are, just in case I need them.

Posted by L.C. at 09:42 AM | | Comments (0) | TrackBack (0)
Filed under: General 40ish | Meaningless Gab | Reviews



Google