twenty-six

it's a bloody hurricane.
Not liking it much. My wig tends to move and I can't get it back to where it was before. I guess youngsters don't have that problem.
happybirthday.x

sister

I seem to be really in my own bubble at the moment. Head down, thinking and doing 'educational-esque' tasks.
Reading, writing, interpreting, understanding, paraphrasing...the list goes on.
Might have to take a day off soon. haha.
But, there is no escaping an MSc. It's there. It's always there. It's not like a job that when you step out of the office, it disappears until the next time you cross the threshold. Instead, no matter where you are, it's there. The assignments. The last article read. Some little point that someone wrote that might be important. Or some little detail that you thought was little actually turns out to be something quite big.
And that's the problem. You could be on the bus or walking along the street or about to nod off, then suddenly something 'comes' in a flash which changes your perception about the assignments or related stuff.

Seems like I don't have any 'happy medium'. It's either on or off. Usually on.

L.A.D.

So, there I was sitting in class today. Kind of bored, kind of tired, kind of hot - not that kind of hot - but listening to some of the arguements relating to whether or not you can teach creativity in the sense of developing a students ability in the arts like music or painting et al.

Clearly, it was the Philosophy class and all kinds of stuff was getting aired. Some of high-brow. Actually, most of it was high-brow. From the likes of medieval times when painters and craftsman had to join a guild to learn their trade which suggests that you can teach creativity to some extent.

And, there I was thinking in these terms...and I decided that you probably can teach creativity to a certain extent but only upto a point. The rest must can from the individual themselves in terms of ability and other factors.

I justified this - not in classical terms as should have been done in class - but in footballing terms. This is perhaps why I didn't utter it outloud to the Professor!

On the training field a coach can tell a player where to stand, where to position his body, how to move etc and by doing this the player can essentially do anything given enough practice and or time. That is 'teaching' creativity if you like.

But, off the training field and in a real life match - that is where you see the truly creative. The ones who don't just practice it but can turn it on in the flicker of eye, completely unexpectly and effortlessly. That can't be taught even by the best coaches. It's instinct.

Example=Ronaldinho's goal on saturday. The cross comes in. He chests it in order to control it but doesn't completely pull it off. The ball is going away from him. A 'taught' player would allow the ball to roll away and then he would try to get it under control. But, he doesn't do this. Instead, he kicks it. Not just kicks it but kicks it over his head and it's the net from 12 yards out. All in 1 movement.
You can't teach that.
A good teacher unlocks the potential and gets the individual to express themselves.

It's as simple as that.
Rocket science, it ain't.

run

It's shite being Scottish as some ginger /strawberry blonde?/ bloke once shouted. Well, it is and it isn't.
Football team=win 3 games on the trot and we think we're the dogs balls. All for it to come crashing back down to earth with a defeat.
Rugby team=a few good wins. Nothing spectacular but steady improvements. Then a mere hint that we might actually claim a big scalp only for our own scalp to be taken by an Australia team who aren't that good and who had 1 eye on the beach - and it wasn't Portobello.

Plus, all this wind and driving rain. As mr. scarface said 'is this it?' Seems like it. It's this until March next year. Oh god. It's a nonsense. Why can't anyone else see that this weather is total balls? Are my glasses not working or something?!
It's hard fighting the masses.

Timid

I have been getting bogged down in one of my classes - 'The Nature of Enquiry' - as it is known. It looks at different perspectives on knowledge and how one can 'enquire' about the world.

So, each week we have been looking at concepts like positivism, post-positivism, interpretivism, critical theory, post-structuralism, feminism et al. All ways of viewing knowledge...

Mostly, we are surrounded by 'positivism' which essentially expects knowledge to be able to generalise the World and everything in it. If you think of Physics and Chemistry, then you have a idea of it. But, this positivist way of looking the world is everywhere. All those surveys that say 30% of the population are over weight or even examinations in School are examples of this way of thinking.

It's just they way the world is...thank you Plato / you b__D/
Anyway, the assignment for this class suggests that you examine the different ways in which research is done using these concepts mentioned above in our own field. For me, it's second language acquisition.

Thought that it might not be too difficult because research is mostly positivistic. However, it's changing. Instead we have other forms of 'doing research'. Other forms that are distinct but these 'distinct' forms are quite similiar, so much so that they often overlap. It's all abit of a grey area.

And that has been the problem. I've not been able to visualise the spectrum of research. At one side is this positivistic way of research and at the other, well, I haven't been able to fully get to that side of the spectrum. Hence, the 'bogged' down bit.

But, by some wonder I found an article that has cleared the clouds and has left sunshine. It's certainly not a clear blue sky - more of a typical Scottish summer day. But, it's progress.
It gives a spectrum. Not complete but the foundations of one. I need to fill in the gaps but at least I've something to work with. Now, I might be able to get onto the assignment and think of something to write about.
Wonderful.

God, I have no life.

Plan

1. Hearts are going to get relegated.
Controversial but might not be that far from the truth. No wins in 7, another 'manager' coming to take over /or might not/ as the case may be. The 'sporting director' calling their supporters racist. Benching their captain and most consistant player. A submariner of a benefactor who couldn't navigate his way of a wet paper bag and an 'us vs. then' mentality. All pointing to well, not the upper tier of the SPL.

2. Hibs will win something. Not sure what but it might only be a prize for playing nice football.

3. Celtic to progress in the Champions League.
Oh yes, we just have. That's nice!
Played off the park buy a near full strength Man. Utd. but it took a moment of brillance from 30 yards to beat them and a big stroke of luck in them missing a penalty. But, a win is a win no matter how it is achieved and with it the 3 points that take us into the last 16. What price that we put our away hoodoo to bed in Copenhagen thus winnnig the group??!

Domain

So, it's been windy and rainy and cold.
Not just windy but WINDY ...I hate it.
But, I'm not moaning, honest.