The Urban Intelligensia

The Last Entry of 2008

Good evening, readers!  Happy New Year!

Well, this is it...my last entry for 2008.  I have to admit that I'm surprised that I've made it this far with my blog.  But looking back, I could have done so much more with it and make it work more for me. So, with that in mind, there will be some changes in 2009 with the Urban Intelligensia.

The Urban Intelligensia will strictly focus on writing and the writing world in 2009.  I want to work harder on my writing career and I need/want a blog that reflects that desire.  The Urban Intelligensia will focus on the writing, thinking and creative arts.  There will be will book reviews, writing tips and a spotlight on the work of other writers and their writing.  It is the goal to turn the Urban Intelligensia into a destination for writers and those interested in writing. So stay tuned...it begins on January 1st!

In other news, I will also be launching a new blog on another passion of mine - fashion.  I'm still working on the blog name but the focus will definitely be on fashion - news, reviews, pictures and commentary.  I'll be giving my spin on today's fashion and the fashion world.  There'll be commentary on designers, models, magazines and any other media that features fashion. I'm excited about this blog as it's been on my mind since I began working on the Urban Intelligensia. So now I'll be blogging about writing and fashion - and there may be an exchange of both topics on the blogs. So my new fashion blog launches TOMORROW...so do stay tuned!

Happy New Year!!!

This Writer's Life - The Eve Before the Eve

Good evening, readers!

Well, it's the eve before New Year's Eve and 2008 will soon become part of history.  I can't believe that another year is almost over!  Where did the time go?  I remember it being January '08 and making my resolutions for the year and getting off to a good start only to falter and stumble some months in.  I did do some things, but as always I face another end to a year w/o accomplishing all that I wanted to do.  Will 2009 be any different?  It has to be.

Ciao for now.  Final entry of 2008 tomorrow!

This Writer's Life - The After-Christmas Crunch

Hello readers!  A belated Merry Christmas to you all! Happy 1st day of Kwanzaa! I'd like to send an e-shout out to my buddy Kenya who is celebrating a birthday today! Happy Birthday, Kenya!  =)

Well, Christmas is over and the presents have been unwrapped.  The Christmas dinner is now leftovers in the fridge and the continuous run of holiday shows has slowed down to a trickle.  The malls will be packed with eager returners and spenders (the retailers hope) and everyone is counting down to New Year's Eve and bringing in 2009.  2009?!  I can't believe another year is almost over.  I remember 2008 and busy doing a lot of things,but still - almost done?!  Scary.  As a writer, I look back on the year with mixed feelings.  I did some new, but not enough for my taste and I've reached the point where I MUST do more. I feel as if time is slipping away and with each passing year pursuing a writing career seems......pointless.  I mean what's the point of trying to be a writer if I'm struggling to write? I know I must work harder, press on and keep at it. Deep down I know that success will come, but I want it to come NOW.  A part of me feels that it will just drop in my lap and I'll become an overnight literary sensation.  I'll do book tours, interview on the hottest tv shows like Oprah, Ellen and Access Hollywood. I'llmeet celebrities, have my stories optioned for movies and see my financial problems disappear. Yeah right....and then I woke up. Despite seeing a sudden sensation from time to time, I know most people don't reach that level of success overnight...it takes years...years...I just want it to be now so that I'm still young enought to enjoy it.  I'll continue to forge on.  I wish writing inspiration would come already.

Ciao for now!

Educational News - Budget Cuts for the BPS

Hello readers!

Well, it appears that the budget axe will soon fall on the 2009 - 2010 school year. Hundreds of teachers and other educational staff could be facing layoffs (nothing's definite yet).  It was reported  on Ch. 5 news earlier this morning and it's in today's Boston Herald. The state is suffering from a cash shortage and the city of Boston is suffering from a cash shortage as well.  Everyone is hurting and the school department is preparing itself for the worst. Butt regardless of what happens, the ones to truly suffer will be the students.  Most teachers are skilled in more than one discipline and can tap into those skills to help them find work even in this tough economy. But what about the kids? From K0 thru high school, the students depend on their teachers to instruct them and prepare them for the next generation of working adults.  Without teachers, teacher's assistants, paras and other support staff, how will that happen?

I hope the school department looks carefully at the each and every department, division and school before making its budget decisions.  When times are tough, organizations have a tendency to overcut and do more harm than good in the long run.  And that's what needs to be considered - the long term outlook.  The economy is bad, yes, but will it be bad forever? NO!  We have a new leader coming into the White House who has already been working on the economy since he was elected (GO BARACK!) and I know he and his Cabinet will do everything that they can to help people get and keep jobs, save businesses and stop the bloodletting from foreclosures. All we can do now is hope, start looking at what we can do ourselves and support the incoming president in every way possible.  School department don't OVERCUT! Teachers are NEEDED now more than EVER!  The future depends on us.

Ciao for now.

This Writer's Life - Happy Holidays!

Hello readers!

It's been a crazy year on the writing front - full of ups, downs and complete standstills.  Much is riding on a "fast out of the gate" 2009 and I'm thinking and planning on that now. But as I look back on 2008, I did accomplish some things - winning an award for my writing, making a serious investment in my writing, writing and submitting (and getting paid for) my article to the Banner and making my 100th entry on my blog. So I did do some stuff with my writing this year and I need to be proud of that.  Did you do anything with your writing this year?  If so, share your success here on my blog.  Let's encourage each other as we write our way into 2009.

To that end, I wish everyone a healthy and happy NEW YEAR!

Educational Perspective - An Early Christmas Gift

Good morning, readers!

Well, I thought getting Friday off was a treat...but Santa is spoiling us now.  So, it's Sunday night and I'm getting ready to come in yesterday to begin an abbreviated work week when I get a call.  It's the superintendent's office...school has been cancelled for Monday and Tuesday!  I couldn't believe it, but it was TRUE!  They also called my cell phone and posted the announcement on the school's website NO SCHOOL!  I am too happy.  Yesterday, I got more shopping done and today I will run some more errands. I am using this time to my advantage.  Christmas will be here on Thursday and I don't want to be doing anything at the last minute. Yes, we definitely will be paying for these days off come June, but at least it'll be sunny and warm by then - not cold and snowy.  So for right now - WOOHOO!!!!

Happy Holidays!

Educational Perspective - Snow Days

Hello readers!

I love snow days - too bad you have to pay for them in June.

Ciao for now!

Educational News - Class Size and Charter Schools

Hello readers!

In yesterday's Boston Herald, there were two pieces on class size and charter schools - big issues in the Bay State.  I will address both.

Class size - Due to economic constraints, the state will have a budget shortfall and be unable to live up to the 1993  law on class size.  Granted, with today's student enrollment, class size may just work itself out naturally. But it is an issue in many schools across the state where you have 30+ kids packed into one room and a teacher trying to manage it all.  Smaller class sizes are better because the teacher can more efficiently help the students and the students get more individualized attention.  Everyone can learn and grow in a smaller environment.

Charter schools - Remove the cap!  Free up competition.  I am all for an exam charter school.  Shoot, more exam schools period.  In Boston, we need to RAISE our educational standards.  A lot of students, especially at the high school level and unfortunately in urban citiies, aren't taking their educations seriously.  They think school is a joke, hate their teacher and don't want to do the work.  But yet, they want passing grades, good recommendations for college and marketable work skills.  Education is a two-way street.  Teachers teach and the students should learn. Both parties need to do their part.  Bring on the charters!

Current Events - Bush a "shoe-in" for irate Iraqi's rage

Good morning, readers!  I have to digress from education and writing to discuss the latest from Bush land.  It seems old W is still quite spry and did a heck of a job representin' for the 60+ folks.  Bush was in Iraq meeting with leaders and during a press conference an Iraqi journalist, seemingly unhappy with Mr. President, threw not one, but TWO shoes at Bush. Apparently the journalist was mad with Bush's handling of things in Iraq and wanted to express his dissatisfaction. In Iraqi culture, getting a shoe thrown at you or being hit with one represents dislike on the part of the thrower.  It's our equivalent of being hit with tomatoes or being booed off the stage.

When I watched the footage, I didn't know whether to laugh or be concerned.  On the one hand, seeing W getting shoes thrown at him and watching him duck and dodge was hilarious.  On the other hand, that was a serious security breach - what if that had been a grenade or other explosive device?  I'm no fan of Bush, but I don't want him hurt or killed. I want him alive to see Obama clean up the mess that he's made over the last eight years and see how a "real" leader gets the job done.  But, it was funny watching that leather fly. Bush cracked jokes afterwards, but I'm sure he was ticked off by the fact that people were throwing things at him.  He was thisclose to getting hit with some sole.  Maybe now he'll examine his actions as Commander in Chief and develop one.

Ciao for now.

This Writer's Life - In Perspective

Hello readers!

Writing is about becoming more than what you are while maintaining all that you have become.  Writing is life and life is writing.  The written word is the most powerful thing on the planet.  Why? Because it is forever.  The word can never die, for it is immortal.  That's why writers write - to become immortal.  Shakespeare is immortal.  F. Scott Fitzgerald is immortal.   Richard Wright is immortal.  Alice Walker, Toni Morrison and Maya Angelou are on their way to immortality.  They will join the countless others, but also the chosen few whose words live on through the ages. That is power and powerful.  That is what I want.