From the Bowels of HIGH SCHOOL

Yes, World, RantWoman too went to high school. Even more astoundingly, apparently the world is crying for a few comments from RantWoman's past as a high school student. RantWoman herself was unaware of this situation--until...until this morninng's email

First a snarky link about how to make science sound all sciency and commentary about science all well-informed. This is from the Guardian; would anyone in this country be this honest?

http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/the-lay-scientist/2010/sep/24/1

The provenance of this link:

Rob Sticka Blog

Full disclosure: RantWoman went to high school with the blogger and has been reading with amusement the email emanations he has been sending out to an email list he compiled in connection with a major year reunion. The blog has arisen because too many of the email addresses are bouncing. RantWoman actually is glad to have a blog and to subtract one stream from the inbox.

RantWoman means to bookmark the blog, but physical media being the evanescent thing it is, RantWoman figures it would be a good idea to stash this item on her blog too--even if it helps contribute to the impression that RantWoman's blog is about as tightly organized as any number of drawers around her house. RantWoman is not particularly pleased with what she last did to mess around with her blog layout but does not have time just now for more messing. RantWoman also doesn't really do blog roll on this blog anyway, so she is going to have to rely on clever tagging to find this again. Welcome to 21st century filing.

Highlights of what RantWoman read

--Commentary on Dancing with the Stars with much reference to flatulence and spray-on tanning and some comical digests of Hollywood gossip or gossip the blogger might aspire to. RantWoman still owns but has not plugged in two predigital conversion televisions; RantWoman however very occasionally intersects with Dancing with the Stars over at RantMom's. RantMom has a small TV and RantWoman does not see well, so RantWoman's experience is heavily influenced by the commentary. To say the least, this blog item offers whole dimensions RantMom would never dream of mentioning. Plus, RantMom's excuse (HORRORS!) for flatulence involves surviving colon cancer, so those around her feel obliged to be pretty forgiving about the issue.

--Reference to imaginary numbers and Powerpoint, a winning juxtaposition under any circumstances even though RantWoman is trying to imagine the scenarios where imaginary numbers might add up to marks issued by Dancing with the Stars judges.


--Memorials to several people RantWoman remembers from her days as a school girl. Okay, so RantWoman was unfazed by the football team's perfect 0 and 9 record one year; she is still glad the coaches made good impressions.

As long as RantWoman is cavorting on memory lane though, perhaps her readers will enjoy a couple piquant moments.

--RantWoman had to be reminded decades later that in tenth grade she and Bugs Bunny Friend* made a half-hearted gesture about being allowed to take shop instead of Home Ec since we both already knew how to cook and sew. Other people with more litigious parents who lived in other places sued under Title IX and now, to RantWoman's great approval, many schools have much more flexibility about who is allowed / expected to take shop or Home Ec--that is, IF they still have Shop and Home Ec classes. Sigh!

*RantWoman will explain the Bugs Bunny story another time; it is part of RantWoman's fixations about pedestrian amenities and walkability, but RantWoman wants to write of something else here.

--Also on the Modern Womanhood front, there would be the Case of the Missing Calculus Tests. Once upon a time senior year RantWoman's calculus teacher gave us a test. The test was maybe Friday; students had to live in suspense all weekend; RantWoman is unsure whether the class even asked about the tests on Monday, but by Tuesday or Wednesday, people were getting querulous and insistent. Still no returned tests and another day on Thursday to inquire.



Finally on Friday, Mr. Calculus Teacher fessed up: he explained that when he and Mrs. Calculus Teacher got married, one of the conditions of the occasion was that Mr. Calculus Teacher was to do the laundry. He further explained that one night he had been at a certain local laundromat busily grading away while the dryers spun. However, he looked away long enough to do something laundry-related and when he came back, the calculus tests were GONE.


RantWoman is unsure why the new blog makes RantWoman think of the Calculus test story; the blogger is not on the top of RantWoman's list of suspects, though RantWoman supposes he MIGHT know who should be. It's not particularly that RantWoman means to run down this episode of True Crime. RantWoman is simply going to smile about other parts of the story. RantWoman was not only charmed by someone doing this for his beloved, she also loudly but secretly applauding Mrs. Calculus Teacher for getting some housework out of her husband.

RantWoman also remembers telling Calculus Teacher, "I really do not see what the big deal is. We would really think you we weird if no one in your house did laundry."



If RantWoman is going to summon comedic moments from the mists of memory, perhaps it is not terrible to include some links about what Mr. Calculus Teacher has been doing besides ushering teenaged minds through the wonders of derivatives and integration:



http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/in-the-valley-of-the-wolves/podcast-interview-with-wildlife-cinematographer-bob-landis/224/



http://www.studiodaily.com/filmandvideo/technique/craft/f/shooting/Into-the-Wild-With-Nature-DP-Bob-Landis_8699.html