The Far Side of Forever

  Goody-two-shoes: A character who was just morally good Matthew Cuthbert Richard Farnsworth as Matthew Cuthbert Everyone needs a man like this in their life. Matthew Cuthbert is one of the very first characters you meet in Anne of Green Gables. He's on his way to pick up what he thinks is a young orphan boy from the train station. Instead, he finds a skinny 12-year-old girl with fiery red hair and the ability to keep up both sides of the conversation at once. Even though she's not what he expected, he brings her home to the beautiful Green Gables and the rest is literary history.  Anne and Matthew on their way to Green Gables Matthew is a quiet and gentle character who doesn't speak that much but his presence is felt and the kindness that radiates from him leads to some of the sweetest scenes in the book. Why is he so morally good? He just is. Logic would have dictated leave Anne there, and send her home on the next train. Instead, he took her home, let her talk her mind o...

I have to thank my sister Ivy for the AWESOME David Rossi banner now gracing the top of this blog! As you can guess, I'm a Criminal Minds fan. Not totally obsessed, but very, very close. And yes, Rossi is my favorite character. And yes, that's largely due to the fact he's played by Joe Mantegna. The Criminal Minds Cast Shemar Moore as Derek Morgan, Kirsten Vangsness as Penelope Garcia, Paget Brewster as Emily Prentiss, Thomas Gibson as Aaron Hotchner, Joe Mantegna as David Rossi, AJ Cook as Jennifer "JJ" Jareau, Matthew Gray Gubler as Spencer Reid. I like this show for a lot of reasons. One is the chemistry between the characters and how they've changed and grown over the years. Every character has gone through some horrific tragedy in their life, very similar to many of the criminals they hunt. Yet, over and over, they emphasize that while evil is inherent in all people, and sometimes environment plays a role in the making of a killer...

Ok, so it's been MONTHS since I've posted anything. I am not a writer. That honor belongs to my sister, Ivy . I just like reading everyone else's creative thoughts. Anyway, Ivy told me about Bella's LOTR Blog Party and it sounded quite fun so I figured I'd give it a go - in between teaching classes and grading papers. :) I'm a day behind, so here's yesterday's assigment: 1.) How were you introduced to Tolkien? I loved the Rankin Bass Hobbit as a child. I could sing every song and knew most of the dialogue by heart. Bilbo Baggins in the Rankin Bass Hobbi t 2.) Did you read the books before the movies or after? Long before. I read The Hobbit first and then LOTR. I believe I was 8 when I read the Hobbit and 10 when I read LOTR.   3.) Do you like Tolkien's style of writing? I do. Some people consider him too verbose, but I am an extremely visual person and read very fast, so as I read it's easy for me to get an exact picture of what he...

It's exam week here at StoneBridge, meaning the school year is almost over! Hallelujah! But we all have to survive exams first. I'll let you in on a little secret here: I hate exams. With a burning passion. In all honesty I really don't see the use for them. I know it's supposed to test how much they've learned over the semester, but what was the point of all the other tests I gave then? It's so hard to write a fair exam in science too because there's so much material covered. So I make it easy for my students (and myself). I just tell them the exams are the most missed questions from the tests and quizzes with a few that everyone did well on thrown in for easy points. I figure if they knew it three months ago, they probably still know at least part of it now. I know a lot of kids may cram and forget, but that's their issue. Surprisingly, most of my students retain the basic information throughout the year. They're all good kids, but I might b...

Recently I've been re-watching one of my all time favorite BBC miniseries: North & South. Richart Armitage as John Thornton and Daniela Denby-Ashe as Margaret Hale Basic storyline : A father, mother, and daughter from the rural south of England moves to the mill town of Milton in the north. Margaret, young, a little naive, and quite outspoken, meets local cotton mill owner John Thorton, a quiet, brooding character with a bit of a temper and a sarcastic tongue that could clip a hedge. Sparks soon fly between the two and not the good kind. These two can't be in the same room without one or the other starting a verbal sparring match. I love the story because both have character flaws and both end up the hero. It's a very true to life story. We've all known someone like Margaret Hale or John Thornton. Maybe we are them. So, if you love period dramas, or stuff from the BBC, check this one out. Now, when I first started this movie, I hated John Thornton. The bo...