Alan's Musings

Why Scouting?

amm — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 04:47:50 +0000

I have been involved in Scouting for over two decades: first, as a youth, then as an adult. What is Scouting’s enduring attraction? What led me to the BSA as a child initially, and then again as an adult?

My Youth Involvement

As a kid, I joined Cub Scouts because a bunch of friends did, or because [...]

First Sighting

amm — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 04:36:52 +0000

I pulled up to the back end of the cars waiting for the light. The car just ahead had brake lights in an unusual pattern: a slight pointed “subset” and “superset” symbol (left and right, respectively: ⊂ and ⊃), while across the top of the back windshield was a single row of red lights. All [...]

I Miss Her

amm — Tue, 06 Mar 2012 07:30:23 +0000

Do I think of her each day? No, Not even each week. Still, I miss her so.

It would have been fifty-four.

That Middle Seat, Revisited

amm — Wed, 23 Nov 2011 15:15:10 +0000

In “The Family, the Middle Seat, and You,” I asked what you would do in that scenario. Here’s what happened.

The passenger did, in fact, relinquish his aisle seat for the middle, and the passenger in the family’s row on the aisle then moved back one row, beside the passenger in question.

The aftermath:

As the flight attendants [...]

The Family, the Middle Seat, and You

amm — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 17:31:47 +0000

I was flying to the east coast the other day, non-stop from San Francisco to Washington Dulles. I had taken my seat and was settling in (“feathering my nest,” as I like to think of it). A women with her two children, about 12 or 13 and about 8 or 9, arrive at a nearby [...]

You Can’t Start a Fire Worrying about Your Little World Falling Apart

amm — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 05:47:36 +0000

Metaphor in Teaching

amm — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 05:19:23 +0000

Metaphor is one of the most powerful tools available to teachers.

I was talking with a friend and former colleague, Mark. We met when I was at NeXT: initially, he was one of my customers; he later came to work at NeXT. Among the other Insanely Great™ experiences I had at NeXT, I taught a very [...]

One Real World Volt Snapshot

amm — Sun, 02 Oct 2011 14:30:01 +0000

Trip to San Francisco this evening for some hoped-for but unrealized sunset photography, dinner, and a friend’s wedding celebration. Simplified my life and just left the car in Normal Mode the entire trip, instead of switching to Mountain Mode (lousy excuse for Hold Mode—hold the battery right where it is, please—but all that’s available in [...]

Remembering and Visualizing

amm — Sat, 24 Sep 2011 16:01:57 +0000

As we approach the a marker in the endless circle of life, of seasons, of the year, I reflect on the past to inform my thoughts of the future. We spend so much time analyzing our failures so we don’t repeat them. It’s equally important to understand our successes so we can repeat them, apply [...]

Volt on Display

amm — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 04:30:02 +0000

Amazing, sometimes, what comes back from one’s childhood—which experiences remain, perhaps subliminally, to resurface on need.

Yesterday, Jeb Eddy called. He’s active among the leadership of the Midtown Residents Association, with a focus on “All Things Green.” MRA’s annual Ice Cream Social was coming up (Sunday—today!), and he was hoping to get a couple of electric [...]