It has been awhile since I've blogged and I have missed it. It's hard to sit down and tell a story when your head is full of math. I wonder how math teachers do this..hmm.. Maybe they tell old math tales and abacus jokes, I don't know. I did manage to make it through the studying and tests one day at a time, but most evenings, when I had the chance, I read fiction. I never turned on the television and the only news and weather I got was from my truck radio as I went from point A to point B. I don't think I missed much because the news seems the same only with different players.
There are no wrong answers in fiction. If I was tested on each book I read I would probably stop reading. Sure I was tested on them in school when I was growing up, but this was simply a way for the teachers to be sure that I had read them. Of course I read them. I read cereal boxes and junk mail when I have nothing to do. I try to imagine what the author was thinking when the wrote the description of the "latest technology in personal transportation. We at the Scooter store offer only the best...". I have been hooked all my life.
When Taylor wanted to play soccer last year the school required a physical examination. When I took her to the family doctor he looked her over good and tested her vitals. He talked to her about the dangers of pier pressure, drugs and smoking. He harped on diet, exercise and all the other "doctor" things that we all hear about. But he also told her something that surprised me. He told her to read. Turn off that TV that figures everything out FOR you, and use your imagination. A perscription to read? I thought so.
Well before it sounds like I am completely down on math, let me say that the lessons were a humbling experience. I have always consider myself as smart as the next guy, but there are some really smart people out there! It made me feel good to surround myself with them, if only for a few weeks. I now know for sure that I use the "other" side of my brain. I finally answered the question that I have asked my school teachers in the past. "Why do I have to learn this? When will I need to know this?" Now I know. Now.
