point of view

once upon a time sam and dennis viewed the world outside from the ouside....a lot. i guess as they have gotten older they have the attitude that they have seen it all and it is quite nice to sit in the warm sun watching the birds outside on the back porch.

i think we need to have a change of view every once in a while....not to often...too stressful... but just often enough to keep us growing and our brain working, to keep the fires lit.

i am reading THE TIPPING POINT by Malcolm Gladwell and it has really opened up a new way of looking at things. weirdly it is applicable to the situtation our school has lasped into. his thesis states that there are three rules for the tipping point---the law of the few, the stickiness factor, and the power of context. and it is back up by some studies. just a few statements

....a child is better off in a good neighborhood and a troubled family than he or she is in a troubled neighborhood and a good family

....our immediate social and physical world play a huge role in shaping who we are and how we act.

...simple physical movements and observations cn have a profound effect on how we feel and think.

he proposes that the crime rate in new york went way down because one... the director of the transit system attacked the graffiti problem and made the cars nice and stopped the sneaking on the trains free. then the police chief attacked the small crimes of the neighborhoods.

so small things can make a big difference.

we need a tipping point here. i sneaked in a flower arrangement in the business office, traded out the ugly bell for a pretty one , changed the rack that held small papers. clean the counter which was really sticky. someone else cleaned the spots on the rug. now if i can just get rid of or paint the rag tag collection of tables. to have people perceive you are successful you must look successfull. you can't be niggerdly.


got the cell phone thing done.... a little thing, but i think it will help make a big difference.

the maintainace man is working mega hard to make things work... help moral of teachers which will make teaching better.

i thought we would need some charisma....but i think we just need the right connections after reading the book.