Magicians on a mountaintop
Greetings starfighters,
With Spring Break this week, I’ve taken some time to practice being creative, even if that meant creativity in the form of some home improvement projects. I even put in a new lighting fixture and bathroom mirror and painted. Extremely productive.
However, as with all creative endeavors, something happens to screw things up. In my case, something’s going on with our dishwasher. Same old story, check some things off the list and add a few more. Our creative work follows the same pattern as we complete one task and then, invariably, find something else to work on or revise old work, whether in our personal or professional lives.
Creativity is absolutely a process and, no matter what some people think, it is also work. Hard work. Harlan Ellison would write stories while sitting in bookstore windows to prove that point.
“I do it because I think particularly in this country people are so distanced from literature, the way it’s taught in schools, that they think that people who write are magicians on a mountaintop somewhere,” he told NBC after one such performance in 1981. “And I think that’s one of the reasons why there’s so much illiteracy in this country. So by doing it in public, I show people it’s a job … like being a plumber or an electrician.”
Educators may not have to work in store windows, but we do play to pretty tough crowds and have far more complex creative problems to solve than writing a short story. So, take heart, dear friends, and know that your creative work is on par with the greatest creators ever.
Also, perhaps we should spend more time creating in public, or at least creating with our colleagues. Certainly, our combined genius could come up with some incredible stuff…
Meanwhile, here’s this week’s 10 things…
Speaking of creativity, it’s important that we all find time to be creative and then, actually create something, no matter how bad—or good—we think it may be.
As many of us want to plan more authentic assessments of student work and figure out ways to change accountability measures, let’s make sure we count what counts.
I’m sure you know that on Monday, April 8, 2024, a total solar eclipse will be visible across portions of the eastern US. For reference, here’s a chart detailing the different experiences from partial to total eclipse.
I mentioned the release of Dangerous Visions last week but I didn’t get the time to finish it, mostly because I was caught up finishing Cory Doctorow’s latest, The Bezzle. If you want to take a look at how some people in our society play games with others and their finances, this is one you should check out. A fine second entry in Doctorow's Martin Hench series.
Here’s an interesting new paper on Love and the Distance: The Role of Presence in Online Learning.
Creatives should learn from and appreciate other creatives. So, I give you this live concert recorded in 2006 featuring two masters, Mark Knopfler and Emmylou Harris.
As we continue to consider the role of AI across all industries, Professor Rose Luckin offers some thoughts on the future of learning and the relationship between human intelligence and AI.
I will tell you that I was an absolute evangelist for streaming media when it first hit the market. I can remember trying my best to watch Pan’s Labyrinth in the early days of Netflix streaming, although it looked terrible. However, as more services succumb to “enshittification” and our favorite movies, shows, and music can be removed at any time from paid services, I think it’s time we all fought for our right to own media again.
The Prelinger Archives, founded by Rick Prelinger in 1982, aims to preserve "ephemeral films" such as educational, industrial, and amateur films. These films often served specific, practical purposes and have survived by chance. The Archives have digitized and uploaded over 9,200 films, allowing free public access to a unique American culture and history record.
I don’t know if I’m excited about this next project or just itching for a chance to watch a train wreck, but Francis Ford Coppola—you know, the guy behind The Godfather and Apocalypse Now—has personally financed a new film, Megalopolis. I talk about mastery and dedication to the creative craft, but from what I’m reading, this may have taken those notions a little too far. That, or this will be the most brilliantly crazy film ever made.
That’s it for this week, gang. Thanks again for reading; hopefully, you found something interesting. If so, I’d appreciate you sharing this newsletter with some friends. Your support continues to provide me with opportunities to share my learning and discoveries along this weird path we call ‘life.’