Mr. Hamada's Universe

I’ll admit it: I love American Idol. I’m not normally a fan of reality TV or the American Idol derivatives, but there is something about AI that captivates me. (Prediction: Danny Gokey is going to be the Season 8 winner. Take it to the bank!) For the record, I also tend to like things that fall into the “So bad it’s good” category: Coyote Ugly, Bring It On!, and the new Knight Rider.

Besides the inherent comic value of the auditions, one of the things I find fascinating about Idol is the judges. More specifically, I find the critique by the judges and the response of the contestants to be totally intriguing. Paula will always say something good about a contestant, even if it has nothing to do with the actual competition, and rarely offers any concrete advice. Simon is brutally honest, acidic and stingy with his praise. Randy is exuberant (“We got a HOT one tonight dawg!”) and truthful (“It was just okay for me.”) but never in a mean-spirited way. (I’m leaving out the new judge Cara because I haven’t figured her out yet. Why is she there?What does she add? I’m perplexed.)

Who do contestants try their hardest to please? Simon. Who do contestants listen to? Simon. As a teacher, who would you want to emulate at your next Parent Teacher Conference night?

Most of the time, I think teachers (all teachers!) are Paula. We feel the need to say something nice. We are all experts at speaking Teacher when we have to, of saying the hard things in a diplomatic and non-threatening way.

Every one of us (okay, maybe just me) dreams of being Simon, if only once. Oh, to say the things that are running through my head in an unedited (but safe for TV) manner would be cathartic! Brutal honesty would suit me, but would it be helpful?

Randy is my Idol when it comes to PTCs. Celebrate the good, acknowledge the bad and give some advice on how to get better. Now, if I can only get away with calling all my parents ‘dawg’…

Who is your PTC Idol?

Relatedly, what do you like that is so bad that it’s good???

It’s not my first epiphany EVER, but it is my first blog-related one…

Every day I can’t wait to participate within my PLN. Sure, I twitter about my day and I check Google Reader before classes or during lunch. But I can’t wait for school to end so I can get home and really participate. Is this how my students feel too?

I’ll admit it: I missed the boat on this whole blogging thing. 

But now that I’m here, I got some questions that need some answers. This list is by no means exhaustive, but it’s all I could write while my Grade 8s were taking their Algebra Skills Assessment:

1. How do I use those footnotes like dan?
2. Are there any support groups for my addiction to Google Analytics and ClustrMaps?  (Note: I’m not blogging for the numbers, I just like the cool visuals.)
3. What are the benefits to self-hosting as opposed to using Edublogs? How much would it cost me?
4. Other than ‘borrowing’ Jeff Utecht’s list, is there a decent primer on how to use all these cool widgets, tools, plug-ins, etc.? What are all the cool kids doing?
5. How many widgets, plug-ins, etc. does it take to cross over into the “excessive” and “distracting” categories? Is there a general school of thought on blog design and layout akin to using PowerPoint?
6. How much time do you put into writing/editing/uploading content?
7. Is Twitter the blogging equivalent of methadone?
8. How do I explain my newest interest to my wife?
9. Where do you find the time?