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tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-24000784488670683872017-11-16T08:54:44.876-08:00Marylinn KellyMarylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-32045883818949278392017-07-12T14:35:00.000-07:002017-07-12T14:35:28.652-07:00Process and practice

Creating habit, changing course, all is process and process is slow. Slow is a tireless teacher.

It is now 146 days since I began a practice of wheelchair yoga, inspired by and following this book:

Available at amazon.com.

When I first ordered the book, I showed it to the nurse practitioner who sees me at home. A second floor apartment, very steep outside stairs and greatly diminished mobility have me, for now, playing the part of Rapunzel. The NP was enthusiastic and encouraged starting to work with the book, "Ten minutes a week," she suggested. For a time I resisted, claiming that I had a prior commitment to art every day, "or so help me." And then one day it changed, as absolutes do. And now, for more than the stated One Hundred Days, I have begun to build a practice of 35 to 40 minutes a day which equals about four hours a week and I am not the same as when I started.

A friend with whom I Skype from time to time, told me well before I reached the hundred days, that I had been "youthified," appeared thinner, she heard more life in my voice, more strength, she complimented my complexion and my consistence. I feel that, other than in supernatural heat, my sleep is better, my desire to overeat compulsively is diminished, and an enhanced state that I will call balance of mind has crept up on me. I am able to complete tasks in whatever increments they require, however long they take, making space for them with room for the unexpected. If I will not make a deadline, I call and reschedule. Process.

In a recent donation of books to a thrift store, I set a maximum number of grocery bags that would be included in this round of clearing. That allowed me to stop when the number was reached, knowing I could call them again for a return trip - or several. I've pictured creating a map of what I want to accomplish in nest fluffing and may go ahead and draw it. There may be "before" and "after" scenes with no life-or-death dates for completion of anything. Rather than my old way of creating needless stress for my son and me, I have become more caring of our time, our physical resources and, much as I still have pipe dreams of being turned into House Lovely by some magic hand, a very gradual, wary acceptance of who I am and how I do things.

As I am still a newbie to such a practice, I know what has been revealed, what has been altered, is only the beginning. Under life's umbrella of process in the act of surrender, over and over and over. I simply await direction. The best description I can give is that I show up every day for the series of poses and movements, complete them, and let go of everything else until the next indicated thing becomes clear, which it always does. There are days with drawing and coloring, days of sorting and sifting, days of lifting and, after a fashion, muscling things about. I remain seriously committed to a daily sharing of what I find beautiful, inspiring and encouraging on Facebook. That assignment is clear. I've gotten over the notion that such an intention is trivial, lightweight. It is part of my work and part of my joy. Beauty and love, optimism and humor are the antidotes to every pox and toxin that would knock us to our knees.

Being in touch with friends makes me happy, though I have yet to master being a timely and reliable correspondent. Always process. I trust what I do manage to send forth will be adequate, possibly welcome and not seen as falling horribly short of expectations. Process is where we learn to major in patience. Along with possibly quantifiable gifts of beginning a practice, I think I am finding those aspects of human existence which cannot be counted, which may not have any name beyond spirit. For some years now I've felt that all life is an act of faith. That feeling grows stronger. Peace and trust help diminish the deadly stress-produced chemicals that claimed me for so long. Because I have seen so many movies based on samurai and kung fu warriors, it is a metaphor that springs easily to mind, tremendous inner strength to withstand relentless outer forces. I would like to be strong in every sense of the word, to be quiet and calm, reasonable, healthy (heaven knows!), resilient, clear and kind. I would like to be steady, firm in mind and body, not practicing juggling in the way I once did. Not teetering, no fancy footwork, yet flexible. Some of you may be familiar with one of my RubberMoon stamps, "Impossible Things Happen." Yes, yes they do.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-74670374697295335112017-05-02T13:13:00.001-07:002017-05-02T13:13:10.545-07:00Poetry for breakfast

Once I reached my worktable to begin the tasks of the day, I treated myself to a few pages from Bill Moyers' "Fooling With Words" as I munched the nuts that were breakfast.

In the book, Moyers' first subject is poet Stanley Kunitz. He refers to Kunitz reading of his poem, The Lincoln Relics, at the Geraldine R. Dodge Poetry Festival. He quotes some lines that sent me looking for the whole piece. The Civil War, its monuments currently in question, also the subject of a recent inaccurate reference, always speaks to me.

This morning's experience has me vowing to begin my days with poetry, any amount, for even a taste, while a set-up for cravings, nourishes like nothing else. With poetry under our belts, we are no longer running on empty.

Here's the link, a connection to the poem and access to additional information.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-66436394265384670602017-04-23T11:27:00.001-07:002017-04-23T11:27:38.766-07:00Word of the Week - 160
"Spiritual practices help us move from identifying with the ego to identifying with the soul. Old age does that for you too. It spiritualizes people naturally." - Ram Dass

Word(s) of the Week: SPIRIT ENCOUNTERS

Art by Lisbeth Zwerger.

Ram Dass also said, "Treat everyone you meet like God in drag."

I have come to believe that all encounters, human and otherwise, are spirit encounters. Human to human, it is far too easy to slip into expectations, anticipating certain outcomes, making no allowance for the fact of spirits meeting - or colliding - and instead simply reacting.

Beneath the exterior, applied selves we may fashion to carry our often vastly different spirits from place to place are the grottoes, the hidey-holes where we truly live. Spaces secret and safe where there is no reason to be other than who we are. However deeply hidden, we are always at home within. It feels wildly essential to me that I try and remember this, remember that we and our exchanges occupy sacred ground, the conversations beneath, behind the spoken words.

I wonder after a night of vivid dreaming in which all visitors feel so present, whether others share that experience. There have been far too many of these dreams for me not to believe they, too, are spirit encounters. People long departed or perhaps merely distant arrive and I awake knowing we have spent those dreaming moments, during which much is always revealed, together. There is a sense of needing to send spirit emissaries to communicate without disguise or armor, that this is the only realm in which such honesty can occur. That I am capable of imagining these dreams are more than dreams I freely acknowledge, yet I know myself to be capable of recognizing the existence of unlikely events, of trusting what cannot be verified.

In spite of loss, pain, terror and occasional defeat, life is the on-going seance during which we become familiar with magic. As I've been typing, Hummingbird has visited my window twice, checking to see that amnesia hadn't overtaken me, confirming that I continue as a student of its message of joy, lightness and love shared.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-47756728577480031242017-03-27T12:00:00.000-07:002017-03-27T12:00:30.217-07:00Wholeness

Poets Joseph Brodsky, left, and fellow Nobel Prize Laureate Derek Walcott.

A revisited post from March 22, 2011. At the original post, readers have left their own experiences of being saved by poetry, a form which will forever unite us. You will find the comments here.

In cultures other than mine there are ceremonies to restore balance, refit missing pieces into the spaces left by their exodus. My absence from self has been an itinerary of comings and goings for which no estimated times of arrival or departure were known.

Before poetry - appreciated and even studied long ago but not absorbed, not inhaled, no door opened wide enough for habitation, accommodating the bulky goods with which it travels - caught me, I assumed that my once-absent segments had all flown home. Now I find that what I took for life in full measure was more a silhouette. Poetry has a way of poking its fingers into vacant corners, eyebrows raised with the question, shouldn't there be something here?

Poetry, if it wanted to, could beat any self-help manual senseless. A poem is a far more believable testimonial: I survived to write this. Poetry doesn't tell you, it shows you. How is it that, over not so many months, a literary form, an art, has become teacher, guide, source of wisdom and the voice that keeps me awake at night (in a good way)? Painful shards of memory that used to steal my breath now look like material.

There is study ahead, there is travel. My fragments could turn up anywhere. They arrive in daily emails, my heart lurching in recognition. They emerge in posts and comments, they step shyly forward from links that have a telling glimmer: look here.

In a culture thought by some to be without shamans we are not lost or abandoned. The poets rattle and drum, they chant and dance. We are redeemed by words, their incantations point the way.

Posted by  Marylinn Kellyat 10:18 AM

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-30059691223121888972017-03-26T15:08:00.000-07:002017-03-26T15:08:13.502-07:00Word of the Week - 159

Art by Michael Sowa.

Word of the Week: GIFT

I assume we each retain possession of a child's delight upon receiving a gift, especially when it arrives as a surprise. What a bonanza this week when a friend sent not only the newest version of the FLOW BOOK FOR PAPER LOVERS (300 pages of paper-paper-and more paper, the subject of a future post) and her copy of SOWA'S ARK, a collection of creatures which inhabit the imagination of German artist Michael Sowa.

One of Sowa's many rabbit illustrations.

A Sowa snail of intimidating size.

Thank you, Elaine, for the multi-part joy, first the arrival, then the opening and now the ongoing enjoyment of the rich contents. In my family, we called such surprises "Hi presents." Thoughtful, generous and such fun to receive.

If you are interested, the book is available from Amazon, here.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-20425693119994688942017-03-17T12:29:00.001-07:002017-03-17T12:29:19.108-07:00Word of the Week - 158

Jeong Kwan, a South Korean Buddhist nun, is featured in an episode of the series, Chef's Table.

Word(s) of the Week: TEMPLE FOOD

I will allow the links and the chef herself to tell what moved me so deeply about this program. The most I can add is that my own sense of rightness about the world, a world in which peace, beauty, devotion, ceremony, sacredness, generosity, stillness, attention and love not only exist but are valued, perpetuated, feels greatly affirmed. If you, as I, have felt estranged from long-held truths, please permit yourself this accessible period of restoration. And the pure art of vegetarian meals, called simply temple food by the chef.

This will take you to a New York Times article about Jeong Kwan. Here is a recap of the series episode, available on Netflix.

To find the show, it is Episode 1 of Season 3 of CHEF'S TABLE, however you watch streaming programs.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-53780460288453514912017-03-06T15:32:00.000-08:002017-03-06T15:32:32.873-08:00Word of the Week - 157

Art by Lisa Kaser.

Word(s) of the Week: HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY THAT I LOVE YOU?

My family of origin was not much for saying, "I love you." I actually cannot remember it being said to me or among the five of us as my sister, brother and I were growing up. We siblings say it now, yes we do. The words are spoken between me and my friends, me and my son. Anyone who reads this blog or any FB posts knows that I love lots. Lots of people, things, weather, states of being, colors, creatures and love itself. I had a rubber stamp made, small, simple, that urges, "Fall in love with everything."

I was already thinking of this phrase for Word of the Week when last night I dreamed - for about the nine-hundred-and-forty-seven-thousandth time - of an old beau. In the dream I had to turn down an invitation to be his date at a car show, his yellow dream Chevrolet beckoning, as I was already going with someone else. The someone else said, "You know how much he's in love with you, don't you?" My answer was, "Yes, but he won't do anything about it." (Please excuse me for I know the dreams of other people are generally tedious.) The dream caused me to ponder more than four decades speckled with memorable, treasured blurts of affection. We are not growing younger, just like the rest of you. I grapple with the still-adolescent parts of my mind that think saying those words to a man who has been a friend, uniquely, to me for more than half my life has to be "going somewhere." What a twit I can be. It has always been somewhere, everywhere. It is a gift, as my sister might say, "A pearl beyond price," to have people we love, even better but not required if they love us back.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-75196336029566003832017-03-03T13:54:00.000-08:002017-03-03T13:54:40.862-08:00Word of the Week - 156

All paintings by Stephane Dauthuille.

Word of the Week: INCOMPLETE

I look at the art of Stephane Dauthuille, the heads or limbs of his richly-gowned women existing just outside the paintings' edges, and I do not wonder what is missing. I have no feeling that what these works say to me is an incomplete message. They speak fully. We are each allowed to interpret as we will.

The notion of a life in which nothing essential is missing is relatively new to me. Any of us of moderate means is capable of wishing for material goods or circumstances that could, we believe, make everything better. Depending on your definition of better.

A heart or mind that chases after the unattainable allows a sense of lack to cast shadows on what actually IS, obscuring, diminishing what we have. Contentment is not a product of merely having but of the awareness of and gratitude for what is present. As I write this, it sounds simplistic. Of course, everyone knows that, I chide myself. I can't say that I've always known it.

As the only story I can tell fully is my own and though I may write "we," what I mean is me/I. Historically, my greatest sense of incompleteness involves my relationship with myself, with a notion of insufficiency in every nameable category. Becoming our authentic selves, allowing that to be not only enough but desirable requires such traits as acceptance, faith/trust, the willing suspense of doubt and continually reviewing the situation.

I assume of others as I do of myself that we are all works in progress. I once believed that meant an endless striving to be somehow better than I was. I had no idea there could be something succulent about being miraculously ordinary, ordinary meaning just me being me. To be fully who we are, treasuring that profound and unique state without apology or asterisks to indicate missing parts, ah, there's a challenge. Within the boundaries of human life with its sorrows, we seem to have the option of being not only happy but complete. When our mother passed, my sister described her as dancing in heaven with her mother, now restored to two good legs. In the realm of spirit, measured by the heart, I believe I have what I need, two good legs and a great deal more. Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-74982864734109461312017-02-20T00:30:00.000-08:002017-02-20T00:30:20.207-08:00Word of the Week - 155

Portion of "Window in Collioure" by Henri Matisse, 1942

Word of the Week: TIPTOE

My thought for the week: I'd rather not walk where I feel the need to tiptoe. I am at home in art, in beauty, in poetry, color, music, laughter, all foods for the senses. I find strength there, bedrock wisdom, grounding. For whatever life has planned, I am better for leaning into what provides enduringly solid footing while acting as a timeless balm for my soul.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-38184729015734159902017-02-13T10:17:00.001-08:002017-02-13T10:17:23.035-08:00Word of the Week - 154

Illustrator Pablo Auladell and friend.

Writer/artist Edward Gorey as puppeteer.

Word(s) of the Week: INNER CREATURES

Various sources tell us of our inner beings, the ways they inform and shape our lives. Inner goddesses, the inner child, inner chef, inner entrepreneur. I wish for us each to claim our inner creatures.

My creatures are closely tied to the inner child, their gifts the ones I wish she'd had to provide a greater sense of safety and of self. My inner octopus, a master of camouflage and squeezing into tiny hiding places. Tentacles, essentially eight additional brains, would have sensed when conditions required caution. I cannot imagine an octopus behaving recklessly. My outer child/teenager was a puzzling combinations of timid and foolhardy. The creature's ability to move swiftly yet with the languid grace found in water-dwellers speaks to my inner mermaid. The sense of becoming weightless, certainly less gravity-dominated in water still calls to me.

My inner bear, considered a light hibernator, enjoys long winter naps while being able to awaken and take part in Christmas festivities and a winter birthday, neither of which require actually getting dressed. An especially thick, warm bathrobe could transition handsomely between cave and civilization and would, of course, have roomy pockets to carry foraged treats back to the nest. There might also be an inner tortoise capable of hibernating more deeply. The three which were family pets spent their winters in a well-protected location packed with dry leaves, hibernation by concierge.

There is probably a spot at which a spirit animal and inner creature intersect. The attributes of totem forms supply what we most need: a moth, a crow, a fish and my most frequent visitors, parrots. We live in one of the Southern California neighborhoods inhabited by flocks of wild Amazon parrots. They roost and cavort just outside our windows. At times their squawking drowns out conversation. We invent dialogue for them, their loud exchanges sounding like accusation and complaint.

For at least the past 10 years or so I have identified with the story of Ferdinand the Bull, realizing that my activity of greatest comfort is a metaphoric smelling of the flowers, sidestepping conflict, declining to engage in rivalries, feuds, stink talk in general. With the goal of a quiet mind and quiet heart, I follow Ferdinand's example, growing still as I celebrate beauty wherever I find it.

In another post, we may contemplate inner fictional human creatures.

Wishing you blessings of all the Animal Gods. (Thank you, Rebecca.) xo

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-32633436164461634152017-02-06T00:30:00.000-08:002017-02-06T00:30:02.573-08:00Word of the Week - 153

Jimmy Corrigan by Chris Ware.

Word(s) of the Week: A WIDENED MIND

I picked Jimmy Corrigan as this week's poster boy for his "smartest kid in the world" title without any connection to his story. If interested, please read the article at the link, above.

And I will also use myself as a stand-in for the rest of humanity, speaking of my experience, trusting that it is more universal.

A closed mind in a hamster wheel, a spinning treadmill from which I would never escape IF I stayed there without allowing in light, air and other possibilities. I can suffocate myself with narrow, pinched thinking. I, and I assume many of us, am not the best judge of my better aspects. Too often I fail to find any finer points when I bolt the doors, pull the blackout curtains and burrow into my obvious and plentiful, as I believe, shortcomings. This happens most often under stress and when tired.

With some rather limited experience of meditation, I know how a quiet mind feels, what it says - or doesn't say. The agitated mind is a liar, perhaps out of malice, perhaps simply from fatigue. It, in my case, has compiled evidence of insufficiency in pretty much all areas. Viewing the documents in the case, my spirits sag lower still. The evidence is so compelling.

But wait! Put the focus elsewhere, like, say, sinking into an interesting movie or book, seeing the world with a refreshed perspective. It actually feels as though louvers have opened in my temples, allowing refreshing breezes in, letting stale notions escape, certainly thinning the noxious gasses they produce. With a brain open to the winds and the world, I feel so much more connected to all that is not me. I gain a sense of being part of a vast and benevolent entity in which good thoughts prevail, in which "thank you" becomes a mantra, in which unseen hands are joined in fellowship.

A widened mind is not so much the product of being really smart as it is about being open. I thrive on ideas that are not just self-generated. Like when somebody forgets to change the water in the fish bowl, things grow slimy, murky and, let's face it, deadly. I remind myself, or outside forces remind me, to unlatch the windows, to grab the broom and sweep away sour opinions. Perfection is neither a reasonable nor attainable goal, but expanded thinking is, a practice that lets me see myself as more than I seem. We are here to be, I believe, the best versions of ourselves, something we find through being connected to each other and the infinite in which we dwell.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-56818646454811465842017-01-30T00:30:00.000-08:002017-01-30T00:30:11.373-08:00Word of the Week - 152

Word(s) of the Week: CHEERING UP THE SICK PEOPLE

My maternal grandmother was a battlefield nurse in World War I. When, in her 60s, she became ill she was admitted to the Veteran's Hospital in West Los Angeles. Long before freeways went from Pasadena to those far reaches, my father drove our family over one night a week so my mother and I could visit her. Dressed in my Easter suit, I passed for the minimum age allowed to call on patients. On one of our visits, she was not in her bed nor anywhere to be found around the ward. No once could tell us where she might be. We were apprehensive, as she was nearly blind and had recently lost a leg to diabetes. We waited beside her bed as they screened a movie for the women. I think it was something with Elvis Presley.

Eventually an attendant wheeled her back and I'm sure we hissed our questions at her, trying not to talk over the movie. Where have you been? We were so worried. Etc. Her calm response was, "I've been out cheering up the sick people."

I think of her often, as I knew her and as the young Gertrude Holden of Boston, sailing to France after graduating nursing school at what was then Peter Bent Brigham Hospital. In addition to "cheering up the sick people," she was known to have said on numerous occasions, "It isn't Boston but it IS Massachusetts," both of which I have borrowed and quoted all my adult life, probably to the annoyance of those who have listened to me the most.

The thought of her, of her ability to find something of value in what to many of us would seem worthless, the model she was that told me no matter what, if we draw breath we have something to offer others, helps me at times when I begin to sag or doubt. If we are without words, we can listen. We can offer a hand to hold. We can refuse to be discouraged. We can whistle, we can sing, we can be very clear about what matters most, about what is our truth.

I know that hospital ward, which once felt so cavernous, which I would swear reached into distant and shadowy corners on our night visits, would no longer appear so large. I remember the relief my mom and I felt as we caught sight of her, seeming to return again from the battlefields, from very far away, her face, her spirit beaming. I hope some of her lives on in me.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-47257548440205857082017-01-23T00:30:00.000-08:002017-01-23T00:30:15.099-08:00Word of the Week - 151

Art by Rebecca Dautremer.

Rebecca Dautremer illustration, JULES VERNE, 2016.

Word of the Week: ATTEND

Multiple decades of living have schooled me. They have enlightened and confused and guided me, taught me to recognize the urgings from which my truth emerges. I have learned, I continue to learn, to attend my soul's guidance.

My mother once told me that when I tried to lie I lit up like a tilt sign. While I knew in the moment she intended to discourage further attempts at dishonesty, I also believed her. While the blaring of a flashing tilt sign may be more internal now than it was then, it is no less present, certainly no less emphatic.

While we find companionship and support in numbers, in reality we always ride alone. In certain respects each of us is an army of one, directed on a unique assignment. Adhering to my own truth while legions would have me join and follow can be isolating. Worse, it may cause me to doubt what I have come to know as my path. It seems part of what we are here to be is misunderstood, for it is impossible, not to mention onerous, trying to explain a state so clear when viewed within and so limp and inadequate-appearing when held to the light of day and critical eyes. We want those who care for us to understand, to trust our self-knowing, realizing they may not.

What any of us is best equipped to do is be ourself. To be that we must first know just what that means. Arriving at that information is a lengthy, possibly lifelong process. Such awareness is hard-won, its value unquestionable. We navigate our days amid the noise of many voices. Know the one that speaks to and for you with the greatest honesty and attend to that.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-60327642616757873332017-01-16T00:30:00.000-08:002017-01-16T00:30:19.637-08:00Word of the Week - 150

D&G 2014.

Word of the Week: SUNSHINE

While I often label color as a nutrient, I know beyond doubt that sunshine actually is. A vitamin D deficiency smartens one up rather quickly to the fact that a human body needs the light of the sun. In my world that leaves color the task of being sunshine for the spirit.

It is not alone in its assignment, for I corral it with its fellows, including beauty by multiple definitions, swiftly running rivers, things that smell wonderful, the love of and for friends and family, silliness, kindness, insight and intelligence, artfully arranged words. Oh, such a long list. For the spirit to be underfed requires cataclysm of epic proportions.

I have long believed that any garment ought to have pockets and to be without them is a failure of aesthetics and duty. In those pockets one can keep and transport the necessary charms, talismans, symbols of spiritual sunshine, available like smelling salts when weariness gains the upper hand.

We have never truly known where the next step of our journey will take us. That we don't know today only suggests there may be additional reasons for gathering to us more closely that which brightens and enlivens, that which lifts our hearts. Vitality fuels our imaginations, empowers and strengthens. The world needs us, needs our spirits, inspired, nourished, hopeful and strong. The world needs, we need, our sunshine. Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-22454583044856788722017-01-10T14:15:00.000-08:002017-01-10T14:15:04.775-08:00Word of the Week - 149

Page header and cover of a French ledger received for Christmas. Today is Saint Agathon's Day.

Word of the Week: JANUARY

I believe January is one of those hybrids, both month and state of mind. As I age, I find that I am happier with more hours of sunlight, more warmth. While I expect that, come August, I will be displeased with temperatures above 105, there is more day to the days. Winter nights, relieved by strings of cheery, glowing bulbs, are bearable. Without them, a sense of isolation creeps in. Shivering, along with watery gray skies, aggravates a nature already listing toward occasional melancholy. And all of this, mind you, takes place in Southern California, not North Dakota or even Virginia where winter doesn't kid around. And, may I add, how much I have always loved the rain. Just a bit less so when it falls in January.

January can feel like a primitive rope bridge strung between the sweetness, the natural or induced jollity of Christmas and the once-celebrated heart-filled red joy of Valentine's Day. Thank you, Dr. King, for giving us a holiday mid-month to release some of the chilly tension.

As I see each day as the chance for a new beginning, the New Year holds no particular promise of transformation to come. December brings a unique shine, associated with stars and glitter, colorful packaging, specific music, greetings exchanged, good wishes, peace on earth. January is the absence of festivity, all possible childlike anticipations too far away to give comfort. If one could find a way to spread the holidayness of December a bit thinner, to stretch it beyond the first of the year rather than using it up in what feels like a week or even just the one day, I believe winter would lose some of its sting. One would feel less bereft. No doubt you are thinking that to make the celebration of December holidays a more lengthy endeavor would dilute them. I disagree. January needs a little Christmas or its own special not-Christmas, its own bit of happy gleam to chase the deepened shadows, the damp, the ice.

I am not glum as I sit typing in my red sweater having spritzed cautiously frugal dots of Chanel #5 so the fragrance wafts from wrists to stuffy nose, singing to the senses. Without inflated expectations of Christmas, I no longer experience the droop that used to follow. Still, January at best is a wet blanket, at worst a bleak expanse. No, it is not a particularly rational response to a collection of days that mean no harm but one's response to stimuli is rarely rational. Keep the fires burning, hibernate if that helps pass the time, fill the hours with laughter and all that feeds the senses. Press on. Always know that something wonderful IS just around the corner. Hello, February. Will you be my winter Valentine?

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-24173467726543114152017-01-09T00:30:00.000-08:002017-01-09T00:30:36.933-08:00A slight postponementWord of the Week will appear on Tuesday. I have a cold, my wits have fled, I am going to take a nap.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-22263295468174157672017-01-02T00:30:00.000-08:002017-01-02T00:30:15.510-08:00Word of the Week - 148

Illustration by M. Kelly

Word(s) of the Week: WHY NOT FICTION?

On Christmas Eve, with very little time, I tried to write a follow-up story with the characters introduced at Halloween of 2015. I had pleasing photos for illustration, showing dolls by artist Sandy Mastroni which had inspired the original piece. I had a blurry idea of the shape I wanted the story to take, elements I wanted to include. After a couple hours it was as weighty as an anchor and all I could do was put it aside until either the story or I managed to lighten up. Still waiting.

On FB today, a friend mentioned the challenge of naming characters in fiction, with useful suggestions added to the comment thread, reminding me I have novel-length work just sitting there. That seems to leave me adding Fiction Reworking to my list of Stuff I Would Like to Turn Into Habit. I've discussed the Chair Yoga, plus working with hand weights, plus Art Every Day or So Help Me. Then there's the fact of a daily nap not being an option but a necessity. All this may require me to become more serious about time, about where the boundaries are. Seeing things blocked out, in my planner, for instance, is not my norm. As with time generally, I tolerate, actually welcome, its fluid aspects as I experience them. But I doubt that sort of relationship gets books written.

So. There IS no reason why there can't be fiction. I assume if there can be little fiction, there might be big fiction. What was unthinkable yesterday becomes a possibility today. The universe as I have come to know it is fluent in encouragement. It rubs its galactic palms together at the thought of surprising us with our own most deeply held desires, seeming to wander, whistling, through the neighborhood as we write an episode here, a chapter there, thinking of them as short-short stories. As we humans tend to be greater than the sum of our parts, perhaps the same is true of building a novel using the model of the Add-A-Pearl necklace.

It is a daunting word, novel. For now, I may speak of my Add-A-Pearl necklace. We will know what I mean.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-7296860172498842922016-12-26T00:30:00.000-08:002016-12-26T00:30:04.379-08:00Word of the Week - 147

Saint Francis of Assisi by Sassetta.

Word(s) of the Week: SAINT FRANCIS

I first heard this prayer in meetings of 12-step programs. Among the readings that were part of every meeting, this was occasionally chosen in place of words from the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. Its message has resonated for me since then, more than 30 years. Whether or not you subscribe to the form, I feel it speaks eloquently of this season, of all seasons.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-47040467164448398592016-12-22T11:03:00.000-08:002016-12-22T11:07:41.137-08:00Encore: The sisters and brothers throw themselves into Christmas
Last year's two-part Christmas story, revisited in one place.

Wednesday, December 23, 2015

The sisters and brothers throw themselves into Christmas

Vintage Christmas ephemera.

Episode One

"The trappings of Christmas must be perfectly executed," Ambulancia declared to all within earshot, which included passers-by who looked up, startled, and quickened their steps. "I know perfection when I see it. I just can't say ahead of time what it will look like." This bit of last-minute holiday drama concerned traditional crackers presented to each guest atop their dinner plate at the Christmas table. While her mother suggested the manufacturer's decorations were quite festive and would disappoint no one, Ambulancia, joined in protest by her sister Sireena, insisted on what she referred to as "tarting them up" with trimmings that would render them extravagant works of art. Nothing less would do.

Once again, tulle became a material of choice, along with double-faced satin ribbons, gold German Dresden trims and ornaments, Victorian scrap images, sequins, glitter, cotton batting fruit and birds and additional bits of scissored crepe paper. Fortunately, the girls always created in their room, their atelier as they called it, so the already tidy parlor with its slightly strange but mostly wondrous tree would remain undisturbed.

As had been the case at Thanksgiving, Ellington and Henri's parents found it necessary to be "away" at Christmas, some muttered explanation about a distant, aging and slightly gaga relative or some precarious businss assignation in a wintery, remote locale which, they were sure, would cause the boys hardship. It was no hardship at all to stay over with their best friends for the entire vacation. They rolled up their sleeves and tested the glue guns for readiness.

Though it may have seemed to the untrained eye that the sisters procrastinated, plunging into last-minute flurries of holiday preparations in general, that was not the actual truth. They had made all their gifts weeks ago, wrapped them, helped decorate the house, baked, gone to the movies twice with the brothers and eaten lunch in a downtown coffee shop. They were not idle nor forgetful. it was simply that when Ambulancia opened the box of Christmas crackers, she felt her heart sink just a bit and could not bear to think of that happening to their guests. "Presentation," she exclaimed. "Delight the eye, create anticipation. Much of Christmas is anticipation. We will not disappoint."

Thursday, December 24, 2015

The sisters and brothers throw themselves into Christmas, part 2

As long as there was someone at home, the girls insisted that any and all Christmas lights be turned on regardless of the time of day. So it was that they crafted beneath the softened glow of a treasured old Santa, putting finishing touches on the now highly adorned crackers for tomorrow's table.

With one of her favorite holiday magazines beside her, should she need inspiration, Ambulancia sniggered and snorted at the photo of an impossibly lavish cracker, saying in her poshest voice, "Oh, Ree, did we include the Faberge eggs in the crackers this year? I may have forgotten them. We'll need to start over." Her sister answered, "Yep. Forgot them. I guess they'll wait for next year." Snigger, snort, heh heh. "A witty motto, plastic charm and, my favorite, the paper hat, will have to do. I love when we all have on our hats. Nobody thinks they're too silly to wear. We know the best sports, don't we?"

NOT the sisters' Christmas cracker.

"Will you ask our Dad if he's ready to take us to deliver presents?" the older sister asked Ellington. Unlike the girls method of, no other word for it, bellowing from room to room, the Garrick brother went and found Mr. Charpentier in his den and asked if he was ready to drive them around to exchange gifts with their friends. "Yes!" he told him. "Yes. And then a tour of the neighborhood lights after, how does that sound?"

"I feel a bit selfish," he told Ellington and Henri, who had joined them, "having the company of you guys while your parents have to be off in the Black Hole of Calcutta or some dismal place without you at Christmas. Lucky us, I wouldn't trade." His genuine kindness, his enthusiasm for having the fellows to balance all the female influences on every matter, always made the brothers feel they were as good as at home.

Turning off the lighted decorations, Mrs. Charpentier rounded up all the siblings, each carrying a small, paper-handled bag of presents to be dropped off. The first year their father asked if they needed a ride to their friends' houses, the girls clapped with delight. They also jumped, just a bit, and may have let out a shriek. Christmas was so much fun.

With the mysterious packages, some of which were exceedingly lumpy, patterned paper wrapped around the contents like a second skin, exchanged, following rather extended chats on front porches and some familiarly shrill exclamations, all were back in the car. It was officially Christmas eve, the sun had set and lighted trees filled front windows on every block. Following their tradition, they stopped to get hamburgers to eat en route while they rode through the evening, visiting their favorite neighborhoods, the ice cream family's mansion lit up brighter than a Hollywood premier, the towering deodar trees beneath which all cars drove with headlights off.

"I remember the first time I was able to fall asleep on Christmas eve," Mrs. Charpentier said. "I was so disappointed when I woke up. I felt as though I'd lost Christmas, I'd lost the child I had been. But I was wrong. She's still here," she laughed. "You girls and your father helped rescue her from having to be too grown up." She blew kisses toward them all. "Thank you," she said.

"Being able to fall asleep when it's Christmas," Sireena said, "I can't even imagine. How awful that must have been for you." Her mother nodded.

As they wound their way home, the children examined the presents they'd been given and thought of what they would do before going to bed as late as possible. One thing they loved to do and not just on Christmas eve was lie on the floor under the tree in the darkened room and look up through the branches at the lights and they way they were reflected by ornaments and tinsel. It seemed like a wishing place, a fairy place of pine scent and candles. There would be carols playing softly and everyone knew, not just believed but knew, that the best things were entirely possible. Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-7709010962982951392016-12-19T00:30:00.000-08:002016-12-19T00:30:16.800-08:00Word of the Week - 146

From our grandparents one Christmas, my siblings and I each received a Steiff puppet: Jocko, Gaty and Witty.

Word(s) of the Week: SISTER AND BROTHER

I use the word Christmas rather than holidays for it was Christmas that my family celebrated. It is our tradition. It is the past to which I return this time every year. It is my personal version of the Twilight Zone where I know it will be the mid-1950s, where my sister will be around five or six years old, my brother around eight or nine and I somewhere between 10 and 12. When our mother isn't looking, we will make compressed balls of the tinsel and toss them at the tree, rather than draping it strand by strand as she instructed. When the lights are on, we will lie on the floor with out heads beneath the branches, and let our wishing minds carry us away.

The three of us have spoken as adults of the brief interlude, perhaps only one year or at the most two, when our mother sought the short-cut of what we called the Ready-Pack Christmas stocking. A dime store standard of scratchy red mesh with a festive, stapled image atop a bag of, well, stuff. We were used to receiving one of our father's socks with a splendid orange in the toe and a handful of personally selected treasures to open in the middle of the wakeful night. We fussed terribly about the indignity of it, though the Ready-Pack gave us a lasting tradition: the Chinese finger trap, ever after one of Santa's constants.

The Chinese finger trap found its way into the Novelty Items Hall of Fame.

They say that the act of recalling an event changes our memory of it. Physics may one day prove that remembering can alter the event itself. What I know is that, among all the joys that Christmas continues to bring to my life, the most enduring times, the ones etched most deeply into my heart, my very core, are the ones when Laurie, Mike and I were young together, almost swallowed whole like Jonah by the impossible magic of those days.Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-1268789626976001942016-12-12T00:30:00.000-08:002016-12-12T00:30:29.339-08:00Word of the Week - 145

From Austin Kleon's STEAL LIKE AN ARTIST.

Word(s) of the Week: MAKE THINGS

My sister, brother and I grew up following the model of a mother who made things. She was a fine arts major and everything, including the elementary school newsletter, became art in her hands. I have a faint but I believe accurate memory of one of her newsletters, featuring patterns for Three Little Pigs finger puppets. She launched us each on a lifetime path of creating, each according to our specific muses. Music, sports cars, carpentry, cooking, building, sewing, retail display, vintage fashion and accessories, drawing, coloring, paper craft, writing, my siblings and I continue to expand and explore the places our minds and hands can take us.

When fully immersed in the doing, I find it impossible to think other thoughts. Existence in the moment shrinks to the point of a pencil, the heft of the scissors, the accuracy of glue placement. It is another world, the realm of alchemy. We are transformed, returned eventually to ordinary life, perhaps with the ability to see it through new eyes.

In a Facebook post a few days ago, Dr. Clarissa Pinkola Estes, sharing a video of extravagant, traditional tulip-pattern cookies, said this: "I often think of this in our fast food world, and HAIL! to the cooks and bakers. I find you to be HOLY people who bless others with your daily works. Thank you!!"

All that remains for you to do is GO. Go to you studio, your garage, your kitchen, your garden, your shop, your factory and make stuff. It is never too early, it is never too late. Go. Now.

From GO TO YOUR STUDIO AND MAKE STUFF: THE FRED BABB POSTER BOOK

Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-28994140164315006112016-12-05T00:30:00.000-08:002016-12-05T00:30:30.740-08:00Word of the Week - 144

James Thurber, self-portrait.

Word of the Week: ENGAGE

I feel as though I do a poor job of explaining myself when called upon to do so. That is probably because I believe we should not be asked to explain ourselves. Years and years ago I realized I would never find words precise enough to say who I am to someone who couldn't or didn't want to know.

A recent conversation with my most capable, kind and interested nurse practitioner about why it was my priority to re-establish too-long neglected drawing as a daily habit before moving on to doing the same with chair yoga backed me into that corner of trying to say why this was so. A few days later it came to me that art generally is how I engage with the world. Writing, images - either my own or borrowed from the internet - are my voice when not conversing one-to-one. How I am in and of the wider world is better expressed through essays or fiction, through the work of my own hand or photos of what has meaning for me. The conundrum of how to be known without explaining. The long and short-term benefits of a chair yoga practice are not lost on me. However beneficial, though, they take a backseat to an act which carries me outwardly forward while inwardly grounding me more firmly as myself.

This is, you realize, my process. It may not match yours, nor does it need to. Had the internet not been invented, had no platform been offered for creating a free daily (or less often) written musing on any topic I chose, I could easily be, if such a thing still goes on, in downtown Los Angeles' Pershing Square shouting my truths at passing cars and uneasy pedestrians. I could be pressing leaflets into their hands rather than having professional representation for my snowmen, cats, cupcakes, roses, suns, moons, flowers and citizens through rubberstamp companies that turn my drawings into product and send them/me forth.

That I am here for a reason I accept as fact. What I interpret as the reason may shift, may adjust itself with circumstances though it never strays far from a notion of service in the form of that which brings more light than it takes. We've no idea how long we have to complete our assignment, as though we ever could, and I feel some urgency about doing what I think of as my work better, more fully even at my decidedly slowed pace. I can only be here, part of my own support staff, in so many ways on any given day. I swear chair yoga is next. Meanwhile, there is lettering to practice and pages to fill.

Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-16295452718243529642016-11-28T00:30:00.000-08:002016-11-28T00:30:04.491-08:00Word of the Week - 143

Various RubberMoon images with a bit of drawing. Artists: Brethauer, Cather & Kelly.

Word of the Week: STARS

For our Christmas program in the 6th grade, I got to be in the glee club. I have no memory of how that happened, just that it was the vehicle to learning Christmas carols beyond those we sang in Sunday School. We even learned two different tunes for "Away In A Manger" and I still remember them both. Impossible yet true.

Suns, moons, cats and stars are among my favorite subjects for doodles and drawing. The fact of stars assures me we will never unravel all the great mysteries, which comforts me enormously. Carl Sagan said this of us: "The nitrogen in our DNA, the calcium in our teeth, the iron in our blood, the carbon in our apple pies were made in the interiors of collapsing stars. We are made of starstuff."
 ―  Cosmos

Stars and songs make a potent team. To sing, or play, of stars positions them in the firmament, their rightful home. John Fahey's guitar, "We Three Kings."

Don McLean's "Vincent,"

Louis Armstrong's "When You Wish Upon A Star."

Stars by another definition, The Kinks' "Celluloid Heroes."

The holiday season, of which all that shines brightly is a great part, is nearly upon us. Candles, tinsel, lights, stars, the winter nights less dark for their warm glow, no matter how near or far.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-4431916163253046832016-11-21T00:30:00.000-08:002016-11-21T00:30:19.675-08:00Word of the Week - 142

Art by Fabienne Cinquin.

Word(s) of the Week: WHEN IN DOUBT

In times of confusion, I turn or have turned variously to food, sleep, humor, dithering, weeping, growing quiet, snapping, any distraction like organizing my color pencils yet again, pondering and, as a last resort, making a very simple plan.

The holidays confuse me. Relentless promoting of costly, material goods makes me sad. It seems so anti-holiday. I used to be able to participate so differently, certainly with greater energy and other resources. That was a very long time ago. What passes for The News confuses me for I mistrust most of it, either to be actually newsworthy or to be true.

While I would not call myself a tough cookie of the old school, neither am I easily confused so it takes a really large and seething mass of chaos to throw me any distance. Also known as, when the holidays and news collide.

Which brings me to, "Ow-my head," and other home-grown things a bright girl can do. A useful response to confusion is not unlike a healthy reaction to physical peril from, oh, a poisonous snake or other predatory, lethal life form. For me, that means stand still for as long as necessary. Do nothing big or noisy or fast. Drawing, with or without coloring, fits that description. When figures or forms seem too much, I draw words, often silly ones that somehow help me feel less disoriented. As each of us is unique, what is medicine for one may be further confusion for another. It is not one size fits all.

I freely admit to being a conspiracy theorist. One of the suspected conspiracies involves someone/someones somewhere being highly invested in keeping us confused or distracted in ways that render us non-functioning. This is not new business, this didn't just happen. Our job is to be as present, as bright and alert as possible, as don't-get-fooled-again skeptical as we can be. Getting caught up with all the other fish who swim around in circles renders us useless.

It doesn't matter how one combats this fugue state, just that we resist it. There IS a way out. It is our job to find it, to draw its picture so we'll know it when/if it shows up again, regardless of the disguise it chooses. Each of us is responsible for being present, for being our truest and most solid self by our own definition. There is much to be said for simply holding a place of certainty when doubt seems to have the upper hand. It is not about being right, it is about being.Marylinn Kellyhttp://email@example.com:blogger.com,1999:blog-2400078448867068387.post-63911205203055973042016-11-16T14:51:00.000-08:002016-11-16T14:51:06.613-08:00Walking the narrow path

Some years ago a friend told of a question asked by her husband when she was in the throes of a ta-do. He asked, "Would you rather be right or would you rather be happy?" She chose, as I did and do, happy. Every time.

We are, as a country and a planet, in a place of deep turmoil. One of the things I know beyond any doubt is that my words will not change anyone's mind, nor will theirs change mine. I forgot for a moment the truth of that. It was an uncomfortable reminder. Discord has no place in my life. I simply do not believe in arguing, in feuds, in estrangements, in being at odds with those I love or even like. I've learned through years of stress-induced ills and infirmities that fighting is very bad for my health. It weakens the immune system, erases a quiet mind and produces only grief. It steals sleep and the ability to trust in a good outcome.

I also don't believe that hate is an appropriate word to apply to other living things, least of all to my fellow humans. Disagreement needs to include tolerance, the forebearing of hate-filled exchanges, of baiting, demeaning, ridiculing, insulting, oppressing, bullying. It is unreasonable to expect to hold the moral high ground when one is spouting venom, no matter how perfume-drenched it may be.

I do not feel we are required to explain ourselves to others. I believe all are entitled to the dignity of choice, for which we each have very personal reasons, strongly held ideas.

It is a narrow path, trying to walk through this mine field, not staying neutral but maintaining what I hope can be a respectful silence. My voice added to the din would only make it louder. I hear of families so divided they cannot sit together at the Thanksgiving table, detente a distant illusion. My immediate family, never exactly large, has dwindled. Its members are too rare and precious, our years here growing too short to treat recklessly in the election's aftermath. A harmonious life is hard-won, not by abandoning our truths but by asking them to sit quietly in the back seat for the duration of the ride. Marylinn Kellyhttp://firstname.lastname@example.com


text:
Fully Licensed & Bonded
The most famous region of Chile, Chilean Patagonia offers all the dramatic landscape one would expect from the world's ultimate land's end.
In Patagonia the South American continent falls into the ocean in a dazzling explosion of islands, glaciers, icebergs and mountains. Chilean Patagonia is composed of two sub regions, the northern Aisen and to the south, Magellanes. Aisen is home to the National Park Laguna San Rafael while Magellanes hosts the incomparable National Park Torres del Paine. Isolated from the rest of Chile by fierce storms and impassable mountains, Magallanes can be reached only by air, or overland from Argentina. On the Pacific side of the Magellan strait is the city of Punta Arenas, first made prosperous during the California gold rush and later a centre for Chile's wool industry. Among the region's wondrous sights are the spectacular Torres del Paine mountain range, rising to 9000 feet, Cascada Paine (Paine Falls) at 6300 feet, the hypnotic waterfalls of Salto Chico and Salto Grande, the Grey, Pingo and del Frances glaciers, the Pehoe, Nordenskjold, Sarmiento, Pingo and Dickson lakes, and the Verde and Azul lagoons.
The fjords, glaciers and magnificent scenery of the Patagonian region are what attract visitors to this vast wilderness territory. The north, or Aisén region, can be likened to the Inside Passage of Alaska or New Zealand's Fjordland on South Island with its dramatic ice and waterway scenery. Southern Patagonia or Magallanes, is rugged, mountainous and stormy.
It was nearly 500 years ago that Ferdinand Magellan guided four ships through the treacherous passages that are still today thought of as the End of the World. Today Patagonia is inhabited by nearly 2 million people, but is still almost entirely made up of pristine and untouched nature.
The Chilean Patagonia experiences much less severe weather conditions than one might think with the east slope featuring a warmer climate than the west. In the extreme south of Chilean Patagonia the weather is moderated by its proximity to the ocean and small variety in temperature from season to season is experienced. The months of April and May are the wettest with reliable snowfall from June through until September. The depletion of the ozone layer over the South Pole is a growing concern and is thought to be the reason for blindness and skin cancer in sheep in the Tierra del Fuego. Travellers visiting the Chilean Patagonia are advised to bring plenty of sunscreen, regardless of the time of year.
The official language is Spanish.
The local currency is the Chilean Peso (CLP), which is divided into 100 centavos. Visa, MasterCard, Diners Club and to a lesser extent, American Express, are accepted in most large shops and hotels. Travellers cheques, particularly in US Dollars, are welcome in major towns, where there are banks and cambiosoffering currency exchange services. ATMs are widely available.
Mainland is GMT -4 (GMT -3 from October to March). Easter Island is GMT -6 (GMT -5 from October to March).
At the very tip of Patagonia, beyond Chile and even South
America, lies the archipelago of Tierra del Fuego, whose name
translates to 'Land of Fire'. It's a dramatic name for a dramatic
place, as the harsh winds of the sub-polar climate sweep over rocky
mountains, sparse tundra, and hardy forests. Tierra del Fuego is an
increasingly popular ecotravel destination, and adventurous
travellers come to see wildlife that includes sea lions, foxes,
condors, owls, and firecrown hummingbirds. Hiking and camping are
popular activities, and the archipelago offers some of the best
trout fishing in South America.
Much of the tourism in Tierra del Fuego revolves around
'southernmost' things: the port town of Puerto Williams claims to
be the southernmost city in the world, while the southernmost
cathedral and temple are located in Punta Arenas. While Cape Horn
is widely thought to be the southernmost island in South America,
that title actually goes to The Diego Ramírez Islands, which are
nesting grounds for many species of southern seabirds, including
albatross, penguins and petrels.
A paradise for birdwatchers, Magdalena Island Penguin Reserve is
located 21.7 miles (35km) south of Punta Arenas. Magdalena Island
is a natural bird sanctuary, and is home to more than 100,000
birds, including 95 percent of the world's population of Magellanic
Penguins as well as cormorants and seagulls. Because it is a
sanctuary, the only facilities on Magdalena Island are for
scientific research and not tourism. Guided tours are available to
see the penguins in their natural habitat, and the lighthouse at
the Environmental Interpretation Centre provides stunning panoramic
views of the region. There are ferries available from Puntas
Arenas, which take approximately two hours each way and provide
snacks and coffee.
Created in 1959, Parque Nacional Laguna San Rafael covers an
area of 6,726 square miles (17,420 sq km) and includes the Northern
Patagonian Ice Field. It was named for the San Rafael Lagoon that
was created by the retreat of the San Rafael Glacier, and has been
designated a World Biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. A fjord more than
10 miles (16km) long is one of the park's principle attractions,
along with some of the highest peaks in Patagonia, several
glaciers, lakes and a rich variety of bird and sea life. While the
majority of visitors to Laguna San Rafael never set foot on land,
the magificent views from the boat are such that will stay with you
for a lifetime.
UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, the 180,000-hectare (442-acre) park is
the pride and joy of southern Chile. The park takes its name after
the towering granite pillars that rise over 6,560 feet (2,000m)
above the Patagonian plains. It is a hiker's paradise with many
excellent, well-developed trails through astounding changes in
scenery. Turquoise lakes and roaring waterfalls, forests and
magnificent rambling glaciers, icy rivers, daisy-filled meadows,
harsh mountain passes and plenty of wildlife, including the
protected guanaco (wild relative of the llama), are some of its
attractions, while visitors can try their hand at outdoor
activities like horseback riding, sailing and kayaking, rock
climbing and fly-fishing.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
- Please select a date to see the proper prices!
Description of the accommodation:
Rooms, services The guests of Hôtel Montmartre Clignancourt Paris may stay in 30 nicely furnished, comfortable rooms in Paris. If you wish to learn more about the exact scope of services provided by Hôtel Montmartre Clignancourt Paris (including any available for an extra fee), you will find them on the information sheet below.
Payment Credit card guarantee or advance bank card payment may be necessary for finalizing your reservation, depending on the exact room, date and price.
Arrival, opening hours The earliest time for arrival and check-in is 14:00, the latest time for departure and check-out is 11:00. French and English languages are spoken by the personnel.
Hôtel Montmartre Clignancourt Paris rooms Rooms
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Accommodation services
Hairdryer, Desk in the room


text:
Cedric Gervais Teases Gwen Stefani Collaboration, Opens Up About Tyga Dispute
In an interview with Mr. Wavvy, French DJ/producer and recent Interscope Records signee Cedric Gervais talked about his new podcast, My House, and divulged the details of some of his more interpersonal affairs. Among other topics, Gervais echoed the sentiments of countless industry-leading artists by expressing plans to return to house music.
Most notably, he announced plans to work with pop icon Gwen Stefani on a track. "[Interscope] definitely wants me to do something, featuring me [with Stefani]," Gervais said. "It's actually a song I have ready to go. Interscope and Polydor in the UK are trying to find somebody big for the song."
Gervais also revisited Tyga's illegal release of a song sampling his 2013 release, "Molly," under the same name. "They stole my song," he said flatly, "then they put my name on it, thinking that it would be okay." He and Mr. Wavvy continued with commentary on Cash Money Records' unsavory business practices.
Listen to the first episode of the My House podcast here.
[H/T: Dancing Astronaut]
Follow Cedric Gervais:


text:
I'm in my third year serving as Director of Worship Studies at The King's University/Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas. We have weekly chapel services in which we present a three to four song worship set. Like most of you, we tend to present a "cover" of the recorded arrangement. Was there a keyboard hook during … Continue reading You Have Permission
Beginnings. Defined. Delivered.
As I was looking up a word on dictionary.com today, I came upon this graphic. "9 Words About Beginnings". It lead to definitions of these words: incunabula, genesis, inchoate, inception, recrudescence, exordium, commencement, Ab ovo, nascent. Though several are words I wasn't familiar with, God encouraged my heart by reminding me that He is the … Continue reading Beginnings. Defined. Delivered.
The Space Between
Last week I introduced a new class at CMS Northeast in Buffalo, NY. The class is called "The Space Between". I'll tell you honestly that I was a bit anxious heading into the class. Though I believe strongly in the concept behind the class, I wasn't sure if it would resonate with the people who attended. Turns … Continue reading The Space Between
On Our Own
I write regularly for Worship Musician Magazine. One of my recent articles spoke of those moments many keyboard players on worship teams encounter when they're called on to play during a prayer time or quiet ministry moment. In this article I suggest some ways you might do something other than play a familiar song with its … Continue reading On Our Own
The Internal Clock: DVD2 segment
In this clip from my 2nd DVD, you'll learn how what you don't play is just as important as what you do play. Let the internal clock influence how busy your keyboard part is. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1kwJL9sUTik
Tidings Of Comfort And Joy
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C_4Q9WV6Jq0 My wife, Carey, helped me create a cozy vibe at my grand piano so that I could film this video of "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen". It's one of the 10 songs on Christmas In Ivory, available now in my store. In the arrangement my sixth sense is evident, as I feature that beautiful … Continue reading Tidings Of Comfort And Joy
CMS Keyboard Boot Camp 2013
It was a privilege to be among the instructors for the Boot Camp sessions offered as part of CMS Northwest 2013. What a treat to have a full day to share with keyboard players! I had a great time spending the day with seven talented musicians, all determined to grow in their grasp of modern … Continue reading CMS Keyboard Boot Camp 2013


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Ah, conflict. We try to avoid it, we try to make the best of it, we try to simply deal with it. Although conflict may not be fun, according to a post on Psychology Today, it may actually be beneficial.
It kind of reminds us of broccoli. We try to avoid it, we try to make the best of it, we simply try to deal. And then we realize it's healthy for us.
In the piece Victor Lipman writes, "Though conflict is usually at least temporarily unpleasant, it's by no means all bad; in fact it can also be the pathway to something better." Here are four tangible upsides to workplace conflict…
1. You learn to embrace conflict instead of avoiding it. Conflict is inevitable, right? As a leader you'll ultimately have to confront it. He says, "Learning not to avoid conflict but to manage it constructively pays generous dividends – well beyond the business environment."
2. Dirty laundry gets aired and sometimes comes clean. Conflict isn't always bad; rather, it forces teams to address issues. Instead of brushing topics aside where resentment can build, it provides an opportunity for open conversations.
3. It can spur innovation. Conflicts can lead to resolution and that is essentially growth. Lipman points out open workplace conflict "produces bursts of activity and increased activity can yield innovative results."
4. Worst enemies can end up best friends (or at least colleagues who speak to each other). Lipman recalls upon his days as a corporate manager when he noticed conflicts between two people on his team. The solution? He gave them free lunch passes and forced them to dine together!
He recalls, "No one else could be present, so all they could do was talk, face to face, and (hopefully) communicate. How did this work out? I only did it a few times (I came upon the idea in the latter stages of my management career), but the results were generally positive. In these situations conflicts were diminished, and the employees involved became civil colleagues if not exactly 'bffs.'"


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Roma Sightseeing. Chubich Julia F-22. Presentation outline. A capital of Italy Monuments: Pantheon Colosseo Fontana di Trevi Museums: National Museum of Rome Capitolina Museum Barracco Museum.
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Chubich Julia
Mosaic of cat attackinga turkey
Busts of philosophers and poetsThe Dying Gaul
Corso Vittorio Emanuele, 166
Head of Alexander the Great (II sec. A.D.)
Chubich Julia


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Wei, Y., Lombardi, A., Simonsen, B., Coyne, M., Faggella-Luby, M., Freeman, J., & Kearns, D. (2017). A Revised Embedded Planning Tool for Intensive Reading Instruction. Learning Disabilities: A Multidisciplinary Journal, 22(2), 50-62.
Neugebauer, S. R, Coyne, M. D., McCoach, D. B., & Ware, S. (2017). Teaching beyond the intervention: The contribution of teacher language extensions to vocabulary learning in
urban kindergarten classrooms. Reading & Writing, 30, 543–567.
Coyne, M. D., & Koriakin, T. A. (2017). What do beginning special educators need to know about implementing intensive reading interventions for students with disabilities? Teaching Exceptional Children, 49, 239-248.
Sugai, G., Freeman, J., Simonsen, B., La Salle, T., & Fixsen, D. (2017). National climate change: Doubling down on our precision and emphasis on prevention and behavioral sciences. Report on Emotional Behavioral Disorders in Youth, 17(3). 58-63.
Collier-Meek, M. A., Sanetti, L. M. H., & Fallon, L. M. (2017). Incorporating Applied Behavior Analysis to assess and support educators' treatment integrity . Psychology in the Schools, 54(4), 446-460. DOI: 10.1002/pits.
Dukes, L. L., Madaus, J. W., Faggella-Luby, M., Lombardi, A., & Gelbar, N. (2017). PASSing college: A taxonomy for students with disabilities in postsecondary education. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 30(2), 111-122.
Gamez, P.B., Neugebauer, S. R, Coyne, M. D., McCoach, D. B., & Ware, S. (2017). Linguistic and social cues for vocabulary learning in Dual Language Learners and their English-only peers. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 30, 25-37.
Kleinert, W. L., Silva, M. R., Codding, R. S., Feinberg, A. B., & James, P. S. S. (2017). Enhancing classroom management using the Classroom Check-Up Consultation Model with in-vivo coaching and goal setting components. School Psychology Forum, 11(1), 5-19.
Lombardi, A., Kern, L., Flannery, K. B., & Doren, B. (in press). Is college and career readiness adequately addressed in annual and postsecondary goals? Journal of Disability Policy Studies. doi: 10.1177/1044207317716147
Lombardi, A. R., Izzo, M. V., Gelbar, N., Murray, A., Buck, A., Johnson, V., Hsiao, J., Wei, Y., & Kowitt, J. (2017). Leveraging information technology literacy to enhance college and career readiness for secondary students with disabilities. Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 46, 389-397.
Briesch, A. M., Chafouleas S. M., & Johnson, A. H. (2016). Use of generalizability theory within K-12 school-based assessment: A critical review and analysis of the empirical literature. Applied Measurement in Education. Advance online publication. DOI:10.1080/08957347.2016.1138955
Chafouleas, S. M., & E. C. Polifroni (2016). Integrated learning and health: A call for increasing coordination efforts. International Journal of School and Educational Psychology. DOI: 10.1080/21683603.2016.1130586.
Chafouleas, S. M., Johnson, A. H., Overstreet, S., & Santos, N. M. (2016). Toward a blueprint for trauma-informed service delivery in schools. School Mental Health, 8, 144–162.
Collier-Meek, M. A., Sanetti, L. M. H., & Wisniewski, A. M. (2016). Providing feasible implementation support: Direct training and implementation planning in consultation. School Psychology Forum, 10, 106-119.
Coyne, M. D., Cook, B. G., & Therrien, W. J., (2016). Recommendations for replication research in special education: A framework of systematic, conceptual replications. Remedial & Special Education, 37, 244-253.
Coyne, M. D., Oldham, A., Leonard, K., Burns, D., & Gage, N. (2016). Delving into the details: Implementing multitiered K–3 reading supports in high-priority schools. In B. Foorman (Ed.), Challenges to implementing effective reading intervention in schools. New Directions for Child and Adolescent Development, 154, 67–85.
Cuticelli, M., Collier-Meek, M., & Coyne, M. D., (2016). Increasing the quality of tier 1 reading instruction: Using performance feedback to increase opportunities to respond during implementation of a core reading program. Psychology in the Schools, 53(1), 89-105.
Dougherty, S. M., & Lombardi, A. R., (2016). From vocational education to career readiness: The ongoing work of linking education and the labor market. Review of Research in Education, 40(1), 326-355. doi: 10.3102/0091732X16678602
Fallon, L. M., Collier-Meek, M. A., Sanetti, L. M. H., Feinberg, A., & Kratochwill, T. R. (2016). Implementation planning to promote parents' treatment integrity of home-based behavioral interventions for children with autism. Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation. doi: 10.1080/10474412.2015.1039124
Fallon, L. M., & Feinberg, A. B. (2016). Research brief: Implementing a Tier 2 behavioral intervention in an alternative high school program. Preventing School Failure. doi: 10.1080/1045988X.2016.1254083
Freeman, J., Simonsen-Gaines, B. M., McCoach, D. E., Sugai, G. M., Lombardi, A., & Horner, R. (2016). Implementation effects of school-wide positive behavior interventions and supports on academic, attendance, and behavior outcomes in high schools. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 18, 41-51. doi: 10.1177/1098300715580992
Freeman, J., Simonsen, B., McCoach, D.B., Sugai, G., Lombardi, A., & Horner, R. (2016). Relationship between School-Wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports and academic, attendance, and behavior outcomes in high schools. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 18, 41-51.
Gage, N. A., Larson, A., Sugai, G., & Chafouleas, S. M. (2016). Student perceptions of school climate as predictors of office discipline referrals. American Educational Research Journal. Advance online publication. DOI: 10.3102/0002831216637349.
Gawronski, M., Kuk, L., Lombardi, A. R.(2016). Inclusive instruction: perceptions of community college faculty and students pertaining to Universal Design. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 29(4), 331-347.
Kearns, D. M., Rogers, H. J., Al Ghanem, R., & Koriakin, T. (2016). Semantic and phonological ability to adjust recoding: A unique correlate of word reading skill? Scientific Studies of Reading. doi:10.1080/10888438.2016.1217865
Kearns, D. M., Steacy, L. M., Compton, D. L., Gilbert, J. K., Goodwin, A., Cho, E., Lindstrom, E. R., & Collins, A. A. (2016). Modeling polymorphemic word recognition: Exploring differences among children with early-emerging and late-emerging word reading difficulty. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 49, 368-394. doi:10.1177/0022219414554229 (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 1.578; Citations [July 2016]: 5).
La Salle, T. P., Parris, L., & Morin, M. (2016). Deconstructing peer victimization: Relationships with connectedness, gender, grade, and race. School Psychology Forum, 10(1), 41-54.
La Salle, T.P. & Sanetti, L. (2016). Implications of student health problems on achievement and engagement. International Journal of School & Educational Psychology, 4(1), 10-15.
La Salle, T. P., Zabeck, F., & Meyers, J. (2016). Elementary student perceptions of school climate and associations with student and school factors. School Psychology Forum, 10(1), 55-65.
Loftus-Rattan, S. M., Mitchell, A. M., & Coyne, M. D., (2016). Direct vocabulary instruction in preschool: A comparison of extended instruction, embedded instruction, and incidental exposure. Elementary School Journal, 116(3), 391-41.
Lombardi, A. R., Izzo, M. V., Rifenbark, G. G., Murray, A., Buck, A., & Johnson, V. (2016). A preliminary psychometric analysis of a measure of Information Technology literacy skills. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals.
Lombardi, A. R., Izzo, M. V, Rifenbark, G. G., Murray, A., Buck, A., Monahan, J., & Gelbar, N. (2016). The impact of an online transition curriculum on secondary student reading: A multilevel examination. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals.
Lombardi, A., Murray, C., & Kowitt, J. (2016). Social support and academic success for college students with disabilities: Do relationship types matter? Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation, 44, 1-13.
Long, A. C. J., Sanetti, L. M. H., Collier-Meek, M. A., Gallucci, J., Altschaefl, M., & Kratochwill, T. R. (2016). An exploratory investigation of teachers' intervention planning and perceived implementation barriers. Journal of School Psychology, 55, 1-26
Makel, M. C., Plucker, J. A., Freeman, J., Lombardi, A., Simonsen, B., & Coyne, M. D. (2016). Replication of special education research: Necessary but far too rare. Remedial and Special Education, 37, 205-212.
McCarthy, T., Rosenblum, P. L., Johnson, B., Ditel, J, & Kearns, D. M. (2016). The Artificial Intelligence Tutor: A supplementary tool for teaching and practicing braille. Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness, 110, 310-322
Miller, F. G., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Chafouleas, S. M., & Schardt, A. A. (2016). Direct Behavior Rating Instrumentation: Evaluating the Impact of Scale Formats. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 1-8. DOI: 10.1177/1534508416658007.
Neugebauer, S. R., Chafouleas, S. M., Coyne, M. D., McCoach D. B., & Briesch, A M. (2016). Exploring an ecological model of perceived usability within a multi-tiered vocabulary intervention. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 41(3), 155-171.
Overstreet, S. & Chafouleas, S. M. (2016). Trauma-Informed Schools: Introduction to the Special Issue. School Mental Health, 8, 1-6. DOI 10.1007/s12310-016-9184-1.
Parris, L., La Salle, T. P., Varjas, K., Meyers, J. (2016). Introduction to the special issue: Improving student outcomes: Research on school climate and violence prevention and intervention. School Psychology Forum, 10(1), 1-3.
Sanetti, L. M. H, Chafouleas, S. M., Berggren, M. L., Faggella-Luby, M., & Byron, J. R. (2016). Implementing modeling and self-monitoring with DBRC in a tier 2 reading group: A pilot study of feasibility. Journal of Evidence-Based Practices for Schools, 15, 8-40.
Simonsen, B., Freeman, J., Dooley, K., Maddock, E., Kern, L., & Myers, D. (2017). Effects of targeted professional development on teachers' specific praise rates. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 19, 37-47. doi: 10.1177/1098300716637192
Sugai, G., Simonsen, B., Freeman, J., & La Salle, T. (2016). Capacity development and multi-tiered systems of support: Guiding principles. Australasian Journal of Special Education. Advance online publication. doi:10.1017/jse.2016.11
Travers, J. C., Cook, B. G., Therrien, W. J., & Coyne, M. D., (2016). Replication and Special Education. Remedial & Special Education, 37, 195-204.
Wilson, J., Olinghouse, N. G., McCoach, D. B., Santangelo, T., & Andrada, G. N. (2016). Comparing the accuracy of different scoring methods for identifying sixth graders at risk of failing a state writing assessment. Assessing Writing, 27, 11-23.
Al Ghanem, R., & Kearns, D. M. (2015). Orthographic, phonological, and morphological predictors of children's word reading skills in Arabic: A literature review. Reading Research Quarterly, 50, 83-109. doi:10.1002/rrq.84 (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 2.884; Citations [July 2016]: 1).
Baker, D. L., Santoro, L., Ware, S., Cuéllar, D., Oldham, A., Cuticelli, M., Coyne, M. D., Loftus-Rathan, S., & McCoach, B. (2015). Understanding and Implementing the Common Core Vocabulary Standards in Kindergarten. Teaching Exceptional Children, 47(5), 264-271.
Briere, D. E., Simonsen, B., Sugai, G., & Myers, D. (2015). Increasing new teachers' specific praise rates using a within-school consultation intervention. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 17, 50-60.doi: 10.1177/1098300713497098
Briesch, A. M., Briesch, J., & Chafouleas, S. M., (2015). Investigating the usability of classroom management strategies among elementary school teachers. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions, 17, 5-14.
Chafouleas, S. M., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Jaffery, R., Miller, F. G., & Harrison, S. E. (2015). Preliminary Investigation of the Impact of a Web-Based Module on Direct Behavior Rating Accuracy. School Mental Health, 7, 92-104. DOI: 10.1007/s12310-014-9130-z.
Coyne, M. D., Oldham, A., Ware, S. M., & Cuticelli, M. (2015, Summer). Using assessment data to make a difference in vocabulary outcomes. Perspectives on Language and Literacy, 52-56.
Cuticelli, M., Coyne, M. D., Ware, S. M., Oldham, A., & Loftus-Rattan, S. (2015). Improving vocabulary skills of kindergarten students through a multi-tier instructional approach. Intervention in School and Clinic, 50, 150-156.
Fallon, L. M., Collier-Meek, M. A., Maggin, D. M., Sanetti, L. M. H., & Johnson, A. H. (2015). Is performance feedback an evidence-based intervention? A systematic review and evaluation of single-case research. Exceptional Children, 8, 227-246. doi: 10.1177/0014402914551738
Flannery, K. B., Lombardi, A., & Kato. M. M. (2015). The impact of professional development on the quality of the transition components of IEPs. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 38, 14-24.
Freeman, J., & Simonsen, B. (2015). Examining the impact of policy and practice interventions on high school dropout and school completion rates: A systematic review of the literature. Review of Education Research, 85, 205-248. doi: 10.3102/0034654314554431
Freeman, J., Simonsen, B., McCoach, D.B., Sugai, G., Lombardi, A., Horner, R. (2015). Relationship between school-wide positive behavior interventions and supports and academic, attendance, and behavior outcomes in high schools. Journal of Positive Behavior Interventions. DOI: 10.1177/1098300715580992
Freeman, J., Simonsen, B., McCoach, D.B., Sugai, G., Lombardi, A., Horner, R. (2015). An analysis of the relationship between implementation of School-wide Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports and high school attendance and dropout rates. The High School Journal.
Gage, N. A., Ashley S. MacSuga-Gage, A. S., Prykanowski, D., Coyne, M. D., & Scott, T. M. (2015). Investigating the collateral effects of behavior management on early literacy skills. Education and Treatment of Children, 38(4), 523-540.
Gage, N. A., Larson, A., & Chafouleas, S. M. (2015). The Meriden School Climate Survey–Student Version: Preliminary Evidence of Reliability and Validity. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 1-12. DOI: 10.1177/1534508415596960.
Gelbar, N., Madaus, J. W., Lombardi, A., Faggella-Luby, M. N., & Dukes, L. L. (2015). College students with physical disabilities: Common on campus, uncommon in the literature. Physical Disabilities: Education and Related Services, 34, 14-31.
Hayes, J. R., & Olinghouse, N. G. (2015). What cognitive models have to say about the Common Core State Standards in writing. Elementary School Journal, 115, 480-497.
Horner, R. H., & Sugai, G. (2015). School-wide PBIS: An example of applied behavior analysis implemented at a scale of social importance. Behavior Analysis in Practice, 8(1), 80-85.
Jaffery, R., Johnson, A.J., Bowler, M. C., Riley-Tillman, T.C., Chafouleas, S.M., & Harrison, S.E. (2015). Using consensus building procedures with expert raters to establish comparison scores of behavior for Direct Behavior Rating. Assessment for Effective Intervention, 40, 195-204. DOI: 10.1177/1534508415569527.
Kearns, D. M. (2015). How elementary-age children read polysyllabic polymorphemic words. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107, 364-390. doi:10.1037/a0037518 (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 3.518; Citations [July 2016]: 5).
La Salle, T. P., Meyers, J., Roach, A.R., & Varjas, K. (2015). A cultural – ecological model of school climate. International Journal of School and Educational Psychology, 00, 1-10. doi: 10.1080/21683603.2015.1047550.
Lentini, A. R., & Coyne, M. D. (2015). Addressing false positives in early reading assessment using intervention response data. Learning Disabilities Quarterly, 38, 53-65.
Lombardi, A. R., Kowitt, J., & Staples, F. (2015). Correlates of critical thinking and college and career readiness for secondary students with and without disabilities. Career Development and Transition for Exceptional Individuals, 38, 142-151.
Lombardi, A., Vukovic, B., & Sala-Bars, I. (2015). International comparisons of inclusive instruction among college faculty in Spain, Canada, and the United States. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 28, 447-460 (invited author for special issue)
MacSuga-Gage, A. S., & Simonsen, B. (2015). Examining the effects of teacher-directed opportunities to respond and student outcomes: A systematic review of the literature. Education and Treatment of Children, 38, 211-240.
Olinghouse, N. G., Graham, S., & Gillespie, A. (2015). The relationship of discourse and topic knowledge to fifth-graders' writing performance. Journal of Educational Psychology, 107, 391-406.
Oslund, E.L., Simmons, D.C, Hagan-Burke, S., Kwok, O., Simmons, L.E., Taylor, A. & Coyne, M.D. (2015). Can curriculum-embedded measures predict the later reading achievement of kindergarteners at risk of reading disability? Learning Disability Quarterly, 38(1), 3-14.
Sanetti, L. M. H., & Collier-Meek, S. M. (2015). Data-driven delivery of implementation supports in a multi-tiered framework: A pilot study. Psychology in the Schools, 52, 815-828. doi: 10.1002/pits
Sanetti, L. M. H., Collier-Meek, M. A., Long, A. C. J., Byron, J. R., & Kratochwill, T. R. (2015). Increasing teacher treatment integrity of behavior support plans through consultation and implementation planning. Journal of School Psychology, 53, 209-229.
Simmons, D. C., Kim, M., Kwok, O. M., Coyne, M. D., Simmons, L. E., Oslund, E., … & Rawlinson, D. A. (2015). Examining the Effects of Linking Student Performance and Progression in a Tier 2 Kindergarten Reading Intervention. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 48(3), 255-270.
Stephan, S. H., Sugai, G., Lever, N., & Connors, E. (2015). Strategies for integrating mental health into schools via a multi-tiered system of support. School Mental Health, 24(2), 211-232.
Troia, G. A., Olinghouse, N. G., Mo, Y., Hawkins, L., Kopke, R. A., Chen, A., Wilson, J., O'Shea, K. A. (2015). Academic standards for writing: To what degree do standards reflect evidence-based instructional practices and interventions? Elementary School Journal, 16, 291-321.
Briesch, A. M., Swaminathan, H., Welsh, M., & Chafouleas, S. M. (2014). Generalizability theory: A practical guide to study design, implementation, and interpretation. Journal of School Psychology, 52, 13-35.
Christ, T. J., Nelson, P. M., Van Norman, E. R., Chafouleas, S. M., & Riley-Tillman, T. C. (2014). Direct Behavior Rating: An evaluation of time-series interpretations as consequential validity. School Psychology Quarterly, 29, 157-170.
Collier-Meek, M. A., & Sanetti, L. M. H. (2014). Assessment of consultation and intervention implementation: A review of conjoint behavioral consultation studies. Journal of Educational and Psychological Consultation, 24, 55-73.
Crevecoeur, Y., Coyne, M. D., & McCoach, D. B. (2014). English-language Learners and English-only Learners' Response to Direct Vocabulary Instruction. Reading & Writing Quarterly, 30, 51-78.
Eiraldi, R., McCurdy, B., Khanna, M., Mautone, J., Jawad, R. A., Power, T, Ciday, Z., Cacia, J., & Sugai, G. (2014). A cluster randomized trial to evaluate external support for the implementation of positive behavioral interventions and supports by school personnel. Implementation Science, 9:12. DOI: 10.1186/1748-5908-9-12
Evans, S. W., Stephan, S. H., & Sugai, G. (2014). Advancing research in school mental health: Introduction of a special issue on key issues in research. School Mental Health, 6, 63-67.
Fabiano, G. A., Chafouleas, S. M., Weist, M. D., Sumi, W. C., & Humphrey, N. (2014). Methodology considerations in school mental health research. School Mental Health. DOI 10.1007/s12310-013-9117-1.
Faggella-Luby, M., Lombardi, A., Lalor, A., & Dukes, L. L. (2014). Methodological trends in disability and higher education research: A historical analysis of the Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 27(4), 357-368. (invited author for special issue)
Fallon, L. M., McCarthy, S. R., & Sanetti, L. M. H. (2014). School-wide positive behavioral interventions and support (SWPBIS) in the classroom: Assessing perceived challenges in consistent implementation in Connecticut schools. Education and Treatment of Children, 37, 1-24.
Freeman, J., & Simonsen, B. (2014). Examining the impact of policy and practice interventions on high school dropout and school completion rates: A systematic review of the literature. Review of Educational Research. 10.3102/0034654314554431
Freeman, J., Simonsen, B., Briere, D. E., & MacSuga-Gage, A. S. (2014). Pre-service teacher training in classroom management: A review of state accreditation policy and teacher preparation programs. Teacher Education and Special Education, 37, 106-120. doi. 10.1177/0888406413507002
Gage, N. A., Freeman, J., Horner, R. H., Sugai, G., Lewis, T. J., & Strickland-Cohen, K. (2014). Funding support for school-wide behavior interventions and support implementation and scale-up: A descriptive study of nine states. Journal of Disability Policy Status, 25, 164-174. DOI: 10.1177/1044207313488943
Gage, N., Freeman, J., Horner, R. H., Sugai, G., Lewis, T. J., & Strickland-Cohen, K. (2014). State funding of positive behavior support initiatives: Strategies and recommendations for efficiency and effectiveness. Journal of Disability Policy Studies, 25 (3) 164-174. doi. 10.1177/1044207313488943
Goodwin, A., Gilbert, J. K., Cho, S.-J., & Kearns, D. M. (2014). Probing lexical representations: Simultaneous modeling of word and reader contributions to multidimensional lexical representations. Journal of Educational Psychology, 106, 448-468 doi:10.1037/a0034754. (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 3.518; Citations [July 2016]: 12).
Gilbert, J. K., Goodwin, A. P., Compton, D. L., & Kearns, D. M. (2014). Word reading as a moderator of morphological awareness and reading comprehension. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 47, 34-43. doi:10.1177/0022219413509966. (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 1.578; Citations [July 2016]: 13).
Harrison, S.E., Riley-Tillman, T.C., & Chafouleas, S.M. (2014). Direct behavior ratings: Considerations for rater accuracy. Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 29, 3-20. doi: 10.1177/0829573513515424
Horner, R. H., Kincaid, D., Sugai, G., Lewis, T., Eber, L., Barrett, S., Rossetto Dickey, C., Richter, M., Sullivan, E., Boezio, C., Algozzine, B., Reynolds, H., & Johnson, N. (2014). Scaling up school-wide positive behavioral interventions and supports: The experiences of seven states with documented success. Journal of Positive Behavioral Interventions, 16, 197-208. DOI: 10.1177/1098300713503685
Kilgus, S. P., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Chafouleas, S. M., Christ, T. J., & Welsh, M. (2014). Direct Behavior Rating as a school-based behavior universal screener: Replication across sites. Journal of School Psychology, 52, 63-82.
Lemons, C. J., Kearns, D. M., & Davidson, K. A. (2014). Data-based individualization in reading. Teaching Exceptional Children, 46(4), 20-29. doi:doi:10.1177/0040059914522978 (Impact Factor: N/A; Citations [July 2016]: 2).
Madaus, J. W., Dukes, L. L., Lombardi, A. (2014). JPED at 30: Looking back and AHEAD. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 27(4), 345-346.
McMaster, K. L., Jung, P.-G., Brandes, D., Pinto, V., Fuchs, D., Kearns, D., Lemons, C. J., & Yen, L. (2014). Customizing an evidence-based reading practice: Balancing fidelity and flexibility. The Reading Teacher, 68, 173-183. doi:10.1002/trtr.1301 (Impact Factor [Feb 2016]: 0.748; Citations [July 2016]: 0).
Miller, F. G., Chafouleas, S. M., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Fabiano, G. A. (2014). Teacher perceptions of the usability of school- based behavior assessments. Behavioral Disorders, 39, 201-210.
Miller, F. G., Cohen, D., Chafouleas, S. M., Riley-Tillman, T. C., Welsh, M. E., Fabiano, G. A. (2014). A comparison of measures to screen for social, emotional, and behavioral risk. School Psychology Quarterly. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/spq0000085
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text:
Los Angeles Dodgers legendary broadcaster Vin Scully is a baseball icon, and after 80 years as a fan and expert, he's got some pretty awesome stories.
He told NESN's Dave O'Brien a few of those in Part 2 of OB's interview with the voice of the Dodgers, including a story about a bad experience working at Fenway Park and how everything came full circle decades later.
Check it out in the video from "Red Sox Gameday Live" above.
Thumbnail photo via Jayne Kamin-Oncea/USA TODAY Sports Images
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