Well tan my whiskers, it’s that time again!

*cough* That sounded odd.

Anyway, it’s Monday (more so this time than last) and it’s time for another fabulous internet meme!

This weeks meme is brought to you by X? in my Y?

I’m fairly proud of it, as those who are following Super Street Fighter IV will get it, and those who don’t… well, sorry!

Enjoy:

Juri? In my blog post? It’s more likely than you think.

Trailerpilot posted this NY Times article to his blog this weekend and I’m so glad he did…it’s incredibly interesting to me. The article is about a fairly new dance craze that is spreading via the internet to teens all over the country-jerking. It’s not the dance style that interested me. Instead, what peaked my interest in this case can be summed up in this quote from the article:

They began dancing and posted videos on YouTube, and according the mysterious Web laws that can send a laughing baby video global, these unknowns quickly attracted thousands of viewers.

At this point in fact, the videos from the high school students from LA which this quote refers to have received millions of views….and consequently an article in the NY Times, sponsorship from clothing/footwear brands, and a documentary for MTV in the works.

I’m sure we’ve all had the experience of watching some link we got in a forward (or saw in a tweet or on someone’s tumblr) and we OMGLOL at it (because that’s it’s purpose) and then we scroll down and see it’s had millions of views and countless comments….and we think “WTF?  Why?”

It seems to me that while there are unimaginable numbers of people using the internet to post, share, and spread information, there are only a few users who really have the power to make something become viral.  What is interesting to me in regards to this (and these kids who are now responsible for this next big dance movement) is that these gods of the internet are now the ones curating our cultural lives*.  They are the ones deciding that jerking is the next big thing and three wolf moon shirts are the new standard of irony based ROFL-ing and cats doing much of anything are the funnest thing ever.

Truthfully, I can’t decide how I feel about this.  Part of me loves the way we all watch the same ridiculous pixelated crap…it bonds us.  The other part of me wishes maybe we were all watching the same creative, groundbreaking or thoughtful stuff that’s out there.

But since I’m not one of those internet gods, it actually doesn’t really matter what I want us to watch.  So instead, I watch this.

*Note that I am officially waiting to see how long it will take before work at the MCA starts reflecting this cultural phenomenon.

I was supposed to write an essay of 2000 words for my academic writing class and study for my organic chemistry test tomorrow. Instead, I decided to create my `life throughout icons`. Thanks to Deniz Cem Önduygu for his brilliant idea, I must admit how I always liked his ideas and designs. I’d say: check out his blog out for a few seconds. You’ll love it. Full view is encouraged, by the way.

Okay, I think this needs a little explanation. I could have written the dates from 1990 to 2009 in same proportions, but there are many things that has happened between 2003 and 2009, I thought it would be better having more space for the past six years of my life. The importance of the logo in my life deepens as you go to the center of the pentagon. So you could say Opeth is one of the most important things in my life. Not really. But still, not that bad. On the other hand, I think the side between 1990-1995 and 1996-1999 is a little bit emptier than the other sides. I don’t really know why. I might have forgotten some important stuff, but I was in a hurry while doing this. Every logo you think that has an importance to you is nothing but a well drawn graffiti on the wall of your very own street. Please let me know if I have anything wrong with this digital art.

Ah. Now I remember an important one. Disneyland.

And that organic molecule is Caffeine.

I have never seen or read Twilight, but I still find this parody trailer based on Three Wolf Moon internet sensation pretty funny.  It also stars one of my new favorite comedians/actresses: Aubrey Plaza from Parks and Recreation.

(via Mashable)

I’ve been fairly obssessed lately with internet memes, catching up on a lot of the ones I don’t know about. So I decided to do a Meme Monday.

I hope to tailor most to gaming, but meme’s are just too cool to discriminate. Also, this will be a mix of ones we make, and ones found at two really great sites you should check out:

Know your meme

Halolz

Our first meme is brought to you by fake Xbox 360 achievements!

It’s a little late in Monday, but it should appeal to you sports fans as well!

Did you just get the internet today?  If so, Greg Rutter came up with the perfect list to catch you up to speed with viral videos and websites that you probably missed out on.  It’s called: “Greg Rutter’s Definitive List of the 99 Things You Should Have Already Experienced on the Internet Unless You’re a Loser or Old or Something.”

Even if you’ve been surfin’ the World Wide Web for years, there are a lot of classic videos that are worth another spin, and you may even find something on the list that you still need to check out.  I highlighted my personal favorite videos with some orange stars: *****

01) Grape Stomp*****

02) Charlie Bit Me*****

03) Chocolate Rain

04) Dancing Baby

05) Post Secret

06) Charlie The Unicorn

07) Mentos and Diet Coke

08) Numa Numa

09) Peanut Butter Jelly Time

10) George Lucas In Love

11) You’re The Man Now Dog

12) Yatta

13) Star Wars Kid*****

14) Bubb Rubb

15) The Flying Spaghetti Monster

16) Dramatic Chipmunk

17) Homestar Runner*****

18) GI Joe Pork Chop Sandwiches

19) Fail Blog*****

20) Skateboarding Dog

21) All Your Base Are Belong To Us*****

22) Winnebago Man

23) We Like The Moon

24) I Can Has Cheezburger

25) Barney Vs. Tupac

26) Shining

27) Cute Overload

28) Rick Roll

29) Lazy Sunday

30) David After The Dentist

31) Powerthirst*****

32) Christian The Lion

33) Bert and Ernie Rap*****

34) Lady Punch

35) Leprechaun in Alabama*****

36) Where The Hell Is Matt

37) Boom Goes The Dynamite*****

38) Breakdancing Baby

39) Drunk Jeff Goldblum

40) Scarlet Takes A Tumble

41) Susan Boyle

42) Gay Mount Everest

43) Afro Ninja

44) Cop Shoots Himself In Leg In Classroom

45) Tron Guy

46) “Leave Britney Alone”

47) Laughing Baby

48) I’m the Juggernaut Bitch

49) Exploding Whale

50) Take On Me The Literal Version

51) Bill O’Reilly Flips Out

52) Don’t Tase Me Bro

53) The Landlord

54) Breakdancing Baby Kick

55) The Pet Penguin

56) Ms. South Carolina Answers A Question*****

57) I’m F*#king Matt Damon

58) Will It Blend

59) Spaghetti Cat

60) Tom Cruise Kills Oprah

61) Little Superstar

62) Chad Vader

63) Pretty Much Everywhere It’s Going To Be Hot*****

64) I Like Turtles*****

65) Who Needs A Movie

66) Jake E. Lee Shreds

67) Hawaii Chair

68) Aussie Party

69) Hitler Plans Burning Man

70) Montgomery Flea Market

71) Look At The Horse

72) Asian Backstreet Boys

73) Leroy Jenkins*****

74) Pinky The Cat

75) Monkey Sniffs Finger

76) Sneezing Panda

77) Prison Inmates remake “Thriller”

78) Techno Viking

79) Ask A Ninja

80) Best Man Trips and Ruins Wedding

81) Best Wedding Toast Ever (Amy’s Song)

82) Kitten Surprise (how to break up a cat fight)

83) Katana Sword Infomercial Goes Wrong

84) Matrix Ping Pong*****

85) La Pequena Prohibida

86) Angry German Kid (translated)*****

87) Evolution of Dance

88) Ok Go “Here It Goes Again”*****

89) Battle at Kruger (lions vs. buffalos vs. crocodiles)

90) Daft Hands*****

91) Human Beatbox

92) Most T-Shirts Worn At Once

93) Zero G Dog

94) Cuppy Cakes Song

95) George Washington*****

96) Scary Maze Prank

97) Gay Referee

98) Tranquilized Bear Hits Trampoline

99) Reporter Gets A Fly In The Mouth

Youtube is a wonderful place that rarely fails me.  There have been very few times I haven’t found a video that I was searching for.  My favorite thing to do on YouTube is to watch the “most viewed” videos.  It’s interesting to see what videos have spread among the masses and what internet memes develop via youtube.  It’s always a great feeling to identify with an internet meme references outside of the internet, but maybe I’m just a nerd.

I traveled to California for an electronic music festival and at one point during the concert this video played on the large screens.

The DJ, Deadmau5 mixed the song and the crowd went crazy.  Not only did we get a little taste of keyboard cat, but the King of internet memes himself, Rick Astley.  It’s interesting to think about how these specific videos become viral, but what amazes me the most is the feeling of understanding an inside joke among 7,000+ people.  It’s almost indescribable.

The great unity underlying internet memes contribute to the universality component of the internet.  Some question the amateurish and ridiculous content  and cry out, “What does this video say about the mindset of the masses?”  coughAndrewKeencough.  Ultimately, I believe it’s important to look at internet culture for what it’s worth.   My usual skepticism over quality and content is not really emphasized when regarding internet memes and culture.  Ultimately, viral videos are simply entertainment.    If it makes you happy…why not?

See the girl towards the left touching the red mouse head? That's me.

]]> http://thewholebenchilada.wordpress.com/2009/11/03/21-accents/ Tue, 03 Nov 2009 15:32:01 +0000 thewholebenchilada http://thewholebenchilada.wordpress.com/2009/11/03/21-accents/

This woman is officially my hero:

I can do some accents, but hers are FLAWLESS. (Okay, except for the Russian and Deep South ones.) The California accent and the Seattle accent? I couldn’t even hear the difference! And the Katharine Hepburn accent was a trip! And I almost shat myself laughing when she did the Brooklyn accent at 1:55. I love how she’s so expressive and changes her persona with every accent. She’s amazing.

Okay, so maybe the straight side of me is a little in love with her, but I digress. The same lady also does some interesting videos about how to learn accents, and in them she uses all kinds of different accents interchanged, so you never even find out her nationality. This, ladies and gentlemen, is an international woman of mystery.

1. Do you like blue cheese? Yes… but not as much as Alex
2. Have you ever smoked heroin? Don’t fuck around, fuck straight. Can’t believe they’re starting with horse. Um, no, never.
3. Do you own a gun? Nope
4. What flavor do you add to your drink at Starbucks? If anyone fucks with my coffee, I’m going to flavour them.
5. Do you get nervous before doctor appointments? Depends on what I think they’re about to do to me. I’m much more scared of dentists
6. What do you think of hot dogs? Mystery meat.
7. Favourite Christmas movie? The Nightmare Before Christmas
8. What do you prefer to drink in the morning? Coffee… oh coffee… I love you. Let’s have frothy babies together
9. Can you do push ups? The question is why would I want to?
10. What’s your favourite piece of jewellery? My blinging watch… and the bracelet of destiny and my Mexican Day Of The Dead ring
11. Favorite hobby? Writing and cupcakery
12. Do you have A.D.D? No.
13. What’s one trait you hate about yourself? Control freakism
14. Middle name? According to my mother she couldn’t be bothered to write anything else on the forms, so no.
15. Name 3 thoughts at this exact moment? Is anyone at the NaNo meeting tomorrow going to like me? Why is my nose so itchy? Was this all my fault?
16. Name 3 things you bought yesterday? Coffee, false eyelashes, red lipstick
17. Name 3 things you drink daily: Coffee, diet coke, some variety of innocent smoothie
18. Current worry? Dying alone… and not finishing my NaNo
19. Current dislike? Katy Perry
20. How did you bring in the New Year? By almost going to a party with two strange Spanish girls
21. Where would you like to go? Japan
22. Name three people who will complete this: Jen, Lucy, Stono?
23. Do you own slippers? Yes.
24. What shirt are you wearing? A vest that says “C is for Chav” on it
25. [Missing apparently]
26. Favorite colour[s]? Yellow, green, grey.
27. Could you be a pirate? Yes!
28. What songs do you sing in the shower? Is it weird that I don’t sing in the shower
29. Favourite food? Man that changes all the time. Right now, crunchie nut
30. What’s in your pocket right now? I don’t have pockets right now
31. Last thing that made you laugh? Thinking of Noel Fielding wearing panties on Buzzcocks. Was swiftly distracted by the thought of Noel Fielding in MY panties… less *funny* per say
32. Favourite sheets? My green Ikea ones
33. Worst injury you have ever had? When I smashed up my hand saving a jacket potato (It never thanked me so I ate it)
34. Do you love where you live? The lair… are you kidding? It’s the centre of amazing
35. How many TVs do you have in your house? Erm three but one is in the bottom of my housemate’s cupboard and mine is on the sideboard cos I don’t have a stand for it
36. Who is your loudest friend? Danelle
37. How many dogs do you have? None…
38. Does someone have a crush on you? I thought someone did and they seemed to think they did too… but they didn’t. So no, unless my work stalker counts but I think I’ve scared him off
39. What are your favourite book(s): Jane Eyre, A Million Little Pieces, Watership Down…
40. What is your favourite candy? Chocolate
41. Favourite Sports Water: What?
42. What songs do you want played at your funeral? Lapse by Envy On The Coast
43. What were you doing 12 AM last night? Sleeping like a motherbeeyatch
44. What was the first thing you thought of when you woke this morning? Should I buy more shoes…
45. Favourite place to be? Self Sacrifice, The Barfly, wherever Jen is, in the lair

Good morning! Nothing like a popular internet meme reference to start off the day.

There’s also nothing like a jar of peanut butter jelly oats to get your day rolling:

The Ultimate Celebrity Couple, PB & J

Jenna gave me the idea for oats in a jar. If you’re anything like me, you keep about three jars of nut butter in stock at a time. Whenever one gets to the point where it’s practically empty, put your oatmeal in it and enjoy the creamy blend created. For todays oats in a jar, I used:

1/2 Cup Quaker Old Fashioned Oats

1/4 Cup Skim Milk

3/4 Cup Water

1 Teaspoon of Sarabeth’s Strawberry Preserves (The Best!)

Small handful of Dried Cranberries and Raisins

Stir it up in your jar, and enjoy!

With my OATrageous goodness, I enjoyed 1/2 Pink Grapefruit (w/drizzle of agave nectar) and Coffee:

My Breakfast Posse

Rain is in store for this morning, but hopefully it won’t be so bad that I’ll be discouraged from running outside. Will let you know how that goes!

Until my next chew!

What’s your approach to running in the rain? Yay or nay?

]]> http://stupidfuture.wordpress.com/2009/10/23/what-really-happened-at-roswell/ Fri, 23 Oct 2009 04:17:53 +0000 gregchiaramonti http://stupidfuture.wordpress.com/2009/10/23/what-really-happened-at-roswell/

Okay, I know their fifteen minutes is about up, but I had to comment on the whole balloon boy incident. Yes, I was one amongst the media-saturated masses who was totally sucked into this story. I think the really marvelous Pixar movie Up primed us all for a boy-in-a-balloon story (maybe even gave Mr. Heene fuel for his evil scheme). Glad that the boy was alright (not that he was in any real danger, it being a hoax after all). I do have to say that I am quite disturbed by all media outlets, both right, left, and in-between (well, is there really any news nowadays that isn’t slanted either right or left?) for their incessant replaying of poor Falcon getting sick during two of the interviews. I mean, he’s just a six-year-old. Don’t you think it will be kinda traumatic, or at least annoying, for the kid to grow up being “known” for this? It’s bad enough he will be the “balloon boy”, can’t you cut him some slack? And, hey, I was trying to eat my dinner when you played that clip, too… yechh.

BTW, who the hell is Wolf?

- Nigel Matrix

I am going to break the rules #1 and #2, and I am going to talk about /b/. I must say that I am a very big fan of the/b/tard culture, their ways of ostracizing and making fun of everything that actually comes up in human mind. For those who do not know, /b/ is the random forum of an image sharing board called 4chan. There are lots of chans, but the most popular one is 4chan. You don’t have to sign up for this website to upload pictures, and this is where its power comes from. Posters are Anonymous, one of the most destructive things in the world. Since nobody knows who you really are, you are able to do whatever you want. Just Click Here, and in the following website there is a section saying “Misc. (+18)”, you can see Random over there. Hit Random. Do you Agree? I hope you don’t. Because you are about to enter The Asshole of The Internet where everyone is racist, rapist, sexist, a pedo, a weeabo, an atheist.

‘Being Anon’ is what it is all about. It is anon who gives that community its power. Anon can express himself completely and utterly, because he know that he has no limitations as nobody knows who he is. He is a pervert, he is a mocker, the guy everyone hates in school because he is an asshole. /b/ is a place where anarchy takes over: no rules, no democracy, full of people who act chaotic and one at the same time.  /b/ is the gathering of the worst-good-looking people.

“Anyone who wants to can be Anonymous and work toward a set of goals…We have this agenda that we all agree on and we all coordinate and act, but all act independently toward it, without any want for recognition. We just want to get something that we feel is important done…” -Anonymous

Take a look at your neighbour, your friends, your brother/sister, your TA, your elementary school teacher. Anonymous can be any of these people. They might look like they like you. When they get back home, they might post your pictures on /b/ and make fun of you till they die laughing. They are the good looking /b/asterds.

At this point, you might ask: “If they are nefarious, why do you just love them? What the hell is wrong with you?” Nothing is wrong with me. What I really adore about /b/ and anonymous is that they have the control of everything that you can ever imagine on the internet. They govern millions of watchers through youtube, they are the sub-conscience of a human being, wanting to express his real thoughts about the corrupt world they live in, by being the exact thing they are protesting: Corrupt. They have their own memes, their own sense of humor through bizzare phenomenon. Again: They have their own friggin’ memes! Isn’t that wonderful?

Anonymous protests pedophile by loving pedophile and naming it Pedo Bear. As you can see, this is a meme. It’s how it works on Anon. Something terribly wrong which gives them joy is the key for these memes. So, let’s say `hi!` to pedobear:
See? He is cute, he is funny. But he is a pedophile. He was on the guitar of Hannah Montana and it was about to be chosen for Hannah Montana’s official concert stratocaster.

Memes are limitless. It’s not just related to protesting a flaw in the system, anon laughs his ass off as the other people in the world suffer. Hunger, they laugh. War, they laugh. Emo kills himself, they laugh. Suicide, homicide, genocide—They laugh their asses off! They are soulless, mindless, careless /b/tards, terrorists and of course:

They are Anonymous. They are watching you, making fun of everything you do. Creating memes. Laughing at your $500 jeans, heart-shaped swimming pool, DIY’s, passion for buying new shoes, senseless defense of religion. Anonymous is always better than you. Anonymous is always more cruel than you. Anonymous has a better sense of humor than you.

Now, tell me. Why don’t I like Anonymous? He actually raided Youtube with porn, because youtube kept deleting music. He posted a video on youtube about how scientology sucks and take all your money for fucking aliens in deep space. He used DDOS attacks and claimed 60% service capacity of  SOHH. He cussed in and at NO CUSSING CLUB.

He is a Hero. He was tracking an Internet Pedophile called Chris Forcand and got him arrested. He is an internet vigilante. He was pissed of at the sexual abuse of the cat “Dusty” and he identified the 14 year old kid from Oklahoma. He protested the Iranian Elections on 2008 with The Pirate Bay, by opening a website called The Anonymous Iran to prevent the iranian press to tell the lies.

Do you really think Anon is horrible? Why? They are trying to do something good, by making fun of really bad things. This is the crowd psychology. The True Power of The Internet.
You like it, don’t you bitches? Congratulations. You are a NEWFAG now!!

Truth in advertising, y’all.  We really were warned:

With disaster sequences like this, how can it not be?

But now someone’s decided that the only thing better than the five minutes of 2012 that recently made their way onto the internet would be editing out all of the ridiculous CGI footage, thus allowing us to instead focus our attention entirely on the ridiculous performances.  In other words, someone’s my new favorite genius:

I get that I’m in awe of this largely because I refuse to watch the clip it culled its footage from (the apocalypse will not be spoilered), and the internet meme that pops up at the end is a truly inspired touch, but hot diggity damn.  Everybody’s making the greatest faces in response to this apocalyptic meltdown.  In fact, I think I just piddled my pants; they’re that good.

And can we start a slow clap for John Cusack?  Like, immediately?  I suspect it’s probably quite difficult to convey what it’s like to be in a life-threatening disaster that signals the end of the world, but the man has done it.  With totally unchained ridiculous camp performance.  It’s ACTING at it’s finest, and this shit’s sublime.

Et tu, Nicolas Cage?

Cheers to Videogum for the discovery.

Twittering Away!

#VivaViernes, # FollowFridays, #FF, what else but to remember the core components of our communities? que otra cosa que hacer sino recordar a aquellos que mantienen nuestras comunidades en movimiento?

And now also feasible on Facebook/Ahora posible en Facebook, via @Mentions “Tagging” (Etiquetar” feature!… So let’s start, shall we? Comenzamos?

First, Regarding/Primero, En Funcion de Blogging, Social Media – and CMAC

Kare Anderson

Franklin McMahon

Rae Dawn Chong

William Womack

Tatiana Velasquez Munera

Sean Dillon

And when it comes to Photography… y si de Fotografos se trata…

Carlos Baez

Elena Hernandez

Michael D. Colanero

Tracey Ahrendt

Dan Rakofsky

Dane Sanders

Get to know them- and get to know quality… Conozcalos – y conoceran la calidad!

Okay, that’s what I posted on my Facebook Profile this morning… a ellos los publique temprano hoy en mi Perfil de Facebook…

Next? Twitter! Y ahora? El Twitter!

So today, after a great week of learning – and unlearning, of course! Here are a few TOP Twitterers that I feel are worth following… ready?

Entonces hoy, despues de una gran semana de aprendizaje – y des-aprendizaje, por supuesto! he aqui un grupo de Twitterers que me parece que vale la pena seguir… listos?

• Social Media Mavens/Expertos en Medios Sociales

@equalman @socialmedialist @rdelrio @mediabistro @GuyKawasaki @DiyanaAlcheva @chrisbrogan @Jschlinsky @SocialMediaList @Twitter_Tips @marieforleo @ducttape @t3ddymac @scottsmeester @BrianTomkins @AdOperations @SocialMedia_Biz @wefollow @

• Photographers and Illustrators/Fotografos e Ilustradores

@NikkiPinder @DixonHamby @danesanders @toSQ @skipschool @twitphotominute @lindyegalloway @WHCCpro @ smashingmag @ thebschool @kissbooks @dqstudios @JLGphoto @PictageJim @BrookTodd @jasminestar @SmugMugPro @ShootQ @ftpworkshops

Finally, here, previous lists of Twitter Follows from previous weeks… soon to be tallied/organized as the ones on top… Stay tuned! Entonces aqui tengo unos Follows de Twitter de semanas anteriores, los cuales organizare pronto… mantenganse en sintonia!

Ways to enhance our Communication, definitely!

@Minca_F @mysignaturetv @JaredOToole @Parul_Sharma, @FredricSchwartz @PatchWalker @slideshare @forrester, @Quicklearn @StormDawgTweets @TinaTarkenton @TheUserPool @JimKitzmiller @funBLOG @TechBabe, @Dputamadre @JasonBlairMBA, @Simcci, @milblogging @sir_gerold @JUSTWEETN @tracyselena, NutTheSquirrel @iShowNYC @Roland_Hedley @TomHCAnderson @VAsolutionsNOW @JarrodMorgan @GadgetsFan @translationart, @JesseNewhart @EvertonBlair, @MeetTweeps @jonbischke @CoachLynDee @eBookExpert @TheGazzMan @infoadvantage @Frank_Tentler iBeatYou @FXStefan @MetaPhysics @Juanita_Dalry @Cupcake1486 @MrDatahs @debng @writesuccess @designerg @queryfreewriter @annewayman @copywritingmaven @TXWriter @joannayoung @DebNg @VictoriaStrauss @ArticlesFYI @freelancesearch @ArticlesEngine @SearchQueen @BloggersBaseJob @ReferralKey @OnlineNewsroom @RodSeip @ArticlesFYI @Greg007Collins

… may this token of my appreciation help us all expand our connections! …. espero que esta muestra de agradecimiento nos permita expandir nuestras redes!

I’m sooooooo sorry to Greedo and his fans and Jabba……………….. I spoke to Jabba right after and he said the same thing my mother would’ve said. Greedo is very talented! I like when he speaks with all those subtitles, it’s like some cool foreign movie! I’m in the wrong for going to the Cantina and taking away from his moment – though he would’ve missed anyway! Boooyaaawwww!!!! The Star Wars where Han shoots first is the best version of Star Wars in the past three decades!!!! That’s what it is!!!!!! I’m not crazy y’all, the Force is strong with me and i’m just real. Sorry for that!!!! – Kanye

Check out more of this meme here: http://kanyegate.tumblr.com/

-Nigel Matrix

So once upon a time, I took courses in education. Many of these courses involved presenting a struggle that you were having in the classroom, then allowing other people to give you advice using some sort of pre-determined format or protocol. One such protocol that received a little bit too much use was called, “I Noticed… I’m Wondering.” We were asked to ‘notice’ and ‘wonder’ things about articles that we read, about others’ ’struggle’ presentations, about students’ IEPs… Pretty quickly, it became apparent that “I Noticed… I’m Wondering” is the perfect passive-aggressive way to criticize someone, or to make demands for yourself. Of course, it can be used gently. “I noticed that you had the students complete an exit slip. I’m wondering what data you gathered from that.”* “I noticed that you gave the directions orally. I’m wondering if having them written would have any effect.” But then again, you can also branch out. “I noticed that my drink is gone. I’m wondering why you haven’t gone to buy me another one.” “I noticed that your trashcan is missing. I’m wondering where the students are going to put their trash.” And so forth. In my mind, this format would make an excellent Internet meme. “We heard you like X, so we put an X in your Y so you can X while you Y” is still fairly hilarious. LOLcat still has a long life. I feel that “I Noticed… I’m Wondering” could be successful. I noticed that you’re still reading this blog. I’m wondering if you agree with my idea.

Considering the frequency with which my educator friends and I work “I Noticed… I’m Wondering” into our everyday speech (the drink example above having been used at least once per drinking night) has also caused me to ponder how educator doublespeak has seeped into my phrasing. Today, for example, I came home from work very annoyed. My husband asked me what was wrong, and I replied, “I’m really struggling with this co-worker.” I didn’t immediately say, “This co-worker is an idiot who wastes all my time,” which is basically true and somewhat more descriptive. I said that I was struggling. On the one hand, one might assume that it is generally positive to be struggling with something, because that implies a possible solution. And it does put the onus for finding a solution on me, because I’m the one struggling. But, on the other hand, my co-worker is still an idiot who wastes all my time. I do need to figure out effective strategies for dealing with this person, but… this person is still an idiot. And I’m an idiot, too, because I just used the phrase “effective strategies.”

In other news, my throat is sore. I noticed that I feel as though I have pulled a muscle in my tongue. I’m wondering if I am going to die from this disease.

*”I’m wondering” is a statement, by the way. You are stating that you are wondering something. You are not asking a question. Thus, “I’m wondering if we have any chocolate ice cream,” is very different from, “Do we have any chocolate ice cream?”