As I was thinking about going back to work, and about the students coming back to school this year (2025), I wondered about the history of the school bus. It is interesting to see the yellow color has survived multiple upgrades of the American school bus. In American history 7th graders will learn about Henry Ford and his model-T car. Go to the museum link I have provided in the caption under the picture of the Blue Bird No.1., and you will be able to read more about the oldest surviving school bus in America.
Fortunately for students today the buses are much safer and more comfortable than back in 1927. I hope everyone has a good beginning to this school year 2025.
I know I have a picture of my daughter getting on a school bus for the first time, however, I could not find the picture at this time, though I did find a picture of her on her first bike with training wheels. I also found a picture of Ivan the giraffe from our visit to the San Diego Safari Park. I have added the picture to my post about date palm trees, and I found a picture of my daughter and my mother at the Anne of Green Gable house on Prince Edward Island, and I have added this picture to my last Sunday Reflection post.
The weather today is hot and sticky, even early this morning when I went out to run a few errands. I have not been going outside as much as I would like, however, I have been taking care of myself getting preventive medical exams and other healthcare appointments.
Today I want to spotlight the United States National Arboretum. Since I have been going through my old picture files, I found a folder of some pictures taken at the National Bonsai and Penjing Museum which is located on the arboretum grounds. It was mid- February of 2009, and we took a car trip into D.C. to visit the National Arboretum. Winter is not as busy as other times of the year, so parking was easily available and the admission is always free. https://www.usna.usda.gov
I have shown only a few of my pictures that I took on this trip. I revisited the U.S. National Arboretum website to see what was going on there currently in 2025. I discovered the interactive map (ABE) which is very cool. It gives you a bird's eye view of all the arboretum grounds and where it is located within the district. It has a plant finder feature which is very useful if you love to discover new plants or explore variations of known plants. One thing I could not find on their site was a little history of how it all got started. I found this website: https://livingnewdeal.org/sites/national-arboretum-washington-dc/
If you have a child in school they will learn about U.S. history. One unit of study will be the New Deal which was a program to help the U.S. recover from the stock market crash (1929) and the depression that followed. The link above gives more information about this. I have taken a screenshot about how the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp) helped to lay down the groundwork of the U.S. National Arboretum.
Thinking about the school year ahead, you might want to plan a visit to the U.S. National Arboretum during the winter break when your children are under foot, and you want to enrich their learning at no substantial cost to the family budget.
I remember the long lines waiting to get into Cameron, hours spent waiting, all to get good center court stadium seats. We chanted songs and cheers. This madness continued throughout the basketball season. I won lottery tickets to go to the Final Four one year.* The good old days! Over the years since then I have not always followed the team. Some years when my life has allowed me the time, I watch the games. This past Friday I watched Duke dominate the other team. They won! They play again today.
The other day when I was looking at pictures, I saw a Duke fan wearing a Blue Devil mask with the words "U Can't Touch This" written on it. This MC Hammer song came out the year my daughter was born just a couple of weeks before her birthday. This song always puts me in a good mood, especially when I watch MC Hammer do his dance!
Go Duke!
* Update--I decided to look up the year I attended the Final Four. It was 1978 and the final four was held in Charlotte, North Carolina. My roommate Allison, was from Charlotte. Duke made it through to the Championship game, however, we lost to Kentucky that year. The score was 94-88.
Correction to the update: It was the first round of March Madness that I attended in Charlotte, N.C. in 1978 and not the final four. Duke did go on to the Championship game that same year.
I was introduced to the “gumball problem” when I read about a mall contest that offered a prize to the person that could most accurately guess the correct number of gumballs in a giant machine. This image is AI generated.
There is a statistical theorem called the Central Limit Theorem that addresses this problem. If you want to get technical, you can research this theorem. I looked to Microsoft's co-pilot to explain it in simple terms. I wanted to make it understandable to school children with short attention spans.
Ask Microsoft co-pilot if you want to dive into another math challenge.
If you want the most accurate average, it is best to have a large number of random educated guesses. The more guesses you have, the more likely you are to arrive at the correct answer.
Also, having a diverse group with a range of perspectives can lead to a better average that hits or gets closest to the correct number.
Here is my editorial opinion: I think the "wisdom of crowds" can be used in many ways. We all want to be right or think we have the best answer, and the best way of arriving at it. However, I think it would be far more interesting to see many different methods of trying to guess the correct answer. This way you can learn something about how different people think about different problems, and the many methods you might try. Keep in mind the gumballs have to stay in the machine. You cannot remove any during the contest, or else the number will change.
I was reminded today of the Middle School I attended in 1972-1973. The most interesting things I remember about these years were the sludge test we had to do in science class,and my confrontation with a male student in band class. He was a trumpet player, and I played the timpani (aka a kettle drum). He kept trying to put his hand up my skirt on several occasions. I told our band teacher, and he told me I had the right to defend myself.(In other words, he was not going to stop the boy.) So, one day when the boy was harassing me again, I tried to slap him, and he jumped down a step and grabbed my hand. I had no other recourse than to kick him, and because he had jumped down a step, my kick landed squarely between his legs. He immediately let go of my hand. He spent the whole class on the floor in the instrument room. He never bothered me again. Neither one of us was ever reported nor punished for this conflict. He did not appear to suffer any permanent damage from my kick.
In case you were wondering what a sludge test is, here is a good description: "A 'sludge test' for students is a hands-on science activity where students are presented with a mysterious mixture (the "sludge") containing various unknown substances, and they must use scientific techniques like filtration, distillation, and observation to identify the individual components within the mixture, essentially acting like mini-forensic scientists to "solve" the sludge puzzle; often used as an assessment to test their understanding of different chemical properties and separation methods.
Times have changed dramatically since my middle school years. Sexual harassment is taken much more seriously than back in 1972-73. Also, a sludge test would not be attempted today since open burners were used, and there were a few other dangerous components of this assessment.
My old middle school was named J.G. Whittier. The school was closed back in the 80's.
Tonight I decided to look up the poet J.G. Whittier. I found a poem of his which I really like, and think is motivational for anyone facing difficult times. See below a copy of this poem.
On this sixth day of January 2025 it is snowing. Overnight enough had been accumulated to give school kids the day off. Happy Snow Day to those who get to play.
As we enter September, the relief of cooler weather will arrive. This morning the thought of apples came into my mind. Fall is full of festivals and apples in Virginia.
I stayed up late last night finishing the book, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson. I picked it up Friday at a thrift store along with his book, The Girl Who Played with Fire. After finishing his first book, I will have to wait to read his second. The book is a thriller, and it took my mind into a horrible darkness that can reside within some humans. The dragon theme has now been fully played out. I am ready to move on.
Twenty twenty-five is the year of the Snake in the Chinese zodiac. Perhaps this thought brought apples into my mind.
Moving into the theme of apples, festivals, and love brings my mind into much lighter territory.
The apple is also a symbol for education. Out of curiosity, I asked the AI image generator for an apple cut into fifths. Here is its first attempt. I realized I needed to be more specific. I asked for one apple cut into equal fifths. Finally, I asked for the heart of an apple. The image above is the result. This is my favorite.
AI generated image. Labor Day is an unofficial end of summer. The fashion police have some rules. IMO, flowers in your hat can be worn year round.
Labor Day is around the corner. It is a celebration of American workers. In 1894 Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday.
American workers, and most likely workers around the world, have to struggle for fair treatment and decent wages and benefits. Leaders at the top give generously to themselves, and often it is the worker that gets the short end of the stick.
An official holiday does not fundamentally change this. It is basically a PR move. However, we all can enjoy a parade or a picnic. Though, not all workers enjoy a day off. I feel fortunate to be getting a four day weekend from school work. I still have to work for my family 24/7, so technically it is not really time-off the clock.
Labor Day has also acted as an unofficial end of summer. This is changing since by the time Labor Day rolls around, I will have been back to work for about three weeks. There are those who want school to follow a year round calendar. Most children want and need a summer break to rest and play. However, child care can be a problem for working families.
On a lighter note, the end of summer leads us into cooler weather and darker colors. Summer white darkens to a winter white and continues along the spectrum to tans and beiges, and then brown. Flowers in hats are acceptable year round. Though perhaps, the straw should be changed to felt, and this makes me think of Octoberfest. Something to look forward to.
The heart necklace in my last post was purchased at the Etsy website. I was surprised to find that I still had an account with them from way back in 2015. I had forgotten my password. I was able to change it so that I can now access it. I decided I should support the small entrepreneurs that create a variety of things to sell on Etsy.
Since I work in a school, I thought maybe I could find a fun T-shirt to make students think. I found a vendor located in my state that creates T-shirts using the periodic table of chemical elements.
The T-shirt came today. It is a standard crew neck, so I just pictured the important message on it. It makes me think since I am not trained in chemistry, though I have read a book or two on the subject. I have worked in 8th grade science in the past, so I do know a little about chemistry, at least enough to support the students. I got an A in high school chemistry way back when I was in high school. I took no chemistry classes in college.
The three elements of Potassium, Rhenium, and Indium are useful together only to spell out my last (married) name. And of course I noticed the numbers, and it made me laugh!
movingforwardslowly 