For my comic-lovin’ brother, I offer this lovely article from the Orlando Sentinel:

Comic books arrive in school as learning tool

Comics, once scorned by educators, are sharing school library shelves with the classics of literature these days as librarians look for ways to hook teens, particularly boys, on books and reading.

Libraries in middle and high schools are betting that colorful, action-packed books featuring superheroes and other larger-than-life characters can give struggling or disinterested readers a bridge to more-advanced literature.

…

At Boynton Beach Community High School in Palm Beach County, media specialist Will Heckman has built up a collection of 1,400 graphic novels in the library the past two years. Kids can’t seem to get enough.

“If I get a new load of graphic novels, I can’t even get them out and they’re all, like, attacking them,” Heckman said.

‘Tis good news for those of you in the industry, and good news for those of us in literacy as well. I can speak firsthand of how much more attractive a graphic novel is over a book to an adolescent boy.

Or a soon-to-be-30-year-old one.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Police released the name of the gunman who allegedly went on a shooting rampage at a Columbus nightclub Wednesday night, killing four people before a police officer shot him dead.

Nathan Gale, 25, of Marysville, reportedly jumped onto a concert stage and open fire, NBC 4 reported. The shooting took place shortly after 10 p.m. at Alrosa Villa, located at 5055 Sinclair Rd.

A crowd of about 250 people was inside for a concert by Damageplan, a heavy metal band. Two former members of the band Pantera formed the group.

The band took the stage shortly after 10 p.m., and minutes later, a man, who was wearing a hockey jersey and hooded sweatshirt, began firing at point-blank range at least four times at guitarist Dimebag Darrell, NBC 4’s Kyle Anderson reported.

…Gale reportedly shot and killed another member of the band before firing shots into the crowd.

Columbus police were flooded with 911 calls from concertgoers right after the shooting. Some witnesses said Gale took a person hostage. Minutes later, a Columbus police Officer James D. Niggemeyer entered the nightclub and shot and killed Gale, police said.

###

Added to note that the band in which Donny, my boss’s legal assistant’s significant other, is a member, was apparently scheduled as a backup band, but didn’t end up being there last night. Lucky.

EDIT TO ADD: Forgot that the NBC4 story only has four dead. Most recent updates are putting it at five, now, though you wouldn’t know it from this AP story, which declares “four” in the hed but mentions “the fifth person killed” and that the person’s family had not yet been notified. Also, the AP story goes out of its way to mention John Lennon (read all the way to the bottom).

Found and sympathized: Jeff Parker has fallen prey to the glory that is the 3-disc SESAME STREET boxed set.

Batty batty batty batty batty batty batty BAT.

I received this from my very wise cousin today and it was so true, I had to post it before everyone went to their holiday parties this weekend and squandered this precious time of the year!

1. Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Christmas spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately. Go next door, where they’re serving rum balls.

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. Like fine single-malt scotch, it’s rare. In fact, it’s even rarer than single-malt scotch. You can’t find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It’s not as if you’re going to turn into an eggnog-aholic or something. It’s a treat. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It’s later than you think. It’s Christmas!

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That’s the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat.

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they’re made with skim milk or whole milk. If it’s skim, pass. Why bother? It’s like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission.

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a Christmas party is to eat other people’s food for free. Lots of it. Hello?

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year’s. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you’ll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog.

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don’t budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They’re like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you’re never going to see them again.

8. Same for pies. Apple. Pumpkin. Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or, if you don’t like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day?

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it’s loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards.

10. One final tip: If you don’t feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven’t been paying attention. Reread tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner.

Remember this motto to live by:

Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate in one hand, martini in the other, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming “WOO HOO what a ride!”

OK, now I’m serious about this one, should it be “pop” or “soda”?

Yes, yes, I know, in Ohio, it’s “pop.” I grew up drinking it and called it that until I was persuaded in late adolescence by my East Coast-hailing cousin that “soda” just sounded so much cooler. It stuck. Now whenever I hear someone utter the word “pop,” it sounds foreign and strange.

In the South, it’s neither–it’s “Coke,” even when it’s Pepsi, Sprite, Mountain Dew, or even Fresca.

So which is it, really? And why, you may ask, is this debate plaguing me this morning?

Today I came across a literacy-related arcticle from the dahlbergcentral hometown rag, “The News Journal.” It’s all about a parent-student day at a local school (Woodland Elementary, if you must know). I read the article–I always love reading stuff from home–and there it was:

“Pizza and pop fueled group conversation in the gym afterward.”

Such a small sentence. And yet so powerful. I had to think hard. When was the last time I had seen someone refer to “pop” in a newspaper article?

A quick consultation to my handy AP stylebook found no helpful guidelines to the correct use of words for fizzy beverages. I hit up Webster himself and found that, yes, one definition for “pop” is indeed a carbonated drink. But why the difference in what we call it depending on where we live in the country? And are there other newspapers that use the word “pop”? Is this a common practice? Where are the cultural pop/soda/coke boundaries?

I’m on a mission. I’m going to uncover as many examples as I can. I’ll give you all a full report on what I find. And in the meantime, I’m going to go drink my morning soda.

UPDATE!!! Quick search has turned up this gem of information!!! It’s a color-coded map of who uses which term in what part of the country.

Of interest: ColumbusRetroMetro, a blog devoted to the Columbus urban real estate market — mainly geared towards urban residential and historic neighborhoods, but it’s interesting for its redevelopment of downtown perspective.

[via people have the power]

It was just a conversation with his Meme and Grandude this time, but this kid’s showing some serious potential!