Read This! -Initial attempt to blog about what's on my mind

It is much more difficult blogging on a consistent basis when you aren't traveling and sharing your days with a large audience. At this point, I imagine our blog audience to be ourselves and perhaps someone checking on the old site now and then. The goal from this is to create smaller blog entries on a more on-going basis for the fun of it, rather than writing with an larger audience in mind.

So here is what's on my mind. First, I have been dedicating most of my time in Pasadena, Chino, and Aspen Springs to job hunting. Amidst the challenging job market, this has been a fairly enjoyable process. The education site I use- ed-join-has a steady stream of postings and I really can't keep up with all the cover letters, resumes, and applications to fill out. Of course I could be competing with 700 other applicants for each position, but I'm trying to stay positive and hoping for a few call-backs in the coming weeks. I am searching or a Vice Principal role, though other educational administration positions are also fine. I just want to get my foot in the door. My desire to teach elementary school has not completely extinguished, however, I am much more intrigued by the prospect of working in an administrative capacity. Plus I completed all my fieldwork and classes for my credential and Masters, so why not?

Other thoughts... I think one of the most difficult parts of being an American since returning to the U.S. is witnessing the division in our country. Be it health care, government reform, or any other myriad of issues, it seems like we are more polarized than ever. And the degree of polarization and vehemence which people hold for their side is startling. I would love to turn on a political show or listen to a leader say, "Today we are going to devote our time to figuring out how we can work together on issues. Let's take the best ideas from both sides of the political spectrum and civilly and politely work out compromises that will push our country forward." That would be nice. Wouldn't it be cool if Bill O'Reily said "I totally disagree with Keith Oberman, but I respect him, and want us to sit down together to figure our ways we can move forward" (I suppose ratings would go down if that happened). It would be great if that attitude transferred to the Senate and House, and all those ugly town hall meeting. I don't think we're going to make much progress as a nation without some compromise.

Finally, I just finished reading American Lion by Jon Meacham. I recommend it. The style of writing is a bit taxing as the author, loves to use commas, and interjects long stories between facts that you are already trying to keep clear in your head, but instead become confusing because of the new information he's interjecting. Anyway, the book is about the life of Andrew Jackson in the White House and his years as President.

I knew little of Jackson before reading the book, except that he is on the twenty, had big hair, and was responsible for much of the Native American removal in the the Eastern and Southern States. The book confirms the latter (they don't get into the hair too much) but it also brings out a bunch of the good things he did. I think the most interesting was that during his presidency, the country was already moving toward civil war, even though it was 1830's; thirty years before the real Civil War. He showed some gusto in his leadership, along with cool headed, calculated maneuvers that quelled the path to war. If a civil war had occurred at that time, it's unlikely the U.S. would have been able to put the pieces back together like they did during Lincoln's presidency. Overall, a good read.