"Don't be a coconut, God is trying to talk to you. We could drag it out but that's for other bands to do. I've got nothing to say. I've got nothing to say. I've got nothing to say. I've got nothing to say. I've got nothing to give. Got no reason to live, but I will fight to survive. I've got nothing to hide, wish I wasn't so shy." ~the strokes

I've been listening to The Strokes lately. They are truly one of the best bands around today. They had a whole lotta hype to live up to even before they released their debut album, and that put a great deal of pressure on them, but they still managed to release one of the best debut albums ever and follow it by two more stellar releases. I love the fact that they're a New York band to the core. I can't wait to hear what they come up with next. Here's my review of their concert last spring at the Hammerstein Ballroom, in case you missed it when I posted it for the first time. Julian sitting alone at the piano singing "Ask Me Anything" (quoted above) was a beautiful moment. That concert was crazy. It was a really, really fun night, though. Nic's review is more interesting and amusing than mine; maybe I'll post it later. The band was touring First Impressions of Life on Earth, one of the best albums of the year.

I didn't watch the Grammys last night. You'd think that I would have, being the obsessed music fan that I am, but I decided to boycott them because I was disappointed with the nominees. The Strokes should have been nominated. The Grammys have become too mainstream, political, and commercialized. They make me mad.

School was okay today. Luckily my supervisor observed my easiest, smallest, most well-behaved class, and everything went well. The students were attentive and responsive. They quickly figured out that I was being observed, and one of them loudly announced that I was going to make a great teacher. The other two classes of the day did not go as smoothly. On Monday all classes meet (for 42 minutes each), and if it had been any other day (when we have 90 minute periods), I would have had one class stage a mutiny and the other class all fall asleep. They're getting sick of poetry. And so am I. We still have Donne and Milton left, which are the most difficult. I'm not looking forward to teaching those lessons.

Good moment today: During one class (the one that my supervisor observed), one student asked me if she could recite a poem she had written. She wants to perform it at the talent show. She was absolutely amazing. Her poem was very long (it took her about 4 minutes to recite it), and she had the whole thing memorized; she didn't use any notes at all. It almost sounded like a rap song as she performed it. It was incredibly well-written. This girl has had a really tough life, and she manages to put all her feelings and experiences into her poetry. She is so incredibly talented. I wanted to cry, applaud, cheer, and hug her all at the same time. The students always start packing up 5 minutes before the bell rings no matter how many times I tell them not to, but the student was still reciting as the bell rang and no one in the class moved until she was finished. I was so proud. It was a good moment.