tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post2899084876376870952..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: The "Aha!" moment when I first realized I wanted to be a writerBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger26125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-70039274001261268652010-11-22T09:28:35.937-08:002010-11-22T09:28:35.937-08:00Re: Anonymous former student of "Mrs. Folgers...Re: Anonymous former student of "Mrs. Folgers"<br /><br />Your story hits home, too closely unfortunately. I'm in a business program and taking a required Ethics course. My professor is tenured and has a real problem with giving us our writing assignments in advance, and when he does, the questions are vague (he often assigns questions from his book, which is informational but poorly written). He gave us an assignment at the end of class a couple of weeks ago, due on the next session, and I misunderstood what he wanted (along with a couple of my other classmates). I ended up getting the paper completely wrong, and he returned my paper with a big "C" on it. His comments were very antagonistic, wondering why I wrote on the wrong subject, but his final comment is the one that pissed me off. It said roughly, "Why did you choose to write about that company and not the one in the assignment? I know I assigned a paper on that company a couple of years ago!!!!!!?!?" I took it as him insinuating that I plagiarized the paper off an old student of his, but what pissed me off is that he gave me a "C". If he had any balls, he would have either given me an "F" or called me in to discuss the matter. Instead, he chose to follow the "unethical" approach, which was to passive-aggressively give me a weak grade and then chide me in veiled language about stealing my paper. I have always been extremely respectful to him, but after class, I met with him and explained why I had done the wrong paper and showed him how it was so easy to confuse what he wanted. Thank God this will be my last class with this dude, but sometimes, I really think a lot of little people end up as teachers (that's not to generalize, because I have some amazing professors at this school).Tully Moxnesshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07574119156166435474noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-27098027781708399582010-11-21T09:28:35.703-08:002010-11-21T09:28:35.703-08:00This post was a pure delight to read. It's so...This post was a pure delight to read. It's so encouraging to read about how teachers inspired their students in unique ways.<br /><br />Your story reminded me of a time in junior high when I had to deliver an oral report on the Monroe Doctrine. <br /><br />The fellow sitting behind me, also named Ken, wanted to read my speech. And he gave it back just as I was called on by the teacher. So I stood at the front of the class and looked down at my paper to see that he had scribbled all over it basically having rewritten the whole thing. It had become the Marilyn Monroe Doctrine, and I'll just let your imagination take over from there.<br /><br />Since I had written and rehearsed the original speech and was more interested in the grade than making the other kids laugh, I just regurgitated what I had originally written. <br /><br />As for Kenny, his goal later became to steal more cars than anyone else in the state of Texas, and the last time I saw anything about him in the news he being sent off to the big house. Maybe he ended up doing stand-up in the chow line.Geohttp://sleepless.blogs.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-25563409996050123112010-11-21T08:29:47.412-08:002010-11-21T08:29:47.412-08:00I have to say, I think I have an aspiring comedy w...I have to say, I think I have an aspiring comedy writer in my first grade classroom.<br /><br />We generally have a Reading and Writing Workbook page to do every day. It's pretty easy, usually. "match and write the correct word under each picture". Too easy, if you ask me. So I ask the students to then take those words and write sentences for them.<br /><br />This week, one of the words was "fox". Here's the sentence I got from a little boy called "Alex": <br /><br />Oh no, it's a fox! RUUUUUNNNN!<br /><br />(And yes, he did use all caps and elongated the word "run" just like that.)<br /><br />Generally, I get sentences like "The fox likes to run.", or "I like to see a fox." or even "A fox likes to eat meat." Nothing like this, though. Needless to say, I was delighted and laughed out loud. <br /><br />Sometimes it's fun teaching first grade.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26107216848489310572010-11-20T09:42:58.667-08:002010-11-20T09:42:58.667-08:00If she's giving out As for crappy papers, then...If she's giving out As for crappy papers, then she is a bad teacher.Novicknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-20722661049774068432010-11-19T04:01:08.588-08:002010-11-19T04:01:08.588-08:00"Jim Pacek said... You didn't need to kno..."Jim Pacek said... You didn't need to know about the Monroe Doctrine!"<br /><br />Actually it is vital that everyone know the Monroe Doctrine which is to replace worn shocks and struts at 50,000 miles.<br /><br />Thank you. Thank you. Please remember to tip your blog host.mcpnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-15187182388939863732010-11-18T20:41:13.171-08:002010-11-18T20:41:13.171-08:00Had to delete a comment. Please don't use thi...Had to delete a comment. Please don't use this blog to just send people to your website.By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65169851779898525982010-11-18T19:34:31.571-08:002010-11-18T19:34:31.571-08:00Great story! Thanks for sharing! She's a gre...Great story! Thanks for sharing! She's a great teacher -- she taught you exactly the lesson YOU needed. You didn't need to know about the Monroe Doctrine!Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18158916950442942918noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-64807273418849778702010-11-18T17:47:35.404-08:002010-11-18T17:47:35.404-08:00Ha! Those test when I took them the result always ...Ha! Those test when I took them the result always was that I should be an engineer. The thing is I'm not very good at Math, don't like it and don't care about the value of X.<br /><br />JPAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-35136659169484408762010-11-18T17:42:41.612-08:002010-11-18T17:42:41.612-08:00Too bad Miss Harper isn't the Executive VP of ...Too bad Miss Harper isn't the Executive VP of ABC-West Coast.Joey Hhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11718595858513830730noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-40100617549499818262010-11-18T17:18:49.498-08:002010-11-18T17:18:49.498-08:00For five years in High School I was taught English...For five years in High School I was taught English by a horrendous old bag who delighted in telling me how little I knew. Then I moved class to a man who just loved to discuss books and always encouraged my opinion. Crucially, he always nodded sagely and pretended I wasn't talking pretentious teenage crap, allowing me to come to that realization for myself.<br />He loved his job and was brilliant at it. A great teacher can give you a life-long passion.Macnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-92067839306966895092010-11-18T15:42:41.823-08:002010-11-18T15:42:41.823-08:00I had an English teacher in high school. Mrs. Cof...I had an English teacher in high school. Mrs. Coffee. Her real name. Of course, we called her Mrs. Folgers. She hated me partially because I didn't play football. She had a crush on the football team. I think some of them crushed her.<br /><br />We had to turn in a creative writing essay. I had heard about Ebbets Field -- where the Doyyers played before moving to L.A. -- but didn't know jack about the place considering it was torn down years before I was born. Problem was, I described it in full detail (from what I thought it would look like and how it might feel to be in the stands). <br /><br />Mrs. Folgers thought I had plagiarized it from an in-flight magazine (she might have been a stewardess in the swinging '60s. This makes sense).<br /><br />Not only did she accuse me of plagiarizing, but she also gave me a 'C.' WTF?! If it was good enough to seem plagiarized, it should have gotten an 'A.' <br /><br />I wasn't able to plagiarize in math, so I became a writer. Math sucks.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89297514469019449262010-11-18T13:54:34.966-08:002010-11-18T13:54:34.966-08:00When I took the vocational aptitude tests at Canog...<i>When I took the vocational aptitude tests at Canoga Park High ("where even the school mascot has a gun") a few years after Ken, I was best qualified for two professions: (1) Bank guard and (2) model.</i><br /><br />Bank guard/model -- if Will Ferrell were five to 10 years younger, that might be the character he would play in his next movie. Sounds like a tacky "SNL" script, doesn't it?VP81955https://www.blogger.com/profile/11792390726196611188noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-39075633473212365612010-11-18T12:22:18.266-08:002010-11-18T12:22:18.266-08:00When I took the vocational aptitude tests at Canog...When I took the vocational aptitude tests at Canoga Park High ("where even the school mascot has a gun") a few years after Ken, I was best qualified for two professions: (1) Bank guard and (2) model. All I can guess is that I was mostly interested in a career that consisted of standing around and doing very little.Dr. Shrinkernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-36692280147331230642010-11-18T11:52:37.679-08:002010-11-18T11:52:37.679-08:00In summer school between my junior and senior year...In summer school between my junior and senior year of high school, I took a typing course -- still one of the most important classes I've ever taken.<br /><br />The course consisted, for the most part, of typing the same exercise over and over; presumably gaining technique and speed as you go along. I can't remember the story, but it was a fairly tale (though probably unique to the course; not a childhood classic).<br /><br />I'd hunt-and-peck, but pretty soon I was finishing the story before the allotted time. So I started embellishing.<br /><br />After several weeks, the teacher pulled me aside. <i>"If this were a creative writing course, I'd give you an 'A'."</i> But since I wasn't typing "correctly," he'd have to fail me. He allowed me to leave before the course was over. I got an incomplete, and all the speed I needed.tehttp://toddeverett.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-75335179663088094622010-11-18T11:28:19.456-08:002010-11-18T11:28:19.456-08:00Friday question: Do you think that the writers of...Friday question: Do you think that the writers of How I Met Your Mother currently know who the mother is? Or are they going to wait until they know they're in their last season to decide who she is and reveal her?<br /><br />They've planted a lot of details along the way, but it still seems like it could go in any direction. <br /><br />As a TV writer, have you ever carried on a mystery storyline without necessarily knowing the resolution yet?Erika C.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-32594520546246687072010-11-18T11:26:40.525-08:002010-11-18T11:26:40.525-08:00I had to write essays in English during my first y...I had to write essays in English during my first year of college. I was liberal with the jokes and got remarks such as, "Even science fiction is logical. This is not! Automatic F", "This is NOT a creative writing class. Automatic F".<br /><br />She always chose the topics and the final one was, "Explain why one must make mistakes in order for one to learn", so I broke every grammatical rule I could think of and wrote that I learned I'd get an Automatic F. I did, but it was worth it to see points off for things such as, "This is not a run-on sentence!"Keithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17970641911241417692noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-47259880447324706072010-11-18T11:22:30.981-08:002010-11-18T11:22:30.981-08:00Thanks for answering my question Ken! Such a grea...Thanks for answering my question Ken! Such a great story!Tamarahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11604512842392443861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-58322689960128061482010-11-18T10:44:14.324-08:002010-11-18T10:44:14.324-08:00Friday question: been meaning to ask for a long t...Friday question: been meaning to ask for a long time.....how did the character of Tommy Tuttle from Tacoma, Washington come to life? What inspired you to make him a Wazzu grad? <br />Great character and so very well played by Mr. Candy.Garyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16300021275090146448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-69846579629288373022010-11-18T10:14:08.670-08:002010-11-18T10:14:08.670-08:00It was those very same aptitude tests that made it...It was those very same aptitude tests that made it very clear that I would be a terrific Fuller Brush salesman.Jeffrey Leonardnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-10047245593905350702010-11-18T10:07:55.702-08:002010-11-18T10:07:55.702-08:00Ken - as I mentioned some months ago, when your bo...Ken - as I mentioned some months ago, when your book is ready to go to publishers/agents, it could use a copyedit first. How can I send a resume? (I am not known for chutzpah and this is not an instance of it. I've been a pro for 25 years and I could make a genuine difference in the quality of your book. Plus, I want to read it - so it's in my interest to help improve the chances of its being published.)gottacooknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-14065581106456928402010-11-18T09:12:54.359-08:002010-11-18T09:12:54.359-08:00"A" in high school, been down hill ever ..."A" in high school, been down hill ever since, eh?<br /><br />You've done okay... Or maybe a little better.Sally creeping down the alleynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-20367835165290294012010-11-18T08:44:28.892-08:002010-11-18T08:44:28.892-08:00Was that teacher Mary Kay Letourneau?Was that teacher Mary Kay Letourneau?emilynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-84572109819837472912010-11-18T08:32:23.087-08:002010-11-18T08:32:23.087-08:00Maybe it helped you, but that woman is a terrible ...Maybe it helped you, but that woman is a terrible teacher.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-91209106994816616542010-11-18T07:24:14.768-08:002010-11-18T07:24:14.768-08:00I LOVE this story! I don't remember when I re...I LOVE this story! I don't remember when I realized that I wanted to write as a profession. I do, however, remember when I realized that good writing had a positive payoff.<br /><br />In fourth grade I wrote an emotionally moving essay about Washington crossing the Delaware. I got an A. When I read the essay out loud to my family, my older brother mocked me and the writing. Our Dad looked at him and said, "On your best days you don't write as well as your sister."<br /><br />Considering that my brother was a straight A student in all subjects while I totally sucked at math, that was the first time that I'd been deemed better at anything academically. It was a shining moment.Mary Stellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02186261066656584772noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-90031029521834483132010-11-18T07:14:58.004-08:002010-11-18T07:14:58.004-08:00It's amazing how one teacher can inspire you l...It's amazing how one teacher can inspire you like that. I was lucky to have a couple.bloggitynoreply@blogger.com