Mr. Locke’s Classroom

Obligatory Post-Holiday Post

Posted on January 2nd, 2007 by Neal Locke

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Two years ago as a high-school teacher, I was insanely busy and stressed throughout most of the year (including summer, despite incorrect assumptions on the part of non-educators–but that’s a different post). The two-week Christmas break, however, was always an oasis in the storm.

Now, working for a church, my stress-level during most of the year is lower, but unfortunately holiday season is ecclesiastical prime-time. So, all in all, this rushed and over-stuffed holiday season was not my favorite. That said, there were some high points:

Spending time with Amy’s family and some of mine
Watching Grady tear into presents with unbridled glee
Good presents: Derek Webb & Woody Guthrie CDs, camping/hunting gear, rare Steinbeck book, red sweater
Grady living out a long-held dream: making and eating gingerbread men.
Finished (and preached) sixth sermon
Spent New Year’s eve with good friends (and I got to play)

The entire “collection” of our holiday pictures is posted here. Happy Christmas, Merry New Year, Joyous Hanukkah, Kwanza, Solstice, Shopping Season, or whatever you enjoy celebrating this time of year.

Posted in Church, Family, Fatherhood, Grady, Life, Pictures, Steinbeck | 4 Comments

Collaborative Sermon, Anyone?

Posted on December 20th, 2006 by Neal Locke

One of the many hats I wear at our church is that of back-up preacher when our pastor is gone. I will be resuming the role and preaching my fourth sermon (or is it the 5th? I lose count) on New Year’s Eve Day, which falls on a Sunday this year.

In the spirit of open-source, community, and all that makes the blogosphere so great, I’m opening my sermon for collaboration with any and all readers of this blog (yes, all three of you). I’ll be writing it on Google Docs, so if you have a google account, email me and I’ll send you an invite to develop/edit/refine it via their excellent service. Otherwise, comments to this post are always a great way to add your input.

I’m somewhat bound (by choice) to the Lectionary, so here are the options:

Luke 2:41-52 – The story of young Jesus leaving his parents behind while he chills at the temple.
Colossians 3:12-21 – Some instructions from Paul on how to live as disciples (includes controversial “wives submit to husbands” passage)
Psalm 148 – A psalm of unbridled praise.
1st Samuel 2:18-26 – Samuel the prophet as a young boy, blessed by God and popular with the people.

Which passage would you pick? What approach would you take? Does anything spring out of these texts that needs to be said, but most often isn’t? What analogies, songs, pictures, stories, personal experiences, etc. might put one of these passages in a new perspective?

Posted in Blogging, Church, Open Source, Technology, Writing | 3 Comments

Share the Wealth

Posted on December 19th, 2006 by Neal Locke

Yesterday, I ran accross an old favorite of mine again on Wikipedia: I have to admit, though Huey Long is a controversial figure, and on some issues (racial equality, for one) he disappoints, I am still fascinated by some of his ideas — especially his posthumously published book (he was assasinated) My First Days As President. If you can get past the audacity of the title and concept, you’ll find comments like these:

There is a sane limit to the amount of water that a horse can drink; to the number of miles than a man can run; to the length of time which one can live. There is also a sane limit to the amount of wealth which it is healthy for one to own.

Once upon a time, Huey Long appealed to the ambitious, political aspirant within me. Now, however, it’s the moralist and social critic in me that gets excited by his words. I know that like most politicians, he often failed to live up to his own rhetoric. But it is inspiring nonetheless, and I have yet to hear anyone raising equivalent issues in our greed-driven society today. I wonder what language a contemporary Huey Long might incorporate…an “Open Source Economy,” perhaps?

Posted in Open Source, Politics, Reflection | Leave a comment

Space Academy (an abandoned novel)

Posted on December 11th, 2006 by Neal Locke

For the first time in several months I was able to make it to my writer’s group tonight, and was thus inspired to dust off an old project.

I began writing Space Academy almost four years ago — taking some of my experiences with high school students and superimposing them on a backdrop of future-high-school-in-space. The idea was far from original, but the characters, treatment, and some of the themes were fresh, and I enjoyed writing it…until I ran into a dead end, deleted a good-sized chunk of it, and never quite got the story back on track.

I’ve posted the prologue and chapter one over at my writing blog. As I re-read it in the next few weeks — and maybe even get some fresh input from those who have not read it — hopefully this little story will find its footing once again.

Of course, if you’re looking for some more “grown-up” sci-fi, check out my short story, Twelve. It’s lengthy, but definitely the completed work of which I am most proud. All my fiction, poetry, and songs are published under Creative Commons license — so feel free to share.

Posted in Literature, Open Source, Writing | 2 Comments

Several Updates

Posted on December 11th, 2006 by Neal Locke

I can feel myself slipping into my neglected-blog phase again, so this is a compilation of several things I’ve been meaning to post but haven’t had the chance to:

For relatives who’ve been asking (or generous wealthy people randomly wandering through) I’ve updated my Christmas wish-list at froogle. You can see it by clicking here. Mostly the usual…Camping stuff, Woody Guthrie & John Steinbeck stuff, etc.
I’ve posted a few more videos of Grady on Youtube. You can see them all here.
Saving the best for last–I am very, very, VERY proud of my former Academic Decathlon students at Sunset High school–this month they participated in District Competition against all of the other schools in the Dallas school district (one of the largest in the nation). They made history by placing FIRST. That means they beat EVERY SINGLE MAGNET SCHOOL and all of the affluent white-bread North Dallas schools. For an inner-city, mostly hispanic school with all the accompanying challenges and educational obstacles, this is huge. I was honored to be there, and it’s a day I’ll remember for a long time.

Posted in Random | Leave a comment

No, Daddy, I am NOT a contrarian!

Posted on November 29th, 2006 by Neal Locke

[6:30am in Austin, Tx. over Thanksgiving holiday]
Grady: [crying loudly from his makeshift room] Mommy!!! Daddy!!!
Daddy: [stumbling half-awake into Grady’s room] It’s not time to wake up yet, Grady.
Grady: Yes, it IS time to wake up!
Daddy: Ugggh! No wonder — Your diaper is soaking wet.
Grady: No, Daddy. My diaper is NOT wet!
Daddy: [changing diaper] Yes, Grady, it is.
Grady: NO. It’s NOT!
Daddy: Well, now it isn’t, because I changed it.
Grady: NO, Daddy, you DIDN’T change it!
Daddy: Yes, I did.
Grady: No. You didn’t.
Daddy: Grady, you are a contrarian.
Grady: No, Daddy — I’m NOT a contrarian.
Daddy: [exasperated] Fine. You’re not a contrarian.
Grady: Ok. I’m a contrarian, Daddy.
Daddy: [laughing] That’s my little contrarian…
Grady: Daddy?
Daddy: Yes, my little contrarian?
Grady: Daddy, I’m not a little contrarian.
Daddy: You’re not?
Grady: No, Daddy. I’m a BIG contrarian.