Don Pogreba is a current writer and retired teacher of English, Social Studies and Debate, and a loyal, if often sad, fan of the San Diego Padres and Portland Timbers. When he is not traveling, he is working on his classroom web site or dreaming about another adventure.
When I think about travel, it’s hard not to think about the friends who first inspired me to realize that I not only could, but certainly should, see more of the world. The picture at the top of this post is on a tree outside their door, a constant reminder that they are explorers, and while I will never quite match their travels...
Prince of Wales Highline Trail Many Glacier Lodge Waterton, Alberta Dock at South end of Waterton Lake Prince of Wales Prairie near Pincher Creek, Alberta Near Ronan, MT National Bison Range Granite Chalet St. Mary’s, Glacier Highline Trail Highline Trail Granite Chalet and Hikers in the Distance Highline Trail St. Mary’s
After the modern bustle of Paris, the charms of Rome were an entirely different experience. What I most loved about Rome was the feeling of simultaneously being in 44 BCE, 1500 CE, 1950 CE, and 2015 CE. In the course of one block, you could see a fragment of an ancient column, a church constructed in the Middle Ages, and the most absurd...
Tomorrow, we’ll be discussing one of my favorite articles, Dehumanized by Mark Slouka. In it, he writes, The humanities, done right, are the crucible within which our evolving notions of what it means to be fully human are put to the test; they teach us, incrementally, endlessly, not what to do but how to be…. They are thus...
My dad returned just when I needed him most. The first fiery red bumps announced their presence on my face and arms the day he came home, the day he came home for the last time, to say goodbye. Sitting there in his battered old red pickup truck, I furiously scratched my skin, waiting for him to come out of the bar, where he had stopped...
A number of my friends on Facebook have recently shared lists of ten books that have had the most lasting impact on their lives and challenged others to do the same. I decided to cheat a little bit and post a separate category for childhood favorites and those that endured into adulthood. That there is no room on the list for The Great...
The Sisyphean task of teaching a class of students how to write interesting argumentative essays has begun again in earnest, with the first essay of the year assigned to my AP Language students. The topic I’ve chosen(the role of media violence in actual violence) certainly isn’t groundbreaking, as some told me they’ve already written it...
Two letters in class today, one from Wallace Stegner to a government agent, and one from Chief Seattle to President Pierce. I’ve always struggled with whether I should teach the “Seattle” letter, given its doubtful provenance, but the message seems to resonate with my students. From Wallace Stegner: “Something...