Over the next few weeks, I'll be migrating this website to a new server . . . at least that's my plan. I'm not sure how everything will work. If you subscribe to my blog through an RSS Reader, please check in after a few weeks to see if I'm posting. I'm pretty sure I won't figure out how to migrate the old RSS subscription to the new server. In fact, I may just start from scratch since I'm having trouble even backing up my old files (at least I now have them all saved in a text file for my o... Read Full Story

It's true . . . my blog has been down for over a month because the person who owns the server moved and then had to transfer stuff from a broken computer. I'm so grateful that he was able to save my stuff--and so glad to be back online. A lot has happened since I last posted. Although I've been back in California for almost 2 months, I've traveled almost every weekend: a trip to San Francisco to hang out with my friend Lixian, a visit to Utah to see the family, 10 days in Arizona. I have vow... Read Full Story

For a long time, I've wanted to include a photo reference guide to the people I mention in my blog. I especially wanted to do this last year since so many of my friends back home didn't know my friends in Norway. Better late than never, I say. Lixian and Jeff: Lixian was the person I hung out with most frequently. She's always fun to talk with and I love how committed she is to making the world a better place. My 10 months in Norway would have been so much more lonely without her. I hope... Read Full Story

My last week in Norway was filled with socializing, goodbyes, packing, and cleaning. It went by quickly. I was able to explore more of Oslo with my friends--I enjoyed seeing new parts of the city and experienced some melancholy as I said goodbye to places that had meant so much to me over the last 10 months. Blå, "the coolest bar in Europe," was one of the places I visited with Lixian and Jeff. We hung out on the patio by the river and enjoyed the band. After awhile, we walked through th... Read Full Story

I moved around a lot as a child. It seemed like every 3 years, my family would pack up yet again and move to a new place. In some ways, I got the worst of it, I think. My brother Ted managed to go to part of junior high and all of high school in Ogden, Utah (and he settled there permanently). My brothers Jim and Matt mostly lived in Logan, Utah growing up. My brother David was the closest to me in age, yet somehow he was able to adopt Logan as his hometown, as well. Me? I always felt displac... Read Full Story

As I walked around town yesterday enjoying the Oslo music festival (different bands playing all over the city), I thought about how fun it has been to live in this city. Although Oslo and Fresno are similar in size, Oslo has more things to do: museums, concerts, outdoor life. It's been fun to live here. In my head, I started a list of things I'll miss about Norway. Here are some of the things in no particular order. 1. My friends (of course!) 2. Heated bathroom floors (what a wonder... Read Full Story

I've just completed my last presentations of the year at Byåsen VGS in Trondheim. Maria, a teacher who is originally from California, organized my trip. The teachers asked me to do five of my eight presentations--so this visit allowed me to revisit many of the presentations I've done this year. The U.S. Teens Speak has been by far the most enjoyable presentation for both me and the students, I think. The students always get a kick out of my sarcastic question at the beginning, &quo... Read Full Story

I sit in my hotel room tonight, looking out my huge window towards the harbor of Puerto Rico, Gran Canaria, Spain. The light is so bright, it looks almost white in the photographs I've taken. And there's something almost *too* much about being here. This town was constructed 20-30 years ago with the sole purpose of tourism. The steep cliffs are covered with bright white hotels and the harbor is lined with touristy restaurants and a few souvenir shops. Don't get me wrong, I love... Read Full Story

As I near the end of my lecturing here in Norway, I've been reflecting on what I've learned. In this post, I want to focus on the actual job I've been here to do--working with students and working with teachers--and what characteristics seem to me to produce effective presentations. In a recent entry, I mentioned the presentation I did at the Vestfold Language Forum on Obama's Rhetoric. Anne Tove emailed me recently and told me that the teachers had been really pleased with... Read Full Story

Yesterday, Lixian and I went to a performance of the Nordic Black Theater here in Oslo. A boat on the fjord provides a space for the drama company, a cafe, and a bed and breakfast. We went early, sitting outside in the glorious Oslo spring evening and admiring the Oslo Opera House just across the way. Lixian is just finishing her thesis on multiethnic performance in Oslo and the Nordic Black Theater was one of the first companies that she worked with when she began her research. The pe... Read Full Story