Category Archives: Education

Solipsism and the Riot

Posted on January 10, 2021 by advicefrommarta

I was on  my way to Costco when I got news of the revolution. I started the day with the news that in response to some local politics, someone tried to throw a brick with the N word on it … Continue reading →

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What If There Isn’t a Real World?

Posted on December 13, 2020 by advicefrommarta

One day we will no longer live in pandemic-world and I will be able to start a blog post with a phrase other than “The other day on Facebook.” But, we don’t live in that world yet. So … The … Continue reading →

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A Good Crisis Wasted

Posted on June 28, 2020 by advicefrommarta

Here in my middle class (increasingly upper middle class) suburb of Oak Park Illinois the mom groups are in a tizzy. It’s not the usual tizzy about teenagers without bike helmets, or people putting their poop bags in strangers’ garbage … Continue reading →

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Time Travel

Posted on September 26, 2019 by advicefrommarta

To help with a recent surgery I have been taking a water aerobics class. I go on Tuesdays and Thursdays and I am the youngest, by a lot. Most of the people in the class know each other. Some go … Continue reading →

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Wide Lawns, Narrow Minds and Lots of Pressure

Posted on January 25, 2018 by advicefrommarta

My uncle once told me a story about a job interview he had in college. Like me, my uncle has a BA in Philosophy from the University of Louisville. At the job interview he was asked “What do you hope … Continue reading →

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Sacrificing Our Children

Posted on October 4, 2016 by advicefrommarta

On Rosh Hashana we read the story of Abraham’s attempted sacrifice of Isaac. It is a difficult story to understand. Previously we’ve been told how wanted and loved Isaac is. A late in life baby for his parents, their only … Continue reading →

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Dick Jokes and Religious Greetings

Posted on December 17, 2015 by advicefrommarta

The other day I was thinking about “Big Johnson” t-shirts. These were shirts that featured stupid dick jokes and caricatures of big breasted women. They were popular in the 1990s before we had social media as an outlet on which … Continue reading →

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Snow Days

Posted on January 8, 2015 by advicefrommarta

Fourth grade was a bad year for me.  I went from the loving embrace of Mrs. Minnis, a woman who defended my left-handedness by loudly telling everyone in class that her husband, an artist, was also left-handed, to the cold-fish … Continue reading →

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What Is Private

Posted on May 21, 2014 by advicefrommarta

When I was a child we did not know our teachers’ first names. A better part of the school year was spent trying to find out your teacher’s name and other personal information. If you came up with intel about … Continue reading →

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Whose Right Is Right?

Posted on May 19, 2014 by advicefrommarta

A story made the rounds in Chicago recently about a high school senior who wore a shirt with a picture of an AK-47 on it. The school principal felt that the shirt violated the dress code against “disruptive clothing” and … Continue reading →

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