Archive for the ‘Doug’s Original Work’ Category

England outplayed France if you look at the stats. They possessed the ball 57% of the time and had eight shots on goal to only five for France. The announcers I’m listening to agree.

Harry Kane had a poor effort on his 2nd PK, to say the least. You have to get the ball in a PK on frame in order to score!!!!!!! (I hardly ever use an exclamation point.) As Yogi says, short putts don’t go in, and zero percent of PKs at or outside the “furniture,” as British announcers say, do not find the net or at least the inside where scoring happens. I still love Harry Kane, and I hope you do too.

The semifinal games feature Argentina vs. Croatia on 12/13 and France vs. Morocco on 12/14. This means that the winner and the loser of the first game get an extra day off prior to the final on 12/18 or the third-place game on 12/17.

Analysis

If Morocco can beat Belgium, Spain, and Portugal, they can also beat France, a team that was outplayed by England. If Croatia can beat Brazil, for goodness sake, they can beat ANYBODY! (See note above.)

They will both be underdogs, but you count them out at your own risk. A Croatia-Morocco final would be crazy from a “who saw this coming” point of view.

Who’s the dog? (That’s the underdog for those not into sports betting jargon.) The team that beat Brazil, or the team that beat three top European teams and only gave up one own goal in five World Cup games, including PKs!!!

A Morocco vs Croatia final could be a tough watch. Wake me up when we get to PKs. They are both from group F, and they played each other to a 0-0 (or nil nil) draw during the group round-robin play. Croatia had the ball 65% of the time, but both teams only had two shots on goal.

Who wouldn’t rather watch Argentina and France? There are two other possibilities if there is only one upset, and neither says here is a Must-See game for the casual fan.

It’s going to be life without football for a few days. Then I go cold turkey for two years as I can’t care about the national leagues of other countries. No offense, as I suspect that non-Americans may not care too much about the US league either, although they probably know more players that American fans. I only live for the World Cup and the European Championship, which has better teams overall than the World Cup.

In games when the Premier League teams play, I might watch games if my media would tell me when they’re on. I know, it’s on the Internet somewhere. My bad. I guess that means that I don’t really care about club/city teams mostly owned by people/countries who are seriously wealthy.

It’s hard to pick a side if both sides are located in a country where you don’t live. I do cheer for the Elfsborg team located in the city of Borås, Sweden, where my Swedish cousins live. I also pull for NYFC and The Red Bulls in the US Major Soccer League (MLS) as they are essentially New York teams even though The Red Bulls, like the Giants and Jets, play in New Jersey.

With rare exceptions, the MLS features a lot of players you never heard of. The players you may be familiar with are forty-ish-European has-beens squeezing the last paycheck out of what is left of their talent. Get ready for the Messi tour.

If I had to pick teams I wanted to win by country, I would go United States (Where I was born and live), Sweden (My Mother’s home), and Canada and/or England, where I have friends and family. After that, it gets a little arbitrary. In my case, I liked watching Luka Modric during Croatia’s run to the finals in 2018. My daughter also won some money backing Croatia, so that pulls me to them.

This is exciting for Arab and African countries as this is the first country to make it to the semi-finals from either region. Ironically, I find that a lot of people in the US routing for underdog Morocco may also find that they disagree with Arab countries’ views and laws regarding the LGBTQ+ scene.

The Odds and My Picks

I don’t gamble because I live on a fixed-income teacher pension, which means it’s not broke. I do, however, follow the betting scene. The odds for the four teams left to win the Cup are France +110, Argentina +170, Croatia +750, and Morocco +900. The odds for the semifinals are Argentina (-120) vs. Croatia (+400) and France (+189) vs. Morocco (+650). You have to bet $120 to win $100 if you bet on Argentina and $100 to win $400 if Croatia wins. You have to bet $189 to win $100 if France wins and bet $100 to win $650 if Morocco wins. This screams bet the dogs!

As my rationale above explains, these underdogs are only underdogs because they don’t carry a World Cup-winning brand. If you are betting on France and Argentina, the favorites, you don’t have much to win. If you bet the underdogs, you only need one of them to cash to win overall. I would be surprised if at least one underdog doesn’t make the final. Croatia made the final last time, so they have been there. Morocco represents the African continent and the Arab world. Both games they play going forward will be big-time home games for them. They also haven’t given up a goal kicked by another team yet.

Somebody has to win, and good for them. I enjoy watching soccer/football at this level every two years. I just hope that I can get a ticket to a game near me when the World Cup comes to North America in 2026. I hope you can too.

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It’s clear to me that Elon Musk’s purchase of Twitter has caused many people to leave the platform. While a lot of what happens on Twitter is useless, frivolous, and even harmful, there is a lot of good information being shared by people with similar interests. I’ve been on Twitter since 2009, when I started my blog DrDougGreen.com. I quickly connected with other like-minded educators who were using it to share free resources or advertise education products and services.

It was obvious to me from the start that educators using Twitter were a very small slice of the Twitterverse. If you look at who has the most followers, for example, you will find that they are all politicians, celebrities, athletes, or big organizations like NASA and Youtube. They have millions of followers, and none are considered to be primarily educators.

The top tier on Twitter uses it to promote themselves, their opinions, their causes, and their products. Some also engage in criticizing others. This later behavior often generates stories in the print and online news media. This can result in a common belief that Twitter is a bit of a “cesspool” rather than a place where people can share beneficial ideas and information and engage in meaningful discourse.

I find this unfortunate as, for me, Twitter is a rich source of the kind of resources that I share on my blog. It is also a way that I can spread the word about the important educational ideas that Twitter helps me find. It’s the rare link that I post that isn’t associated with one or more Twitter accounts.

As of this writing, I have 6233 followers. While I not in the millions, I am in the top one percentile when it comes to Twitter followers. Unfortunately for me and many others, Since Musk took over, I have sadly lost about 100 followers with a handful leaving every day. Say what you will about him, but he certainly is a lightning rod for media attention and as a result, people are leaving every day. Leaving is facilitated by the fact that when it comes to users, Twitter currently ranks 17th.

Right now, the fate of Twitter is uncertain. Since I find it so valuable, I hope that when the dust settles, Twitter is healthy and still allows people with common interests to share ideas, information, and opinions. This can only happen for education if parents and educators stay the course. I am asking, therefore, that you stick with Twitter and use it for this purpose. In the long run, it will certainly benefit our children and ourselves. Thanks for your consideration. If you have already left Twitter, please reconsider. It’s easy to return. If you never were on Twitter, give it a try. Also, be sure to follow me @DrDougGreen if you don’t already. THANK YOU!

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Dr. Doug’s Pictures and Tips for traveling to Italy
On September 20, 2022, I left for Italy with three friends. We returned on October 4th. If you haven’t been to Italy, I strongly suggest you add it to your bucket list. You can sign up for a tour if you aren’t into vacation planning like I am. My issue with tours is that you bring the crowd with you, and they lack flexibility. Book your airfare six months in advance and your rooms at least four months out. We used Airbnb and had great success. You get a lot of space and all of the amenities of a nice apartment.

Starting in Milan

• Italy’s second-largest city is known for finance and fashion. It’s clean as big cities go and features many one-of-a-kind sites. Start with the Duomo, which is the big cathedral. Be sure to get a ticket that includes roof access. If you can, go back and see it at night. Then check out Leonardo Da Vinci’s huge iron horse, which stands 21 feet high and is 24 feet long. You can see it from the street any day and the garden it’s in is open on weekends. Next, it’s the Cimitero Monumentale di Milano, which you have to see to believe. It’s enormous and filled with amazing statues. Even if you are not a big opera fan like I am, you should catch a performance at La Scala, perhaps the most famous opera house in the world. They also do ballet.

Lake Como Region

• The towns along Lake Como are a short train ride from Milan. We got off at Varenna and took a ferry to Bellagio. For lunch, we found a restaurant that overlooked the lake, and we had the best view I ever had for a meal. Consider doing a few nights here.

On to Cinque Terra

• These five small towns on the coast south of Milan are embedded in the hillside and are rather unique. There are trails between the towns that I would say are challenging due to some uneven surfaces, elevation changes, and a lack of railings in some places. If you don’t want to walk, all towns are connected by trains and ferries. We stayed in La Spezia, which is a small city just south. It’s also a nice place to visit. From there, we took the train to Corniglia, the middle town. After walking 400 stairs to the town, we then hiked north to Vernazza (ugh). We then took a ferry north to Monterosso and trained back to La Spezia.

There is Nothing Like Rome

• Heading south, we hit Rome. I had been there before, so I planned two full days of sightseeing for the member of our party who hadn’t been there. We started at The Colosseum and went on to The Palantine Hill and the Roman Forum. They all come on one ticket, which you should purchase well in advance. We then walked by the Trevi Fountain and the Spanish Steps to the Pantheon. They are all free. On day two, we started by having breakfast at the Trevi Fountain. You can’t see this enough. We walked to the Borghese Gardens and took a tram ride around it. We saw the Borghese Gallery, which is not that big but entirely beautiful. The Bernini statues are the high point. Next, we took a pre-purchased tour of the Vatican, including the Sistine Chapel. That included dinner. when we finished, Saint Peter’s was closed, but we got to see it at night. We did see it the following morning after a 40-minute wait in line. It’s not a bad place to wait, and there are no advanced fast-track options.

Sorrento, Naples, Pompei, and Capri

• Naples is Italy’s third largest city. I found it to be crowded, as have others. We booked a tour that took us to the hot spots. Earlier in the day, we visited the ruins at Pompei, which are also amazing, with an eight-person tour. The next day we took the ferry from Sorrento, where we were staying, to Capri. This island is like nothing I’ve ever seen. It juts out of the sea with steep cliffs and crazy roads. Start by taking a boat ride around the island to see it all, including several grottos where the water is bluer than any I’ve seen. From the port, you can take the Funicular to the town of Capri if you aren’t up for a lot of stairs. You can’t see it all in one day so consider staying there if you can afford it.

Additional Tips

• Be sure to buy the intercity train tickets a month or two before you go as they will cost less and save you some hassle at the stations. There are a lot of reasonable short tours of one day or less, and we did several, including a gourmet dinner in Rome and a visit to a farm in the Sorento Hills where we made and ate our own pizza and consumed wine, olive oil, and cheese made on the property. The information at RickSteves.Com and his books that are specific to each town were a big help. All of his PBS videos are available on his website.
• In 2019, I also visited Venice, Verona, and Florence with side trips to Siena and Pisa. These places are comparable to those discussed here. Everywhere you go, there is a lot of history, beauty, and great food at very reasonable prices, especially for Americans, as the dollar is very strong now. Not everyone speaks English, so try to learn some common words. I also relied on the Google Translate app. Be ready to do a lot of walking. We averaged over nine miles a day. You could cut the mileage by using taxis and subways more. Look for subway turnstiles that offer touch-and-go access with your credit card. You will find someplace that only take cash, so be sure to have some Euros in your wallet and one Euro coins for some toilets. Each member of our group contributed to the planning and finding our way around, so be sure to team up if you aren’t going alone. There is a lot more to seen in Italy so let me know where I should go next at Doug@DrDougGreen.Com. Thanks.

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On 1/30/2022 I attended a Daniel Pick online presentation only for people who had preordered his new book “The Power of Regret: How Looking Backward Moves Us Forward.” There were about 1,300 of us. During this presentation, he gave the audience the ten most important things that he has ever learned. These all match up with my thinking. Since he did a count down, we start with the number 10. This presentation will not be available anywhere else so share this with your network.

10. How to make a decision

• Start with asking yourself “what advice would you give to a friend.” Fundamental reasons are better than instrumental reasons. Do the right thing. Less is more. Do fewer things well.

9. The best way to get things done Read

• “Bird by Bird” by Annie Lamont. This is the one step at a time approach to getting something done. The coach should tell the team, let’s go 1-0 today.

8. The best way to choose what to do

• Pick the professor more than the class. Focus on who you are doing something with. Read “The No Asshole Rule: Building a Civilized Workplace and Surviving One That Isn’t” by Robert I. Sutton. Here is a link to my summary. Don’t tolerate jerks for a moment. We are who we spend time with.

7. How to Persuade People

• Read “Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion” by Robert B. Cialdini. The best way to persuade someone to do something is to make it easy for them to do it. Consider changing the default option. If you want to make it easy to run, put on your running outfit.

6. The best way to get a good idea and how can you tell a good idea from a bad idea

• From Malcolm Gladwell, good ideas lead to good ideas. Look for good ideas you had that have proved themselves. You need to be excited about it. Look for stories rather than topics. Put your ideas out to other people. They are likely to give you more ideas. Generate a lot of ideas without evaluating them at first. Next, capture the ideas. They can be floating. Keep a running document on your computer and cellphone so that you get an idea you can write it down. Finally, socialize your ideas and don’t worry about somebody stealing them. The more ideas you share, the more people will share there’s with you.

5. The best way to deal with hassles

• Read “Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity” by David Allen. If you have a task that can be done in less than two minutes, do it now. Use the stoic test. When confronted with a hassle reframe it as a test. Then move it from the realm of emotion to the realm of cognition.

4. The best way to liberate yourself

• Do not manage your life to impact what other people think of you as they are probably thinking about themselves. Just be a good person and do the right thing.

3. The best way to get stuff done, part two

• Step by step is the micro part. Seeing the big picture and keeping your eye on the prize is the macro part. You want to think about systems. Broaden your focus and it will be easier to see how the small parts fit. Al Gore made a guest appearance here. We always face the voice between doing the hard right thing and the easy wrong thing. Seek first to understand.

2. The best way to deal with regrets

• Dan recalls telling the head of AirB&B that his idea would never work. Process regrets inward, outward, and forward. Treat yourself with kindness. We all make mistakes. Forgive yourself. Disclose your regret. It releases the burden. Even writing about it can be helpful. Finally, extract a lesson from it.

1. The best three words to say regularly

• Please and Thank You. They are profound. Please reminds us that we are not entitled to anything. Thank you serves a similar purpose. Expressing gratitude deepens our sense of meaning and purpose. Doing so is advantageous. Here is a link to my summaries of Daniel Pink’s books.

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Dr. Doug played banjo at the Chenango Froka Central Schools Christmas Concert.

If you are here today thank you so much. Rather than give you new content I think it”s best to read some of the inspirational quotes that I post almost every day. Below are the most recent posts. If you want to see a very long list, go to my archieves. Consieder putting some on your classroom wall. You can also check out my archives for Social/Mobile Media & Artificial Intelligence Education, Leadership/Parenting, Learning Resources, and Humor / Music / Cool Stuff.

11/30 @WSroufe

11/28 @RonAndSandyLee

11/27 @drugb0t

11/26 @RonAndSandyLee

11/25 @tim_fargo

11/24 @themerry_monk

11/23

@TrainingMindful

11/22 @Gapingvoid

11/20 @ITArchitechs

11/19 @Melanie_Collins

11/17

@LifeWithJohn

11/16

@JillDuBois22

11/15 @eileen_lennon Moderator of #NYCSchoolsTechChat

111/13 @BabyGo2014

11/12 @BillMoore20

11/11 @SimpliTeach

11/10 @JeanetteJoy

11/9 @theeiguy

11/8 @jeffsheehan

11/6 @Gapingvoid

11/5 @lawrence_wray

11/4 @gary_hensel

11/3 @TrainingMindful

11/1 @Leadershipfreak

10/31 @Gapingvoid

10/29 Larry Cuban’s latest cartoon collection – You might not find all of them funny but my friend Larry does his best. @LarryCUban

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