The power of writing

1. I've been trained to use a new on-line program developed by ETS, the company that runs the SAT, designed to help teach writing. I like the idea of the program. It gives kids instant feedback and could save me some time grading papers. But I'm troubled by the fact that the program only recognizes very basic patterns, like word repetition or misspellings. I think if the guys from google got ahold of this product, they would make it much better. If you want to noodle around with it, email me, and I will send you my log on and the URL. I'm curious if anyone else wants to try it out, and what their thoughts are on it. I think this is the wave of the future, boys. It really would make grading all those SAT essays easier, wouldn't it?

2. I'm amazed at the power of Jane Austen. My wife recently rented Pride and Prejudice, the BBC version that came out a few years ago starring Colin Firth, and she has been watching and reading Jane Austen for the past 5 days. She can't seem to get enough of it. It's fascinating to see her reaction. She finished the book this morning, and we got the DVDs from the library after returning them to blockbuster.com. She's watched them three days in a row now and seems to enjoy each time. I imagine we will end up owning this BBC version and going to see the film with Keira Knightley that comes out sometime this year.

3. I'm currently reading three different books. Can't seem to settle on one. I like Fever Pitch by Nick Hornby (another sports book -- this time about rooting for Arsenal in the English soccer leagues, kind of an autobiography through sports); I also like Dancing at the Rascal Fair by Ivan Doig, which I found at Costco this weekend and decided to pick up, maybe because of my Montana roots. A little heavy on the rhapsodic descriptions of Montana mountains, although there really is a lot to get excited about in the Montana landscape. Finally, Farenheit 451, a classic that I have not yet read and am reading more out of obligation than anything. Unsurprisingly, I'm not as enchanted with it just yet. We'll see if I like the ending. Which do you all think I should finish first? So far, Fever Pitch is ahead by page count.