Lateral Thinking and Underwear

I am currently having AP students pay close attention to their lateral thinking. I asked them to record and share when their thinking seems to drift. Where does it go? What leads one thought to the next? It has lead to very funny discussions.

Part of our deal, as a class, is that I share first (each morning) and that they only have to share once a week. At this point of the year it is still too soon for them to realize the connection between this exercise and the artwork that they produce, but that will come. Slowly, they are starting to make a few connections.

Because I see this class in the morning and I have to be ready to share (and if you read my last post, you will realize that this is very EARLY in the morning with little time to really digest any thoughts) I have started paying very close attention to my head as I make the routine walk from my “office” to the school office to collect my mail. I never have to force this, my head is always busy. The only difference is admitting my private stuff out loud … to my students and to all of you. I am amazed at how many random thoughts appear in a span of sixty seconds and equally amazed to listen to my students whose random thoughts are specific and telling.

So for what it is worth, here is what I shared today:

(A little bit of background information before I begin:

Awhile back the Building and Grounds crew turned the school’s study area into the cafeteria. Basically this means that they got rid of the carpet and put down tile and now kids eat there instead of read there. Before they tiled it, the principal asked the art department about color choices. We sat on the floor and poured over catalogs and picked out pretty things. I think they asked us only to choose the exact opposite of our suggestions and now the floor is the color of silly putty and elephant. This might be okay, except that the walls are red and yellow. Visually, it’s a disaster).

Let the lateral thinking begin:

Why did the janitor stop me and only me to tell me that if this floor has even one drop of water on it, I could easily fall and break my neck? Now each time I make this trek I have to worry about collapsing. I suppose looking down is better than looking at these walls. Christ. Why is there a different font on every goddamned wall in this place? How I am supposed to be inspired by the Wall of Inspiration when the plaques look like they are straight out of the Elk’s Lodge? Who made those plaques? Does anyone make contemporary plaques? Why is brown paneling and fake bronze the standard? I bet I could make a fortune making nice plaques. Look at the floor, look at the floor, look for water, don’t fall. Oh man, I am wearing a dress. If I fall, it is likely that my dress will twist up over my underwear and the whole school will see my underwear? Quick mental note of what underwear I have on. What would be acceptable? Clearly, no underwear with text. No lace. God no. Thong, obviously out (not that I’d have one on anyway). I think the only acceptable underwear to flash the entire student population is a simple black cotton panty. Maybe navy is okay. No white.

Open door to office, hello to teacher I don’t really know, get mail, walk back down the trecherous cafeteria to my office. Ready or not, here I am.