The James Logan Courier

By Tierra Negra, Courier Special Correspondent

A few years ago, when I attended a conference that talked about the brain, I came to the realization that teachers can benefit from its innate nature to solve problems. The presenter also helped me find the answer to the question most commonly posed by my students: why do I need to learn a subject matter I would never use in the future? To create new connections that eventually raises the ability among the neurons to communicate therefore processing information more efficiently.

Since then, I no longer merely gave data but tried to question students so they would come with the answers on their own. I provided examples that would feed their brains making them naturally think about solutions to problems.

By Tierra Negra, Courier Special Correspondent

Now days, individuals may improve standards of living within a relatively short period of time. This ability originated with the abundance of opportunities to buy things on credit. It started with the acquisition of cars and was followed by the popularization of credit cards. One of my stored ideas, for a future book, is to analyze the social mobility within my own family from a feminine perspective during the last century because we are the ones usually closer to poverty and discrimination.

After my great-grandmother left Lebanon –by herself arriving to Mexico in search of the father of her two children without knowing a word of Spanish, my grandmother –her daughter, ended up living in a small town where she raised nine children and all males were able to attend college in the city.

From wikipedia:
Alberta Hunter (April 1, 1895 – October 17, 1984) was an American blues singer, songwriter, and nurse. Her career had started back in the early 1920s, and from there on, she became a successful jazz and blues recording artist, being critically acclaimed to the ranks of Ethel Waters and Bessie Smith. In the 1950s, she retired from performing and entered the medical field, only to successfully resume her singing career in her 1980s.

1910s – 1940s
Born in Memphis, she left home while still in her early teens and settled in Chicago, Illinois.There, she peeled potatoes by day and hounded club owners by night, determined to land a singing job. Her persistence paid off, and Hunter began a climb through some of the city's lowest dives to a headlining job at its most prestigious venue for black entertainers, the Dreamland ballroom. She had a five-year association with the Dreamland, beginning in 1917, and her salary rose to $35 a week.

Learn more about Alberta Hunter, free from RedHotJazz.com.

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