SCHOLA: Muzak hath charms to soothe the savage breast

Friday, January 16, 2004

Muzak hath charms to soothe the savage breast

G spent the day putting the metal roof on the girls' clubhouse. When I went outside to check for any last minute requests before heading into town, imagine my shock and horror to hear my usually classic rock/alternative music-listening husband jamming to some easy listening. He heard me snickering and defended his choice, saying it was relaxing. Oh my.

A few minutes later when I got to the marina and into my car, I turned the ignition and was subjected to an instrumental medley from "Camelot." He was actually driving around yesterday doing his errands with this station on. The poor guy has truly lost his mind.

SCHOLA 101

schol' a: 1) An intermission of work, leisure for learning, learned conversation, debate, disputation, lecture, dissertation. 2) A meeting place for teachers and pupils, place for instruction, place of learning, school. 3) The disciples of a teacher, body of followers, school, sect. 4) An acronym for my tortuous blog title "Secular Classical Homeschoolers' Odyssean Learning Adventure." 5) How my Boston cousins pronounce "scholar." 6) Someone who studies at 10 o'clock for a dilla or a dolla.

These are the blatherings of an introverted, autodidactic, champion of The Enlightenment raising three daughters. At one time or another we have homeschooled, public-schooled, Catholic-schooled, cyber-schooled, unschooled, and even threatened boarding school. We have been inspired variously by The Well-Trained Mind, A Thomas Jefferson Education, and Climbing Parnassus, tempered by the writings and wisdom of Charlotte Mason, John Holt, Benjamin Franklin and Michel de Montaigne.

I try not to get wrapped up in labels, but we are secular and we are classical-ish.

We travel. A lot. Sometimes to the other side of the state and sometimes to the other side of the planet. Join us on our journey as we search for our home, navigate the waters of self-education, lounge with the lotus-eaters, and bash a Cyclops or two.