Blonde Champagne: Teachable Moment

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Teachable Moment

I apologize to those of you who may have had problems accessing the site yesterday, but I received a humbling amount of traffic from the MSNBC.com article on Steve Irw in and the server had trouble finding enough seats at the table.

The Croc Hunter enjoyed teaching people, so this week I put his picture on the screen of my classroom wall and remarked on what an excellent communicator he was. What made him a good communicator, class?

The conversation went about the same in all five sections:

STUDENT: He talked funny!
ME: Okay, that's called an Australian accent. Anybody else?
STUDENT: He said "Crikey!" a lot!
ME: Yes... yes, he certainly did. But let's look a bit broader. What made people want to listen to what Steve Irwin had to say?
STUDENT: He had steel balls!

Eventually, though, usually from the back, a hand would inch into the air, followed by a tentative "He... he liked what he did?"

That's a good part of it.

make your passion your profession at: mb@blondechampagne.com

10 comments:

Ruby Rose said...: Hi MB

here in Australia we've been amazed at how much the rest of world admired and will miss Steve Irwin - he really was a phenomenon.

I think the best way to enjoy vintage Steve Irwin, if it's up on youtube or somewhere like that, is his interview with a man called Andrew Denton. Andrew has a "chat" show (for want of a better word) called "Enough Rope" and he does wonderful, interesting, in-depth interviews with all sorts of people, not just celebrities.

They played this interview (recorded about three years ago - baby Bob was on the way) the day that Steve died and it was incredible to think he was gone - his passion and love of life and of animals just explode off the screen.

And his description of how his wedding put him so far outside his comfort zone and what he did on his wedding night are just too, too funny.

It's a brilliant memorial - I hope someone puts it up on the internet.

Alexandra; September 07, 2006 2:17 AM
Anonymous said...: Alexandra,

Thanks for brining this interview up. I'm from Australia too, and I am in agreeance that this interview is by far the best I have seen with Steve.

I had seen the interview when it was recorded, and when I stumbled across it on Monday night I couldn't have been happier. For a moment I stopped crying and instead the tears running down my face were from laughing too much.

The interview really got down to the heart and sole of Steve and in turn showed us the honest, loving, and passionate man that he was.

I too hope that this interview is made available somewhere, in fact, i'm going to have a look at the ABC website because they often make these sort of things available.

Thanks for sharing,

Cathy; September 07, 2006 2:31 AM
Anonymous said...: G'day ladies :) I saw parts of the interview you're referencing on Animal Planet. What I saw was a fresh and honest portrayal of Steve, and I'd really like to see the whole thing.; September 07, 2006 8:38 AM
Anonymous said...: Yes Ruby Rose!! I was going to mention that interview, too - Denton is brilliant and it was such a touching interview that showed the depth beneath the "Crikey!" and the passion ringing through it :) Glad you have seen part of it, MB, hope you get to see it all :).

Cool cartoon, btw, and one I think Steve himself would have had an ironic, poignant giggle over.

xx; September 07, 2006 8:40 AM
wurwolf said...: The interview is up on You Tube. Let's see if Blogger will let me do html....

Steve Irwin on Enough Rope

The first clip is a short piece but the entire interview is included in subsequent clips.; September 07, 2006 9:03 AM
Cbell said...: I think the cartoon posted on your page is probably true. I know that Steve worked with wild animals... but he respected them, and in turn, I'd like to think the respect was reciprocated.; September 07, 2006 11:43 AM
Anonymous said...: That's a good cartoon, but I enjoyed more the "that's a life!" one. Check out the website http://cagle.com/main.asp; September 07, 2006 12:12 PM
Jenib said...: Steve Irwin is a true hero for our generation. It was easy to look up to someone who believed so passionately in a cause. I have been drawn to the tributes and news reports and have literally cried for the void that may be left behind. There will never be another person like him-he was one in a million. I only hope and pray that we carry on the torch that he lit in our hearts.; September 07, 2006 10:52 PM
Anonymous said...: Thanks for finding the link, wulfie!; September 08, 2006 12:53 AM
Anonymous said...: Psst, hot tip for all you Irwin-lovers: there's a movement afoot to wear khaki today (Fri 9/8) in memory of Steve Irwin: "Crikey, it's khaki Friday for Irwin."; September 08, 2006 9:46 AM

Wednesday, September 06, 2006

Teachable Moment

10 comments:

Previous Tastings