Office help

A young executive was leaving the office late one evening when he found the CEO standing in front of a shredder with a piece of paper in his hand.
"Listen," said the CEO, "this is a very sensitive and important document here, and my secretary has gone for the night. Can you make this thing work for me?"
"Certainly," said the young executive. He turned the machine on, inserted the paper, and pressed the start button.
"Excellent, excellent!" said the CEO, as his paper disappeared inside the machine. "I just need one copy..."

Fairlane Story

Notice the redesign of the tail-lights with a noticable cross hatch pattern to echo the new front grille.

Coaching Teachers To Be Leaders

How Do I Know I'm Ready to Share Leadership? by Evelyn Cortez-Ford

It is not unusual for principals to be concerned about sharing leadership with teachers. Principals know that the implications of a "community of leaders" are broad and deep, and the effects are particularly evident for teachers and principals. Few teachers and principals have formally been prepared to share leadership. In fact, teacher leadership requires a personal transformation that may give one pause and make him or her question: How do I know I'm ready to share leadership? That question can only be considered with a deep understanding of the concept of teacher leadership.
TENETS OF TEACHER LEADERSHIP
A universal definition of teacher leadership is non-existent because teachers lead within the unique context of their schools. However, teacher leadership has certain tenets that give it structure and purpose. Following are some basic principles of teacher leadership.
• Leadership is an organizational trait that belongs to everyone. Leadership is not embodied in one or two individuals who hold formal positions.
• Teacher leadership is a context-specific process that is defined by all members of the school.
• Teacher leadership processes are collaborative and democratic.
• Teacher leadership is enacted in the service of student learning and school improvement efforts.
• Leaders meaningfully connect teaching, learning, and leading.
• Leaders are interdependent.
When carefully examined, the tenets of teacher leadership suggest a variety of personal and organizational changes ranging from changes in relationships, structures, and processes to changes in personal responsibility and professional development. The changes can be daunting. To get a handle on those changes, and to determine readiness to share leadership, you might want to refer to the informal assessment below.
INDICATORS OF READINESS TO SHARE LEADERSHIP
Below is an informal, personal assessment that can provide insight into one's readiness to embed teacher leadership in a school. The indicators address personal considerations for the principal including values, commitments, and knowledge.
The principal is prepared to share the leadership values of…
• collective achievement.
• individual and collective responsibility.
• collaboration.
• democratic, inclusive processes for working.
• personal and professional growth for all.
• recognizing and celebrating the strengths and talents of teachers.
The principal is committed to…
• establishing structures that allow for collaboration (for example, School Leadership Teams).
• removing barriers that impede teachers from leading (for example, a lack of time to lead).
• establishing informal and formal communication links for information sharing.
• establishing job-embedded professional development structures (for example, study groups, action research projects, and coaching).
• establishing shared decision-making processes.
• developing equal, collaborative relationships with teachers.
• collecting data on the effectiveness of leadership performance.
The principal is knowledgeable about…
• teacher leadership theory and practice.
• adult learning theory.
• leadership development.
• collaborative processes.
• emotional intelligence.

Three words

A woman was sitting at a bar enjoying an after-work cocktail with her girlfriends when an exceptionally tall, handsome, extremely sexy young man entered. He was so striking that the woman could not take her eyes away from him.

The young man noticed her overly attentive stare & walked directly toward her. Before she could offer her apologies for being so rude for staring, the young man said to her, 'I'll do anything, absolutely anything, that you want me to do, no matter how kinky, for $100, on one condition.'

Flabbergasted, the woman asked what the condition was. The young man replied, 'You have to tell me what you want me to do in just three words.'
The woman considered his proposition for a moment, withdrew from her purse and slowly counted out five $20 bills, which she pressed into the young man's hand along with her address. She looked deeply into his eyes & slowly, meaningfully said, "Clean my house."

Fairlane Story

Continuing the two series cycle trend, Ford tweaked the front and rear of the ZG Fairlane. They were also well aware of the negative comments that they were receiving regarding the lack of distinction of the Fairlane from the Falcon, and solved this by subtely giving the front of the ZG more presence with the use of the new grille, but also as a benefit of the handsome and different restyle they gave the front of the XB Falcon. The XB and the ZG now looked quite dis-similar.

Capacity

Our grand business in life is not to see what lies dimly at a distance, but to do what lies clearly at hand." -- Thomas Carlyle

We each play a role in the bigger game of life. In this bigger picture, life plays with energy and matter to expand, create, express and evolve. It explores new possibilities, realizes them and then reaches for even more. Life continually transforms what is into something brand new. We choose how actively we take part in this cosmic dance. We can become mere spectators to life if we get stuck in old ideas that have lost their energy for us. How much passion do you feel for your goals? Are you still being creative in how you work with them?

"Embrace fully your capacity to create, to think in unlimited ways, and to pursue everything that you have been wanting. Be flexible, open and willing to let the new come to you. "This can be the most joyous, prosperous, and creative time of your life." -- Sanaya Roman and Duane Packer

Last words

Three buddies die in a car crash, and they find themselves at the pearly gates.

They are all asked, "When you are in your casket and friends and
family are mourning upon you, what would you like to hear them say
about you?

The first guy says, "I would like to hear them say that I was the
greates doctor of my time, and a great family man."

The second guy says, "I would like to hear that I was a wonderful
husband and school teacher who made a huge difference in our
children of tomorrow."

The last guy replies,
"I would like to hear them say... LOOK!!! HE'S MOVING!!!!!"

Fairlane Story

The ZG Fairlane brochure cover

Relaxation

Is relaxation possible only when we’re not working? No. With awareness and practice, we can be relaxed no matter what we are doing. In fact, when we work in a relaxed state, our productivity increases as our effort decreases.

For true relaxation, we need to connect with our bodies -- to consciously and intentionally become aware of tension and release it.

Geography

I traveled almost all over the world
- Wow, you must know geography well.
- Oh yes I spent 2 months there..!

Fairlane Story

You can see in the above that Ford continued with the policy of stretching the ZF by adding length to the wheelbase between the rear door and the wheelwell.

Confronting Concerns With Teacher Performance

Teaching is among the noblest of professions, that much is clear. Effective teachers are a commodity any society, school district, or neighbourhood school would be wise to revere. We should heap praise on our best teachers, offer substantial financial remuneration, and carve giant statues of them to place in front of City Hall.
As principals, our responsibilities range far and wide, but right at the centre is to inspire, motivate, and maximize the impact our teachers have on student learning. That is all well and good when the teachers conduct themselves with professionalism, utilize best practices in instruction, and keep their hands clean. But what happens when it all goes awry? How do we respond to substandard performance?

THREE LAYERS OF DISCONTENT

Inadequate performance in teaching is not always easy to define. Sure, sometimes a teacher earns national notoriety by having an affair with a student and sneaking off to have his baby in Acapulco with the money she siphoned from the soda machine sales, but those are special cases. Most teaching indiscretions are subtle. The trick for administrators is to identify the issue, then to grasp it head-on in the most appropriate manner. Let’s have a look at the three layers of performance concerns:

Caught With the Pants Down
This one’s easy: the teacher violates a law or is observed doing something so stupid it’s hard to imagine anyone would do it -- until we read the newspaper and see that this isn’t the first time someone’s been this stupid, either. These folks need personnel discipline, and the course is clear-cut.

A Slip of the Lip
We’re all entitled to a mess-up. Golfers call them “mulligans.” These are uncharacteristically bad moves: a frustrated teacher uses sarcasm in the classroom; a tired teacher omits an entire morning in her lesson plans; a harried teacher inadvertently checks out 25 copies of the wrong book and decides to just show a video instead while she pulls herself together; a confused teacher forgets it’s Monday and spends the day at Sea World instead of in his sixth grade classroom. Unless this becomes a weekly habit, all these folks need is a wake-up call and a little nudge back in the right direction.

The Silent Assassin
More likely than the isolated incidents that are listed above, however, are the common, repeated abrasions of Teacher Y outlined below. And, sadly, these situations repeat themselves far too often.

See if this sounds familiar: Teacher Y (as in, “why does he still come to work?”) arrives at school…just a few seconds after the contracted start-time, but before the kids come in. The daily routine is filled with unimaginative lessons, perhaps scripted instruction with no ties to any specific learning outcomes, and dispassionate relationships with his students. There may even be times when the kids are working but the teacher is at his desk. Teacher Y sits with his colleagues at lunchtime, but only to complain a bit and to shovel some leftovers hurriedly. When he’s invited to stay after school to discuss the results of the math assessment, he declines (again) and hurries off with a stack of papers to mark (with no helpful feedback, mind you).

The teachers complain about his lack of collaboration. The parents complain about his lack of communication. The students complain about his lack of personality. He complains about whatever the topic du jour may be. And the student achievement in his class is…well, it’s okay. Nothing special, but nothing out of a Quentin Tarantino movie, either. You’re the principal. What do you do?

THE UGLY REALITY

Often, we do a lot. Okay, that’s a lie, and you know it. We don’t do much. We sit and close our eyes to it, with a grimace, yes, but still feeble and hapless. Technically, there’s nothing Teacher Y is doing that qualifies as neglect of duty, that violates the teaching contract, or that would earn him a trip in the back of the sheriff’s cruiser, cuffed and stuffed.

Morally, ethically, and realistically, though, Teacher Y is committing educational malpractice. We need to admit it: We have tons of research to support the “best practices” of instruction that he’s ignoring; we have decades of qualitative and quantitative data to defend the cultivation of a nurturing classroom environment that he’s disregarding; and we have reams of evidence to endorse the cultivation of true collaborative professional relationships that he’s snubbing.

When will we take a stand against this malpractice? I say that time is now. Right now. If there are children in that classroom, or if there are going to be children in that classroom tomorrow, we have an obligation to provide the best possible learning environment -- and to insist upon excellence from those in the noblest of professions.

SO WHAT DO WE DO?

Our responsibility as principals is to inspire, motivate, and maximize the impact of our teachers on student learning. We can’t wait until the teacher’s performance evaluation is due and then submit a blind-sided scorcher. That wouldn’t be right and it wouldn’t help.

Instead, do this: Get courageous. Invite the teacher into your office to chat. Right now. Immediately, as in What are you waiting for? Find out what’s going on. Share your concerns. Talk about the specifics of what you’ve observed in that classroom. Get Teacher Y to talk about what’s going on. Discuss. Argue. Exchange ideas. Converse. Reason. Get a real row going. Only when it’s out in the open can we even begin to put a dent in its shell of artificial harmony.

Then, and only then, we can tackle a solution together. Lay out the specifics. Create a plan. Enlist Teacher Y’s suggestions and ideas. Isolate an approach that will inspire, motivate, and maximize the impact of this teacher on student learning. This is the noblest of professions we’re talking about -- it’s worth that discomfort, that effort, and that openness. We can’t shy away from our conscience

Gold fish

Two gold fish are in a tank one says to the other "Do you know how to drive this thing?"

Fairlane Story

The four series of earlier Fairlanes - ZA to -ZD - were Australian styling off-shoots of their respective Falcons, which were in turn all off-shoots of the 1966 U.S. Ford Falcon. The ZF Fairlane on the other hand was an off-shoot of the wholly Australian designed XA Falcon, and as such is quite significant. Unfortunately, buyers did not think it was sufficiently removed in looks from the Falcon on which it was based, and sales suffered accordingly.

Leadership Quotes

Henry Clay:
Of all the properties which belong to honourable men, not one is so highly prized as that of character.

Don Quixote:
One man scorned and covered with scars still strove with his last ounce of courage to reach the unreachable stars; and the world was better for this.

Edward B. Butler: Ins
One man has enthusiasm for 30 minutes, another for 30 days, but it is the man who has it for 30 years who makes a success of his life.

Money

Money can't buy happiness but it keeps the kids in touch!

Fairlane Story

The ZF Fairlane brochure

Crayons

by Mr Ivan

I busted up my crayons
Colorin' maps and doin' art,
So I keep the pieces in my pocket,
And I think that's pretty smart.
That way they're real handy
When I need them real quick.
I just peek into my pocket
And decide which one to pick.
I use magenta for my homework,
And for science I use green.
But for spelling I need yellow
So my mistakes are hardly seen.
Black is what I use in history…
All them men and wars and dates.
I also press down real hard
(It helps to keep things straight!)
Now, blue I save for numbers
'Cuz that is how I feel.
My math grade's always sorta low,
So blue's perfect…it's ideal.
I write stories in all colours,
Saving orange for nouns and such.
And brown I use for adverbs
'Cuz I don't understand them much.
My teacher mustn't like my work,
For he only shakes his head.
He takes my colourful papers,
Then he marks them up in RED!

Escape

Three lunatics attempting to escape from a mental hospital; the first one passes the guard, makes a sound of a cat, and continues. The second one does exactly the same, meowing like a cat, and gets out, too. The third then passes near the guard and yell, “I’m a cat, too!”

Fairlane Story

And, while the six cylinder and 302ci V8 engines were also unchanged, the big 351ci V8 was now of the more modern Cleveland type, but fitted with a two barrel carb and rated at 250hp.

Listen

“Doubt yourself and you doubt everything you see. Judge yourself and you see judges everywhere. But if you listen to the sound of your own voice, you can rise above doubt and judgment. And you can see forever.” -- Nancy Lopez

Whoa there!

“Is your new horse well-behaved Charles?”
“Oh, yes Phil. When we come to a fence, he stops and lets me go over first.”

Fairlane Story

Inside the rather spartan dash was unchanged.

The Power of Determination

by Jack Canfield

One of the most important qualities you will need to develop in order to continue taking action is persistence. You must be persistent in your disciplines and habits; perseverant in the face of adversity, hardship and challenge; and determined to achieve your dreams, no matter what. There will be many times when you will want to quit, give up, and go back to doing something else, but the one quality that will guarantee your success is the willingness to stick with it, to see it through to the end -- to refuse to settle for anything less than your dream.

The longer you hang in there, the greater the chance that something will happen in your favour. No matter how hard it seems, the longer you persist, the more likely your success will be. Adversity and Discouragement Is Inevitable No matter how well you plan and how well you execute your plan, you are bound to meet with disappointments, adversity and failure along the way to your ultimate triumph. Sometimes, you'll encounter what seem like overwhelming odds. And sometimes, the Universe will test your commitment to the goal you're pursuing.

The going may be hard, and may require you to refuse to give up while you learn new lessons, develop new parts of yourself, and make difficult decisions. And, adversity is what gives you the opportunity to develop your inner resources of character and courage. Adversity is a great teacher. It will test you and make you stronger. But you have to hang in there and not give up!

More than 4000 years ago in China, Confucius wrote: "Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall."

How to Deal with Obstacles
Whenever you confront an obstacle or run into a roadblock, you need to stop and brainstorm three ways to get around it, over it, or through it. For every obstacle, come up with three different strategies for handling the potential obstacle. There are any number of ways that till work, but you will only find them if you spend time looking for them. Always be solution-oriented in your thinking. Persevere until you find a way that works.

Ssshhhhhh

A guy was driving when a policeman pulled him over. He rolled down his window and said to the officer, "Is there a problem, Officer?"
"No problem at all. I just observed your safe driving and am pleased to award you a $5,000 Safe Driver Award. Congratulations. What do you think you're going to do with the money?"
He thought for a minute and said, "Well, I guess I'll go get that drivers' license."
The lady sitting in the passenger seat said to the policeman, "Oh, don't pay attention to him - he's a smartass when he's drunk and stoned."
The guy from the back seat said, "I TOLD you guys we wouldn't get far in a stolen car!"
At that moment, there was a knock from the trunk and a muffled voice said, "Are we over the border yet?"

Fairlane Story

The tail-lights have now become two sections - red over amber - with a chrome divider.

Success

"I've failed over and over again in my life and that is why I succeed." Michael Jordan, basketball legend

Church

A Sunday school teacher asked her little children, as they were on the way to church service, "And why is it necessary to be quiet in church?"
One bright little girl replied, "Because people are sleeping."

Fairlane Story

The ZD Fairlane featured a new grille which was plastic, and therefore was quite radical for cars of that time. The style is noticably different from that of the ZC.

A COLLECTION OF THOSE TOTALLY USELESS AND ENDLESSLY FASCINATING FACTS YOU FIND ON THE INTERNET

Nose hairs are called "vibrissae."
Potatoes are not mentioned in the Bible.
The world's population is increasing by almost a quarter million people a day.
With each breath, you exchange about 1/6 of the air in your lungs.
All sturgeon caught in British waters legally belong to the Queen.
The technical name for a kazoo is a membranophone.
Milk cartons were invented in Sweden.
As many as 80,000 bees can belong to one beehive.
The sound of thunder travels about 1,100 feet per second. The light from a lightning bolt travels at, well, the speed of light, about 186,000 miles per second. So, if 5 seconds pass between seeing the bolt and hearing the thunder, it means the bolt was about a mile away.
Butterflies travel at about 12 miles per hour.
Burglaries are only the 7th most frequent cause of burglar alarms going off. Owner error is #1.
The sun converts more than 4 million tons of matter into energy every second.
The smell of peppermint has been found to improve the concentration of office workers.
The @ symbol, so common nowadays due to e-mail, is 500 years old.
Flies hum in the key of F.
20% of all road accidents in Sweden involve a moose.
In a single hour, your heart uses as much energy as it would take to lift a ton three feet off the ground.
In a lifetime, a human heart pumps enough blood to fill 45 oil tankers.
Six standard Lego pieces, with 8 posts, can be combined together in more than 100 million ways.
A person grows about 7 miles of hair per year.
The Pacific Ocean holds about 6 sextillion gallons of water (that's a 6 with 21 zeroes).
It takes about 100 years for a tin can to disintegrate completely.
Twelve people have walked on the Moon. Four of them were left-handed.
Only about 1/3 of the world's population eats with a fork