Burke.Word

[Ed: After a long hiatus, Ed(mund)ification is back!  Edmundification is a periodic safari in search of the heart and mind of the various exotic inhabitants of the Serengeti that we call Burke.  Patterned on Vanity Fair’s Proust Questionnaire, we pose a series of semi-incriminating questions to a BurkeWorld teacher, student, parent, alumnus, or pet.  Think of it as a cross between Wild Kingdom, Inside the Actor’s Studio and gossip rag TMZ.  You can check out past editions of Ed(mund)ification here.]

Math whiz, Michelle Johncock, has said that, although she loves to run, she won’t do more than a half marathon.  Burke.Word finds this hard to believe, because Michelle does nothing half way.  If you are in battle, on the soccer field or against an algebraic equation, you want Michelle on your side.  No matter the size of the opponent or the odds, she comes armed and ready to “throw down” with the same clarity of purpose, energy and fearlessness (trust me, I’ve seen what she’s done to much larger, hairier soccer opponents). Want more proof, check out the slideshow of Michelle performing the alternate story of the 3 Little Pigs.  Or you can take a look at how easily she dispatched the following marathon of questions (in minutes, btw)!

What is the most embarrassing song on your ipod?
When all my CD’s were stolen from my car 6 years ago a VERY sweet Burke XC runner made me two mix CD’s laden with country music and Disney tunes…I currently own both Kenny Chesney’s “Keg in the Closet” and Phil Collins singing “Be a Man.”

I wish I knew how to…
Play the piano.  Thew?

Tell us a piece of good or bad advice you’ve received that will stay with you.
When I was 15 Atis Kleinbergs once told me that you should never be dependent upon someone else for your happiness.  You gotta know how to make yourself happy first and foremost.  Best advice I ever got.

What can’t you live without?
Music… and the ocean.

What do you really care about?

Education, theatre, my friends, my family…

Is there other sentient life out in the universe? – What’s it like?

You should see the other guy

Hells yeah, cause if not, it’s an awful waste of space.  It’s like us, only better looking, better smelling and without pollution.

Do you sing in the shower or the car?
Not as much in the shower but like crazy in the car.

What phrase do you use too often?
“You cannot distribute a power over addition or subtraction!”

What mild mannered person at Burke is secretly a super hero?  What’s their power?  What’s their super name?
Wendel is definitely a super hero.  His super power is so secretive I’m not sure he even knows what it is, but it involves a bike helmet. He is known as Lednew…

What’s your super power?
Wouldn’t you like to know…

Truth is…
In the ear of the listener.

Beauty is…
Being able to see past the obvious. Oh, and a good Fibonacci series.

Head, shoulders, Thew & toes

What are you thinking when you are running?
I’m usually solving the world’s problems. That or trying to get a single track of a song out of my head. At times I’m just thinking, “Molly – slow down.”

Where do you most like to hang out at or near Burke?
Thew’s room. Or with Karma.

What have you learned while at Burke?
Expo marker dust does not come out of clothing or shoes.

What’s your most vivid memory of your time at Burke?
When Aaron P, Stephanie B, Stacy and I shrunk the atrium – replacing every piece of furniture with an exact miniature replica – (which bothered the seniors to NO END).  The homecoming prank was then a convoluted and fabulous investigation into how this happened featuring Monica as Daniel R, Daniel as Monica, Oliver dressed in pink and green spandex and a moment when the shrinking ray hit Stephanie and she turned into Helen Chow.  Good times.

If you could change one thing about education what would it be?
The over-emphasis on advancing students before they’re cognitively ready.  It is frustrating to pretend that a. everyone can learn the same thing at the same pace, b. that somehow doing Calculus a year earlier than another person (or at all for that matter) makes you smarter than that person, and c. that challenge doesn’t come in all different shapes and sizes.  School curriculum should be a rich and exciting ocean to swim in, not a stagnant pool to just get to the other side of as fast a possible.

Tell us about a time when you were really happy.
I jumped off the tallest bungee in the world when I was in SA and I was giddy and enormously relieved when it was over. I was with two of my favorite friends and I was two weeks from going home.  There was so much going on to be happy about.

Close your eyes… what do you see yourself doing in 10 years?
I don’t know, and that’s the way I like it.

What scares you the most?
I’m frightened of waking up one day and realizing that I passively allowed my or my friend’s rights to be taken away.  It’s hard to know when the right time is to get involved in an issue or an idea, but since I’m usually ten minutes late to everything there’s a good chance I’ve already missed out on something important. As Edmund Burke said, “All that is needed for evil to triumph is good men to do nothing,” or something like that.  I don’t want to do nothing. 

What role in a play or movie would you most like to play?
I’ve always wanted to be a stunt-woman – so it’s not so much a role as a job…

What is success?
Realizing that while there is more you want to do, you have the capabilities and opportunities in your grasp to do those things.

Who do you think that Edmundification should spotlight next?
Daniel Running – he saw me get this email and is desperately jealous.

What question would you like to ask the next Edmundification Celebrity?
What’s the secret to the universe?

With Ceviche

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