Zulmara Cline has a nice new teaching tool for her literacy classes at Cal State San Marcos; a short story published in the newly released "Chicken Soup for the Latino Soul."
Cline answered an online call for submissions to the latest of the popular "Chicken Soup" series, which has sold more than 80 million copies worldwide. Her story, "The Bear," recalls Cline's struggle to leave home and traditional family expectations to attend college.
She finds support for her choice from her divorced mother, who gives her, as she prepares to depart, a battered Paddington Bear bearing the message, "Please, take care of this bear."
This book provides the widest audience for any of the education professor's published works, most of which appear in professional journals.
"My sister said, 'Finally, you've been published in something people read,' " Cline said.
The book shows Latino culture from many different perspectives, said Cline. Sharing her story with others is important, she added, because "A lot of Latino students go through the same type of thing as far as respecting the culture, but not necessarily being defined by the culture."
"Some have a hard time breaking away from the family norm, when the family doesn't want them to go away to college."
Signing off and on: Bobbin and Pete Kraeger, founders and owners of A Graphic Edge in downtown Escondido, have sold their sign company after 11-plus years. Pete will continue as a salesman for the trio of new owners, Gregory Pilon, Casey Pritchett and Kaseem Baker. Bobbin, who has served on boards of both the Downtown Business Association and Escondido Chamber of Commerce, looks to travel in a somewhat familiar direction, doing voice-over work for radio and television commercials and perhaps do a little acting. She also wants to spend more time "being a mother" to her 14-year-old daughter. Bobbin goes back a long way in the radio biz, having worked using her maiden name Bobbin Beam as a disc jockey and program director at stations, including KGB and KFMB in San Diego.
Quick hits: An editor here wondered about the message being sent by a cardboard sign in front of Del Dios Middle School on Wednesday reading "Busses only." Some kind of kissing zone, perhaps? A call to the school set off a scramble for dictionaries by staff members, who confirmed that "busses" is an acceptable alternative as the plural of "bus." … A fax from the U.S. Government Printing Office elicited a few office chuckles Thursday. While the agency's name came through clearly, the remainder of the text was unreadable.
Contact staff columnist Jeff Frank at (760) 740-5419 or jfrank@nctimes.com.
