Mark Shea
@markcshea.bsky.social
Western Mass, college writing and applied linguistics
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Saul" shared this photo of a crew harvesting broccoli in Salinas, CA. "To harvest rapidly we need to be bent over as we walk and cut the crop. In the rainy season the rows are full of mud. It's slippery and extremely tiring to walk like this all day." #WeFeedYou
December 10, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Saul" shared this photo of a crew harvesting broccoli in Salinas, CA. "To harvest rapidly we need to be bent over as we walk and cut the crop. In the rainy season the rows are full of mud. It's slippery and extremely tiring to walk like this all day." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
New this morning in The Important Work, from Babson English prof Shannon Mooney: what the em dash debate can tell us about why students use AI to write their papers--and how she's grappling with that in the classroom. theimportantwork.substack.com/p/chatgpt-an...
ChatGPT and "Inventing the University"
What we can learn from the em dash debate
theimportantwork.substack.com
December 10, 2025 at 12:37 PM
New this morning in The Important Work, from Babson English prof Shannon Mooney: what the em dash debate can tell us about why students use AI to write their papers--and how she's grappling with that in the classroom. theimportantwork.substack.com/p/chatgpt-an...
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Lola" is harvesting apples in Washington State. "We need to buy our own scissors and bag to do the job. The scissors cost $35 and the bag costs $90. Right now it's peak season and the trees are full of apples. If we work fast we can make around $140 in 8 hours. " #WeFeedYou
December 7, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Lola" is harvesting apples in Washington State. "We need to buy our own scissors and bag to do the job. The scissors cost $35 and the bag costs $90. Right now it's peak season and the trees are full of apples. If we work fast we can make around $140 in 8 hours. " #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
Your hands are covered in little men. And the little men can make you sick if you don’t give them a bath. Sometimes they make other people sick too. Please give the little men a bath! I’m not crazy! Just listen to me! Bathe the little men on your hands! This is real! Get the men wet, you fools!
December 3, 2025 at 8:46 PM
Your hands are covered in little men. And the little men can make you sick if you don’t give them a bath. Sometimes they make other people sick too. Please give the little men a bath! I’m not crazy! Just listen to me! Bathe the little men on your hands! This is real! Get the men wet, you fools!
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Ian" shares, "I work 10 hrs/day in Salinas CA operating agricultural machinery that harvests different types of lettuce. My job requires effort & dedication. It's essential to keep the soil fertile and ready so it continues to produce food for our holiday tables." #WeFeedYou
December 3, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Ian" shares, "I work 10 hrs/day in Salinas CA operating agricultural machinery that harvests different types of lettuce. My job requires effort & dedication. It's essential to keep the soil fertile and ready so it continues to produce food for our holiday tables." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
Brussels sprouts grow upright on a tough, woody stem. This picture is a partly mechanized harvest, but a crew of workers used machetes to cut off the stalks in the field, while another worker trims off the leaves as he feeds the stalks into the machine. It's grueling work especially when it is hot.
November 26, 2025 at 7:40 PM
Brussels sprouts grow upright on a tough, woody stem. This picture is a partly mechanized harvest, but a crew of workers used machetes to cut off the stalks in the field, while another worker trims off the leaves as he feeds the stalks into the machine. It's grueling work especially when it is hot.
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Arnulfo" shares, "These are heads of broccoli that I've harvested. I've been working in the fields of CAs Central Coast for 21 years. I plant and grow broccoli, lettuce, cauliflower, and other vegetables you probably will see on your #Thanksgiving tables." #WeFeedYou
November 27, 2025 at 3:01 PM
"Arnulfo" shares, "These are heads of broccoli that I've harvested. I've been working in the fields of CAs Central Coast for 21 years. I plant and grow broccoli, lettuce, cauliflower, and other vegetables you probably will see on your #Thanksgiving tables." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
Your Thanksgiving gravy tastes better when you use union mushrooms. Let's give a huge thanks to workers like "Adan" who harvest mushrooms for Monterey Mushrooms under a UFW contract. On an average day, he picks 240-280 of the blue baskets you see in this vid. #WeFeedYou
November 22, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Your Thanksgiving gravy tastes better when you use union mushrooms. Let's give a huge thanks to workers like "Adan" who harvest mushrooms for Monterey Mushrooms under a UFW contract. On an average day, he picks 240-280 of the blue baskets you see in this vid. #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Cynthia" harvest strawberries in Oxnard CA. "This day it was very difficult to do my job because of the rain. The rows we need to walk through in the strawberry field were full of water. This makes it very difficult to work as it is extremely slippery." #WeFeedYou
November 21, 2025 at 12:00 AM
"Cynthia" harvest strawberries in Oxnard CA. "This day it was very difficult to do my job because of the rain. The rows we need to walk through in the strawberry field were full of water. This makes it very difficult to work as it is extremely slippery." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
OpenAI Reveals ChatGPT Primarily Used To Ask If Hot Dog Too Old To Eat https://theonion.com/openai-reveals-chatgpt-primarily-used-to-ask-if-hot-dog-too-old-to-eat/
November 20, 2025 at 9:00 PM
OpenAI Reveals ChatGPT Primarily Used To Ask If Hot Dog Too Old To Eat https://theonion.com/openai-reveals-chatgpt-primarily-used-to-ask-if-hot-dog-too-old-to-eat/
Reposted by Mark Shea
A crew in McFarland, CA worked to pick the last lemons left in these orchards. Workers are paid piece rate for each of the large 900 lb bins seen in this picture. They earn a lot less during this late season, but that’s true almost everywhere this time of year. #WeFeedYou
November 20, 2025 at 9:00 PM
A crew in McFarland, CA worked to pick the last lemons left in these orchards. Workers are paid piece rate for each of the large 900 lb bins seen in this picture. They earn a lot less during this late season, but that’s true almost everywhere this time of year. #WeFeedYou
For an ongoing ed activity in our peer writing center, mentors met in pairs to discuss this post. Here are the discussion prompts we used--please use and adapt as you like!
marksheaappliedlinguistics.com/2025/11/19/g...
marksheaappliedlinguistics.com/2025/11/19/g...
I’ve been reading a lot of good discussion about the problems of using AI to grade student work, which has left me thinking again about how embedded these tools are becoming while many students are still learning little/nothing about them. theimportantwork.substack.com/p/at-my-high...
At my high school no one is talking about AI
But everyone is using it
theimportantwork.substack.com
November 19, 2025 at 10:07 PM
For an ongoing ed activity in our peer writing center, mentors met in pairs to discuss this post. Here are the discussion prompts we used--please use and adapt as you like!
marksheaappliedlinguistics.com/2025/11/19/g...
marksheaappliedlinguistics.com/2025/11/19/g...
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Julio" is pruning orange tree in Fresno CA. "I earn min wage and work 7 hrs a day. I get very tired. I'm working from my knees a lot of the time and I need to cut thick trunks so my hands hurt. But this work is necessary so there will be a good harvest next season. #WeFeedYou
November 18, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Julio" is pruning orange tree in Fresno CA. "I earn min wage and work 7 hrs a day. I get very tired. I'm working from my knees a lot of the time and I need to cut thick trunks so my hands hurt. But this work is necessary so there will be a good harvest next season. #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Val" sent us this video of where she would normally be pruning almond trees saying, "The rainy season has arrived in the San Joaquin Valley. This means we aren't able to work. Without this salary we are worried that we won't be able to pay our rent or buy food." #WeFeedYou
November 18, 2025 at 3:00 AM
"Val" sent us this video of where she would normally be pruning almond trees saying, "The rainy season has arrived in the San Joaquin Valley. This means we aren't able to work. Without this salary we are worried that we won't be able to pay our rent or buy food." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
Reposted by Mark Shea
Workers in the Soledad area are harvesting celery. These workers often develop chronic back pain due to the repetitive motion. "Raul" shares, "We don't have time to rest or stand for more than two or three seconds." #WeFeedYou
November 16, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Workers in the Soledad area are harvesting celery. These workers often develop chronic back pain due to the repetitive motion. "Raul" shares, "We don't have time to rest or stand for more than two or three seconds." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Julio" shares: wine harvesting work is very meticulous. The quality of the finished wine is determined by the condition of the grapes we pick. We need to carefully get rid of the leaves without damageing the grapes. Our skill produces great tasting wine. #WeFeedYou
November 15, 2025 at 9:01 PM
"Julio" shares: wine harvesting work is very meticulous. The quality of the finished wine is determined by the condition of the grapes we pick. We need to carefully get rid of the leaves without damageing the grapes. Our skill produces great tasting wine. #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Marie" sent us this photo saying: "Here we are harvesting sweet potatoes in Merced County CA. We begin working at 4am. It is hard to see at this hour as we sort the potatoes and distinguish their size and shape just using lamps." #WeFeedYou
November 14, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Marie" sent us this photo saying: "Here we are harvesting sweet potatoes in Merced County CA. We begin working at 4am. It is hard to see at this hour as we sort the potatoes and distinguish their size and shape just using lamps." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
take a moment, close your eyes, inhale deeply, exhale, and then imagine hearing "livvy" in RFK jr's voice
November 14, 2025 at 5:37 PM
take a moment, close your eyes, inhale deeply, exhale, and then imagine hearing "livvy" in RFK jr's voice
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Eri" sent this pic saying, "There's a cold rain here in Soledad CA, but we're still out in the field harvesting broccoli, so families across the country can eat. Farm workers deserve dignity, protection and respect for our work." #WeFeedYou
November 14, 2025 at 12:30 AM
"Eri" sent this pic saying, "There's a cold rain here in Soledad CA, but we're still out in the field harvesting broccoli, so families across the country can eat. Farm workers deserve dignity, protection and respect for our work." #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Martin" is cultivating young lettuce plants in Gonzalez CA. His skilled work allows the soil to better utilize water so the lettuce grows larger and fuller. #WeFeedYou
November 12, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Martin" is cultivating young lettuce plants in Gonzalez CA. His skilled work allows the soil to better utilize water so the lettuce grows larger and fuller. #WeFeedYou
Reposted by Mark Shea
Musk: i reada da frankenstein
Mary Shelley: motherfucker
Shelley: you better not get this one wrong
Shelley: i literally could not spell it out any more obviously
Mus: itsa about how meddling in da domain ova god is good!
Shelley: MOTHER
Shelley: FUCKER
Mary Shelley: motherfucker
Shelley: you better not get this one wrong
Shelley: i literally could not spell it out any more obviously
Mus: itsa about how meddling in da domain ova god is good!
Shelley: MOTHER
Shelley: FUCKER
November 11, 2025 at 4:49 PM
Musk: i reada da frankenstein
Mary Shelley: motherfucker
Shelley: you better not get this one wrong
Shelley: i literally could not spell it out any more obviously
Mus: itsa about how meddling in da domain ova god is good!
Shelley: MOTHER
Shelley: FUCKER
Mary Shelley: motherfucker
Shelley: you better not get this one wrong
Shelley: i literally could not spell it out any more obviously
Mus: itsa about how meddling in da domain ova god is good!
Shelley: MOTHER
Shelley: FUCKER
Reposted by Mark Shea
The funniest thing happening in Houston is that the personal injury Pusch-Nguyen has broken up in spectacular fashion,and Pusch replaced Nguyen with a guy named Wynne.
I can't find my pics of the more obviously "we could be a yaoi-bait TV show teehee" themed ones, but here's this snap from when I was back on Htown for a funeral a couple months ago:
November 6, 2025 at 2:20 AM
The funniest thing happening in Houston is that the personal injury Pusch-Nguyen has broken up in spectacular fashion,and Pusch replaced Nguyen with a guy named Wynne.
Since I read @gretchenmcc.bsky.social and @superlinguo.bsky.social on lingcomm last year, I’ve been keeping an eye out for examples of curiosity in public discourse. This is nice one (McCulloch and Gawne link in reply)
I vascillated on sharing this. My grandma wouldn’t approve.
I am sharing it because Milo is a doll, I’ve had a rough few weeks, I never got a proper libra season and he describes me the one way that makes me feel seen: I am curious.
thehometownholler.substack.com/p/the-very-m...
I am sharing it because Milo is a doll, I’ve had a rough few weeks, I never got a proper libra season and he describes me the one way that makes me feel seen: I am curious.
thehometownholler.substack.com/p/the-very-m...
The Very Model of a Modern Public Intellectual
Choose Your Fighter! This week I pick Tressie McMillan Cottom.
thehometownholler.substack.com
November 3, 2025 at 11:06 PM
Since I read @gretchenmcc.bsky.social and @superlinguo.bsky.social on lingcomm last year, I’ve been keeping an eye out for examples of curiosity in public discourse. This is nice one (McCulloch and Gawne link in reply)
Reposted by Mark Shea
"Tomas" shared this video from Madera County, CA. "The almond harvesting season is ending, but right now there is still work. We are paid minimum wage to chop up the trees that fell or broke due to the weather or the shaker machines." #WeFeedYou
November 3, 2025 at 9:00 PM
"Tomas" shared this video from Madera County, CA. "The almond harvesting season is ending, but right now there is still work. We are paid minimum wage to chop up the trees that fell or broke due to the weather or the shaker machines." #WeFeedYou