Amazon to Ebay...Surf'in the summer waves!

This summer I decided it was time to clean up our computer room. Since I have gone back to grad school it has become the collection point for all my things from school and work. The books were starting to pile up and it was time to get organized. I started to drive to the college book store to return books and then I had an idea. What about selling them online? I had purchased all of my books online, mostly from Amazon due to their free shipping and fast response. I have sold items on Ebay and found it easy to use Amazon to sell my books. I not only have sold most of them, but now find myself listing and selling books for friends. So far I have sold about 10 books this summer. I have managed to make at least half of what I paid for them, so that is much better than what the bookstore used to give me in college!

When I haven't been selling online this summer, well of course I have been shopping. Ebay is a great place to find graduation gifts. I wanted college fleece throws for former students going out of state to school. I found them and had them shipped and in my hands within a week. I even found a cool laser monogrammed wood pen and business card holder and pen for a male graduate. So when it gets too hot to get out in Texas turn on your computer and go shopping!

Facebook...watch out Grandpa wants to be your friend!

Facebook...it all started out so simple. A friend had an account and suggested I try it, it's "really fun". Since I was taking web2.0 I opened an account and tried it out. I started out with a few friends and checked it every now and then. After moving five hours away, I have reconnected online with former colleagues, college friends, friends from grade school and even friends living abroad. I now have more friends online than probably in the nearby cities where I live. I must admit to find myself logging in more often and spending way too much time looking at folks photos and posts. I have managed to avoid the games, but some of the polls and quizzes reel me in. Facebook is a way for forty somethings to stay connected with old friends and family. Now not only do I find my former students, colleagues and friends their parents are joining in the fun! One of the fastest growing segments has become people in their 50's and older. So watch out next time you log on... you never know who might be requesting to be your friend!

Skype Me!

I am sure you have heard the word but perhaps you have not yet experienced the wonder of Skyping! I too had heard about this free internet calling system but hadn't used it. You download the program for free and with your computer you can talk to people around the world for free. I had found along lost friend from high school on facebook and she now lives in Guatemala. She was anxious to talk and see each other and urged me to try Skype. I downloaded it in less than 15 minutes and watched the short tutorial. Then later that evening we talked on Skype! Wow how amazing was it to see Ana in her living room in Guatemala in realtime and talk to her. I look forward to more Skyping in the future and trying a conference call via Skype. If you try Skype there are a few things to watch for your settings on your webcam must be clicked on, the blue button on the right of the screen and your speakers on your computer must be turned up. Other than that it is really easy and fun!

MapMash... A cool tool!

Wow a cool new web 2.0 tool I found is http://mapmash.googlepages.com/. It has several features but my all time new favorite mapmash uses the best of citysearch restaurants paired with google maps. It shows you the locations of the best restaurants in your city! Cool! There are also mapmashes showing predictions for electoral votes, best places to shop, transit maps, news maps and so much more. This is a really cool site to waste time on or use to narrow your search for a new restaurant!

Ike Humor...Because if you can't laugh Ike wins!

Top Ike Related T-shirt Slogans

Ike Rocked My World
Ike 1 Houston 0
How big was your storm surge?
Got IKE?
Just Rebuild It
Ike.... Is that all you got?
No Likey Ikey
I've Been Iked
I survived Ike and all I have left is this T-shirt
I didn't vote for Ike

Top 10 Good Results of Ike
1. Low electric bill (no electricity still)
2. Low water bill
3. Low grocery bill
4. Low gas bill (don't want to use b/c of shortages)
5. Got to know neighbors and see them at our worst
6. No papers to grade ( no school for 6 days so far)
7. Not having to get up early
8. Getting time to spend with family
9. Got to visit niece and nephew in San Antonio and eat lunch at their schools
10. Got to spend time with loved ones and hubby (no power at his work all week, so off)

Top Baby Names for those Ike Babies... What else could folks do this week...
Ike (okay its an easy one)
Stormy
Gale
Wendy

Hubby and I wrote these. After 5 nights with my parents the house was getting really small!!!! We needed air, space, a change of scenery and channels without 24/7 IKE coverage. Our house was without electricity for 12 days. Lots of downed pine trees/power lines... Fortunately just roof damage and loss of all fridge stuff, we have great friends and family to keep us and put up with our crazy emotions. Uncertaintly is hard... Hubby has not worked all week either due to no power at his job. We both needed to get away... see traffic lights that work, no lines for gas, watch IKE free TV, relax... Pray for those that are so much worse off and lost everything. My friend's 80 yr old grandparents lost everything and will have to start over. We were very blessed it is just a minor inconvenience for us. Focusing on these humorous things helped us to laugh a bit and start to relax. Hope you find humor in them too.

Oprah's New Booklist for Kids!

Oprah has just added to her site a new annotated booklist for kids. It is divided by age into five sections and even provides tips to help parents read with their children.

Also here is Oprah's speech to Stanford's graduates June 14, 2008. She reminded the students that there will be failures along life's journey and the importance of learning from our mistakes. She stressed the importance of our failures in shaping us as humans. She encouraged the students to use their gifts to make the world a better place and to enjoy the great things that are sure to come along life's journey.

I have enjoyed watching her show this summer, now it is back to taping it and watching it on the weekends. Perhaps someday when I retire I can actually attend a taping. She is an amazing woman who has impacted the life of so many through her voice. She has brought so many important issues to the forefront and now with her booklist for kids she will help to encourage parents to read with their child. Reading is so crucial to a child's success in school and in life!

Twenty Years!

Twenty years ago I graduated from A & M and started teaching. Where has time gone? Now some of those students are starting their own teaching careers. The best advice I have gleaned through the years is...Don't try to do everything at once, add one thing at a time. Don't stay at the school past 5 you will just waste time and end up very tired. Take care of yourself, if you aren't feeling well you won't do your students any good. Laugh!!! Smile!!!Enjoy each day! Keep all your sweet notes from parents and students they will help to lift your spirits on the bad days. Because they will come as they do with any job. And never ever wear a smock dress! :)

Tomorrow I start my twentieth year and I still love teaching. Seeing the smile on a child's face when they finally understand multiplication or another concept is super. But seeing my students return to share their triumphs in their life is the absolute best. I am so proud of them! Each is special and unique and a part of me. We have laughed and learned together and had a lot of fun! Have a great school year!

Text Messaging is it harming our students writing?

A recent article in the Baltimore Sun begs the question is texting harming our student's ability to write? Many English teachers can relate to grading papers with LOL, BFF, OMG, L8R and other abbreviations included throughout the papers. I cringed a few years ago while grading my sixth graders bookreports that were laden with mistakes. However, then I had a thought... What if we are on the edge of a new language emerging. Soon these abbreviations will creep into the dictionary and into our everyday language. They are already appearing in commercial advertisements (ADS). Perhaps one day they will become everyday language and acceptable in writing. Just a thought! Once I am sure it was terribly improper to say Ad instead of advertisement but or TV instead of television. Just as the thee and thou's have gone by the wayside perhaps someday so will our expanded form of writing as texting and email become more commonplace. Just a thought...

Ten things I learned this summer taking INST 6031!

1. Online classes are demanding, especially tech ones in a five week session
2. Read the text, flag and highlight it before you take the online timed test! Answer questions you know first skip others and then return to them. Get an answer on everyone and then recheck those still uncertain about.
3. Be organized and you can achieve anything. This class had 17 assignments, 12 tests, 3 major projects in five weeks. Sounded impossible but I took it one step at a time and made it!
4. Take breaks to keep your sanity!
5. Don't sweat a point here and there if you still end up with a good grade.
6. Nothing worth learning is easy.
7. There is always something new to learn technology wise even in programs you already think you know. Thought I knew word, powerpoint, excel and access pretty well. Learned so many things this summer.
8. Some things that sound the hardest like making cam studio videos, converting text files to pdf and zipping files are actually easy.
9. You can do anything for five weeks... I lived under extreme stress with the demands of this class but persevered and made an A!!!!
10. Nothing is sweeter than finishing something difficult and succeeding!

Bluebonnets in July?

Wow, today I realized July is almost half over and soon I will be flipping the calendar to August. When I flip that calendar suddenly everything goes into high gear getting prepared for a new school year. I decided to look at the TXLA website today and print out the Bluebonnet list for 08-09 before I head to the bookstore. I was pleased to find a great list of read alouds and even reader's theaters for several of the books. Thought I would share here. If you teach the lower grades or middleschool those lists can be found there as well as resources to teach.