Reading Friday

Welcome to another installment of Reading Friday! I read two books this past week:

1. The Winner's Curse by Marie Rutkoski. After reading Rutkoski's interview on the Greater Rochester Teen Book Festival blog, I read the ARC of this novel.*

Kestrel is the daughter of a general. She has the choice either to marry or go into her father's army. Kestrel accompanies her friend, Jess, to the town's marketplace during a slave auction. Kestrel is in a heated bidding war with another person over the slave, who is a young man the same age as Kestrel. She wins him after bidding a large sum of money; hence, the winner's curse. Kestrel is fascinated by the slave, Smith (Arin), and wants to know his background. Smith is guarded about how much he lets Kestrel know about himself--he has secrets.

While I was put off by the cover of the book (how many YA books have covers with young ladies suffering from ennui in fancy dresses?), I really enjoyed this book! I especially like Rutkoski's characters; Kestrel is a strong female character who makes mistakes. Smith (Arin), Kestrel's slave, is headstrong and torn between loyalty and romance. Rutkoski's style kept me reading--I had to know what was going to happen next.

The novel ended a bit abruptly, but I believe this is the first in a trilogy. I'm excited to read the next installment.

The Winner's Curse is scheduled to be released on March 4.

2. A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

I read this book in less than an hour. Linda Sue Park weaves the stories of two people from South Sudan together. One is Salva Dut, the real-life founder of Water for South Sudan. He is one of the Lost Boys of the Sudan in the 1980s/1990s. The other is Nya, a fictional girl living in a Sudanese village in 2008. Nya walks to the nearest freshwater source for her village every day-- it takes her most of the day walking to fetch water for her family. Through the two narratives, the reader is able to see the war in Sudan and how that has affected the Sudanese people over the past 20 years.

Everyone should read this book. I didn't realize how much the Lost Boys struggled during the war. Although I knew that fresh water is a problem for many people in Africa, I didn't realize the extent of the problem. This book exposed me to lives outside my realm of experiences.

Overall, it was an awesome week for reading!

*NOTE: My friend who went to NCTE picked up the ARC at one of the publisher's tables. I am not compensated in anyway for my book reviews on my blog.

How I Became an Impact Teacher

There are four stages to teaching: fantasy, survival, mastery , and impact. Very few teachers reach the stage of impact teacher; for that is the stage that changes one's students' lives for the better. We've seen popular images of the impact teacher in movies and on TV: Stand and Deliver, Dead Poets Society,* etc.

In the different articles I've read about teaching, the third year is when the new teacher finally feels competent in the classroom. Year five is when the teacher begins on her journey to mastery. Very few teachers make it to the impact stage.

Call me precocious, but it was in my fourth year of teaching that I made an impact on my students.

Before I turned to the "dark side" a.k.a. library science, I was an 11th grade English teacher. The school where I taught had in-house subbing; that is, if a colleague was out, one subbed for him/her during her free period. One of my colleagues, a 10th grade English teacher, was out for the week and I was assigned to sub for one of her classes. Her sub plan was this: Have the student's watch Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet.

Mind you, I didn't preview the movie. I assumed the classroom teacher did. In fact, I barely remembered watching parts of the movie when I studied Romeo and Juliet as a 9th grader. I put in the tape, shushed the class and went ahead reading the research papers from my own students.

Throughout the movie, there was an undercurrent of murmuring conversation from the class. They obviously weren't paying attention. Every so often, I would glance up from my papers, shush them and go back to reading.

At one point, the whole class went dead silent. Much like having a toddler, when one hears silence, one knows something is wrong. I glanced up from my paper and got an eyeful of naked butt on the TV screen. I automatically blurted out, "Do not stare at the naked butt!"

This was a tactical error. Blurting out something like "do not stare at the naked butt" to a bunch of 15 year olds is not a wise idea. The class went wild. I fast forwarded the rest of the R&J butt scene, quieted them down and immersed myself back in correcting.

Fast forward a year. The students who were in the class in which I had subbed were now my 11th grade students. I had one particular student who would waddle up to the podium at the beginning of class and say, "Hey, Mrs. R! Remember when you showed us the naked butt last year?"

At first, I tried to deny it by saying I forgot about the butt. After the daily reminders, I finally said, "I didn't show you the butt on purpose. The butt was your teacher's sub plans. Blame your 10th grade teacher for the butt."

Alas, I still got the reminder.

Fast forward to a few years later when I had moved to my present school in my present position. I was talking to one of our teachers. She told me that her next door neighbor was one of my students when I taught ELA 11 and what he remembered most about me was that I showed him a butt.

It's nice to know that I have reached the level of impact teacher.

*One could argue that this also part of the fantasy phase of teaching--where one is going into the classroom, inspiring all the students and changing their lives together. Also, Dead Poets Society will be a post within itself at a later time.

Reading Thursday

I've been quiet the last few days. It's not that I don't have stuff to write about--I've been busy reading (my New Year's Resolution) and am involved in projects at work.

I have tried to do posts called "Reading Friday" which give a rundown of what I've read as of late, but I'm inconsistent. *shrugs* It happens. So I am going to do "Reading Thursday" today. Here's a list of the books I've read since my last reading post:

 

Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett. If you don't read Terry Pratchett, you should. His characters are hilarious, yet they accurately portray human nature. I loved this book!

Croak by Gina Damico.  Lex Bartelby is shipped off to her uncle's house in the Adirondacks after she caused havoc at her school. Could her behavior have to do with a family trait that Lex shares with her Uncle Mort? A fun read. Gina Damico is going to be at the Greater Rochester Teen Book Festival in May.

The Lord of Illusion by Kathryne Kennedy. I'm a sucker for fantasy romances. I read them and then I complain to my husband about them because I get disappointed. While I loved the premise of this book--Elven Lords have taken over England during the Regency era--the plot fell short about 2/3 of the way through. Having said that, I will try another one of the author's books because I enjoy the premise.

Cold Calls by Charles Benoit. Benoit has a gift in writing suspense. I really enjoyed this book because I had to keep reading to see what happens--I kept guessing at what the characters had done and how they would react. Highly recommend for people who like mystery.

So, dear readers, that's my run-down of my reading for the past month.

What are you reading?

My New Years Resolution

I know it's a little late to talk about New Years Resolutions. After all, most people have gone through and quit their resolutions by now.

I believe that the whole thing with resolutions is that you have to set out every day to do them and if you fall off the wagon, you get back on the next day.

So, my resolution is to spend less time online. I will still be blogging, as I see that as a creative outlet, but I am spending less time going through my Facebook newsfeed, my Twitter feed, Pinterest, etc.

And what I am going to do with that time?

*  Read a book. I've often lamented that I don't have enough time to read. I am unplugging and reading more. I can finally catch up on my giant TBR list and the tons of books sitting on my shelves at home.

*Learning new embroidery techniques. I've been cross stitching a lot more. There are some techniques I want to learn.

*Make cards for people. People like receiving hand made cards, I've found.

*Hang out with people--face to face. Instead of being insular and stuck to the screen, I want to see my friends more.

This resolution is going to be difficult; after all, I've spent the last four years of my life scrolling through my news feeds and living vicariously through others. But now it is time that I live my life.

Anyone want to go for coffee?

My Plan Involving Sauna Pants

I finally was able to hang out with my best friend, Amy, yesterday. I hadn't seen her in almost two weeks. She came over for lunch and then we decided to head out to the Shops at West Ridge because we enjoy walking through and giving a running commentary on their stuff. Amy found a particularly small, creepy doll in a display case. The vendor had put the doll in a bag. She claimed that the tiny dolls are the most dangerous because they are so small they can't eat your hair--they eat your eyelashes. That's why it had to not only be locked up, but also put in a bag. This way, it can't get out to chew on your eyelashes while you sleep.

As we were walking through, I updated Amy on my sister's wedding. I don't believe I mentioned it here on the blog--my sister, Katie, is getting married in April. It's a destination wedding in Florida. I'm one of the bridesmaids. Anyhow, as I was telling Amy yesterday, I've put off buying the bridesmaid dress. One reason for my procrastination is that I really don't have the discretionary money to sink into the dress. The second, and probably more pressing reason, is that I really, really despise going to David's Bridal. It is my own personal hell. It's loud, it's bright, and it is very...princess-y. Last time I was a bridesmaid, the consultant at David's said my arms were  like "tattooed sausages". Why the hell am I paying someone a handsome fee to insult me? I've spent the last year trying to build up my self-esteem. I really don't need a bridal consultant to tear it down by telling me that my body is not beautiful because I don't fit into the standardized American perception of beauty.

So, I haven't gone to pick up the damn dress yet. However, I did come up with alternatives to the dress that I'm sure my sister will be totally willing to entertain:

1. The gorilla suit.* On the corner of Lake Avenue and Stonewood, there is this sketchy-looking variety store. Outside of said store is an A-frame sign and a pink gorilla suit. I'm thinking I can pick up that gorilla suit for mad cheap--it's been outside for most of the winter and is right outside the tattoo parlor. People from the tattoo parlor go outside and smoke by the gorilla; I'm sure it has an aroma.

I know the gorilla suit is not "malibu"; it's pink. However, I'm sure a gallon of Clorox to bleach the suit and some dye in bright blue will bring the suit up to the wedding's standards. Plus, I'm sure the gorilla suit is very sturdy and the fake fur wouldn't mat in the dryer or fall out or anything. I'm pretty sure this plan will work out well and I will be standing on the beach in Florida not looking like a deranged Sully from Monsters Inc. with alopecia.

"Hey, kids!"

As Amy pointed out yesterday, "Your sister says she is a 'beachy girl'. You just shrug and tell her you are a 'gorilla suit girl.' She'll understand and think it's awesome!"

2. My second plan was inspired by a post on Retronaut:

I love how he is looking so lovingly at his woman wearing sauna pants. People will look lovingly at me, too.

I think these sauna pants with a coconut bra (Amy pointed out that I would need a top). If you look at the picture, the pants have a straw attached. I could keep a pina colada in there or something and sip it during the wedding. Another option would be to keep Green Goddess dressing in the pants, fill up a fanny pack with crudite, and keep the pina colada in the coconut bra (this would have a straw, too). I would offer snacks and drinks to the guests during the wedding. People would be really impressed with my sister's ingenuity at having a one-woman buffet run around during the ceremony. And I'm sure these people would be grossed out at the idea of drinking Green Goddess dressing from a straw out of my sauna pants.

I bet I could get custom sauna pants in Malibu blue, too.

The other benefit of wearing the sauna pants would be that I would lose a ton of water weight. Then I could go to David's Bridal without having my self-esteem cut to shreds because the consultants would wonder at my svedlt body and want to know my secrets. Of course, at that point, the wedding would be over, so I wouldn't have to go to David's Bridal anyway; and the consultants will never know my secret!

As much as I want to be a "gorilla suit kind of girl", I think I'm definitely a "sauna pants and coconut bra kind of girl." Due to the frequency of Amy and my visit's to the Shops on West Ridge, I'm pretty sure I will find these sauna pants. Hey, maybe the sketchy variety store carries them!

I bet my sister is going to read this post and think I'm freaking brilliant.

To the other bridesmaids who already bought the dress which I know we can't return: I'm really sorry that you already bought the dress and that my sister is having you go buy sauna pants from the 1970s. Get your money's worth from the bridesmaid dress and spend the next 10 Halloweens as a princess.

Just sayin'.

*My husband first posited the gorilla suit as an alternative to the bridesmaid's dress about a month ago. I can't take credit for the idea--just the idea of bleaching the hell out of it and dying it Malibu.

Another Day

A few days ago, I had posted about going to a used book store and I said, "That will be a post for another day."

Today is another day, dear reader.

I love used bookstores! With the advent of digital publishing and perhaps the decline in reading, used bookstores are like unicorns--you just don't see them around so much anymore. A few weeks ago, my friend, Amie,* and I were stalking used bookstores in the Rochester area online, and we finally found one in Spencerport, The Book Centre.

I liked the Book Centre. It is floor to ceiling with books. So many books. So many, many books. It's the kind of place where I think I could spend days browsing the stacks, but only can tolerate about 45 minutes before I have an information overload.

As we were browsing the mysteries, I heard some voices in the row of books behind me. Suddenly, a pile of heavy books about WWII aviation landed on my head, as well as a guide to birds. I stood stunned. A gentleman rounded the row and said, "Sorry about that."

"It's okay," I mumbled, rubbing the back of my head.

"Ah, here it is!," he said cheerily, picking up the bird guide.

I felt a little awkward, so I started picking up the books on aviation. "You can leave those. I'll get them," the cheerful man said.

It was like people got beamed in the head with heavy books every day.

I retreated into the paranormal romance section to lick my wounds. I had a hell of a head ache.

Later, when Amie and I stopped for coffee, I asked, "Do you think it would be ironic if I got killed by a stack of books on my day off?"

She smiled. "Yeah, it would probably become some sort of meme and go viral."

"Yeah, I can see that--Librarian Killed by Books. Oh, the hilarity." My head still hurt. I think the cheerful bookseller should have given me a free book for pain and suffering.

So, having said all this, I'm actually looking forward to going back to Book Centre. There's so much more there I want to pick through. I'm bringing a friend when I return, so I can have someone spot me as I browse. After all, I don't want to be that meme.

*I have a few friends named Amy. It is really confusing to people when I talk about "my friend, Amy" because it could be Amy, Amy or Amie. I think my Amys come across better in my blogging.
Having said that, there is Lora and Laurie, Colleen and Colleen. This is why my husband just nods when I tell him anecdotes about my friends.

Meme has nothing to do with this post. I just like it.

In defense of stupid

Mae Young. Photo from Fox Sports.

Back in college, I used to spend my down time reading classics and researching artists. I blew through Ayn Rand's The Fountainhead in two days--just for fun.* I researched T.S. Eliot because I wanted to know more about him--just for fun. I read Moby Dick in a day and a half--just for fun. I read about Andy Warhol's screen-printing processes--just for fun.

Amy and I started watching wrestling in grad school. Olean, NY has a huge wrestling fan base. I think we started to watch it in part to have something to talk about with our coworkers at Tops and Ames.** We also started to watch it to poke fun of it. However, I found myself being sucked into the storylines and impressed with the wrestlers.

Edge and Christian are my favorite and my best.

When I started teaching full-time, I found that I couldn't come home from work and snuggle up with the work of Charles Baudelaire or pick apart the layers of symbolism in William Blake. You can say what you want about teachers--but I tell you, the job is mentally and emotionally exhausting. I wanted to be entertained by something I didn't have to think about--at all.

And this is truly when I got sucked into the world of the WWE.

Amy and I used to watch Monday Night RAW religiously. We used to speculate about the story lines, including the fact that we could probably write more cohesively than the WWE writers. We went to the live events in Rochester and Buffalo. It was great fun! At one point, I had even charted out a cross stitch chart of Christian. Somehow, I messed up the dimensions in the stitching software and my finished project was going be about 7 ft. tall and 4 ft. wide. It would have taken a few hundred skeins of thread to complete. I decided that it would have to be my life's work to do this project. I imagined myself finishing the project when I was, like, 70 and presenting it to the Orangeville, Ontario Town Hall as a memento of one of their greatest sons.

This was not the original pic I was going to stitch. But imagine this about 7 ft. tall. Truly epic stitching, I tell ya!

Of course, I never actually stitched it.

I did find when I watched wrestling regularly, I treated myself better. After during my first year of teaching, I weighed close to 300 lbs. I couldn't climb a flight of stairs without being winded. I started eating vegetarian and exercising and lost weight. Part of my motivation was because I was watching these people who had attractive bodies and I wanted to be attractive, too.

I dropped out of the wrestling fandom when I got married, as my husband couldn't stand the stuff. Not that I blame him--I do have a lot of problems with the WWE--they don't treat their workers very well; they exploit women; they reinforce hurtful stereotypes; Linda McMahon's run for office; etc.

Having said that, I sometimes become nostalgic for my WWE fandom days because it was fun. This is why I am sad about the passing of Mae Young, who was a pioneer of women who wrestled. I am in awe that she worked right up to the end of her life. She was strong and sassy. Although I don't want to be a wrestler, nor do I desire to watch WWE, I do admire Mae Young.

*After I emerged from my dorm room after shunning my friends for two days to read The Fountainhead, I told Amy that I never wanted to read another book again. I thought The Fountainhead was that awful.

**Remember Ames? When the Olean Ames was closing, I bought a pair of shoes there. Each shoe was a different size. Since then, I always check to make sure the shoes are the same size when I buy shoes.

Science Don't Care About You

Before I get started on today's post, I suggest you check out this post from my brother on his blog. It's insightful, funny and talks a little bit about what it's like to be a pro wrestler. 

N. Tesla. Despite the fact that it looks like he doesn't care, he cared very much about science. However, science never cared about him.

It was either Christmas Day or shortly thereafter, when my husband, son and I had a discussion about science. Mind you, we talk about science all the time, but this discussion sticks out in my mind because the topic was about how science doesn't care about us. In fact, my child wrote a song called "Science Don't Care About You". As he was singing it, Mark said, "Just because science doesn't care about you, doesn't mean that you shouldn't care about science."

I added, "Yes. If you stop believing in science, you will start to float around the house, because you don't believe in gravity."

My husband sighed. "No," he said, "You can doubt stuff like gravity, but that doesn't mean it won't exist. Science governs our every day life."

"I still think it would be cool if the cats started floating around the house," I said. "After all, they don't believe in science. It is against their religion*."

Mark does have a point. It is important to know about science, even if it doesn't care about you. After all, a knowledge of basic science helps us avoid things like mixing bleach and ammonia.

I'm such a big fan of science that I have tried to insinuate myself into our school's science department, telling them they should let me in because I have a degree in science (okay, it's library science, but are we really going to split hairs here, people?).

In conclusion, science doesn't care about you. Not one single bit. But you should care about science because it will help you stay alive.

*Honestly, I don't know about my cats' religious beliefs. I never had theological discussions with them. However, I do assume they believe in sacrificing to appease a higher power, as I find the toy mouse by the food dish when it is empty.

Don't call it a comeback, or The Last Three Weeks of My Life

I had in my head that I was going to take an indefinite break from blogging because I felt that I had really have nothing to say and, besides, who reads blogs anyway? With some encouragement from my friend, Amie*, this weekend, I'm back blogging.

Much has happened in the past few weeks. First off, I've done a lot of crafting. I used to crochet all the time, but I found that I burned out on it. I've since been doing embroidery. I think I like embroidery better because I have to focus on it more. There are pics of recent projects on my Instagram. My proudest recent project is the polar bear I stitched for my cousin in the UK.

Second, I found out that the dojo where Charlie and I go for karate is closing its Brighton location at the end of the month. I credit karate with my change in attitude (I'm much more positive then I've ever been) and my change in fitness. When we received the letter, both Charlie and I were very upset. We are now trying to plan out what our next steps are. I don't want to give up exercising. I actually enjoy it!**

Third, and this is a minor point, our cats have colds. I mention this because cats do not have good hygiene, so they don't cover their noses when they sneeze. I've caught them sneezing into the communal food bowl. One sneezed in my face. This circles back to the Tabby Lobby, I'm sure, in some way. Anyhow, two of the three cats have colds and sneeze all the time and have runny noses.

Fourth, I went to a used book store this past weekend. That will be a story for another day.

Thanks, dear reader, for taking the time to read my blog. I appreciate it.

*Thanks for your encouragement, Amie. I appreciate it.

**I never thought I would type that sentence. It's true, though.

taking a break

Hi, All,

I'm going to take a brief break from blogging, as I have a lot on my plate right now.

Check back soon.