I seem to post more links than original posts, but here's another one! :-)
Anyway, NPR recently had an article about the top 100 books for Young Adults. I was quite impressed with the list which included classics (expected) and very new (surprisingly pleased) titles. Take a look. I think you'll be pleased with the options.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Tuesday, July 10, 2012
Politicians and Big Business Get it Wrong...Again
There were a couple of articles online recently that I think missed the whole point. Not too surprising since the writers' perspectives are from the political and business (read Money) ends.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/the-worst-masters-degree/2012/07/08/gJQAfm6BXW_blog.html
http://neatoday.org/2012/07/09/politicians-ignore-research-say-smaller-class-size-makes-no-difference/
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/answer-sheet/post/the-worst-masters-degree/2012/07/08/gJQAfm6BXW_blog.html
http://neatoday.org/2012/07/09/politicians-ignore-research-say-smaller-class-size-makes-no-difference/
Update
Hello, All.
I want to thank everyone who sent me messages of support and concern regarding my mother.
While the diagnosis is horrific and the timeframe uncertain, she is actually doing much better. She has been removed from the residential hospice and we moved her into an assisted living facility with hospice services. She is stable and getting comfortable with her new situation. She's exhausted from all of the changes of the past 8 weeks, but thankfully, she has experienced no discomfort or pain.
So, again, thank you for your support. Keep the positive thoughts and prayers coming for her.
Thank you.
Update, November 15, 2012
For anyone who is interested, we lost Mom on September 1, 2012 to metasticized endrometrial cancer caused by a protocol of Tomoxifin following breast cancer surgery.
They had gotten all the initial cancer due to very early diagnosis and put her on the drug to ensure its nonrecurrance. Unfortunately, as she was finishing the protocol, it was announced that Tomoxifin can lead to endrometrial cancers, which she developed approximately 10 years later. She had a hysterectomy two years ago and we were told the tumor was well-contained and they had gotten it all. Obviously, they hadn't.
She passed away quietly, surrounded by her family with her hands held by her daughter and son.
She was a wonderful, giving woman who would give everything she had to anyone who needed it. She had a difficult life, being an unwanted child. She was determined that her children and grandchildren would know how much they were wanted and loved.
I'm happy to say that there are no regrets that things were not said or done. We talked extensively all the time, not just within the past few months, but for years. We were completely open with each other and were blessed to have had the time to say everything we needed to. My only sadness comes when I do/see/hear something and want so desperately to tell her and I can't. I love her dearly and that will never die.
Mom will be missed forever.
Ich Liebe Dich, Mutti!
I want to thank everyone who sent me messages of support and concern regarding my mother.
While the diagnosis is horrific and the timeframe uncertain, she is actually doing much better. She has been removed from the residential hospice and we moved her into an assisted living facility with hospice services. She is stable and getting comfortable with her new situation. She's exhausted from all of the changes of the past 8 weeks, but thankfully, she has experienced no discomfort or pain.
So, again, thank you for your support. Keep the positive thoughts and prayers coming for her.
Thank you.
Update, November 15, 2012
For anyone who is interested, we lost Mom on September 1, 2012 to metasticized endrometrial cancer caused by a protocol of Tomoxifin following breast cancer surgery.
They had gotten all the initial cancer due to very early diagnosis and put her on the drug to ensure its nonrecurrance. Unfortunately, as she was finishing the protocol, it was announced that Tomoxifin can lead to endrometrial cancers, which she developed approximately 10 years later. She had a hysterectomy two years ago and we were told the tumor was well-contained and they had gotten it all. Obviously, they hadn't.
She passed away quietly, surrounded by her family with her hands held by her daughter and son.
She was a wonderful, giving woman who would give everything she had to anyone who needed it. She had a difficult life, being an unwanted child. She was determined that her children and grandchildren would know how much they were wanted and loved.
I'm happy to say that there are no regrets that things were not said or done. We talked extensively all the time, not just within the past few months, but for years. We were completely open with each other and were blessed to have had the time to say everything we needed to. My only sadness comes when I do/see/hear something and want so desperately to tell her and I can't. I love her dearly and that will never die.
Mom will be missed forever.
Ich Liebe Dich, Mutti!
Wednesday, June 13, 2012
Oh, Yeah!
This was posted on a friend's Facebook page. He got it from David Stebbings' 'I Love Libraries' website. I agree wholeheartedly! YA novels are wonderful! I enlarged it so you can read it easily.
Sorry for the lack of posts
I just wanted to apologize for not having posted anything for a while. A couple of days after my last post, we received word that my mother had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and we were under the distinct impression she would probably not last the week. I rushed out to Wisconsin from Rhode Island to be with her. We have been very lucky that she has actually recovered to the point that we are working on removing her from Hospice and getting her into Assisted Living with Hospice where she can meet new friends and participate more than she can now. She has been in the current location for 3 weeks now, and we were told the average stay is just 6 days. To all my friends and colleagues, thank you for your thoughts and prayers. We have been blessed with extra time with her.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Save the Date!
Save the dates!
The AASL Fall Forum will be held in Greenville, SC on October 12 and 13, 2012 (Friday and Saturday). The theme is "Transliteracy and the School Library Program." Registration is currently open and conference information is available at this link.
Also, the American Association of School Librarians recently announced the dates and locations for the 16th and 17th Conferences. See the link above.
The 16th Conference will be held November 13-17, 2013 in Hartford, CT.
The 17th Conference will be held October 15-18, 2013 in Columbus, OH.
Keep checking for more information as it is released.
In the meantime, don't forget the ALA Annual Conference being held in Anaheim, CA on June 21-26, 2012. There's a lot to see and learn, not only at the conference, but in southern California. In addition to the wonderful sessions, there are plenty of activities in which to participate. Disneyland, anyone? Don't forget the Rock Bottom Remainders will be performing on Saturday at 8 p.m. (If you've never seen them, they are a group of authors who get together and perform. They're actually pretty good! Members include Stephen King, Amy Tan, Mitch Albom, Dave Barry, Matt Groening, Scott Turow, Ridley Pearson, Greg Iles, James McBride, Roy Blount, Jr., Kathi Goldmark and Sam Barry. Roger McGuinn of The Byrds joins the band as special musical guest.)
Early Bird registration is now open.
Mark your calendars now and we'll hope to see you there!
The AASL Fall Forum will be held in Greenville, SC on October 12 and 13, 2012 (Friday and Saturday). The theme is "Transliteracy and the School Library Program." Registration is currently open and conference information is available at this link.
Also, the American Association of School Librarians recently announced the dates and locations for the 16th and 17th Conferences. See the link above.
The 16th Conference will be held November 13-17, 2013 in Hartford, CT.
The 17th Conference will be held October 15-18, 2013 in Columbus, OH.
Keep checking for more information as it is released.
In the meantime, don't forget the ALA Annual Conference being held in Anaheim, CA on June 21-26, 2012. There's a lot to see and learn, not only at the conference, but in southern California. In addition to the wonderful sessions, there are plenty of activities in which to participate. Disneyland, anyone? Don't forget the Rock Bottom Remainders will be performing on Saturday at 8 p.m. (If you've never seen them, they are a group of authors who get together and perform. They're actually pretty good! Members include Stephen King, Amy Tan, Mitch Albom, Dave Barry, Matt Groening, Scott Turow, Ridley Pearson, Greg Iles, James McBride, Roy Blount, Jr., Kathi Goldmark and Sam Barry. Roger McGuinn of The Byrds joins the band as special musical guest.)
Early Bird registration is now open.
Mark your calendars now and we'll hope to see you there!
Friday, May 18, 2012
Solar Eclipse Sunday
Did you know there will be a solar eclipse on Sunday, May 20?
The eclipse this weekend is referred to as an 'Annular' eclipse because the moon is at its farthest distance from the Earth. As a result, the moon will not fully cover the sun. At the height of the eclipse, the sun will be seen as a 'Ring of Fire' in the sky. It should be a spectacular sight.
Unfortunately for those of us on the East Coast of the United States, we won't be able to enjoy the show, which begins on Sunday night around 5 p.m. in the US. The eclipse this time runs from China to the Southwest United States, although people as far east as the Appalachian Mountains will see some effect.
However, all is not lost. There are many sites online which will be tracking and showing the eclipse. Here are just a few (thanks to MSN.com):
The eclipse this weekend is referred to as an 'Annular' eclipse because the moon is at its farthest distance from the Earth. As a result, the moon will not fully cover the sun. At the height of the eclipse, the sun will be seen as a 'Ring of Fire' in the sky. It should be a spectacular sight.
Unfortunately for those of us on the East Coast of the United States, we won't be able to enjoy the show, which begins on Sunday night around 5 p.m. in the US. The eclipse this time runs from China to the Southwest United States, although people as far east as the Appalachian Mountains will see some effect.
However, all is not lost. There are many sites online which will be tracking and showing the eclipse. Here are just a few (thanks to MSN.com):
- Slooh Space Camera: The Slooh website has organized a series of webcasts from Japan, California, Arizona and New Mexico, accompanied by commentary from Astronomy Magazine columnist Bob Berman and Lucie Green, a BBC commentator and solar researcher at University College London's Mullard Space Science Laboratory. The show gets started at 5:30 p.m. ET Sunday, when the eclipse will be just getting good in Japan. Prime time for the webcasts from the American West will kick in around 8 p.m. ET. For more, check out Slooh's news release.
- Eclipse Live from Fujiyama: Panasonic is planning a solar-powered webcast from high atop Japan's Mount Fuji, which is inside the track of annularity. The team will charge up batteries from an array of electricity-generating solar cells at a base camp, then carry the batteries up to the camera site. Video coverage via Ustream is due to start up at 5 p.m. ET. This YouTube video previews the event. For updates, check out the project's Facebook page and Twitter stream.
- Hong Kong Observatory: The webcast from Hong Kong is due to begin at 5:41 p.m. ET
- Live-Eclipse: Japanese eclipse-chasers plan to be webcasting via Ustream at 6 p.m. ET.
- YokosoNews: This page from the Japanese news site lists lots of webcasts, generally beginning at 5 p.m. ET or later.
- Ustream: Do a search on "eclipse" and you'll find all sorts of Ustream goodies, from 5 p.m. ET onward. One user is promising a video stream from the northern tip of Taiwan starting at 4:50 p.m. ET.
- AstroBob's viewing guide: Duluth photographer Bob King provides a vivid guide to the phases of an annular eclipse and also links to AstronomyLive.com as a potential source of webcasts.
- University of North Dakota: UND's SEMS (Sun Earth Moon Systems) team is organizing an eclipse webcast from Shasta College in Whittier, Calif. The streaming is due to begin at 8 p.m. ET, and there's a chat window that lets you compare notes with other eclipse fans. The UND team has been doing eclipse webcasts since 2004, so they've built up a loyal following over the years.
- Scotty's Sky: Skywatcher Scotty Degenhardt is promising an unconventional webcast of the annular eclipse via his iPhone from Area 51's "Black Mailbox," a popular gathering place for UFO fans in the Nevada desert. The show is set to start at 8:10 p.m. ET. Check out Degenhardt's website for the details.
- Exploratorium in Second Life: Speaking of "unconventional" ... San Francisco's Exploratorium science center is planning to provide information about the eclipse in the Second Life virtual world. If you're a Second Life resident, set a course for Exploratorium Island.
If, however, you miss the entire show, you'll have another chance on June 5, 2012, when the planet Venus crosses between the Earth and the sun. Then, on November 13, 2012, there will be a total eclipse.
VERY IMPORTANT: Remember to take the proper precautions when viewing the eclipse such as using special eclipse-viewing glasses, filters on telescopes or binoculars, or pin-hole projectors. NEVER LOOK DIRECTLY AT THE SUN. You can get more details by checking the NASA website. Also, check out this video at Eyes On the Sky.
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