“so much depends upon a red wheelbarrow…”

as all ye avid fans (my spam counter says there are thousands of you computer robots out there – and then julie:) of my blog know, i’m kind of, sort of training for the chicago marathon this fall – which would be the only reason why i’d get up at 4:30 and start running outside for long distances every sunday

so this sunday, i’m trying to practice good running technique and repeat some “power mantra” – according to running gurus, you’re supposed to have power words that you say to yourself – or phrases – throughout a run so that you have something to discuss and think about – oh, and so you’ll keep your mind positive (this would be for the elite athletes – normal people just put on earphones and try to drown out the pain:)

and yet, summer running makes me stupid (as evidenced by the fact that my no. 1 song right now is “call me maybe” – a song i couldn’t even listen to in may) so the whole mantra thing went out the window quickly today – and in it’s place…

“the fault in our stars” by john green – oh curse you john green for you had to remind me of that william carlos williams red wheelbarrow poem – which became my mantra today:) and really, all is forgiven anyway because “stars” was wonderful – achingly beautiful was the description on the back – and i would agree – two smart kids playing verbal tag throughout the book is a great plot for me (outside of the language and “adult situations” that i think i’m just forced to realize all teenagers deal with now…)

“the last coach” by barra – wonderful book on paul “bear” bryant – it’s the second time i’ve read the book – first time in about seven years – made me hit the internet for some of the obscure bryant video – and i’ve got a few requests out to the county for interlibrary loan books about the old bama campus – so very enjoyable read – the bear died pretty much right before i could remember him – but just when i could remember everybody else remember him – dad and i had some great conversations b/c dad sold drinks at denny stadium in the ’60s – so great read

the good news – the room is getting more in order – the bad news – the room is a lot messier because the more i pull out, the messier it gets:) hopefully, order will be restored sometime soon

drop by during sixth grade orientation – just say mayfield approved it – that’s the only time i’ll be there to give you your top locker…

maf

stylin’ in my second grade swatch watch…

so i’ve decided it’s the little things that make life fun – like today, i wear my swatch watch for the first time since like grade school – discovered it a year ago at the parents’ house, got it out and searched for a battery, had no luck with the itty bitty battery that was needed, found it on amazon for $2.90 and now – viola – i have my little watch working again – bringing out the male in me that does so love to fix things:)

(and you get bonus this year for saying “hey, cool watch dr. mafeld” on a day that i wear it – your reward for hanging in there through the summer books i’m reading – i know, i know – they’re awful – none about teens falling in love…)

i read a good amount of football media guides this week for i helped at SEC media days – i learned such things as mizzou didn’t field a team in ’19 due to the spanish flu, kentucky doesn’t know the name of their coach for the first two seasons (how does that happen? seriously, no one wants to take credit for those teams), and south carolina’s board of trustees banned football in 1906 – fun times for close readers of these guides

the one book i read was “a storm came up” by doug segrest – doug is a sportswriter with the b’ham news – and i would hope he’d say we’re decent friends – i would classify his 1963-setting in rural alabama as a high school YA book – very serious situations in the book – but it’s a great, great book that makes you think about what you can do in tough situations – and how you would respond

the good news is i’m starting to work on our room just about every morning (still taking volunteers for service hours – there’s no greater service than helping teachers prepare for the minds of tomorrow – they’re they minds of tomorrow which explains why they have no brains today)

the bad news is it’s good that i’m working right now b/c the room isn’t the best:)

but hey, the internet connector doesn’t come out of the wall anymore so that’s something good

happy last week before my birthday week (although, i don’t have a birthday week and people that do have nothing else better to do than invent reasons to celebrate themselves)

mafeld

yes, i took 200 D.C. photos (but 60 were of my feet… :)

for some reason, this was the week to read – but before that…

adison – please clarify the book the POV’s are coming from – because my last check had you on “manifest” and i’m not remembering anything from your writing that has to do with the book – of course, if it’s just you telling about your summer, then sorry about your posterior… šŸ™‚

olive-a – YEAH FOR FINISHING BOOK ONE!!! and my apologies on offending your harry potter fandom – however, in my defense, or at least the way i see it, harry grew up over the books – he didn’t change – there’s a difference – he started the series a good kid and he ended the books a good man – no difference – same thing with ron and ms. granger – who they were at the start were who they were at the endĀ – no transforming – they just grew up – which is sort of how i hope you’ll be one day b/c you started my class perfect so there’s no major transformation to go through – others, however… šŸ™‚

alright, to the books…

“of africa” by soyinka – even years later, continental europe messed africa up – there’s still fallout, from the governmental structure to civil wars – this book did a great job showing that

“indescribable” by giglio and redman – book of amazing galaxy shots and testimony to the power of God in the universe – wonderful book that makes you take a step back to appreciate what’s around you

“candy experiments” by leavitt – elem kids rejoice!!! a book on how to take your favorite candies and blow them up:) (rather, just do some cool things with them – and possibly learn a bit about the science behind it as you go – really loved this book)

“the hobbit devotional” by straussĀ – 60 devotions based on the hobbit – good reminder that just as bilbo was called, we all have a big adventure awaiting us – whether we like it or not:) in life to travel

“shakespeareĀ onĀ toast” by crystal – how do you read shakespearea? this guy argues through the meter and verse – very interesting read – pretty quick and light, but the iambic pentameter stuff helped me – and should help me help you next year

and finally…

“14 minutes” by salazar – distance runner, now coach of The Oregon Project for Nike, talks about having the passion and drive to be great, and the wisdom to know when to pull back – to trust in faith over perfection – loved the book as a runner – as a teacher of young people – as a person of faith

hope your week to come is great – i’ll beĀ at football media days so look for me next to a D-lineman – i’ll be the smaller one…

maf

yes mr. scott, mcdonald’s does have wonderful water…

so this one is early because i’m off to tour the world tomorrow morning…

“the longest race” by ayres – book on distance running – on running philosophy – on the earth and what we’re doing to it – on how to live counterculturally – and the point is that while our society values speed and power, life is really about enduring – about patience and waiting – good lessons – enjoyable

“les miserables” by hugo – oh, i was so proud to finish this one in a week – i read the 1200 page abridged edition – so i missed 200 pages – but i got most of it – lots of side roads taken in the book that i could figure would not be in the rock opera – what i liked about the book was what i like about all long books – you get involved and watch them grow over time and through the years – and who they are at the end is very, very different than who they were at the beginning – now, today’s young adult books do rival some classics like “miserables” in length – if you chain all the books in the series together – but you just don’t get the character development – bella, edward, katniss, even lovable harry potter are all EXACTLY the same people at the end of the story – now, it’s not like the books end with them aged tremendously, but maybe some author could throw a curve ball with the next series i read and do something about that problem… šŸ™‚

and it’s on to season five of “friday night lights” – clear eyes, full hearts, can’t lose

adison – great to hear that baseball finally ended and you’re getting in both some reading and blogging – however, you only mentioned one awesome sister – i would assume the younger one???

mafeld

there are days when faryn is even smarter than she usually appears…

happy july – happy recovery day from the last day of june (also known as post-liberty day parade day or post-long run day)

“speed to glory” and “heart of a champion” – both short juvenille bios on olympians – the first is about cullen jones, probably the most famous african-american swimmer the US has had – i enjoyed that oneĀ – swimming books are almost as good as running books – the second book is about gymnastics – which is just not my thing (aka, agility, bendability, etc.)

“run to overcome” – a reread for me – on my second attemptĀ – or really second go round, i enjoyed reading how meb woke up at 4:30 am every morning when he first came to the US in order to do homework with his father – his parents stressed – we would say “overstressed” in today’s parenting – the importance of education – no wonder that all of the people in his family have achieved great things in college – and no wonder that my junior high boys that go home and play video games all afternoon go, um, nowhere…

“the guy under the sheets” – by chris elliott – his autobiography – in severe satire – there was a funny line at the beginning where he spoke of needing to finish the opening scene of chapter one so that he could go back to the beginning in chapter two and then progress chronologically – which is basically what all biographies do – that part was my absoluteĀ  favorite – lilly has a GREAT father in “how i met your mother” (that would be chris elliott)

“les miserables” – there are several was to attack this book – hugo wrote like 1400 pages – the county has an abridged 320 – barnes and noble gave me a 1200 page edition – so i’m in for a long haul – i’ve decided, at page 500, that i have to like this book – because otherwise i’m ridculous for reading it and can’t sucker anyone else into making the same mistake – that said, it’s definitely a book that can be cut down – but there are great moments in it – my favorite so far is the metaphor between indecisive men and cats

i would tell you that metaphor but i can’t decide if you’re ready for it:)

luv,

maf