well, few more weeks of this and we’re about done – exciting…

i read two of the intermediate BOB books this week – pretty good…

“powerless” – highly recommend to all of you – easy read – basically, a kid who ends up in a town with kid superheroes – superheroes that lose their powers when they turn 13 – pretty entertaining – relatively deep for an elementary book (like, the discussion of whether it would be of greater good to take powers away – b/c powers can be used for evil – or to keep them – that’s a discussion you could debate for a long time…)

forgot the title of the other book – basically, a puzzle book with a big mystery to solve – entertaining – wasn’t that thrilling for an old man, but i’m sure 3rd graders could get into it

have i mentioned yet that the NKOTB are going to be on DWTS??? yes, monday night, dancing with the stars has my favorite group of all time – if kristie alley wasn’t going to be on, i might have even included the link…

okay, back to books…

“justice brennan, liberal champion” – the book book i read this week – all the way from jacksonville state (i find it funny that jsu had a book with the name “liberal” in it – very taboo word in this state) – very much enjoyed it – many reasons – one, the justice’s wife was marjorie and she died:) two, the justice was on most of the major court decisions that i studied in high school and college and so it was fun to read about them from another angle – three, the book had a decent message at one point about how even when things look dark, those that can hold on are typically those that have seen the light before (i know, general, but basically, if you’ve had good years, you can go through the lean years – like trying to get through the “julie smith years” b/c you know that better things will eventually come)

the fourth best part of the book was that the supreme court justice remarried after marjorie – he married his secretary – lock up your secretaries all you out there… 🙂

so that book was my serious book for the nine weeks – i’m back to lighter stuff this week – including a book on why the cubs are awful and why football teams should always go for it on fourth down…

mafeld

so somewhere last week – probably actually the week before – i went brain dead and stopped reading – which means i’m progressing much slower through the books – oh, well, who’s keeping track anyway…

“eric liddell story” – i think i blogged about the book last week – but i hadn’t really started reading it until this past week – problem solved a few days later – the book borrows from previous research on liddell – and was similar to the book i read, “pure gold,” about the runner – very good – encouraging read

“BOB questions” – hey, i’m counting anything i have to read that’s close to 100 pages typed up – lots of trivia i’d forgotten about the books – enjoyed the competition bunches friday – went by way too quick (particularly compared to the next day when i had to go there for training…)

“active english” and “classroom trials” – two books about creative activities to use in class – got some ideas to use for our next courtrooms – and a few other ideas for things – always excited about a new activity for class

nanowrimo word count back up to near 36,000 – spoofing currently on a BOB quiz bowl round – got a good idea friday when someone told me that the second round with the bonus questions was “boring” – thanks…

just finished the potter movie – wonderful – most distressing news in sunday’s media section of the b’ham news – apparently, there are two “breaking dawn” movies coming out – why wasn’t i consulted on this??? that means the twilight saga will have been a part of my life for five years when it ends – sad…

reading “east of eden” now – i LOVED it like seven years back – i hated the first 200 pages, was ready to abandon it, and then the whole thing turned on a dime – and i just wept and loved it so – so i’m hopeful that it still rings true for me – otherwise, i guess i’m not not the same boy/man – hope that you’re still the same boy/man though…

(and happy good friday in advance)

mayfield

i mean, do we even have to have school with the dvd out friday???

(full disclosure – i didn’t go see the movie when it was at theaters so that’s probably why i’m excited about friday – i think i’m still bitter about my “lion king” date walking out on me in ’95… 🙂

finished the BOB series with “the morgue and me” – a mystery novel – if you read about the author, you would’ve had all you needed to know about it – definitely of the group, it was the book that was most “high school” material – although, if my high school kid said some of the things in the book, i’d been reaching for the soap to wash a mouth out… anyway, you start the book thinking the kid is the classic nerd who keeps to himself – but then he suddenly becomes attached to a 26-year-old party girl and everything works out right – odd…

“50/50” – by dean karnes and matt fitzgerald – much more my style – guy ran 50 marathons in 50 states in 50 days – his story – very funny at spots (like when he called “mercedes marathon” flat – and this was before the course was changed and it went over red mountain) – sort of a cross between advice on how to run and what to worry about and how to dream big and achieve it – probably, when i retire to the ranch in chelsea, i’ll get a bike and go explore the world sort of like he did – i don’t run fast enough to do it by foot:)

“the flying scotsman” by sally magnusson – a book about eric liddell – famous runner and missionary (second part is more important than the first) – subject of the movie “chariots of fire” – which we ought to watch in my classroom if none of you have seen it – incredible, incredible movie – anyway, the book came out 30 years ago – so i got it at the thrift store for like 15 cents – it’s about what the movie couldn’t get to – liddell’s full story (including his death in a POW camp at the hands of the japanese in WWII)

well, happy journaling – my boys on sunday morning told me that there’s six weeks left in the year – i don’t think that’s right…

maf

dear journal bunch,
happy beginning of april – oh, how will any of you begin to cope with the increased homework load this week??? i feel so sorry that you have more than one journal… oh, well, that’s life (more than one journal – yes, that’s life:)

last week, i read some of the high school BOB books so that i could be a better reader in a few weeks – so most of what i read you could read and enjoy (unlike most weeks with what i read – although, i did sneak in “blueprint plan” by kirk franklin and that was a nonfiction that none of you would read – but it was still good – probably most interesting was the afterward where franklin said he’d never even read a book all the way through until he was 26 – wow…)

“the crossroads” – very, very predictable book – not that interesting either – but i’m sure you’d love it all b/c it’s the first book in a series – so you’d have something to read on for a good half-year – which apparently interests most of you (i totally don’t get the series obsession if you can’t figure that out)

“unwind” by shusterman – it’s the future, people are harvesting organs and body parts of teens – if this happens soon, i want julie’s brain, trey’s piano fingers, st. k’s soul (b/c she’s a saint, right???), and maddie’s… well, i don’t think i want anything from her – i’m pretty good there… 🙂

(unwind was a good book)

“revolver” by sedgwick – it’s 1910 – your father just froze to death – and a crazy guy walks in with a guy – what ya gonna do??? the book read real fast – entertaining – which i guess is all you can ask – but it doesn’t ask the big questions that “unwind” did

those were the books – i read about libya, and japan – and, best of all, the sports illustrated baseball preview – very excited about the new season – not that i have hopes for the braves, cubs, and sox (red and white), but it’s better than watching basketball and other such things…

happy blogging (note the second “g” people – it happened against last week to someone:)

maf