ola (hola),
so i guess this past week was decently productive – read a whole bunch – among the highlights…

“bloody jack” – a BOB book – read it in a day – b/c it was bad and i was ready to be done with it:) i suspect most BOBers will enjoy the book b/c it’s rather steamy – the hammock sleeping was interesting – anyway, steamy for an academic competition – obviously not my pick – i still can’t figure out how that book was turned into a series…

“youth” and “heart of darkness” – i turned to the nook when i finished my books friday – both short stories are by joseph conrad – both about sea adventures gone wrong – “heart” is the more critically acclaimed b/c it’s about the african ivory trade in 1900s – and how Europe exploited the land – the stories are very well written, particularly b/c English was conrad’s third language

“the best of alf van hoose” – it might have had a catchier title, but that’s basically what it was – a reporter for the B’ham News – sports editor – for 40 years – the book was a collection of highlights – the best writing were pieces he did on special assignment – in Vietnam to compare his WWII experience with the “new” soldier – and in 1989 when he went back to europe and re-traced his route in WWII – i guess i liked those pieces the best b/c the issues are a bit weightier than what alabama or auburn did – although his finale to the barons old stadium – rickwood field – was wonderful

on a lighter note, i read a story this morning in “the economist” about male dancing as a way of attracting females – it seems that males who can dance better attract females better – and the better is when they use their three pivot points – like head, torso, and feet – they also found that head-banging is unattractive to women – and that the right knee’s motion is the most attractive to women – if only i’d known this sooner – oh well, there’s always the next school dance…

maf

peeps,
yo, it’s like another week – yo…

so i finished 20,000 leagues about thursday-ish this last week – it’s not nearly as classic-y as 80 days because there’s a ton of under the sea info that’s a bit TMI – but the character of captain nemo is pretty good – anyone psychotic enough to run a ship and wreck havoc on the high seas and yet cries at the drop of a hat is a pretty complex character

i started two books near the end of the week – haven’t finished them…

the maisel report – a book about college football written by a guy, ivan maisel, that i knew a bit when i was at bama – the book basically talks about the overrated, underrated college football teams, traditions, coaches, and such – the book came out two years ago so some of the material is dated (like he thought saban was overrated and that alabama was overrated because neither one had done much in 2007) but it’s an entertaining read – unlike…

red pyramid – a BOB book – not a fan – part of that is my fault – i’ve read part of the percy jackson series and this seems to be percy jackson in egypt – there’s also some eragon stuff in there where the words have power and magic drains you – again, all ideas that have been used before – so i’m struggling to get through the 500 pages – although i took the book to bryant denny last night and got about 50 pages read while espn was at commercial timeout (for those of you who’ve never been to a college game that’s televised, there’s an annoying guy in white with a red hat that steps onto the field at every commercial break – and cues the officials to restart the game – he’s like a God b/c of his power over the game continuing…)

do hope your reading is better

sincerely,
mafeld

dearest peeps:)

i do hope you’re enjoying your Labor Day holiday – if you’re a sixth grader and new to this (or a lost seventh grader), you don’t have to blog on Monday – it’s a holiday – truly, enjoy the off – no need to do homework that day

i had a productive week in the world of reading – i finished “dracula” by bram stoker – basically, a group of guys chase dracula around until they find him and put the final nail in the metaphorical coffin (actually, they drove a stake through his heart) – i then read “coming back stronger” by drew brees – new orleans saints quarterback – good read about how to handle adversity – brees overcame injuries and people who doubted his ability to play in the NFL to put together some wonderful last few years – i finished that book yesterday in t-town while waiting for the bama game to start – i then started and finished today “slob” by ellen porter – best of the battle of the books so far just b/c it was sort:)

slob’s title is a misnomer – you think the title is related to one thing but it’s really about another – in all seriousness (b/c out of my mind by sharon draper is the best BOB by far), the book was okay – good for 200 quick pages – story about a kid who’s trying to overcome his self-doubts created when his parents were murdered two years before

i also read the book of leviticus this week – lots about what to eat and not to eat for Israel – i read a story this morning in the economist that drinking water is good for you (shocking)

no big reading plans this week – i guess i’ll go back to a classic on the nook if nothing i’ve ordered from the library comes in – i’m holding off on the pyramid and other BOB books until i get in the mood – which isn’t now…

sincerely,
maf

Dear peoples,
hope you’re having a good weekend – or good week – whenever you read this (except for if you’re reading this Christmas Day – in which case, STEP AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER AND GO SEE WHAT SANTA LEFT YOU – honestly, some people…)

let’s see, last week i read…

“justice: what’s the right thing to do?” by sandel – great book – enjoyed it a ton – written by a professor at harvard – lots of topics and matters i’d studied in high school debate – sandel brought in real-world examples which made the book all that more enjoyable

i’ve now started “dracula” by stoker – it’s pretty good, 100 pages in – sort of like frankenstein – peoople were more easily scared back then, i guess:) anyway, the book is told through the POVs of different characters – dracula sort of comes and goes – he’s currently at castle dracula in transylvania with his three women – i think he’s coming to london soon though in the book

in magazines, i read about the cincy reds and how they plan to win the NL central (by playing the cubs as often as they can) – i’m also reading all my alabama articles from the b’ham news (the article about the groundskeeper today and the nutritionist yesterday were both interesting reads) – i read the book of genesis last week – pretty bloody opening round book of the Bible…

hope your reading goes well

sincerely,
maf

yo,
happy week before football!!! or, i guess for the band kids, happy week of football – or something like that…

finished the fitzgerald book – the poor couple who were waiting for granddad to die so they could get his money ended up destroying their lives – and on the last appeal, did get the money – it was too late though – the man had gone psycho – lesson i learned is you’ll wasted your life away waiting for grandmother’s money… 🙂

started walden by henry david thoreau – i’m about 1/2 way through – the book is sort of disappointing  – like i read it in college and liked it – now, i’m like “who’s this 30-year-old that supposedly solved all of life’s problems – and reached solutions different than anyone else had ever reached – what made him so smart?”

over the weekend – okay, like friday – i read “out of my mind” – by sharon draper – second book in the BOB series i’ve read – it was good – would make a wonderful complement to rules by cynthia lord – i wasn’t that surprised by the book – i sort of saw the twist coming at the end – so yeah for me, i guess…

finished most of the minor prophets this week – zechariah is waaaaaaaay different than the rest of them – much more like revelation – angel of death and such – i also read about the saban movie coming to theaters this friday – i’m thinking road trip

oh, mockingjay comes out this week too – for those that care… 🙂

happy reading,
maf

howdy!!!

well, the summer/fall has come upon us again – time to get some journals started…

“hunchback of notre dame” – i read this on the nook – 570 pages of fun – pretty slow reading – took nearly a week – what i found interesting was that the main character was the building – the cathedral at notre dame – the book was a bit like moby dick in that there was a ton of detail about things i didn’t know about (in this case, architecture)

“teach outrageously” – teaching book – basically, the book taught about how to be a teacher that dresses up and dramatizes things for the students – sorry, i wasn’t inspired to make the switch

“the gollywhopper games” – cute book – sort of charlie and the chocolate factory in the 21st century – some of the puzzles i got, most of them, i didn’t – i thought the wrong person won the contest though – the girl beat the main character in every race but the last one – how’s that fair???

“the beautiful” by f. scott fitzgerald – also on nook – nook’s theme for barnes and noble classics this week is “tear jerkers” – strangely enough, this book isn’t one – it’s basically about two people who desperately want to be rich (they keep waiting for the guy’s grandfather to die and give them money) and when that doesn’t work out, their lives fall apart – poor, poor people who want to be rich… again, the book is written to sort of condemn that lifestyle – tragically enough, the main character went down the same path in his life (we can put him in the “creative genius who destroys his life” hall of fame that includes several others)

i also read about uganda, alabama football, and the book of ezekiel (the valley of dry bones) – guess those are the highlights – anyway, happy reading

sincerely,
maf

Because you’re never too old to learn new things, right??? let me know if it works…

sincerely,
the b’day boy (plus one day) mafeld

A5 Starter Notebook Page 1

one week-ish and counting…

“phantom of the opera” – awesome little classic – different from the play/video – no music, of course – story though of genius and gifts – and how to fit into a world that doesn’t make room for you – hauntingly beautiful – really, really enjoying the story (1/2 through) – oh, and i’m reading it on nook – so thanks barnes and noble

“paradise regained” – another nook read – john milton – very good – had read paradise lost twice – basically, this story tells the tell of christ in the desert and the temptations of satan – milton adds details to enhance the story – very well done

“dealing with intensity” – i think – i forget the exact title – but a book about gifted kids and their intensities – what they get excited about – i couldn’t relate b/c i never get excited about a thing… 🙂 i took good notes – the parts about gifted adults i thought of running off just so that ya’ll knew what you had to look forward to…

“conversations with america’s best teachers” – disappointing – i guess when you have that title, you expect the best – just a q and a with teachers of the year – and i wasn’t that impressed with what they had to say – other than their enthusiasm was encouraging

also read christianity today, the book of isaiah, july 09 edition of an english magazine (how to bring fun back to the english classroom), and a myriad of other small things

hope summer reading is coming to a close in a bang-smackingly awesome way – or that you’ve found a way to be gone from class for the next few weeks…

sincerely,

maf

dear gifted dears,

hope you’re well – two weeks – sniff:( i know you’re all very sad…

congrats to kaitlin b for winning the prize of first to blog this summer – not only does she win an A for the year, she also will get first dibs on our nook in the classroom

what’s that, you say??? a nook? yes, we have a barnes and noble e-reader for the class now – i’m excited – very excited – very geeked up – did i mention i was excited???

we also have a new camera for the newsroom – but nothing as cool as the nook!!!

as for reading, last week, i worked media days so i read a ton about sec football (in short, every coach is optimistic about the year to come and every fan thinks their team will be undefeated this year) – i finished the new testament for the third time in a year – so i went back to the book of isaiah

i’m about 100 pages from finishing “the promise” by jonathan alter – about president obama’s first year in office – sadly, i’d forgotten much of what happened in 2009 – the book reminds me of a bob woodard book i read in ’94 on clinton’s first year in office – sort of the “inside” story – and as a political junkie, i love those types of books

next up is “the hardest questions aren’t on the test” – an education book – that and some of the BOB material should keep me busy until i see ya’ll – take care

sincerely,
mafeld

dear darlings,
i’m off to work football media days with the sec for the next few days – so not much reading – outside of football – which doesn’t count in most academic circles – and why are all academic geometric shapes circles anyway???

on to the list…
“wounded by school” – wonderful book about how school can really mess you up – while the last sentence can be read with sarcasm, the book did have a point – i made the most notes on that book that i’ve made on a book in a long, long time – scary responsibility to be a teacher sometimes…

“i can now die in peace” by bill simmons – i think i got the title right – anyway, the book was about the 2004 red sox – the first few pages were very, very funny – afterwards, what i enjoyed was just going back to a time when people wondered if the red sox would ever win a title – what a difference a few years makes

“a perfect mess” by eric abrahamson – how small messes are actually good – made me feel better about my house:) actually, the book had a good point – that being obsessed over order isn’t good – it’s psychotic – i thought that the point was made by like 12 and the following 300 pages sort of just beat the poor point to death

“far side gallery” – funny, funny book – and sense gary larson, the creator of the series – did the book, there was plenty of back story on some of his favorite cartoons – had forgotten how much i enjoyed the series until that read

guess those are the highlights – hope you enjoy your hot summer days

sincerely,
dr roy