Reflecting on the year that just occurred......

Oh by how different a year can be.....I started off the year with a bang!  I felt strong and powerful.  I signed for 18 hours of graduate work all the while I was finishing the yearbook.  I took 9 hours of Library Science at SHSU and 9 Hours of PS at Sul Ross; and all was great!  I felt I was able to manage my time wisely and was even able to finish the yearbook before Spring Break! 
Then the end of March came in and all hell broke lose. 

Mom went in for what we thought was a routine procedure; boy were we wrong.  Within a span of 6 weeks; we almost lost her twice. Luckily after countless Dr. visits; hospital, nursing home and rehab stays she is home with us. 

During the summer I was able to take 21 hours but this fall I was only capable of taking 6; and that is saying much.  I was able to complete my practicum and pass the TeXes but finished a class as an incomplete; because mom's health came first but I also had to work. I was able to finish my summer classes because I did not have to worry about work;but this all I did.  And to top it off; they took away my yearbook and gave me a dual credit history class to teach.  A class whose subject I have not taught in over 12 years. 

Lord give me strength.  And he did!  But now that mom is somewhat stable; I am able to focus more on myself.  Especially my leg which was been continuously swollen for the past three months.  I go see the Dr. in three days and lets see what the outcome is.

I pray that all is fine; but I will plan for the worst and pray for the best. 

See you next year!

What's the Difference?

I don't know what is up with me this semester. The past several semesters, I have been on top of all of my assignments making sure that I turn in the assignments way before the due date.  I make sure that I read all that is required and now what is expected.

This Semester, I am procrastinating until the last possible minute, I turned in an assignment late; which I never had before; and just have a "Blah" attitude.

Could it be because I am not taking as many hours as I normally due this semester? Is it because at work I am not sponsoring anything (first time in 16 years) and just go with the flow?  Is it because I just had my surgery and just want to sleep it off?   Is it because I am not walking in the mornings, which would give me the energy I needed for that day?

I don't know?  It just feels different and I don't know why?  But I need to slap out if and get back in track!

Be Positive! That's harder than you think

     The past two weeks have not been the greatest.  As some of you know; we were able to bring mom back home a couple of weeks ago from the Nursing Home. She was doing great until this weekend when we had to take her to the ER.  It turns out that she has a strong UTI because of her lack of drinking water.  But when the UTI comes; her short term memory goes; and we are back to a pre-dementia state.  So me and my sister have to take turns at night to sleep in a chair next to her bed to make sure she does not try to wake up and get up. In her weak state she cannot walk without assistance; so we are there to make sure she does not hurt herself.
    Besides that, I went to see a new Podiatrist because Dr. C. messed up my foot to get a strong infection.  Dr. C. stated that it was very deep and that it might get to  my foot; and that it will take several months before I can be cured.  I had enough!  I gave him a chance but that was the last straw!
   I ended up in San Antonio; and loved Dr. B.  The moment she saw my foot she knew what was wrong; and ordered tests to see how bad the infection was. It turns out that the infection has gotten to part of my bone; so I will be having a biopsy on Friday!  I am scared again; because I am just afraid of what can happen.  I am also scared because I will have to go to SA to have the biopsy by myself.  With mom's illness, I can't ask anyone to take me.  I am grateful that my sister will be able to pick me up after the surgery; but still scared.  But I will be positive! I will have faith that all will be well; because I do not have any other choice.  But I am scared.

Facebook and Twitter  

   Today’s blog is going to look at the role that both Facebook and Twitter can have in regards to the library.  I searched for “School Library” in Facebook and looked at three pages.

     I was able to look at Rayburn Middle School Library (San Antonio, Texas), Buckeye High School Library page (Deville, Louisiana) and Mission High School Library page (Mission, Texas).  The following are some key observation points regarding the three pages. 

     For Rayburn, Middle School Library; I like that they showcasing the works of various authors.  Some of the authors that were highlighted were Patrick, Carman, Helen Frost, and Maureen Johnson.  They were advertising different events that were happening around the school district such as Librarypalooza; and NerdvanaCon.  The library page also showed how students, staff and almost anyone could help out with the Hurricane Harvey Relief effort by listing items that can be donated and the location where they could drop it off.  And one last item that I liked was that it promoted school events such as Meet the Teacher night.  It was full of vibrant pictures and looked to be updated frequently.

     In regards to the Buckeye High School Library page here are some positive points and some suggestions.  I liked that they had videos of school events; such as Pep Rallies, and Choir Performances.  IT also highlighted individual student achievements and promoted school spirit.  The main advice that I would give them is to have more information regarding the library; or something that promotes reading or the use of the library; because it was hard to find any information that would promote the library or reading. 

     The last page that I looked at belonged to the Mission High School Library.  Working at a High School this was my favorite page, because it promoted literacy, and at the same time promoted school pride.  It was fun to see a picture of a book that was recently returned after being out for more than 596 days.   And I also liked that it promoted events that emphasized literacy such as the Border Book Bash that feature author Pablo Cartaya. 

     In regards to twitter; I was able to start following several new people including those that are tech savy and are able to share their thoughts and recommendations with others.  One of the first people that I read her tweets was Kathy Schrock @kathyshcrock.  Her twitter page will first lead you to several of her webpages including www.kathyschrock.com.  This web page has a bunch of great information including her speaking engagements.  You are also able to access her blog that has great information regarding new technology that I am able to share with my colleagues.  In regards to her tweets she helps us explore some new toys out there including the 3D printing pen.  She also shares sales on technology equipment that she feels we should all have access to. 

     Another person that I was able to follow was David Warlick @dwarlick.  At first when you get to his twitter page; you are exposed to different videos that he has taken during his vacation in Hawaii. You are also able to find some great articles; one that I found interesting is one that describes how the purple in the American political landscape has all but disappeared and we are left with only red and blue.  Another fascinating article was how the future will employ those that can do the jobs that robots cannot; but then why is our school system treating our students like robots. 

     As time goes by, I will have the opportunity to follow in greater detail the different blogs that are out there and learn more.  

Is a free reader a person that reads for free at a bookstore?

     Today’s post will talk about free readers and the one that I chose to use for this class.  I will also be discussing five different blogs that I decided to follow and the reasons why?  At first; when I saw the word free readers; I thought that is what was a new term for people that sit at book stores and read the books without purchasing them.  That’s the wrong answer. 

   

  A free reader is an app where you can manage all your blogs.  You can read all posts from the different blogs by visiting this one app/webpage.  While searching on “Google” for free readers; I came upon an article on livewire.com titled Top 7 Free Online RSS Readers.  The article mentioned the following free readers:  Feedly, The Old Reader, Feedreader.com, Diggreader, Newsblur, Inoreader, and G2Reader.  After reading the descriptions, I was torn between Feedly and Feeder.

Looking at the differences between them I noticed that Feeder had a Google Chrome extension and had a dedicated IOS app.  This was important to me because I own an Apple iPhone 7 and our school has us use Google Chrome as our web browser.  But ultimately, I chose Feedly because it was the most popular; which means that I could get help from people on the net easier than the others.  It can also link my Youtube subscriptions; which is an added plus. 

     I initially decided to follow the following blogs, with the intention to add more through out the year. They are:

a.       AASL Blog http://knowledgequest.aasl.org/  posts articles and editorials from the Journal of American Association of School Librarians.

b.     Library of Congress http://blogs.loc.gov/loc posts pictures, articles and other information from the Library of Congress website.

c.      Mrs. Reader Pants http://www.readerpants.net/   posts articles, book reviews and other fun stuff from veteran librarian, Leigh Collazo who is in her 14^th year as a librarian in an international school in China.

d.     School Library Journal http://www.slj.com/ posts articles, editorials and other information from the School Library Journal.  It also provides a link to other blogs from librarians and readers from around the world.

e.      YALSA blog http://yalsa.ala.org/blog/ posts blogs, articles, journals and other information from the Young Adult Library Services Association webpage.

f.      Mighty Little Librarian  http://www.mightylittlelibrarian.com posts articles, book reviews and other information from Tiffany Whitehead, a librarian from Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

     For the most part I chose these blogs because they were publishing at least once or more a week. Other blogs that came up in my search were posting once a month or less. I wanted to be able to be kept abreast of any new information that would be vital to my learning.  

My Tumblr page is

bepositivedreambigyoucantu.tumblr.com  or at https://www.tumblr.com/blog/bepositivedreambigyoucantu