It's a Digital World Out There

Is it Wednesday already?  I've been having trouble remembering what day it is because today we had a snow day!  Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately?) they canceled classes yesterday evening, because when I woke up this morning the roads seemed fine.  It is very difficult to get motivated to do anything on a snow day, but at least I made a nice breakfast for the hubs!

For this week, my students have to write about the idea of moving to a digital world.  Which is better?  Print or digital?

I personally don't have any sort of e-reader yet, but I really want one!  Just the other night I finished a book and really wanted to read the next one in the series.  I remember sitting in my bedroom thinking that if I had a Kindle, Nook, iPad, or whatever, I could just click a few buttons and I would have the book without ever getting out of bed.  The same thing happened when I read about another book I'm dying to read.  Not only that, but if I go to the store and get these books (which I hadn't done yet), they are going to cost a fortune!  Well, maybe not a fortune, but more than I care to spend.  So, instead I got online, looked it up, and found the book at my local library.  Now I just have to swing by and pick it up for free!  Look at me mixing digital and print!  Then, if I want to own the book, I will go to amazon.com and find it nice and cheap.

Even though I want to own an e-reader, I love real books.  I love holding them in my hands and writing on their pages.  (Yes, I'm one of those people who write in my books.)  Even so, they are quite expensive if you want a book immediately.

I was trying to remember the last time I actually purchased a full price book and I realized that I don't buy full price books for myself.  I only buy them as gifts.  If I'm buying a book for myself, this is where I get it:

 

From what I can tell, the next date (since the only picture I could find was for 2012) is March 8-10.  At this sale, paperbacks are $0.50 and hardbacks are $1.00!  You can't get much better than that!  Oh, and one of my favorite things are the grab boxes.  They have boxes of 20 books for $1.  The only catch is that you can't look in the box.

I'm thinking I should take my classes on a field trip to the book sale.  Spread the book love!  What do you think?

Well, that's all for now!

Godspeed.

Freshman English II

I have decided to try having my Freshman English II Online students use a blog instead of a journal, so I will occasionally be posting things related to that class and their assignments.  The first of those assignments is to post a picture or collage and write about yourself, so that is what I have done here.

Welcome to Freshman English II Online! My name is Mrs. Hall and here are some pictures that I think represent me.

In a few of these pictures, you will see me with my husband Daniel. We have been married for six years and we don't have any kids, but we do have a dog named Penelope who is one of the strangest dogs I've ever known.  I always say that she acts more like a cat than a dog.

The other people pictured above are my mom, dad, sisters, and niece. My family is very important to me.

Another thing you may notice from my pictures is that I'm kind of silly. The picture in the pink wig is from the premiere of The Hunger Games. I went dressed up as a citizen from the capitol. There are also a few pictures related to Harry Potter. In one I am wearing my Harry Potter robes (Ravenclaw), in one I am standing in front of Hogwarts, and in yet another I am at the midnight premiere of the final movie with my sisters. I also like Wonder Woman and collect Wonder Woman memorabilia. I actually have the invisible jet parked in my back yard, you just can't see it.

If you are interested in making a collage like this one, I went to www.kizoa.com, created an account, uploaded pictures, and then used their collage maker. Just be careful that you don't use one of the premium collage makers, because then the image isn't free! If you are good with Paint, you could use that as well.  You can also post a single picture if collages aren't your thing.

I look forward to reading about all of you this week!

Godspeed.

Happy New Year!

I know! It's been a minute.  And it's not a Wednesday.  For both I am sorry, but I feel as though it is time.

Around May of last year, my family went through some hard times and I wasn't sure I wanted to share that with the Internet.  However, it was such a big part of my life that I knew I couldn't write without talking about it, so I put the blog on pause.  But that is so last year.

So, now for a discussion of New Year's resolutions.

I know there are a lot of people who eschew New Year's resolutions, and I understand their reasoning.  Recently on Phineas and Ferb, Dr. Doofenshmirtz was planning some sort of hijinks that involved making the citizens of the Tri-State Area put, "Serve Heinz Doofenshmirtz," on their New Year's resolution list.  Normally, Perry would swoop in and stop this nonsense, but he sat by and let it happen, because everyone knows that New Year's resolutions are meaningless and almost guarantee that thing won't happen in the new year.

That being said, I like New Year's resolutions.

I like the idea of a fresh start.
And I like lists.  A lot.

So, if I'm going to make a list of New Year's resolutions, there are a few options:

1. Very generic goals that I will obtain regardless of their appearance on an arbitrary list.
2. Superbly ambitious goals that aren't necessarily meant to be in obtained in one year.
3. Super specific goals that I want to happen in between January 1, 2013, and December 31, 2013.

Decisions, decisions.

I think a specific list is my cup of tea.  However, I hate that feeling of failure when I look back and realize I have done nothing.  To do lists depress me because I am overly ambitious and I very rarely complete everything on the list unless I have to for some reason.

Enough waffling about.  Here is a list of things I think it would be cool to do/complete/obtain in 2013 or beyond, but it's totally cool if some of these things don't happen.

1. Read more books for pleasure and then write about them here.  I don't necessarily want this blog to become a book review blog, but I do love reading and writing about books.  Hence the whole English teacher thing.
2. Blog more.  Last year I blogged 7 times, so I think more than 7 is an obtainable goal.
3. Get papers back to students in a more timely fashion.  I'm sure my students would appreciate it if I could stick to this one.
4. Research a couple of PhD programs and decide if it's something I really want to do.  I've talked about getting my PhD for years, but I know nothing about when, where, how, etc. I want to do this.
5. Read more nonfiction.  I am not a fan of nonfiction, but I recognize its importance.  Broadening horizons and whatnot.
6. Do laundry and dishes on a regular basis instead of all at once.  And get a new dishwasher because hand washing dishes just isn't my thing.
7. Watch all of the movies nominated for Best Picture, Leading Actor, and Leading Actress awards for the Academy Awards, write up Oscar predictions, and throw an Oscar party.
8. Finish the Song of Ice and Fire series, or at least what Martin has written to this point.  I love these books, but they are time consuming and difficult to get through.
9. Write something for publication.
10. Go to the PTK national convention in San Juan, California.
11. Begin working on my table made of LEGOs to display all of my Harry Potter LEGO sets.
12. Maintain my weight.  Although weight loss goals seem to be a standard, my goal is simply not to gain any weight.  One of my BFFs is getting married this summer and I already have the dress, so I would like to still fit in the dress this summer.
13. Throw Jen an awesome shower and bachelorette party.
14. Start a savings account.  Living paycheck to paycheck sucks.  I've got to cut my cost of living if I ever want to retire!
15. Go to an HP con (or buy tickets for 2014 if the 2013 cons are sold out), the Wizarding World, or The Making of.  These are probably unobtainable due to #14, but hey, a girl can dream.

Well, that's all I can think of right now folks!  I hope you all have a great 2013!


Godspeed.