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How Technology is Changing the World–No Oxford Comma???
I’m drinking coffee and reviewing social media. I love when there’s an honest to goodness conversation unfolding on Facebook or Twitter. I don’t get those deep conversations in person as much...
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Filling the Empty Space in my Bookshelf…Visionaries Wanted
I have a special shelf dedicated to books written by important people in my life. Some were written by mentors, like Dr. Stan Lemons’ collection and Dr. Brenda Meehan Waters, both among of the best of...
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Be Brief. Be Seated–The Art of Shutting Up.
Geoff Talbot’s blog, Seven Sentences , was the first thing I read today. His goal–inspiring the world daily in just seven sentences. Brilliant. I am the opposite of “seven sentences.” I’m “seven...
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Write Less. Be Right More. A Top 10 List.
Everywhere I go, there’s a top ten list. “Top 10 Ways to Make Your Sneakers Smell Fresh,” “Top 10 Ways to Declutter.” As an stodgy history writer, I decried the top ten list for the longest time. Now...
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Shakespeare Smackdown (You Can’t Handle the Truth!)
It’s Shakespeare’s birthday. I don’t have a card. To tell you the truth, I’m a bit angry at the man, dead though he may be, because no one will do my work in class. They’re all walking around with...
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Sloooowwww Down! And Do Not Delete
“No!!” I said as I watched my finger click “Don’t save.” I was multitasking–talking, thinking, and typing, laptop balanced on my knee. My finger headed for the wrong square. Microsoft Word gave me the...
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He Said, “No”
“Is this you following me on this blog?” “Yes,” I said, nearly one year ago. I’d just started blogging. I got caught setting up a blog with a bad name. Kamal made me promise to write. For real. He...
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Wild West of Punctuation
The dash is like the Wild West of punctuation. It has no rules. As a writer, I overuse it. I commit other grammatical crimes, too, like my regular use of the sentence fragment, but there’s nothing like...
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Three Dumb Questions
“How long does it have to be?” he asks. “There are three questions you will never ask me,” I reply. “What’s the date and time,” I motion to the date scribed in red and the analog clock ticking out...
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Looking into the Artists’ Eyes
It’s easy to give feedback. But there’s something about giving honest and genuine feedback while looking into the eyes of an artist that’s emotional, different. View of the Congregational Church that...
View ArticleGood Karma Report: Teens Give a Tired Mom a Slice of Heaven
Summer recreation. It’s a gift from God to all parents who work twenty-five hours a day. Camp seems so easy, too easy in fact–sign the boy up for eighty-five dollars for the whole summer, wait a month,...
View ArticleParents Unite! You DO Have Power!
My son will hate me when he grows up. All kids hate their parents, but mine’s discovered The Blog. He can read now. He sneaks up behind me just as silently as when he’s trying to steal my passwords and...
View ArticleShakespeare’s on the Discount Shelf
There they sat, alone in my inbox for just ninety-nine cents. The Bard himself and my beloved Mark Twain. Ninety-nine cents each, that is, for a grand total of a dollar ninety-eight. “This collection...
View ArticleWhy We Wrote about Dinos instead of Education for April Fool’s
Our first book is live. It’s about a little dinosaur who annoys his mom. I wrote the words, and the brilliant Sarah Steenland drew all the pictures. I’m late in releasing the education book I’ve been...
View ArticleWhy I Love Letters though I’ve Had the Email Beaten Out of Me
“Sign up here to receive a handwritten letter…” I signed up right away. I’m an adult. I can no longer imagine getting an envelope in the mail that doesn’t demand money. What a delightful project by...
View ArticleUncle Sam Celebrates My Birthday By Making Me Look Bad (Ode to my favorite...
I was in line at AAA getting my new license. I didn’t want to drive with an expired one. Once I forgot to register my car for two years. “Do you know you skipped an entire registration cycle?” the...
View ArticleJesus Is Always the Answer: How God Helps Authors and School Cheats
“You can’t mark my exam wrong, Miss,” said my student. “I put ‘Jesus’ for the answer, and as you know, Jesus is always the answer.” I wasn’t quite sure what to say. Except for one thing–the kid...
View ArticleHow to Screw Up Your Book Release
I pushed the button on the Kindle file. I was supposed to be waiting until Tuesday. “Please be aware that it can take up to 12 hours for English and 48 hours for other languages to be available in...
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Why I Need to Be in Oprah’s Book Club
My book, Don’t Sniff the Glue: A Teacher’s Misadventures in Education Reform is live on Amazon. I priced the Kindle so even a teacher without classroom supplies could afford to read it for less than a...
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Ultragorgon Casey Meets Kurt Vonnegut and Calvin & Hobbes
I’m excited–Amazon thinks I’m funny. I’ve waited my whole life to be funny–I’m used to people laughing at me, not with me, like when they nicknamed me “Ultragorgon” in middle school after we studied...
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