Pink Eye!
I had all these wonderful blog posts rolling around in my head. Then one of the oh so generous children at school shared their pinkeye with me. It may be a minor irritant to kids, but to adults it’s pain to 10th power. Luckily, the folks at the Smithville Texas Regional Medical Center were most helpful. There is not any other place to go when one is staying in Bastrop, Texas, which is to small a town to have a hospital.
For 48 hours, I couldn’t read or use my computer. Not a fun way to end what started out as a most enjoyable weekend.
Given a choice between my eyes and my ears, I think I’d opt to keep the eyes and loose the ears. Only I hope I’m never in a position where I have to make such a horrendous decision.
Monday, May 01, 2006
Sunday, April 16, 2006
Happy Birthday Beverly Cleary (3 Days Late)
Beverly Cleary turned 90 on Wednesday.
Turning 90 is an accomplishment for anyone. Turing 90 and still being able to hold children enthrall is a major accomplishment.
Henry Huggins was published in 1950, her last book Ramona’s World appeared in 2001. Three generations of children have loved her books. Now there’s a legacy!
Subs Are Not Us
Subs Are Not Us
As the year wears on the substitute teachers become odder and odder.
Subs basically fall into 3 categories,, gold, silver and badly tarnished cheap tin. The gold subs are retired teachers, usually teachers who have taught at the school
for years and years. They know the children – often they are their prior students, the routines and the school culture. They are highly prized, have their choice of jobs and are often booked months in advance. These are the subs one calls for in-services, personal days and jury duty.
Then there are the silver subs. Often silver subs are working on their teaching certificates and subbing to get experience, job leads and to find a school they want to work in. They come expecting to work and while they haven’t quite got a handle on classroom management they do an acceptable job. Some move on to become permanent full time teachers. Most schools have a pool of silver subs who get the call when the gold subs are busy.
And then there are the badly tarnished, cheap tin subs. These are subs that are willing to take a call on a rainy Friday mornings, the subs that show up when you wake up at 5am with the stomach flu and the bi-lingual subs. And from these subs legendary stories emerge. As the year trudges on the tales get taller and taller.
One of our bi-lingual teachers suddenly resigned & we’ve had an revolving door of subs, each one stranger than the last. Since I’m the librarian I see more than my fair share of them and have ample opportunity to observe their modus operandi.
“Game Boy Man” came complete with Sony hand held. Whenever he thought the kids were occupied out came his gizmo and his thumbs pounded and pushed till he was reminded that it was time to take the kids back to class. He had a habit of “stepping out for a minute”. His idea of a minute and mine differed by 1,800 seconds.
“Chronicle Woman” brings the newspaper and book to work. She brings the children to the library and then while I am teaching pulls out her paper and proceeds to read it. The paper snaps, crumbles and rustles and it is difficult to teach the children attentive listening when their teaching is demonstrating the total opposite. Her idea of teaching is reading while the kids do seat work. She is physically but not mentally present.
“Attitude Woman” showed up 2 hours late for the job this past week. The principal had already split the class up among the other grade level teachers so she was sent to the library to help us out. One thing about a library, we always have work that needs to be done.
My assistant pointed to the shelving and asked “have you ever shelved before?”
Yes”, she replied” but I don’t like to do it.” We don’t either but it’s part of the job.
“You can straighten shelves instead,” I offered. “
I don’t like to do that either” she retorted. “
Well, it’s for thirty minutes, then you have lunch duty”.
“I have a headache. This is not what I came to do today, I need to call the sub office and talk to Betsy (the person who assigns subs their jobs)”.
“We don’t have a phone in the library (boldface lie on my part) Go to the principals office and use her phone”
Five minutes later sub is heading out the door and I’m filling out an evaluation. She will not be back.
And then there was TMI Sub.
TMI sub arrived wearing a tight, low cut, spaghetti strap top and was promptly advised to put on the matching jacket. She as assigned to a 5th grade class, when most of the boys are double retaines and busting with hormones. She dropped the class off for lunch and vanished. Into thin air, she was nowhere to be found. Lunch is 30 minutes and after 45 minutes, one of the counselors brought the class to me and asked if I’d watch them while they scoured the building. An assembly was on the docket and the cafeteria had to be cleaned up and set up.
Fifteen minutes later the sub appears in the library. One of the kids asks her – in Spanish where she’s been. She says something and then next thing I know a boy is blurting out in a shocked voice “You got your period? “ He didn’t say it to attract attention or get a laugh, he was totally appalled. The girls all look mortified and embarrassed and my jaw hits the floor.
I turn to her “You don’t tell kids that!”
“Why? It’s perfectly natural, I started my period, didn’t have anything and had to go buy some tampons – see”.
Not only is it TMI time it is Show and Tell time.
At this point the Assistant Principal comes in to tell me they cannot find her anywhere. I tell him she’s reappeared and it might have been better if she hadn’t. He blushes and sends me off to the Principals office to share the story.
5 minutes later that sub is heading out the door too.
And we still have 30 days of school to look forward too!
As the year wears on the substitute teachers become odder and odder.
Subs basically fall into 3 categories,, gold, silver and badly tarnished cheap tin. The gold subs are retired teachers, usually teachers who have taught at the school
for years and years. They know the children – often they are their prior students, the routines and the school culture. They are highly prized, have their choice of jobs and are often booked months in advance. These are the subs one calls for in-services, personal days and jury duty.
Then there are the silver subs. Often silver subs are working on their teaching certificates and subbing to get experience, job leads and to find a school they want to work in. They come expecting to work and while they haven’t quite got a handle on classroom management they do an acceptable job. Some move on to become permanent full time teachers. Most schools have a pool of silver subs who get the call when the gold subs are busy.
And then there are the badly tarnished, cheap tin subs. These are subs that are willing to take a call on a rainy Friday mornings, the subs that show up when you wake up at 5am with the stomach flu and the bi-lingual subs. And from these subs legendary stories emerge. As the year trudges on the tales get taller and taller.
One of our bi-lingual teachers suddenly resigned & we’ve had an revolving door of subs, each one stranger than the last. Since I’m the librarian I see more than my fair share of them and have ample opportunity to observe their modus operandi.
“Game Boy Man” came complete with Sony hand held. Whenever he thought the kids were occupied out came his gizmo and his thumbs pounded and pushed till he was reminded that it was time to take the kids back to class. He had a habit of “stepping out for a minute”. His idea of a minute and mine differed by 1,800 seconds.
“Chronicle Woman” brings the newspaper and book to work. She brings the children to the library and then while I am teaching pulls out her paper and proceeds to read it. The paper snaps, crumbles and rustles and it is difficult to teach the children attentive listening when their teaching is demonstrating the total opposite. Her idea of teaching is reading while the kids do seat work. She is physically but not mentally present.
“Attitude Woman” showed up 2 hours late for the job this past week. The principal had already split the class up among the other grade level teachers so she was sent to the library to help us out. One thing about a library, we always have work that needs to be done.
My assistant pointed to the shelving and asked “have you ever shelved before?”
Yes”, she replied” but I don’t like to do it.” We don’t either but it’s part of the job.
“You can straighten shelves instead,” I offered. “
I don’t like to do that either” she retorted. “
Well, it’s for thirty minutes, then you have lunch duty”.
“I have a headache. This is not what I came to do today, I need to call the sub office and talk to Betsy (the person who assigns subs their jobs)”.
“We don’t have a phone in the library (boldface lie on my part) Go to the principals office and use her phone”
Five minutes later sub is heading out the door and I’m filling out an evaluation. She will not be back.
And then there was TMI Sub.
TMI sub arrived wearing a tight, low cut, spaghetti strap top and was promptly advised to put on the matching jacket. She as assigned to a 5th grade class, when most of the boys are double retaines and busting with hormones. She dropped the class off for lunch and vanished. Into thin air, she was nowhere to be found. Lunch is 30 minutes and after 45 minutes, one of the counselors brought the class to me and asked if I’d watch them while they scoured the building. An assembly was on the docket and the cafeteria had to be cleaned up and set up.
Fifteen minutes later the sub appears in the library. One of the kids asks her – in Spanish where she’s been. She says something and then next thing I know a boy is blurting out in a shocked voice “You got your period? “ He didn’t say it to attract attention or get a laugh, he was totally appalled. The girls all look mortified and embarrassed and my jaw hits the floor.
I turn to her “You don’t tell kids that!”
“Why? It’s perfectly natural, I started my period, didn’t have anything and had to go buy some tampons – see”.
Not only is it TMI time it is Show and Tell time.
At this point the Assistant Principal comes in to tell me they cannot find her anywhere. I tell him she’s reappeared and it might have been better if she hadn’t. He blushes and sends me off to the Principals office to share the story.
5 minutes later that sub is heading out the door too.
And we still have 30 days of school to look forward too!
Old Friends
Old Friends
Last night we gathered with an group of old,old friends and revisited that venerable lesbian institution, The Pot Luck.
It had been so long since we had seen each other. It seems as one gets older life gets in the way and nesting at home seems more and more appealing.
So there we were, one long time couple who hold a Houston record for the number of years together, one friend recovering from a break up, another who was solo for the evening ( her partner was out of out of state caring for aging parents) and My Beloved and myself.
One wonderful thing about old friends (if we added up the years we had all known each other it would approach the century mark) is that it does not matter how long it’s been, the conversation picks up as if it were yesterday.
We all summed up the events of our past six months in just a few sentences. There was enough history between us the sketchy details were all that were necessary.
No longer did we talk of jobs and careers – retirement is imminent for some and the rest us are settled and content with where we are. Career advancement is no longer a priority any longer. Our children are sleeping through the night, done with the terrible twos and finished with their adolescent rebellions.
This time the talked turned to ageing parents, the state of their health ,and the state of ours. We are the baby boomers, not only are we muddling through our own upcoming old age we are also coping with our parents. The talk ranged from cholesterol medications and assisted living versus in home care.
Of course, being women we had to catch up with who was with whom, who left whom and whatever happened to so and so. Taking a tip from the L Word we created our own “chart”. When it comes to lesbian relationships it is not six degrees of separation, it’s only three. Either our community is too small or we are not adventurous enough to look outside our comfort zone.
The party broke up at 10pm. Because not only are we old friends, we are also getting old.
Last night we gathered with an group of old,old friends and revisited that venerable lesbian institution, The Pot Luck.
It had been so long since we had seen each other. It seems as one gets older life gets in the way and nesting at home seems more and more appealing.
So there we were, one long time couple who hold a Houston record for the number of years together, one friend recovering from a break up, another who was solo for the evening ( her partner was out of out of state caring for aging parents) and My Beloved and myself.
One wonderful thing about old friends (if we added up the years we had all known each other it would approach the century mark) is that it does not matter how long it’s been, the conversation picks up as if it were yesterday.
We all summed up the events of our past six months in just a few sentences. There was enough history between us the sketchy details were all that were necessary.
No longer did we talk of jobs and careers – retirement is imminent for some and the rest us are settled and content with where we are. Career advancement is no longer a priority any longer. Our children are sleeping through the night, done with the terrible twos and finished with their adolescent rebellions.
This time the talked turned to ageing parents, the state of their health ,and the state of ours. We are the baby boomers, not only are we muddling through our own upcoming old age we are also coping with our parents. The talk ranged from cholesterol medications and assisted living versus in home care.
Of course, being women we had to catch up with who was with whom, who left whom and whatever happened to so and so. Taking a tip from the L Word we created our own “chart”. When it comes to lesbian relationships it is not six degrees of separation, it’s only three. Either our community is too small or we are not adventurous enough to look outside our comfort zone.
The party broke up at 10pm. Because not only are we old friends, we are also getting old.
Sunday, April 02, 2006
By Your Possessions Ye Shall Be Known
It’s amazing how much our possessions tell about ourselves. I can tell a great deal about a family from what’s put out at garage sales, but it’s at estate sales or major moving sales where the personalities really shines forth.
We went to a garage sale last week, given by a woman whose mother had just moved into an assisted living complex. She’d of course not had to leave everything behind, but it was possible to “picture her” based on what she’d not been able to take with her.
A twenty year span of exercise videos spoke to a life long struggle with weight. Her clothes – many suits of stylist stout variety showed that it was not a successful one.
She adored bridge and board games – there were piles and piles of playing cards and mugs adorned with the Ace of Spades or the Three of Clubs. Outburst, Pictionary, , Trivial Pursuit and multiple versions of Scrabble were piled high.
Old New Orleans cookbooks told of her early life in the Crescent City, however she did not appear to enjoy cooking since the only cookbooks dated back from the first days of her marriage. There was not a recent cookbook among the bunch. She also was not much of a reader, most of the books were of the Readers Digest variety.
She did however adore sewing. Bolts of fabric, trim and old patterns abounded.
Another shopper inquired about the sewing machine. Her daughter said she had taken it with her, she just couldn’t bare to part with it though she could no longer sew.
And among the books I found the reason why- the only book with a recent copyright date was entitled Parkinson’s Disease.
We went to a garage sale last week, given by a woman whose mother had just moved into an assisted living complex. She’d of course not had to leave everything behind, but it was possible to “picture her” based on what she’d not been able to take with her.
A twenty year span of exercise videos spoke to a life long struggle with weight. Her clothes – many suits of stylist stout variety showed that it was not a successful one.
She adored bridge and board games – there were piles and piles of playing cards and mugs adorned with the Ace of Spades or the Three of Clubs. Outburst, Pictionary, , Trivial Pursuit and multiple versions of Scrabble were piled high.
Old New Orleans cookbooks told of her early life in the Crescent City, however she did not appear to enjoy cooking since the only cookbooks dated back from the first days of her marriage. There was not a recent cookbook among the bunch. She also was not much of a reader, most of the books were of the Readers Digest variety.
She did however adore sewing. Bolts of fabric, trim and old patterns abounded.
Another shopper inquired about the sewing machine. Her daughter said she had taken it with her, she just couldn’t bare to part with it though she could no longer sew.
And among the books I found the reason why- the only book with a recent copyright date was entitled Parkinson’s Disease.
Separating the Wheat from the Chaff
I'm still writing a monthly column for BookThink - it's great fun and it's helpling me be both a better writer and a bookseller. Craig is still publishing it on his free newsletter so I can repost it here:
Thanks to Freecycle.org I’ve made a new friend who is a budding bookseller. Lou has an eye for jewelry and china (did you know folks collect Starbucks mugs???) so we are swapping knowledge fields.
By the way, if you have not explored Freecycle.org I heartily recommend it- there are local chapters in many cities. Their goal is to keep items out of the landfills by giving them away. I have acquired many a free box of packing peanuts. I’ve also given away books I didn’t want to haul to the thrifts or to Half Price so it is also a potential source for books. That is how I meet Lou – she came by to pick up a stack of yearbooks I inherited and did not want to sell.
Lou introduced me to some of her favorite garage sale routes and in return, I introduced her to my favorite thrifts. I then knew how much of my book scouting occurs before I even lay my hands on the book.
Lou kept asking “How’d you know to pick that one up” ?
“It had a mylar jacket – I knew it was ex-library”.
“But I though ex library books were worthless”
“Sometimes, but not always. Especially when it comes to children’s books.” And besides, no matter what “commandant” you follow when it comes to bookselling there are always the one or two books that are the exception.”
Therefore, here are some “commandants” to help you while scouting thrift stores, garage and estate sales for children’s books. Remember, unlike those given to Moses these are not written in stone and they are exceptions to every one of them.
Always, always, always pick up any children’s book with a Mylar jacket. That means it is an ex-library book. Remember, as I stated in my first column when it comes to children’s books ex-library is often all there is. It is not the kiss of death as it is with so many adult books. Check the copyright date. If it is prior to 1964, you might have a winner, or at least a quick sale on your hands. Do flip through looking for crayon marks and ripped and torn pages – we are talking kids books after all.
What is the subject? Fairies, mice, cats, dragons, witches, horses and fantasy of any sort have a ready market. Think outside the box here – people who breed Collie Dogs often collect books about collie dogs. People who quilt collect picture books about quilting. Beverly Cleary, best know for her Ramona series (still in print and not worth reselling) also wrote Lucky Chuck, about a boy and his wish for Harley Davidson. I’ve sold copies to Harley- Davidson riders. Who did the illustrations? Are they especially charming?
Do you recognize the name? Do they have shabby chic appeal?
Grab any book rebound in buckram (often referred to in book descriptions as “stout library binding” and take a second look at it. The buckram binding means the book was popular enough to be read to death and yet important enough to the library that they were willing to spend the money to have it rebound. Do not be put off by the ugly binding – the 1960 & 1970s resulted in some truly lurid color combinations – often the inside pages are clean. This binding is practically indestructible so the pages will not be falling out. A grubby buckram binding cleans up fast and easy with any household spray cleaner.
Open it up, flip through it and ask yourself the same questions you would ask about a mylar jacketed book. At one store, I spotted a thin, little picture book bound in the most unattractive brown binding you could imagine. It turned out to be a copy of Alexander the Gander by Tasha Tudor. The book, with all the flaws clearly described still sold for $45 on E-bay.
Every year The American Librarian Association awards the Newbery and the Caldecott Medal to the best novel and picture book of the year. They are frequently given as gifts –they must be good books – they have won an award – right? Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
The award winners are books adults think a child should read, not one a child might want to read and often not one an adult would remember fondly. The print runs on these are enormous, all libraries own them and they remain in print forever. The thrifts are littered with like new copies of these titles. There are a small niche of collectors who gather up the award winners – but only in the first edition / first printing, which were released before the books won their award. If the book has the gold or silver award seal on it is not a first edition. If you can get them cheaply, they can be sold in lots on E-bay to homeschoolers or teachers building classroom libraries.
One exception is Chris Van Allsburg. The Polar Express won the Caldecott Award in 1985. It’s very popular, especially right around Christmas time. In fact, all his books are good for a quick sale – he won’t allow paperback editions of his books, so they are only available in hardback. The books are always strong sellers, even the ex-library copies. Van Allsburg’s first/ first are considerable collectible – a first edition of the Polar Express just sold for $142 on E-bay. .
Along with Van Allsburg several other children’s authors have attracted the interest of the hyper-modern collectors. Two are of course Philip Pullman and J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) , the third is Lemony Snicket, author of The Series of Unfortunate Events. That’s another set that sells well in lots – there are currently 12 in the series. Pullman and Rowling’s books are consistently in Craig’s Top Ten E-bay sellers lists.
Another twist in the search for editions are the British Editions of J.R. Rowling and Philip Pullman books. I’ve yet to find the latter but I’ve had good luck with the former. I recently sold a British paperback set of the first 3 Harry Potter books for $38. Not bad for a $1.50 investment!
Every state has a state book award too – in Texas it’s the Bluebonnet Award. Normally 20 or so books are nominated for the annual award, children read a specified number and vote on their favorites. Once the award is over and done with the “losers” tend to show up in the thrifts. Again, with a few exceptions they are common as “The Bridges of Madison County and just about as valuable. It’s worth taking a look at your state award list – which can be found on line by accessing your State Library Association so you’ll know to leave those books where you find them.
Along with the award books you’ll also multiple editions of the “classics” – Little Women, Black Beauty, Treasure Island, The Secret Garden, Peter Rabbit etc. etc. These are now in the common domain which means anyone can print them. Just like the Newbery and Caldecott books, they are often given as gifts and just as often, they land unread in the thrift shops. Unless done by Easton Press they aren’t worth the paper they are printed on. Tasha Tudor did illustrate an edition of the Secret Garden and The Little Princess, but both are still in print, in fact these are two of the few Tasha Tudor books that aren’t good sellers.
When it comes to Book Club editions, there are plenty of children’s BCE too. The oldest and the biggest is The Weekly Reader Book Club (WRBC). It has been around since the 1950s – I was a member as a child. The books are easy to spot – the bindings are shoddy and the paper is cheap. It resembles newsprint and by now it is often cracked and brittle. The WRBC is still around so the books abound. There are several clubs – sorted out by age levels so you will encounter WRBC picture books and chapter books. There is also a Dr. Seuss Book Club - produces shiny covered copies, (no dust jackets) of “I Can Read Books”. Common as dirt and just about as valuable.
Another set of books with shoddy bindings and cheap paper are the Whitman books. Shiny picture covers, often with a TV tie- in and published in the 1950s and 1960s. Annette, Spin & Marty, The Lone Ranger and so on. Thrift stores often consider these “special” because they are old, price them accordingly and proudly display them in the glass case. I know Craig has discussed them in a previous issue of The Gold Edition and some are collectible. You need to know what you are doing before you pay the delusions of grandeur prices.
The paperbacks are everywhere – many are worth putting up in lots if the price is right. Magic Treehouse, Hank the Cowdog, Junie B. Jones, A-Z Mysteries, Goosebumps, Animorphs, Bailey School Kids – they all have E-bay potential if the store is having a 10 books for a dollar sale or you strike a hard bargain at a garage sale. Series books are ‘hot” right now so there are many, many of them and most children, once they settle on a series they like want to read every book ever written. They are the Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys of the new millennium. The old Scholastic Paperbacks, which date to the 1960s have nostalgia appeal for the baby boomers. Once again, lot them by topic or author. There are some paperbacks that top out at over $50 – an issue of 50/50 touched on those.
Board books, if in good condition (no teeth marks!) are also worth listing in lots. Try to group books by author if possible or by subject.
You will find multitudes of like new Disney books and current TV & movie tie- ins. Leave them. Ditto Clifford the Big Red Dog and Arthur the Badger books. Pop Up books are another leave behind – usually the pop-ups are damaged, but if you find one by Robert Sabuda do give it a second glance. I did find a mint first edition of one of his Christmas pop up books at a thrift store.
I live in a large, sprawling city so when it comes to garage sales, I scour the ads carefully and try to read between the lines – I haven’t the time or the gas to waste driving to a sale that’s worthless. I don’t bother with any sale that claims to have cribs, strollers and baby items. The only books I’ll find there are Disney books and other worthless pulp. My idea of garage sale nirvana is one given by a retired teacher. Teachers spend hundreds and hundreds dollars of their own money on their classroom libraries and they never throw anything away. They are frequently the recipients of school library discards that date back decades so the potential to mine some gold is high indeed.
While I don’t think you make living only searching out children’s books at Thrift Stores and Garage Sales you can definitely add to your income by keeping an eye out for them while you are trolling for othere treasures.
Thanks to Freecycle.org I’ve made a new friend who is a budding bookseller. Lou has an eye for jewelry and china (did you know folks collect Starbucks mugs???) so we are swapping knowledge fields.
By the way, if you have not explored Freecycle.org I heartily recommend it- there are local chapters in many cities. Their goal is to keep items out of the landfills by giving them away. I have acquired many a free box of packing peanuts. I’ve also given away books I didn’t want to haul to the thrifts or to Half Price so it is also a potential source for books. That is how I meet Lou – she came by to pick up a stack of yearbooks I inherited and did not want to sell.
Lou introduced me to some of her favorite garage sale routes and in return, I introduced her to my favorite thrifts. I then knew how much of my book scouting occurs before I even lay my hands on the book.
Lou kept asking “How’d you know to pick that one up” ?
“It had a mylar jacket – I knew it was ex-library”.
“But I though ex library books were worthless”
“Sometimes, but not always. Especially when it comes to children’s books.” And besides, no matter what “commandant” you follow when it comes to bookselling there are always the one or two books that are the exception.”
Therefore, here are some “commandants” to help you while scouting thrift stores, garage and estate sales for children’s books. Remember, unlike those given to Moses these are not written in stone and they are exceptions to every one of them.
Always, always, always pick up any children’s book with a Mylar jacket. That means it is an ex-library book. Remember, as I stated in my first column when it comes to children’s books ex-library is often all there is. It is not the kiss of death as it is with so many adult books. Check the copyright date. If it is prior to 1964, you might have a winner, or at least a quick sale on your hands. Do flip through looking for crayon marks and ripped and torn pages – we are talking kids books after all.
What is the subject? Fairies, mice, cats, dragons, witches, horses and fantasy of any sort have a ready market. Think outside the box here – people who breed Collie Dogs often collect books about collie dogs. People who quilt collect picture books about quilting. Beverly Cleary, best know for her Ramona series (still in print and not worth reselling) also wrote Lucky Chuck, about a boy and his wish for Harley Davidson. I’ve sold copies to Harley- Davidson riders. Who did the illustrations? Are they especially charming?
Do you recognize the name? Do they have shabby chic appeal?
Grab any book rebound in buckram (often referred to in book descriptions as “stout library binding” and take a second look at it. The buckram binding means the book was popular enough to be read to death and yet important enough to the library that they were willing to spend the money to have it rebound. Do not be put off by the ugly binding – the 1960 & 1970s resulted in some truly lurid color combinations – often the inside pages are clean. This binding is practically indestructible so the pages will not be falling out. A grubby buckram binding cleans up fast and easy with any household spray cleaner.
Open it up, flip through it and ask yourself the same questions you would ask about a mylar jacketed book. At one store, I spotted a thin, little picture book bound in the most unattractive brown binding you could imagine. It turned out to be a copy of Alexander the Gander by Tasha Tudor. The book, with all the flaws clearly described still sold for $45 on E-bay.
Every year The American Librarian Association awards the Newbery and the Caldecott Medal to the best novel and picture book of the year. They are frequently given as gifts –they must be good books – they have won an award – right? Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
The award winners are books adults think a child should read, not one a child might want to read and often not one an adult would remember fondly. The print runs on these are enormous, all libraries own them and they remain in print forever. The thrifts are littered with like new copies of these titles. There are a small niche of collectors who gather up the award winners – but only in the first edition / first printing, which were released before the books won their award. If the book has the gold or silver award seal on it is not a first edition. If you can get them cheaply, they can be sold in lots on E-bay to homeschoolers or teachers building classroom libraries.
One exception is Chris Van Allsburg. The Polar Express won the Caldecott Award in 1985. It’s very popular, especially right around Christmas time. In fact, all his books are good for a quick sale – he won’t allow paperback editions of his books, so they are only available in hardback. The books are always strong sellers, even the ex-library copies. Van Allsburg’s first/ first are considerable collectible – a first edition of the Polar Express just sold for $142 on E-bay. .
Along with Van Allsburg several other children’s authors have attracted the interest of the hyper-modern collectors. Two are of course Philip Pullman and J.K. Rowling (Harry Potter) , the third is Lemony Snicket, author of The Series of Unfortunate Events. That’s another set that sells well in lots – there are currently 12 in the series. Pullman and Rowling’s books are consistently in Craig’s Top Ten E-bay sellers lists.
Another twist in the search for editions are the British Editions of J.R. Rowling and Philip Pullman books. I’ve yet to find the latter but I’ve had good luck with the former. I recently sold a British paperback set of the first 3 Harry Potter books for $38. Not bad for a $1.50 investment!
Every state has a state book award too – in Texas it’s the Bluebonnet Award. Normally 20 or so books are nominated for the annual award, children read a specified number and vote on their favorites. Once the award is over and done with the “losers” tend to show up in the thrifts. Again, with a few exceptions they are common as “The Bridges of Madison County and just about as valuable. It’s worth taking a look at your state award list – which can be found on line by accessing your State Library Association so you’ll know to leave those books where you find them.
Along with the award books you’ll also multiple editions of the “classics” – Little Women, Black Beauty, Treasure Island, The Secret Garden, Peter Rabbit etc. etc. These are now in the common domain which means anyone can print them. Just like the Newbery and Caldecott books, they are often given as gifts and just as often, they land unread in the thrift shops. Unless done by Easton Press they aren’t worth the paper they are printed on. Tasha Tudor did illustrate an edition of the Secret Garden and The Little Princess, but both are still in print, in fact these are two of the few Tasha Tudor books that aren’t good sellers.
When it comes to Book Club editions, there are plenty of children’s BCE too. The oldest and the biggest is The Weekly Reader Book Club (WRBC). It has been around since the 1950s – I was a member as a child. The books are easy to spot – the bindings are shoddy and the paper is cheap. It resembles newsprint and by now it is often cracked and brittle. The WRBC is still around so the books abound. There are several clubs – sorted out by age levels so you will encounter WRBC picture books and chapter books. There is also a Dr. Seuss Book Club - produces shiny covered copies, (no dust jackets) of “I Can Read Books”. Common as dirt and just about as valuable.
Another set of books with shoddy bindings and cheap paper are the Whitman books. Shiny picture covers, often with a TV tie- in and published in the 1950s and 1960s. Annette, Spin & Marty, The Lone Ranger and so on. Thrift stores often consider these “special” because they are old, price them accordingly and proudly display them in the glass case. I know Craig has discussed them in a previous issue of The Gold Edition and some are collectible. You need to know what you are doing before you pay the delusions of grandeur prices.
The paperbacks are everywhere – many are worth putting up in lots if the price is right. Magic Treehouse, Hank the Cowdog, Junie B. Jones, A-Z Mysteries, Goosebumps, Animorphs, Bailey School Kids – they all have E-bay potential if the store is having a 10 books for a dollar sale or you strike a hard bargain at a garage sale. Series books are ‘hot” right now so there are many, many of them and most children, once they settle on a series they like want to read every book ever written. They are the Nancy Drew and The Hardy Boys of the new millennium. The old Scholastic Paperbacks, which date to the 1960s have nostalgia appeal for the baby boomers. Once again, lot them by topic or author. There are some paperbacks that top out at over $50 – an issue of 50/50 touched on those.
Board books, if in good condition (no teeth marks!) are also worth listing in lots. Try to group books by author if possible or by subject.
You will find multitudes of like new Disney books and current TV & movie tie- ins. Leave them. Ditto Clifford the Big Red Dog and Arthur the Badger books. Pop Up books are another leave behind – usually the pop-ups are damaged, but if you find one by Robert Sabuda do give it a second glance. I did find a mint first edition of one of his Christmas pop up books at a thrift store.
I live in a large, sprawling city so when it comes to garage sales, I scour the ads carefully and try to read between the lines – I haven’t the time or the gas to waste driving to a sale that’s worthless. I don’t bother with any sale that claims to have cribs, strollers and baby items. The only books I’ll find there are Disney books and other worthless pulp. My idea of garage sale nirvana is one given by a retired teacher. Teachers spend hundreds and hundreds dollars of their own money on their classroom libraries and they never throw anything away. They are frequently the recipients of school library discards that date back decades so the potential to mine some gold is high indeed.
While I don’t think you make living only searching out children’s books at Thrift Stores and Garage Sales you can definitely add to your income by keeping an eye out for them while you are trolling for othere treasures.
Saturday, March 25, 2006
There is No Joy in Mudville
Texas lost to LSU in overtime.
At least the grocery store won't be as crowed next weekend.
At least the grocery store won't be as crowed next weekend.
Clues to March Madness
Clues to March Madness
I’m not a basketball fan but March Madness is still impacts my life.
Despite attending two sports powerhouse universities (Florida State and the University of Texas) I don’t like college basketball or football. I think the idea that these sports are “amateur” is ludicrous and that the programs are nothing more than training programs for pro sports. College Basketball has an especially poor record when it comes to actually graduating their players.
However, March Madness is everywhere, especially since the University of Texas made it to The Elite Eight.
The internet connection at work slowed to a snails pace.. So slow that I couldn’t use it to teach lessons, order books or anything else legitimate. It was district wide so teachers started to howl. Turns out folks (mostly in the administration building) were watching the games on streaming video. Needless to say this did not sit well with those of us in the trenches who don’t have time to go to the bathroom, much less sit in front of our computers and watch basketball.
The grocery store was full of men this afternoon buying beer and junk food. Massive quantities of beer and very large bags of chips & pretzels. Frito Lay and Budweiser stock must be up by 5 points. The lines were long and the men were intent and on a mission. They needed to get their substance and get home and hunker down and personally cheer their team to victory.
Never mind that the game is in Atlanta.
Tuesday, March 21, 2006
My BetsyTacy list ca
My Betsy-Tacy list came down with a case of the doldrums so someone started up this Snaphot MeMe to get the creative juices (and the posts) rolling again.
I too seem to have a case of the doldrums – to much to do, not enough time to do it. Way to much stuff piled up at work – the un-cataloged books , science equipment and math manipulatives are taking over the back room. My E-bay office is a mess and I’ve 12 boxes of unlisted books in the garage. The garden is quickly being overrun with weeds and needs a couple of hours of serious attention. The phone keeps ringing and ringing and ringing. The neighbor’s dogs have a bad case of the non stop barks.
I’ve got the doldrums when it comes to blog postings too, so I’m going to borrow my list servs MeMe.
WHAT I'M READING
Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria by Carolly Erickson. Found this in a scruffy little thrift shop in Phoenix. I’m enjoying it so much that I’m going to keep it. Not that I need another royalty biography but I’m such a sucker for these kind of books. .
WHAT I'M WEARING
Red long sleeved shirt, kaki pants, Sperry Topsiders sneakers and my new Frank Lloyd Wright watch. I dress for comfort, not for fashion. Earrings have been removed. Today’s choice was dangly purple crystals. All of sudden I’m wearing earrings again – the kids are school have noticed.
WHAT I HAD FOR DINNER
Baked potato soup with bacon, green onions and cheddar cheese. I make a very good baked potato soup if I say so myself.
HOW I'M FEELING
Tired – standard feeling these days. Getting up each morning is getting harder and harder. Is this old age or is this another symptom of the doldrums?
WHAT I'D LIKE RIGHT NOW
Cape Cod White Cheddar Cheese Popcorn. That stuff is addictive.
WHAT I SHOULD BE DOING
Packing Amazon and E-Bay books so I can mail them tomorrow. Or listing books. Or re-listing all the books in my E-bay store that unlisted themselves earlier this week. Or read professional journals. Or sample books. Or folding the laundry. Or making my lunch. It’s so depressing to still be packing a lunch box at the age of 53.
WHAT I'M DOING THIS WEEKEND
Going garage sailing. And perhaps planting some herbs and flowers in my front bed so the yard won’t look so weed infested.
WHAT I DID LAST WEEKEND
Packed books and spent 4 hours to the phone talking to people in India as we tried to figure out why my new Palm Pilot wouldn’t sync with my Outlook Calendar. Mercury is so retrograde. And worked the school carnival. Weekend, what weekend?
WHAT I'M LISTENING TO
Boston Legal, with one ear, My Beloved is addicted. I can take it or leave it, but Candace Bergen is a pleasant change from the usual TV anorexic bimbo.
I’m not going to pass this MeMe on to anyone specific but if you want to do a snapshot of yourself, then take it and run with it!
I too seem to have a case of the doldrums – to much to do, not enough time to do it. Way to much stuff piled up at work – the un-cataloged books , science equipment and math manipulatives are taking over the back room. My E-bay office is a mess and I’ve 12 boxes of unlisted books in the garage. The garden is quickly being overrun with weeds and needs a couple of hours of serious attention. The phone keeps ringing and ringing and ringing. The neighbor’s dogs have a bad case of the non stop barks.
I’ve got the doldrums when it comes to blog postings too, so I’m going to borrow my list servs MeMe.
WHAT I'M READING
Her Little Majesty: The Life of Queen Victoria by Carolly Erickson. Found this in a scruffy little thrift shop in Phoenix. I’m enjoying it so much that I’m going to keep it. Not that I need another royalty biography but I’m such a sucker for these kind of books. .
WHAT I'M WEARING
Red long sleeved shirt, kaki pants, Sperry Topsiders sneakers and my new Frank Lloyd Wright watch. I dress for comfort, not for fashion. Earrings have been removed. Today’s choice was dangly purple crystals. All of sudden I’m wearing earrings again – the kids are school have noticed.
WHAT I HAD FOR DINNER
Baked potato soup with bacon, green onions and cheddar cheese. I make a very good baked potato soup if I say so myself.
HOW I'M FEELING
Tired – standard feeling these days. Getting up each morning is getting harder and harder. Is this old age or is this another symptom of the doldrums?
WHAT I'D LIKE RIGHT NOW
Cape Cod White Cheddar Cheese Popcorn. That stuff is addictive.
WHAT I SHOULD BE DOING
Packing Amazon and E-Bay books so I can mail them tomorrow. Or listing books. Or re-listing all the books in my E-bay store that unlisted themselves earlier this week. Or read professional journals. Or sample books. Or folding the laundry. Or making my lunch. It’s so depressing to still be packing a lunch box at the age of 53.
WHAT I'M DOING THIS WEEKEND
Going garage sailing. And perhaps planting some herbs and flowers in my front bed so the yard won’t look so weed infested.
WHAT I DID LAST WEEKEND
Packed books and spent 4 hours to the phone talking to people in India as we tried to figure out why my new Palm Pilot wouldn’t sync with my Outlook Calendar. Mercury is so retrograde. And worked the school carnival. Weekend, what weekend?
WHAT I'M LISTENING TO
Boston Legal, with one ear, My Beloved is addicted. I can take it or leave it, but Candace Bergen is a pleasant change from the usual TV anorexic bimbo.
I’m not going to pass this MeMe on to anyone specific but if you want to do a snapshot of yourself, then take it and run with it!
Saturday, March 11, 2006
Sun City
Sun City
We’re in Phoenix, my beloved is playing golf and I’ve amused myself with some friends from my Betsy –Tacy list who enjoy garage sales and thrift stores as much as do.
Thursday we set out for Sun City, which was worth the trip, even without all the goodies we found. What an eerie, Stepford Family quality the place has. There are no children no young people at all, they aren’t allowed. No schools, no playgrounds, no swing sets or tricycles on the lawns. Everyone we saw was white, tanned and elderly.
Men are men, regardless of their age and when it comes to toys they must have the latest and greatest. In this case, the toys are golf carts. We saw one particularly dapper gentleman tooling along in a brushed chrome number with shiny chrome hubcaps. Took “Pimp My Ride” to a new level.
The houses are the epitome of “Little Boxes on the Hillside (or since we’re in Phoenix the sand). All looking just like and frozen in a time wrap dating back to when they were first built. The first wave, built in the 1960s are all flat roofed with shag carpet and harvest gold and avocado green appliances. The second wave, done in the 1980s are just a bit bigger and had lots of fake wood paneling. I understand there is now a third wave of Sun City McMansions, but we didn’t make it that far. It’s to new to have many estate sales.
We encountered flocked wallpaper, gold gilt upholstery, pink and turquoise tile and shiny Formica flecked counters. The furniture had a similar frozen in time look. Sun City residents mostly hail from the Mid West, and acquired their furniture before the South West desert look was chic. Overstuffed chairs, ornate pseudo Victorian chairs, “Early American” sofas– complete with hideous plaid or floral upholstery. Large TV consoles and I lost count of the number of entertainment centers containing record players.
Phoenix is in the midst of the drought and new houses don’t have lawns - they have heat tolerant desert plants. Not so in the first Sun City dwellings. The residents seem to have done their best to replicate their former homes complete with lawns. Only the lawns have long since died and have been replaced by artificial putting green cloth. And a very bright green it is too. It’s Saint Patrick’s Day every day in Sun City. The 1980s home tend to be of the cactus and clay pot school of decorating – much more environmentally friendly.
The estate sales were the most fascinating. It was an exercise in sociology to see what people choose to bring with them. I was amazed at the number of furs. Not new furs, but old 1950s mink stoles and those gruesome fur pieces where the minks are all biting each other on the butt. Hanging in the closet at one house was a WW II era mink coat – padded shoulders and all. Just the sort of the thing the Andrews Sisters would wear on a USO tour. It had a monogram and came from a furrier in New York City. It was also very, very tiny and judging from the polyester double knit pant suits for sale it’s owner outgrew it years and years ago. Oh what stories that coat would tell and why did its owner bring it with her to the desert?
We were looking for books and they provide the best snapshot of who once lived in the house. Just about every sale had a local cookbook or two from the owners’ hometown.
One home had a shelf full of “how to write” books, another had shelves of theology titles.
Just about every book every issued by a book club was to be had as well as many, many Readers Digest condensed books and National Geographic’s. Some folks knitted, some did needlework and many, many, many were golfers. Our favorite house had art books – not coffee table art books, but technical how to draw books, all dating from the 1940s and 1950s. Tossed in with those were children’s books, mostly from the 1960s – nice, hardbacked with the dust jacket children’s books from a time when the only kiddie lit people owned were Little Golden Books.
The saddest houses were the houses with no books at all.
“A house without books is like a room without windows. No man has a right to bring up his children without surrounding them with books, if he has the means to buy them.”
Horace Mann
We’re in Phoenix, my beloved is playing golf and I’ve amused myself with some friends from my Betsy –Tacy list who enjoy garage sales and thrift stores as much as do.
Thursday we set out for Sun City, which was worth the trip, even without all the goodies we found. What an eerie, Stepford Family quality the place has. There are no children no young people at all, they aren’t allowed. No schools, no playgrounds, no swing sets or tricycles on the lawns. Everyone we saw was white, tanned and elderly.
Men are men, regardless of their age and when it comes to toys they must have the latest and greatest. In this case, the toys are golf carts. We saw one particularly dapper gentleman tooling along in a brushed chrome number with shiny chrome hubcaps. Took “Pimp My Ride” to a new level.
The houses are the epitome of “Little Boxes on the Hillside (or since we’re in Phoenix the sand). All looking just like and frozen in a time wrap dating back to when they were first built. The first wave, built in the 1960s are all flat roofed with shag carpet and harvest gold and avocado green appliances. The second wave, done in the 1980s are just a bit bigger and had lots of fake wood paneling. I understand there is now a third wave of Sun City McMansions, but we didn’t make it that far. It’s to new to have many estate sales.
We encountered flocked wallpaper, gold gilt upholstery, pink and turquoise tile and shiny Formica flecked counters. The furniture had a similar frozen in time look. Sun City residents mostly hail from the Mid West, and acquired their furniture before the South West desert look was chic. Overstuffed chairs, ornate pseudo Victorian chairs, “Early American” sofas– complete with hideous plaid or floral upholstery. Large TV consoles and I lost count of the number of entertainment centers containing record players.
Phoenix is in the midst of the drought and new houses don’t have lawns - they have heat tolerant desert plants. Not so in the first Sun City dwellings. The residents seem to have done their best to replicate their former homes complete with lawns. Only the lawns have long since died and have been replaced by artificial putting green cloth. And a very bright green it is too. It’s Saint Patrick’s Day every day in Sun City. The 1980s home tend to be of the cactus and clay pot school of decorating – much more environmentally friendly.
The estate sales were the most fascinating. It was an exercise in sociology to see what people choose to bring with them. I was amazed at the number of furs. Not new furs, but old 1950s mink stoles and those gruesome fur pieces where the minks are all biting each other on the butt. Hanging in the closet at one house was a WW II era mink coat – padded shoulders and all. Just the sort of the thing the Andrews Sisters would wear on a USO tour. It had a monogram and came from a furrier in New York City. It was also very, very tiny and judging from the polyester double knit pant suits for sale it’s owner outgrew it years and years ago. Oh what stories that coat would tell and why did its owner bring it with her to the desert?
We were looking for books and they provide the best snapshot of who once lived in the house. Just about every sale had a local cookbook or two from the owners’ hometown.
One home had a shelf full of “how to write” books, another had shelves of theology titles.
Just about every book every issued by a book club was to be had as well as many, many Readers Digest condensed books and National Geographic’s. Some folks knitted, some did needlework and many, many, many were golfers. Our favorite house had art books – not coffee table art books, but technical how to draw books, all dating from the 1940s and 1950s. Tossed in with those were children’s books, mostly from the 1960s – nice, hardbacked with the dust jacket children’s books from a time when the only kiddie lit people owned were Little Golden Books.
The saddest houses were the houses with no books at all.
“A house without books is like a room without windows. No man has a right to bring up his children without surrounding them with books, if he has the means to buy them.”
Horace Mann
Tuesday, March 07, 2006
Musings From Phoenix
We’re in Phoenix, AZ – it’s my Spring Break (Yeah for Spring Break!) and My Beloved has a golf school on her agenda. It just happened to be in Phoenix and just happened to take place during my Spring Break. Clever woman, My Beloved.
Assorted musings include:
Woman with large rumps should not wear Capri pants and stiletto sandals. They resemble a watermelon balancing on two toothpicks.
The checkers at the Fry’s on Baseline Road in Phoenix are delightfully friendly and helpful. Such a refreshing change from the bored, with attitude teenagers at my local Kroger.
People who frequent the library for free internet access via the library computers are sorely lacking in the social skills and will not hesitate to bite one’s head off at any imagined slight or honest mistake. I am very grateful I have my own computer.
In conjunction with that, free wi-fi is one of the greatest inventions of the 21st century.
And further more, I am very grateful I no longer work in a public library so I don't have to deal with clientele who don't want to give up their computer terminal because their time is up
Why did it take us only 3 hours to fly to Phoenix but then take 2 hours to retrieve one’s luggage and rental car? The Phoenix airport has ; in its infinite wisdom built a central rental car terminal. It’s Aggie Architecture at its best - the ramps are so tight and narrow that the shuttle buses they use can’t navigate it.
No matter what town I visit I always seem to find the day-labors site. Must have something to do with my fondness for thrift shops.
Phoenix in March is heavenly – the temps are a prefct mid 70 with not a smidgeon of humidity.
Phoenix & Scottsdale must have strict signage laws. Not only are the buildings low – I’ve seen few about 4 stories, the signs are also low to the ground. Very refreshing to eye after Houston’s visual pollution. Everything is painted in desert blending colors too – nothing garish or gaudy. The freeway noise muffling walls are inlaid with the most interesting Southwestern designs. Houston should take some lessons.
Sunday, March 05, 2006
A Book Sailing We Will Go...
A Book Sailing We Will Go….
Woo- Hoo! I’m on Spring Break and the book sale season has begun. We kicked it off with the annual Boerne Library Sale, followed up by the next day with a Mini-Monster book sale in Austin.
The Boerne sale begins on Friday at noon so I started my Spring Break 1 day early. My principal knows my book buying forays add hundreds of dollars to books to the library so she is lenient about awarding personal days.
We set forth at 6am and sailed into New Braunfels by 9:30, just in time for the thrift stores to open up. Not much in the way of goodies but such is life. Hopefully no scores meant the book sale would be good to us. Book Sellers are perpetual optimists.
Boerne is a small town, about an hour north of San Antonio that for some reason has a stellar sale. Well laid out, well organized, not to pricy and in a building that is big enough to accommodate the crowds. Boerne is a well-heeled area, catering to retirees who are enjoying the good life. There is a also a population of ex-hippies, artsy crafty people who love the Texas Hill Country - not only is it beautiful, but it is also the vortex of all things liberal in Texas. Overall, it adds up to a population of avid readers.
By 11:30 the line was 50 people long and growing. Most book sellers know each other by sight so there was lots of chatting going on, talk of past finds, future finds, the fate of Abebooks.com, whether or not it was worth it to open an e-bay store and acceptable book sale behavior.
It is a hot topic in the book-selling world. Technology has radically changed bookselling, what with the Internet and Scoutpal almost anyone can become a bookseller – at least for a little while.
In the old days book sellers relied on notebooks and their memories, which were prodigious and photogenic. Scoutpal enables one to scan or type in an ISBN and instantly find the value of a book according to Amazon. One does not need to know anything about books; one just needs to know how to type. At least that is what they think.
Dubbed the “scan monsters” they are considered lower than low. Many good booksellers use Scoutpal - I for one swear by it. However, we also have an intrinsic knowledge of books and use it as an additional tool, but not as our only tool. We go thought the tables, book by book, selecting what we want and setting them aside to check later when we cull prior to buying.
The scan monsters don’t operate like that. They sweep the contents of an entire table into boxes and carry the boxes to a corner where they scan every title and toss the discards, helter skelter into a pile. To them books are commodities. Period. Often they operate in a family – 3 or 4 of them grab up armloads of books while several others scan away in a corner. They horde stacks and stacks of books and allow no one else near them.
One of the worst offenders lives in Houston, nobody knows her name but everybody knows her. She arrived and the buzz started as folks pointed her out and recounted horror stories of her past behavior.
At the stroke of noon one the sale organizers opened the door and climbed on a chair to make some announcements. After the usual thank you for comings she stated that, based on past behaviors, they had made some changes in the rules. Anyone caught hording books, cleaning off tables or being rude or greedy would be asked to leave.
The line broke into wild cheers and applause.
Just like Queen Victoria, the Scan Monster was not amused.
Woo- Hoo! I’m on Spring Break and the book sale season has begun. We kicked it off with the annual Boerne Library Sale, followed up by the next day with a Mini-Monster book sale in Austin.
The Boerne sale begins on Friday at noon so I started my Spring Break 1 day early. My principal knows my book buying forays add hundreds of dollars to books to the library so she is lenient about awarding personal days.
We set forth at 6am and sailed into New Braunfels by 9:30, just in time for the thrift stores to open up. Not much in the way of goodies but such is life. Hopefully no scores meant the book sale would be good to us. Book Sellers are perpetual optimists.
Boerne is a small town, about an hour north of San Antonio that for some reason has a stellar sale. Well laid out, well organized, not to pricy and in a building that is big enough to accommodate the crowds. Boerne is a well-heeled area, catering to retirees who are enjoying the good life. There is a also a population of ex-hippies, artsy crafty people who love the Texas Hill Country - not only is it beautiful, but it is also the vortex of all things liberal in Texas. Overall, it adds up to a population of avid readers.
By 11:30 the line was 50 people long and growing. Most book sellers know each other by sight so there was lots of chatting going on, talk of past finds, future finds, the fate of Abebooks.com, whether or not it was worth it to open an e-bay store and acceptable book sale behavior.
It is a hot topic in the book-selling world. Technology has radically changed bookselling, what with the Internet and Scoutpal almost anyone can become a bookseller – at least for a little while.
In the old days book sellers relied on notebooks and their memories, which were prodigious and photogenic. Scoutpal enables one to scan or type in an ISBN and instantly find the value of a book according to Amazon. One does not need to know anything about books; one just needs to know how to type. At least that is what they think.
Dubbed the “scan monsters” they are considered lower than low. Many good booksellers use Scoutpal - I for one swear by it. However, we also have an intrinsic knowledge of books and use it as an additional tool, but not as our only tool. We go thought the tables, book by book, selecting what we want and setting them aside to check later when we cull prior to buying.
The scan monsters don’t operate like that. They sweep the contents of an entire table into boxes and carry the boxes to a corner where they scan every title and toss the discards, helter skelter into a pile. To them books are commodities. Period. Often they operate in a family – 3 or 4 of them grab up armloads of books while several others scan away in a corner. They horde stacks and stacks of books and allow no one else near them.
One of the worst offenders lives in Houston, nobody knows her name but everybody knows her. She arrived and the buzz started as folks pointed her out and recounted horror stories of her past behavior.
At the stroke of noon one the sale organizers opened the door and climbed on a chair to make some announcements. After the usual thank you for comings she stated that, based on past behaviors, they had made some changes in the rules. Anyone caught hording books, cleaning off tables or being rude or greedy would be asked to leave.
The line broke into wild cheers and applause.
Just like Queen Victoria, the Scan Monster was not amused.
Sunday, February 26, 2006
The Backlash
….is beginning. Texas, especially Houston, Dallas and San Antonio opened up their cities, wallets and hearts to the residents of New Orleans. Many, many of them were flown and bussed to the Lone Star State and housed in shelters, hotel rooms and apartments. Donations of cash, food, clothing and furniture poured in. FEMA and the city of Houston provided housing vouchers, Medicare agreed to pick up the health care tab and FEMA provided money for living expenses. Schools waived records and birth certificate requirements and took in all students with no questions asked.
It has now been six months. Many of evacuees are still here; the majority former residents of the Lower Ninth Ward, which may never be rebuilt. These are the poorest, the least educated , the medically fragile and are ill equipped to cope with a series of disasters which would stagger the most well adjusted. These folks have lost their family support system and all that is familiar. Back in the Big Easy their safety net was tenuous at best and in Texas it is non existent.
All of New Orleans’s dirty laundry came with them. Gang wars, turf wars, drug dealers – career criminals who thumbed their nose at the Louisiana justice system. Our crime rate is soaring.
New Orleans schools were known to be inept, corrupt, and more interested in lining administrator’s pockets than educating children. The kids are low, low, low. They need counseling, they need remedial help, they need health care, they need parenting and they need manners. Fighting appears to be the problem solving method of choice. We are having problems and it is worse at the high schools. Schools are struggling and money that could be spent on education is going for additional security.
Texas never spent much on heath care for the indigent - we have some of the highest rates of uninsured in the nation. Our clinics were barely coping and now the Medicare wavers are running out and the emergency rooms are swamped.
FEMA took what little Section 8 housing Houston had and our own poor have nowhere to go. We had long, long waiting lists for public housing and they have suddenly become much, much longer.
Houston is a hard city to be poor. A car is almost a necessity, housing is expensive, social services inadequate and there is a long tradition of pulling yourself up by the bootstraps. Low skill jobs pay barely minimum wage and there is a large underground economy of illegal immigrants who will work for well below that wage.
The Mayor of New Orleans now says he does not want any one to come back who “won’t work”. Many of the folks now in Houston cannot work. They have never worked, they have no skills, they are ill or they have multiple small children. Welfare has supported them for at least 3 or 4 generations and the culture of getting up every day and going to work is alien to them. They are the very old and the very young – grandparents raising their grandchildren and great grandchildren. The parents? In jail, on the streets, in and out of drug rehab, and unable to raise their children.
So, they are all ours. Thousands of new residents needing millions of dollars in services that Texas taxpayers must pay for. The Federal Government seems to have billions to rebuild Iraq but very little for the Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and other hurricane-affected areas.
The administration has taken NIMBY – Not in My Back Yard to a new level.
It has now been six months. Many of evacuees are still here; the majority former residents of the Lower Ninth Ward, which may never be rebuilt. These are the poorest, the least educated , the medically fragile and are ill equipped to cope with a series of disasters which would stagger the most well adjusted. These folks have lost their family support system and all that is familiar. Back in the Big Easy their safety net was tenuous at best and in Texas it is non existent.
All of New Orleans’s dirty laundry came with them. Gang wars, turf wars, drug dealers – career criminals who thumbed their nose at the Louisiana justice system. Our crime rate is soaring.
New Orleans schools were known to be inept, corrupt, and more interested in lining administrator’s pockets than educating children. The kids are low, low, low. They need counseling, they need remedial help, they need health care, they need parenting and they need manners. Fighting appears to be the problem solving method of choice. We are having problems and it is worse at the high schools. Schools are struggling and money that could be spent on education is going for additional security.
Texas never spent much on heath care for the indigent - we have some of the highest rates of uninsured in the nation. Our clinics were barely coping and now the Medicare wavers are running out and the emergency rooms are swamped.
FEMA took what little Section 8 housing Houston had and our own poor have nowhere to go. We had long, long waiting lists for public housing and they have suddenly become much, much longer.
Houston is a hard city to be poor. A car is almost a necessity, housing is expensive, social services inadequate and there is a long tradition of pulling yourself up by the bootstraps. Low skill jobs pay barely minimum wage and there is a large underground economy of illegal immigrants who will work for well below that wage.
The Mayor of New Orleans now says he does not want any one to come back who “won’t work”. Many of the folks now in Houston cannot work. They have never worked, they have no skills, they are ill or they have multiple small children. Welfare has supported them for at least 3 or 4 generations and the culture of getting up every day and going to work is alien to them. They are the very old and the very young – grandparents raising their grandchildren and great grandchildren. The parents? In jail, on the streets, in and out of drug rehab, and unable to raise their children.
So, they are all ours. Thousands of new residents needing millions of dollars in services that Texas taxpayers must pay for. The Federal Government seems to have billions to rebuild Iraq but very little for the Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida and other hurricane-affected areas.
The administration has taken NIMBY – Not in My Back Yard to a new level.
Other Duties as Requ
Other Duties as Required….
All school librarian jobs come with a list of “other duties as required” which is long and varied. I know of one librarian who is responsible for all the laminating at her school. Over 1000 pieces a month – she even keeps a count! Librarians are frequently responsible for lunch or playground duty. Sometimes the library is closed and the librarian becomes an emergency classroom teacher when a sub is a no show.
My own list is lengthy. In my 15 years, I have:
- Chaperoned field trips
- Baked dozens and dozens of brownies to serve at reading celebrations
- Supervised kids in trouble when the Assistant Principal’s office is on overflow
- Housed a student when their teacher just “had to get him/her out of their sight”
- Provided jobs for teacher assistant subs that nobody wants
- Tutored
- Taught Gifted and Talented classes
- Set up computers, TV/VCR combos, DVDs. Somehow; if it plugs in, then it’s my job
- Moved the library- twice
- Kept children who couldn’t go on field trips
- Provided extension cords, batteries, puppets, globes, tape, pencils, scissors, overhead lamps, chocolate and hugs
- Rearranged furniture to accommodate last minute speakers
- Served as the cafeteria when the cafeteria was needed for a program.
- Instructed teachers in Password 101
- Made coffee
- Cleaned tables
- Hosted showers and parties
The TAKS test is an all day affair. The students are allowed if they need to or wish to stay after school to finish it. Tuesday’s test was a marathon in endurance. The kids overflowed the library and this was despite some teachers opting to keep their kids in class. Accommodating this many children gets tricky since the rules require that a trained in test administration, certified teacher be in attendance at all times.
One of the 5th graders, who in charge of his only 1 year younger sister couldn’t find her anywhere. We finally figured out she’d gone home on the bus and since he had the only key to their apartment, she was locked out. Her apartment complex, which is Section 8 housing and filled with Katrina evacuees via FEMA vouchers is not the sort of place where a pretty little 10 year girl needs to be hanging about with no place to go. Her family is from New Orleans too and they haven’t any friends here. The girl has some issues and isn’t allowed to stay home alone.
The Principal dispatched me to go and get her and bring her back to school to wait for her brother to finish up. I took the apartment key, got into my car and set off.
The apartment complex was grim, it is large and sprawling, the buildings painted the color of elephant poop (it helps keep the gang graffiti under control), the parking lot full of ruts and holes and the grass dry and battered into a matted pulp. It was swarming with children, running and out from the dented cars and the dumpsters, swinging on the spindly trees and climbing on the balconies and railings. Leave It to Beaver or Maybury RFD is wasn’t.
I found the girl sitting on the front stoop of her apartment. Just sitting, not looking anxious, not wondering just sitting looking resigned. I told her I needed to take her back to school and she said she couldn’t go till she walked the pit bulls. One was chained to the railing by the front door, the other inside in a crate.
So we opened up the door and there was indeed a dog in a crate. The only other furniture was a new couch and chair that had a “rent to own” look about them and the largest big screen TV I’ve ever seen. We walked the dogs, chained them up again and headed back to school.
I’ve had many, many “other duties as required” but this is the first time I’ve been asked to walk the Pit Bulls. .
Luckily they were friendly Pit Bulls..
Friday, February 24, 2006
More Bookselling
I'm a regular columnist with Bookthinker! I'm so excited - I've always loved to write. I recommend BookThink to all aspiring booksellers - it's so informative and the people who frequent it are always polite and civil. It's a very pleasant change from the E-Bay booksellers forum, where folks are downright snarly.
Here is this month's effort!
The Career Romance Novel
By Guusje Moore
Last month’s column dealt with Malt Shop novels – teenage girl gets the boy of her dreams – all written and set in the 1950s and early 1960s. So where did these girls go after high school graduation? Why, they reappear in the Career Romance Novels, also published during the same time period.
CRNs were written during an era when many middle to upper middle class families sent their daughters as well as their sons to college. After all, a college education would equip her to be a better wife and mother. In addition, she would more likely meet a white collar husband within the ivy halls. If by chance she was not engaged her senior year, she could at least support herself until Mr. Right came along. Of course, this was all pre Betty Freidan and The Feminine Mystique.
<http://www.greatwomen.org/women.php?action=viewone&id=62>
CRN heroines are not the saucy, sexy Cosmo Girls of the swinging sixties; these are "good girls" who wear hats and gloves to work and might give up a chaste kiss on the final page. Oddly, Career Romances were virginal precursor of the highly successful Chick Lit genre. As an aside, Chick Lits, which are easily spotted in their hot pink covers, do well in lots if you can get the books cheaply on FOL bag day.
Most titles followed one of two rigid formats. Either the name of the main character appeared first followed by her career choice (e.g., Beth Hilton, Model, Sue Barton, Senior Nurse, Nancy Runs the Bookmobile) or there was simply an allusion or the actual job title (e.g., The Girl in the White Coat, Flight Nurse, Miss Library Lady). You will note that there are not many doctors, lawyers or engineers in these series. The jobs dramatized are very traditional and typically female dominated – e.g., teachers, decorators or secretaries. You might run across an occasional dancer or actress, but most of these books are about realistic career aspirations.
Nurse CRNs books almost deserve a column unto themselves. There are hundreds of them. When listing a nurse book, be sure to put "nurse" in your title if doesnÂ’t appear in the book title. There are lots of nurse memorabilia collectors, and this will drive them to your auctions. Most nurse CRNs are stand-alone titles, but there are series as well. Two queens of the genre are Cherry Ames and Sue Barton. Cherry even has her own website, which also has information on other nurse books:
<http://www.cherryamespage.com/>
The Tiny Pineapple is another good resource:
<http://www.tinypineapple.com/bookshelf/nurse_books/>
A friend once described Cherry Ames as "The Nurse with ADD" since Cherry changes jobs with more frequency than a two-year-old throws tantrums. There are 27 books in the series, and several were recently reprinted. As with most any series, the last appearing books are the most valuable - in this case, Jungle Nurse and Ski Nurse can net $200 and up on eBay. The earliest books are the most common but are still well worth grouping into lots. Research what you find and plan your auctions accordingly.
Sue Barton, a spirited redhead, was created by Helen Dore Boylston. The series follows her career from student nurse through her marriage and the birth of her children. Some of her struggles with career and motherhood still ring true today. The Sue Bartons with full color dust jackets showing head and shoulders pictures of the heroine command the best prices. Individual copies often sell for $50 more, even in an ex-library state. Non ex-libs with dust jackets can go for well over $100. However, since sheÂ’s not been reprinted, any Sue Barton book sells, even the paperback or British versions. (See the Cherry Ames website for more information.)
Helen Dore Boylston also wrote a four-book series based on an actress - Carol Page. Titles include Carol Goes Backstage, Carol Goes on Tour, Carol Plays Summer Stock and Carol Goes on Stage. These are one of my holy grails. I have never read one, let along owned one. They sell for a pretty penny, but were I to find them, I think I would add them to my personal collection. An interesting piece of kiddie lit trivia is that Helen Dore Boyston is reputed to have been the lover of Rose Wilder Lane, only child of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the Little House Books (more on her in a future column). And there is a theory that Lane did more than edit her mother’s books – she actually wrote them.
<http://www.elliemik.com/boylston.html>
As I mentioned, most career books are single titles written by a variety of authors, though Betty Baxter Anderson wrote quite a few of them. It is not as important to memorize authors names in this sub-genre because they are more commonly collected by job description or publisher runs. CRN publishers attempted to cover as many careers as reasonably plausible. Keep an eye out for Dodd Mead’s "Career Books" and J. Messner’s "Career Romances for Young Moderns" – two of the more prolific publishers. Most collectors try to complete full runs by publisher, though some specialize in specific careers. Besides nurses, there seem to a large number of teacher and librarian novels out there.
<http://www.jenw.org/home.htm>
As with the nurse books, always list the career in your title, and, if you have room for the phrase "career romance" or "career girl," include it also.
Once our career girl met Mr. Right, the wedding was the next event on the agenda. Actually, there are not very many wedding or marriage books, perhaps because these books were written for teenage girls whose imagination went no further than a misty veil and a handsome groom waiting at the altar.
There are, however a few to look for. Prices have dropped sharply since most have been recently reprinted, but ex-library copies still appeal to nostalgia buffs. Rosamund Du Jardin wrote two – Double Wedding and Wedding in the Family, both of which start with an engagement ring and end with tossing rice. Maud Hart Lovelace (another author who deserves an article) ended her very popular Betsy-Tacy series with Betsy’s Wedding. Lenora Mattingly Weber married off Beany Malone in Something Borrowed, Something Blue. She then added one more to the series – Come Back Where Ever You Are, which detailed Beany’s experiences as young wife and mother. It was one of the few books that dealt with married life. The only other one I can think of is Anne Emery’s Married on Wednesday.
Most of the time you will only find ex-library copies of these books. Hardback with a dust jacket under mylar is most preferable, but library bindings with pictorial covers are also saleable. Since these are young adult novels, you may find them in a teen fiction group at library sales.
So, keep your eyes peeled for Brenda Becomes a Buyer, Jet Stewardess, Jinny Williams: Library Assistant or Sue Barton, Staff Nurse. Grab the covers showing a dewy eyed bride in a trailing white dress, and youÂ’ll be smiling right along with the wedding guests.
Here is this month's effort!
The Career Romance Novel
By Guusje Moore
Last month’s column dealt with Malt Shop novels – teenage girl gets the boy of her dreams – all written and set in the 1950s and early 1960s. So where did these girls go after high school graduation? Why, they reappear in the Career Romance Novels, also published during the same time period.
CRNs were written during an era when many middle to upper middle class families sent their daughters as well as their sons to college. After all, a college education would equip her to be a better wife and mother. In addition, she would more likely meet a white collar husband within the ivy halls. If by chance she was not engaged her senior year, she could at least support herself until Mr. Right came along. Of course, this was all pre Betty Freidan and The Feminine Mystique.
<http://www.greatwomen.org/women.php?action=viewone&id=62>
CRN heroines are not the saucy, sexy Cosmo Girls of the swinging sixties; these are "good girls" who wear hats and gloves to work and might give up a chaste kiss on the final page. Oddly, Career Romances were virginal precursor of the highly successful Chick Lit genre. As an aside, Chick Lits, which are easily spotted in their hot pink covers, do well in lots if you can get the books cheaply on FOL bag day.
Most titles followed one of two rigid formats. Either the name of the main character appeared first followed by her career choice (e.g., Beth Hilton, Model, Sue Barton, Senior Nurse, Nancy Runs the Bookmobile) or there was simply an allusion or the actual job title (e.g., The Girl in the White Coat, Flight Nurse, Miss Library Lady). You will note that there are not many doctors, lawyers or engineers in these series. The jobs dramatized are very traditional and typically female dominated – e.g., teachers, decorators or secretaries. You might run across an occasional dancer or actress, but most of these books are about realistic career aspirations.
Nurse CRNs books almost deserve a column unto themselves. There are hundreds of them. When listing a nurse book, be sure to put "nurse" in your title if doesnÂ’t appear in the book title. There are lots of nurse memorabilia collectors, and this will drive them to your auctions. Most nurse CRNs are stand-alone titles, but there are series as well. Two queens of the genre are Cherry Ames and Sue Barton. Cherry even has her own website, which also has information on other nurse books:
<http://www.cherryamespage.com/>
The Tiny Pineapple is another good resource:
<http://www.tinypineapple.com/bookshelf/nurse_books/>
A friend once described Cherry Ames as "The Nurse with ADD" since Cherry changes jobs with more frequency than a two-year-old throws tantrums. There are 27 books in the series, and several were recently reprinted. As with most any series, the last appearing books are the most valuable - in this case, Jungle Nurse and Ski Nurse can net $200 and up on eBay. The earliest books are the most common but are still well worth grouping into lots. Research what you find and plan your auctions accordingly.
Sue Barton, a spirited redhead, was created by Helen Dore Boylston. The series follows her career from student nurse through her marriage and the birth of her children. Some of her struggles with career and motherhood still ring true today. The Sue Bartons with full color dust jackets showing head and shoulders pictures of the heroine command the best prices. Individual copies often sell for $50 more, even in an ex-library state. Non ex-libs with dust jackets can go for well over $100. However, since sheÂ’s not been reprinted, any Sue Barton book sells, even the paperback or British versions. (See the Cherry Ames website for more information.)
Helen Dore Boylston also wrote a four-book series based on an actress - Carol Page. Titles include Carol Goes Backstage, Carol Goes on Tour, Carol Plays Summer Stock and Carol Goes on Stage. These are one of my holy grails. I have never read one, let along owned one. They sell for a pretty penny, but were I to find them, I think I would add them to my personal collection. An interesting piece of kiddie lit trivia is that Helen Dore Boyston is reputed to have been the lover of Rose Wilder Lane, only child of Laura Ingalls Wilder, author of the Little House Books (more on her in a future column). And there is a theory that Lane did more than edit her mother’s books – she actually wrote them.
<http://www.elliemik.com/boylston.html>
As I mentioned, most career books are single titles written by a variety of authors, though Betty Baxter Anderson wrote quite a few of them. It is not as important to memorize authors names in this sub-genre because they are more commonly collected by job description or publisher runs. CRN publishers attempted to cover as many careers as reasonably plausible. Keep an eye out for Dodd Mead’s "Career Books" and J. Messner’s "Career Romances for Young Moderns" – two of the more prolific publishers. Most collectors try to complete full runs by publisher, though some specialize in specific careers. Besides nurses, there seem to a large number of teacher and librarian novels out there.
<http://www.jenw.org/home.htm>
As with the nurse books, always list the career in your title, and, if you have room for the phrase "career romance" or "career girl," include it also.
Once our career girl met Mr. Right, the wedding was the next event on the agenda. Actually, there are not very many wedding or marriage books, perhaps because these books were written for teenage girls whose imagination went no further than a misty veil and a handsome groom waiting at the altar.
There are, however a few to look for. Prices have dropped sharply since most have been recently reprinted, but ex-library copies still appeal to nostalgia buffs. Rosamund Du Jardin wrote two – Double Wedding and Wedding in the Family, both of which start with an engagement ring and end with tossing rice. Maud Hart Lovelace (another author who deserves an article) ended her very popular Betsy-Tacy series with Betsy’s Wedding. Lenora Mattingly Weber married off Beany Malone in Something Borrowed, Something Blue. She then added one more to the series – Come Back Where Ever You Are, which detailed Beany’s experiences as young wife and mother. It was one of the few books that dealt with married life. The only other one I can think of is Anne Emery’s Married on Wednesday.
Most of the time you will only find ex-library copies of these books. Hardback with a dust jacket under mylar is most preferable, but library bindings with pictorial covers are also saleable. Since these are young adult novels, you may find them in a teen fiction group at library sales.
So, keep your eyes peeled for Brenda Becomes a Buyer, Jet Stewardess, Jinny Williams: Library Assistant or Sue Barton, Staff Nurse. Grab the covers showing a dewy eyed bride in a trailing white dress, and youÂ’ll be smiling right along with the wedding guests.
Monday, February 20, 2006
T minus One and Counting
It’s tomorrow. The day of decision. The day of destiny. The day of reckoning. D-Day. The Last Judgement. The bump at the end of the road. The last supper.
Tomorrow is the TAKS test. The all important, all things hinge on , oh no we don’t teach the test, we teach the curriculum (yeah right!) TAKS test.
It’s a killer day – 8 year old children are expected sit still, and focus on all day reading test. Those who fail get pulled for yet even more intensive tutoring so they can re-take it in May. Those who fail it then end up in summer school so that they can have one more try at it in late June. It’s three strikes and you’re out – or 3 strikes and you repeat the grade. The same goes for the 5th graders.
So much rides on this test – my Principal’s job, our school’s reputation, a teacher’s future class assignment, a child’s future & the neighborhood real estate prices.
Yet so much of it is totally out of our control. We ask the parents to ensure their kids have a good dinner, an early bedtime, a calm morning and a good breakfast. However, we can’t be sure this is going to happen and for some of our kids we know it won’t. Many of our parents have the most tenuous of childcare arrangements and by this time of the month, the cupboards are bare.
There are many things wrong with No Child Left Behind and the emphasis on tests, tests and more tests. The worst thing, in my opinion is that while we only have the kids 8 hours a day, we are still held responsible for what happens to them the other 16. Not to mention what happened to them the first 4 years of their life and the 9 months they spent in utereo.
Tomorrow is the TAKS test. The all important, all things hinge on , oh no we don’t teach the test, we teach the curriculum (yeah right!) TAKS test.
It’s a killer day – 8 year old children are expected sit still, and focus on all day reading test. Those who fail get pulled for yet even more intensive tutoring so they can re-take it in May. Those who fail it then end up in summer school so that they can have one more try at it in late June. It’s three strikes and you’re out – or 3 strikes and you repeat the grade. The same goes for the 5th graders.
So much rides on this test – my Principal’s job, our school’s reputation, a teacher’s future class assignment, a child’s future & the neighborhood real estate prices.
Yet so much of it is totally out of our control. We ask the parents to ensure their kids have a good dinner, an early bedtime, a calm morning and a good breakfast. However, we can’t be sure this is going to happen and for some of our kids we know it won’t. Many of our parents have the most tenuous of childcare arrangements and by this time of the month, the cupboards are bare.
There are many things wrong with No Child Left Behind and the emphasis on tests, tests and more tests. The worst thing, in my opinion is that while we only have the kids 8 hours a day, we are still held responsible for what happens to them the other 16. Not to mention what happened to them the first 4 years of their life and the 9 months they spent in utereo.
Wednesday, February 15, 2006
On the Road to Nowhere
My school has a high mobility rate (worse since Hurricane Katrina) - students come and students go. It’s not uncommon for some of our kids to attend 2 or 3 different schools over the course of the school year.
Last August one of the new students really stood out – after all most 5th graders don’t come accompanied by their own parole officer. He was very tall, already a year and half-older than most of our other 5th graders (ah, the joys of double retainees). Well spoken, well mannered when he wanted to be, very intelligent, read way above grade level and wrote with a maturity far beyond most 5th graders.
He also had attitude with a capital A, a chip on his shoulder, street smarts and no work ethic whatsoever. He argued with everyone and anyone, instigated fights, and quickly became a frequent guest of the Assistant Principal.
Our principal, well aware that African American Males are an endangered species, gave him chance, after chance, after chance. She mentored him , had parent conferences, sent him to counseling, moved him to a different classroom, even approved a transfer when his mother moved out of the attendance zone.
Everyone thought he was turning over a new leaf till a couple of "never been trouble, always well behaved" girls tentatively approached their teacher and spilled out a sordid tale of sexual comments, harassment, verbal threats and what in the workplace would be considered “a hostile work environment”.
Once they broke the ice the stories came tumbling out. He would follow kids home and jump them once they off school grounds, he sat in the very back of the bus and talked trash well aware that the bus driver could not hear him. He had issued threats of what he would do if anyone dared report him. In short, he had pretty much terrorized the class.
Since he was extremely intelligent he had a genius for saying just the right thing when confronted and knowing just what he could away with when the teacher’s back was turned.
His behavior gave the principal no choice but to revoke his transfer. He’s going from our school, which while we may be 85 % free lunch and everything that goes with it, is still a very good school. We care about the kids, we nurture them, our kids learn and our test scores are excellent. He would have had a chance with us; in fact, we were most likley his last chance
Come Monday he will be attending school in a neighboring district, in an area of town noted for its high crime and low performing schools. Next year he’ll be at middle school with an even worse reputation, and the high school, should he manage to stay in school long enough to get there is even worse.
It is all so very sad, here is a young man who has so much potential yet at age 11 his life script is already written. By the time, he is 21 he will be either in a wooden box or in an iron cell.
Even though we are supposed to leave no child behind some cannot be salvaged.
Last August one of the new students really stood out – after all most 5th graders don’t come accompanied by their own parole officer. He was very tall, already a year and half-older than most of our other 5th graders (ah, the joys of double retainees). Well spoken, well mannered when he wanted to be, very intelligent, read way above grade level and wrote with a maturity far beyond most 5th graders.
He also had attitude with a capital A, a chip on his shoulder, street smarts and no work ethic whatsoever. He argued with everyone and anyone, instigated fights, and quickly became a frequent guest of the Assistant Principal.
Our principal, well aware that African American Males are an endangered species, gave him chance, after chance, after chance. She mentored him , had parent conferences, sent him to counseling, moved him to a different classroom, even approved a transfer when his mother moved out of the attendance zone.
Everyone thought he was turning over a new leaf till a couple of "never been trouble, always well behaved" girls tentatively approached their teacher and spilled out a sordid tale of sexual comments, harassment, verbal threats and what in the workplace would be considered “a hostile work environment”.
Once they broke the ice the stories came tumbling out. He would follow kids home and jump them once they off school grounds, he sat in the very back of the bus and talked trash well aware that the bus driver could not hear him. He had issued threats of what he would do if anyone dared report him. In short, he had pretty much terrorized the class.
Since he was extremely intelligent he had a genius for saying just the right thing when confronted and knowing just what he could away with when the teacher’s back was turned.
His behavior gave the principal no choice but to revoke his transfer. He’s going from our school, which while we may be 85 % free lunch and everything that goes with it, is still a very good school. We care about the kids, we nurture them, our kids learn and our test scores are excellent. He would have had a chance with us; in fact, we were most likley his last chance
Come Monday he will be attending school in a neighboring district, in an area of town noted for its high crime and low performing schools. Next year he’ll be at middle school with an even worse reputation, and the high school, should he manage to stay in school long enough to get there is even worse.
It is all so very sad, here is a young man who has so much potential yet at age 11 his life script is already written. By the time, he is 21 he will be either in a wooden box or in an iron cell.
Even though we are supposed to leave no child behind some cannot be salvaged.
Sunday, February 12, 2006
MeMe of Three
This MeMe is making the rounds of the blogsphere and it is also making the rounds of the Betsy-Tacy listserv. Which makes perfect sense since it’s a list of women who read and love the Betsy Tacy books by Maud Hart Lovelace. Those of us on the list are compulsive readers who will read the ads while riding the subway, the back of the cereal box or a tattered magazine in the doctors office so it’s not surprising we are also passionate about children’s literature.
I don’t like to resort to MeMe’s - include to many in your blog and it starts to read like you’ve joined the Stratemeyer Syndicate, but I’ve got a cold and I’m feeling brain dead. This one is short and rather fun.
What are your three favorite children's series?
1. The Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace.
2. The Shoe Series by Noel Streatfeidl.
3. The Beany Malone / Katie Rose and Stacy series by Lenora Mattingly Weber
What are your three favorite non-series children's books?
1. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
2. Miss Happiness and Miss Flower by Rumer Godden
3. An Old Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
What are your three favorite children's book characters?
1. Ramona from the Henry Huggins / Ramona books by Beverly Cleary. She still makes me laugh
2. Emily Webster from Emily of Deep Valley by Maud Hart Lovelace. I was so like Emily when I was in High School
3. Jane Ellison in the Jane / F-H series by Anne Emery. Unlike many teenage heroines, Jane wasn’t perfect, in fact she fumbled and bumbled as much as I did as a teenager. It was nice to know I wasn’t alone.
Commentary:
This list is from the books I read growing up as child and still read and reread. I’ve found few contemporary children’s novelists whom I adore with the same passion, though I have many, many favorite picture books that I use over and over again in my lessons.
And of course I had to leave out many, many books – the Melendy Family series by Elizabeth Enright, Hitty Her First 100 Years, the books by Rosamund Du Jardin, the old, non PC Bobbsey Twins, the original Mary Poppins & Winnie the Pooh books (not the Disney versions), many other books by Rumer Godden and Frances Hodgson Burnett, Black Beauty, the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the Moffat books by Eleanor Estes…the list goes on and on and on.
I’m not going to pass this MeMe on to anyone in particular. If it sends you down memory lane, then take it and run with it!
I don’t like to resort to MeMe’s - include to many in your blog and it starts to read like you’ve joined the Stratemeyer Syndicate, but I’ve got a cold and I’m feeling brain dead. This one is short and rather fun.
What are your three favorite children's series?
1. The Betsy-Tacy series by Maud Hart Lovelace.
2. The Shoe Series by Noel Streatfeidl.
3. The Beany Malone / Katie Rose and Stacy series by Lenora Mattingly Weber
What are your three favorite non-series children's books?
1. A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett.
2. Miss Happiness and Miss Flower by Rumer Godden
3. An Old Fashioned Girl by Louisa May Alcott
What are your three favorite children's book characters?
1. Ramona from the Henry Huggins / Ramona books by Beverly Cleary. She still makes me laugh
2. Emily Webster from Emily of Deep Valley by Maud Hart Lovelace. I was so like Emily when I was in High School
3. Jane Ellison in the Jane / F-H series by Anne Emery. Unlike many teenage heroines, Jane wasn’t perfect, in fact she fumbled and bumbled as much as I did as a teenager. It was nice to know I wasn’t alone.
Commentary:
This list is from the books I read growing up as child and still read and reread. I’ve found few contemporary children’s novelists whom I adore with the same passion, though I have many, many favorite picture books that I use over and over again in my lessons.
And of course I had to leave out many, many books – the Melendy Family series by Elizabeth Enright, Hitty Her First 100 Years, the books by Rosamund Du Jardin, the old, non PC Bobbsey Twins, the original Mary Poppins & Winnie the Pooh books (not the Disney versions), many other books by Rumer Godden and Frances Hodgson Burnett, Black Beauty, the Little House books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, the Moffat books by Eleanor Estes…the list goes on and on and on.
I’m not going to pass this MeMe on to anyone in particular. If it sends you down memory lane, then take it and run with it!
Tuesday, February 07, 2006
Comma Comma And
The TAKS writing test is just around the bend and our 4th graders are busy, busy, busy with “Writing Camp”. Think Boot Camp for budding writers and you get the picture. The main difference between the Marines and us is that our recruits don’t enlist, they are conscripted.
I took another teacher’s after school tutoring session and after taking one look at the TAKS packet (there is nothing more soul destroying than a TAKS packet) I tossed it aside and opted for “quick writes” instead.
We are blessed with some amazing on-line resources, including United Streaming, which I’ve renamed “The Cyber Blockbuster”. Its forte is streaming video but the site also has a section of teacher tools, including illustrated writing prompts.
I put one up and we started brainstorming. Our students have a tendency to make a long list of traits when they are writing description so I’ve been teaching the concept of “comma, comma, and”. Think 3, as in The 3 Bears, The 3 Pigs or The Holy Trinity. We seem to be inatly programmed to look for patterns of three. Using “comma, comma, and” really does help a passage “flow”.
After 20 minutes we’d came up with a pithy paragraph describing the night flight of an owl. I used a laptop and projector and typed their suggestions in MSWord. The kids found the programs ability to do automatic spelling and grammar checks most intriguing. They have to use paper and pencil so not only do they have to worry about content; they also have to sweat the mechanics. That is a tall order for a 9 year old, especially for one for whom English is not their first language.
They then choose another prompt and we all sat down and started to write. I joined them and all of a sudden, I noticed I could no longer hear their pencils scratching on the paper. I looked up and they were all staring at me - I’d scratched out a sentence. A teacher admitting to a mistake? Unheard off! Aren’t teachers supposed to be perfect?
This teacher isn’t, at least not when it comes to writing!
When we finished one of the kids looked up at me and said “This was fun”.
Ah, there is nothing sweeter to a teachers ear than knowing a lesson hit home!
I took another teacher’s after school tutoring session and after taking one look at the TAKS packet (there is nothing more soul destroying than a TAKS packet) I tossed it aside and opted for “quick writes” instead.
We are blessed with some amazing on-line resources, including United Streaming, which I’ve renamed “The Cyber Blockbuster”. Its forte is streaming video but the site also has a section of teacher tools, including illustrated writing prompts.
I put one up and we started brainstorming. Our students have a tendency to make a long list of traits when they are writing description so I’ve been teaching the concept of “comma, comma, and”. Think 3, as in The 3 Bears, The 3 Pigs or The Holy Trinity. We seem to be inatly programmed to look for patterns of three. Using “comma, comma, and” really does help a passage “flow”.
After 20 minutes we’d came up with a pithy paragraph describing the night flight of an owl. I used a laptop and projector and typed their suggestions in MSWord. The kids found the programs ability to do automatic spelling and grammar checks most intriguing. They have to use paper and pencil so not only do they have to worry about content; they also have to sweat the mechanics. That is a tall order for a 9 year old, especially for one for whom English is not their first language.
They then choose another prompt and we all sat down and started to write. I joined them and all of a sudden, I noticed I could no longer hear their pencils scratching on the paper. I looked up and they were all staring at me - I’d scratched out a sentence. A teacher admitting to a mistake? Unheard off! Aren’t teachers supposed to be perfect?
This teacher isn’t, at least not when it comes to writing!
When we finished one of the kids looked up at me and said “This was fun”.
Ah, there is nothing sweeter to a teachers ear than knowing a lesson hit home!
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