I know I’ve been doing a lot of holidays, but good ones keep coming up. Also, school started and things are busy. Today, I’m bringing a really important holiday to you, which I think more people need to be aware of.
Literacy is very important to future success. As you can see from the infograph I found with a Google Image Search, most of those who can’t read end up in jail or at least on welfare. So, how can one help an adult who has this problem?
I found a list on Readingpatch that can answer this, but here is the quick list:
Build a rapport with the person. Similar to children, there is a confidence issue, so you need to make a connection first. This creates trust and understanding from both parties. A rapport can also reveal an undiagnosed reading disorder like dyslexia.
Contrary to what fiction says, do NOT start an adult with children’s books. They may be easier and seem safer, but there is a humiliation factor.
Connected to the previous entries is that you need to build their confidence. Praise as much as possible.
Reading aloud like we do with children can be another source of humiliation. Use reading programs, which can create some privacy.
So, what do you think can be done to help with the literacy rates across the globe? Do we teach reading incorrectly in some countries?
The title pretty much sums it all up. Students at my school started on Tuesday and my son started on Wednesday. I got a little time with him Tuesday night after 10 days of not seeing him, but I get real time with him this weekend. Think that absence weighed on me a lot and added to the stress.
Thankfully, the students had a good week and only a few blips, but nothing major. My biggest challenge is having lunch at 1:30 PM since I have breakfast at 6 AM. Snacking between resulted in the vending machine, so I need to get better snacks to stash in the classroom. Stuff that the kids and a few coworkers won’t eat, which is why I’m going with apples. I’m trying to do mostly zero sugar protein drinks for lunch as well in the hopes of losing some weight. Not every day, but maybe 3 of them. Probably a good thing that lunch is my biggest challenge for now, which means our students are taking to the new schedule and classroom really well.
School starting later and ending later has thrown me off. I end up having an hour and 15 minutes between dropping my son off and needing to start. No point in going home, so I went in thinking I could rest in the faculty lounge with a notebook. Seems a lot of people show up their old time anyway, which means I can’t find a place to write or read. Might go into the classroom next week. Another thing I started doing was Pokemon Go in the park on the days I didn’t have to bring my son into school. I leave at 6:30 instead of sitting around the house and get exercise in. 20-30 minutes is a pretty good time to get a few things done in the game, but this will have to stop once it gets cold or the weather isn’t agreeable. Malls don’t open until 10 AM, which means winter is going to pose a problem.
Honestly, I really tired and appointments being added on top of the start of school/work didn’t help. Getting twitchy since I can’t get to my notebooks or Darwin & the Demon Game. That book has been printed out and sitting on a table since June, but time has not been on my side. Determined to start it next weekend at least since I’ll have the house to myself for a while. We’ll see how that goes since cooking, mowing the lawn, and various errands will have to get done first. The new school hours combined with the appointments don’t give me much time in the afternoon/evening. If I can get most of the food shopping done this weekend then I should be in a good place for writing. That should be the overall goal this month.
I was about to say that I made no progress this week, but I almost forgot that last weekend wasn’t about writing. Knowing that time would be limited, I put a lot of time and money into making my son’s Halloween costume. Only the gloves remain to be put together while the wig and belt are on the way. The shirt was the hardest part because it was first and I’m not good at sewing. So, I had to keep failing and trying again. By the time I reached the jacket, I had a better idea of what I was doing. Thankful for that since that required turning it from a long sleeve into a short sleeve, which was daunting. The fur collar was an unexpected creation to counter the original plan’s removable collar. Here are some pictures of the character and finished products:
Rimuru Tempest
At least I got some creative outlet. This school year is going to make writing difficult, so it might take me the entire year to finish editing Darwin & the Demon Game and Darwin & the Beast Collector. My hope is to get the first one edited before holiday break and I can type it in during that time. Then, I’ll get the second one edited before spring break and type it in then. This would me I tackle Darwin & the Joy Path by next summer. Not ideal or anything close to great, but it looks like my author time is going to get less and less. Feel like I’m in a position where it’s time to either give up for a few years or continue suffering. The blog is getting harder to maintain as well, which means this is going to be a dangerous year in terms of my creative outlets. Really hope I can utilize the mornings at some point to at least get notebook and editing done. I might set up blog posts while my son does homework too.
That’s pretty much it. Next week is a full one of school and living. What are the goals?
Spend time with son.
Errands to make sure we have food for dinners.
Cook dinners.
Start editing Darwin & the Demon Game.
Tinker with ‘Phi Beta Files’ if possible.
Set up more November blog posts.
Maintain 7+ hours of sleep a night.
Play Pokemon Go to get some exercise every day.
Hydrate! Didn’t do this well and my guts were killing me by Friday.
Today is ‘Read a Book Day’! Didn’t know this holiday existed, but it’s definitely a hobby that people should try out. Let’s not be specific about books too. Sure, you have novels and tomes. You also have manga, short stories, and comic books. As long as you’re reading something, I say it counts. Let’s include audiobooks too since it’s a weekday and people have work or school.
So, what’s your favorite book that you’ve read multiple times? (For me, it’s ‘Ender’s Game’ by Orson Scott Card.)
The title says it all. It’s National Wildlife Day, so here are some fun pictures about it. Also, what is your favorite animal? I’m always torn between tigers, wolves, and red pandas. Depends on my mood.
Teasers have returned! Here is an excerpt from The Merchant of Nevra Coil. Called Everthorne, this is the northern Sister City and sits in a very difficult region. A briar forest to the south, icy expanses to the east, swamplands to the west, and a craggy shore to the north. Yet, it sits in a comfortable weather zone. It has a lot of trouble though, which you’ll get to see more of in the book.
Welcome to our end of season sale! All of our grills are discounted and can come in any reasonable shape you want. The only choice you have to make is size and the method by which it cooks. We even have vegetarian and vegan additions that will eliminate all non-desired food placed on the grill. Same can be done with allergies. Why do we do this? It’s because some people visit those with diet restrictions, ignore them, and take over the grill as if they are in charge. Totally optional addition though.
Now, take a look at our small, but expansive list.
Gas– The good old propane grill. Our tanks are extra fortified to prevent leaks and punctures. They are also self-filling through a tiny portal, which accesses our propane reserves. This will go off when it reaches 10% capacity, but it will shut down the grill for about 30 minutes.
Infrared– Using gas, a ceramic tile is heated to create more controllable thermal radiation. The smaller cannister has the same additions as the Gas Grill. The tiles will summon their own replacement when it is time to retire.
Electric– If you don’t want gas or charcoal then we have electric. The battery cannot recharge, but we have an automatic replacement system. It’s a team of vultures paired with raccoons who are trained to do the work. All you have to do is give them some of the BBQ and they’ll be happy.
Pellet Grill– This grill uses wood pellets and has a lot of versatility in how you cook the food. Each purchase comes with a list of preferred woods as well as where you can buy them cheap. The list changes as prices change. Grill comes with a splinter warning and removal system just in case.
The rest are all charcoal grills, but different styles. You can use any charcoal that you wish, but we do have a brand that burns slower. It means your charcoal will last longer and save you money.
Brazier– A standard grill with a wire rack over the charcoal. These all have a button you can press for intense heat, which cleans the rack. Any food that falls through the grating is lost, but summons a helper goblin to make sure it doesn’t happen again. They won’t touch the food because they ate the lost piece. Many people sacrifice a piece just to get the help because some goblins arrive with special sauce.
Kettle– This sphere-shaped grill is similar to the Brazier model, but doesn’t come with a goblin. Instead, it has a perfectly shaped cover, which can be made transparent by the turning of a dial. This allows you to check the progress of your cooking without losing heat. Larger models have a switch that will flip food to cook both sides.
American Hibachi– Unlike the Japanese version that only warms food, these small grills will cook food. They can be folded to a size that will fit in a shoebox and can be cleaned by shaking it in its compact form. This grill comes with tools made exactly to its size, which can be kept in a side compartment.
Tandoor– This is a more advanced grill made of clay and shaped to look like a vase. It can use wood or charcoal. A timer/thermometer is built into the tandoor grill, which will eject the skewered meat when cooked to your programmed desire. This grill comes with a robot designed to catch the flying food.
Gravity-Fed– Nothing special or magical about this type of grill. It’s just really interesting and cool.
Legends of Windemere 