How To Use the QR Code Displays

I've been inspired by the AMAZING bulletin board in Ms. Tramontin's classroom.  If you haven't seen it yet, you really should.  Her display uses QR codes, which most of you will have seen in the corners of advertisements in magazines.  Normally, I'm not a fan of QR codes, since they are meant to tempt one into buying more, more, more (and I really don't need any more stuff!).  Ms. Tramontin harnessed this tool to create a display that links students to audio and video using a bar code scanner.

Since imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, Ms. Tramontin should be feeling pretty good today.  I've created two Library displays that use QR codes too!

To use these bulletin boards (one in the Library, one in the Senior hallway), you'll need a smartphone.  Follow these directions to see what's in store for you in the Library.

1. Download one of the many, many FREE QR code scanners from your app store.  Per Ms. Tramontin's recommendation, I chose ShopSavvy's product.  It's free and it's fast.
2. Use the app to scan the QR codes on the bulletin boards.
3. Enjoy the videos.
4. Come check out the books!

A Nest of Readers

I think my favorite moment at FSHA so far happened just now when I walked in on this lovely scene.  Great girls reading great books in a great spot.  Blessed be the bean bags.

What I Just Read: I Hunt Killers

Jazz (or Jasper) is 17, smart, tormented by guilt and shame, and the son of a notorious serial killer.  In Barry Lyga's new thriller, I Hunt Killers, the small town of Lobo's Nod is faced with its second murderous fiend in a decade when a copycat killer begins to duplicate the crimes Jazz's dad began committing early in his career.

Billy Dent killed 134 people, mostly women, over the course of his long career.  In the second half of that long stretch of time, he had a son.  Jazz was raised to follow in his father's footsteps, learning tricks of the trade from a very young age.  While Jazz rejects his father's attempts to make him into a second-generation monster, he is plagued by nightmares and self-doubt now that his father is safely behind bars and he is left to pick up the pieces.

Together with his girlfriend and loyal pal, Jazz works to uncover the truth about the copycat killer who calls himself The Impressionist in the hope that he will be redeemed in the eyes of his small community, no longer an outcast or a mini-murderer.

It's a quick, furious read (I read it in two days).  Don't worry, it's not as gruesome as it sounds, although it can be a little scary at times.  I recommend it for fans of Alan Ferguson's forensic mysteries (The Christopher Killer, etc.), as both are chock full of details about the detection and analysis of clues in the pursuit of a criminal.

Book Spine Poetry: I am an emotional creature

"I am an emotional creature"

Bright young things lie in your face,
The twisted sisterhood lost, lost.
Lost and found in a different voice, 
The nature of life - 
no turning back.
I am an emotional creature.

Check it out @ the Library: Shiver

Check out the book: Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging

It's Carnival Time!

It's Mardi Gras, and what I wouldn't give to be in New Orleans right now!  If you've never been, Mardi Gras is one of the most magnificent celebrations of solidarity, creativity, tradition, and music that I've ever seen.  Myths of Bourbon Street shenanigans aside (the real Mardi Gras celebrants go nowhere near Bourbon Street!), the city is filled with wildly-costumed, happy, parading locals and visitors.  My mom is there; she goes every year.  Schools are closed the entire week, and families get together for celebrations that rival any Thanksgiving or Fourth of July in the rest of the country.  Costumes, masks, beads, special ladders that allow the kids to see over the crowds....this holiday is a wonderful example of a community coming together to create a collective experience of joy and tradition.  Every local neighborhood has a parade during Mardi Gras season, which has been going on for many weeks.  The parade season is highly organized and each parade is scheduled so that participants can join in the fun. Today's famous parades include the Rex parade, the Zulu parade, and the St. Anne's parade.
One of the very best parts of Mardi Gras is the music.  Brass bands march the streets playing songs that bring people out of their homes to follow along and dance for miles.  Every club and restaurant pumps New Orleans jazz and funk out into the streets.  It's a cacophony of colors, sights, and sounds that leaves one's head spinning in the best possible way.
Perhaps the most beautiful sight during Mardi Gras is also one of the most elusive.  It is hard to describe the breathtaking beauty of a Mardi Gras Indian Chief turning the corner, followed by his Spy Boy, Flag Boy, and other tribe members.  These men spend the entire year designing and sewing every tiny bead onto their beautiful costumes.  It's really a sight to see.
New Orleans is a special place.  It's home to traditions, music, architecture, cuisine, and literature that is entirely unique.  It's historic role as a a major port of entry to the Unites States and the Mississippi River  brought Spanish, French, Haitian, African, and so many other cultural influences to its muddy shores.  These have melded and mutated into something that exists nowhere else.  It's hard to describe.  I recommend you just go, and soon.  I'll give you a list of restaurants to try that will bring you to your knees.
Have I enticed you?  If so, it is now time for you to explore the wonderful world of New Orleans through its literature.  So many writers have captured parts of New Orleans in their writing.  It's a great way to begin.  Take a look at the titles below, some of which are available in the FSHA Library.

Happy Mardi Gras, and Laissez le Bon Temps Rouler!

Fiction
A Feast for All Saints by Ann Rice - one of my favorites and NOT a vampire novel
A Confederacy of Dunces by John Kennedy Toole - we have this one
Eleanor Rushing by Patty Friedmann - an all-time favorite of mine
Claire Dewitt and the City of the Dead by Sara Gran
The Dave Robicheaux mysteries by James Lee Burke
The Skip Langdon mysteries by Julie Smith
Ruined by Paula Morris - we have it; a YA ghost story of the Garden District and Mardi Gras)
My Mother the Cheerleader by Rob Sharenow - a YA novel of 1960 New Orleans and school desegregation (we have it)
Yellow Jack by Jack Russell


Nonfiction
Zeitoun by Dave Eggers - we have it; a true story of Katrina and its aftermath
The World That Made New Orleans: from Spanish Silver to Congo Square by Ned Sublette
New Orleans, Mon Amour: Twenty Years of Writings from the City by Andrei Codrescu

I could go on and on and on and on.......

Girlfriend Theology

This week I had the great pleasure of participating in Girlfriend Theology, a process/project happening in the Religion I classes.  Girlfriend Theology is about storytelling, women and girls coming together, listening to one another, reflecting on their shared experiences, making connections, and all that other great stuff!

Earlier this year, Mrs. Tramontin
and Mrs. Dawson issued an open invitation to the women of FSHA to share stories of their adolescence with the girls, who would then participate in a discussion of the stories.  The girls would be asked to share their personal connections to the stories, their ideas about the wider themes in the stories,  where they see God in the stories, and how they might apply the lessons of the stories to their own lives.  I knew right away that I wanted to participate.  Some of my best friendship moments happened during campfires at Camp Cheley, youth group meetings at the church I attended when I was in high school, and in the lounge of the sorority house where I was very briefly a member in college.  I am well aware of the power of sisterhood! But, what to write??? So many things happened during my teenage years!  What was memorable?  What stood out?  Where might our girls find meaning?  And then it dawned on me.  The perfect topic....my first kiss.  What more memorable moment could there be, really?

I read my story to four groups of freshmen this week, who now know much more about me than I know about any of them.  The experience was remarkable in its variety. Each group of girls latched onto different themes from my story, making no two discussions alike.  They talked about friendships built and broken, how boys might feel (though who can really know the answer to that?!?), feeling lost, feeling found, feeling  in-between.  They talked about purpose, decisions, consequences, dreams, and God.  They talked about Ryan Gosling and Nicholas Sparks.  They talked about love of all kinds.  Through these discussions, I could see girls making connections to one another, realizing they are not alone in their innermost thoughts and feelings.  I may have seen some friendships blooming before my very eyes, or some anxieties fading away, or some confusing thoughts finally becoming clear.

And here's the really great part: my story had very little to do with it.  While the story of my first kiss provided the context, and the entertainment, the discussions were about the girls.  The girls and their thoughts/feelings/ideas/fears/joys/faith/doubts/beliefs.  Girlfriend Theology gave them a way to dig in to some issues central to their lives, with structure and security...and sisterhood.

I loved it.  I hope I get to do it again.  Thank you, Mrs. Tramontin and Mrs. Dawson for inviting me to be part of this process.  Thank you, wonderful, thoughtful girls, for making me feel welcome, for responding so beautifully to my story, and for taking risks when you shared your thoughts with one another and with me.

GIRL POWER!  Love it.

I SO TOTALLY judge a book by its cover

The phrase "don't judge a book by its cover" is an excellent metaphorical maxim to live by, much like "all that glitters is not gold".  It is true that one should not accept the world at face value, and that many things are not what they seem upon first glance.  Some level of discretion is wise.  But taken literally, this phrase holds no water with me.  I judge books by their covers all the time, whether right or wrong.  When I browse shelves at the bookstore or library, I pick up books by authors I love, yes, but also because of beautiful dust jackets, interesting bindings, or titles splashed across the cover in cool fonts.  I'm willing to read a copy of a book with a hideous cover only if I know (somehow) that it's going to be a good read.  It's OK.  I don't feel bad.

Here are some AWFUL book covers from our school library.  Actually, these books are no longer part of our school library, but not because of their covers.  Well, maybe that's not entirely true.  The cover is a factor, but certainly not the only one.

Twilight Lip-Reading HILARIOUSness

This is so funny, I can hardly stand it.  It makes the movie SO MUCH BETTER!

"The Fault in Our Stars" Fan Song

John Green fans, rejoice!  Here's a 52-second song about Natalie Portman's presence (or lack thereof) in the book The Fault in Our Stars.

VlogBrothers: John Green on his books' covers

Do you LOVE John Green?  I do!  Did you know he and his brother have a YouTube channel called VlogBrothers?  Love it!  here's John Green talking about how he feels about the cover art on his books.  He is one fast talker!

The Mortal Instruments: The movie

Fans of The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, take a look at the cast list for the upcoming movies.  I must say, every single person on this list is extremely good looking.  One of my favorite choices is Jonathan Rhys Meyers to play the role of Valentine.  He is the perfect combo of beautiful and sinister.  Clary will be played by Lily Collins, who was in The Blind Side and Mirror Mirror.  The film is scheduled for release next August!