It might look like I've been missing in action... and I kind of have been. It's has been so crazy busy! Blogging was always on my to-do list, but it was the one thing that kept getting pushed back. I will try to focus and do a better job in the future. Writing and personal reflections are important!
I have many books to reviews, but I'm going to take a break from these and write about what my schedule has been like.
OTA/EncycloMedia took place in OKC on Oct. 6th & 7th. Had a fantastic time at the OKSL luncheon - even had a fan girl moment. I knew Matt de la Pena was going to be there as the guest speaker/author, but low and behold in walks Alex London, author of Proxy. I loved this book! It's pretty much my favorite on this year's Sequoyah List. I was able to calm myself down, and I did enjoy listening to Matt's talk. I helped cleanup and then went to 2 more sessions. The Brown Brothers, our PermaBound reps, do a fantastic job each year. They hold a huge after first day conference event. They'll bring in great authors and give away fantastic prizes. It's a definite CAN'T MISS when you go to EncycloMedia. I ended up just staying to wait for it to start instead of checking into my hotel and then coming back. I'm one of those people that when it looks like I'm home for the evening, I'm pretty much done for the rest of the night. I figured if I went to the hotel, then I wouldn't come back, and I did not want to miss it. Lucky me! As I was waiting for it to start... in walks Matt and Alex. Yes, I was bold and daring. I went up to Alex and told him how I enjoyed his book. Big smile! Then I said it reminded me so much of The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman, and he got excited with me because that's exactly what he was going for. Too cool! The rest of the conference went well, and I even presented the next day on How to Search Google Like a Ninja. Got lots of positive feedback, which is always nice because you're never really sure how people feel about your presentations. Didn't head back home after EncycloMedia because...
I drove straight to Quartz Mt. Resort the next day for the Oklahoma Fall Institute for Educators. Now we do not get many perks as a teacher. When you stumble upon one, you need to seize it. I've had other teachers tell the wonders of this opportunity, but it never seemed to work out for my schedule. This year I decided to go for it. I applied for Digital Painting, thinking it would be a great resource for my students in my MakerSpace. At first they didn't think this workshop would be useful for a librarian, but I worked my magic. Are you kidding me!?!? Digital painting is straight up graphic novels. Once I set them straight, they happily approved my application. First day I thought I was in way over my head, 2nd day I got into my groove, and finally by the 3rd day I was loving it. I ended up creating 3 pieces - very proud of them! Each one has its own story and design strategy.
I'll stop for now and continue with my narrative of the craziness that is me soon. Stay tune!
