Wow!

Many of what I have been reading online and digesting these days is summed up well by Colin Powell on Meet The Press.

Let me say that as a teacher who is making great gains in 21st century learning and creating critical thinkers who can look at both angles of information, annotate, and think, I am impressed with Barack Obama's campaign. Let's face it, his advisers are transparent yet a definite force in his campaign. He has surrounded himself with the best thinkers. He would do the same as president if given the chance. Those of us who know what a personal learning network is can understand that. The Republican party on the other hand has not learned this lesson and resorts to strategies that are grasping to the air.

I found Colin Powell's speech to be well thought out and heartfelt.

I have too much going on...

Has it been two months since I blogged here? I know I have blogged here and here and here since then. I know, 4 blogs, am I nuts? Yes, actually, but I am trying to maintain on several fronts to open doors in future areas. Nuts, I know.

However, I am attempting to leverage the great web 2.0 technologies I talk about day in and out to help me. I am also focusing on things I know work (that are not revolutionary) to help as well. So here goes:

• Finish going through the rest of my house and declutter (I actually did a lot this summer). Have 3 bins: Trash, Donate, and Maybe (sell or donate is probably where they will go)
• Create a no distraction zone - it was the couch but the TV sometimes interferes, it can be the breakfast counter (my last use was the time I fell off the bar stool - don't ask - and was in a cast for 6 weeks), it can be my craft room provided I follow the next step...
• Use Remember the milk to automate my schedule for keeping the house clean (and my craft room). I currently have tasks set for each day - it is easier to keep the house clean this way instead of spending a whole weekend morning. I am also learning to put in even small tasks to manage business, home, and work items that need to be done. The little woohoo messages they give you as you cross items off your list is great too!
• Make a short list of 4 or 5 things I love and include one a day
• Single task - I really thought I was good at multitasking but that is not the case. Spend enough time to get to a certain point and then put aside for review if not possible to finish. (If my work makes me think of an idea for another project, note it but do not go and work on that one too.) Add also that this task should be timed so loss of focus does not increase time spent on it.
  
• Start my day with peace. I try, and I actually get there a little bit. After my husband leaves and the dogs have been fed and potty-ed, I may read, sit in silence with coffee, mull the news, read blog posts, exercise, etc.
• Eat nothing from a box - okay we aren't counting cereal, but eating whole foods makes you think twice about what you eat and is not so ready that you grab without thinking. Don't ask my kids or husband what they think about this.
  
• Go paperless. I am close to this. Need to automate a few more things but sometimes it is necessary for me to print off in order to read and mull over properly.
• Have 3 tasks for the day. Tough for me. I generally think I can get 20 things done in a day. Realistic until family, students, and others start interacting. I think i can handle this and perhaps create a maybe list in case extra time comes my way.
• Get rid of two things for every new thing that I bring in to my house (exception: food. We have to. We live out of town, can get really poor weather in winter, and I have a large pantry for storage). This will help with the first strategy.

These are not new or revolutionary but a focus on these may make a difference in my ability to manage tasks and time. Do you do any of these strategies and how do you feel about them?

Taking the Rock band guitar up a notch

As a Pazzles design team member, I get to play with interesting materials as well as designing new cutting files. Our June task was to use vinyl on anything in our home. Waiting to the last minute (that is not a trait of mine - I just could not get an idea I loved), I stumbled upon a DOA Xbox guitar and the idea hit me. I used a quote that my SIL Jennifer Sizemore used on a past layout: "Life without music would be a mistake."

Well, it was chosen for Design of the Month at Pazzles. I am so excited. Now to decorate the other guitars in the household.

Tags: Pazzles, Rock Band

May technique kit - Grungeboard

The Scrapaholix technique kit is Grungeboard. I made this cute layout of my son't new furniture. It was tough to see the hand stamped dinosaurs being painted over by the sand colored painted - or should I say buried over!? It was great to see him pick furniture and see his style emerge.
The grungeboard was fun to work with. It is much different than chipboard, much like leather. After using an ink pad on it and spraying it with glimmer mist, it only curled up a little and flattened out as it dries. The color was actually more vibrant on the grungeboard as well. The grungeboard was used to make two of the squares on the left page (top right and bottom left square) as well as the tag, "R" and "O" in the title. It is tough to see the glimmer mist and this looks much better in person.

Tags: grungeboard, scrapaholic-usa, scrapaholix

First attempt at a header

So, I should have done this last night after Jen showed me how to make a custom header. But, it is okay as a first attemp on my own. Not sure what I am missing but was unable to drag the digital paper down to a smaller size, so instead I cut and pasted a section of it. I know it is not balanced and great, but a first attempt. Mostly I don't know exactly what I want here yet. So, here it will stay until I do decide (and I learn again how to manipulate the paper - maybe the way I opened it?)

So, after almost a week of company, the dogs are all sleeping and I might not be far behind them. We had a great visit from Dave, Jen, and Jacob (and Beau), heard some great news (!!!), and ate some good food.

The kids are not looking forward to school tomorrow though they won't admit they are bored. I am not going to school as I have a Drs. appointment. After dislocating my little finger, I tore ligaments. Unfortunately it is my right hand which had me rewrite my "to do" list for the holidays - I have no use of fingers in that hand. Oh well, maybe there will be good news tomorrow but I think there is another two weeks in a cast.

So, Happy Holidays to all! Anyone make a resolution? Mine is just to continue to improve. Since there are so many areas that can occur in, I can just choose, right?