Sunday, August 25, 2013

Adjust Your Sails

Life is like an ever changing wind.  Some days the skies are blue and cloudless and the wind is calm.  Some days the skies are angry and black and the wind howls.  Life is pretty much the same.  No two days, no two moments are ever the same.   You must continually adjust your sails.

Each day we are confronted with new challenges, with new obstacles we did not expect, trials, joys, fears.  We never know what to expect upon waking.  Sure, we have a plan and if you're like me, you have several calendars and you think you have it all worked out.  Life doesn't follow a calendar I've come to find out.

Adjusting my sails is one of the hardest things for me.  I am not a roll with the punches kind of gal.  I live my life by my calendars.  I like routine.  I like control.  I do not like the unexpected.  I am not good with change. I have little patience for the unorganized.  It is hard for me to adjust my sails but I'm trying to learn.

I have honestly asked myself when watching someone who is very flexible, who has no calendar or makes no lists, who has a disorganized working environment, how do they live?  With everything I have going on, I think if I were not organized everything would be an utter failure.  I also don't do failure well.

To adjust your sails you must be able to realize that no matter what comes you can adjust and when the wind has stopped you will still be sailing.  We must be able to bend and turn, sway and stand.  Life isn't going to follow our calendar or our lists.  It isn't going to be easy or predictable.

Adjust your sails and you will never be blown away.

Sunday, August 11, 2013

Connect With Deborah....

Every so often I post a "Connect with Deborah" blog or note so that people can connect with me all over the Internet and also buy my books if they want to :D  So here is one of those posts!  Feel free to connect with me....and buy my books if you want.....

ME

Facebook - http://www.facebook.com/deborahahorton
Twitter - https://twitter.com/DeborahHorton
Google Plus - https://plus.google.com/u/0/117451977985364009244/posts
LinkedIn - http://www.linkedin.com/deborahahorton/
MySpace (the new one) - http://www.myspace.com/deborahhorton
Personal Blog - http://deborahhorton.blogspot.com/
Poetry Blog - deborahhorton.wordpress.com
SnapChat - debhorton
Pinterest - http://pinterest.com/deborahahorton/
Instagram - http://instagram.com/uwshuhd1
Vine - Deborah Horton
Tumblr - debhorton.tumblr.com

BUY MY BOOKS!

NOVEL - MIMOSA

Available in the iTunes iBookstore!

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-whispered-heart-volume-iv-deborah-horton/1112035762?ean=9781105810206
http://www.lulu.com/shop/deborah-horton/mimosa/hardcover/product-21040666.html (Hardcover)
http://www.lulu.com/shop/deborah-horton/mimosa/ebook/product-21040695.html (eBook)

POETRY BOOKS

The Whispered Heart Volume I  http://www.amazon.com/The-Whispered-Heart-Deborah-Horton/dp/1462639321/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&qid=1376261963&sr=8-18&keywords=Deborah+Horton
(Also on iBookstore)
The Whispered Heart Volume II http://www.lulu.com/shop/deborah-horton/the-whispered-heart-volume-ii/hardcover/product-20150654.html
The Whispered Heart Volume III http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-whispered-heart-vol-iii-deborah-horton/1112128989?ean=9781105810190
(Also on iBookstore)
The Whispered Heart Volume IV  http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-whispered-heart-volume-iv-deborah-horton/1112035762?ean=9781105810206
The Whispered Heart Volume V  http://www.lulu.com/shop/deborah-horton/the-whispered-heart-vol-v/ebook/product-21037593.html

SPORTS

Chop Heads Blog- mlblogschopsheads.wordpress.com
Front Office Blogs - frontofficeblog2.wordpress.com
Front Office Blogs on Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/frontofficeblog

BILLINGS SENIOR HIGH POETRY CLUB

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/BSHPoetryClub
Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/BSHPoetryClub
Google Plus - https://plus.google.com/u/0/102028091194698945078/posts

BILLINGS SENIOR HIGH LITERARY ARTS MAGAZINE

Twitter - https://www.twitter.com/BNLiteraryArts
Wordpress - broncnationliteraryarts.wordpress.com

Books For Sale!

I have the following college textbooks/books for sale.  I used these for classes at MSU-Billings however all but the statistics books can be used for any classes anywhere if required and some can even be used just to read.

If you are interested please send me an email at deborah1803 at gmail dot com  Thanks!!

Statistics - Second Custom Edition for Montana State University Billings  Like New $75.00 (includes never used CD)
Author MCCLAVE
Edition 2012
Published Date 2012
ISBN 9781256646433
Publisher PEARSON

100% Information Literacy Success  by Terry Taylor, PHDUsed Paperback $4.00

Product Details

  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Cengage Learning; 1 edition (April 17, 2007)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1418048186
  • ISBN-13: 978-1418048181

The Story of Abelard's Adversities by JT Muckle Used Paperback $1.00
  • Paperback: 80 pages
  • Publisher: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies; Revised edition (January 1, 1964)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 088844253X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0888442536

The Prince by Nicolo Machiavelli  Used Penguin Paperback $1.00
  • Paperback: 144 pages
  • Publisher: Penguin Classics; Oxford World's Classic Paperback edition (February 4, 2003)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0140449159
  • ISBN-13: 978-0140449150

Sources of The Making of the West Peoples and Cultures: Volume II - Since 1500 by Katherine J. Lualdi  Paperback Used $3.00
  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's; 3rd edition (February 20, 2008)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0312465181
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312465186

A Pocket Style Manual, Fifth Edition by Diana Hacker Paperback Used $1.00 
  • Spiral-bound: 272 pages
  • Publisher: Bedford/St. Martin's; 5th edition (April 27, 2010)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 031266480X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0312664800

Life and Miracles of St. Benedict by Pope St. Gregory the Great Paperback Used FREE with other books if you want it!!
  • Paperback: 87 pages
  • Publisher: Liturgical Pr (December 1984)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0814603211
  • ISBN-13: 978-0814603215

The Human Tradition In Modern Latin America by William H. Beezley, Judith Ewell Paperback Very Light Use $5.00
  • Paperback: 277 pages
  • Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers; 1st Published edition (September 1, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0842026134
  • ISBN-13: 978-0842026130

The Massacre at El Mozote by Mark Danner Paperback Used $2.00
  • Paperback: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Vintage; 1 edition (April 5, 1994)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 067975525X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0679755258

Latin America and Its People, Volume 2 (1800 to Present) (2nd Edition) 2nd (second) Edition by Martin, Cheryl E., Wasserman, Mark published by Longman (2007) Paperback Used $2.00

March 4, 2007  0205520502  978-0205520503 2

Storm From The East: The Struggle between the Arab World and the Christian West by Milton Viorst Hardback Used $3.00
  • Hardcover: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Modern Library (April 18, 2006)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0679643303
  • ISBN-13: 978-0679643302

Women and Politics in Latin America by Nikki Craske  Paperback  Used  $4.00 
  • Paperback: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Rutgers University Press (March 1, 1999)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 9780813526935
  • ISBN-13: 978-0813526935
  • ASIN: 0813526930

Drinking the Sea at Gaza by Amira Hass Paperback  Used $2.00
  • Paperback: 400 pages
  • Publisher: Picador; 1st edition (June 1, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0805057404
  • ISBN-13: 978-0805057409



Saturday, May 4, 2013

Not What You Think

This weekend in Billings voters are contemplating passing two education levies.  One is for more teachers (to make sure student/teacher ratios are met in elementary schools for accreditation) and the second one is an elementary school technology levy.

Just like any other city or town in the US, many voters get the ballots and/or information in the mail and one of the first things they say is WHY?  Why do we need MORE money for schools when just last year or a few months ago, we just had levies for schools?  Why do we need more money for schools when our education system is said to be failing?  Why?

I could go on and on about the statistics and explain accreditation but this doesn't convince many people.  They think that these issues should be solved by the money we have or that the school systems waste so much money already, they shouldn't get anymore.

I have been on both sides of the levy fence.  First as a parent on three children in schools and now as someone who works in a high school.  The opinions I had formed as a parent have been mostly transformed by being someone who works there and sees what goes on in a high school on a daily basis.  Some of my opinions have not changed.  But there is one over riding thing I have come to realize and that is that almost ALL people who do not work in the school system have no idea what schools contend with on a daily basis....absolutely none.

Here are just a few things people may not have thought about who do not work for the school system.  Starting from the top, administration must deal with not only students but parents, local and state government, school boards, superintendents, police, parole officers, community organizations, businesses and residents who live around the schools on a daily basis.  The sheer volume of paperwork that is required by the state and federal government for admin, teachers, everyone and everything has to be documented and reported and justified.  Assistant principals are in charge of discipline, attendance issues, management of sections of the staff, school/curriculum projects and on and on.  They also must be mediator, counselor, disciplinarian, parent, teacher, manager of both the students and the staff.  Teachers have to not only teach but plan lessons months in advance, complete masses of paperwork, attend training and meetings, sponsor clubs and activities, counseling, staff relationships.  The interpersonal relationships in a school can be quite complex and reflect all the good and the bad of large groups of diverse people.  The drama is not only with the children.  These are just the surface things.

The issues with the children range from homelessness, to malnutrition, to abuse, to truancy, to depression, to suicide and all the way to the simplest of things like school supplies.  The student population ranges from the stable and well adjusted student to the student at risk from any number of things most people never even consider or know about.

Imagine what it is like to teach, to administer, to learn in all of these environments.  It is one of the hardest jobs there is and one where the naysayers outnumber the encouragers by massive numbers.

No, I am not saying the school system in the US is perfect, far from it.  But I know first hand that there is so much more involved with the education of children than anyone on the outside knows.  That in the end the schools are becoming more disciplinarian, provider of food and clothes, finder of shelter and safety, counselor, psychologist, teacher, and yes parent to many students.

So the next time you are called upon to vote on a school levy consider actually going to visit a school or talking to a teacher or some of the actual students before making your decision.  You just might find it is not what you think.

Monday, April 15, 2013

System Shock

Again today American's had a system shock.  When something so horrific happens that they are systemically shocked by it.  Newtown, 9-11, Fort Hood, Virginia Tech, Lone Star College and on the list goes.  American's feel the shock, the sadness, the helplessness of it all.  They question.  They grieve.  They pray.  The government wants to pass laws.  News reporting rushes ahead of the facts and even sometimes gets in the way of them.  Reality television takes on an entirely different meaning.

Other countries like Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Libya, Israel must all look at our news and our reactions to it and wonder, why do we seemingly go overboard when something like this happens when in their countries it is an everyday....and EVERYDAY occurrence.  Why do we not rise up in shock and outrage when even our own American soldiers are killed in other countries?  Why do we not feel the same shock and grief when their people are killed in huge groups on a daily basis?

Those in Chicago who have lost loved ones surely must ask themselves, why is this event worse than the loss of my child, my father, my brother, my husband, my family member?  Last year, 2012, 507 people were killed in Chicago.  So far in 2013, there have been as best as I've been able to find, 85 people killed.  America is not outraged by this.

Perhaps it is because what happens in other countries even to our own soldiers doesn't happen here.  Perhaps it is because those soldiers are lost in the performance of their duties.  Perhaps some Americans believe those are acceptable losses.

Perhaps it is because the people in those other countries that are killed are not Americans.  Perhaps there are some Americans who believe those people should die.  Perhaps some Americans don't care if they do because they are not in this country.

The government and some Americans run directly to passing laws because of these system shocks.  Guns must be stopped.  The mentally ill must be controlled.  Though I haven't heard anyone saying we need to ban knives such as were used in the Texas college stabbing.  Guns kill everyone apparently.  Except today in Boston.

But what of those in Chicago?  What of the 2012 number of more than 1 person being killed a day.....being killed a day.  I see no system shock here.  Because they are spread out the system shock doesn't register.  And so no one stands up to demand justice or to ensure it.

These things are just not shocking enough.....sadly.  Peace and comfort for all those who have lost those they love.

Tuesday, April 2, 2013

Zombie College

In general, I like college, or should I say I like college courses.  I think they are worthwhile for the most part and I enjoy learning new things or learning more about things I already know.  I think getting a college degree is worthwhile.  I am not convinced that it's the ticket to a better or a higher paying job anymore but I do think it's worthwhile to get one.

But there is something I hate about college and that is that it is a total scam to get as much money from  you as possible.  For a 4 year degree you are required to take about 60 credit hours of courses that have absolutely NOTHING to do with your degree.  Many of these courses are upper level courses in whatever your "major" of choice is.  These credits are almost NEVER offered either on campus or online in hours outside of 8am to 3pm.  When they are offered in Summer, the colleges will offer about 1/3 of your normal financial aid thus preventing you from taking more than 2 classes at most, so you are unable to take these upper level classes in Summer.  And remember, you cannot get your degree without them.

Thus, students like myself who are returning to college after many years and who MUST work full time, then find themselves going to college for at least 2 years sometimes 3 years longer than what should be necessary.  By doing so, we pay tuition for each semester we go longer.  We get further into debt with loans.  We grow older every year and by the time we get the degree we are approaching retirement age.

It then begs the question, why bother.  Why go into massive debt with no guarantee of a better or better paying job?  Why keep taking classes that have nothing to do with your major course of study just to fill out credit hours?  Why keep paying for classes that take you further and further down the age line and no closer to your degree?

I find myself faced with this very dilemma and coming to the conclusion that college is a financial scam aimed at getting the most money possible out of every single student.  That it is not designed in any way for anything outside of the traditional go Fall and Spring semester, no summer semester, take the barest minimum required students who go for years and years taking class after class of meaningless material.  While the college makes money hand over fist.  And I haven't even mentioned the scam of college textbooks, but I have long since found work arounds for that particular scam.  The classes though, I haven't and it is becoming harder and harder to justify going at all.

I am 50 years old.  Since I cannot take more than 2 upper level classes or even 2 classes at all this summer, and I still need 30 credit hours of these upper level classes, which again I cannot take in Fall or Spring, making me have to go to college years just to get these classes.  Am I supposed to go to college until I'm dead and leave an enormous college loan bill behind?

College is a scam....they want to pretend to be institutions of higher learning and that a college degree can afford you a high paying better job...but what they are are zombies eating away your money and your life while you just keep going to college until you are dead....