Archive for the ‘Personal’ Category

I’m Home!

Tuesday, June 7th, 2005

Hooray! I am at home!

It feels great to be back. I just wanted to give you an update. I am

still moving at a slow pace but each day brings improvement. I

still have occasional headaches and

I tire easily. I seem to need lots of rest and I really look forward to

feeling like my old self. The doctors were amazed at how well I did -

no bad results

like facial problems, eye problems, etc.I have lost hearing and balance

in my right ear but I knew that going in. Now I have to count on my

left side to take over. I believe it had already started that process

prior to surgery. I truly feel blessed! I’m

taking it a day at a time and every day brings progress.  I can’t

wait till I feel like blogging again! I don’t think it’s going to be

that long.

Thank you all for your warm, wonderful thoughts and prayers……….

Recovery Under Way

Saturday, May 28th, 2005

Hello everyone! I have a good report. I ended up in the best possible category for the surgery I had to undergo. I am now out of the hospital and recovering at Seton Hall. I feel good. I may be a little weak and a little wobbly but I am healing. I seem to be passing the severe headache stage and am trying to do what the doctor says. If things continue to go well I will be able to fly home next Thursday. My brain is healing from the jolt!  I thank you all for your thoughts and prayers.

Heartfelt Thanks

Wednesday, May 18th, 2005

I would like to extend

a very heartfelt thanks to all you you who responded to my previous

post. It is very uplifting, to say the least. My husband John and I

have just spent two nice days at a wonderful hotel right on the coast.

It has been peaceful and relaxing as I get ready for what lies ahead.

Now we are headed over to the hospital. Tomorrow I have a battery of

tests and then surgery will be at !:00 PM LA time this Friday at

St.Vincents.

Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. I’ll post again when I can.

A Personal Note

Sunday, May 15th, 2005

I’ve debated

about writing this email and sharing a personal situation with you.

I’ve decided to go ahead because just like I have a school family, I’ve

come to feel that I have an “educational blogging” family and I want to

let you know why I won’t be blogging for a little while.

Back in 2001 I was diagnosed with an Acoustic Neuroma, a brain tumor

that starts in the cells that wrap around the auditory (hearing) nerve

in the head. Now the good news is that these tumors are benign. The bad

news is that if they grow they can press on the brain stem and that is

life threatening. The other good news is that they grow slowly.

Needless to say, 2001 was a traumatic time for me as I researched what

to do about it. This was right in the midst of 9-11 so things wern’t

going well for me or my country. The Internet turned out to be a

godsend and led me to a wonderful doctor at Johns Hopkins to have

radiation. That was the least invasive treatment and I wanted to avoid

surgery at all costs. What I read about some of the surgery results scared me.

Anyway to make a long story short, 3 years later I find out that I am in

the 3-5% failure rate for radiation. I have to have surgery. Everything

I learned told me to go to the surgeons with the most experience as

this is a very delicate surgery. This time I am going to Los Angeles

for surgery on May 20th. I’ve got a good doctor. Both of my doctors do

email and respond anytime I write. I think I’m going to make that a

requirement for all future doctors.

Now, hopefully, I will do just fine and snap back in a few weeks. That

has happened to others. Others have not been so lucky and have ended up

with facial damage, problems, etc. I’m an optimist and plan to be on

the high side. I have learned that this tumor is life-altering, not

life-threatening and I will carry on.

I welcome your thoughts and prayers. I have already told the guys

that I would have been presenting with at NECC. I hate to miss my

favorite conference but I am going to take Will’s suggestion and tell

the doctor to be sure and leave the “blogging” lobe untouched!

I’m off to catch a plane to LA in a couple of hours. I’ll post again as soon as I am able.

Sharing a good moment

Friday, April 22nd, 2005

This

email arrived today and made my day! Especially the part about Patrick

- now words like that from a former teacher really count in my book.

Think we could use things like this for evaluation? I am still

struggling with evaluation but have decided that a rubric of skills

just isn’t the answer.

Anyway, I just had to share my good moment….

Anne-

Thank you for

sharing my baby blog with the National School Boards Association.  I must admit

that I freaked out when I read the post from Kelly McCarthy because I had no

clue who this person was & then to see where my blog was posted….yikes! 

But think the exposure PE can receive as a result of this will be great. 

In fact, I

shared the site with a professor from UGA that organizes the annual Georgia

Physical Educators Workshop so that he could suggest that other PE teachers use

them as well.  He was impressed and is sending it to “everyone”.

Thank you so

much for all you do at House.  You have an amazing ability to get the students

to dig down deep and pull out things they didn≠t even realize they could

do!  I am still floored and amazed by Patrick’s blog on what he was

passionate about.  I shared it with Gail Scott yesterday (he was in her 4th

grade class) and she could not believe the dramatic changes in his writing

skills!  You have found the magic key to unlock the passion of writing within

him ~ and numerous others no doubt! 

Thanks.

Stacy L. Roper

Physical Education Teacher

J.H. House Elementary School


—–

Protect our freedoms!

Friday, March 11th, 2005

  Will posts

about the importance of showing our strength early to clarify the

protection given to bloggers under the media exemption rule. See his post. I ditto his request!  Join in to petition FEC chairman Scott Thomas. I  urge you to sign the petition and tell others about this. It’s important that we protect the freedoms we now enjoy on the Internet!
—–

Thankfulness

Wednesday, November 24th, 2004

Joyce Hooper, the principal of J. H. House Elementary School is doing a great job with her weblog that she started this year. Her most recent post was sent to the students about thankfulness.  It is well worth the read as we approach this Thanksgiving holiday.

I am thankful for so many things but I wanted to take a moment and say a special thanks to all the members of the educational blogging community. The perspective of the many different voices is awesome! I love the sharing of the thinking, the different ways we approach things, what is top on our minds, what is making a difference, how we can use technology to empower our students……

I wish you and your families a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Personal & Professional

Monday, October 25th, 2004

I had jury duty today - did not get called to serve on a jury though. This makes about the sixth time I have been called - served on four. I still find the process fascinating.

Now what made today even better was that I got to participate in ‘Advance Voting”. It felt so good to cast my vote. I am ready for a change. Enough said on this blog! Most places around Georgia seemed to have a 2 hour wait to vote but I only had a thirty minute wait - not bad! Plus it was great to see so many people desiring to vote!! I know I will be in for a long night next Tuesday!

Now bloglines, furl, webnotes and all other great tools are making me feel less than organized. I have so many things saved to so many places that I’ve got to rethink this whole process. Technology is supposed to get me more organized but I feel on overload. I have so many good things saved that I forget what all I do have!! I have so many links of James Farmer’s saved. I need to quit saving and just start posting. Less is better, I’ve decided (as far as getting organized and making use of these great tools.)

James is really posting some good things lately, not the least of which is his providing free-for-teachers hosting, installation, support and consultation for weblogs, wikis, CMSs and more, Go to incsub.org and learn all about it!

He also points us to  Blogwise and Blogstreet. Take a look! There are so many relevant posts on his weblog.

On a personal note, I love his Advice post. I’m one American who appreciates his opinions and links to note, both personal and professional!

So now take my advice and check out his weblog - it is one of the best!


—–

My Mother

Thursday, September 9th, 2004

On August 23, 2004, my mother, Vera B Price passed away after a short battle with pancreatic cancer. At first they told us that she would have 4-6 months but things changed quickly. She got the diagnosis in the hospital and after a few rounds of chemo-therapy the decision was made to take her home for her final days. I have a deep hole in my heart now that will never be filled but during this terribly hard time many blessings unfolded.

  • My mother got to say good-bye to her family and friends. She was surrounded by those who loved her dearly. We were able to keep her at home right up to the final moment. I am so thankful for that.

  • One night as I was sitting with her, I said to a friend, “I just wish there was something I could do to give her peace and my mother, with closed eyes, very strongly and empatically said, “You do give me peace!” What a comfort to remember those words now.

  • She roused herself up one day and said, “I have seen my dear sweet Jesus. It is so peaceful, so beautiful…… I could see and feel the peace within her. Again, what a comfort, what a joy, and she looked so beautiful as she was telling us about her experience.

  • As she talked about one of her grandchildren she began to sing a lullabye to her. I couldn’t stop crying, yet my memories of all the times she showed her love to my daughters and my sister’s daughters is ever with me.

  • She had such courage thoughout the pain and even had us laughing so hard at times, crying softly at others, and running a whole gamut of emotions that are hard to explain.

  • Her sense of humor remained to the end. John and I have two dear friends, Sam & Diane,  who my mother also loved. Sam came by one day and after talking a bit, my mother quietly said, “Good-bye, Sam.” Tears flowed once again and Sam had to really struggle to not cry. He gave her a kiss on her forehead and departed. Then later after Sam had left my mother said, “Sam gave me the sweetest kiss but don’t tell him because Sam will just brag, brag, brag, brag!  You’d have to know our good friend Sam to appreciate that but the laughter throughout the room was so good and helped us remain strong for her.

  • She talked a lot and there was an urgency to what she had to say. While not all of it was within our understanding she was teaching us and giving us wisdom in an incredibly wonderful way. I am still sifting through much of what she said. I want to learn more about death experiences because something was happening that was truely inspiring but beyond my grasp at the moment. I really sensed that she was between two worlds. This too is hard to explain but I feel peace. I know she felt it, too. She has sent me on a journey that I think will give me more understanding of how to be more in the moment with those I love. That is so important. Relationships are what are important. She has given me much to reflect upon.

My former principal, whom I love dearly, gave the eulogy for my mother here in Georgia. She told her story well. My mother’s blog was mentioned and I remember thinking at the time…. I wonder if a blog has ever been mentioned at a funeral service before? I thought of her very first post, Am I blogging now?  Good memories flooded me.

We then traveled to Texas to bury my mother next to my dad. This may sound strange but my mother made a grand exit and I am so proud of her. I hope when my turn comes, I can do half as well. 

I returned to work yesterday and I am slowly emerging back into the world. She’d want that…… I love you dearly mother.


—–

Worse week ever

Wednesday, August 11th, 2004

My mom has just been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I’m still reeling and trying to surface. This past week has been filled with tests, worries, fear and dread. The doctors told her yesterday. My mom is 86, sharp as a tack, and someone you all would love. Why does this have to happen to someone like her? I know there are no answers to such a question…….