Make the Grade or Die Trying: Common Core and College. March 31, 2014

March 31, 2014: Am I referring to a High School student getting ready to be thrust into college? No. I’m writing in response to everything I’ve gleaned from parents, students and educators fighting back against this crazy “Common Core” curriculum. What I’m having trouble is finding any information if this curriculum from a college perspective. Yes, I see this is trying to prepare High school students for college according to the ACT dot org website. What I want to know is: is Common Core being utilized *in* colleges everywhere? I haven’t found the answer, yet. This is what sucks about being in the dark. I read about the Engineering degree parent who wrote on their kid’s CC math homework that he couldn’t make sense of the math question and how the student has to go through 180 steps to figure out the “wrong” right answer. I watched the videos about the 9th grade Special Ed student who spoke out against Common Core being taught in his public school before a hearing. I watched the video where the Arkansas mom decimates Common Core in four minutes. I’ve been following a discussion board elsewhere on the net lately to keep myself abreast of the unfolding Common Core debate. BUT— I don’t have kids. I’m not a parent. I ask questions from time-to-time that never get answered. Why? Maybe Common Core shouldn’t affect the average non-parent out there in society who will want to finish their college education someday. I mean, duh—shouldn’t I have learned everything in High school and know this already? I have a GED to my name and two semesters of college. Its two different sides of the coin with Common Core. Either you are “for” Common Core or you hotly “oppose” it. There is no rhyme and reason with Common Core. It prepares another generation to be computers. Throw out the fundamentals of learning the old way. This “new” Common Core way will make “slave wagers” out there in society. Okay, I understand this from all the debates I’ve been reading about. BUT— How does this prepare me for "college level" Common Core? Why should it worry me anyway? Shouldn’t I know the answer to my question by now or am I *gasp* already dumbed down myself? I see these math worksheets they're giving students as early as Preschool and Kindergarten and I’m not EVEN the student. What I see horrifies me. I’m not even a parent, either. Why should it even concern me? Well, if I had any notions I’d conquer my “LD” demons, then Common Core is Satan in the world of academics. The Learning Disability program is a precursor to Common Core. Just like back in the Seventies (before I was born), they had what was called the "new" math, which was possibly a template that later become Common Core. Make the grade or die trying. Why this popped into my head while mulling over countless pages of debate about Common Core doesn’t come to me as a surprise. I don’t speak in favor of the LD program because of my past experiences. I’m not posting intense hatred for this public school program. I’m not here to troll and spew negativity, that isn’t me. I just want answers as to the difficulty rating from 1 being the lowest and 10 being highest in regards to this Common Core curriculum. If an Engineering degree dad can’t figure out Common Core, and an Arkansas mother with twelve years of college under her belt can’t figure where the logic is in this muddled mess, what chance does a person like me have when I do eventually return to seek a degree in General Studies? I’d eventually like to have a minor in History, since that is my second strong area that interests me. But eh, whatever. Maybe someday I will stumble upon my answers in the unlikeliest of places—like a bookstore or the library, perhaps. *Shrugs*

Writing, editing, proof reading and... choose your own book cover.

Like the title says, I've been trying to do too much at one time (again), which isn't unusual for me. But one thing at a time and here's what to look forward to: 1.- Finish the darn book/story/novella/novel...epic 'whatever' adventure. 2.- Hours and hours of proof-reading. 3.- More proof-reading (break for a snack, exercise, run errands) return and scroll through the open document to find mistakes, grammar errors, missing/ extra punctuation, needed dialog, etc. 4.- Editing. This is never a 'finished in one day' kind of thing. 5.- Revise, rewrite and re-do. This includes plots, scenes, characters, etc. 6.- Don't quit while the iron's hot. Keep a rough draft handy in a notebook. 7.- Does it read okay? Any missing chunks of time (and space) between events? Correct them before it goes to the self-publishing sites. 8.- Many first-time and seasoned pro writers will face bad criticism at some point in their writing career. How to avoid this: don't send off a first draft to an editor and don't expect a reply. Also, avoid submitting your manuscript to "cc" (carbon copy) editors all at the same time. I hear this is something like 'spamming' when it goes out to many recipients. You'll likely make their 'crap list' or worse. 9.- Choose a cover from a stock photo. Many places offer this service and there's oodles of photos to choose from. 10.- Your books/ short stories/ novel is published. Want to skim a paper back "proof" copy of your work? It will cost a little bit of money to get the books in print for proof reading if your eyes are bugging out from staring at Microsoft word too long. Writing is not easy. There are long hours, days, weeks, months and sometimes years that go into creating a story and/ or book. Also, writing is not a high paying profession, either. It is feast or famine. The aspiring author needs to be aware that their books/ stories, etc. will not make an instant splash on a best selling book list of hot reads like a Harlequin steamy romance. However, writing is very therapeutic and can, with enough determination to promote your own stuff, be rewarding.

Eric Carr figures: Elder era and Hall of Fame.

They're stunning and I can't say enough good things about these figures. Each figure is numbered and signed by the artist and they're limited edition, too. Each figure stands 10" high and comes as shown with or without drumsticks (not shown). Each figure can be purchased from eBay or from the Official Eric Carr website. These sell for about $57.99 each and they're selling out fast. They are extremely lifelike in detail and would make an excellent addition to any Kiss/ Eric Carr collection. I could only afford two for the present time. The silver Hall of Fame figure is stunning as well.

Exclusive from Blabbermouth statement about the Eric Carr lawsuit.

Exclusive: Eric Carr's Family Says Lawsuit Against Kiss Was Filed Without Their Knowledge, Authorization Or Consent - Blabbermouth.net



More at Blabbermouth. net. 

UPDATE*** Carr denies Kiss lawsuit. 3-12-14

UPDATE*** Carr denies kiss lawsuit 3-12-14

I will provide links to where statements can be found. However, we still need to help spread the word about this as much as possible. http://ultimateclassicrock.com/eric-carr-denies-kiss-lawsuit/ http://www.kissonline.com/news/article/id/39686 Paul Stanley of Kiss was first to tweet out the shocking news on Twitter yesterday. Fans caught word of what was going on. I found out about it late after supper.I took to Facebook helping other fans spread the word on behalf of the Carr family. I re-tweeted Paul’s first twitter message, but forgot to use hash tags in some cases. Trying to process the shocking news will take the wind out of one’s sails, especially when going back and forth and all over on the internet and keeping up on two different social utility sites. Let’s hope we got this nipped in the bud in time.

Breaking News from BlabberMouth: Eric Carrs Heirs sue KISS over unpaid royalties.

I just caught wind of this article on Facebook and decided to share it here on my blog. The original article: http://www.metalwani.com/2014/03/news-eric-carrs-heirs-sue-kiss-over.html According to this article, an heir to the Carr family, is suing KISS for unpaid royalties. The family of Eric Carr denies this. There will be an official statement from the Carr family and KISS very shortly over this. From all the sources that I've been reading up on (four, to be exact), repeat this is a FALSE lawsuit. Whoever originally wrote up this, is likely out to get instant publicity and little else. At least that's my assumption. For more information check out http://www.ericcarr.com/ and https://www.facebook.com/EricCarrOfficial More to post as this story develops.

Making a cloth doll body from scratch.

It's finally finished and it only took me one night to make a cloth body from period appropriate fabric for a tiny Civil war era China head doll head. This was my first attempt at making a doll body from scratch. I think I didn't do too badly. Creating the small clothes was time consuming, but interesting since I created the dress using different scraps of fabric.

This doll head needed a body, so I created one from an old flour sack. Next, I made the arms and legs and sewed them to the body and stuffed them with clean cut up strips of cloth.

And finally, the clothes. Why it took me forever to create them is because I wanted this doll to have a petticoat, layers of lawn cotton undergarments... (c'mon, its just a doll!), and then I wanted to make a two piece dress, of which, really didn't turn out, but it'll do.