Best Laid Plans

Many years ago the Scottish poet, Robert Burns, wrote a poem including the line, "The best laid schemes o' Mice an' Men, Gang aft agley, "

We've changed that a bit in modern English to refer to the best made plans instead of calling them schemes.

That line, which was originally about a mouse having its home and food destroyed in the middle of winter, is still referred to in our time. While it's rare for humans to have their homes destroyed by earthquakes, fires, floods, hurricanes, and other natural disasters, those terrible things do sometimes happen.

And there are lots of other ways our best made plans can fail.

I hope no one reading this post has had to deal with a major loss. But all of us have times when things get in the way of our plans.

It's September and the first day of Fall is just over two weeks away. Thinking back to our New Year Resolutions in January, I wonder how many of us have actually achieved what we had planned and hoped to accomplish by this time.

I certainly haven't, but I have accomplished quite a few other things I hadn't even thought of back then.

Sometimes when things go "agley" it can be for the best in the long run.

Test Post

My blog posts used to show up on social networking sites like Facebook automatically through Networked Blogs. They stopped appearing on those other sites over a month ago. I'm trying Networked Blogs again to see if it works as it used to, although I never left it before.

This is a test to see if this post appears on those other sites. I'll write the next regular blog post on Saturday morning, as usual.

School Days

A few years ago I blogged about the difference between school calendars when I was a kid and those they have now. 

But one thing I failed to mention is the advantage of the way it used to be.

Back when most public schools in the United States followed the same calendar schedule it was easier for kids who moved from one area to another. They knew school would start right after Labor Day, which national and religious holidays would give them a break, and that Summer Vacation would begin at the beginning of June. If possible, families scheduled moves so their kids would enter their new schools at the beginning of the school year.

But in the past every state had its own choice of curriculum, and even school districts within a state might be different. If a kid had to move during the school year the new school might be ahead of what they had learned in their previous school and possibly even studying different topics.

I'm no expert on the Common Core Curriculum and have heard both negative and positive things about it. However, I do think it must be easier for kids who move to have their classes in the old and new locations be similar.

If anyone can tell me more about the pros and cons of Common Core I'd love to hear what you think.

The Secret of Rover.

I never review books I don't like. I'm reviewing The Secret of Rover by Rachel Wildavsky here because it is one I loved!

This is an exciting adventure about two kids whose parents were kidnapped by terrorists. They must travel across several states in hopes of finding help from their only other relative, an uncle they've never met. And the kidnappers are pursuing them.

This isn't a simple crime story just about kids trying to save their parents, though that's certainly enough to keep readers fascinated. It's also about international security and the whole future of the world may depend on what the kids, Katie and David, do.

The Secret of Rover is a combination of mystery, Sci-fi (What is Rover, anyway?) and action adventure and it's a genuine page turner. The characters and their relationships are believable and the settings are realistic.

In short, this book has every element of a wonderful book.

More on Language

If you use the "search" feature on my blog page and type in "Language," you'll see many posts I've written about language. That's a subject that has fascinated me all my life.

Recently I've joined the local German-American Club and I'm taking an intermediate class in the German language through them.

Although I took two years of German in High School, that information has gotten buried somewhere in the depths of my brain. I'm hoping this class will help me remember what I learned in the dim and distant past and teach me more of the language.

Maybe I'll actually become a fluent speaker of German eventually. I'm already fluent in English and American Sign Language so that would make me trilingual.

If that does happen, maybe then I'll study another language.

I've always wanted to learn Spanish. Since I live in California I've picked up a little of that language, and I studied Latin, which is similar to Spanish, in High School. Maybe it wouldn't be too difficult for me to learn at least a little bit of Spanish.

And, eventually, I might even brush up on the French I took in College, even though I disliked those classes and don't remember much from it.

When I was a kid I wanted to learn every language in the world but, obviously, nobody can do that. However it would be fun to learn some more.

I just hope my brain isn't too old to do it.

Ten Little Tricksters

It's only August, but I want to tell you about a book for kids about Halloween. It never hurts to plan ahead.

Ten Little Tricksters is a standard counting story with a different number of kids - or spooks - in costumes on each page. It's not really scary, but captures the fun of trick or treating so kids will love this book.

If I were rich I'd buy enough copies to give all the children who come trick or treating to my house, but I can't afford to buy that many. However every family that buys a copy will find it's a great way to get kids excited about the holiday. Preschool and Kindergarten teachers will enjoy sharing it with their classes, too.

As you can see from the cover, Kevin Collier created illustrations that show the feeling of the book perfectly.

Now you've got plenty of time to go out and get this book before Halloween.

The Secret of Ferrell Savage.

I'm impressed with this book by a new author, J. Duddy Gill. I wonder if the author's name is a pseudonym because it's so unusual and the character names are all original and amusing even without the story.

But the story is exciting, adventurous, and fun. There's real danger involved, too. It's about a boy, Ferrell Savage, his friend, Mary Vittles, and a threatening, new kid, Bruce Littledood.

 One of the things I like best about it is the lack of stereotypes. So many books for kids have similar characters and conflicts, but this one is completely original.

Yes, the main character will be in a dangerous competition (or two,) another character is threatening to him, and a girl is involved, but their interactions and reactions are not at all what the reader would expect. And the secret is very unusual!

I don't want to give away the plot so I won't go into more detail.You'll need to read it to learn more.

I hope the author writes a sequel because, while the ending is satisfying, there are a few unanswered questions. Why does Bruce Littledood need to be a winner? Why is Ferrell's mother a strict vegan? And how will his relationship with Mary develop in the future?