Tiff4Tat

I finally broke down and subscribed to TikTok.  My intent was to keep up-to-date with the challenges that young people like to take part in. As a middle school principal, I want to stay in the know. Stay hip.  What I’ve learned so far, however, has nothing to do with what young people are into right now. To avoid a really deep TikTok rabbit hole, this blog will focus on 5-star mystery/thriller reads I have found on BookTok this July. The books are listed in chronological order with a brief recap. Follow me on Goodreads to keep current on all my reads and ratings.  Read: July 1-5, 2024 Listened on Audible This was a solid 4 stars until the final 20 percent of the book. If I could rate it higher than 5 stars, I would! I listened to Audible, and the male/female readers made this very enjoyable. The surprises I did not see coming, and they just kept getting unraveled and revealed until the last page. If you love psychological thrillers with untrustworthy narrators then this ...

  “Storytelling is at the core of all human connection.” ~ Kristin Hannah Kristin Hannah with Diane Carlson Evans In her own words, Diane Carlson Evans is “an advocate for nurses and women who have served in war.”  This is an understatement.  Evans, born and raised on a dairy farm in rural Minnesota, served as a nurse in the United States Army during the Vietnam War. She is the Founder of the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Foundation (formerly the Vietnam Women’s Memorial Project), and former President and CEO of the Board of Directors. ( Read more HERE .) According to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund website: There are eight women, all nurses, whose names appear on The Wall. Of the 265,000 women who served during Vietnam, nearly 10,000 military women served in-country during the conflict. Barred from combat, these women served in health care, communications, intelligence, and administrative positions. Civilian women served as foreign correspondents for news agencies, worke...

Gail Mary was the most excited of all.  She couldn’t sit still, waiting for author Craig Johnson to begin his reading.  Craig Johnson Media Toolkit Photo She bustled around the front of the bookstore, chatting it up with Craig’s wife, Judy, asking Judy how she liked the muffins she had made for them.  “I’ve read all of his books,” Gail Mary said. Johnson was in Bozeman on June 19, 2024, promoting his 20th novel in the Walt Longmire series, First Frost .  “I’m the Beer Bread Lady,” Gail Mary said, adding, “Everyone remembers my name because it rhymes with Hail Mary, full of grace!”  Gail Mary made sure Johnson had water and was settled in before beginning his reading. Johnson made sure to let Gail Mary know he loved her beer bread.  The Country Bookshelf hosted the free reading, and the store was full with people buying armloads of Johnson’s books. It seemed many had heard him speak before – as had I – and had attended Longmire Days -- which I have not -- ...

Former Montana Professor Memoir Examines Life He Thought He Wouldn’t Live He walks in late with a cane, appearing feeble. His age surprises me. Although, it shouldn’t. It has been 30 years since I took my first class from him at the University of Montana.  Prior to Casey Charles taking the podium, the sparse audience talks about Casey before he begins his reading at Shakespeare & Co., in Missoula, Montana, a town where Casey – retired from UM – spends half his time.  “Very popular professor,” is one comment.  “First queer studies professor in the state,” is another.  “His class was very popular and controversial at the time,” is a third.  I took Gay and Lesbian Studies from Casey Charles around 1996. As an English literature major, it satisfied an upper level credit requirement. From the first day of class, I was fascinated. There was something about Casey that struck me.  I remember his aura.  His intelligence.  The corduroy jeans, brown or g...

Summer is here and I still have (let me count them) 28 tabs open on my browser. As a principal of two elementary schools, I’ve had more, I’ve had fewer, but through the school year this number is typical. I find these open tabs a good analogy for the life of a school Principal - we have so many irons in the fire at all times; students to guide, meetings to attend, parents to call, teachers to observe, scheduling and coordinating of assessments and activities, and a school to lead. Big Piney, Wyoming, Elementary School This life of multitasking can be (and often is!) overwhelming for a school leader! When do we find time for professional learning, growth, and, God forbid, some self-care? It’s officially the first day of my summer vacation and while I’ve planted flowers, taken my dogs for a walk, and enjoyed a Roxor ride, I have also spent time today reflecting on the past year while planning for the next one.  Last fall, my Guiding Coalition had determined we’d select a new ELA curr...

In my mid-30’s, I was very much into running. I engaged in a training program that prepared me for a marathon. While I never ran one – I did compete in three half marathons one summer – I found great motivation in the planning and training.  So, when I saw the 2024 Poetry Marathon posted on Facebook, I was very excited. Fifteen years older has slowed me down physically. But, writing? I could do that again.  It’s been seven years since I participated in my first Poetry Marathon.  The Poetry Marathon, a yearly online event, has one goal: To write one poem every hour for 24 hours straight. In 2017, I did just that. Stayed awake for a full 24 hours, writing, thinking, revising.  This year, I opted for the 12-hour version.  To steal some motivations from the Facebook group to rationalize this decision: When the going gets tough, the tough keep writing.  Sometimes the right poem finds you.  Write like you mean it … And a practical, applicable saying for any ...