Early in the fall semester, I began to pray for God to give me some kids to mentor. I listed off the ones I thought might be leadership and asked for confirmation. You know, seniors…soloists…loudmouths… Then forgot all about it in the busyness of day-to-day teaching. But God did not forget. Sometime in mid-September, I [...]
Archive for the ‘The Arts’ Category
Master Class
Posted in music, Teaching, The Arts, Writing, tagged mentoring teens, teaching music on December 12, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The Rise of Baby King
Posted in music, Teaching, The Arts, tagged Mark Cohn, teaching music on October 22, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Thank You Doesn’t Cover It
Posted in Christianity, music, Spirituality, Teaching, The Arts, tagged dress rehearsal, mobile opera on April 9, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
The young people in the cover photo with this blog entry are more dear to me than I can say. Six of them are seniors, and my eyes instantly sting when I think about their upcoming graduation. The ten or so missing from the photo—due to scheduling conflicts, family emergencies, and disciplinary issues—are equally part [...]
Mobile County Honor Choir
Posted in Teaching, The Arts, Uncategorized, tagged high school choir, music, Teaching on March 18, 2010 | 4 Comments »
I have taught in the Mobile County Public School System off and on for nearly twenty-five years. Like most people, I kind of have a love-hate relationship with it. You know, everybody thinks education is a good thing. We ought to encourage boys and girls to learn to read, write, and do enough math to [...]
Once in a Blue Moon by Leanna Ellis
Posted in Books, Christianity, The Arts, tagged Christian romance, Fiction, reading on March 7, 2010 | 1 Comment »
My friend Leanna Ellis has a new book releasing this month, and I wanted to tell you about it. Here’s the scoop: Once in a Blue Moon ISBN: 978-0-8054-4988-4 B&H Publishing Faith is the first step to soaring. The day Armstrong stepped on the moon has special memories for most Americans, but not for Bryn [...]
Me Myself and The Author
Posted in Books, The Arts, Uncategorized, Writing on February 20, 2010 | 16 Comments »
How’s that for a self-absorbed title? But me is all I’ve got. Wait, I am all I have. Never mind. What I mean to say is, I’ve always liked my names. All forty-five of them, and I never particularly cared what anybody called me. My mom and dad named me Tomi Elizabeth Cook. “Tomi” is [...]
Interview with Fran McNabb
Posted in Books, Teaching, The Arts, Writing, tagged creative writing, Fiction, Fran McNabb, Historical romance, Hurricane Katrina, Mississippi, public libraries, publishing, reading on February 13, 2010 | 11 Comments »
I’d like to introduce a very good friend of mine, author Fran McNabb. For more than ten years I was a member of the Gulf Coast Chapter of Romance Writers of America, where I met and interacted with lots of gifted writers like Fran. Fran served as president of the chapter for several years…before, during [...]
Snow Day
Posted in Books, The Arts, Writing, tagged creative writing, high school choir, Writing on February 12, 2010 | 3 Comments »
This has been a hard week. I live in Mobile, Alabama, where every February this thing called Mardi Gras takes over the whole town. And, in particular, a freakish spirit of japery possesses even the best of students so that the weeks leading up to Fat Tuesday are a nightmare for public school teachers (this [...]
New Christian Romance From Gail Martin
Posted in Books, Christianity, The Arts, Uncategorized, tagged Christian romance, Fiction, Gail Gaymer Martin, Love Inspired, reading on January 30, 2010 | 1 Comment »
For those of you who enjoy Love Inspired romances, here’s a new offering from my good friend Gail Martin. Highly recommended. Groom In Training by Gail Gaymer Martin Second book in the Man’s Best Friend Series from Steeple Hill Love Inspired Friends, Four-legged Friends and Love. A widow with a sad past, Steph Wright, finds [...]
Rachel Hauck and Sara Evans Connect
Posted in Books, Christianity, Spirituality, The Arts, Writing, tagged creative writing, Fiction, publishing, Rachel Hauck, reading, Sara Evans on January 24, 2010 | 2 Comments »
Here’s a little info on a new book by my friend Rachel Hauck. Looks like a lot of fun: Jade Fitzgerald left the pain of her past in the dust when she headed out for college a decade ago. Now she’s thriving in her career and glowing in the light of Max Benson’s love. But then [...]
