‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Overview

Tuesday.  Hard to believe that my Tuesday was as busy as it was.  But, then again, it was the calm before the perverbial storm.  I got up this morning and got myself ready for what would be a pretty long day.  I knew it would be, so it kind of helps that I was able to plan ahead on that.  I got up and got into the shower and Heather talked to me a minute and then she was out the door on her way to work.  I got done with my shower and got ready for work and the kids watched “The Early Show” on CBS with me while I finished getting ready for work.  The entire show was about the snow storm that looks to wallop my area of the country tomorrow.  Honestly, I wouldn’t mind a little snow.  We’ve had so little snow this season and I am amazed we haven’t had more snow that we have.  It would be nice to have the snow and possibly a snow day.  It would be a nice break.  After a little while, the kids were off to school and I was off to work.

I got to work and set things up for another day of music theory.  Overall, things seemed to go well and I was happy with how the school day went.  It really is getting to a point where I am once again enjoying my job.  Especially when I have classes that are putting their best foot forward and doing the best they can in class and trying to their fullest potential.  Will all students be straight A students?  Of course not, but that also means I’m challenging them to raise the bar on what they know about music and how to read and write it.  Throughout my day today, there was a lot of talk about the possibility of a snow day tomorrow.  I was predicting that we would have one because I think this storm is just going to hit us with too much snow for us not to.  I got done with my instructional day and hung around school to grade some papers.

I finished grading papers and then headed over to Roosevelt and joined Jim for SMASH rehearsal.  We were short one member, but did the best we could.  We went over stick routine and the 55-6 routine before we got finished.  As I was heading home from SMASH, Heather called me and told me she would meet me at home and we would go out to dinner.  So, I met Heather, we all got in my car and then headed for “Tully’s”.  When we got on the road, the snow was BARRELLING down!  But, I have driven in snow like this before, so I had no problem doing it.  After eating dinner, we went to “JoAnn’s Fabircs” to get some things for my new Mandalorian vest and then headed home.  It was slow going heading home, but we got home around eight o’clock or a little after.  Heather watched “Biggest Loser” while I played “Call of Duty 4″ on the PS3 online for a little while.  At ten o’clock I watched “The Good Wife” and then Heather and I headed to bed.  We went to sleep with dreams of sleeping in tomorrow.

Okay, so this is the LAST entry for the book “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry.  I will over view the good and the bad about the book and then give it an overall rating of 1 to 10.  1 being a “don’t bother” and 10 being a “must read”.  Here’s my analysis…..

‘Star Wars – Mestar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Epilogue

Well, it’s Monday and I have to say that I was exhausted this morning.  Of course that would have NOTHING to do with the fact that I didn’t go to bed until midnight last night!  I got up this morning after letting my alarm go off three times and as I headed out to the bathroom, Heather was already on her way to work.  So, I scrambled to get my shower and get myself back on track for the morning.   I managed to take a quick shower and had a quick breakfast and was able to catch up on time.  The kids and I watched “The Early Show” on CBS before it was time for me to head off to work and them off to school.

I got to work and got things set up for the day.  I taught my first units on Music Theory and they seemed to go pretty well.  I think it helps when my students pay attention and do the best that they possibly can.  It helps to make things go a little easier.  I was pleased with how my work day went and I felt as though things went pretty well.  It’s always nice to have that feeling at the end of a work day.  I got done with work and headed over to the High School for another PLC and a last chance to watch the edited version of “Freedom Writers” one last time.  Those meetings got done as Heather was telling me that she finally got her Nintendo Wii today.  She sounded pretty excited about it, and I have to admit, I’m a little excited too to see what all the hub-ub is all about.  I got done with my PLC and came right home.

I got home and changed out of my clothes and we ate a dinner of leftovers of the food from last night.  It was a good dinner.  After dinner, Heather and I played a little bit of tennis and baseball on the Wii before having to head out to take Austin out to Boy Scouts.  We dropped him off and then headed to Jackson Hewitt and signed off on our tax papers and I have to say that we are actually getting a decent tax return this year.  I’m even shocked at the price.  We got done there and came home.  Once we got home, we played the boxing game for a little bit on the Wii and then I went into the basement and started watching my usual TV shows including “How I Met Your Mother”, “Accidentally on Purpose”, “24″, and “CSI Miami”.  I also worked on part of the latest podcast and did some shopping for Valentine’s Day online.  After that, we watched a little bit of the local news and then went to bed.

Okay, let’s talk about the Epilogue of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry.  This will be the last chapter covered of this book.  Tomorrow night will be an overview and a rating of this book and then we will move onto Medstar II…..

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 40 (Part 5)

Sunday.  There was so much to do today, but a lot of it had to do with one word – SUPERBOWL!  I got up this morning and got myself ready for church and got the kids ready for church.  They were excited because not only was it Superbowl Sunday, but it was Scout Sunday as well.   Now, whoever planned that should be shot!  It’s just too much excitement for one kid to handle.  We got done getting ready for church and before I knew it, we were getting in the car and heading for our Scout Sunday service.

Overall, our church service wasn’t bad.  It was filled with honors for the Scouts and ended up being communion Sunday as well.  It was a packed day, but not bad nonetheless.  We got done with church and the kids went off to Sunday School.  Heather and I headed over to “Sonic” and continued our tradition of a small afternoon date.  We got a small burger meal and shared it and then I dropped Heather off at the house and I went over and picked up the kids from church.  We got home and the kids had a quick, small lunch and then set about cleaning the house.  I went into the basement and took notes for and then recorded the next two “Clone Wars in a Galactic Minute” sequences.  I will have to work on editing them, but at least they are recorded and ready for editing and processing.  I got done with that and helped the kids clean up the basement for my Superbowl party tonight.  I took a short nap (and so did Heather) and then we started working on food.  I then blogged for a little bit until friends started to arrive.

We watched the Superbowl together and I have to say that the New Orleans Saints really did surprise me.  I thought the entire game was going to be a runaway of the Indiannapolis Colts.  I really thought that after the first quarter.  But, the Saints pulled it out in the end and I can’t help but say that I really wasn’t for either team, but didn’t mind the Saints winning.  It reminded me of the time the Rams won the Superbowl back in 2000 for the first time in their franchise’s history.  Now, about the Superbowl ads.  They weren’t bad, but they weren’t great either.  I really thought that we would see some serious inovation this year, but it ended up being rather bland.  Especially when you have two ads that run back to back that have guys with no pants on.  Really, you couldn’t have broken those advertisements up with Dorito’s or a Bud Light ad?  Poor planning if you ask me.  We got done watching the game and then watched “Undercover Boss” and then switched over to “Big Love” at 11 and went to bed at midnight.  It was a long day, but filled with food, drink, and good friends.  What more could a person ask for?!

Okay, let’s talk about Part 5 of Chapter 40 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry…..

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 40 (Part 4)

Saturday.  It may be a weekend, but it was a workday for the Crissman family none the less.  We had a lot to do for our day today and for our weekend this weekend.  We had a lot to get ready for, so we had to get up at a decent hour this morning.  Heather and I got up around nine-thirty and got the kids up and had them cleaning up things around the house.  We got up, took a shower and got going right away to go shop for some things we needed for tomorrow for our Superbowl party at our house.  We went to Wal Mart and got some things we needed, including a computer chair, rolls, pizza sauce, and other things.  We got done at Wal Mart and headed for Wegmans to pick up a few more things.  We checked out of there and came home.  We all ate a quick lunch and I headed downstairs and finished editing out the music videos from my class from last quarter.  Once I got done, I took a short nap and watched “Dude, Where’s My Car” and then started to clean the basement.  Before I knew it, it was time to get ready for a FanForce event tonight.

We had a birthday party to get to.  We took off from the house a little bit early because we had no idea where we were going.  We got to the birthday party and it was at this gorgeous house!  We got changed and got things settled.  We had quite a few costumers show up and all got kitted up.  We then went downstairs and had a great time with the kids.  They were all fun-witted about the whole experience.  I got hit with a Nerf dart at least a dozen times, but I did eventually get my revenge.  Overall, it was a lot of fun.  We finished up with the party and they offered to feed us, but Heather wanted to leave.   So the rest of the FanForce group hung around and we left.  We got home and had  a quick dinner while Heather worked on cleaning out the dishwasher.  After dinner, I set about working on some things.  Through the course of the birthday party, we had some minor incidents.  The biggest of which was Austin loosing his stalk to his antenna.  So, I had to make some repairs.  I watched some episodes of “ALF” while I made the repairs and before I knew it, it was midnight and time to go to bed.

Okay, so let’s talk about Part 4 of Chapter 40 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 40 (Part 3)

Friday.  Thank goodness I made it to the end of this work week.  Next week was going to be just as busy, but I was so glad that I had made it to Friday.  I got up this morning and was just EXHAUSTED!  I didn’t want to get up, but had to force myself to get out of bed.  I really could use a day off from work and have a day to just lounge around. I know, I’m dreaming.  I got out of bed and took a shower.  As I got out of the shower, Heather was heading off to work.  She had made me an egg dish, so I changed quick and came out and ate some breakfast.  I then got ready for work while the kids and I watched “The Early Show” on CBS.  We got done watching T.V. and before I knew it, I was on my way to work while the kids were off to school.

I got to work and set things up for my day.  I had LOTS of plans for my day today.  I got most of them done too.  I wanted to finish up some paper work for some equipment we wanted to buy for the drama club.  I got that done this morning.  I also finished putting together the tech schedule for the drama club as well.  Among all that, I also managed to teach my classes.  My eighth graders started watching other music videos that have been done in my class.  My seventh graders talked with me about podcasts, what they are, and how they work.  They seem genuinely excited about their project.  It’s refreshing, because I haven’t had a class excited about podcasting in over a year.  My sixth graders started “American Idol” season 9 today and they were pretty excited about that as well.  Overall, a pretty good work day.
I got done with work and texted Heather quick.  I then drove down to Pennsylvannia to get some gas and came back home.  I met Heather and we headed over to Johnson City to “Toys R’ Us” and finished getting some gifts for Tara’s Birthday which was today.  We also got candles and some wrapping paper and then ordered pizza on our way home.  I dropped Heather off at home and she wrapped the gifts while I picked up the pizza from “Bella’s”.  I came home and had dinner with the family.  We then had some cake and then Tara opened her gifts and she got a whole bunch of “Littlest Pet Shop” gifts, which is exactly what she wanted.  We hung out for a little bit and then I went downstairs and worked on finishing editing out my students’ podcasts from last quarter.  I did that for a little bit, but before I knew it, it was time for “Clone Wars”.  We watched the show as a family.  We got done watching “Clone Wars” and then I finished working podcasts and then started working on music videos from last quarter.  I worked so hard on those that before I knew it, it was midnight and time to go to bed.  But, the good news was that I finished editing the videos.

Okay, let’s talk about Part 3 of Chapter 40 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 40 (Part 2)

Thursday.  There was so much to do, I didn’t even know where to begin.  I got up this morning and ate a breakfast of leftover pancakes with the family and before I knew it, Heather was off to work while I was getting in the shower.  I got done and got ready for work while we all watched “The Early Show” on CBS before I took off for work.

I got to work and my job started from the minute I walked in the door.  I had questions about the concert today and the schedule that we were following and how it was all going to work.  I no more than  got to my classroom and someone asked me to come into the auditorium and I helped some of the High School teachers set things up.  I then got my classroom set up and started to teach first period and then took my eighth graders down to see the concert and to run the sound and lights.  The concert seemed to go well overall.  There were some small snafoos, but those happen and I thought it went well.   We got done and I took some things apart and then got ready for the rest of my classes.  My sixth graders did the Antiquity Era of music today, my seventh graders did the Renaissance Era, and my eighth graders started the video series on Jazz.  Overall, it wasn’t a bad academic day.

I got done with school and left to come home right away.  I caught my kids goofing around.  They were watching T.V. and not doing their homework, so I had to come down on them like a heavy hammer.  Why?  Well, mome wasn’t coming home until nine o’clock tonight, so I was in charge.  I helped the kids stay on task and then we all pitched in together and made dinner.  After dinner we cleaned up the dinner together.  After dinner, I made sure the two older children practiced their instruments while the youngest child cleaned her room.  After that, I finally had a chance to breath and came downstairs.  I called Ian to try and tell him that I forgot we were supposed to record tonight, and I could not because I was the only adult in the house.  Not too long after I called Ian, he showed up.  We talked for a little bit and I copied a DVD for him and then he took off.  After that, I watched “CSI” and “Fringe” on tape when Heather came home.  We then decided to go to bed.   I was exhausted!

Okay, let’s talk about Part 2 of Chapter 40 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 40 (Part 1)

Well, it’s Wednesday and it was just another day of the week.  Well, it should have been just another day, but for me it was a day that I had a lot to get accomplished before tomorrow.  I got up this morning and hopped right out of bed because I didn’t have time to goof around or even snooze my alarm today.  I went and took a shower right away and as I was coming out of the shower, Heather was off to work on her own.  I got done with my shower and finished getting ready for my school day and came out and ate breakfast with the kids at the table.  We all had some leftover pancakes and then watched “The Early Show” on CBS and then I was off to work while they were off to school.

I got to work and set things up for my day.  I had a busy day because we have a recruitment concert here tomorrow, and I need to make sure that I have all the things set up for that concert and ready to go for that concert.  But, I had to take care of that later in the day.  I got things set up and started teaching my classes.  It was a day for “playing”.  My eighth graders reviewed with me my expectations for keyboard and got a time to get to know the instrument a little.  I did the same with my seventh graders.  My sixth graders talked about recorders and my recorder rules and what my expectations are on the day that we do recorders.  Overall, the day seemed to go well.  I set things up for the concert tomorrow and was able to test out the equipment and it seemed to be working fine.  I got done setting things up for the concert and then headed home after school and after working on the auditorium.

I got home and helped Heather get dinner together.  After dinner, Heather took the kids to Youth Group and then to Girl Scouts.  I worked on organizing some paperwork and getting organized for school and then played “Call of Duty 4″ online for about a half an hour before watching my usual Wednesday night shows, including “Human Target”, “Criminal Minds”, and “CSI NY” and then went to bed.

Okay, so let’s cover Part 1 of Chapter 40 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 39 (Part 3)

It’s Tuesday and it was a busy day for me.  I got up this morning and felt tired a little bit.  I’m not sure but every once in a while I become completely run down.  I think it’s possible that my age is just catching up with me.  I got up slowly and made my way to the shower.  As I was getting in, Heather was taking off for work.  I got in the shower and changed into my clothes and then joined the kids in the kitchen for breakfast.  We then watched “The Early Show” on CBS.  They had an interesting story about girls getting into fights more.  To make matters worse, they’re antagonizing each other online and then they are getting into physical fights and then posting them online for the sake of having a viral video.  The MOST distrubing part of the story was a couple in Ohio that had their daughter get in a fight with another girl and they watched the fist fight and then video taped it!  WOW!  Those parents are stupid!  Before I knew it, the kids were off to school while I was off to work.

I got to work and got things set up for my day.  It wasn’t too hard of a day.  I had my students work on their developmental workbooks and then I had them take a test to see what knowledge they have about music before they take my class.  It gives me an idea of what they do know.  It will also be a way for us to measure later on what they have learned in the next nine to ten weeks.  It went good overall and I was pleased with my classes in general.   I got done with my day and watched the final episode of Seaon 6 of “Stargate SG-1″ before heading to SMASH on my laptop.  I got to SMASH and we had a great rehearsal and got a lot done before some of the students had to leave early because of a concert at the High School tonight.

We left SMASH and Ruth and I came home and joined the family and we had a dinner of meatball subs.  They were great and my wife did a wonderful job making them!  We got done with dinner and watched “The Office” and then I went downstairs and vented online for an hour by playing “Call of Duty 4″ on the PS3.  I then watched “American Idol”, “Kitchen Nightmares”, and “The Good Wife” before going to bed.

Okay, so let’s talk about Part 3 of Chapter 39 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry……

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 39 (Part 2)

Monday.  I was optimistic today because it was a new day, a new week, and a new quarter.  I got up this morning and got myself going for the day.  Once I started to head into the shower, Heather was heading off to work.  I got done taking my shower and got dressed and had a nice breakfast of pancakes.  I got done eating breakfast and watched “The Early Show” on CBS for a little bit.  The main talk of the morning was about the Grammy Show from last night.  Now, I’ll admit I did not watch the show.  But it sure looks like I had GOOD reason to NOT watch the show.  I’m not sure I want to see Pink almost naked and I’m not sure I like the idea of Stevie Nicks singing with Taylor Swift.  Worse yet, I did NOT want to see another tribute to Michael Jackson!  I get it, the guy contirbuted to music, get ift over with already!  I got done watching that segment and I was off to work while the kids were off to school.

I got to school and set things up for the first day of my classes.  They went pretty well today, but I always call the first day of a quarte the “grace” day.  Students are getting to know me, I’m getting to know them and they usually don’t act out during that timeframe.  Let’s see what they are like after tomorrow.  I always pray that my students can learn to the best of their abilities.  I got done with my instructional day and raced out the door to get to the High School for a PLC meeting.  I watched my edited version of “Freedom Writers” twice and talked about journaling and the power of writing in a journal.  I got done with my PLC and came home.

I walked in the door, changed my clothes, and ate a dinner of spaghetti with the family.  We got done with dinner and I watched “The Simpson” and “The Office” with Heather.  I then worked on some things for school and then started to watch my usual line-up of nightly T.V. shows as Mike Wilkerson and I worked together to get the “Galaxy Cast” website updated.  I watched “How I met Your Mother”, “Accidentally On Purpose”, “24″, and “CSI Miami” while I taped “Two and A Half Men” and “Big Bang Theory” to watch at a later time.

Okay, so let’s talk about Part 2 of Chapter 39 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel” by Michael Reaves and Steve Perry…..

‘Star Wars – Medstar I: Battle Surgeons, A Clone Wars Novel’ – Chapter 39 (Part 1)

Sunday.  A day with God and we all got up early for church this morning.  We got up and started getting ready for church. We had to be there a little early because Ruth was cross-bearer today.  We got in the car this morning and it was freezing cold!  We drove to church in the freezing cold car and got to church and went inside and got ready for the service.  We had a nice service this morning talking about the power of God’s love.  We got done with the church service and went downstairs for our social hour and during that time, Tara came over to us and said she knew how hot coffee really was as someone had dropped some coffee on her.  She then lowered the shoulder of her dress and revealed three burn blisters.  We raced to get some cold water on her shoulder and then got her coat and took her home.

We got home and fixed Tara up.  We had her take her dress off (still had hot water on it) and sprayed her with burn spray and put a bandage on it.  I went downstairs and started to work on my first sheets for “American Idol” of Season 9 for school.  Heather got a phone call and I had to leave and go get the kids from Sunday School.  I came home and finsihed working on my “Idol” sheets for my classroom.  I then worked on starting to put together the music videos from my students from this past quarter.  I still have a long way to go to put those together.  While I did that I watched the NHL hockey game of the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Detroit Red Wings for a little bit on Fox and the switched to watching episodes of “Alf”.  I worked the rest of the afternoon on videos until it was time for dinner.

I joined the family for a dinner consisting of “potato bar” and then went back downstairs and worked on the blog while watching a few more episodes of “ALF” before switching over to “‘Till Death”, “The Simpsons”, “The Cleveland Show”, “Family Guy”, and “American Dad”.  After that, I worked on fixing up a cornet that a parent of a SMASH student started to get me.  I worked on that until it was time to go to bed.

Okay, let’s talk about Part 1 of Chapter 39 of “Star Wars – Medstar I:  Battle Surgeons,  A Clone Wars Novel” by Micheal Reaves and Steve Perry……