Maria's Mélange

It’s fun learning new things. Sometimes I forget just HOW much fun it can be! My school, ACE Academy, has a wonderful Makerspace, and I had the opportunity to experience a beginner glass fusing class there a few weeks ago. Kristine Shafer, from Helios Fused Glass Studio , came to share her expertise and teach us how to use our new glass kiln.   I’m a quick study, but it was still amazing how many details I absorbed while digging into this new experience! Kristine said that she normally does a beginner class over a few weeks, so I got a real crash course to just get the overall experience. Right from the start, it was clear I would need a beginner’s mindset. It’s easy to forget how much specialized vocabulary there is in any field when you’ve been in the same one (education for me) for almost thirty years. I learned the names for new tools, the names for different levels of fusing of glass, and even the acronym for the measure of how quickly glass types expand ( COE: coefficient of exp

 Once again, I am over the moon to be able to participate in a blog tour for the latest John David Anderson book. This one is the second book in a science fiction duology. Science Fiction is one of my absolute favorite genres, and I am so excited to see another amazing addition to middle grade sci-fi hit the shelves. Yes, those are Star Wars mini posters, a Yoda comic,  and a book about Sally Ride behind me. Here is the publisher's summary: Leo Fender is no stranger to catastrophe, whether it’s the intergalactic war that took his mother’s life or the ongoing fight for his own. He’s seen his planet plundered, his ship attacked, his father kidnapped, and his brother go missing—and found himself stranded on a ship with a bunch of mercenary space pirates. Still, nothing could have prepared him for the moment he and the crew tried to save his father—and discovered a dark plot that could destroy hundreds of worlds in the blink of an eye. Now, Leo is adrift. His father has sent him on a m