Tour Marm's First 100!

Well! One Hundred Posts!

It couldn't have come at a better time as I shall be temporarily abandoning the blog while I am on tour!

There have been so many surprises!

Not only have I met some wonderful people, but I have been treated to pleasant, instructive, poignant, and provocative posts. I have had several cheerleaders, but I want to thank Elementary History Teacher over at History is Elementary for her kindness and generosity; her blog is my gold standard.

I have experimented with style and content and participated in the Wordless Wednesday and Thursday Thirteen memes. Some people liked my Figure-It-Out Friday.

I entered a few Carnivals and won a Blog of the Day Award.

Additionally, I was contacted by two editors of magazines and two of my posts were picked up as featured articles. One will appear in Lost Magazine in May and another in the AFT Quarterly. (I'm even getting paid!!!) Considering that I have not written seriously since my school days, it has been rather encouraging!

Lately, my workload and some health issues prevented me from being as thorough as I wanted but perhaps after my tour season, I shall have a bit more time to expand. I have learned that I don't have to produce something each day. (I wonder how people have so much time to do just that!) My visitation to other blogs came to a halt; I think I'll arrange to have 'visiting days' Monday and Tuesday and only post three days a week.

There were regrets due to WORD document failures: My articles on Dr. Ralph Bunche (who lived a few blocks from me in Kew Gardens, NY), Emma Roebling, and General William Tecumseh Sherman were lengthy posts that seem to be frozen. It was frustrating and quite disappointing.

The real purpose of this blog was to assist those who were interested in educational travel programs for their students, and I need to return to that concept since I seem to be the only one in the blogsphere who designs and conducts tours. I was hoping to attract some teachers and administrators, not for personal gain, but to give them ideas of alternative services and resources. So from now on, my posts will concentrate in some way to a site or something that would help the planning and decision process. It's time to get focused. I welcome questions concerning logistics etc. and would like to set up a forum with those who have traveled.

It has become evident that I also need a crash course on HTML!

However, I decided to list some of my personal favorites for you to look over while I am away: Please don't hesitate to leave comments - I crave feedback!

If you have questions unrelated to the posts, would like to share your travel experiences, or have any other comments, please use the Q&A Forum. This is also the place to ask the question you yahoo'd/googled that directed you to this blog - I might be able to answer it for you!



Personal Experience:

Let's Go Fly a Kite
Poetry for School and Soul: Growing Up With poetry
Bringing Cemeteries to Life - John Meigs Effigy
Christina Meets Thomas Jefferson
What's Wrong with Homework?
The Tour Marm Goes on Strike: How I dealt with Frustration
Craig Ferguson: Role Model
American Paintings I Love: Can you identify them?
The Tour Marm in the Twilight Zone

About Touring:

Journeys vs Guided Tours
Touring for God and Country
Thirteen Overlooked Sites in Washington, DC
Teaching to the Trip
How to Make Appointments for the US Capitol, White House, etc.
Night at the Museum: Overnight Visits
Salem and Peabody Essex Museum
Lame Tour Guide Jokes
Tour Talk: Codes and Catch Phrases
NCLB My Way: Counting Systems
Thirteen Things I Hate To Do in DC During Student Tour Season
March Madness


History:

Good Hands
Charles Willson Peale: Renaissance Man Answer
Baptism of Pocahontas
Kindred Spirits
Phoebe Snow: Advertising Icon
The Donner Party and Lincoln Connection - FIOF
Fugitive Slave: Oney (Ona) Judge Staines

I hope you enjoy reading these and you are welcomed to leave your comments either with the posts or on the Q&A Forum.

Cheers!

The Educational Tour Marm