Books are Priceless and the price will continue to go UP

Went to an auction and there were boxes of old books.  Well the price ended up being $5 a box of books.  Really?! They were old books, some smelled old, some were abused and well read, and one was a bible.  I could not say no.  Bought the books and took them home and put them in my garage.  My eleven year old son came in with a few of the books and put them on the end table and told me that one was from 1879 and that we should read it.  I started yesterday and I am almost done. It is Kavanaugh by Longfellow.  Worth reading but not an easy read.
So is this a recommendation for a book?  NO!  I have aghast at the idea that books are worthless and people can't even give them away.  Was it so long ago that only the rich could have books, then libraries made it possible for all to have books, now no one wants them.  I think  and have heard that other countries do not take books for granted but with technology maybe paperless is what everyone wants.  I don't, I loved opening that old book and smelling the age, feeling the paper, enjoyed holding it in my hands, really enjoyed the handwritten message inside.  I foresee a future when books will slowly become so rare that  only the rich will be able to own them.  They will be on "Road Show Antiques" and discussed as being a rare find.  Until then I will continue to buy books , just need a library to store them.

Administrative Focus or lack of...

I really try to focus, work on a task or problem, give it my all, and then feel a huge amount of accomplishment.
I find it next to impossible as an assistant principal/curriculum director/teacher/family person/individual.
Just to illustrate the above this is a list of what I have worked on this weekend....
Two 5th grade basket ball games
Babysitting twins
Shopping for groceries
Menards for house repair supplies
Making dinner
Cleaning the house
Repair an Anderson Window that was broken and rehang
Caulk the front door and window
Replace siding that was rotten, repaint, and caulk
Laundry
Church and Sunday School/Christmas Program Practice
Watch a DVD with my family
More house cleaning
Read the paper
Read two chapters in my new book ('One Thousand White Women' really good!!!)
Work on Site Visit Documents
Update my calendar and respond to emails
Favorite 'Smarter Balance' test site and read more about the entire testing system
Update my blog, oh yeah this one and the PVELART site that I just started
Review Iowa Assessment information and updates
Help my son with homework
Clean up after the dogs
OKAY STOP!!!!
How is it possible to do all that in two days and stay focused???????
Well my answer at this point is stay up late.  I also am going to hire a personal assistant that will work for free and be rewarded with the joy of just being around me.
SO HOW DO YOU FOCUS?  ANY GREAT TIPS WOULD BE APPRECIATED JUST COMMENT AND I WILL READ IT AROUND 11:30PM OR LATER.

Elementary Students Elect the Next President of the United States of America!

What a great day of learning.  The 5th grade staff completed a unit about elections with a school wide election on the same day as the national elections for president.  Now I know that this has been done before,  but I will say the Prairie Valley Elementary 5th grade staff and students did it WELL!  After the background work in the classroom; investigating elections, past elections, student prior knowledge, and introducing new concepts , students created election posters (applicable to the Preschool- 6th grade students and staff), registered all voters, set up precincts, voting booths, public announcements, trained poll workers, and set up schedules for voting.  It went very well and the school was updated on results throughout the day precinct by precinct.  One of the requirements for registering to vote was that the student or staff donate a non-perishable food item.  If the students forgot to bring one extras were brought in by all. 
I got to assist with some of the younger student precincts and helped read the names under the candidate pictures.  It was a joy to see how many five and six year old students knew the names, identified the faces, and were anxious to vote. 
A five year old student that I assisted tried to come back to the voting booth. I told her the rule was that it was a private voting booth and she had already voted.  She then declared that she wanted her can back so she could vote for the other guy since that would only be fair. 
At the end of the day I reminded the students as they went to the bus to watch the election results to see who the nation picked for president. One student said, "We have voted and it would be nice if the nation would let us elect the president like we did today, just the kids in this school, or just the kids all over."
What an IDEA and after the day I experienced;caring, patience, excitement, interest, and fairness, I would trust the kids to elect the next president, and it would make sense. 
Someday they will....