Annie Fox's Blog...

Thoughts about teens, tweens, parenting and this adventure of living on Earth in the 21st century.

Annie Fox, M.Ed., is an internationally respected parenting expert, award-winning author, and a trusted online adviser for tweens and teens.

#13: We’re here to help

January 19, 2009

Sorting books was a big group effort

Lots of books needed lots of sorting

To honor Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s legacy, today is a National Day of Service. President-elect Obama visited wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center before stopping at Sasha Bruce House (a shelter for homeless teens) where he rolled up his sleeves and helped paint the walls.

In the spirit of service, David and I took the Metro down to  Shaw Junior High School (near Howard University) and joined dozens of volunteers sorting through books that had been emptied out of now-closed schools. It was a complete jumble! Middle school books were mixed in with elementary and pre-school. History, math and fiction with biography, poetry and science. Our job? To sort them by categories (tossing out outdated ones and any books in poor condition) and box them up so that school librarians could easily shelve them in their new homes in other schools in DC.

Even when it comes to books, a picture is worth a thousand words!

Annie, and two other women from Marin!

Annie, Sarah and Caitlin, both from Marin!

Sorting through Social Studies and Science books

Sorting through Fairy Tales, Social Studies and Science books

Right before the stack toppled

Right before this stack toppled

Any day can be a day of service to your school or  your community. Dr. King said that true greatness comes in serving others. Lending a helping hand also makes you feel good about who you are. Interested? There’s a Global Youth Service Day coming up in April. How can you be of service?

Filed under: Inauguration,Politics,Teens — Tags: — Annie @ 3:54 pm
---------

#12: Rock on!

We Are One crowd from above. The arrow points to where we were standing.

We Are One crowd from above. The arrow points to where we were standing.

You know how when you’re hearing really great music performed live and you just feel like dancing? And if you’re with a few friends and they’re into the music, well, you can really get into it.

Well imagine 500,000 really happy people listening to some of the world’s best pop musicians… and you start to get a sense of what yesterday’s We Are One concert at the Lincoln Memorial was like. And let me tell you, when Bruce Springsteen, Mary J. Blige, John Mellencamp, Stevie Wonder, and Beyonce (to name a few), start doing their thing, we all got into it. Even Barack and Michelle were bopping to the music! 

No words can really capture the feeling of what this concert was like, so I’m just going to let the pictures tell the story. Enjoy!

Before the concert, we're pretty far back!

Annie, before the concert. See the Lincoln Memorial behind her? That's where the stage is.

The crowd, as viewed from the foot of the Washington Monument

The crowd, seen from the base of the Washington Monument

Telephoto shot of the Lincoln Memorial and frozen reflecting pool, taken from the foot of the Washington Monument.

Telephoto shot of the Lincoln Memorial and frozen reflecting pool, taken from the base of the Washington Monument.

View from behind us, looking back towards the Washington Monument

View from behind us, looking back towards the Washington Monument

Garth Brooks singing "Shout"

The crowd watching the crowd

Garth Brooks singing "Shout"

Garth Brooks singing "Shout"

Some of us joined in

Some of us joined in

Finally, President-elect Obama takes the stage

Finally, President-elect Obama takes the stage

Filed under: Inauguration,Politics,Teens — Annie @ 3:33 pm
---------

#11: To be a part of history

Jonathan from Miami, FL

Jonathan from Miami, FL

Part of the fun of being here is talking with people who have traveled from all over the country to be a part of this moment in history. Often, when “history” happens, we don’t know it because it slips by disguised as an ordinary moment. You don’t find out until afterwards that something important actually happened while you were there.

But other times, you absolutely know history is being made and you always remember where you were and what you were doing when you collided with it.  

In the early afternoon of  November 22, 1963 I headed through the halls in Westbury Jr. High on my way to core. Jeffrey Tanin came up to me and said, “Did you hear? President Kennedy was just shot!” Jeffrey often made up stuff, so, I didn’t believe him. But a minute later when I walked into Mr. Kirsch’s class and saw his expression, I realized that for once Jeffrey told the truth.

Caitlin

Caitlin, VA

People are here in DC now because they want to be part of an incredibly joyful moment in history so they’ll never forget what happened here on January 20, 2009. Here are a few we’ve met so far:

Caitlin (age 22, waitress at the Coyote Grille & Cantina in Fairfax, Virginia):  I’ve never been to an Inauguration and this is the first election I ever voted in.  This is a really big moment in history because of  who we are electing into office. I think it would be a shame if I didn’t go, living so close to the nation’s capital.

From San Diego, CA

From San Diego, CA

From Florida, but prepared for the cold

From Florida, but prepared for the cold

From South Carolina

From South Carolina

From South Carolina

From South Carolina

David talking with two men, one from SE Washington State, the other from Arizona

David talking with two men, one from SE Washington State, the other from Arizona

Duncan and Jessica, artists from Indianapolis, IN

Duncan and Jessica, artists from Indianapolis, IN

Michael from Indianapolis, IN, won the ticket lottery from his congressman.

Michael from Indianapolis, IN, won the ticket lottery from his congressman.

Filed under: Inauguration,Politics,Teens — Annie @ 2:46 pm
---------

#10: We Are One

January 18, 2009

HBO: We Are One Concert

We Are One Concert

The We Are One inaugural celebration kicks off today at 2:30 PM ET in front of the Lincoln Memorial (site of Martin Luther King Jr.’s, “I Have a Dream” speech). (I definitely see a theme shaping up here.) It’s free and open to the public (thermal underwear not included) and this concert’s got an unbelievable line-up of all-star… stars! We’re heading over there in a bit and I’ll be blogging about it tomorrow. But here’s a tip… you can watch the concert live at 2:30 PM ET/11:30 AM PT on HBO or later tonight on HBO at 7 PM ET/PT and 11:30 PM ET/PT (I know that’s late but there’s no school tomorrow!).  Which reminds me, if  you’re looking to do something of value on Monday’s National Day of Service… check this out.

---------
« Newer PostsOlder Posts »
Follow Annie Fox on Social Media and the Web