3360 Librarians and Nurses, peas in a pod?

The American Library Association has great difficulty minding the store--er--the library. Is it too boring figuring out why Google and Amazon left them in the dust? The ALA spends its time fretting over the Bush administration, poverty, crime, gay and women's rights and war while handing Castro and Chavez a library get-out-of-jail-free card. I guess all the library problems have been solved (except how to get an increasingly non-reading public to use libraries).

Then I was looking something up in a nursing journal, "Journal of Professional Nursing." I think it was something about handwashing and how hospitals and medical staff are infecting people because they've become careless. And I came across this challenge--nurses should prevent war, not just treat war wounded.

"Nurses have a distinguished history of caring for the wounded during wartime without regard to ethnicity, nationality, religion, and other personal factors. Although it is important that this tradition continue, nurses can individually and collectively take a more active posture in preventing war and armed conflict. "Journal of Professional Nursing," Nov-Dec 2006. Now what direction do you suppose that "active posture" will take?

Here's a radical concept. How about if the librarians collect, preserve, promote and dispense information (from all view points, not just their own), and nurses protect and care for our health with the highest proven standards (like hand washing). Then after doing a highly professional job for 8 hours or a shift, they could leave work with a clear conscience to tackle those projects of their own religious and political persuasion.

Poetry Thursday

Indiana claims James Whitcomb Riley as the "Hoosier Poet," and there is a collection of his manuscripts at the Lilly Library at Indiana University. You really only need one poet like Riley to enchant the school children with the rural dialect and old stories, so there probably wasn't much demand for Harry S. Chester, the "Elkhart County Poet," who also enjoyed and wrote poetry in this style. He was the Clerk of Courts, and although I've browsed through the Internet, this poem, "The Wakarusa Band," is the only title I can find. I didn't actually find it on the Internet either--I was doing genealogical research at the public library, and it is in the Elkhart County History. I have few ties to this county, but don't you get a little misty eyed thinking about old Harry behind the desk scratching out the marriage licenses, and tapping his toe while he passed his time writing poetry.

The Wakarusa Band
by Harry S. Chester

You talk about your Brooks's Band and Boyer at his best
An' Thomas's big orchestra, an' Sousa an' the rest
Their hifalutin' music, I suppose, is good enough
For city folks who educate on operatic stuff;
But when you want to reach the heart and make it laugh an' sob,
An' be in touch with nature like, and make it thrill an' throb
With melody an' music that a child can understand,
You ought to hear a concert by the Wakarusa Band.

They ain't up on concertos an' cantatas an' the like
But you can't beat 'em grindin' out a quickstep on the pike
An' when they play "Old Nellie Gray" an' "Where the Daisies Grow,"
My memory goes slidin' back to the long, long ago;
An' music that'll work like that an' strike your very soul,
An' flood you full of memories an' all your past unroll
That kind of music playin' fills its highest mission and
That's why I like to listen to the Wakarusa Band.

I saw the great directors in Chicago at the Fair,
With all their fine musicianers annihilatin' air;
A drum'd bang, a horn'd blat, a clarinet's shriek
An' ef you call that music, say, you ought to hear me speak;
I want the kind of music, that'll melt into the heart
I wouldn't give a picayune for all their classic art;
Let educated critics gulp it down an' call it grand
But I’ll just sit an' listen to the Wakarusa Band.

There are several photos of the Wakarusa Band (not to be confused with the music festival in Kansas) in the archives at the Public Library in Wakarusa, Indiana, here and here.

While I was at my public library, there were some middle school “musicianers annihilatin' air" with bang and blat and shriek.

My Turn
You ramble in your Myspace on why you do that stuff--
Your fuzzy youtube I 'spose is good enuf.
But still I'd rather read your words and text
without that noise ef from you gen-next
which don' melt my heart or strike my soul
as your past and future you unroll.

Poetry Thursday
Wakarusa, Indiana
dialect poetry

3358 What a nice idea

Burning the clocks. A little late for 2006; maybe next year. We've got a creek. . . I could make a lantern.

3357 Are you from Podunk?

For you non-USA'ns, "Podunk" is a synonym for the town from nowhere--too small to matter. Except to the people who live there. I grew up in two lovely Podunks, Forreston and Mt. Morris in Ogle County, Illinois, in the northern part of the state, close enough to Wisconsin and Iowa that we sometimes took Sunday afternoon drives to those states. Here is a website that's lots of fun, called epodunk.com where you can search out information about your little town. There are also Podunk sites for Canada and Ireland.

It appears to me now in 2007 that Forreston is the more attractive of the two, but when I was living there (1946-1951), Mt. Morris was twice the size and had the better business district, nicer homes, paved streets and more advanced schools. In those days Mt. Morris had a thriving publishing and magazine distribution industry--actually they are still there--but experienced a devastating strike in the 1970s, and the town has been slipping since. Even today, many libraries have subscriptions addressed to Mt. Morris. Statistically, the 2000 census still shows Mt. Morris with the higher median income and home values, but it essentially no longer has a school system, which really gutted the town of community spirit. Meanwhile, Forreston has diversified with small businesses, rallied its voters for bond issues, made itself a wonderful place to buy real estate and settle down, and has moved on. Both towns have housing stock with median range far below the national average.

The funny little picture on the Mt. Morris epodunk site is actually a post card of Pine Creek, IL where my dad grew up. It is closer to Dixon (home of Pres. Reagan) than Mt. Morris. Not sure how they select the graphics.

3356 Are you a tea drinker?

Although I’m not particularly fond of tea, I do drink it first thing in the morning because I am awake about an hour before the coffee shops open.* I thought this study of the affects of milk on the vasodilation benefits of tea was interesting. I always add a bit of orange juice to kill the taste. I wonder what that does to tea? It seems to be something in the milk--rat cells being tested to find that out.

"In a study of 16 postmenopausal women, those who drank about two cups of black tea without milk had a greater than four-old increase in flow-mediated vasodilation from baseline in the forearm brachial artery (P<0.01), said Verena Stangl, M.D., of the Charité-Universitätsmediz in Berlin, and colleagues.

However, those who drank a mix of 90% black tea with 10% skimmed milk had no more of an increase in vasodilation than if they had consumed two cups of hot water, Dr. Stangl and colleagues reported online today in European Heart Journal." Reported at Medpagetoday.

*Although I'm a coffee drinker, I don't like the taste of my own brew (or yours either), so I've been going out for a cup since I was a teen-ager. While there, I draft my blogs.

3355 Fat pills for dogs

Can you believe it? People are going to drug up Fido so he can lose weight. My solution is much cheaper and healthier. If you own a dog, get up off your fat butt and take him out for a walk or run for 30 minutes a day. You'll both be much healthier. Just remember to take the plastic bag for the feces. If you don't have the time, hire a dog walker--our travel agent, who is also an exercise nut, does this to stay svelte and trim. And if you have a fat cat, take a string and play chase with her for 15 minutes a day. The cat will lose weight, and you'll feel like a kid again and go to bed with a smile on your face.

3353 Ten phrases I would not miss

I've seen end-of-the year lists of over used words, list of new words, and of course, Wired always has it's own list of tired and fired words. Here's my list of meaningless gobbledegook, phrases I'm sick of seeing primarily because they promise more than they deliver.

1. tax initiatives
2. voting irregularities
3. renewable energy
4. bipartisanship
5. mission statement
6. vision for change
7. experts say (also its first cousin, informed sources say)
8. interface
9. segue
10. Islam is a religion of peace

3353 What's going on in Stockton?

Do you ever read those full page ads in the paper called "legal notices" where the confiscated belongings are listed from criminal busts? No? Must be one of my odd quirks. The Drug Enforcement Administration of the U.S. Dept. of Justice lists seized property--there's lots of legal mumbo jumbo so it isn't clear to me if the listed parties can reclaim it or if it will be auctioned. On the list are lots of weapons, watches, currency, vehicles, airplanes, boats, bank accounts, jewelry, and some furniture and electronics. Then there was Strockton, California, and the property seized was grow lights, fans, carbon filters, all kinds of special boxes, etc. Apparently Victoria Chu, Ngai Chung Hung, Roex Hung, Michael Lee, Wing Chou Chan, Wayne Feng and Ka Wai Yu were dabbling in some unauthorized agricultural venture to the tune of a quarter million dollars.

3351 Monday Memories--Grandmother's Hymnal

One of the books I inherited that means a lot to me is my maternal grandmother's hymnal. Here is what we librarians call the bibliographical information and a description of it. I have a 115 page list of my grandparents books which I used for various publications I wrote when I was working. (Aren't you pleased I'm not listing them all?).

The word "Brethren" refers to "Church of the Brethren" an Anabaptist group, although at the time this title was printed, they just referred to themselves as "Brethren." The official term was German Baptist Brethren at that time. My family spoke German for about the first 100 years they were in this country (giving it up around the 1820s) and the Brethren printed the first European language Bible in the colonies--but it was in German, not English.

I used a wonderful program called "Notebook" to make this list, which I no longer have or know how to use (lots of DOS type commands), and could sort by author, title, date, publisher, subject or keyword. Any time you complain about the hymns your church is using--just take a look at what your denomination was singing 100 years ago. It's an eye-opener.

Brethren's Tune and Hymn Book: Being a Compilation of Sacred Music Adapted to All the Psalms, Hymns, and
Spiritual Songs in the Brethren's Hymn Book. Carefully revised, rearranged and otherwise improved. Mt. Morris, IL: The Brethren's Publishing House, 1894. no. 11

Subject: Brethren--Hymnbooks

Notes: Script: "Mary L. George, Ashton, Illinois."
This is a reprint of the 1879 "The Brethren's Hymnbook"
edited by J.C. Ewing, the first hymnbook with four-part
harmony, copyright by Quinter and Brumbaugh Brothers.
James Quinter selected songs from earlier editions.
Today we would recognize few of the hymns in this book.
The Brethren's Publishing House was privately owned.
In 1897 all rights and titles were turned over to the
Church's General Missionary and Tract Committee and it
moved to Elgin. When the Kable Brothers started their
printing venture in Mt. Morris, they used the printing
plant. ("Brethren Press," Brethren Encyclopedia, Vol.
1:193)

View More Monday Memories Participants
My visitors and those I'll visit this week are:Anna, Becki, Chelle, Chelle Y., Cozy Reader, Debbie, Friday's Child, Gracey, Irish Church Lady, Janene, Janene in Ohio, Jen, Katia, Lady Bug, Lazy Daisy, Ma, Mrs. Lifecruiser, Melli, Michelle, Paul, Susan, Viamarie.

3350 Oh lady, you don't want to know!

She wanted to know what sort of cold hearted bitch she was, and I was ready to respond, but didn't want to sign in for one more password. So I moved on, but I really, truly wanted to call her exactly what she'd already named herself. Other words that come to mind. . . whiny, spoiled, self-centered, childish. But maybe it's depression. I think it's what started the women's movement in the 1970s. And children's lives have been going down hill since.

3349 Randy's new blog

Randy Kirk has started a new blog called The God vs No God Debate, and you're invited to join in. Stop by and take a look. Tell him Norma sent you.

The first 5 topics will be:

What are the practical advantages of believing in God?
What are the practical advantages of not believing in God?
Why do Christians feel so compelled to convince others to believe?
Why do atheists want so badly to win the debate?
How should evidence be "weighed" in this subject area?

3348 A new epidemic among teens?

The Dec. 28 issue of New England Journal of Medicine (355:26) has a series of articles on mental illness in teens. Now, it's not that new diseases can't arise--afterall, when my grandmother was a child, virtually no one got polio. It became an epidemic in the 20th century because sanitation improved and children no longer had the harmless mild type. Still, as my class prepares for its 50th reunion next summer, I am sort of wondering why we students didn't see mental illness among our classmates (there were a few teachers I sort of wondered about, however). The lead article suggests the screening of all teens to catch the "silent epidemic of mental illness among teenagers" which is leaving them vulnerable to emotional, social, and academic impairments in later life.

I'm sure if my friends and I had had screening, that the usual anxieties about grades, or mood disorders from squabbles with parents, fatigue from bad schedules or bruised and broken hearts from dating, or poor social skills resulting in rejection by the "in-crowd" would have rated us off the charts for feelings of hopelessness and depression. And I didn't know a single person in my high school who had an eating disorder or a drug/alcohol problem to the extent that we began to see in the late 60s and early 70s. However, I think pharmacologic intervention for huge numbers of teens who might have otherwise passed through a phase of sadness or emptiness without medical help, is a pretty high price. We don't even know the long term results for adults. Does the phrase "follow the money" come to mind for anyone but me?

3347 Go Bucks--but learn to spell

Yesterday at the coffee shop someone had written on the children's blackboard in the back of the shop:

" 'Gator meat tastes like WOLFERINE."

Here is a photo of a wolverine, a member of the weasel family and the Michigan mascot. According to their website, no one knows how the school got that name, although there are some interesting theories. Wild wolverines do not exist in Michigan. Although they've been known to get wild when they visit Columbus.


If I were a betting woman, or if I even followed football, I'd say OSU by at least two touchdowns.

3346 Mandated folate levels

This is certainly odd. Or maybe not. In the 1990s, the federal government mandated folate be added to cereal foods because in pregnant women it can reduce certain birth defects. But. . .

"Fortification of enriched cereal-grain products with the B vitamin folic acid to help prevent pregnancies affected by neural tube defects (NTDs) such as spina bifida and anencephaly became mandatory in the United States in January 1998. Although median serum folate concentrations among nonpregnant women of childbearing age increased initially after the mandate, levels decreased 16% from 1999--2000 through 2003--2004, and RBC folate concentrations decreased 8%." MMWR Jan. 5, 2007

I'm guessing it is certain low-carb fad diets that suggest you not eat bread, rolls, macaroni products, rice, corn meal, etc. The largest decrease was among non-Hispanic whites. You can't mess with Mother Nature--eat all the colors, ladies--just eat less if you're fat. And move more. It works. And be especially careful if you are childbearing age.

3345 One of the best movies I've seen

Finally got my husband to go to Dream Girls with me. Of course it's the best I've seen this year--not too hard since this is only the 7th, but I'd say the best I've seen in a decade. Maybe 2 decades. I'm ready to see it again, and that's really unusual for me. I think Overboard is the only movie I saw twice in the theater.

Every performer was outstanding--Eddie Murphy, Jamie Foxx (I've never liked either one), Beyonce, Anika Noni Rose, Danny Glover--but Jennifer Hudson was just extraordinary. I've never watched American Idol, but I've read about her smack down by Judge Simon. She's Fabulous. Couldn't believe-my-ears stunning. Not just her singing but her acting. Why they call her "supporting actress" I'm not sure unless they mean it as in "foundation" or "no-story-without-her."

The movie doesn't get preachy--if you lived in the 60s you catch the fleeting frames of history--but it does show that greed, bad behavior and infidelity know no racial preference. Yes, you have to suspend belief a bit--you are watching a broadway musical of the 1980s based on a 1960s girl group, in a 21st century movie verson, but as my daughter always says, "Mom, it's a movie!" Yes, it is, and this is what movies should be. Not truth. Not reality. Not a sermon. Just knock-your-socks-off terrific. And who knew Eddie Murphy could sing like that?

Dream girls
Jennifer Hudson
Beyonce Knowles

3344 Those who write for a living also work for minimum wage

or less. "It's a great story but hard to do. Everyone had an agenda and hardly anyone, I thought, completely told me the truth. Worst of all the story took me longer to research and write than any other story I've ever written. A teenage dropout flipping burgers at McDonalds wouldn't accept my hourly wage on this story." Read the whole story, Murder on the Last Turn. He blogs about writing it here.

3343 My baby has her first cavity!

After 15 years of avoiding dentists, my daughter finally went to one she picked out of the yellow pages for her husband, who had a broken crown. She had noticed a tiny black spot on a molar a few weeks ago. The dentist, after she recovered from the shock of seeing an adult mouth with no fillings, told her that because she had not had a cleaning in 15 years, they would need to do it in stages because of plaque build-up. Plaque is the sticky white stuff that forms on teeth and can cause tooth loss from gum disease--even a tooth with no cavities can be lost from poor dental care.

But when the dentist looked closer, there was also no plaque. My daughter brushes twice a day and flosses regularly. However, she also had thyroid cancer about 9 years ago (thyroid was removed), and has some dry mouth, so lack of saliva apparently cuts down on the plaque build up. Whatever the reason--good dental hygiene, good genetics or good luck, the dentist said she'd never seen a mouth like that. And the black spot? Neither the x-rays nor the dentist could find it, so my daughter had to tell them where it was--and yes, it was a cavity.


My baby's first cavity! She'll be 40 this year.

dental hygiene
dentist
gum disease

3342 The Frozen Chosen

I've been following a discussion at another blog about the way WaPo messed up a story about the Falls Church and Truro Episcopal congregations (Fairfax, VA) worship and leaving the denomination. To say the reporter attempted to portray the believers (some prominent Republicans) as weirdo kooks would be mild hyperbole, but close enough. The comments have been as interesting as the original article, and it seems that Lutherans and Episcopalians also use the term "frozen chosen" which originally was a derogatory term for Calvinists, particularly Presbyterians. Anyway, I saw this joke in the comments and laughed out loud.

A young boy was shocked to find that his neighborhood playmates had never been baptized. Thinking quickly, he led them all to the nearest church.

A janitor, the only person there at the time, opened the door and let them in. Upon hearing what they wanted, he led them into the bathroom, where he proceeded to sprinkle each of them with water from a toilet.

Walking home, the boys began to wonder what demonination they had joined.

"Well we can't be baptists," one boy said, "because they dunk you all the way in."

"Well, we can't be Catholics," another boy said. "They pour water over your head and light candles."

After further discussion, another boy finally interrupted in disgust. "Come on, guys, didn't you smell that water? We're 'piscopalians!"

3341 Common errors in English

Oh, I'm in heaven. I could spend all day at this site. I've already learned you shouldn't say make a "360 degree turn" because then you'd be right back where you started. Instead, it's 180 degrees that gets you in an opposite spot--if you're making new year's resolutions, or something.

I saw this at Now Norma Knits another fabulous knitting site. I think knitting blogs are some of the most attractive and interesting in the blogosphere. And here's another Norma with strong opinions. It must go with the name.

And yes, I did make a New Year's resolution, and maybe 2 are still percolating as possibilities. I announced this at my other blog (2nd blog, but I have 10), but I'll reveal it here, since it is now day 6 and I've kept it this long. I am reading the One Year Bible (NIV translation). Each day you get an Old Testament and New Testament passage, a Psalm passage, and some verses from Proverbs.

3340 Today's atheists lack charm

In today's Wall Street Journal there was an editorial that had a very familiar ring. Sam Schulman says today's atheists are no match for their forebearers like George Eliot, Carlyle, Hardy, Darwin, H.G. Wells and George Bernard Shaw. They have no arguments you didn't hear in college and lack charm. He says atheists think religious people like me are stupid, full of superstitions, unsafe for children, full of fables and indefensible. Mr. Schulman goes on to say atheists don't focus on Islamic extremists who openly spew hate and kill apostates. It's people who attend church and actually believe something that upset them. He concludes that atheists are shallow, peevish, unsympathetic whiners who are rigid and preachy. Amen to that.

Now I know what the problem was with an editorial I read in the Upper Arlington News by Richard Ades this week. It was so garbled and poorly written including everything from the 9/11 attack to Merry Christmas attacks that I was hard pressed to make sense of it. But Sam Schulman has shed some light on it. Mr. Ades has been reading Richard Dawkins and watching too much PBS.

I sent a letter to the SNP/UA News. Let's see if they'll publish criticism of one of their own.

3339 White female in charge?

Calm down, Nancy Pelosi. Eighty percent of librarians are female and 89% are white. No one's beating a path to our door. Librarianship is the lowest paid profession that requires an advanced degree. Garbage collectors (usually men) make more. So don't get a swelled head about this position.

"But women weren't just waiting; women were working. Never losing faith, we worked to redeem the promise of America, that all men and women are created equal. For our daughters and granddaughters, today we have broken the marble ceiling."

Marble ceiling, indeed! Lots of libraries have marble ceilings, and floors, and walls. If you want to make a difference in marble buildings, Ms. Pelosi, maybe the Librarian of Congress could be a librarian?

3338 Death of a friend

John Neff, 72, a former teacher at Upper Arlington High School passed away New Year's Eve of Alzheimer's Disease. His wife and I were in a Bible study group "Harried Housewives," many years ago, and in the 1970s, we occasionally went out together as couples. I saw her at the coffee shop this morning and she told me of his merciful passing. According to the obituary published in the Columbus Dispatch, "John enjoyed his teaching career at Upper Arlington High School, where he taught Sophomore English, Psychology, and Humanities, and was the Alcohol/Drug Educator for the district the last seven years of his career. While at UAHS, he developed a course "The Bible as Lit" . . . He was very active at the Hilltop Church of God, where he taught a young adult Sunday school class and was active in the State Board of Christian Education for that church. Since 1983, he had been actively involved at First Community Church, where he taught adult education classes, served on the Adult Education Council, and Spiritual Searcher Committee, serving as Chair at different times of each, and was a member of the Board of Church and Ministry for the Central Southeast District of the U.C.C. For 22 years, he was a member of the First Community Church Chancel Choir which was a deep joy in his life. Following his teaching career, he did some light catering and was quite the gourmet cook. He was a man of many talents and was very widely read. . . The last job he had before his illness robbed him of his health was as manager of the Utzinger Memorial Garden at the Farm Science Review, a job he loved very much. He spent many hours in his own green house planting seeds to be replanted into his own garden and yard."

Services were held at FCC on January 3, 2007 with Rev. James Long officiating.

Alcohol in breast milk and child abuse

Whatever you think about the morality, pleasure or efficacy of drinking alcohol, you can't honestly say it tastes good. With flavorings, possibly some drinks taste less awful than others. I have never tasted beer because it smells like rotten grain, and I think that's why God gave us a sense of smell.

So if you are pregnant or nursing, are you telling me you can't avoid a bad tasting, mood altering drug for 15 months? (9 months + the 6 average for nursing) Come on, ladies--toughen up. The terrible twos and the teen years are coming at you fast. Get a spine. Put down that bottle of beer or glass of Chardonnay. You can wait three hours 'til your breast milk is safe for someone who weighs 8 lbs and is totally dependent on you.

alcohol
breast milk

3336 My letter to Glenn Beck

Hey, I'm on a roll. Just can't seem to stop writing letters.
.

Dear Glenn,

I wrote to WTVN protesting the programming change. Letter here.

Now I'm wondering. I just heard you insult me and President Ford by joking about his funeral. You said no station but WTVN carried it because they were looking for a reason to avoid carrying you (paraphrase, so don't get picky on me). I listened to it on WTVN radio. It was very moving, and I loved the hymns and the eulogies. My husband, sister (Illinois--way out of range for WTVN) and many friends, and some of my blog readers who e-mailed me, also either watched or listened.

Grow up, Glenn. Not everything is about you. There are times you're ahead--you should just shut up while you're there.

Norma Bruce
(you're on here, but I've switched to Cincinnati for today)

3335 And you think you've got thank you notes to write

Look at all the folks Jordan Richards will need to thank!

3334 The minimum wage smoke screen

I suppose I shouldn't complain that the Democrats will try to make hay with this. But it irritates me no end. In Ohio, the voters were dumb enough to add it to the Constitution through an amendment in November! So nationally, we couldn't get that bad.

A tiny fraction of people in this country (520,000 in 2004, mostly teen-agers, most in leisure and hospitality industry) work for minimum wage, and most of them are part timers on their way up to the next wage level who are not the sole support of their family. No fast food restaurant or motel around Franklin Co. Ohio is hiring at minimum--they are probably paying $7 or more to even get someone to finish filling out the application. Even our illegals are getting about $15/hour in the so-called "jobs that Americans don't want." In 1983 I worked for the Ohio Department of Aging on a grant from JTPA--Job Training Partnership Act. (Yes, I was on the dole--but I was a Democrat then.) I remember attending a conference on low income workers. At that time, 24 years ago, we were told that in order to offer a woman what she could get on welfare [Washington DC], she would have to have a job at $10.50/hour to make up for comparable housing subsidies, food stamps, free medical, free tuition, transportation, and pay for babysitting so she could work, taxes and insurance. That was 1983 money. So how ridiculous is it to look like your political party is a saviour of the low wage earner by raising minimum wage?

Every time Nancy Pelosi was on the news today, I changed channels, and finally put in a DVD of Boston Legal.

George Will's suggestion--let the market decide.

Sit down, shut up, and pay attention

I was listening to the local (Cincinnati) talk show in the car this morning and the host Mike McConnell was talking about how over protected children are today. His plan, if he were in charge of the U.S. Dept. of Education, would be, "Sit down, shut up, and pay attention," and it wouldn't cost the tax payers a penny. This made me think of one of my high school teachers, Warren Burstrom, and I think those were his exact words to Glenn Orr and Marv Miller in Chemistry class. We all loved him and learned a lot. Murray sent me these memories of the "good old days" when we were in school. He was class of 1956. I, of course, am much younger.

Scenario: Jack pulls into school parking lot with rifle in gun rack.

1956 Vice Principal comes over, takes a look at Jack's rifle, goes to his car and gets his to show Jack.

2006 School goes into lockdown, FBI called, Jack hauled off to jail and never sees his truck or gun again. Counselors called in for traumatized students and teachers.

Scenario: Johnny and Mark get into a fist fight after school.

1956 Crowd gathers. Mark wins. Johnny and Mark shake hands and end up best friends. Nobody goes to jail, nobody arrested, nobody expelled.

2006 Police called, SWAT team arrives, arrests Johnny and Mark. Charge them with assault, both expelled even though Johnny started it.

Scenario: Jeffrey won't be still in class, disrupts other students.

1956 Jeffrey sent to office and given a good paddling by Principal. Sits still in class.

2006 Jeffrey given huge doses of Ritalin. Becomes a zombie. School gets extra money from state because Jeffrey has a disability.

Scenario: Billy breaks a window in his father's car and his Dad gives him a whipping.

1956 Billy is more careful next time, grows up normal, goes to college, and becomes a successful businessman.

2006 Billy's Dad is arrested for child abuse. Billy removed to foster care and joins a gang. Billy's sister is told by state psychologist that she remembers being abused herself and their Dad goes to prison. Billy's mom has affair with psychologist.

Scenario: Mark gets a headache and takes some headache medicine to school.

1956 Mark shares headache medicine with Principal out on the smoking dock.

2006 Police called, Mark expelled from school for drug violations. Car searched for drugs and weapons.

Scenario: Mary turns up pregnant.

1973 5 High School Boys leave town. Mary does her senior year at a special school for expectant mothers.

2006 Middle School Counselor calls Planned Parenthood, who notifies the ACLU. Mary is driven to the next state over and gets an abortion without her parent's consent or knowledge. Mary given condoms and told to be more careful next time.

Scenario: Pedro fails high school English.

1973: Pedro goes to summer school, passes English, goes to college.

2006: Pedro's cause is taken up. Newspaper articles appear nationally explaining that teaching English as a requirement for graduation is racist. ACLU files class action lawsuit against state school system and Pedro's English teacher. English banned from core curriculum. Pedro given diploma anyway but ends up mowing lawns for a living because he can't speak English.

Scenario: Johnny takes apart leftover firecrackers from the 4th of July, puts them in a model airplane paint bottle, blows up a red ant bed.

1956 Ants die.

2006 BATF, Homeland Security, FBI called. Johnny charged with domestic terrorism, FBI investigates parents, siblings removed from home, computers confiscated, Johnny's Dad goes on a terror watch list and is never allowed to fly again.

Scenario: Johnny falls while running during recess and scrapes his knee. He is found crying by his teacher, Mary. Mary, hugs him to comfort him.

1956 - In a short time Johnny feels better and goes on playing.

2006 - Mary is accused of being a sexual predator and loses her job. She faces 3 years in State Prison.


Gimme 1956 back please!

3332 My letter to Oprah

My husband suggested I turn on the Oprah show--she was doing a program on "class." I watched a few minutes (it was a rerun of an April show), but couldn't handle the twaddle of Robert Reich, Clinton's former Secretary of Labor. Her web site summarizes his thoughts:

Reich "says that a family's ability to provide their children with a quality education, health care and access to other resources determines one's class. "A lot of kids who are poor or working class are not getting the schools that they need and are not having the connections and the models of success that they need."

He notes three indicators of class: "weight, teeth and dialect. In terms of appearance, people who are overweight or have poor teeth are generally regarded as lower class."

I didn’t see the part about teeth but did hear him saying they (lower class and poor) aren't getting good schools. That's been proven false by putting lower class district children into stunning new schools with incredible technology. New bricks don't turn out new scholars. Old values and concerned parents do. Poor families who take the initiative to get their kids into charter schools benefit in the long run. Immigrant Vietnamese and other Asians and even some immigrant Mexicans have managed to move their families into the middle class by hard work and strong family values, not good teeth and good schools.

Here’s my letter to Oprah.

I was disappointed in your "class" show because of the misinformation Robert Reich presented.

The growing gap is not between classes, but between families of married couples and unmarried women with children. Women can virtually eliminate poverty by 1) finishing high school, 2) not having babies as teen-agers, and 3) marrying the father of their children. If her husband takes a job, any job and keeps it, he will almost guarantee their success.

There is still plenty of opportunity in this country--illegals who flood over our borders seeking it is proof of that. But young women need to get smart and stop listening to musicians and boyfriends who call them "Ho" and "bitch" and get down to the business of saving their future children with some backbone and pride.

Maybe you could also open a school for girls here in the U.S.

Source update: William Galston, a Democratic strategist and former domestic affairs adviser to President Clinton is usually acknowledged as the source of the statistics on the relationship between poverty, education and marriage. See James Q. Wilson, City Journal, Why we don't marry. The original Galston source doesn’t seem to be on-line, but every one quotes him. You can look through his bibliography--may be co-authored with Kamarck.

Source update: Kansas City--money and school performance, Cato Policy Analysis . "The lessons of the Kansas City experiment should stand as a warning to those who would use massive funding and gold-plated buildings to encourage integration and improve education."

Robert Reich
Oprah show
poverty
marriage

3331 What I had for lunch

As I noted in September, I decided to lose weight (my 20 blogging pounds) by paying attention to food triggers that made me more hungry. I've lost 17 lbs. and lots of inches where I blog. I've learned to eat to love some foods I'd almost never eaten before, like greens and peppers. Collard greens, turnip greens, bell peppers--red, yellow and orange, and lots of onions. The greens are high in anti-oxidants which help fight all kinds of degenerative diseases and contains trace minerals and calcium. Collard greens (1 cup) have 118.9% of the daily value for vitamin A and 57.6% of vitamin C. But turnip greens are even better with 158.3% of vitamin A and 65.8% of vitamin C. If you have thyroid or gallbladder problems (which I don't) you might want to be cautious about greens, according to The World's Healthiest Foods.

It's awfully hard for one person to eat a bunch of greens before they would go bad, so here's my trick: I lightly saute them with onions in a small amount of olive oil and put them in small individual packages for lunch and freeze them. I don't like those dull, limp, gray blobs you see on steam tables, so these stay bright green.

Today I quickly grilled with a touch of olive oil about 1/2 cup of frozen organic sweet corn with one of my packages of turnip greens and onions, and about a fourth of a red pepper--maybe 1/4 cup. The corn adds a touch of sweetness to the turnip greens which aren't as mild as the collard greens. The mild peppers add color and crunch, and are also excellent sources of C and A. If I were eating a cup, it would be even higher than the greens. My, it was so colorful. Just a pleasure to eat with my book.

With lunch, I was reading The Trouble with Africa, by Robert Calderisi, a Canadian who has worked in Africa since 1975. Africa has received some $600 billion in aid since 1960, yet it has actually gotten poorer since then. It's no longer useful to point fingers at colonialism or slavery, the Africans themselves are making a mess of things, and foreign aid seems to be part of the problem.

For dessert I had fresh pineapple. . . and a Christmas cookie.

3330 So you want to be a writer

A snippet from a poem by Charles Bukowski (1920-1994), who published his first book of poetry when he was 39. To support his writing, I think he must have worked every job except library clerk.

don't be like so many writers,
don't be like so many thousands of
people who call themselves writers,
don't be dull and boring and
pretentious, don't be consumed with self-
love.
the libraries of the world have
yawned themselves to
sleep
over your kind.
don't add to that.
don't do it.
unless it comes out of
your soul like a rocket,
unless being still would
drive you to madness or
suicide or murder,
don't do it.

unless the sun inside you is
burning your gut,
don't do it.

I think this applies to bloggers too, although he was writing about poetry. I've seen a lot of blogs with only 4 or 5 entries over months and years. Bukowski went on to write more than 45 books. I like to write; hate to publish.

Tomorrow I will start working on Poetry Thursday and won't do Thursday Thirteen for awhile. I'm about out of lists.

thursday thirteen
Poetry thursday
Charles Bukowski
writing
poetry

3329 WSJ features two stories about libraries

Yesterday's Wall Street Journal featured librarianship in its Career Journal section. Gee, most of this good news should have been withheld or the profession will never get the new blood. Must have been a woman writer (see my previous article here).

The writer opines (parentheses are my comments):
1) An aging profession (therefore, there must be opportunity--and haven't we been hearing that since the 1960s when I was in grad school?).
2) Low salaries (you don't want to know how bad they are).
3) Limited opportunities in desirable areas (in rural areas it's $25,000/year and all the snow you can shovel).
4) Expensive advanced degree requirements--ca. $20,000 at a top school like my alma mater. (It's not unusual to find librarians with 2 or 3 advanced degrees because they keep going to school while job hunting.)
5) 80% of the profession is female. (This always depresses salaries and causes a problem in a field that increasingly is computer dependent, a field dominated by men).
6) 89% of the profession is white. (It's not called welfare for the middle class for nothing!)
7) The better salaries are in the private sector (i.e., corporate, but the profession tends to be anti-capitalism).

Then today there was a lengthy opinion piece in the WSJ by someone named John J. Miller, who suggests that libraries should hang on to Hemingway, Proust, and Solzhenitsyn even if it means crowding out the latest John Grisham and David Baldacci. He uses the Fairfax Co. VA system which apparently has installed a circulation system that will flag books for withdrawal (that's the librarian's sexy term for "dump it") when it hasn't circulated (librarian's term for check-out a book) for two years. He thinks libraries should be cultural repositories because they can't compete in today's world of Amazon.com, i-Pod and MP3.

". . .librarians should. . .discriminate between the good and bad, the timeless and the ephemeral . . . as teachers, advisers and guardians. [They shouldn't be] clerks and stock boys at grocery stores."

Oh dear! Sometimes it is hard to know if someone is writing tongue in cheek. He apparently doesn't realize that librarians already are acting as guardians of the public welfare. They are more liberal than the ACLU or Barbra Streisand and Tim Robbins combined. Just go look at the issues and forums on the web page for the American Library Association and read the Bush bashing.

E.S. Browning pitches like a girl

Several times I've written posts about the differences in writing style between men and women. Most of my examples come from the Wall Street Journal. Women staff writers of this publication use fewer idioms, less colorful language, and usually include more direct quotes. Their articles also contain a "yes, but. . ." lead if they are presenting anything positive about the economy or culture. Or they hate to commit. The good news will be placed near the bottom, if you persevere through their stodgy style. Let me offer some examples by writers whose names clearly indicate their sex.

First the guys in yesterday's paper:

"The hedge-fund locomotive ran into some impossible obstacles but for the most part kept chugging ahead in 2006." Gregory Zuckerman

"Latin American stocks surged to a 4th straight year of double-digit increases, their longest streak in at least 19 years, as global investors increased bets that big economies such as Mexico and Brazil have bid "adios" to a rocky past of one crisis after another." John Lyons

"The deal-making world can hardly suppress its glee about 2006, which will go down as the best year to date. Business has been so good that some are gritting their teeth, afraid their luck may somehow run out." Dennis K. Berman

And now the ladies:

"Bond investors enter 2007 divided about the prospects for the U.S. economy. They will find out in the coming months which camp has it right." Serena Ng

"Asian stocks logged another year of gains, but it wasn't an easy ride for investors." Laura Santini

"As the air rushed in and out of the crude-oil market in 2006, the breathless rise and surprising fall dominated discussion of whether the commodity boom could last." Ann Davis

Notice the next time you read WSJ, Forbes or Business Week: The men who write about business, politics and economics heavily use gambling, sports, technological, automotive and agricultural idioms, anecdotes, methaphors and analogies. They play games with words and tease the reader just a bit--using double meanings, puns and ambiguities. They coin new words, invent proverbs, use slang, and get sloppy with foreign words, like using "adios" in my second example (for Brazil it should be Portuguese, not Spanish).

The women, on the other hand, are more literal, timid and bland. If they do use figurative language, the phrase is probably so commonplace, we don't even notice, i.e. they are as dull as dishwater but hit the nail on the head. They tend toward touchy-feely and weakly emotional words to humanize the markets--"disappointing performance," "hoping it starts strongly," "outlook is cloudy," "could fizzle," etc.

So all this leads me to E. S. Browning. He writes like a woman. The exception that proves my rule. In fact, because of his use of initials (his friends call him Jim according to one article I Googled), I'd always figured he was a female--that and his straight-forward, gloomy, no-nonsense writing style. He's a 27 year staff writer veteran for the Journal and is the writers' union representative, according to articles that quote him.

"Investors are approaching 2007 with a high degree of optimism--perhaps too high, some skeptics worry." E. S. Browning

3327 Today is the day

to send thank you notes for the gifts you received, the parties you enjoyed, and to the people who were a bit less fortunate, losing a loved one over the holidays or experiencing a reversal in good health or personal life. And I don't mean e-mail. E-mail just doesn't cut it for special occasions, sympathy, or sincere thank yous. Open the desk drawer, pull out a card, find a pen and a stamp. Then you can lie awake at night solving the world's problems without these details popping up. If you're a Democrat, write a note to remind your congressperson about all the promises made. If you're a Republican, drop a note to those who are still in the game about why the others were voted out. Those guys don't need paper and stamps--send e-mail--it will all go in the circular file anyway.

Oh yes, and take down your outside lights.

3326 Losing weight isn't rocket science

says Tara Parker-Pope, the health writer for the Wall St. Journal. Make tiny changes she says, and see some amazing results. If you love a daily Starbucks Grande Latte (260 calories) on your drive to work, switch to coffee three times a week, and you'll save 21,840 calories, or 6 lbs a year. Skipping shredded cheese on your lunch salad is 10,000 calories a year, or another three pounds. There--you've got a good start on the next holiday season.

3325 Correcting the myth of DDT

Steven Milloy of Junk Science.com had a letter in the WSJ last week correcting the myth of thinning bird eggs that had appeared in one of their articles.

I can't find the letter online, but he essentially provides the same argument in this Canadian publication, "Bald-eagle DDT myth still flying high."

As early as 1921, the journal Ecology reported that bald eagles were threatened with extinction – 22 years before DDT production even began. According to a report in the National Museum Bulletin, the bald eagle reportedly had vanished from New England by 1937 – 10 years before widespread use of the pesticide.

A 1984 National Wildlife Federation publication listed hunting, power line electrocution, collisions in flight and poisoning from eating ducks containing lead shot as the leading causes of eagle deaths. In addition to these reports, numerous scientific studies and experiments vindicate DDT.

So millions in Third World countries needed to die and continue to die for lack of DDT, and birds' eggs weren't even thinning. Where are the bleeding heart liberals when the poor and brown of the world need them? Probably off somewhere supporting Castro and grieving for Saddam.

3324 Columbus' first baby of 2007

is Miguel Angel Naranjo. His parents Maria and Rodriguez left Mexico four months ago. Fearing a birth defect that runs in the family, they wanted the good care their infant would get in the the USA.

No word on legal or illegal entry, or whether they are married, or how they made their way to Columbus, Ohio, or who is paying for this. On the plus side, the child didn't have the defect, so we've been saved that cost and the child has been saved corrective surgery.

Cross posted at my blog on illegal aliens, Illegals Today.

3323 Listening to beautiful hymns

The hymns sung for the President's funeral have been wonderful. Right now, I'm listening to "For all the Saints." It makes me wonder if today's thingies sung at contemporary church services, the "it's all about me 'n Jesus" repetitious choruses, will ever sound this good if repeated often enough?

3322 Art is an investment

in beauty, the future, and good thoughts. We buy a lot of art. In fact, we have so much art we didn't know what we had until we threw an art party in December 2001 in our former home and set everything out for display, including t-shirts with original screened art for Bible school.

However, we don't buy and collect for investment. I don't envy our daughter trying to figure out what to do with it after we're gone and she and her brother have their walls and closets full. We already store some of my husband's paintings on their walls. At Christmas our son was "loaned" a golfing painting and a fishing painting for his house.

The December 18 WSJ had an article on investing in the art market. Art is illiquid, unregulated, commissions can eat you alive, galleries do not need a license, the art indexes do little, and no one seems to track unsold art. Whew! So much for investment value.

Our way is much better. 1) Buy what makes your heart skip. 2) Buy from artists who are also your friends. 3) Buy from a menu of representational and realistic art, with an occasional "mystery meat" to spice it up. 4) Buy small enough so it can rotate in and out of the storage closet. 5) Buy what works with your tastes and decor--it's your home, not a museum or gallery.

I've updated my spread sheet on artists and media, and we have 70+ artists in our collection--each one a little treasure. Friday we're taking down a show, and bringing one home that my husband bought from another watercolorist--I haven't seen it yet, but I'm sure I'll love it.

3321 WTVN drops Glenn Beck

And they hear from me. (I've yet to find that writing a letter does any good, but I do it anyway.)

Program Director
WTVN 610 AM Radio
2323 W. 5th Ave.
Columbus, OH 43204

Dear Sir,

When I heard last week that you were dropping Glenn Beck for a locally produced talk segment, I couldn’t believe my ears. I immediately started switching to 700 am in Cincinnati just to see what was available nearby. And although it is irritating to hear all the commercials and announcements for events or companies I’ll never patronize, it will be better than listening to more hours like the Saturday morning guys who call Bob Connors to whine about the Buckeyes or pot holes .

My husband and I were furious when you dropped Dr. Laura in the fall of 2001, apparently for her opposition to gays adopting infants, because nothing else she was saying was politically charged--unless it was urging people to be faithful to their spouses. I suppose that might have offended some of your staff. When I called the station to complain, I got no response except “We’ll pass your comment along.”

It took awhile to get accustomed to Beck‘s style, but I do listen about 3 out of 5 days, depending on what my schedule is, and always in the car during drive time. I’m tired of being jerked around for whatever your program director’s personal biases are. I appreciate good business methods, and Beck was #1 in this market. Hello! Get smart this time. You’ve got a winner on radio!

You’ve lost this listener, not just for this time slot, but for others like Connors and Corby. I can get great talk shows from California on the Internet. I’m not going to take a chance on being part of your audience in this time slot again.

Glenn Beck
talk radio
WTVN Columbus
Dr. Laura

Monday Memories

In honor of the Dream Girls movie, which I wrote about here, I'll throw in a memory from the mid-60s when we were briefly landlords. The movie is based on the Broadway musical, which is loosely based on the lives and careers of the women in the Supremes.

Our first home in Champaign, IL, purchased in 1962, was a duplex--not a real one--it had been converted from a one family house, so the renters had 2 bedrooms, living room, bath and kitchen upstairs, and we lived downstairs. After we bought our home on Charles St. in 1965 we rented both units, and that paid for both mortgages.

Although we really didn't want to rent to female students (we preferred married couples), after a few weeks of no rent for one unit, we relented. Not. A. Good. Idea. Oh, did they party (we found out later from the other renter). And didn't pay their rent. Finally, they just left, owing back rent. When we let ourselves in, things were a terrible mess. Spoiled food. Dirty clothes. And bills from the local hospital for food poisoning. Also bills for pregnancy testing and services. We weren't the only people in town these girls stiffed. I called their parents (on their university records) who were clueless--thought they were enrolled at the university living in a dorm. They had left behind all the "free" records on a membership in a record club (33 1/3 at that time), including the first by the Supremes. We may still have it somewhere.

This record by the Supremes was a keepsake of our years as landlords and I got a lot of enjoyment from it. Wikipedia lists the songs as:

Side one
"Love Is Like an Itching In My Heart" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"This Old Heart of Mine (Is Weak For You)", (Holland-Dozier-Holland, Sylvia Moy)
"You Can't Hurry Love" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"Shake Me, Wake Me (When It's Over)" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"Baby I Need Your Loving" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" (Lee Hazlewood)

Side two
"I Can't Help Myself (Sugar Pie Honey Bunch)" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"Get Ready" (Smokey Robinson)
"Put Yourself in My Place" (Holland-Dozier-Holland, John Thornton)
"Money (That's What I Want)" (Berry Gordy, Jr., Janie Bradford)
"Come and Get These Memories" (Holland-Dozier-Holland)
"Hang on Sloopy" (Wes Farrell, Bert Russell)

View More Monday Memories Participants
My visitors and those I'll visit this week are: Anna, Becki, Chelle, Chelle Y., Cozy Reader, Debbie, Friday's Child, Gracey, Irish Church Lady, Janene, Janene in Ohio, Jen, Katia, Lady Bug, Lazy Daisy, Ma, Mrs. Lifecruiser, Melli, Michelle, Paul, Susan, Viamarie.

3319 Judith Who?

Reviews of the this Prada look-alike book almost make me wish I liked fiction:

From Booklist--[Bridie] Clark, who once worked for publishing mogul Judith Regan, makes her debut in a devilishly funny companion piece to Lauren Weisberger's Devil Wears Prada (2003), substituting the book business for the fashion industry. Claire Truman, who works for a top-tier New York publisher, is about to lose her beloved mentor to retirement. Then she runs into her old college crush, wealthy Randall Cox, who begins squiring her to all the trendiest restaurants in town and lands her a job interview with Vivian Grant, a highly successful publisher known for churning out best-sellers on porn, pulp, and politics. Things start promisingly, especially when Claire is given the go-ahead to sign up talented first novelist Luke Mayville, but Claire soon starts receiving midnight phone calls full of impossible demands from her imperious new boss. Faced with a soul-crushing workload and a marriage proposal from her too-good-to-be-true boyfriend, an overwhelmed Claire must suddenly make some life-altering decisions. This entertaining novel rises above its predictable plot and sometimes-flat characters on the strength of its humor--Vivian's vitriolic tantrums are laugh-out-loud funny. Joanne Wilkinson

According to Readers Read, "Judith Regan had no comment about the novel, no doubt because she's busy getting ready to sue HarperCollins for millions of dollars for wrongful termination, slander, libel and who knows what else."

I thought there must be something other than the O.J. debacle that led to her demise.

3318 New treatment for wrinkles approved by FDA

Possibly you were too busy over the holidays developing wrinkles and frown lines while buying gifts for the in-laws and anticipating those January bills to notice that the FDA has approved a new treatment for those deep lines--something that lasts longer than Botox and Restylane. It's called Radiesse and is produced by BioForm Medical Inc.

And if you don't care about lines and wrinkles, you might use it to plump your retirement portfolio (while it flattens your wallet). Sales are expected to rise 15% annually through 2010--just 3 years away-- to $935 million.

Cross posted at Growth Industry, the blog I write for people over 50.

3317 Can universities tolerate free speech?

Mike Hardin's column in yesterday's Columbus Dispatch would indicate that some Ohio State officials can't handle criticism. You're aware that each time you buy a t-shirt, ball point pen, tail-gate supplies, necktie, billiard balls, floor mats, shower curtains, thermometers or piece of stationery bearing your college or university logo, you are buying into a license agreement that the vendor has to obtain. In towns like Columbus, this is a huge business ($5.7 million in royalties last year to OSU with 500 licensees) and if a local vendor would lose the right to OSU logo merchandise, his business would be in huge trouble. AP story on sales.

Hardin reports that a west side vendor, Mike DiSabato asked questions in the Dispatch about Nike's attempts to get an exclusive sweetheart deal with the university which would cost him 56% of his business in jerseys. He was terminated as an OSU licensee. He had also been attempting to get permission from the university to use the logo and name to donate some of his proceeds to a local charity, a fund raiser to honor an OSU athlete killed in Iraq. A percent of sales would go to the Ray Mendoza charity. Mendoza, 37, a former OSU wrestler, was killed on his third tour of duty. Two of Mendoza's brothers work for DiSabato. 5 page form for a proposal

Rick Van Brimmer, Director of Trademark and Licensing at Ohio State, refused to comment according to Hardin, so we haven't heard OSU's side. It will need to be really good to clean up this PR mess. In 2003 Van Brimmer, whose deceased wife Barb was a university librarian and curator of special materials in the Health Sciences Library, and who worked with me in planning the new Veterinary Medicine Library, developed an innovative program, "Treasury of Fine Art," to license the various art stored in the university libraries. Whether the OSU Libraries gets a percentage, I don't know.

DiSabato and his brothers are former OSU athletes. He also believes the athletes should be getting some of the license fees (in a trust fund), which obviously wouldn't make him too popular with Van Brimmer.

3316 Happy New Year!

Now there's an original post. As I drifted off to sleep about 11 p.m. last night I said to my husband, "Remember when we stayed up to watch the millennium events of 2000 . . . zzzzzzz."

3315 You are so blessed

This one will make you think about your blessings as we enter 2007.

You are so blessed

3314 Dream Girls

is the movie I wanted to see this week-end, but there is wall to wall football, and you know what that means. A stunning review in Rolling Stone.

My husband says it's a chick flick, and even if there were no football he wouldn't see it. What do you think?

3313 Does this book make me look fat?

This surprised me a bit. Not sure how to take it.

"As a woman ages, she lets up a bit on what she sets as her ideal body weight. Systematic studies have found that over the age of 30, a woman will rate her ideal figure as significantly larger than that perceived as most attractive to men." p. 146, The Longevity Bible.

I like to think women over 30 are just less influenced by what the ad agencies say look good. What do you think? If I weighed what I did in high school--120--which was fine for a 17 year old, I'd probably be rushed to the hospital.

body image, self perception, attractiveness

3312 Friday Family Photo

Our fifth Christmas in the condo.

Christmas Eve 2006

Christmas 2001, our 34th and last in the house where the children grew up

Thursday Thirteen

Having the New Year's Talk about Finances

About once or twice a year we go over our finances. The upcoming new year is a good time to think about projects and special gifts that dip into our savings account. So this week we had "the talk."

1. My husband is going on a mission trip to Haiti--or as our daughter has reminded us since she heard, "one of the most dangerous countries on the planet." However, he isn't going to Port au Prince. Then our son-in-law chimes in with snake stories even though we tell them he will be in the city. He will be helping with construction projects for a Christian school where one of our pastors is teaching that is closer to the border with Dominican Republic than to the capital (which really is crime ridden).

2. Special one time gift for our church which seems to have hit a financial rut in the road to support three campuses and eleven Sunday services.

3. Annual gift for the Lakeside Association, the Methodist Chautauqua community on Lake Erie where we own a cottage.

4. IRA contributions for our children.

5. New stove top for the kitchen. This has been on the list for two years. Only two burners have a work ethic--the other two work when they feel like it.

6. Repaint the bedroom. It looked pretty good to us when we moved here compared to the dark brown and gray living room, orange dining room, electric yellow guest room and red family room, but now the dark blue faux stripe walls are looking a bit, um, dark (male decorators used to live here). We'd like to find a color that will work without replacing the carpeting. I asked my husband if he'd like to do the painting himself, and he quickly and emphatically said, NO.

7. Replace the ceiling fan in the bedroom. We really need the fan because it gets hot in the summer. It works fine, but has an ugly problem. Are there attractive ceiling fans? I've never seen one.

8. Replace the cheap medicine cabinet in my husband's bathroom. It's so cheap the door bends when you open it. Add a second mirror with a nice frame.

9. Replace the light fixture in the bathroom, which doesn't cover what it replaced.

10. Find a better bookcase for the bedroom (I've rearranged it and it looks better, but I have to leave it on the list or I won't have 13).

11. Try to find a head board for our bed that matches resembles our 1963 oiled walnut contemporary dressers. I believe this was on last year's list.

12. Find new bedding that works with the new wall color and the new headboard.

13. Replace the wall mirror in the dressing room area which has become streaky with age and can't be cleaned up.

Get the Thursday Thirteen code here!The purpose of the meme is to get to know everyone who participates. Visiting fellow Thirteeners is encouraged! Leave a comment and I'll add your name and URL. View More Thursday Thirteen Participants
Visited and visitors last week and today:Alison, Amber, Amy Christopher, Anale, AnnaMary, Beth, Bookworm, Bubba, Carol, Caylynn, Celfyddydau Chelle Y. Cheryl, Chickadee, Cinderella, Cindi, Christine, Dane Bramage, Darla, East of Oregon, Gracey, JAM, Jane, Janeen, Janet, Jen, Julie, Katia, Kitty, KT Cat, Lady Bug, LaughingMuse, Laura, Leah, Lisa, Ma, Mar, Melissa, Mikala, Misti, Momtoanangel, N. Mallory, Pippajo, Rashenbo, Sanni, She, Shoshana, Silver, Skittles, Something Blue, Sonny, Southern Girl, Smurf, Sparky, Staci T, Susan, Susan (Mustang), Teena, Terrell, Terri, Tiggerprr, Wackymommy, West of Mars.

3310 The MSM dissing President Gerald Ford

No, it can't be about him or his family, it has to be their agenda--anti-Bush, anti-war. I'm thoroughly disgusted that our media can't let the man's body even chill, can't get him brought home to Michigan. Just jump right in--it's all about you guys, right? It's not like you haven't had six years to beat this monotonous drum. Ford deserved better. We the people deserve better.

I listened to Sam Donaldson (former news grump) interviewed on radio yesterday. Of course, he had to mention it was a kinder, gentler time back then when Ford was president, that the 70s weren't like today--much less partisanship! Huh? It was Watergate, Sam. It was the Vietnam War, smug face John Kerry, the protestors, the failure to protect millions of our allies when we cut and ran. So Sam doesn't recall how the press was all over Ford for pardoning Nixon? Sam! What planet are you living on these days?

And then WaPo and Bob Woodward decide the day after his death is the day to release comments he didn't want published while he was alive. What'd they do? Post someone at the door of the bedroom and text message it in? And then ABC News had an interview with some idiot professor who taught History of the American Presidency who just guffawed about what an "ordinary" president he was, and how clumsy he was even though he was our most athletic President.

You guys ought to be ashamed.

Gerald R. Ford

I was surprised when the tears came. He was a fine man who dedicated a large part of his life to his country. His memorial site.
The Ford family in 1976

3308 No more fat lips

My daughter gave me a lip restorer for Christmas. Yes, when I was young having fat lips was not in style, and now that they are and women pay a lot of money for all sorts of unhealthy enhancements, mine have pretty much disappeared (it's called aging). I don't try anything new without reading the ingredients--especially on my mouth. It's a two part system. In the first part I noticed "benzyl nicotinate." Sounds nasty, doesn't it, like it might be from tobacco? So I found this neat site called, "Science Toys" which I think is for kids, and it explains various chemical ingredients. It's a B vitamin, and a vasodilator, so I suppose that's what its purpose is in a lip plumper (doesn't that sound funny?)--opens the capillaries and makes the skin red.

Then in part 2 I found an ingredient called butyro spermum Parkii. Now that really sounded gross until I looked it up and its common name is Shea's Butter. It comes from a tree in Africa, and you can buy it in bulk to make your own cosmetics, or in health food stores, and you can even buy it fair traded from cooperatives like you do coffee.

The print is very small and I have another 10 or 20 to look up. But the next time you see me I just might have my fat lips back.

3307 Not everything grows old gracefully

When leaving the public library this morning, I walked by the reference/ reserve section for . . . well, children I suppose. But very old children. When I was the librarian in the Veterinary Medicine Library at The Ohio State University, I was horrified by the science fair projects that brought school children to my library. Because school children can't get there on their own, they were usually with their parents and if I was on duty I could warn the parent that the project was not appropriate (if it involved the health and well-being of an animal). At that time, I looked at what was available in the public library so I could make referrals to better sources, but discovered many hadn't caught up with the times in terms of animal welfare.

So I stopped and looked again today. Here's the copyright dates I noticed--1950 [outdated even when I was in school], 1962, 1970, 1974, 1980, 1982, 1984. There were many from the early 1990s. But I was really stunned to see "Science projects with computers," with a 1985 copyright date. These books belong in a history of science teaching collection.

Although the general concepts and plans can remain the same in the revised editions, the bibliographies and web content information needs to be updated--many of these books pre-dated the web--and also this visually sensitive generation needs illustrations that don't look like mom and dad or grandpa when they were kids. I use a very well-heeled public library--it can afford to print color bulletin board displays that reproduce book cover images on deep hue backgrounds that must require gallons of ink. Surely it can spring to update the science fair collection and withdraw or send to storage the out of date materials.
Borrowed from a Manitoba science fair


science fairs
public libraries
children's books

3306 Three Silly Chicks

is the name of a group blog effort that reviews funny books for kids. The three contributors are also authors of children's books and have their own personal journals. Stop by here--if you have children, or grandchildren, and you love to put books in their hands, you'll really enjoy this site.

Top 10 New year's Resolutions

Will you be making any New Year's Resolutions for 2007? Even if we don't keep them, it's always useful to reflect on our habits and lifestyle to assess what might need a change. The only resolutions I ever kept for any length of time were 1) to stop biting my fingernails, and 2) always put my keys in the same place in my purse. Those two tiny changes made a huge difference in my appearance, and my frustration level--and I did it about 30 years ago. There is nothing more off-putting than watching someone nibble at their hands (unless it is watching them smoke or getting smashed). By not digging many minutes a day in my purse, I bought myself a lot of time.

These are from Goals Guys website, and the original article, with permission to reprint, is much longer, but I've shortened for use here, adding a few asides.

Top Ten New Year Resolutions

The following list is the result of our extensive survey, which consisted of over 300,000 responses worldwide.

1. Lose Weight and Get in Better Physical Shape

Are you ever going to be fit again as long as you live? The answer is unless you make a resolution to get fit – you’re never going to be fit – ever. The choice is yours; it begins by opting for the stairs instead of the elevator, fruit in place of chocolate, and active rather than sedentary activities. I've lost the weight, now I need to add the exercise. I'm wearing my new pedometer I got for Christmas!

2. Stick to a Budget

The good news is that most people find the longer they can stick to a budget, the easier it becomes. We had to do this for a few years when my husband started his own business; wasn't that hard because we'd always been careful. But we are going to sit down together and review our year's expenditures.

3. Debt Reduction

Make a resolution now to stop charging anything and to get financially stable. If you can't pay cash for it, you don't need it, make it just that simple and you will find yourself out of debt in no time at all. We have no debt, so I can skip this one.

4. Enjoy More Quality Time with Family & Friends

Starting right now, you can begin to make choices and take day-to-day actions that will create nothing short of a phenomenal family. You can choose to have one if you just resolve to do it and know where to put your focus. Making our families stronger and healthier is important to our communities, our state and our world. We'd love to spend more time with our friends, but we seem to have more time than they do--grandchildren! Thinking about inviting a few folks in before I pack up the Christmas dishes.

5. Find My Soul Mate

Soul mate relationships Marriage gives both partners the fulfillment that deeply satisfies them and makes them feel that they have found the most wonderful person in the whole universe. I did this many years ago, and I think "soul mate" is an inaccurate, misleading term, so I struck it out. Soul mate sounds awfully narcissistic to me--not for the long term.

6. Quit Smoking

Becoming a non-smoker is probably one of the best decisions you can ever make, and is a life changing as well as a life saving decision. I am so thankful that I never got mired in this mess--in fact, I'm not sure I even feel sorry for you smokers anymore like I used to. If you don't care about yourselves, why should I?

7. Find a Better Job

It's corny, but true -- most of us get reflective at this time of year and if we are in jobs already, we begin thinking: Am I on the right path? Do I like where my position and my company are headed? Am I even in the right career? Oh yeah--I'm retired and loving it. But I still enjoy libraries and all they offer.

8. Learn Something New

Whether you take a course or read a book, you'll find education to be one of the easiest, most motivating and beneficial resolutions to keep. Challenge your mind in the coming year, break out of currents routines and challenge every comfort zone and watch your horizons expand. That's why I blog and why I read your blogs--so don't disappoint me in 2007.

9. Volunteer and Help Others

Resolve to replace the pursuit of success and materialism with the pursuit of contribution and generosity. For this to occur, the critical question must move from, “How can I become successful?” to, “What can I contribute that will significantly impact other people's lives?” By focusing on what we can contribute, we automatically become successful. Yes, I could use a little work on this one. Maybe a lot. Haven't quite found the right fit.

10. Get Organized

Resolve this year to plan your days, reduce interruptions, clean off your desk, say "No", and make detailed lists. The benefits of getting more organized include being able to save time, as you no longer look for the same things over and over again or need to replace things you can’t find at all. Last year at this time we did a massive clean out and reorganization, but I see some clutter reappearing behind closed doors--I'll try to nip it in the bud.

Goal Guys Reprint Policy: You can freely reprint this material (full version, not mine) with the following reference source: Gary Ryan Blair is the inspiration behind the 10MillionResolutions.com phenomenon - www.10MillionResolutions.com

New Years Resolutions

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

3303 Christmas service on Hallmark Channel

The listing of Christmas programs on TV today included one on Hallmark Channel by Church of the Brethren, the denomination in which I was baptized when I was 11. So I've been watching it, and found the service similar to what I expected--message of peace, reconciliation and some diversity with handsome young people. However, the music is lovely, all based on the Luke 2 birth story, and even if you know nothing about this anabaptist group, you'll enjoy it. The choir from Juniata College (Huntingdon, PA) performed, as well as a children's choir from Indiana, and congregational singing. Shawn Kirchner, minister of music at the LaVerne (CA) Church of the Brethren, directed the musicians and arranged many of the selections. It was originally created for CBS in 2004.

To purchase this on DVD.

Church of the Brethren
Christmas hymns
Christmas Eve