2980 The adorable, perfect birthday card

Yesterday my husband asked for a birthday card from my stash. I poured pored through them. Not much in the birthday category--lots of get well, thinking of you, and sympathy (must be our age group). Yes, I still send cards and letters via the U.S. mail and don't e-mail them. Nothing thrills me more than a first class letter coming through the mail slot, and I'm assuming it is the same for others. If I get sick--don't send an e-mail--send me a REAL card.

But I found just the right card--two dalmatians (my favorite dog) sitting on a couch together with a dark blue envelope. "You have to sign my name too," I said, "because it is a 'from both of us' card." And he did, and this morning set off for Bob Evans Restaurant with our photos from Russia and the birthday card for Tom. (This group meets weekly.)

Cuter than this
When he came home he had a sad story to tell. He had propped the card up at the edge of the table next to a divider, and it dropped down a crack where the divider can be lowered or raised! Gone forever until the next time Bob Evans is remodeled. I'll bet those workmen will find a lot of junk--including money.

And it was an expensive card too! Next time, he'll get one of my homemade cards from one of my paintings if he wants to say "Happy Birthday."

2979 How do you count a dead Iraqi? As many times as possible.

Steven E. Moore points out in today's Wall St. Journal the many holes in the methods and conclusions of the Johns Hopkins war dead study done in Iraq. Instead of an error margin of plus or minus 3 or 5%, he estimates 1200%.

"[T]he key to the validity of cluster sampling is to use enough cluster points. In their 2006 report, "Mortality after the 2003 invasion of Iraq: a cross-sectional sample survey," the Johns Hopkins team says it used 47 cluster points for their sample of 1,849 interviews. This is astonishing: I wouldn't survey a junior high school, no less an entire country, using only 47 cluster points."

Other studies, other cluster points, pointed out in the article:

For its 2004 survey of Iraq, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) used 2,200 cluster points of 10 interviews each for a total sample of 21,688.

A 2005 survey conducted by ABC News, Time magazine, the BBC, NHK and Der Spiegel used 135 cluster points with a sample size of 1,711. . .

The International Rescue Committee in the Democratic Republic of Congo, used 750 cluster points

Harvard's School of Public Health, in a 1992 survey of Iraq, used 271 cluster points.

Another study in Kosovo cites the use of 50 cluster points, but this was for a population of just 1.6 million, compared to Iraq's 27 million.

Let's have a do-over.

2978 Have you ever been polled?

I seem to get polled so often, I'm getting suspicious. What am I, the sampled Republican? Mrs. Average Retiree? Next time, I'll ask, and write down the name of the polling company and look them up. Today it was just 2 questions: 1) If the election happened tomorrow, would you vote for Pryce (R) or Kilroy (D). Answer: Pryce. 2) Are you pro-life or pro-choice? Answer: Pro-life. Thank you. Click. The one before this was so skewed to the left, it was almost laughable. I suspect today's was to determine if I needed further encouragement to go to the polls or needed more literature.

Still it might have been a trick question. I think the pollster asked about the Senate race, and Pryce and Kilroy are running for the House (Congressional District 15, Ohio).

political polls
poll questions
poll bias

2977 A pool of peace while driving

I enjoy listening to the radio in the car. My car radio gets better quality sound and more distant stations than anything I have in the house. But sometimes I don't want to hear Glenn Beck screaming, or Rush opining, Paul Harvey's rest of the story, or the clanging rock of contemporary Christian music, so I listen to the Catholic station. Sometimes it is the soothing sounds of the rosary, or a liturgy I'm not familiar with. This morning I heard the best sermon on baptism and confirmation that I think I've ever heard. Some parts were a bit different than Lutheran, and certainly different than Anabaptist, but excellent in presentation and thought. After that there was a touchy-feely chat call-in show by a woman talking about sex roles that wasn't much different than what you'd hear elsewhere, but for a few moments---ah, there was peace.

One of the advantages of listening to Latin hymns is there aren't any new ones. Link to Heretical hymns.

St. Gabriel Radio
Catholic radio
Christian programming
am radio

2976 Help for military families

You'll see a different side of the military experience at Spouse Buzz, virtual Family Support Group, where contributors celebrate and embrace the tie that binds them -- military service. Good stuff here. Issues many of us can identify with even if we've never said good-bye/hello at the base or airport. You'll see the war on TV; now see what's going on at home for the families

deployment
military spouse
marriage
parenting

2975 Searching for your lovey?

That's not your old boyfriend. It is a stuffed or plush toy or animal that you remember and would like to replace. Plush Memories is a blog set up to help you find that little treasure and is written by Dirty Butter who also keeps a memory blog, Yesterday's Memories. My kids both had Snoopy plush dolls when they were little--soft as pillows and almost as big as they were. My husband's parents gave them to them and they really got the use. We still have them someplace.

2974 Lawnmower injuries and children

Billo has an interesting story at his blog about children injured by lawn mowers. Over 9,000 injuries a year, and more from power push mowers than riding mowers. 80% of the injuries are to boys--are we surprised? And compare this to the 260 children a year that are injured by firearms. Are there any requirements for parents to lock up their mowers like there are for guns? Can kids ride a lawnmower to school? Should Brian Ross do an expose on lawn mowers? Billoblog has the stats and cites.

2973 Conservative Blogger DJ

There's an interesting play list at Anti-Idiotarian Rottweiler. I think he keeps 15 up on the site at a time. No changes since July. Everything from Dean Martin to The Byrds to Alice in Chains. Right now I'm listening to "Cotton Eyed Joe" by Rednex.

2972 On parenting

Are you a good parent? I noticed this at The Corner--can't vouch for the statistics--don't know the author:

"Your life outcomes are determined 45-50 percent by genetics, 45-50 percent by outside-the-home socialization (which is affected by parental decisions about housing, schooling, etc.), 0-10 percent by in-home socialization (=parenting). That's what the evidence tells us, as I read it. Parenting has been WAY over-sold. And Freudianism (in-home socialization determines 100 percent of life outcome) is dog poop." The Corner, July 26, 2006

I agree--although I'd put genetics (personality, intelligence, physical attributes, talents) a bit higher, and parenting (values, discipline, religion) I'd put at about 1-2%. You've pretty much got the game plan when the baby pops out of the womb. If your daughter is 5'8" and a size 10, she just will never work for Abercrombie & Fitch no matter what you do. You can chose a good school, or have a good health plan to help things along, but the kid will grow up to be the one God gave you at the beginning. If you're a parent, it would be smart (and gracious) to not take the credit and never take the blame.

Parenting comes at you in stages. What works at 2 definitely doesn't fly at 12. I was a fabulous parent for the early years--not so great for teens. The kids are 38 and 39 (or is that 39 and 40?); just ask 'em. Had the proverbial eyes in the back of my head, I did. Although most of the time they were growing up, my hair was too long to peek through. Now, we socialize occasionally and help each other out--my husband's helping our son paint his house and our daughter has been taking care of our cat during all our travels lately. I do try to mind my own business, and only nag occasionally--usually about health--but it's tough considering I was very over protective. Afterall, I want them to take care of me in my old age!

As children they never missed church; never even asked. As adults they attend on Christmas Eve. I think my husband and I said prayers with them every night practically until they left home--or at least until they were bigger than we were. As the saying goes, God has no grandchildren. My husband still prays for them every day!

I was room mother, choir mother, Campfire leader, and VBS teacher. I took them to art shows and libraries. Heck, I taught them to read before kindergarten, and supervised all the homework. I used to storm into the school and demand that the teacher keep my kid after school until the work was completed! (They were sooo happy to have my kids graduate!) I gave up all sorts of perks I probably didn't need and ate macaroni at the end of the month just so we could live in the best school district in Columbus. I made sure they always had holidays with the relatives so they knew what an extended family was (we have no relatives here).

I taught them to cook, clean and sew (don't bother with the sewing--Wal-Mart is cheaper). We took them to restaurants for family time, but also they learned how to behave in public. They ate better than most of their peers and we always ate meals as a family, so they learned good table manners. Fast food or pop? They didn't get it in our home. I remember the shocked look when they were adults and found pop in our refrigerator and learned we occasionally went to McDonald's.

They took piano lessons and one even had 2 clarinet lessons! Our daughter took voice lessons for awhile. I hired a really neat guy to teach my son to play the guitar by ear; and 25 years later he still plays and once had long stringy hair and played in bars with other guys who thought they'd be famous some day.

My kids were in every imaginable sport activity when they were young, and one is a natural athlete. But I was on the job and didn't let them join up until at least 3rd or 4th grade because I thought I was smarter than the other mommies and that kids needed time to be kids. Of course, that meant no one else was around to play with--so you're fighting a losing battle there. Swimming, tennis, and ice skating lessons. Neither one of us plays golf, but we talked a golfer friend into teaching our son a few basics as a teen, and I think he still goes to the course and throws his back out from time to time.

I said "No," a lot. Much more than was necessary. "No, 6 weeks in France in 5th grade will not benefit your education." "No, you can't go to Florida on Spring break with your friends." "No, you can't leave the house until you write Grandma a thank-you note." "No, that outfit is too expensive." "No, you're not leaving the house looking like that." Playing with matches with friends? I called the fire chief and arranged a little chat while the other mommies said their little sweeties would never do such a thing.

We laughed and played a lot--went on picnics down by the river, bike rides around the neighborhood, put on records and danced, played dress ups and made forts, had overnights with friends, family camp, birthday parties, made a zillion crafts at the kitchen table, dressed the cat in doll clothes, went to Tullers for fresh cider and donuts on Saturday mornings, ice skating, movies--the same kind of stuff I did when I was young. In fact, except for the TV and the community sports, I was surprised by how similar the activities were.


Oh sure, I made mistakes. They could probably tell more than I know about. The teen years I would never want to do over. But if I could have a "do over," I'd never sign a permit for my teen-ager to work. This wasn't the 50s or 60s; it was the 80s. Fast food and retail jobs don't build character, work ethic, or good values, etc., it just puts them under the influence of 22 year old assistant managers, and in close association with school drop outs and kids you'd never let through your front door. Let's see, what else. I'd never put a child in a special class unless the regular work was totally out of reach--and even then I'd tighten the belt and go for tutoring. If the school says your daughter doesn't pronouce a consonant correctly, just lisp at the teacher and tell her that's how it's done in your family. No one wants to be your pet project--children don't like to feel like they need to be fixed, and they hate being different.

Another mistake I admit to--I'd never let a minor living under my roof own an automobile, not even with their own money. Because of insurance laws, you actually have this decision in your hands. A 17 year old that can afford a car, probably can't afford the insurance. You might think it will help transportation problems, but trust me, mommies and daddies, you want to keep them driving 4 door sedans as long as possible. Some things need to be done or not done just to help the parents!

But we hope it all pays off. Parents try to raise up adults, not children. They grow up, come home to visit, invite us for dinner, visit when we're sick, call just to chat and make us proud. The Bible says, "Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it." Scripture is a bit vague about just when "Old" takes place, however.

parenting, children, family, Education, children's sports

Monday Memories

Brethren Volunteer Service, pt.1
Brethren Volunteer Service was started in 1948 training young people and adults in groups to help in a variety of community projects in many countries. Service might be in a hospital, a small struggling church, Appalachia, a migrant camp, blighted urban area, nursing home, or school. Both my sisters had served, so I signed up for a summer unit in 1957 and left for California right after high school graduation, traveling to Fresno by myself on the Greyhound Bus. This memory is not about all the strange people I met on the bus, but rather I want to post some photos because my album has fallen apart after almost 50 years. I've adjusted the posting time so you can scroll down, instead of up. There are 3 parts, otherwise it would take too long to load.

I was assigned to a community center that served Black agricultural workers. The community looked rural and had tidy little houses; the house in which the volunteers lived looked much the same as the rest of the community. We had 4 rooms, no air conditioning. The director of the project and his family lived next door in a slightly better house. All the land for the center and the two houses had been donated by a Hoff family who were members of the Church of the Brethren.
121 West North Ave., Fresno 6, California, front of the volunteers' residence
Back of our house on W. North Ave. There was a large garden, but I don't think we took care of it. Laundry is on the line--wringer washer, no dryer. Addition to the back was the laundry room and tool shed. Addition on the side was two bedrooms, one for four women, one for four or five men. With 9 people living in a tiny house we had to be scrupulously neat; beds made up first thing; dishes washed and put away after meals; no clutter at all.
Our BVS group, but I don't remember all the names. Judy Haldeman, Imogene Traughber, in front, Rufus Wagner, Terry Thoreen, back. The other three guys are Don Jordan, next a relative of the director, Clare Stein (can't remember his name) and possibly Tim Guest. We had a "housemother" a few years older than me whose name was Barbara, but she isn't in the photo. From the clothing, we must have been at church. I was the photographer using my little Brownie Hawkeye. Only 3 of us were summer workers--the rest had been through regular training in Maryland.

Check the two previous posts for pt. 2 and pt. 3, rather than scrolling up.

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My visitors and visited this week are:Ma, Viamarie, Mrs. Lifecruiser, Debbie, Lazy Daisy, Lady Bug, Janene, Michelle, Anna, ChelleY. Jen, Melli Becki, Paul, Friday's Child, Irish Church Lady,

Brethren Volunteer Service
Church of the Brethren
Fresno, California
community centers
volunteerism

Monday Memories

Brethren Volunteer Service, pt.2
To make this load faster, I'm dividing the photos into 3 entries. Go up one for the first part.

Generally, the girls did all the shopping, cooking, cleaning and laundry for the whole unit; the guys took care of the grounds, maintenance and vehicles. We all had playground duty; taught classes to the children; did surveys in the community about needs. On Friday nights there were movies for the community, and candy was sold at the center. There were sports teams coached by our volunteer staff, and the children were in leagues and transported around the area to play. Also ping pong tournaments. The BVSers worked hard and played even harder. We took some interesting trips to the California parks and mountains, agricultural areas, miniature golf, and to Sacramento in the center's van. For someone from a tiny town in Illinois, there was a lot to see and do. But I was only 17 and had never been away from home except for camp; so I think I would have been more useful had I been older.

Making ice cream; Barbara standing on the pail and Rufus churning. I believe this block building was built by the BVS-ers who came before us by a year or two.
Enjoying the ice cream. This looks like we were in the director's house and one of his small children is in the foreground. I think I see a Bible or two, so maybe we had a lesson before the treat?
We didn't have a TV, but we had a record player and we sang. The fan in the living room window was connected to a hose which helped cool the house with running water.
My Bible class. We had made potato head puppets (I learned this from my mother) and put on a play we wrote. I believe they performed for the community and parents, because usually they wore play clothes when they came to the community center (built by the volunteers).

Brethren Volunteer Service, Church of the Brethren, Fresno, California, community centers,
volunteerism, Monday Memories

Monday Memories

Brethren Volunteer Service, pt. 3
Here's a few more photos. Scroll up for pt. 2 and pt. 1 and the explanation of what you're seeing. I reversed them.

The kitchen was really pretty nice, and we had great meals--many of the Cal-Mex type things I'd never had before. Lots of beans, rice and onions, smothered in cheese, seconds on bread and milk. We had one tiny bathroom off the kitchen and 9 people living in the house. We must have had assigned times. I think the women got up first. Someone would turn on Mahalia Jackson gospel and blast everyone out of bed in the a.m.

I doubt that we could all sit down at the same time in the living room, and I'm certainly taking up more than my share here, so perhaps some were out this evening at a ball game with the kids.

It must have been my day to cook because I have on an apron--the same one Genie is wearing in the above photo. I'm showing off my new shoes bought in Fresno. Our pay was $7.50/month (or was it a week?), which actually goes pretty far if your board and room is taken care of (or it did 50 years ago), so I probably saved mine and bought new high heels. And yes, that is a sun tan because we were outside much of the day.

Please check out pt. 1 (above) for the beginning of the story.

Brethren Volunteer Service
Church of the Brethren
Fresno, California
community centers
volunteerism
Monday Memories

2968 There is no media conspiracy

They aren't colluding. They are just liberals doing what they do best. Reporting what they truly believe. That's not conspiracy; it's ignorance. Recent media bias stories that report otherwise are analyzing "talking heads," not the basic news stories. Anybody can scare up a few minutes of a former Republican senator or a fading moving star. The only professionals more liberal than journalists (4:1) would be university faculty (estimates range between 7:1 and 30:1) and librarians (224:1). I'm not counting Hollywood because most aren't professionals; they are unemployed a large part of their working life.

Mark Foley stories: NBC 56; ABC 50; CBS 46. Via Glenn Beck radio, 10-16-06. So far, the only sure thing is the Page was no longer a Page and was over 18. It was e-mail and IMs, not sex with a minor like Congressman Studds, who mercifully died last week before his tawdry behavior and the Democrats' support of him (including Nancy Pelosi) gets any more publicity. The other charges against Foley, which are coming to a call-in line, until they are investigated may be at the same level as the rape charges against the Duke la crosse players, all of whom proved innocent with DNA tests, and the "victim" says no condoms were used.

Death and taxes. Politics and sex. Democrats with no program. Sigh.

"Of the 20 major media outlets studied, 18 scored left of center, with CBS' "Evening News," The New York Times and the Los Angeles Times ranking second, third and fourth most liberal behind the news pages of The Wall Street Journal." UCLA study

Brian Ross
Media bias
Mark Foley
Liberal MSM

2967 Voting for King and Queen of Homecoming

Doesn't that sound--I don't know--so retro? I noticed a photo of the court in today's OSU Lantern. I discovered I actually can vote by using my university login, but I didn't--didn't seem fair. I really don't consider myself a "Buckeye" even though that's where I spent most of my working years.



But back to the court. This is one good looking bunch! Wow! I've clicked under their photos and read the little bios. They seem to be limited to listing 5 activites while on campus. A number are in sororities or fraternities, and Stephanie Wiseman is President of Panhellenic. I was never a greek, but that's a big deal! Three seem to be of middle eastern or east Indian ethnicity, and one appears to be Asian, despite a Scots Irish surname. No one is overweight--chubby maybe, but just a bit. Considering Ohio is one of the fattest states in the country, I find that awesome. Maybe I'll post this at my Hugging and Chalking blog.

None of the girls have short hair and none of the guys have long hair. These hair styles look right out of the 1970s for the women. Pressed and straight. Put heavier mascara on them and you probably can't tell them from their mothers. The majors are interesting too (all are seniors)--criminology (2); international business, finance, marketing and economics (3); political science (5); sciences--microbiology, biology, geriatrics, nutrition, physics; special education (2). Two are from my community; four are out of state. Looks like a very bright, beautiful, and socially alert group. I have no idea how the court was selected, but the country looks to be in good hands.

Ohio State University, Homecoming, Buckeyes, college students, college majors, hair styles

2966 The Education Myths

"Few people are aware that our education spending per pupil has been growing steadily for 50 years. At the end of World War II, public schools in the United States spent a total of $1,214 per student in inflation-adjusted 2002 dollars. By the middle of the 1950s that figure had roughly doubled to $2,345. By 1972 it had almost doubled again, reaching $4,479. And since then, it has doubled a third time, climbing to $8,745 in 2002." The American Enterprise.

If spending more money on education worked, why don't we see better results? Instead, we just get asked for more money. Sometimes they don't even pretend they need it, like Danbury in Ottawa County, OH. That's where we have our summer home. They've just raised our taxes by 30%--but most of us don't live there and don't send any children to their schools. They must have gold plated computers--two for each child.

"Economist Eric Hanushek of Stanford University examined every solid study on spending and outcomes--a total of 163 research papers--and concluded that extra resources are more likely to be squandered than to have a productive effect."

Feeling sorry for poorly paid teacher? Don't.

"Data from the U.S. Department of Labor show that in 2002, elementary school teachers averaged $30.75 per hour and high school teachers made $31.01. That is about the same as other professionals like architects, economists, biologists, civil engineers, chemists, physicists and astronomers, and computer systems analysts and scientists. Even demanding, education-intensive professions like electrical and electronic engineering, dentistry, and nuclear engineering didn't make much more than teachers per hour worked."

Read the whole article for more myths about class size, school choice, insurmountable social problems and the effectiveness of certification.

2965 Sprint to the Finish

"I just went through the list of all 40 competitive House races on Real Clear Politics, and I found only 8 clear pickups for the Democrats."

Read the whole blog, then go up and read Dafydd at Big Lizards Manifesto

2964 Judges are not free to create rights and rewrite statutes

A decision by the California First District Court:

"All can agree that California has not deprived its gay and lesbian citizens of a right they previously enjoyed; same-sex couples have never before had the right to enter a civil marriage. It is also beyond dispute that our society has historically understood “marriage” to refer to the union of a man and a woman. These facts do not mean the opposite-sex nature of marriage can never change, or should never change, but they do limit our ability as a court to effect such change. The respondents in these appeals are asking this court to recognize a new right. Courts simply do not have the authority to create new rights, especially when doing so involves changing the definition of so fundamental an institution as marriage. "The role of the judiciary is not to rewrite legislation to satisfy the court's, rather than the Legislature's, sense of balance and order. Judges are not ' "knight[s]-errant, roaming at will in pursuit of [their] own ideal of beauty or of goodness." ' [Citation.]" (People v. Carter (1997) 58 Cal.App.4th 128, 134.) In other words, judges are not free to rewrite statutes to say what they would like, or what they believe to be better social policy."

2963 Putting Mark Foley in perspective

The U.S. government estimates that 600,000 to 800,000 men, women and children are trafficked across international borders each year. Of these, approximately 80% are women and girls, and most are sold into the sex industry. President Bush denounced this at the U.N. in 2002 (Yeah, that should get some action) and in 2005 and 2006, and the U.S. Congress passed the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act to expand existing laws. Many Christian organizations have pushed for stronger action. (Stats from Christian History, Issue 90, Spring 2006)

"Many victims of human trafficking are forced to work in prostitution or the sex entertainment industry. But trafficking also occurs in forms of labor exploitation, such as domestic servitude, restaurant work, janitorial work, sweatshop factory work and migrant agricultural work.

Traffickers use various techniques to instill fear in victims and to keep them enslaved. Some traffickers keep their victims under lock and key. However, the more frequent practice is to use less obvious techniques including:

• Debt bondage - financial obligations, honor-bound to satisfy debt

• Isolation from the public - limiting contact with outsiders and making sure that any contact is monitored or superficial in nature

• Isolation from family members and members of their ethnic and religious community

• Confiscation of passports, visas and/or identification documents

• Use or threat of violence toward victims and/or families of victims

• The threat of shaming victims by exposing circumstances to family

• Telling victims they will be imprisoned or deported for immigration violations if they contact authorities

• Control of the victims' money, e.g., holding their money for "safe-keeping"
Gayle Christie

The Democrats and the $oros organi$ation who knew about the page homosexual problem and did nothing until it suited their political purposes (i.e., more important to embarrass a Republican than save a child), need to find a bigger target. This might be a place to start. Or will saving women and children not get as much publicity?

We spent millions investigating the non-issue of Plamegate, ruining reputations and careers willy-nilly, finding out in September that Richard Armitage and Patrick Fitzgerald knew all along what the score was. THERE WAS NO CRIME. Let's not waste more time and money on another trumped-up-by-Democrats scandal. If they want to win an election, let them come up with some issues and solutions--the old fashioned way.

2962 Behind closed doors

It's time to see what's in the closets, cabinets, and under the sinks and be ruthless. In our home of 34 years--a 3 bedroom house--we didn't have an attic or a basement, and I was much better about clutter. Now we're in a condo and have both. And we have clutter! Yesterday I was going to make a list--thought it might be a good Thursday Thirteen topic, but I made the mistake of looking in a box that had photos, so I spent 4 hours scanning and drafting a Monday Memories about my time in Brethren Volunteer Service. Hope to have it ready by tomorrow.

However, I did strap on my audio book of "Master and Commander" and rearranged two shelves in my bathroom linen closet. I really didn't throw out much. My sister Carol sold Avon when she was in high school, and I see I still have a blue tin of bath powder that I got from her--oh, maybe 50 years ago. That would be fine if I collected Avon memorabilia, but I don't. And half used bottles of various lotions, mouth wash, tiny bottles of goop from hotels, a stash of bath soap, and not even the kind I really like (Palmolive).

My clothes closet had become a jumble over the summer--after each trip things were hung anywhere. So I moved the hot weather items to the guest room, moved some sweaters to my closet, and color coded. There's nothing like putting your shirts and sweaters on the pole by color to see that you have things you'll never wear or haven't worn in 4 years. I have four black skirts, 2 for summer, 2 for winter; 2 denim skirts; maybe 5 or 6 black slacks, only 2 of which fit (hope to change that, but then the larger sizes won't fit). Usually I buy cheap stuff, so I don't know why I hang on to them for such a long time. I pulled out a really lovely outfit--blazer and straight skirt--(in a size 8 and doesn't fit) that my daughter bought me maybe in 2001. I do have a storage area for clothing I love but don't wear anymore that goes back 50 years. So I may retire it. I looked at 3 plaid wool skirts--from my working days--that must be over 20 years old. They definitely need to go to the archives.

Then I popped over to read Neo-neocon, and I see she is cleaning closets too, while she tries on clothes for a trip, destination is a surprise. Maybe I should have cleaned the closets before we traveled.

2961 This post is about sex

While I was making a wonderful salad with dark green leafy stuff ("absolutely no spinach" the package read), two hard cooked eggs, grilled onions and broccoli, and about a third of a cup of mild salsa, I was listening to WOSU NPR, which is doing a fund raiser (what a concept!).

Much to my surprise it was two guys talking about testosterone. Except one guy started out as a woman, attended a woman's college, and had grown up accepting all the feminists said about the differences between men and women all being a social and cultural construct. Then, after she decides to become transgendered (don't know if that is the right term, but she is on her way to being a he with no penis), she starts getting hormone injections--testosterone. S/he discovered that her brain changed!

Griffin (the female to male person) talked about being filled with lust and pornographic thoughts on the subway--not from noticing a sexy babe, but from seeing just an ankle or a knee. He was terribly embarrassed and really had to struggle to avoid being crude, but the thoughts were unstoppable.

He began to lose some of his verbal acuity over time. He now has to look up more words than he used to as a woman, and the stumbles more in his speech.

He began having trouble crying when he was upset or stressed. Even when he can cry, it isn't the same with very few tears.

He developed an interest in science (this caused so much laughter I wasn't sure he was serious, but he said he'd been reading in areas that had never interested him before).

He became more visual. He now enjoys pornography and strip joints, whereas before he had no interest and thought that was sexist.

I didn't find the exact interview but here is one on Grrl Talk Borders that covers pretty much the same thing, except the interviewer is a woman and the two were girl friends in college.