| The Nile ain't a river in Saskatchewan |
Usually before we go anywhere, Jerry will joke that I'm in weather denial. This comment stems from the fact that I don't like having to wear my winter coat or layers any longer than I have to. If I can get away wearing a bunny-hug or sweater, I'm good. Of course this is quite a change from his perspective on the weather, as he'll wear 3 or 4 layers when it's barely sweatshirt/sweater temperatures outside!
That said, tonight is calling for flurries -- Wednesday's forecast, too. And by the looks of outside right now, I wouldn't be surprised if my hair does get a bit frosty on the trek home later.
It never fails, every year I'm never fully prepared for winter. This year's no different!
Though apparently someone else in our graduate student hovel office is in a bit of rush, seasonally-speaking. For the third day straight, I've heard Christmas carols playing in someone's cubicle. I can handle the crooning of Bing, but when Celine comes on -- that's just a little too much for this girl. |
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| New digs |
Time for a change -- New look, new comments, same content!
Let me know whatcha think.
EDIT: Grrr, now I know why I hadn't changed my template in 3 years -- what. a. pain. Firefox is way friendlier to me than IE. Hopefully it loads okay in both browsers, now. |
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You fit in with:
Spiritualism
Your ideals are mostly spiritual, but in an individualistic way. While spirituality is very important in your life, organized religion itself may not be for you. It is best for you to seek these things on your own terms.
60% spiritual.
40% reason-oriented.
Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com
It looks like me and Fundamentalists are at separate ends of the spectrum -- nice to see it visually, confirming what I pretty-much knew already by experience.
(via this Taoist guy I know) |
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It's Hallowe'en tomorrow, though it doesn't feel like it -- that could be because I missed the annual Rocky Horror Picture Show last night, the first time in years.
But in honor of the festive holiday I never was allow to celebrate until I became an adult, some links:
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Have you ever had one of those dreams that you still vividly remember after you've woken up? And not only do you remember all of its details -- but you somehow feel changed, because of it?
I'm not going to bore anyone with the details of my dreams, but right now I'm in that creepy space where the dream world intertwines with reality.
Maybe it's because it's Hallowe'een tomorrow? That, or it could always be because I stayed up until 5AM reading a novel. |
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Happy Fitznukkah, Everybody!
Al Franken
That's right -- it isn't a one-day holiday like Fitzmas. This could go on and on. One day a great gift like Libby, the next day a pair of socks (Ari Fleischer), the next day, who knows: maybe an Xbox 360 (Karl Rove)! Maybe this can be dragged out until the 2006 midterms.
Anyway. Boy, did he lie! Wow. That. Is lying. Hoo boy.
And how about Rove telling the press he was going to have a great Friday and a great weekend? They can't even not lie about what kind of weekend they're going to have.
The only disappointment was the lack of a "treason" indictment. Looks like thirty years is the most Scooter will get. But who knows? He might get squeezed and end up ratting out the other guys, and get only eight to twelve.
It occurs to me that all of this may be about covering up the phony rationale for the march to war. One of you enterprising "bloggers" should look into that. Here's a clue: At one point, Cheney told Tim Russert, "there's no doubt that Saddam has reconstituted his nuclear program." If that statement could be proven false, that might provide the motive for smearing Joe Wilson and his wife, Valerie Flame.
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It's funny how certain books can speak right to the heart of the matter. A couple weeks ago, I picked up a slew of cheap books at the CFUW book sale -- one of which was a book by Pierre Berton, The Comfortable Pew: A Critical Look at the Church in the New Age.
This book was written in 1964, so the illusion to "new age" is not to the metaphysical movements usually associated with the phrase today. I don't think I'd be far off in saying that Berton uses "new age" in a way McLaren uses "post-modern" or emerging. (then again, I'm still in the early processes of the book -- I may revise this assertion later)
The impetus of this book is especially interesting. The Anglican Church's Department of Religious Education sought out Berton to give a critique of the status of the Protestant church in the mid-twentieth century.
From the book's foreword (written by the Anglicans who commissioned the book):
During the last few years, there has been much talk about the need for the Church to "listen." We have shown a grand talent for lecturing and hectoring; but we seem unwilling to believe that God works through men outside our ranks, who may have much to teach us and a few legitimate challenges to make.
Several ideas are clear ... [the church] can look to the outsider for help. The second idea is that we can best understand the views of others by inviting them to express theirs under our own roof and with our blessing. We have printed many books in which Christian writers stated the views of outsiders and then proceeded, without difficulty, to rebut them. Why not ask somebody who would express these views directly and confidently, and who would, in doing so, show us those areas where the Church needed to examine its work with great care? Right away, you can see why I'm hooked. While they may have initially perceived this action as risky -- I find it refreshing (and rare?), and can already foresee an opportunity to gain some new perspective. Besides, Berton is an amazing writer -- and this book is combining two of my favorite arenas: politics and social justice. You can expect to see plenty of his quotes littering this space in the near future.
There's a chapter in the book entitled, "Can Nuclear War Ever be 'Just?'" Context of the chapter -- again, this was written in the early 1960's, in the height of the Cold War. The Bay of Pigs incident had only occurred 2 years earlier, and the world's sensitivity to nuclear destruction was especially heightened. In this chapter, Berton outlines his disappointment with the willful silence of most Protestant churches, in matters concerning nuclear weapons and disarmament procedures:
I have searched the newspapers following the first published news of the atomic explosions in Japan to try to find evidence that somebody of stature in the Christian Church called out against this national denial of the Christian message. There is very little, and most of what there is says very little. [...] Other individual ministers used the news of the bomb to call for a return to religion, but few if any attacked the use of the bomb itself or called for its abandonment as a weapon of war. Nor did any of the major churches.
Undoubtedly Christian consciences were privately troubled. Canon John Collins tells me that he received a letter from the then Archbishop of Canterbury, Geoffrey Fisher, "in which he said that it would absolutely outrage Christian conscience were these bombs to be developed after the war. But, alas, when the time came no such official voice was ever raised in protest, and the Church, as part of the 'Establishment,' has continued to sit on the fence, and so by implication support whatever government has been in power in its policy of nuclear armaments." Exactly. While I have difficulty comprehending silence in regard to nuclear weapon abuses, the above rebuke is still applicable to today's Church. Berton is saying that it is the church's responsibility to speak out (and not remain silent) when there are injustices being committed in the world. It's a responsibility to voice your disapproval for unjust wars -- whether these wars involve the killing of innocent civilians somewhere overseas or a battle on our own soil, one that endorses eager discrimination within our own ranks. Inaction and silence, no matter what auspices they hide under, is no excuse.
Later in the chapter, Berton mentions the post-WWII tendency of many of the clergy to "go along with the majority feeling in the United States at any given time" and how this inaction is "tantamount to an admission that Christ's suffering on the cross was a failure." I know that back home the Religious Right is speaking out in FULL force these days -- but this version of "speaking out" isn't what I'm referring to. (far from it!)
I'm thinking more along the lines of what Jim Wallis calls "changing the wind." And it's something that's necessary -- not only politically, but in the church, as well. I suppose this is where I see my faith. It's not one that's hidden, or afraid to speak out when there's wrongs being committed. I think that part of my inclination stems from being an older sister. I've got an implicit protective instinct of fighting for underdogs or the oppressed -- which I know sometimes gets me into trouble.
I'm far from perfect (as many of you can attest to), and I know that my passion often gets in the way of my message -- but this passion is an important part of who I am. Nowadays I'm just learning the process of perceiving when it's the time to reign it in -- versus the times when it's necessary that I speak out ... loudly. |
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After spending ALL DAY at school today, I'm curling up and watching CBC's documentary series, The Passionate Eye. Tonight's episode is called "Frankensteer," and it's only reminding me (rather graphically) of some of the reasons why I'm not a red-meat eater (and an only occasional chicken/turkey consumer).
The episode's description:
Frankensteer is a disturbing documentary that reveals how the ordinary cow has been turned into an antibiotic-dependent, hormone-laced potential carrier of toxic bacteria, all in the name of cheaper food. Frankensteer exposes the harsh and sometimes frightening realities of how our beef gets to our tables.
According to this compelling documentary, the beef industry, supported by North American government agencies and pharmaceutical companies, has engaged in an on-going experiment to create the perfect food machine. Their goal is to increase the speed of production and reduce the cost of manufacture. But there is a price in producing a cheap industrial product. This benign, grazing herbivore has undergone a transformation in how it’s raised, fed and slaughtered. Consumers are unaware of the dangers lurking in their beloved steaks, ribs and, especially, hamburgers.
According to Mike McBane of the Canadian Health Coalition, "When you bring a package of hamburger home from a supermarket, you have to treat it as toxic material…"
Frankensteer reveals some startling facts. Every year, fifty per cent of the total tonnage of antibiotics used in Canada ends up in livestock. Cattle raised in massive feedlots are routinely dosed with antibiotics even if they are not sick for public health safety reasons. During the current BSE (Mad Cow) crisis, North American health officials labeled parts of the cow as bio-hazardous products and ordered that they be handled accordingly. Recent changes in inspection rules have shifted the responsibility for food safety from government inspectors to the people on the floor who do the slaughtering and packing. Peaceful herbivore cows are routinely poisoned, forced to eat food they would not normally (often making them into cannibals, by feeding them the meat and bones of other cattle), they endlessly suffer in huge disgusting grain lots, they're injected with hormones and all sorts of cancer-causing antibiotics, and then beef consumers then ingest it all.
Think about that when you have another Big Mac attack. (yuck)
Ugh, and I hate hearing about the fact that many growing calves are fed blood instead of milk. Time for me to start seriously rethinking soy.
I first heard about having a "theology of the body" from Andrew on his blog -- documentaries like this one reinforce that need. For me, it'll be worth paying the extra that's required to ensure my food is free-range, not factory farmed.
Either that, or I'll just make that final leap and become a vegetarian for good. |
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And now a literary flashback from August 11, 2004:
"When I was a little girl the heads of my paper dolls came off, and it was a long time before I discovered that my own head would not fall off if I bent my neck. I used to walk around holding it very stiff because I thought a strong wind or a heavy push would snap my neck. Nel was the one who told me the truth. But she was wrong. I did not hold my head stiff enough when I met him and so I lost it just like the dolls."
Sula, Toni Morrison |
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The start of all the cards falling down? Miers withdrawls.
The news could be even better tomorrow.
UPDATE: Harriet laments the loss over at her blog: WIP (Withdrawl in Peace)
Her thank you note:
Dear Supporters.
 This is obv a really hard day for me, I was super excited about being a Justice. I was looking at my very first blog post and it made me cry. But this day isn't about me. Its about all of us. And I have to say... Thank You.
Of course I have to start with a thank you to Hugh. Hugh Hewitt. Hugh your the best!! Here's what Hugh wrote today, Ms. Miers deserves great thanks for her significant service to the country. Same to you!! Your simply the greatest.
Thank you to everyone who writes comments on this blog, Mike Sparkle Judy Gyrobo Bob Liz Ah Patrick EVERYONE, you know who you are. You are my BFF, for real.
Thank you to Nicolle...its the Silver Lining that I get to stay in the WH and work with you again. Your the BEST!!
But Most Of All...
THANK YOU MR. PRESIDENT. I know this wasn't you're decision anymore than it was mine...but guess what, we're going to STICK TOGETHER just like always!! (yes, I know it's a goof) |
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I'm not usually a fan of Maclean's, but this week's cover story looked to be a gem: "The Age of the Wuss: the sad slump of North American manhood" -- so you know I had to check it out. And to make it even more interesting, "exhibit A" on the cover lists the "limp life of the Canadian Tire guy."
Now Jerry and I have a running theory about this "Most Irritating Canadian" figure on TV -- we think he's some type of android. He's got to be, because no human can get so excited (and yet be so annoying) about silly gadgets and trinkets from a Walmart-wannabe store.
But I digress. The cover story is by Charlie Gillis, and it's entitled "He's Come Undone: After all their 'evolving,' men run the risk of obscuring the meaning of male altogether -- it's an interesting case study and history on the changing cultural expectations of men in the 21st century.
Some parts I found interesting:
[from the introduction] It's become almost cliché to portray men as being in some state of socio-sexual chrysalis, slowly emerging from a few millennia of male hegemony and discovering the woman inside themselves. The post-feminist era has unleashed no end of books, studies, surveys and essays charting this trajectory, in most cases portraying it as a rise from primordial incivility to a more advanced state of being. Like primates developing opposable thumbs, men were supposed to be acquiring traits to better serve them in a world where gender lines don't matter. Aggression would give way to sensitivity, ruggedness to style, stoicism to "emotional intelligence."
[and the conclusion?] A few years ago, Kimmel formed a three-pronged theory about how American men were protecting their outdated ideas of masculinity. They sought to exclude others, such as women and homosexuals, from their fraternal world, he said. Or they tried escape -- "lighting out," as Mark Twain would have it, on hunting trips, or mythopoetic retreats, à la Robert Bly. When all this failed, Kimmel believes, they retreated into themselves, focusing on appearance and their ability to shape their own bodies.
As Pujos-Gautraud's reactions illustrate, this may prove the most dangerous outcome of men's current malaise. Yes, their experimentation with appearance -- remaking themselves on ever more feminine principles -- has torn down weary stereotypes. It may even help them understand life from a woman's point of view. But men now run the risk of obscuring the meaning of male altogether, of robbing the sexes of that age-old friction that, however frustrating, happens to be the stuff of life. If the views of one open-minded, middle-aged Frenchwoman are anything to go by, that would be one evolutionary rung too far.
Interesting stuff.
But the best part of the issue is the rant on the Canadian Tire guy -- Love it. "The prince of Simoniz pressure washers -- the pitchman on one of Canada's most hated ad campaigns -- has proven especially repulsive to bloggers. Every mention of him on the Web results in a string of nasty posts written with a rage so visceral it's hard not to fear for the safety of Canadian Tire Guy's fictional family. If he lived in any real Canadian neighbourhood, somebody would probably have glue-gunned his lips shut."
That article is followed up by a humor piece of various diary entries of the Canadian Tire guy (by Scott Feschuk). My favorite entry:
Dear Diary,
What a surprise! While using my new Simoniz S2800 Gas Powered Pressure Washer, available at Canadian Tire, to brush my teeth this morning, I noticed that our next-door neighbours, the Johnsons, have a "For Sale" sign up -- even though they've been here for less than a year. I went over and asked Walt why they were moving and he said: "You. You and your obnoxious, know-it-all ramblings about cheap, piece-of-crap products no one needs." Then he chased me off his property with a set of barbecue tongs. That Walt! I'm going to miss his sense of humour! Our other next-door neighbours are trying to sell their home, too. Come to think of it, so are the two families right across the road, including Bill and Carol, who been on the street for -- wow, how long has it been now? -- almost 17 months! A new record! I really think they would have become our best friends in the whole wide world if it weren't for Bill's hectic work schedule. And the restraining order he filed against me.
Stories like these made those annoying ads almost bearable. |
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Flashback -- November 2, 2002:
Modern Aphorisms:
- I'd kill for a Nobel Peace Prize.
- Borrow money from pessimists - they don't expect it back.
- 42.7% of all statistics are made up on the spot.
- A conscience is what hurts when all your other parts feel so good.
- A clear conscience is usually the sign of a bad memory.
- All those who believe in psychokinesis, raise my hand.
- The early bird may get the worm, but the second mouse gets the cheese.
- I almost had a psychic girlfriend but she left me before we met.
- OK, so what's the speed of dark?
- Depression is merely anger without enthusiasm.
- When everything is coming your way, you're in the wrong lane.
- I intend to live forever - so far, so good.
- If Barbie is so popular, why do you have to buy her friends?
- Eagles may soar, but weasels don't get sucked into jet engines.
- What happens if you get scared half to death twice?
- Why do psychics have to ask you for your name?
- A conclusion is the place where you got tired of thinking.
- Experience is something you don't get until just after you need it.
- To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research.
- Everyone has a photographic memory, some just don't have film.
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e·piph·a·ny - A sudden manifestation of the essence or meaning of something.
- A comprehension or perception of reality by means of a sudden intuitive realization: "?I experienced an epiphany, a spiritual flash that would change the way I viewed myself" (Frank Maier).
It's 4:23AM in the morning, and I'm having one of those epiphany moments that you just can't roll over in bed and forget about.
A couple posts below I used that ageless cliche of the church, of speaking the "truth in love." Truth, in love. Truth in love. Truth IN love. What does this mean?
Lately I've been really struggling with relating to people from polar sides of an issue close to me. I've racked my brain, futilely attempting to understand why they'd see the issue from the obviously wrong perspective! (yes, that's sarcasm) In my communication class, I emphasize over and over again to my students the need for relation in all of our communication -- but ironically, I had little to no relation going on with my opponents. They saw things one way, I saw things from a completely different perspective. No middle ground, no attempt to understand.
But tonight, having a long sleep-deprived conversation with the Mr., my epiphany occurred. What does truth in love mean -- beyond its conventional use as a free pass to hurt someone's feelings while hiding behind the supposed legitimacy of honesty?
Many times when a person evokes or employs "truth in love," the emphasis is placed more on the truth aspect of the message than the love. But that's not how the sentence itself is structured -- truth is in love, inside of it. Love is what is encompassing it, surrounding it -- which should effect how this truth is delivered.
Which leads me to my problem. Whenever I see an injustice in the world, I want to remedy it ... but remedying it doesn't mean emphasizing what I see as the truth at the expense of love.
Anyone that knows me knows that I'm big on accountability. There are few things I despise less than someone who's a hypocrite -- saying one thing, while intending (or doing) another. My drive for accountability needs to be balanced with a drive for showing love -- or compassion (not pity) -- for whoever my opponent is. This is huge!
Both of these elements -- accountability and compassion -- have to be a part of my approach. Without accountability, my compassion could easily slip into condoning of actions and a general sense of apathy to what is right and wrong. Yet without compassion, my drive for accountability (and justice) is useless, because it gets me nowhere.
And that's the common ground I've been looking for, in all these discussions that have frustrated me so much lately. It's as if I can see the person behind the opposition -- and I know now why I get so adamant about continuing this dialogue.
So, there you go. That's where I am. I'm leaving the post from earlier tonight down below -- but I know in the few hours that have transcribed since writing it, I'm a different person.
And hopefully, I can be a better one because of it. |
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 I meant to post this earlier this week -- has anyone caught the newest Daily Show spinoff, The Colbert Report? Hilarious. It's like a humorized mismashed version of all the O'Reilly's and Chris Matthew's out there.
On the second show, he did a bit on congressional districts ("Better know a district") -- and which of the 435 districts did he start with? One from Savannah, GA! "The home of the cradle of Southern civility (after Charleston) ... Savannah is also known for its gardens; many of which are sometimes good, sometimes evil, and at midnight -- a little bit of both."
Colbert interviews my former "African American" representative Jack Kingston. Wow, was it funny. The clip of it is here. |
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The following was said "in christian love" in response to a post on another blog. So far, it's the last word spoken in the comment thread -- I just hope someone will address it for what it really is: (I would, but I've got a not-so-sneaky suspicion that I'm not welcomed by some in the thread)
Lastly and perhaps most importantly I wish to speak to those, brothers and sisters who engage in homsexual relationships.
My friends, before you are anything in your own estimation, you are first, last and always a beloved child of your Creator, your Father in heaven.
He "knew you in the womb", He has "counted and numbered the hairs on your head." In His great love for you he has endowed you with his very being, he gave you of Himself in the spiritual being that is your soul. When salvation was compromised, he did not abandon us, rather He gave us his Son. He does everything for us in love, as love.
First, last and always you are a beloved child of God, as am I.
And what of you, my brothers and sisters? Do you not hope to see yourself as something more than a sexual orientation. Are you not a son, a brother a sister, a friend. Would you not rather be identified first with skills you have learned and shared. Would you not rather be first known as a lover, a giver, a person of good humour? Do you not dream of a relationship with life that transcends sexual expression, as it's defining characteristic?
Forgive me if I offend you, my brothers and sisters. Truly it is not my intention. Rather I come in love offering what I believe to be words gifted to me from the Holy Spirit.
May the grace and peace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with us always. Completely clueless.
This line particularly bothers me: "Do you not hope to see yourself as something more than a sexual orientation?" Does anyone else see the irony of this statement (?!) -- the writer is assuming that the sexual identity of anyone who's gay works as the primary identifier of who they are! If anything, the commentor is the one obsessed with their sexual identity. This is a clear-cut case of someone who is out of touch with the complex human realities of a situation. The falsity of labeling them as "brothers and sisters" works more as a slap to the face than an effort to reconcile differences.
Which, I suppose, is what bothers me the most when these theological-pseudoacademic discussions on this issue comes up -- it's the attitude of it all. The conversation usually digresses into a pin-the-tail on the sinner type of game, where judgement proliferates -- usually based on a few passages, and usually taken out of context (with the biblical text and the cultural context of today's realities).
Labels abound in these talks -- and the word "political" inevitably comes up. It's not political. Ultimately, it's a humane issue. Screw being politically correct, this is about loving people for who they are, not who we think they should be. In fifty years from now, I'll be an even spunkier old woman -- and I hope that I can look back on these smug discussions as something that occurred in the past, because the church decided to move away from judging and onto the loving. (cliche, yes -- but necessary)
I get really passionate and emotionally involved in discussions concerning this issue -- and of course, because of this, I'm usually the first written off in the conversation -- mainly because I can't enter the dialogue in the acceptable detached, superior manner. When I see injustices being committed, I have a hard time sitting idly by. Ivory towers extend beyond academia. I'm tired of listening to others talk about "Others" by either objectifying them to abstraction or by exuding pious-pity, rather than the compassion that is necessary in the situation.
[note: Okay, I've come back to this post after watching a rather-enjoyable Daily Show, breathing some rather deep breaths, and hopefully gaining some perspective.
I don't mean to paint the entire conversation going on in this comment thread as entirely negative. Many people on there have interesting things to say, with an attitude that is cautious and not at all arrogant. There's even a few comments where I've admired the transparency of the individual -- particularly when someone said, "Is there any place for us to live in the tension of our inability to discern the correct answer? Even better, is there any place to which we can come where the real life people about whom we're speaking in the third person as though they're not in the room become something more than "an issue" to people like me?" While I may not agree with everything he's said, I can at least appreciate the fact that he's put a face on the issue -- and won't deny the implications of that personalizing. I really respect that vulnerability.
Of course, there's others on the thread who act the opposite by remaining more concerned with the policy than the person. Obviously, it's these latter folk that really rile me -- but I wanted to clarify that my post above is not directed toward those who are earnestly seeking conversation on this issue. I'm not militant enough to demand that everyone must agree with me -- I just want the conversation to be real, and not centering on the pretentious one-upping of each other using theological scholarship.] |
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One of the best Daily Show interviews. Ever.
Stewart nails conservative editor Bill Kristol (the same guy who's spouting buzz phrase "the criminalization of politics"). Key bits:
Stewart: "I have to give you credit ... you, I think, if you go back and read the essays, certainly what you were saying Saddam Hussain in 1997 -- you were wrong about Iraq way before anyone else, and I have to give you credit." Oy, did Kristol look strained for the ENTIRE interview. He just couldn't defend the Administration's antics.
Kristol: "Harriet Miers will pull out in the next two weeks ... it'll be the right thing to do. She's loyal to the President, she's a bad appointment, she should have told him it was a bad appointment -- she didn't, so she'll now withdrawl ...
Stewart: "So, when he came to her and wanted her to be the next Supreme Court Justice, she should have said, 'but I'm not qualified, sir!'? She should have had the cajones!" Heh. The clincher came at the end:
Kristol: [defending the war in Iraq]
Stewart: So, to have weapons inspectors, to look around, might have been a good move.
Kristol: Well, it was a good move.
Stewart: And they could look around and be like, [looks under coffee cup] -- No.
Kristol: Well, the weapons inspectors themselves said that Saddam wasn't fully complying -- could we have kept 150,000 troops there forever? So the weapons inspectors could have inspected ....
Stewart: You're right, because that would have cost us alot of money.
Watch it. |
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Matt sent this to me to "cheer" me up. Love it.
(and maybe if Prosecutor Fitzgerald delivers, it could happen! Then again, I AM an idealist.) |
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In "honor" of the upcoming season, this flashback from January 28. 2004:
Fun in the cold. (or, things I woulda never learned had I not moved so far North)
- Having any liquid present in your nose instantly freeze, making it feel crunchy
- Automatic extra freezer space -- on your back porch!
- Taking off 2 layers of clothes and still being fully dressed
- Being unable to open your car, due to the locks being frozen tight
- Knowing the meaning of "dry cold"
- Having your cheeks still be stinging from the cold, 10 minutes AFTER coming inside
- Wet socks. 'Nuff said.
- Legitmate excuses to skip the gym or even leave your apartment
- Waiting at a crosswalk and seeing a car skid, 20 feet away, in order to stop right in front of you
- Having your jaw freeze and being unable to talk for a few minutes until you thaw
- Automatic conversation starter with strangers, bitching about the weather
- Unable to reach a taxi or a tow truck, due to busy signals
- Looking forward to the day it'll only be -20 (downright tropical!)
- Being able to wear all the clothes you own, AT ONCE
- Watching people walk backwards, against the wind
- Sheer bragging rights for surviving it
- Having to start your car 20 minutes before you go anywhere
- 3 inches of ice on your bedroom window -- on the INSIDE of your window
- When your tape player plays in slooooow motion, or your CD display doesn't
- Preparing to teach an amazing lesson, and only having less than half the students actually show (but I still had an awesome class this afternoon!)
- Being one of the coldest places in the Northern Hemisphere (colder than the North/South Pole, I checked)
- Thanking God you're not a postal worker
- Wearing your "bunny hug"/hooded sweatshirt with the hood up -- inside your apartment
- Your choice of stalled cars throughout the city -- with only a 16 hour wait for a tow truck!
- When you get an "ice cream headache" -- just from going outside!
Things to look forward to? |
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Since the comments are still off, here's a suggestion. Email me (rbennetch -at- gmail dot com) and ask me a question. If it's interesting and not that offensive, I'll answer it here in this space.
I've already got one ready to answer, regarding my former position on the war in Iraq:
Actually, I'd also be interested on how you currently feel about some of the specific items in the post: the Canadian media reporting the bad but not the good, Saddam as dictator and some of the atrocious things he's done.
I don't disagree with your current position, of course, but I'd be interested in seeing the transition and your current response to some of the issues you raised then. First of all, I'm sure it's readily apparent that I'm a CBC-junkie these days. I had a serious case of the shakes when the lockout was on, and I was deprived of Mansbridge and The National. Even if I miss it at 10, I can still catch it online. (in fact, listening to it now)
In April of 2003, I was still getting used to being an American in Canada. It's disconcerting (at first) to listen to negative news of your country -- particularly when the only media you're used to reading/hearing is the American media. I think it's too much of a generalization to say that the Canadian and International medias were reporting the bad and not the good -- if anything, that was an attempt to counteract the Bush propaganda machine that was running full force.
And as far as regarding Saddam as a dictator, and the atrocious things he's done -- well, I still believe that. He is a horrific man, and the history of his actions deserve judgement. BUT -- doing what we did, under the pretenses of what we did ... that was not the right thing to do, either. If we were really concerned with the human rights violations of Saddam, we should have done something in the 80's, when we knew what he did to the Kurdish population -- rather than plying him with more weapons and support. Hindsight's 20/20.
If the rational behind the Iraq war was to "spread freedom" and to stop human rights violations of dictators -- well, we better get busy invading several countries in Africa, and some of our Middle Eastern "allies," as well.
The fact is, my country initially invaded Iraq on the rationale that there was WMD that were threatening the region and our home. Now the rational is "spreading freedom and democracy" through occupation and dodging car bombs. It's a mess.
And looking at the headlines in the last few weeks, it looks like it's finally catching up with the Grand Old Party (Republicans). |
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The world of biblezines has expanded!
Ever wish your Bible was as easy to pick up as your favorite magazine? Now there’s a new BibleZine™ created with today’s modern guy in mind. With an edgy, techo-savvy style and content that makes Biblical truth fresh and relevant, it might just make Bible reading the best part of your day. If teenagers and women have to put up with this drivel, then it's only right that men have access to their very own copy, as well.
via Darryl.
Speaking of which, why are women "Becoming" and men are "Align[ed]"? There's semantics and connotations galore in those title selections.
(speaking of which, it's been an embarrasingly long time since I've dusted off ye old thesis project. By the time I'm finally done, I'm sure they'll have a Revolve 3 or 4. oy.) |
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One of the most interesting things about having a weblog is the ability to go back in time and see what you were thinking -- days, week, months ... and now, even years ago. The following is one of those types of posts. I wrote this one in April of 2003, and I think you'll see a different perspective than what you're used to reading in this space.
April 9, 2003: It's time for me to get off the proverbial fence.
I'm glad the US is in Iraq.
I've been debating this, over and over again in my head for the past couple weeks. Without a doubt, I've supported our military -- but I just wasn't sure how I felt about our involvement. After much brooding -- of which will continue, I'm sure -- I think it's a good thing we're over there.
No, I'm not saying that I support the killing of innocent civilians that suffer from the bombs or the fighting. That's a tragedy that no one wants to see -- least of all the US government (despite what some international media has to say). But I've noticed something, in watching/reading the different types of media available (and believe me, I'm saying this after watching more than just the US Media -- I watch everything from CBC, CNN, read Al-Jazeera, etc). I've noticed that the much of the Canadian media avoids reporting some stories, like Marines free jailed Iraqi children or human shield realizes his assumptions were wrong. Or don't show the pictures of waving, happy people welcoming Coalition soldiers, offering them food and assistance, or the pictures of clinics that soldiers operate to help the hurt and wounded. Supplies are low, the situation is bad -- but I'd be willing to bet that many of the reasons why the country is in such bad shape has to do with the government that has ran things for the past 20 years.
Instead of reporting issues like these, most of what is harped upon in the news are the civilian causalities, delivered in a smug tone that makes me feel nauseous. No one mentions that Saddam is a dictator, who brutally kills his people and makes them continually live in fear and without resources. No one mentions that this man (and the rest of his "regime") continually sanction the murders and abuse of their people -- from his son beating the national soccer team as penalty for losing (so bad that they couldn't walk for weeks) to literal torture chambers where unspeakable things happened to any dissenters.
The latest kick on campus is to rant on how this invasion is "illegal." I'm not a UN expert, and believe me -- while I may ideally like the idea of the UN, I find that it is a useless organization that spends way too much time in bureaucracy and not enough time backing up its claims. What does the UN enforce, exactly? How can it say that it merely will "investigate" situations, and sit on their hands when innocent people are being killed by evil men by the day? For example -- how is the UN going to handle the civil war that is going on right now in the Congo? The one where almost 1000 civilians were killed in a day, and buried in a mass grave?
And if I hear one other person exclaim that the US is there for the oil, I think I'm going to SCREAM. Why would we go all the way overseas and invade a country, trigger all this Muslim anger, if all we wanted was their oil? Hell, we could invade Alberta or Venezuela if we really wanted some oil -- and they're in our own hemisphere for crying out loud!
Oh, but the US has frozen 80 billion dollars in Iraqi assets to pay for the war! Well, most of those "assets" were probably in Saddam's name to begin with -- if they're now used to help the Iraqi people I don't have a problem with that.
I'm trying to remember what the world's perspective was when the US bombed Slobovan Milosovich out of Kosovo. He was a man who sanctioned genocide, and if it wasn't for the US leading the way to get rid of him -- would he still be in power? I don't know.
I realize that many people will probably read this post and will disagree with me. That's fine. This wasn't a conclusion that came easy for me. I'm proud of my country. I'm proud that instead of sitting back and letting a dictator abuse his people and squander their earnings in furnishing his palace (rather than improving the lives of his people), my country is holding him accountable for his actions. I'm proud that we're fighting for the Iraqi people -- not to take over their lands and resources -- but fighting so that we can give them BACK to the people to which they belong.
I realize now that it's late and I should probably stop my rant. It's just so hard sometimes, being up here. I feel like I have to keep so much of what I feel and believe kept inside -- Where do I begin?
Maybe now you'll see why I'm so disallusioned with my President and his crony-Administration nowadays. I feel betrayed -- because I trusted him and his intelligence reports when they said we had reason to go to war. Now, I know better. I know it's okay to mistrust the government, and that war isn't the best solution when fighting terrorism. If anything, what's going on over in Iraq two years later has taught us that terrorism begets terrorism.
Today, I appreciate the different perspectives of news I run across -- whether it's the CBC, BBC, LA Times, or other news agencies. We need these perspectives to keep us accountable for our actions and opinions.
Obviously, I'm not that different of a person -- sitting here, two and a half years later. Still, it's rather awkward to read these past thoughts of mine. Some people would argue that living in Canada for the last 3+ years has made me more cynical of my country and its actions. I'd rather say I'm more aware -- and if anything, I appreciate my country and background all the more.
I am still proud of the fact that I'm American -- but that pride doesn't give me any entitlement on freedom and choice of religion, or does it give me the arrogance to push myself and my perspectives onto someone else. I think every American should live out of the country for at least a year, just so you can experience how we're viewed elsewhere in the world. It's a perspective you can't gain until you've experienced it, firsthand. |
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My sis has a sweet post about our relationship over at her blog. Thanks, grrrl. (we've come quite a ways from the dividing-the-room-in-half-with-masking-tape stage we were in when we shared a room, long ago)
As of this weekend, I've booked our tickets home for the Christmas holidays. We'll be gone December 16-27th.
I. can't. wait.
Part of our holidays will be spent in NYC, seeing the city at Christmastide. The other half will be with my parents, in the mountains of Virginia.
Mid-December can't come fast enough for one homesick girl.
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From another email:
"Imagine a world filled with holy listeners." - Joan Chittister |
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In the interest of reviving this space once more, I've decided that this week I'm going to dredge up some older posts from the archives. Sorta akin to what Oprah did one summer, when she showed old episodes from her past.
The first blast from the past comes from June 21, 2004. I was reminded of this post because this weekend Jerry and I watched the satire "Saved!":
Are you down with the G-O-D?
The movie of 2004 that Christians need to check out is not Mel's two-and-a-half hour tome -- but rather Brian Dannelly's satire Saved!.
Good movie! But before I digress into my impressions of it, let's review the definition of satire:
A work that blends a critical attitude with humor and wit as well as with the intention of improving human institutions or humanity. Good satire is not only funny, but thought provoking. Satire is a necessary stylistic weapon that is carefully aimed to inspire social change.
 Saved! is biting in its criticism of Americanized Christianity. It focuses around the lives of students in American Eagle Christian High School -- with a special focus around the life of Mary, an 18 year old in her own dilemma that eventually makes her an outsider pitted against her former "Christian Jewel" friends.
So much of the movie rang true for me, with my background of growing up in a church and youth group. The film shows the classic case of academic Christianity clashing with the realities of the real world. Mandy Moore plays Hilary Faye, the perky, beautiful, prayer-circle-leading antagonist who is clueless when applying her faith to the world around her. She'd rather abduct her best friend for an intervention/exorcism and literally throw a Bible at her -- than take the teachings of the text and apply them in a loving way. When confronted with a schoolmate who's gay, she vehemently prays that God will cleanse him of his despicable ways -- and isolates him rather than accepting him for who he is.
For some Christians that I know, that's an easy trap to fall into. It's easy to be judgmental of another person -- especially when you've got no experiential knowledge to fall back on. What do I mean, exactly? Well, it's easy to say that someone who's gay is willingly "living in sin" and makes a choice to be that way -- when you've never been friends with someone who experiences that. Or that it's easier to be viciously Pro-life -- until you know what it feels like to have an unexpected pregnancy or know someone else in a precarious situation.
In my opinion, more meaningful conversations will be inspired by watching this film than by watching Gibson's The Passion. Churches really should be buying out theatres and letting their members in to see this film -- Though I doubt that'll happen. Instead, I'm sure many preachers will use their pulpits as resources encouraging their congregations to boycott this film -- which will ultimately mean the very people who should be watching this film won't be.
Which supports dear Mr. Swift's comment that "Satire is a sort of glass, wherein beholders do generally discover everybody's face but their own."
Alas. Funny, this review of the film seems more apt now than it did at the time I wrote it.
Stay tuned this week for more blasts from the past -- I'll even pull up some posts where I used to (*gasp*) support my President and his phony war! |
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Hey, thanks for some of those encouraging emails -- you've all reminded me why I love this hobby so much.
This was included in one of them, I love it:
The Paradoxical Commandments
People are illogical, unreasonable, and self-centered.
Love them anyway.
If you do good, people will accuse you of selfish ulterior motives.
Do good anyway.
If you are successful, you will win false friends and true enemies.
Succeed anyway.
The good you do today will be forgotten tomorrow.
Do good anyway.
Honesty and frankness make you vulnerable.
Be honest and frank anyway.
The biggest men and women with the biggest ideas can be shot down by the smallest men and women with the smallest minds.
Think big anyway.
People favor underdogs but follow only top dogs.
Fight for a few underdogs anyway.
What you spend years building may be destroyed overnight.
Build anyway.
People really need help but may attack you if you do help them.
Help people anyway.
Give the world the best you have and you'll get kicked in the teeth.
Give the world the best you have anyway.
(c) Copyright Kent M. Keith 1968, renewed 2001 |
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You go girl. |
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The last week or so has taught me some things about my fellow humans -- particularly what a sordid lot we all are. In various conversations, I've witnessed some grace ... but unfortunately saw more of a lack of it. I'm tired of the game. I'm tired of the holier-than-thous having a louder voice -- whether it's in the political arena back home, in the pulpit across the street, or in the blogosphere around the corner.
I'm tired.
And my heart hurts.
While this space has opened many doors for me, right now my nose hurts from a few too many being slammed on it.
Just as I was going to post this, I ran it by my main proofreader (aka the Mr.), who was a bit alarmed by the defeatist tone of it. Then he read me this passage from The Myth of Certainty by Daniel Taylor:
Conservative Christians have too long been paranoid about the world just beyond our noses. Much of the defensiveness and anger that we direct toward the "secularists" spring more from insecurity and fear than from informed righteousness. This so-called secular world is sometimes not nearly so much a threat to God and his ways, as it is to us and our ways.
And then I remembered a line from one of Margaret Atwood's books, The Handmaid's Tale -- Nolite te bastardes carborundorum (don't let the bastards get you down).
So, I'm doing exactly that. While my heart isn't fully back into it, I'm going to press on. I'm not going to let hypocrites or pedants or sycophants get me down. Once, a long time ago, I made the mistake of confusing God with his representatives on Earth. I know better.
Comments are disabled for a while. If you'd like to comment, feel free to email me -- rbennetch-at-gmail-dot-com. |
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21 St Annual FESTIVAL OF FAITH
Sunday, October 23, 2 pm
St John's Anglican Church
816 Spadina Cresc. E (Spadina Cresc and 23 rd st)
Theme: GROWING IN HARMONY
Prelude: Gregory Schulte (organ)
Welcome: Reg Wickett, Assistant Priest, St. John's Anglican Cathedral
Introduction: Patricia Pavey, President, MultiFaith Saskatoon
Greetings: Mayor Don Atchison
Call to Prayer: Islamic students
Instrumental music........ Lana Quinn, Harp. Baha'i
Hymn...................Choir, St. John's Anglican Cathedral, conducted and accompanied by Gregory Schulte
Dance.........................Lakshmi Yoageeswaran (and others) Hindu
ESSAY---------------(by Daniel K.Laban)..... David Parkinson, Viola; Karen Dawson,Alto; Susanne Kaplan,Soprano; David Kaplan,Piano
Reflection on Silence:.......Saskatoon Quaker Meeting
"Growing in Harmony" (Poem by Kamal Parmar)........Kamal Parmar (Sikh)
There's a Rhythm........from "Spirit Songs" - Rhonda Morai; Landis Maitland-Whitelaw and Karen Scott Barss
(and another song from Spirit Songs tba)
"Love Comin'" (Reggae/Gospel Song).....Oral Fuentes
Honour Song........Kimble Worme (Aboriginal)
Song............The Offering (David Hunter, didgeridoo, etc.)
"Woyaya"............................................MultiFaith Choir, conducted by Wendy Carroll
All are welcome to this free event. Refreshments will be served after the program. For more info call 933-0919. |
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The last little while has convinced me that it's time for another detox. No, I'm not addicted to any illegal substances -- I don't think I'm addicted to anything (besides procrastinating).
This detox is more of a purification-type deal, where I'm going to focus on making myself feel better, physically or otherwise. So, I'll nix the processed foods, animal products, dairy, refined sugars, and caffeine for a little while -- and focus more on whole grains, soups, fruits and veggies, and other leafy objects. I hope that'll clear my body and head of what's clouding me.
I'm also going to detox (or unplug) from the world for a little while. My blog is going to be silent, and I'm going to hide out for a bit in the cave of our basement. I've got piles of work to do, so I'll be occupied enough. I just need a break from people, before I turn too misanthropic.
Posting shall resume once I'm over it, or in case we go to war with Iran. |
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Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed people can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Mead
My tenth-grade English teacher had a poster of this statement on her classroom wall -- now, I've got a patch on my bulletin board with the same saying. It's one of my favorite quotes, because I hold it to be very true.
Plus it's also the first thing that comes to my mind when I think about last night's Freehouse on making poverty history -- on a local and global scale. I'm always amazed at how these events come together, from the planning conversations to the actual execution. It's always interesting to watch the changes from a blank canvas of an unfamiliar room to a transformed space of reflection and learning -- it's quite something to behold.
There's a whole list of resources over at the Freehouse's site which explain much of what we discussed last night. I was moved by the experience of it all -- from the planning of my little station on Fair Trade merchandise to meeting new people to deciding to show my solidarity for the movement by wearing a little white bracelet.
Change isn't always evoked by radical social change at a legislative or large-scale effort -- many times it begins by a group of friends gathering together and deciding to work toward a common goal. Last night, I felt like I was a part of a movement that is bigger than myself -- and that I was truly part of a global church.
The next Freehouse is November 20th, and we'll be discussing justice versus pacifism -- and how we should react to war and other injustices that are going on around us. |
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per·spec·tive
Relief Officials Say Quake Toll May Hit 100,000
By Carol J. Williams
Times Staff Writer
12:58 PM PDT, October 17, 2005
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Relief officials and local government leaders in earthquake-devastated northern Pakistan have reported dramatically higher death tolls from the Oct. 8 temblor, with figures as high as 100,000 from those best positioned to assess the outcome, the army's chief spokesman said today.
While the government has decided against revising its official estimate of 38,000 killed until completion of a survey, it acknowledged that the toll is likely to be much higher, said Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan.
The army spokesman said a revised official figure was pending completion of a thorough review ordered by the federal relief coordinator, Maj. Gen. Farooq Ahmed Khan.
The government was reluctant to validate the disturbing rise in field estimates because of their implications for compensation to victims, Sultan said.
But he confirmed that a trusted philanthropist reassessing casualties from the 7.6-magnitude quake estimated the number killed to be around 100,000. That report came from Abdul Saddar Edhi, a "widely respected and selfless person" whose namesake foundation has been leading relief efforts, Sultan said.
A spokesman for the regional governor of Pakistani-controlled Kashmir, Abdul Khaliq Wasi, told reporters in shattered Muzaffarabad that 40,000 were confirmed dead in his territory alone, which added to the deaths in neighboring North West Frontier province and Indian-controlled Kashmir put the toll at more than 54,000.
In Islamabad, a government official said he counted about 80,000 dead after being informed by humanitarian scouts of the repeated instances of entire villages being discovered buried under the rubble.
"My personal assessment, after having traveled extensively in the area, is 80,000, plus or minus," said the official, who did not want to be named because of the government's policy of awaiting the survey results before releasing updated figures.
Adnan Asdar, a volunteer coordinating surgeries and medical evacuations in Muzaffarabad, said he calculated that at least 75,000 have died and that the toll could swell further unless the homeless are provided adequate shelter before winter sets in. Snow has already begun dusting the Himalayan foothills where the quake unleashed its most destructive power.
A driving rain that had grounded the humanitarian airlift a day earlier ceased today, allowing life-saving air drops to remote mountain hamlets to resume and dozens of injured to be flown out of isolated villages for medical treatment. More than 1,200 sorties were flown by the international fleet of 60 choppers aiding victims, said Khan, the relief coordinator.
But those overseeing the daunting challenge of reaching settlements cut off by landslides or altitudes so high that helicopters can't operate safely concede that as much as 20% of the territory ravaged by the earthquake has yet to be delivered any shelter, sustenance or medical care.
"I don't know how much of a dent we put in that today, but we had a lot of activity," said Geoffrey Krassy, a U.S. diplomat usually involved with anti-narcotics operations who has been seconded to the quake relief mission. He estimated that at least 20 tons of food, medicine and shelter had been delivered today by the American helicopters alone.
Several thousand injured survivors were believed to be stranded in mountain villages. Humanitarian relief workers have warned that many will die of infections like gangrene unless they are treated soon.
Those healthy enough to make the trek down steep goat tracks have taken to carrying the injured over the rugged terrain to the main relief points, including Muzaffarabad and Balakot, in hopes of getting them treated at field hospitals. There are now 30 such hospitals operating in the quake zone that are capable of minor surgeries, the relief commissioner said.
Despairing of the obstacles preventing vehicle access, some aid groups have begun using backpackers and mules to bring tents, blankets, food and medicine to highland settlements.
With the number made homeless by the quake now estimated by the United Nations at 3 million, Pakistani authorities repeated a global appeal for more tents as shelter. Relief commissioner Khan said 250,000 tents were needed, but only 33,000 have been mustered so far.
In an article today, The Nation newspaper reported that Lahore and Karachi tent-making factories have been unable to step up production because of a lag in materials, and that costs have shot up at least 33% because of the pressure being applied to accelerate output. The two main producers turn out about 300 tents a day.
Nine days after the earthquake, not all of the news was grim. Authorities claimed that at least 70% of surviving structures in Muzaffarabad had power restored today, although few lights were visible beyond the main relief compounds.
Health Minister Mohammad Naseer Khan said vaccination squads were being deployed and that no epidemics had yet hit the region despite a dearth of clean water. Most survivors crowded together in leaky, unheated tents, he said.
Two U.S. Navy vessels that were docked at Karachi began offloading heavy equipment for transport to the quake area. The earthmovers and other machinery were sent to clear roads so aid convoys could reach deeper into the ruined area with bigger relief loads. A U.S. Army MASH unit was also en route from Germany.
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One of the best 50¢ that I've spent in a while.
Classic movie -- complete with young John & Joan Cusacks, synethesized tunes, big hair, and teen angst. I don't think I've ever watched it in its uncensored form -- usually it is on TV and it's all cut up.
For this trip down memory lane I thank you, John Hughes!
(rumor has it that there's a "32 Candles" in the works, where the characters reunite years later -- then again, there's been rumors of a "Breakfast Club" reunion for years, too.) |
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Busy, busy weekend.
Good time of connecting with friends -- new, old, or otherwise (you know who you are).
Freehouse tonight was inspiring, in many good ways. I'm still letting some of what happened tonight sink in. I'll debrief more tomorrow, maybe.
My week looks to be looming, and it's only a quarter to 12 on Sunday night.
More later, g'night. |
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I love that poster for fair trade -- found it here.
I'm in the middle of researching stuff for the next Freehouse, which is this Sunday night at 7pm. The theme for the night is "Exploring a Glocal Faith" and we'll be addressing the issue of poverty (and what we can do about it) on both a local and global scale. Should be an interesting night.
Tomorrow starts a 3-day weekend for the Mr. and me. We're heading off to Ten Thousand Villages to pick up some fair trade stuff for Sunday (tea, coffee, and maybe some other goodies).
Then on Saturday and half of Sunday, we're off to connect with some of our favorite people in Prince Albert. (him, her, him, her, and her. Blogging geeks all -- but also good friends.) Sunday morning we'll spend here, and then we'll run back to Saskatoon for Freehouse that night.
And, somehow in the midst of all this, I need to finish grading assignments, lesson-plan, and consider some writing. (ha!)
Have a good weekend everyone. See y'all on Sunday night. |
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Today's the start of the annual CFUW book sale. I look forward to this sale each fall -- and this year's literary conquests are quite the collection. I'm not exactly sure where we'll put them ... but I'm happy to support such a great cause, and of course, I'm always happy to add more to my (already burdened) bookshelves.
Today's trip had a couple of adventures, in addition to the quest for new reading material. As I was perusing the Americana section (oddly deserted) -- a creepy old man™ started to flirt with me. A bit uncomfortable, but I was eventually able to feign him off. What's even more disturbing about this episode is that my Mr. was watching from across the room and didn't come to my rescue! (some knight!)
(then again, he later asked me what I would have done if some creepy old lady™ started flirting with him -- and I said I would have probably watched and laughed like crazy.)
The other interesting instance happened while we finished going through the religious/ inspirational section. I made a comment to the Mr. (rather loudly) that I was alarmed at the amount of Dobson books available for purchase. As we left that section, a mousy man asked me where I had found these books by the famed child shrink/wannabe politico. I pointed, and left the room. Later, Jerry insisted that this man was subtly trying to teach me a lesson about defaming the infamous doctor. However -- I don't think he was that capable of such subtlety, and it'll take more than nuances to keep me from speaking out against dear James.
But -- back to the books! Every book is a buck, unless it's marked differently. The two of us brought our big burlap grocery bags, and spent around 43 dollars, total.
The list:
Movies:
- The Road to Perdition
- Rain Man
- Beloved
- Sixteen Candles
- & The Breakfast Club
His books:
- Pascal, Pensees
- Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls
- The Essential Works of Marxism
- D.H. Lawrence, The Plumed Serpent
- Matthew Arnold, Culture & Anarchy
- Ed. Joseph F. Tuso, Beowulf
- Ed. Richard P. Dennish and Edwin P. Moldof, The Search for Meaning
- William Golding, The Inheritors
- Aldous Huxley, Brave New World Revisited
- Ivan Turgenev, Fathers and Sons
- Charles Dickens, Oliver Twist
My books:
- Mary Daly, Gyn/Ecology: The Metaethics of Radical Feminism
- George Barna, Boiling Pont: Monitoring Cultural Shifts in the 21st Century
- Pierre Berton, Why We Act Like Canadians: A Personal Exploration of our National Character
- Dale Carnegie, The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking
- The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Quotations
- Ed. Martin Palmer, Anne Nash, and Ivan Hattingh, Faith and Nature: Our Relationship with the Natural World Explored through Sacred Literature
- Dr. Ala'eddin Kharofa, Islam: The Practical Religion
- John G. Diefenbaker, One Canada: Memoirs (How can I live in Saskatchewan and not know about Dief?)
- For Dummies: Personal Finance for Canadians (I know about US finances, but RRSPs, etc. confuse the heck outta me)
- Pierre Berton, The Comfortable Pew: A Critical Look at the Church in the New Age
- G. Vermes, The Dead Sea Scrolls in English
- Mary Bader Papa, Christian Feminism: Completing the Subtotal Woman
- Leslie D. Weatherhead, The Christian Agnostic
- Stephen D. Moore, God's Beauty Parlor and Other Queer Spaces in and Around the Bible
- Carl Berstein and Bob Woodward, All the President's Men
- Jay David Bolter, Writing Space: The Computer, Hypertext, and the History of Writing
- and Robert F. Kennedy, Thirteen Days: A Memoir of the Cuban Missle Crisis
And there's two mystery books I'm giving to him and his bride. Not a bad haul.
The sale is at 701 Cynthia, right off Ave C & Circle Drive. It runs until Sunday. Go support scholarships for women and buy books! |
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Oh no. Wayne Booth passed away on October 10th. I had just taught his essay "The Rhetorical Stance" a couple weeks ago -- unfortunately, I didn't do such a swell job of it. My supervisor said it was because I was "too loyal" to the material, and didn't aim my lesson at my students' level. It would have been a brilliant lesson for fellow rhetoricians -- but for 2nd & 3rd year engineering students, not so much.
Booth was 84, and leaves behind quite a canon of work. (incidentially, many of the 20th century great rhetoricians had "B" last names -- Wayne Booth, Kenneth Burke, Lloyd Bitzer ... soon to be Becky Bennetch?) |
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Women's health fuelling poverty --
Tackling female health would not only save millions of lives but reduce global poverty, experts say.
The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) says 99% of maternal deaths are preventable yet every minute a woman dies from pregnancy-related causes.
This loss impacts not only on the family and society, but also on the economy, its latest report says.
UNFPA says investment in reproductive health and gender equality could spur growth and sustainable development.
[...] Executive director of UNFPA Thoraya Obaid said: "The problem is implementation and monitoring implementation.
"You have to spend more on healthcare and on looking after women.
"If women are healthy then they can jump start the life of their family and the economy."
She called for the "utterly immoral" gap between the reproductive health of rich and poor women to be closed.
"In no other area of health are the disparities between rich and poor so wide and the tragic consequences so utterly immoral," she told a news conference at the Foreign Press Association in London to launch a population report . |
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"Mysticism is for those who can't do the math." (Stephen Hawking)
Just got home from attending a seminar at STM on mysticism. Interesting discussions on various saints and scholars of the Catholic faith, in addition to a paper on the federated/affiliated Catholic colleges of Canada. Most of the discussions focused on medieval mystics -- which made me think, who would be considered a contemporary mystic?
If I wasn't already mired in a Communication/Rhetoric program, I'd be SO tempted to take on a religious studies degree at STM.
Tonight I'm going to lecture by a Muslim scholar entitled, "When We Disagree About God Can We Talk With One Another?" Should be interesting.
I like hearing different viewpoints on things religious -- and admittedly, I have more patience with people outside my belief system than I do for the fundamentalist/intolerant people within.
Just the other day I was researching different denominations and their doctrinal statements. I started with Mennonites, mainly because all of my extended family (on his side) are Mennonite -- and I like seeing what I'm up against!
Interesting differences between the two sides -- Mennonite Brethern versus MCC (Mennonite Church of Canada -- formerly General Conference). One denomination has explicit pamphlets that outline their perspective on several intimate areas of life -- while another summarizes most of these issues in a single statement on the church's relation to government and society. I favor the latter, not surprisingly.
I have issues with alot of "doctrine." I struggle with summarily formed statements that work to ostracize believers from non-believers -- often by using statements of piety and separation. I also resent the way the Bible is often used as the end-all answer to many issues facing us today -- especially considering the ways the Bible has been misused in the past (and I'm thinking of those passages that have been used to subjugate women, condone slavery, and deny interracial marriages).
There's more to be said, but I think I'll let these issues mull a bit longer in my mind. Flame away or agree with me in the comments below. |
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Hallelujah, he's back!
Jerry said, "just when I was getting used to the American news sensationalism" -- the news drought is finally over in the Bennetch/Peters household.
UPDATE: Referencing the lockout -- "Thanks for waiting." |
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Bumpersticker spotted at Tim Hortons this morning:
Welcome to Saskatoon. Now go home. (heh) |
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Jordon's got some good discussion over at his place over the whole Dobson gay-marriage slippery-slope issue. I particularly liked this comment:
thanks Jordon, for drawing our attention to this. It links back to something I blogged about last May - about how Dobson's view on family seems to have little in common with Jesus' view on family. It's essential to understand the role of anxiety in this discussion. Somehow gay marriage strikes a deep chord of fear in many Christians = perhaps the same chord that was struck when the apostles came to understand that the experience of following Christ was not limited to Jews, that even the goyim could be Christian. If that was the case, what then of the covenant, the promises, the history. . . this kind of freethinking could be very dangerous. And of course it was non-scriptural.
Praise God that our ancestors were not afraid to explore new dimensions of God's love, dimensions once impossible to imagine. Because of their courage, their faith, Dan, YKher, theo-speak and I can all be part of this wonderful upside-down kingdom of God - and argue about whether a gay couple should be able to commit their lives to one another in the covenant of marriage.
(my emphasis & the author's blog is here)
Yes! This comment has got me thinking, and I think it's given me some extra ammunition in my argument toolbox. |
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I am just fighting going to work right now. Theoretically, I should be lesson planning, marking, thesis-izing, or reading.
Instead, I just finished watching this week's show, and via The Movie Blog, I found the most amusing (ever!) trailer of a film -- Kubrick's The Shining as romantic comedy. Genius.
(there's also horror-flick of Titanic and West Side Story, a la 28 Days Later.)
Distract yourself. |
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Let's be clear: Mr. Bush is proposing to use the first veto of his presidency on a defense bill needed to fund military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan so that he can preserve the prerogative to subject detainees to cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment. In effect, he threatens to declare to the world his administration's moral bankruptcy.
I'm still trying to see how this administration can qualify this veto -- and its implications on the morality this President has no trouble espousing, but difficulty applying to real-life scenarios.
Who isn't against torture? |
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Thanksgiving. This marks the 4th time I've celebrated the holiday in October, and I'm admittedly getting used to it. (though part of me still misses the November holiday -- mainly because once Thanksgiving is over then, the Christmas holiday season begins)
This year I was lucky enough to have two turkey dinners -- one with some good friends and then another with my new extended family. Here are the highlights:
- much good food -- plus I was able to introduce his family to yams with brown sugar & pecans.
- many conversations (and usually all at once)
- I actually knew something he didn't
- lots of playing with the nieces and nephews -- I never tire of hearing "Auntie Becky, watch this!"
- more good food that she made
- baking 2 apple pies in as many days
- amazing Autumn weather (now I really sound Canadian, talking about the weather)
- leftovers!
- watching these two verbally duke it out
- CFL football & hockey
- of course, the food
- showing off the fork trick
- feeling full and surrounded by people that actually like you
I'm really jealous of people that are near (geographically-speaking) to their families when these times of the year come around.
As of right now, my family is spread all over -- sis and brother are in New York state (one outside of NYC & another in Brooklyn), mom is in the mountains of Virginia, dad's in mountains of Haiti, and I'm out west in the prairies of Saskatchewan. It's been an embarrassingly long time since we were all together in the same house.
Hopefully that'll have changed by Christmas. |
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| You Are Apple Cider | 
Smooth and comforting. But downright nasty when cold. |
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This week's Real Time with Bill Maher was really good. The panel (Andrew Sullivan, Ben Affleck, and Salman Rushdie) held their own -- and there was an interview with Ann Coulter that was quite amusing, especially when she dummied up about the connection of poverty and crime rates.
The quote that stood out most to me was Andrew Sullivan's defense of "people of faith:"
People of faith are not talking about what is known, they're talking about what is not known -- what we cannot know. And genuine people of faith are not going to make these asinine statements like Franklin Graham, or these nutcases that you point out.
They're going to be humble in front of God. They're going to recognize that there are some things that science cannot tell you -- the meaning of the universe, the point of our lives, what morality is, what happens to us after death, how we should treat our fellow human beings -- those questions, I think in true people of faith who don't seek to impose it on other people, are just trying to live their lives in a good way.
And by demonizing all people of faith, what you do is you play into the hands of these fundamentalists. The United States is based on a separation of church and state, and that's why religion is so strong in this country. The Republican party has betrayed that tradition -- and you're right to call them on it -- but don't, don't conflate that with the greatness of many religions, and the many people of faith. But the real kicker was when Maher said "I love Jesus, I just don't like the Christians who don't believe in what he says." |
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Dobson demonstrates yet again why he's such an ass (by simply opening his mouth!) -- here's one of his slippery slope arguments on same-sex marriage.
For more of these conservative nut-job distractions, check out Media Matters. |
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Thanksgiving is on Monday, and I've been craving some sweet potatoes. I went to the store today to pick some up to make for (his) big family gathering -- and there were no sweet potatoes to be found. Instead, I picked up some gargantuan yams. Silly me thought they were nearly the same thing -- alas, they're not. I'm so disallusioned!
- A helpful chart, outlining the many differences
- The Congo Cookbook's explanation for the confusing of the two names:
Yams and sweet potatoes (Ipomoea batatas) are unrelated and cannot always be used interchangably, despite the fact that sweet potatoes have been called yams for centuries in North America, begining when enslaved Africans applied their West African word nyami to the North American sweet potato that resembled their African yam. Nyami (or nyana) became yam in English, igname in French and ñame in Spanish. I suppose I'll have to wait til December to get some real sweet potatoes! |
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That's my sister (ranting about the "state" of purgatory she's in):
If I could growl right now, I sure would. I would growl loud enough to wake my neighbors here at 4:30 in the morning - those neighbors who shrink away from me like I am a leper because that is the NY way. I would growl loud enough to wake Tim's boss and have him fear the wrath of Suzy. I would growl loud and strong so that career opportunities would blossom like flowers in the respect and awe of my fearsome voice. And my voice would resonate in the state of NY, forcing all who come into my path to be aware that I will not be a victim.
Love it. |
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Shooting the Truth
Documentary filmmakers and photojournalists know that Born Into Brothels violates a fundamental professional principle: be a fly on the wall. Documentarians of the cinéma-vérité school learn early not to upset the order – or even better, the chaos – but only to record it. “That’s bullshit,” says Kauffman in a stage whisper. 
“I don’t pay attention to rules in my own work and it’s not how I taught the kids,” says Briski. “There are rules like: Don’t point the camera right into the sun, but why not? Breaking rules is part of being free and open. There were these amazing kids with so much talent and wisdom and humour and I was part of the story. I was involved in their lives. Our stories were intertwined, our karma was intertwined and that’s the truth. Any other kind of film would have been artificial."
We just finished watching the documentary Born into Brothels -- powerful film. I think I'm still processing what I heard and saw. The wisdom these little kids had -- despite the situation and surroundings they're in ... I'm humbled. (and that doesn't come easy)
The filmmaker made a foundation out of her interactions with the kids, Kids with Cameras. On the site they've got the pictures from the film, updates on the kids, and a place to order the soundtrack (which we just did). They've launched similar Kids with Camera campaigns in Cairo, Haiti, and Jerusalem.
The film won the Best Documentary Oscar for 2004 -- and it's well worth it. |
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DEAR ABBY: From time to time, you tell young women who think they might be pregnant and are afraid to tell their parents, to do so. I usually do not write letters like this, but I need to express my personal experience. I am a minister. Several years ago, I worked for Planned Parenthood and we had a young girl -- around 13 years of age -- test positive for pregnancy. We urged her to tell her parents, but she kept refusing, insisting, "Dad will kill me!" Of course, we knew better, and finally convinced her that the best thing was to tell her parents, have the baby, and get on with her life. Her father beat her so badly that she was in the hospital for more than a month. She lost the baby because of the beating and ended up in foster care. I will never again tell a young person that her parents will not go crazy, and I don't think you should do that either. Thanks, Abby. I enjoy your column. -- REGRETFUL IN FLORIDA DEAR REGRETFUL: Thank you for the warning. Even though we wish all teenagers could disclose to their parents, as your letter illustrates, it is a sad reality that some of them cannot. And we, who care about young people, have to first be concerned with their safety. Although most young girls do involve their families, there will always be some who are unable to do so. For that reason, I do not believe that parental notification should be mandated by law. And because sex education is no longer taught in as many states as it had been before, I strongly urge parents to begin talking to their children early about the facts of life and their personal value systems, in order to create a safe and comfortable environment should a crisis occur.
via Dr. B
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Thanks to the cheap used books at Amazon.ca, we're now the proud owners of The Calvin Becker triology by Frank Schaeffer (Frances' considerably-less scary son).
The first book in the series is Portofino. The description:
Calvin, the irrepressibly endearing hero of Frank Schaeffer’s Calvin Becker Trilogy, is the son of a missionary family, and their trip to Portofino is the highlight of his year. But even in the seductive Italian summer, the Beckers can’t really relax. Calvin’s father could slip into a Bad Mood and start hurling potted plants at any time. His mother has an embarrassing habit of trying to convert “pagans” on the beach. And his sister Janet has a ski sweater and a miniature Bible in her luggage, just in case the Russians invade and send them to Siberia. His dad says everything is part of God’s plan. But this summer, Calvin has some plans of his own . . . Jerry & I are starting it tonight -- looks to be a welcoming distraction! |
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| more hard work |
more hard work
Originally uploaded by Momma B.
Speaking of which, my dad left today to spend two weeks working with a medical/surgical team in Haiti.
I went with him in 1996, because it was a family tradition that each of us kids spent 2+ weeks down there during our senior year of high school. My parents thought it was important to teach us kids to give back to others (even in difficult situations), especially after all that we'd been given. When I went to Haiti ten years ago, it was the poorest country in our hemisphere. Today, it's still one of the poorest -- and the political unrest/unraveling has not helped it much.
So, if you think of it, think of my dad who'll be down there for the next couple weeks. I know he's so excited to be going, and that he'll make a huge difference in people's lives -- but I also know it'll be difficult for my mom while he's away. And I'll be a little nervous considering the political situation that's simmering while he's down there. |
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 The next Worship Freehouse will be Sunday, October 16th at 7:00 p.m. at Faith Baptist Church :: 1601 Munroe Ave. S. (3rd Street and Munroe Avenue - Just three blocks off of 8th Street)
As always, admission is free.
The theme for the next three Freehouse's will be "Exploring a Global Faith" (pssst, that's gloBal, Jordon, not gloCal) and on October 16th we will be looking at global and local poverty and our response to it. There will be some corporate worship, time for reflection, interactive stations, and fair trade beverages. If you want to help, fire off an e-mail to thefreehouse@gmail.com.
"Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity. It is an act of justice. It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life. While poverty persists, there is no true freedom." - Nelson Mandela
Jesus came bringing good news to the poor. But consider this...
* 3 billion people, almost one-half of the world's population, live on less than $2 a day
* 1.2 billion people live in extreme poverty, on less than $1 a day.
* 30,000 children under 5 die every day from preventable and treatable poverty-related illnesses.
* nearly 1 in 6 Canadian children and more than 1 in 6 U.S. children live below the poverty level.
* the richest 5 percent receive 114 times the income of the poorest 5 percent.
The Make Poverty History campaign urges Canadian and world leaders to take action on eliminating global and local poverty. It assumes that changes are needed in the economic systems and structures that perpetuate inequality and injustice.
But change also needs to happen in the lives of individual people. Christians especially need to demonstrate by their own lifestyles that they are committed to a world built on justice and fairness. |
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The world just officially became a better place for us (financially speaking).
We got our full damage deposit back from our old place (which was in doubt, considering the lack of credibility shown by our old landlord) -- AND, my student loan finally came in. Whew, one less thing to be in limbo over.
Now back to your regularly scheduled programming. |
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Wow, Congress did something right -- for once:
Delivering a rare wartime slap at Pentagon authority and President Bush, the GOP-controlled Senate voted 90-9 on Wednesday to back an amendment that would prohibit the use of ''cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment'' against anyone in U.S. government custody, regardless of where they are held. |
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from KILL WILL: The Rough Magic of Quentin Tarantino
by Eric David
So how does our faith fit into all this? Where is the morality of this pomo morality play? What does the Vice character give us in this revenge tale? Is God even involved in this film? In volume 1 of Kill Bill, when Beatrix wakes from the coma that Bill induced by shooting her in the head during her wedding dress-rehearsal; when she realizes all her friends and the man she intended to marry were dead; when she realizes that the peaceful life she had set up for herself had been ripped away from her; when she thinks that her baby by Bill is also dead, she declares with the authority of an Old Testament prophet: "When fortune smiles on something as violent and ugly as revenge, it seems proof like no other, that, not only God exists -- you're doing his will." Beatrix is no Mother Theresa, that's for sure. She isn't even a female Hamlet, really: she's more like the yin to Charles Bronson's yang, and with a kung-fu grip no less; a femme fatale who goes first maternal and then postal, enacting all the cursing psalms upon her enemies one-by-one until, in the end, she does kill Bill . But, unlike most action movies, Kill Bill ends not with a bang, but a whisper. Beatrix strikes Bill in the chest with an ancient Five-Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique, learned from her cruel master, Pei Mei, played by Chinese martial arts movie legend, Gordon Liu. How can we condone this as people of faith? What do we have to learn from a director who has said "Movies are my religion and God is my patron"? Then again, do we have a right to cast stones being people of a Book that contains violence which, if depicted in full, would be just as disturbing as any of Tarantino's movies, if not more so? Mel Gibson's The Passion of the Christ is a case in point. The movie cannot be ignored, if only because it represents one of the foremost cultural events to unite Protestants and Catholics in centuries. But Tarantino, as always, has his own take on Gibson's movie: I loved it. I'll tell you why. I think it actually is one of the most brilliant visual storytelling movies I've seen since the talkies - as far as telling a story via pictures. So much so that when I was watching this movie, I turned to a friend and said, "This is such a Herculean leap of Mel Gibson's talent. I think divine intervention might be part of it." I cannot believe that Mel Gibson directed it. Not personally Mel Gibson - I mean, "Braveheart" was great. I mean, I can't believe any actor made that movie. This is like the most visual movie by an actor since Charles Laughton made "The Night of the Hunter". No, this is 15 times more visual than that. It has the power of a silent movie. And I was amazed by the fact that it was able to mix all these different tones. At first, this is going to be the most realistic version of the Jesus story - you have to decipher the Latin and Aramaic. Then it throws that away at a certain point and gives you this grandiose religious image. Goddamn, that's good direction! It is pretty violent, I must say. At a certain point, it was like a Takashi Miike film. It got so fucked up it was funny. At one point, my friend and I, we just started laughing. I was into the seriousness of the story, of course, but in the crucifixion scene, when they turned the cross over, you had to laugh. Not exactly Billy Graham's perspective, but maybe closer to what many non-Christians were thinking when they saw it. [...]
So we return to the question: how can we as people of faith in a God of love cheer Beatrix on in her murderous quest? Isn't revenge the Lord's? Didn't he sayeth so Himself? Didn't Jesus rescind an eye for an eye? It would all have been so much easier if she had known her daughter was alive as she was taking revenge. Then she would be the shepherd, out to find the lost sheep. But no, she is avenging the death of her fiancée, her friends and, especially, her daughter. The issue is far from black-and-white. As Bill's low-life brother Budd (played with a grim nihilism by Michael Madsen) puts it, "That woman deserves her revenge... and we deserve to die…. Ha! But then again, so does she." And she nearly does. She is shot with rock salt, buried alive, and, as James Christopher put it, "takes more hits than Jim Caviezel in The Passion of the Christ."
A must read for Tarantino fans -- a good article combining three of my favorite areas: pop culture, film theory, and religion.
Read it here. |
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Us
Originally uploaded by becky b.. Looking over our pictures we took today, we came across this one.
Me: Oh look honey, you have a pin-head.
Him: Oh yeah? You look like Chewbacca.
True love. |
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So it's coming to this?
The Booman Tribune reports that Republicans in Indiana are drafting legislation that would make marriage a requirement for motherhood and would include criminal penalties for unmarried women who become pregnant. According to a draft of the recommended change in state law, every woman in Indiana seeking to become a mother through assisted reproduction therapy such as in vitro fertilization, sperm donation, and egg donation, must first file for a "petition for parentage" in their local county probate court. Only women who are married will be considered for the "gestational certificate" that must be presented to any doctor who facilitates the pregnancy. Further, the "gestational certificate" will only be given to married couples that successfully complete the same screening process currently required by law of adoptive parents.
Via Feministing.
When asked specifically if she believes marriage should be a requirement for motherhood, and if that is part of the bill's intention, Sen. Miller responded, "Yes. Yes, I do." Of course, if you're gay and want to have a baby -- well, then you're just out of luck.
It's statements (and mentalities) like these that nearly kept me from getting married -- I don't need validation from my government or church that approves of the committment that already exists within my relationship.
Reading stories like these make the world seem a little too brave, in the Huxley definition of the word. |
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Mark thine calendars:
- Christian Perspectives: Experience & Knowledge of God -- Panel Discussion featuring:
Dr. Carl Still: “Scholastic Journeys to God”
Dr. Tom Deutscher: “Robert Bellarmine’s Stairway to Heaven”
Dr. George Smith, csb: “An historical Overview of Spirituality in Canadian Catholic Higher Education”
October 12, 2005, at 3:30 pm
Room 344b, St. Thomas More College
All are welcome.
Reception will follow in room 344a and
- When We Disagree About God Can We Talk With One Another? -- Guest Speaker: Dr. Stuart Brown.
Weds. October 12 at 7:30 p.m.
Arts 214 (formerly Place Riel Theatre)
Dr. Brown is the Director of the Canadian Centre of Ecumenism in Montreal. An Islamic Scholar, he has lived and worked in several countries around the world and has a broad range of experience in ecumenical and inter-faith dialogues. Dr. Brown was the Program Secretary for Christian Muslim Relations at the World Council of Churches in Geneva and General Secretary of the Canadian Council of Churches. Dr. Brown's presentation will be followed by 3 short responses and refreshments. Cosponsored with the Department of Religious Studies & the Prairie Centre of Ecumenism.
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More examples of mock-Biblezines here -- including "Rage: The Angry Parts of the New Testament for Men" and "Hen: The Bible for Biker Grandmas."
Hilarious! Which reminds me, isn't there some Biblezine in my life that I'm supposed to be researching/writing about? It's been a little too long since I've dusted off that trusty laptop, I'm afraid.
(thanks, Darryl for the laugh & distraction!) |
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Top Ten Signs Your Supreme Court Pick Isn't Qualified 10. "Lost 10 grand yesterday in the 'case' of Jets vs. Ravens" 9. "Spends most of her time trying to fit the gavel into her mouth" 8. "Her legal mentor: Oliver Wendell Redenbacher" 7. "Asks courtroom stenographer to, 'Quit that annoying tapping!'" 6. "Instead of Constitutional law books, consults set of 'Garfield' paperbacks" 5. "Keeps shouting, 'When does mama get to hang somebody?!'" 4. "When Scalia walks by, she pretends to cough and says, 'Rogaine'" 3. "Authored the book: 'I'm Not Qualified to be a Supreme Court Justice'" 2. "The closest thing to courtroom experience was being an extra on 'Matlock'" 1. "Glowing letter of recommendation from former FEMA director Michael Brown" |
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Fatuous observation of the day: My choice of shoe often corresponds to my outlook/attitude.
For example, when I'm wearing sandals, I'm presumably in a laid-back, lounging type of mood -- willing to scuff around, without any set schedule. When I'm stuck wearing "grown-up"ish shoes, I'm usually teaching and in a professional context, and I must announce my presence by making clicking noises while walking down the hallway. If I'm wearing slippers, then I'm in a pajama/lazy mood at home and when I'm wearing sneakers, I'm usually on the move.
Lately my choice of footwear has been boots. Black, (somewhat) clunky, combat boots. The question is, what does this signify -- concerning my mindset of late? |
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I'm sure you all have heard by now that Bushie has nominated another one of his buddies for a top position in government -- but rather than getting a horseshow judge to lead a disaster response agency, this time, he's appointing a Supreme Court Justice. Let no one accuse him of cronyism, despite the fact she's got no judical experience and was his personal lawyer and secretary for the last few years.
In 1996, Bush called her a pit bull in size 6 shoes. "When it comes to a cross-examination, she can fillet better than Mrs. Paul," he said on another occasion, referring to a frozen fish company. Nice. She should definitely be appointed to our highest court of the land, for a lifetime appointment.
Make sure you check out her blog. From my favorite entry:
I know, it's a little late for lunch (it's not brunch, it's, what, linner? lunper?)--but honestly, I didn't even realize how hungry I was until it arrived...
 Guess why this salad tastes super good today? Because I'm gonna be on the Supreme Court!
Heh. |
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I'm it -- at least in terms of the latest blogging meme:
1. Go into your archive.
2. Find your 23rd post.
3. Find the fifth sentence (or closest to).
4. Post the text of the sentence in your blog along with these instructions.
5. Tag five other people to do the same.
This one was from waaaaay back, but seems to reflect a recurrent theme:
Ah, the joys of insommnia! So, there ya go -- still got the insommnia occasionally these days, but now I've got a cute boy that'll stay up late with me. So, it's all good.
My tagged (or one kickass grrrl roll call): Ril, Ang, Wendy, 'Neen, and my momma. |
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| Tomorrow marks my first day of volunteering for a Brownie troop with the Girl Guides. When I talked to the regional coordinator, she asked me if I was "up for a challenge." I'm sure you all can guess my response. So, my first troop is going to be an inner-city one, and I'm very excited. |
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