Autumn Meme etc.

I found this meme on the blog The Kitchen Door [thanks Charlotte for the link!] I love her "Prayer Request Wednesday" feature - check it out! Anyways, to the meme:

1. Share a Fall memory.
Of course jumping in a pile of leaves that my dad raked. Walking outside in the crisp air. Beautiful blue skies, orange leaves blowing in the breeze. Apple picking and eating. Waking up warm and cozy in bed.

2. Your favorite Fall clothes--(past or present)?
Warm sweaters. A gift from a friend of hand-me-down oxblood leather boots that go great with all my plaid skirts. Woolly tights.

3. Share a campfire story, song, experience...etc.
Not really a campfire song, but my college has a tradition of singing Greek hymns outside in candlelight in November. It's beautiful and haunting and amazing.

4. What is your favorite thing about this time of year?
I used to hate this time of year because I would always catch a cold that would last all winter. And I hated being cold all winter, with the snow and dreariness and all. But I have come to really appreciate fall for the beautiful season that it is. The colors and crispness of it all is overwhelming some days. In my household, everyone but me has their birthday in the fall, so it makes it a time of celebration. Plus we host Thanksgiving, and who doesn't love Halloween? I also think All Soul's Day is one of the most beautiful ideas out there, and so I try to create a WASPified Dia de los Muertos, if you can picture that. I plan to take the photos of the family members that have died and put them on the dining room table w/candles and then cook a big Mexican feast. Yummy.

5. What changes are you anticipating in your life, your church, family...whatever...as the season changes and winter approaches?
I am considering what becoming a chaplain would mean for me. How I would do it, how much schooling I would need, how I would do it w/my current life situation, etc. While I remember that my daughters are growing each and every day. I don't want to let that slip by in a cloud of busyness - where I don't recognize their awesomeness. [I didn't sign up for Moxie's Release the Yelling class, but hope to when I have more time/less insanity in my schedule.....]


Bonus: What food says "AUTUMN" at your house? Recipes always appreciated.
Pumpkin pie. I use the recipe on the Libby's can. It's the best.

* 3/4 cup granulated sugar
* 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
* 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
* 2 large eggs
* 1 can (15 oz.) LIBBY'S® 100% Pure Pumpkin
* 1 can (12 fl. oz.) NESTLÉ® CARNATION® Evaporated Milk
* 1 unbaked 9-inch (4-cup volume) deep-dish pie shell
* Whipped cream (optional)

Last Night on TV

On my friend Marie's suggestion I watched "Lewis" last night. I was only impressed by the last 15 seconds of the show. She also rated last night's episode a "B-/C+". Much more to her liking is the episode, "Life Born of Fire", which I will hold out for before I pass judgement on the series as a whole.

Anyway, after that there was a brief food/travelogue show on called, "Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie" which was featuring Turkish food, and the breaking of the fast, or Iftar, in Istanbul ["Turkey: Iftar in Istanbul"]. WOW! Now, I LOVE Turkish food. And watching this show was like a dream. The food looked amazing. And seeing Istanbul on TV, in all its glory - being able to show Josiah what I've been talking about all these years - was a real treat! It made us vow to get there as soon as physically possible. Yummy food too!

Here's the blurbage from the website:

Travel to Istanbul, an ancient Turkish city with a culinary past that weaves its way through the Byzantine, Roman, and Ottoman empires. During the holy month of Ramadan, locals fast from sunrise to sunset. Join a food author for the Iftar meal, the traditional feast when the fast is broken. Visit the famed 150-year-old bakery that makes Turkish flatbread pide, a mainstay of the Iftar, in a time-consuming, authentically traditional way. Discover the beauty of güllaç, a multilayered dessert studded with pistachios and pomegranates, and meet a family that has perfected the art of making Turkish delight, an early ancestor of the jellybean. In the Gourmet test kitchen, executive editor John “Doc” Willoughby prepares spicy grilled köfte, a Turkish street-food favorite that gets its irresistible flavor from a unique blend of spices.

My Vacation

So, I just got back from an awesome vacation (for me) while Josiah was working in Goldsboro, NC. We stopped at Chincoteague, VA on our way down to North Carolina. And while J. was training in Goldsboro, the girls and I went to New Bern, NC. It was a fantastic time! Here are the highlights:

* We ate fantastic Barbeque at McCalls in Goldsboro, NC. To my tastebuds, the best ever. Here is video of both the salad and entree buffet:



And then there was the dessert buffet. This place had the best banana pudding I've ever had. Complete with meringue topping.

* I saw an amazingly beautiful moth. The kind I only thought were owned by frustrated Victorians, a la "Angels and Insects". This thing was gorgeous!


* The girls and I drank Pepsi at the counter of the pharmacy where it was created in New Bern, NC.

* I met Liev Schreiber's mom and gushed about what a great (and hot!) actor I think he is. My brush with fame!

* And we saw an Indigo Bunting.

It was just an awesome time.

Weekly Blog Round-Up

Check out this Peek-A-Boo Jesus via "Religious Imagery" blog. Love it! "Religious Imagery" does a great job finding graffiti-like religious art. I still haven't figured out if the blog author is the artist, but either way, it's fun, "found" art. Keep it up!

Italians walking their children to school, via NYT. I think we could make this into a movement here too. While we were walking to school the other day, we witnessed, through a bus window, an unfortunate child getting beaten about the head by another child. The other kids on the bus were laughing about it. La Prima and I discussed how it would feel to be the beaten child, and I described my own dire bus experiences. She still thinks riding the bus is cool, but now, maybe that feeling is tempered...?

* More beautiful poster art from Bryant Terry and Favianna Rodriguez.

* I still love this blog! from the NYT

* Honors for Indigenous Activists for saving Sacred Places! from: Censored News.

* Got to check out the PBS show - I love frogs! So cute! Via TreeHugger.

Weekly Blog Round-Up

POP CULTURE:
* BSG at the UN - So Say We All. But, huh? From io9

* BlogHer posted a big discussion of the Jon Stewart evisceration of CNBC:

Stewart finds that outrageous. So do I. Reporters have a special role in our society. They are supposed to look at all stories with a skeptical eye. We count on reporters to make sure the mischief makers are caught and exposed. We do not expect the reporters to be turning a blind eye to the mischief.

Stewart's focus on CNBC captured what many people are feeling. From Mother Talkers,

I was listening to Marketplace on NPR during the drive home on Friday. I should really stop doing this, in this climate, because I get really worried. I heard this depressing statistic: if you graduated in the 1990s and started saving for retirement, you are basically back to square one. You have no more money for retirement than if you'd saved it under your mattress. I am furious. I did everything I was supposed to do: saved from the first day I started my first job, made it a priority. And because some fat cats on Wall Street got too damn greedy, I've lost it all. 11 years of investments, gone. Now what? I'm not sure I can trust 401(k)s for retirement anymore, y'know? Luckily, I'm at least 30 years away from retirement. But I'm still really pissed!

Oy on the financial news from BlogHer. From the same article: From Cenk Uygur of The HuffingtonPost

I have a close friend who works at a business news station -- and here is the worst kept secret in show business -- it's all about the access. If you piss off the CEOs or the companies, you're going to get a call from your boss. You have jeopardized our relationship with them!
That is very thinly disguised code words for -- don't ever say anything negative about a company we cover otherwise your job is in the trouble. The message is clear -- go along to get along. This isn't journalism. It's public relations by another name.

* I found this site randomly today. Need to take a listen

ART:
* Google flagging a French art blog for showing female nudes in artworks, which I learned about on Bob's Blog.

* Fast trains coming in Turkey! found on TreeHugger.

FOOD:
* Obama is tackling food safety via AmericaBlog. Yay! We've just sent in our check for our favorite farm's CSA I can't wait. And here's a second piece from Nicholas Kristoff's column about food safety, "Pathogens in our Pork." [A witty double entendre in there too!]

* White house green garden, via Huff Po.

* The Dirty Dozen buying guide for produce: a friend posted on facebook.

STYLE:
From my friend Jessica's Blog:

And now my friend is wondering, what does it say about him that he didn’t want to like those glasses because he was afraid that everyone else would like them, too? “Now and then,” he writes, “I get the awful feeling that people think I grew a beard to be trendy and I want to say, ‘I had this beard before it was cool.’… What sort of person feels that way and why?”

Here’s what I think. I think that the dynamic that accounts for his anxiety and my aneurysms is a particularly Generation X phenomenon. When we were growing up, we were fond of things that were weird and unlovable, largely because we, ourselves, felt weird and unlovable. Now that those things have been appropriated and repackaged for mass consumption, we instinctively want to reject them, even though we still love them—just like we mostly kind of hate ourselves, even though we inspire ourselves with something like the affectionate pity one might feel for a broken crayon, or, say, a tattered copy of Pac-Mania! The Official Pac-Man Joke Book.

Weekly Blog Round-Up

BELIEF:

* "None" gaining ground - In a USA Today article, found on Hasta Los Gatos Quieren Zapatos, more and more people are listing "none"as their religious affiliation. I was v. interested to read the following quote on reenee's post:

"Meanwhile, nearly 2.8 million people now identify with dozens of new religious movements, calling themselves Wiccan, pagan or "Spiritualist," which the survey does not define. Wicca, a contemporary form of paganism that includes goddess worship and reverence for nature, has even made its way to Arlington National Cemetery, where the Pentagon now allows Wiccans' five-pointed-star symbol to be used on veterans' gravestones." Having just been to Arlington for my grandmother's funeral, this tidbit struck me. Just like how there are now Wiccan Chaplains in the Army.

* A GREAT post on belief, Jesus, the Apostle's Creed and basically sums up my feelings about God, at BlogHer. Just hit the nail on my head!

* Interesting story on Beliefnet about the change from Junia to Junias in the Bible text in 1927. Apparently, Junia was considered a female apostle, until a footnote wiped her out. I read a lot about this issue, and found this link on Christian Feminism thanks!

* On BuzzFeed: Ha Ha:

"Roman Catholic bishops in Italy are calling for Catholics to abandon technologies like text messaging, Facebook and Twitter for Lent. Also recommended: BuzzFeed. So we'll see you in about 30 days have a great month everybody! Just kidding. But seriously, I was just about to poke God. "

* The History of religion from HLGQZ, found here


GREEN:

* I guess it comes as no surprise that in Istanbul, carpet recycling is the big green thing. Found on TreeHugger.

* Earth Hour: found on Green Lent. Let's do it!

* From TreeHugger: Rodale will donate to actual farmers if we buy food from these two companies. Plus! You can get a free subscription to Organic Gardening magazine.

FUN:

* Courtesy of Lakshmi. She laughed 'til she cried. I think it's funny. But then, I don't get Twitter.

* OMG! Dwayne Johnson! He Sings & Dances too!?!?!?! Sheesh, so HOT! From Joe.My.God.

RELIGIOUS ART:

* "View Religious Art For Lent" on Blogging Religiously, Via Iconia.

* PLUS! Church Sign Hackers - awesome. From BuzzFeed.

MENTAL HEALTH for DAUGHTERS:

I found this great list of questions that Reviving Ophelia author, Mary Pipher, PhD, recommends for adolescent girls, to help them stay grounded and healthy. It's a pretty good list for anyone, so I thought I'd share:

How do I feel right now?
What do I think?
What are my values?
Who would I describe myself to myself?
How do I see myself in the future?
What kind of work do I kike?
What kind of leisure do I like?
When do I feel most myself?
How have I changed since I entered puberty?
What kinds of people do I respect?
How am I similar to and different from my mother?
How am I similar to and different from my father?
What goals do I have for myself as a person?
What are my strengths and weaknesses?
What would I be proud of on my deathbed?

From Reviving Ophelia, by Mary Pipher, PhD, pg 255, 1995

FOOD:

* A beautiful, Spring-evoking (INvoking?) poem: "Strawberries" by Edwin Morgan from Queenie Takes Manhattan.

* More news from an Op-Ed in the NYT about how unsafe US food production is.

"So what’s going on here, and where do these antibiotic-resistant infections come from? Probably from the routine use — make that the insane overuse — of antibiotics in livestock feed. This is a system that may help breed virulent “superbugs” that pose a public health threat to us all."

* From my friend Jim's blog "Legend of St Ursula, St Michael Fighting the Dragons" This is a new blog, and this first (post-virgin) post is about illness, Lent and cooking! The Cornbread recipe is an added bonus - along with some fab religious art. Excellent work!

POLITICS:

* In my view, this is HUGE, and SUCH a relief. Way to go Barry! from Huff Po: "When signing legislation, Bush often would use such statements to direct officials to ignore parts of the law he thought were incorrect or restricted the administration's constitutional powers."

Weekly Blog Roundup

RELIGIOUS ART:

I love some of these images from Idle Speculations, I can't choose! the tree of virtue and the tree of vice to the left.

CULTURE:

How to have a good self body image, as a mom, but also impart good messages to our daughters about their bodies from Jezebel commenting on the original WaPo article. Makes a ton of sense.

An ode to godparenting from BlogHer echoes my feelings exactly. Thank you again, Lakshmi & Sam!

Egyptian pyramid photo of noblewoman's tomb cia BBC.

Interesting take on the dilemma that is Facebook from Huff Po (which is another thing I must check daily).

Some guy at CNN has a crush on Michelle Obama - I guess I do too then.

More on the impending demise of Gourmet. I wish it didn't have to be this way! via Gawker.

Fug Madness is right around the corner, y'all!

SHOPPING:

Dag! How did I miss this?? From my pal Jennifer Westhoven's blog: free Chanel 19?!?!? So bummed I missed it.

Cadbury Dairy Milk goes Fair Trade!!! This is awesome news, just in time for Easter. [Think they planned it that way??] via BBC.

Here is some worrying news about the state of hiring in this country . Yes, we should hire capable Americans for American jobs. But one thing this article points out is that

"Deep, long-term shortcomings in the U.S. education system have left the country dependent on foreign-born scientists, engineers, computer specialists and other highly skilled workers to fuel the research and innovation that drive economic growth."

Right. And who knows how long it will take to correct this. from Workforce Week, found via BBC.

ART:
Idea of the North - photographs by Birthe Piontek found on "Heading East". Beautiful and haunting photos. Wow.

two amazing shows at Penn's ICA right now:
1) Dread, by Joshua Mosley is a fantastic short film (with sculptures!) that might just blow your mind. Pascal and Rousseau feature prominently.
2) Touch Sensitive by Anthony Campuzano's fantastic art that uses text and bright colors. I was very moved by his work, even though it seems very simple when you enter the space, the ideas involved are very powerful. Two fantastic shows you won't want to miss if you're in/near Philadelphia.


Art Blog by Bob's monthly poll has me sweatin' to the oldies! Puts me in the mood for some hard rock.

I knew there was another reason I love Joss Wheadon - his craftiness! I love the part about his interview in Crocheting Monthly, from BlogHer.

Office cubicles from around the world from the TIME website.

How to be a mermaid/merman via Blogfish and Oceana.

Obamas turn White House organic! More on the "New Victory Garden" in the US. Yeah! From TreeHugger.

Weekly Blog Round-Up

Talking about sex from the conservative christian point of view. Not mine, but I share a lot of her goals! Found on BlogHer.

It WOULD have to be a Welshman who is an agricultural saboteur! Sheesh! from bldgblog

Art-o-matic via TreeHugger

Apparently, it's not just me. "Even The Rich are Taking Home-Made Sandwiches for Office Lunches." On TreeHugger

Cool! From Pruned - an anonymous hugging wall!

Mexico Cooks wooden boxes photo.

From Idle Speculations the Presentation in the Temple is a feast day that also happens on/near February 2nd. Terry has some examples of religious art depicting the presentation. See, I love these ancient churches in Turkey.

World Wetlands Day on Pruned. Here are their top 8? reasons to support wetlands:

1) Wetlands are "the kidneys of the landscape," able to filter out pollutants from, for instance, agricultural runoffs and urban effluents.

2) Because of their bioremediating properties, wetlands can be a cheap alternative to municipal waste water treatment.

3) During particularly heavy storm events, they act as temporary water storage tanks. They then release the excess water slowly rather than in a deluge, lowering flood heights and minimizing the damage of valuable property downstream.

4) Wetlands also store carbon within their live and preserved (peat) plant biomass instead of releasing it to the atmosphere as carbon dioxide. Therefore, wetlands world-wide help to moderate global climate change.

5) Along the coast, they are good at mitigating the effects of hurricane storm surges, tsunamis, and the less energetic but no less destructive normal ebb and flow of ocean waves.

6) Wetlands help to replenish aquifers that so many people depend on.

7) They are "biological supermarkets," producing annual commercial harvests of fish and shellfish that sometimes amount to hundreds of millions of dollars. Indeed, many people rely on wetlands for their livelihood.

8) As eco-attractions, they inject a sizable amount of tourist income to the local economy.

Wetlands, in other words, provide so many beneficial services for people that they are very much deserving of a sacrificial virgin. Or two.

Marisa Tomei on Fug - but in the "well played" column. I think she looks fantastic. Are those Bjorn Weckstrom pieces she's wearing? I totally love the Fug Report, which is where I found this photo.

It would be nice if Republicans got it, and would stop being the "party of No" but they won't. via NYT.

Google Oceans. Sounds pretty cool! Via BBC

From a friend on Facebook, this discussion of school lunches just reflects my own views so closely. This was written by President Obama's new chef, on his blog: Hull House Kitchen.

Interesting point - that we humans are not really thinking about our "place" within the world-wide ecosystem. And we may end up paying a dear price for that ignorance. Trust TreeHugger to shine a light on this issue. Upshot: it will take a multi-disciplinary course of action.

From BlogHer, here's a v. interesting look at Saints' lives from the viewpoint of someone who was raised Catholic and remembers the "Saints Days" and how exotic the names and stories sounded. She asks us:

"Saints were exotic, mysterious, and did magical things.

It got me thinking -- if I could name five women to Sainthood (spiritual sainthood) what measuring stick would I use and who would be my first five saints?

I guess I would choose woman who lived exemplary lives, role models, grounded and inspiring women. I would choose women who helped me move along spiritually in some way, even if we had never met.

Here is my list -- at least the one I have in my soul tonight. They are in no particular order. Now who is on your list? And why?"

They aren't all women, but nonetheless, my votes for saints.:

Ladybird, a dear friend who has taught me so much about life and its peaks and valleys.
Hiphopopotamus and Rhymenocerous, another dear friend, who has taught me about spirituality and light. She has the sunniest disposition I know.
Eleanor Roosevelt
Paul Farmer, founder of Partners in Health
Lawrence Marshall, The Northwestern Law prof. who researched convictions and led to IL Gov. Ryan putting a moratorium on all death row convictions.

There are more, but they aren't coming to mind just yet. Pass it on....

Weekly Blog Round-Up

UPDATE: Ladybird & Andy - You gotta check this out: the Heavy Metal Band Names Flow Chart! On Comic vs. Audience, via Boing Boing.

WOW - look at the detail. The tear glistens!!! - Thanks, as ever, Terry from Idle Speculations

"awesome president is awesome" from Buzzfeed

Green roof on Huff Po

Why Former Energy Secretary Should Keep His Mouth Shut! Amen, brother! from TreeHugger.

I truly loathe Bush. I wonder if he will ever get his just desserts. Story from Gawker.

Poe in 50's Hipster Argot. If that's not your thing, just read Poe aloud. Both from Boing Boing.

Holy moly! crochet coral reef!! From Boing Boing.

Gotta love Gawker for their assessment of Obama Staffers' discontent with the White House tech environment. Muddle through like the rest of us, OK?

Too geeky for words - Planet of the Apes font from Boing Boing.

Obama's first act is to halt Bush's last-ditch efforts to wreck stuff. Via TreeHugger.

Roma (Gypsy) History - Here is a pretty detailed (harsh) account from the BBC of Roma suffering during the Holocaust.

If you like birds, there are some beautiful photos over at Peregrinations Ornithologiques!

Cheap food is back. So say we all. There is a spread in the Philadelphia Inquirer in this week's food section about Mac & Cheese - for exactly this reason - it's cheap!

And, finally, my horoscope (Pisces) from Rob Brezsny's Free Will Astrology:

Once every few years, a panel of Hindu and Buddhist judges in Nepal chooses a new "living goddess," a young girl who serves, until she reaches puberty, as an incarnation of the deity Taleju. One of the tests each candidate must pass in order to be eligible for the role is this: She must show no fear as she spends a night alone in a room filled with the bloody heads of ritually killed buffaloes and goats. I'd like you to consider the possibility of carrying out a more humane equivalent of that ceremony, Pisces. For one night, keep symbols of what you're afraid of in the place where you sleep. To do so would be an excellent way to earn the right to graduate to the next level of your spiritual evolution.

Odd Cookbooks

BREAKING:

I just received a package of ephemera from a friend in Kinston, NC. She knows of my love of old/wacky cookbooks, especially of the old-school church lady or county fair variety. Anyway, she photocopied some excerpts from Bull Cook and Authentic Historical Recipes and Practices, by George Leonard Herter and Berthe E. Herter, Herter's, Waseca, Minnesota.

Check it out -

Spinach Mother of Christ:

The Virgin Mary, Mother of Christ was very fond of spinach. This is as well a known fact in Nazareth today as it was 19 centuries ago. Her favorite music was that of the crude bagpipess of that times, and this also is a well-known fact.
Her recipe for preparing spinach spread with Christianity throughout Europe. On the eve of Christ's birth in the cave that was called a stable, Her only meal was spinach.
The early European immigrants from Germany, France and Italy nearly all brought this recipe with them.

Other chapter headings among those my friend sent:

"Sioux Method of Cracking Black Walnuts, Butternuts, Hickory Nuts and Hazelnuts"

or my favorite:

"In Case of a Hydrogen Bomb Attack You Must Know the Ways of the Wilderness to Survive"

other recipes include:

"Prairie Dog Bat Materson", "Fried Snapping Turtle or Smaller Turtle Meat, Scandinavian Style", and "Belgian Squirrel"

She says she's on the lookout for another copy for me! Yay! A quick google search tells me that I am not alone in my awe of the "Spinach Mohter of Christ" recipe. I just found 2 other quotations! There's probably more!

Weekly Blog round-Up

An awesome discussion of atheist bus ads on Vegas Cohort, via Friendly Atheist via Emerging Pensées (I know, the trail of bread crumbs confused me too!)

Understanding Science: A sorta wonky site about Science and how it helps our lives. But some good explanations there.

Inauguration Lunch menu! I wish I could taste this food! I love the idea of the cherry chutney, with wine selections listed too! I also can't wait to see the changes to this page!

The Recently Deflowered Girl: The Right Thing To Say On Every Dubious Occasion, by Hyacinthe Phyppe [Edward Gorey, Mel Juffe] found on: Buzzfeed

Slumdog Millionaire won big at the Golden Globes. This Sojourner's article explains why, w/clip at the bottom.

At right, Noli Mi Tangere - Beautiful from Art Blog by Bob

Scientists to Obama: FDA has been corrupted
from AMERICAblog News| A great nation deserves the truth by Chris in Paris

Won't it be a positive change to have science matter again during the Obama administration? From the AP:

In an unusually blunt letter, a group of federal scientists is complaining to the Obama transition team of widespread managerial misconduct in a division of the Food and Drug Administration.

"The purpose of this letter is to inform you that the scientific review process for medical devices at the FDA has been corrupted and distorted by current FDA managers, thereby placing the American people at risk," said the letter, dated Wednesday and written on the agency's Center for Devices and Radiological Health letterhead.

The center is responsible for medical devices ranging from stents and breast implants to MRIs and other imaging machinery. The concerns of the nine scientists who wrote to the transition team echo some of the complaints from the FDA's drug review division a few years ago during the safety debacle involving the painkiller Vioxx.

The FDA declined to publicly respond to the letter, but said it is working to address the concerns.

In their letter the FDA dissidents alleged that agency managers use intimidation to squelch scientific debate, leading to the approval of medical devices whose effectiveness is questionable and which may not be entirely safe.

"Managers with incompatible, discordant and irrelevant scientific and clinical expertise in devices...have ignored serious safety and effectiveness concerns of FDA experts," the letter said. "Managers have ordered, intimidated and coerced FDA experts to modify scientific evaluations, conclusions and recommendations in violation of the laws, rules and regulations, and to accept clinical and technical data that is not scientifically valid."

Couch surfers welcome, but small-space campers requested! via TreeHugger

Awesome points made by Snuffy, as usual. This time, about Christianity. I have to say, I can't say it any better than she does.

Another beautiful image from Idle Speculations of my fave - John the Baptist baptizing Jesus.

This NYT article is noticeably vague about what this "tough-guy" pastor actually preaches about the role of women, other than that he's mainline Calvin. I don't think I would agree with him, nor be a member of his church, but I share his frustration w/the pansy-@$$ version of Jesus that's out there in full effect.

While I celebrate Obama's inauguration, Russel Means makes the case for the Native American Indian (well, AIM) point of view - Food for thought, to be sure.

I never thought I'd agree w/the CEO of Walmart in my lifetime, but I think he's on to something. Something good for America and Americans. Via AmericaBlog.

Intrepid food fans, check out how easy it is to make sauerkraut! Via Boing Boing.

Water under NYC via bldgblog - and London's lost rivers to be uncovered! from TreeHugger.

Awesome "Jesus for the Working Person" image by Art Young on Art Blog by Bob. I am learning from Bob that I am a big fan of the "Ashcan School."

Via TreeHugger - Google launches the transit map layer to its Google Maps. About time - but this will be helpful fo shizzle. But dag! Philadelphia is not one of the cities included on the first round. Bummer.

Gourmet going down!?! This is terrible news to me. [sniff!] Via Queenie Takes Manhattan.

An awesome riff on what we wish would happen if Bush were actually sent to prison for his crimes from 23/6.

Mr Darcy-Obama at the White House, from Huff Po. I still think it's a stretch - would Obama ever be as RUDE as Darcy? I guess I'll never know. But, at least someone out there is making the comparison.

From Iraq Veterans Against the War - this depresses me no end. When will the soldiers get a break?!

Robert Crumb's book of Genesis via Boing Boing. Huh. Will it be religious-arty enough for me??

And, finally, Jesse's Tree from Idle Speculations.

Weekly Blog Round Up

My friend Karen sent me this image of Pharaoh's daughter finding Moses, it's from the Fleischer Art Memorial, here in Philadelphia. It's done in the style of a Madonna, but is of an Old Testament subject.

Interesting. I'll have to go see it in person! Below is another view of Moses in the bull rushes from Idle Speculations for comparison.

Words of wisdom from our trusty Church Administrator about open sourcing one's life. A very good read.

5 suggestions for Change.gov from boing boing.

Green gingerbread competition for the season.

A Pruned article about re-purposing canals. Is there something other than green-ways that we can do with these things? I think of the canal in my hometown. What memories!

Batgirl wants fair pay!

Chicago sit-in pays off for workers. Perhaps there is a glimmer of hope for the workers in this country after all.

I'm still not gonna darken Walmart's door, but if Blogfish says they are helping to stop overfishing, I'll say, good job. On that.

A cute hippo! Love the hippos. Even if they are aggressive and hate humans.

Awesome images of "re-sampled space" from bldgblog.

This weekend will be our family's holiday baking weekend. Unfortunately my flu bug has prevented Lakshmi, Sam and Awesome Godson from coming over. He's still brand-new, and though I approve of sharing, I do not approve of giving the gift of flu to an infant. SO. We will be cooking with just the Grand Forêts present. Our cookie list this year is as follows:

• gingersnaps
• chocolate star cookies with crushed peppermint
• Austrian jam cookies
• mock mincemeat mini-tarts
• "Cherry Garcia" "Dunking Platters"
• and fudge

Have a great weekend, all!

Weekly Blog Round-Up

Apparently, this is the correct video of Angie and Neil at the Flaming Lips' Halloween Parade of a 1,000 flaming skeletons. Look at the 17 seconds marker for Angie and Neil turning around to look. I guess there was awesome music coming from behind them.

Obama on food policy from Boing Boing.

Finnish landscape from Villipiha.

"One Nation, Under Cupcakes" good job Philly!

An overheard dream about Abe Lincoln from Heading East.

Michelle O. in the fab red dress from Huff Po.

Hipsters no more? because of Obama? A treatise on the hipster scene and why to not diss those who work(ed) for Obama, from Gawker. Original source here.

Rebooting computing from Kimberly Blessing. I'm so into usability. Could be interesting to go, but not sure I'm hands-on enough. My cuz is though.

Spooky Polish forest. I'd love to check out this part of the world, in nice weather. Thanks to Vrbovan Blog for the image.

Obama family's secret service names - love them! From Huff Po.

Bush snubbed. wow. it's sorta hard to watch, and realize how much the rest of the world disliked this guy.


And finally, the Dot Earth readers' "10 Earthly Ideas on a Budget" - suggestions for Obama to consider for a greener US. Excellent. I especially love # 10, the idea of a Victory Garden at the White House. Aparently, Eleanor Roosevelt planted one, back in the day.

Rosemary

There's rosemary, that's for remembrance; pray,
love, remember: and there is pansies. that's for thoughts
Hamlet, Act 4, Scene 5

Blog Round-Up

Some News, and other stuff, that caught my eye this week. Enjoy!

• The call for an "Energy Manhattan Project"
• See all 52 (including DC & Pr) State Obama bumper stickers.
• National guard deployment to Iraq & Afghanistan
• omg! Tigh-Roslin campaign site as seen on Boing Boing
• Pretty moss-inspired jewelry
• I helped get the reporters in our of jail in Minneapolis/St Paul!
  
• Mabon is this weekend. Time to make my green man!
• WE has a new ad out against the dirty coal and oil lobbies. Check it out!
  
• TODAY is International "Talk Like a Pirate Day"!
  
• Federal Court Bans Mad Cow Testing
• Tea is more beneficial than water! I knew it.
• Bob at his best - St John the Baptist Triptych - I plan to comment on this piece more later, but in the meantime - WOW!
• How coastal building development since the 1970's has lead to crazier hurricane damage, on Pruned.
  
• This Quiz feeds the hungry. Again, thanks, Bob!

• Old School printing operation. I'm not sure my grandfather's press was as high-tech as this, but wow!

Printing a Book, Old School from Armin Vit on Vimeo.

Incommunicado

Sorry folks, needed to take a brief hiatus, but I hope to be back on the blogging track now. Some events in my life contributing to my lack of blog posts:

1) I just created a "Women For Obama" fundraising site! Please go check it out.
2) I became a Godmother to beautiful William, new son of Lakshmi and Sam. I am THRILLED!
3) A friend of mine just signed up for the National Guard and I am terrified that he will be shipped overseas, but I'm trying to be supportive. I gave him a milagro for protection - I certainly hope it works. Maybe when he's done with his service, he can leave it in a shrine somewhere.
4) My granny had a stroke and is now in a nursing home. I went to visit her in Minneapolis (during State Fair time, so I swung by for some roasted corn, a corn dog, and a milkshake from the dairy barn. Dag, they aren't kidding about how awesome the food is there!) She's doing OK, but it's a little shocking to see someone who has always acted like someone 2/3 her age, acting 98, finally.
5) I interviewed yesterday...
6) The girls won us over and we got a cat - they named her Grace, and she's beautiful. We got her from PAWS.
7) And then there's the Phillies....

So that's what's going on for me. I haven't even been checking my bloglines recently to be able to comment on all the excellent religious art that has been passing me by... If you see something you think I'd like, please let me know!

Ciao

Ithaca Farmers' Market'

Thanks to Cooking in the 'Cuse for the head's up about this article from the New York Times. I love the Ithaca Farmers' market. Josiah has many fond memories of selling honey and maple syrup w/his mom & brother when they were kids.

I love to go there w/La Prima & La Segunda. If we're feeling spendy we get them something from Silk Oak. Lunch at Macro Mama is superb - their corn fritters are da bomb [voted "Best Vendor at the Ithaca Farmers' Market" 2005 Ithaca Times]. Don't forget to get hopped up on caffeine if you go (especially if it's raining) at Gimme!

And of course apples from upstate New York are always stupendous. None better in my opinion. I'd love to get back to Ithaca this fall. We often pick fruit at Littletree Orchards.... MMMMmmmm!

Quick Blog Round-Up

Just catching up w/my blog reading and I have to share this awesome Frida Kahlo post from Bob. He posted this Moses image, which I haven't been able to stop thinking about. Thanks, as always, Bob.

In other cupcake-related news: lavender cupcakes and Canada Day cupcakes. The latter I may try for my dad's upcoming birthday.

Good Church Design posted these covers of "individually packaged" books from the Bible. I must say, the cover images got me to buy each of the four Gospels individually back when they came out. Stark, but not depressing. They really do fit in your pocket(book?) and feel more manageable than lugging the whole Bible around just to read Mark, let's say. Not, of course, that I've made it all the way through Mark yet. Matthew, check! The rest, not yet. But I'm really impressed, both by the designs of the covers, and by GCD blog. It's a really beautiful blog - go check it out!

In other news, even while the diplomats are in a tiff (link), the sailors are doing the right thing - having a sandwich competition. I wish there were more photos as part of the article, but from what I can tell, these are fantastic. In honor of Victory Day.

And in a further move to shrink the world, and encourage us to all get along, tomorrow is Pangea Day. I saw Control Room and LOVED it. The part about the "spontaneous mob that pulled down Saddam's statue" was amazing and chilling. War is hell. It's true. But the propaganda machines are diabolical. Seeing inside what happens in newsrooms (around the world) is frightening. And empowering. If we know that's the lay of the land, maybe we can do something about it. Right?

Mmmmm Butterscotch Krimpets!

Check it out! Barack Obama likes Butterscotch Krimpets too!!!

It's funny, those Cupcake gals up in NYC call them cupcakes. Close....