Sunday, January 29, 2012

YA Sci-Fi and Fantasy Reads

I've been reading some great YA sci-fi and fantasy this week. I recommend these:

  • Unison Spark by Andy Marino
  • Cinder by Marissa Meyer
  • Sweetly by Jackson Pierce
  • Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan
  • Entwined by Heather Dixon.

Saturday, January 28, 2012

So Sad

Yesterday, Hull House closed its doors after 120 years of service.  The foundation ran out of money - increased demand for services, but less available funding.  I have never even been to Illinois, but it makes me want to cry.  Jane Addams was my hero.

Saturday, January 21, 2012

Goodbye, Governor Goodhair!

While I am ecstatic to see him out of the presidential race, I surely wish we could get him out of Austin, too!

Friday, January 20, 2012

Monday, January 16, 2012

MLK March And Nursing Home Pet Parade

Today was sure a gorgeous day to honor Dr. King's memory with a march.  We took the Brownie Girl Scouts, of course.



Then, because MLK Day is supposed to be "a day on, not a day off", we engaged in some community service at our favorite nursing home - a pet parade - always a favorite with the residents!


A great day with the Girl Scouts, honoring Dr. King and helping our community!
 

Sunday, January 15, 2012

First Day School: Fundamentalism and Listening For God

We are back to work at First Day School in earnest.  Since we had such a long hiatus prior to our Christmas lesson, today we reviewed our last (way) pre-Christmas lessons on Fundamentalism and Listening For God.  

My Young Friends "class" (just my teen) talked about the key beliefs of Christian Fundamentalists, in their absolutism, and started a review of Sinners In The Hands of An Angry God.  We will continue this lesson next time and then move into our next lesson on "absolutists" - cults. 

My Little Friends/Lower El "class" (just my second-grader) reviewed our "Listening For God" lesson in the style of and using materials from Faith 'n' Play.  The Lone Star Baby says that she hears God in the ocean - me, too, although God feels like Mother to me there. 

The girls' dad then picked them up and I stayed with the adults of our Meeting for a very nice Meeting for Business in which we agreed on our State of The Meeting report.  Lovely.

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Recently Read And Enjoyed

The Highest Frontier by Joan Slonczewski - kind of a girl version of the best Heinlein juveniles, but with its own story - oh, so good.  Slonczewski is my favorite sci-fi author ever and I am so glad she published another book!  I've already read it twice.

The Barbarian Nurseries by Hector Tobar - I wanted to put it down for a little while when things were looking awfully bad for the protagonist because I just could not bear it but it was worth pushing through.  I tend not to read a lot of mainstream bestsellers because I tend to find the protagonists of them narcissistic and shallow and whiny but this is worthy of the hype.  Truly wonderful.

Seven Tears Into The  Sea by Terri Farley - first in a stash of cheap, paperback selkie stories that I am digging into with relish and abandon.  Very nice.

Friday, January 13, 2012

Scary Romney

Doesn't Bain Capital just sound evil?

The Kid Really Doesn't Like Governor Goodhair

The Lone Star Baby has a book of lists she really enjoys - different pages ask her to list different things.  She takes it to school often and she and her friends have fun with it in morning and aftercare.  She told me in the car that she recently finished a page that asked what she would like to change in the world.  Her list:

  • The melting of the polar ice caps
  • Broccoli
  • Rick Perry.

Tuesday, January 03, 2012

Savvy Girl

The Lone Star Girl has taken on the task of participating in Telephone Town Hall Meetings with our creepy Congressman whenever he calls.  She has done it enough times that she now knows what to say to the question screener that is technically honest but will not cause her question to be thrown out before she gets a chance to talk to the Congressman.  I'm rather proud.

Sunday, January 01, 2012

Happy New Year!

I hope that 2012 is full of love, peace, joy and health for everyone!  

(And now I must go grade things....)