tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90735682024-03-13T05:50:55.662-05:00Happy Cindy Changes the WorldPolitics, Religion, Education, Perspective and Reality as I know it, with a good dose of humor and some small bit of navel gazing. Promoting peace, the sacred center of our humanity, with belief that when humans are our best and most joyous selves the world changes for the better.
See also crankycindy.blogspot.com where I post on my less optimistic days.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.comBlogger128125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-81732277489684448262009-05-18T11:35:00.002-05:002009-05-18T11:42:39.415-05:00Alice Walker -- We Are the Ones We Have Been Waiting For: Inner Light in a Time of DarknessVideo from C-SPAN Book TV. Can't embed, external link <a href="http://www.booktv.org/watch.aspx?ProgramId=PC-10202">here</a>. The first 8 minutes are street interviews.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-9557258813999457832009-04-28T16:48:00.004-05:002009-04-28T16:54:10.702-05:00Self Advocacy - Autism Awareness Month is almost over.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgC01hbaEQnKvIcwmz8GHI0Yf0meR8jXDaCRFWl-5IkS6vKygP40wSbUZK86oPSCViSBu8jXo5pnvCcuKxjZ8B2iQiGS6zXCWD82CR_V9wo19i-M1Qi9QpWU9pA0CMHi5MWAg/s1600-h/p.awareness.png"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 154px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifXfdYP5LNOREfzN5LbAAdNzRFouZSd_hGmXzbQRh2rjU7tP1oAYT3VX-ktP-zST0vKSAoIMsyG3cqArHrd9tVRLxL4OQnodllQtG2KL9eg4Wf6jRKsjaL1mm6al1jGxQqlo2l/s200/p.awareness.png" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5329863413872609330" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Click the picture to see it full size on it's original site at Asperger Square 8.<br /><br />Autism Awareness month is almost over. Have you asked an Autistic person about it yet?Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-48202587003338175172009-04-28T06:18:00.010-05:002009-04-28T07:58:23.205-05:00"Three generations of morons is sufficient"The above quote is from a Supreme Court Opinion, 88 years ago, regarding the involuntary sterilization of people with developmental disabilities. How much better are things today? "Autism Steals." "Autism Leaves an Empty Shell." "Autism is No Hope, No Future."<br /><br />This video was put together by <a href="http://www.autisticadvocacy.org/">Autistic Self Advocacy Network</a>, the <a href="http://www.danmarinofoundation.org/">Dan Marino Foundation</a>, and <a href="http://www.kentcreative.com/">Kent Creative</a>. It was written and performed by individuals on the autism spectrum.<br /><br /><br /><object width="445" height="364"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y_dPZDcX_ck&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Y_dPZDcX_ck&hl=en&fs=1&rel=0&color1=0xe1600f&color2=0xfebd01&border=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="445" height="364"></embed></object><br /><br />Have a few more minutes? Wonder what situation is behind this that would make these people think that a PSA is needed to advocate for basic human rights? <span style="font-style: italic;">aka: the inherent worth and dignity of all persons?</span><br /><br />Ari Ne'eman is the President of the Autistic Self Advocacy Network. He refers to himself as an Asperger's Autistic, is the narrator of the above PSA, and speaks to this question in a Keynote address to ASAN in this <a href="http://www.childnett.tv/videos/lectures/keynote_autistic_self_advocacy_network">video.</a> It is housed at the Dan Marino's <a href="http://www.childnett.tv">Childnett.tv</a> and outlines the challenges and dangers that face people on the autism spectrum by well-meaning people under the names of "education" and "treatment."<br /><br />If you choose not to watch the above video, let me simply tell you that the quotes above were taken from real live "autism advocates" --- that is, people who are not autistic who want to cure autism because "This is the special curse of autism. You have your child, and yet you don’t have him. You have a shell, a ghost of all the dreams and hopes you ever had." (from <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20020927200817/http://web.sfn.org/NL/1999/May-June/articles/advocate.html">Autism Research: A Legacy of Neglect, an Opportunity for New Discovery</a> by Jonathan Shestack, co-founder and president of <a href="http://www.cureautismnow.org/">Cure Autism Now</a>.) <br /><br />While there are no easy answers, and human life is infinitely complicated, I cannot help but think that people with autism ought be in the middle of the discussion, not the periphery. It seems that the philosophical difference between autism as illness and autism as natural neurological diversity is a pretty great distance. It seems that the difference between "curing" something and helping them live the best life they can, maximizing their skills and learning to live with the challenges is pretty great distance.<br /><br />After all, we don't still try to cure glbt folk, <a href="http://exodus.to/help/?option=com_content&task=view&id=327&Itemid=147">do we</a>?Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-72414173481260393202009-04-19T14:48:00.010-05:002009-04-19T15:27:10.890-05:00Read it like there's gonna be a quiz.<a style="" onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOmuTKccY5vBZSQOG0aBhnkPhstZQKIttbcgxEoA4WFBjzzC_dwBCabCs4sOk6YFIpzgRViEQOWE-sATTRiU-CdNEPL59PfWlxrwH41-LXUn-leOt8IERFrnXobBEPScKMQgW/s1600-h/mosaic+project+pictures.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer; width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfOmuTKccY5vBZSQOG0aBhnkPhstZQKIttbcgxEoA4WFBjzzC_dwBCabCs4sOk6YFIpzgRViEQOWE-sATTRiU-CdNEPL59PfWlxrwH41-LXUn-leOt8IERFrnXobBEPScKMQgW/s200/mosaic+project+pictures.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326493972098284770" border="0" /></a>The Mosaic Project <a href="http://www.uua.org/leaders/leaderslibrary/mosaic/index.shtml">recommendations </a>are out.<br />This is one of the most clear, vibrant, passionate, intellectually and developmentally sound documents that has come out of the UUA. And I'm the kind of geek who reads these documents on a fairly regular basis. Laura Spencer's report clearly articulates the challenges youth and young adults of color, multicultural youth and young adults, trans-racially adopted youth and young adults face within our movement, locates this experienced reality soundly within the best literature and theory known, and it's recommendations are unmistakable.<br /><br />If you care about our youth, and/or our ability to be a relevant multicultural religous movement, and/or AR/AO work, and/or being a person who takes Right Action, and/or just being <span style="font-style: italic;">a better person next week than you are today</span>, then this document is for you.<br /><br />Read it. Like there's going to be a quiz. <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidBJ7c7qJVEAeUKt00_fmIelj5znKGGK8I3O2adQXZNTVuAIi3_mklnqPZNUMKtsiQSIr1VkjX51SEbqlXKh-4OGjc-_s0_JJGAaD1skDAa1tsEnO5KkESsIKkes18Dh3jhad3/s1600-h/chickenpopquiz.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer; width: 194px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidBJ7c7qJVEAeUKt00_fmIelj5znKGGK8I3O2adQXZNTVuAIi3_mklnqPZNUMKtsiQSIr1VkjX51SEbqlXKh-4OGjc-_s0_JJGAaD1skDAa1tsEnO5KkESsIKkes18Dh3jhad3/s200/chickenpopquiz.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326493456929965874" border="0" /></a><br />Don't whip through it online like it's a blog, and toss off an opinion.<br /><br />Print it out, put it in a binder, write in the margins, look up the references. Ponder and think and grow and be an active reader, engaging the material; a reflective Unitarian Universalist who listens deeply when people articulate their reality. Be a UU who pushes themselves to think outside even their own box.<br /><br />Unitarian Universalists have poured their lives out as the text upon which this exegesis is written. We should respect and honor that by seeing, hearing, and responding.<br /><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(102, 51, 51);">The Question<br /><br />What are the ministry needs of African, Caribbean, Native/American Indian, Asian and Pacific Islander, Latina/Latino and Hispanic, Middle Eastern/Arab, Multiracial and Multiethnic and trans-racially adopted Unitarian Universalist (UU) youth and young adults?<br /><br />* How does our Unitarian Universalist faith need to change in order to meet these needs?<br />* What structures need to be strengthened or established to support families, congregations, campus groups, districts, and continental bodies in their ministries to these youth and young adults?<br /><br />The Mosaic Project Report offers recommendations to help congregations, districts, and Association create an environment that is an effective part of the scaffolding that supports Youth and Young Adults of Color both in their development of a healthy identity and through the transition from childhood to adulthood. The positive impact of creating such an environment can reach beyond the Youth and Young Adults of Color community into all ministry areas. By creating congregations, communities, and institutions that embody the seven Principles, Unitarian Universalists can indeed move closer to building the world we dream about.</blockquote><br /><br />It's all about systems and structures, and ultimately, what those of us with access to decision-making do to make those systems and structures more appropriate, supportive and embracing, and empowering for all of our youth and young adults.<br /><br />And there will be a quiz. Whether by your higher power, your conscience, or by the youth of today and tomorrow who will judge our actions in the future, there will, by god, be a quiz.<br /><br />I pray we pass.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-22222336157470594302009-04-18T08:03:00.010-05:002009-04-18T09:50:00.994-05:00Non-Anxious Presence vs. Actual Calmness<a href="http://chalicespark.blogspot.com/2009/04/non-anxious-presence.html">Chalice Spark</a> posted a great post about being a non-anxious presence in our work. In the comments, <a href="http://momwhats4dinner.blogspot.com/">Anna Banana</a> raises a good question about the difference between maintaining a "non-anxious presence" and being calm. As I understand it, the former is a behavior, not necessarily a feeling state.<br /><br />We may or may not feel calm, anxious, stressed, fearful; but our behavior relative to the congregation can be a grounded one that avoids overreacting, taking "bait," or permitting changes of the subject and the like. Our non-anxious presence can be to keep the eye on the ball, so to speak, to hold up the core values and specific issue at hand, slowly, carefully, with humor even, <i>regardless of our internal feelings about it.</i><br /><br />If we act stressed, people around us will <i>feel</i> stressed, even if they'd not needed to in the first place. It's why Opening of the church year is so challenging for me, because I <b>am</b> stressed! I'm working 70 hours a week dealing with things like 17 families that didn't register their kids on time so I need to reconfigure classes the day before teacher training. But the members are there with excitement, looking forward to a new year, anticipating new things. <br />If my stress/anxiety shows in my behavior then their feelings may change and become MY feelings, and the subject (opening excitement and joy) will change to be about me (and my frustration, anger, anxiety.)<br /><br />Conversely, when the congregation is under stress, (say because of finances,) I am of course also under stress, and most definitely am not "feeling calm." My behavior in terms of being a non-anxious presence for them helps them keep the focus on <i>their</i> challenges, their feelings, and their tasks and roles.<br /><br />Many of my colleagues, (particularly among the ordained ministry and those other religous professionals I consider foreparents or mentors,) seem to be able to maintain an actual inner sense of calm while behaving in a non-anxious manner. <br />Both. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFeZ5T0ZR0e0GxnBcaBvoAhBrMHk45M058D4GQOwtQjmrr2CFy0uVfSzltJ0DWdVgo79dtTPOC6KoXBnrKKNLqFVPj2XDBG8RTwq5gNyAFiaXpkn7MVndbIS-xWxQR0p0R7jX/s1600-h/speed-limit-change-sign-resized.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilFeZ5T0ZR0e0GxnBcaBvoAhBrMHk45M058D4GQOwtQjmrr2CFy0uVfSzltJ0DWdVgo79dtTPOC6KoXBnrKKNLqFVPj2XDBG8RTwq5gNyAFiaXpkn7MVndbIS-xWxQR0p0R7jX/s200/speed-limit-change-sign-resized.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326018187310208610" /></a><br />I aspire to this, but I have a limbic system that goes from zero to 70 in .1 seconds. So the distinction between feeling and behavior is a really important one for me. Behaviors are something that can be practiced. <br /><br />These include behaviors that are<br />a) behaviors of welcome, listening, focusing, acknowledging feelings and elephants in rooms, visioning, constancy, and perhaps above all, predictability,<br />b) behaviors that access my higher cognitive functioning despite the fight or flight or cry response my emotional self is looking for<br />and c) back my limbic system down to 55.<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">(I am told that meditation can be used for helping the limbic system chill out, but cannot attest to that personally. I find nature radio on pandora.com helps as a limbic system governor, and once the gas has been hit, jumping jacks in the office w/ the shades drawn to discharge adrenaline is useful. Jumping jacks in public would likely be counter productive. I'm just saying.) </span><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvjGdCYwjG9Wt1N80mktdw0cFWw0xZnHbWNA8w7M-ezSsrC98Qap4ZzgZuemzJImx8-xWQTGkf8HtGiFNNERIboQMrGzDp5RKuaOMUXqYu85lneP_SF9BkpNvm2U8Ud5eOi2_/s1600-h/juggle.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 150px; height: 200px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCvjGdCYwjG9Wt1N80mktdw0cFWw0xZnHbWNA8w7M-ezSsrC98Qap4ZzgZuemzJImx8-xWQTGkf8HtGiFNNERIboQMrGzDp5RKuaOMUXqYu85lneP_SF9BkpNvm2U8Ud5eOi2_/s200/juggle.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5326029940131694338" /></a><br />The most challenging, as someone for whom inner calm does not come easily, isn't finance committee meetings, or congregational meetings about the latest issue; these can be prepared for. The greatest challenge is keeping space in my brain prepared to the inevitable subject out of left field while I'm full of 79 things to juggle on Sunday Morning. When I'm juggling balls, and someone tosses me a grindstone. When a member starts talking about about something they've been keeping pent up, or something they feel is exceptionally timely and must be addressed on the spot, it can be very difficult to implement the mantra, "this isn't a good time, please call me and we'll find a time to have tea." <br /><br />"This isn't a good time, please call me and we'll find a time to have tea." <br />"This isn't a good time, please call me and we'll find a time to have tea." <br />"This isn't a good time, please call me and we'll find a time to have tea." <br /><br />As a matter of fact, I think I'm going to start practicing it like an actual mantra. I'll let you know how that works.<br /><br /><br /><br />(grounded...eye on the ball... left field. Must be spring, Go Red Sox.)Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-78284788983331979632009-04-15T08:13:00.027-05:002009-04-17T04:29:02.575-05:00Being a Professional Religous Professional in difficult economic timesA very wise colleague recently told me that she thought that at the core of what we do, is that we educate people on how to "do church." My work is not the same thing as my job description and commensurate task list.<br /><br />I really like that as a hook upon which to hang my hat. Our <span style="font-style:italic;">work </span>is that we provide leadership in how to live in a certain kind of community that doesn't exist elsewhere. We provide opportunities for people -- adults, youth, children -- to practice the skills necessary to be able to be in right relationship. It's relatively easy with people who think like us and laugh at the same jokes, but our religious community, when done right, includes people we don't particularly enjoy being with, people we don't understand, people we find challenging, angry, or obstructionist, and "doing church" with them takes a lot of work. <br /><br />When we ask ourselves, "What is a congregation uniquely positioned to provide it's members," we come to that answer. We are a religous movement that affirms the worth and dignity of our most challenging people. We are a faith tradition that expects that people will be oriented toward right relationship, toward health and wholeness; toward, dare I say, liberation from that which limits and challenges us. We are a faith tradition where people covenant to stay at the table together and work things out, to practice and practice and practice again the skills to be able to work things out. <br /><br />Religious Professionals whose work is in congregations are in a unique position relative to the members and congregations in which we serve. We spend 20 or 40 or 60 hours a week "working" on the doing of church. By the time we've been doing this work for several years, we have engaged in myriad collegial conversations and spent intense time in educational development opportunities at 15 and 25 and 40 hours a pop, learning from our colleagues and foreparents, from those who specialize in understanding particular aspects of our work. We may have spent 1 or 3 or 4 or 10 years in advanced studies in preparation for the work we do, learning how the early Christian church, liberationists in Latin America, marginalized populations and mainstream congregations in the US all have "done church." We've learned about congregational systems theory, and the impact of congregational size on the necessary administrative and program structures; we've worked to be a non-anxious presence.<br /><br />And the people we serve, for the most part have not spent years and years in this endeavor. They attend worship once a week. They serve on a committee, or teach a class, maybe both. Some few immerse themselves in "being" Unitarian Universalist in an active, core sense. Maybe, after a number of years, they serve on the Board or on committees and boards of the larger association. Or they blog regularly about our Association and our lives together.<br /><br />But church time is slow time. <br /><br />C h u r c h T i m e i s S l o w Tiiiiiiiimmmmmmmmmmeeeeeeee.<br /><br /><br /><br />I came out of Seminary great guns, intending to change the world, to start adult education programs that mimicked the kind of intense bonding and exploration I experienced in Seminary. I was going to start outreach ministries that met the felt needs of the poorest in the community from church basements, empowering the members of any congregation I served to imagine wildly the kinds of needs they, banded together as a congregation, could meet. <br /><br />And here I am two decades later on a sunny Wednesday afternoon, talking with people, not about the next outreach activity, not about deep intense theological questions about the meaning of life, but about the importance of the <a href="http://archive.uua.org/cde/education/safecong.html">Safe Congregation Policies</a>. We explore why it isn't a good idea for a person who doesn't actually believe that the rules are necessary to be the actual person who teaches them to newcomers. Sometimes I practice, teach, and engage in right relationship with my community by saying "No." <br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTybO7ygee4F2-uxiC2UEVEcoPX0B_1a5ukWBnUwoUWuQcbrm_Rp_fXyjQg8-1clxGA4newRkfxi1LLiGa-5OvjSXJgo8ZkWut_W30ldpFjqADotKE-xE2NAk0Q7IOyUCDbF_q/s1600-h/covenant+on+truck.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 108px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTybO7ygee4F2-uxiC2UEVEcoPX0B_1a5ukWBnUwoUWuQcbrm_Rp_fXyjQg8-1clxGA4newRkfxi1LLiGa-5OvjSXJgo8ZkWut_W30ldpFjqADotKE-xE2NAk0Q7IOyUCDbF_q/s200/covenant+on+truck.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5324913610082406610" /></a><br />Here I am, again, trying to find language for why the word Faith doesn't mean belief in what isn't provable. Or in a conversation about why, just because the word Covenant is printed on the side of big rigs and is claimed by <a href="http://www.religioustolerance.org/reconstr.htm">reconstructionist </a>Christians we still get to use it. That, in fact, we must use this language, for it is our language. The very deepest innermost truth of our faith is in our covenant one with another.<br /><br />Here I am, again, asking a group of incredibly passionate and talented RE Volunteers to remember that they are working with a group that exists in the context of a larger RE Program, which is in the context of the larger congregation, which is uniquely qualified to offer it's membership a certain kind of being-in-relationship.<br /><br />Here I am, again, (trying to be careful) asking questions about why a congregant who buys fair trade coffee and won't shop at Walmart would entertain the idea that when staff hours are cut, that staff member should just offer up volunteer time to fulfill their job description.<br /><br />Here I am, not engaged in a deep discussion about multinational economic oppression, but explaining why I think that all staff will support another staff person's raise to the local Living Wage even though none of us are going to get a COLA this year; why it's a justice issue; why we are also bound together in right relation.<br /><br />Under economic pressure, congregations need their religous professionals to be professional -- that is, to continue to help them learn how to "do church." If my hours or program budget were to be cut further, what would that mean to me as a professional? What would it mean to my family? These are my questions to answer, and they belong in conversation with my family and colleagues.<br /><br />But, how would the congregation "own" the consequences of choices to cut? This, ultimately is my role as a religious professional under economic pressure -- how might I help the congregation understand that those consequences have to do with how <span style="font-style:italic;">they </span>live <span style="font-style:italic;">their </span>lives together, how <span style="font-style:italic;">they </span>support their children and youth, how <span style="font-style:italic;">they </span>walk together in justice and peace and right relation. Changes in my job description would mean modifications in how they support their own religious community, but it ought not be about whether or not I am hurt or angry. Their reaction to any cuts that are made ought not be to personally apologize to me. Because it's not about me. <br /><br />My family life is about me, my economic realities are about me, and my solutions will be about me. But the congregation must learn through this as through everything else, how to "do church," how to be in right relation, how to make hard choices and then follow up with right action.<br /><br />What I do as a religous educator is far more complicated, rich, and meaningful than the exciting work I'd once dreamed. Starting up community education programs to teach basic car repair to single mothers would have been much simpler.<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">PS. Late breaking news people, Literary License. It's a lovely thing. Remember, I never talk about my congregation on this blog, and so there are no exact literal conversations with exact identifiable congregants; just as I hope you understand that it could not possibly be true, in that literal factual sense, that I had all of the above conversations, literally, this Wednesday afternoon.</span>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-67245685726282553802009-04-10T10:32:00.002-05:002009-04-10T10:38:45.752-05:00Moses is Departing Egypt: A Facebook HaggadahSince I'm on the subject of Facebook, here's a very funny page. But it's a Fake Facebook page, so don't try to click the link to see who God's friends are. It won't work. <br /> <br />Below is a screenshot of the beginning.<br /><br /><br /><img src="http://www.snackfeed.com/plugin/thumbnails/bc9b43ca1a3536b4edba66840ba4f405.png" /><br /><br /><a href="http://www.facebook.com/ext/share.php?sid=87838385931&h=Xb2Cq&u=XuYvC&ref=nf">Here's the link</a> to the whole thing.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-12303817142609754542009-04-03T05:36:00.008-05:002009-04-03T10:23:18.277-05:00Facebook as the new ScannersMy grandfather had a scanner. <br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJf_GeF4yWZmcOx1MUZZnQMi93HIuGbr6yYwtftPNVUvPjSilKEaW1H-muezA2NA3C1UiPaf0v3eTaKrxFN6j6BvgBMy9TrGzUpmeeILDU3Y0kGQhwSMt2hw51Mt95OFkz5Fw1/s1600-h/scanner+1.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 171px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJf_GeF4yWZmcOx1MUZZnQMi93HIuGbr6yYwtftPNVUvPjSilKEaW1H-muezA2NA3C1UiPaf0v3eTaKrxFN6j6BvgBMy9TrGzUpmeeILDU3Y0kGQhwSMt2hw51Mt95OFkz5Fw1/s320/scanner+1.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320415709728211794" /></a> <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />My dad has a scanner.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKo8Q5Hp6iz3ynOO86Z4s07M3LKs943aNg1NbTZWyET1yOqGSyCtftRJLZEwuqElvlj9G5-dV9agrDntaapdSRc2PQniGHRmOu0MD6T4WirWbnyYrVAXXrRlM6JLBVDxJYynn2/s1600-h/scanner+2.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 160px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKo8Q5Hp6iz3ynOO86Z4s07M3LKs943aNg1NbTZWyET1yOqGSyCtftRJLZEwuqElvlj9G5-dV9agrDntaapdSRc2PQniGHRmOu0MD6T4WirWbnyYrVAXXrRlM6JLBVDxJYynn2/s320/scanner+2.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320415833180086066" /></a><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_jcQqDtzIw9Oqg6ag_tz2rsXAnCN4xgmRGivDyzbMs7BB94FXNz0HP6uFNorvFNYd7Trdu-isvzO490PfNMQhzI5QzBNLt4No6NEstZPY7HxXa96HVHzsiSDEIyI3qxZ4rHKx/s1600-h/scanner+3.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 299px; height: 320px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg_jcQqDtzIw9Oqg6ag_tz2rsXAnCN4xgmRGivDyzbMs7BB94FXNz0HP6uFNorvFNYd7Trdu-isvzO490PfNMQhzI5QzBNLt4No6NEstZPY7HxXa96HVHzsiSDEIyI3qxZ4rHKx/s320/scanner+3.gif" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5320416034494566530" /></a><br /><br />I have a scanner. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />My uncle and brother are technogeeks, so they graduated to ham radios and shortwave and I don't understand a word they say so they don't get to be in my blog today.<br /><br />If this is new to you, let me explain that a scanner is a radio device one can set to certain frequencies to listen to police, fire, ambulance (and for the truly compulsive, the two-way radio broadcasts between the base and, say, the Heating Oil delivery truck, or the local college security officers.). Scanners are the explanation of how local tv news sometimes get so quickly to the scene of the accident. It provides, not long narratives of reality, but little bits of information that provide a mental image of reality, a little fuzzy in the manner of television when it went out magically over the air the way television is supposed to be transmitted. Yet it is still a little specific at the same time...like when that fuzzy tv had great audio. <br /><br />A scanner is how my dad kept up with the local situation for weeks while there was no electricity after the ice storm of 1998 in the Northern Adirondacks (and Vt, and Quebec). Battery back up, very hard core.<br /><br />My grandfather's scanner usually brought out opinions from my grandmother, <br />"I told you there was no good letting kids play in that park down there," or<br />"He was probably drunk," or "As fat as that, it's no wonder she had a heart attack."<br /><br />I have used mine in times of electrical outage, or when I hear lots of sirens, or, sometimes, if there's nothing on tv and I wonder what's going on in my town[s].<br />I get to find out that the electricity is out because someone crashed into the pole at the end of the road, so I know it won't be long. I can tell if any neighbors already called in a noise complaint...<br /><br />My partner pointed out the other day that I haven't turned it on since I joined Facebook.<br /><br />Is Facebook the new Scanner? Have all my bits of technology and hobbies been replaced?Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-85085697278369911422009-03-24T11:33:00.003-05:002009-03-24T11:36:34.262-05:00Married Gay People Who Are SorryI haven't had time in months to post any original thoughts on this blog, (I'm unclear if I've even <span style="font-style:italic;">had </span>any original thoughts) but who needs original thoughts when there's Portia Di Rossi and Jimmy Kimmel?<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/GMLV3jPQW44&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/GMLV3jPQW44&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&feature=player_embedded&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-31450539698065707392008-12-14T20:39:00.002-05:002008-12-14T20:44:37.926-05:00Wizards of Winter and BarbraTwo very cool videos of a house with Christmas lights sync'd to music. First the Trans-Siberian Orchestra's Wizards in Winter, then Barbra Streisand's Jingle Bells.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/IK90Ys2LhSo&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/IK90Ys2LhSo&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/3LYcsGtPC8Y&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/3LYcsGtPC8Y&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-77079597628562878782008-11-22T07:22:00.005-05:002008-11-22T08:14:48.461-05:00Child safety redux - Who is in charge of looking out for dangers?Thinking Out Loud. <br />I came across this fabulous set of PSA's. They are fun and simple. Click the video tests, in order, below. Make sure your children aren't in the room, b/c unexpected words may fly out of your mouth.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ahg6qcgoay4&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Ahg6qcgoay4&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br />Now that you've got the hang of it, watch this one.<br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/ubNF9QNEQLA&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/ubNF9QNEQLA&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Page down ...<br /><br />These are from <a href="http://www.dothetest.co.uk/">http://www.dothetest.co.uk/</a><br /><br /><br />I was all proud of myself when I saw the bear in the second video. After the first video, I was looking for a bear, and I found it, then noticed it change. I was not a little dismissive of the video, given, <span style="font-style:italic;">::eyes roll::</span> how easy it was. <br /><br />Normally, I'm the queen of continuity errors. In the middle of a film, if someone's cigarette grows a quarter inch when the angle changes, or if the coffee handle turns left instead of right, I have a good grumble, out loud. If continuity errors continue, I often add a dramatic Tony Soprano arm wave to the grumble. And whomever is in the living room with me is resentful of my interruption of their experience. They'd not noticed continuity errors, and so it was I, not the film's inattention to detail, that interrupted their experience.<br /><br />I'm embarrassed to say in this case, I stopped at the bear, even though I knew the gist of the exercise. I stopped looking. I stopped seeing. I watched, but didn't see.<br /><br />So I find myself pondering this in relation to our congregations and the safety of children (and elders, and other vulnerable people.) <br /><span style="font-style:italic;"><blockquote>It's so easy to miss something you're not looking for.</blockquote></span> Is this why DRE's and church staff are more aware of the number of people in the building who are not congregants, in fact, the number who live on the edge of sanity, sobriety, and the law? (This is likely most true of those of us in downtown congregations).<br /><br />Is this why, given people's natural (and I would say appropriate) desire for congregations to be places of safety and sanctuary, that they resist efforts to increase security in ways that require them to be inconvenienced or, frankly, to have to notice that bad things happen even in church?<br /><br />So is this part of an explanation of why we seem to be the only people who notice when matches are left out on the edges of things, or when a door is unlocked because it's inconvenient to have to continually walk to open it during committee meetings? Because we are looking? <br /><br />And if members are not looking, even when there are policies that say they ought, then of course members are going to be uncomfortable or even resentful of us when we point out risks. It is not the fact of a unlocked door, or the matches, or the suddenly covered security-window-in-the-door that interrupted their sense of sanctuary. It was the staff, the DRE, or the identified safety wonk on the RE Committee who interrupted their sense of sanctuary. <br /><br />I wonder if this is a partial explanation for why congregations sometimes seem to expect us to write and implement policies, to monitor and ensure safety, but push comes to shove, not really bother membership about their behavior when that behavior impacts safety.<br /><br />And if it is, what's the solution?<br /><br />As Harriet the Spy said so frequently, <span style="font-style:italic;">Hmm, think about this.</span>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-64039879073344494272008-09-24T07:32:00.002-05:002008-09-24T08:36:25.422-05:00What makes your heart sing?I think, and of course I'm not the first, that this is a core question for religious educators. We should be asking everyone we come across in our work, "What makes your heart sing?" <br /><br />When we have some insight into the answers to this question, we create space within which to imagine ways to make everything we do be meaningful. We can look for ways to create connections between people, practices and principles; we can pull on members' natural inclinations and desires to seek moments of meaning. We can collaborate on opportunities for service that aren't driven by <span style="font-style:italic;">how we've always done</span> something, but by maximizing connections between past, present, and future/vision. <br /><br />When we listen to people's answers, we can go to our RE Committee and Minister and colleagues and say,<br />"Look what I found out! XXYYZZ is the new AABBCC! Or: 10 people have told me that they cherish JJKKLL. What would happen if...."<br /><br /><span style="font-style:italic;">(Perhaps our RE Committee and Minister and colleagues are, in fact, the first people to whom we should direct the question.)</span><br /><br />I often think that I know how to do my job -- what the goals are, what the needs of the families are. But people will answer these two questions very differently:<br /><span style="font-style:italic;">What do you need?</span> elicits a different answer than <span style="font-style:italic;">What makes your heart sing?</span> My "job" is to flex and learn and remember that I need to be able to hold both of those questions (and all the answers) in order to truly support faith development.<br /><br />...<br /><br />It surprised me how much this video makes my heart sing. <br />As it started, I <span style="font-style:italic;">so </span>didn't see it coming...what happened in my heart.<br /><br />If you have a fast internet connection, <a href="http://wherethehellismatt.com/videos.shtml">this link</a> will get you to his page and a hi-res version, which is even more glorious.<br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlfKdbWwruY&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/zlfKdbWwruY&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-30368365193109623142008-09-23T11:41:00.005-05:002008-09-23T13:37:14.733-05:00Someone you love has Mito<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFexSE1BnAPQCG_98SuW61xK-nr-Ckc6OQnIiCRx6niwLhWN33BbfwXRZnGLtsL8JOJKrzyLX-HM1k0SoEuAXzBnwzLFyNBoBlwHy1LaK1Khnc8mQb2pTJZJ9lLhs6dOaef0Qa/s1600-h/562px-Diagram_of_a_human_mitochondrion_svg+copy.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFexSE1BnAPQCG_98SuW61xK-nr-Ckc6OQnIiCRx6niwLhWN33BbfwXRZnGLtsL8JOJKrzyLX-HM1k0SoEuAXzBnwzLFyNBoBlwHy1LaK1Khnc8mQb2pTJZJ9lLhs6dOaef0Qa/s320/562px-Diagram_of_a_human_mitochondrion_svg+copy.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5249259612642926690" /></a><br />Every year 1000-4000 children are born with a Mitochondrial Disease. The person in my life who I know lives with Mito is Gwen, who I've written about on this blog many times <a href="http://happycindy.blogspot.com/2005/09/this-is-gwen.html">before</a>. Gwen and her family are no longer part of our congregation because our local hospitals didn't have the specialized treatment necessary to support Gwen, so they are now the beloved members of another UU congregation.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/UjIBu0tiXk0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/UjIBu0tiXk0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object><br /><br /><br />Many, if not most people with Mito are misdiagnosed, or not diagnosed until after death, so take a minute to learn about this often misunderstood disease. This is Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week, to do yourself and your loved ones a favor, take a moment for awareness.<br /><br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.umdf.org/site/c.dnJEKLNqFoG/b.3042169/k.7A8C/About_Mitochondrial_Disease.htm">Mitochondrial diseases</a> result from failures of the mitochondria, specialized compartments present in every cell of the body except red blood cells. Mitochondria are responsible for creating more than 90% of the energy needed by the body to sustain life and support growth. When they fail, less and less energy is generated within the cell. Cell injury and even cell death follow. If this process is repeated throughout the body, whole systems begin to fail, and the life of the person in whom this is happening is severely compromised. The disease primarily affects children, but adult onset is becoming more and more common. </blockquote><br /><br />This means that organs fail to work properly -- or fail outright. Without energy to run the cells, cells die, and can't do their jobs within the organs. So people with mito may not have GI tracts that work, or kidneys that will flush, or livers that wil cleanse. They become extremely vulnerable to the slightest bacteria or virus. <br /><br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.umdf.org/site/c.dnJEKLNqFoG/b.3042169/k.7A8C/About_Mitochondrial_Disease.htm">Depending on which cells are affected</a>, symptoms may include loss of motor control, muscle weakness and pain, gastro-intestinal disorders and swallowing difficulties, poor growth, cardiac disease, liver disease, diabetes, respiratory complications, seizures, visual/hearing problems, lactic acidosis, developmental delays and susceptibility to infection.</blockquote><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkJxbike0oOnta0LtcI4lnel459LtgXOAgcLzkpJ_FuXneyOO9tZpKRtCUdQko81Dywf97KTeflII_U4AFPF6ympZ9vFATVA3HcOfHZjwu-FgKgL4EsnWlOJ1gWOWlXVNGHNE/s1600-h/Symptoms.jpg"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXkJxbike0oOnta0LtcI4lnel459LtgXOAgcLzkpJ_FuXneyOO9tZpKRtCUdQko81Dywf97KTeflII_U4AFPF6ympZ9vFATVA3HcOfHZjwu-FgKgL4EsnWlOJ1gWOWlXVNGHNE/s320/Symptoms.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5249264536823042274" /></a><br /><br />Click the image to the left for a larger version of Symptoms of Mitochondrial Diseases.<br /><br /><blockquote><a href="http://www.umdf.org/site/c.dnJEKLNqFoG/b.3042175/k.6554/Treatments__Therapies.htm">Treatment</a><br />"At this time, there are no cures for these disorders.<br />Goals of treatment <br />note: goals may never be met<br /><br /> * alleviate symptoms<br /> * slow down the progression of the disease"</blockquote><br />For more information about treatments and therapies, click the link in the above quote about Treatment.<br /><br />As research continues, there seems to be more and more connection between mitochondrial diseases and autism spectrum disorders. <br /><blockquote>David Holtzman, MD, PhD, a Pediatric Neurologist at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, MA, notes, “Mitochondrial Disease may present with the clinical features of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Several recent studies have documented biochemical evidence of abnormal mitochondrial functions in at least 30% of children with ASD.”</blockquote> FMI about thinking about connections between ASD and Mito, start <a href="http://www.mitoaction.org/blog/autism-and-mitochondrial-disease">here</a><br /><br />Support these organizations:<br /><a href="http://www.mitoaction.org/">Mito Action</a><br /><a href="http://www.umdf.org/site/c.dnJEKLNqFoG/b.3041929/">United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation</a><br /><br />People you love are living with this disease. They may or may not know it.<br />Support research.<br />Take a few minutes and play with the above websites and google and youtube.<br /><br /><br /><br /><object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/BQJbgFlI2ho&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/BQJbgFlI2ho&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-54185997193181722622008-09-07T21:12:00.005-05:002008-09-07T21:23:41.233-05:00Daydreaming as active engagement with our internal landscapeReligious Professionals absolutely cannot jump from task to task to task, rushing willy nilly from one to do list to the next. It cripples us. We have to have time intentionally carved out that's full of daydreaming, imagining, making the improbable connections that amount to leaps of creativity and connection in our professional lives. Professional development, formal or not, needs to include opportunities to "contemplate our internal landscape." <br /><br />Jonah Lehrer in the Boston Globe:<br /><br /><blockquote>scientists have begun to see the act of daydreaming ... is a fundamental feature of the human mind - so fundamental, in fact, that it's often referred to as our "default" mode of thought. Many scientists argue that daydreaming is a crucial tool for creativity, a thought process that allows the brain to make new associations and connections. Instead of focusing on our immediate surroundings - such as the message of a church sermon - the daydreaming mind is free to engage in abstract thought and imaginative ramblings. As a result, we're able to imagine things that don't actually exist,</blockquote><br />...<br /><blockquote>Every time we slip effortlessly into a daydream, a distinct pattern of brain areas is activated, which is known as the default network. Studies show that this network is most engaged when people are performing tasks that require little conscious attention, such as routine driving on the highway or reading a tedious text. Although such mental trances are often seen as a sign of lethargy - we are staring haplessly into space - the cortex is actually very active during this default state, as numerous brain regions interact. Instead of responding to the outside world, the brain starts to contemplate its internal landscape. This is when new and creative connections are made between seemingly unrelated ideas.</blockquote><br /><br />The article is <a href="http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/articles/2008/08/31/daydream_achiever/?page=full">here</a>. Jonah Lehrer is an editor at large at Seed magazine and the author of "Proust Was a Neuroscientist."Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-75636762952603014462008-07-01T15:37:00.007-05:002008-07-01T16:03:45.100-05:00On Competency Expectations : Take a cue from the CanadiansSetting aside the fact that expecting competency and professional ethics from professionals is simply appropriate, it seems to me we could take a cue from the <span style="font-weight: bold;">1998 Canadian Supplement to the UUMA guidelines.</span><br />Others have quoted the new rule, but I'll put it here for any who aren't following along on other blogs.<br /><blockquote>"The fellowship of a minister may be terminated by the Ministerial Fellowship Committee for unbecoming conduct, incompetence, or other specified cause."</blockquote>Employment law is different in Canada, so a minister can be "dismissed for cause." Dismissal from a congregation is <span style="font-weight: bold;">not </span>what this particular rule change is about, but I mention it here because we might take some wisdom from this in terms of its usefulness in identifying where the bar might be set, what might constitute incompetence.<br /><br /><blockquote style="color: rgb(153, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;font-family:arial;"><span style="font-size:130%;"><span style="font-weight: normal;">“Cause” is a term of art and in general means <span style="font-weight: bold;">particularly egregious</span> </span>behavior such as repeated drunkenness in the pulpit...</span></blockquote><br />I think it's the funniest line in any professional document I've ever read, and it makes me happy every time I can find an excuse to refer to it. This may be the first time I've been able to refer to it and have it actually be directly relevant.<br /><br />And it also appropriately sets the bar clearly so as to avoid messes regarding personality or disagreements of style, theology or low/high churchiness and the like.<br /><br />If you've never seen it, the entire paragraph is:<br /><blockquote>In Canada a distinction is drawn between being dismissed for cause and being dismissed. “Cause” is a term of art and in general means particularly egregious behavior such as repeated drunkenness in the pulpit, failure to conduct services with no notice given or molestation of children in the church school. In situations where there is clearly cause, no benefits of any kind and no salary need be paid after the date of dismissal. Where “cause” in the legal sense cannot be established it may be that longer benefits than those described as normal in the US will have to be paid. In either case the minister is entitled to be treated fairly, to know the details of the charges and to have an opportunity to reply. Failure to proceed fairly can result in a review by the courts. Separation of church and state is not observed rigidly in Canada, and there are an increasing number of cases where courts have concluded that ministers were not treated fairly.</blockquote><br />Also, as an aside, may I take this moment to state my strong opinion that all LREDA members ought not only read our own Guidelines, but the UUMA Guidelines as well (and hopefully the updated ones will be finalized if not already, and Google-able and on the UUA website soon) And vice versa. We are all accountable to professional standards and expectations of ethical behavior, and as religious professionals it is incumbent upon us to be aware of how those standards and expectations are and are not the same given our different responsibilities within a congregation.<br /><br />I'm just saying.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-79106355604849016252008-05-01T17:15:00.003-05:002008-05-01T17:24:55.454-05:00Keeping Mum<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbH9IhmIbwJemetXKAmWQ-lFAiAbSYa11BX2rrtZWm4933pnZca0WP4ILNuiJL4SB0e10JjeQCUT1RO-Me2yz7pXAD5C8uc_mD1dHytgwWnCpgaBI8qXyyvZUQmnm6HQ2y2gmS/s1600-h/keeping+mum.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbH9IhmIbwJemetXKAmWQ-lFAiAbSYa11BX2rrtZWm4933pnZca0WP4ILNuiJL4SB0e10JjeQCUT1RO-Me2yz7pXAD5C8uc_mD1dHytgwWnCpgaBI8qXyyvZUQmnm6HQ2y2gmS/s320/keeping+mum.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5195537057940670466" border="0" /></a>Dark British comedy with a Rowan Atkinson as the Vicar and Maggie Smith as, er, Mary Poppins, sort-of. What could be better?<br /><br />If you've never seen this 2005 film, and if you ever think I'm funny, then try to catch it. If you don't ever find me funny, I recommend you give it a pass because <span style="font-weight: bold;">I</span><span style="font-weight: bold; font-style: italic;"> </span>find it hilarious.<br />and sick.<br />and hilarious.<br /><br /> I like to believe that people who don't find me funny won't find Maggie Smith funny. I'm just saying.<br /><br /><br />TMC Monday 1:30 am<br />Showcase Tue 11:15am<br />Sho2 Wed 9:15 am<br />TMC may 8 9:20 amCindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-88174114402624283002008-04-01T07:56:00.003-05:002008-04-01T08:35:09.216-05:00Autism: The Musical<a href="http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/autism/index.html">Watch </a><a href="http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/autism/index.html">it</a><a href="http://www.hbo.com/docs/programs/autism/index.html"> </a>on HBO. It's amazing. It's honest. You'll fall in love with the kids and appreciate the depth of the time and effort parents put into helping their kids grow and develop. You will watch as people struggle with communication, social skills, and impulsivity. The film shows snippets of the joys and challenges, the positive communication and melt-downs -- both child and adult. It is a film about children with autism, but it is just as much about how neurotypical adults sometimes have similar behaviors and responses to the world -- just not as frequently.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.hbo.com/apps/schedule/ScheduleServlet?ACTION_DETAIL=DETAIL&FOCUS_ID=647488">Here </a>is the schedule. The next showing is Wednesday at 6:15 East, 9:15 West. It is also On Demand, although it doesn't show up yet on my On Demand Schedule. There are also some cut scenes available On Demand, which you'll want to go to immediately after seeing the film.<br /><br />Don't have HBO? Go visit a friend....<br /><br />My only significant critique, (which would have completely changed the film), is that they only gave a tiny nod to the inadequate resources that are provided to help children fully develop their potential, or to the reality that public schools fail to meet the legal standards of education on a regular basis.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-65059614098003526362008-03-17T17:26:00.004-05:002008-03-17T17:59:10.834-05:00Daddy’s Roommate Buys a Prius<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;" >A satire of the fundraising letters of James Dobson<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);"> </span></span><a style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://www.family.org/">(Focus on the Family)</a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);font-family:trebuchet ms;" >. </span><br /><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;" >Said satire is brought to you by the funny evangelicals at </span><a style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://www.wittenburgdoor.com/">The Wittenburg Door.</a><br /><h1 style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;"><span style="font-size:100%;"><a href="http://www.wittenburgdoor.com/green-homosexuals%2C-newest-threat-american-families">Green Homosexuals, The Newest Threat to American Families</a></span></h1><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);font-family:trebuchet ms;" >EXCERPT: </span><br /><blockquote style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">We must defend our way of life. Many of you know my stand against homosexuality. <p>AND, more recently, you may have heard how I have criticized evangelical leaders who have formed unholy alliances with the environmental movement to “save” the planet at the expense of our God-ordained standard of living.</p> <p>What you may not know is that these two radical movements have now joined forces.</p> <p>My friends, <strong>we are now facing a Gay-Green threat:</strong> <span style="text-decoration: underline;">Homosexual activists who also seek to limit carbon emissions and promote recycling, as well as a sustainable lifestyle</span>!</p><p>I know it sounds like “gangrene” <em>and that is entirely appropriate, since this is a rottenness which will eat away at the integrity of our American way of life</em>.</p></blockquote><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></p><br /><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">And, in case you've never seen what Mr. Dobson writes, here's an excerpt of a <a style="color: rgb(0, 0, 153);" href="http://www.focusonthefamily.com/docstudy/newsletters/A000000334.cfm">real </a>letter:</p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"></p><blockquote><p>April 2004</p><p>Dear Friends:</p><p>I write to you today with a profound sense of concern and apprehension for the welfare of the family, and indeed, for the future of our nation. I do not recall a time since the beginnings of Focus on the Family, 27 years ago, when the institution of marriage faced such peril, or when the forces arrayed against it were more formidable or determined. Barring a miracle, the family as it has been known for more than five millennia will crumble, presaging the fall of Western civilization itself. This is a time for concerted prayer, divine wisdom and greater courage than we have ever been called upon to exercise.</p>For more than 40 years, the homosexual activist movement has sought to implement a master plan that has had as its centerpiece the utter destruction of the family. The institution of marriage, along with an often weakened and impotent Church, is all that stands in the way of its achievement of every coveted aspiration.</blockquote><p></p><br /><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></p><p style="font-family: trebuchet ms; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><br /></p>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-2299713276638552452008-03-05T18:25:00.002-05:002008-03-05T19:37:15.403-05:00Latency aged boys collect thingsIt's part of the developmental deal, 10-12 year old boys build model worlds - railroads, lego-lands, duct-tape tech deck skateboard parks - and they collect things. They collect baseball cards, Pokemon cards, matchbox cars...<br /><br />My grandson collects "Quotes I Like by Barack Obama."<br /><br />He writes them on little flash cards so he can learn them.<br /><br />I'm so proud.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-39313075643386589692008-02-26T10:13:00.005-05:002009-11-07T10:06:22.164-05:00Laugh like a pig Auntie CindyWhen Naomi was much smaller, she loved my laugh, which, when there is enough humor in the ether, does have an occasional snorting quality to it. My brother Dave and sister-in-law Mari used this as a way to help her differentiate between Auntie Beloved and Auntie Cindy.<br />
<br />
Before, it went like this:<br />
<br />
Age 18 months - 2 years--<br />
"How does Auntie Cindy laugh?"<br />
[Naomi would scrunch up her face and pull air in and out of her 18 month old nose, like 18 month old smelling the flowers on speed]<br />
<br />
Age 2--<br />
She'd be on the phone and say,<br />
"Laugh Auntie Cindy."<br />
<br />
Age 2.5--<br />
on the webcam, she'd scrunch up her face and say,<br />
"Laugh Auntie Cindy."<br />
<br />
Age 2.75--visiting in person<br />
This time, after spending 8 days with her, we were riding in the car when out of the blue she suddenly made the connection.<br />
<br />
"Laugh like a pig Auntie Cindy."<br />
<br />
Everyone swears they never taught her what a pig sounds like.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-75333632408680185402008-02-14T13:57:00.004-05:002008-02-14T14:15:39.331-05:00Happy Cindy is SO HAPPY with her niecesthe 7 week old twins, and a toddler in California in the early spring with actual live daffodils in the front yard. <br /><br />Naomi sez:<br />Auntie Cindy, are you Happy? <br />Yes Naomi, I am Happy.<br />Are you SO HAPPY?<br />Yes, Naomi, I am SO HAPPY!<br /><br />And today is my 8.5 / 2.5 year anniversary with the honey. (That's time together pre and post marriage rights)<br /><br />What could possibly make it be better? It'd maybe help a little if the toddler internalized the instructions in this video which she's watched, so far, 5 times. I post it here for easy retrieval for all RE Teacher trainings.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Wju7F5ytk6M&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Wju7F5ytk6M&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-21392438719806477052008-02-02T18:39:00.001-05:002008-02-02T19:28:45.063-05:00Puppy BowlBefore the Super Bowl is the Puppy Bowl IV, on Animal Planet. Tomorrow 3 pm. With a half time show of kittens.<br /><br /><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab-06731299623119407 visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/Rw535Wiosq8&rel=1"></a><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/Rw535Wiosq8&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/Rw535Wiosq8&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br /><br /><br /><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab-06731299623119407 visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/7HSNeGuIR5M&rel=1"></a><a style="left: 0px ! important; top: 15px ! important;" title="Click here to block this object with Adblock Plus" class="abp-objtab-06731299623119407 visible ontop" href="http://www.youtube.com/v/7HSNeGuIR5M&rel=1"></a><object height="355" width="425"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/7HSNeGuIR5M&rel=1"><param name="wmode" value="transparent"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/7HSNeGuIR5M&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" height="355" width="425"></embed></object><br />This is a preview of one of this year's contestants.<br /><br />Puppies make me happy.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-13934305864645149502008-01-21T12:43:00.000-05:002008-01-21T12:46:53.956-05:00DocWatch Jan 21 thru Jan 26Docs to explore this week:<br /><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Today, Monday 1/21</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">noon Sundance</span> </span><a href="http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500240244">Murder on a Sunday Morning</a> A 15 year old boy is arrested and charged with murder.<span style="font-style: italic;"> The evidence? He's black and the victim was white and he was walking in the area. when did this happen? Was it one of the injustices Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was protesting in 1965? nope. 2000. <br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">3:30 pm Sundance</span> <a href="http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500200052">Blue Vinyl</a>. Last Chance to see it in the near future.<br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">4 pm HBO <a href="http://www.hbo.com/apps/schedule/ScheduleServlet?ACTION_DETAIL=DETAIL&FOCUS_ID=626865">Hard as Nails</a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Justin Fatica is not for everyone. When he steps up to the altar, the unordained minister becomes a frenetic whirlwind of energy, using a mix of professional wrestling, hip hop and Scripture to bring Jesus to thousands of young worshippers. Despite his success, Fatica's intense, over-the-top approach faces some serious resistance--even from his own beloved Catholic Church. This documentary follows the self-ordained preacher who started his controversial "Hard as Nails" ministry as a way to reach troubled kids.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">5:15 Sundance </span> <a href="http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500014397">Shakespeare Behind Bars</a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Each year, inmates at the Luther Luckett Correctional Facility in Kentucky take on a difficult and challenging task: the production and performance of a Shakespeare play. This powerful documentary by Hank Rogerson follows rehearsals for "The Tempest" — a story heavy on the theme of redemption — as the cast, some serving life sentences for murder, develops their chosen roles, giving the audience an unexpected view of some complex, intelligent, thoughtful men in the process. "Ingenious"— </span><i><span style="font-size:85%;"> Village Voice.<br /><br /></span></i><span style="font-weight: bold;font-size:85%;" ><span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">Don't miss this one.</span></span><i><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span></i><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">8 pm Logo <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"> </span></span><a style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/brother_outsider/series.jhtml">Brother Outsider. The Life of Bayard Rustin</a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"></span> <a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/brother_outsider/videos.jhtml#"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Watch preview</span> </span></a><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span></span><span style="font-size:85%;"><span class="font-gray">Riveting Portrait of Forgotten Civil Rights Pioneer and Strategist About the Film Since its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival, Brother Outsider has won 20+ awards<br /></span></span><blockquote><span style="font-size:85%;">Long before Martin Luther King, Jr. became a national figure, <a href="http://www.rustin.org/">Bayard Rustin</a> routinely put his body--and his life--on the line as a crusader for racial justice. Rustin's commitment to pacifism and his visionary advocacy of Gandhian nonviolence made him a pioneer in the 1940s, and captured King's imagination in the 1950s. In 1963, with more than 20 years of organizing experience behind him, Rustin brought his unique skills to the crowning glory of his civil rights career: his work organizing the historic march on Washington, the biggest protest America had ever witnessed.<br /> <br /> But many viewed Rustin as a political liability. He was openly gay during the fiercely homophobic era of the 1940s and 1950s; as a result, the very civil rights movement he helped create frequently shunned him. The compelling new film <i>Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin</i> chronicles Rustin's complex life story, a tale of race, prejudice, and idealism at the heart of 20th-century America. Though he had to overcome the stereotypes associated with being an illegitimate son, an African American, a gay man and a one-time member of the Communist Party, Rustin--the ultimate outsider--eventually became a public figure and respected political insider. He not only shaped civil rights movement strategy as a longtime advisor to Martin Luther King, Jr., but earned the respect of numerous U.S. Presidents and foreign leaders.</span></blockquote><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Tuesday 1/22<br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">8:00 am and 1:35 pm Show Showcase </span><span class="movietitle"><a href="http://www.flockofdodos.com/">FLOCK OF DODOS: THE EVOLUTION-INTELLIGENT DESIGN CIRCUS </a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Evolutionary biologist Dr. Randy Olson is the star of this tongue-in-cheek documentary that examines both sides of the evolution versus "intelligent design" debate, a controversial subject that has pitted faith against reason and school boards against scientists in an increasingly emphatic war of words and ideas. Which side will survive, and which will go the way of the now-extinct dodo bird?<br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><span style="font-weight: bold;">8:30 am Logo <span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"> </span></span><a style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);" href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/brother_outsider/series.jhtml">Brother Outsider. The Life of Bayard Rustin</a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(51, 51, 255);"></span> <a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/brother_outsider/videos.jhtml#"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(51, 51, 255);">Watch preview</span> </span></a></span><br /><span style="font-size:85%;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Wednesday 1/23</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">5 am Disc Times</span> John of God <span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">For 40 years, the Brazilian spiritual medium John of God has reportedly healed millions of people. Follow the journeys of skeptics, medical professionals and the chronically ill as they seek out the healing hand of this mysterious man. TV-MA<br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;"></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">3 p Sundance </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Helen's War: Portrait of a Dissident . Helen Caldicott.</span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">10 pm Dis Health </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://health.discovery.com/tv-schedules/special.html?paid=62.8119.109799.0.0">Switching Sexes: The Aftermath</a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">For people who find that their mind's identity and physical sex are mismatched, sexual reassignment surgery is a viable solution. Follow two transsexual men as they struggle through the heartache and sacrifice of becoming</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">female</span>.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">Check Local Listings PBS</span> <span class="programinfodescription">"American Made" is a compelling look at family, faith and racism as a Sikh family is stranded on a desert road and family members try to flag down passing cars.<br /></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">Check Local Listings PBS</span> <span class="programinfodescription">"A Son's Sacrifice" </span>What motivates a young educated New Yorker to take over his family's halal slaughterhouse? Visit Imran Uddin at his unusual workplace at <a href="http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/video/?video_id=67">this</a> preview.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Thursday 1/24</span><br /> <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">1 am</span><span style="font-style: italic;"> </span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Dis Health </span><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><a href="http://health.discovery.com/tv-schedules/special.html?paid=62.8119.109799.0.0">Switching Sexes: The Aftermath</a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">For people who find that their mind's identity and physical sex are mismatched, sexual reassignment surgery is a viable solution. Follow two transsexual men as they struggle through the heartache and sacrifice of becoming</span> <span style="font-size:85%;">female</span>. (also 5 pm the 26th)<br /><span style="font-size: 85%;"><span style="color: rgb(153, 102, 51);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size: 100%;"><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">9:05 am TMC extra </span><a href="http://www.spiritofbaraka.com/genesis.aspx"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Genesis</span></a><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><a href="http://www.spiritofbaraka.com/genesis.aspx"> </a>- </span><span style="font-size: 85%;"><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-style: italic;"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">a really cool look at the life cycle, follow-up films to Microcosmos and Winged Migration. <a href="http://www.videodetective.com/titledetails.aspx?PublishedID=180273">Link </a>to the trailer. You might recognize the narrator as Sotigui Kouyate, who played the lead (and won lots of awards,) in the film <a href="http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/little_senegal/">Little Senegal</a>. </span></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"><span style="font-size:100%;">also on at 6:05 pm</span></span></span></span><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"><br /></span></span></span></span></span><br /><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Friday 1/25<br />12:30 pm HBO <a href="http://www.hbo.com/apps/schedule/ScheduleServlet?ACTION_DETAIL=DETAIL&FOCUS_ID=626865">Hard as Nails</a> </span><span style="font-size:85%;">Justin Fatica is not for everyone. When he steps up to the altar, the unordained minister becomes a frenetic whirlwind of energy, using a mix of professional wrestling, hip hop and Scripture to bring Jesus to thousands of young worshippers. Despite his success, Fatica's intense, over-the-top approach faces some serious resistance--even from his own beloved Catholic Church. This documentary follows the self-ordained preacher who started his controversial "Hard as Nails" ministry as a way to reach troubled kids.</span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /></span><span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0); font-weight: bold;">Saturday 1/26</span><br /> 10 am <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">Sundance </span><a href="http://www.sundancechannel.com/films/500240244">Murder on a Sunday Morning</a> <span style="font-style: italic;"> A 15 year old boy is arrested and charged with murder. The evidence? He's black and the victim was white and he was walking in the area. when did this happen? Was it one of the injustices Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr was protesting in 1965? nope. 2000. <br /><span style="font-weight: bold; color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">8 pm LOGO </span> <a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/out_on_the_job/series.jhtml">Out On The Job.</a><br /><br />WATCH ON DEMAND<br /><a href="http://www.hbo.com/apps/hodschedule/hod/details.do?FID=PMRS112403">Friends of God </a>HBO<br /><a href="http://www.hbo.com/apps/hodschedule/hod/details.do?FID=PMRS112405">Ghosts of Abu Graib</a> HBO<br /><br />WATCH ONLINE<br /><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/newswar/">NewsWar</a> A Frontline 4 part investigation into the future of news.<br /><a href="http://www.pbs.org/wnet/religionandethics/index_noflash.html">Religion and Ethics Newsweekly </a><br />P.O.V Online Short Film Festival <a href="http://www.pbs.org/pov/shorts/shorts_scaredycat.html">Scaredycat </a><br /><a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/no_dumb_questions/videos.jhtml">No Dumb Questions </a></span>Three children learn about, and talk with their uncle as she becomes their aunt.<span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/southern_comfort/videos.jhtml">Southern Comfort</a> Robert Eads, a transman, is dying from ovarian cancer. A fascinating, touching, and beautiful portrait of his life in Taccoa GA.<br /></span><span style="font-style: italic;"><a href="http://www.logoonline.com/shows/dyn/out_on_the_job/series.jhtml">Out On The Job.</a> 3 people come out on the job. How's that work for them? </span><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><br /><br /></span><span style="font-size: 85%;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span>Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-32868250177678597652008-01-21T09:23:00.000-05:002008-01-21T09:58:52.301-05:00I seem to be morally average, and I'm not sure how I feel about thatA nod to Steve Caldwell for pointing out <a href="http://liberalfaith.blogspot.com/2008/01/two-online-quizzes-on-god-and.html">Two online quizzes on God</a> at The Philosopher's Magazine on the Net. I started looking around the site. Great opportunities for COA and YRUU application. I took the <a href="http://www.philosophersnet.com/games/morality_play.htm">Morality Play quiz</a>, a more philosophical version of the values clarification exercises we did in the 70's. Turns out I'm average in terms of my moral parsimony<span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">.</span> <span style="font-style: italic;">Parsimony. Great word. Means something along the lines of frugality and tightness in regards to clarity and internal consistency. See also Occam's Razor.<br /><br /></span>Actually, it said I'm average in terms of my moral parsimony<span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);"> for people my age.</span> I may have to go back and answer it the same way, then say that I'm 20 and see how I compare.<br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br />It was forced choice exercise however, and I was often forced into the<span style="font-style: italic;"> most true </span>answer. I kept wanting a third option "find another way." (In another quiz, Taboo, I kept wanting another option as well <span style="color: rgb(102, 51, 0);">"not morally wrong, but gross."</span> Please note, there is no direct link to Taboo from this blog because it is most definitely not for church use with minors.)<br /><br /><a href="http://www.philosophersnet.com/games/">This </a>is the link directly to the games page.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9073568.post-28370450733348167672008-01-18T09:14:00.000-05:002008-01-18T09:28:15.762-05:00Changed the number of posts on the first pageAfter some ponder as to why a colleague gets stuck on this blog... it's not a bug, and it's not a secret plot to force people to indulge in the beauty and brilliance of my opinions, so I changed the number of posts on the page. This way, if the problem is the sheer amount of stuff on the front page, particularly where I've put so many YouTube posts up lately, the problem should, could, might, stop.<br /><br />So, if anyone gets stuck on this site now, please let me know by commenting.Cindyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05835474647542190752noreply@blogger.com0