Unhappy Hipsters

A few days ago Morgan pointed me to a clever and witty website. They take photos from Dwell magazine and caption them. It’s called Unhappy Hipsters. In some ways it is the uber-modern, angst-ridden, minimalist, home decorating equivalent of Awkward Family Photos.

I had you at angst-ridden, didn’t I?
;o)

He’s Back!

But, then again, perhaps he never really left.


This evening, MSNBC aired a two hour special rebroadcasting the question and answer period from President Obama’s unprecedented meeting today with House Republicans, at their retreat in Baltimore, Maryland. (MSNBC broke the report up by questions. I believe this link will take you to the correct page so you can view each segment in turn.) Watching President Obama during Wednesday’s State of the Union Address I was buoyed and encouraged. But tonight I was reminded of exactly why I voted for Barack Obama. The guy is brilliant. He’s not as liberal as I wish he were, but he’s as liberal as anyone could be and still get elected president. He’s a policy wonk, which I like. He tends toward the professorial, which is fine. I admire his devotion to bipartisanship, even though there are times when I would prefer him to just strong arm his way through legislation. He has an easy grace when speaking extemporaneously. He can be casual and colloquial, but, unlike some of our politicians, is never crude. Yes, I know he is ridiculed for his use of tele-prompters, but no one can deny the man is extremely intelligent and articulate. Plus, he has a staggering depth and breadth of knowledge on all aspects of the government and the challenges we are facing as a nation. He also has a sense of humor, which I think is vital to the job. And he is the epitome of cool. Being calm, self possessed and not easily ruffled or riled ought to be a Constitutional requirement to be president!

Today, President Barack Obama faced off against House Republicans and hit for the cycle - - - with extra home runs right over the Green Monster!

Thank you Mr. President.

Patience

“Patience and fortitude
conquer all things.”

- Ralph Waldo Emerson
(May 25, 1803 – April 27, 1882)


We shall see Mr. Emerson.
We shall see...

SCOTUS Update

Chuck and I were speaking with a friend of ours today who is about the most right-wing, rock-ribbed a Republican person that we know. He’s also pro-business and against “big government”. Out of the blue he asked us what we thought about last week’s Supreme Court decision. Now, part of how we all remain friends is that we don’t get ourselves unnecessarily into heated political discussions. We hold fast to the values and interests we hold in common and let sleeping dogs lie. Well, we answered truthfully that we thought it was a terrible decision. We felt the Supreme Court over reached badly and needlessly. And we felt that it would be a devastating shift in the balance of power between individuals and corporations. Our friend shocked us when he said: “I agree with you completely.” He went on to say that he felt it could lead to the undermining of our democracy as we have known it.

So, it’s not just the liberals.

Look At Their Eyes

According to the Library of Congress, these children were protesting against child labor while marching in a labor parade. The photo was taken on May 1, 1909, most likely in New York City. One girl’s banner is written in Yiddish, the other in English. Both are holding American flags.

Look at their eyes; their slight, sweet smiles.

This was 1909. Real and lasting change in child labor practices would not be realized for twenty-nine more years. That was when President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.


Original Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress. Adjustments by LMR/Pink Granite. Software: Apple iPhoto ’09 & Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Mac.

ShelterBox

ShelterBox strikes me as a brilliant idea! Vital supplies are bundled into a large, reusable 40 gallon storage box and shipped off to aid victims of natural disasters. The location and circumstances of each crisis helps determine what will be in the ShelterBoxes, but at least one ten-person tent is always included. The charity was created by Tom Henderson in 2000 in Cornwall, England. It began with Mr. Henderson’s Rotary Club in Helston-Lizard, but is now supported by Rotary Clubs and individuals around the world. You can read more about the contents of the boxes and see one in detail here.

I’ve been unable to find a rating and review of ShelterBox on Charity Navigator, but it is registered with the Charity Commission which regulates charities in England and Wales. Based on a few Google searches, fundraisers for ShelterBox are taking place all over the U.S. right now. More than 1700 boxes have already been sent to and are being deployed in Haiti.

Here’s a brief CNN video about ShelterBox.

Here’s the ShelterBox Flickr Photostream.

And you can find ShelterBox on Twitter.

I Still Wish...

I first wrote and posted this piece in 2007. I have posted it every year since. My feelings have not changed. I believe it bears repeating. Perhaps more so this year after the horribly divisive and violent year we have had. While there has been change in the membership of the Supreme Court, we still have the same balance of conservative, moderate and liberal justices. The Supreme Court is key to this issue.

Today is the 37th anniversary of the United States Supreme Court Decision known as Roe v. Wade.

In light of this anniversary I have a few wishes to state:

- I wish, that from this moment on, no woman would ever have to make the decision to have an abortion.
- I wish contraceptives, including the morning after pill, would always be readily available to all women.
- I wish that all young people would be taught age appropriate sex and health education.
- I wish that all young people would be taught that abstinence is a legitimate choice, at the same time they get clear information about all forms of contraception.
- And I wish that abortion would always be safe and legal and available to all women.

Houston, We Have A Problem

Hell, it’s not just Houston. It’s every state in these United States of America and every citizen therein.

Today, the United States Supreme Court totally screwed us - us human citizens that is. I have seen it referred to as “Judicial Activism”. Oh, the unmitigated irony! And judicial activism ain’t even close.

My summary: Corporations, unions, and other organizations can now pour their money into political campaigns - not a trickle from a dripping faucet; a freakin’ fire hose at full pressure.

But I am not a lawyer.
Nor am I a suddenly politically omnipotent corporation.
I’m just a human being.

Read more in multiple posts at SCOTUS Blog.

More still at Jonathan Turley’s blog. (Professor Turley is less upset than I am.)

A summary and editorial in the Washington Post.

President Obama’s statement on this decision.

And the Supreme Court’s 183 page Opinion in PDF - includes majority and minority opinions.

Thank You Mr. Parker

Robert Brown Parker, author, died at his desk Monday.
I thoroughly enjoyed all of his books.
I refer you to this report in the New York Times by Bruce Weber. He does a far better job than I ever could in summing up Mr. Parker’s life.
For even greater appreciation and background on Robert B. Parker, I recommend this article, also from the New York Times, by John Kifner.

Thank you Mr. Parker.
Your work will live on.
But you and the further adventures of all of your wonderful characters shall be sorely missed.


My earlier post on Mr. Parker

Happy Birthday!

”Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday to you,
Happy Birthday dear Gail
Happy Birthday to you -
and many more!
Wheeeeeee!!!”

It’s my sister Gail’s birthday today and it’s an important one - one involving a zero!
Yay Gail!

The Work Goes On...

Unfortunately, Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley.


“...the work goes on,
the cause endures,
the hope still lives
& the dream shall never die.”
- Senator Ted Kennedy first at the 1980 Democratic National Convention and again at the 2008 Democratic Convention


“The work begins anew.
The hope rises again.
And the dream lives on.”
- Senator Ted Kennedy at the 2008 Democratic Convention

This Is It!

Have I mentioned today is election day here in Massachusetts?
Good!



Turn HOPE into reality. VOTE!

It’s Time

Fired up!
Ready to go!

Tomorrow is the special senate election here in Massachusetts.
The polls will be open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.
If you need information about your polling place go the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s website.

I’ll be casting my ballot for Martha Coakley.
I hope you will be too.


Live your values.
Love your country.
VOTE!

Pat Boone? Seriously?

Our telephone has been ringing off the hook the last few days. We’ve suddenly become “popular” with various political organizations and action committees. We’ve gotten so many “robo-calls” lately, that this afternoon, Chuck picked up the receiver on what the Caller I.D. showed as another “unknown number” and he didn’t even bother to say hello. Instead of the expected taped message beginning to play, a woman’s voice began saying “Hello? Hello?” Ooops! A genuine human being was calling to encourage us to vote for Martha Coakley!

Later, while I was on the phone with my mother in Rhode Island, another robo-call message was left on our voice mail. This one was from Pat Boone. Yes, that Pat Boone, the singer, Mr. White Bucks himself. He’s now a spokesperson for an extremely conservative right wing organization (60 Plus Warning: a video plays automatically) which claims to be working on behalf of senior citizens. In my humble opinion, scaring the bejeezus out of seniors is more accurate. Pat was calling to tell us to vote for Scott Brown.

Pat Boone has always been on the far right in his politics. But in the last several years he’s joined forces with “World Net Daily” where he has published several screeds. Yes, that World Net Daily, home planet of the wingnuts. One of Boone’s pieces published in August 2009, compared liberals to the “black filthy cells” of cancer. When you go to the World Net Daily website (They’re easy to locate. I won’t link to them.) to read any of Pat Boone’s “commentaries”, you’ll find multiple Scott Brown ads all over the pages. These ads were all paid for by “The Scott Brown for U.S. Senate Committee”.

That is Scott Brown’s target audience.

Electioneering

As a registered lower case “i” independent (unenrolled) voter here in Massachusetts I often get mailings from political candidates. Today I received two slightly different pieces of mail from REPUBLICAN candidate Scott Brown. I emphasize Mr. Brown’s party affiliation, because as Jim of Notes to Leicester points out, Mr. Brown likes to portray himself as an Independent. In fact, on both of today’s flyers, the only place the word “Republican” appears is in the small, light print over my mailing address. There you can find “Paid for by the Massachusetts Republican Party” and “Paid for by the Massachusetts Republican State Committee”. Unfortunately (Freudian-ly?), on the larger State Committee mailing, they list three dates: Black Friday, White Christmas and “Brown Tuesday”, referring rather inartfully to election day this Tuesday the 19th.

“Brown Tuesday”. Well, I know the first thing I thought of when I read “Brown Tuesday” and I don’t think it’s what the Republicans wanted me to think of. But I will check the bottoms of my shoes when I head to the polls Tuesday...

L'Union Fait La Force

One thing we know is that the need in Haiti is enormous now and will continue to be so into the foreseeable future. Haiti was the poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere when the earthquake struck just before 5:00 p.m. Tuesday. Now it is in desperately worse straits.

There are many ways to contribute; many honorable, effective and efficient organizations are directing resources to Haiti. The Center for International Disaster Information, CIDI says “Americans Should Send Cash Donations to Best Aid Victims of Devastating Earthquake”. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI however, is warning folks to be cautious of scams. I’d suggest using Charity Navigator which provides very good ways to evaluate a charity. Their top rating is “4 Stars”, but each listing contains a wealth of information beyond that brief headline.

Here are some organizations which are accepting contributions to specifically help the people of Haiti:

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (4 Stars)



Partners In Health (4 Stars)



Habitat for Humanity International (4 Stars)



American Jewish World Service (4 Stars)


American Jewish Joint Distribution Committee (4 Stars)

I am unable to find an on-line reference, but on the radio today, we heard a statistic that the majority of donations will come in within the first six days following a disaster. Haiti will be in need for months, most likely years. So you may wish to consider periodic or ongoing donations to a favorite charity which will be in Haiti for the long haul.

Haiti’s motto is “L'Union Fait La Force”, which translates into “Strength Through Unity” - a phrase we can take inspiration from.

Senator Coakley

Yes I was underwhelmed by all the candidates before the primary and I wasn’t alone in that. But push has come to shove. The Massachusetts Senate Election is Tuesday. I’ll be voting for Martha Coakley.

Lord knows I could never pull the lever for Scott Brown. According to his own issues page, he’s planning to vote against the health insurance and healthcare legislation - and it’s not because it doesn’t include a sufficiently robust Public Option! Brown defends waterboarding, saying it isn’t torture. And, in my opinion, doesn’t have enough faith in our legal system and our Constitution to endorse the prosecution of terrorists in our own courts. Even though we have been doing that successfully since the first World Trade Center Bombing in 1993.

Have I wrapped my mind and heart around the fact that Martha Coakley is not Ted Kennedy? No. But Senator Kennedy became the Liberal Lion of the Senate over time. Now it’s Martha Coakley’s time to start to walk down that same path.

I Have No Clue

As I headed back to the car across the grounds of the Big E on Saturday, the icy wind was whipping. It was in the low twenties F (below zero C) and I was well bundled up. But I’d been walking for more than hour and really wanted to thaw out. The nearer I got to the car, the more direct my route became. I ignored any and all interesting architecture, angles and shadows to cut through a parking lot outside the huge building where a wedding expo was taking place. That’s when I spotted this vehicle.

My first reaction was “Ah Ha! Dunkin’ Donuts = Hot Coffee = Perfect”. But as I got closer, I realized it was a giant cup of ICED Coffee! I immediately felt colder! I know New Englanders are a hearty bunch. And we are known for consuming a greater amount of ice cream, in winter, per capita than anywhere else in the United States. But Iced Coffee was just plain silly! I snapped one last photo and went directly to the car, which I had purposely left in full sun. Ahhh... Perfect!

Same Sex Marriage Is Good For Society

Jeff over at Wormtown Taxi posted about this earlier today and I wanted to share it over here. Newsweek Magazine has published a piece entitled “The Conservative Case for Gay Marriage” written by someone with impeccable conservative credentials, attorney Theodore B. Olson. Olson has made a logical, thoughtful, fully reasoned case in support of same sex marriage. He takes every specious argument and calmly refutes each one.

The Village That Never Really Was

Yesterday, Chuck and I drove out to the Big E in West Springfield. Chuck visited a woodworking show and I took the camera with me as I walked around the extensive grounds. The photos below are all from the Storrowton Village. Storrowton was created by Helen Osborne Storrow in the 1920s and 30s by purchasing buildings from around New England. They were dismantled and then reconstructed on the grounds of the Eastern States Exposition, creating the museum which stands to this day.
The old Southwick Baptist Meeting House (c. 1822), which was modified and joined with the old Atkinson Tavern (c. 1789) to create the current Storrowton Tavern.


The steeple of the old Union Meeting House (c. 1834)


I love this tiny building! The old Zachariah Eddy Law Office (c. 1810), with its arched copper roof, would make a wonderful retreat or studio.


A window on the west side of the old Union Meeting House. I was instantly smitten with the old glass, the reflections in it, the candle with glass hurricane on the windowsill and the second window on the eastern side.

Angels

Even angels need a bit of fun; a moment’s respite; a return to childhood. Letting go of her responsibilities for just an instant, she flies down, letting her wings rest briefly in the light January snow. A laugh, bell-like; no, more like chimes, spills out into the wind. Then, as swiftly as she arrived, she’s gone. Only the snow angel remains - and that only ‘til the wind or sun or next snowfall makes us wonder, was she ever really there...

Update

You know that post-holiday lull that often happens right after New Year’s Day? Well, apparently it is not happening in 2010. A new wrinkle has developed with an ER (Elderly Relative) and that means it’s a preempt. Thankfully, health is not the issue; it’s more of a chess challenge! However, when I sit down at the keyboard, what I want to do is pour it all out in a post. But that’s way too much like a twenty-something’s middle of the night drunken phone call to an ex-boyfriend. It might feel good in that brief moment, but the next morning - between the hangover and the regret - Oy!

The meeting with our attorney was great. Very productive and it was good to catch up with her. We had reviewed all of our documents, annotated a copy of the will and felt we went in well prepared. She had some good suggestions, which we will follow up on. As a result, we should have all the “I”s dotted and all the “T”s crossed in fairly short order. Drawing up Last Wills and Testaments may not be a fun thing to do, but once it is completed and signed, it really does bring peace of mind.

I’m hoping to get out in the sunshine with the camera tomorrow. Fingers crossed...

Lineage

It wasn’t until I typed the title of this post that I thought about the interesting and coincidental meaning of it. You see, this evening, we had dinner at a restaurant on Harvard Street in Brookline, Massachusetts called “Lineage”. We went there with Chuck’s newly 87 year old aunt on this, her birthday. Hence, lineage had an extra depth to it!

The restaurant was lovely - spare, with white tablecloths, unusually shaped white plates and bowls, clam shells as salt and pepper dishes - a nice mix of formal and casual. The service was good - my standard of being attentive without being intrusive was met and exceeded. The only problem was when the restaurant suddenly filled up and there was significant delay between ordering dessert and coffee and its arrival at table. The daily menu was fresh, tasty and inventive without being pretentious or self consciously clever. I began with the roasted beet salad with goat cheese, greens and balsamic. It was delicious. Chuck had the cauliflower soup with curry - delicate and also delicious. The birthday gal definitely enjoyed her entree of grilled salmon with beluga lentils. Chuck chose pan seared striped bass with cippolini and tasso ham. While I ordered the ricotta cavatelli with butternut squash, spinach and shaved black truffle. Both dishes were delectable. For dessert, Auntie chose the butterscotch pudding with pecans, Chuck the apple streusel tart and I the pot de creme. Chuck was the clear winner there. The pot de creme was not nearly as complex as I had hoped. I guess years of savoring and cooking with Scharffen Berger chocolate has spoiled my taste buds!

All in all, it was a very nice way to kick off Tante’s “88th year”!

Planning For Alligators

Chuck and I are off to our attorney tomorrow. It’s been about a decade since we had our wills and all the attendant documents drawn up. Having gone through a rather lengthy process after Chuck’s Dad passed away last February, we are acutely aware of how important it is to dot all the “I”s and cross all the “T”s. Milton was very well organized, but even he lost track of a few details. Thankfully, while he was in his prime and full powers, he worked with a wonderful attorney in Seattle who thought of darn near everything. The few hiccups we have encountered (one of which is still hanging fire) have been sorted out by either Chuck or his sister. The two get along beautifully and have been consistently on the same page - both prior to Dad’s passing and ever since.

But because Chuck and I have no children, the burdens of our estate will fall to other relatives. It’s one thing to plough through a mound of paperwork and legal documents on behalf of your parents. But it really is something quite different to do it for your aunt and uncle. So our goals tomorrow are twofold: One - to make sure all of our estate documents are fully up to date and reflect our wishes within the confines of the current laws of the Commonwealth; and Two - to do everything we possibly can to make the eventual settling of our estate as streamlined and automatic as possible for our executor and heirs. If there were a way for us to magically handle it for them after we have been eaten by alligators and buried, we would! But, alas, we will have to trust our brilliant, thoughtful, excellent attorney to get us as close to that wish as reality will allow!

Free Your Photos!

Was it Hewlett Packard that had the advertising campaign showing family photographs trapped on the memory card inside a camera? Epson? No matter. Back when we used our Canon SLR film camera, we would send our exposed rolls off to be developed and request the free double prints. But that was also a time when a week’s vacation might only generate 36 photos because film was expensive and developing was really expensive. The Christmas photos might share the same roll as Easter. Now, with my beloved Canon PowerShot S2 IS digital camera (and a decent sized memory card), I can snap away without limit. It’s been great for my photography skills. It’s been great for capturing life’s little moments. It’s even been great because I can view the photos anytime on my laptop or my iPod. But it wasn’t all that great for motivating me to print off photos.

Enter digital scrapbooking. Instead of printing off individual photographs, I could take a group of photos from an event, create a layout and print out one piece of paper. I could also e-mail the layout to family members so that they could download them in their computers and print them out. That’s also worked in reverse a few times, such as when a niece e-mailed some photos of her daughter’s school promotion. I was able to turn it into a simple layout and share it with the family. Because my Mom doesn’t have (and doesn’t want!) a computer, I can print layouts out for her. Which brings me to the point of this post: What’s the best paper to print on? I love “Staples Photo Supreme Double-Sided Matte Paper”. It takes the ink from our Canon and HP inkjet printers beautifully, dries quickly, cuts cleanly and has a wonderful weight. Because it is double-sided, if you goof up (and it’s destined for an album or a frame) you can get a second shot on the reverse. It also works well for postcards - 4 to a sheet - and gift tags and bookmarks! You can buy it in packages as large as 100 sheets and Staples often has it on sale or with a rebate.

I have to admit, that while it’s fun to see your photographs and layouts on the computer screen, it’s an even bigger thrill to hold them in your hands or pass them on to folks.

Cabin Fever Turns Rosy

The snow has been falling off and on since forever. O.K. Maybe it was only Thursday? Chuck ran the snowblower a couple of times. There’s a rumor the sun may come out tomorrow - but I ain’t bettin’ my bottom dollar! (Sorry Annie!) To fend off cabin fever, I have been playing in Photoshop. The whole Texture thing has continued to fascinate me. Today I chose a sky photo I took in the summertime. I converted it to black and white. Then I used it to make a piece of background paper for digital scrapbooking projects.


If you’re interested in the details, here’s what I did using Adobe Photoshop CS3 for Mac:

Created a new document 11” x 8.5” landscape.
Layer > Duplicate.
Working on the new layer, I chose a foreground color and used Paint Bucket to “pour” the color onto the layer.
I opened a photo of the sky.
Converted the sky photo to black and white using Layer > New Adjustment Layer > Black & White.
Dragged the new black and white sky photo onto the solid pink layer.
I experimented with the Blending Modes. I chose Overlay.
With the sky layer highlighted I went to Filters > Artistic > Paint Daubs.
I chose Brush Size 20, Sharpness 15, Brush Type Sparkle.
Pretty cool.
You can adjust the opacity on the color layer or the sky layer to further tweak the look.

As long as I keep the original PSD file saved in layers, I can change the color as the spirit moves me. And keep generating new variations.
So, choose Image > Duplicate.
Add COPY to the end of the file name.
You now have two layered versions of the Pink Sky open.
Flatten the COPY by choosing Layer > Flatten Image.
Now save that COPY as a JPEG.
I usually create a new folder, naming it the same as the PSD file.
Then I keep the PSD, the JPEG and the RTF all in the same folder.
This takes up valuable room on my computer, which is why I move it to an external hard drive.

Remember to save your files as you go along.
Remember to work from COPIES of your original photos.
Have fun!

Thoughts On Style

I’ve always worn my hair long. Well, except for one disastrous home “trim” my mother gave me in fourth grade, which required an emergency trip to a hairdresser for salvage work. Then I made a rash decision in the early 1980s which also involved a complete and equally disastrous dye job. Back in 1979, when I turned twenty-one, my mother told me it was time for me to get my hair cut. I was unaware of the you-must-get-a-short-haircut-at-age-twenty-one-rule and “declined”. Now I am 51, turning 52 in May. I continue to wear my hair long enough to pull it back in a braid. The older I get, the more I recognize that my female peers have short haircuts. And it seems that the older women get, the shorter their hair gets. Sitting at a large meeting several weeks ago, attended by many folks in their 70s and 80s, the vast majority of women around me had hair nearly as short as the men. No thank you.

As I grew up, my personal style was somewhere between preppie and hippie. When Midi-skirts made their appearance, I was an early adopter. As a result, some younger kids in my high school thought I was a student teacher! In college I wore farmer overalls with shitkickers, long skirts with Frye boots and business suits with pumps. As the years have gone by I now wear Birkenstocks and Smartwool striped socks whenever possible. I’m happy in quarter zip sweatshirts and henleys. I carry vintage purses by Walborg, JR and Margaret Smith or an L.L. Bean Healthy Back bag. And I always have a folding Asian fan in those purses. I wear the same gold jewelry nearly every single day, along with a mans Timex Expedition watch. But I sometimes like to add a vintage and over the top Eisenberg pin.

For many years, I have been taken with Jenny Joseph’s poem “Warning” which begins: “When I am an old woman I shall wear purple; With a red hat that doesn't go and doesn't suit me.” However, I am decidedly not taken with its commercial corruption into the Red Hat Society and their over boa-ed tea parties. Ms. Joseph’s 1961 poem deserves better than that. Written when she was 29, published when she was 42, the poem imagines the freedom of the future compared to the responsibilities of the present. It ends on a wistful note of the possibility of being just a wee bit less sober now.

It is said that as we age we become more like ourselves. O.K. But I am committed to becoming more of the better parts of myself. I wish to become braver, kinder, freer, more generous, less worried. When I look ahead - ten, twenty years and beyond - I do not wish to look in the mirror only to find I have morphed into one of those cookie cutter women I sat with at that recent meeting. No thank you. I would rather grab onto the pendulum and fling myself out to the opposite side of the spectrum, to fall in among folks who look more like this - all verve and flair and most decidedly free!


Thanks to Ricë of the Voodoo Cafe for alerting me to “Advanced Style”.

So Far So Good

It was a very quiet day at home. A hockey game was played at Fenway Park. It had a happy ending for the Boston Bruins, which even for non-hockey fans like us was pretty darned exciting. We watched a couple more episodes of “Mad Men” and continued to find them mesmerizing and creepy. A little bit of snow drifted down, but not enough to need to shovel.

True, it is just the first day, but 2010 has yet to disappoint!
;o)