Oh man...

Check this out.

Where the hell is Matt?

If you haven't seen this yet, you really need to check it out. It makes my heart sing every time I watch it, which I do pretty often.

Excerpts from his website:

Matt is a 30-year-old deadbeat from Connecticut who used to think that all he ever wanted to do in life was make and play videogames. He achieved this goal pretty early and enjoyed it for a while, but eventually realized there might be other stuff he was missing out on. In February of 2003, he quit his job in Brisbane, Australia and used the money he'd saved to wander around the planet until it ran out. He made this site so he could keep his family and friends updated about where he is.

A few months into his trip, a travel buddy gave Matt the idea of dancing everywhere he went and recording it on his camera. This turned out to be a very good idea. Now Matt is quasi-famous as "That guy who dances on the internet."

Matt was a very poor student and never went to college. When he got older, he was pleased to discover that no one actually cares. Matt doesn't want to imply that college is bad or anything. He's just saying is all. There's other ways to fill your head.

Matt also has a blog about all his travels. Go to his site and read it.

10 Favorite Quotes...on learning

Whenever you are asked if you can do a job, tell 'em, "Certainly I can!". Then get busy and find out how to do it.
...............Theodore Roosevelt


I am always doing that which I can not do, in order that I may learn how to do it.
...............Pablo Picasso


A single conversation with a wise man is better than ten years of study.
...............Chinese Proverb


If you think you can or think you can't, you're right.
...............Henry Ford


Life is my college. May I graduate well, and earn some honors!
...............Louisa May Alcott


I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.
...............Confucius


Imagination is more important than knowledge.
...............Albert Einstein


I cannot teach anybody anything, I can only make them think.
...............Socrates


Nothing that is worth knowing can be taught.
...............Oscar Wilde


If we continually try to force a child to do what he is afraid to do, he will become more timid, and will use his brains and energy, not to explore the unknown, but to find ways to avoid the pressures we put on him.
...............John Holt

The New 7 Wonders of the World

Loss of electricity prevented me from posting last night. I threw out a bunch of uncooked chicken from the fridge, but otherwise we are okay.

Vote for what you think the new 7 Wonders of the World should be. You're running out of time...

The commonly known Seven Ancient Wonders of the World were all man-made monuments, selected by Philon of Byzantium in 200 B.C. His selection of wonders was essentially a travel guide for fellow Athenians, and the stunning sites were all located around the Mediterranean basin, the then-known world.

The monuments he chose, to be remembered in perpetuity, were:

The Lighthouse of Alexandria
The Temple of Artemis
The Statue of Zeus
The Colossus of Rhodes
The Hanging Gardens of Babylon
The Mausoleum of Halicarnassus
The Pyramids of Egypt

All were built between 2,500 B.C. and 200 B.C. Today, only the spectacular Pyramids at Giza in Egypt remain. Now, just as Pierre de Coubertin revived the Olympic Games in 1896 with his modern version of the competition, New7Wonders founder Bernard Weber is seeking to revive the concept of the 7 Wonders with this ambitious global campaign: the New 7 Wonders of the World. The key difference is that, this time around, they will not be chosen by one man, but rather by millions of people all over the world.

The new wonders that are selected will be the people’s choices and they will be drawn from the earliest time that humans walked upon the earth up through the year 2000.

It is, therefore, possible that the only survivor of the original 7 Wonders of the World, the Pyramids at Giza, could be chosen for a second time, taking them well into a third millennium of global fame!

The New 7 Wonders campaign was launched in 2000 by Swiss film producer, author and aviator Bernard Weber to select the seven new Wonders of the World via the first global voting campaign. Half the profits from the campaign will be donated to global good causes in monument and building restoration and preservation.

Visit www.new7wonders.com for more information.

Why Homeschool?

Perhaps because we can't trust the idiots who would be in charge of our children?

Sun May 13, 5:28 PM ET

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. - Staff members of an elementary school staged a fictitious gun attack on students during a class trip, telling them it was not a drill as the children cried and hid under tables...parents of the sixth-grade students were outraged...

Principal Catherine Stephens declined to say whether the staff members involved would face disciplinary action, but said the situation "involved poor judgment."

I keep reading more and more of these ridiculous stories. Here's another one:

Sunday, May 13, 2007

CHICAGO — A girl and her grandparents have sued the Chicago Board of Education, alleging that a substitute teacher showed the R-rated film "Brokeback Mountain" in class.

The lawsuit claims that Jessica Turner, 12, suffered psychological distress after viewing the movie in her 8th grade class at Ashburn Community Elementary School last year.

No matter what your beliefs are about homosexuality, showing any R rated movie to an elementary class is asking for trouble!

It's downright scary that parents are expected to leave their children in the hands of morons like these. I feel so fortunate that I don't have to.

A Homeschooling Calendar

I started this tradition with my younger son about five years ago when he was five years old. At the time I was a newly confirmed homeschooler, and still considering unschooling, so I was constantly looking for fun and non-coercive ways for him to practice writing. Plus every morning he would wake up and ask me "what are we doing today?" So I combined the two and came up with a calendar for him to make for himself. He loved it so much that he continued for two years before he decided he didn't need it anymore. But about two years ago I started again with my younger son, who had then turned five years old and began asking "what are we doing today?"

We start with a large blotter calendar, you know the kind that typically go on the top of people's desks? I get our at Staples, because they are the only ones I have been able to find without the information already in there, and no lines running across the whole thing for notes (which we find very distracting, since we don't use words to fill in our activities).

I use a pencil to write in the name of the month, and the numbers, and then my son traces over that information with a marker. Then we head downstairs to the computer and find clip art to represent each thing we are doing that month. So we have garbage cans for Tuesdays to remind us to take the trash out, birthday cakes for parties, soccer balls (with shooting flames, no less) for soccer practice and games, a small stack of books for library day, and so on. I am blessed to have a color printer to print these things out on.

My son and I practice using scissors by cutting out the clip art, and then together we glue them onto the calendar where each thing belongs. Every day now, he can check the calendar for what we are doing, and he no longer needs to paste Daddy on every Saturday and Sunday, because he knows the days he stays home without needing a reminder.

This has been a terrific way for both of my boys to learn the days of the week (still working on months though), and given them good practice in writing and cutting. It also gives them a sense of security in knowing how their day looks without having to ask.

This has remained a non-coercive activity since we began. In fact, we finally just finished the month of May today, which is what prompted me to blog about it. For the last 13 days the pieces have been laying on the kitchen floor underneath where the calendar hangs. It just occurred to my younger son though, that he wants to start counting down the days to his birthday party (11).

Scholastic Books

I can remember I was the only student in my class at St. Luke's school, from 2nd through 6th grade, who ordered every single time my teacher handed out those Scholastic flyers to the class. Not only did I order every time, but I often came home with a dozen books at a time. Up until my parents got divorced, my mother would let me order as many of those books as I wanted, as long as I promised to read them all.

Well imagine my delight when I found out that homeschoolers can order from Scholastic too. Just go to their website and order a catalog for the grades you'd like, then place an order once you receive it. It's that simple.

Many homeschool groups collect orders and place them as a group. I can't understand why the individuals don't place orders themselves though. Perhaps their group collector neglected to tell them they can, because they themselves want to collect all the points for each order? One point is awarded for each dollar spent, and traded for free merchandise in the flyers. Often there are specials where purchasers can earn 3x (for example) their bonus points by purchasing a certain amount.

So I can see why the group collector would benefit from a group order, but there is no benefit to the individual at all. There is no minimum order, no tax, and no shipping. So you can order one book for 95¢, have it shipped right to your door, and get one point for yourself to use later. Actually, the only negative thing about individual orders is that the catalog only comes in sets of 50 flyers. It's a one inch thick thing which is pretty wasteful since I only need one flyer. On the other hand it is recyclable where I live.

I also like that I can save up a few months worth of flyers and order all at once online (instead of by mail), which can only be done without a fee if $20 is spent at one time. This way I get my books, my Scholastic points, and my Disney Visa points!

I've ordered many things from Scholastic over the last several years. In addition to the obvious books, we've also ordered computer games, models of body parts like an eye and a heart, games like pizza pie fractions and car math, and activities like a book of calculator games with a calculator. Many a stocking-stuffer came from Scholastic.

One of the other fantastic things about Scholastic is their warehouse sales, which they have a few times a year. They literally open up the warehouse and clear out the stuff. Everything is typically 50% off listed price.

I went to one in Danbury today, and spent $200. I came home with enough Klutz kits to give for birthday party presents for probably two years. I also got several new Christmas books, since I'm getting sick of our old ones, several computer games, two hard cover copies of two books by the authors of The Quiltmaker's Gift, (one of each to keep and one of each for gifts), grammar and algebra books to tuck away for whenever someone asks about those things, board books to give to my nephew for his first birthday, and a really cool book called Scholastic Encyclopedia Of The Presidents And Their Times, which will be great to refer to with my boys, but I really bought for myself to sit down and read. All this plus a several books for both of my boys.

The last time I went to a Scholastic warehouse sale was three years ago when I spent $300. So I'm figuring the $200 worth of stuff I bought today ought to keep me settled for two years. It's hard not to over shop there, but for once I think I did a good job of sticking to gifts, and reference books and computer games which will be good to keep around. I went very very lightly on the fiction since that stuff is easily borrowed from the library.

I was grateful for the table they keep near the registers, where I could go through my grocery cart, weed out the stuff I really didn't need, and simply dump it all off there without feeling badly about making a mess.

The sale in Connecticut has just started, and goes till next Saturday. You can print out a coupon for $10 off a $50 purchase.

If you haven't already checked out all Scholastic has to offer, I hope I've convinced you to give it a try!

The making of a conscientious objector

I originally posted this on my other blog back in January, but want to re-post it for my new readers here. After reading it last time my mother chuckled, telling me that she didn't think I was really giving R (10 years old) a balanced view of both sides; that it is obvious mine is being represented more heavily.

So be it; my view is the right one.

*****************************************

January 2007

This morning R came into my room as I was watching This Week with George Stephanopoulos, and started watching with me. There were no images of war, so I allowed him to stay and listen. He watched for a few minutes, left, and returned during The Chris Matthews Show, which seemed to keep his attention more.

This led to a 10 minute conversation about sending more troops to Iraq, how Bush hoodwinked the country into the war in the first place, how the Patriot Act is turning him into a dictator, whether Iraq would be better off with us forcing our view of a good government on them vs. leaving now and letting them fall into civil war, how we can get Bush out of office, and whether or not U.S. citizens can be dragged into fighting in the war if they don't want to go. He was full of intelligent questions; I was, quite frankly, surprised.

I have been wanting to start taking him to rallies, and talking to him about the realities of war, so that I can start making a Conscientious Objector file for him. I think it's really important that I start doing that soon, but I've been concerned about exposing him to the stress of war. I know for myself that keeping up on it often makes me feel powerless, and I've been concerned about how it would effect his psyche. So I've been dragging my feet on it. But today convinced me it's time to get moving. I'm going to pick up some of the age appropriate books out there about war to read with him, and maybe I'll check out what Netflix has to offer on the subject too. I'll definitely be starting to document conversations like the one we had today.

R feels that we should definitely not be sending more troops to Iraq. Especially more men than those that live in the whole town of Cheshire. He also feels that we should totally withdraw from Iraq and let the people fall into a civil war. He believes that we should not be dictating to anyone how they should run their country, and we should let the Iraqis fight for the government they want to have, themselves. He thinks that we should get rid of the Patriot Act, and that George Bush is dangerous, and we should try to get rid of him too.

I am very proud of R for seeing things the way he does. When I was answering all of his questions, I was careful to give both points of view (McCain was being interviewed on TV at the time we were speaking) to make sure he would formulate his own opinions, and not just accept mine as his own. He is a bright boy and understands how wrong war is. If anyone would actually show the realities of the war on TV, I'd probably let him watch. He is getting old enough to understand the world beyond his up-till-now small one.

More on unschooling

This is something I wrote on my other blog today:

Playgroup was especially fun today because three new families joined us...

Funny, two of the moms already knew me from the photo on my blogs...Apparently there was a big discussion about my blog regarding Radical Unschooling vs. Self-Directed Learning [on one of the unschooling lists]. It seems that I don't even have to be on the lists to have my "wrong" way of doing things criticized - lol! Anyway a few of us had our own interesting discussion regarding the topic, and I can add more people to the list of those who are afraid to post their real feelings on the lists. They suggested I started my own for those of us who are not comfortable with the extremism.

I considered doing this quite a bit. I even went ahead and created it earlier today. It was called Not Radical Unschoolers. But moderating a list is not something I have the time to do, so I then deleted it. I do think there is real a need for it though. Unfortunately this sort of list is going to need a moderator who is paying close attention, and I can't be the one to do that right now. I'll join though if someone else creates it :-)

By the way, I'm moderating comments now. Not interested in providing soap boxes for anyone except myself :-)

Magazine Subscriptions

At one time I had about eight different magazines coming to my house each month, in addition to my weekly Newsweek. I had a few which I personally subscribed to, and a few which were gifts. Well to say it got overwhelming is an understatement. So when they all expired I did not renew any of them, and I've been subscription-free for about eight months now.

The problem is that I really do miss some of them. I find that I am attracted to non-fiction writing, and magazines are a good way to learn about a lot of things. So I've been borrowing magazines from the library the last few times we've gone. This way I don't have the stress of a whole pile to get through, and have to "get rid of them" on due date whether I've read them or not, which is kind of liberating.

I thought I'd take some time to blog about a few of my favorites.


Life Learning Magazine
is definitely high on my list. From their website:

Let Life Learning help you discover how to employ self-directed, life-based learning in your own life and/or that of your child.

Read all about how other people just like you and your children have learned without being taught...what helps and what hinders, and what they have achieved in their lives as a result. Laugh, cry and identify with parents who are helping themselves and their children learn from the real world...and learning a lot about themselves along the way.

Think about how we are limited by a society that believes in coercive education...and how we can transcend those limits in our daily lives. Find support and reassurance for interest-based, learner-directed education and non-coercive parenting.

I'm bummed that my local library does not carry this magazine, and am thinking of donating one to them. All of the homeschooling magazines they offer are Christian based, which is pretty annoying.

One of the cool things about this magazine is that the radical vs. self-directed debate happens within its pages. The editors are radicals but the letters to the editors are filled with people who question it. It makes for interesting reading, and has certainly helped me define myself as an unschooler.


Ode
is another one of my favorites, and another one that my library doesn't carry. From the Ode website:

Ode is an independent magazine about the people and ideas that are changing the world.

Sometimes it’s difficult to see beyond the war, poverty, exploitation and pollution that the mainstream media use to fill our view of the world. But there is more to life. There are other stories to report. Stories of countless initiatives being launched around the globe by people devoted to justice, respect and equality. Stories that bridge the gap between thinking and doing, between rage and hope, and the painful gap between the rich and poor – and thus build peace and sustainability. That is the news that Ode promises to deliver. By reading Ode you connect to a network of positive change and inspiration. Ode points the way to knowing better, doing better and feeling better.

Ode publishes ‘the stories that are different from the ones we are brainwashed to believe’ (Arundhati Roy). Ode challenges us and invites us to change. We realise that change starts with information. We can only make a choice to change things for the better when we learn how it can be done. Similarly, we can only change our behaviour when we understand the harmful effects of what we do. Ode teaches and inspires us, helps us see how every one of us can contribute to a more just and sustainable world.

It was really nice to read about some of the good stuff happening in the world, and when I have more time in my life I will definitely get back to that one.


Simple Scrapbooks
was one I enjoyed quite a bit. I got into scrapbooking when I bought an empty scrapbook at Disney World in 2004, and caught the bug big-time. I wanted a magazine which would help me learn about techniques and tips, but everything out there really focused on the embellishments. I commented about this to a scrapbook store owner while visiting my mom in Maine, and she suggested Simple Scrapbooks, because the focus was on the pictures.

I can't find any sort of "About Us" info on their site to paste here, but they do tend to write things with the beginner in mind.

The problem was that they too, finally succombed to the one-picture-on-a-page mentality, and lost the philosphy of scrapping every day moments. They do tend to use less embellishments than other magazines, but still the focus has become the "art" rather than preserving mountains of memories.


Mothering Magazine
which is the bi-monthly bible of attachment parenting. They are the folks who gave me the courage to not vaccinate my kids. From their website:

Mothering celebrates the experience of parenthood as worthy of one's best efforts and fosters awareness of the immense importance and value of parenthood and family life in the development of the full human potential. As a readers' magazine, we recognize parents as the experts and wish to provide truly helpful information upon which parents can base informed choices.

Mothering is like no other publication. We are an original. Born in 1976 out of the need for the natural family community to learn about raising healthy children, Mothering was the birthplace of the natural family lifestyle.

Read in more than 65 countries, Mothering is the only independently owned, family living magazine in the world. We address contemporary health, personal, environmental, medical, and lifestyle issues in an upbeat, intelligent, compassionate, and courageous way.

Each issue contains philosophical inspiration and practical advice about family living. Topics are as diverse as circumcision, vaccinations, organic foods, childhood illnesses, home birth, ear infections, parenting teens, web site information, midwifery, and homeopathy.

Mothering is a family. We have an independent editorial spirit unmatched in the industry and a readership that is unmatched in responsiveness. Readers who read Mothering share many of the same values. Nowhere else will you find such proactive, passionate, and highly educated readers. In the pages of Mothering you will find an environment of credibility, trust, and authority.

Not much more can be said about this one. I picked up two past issues from the library today, and will blog about a story I read regarding kids playing with guns, soon.

Friends

A while ago I took a casual survey of some of my friends and asked them what makes a friend a "good" friend. The best answer I got was "loyalty". After hearing the rest, mulling it over, and digesting some recent experiences, I have to agree; loyalty is the best thing you can have in a friend.

Well tonight I had dinner with my most loyal friend.

Over a giant margarita.

It was great.

10 Favorite Quotes...on religion

The United States of America should have a foundation free from the influence of clergy.
...............George Washington


Question with boldness even the existance of a god; because, if there be one, he must more approve of the homage of reason than that of blindfolded fear.
...............Thomas Jefferson


The way to see by faith is to shut the eye of reason.
...............Benjamin Franklin


A man's ethical behavior should be based effectually on sympathy, education, and social ties; no religious basis is necessary. Man would indeed be in a poor way if he had to be restrained by fear of punishment and hope of reward after death.
...............Albert Einstein


So long as the universe had a beginning, we could suppose it had a creator. But if the universe is completely self-contained, having no boundary or edge, it would neither be created nor destroyed it would simply be. What place, then, for a creator?
...............Stephen Hawking


Religion is comparable to a childhood neurosis.
...............Sigmund Freud


I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.
...............Mahatma Gandhi


The first requisite for the happiness of the people is the abolition of religion.
...............Karl Marx


Religion is excellent stuff for keeping common people quiet.
...............Napoleon Bonaparte


God made me an atheist. Who are you to question his wisdom?
...............Unknown

56th National Day of Prayer

I learned about the National Day of Prayer through a little blurb in my local newspaper last week. My town actually had an "event", which took place "at noon in the Council Chambers at Cheshire Town Hall. The theme this year is 'America Unite in Prayer".

Well to say I was surprised to read this is putting it mildly. So I did a Google search, since it was labeled as "national", and found an entire website dedicated to it. A scan of the "About Us" page had some interesting information:

Who We Are

We are the Judeo-Christian expression of the National Day of Prayer which was established in 1952 by a joint resolution of the United States Congress and signed into law by President Harry S. Truman.

What We Do

The National Day of Prayer Task Force exists to communicate with every individual the need for personal repentance and prayer, mobilizing the Christian community to intercede for America and its leadership.

"To intercede for America and its leadership?" The word intercede surprised me in this usage, so to be sure I was understanding it correctly I looked it up:

in·ter·cede:
1. to act or interpose in behalf of someone in difficulty or trouble, as by pleading or petition.
2. to attempt to reconcile differences between two people or groups; mediate.

Yeah, I am understanding it correctly, and not liking it at all.

What is it about this country's inability to follow it's own rules about the separation of church and state? I watched a movie called Does Europe Hate Us? and one of the things they do laugh at us about is our inability to do just that. It is becoming incredibly annoying to me.

But I wonder, would it be as annoying to me if I myself believed in God?

A couple of years ago, Newsweek had a terrific article on its My Turn page. I looked all over and tried to find a link to post here, but with no luck. The article was about how people can't deal with atheism. Every religion dictates a tolerance for other religions, but most people I have spoken to can't deal with no religion.

Years ago I was part of a playgroup where one of the moms was a Mormon. She was a lovely woman who I enjoyed spending time with, and was actually the person who introduced me to the idea of homeschooling. Although supercilious statements like "Catholics believe...Mormons know..." popped up too much to be missed, she was otherwise very accepting of the other women in the group of different religions, but she was on a constant quest to help me define mine. She just could not deal with the fact that I did not identify with some religious group, and even found a website where I could take a test to help. Since I refused to take it, she actually took it for me, and stopped harassing me once she could label me as being most closely aligned with Buddhism. (I have recently taken it myself and find that I am evenly matched between Buddhism and Paganism.)

An article on the Newsweek website states:
In a recent [2006] NEWSWEEK Poll, Americans said they believed in God by a margin of 92 to 6—only 2 percent answered "don't know"—and only 37 percent said they'd be willing to vote for an atheist for president.

Of course this is exactly why so many people have such issues of acceptance when it come to people who do not believe in God; comparatively speaking there are so few of us. But to actually not vote for someone because of a lack of religion?

Perhaps it is this intolerance which makes me increasingly intolerant of the state of affairs in our government. Yes, I believe that "under God" should be removed from the Pledge of Allegiance. Yes, I believe that "In God We Trust" should be removed from our money. I believe that placing one's hand on the bible to swear in a court of law is ridiculous, and I believe that moments of silence in schools should be banned. Because all of this assumes a belief in God.

Freedom of religion means all religions. And it should also mean no religion.

Raw Milk

Monday night I saw a story on World News Tonight about Raw Milk. You can see it for yourself here. Raw milk is unpasteurized, unhomogenized, and "illegal to sell in 23 states". Well here in Connecticut, it is legal - thank goodness. And my family is among the "devotees".

I first learned about raw milk from a friend, who had read the book Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook that Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats.

This friend is one who is great at influencing people, so I eventually read it myself. I'm glad I did because it totally changed my life, and those of my family.

The book is based on the findings of Weston A. Price. "In his search for the causes of dental decay and physical degeneration that he observed in his dental practice, he turned from test tubes and microscopes to unstudied evidence among human beings. Dr. Price sought the factors responsible for fine teeth among the people who had them- the isolated 'primitives'...Wherever he went, Dr. Price found that beautiful straight teeth, freedom from decay, stalwart bodies, resistance to disease and fine characters were typical of primitives on their traditional diets, rich in essential food factors."

My grandmother was 94 years old when she died. She came to the U.S. from Hungary, and ate a very high fat diet throughout her life, including cooking in bacon fat and lard and using lots of butter. So when I read the book's recommendations for eating lots of healthy fats, the information felt right.

My friend became a full-time crusader for the Weston A. Price Foundation, and started a chapter here in Connecticut. One of the things she did in helping to convince people that this philosophy makes sense, is to invite people to her home to watch a PowerPoint presentation about it. During that presentation, which I later had my husband attend so he would understand where I was coming from, there was significant discussion on raw milk. Basically what was done was to show what is done to milk during the pasteurization and homogenization process. And it was enough to convince me that it is totally unnatural. Here is a great article on Raw Milk vs. Pasteurized Milk.

Now that I've been convinced of the benefits of raw milk there is no going back. I am actually spending $8 a gallon, and I do not permit my children to drink "regular" milk when raw is not available. Just the idea of it grosses me out.

Check out the link and watch the story. And then read the truth.

Carnival of Homeschooling #70

Carnival of Homeschooling #70: the Yes, No, Yes! edition has been published at Dewey's Treehouse.

What is a blog carnival?

"A Blog Carnival is a particular kind of blog community. A Blog Carnival is like a magazine. It has a title, a topic, editors, contributors, and an audience. Editions of the carnival typically come out on a regular basis (e.g. every Monday, or on the first of the month). Each edition is a special blog article that consists of links to all the contributions that have been submitted, often with the editors opinions or remarks.

"There is so much stuff in the blog-o-sphere, just finding interesting stuff is hard. If there is a carnival for a topic you are interested in, following that carnival is a great way to learn what bloggers are saying about that topic. If you are blogging on that topic, the carnival is the place to share your work with like-minded bloggers."

This is the first time I have submitted something to this carnival.
Please check it out.

Here is more information on blog carnivals.
Here is information on how to make a submission of your own.