A Minute with Miriam

Remembering Whitney

2012-02-19T15:57:00.002-10:00

I remember when I was 12 or 13 years old and I'd visit my friend and cousin Shonda and listen to her Whitney Houston cassettes. I didn't own any at the time and would listen to her's non-stop, singing along and imagining I was Whitney. I had never heard uch a voice and the love she sang about tantalized my young, unexperienced heart. When I heard her voice and saw her beauty, I knew that I could be like her. No, I couldn't sing nor did I think I was a pretty as Whitney but seeing a brown girl conquering the world one song at a time, showed me that I could follow my dreams and break barriers too. She didn't know me and I didn't know her but she became a source of strength and an example that hard work and talent, and the grace of God, can move mountains and allow us to share the gifts HE gives us regardless of what we look like othow the world sees us.
I am saddened that she questioned her beauty and talent but I understand that as a human being, even the best of us have doubts. The public puts celebrities on pedestals and dare them to fall off and when they slip, we gawk and gossip and make judgments. That is what is so sad. If my life was put under a miscroscope, people would be shocked and find faults too. We have all slipped and fallen short and embarrassed oursleves. That is called life and we grow and learn to do better.
To Whitney: Thank you for inspiring a skinny little girl to beleieve she could be fearless like you. You touched millions that you will never know about and set an example for little brown girls, all girls, to know that dreaming is not only possible but a necessity.
You are truly an AMERICAN icon and ambassdor...the Start Spangled Banner is forever changed by your rendition and brings tears to my eyes with pride everytime I hear it.
To Whitney's family: My heart and prayers go out to you and I personally thank you for allowing us, the public to share a part of Whitney. Our world is better because of your sacrifice in giving her to the world.

Chinese Year 2012 (23 January 2012 – 9 February 2013) is the Year of Dragon.

2011-12-17T11:34:00.001-10:00

The Year of 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, which begins on January 23, 2012 and ends on February 9, 2013.

Movie Watching List

2011-12-14T18:59:00.000-10:00

Movie Watching List

Television Watching list

2011-12-14T18:50:00.000-10:00

Television Watching list

Patron Saints of Writers

2011-02-27T17:42:00.000-10:00

Saint Lucy of Syracuse

Rich, young Christian of Greek ancestry. Raised in a pious family, she vowed her life to Christ. Her Roman father died when she was young. Her mother, Eutychia, arranged a marriage for her. For three years she managed to keep the marriage on hold. To change the mother‘s mind about the girl‘s new faith, Lucy prayed at the tomb of Saint Agatha, and her mother‘s long haemorrhagic illness was cured. Her mother agreed with Lucy’s desire to live for God, and Lucy became known as a patron of those with maladies like her mother‘s.

Her rejected pagan bridegroom, Paschasius, denounced Lucy as a Christian to the governor of Sicily. The governor sentenced her to forced prostitution, but when guards went to fetch her, they could not move her even when they hitched her to a team of oxen. The governor ordered her killed instead. After torture that included having her eyes torn out, she was surrounded by bundles of wood which were set afire; they went out. She prophesied against her persecutors, and was executed by being stabbed to death with a dagger. Her name is listed in the prayer “Nobis quoque peccatoribus” in the Canon of the Mass.

Legend says her eyesight was restored before her death. This and the meaning of her name led to her connection with eyes, the blind, eye trouble, etc.

Born

•c.283 at Syracuse, Sicily
Died

•stabbed in the throat c.304 at Syracuse, Sicily
•her relics are honoured in churches throughout Europe
Name Meaning

•light; bringer of light (= Lucy)
Name Meaning

*****************************************************************
Saint Francis de Sales
Born in the castle of Château de Thorens to a well-placed Savoyard family, the eldest of twelve children born to François de Boisy and Françoise de Sionnz. His parents intended that Francis become a lawyer, enter politics, and carry on the family line and power. He studied at La Roche and Annecy in France, taught by Jesuits. Attended the Collège de Clermont in Paris, France at age 12. In his early teens, Francis began to believe in pre-destination, and was so afraid that he was preemptorily condemned to Hell that he became ill and eventually was confined to bed. However, in January 1587 at the Church of Saint Stephen, he overcame the crisis, decided that whatever God had in store for him was for the best, and dedicated his life to God.

Studied law and theology at the University of Padua, Italy, and earned a doctorate in both fields. He returned home, and found a position as Senate advocate. It was at this point that he received a message telling him to “Leave all and follow Me.” He took this as a call to the priesthood, a move his family fiercely opposed, especially when he refused a marriage that had been arranged for him. However, he pursued a devoted prayer life, and his gentle ways won over the family.

Priest. In 1593 he was appointed provost of the diocese of Geneva, Switzerland, a stronghold of Calvinists. Preacher, writer and spiritual director in the district of Chablais. His simple, clear explanations of Catholic doctrine, and his gentle way with everyone, brought many back to the Roman Church. He even used sign language in order to bring the message to the deaf, leading to his patronage of deaf people.

Bishop of Geneva in 1602. He travelled and evangelized throughout the Duchy of Savoy, working with children whenever he could. Friend of Saint Vincent de Paul. He turned down a wealthy French bishopric to continue working where God had placed him. With Saint Jeanne de Chantal he helped found the Order of the Visitation . A prolific correspondent, many of his letters have survived.

The value of his writings led to his being declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Blessed Pius IX in 1877, and a patron of writers and journalists by Pope Pius XI in 1923. The Salesians of Don Bosco, the Oblates of Saint Francis de Sales, and the Missionaries of Saint Francis de Sales are named in his honour as is the Saint François Atoll in the Seychelles Islands.

Born

•21 August 1567 at Château de Thorens, Savoy (part of modern France)
Died

•28 December 1622 at Lyon, France of natural causes
•buried at the basilica of the Visitation, Annecy, France
•his heart was preserved as a relic at Lyon
•during the French Revolution his heart was was moved to Venice, Italy

**************************************************************************
Saint John the Apostle
Son of Zebedee and Salome. Fisherman. Brother of Saint James the Greater, and called one of the Sons of Thunder. Disciple of Saint John the Baptist. Friend of Saint Peter the Apostle. Called by Jesus during the first year of His ministry, and traveled everywhere with Him, becoming so close as to be known as the beloved disciple. Took part in the Last Supper. The only one of the Twelve not to forsake the Saviour in the hour of His Passion, standing at the foot of the cross. Made guardian of Our Lady by Jesus, and he took her into his home. Upon hearing of the Resurrection, he was the first to reach the tomb; when he met the risen Lord at the lake of Tiberias, he was the first to recognize Him.

During the era of the new Church, he worked in Jerusalem and at Ephesus. During Jesus’ ministry, he tried to block a Samaritan from their group, but Jesus explained the open nature of the new Way, and he worked on that principle to found churches in Asia Minor and baptizing converts in Samaria. Imprisoned with Peter for preaching after Pentecost. Wrote the fourth Gospel, three Epistles, and possibly the Book of Revelation. Survived all his fellow apostles.

Traditional stories:

•Emperor Dometian had him brought to Rome, beaten, poisoned, and thrown into a cauldron of boiling oil, but he stepped out unharmed and was banished to Patmos instead. This is commemorated by the feast of Saint John before the Latin Gate.
•When John was en route to preach in Asia, his ship was wrecked in a storm; all but John were cast ashore. John was assumed dead, but two weeks later the waves cast him ashore alive at the feet of his disciple Prochoros.
•When John denounced idol worship as demonic, followers of Artemis stoned him; the rocks turned and hit the throwers.
•He prayed in a temple of Artemis; fire from heaven killed 200 men who worshipped the idol. When the remaining group begged for mercy, he raised the 200 from the dead; they all converted and were baptized.
•Drove out a demon who had lived in a pagan temple for 249 years.
•Aboard ship, he purified vessels of sea water for drinking.
•Ceonops, a magician, pretended to bring three dead people come to life; the “people” were actually demons who mimicked people so the magician could turn people away from Christ. Through prayer, John caused the magician to drown and the demons to vanish.
•Once a year his grave gave off a fragrant dust that cured the sick.
Died

•c.101 at Ephesus (in modern Turkey)
•a church was built over his tomb, which was later converted to a mosque

**************************************************************
Saint Paul the Apostle
Jewish Talmudic student. Pharisee. Tent-maker by trade. Saul the Jew hated and persecuted Christians as heretical, even assisting at the stoning of Saint Stephen the Martyr. On his way to Damascus, Syria, to arrest another group of faithful, he was knocked to the ground, struck blind by a heavenly light, and given the message that in persecuting Christians, he was persecuting Christ. The experience had a profound spiritual effect on him, causing his conversion to Christianity. He was baptized, changed his name to Paul to reflect his new persona, and began travelling, preaching and teaching. His letters to the churches he help found form a large percentage of the New Testament. Knew and worked with many of the earliest saints and fathers of the Church. Martyr.

Born

•c.3 at Tarsus, Cilicia (modern Turkey) as Saul
Died

•beheaded c.65 at Rome, Italy

Majorettes

2011-02-10T16:17:00.003-10:00

Relevant pics from Flickr

By looking4poetry

By Chris-Millett

By extranoise

Press Release

2010-12-28T21:23:00.001-10:00

Writer Will Donate 1/2 Book Proceeds To Gordo High School Grenadier Marching Band, Gordo, Alabama

GHS Majorette History Project

2010-12-28T21:20:00.001-10:00

Gordo High School Majorette History Book Project - Gordo, Alabama, Majorettes

2010-12-28T21:16:00.001-10:00

Gordo High School Majorette History Book Project - Gordo, Alabama, Majorettes

Miriam D. Dufer, Author, Writer and Publishers compiles history of Majorettes at her Alma Mater

2010-12-28T21:16:00.000-10:00

Miriam D. Dufer, Author, Writer and Publishers compiles history of Majorettes at her Alma Mater

Graduate Student Humor (Taken from The University of Michigan)

2010-12-20T00:40:00.002-10:00

The Top Ten Lies Told by Graduate Students

taken from the Harvard Crimson

10. It doesn't bother me at all that my college roommate is making $80,000 a year on Wall Street.

9. I'd be delighted to proofread your book/chapter/article.

8. My work has a lot of practical importance.

7. I would never date an undergraduate.

6. Your latest article was so inspiring.

5. I turned down a lot of great job offers to come here.

4. I just have one more book to read and then I'll start writing.

3. The department is giving me so much support.

2. My job prospects look really good.

1. No really, I'll be out of here in only two more years.

Top Five Lies Told by Teaching Assistants:

5. I'm not going to grant any extensions.

4. Call me any time. I'm always available.

3. It doesn't matter what I think; write what you believe.

2. Think of the midterm as a diagnostic tool.

1. My other section is much better prepared than you guys.

You just might be a graduate student if...

...you can analyze the significance of appliances you cannot operate.

...your office is better decorated than your apartment.

...you have ever, as a folklore project, attempted to track the progress of your own joke across the Internet.

...you are startled to meet people who neither need nor want to read.

...you have ever brought a scholarly article to a bar.

...you rate coffee shops by the availability of outlets for your laptop.

...everything reminds you of something in your discipline.

...you have ever discussed academic matters at a sporting event.

...you have ever spent more than $50 on photocopying while researching a single paper.

...there is a microfilm reader in the library that you consider "yours."

...you actually have a preference between microfilm and microfiche.

...you can tell the time of day by looking at the traffic flow at the library.

...you look forward to summers because you're more productive without the distraction of classes.

...you regard ibuprofen as a vitamin.

...you consider all papers to be works in progress.

...professors don't really care when you turn in work anymore.

...you find the bibliographies of books more interesting than the actual text.

...you have given up trying to keep your books organized and are now just trying to keep them all in the same general area.

...you have accepted guilt as an inherent feature of relaxation.

...you find yourself explaining to children that you are in "20th grade".

...you start refering to stories like "Snow White et al."

...you often wonder how long you can live on pasta without getting scurvy.

...you look forward to taking some time off to do laundry

...you have more photocopy cards than credit cards

...you wonder if APA style allows you to cite talking to yourself as "personal communication"

The Twelve Days of Research (To be sung to the tune of "The Twelve days of Christmas")

2010-12-20T00:39:00.000-10:00

On the first day of research,

My Prof, he said to me,

Make us a cup of tea

On the second day of research,

My Prof, he said to me,

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the third day of research

My Prof, he said to me,

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the fourth day of research

My Prof, he said to me,

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the fifth day of research

My Prof, he said to me,

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the sixth day of research

My Prof, he said to me,

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the seventh day of research

My Prof, he said to me

Go to Summer school

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you

Make us a cup of tea

On the eighth day of research

My Prof, he said to me

Get some bloody funding

Go to summer school

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the ninth day of research

My Prof, he said to me

No I haven't read it

Get some bloody funding

Go to summer school

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the tenth day of research

My Prof, he said to me

Where's your bloody thesis

No I haven't read it

Get some bloody funding

Go to summer school

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the eleventh day of research

My Prof, he said to me

Pull yourself together

Where's your bloody thesis

No I haven't read it

Get some bloody funding

Go to Summer school

Plagiarize some papers

TAKE an MSC

Fabricate some data

Tutor three new students

Who the hell are you?

Make us a cup of tea

On the first day of research

My Prof , he said to me:

AT LEAST YOU'VE GOT YOUR B S C.

Graduate School Barbie

2010-12-20T00:38:00.000-10:00

Graduate School Barbie comes in two forms:

Delusional Master's Barbie (tm) and Ph.D. Masochist Barbie (tm). Every Graduate School Barbie comes with these fun filled features guaranteed to delight and entertain for hours:

Grad School Barbie comes out of the box with a big grin on her face that turns into a frown after 2 weeks or her first advisor meeting (whichever comes first).

- Adorable black circles under her delightfully bloodshot eyes.

- Comes with two outfits: a grubby pair of blue jeans and 5 year old gap T-shirt, and a floppy pair of gray sweatpants with a matching "Go Screw Yourself" T-shirt.

- Grad School Barbie talks! Just press the button on her left hand and hear her say such upbeat grad school phrases like, "Yes, Professor, It'll be done by tomorrow" "I'd love to write it all over again" and "Why didn't I just get a job, I could have been making $40,000 a year by now if I had just started working with a Bachelor's. But noooooo, Mom and Dad wanted a masters degree, I wish somebody would drop a bomb on the school so that I'd have an excuse to stop working on my degree that's sucking every last drop of life force out of my withered and degraded excuse for a soul..." (9 V lithium batteries sold separately)

-Grad School Barbie is anatomically correct to teach kids about the exciting changes that come with pursuing a higher education. Removable panels on Barbie's head and torso allow you to watch as her cerebellum fries to a crispy brown, her heart race 150 beats per minute, and her stomach lining gradually dissolve into nothing.

Deluxe Barbie comes with specially designed eye ducts. Just add a little water, and watch Grad School Barbie burst into tears at random intervals. Fun for the whole family!

Other accessories include:

-Grad School Barbie's Fun Fridge (tm) Well stocked with microwave popcorn, Coca-Cola, Healthy Choice Bologna (99% fat free!),and small bottle of Mattel Brand Rum (tm).

-Grad School Barbie's Medicine Cabinet. Comes in Fabulous pink and contains Barbie sized bottles of Advil, Prozac, Zantac, and your choice of three fun anti-anxiety drugs! (Barbie Medicine Cabinet not available without a prescription)

-Grad School Barbie's Computer Workstation. Comes with miniature obsolete PC (pink of course), rickety desk, and over a dozen miniature Mountain Dew cans to decorate your workstation with (Mountain Dew deposit not included in price, tech support sold separately)

And Grad School Barbie is not alone! Order now and you'll get two of Barbie's great friends!

GRADUATE ADVISOR KEN: Barbie's mentor and advisor in her quest for increased education and decreased self esteem. Grad Advisor Ken (tm) comes with a supply of red pens and a permanent frown. Press the button to hear Grad Advisor Ken deliver such wisdom to Barbie as "I need an update on your progress" "I don't think you'll be ready to graduate yet" and "This is no where near ready for publication." Buy 3 or more dolls, and you can have Barbie's Thesis Committee! (Palm Pilot and tenure sold

separately.)

REAL JOB SKIPPER: When Barbie needs to talk, she knows that she can always count on her good friend Real Job Skipper (tm), who got a job after getting her bachelor degree. Press the button to hear Real Job Skipper say, "Sometimes I wish I went for my masters degree" and "Work is so hard! I had to work a half an hour of overtime!" Real Job Skipper's Work Wardrobe and Savings account sold separately. WARNING: Do not place Grad Student Barbie and Real Job Skipper too close to each other, as there have been several mysterious cases of children leaving the room and coming back to find Barbie's hands mysteriously fused to Skipper's throat.

Why God Never Received Tenure at any University

2010-12-20T00:36:00.003-10:00

He had only one major publication.

It was in Hebrew.

It had no references.

It wasn't published in a refereed journal.

Some even doubt he wrote it himself.

It may be true that he created the world, but what has he done since then?

His cooperative efforts have been quite limited.

The scientific community has had a hard time replicating his results.

He never applied to the Ethics Board for permission to use human subjects.

When one experiment went awry he tried to cover it up by drowning the subjects.

When subjects didn't behave as predicted, he deleted them from the sample .

He rarely came to class, just told students to read the Book.

Some say he had his son teach the class.

He expelled his first two students for learning.

Although there were only ten requirements, most students failed his tests.

His office hours were infrequent and usually held on a mountaintop.

Dictionary of Useful Research Phrases

2010-12-20T00:35:00.001-10:00

"It has long been known..." <-> I didn't look up the original reference.

"A definite trend is evident..." <-> These data are practically meaningless.

"Of great theoretical and practical importance..." <-> Interesting to me.

"While it has not been possible to provide definite answers to these questions..." <-> This was an unsuccessful experiment, but I still hope to get it published.

"Three of the samples were chosen for detailed study." <-> The others made no sense.

"Typical results are shown." <-> The best results are shown.

"The most reliable results are those obtained by Jones." <-> He was my grad assistant.

"It is believed that..." <-> I think.

"It is generally believed that..." <-> A couple of other guys think so, too.

"It is clear that much additional work will be required before a complete understanding of the phenomenon is possible." <-> I don't understand it.

"Correct within an order of magnitude." <-> Wrong.

"It is hoped that this study will stimulate more work in this field." <-> This is a lousy paper, but so are the others in this crummy field.

"Thanks are due to Joe Blotz for assistance with the experimental work and to George Frink for valuable discussions." <-> Blotz did the work, and Frink explained to me what it meant.

"A careful analysis of obtainable data..." <-> Three pages of notes were obliterated when I knocked over a glass of beer.

"A statistically oriented projection of the findings..." <-> Wild guess.

"A highly significant area for exploratory study..." <-> A totally useless topic suggested by my committee.

=====================

"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism. To steal ideas from two persons is research." -Anonymous

Things to Say and Do Guaranteed to Spice up Your Thesis and Dissertation Defenses

2010-12-19T23:17:00.003-10:00

Begin the defense by charging a cover and checking for ID.

Charge a two-drink minimum.

Begin with "Ladies and Gentlemen, please rise for the singing of our National Anthem."

Follow that with a joke that starts with "Which reminds me of a story - A Black guy, a Chinese guy, and a Jew walked into a bar..."

Bring coffee and charge 25 cents a cup.

"Charge the mound" when a professor beans you with a high fast question.

Describe parts of your dissertation using interpretive dance.

Lead your committee members in a Wave.

Break the tension at appropriate moments with a sing-a-long.

Answer tough queries with "You call THAT a question? How'd you ever get to be a professor?"

Have bodyguards outside the room to discourage attendance of certain professors.

Present your defense using puppets.

Before you begin your presentation, sell T-shirts to recoup the cost of copying, binding, etc.

In addition, pass a collection basket.

Answer complex issues in mime.

Use the ocassion to hold a Tupperware party.

Have bikini-clad models in charge of changing your overheads.

At approximately the mid-point of your defense bring out maracas and shout "Everybody rumba!!"

Explain nonsignificant findings with "It would have worked if it weren't for those f*%ing kids."

Refuse to answer tough questions "in protest of our government's systematic and brutal opression of minorities."

Offer door prizes and conduct a raffle.

Ask professors to "Please phrase your question in the form of an answer."

Interrupt every 15 minutes with the announcement "And now, a word from our sponsor."

Present critical parts of your defense in iambic pentameter.

In your announcement, inform your committee that it will be a black tie affair.

Hire the Goodyear Blimp to circle the building.

Announce to your committee that "There will be a short quiz after my presentation."

Bring your pet boa.

Bring snacks and start a food fight.

Slap your committee chair with a glove and challenge him to a duel.

Arrange for a halftime show.

Bring a big foam hand that says "I'm #1."

Pass out souvenier matchbooks.

Hang a pinata over the table and hire a strolling mariachi band.

Make each professor remove an item of clothing for each question asked.

Use a Greek Chorus to highlight important points.

When necessary, say "I'm sorry Professor Smith, I didn't say 'SIMON SAYS any questions?'. You're out."

Dress in top hat and tails.

Hold a pre-defense pep rally, complete with cheerleaders, pep band, and a bonfire.

If you sense that things are not going well, threaten to detonate a small nuclear device in the room.

Show slides of your last vacation.

Put your overheads on a film strip. Designate a professor to be in charge of turning the strip when the tape recording beeps.

If members of the committee begin to argue among themselves announce: "OK, everybody - heads down on the desk until you show me you can behave."

When in trouble, begin speaking in tongues.

Answer every question with a question.

Hand out 3-D glasses.

Announce credits at the end. Include a "key grip" and a "best boy."

Make a practice of replying, "Sure, I could answer that, but then I'd have to kill you."

Ask a friend and conspirator to attend and ask the first question. Draw a blank-loaded gun and "shoot" him. Have him make a great scene of dying. Be sure to include fake blood. Turn to your committee and ask "Other questions?"

Wear clown makeup, a clown wig, clown shoes, a clown nose, and nothing else.

Install "APPLAUSE" and "LAUGHTER" signs.

Use a TelePromTer

Alter the clocks in the room and begin your defense 15 minutes before anyone arrives.

Last required class

2010-12-19T23:05:00.001-10:00

So,
I just finished my last required class for the Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing. What's left...the Thesis. Having done one before doesn't make this one any easier. This one will be a novel and I have no idea what it's going to be yet. I have a few things floating around in my head but haven't pinned down anything yet. So I am going to do this:

Set deadlines for myself. Stick to the deadlines like my life depends on it.

Map out my whole schedule in as detailed a manner as possible. Block out time for all my daily obligations, and include plenty of time for my thesis.

Set a regular schedule. Work on my thesis every weekday between 8 and 10 pm. Weekend: 4-6 pm.

Be realistic about how much time I will need. This is a huge project, and it has to be good.

Use the blog to help map out some things and brainstorm.

I was an extra on a new TV Show: Off the Map

2010-12-04T13:04:00.000-10:00

I played an extra as a South American Villager. It was a fun experience. I plan to watch the show and I hope you do too.

About the show:
About Off The Map Executive producers Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers (Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice) and creator Jenna Bans (Grey's Anatomy) bring to viewers an uplifting medical drama that explores how far one has to go in order to truly heal.

Welcome to "la ciudad de las estrellas" (the city of stars), a tiny town in the South American jungle which has one understaffed, under-stocked medical clinic. That's where idealistic young Dr. Lily Brenner just landed, along with fellow doctors Mina Minard and Tommy Fuller. All of these young doctors are running away from personal demons, but they aren't the only ones with emotional baggage. Take the legendary and enigmatic Ben Keeton, who was the youngest Chief of Surgery at UCLA. He walked away from it all to found the clinic. Together with his right-hand doctor, Otis Cole, the mysterious Dr. Ryan Clark and local doctor Zita Alvarez, he'll teach the newcomers how to save lives in the most challenging environment they've ever worked in—while taking them on adventures of a lifetime.

In this ensemble drama, six doctors who have lost their way will go to the ends of the earth to try to remember the reasons why they wanted to become doctors in the first place.

Off the Map stars Jonathan Castellanos as Charlie, Valerie Cruz as Zitajalehrena Alvarez (Zee), Caroline Dhavernas as Lily Brenner, Jason George as Otis Cole, Zach Gilford as Tommy Fuller, Mamie Gummer as Mina Minard, Martin Henderson as Ben Keeton and Rachelle Lefevre as Ryan Clark.

Off the Map is executive-produced by Shonda Rhimes and Betsy Beers, and created/executive-produced by Jenna Bans. The series is from ABC Studios.

starring:
Jonathan Castellanos as Charlie
Caroline Dhavernas as Lily Brenner
Zach Gilford as Tommy Fuller
Martin Henderson as Ben Keeton
Valerie Cruz as Zitajalehrena Alvarez (Zee)
Jason George as Otis Cole
Mamie Gummer as Mina Minard
Rachelle Lefevre as Ryan Clark

Dido Elizabeth Belle Lindsay

2010-11-28T13:03:00.000-10:00

Dido Elizabeth Belle was born around 1763. Her father was at the time a British Royal Navy captain who late became Admiral John Lindsay and was nephew of the Earl of Mansfield. Little is known of her mother although the story goes that Lindsay captured a Spanish ship and had his way with one of the slaves. It is doubtful that the woman willing gave herself to the captain. It is said that she was his mistress but a mistress must be free to make that choice and as a slave Dido's mother was not free. There is no information as to what happened to her after Dido's birth.

Lindsay sent the Dido to his uncle, the Earl of Mansfield who lived with his family at Kenwood House in Hampstead, England. They were already raising her cousin Elizabeth Lindsay who was about the same age as Dido and had also lost her mother.

It is possible Mansfield took Dido in as Elizabeth's playmate and, later in life, her personal attendant.

Dido was never treated as an equal member of the family, she did not dine with the rest of the family especially if they had guests, but joined the ladies for coffee afterwards. As she grew older, she took responsibility of the dairy and poultry yards at Kenwood. She received an annual allowance of £30 10s (Elizabeth received around £100, but £30 10s was several times the annual wages of a female servant).

A 1779 painting by Johann Zoffany shows the two cousins together and now hangs at Scone Palace in Scotland and is owned by the present Earl Mansfield.

Elizabeth married and left the estate in 1780 at the age of 20. When Dido's father died, he left her £1000 in his will and asked his wife Mary to take care of her. Mary Lindsay's later will does not mention Dido. Lord Mansfield, in turn, left Dido £500 and £100 annuity in his will and officially confirmed her freedom.

Dido's later life is mostly unknown. According to genealogist researcher Sarah Minney, in 1793 Dido married a steward named John Davinier and they had three sons.

Dido Elizabeth Belle died in July 1804. She was buried in the St George Hanover Square burial ground.

In the 18th Century, some Black people in the Eighteenth Century were considerably more privileged than most. One such Woman was Dido Elizabeth Bell Lindsay.

Dido was the daughter of Captain John Lindsay of the Royal Navy. She was born in England to an African mother who was captured from a Spanish ship.

Dido lived in Kenwood with her Great uncle William Murray until she was at least thirty. Although she was not a servant, it seems that she had a statues slightly lower than that of a full family member. Among her tasks were tending to Cattle and Poultry.

Murray and his Wife were childless and seemed happy to raise Dido and her cousin Lady Elizabeth Lindsay, whose mother had died while she was still an infant. Authors Speculate that Dido’s role in the family might have been that of ‘Playmate or attendant to her cousin.

The Portrait by Zoffany proves that Dido grew up to be an elegant and beautiful young woman. Her high status afforded her presents at Christmas and Birthdays that were more than normal servants would get, yet certainly less than her cousin Lady Elizabeth.

When her cousin left Kenwood to marry in 1785 Dido stayed on to look after the Murrays. While she stayed there records show that she lived in some comfort. Her bed was hung with glazed Chintz, she had asses milk when she was ill and a mahogany table made for her.
(Adams p13).

After her fathers death she received One thousand pounds. In her fathers obituary, which appeared in the London Chronicle she was referred to as having an amiable disposition and accomplishments which have gained her the highest respect.
(London Times, June 9th 1788,555)

When her Great Uncle died he left her a further 500 pounds and 100 pounds per year for life. He also made certain that she was a free woman. Little is known of Dido after the death of her uncle except that we can assume that she married, in 1779 her name changes to Davinier and she left Kenwood.

Black England

British Lingo from Law & Order UK

2010-11-27T10:23:00.000-10:00

I just discovered Law & Order UK when I was channel surfing. Since I love all the Law & Order shows, I was intrigued by a British version. To understand the show, the Law & Order UK website provides this glossary.

Barney - Trouble; a fight

Bird - Girl

Bloke - Guy

Car park - Parking lot

Caravan - Trailer

Coppers - Cops; police

Cot - Crib

Dodgy - Suspicious

Flat - Apartment

Flog - Sell

Gaff - House; home

Go spare - Get very angry

Guv (guv-nor) - Boss

Holdall - Bag

Kip - Sleep

Letting agency - Rental Agency

Lezzer - Lesbian

Lorry - Truck

Minger - Ugly

Mobile - Cell phone

Neither use nor ornament - Neither useful nor aesthetically pleasing

Nicked - Arrested (he got nicked); Stole (she nicked my telly)

Old bill - Police

Playpark - Playground

Pissed - Drunk

Punch-up - A fight

Put (someone) on the dock - Put on trial

Quid - Money, British pounds

Ring (I'll ring you) - Call (I'll call you)

Rough sleeper - Homeless person

Stitched up - Set up

Telly - TV

Tippex - White Out

Tube - Subway

Veg - Vegetables

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Police Lingo
DS - Detective Sergeant

DI - Detective Inspector

ABH - Accidental Bodily Harm

GBH - Grievous Bodily Harm

SOCO - Scene of Crime Officer

Meaning of Miriam

2010-11-27T10:13:00.000-10:00

The girl's name Miriam \m(i)-riam\ is pronounced MEER-ee-em. It is of Hebrew origin. An older version of the name Mary. Biblical: the sister of Moses, who saved his life as a baby when she hid him in a basket among the rushes at the river's edge for the Pharoah's daughter to find. The name was revived in the 18th century. Singer Miriam Makeba.

Miriam has 15 variant forms: Mariam, Maryam, Meriam, Meryam, Mimi, Mirham, Mirjam, Mirjana, Mirriam, Miryam, Mitzi, Mitzie, Miyana, Miyanna and Myriam.

The amazing Hebrew name Miriam: meaning and etymology

2010-11-27T10:10:00.001-10:00

The amazing Hebrew name Miriam: meaning and etymology

The English name Mary is the transliteration of the Greek name Maria or Mariam, which in turn is the transliteration of the Hebrew name Miriam.

There are two Miriams mentioned in the OT. The most famous one is the prophetess and older sister of Moses and Aaron. Another Miriam (most probably a male) is mentioned in the genealogy of Judah (1 Chronicles 4:17).
Mary is a popular name in the NT. The most famous Mary is the mother of Jesus (Mat 1:16). Others are Mary Magdalene (Mat 27:56), the mother of James and Joseph (Mat 27:56), the sister of Martha and Lazarus (John 11:1), the mother of John Mark (Acts 12:12), and a Roman Christian (Rom 16:6).

The origin and meaning of the name Miriam is unclear, although, as many Levite names are for some reason Egyptian, it may have to do with the Egyptian word for Beloved (see the name Merari). On a Hebrew stage, most scholars derive the name Miriam from the verb (mara 1242) meaning to be rebellious, disobedient. A derivation from this verb is (meri 1242a) meaning rebellion (see the name Meribah). Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names reads Their Rebellion. NOBS Study Bible Name List reads Obstinacy, Stubbornness.

Another possibility is a combination of the words and .
(mar 1248a) means bitter; (mar 1248b) means myrrh. Both come from the root (marar 1248) meaning be bitter, strengthen, strong. (mar 1249a) probably means drop but is used only once, in Isaiah 40:15).
The word (yam 871a) means sea.

Hence, the name Miriam also means Strong Waters or Waters Of Strength.

Jerome (4th century AD) suggested relations with the word (ma'or 52f), star, from the verb ('or 52), to be light, shine (see the names Aaron, Ur and Urim). Combined with the word (yam 871a), sea, the name translates to Stella Maris (star of the sea), but that strikes as a very free interpretation.

Supporting St. Jude

2010-11-27T09:05:00.002-10:00

My Hometown

2010-11-24T00:29:00.002-10:00

Gordo, Alabama is my hometown. Gordo is a town in Pickens County, Alabama, United States with a population of about 2000. I went to Gordo High School (The Green Wave)

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Dystopos

By jimmywayne

The Vatican

2010-11-24T00:20:00.001-10:00

This was my favorite place to visit in Italy. I missed the Pope by 1 hour and was so said. I still got to tour everything and met the curator of the museum who gave me a private tour.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By papalars

By MarcelGermain

By Giorgos~

Conegliano, Italy

2010-11-24T00:16:00.001-10:00

Right in the historical city centre of Conegliano, in a renewed old building of the 15th century, the Hotel Canon D'Oro, completely refurnished and enriched with old style pieces of furniture, warmly welcomes its guests.

A delicious garden facing Conegliano's hills crowns the relaxing atmosphere of the Hotel.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By G.Dalle Crode

By efilpera

By jarson_jarson

By Basilicata Travel

Napoli

2010-11-24T00:13:00.000-10:00

Napoli is one of my favorite cities to visit and it has the best pizza and sea food.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By J.Salmoral

By WorldFlickr

By jef safi

By laura.foto

Macau

2010-11-24T00:06:00.001-10:00

Tiny Macau, a special administrative region of China, has seen its low-key colonial character give way to massive commercial and tourist development. I want to visit Macau because Gu Jun Pyo and Jhandi went there in Boys Over Flowers.

New Caledonia

2010-11-23T23:58:00.004-10:00

I want to visit New Caledonia because Gu Jun Pyo and Jandi went there in Boys Over Flowers. It is a beautiful place. New Caledonia in Melanesia is an oasis in the South Pacific, a land of contrast, splendour and excitement.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Searocket

By conner395

By Eustaquio Santimano

By Swamibu

Why I hate racial categories in the U.S.

2010-11-23T21:56:00.001-10:00

Negroe, Colored, Black, Afro-American, African-American. Hispanic, White Non-Hispanic and the list goes on and on. Check all that apply. Check one. Look at me and decide what I am.
Ironically, when I lived in Maywood, IL, I'd go to a Spanish speaking part of town and people would speak Spanish to me, thinking that I was one of them. I've been asked if I come from the islands because of my skin color and my speech. When I go to Europe or Asia, I am immediately signaled out as the American. Don't get me wrong, I am brown skinned, I like to call it Caramel. I was born in Alabama and never been to Africa. My parents were born in Alabama and their parents were born in Alabama and their parents were born in Alabama and Virginia. I don't even know anybody from Africa.
So...what do I want to be? I want to be known as a kind woman who is smart, a great mom and wife, a Soldier who has served her country honorably, a good friend, a faithful church-goer, a person who gives back to the community and so on. I don't want to be known as the black ...take your pick. There is nothing wrong with being black, brown, yellow, red, white or whatever but if that is all we see, we miss so much.
I am an Alabamian-American, native born citizen. My skin color is no more important than my hair color or eye color. I don't want to be given anything because of my skin color or not get something I deserve because of my skin color.
When I visit other countries, their people are proud to be nationalists. Italians consider themselves Italian. Panamanians consider themselves Panamanians regardless of lightness of darkness of skin color. So why does America harp on sociological categories that are traditionally wrong? From the Racial Integrity Act of 1924 to the One Drop Rule, we have marginalized human beings by skin color. What happens to those that don't look as we expect? A woman who looks white but has two parents that are darker skinned and considers herself black. A woman who looks black but when she opens her mouth,we find that she is from Panama and considers herself Panamanian and not a "sister"?
I am interested in this because of my own family history. My great grandfather refused to pick. He identified himself as a mixed blooded man only. Both his parents were products of slave master/slave relationships and looked white. My great great grandmother didn't even know her mother was a slave until she was 18 years old. She had been raised by her father (slave master) and his white wife and grew up in the same house as her half sisters and brothers. She was treated as white. When I started researching my family history, I looked at Census records and for her she was lsited as white, 10 years later as Mulatto, 10 years later as white, and 10 years later as black. She certainly didn't change colors but the Census takers put down whatever they saw.
With my own daughter, she was born looking 100% Korean. Her father is part Korean (mother from Korea) and part American (father from Illinois with French, Irish and German ancestry). My family is from Alabama and has African, Irish, German, Scottish, Italian and English ancestry. So what should she choose? She looks more like her father but has my ways. She likes Korean food better than anything else. My mother was born with blond hair and hazel eyes. My sister has hazel and green eyes. My side of the family ranges from almost white skin to dark black skin.
I hope that my grand-children (whenever I have them) are free to be whoever they are and be proud of their rich heritage but understand that they are first human and second American. I hope that they will be judge by what they do and not what they look like.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Monica's Dad

Writing Exercise: Obituary

2010-10-03T06:29:00.004-10:00

Obituary (pg 143)

Write a story that mimics the form of an obituary, but try to make it a funny obituary, like this one, for Davis Mortimer. 500 words.

I chose this exercise because I don’t consider myself funny in person or as a writer. I wanted to challenge myself into stretching my comedic wings.

Mitzi Itzim November 21, 1921 –November 21, 2009

BIRMINGHAM (AP) - Mitzi Iztim, born Mitzi Minerva Greene in 1921 in Gordo, Alabama left us on November 21, 2009. She will be met in the afterlife by her husband, Merle, her son, Merle Jr., and daughter, Minerva, hopefully, in the celestial city. She died in a Birmingham hospital Wednesday, about six weeks after being injured in a fall.

Itzim, who produced and co-wrote acclaimed films like "Serenade,” saw Hollywood success as director of "The Five Columns" and was nominated for three Oscars, has died. Itzim began her career of more 1940 when he worked as a writer for Wilford Willeman on the British sound film, “The Princess and The Queen.” She was nominated for Oscars with director Rupert Glover as co-writer of 1955's "Brief Escape" and 1966's "Menehune." She went on to write and direct the acclaimed 1979 film "The Last Days of Miss Gleason" and the critically panned 1982 box office hit "The Glass Unicorn." She was 88. She fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept the faith and now she’s gone, Praise the Lord!
She is survived by her daughters Marisa, Marjorie, Michaela, Madaleine, Magdala and Betsy, and son Wilbert; grandchildren, Fidel, Estefania, Zaid, Rishi, Angeles, Nash, Elfren, Chana, Yaritza, Branson, Dimitri, and Tayshaun; great-grandchildren, Cordell, Bam-Bam, Petrice, Wendy, Angee, and Loree; a host of nieces and nephews, and a dog named Wendell. We apologize if we missed anyone but we know that no one really gives a shit.

Her personal life was less notable than her professional life. When she was writing, she was an enthusiastic drinker and would drink herself into such a state that we thought she was multi-lingual and eventually determined that she was just drunk and was speaking drunkish, surely a foreign language. She was mean and full of self pity and her children hated her.

There were rumors that her husband Merle died just to get away from her.

Now we can finally get rid of that over-priced, over pampered, pain in the ass, mut she called Wendell. Every time her door bell rang, this stupid dog would come to the door and make a puddle of piss to welcome the ignorant bastard on the other side of the door. She thought it was cute but we all thought it was sad and crazy. We’ll try and find him a good home but if he should just happen to run away or get taken out with the garbage by mistake, oops!

Funeral Services will be held at the Dead Diva’s Funeral Home and Mortuary in Hollywood, the one place she was appreciated. The family asks that no one attend the service because we feel she received enough attention during her life and really want to ignore her in death. She’s either with Jesus in Heaven and hopefully Job is around or she went way down South and is bugging the hell out of Satan. Either way, we are relieved.

Word Count: 498

Works Cited

Kiteley, Brian. 4 AM Breakthrough. Cincinnati: F+W Publications, 2008. Print.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Thomas Hawk

By dbking

By valleyviolet

Writing Exercise: Aphorisms

2010-10-03T06:28:00.003-10:00

Aphorisms (pg 093)

Collect a dozen aphorisms. Make up your own. Scour encyclopedias of aphorisms or epigrams (The Penguin Dictionary of Epigrams, for example). It is important that half of the aphorisms you use in this exercise are those you made up yourself. Once you’ve got a good collection, populate a scene with a handful of friends talking over an unimportant subject. Let your characters speak these epigrams intermittently. Perhaps two of the characters speak all of the aphorisms, and the other characters speak only their original thoughts. When your people speak these pithy remarks they should not note the source. See what happens to your conversation when you deliberately spice it up with dense thought like this. Let the quality of the aphorisms leak into the other speeches. 500 words.

I chose this exercise because it forces me to work on dialogue, a weakness of mine.

The girls meet every Thursday to have drinks at The Jinx. They can’t remember whose idea it was to start doing this but since graduation, this has been their ritual.

“Hey Bellissa! I just got off the phone with Cadence and she said that she just read a special flyer from The Jinx. It said: Come and celebrate the 7^th Anniversary of being Savannah's premier live music venue with us,” Adalyn says.

Bellissa pulls the telephone away from her ear a bit to limit the affect of Adalyn’s screaming in her ear. “It’s been seven years? I remember when that building used to be The Velvet Elvis and we all thought life would end when it closed,” Bellissa says.

“What we anticipate seldom occurs; what we least expect generally happens. I can’t wait to see you guys. Let me finish getting dressed and I’ll see you in a couple of hours,” Adalyn says.

The girls get their usual table that sits atop a raised platform offering patrons a panoramic view of the stage, dance floor and the main bar.

“I was in such a rush that I forgot my purse. Can you guys cover me?” Cadence asks.

“The holy passion of friendship is so sweet and steady and loyal and enduring in nature that it will last through a whole lifetime, if not asked to lend money,” Deirdre responds.

“Aren’t we feisty and intellectual this evening?” Cadence says with a smile.

“Don’t worry. I’m sure that between the three of us, we can cover all the club soda you drink,” Adalyn says.

“So, what’s been going on with you guys this week?” Bellissa asks.

“Tony and I had a fight again a couple of days ago. He keeps throwing his wet towels on the bed after he showers. It’s infuriating!” Deirdre says.

“The only way a woman can ever reform her husband is by boring him so completely that he loses all possible interest in life. Have you tried that, Deirdre?” Adalyn asks.

“I never thought of that. My mother always told me, happy husband and the wife is in dreamland. It’s more like nightmareland. I swear, he is the perfect husband, except for those damn wet towels.” Deirdre says.

“Well Deirdre, life is a mirror, if you frown at it, it frowns back; if you smile, it returns the greeting. Maybe you should get a water bed. Get it? Wet towels, water bed. I slay me.” Cadence says laughing.

“We all boil at different degrees. At least you have a husband. I keep meeting Mr. Wrong, Mr. Wronger, and Mr. Wrongest. Do I have Psycho Magnet imprinted on my forehead?” Bellissa asks.

“Don’t worry, Cadence. You’ll find someone, get married, and be miserable like the rest of us. Seriously, it’s not that bad. Marriage just takes a lot of work and sometimes, you have to put up with little annoyances, like wet towels, “ Deirdre says.

“Love seizes on us suddenly, without giving warning, and our disposition or our weakness favors the surprise; one look, one glance from the fair, fixes and determines us. Friendship, on the contrary, is a long time forming; it is of slow growth, through many trials and months of familiarity. We’re your friends and will always be there for you. Love will come for you when you are ready to receive it,” Adalyn says.

Word Count: 503

Works Cited

Kiteley, Brian. 4 AM Breakthrough. Cincinnati: F+W Publications, 2008. Print.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By andyi

By dbking

By oedipusphinx — — — — theJWDban

By John Fraissinet

Writing Exercise: After Auschwitz

2010-10-03T06:27:00.001-10:00

After Auschwitz (pg 190)

          Write a short scene set in a Nazi concentration camp. The idea of trying to imagine oneself into such a place or situation is abhorrent. Many have argued over the years that no one has the right to write about the death camps without having actual experience of them. The philosopher T.W. Adorno said that writing poetry after Auschwitz was barbaric. The word barbaric means uncivilized. I’m all for trying uncivilized.

          Another simple instruction for this exercise is to use the names of a handful of people you love as characters in this story. These names should not be the people you love; only use their names, not their characteristics or souls. But putting just the names of your loved ones in such horrifying circumstances will be a useful narrative operation. It will be hard to be carefree about this investigation with your own family names involved. 500 words.

          I chose this exercise because it is hard to imagine human beings put through such horrific circumstances, let alone, people you love.
Although it can be argued that “no one has the right to write about the death camps without having actual experience of them”, as writers, we explore and write about situations that we haven’t experienced and I think that’s why it’s called Fiction.

          As incoming prisoners came through the selection, a plump SS officer sorted them into two lines. Salina Embry and Gradie Summerville, sent to the right, were immediately sent to “the little red house”. The carbon monoxide gas, compressed in seven steel containers that looked like milk cans mounted into the red brick wall was released through copper pipes into the gas chamber.

          Salina tried not to inhale the gas and covered her mouth but the vapors burned her eyes so bad that she had to remove her hands from her mouth and gasped for breath, crying out terribly. Gradie, determined to be brave and trust in God, stood there as erect as she could and took a cavernous breath, believing God would protect her. God was not with her on this day. They both were dead in seven minutes. Their bodies were loaded on a red wagon and wobbled to a ditch about a mile from the “the little red house” and dumped like yesterday’s milk.

          Lillie Washington and Louisa Sturdivant were sent to the left in preparation to be put to work. Lillie and Louisa were stripped of their clothes and personal possessions and moved on to have their heads shaven. The pins in Lillie’s hair were ripped out and her hair met her waist. Her hair took the longest to shave between the two. Louisa had always worn her hair shoulder length so her turn went much faster.

          Once clean, the women were sent for registration. Louisa’s registration, AU25375, was placed on her left breast.

The SS officer joked, “This one has huge breasts! Put it there!
          As the SS officer laughed, Louisa tried to hold in her tears as she sat there physically and mentally exposed to the cruelty. She’d been a reticent woman who’d never revealed her breasts to anyone other than her husband and doctor.

          Lillie received her registration, AU25376, on her left inner forearm. Her breasts were less appealing.

          Louisa was taken to Dr. Burkhalter in the infirmary. He told her that he needed to run some tests to find out how to make her feel better. She told him that she didn’t feel sick. Immediately, she was beaten until she lost consciousness and strapped to a cold, steel table. He applied a variety of intensities of radiation to her ovaries. As the concentration increased, severe burns began to show on her abdomen, groin, and buttocks areas. The pain was so extreme that she’d pass out in between rounds of radiation only to be revived to be conscious for all iterations of tests.

          Lillie was sent to work in SS kitchen where guards stood watch to make sure food and drink was not poisoned by a prisoner feeling brave. With good reason, Lillie was watched very closely because her eyes, dark and hollow, screamed to the world that if given the chance, she’d poison them all. She often daydreamed about serving the plump SS officer a silver tray with Plettenpudding garnished with raspberries and whatever poison she could find.

Word Count: 505

                                                    Works Cited

Kiteley, Brian. 4 AM Breakthrough. Cincinnati: F+W Publications, 2008. Print.

Relevant pics from Flickr

No data

By dbking

By dichohecho

By valleyviolet

Writing Exercise: Etymologies

2010-10-03T06:24:00.000-10:00

(3) Etymologies (pg 31-32)

Take four words that seem to recur in your fiction. Study their etymological histories. How will you find these four words that recur in your fiction? If you have all or some of your fiction in digital format, click Edit in the main toolbar (of Microsoft Word). Then click on Find…option. You’ll simultaneously have to reread your old fiction and see if you come across repeated words. The words you choose should be meaty and complex, preferably with a long etymological history. Use the older meanings (without the word) as well as modern synonyms. Collect some sentences with these etymologies rewritten into relatively normal-sounding narrative sentences. Eventually, you will have a piece of prose that is something of a comment on your previous stories (or novel). 500 Words.

I chose this exercise because I simply love etymology. My 10^th grade English teacher made me use the Old English Dictionary religiously and I thank her for that now (not back then). My four recurring words are: generation, descendant, ritual, and transformation. This was a fun exercise because each word led to a different word and a different word and meaning and so on.

She gestured to him using the middle finger to simulate a penis, and the remaining fingers to represent the testicles. The impudent finger mocked him and laughed just like the smile upon her twisted face. She knew she shouldn’t have done it. Mrs. Henson was just a few yards away from her and at any moment, she could turn her head and catch her, finger in mid air.

Mrs. Henson didn’t like children who were inclined to take liberties. Cheeky children would surely be introduced to her wooden paddle with the holes drilled in it. Cheekiness was not allowed. A lack of respect and excessive boldness was definitely not allowed. And the finger. Well the finger could get you escorted out into the hall and asked to touch your toes. All the kids knew this.

Lillian hoped that Mrs. Henson wouldn’t catch her. Mrs. Henson had a quick and acute sensibility as if she he had eyes in the back of her skull, peaking out of her curly, brown wig.

Word Count: 503

Works Cited

Kiteley, Brian. 4 AM Breakthrough. Cincinnati: F+W Publications, 2008. Print.

***

Writing Exercise: Dialect

2010-10-03T06:20:00.000-10:00

Dialect

If you wrote the exercise the first time in authorial or formal voice, try the same or different subject in a colloquial, even a dialect voice – perhaps a character talking to another character. If you did it colloquially to start with, back off a little and try a more detached, authorial mode. (49)

I chose this exercise because the idea of experimenting with dialect appealed to me. I didn’t have much experience with dialect and wanted to challenge myself with it.

The restaurant was loud and bustling with tourists. Kekoa sat at the far end of the booth so his long legs could move unhindered. His 6’4” frame held thin arms and runner’s legs. Kalani, who like to be called Hank, was a smaller man, and much rounder. Joe’s Seafood Grill in Haleiwa was a tourist magnet for those brave enough or stupid enough to try and surf the North Shore. Kekoa and Kalani ritally ate at Joe’s on their lunch break, hoping to see some stupid haole spilling tears after a go at kai. “Eh, howzit, brah. You get any da kine?”, asked Kalani. “No listen to that tita, she say any kine, brah.”, Kekoa replied. “I know brah. Malia we go foa beach wit me. Wot? Boddah you? Keoka smiled impishly. “Kalani, see brah, no boddah. Eh! You get dirty lickens bundbye you no, top dat! Eh Can you get one ride foa da beach, brah?”

Kalani’s attention was momentarily fixated on the curvy blonde that just walked in but was brought back to the conversation by a kick from Kekoa. “Ouch brah! Kayden.”

“Ho, brah, Malia wen spoke me in da cah wid Leilani and geev me stinkeye”, Keoka said. “Stinkeye, eh?” “Yep” “Keoka, eh, brah, nevah mess wid dat tita, she gon bus you up”, Kalani said giggling. Lauging, Keoka asked, “bus me up?” “Brah, sometimes she so lolo but she plenty akamai. She wen mek one computah.”

Word Count: 242

Works Cited

Le Guin, Ursula K. Steering the Craft. 1st. Portland, OR: The Eighth Mountain Press, 1998. 39-60. Print.

Writing Exercise from Le Guin

2010-10-03T06:18:00.002-10:00

Being Gorgeous

Write a paragraph to a page (150-300 words) of narrative that’s meant to be read aloud. Use onomatapeia, alliteration, repetition, rhythmic effects, made-up words or names, dialect – any kind of sound effect you like – but NOT rhyme or meter.

I chose this exercise because of the poetic devices suggested. I wanted to use alliteration and repetition and see how it sounded.

Yeun-Ja knocked 8 times on the door before entering hotel room 888, showing respect to anyone or anything that may reside there. Hotel rooms tend to be a place where the 'yang' is weaker than the 'ying'. The constant movement of these two energies, yin to yang and yang to yin, cause everything to happen. Just as things expand and contract, and temperature changes from hot to cold, people go in and out, but they don't stay, causing ghosts to gather. Who knows who or what had been in the room before her. In and out, day after day, night after night, the fights, the lovemaking, the room service, the killing; the room was filled with energy. She flushed the washlet to flush out any bad influences. The swoosh of the flush was subdued by the first few tunes of Op. 62 Nr. 6 Frühlingslied by Felix Mendelssohn. Mendolssohn’s music may have scared away the bad influences but Yeun-Ja flushed anyway to be sure. She didn’t place her shoes or shoes neatly by the bed so it would be harder for a ghost to find the bed and bother her slumber. She placed her shoes in a corner by the door’s entrance and put her rolled up socks inside them. Yuen-Ja rolled out the yo onto the heated floor and covered up with an ibul, resting her head on the wheat husked filled pyogae, praying her ritual would cause a peacfeul night’s sleep. (Word Count: 243)

Works Cited

Le Guin, Ursula K. Steering the Craft. 1st. Portland, OR: The Eighth Mountain Press, 1998. 26. Print.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Gilderic

All About Boys Over Flowers

2010-07-31T21:54:00.004-10:00

An ordinary girl whose family operates a laundry shop. Although coming from a poor family background, she possesses an extraordinary determination and is always optimistic, cheerful and full of energy. Once during a delivery of laundry to Shin Hwa College, she met with the legendary F4 and their fairy-tale story begins from there.

Lee Min Ho as Gu Jun Pyo

Lee Min Ho
The leader of F4 and the successor of South Korea’s top corporation Shin Hwa Corporation. Overbearing and cold-blooded on the surface but warm-hearted and passionate deep inside. Although a little male chauvinist, he is willing to do anything for the woman he loves. He will also often display childish acts in front of the woman he loves.

Kim Hyun Joong as Yoon Ji Hoo

Kim Hyun Joong
A member of the F4 who has autism since young, unconcerned to almost everything and likes to hide alone in one corner. However behind his seemingly cold appearance, he has a gentle and delicate heart. Geum Jan Di is also attracted by his angel-like personality. Although he feels a little for Geum Jan Di but he is unable to forget his first love Min Seo Hyun.

Kim Bum as So Ee Jung

Kim Bum
Gifted potter and successor of a noble family. Highly popular among the girls in the college but his heart is starting to feel for Jan Di’s best friend Chu Ga Eul. Yi Jung who is always surrounded by girls from the upper class puts his eyes on this ordinary girl.

Kim Joon as Song Woo Bin

Kim Joon
The most flirtatious of the group, Song Woo Bin is the son of giant corporation in the construction industry. As the successor of a newly-promoted noble family, he is poised to face a political marriage against his will and his flirtatious nature is just a way of self-indulgence.

An ordinary girl whose family operates a laundry shop. Although coming from a poor family background, she possesses an extraordinary determination and is always optimistic, cheerful and full of energy. Once during a delivery of laundry to Shin Hwa College, she met with the legendary F4 and their fairy-tale story begins from there.

Lee Min Ho as Gu Jun Pyo

Lee Min Ho
The leader of F4 and the successor of South Korea’s top corporation Shin Hwa Corporation. Overbearing and cold-blooded on the surface but warm-hearted and passionate deep inside. Although a little male chauvinist, he is willing to do anything for the woman he loves. He will also often display childish acts in front of the woman he loves.

Kim Hyun Joong as Yoon Ji Hoo

Kim Hyun Joong
A member of the F4 who has autism since young, unconcerned to almost everything and likes to hide alone in one corner. However behind his seemingly cold appearance, he has a gentle and delicate heart. Geum Jan Di is also attracted by his angel-like personality. Although he feels a little for Geum Jan Di but he is unable to forget his first love Min Seo Hyun.

Kim Bum as So Ee Jung

Kim Bum
Gifted potter and successor of a noble family. Highly popular among the girls in the college but his heart is starting to feel for Jan Di’s best friend Chu Ga Eul. Yi Jung who is always surrounded by girls from the upper class puts his eyes on this ordinary girl.

Kim Joon as Song Woo Bin

Kim Joon
The most flirtatious of the group, Song Woo Bin is the son of giant corporation in the construction industry. As the successor of a newly-promoted noble family, he is poised to face a political marriage against his will and his flirtatious nature is just a way of self-indulgence.

Relevant pics from Flickr

No data

By - Annetta -

My Favorite TV Show: Boys Over Flowers

2010-04-10T05:54:00.001-10:00

While delivering a student's dry cleaning, Geum Jan Di saves the life of a heavily bullied student at the most prestigious school in South Korea. Her actions soon became public and exposes the bullying within the school, therefore enraging the public. To silence the public's attention, Jan Di is offered a swimming scholarship to Shinhwa High School which she declines but her family forces her to attend.

During her first day at Shinhwa, Jan Di learns of the famous F4 and of the other students' adoration and fixation with the boys in the group. Gu Jun Pyo, Yoon Ji Hoo, So Yi Jung, and Song Woo Bin are the richest and most powerful kids within Shinhwa and South Korea. Subsequently, they use their power to terrorize weaker students or those they do not like. Jan Di, instead of being impressed, becomes enraged and fantasizes about confronting Gu Jun Pyo, the leader and initiator of many of the bullying acts. She gains courage to confront him when a friend, Oh Min Ji, accidentally spills ice cream on his shoes and he demands the girl to lick it off. Jan Di defends her friend and attempts to reason with Jun Pyo's tyrannical demand. He refuses to relent and demands her to lick it herself. Feigning licking it, she bends down but shoves hr own ice cream in his face. Enraged by this, Gu Jun Pyo declares war on Jan Di and encourages the other students to bully her. Jan Di, however, is resistant, refusing to apologize to Gu Jun Pyo, and stands by her decision to fight him.

Ironically, Gu Jun Pyo, having never been stood up to, begins to develop feelings for her. He tries unsuccessfully to woo her as she slowly begins to spend more time with Jun Pyo and his friends. Jan Di teaches Jun Pyo that money cannot buy everything and in order to have real friends, he himself must be real or use his heart, but Gu Jun Pyo still does not understand why someone like Jan Di should dislike him. As the story progresses, Jun Pyo falls deeper in love with Jan Di and she learns how to open herself to his love as well.

Jan Di's best friend, Ga Eul often finds herself in the same place as Yi Jung. Though she finds him attractive, she is initially annoyed by his arrogance. One day, Yi Jung finds Ga Eul crying after she is dumped by her boyfriend. He advises her to let him go, and later, to make her feel better, the two show up to a club in which he is attending. Yi Jung pretends to be in love with Ga Eul to make her ex jealous. He gives her his scarf and walks her home. After this, Ga Eul finds herself smitten with Yi Jung. On Valentine's Day, she waits outside his house, planning to give him chocolates. He shows up with two girls on his arm and on his table, he already has dozens of chocolates from other girls. When Ga Eul is upset, Yi Jung reminds her that their night at the club was only an act, and it's not his fault if she took it too seriously. Yi Jung feels bad, and gives Ga Eul a cake and flowers, when he mistakenly thinks it's her birthday. The two become friendly again.

As love begins to blossom between Jan Di and Jun Pyo, Jun Pyo's mother discovers them and deems it unsuitable. She does everything in her power to keep the two apart, even arranging a marriage for Jun Pyo. The other F4 members and Ga Eul try to bring them back together. Yi Jung and Song Woo Bin came up with a few plans, but they fail. They resort to So Yi Jung and Ga Eul pretending to go on a fake date, which upsets Jan Di because she doesn't consider Yi Jung good enough for her friend. She follows the two around with Jun Pyo by her side, making sure Yi Jung is treating Ga Eul appropriately. At first their plan was successful but because of Jun Pyo's mother, their relationship became strained again.

After their date, Ga Eul finds her self falling for Yi Jung again. Yi Jung feels the same way, but he can't bring himself to admit it, due to his doubt in true love. After a talk with the first girl Yi Jung loved, Ga Eul admits to Yi Jung how she feels about him and asks if he'll go on a real date with her. He rejects her, saying he doesn't date nice girls, foolish girls, or girls connected to his friends. He later changes his mind, and takes her out, though he spends all his time ignoring Ga Eul, and talking to other women. Their date ends with Ga Eul throwing water in Yi Jung's face, but Ga Eul still helps Yi Jung to get safely home when he is too drunk to do it himself.

Other factors keep arising as another member of the group falls in love with Jan Di (which was Yoon Ji Hoo) and in a twist of fate, Jun Pyo loses his memory. A girl named Jang Yu Mi who was in the same hospital where Jun Pyo was confined, takes advantage of him to make him fall in love with her. Geum Jan Di never gives up for Jun Pyo to remember his love for her, even reenacting her former acts of defiance. In a last ditch attempt to help Jun Pyo regain his memory, she falls in the swimming pool letting Jun Pyo reminise his love for her. On Jan Di's graduation, Jun Pyo proposes to her on the cable car at the NamSan Tower where their first date was held. Gu Jun Pyo told Jan Di that he needs to study abroad to fix problems regarding Shinhwa. Jun Pyo asks Jan Di to accompany him as his wife but Jan Di refuses because she has also plans for her future becoming a doctor. The two agreed but Jan Di told Jun Pyo that she will be waiting for 4 years on one condition--if Jun Pyo comes back as a handsome and charming man.

After Ga Eul helps Yi Jung decipher the message his first love tried to send him, Yi Jung has a change of heart about their relationship. At his home, Yi Jung warns Ga Eul that he's not a nice guy, and Ga Eul tells him that not every nice girl wants a nice guy. The two almost kiss, though they get interrupted. Later, Yi Jung visits Ga Eul to talk about their relationship. Before Yi Jung can confess how he feels for Ga Eul, she cuts him off, thanking him for giving her the chance to not have any regrets about the two of them, since she gave it her all. She leaves him before he ever gets the chance to say he loves her.

The story ends with F4 four years later with each cast revealing happenings on their current life--Yi Jung coming back from Sweden for helding his art exhibit and visits Ga Eul to a kindergarten teacher, where it's revealed that the two are now dating, Ji Hoo who just opened his Grandpa's clinic, and Woo Bin becoming a happy man but his career was never mentioned in the story. Lastly, Geum Jan Di went to the beach near the university where sh was attending to see Jun Pyo.He then proposes to Jan Di but the answer was still a question among viewers because when Jan Di was about to answer--Ji Hoo, Yi Jung and Woo Bin arrive saying that they object to the proposal because Jun Pyo and Jan Di didn't ask for their permission first....and they live peacefully.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By B.S. Wise

By - Annetta -

By jushih：『對我來說，這就是生活』

By dramatomy.com

Reading Across America 2010

2010-03-15T21:14:00.001-10:00

On March 4, 2010, I joined the students at Kalihi Waena Elementary to celebrate the ninth annual National Education Association's Read Across America Day. NEA's Read Across America Day, which falls on Dr. Seuss's 102nd birthday, expects more than 45 million readers, both young and old, to pick up a book and read. To honor the good doctor and celebrate the fun and value of reading,I read to a Kindergarten and 3rd grade class.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By Darwin Bell

By Malingering

By Chris Devers

By Aristocrats-hat

Thailand 2010

2010-03-13T08:12:00.002-10:00

Relevant pics from Flickr

By MikeBehnken

By 27147

By tarotastic

By MikeBehnken

Mrs. Hawaii International 2010 Ladies Night Out

2010-03-12T20:08:00.001-10:00

Relevant pics from Flickr

By picassoswoman

By Sapo Essay

By manitou2121

By duke9042004

Pageant Appearance at Ward Warehouse

2010-03-12T06:04:00.000-10:00

Maternal Lineage Test (Mitochondrial DNA)

2010-01-16T19:02:00.001-10:00

I had my DNA tested for genelogical purposes and the results follow:

MATERNAL ANCIENT ANCESTRY

My HaploGroup: HV *

Maternal Ancient Ancestry Haplogroup H originated in the Near East approximately 23,000-28,000 years ago and expanded into Europe roughly 20,000 years ago, possibly at the same time as the diffusion of the Gravettian technology. Gravettian technology is characterized by backed blades used for projectile points and is associated with cultures that made Venus statues, such as the Venus of Willendorf. These early Paleolithic populations retreated to southern Europe because of the expanding ice sheets of the Last Glacial Maximum (15,000 years ago) and likely settled in southern France/northern Spain. Haplogroup H then gradually re-expanded into the rest of Europe after the ice sheets retreated. Haplogroup H is one of the most common haplogroups in Europe. It makes up 40-50% of most European and 20-30% of the Near East and Caucasus region populations. Tsarina Alexandra Romanov (wife of Tsar Nicholas Romanov), Prince Philip of Russia, and Marie Antoinette (Queen of France) are all believed to be members of Haplogroup H.

Relevant pics from Flickr

By jurvetson

By dbking

By PhOtOnQuAnTiQuE

By kevinzim

Writing Prompt: Do you believe in ghosts? Write about what you believe.

2010-01-16T19:00:00.001-10:00

I do believe in ghosts. The body is filled with blood and bones and the Soul is present whether we see it or not. The Soul is connect to the universe and remains long past the physical body. Once the body goes, the soul infinitely exists. Souls can be tormented or lost and exist on a different plane than the body but I believe Souls interact with us everyday. A gentle breeze, the chill in a room, the shadowy things we see out of the corner of our eyes, these things are the Souls interacting with us. Can people or places be haunted? I believe they can. Although the planes are different, they are connected by the universe and at times, they mix and mingle and the planes are bombarded against the other. Souls are what give us life and feel the happiness and distress of our actions and those things acted upon us. Souls can guide us or hinder us. If we look at Souls at as energy, energy can be moved and displaced. I believe that if a Soul is not at rest, it lingers and searches for some type of closer. If found, it passes on and if not, it lingers and becomes angry and frustrated. Some Souls find redemption in life and some don't. Some Souls have unfinished business and seek to carry that out. Have you ever been in a place and had an eery feeling while there. I experienced that in Savannah, Georgia down by the river. Just down the stairs from Bay Street, across the cobbled-stone street, there are cave-like dwellings where slaves were kept chained for sale. Off the boat and to the chains they went. When I walked through these dwelling, I felt a tightness in my chest and I felt as if I were not alone. There was a presence. Savannah is known for its ghost stories and there are many tourist atractions for them. But I honestly felt the presence.