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Tuesday, February 26, 2019
Here is Your FedEx Tracking
Monday, February 25, 2019
U.S. Bank Alert
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Sunday, February 24, 2019
Four Feet, Two Sandals
Four Feet, Two Sandals
Picture book,
Our kids have shoes for school, for play, for parties, for
hobbies such as ballet or baseball... They and we take shoe ownership
pretty much for granted. So Karen Lynn Williams and Khadra Mohammed's
Four Feet, Two Sandals can provide an intriguing look into the world
of the refugee camp.
Lina has not had shoes for two years. When relief workers
distribute used clothes she finds a yellow sandal with a blue flower
that fits her perfectly.
The next day, as Lina is scrubbing clothes in a stream, the girl
with the matching sandal, Feroza, places it at her feet and starts to
walk away. Her grandmother has told her wearing one sandal is stupid.
Lina has a better idea. You'll have to read the book to see
what it is.
On a purrrsonal (Joey cat is lying across my shoulders singing
contentedly) tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the whole year.
February 25, 1993 I was awake for the C section delivery of my second
daughter, Katie. It was amazing to see the little being who had been
growing inside me. Needless to say, it was love at first sight. Now
twenty-six years later Katie is all anyone could hope for in a
daughter: smart, hard working, ethical, kind, funny...even a book
lover like her admittedly geeky mom.
I posted this one day early because I have the luxury of being home,
in my cozy studio as cold winds whip around the house. Tomorrow I
need to spend much of the day in UMaine's Fogler Library working on an
annotated bibliography for class and then work the supper shift at
Wells.
A great big shout out goes out to Katie with best wishes for a
rewarding and exciting year with at least a few magic moments.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Picture book,
Our kids have shoes for school, for play, for parties, for
hobbies such as ballet or baseball... They and we take shoe ownership
pretty much for granted. So Karen Lynn Williams and Khadra Mohammed's
Four Feet, Two Sandals can provide an intriguing look into the world
of the refugee camp.
Lina has not had shoes for two years. When relief workers
distribute used clothes she finds a yellow sandal with a blue flower
that fits her perfectly.
The next day, as Lina is scrubbing clothes in a stream, the girl
with the matching sandal, Feroza, places it at her feet and starts to
walk away. Her grandmother has told her wearing one sandal is stupid.
Lina has a better idea. You'll have to read the book to see
what it is.
On a purrrsonal (Joey cat is lying across my shoulders singing
contentedly) tomorrow is one of my favorite days of the whole year.
February 25, 1993 I was awake for the C section delivery of my second
daughter, Katie. It was amazing to see the little being who had been
growing inside me. Needless to say, it was love at first sight. Now
twenty-six years later Katie is all anyone could hope for in a
daughter: smart, hard working, ethical, kind, funny...even a book
lover like her admittedly geeky mom.
I posted this one day early because I have the luxury of being home,
in my cozy studio as cold winds whip around the house. Tomorrow I
need to spend much of the day in UMaine's Fogler Library working on an
annotated bibliography for class and then work the supper shift at
Wells.
A great big shout out goes out to Katie with best wishes for a
rewarding and exciting year with at least a few magic moments.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
The Bad Food Bible
The Bad Food Bible
Adult nonfiction
"We live in hard times for people who simply want to eat--
normally, that is, in a way that would be recognizable to our
ancestors, aiming for no more than a tasty meal, eaten to
satisfaction, with a feeling of pleasure. Now, instead, we sit down
to dinner in trepidation, our heads swirling with a chorus of wasps
whispering, Eat only good foods, avoid the bad..."
If you've been on this planet any length of time you've
experienced a series of scary food revelations proclaimed by experts
and reported faithfully by the press. Just about anything you enjoy
(including the coffee I'm drinking as I write this) has been shown to
cause heart disease, diabetes, some other dire illness, or, that
ultimate of penalties, premature death. There are good foods and bad
foods. Only you never know when a formerly benign substance will be
revealed to be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
In The Bad Food Bible: How And Why To Eat Sinfully (I can't
imagine anyone passing up a book with that title!) Dr. Aaron Carroll
urges readers to take food panics with a grain of salt (another of
those demonized substances, BTW). He shows us that much of the
research upon which food alarms are based is rife with faulty
methodology or interpretation.
Want an example? In 2008 the journal Obesity published a study
on the relationship between weight and diet beverage consumption.
Over 3,600 people were followed over seven to eight years. The more
diet drinks the subjects consumed, the heavier they were. A more
recent study following over 1,450 people over about ten years reached
similar conclusions. The media was quick to pounce on the irony of it
all.
Pretty damning, right? Not really. As any University of Maine
statistics student who has been paying attention in class can tell
you, correlation is not the same as causation. Two things happening
at the same time does not mean one causes the other. In fact reverse
causality (getting the order mixed up) could be in play). What if
heavier, more weight conscious or other people's biases conscious
people are more likely to reach for a diet beverage when feeling
thirsty?
There are a lot more flaws in studies which Carroll translates
into layperson language.
Each chapter concerns a highly controversial substance. Being
what Carroll would call a moderate drinker, I was very interested in
the chapter on alcohol. Much research has shown moderate drinking to
protect against perils like heart disease and cognitive decline.
Recently increased risk of breast cancer has been tossed into the mix
with some researchers declaring abstinence to be the only safe
policy. After scrutinizing a wide range of studies, Carroll comes to
the conclusion that:
"But if you're a healthy person who drinks alcohol responsibly,
you can feel confident that you're not doing yourself any harm. In
fact, you may actually see some benefits from your light or moderate
alcohol consumption."
I'll drink to that!
Seriously, the media in America presumes that viewers and
readers have the attention span of hamsters on speed. They operate
under the assumption that dramatic and alarming sells. They (and
unfortunately many researchers) are searching for the one magic bullet
that will solve quite complex problems. If you want a more nuanced
look at the risks and benefits of foods and beverages, The Bad Foods
Bible is a really good read.
On a personal note, I went a little wild when I started working dining
services in a place where I could have hot, crispy fries, root beer
floats, pizza, cookies, doughnuts...when I worked without having to
cook them. Recently I declared the honeymoon over and am working on
more balanced nutrition at work. It doesn't mean, however, that I
won't pick less nutritious foods, such as my favorite jam filled
cookies, for sometimes treats.
A great big shout out goes to out dining services chefs and CAs who
prepare the foods that make meals memorable.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Adult nonfiction
"We live in hard times for people who simply want to eat--
normally, that is, in a way that would be recognizable to our
ancestors, aiming for no more than a tasty meal, eaten to
satisfaction, with a feeling of pleasure. Now, instead, we sit down
to dinner in trepidation, our heads swirling with a chorus of wasps
whispering, Eat only good foods, avoid the bad..."
If you've been on this planet any length of time you've
experienced a series of scary food revelations proclaimed by experts
and reported faithfully by the press. Just about anything you enjoy
(including the coffee I'm drinking as I write this) has been shown to
cause heart disease, diabetes, some other dire illness, or, that
ultimate of penalties, premature death. There are good foods and bad
foods. Only you never know when a formerly benign substance will be
revealed to be a wolf in sheep's clothing.
In The Bad Food Bible: How And Why To Eat Sinfully (I can't
imagine anyone passing up a book with that title!) Dr. Aaron Carroll
urges readers to take food panics with a grain of salt (another of
those demonized substances, BTW). He shows us that much of the
research upon which food alarms are based is rife with faulty
methodology or interpretation.
Want an example? In 2008 the journal Obesity published a study
on the relationship between weight and diet beverage consumption.
Over 3,600 people were followed over seven to eight years. The more
diet drinks the subjects consumed, the heavier they were. A more
recent study following over 1,450 people over about ten years reached
similar conclusions. The media was quick to pounce on the irony of it
all.
Pretty damning, right? Not really. As any University of Maine
statistics student who has been paying attention in class can tell
you, correlation is not the same as causation. Two things happening
at the same time does not mean one causes the other. In fact reverse
causality (getting the order mixed up) could be in play). What if
heavier, more weight conscious or other people's biases conscious
people are more likely to reach for a diet beverage when feeling
thirsty?
There are a lot more flaws in studies which Carroll translates
into layperson language.
Each chapter concerns a highly controversial substance. Being
what Carroll would call a moderate drinker, I was very interested in
the chapter on alcohol. Much research has shown moderate drinking to
protect against perils like heart disease and cognitive decline.
Recently increased risk of breast cancer has been tossed into the mix
with some researchers declaring abstinence to be the only safe
policy. After scrutinizing a wide range of studies, Carroll comes to
the conclusion that:
"But if you're a healthy person who drinks alcohol responsibly,
you can feel confident that you're not doing yourself any harm. In
fact, you may actually see some benefits from your light or moderate
alcohol consumption."
I'll drink to that!
Seriously, the media in America presumes that viewers and
readers have the attention span of hamsters on speed. They operate
under the assumption that dramatic and alarming sells. They (and
unfortunately many researchers) are searching for the one magic bullet
that will solve quite complex problems. If you want a more nuanced
look at the risks and benefits of foods and beverages, The Bad Foods
Bible is a really good read.
On a personal note, I went a little wild when I started working dining
services in a place where I could have hot, crispy fries, root beer
floats, pizza, cookies, doughnuts...when I worked without having to
cook them. Recently I declared the honeymoon over and am working on
more balanced nutrition at work. It doesn't mean, however, that I
won't pick less nutritious foods, such as my favorite jam filled
cookies, for sometimes treats.
A great big shout out goes to out dining services chefs and CAs who
prepare the foods that make meals memorable.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
March Forward, Girl
March Forward, Girl
Juvenile/YA herstory
"After what felt to me like an eternity, we heard the Klansmen
rejoicing; they had completed their task and were saying to each
other, 'He won't ever look anyone in the eye and whisper under his
breath again. This uppity nigger has gone wherever they go when they
die.'"
Melba Patillo Beals, who would go on to be one of the Little
Rock Nine, the courageous teens who integrated Central High School in
1957, was only five when the incident described above took place. She
and her grandmother were in church. Suddenly the doors slammed. Six
men in KKK sheets and masks lynched a black man in full view of the
terrified congregation. Although her grandmother covered her eyes,
she could hear everything. Remembering the victim, Mr. Harvey, as a
nice man whose son she had played with, she desperately prayed for
someone to do something. After the left the church, passing the
strung up corpse, the nightmare continued.
"That night and many nights afterward for a long time, I could
see Mr. Harvey's feet hanging down and the rope stretched over the
rafter, and I imagined his face in my mind. I didn't talk to anyone
about this because Grandma told me that if I said anything to anyone
about seeing Officer Nichols with the Klan, they would come get us and
hang us too. I thought I would never forget that scene as it replayed
in my head."
In her memoir, March Forward, Girl, Beals describes the world in
which she grew up. It was a world in which the KKK could lynch a man
in church and get away with it. The city officials and police
officers mandated to prevent violence were often members. It was a
world in which violent whites could do anything they damn well pleased
and get away with it. (When she was eleven she was kidnapped and
nearly raped at a KKK event.) It was a world in which even the most
dignified blacks had to kowtow to even the most vulgar whites, a world
in which separate but unequal was the law of the land, a world in
which a little black girl couldn't touch pretty things in stores while
white kids could touch everything to their hearts' content...
March Forward, Girl is very well written. I do, however,
question the juvenile designation. The lynching and near rape scenes
have me seeing it as more fitting for the upper part of the YA age
group. Read it very carefully first if you're planning to give it to
anyone younger.
Actually Go Forward, Girl is an excellent read for adults.
Being ignorant of history can doom us to repeat it. Sadly there are a
lot of people (including ones in high places) who believe that a
return to segregation will make America "great" again.
On a personal note, we're at the point in winter where, at least here
in Penobscot County, Maine, people are growing weary of cold weather,
shoveling, and ice under foot and under wheel. If you believe in
forcasting by rodent you'll be expecting an early spring since old
Puxatawny Phil didn't see his shadow on the designated date. If you're
realizing the lack of peer reviewed research behind that method you
aren't putting the shovel away. Let's face it. The weather is beyond
our control. We could get slammed with a blizzard in April. However,
if you want to add an anticipatory touch of spring to your interior
decor you'll be delighted to know that my daughter, Amber, has started
posting spring crafts on her blog:
Http://amberscraftaweek.blogspot.com.
A great big shout out goes out to my crafty daughter, Amber.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Juvenile/YA herstory
"After what felt to me like an eternity, we heard the Klansmen
rejoicing; they had completed their task and were saying to each
other, 'He won't ever look anyone in the eye and whisper under his
breath again. This uppity nigger has gone wherever they go when they
die.'"
Melba Patillo Beals, who would go on to be one of the Little
Rock Nine, the courageous teens who integrated Central High School in
1957, was only five when the incident described above took place. She
and her grandmother were in church. Suddenly the doors slammed. Six
men in KKK sheets and masks lynched a black man in full view of the
terrified congregation. Although her grandmother covered her eyes,
she could hear everything. Remembering the victim, Mr. Harvey, as a
nice man whose son she had played with, she desperately prayed for
someone to do something. After the left the church, passing the
strung up corpse, the nightmare continued.
"That night and many nights afterward for a long time, I could
see Mr. Harvey's feet hanging down and the rope stretched over the
rafter, and I imagined his face in my mind. I didn't talk to anyone
about this because Grandma told me that if I said anything to anyone
about seeing Officer Nichols with the Klan, they would come get us and
hang us too. I thought I would never forget that scene as it replayed
in my head."
In her memoir, March Forward, Girl, Beals describes the world in
which she grew up. It was a world in which the KKK could lynch a man
in church and get away with it. The city officials and police
officers mandated to prevent violence were often members. It was a
world in which violent whites could do anything they damn well pleased
and get away with it. (When she was eleven she was kidnapped and
nearly raped at a KKK event.) It was a world in which even the most
dignified blacks had to kowtow to even the most vulgar whites, a world
in which separate but unequal was the law of the land, a world in
which a little black girl couldn't touch pretty things in stores while
white kids could touch everything to their hearts' content...
March Forward, Girl is very well written. I do, however,
question the juvenile designation. The lynching and near rape scenes
have me seeing it as more fitting for the upper part of the YA age
group. Read it very carefully first if you're planning to give it to
anyone younger.
Actually Go Forward, Girl is an excellent read for adults.
Being ignorant of history can doom us to repeat it. Sadly there are a
lot of people (including ones in high places) who believe that a
return to segregation will make America "great" again.
On a personal note, we're at the point in winter where, at least here
in Penobscot County, Maine, people are growing weary of cold weather,
shoveling, and ice under foot and under wheel. If you believe in
forcasting by rodent you'll be expecting an early spring since old
Puxatawny Phil didn't see his shadow on the designated date. If you're
realizing the lack of peer reviewed research behind that method you
aren't putting the shovel away. Let's face it. The weather is beyond
our control. We could get slammed with a blizzard in April. However,
if you want to add an anticipatory touch of spring to your interior
decor you'll be delighted to know that my daughter, Amber, has started
posting spring crafts on her blog:
Http://amberscraftaweek.blogspot.com.
A great big shout out goes out to my crafty daughter, Amber.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Friday, February 22, 2019
What The Hell Do You Have To Lose?
What The Hell Do You Have To Lose?
"His [Trump's] colorful speeches to racous white crowds conjured
scary pictures of black neighborhoods full of gunfire and desperation
that threatened white people, risked infecting white neighborhoods,
and required support for police, even bad police, who had to cope with
those out-of-control black folks. 'I mean, honestly, places like
Afghanistan are safer than some of our inner cities,' he said."
During his election campaign and the first years of his
presidency Donald Trump has been playing to the folks who want America
to be a whites only club. Hate groups have been multiplying. The
Internet is full of racist rants. Addressing prospective black voters
as to why they should vote for him, he had this to say: What the Hell
do you have to lose? In a book by that exact title Juan Williams
answers that question: a Hell of a lot!
Williams breaks his narrative into six strands: voting rights,
education, public accomodations, black voices, employment, and
housing. In each he describes a history of painstaking and heroic
struggles to gain basic rights for minorities and very real progress
that suddenly is in jeopardy thanks to you know who in the White House.
What Do You Have To Lose? is a much needed wake up call for our
nation: a must read for blacks and allies.
On a personal note, this past week has been rich and rewarding for
me. Assessment continues to fascinate me. I am so proud of the
survey I created for homework. Someday I plan to actually use it in
researching student worker retention in dining services. Work is
going great. The low point of my week was losing my watch during my
morning commute. The high points were the social at the multicultural
lounge where we feasted on Chinese food and discussed what being a
good ally means and seeing my survey all printed out. I am some proud
of it.
I'm having times I feel really confident in my abilities. Like yes I
belong in my program. Yes I will get that degree. My classmates give
me a lot of encouragement.
And Jodi is still in my life even though she doesn't have to be.
I think the Red Cross would have to reject my blood because it feels
like champagne running through my veins.
A great big shout out goes out to my classmates, Jodi, and my partner
and his blizzard battling coworkers.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
"His [Trump's] colorful speeches to racous white crowds conjured
scary pictures of black neighborhoods full of gunfire and desperation
that threatened white people, risked infecting white neighborhoods,
and required support for police, even bad police, who had to cope with
those out-of-control black folks. 'I mean, honestly, places like
Afghanistan are safer than some of our inner cities,' he said."
During his election campaign and the first years of his
presidency Donald Trump has been playing to the folks who want America
to be a whites only club. Hate groups have been multiplying. The
Internet is full of racist rants. Addressing prospective black voters
as to why they should vote for him, he had this to say: What the Hell
do you have to lose? In a book by that exact title Juan Williams
answers that question: a Hell of a lot!
Williams breaks his narrative into six strands: voting rights,
education, public accomodations, black voices, employment, and
housing. In each he describes a history of painstaking and heroic
struggles to gain basic rights for minorities and very real progress
that suddenly is in jeopardy thanks to you know who in the White House.
What Do You Have To Lose? is a much needed wake up call for our
nation: a must read for blacks and allies.
On a personal note, this past week has been rich and rewarding for
me. Assessment continues to fascinate me. I am so proud of the
survey I created for homework. Someday I plan to actually use it in
researching student worker retention in dining services. Work is
going great. The low point of my week was losing my watch during my
morning commute. The high points were the social at the multicultural
lounge where we feasted on Chinese food and discussed what being a
good ally means and seeing my survey all printed out. I am some proud
of it.
I'm having times I feel really confident in my abilities. Like yes I
belong in my program. Yes I will get that degree. My classmates give
me a lot of encouragement.
And Jodi is still in my life even though she doesn't have to be.
I think the Red Cross would have to reject my blood because it feels
like champagne running through my veins.
A great big shout out goes out to my classmates, Jodi, and my partner
and his blizzard battling coworkers.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
Sunday, February 17, 2019
A Few Red Drops
A Few Red Drops
YA nonfiction
"The rage didn't appear out of nowhere that day on the beach.
It had been a long time coming, born in the city's beginnings, written
in the countless daily interactions of ordinary citizens and city
leaders. Black migrants from the South clashed with white immigrants
from Europe; laborers and union leaders struggled to hold their own
against mighty industrialists; police and gang members strove to
control the streets; Democratic aldermen and a Republican mayor faced
off over patronage and power. This is the story of their conflicting,
built over time, layer upon layer, ultimately exploding in bloodshed
on the city's streets. It is also America's story."
Clare Hartfield brings readers another chapter in history we
probably didn't get taught in school with her A Few Red Drops: The
Chicago Race Riot of 1919. On a hot, muggy day (July 27) four black
Chicago teens floating on a raft in Lake Michigan drifted to a stretch
of beach considered whites only. A white man started throwing rocks
at them. One boy, Eugene Williams, was struck and killed. A police
officer ignored demands to arrest the culprit. Nights of violence
ended with 38 deaths and 537 people being wounded.
But the troubles didn't arise out of nowhere. Hartfield takes
readers back to the middle of the 19th century and, in a richly
illustrated narrative, tracks the trends that led to the tragedy. Her
fine book is a must read for all of us who want to catch up on all the
history not included in out whitewashed high school textbooks.
On a personal note, I probably could have gone to church, but I was so
tired of battling the elements to get around I wanted one day I didn't
have to set foot out of my home. Well I did as much homework as I
could without a trip to Fogler (UMaine) Library and then...
...realized I'm really scared. I knew Jodi's last day was
Friday and we're getting a new manager. But I was too rushing around
busy to ponder on it until the realization hit me like a stack of
bricks. This week he will be there.
On an intellectual level I can see that the transition will
probably be nothing but benign.
But my feelings do a good job of ignoring all that. With Jodi
we could go to work and know what to expect. A manager has so much
influence in stuff like whether a work place feels safe, whether it's
empowering and inspiring or hierarchical and stiffling, whether people
pull together as a team or have to fight for small favors. Some of
the non student workers and supervisors have told me manager horror
stories. I have no clue what working in Wells will be like going
forward. That's scary. And with the presidents day holiday my
imagination has about 23 more hours to torture me.
Have you ever gone through a transition like that?
A great big shout out goes out to my fellow workers with whom I will
go through the transition. I hope for all of our sakes my worries
will be much ado over nothing.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
YA nonfiction
"The rage didn't appear out of nowhere that day on the beach.
It had been a long time coming, born in the city's beginnings, written
in the countless daily interactions of ordinary citizens and city
leaders. Black migrants from the South clashed with white immigrants
from Europe; laborers and union leaders struggled to hold their own
against mighty industrialists; police and gang members strove to
control the streets; Democratic aldermen and a Republican mayor faced
off over patronage and power. This is the story of their conflicting,
built over time, layer upon layer, ultimately exploding in bloodshed
on the city's streets. It is also America's story."
Clare Hartfield brings readers another chapter in history we
probably didn't get taught in school with her A Few Red Drops: The
Chicago Race Riot of 1919. On a hot, muggy day (July 27) four black
Chicago teens floating on a raft in Lake Michigan drifted to a stretch
of beach considered whites only. A white man started throwing rocks
at them. One boy, Eugene Williams, was struck and killed. A police
officer ignored demands to arrest the culprit. Nights of violence
ended with 38 deaths and 537 people being wounded.
But the troubles didn't arise out of nowhere. Hartfield takes
readers back to the middle of the 19th century and, in a richly
illustrated narrative, tracks the trends that led to the tragedy. Her
fine book is a must read for all of us who want to catch up on all the
history not included in out whitewashed high school textbooks.
On a personal note, I probably could have gone to church, but I was so
tired of battling the elements to get around I wanted one day I didn't
have to set foot out of my home. Well I did as much homework as I
could without a trip to Fogler (UMaine) Library and then...
...realized I'm really scared. I knew Jodi's last day was
Friday and we're getting a new manager. But I was too rushing around
busy to ponder on it until the realization hit me like a stack of
bricks. This week he will be there.
On an intellectual level I can see that the transition will
probably be nothing but benign.
But my feelings do a good job of ignoring all that. With Jodi
we could go to work and know what to expect. A manager has so much
influence in stuff like whether a work place feels safe, whether it's
empowering and inspiring or hierarchical and stiffling, whether people
pull together as a team or have to fight for small favors. Some of
the non student workers and supervisors have told me manager horror
stories. I have no clue what working in Wells will be like going
forward. That's scary. And with the presidents day holiday my
imagination has about 23 more hours to torture me.
Have you ever gone through a transition like that?
A great big shout out goes out to my fellow workers with whom I will
go through the transition. I hope for all of our sakes my worries
will be much ado over nothing.
jules hathaway
Sent from my iPod
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