African-American Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators 1st Conference

African-American Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators 1st Conference Apr. 25, 2009, Charlotte NC

The conference will take place at Charlotte University Place Hotel, Charlotte, North Carolina and early registration is due by Feb 1.

Email them at AACBWI@aol.com if you're interested in serving on the committee or would like for us to send you information on Registration. For more details go to aakulturezone website to learn more

And here is the website for the AACBWI

Nutrition hub pages

AUTISM AND ASPERGER SYNDROME

Encouraging Communication in Children with Asperger Syndrome

Favourite Biographies on Autism and Asperger Syndrome

Favourite Novels on Autism and Asperger Syndrome

Favourite Books on Autism and Asperger Syndrome

Favourite Books on Asperger Syndrome and Relationships

EPILEPSY
Epilepsy and Nutrition

Epilepsy and Hormones


DYSLEXIA

Using a Multisensory Approach in the Treatment of Dyslexic Children

OTHER SPECIAL NEEDS

Diet and Neurodevelopmental Delays


Cranial Osteopathy


OTHER HEALTH

The History of Contraception

Low Blood Sugar - Hypoglycemia

Nutrition and Multiple Sclerosis

http://hubpages.com/hub/Nutrition-and-Multiple-Sclerosis

Amino Acids

http://hubpages.com/hub/Amino-Acids1

How Vampires Got Sexy

CFBA: Wanted by Shelly Shepard Gray

This week, the
Christian Fiction Blog Alliance
is introducing
Wanted
Avon Inspire (January 6, 2009)
by
Shelley Shepard Gray


ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Hidden is Shelley’s first foray into inspirational fiction. Previously, Shelley lived in Texas and Colorado, where she taught school and earned both her bachelors and masters degrees in education. She now lives in southern Ohio where she writes full time. Shelley is an active member of her church. She serves on committees, volunteers in the church office, and is part of the Telecare ministry, which calls homebound members on a regular basis. Shelley looks forward to the opportunity to write novels that showcase her Christian ideals.

This is the second book in the Sisters Of Heart series. The first was Hidden.


ABOUT THE BOOK

Twenty-year-old Katie Brenneman has always quietly fancied Jonathan Lundy. So when the brokenhearted widower asks her to help him take care of his two young girls, Katie knows it will be a trying time-yet she cannot pass up a golden opportunity to get to know this man better.

Just as she's settling into her new life, a message arrives from Katie's past, threatening to expose her darkest secrets. During her Rumspringa, her running-around years, she experimented with activities forbidden in the Amish way of life. Frightened by how far she'd strayed from her values, Katie ran back home, vowing to cut all ties with the outside world. Now her transgressions are coming back to haunt her, just as Jonathan seems willing to welcome her into his heart.

Will the past destroy Katie's chances for love? Or will Katie finally allow herself to accept God's love, forgive her past...and receive everything she's ever wanted?

If you would like to read an excerpt of Chapter 1 of Wanted, go HERE

2nd Annual Black Quill nominees

DARK SCRIBE MAGAZINE has announced the nominees for the 2nd Annual Black Quill Awards! Every vote makes a difference, so please follow the link below
and cast yours now.

Remember, voting closes at midnight EST on Sunday, January 25th, 2009.
And please, tell your friends!

http://www.darkscribemagazine.com/current-nominees/

Weekend Movie Viewing

Okay, I was stuck in bed. Hubby took care of younger son so I could rest. Younger son cries in pain all the time. From birth to 18 years. So one can imagine what it's like for a mom with fibro taking care of a sick 18 year old who can't tell what his problem is. Exhaustion, despair. So there I was hanging out in bed ...which of course can be either a good or a bad thing when it comes to weekend TV.

First the bad films.

Reign of Gargoyles. Oh my gosh! If you ever have a choice of seeing a movie where evil Nazis bring stone gargoyles to life to help them win the war, let it not be this one. I could take the Saving Private Ryan cinematography camerawork. I could take the crappy CGI because it was scifi channel and that is to be expected and certainly it was better than the CGI of the Cyclops (to be mentioned later) but if there is one thing I can't stand it's enduring a movie where the hero gets on my nerves. He was supposed to be a cocky fly-boy but I kept wanting him to grow and to discover what a jerk he was. But noooo, the scriptwriter gave us all a chance to see what a great guy he was. To make matters really bad, everyone in the film kept coming up out of the blue to tell him what a great and noble guy he was. (The kick-butt babushkad gorgeous woman who could double as a gunslinger, the guy from the scottish/english regiment, his own commander. It was all too much.) And the cocky guy kept looking healed when they said that. Who knew this jerk needed healing?

Then there was Elizabethtown. Please, please, please do not ever see this flick. Everyone acting in this flick was so universally bad I kept thinking that it couldn't be the actors fault it had to be the director's. IT simply had to be. I know folks sometimes freeze up and do weirdly pretentious amateurish theatrical acting when they are told they are doing a great novel. But this took the cake. Everyone had a "aren't we all deep?" look on their faces. All the lines were spoken in a kind of "aren't we all saying something precious and real?" tone. There were continuous odd moments when
the characters didn't seem to be talking to each other but at each other. Okay, movies like "Rich in Love" had some trouble. But they managed to seem vaguely real while doing the "we're in an arty real story" thing. Not this. The only folks who liked this movie were probably those folks who brought their own emotions to the flick and so it worked for them. But if one sees this thing objectively...it's totally horrendous. I kept hoping folks who watched Elizabethtown would stay up and watch Little Miss Sunshine. A great film. Very human. Not pretentious in its "reality."
Now the good.

Okay, I totally totally squealed when I flipped through the channels and realized I had missed the first half of A history of Violence. This has been a movie I have wanted to see for three years! And it did not disappoint. First I've got to say I love guilty heroes trying to find redemption or at least "release from past" stories. Hidden secret pushing at the soul. Second, I love Viggo Mortenson. Forgive me, Lord, and I will try not to lust but there is something about a steely-blue-eyed blondish emotionalless older guy that makes my heart flutter. The weird thing is that generally my types are more like my husband. A dark-haired Euro type that reminds me of the Plantagenet dynasty. Yes, folks may get all hot and bothered about the Tudors but they were not nearly as hot -- in my humble opinion-- as the Plantagenets. But back to the movie. It was totally what I had been waiting for all these years. Now I just have to see the beginning.

So yeah, my favorite movie over the weekend was one I didn't even finish.

Another good movie I didn't finish -- but didn't make it to favorite status-- was The Book of Ruth. It was about a girl who has an abusive bitter mother. Girl meets shiftless lazy but generally kind-hearted lout and they fall in love (because they are both simple folks who desperately need love.) But they live in mother's house. After the baby is born there is peace for a good two years and it looks as if love will heal all involved...but then.... But then what? you ask.

Sorry, I didn't wait to find out. This movie made the very very very bad mistake of starting with Ruth (aforementioned abused insecure daughter) tied to a bed with black eyes, bruised lip, and folks saying, "Folks are saying you did this but you didn't, did you?" Know what? I really hate depressing movies like this. Check that: I don't mind depressing if it turns out well. But well, when things started going downhill for the family because of mom's weirdo behavior...I just had to turn the channel.

Other good movies I saw were 40 year old virgin with Steve Carrell whom I love, My big fat greek wedding, which I love, and Virus with Jamie Lee Curtis which I love. I liked them all but hey I've seen it before. Sat through a great deal of them -- to avoid seeing crappy stuff-- and loved them again.

But something entirely new was Cyclops. Oh gee, that badly-animated Cyclops creature touched my soul. I kept turning to my husband and saying, "I am so touched by this movie." Okay, he had this "I'm going to laugh at you if you continue like this" look on his face. But I couldn't help it. I even got weepy about it. Because the Cyclops was deformed and not part of his world and in pain and had speech issues. Okay, my mind obviously turned him into a disabled person who was being abused. And by then I was lost. (Okay, I'll admit that my own issues helped me like this flick. I gave it a lotta leeway, in much the same way folks who like Elizabethtown might give it leeway. The human heart can make anything likable.) Yep, I don't like seeing any non-verbal creature suffer. Effect of having son. I just hate seeing anything suffer. Even a cyclops.

The hero centurion, Marcus, was way hot. Not really my type which surprised me. I don't go for stocky hero types but he was so honorable and normal and kind to the Cyclops, and his goodness wasn't overly trumpted in the script. He was a decent person who understood the pain of a non-verbal creature. That won me over. Then there was Eric Roberts. I have loved this guy since King of the Gypsies. He seemed to be having total fun in this camp epic. I mean...we're shown this tiny little circle of folks who are supposed to be a crowd in the Amphitheater. Come on! But it was such fun.

I've heard it said that there are two kinds of mothers: those who have children who have died and those who have children who have lived. I suspect that's true. I have my fears sometimes for younger son. I can't imagine what it's like to be in pain every day for all the 18 years of my life. I don't want him to die. But I think there is a category in there for moms who have had kids who have suffered long illnesses. I find life a bit odd all the time because it seems my life is just utterly, utterly weird and my son's illnesses and mine quite cruel-- the length of it, I mean. But I know God is on our side. And I still believe we will both be cured. 20 years or illness or no. God can do the impossible. And when son and I are finally healed, I think we're both gonna become champions of the ASPCA and of sick children everywhere. We identify with them too much not to help them out when we get the power to. Now, back to writing.

House-cleaning

AT the risk of sounding like a nut I will state that sometimes we Christians need to do some heavy house-cleaning and removing occult stuff from our houses. Yeah, I know...sounds silly. But ask God if I'm right. Do you have books on the occult in your basement? an old Buddha statue? A statue of Ganesh? A yoruba God doll? Get rid of it. Ever looked at astrology charts? Have you ever visited a fortuneteller? Played with a ouija board? Played with tarot cards? Used the I-Ching for divination? Then repent and confess the sin to a Christian friend. Was your house blessed when you first began living there?

I'm telling you I know whereof I speak. I've lived in some haunted houses. And I even had God tell me in dreams a couple of time to get rid of certain things that seemed relatively harmless. Second-hand clothes I received, and a music album I once had.

Both Joshua and Moses told the people not to bring an accursed thing into their homes. You will be amazed at how your health sometimes improves when you get rid of this accursed stuff. Yeah, I know...to the worldly person it seems silly but... trust me on this.

I feel I have to remove some of the stuff I brought in from my mother's house after she died. She visited mediums and the like a lot. And I've been super-sock since I brought some of her stuff here into my basement. I haven't been able to look into it though. Yeah, for 4 years I haven't gone down into my basement. Can't deal with the grief. But I'm definitely gonna get rid of that stuff. -C

Amazed at the subtlety of words

Okay, I'm not sure we can even go back to food basics now. Monsanto and Con Agra and all those folks have pretty much genetically-engineered everything.

But now it looks as if they've turned our own taste buds against us. The Slow Poisoning of America website is a site everyone should look at. When I saw their claims that MSG is added to food for the addictive effect it has on the human body, I was surprised. But then I checked out the website for the Glutamate Association.

Yes, they actually say it's addictive -- with a straight face-- and they think that's good. Ah, words! Ah, greed!

The food industry learned from the tobacco industry that addicted customers keep coming back for more. So why do you go to Applebees, MacDonalds, KFC? Why that craving? Well, go to the National Library of Medicine, at www.pubmed.com Type in the words "MSG Obese" or "MSG headache" or just plain old "MSG" and read on.

Now more than ever, we moms need to realize that our family's very lives depend on what we put in their mouths.

Here is an informational vid on youtube about MSG



In the meantime, other words for MSG
Hidden Sources Of MSG In Foods
From the book 'Excitotoxins - The Taste That Kills' By Dr. Russell Blaylock, MD

Hidden Sources Of MSG

As discussed previously, the glutamate (MSG) manufacturers and the processed food industries are always on a quest to disguise the MSG added to food. Below is a partial list of the most common names for disguised MSG. Remember also that the powerful excitotoxins, aspartate and L-cystine, are frequently added to foods and according to FDA rules require NO LABELING AT ALL.

* Food Additives that ALWAYS contain MSG *
Monosodium Glutamate
Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
Hydrolyzed Protein
Hydrolyzed Plant Protein
Plant Protein Extract
Sodium Caseinate
Calcium Caseinate
Yeast Extract
Textured Protein (Including TVP)
Autolyzed Yeast
Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
Corn Oil

* Food Additives That FREQUENTLY Contain MSG *

Malt Extract
Malt Flavoring
Bouillon
Broth
Stock
Flavoring
Natural Flavors/Flavoring
Natural Beef Or Chicken Flavoring
Seasoning
Spices

* Food Additives That MAY Contain MSG Or Excitotoxins *

Carrageenan
Enzymes
Soy Protein Concentrate
Soy Protein Isolate
Whey Protein Concentrate
Protease Enzymes of various sources can release excitotoxin amino acids from food proteins.

Yeah, they use the term "spices" as a catch-all phrase because in the FDA there is no true meaning for the word "spice." So one can list something as a "spice" if one wishes to.-C

2009 Native Radio Theater Special Call for Scripts

2009 Native Radio Theater Special Call for Scripts

Life is a soap opera...or it could be. Native American Public Telecommunications (NAPT) is teaming up with Media for Health and the National Society for American Indian Elderly in a Call for Scripts to be considered for production through the Native Radio Theater Project. Our goal is to produce a series of short audio dramas that would be entertaining and educational. The deadline for submissions is February 13, 2009.

NAPT's Native Radio Theater project is a partnership with Native Voices at the Autry in Los Angeles, CA.

As a public health drama, this radio program will revolve around common health concerns such as diabetes, diet and nutrition, mental health, substance abuse and other issues that are currently impacting Native communities across the country. In an entertainment-education radio drama serial, these health issues are interwoven with the personal stories of the characters who model for the audience new behaviors that can improve their lives and their communities. However, while this is a drama, in drama there is always room for humor.

This health promotion radio drama is a partnership between the Native American Public Telecommunications, the National Society for American Indian Elderly (NSAIE), Media for Health, University of Alabama at Birmingham School of Public Health and the Corporation for National and Community Service. The project's current working title is Healing Circle. We aim to create pilot episodes for a serial (that is an ongoing story like TV "soap operas.") This call for scripts is announced with the intention of finding writers who have a serious interest in participating in an exciting and innovative radio drama while also positively impacting American Indian communities across the country.

Media for Health, a Birmingham, Alabama based non-profit dedicated to improving the public's health through entertainment-education principals, is contributing their extensive expertise in creating radio dramas "that are good for you" to this project. Media for Health has had proven success with its radio drama serials BodyLove and Keeping Up With the Walkers.

NAPT shares Native stories with the world through support of the creation, promotion and distribution of Native media with offices in Lincoln, Neb., and Albuquerque, N.M. NAPT is one of five members of the National Minority Consortia funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to provide diverse programming to PBS and other public broadcasting systems.

For more information on NAPT, go to www.nativetelecom.org. Email native@unl.edu.
For more information about Media for Health, go to www.mediaforhealth.org. You can hear past segments of BodyLove on their website.

To keep updated about the project, please visit: www.healingcirclemfh.wordpress.com

Call for Script Parameters:
- 3-4 five minute long scripts
-Three main characters
-One character should be an elder
-Should include a character dealing with diabetes or mental health problems
-Based on the principles of Entertainment-Education
-Include a title of your radio drama

Application Process:
- Complete and sign application form. By entering this contest, writers and theater companies affirm that scripts are their own work and are not under contract for pay by other theater groups.
- Submit six copies of the script using 8.5 x 11-paper with 1-inch margins and a 12-point standard typeface. The script cover page should include the title, names of all authors, name and address, phone and fax numbers, and email address of the corresponding author. Subsequent pages should include only the manuscript title and page numbers.
- Include a self-addressed stamped postcard for receipt notification.

Mail to: Robin Perenchio, Media For Health, 2917 Central Avenue, Birmingham, AL 35209
Questions? Email Robin AT mediaforhealth.org Or call Robin Perenchio at 205-870-9422
Hat tip to


http://krystynmedia.blogspot.com/2008/12/blog-post.html

7th Element: All of My Days

I just loved this Christian band. Why did they disband?

My vid for them is over at youtube

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7R74IRXaDM

Blogging the Psalms

Okay, I felt the Lord tell me to go through the Psalms on my blog for 2009. So I'll be doing them on my www.carolemcdonnell.blogspot.com blog

The Psalms are songs that were sung. Some folks don't get the Psalms. There's a lot of heartfelt stuff there. So if you want to drop by on my other blog during 2009, drop on by.

Other blogs on this blog tour include:

http://pen-of-the-wayfarer.blogspot.com

http://otiumsanctum.com

http://lianastories.blogspot.com

And this is the permalink

So, for a little taste, let's begin with Psalm 1.

This is Sonya's post on her blog.

(I don't think I'll do the psalm tour on both blogs. I really want this one to be dedicated to art, writing, etc.) But here goes:

Psalm 1 begins with the word "blessed."

What does bless mean? Or maybe I should phrase it this way? How do you judge someone as blessed? Is there someone out there whom you say, "Wow, that person is blessed!" Okay, I have moments of envy where I say, "Look at this person. Money, health, good looks, a great house!" The Hebrew meaning of blessed is: 1) one who is to be congratulated. One who has Contentment. One who has Peace or shalom (Nothing broken or missing). Aaargh. Nowhere does the Psalm tell us that fame, riches, a gorgeous figure is the sign of a blessed person.

Well, Psalm 1 begins by telling us who is not blessed. The blessed person is not the person who takes advice from ungodly folks. The blessed person gets his advice from God Himself. Wow!!!! The Bible urges us to trust God and to put all our hope and faith in God. God made us to know him. Wow!!!!

So, let's ponder this Psalm. Psalm 1

1Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful;

CM: NEAT PROGRESSION, UH? We begin by walking in the advice the world gives us. Most Christians do this, unfortunately. Hey, we ask God for guidance but we rarely wait for His answer. And besides, we generally are too carnal to actually have faith in walking by God's advice. But then after we walk in the world's advice -- disregarding the Bible, our dreams, our inner leading, we start standing with sinners. Our own spiritual walk pretty much stops. Then we get all comfy, sitting and scorning and mocking folks of faith.

To have good advice is one thing, to follow it is another. There has to be the heart to follow it. This leads to the second verse.

2but his delight is in the law of the LORD, and on His law doth he meditate day and night.

CM: Okay, I DO delight in God's law but I'll admit that often in the morning my first choice is to look at a final fantasy video on youtube. Gotta stop doing that. And I really like the scifi channel so I tend to watch that instead of listening to Christian television. Gotta work on that. But generally, for the most part, I'm always thinking about the Bible or God. So...am advancing somewhat.

3And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither, and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.

CM: Great promise. The difference between a strong tree and a scraggly tree in a desert. The difference between a strong tree and a tumbleweed blown about by the wind. Consider the difference between a weed that is blown and a tree that is thoughtfully planted in a specific place. Streams of water? Streams!!! Not just one stream but many. God has planted me among some good streams, some loving folks who have contributed to my spiritual growth. What fruit do Christians produce? Love, peace, joy, truth, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control. I swear when I haven't been in the word I don't show much spiritual fruit.

This is the first promise in the Psalms that tells us that the word itself gives us life. The word itself is active and powerful and it does the work of changing us...if we allow it to. A Christian who trusts in God isn't going to allow himself to be blown every which way. That due season part is a bitch, though. When exactly is due season? An appointed time? Or can one force the growing season? A promise of a good life. So many people behave as if God has disappointed them and given them a crappy life. Yet, honestly, how many Christians really meditate in the Lord day and night BEFORE their trouble began? Hey, much of my fruit would have prospered if I had kept in the word more. Sometimes God restores...but it is very hard to build one's boat in a storm. There are earthly physical and spiritual eternal consequences to staying in the word.

4The ungodly are not so, but are like the chaff which the wind driveth away.

CM: Ah, the ungodly! Don't let me even get on to them. The ungodly DO think they will survive, though, don't they? They do think of themselves as endurers. They never think of their end. While, heck, that's all we Christians often think of. To be blown about by life, to walk in darkness without the light of God's word! Think of the peanuts we eat! We shell the peanut and then blow the chaff away. We are called to be the salt of the earth. If the salt loses its flavour -- because it doesn't abide in the word-- it is no good and is thrown out and trampled under foot men.

5Therefore the ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous.
6For the LORD knoweth the way of the righteous, but the way of the ungodly shall perish.

CM: Wow, the Lord knows my way. Gotta ponder that. I wonder what the word translated "know" means. Really means. Too wonderful for me to understand. And yet, in the simplest way possible, it's good that God knows my way. The word of God says God is always with us. HE is at our right hand always to help us. With math test, with guidance, with comfort, with advice about flaky neighbor. We don't like thinking of the ungodly's punishment, do we? What a scary way to end the Psalm!

Yes, I know...folks don't like to divide the world into black and white, good and bad, up and down. But although God is merciful, he does divide the world into those who are with him and those who are against him. Those who follow him and rely on him daily, and those who do not. Here it's not about denomination or ethics, it's about who reads and studies the Bible and who does not. A person who considers herself a good person yet who does not study and trust the word of God is therefore not considered blessed.

Ethnic group rising up against ethnic group

This world is not my home. Something greater calls me. St Paul says, "if we have hope for this world only, we are of all men the most pitiful." So true. He hints that attachment to the world is carnal. Very.


















The United States, racist though it is, is not as bad as some of these places.

It is Unanimous by Hafiz

IT IS UNANIMOUS
Hafiz
It is unanimous where I come from.
Everyone agrees on one thing:

It’s no fun
When God is not near.

All are hunters.
The wise man learns the Friend’s weaknesses
And sets a clever trap

Listen,
The Beloved has agreed to play a game
Called
Love.

Our sun sat in the sky
Way before this earth was born
Waiting to caress a billion faces.

Hafiz encourages all art.

For at its height it brings Light near
To us.

The wise man learns what draws God
Near.

It is the beauty of compassion
In your heart.

Written by the 13th century Persian poet, Hafiz.

T-Bone: Name-Dropping

Review: Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight

Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight
by Karen Scalf Linamen.
Blurb:

Every woman longs for change in some area of her life. Unfortunately, fear, fatigue, adversity, heartbreak, past failures, and even the choices of other people get in the way and make lasting change seem out of reach. Having been there herself, Karen Linamen knows exactly how to take readers from where they are to where they want to be.
In Only Nuns Change Habits Overnight, she examines 52 powerful actions readers can apply to any change they long to embrace. Her insights apply to career, finances, personal health and fitness, relationships, faith—in fact, every facet of a woman’s life.
Blending laugh-out-loud humor and sage advice, Linamen shows readers the link between dissatisfaction and transformation, how to remodel habits, the little-known truth about procrastination, how to generate the energy they need to pursue the life they desire, how to benefit from options and resources they never dreamed they had, and much, much more!

Author Bio:
Karen Linamen is a popular speaker and the celebrated author of ten books for women, including Due to Rising Energy Costs the Light at the End of the Tunnel Has Been Turned Off and Just Hand Over the Chocolate and No One Will Get Hurt. She has been featured on more than one hundred radio programs, including FamilyLife Today. Publishers Weekly describes her as “funny, forthright and unforgettable.” Linamen lives with her family in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Visit her website at www.karenlinamen.com.

Amazon Link:

My review is up at blogcritics

Weekend Movie Viewing

Some interesting flicks over the weekend:

10,000 million BC

-- okay, modern day time traveling scientists end up in the past. They accidentally leave the very hunky Chris Atkins character and some hot athletic girls behind. Sixty years pass by -- it's very hard to pin-point dates when one goes back in time to a specific time-- and the original scientist returns with the military to get his friends back. But there's a problem. Because of the singularity wormhole issues (yeah, i know the lingo cause i watched way too much stargate back when it hadn't gotten so complicated and weirdly theological) the scientist --who feels guilty for having left his friend back in the day-- has to stay behind and shut off the singularity or else...well, dinosaurs or whoever will be able to get through into modern time.

Not that it helps. Scientist nobly stays but alas, a dinosaur gets through the wormhole and follows the returning aforesaid hunky Chris Atkins character back to LA. Dinosaur creates havoc...but one of the returnees remembers the 3rd street tunnel and they decide to trap the dino there. BTW, one of the returnees has a son who was left behind and who is angry because of the loss of his father. So the prelibration is pretty much us wanting this dad and son to reunite and be healed.

Not bad...but well, scifi channel special effects are none-too-great. A lot more time spent in the BC time than in the LA time. So there's this feeling of more a back in time flick than a Godzilla messing up buildings. Also, much of the dino damage is done at night so most of LA is blissfully unaware of rampaging dino. There was an attempt to do little trick ending stuff with time as in Timecop but it kinda fell flat. On the whole a good movie.

It was basically reptilian weekend on scifi channel. The worst of the lot being MegaSnake...with a hero who was emotionally scarred from being raised in a snake handling cult. For the record: Jesus DID say if you handle dangerous snakes they won't harm you. But he didn't say go out and pick them up. After all, the devil told him to dive into supernatural danger by jumping off the temple and used Psalm 91 in his temptation but Jesus declined. Also, the ability not to be harmed by snakes could pretty much represent demons as well as physical snakes.

A Walk to Remember. Young girl -- minister's daughter-- is dying of cancer and falls in love with juvie kind-hearted hunk. Hence, she gets a little happiness before she dies. In this flick miracles are defined as the fact that she got to have some marital sex before she died. Sweet movie but because of my particular health issues and my son's I always get annoyed with stories that define miracles in such a wussy way. I'll agree that God blessed her with a husband before she died but I think A) he would've blessed her with a good husband anyway and B) I think he could have given her a true miraculous healing in addition to this sentimental thing they called healing. I just hate sentimentality when what I want is a true acknowledgment of divine miracles.

Momma's Boys. -- Okay, this wasn't a movie but a reality show I discovered on WE TV. It's like a dating show except the moms are there too, helping their sons pick the right girl. And the girls are of course trying to butter up the moms. Sweet Jewish, italian, and Russian-American moms. The guys were okay but didn't do much for me. A lot of black girls made the cut...and a lot didn't. ::raised eyebrows:: made me wonder why black women put themselves into these situations where guys pretty much are hooked on the blonde ideal. Will see what happens to them.

Valkyrie -- another not-movie. On History Channel. This was about the conspiracy plot to kill Hitler. I honestly didn't like this much. First, trailers for the Tom Cruise movie kept popping up during the commercials. Which made me think the docu had been made simply to sell the movie. But I also disliked it, secondly, because the take seemed to be that the poor German folks were hijacked and only the Nazis were racist. Hey, I'd like to believe that an entire people could be duped but I don't really believe the regular German person was so innocent. Thirdly, they mentioned the holocaust against the 6 million Jews but not against the gypsies. My friend Cora Schwartz is Jewish and works so hard to commemorate the memories of the death of the gypsies that I've turned into a stickler about it too. Gypsies died too. About 4-5 million. Fourthly, they listed some groups that hated Hitler and Nazism: the noble monarchists, the idealistic secularists, the religious community, the Catholic community. But they forgot the Jehovah's Witnesses (yeah, although most christians think they're a cult, the Witnesses are great at standing up to persecution.) and Pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Why didn't they mention these folks? On the whole, it was okay.

The weird thing is that as I watched it I realized that what the Nazis did in their literature about Jews was what many novels, news programs, etc, do with Christians. Very weird. It kinda scared me because I saw quite clearly how Christian fanatics are now the new boogeyman...and Christian evangelicals are subtly blamed...as the Jews were blamed in Nazi germay. Trust me: I can totally see Christians being scapegoated and killed in a new government. There are very very very very few Christian fanatics in real life. And most of us -- I for one-- am very nice. But it made me see how close we are to being set up to being persecuted and destroyed. I mean, as I watched it, I could easily replace Jewish with Christian and see how hated we Christians now are. If I see one more book or read one more novel or hear one more newscast about evil Christians!

On the whole, not a bad weekend. But not a really great one. I think I'm gonna start watching Momma's boys. I really like the Jewish and Italian moms. -C

Easy Dismissal: human judgment

We humans have a very bad habit of easily dismissing other people. Everyone does this. Religious, non-religious. Christians, non-Christians. This is what Jesus calls Hardness of Heart. And it is possibly the worst of sins because it's a sin against Love. It's part of the human condition to judge others and dismiss their lives, pains, etc. We don't know...but we think we know. Because it's easier than to break up the fallow ground of our dry hearts.

We find other people over-emotional. Or we judge them as whiny. Or we judge them as weak. Or we judge them as cold. It doesn't matter. We just judge them. And we really don't know what it's like to walk in their shoes...but we think if we walk in those folks' shoes we would wear those shoes better. I cannot tell you the amount of folks who think that if they only slept one hour a night for 20 years...and was taking care of an autistic kid they would be so much better than I am. Oh really?

I notice this a lot in Christian sermons. Ministers always give illustrations as if if they were in a Bible character's position they would be so much better. I've heard people blame the brother that stayed at home (when the prodigal left) for not being more happy when his prodigal brother got home. As if they themselves would have behaved so much better...as if they actually behave better. I've seen ministers blame Hagar...as if they know what it's like to be a slave woman. I've heard ministers blame Job's wife as if they wouldn't lose faith if all their children were killed in one night. I've heard people mock the disciples for having no faith and pick on Peter for running out on Jesus...as if they wouldn't have done it. Oh really?

I recently heard a white Christian guy on Christian TV talking about the bad habit black women of have being fat. His mouth fairly dropped scorn. Seems we black women just don't have any moral power to stop ourselves. Like the guy knows what it's like to deal with racist folks. Has anyone ever done a study on the effect of racism on black women? And how about those studies that say black folks don't have the enzymes to digest wheat and milk properly...besides our body was geared to store fat because so many of our ancestors lived in barren places? And how about the effects of stress and lack of sleeplessness on obesity? But no...folks like easy answers and so they come up with black folks eat too much and so are fat. Oh really?

Jesus tells us not to judge each other's sins. We believe we don't judge other folks' sins but judging what we consider other folks' failures, faults or personality...is also judging. Look: I'm not gonna judge a judgmental minister when he falls into sin. Remember, the Bible says judge not less ye be judged. And that judgement is often not the great throne judgment but being put in the same situation as the person you judged. I remember a friend picking on her sister-in-law. Her exact words were: "Look, she got so far taking chemotherapy. But look at me. I had cancer too. And I'm thin." I so wanted to sock this lady. Even in the same situation, she found a reason to judge another human being. We should have loving hearts.

I am totally sure I get on folks nerve and they think I'm a whiny blogger. But you know what? I feel God called me to be honest...in a world where so many Christians and so many Blacks are not honest because we care too much what other folks think about us. So if I whine because I feel sick or my son feels sick...just be happy that you aren't sick. Besides, I'm not judging you or your posts. I try my best to enter the life of another and see their life from their own point of view. And why not? I soooo know how --everyday, everyday, everyday...I just miss falling into some mega sin. But that's between me and God. And I've lived long enough to know how frail we humans are...and how hard life is...for EVERYONE.

Vilsack - poor choice for Dept of Ag - Please sign petition

Got this on a health list I belong to fromgary gach so am passing it along:

In spite of a huge e-mail campaign from organic consumers and, in apparent contradiction to his announcement that he wants an organic garden at the White House, Obama has chosen Tom Vilsack, a strong bio-tech proponent supporting genetically engineered crops, cloned animals, etc., to run the Department of Agriculture.
Vilsack, according to The Organic Consumer's Association, was named Governor of the Year by Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO), the biggest
pro-genetic engineering lobby in existence.

As you will see below, Vilsack is truly Monsanto's boy. He pre-empted the local votes of towns and counties who had voted to disallow GE seeds!

Here's a youtube vid of Vilsack's history with bio-genetically engineered food.

* Vilsack was the origin of the seed pre-emption bill in 2005, which many people here in Iowa fought because it took away local government's possibility of ever having a regulation on seeds- where GE would be grown, having GE-free buffers, banning pharma corn locally, etc.

An activist from the west coast even made this youtube animation about Vilsack


The airplane in this animation is a referral to the controversy that Vilsack
often traveled in Monsanto's jet.

It's still possible to block Vilsack's confirmation with a massive support
of the petition drafted by the Organic Consumer Association. It's easy to sign on at this link:

http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/642/petition.jsp?petition_KEY=1783

or from the Organic Consumer Association website http://www.organicconsumers.org/

Your email will be sent to your Senators and the President-Elect's office.

PLEASE POST THIS TO YOUR E-MAIL LISTS!

Thanks!

author page:
blog: http://blogs.psychologytoday.com/blog/where-buddha-meets-freud

Despite a deluge of over 100,000 emails and petition signatures from organic consumers and farmers objecting to the appointment of biotech and biofuels booster Tom Vilsack as Secretary of Agriculture, the Senate is scheduled to begin confirmation hearings for Vilsack today.

The Organic Consumers Association (OCA) is disappointed in this controversial appointment, and we are calling on our national network and allies to pressure Obama to move beyond "agribusiness as usual" by drafting Jim Riddle to head the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), the department that oversees organic food, farming, and standards. Riddle is an organic farmer from Minnesota, former Chair of the National Organic Standards Board, and a longtime advocate for sustainable and organic farming. With Riddle heading up the AMS, farmers markets, Community Supported Agriculture, transition to organic programs, and the National Organic Program will finally receive the attention, technical assistance, and funding they deserve.

Easy Dismissal: Scientific hubris

If there's something that irks me it's when someone dismisses something out of hand without quite knowing the facts. It's kneejerk disdain, kneejerk arrogance. They think they have all the answers. I was listening to a scientist who said he questioned God's competence because the amount of junk DNA in our body just makes him know that if a perfect God had made us we wouldn't have all this silly unimportant stuff floating around in our bodies.

Oh really?

Oh really?

I'm no expert on DNA and I don't think the experts on DNA are experts either. God's wisdom is past finding out. It is the glory of God to conceal a thing and the glory of man to reveal it.

I've lived long enough to hear folks find a reason for the appendix and for tonsils. I have no doubt at all that one day we will find that all that junk DNA is quite useful to God's creations. I have no doubt that if a scientist tries to remove the junk DNA from someone or from someone's genetic line, we will end up with disaster. But the arrogance of people who think they know....

He who knows not and thinks he knows....is a fool.

Ah, these Jesus movies!

Okay, I'll say straight up that my favorite Jesus movie is Pier Paolo Pasolini's The Gospel According to St Matthew. This director was an atheist and a Marxist and yet his rendition is the most faithful, the most clean, the most respectful of its source material. His "Jesus" is passionate, angry, pissed off at hypocrisy....utterly prophetic in his holiness and his disdain of human self-deception and worldly hypocrisy.

After that is Jesus, based on The gospel of John. Not a bad flick and it touches me. It has moments of interfering teacherliness but not as much as others. It touches the viewer.

There is Franco Zefferelli's Jesus of Nazareth with the blue-eyed Robert Powell and the ultra blonde Michael York which has a very approachable Jesus. It's not Jesus as everyman, but Jesus is pretty human and yet manages to be holy at the same time. It's about eight hours if I recall. The problem with this one is that in order not to blame either the Jews or the Romans for the death of Jesus Zefferelli invents an evil Jewish bad guy out of whole cloth. Not necessary and it feels very odd.

There is The Passion of The Christ: It's pretty bloody. It didn't touch me because I pretty much knew it was bloody. Also, it is more Roman Catholic than Jewish. I would have much preferred seeing the Last Supper done as a Jewish Passover mean than to see it imitative of a Roman Catholic cleric. The Virgin Mary is also very Roman Catholic, her sexuality influenced more by St Augustine's issues than by Jewish sexual mores. So she is pretty virginal and untainted. And Jesus' brothers and sisters are nowhere in site. Like the rest of the Jesus films I'll describe it adds little bits to try to enlighten us but it's an interpretation that is sometimes iffy and a might sentimental and obvious. I mean: the depiction of Barrabas as a drivelling fool. What's that about? In the Bible Jesus Barabbas is a kind of proto-anti-christ figure: the one chosen because folks want strength, physical and worldly answer to their problems.

Among the worsts are The Greatest Story Ever Told. I totally don't know where to begin to disparage this ponderous boring monstrosity of pseudo-holiness. Okay, I watch it on the holidays. But that's because I like Jesus movies on the whole and in Christmas there is nary a word about Jesus in all these Christmas movies on cable... so better half a loaf than no bread. But the trouble with this is that it not only tries to teach people the meaning of everything Jesus says but that it truly gets some theology wrong. Jesus, for instance, preaches righteousness and is rather judgemental. It belabors certain points and brings in other sections from the Bible to teach flat-out homilies that just don't work. There is a kind of arrogance in the film where it's clear the screenwriter thinks it's best to replace the words of the gospel with his interpretation of the words. This is why I hate paraphrased Bibles: sometimes they totally change the message and the theology by their changing the words. So Jesus ends up saying pious comments that show that the screenplay doesn't understand the gospel of grace, or that he thinks the audience won't understand. And it is so obvious that Max Von Sydow doesn't "get" Jesus as a person but as a kind of walking pious spouter that one cringes. Not to mention the weird sub-plots they have to add. Okay, I won't even talk about the casting -- okay, I will: what's up with that black Simon of Cyrene? If having Sidney Poitier help to carry Jesus' cross is to say that we black folks are bearers of god's truth or some other civil rights aren't-they-a-holy-people-issue, honestly it just makes me cringe.

Okay, to mention weird sub-plots, the worst Jesus move has got to be King of Kings. I'm not saying all these stories don't have a moment where they touch me. But honestly, King of Kings is so utterly "creative" in its sixties adaptation/interpretation of the Bible that well, if it wasn't for Jeffrey Hunter's hotness I'd turn the channel. This is one seriously homoerotic Jesus, too, and it certainly makes a girl wonder what the heck was going on between those disciples. It's kind of like sword and sandal meets religion. Every time I see this one I want to get the DeMille silent version.

There is also the Passover Plot which is based on a book written by a Jewish writer who decided that Jesus planned a passover plot and well, the rest is history based on deception. I won't even go into the mechanics of what being crucified does to the body much less the idea that someone who has suffered blood loss and trauma is going to revive in a cold airless grave guarded by temple guards then have twelve of his disciples (and more if we include all the women) go to death and suffer being burned in oil rather than give away the secret.

Jesus of Montreal is utterly stupid and tries to show that Jesus was really the illegitimate son of Mary and a soldier named Panthera. Okay, it's an old insult against Mary that has been proven false. First: Panthera and Parthenos are words that sound alike. Parthenos means "the virgin" so with bad production or --purposeful snideness-- Jesus the son of the virgin easily becomes Jesus the son of Panthera. Second: We all know that when we want to belittle someone we get nasty. Instead of saying simply that Jesus was the biological son of his mother when she was married to her father, folks go out of their way to belittle his parentage by making his mother a whorish frolicker with a licentious roman soldier. Nasty. And I won't even go into the fact that he's depicted as vaguely mentally-disturbed.

Upshot? If you want to see a Jesus film and if you don't mind subtitles, seek out Pier Paolo Pasolini's The Gospel According to Matthew. It's odd filmmaking and it's made by a Marxist atheist...but it's the purest depiction of Jesus ever made in a film. God's words, and only God's words. No prancing half-naked lusty women in beads for miles around. And yeah, one totally gets the feeling that Jesus rose from the dead. Unlike some of these other films which tend to spiritualize it or psychologize it or simply remove it from the context at all.