Banned Books

Banned Books Week was last week, and often it's presented as the enlightened looking back on a more ignorant age. Not so. The totalitarian mindset is alive and well. A California charter school recently banned The Hiding Place, the story of Corrie ten Boom and her family hiding Jews during WWII. The problem? The ten Boom's were Christians, and they were audacious enough to pray and share their faith while in a concentration camp. This has caused a minor dust up in the blogosphere, but what is most appalling is the ignorance, and an unwillingness to read the book in question by someone who is reportedly a librarian. The quote below is from a Library Journal blogger:

I was unfamiliar with Corrie ten Boom or her book The Hiding Place, but if the Wikipedia entries are accurate, it does seem like the book is pretty Christian. Supposedly, the entire time she and her sister were in a German concentration camp, they “used a hidden Bible to teach their fellow prisoners about Jesus,” because not enough people had told the Jewish prisoners that they were wrong to be Jewish.

Really? Never mind that  the ten Boom's are honored with the title "Righteous Gentiles" by Yad Vashem. The same title was given to Oskar Schindler of "Schindler's List" fame. The Holocaust was horrific, and should never be forgotten. Simply stating that the kids should read The Diary of Anne Frank instead is a cop out. Six million people died during that time period; we need more than one first person account.

It's hard to tell exactly what happened at the school, because it appears that the "eye witness" accounts are anonymous at the moment. Details of the case can be found here.

Before I get accused of being a "right wing hater" let me just say that I know conservatives have done similar things. The argument "they do it too!" is flawed. Sure, I haven't written about right wing ridiculousness, but the blog is young.

Heartbreak May Be Just That...

It's a physically real thing.

But I could feel my heartbeat flicker erratically. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't normal, so after work I asked my husband to take me to the emergency room. A burly nurse with a tattooed neck joked during the electrocardiogram. But his expression changed as he looked at the screen. With breathtaking speed I was hoisted onto a gurney, stripped, wrapped in a hospital gown, had an IV jammed in each arm and was pumped full of heparin.
Somebody told me I was having a heart attack.

Excerpted from NPR

Winging It

Sometimes life goes absolutely crazy. Some of them are out of control, like covering while a coworker is out, when it's already going to be a very busy week. Some of them are much more of my fault. I have a bad habit of taking on  everything at once. For example, I volunteered to plan the major dinner for 100+ people for my non-profit. (I'm on the board, not actually in charge, thankfully!) This dinner takes place the weekend after my sister's wedding, which entails travel to Alabama. I did all of this before realizing that I'd set myself up for a very busy October. Please tell me that I'm not the only one who does this!

I'd also like to say hello to everyone from Conversion Diary! This blog isn't even a week old, and I've had hits from Australia, Canada, Germany, and the UK. It's good to know someone is reading. :-)

7 Quick Takes

1. And We're Off!

Of course, what kind of blog would this be if I didn't link to Jen Fulwiler's blog over at Conversion Diary. Ideas for the blog are still evolving, but I expect to have a variety of things posted.

2. Is There Love (Life) in Space?

It looks like they've found an exoplanet with water vapor in the atmosphere similar to Earth.

Water vapor has been spotted in the atmosphere of an exoplanet, roughly the size of Neptune. The alien world lies 124 light years from the Earth, and is the smallest planet ever observed with the vapor in its gaseous outer layer.

More here.

3. A Prisoner of War Speaks

The longest held American POW, from the Korean War. He was held for 20 years. I can't comprehend what he went through. The story of John T. Downey is here.

4. Moving on from the News... to Fall!

I love fall. I  don't get a whole lot of color change here in eastern Oklahoma. Usually the leaves go from green to dead and brown in a matter of days. Since a weekend trip up to New England isn't feasible at the moment, the next best thing is a live foliage map!

5. Pumpkin! Pumpkin! Pumpkin!

 

Similar to Lorelai Gilmore's "Coffee!Coffee!Coffee!" One of my favorite recipes was for white chocolate pumpkin scones, but alas! I have lost the recipe. Here's a close approximation of the recipe, via Creations by Kara. I can't wait to make these.

White Chocolate Pumpkin Scones

2 cups flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup butter
1/3 cup white chocolate chips
1/3 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
1 tsp vanilla
Milk
Cinnamon sugar mixture

Click the link to get the instructions.

6. Chick Flicks and the Perfect Food Pairing

Brilliant! I will have to try some of these. Via Cupcakes and Cashmere

7. Lots of Links

Okay, so Seven Quick Takes turned into Seven Links instead. I promise to have more up soon!

Richard Lionheart

While waiting for everything on the blog to get set up, here's an interesting story of Richard the Lionheart of the Robin Hood legend fame.

From the Medievalists:

In April 1199, the French King, Philip II, thanked God for the providential death of his great rival: Richard I. Ever since the English king was freed from his prison in Austria in 1194, he had turned his war machine on the French, reclaiming the lands and castles that were taken while he was captive. Had he continued his relentless campaign, Richard might well have conquered the whole of France, and medieval history would have turned out quite differently.

Starting Out

Hello there,

I plan on having a real post up soon. Until then, welcome!

Mari