This thing's still here?

 Remember when we were in our 30's and we'd say things like, "As soon as I get some spare time...." Ha, those were the days....

Turtle book of the month club

So this time it's a twofer! I've recently read both The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, with thanks to my father in-law for giving them to me for my birthday. They are both fantastic. I am immensely grateful for the new insight I have into the lives and cultures of the many peoples of Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan. I think Hosseini did a fantastic job of painting a human face on the Afghan world in a manner that can hopefully help diffuse the myths and preconceived ideas about Afghanis, Persians, Pakistanis, Hindis, Islam, and much more.

A Thousand Splendid Suns is much more graphic and gritty than The Kite Runner, but they both powerfully drive home the personal and cultural struggles of the people we now both attempt to befriend and manipulate. This part of the world has been a doormat for foreign forces since the beginning of recorded history - starting with the Mongols, then Greeks, Crusaders, Arabs, British, Soviets, Taliban, and us, just to name a few. The current population remembers nearly nothing of their country but war, occupation, sacrifice, and suffering. The books, though fictional, help show of how this came to be, and perhaps what is in store for the future.

I give them four enthusiastic thumbs up. (Two for each book. Come on, I'm not a freak!)

Laughter is universal

Plans for healthy growth

*Oops for letting this sit in the "drafts" folder for a few weeks*

Last fall, I took my oldest daughter camping in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park. We hiked and camped and had an outstanding time, and she remarked that we should do that trip every year. At the time, I totally agreed. Recently, however, two things have changed my mind. First, I've reflected on the fact that she is now 11, and I don't have too many years left before she'd rather be hanging out at the mall with her friends, so I need to keep her interested. More importantly, I happened to started watching the PBS series, "The National Parks: America's Best Idea" (Victoria gets the credit for bringing it to my attention Monday night. I would have missed it without the 4 hour time difference, too). After 6 hours so far, with no commercials, I am enraptured. Ken Burns has truly outdone himself with this series.

More importantly, I'm convinced that I need to take my kids to as many different national parks as I can within practical limits (I think there are 58 now). I did a heck of a lot of camping as a kid, and we always tried to go different places. It was awesome. Deep-down I know that I could take my kids camping anywhere and we'd have fun, but if I have to travel 4000 miles to take the oldest out, we might as well go for the best diversity and scenery the country has to offer. I have some awesome friends in D.C. that want me to come out there, but that's a tough sell when I put it up against, say, backpacking in Yellowstone. *sigh* I have some tough choices to make. Fortunately: a. My daughter is old enough to give me a real opinion of where she'd like to go; b. Any decision we make will be a great experience for her.

Discoveries

Life moves on. Not too terribly much has changed. That is to say, nothing drastic. Dusty is growing like a weed. At 8 weeks old, he is beginning to outgrow size 0-3 month clothes. Beth wants to smother him with kisses, and sing, and instinctively dance to anything with a beat, and play the drums, and play with her food. Life is good when you're 2-1/2. The mini-man is also finding things out about himself, like how to sit-up, and how ticklish it is to rub his feet on my face when I haven't shaved all week.

I too, have been slowly discovering myself. Actually, not myself so much as that there are others like me. All the thoughts and philosophies I've always carried and held dear, I am now learning the names to, like "Secular Humanist." Where agnosticism says, "I'm not sure," and Atheism simply says, " I don't believe in gods," Humanism takes on entire philosophies. It is about not only science and the natural world, but also about ethics and doing the right things for humanity. It's all the good morals of religion, but without the killing and raping and sacrificing of goats and stuff. One of the hardest parts is "coming out." When you tell people you're an atheist, they make some kind of mental connection with "anarchist" (which is all wrong). If you come out and say you're a secular humanist, you might as well have said "Scientologist," or "Hare Krishna ." It sounds at first like the kind of cult you might find camping in trees in the mountains like Ewoks.

So the other hard part is trying to balance just how much to mention it at all. Of course anyone who feels they have finally found their spiritual calling wants to talk about it. It's exciting. It's a relief. It's..... a social stumbling block. Nobody really wants to read about someone blabbing the same thing over and over again. I found God, I hate men, my job sucks, gays need more rights, the president is out to ruin our lives, this disease needs attention, etc. Any cause can be interesting for a while, but after a bit most readers are bored or disillusioned. I know it's been creeping into my writing more and more over the last year or so, but hang in there, because there is more to me. The internet is, both gratefully and unfortunately, a great place to vent.

Back to discoveries. I've been talking with other Atheists here in Hawaii for a while here, and we needed something to help us get more organized in order to find more like-minded people and meet in person. We discovered meetup.com and I started a group. I'm very excited about building a larger network of friends out here, and the thought of going on outings and get-togethers without the religious undertones. Both of my parents were big into community involvement and service. Most notably Cub and Boy Scouts. I've always felt it in me too. I have been considering volunteering there for years, but seeing as my kids are still quite young, and SuperMom often works insane hours, I really don't have time to allocate to the level of commitment I know I'd want to. Hopefully this will give me the sense of community and service that I'm looking for while still working within a casual schedule.

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz - and pictures!

I am still alive, just sleep deprived. I did manage to go to a wedding last weekend, where I saw my best friend from High School finally get hitched. Actually, I was in it, so I don't have any of the good pictures (yet).

I know it's been almost a month since my last lackluster posting attempt. I usually think of something to post at least every other day, but by the time the 2-1/2 year old goes to bed, I'm ready to follow. Speaking of sleep.........

But before I go, here's some pictures to keep everyone up to date.


Dusty and me ready for a nap


Beth and I on the water


The lovely and beautiful Kristen at Stew's wedding


The equally lovely and beautiful Gina at Stew's wedding


Me and Stew in his last fleeting hours of bachelorhood. Somehow "look natural!" never does. AKA I don't photograph well.


Stew in his first few hours of marriage. Look how happy they are! Heh, newlyweds.

Days that make it all worth it

Sometimes, my job is just awesome. I know most of you might consider this a nightmare, but spending 3 days making up these panels and contactors is like eating 3 meals of just dessert.










And yes, I know where every single wire goes and what it is for.

My attempt to make your head explode

from cuteness!



Okay mom, is daddy done with the camera yet?

Are you scared?

According to a recent scientific study, you may have less of a choice than you realized over which political party you choose: "Conservatives Scare More Easily Than Liberals, Say Scientists"

This syncs well with another study showing, "47% of Republicans don't think North America and Africa were once a part of the same continent (Pangea), another 29% aren't sure."

That ties well with this article, "Only Six Percent Of Scientists Are Republicans: Pew Poll"

And of course there's the recent poll that shows that I might not be in America right now: "North Carolina Leery About "State" of Hawaii"

So, with a little work we can begin assembling the pieces. People who are inherently more fearful of the unknown tend to cling to what they feel they know, or what brings them comfort in what they do not. They resist change. They are more conservative. They aren't interested in science, because they already know everything that is important to them, and why change that? Why challenge that? Why encourage it in our schools?

Republicans are currently whipped up into a frenzy over health care. Unfortunately they never stop to realize that without scientists, people who push the limits and test boundaries, we'd still be bleeding people and performing exorcisms and burning witches at the stake. Those pills that you just can't live without and are mortified at the thought of not having them? Yeah, they were developed by people and tenets of science (evolution, scientific method, belief that man could heal without prayer) which conservatives probably deny or abhor to some degree.

Seriously, I'm more center-of-the-road than I might sound. I'm not a fearful person, but there is one thing that scares the crap out of me, though. Ultra-conservatives. You can believe in God and science at the same time. It just takes an open mind, and some education.

Turtle book of the month club

I'd like to congratulate Danny Evans over at Dad Gone Mad on his new book, Rage Against The Meshugenah. I'd tell you how fantastic it is but, well, I just got it yesterday. Considering I just got a new son 3 days ago, it might take me a while to work through this one.
Mail is always exciting, especially when padded envelopes are involved!


Everything has to get past my secretary first....


Due to time constraints, I haven't been able to read the book yet, but Hasta the (I blink for every possible photograph) wonder dog gives it three paws up. She tried to give four, and then lost her balance.