Life is Needlework

Posted on December 11, 2008 by Heather

For a little while now I have been occasionally writing in another blog: Stitching Lotus.  It has been my crafting blog, where I share pictures and thoughts about my needlework and knitting.  I have decided, though, that come the new year, I will be merging that blog with this one.

Originally, this blog was meant to be a place where I shared my thoughts about life, and specifically my spiritual journey.  I’ve thrown in some memes, some talk about politics, and a few other things.  But overall, it was a blog about me as a Wiccan and Tarot reader.  My life changed significantly this year with the birth of my wonderful, happy, adorable son.  Blog entries have become less frequent, and definitely much less eloquent.  Personally, I have found that I take a great deal of comfort now in domestic tasks, like my needlework.  In the way that Tarot and Wicca are, needlework is my comfort.  It is “a defense against slothfulness, weariness and sad thoughts”1.  And as such, I believe it deserves a place in this blog, and should not be relegated elsewhere, away from my little home on the Internet.

I’m also hoping to find another photo meme to take part in.  So, you might find the blog becoming a bit more picture heavy in the coming months.

I appreciate everyone who has stuck it out during this year, and I’m also grateful for all the new readers.  Even though I may not comment, I am reading your blogs too. (Assuming you’ve left a trail for me to follow!)

1. Dinah M. Craik, A Woman’s Thoughts About Woman, 1891.

2 Comments | Posted in Cross Stitch, My Life, Site News |

In Living LCD… With No Government

Posted on December 8, 2008 by Heather

quanta and I have finally taken a step into the 21st century.  Last week, my Christmas present arrived a little early–a 47″ LG LCD TV.  I was more than a little shocked, since I thought we had agreed to wait a year, in hopes of seeing our investments recover a little bit before we bought a new TV.  Now, though, the Baby Man can safely bring friends home from pre-school and not be ashamed of the CRT in the living room.  (Not that he is in pre-school yet, but, you know, peer pressure starts early nowadays.)

(Bonus points to anyone who can name all four video game consoles that are in evidence in this picutre.  Honestly, there are four.  Look hard.)

In other news, the Canadian government is totally malfunctioning.  Although we have just had an election, there is a chance we could be going to the polls again very earlier in the new year, or we may end up with a coalition government made up of the Liberal and NDP parties, augmented by the separatist Bloc party (!).  And even though they look to regain control of the Parliament, the Liberals still can’t get their act together.  The current leader, Stephane Dion, was originally due to step down in May, but less then an hour ago he said he was throwing in the towel now.  He is most likely to be replaced by Michael Ignatieff, who is the representative for the area where I live… and not my top choice for the job.

I have nothing against a coalition leading the Parliament.  Of course, this is likely because I am not a fan of the Conservatives. Mostly, what I want is for the politicians to get their act together.  With the current economic climate, we need them in Parliament doing their jobs, rather than sitting on their hinnies.  Stop being a coward, Harper, and let’s get back to work.

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How Many Earths?

Posted on November 27, 2008 by Heather

I think I’m a pretty green person.  I try not to leave too many lights on (she says as she stands up to turn off the kitchen light).  I walk almost everywhere, and take the subway if I need to go farther.  We don’t own a car, and I’m only in my parent’s car about twice a month.  We recycle almost everything we possibly can.

The biggest areas I thought we had a problem with were garbage (lots of baby diapers to get rid of since I can’t use cloth; our water isn’t hot enough to wash them properly) and quanta’s incredibly long showers in the morning.  Bad, yes, but I didn’t think they were “end of the world” bad.

Well, after trying out this little quiz/game, Consumer Consequences, it turns out that it is my eating habits that are having the biggest impact.  Odd, since I try to eat a lot of veggies, and try to buy local when I can.  But, as you can see from the screen shot below, if everyone lived like me, we would need 2 Earths.  Two!!

The screen shot shows my score (green) compared to the average female score (purple), which is 3.7 Earths.  So, I suppose I can take a little comfort in knowing that I am a bit greener than average.

Comments Off on How Many Earths? | Posted in The Outside World |

That Crazy English Language

Posted on November 14, 2008 by Heather

I admitted a few posts ago that I’m a terrible speller. I have been all my life.  I just have a heck of a time sounding out words.  And now I can easily explain why.  Watch this movie of Ed Rondthaler, former president of the American Literacy Council and author of The Dictionary of Simplified American Spelling, showing just how messed up the English language really is.

Ed Rondthaler on English Spelling

And why doesn’t comb rhyme with tomb?

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Book Review: Video Game Play and Addiction

Posted on November 12, 2008 by Heather

I’m going to confess to something right away, to clear the air.  I expected to not like this book.  I figured it was yet another attempt by the media, as it were, to tar and feather video games and blame them for all the ills of the world.  Thankfully, I was wrong.  Video Game Play and Addiction: A Guide for Parents by Kourosh Dini, MD is a smart book about how, for good or bad, video games are changing our world and our children.  Kourosh Dini is a child and adolescent psychiatrist, making him more qualified than some to comment on the issue.  He is also a gamer, and that puts him and his opinions head and shoulders above most other pundits.

Video Game Play and Addiction isn’t playing the blame game.  Dini, instead, takes time to teach parents about different genres of video games, pointing out what what children can learn from them.  He writes about how gamers are different; how they believe in success through hard work and in personal responsibility (all learned through video game play).  I’m very pleased by how Dini first focuses on what is good about video games, before moving on to the discussion about addiction.

The meat of the book, though, is about addiction and violence.  And here, Dini is very even-handed.  He provides a list “Problematic Playing Questions” for parents to use when they suspect an addiction problem, as well as some possible solutions.  Happily, he doesn’t advocate a cold-turkey stop, but rather more restrained and tolerant solutions.  He also is clearly presents his belief that parents and caregivers need to be aware of what video games their children are playing, and to make good use of tools like the ESRB rating system.

This isn’t a perfect book, though.  There seems to be a bit too much of a focus on MMORPGs.  Given that most media attention and parental concern seems to be focused on first-person shooters (Gears of War, etc.) and sandbox games (Grand Theft Auto 4), I’m surprised they weren’t talked about more.  And, in the technical arena, Dini suffers from the sin of wordiness, but who am I to throw stones in that department?

Overall, I would recommend this book to a parent looking to learn more about video games, and hope that they take away from it that video games aren’t necessarily the problem.  Dini’s “Problematic Playing Questions” and suggestions for overcoming areas of difficulty make this book well worth the cover price.

Buy Video Game Play and Addiction: A Guide for Parents by Kourosh Dini, MD from Amazon.

Learn more about it at the book’s website: http://videogameplayandaddiction.com

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A Day for Remembrances

Posted on November 11, 2008 by Heather

Today, November 11th, is Remembrance Day here in Canada and other Commonwealth countries.  It is a day originally set aside to commemorate the end of World War 1, but has been continually expanded to commemorate all those citizens of Commonwealth countries that have taken part in any war or peace keeping action up to the current day.  It is a time when we think about what our freedom has cost in terms of life and personal sacrifice, and to reflect on what needs to be done to ensure everyone experiences freedom.

I guess that brings up the question of what freedom really is, and whether we are right to impose our ideas of freedom on other people.  So many things in this world are subjective: religion, freedom, love.  What shouldn’t be subjective is human rights.  And that is what we need to fight for: the preservation of human rights, both here and abroad.

I am deeply grateful for the sacrifice Canadian men and women are making overseas, just as I am so incredibly grateful for all the sacrifices made in the past.  And while I will do my best to make sure that Baby Man understands these sacrifices too, I hope that he will never be called upon to do so himself.  May he and all his children grow up in a peaceful world.

Image Source: http://flickr.com/photos/34427466731@N01/1402612 Used under the Creative Commons Attribution ShareAlike 2.0 license.

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Worn Down

Posted on November 10, 2008 by Heather

I seem to be hitting one of those walls that I come to every couple of months.  Nothing is really wrong; the Baby Man is awesome, confidently learning to walk all on his own it seems; the husband is doing well, helping out as best he can.  It is me and the cat that aren’t doing very well.  She is getting very old, and I suspect she hasn’t much time left.  She spends most of the day asleep now, and cries for attention nearly all night.  This keeps me awake, and adds to the sleep deprivation I am trying so hard to recover from.  Really, it figures that as Baby Man happily sleeps for 13 hours a night, I’m kept awake by the cat.

So, with all of this, the NaNoWriMo isn’t happening.  I’ve got 215 words, which isn’t that bad I guess.  It is 215 more words than I have written this year.  Knitting isn’t going well either.  I’m just too damn tired to fiddle with bloody cables.  Thank the gods that my holiday shopping is nearly done.  One more shopping trip, and I can avoid all stores until the new year, when it is time to birthday shop for Baby Man.

What I most need right now is a good night of sleep (preferably 12 hours), and a whole day to watch Jane Austen movies and work on cross stitch.  I think the likelihood of any of that is nil.

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