Archive for February, 2007
February 28, 2007 at 9:03 am · Filed under publishing
Operating in Kenya’s isolated Northeastern Province near the unstable border with Somalia, the camel “bookmobile” carries books to children and adults throughout the area. Masha Hamilton, author of THE CAMEL BOOKMOBILE (due out in April of 2007) walked through the bush with a real camel bookmobile and has started a book drive called Authors for African Literacy, but the donations aren’t just limited to authors. I’m sending a box of books. If you want to help, visit Authors for African Literacy to find out how.
There are also some excellent pictures linked on the site that show the camel bookmobile in action.
Blog Nod: MJ Rose
February 27, 2007 at 7:36 pm · Filed under island life
February 27, 2007 at 2:09 pm · Filed under home education
The upcoming March/April issue of Home Education Magazine has my essay, “Queen of Hearts” on page 34. If you’ve dealt with the concerns of family members thinking that your kids aren’t getting what they need from home education (haven’t we all??), you might enjoy it.
February 26, 2007 at 3:25 pm · Filed under My Musings
JAKARTA (AFP) - Engineers dropped chains of concrete balls into a “volcano” oozing hot mud in Indonesia’s East Java province Monday as they resumed a bid to stem the flow which has submerged entire villages.
Call me cynical, but it seems like it would be a much better use of energy and dollars to help the people who have homes in danger to relocate. Yes, I know that people will not want to leave their homes. But it seems likely that they may *lose* their home under mud, and have to relocate anyway.
February 26, 2007 at 7:26 am · Filed under My Musings
Annie shared her experiences about washing dishes in Japan in a comment on my dishwashing thread. If you’re interested, check it out.
February 24, 2007 at 9:23 am · Filed under home education
This is a public school that knows how to involve kids in a project that interests them! Rick Riordan, author of The Lightning Thief and The Sea of Monsters shares photos from a school visit.
February 22, 2007 at 3:28 pm · Filed under My Musings
Just like many of my household chores, I wash dishes just like my mom did. Fill the sink with soapy water, add dishes, lift out one dish at a time, wipe with a sponge (or dishcloth), then rinse. That’s how I learned to do dishes, and I frankly never gave a thought to my method. It’s how all of my friends do their dishes, give or take a minor deviance. Doing dishes certainly seemed like a pretty universal chore. (Note: our house does not have a dishwasher - gasp!)
Well, last week I had another family over to teach them how to bake bread. As part of the day, one of the older girls helped to clean up and taught me how to do dishes her way. She is of Japanese descent and apparently the Japanese way of doing dishes is quite different than the method we typically use in America. (Annie? Is this so in Japan? Or is this one Japanese family’s quirk?)
The funny thing is, after seeing her wash dishes this way and then trying it myself, it makes SO much more sense!
This is what my sink looks like using this method:
To use this method, rinse and stack dishes on the counter and pick them up one by one. Dip the sponge into the bowl of soapy water and use it to sponge the dish clean. Rinse the dish under running water and then set aside to dry. If you are washing utensils, you can set them in the sink and then rinse a number of them at a time.
Washing dishes this way seems to take less water, less soap, and is cleaner. There are no bits of food floating in the “clean” dish water, and all of the dirty water goes down the drain. The bowl of soapy water stays clean, so the soap lasts longer. I’m definitely liking it!
Told you it would be a weird post.
February 21, 2007 at 11:13 am · Filed under island life
iSpeak Hawaiian podcast - The living language of Hawai’i - listen and learn via itunes
An free online course in Hawai’ian language from Kamehameha Schools
Hawai’ian language dictionary
‘Aha Punana Leo
February 18, 2007 at 9:08 am · Filed under home education
I have a video buried deep in boxes of B laughing like this. If you need a pick me up, click on over to Purple is a Fruit.
February 17, 2007 at 7:12 pm · Filed under book reviews
You’ve probably seen Old Turtle over there in my sidebar. It was one of our favorite picture books to read when the boys were younger. The author, Douglas Wood, also wrote another picture book that we really enjoyed, Grandad’s Prayers of the Earth. These books are powerfully spiritual and suited – believe it or not – to kids of every faith, without being preachy.
Today, I had the chance to read Douglas Wood’s Old Turtle and the Broken Truth. I am awed at the powerful simplicity that the author uses to convey a simple truth: we are all connected. The people of the world are connected in our humanity, but we are also connected to the wonders of the world; the falling stars, the trees, the oceans. In this story, Old Turtle returns to remind us that while it’s true that “you are loved”, this truth is only half of the story.
“The Broken Truth, and life itself, will be mended only when one person meets another – someone from a different place or with a different face or different ways – and sees and hears…herself.”
If every person in the world could take a cue from the author, we just might find ourselves living the life of peace that so many of us dream of.
Next entries »
