... The Uniform Project

What do all these outfits have in common?

They're obviously an exercise in accessorizing. But look closely.
Did you notice they're all the same dress?

With 7 copies of the exact same black dress, she wears the dress every day of the week altering the outfit only by adding accessories.

And she will do it for 365 days in a row.
If only I were this brave and talented. I'm lucky if I go so far as to add a belt to my jeans....

... Our Family Secret

Well, it's out. Who were we to think we could keep it a secret. Occasionally over the years I'd run into someone who'd hear my former surname and guess the truth. But now with Johnny Depp, Christian Bale and (sigh) Billy Cudrup bringing it out into the open with the movie Public Enemies, I suppose it's time for a confession.

A member of my family, Homer Van Meter to be precise, was the focus of an FBI manhunt. Yep, family lore turns out to be true and Homer was indeed John Dillingers right hand man.

Now I just need to do some research and see if the Belle Star listed in our family bible is the same as the famous female outlaw. Jeesh....

... A Little Riddle

Q. What do Bruce Wayne, Mary Magdalene, and Queen Elizabeth have in common? {keep reading and you'll find out}

Many of you waited in lines for hours to cast your vote this week. Yet locally it seems, a great many opted to vote absentee. That's were I come in.

Our typical team of four election officers turned into a team of 27+ this past week, yet it still took us 40+ hours to count the record breaking number of absentee ballots. Yes, one local city officially broke the record for highest number of absentee ballots in any election... over 2x the amount of the next highest city.

You can imagine the scene in there; team upon team counting, approving, opening, checking, casting, counting, counting (lots of counting), each ballot. Official looking people breathing down our necks making sure we're doing everything properly. Everyone did a wonderful job though. The mood, in spite of the situation, was good. Lots of sugar and caffeine were consumed & lots of laughter could be heard.

My team kept themselves entertained, in part, by taking note of the names of some of the votes we processed. I thought I'd share them here for you to marvel at too. Remember, these are legal names here folks:

Bruce Wayne
James Taylor
Michael Jordan
James Bond
Richard Ford
Dorian Gray
Queen Elizabeth
Mary Magdalene

A. They all voted in this years presidential election.

Who knew we had so many famous people living in our little corner of the country?! hehe

... Cycling without Borders

Meet my friend Markus. I stayed with him and his family for a week or two during my first visit to Germany. They were very kind and I still have the Christmas gift they gave me that year... very pleasant memories.

Anyhow, many, many years have passed and I now find Markus cycling from the Black Forest to the Yellow Sea (see the route here... it's unbelievable!), and blogging about his experience.


Initially I was just amazed by his ability to undertake such an adventure. Taking a year out of his life to bike through 18 different countries, not knowing what he's going to encounter... Wow!

Yet daily, as I read his posts and look at his pictures, I am even more moved by the encounters he has. By the acceptance, the challenges, the kindness.

No need for me to share these stories, folks, 'cause I know when you see it for yourself you'll be instantly hooked -- this is one blog you'll want to follow.

[Photography credits belong to Markus -- he's amazing, isn't he?]

... Faith Priorities for the Election

I know many of you are tuning into my blog in hopes of catching some wedding pictures and stories. And while I look forward to sharing some highlights of our special day, I feel there's something far more important on the burner right now -- the upcoming election.

Jeff and I spend much of our time discussing politics and truly desire to live our beliefs out through our political views and actions. Because of this, I feel it's all the more appropriate to post this excellent, thought-provoking article by Jim Wallis as a follow up to the wedding week posts. (Kudo's to Catherine for pointing me to this article!)

Please, if you can find a minute, read the article. It's long, yes, but it's worth it. One thing you might notice is that one of Wallis' faith priorities - consistent ethic of life - is a theme I've been touching on quite a bit here lately... very much on my mind and heart.

I'd love to hear what your "faith priorities" are too... how do you decide your vote?

My Personal ‘Faith Priorities’ for this Election
by Jim Wallis 10-23-2008

In 2004, several conservative Catholic Bishops and a few megachurch pastors like Rick Warren issued their list of “non-negotiables,” which were intended to be a voter guide for their followers. All of them were relatively the same list of issues: abortion, gay marriage, stem cell research, etc. None of them even included the word “poverty,” only one example of the missing issues which are found quite clearly in the Bible. All of them were also relatively the same as official Republican Party Web sites of “non-negotiables.” The political connections and commitments of the religious non-negotiable writers were quite clear.

I want to suggest a different approach this year and share my personal list of “faith priorities” that will guide me in making the imperfect choices that always confront us in any election year — and suggest that each of you come up with your own list of “faith” or “moral” priorities for this election year and take them into the polling place with you.

After the last election, I wrote a book titled God’s Politics. I was criticized by some for presuming to speak for God, but that wasn’t the point. I was trying to explore what issues might be closest to the heart of God and how they may be quite different from what many strident religious voices were then saying. I was also saying that “God’s Politics” will often turn our partisan politics upside down, transcend our ideological categories of Left and Right, and challenge the core values and priorities of our political culture. I was also trying to say that there is certainly no easy jump from God’s politics to either the Republicans or Democrats. God is neither. In any election, we face imperfect choices, but our choices should reflect the things we believe God cares about if we are people of faith, and our own moral sensibilities if we are not people of faith. Therefore, people of faith, and all of us, should be “values voters” but vote all our values, not just a few that can be easily manipulated for the benefit of one party or another.

In 2008, the kingdom of God is not on the ballot in any of the 50 states as far as I can see. So we can’t vote for that this year. But there are important choices in this year’s election — very important choices — which will dramatically impact what many in the religious community and outside of it call “the common good,” and the outcome could be very important, perhaps even more so than in many recent electoral contests.

I am in no position to tell anyone what is “non-negotiable,” and neither is any Bishop or megachurch pastor, but let me tell you the “faith priorities” and values I will be voting on this year:

1. With more than 2,000 verses in the Bible about how we treat the poor and oppressed, I will examine the record, plans, policies, and promises made by the candidates on what they will do to overcome the scandal of extreme global poverty and the shame of such unnecessary domestic poverty in the richest nation in the world. Such a central theme of the Bible simply cannot be ignored at election time, as too many Christians have done for years. And any solution to the economic crisis that simply bails out the rich, and even the middle class, but ignores those at the bottom should simply be unacceptable to people of faith.
   
   
2. From the biblical prophets to Jesus, there is, at least, a biblical presumption against war and the hope of beating our swords into instruments of peace. So I will choose the candidates who will be least likely to lead us into more disastrous wars and find better ways to resolve the inevitable conflicts in the world and make us all safer. I will choose the candidates who seem to best understand that our security depends upon other people’s security (everyone having “their own vine and fig tree, so no one can make them afraid,” as the prophets say) more than upon how high we can build walls or a stockpile of weapons. Christians should never expect a pacifist president, but we can insist on one who views military force only as a very last resort, when all other diplomatic and economic measures have failed, and never as a preferred or habitual response to conflict.
   
   
3. “Choosing life” is a constant biblical theme, so I will choose candidates who have the most consistent ethic of life, addressing all the threats to human life and dignity that we face — not just one. 30,000 children dying globally each day of preventable hunger and disease is a life issue. The genocide in Darfur is a life issue. Health care is a life issue. War is a life issue. The death penalty is a life issue. And on abortion, I will choose candidates who have the best chance to pursue the practical and proven policies which could dramatically reduce the number of abortions in America and therefore save precious unborn lives, rather than those who simply repeat the polarized legal debates and “pro-choice” and “pro-life” mantras from either side.
   
   
4. God’s fragile creation is clearly under assault, and I will choose the candidates who will likely be most faithful in our care of the environment. In particular, I will choose the candidates who will most clearly take on the growing threat of climate change, and who have the strongest commitment to the conversion of our economy and way of life to a cleaner, safer, and more renewable energy future. And that choice could accomplish other key moral priorities like the redemption of a dangerous foreign policy built on Middle East oil dependence, and the great prospects of job creation and economic renewal from a new “green” economy built on more spiritual values of conservation, stewardship, sustainability, respect, responsibility, co-dependence, modesty, and even humility.
   
   
5. Every human being is made in the image of God, so I will choose the candidates who are most likely to protect human rights and human dignity. Sexual and economic slavery is on the rise around the world, and an end to human trafficking must become a top priority. As many religious leaders have now said, torture is completely morally unacceptable, under any circumstances, and I will choose the candidates who are most committed to reversing American policy on the treatment of prisoners. And I will choose the candidates who understand that the immigration system is totally broken and needs comprehensive reform, but must be changed in ways that are compassionate, fair, just, and consistent with the biblical command to “welcome the stranger.”
   
   
6. Healthy families are the foundation of our community and nothing is more important than how we are raising up the next generation. As the father of two young boys, I am deeply concerned about the values our leaders model in the midst of the cultural degeneracy assaulting our children. Which candidates will best exemplify and articulate strong family values, using the White House and other offices as bully pulpits to speak of sexual restraint and integrity, marital fidelity, strong parenting, and putting family values over economic values? And I will choose the candidates who promise to really deal with the enormous economic and cultural pressures that have made parenting such a “countercultural activity” in America today, rather than those who merely scapegoat gay people for the serious problems of heterosexual family breakdown.

That is my list of personal “faith priorities” for the election year of 2008, but they are not “non-negotiables” for anyone else. It’s time for each of us to make up our own list in these next 12 days. Make your list and send this on to your friends and family members, inviting them to do the same thing.

[from God's Politics Blog]

... Halima Bashier

If Halima Bashier meant to tell of her youth in a way that caused me to think her a kindred spirit, it worked.

If she desired to show the normalcy and happiness of her life, she did.

If she intended this in an effort to sharpen the contrast between the joyful life she lived and deep and the horrible loss she experienced, she succeeded.

Halmina grew up in Sudan, Darfur to be precise, and she's the first woman affected by the war there to share her tale. She calls it Tears of the Desert.

Did you know that there is a conflict going on in Darfur?

A friend, knowledgeable of this, saw that I was reading Halima's story and said "oh, how sad", yet the bulk of the story, honestly, was not sad. It was enjoyable, educating, & entertaining. It told of a lifetime of joy and love. I feel lucky to have been able to see that.

What is sad, however, did not take long to tell. What is sad is how all this was taken from Halima, for no real reason. What is sad is that in today's day and age, genocide continues to occur. That it is happening right now, as I type this.

Genocide: –noun The deliberate and systematic extermination of a national, racial, political, or cultural group.

Amazingly, it can be easy to emotionally detach when we hear stories of war, pilfering, murder, & rape. It seems a world away, so simple to ignore. Yet, Halmia's story reminds us that we are all fellow human beings and what has happened to her, her family, her village, her land -- what is STILL happening -- is an atrocity and does matter, we cannot simply choose to dismiss it.

Would we sit by knowing the Holocaust was going on today? Would we, again, ignore the news reports of the extermination of the Tutsis in Rwanda? What will we do this time... today... now?

Halmia finishes her epilogue "It has now been 6 years since the conflict in Darfur began.... Time after time, the world has been alerted to the slaughter and the rape and the horror... but what has actually been done to stop the slaughter."

To learn more visit:
www.savedarfur.org
www.eyesondarfur.org

Thank you to The Random House Publishing Group who sent me an early release of this book. Copies are now available.

.... Shark Attacks

I have a friend who won't swim in the ocean for fear of sharks.

It'd be one thing if that just meant she didn't indulge in the local beaches, however, she regularly vacations in beautiful Florida.

So it's not unusual that I thought of her when I saw this fact in the NY Times recently.

"Throughout the world last year, there was a grand total of one fatal shark attack (in the South Pacific), according to the International Shark Attack File at the University of Florida."

There you are Marie, only one fatal shark attack.

Does it make you feel any safer? :)

... a Friends Pain

I can't keep my thoughts off of it. It's such a horrible story.

A friend of mine buried her husband yesterday.
Her name is Heather, his name is Sean. They're both 23 years old with two small children.

I first met Heather in North Carolina when I interviewed her to work for me. I've never met Sean.

Sean was murdered, shot in the head, by a friend that Heather and Sean have known since High School.

It's all over the news, a media circus, and promises to be for some time as the murderer (he called 911 after he did it and waited outside for them to show up), has hired the former U.S. Attorney to defend him (apparently his grandfather has connections).

Everyone has questions, no one has answers.

But there Heather is, going through this. My heart breaks for her. She is so young, appears meek and quiet to the eye, but even before this tragedy, she has struck me as a very strong and capable girl.

If you think of them, please pray for Heather and the two children she is now raising (Matthew and Kaylie).

... Idealistic Heirs

In todays New York Times I read an article about young philanthropists who have, in their late teens or twenties, inherited millions of dollars but then decided to give away a large portion of it to charity. Interesting enough in itself, but one part of the article in particular stood out to me.

Tyrone Boucher, 25, donated his six-figure trust fund to charity. Part of his motivation stemmed from concern about the growing gap between the rich and the poor. When he explained this to his father, the response he received was "Tyrone, we're not really rich. There are people who have multiple homes and private jets." Tyrone's response was "You're talking about your friends who are in the top 1%, and we're in the the top 5%."

Tyrone seemed to have a more accurate perspective than his father. Their exchange once again reminded me of how easy it is to compare ourselves to those who are doing better than us. Perhaps it's the American way -- part of the American dream or something -- but it's so deceiving. Of course there are people that are doing better than us financially. But we are doing better than so many more.

I want my heart to be opened to those who are more needy than I. I want my eyes to be opened to ways I can be part of a solution. I'm very provoked by those who have chosen to give away their millions. I too want to be someone who gives away her wealth... God willing, right down to her last mite... not someone who feigns poverty as an excuse to live selfishly.

... History

"Civilizations proceed from bondage to spiritual faith
from spiritual faith to courage
from courage to liberty
from liberty to abundance
from abundance to selfishness
from selfishness to apathy
from apathy to dependency
and from dependency back to bondage.

Apathy is also anti-democratic as democracy requires the informed consent of the governed, and will not last if voters can't be bothered."

~Arnold Toynbee
Historian

Avoid apathy.
Be informed.
Vote.
Tomorrow is Virginia's Presidential Primary.

... Emoticons

"I love emoticons. They are our admission that we we are no longer capable of conveying exactly what we mean with words. "
Sparky Donatello


Happy 25th Birthday to :-), the original emoticon.

... Radio Lab

WNYC's Radio Lab is my newest podcast obsession. I love to learn and this show teaches me.

They take simple topics, ask basic questions, and research the science. The shows hosts, Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, are comedic yet knowledgeable. The program is produced in an edgy way that keeps your attention. Attention that is required to grasp some of the concepts they are introducing.

Time
Zoo
Memory
Sleep
Space
Music
Emergence


These are some of the shows I've already listened to. They are fascinating. Check them out, I promise you'll learn something new.

... The Egg

An egg is an egg is an egg. Or is it?


Turns out, all eggs are not created equal. Something Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms already knew. He feeds his hens - well, all his animals for that fact - grass vs. grain. How much of a difference does that really make? Well Mother Earth News Magazine conducted some independent testing at a lab in Seattle and this is what they found.

• Vitamin E ------ Polyface Eggs 7.37 mg ----- USDA Eggs .97 mg
• Vitamin A ------ Polyface Eggs 763 IU ------- USDA Eggs 487 IU
• Beta Carotene - Polyface Eggs 76.2 mcg ---- USDA Eggs 10 mcg
• Foliate --------- Polyface Eggs 10,200 mcg -- USDA Eggs 47 mcg
• Omega 3s ------ Polyface Eggs .71 g ---------- USDA Eggs .033 g
• Cholesterol ---- Polyface Eggs 292 mg ------- USDA Eggs 423 mg
• Saturated Fat - Polyface Eggs 2.31 g --------- USDA Eggs 3.1 g

Woah, quite a difference. The crazy thing is, Joel's Grass Fed Eggs are no more expensive than the USDA Eggs. That means they cost less than the cage-free or Omega 3 enhanced organic-type specialty eggs at the store. Whoo Hooo!

[Former roommates of mine can attest to the fact that my excitement is genuine - I am a girl who likes her eggs.]

... Madonna

Yesterday, my friend Madonna succumbed to a 6 year battle with cancer and went home to be with the Lord. Please pray for her fiance, Gene, and all of her friends and family as they grieve this great loss. We'll miss her.

... The High Cost of Low Prices

"Always Low Price, Always"

Wal-Mart's tag line has to be one of the best kept promises in corporate history. We're all familiar with the smiley face that skips around the store knocking a few pennies off the prices of our favorite products every day. Each and every year product prices drop an average of 5%. Ever wonder how they do it? I did. So I spent that last few months researching.

What I found is that the price tags on products lining Wal-Mart's shelves do not represent the entire cost of the product. Wal-Mart is able to sell products cheaply simply because they excel at keeping their overhead (expenses) down. How do they do it?

Power
Wal-Mart is the largest retail buyer ever known to the world's economy, they are a monosopy. This power gives them control over the market allowing them to set prices vs. letting the market bear what it can. Control = Low Prices.

Innovation/Quality
Setting dramatically low prices leaves the manufacturer little money left for innovation. In fact, many producers facing price pressure have switched to foreign made parts - effecting the quality of the product. You may have experienced that the Singer sewing machine sold at Wal-Mart is not the same Singer sewing machine sold at another retail location. Cheap Parts = Low Prices.

Some Assembly Required
You also may have noticed that a lot of the products purchased now require assembly. This allows for less labor in the manufacturing of the product. Less Labor = Low Prices.

Bankruptcy
The statistics for American companies who have filed bankruptcy stating price pressure from Wal-Mart is jolting. Wal-Mart sets the price, sets the shipping requirements, sets the turn around time, sets the.... you get the picture. If a company is unable to compete, they are out. If they are outed they oftentimes find that they've made so many compromises to meet Wal-Marts demands, they can no longer survive as a business. Price Pressure on Manufacturers = Low Prices.

American Jobs
In order to stay in business, American companies are increasingly outsourcing labor to foreign countries. Pushing business overseas isn't necessarily bad - unless you like high paying jobs and the luxurious lifestyle they afford. Cheap Labor = Low Prices.

But wait, doesn't Wal-Mart create jobs? Yes, Wal-Mart does create jobs, sort of. Of the 480,000 new retail jobs per year, 70% are Wal-Mart jobs. At the same time, however, there is an annual decrease in U.S. manufacturing jobs of 3.1 million.

Employee Practices
Wal-Mart has acknowledged locking employees inside the store with they work. Less Shrinkage (stealing) = Low Prices.
Wal-Mart has admitted to hiring illegal aliens as independent contractors. Low Pay = Low Prices.
Wal-Mart has confessed to forcing employees to work off the clock. Fewer Wage Hours = Low Prices.
Wal-Mart was found guilty on charges of child labor. Underpaid children sewing clothes = Low Prices.

Employee Wages
There has been a lot of discussion regarding how much Wal-Mart pays their employees. The truth of the matter is, they can't afford to pay more. The low prices mean low profit margins. The low profit margins means the overhead has to be kept low. The truth is, Wal-Mart would go bankrupt if they tried to give their employees a $2/hour raise. Low Wages = Low Prices.

Foreign Human Rights
Wal-Mart currently finds itself in court again, this time defending themselves in the foreign human rights arena. The outcome remains to be seen but the accusations include beating employees with the clothes they are sewing if they aren't working fast enough. High Output = Low Prices.

Poverty
A peer reviewed academic magazine study reported "the presence of Wal-Mart [in a city] unequivocally raised family poverty rates in the US counties during the 1990s". An increased poverty rate puts a larger strain on our social welfare programs. Government Payed Benefits = Low Prices.

Environment
Farm raised Salmon. That is all I'm going to say because the process of how it works is so gross that I don't even want to speak of it. Feel free to do your own research if you're interested. No Clean Up Costs = Low Prices.

The way I see it, those great deals at Wal-Mart aren't such great deals if you know the whole picture. In order to save a few pennies on our favorite items, we are asking quite a bit of our fellow man, economy, and environment. We are passing on those costs to others. I say we because Wal-Mart meets the demands the consumers are asking of it - low prices. We are the ones profiting.

In a sense, Wal-Mart is a form of democracy - we vote yes and support their practices every time we make a purchase. I just would like to see us make more informed votes.

... The Tonight Show

Just a quick post to tell you all that fellow blogger Lady Libby and I are going to be in the audience of The Tonight Show this very night. In appearance will be Dominic Monaghan of Lost and Lord of the Rings fame.

We also have standby tickets for tomorrow nights show with Orlando Bloom.

I'll post more later. Maybe we'll have a cool story to tell, like when Christen, Amy, and I met Denzel Washington after watching him in Julius Ceasar in NYC. Maybe...

Update:
The show was great. It was very interesting to see how it all worked. We didn't make the Orlando Bloom show but I was okay with it. Libby did, however, get asked to do a special spot on the show. She asked a questions as a part of the JayWalking segment. It should be on sometime next week.

... My Farmer

The phone rang and it was Joel- my farmer. He had arrived in town a little early with my buying club order and was wondering if I could come early too. See, I order my meats and eggs from a farm in rural virginia. Joel, the head of the family who runs the farm, chooses to deliver the foods to his customers directly. He prefers to have the eye to eye contact believing that you can't regulate morals, real morals come from looking your customers in the eye. I like the novelty of seeing Joel face to face on a regular basis. I was even a bit star struck the first time as I'd read a few books about him and his style of farming.

I jumped in the car, eager to get my eggs, chicken, and beef. The radio was tuned to NPR and The Diane Rehm Show was just beginning. Ironically they were discussing food safety. You may remember that a while back there were recalls on contaminated pet food. The wheat, grown in China, had been intentionally injected with a chemical contaminant named Melamine in an effort to make the wheat appear to be a higher quality. The Melamine was reacting with other contaminants and causing the animals kidneys to shut down. The story focused on the FDA's responsibility to protect American consumers from food contaminants. An ever increasing amount of our food (or ingredient in food) is imported and most countries don't have the safety regulations we have. Food born illnesses have doubled in the past 5 years. They stressed that we need to know where our food comes from. By how? asked Diane. Unfortunately there is no way as of yet. The current administration has not allowed laws to pass that would inform consumers.

What sparked the story this week is that the FDA had discovered that chicken raised for human consumption had eaten feed containing the melamine contaminated wheat. They decided that the potential for melamine poisoning was minimal and they would not pull chicken off the shelves. They are leaving it for us to eat.

I listened in concern, but was not tempted to fear. Why? Because I do know where my food comes from, Joel and his family. Their chickens don't eat feed, they eat grass. Grass that is grown on their farm. I know the ins and outs of Joel's farm because he makes them well known. He encourages his patrons to drop in any time and give themselves a tour of the entire farm- full access- to see everything. This, he feels, keeps everyone on the farm accountable and he likes his customers to be educated.

I am hoping to make it up to Swoope, Virgina this summer to visit Joel and his family and my chickens whose eggs I eat every morning. I'm grateful for his desire to farm "beyond-organic", to educate the public, and to be so politically involved with the legislation regulating farmers. And, I'm grateful that I can enjoy tonights dinner without wondering if my kidneys are going to be ok.

... An Unusual Report

On the January 1st edition of All Things Considered, reputable news station- NPR- released a story about a UFO over Chicago O'Hare. Peak your interest? Listen to the report by clicking here.

... Unschooling

Check out this story on unschooling. No, not homeschooling-- unschooling. It's pretty interesting. I think the reporter did a great job too. ;-)

"Unschooled" Children Control Their Own Education (Scroll all the way down on the left)