| http://feeds.villagevoice.com/~r/articles/savage_love/~3/289927160/0820,my-boyfriend-s-kink-is-getting-fat-what-do-i-do,440948,24.html http://villagevoice.com/people/0820,my-boyfriend-s-kink-is-getting-fat-what-do-i-do,440948,24.html Q: I'm a 31-year-old man, and my girlfriend is 28. We've been in a monogamous relationship for four years. Recently, we've been doing the long-distance thing, and we're going to be doing it for a while until I can move from Canada to the United States. This is our problem: She brought up the idea of an open relationship until I get down there. I said OK—trying to be GGG—then called her back 24 hours later and reneged.Dan, I can't . . . read more (By Dan Savage)  | |
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| ...about the ads. I got screwed by my social security number, so I'll be the last chump to get my stimulus check. Heh, I warned you that if I didn't get jewelry sales, the LJ would get it. Looks like the Russians just stepped in and "took care of it".
On the plus side, I picked up more job offers this week. It's weird to be in this middle ground where my reputation is skyrocketing and I'm getting more and more work, but I'm still making less than I did when I was slinging comic books and porn.
I have another driving lesson tomorrow, which is where all of my cash has been going. Wish me luck, as he'll probably try to get me out on the freeway again, and I might want to vomit. - Mood:nervous
 - Listening to:"Marianne" - Tori Amos
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| http://feeds.villagevoice.com/~r/articles/savage_love/~3/289898630/0820,my-boyfriend-s-k,440948,24.html http://villagevoice.com/people/0820,my-boyfriend-s-k,440948,24.html Q: I'm a 31-year-old man, and my girlfriend is 28. We've been in a monogamous relationship for four years. Recently, we've been doing the long-distance thing, and we're going to be doing it for a while until I can move from Canada to the United States. This is our problem: She brought up the idea of an open relationship until I get down there. I said OK—trying to be GGG—then called her back 24 hours later and reneged.Dan, I can't stand the idea . . . read more (By Dan Savage)  | |
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| http://www.startribune.com/local/18917619.html The money would be used to maintain current average class sizes -- 26 for grades K-3 and 32 for other grades -- and pay for other key initiatives, such as the oft-discussed Strategic Plan. | |
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| http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/13/einstein-religion-is.html A newly published letter reveals that Albert Einstein viewed religion and religious works as "childish," and "primitive works."
In the letter, dated January 3 1954, he wrote: "The word god is for me nothing more than the expression and product of human weakness, the Bible a collection of honourable, but still primitive legends which are nevertheless pretty childish.
"No interpretation no matter how subtle can (for me) change this..."
"For me the Jewish religion like all others is an incarnation of the most childish superstitions. And the Jewish people to whom I gladly belong and with whose mentality I have a deep affinity have no different quality for me than all other people."
Link
( Thanks, Modeling Promotions Girl!)
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| http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/13/nndb-mapper-lets-con.html Gweeds sez,
The NNDB Mapper is a visual tool for tracking the connections of more
than 32,000 famous people- linking them together through family
relations, corporate boards, tv shows, political alliances and shadowy
conspiracy groups.
Creating a map with the NNDB Mapper tells a story about the world through
connecting the lives of billionaire executives, scientists and inventors,
politicians and activists, writers and musicians, and even Hollywood
stars.
These stories are shared by saving the maps for others to explore- from
San Francisco's
political landscape, to Hollywood sex
charts, to who rocks more: Ozzy vs Slayer?
Link
( Thanks, Gweeds!)
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| http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/13/security-guards-thre.html Andy sez,
This afternoon, an NPR colleague of mine and I were almost arrested at Washington DC's Union Station for taking panorama photos with a Gigapan, a robotic camera mount developed by Carnegie Mellon University originally for the Mars Rover. The university had sent us a loaner of the robot for us to evaluate.
Though we were initially allowed to take photos, they unexpectedly changed their minds, demanding that we delete our pictures and cease taking pictures, or face arrest. They didn't seem to care I was Twittering their comments throughout the incident, though. I've posted a summary of what happened, as well as the resulting half-gigapixel panorama photo, on my blog.
Link
( Thanks, Andy!)
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| http://www.boingboing.net/2008/05/13/warnerdc-comics-shut.html Alex sez,
Thomas Denton of comic blog Say It Backwards has a nephew who was diagnosed with cancer. A charity called Candlelighters helped his family out. Thomas decided to use his connections in the comics world to organize some charitable auctions featuring original artwork by various artists to give something back to the organization. Apparently Time Warner (who own DC comics, who in turn own Superman, Batman and most of the cool superheroes who wear capes) objected to the selling of the pieces featuring their copyrighted and trademarked characters on eBay, specifically Superman from what I understand.
Using characters owned by the major comic book corporations is pretty common in charity auctions at comic book conventions. This is not to mention that if you go on eBay right now there are a lot of auctions for artwork featuring those same characters, none of which Time Warner seems to be going after.
Thomas has posted a statement apologising to everyone involved in the affair (artists, bidders), but it doesn't seem right that he's been left holding the bag for trying to something for sick kids. Some letters to Time Warner's PR department might make them think twice about sending out cease and desist orders so wantonly, and who knows, might even prompt them to kick some cash Candlelighters' way.
Link
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| I got my kids' first standardized test scores ever back today. It was really weird. They weren't the No Child Left Unscathed kind of tests but an alternative that the school they go to uses so that it can track its own progress.
E's really confirmed what I have thought and tried to tell her teacher all year. Her grades and her abilities and achievement do not match. She scored above average on almost everything but her highest test scores were in the classes where she gets the lowest grades. I have tried to explain to her teacher that she is not just plagiarizing the textbook when she fills out the worksheets and that he needs to considering allowing answers that are correct even if they are not worded the way he anticipates. I think it is just laziness on his part honestly, that he is not even reading her answers to see if they are true and relevant but automatically marking them wrong whenever they deviate from the answer key. This is most pronounced in science, which she loves but now thinks she is not good at because of her grades on worksheets in his class. Her teacher for next year is better and does actual experiments in the classroom so that should help.
F's was more encouraging. He blew the top off it, getting perfect scores in many subject areas and far above average in everything. His teacher couldn't praise him enough and I was relieved that she agreed that he needs to be challenged but not to skip a grade since he still has some maturity issues that would make skipping too hard on him. So that was good.
I went after that to ask for financial aid. The principal was encouraging so hopefully they can get at least some sort of a tuition reduction. I have been told repeatedly by many of their teachers that they are a joy to have in class so I am hoping they will be considered enough of a joy to subsidize somewhat. I also learned that two of the kids who have picked on E will be going to public school next year so that is good too.
I asked E's music teacher where she should be taking private lessons since she did so well on recorder this year and wants to take violin and her teacher praised her a bunch and then said she really needed to go to a conservatory half an hour away. Ugh ugh ugh. I want the best for her so I will make the drive but I really don't relish the thought of another two hour excursion in our already packed school week. Is it worth it? Yes. Will it be easy? NO. Will I do it? If there is any way I can work it out. I feel like it is so hard for E to cope with so many aspects of the whole academic experience that anything that is a sure shot has to be pursued. Her grades just aren't going to reflect her intelligence and hard work right now so things like ballet and music that she is weirdly gifted in have to be supported at any cost or inconvenience. She needs the confidence and she needs the record of her intelligence in a way a non-special needs gifted kid would not. Where this leaves F I do not know. Thankfully he is still young enough to be happy and engaged with one extracurricular. When he starts asking for a second one I may have to grow a clone and buy a second car.
I managed to avoid an unpleasant ballet waiting room mom by going to buy tickets for the recital at the box office across town.
Now I just have to get things squared away for my own school for next year. I am not sure how or when I am going to do this. Obviously I can only take classes that are offered when the kids are in school. Also obviously, I can only afford junior college.
Strangely I do not feel at all martyred putting my own stuff last. I do not want to be thanked for this. I do not want anyone to feel bad. I want them to grow up taking their own importance for granted and then raise their own kids the same way. It is very weird to realize this: that I can actually be a better mother than I had and the fact that it feels like a tightrope walk sometimes and is never quite instinctive is okay and doesn't make it any less real.
I was talking with one of the ballet waiting room moms after class today (my favorite one, another knitter and also a teacher) and she agreed that if I had put E in early childhood stuff when she couldn't talk until three, and had violent tantrums, etc., she would not be having the kind of year she is having now (she has had some difficulties but I can't pass a teacher from her school without being told how sweet and well-behaved she is). It may make it hard to get appropriate support from the school district, but compared to the stigma she would be facing if she started this year with half a decade of documentation of her early childhood stuff, not getting district support is nothing. She could not read at seven and at nine is at least one grade level ahead in it. She could not talk at three and is now considered very articulate by the staff at her school. That is mostly because she is very bright and has worked hard with me, but some amount of that is because I kept her out of the system and gave her time to catch up and a lot of freedom, patience, and one on one attention. It is so nice to know that it didn't backfire. I am not a fan of standardized tests, but I won't turn down any evidence that my kids are smart.
Maybe I just have an operating assumption that will reinforce itself Candide-like, regardless of evidence to the contrary, but my theory is that every child has special needs and every child is gifted. I am going with that. - Listening to:Catherine Wheel - Phantom of the American Mother
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iDial adds an old timey rotary phone dial interface to your "jailbroken" iPhone.