Terrific Television

If you've never heard of, or not a fan of, Shonda Rhimes?  What in the world is wrong with you?

This lady has single-handedly recharged and re-energized television by creating smart, creative, entertaining fare.  Her current shows are Grey's Anatomy,  Scandal, and How To Get Away With Murder.  She completely dominates Thursday nights on ABC.

The thing that makes her shows so good is she fills them with brilliant, flawed characters who can solve the problems of the world, but stumble and bumble in their personal lives.  They are brilliant misfits who rule their world.  And, she staffs her shows with incredibly talented actors who are a true reflection of our world.  Her rainbow coalition is black, white, brown, yellow, and at mixture of all of the above, but most of all, they are kickass.

So, do yourself a favor, if you're not already on it, by jumping on this bandwagon if you want to be seriously entertained.

Here's an interesting article by one of Shonda's many disciples.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rachel-braun-scherl/shondaland_b_6058440.html?utm_hp_ref=tv&ir=TV

Toddler Tricks

This is a silly video clip of bedtime antics of a four-year-old portrayed by a man.

This is not at all what my parenting looked like back then, but maybe some of you can relate.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/05/convos-with-my-4-year-old-bedtime-_n_6109378.html

I Don't Know

I can't decide if I appreciate what this man is doing or not.

He's a police officer who buys signs from homeless people that they are holding up (for a couple of bucks he says in the video; the article says $5), then takes their picture, and paints it on the sign.

Is he helping them or exploiting them?

Is he trying to bring awareness to the homeless problem in his city/country, or is he a self-promoter, taking advantage of these hard-on-their-luck folks?

Watching the video didn't help.  He comes off slimy to me.

What do you think?

http://news360.com/digestarticle/v9gXCCsRpUmKri-aRfVpeg

What Happens to Our Bodies

This is an intriguing article on the decomposition process of our bodies when we die.  It features a "body farm" that studies this.

Morbid?

Yes.

Engrossing?

For sure.

Warning:

The images in the article are blackened, and if you're queasy like me, you might leave them that way.  Also, there's a video, but I didn't watch it.  My imagination was all that was needed to get the picture.

http://www.vox.com/2014/10/28/7078151/body-farm-texas-freeman-ranch-decay

The Young Builder

This is a kit for a beautiful marble run.  Unfortunately it's not suitable for the little ones in my world, but it's too much fun not to share.

It's featured on The Grommet, but is also available for purchase from Amazon.

Here's to hours of playtime for the young, and the young at heart.

https://www.thegrommet.com/mindware-q-ba-maze?utm_campaign=20141106&utm_content=7986&utm_medium=email&utm_source=CC&trk_msg=VAKCNC2OLRFKV3GTUCM23G0QHG&trk_contact=6PJ17299EJ5SLGM27119G0AQ7K

When in Rome . . .

Heed the warning signs.

http://www.thenational.ae/uae/american-70-held-for-taking-photos-in-restricted-area?utm_source=Communicator&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=&utm_campaign=Abu%20Dhabi%20population%20doubles%20in%20eight%20years

Perks

For locals in my world.

http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_268743/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=IgiKA1l7

Weary in Well-Doing

This is another piece by the writer in the previous post.  It's about the weariness of writing about racism.

https://medium.com/matter/the-racism-beat-6ff47f76cbb6

A Tender Story

A young man writes about his Mom.

It's a lovely read.

Long, but worth the time.

https://medium.com/matter/on-kindness-819ce388f976

It's All Relative

The size of things in the solar system, compared to things we're familiar with.

Interesting.

http://astronomycentral.co.uk/astronomy-the-size-of-stuff/

Science is Fun!

This hands on museum in the San Francisco Bay Area gives kids, young and old, a chance to have some serious, experimental, exploratory fun.

If you're in that area, you have to check it out . . . for me . . . and let me know what you think.

http://tinkering.exploratorium.edu//chain-reaction

Watch the quick video at the end of the article.  It's pretty darn cute.

Street Art

This can be a powerful medium.

Check out the murals below.

My favorite is #1.

What's yours?

http://news360.com/digestarticle/-EysSaX1Y0qBEv_zYfMIeg

Give Your Old House New Tricks

Some of the gadgets featured in this clip are easily doable and can give your old house some new tricks.

http://www.usatoday.com/videos/tech/personal/2014/11/02/18368769/

Technology - WOW!

These are folks performing in NYC's subway stations brought together by technology.

Incredible!

http://vimeo.com/109672232

Parenting Advice

This comes from Deion Sanders, aka Primetime.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/experience/weekend/entertainment/2014/10/29/deion-sanders-is-owns-primetime-papa/18125109/

I love this guy!

My Ad Man

Check out Ben in the ad below.

http://vimeo.com/110426711

Yes.

I'm a proud momma.

Powerful Short Film

The 14-minute movie captures the empathy, or lack thereof, of the heartache that has been reeling in the black community for years, with a bubbling up of incidents recently, that makes this message especially timely.

http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2014/11/with_american_short_film_nate_parker_hopes_to_inspire_white_empathy_about.html?wpisrc=newsletter_jcr%3Acontent%26

Riveting!

Not long ago, I mentioned a podcast that was getting a lot of attention.  I had not yet listened to it.

Now, I can speak from experience.

It's absolutely riveting.

I listen to it on my long drives, and I've actually slowed down to finish an episode before arriving at my destination.

It's called "Serial."

Like a good book, on the one hand I can't wait to finish the series, but on the other, I don't want it to end.

You can find it here:

serialpodcast.org

Don't take my word for it, check out a review of it below, and then, take some time and . . .

Listen up.

http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2014/10/podcasts-so-good-you-want-to-binge-listen/382055/

Better Teachers

There is no doubt in my mind that the person teaching a class makes an enormous difference in the lives of the students in their charge.

They can propel the kids forward or retard their growth.

The effective ones can move mountains.

The ineffective ones become a part of the mountain that needs to be moved.

Should the responsibility of educating kids rest solely on teachers?

No.

Absolutely not.

Does it?

Many times, yes.

Are there institutional hindrances to some kids' succeeding, like poverty and neglected schools?

For sure.

Do we throw up our hands in defeat when face with these obstacles?

We shouldn't, but many do.

There are solutions, but the politics of getting them in place can be overwhelming.

The article addresses some things that could be done.

The success of the US as a competitive force in the world depends on us getting this right, and soon.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/10/29/opinion/frank-bruni-toward-better-teachers.html?src=me&module=Ribbon&version=origin&region=Header&action=click&contentCollection=Most%20Emailed&pgtype=article

Which One Are You?

Assuming you're a parent, are you the "default one?"

Find out below.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/m-blazoned/the-default-parent_b_6031128.html