J's Chimes: OMG! (One Manga is Gone!)

With the war on Scanlations, there's bound to be causalities involved and the very first goes to the popular free manga website known as Onemanga. As as now companies are taking seriously on licensing laws and such, websites are now closing down one at a time and who knows which the the next victim coming up. Other than that, popular series like Bleach and Naruto are now protected by copyright infringement laws so none can now be distributed for fans to continue reading the exciting parts coming soon... Whether it is a good thing or not no one is ever sure at the moment and so maybe it's back to the bookshops again...? Pertaining to this, J's Chimes will also be closing down the manga link sections as those links are already dead because of such turn of events. Anyway, let's just see what happens next...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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J's Chimes: To Copy Or Not To Copy...

Plagiarism doesn't only happens in our assignments or books and such where references are needed to be put at the back for salutations. Even animes and games are being copied just so to attract people to buy their products. And so you know it doesn't only happens in Singapore, but in other parts of the world as we know it. Such an example would be this so called Korean game that copies the One Piece anime cover but added with a couple of tweaking here and there... Of course this is not such a big deal until you'd see this below....


Yup... Does it looked familiar? Somehow some Suzumiya Haruhi Fan decided to drew a look-a-like picture of her in a book about sports for sale in association with the Beijing Olympics 2008. Was wondering why Japanese animation companies didn't sue them instead for such plagiarism...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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J's Chimes: War On Scanlations

With talks about losses incurred with the piracy of mangas through scanlations available at websites, Japanese and US manga publishers have come together with the aim of putting an end to illegal online distribution of mangas. This alliance includes many of the known publishers that delivers us the mangas in stores like tokyopop. Such copyright issues are thus put into action and are currently cracking down on much of the manga sites as we know of today... Publishers claimed that scanlations are main the cause of the industry woes. Another battle against anime is once again imminent with all the piracy and copyrighted issues going on as of date. Whether it would be good or bad no one is ever sure... But since it does affect our personal well-being of reading mangas for free, I guess only time will tell...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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Day 9 In The Army: Ancient Adult Books And Art

Firstly if ya ever feel offended by the artwork, please do not read this post. Else this is actually part of a erotic book as written and drew in the past. Such artwork dates back many centuries ago and known as Shunga, which flourished during the reign of the Tokugawa Shogunate... Think was sometime in the Edo Period... Interstingly, artists in the past have unique ways of expressing such cases of relations in the form of such art that is rarely seen now... Probably because 2D anime is more moe....


Interestingly, tentacle porn or rape by monsters are already been depicted in ancient artwork and books dated centuries ago... And thus had become what it is today... Strangely, such fetishes had dated many centuries back and brought forth into something new as we see today where many thinks its taboo and sorts.


I guess Eroges and such have a seriously long history in which little people would know... probably because there are new medias of such to educate people about these things... Somehow or rather, ancient artworks have a strange way of communicating such things with weird expressions and positions to get you wondering why such are deemed nice in the past. Who couldn't agree more that anime is better...lol. Advancements, advancements, advancements...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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J's Chime: They Are All Connected To Anime...

Some people just don't understand the importance of Japanese anime in our lifestyle so I thought that a little 'Education' is necessary for you to know why. Of course you do know how anime begun and stuff but do you really know that they actually connected to all industries around? Think harder and you will get the gist of it. They are as per follows:


Anime inspires mangas & doujinshi and vice versa:
Till date, most mangas are now being made into anime because of their popularity. Some examples are Bleach to Naruto. Some animes also become manga and such would be Suzumiya Haruhi to Code Geass. Sometimes the storyline deviates from each other or that the style of art is different.


Anime comes from Eroge and vice versa:
Same as mangas, some adult games do become anime (Other genre includes ecchi and hentai) and vice versa. Some examples are ToHeart, Comic Party and School Days. Surprisingly, Eroges seem have better storyline in some cases. Thus its inevitable that people who loved anime will definitely get to know Hentai too. Of course there are still Eroges that came out as a decent anime like Yoake Mae Yori Ruriiro Na, Izumo or Utawarerumono instead of making it into a H anime.


Anime creates Artwork, Fanbooks, Fanarts and vice versa:
A good example would be Queen's Blade in which the artwork are kinda popular that it becomes an anime a few seasons back. Anime also brings market to the art industry which also brought about making characters for games, movies, etc. An example of such Artist is Tony Taka who drew up characters for Shining Tears, games and anime.


Anime helps develop games and vice versa:
A nice example would be the Suzumiya Haruhi game on PSP and an example of games becoming anime would be Tales of Symphonia, Tales of Vesperia, etc. In fact, games are made to look like anime characters and you could name many though in the market.


Anime releases movies and vice versa:
Anime creates movies in both live action, animation and 3D. Examples of live action includes Death Note, Animations as in Summer Wars and 3D animations like Final Fantasy The Spirits Within. In fact there are more of such movies and popular ones like Death Note live action has been watch by many people whom includes those who don't like anime. But the thing is, it originates FROM anime, so why are you complaining?


Anime brings about products into industry and vice versa:
With anime's popularity comes about toys for kids, daily necessities like food to tissues or plates etc, stickers, cups, straps, wallets, clothes, appliances, electronics and many many more stuff in the market which in turn generates profit. If you for once think that anime is useless or should be ban, won't all of these industries be affected and create loss of jobs, revenue, opportunity costs?


Anime becomes hobbies and scale models and vice versa:
With anime, it brings about demands for scale models of favourite characters and stuff. Thus bringing about new hobbies for people. Anime creates new demands like daimakura, card games like Bushiroad's Weiss Schwarz, Gundam modeling, Gashapons, etc.


Anime relates to Cosplay and vice versa:
Without animes, there won't be cosplay and without cosplay, there won't be animes. Similarly a new industry in regards to cosplay for example fashion, makeup, wigs, clothing stores would be affected if not for anime which inspires people to dress as their favourite character. With that there won't be conventions and such around.


Anime spurs conventions, competitions, events and vice versa:
Would there be comicon, comiket, AFA, Coscon, Cosfest, EOY and such happening around the world if anime does not exists? Won't there be a bit less entertainment for the general public if anime wasn't around? Think again....


Anime composed Songs & Music and vice versa:
So you've heard many songs in Japanese? Out of the few you've listened, there would bound to be one that's from an anime series. So you say that anime songs are bad... Are you saying that the idols who sang these are bad too? Take note that some of these anime song are sung by popular bands like Orange Range to Ayumi Hamasaki.


Anime brings about Seiyuus, Voice acting, writers, artists, Idols, etc:
May'n is an example of popular idols in Japan. Voice actings for anime characters, giving a boost to art in a country, etc are what anime could expand into. Without such there wouldn't be voice acting schools, artwork, writers around wouldn't it? Singapore is slowly picking up with animations and stuff in relations to IT so it wouldn't be surprising to see animation films by local people in future.


Anime brings about photography in parts of the world and also tourism in Japan:
Cosplay = Photography and I would be surprise if it wasn't... Such brings about also tourism in Japan by tourists from around the world who loves anime too. What else would also be popular in Japan? Hardly I can't think of any besides it having delicious food and shopping, scenery and culture...


BEST PART ABOUT Anime? Everything is linked together...
Anime = Mangas = Eroge = Artwork = Games = Movies = Cosplay = Models = Conventions = Songs..... Talk about any and it all adds up and links well together. Any other reasons to hate anime now? Take out either one and they will all fall like dominoes. Think deeper and you'd understand what animes really are... Of course there are still more connections in which animes could link to and no doubt it is a part of our daily lives before you know it. Your push toy to your phone strap could very well be from an anime when you least expect it...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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J's Chimes: Otaku's Otacool

Bought this book immediately on the 1st day as I step into the convention. Cost about SGD$29.90, this book was totally sold out that afternoon and glad that I've bought it. Otacool features worldwide otaku rooms and their hobbies. Really informative and nice. What's even better is that I've got Danny Choo to autograph the book for me! This is the best AFA ever!Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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J's Chimes: Art Books & Stuff

Bought these art books (Top Left) at Toa Payoh Comics Connection at a discounted price of SGD$10 each! Quite a bargain for something this thick which usually retails at SGD$30+. The artwork is really amazing so it's so worth every dollar spent. There's more at that shop so if you're interested then go take a look. Bought the Utawarerumono Artbook (Bottom Right) at Kinokuniya at 20% off its retail price. Love this a lot (Check games section for review about it) and thus bought it. Anyway, J's Chimes has updated most of the sections to date now. A new section called the Fan Art Section will then be added to our website featuring moe picts that you see above. So stay tune for more...Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3626
Do you have a favorite book?
A week ago I was the guest speaker at a young adult women's Bible study (not from my church). Their theme this year is mentoring, so each hostess invites a "mature" friend to speak to their group. After giving my testimony I moved on to evaluating Christian books (I used a Christian publisher, Alternative Medicine by O'Mathuna), and the book in hand (using a Randy Alcorn title, Christian imprint I didn't know by a mainstream publisher). They were a delightful group, sincere and well-read, involved in their families, church and community. Most, but not all, had children. The only people this age I have much contact with are my own children--who don't use libraries and don't attend a church (what we call Chreasters--attend on Christmas and Easter), so I wasn't sure what to expect. When I talked about recommending a title for their public library, which most of them used regularly (some Hilliard, some Columbus, some Dublin), a few expressed surprise that they could recommend a book. Is that a well kept secret? Do library websites and staff not encourage this (mine doesn't, but I thought it was a local "we know best" attitude)?

Then one well-read mama asked me, "What is your favorite book--besides the Bible?" I could definitely feel a blush on that one. Not only am I reading through the One Year NIV for the first time, but I'm somewhat promiscuous when it comes to favorite books--fickle and flitting, rarely reading the entire book. Table of contents, index, bibliography and a few key chapters and I'm out of here. So I mumbled a title I enjoyed two years ago, Wide as the waters by Benson Bobrick (Simon & Schuster, 2001). The sub-title "The story of the English Bible and the revolution it inspired" pretty much describes the theme. The book didn't do that well in sales, because several others with the same thesis appeared at that time, but I definitely think this one does the best job of showing that once the Bible was available in English, reading books of all types increased dramatically. There was an increase in the circulation and production of books (printing by then had been invented). "At the same time, once the people were free to interpret the word of God according to the light of their own understanding, they began to question the authority of all their inherited institutions, which led to reform within the Church." In short, it changed the world politically and socially, as well as spiritually. See author interview here. Another favorite, which I didn't mention, and which I did read cover to cover is The Story of English, a beautifully written and illustrated book that resulted from a TV program by the BBC. I bought it for $1.00 at a book sale, and I'll never let it go.

So if you ever are called on or choose to talk about books, arrive prepared. You might be asked about your favorite book or author.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3610
The anti-Bush obsession at my library
Yesterday I picked up a book about President Bush from the sale truck at my public library branch for $2.00, The Right man; the surprise presidency of George W. Bush, by David Frum, Random House, 2003 (colophon says First Edition, but I know nothing about that sort of thing and don't care). Seems to be in perfect condition with just a tiny coffee stain on the cover. I flipped through it, didn't see anything just awful and ridiculous, so decided to buy it. Then I went to the computer terminal and looked up Bush, George W. (George Walker), 1946- , which had 81 matches. Now that's not all the titles, because catalogers like to add subdivisions and they get pretty silly about it. His ethics--17 titles; his friends and associates, 15 titles; his political and social views, 14 titles. A lot of these overlap, some books get two or three subject headings, especially GWB books, and I didn't want a research project. Besides, I already knew from glancing through the 973 Dewey classification number on the new book shelves, that someone at Upper Arlington Public Library hates and despises the Bush Administration. But 81 titles--I was curious! So I started plodding my way through the excrutiatingly awkward browse feature of this library's on-line catalog. Truly a challenge for this librarian who has been using on-line catalogs since their infancy in the 1970s.

I'm guessing about 10 of the 81 were balanced, fair or just PR titles, including The Right Man. A few were about him as Governor of Texas, some appeared to be more about his family or Karl Rove than him (I'm judging from the photographs on the covers which clutter up the screen--if Bush wasn't cross-eyed, or flap earred, or the word "scandal" or "outrage" wasn't in the title or subtitle, you could sort of figure it out). UAPL LOVES Bob Woodward and Michael Moore. Oh. my. gosh. They must own stock in those men. Woodward's latest book had 15 copies (I noticed the other day they are ALL on the shelf--nothing checked out--just taking up space collecting dust). I think Farenheit 911 had 17 copies (and it has been proven to have so many errors from a number of sources that I'm surprised they hang on to so many copies.)

Anyway, I jotted down the call numbers--and UAPL doesn't mind reusing a call number/author number combination, so don't worry if you see dups. I personally think that is outrageously sloppy, but I know a number of libraries do that now. I noted 51 that I guessed from the title and full record are anti-Bush--and the number of copies. Some I combined that had separate records, like large print, regular print, and audio. But still, even if you figure publishers will turn out more negative than positive titles about a President, does Director Anne Moore (yes, her name) have to buy them all and in so many copies? Whew! What a waste of taxpayer's money. Especially in a community where Republicans outnumber the Democrats. This woman really believes books change lives, and political beliefs.

My library prints full color posters of upcoming events on sheets of paper the size of wall board, but only gives us scrap paper at the terminals.

David Frum's column

George W. Bush
Libraries, librariansSource URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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How many anti-Bush books does one library need?

While browsing the new book shelves at the Upper Arlington Public Library today I glanced through the 973.931 section. In the Dewey classification system this is "Administration of George W. Bush, 2001- ." On the shelf were 1) Pretentions to an empire, 2) Impeachment of George W. Bush, 3) Static; government liars, media cheerleaders and the people who fight back, 4) Voting to kill, 5) U.S. v. George W. Bush, 6) How Bush rules, 7) Vice; Dick Cheney and the hijacking of the American presidency, 8) The architect; Karl Rove and the master plan for absolute power, preceded by two Clinton books, a his and hers (positive, glowing) in 973.927.

Just out of curiosity, I went into the stacks and checked this class number--the Bush years. There were 4 packed shelves, about 30 books to a shelf (ca. 120 books), and only four were positive, balanced or fair to the President of the United States. Some titles had multiple copies. Within this class are also the books on 9/11, ranging from touching to wild to absurd, John Kerry's campaign hype, a bio of Tommy Franks, an anti-Bush women title and two on Hillary Clinton, but compared to the anti-Bush tirades, they don't account for much space. Included in the stacks were items like Gore Vidal's Dreaming War, Woodward's Plan of attack, and James Bovard's Bush betrayal. The previous 5 shelves (ca. 150 books) covered the presidencies of Carter, Reagan, Bush 41 and Clinton (973.926-973.929).

Someone at UAPL REALLY believes in the power of print, because I'm guessing that well over half of the voting residents within our city limits are Republicans. I used to be a Democrat--voted right across the street from the library at St. Mark's Episcopal, and I never ever had to wait in line. Those poor poll attendants looked like the Maytag repairman. Now I'm a registered Republican voting at a Catholic church further north, and there is always a wait. So it appears that either the director or her bibliographer-in-charge of current events thinks if they just buy enough anti-Bush titles they can move this white, suburban, business class community on the edge of the University to the left. Meanwhile, they aren't serving the people who vote on their bond issues.

Book banning begins with the publishers, then moves to the reviewers at LJ, PW and NYT who act as gatekeepers for the public, and then on to the libraries where the few conservative titles that squeak through are carefully scrutinized to make sure they are safe and politically bland.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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Ayaan Hirsi Ali on Western culture

I've enjoyed watching Ayaan Hirsi Ali on Book-TV talking about her new book, Infidel, and then answering questions from the audience. Ali, a Somali with Dutch citizenship, commented on Europeans' lack of appreciation for freedom and individual liberty (said she hadn't been in the U.S. long enough to make a judgement about us). She said Europeans have little appreciation for their advantages because they've never been denied it or had to fight for it (speaking of the post WWII generation). A woman in the audience who had attended college in Cairo said women there were beginning to cover their heads. Ms. Ali said the belief behind covering of women was so that men would not become inflamed and out of control at the sight of a woman's body. Wouldn't it be better, she said, for men to learn to control themselves and develop some discipline rather than depend the women to keep them reined in. (Obviously, I'm paraphrasing.) When the prophet developed these guidelines for dress it was the 7th century--and things have changed. She received a rather hostile comment from a male Muslim in the audience who thought she was disparaging Muslim culture while claiming to be Muslim. He asked about poverty [in the West?], and she responded, "I would rather be poor and free, than poor and a slave." She also suggested to him that he try that question in a Muslim country--that only in the U.S. would he not be in danger and only laughed at.

Also, when she was asked about the difference between Muslim and Christian immigrants (in Holland), she said the first and second generation immigrant Muslims were better integrated than the third, but with the Christians it was just the opposite--they had a hard time with the first generation fitting in, but by the third, all the performance and attitudes was the same as the native Dutch. She said that Americans are too concerned with the growing Muslim population in Europe, but that the Muslim culture is growing much faster in Latin America. Radical Muslims in the U.S. she says, are very well funded, and very patient. She also said Americans are much too apologetic when trying to have an open dialogue with Muslims. She suggests treating Muslims as equals who will understand what you say.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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Being a bilious feminist

Apparently, that phrase doesn't appear in all the articles and blogs indexed on the internet. At least, Google didn't find it. Yet. I think it is quite handsome. I love a clever turn of phrase. Here's the context:

"Being a bilious feminist with a potty mouth doesn't much distinguish one in the blogosphere these days." That's in an article by Mary Eberstadt who writes about Democratic presidential candidates, closing their eyes and folding their hands in an appearance of prayer in order to woo Christians--and needing to fire their on-board bloggers of the liberal left who loathe Christians and can get really foul mouthed and nasty.

That--being a potty mouth--can get you banished from my links quickly. And unfortunately, it isn't limited to Christian bashers. I've also found some Christian bloggers who think you fight mud with mud. They throw in the occasional F word too, only it isn't Fascist.

Eberstadt goes on to feature some unrestrained Christian bashing in recent titles, all of which I think I've mentioned here in posts about our public library's bias:

Theocons
Kingdom Coming
American Theocracy
Thy Kingdom come
Religion gone bad
American fascists

You get the drift. They make Ann Coulter's "Godless" seem mild by comparison, and I also wrote that she was over the edge. Eberstadt points out that the left doesn't reserve its hate for Islamofascists, but instead is blatantly anti-Christian, and these authors and bloggers are embedding themselves in the Democratic party and campaigns.

Speaking of which, we've had an interesting turn of events here in Ohio. Our new Democratic Governor Strickland ran on that warm, fuzzy, "I'm a Christian too" platform and won. I think he said he was a former Methodist minister--but don't quote me on that. He could have been blind, deaf, dumb and a pagan plumber, and still have won because of our former governor's miserable record (a Republican). But I digress. Yesterday I heard he doesn't want any Iraq refugees (who will inevitably need to be resettled if Democrats are successful in their cut and run strategy) coming to Ohio because he was against the war. I hope this is absolutely false or taken completely out of context. It will make Democrats and Christians look really bad.

Update: On Feb. 17, there were 4 entries on Google for "bilious feminist," mine and 3 others, so I wasn't the only one who thought it a descriptive phrase. Also I checked my public library for those 6 titles she mentioned, and there are 2 copies of each, except American Theocracy has seven copies--5 regular, 1 large print, and 1 audio for a total of 7--the cataloger assigned it the subject heading "George W. Bush." For every one conservative librarian, there are 223 liberals. Censorship begins with the purchase.

Update 2: Dr. Helen comments on the fired blogging potty mouths who are claiming sexism got them fired: "My guess is that Edwards hired these women to make the point that he was a "progressive feminist" who took women's views seriously. His mistake was to believe that the average woman, or man for that matter, would take the views of a bigot and a hater like Marcotte seriously regardless of sex. Sexism may have played a part in Marcotte and her fellow-hater getting hired but it certainly played no part in getting them fired--their unprofessional conduct and rantings did that for them all by itself."

Update 3: on Marcotte's writing a commenter at Cathy's blog says, "This is something that I've never been able to comprehend: Why are so many Liberals unable to acknowledge the obvious in this case? Aren't they supposed to be super-sensitive to bigotry? Is it really that hard for them to notice the elephant in the drawing room? That the empress has no clothes?"Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3400 Best selling books for youth

How often is a best seller for young people actually written by someone under 18 or even 21? The USA Today Best-selling books for 2006 list for young people has Christopher Paolini's Eragon as number one and his Eldest: Inheritance Book II was fourth. I'm not sure I read books for youth even when I was a teen and I claim total ignorance on this genre and mysteries and fantasies.

What I find fascinating is Paolini's background. Farm raised, and home schooled, he finished high school by age 15. He'd also had a few failed attempts (by age 15) at novel writing. In this interview for other teens interested in writing, he mentions, sort of off hand as though everyone does this, the depth of reading he'd done (before age 15) in Teutonic and Old Norse history in order to have the background for his characters, language and country.

He says when he was little he didn't want to learn to read--didn't think it was important, but that his mother was persistent and patient (a former teacher).

"Then she took me to the library. It's easy to write those words now, but they cannot convey how that single event changed my life. In the library, hidden in the children's section, was a series of short mystery novels. Attracted by their covers, I took one home and read it eagerly. I discovered another world, peopled with interesting characters facing compelling situations." Can you imagine how busy he must have kept the Interlibrary or Regional Loan department at his public library?

When he had his first book self-published after years of drafts and editing, the family marketed it themselves--beginning with talks at libraries. These parents obviously had a lot of faith in their boy! I think I heard an interview on the radio where he said they'd mortgaged their home to do this. But don't quote me.

"The Paolini family spent the next year promoting the book themselves. Beginning with talks at the local library and high school, they then traveled across the U.S. Christopher gave over 135 presentations at libraries, bookstores, and schools in 2002 and early 2003." His webpage

Someone who bought it brought the title to the attention of a publisher, who signed him, and by mid-2004 Eragon had sold over 1 million copies.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3394 Respect your brain

The library notified me that there was a book waiting for me that I had requested (placed a hold several weeks ago when someone else had it checked out). I had no recollection of the book, and didn't remember when or why I requested it. The title? Making a good brain great, by Daniel G. Amen, MD. Hmmm. Looks like I needed it, doesn't it?

I leafed through it and noticed the chapter on brain injury. In 1989 my daughter was in an automobile accident--hit by a drunk driver while waiting at a stop sign. I think I blogged about it some time back. Since you aren't told much on the phone at 3 a.m. except to come to the hospital, I was fully expecting to claim a body when we got there. Even as I type this, my heart rate has soared from the stress of remembering that awful night. She was in ER with a concussion, but was sent home after a few hours. She had years of trouble resulting from that "mild concussion" and a huge hassle getting the other driver's insurance company (Nationwide) to pay up. She started stammering, was depressed, tested very low on IQ tests (done for the court), and developed debilitating migraines. She told me the other day that she had a few sessions with a neuropsychologist (also court ordered) who taught her some cognitive skills to work around the injured area. Even today, she will occasionally use what he taught her if she feels a migraine coming on, and her speech cleared up and she's her old self at problem solving and intelligence.

So I was interested to read in Dr. Amen's book that many people have had brain injuries and don't know it--particularly from falls and sports like biking, snowboarding, sledding and skating. He writes:

"A concussion or mild "traumatic brain injury" (TBI) is far more than just a bump on the head. According to the American Academy of Neurology, "There is no such thing as a minor concussion." A study from UCLA found that "the level of brain glucose use in people who suffered mild concussions was similar to that in comatose, severely brain-injured patients. . . Even mild head injuries result in major changes to the brain's metabolism and could make victims susceptible to more serious damage from a repeated blow."

Dr. Amen advises parents to never let their child knock the soccer ball with his head--heading drills, in which a child's head is knocked repeatedly, are of greater concern to pediatricians than is the occasional head-punt in a game. A study of adult soccer players found 81% had impairment of attention, concentration, memory, and judgment when compared to non-players of similar age and circumstances. He says football players are struck in the head 30-50 times per game and regularly endure blows similar to those experienced in car crashes.

Dr. Amen, who has seen over 30,000 brain scans, says: "I would not let my children hit a soccer ball with their heads, play tackle football, or snowboard without a helmet. I encourage my own kids to play tennis, golf, table tennis, and track. Your brain matters. Respect and protect it."

traumatic brain injurySource URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3331 What I had for lunch

As I noted in September, I decided to lose weight (my 20 blogging pounds) by paying attention to food triggers that made me more hungry. I've lost 17 lbs. and lots of inches where I blog. I've learned to eat to love some foods I'd almost never eaten before, like greens and peppers. Collard greens, turnip greens, bell peppers--red, yellow and orange, and lots of onions. The greens are high in anti-oxidants which help fight all kinds of degenerative diseases and contains trace minerals and calcium. Collard greens (1 cup) have 118.9% of the daily value for vitamin A and 57.6% of vitamin C. But turnip greens are even better with 158.3% of vitamin A and 65.8% of vitamin C. If you have thyroid or gallbladder problems (which I don't) you might want to be cautious about greens, according to The World's Healthiest Foods.

It's awfully hard for one person to eat a bunch of greens before they would go bad, so here's my trick: I lightly saute them with onions in a small amount of olive oil and put them in small individual packages for lunch and freeze them. I don't like those dull, limp, gray blobs you see on steam tables, so these stay bright green.

Today I quickly grilled with a touch of olive oil about 1/2 cup of frozen organic sweet corn with one of my packages of turnip greens and onions, and about a fourth of a red pepper--maybe 1/4 cup. The corn adds a touch of sweetness to the turnip greens which aren't as mild as the collard greens. The mild peppers add color and crunch, and are also excellent sources of C and A. If I were eating a cup, it would be even higher than the greens. My, it was so colorful. Just a pleasure to eat with my book.

With lunch, I was reading The Trouble with Africa, by Robert Calderisi, a Canadian who has worked in Africa since 1975. Africa has received some $600 billion in aid since 1960, yet it has actually gotten poorer since then. It's no longer useful to point fingers at colonialism or slavery, the Africans themselves are making a mess of things, and foreign aid seems to be part of the problem.

For dessert I had fresh pineapple. . . and a Christmas cookie.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3319 Judith Who?

Reviews of the this Prada look-alike book almost make me wish I liked fiction:

From Booklist--[Bridie] Clark, who once worked for publishing mogul Judith Regan, makes her debut in a devilishly funny companion piece to Lauren Weisberger's Devil Wears Prada (2003), substituting the book business for the fashion industry. Claire Truman, who works for a top-tier New York publisher, is about to lose her beloved mentor to retirement. Then she runs into her old college crush, wealthy Randall Cox, who begins squiring her to all the trendiest restaurants in town and lands her a job interview with Vivian Grant, a highly successful publisher known for churning out best-sellers on porn, pulp, and politics. Things start promisingly, especially when Claire is given the go-ahead to sign up talented first novelist Luke Mayville, but Claire soon starts receiving midnight phone calls full of impossible demands from her imperious new boss. Faced with a soul-crushing workload and a marriage proposal from her too-good-to-be-true boyfriend, an overwhelmed Claire must suddenly make some life-altering decisions. This entertaining novel rises above its predictable plot and sometimes-flat characters on the strength of its humor--Vivian's vitriolic tantrums are laugh-out-loud funny. Joanne Wilkinson

According to Readers Read, "Judith Regan had no comment about the novel, no doubt because she's busy getting ready to sue HarperCollins for millions of dollars for wrongful termination, slander, libel and who knows what else."

I thought there must be something other than the O.J. debacle that led to her demise.Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3278 And we're giving AIDS/HIV advice and drugs to Africans?

Dr. Anonymous in her memoir Unprotected which was reviewed in the Dec. 14 WSJ reveals that medical personnel can warn college kids about healthier living--trans fat, exercise, sensible weight--but not that their sexual behavior is dangerous and unhealthy.

"I'm discussing a taboo topic here: the dangers of radical social agendas in my profession. My colleagues are well-intentioned, and care deeply about their patients. But campus counseling centers are whitewashing the painful consequences of casual sex, STDs and abortion.

They are promoting the notion that men and women are the same. They are not educating young people about future and family. In these issues, so central to campus health and counseling, we are failing our young people."

She can't suggest to a depressed female student that the source of her pain might be the casual sex vs. her desire for love and commitment.

When she treats a young homosexual college student engaged in "high risk behavior with multiple people she discovers by policy she cannot insist that he be tested for HIV. And if he were to submit to voluntary testing and the tests were to prove positive, she would not be allowed to report this information to the local health department--even as she would have to for any other communicable disease." [from the review]

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3257 Three reasons I love language

Phonics. Diagramming. Latin. And I learned in that order from age 6 to 16. I really enjoyed the review of Sister Bernadette's Barking Dog by Kitty Burns Florey in today's WSJ. I think I want this for Christmas (someone who reads this blog has been asking for ideas).


I don't know how children are taught to read and write these days in public school. Someone is doing a good job because I've found some amazingly good writers on the internet, and they can't all have been home-schooled or have attended private schools. Perhaps it is self selective--if you hate to write, know you're a poor speller and can't make a sentence sound right--you take up another hobby. Or you type with your thumbs and can only text message.

Were you taught to diagram sentences when you were in school? Were your classes called "language arts," or "communication," or "English?" Were you taught "whole language" or phonics? Did you have instruction in penmanship (cursive) after the early grades?Source URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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3212 Holiday Reading from the Public Library

If the adult services librarian, Wendy Bethel, had listed 10 titles instead of 9 for recommended "holiday reading" in the Nov/Dec 2006 Upper Arlington Magazine, p. 29, maybe she could have included Christians and Christmas? What a concept! Wouldn't that be trendy? But no, although her list includes Hanukkah and Kwanzaa, the suggestions of new titles at the library that include the story of a holy savior who becomes a baby, the son of God, the eternal King, are non-existent. Probably because she hasn't purchased any, or never reads a review publication that includes them.

How about the book Yule: A celebration of light and warmth, by Dorothy Morrison. Would that apply? Well, no. Here's a peek from Amazon: "Those who yearn for spiritual meaning but aren't strongly affiliated with a specific religion sometimes feel left out of winter holidays. Yule is like a hot toddy for these chilled and isolated souls. From mistletoe to gift exchanging, Yule explores and exalts the pagan and regional roots to many of our contemporary rituals and celebrations." Doesn't that just tug at the old heart strings--if they want something spiritual, don't give them the meaning of the coming of the Christ child, give them pagan myths and legends that Christians scooped up along the way to becoming a world wide religion of all nationalities and languages.

What about The Winter Solstice: the sacred traditions of Christmas by John Matthew, a folklorist, packed with cute stories of the birth of different gods, what's the significance of mistletoe, Santa's evil twin, Bob, Shamans and little green men. Isn't that just so touching?

And what Upper Arlington homemaker doesn't need another theme to decorate her home? So the library offers Christmas style by Debi Staron and Bob Pranga, where we learn of trees that look like Joan Crawford, Marilyn Monroe and 10 other "Dames of Christmas" to make this one a real hit.

Was there not even a nicely illustrated book about a Christmas hymn, or a sweet little shepherd story, or something about mean old Herod killing babies and Rachel weeping?

Shame on the Upper Arlington Public Library, and shame on the Upper Arlington Magazine for ignoring the Christmas story.

public libraries, Upper Arlington Public Library, Christmas reading, reading lists, book selectionSource URL: https://maryelizabeth-winstead.blogspot.com/search/label/Books
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Thursday Thirteen

How to become a sweet old lady instead of a grumpy old grouch is the title of a book by Marilynn Carlson Webber (Zondervan, 1996), a pastor's wife. Some of her suggestions need to be started early, or will require some practice. It's good advice for all ages. Here's a few of her chapter headings and other thoughts.

1. Create your own party; take the initiative to make your life interesting and fun

2. Accentuate the positive

3. Do your best and do what you can; you can't win if you're not in the game

4. Keep doing what is needed, but

5. Know when to quit

6. Take time to smell the roses

7. Make new friends--concern yourself more with giving than receiving

8. Give the gift of encouragement--give 10 compliments for one criticism

9. Give the gift of memories

10. Change yourself first and start with forgiving. Unforgiveness will result in sleepless nights, physical disorders, depression, stifled creativity, bitterness, resentment and will rob you of joy.

11. Look on the funny side of life.

12. Develop a vital faith.

13. Wear out, don't rust out.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone

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