Ignorant Historian

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Okay, so the title is overly dramatic, not to mention cliché.

But I can’t help but think that the amount of TV I’ve watched in the last couple of months isn’t healthy.  I don’t feel I watch excessively (maybe an average of 10-12 hours a week…you all know how much I read, but that still sounds like a lot), but I still feel too tied to that little gray box, or really, the little gray computer screen.

I hate being tied to a TV show.  Yet shows like 24, Glee, and So You Think You Can Dance “make” me come back week after week.  And then there are all the crime shows that suck me in.

During finale season, I repeatedly cringed as conversation after conversation, online and off, dealt with this show or that show.  And then just the other day we had some friends over, and the group of us sat around discussing TV for about an hour.  We could have intelligently discussed any number of topics, but we went for the lowest common denominator (and I definitely was a part of the problem on this one).

I guess that’s what I don’t like about TV…it IS the lowest common denominator, rarely challenging.  There’s nothing inherently wrong with it, sure.  There’s nothing wrong with mindlessly relaxing occassionally, but a book can have the same affect while improving your vocabulary and reading abilities without you even realizing it.

Like most things, TV’s best in moderation with a healthy dose of discernment and critical thinking.  Moderation has never been something that I’ve been good at.  If I start watching TV any given evening, I’m not likely to stop before going to bed (late).  So I’ve been trying not to start.  Aside from the previously-mentioned SYTYCD (hey, at least dancing is “the arts”), I don’t want to watch any TV during the week.

By cutting out a lot of my TV watching, I’ll be able to keep up my reading habit and be social (obv not at the same time).  And if I know what’s good for me, I’ll throw in some exercise, too.

Photo by schmilblick

A post about my move is still coming.  I had intended to post it today, but I need my real camera (which is at work) to take decent pictures…phone pictures just won’t do for my fun blue room!

I have a problem.

I’m addicted to smileys (especially of the =), ;) and =P variety).

And LOLs. (which has gotten so bad that I start to think “lol”)

I need help.

I’m pretty sure that I was able to write without them at one point.  I don’t think they ever slipped into a paper during my school days.

But today I can’t seem to write a text or a blog comment without them.

Help!

Photo by ~Prescott

If you don’t like something in the American culture at large, is it okay to say it? Fight it? Encourage lawmakers to restrict it?

If the issue is the treatment of animals, the emission of greenhouse gases, or the enforcement of immigration laws, the answer seems to be yes.

But what if the issue is moral? Limiting pornography distribution, the defense of the traditional family, or the ending of legal abortion?

The answer seems to be no.

I know we Americans pride ourselves on our freedom.  I’m thankful to live here, truly.  But when did our inalienable rights to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” come to mean “you mind your own business and I do whatever I very well please” ?

I’m okay if that “whatever” is just a difference of opinion.  Or just stupid.  But when it is something harmful to others or trashes and distorts one of God’s good gifts, a line has been crossed.

Civil discussion encouraged.

Photo by Beverly & Pack

I have no idea why I’m writing an Earth Day post.  It’s not likely that this will be the first one you will read, if you spend any time at all in the blogosphere.  But over the past year I’ve been taking more intentional steps to take better care of our home.

I’ve already mentioned our garden a few times.  It’s been growing, especially the cucumber and tomato plant (which is already about 1/3 to half it’s full size).

I wish I could show you pictures, but that’s what I get for having supervised-visitation only with my plants (I joke that I feel like I don’t have custody of them as I haven’t yet moved in with Jen).

You’ll just have to picture growing plants (except for the mint which I apparently killed by burying the seeds WAY too deep).

Another thing that I’ve finally gotten good about it using reusuable shopping bags.  I’ve only gotten a few eye rolls from cashiers (that used to be me, so I understand), but it’s worth it on many levels.  I wish I could tell you my primary motivation for this is creation care, but that’s secondary.  I really just hate having to mess with plastic bags.

I’ve also been working on water usage. Still haven’t figured out how to help with the garden water, but I have figured out that I don’t need to run the shower while I’m shaving my legs.  Saves gallons of water, especially when it’s been a while since the last time I shaved (I apologize for any men reading this!).

I’m not trying these things because being green is in.  I’m doing them because I believe that as a Christian I’m called to be a good steward of everything God has given me, not just my time and money.  And that includes this beautiful planet God has given us for a home.

I’ve still have got a lot to learn.  That’s why I’m excited to read Green Like God which I just ordered from Amazon.  I heard about it on Carol’s blog, got excited about it, and then realized I knew who the author was, as he was a student at Southeastern when I was.

Even a global warming skeptic like me can take steps to take care of the Earth.

Have any more suggestions?

Photo by cygnus921

While sitting in my carrel waiting for my next tax client, I saw a sight that made me smile.

A child ran by.

Nothing unusual in a place that offers numerous services to families.  All children make me smile (except, perhaps, when they’re disobeying me), but I had extra reason to smile when I saw this cute little girl.

Under her blonde pigtails I saw a face touched by Down Syndrome.

I couldn’t tell you how long it’s been since I saw a small child with Down Syndrome.

Perhaps it’s just the children I’ve been around.  I see dozens of children a week between church and work.  But something makes me think that’s not just it.

According to a medical study mentioned in the Washington Post, there should have been a 34% in the number of children born with Down Syndrome from 1989 to 2005.   In actuality, there was a 15% decrease.

While I don’t wish more children to have Down’s Syndrome, I most certainly wish more children with Down Syndrome to have the chance to live.  Actually, I want ALL of them to have a chance to live.  Sadly, 92% of parents who find out they are expecting a child with Down Syndrome kill that child through abortion (according to the same study).

Statistics are just that–numbers.  But each child denied the chance to live (as if life and death should be in our hands) is one less child to bring a smile to our faces, to humble us, to give glory to our Creator.

I don’t necessarily think that pre-screening is a bad idea.  But if we’re going to use that screening to determine which child should live or die, it should be stopped.  What basis do we use to determine if a child should live or die?  Quality of life?  I think having a life is better than not having one.  Potential for early death?  There’s no earlier death than death in the womb.

What a price to pay for the sins of others.

Photo by Charlotte Morrall

There’s just something special about the Olympics, isn’t there?

My love of the Olympics is two-fold.  First, I simply enjoy watching sports.  I think it brings out the competitive side of me.  While I obviously have a preference of what sports I watch (college football, college basketball, PGA majors…in that order), I can watch almost anything and enjoy it.  The only known exception is soccer…blech.

As far as Olympics sports go, I’m pretty predictable.  My favorite winter sport is figure skating, and my favorite summer sports are gymnastics and swimming (probably because I know how fast they’re swimming).

But really, the second reason is what I want to talk about.  It’s the global aspect of it: people from all countries (except for our warm-loving friends for the Winter Olympics) come together for one cause.  Of course, we need to remember that world peace isn’t possible on our own terms.  But there is something special about people from different peoples coming together…reminds me of what heaven will look like.

Now THAT’ll be a place of world peace.

Photo by Dieter Drescher

Okay, forgive me.  If you’re a Twilighter, you won’t like this post as I’ll be dissing Edward.  If you’re not a Twilighter, then you won’t like this post because I’m going to talk about Twilight.  So basically, you have to have the exact same opinion as me (And why wouldn’t you if you have been reading my blog, right? I’m incredibly persuasive.) to enjoy this post.

I do realize that this post is at least a few weeks late, if not years.  Still, I wrote it now.  Actually, I’m rather pleased that I wrote anything “real” this week at all.

I read Twilight a couple of months ago after the umpteenth suggestion.  Didn’t hate it, but didn’t like it, either.  Over Thanksgiving break, I significantly miscalculated the number of books I’d need (I guessed 3, but 2 were youth books, so bad call) so I needed something to read.  Knowing my mom had New Moon, I thought I might as well continue the series.

After reading these two tomes, I still don’t get what it is about Edward that people like. At all.  In the interest of full disclosure, my ideal man-in-a-book/movie is Edmund in Mansfield Park (the movie, not necessarily the book).

9 Reasons Why I Couldn’t Like Edward

1. He’s pale as all get out.  Sure, being pale isn’t necessarily a bad thing (though I must admit I like my guys darker), but I don’t see how it’s a good thing, either.

2.  He’s a stalker.  Sure, Bella eventually gave permission for Edward to watch her all-night (like that isn’t creepy itself), but he did it before without asking.

3.  He sparkles.  If someone is going to sparkle in a relationship, it better be me.

4.  He’s mopey.  Sure, we all can be sometimes, but he seems to be too much (Bella, you too).

5.  He’s hard. How is that cuddly?

6.  He doesn’t bother to check his facts before making a big decision (killing himself).

7.  He likes Bella ’cause she smells good. That isn’t shallow…

8.  Other than these things, what else do we know about him?

9.  And then there’s something about being non-human…what was that again?

It’s been a while since we’ve tackled a controversial topic here at the Ignorant Historian, hasn’t it?  Well, let’s dive right in!

You may have heard already, but President Obama has said this weekend that he wants schools to be open longer: longer school days and longer school years.

In some ways, I agree with him.  It bugs me that the local school district here is open for the minimum numbers of minutes and the minimum number of days.  To me, that just screams, “We’re only doing this if we have to…if we could get by with it, we’d be open even less.”

I DO think that we’re not doing a great job educating our children.  That’s why what he’s saying resonates with me.  But I think that it just might be the wrong approach; the federal government once again stepping into the role that the parents have abdicated.

To be honest, it really bugs me that the federal government is involved in education at all.  As a citizen, of course the President and other elected officials (on the federal, state, and local levels)  have a right to voice their opinions on the matter.  But the decisions should be made on the state and local levels.  More importantly, parents need to make those decisions for their children and remember that it is their responsibility to educated and train up their children.

Of course, at this point, you might be thinking, “Well, that’s all well and good, but she doesn’t have children!  She doesn’t know how it is!”  And of course, you’d be right.  Though I haven’t had the privilege of having children to call my own, this is still a passionate subject to me since I regularly work with children myself.  I do know it’s possible, because that example was set for me.

I went to a public school growing up, but my mom didn’t leave my education to that.  She read to my brother and I nightly from chapter books (I believe this is the number 1 best thing she did to encourage us to love reading, a vital skill of a lifelong learner).  She reviewed our textbooks at the beginning of the year so she’d know what we’d be learning.  She took us to the library.  She required us to keep up and continue to develop our skills in the summer by spending about an hour a day on workbooks, flashcards, educational computer games, and other activities.  She took us on fun field trips where we could learn while having fun.  Both my mom and my dad took many opportunities to teach us through everyday situations.

So, while children do need more than 7 hours of education 180 days of the year, that just might be enough time in school if the students weren’t receiving all their education during that time.  Sadly, that’s often not the case.

Parents, please step up.  You have been given a blessing, but with that blessing comes incredible responsibilities.

Photo by digicla

A few weeks ago when I talked about the end of this decade, I mentioned how it didn’t have a name.  That got us talking about not only the name for the decade, but for my generation.  Names like “The Digital Generation,” “The Entitled Generation,” and “Generation Y” were thrown out.  While I had to agree with some of the things you were saying, they also hurt.  They were true, but not the whole truth.

One thing that I have always felt has defined my generation in part is the tragic cruelty of September 11.  Yes, this has affected all Americans, but for the younger generation, it defined our childhood, our teenage years, our early adulthood.  For me, the greatest act of terrorism on American soil happened three weeks after I went to college, moved out from my parents’ home, and started thinking seriously about what career I’d pursue.  If something that huge didn’t affect me and those of my generation, it’d be shocking.

And though the influence of that tragic day 8 years ago can’t be measured (after all, who’s can say what we might have been like otherwise?), I know that the influence is there.

I remember.  More importantly, we remember.

Photo by NJ Scott

This holiday weekend has been a mostly unfrusterating carnival of technological mishaps for me.  Or maybe now that it’s over, I’m forgetting the frusteration I felt Saturday afternoon.

First, my headphones that I use to watch House on my laptop (I actually prefer that because it has better sound/picture than my TV) and listen to pump-it-up music on my phone stopped working.  Okay, it was still half working: the left half.  What can I say, left is better!

Then, the biggest issue happened Saturday.  While I was cleaning my room and my laptop was supposed to be minding it’s own business, it decided to get freaky on me.  It’s only 9 months old (a mere baby…okay, child), but for whatever reason no matter how many different fixes I tried, it would not get past a certain point in the start up.  Every type of system restore I attempted wouldn’t work because there was something wrong with the disc (really? hadn’t noticed) and needed to run the Scan Disc thing.  Of course, that would require it to fully start up…

I consider myself decently handy when it comes to computer things, but this was beyond my skill set…at least my old skill set.  I ended up having to reinstall Windows on my lappy and all the rest of the programs.  I’m very thankful that I didn’t really have plans this weekend, so I had time to get it back in working order!

The last technological mishap comes from Facebook.  For whatever reason, all the updates are stuck at Saturday afternoon.  Of course, that means that it’s full of “I’m so excited for the game!” and “Boomer Sooner!”  Like rubbing salt in the wound…

Seriously though, this weekend has been relaxing, with double the alone time and doing pittly things time.  I’m very thankful for these types of weekends, especially when they fall between two very busy weeks!  I hope you had a wonderful weekend as well!