July 2010

  • August 1 is Sisters Day

    By sarajean on 7/31/10 8:00pm
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    Tomorrow is a day to celebrate with the second-most important woman—or women—in your life—your sister(s). (Okay, if you are married, maybe she’s third…) Sisters Day is a perfect time to either go out or make plans to spend the day with your siblings, or to reconcile with them if you’ve had a spat. Here are a few things you might want to do with your sisters on this special holiday.

    Hang out. This isn’t so complicated, is it? Just block out an hour or two and spend some time together. Visit a park you went to as kids or have a treat at your favorite ice cream shop. Watch a marathon of your favorite films (my sister and I are planning a Jim Henson marathon soon) and make some frozen margaritas while you quote or sing your favorite lines. Have an old-fashioned sleepover if you want and paint each other’s toenails, pop popcorn, and listen to music. Speaking of music…

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  • Parenting and Personal Identity

    By sarajean on 7/31/10 6:13pm
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    Months ago, I vehemently argued in favor of posting one’s photos of one’s children on Facebook when a childless friend postulated a question about it. Shouldn’t your FB page be about you, she asked, and not about your children? Though her question was not hostile, my answer definitely was—though I certainly didn't mean to be--and now I’m left analyzing why that was.

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  • The Mind-Body Connection: Part II

    By sarajean on 7/31/10 2:21pm
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    But I know it’s one of those things where if I knew what I was missing, I would be devastated. And I know enough to know that I’m missing out on so much in life. I’ve never tried throwing paintballs, for example. I haven’t played a sport since I was 16—and even then, it was only for a year. I’ve never tried a martial art, I enjoy dancing on occasion but have never really learned how to do it well, and I would much rather lie around with a book than take a walk. I’ve always been that way; even during family trips—camping, reunions, whatever—I would bring a book. The other kids would bring bikes, fishing poles, and other playtime equipment; I brought stacks of books, or notebooks and pens, or drawing materials. I’m not saying that there is nothing wrong with these activities; on the contrary, they are so very worthwhile and awesome that I’d like to share them with everyone in the world.

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  • STFU, Phyllis Schlafly

    By sarajean on 7/31/10 7:55am
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    Phyllis Schlafly's latest political ambition is to badmouth a pretty easy target: single moms. Any woman who is against feminism is already highly suspect in my book—especially one who is an attorney and an author, a fact that wouldn’t be possible without feminism; but as a mother with six kids, you’d think Schlafly could have some human decency when it comes to mothers working alone to support their children.

    Not a chance.

    Schlafly is raising hell about women voting for Obama because they’re single and wanting government assistance. “70% of unmarried women voted for Obama. And this is because when you kick your husband out, you’ve got to have Big Brother government as your provider.”

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  • Tell Congress: Don’t Cut After School Programs

    By sarajean on 7/30/10 4:55pm
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    Aside from what Ben Stein stupidly thinks, most Americans are working hard to make ends meet these days. Those who are unemployed are working hard to find work, often having to resort to much less pay than the former positions they occupied and altering their lifestyles accordingly. I know this is true, since I, along with many of former my co-workers, and many of my husband’s former co-workers, have floated along in this boat. Many of our friends and family members sadly still are. It’s not a time to make families struggle even more than they already are—that’s for sure.

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  • 10 Things NOT to Do in Public

    By Anonymous on 7/30/10 12:47am
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  • Zirh Introduces a Booze-Soap Line

    By becksta on 7/30/10 12:02am
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    Long Island Ice-Tea SoapLong Island Ice-Tea SoapAt the end of a long, hard night drinking out on the town, it’s likely that you will have at least some alcohol on your body, your top, your jeans,  your purse, your man-bag, your Iphone, your Ipad, or whatever else you might happen to have with you. If you aren’t going out, however, and would like to pretend that you’ve been out for a wild night on the town in order to impress your friends, you can now use Zirh’s booze-inspired scented soaps.


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  • Ban on BPA in Baby Products a Small Step Toward Human Health

    By sarajean on 7/29/10 7:59am
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    The banning of bisphenol A (BPA) in one single state is not a whole lot to celebrate. The optimist in me wants to say, “Yay! If California can do it, the rest of us can, too!” Unfortunately, I am feeling much more pragmatic today, and given the fact that California has routinely passed laws that support the environment, health, children’s issues, and plenty of other things I care about over the past couple of decades (at least) that my state still has yet to even give a damn about, I’m not going to hold my breath.

    And the chemical is still being allowed to be manufactured. The ban, recently passed by the California House of Representatives, is part of the Toxic-Free Babies and Toddlers Act—which, as you might guess, means that the chemical is only being banned from materials meant for people ages three and under.

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  • Kids See Dead People

    By sarajean on 7/29/10 7:02am
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    What if the whole Bruce Willis scenario in The Sixth Sense were much more than M. Night Shyamalan’s greatest hit film? Caron Goode is playing a true life, though living, role of Wills’s character, investigating the minds of children who might possibly see ghosts.

    The psychologist says that her efforts stem from her own childhood experiences, and she’s out to discover whether or not the imaginary friends that so many kids have are actually the spirits of the dead instead. She’s even written a book, Kids Who See Ghosts: How to Guide Them Through Fear, about it.

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  • Sports Job Market

    By colormejosh on 7/28/10 7:15pm
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    In these trying economic times there is so much uncertainty about employment - especially employment that is specialized such as sports. One of the best things about sports jobs is that they will alwyas be around. There will always be a spot for someone to play, coach, and market sports - as the fanbase seems almost unlimited.


    There are many types of sports jobs and career paths one can look into such as: Sports Agent, Coaching, Fitness, Law, Management, Marketing, Media, Sales, and Writing positions. Sports fitness is arguably the fastest growing sector of the entire career path as Americas need to trim down due to the Obesity Epidemic is at a fast pace - it seems like gyms and personal trainers are popping up all over!

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  • National Merry-Go-Round Day

    By sarajean on 7/23/10 9:52am
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    July 25 is a perfect day to go out and enjoy the merry-go-round. A Sunday this year, it affords most families the chance to hit the park and, if there’s still one left (as my old favorite park no longer has one), show their children—as well as the parents themselves!—a good old-fashioned time on the merry-go-round. If there is a carousel or carnival near you, that’s a great opportunity as well.

    I have a wonderful story about a merry-go-round. In fact, I wrote about it in junior high, much to the delight and disgust of my classmates. Reading it aloud was some of the most fun I’d ever had in school to that point!

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  • Tell an Old Joke Day

    By sarajean on 7/23/10 9:38am
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    Tomorrow, July 24, is the day everyone gets to sigh with collective relief because they don’t have to come up with new jokes to entertain people with. Okay, maybe those of us who aren’t comedians don’t really lose sleep over such things, but there is a joy in recycling old jokes, isn’t there?

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  • National Drive-Thru Day

    By sarajean on 7/23/10 9:16am
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    Saturday July 24 is National Drive-Thru Day, a day meant to encourage people to use the drive-thru for their convenience. But do we really need an excuse to sit on our butts and buy more junk food that we don’t need, wasting more gasoline while we idle? I think not. In fact, it seems like every day is drive-thru day—and it’s not limited to food, either. Gas stations, dry cleaners, and plenty of other services have drive-thru windows as well. How about instead of a drive-thru day, we instead spend the day both not using the drive-thru as well as making plans on how to not use the drive-thru in the future.

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  • Ghostbusting 101 for Parents

    By sarajean on 7/15/10 9:22pm
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    Little SaraJean (Okay, that’s not her name, but I don’t like to use her name in my articles!) has recently become very, very obsessed with ghosts. I think the main reason is because her dad has her hooked on Scooby Doo, which is full of creepy creatures—and even though they are unmasked at the end of each episode, their frightening images are still left in the minds of kiddos who watch them.

    Recently at our art class, I overheard some mothers discussing how they couldn’t believe their children had nightmares. “What on earth could they have nightmares about?” demanded one mother, and another promptly agreed.

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  • Themed Family Game Nights

    By sarajean on 7/15/10 3:59pm
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    Though we just started having family game nights this past winter, they have proven to be a huge success. We have a lot of fun together, playing different games, competing for prizes (basically things we find in our homes that we’d like to swap), and just being together as a family. My sisters and their significant others, my parents, a couple of aunts, and sometimes a few friends join in for the monthly fun.

    Recently I suggested that we start having themed game nights, mostly because I just think it would be something we’d enjoy. What I’d love are some theme suggestions that are family appropriate (we always have my daughter, who is four, in attendance; other children sometimes attend as well). Here are a few that I’ve already come up with.

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  • IDEA is Hiring Interns and Organizers

    By sarajean on 7/14/10 9:32am
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    klatklatOne of my favorite new educational organizations is IDEA: The Institute for Democratic Education in America. I’ve been a volunteer for the organization since last winter, and have discovered so many amazing people, educational views, and resources there. You can learn about all different kinds of alternative forms of democratic education (many, like free schools, I never knew anything about until I started volunteering with the organization), as well as download resources like lesson plans and multimedia recommendations. It’s a warm, welcoming community of educators, parents, students, and activists from all across the country, and I would invite anyone who wants to learn more about democratic education to come on over and check it out.

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  • Albums of Note: "Rio" by Duran Duran

    By msarko on 7/7/10 7:04pm
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    Today, the British dance pop group Duran Duran is synonymous with the sleek, fashion-obsessed music scene of the 1980's, but the band came very close to falling apart at its most crucial moment. The 1982 album Rio eventually went double platinum by the time it was reissued in America and grabbed the #1 spot in Australia, both major events that wouldn't have been possible without a real eye for innovation.



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