South Africa Benefit Quilt Show

NOT YOUR GRANDMOTHER’S QUILT SHOW
SATURDAY. MAY 3, 1:00 – 7:00-ish
CHRIST THE KING CHURCH, RTE 213, STONE RIDGE, NY

We hang, display and wrap the interior of Christ the King Church-Christo style with quilts that will blow your mind! To benefit Mariya uMama weTemba Holy Cross Monastary Scholarship Fund andThe Ilinge Isibindi Children’s Project.

Quilters include: Wendy Blair • Anne Wargin • Stella Zahn • Pam Flam • Linda Seekamp • Patty Curry •Eileen Barchi • Susan Herman •Wendy McDonald • Tana Miller Linda Fitzpatrick • Mama T Curry • Pam Duke • Margaret Caccamo Elaine Blythe • Jody Mellantahin • Susan Holland.

Sponsored by The Bidty B*tches, Christ the King Quilters, Stone Ridge Wine & Spirits, Fox and Hound Wine & Spirits, bluecashew Kitchen Pharmacy, Bodum, In Pursuit of Tea, High Falls Mercantile and Hudson Valley Dessert Co.

Support Pathways to Career Training

While more women are working than ever before, many do not have the skills and opportunities necessary to obtain the high-wage jobs needed to adequately support themselves and their families. To address this, Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-CA) recently introduced the Pathways to Advancing Career Training (PACT) Act (H.R. 5774).

This legislation would fund programs that provide outreach, education, training, support, and job placement assistance to encourage and prepare women for nontraditional careers. The provisions of the PACT Act would fill the void left when similar programs were eliminated from the Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act in 1998.

Women experience barriers to entry in high-wage, high-skill jobs due to biased career counseling and recruiting. Even after they enter nontraditional career and technical education programs, they may experience sexual harassment and differential treatment in the classroom. The PACT Act focuses on decreasing the obstacles single mothers and divorced and widowed women face when re-entering the workforce and preparing them for careers in fields where they are underrepresented.

AAUW believes that career and technical education is increasingly important for women and girls working towards economic self-sufficiency for themselves and their families in a competitive marketplace. Access to high-wage, high-skill jobs should be a right for women and girls from diverse racial, ethnic, socioeconomic, age, and disability backgrounds, including training for nontraditional jobs. It is in these fields traditionally dominated by men that women workers can begin to close the persistent wage gap between women and men.

Take Action!
To urge your representative to cosponsor the PACT Act, you can use the AAUW Take Action system. Click on the link, then follow the instructions to send your message:

http://capwiz.com/aauw/issues/alert/?alertid=11325521&type=CO...

For more information, read AAUW's position paper on career and technical education for women and girls.

Clearwater and Shad Festival News

THE GREAT HUDSON RIVER REVIVAL:
America's Largest Annual 'Green' Festival

On the Weekend of the Summer Solstice, June 21 and 22, on the Shores Of The Hudson River,
in Westchester County's Croton Point Park.
For more information, click here: http://www.clearwaterfestival.org/

Early Bird Savings on Tickets!
Tickets purchased in advance qualify for a special early bird discounts. Purchase your tickets before April 21 and save up $15 off gate price of $45. Children under 12 are free. Membership discounts are availably instantly to those who become members. To order tickets call 1-800-67-SLOOP or visit website above.

This year the Festival has significantly stepped up its efforts to reach its "Zero Waste" goal by arranging to collect all food waste for composing. Clearwater was the first major festival to develop the concept more than 42 years ago with the Litter Picking Committee, and today it is an integral part of our efforts to make our event a model for all other Festivals to follow.

Clearwater is also using recyclable products and encouraging visitors to bring their own water, minimizing the environmental impact on the site. The five performance stages are all powered with 100% sustainable energy that includes solar and bio-diesel. The festival will also feature hands-on environmental education workshops and exhibits, including the GREEN LIVING EXPO, where companies, firms and organizations showcase green products or services, an the ACTIVIST AREA, where visitors can get information on many of the community's important environmental groups.

Also on Sunday May 18: THE RIVERLOVERS' SHADFEST from 11am to 5pm. At 2pm - Free shad samples from the Hudson River Foundation. At 2:30pm - Arm of the Sea Theater performs Music all day on the Shadfest Stage. Shad dinners and vegetarian chili for sale (also hotdogs and hamburgers) plus craft vendors and activist groups, all day long! Rain or shine!
http://www.riverlovers.org/shadfest.htm

Night Music from the New Paltz College-Community Chorale

Denise Springer sent this concert announcement. She sings with the New Paltz College-Community Chorale. So mark your calendar.

SUNY New Paltz : Music Overview

Spring Choral Concert: Night Music

Tuesday, April 15, 2008, 8 pm
Julien J. Studley Theatre

Choral music celebrating the beauty and mystery of the night, sung by the Concert Choir, Chamber Singers and College-Community Chorale under the direction of Edward Lundergan.

$6 general admission, $4 seniors/staff, $3 students

Photo by michibanban

Gandhi's Satygraha: social and climate change

On the AAUW trip April 5 to Tosca at Lincoln Center, we noted what appeared to be a home-made banner across the Metropolitan Opera House with fish, river, bare feet, an eco-system of Mahatma Gandhi's life-changing philosophy of Satyagraha. Now comes member Caroline Paulson's email with information about the city-wide event. I thought you would be interested in this:
April offers New Yorkers extraordinary opportunities to explore Gandhi's satyagraha or "truth force," and how Gandhi's ideas and example can transform today's environmental and social change movements. See below for the Garrison Institute's free public forum on Satyagraha and Climate Change April 13 at St. John the Divine, previewed in Sunday's New York Times
. Also below is information on a satyagraha march to Union Square today April 6, the anniversary of the Salt March or Salt Satyagraha, perhaps Gandhi's famous act of civil disobedience. It kicks off a month of satyagraha-themed events in New York. Tune into WNYC's Brian Lehrer Show Friday, April 4, 11 am for a discussion of satygraha, social change and climate change.As Philip Glass’s opera “Satyagraha” opens at the Metropolitan Opera, the Garrison Institute in cooperation with the Cathedral Church of Saint John the Divine presents a free, public forum exploring Gandhi’s concept of satyagraha or “truth force,” its links with Thoreau’s civil disobedience, Emerson’s self-reliance, and Martin Luther King, Jr.’s agape, and the relevance of this thought lineage to our time. Satyagraha: Gandhi’s “truth force” in the Age of Climate ChangeA free public forum April 13, 2008 7:00pmat New York’s Cathedral Church of Saint John the DivineAmsterdam Avenue and 112th StreetPlease join us for a historic evening with:
Dr. A. T. Ariyaratne, founder of Sri Lanka’s Sarvodaya movement
John Francis, United Nations Environment Program Ambassador, founder of Planet Walk
Rajmohan Gandhi, Gandhi’s biographer and grandson

Philip Glass, performing excerpts of his opera, “Satyagraha”
Paul Hawken, author of Blessed Unrest
Odetta, singer/songwriter often called “the voice of the civil rights movement”
Billy Parish, founder of the Climate Campaign, co-founder/coordinator of the Energy Action Coalition
Sulak Sivaraksa, founder of the Thailand Spirit in Education Movement
Mary Evelyn Tucker, co-founder/co-director of the Forum on Religion and EcologyFor more information on the April 13 Satyagraha public forum, see http://www.garrisoninstitute.org/. No reservations necessary. Arrive early for best seats. Directions: www.stjohndivine.org/visit_directions.htmlFor tickets to Philip Glass’s opera “Satyagraha,” visit http://www.metopera.org/. For other April satyagraha events in the NYC area, visit http://www.satya-graha.org/.
The Garrison Institute
· Route 9D at Glenclyffe, Garrison, New York, 10524 · Tel. 845.424.4800
http://www.garrisoninstitute.org/ · garrison@garrisoninstitute.org

Lip Service From Albany

It's time for us to take action because Albany apparently won't.

It's the same thing every year -- the pay equity bill passes the House but never gets out of the Labor Committee in the Senate. For six years our elected representatives have been giving us nothing but lip service.

Bruno won't comment. Robach, Committee Chair, talks out of both sides of his mouth.

Steinem adds voice to pay-gap bill -- Page 1 -- Times Union - Albany NY

A National Academy of Sciences report on pay inequity found that up to half of wage disparity between men and women was not explained by differences in factors such as education or experience.

"This is outrageous," said Craig Johnson, D-Port Washington, the bill's Senate sponsor. "It is tragic that we claim to be in a progressive state, yet we have not remedied this tremendous wrong."

The bill has passed the Assembly every year since 2002, but died in the Senate Labor Committee. This year, it passed the Assembly again and is in the committee.

Sen. Joseph Robach, R-Rochester, who heads the Labor Committee, also spoke at the event, expressing his commitment to providing good, equitable wages to all residents.

Robach's office did not respond when asked whether the bill will move out of committee this year.

Scott Reif, a spokesman for Senate Majority Joseph L. Bruno, wouldn't comment on why the bill hasn't reached the Senate floor for a vote previously. He said the bill would be reviewed "but right now we're focused on passing the state budget."

Johnson said he isn't interested in waiting any longer. "Time's up, put the bill onto the Senate floor," he said. "If not, let a new majority do it."

*****

CALL Senator Joseph Robach, Chair,Senate Labor Committee
518.455.2909 (preferable) and ask for his Chief of Staff

or write him at 902 LOB, Albany, NY 12247

or e-mail robach@senate.state.ny.us.

Tell him you want the NYS Fair Pay Bill (S3936) out of committee and on the floor of the Senate for debate. When will that happen?

Photo by Anyaka

For more information on the bill read this summary on the NYS AAUW blog.

Bach Mass in B Minor - April 26, 27

Betsy Tuel sent word of an upcoming concert:

The Ulster Choral Society and Camerata Chorale are excited to present a performance of the Mass in B Minor by Johann Sebastian Bach. This monumental work set the standard for settings of the Latin Mass.

The combined choirs will be joined by professional soloists and the Bach-Handel Festival Orchestra to make this a highly polished performance.

Performance dates are:
Saturday, April 26, 8:00 PM, at the United Methodist Church in Poughkeepsie (just south of Vassar college)

Sunday, April 27, 4:00 PM, at the St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Church in New Paltz (just west of SUNY New Paltz)

Admission: Probably about $15, with discounts for seniors and students.

More Information: Bill Tuel 658-9532

Karpova v. Snow Brief Filed with Supreme Court

From Judith Karpova:

Today, the fifth anniversary of the 2003 US attack on Iraq, attorneys Michael Sussman and Stephen Bergstein filed a brief to the Supreme Court to defend me against the prosecution of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Treasury Department: Judith Karpova v. John Snow, Secretary, Department of the Treasury, United States of America.

Five years ago, in February and March of 2003, I went to Iraq with an international movement called the Human Shields to defend the UN designated civilian infrastructure of that country, such as water treatment plants and power generating stations. Such sites had been bombed by the US in the 1991 Gulf War, with catastrophic results for the Iraqi civilian population. The Human Shields had the larger ambition of bringing enough Western people into Iraq to prevent the war from going forward. Though failing in this greater goal, the sites we lived on during the 2003 war were not bombed. We were hosted by an Iraqi tourism ministry which provided food, lodgings and transportation within the country.

The Treasury Department accuses me of supporting the pre-war Iraqi economy by allegedly buying food and thus breaking the economic embargo against Iraq. As if, had I spent a few dollars, I could have undermined the entire US effort, going on for twelve years, to impoverish and starve the Iraqi people. Over a million Iraqi people died as a direct result of these sanctions, from the lack of banned medication and from untreated water. The embargo had become an international scandal.

The war which did go forward in 2003 is beyond a scandal. The Bush administration has again destroyed the country's infrastructure, used cluster bombs and depleted uranium against it citizens, handed over Iraq's reconstruction money to political cronies, and economically looted the country. It is closing in on seizing its oil reserves. In the desperate scarcity it has created, the administration uses US taxpayer money to pay every Iraqi sect and militia to kill each other. It has killed at least another million Iraqi people through these policies and driven millions more from their homes. The US soldiers trying to contain the Iraqi insurgency are treated as throwaways, denied protective equipment in the field and care when they return. While the administration borrows trillions of dollars to pay for its oil war in Iraq, it attempts to punish me and other humanitarian travelers for witnessing pre-war Iraq and stating that Iraqi lives are no less important than our own.

This Administration has a policy of impunity. The war itself was based on unconfirmed assertions and actually forged documents. Mercenary contractors commit atrocities in Iraq and are immune from prosecution because they're neither part of the military nor subject to US civilian law. Iraq itself is not permitted to prosecute any foreign contractors and these contractors fail to rebuild, but get paid anyway. Paul Bremer, the administrator of Iraq in 2003, says he's not subject to law because the Coalition Provisional Authority was not an entity of the US government. In my case the courts mirror this culture of impunity. Without a hearing, without having to submit any evidence or proof to an impartial judge or jury, the Treasury Department has both accused and convicted me of supporting the Iraqi economy by my humanitarian travel there prior to the war. In his memorandum to the Southern District Court of New York State, the US Attorney notes that the (Federal) Second Circuit "has declined to attach talismanic significance to the availability of an oral hearing."[1] A talisman is an object thought to have magical powers. This is apparently what the government now thinks of due process -- as a kind of superstition. Thus far the state and Federal Courts have upheld this denial of due process. I have filed to the Supreme Court today to ask if the culture of impunity has engulfed them as well. Do they also find due process nothing more than a superstition, or is it instead part of our Constitution, which they need to uphold?

[1] US District Court Southern District of New York, Judith Karpova against John Snow, 05 Civ. 5812 (CM) ECF Case p. 11

Have you subscribed to FactCheck.org?

From Ruth Wahtera:

I recommend that everyone subscribe to FactCheck.org

Here's a video from them (they publish one a week) about spam.

If you're not familiar with them, they are a nonpartisan, nonprofit, "consumer advocate" for voters that aims to reduce the level of deception and confusion in US politics. They are sponsored by the Annenberg Public Policy Center at the University of Pennsylvania. Here's an update they sent today about the political chain emails we all receive. They also analyze all the speeches, ads, debates, etc. from every candidate in all parties. Recently they added coverage of important court elections.

That Chain E-mail Your Friend Sent to You Is (Likely) Bogus. Seriously.

March 18, 2008

by Lori Robertson

We’ve noticed that chain e-mails, particularly those about politics, have a lot of things in common: urgent and frightening messages; spelling errors; a tendency to blame mainstream media for not telling the real story; and false, misleading, utterly bogus, and completely off-base claims.

If there was ever a case where readers should apply a guilty-until-proven-innocent standard, this is it. We at FactCheck.org ask the public to be skeptical about politicians’ claims. With these e-mails, outright cynicism is justified. Assume all such messages are wrong, and you'll be right most of the time.

Note: This is a summary only. The full article with analysis, images and citations may be viewed on our Web site:

The Perito Moreno Glacier Video

From Caroline Paulson:

THIS CLIP IS OF A SPECTACULAR SOUTH AMERICAN GLACIER. THE PERITO MORENO GLACIER BREAKS UP EVERY FOUR YEARS LIKE CLOCK WORK, GIVE OR TAKE A WEEK.

THERE ARE PHOTOGRAPHERS FROM THE FOUR CORNERS OF THE EARTH THAT COME TO SOUTHERN ARGENTINA AND THEY LITERALLY CAMP OUT AT THE GLACIER SITE IN ORDER TO GET THE ACTUAL BREAKUP ON FILM.

THE INDIVIDUAL WHO GOT THIS SHOT DID A MARVELOUS JOB!

Art of an American Dream

From Arlene Bruck:
We're very proud that one of the students AAUW honored during the holidays, Cayetano Navarrete, is the youngest artist selected for a solo show at the Woodstock Artists Association Museum. He is a junior at Kingston High School.

Do make an effort to see Cayetano's show which continues through April 7th.

Daily Freeman - Art of an American Dream: "A Kingston High School student in search of the 'American Dream' has reached a significant reality. At the age of 16, he is believed to be the youngest person ever selected for a solo show at the Woodstock Artists Association Museum.

He is Cayetano Navarrete, and his exhibition of recent works, primarily mixed-media with paintings, photos and prints, opens from 4 to 6 p.m. Saturday at the museum, 28 Tinker St., in Woodstock. The exhibit continues through April 7."

[Read more of the Freeman article by Bonnie Langston]

If you liked this post you may want to sign up for automatic updates. You can choose the RSS feed or an email subscription at the bottom of the sidebar.

Miss Pettigrew and Pay Equity

From Garnette Arledge

Do you read Virginia Woolf, E.M. Forster especially Howard’s End, Jane Austen and enjoy the film Cold Comfort Farm?

If your response to the above list is positive, go see Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day, now playing in Woodstock. The main character reminds me of the AAUW mission, spirit and spunk. The underlying theme relates to our recent telephone conference call on Pay Equity – something only distantly addressed in the ‘merry romp’ as the Washington Post critic called it. Neither of the women character’s have economic safety nets, hence their desperation as well as their wiles.

Click here for a cheeky review, anti-ageist although it means to be cute. Read it, if I haven’t convinced you that you might enjoy this bittersweet comedy on the last few moments before Hitler’s Blitz. Somehow we leave the cinema knowing Miss Pettigrew and her ilk will triumph, just as they did, and we will, this epoch as well.

Brain Games in Rhinebeck

From Garnette Arledge:

Life Long Learning Institute at Bard, Member Joanne Gelb is starting a new BRAIN GAMES class in Rhinebeck.

New participants are welcome to join the class which will meet every Wednesday at the Starr Library, 66 W. Market Street in Rhinebeck beginning March 12 at 1 PM.

Registration is not required. Just show up.

Brain Games is a fun program for senior citizens using memory games and puzzles to help them expand their brain power. A volunteer leader guides the class of all skill levels through a series of mental exercises designed to stimulate and challenge their brain.

Age-related mental decline is expected to affect nearly 84 million people worldwide by the year 2040, but according to the National Institute on Aging, recent studies have found senior citizens who exercise their brains with games using reasoning, speed and memory have long-lasting benefits.

A large study published in the December 2006 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association showed the positive effects of regular brain exercise can last five years or more.

If you have any questions, call Joanne at 876-8799.

Can You Pass a Citizenship Test?

From Garnette Arledge: How well can you do?

Independence Day Quiz

Every day thousands leave their homelands to settle here in the land of the free. Before they become citizens they are required to take a citizenship test and score 80%.

Could you pass this test if you took it today?

Our quiz is made up of 20 questions found on the actual citizenship test with a few curveballs in the mix.

Pew Report Finds More than One in 100 Adults are Behind Bars

From Ruth Wahtera:
Seems like it's time to revisit our policies and our budget priorities.

Pew Report Finds More than One in 100 Adults are Behind Bars: "The report points out the necessity of locking up violent and repeat offenders, but notes that prison growth and higher incarceration rates do not reflect a parallel increase in crime, or a corresponding surge in the nation’s population at large. Instead, more people are behind bars principally because of a wave of policy choices that are sending more lawbreakers to prison and, through popular “three-strikes” measures and other sentencing laws, imposing longer prison stays on inmates.

As a result, states’ corrections costs have risen substantially. Twenty years ago, the states collectively spent $10.6 billion of their general funds—their primary discretionary dollars—on corrections. Last year, they spent more than $44 billion in general funds, a 315 percent jump, and more than $49 billion in total funds from all sources. Coupled with tightening state budgets, the greater prison expenditures may force states to make tough choices about where to spend their money. For example, Pew found that over the same 20-year period, inflation-adjusted general fund spending on corrections rose 127 percent while higher education expenditures rose just 21 percent."

AAUW Pre-Trip Program: Enjoying Tosca

Whether or not you plan to attend the NYC Opera production of Tosca with us, you'll enjoy this special pre-trip program.

Our speaker, Raoul di Blasi, age 91, is still active as a Kingston voice and piano teacher. He discusses the opera, Tosca, with great affection. You'll spend a delightful hour enriching your appreciation of the opera.

“Why not come for the talk and then go out to dinner with the glorious arias of Tosca in your ears,” suggests Vivi.

When: Friday, March 14, at 4 p.m.
Where: the Kingston Area Library

This program, and all of our trips, are open to the public

The Kingston Branch of AAUW trip to the New York City Opera for Tosca is Saturday, April 5. Seats are available for the bus and opera, or you can choose the bus trip alone. You'll find details on the trip here.

3/8/08: AAUW bus trip to MoMA -- new exhibit added!

New Color Show at MoMA

From The New Yorker, 2/25/08

Beginning March 2

MOMA's upcoming show Color Chart: Reinventing Color, 1950 to Today identifies a broad shift in artists' approaches to their palettes, away from the spiritual (a la Kandinsky) and theoretical (a la Josef Albers), and toward ready-made sources and random systems. On view will be nearly a hundred works by dozens of artists, including Bas Jan Ader, Daniel Buren, Damien Hirst, Yves Klein, Sherrie Levine, Gerhard Richter, Frank Stella, and Andy Warhol.

Seats are still available! Member discount available. Send an e-mail to kaauw12401@gmail.com to reserve with Garnette.

For Study and Contemplation During Lent

From Marjorie Regan --

Lenten Contemplative Studies Series
Sr. Hilda Pleva
The next 3 Monday nights, 7 p.m.
The Redemptoristine Monastery

Monday, Feb. 25th- Contemplative Values for Everyday Living
Monday, March 3rd - The Art of Contemplative Prayer
Monday, March 10th- Contemplative Life in the 21st Century

Call to register for any or all sessions and for directions. 384-6533
The monastery is on the grounds of Mt. St. Alphonsus, 9W in Esopus.

Photo by Fort Photo

From Judith Karpova--

Dear Friends,

My very dear Iraqi friend Namaá Alward, who was in Baghdad with the Human Shields in February and March of 2003, is coming to the United States as a lead singer in a concert at the Cooper Union Great Hall on March 1st.

The concert commemorates the death of Rachel Corrie and the fifth anniversary of the invasion and occupation of her country.

Namaá is an actress and singer, born in 1953. At 18 years old, she won a national prize as the best actress in Iraq.

She was engaged in politics in the communist party.

"There were no other parties or method of expression." she told me. "Very few could maneuver to stay without any announced commitment, to be able to be neutral. And I was an actress, I had to be clear about which camp I was in, about which commitment I had, so being leftist, you are automatically called communist. So I was a member, but a naughty one, and I still am, until today, I just follow my intuition. I don't accept authority and I will never accept it, and any kind of authoritarianism provokes me — this is why I don't accept religion, because you have to follow a path written and decided beforehand for you. This makes me a puppet following the one who moves me. So this is why I was naughty also when I was a communist.

"So I exposed myself and people around me to danger, because it was not allowed to anything but Baathist and follow the god, Saddam Hussein."

She was forced to flee Iraq to escape the Saddam Hussein regime. She found sanctuary in Norway, where she works with political refugees and has won many prizes for her work in theater and film.

In February of 2003 she risked being apprehended by the regime and returned to support the Human Shield project and to see her family before the war.

Last year she came to the US to participate in a similar concert, and she is returning again this year. Her singing is intricate, emotional and pure. I urge everyone who has a chance, to go to Cooper Union and see her and the other world-class musicians and performers in this venue: The Rest is Silence.

Judith Karpova

Let's Grow the Woodstock Time Exchange!

Here's a great way for you, your club or church, your school, or your children to give service, help your neighbors, and gain ... well, whatever you need.

• Petsitting, housesitting, babysitting
• Shoveling, gardening, outdoor work
• Rides to the doctor, airport, shopping

You name it, offer it, or ask for it.

Kingston AAUW and some of our individual members have joined the Woodstock Time Exchange. (You don't have to live in Woodstock.)

You can read about the time exchange movement and/or watch the video, at the Timebank.org website.

You can read about why our AAUW branch joined on our official branch website.

You can join by going to the sign-up site. Then click on the 'find time banks' button and scroll down to Woodstock (at the bottom of the alphabetical list). Just click the various links for more info.

When asked how you heard about time banks, mention Garnette Arledge or the AAUW.

Bambino Baseball Start-Up -- Spread the Word

Looking for mentally and physically challenged children who live in Ulster or Orange County to participate in the All-American sport of baseball by being a part of the Bambino Buddy Ball Division of Marlboro’s Babe Ruth League!

The Bambino Buddy Ball Division offers mentally and physically challenged boys and girls, ages 5 through 21, the opportunity to participate in an organized game of baseball. This program helps children enjoy the full benefits of participating in an athletic environment structured to their abilities.

The Bambino Buddy Ball Division employs the use of "buddies". The buddies assist the players on the field and, whenever possible, encourage the players to bat and make plays themselves. A buddy can be any age.

For a Bambino Buddy Ball Division to exist, there must be 30 or more players.

The division will be based out of Marlboro and open to Ulster and Orange County residents. If you know someone who might be interested in this program, please have them contact Heather Troncillito by March 21, 2008 . With enough interest, she will hold an informational meeting about this wonderful program.

Let Them Play Ball!!!

Photo by B Tal

Six-Word Memoirs -- A Challenge

Fascinating! Engaging! All those superlative words you see in ads!

This morning, Visual Thesaurus (a site worth visiting if you haven't already) sent a link to this new site.

Not Quite What I Was Planning is a companion site to the book which has just been published.

Here are some examples of "six-word memoirs by writers famous & obscure."

Brush with Death;Comb with Life -- David H.
Married with children (and second thoughts). -- withheld
Sold the saxophone. Got a computer. -- Ken H.
Fifteen years of therapy for this?! -- Karen W.

Six-Word Memoirs at SMITH Magazine: "Six-Word Memoirs: The Legend

Legend has it that Hemingway was once challenged to write a story in only six words. His response? “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” Last year, SMITH Magazine re-ignited the recountre by asking our readers for their own six-word memoirs. They sent in short life stories in droves, from the bittersweet (“Cursed with cancer, blessed with friends”) and poignant (“I still make coffee for two”) to the inspirational (“Business school? Bah! Pop music? Hurrah”) and hilarious (“I like big butts, can’t lie”)."

Reading these could become addictive. Writing my own, obsessive. This is my introduction to Smith Magazine, too. Are you familiar with it?

SMITH Magazine is a home for storytelling, with a focus on personal narrative. Whether a professional or unpublished writer, we believe everyone has a story, and everyone should have a place to tell it.

Strong Women Stand Tall

A friend sent me a request to cast a vote for Nancy Kavaky, and I pass that request to vote along to you.

Nancy's husband wrote an essay nominating her for the Women's Day and National Osteoporosis Foundation 'Strong Women Stand Tall' award honoring women who live with osteoporosis and continue as a source of strength for their families, friends, and communities. She is now one of the three finalists.

Nancy lives in Rhinebeck, so clearly we feel a bit of local pride and hope you'll vote for her. But, read the three brief nominating essays yourself.

You'll find the essays and the opportunity to vote here.

Voting ends March 15, 2008, so please take the time to do it now! Nancy's friends, family, and fellow quilters at Cuddle Quilts (where they have made over 1,300 quilts for at-risk children) thank you.

Big Think - Thoughts on the Big Issues in Life

Big Think - We Are What You Think

Here's an intriguing site -- Big Think. The folks here have pulled together thousands of short video and audio clips from thinkers -- experts, professors, politicians, artists, etc. -- about a vast array of subjects. You can listen/watch them, respond, agree, disagree, and submit your own ideas.

photo by noamgalai

Celebrating New York City

Celebrating New York City

The Art of
Richard Pantell and Karen Whitman
etchings, block prints and paintings

FEB 10- MAR 2, 2008

Artists Reception: Sunday Feb 10, 1-5 PM
Hours Saturdays and Sundays 1-5PM
Free Admission

Artists Lecture: Saturday, Feb 16-2PM
280 Hisgh ST, Closter NJ
Located adjacent to the Closter Library
201-768-0286
www.belskiemuseum.com
Well known local Woodstock NY artists
and musicians.