Are We Losing the Art of Written Communication?

What do you prize the most of an ancestor's that you never met?  For me, it is letters. It is like reaching across time and having a portion of their thoughts and their handwriting, which is a physical portion of them. Many I don't have pictures for, but I have little a bit of their personality.

 For that reason, I treasure letters I have saved of aunts who wrote me when I first married.  Books written by two ancestors, Lemuel Roberts and William Bradford have been wonderful too.

What brought this to mind was some events that occurred the last week with some grandchildren.  The oldest is always on the go, so I will text her and she can text me back later.  Hmmm... not a lasting communication and usually is generic conversation.

The next to the oldest, I called.  Conversation went like this... "Hi! How are you doing?"  "Good." (Now I have to start digging to get past good...)  Once again, not great communication nor lasting.

My great great grandfather wrote a letter to his nephew that was saved and has been passed around to countless descendants.  It tells what he thought about, and what was happening with his family for us to read, savor, and glean information from.

...he put the place and date at the heading. Forgotten art of letter writing?
The Hero wrote a letter to his daughter when he arrived home after visiting with her. She still loves it now that he is gone.

After contemplating today's texty and techy world, I have decided I am going back to writing letters to my grandchildren, especially those that live over a day's ride from me. I will start putting a special message in Christmas cards for family that I communicate with in my handwriting not a computer generated message.

http://worldwidegenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/08/are-we-losing-art-of-written.html

Word War: The Difference in Meaning and Usage of Geek, Nerd, and Dork

Geeks and nerds and dorks, oh my!

This isn’t Kansas anymore, Toto, and it’s also not mid-twentieth-century America, a time and place that had the Bill Gateses and Mark Zuckerbergs of the world pegged as the walking, talking intersections of social awkwardness, poor fashion sense, highfalutin intelligence, and a strange technophilia.

The attitude towards GNDs (geeks, nerds and dorks) has changed tremendously, as have the definitions attached to the terms. The formerly caustic connotations carried by these words have been neutralized, which also means their meanings have converged and the labels themselves seem more interchangeable.

But do geek, nerd, and dork really mean the same thing these days? We decided to get to the bottom of it by undertaking a good, ol’ etymology investigation (we’re more free to be word nerds than ever, after all). Here’s what we dug up!

From Circus Freak to Geek
Derived from geck, a fourteenth-century Germanic term for court jester and later a word that came to mean “a person uncultivated; a dupe,” geek first cropped up in the United States in the early twentieth century as carnie slang.

If you want to get specific, it was used to refer to unskilled performers whose acts were shocking and repulsive. Some geeks would even bite the heads off living animals, like chickens or snakes. In short, geeks were circus freaks, and they were immortalized as such in William Lindsay Gresham’s 1946 novel Nightmare Alley.

Over time, the word became synonymous with those who were outsiders, oddballs, and eccentrics. Until the 1950s. That, according to a BBC interview with Merriam-Webster lexicographer Kory Stamper, is when the definition shifted to mean “a person often of an intellectual bent who is disliked.”

Why is not one hundred percent clear; though, many experts have suggested that it has something to do with the rampant anti-intellectualism evident in America during that time period as a result of McCarthyism. This sentiment and the idea of geeks as hated brainiacs pervaded during the ’60s—only to truly evolve after the computer boom of the ’70s and ’80s.

Once PCs (personal computers) became the talk of the town, so did the word geek as a derisive term for someone who had a deep knowledge and passion for computers and related technology.
From this point, you likely know the ending. As digital culture, social networks, and technological innovation on the whole gained momentum, geeks got cooler (or the mainstream got geekier).

After all, it became clear that people like Steve Jobs and Elon Musk, who have often been identified as geeks, were not unskilled freaks as much as powerful, rich, world-changing inventors.
Naturally, it was only right that the semantics attached to geek shift again. Nowadays, in a world where 4-year-olds can film themselves on iPhones and grandparents use the word ‘meme,’ a tech-infused life is not the exception; it’s the norm. And accordingly, this element is no longer a prerequisite for geekdom.

So, today, anyone’s who’s a knowledgeable and obsessive enthusiast is a geek, and anyone who becomes extremely excited or enthusiastic about a subject, typically one of specialist or minority interest, is geeking out.

The Revenge of the Word Nerd
If you know that “a person’s a person, no matter how small,” can imagine nothing greater than a breakfast of green eggs and ham, and would cherish the opportunity to give Cindy Lou Who (who’s no more than two) a great big hug, then you may also know where the first credible evidence of the word nerd appeared.

Yep, it’s largely accepted that the term originally popped up in Dr. Seuss’s 1950 book If I Ran the Zoo, in which Gerald McGrew imagines the incredible, exotic creatures that would populate his own extraordinary animal menagerie.

“And then, just to show them, I’ll sail to Ka-Troo, and bring back an It-Kutch, a Preep, and a Proo, a Nerkle, a Nerd, and a Seersucker too!”

In true Dr. Seuss form, the term comes with an accompanying illustration that depicts a grumpy, anxious, bizarrely hairy, black-shirted character.

Nerd
Unfortunately, few of the traits attributed to the famous author’s creation aligned with a 1951 Newsweek article’s findings about the way the word nerd was being used at the time.
According to the piece, which rounded up slang used by teenagers across the nation, “In Detroit, someone who once would be called a drip or a square is now, regrettably, a nerd, or in a less severe case, a scurve.”
Here, nerd means an indecisive, weak, old-fashioned, uncool person—a definition that largely prevailed for the twenty-five years or so that followed.

What happened next?
Happy Days, Saturday Night Live, and then Revenge of the Nerds. The sitcom, sketch comedy show, and famous 1984 movie all appropriated nerd for their own use, along the way shaping public perception of the term.
What remained after the fact was a person who was physically immature, cowed by parental authority, sexually unsuccessful, socially awkward, highly intelligent, and technologically adept. Not necessarily an equal balance, but at least a mix of good qualities and bad.

Similar to the way in which the term geek was redefined after the PC became ubiquitous, nerds inherited some good fortune when the technological tide turned.
Unlike its counterpart though, nerd was never linked so explicitly to technology, which is why many experts believe it still remains the more derogatory of the two expressions.
As a result, these days a nerd is still thought of as a socially awkward person who has an IQ higher than their weight in pounds. The difference is it’s more of an endearing title now—not a derisive one.

Dork Does Not Mean Whale Penis
The origin of dork is more shrouded in mystery than geek or nerd, but many etymologists believe the term was born from the seventeenth-century Scottish pronunciation of the word dirk, which is a long thrusting dagger.

After that point, things get a bit hazy. Dork has been traced to a variety of sources, including student slang, a 1960s poem where it appears as a synonym for penis (an extension of a dirk’s penetrating motion?), and beyond.

Regardless of which is true, dorks of the mid-twentieth century didn’t share the high intelligence and technological interest and skills of geeks and nerds. Quite the contrary, they were thought of as stupid and foolish.

Dorks also don’t have anything to do with whales, especially their penises. One quick Google search will reveal how widespread this urban legend is, but nonetheless, it still remains more myth than meaning.
What is true is that as the years have gone by, teenage slang has shifted dorks into the geek/nerd grouping based on a shared idea of social awkwardness. Likewise, the acerbic nature of its original definition has been somewhat neutralized, and now dork refers more to someone who’s a bit of a silly social misfit and who doesn’t really care what others think.

How do you identify? Tell us whether you’re a geek, nerd, or dork and why in the comment section below or via our Facebook or Twitter feeds.

Written by: Stephanie Katz is a San Francisco–based writer who, contrary to the way it may seem, won’t correct your grammar over beers, coffees or any other normal life interaction. She tells stories about health, history, travel and more and can be contacted via email at stekatz@gmail.com.

*http://www.grammarly.com/blog/2015/word-war-the-difference-in-meaning-and-usage-of-geek-nerd-and-dork/?lf&utm_campaign=GeeknessDay_15&utm_source=Facebook_org&utm_medium=content&utm_content=hyperlink

Interesting Article in Genealogy Research

* Learn Your Lineage Through Your Feet.

It's been proven that our feet can tell us many things, but did you know that our feet can tell us about our lineage? Based on this simple foot reading test we can learn our true descent


Foot reading: what your toes say about you
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/health/wellbeing/5125678/Foot-reading-what-your-toes-say-about-you.html

Your Feet: What They Look Like Gives Valuable Information
http://curingchronicpain.com/your-feet-what-they-look-like-gives-valuable-information

"Yup I'm Greek" by David Kanigan
http://davidkanigan.com/2013/04/01/yup-im-greek/

*http://www.tmgenealogy.com/2013/06/learn-your-linage-through-your-feet.html?goback=%2Egde_3762308_member_250656497#%21

NPR - Marvel's Half-Black, Half-Latino Spider-Man Is Going Mainstream

Marvel has put half-African-American, half-Latino teen Miles Morales in the Spider-Man suit.

Courtesy of Marvel

Step aside, Peter Parker: There's a new Spider-Man joining the Marvel Universe.

Since his creation in 2011, the character Miles Morales, the half-African-American, half-Latino version of Spider-Man, has occupied Marvel's Ultimate Universe — a side realm of Marvel that reimagines various superhero story lines. But after the conclusion of a massive crossover event called Secret Wars, which sees this alternate universe destroyed, Morales will be bringing his brand of web-slinging heroism to the mainstream Marvel Universe.

"It won't be [that] Miles is Spider-Man with an asterisk or some kind of adjective or adverb attached to it. He is going to be Spider-Man — just Spider-Man," says writer Brian Michael Bendis, one of the co-creators of Miles Morales. "We thought that that message was as important as anything we've ever done."

As far as its comics go, Marvel has had a string of diversity shifts recently, with changes to Captain America, Ms. Marvel and Thor. Bendis tells NPR's Arun Rath that being a part of this shift in the comics universe has been a personal journey as well; two of his four children are adopted, one African and one African-American.

Adhering to a famed Spider-Man adage — "With great power comes great responsibility" — Bendis says that with the stage he has at Marvel, it's partly his responsibility to create work that represents what he thinks the world should look like.

Some critics have said that the Marvel Cinematic Universe, or MCU, has lagged behind the comic books when it comes to diversity, pointing to the recent announcement that white actor Tom Holland would don the mantle of the rebooted on-screen version Spider-Man. Bendis is on a committee that consults on the Marvel movies, and he looks at the comparison differently.

"The changes we're making in the comics, some of them are 50 years old or older," he says, "whereas the Marvel Cinematic Universe has only been around since 2006. Even with that, there is a lot of representation going on."

Bendis cites the planned Black Panther and Captain Marvel movies as examples, as well as the black characters Falcon and War Machine playing integral parts in the MCU.

"I just think it is the beginning of what's to come," he says.

http://www.npr.org/2015/06/27/417457442/marvels-half-black-half-latino-spider-man-is-going-mainstream?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=books&utm_term=artsculture&utm_content=20150629

6 Commonly Misheard Song Lyrics

6 Commonly Misheard Song Lyrics
by Allison VanNest • April 16, 2015

You know that embarrassing moment when you’re part of a bar sing-along, and as you confidently wail gibberish lyrics to a classic song, the other patrons turn to look at and silently judge you for being totally clueless? Misheard lyrics, while hilarious, are a sure way to lose your credibility as a music lover. Help prevent a friend or even yourself from ruining a sing-along to a classic hit by finally learning the real lyrics to these often misquoted hits.

“Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix
Image via Flickr by mirjoran
This is one of Jimi Hendrix’s most famous compositions. However, it also contains one of the most commonly misheard lyric lines in history, “… ‘scuse me while I kiss the sky,” which countless listeners have heard as, “…’scuse me while I kiss this guy.” In fact, this misquote is so ubiquitous, it’s the name of a website devoted to misheard song lyrics.

“Tiny Dancer” by Elton John
One of the funniest and strangest misheard lyrics of all time comes from Elton John’s “Tiny Dancer.” While the music was composed by Sir Elton, the lyrics were written by songwriter Bernie Taupin, who based the title line, “… hold me closer, tiny dancer” on his then-girlfriend. She was a dancer, not a 1980s sitcom star, as suggested by the popular misquote, “… hold me closer, Tony Danza.”

“Royals” by Lorde
Lorde’s Grammy-winning single “Royals” put her at the forefront of American pop music. However, the lyrics of this song have earned a bit more than top-level music recognition. The line, “Let me be your ruler, you can call me queen bee” is the source of one of the funniest musical malapropisms in recent memory. For some, royalty is not about being “queen bee,” but about being a “green bean.”

“Drunk in Love” by Beyoncé
The true Queen B, Beyoncé, churns out so many hits that it’s difficult to keep up with her newest chart-toppers. “Drunk in Love” is one of her biggest in recent memory. Being such a popular club song, the lyrics “I’ve been drinking, I’ve been drinking…” kept club-goers partying all night long. However, some seem to believe that Beyoncé is a bit of a Game of Thrones fan, as “I’m a dragon, I’m a dragon…” is commonly heard in place of the real lyrics.

“Because of You” by Kelly Clarkson
America’s first American Idol, Kelly Clarkson, is one of the few winning Idols to have a legitimate music career, and it all began with her first big hit, “Because of You.” Kelly reassured listeners that, “Because of you, I never stray too far from the sidewalk,” but many buffet enthusiasts seem only to hear “Because of you, I never stray too far from the salad bowl.”

“Have You Ever Seen the Rain?” by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Creedence Clearwater Revival is the quintessential classic American rock and roll band, and the famously misinterpreted lyrics in their hit song “Have You Ever Seen the Rain” are equally iconic and memorable. The real lyrics say, “It will rain a sunny day; I know, shinin’ down like water,” but the admittedly anachronistic misheard lyrics go a little something like, “It will rain of Sunny-D; I know, China don’t like water.”

While these are some of the more hilarious misheard lyrics out there, we all know that there are countless songs with even more twisted and hilarious translations. Which of these are you most excited to correct your friends and family about next time you hear them belt out the wrong words?

http://www.grammarly.com/blog/2015/6-commonly-misheard-song-lyrics/?lf&utm_campaign=Blog_Augment_1&utm_source=Facebook_org&utm_medium=link_post

5 Amazing Library Facts

*5 Amazing Library Facts
by Ann Edwards • April 17, 2015

We know that libraries are portals to amazing knowledge and insight, but libraries themselves are also pretty amazing. Here are 5 facts about libraries that will amaze you.

1. According to the American Library Association, 58% of adults in the United States have a library card.
2. The Library of Congress is the world’s largest library. It contains over 160 million items!
3. According to the American Library Association, students in the United States make 1.5 billion visits to school libraries during the school year.
4. The highest library in the world is in Shanghai, China, 60 floors (over 757 feet) above street level.
5. The largest overdue fine for a library book was $345.14. The book was 47 years overdue!

*http://www.grammarly.com/blog/2015/5-amazing-library-facts/?sf&utm_campaign=Blog_Augment_1&utm_source=Facebook_org&utm_medium=link_post

John Updike's Home to Open as Museum

*By William Ecenbarger, For The Inquirer
POSTED: August 08, 2014
 SHILLINGTON, Pa. - With a fresh coat of white paint and a green moat of surgically cropped lawn, the house where John Updike grew into adolescence sits prettily along a busy road in this suburb of Reading.

But inside is the detritus of renovation-in-progress - bare floorboards, stripped walls, paint cans, bent nails, wood splinters, patches of wallpaper - covered in dust.

"These things take time," sighs Maria Mogford, curator of the John Updike Childhood Home. "We wanted it to be ready this fall, but ... it has a way to go."

When it opens, probably next year, the site will join childhood residences-turned-museums of other famed American authors. Mark Twain is forever linked to Hannibal, Mo.; William Faulkner to Oxford, Miss.; Emily Dickinson to Amherst, Mass. But in one respect, the building at 117 Philadelphia Ave. will stand out.

More than any other American writer, Updike made his first home an ongoing setting, in intricate detail, for his 61 volumes of novels, short stories, poems, and essays. The house, where he lived with his parents and a grandparent and where he said his "artistic eggs were hatched," was also where many of his last stories are set.

"He said if he ever had a ghost, it would haunt this house," says Mogford, an English professor at nearby Albright College.

She points to two living-room windows: "He describes in at least three short stories how the family Christmas tree was placed between those two windows."

She steps into the dining room. "Right in the middle was a table," Mogford says, "and he used to curl up under it and read or draw."

Indeed, the 12-year-old Updike hid here on the day the family moved from the house in 1945, at his mother's insistence, to a farm about 11 miles away. For the rest of his life, through his fiction, essays, and poetry, Updike expressed bitterness at his mother's determination to leave the Shillington house.

Through a character in a short story, he called it "the crucial detachment of his life." Fifty years later, in another story, he said he "saw his entire life ... as an errant encircling of this forgotten center."

The John Updike Society, formed a few months after the author died in 2009, bought the house two years ago from an advertising agency that had occupied it. The group paid $180,000 for the property and expects to spend from $250,000 to $300,000 - with help from donors - to refurbish it.

Mogford says the museum won't have an adverse impact on Shillington - a one-square-mile borough, with a population of about 5,300 - because access to the home will be by appointment only on limited hours and days.

Updike drew material from other homes in the United Kingdom, New York City, and Massachusetts, but Shillington remained the richest source of his imagination throughout a half-century of writing that earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, the National Book Award, and many other accolades. His Shillington stories are written in rich, descriptive, lyrical language, and contain precisely remembered details from his childhood.

In his widely praised new biography of the writer, Adam Begley wrote: "For Linda Updike to regain her childhood paradise, her son had to relinquish his. In a letter she sent to him on the fifth anniversary of the move, Updike's mother wrote: 'If I had known then how much you hated to leave that house, I might not have had the courage to go.' My guess is that she would not, in fact, have found that courage."

Mogford points to a stained-glass window above the front door - "that's original" - then her finger drops to the mail slot. "So is that, and in one of his stories, he remembers sitting under the slot and letting the mail hit him as it was delivered by the postman."

Sunlight butters the bare floor of a second-story room that served as a studio for Linda Updike. "My mother dreamed of being a writer, and I used to see her type in the front room," Updike wrote in "The Dogwood Tree," an autobiographical essay published in 1963. "The front room is also where I would go when I was sick, so I would sit there and watch her."

The kitchen is empty save for a modern electric range, but Updike recalled the room "with its linoleum floor and wooden icebox and soap-smelling stone sink. The kitchen smelled of vanilla, cinnamon, and shredded coconut in its glass-fronted cabinets, and of the oilcloth on the little table where we ate, I seated at a corner that prodded me in the stomach."

The kitchen door leads to a side porch where, the author said, "I would play by myself or with others - setting up grocery stores out of orange crates and crayoned paper fruit" and that he described as "one of my favorite places in the world."

In the side yard is a dogwood tree planted by the Updikes in 1933 to commemorate his first birthday - and that he memorialized in the essay title 30 years later.

"We took a seedling from the tree this spring that we can plant and, in a way, keep it alive," says Mogford. "It's now 81 years old, and we don't know how much longer it will last. We also pruned it, and a local artist is making pens and jewelry out of the trimmings that we will sell in the gift shop."

Though it's currently unoccupied and no longer part of the Updike property, the two-story chicken coop is still there. Updike used the image of a chicken house dozens of times in his writing. His grandmother used to behead the birds, and Updike wrote of "the bloody stump" and "the frightened and stupid chickens, the vegetable garden that always needed weeding."

The society is seeking donations to restore the house to the way it would have looked during the Updikes' ownership.

As a national literary landmark, the Updike home, built around 1900, will attract scholars from around the world, but Mogford adds: "There are a lot of Updike fans out there - regular people who have read all his books several times. They'll be coming for sure."

Some may have already been. The society has held a biennial conference since forming and expects more than 200 when it meets again in October in Reading. Begley, Updike's biographer, is scheduled to speak, as is David Updike, the author's son, who is a fiction writer. The event will also include a picnic at the Philadelphia Avenue house and a walking tour of Shillington.

The town may already be a magnet because Updike insistently translated his own family and the geography of his youth into his literature. In his early novels, The Centaur, Of the Farm, and Poorhouse Fair, and in dozens of short stories, Updike has made himself, through different voices and physiognomies, his own chief character.

He has made his readers intimately familiar with his parents and his two boyhood homes. Shillington is Olinger in Updike's fiction; Plowville, Pa., where he moved when he was 12, is Firetown; and Reading, the closest city, is Alton or Brewer.

But Shillington was the most powerful influence on his writing. In one of his last poems, written a few weeks before he died and when he knew he was terminally ill, he thanks his childhood friends "for providing a / sufficiency of human types: beauty / bully, hanger-on, natural / twin and fatso - all a writer needs, / all there in Shillington."

william.ecenbarger@gmail.com

*http://articles.philly.com/2014-08-08/news/52560943_1_shillington-stories-advertising-agency

7 Homophone Mistakes to Avoid

*by Allison VanNest • March 27, 2015    

When you’re speaking out loud, homophones sound alike, but when you’re writing them out, it’s a different story. Though they have the same pronunciation, homophones have slightly different spellings and totally different definitions. Since using the wrong one can completely change the meaning of your statement, it’s important to make sure you have the right word in mind. Here are seven homophone mistakes to avoid.

Than vs. Then
Despite their single letter of difference, misusing “than” and “then” can change a statement completely. “Than” is the word to use in a comparative statement, like “You’re a better writer today than you were yesterday.” Use “then” when describing a sequence of events, like “Write a good sentence, and then compose a great paragraph.”

To vs. Too
While “to” and “too” sound the same, remember that the former is a preposition, while the latter is an adverb. “To” typically means “toward,” while “too” can either mean “excessively” or “also.” For example, you could say, “When you go to the beach, take me too.”

Your vs. You’re
Though it’s a common mistake, using the wrong version of this word can make your writing look sloppy. “Your” is always a possessive pronoun, so when you use this word, be sure you’re declaring ownership. For instance, you could say, “your book” or “your professional writing sample.” “You’re,” on the other hand, is a contraction of the words “you” and “are.” When using this word, check yourself by reading it with the words “you are” in place of the contraction to make sure it makes sense.

Threw vs. Through
“Threw” and “through” may be different parts of speech, but they can be tough to keep straight. The first work in this homophone pair is the past tense of the verb “throw,” or the act of tossing something in the air. “Through,” however, is an adverb that implies movement through space or time. You could say, for instance, “The pitcher threw the baseball through the air like a pro.”

Stationary vs. Stationery
Many writers confuse these homophones, since the only spelling difference is a single vowel towards the end of the word. “Stationary” and “stationery,” however, have very different meanings. “Stationary” refers to standing still, while “stationery” refers to cards, paper, or other writing materials. Your stationery may be stationary, but never the other way around.

Seas vs. Sees vs. Seize
As if two homophones weren’t enough, you will find three spellings of this sound-alike. “Seas” is a noun that describes oceans and other large bodies of water, while the verb “sees” refers to looking or observing. Finally, “seize” means to take control. “She sees the opposing forces seize the seas” demonstrates the unique meaning of all three.

There vs. Their vs. They’re
You’ll also find three of these tricky homophones. “There” refers to a general location or distance. When describing where you parked your car, for instance, you might say, “My car is in the parking lot over there.” “Their” serves as a possessive form for more than one person. When referring to the vehicles belonging to a group of people, for example, you would say, “their cars.”

Finally, “they’re” is a contraction of the words “they” and “are.” Whenever you use this term, make sure that what you really mean is “they are.” For instance, you could say, “They’re parking.” If you’re really ready to show off your knowledge of homophones, try out the statement, “They’re parking their car in that lot over there.”
Homophones may sound the same, but their meanings are very different when you use them in writing. Study up on which words you need to use, and when, as many spelling and grammar checkers cannot correct for words that are spelled correctly but used wrong. (Lucky for you Grammarly can!)

What’s your biggest homophone mistake?

*http://www.grammarly.com/blog/2015/7-homophone-mistakes-to-avoid/?preview=true&preview_id=12431&preview_nonce=eccd29efa4

11 Books That Were Banned for Completely Ridiculous Reasons

*Posted by Chrissie Gruebel × September 24, 2014

Happy Banned Books Week! In honor of this glorious celebration of our freedom to read what we want, let’s pause for a sec and remember there are people out there still trying to take this freedom away for dumb reasons like not wanting their kids to read the word “nipple.”

Actually, now that we think of it…it’s kinda quaint that people still think they can ban books at all, right? It’s the most ineffective power trip in the world! The U.S. government can’t even keep their top-secret spy stuff from the public—how does anyone expect to keep The Adventures of Captain Underpants away from a kid who is basically made out of internet?

So let’s all get together and laugh in the face of censorship. Here’s a list of books that were banned and/or challenged based on…well, based on basically nothing.

Harriet the Spy, by Louise Fitzhugh
Why: Because she SPIES (and lies and curses and sets a bad example for kids or whatever)—basically, because she does exactly what Louise Fitzhugh promises in the title. If anything, this is a lesson in honesty and truth in advertising. She could’ve called it Harriet, the Perfect Child but she didn’t, did she? Plus, show us an 11-year-old who isn’t lying and spying and making mischief from time to time, and we’ll show you that this 11-year-old is a cyborg in human skin.

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, by Judy Blume
Why: They called it “sexually offensive,” “immoral,” and “profane,” but let’s be honest here: the real answer is “TOO MUCH PERIOD.” Hey, tween gals on the cusp of lady-dom? Don’t panic! Don’t panic even though you live in a world where no one likes to acknowledge that this happens to you! Forget Judy Blume and turn your attention toward these tampon commercials where women do nothing but turn cartwheels on a beach. Yeah. Thiiiiis is reality. Shhh.

Where’s Waldo, by Martin Handford
Why: Side boob. Seriously. Yes. In this hot mess of a book that’s supposed to make it difficult for you to find anything, someone managed to pick out an errant side boob in the beach scene of the 1987 version. Because, per usual, women’s bodies—even the cartoon ones—ruin everything and start wars and stuff. Avert your eyes forever.

Little Red Riding Hood, by Brothers Grimm
Why: In the 1987 version, which was adapted from the original fairy tale, Little Red Riding Hood was shown carrying a bottle of wine in her basket. But, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, we ask you this: What’s honestly the most disturbing thing about Little Red Riding Hood? Is it the fact that there’s a sentient wolf in her grandma’s pajamas? The fact that said wolf probably mauled said grandma to death? Oh, it’s the WINE? Really? Not the fact that the Brothers Grimm were always setting up scenarios where children might get eaten? Ok, as long as you’re sure. Glad everyone has their priorities straight.

Where the Sidewalk Ends, by Shel Silverstein
Why: The only reason there could possibly be: promoting cannibalism, which is something we all remember from our childhoods, right? Shel Silverstein wanted us to eat other humans. Oh, and some people who really care about their plates also got mad because Shel told kids to break dishes instead of washing them, and we have to keep our little indentured servants in line, right? We can’t have a bunch of whimsical poetry giving them any ideas.

The Grapes of Wrath, by John Steinbeck
Why: Vulgar language—but we kinda understand this one because, as all historical documents indicate, the Great Depression was named in jest.
In reality, it was a time of widespread singing and dancing and feasts. Everyone had a really great time. So Steinbeck got it wrong with all that tenant farming and unemployment and hardship. It’s just not accurate. Why would anyone need vulgar language when the world was so awesome?

Other good ones:
• The Catcher in the Rye, by J.D. Salinger: Pornographic.
• My Friend Flicka, by Mary O’Hara: Uses the word “bitch” to describe a female dog when we ALL KNOW what the word “bitch” is really for.
• The Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank: “Too depressing” in one case, and in another case, she talked about genitals for a second and people got mad.
• Lord of the Flies, by William Golding: Implies that man is nothing more than an animal (as in, the point of the whole book).
• Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, by Bill Martin Jr.: Banned because an author with the same name as this book’s author (Bill Martin, no relation)—who, to be clear,  is an entirely different person—was a Marxist who wrote a different book about Marxism and people don’t know how to check their facts.

What books do you love that were banned for silly reasons?

*http://www.barnesandnoble.com/blog/11-books-that-were-banned-for-completely-ridiculous-reasons/

10 Things Mark Twain Didn't Really Say

*Samuel Langhorne Clemens provided us with some of the best quips ever. But he's also one of the most misquoted men of all time. Here are 10 quotes Mark Twain likely never uttered, despite popular belief.

1. “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.” It has also been attributed to Agatha Christie. Neither source can be verified.
He DID say: “Never put off till tomorrow what may be done day after tomorrow just as well.”

2. “Be careful about reading health books. You may die of a misprint.”
He DID say: “A successful book is not made of what is in it, but of what is left out of it.”

3. “Censorship is telling a man he can't have a steak just because a baby can't chew it.”

He DID say: “When a Library expels a book of mine and leaves an unexpurgated Bible lying around where unprotected youth and age can get hold of it, the deep unconscious irony of it delights me and doesn't anger me.”

4. “Everybody talks about the weather, but nobody does anything about it.”

He DID say: “I reverently believe that the Maker who made us all makes everything in New England but the weather. I don't know who makes that, but I think it must be raw apprentices in the weather-clerk's factory who experiment and learn how, in New England, for board and clothes, and then are promoted to make weather for countries that require a good article, and will take their custom elsewhere if they don't get it.”

5. “I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.” This was actually written by Blaise Pascal.

He DID say: “We write frankly and fearlessly but then we "modify" before we print.”

6. “The coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco.”

He DID say: “Cold! If the thermometer had been an inch longer we'd all have frozen to death.”

7. “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” Twain himself denied inventing this quote, and claimed Benjamin Disraeli was the one who created it. It is thanks to Twain, however, that the saying became popular in the U.S.

He DID say: “Yes, even I am dishonest. Not in many ways, but in some. Forty-one, I think it is.”

8. “It is better to keep your mouth shut and appear stupid than to open it and remove all doubt.”

He DID say: “[He] was endowed with a stupidity which by the least little stretch would go around the globe four times and tie.”

9. “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do.”

He DID say: “One cannot have everything the way he would like it. A man has no business to be depressed by a disappointment, anyway; he ought to make up his mind to get even.”

10. “Whiskey is for drinking. Water is for fighting over.”

He DID say: “Water is an individual, an animal, and is alive, remove the hydrogen and it is an animal and is alive; the remaining oxygen is also an individual, an animal, and is alive. Recapitulation: the two individuals combined, constitute a third individual--and yet each continues to be an individual....here was mute Nature explaining the sublime mystery of the Trinity so luminously that even the commonest understanding could comprehend it, whereas many a trained master of words had labored to do it with speech and failed.”

Thanks to TwainQuotes for many of these. Do you have any favorite Twain quotes (or misquotes) to add?

*http://mentalfloss.com/article/29372/10-things-mark-twain-didnt-really-say

Book Titles from Shakespeare

*Book Titles from Shakespeare

by Maeve Maddox

... It is a new millennium. Shakespeare has enjoyed a 450-year popularity. Maybe it is time to remove his work from the general curriculum. Twelve years of public education do not necessarily equate to what used to be an adult level of literacy. I’ve encountered college freshman who thought the writing of George Orwell was couched in “a redundant tongue” that took “quite a bit of concentration to understand.” Students who have trouble with Orwell are certainly going to be flummoxed by Shakespeare.

Still, writers of the past knew their Shakespeare. Here are some titles drawn from the plays. Can you spot the play that the title comes from?

1. The Moon Is Down, John Steinbeck
2. Gaudy Night, Dorothy Sayers
3. Under the Greenwood Tree, Thomas Hardy
4 And Be a Villain, Rex Stout
5 Something Wicked This Way Comes, Ray Bradbury
6 Pale Fire, Vladimir Nabokov
7 Band of Brothers, Stephen Ambrose
8 The Dogs of War, Frederick Forsyth
9 There is a Tide, Agatha Christie
10 By the Pricking of My Thumbs, Agatha Chrstie
11 Not in Our Stars, M. M. Marshall
12 Chimes at Midnight, Terence White
13 The Mousetrap, Agatha Christie
14 Twice-Told Tales, Nathaniel Hawthorne
15 A Muse of Fire, A.D. Harvey
16 Strange Snow, Steve Metcalfe
17 Walk the Night, Robert C. Reinhart
18 A Plague on Both Your Houses, Robert. W. Whitaker
19 The Sound and the Fury, William Faulkner
20 “Dagger of the Mind,” Star Trek episode

*http://www.dailywritingtips.com/book-titles-from-shakespeare/

Genealogy Article

*101 Best Genealogy Websites of 2014
7/28/2014
By David A. Fryxell

Whether you're a family history newcomer or a seasoned ancestry sleuth, our 15th annual collection of the best genealogy sites on the web can help enrich your genealogical research. Take a look to see which sites made this year's list.

Times flies when you’re having fun researching your family history. It’s hard to believe, but this is our 15th annual installment of the 101 Best Websites for genealogy research. (If you do the math, that’s 1,515 total website write-ups, though of course many honorees repeat from year to year.)

To celebrate the occasion, we’ve broken this year’s roster of outstanding websites into 15 categories—which also makes it easy for you to zoom in on the type of site you’re looking to explore, from social media sites to maps to state or foreign databases.
As before, in the list that follows, we’ve indicated with a $ symbol sites that require a subscription or other payment to access the core content; mostly free sites that also offer paid premium services don’t carry the $ sign.

Click the category below to see the best websites from that category:
Best Big Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-big-genealogy-websites-2014

Best US Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-us-genealogy-websites-2014

Best Military Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-military-genealogy-websites-2014

Best Social Media Websites for Genealogy
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-social-media-websites-2014v

Best Mapping Websites for Genealogy
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-mapping-websites-2014

Best Genealogy News Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-genealogy-news-websites-2014

Best Tech Tools for Genealogy
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-tech-tools-2014

Best Canadian Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-canadian-genealogy-websites-2014

Best Historic Newspapers Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-historic-newspapers-websites-2014

Best Websites for Vital Records
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-vital-records-websites-2014

Best African-American Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-african-american-genealogy-websites-2014

Best State Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-state-genealogy-websites-2014

Best Websites for Immigrant Research
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-genealogy-websites-for-tracing-immigrants-2014

Best UK & Irish Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-british-and-irish-genealogy-websites-2014

 Best  Continental European Genealogy Websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/best-continental-european-genealogy-websites-2014


More Online
Free Web Content

Best genealogy websites for beginners
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/25-best-genealogy-websites-for-beginners

Best state research websites
http://familytreemagazine.com/article/75-best-state-sites-2013

Improving your Google search
 http://familytreemagazine.com/article/tech-tips-google-search

More...
*http://familytreemagazine.com/article/101-best-websites-2014

5 Costly Financial Aid Mistakes Community College Students Make

Community college students who don't apply for scholarships
and financial aid may be missing out on thousands of dollars in tuition assistance.

*Loading up on classes to qualify for more student loans sets students up for failure, experts say.

By Kelsey Sheehy June 24, 2014 | 10:30 a.m.

Financial aid helps put college within reach for millions of students, but a few common mistakes and misconceptions can cost students thousands.

Community college students, who are more likely to be first-generation students and less likely to have college counseling before enrolling, are more susceptible to these errors.

Experts at community colleges and college counseling centers say these five mistakes are ones students often make on the road to financial aid.

[Find two-year schools in your state with the U.S. News Community College Directory.]

1. Procrastinating: The Free Application for Federal Student Aid, or FAFSA, is available Jan. 1, but students often don’t apply until the last minute, says Matt Falduto, director of one stop student services at Kirkwood Community College in Iowa.

"So many students wait way up until a month before classes start, and that just doesn’t give them enough time to complete the process and make sure everything is in place before the semester starts," he says.

Students who put off applying could also miss out on certain grants and scholarships that are awarded on a first-come, first-served basis, he says.

"The timing is really crucial," he says. "They really need to get a jump on it ahead of time."

2. Not applying for aid: "Many community college students, especially nontraditional students, don’t take the time to apply for financial aid," says David Metz, director of financial aid at Columbus State Community College in Ohio.

Often, students simply don’t know financial aid is an option, or they think they won’t qualify because of their income.

More than 60 percent of full-time community college students worked at least part time during the 2011-2012 school year, according to the American Association of Community Colleges. That figure jumped to nearly 75 percent for part-time students, who accounted for 60 percent of all community college students in fall 2012.

Students who forgo the FAFSA could miss out on state and federal grants – which don’t need to be paid back. They may also miss out on low-interest loans that offer repayment protections rarely available with private bank loans.

[Learn how to avoid common FAFSA mistakes.]

3. Overlooking scholarships: Bypassing free money is rarely a wise move, yet many community college students do so on a regular basis, says Paula Dofat, director of college counseling at the Baltimore Leadership School for Young Women, an all-female charter school that focuses on math, science and technology.

"Students don’t realize that there are numerous scholarships offered by their community college," Dofat says. "Usually it's just a matter of submitting a one-page essay and an unofficial copy of their transcript and thousands of dollars may become available to them."

Howard Community College in Maryland, for example, awarded just over $1.3 million in institutional grants and scholarships to students during the 2013 fiscal year, which students could use to cover tuition, books and transportation costs. The school plans to award an additional $2.5 million in grants and scholarships this fall, thanks to an influx of funding from the Howard County government, says Elizabeth Homan, with the school.

4. Borrowing too much: Community colleges are significantly less expensive than four-year universities, but students often borrow more than they have to.

Average annual tuition and fees for students attending public, two-year colleges in their communities were just $3,260 in 2013-2014, compared with nearly $8,900 for those enrolled as in-state students at four-year public universities, according to the American Association of Community Colleges' annual fact sheet.

[Get advice on how to maximize your savings while attending a community college.]

The lower cost, coupled with the fact that a majority of students are only enrolled part time, means students may be able to foot the bill for at least part of their education as they go.

* http://www.usnews.com/education/community-colleges/paying/articles/2014/06/24/5-costly-financial-aid-mistakes-community-college-students-make

Top 10 Spiritual Episodes of ‘The Waltons

It’s rare for John Walton to enter a church, but he goes there when his youngest daughter Elizabeth is afflicted with a handicap. The negotiation and balance between John’s more universal spiritualism and his wife Olivia’s traditional Baptist religion is at the center of the show. (Photo courtesy CBS, Illustrated Waltons Episodes)


Top 10 Spiritual Episodes of ‘The Waltons’
by John A. Zukowski
January 21, 2014

Don’t categorize ‘The Waltons’ as a rural melodrama. It was Depression-era realism. And the combination of religion and spirituality was groundbreaking.

For many years, there wasn’t much religion or spirituality on TV shows.

Other than occasional references about going to church — and a few lightweight oddities like “The Flying Nun” –religion wasn’t depicted on TV shows often for about two decades. But two landmark shows in the 1970s changed that.

One was “Kung Fu.” The show about the Taoist monk Caine (David Carradine) journeying through the American West was a hit partly because of a Bruce Lee-induced karate fad. But along with the popular end-of-show fight scenes, it introduced Eastern religion to middle America.

The other important TV show was “The Waltons” which featured religion regularly. It was a combination of cultural Southern Baptist religion, New Deal-inspired Social Gospel and universal spirituality.

I don’t know why “The Waltons” has a reputation in some circles as a lightweight show. It’s far from that. The Depression-era realism makes it one of the great television dramas — at least in the first six seasons. (The seventh season had a few good episodes, but by seasons eight and nine too many of the main characters had left the show — which ruined its chemistry).

On one level the show was strong because of its multiple coming of age stories. The children were always in some phase of spiritual and moral development. And the large cast gave the show a wider and deeper presentation of viewpoints.

To see all of the Top 10 Spiritual Episodes of ‘The Waltons’ go to the web page...

- See more at: http://spiritualpopculture.com/top-10-spiritual-episodes-waltons/#sthash.dLm3oDXL.dpuf

A Floating Library on The Hudson River

* SEPTEMBER 6, 2014 – OCTOBER 3, 2014
ABOARD THE LILAC MUSEUM STEAMSHIP

The Floating Library is a pop-up, mobile device-free public space aboard the historic Lilac Museum Steamship berthed at Pier 25 on the Hudson River in New York City for September 6- October 3, 2014.

The people-powered library is initiated by artist Beatrice Glow and brings together over seventy participants to fortify a space for critical cultural production by pushing boundaries under the open skies that are conducive to fearless dreaming.

The ship’s main deck will be transformed into an outdoor reading lounge to offer library visitors a range of reading materials from underrepresented authors, artist books, poetry, manifestoes, as well as book collection, that, at the end of the lifecycle of the project, will be donated to local high school students with demonstrated need. Ongoing art installations include a Listening Room that will feature new works by six sound artists in response to literature, site-specific paper rope swings, The Line, by Amanda Thackray, and Leading Lights by Katarina Jerinic in the Pilot House.

During this action-packed month, there is free public programming with over twenty roundtables, performances and workshops that will shine a spotlight on maker culture, DIY politics, sustainability issues and community engagement.Some highlights include bookmaking with Center for Book Arts and Small Editions, a modular furniture building workshop with Reid Bingham, live recording session with HeritageRadioNetwork, a Sensory Walk Workshop with the Movement Party, Lighght Reading with Ugly Duckling Presse, a multimedia sound performance by Pauchi Sasaki in the Petty Officer’s Room – a space akin to being inside the belly of a whale—, and SeaChange: We All Live Downstream ( a participatory voyage initiated by Mare Liberum and 350.org) will disembark onboard for three days of office hours after traveling for three-weeks on small boats made of paper connecting climate change activists along the Hudson.

Through collective placemaking, the Floating Library intends to recodify how we occupy public spaces by bringing activities that are typically confined within privileged institutional walls— such as reading, writing, researching, questioning and debating—to open space. Resituating these activities to the public sphere is a proposal to dismantle the unequal distribution of knowledge/power. Given the Lilac is America's only surviving steam-powered lighthouse tender and is undergoing restoration, orchestrating the Floating Library aboard an industrial archaeological artifact draws parallels with the balancing act we collectively perform to navigate uncertain times and shifting currents. The project intends to catalyze cultural momentum and foment future coalitions between artists, visionaries, cultural activists and scholars that will outlive the temporary library structure.

While libraries are temples to worship ideas and knowledge production, they have also contributed to social stratification as print culture invented the literate class that possesses esoteric knowledge/power. The Floating Library hopes to catalyze the dismantling of this hierarchy by making education more accessible through free workshops and roundtables that encourage horizontal exchange, stretch the social imagination, and cultivate a public space dedicated to scholarship. The library will engage the public as a laboratory that brainstorms, identifies, develops and experiments with modalities to activate art and education as progressive research for socio-political transformation.

Historically, coffee houses and salons have served as rehearsal spaces for intellectual and cultural movements. Yet, in New York we have lost such places where one can read or converse without loud music, a customer carrying on a phone conversation aloud, and keyboard chatter. Public green spaces are going extinct. Reading on the subway is claustrophobic. Our apartments are chicken coops. We have the Public Library, but the indoor space regulates and censors our behavior and thoughts. Given this dilemma, Floating Library intervenes as an expanded site for participatory practice and civic engagement. It is an antidote to the disappearance of mental and physical space in the increasingly urbanized and cyberized world.

To enjoy this unplugged zone, library visitors will power-off their mobile devices and vow to respect quiet space. There will also be designated spaces for Reading, Writing & Drawing, Dialogue, Scanning, and Listening. The ship’s main deck will host a quiet reading ambience. Readers can BYOB (Bring Your Own Book) or browse the library.

The library afloat on water is always on the verge to sail into the distance just as books contain the magic to transport our minds to unknown terrains. A reader is a dreamer/traveler/pirate as to open a book is to embark on an adventure into the wider world as well as dive deeper into oneself. Given this, the Floating Library celebrates boats and books to map a path towards a waking life, self-organization, citizen autonomy and fertile imagination.

This work was made possible, in part, by the Lilac Preservation Project and the Franklin Furnace Fund supported by Jerome Foundation; the Lambent Foundation, The SHS Foundation, and by public funds from the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council.


ACCESSIBILITY: The Floating Library is taking place aboard the Lilac Museum Steamship, an industrial archaeological artifact, berthed at Pier 25 on the Hudson River. Although we intend to make our public programming as accessible as possible, we are limited by the space, therefore event attendance will be admitted on a first come first serve basis.

Please also remember that you will be entering a ship undergoing restoration. Wear comfortable shoes that you can climb ladders in and watch out for low overheads and for trip hazards.

PHONE POLICY: The Floating Library is a mobile device-free zone to encourage visitors to be more engaged with their surroundings.   Power off your phone when boarding and respect the quiet space.

*http://www.floatinglibrary.org/

Job Search - 14 Illegal interview Questions

Can an Interviewer ask if you're pregnat? 14 Illegal interview questions you should know.
 By Amanda Chatel @angerchatel

Trying to get a new job is no easy feat. And because scouring the Internet for that one perfect position isn’t hard enough, there’s also the whole interview process to worry about. Not only do you have to contend with the possibility of feeling forced to answer a question that’s illegal (we’ll get to that in second), but we women also have to deal with potential discrimination, simply because we’re women.

Studies show that when given the choice between hiring a woman of “childbearing age” or a man of the same age, a third of managers are going to choose men. Because why hire a woman who might want to have a child in a couple years when you can hire a dude who, if he and his partner have kids, will only be taking a mere week for paternity leave?

A recent survey of 500 managers by law firm Slater & Gordon found other alarming facts, too. Forty-four percent felt that hiring women was a “significant concern” due to the financial toll that maternity leave can have on a company (because all women want to have kids, of course). Even worse? “A third of managers claim that women are not as good at their jobs when they come back from maternity leave.”

Not hiring someone on the off chance that they may or may not have a child someday absurd. It is also very illegal.

Although some interview questions are obviously illegal, like being questioned about your ethnicity or sexual orientation, others can seem totally legit — especially if you have a nice banter going with your interviewer. But it’s crucial to know that you are not under any obligation to answer certain questions.

So the next time you go into an interview, be on the look out for these questions. You’ll know the question is illegal if you’re asked…

WHAT’S YOUR MARITAL STATUS?

You can’t even be asked if your last name is your maiden name or not. They can ask if you’ve worked or earned a degree under another name, but whether you’re single, engaged, married, or in a polyamorous relationship with 15 people, it’s none of their business.

ARE YOU PREGNANT OR DO YOU HAVE KIDS?

Totally illegal to ask.

WHAT’S YOUR FIRST LANGUAGE?

In their dreams is right. It doesn’t matter if you have the thickest accent in the world, you can’t be asked what your first language is, nor can you be asked what country you’re from, or how long you’ve lived in the States. They can ask you ”What languages do you read, speak or write fluently?,” so if you offer up where you’re from on your own, then that’s on you.

DO YOU GET SICK ALOT?

Even if your past or current illnesses directly affect your job, your medical history is not up for discussion. However, you can be asked if you’re ”able to perform the essential functions of this job with or without reasonable accommodations?” (That’s how they get around straight-up asking if you’re at death’s door and won’t be around for your three-month review.)

HAVE YOU EVER DONE DRUGS OR HAD A DRINKING PROBLEM?

OK, this one is a little tricky. Companies can’t ask about your past drug use, but they can ask if you currently use drugs, and what those drugs are. The reason for this is that the Americans With Disabilities Act only protects past drug use. In addition to the drug thing, potential employers also can’t ask if you drink, even socially, because that also violates Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990. How? Because if you’re a recovering alcoholic, that’s part of your medical history.

WHICH RELIGIOUS HOLIDAYS DO YOU CELEBRATE?

You might think they’re inviting you to the Christmas party early, but this question actually reveals your religion, and it’s illegal to ask about that in a job interview.

WHAT’S YOUR CREDIT SCORE?

I wish I knew this one before a past job looked into my credit score and saw a big, fat zero, but I digress. If an employer wants to know how in debt you are or just how perfect your credit score is, they’ll have to ask permission first. Not only are they not allowed to ask about your spending habits, but they can’t ask if you own property, how many bank accounts you have, or whether or not you’re proficient in balancing your personal finances.

HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ARRESTED?

Although you can be asked if you’ve been convicted of a crime, you can’t be asked if you’ve been arrested. Granted, you need to be arrested before you can be convicted, but that’s just how the law rolls.

WHY WERE YOU DISCHARGED FROM THE MILITARY?

The feeling here is if a soldier is dishonorably discharged, it shouldn’t stand in the way of them getting a job. However, interviewers can ask about education, training, and even where you were stationed.

HOW TALL ARE YOU?

No matter how tiny you look, no one gets to ask you specifics about your height or weight. If something’s out of reach and your height is a concern, you can just remind them that step stools exist for a reason.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WORKING?

They might be able to tell based on when you graduated, but age is also not a topic they can ask you about. When people ask how long you’ve been working, with some quick math, they can easily figure out, roughly, your age.

DO YOU LIVE NEAR THE OFFICE?

Yes, your address is on your resume, but that still doesn’t give anyone interviewing you the OK to ask the details about where you live. If they’re really interested, they can Google it later.

WHO’S YOUR EMERGENCY CONTACT?

As I’m sure you’ve noticed, applications for jobs often ask for an emergency contact, which is very much within their right to have after your employment. What isn’t in their right, whether before or after employment, is asking how that emergency contact is related to you. If it happens to be your husband, then voila! Now they know you’re married … so they’ll probably assumed you’re going to have a baby.

WHICH ORGANIZATIONS DO YOU BELONG TO?

What you do in your free time is your business. That includes that single’s knitting club. You do you.

Editor’s note: If you’ve been asked one of these questions in an interview, you can file a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

http://www.bustle.com/articles/35553-can-an-interviewer-ask-if-youre-pregnant-14-illegal-interview-questions-you-should-know

NPR Article - Book News

George R.R. Martin 

Book News: George R.R. Martin Was Told Sci-Fi Would Rot His Brain
by ANNALISA QUINN
August 12, 2014 8:47 AM ET

The daily lowdown on books, publishing, and the occasional author behaving badly.

Game of Thrones author George R.R. Martin told an audience at the Edinburgh International Literary Festival that his teachers said sci-fi would rot his mind. "When I was 12 or 13, I had teachers take away science fiction books by [Robert A.] Heinlein and [Isaac] Asimov and say: 'You're a smart kid, you get good grades. Why are you reading this trash? They rot your mind. You should be reading Silas Marner,'" Martin said, according to the Guardian, a co-sponsor of the festival. He added, "It is an artificial distinction anyway – literary fiction in its present form is a genre itself."

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2014/08/12/339786502/book-news-george-r-r-martin-was-told-sci-fi-would-rot-his-brain
Photo: Charley Gallay/Getty Images for Playboy

Tribune Article

I think of my job as very much going to the root of librarianship, which is facilitating learning … and creating community. The main difference is that I (and my library) are moving well beyond just books, as are many other libraries.” — Mikael Jacobsen

Google can't compete with a skilled librarian steeped in information technology
By Erinn Hutkin, Tribune Content Agency,

In the six months Mikael Jacobsen has worked as learning experiences manager at the Skokie Public Library, his days have come to include everything from teaching classes to producing movies and offering information about Microsoft Office products. He oversees the library's digital media lab, coordinates its digital literacy offerings and introduces ideas in hands-on learning for non-traditional items, such as video cameras patrons can check out.

On top of that, Jacobsen oversees the library's computer areas and study rooms and helps patrons find materials and research any given topic.


"I think of my job as very much going to the root of librarianship, which is facilitating learning," said Jacobsen, 38, who earned a Masters of Library and Information Science from Dominican University in 2008. "We are facilitating learning and creating community. The main difference is that I (and my library) are moving well beyond just books, as are many other libraries."

In fact, said Diane Foote, assistant dean of Dominican University's Graduate School of Library and Information Science in River Forest -- the only master's-level library and information science program in the Chicago-area accredited by the American Library Association -- in the age of Google, it may seem like there's less need for librarians.

The truth is, access to a wealth of information on the Internet has placed even more importance on librarians. Foote notes that few other professionals are so specifically trained to access, analyze, share and manage all types of information.

And because there's so much information available, those with a master's degree in library and information science are qualified to work in a wide variety of settings, from school and public libraries to government agencies, hospitals and research labs, military bases and large corporations, many of which have their own libraries and archives. In addition to working in libraries, some Dominican grads have research-related jobs at BP, Kraft Foods, law firms, museums and law libraries.

"Libraries are about more than checking out books anymore," Foote said.

Foote jokes that some alums have even ended up working at McDonald's, in the corporation's digital asset department, helping organize and catalog photos and videos for use in marketing.

Surveys completed by 2011 graduates of Dominican's master's program showed 90 percent were employed within a year of earning their degrees, Foote said.


Allison Schein, 37, found work at two non-traditional settings; she's a Creative Audio Archive Archivist at Experimental Sound Studio and Studs Terkel Radio Archive Manager at WFMT radio network, both in Chicago.

At the sound studio, Schein digitizes recordings for preservation, contacts artists to secure permission rights for the studio's recordings and assists in grant-writing and coordinating local archiving events. At the radio network, she manages teams of interns and contacts educational groups to make them aware of resources and tools the studio is building online that can be used in classrooms.

"The guiding principles are the same -- access, preservation and cataloging, since that's the goal of every library or archive," Schein said. "The major difference is that my job is concerned almost exclusively with audio."

To become a librarian, a master's degree is usually required. Foote said few students in master's level programs carried a similar major as an undergrad. The most common undergraduate majors are education, English, history and fine arts.

And while the job requires working with information, librarians must also be good with people.

"In essence, it's a public service job," Foote said. "Public librarians are on the front lines. People ask for weird things. There's a joke among public library reference librarians that the most common question they field is, 'Where's the bathroom?'"

But for Jacobsen, face-to-face interaction is one of the perks of the job.

"I love to see the light bulb moment every day for children, teens, adults and seniors," he said. "I love to help create hundreds -- if not more -- light bulb moments a day."

Librarians now work in many specialized fields

The scope of library science has evolved far beyond the check-out desk.

One of the main missions of a librarian today is to help patrons find information and do research, whether in a public or school library, or one of the many specialized libraries (law, medical, business, etc.). They may also teach patrons about the many resources available to them; organize library materials, plan programming for different audiences, research and choose new books, materials and videos; buy equipment and prepare budgets. Many also train and direct library technicians, assistants, support staff and volunteers.

A master's degree in library science (MLS.) is required for most jobs. A bachelor's degree is required to enter an MLS program, but any undergraduate major is acceptable. MLS programs often take one to two years to complete. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a degree from an American Library Association-accredited program can mean better job opportunities. In the Chicago area, Dominican University's MLS program holds that distinction.

Librarians working in law, medical, or corporate libraries often supplement their master's in library science with training in their specialized field. A law librarian, for instance, may also be required to have a law degree.

When it comes to compensation, the BLS reports the median annual wage for librarians was $55,370 in May 2012. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $33,380, while the top 10 percent earned over $85,000. The majority of librarians work full-time; in 2012, only about a quarter of librarians held part-time positions.

In 2012, according to the BLS, there were 148,400 people working as librarians.

Employment of librarians is expected to grow 7 percent by 2022, slower than average compared to other occupations. In the future, fewer librarians are expected to be needed as the public becomes more adept at using electronic resources, but at the same time, the rise in electronic information is expected to boost the demand for librarians who know how to do research..

(C) 2014 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
http://www.chicagotribune.com/sns-201407250000--tms--careercarer-b20140725-20140725-story.html


I think of my job as very much going to the root of librarianship, which is facilitating learning … and creating community. The main difference is that I (and my library) are moving well beyond just books, as are many other libraries.” — Mikael Jacobsen

25 Common Words That You’ve Got Wrong

Everybody talks a lot. It’s one of the most frequent things we as human beings do. We need it to communicate. People do it for entertainment. Just because we all do it all the time doesn’t mean we have perfected the craft. Here are a bunch of common words everyone uses but most use incorrectly.

1. Irony
What you think it means: Something that is funny.
What it really means: Contrary to what you are expecting.

This is a famous one because so many people get this wrong so often. It’s also kind of hard to explain, so we’ll use an example. The Titanic was boasted about as being 100% unsinkable and then in 1912 it was sunk anyway. That is what is called cosmic irony. When a starving vegetarian eats a pepperoni pizza, that is what is called situational irony. There are other kinds too, such as dramatic irony and Socratic irony. Believe it or not, sarcasm is actually irony. When you say something sarcastically, your tone and your words mean two opposite things. That is ironic. Irony can be funny but not everything funny is irony.

2. Travesty
What you think it means: A tragedy or something unfortunate.
What it really means: A mockery or parody.

This is another one that people have wrong fairly frequently. You’ve heard people call 9/11 a travesty. Truth be told 9/11 was a tragedy. A travesty is actually a mockery or a parody. One might say that a Weird Al Yankovic album is a travesty. With how often this word is associated with tragedy, we wouldn’t be shocked if that definition were eventually added as an acceptable meaning. Until then, it doesn’t mean anything bad happened.

3. Ultimate
What you think it means: The one, the only. The best.
What it really means: The last item of a list.

Some people do actually use this one properly. You may see someone list off a bunch of things and hear them say, “Okay, at the store we need eggs, milk, juice, and ultimately, butter.” That is actually the proper use of ultimate. There is no other context or added context. It simply means the last one.

4. Conversate
What you think it means: To have a conversation.
What it really means: Nothing.

Conversate actually doesn’t exist and I’ll prove it to you. Go into a program that underlines words with red if they’re spelled wrong. Now type out conversate. Did you see the red line? Conversate was meant to be a mixture of conversation and converse and be used as a verb. However, converse is a verb and there really isn’t a need for a second verb to describe the same action.

5. Peruse
What you think it means: To skim or browse.
What it really means: To observe in depth.

When you peruse something, you are actually taking a very close look at it. When you’re at a record store (remember those?) and you’re just running through a stack of records, you are just browsing. If you pick up a record and look at the artist, track list, and additional information on the back, then your are perusing.

6. Bemused
What you think it means: Amused.
What it really means: Confused.

This is one of the many words on this list that will make you strongly dislike the English language. Despite looking all but identical to the word amused, bemused doesn’t even come close to meaning the same thing. If you are bemused then you are actually confused.

7. Compelled
What you think it means: To do something voluntarily by choice.
What it really means: To be forced or obligated to doing something.

This is one that people get wrong and it’s rather understandable. The real definition is very close to the definition people generally use. The difference is the motivation. When people say compelled, they think the person wants to perform the action. In fact, they are forced to do it regardless of their personal feelings. Here’s an example. When you’re in court, you are compelled to give honest testimony. You may not want to, but it doesn’t matter because you have to.

8. Nauseous
What you think it means: To feel ill.
What it really means: To cause feelings of illness.

This is another understandable mishap that a lot of people make. If you actually feel sick then you are nauseated. The object that made you feel ill is nauseous. Here’s how this works. If you’re at an amusement park and you’re sitting next to a full trash can, the fumes from the trash may make you feel ill. That means the fumes from the trash can are nauseous because they are making you feel nauseated.

9. Redundant
What you think it means: Repetitive.
What it really means: Unnecessarily excessive.

This one is tough because you can use it wrong but unintentionally use it right. When you repeat something a bunch of times, it can become redundant, but redundant expands far beyond just repeating things over and over. A popular thing companies are doing now is firing people but instead of calling it “getting fired,” they call it “eliminating redundancies.” The premise being that the employee they’re firing is unnecessary and excessive and they are thus eliminating them. In pretty much any scenario where there is simply too much of something, it is redundant.

10. Enormity
What you think it means: Huge, enormous.
What it really means: Profoundly immoral or evil.

Don’t beat yourself up over this one because no one knows this one off the top of their head. Enormity sounds like enormous and as with many of our other examples, here we expect words that sound alike to have similar meanings. Enormity simply means really evil. An example of how to use it is the following: “The enormity of the crimes committed by the Nazis in World War II.” It doesn’t mean the enormous crimes, it means the heinous crimes.

11. Terrific
What you think it means: Fantastic, good.
What it really means: Horrific, to inspire fear.

This is another one that we expect will be changed in the dictionary eventually because barely anyone uses the real meaning anymore. When people say they feel terrific, they mean to say they feel fantastic. An example of something terrific is King Kong. You see a giant monster and it inspires fear. We’re going to loop awesome in with this one too. Awesome simply means to inspire awe and people often use it to describe something really good.

12. Effect
What you may think it means: To cause something to change.
What it really means: An event that causes a change.

A lot of people staunchly defend the wrong definition of this and it’s understandable. When action A causes a change in object B, action A affected object B and object B has been affected. Effect is an event that causes a change. In our prior example, action A is, in and of itself, an effect because it affects things. It’s admittedly confusing to explain but easy to remember. If it’s a noun, it’s an effect. If it’s a verb, it’s an affect.

13. Disinterested
What you think it means: Bored.
What it really means: Neutral.

A good way to remember this one is that there is a word that means bored and it’s uninterested. If you’re uninterested, you’re bored. Being disinterested is the long-form equivalent of stating that you don’t care about something.

14. Irregardless
What you think it means: Without regard.
What it really means: Nothing.

Like conversate above, irregardless isn’t actually a word. When people say irregardless, they actually mean to say regardless. Regardless means without regard. Irregardless has been used so often that it actually is in the dictionary now and that’s kind of sad. Even though it is technically there, there are a large number of people who don’t consider it a word. You can save yourself a couple of keystrokes and a tongue lashing by just using regardless.

15. Chronic
What you think it means: Severe.
What it really means: Over the course of a long time.

This is definitely one that people ought to know better. When you have severe pain, it is just severe pain. If you have chronic pain, you have been in pain for a long, long time. Chronic conditions and diseases are called chronic because they won’t go away and not because they’re overly severe.

16. i.e.
What you think it means: For example.
What it really means: In other words.

This is one among a number of shortened words that confuse people. Here’s a quick guide on how to use them. Et cetera is etc., example is ex. or e.g., and in other words is i.e. When you use i.e. you’re essentially putting it there to let people know that you’re going to be stating the same information in different words. Here’s how it really works. It’s June and I moved into my new apartment in April, i.e., two months ago.

17. Decimate
What you think it means: To destroy or annihilate
What it really means: To destroy ten percent.

This one is really goofy and one day this won’t be true. For the time being, decimate actually means removing only ten percent of something. If you know a little bit about words it’s not difficult to figure out. The prefix “dec” means ten. However, the traditional definition of this word is antiquated and it’ll probably be changed eventually. Until then, it’s technically correct to use a word like exterminate or annihilate instead.

18. Panacea
What you think it means: A cure.
What it really means: A cure for a lot of things.

This one is easy to confuse because the explanation is virtually the same even if the definitions are vastly different. A panacea is something that cures a lot of things all at once. For instance, penicillin is a panacea. It cures a bunch of diseases. The flu vaccine is not a panacea because it only protects against the flu.

19. Fortuitous
What you think it means: Lucky.
What it really means: By chance.

There is a difference between luck and chance. Unfortunately, people use the two interchangeably, so much so that it’s difficult to explain the differences anymore. Lucky is an event that happens by chance that can be described as fortunate. Winning the lottery is lucky. Fortuitous means simply by chance. For instance if you drop your basketball and it bounces into the road and gets hit by a car, that’s a fortuitous instance. It’s neutral, so it can be good or bad things that happen by chance.

20. Plethora
What you think it means: A lot of something.
What it really means: More than is needed.

This is one I use incorrectly all the time. In fact, I almost used it a couple of times in this very article. Plethora simply means that there is more of something than is needed. For instance, you may think that 5,000 people is a plethora of people. However, when you put them into a hockey arena that seats 13,000 people, it’s actually less than half capacity and therefore not a plethora. If you had 13,500 people in that same arena, that would be a plethora of people.

21. Total
Total means exactly what you think it means but total is used unnecessarily on a frequent basis. When there is a total of 50 people who do something, the total is 50 whether or not you use the word “total.” Or you might hear someone say that they were totally surprised. Surprise is not a conditional emotion. You were either surprised or not. The use of total didn’t add anything of value to the sentence. In most cases, the definition is correct but using the word is repetitive when put in context with the rest of the sentence.

22. Literally
What you think it means: Figuratively.
What it really means: Actually.

This is something that has come about relatively recently and my generation may have helped propagate this one. Literally means actually. When something is literally true, it is actually true. If I haven’t seen my friend in literally five years then I actually haven’t seen them in five years. People use literally along with hyperbole to show an emotion: “I haven’t had Chinese food in literally a million years.” This is meant to denote that the person hasn’t had Chinese food in a while. The word those people actually want is figuratively. They figuratively haven’t had Chinese food in a million years. They probably literally hadn’t had it in a few days or weeks.

23. Can
What you think it means: What is permissible.
What it really means: What is possible.

This is one you have to nip in the bud in childhood because it’s much harder to correct in adulthood. When you can do something, you have capacity within you to perform that action regardless of whether or not you actually do it. I can bang my head into my desk but I absolutely will not do it. When people use can incorrectly it is because they mean to use the word “may.” When you ask someone if they can open the door, you did not ask them to open the door. You asked them if they were capable of opening the door. If you wish for them to perform the task, you should ask if they will open the door. When you ask if you can have something, you’re not asking someone to give it to you. You’re asking if you have the capacity to own it. If you need something, ask if you may have it.

24. Defective
What you think it means: That something is broken or missing pieces.
What it really means: Simply that it’s broken.

You’ll see this one a lot in Amazon reviews. People will say that their unit came defective because it was missing a screw or pieces in the box. That’s actually incorrect. What they mean to say is that their product is deficient. It’s missing pieces, it is not actually broken. The machine may work perfectly fine once the missing pieces have been re-added, which means that it actually isn’t defective at all.

25. Obsolete
What you think it means: Old, out of date.
What it really means: Not produced, used, or needed.

You’ll see this one in the tech industry a lot. People in tech article comments will comment that a phone is obsolete when they really mean that it’s out of date. The literal definition of obsolete is an item that it isn’t produced, needed, or used anymore. An example of this is is the steam engine. It’s largely inefficient compared to today’s combustion engine and even more inefficient than the emerging electric engines. Thus, steam engines are not used, produced, or needed anymore. Yes, they are also old and out of date, but obsolete is kind of the next step after old and out of date.

Wrap up

The English language is a finicky one but it’s also ever changing. Words are updated and definitions change. New words are added every year and some are retired. Very few people will ever master the entire language and the rest of us will just have to do the best we can! via higherperspective


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