A couple of articles from xmorningrosex

One on why the diamond industry is EVIL (and those aren't caps of sarcasm, they're for honest emphasis here)

And one on, again, why appliances should be unplugged or fully turned off when not in use. That includes baby monitors, Jenn, are you listening?

FUCK

THE grandfather of a baby taken into care immediately after he was born is accusing social services of discriminating against his daughter because she has a form of autism.

There isn't much information in the article, but what is there isn't making me very happy.

Ack! Help!

See, I was commenting on my entry on presents, and I realized - I know what to get Jackie for her birthday!!!!

Jackie is one of Ana's friends. She's a lefty. I already was planning to get her a pair of lefty scissors (two pairs - one to have and one to lose! But now I realize she's going to school in the fall, so maybe I'll get her three - home, school, lose), and I just now realized the perfect thing for her is also a bunch of magazines or interesting pages from magazines to cut up!

Clearly, I have to ask on freecycle, I know. But I thought I'd also ask youse guys, just in case anybody didn't mind going through the hassle of shipping, because... I don't know. I'd pay for the shipping.

Also, I was wondering if anybody had any other ideas for things to cut up that I could pass to this kid for her birthday.

(And yes, my current cheer doesn't negate my pissed-offedness about that earlier article.)

Four random articles.

One on abortion and genetic testing by Amy Harmon

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Another one by Amy Harmon, this one on knowing our genetic code.

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A fascinating one on shamanism in Korea.

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And one on modern librarians

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OOOOH! Have I posted about this before?

Nature tours - finding edible plants! I've got to go to one.

And they've got them through December! I think I may have found Jenn's next birthday present. If I don't give her free babysitting again, that is.

Isn't this the coolest thing ever? (I've had the site for a few months now, let's be honest, but I didn't realize they ran into the winter like that.)

Here's a question now, before I sign myself up for one of these and drag Elise with me (she needs something to do): Most people in the world around me seem to think that virtually everything out there will kill you.

But I'm thinking, munching on the oh-so-poisonous mulberries - is that true? I mean, we evolved on this planet. Is everything really poisonous, or is most of it harmless or at least only mildly toxic to us? I'm not about to start tasting everything to check, of course - it just is a question that has popped into my head.

And another question, which maybe somebody has an answer to. There's a tree I've only ever seen on Staten Island. It looks a lot like a Honey Locust, but the thorns are only on the trunk, in huge clumps that complete encircle it for a bit, then stop. So it's trunk, trunk, CIRCLE OF THORNS!!!!!, trunk, trunk. There are smaller clumps on the rest of the trunk (that show signs of growing into the aforementioned thorncircles), and a few clumpettes on the larger limbs - but they aren't evenly spread out on branches the way the thorns on Honey Locusts appear to be. Any ideas?

And another article

On (semi-clandestine) urban beekeeping.

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