Betty and I had one of the nicest Christmases in recent memory this past weekend. I’m not sure how, but everything came together in a good way for us – including a surprise bonus from her boss that made us feel a little less guilty about buying each other presents (though I never feel entirely unguilty, being both Catholic and only partly employed). (Or is that fully employed but underpaid? Something like that.)
I got a new printer/fax/scanner which was badly needed (and deductible!), new cufflinks (NYC subway tokens, even), a new tie bar and a new tie. Also some underwear, and tea, and chocolate truffles. Books (but only one about gender!), Wig in a Box. (I’ll let Betty tell y’all what she got.) We spent the day at my sister and brother-in-law’s place, as per usual, and it was a quiet, pleasant Christmas, with us mostly playing with their new kittens and eating and playing with kittens and talking and… watching kittens sleep.
Tomorrow my entire clan gathers at her place to exchange presents and eat (and no doubt, play with kittens), and I’m looking forward to it; I haven’t seen my parents since they moved to Florida this summer, and my siblings and nieces/nephews in about as long.
Return of the Boards (Not Yet, Again)
The Boards are supposed to go back up today, but as we’re also switching hosts, I’m awaiting a backup of the database and its move before I re-open them.
I don’t want to go ahead and re-open them and then have to shut them down again – may as well get it all done at once. I’m not saying that the boards won’t re-open today, just that they might not.
Happy Chanukah!
A very happy Chanukah!
Merry Christmas!
Greetings Thread
What with the boards closed, I thought I’d set up a thread so that all the board folks are able to wish each other Merry/Happy’s. It’s not often that Christmas & the first night of Chanukah are the same night.
So, use the comments spot below to go right ahead & do that.
A Very Very Happy Holiday Season to you All!!
Another Cool Thing About Narnia
I’ve been re-reading the Narnia Chronicles as a result of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (which I highly recommend) and I’m on The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, which I’m reading slowly as it’s always been my favorite book.
But this time around I think it’s The Magician’s Nephew that’s resonating the most. There’s something about the decency in CS Lewis’ voice that just *gets* me. Because thinking about how Digory has to go after Polly, after his uncle has sent her “somewhere” on her own, via his magic rings, is just – well, it’s just mighty decent of him. And some days, I don’t know, basic decency seems really appealing in a world where people are blowing each other up all the time.
Early in the book, when Polly meets Digory Kirke, she notices he has been blubbing, and nearly says as much, but doesn’t, because it would be rude to do so. Yet he has been blubbing, because his mother is dying, and it’s one of the only instances I can even think of in any book, children’s or otherwise, where a boy is crying, and it’s totally normal and natural that he is crying, and that in fact, no big deal is made of his crying – except for the fact that Polly is a nice enough person to know not to mention it.
And her not mentioning it has nothing whatsoever to do with him being a boy. That’s what I like about CS Lewis’ universe. In his world, boys do cry.
Without a Trace
Tonight, the crime drama Without a Trace took on a storyline featuring a transwoman – including a transman she knew, her ex-wife, brother, and parents – and did a fine job presenting the story. The episode is called “Transitions” and though I won’t give away the plot, I was really heartened to see a tv show – especially a crime drama – portray a transwoman who wasn’t evil or insane at the end.
Thanks, CBS.
Diversity in the Classroom Guide
An old and dear friend of mine recently put together a book about diversity in the classroom. It’s not a regular book – more of a workbook or guide for teachers, school therapists, and other people who actually work with kids in schools. It’s called Voices of Diversity: Stories, Activities and Resources for the Multicultural Classroom.
The good news is that she’s an old friend of mine, and asked me for a trans story – maybe some of you remember me asking around for someone who had a first-person account of a trans student and some crisis that came out of transness – but I can certify that at least this book has one trans student in it.
The others that I read – one featuring a gay couple dealing with Mother’s Day – were all really wonderful, & helpful.
The Return of the Boards (Not Yet)
Betty and I have re-organized and re-designed the boards somewhat, and will be revealing the changes on Monday, Boxing Day, December 26th.
Light at the End of the Tunnel
The good news is in that an end to the strike is imminent, but I have to say: our news commentators and leaders need a “Labor History 101.” I’ve been astonished at he amount of times I’ve heard someone say “You don’t get anything done by breaking the law” – a comment first articulated by Mayor Mike Bloomberg – because of course that’s not true at all. Every major strike in this country had injunctions thrown at it, fines levied, and involved some law-breaking by the strikers. Susan B. Anthony broke the law when she registered to vote, Rosa Parks when she sat down on that bus.
It goes to show that the law is often there to protect the owners and the people who already have power.
I am especially disgusted with Bloomberg. Bloomberg calling Toussaint a “thug” is out of the 1920s. It has been a long time that union leaders have been respected participants at the bargaining table. The rhetoric was a kind of flashback, to me, of the era of Carnegie and the Ludlow Massacre – though of course things didn’t become as bad as that.
The larger issue at stake still seems to be the fact that the MTA is a bossy boss, that TWU workers don’t feel respected or heeded when they suggest changes.