Lilian Nattel's Blog, page 53
March 13, 2011
you can help
Japan earthquake and tsunami links for helping and locating loved ones – NYTimes.com http://ow.ly/4dC9H
Filed under: Concerning Tagged: aid and relief in Japan
Japan photos: soldier carrying an elderly man to safety
via news.nationalgeographic.com
Click on the link above for more information and photos. Toyota, Honda, Nissan and Sony have shut down production. Sea water is being pumped into the nuclear reactors to prevent complete meltdown–I see echoes of WWII but in mirror images. Instead of conflict, solidarity, instead of enmity, compassion, instead of striving for destruction, rescue.
Filed under: Concerning Tagged: Japan earthquake
March 12, 2011
falling spring mill and pond: photo
via flickr.com
I searched for the word, Spring, on flickr because it's been grey, rainy and leaky here and I need a sight of green. This one will do just fine, though the word spring is about the water and not about the season. It makes me laugh to realize that I'm finding so much pleasure in this watery picture while pained by my watery house.
Filed under: Beautiful Tagged: mill pond, nature photography
March 11, 2011
sci fi history
lose yourself in a sprawling, hand-drawn flowchart of the history of science fiction http://bit.ly/fM5uHp
Filed under: Miscellany
60 year old mom still having babies without medical intervention–because she's a bird
via scientificamerican.com
This is Wisdom, an albatross. At age 60 she is still laying eggs. Researchers estimate that she's had 35 babies. These birds mate for life, lay one egg at a time, one per year or two. They don't mature until age 8 or 9, and spend much of their first years in flight. This article reminds me of all that there is to know about this world. It's real; it's magical. More at the link above.
Filed under: Beautiful Tagged: 60 year old albatross
Jay to the Rescue: Part I of SteamKleen
When our tenant asked me to have a look at the basement this morning, apparently I was smiling as I walked down the stairs, but I assure you there was no smile in my heart. I knew by the tone of her voice that there was something disastrous down there.
I was already stressed to the max and had just managed to focus on some R&R for March break. So the sight of a soaked carpet was not what the doctor ordered. This has never happened before, though underlying damage indicates that there have been smaller leaks that we weren't aware of. But this time it was undeniable. It's no tsunami, let's keep things in perspective, but it was a flooded basement.
I had no idea what to do next. I'm a writer. I can also paint walls and have gone as far as lifting carpet. That's about the extent of my abilities. (My husband fixes the toilet.) I just wanted to cry. Instead I called my best friend and left a message that there was water in the basement and I was going to have a nervous breakdown.
Then I googled carpet cleaners. The first one on the list wasn't available to come out until tomorrow. The second one was Jay Nader of SteamKleen, a family business in operation since 1986. Jay sounded like he knew what he was doing. He was reassuring (and I needed reassurance!). He explained what was going on, why, and what was needed to fix it. Best of all he said he'd be out this afternoon and he was–in fact earlier than I was expecting.
Jay was considerate, courteous, I can even say chivalrous–more welcome here than a knight in shining armor. He even removed a damaged closet door that was scheduled to be replaced so that he could get at the carpet inside the closet. He pulled back the carpet, removed damaged underpadding, sucked out water, and set up a blower to dry everything out. Everything necessary is being done to prevent mold. He said he'd be back in 3 days time to finish up, promising that all will be well.
Impressed and grateful, I offered to post a review on my blog–I am a writer, so this was one thing I could do. You know, there is so much aggravation in this life, but there is also opportunity to be heartened and helped by complete strangers.
Filed under: Personal Tagged: carpet cleaning Toronto, flooded basements Toronto, steamkleen
my heart's in the east: the Japanese earthquake and tsunami
Our thoughts are with Japan today after an 8.9 magnitude earthquake–the seventh largest in history–struck the Pacific Ocean near Northeastern Japan, triggering a tsunami. Google has created an information page on the earthquake with tools to help find missing persons. UN Dispatch has also posted a list of Twitter accounts reporting on the disaster.
via blogs.discovermagazine.com
I should keep things in perspective: a leak is not a tsunami. My heart is with those in need.
Filed under: Concerning Tagged: earthquake Japan
Mid-March Break
Winter seems long at this time of year, when spring is close, but not close enough, snow, sleet, grey skies seemingly endless. My spirits are low, my energy too. When I feel like flinging my computer through the window (without opening it first), it's time for a change.
I need a break–a break from waiting for news about my book, which ought to have come a month ago. This has been a tough process over the course of years and years, starting again from scratch more than once, waiting for news–from my agent, from publishers–more than once.
I need a break from doing things because I should–the right thing, the responsible thing, even the necessary. I need a break from hustling my kids off to school, nagging them to brush teeth, get dressed, get to bed when all I want to do is enjoy their company for the pure pleasure of it.
Thank God–for surely it's divinely ordained–March break is upon us. I want to read great and gripping books, go out with A (just the 2 of us, what a concept), paint water colours with my kids, sew a hammock for stuffed animals, and walk off the winter blues.
In fact, I think I'll start today. What do you need a break from?
Filed under: Personal Tagged: March break
publishing phenomenon 'Heaven Is for Real'
He woke up with an astonishing story: He had died and gone to heaven, where he met his great-grandfather; the biblical figure Samson; John the Baptist; and Jesus, who had eyes that "were just sort of a sea-blue and they seemed to sparkle," Colton, now 11 years old, recalled.
via nytimes.com
Over a million copies of this book have been sold. I don't doubt that this boy had a spiritual experience, but what interests me is how it is filtered through his own upbringing. Jesus is blue-eyed rather than a brownish sort of fellow as he would have been back in the day. My question is where did Jesus get those eyes? Not from his semitic mom. Therefore from his Dad. The unspoken implication: obviously God is a white dude. And that bothers me.
Filed under: Miscellany Tagged: religion
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