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Synthetic Society
Note: You do *not* need permission to edit these pages; if you have something constructive to add or change, go for it!
The Synthetic Society Working Group (SSWG) is a group of individuals who are working to directly address societal issues embedded and surrounding the emerging field of synthetic biology. Everybody is welcome to participate either via contributions to the pages hosted on this wiki, by visiting Boston for a meeting, or by arranging a local workshop elsewhere. At MIT, participants include scientists and engineers engaged in synthetic biology research, scholars expert in considering societal issues associated with emerging technologies, community leaders, and interested individuals. One goal of the SSWG is to make unbiased progress on the issues. Another goal is to collect and organize resources in order to facilitate widespread understanding and consideration of the issues.
Upcoming Meetings
Upcoming Events
- Online SYNBIOSAFE e-conference on the societal aspects of synthetic biology, Monday 5 May to Tuesday 3 June 2008. The issues we would like to discuss fall under the following areas: ethical aspects, biosafety challenges, biosecurity awareness, Intellectual Property Rights, regulation and governance, and public perception, communication and the media. For more information on these thematic areas, specific questions to be discussed, and how to post a contribution, please have a look at the e-conference background paper.
Past Meetings
SBWG lunch September 26, 2007 - Paul Oldham about SB IP issues
SBWG lunch September 5, 2007 - Ken Oye and Rachel Wellhausen will lead a discussion on the Intellectual Commons and Property Rights
SBWG lunch June 13, 2007
SBWG lunch June 6, 2007
2006 iGEM Jamboree (MIT, November 4-5, 2006)
Synthetic Biology 2.0
May 20-22, 2006 (Berkeley, CA)
Day 3 of this conference is devoted to societal issues
Security Town Hall, with Steven Mauer of Berkeley
Friday, 21 April, 5-7p, see webcast
PoET Meeting
Wednesday 1 February 2006
Full Meeting
Wednesday 25 January 2006
Planning Meeting
Thursday 5 January 2006
One person's meeting notes
What is synthetic biology?
The limited, working definition of synthetic biology that we are using in our discussions is (i) the design and construction of new biological parts, devices, and systems and (ii) the re-design of existing, natural biological systems for useful purposes. That is, we are now primarily interested in considering the impact of new, engineered biological systems that are encoded via standard four-base DNA (that is, A, T, C, G). This "definition" leaves out certain aspects of synthetic biology research (for example, understanding the origins of life by re-creating a cell from raw chemicals in the lab). Two reasons encourage us to use of a focused definition. First, we believe that the direct engineering of living systems via standard DNA will have the widest societal impact over the near term. Second, we are likely already at risk of trying to do too much.
What issues are you considering?
We are considering four classes of issues: (i) Biological Risks and Security, (ii) Understanding and Perception, (iii) Ownership, Sharing, and Innovation, and (iv) Community Organization and Culture. Each of these issues is introduced in detail below. If there's an additional class that you think should be considered please let us know.
What approach are you taking?
- Identifying the questions & issues
- Identifying and describing points of uncertainty
- Empirics and relation to past experience (anchoring speculation via history)
Are we taking benefits and applications for granted? Should this be an additional topic?
What's reality? What can be done today?
ETC Group's introduction to synthetic biology
[editorial note: the sections below should likely move to their own independent pages as soon as we start making real progress]
Biological Risks and Security
See the Biological Risks & Security page.
Place holder questions
- How could synthetic biology make the biological risk & security landscape worse?
- How could synthetic biology make the biological risk & security landscape better?
- What are biological risks and why do they exist?
- Can humans engineer pathogens that are more dangerous than those found in nature?
- Is there a useful list of "top 100" biological risks or do such lists themselves pose a dangerous distraction from recognizing a dynamic, agile threat landscape?
- Is biological safety possible?
- should pathogen research be conducted in secret?
- Can defensive pathogen research be successfully conducted in secret?
- Should synthetic biology researchers be subject to government background checks?
- Can one country successfully implement a biological security program in isolation?
- Should biological security measures be open or closed? Centralized or distributed?
Background Materials
- Biotechnology Research in an Age of Terrorism, NAS report.
- Seeking Security: Pathogens, Open Access, and Genome Databases, NAS report.
- Recipe for Destruction, NY Times editorial authored by Ray Kurzweil and Bill Joy.
- [Note, there are other relevant NAS reports, not all of which may be out yet. We should come back and look for more].
- Our Uncertain Future: Biosecurity & Globalization of the Life Sciences (pending NAS report)
- Strategy for Biological Risk and Security, 2003 working paper by Drew Endy.
- DNA for Peace Report U Toronto Joint Centre for Bioethics
Point of Contact
Rocco Casagrande
Drew Endy
Alex Mallet
Gautam Mukunda
11a Monday 9 January 68-580 or thereabouts
Synthetic Society/Understanding, Perception & Ethics
For more information, see this page on Understanding, Perception & Ethics
Place holder issues (collected/presented by Laurie Zoloth)
- DNA as the really real self.
- Dignity is intactness of the being.
- Nature is fixed.
- Nature is normative.
- Suffering is what defines the human condition.
- Slopes are slippery.
- Dual-use is inevitable.
- Mistakes are inevitable.
- We will be as gods.
- The marketplace will distort science.
- An unfair world (inequity).
- A 'Synthetic' world(i.e., couldn't you have named the field "shiny happy" biology?).
- What's actually possible? What's going to happen? Material issues...
Background Materials
- The Perception of Risk by Paul Slovic
- Impure Science by Steven Epstein
- Others, TBD
Point of Contact
Scott Mohr
Barry Canton
Frank Field
Natalie Kuldell
Austin Che
Larry McCray
Meagan Lizarazo
Julie Norville
3p Monday 9 January (Austin will reserve room and send email)
I've reserved 32-397 from 3-5. --Austin 17:49, 5 January 2006 (EST)
Ownership, Sharing, and Innovation
See the Ownership, sharing and innovation page.
Place holder questions
- Programming in DNA will require a library of basic biological functions that can be used over and over again in combination.
- Who is going to make such libraries? [Can it be made?]
- Who is going to own such libraries? [Will anybody?]
- DNA synthesis lets you convert genetic information into genetic material.
- How cheap will gene/genome synthesis become?
- Will anybody pay attention to material transfer agreements for DNA?
- Can copyright be still further munged so that it applies to DNA?
- Will/do existing and future patents restrict progress in synthetic biology?
- What alternative strategies might better promote collaboration but still reward investors to fund the expensive research and development required to bring biotechnologies to market (ie clinical testing of novel biological therapeutics)?
- How do ownership terms impact perception and public acceptance of biological technologies?
- Something that is hard today (for example, designing a protein) will become easier tomorrow. How to best incentivize such work?
- Something that is hard to do once (for example, designing the first copy of a synthetic protein) is easy to reproduce...
- More TBD.
Background Materials
- Drew Endy's talk at OSCON 2005
- Meeting notes from Nov 2005 SynBio conference at Duke Law's Center for Study of the Public Domain [available, email email@example.com]
- Innovation & Incentives by Suzanne Scotchmer.
- Notes & FAQ from the pre-historic days of the BioBricks Foundation.
- Arti Rai and James Boyle article on legal status of Synthetic Biology [draft pending, email firstname.lastname@example.com]
Point of Contact
Ken Oye
Reshma Shetty
Frank Field
Sriram Kosuri
Jason Kelly
Gautam Mukunda
2p Friday E38 6 January
Community Organization and Culture
See the Community Organization and Culture page.
3rd annual meeting of the American Society of Civil Engineers, 1855
Place holder questions
- Are there any actions or standards of practice (celebratory, proscriptive, or restrictive) that should be coordinated on a community-wide basis?
- If yes, would such actions benefit from (require?) one or more forms of community organization?
Background Materials
Point of Contact
Sophia Roosth
Sri Kosuri
Reshma Shetty
Larry McCray
Austin Che
11a 9 January (location TBD)
I've reserved 32-397 from 11-1. I may not be able to make this time or may be late. --Austin 17:49, 5 January 2006 (EST)


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Happy Fourth of July, art people. There's not much going on thanks to the holidays, but for the art die-hards in the crowd, we've managed to scrounge up a few openings. We'd also like to remind you all about the great summer shows we posted about in June. For better or worse, in New York, you'll never be want for shows to see and places to go.
Posts tagged as:


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2013 - it's here! We're well into the second week of the new year and I still need to get into the swing of things around here. Isn't it funny how easy it is to fall out of a routine? Honestly though, after living decadently for the past two weeks I have to say I am happy to have my routine again. While all those indulging meals, cakes, desserts and treats were grand I am feeling over-satiated and glad to be cooking up my lighter dishes in the kitchen again.
What I'll miss however is the extra time we took to spend with friends, who usually gather around our place for dinners, game nights and conversation far into the night. That was real luxury for me. I love catching up with them as most of us live in different cities and usually connect with short texts, tweets or Facebook messages throughout the year.
The break over the Holidays brings us together and we all have time to look back and look forward. While we all laugh when every year Tom asks his famous two questions, we all enjoy listening to each others highlights. lows and ups. We discuss new goals and take balance if the ones made the year before were achieved or not.
Life is not always as perfect as many would like it to be. There is plenty of sweet that lines the highlights but often the bitter leaves a nasty taste behind. I often wonder why it is that many of us can so easily share successes, happy times, and rosy moments. Why do we cover up our failures, sweeping the dreadful moments in our life under the carpet? I truly believe it is the hardships that we face and overcome that define us as stronger people.
The real world is not full of shiny happy people or moments.
When Tom asked us all "what was your best high and your worse low in 2012?" I found it sincere and courageous that many of my friends spoke as openly about their sad and distressing moments as they did about the positive aspects in 2012.
While I was looking through my blog posts and collecting the images for this retrospective one thing was very clear; my year was full of colorful food and much of my day revolved around food and food related topics. I was either cooking it, styling it, shooting it or teaching it. Nothing new for a food blogger, photographer and stylist who has been blogging for almost 7 years. What was different however, was each new project I took on made me grow independently as a professional and take a further step into a more professional career.
It was a rollercoaster ride that covered cookbook stylings, restaurant shoots, magazine features, workshop travels, e-book publishing and more. Each one came as silver linings or dark clouds, bringing pure exhilaration or total frustration with them.
Experiencing such contradictory emotions, often in a span of days or weeks or even sometimes at the same time when projects would run parallel to each other, was new to me. But I learnt and hope am the wiser for it. I understand that the more you push yourself into working on several projects, not all of them function on a positive level. Where there is success, there will also be failure.
I am lucky that I have a very strong, encouraging and supportive network of friends and family.
Thank you so much for always being there with words and advice that pick me up and get me back on track. Thank you for the Google chats, the daily emails and Skype sessions, the many lunches, the laughs and giggles, the consolation and the shoulders, the shares and the RTs. You know who you are!
What was a big test on a private level in 2012 was the fact that both Tom and I were learning to master a relationship as a couple and as parents with thousands of kilometers between us. We are in two different countries doing the balancing act of working as functionally as a family as possible. He is in Stockholm, Soeren and I are in Weimar. We have real family time about 6 days in a month - that can be hard and put a strain on all involved. We have great family days together, then there are days when things do not run as smoothly as we had hoped for. That's life!
So, to answer Tom's famous annual question:
My 2012 High:
The workshops. From Plate to Page as well as the several Food Photography and Styling workshops I instructed on my own energize and motivate me. Teaching enriches me on so many levels and meeting warm, talented and generous people from around the world who come to be a part of the workshops is a most positive high. The workshops make up for what I miss on a virtual platform - meeting like-minded people, exchanging thoughts, ideas and sharing laughs and fears - in real. I met some amazing people in 2012 through my workshops - making new friends chasing new dreams and creating new projects.
My 2012 Low:
My e-book. It was never a goal on my list. It came fluttering into my mailbox and after research and discussions I decided to go for the challenge. I loved working with Michaela, my assigned editor. We ticked well and the blog-to-e-book concept came together fantastically. All my requirements were met by the publishing team at Hyperink. The book took off quite well and for something that I had not planned, I was happy with the initial results. However, when cutbacks were made at Hyperink, things changed and they were unable to market it as planned. The book suffered. I moped. I did not find the drive to push forward the ideas I had. I had a few good ones but I was far too involved in other projects that I was getting paid to complete - so the book sits. It makes a few sales - but it will not be a best-seller.
Do you know what I also discovered while going through my 2012 posts? It was a blog year of hardly any chocolate treats! Seriously, that's never happened before. For a self-proclaimed chocolate addict this was a shameful and yet interesting discovery. Apologies to all the chocolate fans out there - I shall better myself in 2013!
Chocolate treats in 2012:
Chocolate Espresso Sponge Pudding
Black Forest Pavlova: Quark, Cherries, Kirsch & Chocolate
Chocolate Treacle Sheet Cake
My favorite sweet treats in 2012:
French Strawberry Hazelnut and Crème Patissiere Tart
Eton Mess with Saffron Cream, Raspberries and White Currants
Clotted Cream and Lavender Honey Panna Cotta with Prosecco Berries
Quarkkeulchen with Cranberries and a Cinnamon Blueberry Compote
My favorite recipes in 2012:
Salmon Kedgeree with Butternut Squash, Parsnip, Fennel and Quail Eggs
Roasted Fennel Soup with Pernod and Smoked Salmon
Heirloom Tomato Goat Cheese Galette with Anchovies, Olives and Capers
Indian Chicken Curry
This space is almost like an extension of my home and you are so often loyal and fantastic friends I love having over to share my recipes, my thoughts, my ups and my downs.
I thank you all walking this path with me again and I look forward to another rollercoaster year with you.
Dream big dreams and never fear failure or the hard times. Be bold. Be courageous. Create memories.
Reach for the moon … if you miss at least you'll land amongst the stars.
Bring on 2013!
All photographs and written content on What's For Lunch, Honey? © 2006-2013 Meeta Khurana Wolff unless otherwise indicated. | All rights reserved | Please Ask First


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Did I mention the Beatles fans? I don't think I've mentioned the Beatles fans. We were sharing the host hotel at Rosemont with a multi-day convention of Beatles fans.
They began arriving Friday, dragging beer coolers behind them. The muzak in the hotel lobby gave way to a nonstop loop of Beatles tunes supplemented by the simultaneous outpourings of a dozen amateur guitarists. The fans were a mixed lot, just like the knitters. Most were perfectly nice people. Many displayed a possibly unhealthy attachment to the 1960s. And a few need to get out in the sunshine a lot more.
I like the Beatles well enough, I suppose, but after the first full day of them blasting in my ears I was starting to twitch. Then I made up a little game called "What if the Beatles were knitters?"
Here's what I came up with:
- "She Loves Ewe (Baaaa, baaaa, baaaa)"
- "Norwegian Purl"
- "Can't Buy Me Yarn"
- "I Wanna Hold Your Handspun"
- "A Hard Day's Knit"
- "Sgt Pepper's Local Yarn Store Band"
- "All My Roving"
- "Lucy in the Sky with Bobbins"
Gansey Marathon
Sunday was devoted to "Knitting Ganseys" under the tutelage of knitting rock star Beth Brown-Reinsel. I've admired Beth from a distance ever since I picked up her book on Gansey knitting at Halcyon Yarns in Maine.
This is Beth.
You may well imagine my surprise when she, like Merike Saarnitt, turned out to have read this blog and said some awfully nice things. I blushed to the roots of my hair. Or at least where my hair used to be. (Who else is out there that I don't know about? Lily? You reading this? Speak up, Lily. Don't be so shy.)
Beth's method in her full-day gansey class is to lead the students through the creation of a miniature gansey. It uses all the techniques of the full-sized garment, even unto itty-bitty baby cables. I was on enough of a cloud that I sailed right through the Channel Island cast-on (of course, I'd had a brief encounter with it at Knitting Camp) and sped upward through the body to the point where the patterned stitches begin.
And then I realized I'd 1) completely forgotten the seam stitch on the left side and 2) started adding an extra purl stitch in the patterned area, thereby throwing off the design completely.
It was at this point that I began to mutter to myself like the Condoleeza Rice reading the New York Times. I grit my teeth and ripped back.
Jon, meanwhile, flowed steadily onward.
He's such a good knitter. Clickety click went his needles, leaving an adorable little sweater in their wake. No fuss, no muss, no swearing. He reached the neckline in time to take off for lunch. I stayed in my seat and tried to make up for lost time.
I'm pleased to report that in spite of a precipitous drop in blood sugar around 1:30, I did catch up. I even made it to the Market in time to eat a stale, overpriced hot dog in the presence of Sally Melville, who was lunching with Sean. (They're pals, you know. Am I connected, or what?)
Then, back to class for three more hours of knitting. Beth handled the class extremely well, demonstrating processes (including basic gansey design) up front while still taking time to help everyone individually as needed. And she didn't dumb things down, either. Our miniature sweaters had split welts, shoulder straps, all the finicky details.
And I learned, oh boy did I learn, that I am a Loose Knitter. Not that kind of Loose. Well, not only that kind of Loose. Jon and I were working on the same sized needles and with the same yarn, and my sweater was twice the size of his.
Of course, that gauge meant that ultimately I created about 3/4 of a vaguely sweater-shaped conglomeration of lumps in which something like cables may be glimpsed if you strain your eyes.
But I've done it now. I've done the cast-on, the welt, the side seams, the arm gussets, the sleeve pick-up, and so forth. My plan is to do this mini-sweater again, on smaller needles, and then plunge into a gansey for myself.
Thank you, Beth. As we used to say back on the farm, it was just like one of the Guermantes party scenes in A la récherche du temps perdu. A total rip-snorter.
So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehn, Etcetera
When you've spent three days knitting with a group of guys, and eating food of dubious quality, and watching Marie Osmond hawk chillingly ugly baby dolls on QVC, you can't help but bond.
Here's my buds, in the shirts I cooked up as a welcome to Chicago.
Of course, they're gay. So then this happened.
Oy. I'm fahrklempt.
P.S. Cafe Press has picked up "Sheep on Plane" as part of their gallery of Snakes on a Plane paraphernalia. World domination through wool, comrades. Excelsior!


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Things I'm not so crazy about are their "Accessories Updates" (if I wanted to look at a bunch of tchkotchkes and geegaws I could buy in a chain store, I'd read Lucky), and their styling can get a little hokey at times. Just look at the nautical spread this month: some of it is gorgeous, like Vogue 8577 done up in a crisp blue and white polka dot. (Must. have. this. pattern.)
But then there's pure cheesiness: a navy jacket complete with a gaudy anchor crest and military-style buttons? A classic dress done up in this fabric? (If you squint, you'll see that those are little life preservers, anchors, and other nautical emblems. Literal much, Vogue?)
Yikes. I can only think of one place where I'd like to see that print, and that's on the curtains of a toddler's bedroom.
Anyway, back to the positive. The thing I like about their styled pattern spreads is that I'll often discover a pattern I wouldn't have noticed before, like the shirtwaist above. This, combined with the excellent technical stuff makes this magazine a worthwhile read, I think. I don't subscribe yet, but I think I'm on the verge. (Hint to Vogue: if you could offer something more substantial than a 10% off a subscription with a Club BMV membership, I'd sign up for both in a heartbeat! But I know times are tough right now.)
How about you? Are you a regular reader or subscriber?


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via Associated Press
WASHINGTON – Starting this week, "gluten-free" labels on packaged foods have real meaning. Until now, the term "gluten-free" had not been regulated, and manufacturers made their own decisions about what it means.
This new requirement is especially important for people who suffer from celiac disease and don't absorb nutrients well. They can get sick from the gluten found in wheat and other cereal grains.
Under a rule announced a year ago, food manufacturers had until Tuesday to ensure that anything labeled gluten-free contains less than 20 parts per million of gluten - ensuring that those products are technically free of wheat, rye and barley. That amount is generally recognized by the medical community to be low enough so that most people who have celiac disease won't get sick if they eat it.
Currently, wheat must be labeled on food packages but barley and rye are often hidden ingredients.
Celiac disease causes abdominal pain, bloating and diarrhea, and people who have it can suffer weight loss, fatigue, rashes and other long-term medical problems. Celiac is a diagnosed illness that is more severe than gluten sensitivity, which some people self-diagnose.
Ten years ago, most people had never heard of celiac disease. But awareness and diagnosis of the illness have grown exponentially in recent years. It's not entirely clear why. Some researchers say it was underdiagnosed; others say it's because people eat more processed wheat products, such as pasta and baked goods, than in past decades, and those items use types of wheat that have a higher gluten content.
The standard will ensure that companies can't label products "gluten-free" if they are cross-contaminated from other products made in the same manufacturing facility. The rules don't apply to restaurants, but the Food and Drug Administration is encouraging them to comply.
Gluten-free foods have become big business in the last several years. Millions of people are buying the foods because they say they make them feel better, even if they don't have celiac disease.
Alice Bast of the National Foundation for Celiac Awareness says the gluten-free trend has been good for those diagnosed with celiac because of the increased variety of options in the grocery store. But she says it also may have prompted some companies to lose focus on the people who need those foods the most.
The new regulations are "raising awareness that there is a disease associated with the gluten-free diet," she said.
Steve Hughes, CEO of Boulder Brands, which owns leading gluten-free food companies Glutino and Udi's, says his company's products all have 10 parts per million of gluten, less than the new standard. He praises the FDA regulations for being a "stake in the ground" that can increase the integrity of the gluten-free market.
"If consumers can't have confidence in the products long-term, it's going to hurt the overall trend," he said.


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December 12, 2017 |
National Office


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OLRANDO, Fla. — A college student with two guns, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and a backpack filled with explosives pulled a dorm fire alarm Monday in an apparent attempt to force other students out into the open so that he could slaughter them, authorities said. But he instead put a bullet in his head as police closed in.
James Oliver Seevakumaran, 30, was found dead in his dorm room at the 51,000-student Orlando campus of the University of Central Florida. No one else was hurt.
"His timeline got off," university Police Chief Richard Beary said. "We think the rapid response of law enforcement may have changed his ability to think quickly on his feet."
Some 500 students were evacuated from the building in the middle of the night, unaware of how narrowly they had escaped what could have been another Virginia Tech-style bloodbath.
"It could have been a very bad day here for everybody. All things considered, I think we were very blessed here," Beary said. "Anybody armed with this type of weapon and ammunition could have hurt a lot of people here, particularly in a crowded area as people were evacuating."
Police shed no light on a motive, but university spokesman Grant Heston said that before the episode, the school was in the process of removing Seevakumaran from the dormitory because he hadn't enrolled for the current semester. He had never been seen by university counselors and had no disciplinary problems with other students, Heston said.
Detectives found notes and other writings that indicated Seevakumaran had carefully planned an attack and "laid out a timeline of where he was going to be and what he was going to do," Beary said.
The episode began early Monday, just after midnight, when Seevakumaran pulled a gun on one of his roommates, who holed up in a bathroom and called police, Beary said. Around the same time, Seevakumaran pulled a fire alarm, apparently to get other students out in the open, the police chief said.
In his room, investigators found four makeshift explosive devices in a backpack, a .45-caliber handgun, a .22-caliber tactical rifle and a couple of hundred rounds of ammunition, police said. Beary said it appears his weapon and ammunition purchases began in February.
Antonio Whitehead, 21, said he heard the fire alarm go off in the dorm and thought it was a routine event.
"All of a sudden, I felt the crowd move a little faster. And a police officer with a machine gun or something told everyone to start moving a lot faster," he said.
Seevakumaran had attended the university from 2010 through the fall semester as a business student. His roommates told detectives that he had shown antisocial behavior but had never shown any violent tendencies, Beary said.
According to Florida records, his only adult arrest in the state was in 2006 for driving with a suspended license.
Morning classes were canceled, but most campus operations resumed around noon.
Associated Press writers Mike Schneider in Orlando and Freida Frisaro in Miami contributed to this report.


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A T3 resin uptake (also called a T3 uptake or T3RU) is a blood test performed as part of an evaluation of thyroid function.
The thyroid is a gland in the neck that produces the hormones that help regulate many body processes, including growth, energy balance, body temperature, and heart rate.
Thyroid function involves the interaction of many hormones, including triiodothyronine (T3) and thyroxine (T4). Both of these hormones exist in two forms in the blood. The more abundant forms are bound to a carrier protein called thyroxin-binding globulin (TBG), which helps transport the hormones through the body. The less abundant forms circulate unattached or "free." Only the free forms of the thyroid hormones (free T4 and free T3) are available to affect body processes.
The T3 resin uptake is used by doctors to estimate the amount of TBG in the blood, and how much T4 and T3 in the blood is free form and available to affect the body.
If there's either too much or too little TBG in the blood, the measurements of total T3 and T4 levels will be affected, which can make it difficult for doctors to tell whether a person actually has a thyroid problem without also knowing the results of the T3 resin uptake.
Doctors may order the T3 resin uptake when symptoms or previous blood tests seem to suggest thyroid dysfunction. When performed with other thyroid tests — such as those that check blood levels of T3, T4, and thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) — this test can help diagnose hyperthyroidism (when the thyroid gland produces too much thyroid hormone) and hypothyroidism (when the thyroid gland isn't producing enough thyroid hormone).
No special preparations are needed for a T3RU. However, certain medications, including seizure medications, steroids, and birth control pills, can affect the results, so it's important to tell the doctor about any your child is taking.
On the day of the test, having your child wear a T-shirt or short-sleeved shirt can make things easier for the technician drawing the blood.
A health professional will usually draw the blood from a vein. For an infant, the blood may be obtained by puncturing the heel with a small needle (lancet). If the blood is being drawn from a vein, the skin surface is cleaned with antiseptic and an elastic band (tourniquet) is placed around the upper arm to apply pressure and cause the veins to swell with blood. A needle is inserted into a vein (usually in the arm inside of the elbow or on the back of the hand) and blood is withdrawn and collected in a vial or syringe.
After the procedure, the elastic band is removed. Once the blood has been collected, the needle is removed and the area is covered with cotton or a bandage to stop the bleeding. Collecting the blood for the test will only take a few minutes.
Either method (heel or vein withdrawal) of collecting a blood sample is only temporarily uncomfortable and can feel like a quick pinprick. Afterward, there may be some mild bruising, which should go away in a day or so.
Results of the T3 resin uptake are commonly available in 1-2 days.
The T3RU is considered a safe procedure. However, as with many medical tests, some problems can occur with having blood drawn. These include:
Having a blood test is relatively painless. Still, many kids are afraid of needles. Explaining the test in terms your child can understand might help ease any fear.
Allow your child to ask the technician any questions he or she might have. Tell your child to try to relax and stay still during the procedure, as tensing muscles and moving can make it harder and more painful to draw blood. It also may help for your child to look away when the needle is being inserted into the skin.
If you have questions about the T3 resin uptake test, speak with your doctor.
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Wild Palms
Until Spring
One Little Indian
Another debut hits the desk, and here we go, an emotional journey begins – love or hate, even worse, indifference … With plaudits from the NME, Mojo Rising, Artrocker and the Sunday Times, arrows are pointing in the right direction for Wild Palms. What's immediately striking from the first belt of Lou Hills' soaring vocals is the rising momentum in this album.
The band has taken a dramatic evolution over a short space of time, starting out in 2008 as the Ex-Lion Tamers influenced by The Fall and Wire, their new incarnation, Wild Palms explores a diverse soundscape that's infused with diving rhythms, a gripping baseline and those familiar keys.
Until Spring is an unexpected journey, choosing to go left instead of right, defiant and resilient. Opener, Draw in the Light is subtle and acute, while Pale Fire is otherworldly. Hills' vocals are the highlight, but at the same time, offer no respite. They are the band's calling card, and as such, this could be seen as a good thing, but ultimately time will tell if we see this band enter the fore.
Shirley Stevenson


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Speaking More Than One Language Could Prevent Alzheimer's
Not so long ago bilingualism was thought to be bad for your brain. But it looks more and more like speaking more than one language could help save you from Alzheimer's disease.
The latest evidence from the bilingualism-is-good-for-you crew comes from Brian Gold, a neuroscientist at the University of Kentucky College of Medicine in Lexington. To test the idea, he had older people who grew up bilingual do an attention-switching task, a skill that typically fades with age. Earlier research has found that people bilingual since childhood are better at the high-order thinking called executive function as they age.
Gold found that his bilingual seniors were better at the task, which had them quickly sorting colors and shapes, than their monolingual peers. He then added an extra dimension by sticking the people's heads in scanners to see what was happening inside their brains. The brains of the monolingual seniors were working harder to complete the task, while the bilingual seniors' brains were much more efficient, more like those of young adults.
Neuroscientists think that having more reserve brain power helps compensate for age-related declines in thinking and memory, and may help protect against the losses caused by Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. The study was published in the Journal of Neuroscience.
About 20 percent of Americans are bilingual and as many as 60 percent of people in cities like New York grew up speaking two languages
Gold might not be an entirely unbiased observer: He became a fluent bilingual as a child, thanks to the French immersion school he attended in Montreal. He's old enough to remember when speaking two languages was considered a handicap. He recalls a cousin ragging him: "He said, 'You're not going to learn to speak English properly'. Not only is that not true, but bilingualism gives you benefits in what we call executive control."
Gold seldom speaks French now, though he has learned Spanish to talk with his Mexican-born wife and her relatives. His next task is to see if learning a second language in adulthood would give some protective benefit to those of us who missed the chance to be bilingual as children. That, he says, "would be more useful to people."


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Temporary suspension of collection services
Access to the Collections of the South Australian Museum will be closed from December 2023 while staff complete essential audit work. The closure is expected to last until mid-2024. Our galleries remain open to the public.
Biological sciences
Our biological sciences collections encompass a diverse range of fauna, from parasites to whales.
Mineral Sciences
The South Australian Museum is a global leader in research about opal and copper.
Three men bending away from the photographer. Formerly AP6313. 26. '6313' Photograph taken Central Australia. Tindale Tribes: Kaititja.


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From the kitchen of One Perfect Bite...I have a huge store of dried apricots in the pantry. I used a dehydrator for the first time last summer and my over zealous experimentation led to storing far more of the fruit than I could sensibly use. To make matters worse, I forgot the fruit was stored and didn't find it until I began to clean the pantry today. The apricots still retained their color, so I decided to use them to make some jam and a glaze for tarts that I'll be baking later in the week. I have a crock-pot recipe that uses dried apricots to make jam. The recipe is really easy and the only trick is cooking the jam to the consistency you want. No pectin is used in this recipe because apricots are high pectin fruits and the jam will "set" of its own accord if you cook it long enough. If the jam will be kept in your pantry, make sure you sterilize the jars and caps you plan to use for storage. I actually prefer frozen jams, so I bypass that step and make quick work of the very few steps needed to make these beautiful preserves. The frozen preserves retain a lovely amber glow that is muddied in the sterilization process. I can't over emphasize how important it is to cut or shred the fruit into small pieces. Whole apricots are neither attractive or spreadable. They are actually too large to be used to make either jam or preserves. For those who may not know the distinction between jellies, jams and preserves, I have a super short primer. A jelly is made from fruit juice and has no trace of fruit in it. Jam is made by boiling bits of fruit and preserves are basically the same as jam except chunks of fruit are used. The fresh jam will keep in the refrigetor for up to a month and it can be safely frozen for up to a year. If you wish, small amounts or herbs or spices can be added to the completed jam. Here's the base recipe.
Crock-Pot Apricot Jam
1-1/4 pound dried apricots
2 cups sugar
3-1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
1) Chop apricots finely using a knife or food processor. Place in a 3-1/2 quart crockpot with sugar and water and stir to combine. Cover slow cooker and cook on high for 2-1/2 hours, stirring twice during cooking. Uncover and add lemon juice and salt> Cover again and cook on high 2 hours, stirring occasionally, until thickened.
2) Ladle preserves into clean, hot jam jars, seal tightly, and keep refrigerated up to 1 month. You can process the jars in a boiling water bath if desired, but follow instructions from your county extension agent carefully. The jam can also be frozen, Yield: 4 to 6 pint jars.
You might also enjoy these recipes:
Pumpkin Butter - One Perfect Bite
Tomato Jam - One Perfect Bite
This recipe is also being linked to:
Crock Pot Wednesday - Dining with Debbie


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Whether you've decided to level up in your career, or you're trying to learn construction for the first time, ed2go is here to help you reach your professional goals. We offer many construction courses and classes in Niles, MI and partner with colleges and universities from all over the state to make your learning experience as easy as possible. Looking to prepare for a certification online? Not to worry, there's plenty of online construction classes in Niles available.
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This course will help you prepare for a career as a home inspector. You will learn best practices for inspecting residential construction, including inspection guidelines, identifying common defects, reporting methodologies, and risk management.


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The food world is buzzing today about the latest news on just how often we waste perfectly good food. And we admit, the statistics are pretty depressing.
About 40 percent of food in the United States today goes uneaten. The average American consumer wastes 10 times as much food as someone in Southeast Asia — up 50 percent from Americans in the 1970s. Yet, 1 in 6 Americans doesn't have enough to eat, says the U.S. Department of Agriculture. And food waste costs us about $165 billion a year and sucks up 25 percent of our freshwater supply.
That's all according to the report with the not-so-subtle title, "Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill," just released by the Natural Resources Defense Council.
As we've reported, there are all kinds of offenders in this game, from restaurants to regular consumers and our refrigerators. But we thought we'd bring you some info on what some folks are doing to combat the waste and reroute the food where it's needed:
1. Coffee Could Be Fuel Times Two: Researchers are teaming up with Starbucks Hong Kong and a nonprofit called to turn used coffee grounds and wasted bakery items into fertilizer, plastics and biofuels, according to Fast Company.
2. Gents, Start Your Bikes: Caleb Philips founded , a group that collects produce and packaged goods that grocery stores consider no longer "sellable" and bikes them to shelters, housing projects and at-risk community outlets. Since September 2011, BFR has rescued more than 128,000 pounds of nutritious food and transported most of that to feed those in need, according to NPR's Participation Nation blog.
3. There's An App For That: Students at Arizona State University are developing a mobile phone app called FlashFood designed to connect restaurants with excess food to community groups in need, according to the blog EarthTechling. And Love Food Hate Waste is a free app for iPhone and Android that offers hints, tips and recipe ideas to keep home cooks from trashing those squishy tomatoes too soon.
4. Follow That Squash: NPR's Pam Fessler recently brought us this piece on how Wal-Mart and Feeding America have teamed up to get fresh but slightly imperfect fresh foods to the needy. And it's got some pretty cool graphics, too, where you can follow an ear of corn and some yellow squash from farm to table.
5. Do I Hear $100? Stay tuned tomorrow for a piece right here and on All Things Considered about how grocery stores are unloading food at auction that is discontinued, seasonal or near its expiration date, from NPR's Serri Graslie.
What cool anti-food-waste projects are you hearing about? Let us know in the comments section.
Copyright 2020 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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Richard Mourdock is the first to admit he's lacking in the political flash-and-dash department.
"I never got hit with the charisma stick when I was lying there in the nursery," the newly crowned Indiana Republican Senate candidate told NPR in a recent interview.
But Mourdock, 60, who on Tuesday toppled six-term Republican Sen. Richard Lugar in a GOP primary, is a determined if not dynamic campaigner, those who know him say, and no newcomer to the trail.
"Richard Mourdock is right: He's not the most charismatic person, but he's the real deal," says Greg Fettig, co-founder of Hoosiers for a Conservative Senate, the group that rallied state and national Tea Party efforts to defeat Lugar.
"He doesn't get extremely excited, and he doesn't get really low," says Fettig, echoing Mourdock's description of himself to NPR as a "pretty even-keeled person."
His defeat of the venerable Lugar, 80, has put the largely unknown two-term state treasurer in the national spotlight.
Democrats, sensing a sliver of opportunity in the fall race now that incumbent Lugar has been defeated, are scrambling to portray Mourdock as a fringe candidate, while his supporters double down on the candidate's sometimes teary commitment to hard-line fiscal conservatism.
"I think the race is going to be competitive," says Jack Colwell, a longtime political reporter and columnist at the South Bend Tribune.
Rep. Joe Donnelly, the Democratic candidate, "is a Blue Dog and a moderate," says Colwell, "but with the makeup of the state, Mourdock is going to be the favorite."
Mourdock also benefits from the top of the Republican ticket, which features popular Rep. Mike Pence running for governor — and from the Obama campaign's decision not to include Indiana in its working list of states where it plans to compete hard.
And no one, say those who know him, should mistake Mourdock's low-key personality with a lack of conservative fervor.
"He would be a very conservative Republican in the Senate," says Leslie Lenkowsky, a professor of public affairs at Indiana University.
Lenkowsky and others note that during an interview last month with the Indianapolis Star, Mourdock made what has become his most frequently cited assertion: "We need less bipartisanship in Congress."
Mourdock's positions mirror those of the Tea Party and the Republican Party's cultural conservative base.
He advocates repeal of the president's health care law and a $7.6 trillion cut to federal spending over 10 years. He opposes the DREAM Act, wants Roe v. Wade overturned, and says he'd vote against "activist liberal judges." He's against cap-and-trade solutions to environmental concerns, has an "A" rating from the National Rifle Association, and wants to eliminate the Internal Revenue Service and replace it with a "consumption tax."
The Frequent Candidate
Though those in the Tea Party movement are apt to embrace nonpoliticians, Mourdock, a geologist whose pre-politics career included stints at the AMAX Coal Co. and the Standard Oil Co., has spent the better part of a quarter century running for office — frequently without success.
Mourdock lost consecutive congressional bids in 1988, 1990 and 1992. He failed even to gain the Republican nomination in 1988, and lost in the general election in the next two cycles. In 2002, he ran unsuccessfully for his party's nomination for secretary of state.
Mourdock, who has run nine marathons, including one on his 60th birthday, finally won office in 2006, when he was elected state treasurer with 52 percent of the vote. He was re-elected in 2010 with more than 62 percent of the vote.
Fettig and other Mourdock partisans like to note that their guy was the state's leading vote-getter in the 2010 election, besting even successful GOP Senate candidate Dan Coats' vote tally.
Colwell, the columnist, however, notes that Mourdock's Democratic opponent also got the most votes of any candidate in his party, a phenomenon likely due to the fact that, unlike in the Coats race, there was no Libertarian candidate competing in the state treasurer's race. (The Libertarian in the Senate race got 5 percent of the vote.)
State treasurer, as in most states, is not a high-profile job in Indiana. Until Mourdock and his supporters started hitting the airwaves with anti-Lugar ads, he was best known for a lawsuit he filed against the Obama administration for its 2009 auto industry bailout.
The unsuccessful effort claimed that three Indiana state funds invested in Chrysler did not get a fair shake in the administration's deal with Detroit.
That lawsuit, while not sitting well with some in a state dependent on auto industry jobs, made Mourdock "a rock star" with Tea Party Republicans, Fettig says.
Mourdock became a regular at Tea Party events, and headed to Washington by bus for the big 2009 rally at the Capitol.
"Richard Mourdock may not say he's Tea Party," Fettig says, "but we know he is."
A Questionable Comparison
Democrats have raced to compare Mourdock with the disastrous Tea Party candidate Christine O'Donnell, who won Delaware's 2010 GOP Senate primary and lost badly in the general election.
That comparison, however, will very likely prove a big stretch.
"The efforts to portray him as Christine O'Donnell, 'I'm not a witch,' are not accurate," says Colwell, making reference to O'Donnell's campaign ad that addressed her past assertion that she had dabbled in witchcraft.
Mourdock is an experienced politician, twice elected to statewide office, and with support broader than just one corner of the party.
"This is a completely different dynamic," Fettig says. "Richard Mourdock is embraced in the Republican Party. He is not some fringe element like Christine O'Donnell was."
And Indiana is not Delaware.
Mourdock was careful on primary night not to make too much of his Tea Party support in his victory speech, recognizing, Fettig says, that he doesn't want to be identified with just one group.
In his interview with NPR's Tamara Keith, Mourdock says his style is that of a marathoner.
"These campaigns are not sprints," he said. "I've run nine marathons, and one thing you learn is you never change your pace in the last two miles, you just keep going.
"We're just going to keep the same pace," he said.
Dogged Days
With Mourdock, an Ohio native who got his master's degree from Ball State University in Muncie, Ind., voters can expect to hear tough talk cloaked in a low-key delivery.
He doesn't "seem Tea Party," is how he's been described.
Since winning the primary, he has characterized "bipartisanship" as Democrats coming over to the Republican point of view. (This comes on the heels of a state survey that suggests a large number of voters would like somebody who could reach across the aisle, Colwell notes.)
Mourdock watchers are already debating whether, if elected to the Senate, he will be more like Tea Party firebrand Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., or a more mainstream-by-current-standards conservative like Coats, Indiana's other senator. Coats, who had previously served a decade in the Senate during the 1990s, survived Tea Party opposition in 2010 and is now deemed acceptable by activists like Fettig.
One guarantee is that Mourdock won't somehow transform himself into a firebrand. It's just not his style.
And really, Lenkowsky says, that seems to be no problem in Indiana.
"It would be pretty hard to describe Dick Lugar as charismatic," he says, "or Evan Bayh, or Dan Coats, or Mitch Daniels."
Bayh is a former Democratic senator; Daniels is Indiana's Republican governor.
Mourdock, Lenkowsky says, "fits perfectly."
NPR's Tamara Keith contributed to this story.
Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.


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In stock, immediate despatch
Part Number: DVRENCLOSURE-SStyle Enclosure
A protective small metal casing specifically designed to house recorders . This enclosure ensures the recorder's safety from external elements, while providing adequate ventilation and accessibility for seamless operation.
Ext. : 445mm (D), 404mm (W), 120mm (H)Int. : 400mm (D), 354mm (W), 91mm (H)
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This Is Me--2024 A to Z Theme
Friday, December 9, 2011
I Wrote This Post Fifty Years Ago
I alluded to the writing sample that follows in my post on Monday 12/5. As I explained in that post, my teacher at the time, Mrs. Kingston, showed us a picture that she had taken from a magazine and told us to write a description of it.
As I recall, the illustration of what was probably a scene depicting a nighttime sea battle during the American Civil War showed a massive fiery explosion in the water. Men in a dinghy near the blast are drawing back in terror and shielding themselves from the powerful force of the eruption. At least, this is what I remember and I will have to rely on this memory since I don't have a copy of that picture.
Mrs. Kingston gave me an A and some encouraging compliments. She then mounted the paper on a larger piece of yellow construction paper and after reading my paragraph to the class, she passed it around to the other classes in the school and eventually mounted the paper on a bulletin board outside the school office. I experienced my first thrill of having my writing read by others and hearing the words spoken in public. It was a writer's high that I never wanted to lose.
The following is the collection of adjectives, metaphors, and similes that was the paragraph that set me off on my course of writing aspirations.
Burnt and Salty
There is a smell of fire and smoke. You can taste salty water from the ocean. It was fire from the ocean. It was like a volcano from the bottom. It looks like a huge ghost coming out of the sea. The sky looks like the heavens are on fire. The sun fell into the sea. A sea dragon is shooting flamey fire out of the rough water. It feels like a steaming hot furnace. The sea looks like thousands of geysers shooting water. Even though it is dark it is light. It is a geyser of steaming flamey fire. You can feel water and fire shooting into your sweaty face. Your clothing is shabby. Your face is burnt and scarred.
So from my fourth grade self here is some sort of insight to my writing style perhaps. I'm not sure what was influencing me at the time, but I do recall reading a great deal back then. I'm not sure whether to thank her or curse her, but Mrs. Kingston, you played big role in why I blog today.
Do you have a particular teacher who influenced your desire to write? Have you saved any of your old schoolwork or writing samples from childhood? Did you have aspirations to become a writer when you were a child?
46 comments:
That's so cute! What wonderful descriptions. You can see you had talent at such a young age!
I wanted to be a writer since I was really little, too, ever since I learned how to read on my own. I loved books and reading so much that writing my own stories seemed like a natural step. The more I read and the more I wrote, the more I wanted to!
I still have my old stories and writings from when I was little. They make me laugh now!- AnonymousDecember 9, 2011 at 4:55 AM
I wish I had some of my childhood writing, but I didn't save any of it. From about 3rd or 4th grade on, I wanted to be a columnist for the Chicago Tribune. I worked as a daily newspaper columnist for years, but never for the Trib.
ReplyDelete Yvonne -- I think many times we don't appreciate things as much when we are children and learn the value later in life.
esb-- So cool to see you here with a comment! An honor to be visited by one of my favorite writers. I've probably kept some of my children's schoolwork too. I agree that it's fun to see what they do--well, sometimes, but that's another story for another day.
Matthew -- A few years back I got rid of most of my old school papers, but I did keep all of the writing.
Sarah-- I was kind of impressed with my handwriting too. I can't write that well now, but I rarely write by hand anymore either. They don't really teach cursive writing like they used to.
Richard-- I guess the teacher thought so too.
Laura -- It's interesting to think about where our little minds where back when we were children.
Janice -- I don't think I kept any children's books that I had back then, but I do have a few regular books that my parents gave me when I was a kid.
Word Nerd -- I used to be fascinated with newspaper writing when I was a kid--faithfully read the paper. I wouldn't mind writing a column. I guess blogging is almost like having my own newspaper column.
LeeLee, that was wonderful! Thanks for sharing.
I have a few old stories from when I was kid, back before my handwriting became illegible. :) My first published piece was a poem in Highlights Magazine, in the back section with poems and drawings by other kids. I was nine and I was thrilled. Okay, I'm still thrilled and I am waaaay older than nine now. :)Lee, I can't tell you how much I love this post-- from the markedly elegant slant of your nine-year-old handwriting to the idea that the you who wrote this had no concept of the world in which the you who posted it would share it with us to the questions you posed at the end.
I'm just bowled over by the emotions this is all making me feel. Thank you so much for putting this together, a true gem of a post.
Let's see, as for teachers who inspired me to write. I wrote all of my life but I was interested in so many other disciplines, it's not like I have early memories that have to do with writing in particular. I did have one teacher in the gifted and talented program in elementary school who gave me low marks for not being able to follow 'instructions' despite my 'creativity.' That's an INTJ, for you, I guess.- AnonymousDecember 9, 2011 at 7:03 AM
Not bad for a fourth grader. It's so nice that you saved it. I have a few old papers, but not many.
ReplyDelete - AnonymousDecember 9, 2011 at 7:06 AM
My influence came from my Art teachers. I really thought I could make a living off art. Turns out all that creativity I developed manifested in writing. So I give props to my Art teachers for helping me be a better writer.
ReplyDelete Alex -- What can I say--I'm a packrat.
Dezmond -- I was definitely cover all dramatic bases.
Madeline -- Ah yes, Highlights --used to read it in the doctor's office. I didn't mind the wait since I wanted to read it from cover to cover.
Karen -- My mother saved a lot. I probably got my saving habit from her.
Suze -- I appreciate your words. The combined influences of many disciplines helps us to become better writers and better at living in general. A bit of creative rebellion is a good thing.
Kirsten -- There's only so much worth saving. If we saved it all we'd be covered up and be on one of those hoarding TV shows.
Stephen -- Art is valuable in helping us to look at the world in different ways and translate our vision into something for others to see. Writing certainly fits into that creative mold. I always loved art though I wasn't always so great at the visual arts.
LeeHi Lee .. I don't think anyone realised I had a creative bone in my body, let alone the ability to write .. so it's sort of filtered very slowly out of the woodwork.
If my mother hadn't had her strokes and lives on .. but has been able to talk .. then I'm not sure I'd be writing to this day ..
Strange world .. cheers HilaryI did have a creative writing teacher in high school who was very impressed with one of my assignments and read it in front of the class, much to my embarrasment since there was no forwarning. It's a great memory, though. I worked hard on it. It was a short fantasy piece about a girl waking up on a strange planet and trying to escape a montrous snake. The surface of the planet turned into quicksand and she didn't get away in the end. My mother saved it but I think it's lost now. When we moved, I believe it was left behind. Too bad. I'd like to go back and read it now.
Thanks for sharing your piece from childhood. It's really amazing what kids can come up with! You were obviously already developing your writing chops way back then.McARLEE BOID ~
Man, what really impresses the hell out of me (other than your neat handwriting) is that in fourth grade you correctly spelled "geyser" and "scarred".
At that point in my life I probably would have left one "r" out of "scarred" and might not have even put in the "e". And "geyser" - oh, God only knows how I would have spelled THAT one, but I guarantee you it wouldn't have been even within shouting distance of correct.
Yeah, when I was young I was an atroshus speller, but over time "I got better". (I still look like a newt though.)
>>...Do you have a particular teacher who influenced your desire to write?
Well, not to write necessarily, but to read... which of course eventually led me to write. MR. OLDHAM - I had him in 5th grade and loved him so much that my parents requested he be my teacher in 6th grade also, and he was!
He died of some rare disease the next year, when I had gone from elementary school to junior high.
Gosh! That was the first time "death" came to anyone I knew and really cared about. And I can still remember where I was when I learned of it: I was walking home from school when I saw my Ma's car in the parking lot of the local grocery store. I went in and found her in the card section, looking through sympathy cards, which prompted me to tell her that some kid in school that day told me Mr. Oldham had died, but I didn't believe it.
She told me it was true, and that's why she was buying a sympathy card. I broke down and cried right there in Royal Market.
In fact, on that most recent 3-day trip I made back home to L.A., I went into Royal Market (now "Bob's Market") and took a picture of the spot where I learned of Mr. Oldham's death. It's no longer a card section but a refrigerated case for beverages.
>>...Have you saved any of your old schoolwork or writing samples from childhood?
Oh, hell, my Mom saved EVERYTHING, and so, yes, I do still have some of my old schoolwork and writings. Maybe I'll post an old short story from back then on my blog also. (Perhaps you should have made this an actual Blogfest for those who can to participate in. That might have been a fun one.)
I know right where my old writing garbage is, too - I could have it in my hands in minutes. I remember there was some short story about twin boys living in the Ozarks, or somewhere in the South, that I got a pretty good grade on. I know that's still there with the other crap, but I think it might be a little later than 4th grade. I'll have to look and see.
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'
POSTSCRIPT: Yeah, yeah, yeah, I deliberately misspelled "atrocious". You know I can't resist a bad 'n' cheap joke.Hey, SUZE ~
Another INTJ here!
As a youngster I think I tried to follow instructions to the best of my ability. It wasn't until I got a little older that I burned all the rule books and struck out on my own path...
Hmmm... Maybe I should have stuck to the rules a little more 'cause life is HARD out here on my own, and I think I've become hopelessly lost (but I'm making good time!)
~ D-FensDogg
'Loyal American Underground'Hilary -- We can never predict when life's circumstances will inspire us into unexpected action.
Jenn- It sounds like you were doing some pretty creative story-telling.
StMc-- Thanks for the kind words and the great comment. I was gonna say that I see an excellent blog post in this story. You ought to expand on it. I hadn't thought of the blogfest idea but it would be cool. And I know what you're saying to Suze--I'm in the same boat and now I'm trying to patch a lot of leaks so I don't go under. Rules suck, but consequences can be even worse.
LeeWhat a paragraph! The description kind of puts readers in there, at the scene and I can't get enough of that line "You can feel water and fire shooting into your sweaty face." Alrighty then! :)
Yes, I have a particular teacher who influenced my desire to write. Her name is Ms. Satchel, my English teacher during my sophomore year in High School. She used to tell me to save all of my writing and she used to stress this, like life itself depended on it or something...I mean, she would be so serious and the tone of her voice would be so matter-of-fact, that it was scary. I would think to myself "what's the use?" because I had no interest in writing, as a profession.
At the time, I also had no interest in saving ALL of my writing...I mean, who in the world is going to want to keep dozens of floppy disks laying around the house, you know?!! However, I did listen to her and Yes, I did save my work and writing, on loose paper, notebooks and disks, etc. whatever I had my writing on, I would keep it.
No, I did not have aspirations to become a writer when I was a child. My aspirations were in Fine Arts, specifically drawing or illustration of some sort and them my interests moved into film and video.
Therefore, I find it quite interesting that many years later, I appreciate Ms. Satchel for making me realize that writing is important and should not be taken for granted.
The Madlab PostNo. No. And no.
However, I've always been an ardent reader. And I have always had stories, characters, narrative, and dialogue floating around in my head. Very little of it went together, and rarely did anything make a story.
I thought everyone had thoughts like that. I mentioned it to someone once and they said they didn't. That's when the light bulb came on and I wondered if I was supposed to write it down.
Maybe I'm a slow learner.S.Stauss -- So happy you came by and I hope you will return often.
Nicole --I'm glad that Ms. Satchel impacted you so greatly. Now we know who to thank for your wonderful comments and blog posts.
Tracy -- It's in the roots of my writing. I'm glad I kept that one. I might have some other samples from back then but I haven't run across them.
LD -- I agree. If nothing else it's a discipline and kids need more activities to help them focus. Kids minds flit around with too much diversion these days.
Carol -- I tend to have thoughts like you describe. My mind is a flurry of different things. Sometimes I just have to write them down.
Karen -- Sometimes the simplest little word of encouragement can have the biggest effect on a person's life. We never know what it is that we say that will influence a child for the rest of his life.
LeeHey Lee, What a terrific post! It's wonderful that you still have those things from when you were a kid! I saved a bunch of my kid's stuff too.
I remember always wanting to write, although I don't remember having any major influences other than books I would read.
I remember wanting to write a kid's book when I was around 9 or so..it was going to be a chapter book about a family of river otters whose home is being overtaken by developers. (Please hold all laughter until the comment has come to a full stop,lol!)
I thought that since I was a kid, I could write it so kids would want to read it. It proved to be too lofty a goal for a nine year old, and so was eventually scrapped. I wish I still had some of the chapters I'd worked on, it would be neat to read now!
You did have remarkable hand writing, and your use of metaphor is remarkable for a child...it's no wonder you became a writer!
Hope you're having a great run up to Christmas!Mrs. Kingston had a knack for spotting writing talent lurking in those fourth grade metaphors.
I was lucky to have two teachers in school who inspired me to use my imagination. I dedicated my second book to them and if I knew where they were, I'd so love to send them each a copy. I also wish I had a sample of some of my early writing. It would be wonderful to reach back to that time and remember.- AnonymousDecember 10, 2011 at 9:15 PM
Amazing! Felt like I rode a time machine to see the origins of the great writer we know today. I actually wanted to get into entertainment when I was younger. I did write a little book in the fifth grade. We bound it and everything. Struggle for Survival was the name. Guess I still carry that flair for dramatics now. Thanks for the flashback!
ReplyDelete It's so cool that you still have this writing sample! (I must admit I'm a bit of a pack rat too!)
It's obvious that at a young age, you were embracing thoughts and feelings with words and were building your "voice" to share. A great beginning Lee. How fortunate you were that your teacher recognized your gift!Lee-
Sorry, just getting around to reading this.
There was a teacher who inspired me to write-Thomas B. Williams, my tenth grade English teacher.
His first assignment was a short story, and he encourgaed us to be creative about the boundaries for such an assignment.
Then he played a song, "Singring And The Glass Guitar," which was an eighteen minute piece on the second side of an album called "RA" by a band named Utopia.
Who happened to have a guitar player named Todd Rundgren.
So not only did Mr. Williams inspire me to be creative, but he introduced me to a musical passion that would continue for the next thirty-five years and counting.
Thank you, Tom.
Almost forgot.
While my mother may or may not still have the early stuff tucked away somewhere (she's been in a home for five years now), I have a few boxes with everything from high school on, which includes a whole bunch of starts on science fiction & fantasy novels, mystery noves, and several binders full of song fragments and completed lyrics.
Whoever has to clean out my house after I leave for the Great Gig In The Sky will have a treasure trove of ideas at his or her disposal!
Or at least a lifetime supply of bird cage liners.
LCThe first teacher that made me see others might be interested in my writing was Mrs. Metelko, a teacher I'd had for several different English courses in high school. I've always hoped to see my books in print so she could read them someday.
I think it's lovely you're able to trace serious inspiration back to this. It's really good work!Emily - Thanks for stopping by.
Eve -- I think a lot of kids with writing aspirations may tend to write above the reading levels of their peers.
Donna Shields-- I have always been interested in writing.
C Lee -- It would be so cool to find those teachers and give them autographed copies of your book. I'm sure it would make them feel good.
Pat -- I've always had the personal museum philosophy of you never now when something will be needed.
Donna Hole -- I like to see the comparisons. I think in many ways my writing from college is better than what I write now, but it was probably due to all of the academic exposure.
Buck -- It's fun to see our roots and maybe we gain something from it.
Paula -- As I've heard somewhere, teachers are making an investment in our futures so hope they invest well.
Kelly --Not sure where I got the word "flamey", but I liked it well enough to use it more than once.
Disconnected -- You should find a use for all of those old ideas. It's good when a teacher offers a fusion of ideas beyond the normal required curriculum. Mrs. Kingston used to play a lot of music for us--I learned a lot about classical music in her class.
Carolina -- It was good that you were able to establish a long running relationship with a teacher in high school. I was able to do that in college. We didn't have many choices of English classes in high school other than the basic ones for each grade level.
Go ahead and say something. Don't be afraid to speak your mind.
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The other day when I was at the fishmongers I noticed that they had some calamari or squid. I had been wanting to try calamari for a while so I picked some up immediately. As luck would have it the calamari was already cleaned up, so there was less work for me. Whenever I have seen calamari it had always been served fried so I decided to go with fried calamari for the first time. I kept it simple and dredged the calamari in a simple mixture of flour, salt and pepper. Making the fried calamari was as easy as making french fries. The calamari was nice and crispy on the outside and warm and moist and slightly chewy on the inside. I quite enjoyed the texture and chewiness of the calamari. I served the fried calamari with some tartar sauce and some slices of lemon. I wonder what other things I can use calamari in?
Fried Calamari
- 1 cup flour
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pound calamari (cleaned and cut into rings)
- oil for frying
- Mix the flour, salt and pepper in a bowl.
- Dredge the calamari in the flour.
- Fry the calamari in the preheated 357F oil until golden brown, about 2 minutes.


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(BPT) – One of the many exciting and sometimes stressful parts of the holiday season is entertaining at home with friends and family. To prepare for their arrival you may be tempted to just clean the kitchen counters, toss a few extra towels in the guest bathroom and ignore the rest of the house. Instead, your visitors will enjoy the party more if they have full access to an open, organized and welcoming home.
Knowing where to start is the most important thing. Lifestyle guru Susie Coelho has provided entertaining tips for the home on HGTV, "Oprah," "Today" and "The View" and knows just what to do.
Tip No. 1: Food can make or break a celebration. Start your preparations by stocking the bar and cleaning the kitchen.
Set the table or buffet before people arrive. There is a good chance some of the seating for your gathering will be located in the kitchen area. Make certain the kitchen is clean and the sink area is cleared of all food prep materials. If your garbage disposal has an odor, your guests will be sure to notice. Before the party starts, drop in a Power Pack of Liquid-Plumr Disposal + Drain Foaming Cleaner and run the disposal. The fresh citrus scent indicates your disposal is cleaned and deodorized, eliminating the chance of an embarrassing lingering smell being sensed by your guests.
"If you decide to host a holiday event or New Year's Eve party, ask your guests to participate by bringing an appetizer on a decorative platter. This will add different flavors to your event and help encourage conversations about the combination of foods prepared," Coelho says. Also, encourage them to match the theme of the gathering, like chips and salsa for a Mexican-themed party or olives, hummus and pita bread for a Greek-themed party.
Tip No. 2: Once the space is clean and the food is ready, add simple decor to make the space warm and inviting.
When decorating the seating and buffet areas, Coelho suggests going simple with tea lights in glass votive jars and choosing a one or two-tone color palette for dishes, napkins and flowers.
"For beautiful ambiance and magical lighting, arrange candles down the center of the table," she says. "If you want to add some greenery among them for the holidays, you can, but keep it simple."
In addition to the candles as centerpieces, Coelho also recommends making the food part of the display as well.
"Contrast is a buffet's best friend and you can find it in different heights, sizes, colors of the food, dishes and accessories. I have used everything from fabrics, herbs and pottery to flowers, candles and vases, turned over a dish to get height and used an odd container for display," she says.
Tip No. 3: The more room you have to mingle, the merrier everyone will be.
As people start making themselves comfortable, they won't just stay in the kitchen. Having all areas of the house clean and open will invite guests to gather and socialize, keeping the party going longer.
One room your guests will be sure to visit is the bathroom. Make certain you have the room stocked with plenty of paper products as well as soap and hand lotion. Consider also placing a decorative candle in the room to add a festive glow for ambiance.
Most importantly, be prepared for clogged drains in the bathroom and kitchen sinks, which could disrupt the flow of the party. "A clogged sink drain always comes at the wrong time," says Coelho. "To avoid these inconvenient situations, I recommend keeping two products handy at all times: Liquid-Plumr Double Impact Snake + Gel System and Liquid-Plumr Urgent Clear. These products work great for both the bathroom and kitchen sinks to keep them running smoothly."
Now that you had prepared your home for guests ahead of time, you can enjoy the fun and party the night away.