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There is no question that Obama has already overhauled the way the White House communicates with the public. The website is far more user-friendly and modern than the website of the Bush White House. Obama's web videos have allowed him to build a relationship with the American people unlike what any President has ever had. And while his commitment to a five-day comment period for legislation got off to a rocky start, they got things working in time for people to comment on the truly critical "DTV Delay Act".
Though Obama's administration has provided plenty of new tools and initiatives to improve transparency, I have been a little disappointed when I consider the actual implications. While I do appreciate the enhanced communication coming from the White House, I certainly don't feel as though the government is interacting with me in a way that is very different from the past.
In years past, I've complained that the federal budget is simply too immense for an average citizen to read through it and understand where our money is really going. Here's what was provided in 2009. This year, I was hoping for something radically different. What we got looks pretty similar to what we had last year: a PDF that is so long that it will deter most people from reading it, summaries of each department (also PDFs), and a series of fact sheets which are sheer boosterism of the President's policies.
Even some of the widely touted improvements are merely new spins (and better packaging) on the way things were done in the past. After all, the Bush budget team also claimed to focus on programs that produced effective results, and also invited the public to give feedback and share ideas. Sure, the new website places much more emphasis on these things, and seems more earnestly committed to the concept, but even with a prettier website, the Obama's invitation for feedback seems just as hazy as Bush's. After all, once you submit your thoughts on a bill, where does it go?
What is the missing ingredient here? I believe that we are missing interactivity. When you communicate with someone you know personally, you typically have round after round of iteration (think of the email chains you've had with friends or project team members). When you communicate with a large, impersonal entity, you usually have one or two rounds of iteration (writing a letter to a company, receiving automated company email updates, or browsing a company website).
Achieving interactivity is an enormous challenge, and even Obama's most impressive transparency initiatives have fallen short on this dimension. Open for Questions was a step in the right direction - you could submit a question, then vote on other's questions, then view question rankings, then the transition team provided an answer to questions - but I still wanted to see more. If the tool had a way to ask tough follow-up questions, this would have given the public a way to interact with the goverment that had never existed before.
The scale of this whole undertaking is what makes the goal of interactivity so tricky. The usual way to manage idea development with a group on this scale is through sub-teams and representation, but this already exists and hasn't been very satisfying. We have Representatives and Senators to represent us along geographic lines, we have lobbies and interest groups to represent us along issue lines, and we have the press to represent us when we have questions. But even the sub-groups that are represented here are so large that an individual probably doesn't feel like the process is interactive.
And why should the government really want to interact with the entire public, anyway? There are hundreds of thousands of people who have made the decision to work in government, or become influential experts in their field, or to lobby government organizations for their issues. If I am just an average citizen, I probably don't have much to offer to the discussion except an uninformed opinion.
Yet all of this work is founded on the premise that simply getting more people involved wil lead to better government (a significant assumption that I'll explore in a future post). Obama's team has taken the first step, and increased the volume of one-way or two-way interactions. The next step is to figure out how to have true multi-way interactions, because that will lead to a connection between people and goverment unlike any we've ever had.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Monday, February 9, 2009
President Obama shows us how hard it is to hold a press conference
This post isn't necessarily about new transparency policies, but watching Obama's press conference tonight, I was reminded that even the old-fashioned forms of government communications are extremely difficult, so maybe we should cut the administration a little slack as they find their footing.
Have you ever been in an argument with someone and accidentally said something a little different from what you meant, only to lose the entire argument due to that tiny slip-up? Now imagine how hard it is if people are asking you questions about challenging, controversial topics, there are millions of people who are watching who will catch any mistake, and the repercussions of a mistake could change the course of history.
You want that job?
You can point to a thousand little pauses and word choices throughout the press conference to see how challenging this job is. One in particular that I noticed was on the question about A-Rod and steroids. He began to make the joke that hearing about A-Rod was one more piece of bad news in a week that already had a lot of bad news - but then mid-sentence, realized that even as a joke, it wouldn't play well to compare bad news about baseball to the losses and pain that people are feeling as a result of the economy. He changed course in mid-sentence, and in the end, said that the news was bad news on top of a lot of bad news...in major league baseball in recent years.
When he finally got off the stage, and I was trying to sift out the key points in my head, all I could think was how relieved he must be to get out of there. I felt my anxiety levels drop when he finished, and I was just watching!
So what have we learned after watching President Obama's first press conference?
- Press conferences are not the venue for complexity. It's just too hard to talk about a truly complex issue in real-time, with cameras rolling and millions of people watching. You can't deviate from your notes because the risk of saying something a little off is just too high.
- The press asks the right questions, but we need a forum to really push on follow-up questions. Obama has the ability to cut off a reporter anytime, and move on to another question if he wants. This is totally fine by me, because I can see that holding a press conference is so damn challenging that he needs to be able to move on when he's done with a subject. But in the bigger picture, we do need a way to push for nuanced answers to hard questions, and to keep pushing until we get a real answer.
- Commitment to transparency or not, even Obama isn't going to answer yes or no questions on the spot. You know what? I wish he would. One of the best moments in the Change.gov "Open for Questions" responses, was when the now-press-secretary Robert Gibbs gave a one-word answer about "don't ask, don't tell."
- Obama doesn't seem willing to challenge the format, at least for now. Obama could try to make the argument that press conferences are a case of gotcha journalism, and that noone is really looking for answers, they are looking for mistakes. The only way he can have a complex discussion is by first making it ok to make mistakes. Instead, we saw a pretty standard press conference.
- He comes across as pretty stubborn when he gets worked up. It was great to see Obama admit a mistake on the Tom Daschle front this past week. After all, admitting mistakes is a sign of self-awareness and careful thinking. However, I was a little disappointed that today he was unwilling to admit that getting zero republican votes in the House was due to mistakes on his part. Instead, he blamed Republicans, which isn't going to make them any more likely to become "bipartisan".
- He did call on the Huffington Post, which is a good sign for engagement with new media journalism
Posted by Sam Ribnick at 5:47 PM No comments:
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
How much longer can Obama claim "transparency"?
This is getting out of hand.
Slate is running a great article about how Obama has blown a few critical opportunities to demonstrate his dedication to transparency by disclosing troublesome tidbits about some of his nominees. The latest instance, Tom Daschle's back-tax-induced imploding nomination, is truly outrageous as an example of failed transparency.
I have to believe that Obama's team knew about the tax problem before the press did. At the very least, we know that he stood by Daschle even after the information was out. I'm pretty frustrated that Obama decided to play this one close to the chest. I can understand his feeling that political nominees should not have to step down at the first sign of trouble; I also believe that Daschle's nomination probably could have gotten through if he had stuck with it.
But look, when you institute the toughest ethics guidlines the White House has ever had, you can't allow exception after exception in your first few weeks. I was a big proponent of Obama's "it's not about the principle, it's about what works" attitude, but I'm starting to worry that he is so intent on getting the job done that the principles may be left behind.
Slate is running a great article about how Obama has blown a few critical opportunities to demonstrate his dedication to transparency by disclosing troublesome tidbits about some of his nominees. The latest instance, Tom Daschle's back-tax-induced imploding nomination, is truly outrageous as an example of failed transparency.
I have to believe that Obama's team knew about the tax problem before the press did. At the very least, we know that he stood by Daschle even after the information was out. I'm pretty frustrated that Obama decided to play this one close to the chest. I can understand his feeling that political nominees should not have to step down at the first sign of trouble; I also believe that Daschle's nomination probably could have gotten through if he had stuck with it.
But look, when you institute the toughest ethics guidlines the White House has ever had, you can't allow exception after exception in your first few weeks. I was a big proponent of Obama's "it's not about the principle, it's about what works" attitude, but I'm starting to worry that he is so intent on getting the job done that the principles may be left behind.
Posted by Sam Ribnick at 7:05 PM 1 comment:
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Back on track with blogging
Thanks for being patient the last few weeks as my blog has been pretty much idle. I've had to focus on my job and it was taking up a lot of my free time. Thank you to many of my readers for sending me tidbits and suggestions for posts; it was great to know that people are following the events in bringing transparency to government (or not).
A lot has happened during the time when I wasn't posting, including the inauguration of our new president, Barack Obama. Here's a quick update on some of what has happened:
- No five-day window for commenting on new laws. (thanks to Eitan for this link) President Obama has signed his first bill into law as president, the Lilly Ledbetter fair pay act. Whatever you think of the law, we should definitely be disappointed that Obama did not handle his first signing in the way he promised. During his campaign, Obama promised to post all non-emergency bills on the White House website for comment from the public before signing them - and this promise is even repeated on the White House website (see the last line of the "Participation" paragraph). Frustratingly, there doesn't seem to be any place on the website where such bills are actually posted! (PolitiFact has the full story here). I understand that they just got the website up and running, so I'm hoping this is a failure of organization, not a change in principle. It will be interesting to see how they handle the potential stimulus legislation.
- A not-so-transparent stimulus proposal. The House has passed a stimulus bill with a price tag of over $800 billion, and Obama is calling for the stimulus to speed through the senate so he can sign it into law. The prospect of this kind of spending has Americans debating the the best way to try to save the rapidly deteriorating economy. Here's the catch - no one seems to know the facts, myself included! The House bill is 647 pages long (and it took a few minutes of google searching to find it), so I think it's safe to say few citizens have read it. The House website doesn't even mention it on the hope page. Neither does the White House! I managed to find a website: http://www.recovery.gov/ which will be used to track the spending, but only after the bill is passed! I will write more about this soon - it's such a critical opportunty for transparency and we just aren't getting it!
- The bizarro White House website. (thanks to Ian for this link) Some people aren't waiting for Obama to lead the way on citizen participation. Jim Gilliam has taken matters into his own hands, and created White House 2. You can check out his introductory video here, and it sounds like a great idea. He tries to solve the problem of swarming an issue by requiring people to force-rank their priorities. You can make medical marijuana your number one issue, but you can't shout louder to get more attention. And you can't have a dozen issues all as your number one, you have to make tradeoffs. The website then summarizes all the input that people have given into a list of national priorities. There's even a tool to show how Americans rate the spending items in the stimulus plan. I wish the real White House site had such great tools!
- White House tech hiccups. Obama's young and web-savvy team arrived in the White House to find it was a little more old school than expected. No facebook, no IM, no myspace and even no WiFi! On top of that, they even had their email services go down for a while. For the big man himself, it appears he will get to keep his BlackBerry (though not a version you could buy for yourself) and may even have a computer on his desk in the oval office.
- Obama launches Organizing for America. I have to admit that I haven't yet had a chance to read up on the details, but this post by Marc Ambinder explains the basics: Obama and his aides have launched a group to encourage Americans to get involved and promote his agenda. They will use email, texts, house parties and all the usual campaign tools to get the job done. I'll give this a full post later, once I know more.
- Restoring science's place in society. More on this later, but it was really amazing to hear Obama talk about this so firmly in his inauguration.
Posted by Sam Ribnick at 8:03 AM No comments:
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Even if you aren't a Michael Jackson fan, it's hard to resist singing along to Billie Jean, isn't it? Especially the chorus. That is definitely some catchy stuff. So many musicians have covered the song, from Chris Cornell to Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump, and I recently found a cover by the extremely talented Aloe Blacc. To say Blacc's version is a great cover is an understatement – it is absolutely, without a doubt, brilliant. Don't kill me for saying this, but it even beats the pants off MJ's original.
Blacc has used a string section to create a song that is simply perfection. He has taken a fun dance song and turned it into a beautiful jazz/blues song that you just want to listen to over and over again. Which version do you prefer?

subset: commoncrawl


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Even though the Northmen traveled and raided all around the globe, I became immensely interested in the interactions they had with the Irish, whether peacefully or otherwise, during the 10th Century. Because of this, I decided to write a love story between an Irish princess and a Viking warrior in a time when most of the kings were in an uproar about the "blond foreigners" taking control of their ports. That's how my first Viking romance, Ræliksen, came to be.
And did you know that it's on sale right now for only 99¢? Again, I kid you not! It was supposed to go on sale for the month of June (as that's my birthday month) but I think my publisher made a mistake. Shhh...don't tell her.


text: I have officially arrived in the blogging world! Wow, there is lots to learn. Creating my blog wasn't too hard, but I did have some difficulty adding my Avatar from Voki. I think it was just because the fancy ones that I wanted are ones that you have to pay for. I am looking forward to this experience. I am really eager to incorporate this into my classroom and to have the ability to gain ideas and share some cool stuff with other teachers and parents!


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The idea is to use social bookmarking/tagging to create a resource of internet marketing knowledge for the community. Everyone is invited to use delicious and 'tag' articles they think are interesting and relevant. The tags will be displayed on the blog and provide a resource for anyone looking for more information about a particular topic.
If you're already using delicious it's very easy to tag something for the AIMS community. Simply add 'for:aims_canada' and the relevant 'category' tag. You can see the current list of categories over on the left hand side of the blog (under AIMS del.icio.us tags). Note: tagged articles won't appear right away, the library is updated twice a week.
If you're not using delicious (or would like a little help) Tamera has created an excellent Quick Start Guide to help you get started. Download quick_start_guide_to_delicious.pdf
A bit more about social bookmarking and what it means for AIMS members...
What is social bookmarking?
Social bookmarking is a way to save and share bookmarks on the web. You can tag a web page that you find interesting and share it with other people. When you 'tag' a page you are assigning it a keyword. That makes it easy for others to find the information when they search on the keyword/tag you assigned.
See the Wikipedia definition and/or delicious definition of social bookmarking for more information.
What does this mean for the AIMS community?
The purpose is to create a resource of internet marketing information. It's created by the community, for the community. It is a resource that is constantly evolving and growing as the information continues to be updated as new articles are tagged. Our industry is changing fast so this is a great way of keeping up to date with the most relevant and timely information.
For example, are you interested in learning more about mobile marketing? Simply click on the 'mobile' tag in the AIMS list and you'll see articles and information that other members have tagged as worthwhile reading.
We have started tagging articles but we need your help. If you read something that is relevant and interesting to the community please share it! If you haven't used delicious before this is a great way to get started - take a look at the quick start guide and let us know if you have any questions.
If you have any questions please post in the comments below or contact Tamera (at) wildfirestrategy (dot) com.


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There's a reason this blog is not titled Grammy Sews. My sewing machine sits idle most of the year(s). But now that I have completed several major assignments, I find myself in the perfect lull to start a sewing project. When the girls were small, I enjoyed making little dresses for them. Some were fancy, but the ones I liked the most were the simple ones that I could throw together quickly and that they seemed to enjoy wearing, like the Strawberry Shortcake dress that Mama at Law loved, or the smocked kittens overalls that Mama Cat toddled around in.
|Made this for Mama at Law when she was three. Piping and embroidery? When did I have that kind of time?
Now if you looked at my sewing close up, you'd understand that my outfits are best suited for children. I am no tailor. And that's okay.
I have started a John John for Baby Bird. Mama Cat really likes this type of outfit for her little boy. I hope to do a couple for P Buddy, too, before he's too big for his parents to turn their nose up at it. A John John can be as simple or as complicated as you want to make it. I am starting (I hope) fairly simple. This will be a reversible gingham one, sans piping or smocking. The most complicated part will likely be the snap crotch.
In the midst of this project, I have already hit several snags. My machine is not happy about its lack of attention and is making me pay with poor tension, bobbin issues, and a broken foot pedal. The directions for the John John leave much to be desired, but I am finding some good help via the Internet. My frustrations reminded me of the days in my classroom when students would become upset over learning a new skill. Tears, tension, fear...all a normal part of the learning process. It was learning at its best. You see, the best times teaching were not the ones where everything went smoothly and all were happy. The best ones were the days when just as a student was on the brink of giving up, it 'clicked', and the challenge that seemed unsurmountable became possible. That's kinda where I am with my sewing again. But just as I knew the student was going to get there, I remind myself that I will, too. If there are frustrations as I go, it only serves to make me grow.
Yeah, Grammy is still growing. Hope you are, too.


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A new landscape on 16x20 masonite from our trip to Puerto Rico last year. Painted in all true primaries (4 tubes of paint). I love the ocean and love the rocks and the interplay of shadows, lights and darks.
Saturday, August 09, 2008
piece of the week- PR Shoreline
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My dear family and friends,
Oh what a week it was. I hope you've got time, because this will probably turn out to be a novel.
Monday: My last p-day in Colorado. It started out with a phone call from Sister Wilkes (the sister who was being trained by the sister who went home last week) asking to talk to me. When I answered, she sounded like she was almost in tears, or trying to cover up that she was crying. She said, "Sister Good, what do I do if Sister Anderson won't get out of bed?" (Sister Anderson was in denial BIG TIME that she was going home and had told me that she wouldn't get out of bed on her last morning.) I was like "Oh boy. I have no idea." I told her that we were almost ready and would be there in 20 minutes (seeing as how we lived 20 minutes up the mountain). I had no clue what I was going to do when we got there, other than assess the situation and work from there. I go back into the bedroom, and was a little confused because I thought that Sister Anderson had the other bed than the one she was in, but I wasn't positive. I told her that I didn't think she was really serious when she said that she wouldn't get out of bed, and if there was anything we could do to get her up. Her answer to both was "Nope." Well, this went on for about 5 minutes when Sister Anderson jumps up and says, "Just kidding. I've been up all morning and am almost packed. I just wanted to see what you'd do." They were just getting back at me for the idea I had for the District Leader to call Sister Wilkes early and tell her that she was training. We spent the day cleaning and packing. I wasn't about to leave the apartment a mess for the elders who were moving in like it was when I found it. It was spotless by the time we finished... after staying up until 12:00 or later Monday night and getting back up at 6:00 Tuesday to finish it. We saved our hardest goodbyes for Monday... don't ask me why. I was so proud of myself last Monday because I hadn't cried yet. Yet, being the key word, because I was a blubbering mess by the time we headed home Monday night. On the way home, my mood was lightened a bit by a phone call from Sister Quick, one of the members in the ward who was dropping a package off to my family that day. She told me that her dog got to play with ours, and that Mom invited them for dinner. (BTW, she says I've got a pretty cool family. I have to agree ;) )
Tuesday: Like I said, I was up way late and early Tuesday. That left me a little on the unhappy side. But I did a good job at keeping a smile on my face. And I was even able to stay awake on the way from Cortez to Farmington (good thing, since I was driving) The transfer van got to Farmington early, which never happens! (Actually, it's probably better said that it got there on time, instead of late as always). It was a long ride down to Albuquerque. I wanted to sleep, but I can't sleep in the car. So I stayed awake. Other than the AP who was driving and the Elder in the front seat, I'm the only other one who stayed awake the whole 4 hours to the mission office. When we got there boy was it toasty! Right about 100 degrees, with no wind. Yuck. The APs loaded our luggage into our car, a tiny Toyota Corolla (I miss my truck!) and came and apologized because it is a horrible mess. By that point, I was like "Whatever." I'd already been told that the elders we were double transferring in behind had passed their cleaning inspections with flying colors, so I wasn't too worried about the state of the apartment, and I knew that they were good elders, so I wasn't worried about the state of the area book either. I could handle a messy car for a week. But, when we got to Santa Fe and found our apartment, it was even worse than the car! That didn't make me too happy, and then I saw the area book and started to cry (it didn't help that I was exhausted). It hadn't been updated in 2 transfers! For those of you who have served missions, you know how important an area book is, especially in terms of a double transfer. But we're working through that. We went and met our branch president, President Lopez, that night. He is great, and seems to be really willing to work with us.
Wednesday: We did a very quick blitz cleaning of the apartment to make it liveable until today (sanitizing the bathroom and washing 3 or 4 days worth of dirty dishes) and then had a long planning session to try to figure things out, which in case you're wondering, isn't so easy without an area book. Then we set out to try to find our way around and meet people. It's a good thing we've got a good map.
Thursday: We had District Meeting... in Espanola, about 45 minutes or an hour away. Our district is huge... 11 missionaries, I think. They were all grateful to have had a pianist transferred in though, not to mention sisters to keep them on key when singing they hymns. We spent the afternoon meeting more people and learning more about our area.
Friday: I found corn flour in the pantry at our apartment, so I decided to make tortillas for breakfast. For being my first time all by myself, they didn't turn out too bad! But I thought of a couple things I'd change the next time I make them. It was a long planning day, with a good chunk of time spent on the phone with the elder we were following to get information about the investigators and addresses, or at least directions of how to find them. We went out tracting. We also had a lovely New Mexican summer rain storm. I think I'll be seeing a lot more of those.
Saturday: When we went home for lunch, we were completely clueless of what we wanted. There was a can of soup in the pantry that had an alternate recipe for shepherd's pie on the back... and we had fake potatoes. Yes, I actually stooped to the level of making fake potatoes (but at least they were Idahoan!) I know, my family is probably cringing and saying "You did WHAT?!?" That evening we went and helped one of our investigators paint the house she and her family are moving into. She told us yesterday that her husband was amazed at what we were able to do in such a short period of time, especially since it wasn't the easiest place to work--above the stairs hanging over the banister upstairs and literally bending over backward to be able to paint the wall that is on the same side as the banister. It was great fun.
Sunday: It was our first week in the branch. It is tiny--this branch has more members than the Rama Coronado, but fewer people attend. That's sad. We need to change that. We were able to meet more people. And we finished the day off knocking doors, and finishing off our first trailer park. We have yet to run into someone who speaks English, and this was a good-sized trailer park. (We're told that Santa Fe has nearly 50% Hispanics).
Overall, I really like it here. It's a great area. We're slowly but surely learning our way around and getting to know people. I think things will be better by the end of the week.
Have a great week!
Hermana Good
Live in Thanksgiving Daily
3 years ago


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Store Counter Configuration w/ 19 Components, Black Finish & Tempered Glass Shelves
Economy Modular Display Cases - 9' x 28' Island
Economy Modular display cases are retail fixtures that give flexibility to a center aisle mall vendor or a large department store. The configuration shown above is relatively compact, yet allows a retailer to display a large quantity of merchandise. This set of modular display cases includes two register stands, eight corners and nine 72"w showcases. Please note: Our Economy series are manufactured with a low-pressure laminate, called melamine. This is a lesser grade of laminate than Formica™ type laminates used on kitchen counters and is more susceptible to knicks, dings and scratches than our deluxe series.
Every piece of glass in these display cases is tempered, this process makes the glass several times stronger than regular glass. It also makes it safer because when broken it yields small, more managable pieces. Take a look at what other cases are made with. Standard plate glass (annealed) remains in large pieces when broken and is a danger to you and your customers.
- Recessed top shelf
- Sliding drawer
- Open storage w/ adjustable shelf
- Melamine panels
- 38"h x 24"w x 18"d
- Click here for details
- Two - 1/4" thick tempered glass shelves
- Adjustable support brackets
- Sliding white hardboard doors
- Melamine panels
- 38"h x 72"w x 18"d
- Click here for details
- Glass Countertop with open storage below
- Adjustable 1/4" thick tempered glass shelves
- Easy to assemble
- Melamine panels
- 38"h x 18"w x 18"d
- Click here for details
|Overall Width x Height x Depth
|342.0" x 38.0" x 108.0"
|Tempered Glass, Laminated Particle Board
|Placement Style
|Floor Standing
|Height Adjustable Shelves
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The Vanguard Group is about to simplify the names of dozens of its funds in what some suggest is the largest single effort to rename funds within the same complex without a merger of fund companies.
Beginning Oct. 27, more than 40 Vanguard funds will change to shorter names which generally reduce technical jargon and more clearly identify investment objectives. In many instances, the word "portfolio" will simply be replaced with the word "fund." In other cases, Vanguard will drop words which seem to convey little information to investors. For example, the "Fixed Income Securities Fund -- Long-Term U.S. Treasury Portfolio" will become the "Long-Term Treasury Fund." The "Specialized Portfolios -- REIT Index Portfolio" will become the "REIT Index Fund."
Charlene Haykel, president of Simplify LLC, a New York company which advises fund companies on how to reduce jargon in prospectuses, said the renamings show a desire to move from "insider language" with which fund officials are comfortable to "outsider language" that is more understandable to prospective investors.
"With everything you do with the investor, you want to signal simplicity," Haykel said. Using names with jargon "immediately sends a signal that this is tough stuff."
Vanguard officials, who last week announced a series of steps to improve the firm's brokerage service, were not available for comment on the planned name changes. The renamings were disclosed in an SEC filing two weeks ago.
Fund companies currently are in the midst of simplifying the language in their prospectuses as a result of an SEC rule change this year. That rule requires funds and other entities who file documents with the SEC to use what is being referred to as plain English. Vanguard, which sells its funds directly to investors, was among the first fund companies to simplify its prospectuses and shareholder mailings.
Haykel and others said that while a fund group periodically will change the name of a single fund, it is unheard of to rename numerous funds at one time. The occasional exception is when two fund companies merge.
Irene Etzkorn, director of the simplified communications group for Siegel & Gale, a New York consulting firm, said that jargon-filled or obscure names pose a particular problem for fund companies which describe several funds in the same prospectus. If the names of individual funds are not distinct, it can make it more difficult for investors to tell one fund from another. Etzkorn said Vanguard probably has "intelligently seized upon an opportunity" to change fund names as the firm revises its prospectuses to meet new SEC rules.
Vanguard identified more than 40 funds whose names would change in the recent SEC filing. In addition to those funds listed, Vanguard said it would make minor changes in other fund names it did not identify. The filing suggested, but did not say explicitly, that the name changes did not reflect altered investment objectives. Vanguard, of Valley Forge, Pa., the nation's second-largest fund company, has approximately $370 billion in assets under management.
Last year, the SEC proposed a new rule which would have required that a fund's name be consistent with at least 80 percent of its investments. The proposal faced industry opposition and has not been acted upon.
The changes in Vanguard's brokerage business, announced last week, included the addition of online trading later this year and the expansion of its mutual fund supermarket, known as FundAccess. FundAccess will offer more than 2,000 no-load funds, up from about 400.


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|Indian kids creating a humongous elephant.
Bill McKibben's recent article in Grist, talks about the massive art coming out of the 350 initiative. The name, 350 Earth, points to the number of parts per million that most scientists agree is an acceptable upper level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Today the level is about 390 parts per million.
When I saw these images, it reminded me that more than a decade ago, I was working on a NEA grant (along with corporate sponsorships) to underwrite a series of site specific art that could not be completely seen by one person, nor could they be completely experienced in the first person. It was not about the environment, in fact most of the works were about the self delusion that comes from our deepest beliefs be they faith, passion, politics or simply intuition, the fact remains that if one approaches these beliefs rationally they simply don't hold water.
The art works I wanted to create could only be experienced second-hand. Many observers needed to share their piece to put these jigsaw like works together and in most cases the media would need to gather those stories (and hopefully images) to piece together the complete work of art. It was a heady piece for sure.
One of the art works was to be deep under the ocean and only a few submarines and a couple divers would ever see it in person, and they would only see a small part, but they could photograph those pieces and if those were to be assembled, one would experience the work of art. Another piece was a mystery story told on billboards spread across the United States on Route 50. A few truckers or cross country drivers might actually see all of the billboards, but for the most part, multiple travelers would need to work together to piece the facts and discover how things started or how things turned out. (Depending on whether they saw the beginning, middle or end.) Another work from that series was three massive drawings created in a desert that could be glimpsed from outer space. To see the complete drawing, one would need to layer the three images one on top of another. One aspect of the series that I was particularly liked was that for it to succeed, the media had to be willing to connect the dots.
...but I digress...these works from the 350 "Art for Climate" series are born out of ....
...but I digress...these works from the 350 "Art for Climate" series are born out of ....
350eARTh: Art for the Climate from 350.org on Vimeo.
....the site-specific environmental works from the 1970's. Works such as Robert Smithson's Spiral Jetty, Walter De Maria's Lightening Field, Michael Heizer's City or Trisha Brown's laundry piece with dancers climbing in and out of a string of clothes hanging 20 feet off the ground in an alley during the Judson movement. Then came Christo and Jeanne-Claude's gigantic orange-wrapping series, James Turrell's Roden Crater and more recently Andy Goldsworthy's prolific "temporary" outdoor works that we only see because they were photographed.
The elephant from India other images in this post involve tens of thousands of people and can, in many instances, only be seen from outer space.
What a "cool roof." Molly Dilworth used reflective paint to create an outline of the NY and NJ coastline after a 7 meter rise in the sea level. The building is a school in the new Times Square Plaza in NYC. The solar sun and cool roof actually deliver a climate solution. Each of the solar stoves will last for 10 yrs and require no fossil fuels. The reflective paint on the roof saves the mid-town school by reducing the need for air-conditioning.
This enormous Solar Sun was created in Cape Town, South Africa, out of 70 high powered solar "cookers". After the event, the parabolic stoves were donated to the Khayelitsha community where many people do not have access to electricity.
I suspect that this is a spot where windmills would work marvelously.Katrina. It is a picture of a person standing on their house to avoid a flood. The work was created in the Dominican Republic and this is a satellite image. One can only imagine the massive scale of this one!


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Full Brooklyn in HD FormatNow you can watch full Brooklyn in high definition format with duration 105 Min and was published in 2015-11-06 with MPAA rating is 1.
- Original Title : Brooklyn
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- Year of movie : 2015
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- Status of movie : Post Production
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- Companies of movie : Wildgaze Films, Irish Film Board, Item 7, Parallel Film Productions,
- Countries of movie : Canada, Ireland,
- Language of movie : English,
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- Youtube ID of movie :
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- Actors of movie :Saoirse Ronan (Ellis Lacey), Domhnall Gleeson (Jim Farrell), Emory Cohen (Tony), Emily Bett Rickards (Patty McGuire), Nora-Jane Noone (Sheila), Michael Zegen (Maurizio Fiorello), Paulino Nunes (Mr. Fiorello), Jenn Murray (Dolores Grace), Eve Macklin (Diana Montini), Jessica Paré (Miss Fortini), Emily Bett Rickards (Patty), Eve Macklin (Diana), Maeve McGrath (Mary), Jenn Murray (Dolores), Aine Ni Mhuiri (Mrs. Byrne), Jim Broadbent (Father Flood), Eileen O'Higgins (Nancy)
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Tags: love triangle, homesickness, ship, community, based on novel, working class, brooklyn new york city, journey, dual life, irish immigrant,


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Saturday, November 6, 2010
Michael Savage People Are Terrified; Treasury, Currency
|What Do You Think?
7 comments:
- AnonymousNovember 7, 2010 at 2:21 AM
Michael is either a shill or delusional. What amateurs is he talking about? These are professional thieves that managed to f$ck the entire World so badly that nobody can do anything. They created a mortgage fraud and they sold it to pension funds. Ha-ha. No, Michael, these are not amateurs. These are very smart and devious people who have been running the planet for a long, long time. Bernanke and Geithner are just front men who execute the instructions from up above. That's all. Surprisingly, these people are not Mongolians as you all can see. Michael knows it, but he cannot bash people of his tribe. Look how skillfully they screwed Switzerland. >Audits of dormant accounts ordered by the Swiss government in 1962 and 1995 showed a total of $32 million (1995 dollars) in unclaimed war-era accounts. The WJC rejected initial offers from the banks and demanded payment of $1.8 billion to settle the lawsuit. < and this: >The Volcker commission audit cost CHF 300 million and gave its final report in December 1999.< Read the full article here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Jewish_Congress_lawsuit_against_Swiss_banksReplyDelete
If this is not an extortion I don't know what is. Do you still think that these people are amateurs?
- AnonymousNovember 7, 2010 at 6:49 AM
Two words: Secret Service. Look them up. The President does not decide the security level he needs. Besides, who's standing around, counting? No one.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousNovember 7, 2010 at 10:40 AM
a race to the bottom gold 1600
more like gold 6100
buy golds beeches
- AnonymousNovember 7, 2010 at 6:05 PM
Wonder how many Mom & Pops advertise on Savage's show? If any of his ilk have one corporate sponsor, it doesn't matter what they say, eventually they're shills. Yeah, right, Amateurs, indeed!ReplyDelete
- sharonsjNovember 8, 2010 at 11:02 AM
Please stop posting rants by idealogues. Savage is a rightwing crazy. It doesn't matter if the president is a liberal or a conservative, he will be surrounded by the Secret Service and a whole bunch of other people, and it will cost the taxpayers money no matter what.ReplyDelete
When the Justice Dept. goes after the banksters, then I'll believe we're on the right track. Until then, back to hunkering down. Don't expect the corporate Republicans to give a damn about the rest of us.
- AnonymousNovember 10, 2010 at 6:09 AM
Keep posting the doctor savage. He is awsome. Just stopwith the dope smoker alex jones who is in his own delusional world of everyones out to get me.ReplyDelete
- AnonymousNovember 10, 2010 at 10:55 AM
Why does it seem when this site first opened we had no talk of shill and stooges or 911 was an inside job. After a couple of conspiract articles it drew the Alex Jones crowd here in a hurry. I do agree with 309am Savage is a very intelligent man unlike Alex Jones and the goofballs who follow him. Dr Savage is so correct on the issues he states and proves them with back up evidence. Just remeber Alex Jones the dope smoker was the one crying the world is going to collapse when Y2K HITS... Well nothing happened. HE WAS WRONG AGAIN... Yet his pothead followers were right there backing him up. They are pro islam and anti jew. Fuck them muslims.ReplyDelete


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I just have to toot the horn of my downline & friend Jeanne Streiff who has been named one of the Design Team members for Lizzie Anne Designs and is also a design member of My Favorite Things.
Jeanne is the sweetest, fun-loving, generous & downright Artsy Fartsy (that's what her DH Joe affectionately calls her) gal you'll meet! I met Jeanne at a Stampin' Up! workshop I was demonstrator at 2 1/2 years ago. She was the epitome of the future demonstrator; she was there early, she helped out, she out shined everyone with her make 'n take, stayed after to help clean up (she lived next door to the hostess) oh and I can't forget she bought a boat load of stuff! I have to tell you a funny story too! I had about a 40 min drive from my house to the hostess' house. She knew she'd be late in arriving so she asked Jeanne to keep a lookout for me & let me in when I arrived. But I didn't know this. So here I am after having drank a whole diet coke on my ride ther (big mistake) and I couldn't FIND the hostess' house! She didn't have a # there. I was looking all over the street for that house! Well, finally Jeanne caught a glimpse of me & asked if I was the demo and I said yes, I'm looking for Valerie's house. Then she told me she was there to let me in. I said something like, 'Thank God - I really need to go to the restroom! I'm about to have an accident!) Jeanne saved the day!
We've had some great memories & I was so glad she decided to sign after about 3+ months attending her friend's workshops because I knew the benefits not only for her but for me & my downline. Jeanne is so generous with her creativity, her home (she hosted several of our get togethers because she has an AWESEOME stamp room!) and is a great friend!!! If you ever have a chance to get to know her - you BETTER! She will make you laugh - hers is very infectious! I love you, Jeanne & I'm SO very proud of you!!!
Thursday, May 10, 2007
Proud of my Friend Jeanne!!!
Posted to inspire you by Donna Baker at 4:40 PM
2 comments on "Proud of my Friend Jeanne!!!"
- Jeanne S on 5:03 PM CDT said...
You're too funny Donna! Glad I saved you from having to find a bush somewhere...hehe
- Cheryl on 7:17 PM CDT said...
Jeanne is one of my very favorite Splitcoasters!! I know when I see Jeanne's name that I am going to love her work. Everything she does is so great. I enjoy her blog too.
Congrats to you Jeanne and congrats to you Donna for having "discovered" this great talent.
Cheryl Sims
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About Bodhi Massage & Wellness Center
The Best Massage, Acupuncture, & Bodywork
Conveniently located in the heart of San Diego's vibrant Hillcrest neighborhood, the Bodhi studio itself inspires a sense of flow and serenity. Lush vegetation invites you inside. Every detail of our lobby and private rooms—from the all-wood wood floors, to the natural fabrics and colors, even our hand-made candles—was selected to balance your experience of comfort, healing, and professionalism.
Our talented team of professionals approach each person as an individual, working with you to assess your needs. We draw on our entire palate of modalities, emphasizing a holistic approach addressing all aspects of your body, mind, and spirit. Whether you seek a simple day's relaxation, a long-term course of treatment, or a physician-prescribed program to speed injury recovery, everything is customized to your needs.
We look forward to seeing you soon!
Bodhi Massage & Wellness Center
San Diego, CA 92103
United States
Get Directions
- Hours of Operation
- Mon: Closed Tues: 9am - 9pm Wed: 9am - 9pm Thu: 9am - 9pm Fri: 9am - 9pm Sat: 10am - 7pm Sun: 10am - 7pm


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Property details
50 km north of Mikkeli, lake Kyyvesi 20 m (length 40 km, width 10 km), hard, gently deepening sandy bottom, own boat. Wooden cabin 1974, enlargement in 1991, kitchen, living room, bedroom with double bed, alcove with two single beds, room in summer use, a glazed balcony. Downstairs living room with fireplace, sleeping sofa bed (140 cm), sauna (wood burning sauna oven), washing room, toilet, terrace. Outbuilding with double bed, electric lights and heating and a wood shed. The outbuilding only in summer use. Outside toilet. The cottage is located in a steep slope in the middle of a dry pine forest. Birches on the shore. Stairs down to the shore Next to the pier there is a swing. Canoe. In the the room, which is in use only in summer 2 beds For children DVDs, toys, books, games, travel cot, highchair. The staircase is with child gates. 2 fireplaces. Air source heat pump.Check in/out during high season on Friday, and only a weekly rental. Canoe Route 1 km, Kerovuori old-growth forest area of 8 km, Nykälä Rapids 10 km, Iso-Naakkima crater lake 20 km, Pieksämäki 45 km, Puulagolf 45 km, Kangasniemi 50 km Häkärinteet ski 60 km.Note! Bed linen and final cleaning cannot be bought as an extra service.


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Former Vice President Dick Cheney castigated Donald Trump on Monday after the GOP presidential front-runner accused former President George W. Bush of lying in order to force the US into war in Iraq.
"He sounds like a liberal Democrat to me," Cheney told Fox News host Bret Baier. "He's wrong, and I think he's deliberately promoting those views in order to advance his own political interests."
Trump launched an attack on Bush's administration during Saturday night's debate in South Carolina, calling the war "a big, fat mistake" and earning boos for criticizing Bush's record concerning both that conflict and the 9/11 attacks.
"We should have never been in Iraq," Trump said at the time. "They lied, they said there were weapons of mass destruction. There were none and they knew that there were none."
Trump also drew boos at the time for noting that Bush was president during the 9/11 attacks, a criticism he has since repeated to undermine current Republican rival Jeb Bush. Cheney said on Monday that these kinds of remarks made it tough to believe he was leading among GOP candidates.
"I was in the White House bunker on that day helping coordinate and manage our response to 9/11," Cheney said. "I didn't see Donald Trump there. I've never seen him involved in any way that would lead me to believe that he had any first-hand or practical experience about it. It's a disappointment, frankly, that he's acting that way."
Watch the interview, as posted on Monday, below.


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Source: Maria Kannon Zen Center
Zen … Awakening to the dynamic reality of the present moment. It is the Japanese name of a branch of Mahayana Buddhism which emphasizes the role of meditation (zazen) as a spiritual practice.
Beginning zen meditation:
Find a quiet, comfortable spot. Not too hot or too cold; not too bright nor too dark.
Place a cushion on the floor, preferably resting on a thin pad (or blanket or carpeting). Meditation cushions and pads (zafus and zabutons) can be purchased commercially, but other materials, such as pillows, sofa cushions or rolled-up blankets will suffice for beginning meditation at home. Meditating in a chair or on a low bench will also work.
The sitting postures are illustrated in several books on Zen meditation, including, The Three Pillars of Zen by Philip Kapleau and Taking the Path of Zen by Robert Aitken.
The suggested sitting postures are:
1. Full-lotus posture.
2. Half-lotus posture.
3. Quarter-lotus posture.
4. Burmese posture.
5. Kneeling or seiza posture (using cushions or a low bench).
6. Sitting in a chair.
In all of these postures, it is suggested that you keep your spine straight, the buttocks are thrust out and the chin is tucked in. The hands are held close to the body in the "cosmic mudra," where the left hand rests on top of the right, with palms open and up. The joints of the two middle fingers are resting on top of the other. The tips of the thumbs are lightly touching.
The ears are in line with the shoulders, and the tip of the nose is in line with the navel. The belly should be relaxed and allowed to "hang out" slightly. The eyes should normally be half-closed, and the gaze should be at about a 45-degree angle to the body. If you become sleepy during meditation, you might open your eyes wide to help yourself wake up. The crown of the head should point at the ceiling.
The knees should rest on the mat or floor. There should be no space between the knees and the sitting surface.
If sitting in a chair, you should sit on the front edge of the chair with your back erect, as described above. The feet should rest flat on the floor and the legs should be held apart slightly.
Once the sitting posture is achieved, rock back and forth a few times to establish your point of balance and a feeling of relaxed stability.
Take a few deep breaths, allowing the lungs to expand fully, and then exhale fully.
As your breath settles back to normal, breathe through the nose, with the tongue lightly touching the palate behind your teeth.
If you have never meditated before, it is suggested that you follow your breaths or count your breaths. Let all thoughts pass. If thoughts arise, treat them as "clouds passing by." Acknowledge them, and let them pass. Focus your attention on your breath or on the counting.
If you count breaths, you can count from one to ten, on each exhalation or inhalation. The more common method is to count as you exhale. But find the method that suits you. Count from one to ten, then start the sequence over, and continue this cycle.
If you follow your breaths, simply put your attention on your breath as you inhale and exhale. When (not if) your mind wanders, return your attention to the breath (or to the counting). Do not chastise yourself if your attention wanders. The purpose of the mind is to produce thoughts; they are with us always. The idea is to keep returning our attention to our breath or our counting, and our thoughts will settle down naturally.
Zen teachers suggest that we sit for short periods in the beginning. Ten minutes is a good goal to start with. Later, as you gain experience and confidence, you can extend the periods up to 20 or 30 minutes. It's a good idea to take a break after 25 or 30 minutes of sitting.
If you want to continue meditation during a break, you can do kinhin, or walking meditation. In kinhin, we fold our hands in front at about the level of the heart. The right hand is made into a fist, with the thumb tucked in, and held to the chest, palm down. The left hand is placed, palm down, on top of the right. The arms are held level, with elbows projecting at the side.
Walk slowly and deliberately, placing one foot in front of the other. Your attention is placed on the feeling of walking: Notice how your feet touch the floor, how your muscles contract and relax as you take each step. If you make a misstep, simply experience that and let it pass. If your mind wanders, return your attention to the slow, deliberate movement of "just walking."
After a few minutes of kinhin, you may return to sitting meditation.
What's the Point?
The point of Zen meditation is to open our eyes to our "true nature," to enable us to live a truly awakened life. Simply put, it gets us in touch with our pure "beingness." In Buddhist terms, it opens us to the realization of "emptiness." (Cf. The Heart Sutra)
We are not trying to achieve some lofty state, nor are we trying to get in a "trance" or experience psychic phenomena. We are just sitting for the sake of sitting, and letting go of everything else, experiencing our life, in the present moment, in each breath, to the fullest.
We try to sit every day. Some consider 10 minutes to be a minimum length of time. Others prefer 20, 30, or even 40 minutes or more as their own minimum. You should seek to find a time that works for you. As your confidence and experience grow, you may lengthen the time you sit.
You may sit at a time of day that suits you, when distractions will be at a minimum. For some, early morning works best. For others, evenings are preferable.
Often, you may find that while sitting, your feet go to sleep, or you experience aches or cramps in the back and legs. Do not force yourself to endure serious pain. Learn your limits and don't try to force yourself past them. Your endurance will build, the longer you meditate.
It is best to wear loose clothing when you meditate. It is usually not advisable to sit after a big meal. A full stomach can create discomfort that is distracting to meditation.
If you find Zen meditation is something you'd like to continue with a group, check to see if there is a teacher or sitting group near you. There are many Zen groups with listings on the World Wide Web, as well as directories for Zen centers around the world. Another good Zen center directory is in Tricycle magazine, the Buddhist Journal.
If you continue meditation, you may want to purchase items such as incense, a bell, or a "ringing" bowl to signal the beginning and the end of a meditation period. Incense is used by many Zen practitioners to time meditation periods. Short incense sticks burn about 25 minutes, while long sticks burn for 45-50 minutes. A kitchen timer is also good for timing meditation.
The following books offer a useful introduction to Zen:
Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki
Taking the Path of Zen by Robert Aitken
The Three Pillars of Zen by Philip Kapleau
Healing Breath by Ruben Habito


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DVD Stalk: Re-Animator, Perversion Story, and Naked You Die
We kick off this week's batch of horror DVD reviews with Ian Jane's take on the latest release of Stuart Gordon's classic genre film Re-Animator. While the film has made its way to DVD several times before, Anchor Bay seems to have given it quite a nice treatment and one worth picking up for just about any horror fan. Here's what Ian has to say about the latest disc: "Stuart Gordon's feature length directorial debut, 1985's Re-Animator, has been released twice before on DVD courtesy of Elite Entertainment in both single disc and double disc (as one of their Millennium Edition releases) formats. With the rights having shifted over to Anchor Bay Entertainment, the movie now receives its third uncut North American DVD release, proving that the movie remains a popular cult favorite...Re-Animator is a gleefully insane horror film that is as amusing as it is gory. Combs is fantastic as Herbert West and his over the top performance is perfect for this completely excessive film. The effect's don't always look as fresh as they would have back in 1985 but we're still left with a well paced and freakishly funny movie that makes the most of its limited budget and quirky cast...The cinematography from Mac Ahlberg (the same man who directed Justine And Juliette!) ensures that the film always looks sufficiently creepy and the camera work does a great job of capturing the eeriness of the hospital sets and the dank and dreary aspects of the basement laboratory. Gordon keeps the movie moving along at a brisk pace but manages to do so without sacrificing character development. While not all of the characters' mysteries are revealed we certainly learn enough about Cain and West in particular that we want to know what happens to them, giving the movie just the right amount of suspense. The humor also works quite well, with the material played completely straight and with the utmost seriousness...Some of the gore set pieces still pack a punch even now, more than two decades since the film was made. Heads are chopped off, bone saw rip through torsos, plenty of zombies run amuck and a head is squeezed until it explodes. A dead cat is brought back from the dead and a zombie smashes his head into a window until it bleeds. A certain corpse carries its own severed head around and assaults poor Megan in a very unexpected way, and it all results in a completely chaotic finale which raps everything up quite nicely without closing the doors to a sequel (of which two have been made so far at this point in the franchise's history)...If you've already got the previous two disc release from Elite, then whether or not you'll want to upgrade will hinge mainly on how much you value the new documentary and the nifty packaging. For those who haven't already picked up the prior release, however, Anchor Bay's Re-Animator is a no-brainer." Sounds like Anchor Bay's finally put out the ultimate edition of Re-Animator. If you're a horror fan at all, you owe it to yourself to grab a copy of this latest DVD release.
If you hardcore horror fans didn't already know it, Lucio Fulci made more than just his well-known giallo masterpieces. Perversion Story marks one of the director's forays into something a little bit difficult. Ian Jane checks in again to give us the scoop on Severin's latest DVD offering: "Much has been made on various message boards and online cult film fan communities about the version of the film contained on Severin's DVD. The version of the film on this DVD is the French cut which removes various bits and pieces of character and plot development and which in turn contains some spicier bedroom footage. It's certainly a sexier cut of the movie than most fans are going to be used to, considering that the only way to see the movie prior to this release was by way of the grey market releases that have been circulating for years, most of which feature the English language export version known as One On Top Of The Other (which clocks in at roughly one hundred and three minutes as opposed this version at ninety-seven minutes). The alternate edit contained on this disc is just as legitimate as any other version, but it's not been as common and as such, it'll take some viewers by surprise. It's not quite as fluid as the English export version and it's a little choppier but the film in this version is still a tight, well written giallo with some fun twists, some great performances and gorgeous cinematography...The cinematography from Alejandro Ulloa (who also worked with Fulci on The Devil's Honey and Conquest and who also shot Enzo G. Castellari's High Crime) is fantastic. It captures the night life of the big city very effectively and also does a great job of capturing the flair of the mod wardrobe and sixties fashions seen throughout the picture. He shoots Mell, who will always be best known for her performance in Bava's Danger! Diabolik in an almost fetishistic way that really accentuates her exotic looks and alluring features, and the camerawork is a big part of what makes her performance so intoxicating in this picture...Those expecting the gore and shocking brutality of the splatter movies that Fulci is best known for might come away disappointed from the film, as there really isn't much violence at all. That being said, even if the movie borrows a little bit from Riccardo Freda's Double Face (which Fulci also helped script based on a novel by Edgar Wallace) it's still a well made thriller with some great twists, a strong plot, and some fine performances...While hardcore Fulci-philes will likely debate the merits of this spicier cut for some time to come, Severin have provided a completely legitimate alternate version of the film with very nice audio and video quality and the film's soundtrack on a bonus CD." If you're in the mood for something just a little different, you could certainly do worse than to check out Fulci's Perversion Story. Severin is quickly emerging as a top-notch studio for genre DVD releases, and Perversion Story is no exception.
Dark Sky Films is at it again with their latest DVD release. A much lesser-known Mario Bava project, Antonio Margheriti's Naked You Die may not be the best fright flick around, but it's worth checking out. Once again, here's Ian Jane with his take on the film: "Originally devised by Mario Bava and Tudor Gates, Nude... Si Muore (in English, Naked You Die) started life as Cry Nightmare. Bava didn't see eye to eye with the producers and so he was yanked from the production and the reins were handed over to Antonio Margheriti (who directed the film under the alias of Anthony Dawson). The script was re-written, and Bava's name was removed from the picture and the film found American distribution through drive-in specialists American International Pictures who chopped fifteen minutes out of the movie so that it could fit on a double bill, re-titled The Young, The Evil And The Savage. The film was also known under the alternate titles Schoolgirl Killer and The Mini Skirt Murders to play up on the primary location and to exploit the titillating possibilities inherent in a murder mystery set in an all girls school. Dark Sky's welcome DVD release presents the in its original ninety-eight minute running time...Naked You Die is not a particularly great film – in fact, it's fairly pedestrian and not particularly compelling. Rennie sort of walks through the picture without much enthusiasm and the rest of the cast are rarely more inspired than he. The story meanders and the recurring comedic bits aren't particularly funny nor do they add much to the plot, instead they stand out as inappropriate and awkward. The movie definitely builds to a decent ending and there is some suspense to be found in the last half hour of the picture, but getting there doesn't exactly keep you on the edge of your seat...That being said, Naked You Die is far from a write-off and fans of giallos will find enough that works about the movie to want to give it a look. The opening murder, which is quite reminiscent of a famous kill scene from Bava's earlier giallo, Blood And Black Lace, is stylish and eerie as a black gloved killer strangles a woman in her bathtub then dunks her head under water until she can breath no more...Those looking for the sex and violence that the giallo is so often associated with will no doubt walk away from this one with some disappointment as the movie is very light on sex or gore, but this is never the less a very attractive film with a couple of effective set pieces that make it worth a look for seasoned fans of the genre, such as the kill scenes in the basement and the shower. A few of the subplots feel unnecessary and at times they almost feel like padding but the film remains marginally entertaining in spite of this...Naked You Die is far from the cream of the giallo crop, but it's a reasonably well-made film with an interesting ending and some nice camerawork. The cast is rather mundane but at least the movie looks nice and the film does have some importance as an early entry in the subgenre." While it might not be high on every genre fan's wishlist, Naked You Die is still worth seeing at least once.
Sometimes a real gem of a horror film comes from the most unexpected place. Requiem, the latest DVD release from IFC Films, is a nice little surprise for horror fans. Thomas Spurlin fills in the details: "There's nothing more frightening than the terror looming within the confines of a factually horrific experience. Hans-Christian Schmid's Requiem, the true telling of an epileptic German student in the 1970, is stripped down, raw, and void of any easy answers. Instead of relying on the excess of make-up and visual effects to convey dread, this film invokes real fear by mixing in the most terrifying of elements: humanity. Easily one of the better films about the effects of possession and demonic spirits, Requiem rises well above mediocrity due to a stunningly abrasive narrative surrounding one intoxicatingly bright star...What makes the fabric of Michela's insanity such a trip is the factual nature of this terrifying story. This mind's plague can seep into just about anyone's psyche. It seeps into this young student's psyche, however. Nothing can be done but to sit idly by and watch this girl flail in agony. Many other fanciful horror films tickle this subject matter by invoking make-up and exaggerated decomposition of idle bodies. Instead of leaning on aesthetics, Requiem takes a relaxed, focused approach that fuels the atmosphere with humanism. Tackling a film brimming with truth isn't a sure fire recipe for success. It's got to be adapted well, reflect on strong character development, and have a steadfast guiding force as the lead...And what a lead Sandra Hüller turns out to be. Many actors are quite capable of writhing about to an effective degree. Hüller, however, makes Michaela's role her own and crafts a restrained, unnerving persona that'll drive chills along the spine. She will only do this, however, if she sees it fit, thus demonstrating her grasp on the narrative. Sondra holds such insurmountable control over the film and its impeccable mood...Requiem unfolds much like a docile, character driven incarnation of The Exorcist. Instead of carrying the film to a level of fantasy and mysticism, Requiem keeps the tone low and brimming with tangible fear. Demons won't jump out and shriek a few screams out; instead, director Schmid will make you wonder whether their hold upon young Michaela looms within her psychosis ... or something else much more ethereal...Requiem will invoke a primal, haunting fear that'll leave more than a few breathless at the finale." Well said, Thomas. This one's worth taking a peek at.
Since he says it so much better than I possibly could, I'll just let the inimitable Bill Gibron take it away: "Some say he's fictional. Others swear his notoriety and crimes are based in truth. Whatever the case may be, the legendary "demon barber" of Fleet Street has become quite a post-modern icon. There have been movies made of his exploits (at least five by last count) a Tony Award winning musical (from Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim) and, currently, Tim Burton has once again teamed up with Johnny Depp to adapt said song and dance show into a big screen blockbuster. One of the more interesting attempts at the story remains a 2006 TV movie from Britain featuring Ray Winstone and Essie Davis. Abandoning previous versions to focus on the more human, and heartbreaking, side of the couple's crime spree, it's a very unusual take on the subject and the individuals involved. Now, thanks to the digital domain, we have a chance to see how this incarnation of the infamous slasher holds up. The answer is quite well, surprisingly...Luckily, this BBC production just manages to make do. Granted, it's far more graphic than other depictions, and approaches both characters from a strangely psychosexual angle, but thanks to an intelligent script by first time screenwriter Joshua St. Johnston and amiable direction from David Moore (The Forsythe Saga, Rebus), what could have been another stagnant serial killer story turns into something quite compelling. Thanks to both the acting and narrative novelty, a famous urban legend almost lives again...almost...Ray Winstone, who many may remember as a part of Jack Nicholson's mobster crew in The Departed (or better yet, as Captain Stanley in the marvelous Aussie Western The Proposition), has a completely unique bead on his version of Todd. Instead of making him a flamboyant freak (as the Stephen Sondheim musical does) or a straight ahead exterminating angel (almost every other version), the big, burly actor imposes a surreal emotional exile on the character. His version of Todd is a humble, almost holy man who views his barbering as redemption for years he spent incarcerated for a crime he didn't commit. Make no mistake about it, his soft spoken artisan is a screaming loon inside, but Winstone only lets the maniac out intermittently. It makes his concept of the killer all the more intriguing...with an excellent supporting cast (including David Warner and Tom Hardy) and a nice amount of blood and guts (there are a couple of very gory murders among the off screen killings) Sweeney Todd: The Director's Cut is a straight razor slice above the usual Demon Barber derivativeness. While not perfect, it has a certain squalid charm...anyone looking for a less exploitative, and less sensational view of this time honored story, there is a lot to like about this humanistic approach to the horror legend. Sweeney Todd may not have existed in real life, but in the fictional world of film and other entertainment mediums, his is an intriguing immortality." Even the oldest (and most well-known) stories can still be made interesting with a little ingenuity. Sweeney Todd: The Director's Cut is a fine example of just that fact. Check it out, especially if you've never seen the story in any of it previous forms.
Bill Gibron is back again to give us his take on two films from Lionsgate's recent After Dark Horror Fest series. The much buzzed-about series of films is finally getting a nice DVD treatment and, though Bill doesn't love every aspect of the films, he does find a lot to like on these discs. Let's hear it, Bill: "Dammit if Dark Ride doesn't disappoint. It starts off just like those sensationally stupid slasher epics from decades past, and promises a nice amount of slice and dice splatter once our victims in training teens show up at the title locale to spend the night. There's even a healthy dose of monster movie madness, with the deformed killer at the center of the storyline giving the hideous Hellspawn from Tobe Hooper's underrated Funhouse a run for his mutated money. But then director Craig Singer has to go and whiz the entire enterprise down his cinematically inexperienced leg. Even with a few films to his credit, Singer has yet to learn the lessons of successful dread reckoning. These required rules mandate that cheap shocks not be substituted for legitimate scares, that tone and narrative be expertly balanced with performance and personality, and in the category of creating viable villainy, we have to be given some minor insight into the shattered psyche of our bone carver. Provide these production prerequisites and we fright fans will follow you anywhere – well, almost. But Singer continually saunters off into tangent territory, leaving his main storyline to focus on some failed prank, a dead end relationship between two uninteresting lovers, and a horrid hippy chick lifted director out of Rob Zombie's personal – and motion picture – life. All of these fringe elements turn Dark Ride from a film with potential to a piece of sloppy schlock...Thanks to a terrific premise (these carnival and boardwalk mainstays have always carried a seedy, sinister stigma) and the reliance on the old school style of terror, Dark Ride should really retro rock and roll. It's got more compelling potential than a hundred half-baked outsider horror films. But it is clear from almost the very beginning that Singer doesn't have the originality to make this filmic foundation pay off... Perhaps the biggest sin this film commits, however, is the lack on onscreen grue. While many in the audience will cheer triumphantly as a much hated character finally buys the skank chateau, hers is the only slaughter worth savoring. Indeed, many of the other characters die off screen (WHAT?!?!) with our ability to see what happened restricted to an irritating bloody corpse afterglow...What Dark Ride needed was more Friday the 13th and less of Scream's irony overdrive. There are aspects here that are worth a look, but overall, this is one sideshow attraction that will have you demanding your money back...While it's not the worst movie offered as part of the entire 8 Films to Die For series Dark Ride will be a big disappointment for anyone other than the most casual fright fan. It's got too much going for it to completely dismiss, but can't quite figure out how to balance all its benefits into a successful film."
The second film, in the same series, that Bill looks as this week unfortunately doesn't fair much better: "Wicked Little Things is a horror film that cheats. It wants to get by on one element and one element only. It doesn't care about characterization or plot logic, has no idea how to stage scares or suspense. Instead, it carries cast and crew up to some incredibly atmospheric woods in the Bulgarian outlands and hopes that mood alone will create all the creepiness it needs. It has to be said that the locale is indeed wonderful – dense and deceptively beautiful. Even better, the production locates a series of broken down buildings which provides an excellent backdrop for all the dread that's about to occur. But thanks to a terrible script by Jace Anderson, Adam Gierasch and Ben Nedivi (the first two being responsible for a collection of mid-level SciFi Channel style crap) and the uninspired direction of J. S. Cardone (himself a basic b-movie journeyman) what was betting on tone alone to freak out fans simply shrivels up and dies. And unlike the title terrors in this narrative, the movie itself fails to rise from the dead and seek its own cinematic revenge. Instead, it becomes an inert little experiment in monotonous ambiance...Originally entitled Zombies, and at one time tagged with horror film legend Tobe Hooper as the man behind the lens, Wicked Little Things does many standard fright film formulas a major disservice. While it's true that the undead have been an overused and undeserved genre dynamic since the invention of DVD, this is one of the worst applications of cannibal corpsing every attempted. Cardone, who must contend with making the small of frame and physically frail appear baneful and badass, decides that the best way to handle this expositional element is to simply avoid it all together. We never learn why these pissed off children are back from the grave, and why they've decided to dress like extras from a Visage video in the process. And let's not even get started over all the flesh feasting... Even worse, this is all Wicked Little Things has going for it – beyond the obvious attempts to exploit the local. Bulgaria looks pretty imposing here, its dark and dreary woods presenting a perfect environment for all manner of spook show fun...most of the killings occur off screen, a huge pool of fake blood flying up into frame the only indication of the violent vivisection taking place. As stated before, Wicked Little Things is a hapless horror hoax. It promises to be a moody, maniacal trip into a wilderness overloaded with precarious potential. All we end up with are grade school gore goofballs, and not much else." It's a shame that these first two entries didn't pan out as well as we hoped, but stay tuned for reviews of the rest of the After Dark Horror Fest films.
John Carpenter is truly a master director and easily fits the bill as a "Master of Horror." His first-season entry in the Masters Of Horror series is widely regarded as one of the best of the bunch. Ian Jane, unfortunately, doesn't feel quite the same way about Carpenter's season two episode: "John Carpenter's Cigarette Burns was one of the better episodes from the first season of Showtime's Masters Of Horror series, so fans were understandably excited to see the director teaming up with the writing team of Drew McWeeny and Scott Swan for one more shot. Unfortunately, the trio's second attempt, Pro-Life, gets lost in and amongst the politics that its story swats around...Taking elements from some of Carpenter's earlier films like Assault On Precinct 13 and more notably The Thing and throwing in bits and pieces from Rosemary's Baby, this movie seems like a sure thing but sadly falls short of where it should have hit which is a genuine shame considering that it sounds like a perfect fit for Carpenter's talents. By using the real life controversy surrounding the abortion debate in the United States right now as a starting point the film soon becomes bogged down by the politics inherent in the premise and this comes at the sacrifice of character development and tension...With the griping out of the way, let it be said that Pro-Life is not a total waste of time. There are some nifty effects in the film and a couple of genuinely shocking and surprising moments of violence that will keep viewers on their toes. Perlman is decent in an unexpectedly restrained performance, proving that sometimes cooler heads do prevail and Caitlin Wachs is quite good as the confused and distraught Angelique, torn between her religious beliefs and the dire reality of her situation. The script does succeed in making us think, even if it's only briefly, and while the message gets muddled the premise is at least an interesting one. Carpenter's direction is assured and the cinematography is slick and expertly executed. It's a shame then, that the writers weren't able to put the story before the politics and give us a truly intelligent piece of work. The seeds were there, but they didn't fully sprout...Not a particularly strong effort when you consider what Carpenter has been capable of in the past, Masters Of Horror: Pro-Life is still worth seeing for a few inspired moments and a couple of nasty set pieces." Much like the other Masters Of Horror discs, Pro-Life is a nicely loaded package that brings the slightly sub-par quality of the film up to a recommendable level. Check it out.
Finally, Bill Gibron wraps up this week's reviews with a clever little look at Debbie Rochon in Skin Crawl: "Someone in the mainstream media needs to hurry up and hire Debbie Rochon before she loses the desire to perform before the camera. This attractive, intelligent woman has been wasting away in the fringes of outsider cinema for far too long. Granted, it gives novice moviemakers with little or no cash a definite bit of personal production value, but for an actress with as much raw talent as Rochon to simply be some fanboy's easily hire-able eye candy seems a shame. A good example of her underused abilities is the wannabe thriller Skin Crawl. Crafted by a first time filmmaker desperate for an attention-gaining gimmick, and offering Rochon a fully realized role without mandatory nudity or nastiness, this narratively complex effort should make for an interesting fright night at the movies. Instead, ambition thwarts entertainment as the movie's knotty plot purposefully avoids letting the audience enjoy the plentiful paranormal pulp...Welcome to the world of 'good news/bad news' horror film criticism. On the analytic menu today – the under-baked revenge flick Skin Crawl. Lining up the likable elements of this outsider effort, we find a willing cast (complemented by current schlock scream queen Debbie Rochon) eager to deliver in the dread department. Similarly, first time writer/director Justin Wingenfeld wants to utilize a Pulp Fiction / Rashomon style for his narrative, twisting and turning the basic plot points into something surprising...and sinister. And finally, for you lovers of gore and gratuity, actress Julian Wells is in a near constant state of nudity, exposing her chest with routine regularity, while the finale features a decent amount of Italian terror inspired grue. It's actually a pretty impressive collection of pluses, each one an example of a movie trying to make a motion picture mountain out of a standard macabre molehill. But wait – that's only one side of the story. What about the negatives, you ask? Are the flaws facing this film fatal, or merely minor pitfalls along the road to a decent indie effort? Sadly, the cons really cold cock this movie, delivering deathblows over and over again to something that is trying, stoically, to remain engaging and upright. Indeed, in the end, the problems completely scuttle the scares, resulting in a fright film without horror, a tepid tale of supernatural vigilantism that just falls apart...But the biggest crime Skin Crawl commits is waiting for three quarters of its scant storyline to slog by before delivering the bloody goods. Indeed, there are more faked sex scenes in this film than shots of paranormal payback. Julian Wells, who plays the manipulative skank to "needs to die" perfection, gets a lovely little death scene, complete with vomiting and putrescent maggots (yum!). But the rest of the terror is implied, just red stuff dripping off walls and wardrobe. It's too bad that Skin Crawl couldn't get its scary movie act together. There is some good material here. Sadly, it is muzzled by the desire for too much onscreen invention." Not a great horror film, by any stretch of the imagination, but Skin Crawl is still a heckuva lot of fun.
We here at DVD Stalk are incredibly proud of all the great horror news, reviews, and commentary we've been able to bring you over the past year or so and we've grown by leaps and bounds, but we're not done quite yet. DVD Stalk Blog is the latest part of that equation, and an important one at that. Some of the things you're likely to see in the new DVD Stalk Blog include: Shorter, capsule reviews of films (and DVDs) that might not quite fit into the column. News and press releases from all across the world of horror. Interaction with you, the DVD Stalk readers, including giveaways, contests, polls, etc. And, most importantly, a forum for the people behind DVD Stalk to voice their thoughts on current horror films, books, comics, and pretty much anything horror related. We hope to make this blog a place that you'll not only check every single day (as we hope to have new content up daily - or at least nearly daily), but also pop into your favorite RSS reader, tell all your friends about, and link to like crazy little horror freaks.
What do you guys and gals think? We're pretty excited about it, and we hope you'll be too!
As DVD Stalk continues to grow, we hope to bring you more great features and even a few surprises. We've gotten some wonderful responses over at DVD Stalk's MySpace. If you've got a MySpace account, make sure you stop by and friend us.
You keep reading and we'll keep writing. If there is anything that you, the loyal reader, would love to see covered in this area, please feel free to send us a note to [email protected].
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DVD Stalk Editors: Scott Lecter, Geoffrey Kleinman.
The blog raises from the dead and other Halloween treats
Warner Archives, El Superbeasto and more
Feast III, My Bloody Valentine, and Friday the 13th!
X-Files, Naschy, and Black Christmas
Compete Archives
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Bharti Airtel, a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 19 countries across Asia and Africa, Friday announced the names of 262 lucky Airtel mobile customers and 262 lucky Airtel Retailers of the 1st Lucky draw from the North Eastern region to receive bumper gifts from participating in its 'Khushiyon Ki Diwali' festive offer, through which customers buying new Airtel pre-paid and post-paid connections, across its 23 circles, are not only assured of gifts (such as free SMSes, talk time and other value added services), but also stand a chance to get other exciting gifts including Maruti Ritz cars, Hero Honda bikes, LCD TVs, refrigerators and much more. Apart from the customer gifts, 'Khushiyon Ki Diwali' offer brings great opportunities for Airtel retailers. For each bumper gift announced, the activating retailer of the customer will also be eligible to get the same gift as the customer. As part of the first draw, these customers and Retailers were proud recipients of 4 LCD TVs, 24 refrigerators, 20 Airtel digital TV connections and 472 mobile handsets and 4 Hero Honda Bikes. Apart from many more of the same prizes - 1 Toyota Corolla Altis, 23 Maruti Ritz cars and 115 Hero Honda bikes are yet to be taken home!Airtel mobile customers Mr. Nitul Barua and Airtel Retailer Bipul Phukan of Dhemaji & Mrs Pritikana Talukdar Bhowmick and Retailer Subrata Datta of Tripura were awarded Hero Honda Bikes. Names of next set of lucky customers to receive gifts will be selected post subsequent draws on November 2 and November 15. Pan India offer 'Khushiyon Ki Diwali' was kick started by Airtel on October 7 to celebrate the spirit of the festive season. With this, customers across 23 circles upon buying new Airtel pre-paid and post-paid connections between October 7 and November 15 will not only get assured gifts (such as free SMSes, talk time and other value added services), but also stand a chance to get other exciting gifts including Maruti Ritz cars, Hero Honda bikes, LCD TVs, refrigerators and much more. And one special customer to be announced on November 16 will also get the keys to a brand new Toyota Corolla Altis! This Diwali season, Airtel customers, retailers, all stand to win with Airtel. Airtel's 'Khushiyon Ki Diwali' festive offer ends November 15.For further information, please contact Anjuli Chittaranjan, Head Internal & Corporate Communications & CSR, Bharti Airtel Limited NESA. Mobile: 099540 49398
Ikato Y Kiho, first Naga to join National School of Drama in New Delhi
I must be the perfect role model: Ikato Y Kiho is the first person from Nagaland to study in the prestigious


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I have to say a big "Thank You" to fellow writer and member of the South Jersey Writer's Group, Jord Fox, for posting this information on his Facebook page about this wonderful and compassionate lady. I was trying to decide on a featured hero for my blog, but after reading about this woman, I decided on Irena Sendler.
Look at this lady - Let us never forget!
The world hasn't just become wicked...it's always been wicked.
The prize doesn't always go to the most deserving.
Irena Sendler
Died 12 May 2008 (aged 98)
Warsaw, Poland
During WWII, Irena Sendler got permission to work in the Warsaw ghetto as a plumbing/sewer specialist.
She had an 'ulterior motive'.
She KNEW what the Nazi's plans were for the Jews (being German).
Irena smuggled infants out in the bottom of the tool box she carried and she carried in the back of her truck a burlap sack, (for larger kids).
She also had a dog in the back that she trained to bark when the Nazi soldiers let her in and out of the ghetto.
The soldiers of course wanted nothing to do with the dog and the barking covered the kids/infants noises.
During her time of doing this, she managed to smuggle out and save 2500 kids/infants.
She was caught, and the Nazi's broke both her legs, arms and beat her severely.
Irena kept a record of the names of all the kids she smuggled out and kept them in a glass jar, buried under a tree in her back yard.
After the war, she tried to locate any parents that may have survived it and reunited the family.
Most had been gassed. Those kids she helped got placed into foster family homes or adopted.
Last year Irena was up for the Nobel Peace Prize.
She was not selected.
President Obama won one year before becoming President for his work as a community organizer for ACORN
Al Gore won also --- for a slide show on Global Warming.
In MEMORIAM - 63 YEARS LATER
I'm doing my small part by forwarding this message.
I hope you'll consider doing the same...
It is now more than 60 years after the Second World War in Europe ended.
This e-mail is being sent as a memorial chain, in memory of the six million Jews, 20 million Russians, 10 million Christians and 1,900 Catholic priests who were murdered, massacred, raped, burned, starved and humiliated!
Now, more than ever, with Iran, and others, claiming the HOLOCAUST to be 'a myth'.
It's imperative to make sure the world never forgets, because there are others who would like to do it again.
There isn't much to say after reading about this amazing heroine except that we should never, ever stay silent when we witness an evil act perpetrated against another human being. We will be judged on what we failed to do.


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I have such a strong sense of fatalism that I've never been able to understand the part of prayer that involves asking God for things. If nothing is good or bad but thinking makes it so (Shakespeare reference there) and things happen as they are supposed to happen based on cosmic justice and karma, then where is the place for asking God to change "His" plan?
This question has plagued me for a long time. I don't feel comfortable asking God/the Universe for things.
This came even more accutely to my attention recently. I read a blog called The Life and Times of an Indian Homemaker She blogs mostly about injustice to women in Indian society, politics, and change, but a few weeks ago her nineteen year old daughter came down with Dengue fever. She asked for our prayers.
I did not know what to say. I promised my thoughts and my hopes. The child died on August 11th.
So here I am wondering about prayer again. It is hard for me to believe that if you go to a particular temple and make a particular sacrifice, then what you want to happen will happen. On the other hand, I do believe in the power of our minds to create reality and that focusing our attention on something powerfully draws it to us.
Eat Pray Love, the book, gave me some new ways of looking at and thinking about prayer.
Near the beginning, when she's going through a divorce, she takes a long driving trip with a friend from Lebanon. She tells her friend that she wishes she could write a petition to God to get her divorce over and done with. The friend asks why doesn't she. Ms. Gilbert expresses many of the same reasons I have not to pray: "I explained to Iva my personal opinions about prayer. Namely, that I don't feel comfortable petitioning for specific things from God, because that feels to me like a kind of weakness of faith. I don't like asking, 'Will you change this or that thing in my life that's difficult for me?' Because-- who knows?--God might want me to be facing that particular challenge for some reason." (Page 32)
Iva responds, "Where'd you get that stupid idea?" She goes on to say "You are part of this universe...you have every entitlement to participate in the actions of the universe, and to let your feelings be known...it will at least be taken into consideration." (page 32)
So they write a petition to God and shortly after she got a phone call that her divorce had finally gone through.
This notion that as part of the universe, and part of the divine, we have a right to ask for things to go a certain way, is a very new idea to me.
Later in the book she talks about prayer again. I want to just quote the whole chapter to you! It's on page 176 when she talks about her prayers becoming more deliberate. At first she felt odd praying, thinking that God already knows what she needs. She describes her prayers as sounding like talking a hairdresser... "Oh, I dunno what I need...but you must have some ideas...so just do something about it, would you?"
But then she realizes that the half-heartedness isn't going to get her anywhere. She says
"Of course God already knows what I need. The question is--do I know?...You're going to get more out of the experience if you can take some action on your end...Prayer is a relationship; half the job is mine. If I want transformation, but can't even be bothered to articulate what, exactly, I'm aiming for, how will it ever occur? Half the benefit of prayer is in the asking itself, in the offering of a clearly posed and well-considered intention...In making an effort to stay alert, I am assuming custodial responsibility for the maintenance of my own soul." (pg. 176 and 177)
I love that part about "prayer is a relationship; half the job is mine." That makes so much sense!
It's like when you're sitting in a classroom and thinking, "Please, please, please let me pass this test." First of all, I don't know if God cares if you pass the test, but assuming we're talking about it's important to us, so it's important to the universe...well, in that case hopefully you've also studied!
She goes on to talk about destiny also being a relationship, "a play between divine grace and willful self-effort."
I guess another issue is that I want to be beyond the realm of desires, and therefore praying for things I want seems wrong. But I need to acknowledge my desires and see them before automatically squashing them. I am not spiritually in a place where I can be without desire. Especially desire for good things, like the life of a beloved child. How do I reconcile that I think everything happens for a reason and that death is only natural and not a tragedy with praying for things to turn out a certain way?
Well, it reminds me of another Advaitist story. I only remember the bare bones of it, but the idea was that an enlightened man heard about a woman's young son who died and he wept for the child. His disciples asked him why he did this, when he taught that death is an illusion. He said that we are human beings and we have human emotions and it is important to go through those emotions appropriately. We do and should have emotions and emotional responses to things.
This is still a big question for me, but I'm going to try prayer and experiment with it a little. I'm very inspired by these two new ways to think about prayer.