What’s in your bathroom?
I love to look at peoples’ bathrooms. I’m not like a parent running a white glove test, of course; I don’t care about the mess (unless it’s so gross I can’t walk in the room, of course). I care about the different products and décor you will find in the room, which tells a lot about a person.
For example, is everything organic, or homemade? Are there more than ten products for hair care, indicating some high level maintenance, or is it pretty bare? Sometimes you can even get an idea about something you want in your own home, like a deliciously-scented lotion.
My aunt totally stole our Method soap craze when she smelled our hand soap. Are there mermaids and sea shells everywhere—or no décor at all? What kind of theme is there, if any? And the shower curtain—what does it look like? I love shower curtains!
What I really like to do is to see what kind of reading material is available in the john. In ours, as you can see, there are both books and puzzles. My husband and I like to pass notes in our Sudoku books, and my latest book is usually in there since I don’t get a chance to read much outside the bathroom! I’ve seen comic books, magazines and all kinds of fun things in peoples’ bathrooms.
The Copenhagen Puppet Festival
The Copenhagen Puppet Festival is a unique event for those that have an interest in the classic art of puppeteering. This old style of entertainment has managed to survive the test of time and now reemerges in a new way, presenting excellent shows that need not be relegated to children. The festival, as the name implies, takes place in the capital of Denmark though only every other year.
One of the main goals of the organizers is to bring adult puppet theater to a wider audience and hopefully foster an interest in this art form. The event started up fairly recently, in 2007. At first, the festival encompassed both adult and children’s puppet performances, but it has since split. The Copenhagen Puppet Festival now takes place during odd-numbered years, while Puppet Junior - the kid’s equivalent - takes place during even-numbered years.
The festival brings the best in the business together to show what they have to offer. They come as solo acts or in teams and put on a variety of different performances. Some focus on classic puppet theater, using traditional tales. Others are more modern, with political themes or showcasing the aesthetics and techniques of the trade. Part of the festival is devoted to the Danish traditions of puppeteering and another part of it is held for the international artists.
The Copenhagen Puppet Festival is a collection of puppet masterpieces that highlight the artistry of this often-overlooked form of expression. The next festival will be held from February 28th to March the 3rd, so if you happen to be in the neighborhood, do yourself a favor and check it out. You may find yourself pleasantly surprised.
Physics experiment: Straw rocket racing
My daughter and I love to use straws in just about anything. Whether it’s craft making (cut up straws into strips and thread them as a necklace!), sculptures (she made me a horse sculpture to represent Artax from The Neverending Story last night), or science projects, we always need straws in our house.
We use straws as rockets to race in two ways: as launchers and as rocket bodies. Here’s how you do both.
Launchers: This is the easiest one to do. Many of you might remember it simply as “spitballs” from middle school! Roll up a small ball and use your straws to blow it as far as you can. You can alternate by using the ball inside the actual straw or simply on your palm (or elbow, etc. to make it more challenging), use a wet or dry ball, whatever you like. The limit is only your imagination! We tried this with squinkies, too, but it didn’t work so well.
Balloon rockets: Cut a small piece of your straw off—maybe a one-inch piece or so—and blow up a balloon without tying it (just hold it still while inflated). Tape your straw to your balloon, then threat some string through it. Tape one end of the string up high—a doorway works well—then step back and make the string taught. Release your balloon and see how fast it goes! Race your whole family with different strings or just by taking turns.
Camp Activity: Film Canister Rockets
It’s almost time for winter break for many families, which means that some parents will be scrambling around for activities to do with their kiddos. In our house that’s never a problem because we homeschool and are used to doing activities all of the time, but for many moms and dads who work or just aren’t used to being “on” all day, it can be a challenge. Fear not; here is an activity that will keep your kiddos—and you!—amused all afternoon. You could even use it for camp, or a 4-H activity like we do.
Gather together some construction paper or cardstock, enough empty film canisters with lids for each participant (you can use the same lid each time if needed), tape, some water, and some effervescent tablets. The hardest part will probably be the film canister for most people, especially if you take all digital photos; you can see if your local teacher supply store has some for purchase, too.
Flipping your canister lid-side down, make a round rocket top sides for your rocket. You can decorate it, add stickers, whatever you like with the paper/cardstock. This isn’t necessary but it’s a very fun part for the artsy kids—and you can even use this in your modification steps (more on that later).
When you’re finished, take your rockets outside to a safe flat launching surface. Add water and effervescent tablets into the cans and quickly—very quickly!—seal them and step away. You don’t want to get smacked in the face when these things launch!
Your rocket will hopefully pop up in the air and come back down; sometimes they don’t pop much. You can experiment with modifications and variables. What if you add weight (with more decorations) or subtract it? What if you use a whole tablet, a half tablet, or even a quarter tablet for your “fuel”? How about adding or subtracting water, using another brand of tablet… Encourage your kids to come up with new variables to test. You can also measure whose rocket travels the farthest or average out the distances for a math activity.
Finally, be sure to clean up your mess and don’t leave any film canisters or paper in your launch area—especially if it’s at a public place like a park! Our 4-H team were absolute pros at picking up after themselves and it’s just another lesson on being a good citizen and environmental stewardship.
Burning the Clocks
Burning the Clocks is a winter solstice festival that takes place in Brighton at the end of each year as an alternative to Christmas. This tradition can trace its roots back to pagan customs though it now has a distinctively modern approach to those holidays. It’s mostly a local event, but Burning the Clocks still manages to attract more than 20,000 people each year to watch the show or take part, many of them from outside of England.
Burning the Clocks was first put together by people as a response to what they saw as an over-commercialized Christmas holiday. They also felt that since Christmas was centralized around just one religion, they’d like to create something that everyone could enjoy without worry. With this Brighton festival, any can participate and it’s not the giant event of gift-giving that is typical in the Western world today.
The highlight of the festival is a procession of lanterns that begins at 6:30 p.m. Around 2,000 people dressed in costume, each decorated with or carrying a representation of a clock (to symbolize the passage of time) and carrying a lantern. These are made from white tissue paper and willow canes, with each one being made individually. Some of them turn out quite large and spectacular. The procession is accompanied by music from local bands as it makes its way through the site, eventually arriving at the seafront about an hour-and-a-half later.
Once at the destination, the lanterns are all stacked up and lit in an enormous bonfire. Before they are burnt, people are supposed to imbue the lanterns with thoughts of their hopes, dreams, wishes and fears. While the bonfire burns, there is a fireworks show and more music.
Burning the Clocks is a new tradition based on older ones and presents a great alternative to Christmas for those that want a break from the same shopping-oriented holiday. It can be a fun way to break away from the mold, no matter what your religion happens to be.
Alternatives to giving presents
Like many American families, mine is in no position to buying a bunch of presents this year for the holidays. But then again, who needs another mindless present anyway? Why not make something to give to the people you love this year instead? Here are a few ideas that my daughter and I are considering.
Waldorf Stars: We made some of these the other night and they are not only super easy, but super beautiful. They are perfect projects for beginners at origami, and you can even alter them to make them as small or large as you want! We are thinking of hole punching ours and making them into ornaments to give to our loved ones this year. Here is a super easy tutorial to follow; to make smaller stars, just use smaller paper. In the past we have also made spoon ornaments and popsicle stick sleds as gifts.
Make Rock Candy: We are super excited about this project! We’ve never made rock candy before as a family, though my husband did it once as a Boy Scout in his childhood. This how-to guide looks simple enough, and I’m pretty sure we have everything we need already except for the bamboo skewers—which we had months ago before we did a big kitchen purge! Knew we should have saved those for something… Any other holiday homemade goodies, from caramels to fudge, cookies to brownies, would surely be much appreciated as well!
Clay Critters: My daughter loves to make clay gifts for people, and clay is very cheap if you buy the right kind. We get a multi-color pack for about three bucks. This week she’s made me Barbaloot bears from The Lorax, a moon, gnomes, a dolphin, witch hats and a bluebird.
Books: My daughter is seven and very much into books right now. She loves to read, be read to, and to make her own books. She likes to personalize the drawings and add a little text to tiny pocket-sized books, which would make excellent gifts for the people on your list. Alternatively, you can also gift any used books that you are ready to part with; be sure to add a heartfelt inscription.
Homemade Jewelry: Whether you can weave friendship bracelets out of yarn or string, bead small beads onto thread, or even just bend a pipe cleaner and put a bell on it, your personal jewelry will be a wonderful gift to someone in your life. These are particularly good presents for children to exchange.
Click and stand up for animals
Whether you just love your companion animal like a member of the family or you’re a die-hard animal rights activist who doesn’t even eat honey, you might want to take action for animals today on the following issues. Check them out and add your voice to the campaigns you support.
Tell Circus World: No more elephants!
It’s always been the elephants in circuses that kill the appeal for me. I don’t support making any animal unnaturally act for entertainment, but elephants in particular are such huge, loving, family-oriented creatures who need their space, and both their captivity and their cruel treatment have always broken my heart when it comes to circuses. Wisconsin’s Circus World has been adding insult to injury, violating Department of Agriculture laws with their treatment of elephants and partnering with other circuses who do the same. Click here to tell them not to use elephants in their acts anymore, especially if they can’t even respect laws regarding such performances.
While you’re at it, please take a moment to read this information about elephants used in circuses in Los Angeles and add your voice to their opposition as well.
Save greyhounds From abandonment and abuse
Did you know that in Spain, greyhound dogs are used during hunting season, then discarded on the street like a piece of trash when hunters are through with them? The dogs are then left to starve and fend for themselves, which is heartbreaking. Please click here to ask that the dogs be given much better treatment and that laws against this deplorable behavior be made and enforced.
Save Nemo and other reef animals
As our ocean temperatures rise, the homes of these animals and their very lives are in jeopardy due to acidification. This process kills the reefs themselves, leaving clownfish and countless other animals homeless—not to mention dulling their senses so badly that they cannot escape from predators. Click here to ask that the clownfish be added to the endangered species list in order to help protect its habitat and further encourage efforts to curtail global warming.
Tell bebe: No More Fur!
Many people have stopped wearing or supporting fur altogether, but some people—like the company bebe—just don’t get it. While some fur proponents envision a very organic use of animal skins during a process in which every part of the animal is humanely harvested a la Avatar, this simply isn’t the case. Animals raised on fur factories spend their lives cramped up in cages inhumanely suffering so someone can just kill them for their very skin in the name of fashion. If that idea doesn’t make you sick, I’m not sure what will. Click here to tell bebe to stop using fur.
Take action for human rights worldwide
To quote Sara Sidle from TV’s CSI, “It never ceases to amaze me what we do to each other.” No matter who you are or where you are born, there is always a chance that your human rights and very life could be destroyed as long as the rights of anyone are being trampled. We must stand together as brothers and sisters and call for compassionate, fair and humane treatment of one and all.
Stop the Kill the Gays bill
Remember that horrible “Kill the Gays” bill that Uganda was considering? The country is back to considering this heinous legislation. Click here to voice your opposition and prevent gay and lesbian Ugandan citizens from being murdered for simply being who they are. Activists helped stop the bill last year; please click to help stop it again.
Stand up with women of the Congo
The genocide taking place in Congo has been raging for sixteen years now. Much of this blood has touched our own hands in the form of the electronic devices we purchase, fused together over the blood minerals mined in this horrible civil war that’s anything but civil. Women and children are dying daily in a nation where rape is used as a weapon of war; in fact, women in the area expect to get raped. This is completely unacceptable. Please click here to take a stand alongside the women of the Congo along with Hilary Clinton, Michelle Obama, and other people who care.
Pass the Treaty on Rights for Persons with Disabilities
The UN Treaty on Rights for Persons with Disabilities is an integral part of our progress as both a nation and as a global society. With people like Mitt Romney around who want to take away the rights of people with disabilities, it’s more important than ever that we stand up for these individuals who sometimes have no voice of their own. This important piece of legislation will increase access for persons with disabilities worldwide and it is absolutely vital that we pass it. I know knee-jerking people who don’t want to pass it simply because it is associated with the UN! These people are putting politics ahead of people, something we must never do. Please click here to learn more and to add your voice.
Give women in the military equal reproductive rights
Although as many as 19,000 women in the military are sexually assaulted annually—a statistic completely unacceptable in and of itself—not a single one of them is provided with insurance coverage for abortion care. We owe our service women much more than this. We owe them complete safety when in the company of their fellow servicemen, for starters—and we owe them complete medical coverage as well. Click here to demand that military women be provided complete reproductive health care.
Act for a better future
Whether it’s clean water, economic rights or unhealthy food, there are plenty of things to be concerned about today. Yes, we can get angry—but it’s more productive to be active. Let’s add our voices together in support—or in opposition—to the following progressive action items.
Act for clean water
When we think about how millions of the people of the world die simply because they have no access to clean, safe drinking water, it’s a very sobering thought. Many of us have the luxury of readily available clean water in our very homes; shouldn’t the rest of the world have the same? Ask Congress to support the Water for the World Act in ensuring that every person has access to safe, clean drinking water.
Ask for a living wage for fast food workers
When I worked in the restaurant business, I was spoiled; I worked for a family-owned line of restaurants with great benefits, free food, and good pay as far as that line of work goes. Some of the supervisors could have used a bit of sensitivity training, but otherwise it wasn’t bad work. That said, it’s still grueling, thankless, hard work filled with angry customers and lots of gross cleaning every day—and most workers get paid so little in the biz that they have to take on multiple jobs to just afford rent. Click here to ask that fast food workers be paid a living wage.
Tell Monsanto: No immunity for you!
During this year’s lame duck period, Monsanto is after immunity for itself as Congress considers more research regarding genetically engineered organisms. The giant is even after the right to continue planting its GMOs during periods of ordered moratoriums while evidence is gathered and reports are conducted. Don’t they already have enough power in our country? Don’t we now have a right to know what foods contain GMOs and the right to choose not to eat them? Click here to stop Monsanto’s sneaky power grab.
Save Medicare patients
In order to cut costs—and corners—Congress is considering raising the Medicare eligibility rate to age 67, resulting in higher premiums and even more seniors without medical coverage. It’s bad enough that Medicare doesn’t cover so many things, from preventative inoculations to prescription drugs in many cases; why cut corners even more? How about cutting Congressional spending instead, folks? Click here to ask Congress to stop the cuts.
Land diving
In the region of Southeast Asia is the Pentecost Island, home of people that practice a unique and little known ritual known as land diving, or N’gol. It involves, basically, jumping dozens of feet from a giant tower of wood into mostly nothing. The only thing that breaks your fall is a pile of dirt and the stretchy vines attached to your ankles.
The legend behind this ritual is that a man once had a wife that tried to run off because he beat her. He ended up chasing her into a tall tree, from which they both jumped. The girl was smarter, however, and had vines tied to her ankles, thus surviving where the man didn’t. Now, the ritual is performed to ensure a good harvest for the year.
The tower is built when the first evidence of the harvest shows, the leaping ceremony to be performed sometime later, usually in the period from April to June. The towers are sometimes more than 80 feet tall, the bravest jumping from the very top. The event lasts for two days and sees men of all ages, from seven on up, taking this leap of faith.
The only way to survive the jump is by using the stretchy vines that get tied to the jumper. They help to break the fall when the person connects with the sloped dirt embankment at the bottom. There are many levels to jump from, so no one is expected to go the full 80 feet. Each person chooses what level they feel comfortable with and builds a platform there for themselves.
Once the ceremony commences, the youngest jumpers go first. They usually jump from around 20 feet - still much more than most people would feel comfortable with. The older men jump from higher points. These jumps are accompanied by rituals such as dancing, singing and whistling.
Despite the apparent danger of land diving, only one person is known to have ever died and only because it was a particularly dry season and the vines didn’t stretch well enough. Currently, due to government protection of this cultural tradition, the event can only be seen by tourists at one of two spots: Pangi or Rangasusu.