A bite of this, a nibble of that: the Blogasbord

The line of tabs across the top of my computer screen is littered with great reads.  I hope y'all aren't sick of this assortment of fare that I post occasionally.  Anyway, here are a few more:

Ted Williams -- This article should serve as a caution to us all that rapid change in one's life, and near-instantaneous fame (possible now, on the internet), can be hard to adapt to.  I hope Mr. Williams is able to stabilize himself and not disappoint himself or his family.

Charles Krauthammer-- You may have read all you care to about Arizona and and the need for civil political language, but Charles writes well. Anybody remember, just last fall, when W.Va. Gov. Manchin fired a real bullet through the pages of the cap-and-trade bill? That wasn't metaphor. Or was it?

Attention Deficit-- I didn't finish reading this article, but the topic is interesting:  contrasting us to Americans in the 1800s who could listen to seven hours of outdoor lecture, without batting an eye.

Ollin Morales -- This blogger exhorts us to get more sleep, and digs into the dangers of sleep deprivation. So many more people have sleep issues these days.  Worth a look. He links to an Oprah health article about how we have artificially altered our sleep patterns by staying up past sundown, to our harm.  Hmm.

WaPo article -- I was really stunned by this news, and didn't know what to think.  A NC school board is actually trying to reverse integration policy in its area in Raleigh.  What? The current trouble is economic integration, not racial integration, although I think the two still overlap a good bit. This school board feels that integration simply dilutes the problem -- disperses the poverty so that it is not well-addressed.  Both sides are convincing.


Regrets of a Stay-at-Home Mom -- Some of us had a great time smashing this poor woman, on Facebook.  At numerous levels, I disagree with her.  Worth reading, though, if you believe in hearing the other side of the argument.

Silent Suffering -- This article by Anthony Bradley has haunted me all week. He tells of Bill Zeller, a bright, 27-year old computer programmer who committed suicide this month.  The thing that plagued him and made his whole life (past and future) worthless to him?  Being sexually abused as a little boy, probably only 4 years old. My heart mourns for this man, and that he never got help through this, but suffered alone. You can read his 4000-word suicide letter to the world (warning:  some language). Bradley links to it.

Okay! On a much happier note:

Homemade Cleansers -- Macheesmo has done it again, with a great post on making your own cleansers, inexpensively.  They're better than what you buy at WalMart, and healthier for you.

"A Life Without Left Turns"-- I found this essay delightful and heart-warming, as Pulitzer Prize winner and NBC President Gartner tells of his father, and the philosophies that shaped his life. I found the descriptions of their spiritual lives to be sad, but the rest is entertaining and sweet.