Lydia Schoch

Here is this week’s list of blog posts, poems and other tidbits from my favourite corners of the web.

From Why Do Sidewalks Predict Whom We’ll Vote For?:

Heuristic: if a place has sidewalks, it votes Democratic. Otherwise, it votes Republican.

Skeptically Emerging. Rob is an atheist who thinks there should be room in the emergent/emerging church movement for people who don’t believe in god. This is his brand new blog on theology, improving relations between theists and non-theists and (maybe) starting a church for skeptics. I’m a little wary of how this idea would pan out in a large, organized group like a church but I admire Rob’s enthusiasm and willingness to think outside the box and look forward to seeing how his ideas develop.

Don’t Spread It. A humorous poem about flu season.

The Moral Case for Sex Before Marriage.  I don’t actually care when, how or with whom my readers have sex (assuming it’s consensual) but I do strongly prefer living in a city where ideas about sex and sexuality aren’t dominated by one voice. There are so many different cultures and religions here in Toronto that it’s all but impossible for one group to speak for everyone. That’s a good thing.

The Truth About Mistakes. I love this.

From There’s Nothing Mutual About It:

Nor can the unpleasantness of being criticized and ridiculed be separated from the immediate cause of that criticism and ridicule — the fact that the criticism and ridicule is a response to those folks trying to enforce, encode and defend legal discrimination.

So both sides have real grievances, but those grievances are in no way proportional or comparable.

To what extent do traditional folk songs tell the truth? The Ballad of Tom Dooley attempts to peel back the embellishments behind a sequence of terrible events that inspired a folk song. When I was a teenager we’d occasionally catch wind of silly rumours other Christians started about my parents. It’s amazing how quickly the truth can be garbled.

What have you been reading?

“I realize many potential supporters may be disappointed by this news, but I feel there must be at least one or two qualified candidates among the 73 Canadians who are already running. Together, they will likely call Mr. Harper every name I could have thought up myself. I take comfort from that, as should all Canadians.”

With this declaration, Mr. Potyondi joins a distinct minority of Canadians who are not running for the Liberal leadership.

– Political Shocker 

In my experience the average Canadian tends to have a basic understanding of U.S. history, culture, politics and current events but people in the U.S. know virtually nothing about Canadian history, culture, politics or current events.

Yes, there are exceptions but as someone who has lived in both countries sometimes sweeping generalizations start with a kernel of truth.

This is why I was so excited to stumbled across Disstemper, a brand new political satire blog about Canadian politicians and current events.

The humour they’ve displayed so far shows glimmers of being darkly, fiercely Canadian. Will the jokes translate well to international readers? I certainly hope so!

Let me know what you think of it in the comment section.

Happy Sunday! I’m sprucing up the blog this weekend.

You may have noticed a tag cloud on the left hand side of this site. I’ve started with my most recent posts and am working my way back to the beginning so not every post is labelled yet.

Link Love (formerly Recommended Reading) has also been updated. Let me know if I missed anyone.

More updates are coming.

Here is this week’s list of blog posts, quotes, videos and other tidbits from my favourite corners of the web.

Wanna make a monster? Take the parts of yourself that make you uncomfortable — your weaknesses, bad thoughts, vanities, and hungers — and pretend they’re across the room. It’s too ugly to be human. It’s too ugly to be you. Children are afraid of the dark because they have nothing real to work with. Adults are afraid of themselves.- Richard Siken, “Black Telephone”

What if Disney’s Princess Movies Were Horror Stories? I’m a big fan of reworking classics but these tales are definitely not kid-friendly. Then again, neither were many of the originals!

Sexist Humor No Laughing Matter. I wouldn’t be surprised if the same can be said about racist, homophobic, classist, etc. jokes as well. Laughter is wonderful…but not if it’s coming at the expense of someone else.

Sisters Separated by WWII and Seventy Years, Reunited by Facebook. Wow, I can’t imagine the emotional pain Tanija and Hedija Talic and their brother experienced. My brothers and I had typical childhood squabbles growing up, of course, but I bonded with them before they were even born. One of my favourite memories is of Jesse and me having a long conversation with our very pregnant mother’s belly about everything we wanted to show the new baby. To be separated from my siblings would have been excruciating. I hope this family has many happy years together and is able to find their missing brother.

What Would the Apocalypse Mean To You? A great thought experiment.

12 Ways to Make Talking to Strangers Less Awkward via mediocreventure. I disagree with the book recommendation in this link as I don’t find Dale Carnegie’s work to be helpful. The list, though, is worth reading.

On a lighter note:

To be quite honest with you I knew little about Etta James’ life before I read Rage to Survive. I’ve never been a drug addict or professional singer but it’s amazing to see what has actually happened in other people’s lives. There is a sense of relief that comes when one realizes that behind the shiny exterior every one of us has struggled with something. Some are big, others small but no one lives a charmed life.

What have you been reading?

Photo by Kanko.

So last Saturday I posted a link to this article about terrible sex scenes in modern novels.

In response my friend Zora wrote this hilarious satire. My favourite section is as follows:

She looked at him with eyes as moist as huevos rancheros, and the tiny pink bud of her lips was like a perfectly formed rose on the top of a birthday cake, artfully sculpted, reminding him of his birthday candle which he imagined her blowing out, wondering what her secret wish might be.  Her body was full and soft like a ripe peach, and her perfectly round breasts bounced languidly like buoys on the surface of a calm sea.  The look on her face was one of the most intense desire, and sensing the fire in her loins, he leaned down to that sweet furnace and lit a cigarette.

Click on the link above for the entire story. Need I say it’s NSFW? Well, unless you write or publish these kinds of stories for a living. 😉

Here is this week’s list of blog posts, photographs and other tidbits from my favourite corners of the web.

When Good Paranormal Fantasy Sex Scenes Go Really, Really Bad. This is why I’ve yet to include sex scenes in my stories.  It’s quite difficult to write one without falling into tired tropes or using metaphors that just don’t work.

Smile. I dare you to not to smile.

From A Letter to Adam , The Newtown Killer:

Dear Adam,

Let me start by saying that I wish for you to find peace. It would be easy just to call you a monster and condemn you for evermore, but I don’t think that would help either of us.

Codecademy. No, that isn’t a typo. Codecademy is a free, online tutorial for anyone who wants to learn programming languages like Javascript, HTML or CSS. I’m pretty computer literate but have yet to find a method for learning this sort of thing that doesn’t make me feel like a bad geek for not already knowing concept X. Until now.

Draw a Stickman via Mzzlee. An interactive drawing game.

Best Practices for Raising Kids? Look to the Hunter-Gatherers. One of the biggest cultural differences between downtown Toronto and northwest Ohio is how over-protected kids are in the former. In the 8 years I’ve lived here I’ve never seen anyone under the age of 12 walk down the street alone. Even in the suburbs kids don’t seem to have the freedom to wander around that I had growing up. A few years ago a teenage relative was forbidden from browsing on a different floor the library because there weren’t any adults from the family on that floor. This makes me feel sad because Toronto is an incredibly safe city. While I’d never tell others how to raise their children I wish the culture here was less neurotic. Part of becoming a well-rounded adult is learning to manage time, memorize how streets and landmarks interact (e.g. how to get un-lost if you wander too far) and solve interpersonal problems without assistance.

Winter is poetry season. The juxtaposition between the lively imagery in A Thousand Mornings and the grey world around us (at least in continental climates) is delicious. The grass and trees may be dormant for the next few months but our imaginations are fertile!

What have you been reading?