now posting regularly

Just in case anyone out there was worried, let me reassure you that I've been listening faithfully to NPR, even if I missed last week's chance to regale you with my favorite picks.  The upside?  This week is double the fun!  I tried to slim down the stories I bookmarked, and with the time lapse, I even forgot why I clicked some of them in the first place.  Here's what made the cut:

• "Why Mark Twain Still Matters"-- Since JAM and I are attempting to read The Adventures of Tom Sawyer together right now, and because I just happened to go to a small private college that has a significant Mark Twain connection, this piece caught my eye on the NPR Facebook feed.  It's worth the quick read and if I was better attuned to reading nonfiction, this would be a book at the top of my list.

• "'Who I Am': Poetry Not Wasted On The Young"-- While poetry is also not a genre that I'm well-read in, this Morning Edition piece has intrigued me enough to go check out this book from the library.  Perhaps there will even be something in it that attracts JAM, too.  Probably not the Bra Shopping one, but that's one that I want to read, personally.

• "Programs Train Teachers Using Medical School Model"-- Here's another Morning Edition story that made me think.  I think this idea would be worthwhile to pursue, especially if it was accompanied by a compensation level that more closely mirrored medical professionals!

• "A Life Without Fear"-- Morning Edition is definitely getting the prize this week for best stories.  This is a must listen to story, seriously.  Before I met a family through friends of ours, I had never even heard of Williams syndrome.  After getting to know them and their darling children, I now know one individual with this disorder, so I obviously can't speak to the disorder in general.  I do know, though, that this child is sweet and loving, not unlike his parents and younger sister, and I'm happy to call them our friends.  This story puts another face on Williams syndrome, and I listened intently as another family discussed how one common trait of the disorder affects their child and family.  I'm not sure how rare Williams is, but as someone who had never heard of it, I'm happy that NPR aired this story.

• "Spinal Muscular Atrophy 'Doesn't Define Me'"-- Another story from, yup you guessed it, Morning Edition, and this one is an interesting one to list next.  The perspective of one individual with a disability is presented here, and with such a complex topic, the comments on the story are just as interesting to read.  (And thank you to the NPR commenting community for actually leaving thoughtful, respectful and compelling comments... such a refreshing change from so many other online entities!)

• "'Great Reset' Argues Against 'House Passion'"-- Since I apparently haven't listened to much other than Morning Edition over the past two weeks, I'll share yet another one.  The idea behind this book, discussed here with the author, is that perhaps the ideal of home ownership shouldn't be held as such an ideal.  Interesting... this one would make for fantastic dinner party discussion... if I was one who attended "dinner parties."  

• "Burglars Break Into Dutch Prison Steal TVs"-- You may have heard about this funny story, but it was one of those little before-the-break snippets the other day (yes, on Morning Edition!).  If you've got 29 seconds, I'll guarantee you a giggle.

• And finally, guess what??  I've got something that's NOT from Morning Edition!  I was thrilled, absolutely THRILLED, to be in the audience for a taping of two one-hour segments of The Kojo Nnamdi Show for his latest "Kojo In Your Community" segment.  The first hour focused mostly on the wonderful city that we have chosen to raise our family in since 2001, and the second hour was more broadly focused on the our county at large.  Thanks to Kojo and his hard-working crew for visiting our lovely city!

Apparently in love with Morning Edition and NPR as a whole, of course!),