Best. Graffiti. Ever.

Saw this on the northeast corner of State and Plymouth today:

I seriously doubt anyone will be surprised by this...

You are a Social Liberal (70% permissive) and an... Economic Liberal (10% permissive) You are best described as a: Socialist Socialist (10e/70s) Link: The Politics Test on Ok Cupid

Clyde Robert Bulla

Prolific author Clyde Robert Bulla died last week at the age of 93. According to the obituary in the LA Times, Mr. Bulla "wrote more than 60 children's books, most fiction but some nonfiction, starting in 1946 with The Donkey Cart."

He once said, "I'm reaching children at very impressionable age levels — third to sixth grade, 8 to 11 years old. I have to be very careful what I write about."

I remember reading his book, The Ghost of Windy Hill when I was in the 2nd or 3rd grade. It was one of my favorite books at the time. I mean, I *really* loved that book! I read it several times, until it was tattered. Maybe I will try to find a copy at the library tomorrow...

There are not many obituaries online (yet), so the one at the LA Times is probably your best bet.

Quote(s) of the Day

"I got a letter a while back from a sappy woman. She wrote me because she knew I was sappy too. She wanted help - if it was a terrible mistake bringing a baby into a world as awful as this one. I told her what made being alive almost worthwhile for me was meeting saints who were everywhere. By saints I mean ordinary people behaving decently in an indecent society. I hope all of you are or will become saints." (Kurt Vonnegut)

"You can't separate peace from freedom because no one can be at peace unless he has his freedom." (Malcolm X)

Belated Birthday Wishes

Two of my favorite people on this entire planet celebrated birthdays this moth and, while I thought of them and enjoyed their art on those days, I didn't have/take the time to blog it. So, happy birthday to:

Pete Seeger! On May 3, Pete Seeger celebrated his 88th birthday. Pete, to me, embodies all that is right with folk music. In the purest sense of the phrase, "folk music" is music for the people. It should be music that can be sung together, that can speak to many. A few years ago, when Pete was encouraging the crowd to sing along to "Turn, Turn, Turn" at the Woody Guthrie Folk Music Festival in Okemah, Oklahoma, Arlo Guthrie turned to him and asked what key the song should be in. Without even pausing, Pete answered firmly, "G! The People's Key!"

Birthday Boy Quote: "Any darn fool can make something complex; it takes a genius to make something simple." (Pete Seeger)

Studs Terkel! Chicagoan Studs Terkel turned 95 years old this past Wednesday. The Chicago Tribune offers an account of his birthday party, ending with this charming bit: And, finally, the crowd of several hundred got to hear Terkel reveal his own epitaph, if ever needed: "Curiosity did not kill this cat." Studs is another person who celebrates and elevates the "Common Man" (and woman, of course). He truly sees real life -- with all its beauty and ugliness, dignity and shame -- and shows us. He encourages people to tell their stories and shares those stories with us, unearthing gems that so many of us would have walked right past or kicked aside.

Birthday Boy Quote: "I was born in the year the Titanic sank. The Titanic went down, and I came up. That tells you a little about the fairness of life." (Studs Terkel)

I truly love both of these men and hold them up, not as perfect men, but as men to be admired for their compassion for all humankind, their gifts, and their passion. Blessings be to both of them, in whatever they do.

In Memoriam: Lloyd Alexander

From USA Today:

Lloyd Alexander, a prolific writer of children's books including the five-book series The Chronicles of Prydain, died Thursday. He was 83.
Alexander died at his home in the Philadelphia suburb of Drexel Hill, said Jennifer Abbots, spokeswoman for his publishing company, Henry Holt Books For Young Readers. He had cancer, she said.

The final book in his Prydain series, The High King, won the Newbery Medal from the American Library Association in 1969, being recognized as the best children's book of the year. Another book in the series, The Black Cauldron, was named a runner-up for the medal in 1966, a status now known as a Newbery Honor Book.

Read the whole article here.

update: A very nice article also appears in The Washington Post.

Forget the Wii!

Okay, so Science Boy and I were excited to get the Wii, finally. I love that I can get a good workout and practice boxing while playing a video game. Way cool.

But.

How can the Wii compare to the newest video game out there? Yahoo reports:

While zapping enemy spaceships players have to help recover the stolen text of Romeo and Juliet by memorizing lines from the famous play, learning facts about Shakespeare's life and devising synonyms and homonyms for parts of the text.

Read the whole story here.

ACTually, I know I sounded kinda smart-ass up above, but I really do think this is a rockin' cool idea. I would definitely like to try it. If they could just incorporate physical movement, this might well be the perfect video game!