The decline of the briefcase.

I love Geoff Dyer and I was psyched to see this article on him in this weeks New Yorker.

One of my favorite foods hands down, mac & cheese.

Germany's equivalent of the EPA is recommending that citizens cut back on meat consumption.

Left: source.

"Sara Benson has posted to SSRN her working paper entitled “Failure to Arrest: A Pilot Study of Police Response to Domestic Violence in Rural Illinois.” It is a qualitative research study conducted in rural Illinois regarding police enforcement of domestic violence laws."

“When we discover that the truth is already in us, we are all at once our original selves.” - Dogen

“The second time I ever saw you I learned what I had read in books but I never had actually believed: that love and suffering are the same thing and that the value of love is the sum of what you have to pay for it and any time you get it cheap you have cheated yourself.” 

- William Faulkner, The Wild Palms

Image: source.

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The Boy Is Hit, Lit Up Against The Sky, Like A Sign, Like A Neon Sign

Jezebel: What's your NPR name?

Great song: Sinead O'Connor, "No Man's Woman"

Love these ruffled dresses!  I could use something like this for the weddings I'm attending this summer and fall....

Above The Law's Inaugural Law Revue Contest 2009: The Finalists: Vote for Northeastern!!

He read this when he was in Boston! "Guy Walks Into A Bar Car" by David Sedaris

On the murder of Angie Zapata: "On July 17, 2008, Angie Zapata, a happy and beautiful transgender woman who was only 18 and living on her own for the first time, was brutally murdered in Greeley, Colorado by Allen Andrade because she was trans. Her murderer, of course, claims that he beat her in the head with a fire extinguisher until she was unconscious, and then went back and did it again to make sure she was dead when he noticed her trying to sit up, in a fit of "uncontrollable" rage when he discovered that she had a penis. Andrade's trial began on Tuesday, April 14."

Mad Law Professor: Counselor in Chief: "Recently, U.S. News and World Report ran a poll asking readers to whom they would entrust their child if she were running a day-care center: Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, Nancy Pelosi, or Michelle Obama. It was a low point in the use of the subjunctive, as witless and transparently sexist as wondering who could Sheetrock a wall better, Howard Dean or Rod Blagojevich.  Personally, I’d rather spend time thinking about which of them I’d want to represent me if I had to sue a day care, or whom I’d want to see entrusted with regulatory oversight of the peanut butter my child ingests."

Little Rooster Crowin', There Must Be Something On His Mind

A reminder of true bravery: Afghan Women Stoned While Protesting Rape Marriage Law: "About 300 mostly young women gathered in Kabul to show their opposition to a recently passed law that forbids women from refusing to have sex with their husbands and requires them to get a male relative's permission to leave the house."

More amazingness from Sarah Seven.  Wow.

A beautiful, delicate necklace from the Etsy shop Homako.

Left: can I live in an ecopod in your backyard?

Painted ceilings of the South, love it.

The Best American Poetry: "Letter to the Younger Me" by Kate Angus.

More awesomeness from DAME this week! Erica Lisette (aka Rogue Femme Art) is profiled on the store's blog, and DAME itself was chosen by the Editors of the Phoenix for the Best of Boston 2009! Yay and congrats to all the awesome ladies that make it so amazing!

Gay Lovers in Exile: "Recent same-sex marriage victories don't include the right to sponsor your spouse for a green card, leaving binational gay couples wondering where exactly home is."

“If there is to be any peace, it will come through being, not having.” - Henry Miller

I Love You More Than I Did When You Were Mine

How can you not love this cranky, little man? "Woody Allen uses the word 'tragic' four times in his front-page interview with the New York Observer. Also, 'nihilistic,' 'dreadful,' 'sad,' 'malcontent' and 'embarrassment.' And that's before he gets going about the 'appropriate police.' Life, the movie director says, is 'a tough scuffle,' and 'a tragic situation.' You do what you can."

Left: source.

Toddlers & Tiarras: I don't watch this show, but damn I love the Jezebel round-ups!

Yay for Rhinebeck, NY!  I went to college right nearby and worked in Rhinebeck part-time for a few years.  It's a great little town.

On T etiquette, from the Bostonist.

Not gonna lie, deep fried mac and cheese sounds pretty good to me.

Ha!  Gallery of ludicrous romance novel covers.

R.I.P. Judith Krug, founder of Banned Books Week.

NPR: "Two U.S. Army recruits, who are members of the Sikh faith, have filed a complaint against the Army over rules that require them to cut their hair and beards and forbids them to wear turbans. The Sikhs call it religious discrimination. The Army says it bans overt religious symbols and for practical reasons it cannot accomodates the Sikhs' requirements."

“The one thing that can solve most of our problems is dancing.” - James Brown

Because You Want To Set The World On Fire

Oh yeah, this story got me choked up. "Quincy couple stays together for 63 years until the end."

An intense, but sort of awesome, post from Penelope Trunk, on Twittering, online communication, and being a stay-at-home parent.

Love her and love this song: Mary J. Blige "Just Fine."  One of the most reliable pep up songs ever.

An insight on love, from a blogger I enjoy.

Left: source.

From the Alaska Employment Law Blog, news out of the 9th Circuit: "9th Cir: Transgender Employment Discrimination Violates Title VII: Following complaints that a man was using the women’s restroom, an employer banned a transsexual employee from using the restroom until she could prove completion of sex reassignment surgery. The trial court dismissed claims under Title VII, Title IX, and Section 1983. The 9th Circuit has now affirmed the dismissal, but in the process re-affirmed that sex-stereotyping of transgendered employees violates Title VII. The Court agreed with the trial judge that the employee had failed to rebut the employer’s non-discriminatory rationale. "

Oooh, I love book-making...

From RaceWire, really interesting: "English Immersion, Educational Exclusion": "How long does it take to make a child give up on school? Since the 2003 academic year, Boston has pushed public school students with limited English ability—who speak everything from Cantonese to Haitian Creole—into “Sheltered English Immersion” programs. The initiative, the result of a 2002 referendum, was emphasized English as the language of instruction, in contrast to traditional bilingual education that teaches students in their native language."

Big love for Steve, for Hubcap, for Ithaca....xoxo

"Do you have doubts about life? Are you unsure if it is really worth the trouble? Look at the sky: that is for you. Look at each person’s face as you pass them on the street: those faces are for you. And the street itself, and the ground under the street, and the ball of fire underneath the ground: all these things are for you. They are as much for you as they are for other people. Remember this when you wake up in the morning and think you have nothing. Stand up and face the east. Now praise the sky and praise the light within each person under the sky. It’s okay to be unsure. But praise, praise, praise." - “No One Belongs Here More Than You” by Miranda July

Image source.

Indian Legislation's On The Desk Of The Do-Right Congressman

Special effects reel by a 12-year old. I see awesome things in this kids future.

Left: dreaming of taking a roadtrip in this baby and sleeping in the back...

From Jezebel: "Riot Grrrl Retrospective is an 'online exhibition' of 11 short clips - which include archival footage and interviews - that explore how the political/musical movement started, and why it faded away."

AlterNet: Want to Help the Economy? Stop Throwing Workers Into the Maw of the Prison-Industrial Complex: "The taxpayer and the drug user have become odd bedfellows, with the former losing its wealth and the latter its liberty."

"The world is full of people whose notion of a satisfactory future is, in fact, a return to the idealised past." - Robertson Davies

"Pep Talk: Self-loathing is a trap that keeps us stagnant. It’s so tempting to think that we’re not good enough and everybody else is going to be more prepared, more socially adept, and just… better, so why even bother. But that, my angel of music, is total fucking bullshit. You are just as good as anybody- just as special, just as warm, just as wonderful. You’re ready for a challenge and you’re bright enough to handle one. You don’t need outside approval. You need inside approval.

Today remind yourself: I have what it takes."

There's Life Down Below Me Though, The Kids Are Walking Home From School

Inspiring: 84-Year-Old Social Worker Saves $1.4 Million.

Left: source.

Talking to boys about sex, and raising them to be good men.  From the NYTimes and Jezebel.

N.Y. Gov. Paterson to introduce same-sex marriage bill.

Charlize Theron: Banning Gay Marriage Is Akin to Apartheid.

Gridskipper: Independent movie houses in Paris.

Boston Herald: "Massachusetts lawmakers and animal rights advocates hope to pass legislation that would protect pets in domestic violence cases, making it easier for victims to leave their abusers." I know this might sound odd to those who haven't been in situations of domestic violence or worked with victims, however it is a common form of control to threaten or abuse a partner's pet. Additionally, a failure to take the pet with them can inhibit a victims ability to leave an abusive situation. I applaud MA for recognizing this complex aspect of abusive relationships.

Children on love (because I love cute child quotes - so sue me):

"I'm not rushing into being in love. I'm finding fourth grade hard enough." Regina, age 10

"If it's your mother, you can kiss her anytime. But if it's a new person, you have to ask permission." Roger, age 6

"Spend most of your time loving instead of going to work." Dick, age 7

Source.

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The Lords and Ladies of Equalia

Ordered this!  Can't wait to get it and rock some awesome updos this summer.

Left: source.

Let National Car Rental and others know that employee harassment of trans customers is NOT OK!

Loving that Cassie shaved half her head.

AlterNet: The Vatican's Perverted Sense of Justice: Pedophiles Stay in the Church, While Priests Who Ordain Women Are Excommunicate.

Not only is it beyond infuriating that Bingham prevailed on this complaint, but also that Above the Law felt the need to CONGRATULATE them!

Ah yes, staying together for the dogs.

Gridskipper: Indie bookstores in LA.

Very interesting: Miranda Warnings for Lawyers? Recent Rulings Highlight the Possibility.

From Breed 'Em And Weep: The naked truth about mothers and daughters.

Loving these earrings.

DVDs of Milk banned in American Samoa.

“Sometimes I think we’re alone. Sometimes I think we’re not. In either case, the thought is staggering.” - R. Buckminster Fuller

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Ramona The Pest

Jezebel: Is the word 'tomboy' obselete?  And, in honor (left), Ramona Quimby, Age 8 - one of my favorite kiddies.

A good article on the Observe & Report date-rape controversy (I, for one, can say I'm boycotting the movie...it's not getting my $10).

Beautiful colors and photos from the Festival of Colors in India.  (Indian readers, more info if you have it, please!)

Really interesting: people who form intense connections with inanimate objects.

Loving this story! It's the ultimate bff roadtrip. "If you've ever wanted to ditch city life and flee into the wilderness (or if you sometimes fear you might have to), check out this story of two women who did just that in 1916. According to Dorothy Wickenden's story in this week's New Yorker, Rosamond Underwood and Dorothy Woodruff were both twenty-nine, both well-to-do Smith graduates, and both 'uninspired' by their suitors in Auburn, New York, when they responded to a search for schoolteachers in remote Elkhead, Colorado."

Amazing finds from the website Radical Cartography.  Very cool.

The most frustrating law-jobs-related development...of the year? Maybe. The Most Annoying Thing About This Woman Who Is Getting Paid $80,000 to Take a Year Off Is That It’s Not Us.

“There is no harbor of peace from the changing waves of joy and despair.” - Euripides