The Best Use of a Lame Duck Legislature

03 Jan

Erin Shanendoah |  January 3rd,2013 | Discrimination, Gay Marriage, Politics |  Comments Off

Fingers crossed that Illinois passes a bill this week that would legalize same-sex marriage (not just civil unions) in the state. If it does not get passed by this session, Democrats will have a super-majority next session, so everything isn’t riding on this week. Still, sooner is better. We should never wait to say equal is equal.

If this passes, it will make Illinois the 10th state to recognize marriage between homosexual couples. That would mean that in 20% of the country, we actually honor the words of the Declaration of Independence. How long before 100% of the country does?

Your Bacertia is so Old….

02 Jan

Erin Shanendoah |  January 2nd,2013 | Science |  Comments Off

We are starting off the New Year with something old- really, really old, 3.49 BILLION years old. Scientists in Australia have found a fossil record of bacteria dating back that far. It is so old that the earth itself was only 1 billion years old at the time they were formed.

Not only do finds like this help scientists understand the Earth and how it came to be the way it is, it also aids those looking for extraterrestrial life. It is one more item that fossil hunters on Mars (and some day other planets) now know to look for.

No New Posts Until the New Year

24 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 24th,2012 | Uncategorized |  Comments Off

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Blog Feature: Little Seattle Obersvationist

22 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 22nd,2012 | blogging, Dogs, Pets, Writing |  2 comments

Little Seattle Observationist is written by a friend of mine. It’s not really a pet blog, but recently, she added a new friend, Harvey, to her household. So now she has a Formosan Mountain Dog (Basenji/terrier mix) and a cat, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the blog start drifting toward her adventures with her animals. But besides writing about the fact that picking up dog poop is not that gross, she also writes about her life and events in Seattle.

Take a moment to swing on by and congratulate her and the cat and their newfound family member.

Your Money Friday: Are You Financially OK?

21 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 21st,2012 | Finances |  Comments Off

The question today is At What Point Do You Feel You are OK Financially? As outsiders, we look at some people and think they really have it together or OMG how do they live like that, and yet, that person can feel the exact opposite about their money situation.

As people who hang out on money message boards, there’s a definite bias, but it’s something people have to figure out for themselves. I am never going to have 6-9 months of living expenses in liquid savings, so I have to ignore that criteria, though some see it as a requirement.

Now is Amazing

20 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 20th,2012 | Science, Technology |  Comments Off

I know some people dream of living in a simpler age, but I love living in the time we are now. There are so many things I get to learn about because of the internet, things I never would have heard of otherwise. And now, I can study the Dead Sea Scrolls myself. Not touch them- but very few people are actually allowed to touch them.

Israel and Google have partnered to put 5,000 of the Dead Sea Scrolls online. Imagine reading Deuteronomy off the Dead Sea Scrolls, or a first century BC version of Genesis. How cool is that.

The Voice s3 And the Winner Is….

19 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 19th,2012 | Music, Television |  Comments Off

I’m not surprised Nicholas David came in 3rd. Considering I thought he would have to be a judges’ save to even make the top 12 (America you have happily surprised me by voting him to the finals), and that his Monday night performance wasn’t great.

Terry also stumbled on Monday night, and while we all love classic rock, is there a market for new classic rock?

Since making the top 12 (I didn’t think she would) Cassadee has been strong and solid. Rarely was there a night I thought she was “off”. Congratulations Cassadee Pope, Season 3 winner, The Voice

The Voice s3 Final Performances

18 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 18th,2012 | Movies, Television |  Comments Off

The opening tribute to the Newtown victims brought me close to tears. It was done beautifully.

I love Nicholas but did not like his opening number. Terry’s voice seemed weak (and when is Terry’s voice weak) on Broken Wings. Cassadee ended with Cry, but that meant two of her final three performances were country ballads. Does she want to be a country singer?

Blake once again showed why he is my favorite coach by making the duets about his contestants. I thought Play that Funky Music was a great song choice for Nicholas, but Cee Lo never let him shine.

Movie Review: Rock of Ages

17 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 17th,2012 | Movies |  Comments Off

Rock of Ages was a lot of fun. Know in advance that I like musicals, and I love 80s hair band music, so on some level, this was a movie made for me. The leads were appropriately cute and innocent. Tom Cruise excels at playing the random crazy guy (though I’m not positive that’s acting), and Alec Baldwin and Russell Brand were a very cute coupleI didn’t even find Russell Brand very annoying, which is saying something.

Mary J Blige’s character should have been explored more. She seemed awfully tangential for how important I think she was supposed to be.

Blog Feature: Frugal Rules

15 Dec

Erin Shanendoah |  December 15th,2012 | blogging, Finances, Writing |  Comments Off

I’m bad about sharing the blogs I read and follow on social media. Yes, I’m on twitter, but I almost never retweet. I only share 4 blog posts per genre a week (and not always every week). There are people who do so much more. But I do have this blog feature, and today  I want to use it to feature Frugal Rules. John retweets every post I make at Dog Ate My Wallet. He is a fairly new blogger, but he’s written some great posts. This week, you might want to check out his thoughts on frugal holiday tipping.

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