tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58633015995574414972024-03-13T04:19:31.401-05:00Resistance is futileI vow to assimilate the world's philosophies - and I will grow within them.Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.comBlogger349125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-87527105911454612862015-01-25T18:54:00.004-06:002015-01-25T18:54:48.706-06:00Love Without End, by Glenda Green<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/P/0966662318.01._SX140_SY224_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b><a href="http://www.librarything.com/work/1076973" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">Love without End</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Glenda Green. </span></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This is a book my aunt Michele loaned me, saying it was the book that made her fall back in love with Jesus. It is about Glenda Green's miraculous conversations with Jesus as he posed for her painting. It's not the type of book I generally read, so I was a bit skeptical. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I found the beginning section rather inspirational - it described the events surrounding Green's conversations with Jesus. Although I tend to be a bit of a skeptic when it comes to this sort of miracle, I DO believe that Glenda had an inspired conversation - though perhaps only in her head. On a side not, a</span></span><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">ccording to Glenda's painting, Jesus has dazzlingly blue eyes and chestnut hair. :) I hear rumor that this fits the description of Jesus given in </span><a href="http://www.librarything.com/work/10534803" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">Heaven is for Real</a><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">One point that I found interesting is Green's philosophy on loving your enemies: "When you are in the presence of your enemies, you know for a fact that any love you feel is not because of external factors...you know that you are love." In other words, love for your enemies is pure - it isn't tainted with lust or greed. I find this a beautiful way of looking at love. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Green's Jesus also had an interesting philosophy of "innocent perception." To Green, this was the action of seeing things as they are without categorizing the information with our minds. This idea reminded me a lot of the observe/describe of DBT - where you project a non-judgmental view on whatever you observe, and you describe not what you think, but what is (i.e. I feel a burning sensation on my tongue when I taste this food, instead of Mom put too much spice in the food.) This perception also reminded me of the philosophy of phenomenology. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Green's Jesus proposed a Trinity composed of Love, Spirit, and Adamantine Particles (a.k.a the Higgs Boson). This trinity made me chuckle a little - especially after all the recent news coverage of the Higgs Boson; however, it does have a certain appeal to it. I admit to knowing very little about the Higgs Boson other than the fact that it is nicknamed "The God Particle," and that Green suggests that it is a particle that creates mass and is unbreakable. But it's nice to think we're all connected by particles of God. :) </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">One issue I had with this book is that she put her emphasis in bold. And she used so much bolded emphasis that it became </span><b style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">distracting!</b><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> I assume this is because she decided to put Christ's words in italics. Funny thing is, she also put T. S. Elliot's poems in italics. ;)</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-6257363799336373872015-01-25T09:49:00.000-06:002015-01-25T09:49:15.380-06:00The Coldest Girl in Coldtown, by Holly Black<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/P/0316213098.01._SX140_SY224_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">2015 Media #6 / Book #3: <a href="http://www.librarything.com/work/13872008" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The Coldest Girl in Coldtown</a>, by Holly Black </b><img src="http://static.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Reason for reading:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This was the January pick for my bookclub.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Summary:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> In this near-future book, vampires have emerged into the public eye due to an outbreak started by a sloppy newly-made vampire who left his victims living instead of completely draining them. Vampires, and the Cold (people infected with the vampirism disease, but who haven't yet tasted the blood of humans and so haven't turned) are forced to live in ghettos called Coldtowns. In this setting, the story starts out with Tana waking up to a vampire-related disaster, which begins both a physical journey away from the disaster and a spiritual journey of self-discovery.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">What I thought:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This book was fast-paced and difficult to put down. It asked some interesting philosophical questions. Do we all have monsters within us? Do we crave immortality and beauty at the price of humanity? If not, why are so many people attracted to paranormal romances? Is it because we want the ultimate bad-boy? Or, in the opposite line of questioning, why do so many people seek good in what seems evil?T</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-35641948839478999672015-01-18T14:19:00.000-06:002015-01-18T14:19:02.930-06:00Lecture 1 of The New Testament (The Great Courses), by Bart D. Ehrman<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://pics.cdn.librarything.com/picsizes/25/97/25977165df7cca45975782f6667434d414f4141.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/new-testament.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament (The Great Courses, Course Number 656)</a></b><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Lecture 1: The Early Christians and Their Literature</b><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">This was an introductory lecture which suggested a few ways to study the New Testament: 1) as a faithful believer; 2) From a cultural perspective (e.g. the NT's influence on Western culture and on literature); and 3) From the historical context of the initial audience. Erhman's course intends on studying the NT from the third perspective. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">He gives some background information: there are 27 books in the NT, all written by Christians of the 1st century. Many of these books claim to be written by direct apostles of Jesus (i.e. people who are considered to have been sent directly by Jesus to spread his word). All of the books were originally written in Greek.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The 27 books of the NT comprise 4 major groups. 1) The four Gospels, describing the birth, life, and death of Jesus; 2) The Acts of the Apostles, describing the spread of Christianity around the world; 3) 21 epistles, 13 of which are written by Paul, with a focus on the beliefs and ethics of Christianity; 4) The Book of Revelation, which is a piece of apocalyptic literature, originally thought to have been written by the apostle John, but later revealed to have been written by another John. (The belief that it was written by the apostle is why it attained popularity among early Christians.)</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Texts read: </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-new-testament-canon-by-harry-y.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Bart D. Ehrman - Chapter 1</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/chapter-3-new-testament-short.html">The New Testament: A Student's Introduction</a> by Steven Harris - Chapters 1 - 3</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/chapter-1-introduction-to-new-testament.html">An Introduction to the New Testament</a>, By Raymond Brown - Chapter 1</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-new-testament-canon-by-harry-y.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament Canon</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Harry Y Gamble</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-62303825816137179142015-01-18T13:48:00.001-06:002015-01-18T14:20:37.254-06:00Chapter 3: The New Testament: A Student's Introduction, by Stephen Harris<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/P/0073535826.01._SX140_SY224_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">In my final text for Lesson 1 of: </span><a href="http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/new-testament.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament (The Great Courses, Course Number 656)</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, I read chapters 1-3 of </span><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/new-testament-stephen-l-harris/1100262276?ean=9780073535821" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament: A Student's Introduction</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Stephen L. Harris. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">I found these notes from chapter 3 worth sharing, since I was unaware of the differences between these groups before reading this text: </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Chapter 3: The Diverse World of Fist-Century Judaism</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Sadducees: Priests that conservatively stuck to a literal reading of the Torah, eschewing the "oral traditions" of the Pharisees. The Sadducees were the ones who turned Jesus over to the Romans for execution. They were the ones who stood the most to lose if there was fighting between the Romans and the Jews because the Sadducees seem to have been the chief mediators between the Roman rulers and the Jews. They disappeared after the sacking of Jerusalem by the Romans in 70CE.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Pharisees: These priests were also conservative, but they also had an oral law, which was later recorded as Mishnah in 200CE. Although there seems to be a lot of dispute between Jesus and the Pharisees in the Bible, Jesus most likely got along fine with most Pharisees (as can be seen in some Biblical stories). The disputes between Jesus and the Pharisees may have been biased by problems between the early Christians and the Pharisees around the time the Gospels were written.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Samaritins: This is a group of people (named after their capital city Samaria) related to the Jews by religion, but whom the Jews in Judea regarded as alien. Instead of worshiping at the Temple at Mount Zion, the Samaritins worshiped at Mount Gerizim. The Samaritins recognized only the Mosaic Torah, and not the Prophets or other biblical writings. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Essenes: These are the people who are thought to have written the Dead Sea Scrolls somewhere between the mid-second century and late first century CE. Little is known about them, but their practices seem to have many similarities to later Christian practices, though Jesus is never mentioned outright. It is supposed by Harris that this is a non-Christian sect that anticipated some Christian rituals, rather than a group of early Christians. There also seem to be some parallels between the Book of Hebrews and Essenes' beliefs. </span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-78552551848511067682015-01-18T13:36:00.000-06:002015-01-18T13:36:19.591-06:00Chapter 1: An Introduction to the New Testament, by Raymond E Brown<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/P/0300140169.01._SX140_SY224_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><img src="http://pics.cdn.librarything.com/picsizes/25/97/25977165df7cca45975782f6667434d414f4141.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">I've finished reading chapter 1 of </span><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/introduction-to-the-new-testament-raymond-e-brown/1101221135?ean=9780300140163" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">An Introduction to the New Testament</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Raymond E Brown for the great course </span><a href="http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/new-testament.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament (The Great Courses, Course Number 656)</a><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Bart D. Ehrman. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Notes on Chapter 1: </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The meaning of the word "Testament" has developed over time. At first, it was in reference to deals God had made with Noah, Abraham, David, and Moses - most notably the one to Moses in which the people of Israel were made "God's chosen people." Almost 600 years before the birth of Jesus, the prophet Jeremiah predicted "The days are coming when I will make a new covenant..." (Jer 31:31), where a covenant is a testament, and new means renewed. Then, before Jesus died, he referenced a new covenant/testament in his blood. Through his death and resurrection, therefore, Christians believed that god had renewed his covenant with his people, this time including the Gentiles. Only in the 2nd century do we see the word "testament" referring to a body of literature.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">And, in fact, the idea of recording Jesus' story and sayings did not occur until after Jesus' death. Jesus didn't produce any written lectures, nor did he, in any of the Christian writings, suggest that his word be recorded. Letters were the first form of literature on Christian beliefs, and they were meant to answer immediate, pressing problems in the community to which they were addressed. Therefore, the letters of Paul have a different tone and emphasis in each, sometimes to the point of seeming contradictory. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">By the late 60s, anybody who had had direct contact with Jesus had died. The passing of the first generation of Christians led to writings of a more permanent nature. These include the deuteroPauline writings such as II Thes, Col, Eph, I and II Tim, and Titus, which were written after Paul's death. The deuteroPauline letters have a more permanent and universal tone than earlier letters. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Gospels also had a more permanent tone than early Pauline letters, but relevance to Christian problems would still have influenced which works were preserved. Mark's gospel emphasized the suffering of Christ on the cross, which would relate easily to the sufferings of early Christian persecution. The gospels of Matthew and Luke, probably written about 20 years later, are much more focused on the Jesus tradition, including sayings of Jesus which are hypothesized to originated in an earlier document dubbed "Q." </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Acts of the Apostles was probably meant as a continuation of Luke's gospel. It moved the story of Christianity beyond Jerusalem and Judea to Samaria and beyond. </span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Book of Revelation is an example of apocalyptic literature with roots in Ezekiel and Zechariah. Apocalyptic literature was quite common at the time. Unfortunately, many modern readers have forgotten that the book was written to 1st century Christians, who would be quite familiar with the symbolic meaning of apocalyptic literature; they therefore interpret the Book of Revelation literally.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">There are three reasons early Christian writings were preserved: 1) Apostolic origin - books that were purported to be written by apostles of Jesus (or Paul) had special place among Christians. 2) Which Christian communities the literature was addressed to - for instance, very little literature survives from Jerusalem or Judea, which was torn apart by the Jewish Revolt in 66-70. 3) Conformity with the rule of faith.</span><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">There is also a question of why we need 4 gospels instead of just 1. (This was discussed in my notes on </span><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-new-testament-canon-by-harry-y.html">Gamble's</a> book.) Brown suggests that concentration on one gospel could be used to support theology rejected by a large number of Christians. An example of this problem is the beliefs of the Marcionites (also mentioned in detail in my notes on </span><span style="color: #111111; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-new-testament-canon-by-harry-y.html">Gamble</a>). The Marcionites believed that the creator God is not the same as the all-loving God of the NT. Therefore, the OT and teachings of Judaism should be rejected. Brown suggests that one reason the Church embraced four gospels was to refute Marcion's belief that only the gospel of Luke and the letters of Paul should be considered as canon. Brown also suggests that the Church embraced the OT to refute Marcion's rejection of it. However, in his book <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2015/01/the-new-testament-canon-by-harry-y.html">Gamble</a> cautioned against putting too much emphasis on ONE driving factor for the Church's choices, and I agree with him on that.</span></span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-52804704017581290932015-01-07T17:17:00.001-06:002015-01-07T17:17:10.265-06:00Fire & Ash<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://pics.cdn.librarything.com/picsizes/91/be/91be39579521766597452336a67434d414f4141.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://www.librarything.com/work/11752710" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">Fire & Ash</a>, by Jonathan Maberry</b><img src="http://static.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Reason for reading:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This is the fourth and final book in a series that I've been reading. I'm making a goal this year to get farther in / finish as many series as possible</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Summary: </b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">In this fourth and final book in the Rot & Ruin series, Benny, Chong, Lila, and Nix battle the genocidal Reapers while keeping the zombies at bay. But they might have to become monsters to fight monsters. And who is more of a monster: The zombies or the humans? </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Thoughts:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This book was filled with action and adventure with a dash of intrigue. Like most Maberry books that I've read, the action got a little too much at times, to the point of feeling a little B-rate. But Maberry has some interesting plots and his philosophy about who really is the monster is quite interesting. Overall, a good finale. If you liked the first three books, you'll like this one as well.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-50111722301603806452015-01-04T18:35:00.000-06:002015-01-04T18:35:07.885-06:00The New Testament Canon, by Harry Y Gamble<div style="text-align: justify;">
<img src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/P/1579109098.01._SX140_SY224_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-new-testament-canon-harry-y-gamble/1111031818?ean=9781579109097" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; outline: none; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament Canon</a>, by Harry Y. Gamble</b><img src="http://static.librarything.com/pics/ss7.gif" style="border-style: none; color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Reason for reading:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This is one of the supplementary books for the great course </span><a href="http://www.thegreatcourses.com/courses/new-testament.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: rgb(100, 12, 149) !important; cursor: pointer; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; outline: none; text-align: start; text-decoration: none;" target="_top">The New Testament (The Great Courses, Course Number 656)</a><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">, by Bart D. Ehrman. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Thoughts:</b><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;"> This short "guide to biblical scholarship" glossed over some of the reasons certain books, and not others, were chosen for the New Testament canon. This is a very heavy topic with lots of scholarship, and this book tended to disagree with most of the specific theories in favor of the broader theory that there's no evidence that any specific movement had a great impact on the formation of the New Testament canon, but added all together they DID have an impact. I found this book rather dense at times. It assumed prior knowledge of the topic, which I'm only beginning to study. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Notes</b><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><i style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Chapter 2: The History of the New Testament Canon</i><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The history of the New Testament (NT) canon must be pieced together on fragmentary evidence. There are a couple types of evidence that are useful: 1) The contents of the ancient manuscripts of the NT together with scriptural aids like concordances or prologues. This evidence is mainly from the fourth and fifth centuries. 2) The use of early Christian documents written from the second through the fifth centuries. By noting early scholars' allusions to various texts, we can deduce which of these early texts were widely accepted.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The gospels which were incorporated into the NT did not gain clear prominence until the late second century. Mark, written around 65, appears to have been the first narrative gospel. But it originally ended at 16:8 and thus lacked any post-resurrection narrative of Jesus. John, too, was originally lacking sections that were later accepted as gospel - Chapter 21 was not composed by the same person that wrote the rest of the Gospel of John. Additionally, the story of the adulteress (John 7:53 - 8:11) wasn't originally part of the Gospel of John. These discrepancies might have cast doubt on the authoritative truth of these gospels. Furthermore, having too many gospels, especially ones that seem to contradict each other, cast doubt on the adequacy of any gospel. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The first evidence for a collection of four Gospels was in a document written by Irenaeus, bishop of Lyons in Gaul, writing around the year 180. There is also evidence of a four-gospel collection in the Muratorian canon list, which claims that the diversity of the gospels "matters nothing for the faith of believers." This comment suggests that some people had indeed found the discrepancies in the gospels disturbing.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The formation of a four-gospel collection was neither a necessity nor a natural outcome of the history of gospel literature in the early church. It is a compromise which balances an unmanageable number of gospels and a single self-sufficient gospel. Writers of the period tend to speak of the group of gospels as "gospel" (singular); thus, there are not four gospels but a fourfold gospel. Thus a balance is reached between two extremes. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">There are several theories as to why Paul's letters gained the widespread appreciation that led to their placement in the canon. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">One theory is that because his letters were highly valued by the communities he wrote to, they all sent his letters to neighboring communities so that everyone could share. But if this were the case, why did some letters survive and others disappear? And why did the author of Acts of the Apostles not mention the letters, if they were so important? </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Another theory (Goodspeed's) is that Paul's letters were highly valued by one scholar, who went out of his way to collect as many of them as he could. He then wrote the letter to the Ephesians, in Paul's name, as an introduction to his collection. That would explain the difference in writing styles of that letter to the rest of them. Gamble suggests that this is an extremely romantic theory, but with no evidence to support it.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Another scholar (Schmithals) changed Goodspeed's theory a bit to say that the collector/editor of the letters did so to create a weapon against gnosticism, since many of Paul's letters contain comments that are in opposition to gnostic spirituality. Again, there's no evidence that this theory is true, and it's too complex to accept without evidence. (Occam's Razor and all that jazz.)</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Schenke suggested that the letters were collected by a Pauline school of scholars that valued Paul's teaching. This theory seems to be the most attractive to our author Gamble. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><i style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Chapter 3: Factors in the Formation of the Canon</i><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">In the early years of Christianity, there were several Christian movements. Many theologians suggest that the New Testament was developed specifically to refute the claims of one or more of these movements. Gamble lists a few of them, and provides the arguments for and against particular groups having strong influence on the formation of the NT. Although Gamble does not support beliefs that any of these groups had much influence on the NT formation, he does suggest that all of them together could have had a larger effect on the NT.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Marcionite Christians (second century) - movement begun by Marcion, a shipowner-turned-scholar who arrived in Rome in about the year 140. Marcionites Believed that there was an angry Jewish Creator God and a good God that Jesus came to save us from. Since Jesus was not created by the Creator God, he did not have a corporal body - he only appeared to. Thus, Jesus was not human, but he was divine. (This would sorely undervalue Jesus' gift of dying for our sins if he only appeared to suffer.) Because Judaism had nothing to do with Christianity (different Gods) the Jewish scriptures had no place in the Church. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Marcion was the potentially the first scholar to compile a canon of literature - composed of the letters of Paul and Gospel of Luke. Some theologians believe that the Church adopted Paul's letters into their canon because of pressures from Marcionites, and that it was compelled to compensate for Marcion's bias towards Paul by including a variety of other apostolic writings to the canon. However, this theory does not explain why Paul's letters were widely known before Marcion's time. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Gnostic Christians - Believed that the real truth was only revealed to a select few. That when Jesus was baptized, a spirit entered him and he became the savior who taught the way to salvation. This spirit left Jesus and returned to heaven when Jesus was dying on the cross. We, also, are spiritual in nature, stuck in corporal bodies. (This doesn't fit exactly with the way Elaine Pagels described Gnostics in the two books of hers that I've read, but I guess there's room for error in studying a group of people on which so little information is available.)</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">It is commonly supposed that the NT was developed as an effort to oppose The privacy of many Gnostic beliefs, which were only abailable to the select few, and to oppose the "heretical" literature circulated by the Gnostics. However, Gnostics made free use of canonical literature, too, and it seems that the major difference between Gnotics and the Church was more about interpretation than literature.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Montanism - The Montanists were followers of a charismatic prophet named Montanus who claimed that the Paraclete promised by Jesus in the Gospel of John had come, and the end of times were at hand. (Seems like the end of times was always at hand for millennia on end.) Many theologians suggest that the New Testament was formed as a retaliation against Montanism for two reasons. First, the Montanists created new prophetic documents and claimed authoritative truth that the Church wanted to refute. Second, Montanists claimed prophetic revelation and the Church claimed that all prophetic revelations were in times past - that Jesus was the last prophet. However, as with the Marcionites and the Gnostics, Gamble refutes claim that Montanism had much impact on creation of the NT. First of all, Montanists, like the Gnostics, made free use of the canonical literature, but had different interpretations. Second, at the time that Montanism was popular the Holy Spirit and prophetic charisma were accepted by even the anti-Montanists in the Church.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">In addition to the groups above, these Early Christian groups were outlined in Chapter 1 of Bart D. Ehrman's The New Testament: A Historical Introduction to the Early Christian Writings. I thought it would fit in well with these notes on Gamble's book.</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">The Jewish Christian Adoptionists - Believed that Jesus was born a human of a non-virgin. He was adopted by God as His son upon baptism. Jesus was not, however, divine. (I could believe this pretty easily if I were inclined to have fixed beliefs.)</span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Proto-Orthodox Christians - These are the ones that modern Christianity sprouted from. They believed that Jesus was divine and human. They believed there was only one God. </span><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><br style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;" /><span style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.3999996185303px; text-align: start;">Another factor possibly affecting the formation of the New Testament is that the technology to create a codex large enough to hold the entire NT was not developed until the fourth century.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-44103248638276617932014-10-12T20:09:00.000-05:002014-10-12T20:09:32.405-05:00On psychopaths - guestpost by Daniel Schuette<div style="text-align: justify;">
First of all, let me forewarn you: THIS GUEST POST WILL CONTAIN ADULT CONTENT.<br />
<br />
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When I was asked to write a post
for Mental Health Awareness, my first thought was: “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What on earth qualifies me to even do such a thing?”</i> I mean, sure, I’m
on medication for depression and anxiety, I was intimately involved with
someone with bipolar disorder, and I’ve been called crazy plenty of times, but
that hardly makes me some kind of expert. So allow me to preface this post by
saying I am not a mental health professional and am in no way qualified to be
writing this post, so feel free to take what I have to say with a whole shaker
of salt.<br />
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With that disclaimer out of the
way, let me explain what I <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">might</i> be
able to contribute to the mental health topic and why I think your host asked
me to be a part of the conversation. For the past several years, I’ve been
developing a character for a series of novels named Aleksandr Zorin. Aleksey is
not a nice guy. In fact, he’s a psychopath and a sadist and a serial killer. As
much fun as it can be to create such a character, I’m one of those anal
retentive types that finds it necessary (nay, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">imperative</i>) to be as accurate as I possibly can about his
motivations and behaviors, and therefore—by extension—his mental condition. And
since I don’t have an anti-social personality disorder like sociopathy or
psychopathy (as least insofar as anyone knows)—that requires lots and lots of
research.</div>
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<br /></div>
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What I have found is that it’s rarely
like what you see on TV. If programs like Hannibal and Criminal Minds and
Profiler are to be believed, there is a virtually endless onslaught of sadistic
psychopathic killers out there, and they will (almost without fail) be brought
to justice in approximately 42 minutes. In reality (and though I personally question
the accuracy of this statement), the FBI estimates that there are only
thirty-five to fifty serial murderers active at any given time in the United
States. With the abundance of crime dramas currently on TV, it would only take
a few short weeks to declare society completely safe from a horrible demise at
the hands of a violent psychopath. So let’s take a bit to separate fact from
fiction.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Sociopath or Psychopath? There is
much debate on what (if any) difference there is between sociopathy and
psychopathy, even among mental health professionals. Both are classified as
Anti-Social Personality Disorders. Both are primarily characterized by a
profound lack of emotion, empathy, and fear. Some state that the
classifications are two names for the same disorder and can be used
interchangeably. Others believe that psychopaths are born with the deficiency,
and sociopaths are more a product of their environment during early development.
Some say psychopaths are charming, cunning and organized; some say those are actually
the hallmarks of the sociopath. <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
Sociopath Next Door</i> suggests that 4% of the population is sociopathic, yet
Robert Hare—the foremost authority on psychopathy—estimates that 1% of the population
are psychopaths. Considering that is a difference of roughly 9 million people,
there must be a distinction between them, but no one really seems to know or
define what that is. So, for the sake of this post, we’ll just have to say that
between 3 million and 12 million people can be classified as psycho/sociopaths.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Those are astonishing numbers,
though, wouldn’t you say? Think of that—at least <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">three million</i> people are psychopaths. They can do virtually <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">anything </i>with little or no fear of
consequence, and have no internal moral compass to guide their actions. They frequently
view the rest of us as either inferior prey or insignificant pieces to be
manipulated in some grand game of their own design—a game we don’t even realize
we’re playing.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Contrary to what many believe (and
quite fortunately for the rest of us), only a very small percentage of those psychopaths
will ever become violent. Many will instead find ways to harness their uncommon
skillset by entering law enforcement or enlisting in the military, becoming
politicians, surgeons, or successful CEO’s. One might, as you read this, be playing
the stock market fast and loose with your money. Any role where a proclivity
for risk-taking, fearlessness and emotional detachment are considered advantageous,
the psychopath would most likely excel at it. Odds are, you’ve even known a few
without recognizing them for what they were. In reality, psychopaths are rarely
“monsters” and are much more likely to be the successful leaders that we look
up to and even admire.</div>
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On the flip side of that coin,
however, is something that can be truly terrible to behold. Some psychopaths <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">will </i>become violent rapists and
murderers. But contrary to what popular media frequently depicts, they don’t
look like creepy fuckers/scoundrels, nor are they all brilliant cannibals like Hannibal
Lecter. They may be the quiet bloke that lives next door or your asshole/hardnosed/tyrant
boss or the cute ripped guy at the gym. Like any other slice of the population,
they are quite diverse. They can be any race or gender (but are predominantly
male), come from any background, and will have varying degrees of intellect. What
most of them <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">do</i> have in common is a
frightening ability to blend in. They are the chameleons of our society. They
learn to mimic behaviors that they don’t understand in order to fit in; they
are often charming and disarming. They are the ones whose chain-smoking,
muumuu-wearing neighbors wind up on the news exclaiming: “I just can’t believe
it! He was such a nice, normal guy.” Well, no. He really wasn’t. He was actually
a vicious predator that wore a very convincing mask.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span> </div>
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The most
asked and obvious question is “<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">why?” </i>What
is it that causes one human being to revel in the agony of another? Psychopaths
themselves can’t usually provide a clear, objective answer for that. They tend
to place the blame squarely on their victims, or their upbringing. But there is
some new research that seems to shed some light on the subject. Functional
Magnetic Resonance Imaging (or fMRI) of the brains of known psychopaths has
shown significant deficiencies in the areas that process emotion and fear. They
also do not experience the same brain activity that “normal” people do when
shown images or words with violent connotations. In short, the words table and
rape elicit precisely the same emotional response in the psychopath—<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">none</i>. For them, hacking off someone’s
limbs is no more or less remarkable than chopping wood.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Perhaps
Aleksandr Zorin can provide us with another part of the answer: <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">“</i><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Imagine an existence without any
feeling at all. A vast desert of nothing as far as the eye can see in every
direction. It is an endless ocean of sand. Empty. Barren. Then one day you
do something and find it to be… </span></i><span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">exhilarating<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">. Suddenly
within this existence of dust, there is a small oasis—a place that quenches the
endless thirst of nothing. Not an emotion, per se, but a feeling. Something
you've never experienced. Adrenalin flows. Your stomach knots. Your cock gets
hard. Your heart races. Your senses become heightened. It may never be
happiness or love but it is something where there once was naught. It is new.
It is a stirring. It is enjoyable. It is purpose. It is </i>life<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">.”</i> </span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">If Zorin is right, sociopaths and psychopaths eventually
discover just a tiny spark of what the rest of us experience every minute of
every day. It is a glowing ember in the void of their existence. And they <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">like</i> it. They are compelled to ignite it
again and again—to <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">feel</i> again and
again. Unfortunately, it is sometimes the suffering of others that provides the
kindling for those feelings in the psychopath.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Are these broken individuals that
need to be “fixed”, or are they a natural variant in the evolutionary process? Violent
psychopaths are in direct opposition to the laws of civilized society, so they
are hunted by law enforcement. They are often referred to as “evil” and
punished to the fullest measure—by life in prison, and sometimes death. Still,
they fascinate many of us, who perhaps see in them the boogeymen of our nightmares,
or the monsters under our beds. But they are far scarier than any of our
mythological constructs. They are human beings devoid of humanity, barely (and
not always) held in check by our nebulous concepts of compassion and justice.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>So how might this post relate to
mental health awareness? First, understand that the portrayals of psychopaths
and serial killers in the media are rarely accurate. Remember that one of every
hundred people you meet is completely indifferent to your feelings, and they have
a tendency to wreak hell and havoc on the lives of those around them. If
someone you know is charming yet constantly takes advantage of those around
them and then ulti<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>mately destroys those relationships,
you may be dealing with a functional psychopath. Urge those that you care about
to steer clear—there is zero hope of “fixing” them, or getting them to change.
Transformation is impossible for the psychopath. And if the hairs on the back
of your neck stand on end and you get a shiver when someone approaches, listen
to your instincts—you are programmed to sense danger from predators and
psychopaths are the equivalent of modern sabre-tooth tigers.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>While I doubt many with Anti-Social
Personality Disorder have read this post, and though I suspect you wouldn’t
listen even if you had, I encourage you to seek help from therapists. There are
cognitive therapies available that will help you channel your unique assets and
minimize destructive behaviors. It is possible for you to lead extremely
productive and successful lives, despite (or perhaps even because of) your lack
of compassion for others.<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";"> Whether we view them as a different
species entirely, or those saddled with an unmanageable mental “illness”, the
three million psychopaths among us already own a link in the evolutionary chain.
We must learn to adapt to—and accept—the reality that there are ruthless
predators in our midst. We are sometimes hunted. We are sometimes stalked.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman";">We are
sometimes prey.</span></div>
</div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-19554282617959608272014-09-11T16:04:00.001-05:002014-09-12T18:34:41.325-05:00Guest Post: The Survivor’s Side of Suicide, by Julie Cantrell<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: large;">The Survivor’s Side of Suicide<o:p></o:p></span></div>
</div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;">By Julie Cantrell</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span></span>
<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE8eWey1MBK4JHUDSM6pRVwybWK8GE28NnWcT6MMFzmPj_i9au4YnnfTFfIGV-KrFS4WBPICIQLNKvaGT5Or5azqThKnV1ip9L2f_gYpyRBX9pwGWEUYnFT6d4tbHOdyG2bOkbIOoNlcmP/s1600/Jeff2b.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE8eWey1MBK4JHUDSM6pRVwybWK8GE28NnWcT6MMFzmPj_i9au4YnnfTFfIGV-KrFS4WBPICIQLNKvaGT5Or5azqThKnV1ip9L2f_gYpyRBX9pwGWEUYnFT6d4tbHOdyG2bOkbIOoNlcmP/s1600/Jeff2b.jpg" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Suicide is one ugly word. It’s the kind of word that swings
heavy from lips. The kind that is whispered, and stilted, never sung.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As an author, I build my life around words. Every word has
worth. Even those words we are not supposed to say. But </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><i>suicide </i>is the one word I do
not like<i>.</i> I wish there was no need
for such a word in our world</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. Especially since 1997, when my teen brother
ended his own life two months before his high school graduation.</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It is one thing to be
on the other side of suicide</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">, where you may offer prayer or casseroles or
even a hug. It is another thing entirely to be on the side of the survivor,
after a loved one puts a gun to the head or a rope to the neck or a blade to
the vein. That dark depth of despair is no easy channel to navigate because
unlike every other form of death, this one was intentional. This one could have
been prevented. This one carries immeasurable sting.</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The <i>what-if</i>s and <i>but</i> <i>why</i>s and <i>I</i> <i>wonder</i>s
never cease.</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> They haunt all hours, whether moonlit or shine. And the stares
don’t stop either, the constant conversation that hangs silently between
friends -- at the grocery store, or in the church pews, or at the birthday
party. No one says it, but they are thinking... That poor mother, how does she stand
it? Or - That poor child, knowing his father took his own life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">What people on that side of suicide don’t understand is that
we, the survivors left in the wake, are barely keeping our heads above water.
We don’t want pity, or sympathy, or stares. We don’t want whispers, or
questions, or help. </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">We want one thing
only. We want our loved ones back.</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> And there’s one simple way you can give
this to us.</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Talk about the people
we loved and lost.</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Don’t dance around us as if their ghost is in the way.
Acknowledge the lives they lived. Recognize the light they once shined. Laugh
about the fun you once had together.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">There’s nothing you can tell us -- no detail too small, no
memory too harsh -- that will hurt us. We crave it all. We are hungry for any
piece of time travel you offer. </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Bring us
back, to that space, when the one we loved was in the here and now.</b><br />
<u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></u>
<u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Suicide is something most of us struggle to understand. </u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">It
is difficult to rationalize the selfish part of such an act. How could someone
not care about the pain they would throw on their loved ones? How could someone
not be strong enough to stay alive?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">But here’s the truth: </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">suicide
was not the cause of my brother’s death. Depression was the cause of his death.
</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And depression is a beast unlike any other. It is an illness we still struggle
to cure, despite all the therapeutic and pharmaceutical intervention available
today.</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Sometimes, even with
all the help in the world, a person cannot see through the pain.</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> They
cannot imagine a better day ahead. They see only more hurt. And when I say
hurt, I mean suffering. Blood-zapping, brain-numbing, soul-bursting agony.</span><br />
<u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></u>
<u style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Imagine this:</u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> you wake every day as a prisoner. You
are trapped in a cell with no freedom in your future. You are tortured --
physically, emotionally, psychologically. The anguish never stops. Just when
you think you cannot survive another blow, it comes again. More pain.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You try to </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">ignore</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
the ache. You cannot. You try to </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">numb</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">
the hurt. You cannot. You try to </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">rise
above</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> the pain. You cannot. The brutality persists. And you see no end to
it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you knew you had to endure only one more round of abuse,
or one more month, or even a year, or longer. If there was an end in view, you could
be strong enough to handle it. You could take whatever is thrown at you because
you want, more than anything else, to live.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You are a sensitive soul and you have so much left in you to
give. You want only to love and be loved. But the cell has you trapped. You
have tried everything. There is no end to the insufferable situation.</span><br />
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></b>
<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">A person with
depression becomes suicidal when they finally give up all hope</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. When they
accept that nothing they do, no matter how long they survive, no matter how
many medications or prayers or therapists they turn to, the pain will never end.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Can you imagine the pain you would have to be in to take
your own life?</span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> Can you imagine the fear
of a suicidal person (regardless of faith), daring to face the unknown because even
the possibility of eternal hellfire or permanent purgatory or absolute absence
seems less scary than another day in this world?</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When Robin Williams passed away, the world was abuzz
weighing the controversial issues of mental illness, depression, and suicide. While
some people were unable to extend kindness or understanding, proving we have a
long way to go in our culture’s recognition of chemical imbalances, the
international conversation gave me hope. It proved that people are finally
willing to say the word SUICIDE out loud, without the hushed whispers and back
corner gossip. </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Putting this word on
equal footing with all the other words in our vernacular is important. It
lessens the sting.</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I consider this progress, and I am optimistic the forward momentum
will continue. It is time.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><u>I write this blog today for several reasons:</u></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">·</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">One, I am proud to have been the sister to an
amazingly bright spirit who left this world too soon and whose memory I want to
keep alive.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">·</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Two, I want to increase understanding and
support for the millions of people struggling with chemical imbalances.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">·</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Three, I want to offer support and empathy to
all who have lost a loved one to suicide and encourage you to speak out loud to
honor their spirit and to educate those on the other side.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">·</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 7pt; text-indent: -0.25in;">
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-indent: -0.25in;">Four, and most importantly, I have a very
important message for anyone struggling with depression.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One week after my brother died, we received notice that he
had landed the career opportunity he wanted with the Department of Wildlife and
Fisheries. That job may have been enough to offer him the key to that cell, the
something to cling to, the reason for reason. </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Maybe, if he could have stuck it out one more week, he would still be
alive today. Seven days, and he may have had hope again.</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Today, when I see someone struggling for hope, looking for a
signal, a reason, proof that their life matters and that the pain will indeed
end, I think of my brother and that phone call that came one week too late.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">If you are struggling with depression, please remember... </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">you are in this world for a reason</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. You
have a very important journey you must complete. You were born to accomplish
something, something only you know. You will suffer, you will hurt, you will
feel hopeless and alone at times. But you are not in that space forever. Keep
walking, keep moving forward, and you will find your way through in time.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When you hit bottom, please remember this: </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">You are loved. You are never alone. You
were born with everything you need to survive this journey. You matter.</b><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">And once you are on the other side, as you will soon be, then,
you will look back with wiser eyes, the eyes of a survivor. You will know your
soul survived the stretching season. And </span><b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">you
will move through the world with greater empathy and understanding, a gift like
none other</b><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. For you, sensitive one, are the blessed. And we need you here.
In this life.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Be brave. Wage war. Hold fast to the light inside of you.</span><br />
<em><span style="background: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></em>
<em><span style="background: white; color: #141823; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 10.5pt; line-height: 115%;">"For
God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a
sound mind." 2 Timothy 1:7</span></em></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Julie Cantrell is the <i>New
York Times</i> and <i>USA TODAY</i>
bestselling author of <i>Into the Free</i>
and <i>When Mountains Move</i>. She works to
promote suicide awareness and prevention in memory of her brother, Jeff
Perkins. Learn more: <a href="http://www.juliecantrell.com/">www.juliecantrell.com</a></span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-86216087796280216542014-09-04T19:00:00.000-05:002014-09-04T19:00:45.275-05:00Emotional Fitness - Happiness<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This post comprises my thoughts for several activities this week. First, <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/">Novel Heartbeat</a>'s topic for <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/2014/09/life-blogger-fitness/">Life of a Blogger</a> this week is Fitness. Because I've been focusing so much on my own mental health lately, I'm going to cheat a little bit and talk about emotional fitness. Don't get me wrong. Physical fitness is really important. And usually I'm out there training for triathlons and zombie runs, etc. But this year I was whacked upside the head with mental illness which gave me pretty severe fatigue. So, I'll have to focus on emotional fitness and hope that physical fitness will follow. I thought this post would also be nice for <a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/">Create with Joy</a>'s <a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/2014/09/friendship-friday-136-anything-goes.html">Friendship Friday</a>. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">So. Mental fitness. What is it? I think the first step to such fitness is happiness. I found this little book stashed in my mom's sewing basket today. It was rather uplifting if you like thought-of-the-day sorts of books. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In <a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/instant-happy-karen-salmansohn/1110872657?ean=9781607743682"><b> Instant Happy</b></a>, Karen Salmansohn tries to break negative thinking patterns by introducing positive thinking patterns - with the belief that every time we think a negative thought, it reinforces that negative thought in our minds; therefore, if we break that pattern, we can become happy. Although I'm skeptical of instant happiness being anywhere in my near future (that's just too easy, isn't it?), I did enjoy the book, and I appreciate the theory behind it. Obviously, I can't tell you all of the thoughts that I found compelling - that would take the fun out of it for you. But one page asked: What's your pet excuse? It listed a bunch of typical excuses. My pet excuse is: <i>I can't until. </i>I can't start working out again until I'm not fatigued by my mental health. I can't find the perfect job for myself until my metal health is better. If I hadn't planned for a couple of months for my <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/09/suicide-and-mental-illness-theme-read.html">Suicide and Mental Health Awareness theme</a>, I probably would have postponed even that for "this year," just as I'm thinking about postponing my Social Justice and Human Rights Awareness theme at the beginning of next year. Because I can't until my mental health is better. I read a fantastic post about NOT waiting for the "perfect moment" on <a href="http://goinswriter.com/small-habits/">Jeff Goins' Blog</a>.</span></div>
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<a href="https://www.edx.org/course/uc-berkeleyx/uc-berkeleyx-gg101x-science-happiness-1497#.VAj1W_ldXO4" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="111" src="https://www.edx.org/sites/default/files/course/image/banner/gg101x_course_banner608x211.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Another activity that I'm combining into my happiness post is a pre-assignment for the upcoming MOOC from edX <a href="https://www.edx.org/course/uc-berkeleyx/uc-berkeleyx-gg101x-science-happiness-1497#.VAj2lvldXO5">The Science of Happiness</a>. (Yes, everyone, you can still sign up! It starts on September 9th and is free open enrollment!) Our pre-assignment is to introduce ourselves with a short video saying what makes us happy. :) </span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-66927024863971327722014-09-04T15:10:00.001-05:002014-09-04T15:10:35.202-05:00Doon, by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">Let me tell you about an adorable little series of teen romance novels published through Zondervan by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"><b>Genre: </b>Teen romance / Fairy Tale</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"><b>Reason for Reading: </b>The publisher, Zondervan, provided a copy of Destined for Doon in exchange for an honest review.<b> </b></span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">The first book in the series is <b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/doon-carey-corp/1114852635?ean=9780310742395">Doon</a></b>. </span></span><b style="color: #111111; font-family: Verdana, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 17.399999618530273px; text-align: start;"><img src="http://static.librarything.com/pics/ss7.gif" style="border-style: none;" /></b><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"><b>Summary:</b> For Veronica's entire life other people have walked all over her and abandoned her. When a recent break-up leads to Veronica hallucinating a handsome Scottish boy, she's half convinced she's crazy...but as she continues to see flashes of him, she realizes it is her destiny to cross over the Brig 'O Doon in Scotland and meet her destined. MacKenna, her best friend, has other plans for herself and Veronica, though.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">Review:</b><span style="font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"> This was a sweet teen romance for people who are fans of fairy-tale endings. It had a nice combination of adventure (saving an imperiled kingdom from a nasty witch, while dodging angry mobs) and angsty teen romance. It was fun to watch how close Veronica and MacKenna were, despite their differences in personality. They each had strengths and weaknesses, making them a fantastic team. This is a story just as much about friendship as it is about romance.</span></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><b><i>Destined for Doon </i></b>● <b><i> </i></b>Authors: Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon<u></u></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">Zondervan ● September 2<span class="aBn" data-term="goog_1228140622" style="border-bottom-color: rgb(204, 204, 204); border-bottom-style: dashed; border-bottom-width: 1px; position: relative; top: -2px; z-index: 0;" tabindex="0"><span class="aQJ" style="position: relative; top: 2px; z-index: -1;">, 2014</span></span> ● ISBN: </span><span style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;">9780310742333</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Hardcover/$17.99 U.S. ● Ages 15+</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The second book in the series is <b><a href="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310742333_p0_v2_s260x420.JPG">Destined for Doon</a> </b></span><a href="https://www.librarything.com/work/517154/members" style="color: #dd66bc; font-family: Arial, Tahoma, Helvetica, FreeSans, sans-serif; text-decoration: none;"><img src="https://pics-librarything.r.worldssl.net/pics/ss8.gif" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; margin-bottom: -2px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Summary:</b> Unlike Veronica, MacKenna didn't have a fairy-tale ending in the first book. She chose a difficult path, and one that didn't make her as happy as she'd wished. But when MacKenna is given a chance to redeem herself (as well as save the imperiled kingdom of Doon from zombies), she snatches it up. But can she redeem the mistakes of her past? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Review:</b> For me, this book seemed faster-paced than the first one. It picked up a few months after the first one left off, and instead of focusing mainly on Veronica's relationship with Jamie, it focused on Mackenna and Duncan. One thing I liked about this continuation is that (unlike many teen romance series) the problems that must be overcome in the second book are not simply continuations of problems from the first book. Mackenna and Duncan, as a couple, are so different to Veronica and Jamie. Again, this story is a nice combination of adventure and angsty teen love. </span></div>
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<b>And, of course, the moment you were all waiting for - this is where I give a free copy of <i>Destined for Doon</i> to one lucky winner. </b>This offer is for a hardcover copy of the book, and it's good for anyone within the US. </div>
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<a class="rafl" href="http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/1c1177232/" id="rc-1c1177232" rel="nofollow">a Rafflecopter giveaway</a>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhss3ZTRdrWytbICiQytqVCqwWk7Y6PNRdAUbzFoKOqchZyJ_9OoCrocC5Y31u8KdhYPxx_YsJ8cvA_ELdTa90PGx4FkG3T65w-hpfelxrgCsIwmR1VVgK9_NSGRn7qh-0Schtb9sMlVUva/s1600/9780310742302_LorieandCarey.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="color: #dd66bc; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-decoration: none;"><img border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhss3ZTRdrWytbICiQytqVCqwWk7Y6PNRdAUbzFoKOqchZyJ_9OoCrocC5Y31u8KdhYPxx_YsJ8cvA_ELdTa90PGx4FkG3T65w-hpfelxrgCsIwmR1VVgK9_NSGRn7qh-0Schtb9sMlVUva/s1600/9780310742302_LorieandCarey.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 1px solid rgb(238, 238, 238); box-shadow: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.0980392) 1px 1px 5px; padding: 5px; position: relative;" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Carey Corpe:</b> Carey Corp lives in the metropolitan Midwest with her loveable yet out-of-control family. Carey wrote her first book at the age of seven, and currently begins each morning consuming copious amounts of coffee while weaving stories that capture her exhaustive imagination. She harbors a voracious passion (in no consistent order) for mohawks, Italy, musical theater, chocolate, and Jane Austen. Carey’s debut novel for teens, The Halo Chronicles: The Guardian, earned her national recognition as 2010 Golden Heart finalist for best young adult fiction and was featured at the 2012 RT Booklovers Convention in Chicago in YA Alley. </span></div>
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<b style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;">Lorie Langdon:</b><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;"> Lorie Langdon has wanted to write her own novels since she was a wee girl reading every Judy Blume book she could get her hands on. So a few years ago, she left her thriving corporate career to satisfy the voices in her head. Now as a full-time author and stay-at-home mom, she spends her summers editing poolside while dodging automatic water-gun fire, and the rest of the year tucked into her cozy office, Havanese puppy by her side, working to translate her effusive imagination into the written word and continue to build the young-adult-focused blog, HonestlyYA. </span><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;">Read more at </span><a href="http://honestlyya.com/" style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;">HonestlyYA.com</a><span style="color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.559999465942383px; text-align: justify;">.</span>Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-86820084131417576312014-09-01T14:28:00.000-05:002014-09-01T16:30:40.196-05:00Suicide and Mental Illness Theme Read Kickoff!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Hey everyone. September has come and the first week of the annual Suicide and Mental Illness Awareness Theme Read has begun!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As I've said repeatedly during my "plug-my-own-event" campaign, <span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">it is very important for people to be open and supportive about mental illness and suicidal ideation. </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">Some people have absolutely no empathy for suicide - they feel that if someone wants to die, let them die.</span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">What these people fail to see is that suicidal people are ill. Their perception of reality is often distorted, and they honestly feel that death is the only way out. They need to be reminded of why life is wonderful. They need (and want!) help. Suicide is a tragedy - not only for the individual, but for all the friends and family. </span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;"><br /></span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">Stigma pollutes our culture, discouraging people who need help from speaking out - it's the people who talk who end up healing. </span><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; line-height: 21.559999465942383px;">We need more healthy people in the world, and suicide and mental illness advocacy is one way to promote this goal. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">To participate, all you need to do is post about something related to suicide and / or mental illness. This can be a book you've read, a movie you've watched, or just some random thoughts you want to share. You can share publicly on FB or Goodreads etc if you don't have a blog. So anyone can participate. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Here is a list of movies and book suggestions that I posted a few weeks ago: </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/mental-illness">Popular Mental Illness books</a> (Goodreads list) - Several of the books on this list I have already read or are on my TBR mountain.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bustle.com/articles/24100-11-of-the-most-realistic-portrayals-of-mental-illness-in-novels">11 of the most Realistic Portrayals of Mental Illness in Novels</a> - This is a pretty interesting article with some good suggestions. And don't miss the embedded list of <a href="http://www.mastersinhealthcare.com/blog/2011/the-20-greatest-memoirs-of-mental-illness/">20 Greatest Memoirs of Mental Illness</a>. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_illness_in_fiction">Mental Illness in Fiction</a> (Wikipedia) - This interesting list includes some much older books as well as some unexpected inclusions (LOTR? - Ok, yeah, I guess Golem was mentally ill, but...it DOES make kind of a fun list, though. And you can feel free to be )</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.stackedbooks.org/2013/11/contemporary-ya-books-featuring-mental.html">Contemporary YA books featuring mental illness</a> - What is a list of books without YA these days? ;)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://blog.nami.org/2011/06/top-10-movies-about-mental-illness.html">NAMI Blog: The Top 10 Movies about Mental Illness </a>- This is a really good list (should be, coming from NAMI). I've seen 6 of them. :)</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://whatculture.com/film/10-gripping-films-about-mental-illness.php">10 Gripping Films about Mental Illness</a> - This list seems pretty good, as well. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><br /></b></span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://filmracket.com/the-10-best-portrayals-of-mental-illness-in-modern-movies/">10 Best Portrayals of Mental Illness in Modern Movies</a><b> - </b>This list, I suspect, is more about the acting than about psychology. From I totally agree with the assessment of great acting on this list!</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-56552746540778078182014-08-30T09:55:00.000-05:002014-08-30T10:02:09.776-05:00Why I'd switch places with Emma<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week's <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/2014/08/29/ff-time-get-hop-feature-follow/">Feature and Follow Hop</a>, hosted by <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/">Parajunkee</a> and <a href="http://www.alisoncanread.com/">Alison Can Read</a>, asks us to write about characters we'd like to trade places with. This was a really hard question for me, because the books I love the most tend to be about people that have problems galore. Hermione Granger? No thank-you. Don't want to battle Voldemort. I have my own demons to battle.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">After a while, I realized the character I'd most like to switch places with is Emma from Jane Austen's novel of that name. Reason? Clearly I'd be better at handling Emma's problems than Emma. ;) Of course, I also have 15 years on her...and maybe if I grew up all spoiled and rich I would be just as stubborn as Emma. Emma is so sensible but misapplies her sense so gratuitously - and Mr. Knightly loves her anyway - that's what makes me want to change places with Emma. Although this isn't my favorite Austen novel, and Mr. Knightly isn't quite as romantic as Colonel Brandon (from Sense and Sensibility), Emma is my pick. :) You can see <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/03/the-annotated-emma-by-jane-austen.html">my review of Emma here</a>. </span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-26604718847133014142014-08-30T08:04:00.002-05:002014-08-30T08:04:52.523-05:00The last two weeks on Resistance is Futile<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Coming next week at Resistance is Futile</b></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8THLBAuQn5WAp8mDeXc9F9PYFhMlGokjRAx23KE1WQeliZhvNFsgj2qUwGVZkkbM7mWyKE7cnZJw2EI0jhURsemTV7oEE0WW3Va3dE5L2HOJAoxNXDJas-VW9ay0cmBaEL-TmXhyphenhyphen3gxh/s1600/Suicide+MI.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8THLBAuQn5WAp8mDeXc9F9PYFhMlGokjRAx23KE1WQeliZhvNFsgj2qUwGVZkkbM7mWyKE7cnZJw2EI0jhURsemTV7oEE0WW3Va3dE5L2HOJAoxNXDJas-VW9ay0cmBaEL-TmXhyphenhyphen3gxh/s1600/Suicide+MI.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anybody who's been reading my blog for a while will know that I have an upcoming event to raise awareness and personal education about suicide and mental illness. The stigma for these two issues is very high in our culture, and that means that many people who are feeling suicidal have no one to talk to about their problems. Many people who kill themselves could have been saved if only our culture didn't frown upon expressing so-called weaknesses. Many people who could have been treated for mental illness before cascading to rock bottom are left floundering with no one to talk to. Educate yourself and others about mental illness and suicide in order to fight this dangerous stigma!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">My upcoming event is one small way to educate yourself. You can read a book or watch a film / show that educates you on mental illness. Mention it on your blog / goodreads / other place, and provide the link to the review in my comments section. I'll collect them all and make a tab of this year's selections, so that you can see what everyone else has been reading. :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Destined for Doon, by Carey Corp and Lorie Langdon will be released on September 2nd, and I'll be hosting a giveaway of this sweet little teen romance. My review and author spotlight goes up on September 2nd. </span></div>
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<b style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The last two weeks on Resistance is Futile</b></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Watched this movie with my nephew and my friend for her birthday.<br />This movie was surprisingly fantastic. I hadn't expected them to be able to keep so close to the story of the book and yet have it adapt to screen so well. I am SO happy that I went to it. Even my 10-year-old nephew loved it, though it seems to be aimed at a slightly older audience. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I volunteered 28 hours at the crisis hotline</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU3_pgbA5BaeDJkeS6jFA48wiL4rwwXO3yaas5ll3uKnfrz9eNreep8rUeksMaoe44vgVcw_nvlR-KlC-opTeZmBQ0BCG8jEAWmuwbCOthupxbUQ2zGjHjAHXpMO8mTjLUQ7ttofydbWzx/s1600/Depositphotos_25870509_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgU3_pgbA5BaeDJkeS6jFA48wiL4rwwXO3yaas5ll3uKnfrz9eNreep8rUeksMaoe44vgVcw_nvlR-KlC-opTeZmBQ0BCG8jEAWmuwbCOthupxbUQ2zGjHjAHXpMO8mTjLUQ7ttofydbWzx/s1600/Depositphotos_25870509_xs.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Had an orientation for my new job :)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I read the August 8 issue of New Scientist. I was most struck by the article about the "big beasts" - bears, lynx, and wolves - returning to Europe. It included a sweet story about one collared wolf that walked from the Balkans in Eastern Europe, over alps 6 meters deep in snow, to Italy. The story actually brought a little tear to my eye, so I must have been in an emotional state of mind. The article also discussed the social / environmental implications of the large animals returning to Europe. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidf70HhUw2SXQFAUTPvdeY5ANEJPjoj8oVjG7HlvsUlq3wXFMX6p_7de8Cw4mQUDG4nc90TmxxVFbsJO-8I7YI9yjt8D5_SJ-wAJUKGnGf3VowDHPMDWGX1XvJVut7s2WKWX-D3Pci6GG/s1600/Depositphotos_13909550_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhidf70HhUw2SXQFAUTPvdeY5ANEJPjoj8oVjG7HlvsUlq3wXFMX6p_7de8Cw4mQUDG4nc90TmxxVFbsJO-8I7YI9yjt8D5_SJ-wAJUKGnGf3VowDHPMDWGX1XvJVut7s2WKWX-D3Pci6GG/s1600/Depositphotos_13909550_xs.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">As mentioned in my<a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/08/vulnerability-my-deepest-fear.html"> post yesterday about fears and vulnerability</a>, I was at the hospital for a good chunk of the last week. But hopefully I'm doing better now!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">While I was in the hospital, my wonderful BFF gave me two books. One of them was this adorable and hilarious Japanimation comic. It gave me (and a few of the other patients) some needed laughs. :) </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPMVSp76kqleYoE5bCI3UeKwakkNMAehE0jgrsxQ4hGZyaGKMpX0RubphgXtz88Tsq2TQyS6lDoKXhrSF_Ct6MfygyH6gvWV-8IEM7yW1Lzs3Q-CAKTwzo_A_EdzlN080riqvH9DWSTKpV/s1600/Depositphotos_6090459_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhPMVSp76kqleYoE5bCI3UeKwakkNMAehE0jgrsxQ4hGZyaGKMpX0RubphgXtz88Tsq2TQyS6lDoKXhrSF_Ct6MfygyH6gvWV-8IEM7yW1Lzs3Q-CAKTwzo_A_EdzlN080riqvH9DWSTKpV/s1600/Depositphotos_6090459_xs.jpg" height="58" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">While locked up I also enjoyed a game of cribbage with a couple fellow detainees (er...patients). </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3b0cRARmz6_efNA1xF9kt9gCxTwKn0mLLY-NyO-COGDddykBaBrKo5AmZVGSFDGRnXJ56nGzGu5iNnLoj6oAWnPcNpuTT3fDdoJiYXTDCu3rpKSayp_G4OR7aTVNCvpwuIVjFovmOMucO/s1600/Depositphotos_1969751_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3b0cRARmz6_efNA1xF9kt9gCxTwKn0mLLY-NyO-COGDddykBaBrKo5AmZVGSFDGRnXJ56nGzGu5iNnLoj6oAWnPcNpuTT3fDdoJiYXTDCu3rpKSayp_G4OR7aTVNCvpwuIVjFovmOMucO/s1600/Depositphotos_1969751_xs.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">They also taught me how to play Rummy.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://prod.static.vikings.clubs.nfl.com/nfl-assets/img/gbl-ico-team/MIN/logos/home/large.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://prod.static.vikings.clubs.nfl.com/nfl-assets/img/gbl-ico-team/MIN/logos/home/large.png" height="320" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">And we watched the Vikings berserk the Chiefs for a 30 to 12 score. </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaQEaIxb0BHMG5bOn1l6MTDGKx0pP20TriprI3zdEEAmHuz310LN8fsBh6TDrrOfgb3wl6KBfJsIiyzNzwlIdCnux3UZqvDMKCzSyw4Ah31jqUQv3ordWUZEoJPFgesMsAJG_sa5JU13Vu/s1600/Guardians.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaQEaIxb0BHMG5bOn1l6MTDGKx0pP20TriprI3zdEEAmHuz310LN8fsBh6TDrrOfgb3wl6KBfJsIiyzNzwlIdCnux3UZqvDMKCzSyw4Ah31jqUQv3ordWUZEoJPFgesMsAJG_sa5JU13Vu/s1600/Guardians.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Upon sweet release, I celebrated by taking my nephew to see Guardians of the Galaxy - yes, I wanted to see baby Groot dance on the big screen again. :) I can do that over and over! We are Groot! My nephew, sadly, claimed that he liked Ninja Turtles better. :(</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/10593103_10100154220263217_1359978683352995913_n.jpg?oh=9697c64dbc77cd6fdc3c5161aa1f8ebc&oe=5463E602&__gda__=1416422420_2943479964329043373105100ccdb646" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-g-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/10593103_10100154220263217_1359978683352995913_n.jpg?oh=9697c64dbc77cd6fdc3c5161aa1f8ebc&oe=5463E602&__gda__=1416422420_2943479964329043373105100ccdb646" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I also celebrated by having my FIRST pumpkin spice latte of the season! Yum!</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/1480488_10100154220392957_1264194864458821699_n.jpg?oh=6f390c98ab307d11ea585e59533d5493&oe=547FF874&__gda__=1415297310_9aac5e86b9efac83b8a955d037b0313d" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/1480488_10100154220392957_1264194864458821699_n.jpg?oh=6f390c98ab307d11ea585e59533d5493&oe=547FF874&__gda__=1415297310_9aac5e86b9efac83b8a955d037b0313d" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">And yesterday, I got flowers for the first time in over a decade. <br />That makes the hospital stay worth it, right? ;)</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">I FINALLY got to play the game Pandemic for the fist time, thanks to someone I met in the hospital. So perhaps that made the hospital stay worthwhile as well. :)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b><b>Newly Acquired</b></b></span></div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Bought this at Goodwill. It will go well with my mental illness theme the next couple of months, though I don't know if I'll have time to read it, since I have so much else going on. *sigh*</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">This book was also given to me by my BFF while I was in the hospital.</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Daily Deal sale at Audible</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Daily Deal sale at Audible</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513gi8Xw80L._SL300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/513gi8Xw80L._SL300_.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Daily Deal sale at Audible<br /> </span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yrAesl40L._SL300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51yrAesl40L._SL300_.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Daily Deal sale at Audible</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/618Ql3jyHIL._SL300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/618Ql3jyHIL._SL300_.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Daily Deal sale at Audible</span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41tD4BdrnHL._SL300_.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41tD4BdrnHL._SL300_.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Audiobook from the library. Thought it would fit in really nicely with my mental illness theme. Since I had to return A Beautiful Mind, by Sylvia Nasar before finishing it, I'll read this for now. </span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-71290731314492732322014-08-29T09:06:00.000-05:002014-08-29T09:07:33.140-05:00Vulnerability - My deepest fear<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-LaKWyqgnpzhAqmUJ0VKlZUAUrheyrGK3P0Tu0W0JINEs0_XI60JemMFq2STijrB3n7-pmrqKQ5wnkrSc2ycqiYQi16FPOL-8HrKCmVUIPUuQEx1_J5tfOBOHQm_qVUrBt1t7luPVOcQa/s1600/Depositphotos_11189995_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-LaKWyqgnpzhAqmUJ0VKlZUAUrheyrGK3P0Tu0W0JINEs0_XI60JemMFq2STijrB3n7-pmrqKQ5wnkrSc2ycqiYQi16FPOL-8HrKCmVUIPUuQEx1_J5tfOBOHQm_qVUrBt1t7luPVOcQa/s1600/Depositphotos_11189995_xs.jpg" height="132" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">As usual this week I am combining my <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/2014/08/life-blogger-fears/">Life of a Blogger</a> (by <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/">Novel Heartbeat</a>) post with my <a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/2014/08/friendship-friday-135-anything-goes.html">Friendship Friday</a> (by <a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/">Create with Joy</a>). This week's topic is fears. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Some fears are easy to discuss, and some are harder to discuss. It depends a lot on what your fears are. For instance, I have a fear of <b>making myself vulnerable</b>. So stating my fears actually goes against one of my deepest fears. However, I've been working on this specific fear, so this post will be a good opportunity to test out my new mad skilz at being vulnerable.</span></div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2BRaqRnL2kM79l71YnuVJvrgXlyYIXxginx5rlk0jAFOPmWkoN_yOzmFSEvO2IkT4-yZtvNP4N5dQpjxmKIO2fIJDrpkyE_xG7Ve6cNGnne-xSRwx8PJKA8pRQbzUP-4gohju6BZzwzsi/s1600/Scream.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2BRaqRnL2kM79l71YnuVJvrgXlyYIXxginx5rlk0jAFOPmWkoN_yOzmFSEvO2IkT4-yZtvNP4N5dQpjxmKIO2fIJDrpkyE_xG7Ve6cNGnne-xSRwx8PJKA8pRQbzUP-4gohju6BZzwzsi/s1600/Scream.jpg" height="320" width="231" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The Scream<br />Artist: Edvard Munch<br />(who theoretically had bipolar)</span></td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One of the things that has been making me feel vulnerable lately is my recent diagnosis of bipolar disorder. For those of you who are unfamiliar with this diagnosis, it used to be called manic-depressive disorder. I'm diagnosed with type 2, which means I've only been "hypomanic" and not "fully manic." Hypomania increased my irritability, irrationality, and impulsivity while (on a happier note) making me feel that I couldn't be wrong, that I had the ability to climb the highest mountains and take on the world</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">. I lost several people I considered friends during that period. And that still makes me feel abandoned and vulnerable. (Though, I have to admit, the online community is SO amazingly supportive, and I'm very thankful for you guys. You're all rockstars!)</span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMi1tZi7RYq7VbWTC8OfNS6qJS_v5TCoLXcm9Iz0AEMBEKAljhcNVvbtGO5iCSftUx9-12fLrTkxjRC239gWcx8VWm4DjTAyTX4gE4KQ0vge9dtEUvV8IZs2-vuzIQJHlMQoeKh7eYm49L/s1600/Depositphotos_13909550_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMi1tZi7RYq7VbWTC8OfNS6qJS_v5TCoLXcm9Iz0AEMBEKAljhcNVvbtGO5iCSftUx9-12fLrTkxjRC239gWcx8VWm4DjTAyTX4gE4KQ0vge9dtEUvV8IZs2-vuzIQJHlMQoeKh7eYm49L/s1600/Depositphotos_13909550_xs.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">With the spirit of fighting my fears, I will admit that the reason my blog has been a bit quiet last week is because I was in the psych ward of the hospital. (My doctor was unfortunately not as handsome as the one above.) I was really angry at my psychiatric NP for putting me there, because I didn't feel that I was in crisis at <i>that</i> time. But now that I'm out, I realize that he was trying to make sure I was stabilized and ready for my new job, which starts on the 2nd of September. He was being forward thinking, and I was very unappreciative. I guess I'll have to thank him later.</span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixojJyl7NyAH1_YJyCiGt72ZLXWEfepifo7BnV-Rp-yMy0_ju59Ar4jgGOVn0tGy9DtfprhZkVZSqnWqAq1BxqzdH2lqN4vF4lljBZ_QAT157ozSAmmOLwtHQCcKYOVLbEjsb911aMIlsl/s1600/Depositphotos_3980818_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixojJyl7NyAH1_YJyCiGt72ZLXWEfepifo7BnV-Rp-yMy0_ju59Ar4jgGOVn0tGy9DtfprhZkVZSqnWqAq1BxqzdH2lqN4vF4lljBZ_QAT157ozSAmmOLwtHQCcKYOVLbEjsb911aMIlsl/s1600/Depositphotos_3980818_xs.jpg" height="212" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I hadn't originally planned on writing about my mental illness on this post - nor had I planned to mention that I'd been hospitalized in my upcoming weekly update. But when I was searching stock photos for a nice illustration of fear, I found the one above. It seemed fitting, somehow. Before I can change (and therefore master my new job), I need to admit to myself that I actually <i>am</i> in crisis. And to admit <i>that</i>, I need to make myself vulnerable. </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZCYM35H2KSt5VQNQkht7qdlsz_7xGgsJzGOdyoHaRR3aRJvauQg8V4wi19GmXjZ9nTnbQxFntht_tbCGt31grHzUJ_h7kZWIBQFm-d_XM8vk0tsSsSFD9w948SVZDINF9bpHGUiAtb2mU/s1600/Depositphotos_33625003_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZCYM35H2KSt5VQNQkht7qdlsz_7xGgsJzGOdyoHaRR3aRJvauQg8V4wi19GmXjZ9nTnbQxFntht_tbCGt31grHzUJ_h7kZWIBQFm-d_XM8vk0tsSsSFD9w948SVZDINF9bpHGUiAtb2mU/s1600/Depositphotos_33625003_xs.jpg" height="213" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The picture I wanted to choose for this post is the one above - with the spooky religious images. I'd already been having a bit of a faith crisis before I was diagnosed with bipolar, but the diagnosis put my faith into a tailspin. <i>What if...</i>I thought...<i>what if all this time that I thought I was being inspired or called by God, all those feelings of "rightness" and euphoria were just figments of a hypomanic mind? </i>That is the most terrifying feeling I've ever experienced. The foundation of my faith was no longer stable. I'd say on the Richter scale this faithquake was about a 6.5. Most of my faith is still there, but I'm walking around all wobbly. There were a lot of things I felt that God had called me to do - writing is among them. I started writing this blog because I felt that God wanted me to write, and a blog would be a good place to practice both writing and marketing. Now I wonder...what <i>do</i> I blog for?<i> </i>If I give up on my faith, do I stop blogging?</span></div>
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<a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/07/suicide-and-mental-illness-awareness.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8THLBAuQn5WAp8mDeXc9F9PYFhMlGokjRAx23KE1WQeliZhvNFsgj2qUwGVZkkbM7mWyKE7cnZJw2EI0jhURsemTV7oEE0WW3Va3dE5L2HOJAoxNXDJas-VW9ay0cmBaEL-TmXhyphenhyphen3gxh/s1600/Suicide+MI.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Anyway, putting my vulnerability and faith aside, my own diagnosis of mental illness is a fantastic segue to plug my upcoming <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/07/suicide-and-mental-illness-awareness.html">Suicide and Mental Illness Theme Read</a>. Don't forget to stop by my blog in September and October to see what people are reading and watching for this event. I'll also be having a couple of giveaways. You're welcome to jump in and participate at any point in time...all you need to do is read or watch something that educates you on suicide or mental illness. It can even be something that's an accurate portrayal of mental illness - just tell us why you think it's not. :) I have a <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-week-at-resistance-is-futile.html">list of suggestions for both books and movies</a>.</span></div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-70976050538944752972014-08-28T13:00:00.001-05:002014-08-28T13:00:25.675-05:00Facing my demons - 23<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">My friends.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">The one</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">my strength.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">The other</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">imperfect other</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">who loves me</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">in my imperfection.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">They have not left me behind</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">with Procrastination.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Despite my doubt, </span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"><br />they have dragged me<br />under the Gate<br />to Fear.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-7316020072866712932014-08-26T20:08:00.000-05:002014-08-26T20:08:54.407-05:00Facing my demons - 22<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">My skin tears</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">breaks</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">separates from my flesh.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">The left side of my face</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">my palms</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">gone. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">I know this</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">though I can't see.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">But I am too cold to bleed.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Blood freezes in ruptured capillaries.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-34831331700886161512014-08-20T16:14:00.000-05:002014-08-20T16:14:16.355-05:00Facing my demons - 21<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Face</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Hands </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Frozen to the ice</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">cemented by filth</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">I pull</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">My skin is weaker</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">than my stubbornness.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-40391174168014226722014-08-17T23:47:00.001-05:002014-08-17T23:47:17.100-05:00The Week at Resistance is Futile<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, the <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/07/suicide-and-mental-illness-awareness.html">Suicide and Mental Illness Awareness Theme Read</a> hosted here at Resistance is Futile is coming upon me really quickly, and I still haven't written a post with suggestions. So I decided I would throw in some links for you to check out. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/mental-illness">Popular Mental Illness books</a> (Goodreads list) - Several of the books on this list I have already read or are on my TBR mountain.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.bustle.com/articles/24100-11-of-the-most-realistic-portrayals-of-mental-illness-in-novels">11 of the most Realistic Portrayals of Mental Illness in Novels</a> - This is a pretty interesting article with some good suggestions. And don't miss the embedded list of <a href="http://www.mastersinhealthcare.com/blog/2011/the-20-greatest-memoirs-of-mental-illness/">20 Greatest Memoirs of Mental Illness</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mental_illness_in_fiction">Mental Illness in Fiction</a> (Wikipedia) - This interesting list includes some much older books as well as some unexpected inclusions (LOTR? - Ok, yeah, I guess Golem was mentally ill, but...it DOES make kind of a fun list, though. And you can feel free to be )</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://www.stackedbooks.org/2013/11/contemporary-ya-books-featuring-mental.html">Contemporary YA books featuring mental illness</a> - What is a list of books without YA these days? ;)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://blog.nami.org/2011/06/top-10-movies-about-mental-illness.html">NAMI Blog: The Top 10 Movies about Mental Illness </a> - This is a really good list (should be, coming from NAMI). I've seen 6 of them. :)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://whatculture.com/film/10-gripping-films-about-mental-illness.php">10 Gripping Films about Mental Illness</a> - This list seems pretty good, as well. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="http://filmracket.com/the-10-best-portrayals-of-mental-illness-in-modern-movies/">10 Best Portrayals of Mental Illness in Modern Movies</a><b> - </b>This list, I suspect, is more about the acting than about psychology. From I totally agree with the assessment of great acting on this list!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>This week in Futile Resistance World...</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My friend and I watched another two storyarcs of the William Hartnell years for Doctor Who. We've made it a good way through Hartnell's years, and we have decided to move ON to the second doctor. :) YAY!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This week I volunteered 20 hours at the text center</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I watched Elysium - which turned out to be a rather philosophical movie with liberal leanings. The whole, everybody-deserves-to-have-medical-care lean. ;) I found the movie rather sad because the problems portrayed were SO easily translated to problems we're seeing in today's world. I know that's the point of dystopias. But it still made me sad that we should have to question whether a human being deserves to be denied medical treatment just because he was born in the wrong part of the world. :(</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I watched this movie with my nephew. I didn't think it was fantastic, but my nephew LOVED it. :) Then again, I'm not a purist, so I'm not particularly concerned about the differences between the original movies and this movie...I just found the humor sort of stupid and the turtles were really ugly to look at. So. Meh.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Other posts on Resistance is Futile...</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My blog has been really slow lately, but here's a little something if you're following my "epic poem" about </span><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/search/label/facingdemons"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Facing my demons.</span></a><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Newly Acquired</b></span><br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780812696745_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780812696745_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" height="320" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thought I would review the TV show Monk for my Suicide and Mental Illness Awareness theme. This seemed a nice accompaniment, especially since I love the Pop Culture and Philosophy series. Bought this one on my Nook.</span></span></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310742395_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310742395_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" height="320" width="209" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This is the first book in a series. I was asked to do a blog tour for the second book in the series, so I'm reading this one first. </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Got it in hardcover from the library.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310742333_p0_v2_s260x420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310742333_p0_v2_s260x420.JPG" height="320" width="223" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">ARC provided by publisher<br />Blog tour and giveaway on 9/4</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310729501_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img2.imagesbn.com/p/9780310729501_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" height="320" width="215" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">ARC provided by publisher<br />Blog tour and giveaway on 10/7</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I hope to read this book during September and October's Suicide and Mental Illness Theme Read. Purchased it in paperback.</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://img1.imagesbn.com/p/9780062104908_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://img1.imagesbn.com/p/9780062104908_p0_v1_s260x420.JPG" height="320" width="222" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bought this in paperback</span></span></td></tr>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Bought this in paperback</span></span></td></tr>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-68230377155437923422014-08-16T21:28:00.001-05:002014-08-16T23:49:19.391-05:00Storm Thief, by Chris Wooding<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="https://pics-librarything.r.worldssl.net/picsizes/ea/7a/ea7a9203cd26c3159314a6d5651434d414f4141.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://pics-librarything.r.worldssl.net/picsizes/ea/7a/ea7a9203cd26c3159314a6d5651434d414f4141.jpg" /></a></div>
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<b><a href="http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/storm-thief-chris-wooding/1102164549?ean=9781407143873"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Storm Thief, by Chris Wooding</span></a></b><a href="https://www.librarything.com/work/517154/members"><img src="https://pics-librarything.r.worldssl.net/pics/ss8.gif" style="margin-bottom: -2px;" /></a><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Genre: </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Young Adult Dystopia, </span><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Science Fiction, Ages 11-14</span><b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"></span></b><br />
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<b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Reason for Reading: </span></b><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This was my bookclub book for this month. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Summary: </b>The island city of Orokos has been trapped in isolation for so long that the idea of a "world outside Orokos" had become a dream for only the naive and the fanatics. There is nothing outside of Orokos, and Orokos is nothing but city, ghetto, and the ruling Protectorate. Chaos storms wreak havoc upon Orokos and its inhabitants - picking people up and dropping them elsewhere; crippling some people while giving life to others. Even eyeshadow isn't too small to be overlooked by the probability storms.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">When Rail and Moa make a snap decision to hide an expensive artifact from their Thief Mistress, they must flee with an assassin hot on their trail. While running, they come across a golem, Vago, who'd been misplaced by a probability storm before he had any idea of who he was, where he was from, or why he was made. Where can these refugees go when the Protectorate rules with an iron fist - keeping ghetto-folk away from the city? Their path is simply a series of coincidences strung together...leading, where?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>My Thoughts: </b>I really enjoyed this book. The characters were simple enough to flow well in a book for young teens, but each character had an interesting mixture of strengths and weaknesses. My favorite character was Vago, the Golem, whose process of self-discovery throughout the story made him intriguing. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I loved the philosophical underpinnings of this story. It reminded us that the random power of entropy will always win. It always destroys what we have worked to build. Entropy is a non-stoppable machine. So why do we continue fighting it? Why do we continue dreaming of that "other world" when we have so much evidence that it doesn't exist? Why do we clutch hopefully to mere coincidences and use them to fuel our dreams? </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><u><i>Slight spoilerish material</i></u> </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This is a book about hope as well as one about chaos. One character, who was "fanatically" willing to risk the lives of her people in pursuit of a seemingly impossible dream said: "We can stay here with our dreams just out of reach, or we can risk everything to reach them." Even after having finished the book, I'm still not certain which was the right thing to do - was it better for her people to risk everything in pursuit of their dreams? Or was it foolish? Is it better to keep yourself safe by being cynically aware of the brutality of the world, or is it better to hope, dream, or love?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">To me, the lasting message of the book is: your life might be nothing more than a series of coincidences that are out of your control, but how you respond to the world defines who you are - and YOU decide how you respond. I'm not sure whether I agree with this philosophy or not. Lately, I've had a bit of a faith crisis - which makes the life-is-a-random-string-of-coincidences theory sound rather rational. But I know what everyone expects me to say is that God is in control, it's not a string of coincidences. ;) </span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-82325679924123890972014-08-11T23:38:00.000-05:002014-08-11T23:38:01.234-05:00Facing my demons - 20<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Momentum</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">keeps me sliding </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">on ice</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">till I freeze</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">in place. </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Sewage</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Puke</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Blood </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">frozen.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Cements me to the ground.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-39744248199479234602014-08-10T12:07:00.000-05:002014-08-10T12:07:35.021-05:00Facing my demons - 19<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">I arrive in the next circle</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">puking blood and sewage.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">GASP!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">for breath</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">but my lungs freeze.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">COUGH!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">HACK!</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">GASP!</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-18219545012911645572014-08-09T22:52:00.002-05:002014-08-11T23:35:00.470-05:00The Week at Resistance is Futile<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/07/suicide-and-mental-illness-awareness.html" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw8THLBAuQn5WAp8mDeXc9F9PYFhMlGokjRAx23KE1WQeliZhvNFsgj2qUwGVZkkbM7mWyKE7cnZJw2EI0jhURsemTV7oEE0WW3Va3dE5L2HOJAoxNXDJas-VW9ay0cmBaEL-TmXhyphenhyphen3gxh/s1600/Suicide+MI.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Don't forget to sign up for my <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/07/suicide-and-mental-illness-awareness.html">Suicide and Mental Illness Theme Read</a>, coming up in September and October. :) I know I keep saying this, but soon I will post a some lists of books, shows, and movies for suggestions - but the rule is, if YOU think your review fits the theme, then it does. :) Even if your review is mostly to say "this is a novel completely misrepresents mental illness." </span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>This week in Futile Resistance world...</b></span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaQEaIxb0BHMG5bOn1l6MTDGKx0pP20TriprI3zdEEAmHuz310LN8fsBh6TDrrOfgb3wl6KBfJsIiyzNzwlIdCnux3UZqvDMKCzSyw4Ah31jqUQv3ordWUZEoJPFgesMsAJG_sa5JU13Vu/s1600/Guardians.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaQEaIxb0BHMG5bOn1l6MTDGKx0pP20TriprI3zdEEAmHuz310LN8fsBh6TDrrOfgb3wl6KBfJsIiyzNzwlIdCnux3UZqvDMKCzSyw4Ah31jqUQv3ordWUZEoJPFgesMsAJG_sa5JU13Vu/s1600/Guardians.jpg" height="320" width="216" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Did anyone else watch <i>Guardians of the Galaxy</i> this week? It was HILARIOUS. I loved it!</span></div>
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<a href="http://www.epicstream.com/quizstart.asp?q=169&result=Groot&name=Which+Guardian+of+the+Galaxy+Are+You%3F+" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1-ps.googleusercontent.com/h/images.weserv.nl/?url=images%2Esocial%2Dfirst%2Enet%2Ffiles%2Fepicstream%2Fgroot1%2Ejpg&w=580&h=0" height="201" width="320" /></a></div>
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<span style="color: red;"><span style="color: black;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And when I took the <a href="http://www.epicstream.com/quizstart.asp?q=169&result=Groot&name=Which+Guardian+of+the+Galaxy+Are+You%3F+">online quiz</a>, it turns out I am Groot. Yeah. That's awesome.</span></span> </span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuXvmpx2TIzMGhFA-wO4HJMRJwpe-3fI13aQh_l3R2HxiOY03K2iqWP_hdjUFkBiNO5aZLmOurafvuhEhWQfh9UCWeG47cSnGgdMGim6EaJ8_eXRI7R8wjdOxRqdG4lzl18Mx-Txfy2kuQ/s1600/9781402292187-PR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuXvmpx2TIzMGhFA-wO4HJMRJwpe-3fI13aQh_l3R2HxiOY03K2iqWP_hdjUFkBiNO5aZLmOurafvuhEhWQfh9UCWeG47cSnGgdMGim6EaJ8_eXRI7R8wjdOxRqdG4lzl18Mx-Txfy2kuQ/s1600/9781402292187-PR.jpg" height="320" width="213" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I reviewed Rin Chupeco's spooky new YA book <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/08/girl-from-well-by-rin-chupeco.html">The Girl From the Well</a>, (the giveaway is open through the end of the month, you can still sign up!)</span> <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I also posted the <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/08/the-girl-from-well-trailer.html">trailer for the book</a>, if you're interested. </span><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcTcm-g71gLvAB8d8UGOf9mGrLQwBQ64JDba8S4TevPR5QcZpsn13QtvdWkmnrvKeR70-c4BblrMkxP51eJv6JnqD2F7IyuQp2hQsdmBQ1wEnUT-df_RUiRF0hgO24p2YZalveHYUDSgym/s1600/snowman.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcTcm-g71gLvAB8d8UGOf9mGrLQwBQ64JDba8S4TevPR5QcZpsn13QtvdWkmnrvKeR70-c4BblrMkxP51eJv6JnqD2F7IyuQp2hQsdmBQ1wEnUT-df_RUiRF0hgO24p2YZalveHYUDSgym/s1600/snowman.jpg" height="320" width="240" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I went to a Frozen-themed birthday party for my friend's three-year-old. That was a lot of fun. (Happy Birthday Lucy!)</span><br />
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<a href="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/45/Dalek_Invasion_BBC_DVD_cvr.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/45/Dalek_Invasion_BBC_DVD_cvr.jpg" height="320" width="225" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugA4svC0fhQLT_uQ6e3PYglZm1-5iSQjVkZ1heCigAkhHluo3gQE-F4ypKLnJGK3_rSM2Jg74cMdRKZJsZstfhU0Pr6zv2Tr-QRz2cnsuNkIFJbuk4A1Ss5T3umbaGRFGPPU_f-4s3DOn/s1600/The+Rescue+DVD+Cover.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhugA4svC0fhQLT_uQ6e3PYglZm1-5iSQjVkZ1heCigAkhHluo3gQE-F4ypKLnJGK3_rSM2Jg74cMdRKZJsZstfhU0Pr6zv2Tr-QRz2cnsuNkIFJbuk4A1Ss5T3umbaGRFGPPU_f-4s3DOn/s1600/The+Rescue+DVD+Cover.jpg" height="320" width="248" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A friend and I watched TWO storyarcs from the Doctor Who (The William Hartnell years). </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">My friend and I are really struggling with keeping our interest in William Hartnell's doctor. So far, he's nosy, tactless, condescending, and self-absorbed. Plus, the overall theme fits the old British imperialism (white man's burden, and all that jazz). That is in stark contrast to the deeper philosophical message of the modern doctors where his purpose is to protect others' cultures. And where even there is even depth in the Dalek's plan of universal extermination. I can't wait until we move on to the second doctor! Hopefully he'll be more tolerable.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKLd_bbIe-WF-56pJ2BbAqAlSi7AcoFsSdHK66VykUcfcxIcs-Xlv405XfcJL1V6qACBnedJ5ZPfMN3joHbgZJF8FlJQTANFZh916a3YruzmCMiTrO__UjPuAENZqF6fy5pIfGrmmMDS4e/s1600/Depositphotos_41459427_xs.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKLd_bbIe-WF-56pJ2BbAqAlSi7AcoFsSdHK66VykUcfcxIcs-Xlv405XfcJL1V6qACBnedJ5ZPfMN3joHbgZJF8FlJQTANFZh916a3YruzmCMiTrO__UjPuAENZqF6fy5pIfGrmmMDS4e/s1600/Depositphotos_41459427_xs.jpg" height="211" width="320" /></a></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Well, I accepted a new job coming up in September, which pays double what I was making at unnamed-bookstore-chain-which-I-am-not-allowed-to-blog-about-because-Big-Nanny (BN for short)-might-be-watching. It's not QUITE where I want to be, but it's definitely a step in the right direction and introduces some interesting opportunities for growth within the company. This week I got my background and drug test, both of which I passed. :)</span></span></div>
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<a href="http://www.cccollab.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Logo-PNGblue.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://www.cccollab.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Logo-PNGblue.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This week I volunteered for 8 hours as a crisis counselor for a texting crisis line for teens. I encourage everybody who has a lot of empathy for people in crisis to volunteer at a crisis hotline. <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/06/to-asist-or-not-to-assist.html">The suicide CPR training is superb</a>. You won't regret the time spent!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I finally caught up on my Grimm! In fact, I think this is the first time in the history of <i>me</i> that I've been caught up on a TV show that is still running. I can't wait until Season 4 premieres in October!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Perused some interesting articles in this week's Economist. I was mainly interested in learning that the state of Britan's prisons is pretty similar to the state of those in the US. Which is sad. :(</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">I got this free e-comic book from Marvel after buying the giganto fountain
drink at Subway. In it, the Guardians fight a war to protect Earth.
Ironman joins the fight, but he's not as cool as the Guardians, based upon his ability to remain conscious. This comic was 20 pages of amusement. I guess that's really good for the price. :)</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"><b>Other posts on <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/">Resistance is Futile</a></b><a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/"> </a><b>this week</b></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> I added two new stanzas to <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/search/label/facingdemons">Facing my Demons</a></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">And I posted about <a href="http://rachelreadingnthinking.blogspot.com/2014/08/favorite-childhood-memories.html">My Favorite Childhood Memory</a> </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><b>Newly Acquired...</b></span><br />
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This is my post for <a href="http://www.tyngasreviews.com/2014/08/stacking-the-shelves-119.html">Stacking the Shelves</a> (hosted by<a href="http://www.tyngasreviews.com/"> Tynga's Reviews</a>), the <a href="http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/2014/08/sunday-post-120-live-love-laugh.html">Sunday Post</a> (hosted by <a href="http://caffeinatedbookreviewer.com/">Caffeinated Book Reviewer</a>), <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/188946654450268/">Sunday Salon</a>, and <a href="http://mailboxmonday.wordpress.com/2014/08/10/mailbox-monday-31/">Mailbox Monday</a>. </div>
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-23201616810421079882014-08-08T15:59:00.001-05:002014-08-08T20:53:30.263-05:00Favorite Childhood Memories<div style="text-align: justify;">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">This week's <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/2014/08/life-blogger-best-childhood-memory/">Life of a Blogger</a>, hosted by <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/">Novel Heartbeat</a> asks us to relate our best childhood memories. I find this a really interesting topic. Memories are slippery little buggers, they never stay the same with time. I know you might THINK your memories are absolute - I frequently fall into that trap - but they <i>do</i> change. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">They change EVERY time you relive them. But here is my earliest memory</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> - sorry, I couldn't come up with anything from fetus-hood for you Scientologists out there.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">When I was an toddler, I used to crawl out of my crib. I only have one memory of doing it: I had just, with ninja stealth and agility, escaped my prison. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Immediately, I heard my mother's footsteps coming down the hall. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">I slid silently </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">under the crib wondering fretfully: </span><i style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">how does she always know...HOW does she ALWAYS know?</i><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> (Answer: Clearly my mom is a Ninja Master in disguise.)</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">One day when I was around 4 or 5, I asked my parents how they always knew whenever I crawled out of the crib. They looked at me in utter astonishment. They had a hard time believing that I actually remembered such an innocuous event. But I DID remember. </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Now, of course, I'm an adult, and I only remember <i>remembering</i> the incident. But I can learn a couple of things from this memory: 1) Toddlers think before they're old enough to talk, 2) even though most of us have no real memories from before the age of 4ish, kids <i>that</i> age can remember things earlier than that.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Feel free to comment on YOUR most interesting childhood memory below!</span><br />
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<script src="https://widget.bloglovin.com/widget/scripts/bl.js" type="text/javascript"></script><a class="bloglovin-widget" data-blog-id="4073021" data-img-src="http://www.bloglovin.com/widget/bilder/en/widget.gif?id=4073021" href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/4073021" target="_blank"><img src="http://www.bloglovin.com/widget/bilder/en/widget.gif?id=4073021" /></a> <span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">or on Twitter @FutileResistance</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"><br /></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">In addition to posting this on <a href="http://novelheartbeat.com/2014/08/life-blogger-best-childhood-memory/">Life of a Blogger</a>, it is also my <a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/frame?post=3238528737&group=0&frame_type=b&blog=3593226&frame=1&click=0&user=0">Friendship Friday</a> post, hosted by <a href="http://www.create-with-joy.com/">Create With Joy</a>; and my <a href="http://www.alisoncanread.com/2014/08/feature-and-follow-friday-213.html">Feature and Follow Friday</a> post, hosted by <a href="http://www.alisoncanread.com/">Allison Can Read</a> and <a href="http://www.parajunkee.com/">Parajunkee's View</a>. </span><br />
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Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5863301599557441497.post-28026880605079251162014-08-06T23:33:00.000-05:002014-08-06T23:33:03.439-05:00Facing my demons - 18<div style="text-align: justify;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">Transition.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">He hid in the tundra</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">crying</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">cutting</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">cutting</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">cutting himself with ice.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">My name is Legion </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">for we are many.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">My name is Legion </span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;">for we are many.</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="background-color: white; color: #37404e; display: inline; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, 'lucida grande', tahoma, verdana, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 20px; text-align: left;"><br />My name is Legion<br />for we are many.<br />I believe my Lord!<br />Help me in my unbelief!<br />My name is Legion<br />for we are many.</span></div>
Anonymoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01974988315420539840noreply@blogger.com2