Gone Chemistry Crazy

What happens when you combine 200 liters of Diet Coke and over 500 Mentos mints? It's amazing and completely insane. OOOOOH, if you (local friends) are going to try this out in your backyard, invite us over please!

We have gone Science crazy this afternoon. Thank you, my friend, for hosting it at your lovely home and making chemistry so fun and exciting for COOL kids--and easy for parents! Everyone had fantastic time getting a glimpse of the periodic table of elements and formulas and equations, making up individual atom chart, *burning* sugar, experimenting with mixtures of baking soda, water, and Driveway Heat Concentrated Ice Melter...

Magical Moments also available directly here on Flickr

Thank you, Jolene, for bringing stamped postcards for the penguin science project and Kristin for sending in a bundle to remote continent of Antarctica by December 31. Thank you, Jenn Triplett, for sharing the project with us. COOL kids loved decorating them. I'm curious (and excited) when they will make their way back to us from the U.S. research station nearest the penguin colony...

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DD #1 Guitar Journey

What's up, good people! DD#1 is a happy camper...enjoying her early Christmas present...impatient, spoiler...NOT. For at least two years, she has the want, desire, and now the undying determination to embark in this **as our 6-year-old says** exciting guitar journey.

Learning to play an instrument is now easier than ever before. Lack of time, money, living in a rural place, or not finding a quality teacher is no longer a reason for not giving it a try. Thanks to YouTube and those who still believe in free speech. Many accomplished guitarists/teachers are offering free, quality lessons on the video-sharing site. In the past year, hundreds of videos were made available; demonstrating everything from basic strumming, scales and finger-picking techniques to the opening riff of "Sweet Home Alabama." There are even instructions on ways to tune the instrument. These videos have been viewed at least 5 million times. So we are not the first to take advantage of the public service.

Die-hard fan of the Eagles? YouTube makes it possible for you to learn and play a simplified version of Hotel California" in no time. It is surprisingly affecting.

Teachers play slowly and use close-ups, showing each finger movement. If you don't get it at first, you may pause or hit replay. It's like having a teacher with endless patience.

The lessons are informal and definitely feel home-made. DD #1 plays along to videos in her PJs between meals. (She made the cute, plushy Mikey pants for 4H Sewing Club over the summer.) The laid-back approaches of these instructors make her want to learn. They are like a helpful, next-door neighbor I remember in the good old days.

All these free internet learning in the digital age sounds too good to be true, it may be. Most of the songs these people teach are under copyright. It's a matter of time before a licensing company orders YouTube to take them down. There's a very strong argument that the re-use of well-known chords in the sequence these instructors played them would be a violation of the copyright. Until then...we will continue our free rides.

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Thanksgiving Family Tradition 2007

Gobble, gobble! Thanksgiving is a time for togetherness... it's an occasion to be spent in the warm and loving company of family, loved ones and friends enjoying turkey roast and pumpkin pies with them. Thanksgiving is also an opportunity to renew the ties that bind us with the ones we love... it is a time for remembering, cherishing and being thankful for all the good things you have been blessed with.

What are you thankful for this year? The "giving thanks" part of Thanksgiving means different things to different folks. For some, it's about self-medicating to get through the family time. For me, it's about faith, hope, love, and celebrating my family. Sometimes that's all we have, but it's always all we need.

I am thankful for my best friend and husband of 15+ years.

I am thankful for my three blessed treasures who share their wisdom, energy and excitement with me each and every day.

I am thankful for holidays because they are times for family and friends to come together.

I am thankful for food that gives me energy.

I am thankful for the giving and receiving of gifts because by giving we show others that I care about them and by receiving I know that others care about me.

I am thankful for my leaders, such as my ministers, teachers and my mom who comfort me and make me feel safe.

I am thankful for my friends who care about me and those survive cancer, separation, and divorces.

I am thankful for my imaginations and the excitement of learning.

I am thankful for music, blog (recent discovery), and reading, which allow me to let out my emotions.

I am thankful for opportunities to explore new things and take risks especially with my art and craft interests.

I am thankful for the many ways I feel connected to the world around me.

Without hope, life would not be worth living and being thankful reminds us of the hope we have. That's why I think Thanksgiving is so important and why I am glad it's a national holiday.

If we don't teach our children to be thankful, they may go through life without hope and they may not appreciate the world around them. How sad to live with blinders on to all but our own interests. How sad to go through life with a chip on your shoulder. How sad to go through life with no desire to take care of our world. I want our children to be thankful. I count my blessings so they hear me. I tell them they are high on my list. Life is at its best when we are thankful.

As we enjoy our families, friends, parades, food, and football today, we wish you a great day of rest and thanksgiving. May you be encouraged to reflect upon this wonderful nation and all those things we have to be thankful for. God bless you and yours and the Land of the Pilgrim's pride. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

Era of 1930s @COOL Kid's Club 11.14.2007

What's up, America, in the 30s--a year after market crash? With the reduction of spendable income during depressioin era, people had to look to inexpensive leisure pursuits. President Roosevelt helped make stamp collecting a popular hobby.

Parlor games and board games became the rage. In 1935, 20,000 sets of Monopoly by Parker Brothers were sold in a week at its debute. Gambling increased as people sought any means to add to their income. Between 1930 and 1939 horse racing became legal in 15 more states bringing the total to 21. Interest in spectator sports such as baseball grew. Stars like Lou Gehrig and Joe DiMaggio drew fans into the stadium, and those who could not attend the games gathered around their radios to listen to the play-by-play. The 1932 Winter Olympics, held at Lake Placid, New York, renewed interest in winter sports. The Civilian Conservation Corps, a New Deal work project for youths, built ski runs and jumps on public land as well as recreational facilities in the national parks.

Paris fashions became too expensive for all but the very rich, and American designers came into their own. Hollywood movie stars such as Bette Davis and Greta Garbo set fashion trends in dresses designed by Adrian and Muriel King and hats designed by Lily Dache. Clothes had to last a long time so styles did not change every season. The simple print dress with a waist line and longer hem length replaced the flapper attire of the 1920's. The use of the zipper became widespread for the first time because it was less expensive than the buttons and closures previously used. Another innovation of the 30's was different hem lengths for different times of the day - mid calf for day wear, long for the evening. Men's pants were wide and high waisted. Vest sweaters were an alternative to the traditional matching vest of the three piece suit. Hats were mandatory for the well dressed male.

Katherine and DS, COOL Kid's Club fearless reporters, traveled back in time to 1930s to give us this news footage: A group of people were particularly concerned of our post-war injured and forgotten veterans--doctor (AJ) and nurse (McKayla) were working days and nights patiently attending to our war heros' physical needs (Sam, DD#1, and DD#2.) Meanwhile, Bennett the general was leading his troop of cadets and sargents fighting the Germans under blistering cold winter condition.

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Bush Garden Alpacas n Merinos Farm Field Trip Nov. 9, 2007

We've been blessed with another glorious afternoon for our field trip to Bush Garden Alpacas and Merinos Farm in Terrebonne, OR. Our COOL friend, Michelle Sutton was kind enough to pick us up from home and met up with three other families over Target's back parking lot. There were us, The Suttons, The Shields, The Burys, and The Simpsons. From there, we swapped kids and carpooled in two vans. It worked out perfectly. The kids enjoyed the special arrangements too.

When we got to the farm, other COOL families--Annie, Jenn M., and Tabitha (a family we met for the first time)--were already there. Jenn said they had some excitement prior to our arrival. Apparently, one of the farm dogs brought back a cow leg from somewhere--Yike!

I have met the owner's daughter-in-law Chris a month ago and served at a March of Dimes' local fundraiser together. A week later, I met Maryanne over exchange of emails about fibers and blends. It's nice to be able to put a face to the name.

The well-guided tour was awesome, fun, engaging, welcoming, and homey. There are at least two sub-breeds of alpacas, Huacayas and Suris. Huacayas have dense, fluffy fiber, like a teddy bear. The rarer Suri alpaca has long, silky locks that hang down like an Afghan dog.

The kids had a blast feeding the male alpacas with hays and pet them first, then the females with cut-up apples from the farm tree. We were told the males were more friendlier than the females. However, I couldn't tell the difference as they were equally approachable. There were no kicking; no injured, screaming kids.

Out of the owner's preference, the alpacas have full covered facial fibers. They were soft and cute--make you want to curl up and cuddle! Later, we got to experience their end products--in roving and yarn inside her home.

Once inside the gift shop in the house, we were encouraged to feel batches of rovings, try her commerical-type drum carder, touch alpaca and wool samples, see how a swift works (which I have at home for my skeins), and watch Maryanne patiently demonstrate wheel spinning. As an homeschooled mom herself from years past, Maryanne was very thorough in her demonstrations, pleasant, warm, kind, inviting, and especially at ease with the kids.

We had some time to browse around. There were many handmade, handsome gift items as well as felted kits for sale. I love the felted hat made by her friend with her alpaca fiber--though delicate, the alpaca did hold its shape. Someday, I may give it a try. Hmmm...a alpaca hat. Who would wear it? The vibrant felted petals were attractive too. I'll definitely try to make some to embellish felted bags I made or will make.

Althought the tour was free, I was thrilled to see every family bought little something to bring home either for group project or personal holiday gifts for families. We appreciate Maryanne's generosity in accommodating our group, showing us her pride and joy--Alpacas and Rams, and her thoroughness in guiding us through her farm and operation. We will definitely return for more visits and bring our out-of-town guests.

With so many COOL famillies missing the tour--The Biskups, The Vargas, Megh and Lis, The Hughes, The Rogers, and The Walterscheids--I'll most likely schedule another tour in the future if people are interested. There was so much to absorb in a two-hour tour; I could hardly remember most of the alpacas named. Our kids and I won't mind visiting again.

I took over 180 pictures. If you are viewing the blog from an older computer, you may view the slide directly here.

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Happiness is a Fortune Cookie!

COOL COUGARS, our homeschooled Campfire group, started Trail to Family & Community in mid-September and have been working on the IMAGINE NO HUNGER project. Tomorrow will be the last in this trail. Since weather has been warm/inviting, we will be meeting at Larkspur Park.

Meanwhile, each family is to bring a sustainance bread from his/her culture or heritage such as Mexican, tortillas; Jewish, bagels; etc. We were going to make steamed buns; it'd be trying to make enough for 20+ kids/moms. So, we're taking the easy way out by bringing fortune cookies to the meeting to share and give a brief talk on fortune cookie. Hopefully, Safeway or Albertson woul carry them in a big package.

Where and who invented fortune cookie? You ask. This goes back...even before America...For many centuries the Chinese have marked special occasions and festival times such as harvest and New Year with the giving and receiving of Moon Cakes (my favorite dessert of all times) these were made from Lotus Nut Paste.

During the 13th and 14th centuries China was occupied by the Mongols. When plans were made in Peking for a popular uprising to oust the invaders, much thought was given how news of the date of the uprising could be circulated without alerting the Mongols.

The story goes that the Mongols had no taste for Lotus Nut Paste and so the Chinese hid the message containing the date in the middle of their Moon Cakes replacing the yolk with secret messages. Patriotic revolutionary, Chu Yuan Chang took on the disguise of a Taoist priest and entered occupied walled cities handing out Moon Cakes. These were the instructions to co-ordinate the uprising which successfully formed the basis of the Ming Dynasty.

Thus the tradition of giving cakes with messages was born and became a popular way of expressing wishes of goodwill or good fortune on an important occasion.

The origins of the Fortune Cookie as we know it today vary and has continued to be a matter of debate. Like chop suey, some says it is an American invention. Some says in fact it is not even by Chinese American.

Some history claims that it was invented in San Francisco by a Japanese immigrant named Makoto Hagiwara. Hagiwara was a gardener who designed the famous Japanese Tea Garden in Golden Gate Park.

One history claims that David Jung, a Chinese immigrant living in Los Angeles and founder of the Hong Kong Noodle Company, invented the cookie in 1918. Concerned about the poor he saw wandering near his shop, he created the cookie and passed them out free on the streets. Each cookie contained a strip of paper with an inspirational Bible scripture on it, written for Jung by a Presbyterian minister.

In 1983, San Francisco's pseudo-legal Court of Historical Review held a mock trial to determine the origins of the fortune cookie. To no one's surprise, the judge (a real-life federal judge from San Francisco) ruled in favor of San Francisco. Included among the evidence was a fortune cookie whose message read: "S.F. Judge who rules for L.A. Not Very Smart Cookie." Equally unsurprising, Los Angeles has denounced the ruling.

Some says they were laid down by the Chinese 49'ers who worked on the building of the great American railways through the Sierra Nevada into California.

Work was very hard and pleasures were few in isolated camps, those hard workers had only biscuits with happy messages inside, to exchange at the Moon festival instead of traditional cakes with happy messages, thus the FORTUNE COOKIE was born.

Regardless which history you buy in to, fortune cookies has definitely become something of a cottage industry and as the Chinese settled in San Francisco after the railway and the Gold boom the custom continued. Today it is almost impossible to have a Chinese meal in America and Canada without finishing with a fortune cookie.

More and more businesses and even governments are having promotional messages printed on the opposite side to the fortune. The HONG KONG police used them in anti-drugs campaigns and the US followed.

The first automated production of fortune cookies took place in America in 1964 before that they were made by hand using chopsticks. In '64, Edward Louie of San Francisco's Lotus Fortune Cookie Company, automated the process by creating a machine that folds the dough and slips in the fortune. Today, the world's largest fortune cookie manufacturer, Wonton Food Inc., in Queens, ships out 60 million cookies a month.

HAPPINESS IS A FORTUNE COOKIE. A typical day of an unschooler...our heritage lesson.

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Out-of-Print Old Books Available Digitally FREE

Am I the last to know?

Many old out-of-print books, have been preserved for generations on library shelves, are now been scanned by Google as part of a project to make the world's books discoverable readily accessible online.

Copyrights for these books have long since expired; thus, they are now public domain. It's Google's noble intention to keep book ownerships to the public.

I downloaded 3 digital copies in PDF-format dated back to late 1800s. Totally awesome!

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Artist Trading Cards Horse-Like Animal Trade

The kids were agitated that we didn't partake in Campfire's Swim Party at Juniper Swim & Fitness Center this afternoon, followed by COOL Cougar's Sleepover at Campfire's office.

DD#1 is still under the weather and I am not up to par. I believe it's a sign telling us we need to slow down and cuddle.

Instead, we had another virtual science expedition. What's black and white and red all over? Our kids said it's a newspaper. If you said a zebra in a union suit, you . . . . have a weird sense of humor. But you also have good instincts for camouflage. One basic type of animal camouflage is called DISRUPTIVE COLORING. In this case, the animal's markings don't blend in with the landscape. Instead, the markings are meant to confuse predators. The zebra is a good example. To us, the zebra looks almost garish--this horse with crazy black and white stripes. But to a lion, the zebra may look like a big Rorshact ink blot. The stripes break up the outline of the animal, making it less distinct to color-blind predators. It's believed that the zebra evolved from another horse-like animal that didn't have stripes. Rare foals born with white stripes might have survived due to their protective coloring. Through natural selection, this breed survived to become the modern day zebra.

Why Zebra? You ask. DD#1 and I are excited about participating in a trade hosted by a member of Imagination Tribe. Theme is horse-like animal. Together, we came up inititally with a list of possibilities: zebra, giraffe, unicorn, pegasus, foal, donkey, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, deer, rabbit, clysdale...After spending hours googling, our horse-like animal knowledge expanded to include burro, okapi, quagga (pronounced kwag-uh), Hyracotherium (aka Eohippus), Orohippus, Epihippus, Mesohippus, Miohippus, Kalobatippus, Parahippus, Merychippus, Hipparion, Pliohippus, Dinohippus, Plesippus, Equus, and Onager (aka half ass or the Asian Wild Ass).

What comes after facts...it's time to create...more artist trading cards (aka ATC). This trade is due in Arizona by end of November. However, we'd like to send them in together with the Word Play trade due by Nov. 15 to the same hostess. We'd better get right to work.

There you have it...another typical life in an unschooler.

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We Met Jeff Hopkins, a children illustrator today!

Seriously...we met a master illustrator and storyteller, Jeff Hopkins, this morning...on our virtual field trip. He shared some good tips on how to become an illustrator. Interested? Look no more...you too may meet Jeff at Meet Me At Te Corner.

Want to make a video and don't know where to begin? Download this how-to video, courtesy of Meet Me At The Corner.

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Exploding Comet 17P/Holmes Can Be Seen with Naked Eye Tonight, Oct. 29, 2007

Take a glimpse of this way cool, amazing Comet 17P/Holmes. More photos taken around the world recently may be viewed here. Our favorite view was taken in France. We'll be having our science observation tonight over home-brewed hot choco. Who said learning has to be conducted between 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. (varies from district to district?)

Space Weather News for Oct. 29, 2007 Last week, Comet 17P/Holmes shocked sky watchers around the world with a sudden million-fold increase in brightness. It literally exploded into view, rapidly becoming a naked eye "star" in the constellation Perseus. Since then, the comethas expanded dramatically. It is now physically larger than the planet Jupiter and subtends an angle in the night sky similar to the Moon's Sea of Tranquility, the right eye of the "Man in the Moon." Photographers, this amazing comet is an excellent target for off-the-shelf digital cameras and backyard telescopes. It grows visibly from night to night and no one knows how large it will become. Stay tuned to http://spaceweather.com/ for sky maps and the latest images.

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The Miracle Worker performed by B.E.A.T. on Oct. 26, 2007

It was another beautiful FALL day. COOL families, 30 moms and kids of all ages, met at Starbuck at 9:00 am as planned. We lined up orderly, outside of Tower Theatre, behind another homeschool group, awaiting patiently for admission. We were seated by 9:20 a.m., ready for the performance by talented B.E.A.T. cast in association with the Heller Keller Foundation and The Tower Theatre Foundation. The show started promptly at 9:30 a.m. The script is based on "The Miracle Worker", written by William Gibson and directed by Mary Kilpatrick.

What a great performance it was! I couldn't help to cry towards the end of the show :0( I thought B.E.A.T. cast did an outstanding job in carrying out the theme. Next performance "The Wonderful Life" by the group is scheduled in November (set date TBA) and I've reserved a block for COOL. Stay tuned for next review...

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Halloween "Treat" Ideas

It's only 6 days away...Check out this site for great nonfood Halloween ideas!

http://greenhalloween.org/content.php?page=treats

This site was created this year. Whole Foods in Seattle is working with webmama to get the program up and running. Let your Whole Foods (if you've one here you) know about the site and that you are interested in this for your area next year. The webmama has volunteered ALL of her time and energy to this project, meaning she is getting no compensation. However, she's in the process of making this a non-profit for the future. Her husband says, "You're working awfully hard to earn other people (the companies of the candy alternatives) money!"

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Harry Potter Friendship Lessons

I just did this really cool quiz on Which Harry Potter character are you? And here's the result:

Pretty cool huh? I really liked the new movie. From day one, I'm and have been a big fan because I think it teaches us a lot about friends. Friends really stick out for each other and are there for each other through thick and thin. Sometimes I feel out of this world facing my own monsters and challenges. But, with friends, I feel differently because we may face it all together. It's less of a burden.

"True wealth can not be found in your bank account. It can only be found in those you call friend. Those with whom you share your deepest feelings. And those who accept you for who you really are."~~Mary Vandergrift

"A true friend knows your weaknesses but shows you your strengths; feels your fears but fortifies your faith; sees your anxieties but frees your spirit; recognizes your disabilities but emphasizes your possibilities."~~William Arthur Ward

Recently J.K. Rowling revealed that the Harry Potter saga was inspired by Christianity. This is no surprise, really, if she'd said different I'd have had to call bull pucky. It's the great battle between good and evil, the forces gather on each side, alliances are formed, there are betrayals, innocent ones die. And then Rowling announced that Dumbledore was gay. And for some great reason, I was not surprised. It fit just fine the way she'd written it in the book. He's an old, single man and the only real infatuation we read about is with a young man from his past. It fit. Now you're probably wondering why I am so fond of not only a book that some say promotes witchcraft, but also of a gay character. I have no good answers for you other than a) I don't think it promotes witchcraft and b) if God wanted me to worry so much about homosexuality, I think he might have listed it in the top ten. But back to Rowling...I think the reason that I was not surprised by either is because that's the beauty of well crafted backstory. It's there, but you don't see it; it's woven so faintly into the tapestry like a pale blue thread--you only pick up on it when held up to another blue cloth. Then you see it there and think "oh yes, of course that fits perfectly"

Have you seen the Lego HP spoof? You gotta check it out 'cuz it's soooooooo funny.

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Are you a Red Sox fan? Wanna-be? Future fan? Check out JOYOFSOX. The World Series kicks off tonight in the glorified landfill known as Fenway Park. The Red Sox comes off a drilling of the Indians 3 days ago to win Game 7. The Rockies have been off for 9 days, possibly killing any momentum or luck they had.

Who is going to win the Series--The Rockies or The Red Sox?

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