July 28, 2006
DOPA=Censorship
Check it the latest scary tactic the government is using to help keep children "safe." The idea behind Resolution 5329 Deleting Online Predators Act (DOPA) is to force public schools and libraries to block social networking sites, chat rooms and blogs. Their reasoning? Children are continually stalked when logged into such sites. If passed this will be a scary precedent indeed. Schools and libraries that don't comply will be in danger of losing federal funding. Putting the money issue aside, the real danger is the impact it will have on classrooms. If DOPA is passed, important educational forums for students and teachers will no longer be accessible through classroom and library computers. Blocking wikis, blogs and chat rooms will not eliminate the predator issue. What keeps kids safe is educating them about certain online dangers thus enabling them to use the internet safely.
Read more on this at TechCrunch...
Posted by Stanks at 10:41 AM | Comments (0)
July 26, 2006
Bang for the Buck
On hot summer days, the teacher in me goes crazy. I feel the need to organize, boss people around and fix everything. So what form did this manic personality trait take yesterday? I'll tell you. I became obsessed with finding a new apartment. So I grabed my friend and went looking at places that were the top of my price range (cause there is jack-shit in my real price range) and discovered that for $2,000 bucks a month I can get a small apartment with warped floors and a stinky hallway in an old walk-up. Ummm...that's what I have now and I pay a lot less. Ok my apt doesn't have a door beside the front door but I pay a lot less. God damnit. I've been forced to see the bright side: my apt may have no doors, the hallway may have windows that have been busted for MONTHS and I may have neighbors right below me that are bonified idiots, but overall it's not a bad place to live. After several hours of celebrating rent stabilization with my neighbor, my husband, threw up a blog for us, 112suffolkstreet.That's the address of my building but since you don't know my apt number you can't kill me. There's not much on it right now, but go read it anyway. Go on...read it!
Posted by Stanks at 08:37 AM | Comments (2)
July 19, 2006
Daze
Yesterday I was walking around Brooklyn with my friend Honor. We had gone to the movies to escape the heat. On some street that I can't remember the name of, we found a kind hearted animal lover. If only there was somebody who was giving out cold water to humans for free I wouldn't have had to carry Honor on my back.
Posted by Stanks at 08:49 AM | Comments (1)
July 17, 2006
King of the World
Last Saturday two friends and I went on an epic hike. Actually the hike itself was not the epic part, it was the getting there from NYC that proved to be difficult. We left Brooklyn at 11:00 AM and drove for what seemed to be hours to get to High Point, the highest elevation in NJ. Carsick and sick of cars we looked with wide eyes as the mountain rose before us. But the second we pulled up to the trail head, the skies opened up , dumping a hell of a lot of rain on our heads. Ever optimistic (and bored of complaining by that point) we jumped back into the car and drove another hour to Bear Mountain. It wasn't raining when we got there so we popped out of the car, laced up our boots and trotted happily into the woods only to encounter...more rain. And lots of it. With brave hearts pumping, we forged ahead. On top of the mountain we found some excellent blueberries which I did not take a picture of. But I found this little guy sitting in a pool at the bottom of a tiny waterfall. If truth be told, I almost stepped on him. If you look closely you can see the terrified expression on his face.
Posted by Stanks at 01:34 PM | Comments (2)
It's Here...
Well, the first heat wave of the summer has hit. I have to say, with all the rain and thunder that's been shaking the city, I'm not too upset. However, I do wonder about the welfare of my little plot in the 6th and B Garden, a favorite city oasis. Took a little breakfast break there the other morning with my good friend, John. I forgot to take my camera along with me so an older one is gonna have to do. No matter, it looks pretty much the same.
Posted by Stanks at 12:52 PM | Comments (0)