AliceBakerBlog

Racialicious

Having a kid attend a HBCU (Historically Black College or University) has been a hugely positive thing for our family, forcing us to think outside our traditionally white box, and to devote some thought to the subliminal racist forces in our own formative years and, to our collective loss, in the world around us today.  And all of those forces aren't exactly subliminal.

Racialicious is a blog examining the intersection of race and culture.  Check it out and be challenged.  Other blogs with anti-racist themes: Anti-Racist Parent, and Race in the Workplace.

On My Desk

Admit it: We all love to snoop, don't we?  On My Desk is a blog where creative types show their work areas and/or desks.  I find this sort of thing endlessly interesting.  Some people have work areas more confused than mine...

The Happiness Project

"What a wonderful life I've had!  I only wish I'd realized it sooner."  Colette

Attorney-turned author Gretchen Rubin is out to refocus people on feeling good about life and about themselves right now.  Eventually there will be a book called The Happiness Project but right now it's a blog you can consult daily for tips and guidance on getting happy. 

There's lots of news you can use here, especially as we all move into the holidays, hands down the most stressed-out time of year.

The Accidental Hedonist

Did everyone have a good weekend?  Judging from our shared Monday morning accounts here at the library, it was a very busy and not so restful weekend.  Library programs, classes, college reunions, Scout activities, and church events have kept the library staff hopping since Friday.  To make up for all this frenzied activity, wouldn't it be nice if there were time this week to slide back into the routine in a leisurely way? 

Not very darn likely.

But here's something kind of cool for a busy Monday. The Accidental Hedonist is a food blog covering food safety, food science, restaurants, cooking, and above all, EATING.  Everything is written up with a touch of humor and edge.  Fun to read.

Fibonacci!

Internet culture is continually amazing and fun.

A couple weeks ago, a writer named Gregory K. Pincus wrote a blog post challenging readers to write "Fibs", poems based on a mathematical progression called the Fibonacci Sequence, which would dictate the number of syllables in each line.  A Fibonacci Sequence would go like this: 0, 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, etc.

The post was referenced last week at slashdot.org, a website delivering "news for nerds", and the idea has taken off like gangbusters.  I read about it a couple days ago on a knitting blog, of all places.  This blogger challenged readers to write fibs about knitting:

I
wish
I had
a winning
lottery ticket
I'd have all the yarn I could want
...contributed by a reader named Carey in The Knitting Curmudgeon's comments.

This morning, the whole idea is anointed with an article in The New York Times.  Check it out and try your own hand at writing a Fib or two. 

What a fun and vibrant salute to National Poetry Month...

Whip Up

I'm a sewer and a needlecrafter, always have been since about age 10.  In my off-hours I'm always trolling the sewing and craft blogs, getting inspiration for things that there is NO TIME TO MAKE, and scant time to peruse.  But don't get me started on that frustrating topic...

A new crafting blog getting a lot of buzz these days is Whip Up, in which a rotating set of bloggers post about projects, other inspiring websites, and about the kindred spiritness among those who are compelled to be doing things with their hands at all times.

It's great.  Prepare to be inspired.

Danny Gregory

You may not be familiar with the name Danny Gregory, but in the last few months you probably have been regularly exposed to some of his work.  He's a gifted artist and illustrator who plies the advertising trade but manages to make time for a lot of sketching and general stopping-to-smell-the-roses-along-the-way. 

He shares a lot of himself in his blog, Everyday Matters, and also shepherds a Yahoo discussion group on sketching and drawing.  He is working on a book, Creative License, which will be published this coming winter.  The book will capture in book form, what his blog and discussion group are all about--helping people unlock the inner artist and express themselves.

It's a great endeavor.  So many of us have an inner artist that has been securely locked up since our grade school days.  Danny says, "Set it free!"

Knitting Blogs

Today I'm going to ignore the chaos around me and talk about the REAL important things in life.  Like knitting.

I have a list of blogs I regularly check in on a few times a week, and for some reason, the knitting ones are the most entertaining, outspoken, and fun.  These are people with lives and jobs and they all seem to get a lot of knitting done.  How do they do it?  The most fortunate among them have jobs that involve knitting, but that's no indicator of being able to actually have time to use the skills.  I used to work in a quilt shop and sell sewing machines, and at that point in my life, I seldom had time to do much sewing.  And it killed me...

But I digress.  Back to knitting blogs.  I'm including a few of them here, hoping they'll offer a diversion on a Monday.

The Knitting Curmudgeon.  This woman is opinionated and does not suffer fools gladly, but is usually 100% correct in her opinions...  Fasten your seatbelt.  And don't miss the comments her readers post.  Mild language warning here.

Queer Joe's Knitting Blog.  Joe is a good friend of the Curmudgeon's.  Also opinionated.  His readers also contribute a running conversation in the comment section that is too good to miss.

Mason-Dixon Knitting.  Two women, one in Manhattan, and one in Tennessee, are the co-bloggers here.  You could kick back with these ladies and have a fine time, whether you knit or not.

The Yarn Harlot.  The harlot is a Toronto-based knitter and author.  She recounts the trials and tribulations of book-touring, always with a pair of socks in progress on her needles.

Greek Tragedy

Today's New York Times profiles a young woman named Stephanie Klein, who chronicles her life in intimate and unsparing detail in a blog called Greek Tragedy.  Those who keep tabs on such things say that Greek Tragedy is among the top 1% of blogs in readership.

Ms. Klein is recognized on the street and in restaurants and has become a celebrity among her readers, kind of like a real life Carrie Bradshaw in Sex and the City.

Ms. Klein's celebrity has lately outgrown the Web, leading to a book and television deal. Her memoir, "Straight Up and Dirty," is to be published by ReganBooks, Judith Regan's HarperCollins imprint, in April 2006, and NBC is developing the book into a half-hour comedy series produced by Ms. Regan. Ms. Klein is also working on a second book about her fat-camp experiences. (Her trademark candor did not extend to the exact advance for her books, but she allowed that Publishers Marketplace, an industry publication, had described it as a "major deal," meaning $501,000 or more.)

Read more... (The New York Times may require the setting up on an online account, which is free and well worth it IMHO.)

Posting Secrets

Today's New York Times has an article on confessional blogging in general and on PostSecret in particular (The New York Times may require registration to access the article, but it's free).

PostSecret is a blog which invites readers to submit "secrets", written on self-designed postcards.  The result is an ongoing art show of guilt, refreshed every week.  The Times posits that the secrets may be a bit studied, but it's still a vicarious mini-trip into the dark side.