How to Save the World

I just read this article, in light of the difficulties that we're having financially, and it really makes me think. Please read this. I believe it will make you think, too.

"An obscure legal loophole, discovered in 1978 and validated that same year by the US Supreme Court, changed forever lending and borrowing practices, and the housing market, in the US. Until that time, interest rates were a matter of states' rights, and most states carried on a long-standing tradition of anti-usury laws designed to protect consumers from unconscionably high interest rates. In 1978, the Supreme Court, in the infamous Marquette decision, said that existing laws allowed lenders to charge borrowers anywhere in America the rate ceiling allowed in the lender's state of incorporation, regardless of the rate ceiling in the borrower's state, and that it was up to Congress to change the law to prevent 'exporting' of high interest rates. Congress did nothing, lenders flocked to Delaware and Nevada (the two states with no rate ceiling, which are still home to the companies that do half of all consumer lending in America) and in four short years virtually every state, to prevent exodus of financial institutions, had scrapped its interest rate ceiling.

There was at first bi-partisan celebration of this ruling. Free-marketers saw this as the removal of an unnatural impediment to business, the end of interference in the establishment of rates that truly reflect the lending risk. Liberals saw this as an opportunity for middle-class Americans to finally buy their own homes -- prior to the removal of the interest rate cap, most lenders would only lend money to the rich, people who really didn't need money and used it principally for investments. At the time, inflation was rampant and even the rich were paying high rates of interest on borrowings, so the dangers of eliminating anti-usury laws was unforeseeable.

A quarter century later, the consequences of this ruling are clear. In their well-reasoned and thoroughly-documented book The Two Income Trap (the Salon review of which I covered last year), Harvard Professor Elizabeth Warren and her daughter outline what has happened since 1978:

The proportion of Americans who own their own homes has risen a paltry 3%.
140 million (70%) of adult Americans now admit they are carrying so much debt it is making their lives difficult and unhappy.
Bankruptcy rates for women have risen 662%. Foreclosure rates have risen 400%.

Having a child is now the single biggest predictor that a woman will declare bankruptcy.
One out of 7 families with children will declare bankruptcy this decade, and at least that many more should declare bankruptcy to make a fresh start but will instead out of ignorance or fear live with the constant horror of repossessions, hounding and threats from creditors.
More Americans each year declare bankruptcy than have heart attacks, get diagnosed with cancer, graduate from college, or get divorced.
Increased availability of credit has more than doubled the price of housing, to the point that after paying for housing and other essentials (and the other essentials have actually decreased in cost), the average two-income family has less disposable income than the average one-income family had a generation ago.
Families with children have driven up the price of housing in many areas with desirable public schools by as much 600%, and a recent survey indicates proximity to good schools is now the single largest determinant of US residential housing price.
Credit card debt balances have risen from $20 billion to nearly $800 billion, a forty-fold increase (see chart).

The average interest rate on Citibank mortgages is nearly 16%, ten points above prime, and interest rates on 'sub-prime' mortgages are much higher than that (Citibank and other lenders don't divulge the breakdown). On an average home with an average mortgage, the 'sub-prime' borrower is therefore paying $500,000 more over a 30-year mortgage life than a prime rate borrower.

Visible minorities and those with limited education are twice as likely to be paying the high rates of 'sub-prime' mortgages as whites and college-educated people with the same incomes. The reason, according to one retired lender: Because the lenders know they can get away with the higher charges.
Credit companies including Sears, AT&T, GE, Macy's, JC Penney, Circuit City, Radio Shack and GM are just some of the companies that have paid millions of dollars in fines for illegally hounding people after bankruptcy, and for illegally hounding descendants of deceased customers, to repay credit card balances. Most of these companies now make more money from finance charges than they do from selling products.
Even the FDIC, the government body that insures the banks, has expressed alarm at the unforeseen and, in human terms, tragic consequences of unregulated interest rates and credit. They acknowledge the direct correlation between the hawking of massive amounts of credit to everyone in the country at outrageous interest rate, and the rate of personal bankruptcies (see chart above -- the blue line, left scale is the bankruptcy rate; the yellow line, right scale, is credit card debt). They even make it clear that it is the aggressiveness of lenders, more than interest rates per se, that leads to bankruptcies: In Canada, which has never had anti-usury laws, bankruptcy rates were always significantly lower than in the US, except for the brief period in the 1970s, when VISA and MasterCard and their agents began aggressively pushing credit cards in Canada for the first time, when the bankruptcy rate in Canada surged and briefly surpassed the US rate. After the Marquette decision, US bankruptcy rates surged back ahead, and rates in both countries continue to soar.

The authors take great pains to demolish the myth, perpetrated to this day by neocons like William Buckley Jr., that it is consumers' inability to budget and restrain themselves from making reckless purchases that is behind the skyrocketing bankruptcy rate, and that a lot of people just declare bankruptcy to discharge their personal responsibility for undisciplined spending behaviour. Compared to 1978, the average American family spends (inflation-adjusted) 21% less on clothing today, 22% less on food (grocery & restaurant combined), and 44% less on furniture and major appliances than they did, although their (mostly-two-income) family take-home has risen 70% relative to the (mostly-one-income) take-home of the early 1970s. Where has the extra money gone? First and foremost to skyrocketing housing costs (up 100% on average, up to 600% in areas close to the best schools). What else is way up in cost? Health insurance, transportation (to and from two jobs instead of one), pre-school, after-school-care and college tuition are all up from 100% to 500% in cost since the 1970s. Over 90% of all personal bankruptcies are due to three causes: job loss, medical problems, and divorce. The pervasive myths of reckless overconsumption and the immoral debtor are not only untrue, they are cruel deceptions perpetrated by corporatists to mask the real cause of skyrocketing debts and bankruptcies: Reckless lending, usurious and unconscionable interest rates, and cynical mortgage consolidations designed to facilitate foreclosure and expropriation of homes for corporate profit.

One lending analyst has broken the 18% annual charge commonly charged today on credit cards into these four components:

7% for true interest, the cost of borrowing in a low-inflation world
5% for administration costs (which are much higher than for mortgages because of the volume of transactions) and fraud costs (which the credit card companies are legally bound to pay, and which are soaring)
3% for defaults -- the cost of people who skip town, die or declare bankruptcy before paying their balance (did you know that if you die, your beneficiaries are under no obligation to pay off your credit card debt?)
3% for 'the opportunity cost of the early payment period' (the losses the lender incurs when people pay off their cards on time)
So when you carry a balance on these cards, you are subsidizing three groups -- card defrauders and identity thieves, bankrupts, and those who pay their balances in full each month. It is easier and cheaper for credit card companies to get you to pay for these costs than to improve security over credit card abuse, exercise more discretion in lending to those who can't afford to repay, and get early-payers to pay their share of the administrative burden of credit card management. And that doesn't include the other unregulated add-on costs: late-payment fees, balance transfer fees, transaction charges and other service charges, which a recent study showed are increasing by 20% every year. Late payment fees (charges when you don't pay a specified minimum of your credit balance each month) alone are up 300% in the last decade.

As I mentioned at the end of my last economic post, one fourth of all new mortgages are now debt consolidation loans, mostly at high rates. These diabolical schemes often make things worse, and they're being falsely sold as the panacea for families in financial trouble. They complete the cycle that is wiping out the American middle class, which looks like this:

You want to put your children in a good school, so they won't have to struggle like you did. So you pay the outrageous price, inflated by all the other parents with the same aspirations, for a home in the 'right' area.
To pay for it, you both need to work, and one of you has to work two jobs. The 'right' area is not near your work, so now you need two cars, day-care, and a lot of other new expenses.
You just qualify for the huge mortgage, but because of the risk you have to pay a much higher-than-prime rate: Citibank's average 16%.
You can just barely make the payments. And with tuition for university going up by double-digits for the 5th straight year, and youth unemployment through the roof, the dream of putting your kids through college is starting to look out of reach.
Suddenly, one of you loses their job. Or gets sick. Or one of your parents gets sick, or children gets sick, so one of you has to stay at home to look after them. Or the stress breaks up your marriage and now you have two households to pay for.
With the drop in income and/or increase in costs, you max out your credit cards, and the effective interest rate with penalties goes from 18% to 28%. You miss a mortgage payment and late fees and charges push its effective cost above 20% as well.
In desperation, you consolidate your debts with a new mortgage, taking advantage of the increase in the value of your home. You end up with a mortgage larger than what you paid for the house, at a higher interest rate, but at least the credit cards are clear.
You swear you'll tear up the credit cards, but the only way you can pay for the medical bills, the transit pass, the gasoline bills, is on credit. You have no cash for heat, phone and electricity, so you draw cash on your credit cards to pay them, too. Some of the things you bought for a house on a 'no payments until 2004' basis are coming due, so they get rotated right back onto the credit cards. Soon they're maxed out again.
Ashamed and afraid and too ignorant to declare bankruptcy, you borrow from family and friends to pay creditors. You stop paying for life insurance, and sell family heirlooms in garage sales or on eBay. You're crying all the time. The phone rings with creditors non-stop, threatening to take back your Sears Posturepedic, the kids' Christmas toys. They even talk to your kids and tell them in condescending tones that their parents are bad people.

And finally, you become one of the statistics on the blue (or if you're a Canadian, the red) line on the chart above. You've probably lost your home, your marriage, the respect of your children, your friends (who you never repaid), your health. Everything. And all you were trying to do was put your kids in a good school.

So what are the answers? As the authors explain, they're very simple: Congress needs to reinstate anti-usury laws, capping interest rates at a uniform rate, closely tied to the prime rate, across the country. Any and all fees would be added to the interest rate and the total would have to stay below the cap. And consumers need to look before they leap, and keep their debt-load below the level that would allow them to handle that debt if they were suddenly hit with a job loss, a sick or injured family member, or a divorce.

What are the chances of it happening? In the US, at least, it's remote. The financial services industry is one of the largest campaign contributors to political candidates, and they are fiercely opposed to any re-regulation, which would have a catastrophic effect on their profits. They are, in effect, legally stealing from the poor and middle-class of America. The authors show how powerful this lobby is with a story about Hillary Clinton. Because America's unconscionable lenders want to keep the screws on their poorest and most profitable customers, they have twice tried to ram through Congress a bill that would make bankruptcy declarations much harder to make, allow secured creditors to circumvent bankruptcy protection entirely, reduce the priority of family support payments over credit card debts, and require credit cards to be paid off along with mortgages, thereby making it easier for foreclosure before bankruptcy. These lenders contributed $60 million to various politicians to get their support. The authors, and other groups representing the poor, were able to convince Hillary to get her husband to veto the bill. But with MBNA bank the largest contributor to the Bush campaign, the bill was reintroduced, and now-Senator Hillary Clinton, beholden to bankers who contributed $140,000 to her campaign, supported it the second time. Only a fierce lobby, some of whose members were opposed not to the bill but rather to riders that had nothing to do with bankruptcy, managed to block it again -- for now. Both John Kerry and John Edwards opposed the bill, and have promised to pay more attention to bankruptcy law if they are elected, so there is some room for hope.

What are the chances that Americans will follow the authors' advice and rein in their spending, not on luxuries, but on the home they raise their children in, and allow for a contingency like loss of a job, a serious illness or injury, or divorce when they do up the family budget? Pretty remote. It's like asking people to give up the American Dream. Even if, for many, it is destined to become a nightmare. "

Prayer

I haven't felt much like writing lately. There's not a lot of inspiration to draw from. Well, there probably is, but my eyes are too blinded to see it.

Please pray for our family today. A financial crisis has us just about against the wall.

Miracles are desperately needed.

Renaissance Weekend

I love it when things fall into place. It doesn't often happen, so when I see a window of opportunity, I step, climb or break through it, whatever the situation may necessitate.

Last year and this, as part of our Ambleside adventure (for those who aren't aware, Ambleside is a FREE online curriculum based on the teachings of Charlotte Mason and featuring Living Books, or books that are not textbooks but real stories of real people and/or places), we studied/are studying Good Queen Bess, Shakespeare, Leonardo DaVinci, Gallileo and other Renaissance subjects. We've just finished reading Shakespeare's A Comedy of Errors and are studying Pieter Bruegel, who slips in during the mid-16th century.

This weekend we will be immersing ourselves in Renaissance history. Tonight, Bard and I will be taking in a play written by The Bard himself. A friend gave us the heads-up that one of our local universities is presenting Midsummer Night's Dream for little more than a song, so how could I refuse?

On Sunday, our family will be traveling to one of the largest Renaissance faires in Ohio. The Ohio Renaissance Faire will be focusing on pirates this weekend! So the children's assignment for tomorrow is to read all of the loads of books about pirates that I toted home from the library today, selected with the help of our wonderful children's librarian.

In between those activities, we'll enjoy a down-home hot dog roast.

Any ideas as to how I can tie that in with the Renaissance period?

Take Music

Music is so amazing and powerful.

We just came from a house concert, and the music invoked so many different emotions, feeling and ideas. When music plays, relationships change. People think and talk differently. Words take on more weight. The air becomes heavy with meaning.

If you have an opportunity to see live music, please, please, please, for the love of all that's good, do it. You can see a movie any weekend. It will always be available on DVD. You can spend any day in the bookstore. Starbucks will always be around.

But live music? That's Right Now. That's something you can't duplicate.

That's irreplaceable.

Stream of Consciousness Whilst I Take a Break from Reading

The air smells of fried rice
dappled with bits of browned onion,
pungent garlic,
candy carrots,
bitter green pepper,
sweet, spongy zucchini.
The boys are playing Heroscape with Bo.
Sweetheart is playing with clay.
Bard is scavenging for food, having IM'd her way through the fried rice dinner,
unaware that her favorite foods were being consumed without her.
I thought she was asleep.

We removed the television, poking out the huge, unseeing eye from the middle of our Gathering Room.
Too distracting, I say. When I'm lazy or depressed, I go to it, beg it to pacify me with things that, even for video, seem noble--British films, documentaries, cooking shows.
But the books that I love, the ones that I find on dusty shelves in thrift stores or in caving boxes at yard sales or filed neatly by author at the used book stores, are neglected, and as long as that beast lies in wait, my books will go unread.
Since I've pulled the plug, more books have been read, more games played, more conversations had.

Yes, I sometimes miss it. Tonight, for example, when the sadness from this life's weight sends shooting pains through my neck, down my shoulders, I wanted to retreat into thoughtlessness, make an unnecessary trip to the video store and shovel through the heaps of dung in search of one bright and shining treasure. Sometimes it happens. Most times it doesn't. Then, afterwards, I feel used, like my life has been wasted on some superficial thing.

Tonight, I held my ground.
No movies.
No pizza.
Instead, I will read. The librarian graciously waived my outrageously insane fine, and now I'm welcomed there once again, so reading material abounds, not only on my shelves, but in my library bag.
This week, it's Headlong by Michael Frayn, since we're studying Bruegel (read: BROY-gull) this term, and I think I've found a new author to enjoy, as well as a new artist to appreciate.

The fried rice smell is dissipating now, being replaced by the scent of boiling pasta--Annie's Macaroni and Cheese--as Bard attempts to fill the void that was created by her exclusion from the earlier meal. She'll be sustained, but not satisfied.

My break from reading has lasted long enough, and I must find something sweet to eat.

The Lady of Shallott

On either side the river lie
Long fields of barley and of rye,
That clothe the wold and meet the sky;
And thro' the field the road runs by
To many-tower'd Camelot;
And up and down the people go,
Gazing where the lilies blow
Round an island there below,
The island of Shalott.
Willows whiten, aspens quiver,
Little breezes dusk and shiver
Thro' the wave that runs for ever
By the island in the river
Flowing down to Camelot.
Four gray walls, and four gray towers,
Overlook a space of flowers,
And the silent isle imbowers
The Lady of Shalott.

By the margin, willow veil'd,
Slide the heavy barges trail'd
By slow horses; and unhail'd
The shallop flitteth silken-sail'd
Skimming down to Camelot:
But who hath seen her wave her hand?
Or at the casement seen her stand?
Or is she known in all the land,
The Lady of Shalott?

Only reapers, reaping early
In among the bearded barley,
Hear a song that echoes cheerly
From the river winding clearly,
Down to tower'd Camelot:
And by the moon the reaper weary,
Piling sheaves in uplands airy,
Listening, whispers " 'Tis the fairy
Lady of Shalott."

PART II

There she weaves by night and day
A magic web with colours gay.
She has heard a whisper say,
A curse is on her if she stay
To look down to Camelot.
She knows not what the curse may be,
And so she weaveth steadily,
And little other care hath she,
The Lady of Shalott.

And moving thro' a mirror clear
That hangs before her all the year,
Shadows of the world appear.
There she sees the highway near
Winding down to Camelot:
There the river eddy whirls,
And there the surly village-churls,
And the red cloaks of market girls,
Pass onward from Shalott.

Sometimes a troop of damsels glad,
An abbot on an ambling pad,
Sometimes a curly shepherd-lad,
Or long-hair'd page in crimson clad,
Goes by to tower'd Camelot;
And sometimes thro' the mirror blue
The knights come riding two and two:
She hath no loyal knight and true,
The Lady of Shalott.

But in her web she still delights
To weave the mirror's magic sights,
For often thro' the silent nights
A funeral, with plumes and lights
And music, went to Camelot:
Or when the moon was overhead,
Came two young lovers lately wed:
"I am half sick of shadows," said
The Lady of Shalott.

PART III

A bow-shot from her bower-eaves,
He rode between the barley-sheaves,
The sun came dazzling thro' the leaves
And flamed upon the brazen greaves
Of bold Sir Lancelot.
A red-cross knight for ever kneel'd
To a lady in his shield,
That sparkled on the yellow field,
Beside remote Shalott.

The gemmy bridle glitter'd free,
Like to some branch of stars we see
Hung in the golden Galaxy.
The bridle bells rang merrily
As he rode down to Camelot:
And from his blazon'd baldric slung
A mighty silver bugle hung,
And as he rode his armour rung,
Beside remote Shalott.

All in the blue unclouded weather
Thick-jewell'd shone the saddle-leather
The helmet and the helmet-feather
Burn'd like one burning flame together,
As he rode down to Camelot.
As often thro' the purple night,
Below the starry clusters bright,
Some bearded meteor, trailing light,
Moves over still Shalott.

His broad clear brow in sunlight glow'd;
On burnish'd hooves his war-horse trode;
From underneath his helmet flow'd
His coal-black curls as on he rode,
As he rode down to Camelot.
From the bank and from the river
He flash'd into the crystal mirror,
"Tirra lirra," by the river
Sang Sir Lancelot.

She left the web, she left the loom,
She made three paces thro' the room,
She saw the water-lily bloom,
She saw the helmet and the plume,
She look'd down to Camelot.
Out flew the web and floated wide;
The mirror crack'd from side to side;
"The curse is come upon me," cried
The Lady of Shalott.

PART IV

In the stormy east-wind straining,
The pale yellow woods were waning,
The broad stream in his banks
complaining
Heavily the low sky raining
Over tower'd Camelot;
Down she came and found a boat
Beneath a willow left afloat,
And round about the prow she wrote
'The Lady of Shalott'.

And down the river's dim expanse
Like some bold seer in a trance,
Seeing all his own mischance--
With a glassy countenance
Did she look to Camelot.
And at the closing of the day
She loosed the chain, and down she lay;
The broad stream bore her far away,
The Lady of Shalott.

Lying, robed in snowy white
That loosely flew to left and right--
The leaves upon her falling light--
Thro' the noises of the night
She floated down to Camelot:
And as the boat-head wound along
The willowy hills and fields among,
They heard her singing her last song,
The Lady of Shalott.

Heard a carol, mournful, holy,
Chanted loudly, chanted lowly,
Till her blood was frozen slowly,
And her eyes were darken'd wholly,
Turn'd to tower'd Camelot.
For ere she reach'd upon the tide
The first house by the water-side,
Singing in her song she died,
The Lady of Shalott.

Under tower and balcony,
By garden-wall and gallery,
A gleaming shape she floated by,
Dead-pale between the houses high,
Silent into Camelot.
Out upon the wharfs they came,
Knight and burgher, lord and dame,
And round the prow they read her name,
The Lady of Shalott.

Who is this? and what is here?
And in the lighted palace near
Died the sound of royal cheer;
And they cross'd themselves for fear,
All the knights at Camelot:
But Lancelot mused a little space;
He said, "She has a lovely face;
God in his mercy lend her grace,
The Lady of Shalott."

I haven't forgotten.

Watch This!

David Wilcox is my very favorite singer/songwriter. His music has so many layers, so many metaphors, that after listening to one of his pieces, I'm left with message after message for days. If you're not familiar with David, be sure to check out his webpage at www.davidwilcox.com

How Do I Start the First Day?

This post was written by veteran homeschooler, Norma Curry in response to a new homeschooler who wondered how to start her first day of home education. I thought it was absolutely excellent advice, so I asked Norma's permission to republish it here. So, with her blessing, here is Norma's advice:

The beauty of home education is that you get to decide what kind of scheduling works for you and your family. If you have early birds in your family you can begin your day early (lucky you!), and if you are like more of us and have kids who would rather sleep than breathe you will probably begin your day late. Teens are definitely prone to the latter.If you have things that your student must do at any time of day, like mucking stables, or getting to practice ice for skating, or the gym for gymnastics, or fencing class, or to an art class or cello lesson, then you can arrange your schedule around those things.

If you must work part of the day you can arrange your direct interaction with your child around your work schedule. And your child can do more self-directed learning activities, too, giving you more freedom.

If you have a child who loves discipline and routine then you will probably devise a disciplined and routine oriented learning schedule. If you have a very creative type learner then you will probably go for a more ecclectic mode of learning. All are viable and all can work, depending on the learner.

Remember that learning does not only take place while reading a textbook or "doing" school work. Learning is all around us, everywhere, all the time:

• in the kitchen;
• in the workshop;
• in the backyard garden or bird feeders;
• on hikes in the woods;
• helping grandma make a quilt;
• singing in a choir;
• dancing;
• taking care of animals;
• volunteering;
• hanging out at the library;
• watching movies and educational videos;
• traveling;
• reading;
• writing;
• watching PBS;
• doing research at the computer;
• visiting a museum;
• going on lots of different field trips;
• organizing events and activities;
• doing art projects;
• in clubs and organizations;
• in sports and recreational activities;
• and so on.

So be sure to count ALL your instructional hours. You will be amazed!

Learning does not have to come packaged in textbooks and workbooks unless you have a child who really enjoys that kind of thing. If so then you might start out doing lots of "school at home" type activities. If not then you will be fighting all the time to get your child to do things he or she simply does not want to do, and, truth be told, does not have to do to learn. And forcing a child to do something is not conducive to good learning.

Ecclectic learning does not eliminate excellent learning options. Start out spending lots of time at the library. Find out about any programs for homeschoolers they might have. And there are always other programs for kids after school and on weekends. Check with your local parks and recreation folks to see what they are offering; again, often there are classes for homeschoolers. And then follow your child's interests and organize activities that feed those interests. Learning does not have to be painful or boring or sitting in a chair at a table.

The best learning is hands-on so you can help your child find activities that she enjoys and that inspire him to want to learn more.

Plan visits to interesting places whenever you can:

• go to the Renaissance Fair;
• visit your local dairy, factory, bakery, food processing plant;
• attend historical re-enactments.
• Buy one museum or special facilities membership per year (or more if you can afford them) and attend all the great events available to members in these facilities. These might include:

• the Cincinnati Art Museum;

  the Taft Museum;

  The Cincinnati Museum Center ($55/year for a family membership,
  special
  to home educators!);

  the Newport Aquarium;the brand new Freedom
  Center;

  the Contemporary Art Center;

  the Berringer Crawford Museum;

  Heritage Village Museum;

  and many others

If your child already has special interests then further support those interests:

• join a rock and minerals group;
• join a group into fossils, like Dry Dredgers;
• join 4-H and do projects, whether or not you plan to show them at the county or state fairs;
• join a club for any sport;
• join an astronomy group;
• and if you can't find a group form one of your own and tell others about it.

Scheduling? Take your pick. The day is yours and no one else has any right to tell you how to organize it. Figure out what is best for you, your student, your family, and go from there. Generally you will do lots of tweaking and adjusting as you go along. My daughter started her first job at 12 and has been working ever since, so some of her scheduling had to revolve around her work, and still does. She also skates everyday, so again, her scheduling often revolves around when she can get ice time. And she has, over the years, taken many classes. We then had to work her schedule, and mine, around those classes.

Basically home education is a juggling act. The difference is that you have far more time in which to juggle everything. You do not lose that big 6-8 hour chunk of each day that most kids spend sitting in school, plus getting to and from school. And that really makes a difference, stretches out all your options. Give yourself some time to feel your way through what works best for you. Never assume! Just because something works for someone else does not mean that it will for you. And just because the folks in public or parochial school do it that way does not mean it is the right way, or the only way to do it.

Stay open to new ideas. Have fun! Look at every situation you encounter every day and ask yourself what you are learning, or what you could be learning from that situation.

• Do math at the grocery store, or on any kind of shopping trip, or when planning family travel.
• Do science in the kitchen or with household cleaning, or in the backyard.
• Do literature in the car with books on tape.
• Or listen to classical music, or foreign language lessons as you travel in your car.
• These days you can even have personal DVD players in the car so each kid can watch good educational DVDs while you drive anywhere, or while waiting in the doctor's or dentist's office.
• Check out my recent posting about how to get hundreds of free educational DVDs.

Relax! No one is keeping tabs on you. No one is going to come in and tell you what you have to do or when you have to do it. Find your own rhythmn. Allow some time to "deschool" for a while. And then do whatever works best for you. That is what home education is all about.

Written by Norma Curry

Looking for BOOKS again

I'm looking for a few books to begin our academic year. I'm especially looking for inexpensive books, so if you have any of these books lying around and would like to give them away or sell them cheap, please let me know. I'd be very grateful!

*Note: Some of the books that I crossed off below were borrowed from a friend, but I would still like to own my own copy. If you have an extra copy to sell or give away, please feel free to e-mail me at todayslessonsATgmailDOTcom

Poor Richard by James Daugherty
Abigail Adams: Witness to a Revolution by Natalie Bober
It Couldn't Just Happen by Lawrence Richards Borrowed
Physics Lab in the Home by Friedhoffer
Madam How and Lady Why by Charles Kingsley
This Country of Ours by H.E. Marshall
An Island Story by H. E. Marshall
George Washington's World by Gen. Foster Borrowed
Abe Lincoln's World by Gen. Foster Borrowed
Story of the World by Susan Wise Bauer Borrowed
What Everyone Should Know about the 20th Century by Alan Axelrod
Of Courage Undaunted: Across the Continent with Lewis and Clark by James Daugherty
Passion for the Impossible: The Life of Lillias Trotter by Miriam Huffman Rockness
Carry a Big Stick: The Uncommon Heroism of Teddy Roosevelt by Geo. Grant
Wild Animals I Have Known by Ernest Thompson Seton
Fairy Land of Science by Arabella Buckley
Christian Liberty Nature Reader, Grade Five Borrowed
How Should We Then Live by Francis Schaeffer
Tremendous Trifles by G.K. Chesterton
Hidden Art of Homemaking by Edith Schaeffer
Anything by P.G. Wodehouse
Anything by Chesterton
Trial and Triumph (Church history from a definite Protestant perspective) by Richard Hannula
Black Beauty by Anna Sewell Purchased
Pollyanna by Eleanor Porter Borrowed
The Railway Children by Edith Nesbit Purchased
A Book of Golden Deeds by Charlotte Yonge
Bambi by Felix Salten
Little Britches series by Ralph Moody Borrowed
Lassie Come Home by Eric Knight
Gentle Ben by Walt Morey
Gone Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright Borrowed
Thimble Summer by Elizabeth Enright
Return To Gone Away by Elizabeth Enright
The Complete Peterkin Papers by Lucretia Hale
Calico Captive (girl interest) or The Sign of the Beaver Borrowed. (boy interest) by Elizabeth George Speare
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
Tree of Freedom by Rebecca Caudill
Amos Fortune, Free Man by Elizabeth Yates
The Reb and the Redcoats by Constance Savery (British view of revolution)
Justin Morgan had a Horse by Marguerite Henry
The Age of Fable by Thomas Bulfinch preface to 14 (Minerva-Niobe) Purchased
Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe Purchased
The Legend of Sleepy Hollow by Irving
Paul Revere's Ride by Longfellow
Rip Van Winkle by Washington Irving

Bruce Cockburn's Latest, "Life Short Call Now"

Beautiful Creatures

There's a knot in my gut
As I gaze out today
On the planes of the city
All polychrome grey
When the skin is peeled of it
What is there to say?
The beautiful creatures
are going away

Like a dam on a river
My conscience is pressed
By the weight of hard feelings
Piled up in my breast
The callous and vicious things
Humans display
The beautiful creatures are going away

Why? Why?

From the stones of the fortress
To the shapes in the air
To the ache in the spirit
We label despair
We create what destroys,
Bind ourselves to betray
The beautiful creatures are going away

~Bruce Cockburn

On today's playlist:

Bruce Cockburn's Latest, "Life Short Call Now":

1. Life Short Call Now - Bruce Cockburn
2. See You Tomorrow - Bruce Cockburn
3. Mystery - Bruce Cockburn
4. Beautiful Creatures - Bruce Cockburn
5. Peace March - Bruce Cockburn
6. Slow Down Fast - Bruce Cockburn
7. Tell the Universe - Bruce Cockburn
8. This Is Baghdad - Bruce Cockburn
9. Jerusalem Poker - Bruce Cockburn
10. Different When It Comes to You - Bruce Cockburn
11. To Fit In My Heart - Bruce Cockburn
12. Nude Descending A Staircase - Bruce Cockburn

Farmgirl Fare: Savory Tomato Pesto Pie

If I ever get any tomatoes from my garden, I will most DEFINITELY make Farmgirl Fare: Savory Tomato Pesto Pie

Well, how do you like that?

Got this from the witty and talented Rachel. Funny, because I didn't expect these results, but I nodded with understanding once I saw them. Interestingly enough, a position as journalist just opened at our local paper. I responded to the ad with a nice letter of interest and was answered with a request for a resume. HA! Like I have a resume! So I didn't respond further. I hope they find a good person for the job.

You scored as Journalism. You are an aspiring journalist, and you should major in journalism! Like me, you are passionate about writing and expressing yourself, and you want the world to understand your beliefs through writing. Journalism 100% Sociology 92% English 92% Philosophy 92% Psychology 83% Linguistics 83% Engineering 75% Dance 75% Mathematics 67% Anthropology 67% Biology 58% Theater 50% Art 50% Chemistry 42% What is your Perfect Major? created with QuizFarm.com

Customer Service

On Thursday, I saw an ad for an i-pod accessory that Bard has been wanting. It was on sale--one day only--at Kohl's. The price was exceptional, and the ad made it clear that the sale was good on in-stock items only--no special orders, no rain checks. There was also an additional discount--15% off--for senior citizens, so I talked my dad--who is befittingly old--into riding to Neighboring City with me to get the extra amount off. This, in itself, was a miracle.

Not wanting to mess up this good thing and being the wise shopper I am, I called ahead to ask if the item was indeed in stock. Travis, the young man who answered the phone, sounded less-than-enthused that he had to walk ALL THE WAY to the other end of his department to check. What a drag it is to be required to do one's job.

"Just a minute," he droned.

When he came back on the phone, Travis said, "Is it round?" I looked at the photo ad of the transistor-radio-like unit and tried to imagine what Travis's definition of "round" could possibly encompass. There was nothing about the item in this photo that I would describe as "round."

"No," I said, "it's not round. It's rectangular. It looks to be about 12-18" long, though it's hard to tell from the picture."

"But it's not round?" He repeated. Round? I said it was a rectangle. How can a rectangle be round?

"Uh. No. It's not. It's rectangular. It's long, and the i-pod is inserted in the middle, between the two speakers. It's not in the shape of a circle, if that's what you're asking me. Circles are round. This is definitely rectangular."

"Oh. Okay."

Long pause.

"Well, do you have a model number?" He asked.

"No. No model number. There's none given in the ad. Just the description that's on the front page of the flier."

"What does the description say?" I read it to him, and described the photo again.

As if he suddenly had an epiphany or a geometry lesson, he unconvincingly uttered, "Yeah. Yeah, this is it."

I paused. "Are you...are you sure? Because I'm driving forty minutes from Little Village for this item, and this item only. I'm making a special trip, and I want to be sure you have this specific item in stock."

"Yeah. Yeah. I'm sure this is it."

Just because I've been burned before, I asked him to please confirm for me the price of the product. I knew he wouldn't be pleased with his mission, but I meant business. And it was, after all, his business to do business with me.

"Hold on," Travis said, and I could just imagine him rolling his eyes as he set down the phone and trudged ALL THE WAY to the other end of his department to check the item that he had lead me to believe was in his hands.

Minutes later, he returned. "49.95," he sighed.

"Yes! Great! That's the one. Are there more than one?" I asked, imagining a virtual torrent of i-pod accessory buyers flocking to Kohl's for this one-day-only event.

"Yeah. There's a bunch of 'em," Travis said.

"Thank you so much!"

I hung up the phone, packed the kids and my age-appropriate, Golden Buckeye Card-carrying dad into the car, and drove to Neighboring City as quickly as allowed by law. Once at Kohl's, we headed straight to the proper department where I found...

...nothing at all that looked like or was priced the same as the photo in the ad.

There were plenty of units that were much smaller, much larger, and much more expensive, but there were none even remotely the type or the price of the one I'd seen in the ad. The one I'd driven there to purchase. The one Travis had assured me was in stock.

I rang the bell for assistance, was almost instantly greeted by a Nice Young Woman, and showed her the ad, which I'd had the presence of mind to carry along with me in the same plastic baggie as my dad's Golden Buckeye Card.

"Oh, those? We haven't had those in this store for weeks," the Nice Young Woman nonchalantly informed me.

"You...you what?"

"Maybe you'd like to look at one of the other units we have in stock?"

WHAT?!?

After explaining to this Nice Young Woman that I had just spoken to Travis less than an hour prior, that Travis had told me that there were several in stock, and that Travis had confirmed that they were $49.95, she stood silently for a moment. She then headed over to the telephone and called, I'm assuming, Travis, who told her, I'm assuming, that he saw them on the end of the rack. She spoke in hushed tones and then hung up the phone. She then showed me said "end of the rack." There were no units on the "end of the rack" that looked like the one in the ad. There were no units on the "end of the rack" that were priced like the one in the ad. There were many units that were clearly marked, on their boxes, $99.95 and $119.95, and $199.95, but no units marked $49.95. There was, however, a sign above the units that indicated that, at one time there had been, or were supposed to be, units that were, indeed, $49.95.

Travis, however, was nowhere to be seen.

I explained, very politely but very firmly, that I had called ahead and spoken to Travis in order to avoid this very scenario. Travis had assured me that he understood that I was driving 40 minutes to purchase this *particular* $49.95 unit, and he also assured me that, though it was not at all round, it was absolutely, totally, and positively in stock.

The Nice Young Woman called for her manager. I walked around the rack again to be sure that there was no mistake. The Nice Young Woman rejoined us. My dad, who had been not-so-patiently waiting, was repeatedly dropping very heavy hints that we should get a more expensive unit for the same price as the one in the ad, for all of our troubles. The Nice Young Woman smiled politely and repeated that her manager was on her way.

Sure enough, several minutes later, said manager appeared, carrying under her arm the very unit that Travis had assured me was on the rack, that the Nice Young Woman has assured me had been out-of-stock for weeks. I recognized the non-round product immediately as she approached.

"Oh, THANK you," I said to the manager. "Thank you SO much." And then, for some very inexplicable reason, I asked, "Where did you find it?"

The manager, whose face had a look similar to the sound Travis' voice had had, paused briefly and said, as if I should have known the answer to such a ridiculous question, "We don't keep these out. It was locked in The Cage."

I knitted my brows.

That made no sense to me whatsoever.

They had smaller units that were more expensive. They had items that were so small that they could fit quite easily into a person's pocket. And these, the units that were advertised on the front page of their sales flier, were locked in The Cage?

Can you say, "Bait and switch?"

I took the unit from her and noticed that she had a sales flier in her hand. It then occured to me to wonder why Travis had to ask *me* to read what was written on the sales flier, why he had to ask *me* to describe the photo of the item and inform him that it wasn't round. After all, wasn't he there, at the store, where the sales fliers must be floating around like detritus after a thunderstorm?

As I was walking away, I heard the manager whisper to the Nice Young Woman, "Restock a few of those on the end of the rack."

Locked up in The Cage, my arse.

My dad lingered behind and laughed to the manager, "I guess this means that Travis doesn't lose his job?" He was joking, of course, but the manager wasn't laughing.

"No, of course not," she shot back. "He's one of my best."