Blizzardasnowmagedon 2015 Special Update

Because tomorrow is a snow day.... because my husband decided a trip to the art studio was needed in the hours before full forced blizzard.....because, why not, I bring you the first ever Weekly Update Weather Update!  ***Really for the East Coast readers today***

**Reader Challenge** Post any great related links or articles you read tomorrow in the comments!

Ready for this blizzard?  The city has been preparing all day for what is apparently quite a costly situation. 

I chose my outfit around my snowboots today- glad I didn't live in 1888, I suppose.

7 Essential Blizzard survival tips, for NYC, which cause me to wonder-- is there ever a time in the city where you can NOT depend on a bodega?  (more tips here and a suggestion to "park on the left")

Food delivery, or no?  A good idea?  A total necessity?  The epitome of evil?  The Mayor has said only emergency vehicles on the road after 11, and delivery bikes don't count (leading to lots of #onlynewyorkersneedthisclarified)!  This guy disagrees-- and, I will admit, I find his article nonsense....but, I love this line: 

January 26: The Night the Mega-Blizzard Came, and Also the Night Some Nervous New Yorkers Boiled Eggs for the First Time and Felt Pretty Great Afterward.

So, if you do order takeout, you know you are feeling jerky about it-- so here are some guidelines about how much you should tip (hint- a lot). (And, fyi, some New Yorkers do shop-- apparently Trader Joes was mayhem.)

I guess not everyone is thinking about food today-- check out the mass scrambling on craigslist to find a "blizzard boy/girlfriend".  Maybe I'm old fashioned, but, really???

Need help disputing the cold weather means global warning is a myth argument?  Here, courtesy of mic.com and Neil deGrasse Tyson.

Warning: #Snowmageddon2015 could dump 2 feet of snow on New York City, so prepare for traffic to be moving at the same speed as usual.

Oh, internet- the blizzard isn't even here yet and everybody's already hilarious about it.

Stay safe, warm, and ethically fed!  


 

News: January 25th

Some newsy news for this week's update!

Starting with world news-- did you hear about Yemen this week?  In short, government collapse and loss of a US ally against Al Qaida.  Here are the cliff's notes version of all you need to know, and a slightly more in depth version of the same information.

And in the Ukraine, war again, sparked by rocket attacks from rebels this week.

Speaking of war....The Nation magazine reports on the secret wars the US is engaged in around the world.

Closer to (my) home-- in New York, the speaker of the Assembly, Sheldon Silver, was arrested on corruption charges on Thursday.  This situation is not good news for Governor Cuomo. 
(I know, I shouldn't link to the post, it was just really concise!)

I know we've all heard a bit here and there about vaccines and anti-vaccination parents-- this article explains, concretely, how measles can be back in action.  Rather terrifying.  Below is a graph of US cases of measles per year.



In lighter news- this is both amusing and embarrassing for the US-- France's version of The Daily Show has had a field day mocking Fox News after some absurd reporting.  

Some sports news-- first, a real life Waterboy story-- U of I's team manager is suiting up to play basketball because so many players have been injured this year! And in football-- perhaps the Patriots cheated?  By underinflating their footballs?  Lamest sportsmanship ever!

In politics, varied reactions to the State of the Union address-- and I'm sure we all saw Obama's "I won both of them" badassness in some for or another. 
Want to hear more-- let's be honest, if you didn't watch it yourself or read the NYTimes afterwards, you need more of a buzzfeed pictures included summary, right?


(This leading to a "rhymes with" alternative to lame duck to describe the last year of his presidency.)

Jon Stewart and I both can't decide whether or not to root for this for comedic reasons, but we'll be on the lookout for more regarding Sarah Palin and her "serious consideration" of the 2016 race.
On the Democrats side, apparently everybody who is anybody already works for Hillary.

Kinda fascinating-- some big names make some big predictions regarding what will change in the world by 2030.

And to close, a few things related to children and parenting.  A college friend of mine shares this heartbreaking account of the challenges she faces as a black mother, words that are both difficult to read and important to share.  And (whether to shape or respond to my spirited daughter, I don't know) because I love me a strong female protagonist that doesn't conform to gender roles in a children's book, I'm passing on this "best of" in case you find it handy.




 

Martin Luther King Day, 2015

Happy MLK Day.

While my day has been spent holding a baby and chasing a small child, and while the 3 day weekend became an excuse for me to be lazy and late with this update, I did want to pass on some of the sentiment that has been around the internets in regards to this day.

#ReclaimMLK has emerged as an effort to revitalize the day, before (my favorite line)"his entire legacy is retconned into some "chicken soup for the soul brother" feel good tripe."

Here, the creators of #blacklivesmatter talk about using the weekend as a chance to re-engage in civil disobedience and the expansion of a movement.

The rest of this week's edition is a dinner party edition-- although, with a caveat-- maybe save some of these "did you hear about" stories for a casual dinner with a friend rather than a party.  I want people to invite you back, and some of them are

Something for the conversation that we missed last summer- this in depth article explains why the American residential system is just as segregated as ever.

Did you hear about his "unforgiveable" article from the New Yorker, which compares the sentencing of Virginia's ex-governor Bob McDonnell, who was convicted of exchanging office favors for all kinds of presents and financial gains to that of a Virginian teenager convicted of robbery.  The shocking discrepency in their sentencing makes the aforementioned civil action all the more important.

Did you miss the Boko Haram massacre in Nigeria this week?  What do you think of the questions this blogger poses about media and awareness being culturally biased?

Once again, I'm faced with the segue into lighter news challenge....so, let's just move right into it.  As light as we can get, first--- Wedding Dresses!

 

Did you hear about the new trend to rent out wedding dresses?  Seems truly brilliant to me, for both owner and consumer.

Did you know that paying close attention to Obama's approval ratings, now, might just predict how close the presidential race ends up in 2016?

Do you want to hear more information about how the Dutch run their schools?  We know a lot about Finland here at The Weekly Update, but here is how the Netherlands apparently run their schools "like charters"-- autonomously and with individual schools making all decisions.  (Please don't read this as my endorsing this model for the US, however....but I'm sure this could be a lively discussion depending on your dinner guests)





Did you hear the Oscar nominations just came out-- and did you hear this seems to be great news for white men in the industry, though Selma was "snubbed" and apparently women in the film industry have not increased much since 1998?  Do you want to actually see the documentaries (does anyone outside of the Academy actually see the documentaries)?  Here you go!

 

Did you hear about the study regarding how parents use choice to choose schools?  Academics, apparently, is not yet a deciding factor in this decision.

Did you hear that the Supreme Court may rule on gay marriage?  And that this may be a blessing in disguise for the GOP?

Did you watch the Golden Globes?  Do you tune in for the fashion?  In case you, like me, missed it-- here are the best and worst dressed.  How do you think J Lo did??

What did I miss?  Send me submissions!  Have a great week!


 


 
 

Happy 2015!

It is a new year at the weekly update and it seems so much has happened since my last post.  Have you heard about any of it?

This week we have a bit of an assortment of this and that.  Starting with this!  So, I've ridden the subway once since I read about this guy, the voice of "stand clear of the closing doors," and I can't stop thinking about his vocal influence. 

 

Now, let's move into some serious news.  I watched from Michigan, rather stunned, as the NYPD turned their backs to Mayor Deblasio at not one but both funerals for the slain officers.  This sums up the current "police slowdown" and how it is impacting the city, reminiscent of the 1970's....  And I found this editorial expressed a lot of my personal opinions about this issue and the respect warranted or earned by the police force.

Speaking of police relations, extended video footage shows that police officers offered no aid to 12-year-old Tamir Rice, and also tackled and restrained his teenaged sister after his shooting. 

And I am assuming everyone saw varied forms of media regarding the attack on Charlie Hebdo.  There are a lot of accounts and opinions, but this New Yorker piece makes an attempt to make sense of it in a way I appreciated.

 

 "Love, stronger than hate."

Moving into politics....the 114th Congress is in session, and a new abortion bill is already making its way into the conversation. 

Since it is now 2015, all talk is going to turn to 2016:  Presidential Election time.  Jeb Bush is "actively exploring", so we should probably start talking about him: here you go.  

Are we getting depressed?  So much heavy news?  Now here you go.

And Obama is working on free community college, which would be pretty awesome, if you ask me.

2014 has come and gone, which you may recall was a big goal year for No Child Left Behind.  Arne Duncan has some new plans to repeal this legislation.

Now, let's move away from anything serious.  

Does it make you feel old to know it has been ten years since Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston went kaput?  Jen is sick of being pit against Angelina, and she is trying to move permanently beyond Rachel.  Can she do it?

I find it kind of fascinating to read about the fact that mothers' (and even caretakers') brains actually physically change as a result of having a baby.  Perhaps especially fascinating to me because of the baby currently rolling around on my floor...but pretty interesting from a biological perspective in general.

And for another story that makes me want to be a scientist in order to fully appreciate and understand it-- apparently there are black holes approaching one another that will eventually collide and destroy their galaxy.  For some nerdy entertainment, check out the "edited" notes at the end-- just a little math error!

 

Have a dinner conversation at some point about the new TLC show, My Husband's Not Gay.  Possible points of conversation:  Being Mormon, the concept of this show and whether or not you agree with the petition, or the fact that TLC really is an acronym for The Learning Channel.

Have a great week!