the tooth

it has come out!

diapers and water for Lebanon

You're no doubt aware of the situation in Lebanon.

Our partner in Lebanon is taking responsibility to provide supplies and coordinate relief activities to the Zicco House Relief Center in Hamra, Beirut - specifically focusing on the needs of women and children, such as diapers, which are not covered by relief kits.
They're asking for 1000 times $62.50 to provide health and sanitation kits to 1000 female-headed households.

It is now estimated that 10 000 are displaced in Beirut.

lil updates

Voila. With the blink of an eye, the lil one is sitting up on her own, eating applesauce, trying to crawl (but struggling to lift her buddha belly off the floor), singing along, staring at her books and chewing their corners, and mostly trying to run around everywhere (you have read correctly: not walk, but run). pity our lumbar vertebraes as this means much time spent bent over with our hands below our knees.

In a week she'll be six months old, and i might allow myself to feel a great sense of accomplishment. i meant to nurse her for a long time; it has been a real test of my resolve at times, but I feel I've made it and I'm so darn glad. i also wanted to follow her lead, so when she was imitating us with her plastic spoon and cup and desperately trying to stick her fingers into our food, we introduced applesauce (the standard French first food. no rice cereal. contact me if you care to know why). I dare think of this as resolve with flexibility ;)

By the way, and I won't dwell on the subject any longer: although i'm convinced of the health benefits of breastfeeding (to the child, but certainly not to the mother!), and although all kinds of research points to how great it is (latest: natural painkiller), and although it is the single most convenient way to soothe a baby, I have vowed never to judge a woman's choice in that regard. Every situation and every child is different.

What next? I think another tooth may reveal itself in the coming couple of days.

coming up short

I fail.

Every day, I fail. And yet I keep on trying.

Trying to focus at work while my little one is crying - I end up running to her rescue or crying myself. Or both.
I had always thought of working from home as the ability to minimize travel time, the ability to maximize time with her, and have lunch and dinner with P and so on. I had never thought of it as the supplice of hearing my child cry while I'm at work.

Trying to soak in every day with the afore-mentioned lil one, and give her love and attention.

Trying to get through a couple of chores and bills and correspondence.

Trying to have some time with P.

I have so far failed to have much time to myself since the birth: one swim session with my sister. Zilch for yoga. I do steal some time to read a page here or there while I nurse.

I don't feel sorry for myself.

It just occurred to me today that instead of wondering where we are failing, and why this is so challenging, I should be amazed at the fact that we are both still working, and have no babysitter (not that I haven't tried. This may be a topic for another post.), and have plenty of visitors and distractions. So there, I'm finding the silver lining!


Two excellent books I highly recommend:
- Suite Francaise by Irène Némirovsky : a novel relating the French debacle of 1940-41 - the exodus, the German soldiers living in the homes of widows, of mothers of prisoners of war, of women falling in love with them, etc. written during the war without the luxury of hindsight. In fact the author died in Auschwitz and never wrote the last part she intended to her novel. An incredible portrait of French people and their failings.
- Africa Trek (I and II) by Sonia and Alexandre Poussin : the unbelievable story of a couple walking 14 000 kilometers (9 000 miles) from South Africa to Israel with the theme of walking in the footsteps of early humanity. No logistical plans, no car, no safety net. Just African generosity, wildlife and thirst and incredible portraits of countries and people.

US links

In random news:
US: selling to the worried well - aka drugs for healthy people - aka the medicalisation of our bodies

US's supposed high energy weapons

KKK: is Kinder Kirche Küche the right's agenda? Unwanted pregnancies delined for upper socio-eco but rose for the lower; now want to make abortion, contraception and sex ed taboo. mmh.

More women worldwide smoking


In a single article on mother murderers and rigid Christian sex roles:

Any church that forbids contraception must be told: "This woman may die. Her children's lives are at stake."

Sarah contacted me because of an article I wrote four years ago pointing out the role of conservative Christian churches in empowering abusive husbands.

Doctors and mental health agencies need to move from a hands-off stance that stresses patient rights to a position of engagement with the community surrounding a patient.

As her second trial plays out, it's clear that there were three steps in [Andrea Yates'] metamorphosis [from a seemingly happy bride in published photos to a killer]: an oppressive marriage, repeated childbirths and mismanagement of mental illness.

Web users urged on China policy: telling Yahoo, Microsoft and Google not to censure; are those companies there to provide freedom to the Chinese as they claim or to make a profit? I won't bother polling for opinion ;)

And a fascinating look at Tutunkhamen's space gem

to DDT or not to DDT

Thanks Dan - I always enjoy your dissent. Katya was spot on in what I meant. And for once I'm not taking issue with the Bush administration per say, but more widely with the media coverage of the event and the public's expectations and response. I agree with you that in war people die without due process. But it hadn't even occurred to me that he was a soldier at war (despite all the rhetoric about the war on terrorism); and nowhere in the coverage did I see "this is ok to do only because we're at war, remember, and we would normally give this guy a fair trial".
Side comment: if only one side were to declare war (the other were silent), and use this state of one-sided war as an excuse for killing without due process, what then?
Further side comment: is it ok to use war to excuse this killing, and yet to consider prisoners not prisoners of war, and the geneva convention optional?

In misc news:
- Volunteer rates hit record numbers

- An Iranian friend of a relative went back to Iran for tourism. Her family had left after the revolution and she was the first to step foot in the country. naively. She was detained for a couple days upon leaving: she did not carry with her authorization from her male guardian for travel (husband/father/brother). interestingly enough this is one of the issues our partners are working on. stay tuned for campaign details relating to this and citizenship rights. Oh and she made it out ok; something about divorce and such.

- Every year hair worth about $136 million is shipped from India; mostly hair donated in temples, intended as devotion, not commerce.

- women push for seats at climate policy table because they are disproportionally hit by climate change consequences

- to DDT or not to DDT; in other words malayria vs. developmental harm to children

- and here's what French supporters have to say - or show - about Materazzi! No comment about anything else ;)