An NCIS script? Are you nuts?

Over the last few weeks I've been tweeting then Facebooking with a newly discovered online friend who feeds my analytical writing side--the English major in me who likes to discuss story, symbolism, and the dreaded significance. We're not talking Shakespeare or Dickens or even Austen. We're talking NCIS. Up to this point we've created some McMayhem and some fantastic t-shirts dedicated to the writers of NCIS. But we've also caused one another to think about what we write, and how we learn about writing in different ways.

Colorguard28 writes that she's not a visual thinker, and that she struggles to see the images she writes. I, on the other hand, see the images and struggle to describe what I see with the detail that exists in my imagination. I've considered for months participating in Script Frenzy this year, but since I completely bombed at NaNoWriMo in the fall, I've hesitated. The more I've thought about it, the more committed I've become. The theatre muse who helped write 3 summer shows for the teen theatre is ready to try her hand a an NCIS script.

Our Texas Trip

The hubs and I flew to Texas last week to visit with our sons and to see the newest Barton, Moriah (born Christmas Day). We're still here and loving it, even though snow arrived today and I picked up a cold somewhere--probably from the woman next to me on the flight from Chicago to St. Louis. Still I'm very glad we came.

Yesterday we went to Central Market, a grocery store that I am tempted to relocate for. The produce section was amazingly the size of some markets alone with huge amount of organic produce. When we walked in the door, there were ruby red grapefruit so large that Bekah called them pumpkins. The fish and meat section had butchers, not just clerks. The wine and beer section was massive and then there was the rest of the store. We went on Saturday, so samples were on the agenda. Who needed lunch?

We drove back past the campus of Rose Bowl champions TCU. I was tempted to bring home a Rose Bowl shirt, but figured my Ohio State neighbors wouldn't be amused.

Today we visited my sons' church. Very nice congregation that seems to know the  meaning of worship. I have strong opinions on music in church and that it shouldn't resemble a concert. I want to hear the congregation singing, whether I'm off stage or on. I'm told that the congregation was a little light because of the pending bad weather, still I could hear those gathered for worship over those on the the stage. My younger son played percussion today. He tells me that the worship leader told the singers not to sing too loudly, only if the congregation needed help with the music. Apparently, it's not them performing but rather assisting the congregation in singing together. Mmmmm. I love that concept.

We'll be heading back on Tuesday. I'm not anxious to get back, but working from here on the laptop has not been the easiest thing to do. If I could hang out here longer, I certainly would. I know that I'm not waiting so long for the next visit.

Christmasy things

Christmas started for me at the end of last summer, or at least my Christmas knitting did. This is the year of the scarf and I have knit a bunch of them. Everyone got a scarf or a shawlette, with the exception of my granddaughters who got vests. One also got a poncho--oh and my daughters-in-laws got socks. I suppose I didn't really grasp the amount of knitting and purling I've done until my youngest son texted me on their Christmas (two days later) and said that I must have been knitting like a mad woman.  He also said that they had received an inordinate amount of knitted things. *blush*

In other news, their Christmas was two days late because my newest granddaughter was born on Christmas Day. Moriah certainly brought a new meaning to the Christmas story as I waited through the night for news. For the first time in probably 26 years I didn't have to stay up late to wrap or assemble Christmas gifts after Christmas Eve service, and I still stayed up late, this time on baby watch.

The knitting continues, however. I was one scarf short, so I'm knitting one for a brother-in-law. Fortunately, that Christmas party is not until Saturday. I also have a blanket for Moriah on the needles and a red riding hood for Bekah, and as always there are socks in my purse. This thing you do with the yarn is addicting.

No time for melancholy ramblings.

Just deleted a positively morose post lamenting how my peer group is dragging me into acting their age not mine. I am younger than my hubby and a good portion of our friends--many of who are ready to hand the baton to the next generation. I really need to remind them that while they are staring down or passing 60, I'm closer to 50 than 55 and have no intention of packing it in yet.

The Red Scarf Project

My Christmas knitting has gotten a little sidetracked with the discovery of Orphan Foundation of America's Red Scarf Project. According to their website:

OFA helps former foster children become successful adults. In most states, foster youth leave the social services system when they turn 18. In the eyes of the court they’re adults, but few 18 year olds are emotionally, mentally or financially able to support themselves. Without someone to guide them, too many end up homeless, unemployed, incarcerated or pregnant. But it doesn't have to be that way. Thanks to the generosity of thousands of volunteers and donors, OFA is changing the odds for former foster youth every day.

One of their projects is the Red Scarf Project for which crafters make red scarves to give to these young people for Valentine's Day to encourage them.

This project strikes a chord with me because I am an orphan. I wasn't part of the foster care system, but I was raised by my aunt and uncle after the deaths of my parents. I understand what it is like to be 18 and on your own, trying to find your way in the world. Not that my aunt and uncle weren't there if I needed them, but I never felt comfortable enough to ask for their help. From the day I left for college (when I was still 17) I felt that I was on my own.

The Red Scarf Project is a small way that I can encourage someone that they can make it. I've done it, and I'm passing on a scarf to let them know that I've been there and I know they can do it too.  If you'd like to join in just follow the link.

Unfollow/Unfriend: Online relationships and the written word.

I haven't written a serious post for a while, but over the last couple of days I've had some run ins with another NCIS fan that have given me pause to think. I'm part of a large community of fans of Twitter, and while I know that there are other much more volatile fan forums, serious use of the #NCIS stream is not for the faint of heart. Scattered among the "this episode is awesome" tweets and the "Mark Harmon is hot for an old guy" tweets, there is some serious discussion about character development, plot lines and the people who create them. The discussion gets hot, sometimes hotter than the 140 character porn slash that also shows up in the stream.

In some ways, it amazes me that people get so fired up over a TV show, especially one on its 8th season, but that is the beast that is NCIS. It changed from a straight crime drama to something more along the lines of a dark comedy--more kin to Monk than to its JAG roots. The change has not gone unnoticed. It hit a chord with millions of Americans and is still the number one scripted show as the crowds flocked to 8 pm Tuesday nights (or as I dubbed it on Twitter, #NCIS Day). Not everyone is happy with the change.

Becoming a dark comedy meant changing the characters. Character growth is natural, but some of them grew in ways that some of the original fans didn't like and they will let you know their feelings on the subject. That is really the point of my blog today. Dealing with those fans.

For the most part, I enjoy chatting online with my Tweeps. The conversations are usually fluff, but we do share the ups and downs of our days and we care about one another. Many of us at this point have met IRL (in real life), still others have snail mailed packages, bought and sold art/crafts, and have genuinely established relationships with one another. We've invested time and emotions into one another's lives. It's an investment that those not online may not understand, but it's no less an investment in a relationship than that of a coworker or a friend on a ball team. So, when one of the voices becomes difficult to hear, what does one do?

In my IRL experience, I have learned to overlook character traits that bother me whenever possible. I can even say that I have learned to love people not in spite of their flaws, but including their flaws (I am not perfect at this, but I've come a long way.) IRL, we have the benefit of face-to-face interaction, one-on-one time. We are more than just what we say.

Online, especially on Twitter, we are only what we say. Good or bad, we are limited to 140 character soundbites which may or may not be interpreted how we intended. Something we write, thinking we sound clever, may come across as snarky and cause a problem where none existed. Or, because of the casual anonymity of online communication, we may throw something out there that we would never say to someone face to face. We forget that we are speaking with real people with real feelings. We forget to show some respect and common courtesy and start a flame war.

If we are what we write when we are online, we should probably be more careful about what we say and how we say it. Certainly we have the right to express our opinions and carry on lively debate, but when the discussion is reduced to a steady stream of our opinion that is who we become. We are our opinion. We become less the person behind the words. We become the words. Words, on Twitter, you can filter out. We can stop following. We can use the filter tools on Tweetdeck. We can make the words stop.

But there are people behind the words.

There's the rub. There are words that I'm tired of reading. Last night I filtered and then unfollowed some of the words. The problem is, there are people behind those words in whom I have invested time, with whom I have a connection. It's easy to unfollow. Its harder to unfriend.

Snippets

Just a few of the things I'm up to:

• midnight show of Harry Potter tonight. Not dressing up, but am taking knitting. Will answer to Mrs. Weasley.
• finished yet another Purl Ridge Scarf and now working on a vest for one of the girls. It's called Boheme and if you're on Ravelry, you can find it here.
• Still chewing on the fabulous NCIS episode this week. The NCIS Exposition Faerie wrote up her thoughts. Finally we're looking at Vance's backstory. Can't wait for next week.

My queue of knitting projects keeps growing. Lots of new things to try. Just need to get through my Christmas knitting first.

A perspective nearing 100.

It's an interesting thing losing a large amount of weight. I'm looking a loss of 100 lbs squarely in the face. Only 2 more pounds to go. It's been revealing from my own perspective and from that of others. Little things like being able to easily trim one's toe nails all the way up to the big things like being able to walk a 10k race make an impression. So do things people say.

One of the most remarkable is that people don't recognize me. I find that I have to tell people I haven't seen for a while who I am; and people who do see me regularly still do a double take. I can't blame them. I did one myself a couple weeks ago. Yes, I look that good and that different.

I also find that a lot of people now find excuses for why they aren't losing weight. As much as I'd like to be able to take them along with me on my journey, it really is a matter of something just clicking inside that makes you know you have to do this. I try to remember to encourage them that when I started this adventure, I couldn't walk around the block. Now I can walk miles. Also, when I started, I ate more than my 1200-1500 calories because I needed it just to lug around the fat.

I've had an amazing support group, and very few of them have I met online. Most of them are my friends on Twitter and Facebook, and I've only met a few. Most of them don't know what I looked like before, although I do share pics if asked. They encourage me to keep going when I'm flailing, and generally I've been pretty open with them about my struggles and my victories. I hope that some of them follow me in the adventure.

I still have more to lose, but as I'm reaching for the next 2 lbs, I'm also thinking that it's less a matter of a target weight and more a matter of continuing to eat healthy and exercise. Where I land, I land. But first, these 2 pesky pounds need to say bye-bye.

I Surrender.

Given the choice between knitting and writing, I have chosen knitting. There is something about the feel of the yarn and the satisfaction of seeing the work grow on the needles that just isn't being derived from watching words stack up on the page.

I posted that I'm enjoying socks, and I am. I'm also enjoying shawlettes and interesting scarves. My current project is called the Purl Ridge Scarf (I found the pattern on Ravelry. It's knit in the round and is long enough to loop around your neck a couple times. I'm using a couple skeins of Paton Classic wool in Denim Marl in my attempt to knit through my stash for Christmas. That might be an interesting Advent calendar to blog *makes mental note*.

Meanwhile, it's another NCIS night, which is the ONLY TV show I don't knit through. I've tried. I end up frogging my work. Somethings do rate above the needles. NCIS is one of them.

Day three of NaNoWriMo

Besides it being my birthday, day three finds me with an interesting turn in my storyline and wishing I hadn't chosen to make this a fan fic. I knew I would regret it. Still, I press on. I can always edit the characters later. The important thing, everyone tells me, is just to write.

I'm also pushing through on my knitting projects. I know I haven't mentioned here, but I have in other places that I love knitting socks. Why I would attempt NaNoWriMo with so much knitting to do, I can only say, "Peer pressure."

My son's mission trip details

Several of my online friends have asked about my son's upcoming mission trip and have asked how they can help. Below are some of the details:

They will leave Friday, November 19, 2010 and travel to Budapest, Hungary. From Budapest, they will travel by car to the Emmanuel Baptist University in Romania. They will have classes each morning and will evangelize from 12:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. On Friday, November 26, they will leave Budapest and travel to Paris, France. On Sunday, November 28th and Monday November 29 they will take historical tours and evangelize. they return on November 29th.

We ask for your prayers in the following areas:

1. That God's will be done and for travel mercies
2. Preparation of the hearts and minds of those hearing and responding to the presentation of the Gospel
3. Wisdom and discernment to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit
4. Provision and protection. Expenses are $2,200, not including additional expenses for baggage fees, meals and so forth.
5. Wisdom and guidance for the leadership of the mission that includes Dr. Smith (Dean of the College), Christine Hoffman (Secretary of the Dean), and Dr. Birch.

If you would like to help financially, you can mail a check to Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary:

Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary

Attn: Student Financial Aid

P.O. Box 22510

Fort Worth, Texas 76122

Please put "Mission trip, Ethan W. Barton" in the memo. The College will send you a tax-deductible receipt.

Thank you so much for your support.

A Christmas Snow

Last summer I had the privilege of attending the Gideon Film Festival in North Carolina. The primary reason I attended was to see Muse Watson, the actor who plays Mike Franks on "NCIS". However, it turned out to be more than I bargained for. I found myself on the outside looking in on a group of people who were working to fulfill their dreams of making Christian films and telling stories from a Christian perspective. One of those stories was "A Christmas Snow."

"A Christmas Snow" is the story of a grinch-like woman whose father had left one Christmas Eve and spoiled every subsequent Christmas for her, until one snowy Christmas. This year, a blizzard and a houseful of unexpected guests give her a new appreciation for the holiday.

When I saw them movie at the festival, I was charmed by its simple, yet moving story. As time passed, I thought I was just pulled in by the thrill of the festival and of meeting Muse. I had a opportunity to see the movie again recently and was still moved. This is a fine story that puts one in the Christmas spirit, even in October. It has with that substance called Christmas Magic that sits just right with the viewer and reminds one that at Christmas anything is possible.

I highly recommend this movie. You can order a copy at Amazon.com.

Changes ahead

This blog has been languishing. The biggest reason would be my change of job and my corresponding decision to get out of the visible battle for life. Not to say I'm not still actively working toward that end. It's just more as a stage manager than a director--ultimately where I'd more like to be.

So, the blog goes back to it's original focus--me. What I'm doing, reading, watching, knitting, thinking. That may or may not be interesting for some but it's better than nothing and for me it is my life.

Purple Envelope Project

The Red Envelope Project was a huge success. Over 2 million pro-lifers made their voices heard.
It showed me how powerful this type of campaign could be, and gave me an idea to put our numbers to use.

This is Holy Week and we are celebrating the Resurrection. I think it is the perfect time to support those who are working to support life and saving children from abortion.

CareNet and Heartbeat Int. are wonderful organization that have Crisis Pregnancy Centers all over the country. I have no affiliation with them, but I have heard nothing but good things about both and the work that they do.
Here's a link to their sites: http://www.care-net.org/aboutus/ and http://www.heartbeatinternational.org/

Let's take advantage of our numbers and send PURPLE envelopes to Care Net or Heartbeat Int. If you can't find a purple envelope, use a WHITE envelope and write "Purple Envelope Project" on the back. Here's the twist. Instead of sending empty envelopes, PUT IN 1 DOLLAR.

Just think how much we can raise for CareNet and Heartbeat Int. if everyone who sent a red envelope to the White House sends them a purple envelope!

Write this message:
Thank you for all that you do to protect life. Life begins at conception. We appreciate the work you do that helps women choose life. God bless you and your work.


This, like the Red Envelope Project, is something that you can do with your family. Please send your envelope and dollar to one or both of these great organizations.

Here's the addresses:
Care Net
PO Box 758530
Topeka, KS 66675-8530

Heartbeat Int.
665 E. Dublin-Granville Road, Suite 440,
Columbus, OH 43229, USA
Please leave a comment in the comment section if you're planning on participating!

Secretary of State Clinton accepts Margaret Sanger Award

Hillary Clinton accepted Planned Parenthood's Margaret Sanger Award. Here's the transcript of her speech.

What Are Pregnancy Centers?

Last week I wrote that the pro-life movement needs to get the word out on the good that pregnancy centers do. First thing, we need to let people know what pro-life pregnancy centers are.

If you do a search online, you'll undoubtedly come across some articles on what's wrong with pregnancy centers. Generally, these articles are filled with at the best bias based on out-dated information and pro-abortion views, at the worst, outright lies. Rather than rebut the comments, let's just explore what pregnancy centers are and what they do.

1. Pro-life pregnancy centers are not Planned Parenthood.


• Planned Parenthood operates on the premise of "family planning," which translates doing what is necessary to keep from having a baby before you're ready--whether that means providing birth control, emergency contraception, or abortion.


• Pregnancy centers recognize that not all women want to make the choice for abortion and give women other life-affirming options. They operate on the premise that after you are pregnant, it is too late to consider birth control, and will not provide nor refer for abortions. What's more, pregnancy centers usually promote abstinence rather than birth control, responsibility rather than avoidance. The idea being the best way to prevent pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections is by not engaging in the behavior that causes them.



2. While not all pregnancy centers are affiliated with national organizations, those that are, are required to agree to certain guidelines, such as Heartbeat International's Committment of Care. Belonging to a membership organization that pledges to uphold these standards is a requirement before calls are referred to a center through the Option Line website.



3. Pregnancy centers are generally privately funded. While some abstinence programs may have received federal funding, generally the services they provide their clients is free to the client and paid for through the center's supporters. Unlike abortion clinics, they do not make a profit through their services. Pregnancy centers provide free information and assistance to women in need.



4. Pregnancy centers are community organizations run by caring people committed to making their community a better place by helping those in need. Pregnancy center outreaches can include clothing, food, housing, job placement/training, and medical assistance. And because they are community organizations, they are in touch with programs and agencies in their area to assist women in need.

There is a battle being waged against pregnancy centers, trying to stop them from helping women facing an unplanned pregnancy. These arguments are often being made by businesses who might lose profits if their clients chose not to abort. But, they are often made by people who are genuinely concerned for women, but who have a vastly different philosophical approach to meeting their needs.

The need to protect pregnancy centers.

The time has come for life-affirming pregnancy centers and those involved in the pro-life movement to go on the offense, actively promoting the good that pregnancy centers do. A recent article in The Bulletin shows the renewal of threats--an outright campaign--against those who do the most good: Pregnancy Centers.

According to the Philadelphia newspaper, an e-mail was sent to college activists by the Feminist Majority Foundation’s Campus Program announcing a nationwide protest on April 13 against pregnancy care centers that provide free aid and abortion alternatives for women.

The sarcastic side of me wonders if they will stand outside of pregnancy centers with signs depicting babies and offers to kill them.

The realist in me knows that the so-called choice movement has been emboldened by the pro-abortion position of President Obama and the left-leaning Congress and is moving into action to stop pro-life pregnancy centers from giving information and services to women in need. After all, pregnancy centers, generally not-for-profit organizations funded by private donations, eat into the profit margin of abortion clinics.

The Bulletin quotes Virginia Cline of Heartbeat International, “Today, the abortion cartel is a multimillion dollar industry that encourages and promotes abortion for profit … Heartbeat pregnancy centers provide the crucial facts on fetal development and explain the physical and emotional risks of abortion that those selling abortion to women often leave out.”

In the coming weeks, I'll be sharing the good that pregnancy centers do and outlining some of the threats that pregnancy centers face. This is an important message that needs to spread like wildfire. Pregnancy centers are under attack and the pro-life movement must not let them fall.

Time to take care of ourselves.

In one of those convergent moments, an instant of clarity was revealed.

I was already annoyed about discriminatory language remaining in Section 803 of the the stimulus bill.

Section 803 prohibits funds for "modernization, renovation, or repair of [educational] facilities--(i) used for sectarian instruction, religious worship, or a school or department of divinity; or (ii) in which a substantial portion of the functions of the facilities are subsumed in a religious mission."

Congress refused, in spite of an amendment offered by Sen. Jim DeMint (R-SC), to remove that stipulation. The vote failed 54-43. Congress voted to not allow funding to a facility that is used for any type of religious activity--even a school of Divinity. That leaves out schools at even Yale, Harvard, Duke, Wake Forest, any School of Divinity. Incredible!

I know that one of the purposes of stipulations such as this are to control what is taught at our schools. If schools want the government funds, they have to jump through government hoops. It's rare to find a school district, college or university that is willing to sacrifice its accreditation in order to follow the community's own values and curriculum goals. As a homeschool mom, I came to understand that it was necessary to sacrifice the accreditation from my sons' school district, and to sacrifice financially to pay for their education ourselves, in order for my sons to get the education we deemed necessary.

Both sons are now freshmen at a small private college in Texas. We were surprised to find out last fall that the school doesn't take Federal Financial Aid. We were surprised again to discover that the tuition tax deduction and the Hope and Lifetime tax credits are only available to schools who receive Federal Financial Aid.

At that moment I saw our situation for what it is. Like when we homeschooled, if we don't want to follow the mandates of government-sponsored education, we have to not accept government funding. In this case, if it means that we have to forgo the tax deduction for tuition in order to get the education that we want, then we have to step up and pay for it.

The government will never give us what we want on our terms. It's always on theirs. We need to have the courage and the confidence to step out of the system and take care of ourselves.

Thoughts on this week in Washington and What it Means for the Pro-life Movement

I've been mulling over this past week and the pro-life movement. Our new president, Barack Obama, was sworn in, and Obama's abortion agenda loomed overhead while thousands attended the March for Life. There was great concern that Obama might slap pro-lifers in the face with rescinding the Mexico City Policy on the anniversary of Roe V. Wade, however, he waited until take-out-the-trash Friday when it would be more difficult for the not-so-tech-savy Right to comment or report. No worries that the left-wing media will pick up that story and run with it. Besides, we knew that it would be one of his first acts in office, and we knew there was nothing we could do about it but lament--and pray.

I am happy to report, however, that Heartbeat International's Babies Go to Congress event was a hit. People responded well to the idea of taking moms and their babies saved from abortion by pregnancy centers to meet congress persons to show them that pregnancy centers are good for America. Heartbeat is encouraged enough to consider making this an annual event.

Also, Heartbeat's president, Peggy Hartshorn, was interviewed by several news outlets. Peggy has devoted her life to making abortion unthinkable. This interview on CBN is inspiring. Be sure to watch.

It is my belief that pregnancy centers are where the movement needs to be focusing. We need to promote their work as community organizations. We need to protect their work from abortion-lobby interference. And we need to get involved on that grass-roots community level. It is working in our communities where we might just do the most good.

Babies Go to Congress

“On this anniversary of Roe v. Wade, after 37 years of the dehumanizing choice to abort a child, Heartbeat is bringing to Capitol Hill children saved by the compassionate care of pregnancy centers,” said Heartbeat President Peggy Hartshorn, Ph.D. “Members of Congress need to hear from the women we serve. I am grateful they have such positive things to say about pregnancy center help. Children are America’s greatest natural resource, and our elected officials need to preserve the bond between mother and child. Our families and the future of our country are strengthened by the life-saving work of pregnancy centers.”

Heartbeat International, founded in 1971, is an interdenominational Christian association of nearly 1,100 pregnancy resource centers, maternity homes, non-profit adoption agencies, and medical clinics in 48 states and 43 other countries. Heartbeat provides www.OptionLine.org (800-395-HELP) to connect women with the local pregnancy center for the help they need.