To Wii or Not to Wii

This post will prove that homeschoolers are a bad influence, especially if the all-electronic-media-is-BAD information out there has influenced you.

But before I get into that: Happy 4th of July! A day or so later. Now you're onto me. I'm behind on my blog.

We went to a BBQ that we go to every year. A very nice couple and their two little girls (6 and 9) host it. They are both Ph.D. researchers in the brain lab, where the brain surgeon does a fair share of his research. Some of the other brain surgeons occasionally attend and the sister-in-law of the wife-half is married to a neurologist as well. So it’s a brainy good time.

We always start with the whole party at the Pacific Palisades parade put on by the Palisades Americanism Parade Association (um, mouthful), which is usually a mix of so-so bands, drill teams and a few odd groups (usually some religious groups and a few community groups). My favorites are these elderly guys (I think they are called the Oompahs or something similar) who come out in short-sleeved white button downs, white boxers and black socks with what I now affectionately call “sock-spenders,” which are like little elastics on the tops of the socks that hold them up, except that they don’t always hold them up. This time they did a little drill-team-type routine. It rocked!!!

I was thinking that maybe Holly Madison on the Girls Next Door could incorporate this particular fashion option on the show along with her tube socks. Wouldn’t that be so HOT? Sex-kitten sock-spenders!!!

Just the other day, I wrote about buying real suspenders. Is this a sign from God herself? Am I supposed to buy things that suspend? Should I go into the suspending business? What does it all mean?

Oops. I digressed.

Anyhoo, after the parade, we headed to the house. We all played and ate (veggie BBQ options) endlessly until it got dark and then we watched the fireworks. They have quite a spectacular view of the fireworks from their backyard.

This time, they had a new karaoke machine and my two oldest (3 and 5) impressed everyone with their fabulous singing and the fact that they knew most of the High School Musical soundtrack, which they had memorized from listening to it in the car.

Yes, I know the truth is they might have annoyed everyone, but that’s what they get for pretending to be impressed and egging the little darlings on.

How the foray into High School Musical happened might be fodder for another post, but there it is.

Anyway, wow, I’ve REALLY digressed. I’m writing about Wii.

So, we’re going to the California Homeschool Network homeschool conference next month and random people keep mentioning this Guitar Hero competition that will happen there. I’ve been sort of ignoring this on the updates, but then they sent out a list of rehearsal songs and said they were opening a category for 5 to 7 year olds and I thought my daughter might like to do that.

So I Googled Guitar Hero and became instantly overwhelmed.

I’m apparently the last person in the entire universe to know this, but you can’t just buy Guitar Hero. You have to buy a system to play it on.

Okay, so I’ll just buy the system, I thought. But, no. It cannot be that simple. Of course, you can play it on more than one system.

So, I’m a research freak and the research began. I searched online. I asked people I know. Most of them are in the same (should I just say it?) parenting elitist intellectual Southern California crowd that I’m apparently in and had the “Oh, no, we don’t do much media. We really would rather go out and really live life,” attitude. Yes, someone actually said those exact words.

But, I’m also very influenced by the radical unschooler crowd (though I’ve said before and I’ll say again: They can be quite rude and superior themselves), which is more in the “Everything Bad is Good For You” camp. As a result, I’ve been opening my mind a bit more about media types, media limits and how so many studies apply to kids in the traditional public school or private school settings rather than my kids.

We did unschool the television, for example. We just started letting them watch as much as they wanted instead of having some predetermined amount of TV time set. I had been anal about a one-hour-a-day limit. Well, guess what. They almost never watched a full hour of television before we took the limit off and they still don’t. So limiting versus not limiting didn’t seem to make a difference and not limiting sure seems easier.

Okay, back to gaming. Our experience thus far is this. First, my daughter received a Leapster L-Max gaming system handheld thing as a gift about a year ago and didn’t really get into it. I planned to limit it, but never had to. Next, my children received a V.Smile system for Christmas this year. Again, I thought I’d have to limit it, but didn’t have to.

What do I mean by that? Well, my daughter never played on the Leapster for more than about an hour or two per week. My daughter and son play the V.Smile together occasionally, maybe once a week for about one half-hour.

Really. That’s it. I think they have so many things to do, that these things are just options to them, like any other option, just like the radical unschoolers (not all unschoolers) say. I find that fascinating. I’m not sure that this would be the case if we purchased the Wii, because it looks about a thousand times more entertaining than the Leapster or V.Smile, but we’ll see.

Anyway, I very quickly decided that the Wii was the system I’d prefer, due to all of its AI and virtual reality features. You can play as a family and there are so many get-off-your-butt games. Plus, and I personally want Wii Fit, too. That looks super cool and I so need the exercise!

The brain surgeon admitted that all he knew of the current gaming world was Halo and that he would like to have it (yes, dear, even though it is a bloody shoot-em-up game), but Halo doesn’t come on Wii.

I’m trying to be open, supportive and not controlling. I’m all about natural limits. That’s a natural limit, right?

Okay, but really, that Wii thing has so many fun things to do. I realized that I want more than just Guitar Hero and Wii Fit. I also want Rock Band and Dance Revolution, which, if anything like the arcade version, is a workout like no other: Check out this kid!



I'd also want Endless Ocean, Big Brain Academy: Wii Degree (will it make us smarter?), and my children would likely love the High School Musical one with the microphone. My daughter would also likely enjoy the Hannah Montana game, even though she doesn’t really know who that is yet. She loves to sing and dance. Oh and my mom would love a car racing one. There’s well over a hundred games. I’m so tempted.

Of course, this all comes with a hefty price tag and sort of goes against my current drive to be frugal based on the fact that as a freelancer, I choose projects based on how many hours I need to work and more spending = more projects = less time devoted to my quickly-growing children.
Plus, when would I have time to play these games? It’s a tough call.

So for now, I’ll keep asking around and doing the research. I’ll consult my family and friends. I don’t think I’ll run out and buy a Wii or Guitar Hero or any of it for now, but if we receive one as a gift (and now that I’ve mentioned it to my mother, we probably will), you probably won’t see me in the return line, either.

Toodles!

Happy Independence from Spanking Day!

I said I would write about the Biblical spanking debate so here goes.

FYI, I’m not a religious person, per se. I can’t do organized religion because I’ve never found a church that wasn’t filled with mean people. However, I’ve got years of religious training under my belt and I do know my way around the Bible, so I had to pull out some scriptures when the fanatics and I had a discussion.

I’m definitely not speaking for God. I might be into unschooling God or unchurching perhaps, though maybe I’m a Universalist Unitarian. I like the community aspect of the church experience. That’s it for the disclaimers.

I also love this anti-spanking site. He goes head-to-head with the pro-hitters (and there are a lot of them!)

So, I’ve never seen the word “spank” in any Bible I’ve ever read. Have you? I have never seen instruction that says to hit the child in the Bible, although I’ve seen some really nutty interpretations online and in books. The references I’ve read are the “spare the rod” and other guidance passages, which I believe have nothing to do with hitting children.

If people insist on using the Bible as their excuse for hitting kids, why can’t any of them pull out a Bible passage that INDUBITABLY says to hit a child?

Well, because it does not exist.

Okay, and to really throw a wrench in things, here are some scriptures from the King James version. Here, if we want to be literal, no “pop” on the rear will do…

Proverb 23:13 Withhold not correction from the child: for if thou beatest him with the rod, he shall not die.

Proverb 23:14 Thou shalt beat him with the rod, and shalt deliver his soul from hell.

So, if we take it literally, we MUST BEAT our children with THE ROD - and no worries, he will not die. Besides, if you don’t BEAT them with THE ROD, they’ll go to hell, and we certainly don’t want to add hellfire and damnation to indiscretions like touching the stove or saying “no” to mama.

If we view the Bible in parables and the rod as the wooden rod sheepherders used or as the rod being that in the scroll the pages were originally on (insert “train them up by the Word of God”), however, there is room for loving guidance that doesn’t require hitting. I think some people CHOOSE to interpret it differently because they PREFER to hit - either it is “comfortable” to them because they grew up with it (and children who were hit tend to enter into the same patterns) or it is less work for them.

Someone also implied Jesus used “situational” violence when necessary. WHAT? They had the one typical and lame example of Jesus in the temple, so I had to pull out some more scriptures. No, I don’t have 20 versions of the Bible in my house. You’ve gotta love the Internet.

Let’s all read these and ponder this: Might Jesus have made the whip thingy in case He would need it for self defense? Might He have made it as a sort of leash to lead out the oxen and sheep? Were the cords assembled to tie up the oxen? You’ll note, it doesn’t even say Jesus hit oxen.

New American Standard Bible (©1995)
And He made a scourge of cords, and drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and the oxen; and He poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables;

King James Bible
And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables;

American King James Version
And when he had made a whip of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables;

American Standard Version
and he made a scourge of cords, and cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers money, and overthrew their tables;

Bible in Basic English
And he made a whip of small cords and put them all out of the Temple, with the sheep and the oxen, sending in all directions the small money of the changers and overturning their tables;

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when he had made, as it were, a scourge of little cords, he drove them all out of the temple, the sheep also and the oxen, and the money of the changers he poured out, and the tables he overthrew.

Darby Bible Translation
and, having made a scourge of cords, he cast them all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the change of the money-changers, and overturned the tables,

English Revised Version
and he made a scourge of cords, and cast all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew their tables;

GOD’S WORD® Translation (©1995)
He made a whip from small ropes and threw everyone with their sheep and cattle out of the temple courtyard. He dumped the moneychangers’ coins and knocked over their tables.

Weymouth New Testament
So He plaited a whip of rushes, and drove all–both sheep and bullocks–out of the Temple. The small coin of the brokers He upset on the ground and overturned their tables.

Webster’s Bible Translation
And when he had made a scourge of small cords, he drove them all out of the temple, and the sheep, and the oxen; and poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew the tables;

World English Bible
He made a whip of cords, and threw all out of the temple, both the sheep and the oxen; and he poured out the changers’ money, and overthrew their tables.

Young’s Literal Translation
and having made a whip of small cords, he put all forth out of the temple, also the sheep, and the oxen; and of the money-changers he poured out the coins, and the tables he overthrew.

Nowhere does any of that say Jesus was violent. If Jesus hit or beat anyone, why doesn’t the book of John (or any book) say so?

Note also that the translation (whip, cord, scourge, etc.) is not consistent.

He did clearly overturn some tables. If we are really desperate to prove Jesus was violent, I suppose that could fit, but He might have turned them over gently, too.

I’m still waiting for someone to show me anywhere in any Bible where Jesus hit anyone, particularly children.

That’s it on spanking, for now.

Toodles!

Dear Diary

Well, I think I’ve finally found my direction for this, my umpteenth attempt at blogging for me. I think I’ll just make it a journal of my day and forget it.

So, today here is what happened:

I woke up this morning with two out of three kids in bed with me. The brain surgeon was headed to the lab to research brain tumors. It was somewhere around 6 a.m.

I’m a night owl, so I hate 6 a.m.

Since I have a crazy toddler, I had to get up. There was no choice.

I dragged myself out of bed. I just couldn’t be peppy yet, so I did what any self-respecting-wannabe-anti-TV-but-not-really mom would do…I turned on Noggin.

Oh wait, no I didn’t. Because it was already on.

I forgot that my mother-in-law was (is!) here. She came in last night unannounced, as usual, from Kuna, ID (where?). Not that I mind. I don’t. It’s just that I’d like a little warning. A little mental preparation.

And the brain surgeon is VERY patient about my mother, too.

It's how I met her, too. The brain surgeon and I had begun cohabiting (yes, in sin), only then he was a a mere medical student. It was my first time cohabiting and he hadn’t told his parents much about me yet, including that we lived together. I’m on my way home from the hospital en route to the gym when he announces, “By the way, I’m picking my mother up from the airport on the way home, so you get to meet her.” WHAT?

She used to be a flight attendant for United, so the woman just hops on a plane whenever the hell she feels like it. SURPRISE!

The night she met me, I was stinky and sweaty and I promptly hopped in her son’s shower.

I’m not the ho, you da ho, Idaho.

Anyway, so the truth is I left the TV on this morning. I admit it. I watched whatever was on – Jack’s Big Music Show or some kid video segment. It was so unschool cool of me, except all I know was they were bouncing around singing something about having a party for no reason and I wanted to throw the remote at the screen.

But instead, I dragged my lazy ass to the kitchen and started assembling breakfast. Fruit, cereal. Too tired to make their usual green smoothie. Yes, my little children love green smoothies.

Then, I had to get everything ready for Carmen to arrive, because well I just had to. (My friend, a former high-end nanny, says I should fire Carmen over the fact that I have to prep things for her, but whatever).

In case you’re wondering, Carmen is legal, but she didn’t used to be. Everyone in L.A. asks that question. Is she legal? Would they ask that if she was from Canada? nnnnoooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

Oh, also for the record, she has helped our family for almost three years and works about 20 hours a week.

Carmen arrived at 8. I spent the next hour trying to dress my eldest, Miss M., and myself, while my two younger children clung mercilessly to my legs. I know what you're thinking: "Where was Carmen?" It's complex.

Anyway, I load my crap (computer bag for me, computer bag for Miss M, lunch for us both, big bag of recycling) and drag my daughter to my office to work (I go in about two or three times a week for half a day and I bring Miss M with me). I arrived at 10 a.m. Only four hours after getting out of bed to get to my office less than six blocks away. Not bad!!!

Geeze.

Today was busy. I squeezed in two new client calls (one marketing gig for a low-toxicity cleaner and one book ghostwriting gig) between finishing two news stories (one on antioxidants and one on physician advice about smoking) and reviewing my edits on four more news stories that other people wrote (good writers, so not too tough). Plus, I reformatted a peer-reviewed journal article.

My daughter did her Time4Learning home school curriculum and made presents for me including pictures of princesses and one of me from a recent new business presentation pasted on Snow White. Oooooh, the symbolism.

She also does Kumon, as does L-man, but it's like pulling teeth to get them to do it, so we are transitioning away from it.

Then, the brain surgeon left the lab to bring his mother back from her cataract surgery (also news to me!) and picked up Miss M at my office for lunch. Then they went home and picked up BooBoo and the L-Man and took them all to story time at the Beverly Hills Public Library (which is a pain to sign up for, but really nice). Carmen left at 1. Go Hubby! I love that you’re on research.

So, in a nutshell, I worked uninterrupted for several hours today. I felt productive. Usually I don't feel productive at all. And I didn't even have to feel guilty most of the day, because the children were with their father (who happens to be the best young father on the planet. He's handy with brains, too!). Oh holy sanity!

Then, at 5, the brain surgeon called to tell me the baby was feverish and barfing, so I raced home, gave her a bath, nursed her, got barfed upon, took a bath with her, nursed her some more, got barfed upon some more (repeat cycle over and over), shoveled down vegan Pad Thai while nursing some more, and finally got my sick BooBoo to sleep in my bed.

Then the brain surgeon came in to lay with sick baby while I handled the BBR (before-bed routine) with Miss M and L-Man and put them to bed.

I was then really excited (um) to get this peer-reviewed article back to my client, but realized that the movement of some paragraphs means I’ve got to reorder the references. Sigh. I couldn't face it and thus I blog.

Bliggy blog blog.

Anyway, this is fun. The diary I haven’t had time to do. We’ll see how it goes.

It’s 5 minutes shy of 1 a.m. Time to attempt to shut the brain down (totally not what happens, but you know that) and get my 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 hours of sleep. 1, 2, 3, 4, Hi-5!

Toodles!

Sophomore English

Okay, this is going to sound really bitchy at first (or maybe throughout), but at class the other night, five of us were standing around bonding, joking, perhaps being a little catty (actually, doggy and catty, as three of “us” were men) when I realized that high school just repeats itself and we were forming our clique.

Now, of course, it is because the week before, we had actually gone back to high school. It was Caesar Chavez day and our normal room was closed, so we went to Fairfax High School, which was much more depressing a place than my high school ever was.

Anyway, we all sat there in our high school desks. Several people I spoke to admitted it made them feel rebellious just sitting there. Everyone was less engaged, sighed more and seemed genuinely bored.

Of course, it might have more than just the setting that caused the boredom, but anyhoo…

I definitely have already figured out with whom I’d choose to break bread – or in reality share nachos with – because if I’m gonna break code and eat something processed, it may as well be a gastronomical joy.

I’m just going to say it. Some of these people are really quirky. I’m quirky. I know this. But I’m quirky in a nondescript, mainstream kind of way. I’m pretty vanilla.

But SOME OF THESE PEOPLE. Well, a lot of them are actors and we all know how actors are. At those of us in Los Angeles do.

See? There you go already forming opinions about my opinions before you even know what I’m going to say.

I love actors. Some of my best friends and favorite family members dabble in the sport. Actors are the people who will go out on a limb in my writing class. I love this.

In my class, we have:

• People who can write, but cannot act. They read well, but they don’t get all into it.

• People who write well and read well, adding an appropriate level of oomph.

• People who write not-so-well, but read and act so well, you start to think, "maybe this guy's writing is not so bad after all."

But then, there are my absolute favorites:

• People who cannot write to save their lives and cannot act either, but read as if they are putting on an academy award-winning performance of the best screenplay ever written.

And then there’s this guy, who wears a shirt advertising his public assess TV show each week and seems a bit too peppy.

I honestly don’t know why I haven’t wet myself a few times. So damned funny.

Toodles.

Adventures in Homeschooling

We are really starting our adventures in homeschooling. I’ve read voraciously about everything from radical unschooling to more traditional (and definitely more rigid) routes. I’m unquestionably an eclectic homeschooler, but I suppose our children will help define how it all turns out. Plus, my eldest is only 5, so I’m still enjoying my time exploring the options.

I don’t know why I sometimes act like I’m still on the fence. Really, I’m now fully convinced that homeschooling is the best option for us. Besides, we never really get the strange looks I hear others suffer from when we say we are homeschooling.

Since my dear husband is a brain surgeon and I’ve got a decent education, people don’t worry about if we’re “smart enough.” Plus, he taught Kindergarten before med school and I’ve done some teaching myself, so we can pull out those cards.

I do think the idea that you have to have an education to facilitate your child’s learning is a farce, though. My sister quit school very young. The fact is, she’s friggen brilliant and school bored her. She learned everything she needed to know without the drudgery and she’s a successful (and not just moderately) business co-owner with her husband today.

Many have documented successful homeschooling students regardless of the education levels attained by the homeschooling parents.

However, now that homeschooling is potentially in jeopardy in California, I realize it is time for me to take an official position on homeschooling. No more “we’re probably going to homeschool for a while” comments for me. Now that a judge in the 2nd Appellate Court in Los Angeles decided that public school is a good solution for the problem of child abuse (huh?), all of our rights are in jeopardy (see court docs here).

Most homeschooling organizations (e.g. CHN and HSLDA) are saying not to panic, but I do find myself watching the news about homeschooling with fervor I haven’t had since I first started entertaining the idea.

On the other hand, I think the worry is a bit silly and the logic flawed. If we expect those who teach children in California to have a teaching credential, for example, that would practically shut down most of the private schools – and even many of the expensive, chi-chi schools in L.A. have non-credentialed teachers.

Like having a credential guarantees you can teach kids? Then why are so many kids in public schools failing?

And honestly, from watching my children thus far, I’m not sure anyone needs to teach them anything, although out of paranoia or instinct or habit or all three.

I do think there is a place for public school. I’m just not sure what it is. Some kids do need an escape from the home, I suppose, but then shouldn’t we just call a spade a spade in that circumstance?

Some parents don’t have the patience, resources or desire to homeschool. Institutionalized education is certainly an alternative for those families. Alas, some parents don’t want to be around their children all day. Let’s be honest: Many folks can barely contain themselves until kindergarten – and thus free daycare until adulthood – kicks in.

Scoff if you will, but I hear parents say it all the time. “Once they’re in school, I’ll….” It’s sad, really, but it is so universal in our culture that it sounds almost normal to say that we are essentially so sick of children that we can’t wait until all we have to handle is before school, bedtime and weekend duty.

There are agendas, there, as well. What are some possible motives to pull all children away from their families at young ages? Per the precedent court case, is the teaching of “patriotism” to nation and state (that line is just too reminiscent of little children saying “Heil Hitler”) to mass quantities of little Americans necessary to assure enough volunteers for the military (who would have signed up for the Iraq war without a little brainwashing!). What about the economy? Kids in school means more mothers in the workforce. The bureaucracy behind public schools and the public schools themselves, create jobs.

So obvious. More later.


Toodles.