Weekend List!

Sarah's List:

Congratulations chemical weapons watchdogs on your new Nobel Prize, you probably have a very tough job. While I was rooting for Malala just as much as the rest of you (Holy Malala Facebook feed!), I've been following this guy for some time now. There aren't enough Nobel Prizes in the world to recognize Denis Mukwege for what he's doing for women in Congo.

I think Alfred would agree.

  by  BlatantWorld.com 

And here's an opinion on 12 people who should not have won the Nobel Peace Prize.

This article has been getting a lot of forwarding action this week. It's a good run-down of Congo's history. It's a basic primer on Congo if you don't know where to start. One striking line that pretty much summarizes everything you need to know:

"The Portuguese, Belgians, Mobutu and the present government have all deliberately stifled the development of a strong state, army, judiciary, and education system, because it interferes with their primary focus, making money from what lies under the earth." (emphasis added by me, that's the most important part!)

  by  Julien Harneis 

Meanwhile in the States, kids can't shake hands after games because they'll attack each other?

Disney Princesses in Accurate Fashion? (Not all that different from Disney fashion, huh?)

 

  by  kevin dooley 

And Happy 50th Birthday Mama Youyou! For some reason I felt like I needed to give her permission to celebrate herself so I said, "Turning 50 in the States is a big deal." To which she basically said in French, "Umm yeah. It's a big freakin' deal in Congo too." Touché, Mama Youyou.

Joyeux Anniversaire.

Jill's List:

My parents are coming to visit Kinshasa!  It will be a Congo Christmas for us this year...and we are really super excited.  Where else do you get to celebrate with a holiday visit to the bonobos?  You do remember that you are 1% away from actually being a bonobo, right?

Elias and the esteemed Matt Lippart from All the World's a Rage taking in some bonobo action circa 2011.

Found an absolutely hilarious learn-French app.  The designers at Le Monde are brilliant and obviously love Michael Jackson.  Plus, they use the word, frantastique.  It does not get better than that, folks.

Want this app?  Go here.

I just need to mention Malala one more time.  Because.  Wow.

I started thinking about that, and I used to think that the Talib would come, and he would just kill me. But then I said, 'If he comes, what would you do Malala?' then I would reply to myself, 'Malala, just take a shoe and hit him.'  But then I said, 'If you hit a Talib with your shoe, then there would be no difference between you and the Talib. You must not treat others with cruelty and that much harshly, you must fight others but through peace and through dialogue and through education.' 

Holy pagne on Project Runway!  (I know, we're like months behind...it's how we roll with TV around here.)  I keep trying to decide if Mama Youyou and Mama Vida would be proud or annoyed.  We'll be watching some P.R. and getting their opinions.

My haul from Au Beach today.
Loulou begged to come along to the tiny alleyway full of fabric
 because she wanted to pick out something with "rouge and rose for a new jupe"

Looking for a great SPF face lotion that stands up to rainy season humidity grease.  My lovely Josie Maran is...well...a little slick now that it's steamy outside.  I'm liking samples of this and this.  Any other suggestions?

South African bowls as product storage.

This is funny.

Admiring Arno's art from afar.  When are you coming back to Kin, friend?

Watching this story develop.


And.  One more time.  We are so proud to know Noela.  Read her thoughts on being a young Congolese woman.  She rocked this interview for Every Mother Counts from start to finish.

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Weekend List!

Sarah's List:


Did you know if you live outside the US, there are many websites we can't access? But we do get good healthcare! It's a fair tradeoff. John Stewart gets it, and this week sent us to another site to watch his show. Free healthcare and The Daily Show? Be very jealous.

This made me laugh. If Congress Got Stuff Done Like Roommates.

"Hey duders, Just wanted to shoot everybody an email saying 

there's kinda a lot of stuff that needs to be done..."

The latest news on eyebrows. Everyone knows this is an issue near and dear to my heart. I mean eyes.

Even Nefertiti's restoration required shaping up her eyebrows.

  by  GeometerArtist 

This book looks so fascinating. A peek inside Iranian living rooms? Yes, please.

While I'm not so sure that giving money to child beggars is the absolute worst thing you can do as a tourist, here's an interesting piece on the matter.

My sister sent our kids this picture of Uncle Ryan and Elmo in New York City. They freaked out. I replied with the NYT article about this Elmo's "disturbing past." Then she freaked out.

And I dare you to watch this just one time. Or less than 50 times.


Jill's List:

Elias has already changed his Halloween costume idea like 50 times.  Maybe we'll show him this slideshow for some inspiration.

Image found here.

Read Chekov (or maybe some Wendell Berry) to be more empathetic and emotionally intelligent.  (It's scientifically proven!)

I have a huge bag of lemons in my fridge.  There was a sale and both Johan and I filled up at the grocery store without checking with each other first.  Here, you always take your fruits and veg and have them bagged and weighed far before you even approach a register.  Once that bag is tied, you have committed.  Maybe I need to make some of these?

While planning for a Middle School Workshop on Community and how to generally be nice, I was informed that Macklemore and Ryan Lewis had a song that was popular with the young folk. I had absolutely never heard of these people.  Does this make me old, cool, or clueless?

Follow these stories about girls and their dreams around the world during the month of October. (You might even see the DRC featured..!)

Feeling a little jealous of people living with seasons.  Especially when I see things like this.  Fall in the Northwest is like nothing else.

Trying to locate a replacement for my favorite piece of jewelry.  I bought two strands of Ethiopian brass heishi beads in Cape Town (I know, random.) last year and wear them nearly everyday.  I'm just preparing for the inevitable break, drop, or lose.  Seems like this is an option.

Perfection.

Ugh.  Yep.  Children playing alone because there's nowhere else to go.  And this is not a story about Congo.

8th Grade Teachers really should rule the world. (Or just the U.S. government.)  I love the photo they use to illustrate the article.  I swear that's exactly what my middle school teachers looked like.

And.  Speaking of middle school teachers...please take a second to read all about EduCorps, a project to support teachers in the Great Lakes Region of Africa.  This is the vision of the one and only Sara Rich (whom I have never actually met, but feel like I know).  She is stupendous.

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