Dearest Tumblr Fans,
It’s been awhile since you’ve heard from us at When Parents Text.
We moved off Tumblr in April with a great deal of trepidation. We owe so much of our success to the wonderful Tumblr community and we were sad to go.
But we remember where we started!
As a special THANK YOU to our Tumblr followers we’d like to give away FIVE free and signed copies of our new book, When Parents Text: So Much Said… So Little Understood.
All you have to do is reblog this post. We’ll select the winners next Friday!
Thank you so much,
;-)8
Lauren and Sophia
Loved this tumblr… Glad it has moved on to ever better success!
Hurricane Irene finally moves out and as the sun peeks out on the American shore a rainbow appears. The calm after the storm…
Words to left to a generation
When I learned today of the passing of Jack Layton, I was sincerely saddened. While I have no real personal connection with the (former?) Leader of the Opposition, I agree with some of his policies and feel he is a champion for many causes that (I believe) are often omitted from national level politics. His years of hard work has resulted in a REAL alternative for voters, and has helped to draw youth into the Canadian political system. While it is clear that his passing is a great loss for Canadians as a whole, I am a bit taken aback by the collective level of shock, support and grief being expressed by Canadians today.
Now, this is not at all to say that I do not completely feel the same way: I am saddened by the news, I wish to offer my support to his friends and family, and I will grieve the loss to Canadian politics. But that’s what surprises me… I am not alone in feeling this way! I am completely taken aback by the way that these sentiments feel universal among Canadians today. It feels that amongst those which whom I work, play, and see in the media, that we are all in a state of mourning. I feel this is perhaps one of the first times that I have felt that Canadians as a whole have felt connected to ONE particular individual or cause. No political bullshit in the way. No asides, no secondary argument. Just saddened by the passing of a man leaving a great legacy. Perhaps it is that I tend to surround myself with similar-minded (left leaning) individuals, or perhaps it is because of my age, peer group, and my social media awareness… but apart from perhaps the 2010 Vancouver Olympics (and even then, there were many who opposed), this is the most connected or united I have felt with my fellow Canadians. It really is too bad that only with his passing have I come to feel this. It is truly remarkable that one man has had the ability to unite so many, regardless of one’s political affiliation. Perhaps it is naive of me to think that so many are feeling as I am today… but a part of me believes I am not alone in seeking comfort and actually, pride, in the fact that Canadians are able to come together today to remember and pay tribute.
To illustrate this point, this photo is buzzing around the internet today. It is the final few lines of Mr. Layton’s Letter to Canadians. It was written in chalk on a road in Ottawa.
I think this really demonstrates the way in which Canadians are coming together today to celebrate a life, to mourn a loss, and to aspire for a brighter future. I do hope that as a collective, we can take these words to heart and be loving, optimistic and hopeful. I thank you all for the lesson in humility today and for demonstrating once again that despite the bitterness of some of our daily life, we can show compassion.
It’s a beautiful night at the cottage with the sun setting behind me and the beginnings of a cool breeze off the water… Certainly feels like August
Who is Rebecca Black?
So maybe I’m behind on the times, but as I cruised Twitter (my new addiction) and Bookface over the past 24 hours, I noticed several statuses etc. relating to “partying”, “Fridays” and “Rebecca Black”. Feeling out of the loop, I did a quick Google search:
Search term: Rebecca Black
Results:
1. Rebecca Black: “Forget Bieber Fever, I’ve got the Black Plague!” (LMAO)
2. Friday (Rebecca Black Song) … this was the most informative one
3. not all that interesting…
4. neither was this one
5. Is YouTube Sensation Rebecca Black’s “Friday” The Worst Song Ever?”
So now I’m hooked, I HAVE to see this video! Deemed the worst song ever? I’d like to give her a little credit first… so I go in with an open mind.
My first thought: OK, the drawings are campy… but she’s young right? Kids go to camp.
Next: OK, it doesn’t rhyme. But a lot of songs don’t, she’s just being contemporary… ‘rap-singing’? New age slam poetry?
… sorry, bus stop!? STOP… that’s how kids get to school, relax!
… but wait, her friends are driving? How OLD are they? But you know what, I envy you that you’re biggest challenge is to decide where to sit in the car.
Chorus time: well, it’s catchy! Who doesn’t like Friday and partying really? She speaks the truth.
So now I feel like I’ve started to make a few too many excuses for the poor thing… but wait, now we’re getting to my favourite part: the Thursday - Sunday countdown. This is pure genius!
WHO is this rapper?? I am having visions of ‘Rojo Caliente’ and the Sisqo-meets-Daddy-Yankee rapper..
As the video closes, she speaks of the fun she’s having… I hate to point out the obvious, but she doesn’t really look like she’s having much fun (my partner suggests that she looks so forced that she may in fact be at gun-point)!
Well, it’s over. I have dried my tears of laughter, and I can’t help but draw parallels between this Rebecca Black and the ‘Robin Sparkles’ character from How I Met Your Mother. Poor thing, this will come back to haunt her one day… but in the mean time, I hope she enjoys her 15 minutes of fame and the 9+ million YouTube hits! I will likely contribute a couple more to her tally over the next couple of days
If you haven’t seen it yet: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD2LRROpph0
Hope you all have a great FRIDAY!
Pelican, Namibia
Photograph by Romulo Rejon
In Walvis Bay, Namibia, a pelican would never fail in catching a fish … when thrown from a boat.
Oooomm nommmm nommm nom!
… profanity in the classroom
words my prof has used tonight in lecture:
fuck. shit. dick. bitch. hoe. fuck (a second time). ‘wacko-jacko-baby-dangler-withfacethatjustdoesn’twork’.
maybe he is having an off night?
Although world politics and international relations would be considered perhaps one of my fields of expertise, I am not one to regularly chime in and share my political views. Nevertheless, I just finished writing a paper prescribing solutions to militancy within the Arab-Israeli conflict. I thought this article was quite timely … judge for yourselves, but this type of conflict resolution is certain only to inspire higher levels of militancy and intolerance.
