Out of the darkness, and into the (day)light

Well, it's about time. The Indiana State Legislature finally adopted Daylight Saving Time. We are on longer one of the last hold-outs. That honor goes to Hawaii and Arizona. According to CNN, Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma said this about the 51-46 decision:

"I can tell you that the rest of the nation, the rest of the world, knows that Indiana doesn't get it," Bosma said. "Now is the day to tell the rest of the world that we are willing to step into the 21st century."

Now I'll be the last one to say I really understand the benefits behind DST, but I do know that if 94% of the country does it, then you want to be in that group!

Congratulations to the Stices

Chris and Heather Stice were proud to annouce today the birth of their first child, Sierra Sol Stice. She was born Thursday, April 21st and weighed in at 6 pounds 10 ounces and 19 inches long.

Check out some pictures of Sierra at their Yahoo Photos Page.

If you know Chris and Heather, send them your congratulations at chrisstice AT sbcglobal DOT net or hstice AT sbcglobal DOT net

More banned books

Cathy informed me that there was a book banning discussion in our hometown of Lebanon toward the end of last year, very similar to Jennifer's situation. According to The Lebanon Reporter, some parents were upset about a book called The Rumor of War by Philip Caputo. It is a personal memoir of a Marine lieutenant of the Vietnam War, published in 1977, and is taught in many high school social studies classes. Parents were upset about its strong language, violence and even the objectivity of the author. Unfortunately The Report did not publish a follow-up story so I do not know if this book is still part of the curriculum at Lebanon High School.

Read a banned book!

Our friend Jennifer Yoder is an english teacher at Westfield High School. She's currently fighting a challange of a book she's been teaching in her classroom. The book is The Things They Carried by Tim O'Brien. Parents are concerned with the language in this book about the Vietnam War. We wish her luck as she defends the book in front of the Westfield School Board Tuesday night.

If you're aware of censorship and book challenges in your community you can contact the American Library Association, Office for Intellectual Freedom. Protect your liberty and your library, read a banned book! Below is a list of the top 10 most often challaenged books in 2004, according to the ALA. How many have you read?

• The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier for sexual content, offensive language, religious viewpoint, being unsuited to age group and violence
• Fallen Angels by Walter Dean Myers, for racism, offensive language and violence
• Arming America: The Origins of a National Gun Culture by Michael A. Bellesiles, for inaccuracy and political viewpoint
• Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey, for offensive language and modeling bad behavior
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky, for homosexuality, sexual content and offensive language
• What My Mother Doesn't Know by Sonya Sones, for sexual content and offensive language
• In the Night Kitchen by Maurice Sendak, for nudity and offensive language
• King & King by Linda de Haan and Stern Nijland, for homosexuality
• I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou, for racism, homosexuality, sexual content, offensive language and unsuited to age group
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, for racism, offensive language and violence

Great webbed wonders

As many people know, and I'm not afraid to show anyone who asks, I have webbed toes, or Syndactyly as it is medically known. I'm not embarrassed by them, they are just a part of who I am. And no, they don't help me swim faster. Apparently, they are not that uncommon, with 1/10,000 people being born with them.

I found out this weekend that I'm in good company. Aston Kutcher from "That 70s Show", and fellow Delta Chi, showed off his webbed toes on MTV's TRL. Dan Akroyd, Joseph Stalin and Rachel Stevens from the Australian pop group "S Club 7" also reportedly have webbed toes. We are the next evolutionary step of man!

The Taxman

In honor of today being the deadline for tax returns, here's The Beatles' "The Taxman." Fortunately, we've already filed, got our return and spent it!

Let me tell you How it will be.
There's one for you, Nineteen for me,

'Cause I'm the taxman.
Yeah, I'm the taxman.

Should five percent Appear too small,
Be thankful I don't Take it all.

'Cause I'm the taxman.
Yeah, I'm the taxman.

If you drive a car, I'll tax the street.
If you drive to city, I'll tax your seat.
If you get too cold, I'll tax the heat.
If you take a walk, I'll tax your feet.

Taxman!

'Cause I'm the taxman.
Yeah, I'm the taxman.

Don't ask me what I want it for, (Uh-uh, Mr. Wilson.)
If you don't want to pay some more. (Uh-uh, Mr. Heath.)

'Cause I'm the taxman.
Yeah, I'm the taxman.

And my advice to Those who die. (Taxman!)
Declare the pennies On your eyes. (Taxman!)

'Cause I'm the taxman.
Yeah, I'm the taxman,
And you're working for no one but me. (Taxman!)

BOOM, Baby!

On the back of 39 year old Reggie Miller's 22 points, the Indiana Pacers beat the New Jersey Nets 90-86 last night to clinch a spot in the NBA playoffs for the 8th consecutive year. Let's hope they send #31 into retirement with their first NBA Championship!

Help save the "Do Not Call" List

I got this e-mail today, supposable from Indiana Attorney General Steve Carter. I have no reason to believe that it's fake. Check out the savedonotcall.com web site and help keep this great legislation legal.

---

HELP SAVE THE "DO NOT CALL" LIST

The Indiana General Assembly is considering final passage of Senate Bill 509, a bill that would prohibit companies that violate our "Do Not Call" law from doing business with the State of Indiana. Eight out-of-state headquartered banks are attempting to weaken our law by petitioning the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), through the Consumer Bankers Association (CBA), to override our "Do Not Call" law. If they succeed, anyone you transact business with, not just these banks, would be able to contact you for an 18 month period. Phone companies, credit card companies, mortgage companies and many more, in addition to the banks would be able under federal law to call you even if you are on the Indiana Do Not Call list. The proposed state legislation, Senate Bill 509, sends a strong message that we don't appreciate entities that disrupt our peace and quiet and then expect to be rewarded with state
business.

If you want to help this legislation become law, you may contact your state Senator and let them know of your support for Senate Bill 509. If passed by the Senate, the bill would then be sent to the Governor for approval.

For your convenience, the contact information is included below:

Indiana Senate
http://www.in.gov/apps/sos/legislator/search/
1-800-382-9467
(If you do not know who your Senator is, the operator will assist you)

Governor's Office
http://www.in.gov/gov/contact.html
1-317-232-4567

We are working very hard to preserve the "Do Not Call" protections that you have come to expect. Thank you for helping in this important effort. If you have any questions or comments regarding this matter, you may contact us at savedonotcall.com

We have also created a way for you to easily send a single email message to
each of the eight out-of-state banks regarding their support of the CBA effort to weaken our law. Just go the

Upcoming releases

It's going to be a big spring and summer for music and movies! Here's some upcoming releasing I'm looking forward to:

• Ben Folds, Songs for Silverman, in stores April 26th.
• The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, in theaters April 29th.
• Ryan Adams & the Cardinals, Cold Roses, in stores May 3rd.
• Star Wars - Episode III, Revenge of the Sith, in theaters May 19th.
• Son Volt, A Retrospective: 1995-2000, in stores May 24th.
• Batman Begins, in theaters June 17th.
• Fantastic Four, in theaters July 8th.
• Son Volt, Okemah and the Melody of Riot in stores July 12th
• Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J. K. Rowling, in stores July 16th.
  

Save Toby!

Hilarious. And ingenious. Go to Savetoby.com and donate to help keep this rabbit from becoming lunch.

Life Love Sex Death..and Other Works in Progress

I saw a rather provocative performance art/comedy/relationship seminar last night at IU by a guy names Stevie Jay. It was a one man piece called "Life Love Sex Death..and Other Works in Progress" and was about, well life, love, sex and death. It included monologues, skits, jokes, songs, random dancing and observations about relationships. He is definitely "emotionally troubled" as he says in the performance. Check him out if he comes to your town, or check him out online at StevieJay3.com

Doing his schoolwork

There was a nice article about Bill Coan, Jeff's Dad, in the Sunday Indianapolis Star. The article talked about his work with the "Howard School Restoration Group Inc." to restore a 19th century one-room schoolhouse near Fayette. Cathy said she sees where Jeff gets his love of history. If you don't get the Star, check out the online version.

Pac-Mania!

The Hoosier Lottery has a new sracth-off game called
Pac-Man Mania where you can win $10,000 or a full sized Ms. Pac-Man cabinet! As much as I disagree with state sponsered gambling, I'm going to have to buy a couple of these tickets.

Spring in the air

Spring was definitely in the air in Bloomington this weekend. Cathy and I restarted out summer Saturday morning tradition of going to the recycling center, then breakfast at Village Deli and then to the Farmer's Market. I mowed part of the lawn for the first time this weekend. The daffodils we planted in the fall are all blooming in the yard. And our Bradford Pear tree is about ready to burst open its buds.