So a couple of weeks ago I was on a hike in the foothills with one of my Anawim friends. We were on our way down and off the gravel onto pavement when I thought I heard a funny sound from the back end of the car. We stopped and found that my right rear tire looked like this:

Mind you, it only made a little funny noise.

It didn't even handle badly.

The Unctionmobile is a good car.

,

An unconventional candidate!

http://www.sfgate.com/comics/fiore/

(This is going to be the last post in the Women's blogorama. I discovered that the blog has been referenced several times on the interweb as a "Women's Blog". All well and good, but SOOO not the whole story - we will soon resume our regular programming)


Recently we had a Women Ending Hungry Event in Salem. Alivia sang and all kinds of Women showed up to intiate a fresh effort to address the root causes of Hunger in our community. It will be interesting to see how this progresses. here are some pics.

From the BBC


India baby girl deaths 'increase'

There is a cultural preference for male children in India
The number of girls born and surviving in India has hit an all time low compared to boys, ActionAid says.

A report by the UK charity says increasing numbers of female foetuses were being aborted and baby girls deliberately neglected and left to die.

In one site in the Punjab state, there are just 300 girls to every 1,000 boys among higher caste families, it says.

ActionAid says India faces a "bleak" future if it does not end its practice of cultural preference for boys.

This has been around, but for the amusement and education omy my younger readers...

The following is an excerpt from the July 1943 issue of Transportation Magazine. Snopes.com verifies it as real.

Eleven Tips on Getting More Efficiency Out of Women Employees:

There is no longer any question whether transit companies should hire women for jobs formerly held by men. The draft and manpower shorrtage has settled that point. The important things now are to select the most efficient women available and how to use them to the best advantage. Here are eleven helpful tips on the subject:

1. Pick young married women. They usually have more of a sense of responsibility than their unmarried sisters. They are less likely to be flirtatious. They need the work, or they would not be doing it. The still have the pep and interest to work hard and to deal with the public efficiently.

2. When you have to use older women, try to get ones who have worked outside the home at some time in their lives. Older women who have never contacted the public have a hard time adapting themselves and are inclined to be cantankerous and fussy. It is always well to impress upon older women, the importance of friendliness and courtesy.

3. General experience indicates that "husky" girls - those who are just a little on the heavy side - are more even tempered and efficient than their underweight sisters.

4. Retain a physician to give each woman you hire a special physical examination - one covering female conditions. This step not only protects the property against the possibilities of lawsuit, but reveals whether the employee-to-be has any female weaknesses which would make her mentally or physically unfit for the job.

5. Stress at the outset, the importance of time; the fact that a minute or two lost here and there makes serious inroads on schedules. Until this point is gotten across, service is likely to be slowed up.

6. Give the female employee a definite day-long schedule of duties so that they will keep busy without bothering the management for instructions every few minutes. Numerous properties say that women make excellent workers when they have their jobs cut out for them, but that they lack initiative in finding work themselves.

7. Whenever possible, let the inside employee change from one job to another at some time during the day. Women are inclined to be less nervous and happier with change.

8. Give every girl an adequate number of rest periods during the day. You have to make some allowances for feminine psychology. A girl has more confidence and is more efficient if she can keep her hair tidied, apply fresh lipstick and wash her hands several times a day.

9. Be tactful when issuing instructions or in making criticisms. Women are often sensitive; they cannot shrug off harsh words the way men do. Never ridicule a woman - it breaks her spirit and cuts off her efficiency.

10. Be reasonably considerate about using strong language around women. Even though a girl's husband or father may swear vociferously, she will grow to dislike a place of business where she hears too much of this.

11. Get enough size variety in operator's uniforms so that each girl can have a proper fit. this point cannot be stressed too much in keeping women happy.

So There I Was…

Helping a wedding happen. It is a thing that I enjoy.

Everything was going well. The guests were steadily arriving at the family farm. The bridal party was all accounted for and dressed in their finery. The flower covered wooden arch was ready. I was out among the guests greeting people and watching for that moment when it would be time to gather the groom, cue the musicians, and start the proceedings.

A small girl tweaked my radar. She was examining the wedding cake at very close range. She was clearly dealing with the temptation to put just one finger into the icing. She was leaning up on the table. I engaged her in conversation and reminded her of the funny videos where people knock over the cake table at a wedding. She wisely eased back a bit.

She was about eight. Long brown hair and very blue eyes magnified by thick glasses. She was wearing a dress imprinted with Disney princesses. It was clear that she was all into the wedding thing.

We talked about how soon the wedding would start, where the bride was ‘hiding’, and when the cake would be cut. We looked over the guests together.

“I wonder which one is the preacher?”

“Ah, that would be me.”

She looked up at me, mouth open, she pushed her glasses up her nose.

“But you’re a girl!”

“Yep” I said, not correcting the girl/woman thing.

“I’ve never seen a girl preacher!"

“Look all you want, baby – sometimes – God asks girls to be preachers.”

“Not at MY church.”

“What church do you go to?’ She named a large Conservative denomination.

“Ah, well, there are lots of churches and some of them, like mine, think everybody can preach. I am a Quaker.”

“A Quaker” she said, like it tasted funny but not all bad in her mouth.

We talked a little more about God, and what God might ask you to do, and then it was time to start the wedding.



Later, over cake, I asked her what she thought of the wedding, and how it looked with a girl preacher.

“It was nice, you did a good job, you talk read loud, and the cake is good. Do you really have a church or do you just do weddings, my mom said you probably just do weddings?”

“I really have a church. Nice folks. Probably a bit different than your church. Someday, you should come visit.”

She looked up at me,
pushed her glasses up her nose again, pursed her lips.

“I think I would like that – a church where God talks to girls"