Internet round-up: June 9-22

[martasfic]

Originally published at Faith Seeking Understanding. You can comment here or there.

It’s that time again. Here are the articles, memes, and other share-worthy things I’ve encountered in my adventures in cyberspace these last two weeks.

Articles + Blog Posts

1. Why Does My Kid Freak Out?, by Melinda Moyer [Slate]

Very interesting look at the toddler’s psyche.

2. 50 Things Only ’80s Kids Can Understand

I’m on the young side to remember some of these, but the ones I do – hoo boy! What a great look back into the nostalgia file.

3. Sex, Part 2: Why Wait?, by Jamie the Very Worst Missionary

This post left me wanting to cheer. Agree or disagree with the substance of this parent’s advice on sexual purity, but I think this is exactly the approach we should take in developing a Christian sexual ethic: one based on virtue and lifelong goals that goes beyond “that first roll in the hay,” as she puts it.

Also: humor. Lots of LOLs on what can be a touchy subject.

4. Do Millennials Give a Damn About PRISM?, by Andrew Sullivan

Interesting accounts of millennials explaining why they aren’t so botherd by the NSA scandal. (Hint: it has very little to do with the so-called war on terror.)

5. New York Restaurant Bans Tips – For Wait Staff’s Own Good, by Liz Fields [Slate]

This is a much better way to pay servers, and I would love to see more mid-range restaurants follow suit.

6. In Which Sally Grasps Contraception, by Libby Anne [Patheos]

I love Libby Anne’s account of teaching Sally sex ed. There’s no moralizing, it’s completely age-appropriate but respectful to Sally’s intellect. This will provide the great basis to help Sally develop her beliefs about sexual morality and responsible sexuality as she develops. Our country would do well to have more of this kind of sex-ed, organically and done by parents throughout a child’s life.

Pinterest Shares

Geekish + Fannish Humor

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6. Weird how that works out…

7. And speaking of weird…

8. John Howe’s painting of Gandalf + the Balrog

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Hunger Games memeage, spoilers for Mockingjay book

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http://www.fidesquaerens.org/blog/
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13. *sniffles*

Hunger Games memeage, spoilers for Mockingjay book

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18. (Text clearer at Pinterest)

Random Funnies

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4. The ironies.

5. And if this is his most headline-worthy accomplishment…

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8. The simple joys.

9. Funny and informative! (Text clearer at Pinterest)

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Fave Recipes

1. (Recipe)

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Gender + Sexuality + Feminism Stuff

1. So true.

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Humor About Academia, Education, etc.

1. Or, you know, work on your credentials, retool your lesson plans…

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Political Humor

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Religious Humor

1. (Text clearer at Pinterest)

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4. Four Great Religious Truths

5. One can only hope…

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http://www.fidesquaerens.org/blog/
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Deep Thoughts

1. C.S. Lewis, on humility

2. Neil Gaiman, on writing

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4. C.S. Lewis, channeling Augustine

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Somebody’s Million-Dollar Idea

1. A fun, easy replacement for gingerbread houses

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3. I would so love this…

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Random Cuteness

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Nothing New to Share:

1. Groovitudes

Comments

[just-ann-now.livejournal.com]

*falls over laughing at the Episcopalians one* I'll stick that on my husbands FB page.

[marta-bee.livejournal.com]

Glad you like it! And please, do share.

Does Mr. Just_Ann like to friend your fannish friends? If he's interested in that kind of FB connection, PM me a link to his FB page.

[just-ann-now.livejournal.com]

He's friends with more of my RL folks than the fannish ones (though he met a bunch of them at the London Meetup). He's interested in theology, though, so he probably would find those posts interesting. I'll check with him and let you know.

[marta-bee.livejournal.com]

Thanks for checking. And please, don't feel any pressure, either of you. I am interested in knowing family of my friends where they're also interested, but certainly don't want to push if you or he aren't.

[just-ann-now.livejournal.com]

Link on the way!

[fractalwolf.livejournal.com]

This is pretty random, but the "Sex, Part 2: Why Wait?" article was kicking around in the back of my head. I know the adults around me when I was an adolescent would have said that her message was self-contradictory, or at least self-undermining.

But today my brain came up with: Hey, it's kinda like, if you assume that being an adolescent is like climbing a mountain (you're working towards a goal you can't see, but know has got to be up there somewhere, and it's not a straight path and there's lots of little obstacles in the way, but if you're careful and take appropriate precautions, you should get there eventually), then the abstinence-only crowd is saying, "Stick close to and keep a firm grip on the mountain!" And the author of the post is saying, "Stick close and keep a firm grip, and for goodness sake you should also use pitons and rope to keep a slip from becoming a death-plunge!"

[marta-bee.livejournal.com]

I love that analogy, Gwen! I think it's a very good one, except I don't think of it as a death plunge so much. (Something to be avoided before the time is right? Absolutely. But also not the end of the world if you mess up on this.)

I think if you're saying "don't have sex but also when you have sex make sure you do X, Y, and Z" is clearly a contradiction. But I don't know that the author is saying that. More like, she seems to say: "Sex is grown-up stuff and while it's great fun it's also something to be careful with. [kind of like mountain climbing is great fun but also dangerous if done improperly] It's best to wait until you know you've met the right person and are really ready to do it safely so neither of you get hurt. And to help you get ready for that grown-up fun, here's some of what it means to be careful here."

[fractalwolf.livejournal.com]

Exactly! You expressed it much better than I did. :)