Category: This and that

Interrupted with hope

~ Lenore Diane ~ 23 Comments

UPDATE: Tonight, February 14th, Frontline (on your local PBS station) is airing a special about ‘The Interrupters’. I hope you’ll watch it or record it to watch later.

One night, while driving in my car, I tuned into National Public Radio’s Fresh Air. Terry Gross was interviewing Steve James and Ameena Matthews about the documentary film titled “The Interrupters”.

Directed and photographed by Steve James, and produced by Alex Kotlowitz and Steve James, “the documentary tells the moving and surprising story of three dedicated individuals who try to protect their Chicago communities from the violence they themselves once employed. These “violence interrupters” (their job title) – who have credibility on the street because of their own personal histories – intervene in conflicts before the incidents explode into violence. Their work and their insights are informed by their own journeys, which, as each of them point out, defy easy characterization.” [The Interrupters’ Press Kit.]

Though I heard this particular radio program days ago, the story is in my heart and on my mind. Continue reading “Interrupted with hope” →

The Dog Days of Summer

~ Lenore Diane ~ 27 Comments

If you live in the United States, you know the Summer of 2011 will go down in the weather record books as one long, hot summer. As I type, our thermometer indicates the outdoor temperature is 100 degrees. That’s hot.

“That’s hot” reminds me of – no, not Paris Hilton – a quote from an 80s movie titled, “Biloxi Blues”. Matthew Broderick’s character says, “Man it’s hot. It’s like Africa hot. Tarzan couldn’t take this kind of hot.”

As I work from home and look out my window, I see the trees and leaves moving with the breeze. However, the breeze does nothing to cool the air. The fact that my dogs choose to lounge here, with me, rather than outside in their large backyard playground, tells me the wind is misleading, simply moving the hot air and not cooling it.

The heat is zapping me dry, depleting me of words to write and stories to share. I have entered the dog days of summer. Continue reading “The Dog Days of Summer” →

An Atheist and a Christian sit down to dinner.

~ Lenore Diane ~ 31 Comments

While on vacation, the dinners were wonderful. Our friends prepared a new meal for us every night. Wait a minute, one night we had leftovers. Well, we had a new meal prepared for us most nights. One should not be greedy.

In addition to the incredible meals, the dialogue was a treat, too. Some nights, the kids gathered at the Little Tikes picnic table discussing the grossest way to eat noodles, while the adults sat at the ‘Big Tikes” table, talking about science, marriage, politics and religion.

For some, such topics would equate to sheer and utter misery. (I’m referring to the talks about science, nature, politics, and religion. Obviously, conversations about the grossest way to eat noodles would make for a wicked cool conversation.) However, I find those topics fun and entertaining. Keep in mind, I’m different. Continue reading “An Atheist and a Christian sit down to dinner.” →