Sheryl's Scribblings

Fun with Twitter

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:25:00 +0000

Last night Twitter had one of it's little hashtag memes going and I joined in. It was a lot of fun so here were my contributions to the #worldsthinnestbooks:

"Correct Predictions" by Sylvia Brown
"The Art of Blending in" by Lady Gaga
"How to detect a fake autobiography" by Oprah
"Understanding Evolution" by Ray Comfort and Kirk Cameron
'How to run an investment firm" by Bernie Madoff
"Introduction to Aristotelian Philosophy" by Jessica Simpson
"Preventing Infectious Diseases" by Jenny McCarthy
"Problems that can't be solved with explosives" by Adam Savage and Jaime Hyneman
"How to have a successful marriage" by Elizabeth Taylor
"Understanding Germ Theory" by Bill Maher
"Successful Public Relations" by Fred Phelps
"How to Invade Russia" by Napoleon Bonaparte
"Answer to the Question of Life the Universe and Everything"
"Successful Faith Healing"by Peter Poppoff and Benny Hinn
"People God Loves" by Fred Phelps
"Guide to Modern Psychiatry" by L Ron Hubbard, forward by Tom Cruise
"How Homeopathy Works"
"Altruism" by Ayn Rand
"Landing a Probe on Mars" by the Russian Space Agency
"Recording a Clean Podcast" by @GeorgeHrab
"How Old is the Earth" by Ken Hamm
"Winners of the JREF Million Dollar Challenge"
"Contraceptives" by Michelle Duggar
"Ethical Business Practices" by Kevin Trudeau
Okay last one, dedicated to the SGU: "What I love about birds" by Perry D'Angelis

Most of these of course are of a skeptical nature and pretty sarcastic. However I do have to say I love Mythbusters, George Hrab, the JREF, and the Skeptics Guide to the Universe. Perry is greatly missed as a co-host on the SGU.

Stopping Fear and Misogyny

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 05:40:00 +0000

Recently a story was published in Wired magazine by journalist Amy Wallace titled "An Epidemic of Fear: How Panicked Parents Skipping Shots Endangers Us All". I've been vocal on Twitter for quite some time about my support for vaccination and I totally agree with Ms. Wallace and the vast majority of doctors and medical researchers that vaccines are safe, effective, and have probably saved more lives than any other medical advance. Vaccines wiped out the most horrific infectious disease of all time, smallpox, and has nearly wiped out polio.

This debate has recently become very personal to me and here is the reason why:

That adorable newborn is my nephew Joshua, as I'm writing this post he is a mere two weeks old. I shouldn't have to be scared that he'll contract whooping cough before he's old enough to be vaccinated. Unfortunately because of anti-vaccination fear mongering, based on faulty and anecdotal "evidence", mean that herd immunity is crumbling and he's in danger now.

It's also personal in another way. As I found out this week from Orac's blog (and reminded again by Dr. Isis) Amy Wallace has been the target of some really vile misogynistic attacks such as these:

I've been called stupid, greedy, a whore, a prostitute, and a "fking lib." I've been called the author of "heinous tripe."

J.B. Handley, the founder of Generation Rescue, the anti-vaccine group that actress Jenny McCarthy helps promote, sent an essay title" "Paul Offit Rapes (intellectually) Amy Wallace and Wired Magazine." In it, he implied that Offit had slipped me a date rape drug. "The roofie cocktails at Paul Offit's house must be damn good," he wrote. Later, he sent a revised version that omitted rape and replaced it with the image of me drinking Offit's Kool-aid. That one was later posted at the anti-vaccine blog Age of Autism.

I've been the subject of this sort of attack myself and it generally rolls right off my back because it reflects more on the person writing them than it does on me. However it is a symptom of a disgusting aspect of our culture where insulting a woman's sexuality is often used to silence them. I don't want my nephew to grow up and see it as acceptable to do so. I know that his parents, grandparents, and I will teach him otherwise but we'd be blind to think there will not be other influences on him such as the media.

NECSS

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 02:45:00 +0000

So I attended my very first skeptical event over the weekend, the Northeast Conference on Science and Skepticism in New York City. It was a lot of fun, I got to meet so many great new people. The conference itself had some wonderful speakers and panels.

Definitely the highlight of the day for me was the live Skeptics Guide to the Universe podcast and George Hrab's performance during lunch. After the conference was dinner and hanging out at a bar with a bunch of other skeptics.

The lowpoint of the trip was the subway. Saturday night it took about 2 hours longer to get back to the hotel than it should have due to rerouting and delays. My feet were killing me so I was really cranky.

Huge thanks to Mark who set everything up so I could go and for putting up with me when I was feeling so crappy Saturday night.

Atheist Spirituality

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:14:00 +0000

I know that title is a bit of a contradiction but bear with me on this. Today on PZ Myer's blog he posted a very snarky response to this article that argues that humans are hard wired for religious belief. I strongly disagree with that article as well but I'm not going to be so snarky.

There are many reasons why humans invented religions but this is about that feeling of spirituality that so many people feel, from evangelical Christians to devout Muslims to Buddhist monks. This brings me back to the contradiction in the titles of this post, we don't really have a good word to stand in for this feeling when it's not religious in nature. Awe and wonder come close but I don't think they quite say it so for lack of a better term I'm going to use spiritual an mean it in a totally non-superstitious sense.

I think that argument of humans beign hardwired for religion confuses that sense of awe before nature and spiritual emotion that humans have. Those feelings I think are hardwired into us, back from the time when nature was an almost total unknown, the source of life and destruction (as it still is but we understand much of it now and what we don't understand we have the tools to learn).

That feeling led our ancestors who hadn't yet developed science to create mythologies that explained and channeled that spiritual emotion. However just because we have this emotional response built into our brains doesn't mean it has to or should be channeled into worship of some higher being. It just as easily can be channeled into a wonder and love of the universe and it's immenseness and beauty. You don't need a god to feel that, there's no emptiness to being an atheist we've just found that we don't need religion to feed that emotional need.

The universe is more than enough for that. I look up and see the stars and realize that the atoms which make up my body were once inside stars like those. As Carl Sagan said "We are all made of star stuff" and that knowledge invokes in me this amazing feeling that is probably the same as the feeling many religious people feel in church.

Trying to Get This Blog Rolling Again

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 02:57:00 +0000

Yeah, I know I haven't posted here in about a year. In the last year things have changed a lot for me so I thought I'd start this blog up again to have a place to write a lot of stuff that just doesn't fit in my other blogs.

Don't expect a lot of posts here, this is more an outlet for the stuff I don't have space enough to say on Twitter. Do expect me to talk more about my skepticism and atheism because I've become a lot more involved and vocal about those topics.

Squidoo Payday was Today

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 07 Aug 2008 20:30:00 +0000

If you still don't know Squidoo pays the people who use it every month. The pay is based on how well your lens did during the month (there is a two month lag, I was paid today for June). So what was the total?
$170.04

That's not a bad total I think for doing something I enjoy.

Look at the Squid Goodie I Got!

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 20:30:00 +0000

It pays on more than one way to make lenses on Squidoo. Not only do I make money every month from my lenses since I have so many lenses I was named a Giant Squid and got this cool t-shirt. Hanging out with me in the photo is Lucky the chicken, she's almost recovered now after being injured during a big rainstorm.

Expanding my horizons a little on Squidoo I'm now taking orders for custom designed lenses.

Animal Updates

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

You can check out my Squidoo lenses to see the newest photos of the llama, pheasants, and chickens. Big changes in all of them.
Lauren the Llama
Raising Pheasants
Raising Barred Rock Laying Hens

Oh yeah, and my dad brought home a piglet. Here's the picture of Hammy, and yes he is being raised for meat that's why we named him Hammy so we don't get emotionally attached.

What I've Been Up To

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 20:30:00 +0000

Just a quick update on recent happening. I had a very nice birthday on the 9th and I'm now 26 years old.

I've been very busy making new Squidoo Lenses here they are:
Make your Handmade Products Stand Out!
Branding Your Handmade Products
Preparing for an Art or Craft Festival
Creative Uses for LED Lights
Noadi's Art Tutorial Lensography
Ammonites - Amazing Fossil Cephalopods

I'm also working on a directory of all my sites and lenses.

I have two art shows coming up the Shy, Novice, and Closeted Art Show in Bethel, Maine, on July 5th and the 41st Annual Norway Sidewalk Art Show in Norway, Maine, on July 12th.

Happy Towel Day!

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Sun, 25 May 2008 19:45:00 +0000

Are you a hoopy frood who knows where his towel is? If you don't know what I'm talking about now would be the time to go read the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams.

Towel Day is in tribute to Douglas Adams who passed away in 2001.

Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy

Great New Goody for Squidoo Users

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Sun, 11 May 2008 23:05:00 +0000

Captain Squid has set up SquidTop. It's a short format blog platform for squidoo users to use for promotign their lenses, giving squidoo tips, etc. If you're on Squidoo you should check it out.

Waiting for Chicks

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 08 May 2008 18:45:00 +0000

Bet that title tricked you, I'm talking about baby birds. I have 6 barred rock hens (going to raise them for laying eggs) and 4 pheasants (because my dad's always wanted them) coming hopefully tonight. It's going to be an interesting experience, I've raised chickens before but pheasants are new to me.

In much less happy news my cat Hearts died yesterday morning. She had been sick for quite some time so it wasn't a surprise, still hit me hard though. She was 12 years old and I had helped deliver her litter so she'd been a part of the family for a long time.

I'm a Giant Squid

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Sat, 03 May 2008 01:15:00 +0000

I had a complete surprise tonight when checking my mail. I had a message from Squidoo telling me that I was a Giant Squid. The Giant Squid are a select group of lensmasters on Squidoo who have a minimum of 50 great lenses.

I'm totally shocked because I wasn't trying to become a Giant Squid. I made all my lenses for other reasons, I never even expected to have more than 50 lenses. It has some cool benefits like sneak peeks at new Squidoo features, a nifty badge, and a few other goodies.
Seriously if you aren't on Squidoo yet you should be! It's fun and you even make a few bucks.

Squidoo Happenings

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:40:00 +0000

It's funny the way one Squidoo lens can lead to a bunch of others. Here's a fun series of lenses that all started with one.

Cabinets of Curiosity
During the Victorian era Cabinets of Curiosity were all the rage. They collected natural specimens, fossils, artifacts, and oddities. Take a peak into that world.

That led to researching both hoaxes and handmade additions to a cabinet of curiosities. Which led first to a lens on P.T. Barnum and then to one on Cephalopod Craft Patterns.

P.T. Barnum
Introducing the greatest showman on earth, P.T. Barnum. The founder of the modern circus, purveyor of hoaxes, and owner of a long lost spectacular museum.

Cephalopod Craft Patterns
Make your own stuffed octopus, squid, and cuttlefish. Free crochet, knit, and sewing patterns for cephalopods (and a few other sea creatures thrown in).

Cephalopod Crafts led me to run across the site of Helle Jorgensen who creates crocheted sea creatures using recycled plastic bags. Which led to:

Making Your Own Recycled Yarn
Make cool stuff and help the Earth at the same time. If you like to knit, crochet, or any other yarn craft have a go at using recycled materials. You can make your own yarn using plastic bags, thrift store sweaters, scraps, and t-shirts.

The Irony of Maine in the Spring

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 20:00:00 +0000

It is around 75° F outside right now and I'm sitting here in the house with all the windows open and wearing shorts. Outside it's bright and sunny, daffodils and other early spring perennials are popping up in the garden.

The truly funny thing is that there's still quite a bit of snow on the ground! This winter saw over 150 inches of snow fall here, that takes quite a while to melt even in the bright spring sun.

eCrater Resources

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 16:45:00 +0000

As some of you may know I sell my artwork and jewelry designs at Noadi's Art Shop on eCrater.com. Since I'm a big fan of eCrater I've put togeter some Squidoo lenses and an Associated Content article about using eCrater.

How to Start Selling on eCrater
Creating a store on eCrater is easy and fun. ECrater is a free web store service that is easy to set up and charges no fees for standard services.

Using eCrater RSS Feeds
Every eCrater store have multiple rss feeds available. Learn how to use these RSS feeds to promote your store items on other websites such as Squidoo, Zimbio, and blogs.

10 Tips when Using eCrater.com - Associated Content
10 tips to help you improve your eCrater store and give your customers a better shopping experience.

We Can't Say No

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 18:10:00 +0000

This post has little to do with writing, websites, or anything else related to my internet activities. Instead it's a little glimpse into my family.

My family loves animals, that's obvious to anyone who visits our house within a very short time. Monday of this week the menagie consisted of 2 dogs, 3 cats, 2 goats, 2 rabbits, 3 fish, a bantam hen, and a gecko. Notice that I said Monday because it's changed.

On Wenesday my dad stopped by the Paris Farmer's Union and ordered chicks. In late May we will be receiving 6 barred rock hen chicks and 4 pheasant chicks.

Then yesterday my uncle called my dad and told him that a farm near him had an emergency situation and was giving away all their animals. My dad went over there intending only to get the female Nigerian dwarf goat (the two goats we already had were female Nigerian dwarfs) but it didn't end that way.

The place was truly awful. The owner of the animals has cancer and is in a nursing home, while he's been there his wife has not tended to the animals aside from throwing in food. When the owner was told about the conditions on his farm he signed papers that all the animals were to be given to good homes or sent to the humane society immediately. I really wish he had been made aware of what was happening sooner so things would not have gotten as bad as they did. When my dad gotto the farm he found the barn filthy, it clearly hadn't been cleaned in a very long time, there were dead animals that hadn't been removed.

Well my dad can't stand to see animals suffering so he took the animals we'd be able to care for. Not just the female goat but also a male, and a female llama. He brought the goats home last night in the van. My uncle will be brought the llama over with his trailer this afernoon. We'll make up for what's happened to them, they'll have wonderful homes for the rest of their lives. (In case you're wondering about my uncle, he and my aunt took several sheep and lambs.)

All three will need a good bit of work, they are filthy and smelly right now, all three definitely need deworming an a visit from the vet for a checkup. The goats need washing, brushing, their hooves need trimming. The llama's wool is dirty and matted, her teeth have been neglected and are now too long, she spits and kicks so she'll need some training.

This isn't the first time something like this has happened. A few years ago my dad brought home a skinny underfed black and tan hound. Daisy is now a very healthy, friendly, active dog, though still scared of the dark and loud noises. The first two goats we got, Tansy and Blossom, were by no means abused or neglected they were quite spoiled already but their former owners were older and moving to a smaller easier to keep place and couldn't take the goats.

For comparison with the other goats so you can see what healthy Nigerian Dwarfs look like here are Blossom and Tansy:So the pet count is now up to 17 and once the chicks arrive it will be 27! Also since the two goats were kept together all winter, there may be babies on the way but it's too soon to tell.

Oh yeah, remember I said this post had little to do with my online life. Well little isn't nothing of course. Here's a Squidoo lens I made on Nigerian Dwarf Goats.

Photography Stuff

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 03:10:00 +0000

I've put together a Squidoo lens on Taking Successful Photos of your Artwork.

In a similar vein I've also written this article for Associated Content:

Tips for Photographing Your Handmade Jewelry

Learn how to take beautiful photos of your jewelry creations to use when selling online or just to show them off on your website.

Hey Monkeybrain: Fawlty Towers or Monty Python?

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 20:50:00 +0000

My newest Squidoo lens is about whether Fawlty Towers or Monty Python is the greatest show with John Cleese. I vote for Fawlty Towers is the Greatest Show with John Cleese. Let me know what your opinion is, just don't mention the war!

My First Associated Content Article

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 20:55:00 +0000

I just started writing articles for Associated Content. I always need a little extra cash and writing is something I need practice with so getting paid for it is good incentive to improve. Here's a sampling of my first article, just click the title to view the whole thing.

3 Easy Mother's Day Brunch Recipes
Three simple recipes for a Mother's Day breakfast or brunch. A fresh fruit tart, roasted garlic bagels, and refreshing citrus smoothie. Easy enough for kids to make with some help and supervision.

If you're planning to serve breakfast or brunch to your mom (or anyone for that matter) I hope you take a look at my recipes. I promise they are very yummy, my writing may need practice but cooking I have down pat!

Welcome

NoadiArt@gmail.com (Noadi) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 20:31:00 +0000

Thanks for visiting my brand new blog. Not much here yet but there will be soon. This blog will be all about covering the stuff that doesn't fit in my sculpting blog, like articles, Squidoo lenses, web projects, etc.