I took the kids to the Natick Collection tonight and we found a beautiful chocolate shop and cafe called Moonstruck Fine Chocolate. They have chocolate ladybugs, puppies, mice, kitties, and all sorts of gorgeous truffles and extremely dangerous chocolates. I let each of the kids pick one chocolate for after dinner. Norah wore most of hers, as usual.

A few weeks ago, Ben put Norah in her car seat with a neon sherbet push-pop from the ice cream man. When I came back to the car she had her whole hand inside the tube scooping out sherbet, and she was absolutely covered. I recently started using OxiClean Stain Remover. I thought the sherbet shirt was probably destined for the trash, but I decided to experiment with the OxiClean. It took 3 washes to get the stain completely out but it actually worked!
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In the last week two people have asked if I knew where to donate stuffed animals, so I was thinking there may be more of you out there wondering what to do with the mountain of gently-loved teddy bears and Easter bunnies that the kids just had to have but no longer look at. I sent 2 huge boxes to Project Smile. They give stuffed animals to police officers, firefighters, and paramedics to give to children involved in traumatic situations. They also give stuffed animals to elderly people transitioning to nursing homes.

Here are the guidelines:

• Size: Due to the size limitations in the police cruisers please no stuffed animals over 21 inches.
• Condition: Absolutely no stains or smells from pets, smoke, dust, etc. Please check the stuffed animals for tears, discoloration and worn, pilled or damaged clothing. Please do not wash the stuffed animals or attempt to repair them.
• Battery compartments: We can not accept stuffed animals that have battery compartments.
• No stuffed animals that make noises- such as singing, reciting prayers, etc.
• No commemorative stuffed animals that have years sewn on them.
• Please do not remove the tags.

http://www.projectsmile.org/default.htm
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I mentioned in an earlier post that we found carpenter ants at our camp last weekend. I took the day off from work on Friday and went out to meet the exterminator and get started on the new ceiling. This was the welcoming committee that greeted me at the door. Luckily they all fell victim to the ant bombs Ben and Bernie set off. While I waited for the exterminator I checked out our own gigantic ant farm on the underside of the insulation. It was actually pretty cool if you’re into that kind of thing. You could see the pathways and chambers of the colony, with the stacked up empty cocoons, eggs being carried by adult ants, and larva – all frozen in place. $350 later, we’re guaranteed ant-free for 2008.
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Bernie and I worked for two days until our entire bodies ached, but we finally got the new ceiling up and it looks really nice. It looks so nice that now we need to do something with the walls, floors, and furniture. Not to mention those hideous “hand-hewn” beams. Oh well…maybe next year.
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Many of you probably saw this photo in the news this week. It is a picture of an “uncontacted tribe” in Brazil, shooting arrows at the airplane or helicopter that carried the photographer. This tribe is one of about 100 tribes worldwide who have little or no contact with the outside world.

I have traveled a bit and I know that there are large populations who have never listened to an iPod or eaten a Big Mac, but somehow I never stopped to think about these tribes and why they would shun contact with outsiders. Not only would contact with loggers, miners, and missionaries threaten their way of life, it would threaten their lives. These tribes typically have no immunities to viruses like the flu, colds, and chicken pox, and in some cases half of a tribe or more has died from first contact.

The effects of forcing “progress” or “development” on tribal people are disastrous. It does not make them happier or healthier. In addition to diseases including HIV/AIDS, they face starvation or obesity. They can’t hunt or grow food so many turn to theft or prostitution for survival. Rates of addiction, depression, and suicide soar.

Survival International (http://www.survival-international.org/) was founded in 1969 and is the only organization which supports tribal people worldwide. It works for tribal peoples’ rights with education, advocacy and campaigns, and offers tribal people a platform to address the world. Their website has a lot of interesting and useful information about the crises faced by tribal people.

“It is not that the Yanomami do not want progress, or other things that white people have. They want to be able to choose and not have change thrust upon them, whether they want it or not. I am not saying I am against progress. I think it is very good when whites come to work amongst the Yanomami to teach reading and writing and to plant and use medicinal plants. This for us is progress. What we do not want are the mining companies which destroy the forest and the miners, who bring so many diseases. These whites must respect our Yanomami land. The miners bring guns, alcohol and prostitution and destroy all nature wherever they go. For us this is not progress. We want progress without destruction.”
~ Davi Kopenawa, Yanomami shaman, Brazil, 2003
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Going…Going…
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Gone!
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