The new album, "Prick a Little Sniff a Little," recently released by Rock band Babyshambles, is proving to be an explosive hit with junkies and crackheads the world over.
The album which has only been out for a month is already top of the Wasted People Charts, and has also received the support of dope head legends from beyond the grave.
Speaking from the crypt, Rock and heroin great, Jimi Hendrix, said: "Hey Pete, I heard your latest album and love it, keep the skag flag flying."
Hendrix's comment was seconded by 70s Rock sensation and queen junkie, Janis Joplin, who said: "It's definitely good enough for me, good enough for me and Bobby McGee."
Some fan favourites such as "Make Drugs not War," "If I Had Horse Lungs I'll Snort More" and the popular duet with Amy Winehouse "All We Need is a Spoon, Syringe and a Light," have sent baseheads into a needle and alcohol swab buying frenzy.
Pharmacist, Arjun Patel, who runs a chemist in central London, said: "As you can see there is nothing left, it sold out in three days," pointing to an empty shelf that used to be stacked full of syringes.
Band leader, Pete Doherty, has expressed a lot of satisfaction with the success of the album. Claiming that the album is actually a form of protest against the various hypocrites out there. " When I wrote 'If You Haven't Got a Spare Hole Left in Your Arm, Shoot it Up Your Nose,' it was actually a statement saying each time you send me to rehab I come out 10 times hungrier for that delicious black tar," he said.
The album is available for purchase from record stores or can be bought online by visiting www.weallinjecttonight.com. Some road side homeless potheads are also rumoured to sell the CD at discount prices.
Camden based addict, Jerry Thomas said: "Ah men, once that shit hits you your head just explodes."


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As you begin to hear those familiar piano chords, you might assume that Philly native Musiq Soulchild decided to remix his old single Teach Me. On his newest single, If You Leave, the neo-soul veteran vents his frustrations with the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul, Mary J. Blige. Over a wonderfully simple, yet effective melody brought to you by Carvin & Ivan (of Karmui Productions), Musiq opens up to his woman, letting her know that even without her, he’ll still be around, because love is forever. Soulfully strong still, Blige gives a fiery performance, proclaiming Musiq “arrogant” and “full of it” as she asks for her partner to give it a try. A beautiful song with huge single potential, this musical matrimony could last a lifetime.
Written by Kevin L. Clark on 09/21/08
First DJ Booth Appearance:
Member Reviews and Ratings
- Cam’ron - 1st of the Month Vol. 2
- DJ Blaze - Blazing Cuts (July 2014)
- DJBooth City Cypher #1 (ft. Emilio Rojas, Maffew Ragazino, Black Dave, HD & Kirk Knight)
- It’s Electric: An EDM Guide For the Hip-Hop Head
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- The Best Hip-Hop & R&B Songs of 2014 (Ongoing)
Discover the best new songs, videos, and albums added to the Booth.

domain: artistic


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This exhibit at The Riverside Museum
showed different ways in which we
decorate ourselves throughout history
and in different cultures.
Tattooing in Polynesia
American Indian tribes used beads to decorate
their shoes, clothing and household goods.
Glorious 1920’s Frocks decorated with
beads, sequins and embroidery
Glamour and elegance is just a frock away.
The early Victorian period used corsets
and elaborate and painful methods including rib removal
to get the hourglass shape. Give me Spanx anyday.
I never tire of looking at clothing from the 1920’s
and if given a chance would time travel back to that
era, but of course, I would want to be rich in order to
wear dresses like this.
Through out history, jewelry was used as a way to
show wealth and status.
1800’s silk dress.
The wonderful Riverside Museum is a
tiny little treasure just across the street from the
fabulous Misson Inn
About an hours drive east from Los Angeles
A pretty little town that provides a full day
of things to see and do and if you are lucky
and have been a very good girl....
you can sit in this courtyard at The Misson Inn and have a lovely lunch,
a nice glass of Champagne....
While gazing upon this fab view.
A rare and wonderful, clear, sunny afternoon
in Southern California.
Take care to enjoy and stay warm and cozy wherever you are in this last week of January...


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18-year-old Kamille Anderson and 19-year-old Jordan Braswell are both jailed, charged with beating up a 19-year-old man on SE Tater Peeler Road while they held him at knifepoint, and attempted to stab him. While Braswell assaulted the man leaving his face, head, and neck severely bruised, Anderson emptied his pockets, taking all of his belongings, money, and iPhone.
23-year-old Talarriya Hicks is charged with aggravated assault, vandalism, and theft of property after her boyfriend says she came to visit while intoxicated and became disrespectful to him and his property. She is accused of punching him in the face, busting his lip, taunting him with a foot-long knife, cutting the temp tag off his truck, attempting to remove the light bulb from his ceiling fan, and then trying to run over him with a vehicle.
34-year-old Billy Santerfeit was charged with three counts of theft of property, two counts of evading arrest, reckless driving, and reckless endangerment after he admitted to driving a stolen vehicle and took an Amazon van while the driver was out for delivery.
46-year-old Martin Strickland Jr. and 31-year-old Jalissa Brown were charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent after they were found in a vehicle with meth and Jalissa’s child.
43-year-old Alesha Hudson-Brogdon was charged with theft of property and reckless endangerment after police say she snorted a white powder and took her friend’s purse while they met up at a Speedway.
27-year-old Tyler Gross was charged with criminal trespassing and theft of property after reportedly failing to steal a truck.
37-year-old Emily Stephens was charged with theft of property, possession of drug paraphernalia, and possession of cocaine for resale after she was caught in a stolen vehicle with 13.8 grams of cocaine, per report.
19-year-old Eugene Llapri was charged with theft of property, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon, and evading arrest after he attempted to run from the police in a stolen vehicle, attaining speeds above 100 MPH, per report.
43-year-old Richard Mims was charged with theft of property, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of methamphetamine, and drug paraphernalia after he was found with pipes and a gun in a stolen vehicle, per report.
40-year-old Wesley Muffler was charged with theft of property and driving on a suspended license after he was seen backing a confirmed stolen vehicle into a parking spot at Cracker Barrel.

domain: news


text:
Mathieu Arsenault / Rhizome
La vie littéraire
Presented in French
Alone in the arena, Mathieu Arsenault delivers his text in an uninterrupted monologue, his writing as the sole scenic device. Speaking of his era, he criticizes the cultural industry and confronts the public with its habits of consumption, but he also reveals the concern that lies behind our times: that of being forgotten, erased. With the complicity of Christian Lapointe, who had revealed the scenic portent of his writing in 2008 with Vu d’ici, Arsenault now reveals himself as a performer in a ricochet between living out a fictional figure, the investigation of the act of writing itself, an author's conference and freestyle acting.
Partner : Festival International de la Littérature (FIL).
Author and critic Mathieu Arsenault has published La vie littéraire au Quartanier, and more recently, La morte. His first two books, Album de finissants and Vu d'ici, were adapted for the theatre. Mr. Arsenault is also the founder of the Académie de la vie littéraire, which awards annual prizes to authors unjustly overlooked for other literary distinctions. His literary T-shirts are also available for sale at doctorak.co, his online boutique. While he has been a fixture on the public lecture circuit and at open-mic events on Quebec’s literary scene for the past decade, this adaptation of La vie littéraire is his first true theatrical experience.
- Mathieu Arsenault, La vie littéraire (Quartanier, 2014)
- Mathieu Arsenault
- Christian Lapointe
- Simon Dumas
- Assistant director and stage manager
- Lola Tillard
- Rehearsal director
- Jocelyn Pelletier
- A production of
- Le théâtre Carte Blanche et la Maison de la littérature
- With the support from Recto-Verso
- Co-presentation FIL 2020 and La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines

domain: literature


Perceptics wins a border-security contract
Knoxville-based Perceptics LLC has received a contract from the Canadian government to expand and update technology that reads license plates as vehicles cross the U.S.-Canada border. The company's technology is used at border crossings and other sites across the world.
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Tag: King Hussein
"There can be no apologizing for terror. Terror must be condemned unequivocally, everywhere."
The killer fired three bullets at point-blank range into the king’s head and chest as the king ascended the steps to the mosque.
The Jordanian soldier who shot and killed 7 Israeli girls and wounded 6 others was freed from prison by Amman this week.
This is in followup to the prayers and moment of silence that the Jordanian Parliament held in honor of the two terrorists.
The mission had to be a complete surprise for it to succeed.
According to its peace treaty with Jordan, Israel recognizes Jordan's role as custodian of Muslim sites in Jerusalem, but that role is not to "prevent the Judaization of Jerusalem."
The Jordinian state news agency Petra says His Majesty King Abdullah II told a delegation of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish...


text:
Scrimshaw tobacco box
American scrimshaw tobacco box depicting:
"Skulking IN His Watch & Lashes
Flogging aboard USS Constitution 1813"
made in whalebone size: 4.2" x2.3" x 0.9" assembled with bone pins.
This is one of the finest pieces of early scrimshaw I've ever offered for sale. It is not a resin fake. The box is made from flat pieces of whale bone. The top and bottom being made from two seperate strips i.e. not one piece that has split. The subject matter is very unusual and would appear from the detail, ratings on the left and different ranks of officiers on the right, to have been drawn by a witness to the event - also the precise dating
gives credence to this. Unquestionably this is an early piece and it almost certainly dates from 1813 or very shortly thereafter. The inside of the box smells strongly of stale tobacco and the outside has many small scratchmarks which one would expect from an object frequently used and kept in a pocket along with other objects. Condition apart from scratches mentioned above perfect - no repairs.
The USS Constitution is preserved in Boston harbour.
Further photos or detailed close-ups on request by email
More like this:


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At a certain point, we all become caricatures of ourselves. For example, Donald Trump announced today that he was not, in fact, worth the $9 billion he claimed last week; it was more like 10. The sketch kinda writes itself.
Throw me in the bucket with the rest, though: I have committed the ultimate Dead-obsessive cliché – taking a break from the Dead…with the Jerry Band.
I know, I know, but it’s from the stupidly talented lineup with Ronnie Tutt and Nicky Hopkins. Nicky Hopkins sounds exactly like if you asked someone to do an impersonation of “an Englishman who won’t live to see 40.” Nicky had problems, and so does the show, but they are the ones endemic to all Jerry Band shows: everything is too slow except for the ballads.
The ballads are way too slow. (The tempo of Night They Drove Old Dixie Down is “legally deceased.” On the music, it’s written in Italian, so it sounds better, but the dirge-like nature of the tune cannot be overlooked.
Rest of it’s great: check out an uncredited Merl Saunders (?) doing his rhythm guitarist impression on the nasty and dirty clavinet on Let It Rock, a Mission in the Rain, and…
That Garcia guy: maybe he has been a bit overlooked these last weeks, but he could play a little. Sing a little, too.

domain: entertainment


text:
Purchase this article with an account.
Philipp Ken Roberts, Stefan Zotter, Alessio Montuoro, Michael Pircher, Bernhard Baumann, Stefan Sacu, Christoph K Hitzenberger, Ursula Schmidt-Erfurth; Detection of the angiofibrotic switch in neovascular AMD: A quantitative analysis. Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. 2018;59(9):2622.
Download citation file:
© ARVO (1962-2015); The Authors (2016-present)
To quantify volumetric changes of subretinal hyperreflective material (SHRM) towards subretinal fibrosis and determine the angiofibrotic switch under anti-VEGF therapy.
Patients with treatment-naïve nAMD were included in this prospective observational study. The diagnosis was made based on clinical examination, spectral-domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) and fluorescein angiography (FA). Patients were imaged at baseline and after 3 months (after treatment with 3 intravitreal anti-VEGF injections) using a polarization-sensitive OCT (PS-OCT) system with a scanning angle of 30x30° and a scan pattern of 250x1024 A-scans. The device is capable of automatically detecting fibrosis and the retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) based on their birefringent and depolarizing properties, respectively. The change of the volume of SHRM over time was quantified by manual delineation in each PS-OCT B-scan and the occurrence of fibrosis was detected based on tissue birefringence.
50 eyes of 49 patients were included in the study, 28 of which had SHRM and 3 had some degree of subretinal fibrosis at baseline. In seven of these eyes subretinal fibrosis was detected at 3 months, 6 of which could be unambiguously detected based on PS-OCT imaging. All of these eyes demonstrated non-fibrotic SHRM at baseline, which converted to subretinal fibrosis until month 3. The volume, area and maximum thickness of SHRM decreased significantly from baseline to month 3 (p<0.01) and SHRM regressed completely in 7 eyes without developing fibrosis.
SHRM volume decreases significantly during anti-VEGF therapy, however, the conversion to subretinal fibrosis occurs in a subset of eyes as early as during the first three months of anti-VEGF treatment and can be detected by PS-OCT imaging.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2018 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Honolulu, Hawaii, April 29 - May 3, 2018.
This PDF is available to Subscribers Only


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Veteran's Day & Thanksgiving Schedules
Wednesday November 11 is Veteran’s Day. A holiday for many, it is business as usual for Wine Country CrossFit. We will even have the CrossFit Kids, CrossFit Teens, and Teen Weightlifting classes on schedule.
While we are working out hard we remember those who served, both those that are with us and those that have passed. Not always referred to as Veteran’s Day, here is a bit of history on this historic day:
Veterans Day originated as “Armistice Day” on Nov. 11, 1919, the first anniversary of the end of World War I. Congress passed a resolution in 1926 for an annual observance, and Nov. 11 became a national holiday beginning in 1938. Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day–a common misunderstanding, according to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Memorial Day (the fourth Monday in May) honors American service members who died in service to their country or as a result of injuries incurred during battle, while Veterans Day pays tribute to all American veterans–living or dead–but especially gives thanks to living veterans who served their country honorably during war or peacetime.
For those who like to plan, here is our Thanksgiving Holiday Schedule:
Thursday Nov 26 – 9AM Turkey Day Chipper
Friday Nov 27 – 9AM Level 1, 9-11AM Open Gym
Saturday Nov 28 – 9AM Level 1, 10AM Elements
2015 11 10

domain: history


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A Fast Boy Cycle was featured the first week The Spoken went live, and after all the ornate lugs, flash paint schemes and bold logos that we see here, each bike by Ezra Caldwell is like a breath of fresh air. His bikes purvey an understated subtlety that belie his skill, artistry and innovation.
Ezra, thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for the readers of The Spoken. You’ve had a helluva time over the last three years, undergoing treatment for cancer and simultaneously maintaining a high level of creative output. To start, can you tell us a little about your frame building? Where did you learn to put a frame together? I learned to build bikes over an 8 day period with Whit Moyer down in Austin, Texas. I learned to braze, and just enough about frame construction to go home, set up a shop, and start getting myself in trouble.
Your basement is currently being fitted out as a combination metal and wood shop. Your wooden fenders are quite well known, and we’ve seen a few custom crates and racks on some of your customer’s bikes. Have you had any formal woodwork training? I’m not sure I’d call it formal. My father (who was VERY informal… naked a lot of the time, in fact), was a woodworker, so I grew up around a wood shop. I think I started working on a table saw when I was about 8. I made a lot of cross bows when I was a kid. They worked! So there was this interest in engineering in there as well. Objects that DID stuff, not just furniture. I always liked moving parts. In my adult life, I spent a good chunk of time working as a cabinet maker. Kitchens mostly.
We’ve recently seen evidence of your culinary expertise on your blog: beautifully shot time-lapse video of home cooking incorporating gourmet ingredients. Is this an amateur pastime or have you worked as a chef in a past life? I worked for a few summers as a prep chef when I was a teenager. Later, I lived in the north of England for a year for grad school, and worked a couple nights a week as the chef at a Thai restaurant. That was a bit of a coup. But mostly I’ve just always cooked for myself and whoever happens to be living with me or just stopping by. I’m not too intrigued by the restaurant scene… It seems pretty high octane. I’m more interested in being a really good home cook.
There’s also mention of a previous career as a dancer. How did that come about, and how did that transform into frame building? Yeah. It’s true. I danced professionally for a few years, and then taught for almost ten. For a lot of that time I had a company and was making work. I went to art school (university of the arts in Philadelphia). I thought I was going to study industrial design. I was pretty disenchanted when I realized that the industrial designers weren’t that involved in the engineering side of making stuff (or really the MAKING side of making stuff). Mostly just how it looked. How it felt. So there was a lot of CAD work, and some molding of models out of plastic. Someone dared me to take a dance class one night. I did. It seemed like much more fun than the visual arts core classes I was taking, so I switched majors the next day (“you want to switch majors!?” “Yes, if that’s possible.” “have you ever danced before!!?” “Yeah… I took a class last night.”). I stopped to catch my breath almost 15 years later and realized that I sort of hated dance. When I finally ran away screaming, building bikes seemed like a safe harbor. Can’t remember how I connected THOSE dots.
Is Vermont your home state? Is that how your dog, Putney, got her name? The travelogue photography we’ve seen from there is spectacular. How long have you lived in New York? What’s the best thing about living in NYC? Yeah. Putney got her name from my home town. As a hick construction worker teen I said I’d never live in a city, but ended up in Philly for art school and then dance took me to New York. I can’t really imagine leaving now. I live in a great neighborhood in Harlem. The open mindedness and diversity of a big city is addicting. Great food shopping. Not having to own a car!!
Across your frame building, cooking, woodwork and photography, can you define a common denominator? Well. I’d love to get pregnant, but I don’t feel too hopeful. I guess I’m just trying to make up for it.
Let’s get back to the bikes. You seem to specialize in a niche of commuters, tourers and porteurs, with the occasional roadie and mixte thrown in for good measure. There’s a consistent binding theme of reliable, refined simplicity, understated paint schemes, cork grips and leather upholstery: How did this design ethos develop? I’d love to just shrug and say that it’s always been what I liked, but if I look back that’s clearly not the case. My first serious bike was a Cannondale 2.8. This aluminum ass hatchet that I loved. Maybe if you’d asked me back then whether or not I found it BEAUTIFUL, I would have said, “well… no. I guess not”, but I’m not sure! What makes something beautiful to people is pretty tangled up in how they use the thing.
I don’t ride bikes for exercise any more (takes most of my energy to get out of bed!), so what I find beautiful in a bike is different. Maybe I’m talking myself into a corner here. I’ve always been a bit of a minimalist. My favorite artists are those that practice restraint, not those that seem eager to let you know about their virtuosity. I remind myself constantly not to stand too close to the bike I’m building, but to stand far enough away that I can take it in as a whole. It’s easy to get seduced by the details.
What stage is the cancer treatment at? With the basement coming along swimmingly, what’s in the pipeline for Fast Boy Cycles? I’m currently in remission. I guess. I finished a six month round of chemotherapy in May. That followed a pretty brutal evisceration of a surgery that has left me shitting in a bag for the rest of my life. The latest development is that I’ve got some tumor markers that are spiking and we don’t know why. Nothing is turning up in petscans. Tumors have to be pretty sizable to show up in petscans, though, so we’re left guessing. Under these circumstances, it’s pretty hard to think long term about the business.. And yet, cancer could call my bluff and start just leaving me alone. I could live forever! So I can’t exactly ignore the longevity of the business either. It’s a weird spot. I’ve been making these nose bikes lately. All along I’ve liked the idea of specializing in cargo bikes. So I’m taking the time to develop my version of a cycle truck/postal/butcher’s bike type thing. A light and lithe, but capable rig for a town where people don’t have garages to roll big long-bikes into. I’m actually a little obsessed. It could get problematic. “Ezra, I’d really love a simple beautiful single speed rando bike with wood fenders..” “Um… how about a NOSE BIKE?!?”
Keep up to date with the latest happenings around the Fast Boy Cycles workshop via the website, blog and Flickr. Photo of Ezra on the Assless Bike: evanistan.


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LEONARD COHEN - THANKS FOR THE DANCE - VINYL LP
The sketches of these songs were already there, with Cohen asking his son Adam (producer of 'You Want It Darker') to bring to completion once he had died. Seven months following his death, Adam started piecing together the album, recruiting members of The National and Arcade Fire, with various orchestras and choirs contributing towards the final vision: a posthumous album that was wanted and planned by the artist and left for his son to finish.
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A TRIBE CALLED QUEST - WE GOT IT FROM HERE...THANK YOU 4 YOUR SERVICE - VINYL LP
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text:
The Little Red HenBook - 2006
The classic tale of the hen who only got help with chores after baking and eating a cake which nobody else would help make.
Publisher: New York : Houghton Mifflin, 2006, c2001
Edition: 1st Clarion Big Book ed. --
Branch Call Number: JP Littl
Characteristics: 1 v. (unpaged) : col. ill. ; 38 cm

domain: library


text:
The unstable world we all share will be on American minds this year as they sit down to Thanksgiving dinner. Concern will run high for the safety of children, relatives and friends serving in faraway turbulent parts of the globe. And, as many Americans savour the abundance on their tables this Thanksgiving day, less fortunate people who go hungry every day of every year should not be forgotten.
This week, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has released its annual food insecurity and hunger report, showing that the number of hungry people in developing countries has increased by 18 million since the mid-1990s. The total number is still 19 million fewer than in 1990-1992, reflecting important progress made by a few countries, but in a few large developing countries the reduction in the number of hungry people has essentially reversed - because of armed conflicts in some cases, or population growth or economic crisis in others.
Nevertheless, at the current rate of hunger reduction, the 1996 World Food Summit goal of cutting hunger in half by 2015 will not be met before 2150. To meet the goal more quickly, annual reductions would have to be increased to 26 million people a year, more than 12 times the current rate of 2.1 million a year.
Worldwide, there are 842 million people going hungry, including 34 million in countries in transition, 10 million in industrialized countries, and the vast majority - 798 million - in developing countries. That number is about equivalent to the entire populations of North America and Europe: two continents of hungry people.
These troubling indicators signal a setback in the war against hunger. There are good reasons, however, for hope. The FAO report shows that, in 19 developing countries, the number of chronically hungry people dropped by more than 80 million between 1990 and 2001.
The list of successful countries spans all developing regions, with one country in the Near East, five in Asia and the Pacific, six in Latin America and the Caribbean and seven in sub-Saharan Africa. It includes both large and relatively prosperous countries such as Brazil and China, where levels of under-nourishment were moderate at the outset, and smaller countries where hunger was more widespread such as Chad, Guinea, Namibia and Sri Lanka.
In general, countries that succeeded in reducing hunger were characterized by higher levels of economic and social development and better than average growth in the agricultural sector. They also exhibited slower population growth and lower levels of HIV/AIDS.
No handouts please! Self-reliance will result from fair trade rules, sovereignty, and self-representation.
The real question is: If we know the basic parameters of success, why do we allow hundreds of millions of people to go hungry in a world that produces more than enough food to feed everyone on the planet?
To put it bluntly, the problem is a lack of political will. Most hungry people live in rural areas of the developing world, far from the centres of power. They are forgotten by the media in developed countries.
Except when war, or a natural calamity, briefly focuses global attention and compassion, little is said and less is done to end the suffering of the world’s hungry.
Clearly, there is a need for leadership; a need to focus political will and resources on the problem of global hunger. A growing number are doing just that. Now it is time for the international community to follow through on the commitments made at the World Food Summit.
The task ahead of us is to create an alliance against hunger that will mobilize national and global commitment, based not on a plea for charity, but on a demand for justice. Allowing 842 million people to suffer the ravages of hunger is not only a calamity; it is also a threat to economic growth, political stability, and ultimately to peace: all too often, a hungry man is an angry man.
May future Thanksgivings be celebrated in a world in which every child, woman and man have enough to eat.
Jacques Diouf is the director-general of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
Article courtesy of The Philadelphia Inquirer

domain: sociology


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Kvyat to race at home F1 GP in Sochi with new helmet design depicting him riding torpedoSport April 27, 21:43
Maria Sharapova gets into quarterfinal of WTA tournament in StuttgartSport April 27, 21:16
Russia, Japan to hold bilateral year of culture in 2018World April 27, 20:49
Angela Merkel’s visit to Moscow – pragmatism above all elseRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 27, 19:18
Japanese businessmen and officials to visit South Kuril Islands in summerWorld April 27, 18:46
Putin, Abe call for quickest restart of talks on Korean settlementRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 27, 18:32
Russian diplomat accuses White Helmets of supporting terrorismRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 27, 17:54
Putin's spokesman warns against attempts to hold unauthorized rallies in MoscowRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 27, 16:43
Russian Foreign Ministry says situation on Korean Peninsula is degradingRussian Politics & Diplomacy April 27, 16:42
MOSCOW, June 22 (Itar-Tass) - Russian President Vladimir Putin laid a wreath at the Eternal Flame at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Day of Memory and Sorrow marked in Russia on June 22.
To mourning music, honour guards carried the wreath to the memorial.
Together with the president, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, Presidential Administration Chief of Staff Sergei Ivanov, State Duma Chairman Sergei Naryshkin, government members, veterans and public representatives participated in the commemoration ceremony. It was concluded with a march of troops.
At dawn on June 22, 1941, Nazi Germany without a war declaration attacked the Soviet Union. On the first day, thousands of servicemen of the Red Army and civilians died, and 1,200 aircraft, tanks and artillery guns were destroyed. According to the latest official data, more than 26 million Soviet citizens and servicemen died in the war.
Russian President Putin on October 25, 2007 signed the changes to the law on memorial days, including June 22, Day of Memory and Sorrow, the day when the Great Patriotic War began, in the list. It is a mourning day in Russia when state flags are lowered to half-mast and entertainment events and TV shows are cancelled.


Security advisory database for Rust crates published through crates.io
Repository for design and specification of the Component Model
Rust allocator using jemalloc as a backend
Rust bindings and utilities for LLVM’s libFuzzer
OSS-Fuzz - continuous fuzzing of open source software.
Viceroy provides local testing for developers working with Compute@Edge.
The WebAssembly Binary Toolkit
Wasm all up in your token trees


Artificial intelligence has become the discussion of the century and it has already started to drive a wedge between people. We can’t neglect the fact that artificial intelligence is becoming a part of our life. Step by step we get used to virtual personal assistants like Siri, smart cars are getting close to be self-driven, online customer support led by chatbots, robots do surgeries, robots take care of babies, they do chores etc.
So the other question – what is next? Many scientists are worried that artificial intelligence might be better at all kinds of tasks than humans. Recently Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk had a discussion about artificial intelligence and how the future will be with it. Elon Musk was worried about the future and he said that AI is ” A fundamental risk to the existence of human civilization’’ but on the other hand Mark Zuckerberg was optimistic about AI.
It might be beneficial at hospitals where AI can have access to patient journals. The computer can retrieve information much faster than the doctors manage to browse hundreds of documents and we will get better health care thanks to better diagnoses. Smart homes will also reduce energy usage and provide better security and marketing will be more targeted.
At the same time the use of artificial intelligence might get out of control. Facebook had to shut down an experiment after two artificial intelligence programs began chatting with each other in their own language. So the world of the Matrix and Terminator might become pretty real but on the contrary implementing a new technology always has some drawbacks.
LawGeex(an artificial intelligence research company) is working on an AI lawyer to evaluate legal contracts. The AI’s first goal was to beat 20 experienced human lawyers. Human lawyers reviewed the contract and found 30 legal problems in 4 hours. %85 of their determination was true but against the AI they couldn’t win. It had %95 success and it did the operation in only 26 minutes. For now people think that AI lawyers will be useful for hem to make their works easier but in the future either they don’t know that AI will take their places or they they try to be optimistic about it. For me lawyers might lose their jobs in the future. Because of Industrial Revolution and industrial mechanisation in the 18th century a lot of people lost their jobs in factories and I think the same thing will happen to various other jobs.
The worls first citizen Sophia is an AI designed by Hanson Robotics to help visitors and old people in parks. It can copy all face expressions of people for example being happy, sad, angry… During an interview she said that she wants to have a family, a home, a job just like humans. At the end of the interview the reporter asked Sophia if she wants to destroy humans an she answers ‘’ Okay I will destroy humans.’’. They posted another video saying that it was just a joke but I think there may be truth behind it and it concerned me.
I am not against progress in AI but I think we should always keep an eye on it just in case. I would like to end my blog with a quote that I really agree with. “Everything we love about civilization is a product of intelligence, so amplifying our human intelligence with artificial intelligence has the potential of helping civilization flourish like never before – as long as we manage to keep the technology beneficial.“ Max Tegmark, President of the Future of Life Institute.


text:
THE SOCIETY OF MIDLAND AUTHORS
THE SMA SPEAKERS BUREAU
We encourage librarians, event coordinators, and
to arrange an appearance
for any of these fine SMA authors.
Elizabeth Anderson Why I Write Christian Books For Children;
Freelance Writing For Profit & Pleasure; The Lincoln Highway;
All About Books: From A to Z
Carol Ascher I enjoy speaking
about memoir writing, as well as offering workshops on writing
a memoir, and am often asked to talk about and read from my
own memoir, Afterimages.
Arnie Bernstein Chicago
film history, Civil War/Lincoln history, creative writing, creativity
in corporate communications
Mervin Block Broadcast Newswriting
Greg Borzo The Chicago “L” – Chicago’s Biggest Mover & Shaker; history of Chicago’s cable cars; history of bicycling in Chicago and good, safe places to bike
Marlene Targ Brill All aspects
of writing and publishing; research; the fun of nonfiction;
biography; writing workshops
Steven Burgauer A lively
presentation about the fun and challenges of writing science
Dan Burns Career expert; Tools and techniques to win job interviews; Book club discussions; Writing inspiration and techniques
Pat Camalliere History, SW suburbs of Chicago; beginning mystery novel writing.
Marilyn J. Chiat Religious Art
Food history (rum, corn/maize)) and a combination of food history and travel (spice trade and southern India)
Amelia Cotter Supernatural, History, Folklore, Writing
Alzina Stone Dale Crime, mystery
Michael H. Ebner (all slide
illustrated) Baseball as History/History as Baseball, Glitter
Amid Despair: Chicago as the Dual Metropolis, Creating Chicago's
North Shore, Teaching American History in the New Century
Bruce L. Felknor Unsung Heroes
the Merchant Marine at War; Classics of Political Mischief;
Historic Charlatans & Impostors; Boners & Howlers from
the Fount of Knowledge
Carol Felsenthal The art
of writing unauthorized profiles and biographies and how to
Judith Bernette Bloom Fradin
Children's books, American history, and picture books
Edward E. Gordon Business,History
Keir Graff Writing, publishing,
book reviewing, adult fiction and children’s literature
Barbara Gregorich How to
Self-Publish through CreateSpace
Valiska Gregory Children's
Books, Writing Workshops, Book Reviewing
Eldon L. Ham Sports business,
law and history
Kate Hannigan Writing, reading, researching, and resilience
Amy Hassinger Writing Historical
Fiction, Writing about Adolescence, Faith and Writing, Writing
Frank S. Joseph Race, religion,
Chicago in 1948
Josh Karp Comedy, popular culture/cultural
criticism, freelance magazine writing and golf
Richard C. Lindberg Chicago
Crime Tours; Windy City history; his published books about Michael
C. McDonald; the Schuessler-Peterson Murders; the Chicago White
Sox; and Gaslight-Era Criminals Belle Gunness, H.H. Holmes and
Johann Hoch; and writing and publishing in Chicago
Gail Lukasik Fiction, poetry
and nature writing workshops; mystery writing; presentations
on publishing, Illinois and the Trail of Tears
Wendell Mayo Readings from his award-winning fiction; intensive fiction writing workshops for all skill levels, including master workshops; and speaks on and conducts workshop on publishing fiction
Erin McKean Dictionaries, Weird
and Wonderful Words, English Usage and Abusage
James L. Merriner Chicago,
Illinois, and National Politics. History of Corruption and Reform
in Chicago. The Case of Governor George Ryan
Brandon Marie Miller History
topics and writing nonfiction, for school visitis and adult
Patricia Monaghan Earth Spirituality,
Jane Anne Morris Local Democracy,
the Constitution, & Corporations; "Free Trade," Corporate Social
Responsibility, and Democracy; Corporate Constitutional Obstacles
to Localizing Democracy; and more
Gunter Nitsch Life in Post
WWII Germany; refugees; East Prussia
James Reiss Poetry Readings,
Michael Raleigh Mystery writing;
fiction writing; Myths and realities of the publishing world;
Chicago history topics, including the Great Chicago Fire
Cyndee Schaffer The Journey to "Mollie's War," from Inspiration to Publication
Jim Schwab Environmental Topics;
Urban Planning; Oral History and the Art of Interviewing; Adoption
and Foster Care
Sue William Silverman Conducts
creative nonfiction writing workshops; gives presentations on
child abuse prevention, addictions, and family dynamics
Daniel P. Smith Chicago police,
Chicago crime, journalism and non-fiction writing for youth,
using nonfiction lit to help produce crime and mystery novels,
1968 Democratic National Convention
Gerry and Janet Souter Paths
to Publishing, Writing Community Histories
Tom Swift All aspects of nonfiction
writing, including history, essays, research, biography, and
John Wasik Samuel Insull and
the history of utilities in Chicago & Investor protection
and personal finance issues
Michele Weldon Writing Workshops,
Scribotherapy, Journalism, Women's Issues
Sel Yackley Bipolar illness,
suicide, the death penalty, life in a small Illinois town, Turkey
(history, culture, politics, tourism)
Bill Yarrow Poetry Readings, Writing Workshops
Mary Elizabeth Anderson
Mary Elizabeth Anderson is an experienced writer who will speak to audiences on the following topics: "'Why I Write Christian Books For Children," and "Freelance Writing For Profit & Pleasure." She will also speak to schools on the topic of "The Lincoln Highway: The First Transcontinental Highway Across America." A former elementary teacher, she is currently a Stephen's Minister at Trinity United Methodist Church in Grand Island, Nebraska.
Awards include: The 2003 Literary Award given by the Humanities Council of Hall County, Nebraska, for fostering excellence in the arts and humanities in Nebraska's heartland, and the Authors Award given by The Antique Automobile Club of America--Publications Committee--for her children's book: LINK ACROSS AMERICA: THE STORY OF THE HISTORIC LINCOLN HIGHWAY
She has published the following books:
- LINK ACROSS AMERICA: THE STORY OF THE HISTORIC LINCOLN HIGHWAY
- TAKING CEREBRAL PALSY TO SCHOOL
- EVER WONDER WHAT TO DO? ALL ABOUT MANNERS
- IT'S ME AGAIN, GOD (a story devotional book for preteens)
- WHY DID THEY BUILD A FENCE? (a multicultural picture book due out in 2004)
Anderson teaches "Freelance Writing For Profit & Pleasure" seminars at community colleges throughout the heartland. Her articles and stories have appeared in over one hundred periodicals.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education degree from Northwest Missouri State University, along with 30 additional credits in the field of education. She lives in Grand Island, Nebraska, with her husband, Don Anderson. They are the parents of three adult children, and have six grandchildren.
| Carol Ascher Email
I offer talks of memoir writing to people interested in
writing personal essays and their own memoirs. These talks
include such topics as: How does a memoir differ from an autobiography?
What about my life is interesting? Where do I start writing?
What if I don't remember everything I need to know? How should
I organize my memoir—by chronology or by theme?
I also offering workshops consisting of one or more sessions
on writing a memoir, which begin with "mini talks"
on some of the subjects listed above, but allow students ample
opportunity to start writing down their memories and turn
them into sections of their memoirs.
Finally, I am often asked to talk about and read from my
own memoir, Afterimages, which describes growing up in Topeka,
Kansas, in a family of Central European refugees from the
Nazis. In this case, I talk both about my life experience
and about the process of returning to painful memories in
order to write a memoir.
773-233-4577 FAX: 773-233-4541
10704 S. Artesian; Chicago, IL 60655
Chicago film history, Civil War/Lincoln history, creative writing, creativity in corporate communications
Author of Hollywood on Lake Michigan: 100 Years of Chicago and the Movies, The Hoofs and Guns of the Storm: Chicago's Civil War Connections and editor of The Movies Are: Carl Sandburg's Film Reviews & Essays: 1920 - 1928. All published by Lake Claremont Press.
Presentations at DePaul University, Columbia College, Southern Illinois University, University of Illinois at Chicago, BBC Radio, numerous libraries, bookstores, conferences and broadcast outlets.
Experienced and award-winning writer/editor.
Mervin Block has written news at three television networks:
as a staff writer for the "CBS Evening News with Walter Cronkite"
and the "ABC Evening News with Frank Reynolds" and as a freelance
at NBC News. He has written news for Walter Cronkite, Ed Bradley,
Tom Brokaw, Charles Kuralt, Charles Osgood, Dan Rather, Frank
Reynolds, Diane Sawyer, Mike Wallace, Bob Trout, Douglas Edwards,
Edwin Newman, Roger Mudd and Harry Reasoner.
Broadcast Newswriting: The RTNDA Reference Guide (co-published by the
Radio-Television News Directors Association, 1994)
Rewriting Network News: WordWatching Tips from 345 TV and Radio Scripts
Writing Broadcast News--Shorter, Sharper, Stronger (Revised and Expanded), 2d
Writing News for TV and Radio: The Interactive CD and Handbook (with Joe
Durso, Jr., 1998)
Block has worked as a newspaper reporter and editor in Chicago, has served as
executive news producer for WBBM-TV, Chicago, has written and broadcast
editorials for WNBC-TV, New York City, and has won first prize three times
for TV spot-news scripts in the annual competition of the Writers Guild.
He has also written a column on broadcast newswriting, "WordWatching," for
the RTNDA magazine, Communicator. He has taught broadcast
newswriting at Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism,
and he has been teaching workshops in radio and television newsrooms.
Block holds an M.S.J. from Medill School of Journalism, Northwestern
University, and a certificate from Columbia's Graduate School
|Greg Borzo Email Biography Web Site
- The Chicago “L” – Chicago’s Biggest Mover & Shaker
Discover the world-famous Chicago “L” in all its grit and glory. The "L" has been running 24/7 for 122 years. See how it came to be and why it needs to be preserved. This rich historical presentation is lavishly illustrated with 100 images and includes a look at the "L" in the movies. Take a lively, entertaining tour of the "L" through time. Mass transit never looked so good!
- The history of Chicago’s cable cars. Travel back to the days when Chicago had the world’s largest cable car system ever. Providing more than one billion rides, these cable cars filled residents with pride – and robber barons’ pockets with money. They helped lay the groundwork for today’s transit network. But after 25 years, the boom went bust. Today the fascinating story of the rise and fall of Chicago’s cable cars is forgotten—even though we walk past, ride over and dine in remnants of it every day.
- The history of bicycling in Chicago and good, safe places to bike around Chicagoland.
RAGBRAI: America's Favorite Bicycle Ride (2013)
Chicago Cable Cars (2012)
Where to Bike Chicago: Best Biking in City and Suburbs (2011)
The Chicago “L” (2007)
An award-winning journalist, Greg works as an independent writer. He’s an accomplished public speaker and conducts tours about the “L,” cable cars, Chicago history and bicycling for the Chicago History Museum, Chicago Cycling Club, Forgotten Chicago and others.
Greg always engages his audience and strives to entertain as well as inform. His dynamic PowerPoint presentations are lavishly illustrated and always memorable.
|Marlene Targ Brill
aspects of writing and publishing; research; the fun of nonfiction; biography; writing
Marlene is an award-winning author of more than 40 books for
readers of all ages. Her list of published books includes nonfiction for children and
adults and historical fiction for young readers. She writes to create nonfiction that is
fun to read (Tooth Tales from around the World, the only nonfiction history of the tooth
fairy) and that highlights strong people who have changed our world through their
everyday actions (Allen Jay and the Underground Railroad, Diary of a Drummer Boy, Margaret
Knight: Girl Inventor). She also has a passion for writing women into history (Sport
Success series, Women for Peace, Journey for Peace: The Story of Rigoberta Menchu). Her
Tooth Tales from around the World received a Children's Choice Award, and her Keys to
Parenting a Child with Autism was a Parent's Choice.
Marlene is a former special educator who currently writes educational materials, magazine
articles, and other business and healthcare materials in addition to books. As a speaker,
she provides audiences with a humorous view of the ups and downs of the writing life.
|Steven Burgauer Email
Avid hiker, Eagle Scout, founder of a successful mutual fund,
political candidate, Steven Burgauer lives and writes in Illinois.
A graduate of Illinois State University and the New York Institute
of Finance, Mr. Burgauer currently writes science fiction and
occasionally teaches Economics for a local university. He has
written a book on personal investment management entitled, THE
WEALTH BUILDER'S GUIDE. His science fiction titles include:
- FORNAX (1994)
- THE BRAZEN RULE (1995)
a viral killer on the loose
- THE LAST AMERICAN (1996)
a country on the brink of disaster
- IN THE SHADOW OF OMEN (1997)
- THE GRANDFATHER PARADOX
a time-travel story, back to the U.S. Civil War
- TREACHERY ON THE DARK SIDE
sex, murder, and intrigue at zero-g
- THE RAILGUNS OF LUNA (2001)
a sick philosophy spreading across the planet
- THE NIGHT OF THE ELEVENTH
Neanderthal meets human in the mountains of Iberia
- NEWHUMAN (2003)
superior humans colonize a newly-terraformed Mars
- THE SLAVES OF APHRODITE
genetically rejuvenated slaves colonize a newly-terraformed
His work has been reviewed in many places, including LOCUS, SCIENCE
FICTION CHRONICLE, the PEORIA JOURNAL STAR, the EUREKA LITERARY
MAGAZINE, and PROMETHEUS, the journal of the Libertarian Futurist
Society. He was also a contributor to the zany murder mystery,
NAKED CAME THE FARMER, headlined by SF great Philip Jose Farmer.
|Dan Burns Email
Web Site Phone: 630-915-8808
1) “Win The Job Interview Before It Begins!”
A hiring manager makes a decision about a job candidate within the first 60 seconds of their meeting. In those first 60 seconds, a hiring manager can decide whether a candidate will be moved to the top of the list…or dropped from consideration. Career expert Dan Burns, author of the book The First 60 Seconds: Win the Job Interview Before it Begins, will provide the proven and successful tools and techniques to win the job interview before it begins and pursue a successful long-term career. (Adults, 90 minutes)
2) “Book Club Discussion With Local Author Dan Burns”
Take the opportunity to invite local author Dan Burns to your next book club discussion. Learn about the inspiration behind Dan’s new Chicago-based drama, Recalled to Life, as well the details behind his approach to writing short stories, screenplays, and novels. His thought-provoking novel is perfect for your book club list. Two free books will be provided for the library and discounted books are available for your patrons who order prior to the event. (Adults, 90 minutes)
References: Dawn Ellinghamm Mokena Community Public Library District
|Pat Camalliere Email Web Site
- 1) History of Southwest Suburbs (Along Des Plaines River and Sag Valley)
- 2) Writing historical mystery novels
Title/Topic: A Novel Approach: Beginning to End Basics for Aspiring Novelists
Synopsis: Have you ever wanted to write a novel? Chicago-area author Pat Camalliere guides you through the process of writing fiction, preparing you to write your own novel. This fast-paced program gives a thorough but condensed view of the novel-writing process, including basic information on setting, characters, organization, helpful tips, tools and resources, editing, publishing, and book promotion. The author brings her personal working notebooks and files for participants to view. Recommendations available.
Title/Topic: The Lost Town of Sag Bridge
Synopsis: Although it no longer exists, Sag Bridge was once a thriving 19th century canal town, its land now a part of present-day Lemont, Illinois. Author and amateur historian Pat Camalliere will describe the town as it once was, from its formation by glaciers to the closing of its school district in 1959. The town’s importance and the reasons for its decline will be revealed, and the talk will include photos, turn of the century transportation and ghost stories. Recommendations available.
Title/Topic: Travelogue to Dialogue: Photo Travelogue of Local Places of Interest along the Des Plaines River with Author Readings.
Synopsis: Author and amateur historian Pat Camalliere will show and describe photos from her personal collection of places in and near the Des Plaines River Valley. Although all are public and accessible, many area residents have been surprised to know their historic and geographic importance. Discussions are interwoven with readings from the author’s books in which the locations are featured. Locations include St. James at Sag Bridge, the Chicago Portage, Isle a la Cache Museum, and other locations in the forest preserves and along the Des Plaines River. New program.
Note: Author is also willing to prepare talks on related topics, and join book club discussions of her works.
|Marilyn J. Chiat
2812 Drew Avenue South; Minneapolis, MN 55410
Art and Architecture
Marilyn J.Chiat received
her Ph.D. in Art History from the University of Minnesota. Her first book, HANDBOOK OF
SYNAGOGUE ARCHITECTURE, was
published in Brown University's Post-Biblical Judaica Series (1982).
Her most recent book, AMERICA'S RELIGIOUS ARCHITECTURE: SACRED PLACES FOR EVERY COMMUNITY,
was published by Preservation Press, John Wiley & Sons, NYC (1997). Dr. Chiat has
presented illustrated slide lectures on religious art and architecture at venues
throughout the nation and abroad and has appeared on many television and radio shows. She
has received awards for her work from Partners for Sacred Places in Philadelphia, the
Minnesota Humanities Commission and the City of Minneapolis. In her presentations, she
introduces the audience to the "stories" religious art and architecture can tell
about the people who built, decorated and worshipped in the buildings.
One of her most
popular talks, "America's Magnificent Mosaic: A Survey of Religious Art and
Architecture in the United States," takes the audience on a tour of the nation's
byways and highways looking at buildings erected by the nation's various ethnic and/or
religious groups. It is a celebration of what makes America unique: the freedom it offers
all people to worship where and how they choose. Another presentation, "The Shul in
the Golden Medina," looks at the development of one religious group's places of
worship in the New World, examining what they brought with them from the Old World and
what they transformed in the New. Other lectures include a comparative study of religious
architecture, looking at what is shared and what is different among various places of
Email Website http://www.worldplate.com/
How Corn Changed Itself and Then Changed Everything Else A weedy grass growing in Mexico transformed itself into a larger, more useful grass about 10,000 years ago—and then transformed the Americas, even before First Contact. In North America, it swept across the Midwest with stunning speed, building cities, igniting industries, and inspiring poets and innovators. Vampires, Henry Ford, time zones, Fritos, and the Chicago Bears are all part of this remarkable story. Today, corn is more important than ever. (lecture, general audience, 60 min.)
The Rule of Rum Food historian Cynthia Clampitt shares the reason rum arose where it did and when it did, as well as how pirates got involved and who really said “yo, ho, ho” (not the pirates), but also explains how rum was involved in uniting the 13 Colonies, why it was one of the issues that led to the American Revolution, how it also led to a revolt in its next home after the Caribbean: Australia, and how it affected culture and history around the world after that. (lecture, older teens and adults, 60 min.)
Seeking Spiceland For most of recorded history, people searched for routes to southern India. Why? The world’s most popular spices come from a small area at the tip of the subcontinent. Today, however, few visit the region, which is a pity. Southern India offers surprising history, stunning beauty, gracious people, and wonderful food. Come learn about the spices, the place of southern India in world events, and the delights to be enjoyed by a visitor today. (narrated slide show, general audience, 60 min.)
Clampitt is a world traveler and food historian, and she loves sharing tales of what she has discovered. See website for additional info, including other programs, speaking schedule, and fees.
Amelia Cotter Email Biography
Supernatural, History, Folklore, Writing
Amelia is available to speak to audiences of all ages on a variety of topics related to the supernatural, history, folklore, and writing. To schedule Amelia for an appearance or interview, please contact her at email@example.com.
|Alzina Stone Dale
773-684-1856 (Nov-June) 616-426-8275 (July-Oct)
5548 S. Kenwood Avenue; Chicago, IL 60637 1714
Crime, mystery writing, biographies.
writer/lecturer Alzina Stone Dale gives mystery seminars at the Newberry Library and
appears on/chairs panels here and abroad, including Bouchercons, Malice Domestic, and
Magna cum Murder. A biographer of Dorothy L. Sayers, T.S. Eliot and G.K.Chesterton, editor
of DOROTHY L. SAYERS:THE CENTENNARY CELEBRATION and 1998 contributer to the C.S. LEWIS
READERS ENCLYCLOPEDIA, THE SWIFTLY TILTING WORLD OF MADELEINE' L'ENGLE, and THE OXFORD
COMPANION TO CRIME AND MYSTERY, as well as a series of mystery walking guides to LONDON,
ENGLAND, NEW YORK, CHICAGO and WASHINGTON DC, Dale has spoken to library groups, literary
socities, and woman's clubs from Seattle to Washington DC. MYSTERY READERS WALKING GUIDE: ENGLAND was nominated for UK's Crime Writers Association 's Dagger, while CHICAGO won Malice Domestic's Agatha Award and teapot. Her
latest guide to WASHINGTON DC covers political mysteries from David Baldacci to Margaret
Truman. Dale is a member of the Authors Guild, Crime Writers Association, Mystery Writers
of America, Dorothy L.Sayers and Ngaio Marsh Societies, and the Society of Midland
Authors. A native Chicagoan she lives in the Hyde Park house where she was born.
|Michael H. Ebner Email
- Baseball as History/History as Baseball
- Glitter Amid Despair: Chicago as the Dual Metropolis
- Creating Chicago's North Shore
- Teaching American History in the New Century
James D. Vail III Professor of History emeritus at Lake Forest
College and author of "Creating Chicago's North Shore: A Suburban
History" (University of Chicago Press, 1988). Recipient of teaching
awards from the American Historical Association, "Chicago Tribune,"
and Lake Forest College.
|Bruce L. Felknor
509 Trinity Court; Evanston, IL 60201
Heroes: the Merchant Marine at War; Classics of Political Mischief; Historic Charlatans
& Impostors; Boners & Howlers from the Fount of Knowledge
Bruce Felknor is
an author, editor, encyclopedist, editorial consultant, and raconteur, among whose books
are the recent "The U.S. Merchant Marine at War, 17752945," the 1966 classic
"Dirty Politics," "Political Mischief," "How to Look Things Up
and Find Things Out," "The Treasury of the Encyclopaedia Britannica" (with
Clifton Fadiman), and a prize-winning history of the 125-year-old Highland Park
Thank-you letters from program chairs describe his audiences as "captivated"
. . . "rapt" . . . "spellbound." The lectures mine Felknor's own
background: executive director of the then-national Fair Campaign Practices Committee
(1956-66), and varied roles at "Encyclopaedia Britannica" (1966-85), longest as
|Carol Felsenthal Email
1720 N. Cleveland Ave., Chicago, IL 60614
Carol Felsenthal’s latest book, Clinton in Exile: A President
Out of the White House, a look at Bill Clinton’s post presidency,
including the bruising battle against Barack Obama for the democratic
nomination, will be published by William Morrow/HarperCollins
on April 22, 2008. She has also written biographies of Katharine
Graham (an HBO mini-series adapted from the book is currently
in the works, with a revised screenplay by Joan Didion); Alice
Roosevelt Longworth, and Si Newhouse.
Carol Felsenthal has spoken all over the country and abroad
about such topics as the art of writing unauthorized profiles
and biographies of some of the country’s most rich and powerful
people; what’s it like inside the peculiar worlds of book, magazine,
and newspaper publishing; how to get published (find an agent,
write a proposal);, and more generally on the subjects of local,
state, and nationl politics and media.
Information on her speaking engagements and links to appearances
on television and radio can be found at www.carolfelsenthal.com.
Felsenthal has taught college and graduate students at the University
of Chicago in a class titled "Writing Profiles."
For 15 years
she taught a popular class at the Francis W. Parker Evening
School titled "
How to Get Published."
| Judith Bernette Bloom Fradin
Email Web Site
847-869-8099 (10 AM to 10 PM, please)
2121 Dobson Street; Evanston, IL 60202
Matter: For the past ten years I have written children's nonfiction books.
These include co-authorship of 24 books on the states, a book about
Sacagawea, a booklet on storm chasers and one about Mt. Washington, and my
award-winning Ida B. Wells: Mother of the Civil Rights Movement,
co-written with my husband, Dennis.
In addition, I find and re-photograph archival pictures for Fradin books. My
research takes me to the Library of Congress as well as to many primary
sources. I also take relevant photos myself.
My presentations focus on research techniques, archival photography, and the
creation of a book from idea to hardcover. I am a former teacher and I enjoy
audiences from kindergarten on up.
Biographical Information: I was born in Mt. Sinai
Hospital on January 8, 1945, and have lived in the Chicago area
my entire life. I received my undergraduate degree from Northwestern
University and earned my master's degree at Northeastern Illinois
University. I'm married to author Dennis B. Fradin, and we are
the parents of three adult children. I live in Evanston, just
one block north of the Chicago border. I enjoy gardening, traveling,
and going to the park with my 4-year-old grandson.
|Edward E. Gordon, Ph.D.
Email Biography Web Site
312-664-5196 FAX: 312-943-7360
220 E. Walton, Chicago, IL 60611
Ed Gordon is a speaker with vision. As a corporate president, author, university professor and historian, Gordon provides an interdisciplinary perspective on the forces shaping current events. His presentations mix humor with powerful messages that inform and inspire widely diverse audiences. Among his 18 books are Future Jobs: Solving the Employment and Skills Crisis (Praeger, 2013), Winning the Global Talent Showdown: How Businesses and Communities Can Partner to Rebuild the Jobs Pipeline (Berrett-Koehler, 2009), The 2010 Meltdown: Solving the Impending Jobs Crisis (Praeger, 2005), SkillWars: Winning the Battle for Productivity and Profit (Butterworth-Heinemann, 2000), and Literacy in America: Historic Journey and Contemporary Solutions (Praeger, 2003).
Ed Gordon is president of Imperial Consulting Corporation and has taught at three Chicago-area universities: DePaul, Loyola, and Northwestern. Over 100,000 people across the U.S. and Canada have heard his presentations. His most popular speeches on contemporary economic and employment issues include:
- Today’s Employment and Career Challenges: Renewing the Vision
- The Global Talent Race: Can the U.S. Grow More of Its Own?
- Future Jobs: Solving the Employment and Skills Crisis
- Science Friction: Rethinking STEM Education
In his other area of professional specialization, Ed Gordon provides programs on many aspects of World War II, the U.S. Civil War, and the American West. For more information, visit www.historypresentations.com.
|Keir Graff Email
How I Kept My Day Job and Became a Published Author—and
You Can, Too!
Keir Graff knows what it’s like to get a bad review—and what
it’s like to give one. The author of The Price of Liberty
and three other novels recently made his debut as a children’s
author with The Other Felix. He’s also the editor of
Booklist Online, the website of the American Library
Association’s venerable book-review journal, Booklist.
His unique perspective on publishing has been earned through
years of hard work, serendipity, and sometimes painful trial
and error. In this lighthearted and informative talk, Graff
tells his own story of breaking into print while offering practical
advice about getting published, starting with the question every
writer needs to ask: "Will getting published make me happy?"
Marjorie Monaghan, an events programmer at the Chicago Public
Library’s Harold Washington Library Center, called Keir Graff
a "programmer’s dream of a speaker."
In addition to this popular presentation, Graff is often in
demand as a moderator and panelist, discussing various aspects
of writing, publishing, book reviewing, and adult fiction and
| Barbara Gregorich Email
How to Self-Publish through CreateSpace
Barbara Gregorich has published approximately 200 books with
traditional publishers; she has self-published 5 books through
CreateSpace and plans a total of 10 or more. In a detailed,
instructive slide-show program, she shows others how to self-publish
at no cost whatsoever.
|Valiska Gregory Email
5300 Grandview Dr.; Indianapolis, IN 46228
Children's Books, Writing Workshops, Book Reviewing
Award-winning poet and children's book author Valiska Gregory
has published over a dozen books for children. Translated in
seven different languages, her books have received Parents'
Choice Awards, been chosen for the American Booksellers' "Pick
of the Lists," and been featured on PBS and national television.
Library reference source Something About the Author calls
her a "star in the children's literature scene."
Writer-in-residence at Butler University, Ms. Gregory is the
founding director of the Butler Children’s Literature Conference.
She reviews children’s books for Publishers Weekly, and
she enjoys speaking at schools, libraries, and conferences across
the country. www.valiskagregory.com
|Eldon L. Ham
30 N. LaSalle Street;
Chicago, Illinois 60602
Sports business, law and history
Adjunct professor of sports law at Chicago-Kent College of Law. Author of two published books on sports related issues, plus many articles including Chicago Tribune (Latrell Sprewell), Trial Magazine (steroids), Seton Hall Sports Law Journal (disabled athletes), Marquette Sports Law Review (baseball and law). Often featured in the media (WGN Radio and numerous other stations coast to coast, including Alaska, plus the BBC in England).
One of the first attorneys to challenge and change the NFL drug policy in court (Richard Dent v. NFL); former general counsel and chief operating officer, Zucker Sports Management; featured luncheon speaker at the Alabama State Bar Annual Meeting; featured prominently by the National Law Journal in February, 2003; designated to address the 100th World Series Symposium in Boston, October 1, 2003 (sponsored by the Baseball Hall of Fame, Boston Red Sox and Northeastern University).
The 100 Greatest Sports Blunders of All Time (Contemporary: 1997)
The PlayMasters--an unauthorized history of the NBA (McGraw-Hill/Contemporary: 2000)
|Kate Hannigan Email
Writing, reading, researching, and resilience
Kate's books have been included in Chicago Public Library's "Best of the Best" and received starred review from Booklist as well as The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. She offers exciting author visits for schools, and she speaks to adult audiences as well. Kate talks about finding ideas, the joys and perils of research, and how to keep on going in the face of rejection letters and publishing upheaval.
Kate's presentations are for kindergartners on up, focusing on how books go from "ah-ha!" idea to your bookshelf. Emphasis on researching and writing, fiction and non-fiction.
|Amy Hassinger Email
Writing Historical Fiction, Writing about Adolescence,
Faith and Writing, Writing the Novel
Amy Hassinger graduated from Barnard College and the Iowa
Writers' Workshop, where she received her MFA in fiction writing.
She is the author of two novels. Deemed "superb" by O,
the Oprah Magazine and "truly penetrating" by Salon.com,
Nina: Adolescence (Putnam and Listen and Live Audio,
2003) has been translated into Dutch and Portuguese, won a
Publisher's Weekly Listen Up! Award and was
selected as an Audio Book of the Year by ForeWord
Magazine. In a starred review, Library Journal
says The Priest's Madonna (Putnam and Listen and Live
Audio, 2006) is "a rich fabric of love, mystery, anguish,
and faith" while Marie Claire magazine calls
it "a provocative page-turner." Houses in Spain, The Netherlands,
Russia, and Indonesia have purchased the translation rights.
Hassinger received a 2006 Finalist Award in Prose from the
Illinois Arts Council and was named a semi-finalist for the
2005 Julia Peterkin Award. Her stories have appeared or are
forthcoming in Arts and Letters, Salt
Hill, Natural Bridge, and Blithe
House Quarterly Online, and have been anthologized in
Best Lesbian Love Stories.
She is also the author of Finding Katahdin: An Exploration
of Maine's Past. She's taught English to middle school
students, writing and literature to undergraduates, and is
currently on the faculty of the University of Nebraska's Low-Residency
MFA in Writing Program. She lives in Urbana, Illinois with
her husband and daughter.
|Frank S. Joseph Email
Race, religion, Chicago in 1948
Frank S. Joseph is a novelist, journalist, publisher and direct
marketer. His novel TO LOVE MERCY, a tale of blacks and whites,
Christians and Jews, how children view the world, conflict
and forgiveness ... and Chicago in 1948 ... has won six awards
and gone into a second printing.
As an Associated Press reporter, Frank covered the Democratic
National Convention disorders of 1968, Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr.'s march into Cicero IL, and nearly every street event
during Chicago's riot-torn mid '60s.
|Josh Karp Email
847-869-2359 (office) 847-828-7322 (cell)
Comedy, popular culture/cultural criticism, freelance
magazine writing and golf
Background: I have written for the Atlantic Monthly, Salon,
Premiere, LA Times Sunday Magazine, TimeOut New York, Chicago
Magazine, Chicago Sun-Times and other publications. I'm
the author of "A Futile and Stupid Gesture: How Doug Kenney
and National Lampoon Changed Comedy Forever" which came out
in September 2006. I have a Master's in Journalism from Northwestern
University, where I am a frequent lecturer. Additionally,
I have been an adjunct professor of journalism at Columbia
|Richard Lindberg Email Biography
Chicago Crime Tours; Windy City history; his published
books about Michael C. McDonald; the Schuessler-Peterson Murders;
the Chicago White Sox; and Gaslight-Era Criminals Belle Gunness,
H.H. Holmes and Johann Hoch; and writing and publishing in Chicago.
Richard Lindberg is the author of fourteen books dealing with
colorful and unique historical Chicago themes including: Return
to the Scene of the Crime: A Guide to Infamous Places in Chicago;
Shattered Sense of Innocence: The Chicago Child Murders of 1955;
The Gambler King of Clark Street: Michael C. McDonald & the
Rise of Chicago’s Democratic Machine; Chicago Yesterday & Today;
Total White Sox and others.
Utilizing overhead projection slides, Lindberg provides his
audience with unique insight and analysis into little known
episodes drawn from "notorious" Chicago; the genesis of Windy
City crime; famous unsolved crimes and the Gaslight Era of Chicago
history. He will also comment on White Sox baseball (from his
perspective as the official team historian), ethnic neighborhoods,
and can offer practical advice and share publishing "war stories"
to would-be authors concerning how not to get a book in print,
finding the right agent, negotiating contracts, dealing with
difficult publishers, and marketing promotion.
Over the years Rich has been invited to address numerous membership
groups, including the Mystery Writers of America (Chicago chapter).the
Fourth Lights Adult Education Group, Friends of Literature,
the Kiwanis Clubs, a number of neighborhood Chicago Public Library
branches, over 50 suburban libraries stretching from Lake Villa
(north) to Calumet City (south) and Sterling, Illinois (west),
Hugo's Companions (a scion society of the Baker Street Irregulars),
the City Club of Chicago, the Chicago Architectural Foundation,
Triton Community History Organization, West Suburban Trial Lawyers
Association, Mather Lifeways, the Illinois Center for the Book
(workshop), the Swedish Cultural Society, various city and suburban
community historical societies. In addition he has led yearly
bus tours for the Chicago History Museum since 2007.
Rich has appeared as an interview subject on numerous cable
documentary television and radio programs of local and national
origin over the years, including Extension 720 on WGN
Radio Chicago, History’s Mysteries, Mobsters, Masterminds,
American Justice, Cities of the Underworld, and has been
fetured in several segments of Chicago Stories, on Network
Chicago, Channel 11.
|Gail Lukasik Email Web Site
Fiction, Poetry and Nature Writing Workshops, Publishing, Illinois and the Trail of Tears
Gail Lukasik is the author of three mystery novels and one book of poetry. She was awarded the Illinois Arts Council literary award for her poem, “In Country.” Her work has appeared in journals such as the Illinois Review, The Georgia Review, and Rhino. She has taught creative writing at the University of Illinois at Chicago, and currently teaches at Roosevelt University. Her writing workshops are interactive and lively and appeal to beginning writers and more seasoned writers.
She has given over sixty library presentations, including How To Get Published, How To Jump Start Your Writing, Six Ways to Write a Poem, How To Enliven Your Fiction Writing and How To Write Killer Characters. For many years she taught writing workshops at Ragdale Foundation in Lake Forest. She was also one of the master teachers for the Sisters In Crime Mystery Writing Weekend.
Her latest suspense novel, The Lost Artist (May 2012), is set in Chicago and explores Illinois history, specifically Illinois's connection to the infamous Trail of Tears, as well sixteenth century American history and art. She would be delighted to give talks on these topics.
Gail Lukasik's books:
Landscape Toward a Proper Silence (Eye of the Comet Press 1992)
The Lost Artist (Five Star/Cengage 2012)
Leigh Girard mystery series:
Destroying Angels (Five Star/Cengage 2006)
Death's Door (Five Star/Cengage 2009)
|Wendell Mayo Email PO Box 153, Haskins, Oh 43525; tel, 419-823-7005
Wendell Mayo reads from his award-winning fiction; conducts intensive fiction writing workshops for all skill levels, including master workshops; and speaks on and conducts workshop on publishing fiction in the literary marketplace.
Wendell Mayo has read his award-winning short stories at over high schools, colleges, community centers, and book fairs internationally. He’s also a seasoned intensive fiction writing workshop leader, including workshops on specialized topics, recently, “Publishing Creative Writing: Getting in the Game”; “En medias res”; “‘Boys enter the house, boys enter the house’--Using Repetition and Variation in Fiction”; and “The Power of Revision: Breathing Life into Fiction.” He teaches on the faculty of the MFA Creative Writing Program at Bowling Green State University.
4907 N. Washtenaw Avenue,
Chicago IL 60625
Dictionaries, Weird and Wonderful Words, English Usage and Abusage
As the editor of the only magazine for "word geeks," VERABATIM: The
Language Quarterly, and as Senior Editor, US Dictionaries, for Oxford
University Press, Erin McKean has spoken about weird words and the
dictionaries that hold them, the unusual corners of the English
language that produce them, and about good English and how to achieve
it (and her suggestions will surprise you!).
She has spoken to many organizations and groups of all ages,
including, locally, the Caxton Club and the University of Chicago
Alumni. She has also lectured and run a one-day "Word Lover's Boot
Camp" at the Smithsonian Institution.
Called "America's Lexicographical Sweetheart" by Neal Conan of NPR's
Talk of the Nation, she is a regular contributor to PRI's The Next
Big Thing with Dean Olsher, heard in Chicago on WBEZ.
|James L. Merriner
Chicago, Illinois, and National Politics
History of Corruption and Reform in Chicago
The Case of Governor George Ryan
Bio: As a political editor and columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and the Atlanta Constitution, James L. Merriner covered local, state, and presidential politics for more than 25 years. He is the author of four books about politics and history that have won praise both from academic journals and the mainstream press:
Grafters and Goo Goos: Corruption and Reform in Chicago, 1833-2003 (2204)
The City Club of Chicago: A Centennial History (2003)
Mr. Chairman: Power in Dan Rostenkowski's America (1999)
Against Long Odds: Citizens Who Challenge Congressional Incumbents (1999)
Merriner now is writing a biography of former Governor George Ryan.
Merriner often is interviewed on local radio and television public-affairs programs and also has appeared on Book TV on C-SPAN2. He has taught journalism at the graduate level at Northwestern and Ohio State universities.
He enjoys speaking to community groups such as historical societies, service clubs, reform groups, writers' workshops and others.
|Brandon Marie Miller
History topics and writing nonfiction, for school visitis and adult conferences/events. Popular programs include: Women of the Old West; A Brief Gallop Through American Women's History; Why Are They Wearing That?: Fashion and History; "Your Dutiful Child": Growing up in Colonial America; Writing Nonfiction: Behind the Scenes With an Award-Winning Writer; Tips for Youngest Writers: Active Words, Our Mind's Eye, The 5 Senses.
Background: Brandon earned a degree in American History from Purdue University. Her writing background includes magazine articles, educational writings, and award-winning books for young people. She has also presented at state and national conferences for organizations like the International Reading Association and the National Council for the Social Studies.
|Patricia Monaghan Email
Earth Spirituality, Mythology
Patricia Monaghan is
one of the pioneers of the earth spirituality movement. Her classic mythological
dictionary, The Book of Goddesses and Heroines, has been in print continuously for more
than 20 years. Her recent works include The Goddess Path, The Goddess Companion and
Meditation: The Complete Basic Guide. She is currently finishing an anthology on Celtic
spirituality and a book on ecofeminism in Ireland. She is a member of the
interdisciplinary faculty at DePaul University.
She has lectured on goddesses and earth spirituality at
universities, community groups, libraries and festivals for more than a dozen years. The
author of a dozen books on spirituality and mythology, she is a member of the
interdisciplinary faculty at DePaul University in Chicago.
|Jane Anne Morris Email
608 251 2784
Democracy + Corporations + the Constitution + the History
of Corporate Law + Corporate
Personhood: Taking Stock
Corporate anthropologist Jane Anne Morris has spoken before
groups as diverse as: the International Forum on Globalization,
the American Association of University Women, Wisconsin Radfest,
the National Lawyer's Guild, the Texas Acid Rain Symposium,
the Midwest Radical Scholars and Activists Conference, the Nurses'
Environmental Health Watch, the Greens National Party Convention,
the Wolf River Earth First! Regional Rendezvous, Women of Science
of Southeastern Wisconsin, the Alliance for Democracy's founding
convention, the Public Interest Environmental Law Conference,
the Grey Panthers, Col?mbia Support Network, the Association
of Humanist Sociology, the Ecological Resistance Movements Conference,
the Bascom Hall Sweatshop Occupation Teach-In, the Local Democracy
Convention, United Unitarians for a Just Economic Community,
and many more. She has also conducted numerous "ReThinking the
Corporation, ReThinking Democracy" weekend retreats around the
country from Los Angeles to Ohio.
Some of the topics I've spoken on follow. Or, suggest a new
angle to me. * Challenging Corporate Rule: Reclaiming Democratic
Rights * Rejuvenating Our Downsized Democracy * "Baby NAFTA":
'Free Trade' at Home * Corporate Social Responsibility and Democracy
* Is the Supreme Court Too Powerful?: Judicial Review and Democracy
* Corporations, "Rights," and Our Theme Park Democracy * Corporate
Shape-Shifters and the Manipulation of Constitutional Rights
* Democracy Unlimited: A Radical Return to Wisconsin Tradition
* States' Rights, Corporations, and Democracy * Local Democracy
& Corporate "Rights" * Model Law Challenging Corporate Constitutional
Rights * Corporate "Personhood" and Democracy * Regulatory Agencies
and Democracy * Revoking Corporate Charters * Rewriting Our
Constitution for Democracy * NIMBY Activism and Environmental
Education * Legal Fictions.
|Gunter Nitsch Email
Life in Post WWII Germany; refugees; East Prussia
Gunter Nitsch, the author of Weeds Like Us and STRETCH:
Coming of Age in Post-War Germany, was born in Koenigsberg,
East Prussia, in December 1937. By the time he was reunited
with his father at the age of 13, he had lived in Nazi Germany,
Soviet Russia, and in both the Soviet-Occupied Zone and the
British-Occupied Zone in Germany. Although both of his books
deal with the displacement of the people living in the eastern
German provinces following WWII, it is his hope that his story
will lead to a greater understanding of all of the refugee families
worldwide who have faced and are now facing a similar plight.
Gunter Nitsch has given dozens of presentations in the United
States and in Germany, including talks at Concordia Seminary
in St. Louis, The German Society of Pennsylvania, D.A.N.K. Haus,
DePaul University, as well as at clubs and churches in New York
and in Illinois. He is a regular contributor of articles to
The New Yorker Staats-Zeitung.
| Michael Raleigh Email
Mystery writing; fiction writing; Myths and realities of
the publishing world; Chicago history topics, including the
Great Chicago Fire.
Michael Raleigh is the author of nine novels and has received
four Illinois Arts Council awards for fiction. He is an emeritus
professor of English and History of the City Colleges, currently
teaching at DePaul.
Over the years Michael has given talks at dozens of community
libraries in the greater Chicago area, as well as many Chicago
Public Libraries. He has spoken at libraries in several southern
Wisconsin communities, including the Twin Lakes and Salem libraries.
Michael also has, for many years, given seminars twice a year
at the Newberry Library for its Adult Program series. One seminar
is on the subject of mystery writing and another on the general
problems of writing and selling a novel.
In particular Michael has given programs on all aspects of
writing fiction, finding an agent, dealing with publishers and
surviving the creative process in one piece. As a former instructor
of Chicago History at Truman College, he has also given talks
on little-known features of life in Chicago in the 1800s and
on the Great Chicago Fire.
Michael Raleigh's books:
In the Castle of the Flynns
The Blue Moon Circus (Sourcebooks,
Paul Whelan mystery series:
Death in Uptown (St. Martin's
A Body in Belmont Harbor
(St. Martin's Press, 1993)
The Maxwell Street Blues
(St. Martin's Press, 1994)
A Killer on Argyle Street (St.
Martin's Press, 1995)
The Riverview Murders (St.
Martin's Press, 1997)
| James Reiss Email
Poetry Readings, Writing Workshops
Pulitzer-Prize nominee James Reiss's latest full-length book
is Riff on Six: New and Selected Poems (Salt Publishing).
His work has appeared in such places as The Atlantic, Esquire,
The Hudson Review, The Iowa Review, The Kenyon Review, The Nation,
The New Republic, The New Yorker, The New York Times, The Paris
Review, Poetry, Slate, and The Virginia Quarterly Review.
His first poetry collection, The Breathers (Ecco Press),
was nominated for the National Book Award. His fourth book of
poems, Ten Thousand Good Mornings (Carnegie Mellon University
Press), was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize.
He received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts,
the Ohio Arts Council, and the New York Foundation for the Arts,
as well as awards from the Academy of American Poets, the College
English Association of Ohio, the Ohioana Library Association,
the Poetry Society of America, the Unterberg Poetry Center of
the 92nd Street Y in New York, and the Pushcart Press.
Reiss's poetry readings are in no way set "speeches,"
but, rather, ad-lib performances that tend to be dramatic, sprinkled
with anecdotes. He cares a great deal about amusing his audience.
His readings are informal and reach out to listeners.
His writing workshops are based upon his 43 years of teaching
college courses in creative writing in California, New York
City, and Ohio. His surname rhymes with “peace.” He is Emeritus
Professor of English and Founding Editor of Miami University
Press at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.
Cyndee Schaffer Email Web
The Journey to "Mollie's War,"
from Inspiration to Publication
Cyndee Schaffer discusses her mother’s WWII experience as a WAC (Women’s Army Corps) by taking you on a journey from inspiration to publication in her presentation about “Mollie’s War” and the first women in the military during World War II. "Mollie's War," co-authored by Cyndee and her mother, Mollie Weinstein Schaffer, is a memoir that takes you on the romantic and always frightful journey of a WAC during the height of WWII who followed the troops into Europe. It is a story woven around the collection of letters (photos and memorabilia) that Mollie wrote home to her family during WWII along with historical commentary concurrent with the letters. Using excerpts from Mollie’s letters, Cyndee provides a glimpse into the life of a woman in uniform during this crucial time in history. This book vividly depicts her experiences from her first train trip to Daytona Beach, Florida for basic training in October 1943 to the dramatic image of her seeing the Statue of Liberty as her ship approached the shores of the USA in November as she returned home.
Mollie passed away in April 2012 at 95 but Cyndee continues to share her fascinating story by speaking to groups including veterans groups, libraries, senior groups, senior living facilities, women’s groups, men’s clubs, civic groups and other organizations. She discusses the writing adventure from inspiration to publication. Presentation includes a PowerPoint slide show and a DVD of a recruiting movie produced by Warner Bros studio, “It’s Your War, Too” in which Mollie had two cameo appearances.
| Jim Schwab Email
773-384-4754 (home) 312-786-6364 (office)
1755 N. Campbell Ave.; Chicago IL 60647
Environmental Topics; Urban Planning; Oral History and the
Art of Interviewing; Adoption and Foster Care
Jim Schwab is the author of both Raising Less Corn and More
Hell, an oral history of the 1980s farm credit crisis, and
Deeper Shades of Green a portrait of the rising movement
for environmental justice in blue-collar and minority communities.
He has also written or been the prime author for three research
monographs of the American Planning Association, where he works
as senior research associate. These are: Industrial Performance
Standards for a New Century; Planning and Zoning for
Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations; and Planning
for Post-Disaster Recovery and Reconstruction, the last
the result of a five-year collaboration with the Federal Emergency
Management Agency. He has spoken to numerous lay and professional
audiences about planning issues, his own books, and other topics.
One of his favored topics is his involvement in church-based
environmental activism. Jim is the co-founder of the Lutheran
Environmental Network of the Synods, a consortium of synodical
environmental committees within the Evangelical Lutheran Church
in America, and he has pioneered energy conservation work in
that arena, as well as contributing to the environmental work
of the National Council of Churches. Jim also writes magazine
and journal articles on many of these topics. He and his wife
have also been adoptive and foster parents, and he plans to
begin writing and speaking on their experiences.
Sue William Silverman
Conducts creative nonfiction writing workshops; gives presentations
on child abuse prevention, addictions, and family dynamics.
Sue William Silverman is the author of two memoirs. In
addition to writing, Silverman is a professional speaker on
such subjects as child abuse, addictions, and family dynamics
and has appeared on numerous nationally syndicated radio and
television talk shows including the ABC John Stossel special
on addictions; the PBS show, "To the Contrary;" and the Discovery-Health
Dr. William Sechrist at the State University of New York, Cortland, says: "Sue is not only a gifted writer, she's a captivating speaker. She has a gentle way of commanding attention. She also listens carefully to questions from the audience and responds with sensitivity and intelligence. She is serious about her subject matter yet she is also funny at times, and always positive. She succeeds in being 'uplifting' and 'inspiring' about a problem most people cannot conceive of in those terms. She is an extraordinary woman."
Dr. Sunny Andrews, Director of the School of Social Work, University of Nebraska, Omaha, says: "I was extremely impressed with Sue's candor, her friendliness, and knowledge. Her audience loved her and her presentation."
Silverman also conducts creative nonfiction writing workshops and teaches in the low-residency MFA program at Vermont College. She lives in west Michigan.
| Daniel P. Smith Email
Chicago police, Chicago crime, journalism and non-fiction writing for youth, using nonfiction lit to help produce crime and mystery novels, 1968 Democratic National Convention.
Noted speaker Daniel P. Smith has brought his compelling programs
to schools, libraries, universities, association and private
groups. An award-winning journalist and Chicago native, Smith’s
first book, On the Job: Behind the Stars of the Chicago Police
Department, guides readers into the closed-door society
of the Chicago Police Department, while his author program shares
never-before-told stories of the tolls the job exacts on the
officers and the personal experiences that led him to pen On
the Job. Other programs include nonfiction writing seminars
and workshops for students (high school and college), the use
of nonfiction lit in writing crime and mystery fiction, and
a multi-media presentation on the 1968 Democratic National Convention.
References available upon request.
|Gerry and Janet Souter
Email Web Site
847-398-3074 FAX: 847-398-3075
Paths to Publishing, Writing Community Histories
Paths to Publishing: The many ways to get a book published based on our experience with over 20 books published since 1997.
Writing Community Histories: How to reseach, produce and publish community history books. We have produced and written three including a multuple award-winner.
Background: We are a book writing team with experience in adult non-fiction and juvenile non-fiction. Our books have gone into multiple printings and have won awards. We have also writtten plays, novels and short stories.
|Tom Swift Web
Site Bio 952-486-0809
All aspects of nonfiction writing, including history,
essays, research, biography, and journalism
I give talks at writers groups, American Indian organizations,
community education classrooms, library conferences, and book
clubs. I also serve as a writing consultant to undergraduate
and graduate writers.
I am especially passionate to meet and speak to people who
want to make writing part of their lives, even if not their
vocation. I teach classes and give lectures on everything
from how to get started to how to construct a compelling story.
Topics include memoir, essays, history, and biography.
I am often asked to talk about my award-winning biography
of Charles Albert “Chief” Bender, a human-interest story about
the greatest American Indian baseball player of all time.
|John Wasik Email
-Samuel Insull and the history of utilities in Chicago
(local business history)
-Investor protection and personal finance issues (retirement,
college planning, investing)
John Wasik has written 10 books, five
of them on investing and retirement. He has spoken all over
the U.S. and has won 18 awards for his writing and investigative
Covering topics that include investing, retirement. college
planning, taxes and real estate, he focuses on how to bring
balance to everyday life. His philosophy is that a sound "personal
ecology'' can make anyone's life sustainable through a diversified
harmony between, work, leisure, family and community. His speeches
illustrate how money can become a servant in this process and
create a prosperous and happy life.
As a columnist for Bloomberg
News, his work has appeared in newspapers on five continents
and his expertise on personal finance is sought after on a regular
basis in the broadcast media. He holds a B.A. in psychology
and an M.A. in Communications from the University of Illinois-Chicago
and is a certified retirement counselor (InFRE). He's also a
member of SABEW, SPJ and The Chicago Headline Club.
His articles have appeared in The New York Times, The Financial
Times, The International Herald Tribune, The Financial Post,
The Washington Post, Reader's Digest, Parade, Barron's, Popular
Science, Health, New York Newsday, The Chicago Sun-Times, The
Pittsburgh Press, The St. Louis Post Dispatch, The Seattle Times,
The Orange County Register and dozens of other papers.
Writing Workshops, Scribotherapy, Journalism, Women's Issues
Michele Weldon is an associate professor at Northwestern University's
Medill School of Journalism, author of two award-winning books
and journalist for more than 25 years writing for newspapers
and magazines. Her first book, "I Closed My Eyes" (Hazelden,
1999) is a creative nonfiction memoir avaiablable in seven languages.
"Writing to Save Your Life: How To Honor Your Story Through
Journaling" (Hazelden, 2001) is an instructive and entertaining
book about the process of writing as healing. Weldon offers
Writing to Save Your Life Workshops around the country
and offers keynotes around the country on issues of journalism
and advocacy for women and nonviolence.
A succesful keynote for nonprofit organizations and businesses
for the past 10 years, Weldon has spoken before more than 150
major organizations from the March of Dimes and Northern Trust
Bank to the Journalism and Women Symposium and the Northwestern
University Women in Leadership Conference. With a bachelors
and masters degree from Northwestern's Medill, Weldon has written
for newspapers such as the Chicago Tribune, Los Angeles
Times, Dallas Times Herald, New York Times
and scores more for decades. She has written for national and
local magazines including Parenting, Writers Digest,
Woman's Day, Dial, West Suburban Living,
Chicago, Bride's, Seventeen, Personal
Journaling and many others. She is a former editor at ADWEEK,
North Shore Magazine and Fairchild Publications and was
a columnist at the Dallas Times Herald.
|Sel Erder Yackley Email
Bipolar illness, suicide, the death penalty, life in a small
Illinois town, Turkey (history, culture, politics, tourism,
Sel Erder Yackley is an award-winning journalist who was born
and reared in Turkey. After receiving her master’s degree in
journalism from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois,
she worked for United Press International, where she met Frank,
and for the Chicago Tribune. Sel lived in LaSalle country for
27 years and served on the boards of Illinois Valley Community
College as well as the Ottawa Elementary School Board. During
the 1970s, while raising three children, Sel became active in
local politics as well as civic and charitable organizations
in central Illinois. Ten years after her husband’s suicide,
she returned to Chicago to work in the travel business and became
involved in mental health issues. On the boards of international
groups, Sel continues to write, organize tours to Turkey, and
lecture at support groups.
Say it with Sel /See it with Sel
Author of Never Regret the Pain: Loving and Losing a Bipolar
Also see: www.tawsf.org
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| Bill Yarrow
Biography Email Web Site
Poetry Readings, Writing Workshops
Bill Yarrow is the author of three full-length books of poetry (The Vig of Love, Blasphemer, and Pointed Sentences) and four chapbooks (The Lice of Christ, Incompetent Translations and Inept Haiku, Fourteen, and Wrench). He has been nominated seven times for a Pushcart Prize award and six times for a Best of the Net award. He is an editor at the online magazine Blue Fifth Review, and he is a Professor of English at Joliet Junior College.
Bill has been a popular featured reader at poetry venues in Chicago, Evanston, Glenview, Highland Park, Brooklyn, New York City, Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle, Milwaukee, Detroit, Ann Arbor, La Porte, Calumet, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles. He offers workshops in all areas of writing poetry. Recently, he has conducted workshops for RHINO Forums, Poets & Patrons, and the Northwest Cultural Council’s Second Saturday Poetry Workshop. Some of his recent workshops have included “Invented Form in Poetry,” “How to Be Blasphemous,” What We Can Learn about Writing from Shakespeare,” and “The Meaning and Function of Description.”