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Sunday, April 7, 2013

Lilly Pulitzer, with Love




















I have burst into tears three times in the last year.

The first, after viewing dogs euthanized in a gas chamber during the documentary One Nation Under Dog.

The second time after listening to Stevie Nicks recently sing Landslide, specifically the phrase children get older and I'm getting older too.

And now, Lilly Pulitzer has died. 

Many out there might think of Lilly as one of the Palm Beach elite, but for me, viewing her portraits of the past was as if I was seeing my own mother, tanned brown as berries, brunette and oh, so fashionable.

Her fabric, her vintage prints with her name hidden within her fabric, was one lovely Lilly characteristic I shared with my own children as we searched thrift stores for vintage Lilly so many years ago and unbelievably, just last week, on Thursday, I shared the story of Lilly with my students as a person who transformed splattered juice into juice camouflage which unexpectedly became the uniform of those who cherished casual chic.

We searched her fabric for her name, unaware we were searching in the last days of her life.

Lilly never had to lift a finger to do anything, but she did,  And I loved her for that.

I will miss you, Lilly.  So very much.

Farewell.

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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 9:06 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

Saturday, March 23, 2013

Weekend Zen


I'm so bored
what am I to do?
breakout a-town
breakout a-town
breakout a-town
breakout a-town


Julie Ruin, Breakout A-Town


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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 3:00 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

Short Shorts: Brevard Public Schools and the Port



Takes a village to raise children, right?

Brevard Public Schools will soon consider whether or not to snatch up the Port Authority's offer of $5 million to bridge the gap between keeping three schools open through school year 2014-2015 and as a result, shift the attention towards placing a school tax for voter consideration on the 2014 midterm election.

The three schools--elementary schools Gardendale and South Lake as well as  Clearlake Middle School are located within the Port's district.

Port Commissioners officially vote Wednesday to extend the offer to Brevard Public Schools.

The school system was caught blindsided by the Port, who sought out the media before presenting the proposal to school board members, who most likely find themselves uncomfortably caught between a rock and hard place as far as ...

--what strings are attached?

--what political backlash will be assumed for turning down the Port's offer?

--how many conservative voters does it take to turn down a school tax in a midterm election when most voters don't bother to show up at the polls?

Not a good place to bridge.

Read more here. 

***

Many thanks to those readers who have asked about my recent staccato posting here at Talk to Me,  Again, thanks (she said facetiously) to Brevard Public Schools, the requirements of my professional growth plan (aka PGP) have involved--and will continue to involve for several more weeks--an immense amount of writing during my off hours.

I am not gone, I am merely working.

But not this week.  It's Spring Break.



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Friday, March 15, 2013

Weekend Zen

Yoko Ono and Carolee Schneeman
You're getting old, that's what they'll say

Le Tigre, Hot Topic 


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Wednesday, March 13, 2013

Jennifer Carroll OUT

Florida Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll called it quits today as a two year investigation into a purported non-profit resulted in a impressive number of arrests.

The L.A. Times:

(...)

A spokesman for Gov. Rick Scott confirmed Wednesday that Carroll had been questioned by Florida Department of Law Enforcement officers about her work with Allied Veterans of the World, which described itself as a non-profit charity aiding veterans. Officials allege the group was engaged in illegal gambling with the profits going to its owners rather than veterans. Carroll’s public relations firm represented Allied in the past.

Ricky boy isn't offering up any info, keeping the lid shut tighter than a jam jar.

No word forthcoming on Carroll's replacement.

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Tuesday, March 5, 2013

Pinpoint Out?

$3,182,592.00.

To be paid over five years.

That's the deal cut by Brevard Public Schools to purchase Pinpoint, the worthless learning management system that reportedly and quite soon may find itself packed up and back in the mail to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.

Read the purchase agreement here.

The contract term commenced November 22, 2011 was to be continued through November 21, 2016.

If the rumor is true, it would appear BPS is pulling out via the following terms:

" ...or a period of 90 days from School/District's receipt of the Digital Products, School/District may return the Digital Products, and all copies and portions thereof, and cease any and all further use of the Digital Products, for a full and complete refund if School/District is not satisfied with the Digital Products for any reason;" 

The system has been a huge burdensome headache to all stakeholders, both teachers and administrators alike and IMHO, a complete waste of taxpayer dollars to track professional growth plans that can just as easily be filed for review in a three ring binder.

Just sayin'.


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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 9:14 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

Thursday, February 28, 2013

FRS Pension Too Costly to Close?

 News from the Florida Retired Educators Association:


The actuarial study which was ordered to show the cost of closing the pension part of FRS to new employees forcing them to go into the Investment part of the system was received on February 15, 2013.  

 It showed that it would be costly to close the pension part of the retirement system.  

House Speaker, Will Weatherford, has now asked for another study that would include the costs to keep the pension fund open to new employees (as it is currently) so a comparison can be made.  

They have asked that the new study be completed by March 1, 2013.  Then they will decide what to do.  

The Senate, at this time, is not looking at FRS, but is trying to reform smaller pension systems that are run separately by local governments.  

However, they will eventually have to address House Bill 7011.  That bill is now in the House Appropriations Committee, but they have not discussed it as yet.

Contact your Florida legislator here. 

Keep the pension open to new hires.


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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 9:58 PM   2 Comments Links to this post

Friday, February 22, 2013

Weekend Zen

But if you never try
You'll never know
Just what you're worth.

Coldplay, Fix You

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Thursday, February 21, 2013

Tea Party in Tanic over Rick Scott




  











Ha!

Ardent anti-Obamacare Gov. Rick Scott tossed his tea bag ideology overboard this week and made national news doing so by voicing his full support and acceptance of federal dollars to expand Medicaid in Florida.

The Tea Party is all a-twitter over the loss of a sitting conservative governor once thought Least Likely to Sell his Soul to Win Reelection.

Erick Erickson, Red State:

 (...)

Governor Scott is interested in getting re-elected and has terrible poll numbers. No doubt part of this decision has to do with his wanting to get re-elected.

When politicians do what they feel they must to get re-elected instead of doing what they know is right, they often lose re-election and, even when they do not, lose their way.

It is a sad day for conservatives.

The following tweets posted by Tampa Bay Times are (IMHO) by far the funniest observations and responses, but feel free to choose your favorite here.

“Medicaid expansion, Obamacare, teacher bonuses who is this guy?”
--Senate Democratic Leader Chris Smith of Ft. Lauderdale via Twitter 

Will Medicaid Expansion cover me for the knife @FLGovScott just buried in my back?”
--Henry Kelley of the Florida Tea Party Network via Twitter 
  
The governor indicated he found Jesus, 'er "...a new perspective ..."  following his mother's death last year.

Right.

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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 6:12 PM   2 Comments Links to this post

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Nancy Hanks Lincoln

Nancy Hanks--the mother of Abraham Lincoln--is referenced by Team of Rivals author Doris Kearns Goodwin as a woman of "uncertain ancestry".

The circumstances of the birth of Nancy Hanks has been debated over the years with Lincoln himself suggesting his mother's father was a well-bred Virginia farmer or planter.

While searching for information on Nancy this past weekend, I happened upon a book gone public domain and made available for a free online read via Internet Archive.

 Nancy Hanks: The Story of Abraham Lincoln's Mother  (Doubleday & McClure Co., 1899) was written by Caroline Hanks Hitchcock, an author and descendant intent on clearing not only the name of Nancy, but also her son, Abraham.

As Lincoln became a  leader in his party, much like the campaigns of today, political rivals spread rumor that both he and his mother were fatherless.


(...)

"... he himself knew 
little of his family : he did not even 
possess records to show when and 
where his father and mother were 
married. His opponents saw the 
opportunity to belittle him, and 
they spread the story that he not 
only was of humble origin, as he 



Preface xi 

himself publicly, acknowledged, 
but was a nameless child — that 
Thomas Lincoln was not his father. 
Later they deepened the stain 
on his mother's name by hinting 
that she herself was a waif — 
fatherless like her boy. There 
was never any proof produced in 
support of the stories ..."
 
 
Hanks Hitchcock makes her case citing documentation uncovered through study of the Hanks' family line.

It's a precious read and I pass the link to you during this month of February of the Lincoln's birth.

Read more here. 





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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 7:05 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

Saturday, February 16, 2013

Quote of the Week

"Progress and change are the essence of living — for artist and non-artist. Without it, stagnation and deterioration soon become evident. People who expand their knowledge and investigate, remain more youthful, have joyous experiences, and become more mentally alert.”

-Marie Hull, Artist

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Cents and Sensibility

Check out my latest contribution to GlossyNews.

Cents and Sensibility (Though Neither of Either).

Singles seeking sensibility over sexuality crashed newbie dating site Pension Singles just thirty minutes into its Valentine’s Day launch. ...

More here.

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Friday, February 15, 2013

Skyfall

Unreal.  Literally.

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Friday, February 8, 2013

Weekend Zen


 Never been afraid of any deviation.

--Bad Reputation, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts

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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 10:00 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

Welfare Drug Testing. No. Longer. Law. In. Florida.

















Honestly.

Which is basically what this post is about.

This crazy "story" pops up on my Facebook news feed about how welfare recipients are driving out of Florida in droves because of state law requiring they be drug tested prior to receiving benefits.

Those calling this beloved state home should know that this law found itself halted by the courts October 2011.

But no matter how often I insert that fact into the thread of mostly asinine comments, people continue to prove that--

a) Reading comprehension is at an all time low.
b) People can't read.
c) Those without power in American society are the easiest to pile on.


Here's a fragment of idiocy sprinkled with sanity, for your reading pleasure.

Happy Friday.

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posted by Sheree Shatsky @ 8:00 PM   0 Comments Links to this post

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