I've been called to task, and must fess up ... I owe a reporter from the New York Post an apology.

It seems that in my haste to leap in a direction that would put my too substantial bulk between another media slam on the Angelina Jolie adoption fracas and my readers, I went all sloppy with my work.

Not only was I so enthused about posting a response to what I thought was a response to my response that I completely missed the fact that the story I took to be recent was actually four months old, I also jumped to the conclusion that my opinion had originally been solicited because... more

I've been resisting this "things about me" list mania that my fellow bloggers have taken up, but this being the first of the month, and with me close to brain dead after publishing 86 blog posts last month, I'm going to go for it rather than come up with something interesting. I will not be listing 100 things ... not even 86 ... as there are too many things about me that are, quite frankly either not at all relevant to the part of me that writes this blog, or not your business to know. Also, since there's already a lot you do know ... I have four... more

A "Dr. Phil" test is circulating around the internet these days ... whoever the heck Dr. Phil is! ... and I found it interesting enough to pass along here today.

The idea is to answer the multiple choice questions quickly and honestly, and supposedly you'll get some insight into yourself. Apparently, companies are using this to learn about potential employees ... as if they have any right to ask about sleeping habits!

Anyway ... grab a some paper and a pen, number from one to ten, and here we go:

1. When do you feel your best?

a)... more

So, I've been going on and on about the world getting smaller and the cultural gaps growing tiny in the modern world ...

Here was a shop IN SEYCHELLES that had: potato chips, pancake mix AND syrup, disposable diapers NOT from China, 50 kinds of shampoo, 20 varieties of olive oil, real yogurt, a huge selection of breakfast cereals, Oreo cookies, cake mixes, nuts, raisins, all sorts of dishwashing liquids, razors WITH extra blades, fresh asparagus,... more

Continued from previous posts ...

I've written before about shopping in Seychelles and how sparse our shelves can be. Even with shopping options as limited as they are today, the choice is so much wider than in Mark's youth. When he was growing up, most food on offer was local, and that meant fish, fish and more fish, with some cassava,... more

The train continues ...

Last night we had a family DVD session and Mark picked the Disney classic "Peter Pan" for our viewing pleasure. Sam's been watching it often and does some pretty good renditions of bits with voices and actions all straight from the film. Mark's heard his impressions, but never having seen the film he had no frame with which to reference "What ever shall we do?" ... and so on.

Throughout the movie, Mark asked questions and... more

When my husband, Mark, was growing up in Seychelles life was pretty basic. (Keep in mind that he was born in 1966, not 1926, so it wasn't all that long ago.) There was no electricity until after he left the nest, and my in-laws didn't have a phone until the mid-90s.

A small generator was used in the evenings in his later childhood, but kerosene lanterns provided most light, food was bought and used daily as there was no refrigeration, and washing was all done by hand.

One of the many long-lasting effects of this quaint, and in some ways idyllic, childhood comes... more

A lovely report from Santa Cruz, California has me pondering an issue that comes up often in the international adoption world.

The story is about Lisa and Jennifer, a lesbian couple who've adopted twins from Russia. Their tale is sweet and loving, and has, at this time, a happy ending.

"I had always envisioned having children," said Jennifer, sitting in their backyard and smiling, her dark hair curling softly around her face. "It had been my... more

A new book by Anne Tyler ("Breathing Lessons", "The Accidental Tourist") has international adoption at the root. "Digging to "America", fiction focusing on the parents' point of view, is getting good reviews:

In her latest novel, "Digging to America," Anne Tyler flips this perspective on its head, focusing instead on the way international adoptions are experienced by the parents. Tyler, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel "Breathing Lessons," has routinely delivered... more

Among the Dyaks, the tribal people of Borneo, it is common for a person's name to change many times over the course of their life. When they're born, they're called something ugly and distasteful ... literally ... like worm or slug, in hopes of keeping spirits from finding the little darlings too tempting to leave in the worldly realm.

The occasion of the first birthday is celebrated with a naming ceremony where the baby gets the adorable moniker... more