Gone back to Ohio: Christmas 2010

I'm sitting here on our couch this morning, warming myself by the wood stove and the sunshine streaming in the window; the dogs cast about me like so much flotsam. It feels great to be home again. Sarah's still trying to squeeze a couple more moments of sleep out of day, but the coffee's on now, so she'll be up soon and we'll be off. I just want to share some of the better photo's that were captured on our camera from a great weekend with family. We hope you all enjoy the rest of your holiday together and welcome you to our house any time. All the best.

Sorry I cropped her head here, but I love the smile!

Ian took this one. I think it looks like we're racing!

Ah History, the Destroyer of Hope.

Just a quick story about today, before my mind purges the information in its on-going quest to save space for my mailing address and phone number.

We've been learning about the industrial revolution and the labor movement in the United States in the late 19th century for about three weeks now. It culminated today with a guest lecturer talking about the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire and the Uprising of the 20,000. She spoke at length about the conditions in the garment factory, about the age and wages of the women, about the 78 hour work week and the fact that two strikes failed to change conditions at the Triangle Factory. Finally, the revelation that the courts failed to indict the co-owners of the factory was too much for one young man in my class.

"God, everything about this sucks!" he blurted out, then looked back to find me smiling.

"Couldn't have said it better myself."

Next on the syllabus, immigration and city life with such stupendous topics as tenement life, the Chinese Exclusion Act, the rise of the Klan, the nadir of race relations, and race riots. A fronte praecipitium a tergo lupi.