Due to Circumstances....

Gentle ones, I must beg an indulgence of a few days.

As some of you may know, Orion, my furchild, crossed the Rainbow Bridge on 5/23 due to what ended up being lymphoma. I'm still struggling with getting this issue of S and I done, and I thank you for your patience.

Next Issue Due Out June 21

Hello, Gentle Readers.
Stories for this upcoming issue include
....a chat with Joe Larkin, starting a career as a standup comedian at age 70
....info about bioidentical hormone replacement
....warm weather recipes
....and whatever else the Muses gift me with.

Hope that you're enjoying your summer!

As Promised, the Contacts

Gentle Readers, as I mentioned in the last S&I, we in the Chicago area are bracing ourselves for a media monstrosity of a June. Our former governor, Rod Blagojevich, goes on trial June 3. Later in the month, Drew Peterson goes on trial  on June 16, I believe, for murder.  His third wife, Kathleen Savio, was found dead in a dry bathtub. A second autopsy determined head injuries as the cause of death. His fourth wife, Stacey Peterson, is still missing some two and a half years after her disappearance.

The latter defendant's last round with the media turned into a circus of the worst sort, descending into tabloid-esque coverage of the sordid details and a local radio station planning a contest to win a date with him. Instead of using the story as a teachable moment (what to do if you're in that situation; survivors who went on to make lives for themselves; prevention programs), the coverage cheapened and trivialized a serious social issue.

TV stations especially need to know how the viewers feel. So, for those of us in the Chicago area, here are the contacts:

WBBM: http://cbs2chicago.com , 312-899-2222

WMAQ: http://nbcchicago.com , no phone listed

WLS: http://abclocal.go.com/wls , 312-750-7777

WGN: http://wgntv.com

WTTW: chicagotonight@wttw.com

WFLD: http://myfoxchicago.com , 312-565-5532

Please Join Us

This Sunday is Mother's Day. Standing Women (http://standingwomen.org ) has an event you might be interested. At 1 p.m. your time, please take five minutes to pray for the children so that they may know a peaceful, green, just world. See you then.

To Honor the Survivors

   Gentle Readers, we have a high-profile case coming up in the Chicago area in June. Drew Peterson, an ex-police officer from the souther suburbs, will be going on trial for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio, in early June. His fourth wife, Stacy, has been missing for two and a half years. He claims that she walked out on him for another man.
     In any event, this story has been handled with the dignity of a tabloid scandal. By dwelling on the minutia, the coverage trivializes not just what (allegedly) happened to Kathleen and Stacy, but to everyone who survived domestic violence.
     I'd rather see stories about programs to help victims get out of these situations, legal steps to protect them, and resources for prevention. Please join me in holding the media accountable. In the next week or so, I'll post links to media outlets.
     Thank you.

S and I slightly delayed

Gentle Readers, due to a personal crisis (dog had to have some tests; everything came back fine after 48 hours of hot coals and broken glass), S and I has been rescheduled for next week. Thanks for your patience!

Bloom Boxes: No, Not A Way For Plants to Listen to Their Tunes

Ah, we have another cool article for S and I in the works: one on Bloom boxes. They are a new device to generate electricity for household and commercial use. Big names like Google and FedEx have made use of them. We'll be looking at their ins and outs in the April/May issue, out Thursday of Friday of next week.