Solace International, Inc. - Ten day auction beginning today (12.26.05 - 1.5.06.) A collection of paintings by Indonesian artists, survivors of the Tsunami, are up for auction at Overstock.com to raise $10,000 for a community art center where the artists can paint, teach and share their work.

A Selection of the Most Blogged-About Books of 2005. I've read Blink by Malcolm Gladwell who graced the cover of July-August 2005 issue of Black Issues Book Review.

Merriam-Webster's Words of the Year 2005. "Based on your online lookups, the #1 Word of the Year for 2005 was . . . . . .

Merriam-Webster's Words of the Year 2005

"Based on your online lookups, the #1 Word of the Year for 2005 was . . . . . .

Richard Pryor died today at the age of 65. I saw the movies Silver Streak and Stir Crazy and Which Way is Up (I think) or at least I remember hearing the Staple Singers singing the theme song to the movie soundtrack. In Harlem Nights he was oh so cool - his voice and mannerism, I enjoyed his performance. Other than that I was a kid when his stand up was big and wasn't allowed to listen to any of it.

Richard Pryor's Biography (and official website).

The blog, Baghdad Burning, is now a book.

Womanist, Novelist, Poet -->Diary of A Lost Girl: The Autobiography of Kola Boof will be available this month, December. Another book added to my wish list. She's also the author of Flesh and The Devil and Long Train to the Redeeming Sin: Stories About African Women, which was banned and put out of print in 2002 by her Ethiopian publisher, Russom Damba, due to pressure from Arab Muslim factions (the publisher's printing press was firebombed and he and his family received death threats). Of course, the reissued version is avaialbe @Amazon.com.
Kola Boof's ---> website

For the past seven days, I have awakened with the singing (in my head) of "I Sing The Body Electric" from the movie Fame which I haven't seen in years. Finally I decided to search for what the "body electric" means, if it means anything. My sister asked if I'd ever read I Sing the Body Electric by Walt Whitman. And my online search took me straight to it.

Author: Michael Symmons Roberts
Book: The Miracles of Jesus
Description: The miracle accounts of the New Testament describe how Jesus could calm the storms with a word . . . heal the sick. But are these accounts true?

I'm going to purchase this novel. Outside of the Bible, I haven't read any books supporting Jesus on a historical level or anything that reveals and documents the reality of biblical characters and events. Lately, I have questioned myself and others about the belief system I inherited from my kin - without question of course, especially since my mother was a minister (as was the majority of her friends) and my great-grandfather was the pastor of Hills Avenue Baptist Church. My purpose is to know God for myself. Is God Real? Is God there to help or simply watching? Currently I'm reading Dancing the Dream by Jamie Sams. The book was given to me by Mak about two years ago. I started reading it two years ago but put it aside. I may not have been ready for it at the time. I am now. It is enlightening, on a level outside of what Christianity "taught" me. I like that she refers to God as The Great Mystery.

World AIDS Day is today. In reality, every day is a day for awareness. Isn't it somewhat amazing that because there is so much going on in the world we have specific days and months set aside, geared towards a particular cause to make us take the time to gather information, read stories, committ and show compassion . . .

(1)"World AIDS days is about people getting the facts:
(2) CDCs HIV Mission,
(3) UNAIDS,
(4) AIDS Epidemic update (WHO) and while you're there, take a look at the Voices of Hope: Photo Stories particularly Aaron and Mavis' story - it is heartbreaking . . .
(5)Office of Minority Health Resource Center.