Blog Spotlight: Lauren in Libraryland

Welcome to the Blog Spotlight. Every week, we will introduce you to MUW alums who write about their lives, careers, families, and hobbies on their own blogs. If you would like to be featured, contact us!

Blog: Lauren in Libraryland: Musings of a Future Info Pro (http://www.laurendodd.com/)
Blogger: Lauren Dodd ('07), Montgomery, AL

How long have you been blogging?

I've maintained personal blogs ever since I've had access to the internet, and blogs for class since I started my program, but I began this blog last June.

What made you decide to start blogging?

I've been reading other librarian blogs since I started library school about 2 years ago -- my Google Reader is full of them. There are many librarians out there who I admire and would love to meet and talk to. My website is a professional portfolio of sorts, and I thought adding a blog would help me critically engage with the profession and my peers, as well as demonstrate my dedication to my field. I also noticed that while there were tons of librarian blogs, there were far fewer library school student blogs, so I wanted to reach out to other library school students as well.

What is the main focus of Lauren in Libraryland?

The focus my blog started as simply the documentation of me and my experiences in library school, such as attending professional conferences, working at student jobs and internships, etc. But when I noticed that I was inadvertently giving advice to other library school students in my posts, that became more of my focus. When I started library school, I felt fairly overwhelmed about job tracks and internships and resources, so now I'm trying to reach out and offer tips that I wish someone had offered me. I also write about current issues in the profession.

What's the significance of your blog's title?

Well, obviously, I love alliteration. I also thought that the nod to Alice in Wonderland was fairly apt, as my library school experience has been nothing short of a wild, crazy ride. "Musings of a Future Info Pro" is a reference to the term information professional, which is a sort of a larger description of librarians, knowledge managers, taxonomists, etc. I knew that no matter what, I would end up as an information professional of some sort, but I didn't know if I would necessarily end up as a librarian because of the terrible library job market (though I am still hoping to, and it's looking more likely!).

What are your ultimate blogging goals?

To be honest, I've already achieved a lot of what I had hoped when I started this blog. A few of my favorite librarian bloggers have linked to some of my posts, resulting in more traffic than I ever thought I would get, and we've had some online conversations. I've "met" many librarians and library school students who are also bloggers, and a few of us have teamed up for a new library school student blog called Hack Lib School. I've also put my site on my resume, and had future employers read my blog and take notice. After the interview for my current co-op position, my now-supervisor enthusiastically discussed some of my posts with me. From this point forward, I'm just hoping to stay connected to the profession and other librarians. I am not the world's most frequent updater, which is kind of a blogging no-no, but I put care into everything I do write, so maybe it balances out in the end!

What are some of your must-read favorite blogs?

Hyperbole and a Half - http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/
Healthy Eats - The Food Network Healthy Living Blog - http://blog.foodnetwork.com/healthyeats
Poor Girl Eats Well - http://www.poorgirleatswell.com/
Ask a Manager - http://www.askamanager.org/
Cake Wrecks - http://cakewrecks.blogspot.com/
Postsecret - http://www.postsecret.com/
 
Thanks, Lauren, for sharing your blog with us. I encourage all of you to follow Lauren in Libraryland for even more insights into the trials and joys of library school!

Funeral Arrangements for Dr. Hitt

Visitation will be from six until eight on Tuesday night at Lowndes Funeral Home.  The funeral will be an Episcopal service conducted at Carrier Chapel on the MUW campus at ten a.m. on Wednesday morning.  Dr. Ralph Hitt will be buried in Houston, Mississippi, where all of Dr. Ginger Hitt's family is buried, and where, of course, she will eventually be buried too.

Please feel free to leave a comment sharing your memories of Dr. Hitt.

Rest in Peace: Dr. Ralph Hitt

Dr. Ralph Hitt passed away this morning.  Please pray for him and his family.  More details will be posted as they become available.

Friday Favorites: The Hunger Games

This post about The Hunger Games is from the blog of MUW alumna Elysa Mac.

HUNGER GAMES...FACT OR FICTION?

A year or so ago, moms of the homeschool board that I frequent started posting about a new book they were reading, HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins. I checked it out from the library but it was due back before I got to it and so back it went. Time went by and my oldest daugther Anna decided to read it. She checked it out and was quickly hooked. Loving it, she was frantic to read the sequels and have me, her dad, and her two oldest siblings read it so she'd have someone to discuss it with.

Her dad and brother both tore through it and her sister Betsie and I are reading it as quickly as we can, not wanting to take too long to see how the main character, Katniss, fares in the Hunger Games. In this post-apocalyptic world, a nation has emerged with a minority that rules and has plenty of food, medical care, expensive clothing, modern technology, time for entertainment, and iron-clad security. But the majority live in outlying areas where they labor long, rarely have enough to eat, live a style that is much more primitive, have very limited educational and vocational choices, and die all too easily. In these oppressed districts, people often go to extreme and dangerous ends to gain food illegally. Katniss is one of these people. After her father dies, she is forced to become a provider and hunt for her family. She daily faces death in order to go into forbidden areas to gather wild, edible plants, berries, and roots as well as hunt animals for precious and rare meat that can be traded and sold in the black market of their society.

One way that the ruling minority keeps the districts under their control and at the same time provides "reality tv" entertainment is through the Hunger Games. Two representatives, always between the ages of 12 and 19, from each district are picked to fight in a prolonged fight to the death. Names are randomly selected on a "Reaping Day" and those eligible adolescents who are particularly hungry and desperate, can have their names entered extra times in the drawing in return for more food rations for their famiies. After a period of training and preparation, the contestants are placed in a expansive area for the actual competition. In the spacious arena that can include bodies of water, deserts, forests, rocks, hills, and meadows, the 24 participants must use both their survival skills and their fighting skills to stay alive. If they are the one, remaining competitor at the end of the challenge, their district and their family will be rewarded, in part, by receiving even more food as well as other perks.

There is a real life nation that sadly parallels this fictitious one in a few ways: Swaziland.

Swaziland does not have a Hunger Games competition nor does it have outlying districts that are oppressed by a central capital. But like the country in HUNGER GAMES, there is a minority of people who are financially secure and a majority of people who are struggling, sometimes simply to survive. Drive through the streets of the two main cities or some of the smaller towns and you will see signs of prosperity...beautiful homes, hair salons, fitness gyms, fashion boutiques, and plenty of food visible in the grocery store windows. But look around and you'll also see signs of extreme poverty. You'll see the squatter's village and homesteads comprised of battered huts and shacks, the children wearing raggedy clothes, and the stray dogs that are skin stretched over bones.

And spend time there talking to people and here the stories.

Stories of...

...adolescent and elementary aged girls selling their bodies for enough food for one meal.

...old women who have survived off of water and wild greens for two or three weeks.

...children as young as 2 and 3 years old walking 45 minutes to an hour just to get their one meal of the day at a carepoint.

...fathers and mothers who leave their children alone day after day and night after night, sometimes for weeks at a time, so they can work at the only job they can find in a city hours away from home.

...scores of children standing on street corners, by bus stops, and near shop doors begging for a few coins.

...entire neighborhoods dependent on what they can dig out of the city dump's trash heaps to eat and what they can't eat, to sell for money to buy more food.

...gangs of youth raised without a father and desperate for food and money who have resorted to robbery.

...elderly, arthritic grandmothers hoeing up the dry, rocky soil for hours on end in an attempt to grow a few ears of corn in a land hammered by drought.

...parents having to chose between feeding their children or seeking medical care for their children because unemployment rates are skyrocketing and there just isn't enough money to cover both the needs.

Too many people, including way too many children, are in desperate situations. Like the contestants in HUNGER GAMES, some will die of malnutrition and starvation before they will resort to acts that go against their principles. Others will resort to doing whatever it takes to get food, even if it means participating in dishonesty, theft, prostitution, and even murder.

In HUNGER GAMES, the competitors can gain sponsors to provide assistance for them during their competition. A particularly popular contestant might have water or medicine delivered to them at especially crucial times. These interventions by the sponsors make all the difference for the contestants. Sometimes, these interventions mean life, at least for a while, triumphs over death.

In Swaziland, there are thousands of children who can gain sponsors to provide for them during this desperate trial. This is no fictitious game. This is harsh reality. We can't close the book and it quits existing. Whether we want to think about it or not, thousands and thousands and thousands of children will not have enough food to eat today. They and their care providers will be faced with difficult decisions as they struggle to just live.

We have decisions to make, too. Are we going to step in and make sure that they have the food, water, and medical care needed at this especially crucial time? The intervention of organizations such as CHILDREN'S HOPECHEST and ADVENTURES IN MISSIONS make all the difference for the children they minister to. Sometimes, these interventions mean life, at least for a while, triumphs over death.

I realize that I am one person and can't feed every child in the world. I can't pay for every child to be educated or receive the medical care they need. But I can sponsor one or two.  I can make a difference for them. And if others sponsor one or two or three, before we know it, a generation of children can be saved in Swaziland. A generation of children can grow up having to make the only kind of choices that children should have to make.

This isn't a game. It isn't a fictitious story. This is reality.  Now let's write the ending together.

For more information on sponsoring a child, like 7 year old Simpiwe who lives with 7 siblings, visit Danielle Brower's website at:

http://moms4change.net/sponsor-an-orphan/

Delta Magazine Features MUW

This month's Delta Magazine features an article about MUW icon Emma Ody Pohl.  MUW alumna Donnette Lee told us

Imagine my surprise tonight as I was reading my latest issue of Delta Magazine to turn to a full page picture of Miss Pohl.  It is followed by a six page article about her life at the W.  The first sentence says "On an auspicious October day in 1885, 350 hopeful, excited and nervous young women arrived in Columbus, Mississippi, to enroll in the first class at the Industrial Institute and College for White Girls."

If you don't subscribe to this magazine you are missing a treat.  It is of the caliber of Mississippi Magazine, with an emphasis on the Delta.  It can be found at bookstores like Barnes and Noble also.  I haven't finished reading the article yet because I was eager to send this message, but I see that numerous alums are quoted, including Elizabeth Gwin and Barbara Garrett.

I will never be cured of Mississippi homesickness and every month I wallow in it as I read Delta Magazine.  This issue will give me a double dose.

W alums quoted in the article include Barbara McMillin Webb (c/o 1957), Barbara Garrett (c/o 1956) Mary Lib Francis (c/o 1956),  Elizabeth Gwin (c/o 1930) and Bridget Smith Pieschel.

Congratulations to MUW's Art Department

The Collegiate Art Show will be on the W campus in February. More than one thousand (1,000) entries were submitted and two hundred (200) were selected to participate. Of those two hundred (200) pieces, submitted by students at almost all the colleges in Mississippi which have art departments, Fifty-seven (57) are the work of MUW students. MUW's Department of Art and Design clearly shows that big schools are not necessarily better.  Mississippi's First Alumnae Association offers its congratulation to the Art and Design students and faculty.

To learn more about MUW's Department of Art and Design, check out their top-notch website.

Photo of the Week: Orr Chapel

Photos of Orr Chapel are familiar to most who are familiar with MUW.  Located on Front Campus, the Orr Chapel has not been used as chapel for years, and the building is in need of renovation.  However, if you can get inside, you are in for a treat, as these photos by Lydia Coffey Pierce, Class of 2009, show.

Women in Applied Politics Seminar

(left to right)  Linda Ross Aldy, Lillian Wade, Elaine Evans, Mary Libby Payne, Deborah Hodges, Kay Cobb, and Lydia Quarles.  Not pictured are Betty Lou Jones and Jimmie Moomaw

Jimmie Meese Moomaw (c/o 1958 ) gave the Keynote speech at the Women in Applied Politics seminar sponsored by the Stennis Institute and the Mississippi Commission on the Status of Women. Coordinated by MUW alumna Lydia Quarles, Senior Policy Analyst for the Stennis Institute, the presentation focused on (1) getting women to run for public office and (2) then getting them elected when they do.

An amazing group of women were in attendance, including a large contingency from the W: Judge Mary Libby Payne (c/o 1954), Judge Kay Cobb, Betty Lou Jones, Deborah Hodges (c/o 1990), Elaine Evans (c/o 1970), Linda Ross Aldy,(c/o 1973) Lillian Wade (c/o 1969), and Lydia Quarles (c/o 1971).

Attendee Deborah Hodges remarked: "The panels were extremely impressive, well-spoken funny, informative and inspiring. I think I learned more in this 6 hours than I learned in 60 hours of continuing education last year, and not just about politics. I learned about how to be a citizen and most of what I learned can be applied to my daily life on a practical level. I even learned what the Tea Party is supposed to really be about!"

The program included a panel of women from different parties. MUW alumna Kay Cobb represented the TEA party, Rita Wray, the Republican Party and Gloria Williamson was from the Democratic Party. According to Judge Mary Libby Payne "One person from the League of Women Voters said that panel was worth the whole $75 registration fee!"

"Women aren’t running for office in Mississippi. Mississippi women make 73% of what their male counterparts earn. When you look at 'women’s issues', they are LIFE issues – healthcare, education, jobs with good wages. We need more women in elected office at ALL levels (not just in Mississippi, either)" said Deborah. She continued "So, W girls, we’ve got to do better. If we can’t run, we can at least influence. At a bare minimum, we need to get active and work to elect those who share our vision locally, nationally and statewide"

Still, electing women is not the whole job. Judge Mary Libby Payne told us "There was a man there who had been in elective office for 37 years who is retiring this year. He brought his daughter and raved about getting to be in a group like this where he could just listen to women telling of their experiences. Folks, we have got to get more ways to get men to hear us because when they do they become our cheerleaders."

According to Jimmie " Women who are motivated to service and who want to make the most profound impact with their work should consider this: The institutions that offer the greatest opportunity to affect real change are Education/teaching, Church/preaching, and politics/holding elected office. I decided a long time ago that the path to making the greatest impact on the most people lay in the political realm. I challenge all of you with an impulse to serve to consider running for public office."

Thanks to the supporting institutions:  Stennis Center for Public Service, the Foundation of the Mid-South and Newk's of Jackson.

Blog Spotlight: Best in Class

Today we're introducing a new weekly feature: the Blog Spotlight. Every week, we will introduce you to MUW alums who write about their lives, careers, families, and hobbies on their own blogs. If you would like to be featured, contact us!

Blog: Best in Class (http://bestinclassblog.blogspot.com/)
Blogger: Leigh Pourciau ('08), Jackson, MS

A middle-school teacher, Leigh created Best in Class two months ago. "My blog started as a highlight reel of all the humorous and enlightening moments that occurred in my classroom--the things that my students said and wrote that I didn’t want to forget," she explains. In addition to sharing some of her students' more enjoyable antics, Leigh also occasionally addresses educational issues and discusses "educational theory in layman's terms." She has also recently started a series called The Retrospective Project, in which adults share memories of and lessons learned from their own middle school experiences.

When asked how she came up with the name of her blog, Leigh says, "As you probably know, 'best in class' means top of the line. For me, it means those stand-out moments that make me love my profession--the risks that students take in their writing that pay off and the observations they make that surprise me. These times sustain me as an educator."


Leigh Pourciau (right) and class


Leigh has had a passion for writing as long as she can remember, but for a while, teaching precluded her own work. Being a self-proclaimed "avid reader of blogs," Leigh chose to start her own as a way to continue her love affair with writing on a regular basis. "I decided that having an immediate audience that expected updated content would hold me accountable to write," she explains. The benefits of blogging are undeniable. "My instruction feels much more authentic now that I’m writing several nights a week," she says, adding, "I know I’m a better teacher when I practice what I preach."

Some of Leigh's recommend blog reads are:

• 1001 Rules for My Unborn Son
• Dollar Store Crafts
• Incredible Things
• Marshall Ramsey
• Mississippi Library Commission Reference Blog
• Passive-Aggressive Notes

If you would like to contribute your (fond? scary? emotional?) memories of middle school to The Retrospective Project, contact Leigh for more details. And make sure to add her informative and highly entertaining blog to your daily reads ASAP!

Honors College Forum

One of the great things about going to The W is that you are always part of the "family" even after graduation.  For those looking for an excuse to drop by the campus, consider the Honors College Forum.

MUW’s Gordy Honors College Forum Series features Dick Gregory, Rudy Reyes and many more. The Gordy Honors College Forum series opens Thursday Jan. 27th at 6pm at Nissan Auditorium in Parkinson Hall on the campus of MUW. The Forum Series continues through April presenting lectures and undergraduate research.

Dr. Thomas G. Velek, director of the Gordy Honors College, is pleased that the Forum Series continues to be one of the premier lecture series in the state. The series strives to offer dynamic and stimulating presentations for the MUW campus and the Columbus community as a whole.

The series opens on the 27th with "Starving Children, Caring Mothers: Women, Poverty, and Health in Kenya" presented by Dr. Toni Copeland of Mississippi State University. The presentation is Co-Sponsored by the MUW International Series.

The Forum brings legendary civil rights activist, author, and comedian Dick Gregory to Columbus on Feb. 10th. In the presentation “The World According to Dick Gregory”, Gregory will discuss his life, work in the
civil rights movement, and bring his insight and wisdom to the world we live in. Gregory is the author of 15 books, has seven albums, and appeared on numerous television shows.

The series continues on March 10th with “The First Steel Magnolia: Bette Davis and Art of Belledom” presented by Dr. Amy Pardo of MUW. Also in March, the series brings to Columbus Rudy Reyes for a presentation entitled “Generation Kill” on March 31st.

Reyes is the veteran of three tours of duty including Afghanistan’s “Enduring Freedom” and “Iraqi Freedom”. Serving with the Marine’s First Reconnaissance Battalion, Reyes was featured in the book “Generation Kill” and starred in the HBO mini-series of the same name. He is also the author of “Hero Living.” 

On April 14th Dr. Terry Equaoje presents “My Real ‘Coming to America’Story.” Originally from Nigeria, Equaoje is the Technical Director for the Mississippi Soccer Association. His presentation is co-sponsored by
the Columbus United Soccer Club.

The Forum Series concludes on April 28th with the Honors College’s Spring Research Symposium. The event showcases the undergraduate research of MUW seniors who are working on honors research projects. It features both a poster session and final research presentations.

All presentations are at 6 p.m. in Nissan Auditorium and free and open to the public. Speakers are available after to meet and greet members of the audience. For further information or to reserve group seating,
contact Dr. Thomas G. Velek at tvlek@as.muw.edu or 662-241-6850.

Friday Favorites: The Bridge Over the River Kwai

[This review originally appeared on True Classics: The ABCs of Classic Film, a movie blog maintained by three c/o 2007 W girls.]


If Santa didn’t slide enough classic movies under your tree last month, give yourself a treat and grab the new Blu-Ray edition of The Bridge on the River Kwai.

Taking place in 1943 in the jungles of Burma, the film deftly juggles the parallel stories of a cadre of British POWs forced to build a bridge for their Japanese captors and a small group of Allied commandos determined to destroy the enemy’s plans. Colonel Nicholson (Alec Guinness, in a performance that won him a well-deserved Oscar for Best Actor) and his men are captured and placed in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp under the command of Colonel Saito (Sessue Hayakawa, nominated for Best Supporting Actor). Nicholson and Saito clash from the start, with Nicholson being placed in an iron “sweat box” to endure the tropical heat as punishment. In the meantime, his soldiers do their best to sabotage and impede work on a bridge being built over the River Kwai, intended for use by the Japanese army. But when Nicholson is released, he is incensed by his soldiers’ actions and insists that they complete the work on the bridge to the best of their collective abilities, all in a perverse attempt to demonstrate British efficiency and power. Subsequently, after an American Naval officer, Shears (William Holden), successfully escapes the camp, he is then coerced into joining a commando group sent out to demolish the near-completed bridge. As the two groups’ respective missions come to a head, order dissolves into chaos, and the true destructive possibilities of war are revealed.


In addition to Guinness’ award, the film also won six other Academy Awards, including Best Picture. And watching the film now, it’s no surprise that it was so appealing to Oscar voters. The movie combines humor, pathos, drama, and true suspense, creating a compulsively-watchable big screen experience. And you'll immediately recognize the film's signature tune, "The Colonel Bogey March," which the British POWs whistle as they are marched into the enemy camp.

It’s little wonder, in retrospect, because director David Lean is (at least in my mind) the undisputed master of the engrossing epic. I’m not a fan of war movies–far from it, actually–and yet this film and Lean’s 1962 opus Lawrence of Arabia both adhere to and defy the conventions of the typical war film in increasingly intriguing ways. More a character study than an examination of conflict itself, Kwai brilliantly reflects the all-too-human motivations that give rise to war and strife.


For film aficionados, this latest release is the preeminent edition of The Bridge on the River Kwai. Not only does the set include the brand-spanking-new Blu-Ray treatment of the film, it also includes a DVD version for those who may not have updated their players as of yet. Just seeing the movie in all of its newly eye-popping glory, however, is enough of a testament to the wonders that Blu-Ray has to offer, and a compelling argument for making the format switch sooner rather than later. The set also includes replicas of the film’s lobby cards, a full-color accompanying booklet about the movie’s history, and a plethora of intriguing extras.


Overall, this set provides hours of entertainment for an insanely reasonable price, so I highly recommend it for even the casual classic film fan. Pick up your own copy and marvel over its various and sundry wonders for yourself!


Note: True Classics thanks Columbia Classics for providing a copy of The Bridge on the River Kwai for the purposes of this review.

Friday Favorites is an opportunity for MUW alums to share reviews, formal or informal, of books, movies, plays, concerts, or other forms of entertainment.  Please send your reviews to mfaeablog@gmail.com.

Rest in Peace: Evelyn Hays Gordon

Evelyn Hays Gordon of Birmingham, died at 1:00 pm today in New Orleans.  Evelyn was a 1968 MSCW graduate, sister of two other “W” girls, Frances, class of 1959, and Mary Grace, class of 1966.  Originally from Como, all three sisters were Jesters and active in campus leadership positions.  Mary Grace wrote that the funeral will probably be Monday in Birmingham.  

Photos of the Week: Wesley 2006 Spring Mission Trip

MUW Athletics--Memories Wanted

Unfortunately, there won't be a photo like this on from the 1983 Meh Lady taken of this year's athletes, because the intercollegiate athletic program at The W was discontinued after the tornado destroyed the building in the background, the "New Gym".  Because they don't want people to forget this important part of MUW history (did you know that one year The W was the national champion in women's basketball?) emerita faculty members are writing a history of MUW athletics. 

Dr. Joan Thomas told me  "We want to get our story down first. We wanted to have an Appendix with personal memories of athletes but the response has been very poor. I think people have stories but their lives are so busy they have not taken the time to write their stories down.  We do not want the book to be just book of facts, but the story of the people who worked and played in the program."

"Those of us involved in this effort taught at the W during the early history of athletics and some continued until the end.  We want to leave this as our legacy lest future generations  not know the program even existed and the roles so many people played in the story"

Dr. Thomas has asked for our assistance.  What are YOUR memories of the MUW athletic program?  If you were an athlete at The W, please fill out the form below (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) and email it or snail mail it.

*Use separate page or email for EACH memory.

Type Memory________________(See Explanation below

Your name including maiden name. _____________________

The specific team you were on for each memory.._____________________________

The specific year for each memory._________________

Name of the coach of that team.____________________

Complete names of all persons involved.__________________________________________________

The memory itself and why it is important to you:

The authors will discern the appropriateness of the story for inclusion as it must compliment the written text. The memory could be something related to the team, the sport, a trip, competitors, etc. It could be funny, serious, unexpected, unusual, or nice. The authors are hopeful for publication of the book, so the memory should be in good taste. Send all memories by MAIL to: Jo Spearman, Ph.D. 1510 Forrest Hill Drive Columbus, MS 39701 Emails may be sent to Joan Thomas. (jtthomas@ms.metrocast.net) All memories should follow the same format.

Birmingham Chapter Meeting

The Birmingham chapter of Mississippi's First Alumnae Association met January 15, 2011 to hear fellow alumna Jimmie Meece Moomaw read from her new book Southern Fried Child.  Pictured are left to right, front row: Alice Michelle Roberts '01 and Kaye Howard Smith '91; back row - Charlotte Dale McQueen Thornton '69, Roberta Shelton Atkinson '68, Shirley Rutherford Spain '64, Jimmie Moomaw '58, Erin Goia '07, Jo Nell Hales '57, Betty DeBay Hull '64 and Jane Mansell Chamberlain '66.,

A Sad Anniversary

Photos from last year's memorial

One year ago today, the MUW community suffered the tragedy of losing four beautiful bright young women whose W days had barely begun.  Catherine Muse, Alondan Turner, Jamelia Brown and Jaslynn McGee headed to Birmingham for a weekend of shopping and fun.  Unfortunately, the hotel in which they were staying caught fire and all four perished.  

A candlelight vigil was held March 3, 2010, to honor the lives of these young women.  One of the guest speakers, Shirley Spain, spoke on behalf of Mississippi's First Alumnae Association.   This year, an anniversary memorial was held and Shirley again spoke.   She noted that a good crowd attended.  

One positive outcome of that tragedy is that Mississippi's First Alumnae Association began a Memorial Scholarship fund, to which people are invited to contribute either in the memory of these precious young women, or in memory of any friend or loved one.  To contribute to The MFAeA Memorial Scholarship, send your donations to MFAeA Memorial Scholarship, C/O Deborah Hodges, 800 Hillcrest Road ,Building 1, Mobile, Alabama 36695

Friday Favorites: Southern Grace

Southern Grace: Recipes and Remembrances from The W

If it is true that the best cookbooks are storybooks, it is no surprise that Southern Grace, Recipes & Remembrances from The W is on its way to becoming a best-seller! Southern Grace brings time-honored recipes and contemporary Southern cuisine together in a book that reflects the rich traditions of Mississippi University for Women. The recipes featured in Southern Grace are favorite recipes submitted by W alums and friends but the final selections were made by the MUW Culinary Arts Institute which tested and rated each recipe submitted. The cast of characters in Southern Grace is as magnificent as the food. Eudora Welty’s description of her days at the W, the ghostly tale of Miss Calloway in the clock tower and Gail Laws’ encounter with "macho strawberries" take you on a journey through the years at Mississippi University for Women. And all great storybooks have pictures! The exquisite photographs in Southern Grace make your mouth water for the delectable fare and your heart yearn for a visit to the beautiful campus of Mississippi University for Women.

Southern Grace, Recipes & Remembrances from The W is the perfect gift for any occasion so go ahead and order several to have on hand for Mother’s Day, birthdays and weddings! And remember, proceeds from the sale of Southern Grace are used to grant student scholarships and to further alumni goals and projects helping to ensure more success stories from Mississippi University for Women.

Here is one recipe for you to try:

Red Velvet Cake 

 

½ cup (1 stick) butter, softened 

1 ½ cups sugar 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

2 eggs 

2 tablespoons baking cocoa 

2 ounces liquid red food coloring 

2 ½ cups cake flour 

1 teaspoon salt 

1 cup buttermilk 

1 tablespoon white vinegar 

1 teaspoon baking soda 

1 cup milk 

5 tablespoons cake flour 

1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened 

1 cup sugar 

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

 Cream ½ cup butter, 1 ½ cups sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a large mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add the eggs 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix the baking cocoa and food coloring in a small bowl to make a paste. Add to the egg mixture and beat well. Sift 2 ½ cups flour and the salt into a bowl. Add the dry ingredients alternately with the buttermilk to the egg mixture, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients and beating well after each addition. Mix the vinegar and baking soda in a small bowl. Add to the batter and beat well. Pour into 3 well-greased 8-inch cake pans. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes or until a wooden pick inserted in the centercomes out clean. Cool in the pans for 10 minutes. Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.  

Mix the cold milk and 5 tablespoons flour in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Cook until thickened, stirring constantly. Pour into a bowl. Chill until cool to the touch. Cream 1 cup butter, 1 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon vanilla in a mixing bowl until light and fluffy. Add to the cooled mild mixture and beat until smooth and fluffy. Spread between the layers and over the top and side of the cake.  

Yield: 12 servings 

 Special Sale:  While they last Southern Grace Cookbooks are available by the case at a cost of $50.00 plus postage for 12 books.  The Amazon cost per book is $25.95 per book, so this is a real bargain.  If you'd like to order, please email jkatool@comcast.net,  aargrett3@comcast.net or soireems@gmail.com.

Photo of the Week

Jane Dearing Dennis' photo of Lydia Coffey and others following Beverly Jones in "Hail to Thee" at Gather at the Gate, Homecoming 2010.

Snow Day!

Like much of the Deep South, Columbus and The W got snow today.  Thanks to Madeleine Gardiner and Allie Williams, current MUW students, for these photos showing that W students do know how to have fun in the snow.

Fur Baby Friday

Jimmie Meese Moomaw, c/o shares these pictures of her fur baby Bonnie Baen a/k/a "Wren".  

Friday Favorites: When Everything Changed

I loved this book!

From the Publisher:

Picking up where her previous successful, and highly lauded book, America's Women, left off, Gail Collins recounts the sea of change women have experienced since 1960. A comprehensive mix of oral history and Collins's keen research, this is the definitive book about five crucial decades of progress, told with the down-to-earth, amusing, and agenda-free tone this beloved New York Times columnist is known for. The interviews with women who have lived through these transformative years include an advertising executive who in the 60s who was not allowed to attend board meetings that took place in the all-male dining room; and an airline stewardess who remembered being required to bend over to light her passengers' cigars on the men-only 'Executive Flight' from New York to Chicago. We, too, may have forgotten the enormous strides made by women since 1960--and the rare setbacks. "Hell yes, we have a quota [7%]" said a medical school dean in 1961. "We do keep women out, when we can." At a pre-graduation party at Barnard , "they handed corsages to the girls who were engaged and lemons to those who weren't." In 1960, two-thirds of women 18-60 surveyed by Gallup didn't approve of the idea of a female president. Until 1972, no woman ran in the Boston Marathon, the year when Title IX passed, requiring parity for boys and girls in school athletic programs (and also the year after Nixon vetoed the childcare legislation passed by congress). What happened during the past fifty years--a period that led to the first woman's winning a Presidential Primary--and why? The cataclysmic change in the lives of American women is a story Gail Collins seems to have been born to tell.

My Review: 

As I said, I loved this book. I was well written, with lots of stories of individual women that gave a personal touch to what could have been a dry history book. Being at the tail end of the baby boom, I'm of an age to remember most of the things about which she wrote.   I found it interesting that she said something I've written before--that at least part of the women's movement happened because of the recession of the 1970's. Basically, it got to the point that in order to maintain the lifestyle to which they had become accustomed (or wanted), American families sent Mom to work. Since it wasn't something she was going to be doing for a short time before she had kids, or part-time afterwards, Mom wanted to have a meaningful job, with a good paycheck. The book also pointed out that working moms had long been important to the economy of this country; it is just that most of them had been lower-class women working low-paid jobs. In addressing current times, Collins points out that many highly-educated fast-track women are opting to cut back once they have children and that some of those who fought the battles of the '70s and '80s feel betrayed by this.

This is a book I'm going to encourage my daughter to read. To paraphrase an old commercial that is discussed in the book, "We've come a long way baby"

About the author: Gail Collins was the Editorial Page Editor for the New York Times from 2001-2007--the first woman to have held that position.

Message from the Author:

Dear Readers,

I've always felt that reading history was more rewarding when you knew what kind of food the people involved in the great events ate, and whether they had comfortable shoes. If you can put human faces (and feet) on historical figures, they seem less like actors walking through a prescripted pageant. It's easier to appreciate that these folks had no idea how the story was going to work out.So when I wrote WHEN EVERYTHING CHANGED, besides interviewing the movers and shakers of women's history in America over the last 50 years, I talked to a lot of average women as well --- about how their lives, their clothes, their housework, their dating rituals and their career expectations had evolved since 1960. There were lots of surprises, down to the number of little girls who had their Barbies going all the way with Ken. Ken has been way more of a stud than I ever imagined. It's always knocked me out to think that I lived through a change in the way the world regards women that had been waiting to happen for thousands of years. But now, I'm reminded of it in new ways. On the way to work this morning, I crossed my legs in the subway and suddenly thought: pants - we got pants! And whenever I pull laundry out of the drier I remember the 80-year-old woman in Cincinnati who told me that no matter how hard she tried, when she was a young housewife she could never manage to get a shirt ironed in less than 12 minutes. I'll save the shoe discussion for another day.

To Purchase from Amazon: When Everything Changed: The Amazing Journey of American Women from 1960 to the Present

Disclosure: I received a complimentary review copy from the publisher.
This review first appeared on This That and the Other Thing

Photos of the Week: Mam'selles Through the Years