Ten on Tuesday

1. I appear to have started reading again! I went for a year without finishing a single book - and if you ever saw my house, you'd be shocked. Books everywhere. I think I was burnt out from years of school and my brain decided to revolt. However, it appears to be returning (slowly) to work, and books are actually fun again! I finished a very small book this weekend and am now moving on to.... oh, about 5 others. We'll see how that goes.

2. It's been an interesting weather week here on the west coast. It was snowing and hailing yesterday, but today is sunny and nearly feels like spring. I'm just hoping tomorrow doesn't bring a hurricane or tornado.

3. I am three weeks behind on the Walking Dead, so don't tell me anything that happened.

4. This Saturday is World TB Day. I'm betting many of you don't really know that much about TB - its history, what it is, how it's spread or who has it these days. The truth might shock you. One third of the world's population has TB - and a tenth of those will become symptomatic in their lifetime. In HIV-positive populations, the chances of getting it (and dying from it) are much higher than the general population - as with any other at risk group (the homeless, anyone with a pre-existing medical condition). Every 60 seconds three people die from it. And yet it is curable. Here's a short video with some more info, or visit Stop TB's website.

 

5. I started watching a few new shows this week, leading to potential faves. One I really like is Touch, starring Kiefer Sutherland as the father of an autistic child who has never spoken, but uses his considerable intelligence to identify patterns in the world around him. Have you ever heard of the butterfly effect? The idea that a butterfly flaps its wings in one place, causing it to rain on the other side of the world? That every action, no matter how small sends out ripples into the world that can cause strange, unpredictable reactions? Well, this show is basically about these actions and reactions. Another one I'm hooked by is The Firm - it has a couple of Canadians (Molly Parker and Callum Keith Rennie), plus I really like Juliette Lewis these days, so she's a bonus! It's based on the book by John Grisham (yes, like the movie starring Tom Cruise) about a lawyer who stumbles right into the middle of something deadly when he takes a job with a law firm.

6. I really wish life came with some sort of indication of where you're supposed to head and when. I'd even settle for some sort of red alert system when you're making the absolute wrong decision if we couldn't have clear cut instructions. I mean, that's not so much to ask, right?

7. In case you didn't catch the update to my Wicked Wednesday from March 7th, Jason Russell, one of the co-founders of Invisible Children, the organization behind the Kony 2012 YouTube video, had a meltdown. Apparently he was found wandering around naked and drunk (before noon, no less) in the middle of the street. I'm not quite sure what to make of this - I guess we all deal with pressure in different ways - but I do think it's a shame.

8. Loving Ashley Judd right about now:  

 

9. Is it Friday yet?

10. And because I like to end it on the upswing:

If you haven't already (which would make you insane, but whatever), check out Sherlock.