@Macloserboy: Can't help out there, but I would like to build an earthquake-ready school so these children don't have to worry about reliving the horror of a year ago.
My heart still weeps for the parents who lost children in that earthquake. I really hope the Chinese have learned a lesson about construction and safety... but I fear they have not.
@blades31: Hope you enjoy the Three Gorges Dam. IT IS FUCKING CRAZY AS HELL. It is theorized that it might change the tilt of the earth ever-so-slightly because the reservoir of water will be so heavy.
It is also on a fault line. If an earthquake happens (and it will, eventually, because that's what fault lines do), it's going to be the largest humanitarian crisis we've ever seen.
@boxspelunker: Gah. The Three Gorges Dam is an environmental disaster and displacing millions of people, but I never thought to think of the whole thing breaking in an earthquake. That would be... very bad.
@violet333: We watched a terrifying documentary in one of my geography classes and I was like... well, hydropower can be good, but... jesus, was the goal to mess up your country? Because that's what's happening. :( I like to pretend it's all okay.
@blades31: Agh, I know! Is it really so important to have the greatest _______ ever when it might kill you? :(
@OhKermie: Best wishes to your friend. I was raised by my uncle who lost a leg at the age of 17 and lived 55 long, active years afterwards. He was truly one of the happiest men I ever knew, because he concentrated on everything he could do and was too busy to notice the few things he couldn't.
And your description of the Israeli dance program reminds me of a program I read about for returning U.S. vets who have lost leg(s) in Iraq or Afghanistan. It puts them in a pool where they learn how to kayak, complete with eskimo rolls and everything, and then they go on a river. The vets who did it said that using their body in a new way let them build a relationship with and learn to accept their new body, and realize how much it was still capable of.
Since none had ever kayaked before, it let them learn something new without feeling frustrated by how different it now was, or feel limited.
This reminds me of an amazing documentary I watched about young women in Israel who have survived suicide bomb attacks. All of the women had suffered massive physical damage; some were covered in burns while others were missing limbs. They were all enrolled in a dance class together, very much a free movement and creative body expression kind of thing. The goal was to heal their relationships with their bodies, to enable them to find grace and beauty in themselves, and to create a support network of people experiencing similar things.
Man, it was tough to watch, and I cried like a baby at times. But these women were so strong, even when they had bad days, and it was just beautiful. The ladies above make me feel that same fierce, heart-bursting pride in the strength of the human spirit.
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Too much suffering for a Friday. I need a drink.
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sorry.
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/sarcasm
Seriously, though, I'm just glad she is okay. 18,000 homes...wow.
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It is also on a fault line. If an earthquake happens (and it will, eventually, because that's what fault lines do), it's going to be the largest humanitarian crisis we've ever seen.
Well, aren't I all death and destruction today?
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I like to pretend it's all okay.
@blades31: Agh, I know! Is it really so important to have the greatest _______ ever when it might kill you? :(
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I can practically hear her muttering code words...
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Congrats to all survivors!! Your strength is amazing.
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Since none had ever kayaked before, it let them learn something new without feeling frustrated by how different it now was, or feel limited.
05/08/09
Man, it was tough to watch, and I cried like a baby at times. But these women were so strong, even when they had bad days, and it was just beautiful. The ladies above make me feel that same fierce, heart-bursting pride in the strength of the human spirit.
05/08/09