at conference at the Karolinska Institute in April, 2012, chaired by
Kristina Orth-Gome’ PhD

Under the House, by Leslie Hall Pinder, is a charming novel about a dysfunctional family, the Rathbones, who struggle with families lies and secrecy. Evelyn, the youngest of the clan, is sent away to boarding school to silence her from speaking out and asking questions about the identity of her father and other [...]]]>

Under the House, by Leslie Hall Pinder, is a charming novel about a dysfunctional family, the Rathbones, who struggle with families lies and secrecy. Evelyn, the youngest of the clan, is sent away to boarding school to silence her from speaking out and asking questions about the identity of her father and other painful secrets. In the end the brittle house built on secret incest and abuse falls apart, leaving the characters to find themselves and re-invent themselves on terms other than those as members of a family. I found this to be an entertaining read, and not disturbing or depressing at all. The sense of humor of the author carries it along.

You can get it for Kindle here. I gave it five stars.

Falling Women, and Other Stories, is a hauntingly beautiful collection of stories from the author Ellen Herbert. You can follow links to buy it on Kindle here. In one story, a woman talks to her bottle of bourbon “Jim Beam” as if it is her [...]]]>

Falling Women, and Other Stories, is a hauntingly beautiful collection of stories from the author Ellen Herbert. You can follow links to buy it on Kindle here. In one story, a woman talks to her bottle of bourbon “Jim Beam” as if it is her best friend. She struggles with whether to go on the wagon and have a relationship with her cold husband, or go back to Jim. Nothing she does makes any difference anyway, and in the end her husband suddenly dies. Released, she reclaims her life as a sexual woman and strikes up an affair with the funeral home director. Eventually, she realizes that this too will lead to a form of imprisonment.

Falling Women is a richly and beautifully told series of stories that will be unlike anything you have read before.

I give it five stars.

For more information on the film go to our Catania! website; actors click here for character descriptions.

Kickstarter campaign has only 27 days left to go and we are 5% there!

Our goal is to raise $7500 in order to help make our movie over the next 30 days. You can get cool stuff like a travel mug with the Catania! logo for $20 and get involved in the movie [...]]]> We just launched our 30-day kickstarter campaign
for our new movie Catania!

Our goal is to raise $7500 in order to help make our movie over the next 30 days. You can get cool stuff like a travel mug with the Catania! logo for $20 and get involved in the movie and track our progress with our bi-weekly emails and give your input and be a part of the creative process! Or if you pay more your can come to the premiere or even the party at our house with cast and crew where the movie will be filmed! Check out the Catania film web site for updates on the film and a chance to invest in the film beyond the kickstarter campaign.

The Callaway Homecoming Iniative (CHI), a program a year-long in planning between our group at Emory, the Callaway family and Callaway Gardens, and Fort Benning and the Maneuvre Operations Center for Excellence, starts this Wednesday and will go for 10 days Apr 25-May 6 2012.

The Callaway Homecoming Initiative is designed to help members [...]]]>

The Callaway Homecoming Iniative (CHI), a program a year-long in planning between our group at Emory, the Callaway family and Callaway Gardens, and Fort Benning and the Maneuvre Operations Center for Excellence, starts this Wednesday and will go for 10 days Apr 25-May 6 2012.

The Callaway Homecoming Initiative is designed to help members of the U.S. Military reconnect with their families and assimilate into a peacetime home environment upon return from combat deployment. Set on 13,000 acres in the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains in west-central Georgia, this program brings soldiers and families together – at no personal expense – in a spectacular and serene setting, far from the stress and anxiety of war. A series of classes, developed in partnership with Emory University’s Clinical Neuroscience Research Unit, features experts providing information to soldiers and families about unique aspects of being part of military families and transition from the combat theater. Military families also participate in a regimen of outdoor team challenges including a timed adventure race, a zipline course, a laser tag competition and more. Ample time is built for recreational activities as well, including golf, tennis, fishing, bicycling and hiking. When the day’s activities end, military family CHI participants unwind in Callaway Gardens’ Southern Pine Cottages, set in a secluded woodland environment and equipped with screened porches, full kitchens and fireplaces. With all expenses paid and a comprehensive program that addresses all aspects of the combat-to-peacetime transition, CHI is a win-win prospect for everyone – soldier, family and
society at large.

Special thanks to all the volunteers including Callaway and Emory staff and the mental health professionals who volunteered their time to give the talks and workshops to soldiers and their families!

Follow our facebook page and follow us on twitter @CHI_Georgia

http://www.facebook.com/pages/create.php#!/CallawayHomecomingInitiative

View clips about the production of our new Indy film ‘Catania” here, here and here. Want to become a part owner of [...]]]>

View clips about the production of our new Indy film ‘Catania” here, here and here. Want to become a part owner of a movie and be part of something fun and creative? Read a sample of the script here and view the business plan and investor agreement here and here. Catania was a quarter-finalist in the PAGE 2011 international screenwriters competition for Comedy. We are currently accepting investments of blocks of $200. For more information about investment contact Doug Bremner info at dougbremner.com. For information about internship possibilities contact Sabina Vaccarino Bremner svbremner at uchicago.edu.

with contributions by Bob Sims

John Henry Browne is defending accused killer Robert Bales. Bales is the Pacific Northwest-based soldier who allegedly gunned down 17 civilians in Afghanistan.

Before the world knew any of the specific details of this case or who the victims were, it knew all about the accused [...]]]> by Anne Bremner,

with contributions by Bob Sims

John Henry Browne is defending accused killer Robert Bales. Bales is the Pacific Northwest-based soldier who allegedly gunned down 17 civilians in Afghanistan.

Before the world knew any of the specific details of this case or who the victims were, it knew all about the accused — and the defenses. And it knew why.

Nature abhors a vacuum. And what a vacuum of information from the military there was. John stepped up and immediately filled it. He spoke of the four stressful deployments, post-traumatic stress disorder, a head injury, financial woes, and the personal strife Bales has experienced. Sentiment prevailed. “I am not putting the war on trial, but the war is on trial,” John said. Many agreed. Suddenly, public conversation was elevated beyond this case to the prosecution of the war itself.

John Henry Browne was a hippie in the 1960s. When we were married I remember him talking fondly of those halcyon days, describing San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury district, a mecca for the Hippie movement. He knew every nook and cranny in that neighborhood from his travels. He brought memories of Buena Vista Park during the Summer of Love 1967 come to life when he told me his stories. (I recently found an old picture of him with hair streaming past his shoulders and a drooping hippie moustache, one I used for a birthday invitation for him once.) John walked the walk as a hippie. He protested against the Vietnam War. He never served.

Many people talk of the 1960s as a time of protest, casual sex and civil unrest, a time in which some people think very little was accomplished for bettering American society. I disagree. Positive changes did come. In time. Women’s rights and civil liberties improved by leaps and bounds. We steadily climbed out of the chasm of racism. The Vietnam War was ended. And from that time of momentous social change came John Henry Browne.

He has waited all his life for this case. He is made for this case. He will put the war on trial and he will win. It’s ironic that decades after his period of discontent in the 60s, and on the eve of his expected retirement, John is handling the most important case of his career — and one of the most important in this country’s history.

Rules in dealing with the media in such a highly publicized case? Be brief and be quiet. Deliver a message that resonates. Tell the truth. Humanize your client. Use your case as a platform for public conversations about the greater good. Be accessible. Be relentless. Never, never, never ever quit.

I have learned all of this — and more — from my ex-husband John Henry Browne.

[Reposted from Women in Crime Ink blog]

http://womenincrimeink.blogspot.com/2012/03/most-everything-i-know-about-trying.html

And that’s why I know he will win.