CurrentMom

Infrastructure Vulnerability

Image via Wikipedia

Technology Thursday

Spies have hacked into our electrical grid. At least that's what the Wall Street Journal reported recently.

The spies came from China, Russia and other countries, these officials said, and were believed to be on a mission to navigate the U.S. electrical system and its controls. The intruders haven't sought to damage the power grid or other key infrastructure, but officials warned they could try during a crisis or war.

"The Chinese have attempted to map our infrastructure, such as the electrical grid," said a senior intelligence official. "So have the Russians."
[...]
Officials said water, sewage and other infrastructure systems also were at risk. "Over the past several years, we have seen cyberattacks against critical infrastructures abroad, and many of our own infrastructures are as vulnerable as their foreign counterparts," Director of National Intelligence Dennis Blair recently told lawmakers. "A number of nations, including Russia and China, can disrupt elements of the U.S. information infrastructure."

Work-Love Variations

Work Wednesday

I'm lucky. My best friend sits about nine doors down from me at the office, at the end of a long hallway. My friend happens to be my husband so I am fortunate except for the rare days when we're not on speaking terms.

We don't work together on projects and assignments, which gives us both some crucial breathing room. And we usually don't eat lunch together or hop over to Starbucks for an afternoon jolt. (Although my husband occasionally does express his love with a latte!) But he is around for a quick in-person consultation when a kid falls sick or for a reality check when a colleague makes a mildly critical remark.

And the fact that we work in the same space has eased some of our commuting-childcare issues. It also gives us up-front insight into each other's work lives, allowing us to cut each other some extra slack at home when the other person is overwhelmed at work.

As close-to-ideal as our arrangement is (for us), it's not my husband that I look forward to seeing every day at the office. It's my mommy-buddies.

Can You Trust Your Man?

Is there such a thing as a fun, passionate and romantic guy who is honest and trustworthy?  I am married to a nice guy, who is honest, trustworthy and not controlling, but he wouldn't know fun, passion or romance if it hit him in the face.

I have many friends, and people I've gotten to know, who are by nature are fun, passionate and romantic. I would not trust one of them!  Why is it like that?

Is it that they appear not trustworthy because of their fun nature or are they really NOT trustworthy? A to-himself guy is often referred to as quiet or not with it and therefore does not get much attention. A fun, outgoing guy is the opposite, he gets a lot of attention. 

Matzoh Lasagna Pleases Kids Beyond Passover

Meal Monday

Passover presents a small problem for my mac-n-cheese and spaghetti-loving kids. They like the brisket and potatoes we have for the big family meals. But it's just not that appealing to take dry matzoh sandwiches to school while their friends feast on the usual bread sandwiches and pasta. Instead, I bake a big, meat matzoh lasagna early in the Passover holiday and let my children enjoy leftovers for days to come.

Casey Anthony and Adoption: Part 2

Family Friday

I observed last week that Casey Anthony may just be the most hated woman in the US.  Based on the passionate responses received, it seems that I was only partially correct.  Casey Anthony's mother, Cindy, appears to be stiff competition for that title.  And when you see pictures of the doe-eyed, sweet-faced Caylee while contemplating the grisly details of her fate, it's easy to understand why the case evokes such emotion.

Readers of last week's blog did not suggest ways to promote adoption among young women.  However, they did provide valuable feedback, raising some valid points that I had not addressed:

-   Several readers pointed out that adoption is not a panacea.  There are indeed well-known cases of adoption gone very wrong, including the recent case of Renee Bowman, who police allege murdered her adopted daughters in Montgomery County, Maryland. And many of us can name a few non-famous and much less extreme cases in which adoption did not turn out well, for either the adoptee or adoptive parent.  Some readers also noted that giving up a child for adoption can be very painful and traumatizing for the birth mother.