Jennifer Howard

Give thanks for whatever you have to be thankful for. If you feel like taking the long view, you can read more about the history of the holiday over at the National Archives website: On October 3, 1789, President George Washington issued a proclamation naming Thursday, November 26, 1789 as an official holiday of “sincere and humble thanks.” The nation then celebrated its first Thanksgiving under its new Constitution. On October 3, 1863, President Lincoln made the traditional Thanksgiving celebration a nationwide holiday to be commemorated each year on the fourth Thursday of November…. In 1939 President Franklin D…. Read more...

…and the pigs, cows, chickens, and other farm animals who live (if you call it living) on factory farms. Something to think about before you tuck into that bird tomorrow. (Thanks, Don.)… Read more...

This is a nifty idea. If you know of other universities that are trying out similar ventures, let me know. Tons of scholarly presses have worked blogging into their PR portfolios, but this is the first university-created litblog I’ve come across…. Read more...

Talk to your campus librarian…. Read more...

My video of the St. Olaf Milton marathon is now online. It’s my first video experiment as a journalist, and I’m pretty happy with how it turned out. I took the footage with one of those nifty Flip camcorders, and my talented colleague Brock Read did the editing mash-up. If you have 2 minutes and 49 seconds to spare, please take a look…. Read more...

Tonight. Check it out if you’re in the vicinity and have $5 to spare. More info here…. Read more...