Unitarian Universalist Church

Jacques and Elizabeth are in regular attendance at the Orange Coast Unitarian Universalist Church in Costa Mesa, California. This denomination’s beliefs and social activism appealed to both Jacques and Elizabeth who started attending after they were married. Elizabeth is part of the Religious Education committee and uses her elementary education skills to help instruct a new generation of children at the church.

The seven principles of Unitarian Universalism are:

• The inherent worth and dignity of every person;
• Justice, equity and compassion in human relations;
• Acceptance of one another and encouragement to spiritual growth in our congregations;
• A free and responsible search for truth and meaning;
• The right of conscience and the use of the democratic process within our congregations and in society at large;
• The goal of world community with peace, liberty, and justice for all;
• Respect for the interdependent web of all existence of which we are a part.

Amnesty International

Jacques is currently one of the group coordinators of the the local Amnesty International group in Irvine, California, of which he has been a member since 1988. As a member of that group he has helped in many of their human rights actions and events over that period of time, and have made many good friends as a result. Currently both Elizabeth and Jacques attend the Amnesty International meetings in Irvine.

Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of people acting on the conviction that governments must not deny individuals their basic Human Rights. as set out in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Its members and supporters, over a million of them throughout the world, work impartially to secure the organization's goals.

Amnesty International was founded in 1961 and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1977 for its efforts to promote global observance of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The declaration was adopted by the United Nations General Assembly on 10 December, 1948. Every year, this date is observed around the world as Human Rights Day. The 30 articles of the Universal Declaration establish the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of all people.

Since 1961 Amnesty International has worked on behalf of more than 45,000 prisoners around the world.

Join Amnesty International today!

Ballroom Dancing

From 1998 until 2002 (when Joël was born) Elizabeth and Jacques took dance lessons at Ballroom Is Back Dance Studio in Huntington Beach. Jacques became a less clumsy dancer thanks to their expert teachers. Elizabeth, on the other hand, participated in several professional dance competitions (in the amateur category) — click here for photos.

Jacques expresses his admiration at the dance skills of the people from the Ballroom Is Back dance studio, while Elizabeth tries to moderate his enthusiasm.

The Straight Dope

Jacques is a regular reader of the weekly newspaper column called The Straight Dope, and sometimes participates in the associated message board. The column, written by Cecil Adams since 1973, answers the tough questions about which you yourself may have sometimes wondered. Here is a (very small) sample of the awesome explanations provided by the great Mr. Adams:

• Why do pigeons bob their heads?
• If all one billion Chinese jumped at once, would the earth be thrown out of its orbit?
• Why does Heinz ketchup say “57 varieties”? I only see one variety
• Did a French vaudeville star once specialize in trained flatulence?
• Did dinosaurs have a separate brain in their behinds?
• Where are all the baby pigeons?
• Is the Great Wall of China the only manmade object you can see from space?
• Can hair turn white overnight from fright?
• In “Star Trek,” what exactly are “star dates”?
• If aircraft “black boxes” are indestructible, why can't the whole plane be made from the same material?
• Who invented the smiley face?
• Why do older men have hair growing in their noses and ears?
• ’ Is Einstein's brain kept in a bottle in a small–town doctor’s office near Kansas City?
• Can a Munchkin be seen committing suicide in The Wizard of Oz?
• Will poppy–seed bagels cause you to fail a drug test?

No question is too bizarre, and the author goes to great lengths to provide the correct answer. It’s not here that you will see answers of the type “Well, I heard once that…” or “I read somewhere…” The columns refer to scientific studies published in research journals, authoritative sources, and sometimes personal experimentation by Mr. Adams himself (e.g. when trying to find out if prolonged kissing while chewing gum causes the gum to disintegrate, Mrs. Adams was called in as an assistant and a personal attempt was made to confirm the hypothesis).

You can find the Straight Dope Newspaper column on the Internet, with many old columns being archived at their site. If you can’t find an answer to your question at the site, try the Message Boards, where one of the most intelligent communities on the internet hangs out to discuss the Straight Dope column and the mysteries of the world.