PROPER POSITIONING CAN IMPROVE PERFORMANCE
Raise your “manus” — Latin for hand — if you are a word nerd. I know “ego sum” — I am. If you are, too, the etymology of the word “ergonomics” might interest you. It derives from two Greek words: “ergon,” meaning work, and “nomos,” meaning natural law. Combined, these words form “ergonomics,” or the science of work and a person's relationship to that work.
Now raise your “manus” if you also work at a desk. Keep it up if you ever experience pain — whether in your lower back or carpal tunnel — after working for a few hours. Now keep it up if you have ever consulted an ergonomist. For those of you who suddenly lowered your hand, here’s an overview of ergonomics, starting with neutral posture.
Set in the South during the Great Depression, Sean Dietrich’s new novel “Stars in Alabama” weaves together the stories of a homeless teen mother with the gift of healing, two migrant workers and a child preacher on the run from his violent father. 
Poet Maya Angelou wasn’t describing the matriarchs of the Gullah community when she wrote “Phenomenal Woman,” but she could have been. Gullah women have been the guidepost for their families for decades, preserving the native islanders’ language, food, traditions and way of life — all while overcoming the usual challenges of everyday life.
