I've made up my mind that I'm going to make an appointment with my doctor on Monday to discuss the problem with my right knee. I've been hoping my own measures would alleviate the problem, but it's not happening. It works rather well part of the time and then seems like it wants to lock or actually go backwards and hurts when that happens. Meloxicam doesn't help either. It looks like I'm going to have to give up the floor work altogether and I hate that as we need an extra few bucks now and then. That cane is seldom left behind anymore. I need that extra stabilization.
I guess I can't complain. Almost 80 and I've never spent a night in any hospital. Only dental and cataract surgeries and skin cancer freeze offs. I even escaped colds for several of the last few years but one got me last winter and sent me on my weight loss quest.
I'm trying to be philosophical about it, but the change is so radical compared to what I've enjoyed all my life. Such things always cleared up with time and care in the past, but I don't heal and repair like I used to. The drying up of those hormonal "juices" is very noticeable in its overall effect. The "machine" is in need of some major overhuals I'm afraid, and I guess it's getting pretty well plumb worn out.
Saturday, May 31, 2014
A BRIEF EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY
As a human creature, I'm an organized concoction of atoms that were born in stars intricately arranged into molecules and chemical compounds that work together in an harmonious state. Once in awhile things go wrong, and the older you get, the more that happens. Eventually, some malfunction will kill me. I know that, but I don't think about it too much. Living is just too interesting in the meantime.
Just like in the technological world, one improvement leads to countless others and we now have touch screen computing devices that make the first computer we owned look like a lumbering dinosaur in comparison. Remember those first clunky cell phones? Now, the only computer some people have is a smart phone they hold in one hand and it far oushines the first computers.
We recently found the missing link fossil (yes, missing link fossilss are all over the place) of a fish that had jointed limbs. That fish is in my genealogical lineage, and those apendages are the forerunners of the fingers that are clicking these computer keys.
That wonderful development took place eons ago -- eons that are virtually impossible for me to wrap my mind around. It was a far different planet then. The present world map didn't exist. Landmasses have moved around painfully slowly in the meantime. Oceans and seas have come and gone. Millions of species have thriven and perished. It's a miracle that just the right ones came along and led to ME!
Have parallel events transpired on other planets? Probably. But what stage are they in? Has anything comparable to us evolved out there somewhere? Maybe. Maybe not. It's doubtful I'll ever know. But, I can wonder.
Time to get on with the day and go outside to observe and wonder about all those other marvelous creatures (and relatives) that fill this wonderful world we seem to be hell bent on trashing and destroying for the sake of human invented wealth.
Just like in the technological world, one improvement leads to countless others and we now have touch screen computing devices that make the first computer we owned look like a lumbering dinosaur in comparison. Remember those first clunky cell phones? Now, the only computer some people have is a smart phone they hold in one hand and it far oushines the first computers.
We recently found the missing link fossil (yes, missing link fossilss are all over the place) of a fish that had jointed limbs. That fish is in my genealogical lineage, and those apendages are the forerunners of the fingers that are clicking these computer keys.
That wonderful development took place eons ago -- eons that are virtually impossible for me to wrap my mind around. It was a far different planet then. The present world map didn't exist. Landmasses have moved around painfully slowly in the meantime. Oceans and seas have come and gone. Millions of species have thriven and perished. It's a miracle that just the right ones came along and led to ME!
Have parallel events transpired on other planets? Probably. But what stage are they in? Has anything comparable to us evolved out there somewhere? Maybe. Maybe not. It's doubtful I'll ever know. But, I can wonder.
Time to get on with the day and go outside to observe and wonder about all those other marvelous creatures (and relatives) that fill this wonderful world we seem to be hell bent on trashing and destroying for the sake of human invented wealth.
Friday, May 30, 2014
ROME IN RERUN
A good man had to bite the bullet and resign today, not from anything he personally did but due to the deception and lies of people under him. I have to feel sorry for him, but that's the way with high office holders overseeing as best they can people under them and being lied to and betrayed. I can't help feeling that he's better off getting shut of the whole bureaucratic mess. At least the resignation of the White House Press Secretary was a voluntary decision made for overall career reasons that must have made sense to him.
It's a whole different world from that I remember just after World War II. We were a nation that really cared about each other then. The goal was the advancement of the nation and everyone in it.
Not anymore! What I see today disgusts me. It's a lie and a travesty to refer to ourselves as a democratic nation. We're a plutocracy, pure and simple, and the average person is nothing more than throw away garbage to those who hold the ultimate power.
I'd like to be optimistic and think this will all pass, but I'm also a realist and what I see coming is pessimistic in the extreme.
We're Rome all over again!
It's a whole different world from that I remember just after World War II. We were a nation that really cared about each other then. The goal was the advancement of the nation and everyone in it.
Not anymore! What I see today disgusts me. It's a lie and a travesty to refer to ourselves as a democratic nation. We're a plutocracy, pure and simple, and the average person is nothing more than throw away garbage to those who hold the ultimate power.
I'd like to be optimistic and think this will all pass, but I'm also a realist and what I see coming is pessimistic in the extreme.
We're Rome all over again!
Tuesday, May 27, 2014
INSIDIOUS PROPAGANDA
Propaganda does horrible things with people's minds. Two examples are global warming and creationism.
All qualified scientists are unanimous in stating that global warming is real and a growing threat and that creationism is a lot of bunk. People don't like either fact so they are quick to grab onto any off-the-wall bullshit some idiot pulls out of the nether region of his anatomy and publishes. They have no academic or scientific background or credentials. They just endlessly quote each other based on manufactured credentials from spurious organizations they themselves created.
But, they get equal, if not even greater, coverage, and the average gullible cretin who desperately wants to believe his opinions are just as good as all those "edicated fools," parrots it and seeks to impose the nonsense on public policy, especially education. After all, they aren't going to stand for their kid coming home and telling them that they don't know diddly about anything.
Well, they don't! And, the tragedy of the situation is that some of them have their asses firmly planted in the halls of congress.
All qualified scientists are unanimous in stating that global warming is real and a growing threat and that creationism is a lot of bunk. People don't like either fact so they are quick to grab onto any off-the-wall bullshit some idiot pulls out of the nether region of his anatomy and publishes. They have no academic or scientific background or credentials. They just endlessly quote each other based on manufactured credentials from spurious organizations they themselves created.
But, they get equal, if not even greater, coverage, and the average gullible cretin who desperately wants to believe his opinions are just as good as all those "edicated fools," parrots it and seeks to impose the nonsense on public policy, especially education. After all, they aren't going to stand for their kid coming home and telling them that they don't know diddly about anything.
Well, they don't! And, the tragedy of the situation is that some of them have their asses firmly planted in the halls of congress.
Tuesday, May 20, 2014
A HUMAN TRAGEDY
It's sad, actually horrifying, what people can get themselves into because of addictions, usually alcohol.
Today, I was planning to help out a recent acquaintance, actually my neighbor to the rear, by taking him to Jerome for a court date. We were to leave about 9am. At 9:15 I went over to see what the holdup was to find the lady who rents the place cleaning and spraying to get burn odors out. Seems the guy who was staying there is an alcoholic who got drunk and nearly burned the place down last night with something that caught fire on the stove. So, he was arrested and taken to jail.
Later today, I was going to drive his truck back from Camp Verde where it is stranded due to him being arrested there for a little hit and run resulting in a broken mirror, his license taken away, etc. I was just trying to be a good neighbor and help someone I hardly knew out just out of human concern, even though the whole day promised to be a gigantic pain in the you know what. That's just the way I roll, as the saying puts it.
The guy is a former marine veteran and seems to be a conscientious and hard-working guy. "Semper Fi" is one of his favorite and habitual phrases. I really wish there were something I could do to help him, but it's completely beyond my means and capabilities. Alcohol has completely ruined his life since everything he owns is in that parked truck because he had decided last weekend to move to Black Canyon City to get away from a situation he didn't like where he had been living. I suspect they got fed up with his drunkeness, but I can't know for sure about anything.
Oy Vay! What messes we humans can get ourselves into over a simple chemical and a genetic compulsion to consume it.
It's tragic!
Today, I was planning to help out a recent acquaintance, actually my neighbor to the rear, by taking him to Jerome for a court date. We were to leave about 9am. At 9:15 I went over to see what the holdup was to find the lady who rents the place cleaning and spraying to get burn odors out. Seems the guy who was staying there is an alcoholic who got drunk and nearly burned the place down last night with something that caught fire on the stove. So, he was arrested and taken to jail.
Later today, I was going to drive his truck back from Camp Verde where it is stranded due to him being arrested there for a little hit and run resulting in a broken mirror, his license taken away, etc. I was just trying to be a good neighbor and help someone I hardly knew out just out of human concern, even though the whole day promised to be a gigantic pain in the you know what. That's just the way I roll, as the saying puts it.
The guy is a former marine veteran and seems to be a conscientious and hard-working guy. "Semper Fi" is one of his favorite and habitual phrases. I really wish there were something I could do to help him, but it's completely beyond my means and capabilities. Alcohol has completely ruined his life since everything he owns is in that parked truck because he had decided last weekend to move to Black Canyon City to get away from a situation he didn't like where he had been living. I suspect they got fed up with his drunkeness, but I can't know for sure about anything.
Oy Vay! What messes we humans can get ourselves into over a simple chemical and a genetic compulsion to consume it.
It's tragic!
HUMAN POTENTIAL
It's down to three contenders tonight for Dancing With the Stars finale, and they're all good. The real contest is between Meryl and Maks and Amy and Derek. Hard to choose, but my votes went to Meryl and Maks. We'll see what happens this evening.
I appreciate having something like this excellent program to take my mind off what's wrong with the world. A little inspiration goes a long way sometimes. I certainly need it.
It's truly inspiring to see what human beings can do when they really pull out all the stops and give it their all. There are very few truly lazy people in the world. Most will rise to their potential if they have a decent chance. It's such a tragedy when children are put down and their spirits broken before they even get an opportunity to show what they're really made of.
The marvels of genetics are truly amazing. Every baby that comes into this world is so full of potential and I often wonder how much true potential never gets to be. There wouldn't be space to accomodate it all, So, we should cherish every little life that comes along and strive to develop it to the full.
I appreciate having something like this excellent program to take my mind off what's wrong with the world. A little inspiration goes a long way sometimes. I certainly need it.
It's truly inspiring to see what human beings can do when they really pull out all the stops and give it their all. There are very few truly lazy people in the world. Most will rise to their potential if they have a decent chance. It's such a tragedy when children are put down and their spirits broken before they even get an opportunity to show what they're really made of.
The marvels of genetics are truly amazing. Every baby that comes into this world is so full of potential and I often wonder how much true potential never gets to be. There wouldn't be space to accomodate it all, So, we should cherish every little life that comes along and strive to develop it to the full.
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
WHAT'S WITH THE "CROWN?"
I was just reading on the Banned by HWA blog the touching tribute to a former worldwider who has gone the way of all flesh. He was, apparently, one of the more genuine adherents to that theological aberration.
What struck me was his widow's belief that a "crown" is laid up for him.
I have no doubt that he was an exemplary person who did his level best to live a good and loving life. He's not alone. Most people have a desire to live that kind of life, and many succeed to some degree. We certainly all aspire to the goal if we're decent human beings.
But, why does everyone aspire to have a "crown?' What's the great attraction of having something that signifies absolute rule over other creatures? When I was in Worldwide, that was the ever-present "carrot" suspended in our plodding gaze to keep us hyped up as we traversed one "gun lap" after another. We practically orgasmed over the prospect of being rulers over this messed up earth and being able to be that "voice behind them" every time they were about to mess up.
It's still going in all those laughable splits and splinters that remind me of the divisions of protestantism we used to so self-righteously ridicule.
What comical denizens of primatedom we are! Might as well laugh about it. All comedy harks back to the stupidities of reality.
What struck me was his widow's belief that a "crown" is laid up for him.
I have no doubt that he was an exemplary person who did his level best to live a good and loving life. He's not alone. Most people have a desire to live that kind of life, and many succeed to some degree. We certainly all aspire to the goal if we're decent human beings.
But, why does everyone aspire to have a "crown?' What's the great attraction of having something that signifies absolute rule over other creatures? When I was in Worldwide, that was the ever-present "carrot" suspended in our plodding gaze to keep us hyped up as we traversed one "gun lap" after another. We practically orgasmed over the prospect of being rulers over this messed up earth and being able to be that "voice behind them" every time they were about to mess up.
It's still going in all those laughable splits and splinters that remind me of the divisions of protestantism we used to so self-righteously ridicule.
What comical denizens of primatedom we are! Might as well laugh about it. All comedy harks back to the stupidities of reality.
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