cheerfulmonk.com

But I did read this quote,

No matter how chaotic the world feels, we can find joy in small beauties and tiny acts of kindness.
—Henneke

I spent a lot of time pondering that quote. First of all, for me the world today is not just chaotic, it’s scary. I’m spending part of my time dealing with feelings of fear. And I’m with Mary Oliver, experiencing joy is a way of fighting back.

Henneke’s “tiny acts of kindness” works for me too, but I don’t think of “small beauties” when I think of joy. What lifts my spirits and makes my heart sing the most are (1) regular exercise, often while watching something on Netflix with Spanish subtitles because I like learning new things, and (2) reading and writing… playing with ideas and trying to express them succinctly (“Easy reading is hard writing”) and connecting with friends and family via the internet. Even though I post something every day, there’s no pressure. I’m retired and allow plenty of time to explore the web looking for ideas, and plenty of time to figure out how to process some of them.

What about you? What’s your reaction to what’s going on in life, the world, and how are you dealing with it?

December 18, 2024

gocomics.com/bc

How do you feel about winter days? I prefer this time of year to the long days of summer, no doubt because we have so many sunny days. There’s something special about the angle of the light that comes streaming in our living room when the sun is out. Relaxing on the couch with that sunshine yesterday was one of the highlights of my life.

Which do you prefer? Summer or winter?

December 17, 2024

Click on pictures for links to videos. Also check to make sure the TikTok sound is on.

December 16, 2024

Apparently the solar storms that produced them played havoc with a lot of modern farmers.

The issue is that modern tractors are highly dependent on GPS, which is provided by sensitive satellites in our planet’s orbit. One extreme solar storm in May, they say, threw off equipment when planting season was already in full swing.

“Our tractors acted like they were demon possessed.”
—-SOLAR STORMS ARE DRIVING FARMERS “CRAZY”.

What are they going to do about it? Well, more solar storms are predicted for another year or two, so engineers are looking at ways that artificial intelligence can reduce the reliance on GPS navigation.

Wow! Things keep changing.

December 15, 2024

I’m often mistaken for an adult because of my age.
—Bored Panda

And one of my very favorites,

He never grew up; but he never stopped growing.
—Arthur C. Clarke, epitaph for himself

Words to live by.

December 14, 2024

To avoid being influenced by the news or other people. I had never heard of the defendant, but a lot of people who had appeared for jury selection had. I was seated in the the back so I was sure I wouldn’t be chosen for the jury, but I was wrong. One by one most of the people talked to the judge and left. Apparently they were prejudiced about the fellow and couldn’t be impartial.

So when we were sequestered we couldn’t watch the news or talk to one another or our families (via telephone) about the case. I was only an alternate juror, so when it was time for the jurors to deliberate the morning of the sixth day, I was free to go home. I was curious to see what they decided, but it was easy to find out. I just watched the local news that evening. They announced the defendant was found guilty of selling food stamps and interviewed him. What did he plan to do? Appeal the verdict. That must be expensive, how would he pay for it? Probably sell more food stamps. I still remember laughing when I heard that.

December 13, 2024

During those two months I was on call for jury duty in District Court, I had to go down to Alburquerque twice when I wasn’t chosen. (The second time was fun because Kaitlin could come with me and went spent the night in a motel the night before.) Then I had to go and was chosen for a trial which took two and half days. Finally I was almost at the end, just ten days to go. The new call was only for Santa Fe, so I figured no matter what I could be home by dinner time. Uh, nope. I was sequestered for the rest of the week. They did drive us all to our homes so we could pack.

So when Kaitlin came home there were three strangers (fellow jurors) standing on our porch, and the man in the living room introduced himself as a federal marshal. When she came into the bedroom she saw me packing and said,

Mommy, what did you do?!

A perfectly valid question.

December 12, 2024

to be over 70. Why? Because in Monday’s mail I received a summons for two months of jury duty for the Northern Division of the U. S. District Court of New Mexico. That would mostly mean trips to Albuquerque, 100 miles away. (Very occasionally the trials would be in Santa Fe, only a 35-minute drive.).

I had to do it over 40 years ago. Then someone had personally come to my door and had me sign that I had received the summons. This time I only had to go online and answer a number of questions, including that I was over 70 and chose to opt out.

This time was a lot easier.

December 11, 2024

Rose posted this here. What an incredibly smart pup!

December 10, 2024

For posting this video.

I know some readers here have seen it, but others may not have. And it’s way too funny not to share with everyone. Again, thank you!

December 9, 2024