Life On A B-I7

Journal Entry (Friday December 9, 2022)

The question of what constitutes moral and ethical behavior can be condensed very simply, as explained by Samuel Beckett.

Try again. Fail again. Fail better.

Journal Entry (Thursday December 8, 2022)

I know I promised you last night I would bring my kitty over to your house so you could watch him for a couple of days while I go out of town… but something has come up. Specifically, the two of us (myself and kitty) sat down last night to discuss the matter (it’s only fair that he know in advance what is in store for him) once aprised of the plan he became quite animated, and made it clear to me he was not in favor of that decision, he made it clear he wanted to accompany me on the trip. (More on that below.)

I am well aware this presents me with a moral ethical dilemma of significant proportions. In order to help guide me to the proper resolution, I picked up — it just so happens yesterday, coincidentally — a copy of the book “How to be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question.” I’m sure that somewhere in this work is the answer to the question on how best to keep promises. Sadly though I’m just beginning to read the introduction at this point, so while this may be of help to me at some point in the near future, sadly it is of no help to me this morning. My common sense (such that I have) tells me the answer to this dilemma is that I can only address breaking a promise by apologizing and somehow making amends. As a result, I have landed on the decision to make a new promise. So here goes: I promise, promise, promise (notice that is a triple promise, which now places my credibility squarely on the line) that I will bring him over for a play-date after I return from this trip.

All I have to go on at the moment in terms of resolving this dilemma is the conversation of last night with my feline friend and subject of this apology. I won’t go into all the details, he can be not only charming, but very persuasive as well. Suffice to say he made it very clear he wanted to accompany me on this trip. I think it is charming really, how attached is is to me. Please don’t think for a second this has anything to do with me. The very notion that I am taking him with me because I would miss him is laughable. The notion that I would miss having him sitting on my lap, or sleeping snuggled up next to me, or generally following me around keeping his “close eye” on me is, frankly, nonsense. And please don’t think the enjoyment I pretend to get by stroking his chin and petting him measured into this decision in any way…

I’m only doing this because he has insisted that is what I should do, otherwise of course, I would have followed through with my promise to you both without hesitation.

Journal Entry (Saturday November 19, 2022)

I’m a slow reader. I say each word to myself as I read. Not recommended. I’m also a slow writer. So what, at least I read and write. It feels to me sometimes like I might be in a minority. What is the point? I’m not sure there is a point. Will my reading convince me to change my vote (for example). No. Will my writing convince you to change your vote. Not likely. So again, what is the point. The point is, it’s good for my soul.

I recommend everyone do something that is good for their soul. You’ll feel better. Remember, when you do good things, you feel good, when you do bad things you feel bad. So do as much good as you can. Feed your soul, even if it causes you to write embarrassing shit. If you’re like me and can’t write a lick, work on your handwriting. Find a pen that is comfortable and writes well, and go at it. When I try and make my handwriting beautiful, it makes me feel even better. So give it a try, feed your soul and do good things.

Journal Entry (Friday November 18, 2022)

It is unusual for me to wander into the topic of religion, I do it here with no small amount of hesitancy. In the end, I’m getting older and less afraid to speak my mind. Does that make me wiser? Does that mean you should believe what I say? Probably not (either one). It is up to each of us to determine for ourselves what we will and will not believe, and what evidence or rationale we will use to believe the things we choose to believe.

the Bible is a collection of stories written by men. Yes you say, men inspired by god. I question that. Knowing what I do about men, I suspect they may have had motives that were not always pure. Make a point here, justify a position there. What does “inspired” mean if the words we have been given in the Bible are used to justify slavery, or white supremacy, or war, or any other form of abominable behavior that man is capable of pepertrating. I know how the argument goes for believing in the Bible. “You must have faith.” Faith that the editors of the Bible had not a single ulterior motive. Faith that they were all divinely guided and never strayed from god’s truth. I suspect that is what it would take, it also makes them puppets, it removes that cherished religious notion of free will. I don’t believe that line of reasoning for a second.

Let’s look briefly at the history of slavery. The Bible has been used to both justify and condemn Slavery. Can you really have your cake and eat it too? Who is right and who is wrong? Why do we have a Bible that could even allow the semblance of an interpretation that would be used to justify one of history’s greatest atrocities? I suspect someone might respond, “but I don’t want to live in a world without god.” You can keep your god if you like, if that helps you determine right from wrong. But don’t try and tell me that slavery, or white supremacy, or war, or any other number of anti-social behaviors is justified by your god and the Bible he has given you. I’m not buying.

Journal Entry (Thursday November 17, 2022)

Journal Entry (Wednesday November 16, 2022)

I write poetry
like a computer programmer.

Short, crisp,
following a plan
but not always intuitive.

It sometimes reaches a point
where I don’t know where it is.
I have to stop and wonder
oh yes, that’s what all this means.

Journal Entry (Tuesday November 15, 2022)

It’s the Ides of November. I feel a little bit drained. Quite honestly I think it stems from my writing. I have been writing about subjects of such seriousness and importance, subjects so critical to society and our future that it is taking a bit of a toll on my emotional perspective.

The problem is, I don’t know what else to write about. You will no doubt have noticed that this entry is an attempt to change the subject, while stating the obvious, you will also notice I haven’t really moved off of the subject, all I’ve done is change the direction from which I’m peering at it.

With that in mind, I’m going to try and shift gears. As I ponder what has been going on emotionally, I realize I have been spending too much time thinking and not enough time doing. I need to get on my bike and ride, go skiing, or go for a hike. I’m going to make time for one of those tomorrow and then (hopefully) write about that. I’m going to try and change my focus for a day.

But since it is still today, let me get just a bit more of this out of my system. I don’t know how journalists and the serious media talking heads do it. It’s a mystery to me how they manage to do what they do day-in and day-out, without completely losing their perspective. Perhaps it’s not possible, perhaps that explains FOX. It could be my imagination, but I think I have detected a shift across the board. Regular guests on CNN and MSNBC have gotten more direct and passionate in expression of their views over the last few months than they were, say, a year ago. Gradually radicalized. I have even noticed this in some of the smarter and more intelligent pundits.

In an attempt to wrap up this (whatever this is) in a manner that is a bit more positive, I think it’s best if I just go clean the garage now. Somewhere out there I will discover something to write about that is not apocalyptic in nature. Maybe, or I might be reminded of the beautiful set of 1/2” wrenches that were stolen out of the back of my truck earlier this week. I don’t think I’ll mention that because it would be too difficult not to weave in a story about the end of civilization. On a different note, I have been enjoying the World Series, even though the evil team is winning. If your detecting irony now, it’s not my fault, I think you need to work on your emotional health.

Journal Entry (Monday November 14, 2022)

It is with a fair bit of reluctance that I share these thoughts about Twitter. I don’t really care if it survives the Musk takeover or not. I have sympathy for the laid off workers and I hope they all find work soon, at better companies. I think Musk is getting what he deserves, a struggling company that he has no clue how to run, and likely is heading it towards becoming worse, not better. Even though he is telling advertisers he does not want Twitter to become a “hellscape,” I think his statements and antics are sending a very different message. In short, if I were an advertiser I would do exactly what many seem to be doing, abandon the platform..

Twitter has become a platform for the rich and powerful, for robots and foreign actors, and even for a fair share of just plain clinically disturbed people. I never used Twitter myself, and I’m actually quite proud of that fact. (I’m old and I also don’t use Facebook, so there’s that to be proud of as well.) If you’re asking yourself why am I writing this, the answer is simple. I enjoy writing, and Musk and Twitter are low hanging fruit. Perhaps one day I’ll be good enough to write about more important stuff, until then this is good practice. I try not to be hateful. I try not to anger people. I suppose if you are a huge Twitter fan (or clinically disturbed) this could make you angry, but that’s not my intent. You see, I just like to write, and I find it satisfying to put my thoughts out here for the world to see. Ironically of course, this is a corner of the internet with very low traffic, almost zero in fact, but I still find it satisfying.

Journal Entry (Sunday November 13, 2022)

Warning: Political Message Ahead

Let’s focus on the issues. What are we doing about climate change (for example). Let the Republican Party take care of themselves. Don’t try and make me “angry” just so you can get a donation. Angry is what Republicans want me to be. Let’s not play their game, they are way ahead of everyone on that score. Let’s focus on what we can do to make our country a better place for all people, regardless of their skin color or ethnic background.

Journal Entry (Saturday November 12, 2022)

Ruth Bader Ginsburg said…

“Fight for the things you care about, but do it in a way that leads others to join you.”

What we are experiencing today in our society is something more along the lines of:

“Fight for the things you care about, and do it in a way that angers others enough to join you.”

Journal Entry (Friday November 11, 2022)

Why do I write this trash anyway? The only real answer I can give is because I enjoy doing it. At least for now that is reason enough.

For me, there is something very satisfying about taking the time to do this. It really is a matter of taking the time. It is intentional, and it certainly prevents me from doing other things. I don’t know what those other things might be, but life is, no question, about choices, there is no denying that.

I don’t really think of the writing here as “trash.” It certainly isn’t up to the standards of say Edward Abbey, a true writing hero of mine. I suppose what I hope to gain out of this, and it will take a long time, is the ability to be more expressive. That is a skill that can only be acquired with practice. I would like to be able to go on a hike someday, and describe the experience in a way that would make you feel like you are there with me. I’m not there yet. We shall see. The ultimate goal would be to describe that hike in a way that Edward Abbey would appreciate. That might be a bit of a stretch goal.

There is another benefit I have to acknowledge, when I’m engaged in writing, I’m relaxed. That’s important. Not relaxed enough mind you, I’m learning to relax when I’m doing this. My hope is I will eventually reach a sort of zen-like state when I’m writing. An odd goal perhaps, but I think if I learn how to do that, my writing will be able to transcend the more-or-less mundane form that it takes today and perhaps become a legacy of sorts. We shall see.

Journal Entry (Thursday November 10, 2022)

I have become aware, almost suddenly, that most of my recent writing here has had a certain gloomy, if not down right pessimistic bent. I apologize. I should be writing more about my loved ones and my cat. Believe me, I’m aware of that.

That’s not to say I’m going to really do that. I know most of my readers don’t have any interest in my cat, ok maybe my daughters, they love Mr. Tux almost as much as I do, but they are the exception. By the way, when I say most of my readers, I have to acknowledge in truthfulness, the only time someone reads a post here is when I read it too them, and I have to ask several times before I get permission to do that.

Since I can safely assume writing about my cat is off the table (even for those of you gracious enough to let me read to you) perhaps I should take a different approach, one that is a bit more visual…

Journal Entry (Wednesday November 9, 2022)

A note to Paul Begala, a Democratic campaign veteran who worked in the Clinton White House, upon his solicitation of a contribution…

I think the way we “campaign” in our country needs serious reform. While I certainly wouldn’t put you in the same category with Manifort and Stone, while politics is driven more by money than issues, my inclination to contribute financially is dead and buried. I am proud to say I am a life-long democrat, that said, I think our party’s approach to politics has made it increasingly difficult for people to come out and say that. I think the eagerness of democrats in general to express “wokeness” has put us in self-emolation mode with regard to a large swath of American voters, many of whom just can’t find a way to join us any longer. I think all of us in the party would be better served to look inward very carefully. While it is easy to blame Republicans for the dire political climate we find ourselves in today, there is certainly no shortage of disgusting tactics they are willing to try, we are not without blame ourselves. 

Journal Entry (Tuesday November 8, 2022)

In the early days of Twitter, people didn’t know what to post. You saw things like, “I had eggs and pancakes for breakfast this morning.” I wouldn’t dare suggest we should go back to that simpler time, even though we would all probably be better off if we did. I have moved on. I no longer do Twitter or Facebook. I can’t in good conscience be a part of either one. Yes, I still am active on Instagram. I post photos. They are the equivalent of eggs and pancakes. I don’t think my doing that is creating any significant social harm. When I want to be thoughtful, I put some words here. I’m well aware of the fact that no one reads this blog. In a way that’s a good thing. I certainly can’t be blamed for any of the current ills in our society, at least not as a result of the posts on this blog. If someone were to read this, perhaps some responsibility, possibly, could be attributed to me, but just to provide a reset of sorts, let me say:

I had eggs and pancakes for breakfast this morning…

Journal Entry (Monday November 7, 2022)

If you are asked to review a book, you should probably give your submission a modicum of thought (or at least read the book?). As evidence of this, I present the following reviews, all of these were for the book “Under a White Sky, The Nature of the Future,” by Elizabeth Kolbert. (A very good book — that is not my review.)

”Unlike a lot of people who write about the environment, Kolbert doesn’t resort to hype. She just lays out the facts and wraps them in memorable anecdotes. It’s a sobering but engaging and informative read” - Bill Gates

”Beautifully written… an excellent book.” - Jon Stewart

”Kolbert has established herself as one of our very best science writers. She has developed a distinctive and eloquent voice of conscience on issues arising from the extraordinary assault on the ecosphere… The result is a clear and comprehensive history of earth’s previous mass extinctions — and the species we’ve lost — and an engaging description of the extraordinarily complex nature of life.” - Al Gore

”A wonderful book” - President Barack Obama

I like Al Gore’s review the best. I have to note that even with this well written review, he hasn’t convinced me he read the book, since Kolbert’s previous work has been about mass extinctions, but this one focused on other topics. If I wrote a book, I would love to have President Barack Obama review it, but frankly, I’d be a bit disappointed if all he could give me were three words. I suspect the publisher showed Jon Stewart President Barack Obama’s review and asked him if he could do slightly better, which he pulled off marvelously… My vote goes to Bill Gates, I’m guessing he actually read the book.

Journal Entry (Sunday November 6, 2022)

The thought of being a Chinese citizen scares me to death. Literally. I’m allergic to fish. I’m grateful for other reasons too.

Journal Entry (Saturday November 5, 2022)

We can’t cut carbon emissions enough to avoid the worst aspects of global warming. No formulas needed here. People lots smarter than I am have already done the math. If you are yet to be convinced of the existential danger we face, ask your children what they think. Either way, keep in mind that reality has a tendency to follow its own path regardless of what we “believe” it will do. Our best hope to secure a technological future that doesn’t kill the planet is to begin removing carbon emissions as soon as possible. The technology to do just that is being studied and in at least one case implemented. There is a geothermal plant in Iceland that is removing carbon dioxide and injecting it back into the earth so it can be calcified and “frozen” in deep rock layers. You can even provide support for this project. You can become a Climeworks Pioneer https://climeworks.com/. That’s fine and dandy, but it’s not enough to reverse the effects of Climate Change on its own. Professor Klaus Lackner at ASU is doing ground breaking research on this problem https://pit.asu.edu/center-negative-carbon-emissions. A lot more funding is needed, and recognition that, if not our best hope, atmospheric scrubbing will play a key role in abating the most severe effects of climate change. If we could just stop fighting wars long enough to divert maybe one fourth of our military budget into this research, we would be able to make great strides in a much shorter period of time, perhaps even averting the worst consequences that we currently face.

To try and put this into some sort of perspective, to have a 66% chance of preventing the average global temperature from rising above 1.5C without carbon dioxide removal, we need to cut carbon emissions to almost zero by 2040. To have a 66% chance of preventing the average global temperature from rising above 2C without carbon dioxide removal, we need to cut carbon emissions to almost zero by 2075. Keep in mind that a rise of 2C would have severe impact that would alter the planet in ways that some scientists are not convinced would be recoverable.

The material for this post was taken from Elizabeth Kolbert’s book “Under A White Sky.”

Journal Entry (Friday November 4, 2022)

Odd numbered years of course. Why? There are no significant elections in odd numbered years. This gives our over-amped population the largest window they get to decompress before the political parties (one in particular) once again stir them into inhuman madness. I suspect at least one person reading this (I don’t know who you are, but I know you must be out there) thinks I’m being overly dramatic. I’m not. This has been the shape of things political for the last seven years or so, and this appears to be the new collective insanity that will be with us until who knows when.

What does this have to do with the best time to ride you ask? I have found from experience that people are very kind and generous to touring cyclists, that is generally speaking, but my only experience with long distance touring by bicycle was in an off election year. I think this says a couple of things, first and foremost, our new election strategy which is to scare and/or anger the voting public has the potential to spill over into other facets of life, and already has. I believe it also tends to alienate some people from reality. It seems to me that someone on a bicycle could be categorized as a “target” in some parts of the country, target of political angst. (I have red states in mind here, I don’t think that’s a far-fetched proposition.) Another reason to be apprehensive is that I am, simply put, something of a coward.

I could try an experiment. In 2019 I crossed the country following the “Southern Tier” route. I suppose I could try that again in 2024, between September and November, and see what happens. I’m not that curious. Reason number two above steers me away from that plan. Instead I’m going to cross again in 2023 during the months of May and June, using a route further north. Fingers crossed. It has been said that discretion is the better part of valor. I believe it was Shakespeare’s Falstaff who said that in King Henry IV. Not a lot has changed really in 422 years. At least when it comes to valor, I’m inclined to take Shakespeare’s advice.

Journal Entry (Thursday November 3, 2022)

I’m really tired of it. It seems to me the collective intelligence of our nation has sunk to about a third grade level. The only difference is that more hate words are used than the average third grader has yet to learn. Where is this coming from? Of course we have to acknowledge that Trump is largely responsible for making Shitposting popular with his party, but the deplorable speech he uses is deviously calculating. (Let’s not forget the role that Rupert Murdoch and his media outlets have played in this evolution — to a large extent by giving Trump and his minions permission to go down this path and by allowing his own talking heads to use this themselves.)

Elon Musk is now starting to get into the game. It’s not a game. It is going to have serious consequences — it already has. If it doesn’t stop we will find ourselves devolving out of Democracy into a political state where one mindset, if not one party, rules the land. The mindset I’m referring to is hate, and woe to any person that falls counter to that mindset.

Keri Mangis has written a detailed explanation of Trump’s speech. He is a master at this genre. Here is what she uncovered. His speech is characterized by four distinct patterns the are designed to stir emotions, hate for one, but no less an emotion than anger, he does it using these linguistic tools.

• Passive voice
• Metaphor instead of literal language
• Superlative modifiers
• Opt-out clauses (such as “maybe” or “I don’t know”)

Taken together these things can be used to stir anger and hatred in the listener while releasing the speaker from direct blame for doing anything harmful. After all he didn’t really say anything bad.

The point here is not really what Donal Trump says, the point here is his intent and the result of what he says. I think you can guess what I have to say about both of those, so I’m not going to drone on any longer. Just remember one thing please, if you participate in this game, you are pointing all of us towards a future which could very well end our 250 year experiment with Democracy.

Journal Entry (Wednesday November 2, 2022)

I date myself using the term “Trash Talking.” No one trash talks any more, now we “Shitpost.” Viewed in the light of modern social media, this was inevitable, but there is a big problem with this. To trash talk someone typically implied you were likely doing it to their face. This gave the recipient a chance to rebut. Now trash talking has become shitposting and the recipient, or target, has no platform on which to reach the reader of the shitpost, at least not one that readers take the time to investigate. To make matters even worse, the typical shitpost is viewed by a much wider audience today than trash talk was a decade ago. The audience can be world-wide. To make matters even worse still, it seems that a large part of our population is not capable of sorting out fact from fiction. Not to mention the problem that there are media types today apologizing for behavior that a decade ago would have been recognized as intolerable, even by the most depraved psychopathic killer.

One approach to solving this would be to ensure that everyone receives a quality education. An education that teaches everyone to be a critical thinker, to research every opinion before taking it to heart, hell, to recognize what an opinion looks like. This is probably a stretch goal. Besides that, another huge problem is the lack of restraint exercised by thought leaders that should know better. (If they had been given a quality education? Some have, and that’s an even bigger puzzle.) Sharing fiction expressly designed to influence those NOT so well educated, shouldn’t be tolerated, but of course, it is.

How do we fix a technology that allows and perpetuates shitposting? I think it can be done, but I have to qualify this by saying Zuckerberg and Musk have no motivation or intention to entertain any idea designed to make their platforms safer for society. The proposal goes something like this: Before any thought can be placed in the ether, a respondent should be named. The respondent should be given an opportunity to counter the claim/statement before it goes “live.” The platform would manage the “posters” and “respondents” such that they both have similar “expertise/experience” making the dialogue at least somewhat responsible. I realize this would make social media “less fun,” but it might encourage people to become more tolerant in the long run, and perhaps even help people to obtain that noble educational goal of learning to be a critical thinker. It’s worth a try.

There’s no reason why something similar to this couldn’t be done for the broadcast media, but since social media and broadcast media are both “for profit” endeavors, I don’t give this idea much of a chance. It’s too bad, it could work in a world were people cared about their future and their children’s future.

Albert Einstein said “We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”

That is true. So rather than take my suggestion as a possible solution, likely to fail, it might be better to solve this another way. I just don’t know what that other way looks like. One thing I feel strongly about is that siloed information stacks that are each biased in their own way will only serve to divide us.

Journal Entry (Tuesday November 1, 2022)

That may be a somewhat strange title. I’m the sort of person that likes to have a “theme” to their work. (Calling this Blog “work” is a bit of a stretch perhaps, there are no advertisers here, and likely not even any readers.) I decided a little more than a year ago to write a poem a day for one year, that little project has been successfully completed, so now I have embarked on a series of posts titled “On” followed by some subject. It’s more a theme in title only, nevertheless, it gives me something to hang these entries “on” (so to speak).

As I have alluded to in a previous post. Writing does not come all that easily to me. I think the smarter you are, the easier it is to write. Take Hunter S. Thompson for example. I suspect his IQ was off the charts, and he was a pretty good (very good) writer. I never suffered an IQ test because I don’t want to embarrass myself. But if I did, I suspect it would be about normal. That’s not a bad thing. I could still become a good writer in about 10 years if I write 2,000 words a day, read 25 or 30 books a year, and learn some grammar…

None of that is likely to happen. Yet, I still love to read and write, and plan to keep doing it. I’m well aware that AI will be writing most blog posts (at least for those people that are monetizing their word output). Not me. No monetizing here. You can rest assured that none of this was written by any sort of AI engine. Not that you had to even have to ask…

Journal Entry (Monday October 31, 2022)

I have an artist friend that has done a few portraits of people that I admire, he’s very talented. Sometime around the beginning of COVID I asked him to do a portrait of RBG for me. I’m finally reaching out to him to see about picking up the piece. (I have been extremely negligent, no question about it.) Here’s how that conversation went:

“Hi Adam. Ruth Bader Ginsburg here. As much as I have enjoyed living with you through most of COVID, I feel like it’s time for us to move on. Brad reached out to me and declared his love and devotion (Agape, not Erros — posthumously of course). He wanted to know if I would be willing to come live with him. He seemed almost anxious to meet with you this weekend to secure your permission and arrange for my relocation. He seems nice enough so I suppose this has my support… What say you?”

My friend replied in the affirmative. I will soon have RBG to hang with Fauci, Bernie and Albert.

Journal Entry (Sunday October 30, 2022)

I have always been more than just a little shy about expressing my opinion. It dawned on me, just this morning as a matter of fact, that the more I write “On” different subjects the less inhibited I feel — at least in terms of the written word. I can’t really explain this. I suppose this might be an attribute of aging, but I think a big part is due to simply the practice of writing. The more I write, the more I search for things to write about. This makes sense to me but it doesn’t completely explain my change of heart. I’m not ready to label this courage. I think the task of writing daily eventually brings you to a point where the inclination to hold back your thoughts and emotions finds fewer barriers.

I started writing four years ago, 2018. I was going through a divorce and I was not feeling terribly confident in myself. My therapist told me to write a bit every day and bring it to our sessions. The writing was emotional crap, how I felt that day, how was I dealing with my thoughts and feelings, who was I. I spent six months writing every day, sometimes a lot, sometimes just a little. None of it was worth sharing. I’m pretty sure when I shared with my therapist, she was bored most of the time. In January of 2019 I retired, the writing gradually took on a different viewpoint. It wasn’t a lot better - as writing goes - but I started writing about what I was doing rather than simply how I was feeling. The shift from internal examination to looking at the world was a departure for the better. I decided I would ride a bicycle across the country in the fall. That decision really was life changing. I had a wonderful time, and I wrote, every day. I actually wrote some pretty good stuff. It was such a wonderful experience (both the ride and the writing) that I plan to do it again next year.

I can’t say for sure that all this is better than when I started, it feels to me like it is. At least I have reached a point where I feel like I have a tiny something to share with others. Whatever courage it takes to do that, I have found enough to begin sharing the words here.

Journal Entry (Saturday October 29, 2022)

Poetry is not for everyone, it may not even be for me. I’m still trying to figure that out. After writing 365 poems in 365 days, you might think I would have something truly profound to say about that. Let me give it a try (no guarantee it will be profound). I enjoyed the experience, at times (occasionally) I even found it uplifting, was it the most passionate, rewarding thing I ever did, no. I will take a flawless run down Mid-Cirque at Snowbird over writing a poem, even a good one. Hell, I’d take that over writing a dozen good poems. Of course the catch here is there’s no such thing as a flawless run down Mid-Cirque, and likely no such thing as a flawless poem either. We are human after all. Even having tried more than 365 times to write a good poem. I came up short. I like to think that if I was lucky enough to get 365 attempts at Mid-Cirque, and the conditions were perfect for all of them, I might come close to a flawless run, but there is a wise voice inside me that says thou dost give thyself too much credit.

Journal Entry (Friday October 28, 2022)

There are people in the state of Arizona wearing masks and standing by voter drop boxes for the purpose of getting more Vitamin D. (I was not aware that people in Arizona had any reason to think there was a need for more of that.) These vitamin seekers are wearing long sleeves, long pants, masks, and tactical vests, not to mention waist gear that likely holds a firearm. These wardrobe choices, taken together, would seem to do more to prevent the absorption of Vitamin D than enhance it. But, what do I know, I’m no expert in voter suppression tactics.