Lift Up Your Hearts!

I love books. I've loved books for longer than I can remember, since my parents read to me long before I could read for myself—as naturally as a bird-parent drops food into its hatchlings' mouths.

The transition from non-reader to reader was not without its stumbles. Even at my advanced age, I still remember Charlotte's Web with both pleasure and pain. My parents had been reading the book out loud to the family. As the oldest child, the one who could now read on my own, I grew impatient with the one-chapter-at-bedtime pace, and the next day picked up the book and continued the story on my own.

Maybe that's not always a bad thing, but it meant that I was alone when I encountered Charlotte's death. If there was some of the deadly sin of Avarice in my action, it carried its own punishment with it. Ah, well—rites of passage are not meant to be easy.

The transition from non-reader to reader is one of the most significant milestones in modern life, one we don't share with our more primitive ancestors. As recently as 1900, more than 10% of the American population was illiterate. Somewhere between 1969 and 1979, that dropped to below 1%. This, of course, takes no account of how well people read, nor the more disturbing trend of can read but don't. But that's not the question that emerged recently, prompting me to write.

(Yes, this is a new post, not one pulled from my storehouse. It was supposed to be a quick and easy post to make. I should have known better.)

The question is whether or not there are other decisive milestones on the literacy journey, once one has mastered reading Of course there are significant steps in the progress of that mastery, a big one being the transition from being able to decipher words to the technique having become so automatic that it is accomplished with no conscious thought at all to the process, only the content. For example, I can read French well enough to enjoy some books, but it's nowhere near an automatic process.

(I think that there's a point still further, when conscious thought creeps back in, but I never made it through Mortimer Adler's How to Read a Book, much less apply his techniques, so I can't say from personal experience.)

What I'm wondering is how significant to the reader has the advent of e-books been. It's not of the order of the act of reading itself, but the Kindle has certainly changed our lives and reading habits. I'm definitely bimodal when it comes to books: There's nothing like the pleasure of reading a physical book, but e-books have distinct advantages as well, such as being able to carry a vast library in a handheld device, and to search the text, and make notes, and highlights, and to copy excerpts via cut-and-paste rather than laborious typing. On the other hand, e-books don't really belong to us; we may like to think so, but they can be taken away from us at any point. So I will read with the physical books, and I will read with the e-books also.

After that long introduction, here's the incident that gave me pause: After reading six Kindle books in a row, I began another in physical form. (Brandon Sanderson's Warbreaker, if you're curious.) I was reading along, and when it came time to turn the page, I unthinkingly swiped my finger across the lower right-hand corner of the book. That's the way I turn the page with my Kindle

Guess what? It didn't work with the physical book, and I was momentarily taken aback. Even more interesting, I still find myself repeating the motion on occasion, and I'm 143 pages into the book.

The human mind can be peculiar, sometimes.

Citoyen de la Galaxie by Robert A. Heinlein (original publication 1957, this French edition 2011)

Back in August, I quoted a passage from Robert Heinlein's Citizen of the Galaxy. Inspired by this, and a good deal available for the Kindle version, I decided to reread it—in French.

It was a surprisingly delightful experience.

I had three years of mediocre French classes in high school, and have been working very casually, though consistently, with DuoLingo since I was a beta tester for them back in 2012. I have many frustrations with DuoLingo, but this week I discovered that it has actually given me a lot of French vocabulary and a pretty good feel for grammatical structures. I really enjoyed reading Citoyen de la Galaxie.

Naturally I didn't read it as quickly as the English version, but I surprised myself. My goal had been to work my way through ten pages per day. Instead, I was so caught up in the story that I finished it in just about a week.

It must be admitted that I was not a stranger to the story, which helped enormously. I first read Citizen of the Galaxy when I was in elementary school, and I've reread it several times since. How many times I have no idea, but I know that I last read it in 2017—before that, I don't know, except that it was earlier than 2010, when I began keeping track of the books I read. As I read the French, I was astonished to find the words of the English version coming back to me. Between that, the DuoLingo vocabulary, and occasional help from the Kindle French-English dictionary available at a touch, the reading was easy enough to keep me going.

I would not at all expect the same ease with an unfamiliar book. But the experience was exciting, especially since I would often find myself actually thinking in French for a few minutes after a session of reading.

[I wrote this post back in early September of this year. L'il Writer Guy often works in spurts: As I've said before, some time periods have more than their share of interesting material to write about, so I write more than I want to post immediately. I like to squirrel the excess away for occasions when life and/or other priorities leave me, not without many things to say, but without the resources I need to craft them into blog posts.

The negative side is that I often find myself thinking that I've already posted something that's still waiting in the pipeline, as happened with this one. I was working on a thank-you note for some books I received for Christmas, and wanted to reference this post. That was when I realized that I couldn't reference what I hadn't actually posted. So here it is, none the worse for being almost four months old.

And lest you think I've forgotten the current season: I hope you are all having a Merry Christmas—which for us Episcopalians is only on its third day, so I still have a a few days in which to make an actual Christmas post.]

For decades, Christianity Today was one of the few magazines we subscribed to. I appreciated its orthodoxy, its intellectual approach, and its willingness to tackle difficult topics. The magazine's downfall was gradual (as most downfalls are) but undeniable, and we eventually dropped it. Later, I dove back into their online version for a while, but was appalled at how much further its content had fallen. 

Megan Basham's book, Shepherds for Sale, ended up on my Amazon wish list at some point, though I no longer remember who recommended it. Maybe I ought to raise its priority, because it was recently brought back to my attention, and piqued my interest further:

Tucker Carlson interviewed Basham, and it's a 25-minute show well worth watching. Now is not the time to bury our heads in the sand (or our busy lives). Among other things, it makes perfect sense of what happened to our once-favorite Christian magazine.

In the latest Château Love episode, Vivienne and Isabella share with us their first look at the restoration of Notre Dame in Paris. At our last visit to the cathedral, I found it beautiful of course, but also dim. Not so now! Light, light, everywhere! It's only 18 minutes long; enjoy!

A friend shared this on Facebook, and I found a version I could share here.  Amazing!  (3.5 minutes)

"I'll take a million court appearances and people calling me names and people hating me just to keep one of those people from getting hurt or killed." — Daniel Penny

Daniel Penny should not have had to endure any of that. I'm pretty sure he would not have if he had saved those lives in Miami rather than in New York City. In Florida, we tend to appreciate those who risk their own health and safety to protect others—as Penny did by restraining a man who threatened the lives of the other subway passengers. It is unfortunate that the man later died, but Penny did the right thing. Many people are saying that his Not Guilty verdict proves that "the system" worked, but he never should have been tried in the first place, much less still be facing a civil lawsuit.

How many people will in the future be hurt or killed because a potential hero will be less inclined to intervene in a dangerous situation? It may be that those who could become heroes fear death less than trials and lawsuits!

You may feel differently about this situation, and that's certainly your right and privilege. But please refrain from saying so here. This post is meant to honor Daniel Penny, and I'm just not in the mood to argue.

What's missing from this picture?

That's right—no NG tube! No tape marks on her face. No heavy backpack of formula to lug around everywhere she goes.  Grace is eating well enough now to get all her nutrition that way, and the one medication she's still on (hopefully not much longer) she takes orally.

Congratulations, Grace!

Also, not only is her hair growing, but I see a little curl.

Having achieved his private pilot's license, and now being qualified not only to fly other people, but to take them up at night, Noah has been getting in his flying hours by treating his family members and friends.

It didn't take long for Grace to realize what was going on and start demanding her own turn.

It's not every three-year-old whose brother takes her flying in a Cessna 172P Skyhawk!

This post began with a simple meme that made me laugh.  Then I thought about it.

(I didn't make this up. I took it from Elon Musk on X, and who knows where he got it?)

The problem did not start with Joe Biden. It didn't start with Donald Trump. It didn't start with George Bush or Barack Obama. I don't know how far back the corruption goes. I don't even know what it is. The Deep State? The Administrative State? Bret Weinstein calls it Goliath. Others call it the Blob. A Christian might recognize it as Satan. It's not a person, though a large number of highly influential people are deeply involved; it's not a committee; it's not even an organization you can put your finger on, though plenty of committees and organizations are in it up to their necks. It's a force, and it has been driving our country at least since the Lyndon Johnson era, and probably before that.

The person who holds the office of president certainly matters—consider what has happened in just the last three and a half years—but not as much as one might think. There's something that has been driving our country steadily in the wrong direction for decades. It is unelected, responsible to no one, and doesn't care if it corrupts Republicans or Democrats as long as they do what they're supposed to do. Some people are more amenable to control than others, but no one is clean. This may sound like a conspiracy theory, but the evidence is convincing. I've been observing our culture for more than half a century, and this hypothesis is a curve that best fits the data points. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

We face a formidable foe. I don't know who they are, but I know they've been running the country behind the scenes for the past three years—it sure couldn't have been President Biden. Based on what has happened on her watch, which she has not repudiated, I'm 100% convinced that even if Kamala Harris is not complicit, she would, as president, continue to be led along the same disastrous path.

I don't know if Donald Trump has much of a chance; he tried in his first administration, with some success but some notable failure, too, especially in the COVID-19 debacle. I think he has become smarter and wiser from his experience. There's a lot about the man I don't like, but at least he, J. D. Vance, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Tulsi Gabbard, and many other brave souls recognize what we are up against and are determined to fight against it. Yes, I do recognize that the people I just named, who are so enthusiastically working with President Trump, came from the Democratic Party. That's a good part of where I find encouragement: people of all parties are beginning to understand the situation and take action.

With two doctors in the family, and plenty of friends in the medical world, I have it on good authority that neurosurgeons, as a group, are a particularly nasty set of people. In general, I'm told, they are brash, egotistical, and opinionated to the point of extreme rudeness. Not the kind of people I would like for neighbors. Or friends. But if that's true, I strongly suspect that those personality traits are exactly what is needed for the kind of work they are called upon to do. If you're going to operate on people's brains, you need to believe you are the best for the job, and demand the best from everyone in the operating theater. You need supreme confidence in your opinions, your skills, your decisions, your equipment, and your coworkers. How else would you dare to touch a human brain? Would you want someone operating on your brain to be indecisive? To make his cuts without being certain that he is doing the right thing?

Jordan Peterson has wrestled with trying to figure out Donald Trump—he's a psychologist; that's what they do—and has suggested that the traits that turn people off may be exactly what he needs to succeed in his David versus Goliath mission. They had better be, because for now, he leads the greatest earthly hope we have.

Back in 2017, I contributed this meditation to a Lenten devotional put together by our church. Cleaning out my office recently, I recycled the devotional itself, but decided to recycle my meditation in a different way. It seems appropriate for Advent, too.

Romans 9:33: And the one who trusts in him will never be put to shame.

These words occur several times in the Bible, in both the Old and the New Testaments. "Him" refers to the Messiah in the Old, identified with Jesus Christ in the New. In context and in combination, they portray Jesus as a rock that can be a secure foundation or a stumbling block. The characteristics that make rock a good base on which to build also make it painful and costly to ignore as we walk along.

"Never be put to shame" is also translated as, "not make haste, not be disturbed, not panic, not worry, not be disappointed." If Jesus is the foundation of our lives, there is no need to worry or make frantic efforts. Our responsibility is to do our work with calm confidence: God has our backs.

Maybe you all knew this, but I did not, so I'm posting it, because it's very helpful.

I use Google Calendar, and am for the most part pleased with it. But I have always been frustrated by the "Holidays in the United States" calendar. I want to know the major holidays, especially those that change from year to year. I do not want my calendar cluttered up with days that mean nothing to me, or worse, cause me to grind my teeth. And I mean cluttered. If you're like me, your calendar shows not only your events, but those of other people: your spouse, your children, your church, your children's soccer teams.... I don't want another precious space in the day taken up by being informed that it's the first day of Women's History Month.

There is a way out.

1. In your calendar, if you can't see the left-side panel, click on the Main Menu drop-down (three lines) in the upper left, to bring the side panel out.
2. Under "Other calendars," hover over "Holidays in the United States" click on the three vertical dots to the right, and choose "Settings."
3. Under "Holiday calendar content," click on "Select them in 'Regional holidays.'" This takes you to a page where
4. Under "Holidays in the United States," expand "Public holidays." Now you can customize as you wish. Columbus Day offends you? Off with its head! (On your own calendar—leave the rest of ours alone.)
5. Expand "Other observances." This is where you can really go to town. I took my machete to every instance of "First Day of XXX Month" with glee. If you don't really care what day Easter is, take it out. Sorry, however—unchecking "Tax Day" does not get you a break with the IRS.

That's it. Enjoy your new-found calendar freedom.

Or, if you're one of the few who would like to see more entries on your daily schedule, there's a section where you can add holidays from all around the world. Holidays in Switzerland, for example. Or in the Gambia. Or Timor-Leste, for that matter.

UPDATE: This works great for my laptop, but unfortunately my preferences are not carrying over to my phone's calendar, as I discovered when it informed me this morning that today is "Native American Heritage Day." I'm all for celebrating Native American Heritage, but I don't need a day for it and neither does my calendar. One of these days I hope to figure out how to fix that, but it's not high priority right now. If anyone has successfully dealt with the problem, please speak up!

Florida's state surgeon general, Joseph Ladapo, just went up another notch in my book. He is now recommending that Florida's cities that add fluoride to their water supply reconsider that practice.

Don't get me wrong: I'm not against fluoride as an aid to dental health. And once upon a time I was pleased to have fluoridated water, considering it to be a sign of a progressive city. I now believe I was wrong. (I have been wrong on occasion. Once upon a time I even thought it was a good idea to get the COVID-19 vaccine, a decision which I now regret.)

Maybe there was a point in time when it was a good idea to mass-medicate the population, but looking back, I don't think so. In any case, there are now so many other ways to obtain fluoride for dental purposes that it seems ridiculous to impose it on all the city's water customers. I'm not against fluoride, per se, but I am 100% against government-mandated ingestion of fluoride. Let those who want it avail themselves of the many options available, but let our water be pure and safe! Here's hoping we can convince our city to follow the surgeon general's recommendation.

In this I do envy our Swiss family, whose city water comes out of the tap as it comes out of the ground: no fluoride, no chlorine, just great-tasting, pure water.

UPDATE: I wrote to our mayor and our city commissioners, and received a response from the city manager, with whom I have already clashed on the issue of recycling. It was not encouraging. He hastens to reassure me that "you will be happy to know that the levels in our water [are] far lower than the level of fluoride in the study that concerned the Surgeon General," and "we are guided by the science." Well, no, that does not make me particularly happy. Any level of added fluoride is at best outdated, as fluoride for dental purposes is readily available in many forms for those who want it. Medicating the population, en masse and often against their will, is not an acceptable function of government.

Plus, the phrase "we are guided by the science" automatically raises red flags, as all too often it translates to, "we are guided by the pronouncements of whatever authorities we choose to follow," with little regard for how the process of science actually works. This is the same city manager who, when I asked where the materials that the city collects for recycling actually end up, showed no interest in what happens to it once the city passes it on to another agency.

I guess there's more work to be done. I hate politics, but the least I can do is speak up, so they can't insist that they must be right because no one is objecting.

I certainly should have known better.

For several years I worked in a research lab at a major university medical center. True, I only did the computer work (I have exactly one published paper to my name from those days), but even back in the 1970's it was obvious that the peer-reviewed papers/government grant system was, if not totally broken, at least rigged.

Moreover, I spent much of my life learning that "the system" was not to be trusted in many fields. I think it began when my mother, following the customs and recommendations of both society and the medical experts, fed her newborn infants a mixture of diluted evaporated milk and Karo corn syrup, instead of breastfeeding.

But it didn't really hit me until I had children of my own, and observed again and again that the best course of action seemed to be to do exactly the opposite of what the experts recommended and society accepted without question. From birth and childrearing practices to educational decisions to nutritional and medical choices, life taught me that "going with the flow" was often a very bad plan.

So why, why, why did I willingly, even eagerly, accept the COVID shots? Two reasons.

One, working in medical research had provided opportunities to perhaps make a difference in the world, and one of these was being a test subject for the development of the Haemophilus Influenza B vaccine. Porter and I have been blood donors for decades. Our DNA is part of a medical research database. In other words, we've always tried to be good citizens on the medical front.

I like to think that was a good thing. But it predisposed me to being willing to try the COVID shot for the good of the world. Plus, the pressure was great back then that COVID-19 was deadly for the elderly, and our children were worried about their parents.

Still, I feel really stupid for trusting the medical establishment that this was "safe and effective and the only way to keep from killing grandmothers." I knew better. I knew, and even proclaimed at the time, that when the government and medical authorities make such broad statements they are lying. They must be, if only because nothing—especially nothing so novel—can be known to be safe without long-term trials.

By far the biggest factor, however, in our decision to get the shots was blackmail. We have family living overseas, and the only way we could visit them was to submit to the jab. Grandchildren change so fast, even in the course of a year. Even stateside family was largely cut off. We missed a big family reunion, and a nephew's wedding, and barely made the wedding of another nephew. Florida relaxed its restrictions relatively early on, but several long-planned events could not have happened without our vaccination cards, thanks to the restrictions imposed by other states. It was much worse for other people; at least we didn't miss any funerals, or lose our jobs.

Knowing what I know now, would I have willingly closed the door that the magic compliance card opened? I certainly hope so, but I can't honestly say I'd have made the sacrifice.

Nonetheless, I feel stupid, betrayed, and very, very angry.

We're all probably going to die when a more dangerous pandemic hits, because the trust is gone. At least the boy who cried wolf only got himself killed.

I know some mama bears who need to hear this message from yesterday. I don't want to send it to them individually, for a couple of reasons. One, even though I may be convinced that something about a video will resonate with a particular person, I could be wrong, and maybe even offend that person. I'd much rather make something available and let people decide for themselves. Secondly, even in a small audience like mine, I know there is someone who would benefit from it, though I have no idea who. Maybe some papa bears. Maybe some young people who are facing life with courage and joy yet are feeling old before their time. Who knows? So I put it out there. If you're not feeling overwhelmed and overstressed, feel free to skip this wisdom that is both Christian and Cherokee.

It is from the YouTube channel, Appalachia's Homestead with Patara. I've only been following it since Hurricane Helene, when I friend sent me a link to one of Patera's posts about the devastation there. News from Western North Carolina and East Tennessee was spotty at best, and those with already established communications channels (who weren't totally cut off) were a godsend. This quote is from her About section:

How a suburban family left it all behind in order to homeschool & homestead in Appalachia. Learn how to begin homesteading and to learn vital skills such as gardening, food preservation, animal husbandry, homeschooling, genealogy and more! We have chickens, turkeys, geese, quail, ducks, dairy cows, dairy goats, rabbits, 3 Great Pyrenees & the cutest farm cat around! Come along with us on our journey as we follow our Appalachian roots!

The video is 25 minutes long and does well at increased speed. I hope it is meaningful to some of you, but if not, that's okay, just move on.

I've learned to avoid food items labelled "no sugar added," because that usually does not mean the product is less sweet, but is artificially sweetened. When I picked up this bottle of ketchup, I expected to find sucralose, which I detest, in the ingredient list. I was surprised and pleased to see that the sweetener in this case was not sucralose, but rather stevia.

Ingredients: tomato concentrate from red ripe tomatoes, distilled white vinegar, salt, natural flavoring, stevia leaf extract, onion powder.

I had to laugh at the claim "Sweetness from PLANTS" on the label. Just what do they think sugar cane is, an animal?

But I got over it, and decided to try a bottle.

Much to my surprise, I loved it at first taste, and have so far had no cause to change my mind. It doesn't taste artificial, and has a brighter, fresher taste than regular ketchup. Time will tell, but I may be a convert.