I loved GOOD MORNING, MIDNIGHT by Lily Brooks-Dalton – which surprised me, since this novel was billed as a post-apocalyptic story. I have read only a handful of such stories and warmed only slightly to them (The Age of Miracles, The Dog Stars, and Station Eleven). Why did I fall for this one, then? Because, at its heart, GOOD MORNING, MIDNIGHT … [Read more...]
With Only 8.6 Percent Of The Sun …
A total solar eclipse happens about every 18 months, but rarely in the U.S. And, yet, we didn’t join the masses traveling to the Great American Total Solar Eclipse of August 21, 2017. We stayed home. A place, according to eclipsewise.com, that would have an eclipse obscuration of .914 — meaning 91.4% of the sun would be covered by the moon … [Read more...]
Movie: HIDDEN FIGURES
As soon as I saw the preview for HIDDEN FIGURES I was hooked. As a women, as a history lover, as a child of the sixties who grew up watching the race to the moon, the civil rights movement, and the race riots in my hometown of Chicago, I was anxious to get an expanded, heels on the ground, black southern world view of my memories. I wasn’t … [Read more...]
Primitive Technology — Where Tiny House Meets Survivor Man
As I am neither a millennial nor a survivalist, it might seem kind of strange that I am a fan of both the “tiny house” movement and the survival/wilderness teachings of Les Stroud and Bear Grylls. I could blame it on a childhood with too many fond memories of playing with my cousins in the tiny ice fishing house my grandfather built and the decades … [Read more...]
Movie: (DIS) HONESTY — The Truth About Lies
We all love a good story about the rise and fall of an unworthy person. It is the stuff of history, fiction and our daily news. Of course, the bigger the rise, the better the fall. Right? But what if the “unworthy person” was ourselves? What if, at some point in our job, our marriage, our friendships or our interactions in our communities, we … [Read more...]
Martin Molin and the Musical Marble Machine
There is something so utterly fascinating about mechanical music machines. I don't know what captivates me the most -- whether it is the complex timing involved, the thousands of little intricacies and artistries, or the idea that so much thought, imagination and effort went into planning and creating what many times were personal entertainment … [Read more...]
President Lincoln, Inventor and Proponent of Wind Power
In 1849, Abraham Lincoln conceived of and successfully patented a system of air chambers and bellows to lift boats over shoals and obstructions in a river. As a U.S. Congressman (House of Representatives 1847-1849), Lincoln was a frequent boat traveler between Washington D.C. to his home in Illinois and had seen the need for an "improved method of … [Read more...]
The Lure of Comic-Con
Out of my element at Comic-Con 2015, where 250,000 movie fans, comic devotees and techno geeks gather, I had an expectation of being trampled in a sea of humanity. Instead, I found enthusiastic, welcoming people whose entry badges were like a symbol of solidarity. It’s like we were all part of some giant, secret club. Women and men of every age … [Read more...]
Lost and Found News: Probiotic Beer, Gut Checks, Toxin Heroes, Team Gut
A round-up of recent, ponder worthy gut health (yes, gut as in part of our digestive tract) news you may have missed: Probiotic Beer may become the new yogurt If you have never gotten on the probiotic (healthy bacteria for your gut) bandwagon because you didn't like yogurt or if you have never been a beer drinker because you thought it too … [Read more...]
The Pain And Glory Of Being A Nature Nerd
Back in October, I experienced a bit of a surprise as I was weeding our rock-wall shelves. Perhaps more surprising to some may be my reaction to what happened – a true indication of just what a nature nerd I am. Bending under an acacia bush and tugging at weeds, I felt a sharp sting and instant numbness on and beneath my shoulder. I won’t lie – I … [Read more...]
Even The FDA Doesn’t Know What’s In Our Food
Eating and drinking is about as basic to our survival as it gets. While we might debate whether various manufactured foods are the healthiest choices we can make in a day, we assume the FDA has approved their ingredients before we eat them. We assume all the ingredients meet the standard of a “reasonable certainty” that no harm will come to us … [Read more...]
Beating Back the Drive-By Media In Politics
As nature abhors a vacuum, so the drive-by media is hungry to control and define any public figure whose impact might supersede their own. How do we beat them? Whether we believe that Hillary Clinton’s “email-gate” is empty click-bait or something substantive, the amount of feverish news coverage generated in advance of securing the … [Read more...]
The American Nurse Project — Insight Into A Beloved Profession
THE AMERICAN NURSE PROJECT, which includes a book, documentary film and ongoing blog interviews, tells the story of the life and professional commitment of nurses across the United States. The creator, photographer Carolyn Jones along with her team, wanted to raise awareness of the uniqueness of the nursing profession by allowing … [Read more...]
Lost & Found News: Human Migration, Solar Impulse, Discerning Dogs
News to ponder that you may have missed: Lost: Holiday Vacation Travel to Human Migration Mapping When someone says "holiday vacation travel" what comes to mind? Do you envision new sights and familiar haunts? Do you remember the hustle bustle, joys and frustrations of moving luggage and people from point A to point B? Do you think of the … [Read more...]
Behind the Scenes
At night I’ve been known to stare into the quiet darkness beyond our windows, so different from the fierce sunlight of the day and its illumination. And I wonder: what really happens out there, after the sun slithers behind the mountains? What happens behind the scenes? A lot, it appears. When our blinds are drawn to the skies canvassed in the … [Read more...]
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