Hey, Mom! The Explanation.

Here's the permanent dedicated link to my first Hey, Mom! post and the explanation of the feature it contains.

Also,

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #742 - Drinking Coffee is Healthy, prolongs life






my favorite coffee mug
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #742 - Drinking Coffee is Healthy, prolongs life

Hi Mom,

I had planned some original content on résumés and cover letters today but that's not going to happen.

Instead, I bring you this very good news about coffee.

Not covfefe.

Never covfefe.

I knew I was on to something when I wanted to keep drinking coffee even after my doctor told me to cut it down or out.

I did quit once for over six months but less than a year, but then I went back and have not considered quitting again.

Life is too short.

Coffee is my operating system.




FROM HERE - http://www.kurzweilai.net/drinking-coffee-associated-with-lower-risk-of-death-from-all-causes-study-finds



Drinking coffee associated with lower risk of death from all causes, study finds
July 17, 2017



People who drink around three cups of coffee a day may live longer than non-coffee drinkers, a landmark study has found.
The findings — published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine — come from the largest study of its kind, in which scientists analyzed data from more than half a million people across 10 European countries to explore the effect of coffee consumption on risk of mortality.
Researchers from the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) and Imperial College London found that higher levels of coffee consumption were associated with a reduced risk of death from all causes, particularly from circulatory diseases and diseases related to the digestive tract.
“We found that higher coffee consumption was associated with a lower risk of death from any cause, and specifically for circulatory diseases, and digestive diseases,” said lead author Marc Gunter of the IARC and formerly at Imperial’s School of Public Health. “Importantly, these results were similar across all of the 10 European countries, with variable coffee drinking habits and customs. Our study also offers important insights into the possible mechanisms for the beneficial health effects of coffee.”


Healthier livers, better glucose control
Using data from the EPIC study (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition), the group analysed data from 521,330 people from over the age of 35 from 10 EU countries, including the UK, France, Denmark and Italy. People’s diets were assessed using questionnaires and interviews, with the highest level of coffee consumption (by volume) reported in Denmark (900 mL per day) and lowest in Italy (approximately 92 mL per day). Those who drank more coffee were also more likely to be younger, to be smokers, drinkers, eat more meat and less fruit and vegetables.
After 16 years of follow up, almost 42,000 people in the study had died from a range of conditions including cancer, circulatory diseases, heart failure and stroke. Following careful statistical adjustments for lifestyle factors such as diet and smoking, the researchers found that the group with the highest consumption of coffee had a lower risk for all causes of death, compared to those who did not drink coffee.
They found that decaffeinated coffee had a similar effect.
In a subset of 14,000 people, they also analyzed metabolic biomarkers, and found that coffee drinkers may have healthier livers overall and better glucose control than non-coffee drinkers.
According to the group, more research is needed to find out which of the compounds in coffee may be giving a protective effect or potentially benefiting health.* Other avenues of research to explore could include intervention studies, looking at the effect of coffee drinking on health outcomes.
However, Gunter noted that “due to the limitations of observational research, we are not at the stage of recommending people to drink more or less coffee. That said, our results suggest that moderate coffee drinking is not detrimental to your health, and that incorporating coffee into your diet could have health benefits.”
The study was funded by the European Commission Directorate General for Health and Consumers and the IARC.
* Coffee contains a number of compounds that can interact with the body, including caffeine, diterpenes and antioxidants, and the ratios of these compounds can be affected by the variety of methods used to prepare coffee.



Abstract of Coffee Drinking and Mortality in 10 European Countries: A Multinational Cohort Study

Background: The relationship between coffee consumption and mortality in diverse European populations with variable coffee preparation methods is unclear.
Objective: To examine whether coffee consumption is associated with all-cause and cause-specific mortality.
Design: Prospective cohort study.
Setting: 10 European countries.
Participants: 521 330 persons enrolled in EPIC (European Prospective Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition).
Measurements: Hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% CIs estimated using multivariable Cox proportional hazards models. The association of coffee consumption with serum biomarkers of liver function, inflammation, and metabolic health was evaluated in the EPIC Biomarkers subcohort (n = 14 800).
Results: During a mean follow-up of 16.4 years, 41 693 deaths occurred. Compared with nonconsumers, participants in the highest quartile of coffee consumption had statistically significantly lower all-cause mortality (men: HR, 0.88 [95% CI, 0.82 to 0.95]; P for trend < 0.001; women: HR, 0.93 [CI, 0.87 to 0.98]; P for trend = 0.009). Inverse associations were also observed for digestive disease mortality for men (HR, 0.41 [CI, 0.32 to 0.54]; P for trend < 0.001) and women (HR, 0.60 [CI, 0.46 to 0.78]; P for trend < 0.001). Among women, there was a statistically significant inverse association of coffee drinking with circulatory disease mortality (HR, 0.78 [CI, 0.68 to 0.90]; P for trend < 0.001) and cerebrovascular disease mortality (HR, 0.70 [CI, 0.55 to 0.90]; P for trend = 0.002) and a positive association with ovarian cancer mortality (HR, 1.31 [CI, 1.07 to 1.61]; P for trend = 0.015). In the EPIC Biomarkers subcohort, higher coffee consumption was associated with lower serum alkaline phosphatase; alanine aminotransferase; aspartate aminotransferase; γ-glutamyltransferase; and, in women, C-reactive protein, lipoprotein(a), and glycated hemoglobin levels.
Limitations: Reverse causality may have biased the findings; however, results did not differ after exclusion of participants who died within 8 years of baseline. Coffee-drinking habits were assessed only once.
Conclusion:
Coffee drinking was associated with reduced risk for death from various causes. This relationship did not vary by country.
Primary Funding Source:
European Commission Directorate-General for Health and Consumers and International Agency for Research on Cancer.

Abstract of Association of Coffee Consumption With Total and Cause-Specific Mortality Among Nonwhite Populations

Background: Coffee consumption has been associated with reduced risk for death in prospective cohort studies; however, data in nonwhites are sparse.
Objective: To examine the association of coffee consumption with risk for total and cause-specific death.
Design: The MEC (Multiethnic Cohort), a prospective population-based cohort study established between 1993 and 1996.
Setting: Hawaii and Los Angeles, California.
Participants: 185 855 African Americans, Native Hawaiians, Japanese Americans, Latinos, and whites aged 45 to 75 years at recruitment.
Measurements: Outcomes were total and cause-specific mortality between 1993 and 2012. Coffee intake was assessed at baseline by means of a validated food-frequency questionnaire.
Results: 58 397 participants died during 3 195 484 person-years of follow-up (average follow-up, 16.2 years). Compared with drinking no coffee, coffee consumption was associated with lower total mortality after adjustment for smoking and other potential confounders (1 cup per day: hazard ratio [HR], 0.88 [95% CI, 0.85 to 0.91]; 2 to 3 cups per day: HR, 0.82 [CI, 0.79 to 0.86]; ≥4 cups per day: HR, 0.82 [CI, 0.78 to 0.87]; Pfor trend < 0.001). Trends were similar between caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee. Significant inverse associations were observed in 4 ethnic groups; the association in Native Hawaiians did not reach statistical significance. Inverse associations were also seen in never-smokers, younger participants (<55 a="" among="" and="" associations="" cancer="" chronic="" deaths="" diabetes="" disease.="" disease="" due="" end="" examined="" for="" had="" heart="" inverse="" kidney="" not="" observed="" p="" points="" previously="" reported="" respiratory="" stroke="" those="" to="" were="" who="" years="">
Limitation: Unmeasured confounding and measurement error, although sensitivity analysis suggested that neither was likely to affect results.
Conclusion: Higher consumption of coffee was associated with lower risk for death in African Americans, Japanese Americans, Latinos, and whites.
Primary Funding Source: National Cancer Institute.


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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 744 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.18 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.

Monday, July 17, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #741 - Happy Birthday Satchel, a five-year old Beagle

Satchel Paige Tower - day two of adoption - age approx 6 weeks - 1208.25
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #741 - Happy Birthday Satchel, a five-year old Beagle

Hi Mom,

I interrupt my usual routine, the usual MUSICAL MONDAY, for this special blog post announcement.

Happy Birthday to my oh so special puppy dog, her Booness, duh Boo Boo, Smartest dog on the planet earth and beyond (no, really, don't argue), Satchel Paige Tower, who turns five years old today July 17th, 2017.

To celebrate, I dropped Ellory at Camp Fido daycare, and I took Satchel to the Asylum Lake Nature Preserve for a walk, just for her, with her Dad (that's me), solo, no Ellory.

This seems to be a thing. She enjoys her Ellory free time, but she also seems to miss Ellory. Right now, she's camped out in Ellory's crate.

She does that a lot, especially when Ellory's not here.



Here's my posts about our walk.



Here's Satchel tired from the walk.






She's exhausted, but she's happy.


There's video!!




This is a quickie entry because I have a lot of work to do.

I do have a Satchel CATEGORY - here at this link. Click and view all the Satchel posts (or posts that feature Satchel) in reverse order. I am up to 741 total posts for the blog, including this one, and I only have 18 posts featuring Satchel (unless I missed some), so that's not enough.

Liesel considers Satchel her soulmate, which I think is very true. They have an uncanny bond.

I also feel that soul-deep connection with Satchel, and we share a bond, too, but it's different.

I devoted myself to enjoying Ellory as a puppy more because I regret not spending as much time and energy (and photos and videos) on Satchel as a puppy. Her puppy time seemed to go so fast... AND now she's five years old.

She needs to out live both of us.

I am not going to go nuts, but here's just a few photos of my great love Satchel the boo.

I know you love this stuff, Mom, but for other readers, thank you for tuning in.

PHOTO GALLERY

Satchel 1304.25

Satchel 1208.25

Satchel 1211.07 post first day Camp Fido via Liesel

Satchel by Liesel 1305.17a

Satchel and Vespers cuddlin together 1407.11

Satchel by Liesel 1612.11

Satchel by Liesel 1612.17

Satchel via Piper 1211.23



Satchel doing special time - 1506.08

Satchel with Kong 1702.08

PICKING Liesel up from work - Satchel on car dash 1209.24

Satchel and Ellory via Liesel 1701.15

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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 743 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.17 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.

Sunday, July 16, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #740 - Princess RIP - 2003-2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #740 - Princess RIP - 2003-2017


Hi Mom,

I am sad to tell you that Princess has passed away.

Here's Lori's post from Facebook, which is probably better than anything I can create:




As Lori described, Princess stopped eating, which is surely a sign of active dying. This was your sign, too, Mom. You stopped eating in late June of 2015 to signal that you were entering your final days. Princess did the same thing and nearly at the same time as you did, two years later.



I thought I would be more sad about this. Instead I have been distracted by trying to find a picture from when we adopted Princess, of you, Mom, holding her, wearing your winter coat.

Dad did not want us to get a cat. But you wanted a cat, Mom, and since I was living with you and Dad, I promised to take care of her, which I did from 2003 through 2009, when I got married and moved out. Dad has taken care of Princess ever since, including the last two years since Mom died. I helped more from 2009-2011, while we were living in Richland and I was spending 2-3 days at your house, Mom, helping out, but the bulk of the care has fallen on Dad for eight years.

I thought I would have a difficult time with Princess' passing. After all, this is Mom's cat. In a sense, this is one last part of Mom, one living thing that existed because of her love. And, sure, I am sad. But I am not broken.

And maybe, I am all right because I have healed, because I have learned to live with my grief, that I have refused to let grief control me but have rather learned to control it. I have gone on; I have lived life.

I am sorry, Mom. I am sorry that Dad had to put down your cat, but this seemed to be what Princess was asking for. She stopped eating. She had been wasting away. She only weighed five pounds. That's astounding.

Princess never became the committed lap cat for you, Mom, that we hoped she would be. She loved you, but she was a bit stand offish in regards to you.

I wish you had both lived longer, Mom.

But I do accept the way things are, and in a sense, this is a very good thing.

Dad wanted to be out from under the burden of having care for Princess. He wants to be free to travel and do things, to not be tied down. He had asked me to find a way to adopt out Princess, which was going to be difficult given her age (born August 18, 2003), and her frail health. Plus she was needy, meowing constantly for treats and attention according to Dad.

None of us wanted to put her down simply to free Dad of this burden, so Princess chose to go like you did, Mom.

Rest in Peace, Princess. Thank you for bringing love and joy to Mom for her last 12 years.













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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 742 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.16: 10:10 (my time) 7:10 Google time

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.

Saturday, July 15, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #739 - The Channeling - Retro TV Nostalgia


Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #739 - The Channeling - Retro TV Nostalgia

Hi Mom,

So much going on here and I haven't even done that much packing. Just trying to get ahead on work, so I can pack. I subscribe to FredFlix, and it's fine channel despite some ridiculous comments by equally inane, loser users.

I wish I had time for more commentary today, but I do not.

At least I am continuing the tradition of things to watch on Saturdays (unofficially even).

These videos are great.

If you like them, I can show you more, Mom.

There's more at FredFlix on You Tube.

http://www.metv.com/lists/11-reasons-adam-west-is-the-best-batman-ever


















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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 734 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.08 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.



Friday, July 14, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #738 - Roden Explorers - new newsletter - subscribe




Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #738 - Roden Explorers - new newsletter - subscribe

Hi Mom,

Here's some show and tell.

Here's a cool newsletter I learned about.

Fell behind. Catching up.

So just this.

FROM - https://craigmod.com/sputnik/invitation/
An invitation — 

Roden Explorers

Join me on an adventure in mailing listing

My first exposure to James Turrell came sometime in winter 2003 following a harrowing drive
through the Japanese night. I was in a van with two Americans, a Japanese, an older —
supposedly famous — French illustrator, a Belgian artist, a Swedish photographer,
and another Frenchman, drunk — quite obviously so — and driving.
That configuration didn’t last very long.
Despite the fact that many of us had never before
met, the consensus quickly shifted. The drunk
Frenchman — against his vocal pleading that
He was fine! He can drive just fine! — would be
replaced as driver. I was the only other passenger
with an international license.
So it came to be that I drove this group of rag-tag bohemians and artists and drunkards through the
night — my first time driving such a large vehicle,
and also my first time driving in Japan. We hurtled
down freeways swaddled in countryside darkness,
past rice fields, music blaring, joyful,
multi-accented English bouncing all over the
interior, the Frenchman snoring in a heap in
the back.
We were bound for the newly opened 21st Century Museum in Kanazawa,1 butted against the harsh
Sea of Japan on the northern coast. James Turrell
had a room there.
I had never before heard of this Turrell fellow.

Everyone spoke well of his work. I was excited.

Skyspace

His room at the 21st Century Museum is like
many of his rooms — a tomb with a rectangular
hole cut in the center of the ceiling. One of his 'Skyspaces.'
I arrived at dusk. I sat. I looked up at the hole.
I watched the sky darken. I felt the freezing air
pour in through the open roof. I pulled my scarf up around my face. Then I left.


SKYSPACE AT 21ST CENTURY MUSEUM, KANAZAWA, JAPAN — © KALEVKEVAD

Still curious, I returned the next morning and sat
again. The hole framed a crisp, deep blue Japanese
winter sky. Suddenly a cloud floated past. Then
some birds flew over.
The construction was such that the material
forming the hole in the roof was tapered to almost nothing. This tapering produced the
optical illusion — as you continued to stare —
that the sky was pulled down to the very ceiling of
the room. Standing on your tippy toes you could
almost believe you could touch it. And when
something moved past, it felt compressed and
unreal.


TURRELL'S COLLABORATION WITH ARCHITECT, DAIGO ISHII

And so began my minor obsession with James’
work. I’ve spent the night in his house in Niigata2
— a stunning collaboration with Japanese architect
Daigo Ishii3 in which you sleep in a twelve mat
tatatmi room. At the touch of a button, the roof
slides off the house and a sky viewing timed
perfectly to sunrise and sunset begins. You lie there,
dazed, witness to the majesty of a darkness (as 
the sun sets) and color gradation (as the sun rises)
you’ve never before seen.
This past summer I traveled to Naoshima on
pilgrimage to James’ installations in the Tadao
Ando designed, Chichu Art Museum.4 And I’ve
hunted down small collections of his less
consuming light installations at various museums
and galleries around the world.


RODEN CRATER

Roden

It was within this decade long investigation of
James’ work that I discovered his Roden project.5
Roden is the name of a crater in Arizona James
bought in the '70s. It’s become an icon not just for
his Life Work but for the ideal to which — I
believe — many of us strive as creators. It is a
myth — far larger than life in both ideological
scope and physicality.
Here's James' description of the project:
At Roden Crater I was interested in taking the cultural artifice of art out into the natural surround. I did not want the work to be a mark upon nature, but I wanted the work to be enfolded in nature in such a way that light from the sun, moon and stars empowered the spaces … I wanted an area where you had a sense of standing on the planet. I wanted an area of exposed geology like the Grand Canyon or the Painted Desert, where you could feel geologic time. Then in this stage set of geologic time, I wanted to make spaces that engaged celestial events in light so that the spaces performed a “music of the spheres” in light. The sequence of spaces, leading up to the final large space at the top of the crater, magnifies events. The work I do intensifies the experience of light by isolating it and occluding light from events not looked at. I have selected different portions of the sky and a limited number of events for each of the spaces. This is a reason for the large number of spaces.
Did you read that?
Then in this stage set of geologic time …

Explorers

It’s with this work in mind I’d like to start a
mailing list: The Roden Explorers Club.
It'll be a little more private than posting on this site.
 A little more ephemeral, perhaps. Like a crater in
the desert: there if you look on Google Maps, but
usually out of sight.
I'd like for it to be a place for me to announce small
projects built with a pinch of James’ ethos in mind.

Somewhere to ask folks for feedback. Somewhere
to share off-the-cuff thinking about the future of
books and publishing. A place for you to hit 'reply'
outside of the public spectacle of comments
and tweets.
The mailing list will have almost nothing to do explicitly with Roden, of course. Roden is just a guiding star, far off in our desert sky.
If any of this interests you, then please consider
joining me and becoming an Explorer. The
messages will be infrequent, and you can
unsubscribe at anytime.
Together we'll hurtle out under the darkness of the interwebs towards whispers of who knows what. Hopefully joyful, joyfully hopeful, and, perhaps, a
bit drunk.
So, see you out there?

Subscribe

 
NOTED:
  1. Kanazawa, 21st Century Museum ↩︎
  2. House of Light (光の館), Niigata, Japan ↩︎
  3. Future Scape — Daigo Ishii, Architects ↩︎
  4. Chichu Art Museum ↩︎
  5. Roden Crater ↩︎






This essay, published November 2012. Thoughts?
Email me@craigmod.com.
Craig Mod, his head, floating at the bottom of the article
Craig Mod is a writer and designer splitting his time
between Japan and New York. He is a MacDowell
Colony and VCCA writing fellow. His essays and
articles have appeared in The AtlanticCalifornia Sunday MagzineBackchannelAeonNew ScientistVirgina 
Quarterly ReviewThe New YorkerThe New York Times,
The Morning NewsCodex: Journal of Typography, and elsewhere.
Whatever you do, don't follow @craigmod on Twitter or Instagram.




































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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 740 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.14 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.

Thursday, July 13, 2017

Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #737 - Long Lake 1971 - Throwback Thursdays - conversations #13

Dad, Lori, and Mom 1971 at Long Lake, Traverse City, MI
Hey, Mom! Talking to My Mother #737 - Long Lake 1971 - Throwback Thursdays - conversations #13

Hi Mom,

I am starting this Wednesday (1707.12) because it's always my goal to work ahead. Liesel comes home an hour early from work now, and it's throwing off my whole routine. So I just moved a bunch of stuff in the basement to organize it all better for packing.

Oops, I guess I should write about this picture first. It's likely that I took this picture. I am nine years old. I probably could operate a camera. That's you Mom, in your favorite yellow beach robe, with Dad and Lori. I have no idea who the young boy is with the diapers and the football. Neighbor kid possibly? I have no clue. I miss our times at the lake. Those times were so magical. I miss those family vacations.

I had forgotten about that shack in the background. Maybe it's an ice fishing hovel? It's gone now, that's for sure. But then, it's been like 45 years.

So, yesterday was Net Neutrality Day. See this - https://www.battleforthenet.com/.



I posted about this issue yesterday, made a small donation to the EFF -- Electronic Frontier Foundation -- and sent Twitter message urging others to follow suit. Not that I have a huge following, but the post did get 28 views this morning. These Throwback posts continue to be popular. Last week's was the most popular of the week. Hey readers other than Mom, Thanks for tuning in.

So, we put the house on the market last week Friday. Pictures were taken. We had three people insist on seeing it Saturday and three more who wanted to see it on Sunday before the open house at 3:30. One person made an offer Saturday night and wanted us to accept it before the open house, so we did.

Today, and by today I now mean Thursday, the home is being inspected and then there will be an appraisal. Assuming everything checks out, and we expect it to check out, then the sale will no longer be pending, at least unofficially. Then it's all packing. I plan to put in several hours packing tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday. I am having a little anxiety about the packing, but I will feel better about it once I get a bunch of it done and haul a bunch of stuff to my Dad's place, which I am so thankful exists for this exact purpose. If next week I am writing this Throwback entry and I am still over anxious about packing, then we're in trouble.

As for the house, if this deal falls through, we can simply put it back on the market with the confidence that it will basically sell immediately. So, there's that.

I am up at WMU right now as I had to vacate our home for the inspectors.

I did a little bit of work, and I am giving myself 11 more minutes to write this before I do some coding and then take off for a lunch date.

I am listening to this:

So I have been thinking about this blog a lot lately.

One line of thinking has me considering stopping or going on hiatus because the move requires a lot of my time and energy and maybe I cannot afford the time I spend on this blog. On the other hand, if I deprive myself of too many of the things that I enjoy, then ultimately, I will not be mentally healthy. If I become mentally and emotionally unhealthy because of working too hard and dealing with too much stress, then this state of mind and heart and spirit will affect the move anyway. I am not going to be productive if my spirit is crushed.

So, here's where my head is at regarding the blog: I am continuing, but I am going to have to control, very strictly, how much time I devote to it, which means less original content and lots of sharing. I currently have 242 drafts in unpublished posts, so this is really not a problem. In fact, I may go somewhat dark for a period of time, meaning I will set up a series of posts ahead of time, set them to publish on a daily schedule, and may refrain from pushing out notifications to the social media world, which means those of you, and you, Mom, who check the blog will see the activity but otherwise, not.

Five minutes to go for this writing.

The dogs are at Camp Fido.

I have some freedom to accomplish things. They may need to be at camp more often to allow me to pack without any interference or having to worry about them. Right now, Ellory is not allowed in the basement which may have to change before we move simply because it will be easier. So far, she is not too certain of the stairs.

Okay, my time is up for this session. See how good I am being? Now off to write a program for a stack set up in C. Bye for now.

I am back.

Did some programming in C. I made a stack happen. I haven't compiled it yet and see if it runs, but I can do that tomorrow.

I bought dog food, and then took it home to make sure the inspectors did not leave the garage door open.

I have been chatting with a bloke via FB Messenger who I know from long ago who works in the CS industry. He just offered to ask around people he knows in the greater Portland area for a good coding boot camp. He mentioned that many of the front end engineers with whom he works followed this exact route: the coding boot camp route.

So, I am not crazy.

I am actually working toward something and not just wasting time.

I guess that's it for today. I always have more ambitious plans but I have to scale them back for what's realistic.

See you all tomorrow.

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Reflect and connect.

Have someone give you a kiss, and tell you that I love you.

I miss you so very much, Mom.

Talk to you tomorrow, Mom.

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- Days ago = 739 days ago

- Bloggery committed by chris tower - 1707.13 - 10:10

NOTE on time: When I post late, I had been posting at 7:10 a.m. because Google is on Pacific Time, and so this is really 10:10 EDT. However, it still shows up on the blog in Pacific time. So, I am going to start posting at 10:10 a.m. Pacific time, intending this to be 10:10 Eastern time. I know this only matters to me, and to you, Mom. But I am not going back and changing all the 7:10 a.m. times. But I will run this note for a while. Mom, you know that I am posting at 10:10 a.m. often because this is the time of your death.