The good news is that I and my siblings are continuing our annual gathering. The bad-and-good news is that my brother can't make it because he has a full-time job again ( Read more... )

Yesterday we buried my brother-in-law. I put it bluntly because I'm still working out my own feelings, while working hard to be the support my wife needs ( Read more... )

Taking a walk this morning (an ill-advised desire for coffee at the local cafe; it's raining cats, dogs and gerbils this morning), I saw two families out walking in the wet. Both had one in a stroller (suitably covered, of course), and my pre-coffee thought was a bit confused: where could they be going at 10am on such an uncomfortable day ( Read more... )

I shall be hitting -- gently -- the road in a couplathree hours to drive to Nags Head, NC, the Outer Banks. I love you all, really, but part of this trip is a deliberate vacation from everything on-line ( Read more... )

My erstwhile friend has spent his life pursuing a variety of vocations, each of which has tragically ended at best with his breaking even, often resulting in his breaking wind in his ire, and sometimes bringing him close to bankruptcy ( Read more... )

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An email group I belong to includes a learned gentleman who has kindly consented to let me post his short essay on Patrick here. I shall cut for those not interested in it. It is rather long for an LJ post; it is, IMO, well worth reading just for the excellent citations provided.

( I've decided to not try to clean up the formatting.., )

Ya know, my firefly serenity is being damaged... in a manner of speaking.

Sun shares soar on report of IBM deal talks.

So does this mean we may witness the birth of Big Blue Sun?

Life immitates art speculating on life. Beware of CIA types wearing blue gloves...

Swallow, breathe, then see under the cut...

( What science fiction author am I? )

You (general) may already have seen this meme. Many of you will have seen it a few times.

If you think that anyone can be guilty of making a racist comment or performing a racist act, including you, and that you are willing to take ownership of your statements and actions, resist blaming the person who was offended, figure out why they were taken ( Read more... )