The Burrow

I've been absent of late because sometimes life asserts itself quite forcefully. I'm going to take the rest of the week off and allow catastrophe to take a back seat for a while.   I'll be back, with recharged batteries, on Monday. 

Sometimes it's all just too much. Michael Pollan's  A World Appears  has broken my brain.  I can't let my mind run free; I'm constantly wondering if I am thinking the thoughts before they are verbalized in my head.   Is it my neurons firing or is it me , whatever that means.  Do I exist outside of the chemical and electrical impulses in my head?  Pollan notes that this problem is, in some ways, unsolvable since we cannot extricate ourselves from ourselves and observe ourselves from the outside. See what I mean?  Thinking like that can really tie your brain in knots. A kinesthesiologist chimed in on the subject this morning, giving me a very complex description of what goes on in my brain when I think or move.  Pollan calls this materialism  or physicalism , the need for something quantifiable as an explanation. But Pollan dabbles in psychedelics.  He meditates.  He spends time on silent retreats.   Do plants have cons...

The presumptive Attorney General of the United States thinks he is the man's lawyer, not the country's lawyer.  L'etat, c'est moi  seems to be the governing principal in DC these days, so his (misplaced) loyalty shouldn't be such a surprise. But, it is. John Cornyn is happy to let FFOTUS and family off the IRS hook now that he has a signed declaration that the pay-me-because-I-desecrated-the-Capitol fun is kaput.  I see no indication that Todd Blanche won't implement something similar once he's confirmed, nor do I foresee any such protection from tax audits for me and mine. My favorite crooked AG is John Mitchell, Nixon's cohort and someone who actually spent time in prison (19 months for conspiracy, perjury, and obstruction of justice).  Does hiding and lying about the Epstein files in order to protect his client, the guy in the gilded Oval Office, count as conspiracy, perjury, and obstruction of justice? I'm not a lawyer, and my personal legal eagl...

Appliances that were inserted to treat him are going to be removed tomorrow, along with the offending irritant.   This comes as a surprise, although not an unwelcome one.  The hospitalist managed to squeeze us into the surgeon's schedule. Once again, I'll be driving to the hospital, parking with the valet, and waiting. I've spent most of this summer in the hospital, waiting. Getting old is not for sissies.

FlapJilly's birthday was July 29th.  Her mother called us so that we could sing happy birthday to her.  Usually, we make that phone call on our own.  That happens when I decide that it is July 29th. Unfortunately, I spent all day Wednesday knowing it was the 28th. How does this happen to me?   Without a school or work schedule to follow, I end up at Pilates on Monday when I'm scheduled for Tuesday.... or I miss my eldest grandchild's birthday. Spending days in the hospital added to the problem, especially when they don't update the day/date white board in the patient's room. As G'ma said when asked for the day and date during her mental status exam - Do you have a newspaper?  That information is in the top right corner. If only the print edition of the local paper weren't $90 a month......

Costco's aisles were filled with backpacks and lunch boxes this afternoon.   Monday was New Teachers First Day. School starts in one week - Wednesday, August 6th. My desk is covered in planning for the year.  A planting calendar, the school year calendar, Back to School Love Feast..... my brain is not prepared for this. It's July.  It's the middle of the summer.  I should be planning a trip to the ocean, not deciding which seeds to plant in Grandma's Garden.   I don't understand why the school year is structured the way it is.   Tucson Unified School District is floating the idea of year-round school, or 4 days/10 hour weeks.  (Parents have been asked to weigh in;  this woman's analysis is worth reading) .  The Cuters' school in Chicago was on trimesters; we loved it.  Having vacation time when everyone else was in school made ski slopes uncrowded and theme parks deserted.  We made good use of the time. I'm not just c...