Storms Overnight

 Overnight storms were not severe and brought much needed rain. This could be a wet day, and the morning is rather cool. Rainfall amounts do not appear to have been very substantial. A heavy rain will leave a high water mark of debris in the driveway but I did not see that this morning. We were under a flood watch yesterday evening but that might have been a bit optimistic! I have yet to check today's forecast. I've been reading old journal volumes lately. I've kept a journal since 1980, on a regular basis, and sporadically since about 1974 but not much of that early material survives. It interests me to read about the challenges I faced then, the things that occupied me and became matters of concern in those days. Fascinating. I still keep a journal, but I have little to record since one day is so much like another. I like it like that. Stability is very important now. I wish to maintain the status quo. 

Years ago there were storms in my life. I hope there will never be such storms again. Enough. 

Rain Is Likely

 It began sunny and it has become more and more cloudy. It is warm and humidity is high. Flash floods are possible again. I was up just before 5:00 AM because I had things to do and wanted an early start but I'm having trouble staying awake now. But I know that if I try to take a nap I won't be able to sleep, or if I do sleep the rest of the day will be "off". There is a nice breeze today. Mosquitoes have so far not been a problem and that is rather amazing. Bees have not made an appearance and that is troubling. I usually have a lot in the backyard by this time. I've never been stung. I have always been able to move through them very easily. I hope they will show up. I have not seen skunks or possums or the racoon around in the early morning hours for three mornings in a row. Which makes me wonder about them. I bought two forty pound bags of black oil sunflower seeds today from Tractor Supply, which ought to last two weeks. I continue to sustain a colony of house finches, and any other birds who want to use the feeders are welcome. I fill them at least three times per day. The grackles get dry pet food. Of green fireballs we have had none, nor low grade green shit or green furballs or mysterious "booms", sonic or otherwise. No UAPs or flying saucers or orbs or any other mysterious objects in the sky. No wonder I'm having trouble staying awake. 

Good Thunderstorm!

 Hot yesterday but it got cloudy in the late afternoon and in short order we experienced a very good thunderstorm. Plenty of thunder and lightening. More rain this time, but still not enough. However, we have good rain chances almost every day this week. It was beautiful on the patio last evening as the clouds gathered and we began to receive cool outflow winds from all the storms around us. 

"First do no harm." That could be a great starting point for an ethical system. And it might be wise to view all creatures as victims, all suffering from the curse of sentience, which might be likened to a disease, and in our dealings with others see them as fellow sufferers and treat them as a physician would. Actually, "First do no harm" is not part of the Hippocratic Oath, but as a guideline one might try: "The physician must... have two special objects in view with regard to disease, namely to do good or to do no harm." And if we take the view that we ought to be each other's "physician", then with regard to others our objectives ought to be: to do good, or at the very least, to do no harm. Those others, of course, amount to all creatures, human and non-human. 

Random thoughts on a random day...

Rain Midweek

 60% chance. Big words. Some changes here and there. Iced coffee on the patio this morning. Very nice. It's a jungle out there. Just the way I like it. It returns every year and never is it the same. Always surprises me. Lots of critters. Skunks, possums, a racoon. Box turtle sometimes. Mocking birds, Bluebirds, Finches, Pigeons, Sparrows, and the occasional Cardinal. Lots of Grackles. All are welcome.

Why Not Again?

It won't be too much, will it? Can one have too much of a good thing? And this IS the weekend, so this could serve as the official reveal. And speaking of reveals, gender reveal is one of the stupid things people do, one of many, and it's a rather conformist thing to do. We really need more nonconformity, more independent thought, more critical thinking, more literacy, more math literacy, more of an anti-herd mentality going on. Follow the herd and your destination might be a slaughter house. If it's popular, that means a lot of people are doing the same thing, and you have to wonder where those people are placed on the normal curve. You should strive to be among the very smartest people, and those people are not prone to do the things or think the things, that are popular. Popularity is frequently the result of some sort of manipulation, a kind of social engineering. Think of all those Tic Tac challenges. Nefarious, dangerous. You really don't want to be part of a "peer" group of half-wits. You really do not want to be "average". With that sage advice, I present, again, my shaving mug, brush, and soap. I do not present the razors because they are cheap Walmart branded, generic, double-edged disposables but they provide a great shave and they are cheap and actually last a long time. I buy store brands whenever I can find them. Frugality is an excellent habit. Frugality is simple and easy if you have high self-esteem and really don't care very much what other people think or do. 

 Ooooo! Ahhhhh! I think I should get in the habit of making my words big. And how about an update on the endless clusterfuck of a misbegotten war!  Daniel Davis/Deep Dive