Jackie Robinson, A Biography

I am currently reading Jackie Robinson, A Biography by Arnold Rampersad http://www.deseretnews.com/article/865578770/Jackie-Robinson-biographer-Arnold-Rampersad-applauds-42-biopic.html?pg=all.  I am reading it for more than one reason. Earlier this year, I determined that I wanted to read more non-fiction, including biographical material. Another reason is that I went to see "42: The Jackie Robinson Story" twice. I wanted to see how much of the movie was accurate in depicting the incidents in Robinson's life.  I know that there had to be "poetic license or creative license" to fit things into the movie.  But I was curious.  So far, I think the movie did a good job. Another reason is that I am very interested in the way sports in the USA has impacted integration of races.

I went to view the movie the first weekend the movie opened in Lubbock, mostly because I do not see Lubbock as a baseball town, and wanted to be sure to see the movie before it left town. I was surprised that the theater was filled. Many weeks later, a friend wanted to see the movie, and invited me. I went. It was worth seeing twice. And, I was surprised that the movie was still in town. The movie would be worth seeing multiple times, by the way.

I say I do not see Lubbock as a baseball town. Yet, there has been a movement and effort to develop the National College Baseball Hall of Fame
 http://web.collegebaseballhall.org/index.jspin  in Lubbock for many years. The original plans were proposed by an oil speculator who had some serious legal problems and went away, and the plans were dropped except that there had already been honorees.  And a serious contingency of people in Lubbock have continued with the honoree celebrations, and have plans to actually build the Hall of Fame. I hope they do.  At one time, It included a baseball field complex. Maybe we will have some serious games in Lubbock.  Hmmm.

Anyway, I wanted to say, that although I have not completed the book it is obvious that Jackie Robinson was a very serious and complex man who took the role of integrator of baseball very seriously, and did the best he could  And he did good!

Sunday Nights on the Computer

I frequently have things I like to do on Sunday night that do not involve being on the computer.  This is good.  Because, Sunday night is the night that I have scheduled the virus scan for my computer.  It takes a while, but while it is running, everything on my computer is slow to respond.  So, if I am engaged elsewhere, I do not notice this.

Tonight, I got on the computer to do some specifics, including checking the local weather. The virus scan was scanning.  It slowed everything down.  It is still scanning. It is still slowing everything down. 

A necessary evil.

Waking Up Early

For some of the last few weekends, I have been waking up early, before the alarm goes off, and I am not able to go back to sleep.  During the work week, sometimes this happens.  I try to stay in bed, but if I get up and get ready, I sometimes go to work really early, and then put in too long a day. So I try to get myself involved in something else, and do not let myself start to get ready for work until the usual time, about 6:45 AM.

But some of the last few weekend days, I have been waking up about 4:45.  I am wide awake, and cannot go back to sleep.  I have learned a trick.  For me, for some reason, a drink of juice when I wake up in the middle of the night seems to help me go back to sleep. But not at 4:45.

It happened again this morning. I was wide awake and full of energy.  That is okay, but last weekend, I was able to sleep in and that was very nice.

A Storm Today

I woke up at 4:45 AM this morning, and could not go back to sleep.  Well, I got up and read for a while then started on my chores for the day.  I added some additional cleaning to my planned list.

I needed to return a book  that was due to the library, and wanted to look for new selections, so decided to run errands after 9 AM.  The library opens at 9, and I try to make that an early stop, with grocery purchases the last stop, due to possibly (most assuredly) purchasing perishables.

I headed out north, to drop a letter at the post office. I could see the dark cloud to the north, and the wall of dust heading towards us. The wind was whipping up, also.

I do not mind being out in the rain, and wind.  Being in the dust often gives me bronchitis.  But, there is always the possibility of severe weather, including damaging hail.  I returned home, and checked the weather radar.  The storm was an isolated cell and would blow through.  I decided to do housework instead of running errands. 

This change of plan was actually fortuitous for me.  I got to listen to "Car Talk" and "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" on NPR http://www.npr.org/. The additional cleaning was well on its way by the time the storm blew through, and I left to run errands.

It's Hot Outside

It is hot outside.  We have had 100° plus weather the last few days. It makes it hot outside and inside.  I dropped down the thermostat temperature inside of the house because 80° just was not comfortable. Last night, at dark, I went out and watered the vines, trees, bushes, vinca and etc.  You would not know it today, when I was in the back yard, everything looked droopy.  I know from experience I do not need to water every day, but every other day in this heat will keep the plants healthy.

I like living in Lubbock, but I do not like the 100° plus temperatures.

Irritated Me

I have tried to set reminders so that when the Red Sox or Yankees are scheduled for national television, I am reminded. I have not done well with reminding myself when they are playing the Texas Rangers or the Houston Astros. This is unfortunate, because I sometimes get these games on TV.  I missed the Yankee vs. Rangers game last night, but by chance, heard on the news that they were playing tonight, so am able to watch the game tonight.   I thought I had tagged all these games, but obviously, I did not.

Oh well.  Right now, the Yankees are losing at home.  Darn. 

Taki Dumping Stuff on the Floor

We were sitting on the end of the sofa which has an end table abutting the sofa arm.  This end table is STACKED with papers and other stuff.  So, Sunday night, Taki was sitting on the sofa arm, and started dabbling with the piled stuff.  She hit at it, and hit at it, and pushed it, and slapped at it.  Well, she unbalanced the stack so a few papers fell off. She kept at it, and she did a little more, and a little more.

For the time being, I left the stuff on the floor. I do not want Taki to think this is an acceptable game, because there are papers stacked all over my house (I am a "mini hoarder.) 

On the other hand, Haiku likes to play "the pen game."  But, it does not have to be a pen, it can be a pencil, an eraser, a white out container or even a thumb drive (but we stop that in a hurry.)  The pen game consists of Haiku slapping at a pen, like you might a hockey puck, until it falls off the desk or TV tray next to the desk. Then she sits, looking down at the object, until you retrieve it and she can do the same all over again. We have played this game for hours on end, when I have been at the computer. She does not play in the living room or at the dining room table, however.  She could reset the game by jumping down, getting the object and jumping back to her perch.  But she is not motivated to that.  I think this is designed to be an interactive opportunity with me.

The Kitty Litter Pan

When Taki came to live with us, I added a third kitty litter pan.  The one I purchased was a low wall pan, with one end on the short side of the rectangle lower than the others, and the long sides sloping up.  I really did not want that style of pan, but my options were limited when I purchased the pan. It was appropriate, though, because Taki was young, and a low side was easier for her to access.

The other two pans I have are low pans, with attached sides.  The low pans are 3-4 inches, and the attached sides are another 3-4 inches.

A while back, I got ride of that low pan, because so much litter was scratched out of the pan.  I purchased a high sided pan, much higher that the other two pans I have, and the low side on the short end of the rectangle is about the height of the other pans. 

Tonight, I heard a clatter and started to look for it. It sounded like a plastic plate on linoleum or tile.  I did not see from where the clatter might have originated on my quick perusal through the house. I have learned not to worry, because sooner or later, I will see what happened.

It was time to clean out the kitty litter pans, and sure enough, I discovered the source of the clatter. Haiku was sitting in the high sided pan, which was turned on its long side, with some of the litter dumped out.  Haiku was busy using the pan.  When I saw her, she looked a little disconcerted. 

Haiku has a very expressive face.  More so than the other cats, I can look at Haiku and tell if she is content, disturbed, worried, upset or even scared.  Well, she was definitely disconcerted by the status of the kitty litter pan.  But, she did her business and I was able to fix the problem quickly afterwards.

Quiet

I was going to start off by saying I live alone, but I do not. I live with three cats. They have varying levels and times of affectionate behavior. But they are all affectionate in their own way.

I frequently have the TV on for background noise, or the radio, or music.  I have a varied selection of music that is easy to listen to, but makes good background music for when I am reading or writing.  Yesterday, I spent quite some time listening  to, and comparing the two versions of Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture: one some three plus minutes long, the other 17 plus minutes long.  Hmmm.  The shorter version is the part of the Overture that is most famous, and was an arrangement that I was familiar with, but I can appreciate the longer version.

Yesterday, and today, I did not have the TV on much, and did not have music playing.  When this happens, all three cats eventually congregate around me where I am sitting, more slowly if I am in the computer room, as Sake does not care to be there, but quite regularly when I am in the living room.  Sake likes to be on the sofa with me, but is always hesitant to share that perch, although one cat may be on the seat, or the back or the arm.  She is particular where she will sit if some other kitty is sitting on the sofa.  And if she is on the sofa, and someone invades her domain, even if the perch is quite different from hers, she is usually gone. But, if the house is quiet, she may not leave the living room.

I like having all three cats around. More and more, in the morning, they are on my bed, sometimes all three at once, sometimes trading places. But that is a fun ballet to watch.

Well the point of all this is that when my house is quiet, with the ambient noise being the air conditioner, the heater, the refrigerator running, it seems that the cats are more interested in spending time with me.

Kids and Pets

I recently bought a carpet cleaner called Kids and Pets http://kidsnpetsbrand.com/.  I am not even sure where I purchased it, but I hope I will come across it again.  The website tells me Wal-Mart and K-Mart carries this product.  I have a lot of messes to clean up from the cats, and I am also guilty of spillage from time to time. 

This product has an interesting cherry-naphtha fragrance. However, naphtha is not listed as an ingredient, and it is supposed to have a citrus scent.  Whatever.  The point is, I am really pleased with the product.  I had two old red wine stains in my living room carpet.  I had tried everything on them, at the time of the spill and since.  The spill, I will tell,  you occurred before 2007. 

Well, I was looking at the label last night, and realized this product claimed to clean old stains, including red wine.  I tried it on one spot, and it worked. So, today, I did the second spot with the same results. 

They advertise a product to stop animals from scratching furniture.  If I can find it, I will buy it.  My cats have ruined my sofa and futon, but if I can prevent further damage, that would be fine with me.

Buffalo Grass

Ten years ago, I bought some Bufflalo Grass plugs for my yard.  Not wild buffalo grass but a hybrid version designed to use in lawns. I planted the plugs, and had hopes that they would do as predicted: grow well in the dry heat and eventually take over.

Well, the plugs had to be watered regularly until they took hold and my life that year got crazy, and it did not happen. 

Since then, every year, I see a smattering of Buffalo Grass.  At first, a very small smattering, but occasionally even some grass goes to seed.  Two years ago, I gave up watering. The drought was so bad and the air so hot that because of the limited watering we were allowed, if I complied with the water regulations, would not sustain my grass.  Nor my neighbor's grass.  I kept most of my trees, shrubs and vines going.  But the grape vines did not do well, so I cut those back this spring.

Last year I watered some, enough to keep the vines, shrubs and trees going, as I have done this year.  However, this year, there is a split in the hose, as I had water,  I move the hose around and it waters various parts of the yard. 

With the two plus inches of rain we have had in the last couple of weeks, my grass has started growing. The front yard is taken over by purslane http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/WEEDS/purslane.html.  I tried eating it last year, but it did not sit well with me, although it is edible. 

The backyard took off with the rain.  I let the Bermuda grass go to seed before mowing.  But, I noticed an interesting phenomenon:  the Buffalo Grass is really spreading.  I have to think it is taking over where the Bermuda was weak.  It has spread beyond the area where I first planted the plugs, ten years ago!  I am so excited.  I hope it will continue to spread. Buffalo Grass

The House Feels Close

It is hot out, and of course, I have the air conditioner on.  But it is very humid in Lubbock, so even with central refrigerated air conditioning, the house feels close.  I sprayed some air freshener into the intake vent for the air conditioner.  It did not help a whole lot, but it helped some.

The humidity is not something we experience a lot in Lubbock.  The aridity makes the heat so much more bearable. But, when it is humid, we still have to deal with it.

It is the longest day of the year.  I ran errands and did housework earlier, so did not spend much time outside. Maybe later this evening, I can.  I stayed out quite late last night.  The night air was just beautiful, especially in comparison to the house.

Disappointed

As I was perusing the national coverage of Major League Baseball http://mlb.mlb.com/home games, it showed that the Red Sox vs. Detroit game would be aired on FOX.  Well, I was hoping to see the game.  But, FOX is also airing the Rangers vs. Cardinals game, so that is what we were supposed to see.  But the game was rain delayed, so FOX showed the Diamondbacks vs. Reds until the Rangers vs. Cardinals game came on.

I am not a big hockey fan, but the Boston Bruins are playing in Chicago against the Blackhawks in the National Hockey League http://www.nhl.com/ Stanely Cup Finals.  The series is tied 2 each.  I'll watch for a while.

The Weather is Hanging Heavy

It was another day of grey, foggy dust, and strong winds.  Tonight, there is rain in the area, and the radar says we have storms in the area. But it was deathly still a few minutes ago when I looked out. There are dark heavy skies to the south, east and north of my house, and cleared skies to the west. It was a little disconcerting as the sun set. There has been some thunder, but I have not seen lightning flashes.

It is still hot outside, so I think the clouds are retaining any radiational cooling.

I am watching The Weather Channel http://www.weather.com/.   I am seeing the reports of flooding in Canada.  I know we are under a severe storm watch. We shall see how much rain we get, if any. Let us also hope for minimal wind damage.

Storms

Did I ever tell you about the time I was in a tornado?  I was in Minneapolis, Minnesota for a Catholic Charities workshop.  My supervisor and I had gone to dinner at a restaurant on top of the IDS building.  It was a glass building, and the restaurant was very pricey. Neither of us had a big salary, but we splurged and it was fun.

It was early to mid evening, probably before 9 PM, and all the customers and staff of the restaurant were ushered into the basement of the building, because of the tornado warning.  We stayed there for some time.  It felt like several hours, but probably less than 2.  We had not finished our meal, although we were mostly done, and when we were released from the basement, we returned to the restaurant to pay our bill. We were told that no one was being charged for their meal that night, thank you for your patronage. I think we were offered dessert, on the house, but declined.

We learned later that the tornado blew through quickly, but the IDS building was glass walled, and with the breakage of some windows, and the change in pressure, we had to wait in the basement until the panes of glass stopped falling out of the building.

The phenomenon was not unknown to me.  I recalled taking the express elevator in the Hancock Building in Boston, Ma.  There had been more than one occasion when the weather had affected the building so that glass fell from the windows. I think, eventually, the problem was resolved.  But it was a phenomenon that I knew about.

Wonder Drug

I was limping severely at work today.  A co-worker, a physician's assistant, asked about the limp and what I took for it.  I told the PAs of the over the counter medications, I have taken naproxen and ibuprofen, but what works best is aspirin.  I just do not bring aspirin to work.  I should.  It would make a difference.

The PA told me that during school, they were told about this wonder drug that was an antipyretic, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, pain reducer, and blood thinner for those who are at risk of heart disease due to blood thickening.   As the PA said, the class was amazed, but the drug is aspirin.  Before we had acetaminophen, naproxen, and ibuprofen, we had aspirin. The co-worker commented on heroic tough guys in novels chewing on aspirin.  Remember the lowly aspirin.  It does work.

I took some a while ago, and the pain in my hip has diminished drastically.

Another Dusty Day

Today was another dusty day.  The dust is fine and silty, and looks grey as well as brown. It is hard to decide if it is dust or fog, but it is dust.

It is difficult to understand that with as much rain we have had recently why the dust is blowing. But it is.  And, the dust dries out the air around here.

We had about .5" of rain last night, and so far tonight, some sprinkles. We may have more rain the next few days.  The weather map shows wide spread areas of light rain.  But with so much dryness in the area, it will be hard for the rain to reach the ground.  Does that make sense?

Well, we can hope.

Severe Weather

According to the National Weather Service, we are not currently under a severe weather warning http://www.nhl.com/ice/schedulebyweek.htm#?navid=nav-sch-main,   (8 PM) although that could change.  I was just getting ready to start this blog, and there was a simultaneous clap of thunder and a lightning bolt. Which tells me the storm is here.  I disconnected the laptop from the power source, but kept the modem and router connected.  And I kept the televisions connected.  I know better, but I did that, anyway.
Now, the large, intermittent drops of rain have become steady and we are getting much needed rain again. So , this is good. But it is not long lasting, I think.

I am watching the Yankee game,  (The Yankees are playing the Dodgers.)  so I am not tuned into local television for weather alerts. I am okay with this.  I have a weather radio, and I get "Thunder Alerts" from KCBD http://www.kcbd.com/ on my cell phone.  So, if there are emergent issues, I will be alerted.

The outside temperature has dropped significantly, and is at 68°.  But because of the blowing dust and rain, and the threat of severe weather, opening the windows is not an option. Maybe later.

I have been able to open the windows while I slept this week. The problem with that is that with the rain, plants activate, and there is a lot of pollen out there.  Right outside my bedroom windows, there are eunonymous bushes https://www.google.com/search?q=euonymus+shrubs&rls=com.microsoft:en-us:IE-Address&rlz=1I7ADBF&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=RVrCUaTlK4XLyAHisIC4Aw&ved=0CEMQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=647So, so when I wake up in the morning, my eyes are puffy from the irritation from their pollen.  But I still want the windows open, when I can.

This is an ongoing saga. We shall see what happens with the weather tonight.

Championship Series

Here it is, June, and the championship series for the National Basketball Association http://www.cbssports.com/nba/schedules and the National Hockey League http://www.nhl.com/ice/schedulebyweek.htm#?navid=nav-sch-main are in full swing.

Does it make you wonder, though.  I think of basketball as a winter sport, although the addition of the Women's National Basketball Association, in the spring and summer, and the inclusion of basketball in the Summer Olympics negates that.

The Miami Heat are contending with the San Antonio Spurs.  My team, the Boston Celtics is long gone, but I have to cheer for the Spurs, since I am a Texas resident.

But hockey in June?  How do they keep the ice firm in the skating rinks? But, I know this is possible. Where I grew up in Western Massachusetts, there was an indoor ice rink.  It was open 11 months of the year, closed in August, less due to the heat and more for maintenance.  So the ice rinks can maintain even at this time of year.  But hockey is truly a winter sport, and June is definitely not winter.

And the Chicago Blackhawks are skating against the Boston Bruins.  Although I am not much of a hockey fan, I have to cheer for the Bruins.

We shall see what happens over the next few days.   Go team!

An Interesting Weather Day

I was at a National Weather Service http://www.weather.gov/ presentation some years ago, and talked to one of the meteorologists present. He was not from Texas. He said that Lubbock was a prime location for NWS meteorologists because of the severe thunderstorms and tornadoes that occur in this part of the world.  Who would have thought of Lubbock as a prime assignment.  But, apparently, it is.

Today, the sunny, bright but partly cloudy morning sky turned into a grey and dusty day. We had a very brief rain storm amidst the dust, so all it really did was make everything have mud spots on it.

This evening, there was a tornado to the west, large hail to the southwest, and storms moving around on the South Plains.  I thought we were on track for a storm about 5:15 PM, but I misread the radar.  There are severe storms to the northwest, and storms to the southwest.

I want the rain. I do not want anything destructive, but the rain is important.  Not just for our lawns, but for the farmers, and the reservoirs, or water supplies as they are called in West Texas.

That's Interesting

I was looking at my blog statistics tonight, and I realized that some of the posts that were being  viewed were up to more than 15 months old.  I am not sure what that means. I would like to know what brings these old posts to the attention of viewers.  I wish these people would send me comments so I knew why they were interested in my blog.

Driving

One of the most frustrating experiences for me when I am driving on a highway (loop, interstate, freeway, limited access highway, turnpike, etc.) is when I want to change lanes, and I slow down, or speed up and the vehicle around which I am trying to navigate, makes the same change. 

This happened to me yesterday on my way home from work. When I looked at the vehicle, I saw that the driver was not even paying attention to me.  I realized that she was doing, what we are often exhorted to do, and that is to drive with the traffic.  When I slowed down, she slowed down. When I sped up, she sped up.  She was oblivious to what I was trying to do.  She was lost in her driving.

I finally made a drastic change in my speed so that she had to go past me, and just barely in time for me to make the lane change so I could exit the loop.

This was an "ah ha" moment for me.  

A Storm

We had a storm last night.  Around 6 PM, the wind, rain, thunder, lightning and hail blew in. I had the doors open so I could watch the storm.  I know that is risky, but I did it.  There was dime sized hail.

I put 3 buckets on the back patio, to catch water for the rain barrel:  they were full, along with the one that always stays out.  I poured them into the rain barrel this morning, about 20 gallons.  I did not want a stray cat to try to drink from the bucket and fall in.

The rain gauge said 1.25 inches.  The yard was wet this morning, and parts were still wet, tonight.

The girls were restless, Sake and Haiku stayed hidden.  Taki stayed close for much of the evening.

There seemed to be little or no damage at my house.  I am blessed.

A storm like this is not atypical for Lubbock, although they are few and far between.  But, when we have a storm, it is often like this.

Plumbing Access

In the computer room, there is a wall access to the bathtub plumbing in the main bathroom.  There is a desk about 8 inches from the wall.  For years, that door has remained closed.  Until a few weeks ago.  I noticed that the door was open.  I dared not close it, until I could account for all three cats.  Eventually, I did close it.

Last night, I noticed it was open again.  I again had to find the cats before I could close it.  I am not sure why this door is opening.  Of course, both Sake and Haiku know how to open these types of doors.  So it could be one of the cats.  It could be a pressure thing.
Who knows. 

Hmmm.

Printer,Scanner, Copier

I have a Hewlitt Packard 750 Printer, Scanner, Copier http://www.shopping.hp.com/en_US/home-office/-/products/Laptops/Laptops?aoid=51318&keyword=hp%20computer&KWID=248473&002=2190637&006=14195373668&007=Search&008=&009=b&012=hp%20computer&021=17986217381.   I am not sure when I purchased it, but probably about 2005. And, it has served me well. Until recently. Sometimes, it does not want to make copies. Looking at the troubleshooting information in the manual it came with, the bulb for the scanning function may be too dim.  I have been able to finagle the copier to work, but I think, sooner or later, I will not be able to do that

I went online to look for help, or a local authorized HP service provider. I could not find one. I will call next week and try to find one.  I do not know how I feel about packaging and shipping my printer to have a bulb changed. That seems extreme. 

I suspect, looking at new printer prices, it would be less expensive to eventually buy a new printer.  So much for planned obsolescence.

Hair Cut

For years, since the early 1990's, I went to a hairdresser who I really liked as a person and as a hairdresser.  Even when she had health problems, and others substituted for her, when she returned to work, I used her. But I used to be able to get a Saturday morning appointment. When she stopped working Saturdays, I was able to finagle late afternoon appointments for a long time. But as her health deteriorated, those appointments were harder to cadge.

So, I live just a few blocks from a Pro Cuts outlet  http://www.procuts.com/, and have been using them.  I cannot say I have identified a hairdresser that I want to use every time. When I like one, that person is no longer at the shop the next time! Well, the last time I had my hair cut, "Frank" did it. He did a good job. Today, when I went in, he was the hairdresser next available.  He asked me if I wanted a shampoo and a style. I had not ever thought about a style.  I just want a hair cut that allows me to wash, comb and not have to do anything else. Which is what Frank gave me.

Maybe, if there is something special in my future, I will get a shampoo and style. But that is so not me.

The VFW Poppy

As I was out and about today, running errands, at one of the stores I visited, I was approached by an elderly gentleman in VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars) regalia, who wanted to give me a poppy. I accepted the poppy, and thanked him for his service to our country. He told me that he was honored to serve. I did not ask where he served, but he was older than me, so I am thinking maybe Korea?

I stopped and looked for some cash in my wallet, and found a couple of dollars to donate. I apologized I did not have more, and the several veterans at the table descended upon me and thanked me for what I contributed.  

How do you thank people who have put their life on the line so I can go about my life, day by day, with minimal fear of foreign intrusion?

I remember the VFW poppy from when I was a child. The VFW members used to stand in front of St. John's Catholic Church, in Millers Falls, Mass., on the various days that commemorated veterans.  This weekend was Flag Day.  But Memorial Day, Labor Day, and Veteran's Day were also represented. And, maybe D-Day and Pearl Harbor Day.  I do not recall. But we always donated a quarter for a poppy.

Thank you to all veterans and active duty military who serve the United States so that our country can continue to exist with the freedoms we have.

The Electronic Medical Record

Does your medical provider(s) use an electronic medical record?  My primary care physician has, since 2005, when I first started using this provider.   When I visit, which is very rare, they print a copy of our interaction.  
I have kept those printouts, but they are not organized. I think I need to get a three ring binder, and keep those documents in the binder.

I think this is very wise.  If you have a copy of every interaction you have with every provider you use, keep it filed and organized, you can take it with you when you visit other providers.  And, what happens if your provider's electronic files are compromised, or the system goes down and cannot be revived? Don't tell me this cannot happen. I know from personal experience that it can.

Electronic data capture is wonderful, but it is not fool-proof.  Protect yourself.

Rain in the Desert

Lubbock is not in the desert, technically.  We are technically considered "semi-arid."  I am not sure what that means, except that our average rainfall is higher than a true desert.  But we have the sweltering heat, the dry, dusty winds, and the very often, cool nights in the summer.  And the regular low humidity.

Last week, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday nights we had rain showers. Wednesday was the evening  when the winds were 60 to 80 mph, and did so much damage.  My rain gauge had 1 inch of rain. Friday morning, after the Thursday night rain, my rain gauge had .25 inches of rain. And Saturday morning, the rain gauge had .5 inches of rain. I might add that each night, I had my south-facing bedroom windows locked open about 3 inches, and no rain came in. So, the rain was not from the south.

The rain is good, and helps the plants, and lawns, and adds water to the water bodies around here.

This Friday morning, as I was getting ready for work, I saw large, very widely spaced intermittent drops of rain. I was reminded of the cartoons of Wiley Coyote, dashing between raindrops to stay dry.  Whoever made that cartoon understood rain in the desert.  You can almost actually do that.  Sometimes, the rain is so sparse, the drops are truly that few and far in between. 

Additionally, virga http://weather.about.com/od/v/g/virga.htm happens a lot. And, we have mud rain http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rain_dust.  I  experienced this the first year I lived in Lubbock, 1977, when I was returning to Lubbock by plane on a business trip.

Rain in the desert is interesting. It can cause flash floods.  It stimulates plants that have been dormant for very long periods of time, allows them to blossom and do what plants need to do to procreate, and then, go dormant again.

Desert animals also maximize rains.  Nature is truly amazing in the adaptions that have occurred over the years, to allow plants and animals to exist in harsh environments.

Baseball on TV

I am grateful for national coverage of baseball. That way, teams that I like that are not Texas teams have their games televised.  And, when those teams are doing well, the number of their games that are nationally televised increase.

So, I have had the opportunity to watch a lot of Yankee and Red Sox baseball this year. Although, at the beginning of the season, it was predicted that neither team would do well, as with the Red Sox, it is a re-building year, and with the Yankees, they have had so many injuries.

Well, guess what. The Red Sox are leading the American League East, and the Yankees are 3.5 games behind them, and not playing well by Yankee standards!  It makes no sense, prediction-wise.  But these teams have a tradition and history.  It seems when players come to these teams, they step up their game. 

Go Red Sox!

Go Yankees!

Mental Traffic

I have not written since Friday.  I have had a lot of mental traffic occurring in my brain, and when that occurs, it is very difficult for me to put words down, formulate thoughts, be creative or even dull.

I am still experiencing the mental traffic, but sometimes, you just have to plow on.  The way to get better at reading is to read.  The way to get something written is to write.

Why, you might ask, do I have so much mental traffic occurring?  Well, there are several reasons:

We have had some emergencies at work that have thrown all of our schedules off track. That makes it hard for me to feel like I have done what I need to and can go home and not have things pending in the back of my mind. I feel stressed and pressured to get "caught up" if that can ever happen. Or, at least, to get back to the schedule that I had that was workable for me.

Some re-organization at work has left me with a larger than large caseload.  Not the largest.  But we have addressed some of how we can adjust that.

I am concerned about the coming heat season.  We have had some recent rains, which have been nice.  The first storm caused a great deal of damage, but not at my house, thankfully.  We appreciate the rain, but do not see any more forthcoming in a while.

The Red Sox are playing surprisingly good baseball, so they have been on TV more than they might otherwise, and that has meant having the games on some.  I watch, computer, knit, read during the commercials, but that impinges on my brain.

But, I will say, Saturday afternoon, and part of Sunday, the house was quiet: I was reading, and did not even play music.  So, I have had some quiet time. But my mind was still popping, even while I was trying to read.

Sunday night, I had a social activity to which I needed to attend.  I had it on my mind, so I would not forget to go. I did not forget to go.  It was fine.

I think it is time just to do some quiet reflection and empty the brain a little. Or, at least, change the pace. 

So, I will try that tonight.  The TV is off. The air conditioner is running which gives good "white noise" for the background.  The ceiling fans are humming, another source of good "white noise."

I am not being inspired, but this can serve as an update of where I am.

Sake

I am concerned about Sake.  She is a very picky eater these days, and has lost weight. For a long time, I was cooking chicken liver for her.  At first, she ate it enthusiastically. Then, not so.  At first, I could cook two pounds, and she would eat it. But then, as the two pounds got older, she did not eat it. So, then I cooked one pound at a time. Again, after a while, if the liver was not fresh cooked that day or the next day, she just nibbled at it.

Last Thanksgiving, Sake insisted on getting some Cornish game hen for breakfast one day.  So, Memorial Day, I grilled a chicken (beer can chicken).  She seemed to really enjoy it. I bought more chicken and just boiled it. At the beginning of the week, she seemed really interested in the chicken.  But she is already tired of it.

Today, when I got home from work, she did not come out for dinner. I did not put food out for her, either.  Just a few minutes ago, she came looking for me, and I gave her some chicken.  I know it's been sitting in the refrigerator for a week, but it is well covered, and still tastes fresh to me. But she is not so interested.  

I do not know what to do to keep Sake interested in eating.

The Red Sox Win

I was watching the Texas Rangers http://texas.rangers.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=tex vs. the Boston Red Sox http://boston.redsox.mlb.com/index.jsp?c_id=bos baseball game tonight. Big Papi, David Ortiz, http://mlb.mlb.com/players/david_ortiz/index.jsp hit a "walk off" home run.  That was great.

When David Ortiz got to home plate, or shortly there after, he lost his Red Sox jersey, and had his Boston Strong T-shirt on (I suspect it was under his jersey.)

You may remember, the first day that the Red Sox played baseball at home in Boston after the Boston Marathon bombings, David Ortiz addressed the crown http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf2QGHTxgu0. Big Papi was forgiven for his profanity by the powers that be http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lf2QGHTxgu0.  And rightly so. Sometimes, we just have to get spitting mad.

I think it is great that several weeks later, David Ortiz is still commemorating the victims and survivors of the Boston Marathon bombings.  He is a class act. He has always been a class act.

Yeah, Big PapI!

D-Day Commemoration

I did not click to the fact that today was an anniversary of D-Day. Actually, the 69th anniversary of D-Day.  However, I was able to attend the Silent Wings Museum commemoration of D-Day http://www.mylubbock.us/departmental-websites/departments/silent-wings-museum/home.  They had some WWII vintage planes. I did not ride in one.  Hmmm. Maybe I will in the future.  There was a film about D-Day. I thought it might be the one I just watched on PBS, but it was different. It came from the D-Day Museum in New Orleans, http://www.ddaymuseum.org/.

The ceremony at the Silent Wings Museum was to commemorate the Breedlove Airport http://breedlove-cptp.org/Breedlove_Airport.html, the first commercial, official airport in Lubbock.

I am grateful I was able to attend the ceremony.

D-Day History

I really like World War II movies. I am not sure why, but I do.  Not just the submarine movies, but most of the movies.  One of my favorite movies is The Longest Day http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0056197/. This movie is filled with many, many stars, and has many vignettes of what happened during D-Day.  By my personal research, I learned that many of these vignettes were true, with some artistic license taken.  Tonight, on PBS, I watch a show about D-Day http://www.livingbattlefield.org/battlefield-tours-on-dvd.html . From this show, I learned that many of the vignettes in The Longest Day are based in fact.

That was very interesting to me. 

I appreciate movies when they tell us truths, even in modified form.

Thank You to Those Who Make Comments About My Blog

Thank you to those who make comments about my blog. I appreciate that. It lets me know that someone is reading. 

When I check my "statistics" I see that my blog is being monitored, but I suspect most of that viewing is being done by technologically automatic viewers.  I do not get any feed back or response.  When I was having trouble with my email platform by Suddenlink, I did receive a couple of comments, but the second one revealed to me that both were remote, automatic and not person generated.  Why was I surprised? I should not have been.

Anyway, I thank you, the individual reader, and commentator.

Kayaking at Dunbar Historic Lake

When a friend and I purchased kayaks in 2007, we practiced paddling at very small playa lakes in the City of Lubbock http://www.mylubbock.us/departmental-websites/departments/parks-recreation/home: initially Leftwich Park, then Goedeke Park, and finally, the Canyon Lakes System.  The best lake to kayak on is Lake 6, or Dunbar Historic Lake http://www.ci.lubbock.tx.us/docs/parks-rec-file-library/bike-trails---dunbar-historical-lake.pdf?sfvrsn=2.

The water in all of these playa lakes is nasty.  Street run off, including oil, and other chemicals, lawn run off, including herbicides and pesticides, and sewage, although the City of Lubbock may deny it pollutes the waters. But we are not out there to swim, just to paddle.

When we first started paddling, we seldom saw people on the lakes. But as the years have progressed, we have talked to people about our experiences, and others have decided to join us. Also, some folks we do not know are out there on the water. Today, I went paddling. It was a beautiful day, a little breezy, but not bad. There was another male kayaker in a sit-in kayak, and two people out in sit-upon kayaks, and as I was disembarking, a father was launching his canoe to take his two children out, for some fishing. 

The use of the lakes has increased remarkably in the last 6 years. I am not sure how much the City of Lubbock can do about street pollutants entering into the Canyon Lake System, but I think it maybe time to ask them to look at the sewage system pollutants.

Concert in the Park

When I was a child, my parents would take us to the band shell at Unity Park, in Turners Falls, Ma. http://www.montague.net/pages/montaguema_parks/parks for concerts.  In the picture on this website, the shell was on the far right.  When I was little, I hated going to these concerts. 

As a young adult, I started going to these concerts and enjoyed them.  Hmmm.

When I first moved to Lubbock, I was on a very limited budget and found things to do that were free.  One of the first things I found was the Concert in the Park, at Clapp Park http://www.mylubbock.us/departmental-websites/departments/parks-recreation/parks/city-parks. The band playing was the Westwinds Brass Band http://westwindsbrassband.org/index.php. Dean Killion was the conductor then.  I attended these concerts for the first few years I was in Lubbock, then fell off.

When my neighborhood had a neighborhood association, we had a couple of concerts at Leftwich Park. I am not sure any of them were the Westwinds Brass Band.  I know one was the Lubbock Youth Orchestra. Sometimes, I went to other neighborhood parks for their concerts.

I lived in the country for a while, but when I moved back to town, I started going to the Concerts in the Park again.  These are now regularly scheduled at Wagner Park for most of the Sundays in June and some in July .  They are sponsored by the Tech Terrace - UNIT Neighborhood Association.  And the Westwinds Brass Band is the performing act.

Sometimes, they move one or two concerts to other locales.  But most are at Wagner Park.

Tonight was the first night of the 2013 series.  It was a beautifully mild evening, and the crowd was large.  The band was good.

This time of year is busy for the Westwinds, if you look at their website.  They play at Fourth on Broadway, the Lubbock 4th of July Street Festival.  They also play at the First Methodist patriotic concert.  I do not get to that.  It starts at  6PM and is usually "sold out." It is too hard to get there in a timely way from work.  But I understand it is an outstanding music event.

I will miss the concert next week, as I have a prior commitment.  But the Concert in the Park is one of the fastest hours of the week, in my book.

The Impact of Sports on Our Lives

There are very many impacts of sports on our lives.  I cannot begin to address all of those impacts, but there is one area of our lives that I want to address.  And I want to address it by talking about two movies that specifically highlight this aspect of our lives.

The United States fought a War Between the North and the South http://www.civilwar.org/education/history/civil-war-overview/northandsouth.html over economic issues, specifically, but not only, the issue of slavery. By war's end, the black slaves of all states in the United States were declared emancipated http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/featured_documents/emancipation_proclamation/transcript.html.

However, Blacks were not treated well, nor as equals, nor allowed to integrate into our society for close to a hundred years after the war's end.  Segregation was promulgated by "The Jim Crow Laws" http://www.nps.gov/malu/forteachers/jim_crow_laws.htm, not withstanding the fact that Integration technically became the law of the land in 1866 http://www.withylaw.com/history.htm.  There are still racial problems in the United States, not with just the Blacks, but that is one of the areas of racism the United States still faces.

Although there have been Black soldiers in wars fought by the United States, beginning with the War for Independence http://www.army.mil/africanamericans/timeline.html,  the United States military did not officially integrate until 1946 http://www.withylaw.com/history.htm.  Even then, integration was not widely nor uniformly implemented. However, the integration of the United States military opened the door for other types of integrations.

Sports in the United States was a venue which saw integration after World War II.  Yesterday, I went to watch the movie 42 http://42movie.warnerbros.com/,  which is based on the story of Branch Rickey, Brooklyn Dodger executive, choosing Jackie Robinson as the first Negro player in Major League Baseball. I do not usually go to the movies.  I went to see this movie the weekend it was released.  A friend of mine wanted to see it, and invited me to join her.  I enjoyed the movie more the second time, than I did the first, and saw things in it the second time that I missed the first time. And, I can tell you, I will see this movie many more times.

I have seen the movie Glory Road http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0385726/ multiple times on TV or DVD.  The story is about the 1966 NCAA Championship team, the Texas Western Miners, http://gloryroad.utep.edu/home.aspx, which started 5 black players in the championship game, the first such team to win a championship. Did Coach Don Haskins set out to integrate NCAA basketball on a grand scale? From watching the movie, he just set out to win.  And win he did. But that championship game is considered one of, if not the most important basketball games in NCAA history. 

These two stories are a prime example of how sports impacts our lives.  Integration was a long, emotional, hard fought, and bloody battle.  It did not go smoothly in sports any more than it went in many other aspect of our lives.  But sports has had a major impact on integration. 

Does Shelburne Falls Have a New Identity?

I could have sworn that I wrote about the filming of the movie Labor Day, http://www.recorder.com/home/6721923-95/movie-magic-is-latest-draw-in-the-falls based on a novel by Joyce Maynard of the same name.  But, if I did, I could not find the posts.  Well, that is okay, I sometimes have strange titles and strange labels for my posts, that make no sense to me when I go back to read them. So, if I did write about that, why should I think I can find it? 

The reason I would have written about Labor Day last year was because it was being filmed in Western Massachusetts, mostly Shelburne Falls, but also in the Franklin County Jail, and other areas in Massachusetts.  I followed its filming in my home town newspaper, The Greenfield Recorder http://www.recorder.com/ and I read the book, Labor Day http://www.joycemaynard.com/Joyce_Maynard/B__Labor_Day.html. I have been anticipating the release of Labor Day, http://www.deadline.com/2013/05/labor-day-movie-jason-reitman-release-date-december-25-2013/ which is apparently set for near Christmas 2013.  Why it would not be released near Labor Day 2013 is beyond me, but I think this has to do with Oscar politics, and holiday box office numbers. So, maybe, it is not beyond me.

So, today, I was reading The Greenfield Recorder again, and once again Shelburne Falls is being used as a location for a movie http://www.recorder.com/home/6721923-95/movie-magic-is-latest-draw-in-the-falls The Judge http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1872194/.  I think this is a great economic boost for Shelburne Falls, and from all reports in The Greenfield Recorder, the locals are as enamored with this cast and crew as they were with the Labor Day cast and crew. 

I think it is great that Shelburne Falls, and the surrounding area is being used for movie locations. That is so neat.

This is not the first time that movies have been filmed in Western Massachusetts http://www.mafilm.org/made-in-mass/.  The most memorable for me is Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061184/.  Another was The Edge of Darkness http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1226273/ but frankly, the movie stunk.

So, does Shelburne Falls have a new identity as a movie location?  Does two movies, two years in a row, make it so? And why do people in the film industry know about Shelburne Falls.

I have to wonder. Shelburne Falls has a very famous resident, Bill Cosby http://billcosby.com/ , who has a residential compound in Shelburne Falls.  Mr. Cosby resided in Shelburne Falls because he was a post-graduate student at the University of Massachusetts, http://www.umass.edu/ in Amherst, Massachusetts. Early on, the University of Massachusetts had liberal "university without walls" standards. Mr. Cosby could actually use some of his television programming as part of his PhD thesis material.  That is as it should be. It was so educationally about appropriate family and parenting values, and the television venue ensured it was mass marketed in a way that other educational material would not be received.

I do not know if Mr. Cosby was influential in the filming of these new movies.  If he was, I think Franklin County owes him a thank you, at least.  If not, well coincidences  are not always as coincidental as we believe.

So, now, I have another movie for which I have to anticipate the release.