The Glass Slipper

 

Sunday in the Valley

Even when I was working, on Sundays, I typically did very little physical activity unless there was something that I did not finish on Saturday...  otherwise, Sundays were spent, not sleeping late, but on just sitting around relaxing either writing, reading, or watching some movie on the television...  sometimes, we would visit friends or they would visit us, and sometimes, we might go shopping and out to eat at a local restaurant...  maybe a brunch somewhere...  not necessarily a buffet as one always tends to eat more than one should.

After being retired and finding almost everyday is like a Sunday, I have no longer seen Sundays as being something special...  however, I am sure I have just pissed off those who go to Church each Sunday...  my experience with institutionalized religions (ie:  Churches) is that most of the congregation is being hypocritical or is attending just to be seen by their neighbors, and those that are preaching from the pulpit only talk about things that are comfortable and have no controversy attached to them like was Jesus married...

I also find it unsettling how we selected certain books to be in The Bible while leaving others out that did not fit the narrative that they wanted to create and then try to convince us that The Bible was divinely inspired and was written by God through the hands of man...

Those who win the wars write the History Books and slant history as they see it...  the same thing holds true of The Bible and the books in The Bible and how they were written...  BUT, the main issue that I have with the divinely inspired Bible and the tales contained therein, is that the timeline is ABSOLUTELY WRONG...   in that, The Bible says that the universe is only 6,000 years old...  6th grade science proves that to be incorrect.

So...  what else is incorrect???

HOWEVER, I do believe that there is a creator or some sort and disregard the scientific concept of spontaneous creation...  something cannot just come for nothing...  something can only come from something...  but again, where did the first something come from and how in the hell did it get here?

So...  Sundays are not spent reflecting on religious ideologies...  not anymore...  but, I am grateful for the life that I have been given and after experiencing that life for 74 years still wonder why I was not given a choice in deciding if I wanted to be born or not...  I had no control over that decision...  nor did I have any control on being born white or to the parents I was given or to my physical location of birth...  the USA rather than Russia or China...

I am glad that I am white.

I am glad that I am an American.

I am glad that I am middle class.

I am glad that I was given a strong body and mind.

BUT WHY ME?

The Woman

 

Plankton Creates Mountains

A world without the great mountain ranges – the Himalayas, the Alps, the Rockies, the Andes – is unimaginable, but they were not always a part of the Earth’s geography. Mountains didn’t start forming widely until 2 billion years ago, half way through the planet’s history. Now our research has revealed how primitive life played a key role in their introduction to the planet.

While the formation of mountains is usually associated with the collision of tectonic plates causing huge slabs of rock to be thrust skywards, our study has shown that this was triggered by an abundance of nutrients in the oceans 2 billion years ago which caused an explosion of planktonic life.

Timeline for the formation of mountains on Earth. J Johnston/University of Aberdeen, Author provided

Making mountains
Mountains are not just a beautiful backdrop for recreation, they are essential to the way the world works, through their influence on weather, climate, the distribution of fresh water and the erosion of rock to make cultivable soil.

Before there were mountains, the plate movements that reshape the distribution of oceans and continents only occurred on a limited scale. But the movement of these plates are essential to making mountains. The pressure of one plate pushing against another – typically an ocean plate hitting a continental plate – causes slabs of ocean rock to break off and stack up on top of each other as they are pushed from behind.  READ MORE...

Classic Sunday Morning Newspaper Cartoons

 

Nutrient Poor Soil

If you're up to speed on nutrition news, you've probably heard talk that large-scale, industrial agriculture can deplete crops of essential vitamins and minerals that our bodies need to thrive. 

But why, exactly, does that happen, and what can be done about it?  For such a massive problem, the solution is actually microscopic. How soil microbes contribute to healthy, nutrient-dense food.

In its natural state, soil is full of invisible but indispensable microbes. Like, really full of them. There are more microorganisms in a handful of healthy soil than humans who have ever lived, and the microbes on our planet outnumber the stars in our universe more than a million times over.

In healthy, symbiotic systems, plant roots feed these soil microbes sugars and give them a place to latch onto. In return, the microbes help the plants absorb nutrients in the surrounding soil. 

All life on Earth depends on this mutually beneficial relationship—but some agricultural practices can mess with it.  READ MORE...

Transition

 

Eye Drops for Blurred Vision

A newly approved eye drop hitting the market on Thursday could change the lives of millions of Americans with age-related blurred near vision, a condition affecting mostly people 40 and older.

Vuity, which was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in October, would potentially replace reading glasses for some of the 128 million Americans who have trouble seeing close-up. The new medicine takes effect in about 15 minutes, with one drop on each eye providing sharper vision for six to 10 hours, according to the company.

Toni Wright, one of the 750 participants in a clinical trial to test the drug, said she liked what she saw.

"It's definitely a life changer," Wright told CBS News national correspondent Jericka Duncan.

Before the trial, the only way Wright could see things clearly was by keeping reading glasses everywhere — in her office, bathroom, kitchen and car.

"I was in denial because to me that was a sign of growing older, you know, needing to wear glasses," she said.

It was in 2019 that her doctor told her about a new eye drop with the potential to correct her vision problems, temporarily. The 54-year-old online retail consultant, who works from her farm in western Pennsylvania, instantly noticed a difference.

"I would not need my readers as much, especially on the computer, where I would always need to have them on," she said.  READ MORE...

Being Strong

 

Rainy Day Thoughts

 It is raining in the Valley today and quite naturally my thoughts turn to recent events of which we must all by now be aware...  Jussie Smolett was convicted on 5 of the 6 charges related to lying to the police about being mugged...

What I found most interesting about this case is that former President Obama, Presidential candidate Biden, and Vice Presidential candidate Harris ALL STATED how horrible it was for something like this to have happened here in America and blamed it all on President Trump for causing all this hatred to flourish.

Two years later and we find our that Jussie Smolett LIED TO LAW ENFORCEMENT, neither Obama, Biden, or Harris are commenting...  GO FIGURE???

FIRST THOUGHTS:  Should leaders jump to conclusions?

But...  what gets to me more than anything else is how EVERYONE has been and continues to blame Trump for everything...   now, I did not vote for him mind you, but I think the way he was treated was horrible, especially when one compares Trump to Biden in terms of accomplishments.

Thanks to Biden, we now have:

• Highest inflation in 40 years
• Highest Illegal Immigration in our history
• A Supply Chain Shortage
• Increases in urban crime and violence
• Influx of illegal drugs from Mexico
• Distrust of all our Allies
• Repercussions of an Afghanistan withdrawal debacle
• CRT being taught in public schools
• Highest government spending ever
• Potential of tax increases
• Highest debt level ever
• Judging people on color not character
• People leaving law enforcement
• A weakened military
• A decreasing quality of education
• A reduction of STEM students

Did Jussie Smolett cause all of this?  HELL NO...

Did Trump cause all of this?  HELL NO...

America is being influenced by Liberals, Progressives, and Radical Blacks who apparently do not like America as she presently has developed...   Sadly, no matter what anyone does whether it is conservatives, liberals, progressives, or blacks, THE WEALTHY will continue to get WEALTHY...  that is just the way that economies aamre set up...  The only way to keep the wealthy from getting wealthy is to have our FEDERAL GOVERNMENT own everything...

Can you imagine our Federal Government owning:

• Microsoft
• Apple
• Dell
• The Stock Market
• ALL Banks
• Walmart
• Lowes
• Hollywood
• All music companies
• Sam's
• Starbucks
• Dillards
• John Deere
• All airlines
• All Train companies
• All commerical bus companies
• All Trucking companies
• All grocery stores
• All Professional Sports Teams

UNFORTUNATELY, most of us 80%-90% WILL NEVER BE WEALTHY no matter who owns what...

Democrats cannot stop the wealth

Republicans cannot stop the wealth

Progressives cannot stop the wealth

Blacks cannot stop the wealth

Socialism cannot stop the wealth

Insect

Quantum Spin Liquid

A solid is made of atoms that are, more or less, locked in an ordered structure. A liquid, on the other hand, is made of atoms that can flow freely around and past each other. But imagine atoms that stay unfrozen, like those in a liquid–but which are in a constantly changing magnetic mess.

What you have then is a never-before-seen state of matter, a state of quantum weirdness called a quantum spin liquid. Now, by carefully manipulating atoms, researchers have managed to create this state in the laboratory. The researchers published their work in the journal Science on December 2.

Scientists had discussed theories about spin liquids for years. “But we really got very interested in this when these theorists, here at Harvard, finally found a way to actually generate the quantum spin liquids,” says Giulia Semeghini, a physicist and postdoc at Harvard University, who coordinated the research project and was one of the paper authors.

Under extreme conditions not typically found on Earth, the rules of quantum mechanics can twist atoms into all sorts of exotica. Take, for instance, degenerate matter, found in the hearts of dead stars like white dwarfs or neutron stars, where extreme pressures cook atoms into slurries of subatomic particles. Or, for another, the Bose-Einstein condensate, in which multiple atoms at very low temperatures sort of merge together to act as one (its creation won the 2001 Nobel Prize in Physics).  READ MORE...

Washing Toys

 

$70 Million of Stolen Art Surrendered

Michael Steinhart, a billionaire investor and antiquities collector, agreed on Tuesday to surrender 180 stolen relics worth a combined $70 million, reports CNN. 

But that’s not all. Steinhardt, a hedge fund manager who accrued one of the world’s largest collections of ancient art, also agreed to a lifetime ban on acquiring antiquities.

Steinhardt had been under investigation by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Antiquities Trafficking Unit, according to an official press release. 

The team looked into over 1,000 items acquired by the collector since 1987 and found him to be in possession of stolen artifacts that had been smuggled out of 11 countries by 12 different criminal networks. 

Some of the more noteworthy items (pictured above) include Stag’s Head Rhyton, a ceremonial vessel valued at $3.5 million; the Larnax, a small chest for human remains valued at $1 million, and a trio of death masks dating back to 7000 BCE that are valued at $650,000. The items will now be returned to their rightful owners.  READ MORE...

Wake Up

 

Mood Foods

With the sun showing up late and leaving early these days (seriously, why can't we get away with that), feeling not-so sunny yourself lately isn't an uncommon experience. For some, the dip in mood is minimal, but for others it can be debilitating. (If that's the case for you, it's a good idea to talk to a therapist who can give tips specific to managing seasonal depression.)

If you've looked into ways to boost your mood even a little bit, you've probably heard about serotonin, aka a neurotransmitter in the brain that's linked to better mood and overall satisfaction. Serotonin is a chemical made by nerve cells and communicates with other cells in the body. While it's certainly not the only chemical connected to mood regulation (dopamine, oxytocin, and endorphins all do too), it is an important piece of the feel-good puzzle. And get this: There are ways to boost your serotonin naturally through what you eat.

Neuroscientist and Cleaning Uo Your Mental Mess ($17) author Caroline Leaf, PhD, explains that serotonin is made from the amino acid tryptophan. (Yep, the same amino acid that can make you sleepy after eating Thanksgiving turkey.) "Tryptophan is found in many foods and may support the production of serotonin," she says, adding that more research needs to be done to really solidify the connection between diet and mood. (Although the research that does exist is extremely strong.)

With this in mind, there are five serotonin foods that are high in tryptophan that can easily be worked into your meals, according to Dr. Leaf.

5 serotonin foods to eat during winter and always
1. Eggs
Eggs top Dr. Leaf's serotonin foods list not only because they contain tryptophan but also because they're high in choline (a B vitamin) and protein. Choline is directly linked to supporting brain health, including mood, and protein gives the body energy. (Feeling run-down and sad often go hand-in-hand.)  READ MORE...

The Borg

Remembering

Three days ago, we celebrated the 80th anniversay of the bombing on Pearl Harbor, Hawaii by the Japanese Royal Navy...  many civilians and military lost their lives that day and the attacked pulled the USA into WWII...

But how many of us really remember that happening?  Not very many of us because we were not even born yet...  but, as we celebrate that date, we are trying, I suppose, to force people to remember.

Three months ago tomorrow, is the 20th anniversary on the bombing of the World Trade Center in New York City by Islamic Terrorists in which several thousand people were killed...  mostly civilians were killed this time and other than what the media tries to get us to remember, we pretty much don't think about it during our day-to-day lives...

Why do we not think about that horrible event?

For me, it does not impact my life currently nor did it impact my life 20 years ago.  I felt sorry for the families of those who died, but I did not end up hating Muslims nor did I hold any animosity towards people who were of the Islamic faith.

ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY SIX years ago, our Civil War ended after four years of fighting and killing fellow Americans.  We were told that the war was because of slavery and has bascially laid the foundation for all our racism here in America.  

I did not own slaves because I was not born yet.  My parents and grandparents did not own slaves either...  and if, my great grandparents or great, great grandparents owned slaves, what difference should that make to me?

We don't really celebrate the end of the Civil War, nor do we celebrate the end of WWI or the end of the Korean War or the end of the Vietnam War...  maybe we should...  but, we don't.

And yet, there are many black people in America who think people like me should be punished for what my ancestors may or may not have done, simply because I am white.

It is a common sentiment among radical Islamists that ALL CHRISTIANS should be killed because they are Christians and should be held accountable for what happened hundreds of years ago.

What happened hundreds of years ago, just like what happened 20 years ago or 80 years ago or 156 years ago, is not my concern and will never be my concern.  While I may be responsible for what happened ONE MINUTE AGO, there is not a damn thing that I can do to change what I did ONE MINUTE AGO...

I have never been a student of history nor did I ever want to be a student of history.  We learn about history, I suppose, so we don't make the same mistakes again...  and, I would submit to you that SLAVERY will never again happen in America whether I like that fact or not...  so, there is no reason that I should give a damn about slavery.

I would suspect that something like Pearl Harbor will happen again, and I suspect that something like NINE ELEVEN will happen again...  and, I can guarantee you that America will go to war again and no doubt it will be a war in someone else's country...

And, when and if that happens, it will be none of my concern as well...  although, it might indirectly impact me, I will not be responsible for what our leadership does or does not do.

I have a hard enough time remembering my own life...

Let's Be Nice To Iran Now

 

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