Quote of the Week...from Aretha Franklin

Sometimes, what you're looking for is already there.            ---Aretha Franklin

I was saddened yesterday morning to find out that Aretha Franklin passed away...many times she brightened up my often melancholy outlook with some incredible music.  More than that, though, was her wonderful, genuine personality...she said lots of good stuff over the past 50+ years.  The above quote I picked without exactly knowing the context in which she spoke it, but that's often the way with quotes.  I don't think, by her focus on the present, that she meant for people not to try and improve themselves or seek a better life for others...Aretha was always a big advocate for positive change.  The way I see it, a lot of us have problems with discontent and comparing ourselves unfavorably with others...maybe "they" have more wealth, perceived popularity, recognition, travels and adventures, and so on.  However, the only life we will ever experience is that which we have now...and sometimes it's a good idea to stop and reflect on what we have to be grateful for and not on what's all going down around us or who seems to be unfairly doing better than us.  It's good to believe in a better future and work for it, but it's equally good to savor the present and what we already have...advice that I too often forget to take for myself...

8/11 Sermon on "Theology for Dummies", Part 2

Continuing at The Family Church here in Gainesville with his series Theology for Dummies that seeks to more clearly explain the basic principles of Christianity, senior pastor Philip Griffin presented a discussion this past Sunday titled The Attributes of God.  Using various passages scattered throughout the Bible, he described the Lord in ways that mean the most for us as we worship him...

Pastor Philip listed God's main attributes: always there, all-powerful, all-knowing, all-loving, and all-righteous.  Furthermore, in regard to the above, God never changes.  Philip pointed out that God that doesn't only reside at church but is everywhere...even in places that we may find ourselves "hiding" from him. His omnipotence is demonstrated by his having created the universe.  His knowledge extends to what is in our hearts, even before we express it through our words or actions.  God is not vengeful or angry, our pastor stressed, but his love is powerful and personal and overcomes evil...which points to his righteousness and fairness in seeing people without distinguishing among whatever demographic groups they happen to belong to.  And, Pastor Philip added, God's non-changing nature is demonstrated in four areas: his Word, character, love for us, and purpose for our lives...all directed to us both collectively and as individuals.  His Word never fails to have application in our lives, and we need to do what is right, be honest, and be faithful: God is always these things.  And Philip reminded us that while human love wears out, God's doesn't: when we know that God always loves us, we don't need another human being to define love for us.  And finally, as our pastor concluded, God takes even our mistakes and misdeeds for his own purposes, to glorify him. Turn control over to God, whose plan for salvation is through Jesus: the way, the road, the path...

You can watch this message on the church's YouTube video website...just click on the following link: [TFC Video].  The Family Church, located at 2022 SW 122nd Street, holds its Sunday morning services at 9 and 10:30.  Along with the weekly message is praise and worship music, prayer, and further opportunities for learning and discipleship.  Lots of friendly folks are there to chat with before, between, after services, and there is a hospitality center with coffee and treats as well.  Let's see what Pastor Philip has to say next week...

And here's a list of the Bible passages Pastor Philip used in this message...in the order he presented it. I recommend you use the Bible Gateway website to read them if don't have a Bible handy...

Psalm 90:2, 139:7-10
Jeremiah 32:17
Hebrews 4:13
1 John 4:8
Psalm 89:14
Malachi 3:6
Hebrews 13:8
Isaiah 40:8
Matthew 24:35
Deuteronomy 32:4
Hebrews 6:18
Psalm 145:13
Romans 8:39
James 1:17
Romans 8:28
Psalm 125:1

Weekly Short Story: To Walk a City's Street by Clifford Simak

Clifford Simak is one of my all-time favorite science fiction writers...his 1972 short story To Walk a City's Street is just another of several I have enjoyed over the years.  It appears in the anthology The 1973 Annual World's Best SF with Donald Wollheim (also a science fiction writer) the book's editor and publisher.  Simak's tale examines the desire that so many of us have...and it largely drives the food supplement industry...of a panacea that will eliminate illness and prolong our lives.  Ernie is a homeless man at some point in the not-so-distant future (from the author's 1972 perspective).  With their enhanced ability to collect accurate, specific data on the population's health by geographical area, the government health authority is able to determine that the immediate run-down, poverty-stricken urban neighborhood around homeless Ernie is completely disease-free.  Further investigation narrows the cause to Ernie himself: this simple man apparently is a carrier of good health and it wears off on anyone he contacts.  So the smart guys in Washington come up with the idea of hiring Ernie to walk up and down different heavily populated urban streets, in areas where there seems to be a higher level of sickness.  The results are coming back positive, sickness is being eliminated wherever he goes...but Ernie is also beginning to resent and resist his new life...well-paid and provided for he might be...missing his old friends and neighborhood in spite of his previous poverty.  Ernie's handlers are able to control him for the most part, but then they receive a sobering message about that old neighborhood of his.  I won't tell you how it all ends, but you should expect a sharp paradigm shift here...

One of the things I love the most about Clifford Simak's stories...and it distinguishes him from a lot of other sci-fi writers...is that he has a heart for his characters: Ernie's sweet, innocent personality comes out quickly in this very short tale, and even the government men assigned to accompany him on his walks are shown to have their own particular feelings and lives.  I've found writers who are able to accomplish this to be my favorites...it's probably the main reason I've read most of Stephen King's fiction.  But back to the notion that there is a panacea floating around out there that can rid us of our ailments if we can only pinpoint and corral it.  Our bodies are ecosystems within themselves, and the microscopic life permeating them have extremely complicated relationships.  If a drug is administered to kill off one type of invading bacteria but kills off other necessary bacteria, then the door is open for something else to invade the body.  When considering this complexity other data such as illness levels among the population don't necessarily line up in agreement, as Clifford Simak's story illustrates.  Also, it was clear to me that the terror of possible sickness and death...and the prospects of reversing it all...clouded the ostensibly scientific and objective process of those seeking to better the world through someone like Ernie.  What if there are carriers like him around...I encourage you to read To Walk a City's Street for yourself...

Tuesday's List: Soccer's English Premier League...Current & Previous Teams

I began to earnestly follow the English Premier League in international soccer in the fall of 2014, so I'm a relative newcomer to it.  The Premier League began in 1992, although the same clubs competed at the highest level...some for decades...within other leagues before that.  The Premier League contains twenty teams and determines its annual championship by who wins the regular season title.  Also, each year the three lowest finishing clubs are relegated (demoted) to the next lower league, which is inappropriately called Football League Championship. In turn, that league's top three finishers are promoted to the Premier League for the following season.  Because of this, there has been a bit of turnover: since 1992 the English Premier League has seen a total of 49 different clubs!  Yet there are some (Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Everton, and Manchester United) who have been there all 27 years.  Using a very good Wikipedia list (here's the link), I rearranged the teams to first list this year's lineup of 20 teams (arranged in order of finish the previous year, with the last three being the promoted clubs) and then the other 29, the latter listed in order of number of seasons participating in the Premier League.  Following each club's names, in parentheses, is its highest ever finish in the league.  To me the English Premier League is the best soccer league in the world.  Its top teams measure up well with the best of other leagues while there is top-level play even between the lower clubs.  The new 2018-19 season began a week ago: I'm looking forward to another exciting time watching the matches on NBC Sports, whoever happens to be playing...

2018-19 SEASON TEAMS
MANCHESTER CITY (1)
MANCHESTER UNITED (1)
TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR (2)
LIVERPOOL (2)
CHELSEA (1)
ARSENAL (1)
BURNLEY (7)
EVERTON (4)
LEICESTER CITY (1)
NEWCASTLE UNITED (2)
CRYSTAL PALACE (10)
BOURNEMOUTH (9)
WEST HAM UNITED (5)
WATFORD (13)
BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION (15)
HUDDERSFIELD TOWN (16)
SOUTHAMPTON (6)
WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS (15)
CARDIFF CITY (20)
FULHAM (7)

PREVIOUS PREMIER LEAGUE TEAMS
BLACKBURN ROVERS (1)
SUNDERLAND (7)
MIDDLESBROUGH (7)
BOLTON WANDERERS (6)
LEEDS UNITED (3)
WEST BROMWICH ALBION (8)
STOKE CITY (9)
COVENTRY CITY (11)
NORWICH CITY (3)
WIMBLEDON (6)
CHARLTON ATHLETIC (7)
SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY (7)
WIGAN ATHLETIC (10)
QUEENS PARK RANGERS (5)
BIRMINGHAM CITY (9)
PORTSMOUTH (8)
SWANSEA CITY (8)
DERBY COUNTY (8)
NOTTINGHAM FOREST (3)
IPSWICH TOWN (5)
HULL CITY (16)
READING (8)
SHEFFIELD UNITED (14)
BRADFORD CITY (17)
OLDHAM ATHLETIC (19)
BARNSLEY (19)
BLACKPOOL (19)
SWINDON TOWN (22)

Main Candidates in August 28th Primary Election in Florida & Alachua County

If you're planning to vote in the upcoming primary election on August 28th (early voting August 18-25), you might want to know some of the candidates running in the various races here in Alachua County, Florida, and the United States Congress.  Since it's a primary election...other than judge and school board seats...registered Republicans and Democrats have been receiving their own different sample ballots.  And although there are lots of choices in the respective races (especially for state governor in both parties), it's generally acknowledged that there is a small number of leading contenders, which I'll discuss here...

For Florida governor, which Republican Rick Scott is vacating after eight years because of term limits, the Republican primary leader...according to polling...is U.S. Representative Ron DeSantis (endorsed by Trump), followed by Adam Putnam, currently our Commissioner of Agriculture.  These two have been fighting a brutal mail campaign with each accusing the other of selling out conservatism.  On the Democratic side, Gwen Graham, daughter of former Florida governor and senator Bob Graham, is ahead of businessman Jeff Greene.  Greene is coming out very strongly against Trump, especially regarding gun control, while Graham is touting her stances for education and the environment.  For the U.S. Senate seat currently held by Democrat Bill Nelson, the incumbent is running unopposed...his Republican opponent in November will almost certainly be Governor Scott, who has token opposition in this primary.  For the U.S. House of Representatives District 3 seat, comprising Alachua County (among other areas), Republican Tea Party incumbent Ted Yoho is opposed by Judson Sapp, who claims to be more pro-Trump than Yoho. With the Democrats, Yvonne Hayes Hinson, Tom Wells, and Dushyant Jethagir Gosal are on the ballot...I don't know who the favorite is here, but Hinson seems to be winning with the most campaign signs so far.  There are primary elections in each party for the state's Attorney General and Agriculture Commissioner seats.  The State Senate District 8 seat, currently held by Republican Keith Perry who has no party opposition, on the Democratic side has Kayser Enneking facing off against Olysha Magruder...whoever they are.  There are also State Representative primary elections for each party: District 10 for the Republicans and District 21 for the Democrats (at least as far as my own precinct is concerned). For the Alachua County Commission District 2, Randy Wells is running against Marihelen Wheeler in the Democratic Primary election...

There are two nonpartisan judicial races, one for the 8th Judicial Circuit, Group 8 and the other for County Judge, Group 2.  Also, three school board races are on all ballots.  District 1 has incumbent April Griffin vs. Tina Certain, District 3 has incumbent Gunnar Paulson against Judy McNeil and April Tisher, and District 5 has incumbent Rob Hyatt going against Paul Wolfe.  I probably should have been paying more attention here, but with the judges how am I supposed to know who to vote for?

It will be interesting to see what the voter turnout is for this primary election.  A high turnout would be encouraging, but I'll believe it when I see it...

Just Finished Reading Indignation by Philip Roth

Philip Roth, one of whose quotes I discussed a couple of days ago, is probably best known for his novels Goodbye Columbus and American Pastoral.  He was a keen observer of the American scene during his time (1933-2018) and did a lot of it from the perspective of a Jewish man living in the northeast.  Indignation, from 2008, sticks to this pattern as his protagonist, Marcus Messner, is a young Jewish college student from Newark, New Jersey, where he spent much of his youth putting in long hours helping his father, a kosher butcher, at their shop.  But although he had positive experiences at Robert Treat, his local college, Marcus's father has become unbearably overprotective and accusatory, even locking him out of the house one night because he thought his son was up to no good...when in reality he was just studying at the library.  So Marcus transfers to a small public college, Winesburg, in Ohio to escape his father's impossible presence.  But before we go any further, I must mention a crucial detail: it is 1951, the military draft is still in effect, and war rages in Korea with substantially large casualties for those fighting there. Marcus fears induction into the draft and that war without a college deferment, so he assiduously studies and maintains a strong A average...even though he works several hours a week as a waiter to defer some of his parents' expenses in sending him there.  It seems that Marcus is always trying to do the right thing, but those around him seem equally determined to undermine his studies and future...is he fated to end up in one of those Korean foxholes, attacked and killed by the Chinese?  Roth wrote this story from a unique perspective, which I leave for you to discover should you choose to read it.  Instead, I'd like to discuss one aspect from Indignation that made an impact on me: the draft, a protracted war, and how young men of the time viewed it all...

When the American participation in the Vietnam War started in earnest in 1965, I was eight going on nine.  By early in 1966, it was all escalating with no end in sight, and I was in the fourth grade.  We had a special class at the time in Nova Elementary School (Davie, Florida) that focused on what America was all about and was designed to foster patriotism among us.  One day while this was going on, a number of us met in the library's conference room with the librarian (I can't for the life of me remember her name) and one of our team teachers, Mr. Johnston, who was a big military enthusiast who collected all sorts of memorabilia and medals.  The two stood there explaining to us how important it was to fight in Vietnam...the librarian was very proud of her son, who was one of the soldiers over there, and said in effect that it was a great thing to give up your life for your country, making it seem to me at the time like an inevitability.  I knew nothing about the draft or college deferments then, but that meeting really creeped me out, young as I was.  While I was in my mid-teens, the war was still dragging on, with Nixon succeeding Johnson in prolonging it.  But by the time I was eligible to be drafted, not only had the war ended, but so had the military draft!  Looking back, I realized very strongly how the government was plucking young men out of their lives and sending them to be targets of the enemy...to draw out their fire, so to speak...in order to pinpoint their location so that we could hit them from the skies: a very cynical strategy.  I imagine something similar was used in Korea as well.  Anyway, if you were a teenager or college-age young man living during these times of conscription and seemingly endless war, you couldn't imagine the cloud hanging over your life...

Still Bemoaning Rise of Facebook

I've written before about how I bemoan the rapid rise of Facebook and its disastrous effect on independent personal blogging.  Just when millions of people were increasingly posting blogs and connecting with interested readers across their community, country...and even the world, here comes this social media website that reversed the trend, drew away most of those bloggers, and made interpersonal internet communications primarily a matter between people within a predetermined social circle of friends, family, and associates.  My blog is NOT a Facebook blog...the only reason I put a link to it on this site is to make it available to what readers are left: not doing so would be like just walking outside and reading it to the air, unlike a decade ago when people actively explored the blogosphere and my articles made Google's search engine at a higher level.  I am disappointed but not surprised that Facebook not only is suppressing certain postings among its users that are more conservative or Christian, but also that even within the already established group of Facebook Friends on my account it uses an algorithm that prevents most of them from even accessing it unless they deliberately (and inconveniently) click on my account...

I felt that during the first decade of this century the internet was evolving toward a truly cosmopolitan system of communications that bypassed censorship and gave people the chance to freely exchange their philosophies and opinions with each other.  Instead, it seems we now have something in Facebook that is stagnant and condescendingly paternalistic with its meddling into its users' chosen topics and its assumptions as to who gets to read them.  I do appreciate those who are able and choose to read my blog through the link I provide on Facebook, but looking at the big picture I wish it had never come about.  Who knows what amazing, sophisticated networks of worldwide communications we would have developed instead had independent blogging just been allowed to run its natural course...

Quote of the Week...from Philip Roth

You cannot observe people through an ideology. Your ideology observes for you.
                                                                            ---Philip Roth

Philip Roth, who sadly passed away this past May, was an influential American writer both of fiction and non-fiction...his first major work was the novel Goodbye Columbus.  I've just finished reading his 2006 book Indignation: more on that in a day or two.  He interested me enough to look at some of his past quotes, which I accessed through the website A-Z Quotes.  I picked the above one because it spoke to me as to how too many people handle their take on the news...

This has been going on for years: I'll watch some politician or public figure give a speech or interview, and I come away from it with a few details but more importantly their general philosophy on the subject being discussed.  Then I'll tune in to the cable news channels and talk radio and get drastically distorted spins on what was said, often accompanied by the speaker being trashed in the most personal terms. As someone who has learned to think for myself...whether or not you happen to agree with my conclusions...I find that many, if not most people derive their opinions not from the source event but rather from the spin that their "side" has generated in interpreting it.  Note that I'm not distinguishing the political left from the right in this regard: I see it going on everywhere!

Let's consider the last two presidents: Barack Obama and Donald Trump.  You couldn't dream up a pair who have such a different way of looking at things and treating others...to some extent it's necessary to take their personalities into account when they speak on different matters.  I have listened extensively to both and have found areas of agreement, as well as disagreement, with each one.  But too many people, I'm sorry to say, either regard Obama as all-good and Trump as all-bad, or the reverse, depending on how they are ideologically inclined.  First comes the ideology, usually strongly welded to a political party...if it's one of the "bad guys" they'll belittle their positive accomplishments while casting aspersions on their motivations as well as alternately ridiculing their stupidity and accusing them of being sneaky and despotic.  Their own "good guy", of course, is beyond reproach...why, if you dare to criticize then you're both a traitor and a fool...

I thought school was supposed to teach us how to think, not how to parrot others' thoughts...

8/5 Sermon on Theology for Dummies, Part 1

Last week at The Family Church here in Gainesville, senior pastor Philip Griffin began a new sermon series that he humorously titles Theology for Dummies...not that we're all dummies, you see, but that sometimes a potentially cumbersome topic like theology needs to be broken down and simplified to its more basic elements so that all can understand.  In this message, Destructive Beliefs & Life-Changing Truths, Pastor Philip discussed the importance of using Biblical scripture as the authority guiding our lives.  Using 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 14-17 as his scriptural focus (click on the passage to read that whole chapter via Bible Gateway), he broke his message down into two sections: destructive beliefs and life-changing truths...

Pastor Philip provided three of the more pervasive destructive belief systems people face today: individualism ("I call the shots"), hedonism ("I do what feels good"), and relativism ("I decide what is right and true").  He pointed out that with individualism, it is okay and admirable for one take a personal responsibility for his or her own behavior as long as they don't make this philosophy the authority in their lives.  Hedonism in itself leads to moral numbness as well as a progressive lust for more while the fulfillment becomes progressively diminished, as our pastor pointed out.  And relativism may be the most insidious of the three as people may deceive themselves into believing they are living upright, moral lives in accordance with God's designs but refuse to accept any absolute standards...

As for life-changing truths, which supplant those negative beliefs, the overriding theme is the authority of scripture.  Philip stressed that the Bible is our authority, reliable, necessary and sufficient.  While the Old Testament stands as the original Jewish scripture, the New Testament was composed by those who lived during the "eyewitness" period of history when many around them had personally experienced Jesus's presence on Earth.  Philip added that scripture's authority cannot save...only God can do that...but it can give wisdom that leads to faith.  And he concluded that the Bible thoroughly equips us for every good work...

You can watch this message by clicking on the following link to the church's YouTube video website: [TFC Videos].  The Family Church, located at 2022 SW 122nd Street, holds its Sunday morning services at 9 and 10:30 am with praise and worship music, prayer, discipleship and learning opportunities...and of course the weekly message.  There's coffee in the hospitality room before and between services, too.  Let's see how Pastor Philip breaks down theology in simpler terms for us next week...

Weekly Short Story: Window by Bob Leman

I've read my share of stories about windows or portals into other dimensions and seen enough of the same on TV and in movies...Bob Leman's 1980 short story Window is another one.  It appears in the anthology Donald A. Wollheim Presents the 1981 Annual World's Best SF (DAW Books).  I can't discuss this sixteen-page story without giving way much of the ending, so if you're planning on reading it you're probably better off stopping here and coming back afterwards...

In Window, our military is working with some scientists on a secret project.  The most eccentric of these scientists, Culvergast, has a research station out in a remote woods clearing.  News of a most extraordinary development reaches Gilson, a skeptical government official, and the colonel on duty informs him further and takes him to the site.  He can hardly believe what he sees: in the place where the research facility once stood is a cubical extraction of another place, with its own weather!  In the middle stands a Victorian-style house much like those of the late 1800s.  Reeves, an assistant working there, reveals that there is a family living there, but they can't see out to our world.  Anything crossing the barrier between that zone and "normal" reality is instantly cut off and never seen again...with one exception. For about five seconds every fifteen hours, a hole in the barrier forms through which objects from our world can successfully pass through.  Threatened with the prospect of outside scientists and officials coming soon to interfere in the project, Reeves desperately flings himself through and lands on the other side.  Funny, turns out that the people living there aren't really people at all as we would define the term: they transform into vicious carnivores, attack him, and eat him in front of Gilson and the other horrified observers...

The story reveals that Culvergast had been researching telekinesis and seemed to have come up with the principle that underlies this ability for those practicing it.  He then tried an experiment which went awry, causing his disappearance and the presence of the now-terrifying creatures.  I will leave the very end of Window, which has elements of apocalypse to it, for you to read if you're still interested in it after all I've revealed.  I got two things from this story: one, when you open up a doorway into a new, strange place whose nature is largely unknown to you, you're also opening up a doorway from that place into your own world...this type of venture carries with it consequences.  Two, a lot of us are revolted at the site of a predator chasing down, catching, killing, and then tearing into its prey...but that's how creatures survive.  We try to separate ourselves from this brutality by compartmentalizing the farming, slaughtering, and butchering of our food, but we're no different from the monsters in Bob Leman's story in the end.  And does being a vegan really change all that, I wonder...

Tuesday's List: August 28 Primary Election in Alachua County

The state of Florida holds its primary election on Tuesday, August 28...just three weeks from now.  Voters will have several decisions to make on their ballots, although some races are unopposed...at least at the primary stage.  Depending on which party you're registered in, you will receive different ballots with your party's candidates on them to choose from...along with nonpartisan races on all ballots.  Here are the positions up for primary voting...I used the Alachua County Supervisor of Elections website to obtain them:

U.S. SENATE

U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES DISTRICT 3

FLORIDA GOVERNOR & LT. GOVERNOR

FLORIDA COMMISSIONER OF AGRICULTURE

FLORIDA ATTORNEY GENERAL

FLORIDA STATE SENATE DISTRICT 8
FLORIDA CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER

FLORIDA STATE REPRENTATIVE DISTRICTS 10, 20, 21

CIRCUIT 8 JUDGES GROUPS 3, 4, 5, 8

ALACHUA COUNTY COMMISSION DISTRICTS 2, 4

ALACHUA COUNTY JUDGE GROUP 2

ALACHUA COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD DISTRICTS 1, 3, 5

ALACHUA COUNTY SOIL & WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT: GROUPS 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

From what I can gather at this time, unopposed primary races for Republicans are: Florida Senate District 8, and Florida Representative District 21.  For Democrats the unopposed primary races are US Senate and Florida Representative District 10.  In that body's District 20, Clovis Watson (Dem) is unopposed for both the primary and general election...a coronation of sorts.  With the Alachua County Commission District 4, Ken Cornell will likewise "run" unopposed throughout as will this county's Soil & Water Conservation District 3 candidate Danielle Sullen: don't expect to get to vote on these seats.  As for the judges up for consideration, how is anyone supposed to know which candidate to vote for: any constructive advice is welcome.  Other than mentioning the names of the individuals assured election because no one saw fit to oppose them, I deliberately left out the names of the candidates involved in contested contests, either now or for the general election in November.  That's because between now and August 28 I plan to discuss some of them on this blog...stay tuned. 

And no, there isn't a sexy presidential race on the ballot with idols and villains to choose from...just most of your government!  Voting is voluntary, unlike jury duty (unless you belong to one of the exempted categories of humanity).  So naturally since it is voluntary, the government has gone to some pains to make it more convenient, either through absentee ballots, early voting, or polling stations conveniently located near most everybody's residences.  As for early voting in Alachua County, the Supervisor of Elections site lists five locations:

Supervisor of Elections Office

515 N. Main Street, Gainesville

Millhopper Branch Library

3145 NW 43rd Street, Gainesville

Tower Road Branch Library

3020 SW 75th Street, Gainesville

Legacy Park Multipurpose Center

15400 Peggy Road, Alachua

Melrose United Methodist Church

5802 Hampton Street, Melrose

Early voting at one of the above locations will be from Saturday, August 18 and last through Saturday, August 25 with the voting hours on all days being 9 am to 6 pm...

Just Finished Reading Mean Streak by Sandra Brown

Sandra Brown is a prolific romance and thriller writer, rapidly churning out books each year under her own name and others.  I'd never read anything of hers until I recently checked out her 2014 novel Mean Streak from my local public library.  Previously, I had avoided romance literature and thought that this particular book would veer away from that genre.  To some extent it did, but Brown nevertheless felt the need to inject graphic romantic interludes that she apparently is comfortable with in other novels. It seemed a bit awkward because they really weren't necessary to advance the story or the characters...I'm guessing that a lot of Sandra Brown's fans expect this stuff with her books and so there it is.  Aside from that, I liked the suspense and mystery as Emory, a married young woman doctor in Georgia, after falling during a solo twenty-mile training run in the high wilderness along the North Carolina border, wakes up in a strange man's isolated cabin.  This man, who claims to have found her unconscious and brought her back to care for her, refuses to take her back down the mountain to civilization because of the fog.  Emory strongly suspects him of having attacked and abducted her...who is he (he won't name himself) and why does he seem to be hiding way up here?  Meanwhile, Emory's husband Jeff, who is having an affair behind her back with Alice (one of her physician colleagues), comes under suspicion from the local sheriff's office when she doesn't return after a few days missing...

I thought Sandra Brown had a terrific story here, and it wasn't until I was about three quarters of the way through it until I began to suspect who turned out to be the culprit...Mean Streak, more than anything, is a mystery thriller...with some seedy romance thrown in.  If that's your preferred kind of reading, go for it!  She is a good storyteller...maybe I'll explore other books of hers, although that might not happen for a little while...

Yet Another Star Trek TV Series Coming

It doesn't look as if the Star Trek franchise as it relates to television series will ever be a thing of the past, only found through reruns or Netflix, and news has been released as to future plans.  Entertainment Weekly, through my MSN computer newsfeed, has announced that Patrick Stewart will return in a new Star Trek series, donning one again his beloved role of Jean-Luc Picard from Star Trek: The Next Generation.  Picard will be portrayed later on in his life, which makes sense unless Stewart plans on going through Botox or extensive makeup work for every filming.  CBS plans to broadcast it as a regular network series...I'm looking forward to it, although in all frankness I still have yet to view most of the episodes in the previous  Star Trek series.  I saw all of the original series episodes starring William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy, a fraction of Stewart's Next Generation, and very few of Deep Space Nine or Voyager.  I watched none of Enterprise, which wasn't allowed to conclude its run before being cancelled, nor of Discovery, which is has been on CBS since last year and predates even Enterprise on the Star Trek timeline.  I'm interested in the new series, though, because I'm a fan of Stewart and came to prefer the Next Generation episodes in which he was the main actor...sometimes they could get a bit sidetracked and, in my opinion, boring when they focused on one of the side characters.  Well, we'll see what comes of this...

Just Finished Reading Deliver Us from Evil by David Baldacci

I was first introduced to David Baldacci...who tends to write cloak and dagger spy novels...when I checked out one of his books from my local public library.  It was from his Camel Club series but wasn't the first book...causing continual annoyance throughout it whenever a reference to something or someone from an earlier book was given.  I vowed then to subsequently be careful not to start reading a novel in mid-series, but sometimes I goof up and do it anyway...Baldacci's 2010 novel (once again spy-oriented) Deliver Us from Evil is the most recent example.  It's the second in a developing series featuring the protagonist A. Shaw, a tough, smart guy in the James Bond mold who works for a shadow troubleshooting arm of our government.  There are pros and cons to getting involved in a series, both from the author's and from the reader's viewpoints.  An author, when discovering that his or her "first" book has taken off in popularity, can often decide to expand it into a series that is almost guaranteed to continue to rake in the sales every couple of years or so with each new story.  One the other hand, authors doing this can find themselves the target of criticism if they're perceived to be tardy with their expected output...look at the flack that George R.R. Martin is receiving (largely from me) with his delay in finishing his next A Song of Ice and Fire ("Game of Thrones") book.  Readers, for their part, if they take a liking to the series, can count on a rewarding string of reading adventures. But if it's suspense-based, they already know that the series protagonist is in no real danger and will survive to the next installment.  And they have to take care to read the books in chronological order lest they miss the continually developing background story...even if, like Baldacci's novels or that Kinsey Millhone series of the late Sue Grafton, each book has a separate, self-contained main story line.  My irritation with the missing background story to Deliver Us from Evil notwithstanding, I still enjoyed it while keeping in mind that it is largely escapist literature with an intrepid, though flawed, hero struggling though personal issues to save the day. The story has three adversarial groups: how will they align?  There's Shaw and his superior/helper Frank, the bad guy Evan Waller...an evil businessman who makes money through human trafficking and who has a suspected past in the KGB, and a vigilante assassination group working first to rid the world of Nazi war criminals and then to bump off anyone else they don't particularly like.  The "protagonist" of this organization is Reggie Campion, a young woman with her own past to deal with.  How Shaw, Waller, and Campion come together...well, guess you're gonna hafta read that for yourself...

I give a qualified recommendation for Deliver Us from Evil, but you probably would be better off first reading its predecessor, titled The Whole Truth.  Apparently, that introductory book in the series contains more about journalist Katie James, who also appeared in the book I just read but wasn't as central a character.  I like David Baldacci's writing...I also just recently read a standalone novel of his titled One Summer...so far I haven't found anything I dislike...

Quote of the Week...from Confucius

It doesn't matter how slow you go as long as you don't stop.         ---Confucius.

I have to mention up front that Confucius, the famous Chinese philosopher of antiquity, did not live in a technologically advanced, industrial society where work is evaluated by productivity, i.e. how much and how well one produces the required product as a function of time, sometimes measured down to the second.  In my job, I wouldn't be considered a good employee were I just to slowly go about my assignments with no regard to how long I take...your situation, if you happen to be employed, is probably similar...and the consuming public in today's world of instant gratification seems to have lost any semblance of patience.   But you don't have to be an active member of the work force to be affected by time limitations and the need to go a little faster and be prompt.  If you're going to school, you often have to do your assignments at a brisk pace and quickly pack into your brain the material needed for tests. Appointments are pervasive in our lives...juggling them around in our schedules can sometimes involve rushing around, the opposite of Confucius's exhortation. If you like sports, chances are that going fast is an important element for success with whichever team or athlete you're following...including possibly yourself if you're an active participant.  And if you're driving down the road, going slow in itself can present a safety hazard to others if your speed is far below the surrounding traffic flow.  So in today's world the above quote has to be taken with some significant qualifications.  Still...

I think what Confucius was getting at is the importance of continuity in our lives.  For example, if you've read this eleven-year old blog of mine for any amount of time you'll know that I am an avid runner...yet speed rarely enters into this activity as I am more interested in covering distances.  That, I believe, is a wise priority since I'm almost 62 and my days of personal record times are a thing of the past.  Yet as I age, I can still cover those distances with slower running...and mix that running with walking breaks.  But continuity also matters when you consider instilling daily habits.  I believe that if you make a daily routine out of consistently doing something that will enhance your life and possibly others'...even if you do whatever it is slowly...then that element will become a integral part of who you are even if you're not setting speed records.  No point in doing everything at a breakneck pace...there's already enough outside pressure going on without us doing this to ourselves...

7/29 Sermon on Upward Habits, Part 7

Last Sunday at The Family Church here in Gainesville the sermon series Upward Habits continued, with the discussion centered on prayer.  Presenting the message was Gbola Adesogan, an elder at our church and a powerful and persuasive speaker...I was unable to attend due to travel at the time, and the sermon wasn't available on YouTube because of licensing issues.  But I was able to get hold of the sermon notes and, although I would have greatly preferred to hear Gbola's talk directly, they will have to do for this article.  The scripture of focus, which you can read through Bible Gateway by clicking on it, was John 5:2-9...

For his message about praying consistently and tactically, Gbola brought up four foundational points: prayer is urgently necessary as God commands it, there is a strategy to effectively pray, those praying show certain attitudes and postures, and prayer should be intentional.  Since it is, after all, the foundation of Christ's ministry and it helps us experience God, prayer is clearly necessary...Gbola added that it protects us, shapes plans and events, and is the key to all problems and challenges. With strategy, he stressed the importance of recognizing and targeting the true enemy while exalting God and not one's own problems...and also provided the acronym ACTS (adoration, confession, thanksgiving, supplication) to help as a memory device for the elements of prayer.  Attitudes and posture of those praying? Gbola listed many: surrendering sin and grudges, awe for God, focus, attentiveness, connection to God by faith, passion, humility, and in the end giving God...and not oneself...the credit for answered prayer.  As for intentionality, preparing for prayer requires...as our speaker continued...setting aside a time and place, fasting if necessary, and being willing to pray with others...including one's spouse... or in a group setting.  Of course, this very rough summary of Gbola's message reflects his notes and not his actual presentation...I'm sure that I would have included some of his spoken comments had I been able to hear them.  Oh well, the notes were pretty good, and there may be a chance I'll eventually get to watch the sermon if those issues get resolved.  The main thing is that prayer is important and should be approached seriously, intentionally, reverently, and with humility...

The Family Church, located at 2022 SW 122nd Street, holds its Sunday morning services at 9 and 10:30 with the weekly sermon, praise and worship, prayer, discipleship and learning opportunities, and many friendly folks eager to welcome you.  There's a hospitality room where you can get coffee and treats before and between services...I usually make a beeline for it when I first arrive.  Looking forward to this Sunday's service...

Weekly Short Story: Unaccompanied Sonata by Orson Scott Card

Sometimes I come across a story whose intended meaning may be very different from what I get from it...science fiction writer Orson Scott Card's 1979 short story Unaccompanied Sonata is a case in point.  It's a part of the anthology The 1980 Annual World's Best SF (DAW Books), but you can probably get access to it elsewhere...

The setting is Earth at an unspecified time in the far distant future.  A utopia of sorts has settled upon humanity, with children rigorously tested as to their inclinations and talents from infancy until they turn two...and then assigned life-long roles in which they will most be "happy" and content, productive members of a society that no longer accepts discontent and violence among its members. Christian Haroldsen is born into this world and quickly is revealed through his many tests to be a musical prodigy...and then taken from his parents and sent into isolation in the woods where his musical development will be completely original and unaffected by the works of others...he is now one of the Makers.  There are other people who have been tested and assigned the role of Listeners...from time to time they will visit nearby and listen to the music Christian has made and plays on the complex keyboard instrument provided him.  But one day a Listener slips Christian some music by Bach...his own music slightly changes as a result, catching the attention of another group: the Watchers.  When confronted with this "violation", the story turns down a darker path...making an already suspect "utopia" in effect a very disturbing dystopia...

Unaccompanied Sonata resurrects the age-old notion of people being sorted into classes or castes in which they are expected to live out the rest of their lives...the testing early on supposedly places them in areas in which they will thrive, but are people really like that?  Don't we all diverge from time to time and rebel a bit?  And since when does whatever one is inclined toward as a baby determine their life's course?  Then again, this system does seem to curb society away from war and violence...but why not instead just implement a very intensive universal education of nonviolence and positive interaction among the very young instead of this battery of aptitude tests?  So I'm consequently somewhat dissatisfied with Card's tale...but it did remind me of a trend I've noticed in today's real world...

I like to study foreign languages, although I'm not much of a linguist.  When folks encounter me studying out in public...say in a coffee shop...I often get a quizzical reaction and the automatic question: what am I going to do with it?  The same goes whenever I'm "caught" doing math problems out of a textbook or workbook, as if I am somehow operating outside their notion of the kind of person I am "supposed" to be.  It all seems a bit silly to me...I'm enjoying the challenge of progressively learning new things for their own sake without a special agenda in mind.  But to certain others, just studying in some fields in itself bothers them...there has to be an end game to it all.  The screwed-up utopia in Unaccompanied Sonata is controlled by powerful elements in society who have taken upon themselves the assignment of what people are allowed to engage in...even to the point of what music they can listen to. That "end game" becomes the driving, imperative force with undue pressure placed upon children as their futures are laid out for them by the tests they take, after which they are place in specialized areas beyond which they are NEVER to venture.  Not cool, I say...as R.E.M.'s lyricist Michael Stipe wrote in their hit song Losing My Religion, "Life is bigger...it's bigger than you, and you are not me": let us all be vigilant and watch out that well-intentioned social engineering never progressively supplant our precious liberties...

My July 2018 Running Report

In July I slid back some from my progress in June, although I did manage to participate in a race: the modest three-mile Melon Run held on the morning of July Fourth at Westside Park here in Gainesville.  My month's total mileage went down from June to 68 miles as did my longest single run: a measly 3.3 miles.  I missed a couple of days running in July, so although my running declined, at least I was holding to a routine sorts.  I'd like to be able to run some races in the fall, so hopefully my distance training will pick back up in August.  We'll see...

Tuesday's List: Some More of My Favorite Movies of Various Actors

This list contains some more actors that I missed in last week's...still, I left out an awful lot of great performances.  And to illustrate how limited my movie-viewing experience is...even at my relatively advanced age...there were a couple for whom I could only list two movies.  Still, I didn't want to leave them out...so here's my list of favorite films by actor, once again in no particular order:

PETER SELLERS
1 DOCTOR STRANGELOVE
2 A SHOT IN THE DARK
2 THE MOUSE THAT ROARED

ROBERT DE NIRO
1 TAXI DRIVER
2 THE GODFATHER, PART 2
3 CASINO

HALLE BERRY
1 CATWOMAN
2 DIE ANOTHER DAY
3 CLOUD ATLAS

ROBIN WILLIAMS
1 ONE HOUR PHOTO
2 JUMANJI
3 MOSCOW ON THE HUDSON

SIDNEY POITIER
1 TO SIR, WITH LOVE
2 A RAISIN IN THE SUN
3 THE JACKAL

GREGORY PECK
1 MIRAGE
2 SPELLBOUND
2 THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL

NATALIE WOOD
1 WEST SIDE STORY
2 MIRACLE ON 34TH STREET
3 REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE

JOE PESCI
1 MY COUSIN VINNY
2 GOODFELLAS
3 CASINO

JACK NICHOLSON
1 CHINATOWN
2 ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOO'S NEST
3 EASY RIDER

LAWRENCE OLIVIER
1 MARATHON MAN
2 THE BOYS FROM BRAZIL
3 THE WORLD AT WAR (series narrator)

ROBERT SHAW
1 JAWS
2 FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE
3 DIAMONDS

JOAN CRAWFORD
1 HUSH HUSH SWEET CHARLOTTE
2 WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE

GEORGE C. SCOTT
1 PATTON
2 DOCTOR STRANGELOVE
3 FIRESTARTER

KURT RUSSELL
1 BACKDRAFT
2 DEATH PROOF
3 VANILLA SKY

GOLDIE HAWN
1 PRIVATE BENJAMIN
2 SHAMPOO
3 SEEMS LIKE OLD TIMES

RICARD DREYFUSS
1 CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND
2 JAWS
3 MR. HOLLAND'S OPUS 

JOHN TRAVOLTA
1 PULP FICTION
2 SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER
3 FACE/OFF

SHARON STONE
1 CASINO
2 TOTAL RECALL
3 BASIC INSTINCT

JAVIER BARDEM
1 NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN
2 SKYFALL

JOHN CAZALE
1 THE GODFATHER, PARTS 1 AND 2
2 DOG DAY AFTERNOON
3 THE CONVERSATION

FRED GWYNNE
1 PET SEMATARY
2 THE MUNSTERS (TV series)
3 MY COUSIN VINNY

WARREN BEATTY
1 HEAVEN CAN WAIT
2 BONNIE AND CLYDE
3 SHAMPOO

SEAN CONNERY
1 YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE
2 DOCTOR NO
3 THUNDERBALL

ROY SCHEIDER
1 JAWS
2 2010
3 MARATHON MAN

JOANNE WOODWARD
1 SYBIL
2 THE THREE FACES OF EVE
3 A FINE MADNESS

HENRY FONDA
1 THE WRONG MAN
2 MISTER ROBERTS
3 ADVISE AND CONSENT

CHARLTON HESTON
1 PLANET OF THE APES
2 MIDWAY
3 BENEATH THE PLANET OF THE APES

BILL MURRAY
1 GROUNDHOG DAY
2 STRIPES
3 GHOSTBUSTERS

JASON ROBARDS
1 THE DAY AFTER
2 YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
3 ALL THE PRESIDENT'S MEN

NICHOLAS CAGE
1 NATIONAL TREASURE
2 GHOST RIDER
3 MOONSTRUCK

JEFF GOLDBLUM
1 THANK GOD IT'S FRIDAY
2 INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS
3 JURASSIC PARK

JANET LEIGH
1 PSYCHO
2 MAN FROM U.N.C.L.E. (TV episode "Concrete Overcoat Affair")
3 THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE

DONALD SUTHERLAND
1 THE HUNGER GAMES (all four movies)
2 M.A.S.H.
3 INVASION OF THE BODY SNATCHERS

Most Pro Soccer Leagues Starting a New Season

The 2018-19 season for most of the world's premier soccer leagues has just begun or is about to begin in the next two to three weeks...Mexico's Liga MX regular season is already a week old.  For most of the rest there is still a short wait...but in the meantime some of the top European teams from different leagues have been playing each other in the International Champion's Cup...sounds impressive and important doesn't it? Fact check: they are only exhibition matches, held in the United States and other countries to promote more interest in the sport.  However, these games, also called "friendlies", while bringing with them most of the rosters of the different participating teams, are missing the star attractions...where are Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar, and the rest?  Well, Chelsea is one of those featured teams and its manager/coach Jose Mourinho has recently complained that his best players are missing because they are recuperating from the recent World Cup, making his club appear worse than they are.  But I've seen these International Champion's Cup matches in past years when there hadn't been a World Cup and the stars were still often missing from the field.  Still, even without them it's fun to watch these matches...I noticed that since they don't actually "count" in the standings or official tournaments, there are a lot fewer spectacles of players feigning injuries to impress the officials after fouls as they writhe around on the ground with masks of agony...only to get up a few seconds later and sprint down the field...

It looks as if television will cover the upcoming soccer leagues as they did last year.  Univision, along with Galavision at times, will cover much of the Mexican soccer (in Spanish, of course) while NBC/Sports and NBC will show the English Premier League, most of whose matches take place (from our time vantage point here) on Saturday and Sunday mornings.  Germany's Bundesliga will have their games...often delayed or on replay...broadcast by Fox 1 and Fox 2 Sports.  America's Major League Soccer, which has been going on since spring and whose regular season is winding down toward the playoffs, can be seen on a number of different channels although most of their matches can only be viewed through special paid subscription...a policy I think is foolish when they are trying to stir up more interest in the sport within this country.  What teams am I following? UANL Tigres in Mexico, Leicester City and Arsenal in England, Orlando City and Portland in Major League Soccer...and Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, for no other reason than I might as well since they win the championship every year, why not?  One side note: Cristiano Ronaldo, arguably the world's best soccer player and who had been playing for Real Madrid in Spain's La Liga the last few years, has jumped leagues over to Italy's Serie A and will being playing for Juventus this year.  Maybe that will help to boost that league's stature among the others after its recent decline the past few years...