The last page

I have tried to write a journal many times.  In the past, I have tended to buy a nice clean notebook, write entries on about ⅔ of its pages and drop the effort.  As a result, I have many half-used notebooks.  

I know that I am an anticipator.  When I can see the event almost ready to happen, I tend to jump the gun.  But yesterday, I began writing on the very last page of the notebook I began using for blog prompts on February 3, 2022.  Back then, I had not realized that writing to a general, unspecified audience was an activity that was good for me.  I had not developed a habit of noting ideas for a day's post in writing as ideas occurred to me. I had not invented a limit of five ideas, marking them in a way that showed there were five and writing down additional ideas that came along on that day with a different mark.

I am proud of myself for keeping track of one notebook and using all the pages.  I have definitely discovered that some good ideas come to mind that will slip away at my age if I don't write clues for myself.

CNN photos of the week 4/6/2025

https://www.cnn.com/2025/04/03/world/gallery/photos-this-week-march-27-april-3/index.html

Diminshed effort, very diminshed nest-bit

It is not that they can't find materials.  I think there are plenty around.  I am hoping that the pair are losing their enthusiasm for the site.  There really isn't room for a proper nest.

Looking that up

When I look something up, I can tell it does me some good just to formulate the wording of the inquiry.  I almost always use Duckduckgo since it prides itself on keeping my searches "private", that is somewhat secret.  Normally, I am not ashamed of my searches but I am interested in avoiding having people all over the world sending me emails that explain why I should be buying their products.  

I was impressed by Jacques Barzun's comments that scientists are discovering so much new stuff that it is straining our supply of words just to name new discovered parts, processes and particulars.  One way we handle the strain is to use a perfectly good word for something new, something additional.  Say, I write the computer code for a new program that I want to sell.  Let's call it "slidingboard", even though it doesn't slide and it isn't a board.  From now on, when you look up "slidingboard", the first uppity-up pages of the results will be about my wonderful, handy, lovely program and not about playground equipment.

Again??

Our tax preparer called and said that the IRS says I didn't pay my estimated taxes.  Again.  Ha!  I was disturbed when I found I had forgotten before.  I had to pay an additional penalty and I felt good about paying when I should.  However, it looks like they are correct.  Some payments appear to be missing.  Damnit!

Small temp and small time

We know a fellow who is about our age and suffers from dementia.  She was supposed to take him to a physician today for a check-up but we worried that the roads might be too dangerously slippery with ice. Later, she called and said the roads were not bad at all.  Some of our weather apps said the outside temperature was 32 degrees but some said it was a little warmer, maybe enough to not freeze.

I have four different weather apps on my iPad and they rarely agree totally.  Besides, we are often said to live in Stevens Point but that can point to a rather large area.  There are occasions where one app or another says it is raining or snowing when outside of our house there is no trace of either.  We are used to clocks, weather reports and sometimes computers or house phones not agreeing with each other.

The same sort of disagreement happens with time readings.  My watch, my computer, my tablets, various clocks around the house can disagree as to what the exact time is.  I used the labels "small temp" and "small time" for times when I am interested in the exact time or temperature but I have learned that idea is somewhat mythical.

Woo-Woo

I am interested in the books and writings of David R. Hamilton.  His book called "Why Woo-Woo Works" is about his working as a pharmaceutical chemist but becoming interested in aspects of modern life that did not seem to stand up to modern methods of scrutiny.  His interests can be said to relate to the subject of placebos and nocebos, instances where positive or negative words and beliefs are held by humans who are, or seem, able to affect their own or others' lives with ideas that aren't supported by modern methods of testing, experimentation and evidence collecting.  

The novel by recently deceased author Tom Robbins called "Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates" features an explorer who gets cursed by a tribal medicine man.  The explorer is told that he will die if his feet touch the ground.  The man remains in a wheelchair from then on.