Employment Outlook for God

I read a piece recently on future trends, one of which was the reported demise of organized religion and the rise of spirituality. At first blush I felt kind of sorry for all those churches and temples and mosques and cathedrals and their associated personnel.  I mean, what's going to happen with all that real estate?  Can a minister or rabbi draw unemployment? Every once in a while you'll see a church building abandoned and for sale. Or an old church converted to another use-- like a bar or a daycare. It never quite seems right to me. And every once in a while you'll meet someone who used to be a holyman but is now a teacher, businessman or convict.

On second thought, however, this may be just what we need. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will stop looking to their religion to decide how to vote. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will stop looking to their religion to find inspiration to blowup themselves along with other people. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will stop looking to their religion to decide what is a proper union of two people. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will stop looking to their religion to decide what rights a person should have on the basis of gender. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will stop minding everyone else's business.

Instead, maybe this means the day is coming when people will start looking honestly within themselves rather than critically at others. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will start looking to build-up rather than tear down. Maybe this means the day is coming when people will start to see themselves as part of a global whole rather than a sectarian part.

If the prediction holds true, that spirituality will trump religion, imagine the day- probably a hundred years from now- when spirituality has evolved to the place where it was all those hundreds of years in the past. A time when savage tribes roamed the plains of North America. A time when humans realized that the Great Spirit encompassed all and required harmony: The recognition that humans are only one small piece in a complex system that is life on this planet. That plants and animals, humans, water, and all resources have a place and relationship that must be respected and preserved. That God was a spirit with a presence woven into every fiber of the fabric of life-- liberated, not held hostage to the shortsighted expectations of an organized body claiming exclusive rights.

On further consideration, that does seem improbable now, doesn't it?

How The Heck Does This Thing Work?

My sister is visiting from out of town. She reminds me of a particular problem that can plaque strangers from coast to coast and around the world. She even went to so far as to insist I was once snared by this nusance. I denied that ever being the case but then, after her replaying the episode, a somewhat foggy memory started to emerge.

The long and the short of it is she finds it simultaneously amusing and annoying that somehow, in every new home or lodging a person encounters these days, there seems to be a new twist on how to make the shower work. Perhaps not so much in showers separated from the tub, but in the common shower-bath combo, one seems to find all manner of handles, slides, levers, and knobs to make the thing work.

At first glance I thought this complaint was just a sign of advancing years. Geez, I mean, if it's that difficult maybe she should be thinking about assisted living, for crying out loud. An hour or so later I found myself in the guest bath and decided to check it out right here in our own home.  Let's just say I didn't need to call for help but I did have to sit there and pull, push, and twist that damn knob at least dozen times before I could launch the shower! Sadly, I'm not sure I could walk right back in this moment and do it again first try.

I think I'll start a petition to standardize all bathroom plumbing fixtures in the U.S. Every American should have the right to a shower without intimidation. I'm just not sure where to direct the effort: Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development,  or the Council on Aging?

The Slippery Slope

Ordinarily I delete batched e-mail appeals and political rags. For some reason they usually show up from someone who wants to compare Obama to Hitler or the present day US health policy to socialism or fascism. Without fail they are individuals with whom I have only a very oblique acquaintance and even less relationship.

My cousin Kevin sent me a letter yesterday that falls outside the ordinary. I've cut and pasted the whole thing below. It pertains to the proposed SOPA and PIPA legislation which come up for a vote later this month. The bills are supported by the motion picture and music industry for obvious reasons: Their business is being decimated by internet piracy. Even so, sometimes legislation with the best intentions carries the potential for outlandish abuse.

I have not read the bills.  But, if they contain the qualification that services could be censored on the basis of "suspicion" of illegal activity, then we are definitely heading in the wrong direction. Action taken against "suspicious activity" has no place in our system of government.

I fully support protection of intellectual property. Doing so in the age of the Internet has got to be exceedingly difficult. Even so, we have to do better than censoring suspicious activities and services. Censorship is the asphalt which paves the road to forfeiture of personal liberty. Perhaps I'm suffering from limited understanding but, if the proposed legislation allows action based on suspicion, then we need to try again.

I'm certainly not asking anyone to sign the petition but the subject is well introduced in my cousin's appeal. You would do well to make yourself aware and informed of this important piece of legislation.

One last thing, before the last thing which is my cousin's letter: The illustration above came from a Canadian blog that features a really fun philosophical discussion of the "slippery slope" premise. Regardless of your thoughts on the intellectual property legislation, Hendik Van Der Breggen's blog is a good read.

Hi Everyone,

I don't normally send blanket emails to everyone on my contacts list, but this is important!

When the Senate comes back into session next week, they'll be
voting on whether to grant themselves the power to turn off parts of the
Internet. Fun sites like YouTube. Informative sites like Wikipedia.
Political sites like MoveOn.org.

If enacted, new laws would force Internet Service Providers to block
websites that any corporation suspects violates a copyright or suspects
doesn't monitor it's users' content close enough for copyrighted
materials. That means that any website, foreign or based in the U.S.,
could be wiped out on suspicion and made unavailable to everyone in the
world.

I believe in protecting intellectual property rights and copyrights.  I don't want anyone

stealing or using my photographs without permission.  But this is not the way to protect those rights.

What happened to due process and "innocent until proven guilty?"

The Senate must reject the Internet Censorship Act. Please sign this petition and
spread the word.

http://pol.moveon.org/nointernetcensorship/?r_by=34876-18591642-WNQW2Kx&rc=pac_nointernetcensorship_letter.email.g0

Thanks!

Kevin 

Manna From Heaven

There is no hiding it: my zeal for Bisquick is beginning to show. I have featured Bisquick in a couple of my recent cooking related blogs and I'm sure my behavior has raised an eyebrow or two. Dumplings: Legitimate. Cinnamon rolls: A stretch. But that's only what I'm telling y'all. Subsequently I've been merrily experimenting with Bisquick, flour, and baking powder mixes to fashion pizza dough, biscuits, and other high carb delights. As I manipulate the ratios and ingredients I am only getting more and more revved up, excited about the untold adventures that lie ahead in the wilderness that is my kitchen.

In all of this I was starting to feel a little sheepish about my budding love affair with a box of baking mix. Was. Not anymore. The turning point came the other evening after coming home late from work and once again reached into the cupboard and pulled out the Bisquick and flour. Happily, it was then I realized there's no shame in Bisquick. There's no apologizing for that big yellow box on the counter. Bisquick has become my manna: simple and unadorned, this boy's daily bread. When the cupboards are otherwise barren-- no bread, no buns-- the lord provideth Bisquick. And, lo, it is good. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner, just like the Israelites.

A new world is appearing before my eyes. A new culinary spirit grows within. I only hope my waist doesn't grow to obscure my view.

Just Can't Wait

Rehab Facilitator

It ain’t easy being ADD. And ADD isn’t just for kids anymore. For example, the other morning while writing up a recipe I struggled and struggled trying to get this Word program to write the fraction 1/3.  It will do ¼ and it will do ½.  But 1/3? Not in a million.

When I write I get into a groove and have a hard time being interrupted. Nonetheless, when Tam offered to have a look at the problem I had had enough and said “yes.” Now my wife is a very meticulous and systematic individual. She is never ADD. She will look at a problem, study it, attempt a solution, bring in references—I mean, she’s the type who actually reads an owners manual for crissakes. Anyway, being completely flummoxed, I was happy to give her a shot at it. A shot, not five minutes. After about three I was crawling out of my skin. “Just forget it. I don’t need it. Come on, give it back.” I whined like an annoying little brother.

I think it must be hard to live with someone like me, someone who just can’t wait. A person who wants to fly the plane before he’s taken a lesson. A guy whose owner’s manuals are never opened during the life of the vehicle.

I’m happy to report this never happens in surgery. There, I make a conscious and concerted effort to stay steady, mindful, and calm. I check my haste at the door. But toys or games or this computer?  For two-finger tapping away on this teensy little window box of a keyboard? I can't sit still.

I’m thinking voice recognition may be in order. Or maybe just hold the coffee until I’m done on the computer. Then again, there's always rehab: My Royal desktop sits just an arm's length away. That'll learn me some patience.

Go To Sleep

In Monday's NPR health blog there was a feature on sleep apnea. The subject of sleep apnea has become so over blown it's enough to put me to sleep. I'm sure there are many people out there who would function better if their sleep apnea was recognized and treated but nowadays it seems as if everyone gets an invitation to an overnight party at a sleep lab. CPAP machines have almost become in the new century what the exercise belt machine was to the fifties.

The article linked above discusses the business side of this trend. In doing so, once again two of the very worst features of the US system of healthcare are brought to light. Actually, it's one feature but shared by two parties: Greed. Incredibly, we continue to pay doctors to do procedures. The more sleep apnea tests one does, the more money they get paid. And, on the other side of the perverse equation, the more tests an insurer can dodge or decline the more premium dollars they can retain. For the life of me I don't know how the public can live with this system, a system which has as its financial foundation a conflict of interest that places the providing of medical care at the mercy of profit taking. It is a ridiculous design that indubitably creates more health risks than sleep apnea.

When I hear about people who fear healthcare reform, people who rally against "socialized medicine," they are playing directly into the hands of those parties who over indulge at the healthcare banquet. I can only hope that somehow the American public will find enlightenment and revolt. Having income tied proportionally to access and treatment is far worse than any distorted fear of "socialism." Somehow the word "socialist" just doesn't sound as frightening to me as "selfish."

One other thing:  Finger jabs and nudges can be used to restore healthy breathing at night. While perhaps not always as effective as the CPAP machine, they're free and can address both the sleep apnea as well as relieving those little frustrations that build up in the course of a day...just ask my wife.

Just How Does That Happen?

I've been at this for a bit over twenty years now. In all that time you hear all kinds of stories as to how a person trips, slips, stumbles, falls, tumbles, and just plain goes kersplat! But, even at that, I still don't get it. I mean, 7 times out of 10 you're still left to ask: How did that happen??!

Well, tonight I came a little closer to understanding. A ten year old boy cracked up his sled and broke his leg this evening. So I did my duty. I bundled up, filled my to-go cup with my patented coffee sludge, and headed out the door. Exiting into the dark garage, cup in hand, I stepped forward while looking left to find the light switch and, next thing I know, I'm watching a film short of me, flying through the air, heading into the concrete floor, a waterfall of coffee sludge leading the way. Then came that immeasurable moment when you lie there and take inventory: what hurts, does it move, did I wreck my clothes?

I'm happy to report I remain intact. A scrape on my shin like I haven't seen since the downside of six and a sore right ankle, but no broken bones. I was able to go inside, change out my splattered coat, re-load a new cup, and start all over again. The kid's leg is snug in a cast and I'm back home safe and sound.

In all of that I'm still left to wonder: How the heck does that happen??!