"Be a channel...."

 like so much we encounter in the visual world there are sometimes only shadows to inform us

this beautiful lake in the desert attracts birds and vegitation

this western grebe was a constant resident in this place where the water flowed at all times

lost/misplaced my so called smart phone yesterday morning...this is a more traumatic experience than i had assumed...had to buy a replacement at the walmart yesterday and set the damned thing up...well the phone lady in the phone department was adamant that she had no obligation to help me with a "pay as you go" phone...and so she was no help at all....the news seems to be pretty negative. as the federal government of the USA has not figured out that no funding stalls a lot of government activity...i think the other governments (city/county/state) are determined to keep society more or less running...i did not plan to fly anywhere anyway....enough of the human errors in the world...some of my reference material was/is on the errant phone (lost or stolen ) so i will look to the notebooks and my memory...since new york city is much in the news recently i will start with a very good article in "The New York Review of Books" from may 23, 2024...the article is about the building of supertall buildings  in new york city....'".., in light of all the other urgencies the profession should be addressing instead-climate change and social equity being the two most urgent- the devotion of so much talent, money, and effort to erecting ever higher "supertalls' and "megatalls" verges on the obscene. The world is burning- literally and figuratively- this flagrant waste of capital and imagination makes the biblical parable of the Tower of Babel all too easy to comprehend as both the most ancient and most modern of human follies." last lines from "Supersize that?" by Martin Filler...i think they should allow people to jump from the top of the tallest buildings with and without parachutes...there is a very good youtube presentation by Dr. Andrew Huberman who interviews Dr, David Fajgebaum about "Using existing drugs in new ways to treat and cure diseases of brain and body." (2 hours)..this fascinating discussion illustrates how multi-disciplinary approaches to treating ailments has proved to be very productive...this just in...elon musk allowed mucho money by tesla board...like a trillion bucks if he can make tesla stock price rise...the robot army awaits..."Ultra Hardcore" is a good article in New York review of books (jan.18, 2024) which gives some history of elon musk...his life is different from your life...and i do not begrudge him is wealth as it seems to me most everything he has sought to develop is a positive influence on humanity..."Seeking the truth"(30 min) is a good youtube presentation about the author leo tolstoy 

this guy was born into a wealthy family and inherited the family estate when his parents died...he inherited 330 serfs (slaves?) which was a great influence on his life...

his best known book is a huge volume and he said it was not a novel...he kind of rejected the life of social parties and self indulgence after a while and the plight of the economically oppressed interested him much...never read it...but his was an interesting life....i listened to one of the latest musical offerings from Ms Florence Welch called "Buckle"...a very good vocal presentation and good lyrics...this poor girl has not had much luck in the relationship department if her songs are to be taken as personal experiences...she is one of my favorite female vocalists and sings with great power...HOWEVER! i did notice that at the end of one of the presentations of "Buckle" (the one one where she is facing to the left and wearing a sort of veil thing)...there are at least a dozen or more persons or entities shown (credits)...she got robbed! the crook (shirley kurata) who gets credit for "costume design" had no costumes to design...that veil don't hardly count as "costume"...and the rest of the vultures should be given the boot also...ms. Welch needs to spend some quality time with lucas nelson and study his wonderful musical presentations like "Hallelujah"...the one where he sits crosslegged on a bed with a camera and a guitar....forget the damned superfluous production crap...this woman has too much talent to let it be "produced" to death...by the way she is pretty but needs to come to the realization that she is older today than she was yesterday and she will age like everyone else...get over it..."Ancient Aboriginal (australian) History" rock carvings deeper meaning (22min)(rob dogs vlog) this is a good not overproduced viewing of some old, old, rock carvings...GET AMONGST!..."Little Chinese Everywhere" is still putting out some great youtube presentations....visiting a village with german inhabitants was exciting for Flo who speaks the language...a couple of weeks back Mr. Flo had a splitting headache as they ended the show...well DUH!...he was eating any food that was dropped on his table which is a big no no...undoubtedly poisoned by some jealous russian..."trust your friends, but cut the cards"...is a good reminder to be cautious at all times....

"Be a channel, not a dam"...a huberman