Head-dibs

 Happy Breakfast Club Day!  “Saturday...March 24, 1984. Shermer High School, Shermer, Illinois. 60062. Dear Mr. Vernon...we accept the fact that we had to sacrifice a whole Saturday in detention for whatever it was that we did wrong, what we did was wrong. But we think you're crazy to make us write this essay telling you who we think we are, what do you care? You see us as you want to see us...in the simplest terms and the most convenient definitions. You see us as a brain, an athelete, a basket case, a princess and a criminal. Correct? That's the way we saw each other at seven o'clock this morning. We were brainwashed...”

  I thought to try reading this in bite-size portions for ease of digestion, so starting on January 1 I began Book 1. Yesterday I got impatient and finished the book (ending with Book 2). So much practical advice here from a Stoic slave who lived during the reign of Nero. Like opening one fortune cookie after another. Straightforward and convicting lessons on cutting the crap and using your God-given reason for virtuous living. 

 

 It’s been a tough couple of weeks. In short, I’ve been sick with no time off, so I’m burned out. I’ve been doing what it takes to get through a day, not much else.  I’ve decided to get the fitness thing going again by walking at least 15 minutes per day. I’ve not trained since 2020 and have been battling depression since leaving the University. I remember feeling better when training so I need to try again. High blood pressure and now officially diabetic—life goes on.  At least I finished one book.

 

  What will it take to deceive the enemy? This is the straightforward account of how Two British Intelligence Officers used a cadaver to misdirect the German invasion of Sicily in WW2. Fast, yet intriguing read. 

  Finished reading “The Reading Life: The Joy of Seeing New Worlds Through Others’ Eyes”, excerpts from selected writings of C.S. Lewis wherein he addressed the subject of reading. A careful reader will find wise instructions meant for the writer scattered like gemstones throughout his reflections and critiques. My favorite chapters are “The Case For Reading Old Books”, “Why Fairy Tales Are Often Less Deceptive Than ‘Realistic’ Ones,” and “The Achievements of J.R.R. Tolkien.” Though I borrowed my copy from our local library, this is worth purchasing and re-reading (a subject upon which Lewis has much to say). Makes a perfect gift for an avid reader! 

 

 

 

 A Beauty pageant and a hangin’! 

 

 The Gospel of Matthew The Acts of The Holy Spirit 

  "G. K. Chesterton, the "Prince of Paradox," is at his witty best in this collection of twenty essays and articles from the turn of the twentieth century. Focusing on  "heretics" - those who pride themselves on their superiority to Christian views - Chesterton appraises prominent figures who fall into that category from the literary and art worlds... those who hold incomplete and inadequate views about "life, the universe, and everything." He is, in short, criticizing all that host of non-Christian views of reality, as he demonstrated in his follow-up book Orthodoxy. The book is both an easy read and a difficult read. But he manages to demonstrate, among other things, that our new 21st century heresies are really not new because he himself deals with most of them." (Goodreads)