Little Talk:

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How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require? (II)

My current answer:

A slight variation on all those other dull routines.

1. waking up

2. winding down

3. yada yada yada

waking up:

1. wake up

2. stare out the window a bit

3. quick peek at the phone to check for urgent messages

4. get ready

5. leisurely peek at the phone, possibly while listening to a record (or a portion of a record)

6. stare out the window some more

7. get more ready

8. make the bed, etc. Move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study. Turn on the laptop

9. check laptop for urgent email and messages

10. quick peek at the laptop for email, messages, and the web, possibly while listening to a podcast (or a portion of a podcast)

11. 5 minute warm up

12. 5 minute meditation

***

How Much Diet Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

A pattern of eating I am liking at the moment:

morning snack: coffee and / or tea, possibly with a little something

breakfast: cereal and / or toast, possibly with orange juice

lunch: salad and / or soup, possibly with entree

afternoon snack: fruit and / or greens, possibly juiced

high tea / dinner: 

1. leftovers from lunch

2. curds and / or whey, possibly from a plant

3. tea and / or coffee, possibly with a little something

***

How Much Dull Routine Of Existence Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

 

1. waking up

2. winding down

3. yada yada yada

waking up:

0. wake up

1. stare out the window a bit

2. quick peek at the phone to check for urgent messages

3. get ready

4. leisurely peek at the phone

5. stare out the window some more

6. make the bed, etc. Get more ready. Move the phone charger from the bedroom to the study

7. turn on the laptop. Quick peek at the laptop to check for urgent e-mails

8. 5 minute warm-up

9. 5 minute meditation

10. first breakfast / morning snack

11. exercise

12. quick peek at the laptop and phone to check for urgent e-mail and messages

14. shower / bath

15. second breakfast / brunch

16. quick peek at the laptop for email, messages and the web

***

How Much Web-Surfing Does A Man Require?

My current answer:

The Quick and the Leisurely

1. a leisurely peek on the phone (perhaps in the pre-dawn / morning)

2. a quick peek on the laptop (perhaps in the morning / midday)

3. a quick peek on the phone (perhaps in the afternoon / evening) 

4. a leisurely peek on the laptop (perhaps in the evening / night)

One thing I am trying at the moment is to not clean the inbox until the late evening / night.

***

Back in the day, one of my favorite mixtapes was "Mara's mix". (Who is Mara? Good question.) That mixtape introduced me to a bunch of songs I loved, most of them well known. There was, however, one song which had lyrics along the lines of:

1. Our trip was beautiful

2. Everyone full of love

3. The memories shine like,

4. Like the stars above

5. You looked the same to me

6. Although it had been a while

7. When I stop and think of you

8. I will always smile

9. So good for me to know

10. That I have a friend like you

11. Although it was not what I

12. Set out to do

13. So much to talk about

14. Over the last few years

15. It's great to have memories

16. Without the tears

This is (obviously) too good to be my own. Yet I can't find any record of it online.

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Big Talk:

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https://jabberwocking.com/israeli-jews-strongly-favor-all-out-war-in-gaza/

https://en.idi.org.il/articles/52976

Kevin Drum points to a survey showing most Israelis support the war.

I guess my response is:

1. Even if you support the war, there is still a big difference between a war with 1000 civilian casualties, a war with 5000 civilian casualties, a war with 10000 civilian casualties, and a war with more than that.

2. The support for a political agreement has increased slightly

https://en.idi.org.il/articles/52976

We asked again (with some modifications) a question posed in January 2024, about support for a political agreement to end the war: “Would you support or oppose an agreement to end the war which includes the release of all the hostages, long-term military quiet with guarantees from the United States, and a peace agreement with Saudi Arabia, in return for the release by Israel of large numbers of Palestinian prisoners, an extended ceasefire, and agreement to the establishment of a demilitarized Palestinian state in the long term?”[1]

Whether due to changes in the wording of the question or to changes in the surrounding circumstances, the general trend is toward a greater degree of support for such an arrangement. In the Jewish sample, there is still a majority (55%) opposed to an agreement, but the share of those who would support it has risen from 29% to 37%. In the Arab sample, a majority of 77% (up from 69% last time) are in favor of an agreement, and only 9% are now opposed.

***

https://www.972mag.com/palestinians-gaza-exit-fees-rafah/

Via Atrios:

https://www.eschatonblog.com/2024/02/its-february-6-bitches.html

https://foreigndesknews.com/top-story/biden-administration-tells-israel-aim-to-wrap-up-war-against-hamas-by-january/

***

Orwell, in what I believe was his last published essay (May 1949), wrote that politics is "a profession in which one is a baby at fifty and middle-aged at seventy-five." One probably couldn't get away with claiming that eighty is the new fifty. It is perhaps more reasonable to claim, with the benefit of seventy years of progress in healthy aging, that four-score and seven is the new three-score and ten.

https://books.google.com/books?id=zaxG_3ivhVAC&pg=PA491&lpg=PA491&dq=%22baby+at+fifty%22+orwell

Old age brings challenges, but it also brings powerful strengths. Biden has conducted much of his presidency with the refreshing air of an old man in a hurry, an old man who has limited time to waste on nonsense.

I think Biden would probably be more popular if the democrats had managed to get affordable child care over the line. I think two of their top priorities for a Biden second term should be affordable child care, and affordable elder care. It felt very, very telling that Diane Feinstein's family was worried, or at least claimed to be worried, about how to afford her elder care.

https://www.sfchronicle.com/politics/article/dianne-feinstein-medical-bills-18390184.php

https://www.sfchronicle.com/health/article/home-health-care-cost-18388134.php

***

Next post: April 29, 2024