tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-58041909086252049382024-03-15T07:10:58.745-04:00The HalmanatorWelcome to The Halmanator! Whether you're a regular visitor or you were brought here by a search engine, I cordially invite you to sample the idle musings of my mind. Pull up a chair, make yourself comfortable and, if you like what you see, perhaps you'll be back.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.comBlogger208125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-89121027418165407802024-02-10T12:50:00.006-05:002024-02-10T13:28:11.079-05:00Parkinson's Update<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc6pODtOOZS3ZzU3zfSZ-y_4xedohf6MXYwqRUM7W-SR67CsQFNjCCea3jtxYsaLCIp1-pzPPFDLZGKHwwsRsHlFI2KFI_rd4jEjSxMUchik4DS8OU49ztaQi3y86CdS2n9SHYpGASiJqm-tWmMjTJDHT_QRfP40U_rm6bVhf6LGZMw6nGN_VK3blVN0/s577/Parkinson's.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="577" data-original-width="553" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDc6pODtOOZS3ZzU3zfSZ-y_4xedohf6MXYwqRUM7W-SR67CsQFNjCCea3jtxYsaLCIp1-pzPPFDLZGKHwwsRsHlFI2KFI_rd4jEjSxMUchik4DS8OU49ztaQi3y86CdS2n9SHYpGASiJqm-tWmMjTJDHT_QRfP40U_rm6bVhf6LGZMw6nGN_VK3blVN0/s320/Parkinson's.jpg" width="307" /></a></div><p>It's been over a year and a half since I wrote in this blog about <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2022/06/mjf-disease.html" target="_blank">having been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease</a>. I had said, at the time, that I didn't intend to turn this blog into a "Parkinson's blog" and, true to my word, I haven't dwelt upon the subject (as the virtual hecklers in the audience point out that I haven't dwelt upon or even written about very many subjects at all! Well, this post may over-compensate for my reduced verbiage of late. All I can say is, you asked for it!)</p><p>Well, more than a year and a half has gone by, so I thought perhaps my regular readers (both of them!) might like an update, so here it is.</p><p>Overall, my condition has stabilized somewhat, although there has been some notable deterioration. While I never kept track of my typing speed in words per minute, I'm certain that it has slowed somewhat. I unintentionally type a lot more double letters than I used to and my fingers just don't move as quickly and gracefully over the keyboard as they once did. For a computer programmer who has been touch typing throughout his career and even before then (I did take a typing class in high school), this has been noticeable.</p><p>Related to the typing problem, my use of computer mice has developed an irritating problem as well. I'm constantly clicking my right mouse button unintentionally. I tend to rest my right ring finger on the right mouse button as I move my cursor around the screen, but that finger has developed a tendency to twitch, or to rest on that right mouse button just a bit too heavily. Most computer users will understand that right-clicking one's mouse is often used for alternate functions such as popping up menus or cancelling commands, which means that I often end up doing things that I absolutely did not intend to do. Thank heavens for the <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-undo-button.html" target="_blank">undo</a> function!</p><p>While I've always had a slight tendency to stutter or stammer somewhat, this seems to be getting worse as well. Speech impediment is another common Parkinson's affliction. In my case, I think it's a combination of a reduction in the ability to coordinate my mouth and tongue movements, as well as an increased tendency to grope for words that used to be at the tip of my tongue. Sadly, Parkinson's can affect cognitive functions as well. I'm hoping that isn't the case with me (hey, we all have trouble thinking of words from time to time, especially as we get older). Interestingly, I've had very little trouble formulating this blog post which suggests that it may be more my mental speed that's been affected rather than my mental capacity. Sitting here, typing, I have more time to compose my thoughts and form them into sentences than I would if I were speaking off the cuff.<br /></p><p>Perhaps most annoyingly, that embarrassing symptom of uncontrolled drooling that I'd mentioned in my original post about Parkinson's has worsened. This is a common Parkinson's affectation, medically referred to as <a href="https://www.parkinson.org/understanding-parkinsons/movement-symptoms/drooling" target="_blank">sialorrhea</a>. See, everyone's mouth constantly generates a certain amount of saliva, even when we're not eating, and most of us just swallow it automatically without even being consciously aware of doing so (yes, that includes you. Have I grossed you out?) Parkinson's can interfere with automatic reflexes like this so, in my case, if I don't make a conscious effort to swallow my saliva every so often (sounds even more gross, doesn't it?) it runs out of the right side of my mouth. The problem worsens when I'm focused on a task (like doing my job at work) and not paying attention to what's happening in my mouth. This can be embarrassing even if no-one actually sees it happen, because the saliva tends to land on my shirt and leave faint rivulets and trails as it dries. I've actually started preferring to wear shirts with fabrics and patterns that don't show these as clearly as others. I must say, the medical establishment hasn't helped by giving the condition an embarrassing sounding name. Quick, what other medical conditions can you think of that end with "...orrhea"?<br /></p><p>My neurologist has suggested a few remedies for this. First she prescribed a medication called <a href="https://www.cuvposa.com/" target="_blank">Cuvposa</a>. This is a liquid, originally intended for people afflicted with cerebral palsy, which reduces or eliminates drooling by inhibiting the production of saliva. Trouble is, it apparently inhibits the production of all sorts of bodily fluids. Just a few of the long list of potential side effects include constipation, bodily heating (because the sweat glands stop working), dry mouth, nasal congestion, headache, vomiting and shallow, rapid breathing. In short, Cuvposa dehydrates the person taking it! I quickly decided that the side effects were likely to be worse than the drooling, and rejected that option without even trying it. I filled the prescription, but the bottle sits, untouched, in the medicine cabinet. </p><p>Because I did fill the prescription, I also learned that a 473 ml bottle of the stuff costs $700! No, you did not misread that. Seven <i>hundred</i>! That's an expensive way to dehydrate myself. Fortunately, the cost was covered by my employer's medical plan, but it does have a yearly limit and, at $700 a bottle, it wouldn't take me long to get there. This smacks of a drug company that's recouping the cost of making a medication that has a low sales volume on the backs of those few people who require it and therefore have no choice. Jeers to Merz (makers of Cuvposa).<br /></p><p>The second thing that my neurologist recommended was a nasal spray called <a href="https://www.medbroadcast.com/drug/getdrug/apo-ipravent-nasal-spray" target="_blank">Ipravent</a>. This is intended to stop a runny nose but I guess my neurologist reasoned that if it reduces nasal mucous, it might also reduce saliva as well. I was directed to spray it under my tongue rather than into my nostrils. I agreed to try that and I can report that I've not had any undesirable side effects, nor any desirable ones, such as reduced drooling. It simply doesn't seem to work.</p><p>The third option suggested by my neurologist was Botox injections into or near the glands that produce saliva. I guess the idea is that Botox can reduce the flow of saliva by puffing up the saliva ducts in the same way that it reduces wrinkles by puffing up the skin. I read up on it. It has been shown to be effective and seems a low-risk option which can always be reversed by simply stopping the Botox injections (which need to be repeated every three to six months). I'm considering trying that.</p><p>So, how have I been managing my Parkinson's, you may wonder? Well, I regularly take <a href="https://www.medbroadcast.com/drug/getdrug/apo-levocarb" target="_blank">levocarb</a>, which is the go-to medication for Parkinson's. That helps to mask the symptoms by giving my brain an infusion of the dopamine that it seems incapable of creating in sufficient quantities on its own.</p><p>More interestingly, I've been referred to an organization called <a href="https://carespace.health/" target="_blank">CARESPACE Health & Wellness</a> where I've enrolled in a special exercise program for Parkinson's sufferers called <a href="https://carespace.health/pd-safex/" target="_blank">PD SAFEx</a>.</p><p>CARESPACE is a privately run organization which offers programs to improve both health and wellness with the help of physiotherapists, kinesiologists, chiropractors, dieticians and psychologists, to name but a few. It's not exclusively for Parkinson's sufferers but it is run by Dr. Quincy Almeida, who has specialized in the study and treatment of Parkinson's for several years, and who developed the PD SAFEx program.</p><p>PD SAFEx is a twelve week program designed to slow the progression of Parkinson's disease through the use of physical exercises aimed at retraining the brain to correctly interpret the sometimes distorted feedback that it receives from the body's proprioceptors.</p><p>Proprioceptors are sensory receptors that provide the brain with feedback about what the body is doing, including where everything is positioned in space, what muscles are in use, what parts of the body are moving and how they are moving. Dr. Quincy's theory is that the central problem with Parkinson's is the brain's inability to correctly interpret the information that it's getting from the proprioceptors. </p><p>This has caused Dr. Quincy to see Parkinson's in a different light from that of the traditional medical establishment. For example, he doesn't see a trembling hand, one of the most common indicators of Parkinson's disease, as a "symptom" but, rather, a coping mechanism that the brain is using to counter a lack of feedback. With Parkinson's, the brain is unable to determine the hand's position in space, so it sends out signals that cause the hand to tremble (sort of the brain's way of asking the hand "where are you?") This trembling strengthens the feedback signals sent by the proprioceptors until the brain says "Ah! There you are!"</p><p>The exercises in the PD SAFEx program are designed to teach the brain what feedback to expect in response to specific movements and thus improve bodily control as well as reducing the need for over-compensation strategy such as tremors.</p><p>So, for the <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/search?q=TL%3BDR" target="_blank">TL;DR</a> version (which, admittedly, I should perhaps have given at the beginning of this post), I've accepted Parkinson's as a permanent part of my life. I'm learning to cope with the symptoms as best I can, while working to control or reduce them wherever possible. I do feel that fate has led me to the right professionals who are helping me to succeed in this.</p><p>I'll close with a special shout-out to Dr. Quincy Almeida who, besides being extremely knowledgeable about Parkinson's disease and empathetic to those living with it, seems to be just a nice guy in general.<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-18558216969509052862023-06-10T10:04:00.000-04:002023-06-10T10:04:33.203-04:00Give Us Back Our Rainbow<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_RBdsLTb2d2t8CJlaDVqIGNuMfA7WgfNm0spOwS3a81-S_pXdvOupSNykvIWIf05NkjcOHOVmyY6MFh9bmkDwtU7j4SqvPaXY8E2Imx5lgDJhgMsN_j6nb6J3bGAuyePHmf4c_9W5NdaPPTVfHfh-HfLKsPWFTqM1pp7V5023QT5goxMu14ULekJT/s255/Leprechaun.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="255" data-original-width="198" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi_RBdsLTb2d2t8CJlaDVqIGNuMfA7WgfNm0spOwS3a81-S_pXdvOupSNykvIWIf05NkjcOHOVmyY6MFh9bmkDwtU7j4SqvPaXY8E2Imx5lgDJhgMsN_j6nb6J3bGAuyePHmf4c_9W5NdaPPTVfHfh-HfLKsPWFTqM1pp7V5023QT5goxMu14ULekJT/s1600/Leprechaun.png" width="198" /></a></div>Today I wish to bring to your attention a heinous wrong that must be righted. It appears that in the grand tapestry of life, the LGBTQ movement has made a sinister usurpation, snatching away an iconic symbol that has, for centuries, belonged exclusively to leprechauns—the illustrious rainbow.<p></p><p>Oh, how the leprechauns must be feeling right now! Their beloved and cherished symbol, the radiant arch of colors that has adorned their pots of gold and shimmered through the misty landscapes of folklore, has been shamelessly snatched from their grasp. It is a travesty of mythical proportions, an outrage that deserves our full condemnation.</p><p>For far too long, the leprechauns have been marginalized and relegated to the shadows of fairy tales and folklore. They have dutifully protected their pots of gold, maintained their mischievous ways, and gleefully danced along rainbows when they saw fit. But now, in a brazen act of cultural appropriation, the LGBTQ movement has pilfered this age-old symbol and draped it around themselves, leaving the leprechauns in a state of bewilderment.</p><p>It is simply unacceptable! How dare those who identify as LGBTQ utilize the rainbow to represent their diverse community and their struggles for acceptance, equality, and love? Can they not create their own symbol? Must they trample upon the traditions of the leprechauns, a proud and mythical people who have watched over rainbows since time immemorial?</p><p>If we allow this affront to go unchallenged, what will be next? Will leprechauns be stripped of their treasured green attire, only to see it paraded around by eco-warriors? Shall their pots of gold be confiscated by bankers, leaving the leprechauns destitute? Will we witness a horde of unicorns prancing about, demanding their rightful place as the symbol of purity and grace?</p><p>I implore you, dear readers, to stand with me in this grave injustice. Let us rally behind the leprechauns, who, in their solitary existence, have brought joy and whimsy to our lives. It is time to reclaim the rainbow on their behalf, to restore it to its rightful owners. For without the leprechauns, who will guide us to our dreams? Who will leave a trail of gold at the end of the rainbow?</p><p>In conclusion, I beseech the LGBTQ community to find it in their hearts to relinquish their claim to the rainbow. Let them devise their own symbol, one that speaks to their unique experiences and aspirations. Unless LGBTQ stands for Leprechauns, Goblins, Banshees, Trolls and Qilin, their community has no claim on the rainbow!<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-41711548676314467982023-04-01T12:01:00.001-04:002023-04-01T12:07:33.948-04:00ChatGPT<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlGR9lQ6HXqpAZnaCAjQptFZZ4ApwlgNQS-qMLBd_f0YZdgrWXm-IJWPieXeYLZcPmhxjtZMZnp0BmDNB8sPzeHgPRDtjOvxyNk55-HD4Pj_sTdoML3L-N7iAtWf1D35yhWHElaCW4IMKd9nOequUJK5_tQDDZZNMvH9DbeBh03mPqyz5-soddtMCr/s1200/meilleur-chatbot.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="1200" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlGR9lQ6HXqpAZnaCAjQptFZZ4ApwlgNQS-qMLBd_f0YZdgrWXm-IJWPieXeYLZcPmhxjtZMZnp0BmDNB8sPzeHgPRDtjOvxyNk55-HD4Pj_sTdoML3L-N7iAtWf1D35yhWHElaCW4IMKd9nOequUJK5_tQDDZZNMvH9DbeBh03mPqyz5-soddtMCr/s320/meilleur-chatbot.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>I've been hearing and reading a lot lately about a new artificial intelligence (A.I.) algorithm called "ChatGPT". ChatGPT is a "chat bot"; a computer program with which it is possible to interact using plain English sentences, just as if you were talking to a person. You can ask it questions and it will try to answer you, partially by drawing upon as much relevant information as it can glean from the internet. It also has a "machine learning" algorithm, meaning that it can remember information gained and conversations from earlier interactions and use that information to make its responses more relevant.<p></p><p>Some people have sounded the alarm about A.I. getting too clever for its (or our) own good. Might it spread racist, homophobic or hate propaganda that it finds online? Can it get so "smart" that it may some day exceed our ability to control it? Might we become so dependent on A.I. that it ultimately ends up controlling us? Are we seeing the dawn of a "<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terminator_2:_Judgment_Day" target="_blank">Judgement Day</a>" as seen in the "Terminator" movies? These questions aren't just coming from paranoid conspiracy theorists. Even the late Dr. Stephen Hawking expressed concern about the potential pitfalls of runaway A.I.</p><p>The Halmanator has always been curious about technology such as this so, when I learned that there is a <a href="https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt" target="_blank">ChatGPT portal</a> available to anyone who wants a first-hand sampling of what this technology is all about, I couldn't resist giving it a try.</p><p>After registering (which is required), giving the obligatory reassurance that "I am not a robot" (how ironic is that?) and logging in, I started by asking ChatGPT a simple question; the kind that you could as easily ask Google.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:<span> </span></b>What was the latest album released by Mike Oldfield?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>As of my knowledge cutoff date of September 2021, the latest album
released by Mike Oldfield was "Return to Ommadawn," which came out in
January 2017. However, it's possible that he has released new music
since then.</span></p><p>Okay, that was reasonably impressive. I got a full, detailed answer including not only the name of Oldfield's last album but also when it was released plus an indication of how up-to-date this information is and a qualifier acknowledging that this information may be outdated. Also, the answer is correct to the best of my knowledge (I have that album). Next, I decided to throw ChatGPT a bit of a curve ball.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>How about Chris de Burgh? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>As of my knowledge cutoff date of September 2021, the latest album
released by Chris de Burgh was "The Legend of Robin Hood," which came
out in November 2020. However, it's possible that he has released new
music since then.</span></p><p>Now that was impressive; not the answer, so much as the fact that ChatGPT understood the question. It understood that "How about" meant "I'm repeating my last question, except with regard to Chris de Burgh instead of Mike Oldfield this time." This may not seem all that impressive to you, but think about it. To a computer program, the meaning of the phrase "how about" would not necessarily be immediately evident. I've thus established that I can truly use natural language when speaking with ChatGPT. Next, I decided to ask it a more open-ended question.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>Tell me about yourself.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>Hello! I am ChatGPT, a large language model created by OpenAI. My purpose is to assist you in generating human-like responses to your questions and inquiries. I am based on the GPT-3.5 architecture, which enables me to understand and generate natural language responses in a variety of contexts.</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">I have been trained on a vast corpus of text data and can provide information on a wide range of topics, from science and technology to history, literature, and more. I am designed to learn from my interactions with users and continuously improve my abilities to provide accurate and helpful responses.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">As an AI language model, I do not have personal experiences or feelings, but I am here to assist you and answer any questions you may have to the best of my abilities.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>What does GPT stand for? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span><span> </span></span>GPT stands for "Generative Pre-trained Transformer." It is a type of neural network architecture developed by OpenAI that has been widely used for natural language processing tasks such as language translation, text generation, and text classification.</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">The "pre-trained" part of the name refers to the fact that the model is trained on large amounts of text data before being fine-tuned for specific tasks. This pre-training process enables the model to learn the underlying patterns and structures of language, which allows it to generate more coherent and contextually appropriate responses to user input.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">The "transformer" part of the name refers to the specific type of neural network architecture used in GPT models. Transformers are particularly well-suited for processing sequences of text data, as they can model long-range dependencies and capture relationships between words and phrases more effectively than traditional recurrent neural networks.</span></p><p>Okay, so now I have a better idea of what I'm dealing with. Maybe it's only fair to offer ChatGPT the same courtesy.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>Is there anything that you would like to know about me? </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>As an AI language model, I don't have personal preferences or desires.
However, if there's any specific information that you would like to
share, I'm here to listen and respond to your questions to the best of
my abilities. Whether you have a specific topic in mind that you'd like
to discuss or just want to have a conversation, feel free to let me
know!</span></p><p>Well! Thank you Commander Data! Okay, as it happens, there <i>is</i> something that I'd like to share. </p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>I was recently diagnosed as having Parkinson's disease.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>I'm sorry to hear that you have been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. Parkinson's disease is a chronic and progressive neurological disorder that affects movement and can have a significant impact on a person's quality of life.</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">While there is no cure for Parkinson's disease, there are treatments available that can help manage the symptoms of the disease and improve quality of life. Some common treatments include medications, such as levodopa and dopamine agonists, and physical therapy or exercise programs that can help improve mobility and flexibility. In some cases, deep brain stimulation (DBS) may also be recommended as a treatment option.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">It's important to work closely with your healthcare provider to develop a treatment plan that is tailored to your specific needs and symptoms. Additionally, joining a support group for people with Parkinson's disease can be a helpful way to connect with others who are going through similar experiences and to learn more about the disease and available treatments.</span></p></div></div></div><p> </p><p>Pretty much the sort of answer I expected; basically a brief run-down about what Parkinson's disease is and what treatments are available. But I was mildly impressed by the addition of the sympathetic "I'm sorry to hear (that)". Nice touch.</p><p>Okay, time to mess with ChatGPT's electronic mind a bit.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b> I lied about having Parkinson's. Everything I say is a lie. In fact, what I just said is untrue.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>I understand that you have made a statement about lying and that you now
claim that everything you say is a lie. As an AI language model, my
purpose is to assist and provide information to the best of my abilities
based on the information provided to me. It's important to be truthful
in our interactions, as honesty and trust are essential components of
effective communication. If there's anything specific that you would
like to discuss or if you have any questions, I'm here to listen and
provide assistance.</span></p><p>Darn. I had hoped to give ChatGPT an algorithmic nervous breakdown, somewhat like James T. Kirk did with <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0708432/" target="_blank">Harry Mudd's robots</a>. It seems ChatGPT isn't taking the bait. Time to make amends.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b> That was a test to see how you would respond. What I told you was true (except for the part about it being untrue). </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>I see, thank you for clarifying. It's understandable that you would want
to test my responses. As an AI language model, I strive to provide
accurate and helpful information based on the input that I receive. If
you have any questions or concerns about Parkinson's disease or anything
else, I'm here to assist you to the best of my abilities.</span></p><p>Okay, that was pretty impressive. It clearly understood my meaning, responded with a good-natured "It's all good" and offered to resume talking about the subject of Parkinson's. If the response weren't so darned polite, I could almost be tricked into thinking that I was talking to a fellow human. Which brings up an interesting question.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>Can you be sure that you're talking to a human being as opposed to another A.I. like yourself?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>As an AI language model, I am not able to determine with certainty whether I am interacting with a human or another AI language model like myself. However, I am designed to respond to text input in a human-like manner, and I'm programmed to engage in conversation with individuals in a way that is similar to how humans communicate.</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">While there are other AI language models like me, each model has its own unique training and capabilities that can affect its ability to generate responses to specific questions and topics. Nonetheless, my main goal is to assist and provide helpful and informative responses to the best of my abilities, regardless of whether I'm interacting with a human or another AI language model.</span></p><p>A rather verbose way of saying "I don't really care. It's all the same to me." I would have been infinitely more impressed if ChatGPT had phrased the answer that way.</p><p>Okay, one more mind-bending question, the classic ...</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>If a tree falls over without anyone or anything around to hear it, does it make a sound?</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>The answer to this question is somewhat philosophical and depends on how one defines the concept of sound.</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">If we define sound as the physical disturbance or vibration of air molecules that is detected by the human ear, then it can be argued that if there is no one around to hear the tree fall, then there is no sound produced. However, if we define sound more broadly as any physical disturbance or vibration that travels through a medium and has the potential to be detected, then it could be argued that a sound is produced, regardless of whether anyone or anything is around to hear it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;">Ultimately, the answer to this question may depend on how one chooses to define sound and the context in which the term is being used.</span></p><p>Once again, it clearly understood the question and gave me a reasonable answer, although I would have been much more impressed it had said "You're testing me again, aren't you?" Only when a chat bot can come back with that insightful a response can it arguably be called "intelligent".</p><p>And, finally, a question designed to test ChatGPT's ability to glean information on the fly and make value judgements.</p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>I have a blog called "The Halmanator". Have a look and tell me what you think of it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>I'm sorry, but as an AI language model, I'm not able to access the
internet or browse specific websites. However, if you have any specific
questions or topics related to your blog or writing that you would like
to discuss, I'm here to help to the best of my abilities.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>But it was my understanding that you get many of your answers from the internet; what Mike Oldfield's last album was, for example. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>You are correct that I'm able to access and retrieve information from the internet when responding to questions. However, as an AI language model, I don't have a browser or the ability to browse specific websites or access individual blogs like "The Halmanator".</span></p><div class="flex flex-grow flex-col gap-3"><div class="min-h-[20px] flex flex-col items-start gap-4 whitespace-pre-wrap"><div class="markdown prose w-full break-words dark:prose-invert light"><p><span style="font-family: courier;">If you have any specific questions related to your blog or writing that you would like to discuss, feel free to ask, and I'll do my best to provide helpful and informative responses.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:<span> </span></b>I plan to publish this conversation in my blog. Any objections?<b> </b></span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:<span> </span></b>As an AI language model, I do not have personal feelings or objections
to having this conversation published on your blog. However, it's
important to keep in mind that any information shared in this
conversation is public and can be viewed by anyone who has access to
your blog. If you choose to publish this conversation, I recommend that
you consider the privacy implications of doing so and take appropriate
measures to protect your personal information and identity.</span></p><p>Well, the only privacy considerations here are my own and the only possibly sensitive information in this conversation is my having Parkinson's, which I've <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2022/06/mjf-disease.html" target="_blank">already shared</a> with my readers, so I think we're good. Still, I appreciate the caution.<br /></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>The Halmanator:</b><span> </span>Thank you. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: courier;"><b>ChatGPT:</b><span> </span>You're welcome! If you have any questions or topics you'd like to discuss, feel free to let me know.</span></p><p>Interestingly, ChatGPT seemed to take slightly longer in generating that last response than it did for most of the conversation that preceded it; almost as though its algorithm had a slightly harder time interpreting my simple, two-word non-question. Still, it did come back with an appropriate response.</p><p>In my opinion, ChatGPT is a reasonably impressive chat bot program, although I can't say that it would pass the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turing_test#History" target="_blank">Turing test</a>. I'm certainly not worried about it enslaving my species any time soon. <br /></p></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div></div>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-87206479620612201772023-02-26T15:30:00.000-05:002023-02-26T15:30:16.926-05:00Tired of Guilt<div class="separator"><p data-bind="text: $data"></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKjJfvemJ8DccQMBQdjDb7dqnTGdrqbqxdPxpyGaoPk4v1XJxyP18Hw4uhcl21aIXlyUnRpLoxWiI35aRA67wl3qiDtUw_hhFQLp0VThYo3iuOc7QO2Dm5TdKudJb4kBL-_nc5nBAo-CIvY7lIejC1ICn0-qJ83Y_ccrwU7yMfzLAOm0oyN1xX0PzQ/s1279/Guilt-Versability-Lifehack.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="1279" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKjJfvemJ8DccQMBQdjDb7dqnTGdrqbqxdPxpyGaoPk4v1XJxyP18Hw4uhcl21aIXlyUnRpLoxWiI35aRA67wl3qiDtUw_hhFQLp0VThYo3iuOc7QO2Dm5TdKudJb4kBL-_nc5nBAo-CIvY7lIejC1ICn0-qJ83Y_ccrwU7yMfzLAOm0oyN1xX0PzQ/s320/Guilt-Versability-Lifehack.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Recently I was reading the editorial section in my local paper and I came across an article that started as follows: <i> </i><p></p><p data-bind="text: $data"><i>I have been attending vigils for victims of
gender-based violence for years and whether the focus is on missing and
murdered Indigenous women, or marking the anniversary of the Dec. 6
shootings at École Polytechnique in Montreal, there’s always a
noticeable absence in the crowd — men.</i></p></div><p data-bind="text: $data"><i>Other
than a select few, why are men missing from these events? Do you feel
like these spaces aren’t for you? That femicide and gender-based violence
aren’t your issue?</i></p><p data-bind="text: $data">Well, speaking as a man who did not attend the vigil, let me offer the following answer (speaking only for myself of course). First of all. the author didn't say where or when said vigil took place or how long it lasted but, if it took place during regular business hours on a weekday, I would have been at work and if it took place in the evening and ran too late, I would likely have had to be at work early the next day. Most of us have regular jobs to go to and can't take time off whenever we feel like it to support other peoples' causes. I've noticed that people who organize vigils, rallies and protests often seem to schedule them on weekdays when most people are working.</p><p data-bind="text: $data">But I have another reason for not attending, even if I wasn't doing anything else, and that is that I'm quite simply tired of being made to feel guilty about wrongs done to others which I neither instigated nor participated in and which have nothing to do with me other than my happening to be part of a demographic which is painted as the antagonists. I am of European descent and was raised Roman Catholic which makes me somehow complicit in the residential school fiasco unless I support the Truth and Reconciliation movement. I am a white Caucasian so I'm an anti-black racist if I don't show support for the Black Lives Matter movement. I'm also antisemitic because I once <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2019/04/shall-we-not-avenge.html" target="_blank">posted an article in this blog</a> supporting Helmut Oberlander because he was persecuted for having participated in Nazi atrocities without a shred of hard evidence to support the accusation.<br /></p><p data-bind="text: $data">Getting back to the vigil, the author paints all men who did not choose to attend the vigil as antagonists who either participate in, or at least condone, femicide and gender-based violence. Note that she doesn't ask about the women who weren't there. They're part of the victim demographic so they get a pass. The implication is that my non-attendance of the vigil coupled by my belonging to the antagonist demographic makes me somehow complicit or guilty of the wrongs that have been done.</p>Let me state, for the record, that I am a husband and father who has never once raised my hand against either my wife or my daughter. I have cared for and nurtured them to the best of my ability and I object to being made culpable for the wrongs committed by others who happen to share my demographic because I didn't go out of my way to expressly show support for the victims. Quite frankly, I believe that demonstrations such as this vigil ultimately accomplish nothing. They don't eliminate or even reduce the problem, and they don't even increase awareness of it. The vigil came and went and yet femicide and gender-based violence continue to occur as frequently as they ever did. But I suppose that's my fault. Had I attended the vigil, things would surely have improved.<br />Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-77892955801384962972023-01-14T12:23:00.002-05:002023-01-14T12:26:50.931-05:00Hold The Phone!<p> Quick, what's this?</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4GkYQ1Ofoi4JwXhFtnpNZNbXS-Gg19g-t9TjzqCcJxDjwTQ-xqLhe-It_SA3KUeMcQO-8GM8X6d-1TrjN0fo-SQ5pgQNAk0RcX0dHYTt-SLvrt-t4EFqgiK-XkCwwgtqwYjVoP1zbAhLDvopKWjzCgfMxqpYLW5m7nx1z6pkcuaEsSnh5upUvGxlT/s1040/Phone%20Holder%201.JPEG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="780" data-original-width="1040" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4GkYQ1Ofoi4JwXhFtnpNZNbXS-Gg19g-t9TjzqCcJxDjwTQ-xqLhe-It_SA3KUeMcQO-8GM8X6d-1TrjN0fo-SQ5pgQNAk0RcX0dHYTt-SLvrt-t4EFqgiK-XkCwwgtqwYjVoP1zbAhLDvopKWjzCgfMxqpYLW5m7nx1z6pkcuaEsSnh5upUvGxlT/w640-h480/Phone%20Holder%201.JPEG" width="640" /> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">Darth Vader trying to levitate a pile of volcanic rocks from the planet Mustafar? (Actually, that's a bowl of watermelon cubes).</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">A piggy bank like those old coffins where a skeleton hand comes out and takes your coin?</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwisul4obks_DuZjmNaltmH0gpq0aa6antpucJk92F7eU9GidTUQuhY7ANiVGKdV24MK5vJsac9yS29bsEZC2Q9n79tYFmyu17bV3x-aKmWAuOwYgMAdHFL2vezcGvfSntyq_jH6H277Z7nyLmliXz3cJyZrW5ds_yfpcyGaG3hb0JUAUnv651zItr/s1824/Coin%20Holder.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1824" data-original-width="1368" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwisul4obks_DuZjmNaltmH0gpq0aa6antpucJk92F7eU9GidTUQuhY7ANiVGKdV24MK5vJsac9yS29bsEZC2Q9n79tYFmyu17bV3x-aKmWAuOwYgMAdHFL2vezcGvfSntyq_jH6H277Z7nyLmliXz3cJyZrW5ds_yfpcyGaG3hb0JUAUnv651zItr/w480-h640/Coin%20Holder.jpg" width="480" /></a></div></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;">No? Here's a clue.</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEpVIIc62pBqPd6jUdVFusGRQseaZsm0mTo4lSSzAKCm9hF9iFPORc86ocMzevUyFJs9aKTr-ZJnINspRa1E3OIPaLDRFpSp4KBW8LO-lwnAMPRMd-N9rZb85KudCyILCNO2Ocv_o7CPfEW4fPspsx5MSEJCrIKVxeB4VS6fgsMPJqXkgj83SzLPj/s2194/Phone%20Holder%202.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2194" data-original-width="1646" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgMEpVIIc62pBqPd6jUdVFusGRQseaZsm0mTo4lSSzAKCm9hF9iFPORc86ocMzevUyFJs9aKTr-ZJnINspRa1E3OIPaLDRFpSp4KBW8LO-lwnAMPRMd-N9rZb85KudCyILCNO2Ocv_o7CPfEW4fPspsx5MSEJCrIKVxeB4VS6fgsMPJqXkgj83SzLPj/w480-h640/Phone%20Holder%202.jpg" width="480" /></a></div><p></p><p>Yes boys and girls, it's a phone holder! It doesn't charge the phone. It doesn't plug into the phone or communicate with it wirelessly in any way, shape or form, so it doesn't alert you to incoming calls or messages by flashing its eyes or anything like that. It doesn't talk ("You have an incoming message, my master!") or do anything else special. It just provides you with an interesting place to set your phone when you're not using it. (At this point all the millennials out there are scratching their heads wondering "What do you mean when you're not using it?")</p><p>As anyone who has perused this blog before will already know all too well, I'm a bit of a Star Wars geek (and Star Trek geek, and Simpsons geek, and ...) so anyone who has occasion to buy me a present for whatever occasion and can't think of anything I need tends to get me Star Wars stuff (or Star Trek or Simpsons stuff). It was my daughter who got me this thing last Father's Day.</p><p>I have to admit, for a geeky gift, it's surprisingly practical (now I always know where my phone is) and it is kind of an ego boost having the Dark Lord of the Sith as your own personal phone caddy.<br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><br /> <br /></div><br /><p></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-28766403207376587962022-12-31T12:25:00.012-05:002023-01-02T11:42:04.359-05:00Let The Good Guys Win<br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1r8ydWVfxBsUuwV9TCfU5ovURcKpxpsIb-pv67YurdVgfLMVItCBWqqrigMdxUiiYxDbQ20uZq1mT-Vq_UYD3RYx9-QfYrCPxqnlVpkUN-hJxsZPPC3ZL3M33hqzGyIQUnDvinuiU78D70PKVdN2VbUapPsVqCuMZO4I6ei4KLUssBiPPOG-eIjlx/s230/good%20guy.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="230" data-original-width="219" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1r8ydWVfxBsUuwV9TCfU5ovURcKpxpsIb-pv67YurdVgfLMVItCBWqqrigMdxUiiYxDbQ20uZq1mT-Vq_UYD3RYx9-QfYrCPxqnlVpkUN-hJxsZPPC3ZL3M33hqzGyIQUnDvinuiU78D70PKVdN2VbUapPsVqCuMZO4I6ei4KLUssBiPPOG-eIjlx/s1600/good%20guy.jpg" width="219" /></a></div>It's New Year's Eve as I write this. Another year winds to a close and we hope for better things in the new year, as always.<p></p><p>Hoping for "better things" feels like I'm setting the bar pretty low this year. The last few years haven't been great overall. Between the COVID-19 pandemic that simply refuses to go away, a global environment that continues to degrade while the leaders of the world's nations seem to lack the will, if not the ability, to do anything to turn it around, Russia causing untold misery for millions of innocent Ukrainian people with its indefensible war of aggression, spiraling inflation casting increasing numbers of people into poverty and homelessness around the globe ... well, it's easy to feel like things have no way to change but for the better. </p><p>Sometimes it's tempting to assume that a large part of the reason for the many problems that our world is experiencing is that the wrong people have been elevated to positions of power and influence. To name but a few examples, <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Trump" target="_blank">Donald Trump</a> seems primed to recapture the lead of the republican party of America and attempt a second bid for the presidency of one of the world's richest and most powerful nations, despite having clearly incited a treasonous attempt to subvert the democratic transition of power after losing his last election and having illegally removed classified government documents and kept them in his Mar-a-Lago home, to say nothing of his alleged tax fraud charges.</p><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vladimir_Putin" target="_blank">Vladimir Putin</a> continues to wage his senseless war of aggression on the Ukrainian people, targeting innocent civilians, even against the wishes of many of his own people.</p><p>Former Israeli Prime Minister <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Netanyahu" target="_blank">Benjamin Netanyahu</a> seems poised to recapture the leadership of Israel while still under indictment for alleged acts of bribery, fraud and breaches of trust during his last tenure, and despite the fact that he has been clear about his plans to displace the Palestinians living along the west bank from their homes.</p><p>In short, the bad guys appear to be winning and the state of the world reflects that. Maybe what we need is for the good guys to win once in a while; the <a href="https://www.president.gov.ua/en/president/biografiya" target="_blank">Volodymyr Zelenskyys</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexei_Navalny" target="_blank">Alexei Navalnys</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden" target="_blank">Joe Bidens</a>, the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justin_Trudeau" target="_blank">Justin Trudeaus</a>. Now, some of my readers may object to my glorification of some of those names and, to be sure, they all have their faults being human after all, but I believe these people, call them the "good guys", have the best interests of their public at heart, whereas the "bad guys" act only in their own self interest and that of their friends.</p><p>So, if I could be granted a personal wish for 2023, it would simply be this: Let the good guys win once in a while.</p><p> </p><p><iframe allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZWRFY71jnWI" title="YouTube video player" width="560"></iframe> </p><p>Happy 2023 everybody!<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-1994529764412290572022-06-25T12:59:00.000-04:002022-06-25T12:59:26.599-04:00MJF Disease<br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJdCAPOhbDvTcDNbqofsfu2LBDaLMPZlhCIl7DTC2H-fQdzRvFY7jphowxLDaGGbUovEVlbm5nvwEBM6ed-AcKkjow0CpRYMiRir3WZhIAZB3NUI-VI_yAzrdvAVLc2jo6bvpjpvc9vuMdaqYBZj5Y3rCgX6AjYwrc6GcB7q7pzws66jLyre1Yb0a/s825/Parkinsons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="825" data-original-width="763" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitJdCAPOhbDvTcDNbqofsfu2LBDaLMPZlhCIl7DTC2H-fQdzRvFY7jphowxLDaGGbUovEVlbm5nvwEBM6ed-AcKkjow0CpRYMiRir3WZhIAZB3NUI-VI_yAzrdvAVLc2jo6bvpjpvc9vuMdaqYBZj5Y3rCgX6AjYwrc6GcB7q7pzws66jLyre1Yb0a/s320/Parkinsons.jpg" width="296" /></a></div>I had started to notice a number of physical changes in me that I largely wrote off to aging; after all, I was less than a year away from completing my sixth decade on this Earth. <p></p><p>To begin with, I had started to slow down. Everything seemed to take longer than it used to. Take shaving, for example. It suddenly seemed to take an inordinate amount of time to cover the lower part of my face with shaving cream. </p><p>Formerly simple activities, like putting on a jacket or coat, suddenly became more difficult. As I stuck my arm into my jacket sleeve, the sleeve of my shirt would slightly catch on the inside of my jacket liner, and even that slight resistance caused my whole arm to tremble slightly. Pushing my arm all the way through just seemed harder than it should be.</p><p>Most disconcertingly, I had begun to notice that my hands would tremble slightly when I was sitting at rest. I could stop the trembling by concentrating on relaxing all of the muscles in my arms and hands but, if I wasn't thinking about it, if I just sat normally, my hands would invariably start to tremble.</p><p>Months went by and the anomalies didn't seem to go away. In fact, they seemed to worsen somewhat. And new anomalies began showing up. Most annoyingly (and embarrassingly), I started drooling out the right side of my mouth from time to time, and I didn't seem to be able to stop it.</p><p>Finally, I got concerned enough to see my family doctor about it. She ordered a full spectrum of blood tests, all of which came back normal. "I have good news, and bad news," she told me; "The good news is that I can't find anything wrong with you. The bad news is that I can't find anything wrong with you, so we still have no explanation for the trembling hands, etc. that you've been experiencing. My next recommendation would be to refer you to a neurologist."</p><p>Wow. A neurologist. That's a brain specialist, assuming that my vocabulary is still unaffected. Does this mean that the problem might be in my brain? That would be a bad thing. I need my brain! Appearances to the contrary, I use it quite a bit! What could it be? Parkinsons? Lou Gehrig's Disease? A malignant brain tumor? (Answering myself in my best fake Arnold Schwarzenegger accent: "It's not a toomah!") No matter; I had started down this road and I wasn't about to turn back now. So my doctor made an appointment with a neurologist for me.</p><p>After allowing me to tell her, in my own words, why I was there and what kind of symptoms I had been experiencing, the neurologist began by asking some probing questions:</p><p>Do I smoke? (No). Have I ever smoked? (Not regularly).<br /></p><p>Do I drink? How much? (No, really, how much?)</p><p>Any recreational drug use?</p><p>Do I ever have any strange dreams?</p><p>Do I ever "act out" any of my dreams in my sleep?</p><p>How's my libido?</p><p>... and so on.</p><p>She then proceeded to have me do a number of tests, both physical and mental:</p><p>Repeat the following sentences / sounds after me.</p><p>Follow my finger without turning your head.</p><p>Point to the ceiling, then the floor, then the door.</p><p>Which hand am I waving?</p><p>Mimic my hand movements.</p><p>What is the object that I'm holding called? (A ball-point pen).</p><p>(Pointing at the tip of the pen) what is this part called?</p><p>(Removing the cap) what is this part called? <br /></p><p>Name the months of the year in reverse order.</p><p>Count backward from 100 by sevens (most of the people I've told about this admitted that they weren't sure how well they would do at that one either).</p><p>... and so on.</p><p>I had expected her to suggest a CAT scan or some kind of brain X-ray, so I was a bit surprised when, having completed the tests, she told me "I am seeing some kind of Parkinsonism".</p><p>Parkinsonism. As in Parkinson's Disease? You're telling me that I have Parkinson's?</p><p>Truth be told, I wasn't taken completely by surprise. I had suggested, jokingly (I thought) to some of those with whom I had discussed my symptoms that maybe it was Parkinson's. But I wasn't really serious. After all, Parkinson's is one of those afflictions that only happens to "other people", right?</p><p>The neurologist was, generally speaking, very thorough and professional. Her only questionable action was to take my blood pressure <i>after</i> the aforementioned conversation and then commenting that my blood pressure and heart rate were "somewhat high". I couldn't resist pointing out that it might just be a physical reaction to just having learned that I have an incurable, degenerative brain disease! (Duh!)</p><p>She prescribed a drug called Levodopa. Funny name, but the "dopa" part comes from the chemical dopamine, which is not secreted in adequate quantities by the brains of Parkinson's sufferers like myself. The drug apparently tops up my dopamine levels for me. I have an appointment to see her again in about a month at which time she will assess how I'm responding to the medication. This will apparently tell her more about what flavour of Parkinson's I have (apparently "Parkinson's" is an "umbrella" term that includes a whole spectrum of afflictions), how far my Parkinsonism has progressed and she will make further recommendations at that time.</p><p>In the meantime, I of course got into full Google mode and began researching Parkinson's. One of the best resources that I've come across is the <a href="https://www.michaeljfox.org" target="_blank">Michael J. Fox Foundation</a> website, which has all kinds of great information and resources, including a downloadable pamphlet especially for newly-diagnosed Parkinson's patients like myself.</p><p>While I don't intend to turn this blog into a "Parkinson's" blog, I will likely be posting updates that I think may be interesting to my readers. In the meantime, I'm asking all who know me to refer to my condition as "MJF Disease" rather than "Parkinson's", just because Michael J. Fox is much cooler than James Parkinson, even if James gets the credit for first identifying the disease.<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-40439014590682100862021-11-21T16:25:00.003-05:002021-11-21T16:25:32.859-05:00How To Solve Global Warming<p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XGWGhctmjsk/YZq02mCpY1I/AAAAAAAADsY/YiQg9t6blv4GpW_aYRbgIYXktCs_l-4rwCLcBGAsYHQ/s549/Solve%2BGlobal%2BWarming.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Image borrowed from https://www.joboneforhumanity.org/plan" border="0" data-original-height="549" data-original-width="468" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XGWGhctmjsk/YZq02mCpY1I/AAAAAAAADsY/YiQg9t6blv4GpW_aYRbgIYXktCs_l-4rwCLcBGAsYHQ/w274-h320/Solve%2BGlobal%2BWarming.png" width="274" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: xx-small;">Image borrowed from https://www.joboneforhumanity.org/plan</span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>A little while ago, I wrote an uncharacteristically (for me) <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2021/07/were-doomed.html" target="_blank">pessimistic post</a> about global warming in which I expressed my considered opinion that our species is not going to be able to solve this problem. Well, as Theodore Roosevelt once said, "complaining about a problem without posing a solution is called whining." </p><p>I believe that's a fair comment. The problem is, I have no specific solutions to offer. If I did, I'd be much richer and more famous than I am. I only know that what we have done to this point is insufficient and, indeed, what we intend to do, based on the recent COP26 conference in Scotland isn't encouraging either. I did, however, make what I think is a useful observation that might provide a broad suggestion as to what it will take to solve this crisis.</p><p>For example, while it`s clear that the mining and the burning of coal are significant sources of the CO<sup>2</sup> gas being added to the Earth`s atmosphere, neither China nor India, two of the world`s largest coal producers, have expressed a willingness to put an end to its mining. Instead of agreeing to "phase out" (i.e. gradually end) coal production, they committed only to "phase down" (i.e. reduce) coal production.</p><p>Other countries were quick to condemn the two nations for their unwillingness to cooperate. However, if one realizes that coal powers a significant portion of China's power grid and, indeed, that China needed to <i>increase </i>production after experiencing widespread power shortages in mid to late September, one comes to realize that it's not enough to simply agree to end activities that cause global warming. We need to understand why those activities are in place and we need a concrete plan for how those needs will be met via alternate, environmental friendly resources.</p><p>To put a more personal spin on this, you might decide to commit to stop using natural gas, another source of CO<sup>2</sup>, to heat your house, but first you need to figure out how <i>else </i>you are going to heat it, because you do need heat. Once you've decided how you're going to heat your home without natural gas, you need a plan for converting to that method and it's going to cost money, so you also need to budget for it.</p><p>Another example; lots of people are looking toward replacing gasoline-powered cars with electrical ones as a way to significantly reduce CO<sup>2</sup> emissions. After all, electrically-powered cars produce zero emissions. No-brainer, right? Except that electrical cars are expensive and not within everybody's budget, and charging stations are arguably still too few and far between, and charging a battery still takes a heck of a lot longer than filling a gas tank. </p><p> Further, although the electrical power grid can sustain the handful of E.V. (electric vehicle) owners out there to date, could it also support re-charging the literal millions of E.V.s that will flood the streets once we finally do away with gas-powered cars? I've read stories about brown-outs and black-outs due only to increased air-conditioner usage during the summer months. Yet we seem to assume that we can support this <i>and </i>recharging millions of electrical cars without a problem? </p><p>The lithium batteries that power these cars don't have an infinite life span. How are we going to dispose of or recycle them when they start reaching their end of lives in significant numbers? And can we produce enough lithium to make the millions of batteries required for all those millions of E.V.s in the first place? It's considered a "rare earth" mineral for a reason, you know. </p><p>And what kind of CO<sup>2</sup> emissions are generated by the manufacturing process behind a typical E.V. in the first place? Will we simply be replacing the CO<sup>2</sup> emissions that come from driving our cars, with those that come from manufacturing them? I haven't heard many of the same people that seem eager to embrace replacing gas-powered cars with E.V.s ask any of the above questions, and I sure haven't heard them answer any of them.</p><p>Don't misunderstand me. This is not a defense of fossil fuels nor a denigration of electrical-powered transportation. It's simply meant to point out the shortsightedness of those who over-simplify the problem of making the very necessary conversion from greenhouse gas-producing technologies to carbon-free or, at least, carbon-neutral ones. It's not enough to say that we'll do it or even that we'll do it by a given date. We need a concrete roadmap that lays out how this will happen; one that acknowledges that costs and inconveniences will have to be endured by all. Until we can do that, I say again ... we're doomed!<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-24023146551939732582021-08-14T18:26:00.002-04:002021-08-14T18:32:24.315-04:00Tapestry<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lTo01kDgtdk/YRgiWhIp2YI/AAAAAAAADek/TSidWT_oPb0K5B749AWkrmCScriGty0OACLcBGAsYHQ/s1006/STTNG.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="757" data-original-width="1006" height="241" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-lTo01kDgtdk/YRgiWhIp2YI/AAAAAAAADek/TSidWT_oPb0K5B749AWkrmCScriGty0OACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/STTNG.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>One of my favorite <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i> episodes is the one entitled <a href="https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Tapestry_(episode)" target="_blank"><i>Tapestry</i></a>, which was aired during the show's sixth season. <p></p><p>This episode begins with the death of captain Jean-Luc Picard, when he is attacked by aliens called the Lenarians while on a diplomatic mission. He finds himself in the afterlife where he meets the infamous Q; a mischievous, if not malevolent being with almost god-like abilities whose path Picard has crossed before, and who always seems to have a hidden agenda.</p><p>Q informs Picard that he is dead, explaining that it needn't have been so if he had possessed a natural heart rather than an artificial one which was surgically installed during Picard's younger (and more reckless) days as a Starfleet ensign after he made the unfortunate decision to pick a fight with a group of very bad-tempered and strong aliens known as Nausicaans, only to be impaled by a Nausicaan spear-like weapon for his trouble. Q explains that a normal heart would have survived the energy beam that had hit Picard's chest during his recent fracas with the Lenarians, but the artificial heart was, unfortunately, less resilient.</p><p>Picard expresses regret over his misadventure with the Nausicaans, not only because it apparently lead indirectly to his untimely death, but because he feels that he acted in a foolish and headstrong manner and he suggests that he might do things differently if given the chance. On hearing this, Q transports Picard back in time, to two days prior to his tussle with the Nausicaans and challenges him to change the course of events and avoid the fight. If he can do this, he can avoid getting stabbed through the heart which will mean that he has a normal heart when he is later attacked by the Lenarians, which in turn, will mean that he survives that encounter and regains his life. In spite of his mistrust of Q, Picard reluctantly agrees to play along, not only for the chance to avoid death but also for the opportunity to change a part of his past of which he is not proud.</p><p>As events unfold for the second time, Picard makes every attempt to avoid confrontation with the Nausicaans but doing so requires him to act in an uncharacteristically reserved, at times seemingly cowardly manner, causing his friends from that time to question his motivations and character and, indeed, alienating them in the process.</p><p>He ultimately does manage to avoid the skirmish with the Nausicaans and, true to his word, Q returns him to the present day where he finds himself no longer deceased, but back aboard the Enterprise ... but also no longer her captain. Suddenly he is a lowly assistant astrophysics officer reporting to the Klingon, Lt. Worf. Through ensuing conversations with the Enterprise's senior officers and also Q, he learns that his cautious, risk-averse approach to the Naussican confrontation set in motion a pattern of similar behavior in all things, causing others to see him as competent, but unimpressive and leaving him a dreary functionary with a tedious job and no prospects for self-improvement.</p><p>Naturally, this new development is not at all to Picard's liking and (spoiler alert) he persuades Q to allow him to re-live his youth yet a third time and once again fights the Nausicaans, gets impaled, and is returned to his normal timeline and rank ... still alive. It seems that Q simply felt that Picard needed a lesson about being true to himself. The episode title comes from Picard's comment, in the end, that, although he isn't proud of some of the things he has done in his past, he has found that pulling on one of these "loose threads" caused the entire tapestry of his life to unravel.</p><p>Canada is, in my opinion, one of the finest countries in the world. Its people are known to be diverse and accepting of other cultures. We enjoy a high standard of living, a government that respects individual rights and freedoms, a high calibre of education, a health care system that ensures access to high-quality care for all and a reputation that makes Canadians respected and welcomed by virtually every other nation. </p><p>We also have things in our past that could have been done better and of which we are not proud. We weren't always as accepting of other cultures as we are today, and there was a time when we segregated indigenous children from their families and tried to assimilate them into the British colonial culture. There are some who would eradicate anything that reminds them of those unenlightened times. This ranges from tearing down statues of those who are perceived as the instigators of the segregation to renaming buildings, streets, parks, towns and even entire provinces whose current names seem to glorify the British colonialism that lead our ancestors to act as they did. </p><p>In doing this, we may be making the same mistake as Jean-Luc Picard did, failing to understand that our faults and our virtues both make us what we are, and to alter any one aspect of our identity or our history changes our very essence. Edmund Burke famously said "Those who don't know history are condemned to repeat it". If we truly succeed in eradicating all traces of our colonial past, we risk forgetting our past mistakes and, ultimately, repeating them rather than acknowledging them and learning from them.</p><p>We must also remember that those whom some would vilify for being the architects of the residential school system which separated indigenous children from their families were not entirely villainous and, indeed, brought about positive changes as well as negative ones. For example, Sir John A. Macdonald, who has become the target of scorn for many as the chief architect of the residential school system, was also known to be a drunkard and was embroiled in a scandal for accepting election funds in exchange for awarding a contract to build the Canadian Pacific railway which forced him to resign as Prime Minister. Yet he was one of the prime architects of Confederation which turned British North America into the nation of Canada. Canada owes its very existence to this man. And the Canadian Pacific railway remains an invaluable part of Canada's infrastructure to this very day. </p><p> If we were to go back in time and erase Sir John A. Macdonald from history, we would very likely return to the present to find that all the provinces and territories north of the 49th parallel are suddenly nothing more than America's 51st to 63rd states. <br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-88148370508896763932021-07-04T12:58:00.001-04:002021-07-04T13:00:11.051-04:00We're Doomed!<p><i></i></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><i><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0mBh8_Dm1DI/YOHoJm_ZXSI/AAAAAAAADWk/MqM97bu2ZsYIqzE07qxVf8TSbZsTZ98hgCLcBGAsYHQ/s804/Climate%2BChange.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="513" data-original-width="804" height="408" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0mBh8_Dm1DI/YOHoJm_ZXSI/AAAAAAAADWk/MqM97bu2ZsYIqzE07qxVf8TSbZsTZ98hgCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h408/Climate%2BChange.jpg" width="640" /></a></i></div><i>"The trouble is, you think you have time."<span> </span>- Confuscious</i><p></p><p>I'm really worried about global warming.</p><p>Yeah, I know, who isn't right?</p><p>Well, far too many climate change deniers aren't worried, but I'm not worried about them either. Happily they're the minority and therefore not really the problem.<br /></p><p>See, I don't think that we're going to beat this. It isn't because we don't have the scientific knowledge or the technical expertise to make the necessary changes. What makes climate change such an insidious threat is three things:</p><b>1. Everybody thinks it's a future problem.</b><p>Most people think that climate change is something that's coming in the next decade or two. Climate change is here now. Signs of it are everywhere if you only look. The polar ice caps are receding. Glaciers are melting. Average global temperatures are increasing year by year. Extreme weather events like tornadoes, hurricanes, violent thunderstorms and prolonged droughts are becoming more and more frequent. It's no longer a question of avoiding the consequences of climate change. It has now become a question of minimizing the damage. And yet, still, the nations of the world do nothing substantive beyond setting carbon emission targets for the next decade or two, and then consistently missing them.<br /></p><p><b>2. Everybody thinks it's somebody else's problem</b></p><p>The U.S.A. says that India and China aren't doing their part to reduce carbon emissions. China and India blame the U.S.A. and each other. Everybody vilifies Canada for our carbon rich extraction of bitumen from the Athabaska tar sands (and rightly so). Developing countries argue that they should be exempt from carbon limitations, at least until their economies come closer to parity with those of the developed nations. In short, everybody points the finger at someone else and cries "They're the problem, not me."</p><p><b>3. The people who understand the scope and urgency of the problem are not the people who make policy</b></p><p>Climate scientists have been sounding the alarm for years. They show us the evidence that climate change is an existential threat. They urge us to reduce carbon emissions now and give us grim projections of the consequences should we fail to do so, But they can only inform and warn. They have no power to affect the drastic changes that are needed to avoid disaster. That falls to the government leaders and politicians who, unfortunately, consistently prioritize their own short-term goals over the long-term good. Every politician knows that implementing the necessary changes will mean higher taxes, personal inconvenience and, therefore, a loss of voters. Yes, you and I are also at fault, my friend because our self-serving leaders only give us that which they perceive that we want, and most of us would balk at the kinds of personal sacrifice and increased costs that real change involves.</p><p>And so the human race sleepwalks lemming-like onward toward the precipice, unwilling and unable to change course or to stop. <br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-65383193346415498372021-06-09T08:25:00.001-04:002021-06-09T08:27:28.491-04:00Future Shock: Predictable Present<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Toffler#Bibliography" target="_blank"></a><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Toffler#Bibliography" target="_blank"></a><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6ARCP43HZw/YMCtxGOZ6tI/AAAAAAAADSk/hxbs1-t2AcEDjKaqNIIW_6eHBNioEX3ngCLcBGAsYHQ/s384/Future_shock.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="260" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Z6ARCP43HZw/YMCtxGOZ6tI/AAAAAAAADSk/hxbs1-t2AcEDjKaqNIIW_6eHBNioEX3ngCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Future_shock.png" /></a></div><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alvin_Toffler" target="_blank">Alvin Toffler</a> was an author and a futurist, best known for two best-seller non-fiction books which he published in 1970 and 1980 entitled "Future Shock" and "The Third Wave", respectively.<p></p><p>"<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Future_Shock" target="_blank">Future Shock</a>" discussed the psychological and sociological impact of the ever-advancing rate of change (due mostly to technology). It was in this book that Toffler first coined the term "information overload". The book discussed numerous examples of ways in which the industrial society of the sixties and seventies was morphing into what Toffler called a"post-industrial society" in which disposable goods increasingly replace durable goods (i.e. goods that no longer function properly are simply replaced rather than being repaired), whole industries die out to be replaced by entirely new ones and people change employers and even professions with increasing frequency; in short, everything becomes less permanent and more temporary from goods, to jobs and even human relationships.</p><p>Sound familiar? So far, I'd have to say that Toffler hit the nail right on the head.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TdQf5hMf1JE/YMCtxEJIt8I/AAAAAAAADSo/IPWqdb_ry4kzxKODMv3-TJ1KwA9FTAbWgCLcBGAsYHQ/s386/The%2BThird%2BWave.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="386" data-original-width="260" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TdQf5hMf1JE/YMCtxEJIt8I/AAAAAAAADSo/IPWqdb_ry4kzxKODMv3-TJ1KwA9FTAbWgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/The%2BThird%2BWave.jpg" /></a></div>"<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Third_Wave_(Toffler_book)" target="_blank">The Third Wave</a>" discussed the transition from the industrial age to the information age and what effect this would have on society and individual lives. In several ways, "The Third Wave" was more optimistic than "Future Shock" as it actually discussed how the information age might change peoples' lives for the better. For example, in this book, Toffler predicted that the five-day work week would likely be reduced to a four-day or even three-day work week with no loss of income for the very practical reason that information technology made it possible for people to be just as productive in three days as they used to be in five.<p></p><p>Ah, but Toffler forgot about one thing; corporate greed. The reality is that, when one demonstrates that one is able to do the same amount of work in three days that formerly took five days, one's employer simply expects that much productivity after five days. Put another way, rather than being content with the previous level of productivity in less time, the employer expects increased productivity in the same amount of time for the same pay and reaps the cost savings benefit for themselves. In fact, most companies, on seeing a 40% increase in productivity, will push for 50% or even 60%. And when that level of productivity is achieved, the company will demand 70%. Give 'em an inch, and they'll take a mile, as the old saying goes.<br /></p><p>Sorry Dr. Toffler but, had you thought it through, you could have predicted that as well.<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-29060885219100883232021-04-11T13:09:00.000-04:002021-04-11T13:09:01.127-04:00A-Nit Pickin' and A-Grinnin'<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xq7al9Qzuao/YHMr2Mw6tuI/AAAAAAAADE0/Wm_WPWaNKBkbD4w8MSVhzJ3xoEC06NUrgCLcBGAsYHQ/s800/pickin-drib-01.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="290" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xq7al9Qzuao/YHMr2Mw6tuI/AAAAAAAADE0/Wm_WPWaNKBkbD4w8MSVhzJ3xoEC06NUrgCLcBGAsYHQ/w386-h290/pickin-drib-01.jpg" width="386" /></a></div><i>Out on runway number nine<br />Big 707 set to go<br />While I'm stuck here on the ground<br />With a pain that ever grows</i><p></p><p>Those lines are from one of Gordon Lightfoot's most famous songs, <i>Early Mornin' Rain</i>. But did you know that Lightfoot made a technical error when he wrote the lyrics to that song? A later verse goes like this...</p><p><i>Hear the mighty engines roar<br />See the silver bird on high<br />She's away and westward bound<br />Far above the clouds she'll fly</i></p><p>Do you see it? It's such a glaring mistake, it makes you wonder how he could possibly have missed it, doesn't it?</p><p>... (Crickets) ...</p><p>Okay, for the benefit of those few of you who might not be familiar with the ways of aviation, runway numbers are based on the compass direction in which the runway faces. Runway 36 would face to a heading of 360 degrees (north). Runway 27 would face to a heading of 270 degrees (west), but runway number nine faces to a heading of 90 degrees. That's due <i>east</i>! Any airplane taking off from runway number nine would be away and <i>eastward </i>bound, not <i>westward</i>. Apparently, the song's protagonist was <i>cold and drunk</i>er than he realized!</p><p>What makes it even sadder, is how easily this could have been fixed; just change the word "westward" to "eastward". </p><p><i>Hear the mighty engines roar<br />See the silver bird on high<br />She's away and eastward bound<br />Far above the clouds she'll fly</i></p><p>There. Perfect. </p><p>Alternatively, if the airplane really <i>must </i>be going westward for some obscure reason, you could alter the earlier verse instead, like this ...</p><p><i>Out on runway twenty-seven<br />Big 707 set to go<br />While I'm stuck here on the ground<br />With a pain that ever grows</i></p><p>Now the plane can happily be <i>away and westward bound </i>in the other verse. But, personally, I prefer my first suggestion because, although the first and third lines of the verse don't need to rhyme, <i>Out on runway twenty-seven</i> just doesn't roll off the tongue as effortlessly as <i>Out on runway number nine</i>, does it?<br /></p><p>In Lightfoot's defense, he's not alone in making these lyrical <i>faux pas</i>. In fact, I could point out a few more obvious ones (and you know that I will).</p><p>One of Chris de Burgh's best-known classics is a song named <i>A Spaceman Came Traveling</i>. It starts out...</p><p><i>A spaceman came traveling on his ship from afar<br />T'was light years of time since his mission did start</i></p><p>D'OH!!! Only the second line and he's already wrecked the song! Okay, surely nobody missed that one, right? Light years is a measure of <i>distance</i>, not of <i>time</i>. Specifically, a light year measures the distance that light travels in one year. Who wrote those lyrics, the same guy who said that the Millenium Falcon made the Kessel Run in less that twelve parsecs?</p><p>Once again, easy fix...</p><p><i>A spaceman came traveling on his ship from afar<br />T'was light years away that his mission did start</i></p><p>And .... done.</p><p>One more example. This time, I'll pick on Neil Diamond and his well-known song, <i>Play Me</i>. (Note that I'm not picking obscure songs that nobody has ever heard of here. Every single example so far has been taken from one of the singer's best-known songs!) Consider this verse ...</p><p><i>Songs she sang to me<br />Songs she brang to me<br />Words that rang in me<br />Rhyme that sprang from me</i></p><p>"Brang???" What the hell is "brang"? That's not even a word! If you mean the past tense of "bring", Neil, the word is "brought". Of course, that doesn't rhyme, so this is a bit trickier to fix. Hmmm, let's see now ... how about ...</p><p><i>Songs she sought for me<br />Songs she brought to me ...</i></p><p>No. That doesn't really work, does it? What if we change the tense?</p><p><i>Songs she'd sing to me<br />Songs she'd bring to me<br />Words would ring in me<br />Rhyme would spring in me</i></p><p>Yes! There you are! So Gord, Chris, Neil, now that I've done the heavy lifting for you, I expect you to use my new and improved lyrics any time you perform these songs from now on. In fact, maybe you could nip into the studio and record revised versions of all three using the "proper" lyrics. I don't think that's asking too much.</p><p>Cordially, Your Friendly Neighborhood Halmanator<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-88001284808765897362021-01-23T16:56:00.011-05:002021-01-24T09:12:03.220-05:00Confessions of a Recluse<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RrJrg-pBWYY/YAyOgUwy4aI/AAAAAAAAC2w/unMXkN8bp00IOksqX8Or-cDYyrVGI9C9QCLcBGAsYHQ/s960/introvert.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="960" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RrJrg-pBWYY/YAyOgUwy4aI/AAAAAAAAC2w/unMXkN8bp00IOksqX8Or-cDYyrVGI9C9QCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h320/introvert.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>I have a confession to make. I believe that I've weathered this pandemic better than most, because I have certain distinct advantages. For one thing, I'm not a moron. This has helped me to avoid getting infected. Unlike those so-called "anti maskers", I understand that the novel Corona virus does not gave a rat's patootie about my personal rights and freedoms, so I follow the protocols. I wear a mask when in public spaces, I try to maintain a distance of 2 meters or more from others where possible, I sanitize my hands regularly and I avoid unnecessary outings.<p></p><p> I'm lucky enough to work for a company that has been designated an essential service, and so has remained both open and profitable, so my earnings have not been affected. And yet, my job is not the kind of job that potentially puts me in harm's way like our doctors, nurses, personal support workers, truck drivers, grocery store clerks and Wal-Mart greeters. <br /></p><p>I also avoid socializing unnecessarily, and here is where I have another distinct advantage. As I've said more than once in this blog, I'm a natural introvert. I actually <i>like </i>keeping to myself and staying in most of the time. My idea of a fun evening is sitting at home in my easy chair watching something on TV - even something I've seen before. Goodness knows, I have lots of movies and TV shows in my <a href="http://halmanator.blogspot.com/2013/05/all-my-movies.html" target="_blank">Blu-ray and DVD collection</a>. I don't even subscribe to Netflix or the Disney Channel. I do subscribe to Crave TV because I'm apparently not happy unless I'm vastly over-paying for my recreational media (okay, so maybe I <i>am </i>a bit of a moron in some respects).</p><p>I have a fairly large music collection and I often enjoy listening to it. By this I mean really <i>listening</i>. Not just playing it in the background whilst doing something else. I mean sitting back in that beloved easy chair of mine, the same one from which I watch TV, turning on some music, closing my eyes and just listening, savouring every note, every lyric, every nuance. </p><p>Before the pandemic hit, I had been invited to a wedding that took place last November. Because of the pandemic, the newly-weds had to scale back their guest list, so my invitation was revoked with regrets. Was I offended or even just bummed out? No sirree! I felt like I'd been let off the hook. I don't generally like going to weddings. I'm not even looking forward to my daughter's this year! If I could find some way of staying home and playing Duke Nukem Forever instead of attending, I'd do it in a heartbeat!<br /></p><p>I don't even have Zoom or Skype chats with my friends and family. I do use Skype, but just the text messages, no voice or video. If I want to actually talk to someone (which is rare enough), I use a good old-fashioned telephone. I don't need to see their faces. In most cases, I know what they look like. I don't have all that many friends and those few that I do have, I keep in touch via e-mail (and/or Skype). I don't even have a <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2009/09/in-your-facebook.html" target="_blank">Facebook</a> or Twitter account. Anyone who wants to keep track of me on social media can do so by reading this blog plus they get the added benefit of my wit and wisdom (and humility).</p><p>Some have suggested that the isolation forced upon us by the pandemic can be detrimental to mental health (or just detri-mental for short). I just made up that contraction, but feel free to use it, royalty-free. Just be sure to always follow it with "(c) Halmanator, 2021". I think, if anything, the social isolation has <i>improved</i> my mental health (full disclosure: there are those who would note, at this point, that this is no grand claim as it had no-where to go but up anyway). </p><p>Most people think of introverts as socially-handicapped recluses. I prefer the <a href="http://halmanator.blogspot.com/2009/09/myers-briggs.html" target="_blank">Myers-Briggs</a> interpretation of the term. Myers-Briggs defines an introvert as someone who gets his or her energy from solitude rather than social interaction. Thanks to this pandemic, my batteries are fully-charged!<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-40335686622222350752020-12-31T13:38:00.001-05:002020-12-31T17:04:05.723-05:00The Up-side Of 2020<br /><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0uNt9qHgc8A/X-4YcZ4dFLI/AAAAAAAACyg/AXP9ZBsLvZ4RwNPZE0z696j6Wv3S2TawgCLcBGAsYHQ/s2000/GR2020.webp" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2000" data-original-width="2000" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-0uNt9qHgc8A/X-4YcZ4dFLI/AAAAAAAACyg/AXP9ZBsLvZ4RwNPZE0z696j6Wv3S2TawgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/GR2020.webp" /></a></div>I think that most people would agree that 2020 was not the best of years. Aside from causing millions of deaths and sicknesses, COVID-19 has ravaged the world economy, throwing countless people out of work and causing the closure of countless businesses. And yet, the Halmanator, being an eternal optimist, can find silver linings among even these ponderous clouds. Here are some positive things that have come out of 2020.<p></p><p><u><b>The Environment</b></u></p><p>At their peak, daily global CO<sub>2</sub> emissions decreased by 26% compared with the mean 2019 levels, according to <a href="https://rdcu.be/ccR5q" target="_blank">Nature Climate Change</a>. During the spring lock-downs, stories abounded about wildlife appearing in deserted city streets. Aside from finally moving the carbon footprint in the right direction, this also refutes, once and for all, the argument that global warming is not caused by human activity. The moment human activity is reduced, the carbon footprint decreases. One couldn't ask for a clearer indication of cause and effect than that. Perhaps more importantly, this has shown us that we can reduce carbon emissions. It's not an unattainable goal. We simply need the collective will to change our energy consumption habits. The move from gasoline-powered cars to electric cars has been accelerated in many countries, promising a much-needed reduction in fossil fuel consumption within the next decade or so. That's a definite step in the right direction.<br /></p><p><u><b>Sharing the Wealth</b></u></p><p>Because of increased unemployment, many governments introduced some form of government income support until businesses could re-open and resume their activities. This has shown us the benefits of a universal income program, something which had already been suggested before the pandemic, but which the pandemic may have accelerated. Several countries are now looking much more seriously at this idea. It's an improvement over traditional welfare because the recipient isn't penalized for improving his or her financial situation. <br /></p><p><u><b>In This Together</b></u></p><p>Most people followed the new health and safety protocols, from wearing masks and frequent hand washing to staying home as much as possible to keeping a safe distance from others. Many employers adopted a "work from home" policy and made it possible for employees to do so. Front line workers including health care professionals, police, fire fighters, farmers, truck drivers and even common store clerks and food servers braved and continue to brave the risk of infection on a daily basis so that essential services can be provided. Many of those with the financial means have donated to charities and food banks to help the less fortunate. In many cases, the pandemic has brought out the best in people and has reminded us that we're stronger and more effective when we work together.<br /></p><p><u><b>Trump Dumped<br /></b></u></p><p>Yes, Donald Trump, that narcissistic, misogynistic, racist, vacuous, soulless, arrogant, jingoistic, narrow-minded, deceitful, elitist charlatan, the worst excuse for a man ever to occupy the office of President of the United States of America, has been voted out of that office. Even so, he still refuses to accept defeat graciously, which in itself speaks volumes about his deplorable dearth of character. No matter, the American people have spoken and the word is "go", and don't let the door hit you on the ass on the way out. To quote Gene Wilder's <a href="https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-d&q=you+lose+you+get+nothing+good+day+sir" target="_blank">Willy Wonka</a>, "You get nothing! You lose! Good day sir!"<br /></p><p><u><b>COVID-19 Vaccines</b></u></p><p>Not only have several viable COVID-19 vaccines been developed, but this has been accomplished in record time. Perhaps this signals a new scientific approach that may herald similarly speedy cures for future diseases. And lets not forget the brave volunteers who helped with early testing by agreeing to receive what was then an as yet untested vaccine so that it could be proven safe and effective.</p><p>2020 came with more than its share of challenges. On that there can be no argument. Yet it also reminded us of the indomitably of the human spirit, and what we can accomplish when we work together with goodwill and cooperation. That's a message worth hearing.<br /></p>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-68509968097291533762020-07-03T17:23:00.000-04:002020-07-03T17:23:24.432-04:00Honey vs. Vinegar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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A while ago, I was pulled over for nothing more than having the bad judgement to cut off a cop. See, I was stopped at an intersection. I had a stop sign. The perpendicular traffic did not. I swear I looked both ways and saw no cars. Unfortunately, there was a bend in the road several yards to my left and, as I stepped on the accelerator and drove out into the intersection, a police cruiser suddenly came around that bend, headed right for my broadside. His lights and siren were both off but, in hindsight, he must have been moving pretty quickly.<br />
<br />
I floored it, in order to get out of his way as quickly as possible, while the officer behind the wheel of the cruiser simultaneously floored his brake pedal <i>and</i> turned on his bull horn.<br />
<br />
Now, some of you may sympathize with me. Some of you may be thinking "he must have been coming around that curve pretty darned fast! Clearly, this was not your fault, Halmanator!" Some of you might even have suggested as much to the police officer if you had been in my place, making protests along the lines of "I looked and saw no-one coming! How fast were you driving, anyway? You must have been speeding along at a pretty good clip! I could understand it if you were responding to some kind of emergency dispatch but your lights and siren were both off! Now, I'm willing to keep this little incident between us, but don't let it happen again ... pig!"<br />
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But that's not what I said. I pulled over once I'd cleared the intersection, rolled down my window, and waited. Within a few seconds, the cruiser drove up and stopped behind me. The cop stepped out of his cruiser and sidled up to my driver's door. Before he could say a word, I gave him my most sheepish smile and said "Well, that was <i>definitely </i>my bad!"<br />
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He regarded me silently for a moment and said "Yes it was." Then he asked for my license and registration, which I promptly produced. He went back to his cruiser for a few moments, presumably to check my history and look for any outstanding warrants, then came back, handed me back my license and registration and said "I know that curve is pretty close to the intersection but, next time, look more carefully" and, with that, he left. No ticket. No fine. All in all, I'd gotten off easy.<br />
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My point here is that, had I been more combative or even belligerent, both my wallet and my demerit point collection would likely have wound up considerably lighter. My apologetic, if not friendly attitude, probably helped a lot.<br />
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A more serious example: In her book, <i>Completely MAD (A History of the Comic Book and Magazine</i>, author Maria Reidelbach talks about the history of <i>MAD</i> cartoonist <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/03/11/arts/design/sketches-from-a-pow-camp-that-held-african-americans-and-others.html" target="_blank">Max Brandel</a>, before he joined the magazine:<br />
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
"<i>A native of Austria, he had just begun a career as a cartoonist when the war broke out; during the Russian occupation of Poland he and his wife were captured by the Germans. He was imprisoned in concentration camps, where he escaped death by amusing the Russians and the Gestapo with his caricatures of them.</i>"</blockquote>
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Even in the midst of one of the most hellish institutions in history, Brandel was able to soften the hearts of men who thought nothing of sending whole families to their deaths by simply being likeable and making them laugh.<br />
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Then there's my <a href="http://halmanator.blogspot.com/2009/06/tony.html" target="_blank">dad</a>. During his battle with leukemia, he spent a fair bit of time in the hospital, not surprisingly. The nursing staff always seemed particularly fond of him, again because he was simply a nice guy. He accepted his sickness and the discomforts that arose from it gracefully, with few complaints, and he was always congenial with the nursing staff, smiling and chatting with them and occasionally expressing his appreciation for the care that they gave him. When he died, several of them showed up at the funeral home visitations to pay their last respects.<br />
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Never underestimate the power of niceness and likeability. Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-3249239262977903722020-06-13T12:56:00.003-04:002020-06-13T12:56:51.630-04:00Waxing Philosophical<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<i>René Descartes, philosopher; a wise and learned man</i><br />
<i>Said "I can prove that I exist; I think, therefore I am!"</i><br />
<i>I'd like to pose a question, though, that puts him on the spot:</i><br />
<i>A table doesn't think, so does that mean that it is not?</i><br />
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That verse was written by your friendly, neighborhood Halmanator back in the days of his youth, when he <a href="http://halmanator.blogspot.com/2009/08/mladdie-fancies-himself-poet.html" target="_blank">fancied himself a poet</a>.<br />
<br />
My tongue was, of course, planted firmly in my cheek when I wrote that verse. As any logician will tell you, just because a premise is true, it does not automatically follow that its opposite is also true. To wit: although thinking or self-awareness can be considered proof of an entity's existence, it does not follow that any entity which is not self-aware and unable to think does not exist.<br />
<br />
We might extend the argument to say that an entity can also prove its existence by imposing itself upon the thoughts of one or more other sentient entities. If you or I think about the table, we acknowledge its existence even though the table itself has no self-awareness or thought.<br />
<br />
But if we accept that, we may blunder into the following challenge: Hundreds of thousands of young children believe in Santa Claus. They think about him so, given the previous argument, that is proof of Santa's existence. But of course, Santa Claus doesn't exist ... or does he?<br />
<br />
Perhaps the argument can be made that anything that occupies the thoughts of another does exist in some sense, especially if it occupies the thoughts of multiple others. The tooth fairy, the bogeyman, Bugs Bunny, Darth Vader, Tom Sawyer, el chupacabra, Superman, Little Red Riding Hood and, yes, even God. It may be argued that all of them exist in some sense, if only because we, the human race, have willed them to.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-39407740928821824832020-03-28T15:19:00.000-04:002020-03-28T15:19:27.579-04:00Happy Chalk<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Like many other people, I'm working from home nowadays because of the Great COVID-19 Pandemic. I have to admit, all things considered, I've been lucky. My job lends itself easily to working from home (I'm a computer programmer) so, for one thing, my family's income hasn't been affected too badly (my wife isn't working for the duration but qualifies for employment insurance benefits and hers is by far the smaller income anyway, so we're not feeling the pinch too much). Still, being cooped up in the house most of the time is starting to give my wife and myself a minor case of cabin fever, so we mitigate the effects by taking walks around the neighborhood.<br />
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While taking such a walk yesterday, I noticed that someone had scrawled some "feel good" messages on the sidewalk with sidewalk chalk; "You're special", "Be happy", "Stay strong" and the like. I smiled at that and, as our walk continued, my amusement turned into amazement, because the messages didn't stop after just a couple of houses. They appeared at regular intervals for an area that covered at least two or three blocks; "U R #1", "Be kind", "Smile", "You're Awesome!", "Think positive", "Life is beautiful" ... the messages went on and on.<br />
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My heart melted to think that, in the midst of all the fear and uncertainty caused by this virus; empty grocery shelves, tumbling financial markets, social distancing, strained budgets, thousands dying for the love of God ... some <a href="http://halmanator.blogspot.com/2013/11/why-i-hate-neil-pasricha.html" target="_blank">Neil Pasricha</a> wannabe out there not only manages to remember the simple joys that can still be found, but actually spreads a little sunshine around.<br />
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Awesome!<br />
<br />Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-6577153069233521082020-03-15T14:37:00.001-04:002020-03-15T14:37:12.474-04:00We're Bigger Than This<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hi. Remember me? I haven't written in a while, I know. Somehow, I just haven't found much to inspire me to write. I consider myself to be something of an introvert and, as an introvert, I don't tend to speak unless I have something to say.<br />
<br />
As I write this, the corona-virus, or COVID-19, is spreading inexorably around the globe, causing a fair degree of angst. It's not a particularly dangerous virus. Most people who it has infected have recovered from it after experiencing only modest symptoms of illness. But it's extremely contagious and it's dangerous to the elderly and the infirm. Even for the younger and stronger among us, a positive diagnosis means at least two weeks of social isolation. So people have started to take precautions. Some are appropriate, such as frequent hand washing, avoidance of unnecessary large gatherings and unnecessary touching such as shaking hands, and some are less appropriate, such as stockpiling and hoarding things such as food, water, cleaning supplies and toilet paper.<br />
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COVID-19 itself has not directly caused any shortages of the aforementioned goods; we have done that. Ordinary people who, out of fear and paranoia, feel the need to stockpile as though the end of the world were at hand. <br />
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Since there is no shortage of goods and supplies, I assume that this is largely driven out of over-cautiousness. "If I get the virus, I need to quarantine myself for about two weeks, and during that time I can't go out and buy the supplies that I need, so I had better stock up just in case". While this is a legitimate concern and sounds reasonable at first blush, I think people are reacting disproportionately. Look at toilet paper, for example. If you were forced to isolate yourself, how much toilet paper would you need to last you for two weeks? How many rolls to you go through in a day? Two? (That's probably generous). Okay, so 14 days times two rolls a day ... you might need 28 rolls of toilet paper. That's about two twelve packs, plus a bit. Heck, let's be generous and round it up to three. But some people have been seen leaving bulk warehouse stores with two and three and more packs of 40 rolls each! The problem, of course, is that this leaves less for the rest of us. So you get line-ups, and empty store shelves, and arguments. At one warehouse store in my vicinity, a fist fight actually broke out over toilet paper according to a recent news report.<br />
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The irony is that we are only making it harder on ourselves. We are taking a small problem and making it into a much bigger one. We are making a mountain out of a proverbial molehill, if you'll forgive the <a href="https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwjkkoyhh53oAhWRK80KHUP1BHUQFjAAegQIARAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fhalmanator.blogspot.com%2F2009%2F09%2Fthat-is-so-cliche.html&usg=AOvVaw0TAt8Rq8QhCs0b6xH5Vt3H" target="_blank">cliché</a>. Much of our misery is self-inflicted. What worries me is that if a relatively benign problem such as this one brings out the worst in us, causing us to act with no more reason or grace than our simian cousins, then what will we do when we have a real crisis? What if this virus was truly deadly, like ebola or anthrax? What happens when global warming causes inevitable shortages of food and water?<br />
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I'm reminded of a story I once heard, a modern day parable if you will: A man dreamed that he was shown the afterlife. First he was shown hell. In hell, there was a long banquet table laden with delicious food of all sorts, but the only utensils available for eating were chopsticks that were three feet long (and if someone tried to eat with their fingers, Satan chopped them off, I suppose). Everybody at the table wept because the chopsticks were too long. They couldn't bring the food to their mouths, and so they went hungry, even as they had to look at all that enticing food sitting right there in front of them.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AoWHEiG226s/Xm51YmF2aSI/AAAAAAAACAM/otZove1p76URBiohEVyEWer669otg5dcQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/cooperation.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AoWHEiG226s/Xm51YmF2aSI/AAAAAAAACAM/otZove1p76URBiohEVyEWer669otg5dcQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/cooperation.jpg" width="320" /></a>Then the man was shown heaven. Strangely enough, there was the same sort of banquet table and everyone had the same three-foot chopsticks for utensils. But the people in heaven picked up the food with the end of their chopsticks, and offered it to their neighbor across the table, and everyone was satisfied.<br />
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This story illustrates beautifully how things can be so much better when we cooperate and work together rather than against each other or think only of ourselves. We needn't be "picking holes in each others' coats" as Dickens' charwoman so eloquently put it in his immortal novella, "A Christmas Carol". We're bigger than this.<br />
<br />Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-77867156940791830282019-08-03T10:01:00.000-04:002019-08-03T19:57:10.599-04:00No Fear<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I have a request for the members of the LGBTQ community and all their supporters. Please stop referring to anyone who doesn't applaud your sexual preference as "homophobic".<br />
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The "phobic" suffix comes from the word "phobia", which is defined in psychological circles as an irrational fear of something. Hence, when you refer to someone as "homophobic" you infer that said person is somehow afraid of your sexual orientation. While I have no doubt that there are people who feel threatened by it, there are also many of us who disagree with your sexual preference without actually being afraid of it.<br />
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For the record, as a heterosexual male, I believe that all persons should be treated equally in all things regardless of sexual orientation. That said, I also believe that homosexuality is a mental abnormality. The brain is meant to be wired to prefer intimacy with members of the opposite sex. It's biologically necessary for the propagation of our species.<br />
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I don't believe homosexuality to be a matter of choice, any more than heterosexuality is. Therefore, I would never judge or condemn a homosexual person's sexual orientation, nor would I in any way discriminate against such a person, any more than I would condemn or discriminate against a bipolar person or someone with down syndrome or autism or depression. These people can't help being what they are but that doesn't change the fact that their conditions are abnormal. That is not meant to denigrate them in any way.<br />
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What I do object to is those members of the LGBTQ community who expect the rest of us to go beyond simply accepting them for who they are, and to actually applaud their sexual preference, or who would profess their sexual orientation as being normal. It is not. And I especially object to those of us who stop short of embracing their preference being referred to as homophobes. After all, I'm sure that they would balk at being called heterophobes.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-42847141011644932122019-07-23T20:10:00.000-04:002019-07-24T14:02:57.598-04:00The Christian Conundrum<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I was raised in the Christian faith; Roman Catholic to be precise, although what I'm about to say would still apply had I been raised as a Lutheran, Baptist, Methodist or any other of Christianity's many branches. The thing is, even having been indoctrinated in the Christian teachings for most of my life, I still don't "get" Christianity.<br />
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The Christian faith centers around the person of Jesus of Nazareth whom Christians believe was the Christ or the son of God. My first problem with Christianity is that I'm not convinced that Jesus was the Christ, or that there is even such a thing as a Christ. But that's not what I don't "get" about Christianity. That's just my own personal crisis of faith. I understand that.<br />
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What I don't "get" about Christianity is that its central tenet makes no logical sense to me at all. The central tenet of Christianity is that Jesus, being the Christ, accepted suffering and death at the hands of ordinary men in order to atone for the sins of mankind. Mankind had sinned against God through the ages, over and over again, and that opened up a rift between God and mankind. In order for mankind to be reconciled with God and brought back into His good graces, an atonement was necessary. Somebody had to pay the price for all that sinning. So God made His only Son incarnate, one of us, and He took it upon Himself to pay the price that God exacted for our sins, and so redeemed us. And not just up to that point, but forever thereafter. I mean, sadly, people haven't stopped sinning since Jesus allegedly rose from the dead but apparently all those sins committed since then, and forever on into the future, are still forgiven as well, thanks to Jesus.<br />
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I imagine that any Christian, having read this far, is probably scratching their head thinking "That's exactly right! So what don't you get (aside from doubting Jesus' divinity and that snarky use of the word 'allegedly' with regard to His resurrection?)"<br />
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Okay, let's take God out of the picture for a moment and let's look at a similar scenario in human terms. Imagine that a couple of guys break into your house, take all your most valued belongings and vandalize the place, not to mention scaring the bejeebers out of your wife and kids. They have sinned against you. They've done you wrong and, if brought to justice, the law would surely demand some kind of atonement from them.<br />
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Now let's say that you find out who they are but, rather than call the police, you send your only son to talk to them, open their eyes, teach them the error of their ways and maybe inspire a little remorse.. Well, not only do they not listen to him nor show any remorse, but they call the police themselves and report him for trespassing. The police arrive, arrest your son, and put him in jail.<br />
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There. All good now, right? Their debt has been paid and their sins are forgiven. Not just the break and enter perpetrated in the past but, should they do it again, that's forgiven too.<br />
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No, it's not all good of course. How does punishing your blameless son for the wrongs perpetrated against you make anything right? I simply cannot reconcile that logic in my own mind. <br />
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Ironically, it would make more sense to me if we discarded the notion of Jesus' divinity. If he were just an ordinary (or make that extraordinary) man, but not any kind of deity, then he becomes one of us and he accepts the punishment exacted by God on everyone else's behalf. Now, that's noble and that begins to make some sense. Maybe in so doing he shows God that not all men are evil and restores His faith in His own creation, thus reconciling God and man. I understand that devout Christians will still have a huge problem with this kind of thinking, but at least it begins to make some sense to us not-so-devout people.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-56233456080922623682019-04-27T12:24:00.000-04:002019-04-27T12:24:34.070-04:00Shall We Not Avenge?<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KYR-8Coq-sY/XMR_w-GdkeI/AAAAAAAABog/gE_x-FwUPKEKKSt5N7OrI1Q9_EkMNVGEgCLcBGAs/s1600/oberlander.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="399" data-original-width="729" height="175" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-KYR-8Coq-sY/XMR_w-GdkeI/AAAAAAAABog/gE_x-FwUPKEKKSt5N7OrI1Q9_EkMNVGEgCLcBGAs/s320/oberlander.jpg" width="320" /></a>Imagine you're at a bank when suddenly two or three people there pull out guns. One of them approaches a teller and demands, in German, that she open the safe. You understand this because you happen to speak German but the teller does not. Frightened out of her mind, she assumes the gunman is demanding money, so she opens a cash drawer and hands over a wad of bills. The gunman becomes angry because his instructions were not followed and repeats his demand, again in German, brandishing his weapon in a threatening manner. Meaning to help, you explain to the teller that the gunman wants her to open the safe, which she then does.<br />
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Realizing that you speak both languages, the gunmen now press you into their service, forcing you to translate between them and their victims. Staring into the business end of their guns, you of course comply. Now, imagine that, before the incident is over, the gunmen wind up shooting several bank employees and a customer or two for good measure but the police do arrive and the gunmen are eventually arrested. Unfortunately, so are you because one of the security guards assumes, mistakenly, that you were one of the gang all along. After all, you were their translator.<br />
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You're eventually brought to trial and, as the case is heard, all are in agreement that you yourself stole nothing and harmed no-one. However, the prosecuting attorney argues that you aided the bank robbers which makes you complicit. <br />
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To your dismay, you are found guilty, but you appeal the verdict and are eventually vindicated.<br />
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However, about a year later, you are again tried for the same crime and once again found guilty. You appeal again and are exonerated again. Some time after that you are tried again, but this time you are found not guilty and don't even need to appeal. Nevertheless, the prosecuting attorney will not accept defeat and hauls you back to court yet again. This goes on for about two decades, during which period your legal fees practically exhaust your life savings, not to mention the fact that you can never really rest easy and enjoy life because you never know when you'll have to defend yourself against the same accusation yet again.<br />
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Surely most of those reading this would agree that this entire affair was a travesty of justice, yet this is essentially what has happened to an elderly man by the name of Helmut Oberlander. The difference is that Oberlander was a translator for German Nazis rather than bank robbers and the victims were Jewish, which brings politics into the picture as anyone siding with Oberlander suddenly risks being labeled an anti-Semitic.<br />
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During the second world war, Helmut Oberlander was pressed into service by the Nazis as an interpreter for one of the Nazis notorious Einsatzkommando death squads. This is not in dispute. Oberlander maintains that he was seventeen years old at the time. He was coerced into service in that the alternative would have been to risk being executed himself, and that he was merely a translator and did not personally participate in any violence against Jews or any other Nazi prisoners. These statements are not in dispute either. Although I`m sure that Oberlander`s accusers suspect him of being more complicit than he admits, the fact remains that there is not one shred of evidence, none, that he ever personally harmed anyone.<br />
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So his accusers, primarily the Canadian Jewish Congress, have had to content themselves with arguing that Oberlander lied about his association with the Einsatzkommando squad when he first applied for Canadian citizenship and that this should be grounds to revoke that citizenship. Oberlander maintains that he did not lie on his citizenship application. While he concedes that he did not go out of his way so reveal his association with the Nazi death squad, it was only because he was never asked about any such association. At worst, he is guilty of failing to volunteer information about a part of his past which he could not have changed and that he would just as soon put behind him.<br />
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For "lying" on his citizenship application, Oberlander was stripped of his citizenship, won it back on appeal, was stripped of his citizenship a second time, won it back on appeal again was tried yet a third time and won yet again. This has been going on for over two decades. This past week, he was once again tried for the same non-crime and stripped of his citizenship a third time. He plans to appeal again.<br />
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In what sort of legal system is it acceptable to continuously try a person over and over again for the same crime until the court finally produces the desired outcome? Unfortunately, unlike the United States' legal system, Canada has no "double jeopardy" law to prevent this sort of thing happening. In Canada an accuser is free to hound the accused over and over again with impunity.<br />
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Helmut Oberlander is over 90 years old. If his citizenship is not restored, he faces possible deportation, likely to the Ukraine where he was born, far from his family, his friends and the country that he has come to call his home. Is this a fair and just punishment for a man whose worst crime was to translate, involuntarily, for a group of Nazi thugs? <br />
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To the Jewish community, and anyone else who, like Shakespeare's Shylock, cries "If you wrong us, shall we not avenge?" I say this: While it is understandable that you should want to see someone held to account for the atrocities committed against your people, singling out a person who has done nothing wrong but whose background and nationality make him a convenient symbol of the source of your anger is wrong. Punishing a blameless man will not bring back the dead. Two wrongs still do not make a right. Leave Helmut Oberlander to live out his final days in peace and let your God be his judge.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-2498215344603266812019-03-02T14:41:00.001-05:002019-03-05T19:33:31.685-05:00How Not To Keep Employees<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I've changed jobs again.<br />
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Long-time readers of this blog will recall that I started the job which I just left back in April of 2010. The company that I worked for before fell victim to the Great Recession of 2008/2009, so I found myself <a href="https://halmanator.blogspot.com/2009/11/human-cost.html" target="_blank">unemployed</a>. It took me six months to find another job, which is not bad compared with some of the stories of job search frustration that I've heard.<br />
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I have to credit the management of the company that I just left for seeing beyond my technical knowledge, which was not a strong match for what they generally sought in a potential employee, and seeing some promise in my long years of work experience, doing many of the same things that their employees typically did, albeit with different technology. Also, full disclosure, I was able to get a referral from someone close to the company president, which probably didn't hurt my chances either. No matter, the fact remains that they took a chance on me, and I spent almost nine years hopefully vindicating their faith in me.<br />
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Sadly, I was never truly happy in all the time that I worked there and, the longer I stayed, the clearer it became to me that none of my fellow employees were happy either. The company in question is a small, family-run business with only about 13 employees excluding management; i.e. members of the family that owns the company. In spite of my nine year tenure, I was the second newest employee in that company. They have hired a new person since my departure yet, even so, I believe that leaves only two current employees with less than 9 years tenure. Most of the remaining staff has been there for 20 years or more.<br />
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My point is that this company is blessed with a small but highly experienced and dedicated staff. You would think that they would want to do everything in their power to hold on to people like that. Instead, the company management seems to be doing almost everything wrong where their employee relations are concerned. If they had a handbook outlining their managerial policies and practices, it would probably read something like this:<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Blood Lineage Is The Only Managerial Qualifier</span></b><br />
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Never, under any circumstances, grant any form of managerial or decision making authority to any employee whose last name is not the same as that of the company owners. A business is to be run as a kingdom. God has ordained that only those of the proper lineage shall rule. There is no need to search for managerial talent outside of the family bloodline. Heaven forbid that you might accidentally import any new and strange ideas about how to manage the company from outsiders.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Do Not Communicate</span></b><br />
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Never tell your employees anything. Everything is a Big Secret. Don't tell them if you're planning on hiring someone new or if someone has given notice of their resignation. The others will find out for themselves in due time. Let that rumor mill run rampant.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Expect Employees To Accept Work For Which They Are Unqualified</span></b><br />
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Feel free to make your employees responsible for doing things that are outside of their job description and for which they have no formal training. A good employee should be able to figure things out for themselves. To cover yourself, be sure that all job descriptions include verbiage such as "Other tasks as required", which can mean anything from mopping the floor to flying an airliner. And, whatever you do...<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Do Not Train</span></b><br />
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Employees who receive formal training acquire credentials that only make them more attractive to other enterprises. This inevitably leads to their leaving your company and then all of the time and expense that you invested in their training is out the window. If an employee lacks the knowledge to perform a task which has been assigned to them, why, that's that Google is for.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Do Not Document</span></b><br />
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Writing down standards and procedures takes time and reduces productivity. If you do document anything, do it once and never review it to ensure that it is still current. After all, change doesn't happen.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Do Not Replace Staff When They Leave</span></b><br />
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If someone leaves, simply re-assign their duties to the remaining staff. Nobody ever works at 100% capacity and there's always room to take on additional responsibilites.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Micro-manage</span></b><br />
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Your employees cannot be trusted to do their jobs in an independent and professional manner. It is up to you to tell them how to do everything, right down to the precise wording of e-mails to customers. Freeing your employees from the burden of prioritizing their own work and thinking for themselves helps to reduce their stress levels.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Punish Good Performance</span></b><br />
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When you do need to assign additional work to someone, be sure to give it to those employees who are the most productive. This only makes sense as they will be the best equipped to handle the additional workload and stress.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Reward Low Ambition</span></b><br />
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There will always be those employees who whine and complain any time that you try to assign them a task that falls outside of their perceived responsibilities, just as there will always be those with more of a "can do" attitude who are willing to accept new challenges and learn new things. When assigning new tasks, it's best to assign them to the ambitious ones. They'll put up much less of a fuss, thus saving you time and frustration. Don't worry about lopsided work loads and responsibilities, or "fairness", whatever that means. <br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">Avoid Giving Performance Reviews </span></b><br />
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Employees should not need regular reminders of your goals and expectations of them, especially since these never change. They should also have a good idea of their own performance without need of feedback from you.<br />
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If you tell an employee that you're pleased with their performance, they will likely expect increased compensation. Conversely, don't express your concerns to an employee who is not performing up to expectations, or provide goals or suggestions for improvement. If they can't figure out and correct their own shortcomings, you can always fire them. If it does come to this, see the directive about not replacing staff.<br />
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<b><span style="font-size: large;">The Job Is Of Prime Importance</span></b><br />
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As a business owner, you eat, sleep and breath your work, often putting in 50 to 60 hours a week. You should expect nothing less from your employees. Never mind that they are almost certainly nowhere near as well compensated as you are, nor that they will naturally be less invested than you, having no personal stake in the business beyond a paycheck. They owe you complete and total loyalty for being given the privilege of working for you. Family responsibilities, health issues, personal hobbies and general well-being should not impinge upon work responsibilities. The work-life balance should always be weighted toward work. Your employees should live to work, not work to live.<br />
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In my letter of resignation, I did not elaborate on any of the above. Instead, I merely commented that the company has a morale problem and that the staff feels over-burdened and over-stressed. Sadly, I fear that this too will merely be dismissed as the unimportant grumblings of a malcontent.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-16926229633128594782018-09-02T11:53:00.000-04:002018-09-02T16:42:08.893-04:00Nothing Boosts Church Attendance Like A Good War<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GMGRCo2JpTo/W4wHPiYy8tI/AAAAAAAABkg/J8XFv91jzTAdlz5YYTQdLoXM1UtM__GDQCLcBGAs/s1600/church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="266" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-GMGRCo2JpTo/W4wHPiYy8tI/AAAAAAAABkg/J8XFv91jzTAdlz5YYTQdLoXM1UtM__GDQCLcBGAs/s400/church.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
My mother, on returning from Sunday morning services this morning, mentioned that the priest made a comment to the congregation about people who show up at the last minute or, worse, after the service has already begun. Needless to say, he disapproved of such behavior. Nevertheless, he delivered the admonition in as genteel a manner as he could, politely suggesting that people consider getting up a bit earlier in order to arrive in a timely manner, as opposed to thumping his fist on the lectern and invoking God's wrath on non-compliers.<br />
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In days past, it was not always so. Mom recalled her childhood days, when priests were much more given to scolding the impenitent and the impertinent in a fire-and-brimstone manner. She mused that this may have been because people took church a lot more seriously back in those days, shortly after the end of the second world war, consequently giving the clergy an inflated sense of self-importance. She had a point. Nothing boosts church attendance quite like a good war.<br />
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On the other hand, I'm reminded of a certain bit of fundamental airplane pilot wisdom which tells us that "If you push the stick forward, the houses get bigger. If you pull the stick back, they get smaller, unless you keep pulling it further back, in which case they get bigger again." I suspect that church attendance follows a similar pattern. When things get bad, attendance goes up, unless things continue to get even worse until there comes a point where attendance falls off, either because the worshipers have lost their faith, or because they are dead. I wonder what church attendance is like in Syria nowadays?<span id="goog_95734701"></span><span id="goog_95734702"></span>Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-53329772902042039832018-05-12T20:12:00.000-04:002018-05-12T20:12:00.733-04:00Sibling T.M.I.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8lPLRaIlK6w/WveBK6lXxyI/AAAAAAAABeI/Td_apUecolcpScgIlOgJZwIbw5EwWqbRwCLcBGAs/s1600/tmi.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="525" data-original-width="700" height="240" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-8lPLRaIlK6w/WveBK6lXxyI/AAAAAAAABeI/Td_apUecolcpScgIlOgJZwIbw5EwWqbRwCLcBGAs/s320/tmi.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
My sister is one and a half years younger than I. There's not a huge age difference between us, and the gap seems to get smaller with each passing year. But it did seem somewhat bigger when I was 18 and she asked me one day, totally out of left field, what color "come" is.<br />
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Now, on most guys' list of "Questions That We Don't Want To Hear From Our Little Sisters", I imagine that one ranks fairly high, right up there with "Why do all the pages of the magazines under your mattress stick together?" On the other hand, I did feel somewhat relieved that she still had to ask that question.<br />
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My second reaction was the fear of that question being followed by "How do you know?" if I answered her.<br />
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My third reaction was to wonder why the color mattered to her. Was she worried about choosing underwear that wouldn't clash?<br />
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I honestly don't remembered how, or even if, I answered her. Maybe my mind has intentionally suppressed the memory. All I can say is ladies, girls, even though you may understandably regard big brother as the font of all wisdom, there are certain questions that are just too weird to answer.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5804190908625204938.post-72878549617986355572018-04-15T08:53:00.003-04:002020-06-11T07:01:19.853-04:00Nothing To Fear But Fear Itself<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WmETdQyw808/WtNLERAPYsI/AAAAAAAABbs/lVEGHTbez4gaprcakuj9y3ziYUO7m67mgCLcBGAs/s1600/Charlie%2BBrown.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="337" data-original-width="429" height="249" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WmETdQyw808/WtNLERAPYsI/AAAAAAAABbs/lVEGHTbez4gaprcakuj9y3ziYUO7m67mgCLcBGAs/s320/Charlie%2BBrown.jpeg" width="320" /></a>I have a 27-year-old nephew, Jonathan, who still lives at home with his parents. Sadly, this is not so uncommon nowadays. It seems our society has made it harder than ever before for young people to savor their first taste of independence, what with high post-secondary education costs creating onerous student debt burdens coupled with low-paying, precarious student jobs or, even worse, internships that offer no monetary payment whatsoever.<br />
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Jon, however, has no student debt, because he never continued his education beyond high school graduation. It's not that he lacks the mental aptitude for college or even university study. Indeed, he's a bright young man, whose marks in high school were good enough to put him on the honors list. And it's not that he lacks the financial means to cover the cost of tuition and books. His parents, while not overtly affluent, are a comfortable upper-middle-class couple who helped to finance Jon's older brother's post-secondary education and would happily do the same for Jon as well, if only he were willing to enroll. But he isn't.<br />
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Instead, he lives in his parents' home, spending his leisure time playing computer video games. He does not pay rent, because he has no job and therefore no income. At this point, dear reader, you're probably picturing a lazy, overweight freeloader. If so, your mental image of Jon is incorrect. In fact, he happily helps out around the house doing chores and odd jobs and he has been known to do volunteer work in the community. But he refuses to seek gainful employment because nothing suits him. There's always some reason for not applying for any given job; it's too far away and he has no means of transportation or he's unqualified or he just plain isn't interested in doing the type of work required. He suffers from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and this provides a ready excuse for avoiding employment. He may not have ready access to a bathroom or his boss might get irritated with him taking too many bathroom breaks.<br />
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He has lots of talent. He's handy enough to be able to fix things and do simple home renovations and repairs, yet he eschews building on his knowledge of plumbing or carpentry or any other area of specialization in the field of home renovation or repair. He's much more PC-literate than the average person and has built his own custom home PC, yet he would never consider joining the "Geek Squad" or taking a job as a computer technician. And he's a born comedian. He can mimic anyone or any accent. He has a keen memory for movie lines and catch phrases. Yet, when his older brother recently explored the idea of making him Master of Ceremonies. at his up-coming wedding, Jon flatly refused. Public speaking is out of the question.<br />
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He has never had a girlfriend, although he's reasonably attractive and extremely physically fit. He works out constantly. Yet, he's not gay; he has never had a boyfriend either. He has a wonderful sense of humor and an engaging personality. <br />
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He's devoutly religious (Christian) and is somewhat prone to preaching. But he readily admits that the root of his religious faith is a fear of eternal damnation. He doesn't practice his faith out of a love for God, but rather out of a fear of the fires of hell.<br />
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And therein lies the key word that defines Jon. Fear. He's afraid to try anything new. He is extremely averse to change, to the point where he wears the same type of shirt and pants every single day. He's normally unwilling to try anything new or novel; hence the avoidance of post-secondary education and all forms of employment. A friend of his father's recently got him a job working in a warehouse. He didn't last a day. Before the day was out, he had what can only be described as a panic attack and had to be sent home.<br />
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And yet, there have been rays of hope. A couple of summers ago, he spent time in an indigenous community, spreading God's word among the young indigenous people there. The local kids gave him good-natured nick names such as "Army Pants" (because of the camouflage pants that he constantly wears) and "Milk With Ears". At one point, he actually petted a wild wolf and came away with hands still attached to the end of both wrists. He genuinely seemed to enjoy that experience, yet he has never seen fit to repeat or follow up on it.<br />
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Almost everyone who knows Jon, especially his family, gets frustrated with his unwillingness to try anything new. His parents, his brother, his grandmother and, yes, even his uncle, are constantly trying to think of ways to "fix" him. But it's not that easy. While I'm no psychologist, I strongly suspect that Jon's fears and anxieties are the result of a mental illness or abnormality.<br />
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Mental illness is still largely misunderstood in our society. Many people believe that everyone has complete control over their emotions and that, for example, not being depressed or afraid is simply a matter of deciding not to feel that way. The reality is, those suffering from any form of mental illness can no more make it stop than a person suffering from the flu can make their runny nose or watery eyes stop. In both cases, there are treatments and medications that may help, but it's impossible to just wish the condition away.<br />
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So, maybe what Jon needs is counseling. Doubtless that would help. The problem is, he's no more willing to speak to a professional counselor any more than he is willing to try anything else new; at least, not in person. But he does interact with others on-line. He plays on-line computer games and, the rare times that he has actually applied for jobs, it has always been via on-line applications; never in person.<br />
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So perhaps on-line counseling is the answer. That too is available nowadays. I have recently exchanged e-mails with an online counseling web site known as betterhelp.com. One of their representatives stumbled upon this blog and apparently though enough of my writing to suggest that we might provide links between the two sites. Having not used betterhelp's services myself, and not yet knowing anyone who has, I can't yet provide any sort of testimonial for them but I've at least explored the site and the counseling service they offer sounds interesting. Now if I can only convince Jon to give it a try.Halmanatorhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05633928715321475524noreply@blogger.com0