Daily Ramblings – Thankful/Thinking Thursdays – Reading

Tags

any.do, Apps, dark mode, digital reading, Goodreads, Kindle, Reading, Scribd, To-do List

Today, I’m grateful for the Kindle service of Amazon, Scribd, and Goodreads. I read quite a bit each year, typically gravitating to history, politics, military history, and other topics I can learn from. This year I wanted to mix it up with some fiction too.

Many of my friends still enjoy the smell of a new book. I have converted to digital versions of books. They are cheaper, and it is much nicer to read because I can adjust the font sizes. Many of the paperbacks on the market today print them in such a small font that I find it difficult to read.

I also like reading on my iPad, because it is so nice to hold in my hands. I just picked up the iPad Pro and got the 12.9″ screen. It is huge! I only use my iPad for three things–reading, watching movies, and listening to music. If I want to take notes, the Kindle lets me highlight them and keep them in a repository. If I am reading something on Scribd, I can use my laptop to keep track of anything I like and want to remember.

Goodreads is a terrific service. It is owned by Amazon, so any book I read on my Kindle is recorded on Goodreads. When you read 60 books or so a year, it is nice to keep track of what I’ve read so I don’t mistakenly reread something I have already read. It is also an easy way to track my reading goals. It tells me when I am ahead of my reading or behind. I schedule an hour of reading each day, and this synchronizes perfectly with my hour of meditation that I do at the same time. Many meditate with their eyes closed, but there are many meditations that can be done with reading, walking, or while riding on public transportation.

While I’m at it, I also have to announce my move to a new to-do list app. I used Toodledo for years, but became disenchanted with it recently because the interface between my pc and my devices is not the same and doesn’t synchronize well. Toodledo is not supported by the Apple Watch either. My new app is Any.do. It works the same on my iPad, iPhone, and laptop. It is also viewable on my Apple Watch, which is nice. There are some days that I have to get out an about in a hurry and it’s nice to have my todo list on my watch, particularly the grocery list, which is a part of the Any.do app. Another really cool thing is the ability to add the Any.do app to my gmail. Now I have access to all of my to-dos and projects in one place and can view them everywhere. Finally, Any.do can suck in anything from Apple, Google, or Microsoft (calendars) and automatically bring in your events as part of your to-do list for the day. I’m glad I made the switch. The final part is the dark mode you can move to. Microsoft office, kindle, Scribd, Any.do all have dark modes that are much easier on the eyes. Now that I have moved all my apps to dark mode, my eyes are so much more relaxed. Looking at white screen, like the one that we have to use here on WordPress is painful, so I write most of my articles in MS Word (in dark mode) and copy and paste them here.

Well, that’s it for today, folks. If you are looking to make a change to a new to-do app. Give Any.do a whirl. They have a trial period. Frankly, $30 a year is not a big deal, especially when you consider that most of these other apps run $60 annually.

Have a great Thursday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday – Book Recommendations

Tags

Bolton, Book reviews, Goodreads, Ian Douglas, Kindle, Reading, Scribd, trump, Warren Murphy, Woodward

I enjoy reading fiction and non-fiction. Here are a few books I’ve read that some of you may enjoy:

The Room Where It Happened – John Bolton

Fear – Bob Woodward

Rage – Bob Woodward

Singularity: Star Carrier Series – Ian Douglas

The Destroyer Series – Warren Murphy

The John Bolton and Bob Woodward books are political. They both describe the Trump Whitehouse. These were really good reads. I believe that every president is right for the times. Every president deals with the awesome responsibilities of their job in their own way. Many in the Trump camp disparaged these books before they came out, but after reading these books from two different authors, the feeling and descriptions both authors offered were pretty close. This leads me to believe that the descriptions in these books are pretty accurate. Anyway, I hope you take a look at these.

On the science fiction end, the Singularity: Star Carrier series is terrific. The Star Carrier series is 9 books. 8 of them are finished. I am currently on book three. I enjoy how this author delves into the scientific explanations about faster-than-light travel and all the rest he discusses in this story. They are very entertaining.

The Destroyer Series is also another great one, if you enjoy action and adventure, mixed with some of the funniest prose I have read in a long time. If you like action and writing that will make you laugh, these are terrific. This series is composed of 140+ books, but all are really quick reads. Usually I finish them over a weekend.

I’ll provide these book recommendations once in a while. For those of you in my audience who are avid readers, feel free to reach out to me on Goodreads. I use Goodreads because it helps me keep track of all the things I’ve read. I also recommend Scribd, if you are ok with reading books in digital form. Many of the books on Scribd are pretty recent and are part of the subscription. I read enough that Scribd pays for itself. The Woodward and Bolton books by themselves cost about 45 USD. I pay 9 USD a month for the subscription, which also includes audio books and magazines.

Here is my Goodreads link: https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/60448547-david

Send me an invite if you wish. I’ll accept.

Well, folks that’s it for this week’s Thinking/Thankful Thursday.

Have a great day!!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful/Thinking Thursday – New iPad

Tags

2020, America, comfortable, Covid Vaccine, Grateful, Happy, iPad, Pandemic, Satisfied, Thankful

I’m getting an iPad today. I have been without one for a few years, but miss the ability to read on a bigger background than my phone. I also like watching movies and listening to music on it. It’s terrific!

It’s really nice to have the wherewithal to do what I need to do. My heart goes out to those who have suffered during the lockdowns. I constantly thought about that single Mom, working in a restaurant as a waitress, barely making it, and then watch her job disappear instantly. I am hopeful that most had family to depend on during that time.

It looks like a few countries are going back into lockdown. Boy, this thing won’t let up.

I am thankful for this country. Yeah, we had a hiccup early last year, but once the American people are motivated–we get things done.

I mentioned a day or so ago that my folks and I got our COVID-19 vaccine. My arm was a little stiff on the day of the shot, but after some exercise it loosened right up. No pain afterward. We have to get our second shot in April. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes. We got ours at our local pharmacy. It was important for Mom and Dad to get them, because they both have underlying conditions. Because I live here, it was appropriate for me to get one too. I’m grateful for the nurse at our local pharmacy who did such a great job. I never felt the needle go in.

So today, I’m grateful for my health, my family, this country, first responders, nurses and doctors, and my new iPad, which is on its way.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday – NASA

Tags

Exploration, Innovation, JPL, Landers, Mars, Nasa, photos, Science, videos

Photo Credit: www.nasa.gov

For those of you who are wrapped up with political or COVID news, this might be startling. NASA recently landed another exploratory vehicle called “Perseverance”. This is really excited because this lander is seeking evidence of life on Mars, amongst its other missions. Here’s a link (last about 1:45 minutes) showing the final stage of landing on Mars. I have always been in love with space exploration and to think we are actually on Mars looking around. Amazing!

https://flipboard.com/section/technology-ne0117oue7p3v4da/nasa-releases-first-high-speed-video-of-a-spacecraft-landing-on-mars/a-z_kt_yGjRYG60molf6WNmQ%3Aa%3A3153968-445731ce20%2Fflipboard.com

I hope you enjoy this and are interested in learning more. To see all the great stuff NASA is doing, head over to their website: https://www.nasa.gov/ It has some great articles, videos, and pictures to keep you entertained for hours (at least it does for me).

Have a great Thursday, folks!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful/Thinking Thursday – Audre Lorde

Tags

Activist, Art, Audre Lorde, Black History Month, Civil Rights Movement, Discrimination, Gay Rights Movement, Google, Poem, Poet, Poetry Foundation, Prejudice

Photo Credit: Audre Lorde. Photograph by Elsa Dorfman.

Today’s thinking Thursday is about another African American icon. This one is a poet called Audre Lorde. Much of her work throughout her life was dedicated to fighting discrimination be it racial, homophobic, ethnic, or whatever. I’ve included a poem from the Poetry Foundation below for you to read if you are interested. Google highlighted her today. This is where I got the inspiration to write today’s posting. After the poem, I’ve included the link for her biography on Poetry Foundation and a link to her Wikipedia page. I hope you enjoy reading about her.

Sisters in Arms

BY AUDRE LORDE

The edge of our bed was a wide grid
where your fifteen-year-old daughter was hanging   
gut-sprung on police wheels
a cablegram nailed to the wood
next to a map of the Western Reserve
I could not return with you to bury the body   
reconstruct your nightly cardboards
against the seeping Transvaal cold
I could not plant the other limpet mine
against a wall at the railroad station
nor carry either of your souls back from the river   
in a calabash upon my head
so I bought you a ticket to Durban
on my American Express
and we lay together
in the first light of a new season.

Now clearing roughage from my autumn garden   
cow sorrel    overgrown rocket gone to seed   
I reach for the taste of today
the New York Times finally mentions your country   
a half-page story
of the first white south african killed in the “unrest”
Not of Black children massacred at Sebokeng   
six-year-olds imprisoned for threatening the state   
not of Thabo Sibeko, first grader, in his own blood   
on his grandmother’s parlor floor
Joyce, nine, trying to crawl to him
shitting through her navel
not of a three-week-old infant, nameless   
lost under the burned beds of Tembisa
my hand comes down like a brown vise over the marigolds   
reckless through despair
we were two Black women touching our flame   
and we left our dead behind us
I hovered    you rose    the last ritual of healing   
“It is spring,” you whispered
“I sold the ticket for guns and sulfa   
I leave for home tomorrow”
and wherever I touch you
I lick cold from my fingers
taste rage
like salt from the lips of a woman   
who has killed too often to forget   
and carries each death in her eyes   
your mouth a parting orchid   
“Someday you will come to my country   
and we will fight side by side?”

Keys jingle in the door ajar    threatening   
whatever is coming belongs here
I reach for your sweetness
but silence explodes like a pregnant belly   
into my face
a vomit of nevers.

Mmanthatisi turns away from the cloth
her daughters-in-law are dyeing
the baby drools milk from her breast
she hands him half-asleep to his sister
dresses again for war   
knowing the men will follow.
In the intricate Maseru twilights
quick    sad    vital
she maps the next day’s battle
dreams of Durban    sometimes
visions the deep wry song of beach pebbles
running after the sea.

Notes:

M-mán-tha-tisi: warrior queen and leader of the Tlokwa (Sotho) people during the mfecane (crushing), one of the greatest crises in southern African history. The Sotho now live in the Orange Free State, S. A.

Má-se-ru: scene of a great Tlokwa battle and now the capital of Lesotho

Durban: Indian Ocean seaport and resort area in Natal Province, S. A.Audre Lorde, “Sisters in Arms” from The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde. Copyright © 1997 by Audre Lorde. Reprinted with the permission of Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency and W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., http://www.nortonpoets.com.Source: The Collected Poems of Audre Lorde (W. W. Norton and Company Inc., 1997)

https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poets/audre-lorde

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audre_Lorde

This is yet another inspiring woman. I hope you enjoy these links. I did.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking/Thankful Thursday – Civil Rights Movement

Tags

Civil Rights Movement, History, Learn, Little Rock Nine, MLK, Remember, Rosa Parks, Think

Photo Credit:

John T. Bledsoe – This image is available from the United States Library of Congress‘s Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID ppmsca.03090. This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing for more information.Little Rock, 1959. Rally at state capitol, protesting the integration of Central High School. Protesters carry US flags and signs reading “Race Mixing is Communism” and “Stop the Race Mixing March of the Anti-Christ”.

The civil rights movement began before I was born and continues today. Although icons like MKL and others of his era are no longer here, we have fresh groups, organizations, and movements that are fighting for equality. When I speak about these things with my wife, I find it amazing that even today, she still gets the weird look when her accent is heard.

I think the trick to equality and all the rest is time. Every generation is more tolerant than the last. For those of you who are interested, here are some quick links to some Wikipedia articles to take a look at:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Civil_rights_movement

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosa_Parks

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Rock_Nine

If you’ve never taken a look at the civil rights movement, the above three links will describe an America that most of us do not know. I was born in 1963, so many of the movements, actions, and events blew by me, since I was only a child.

These events are worth visiting. They tell a story about how we used to be, and how America has evolved. Is it perfect? No, but it continues to improve (in my opinion).

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thankful/Thinking Thursday – Consistent Reading, Writing, and Learning

Tags

Consistency, Exercise, huge results, Learning, Reading, small actions, Udemy, Writing

Photo credit: CallofDuty.com

Over the last few years, as more of my schedule has come under my control, I have found that doing a little each day compounds into huge results. A little exercise, a little reading, a little writing, and a few minutes watching, listening, or reading some educational material can go a long way.

Some of you are working from home. The beauty of working from home is you can get a lot of things done in a more efficient way. You are not forced to work only for your boss and then look at that pile of laundry, dirty dishes, or snow-filled driveway on your own time. Now you can work on both sets of priorities simultaneously, other than those ZOOM conference calls that eat up a good portion of the workday. Why not take an hour a day and knock out a little in each area: reading, writing, exercise, and learning? It doesn’t take long.

The average length of a session on Udemy is roughly 5-6 minutes long. If you take a few courses, you’re looking at 20-30 minutes each day. You’ll get your graduation certificates in no time, and if you take the right courses, you’ll be adding some critical skills to your toolbox. If you select the 4+ star-rated courses on Udemy, you’ll also be entertained by popular instructors that make the material fun and interesting. 30 minutes a day for 6 days (assuming you subscribe to my “do nothing day” policy) is 3 hours of learning!

If you take the time to analyze what you do each day, I think you’ll be amazed at how much time you spend watching television or streaming videos, and other activities, that although entertaining, don’t build anything. I’m a huge video game fan. My current favorite is Call of Duty, Black Ops, Cold War. It’s a great game and very popular (over 100 million players worldwide). I could play that game for 10+hours a day and still have more energy to play even more. Balance is the key. We all need our downtime to relax, recharge, and rejuvenate. Watch those shows, play those games, get some of that “me” time, but balance this out with some productive activities that will keep your mind working. It is really exciting to me when I pick up some new skill that I can apply immediately to what I do every day.

That’s all I got today, folks. Have a great Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking/Thankful Thursdays – Dr. Maurice Hilleman

Tags

Childhood Diseases, Covid, Curiosity Stream, Disease, Hero, Hilleman, Medicine, Vaccines, Vaccinology

Have you ever heard of Dr. Maurice Hilleman? I didn’t until my brother recommended the film Hilleman: A Perilous Quest to Save the World’s Children. It’s a good film and explains a great deal about the many challenges surrounding the creation of vaccines. Since all the talk in the news, social media, and everything else is about President Biden, President Trump, or Corona virus, I figured this would be a good way to get off of politics and really see what creating a vaccine is all about.

Here are a few links if you’d like to learn more about Dr. Maurice Hilleman. If you want to watch the film, I believe it is only being offered on Curiosity Stream, but you may be able to find it elsewhere. If you want to watch it on Curiosity Stream, the annual membership is 20 USD. I don’t know if Curiosity Stream is offered in other countries. You’ll have to check.

Links:

https://app.curiositystream.com/video/3928 (Curiosity Stream, Hilleman Movie)

https://app.curiositystream.com/ (Curiosity Stream’s home page if you’d like to get a year’s subscription)

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC557162/ (Article about Dr. Hilleman on the National Institute of Health’s website)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maurice_Hilleman (Wikipedia Page)

It’s amazing how many people do not know who this guy is. He is the 20th Century’s most influential vaccinologist, creating over 40 vaccines that are responsible for saving 8 million lives a year, particularly the lives of children. He created vaccines for the Mumps, Measles, Hepatitis A and B, chickenpox, meningitis, pneumonia, and influenza.

I enjoy watching documentaries, particularly those about science and history. If you like these too, Curiosity Stream is a real bargain. I am not an affiliate and get nothing if you join up. My whole family watches this channel, and we find it a real treat.

Happy Thursday!

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking Thursday – Udemy

Tags

cheap, easy, fascinating, inexpensive, Learning, Life-long Learning, new courses, new material, Thinking, Udemy

As the future unfolds, many of us will need to retool and learn new things. I decided to pursue the Python programming language. First, it’s a pretty easy language to learn. There are some things that still confuse me, but mostly, particularly with what I want to do with it, the language is very “learnable”.

I’m taking a Python course on Udemy. These courses cost money, but if you are patient, you can get most of them for less than 20 USD. It’s a real bargain when you consider that you have permanent access to the course, the instructors are outstanding in the 4-star rated and above courses, and you get so much content that you’ll be busy for a few months.

I’m enrolled in an NLP course, two Python courses, a graphic design course, two Excel courses, a digital marketing course, and a data science and business analysis course. I’m taking these because my new position in a religious organization requires that I know how to do all these things (excluding python and NLP). My goal is to complete all these courses before the end of 2021. Not a problem. I’ll get there in no time. The key is to do a little each day. By doing a little learning each day, you’ll retain the information more efficiently. To repeat, since you have lifelong access to Udemy courses you purchase, you are free to go back and review anything that you forget or need to refine. It’s a terrific service. I highly recommend it.

Is there something you’d like to learn, just to learn it? Head on over to Udemy. You won’t be disappointed.

Until next time…

Dave

Daily Ramblings – Thinking/Thankful Thursdays – Lifelong Learning

Tags

Fun, Hobbies, lifelong learning, online schools, school, Skills, Sources, staying competitive, Work

I’m a big advocate of lifelong learning. I am taking a python course currently on Udemy, but have a few more courses in the pipeline for the year. I want to get better with Excel (pivot points, charts, etc.), digital marketing, and data science. These are all on Udemy and are available for a small fee. I got all these courses with 10+ hours of content for about 40 USD. These courses will keep me busy for a while and provide me with the skills necessary to act in my new position in my religious organization for the State of Michigan.

I can’t stress how important it is to remain up-to-date with technology. My parents struggle with most of this, and frankly, so do many in their generation. Most of us in my generation learned technology as part of our jobs. We had to learn it because we needed these technologies to compete in the marketplace. Simple things like searching the Internet, using an email service, an online calendar, or a cloud-based storage system (Google Drive, One Drive, or iCloud). These things are so simple to me, but a mystery to those who have never used them. The world will continue to progress and leave these folks behind more and more.

Now, more than ever, it is important to learn technologies like ZOOM, Skype, or other video chat service. Because of lockdowns, schools and businesses particularly have had to use these types of systems to teach students and interact with their clients. They are also so cool to use to stay in touch with friends and family. My wife and I either Facetime or use ZOOM when she needs help with paperwork or something in AZ.

So keep learning. It is fun, it keeps you engaged, and will give you capabilities you may need in the future, as our societies become more “digital”. It’s also really fun to engage with people all over the world and make new friends. I have friends all over the states, friends in Europe, Australia, and even Indonesia. These technologies have shrunk our planet and give us access to other cultures. This helps us understand why other countries do what they do.

If you’ve never used services like Udemy or Coursera, feel free to ask questions in the comments section. I’d be happy to connect with you directly and help you out. I am not affiliated with any of these educational companies—I’m just willing to give you a helping hand in case you need help. These services are terrific and provide me with the ability to learn all kinds of things that I either find interesting or need to know to do something I want.

Here are some links for your use, should you take this up for yourself:

https://www.udemy.com/

https://www.khanacademy.org/

https://www.edx.org/

https://www.coursera.org/

These are some top online educational sites I have used and recommend. Most of them are absolutely free (except Udemy) and will require you to pay if you want a certificate of completion to use for college credit or employment purposes (Coursera and EdX). Udemy charges a fee for all its courses, but these are typically around 9.99 USD, if you are patient and wait for many of their sales events, which literally happen monthly.

Well, that’s it for today. I hope all you have a terrific Thursday.

Until next time…

Dave