We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.
18:9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and regarded others with contempt:
18:10 "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.
18:11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, was praying thus, 'God, I thank you that I am not like other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector.
18:12 I fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.'
18:13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating his breast and saying, 'God, be merciful to me, a sinner!'
18:14 I tell you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted."
Hunting Canada Geese is good fun. Get out in the dark, set up, hide, wait, drink coffee. It can be tricky though, and picking the right spot to set up makes all the difference.
You can do it on a fancy French ship, Le Commandant Ponant (which the two chuckleheads give you a tour of, below), or on a more spartan Russian ice-breaker (second video, with much more Arctic scenery).
Readers know that my idea of a healthy breakfast is two coffees and sometimes a little nicotine. For adults, the idea that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day" was debunked long ago. Growing kids, of course, need food all the time including protein at breakfast.
If you do heavy labor all day, it's another matter. All I do is to work out at the gym for an hour or so every morning, and some yard work on weekends (as little as possible because I have become bored with it), and take good walks on weekends. That is sedentary.
Sometimes, though, there are occasions for a hearty breakfast.
I have always liked kippers with some eggs. In Scotland, the kippers are about a foot long. Too much. The canned kippers that you find in US supermarkets are barely OK.
Another breakfast that some hate but I love: Creamed Chipped Beef on Toast (aka shit on a shingle). A classic prep school, and military, breakfast.
And the ultimate American breakfast (South and Midwest especially): Biscuits and Gravy. Every family has its own recipe, so I won't link one. Those Bob Evans restaurants make a fine one, but I don't think they let you in unless you weigh over 250 pounds. Grits on the side are good.
To stay multicultural, I can't omit the English Breakfast. Blood sausage:
First, Teaspoon. The expression is one teaspoon of loose tea per cup, and one for the pot. For a single cup, one teaspoon. Thus teaspoon. A tablespoon is three teaspoons.
True colors (or colours). Naval war etiquette required taking down your false flag before initiating battle.
Learning the ropes. Sailing ships had over 300 ropes and lines. Newbies had to learn them all, on the double.
Monogamy is a good arrangement, especially for child-rearing, at least in the Western world. Marriage is (supposedly) a life-long committment to one person. When defied, it can cause serious damage.
Is monogamy "natural"? Of course not, because of the unrelenting sex drive of humans. Humans are always in heat, especially when younger but it never stops entirely. Regardless of how committed one is, all anybody needs to do is to check your fantasies. Temptation abounds.
Europe counted on Australian grain through the 1800s to early 1900s, and later. The great square-rigged ships continued the grain trade through the 1940s.
Their route took advantage of the westerly winds to circle the globe in the Roaring Forties around the Cape of Good Hope, to Australia, then east around Cape Horn. 11 months or so.
The Executive Branch should tell me what to eat and drink as if I were an infant? Apparently people want to increase the $750/month SNAP poverty allowance for food.
Pink Floyd was a heck of a successful rock group. A founder, Syd Barrett, became schizophrenic but seems to have remained a shadow member of the group. Sound and fury signifying nothing? You be the judge.
Abou