Thursday, January 25, 2018

American Robin


34 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Ah, strep; that ought to manifest differently than staph, and be more susceptible to antibiotics. And good that you were seen promptly by an infectious disease specialist--they are often not called in until other doctors have confused the situation.

      --Alan

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    2. Looks like blogger ate another post. I don't usually have this much trouble.

      I have very high confidence in my primary doctor. The fact that he called in Dr. Chandi, the infectious disease specialist, early reinforces that confidence.

      I have follow-up appoints with Dr. Yen on Wednesday and Dr. Chandi Thursday.

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    3. I appreciate the updates, Bill. Does the antibiotic seem to be having an effect?

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    4. Yes, that's a trademark of cellulitis. It's a slow recovery, but docs know how.

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  2. A bunch of posts quoted directly rather than linked. Time presses.
    —Alan
    =======================================
    Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) “convened his top political advisers in Washington on Saturday for a planning meeting that included a discussion of the feasibility and shape of a possible 2020 presidential campaign,” Politico reports.

    “The Democratic socialist’s response to the series of presentations, according to multiple Democrats: I haven’t yet made a decision about 2020, but I still think beating Donald Trump is the most important thing for this country. And I want to be ready if I do decide to run.”
    ============================
    “A ‘draft’ campaign aimed at encouraging former Vice President Joe Biden to run for president could soon open a field office in Iowa, almost two years in advance of the 2020 Iowa caucuses,” the Des Moines Register reports.
    ============================
    A new NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll finds that 60% of Americans support allowing adults to buy marijuana for personal use.
    ===========================
    “A document that former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort’s attorneys appear to have accidentally filed in court Wednesday suggests that federal investigators had an informant inside Manafort’s consulting firm who provided information about his financial dealings,” Politico reports.
    ================================
    Special counsel Robert Mueller “is moving at a far faster pace than previously known and appears to be wrapping up at least one key part of his investigation — whether President Trump obstructed justice,” Bloomberg reports.

    “Mueller has quietly moved closer to those around Trump by interviewing Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats, National Security Agency Director Michael Rogers, Attorney General Jeff Sessions and former FBI Director James Comey in recent weeks, officials said. His team has also interviewed CIA Director Mike Pompeo, NBC News reported.”

    “Those high-level officials all have some degree of knowledge about events surrounding Trump’s decisions to fire Comey and Michael Flynn, his first national security adviser.”
    ====================================
    Washington Post: “People who have appeared before Mueller’s team say prosecutors have detailed accounts of events, sometimes to the minute, and have surprised witnesses by showing them emails or documents they were unaware that the team had or that their colleagues had written. One person said Mueller’s team has asked about Trump’s private comments around key events and how he explained decisions.”
    ========================================
    Ryan Goodman: “If you direct your attention to the series of known cases when Trump officials have not told the truth to the F.B.I. and to Congress about Russian contacts, what emerges is a likely conspiracy on the part of Mr. Trump’s inner circle to mislead federal officials.”

    “That’s where the stakes could not be much higher for the White House. Not only is it a crime to lie to federal authorities; it’s also a crime to encourage others to do so, whether or not they follow through with crossing the line of perjury.”

    “We know that Trump campaign associates did not report to federal authorities their information about Russian efforts during the campaign, even after the F.B.I. urged Mr. Trump and his aides to alert the agency to any suspicious overtures. Far worse are the numerous instances in which Trump campaign officials either lied to federal officials or came perilously close.”
    =================================
    “A Defense Lawyer’s Worst Nightmare”[Click]

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  3. Kriegskinder.[Click] Lessons here for all of us, I think.

    —Alan

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  4. A Study Suggests That People Can Hear Universal Traits in Music[Click] It is very difficult to design an unbiased experiment, but this seems to be a very decent start.

    A Glimpse of a Canadian-Led International Order[Click] “The U.S. ditched a massive trade agreement—which turned out slightly better without it.”

    A Jawbone Is the Oldest Modern-Human Fossil Outside of Africa[Click]

    Why Are Women Still Choosing the Lowest-Paying Jobs?[Click]

    Gotta run.
    —Alan

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  5. This page might be of interest to folks here.

    https://impeachdonaldtrumpnow.org/who-we-are/legal-advisory-board/

    And, while you're there, click Home and sign the petition if you have not already done so.

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    Replies
    1. Thanks for the tip, Cat. I did sign the petition and lordy, I wish someone would ACT ON IT!

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  6. Haven't you heard? Obstruction of justice is the crime of choice for presidents. It was good enough for Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton, after all. I'd say the Cheat-o in Chief has some pretty big shoes to fill if he's going that route.

    The video of him saying he was looking forward to talking to the FBI did make me laugh. The reporters all sounded incredulous. And then he came out with that line about testifying under oath? You can't make this stuff up. A novelist or playwright who tried to sell a work using such material would be laughed out of the business.

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  7. While I have enjoyed all the avian portraits, my favorite is Tufted Titmouse. What a cute little bird!

    Bill, sending the best of good wishes for your speedy recovery! ♥

    I finished Tolkien's translation of Beowulf. Christopher includes with the translation text itself extensive notes and excerpt's from his father's lectures, which are, of course, fascinating and also wonderfully helpful in understanding the epic. I sure wish we'd had this volume when I was studying Beowulf some thirty years ago. Man but he must have been a fantastic teacher, if just his notes and lecture texts, some of them not much more than notes themselves, are so captivating. I learned more from this one volume than in my undergrad and grad school classes on Old English literature.

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    1. Gee, that sounds like a book to add to my retirement reading list, Cat; can you give me a pointer to the volume?

      Alan

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    2. That will go into my wish list. Amazon and alibris.com have about the same prices for the paperback, but Amazon far better for the hardback. I am thinking hardback is the better choice.

      Alan

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    3. Yes, I sprung for the hardback. Seemed better for a book that will see a good deal of use.

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  8. Does this say what I think it says?

    Kentucky has now won permission to make Medicaid only available to non-disabled adult residents...

    If you are disabled, in other words, you are now *not* eligible for MEDICAID? Er...then, what the hell are you supposed to do if you are poor and disabled and have medical expenses? Maybe you're just supposed to lie down and die. I mean, that simply doesn't make any sense, to remove from MEDICAID the people who need it most.

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    Replies
    1. I am pretty sure what was intended (and may have said in toto) was that non-disabled adults who do not work or perform public service will not be eligible for Medicaid. However, if there is no work to be had in their locality, there is nothing said about the state providing it. This sounds like the old GOP faith-based medical plan: pray you don't get sick.

      --Alan

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  9. I do wonder how this will play in the Show-Me State:

    Missouri U.S. Senate candidate Courtland Sykes (R) has ignited a social media firestorm with a Facebook post in which he calls feminists “she devils” and expounds on how he wants his wife to cook his dinner, the Kansas City Star reports.

    Sykes wrote that he rejects “radical feminism’s crazed definition of modern womanhood” and that he wants daughters who will be homemakers rather than “career obsessed banshees” or “nailbiting manophobic feminist she devils.”

    --Alan

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    1. I said in a comment in answer to that "I will be happy to send him a copy of the cookbook, "A Man, A Can and A Plan".

      He's such a jerk. He was born about 70 years too late if *that's* the kind of wife he wants!

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    2. I am rather struck by his neologism: "manophobic." I think that should be androphobic or at least virophobic; but that is probably too high-fallutin' language for him. That's assuming that the story is true and not Russian propaganda.

      Alan

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    3. My goodness! He sounds like the reject from the local tribe of cave men.

      I like 'androphobic," but as you say, that's much too highfalutin, not to say educated a word for such a throwback. (And somebody ought'a throw him back!

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  10. “President Trump ordered the firing last June of Robert Mueller, the special counsel overseeing the Russia investigation, according to four people told of the matter, but ultimately backed down after the White House counsel threatened to resign rather than carry out the directive,” the New York Times reports.

    “The West Wing confrontation marks the first time Mr. Trump is known to have tried to fire the special counsel. Mr. Mueller learned about the episode in recent months as his investigators interviewed current and former senior White House officials in his inquiry into whether the president obstructed justice.”

    Washington Post: “The incident could now become part of Mueller’s examination of whether Trump has taken steps to try to stymie the investigation.”
    ==========================
    "COULD now become part of Mueller’s examination"? And the Pope could be Catholic, and the sun could rise in the east, eh?

    --Alan

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    Replies
    1. Tell me you're loving this as much as I am. 😃👍

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    2. I can't make a comparison, but I sure am enjoying it; it's one [Warning! Unwonted sports analogy!] own-goal after another.

      Alan

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    3. LOL I realize they have to be cautious in their phrasing, but really. You couldn't make this stuff up?

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  11. I was just looking at some Van Gogh paintings and drawings, and saw a couple of railway tunnels. They are rather reminiscent of Edward Hopper paintings in that they show no people. That made me think of a particular old street undercrossing of a railway line in Fresno, and I think that would be an interesting subject to work on. The idea continues to grow on me. It is rather an ambitious subject to start with, but so what? There are a lot of good subjects for sketching here in Eureka, but not in this weather. It has been cold and raining off and on.

    Alan

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    1. I am not sure if these links to Google street views of possible sketching projects will work or not; bear with me while I experiment.—Alan

      Underpass from south[Click]

      Underpass from north[Click]

      An for a straight-up single point of view elevation,
      Fresno High school[Click] should serve.

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    2. Yeah, it works! Pretty snazzy. And speaking of working, I had better get some more work done on that opinion I owe a certain public defender.

      TTFN

      Alan

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    3. Ambitious, yes, but highly admirable.

      Can't quite recall the quote, something like:

      If you reach for the moon, at least you'll fall among the stars.

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  12. Wow--right place, right time! Ten minutes IS a very long time. And let's credit the person who found and brought the defibrillator!

    Alan

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  13. That would be when the UVM Rescue team arrived. But TWO cardiologists present when it happened!!?! Lifesaving!

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