On expectations

God is hope, a wish.

housing concept

All In – every county resident in a bed, under a roof

Instead of funerals and memorials, ...

We could change the whole culture around death, reintegrate death into living. A person either decides it's time or gets a terminal diagnosis or … and before they are weak and in bed, well before, a ceremony is held, all the good things that are said at funerals, the praise, the fond memories, etc etc. Then the person dies and is very quietly buried.

Technology and travel

In the 80's, I used to travel for a few months at a time, to places a bit out of the mainstream. I had a careful packing list - the biggest challenge was taking/finding enough in English to read. Today, posters on slashdot are chatting about being in a remote Himalayan village for a year. One writes: "I'm downloading wikipedia on a usb drive." Another is filling up his Kindle. So much change. I'm a bit speechless, a bit numb with the differences.

Jabir Puar describes Gaza as a laboratory for Israeli maiming, reminding me of how Jews were experimented on by Nazis. Equating Israeli policies to Nazi policies, and Gazans to Jews?

Hobbies

Reading was often noted by my college classmates as a hobby. Hobbies seem to me extras, in addition to. Reading however seems as much a necessity for me as air and water; I would never have considered it as a hobby. I'm pretty purposeful, don't have hobbies, didn't know how to respond to that question. Until yesterday, as I chatted with my sister about turmeric and pain and realized that health is my hobby, alternatives for personal well-being, body work, herbs, meridians, stretches, stillness ...

Jews

The post-colonial territorial divisions in the middle-east woke Arab nationalism which rallied around herding the Jews into the sea. Israel opened its arms to Jews and prospered. Palestinians sheltered in place and were shunned by other Arabs. People with different allegiances butted for dominance or resolution. Today there is stalemate and much death. Tomorrow is unclear.