The Cancer Diaries, Part 10
My father died of esophageal cancer several years ago. It was a horrible, lingering death, and I watched him shrivel and die, in constant pain towards the end. On one…
Personal reminiscences
It’s *NOT* Junk Mail
I recognize that we all like to apply labels to categorize things, as shorthand in communication and in conversation, and to identify common views and beliefs. I do it myself;…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 9
Well, I suppose it’s a good news/bad news story for this post, although I dearly wish it was better. Would that I could have put it all behind me, finished…
The Cancer Diaries, part 8
Diseases desperate grown By desperate appliance are relieved, Or not at all. Shakespeare: Hamlet, Act 4 Sc. 3 Those Kegel exercises sure work. I had my doubts at first, but…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 6
I’m sitting here, on my back deck, in the late Friday afternoon, beside Susan, trying to take stock of my life over a glass of wine, and read a bit…
Why Science Fiction Matters
In the past two years, we’ve watched all the Star Trek series (on Netflix) from start to finish, and all the ST movies (on DVD). We just started watching the…
The Cancer Diaries, part 5
The resilience of the human body is truly amazing. Here I am, three weeks after major surgery, and much of my daily life is back to normal. I can drive,…
Juet’s Journal in Word format
For those readers interested in the voyages of the late-16th-early-17th century adventurer, Henry Hudson, or in the European explorations of North America, I have recently scanned and edited a copy…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 4
A home is not a sterile environment. Not mine, anyway. With two cats, a dog, numerous houseplants, rooms full of books, and my sometimes lackadaisical attitude toward cleaning, our home…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 3
The operating room was cold. Not merely cool: winter cold. In my thin hospital gown, I felt the chill and shivered a bit. The nurse told me it’s kept cold…
The Cancer Diaries, Part 2
There was an episode in the original Star Trek series called The Deadly Years in which Captain Kirk and some of his companions aged rapidly. At one point, the ship’s…
The Cancer Diaries Part 1
I should have started this a while ago. Perhaps when I received the first news something as wrong. But it took a while to really sink in. And then it…
Shaving notes, again
It’s been a while since I wrote about shaving, so I thought it was time to bring that story up to date. If you wish to read my previous posts…
Dandelions and civilization
Whenever I see a lawn with dandelions, I think, “This is the home of civilized people. This is the home of people who care about the environment and their community.…
Big G and Me
One of my fondest childhood memories is sitting between my parents on a warm summer night, on the front seat of the family car, watching a movie through the windshield,…
I’m Reading as Fast as I Can
I don’t recall just when I started putting books aside to read, or perhaps just finish, when I retired. I had this naive, romantic idea that upon retirement, at the…
Of dictionaries, memories, and friends
When a copy of this selection from Samuel Johnson’s famous dictionary arrived last week, I was delighted, and immediately reminded of my late, and well-loved friend, Bill. He would have…
2018 in review
As the year 2018 closes, it’s time for my customary review of what I wrote. It’s also time to thank every reader for participating, for reading my humble musings, for…
Dictionary vs Dictionary.com
Did you know that doxastic is a philosophical adjective relating to an individual’s beliefs? Or that doxorubicin was an antibiotic used in treating leukemia? Or that doxy is a 16th…
Storytelling cubes
You don’t expect Wal Mart to be the source for literary tools, but if you amble into the section crammed with toys, you can pick up a set of Rory’s…