Notebook Entries October 2006
Notebook entry, October 30th, 2006
This morning I called in sick for the 13th time this year. My back is continuing
to worsen and all I did yesterday, Sunday, was rack leaves for several hours.(No
wonder the word rack comes from the 15th century devices to torture). As a result,
Diana and I have had several conversations about my leaving the Postal Service
earlier than anticipated. I think that I have about six months left in my physical
body before it gives up the requirements of the job. But, of course, I would
still have to go out and look for part time work that would allow me to sit
on my fat bum for most of the time. Sigh. It's been a long held dream of mine
that someday I would have a financial base underpinning my survival allowing
me to pursue my creative talents. We've crunched the numbers, and yes, we could
survive, but it would not be a sweet retirement.
I think the other reason behind my decision is that route inspections are coming
up in March and they are periods of intense stress. All ready our station has
had knuckle-crawlers from management with clip boards standing around with thumbs
up their asses and looking at all the productive workers as if they were expenses
to be eliminated. Rumors are flying at work that several positions would be
eliminated, and if that is the case, then the whole station would come up for
bid. When that happens, it creates a "every person for themselves"
nature in the group dynamics. People snitch on others and tell management about
every little infractions in order to curry favor -- as if it would help their
position. I find it very interesting from an evolutionary stand point because
I feel that it gives a clue about group dynamics about any group at a time when
all in the group know that delicate balances will be upset and that some of
them as individuals in the groups will be "eliminated."
The dominates love it to see the little people squirm like this because it inflates
their egos that they are more superior than they really are and makes them ignore
that they "need" these "little people" as the sole purpose
of their existence -- without the worker -- their can be no management.
Notebook entry, October 26th, 2006
It snowed yesterday. It was a heavy, wet snow. We got about four inches -- it's
the third storm this season already. Usually, it does not snow before Halloween,
so the winter seems to be approaching at a fast clip. I have this, and the next
winter to go before retirement. Then I can really pursue study and writing.
Sigh...
I plan on traveling to see the kids in California on the 1st of November until
the 5th. They are still struggling with their business, but I can tell that
they are burned out mentally. Always remember people: stress is the killer in
your body -- we humans we really programmed to sit under the palm tress with
warm breezy wind caressing our faces.
Sigh....
Notebook entry, October 17, 2006,
Today entry has to do with a New York Times online article titled: "Preschool
Puberty, and a Search for the Causes.," by Darshak M. Sanghavi. It seems
that a study done at the University of Massachusetts Medical School reported:
"...presented a report that described how a preschool-age girl, and then
her kindergarten-age brother, mysteriously began growing public hair."
"...Increasingly -- though the science is still far from definitive and
the precise number of such cases is highly speculative -- some physicians woryy
that children are at higher risk of early puberty as a result of the increasing
prevalence of certain drugs, cosmetics and environmental contaminants, called
"endocrine disruptors," that can cause breast growth, pubic hair development
and other symptoms of puberty."
There is no doubt in my mind that most, if not all, of these "abnormalities"
are man made. The evolutionary question we have to ask is, "will humankind
survive itself?"
and if it does survive, will those that are left have enough brain power to
understand that it was coporate greed for resources (money) that did it?
Notebook entry, October 9th, 2006
Happy Columbus Day in America. It's a federal holiday, so the U.S. Postal Service
is not functioning today. That's good, because it's cold and rainy today --
a good day not to be a letter-carrier. It appears that we are in for an early
winter and a major portion of the leaves at our "estate" have already
fallen. I promised myself that I would get caught up on my notebook entries,
but as the morning drags on, I'm finding excuses not to get around to it. What's
the hurry? My dad is still alive at 94 and chasing the nurses around the rest
home -- and I'm in better shape than he was at this age. Still looking forward
to leaving the Post Office in the early months of 2008 and then I plan on working
the rest of the year on local politics, before I search around for part-time
work. It is not confirmed yet, but It appears more and more likely that Denver
will host the 2008 Democratic Convention.
On another note, I was working behind the web site this morning and came across
some of my poster images. I then remembered seeing them on EVOLVEFISH.COM, and
since I no one sell them from my this web site anymore, I put the images up
on my "Retail Section" and put a link to their web site. On two of
the posters there is my web address, so if anyone purchases the posters, and
the posters are viewed by others, at least they will see the web address and
perhaps create traffic. Of course, any of you who have been readers of the early
days of Evolution's Voyage know that I commissioned Utah artist, Gregory Frehner
to do four posters. This fourth one has never been sold. I have all 100 posters
still archived away in my basement. Both my wife and I considered the poster
to be so "dark" and gloomy, that I never placed the poster on the
web site for sale. The back story on this is that when he was creating this
poster, Greg's wife was pregnant. The poster was supposed to be a visual c reation
of the fictional story about a tiger stalking a tribe of pre-humoids EMIGRATING
NORTH out of Africa. (the fictional story never had the tiger catching up with
the tribe). I'm not sure, but I believe that there were complications in the
wife's pregnancy, and both Diana and I speculate that the visual ended up as
a horrible nightmare possibility. Oh, well...life evolves and continues, with
or without us.
A note to future historians. There is a fourth poster. Note the pre-humans in
the tree.
Notebook entry, October 8th, 2006
I haven't written any entries for a while -- oh, I don't know....maybe it's
the change in the wx, the days getting shorter, or my back aching -- or my great
desire to get on to the next level in my life -- retirement. I did just finish
a book review of Bare Branches. I've put several weeks of part time writing
here and there. I really should catch up with the many news entries that are
of my interests.
Craig and my Step-daughter, Emily parents are arriving from England on October
11. So, I most likely will not get around to that either.
Notebook entry, October 7, 2006
OP-ED Columnist, John Tierney has a wonderful piece in the online edition of
The New York Times today, titled: "Jackasses and Fashionistas." He
was commenting on our culture, and in particular, the movie "Jackass Number
Two," and the ultra-thin fashion models seen on the runways of Milan and
Paris.
"But what inspires men to volunteer to be dragged by a horse, gored by
a bull and catapulted on a rocket? One guy gets branded with a red-hot iron;
another attaches a leech to his eyeball. This movie could be called "The
Descent of Man," although it's not easy to square with Darwin's book of
that name. Why weren't these guys' genes eliminated long ago?"
"It's the same runaway process that causes women to endanger their health
by starving themselves to look like fashion models. Extreme thinness is a status
symbol to other women, not men. Men prefer women who are normal weight or plump,
but the stick figures on the fashion runways aren't rying to appeal to a male
audience. Like the guys on "Jackass," they've lost sight of the other
sex because they're so busy trying to impress their own."
Not bad Mr. Tierney. I see that you have been dipping into the evolutionary
perspective of human behavior.