As I have said many times before, I often use this forum to explore certain subjects about which I am totally ignorant. I recently became curious about justice and mercy. Below is the definition of both from the free online dictionary: Justice: 1. The quality of being just; fairness. 2. a. The principle [...]
It was with sorrow that I recently read of Tony Hillerman’s death. Mr. Hillerman was of course the author of many fine books, with perhaps the series about the Navajo policemen, Joe Leaphorn and Jim Chee, being his most famous. Hillerman presented these mystery stories in the context of the Navajo culture, showing the difficulties that [...]
The autumn leaves have pretty much all fallen, stripped from the tree branches by the high winds that have swept through the area. Here are some of the photos that I have taken on my favorite walk to the beach. My favorite type of morning is when the mist curls through the forest and the [...]
The Spotted Owl (Strix occidentalis) is an indicator species for old grow forest in the Pacific Northwest. There were titanic legal battles fought back in the eighties and nineties to preserve a modicum of the old growth forest and thus preserve this species of owl. It requires large tracts of old growth forest which [...]
I recently reread Latro of the Mist which combines two of Gene Wolfe’s books (Soldier of the Mist and Soldier of Arete) into one book. In this book Wolfe (who has been described by some as one of the best writers in the English language) tells the story of Latro, a Roman, who suffered [...]
I have recently become fascinated by the idea of sentience in machines and the nature of consciousness. To explore this idea and to work it out in my own mind, I began to write a story about the subject. Below is an excerpt: “My drowsiness instantly vanished, replaced by an anger [...]
I am always on the lookout for poems that I like. I find that Japanese poets often provide the succinct but poignant quality that appeals to me. Here are some poems of Izumi Shikibu which I like. I had never heard of this particular lady until somebody told me about her. She lived around the [...]
