I am thankful for running water, foods, people, the energy that gives power to love, senses which communicate what we need to celebrate what goodness we can cogitate with intricate beauty delicate complementing kindness and wit

There are many excellent ways to demonstrate one's patriotism, amongst which educating one's self (and others, when possible) about one's nation surely ranks.  Learning hides in every experience, but when we're intentionally distancing ourselves in society, books take the lead.

I currently have bookmarks in ten books (admittedly many of them are a chapter or two in), but I spent the past couple hours reading James MacPherson's The Battle Cry of Freedom.  I am 171 pages in, meaning I only have 691 to go, woohoo!  My natural tendencies when in a group setting lean toward "can't we all just get along?" as I've proven several times when deterring or breaking up physical altercations.  But sometimes the answer to that question is "We can't, and for perfectly good reasons.  We are right to oppose this inhumane treatment of Sapiens who appear to be different, and they are wrong to precipitate or condone these actions, and people who devote a portion of their Memorial Day to read stories of our times will clearly see we are definitely on the correct side of history."

That or you can grill something

A Happy Birthday to You

Although we are all filled with creative imagination, Bob Dylan exemplifies the American poet artist who pleases and awes the world with words, and changes it continuously in new and exciting ways to this very day

Ireland, June 2018 (On the Way Home)

I am finally posting the remaining photos from my journey in Europe in June of 2018.  Previously I shared photos of a half-day in Dublin, Ireland, en route to a day in Brussels, Belgium, several days in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, a night in Hamburg, Germany, and two weeks in Berlin visiting my sister, brother-in-law and nephew, whom I met for the first time.  My flight home involved a night staying in Dublin, where I enjoyed live traditional Irish music at my hotel, Temple Bar.

As I am now living in "Papa" Michael Sullivan's cabin which he built in the North Country, roughly a hundred years after his ancestors escaped the starvation of the potato famine in Cork County, Ireland, I figure now is a good time to share.

The conclusion in Dublin was extra meaningful to me because the first time I did a multi-nation journey, in 2010, I began in India and unexpectedly wound up--ten countries and seven months later-- in Ireland.  That time I had a week to explore, and checked out Cork and the Ring of Kerry.  However, back then I was on a multi-year hiatus (mostly) from enjoying alcohol.  So when I returned, I definitely made a point of tasting some Irish whiskey.  I thought it fitting that the band played "Wild Rover"