Monthly Archives: February 2016

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To Bruce: Vivid Dream

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4:30 AM

Good morning,

I just had a vivid dream that was real enough to tell you about it. First of all understand that I have a collection of recurring dreams that I cycle through, most of the settings are a factory floor and usually my persona is Deming on inspection.

This one was a little different. Location was your dad’s barn. He was talking out loud near a machine. He was giving orientation instructions to anyone in earshot not really directly to me. No one else was around so I tuned in as if he was talking to me but there was no eye contact. He said that a sign that he had put “in the line to gather [stuff]together was jamming the process” and directed that someone should repair the problem. Not sure that he was talking to me I sauntered around the front of the machine to see what was on the other side. This side was dark. There were outlets but no bulbs. I looked up to see your dad on top of the machine pulling out about a dozen packages of chicken and toss them gently into a neat stack on the floor.

Next, I think he was speaking directly to me, “We are qualified by standard to produce for [don’t remember] brand and [starting with an M] brand.” I looked up to see the sign that was stopping the production line as he casually walked away. I briefly wondered why the lighting was so poor here but felt an obligation to perform. As I approached  sign (about 8 inches by 20 inches, hung by the corners with hay wire) the dream ended.

I woke with a strong memory of your father and therefore, you.

Best regards,

Hanque

Uncategorized

Letter to Gov. Dayton (below)

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2/24/2016

 

Your Name here

Your Address Here

Your City, ST Zip here

 

 Dear Governor Dayton,

 

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum.

 

Best regards,

 

Your signature here

 

computer stuff

[Too] Personal Computer

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A few years ago, I built a blog that was to be used as a safe playground for persons who were not familiar with how the internet works. They could go there to learn computer terms and see examples of internet “things” without getting lost or intimidated by the general chaos of typical early visits to the “cloud.”

I customized one area so that when particular “students” were sent there, the content was designed to hold their attention; encourage them to participate by leaving their own comments.

At the same time, I was teaching about computers at a local community center. I used the blog as the center of attention to stage a general presentation for a crowd of as many as 14 attendees and as few as one person. At any time, participants were urged to ask that silly question that beginners are so shy about. I gently forced questions from the group, ranging from cell phones to tablets and the difference between apples and oranges. Often, the whole class would go off on a tangent caused by someone’s need to know.

Recently, I thought it would be a good idea to use the blog in another way.  My uncle is the smartest man I know. I usually talk on the phone with him 2 or 3 times a week. He lives in New Jersey and at 90 years old is very active, taking the train to New Your City several times a week.  His way of communicating is to send a dozen pages of politically flavored diatribe to many people every couple of days. Although I enjoy talking to him on the phone, his written stuff is too wild for me. I have a stack of his mailings in my office, unopened.

Last week, I had the (bad) idea that my uncle could use a blog to disseminate his gospel instead of sending the bulky mailings he does now. During our early morning conversation I announced the new methodology: Save paper and stamps by putting his messages “on line.”

After a lengthy argument (one that I thought won) he finally consented to give it a try.

He said to me, “…just a minute I will go ask her [his wife] to log me in.”  He was out of ear shot by the time I tried to stop him. He came back and said that she was still in bed and that “he dare not interfere with anything on her precious computer.”

Oh Oh.  I knew that I just did a bad thing.

I cut the conversation short, blaming the time running out on my flip phone.

I called my cousin to explain the feud I started between his parents. My first thinking was that he could buy his dad a wireless laptop so that he would not mess up my aunt’s personal computer.

He wasted no time straightening me out. They have been keeping my uncle away from the internet on purpose. Their fear was that if he figured out how to email, his first urgent message would be to President Obama. I told my cousin, “I get it . Sorry.”

Lesson offered: Do not force the internet on anyone.

 

 

 

activist

aridity

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John of the Cross frequently refers to aridity, a dryness that occurs on the path toward union with God. Although it doesn’t feel so good, he assures us that aridity is a sign that we are moving away from our sense-based appetite and moving toward our creator.

Right now I have such an urge to eat a fresh chocolate chip cookie. They are in the kitchen. I have a feeling that swirling cold milk around my tongue while mashing apart chunks of sweetness will make me happy.

On the other hand, if I cherish this lusting with moments of denial, will I become closer to God?

Let’s see.

Beginners

Click Bait

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In Facebook (and other places) there are postings that are designed to get you to “like” or “comment” or “share” for many reasons. Following is a partial list; maybe they look familiar:

“…don’t scroll past without an “amen” (usually accompanied by a gross photo)

“I wept at 1:25. You should get a box of tissues before you continue.

“You won’t believe what happens next…

“Comment with the first word you see (in a matrix of letters filing a box)

“No one ever reads my wall. Type any words to let me know we are still friends…”

“shake your head and comment on what you see.” (a blurry set of moiré lines with a shadow of a kitten)

“Name a city with an A”

All of these request are done by predators that appeal to your sense of pity or gaming or friendship. They are made by people who could care less about the story they present. They are collecting your actions and selling them to social media vendors to make it look like links that they monitor for their customers are getting the results promised.

Don’t fall for these worthless pranks. They are called “click bait” because they exist only to hook you into some nonsense that only serves their needs, not empathy for some false cause or momentum for a worthy cause.