Posted on by Cathy Edgett

Libraries

Ron Charles writes this in his weekly column in The Washington Post today.

In his 2006 biography of Andrew Carnegie, David Nasaw notes that the fabulously wealthy industrialist “would live his final years in disappointment that he had not met his lifelong goal of giving away all his money.”

It wasn’t for lack of trying. At the start of the 20th century, Carnegie was building two libraries a week. In 1903, he doubled that pace. Before he died in 1919, he’d given away money for the construction of more than 2,500 libraries. 

Last Friday night, Donald Trump fired off another havoc-wreaking executive order. Among other things, this one calls for gutting the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

Every year, that little-known agency supports America’s museums and libraries with grants totaling about $266 million, which is close to what Elon Musk spent to put Trump back in the White House. 

Charles goes on and concludes with this:

Yesterday, Trump replaced acting IMLS director Cyndee Landrum — an actual librarian — with Deputy Secretary of Labor Keith E. Sonderling, a former employment lawyer. Sonderling immediately laced up his jackboots and issued a statement that says, in part: “I am committed to steering this organization in lockstep with this Administration to enhance efficiency and foster innovation. We will revitalize IMLS and restore focus on patriotism, ensuring we preserve our country’s core values, promote American exceptionalism and cultivate love of country in future generations.” 

Anybody who’s marching in lockstep with a political ideology needs to spend more free time in a well-funded library.

“There is never time in the future in which we will work out our salvation. The challenge is in the moment. The time is always now.” 

James Baldwin

View from the Albany “bulb”
What do you see? And feel?
Nature and Art
Posted on by Cathy Edgett

Safari West

We spent the night at Safari West, a refuge for animals, the environment, and visitors.

Mother Lemur with her three week old baby boy
Mother and child giraffe inside because of cold and rain
Baby Gemsbok, a type of Oryx, “stashed” while her mother gets food.
Another photo of Mother Lemur and Baby
Sharing a Habitat
Strolling with glamour, confidence and grace
A wonderful life
A beautiful couple atop a Power Wagon



Posted on by Cathy Edgett · 3 Comments

Courage vs. Cowardice

Here’s Adam Schiff, an example of courage:

https://schiffnotes.substack.com/p/my-vote-on-the-gop-spending-bill?utm_source=substack&utm_medium=email

And he’s right.

If Trump gets the GOP spending bill passed, it’s on all of us. We have to take the risk.

I’m with the words of Paul Valery:

One might be light like the bird, not like the feather.

A feather has weight. We feel the force of gravity when we hold it in our hand. Each feather, each individual, has weight, and when feathers and people come together, there is flight, flight that enables us to see the whole picture and fight, and we are, and we will continue until the insanity ends, and we are again a country of which we can be proud.

Reaching to Connect

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

Pause to Joy

Nick Flynn: Every few years I was able to sit with Thich Nhat Hanh for week-long retreats. A bell would ring throughout the day, and we were to stop whatever it was we were doing, and simply breathe. We were also to breathe three times—slowly, mindfully—before we turned on a faucet or a light switch. At first this felt nearly impossible. I simply wanted to wash my hands, or for the light to go on. By the end of the week I stood breathing before the faucet. When the water came I nearly wept…

Remember: Joy is another form of resistance.  

Azaleas dip into and caress a bowl of water!

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

Shimmering

I read Robert Hubbell.  Out of so much that is staggering I choose one thing on which to focus.

Trump is acting like a raving madman. He continues to lobby for the hostile takeover of Canada, and the media pretends it does not hear an idea so lunatic that any other president uttering the idea would be removed from office under the 25th Amendment within hours.  

As I struggle to understand how we’re allowing a used-car salesman to promote a car on the White House lawn, I read this: 

Naomi Shihab Nye:

“Poetry calls us to pause. There is so much we overlook, while the abundance around us continues to shimmer, on its own.”

 I breathe fully there.  

Part of Golden Gate Bridge seen from Sutro Baths
Embrace
Shapes

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

The Choice Is Clear: Empathy

Elon Musk: The fundamental weakness of Western civilization is empathy.

Hannah Arendt: The death of human empathy is one of the earliest and most telling signs of a culture about to fall into barbarism.

In order to understand, Arendt wrote The Banality of Evil, about what led to the holocaust.  She learned that when one looks at numbers rather than consequences in the way that Eichmann did when he was proud to view how many people could be murdered in a day, we see the consequences. 

Eichmann’s behavior is like that of Musk who is looking at numbers, and is not concerned with consequences.  

The Dalai Lama: Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries.  Without them, humanity cannot survive.

An Empty Boat

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

A Peaceful Note

Thich Nhat Hanh in his book At Home in the World.  The chapter is called Lotus Tea.

“Years ago in Vietnam, people used to go out onto a lotus pond with a small boat to put some tea leaves into an open lotus flower. The flower would close in the evening and perfume the tea during the night. Then, in the peace of early morning, when the dew was still glistening on the large lotus leaves, they would return in the boat with their friends to collect the tea. On the boat, they would take everything they needed to make delicious, fragrant tea: fresh water, a stove to heat it, teacups, and a teapot. Then in the beautiful early light of dawn, they would prepare the tea right there, enjoying the morning and drinking tea in the lotus pond. Nowadays we may have a lotus pond, but we do not seem to have time to stop and look at it, let alone to enjoy it by making tea and drinking it in that way.”

We may not have a boat, lotus flower, or pond but we can make and drink tea in a beautifully serene and conscious way.

Swans
Daffodils

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

A Game to Trump

I bought a cookie at a bakery recently and paid an extra 50 cents because of the price of eggs.  That made sense because of what bird flu is doing to the industry.

But now I read this on SF Gate: 

A Mexican restaurant owner in the city – “I’ve had it with this f—king guy,” Hargrave told his employees via text. “… Piece of s—t has the entire world on tilt. It’s like a game.”

When Trump finally enacted the 25% tariffs on Tuesday, Hargrave sprung into action, posting a long letter to his customers declaring immediate changes to his menu, including the addition of a lower-cost guacamole made with garbanzo beans and avocado, as well as a $3 increase on the price of traditional guacamole. Accompanying lime wedges, which customers often discard with their taco plates, would be available by request only. 

The menus — printed on high-quality paper that costs $1,000 per run — were minutes from being printed on Thursday when Hargrave texted his team after seeing a CNBC article that the president had changed his mind. The tariffs are now paused for one month in compliance with the North American Free Trade Agreement. 

The article goes as to how Trump’s whims affect farmers and consumers.  

He fires NOAA workers who monitor climate change and warn of upcoming weather disasters. His method of firing makes the Up in the Air movie look kind. Where do we put it all? He ignores the courts. I read that democracy in this country is already gone. Tragic. And we must hope the country comes together to stop him, quickly, now, and I know people are working on this, and we must stay strong, soft power, strong.

Reflecting

Posted on by Cathy Edgett

Murder

When does cruelty become outright murder?  Did those who voted for Trump know or realize that he was going to destroy Ukraine and give it to Russia?  I believe many thought they were voting for an improvement in the economy which isn’t happening.

From The Guardian today: 

Russia has carried out massive strikes across Ukraine, using drones and ballistic missiles, a day after the US stopped sharing intelligence with Kyiv that had previously given advance warnings of attacks.

The strikes came early on Friday as a Ukrainian delegation prepared to meet with US counterparts in Saudi Arabia for talks about a possible end to the war.

The Kremlin sought to destroy Ukraine’s energy and gas infrastructure, Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. It targeted facilities in several regions, including Odesa and Poltava, using nearly 70 cruise and ballistic missiles and almost 200 attack drones, the Ukrainian president said.

“All of this was directed against infrastructure that ensures normal life,” he wrote on social media. “Currently, repair and restoration work is ongoing.” He said several people were injured when a missile hit a private building in Kharkiv.

In addition, this comes from Heather Cox Richardson today:

This morning, Ted Hesson and Kristina Cooke of Reuters reported that the Trump administration is preparing to deport the 240,000 Ukrainians who fled Russia’s attacks on Ukraine and have temporary legal status in the United States. Foreign affairs journalist Olga Nesterova reminded Americans that “these people had to be completely financially independent, pay tax, pay all fees (around $2K) and have an affidavit from an American person to even come here.”

“This has nothing to do with strategic necessity or geopolitics,” Russia specialist Tom Nichols posted. “This is just cruelty to show [Russian president Vladimir] Putin he has a new American ally.”

Why would we ally with Putin?  What is to be gained except keeping Trump out of the jail cell he should be in?  I wish I understood.  I was on a call where we were asked to send postcards to the White House on March 15, and send letters to Zelensky apologizing but it’s too late.  Trump has made himself king, a very evil king.

Viewing Mt. Tam from the north
Serenity
Egret