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Wizard of Id

November 20, 2025

A gentle, resolute kindness.

That was Agnus’s description of the Arizona group we talked about in yesterday’s post. I love his description, but I would add at least three more words,

Courage, openness to life, and community.

The group reminds me of Albert Camus’s:

In the midst of hate, I found there was,
within me, an invincible love.

In the midst of tears, I found there was,
within me, an invincible smile.

In the midst of chaos, I found there was,
within me, an invincible calm…

I realized, through it all, that…

In the midst of winter, I found there was,
within me, an invincible summer.

And that makes me happy. For it says that
no matter how hard the world pushes against me,
within me, there’s something stronger –
something better, pushing right back.

Instead of being beaten down by fear, the group is pushing back against cancer. And that takes courage and openness to life. The group also adds something more, community and sharing. A powerful combination.

November 20, 2025

Angus in Scotland and his wife have been taking a boat tour to Northern Norway, presumably to see the Northern Lights. November is one of the peak times to see them because of the long, dark nights, but apparently the weather gods have not been kind. Even so, yesterday’s post A gentle resolute kindness touched my heart. Among other things Angus wrote about a group of people from Sedona, Arizona, that he and his wife have had some meals with:

In the last 18 months all have been diagnosed with one or other form of the big ‘C’ and are adjusting to this new stage in their lives. They’ve formed a sort of self help collective in the belief a fear shared is a fear halved. They’re not wealthy but have decided to travel together while they can. The Northern Lights were the first item on their bucket list. They may not have seen the lights but they’ve stood on the deck in the dark in a Force 10 gale and laughed as the waves broke over the bow and soaked them to the skin. They talk in a completely unembarrassed way about their health and their fears. At dinner they order caviar and ask how they should eat it. They go to wine tastings. Sometimes they drink too much champagne in the afternoon and skip dinner. We learn about concierge doctors and the cost savings of driving to Tijuana for medication. Their health insurance costs have soared. They have a gentle resolute kindness to them.

A gentle, resolute kindness. If that isn’t something worth aiming for I don’t know what is.

November 19, 2025

who like to play with balls.

November 18, 2025

The Other Coast

November 17, 2025

Peanuts

Especially resting in the afternoon. 🙂

November 16, 2025

November 15, 2025

This video

reminds me of this poem:

I rescued a human today, by Janine Allen

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her.

I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn’t be afraid. As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn’t want her to know that I hadn’t been walked today. Sometimes the overworked shelter keepers get too busy and I didn’t want her to think poorly of them.

As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn’t feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone’s life.

She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her. Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well.

Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes.

I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven’t walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today.

November 14, 2025

Ziggy

I missed the internet Tuesday, of course, and I checked every hour or so to see if it was back. I fully expected to have access before bedtime that night, but it wasn’t meant to be.

But it’s probably a good thing to be forced to do without the internet for a bit. I did get some other things done. When it went out I made a Possibility List of things I could do, and I started with the easiest just to get me started. That was looking at two video DVDs I had ordered and gotten Sunday. (DVDs so I could see them if we had power but no internet. Talk about good timing.)

Amazon

Amazon

The first DVD had a couple of exercises I’m already trying to work into my everyday life, and the second one I’ll watch part of from time to time. I bought that one partly for meditation breaks, but mostly because it’s by Dr. Paul Lam. I knew he started learning Tai Chi to help relieve his own arthritis, and then he decided to share what he learned with the world. According to Perplexity,

Lam’s osteoarthritis started around age 13, following years of chronic malnutrition and hard labor which deformed his joints and led to persistent pain. Despite these challenges, he persevered through childhood and medical training, eventually finding tai chi a helpful tool for his condition after conventional treatments left much to be desired.

After starting tai chi for self-care, Lam found it not only relieved his arthritis pain, but also enhanced his balance, energy, and overall wellbeing. His personal success motivated him to learn more deeply, collaborate with medical and tai chi experts, and eventually teach and adapt tai chi specifically for those with arthritis.

He reminds me of William Ernest Henley, the author of Invictus. They both suffered painful health problems from an early age and refused to be helpless victims. Instead they went on to make contributions to the world.

November 13, 2025

from about 10 AM yesterday to sometime early this morning.

I had planned to go up to the land with Andy this morning if it was still down, but I’m glad I didn’t. Thanks to Kaitlin and Torben the land has Starlink, so the internet would have been fine, but it wouldn’t have done me any good since my iPad wouldn’t have worked.

When the internet came back up my computer worked just fine, but my iPad still wouldn’t connect. After some time and exercise of my little grey cells, I figured out it was the iPad itself. My backup iPad worked just fine. Arghh! I started configuring my backup iPad so I could use it like my main one, but then I decided to ask Perplexity:

my iPad can’t connect to the internet. No internet symbol, just an arrow-looking symbol. What to do?

It gave me some suggestions and references and one of the suggestions worked, so I can still use that iPad.

Anyway, I’m glad things are working again. Apparently a crucial fiber optic cable was cut during some construction in Santa Fe yesterday morning. Given some of the fragilities of the system, it’s amazing how well things work most of the time. And bless the repairmen who fixed the problem.

November 12, 2025