undulating waves beat bumpers into the dock - gentle knocking sound
Rippling Water [Haiku]
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Monthly Archives: August 2021
DAILY PHOTO: Botswanan Bee-eater on a Branch
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Amsterdam Limerick
A mother who was visiting Amsterdam strolled around town pushing her child's pram. 'twas such a delight 'til she hit the red lights, and her boy saw a game of hide the wild yam.
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BOOK REVIEW: Sheeple’ by Simon Carr
Sheeple’ by Simon CarrMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
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This is an absurdist sci-fi hero’s journey, featuring an everyman, Jim, who discovers that not only is the world not at all what it appears to be, he is far from what he believes himself to be. The world is as the conspiracy kooks see it, Jim is Satan’s spawn, and it will fall to him and his mildly villainous cohort to save the world from another — also semi-evil — faction.
Absurdist stories can get away with all sorts of deus ex machina happenings and logical inconsistencies that would never fly in other genres. This book capitalizes on this fact to some degree. However, one can only really get away with those problematic story elements if the book is: 1.) a laugh-riot of hilarity – such that the reader doesn’t notice or care about those “defects,” or 2.) carefully composed be clear in the face of the bizarreness that is part and parcel of the genre. This book is fully neither. Don’t get me wrong; it’s an amusing story with some genuinely humorous events and turns of phrase. However, it also has more fun with plays on the word “Uranus” than anyone other than an eight-year-old boy has a right to have. While it has its moments, some of the humor feels forced, and so the overall effect isn’t likely to remind readers of the work of Douglas Adams.
If you’re looking for a carefree read that will give you a chuckle here and there, give this book a look. But I can’t say that I got drawn into it to the point that I was desensitized to its spasticity.
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BOOK REVIEW: Master Your Core by Bohdanna Zazulak
Master Your Core: A Science-Based Guide to Achieve Peak Performance and Resilience to Injury by Bohdanna ZazulakMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
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This book shows readers how to build a core that is strong, stable, and which improves resilience. It’s predominantly directed toward women (and those with female students and clients,) and the author’s background involves the study of how improved core stability reduces injury risks, risks which are demonstrably greater for females. That said, most of the practices are applicable to both sexes and where a difference exist, they are discussed. The book presented many beneficial practices to gain better awareness of the core musculature, much of which is deep inside and is only felt in subtle ways.
The book consists of two parts. The first part (Ch. 1 – 8) provides the vocabulary and the common conceptual understanding to grasp the lessons of the second part (Ch. 9 – 13,) which is the actual program. Zazulak’s program uses the acronym BASE (Breath, Awareness, Stability, and Empowerment) as its organizational schema. I appreciated that breathwork was given a seat at the table. Breath is often taken for granted, and even athletes don’t always recognize the importance of training for better respiration, or how integral breath is to better movement.
My one criticism involves how graphics are used in the second part of the book. Exercises are described textually, and then at the end of each section there is a drawing (or drawings) that clarifies the exercise. Leading the text description with the drawing would greatly enhance readability, allowing readers to focus more attention on warnings and small details rather than on the relatively cognitively demanding task of translating words into a mental picture. I would recommend readers skip to the table to review it before reading the descriptions, but this is easier with some formats than others.
If you want to know more about how to build a core that will make one more resistant to injuries, give this book a look.
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DAILY PHOTO: Garden Monkeys and Posing Roosters, Ayutthaya
BOOK REVIEW: Menexenus by Plato
Menexenus by PlatoMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
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“Menexenus” is unique among the Socratic dialogues in that there is very little dialogue and a great deal of speech. (“Phaedrus” has a couple of short speeches in it, but they inform the philosophical discussion.) “Menexenus” does begin and end with a dialogue between Menexenus and Socrates. In the opening niceties, Menexenus reveals that there has been a disruption in finding someone to make a funeral speech. Socrates replies that it shouldn’t be hard, anyone – even he – could deliver such a speech. While Socrates usually takes care to display humility, one must remember that he tends to be unimpressed with rhetoricians who use pretty words to be convincing without having philosophical understanding to withstand close scrutiny or questioning.
Socrates says that he has been taught by Aspasia, and learned a speech from her that would easily do the job. Menexenus insists upon hearing it. Socrates is reluctant because he has not been granted permission from Aspasia to deliver her speech, but – ultimately – he agrees to deliver the speech – just between the two of them. The speech proposes that the virtue of those who passed in service of the state is only as great as the state that they served, and thus jingoistic praise of Athens’ fine qualities is unleased. There is also discussion of the importance of moderation and composure.
The end dialogue involves Menexenus praising the speech, and [with more than a little misogyny] especially in light of its composition by a woman. I didn’t find this as beneficial a read as most of the Socratic dialogues. It doesn’t provide the same kind of food for thought, but is more a lesson in how to build a rousing funeral oration. That said, there is something to be learned about rhetoric.
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Parakeets [Haiku]
hanging off a ledge, parakeets fall into flight to their next perch
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DAILY PHOTO: Morpho Menelaus & a Pale Owl-Butterfly
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Great Egret [Haibun]
The egret stands on stiff, still legs. By contrast, its neck is coiled into a sinuous strike position. For a long time, only its eyes move, saccading in time with the darting prey below the water's mirrored surface. The egret plays shrub, hoping to lure tiny fish into its shadow, within striking distance of its flexible neck. the egret stands, moving only its eyes... then spears water
Tiger Riding for Beginners 