Saturday, February 11, 2023

At last, after months away for repairs, my old Jeep is home again. It was built in 1988, has nearly a half-million miles on the original engine, and runs like a top. Its demonstrated toughness makes my Jeep model a favorite of aficionados. Unfortunately, Jeep gradually stopped making new parts for it. As a result, old Jeeps like mine, but discarded, are plundered for repair parts. My mechanic has trouble finding the correct replacement parts, used but okay. So, repairs can turn into lengthy, expensive, and sometimes iffy projects.

These days, while my Jeep is running well, I ought to sell it. The red paint has faded, and the worn body is bruised, but the model remains desirable, at least for parts. I hesitate because its a good size for my older, arthritic dogs to climb into independently, and it has the cargo space to carry all my dogs at once. That’s not all; I’ve driven this Jeep for nearly twenty years, and silly as it is, love the faithful old beast.

Too soon, a parts scarcity problem will grow beyond that of trying to keep old Jeeps in running condition. More electric cars are on the roads and are precursors to an onslaught of highly automated, electrified vehicles. As a result, we are about to be forced to change our decently-running combustion engine models for new plug-in and battery-powered types. The quickness, completeness, and inevitability of this are astonishing to consider.

Dear Friends: We’ll have to learn to be aware of cars coming toward us silently. Diana

Friday, February 10, 2023

Recently, I wrote about a famous Japanese novel, Masks, written by Fumiko Enchi, a woman. That novel (1958) is a highly regarded classic. Japan. Few women in the fifties were recognized women authors; Enchi’s accomplishments were rare among them.

I looked into Enchi’s life (1905-1986). She was born into an affluent, highly cultured family. She was a sickly child, home-schooled by educated elders. She learned foreign languages and world classic literature. When she became a mature writer, Enchi was recognized for exploring the ideas of sexuality, gender, human identity, and spirituality.

In preparing to read Masks, I learned its many themes were based on an early masterpiece of Japanese literature, The Tale of the Jengi, written by Murasaki Shikibu, a lady of the Japanese Court, early in the 11^th Century. Since then, Jengi has been considered the world’s first novel. It’s a work of imaginative fiction, written in Japanese and containing both Japanese and Chinese poetry. At first, the work went ignored, because Japan’s official Court language was Chinese. Japanese was considered only a “woman’s language.”

I learned that before reading Masks, a must is to know The Tale of the Jengi. That ancient story reveals underlying themes in Masks that otherwise won’t be recognizable. I ordered the old story and on arrival its size surprised me. I thought a title containing the word “tale” suggested a short work, an assumption is from my childhood with Grimm and such. But Jengi, a hefty thousand pages, will take a long reading effort.

Yet again, another seemingly “short road” is transitioning into a long journey. Yet, this introduction to literature new to me will be a rich source of historical and cultural enlightenment.

Dear Friends: We explore with intrigue and often are delighted by where it leads. Diana

Thursday, February 09, 2023

I’m in tears from videos of humanitarian efforts to rescue victims of the
huge shocks that crushed populated areas in Turkey and Syria. Videos bring
alive that situation’s incredible horror, and emphasize the awful realization
that three days post-earthquake having passed means discovering fewer people
still alive.

Those countries are known for having many political and social injustices
relative to social status and structural quality. But criticisms of oversight
aren’t reserved for non-Americans. Here in Florida, a tall building
spontaneously collapsed recently (non-earthquake related) killing its many
residents.

Of course, many such examples exist from time immemorial. Constructing
buildings in earthquake prone areas or too close to waterways invites an eventual
inevitable. The world population has grown so with people just about everywhere
that we’re all vulnerable to natural disasters.

One worries about a newborn baby girl who has become the face of earthquake
disaster and rescue. Her life will start in an orphanage, and her future may be
politically determined. It’s a situation a clever author could pick up and spin
into a novel.

Dear Friends: No too-distant lands and politics exist, all is personal for
everybody. Diana

Wednesday, February 08, 2023

Well, we made it through another State of the Union. Ahead an increasing “domestic biggie” is getting rid of George Santos. Americans love theater!

The header of my Border Collie mix, Osix, shows how she accompanied me through our television journey.

Today, having enjoyed some time off from work, I will resume learning to navigate the Home Depot’s Garden Department. I aim to know shelved products, their availability, and their locations. I’m reminded of how important it is to respond quickly to customer queries. Last week, although beginning to understand products and places, I wasn’t fast enough. While shopping myself, I’m also impatient with inefficiency.

Dear Friends: I’m armed with rest and insight to tackle this day. Diana

Tuesday, February 07, 2023

Up top is an image of my favorite extinct volcano, Broken Top, its profile dramatized in early morning’s complex winter.

A couple of biggies occurring this week. Tonight, I’ll enjoy popcorn while watching Biden’s State of the Union Address. This year’s will be overseen by Harris and McCarthy instead of Harris and Pelosi. McCarthy might try to take some pages from Pelosi’s book to appear tough and unhappy about whatever Biden says. But Pelosi is a standalone; nobody better or more fully expresses disdain, from her bold and lackluster handclapping to her speech-ripping.

Next Sunday, it’s the Superbowl, with Eagles vs. Chiefs. I hail from Kansas city and a Chief’s fan. Hopefully, our incredible Quarterback’s ankle will have healed to handle whatever’s required. So, I understand Superbowl ads cost about $7M for 30 seconds worth of time. To me, those ads mostly represent money wasted.

And next week is Valentine’s Day. I understand that already it’s nearly impossible to get dinner reservations in our little city. I also understand that tourism is down this year. No one could prove that by me, for traffic is heavy and housing is scarce, and expensive. Everywhere is new construction, and most shocking, for the first time clusters of apartment buildings are going up, tall, invasive, and ugly.

A little farm not far from my place has been mowed and cleared for new housing. I didn’t get around to photographing the farm and its wonderful classic barn before everything disappeared.

As usual, I digress.

Dear Friends: Tomorrow, it’s back to work. I’ve enjoyed this little string of days off. Diana

Monday, February 06, 2023

I wrote recently about having not spotted a Robin this season. The birds winter in my area, almost invisibly, and I miss seeing them. Yesterday, a fat Robin perched on my watering troughs. That active bird suggested spring will arrive soon.

So, too, now’s the time to address spring cleaning.

I’m a “putter-offer” who typically prefers to wait and “do it” later.” Finally, yesterday, I tackled with surprising gusto several long-standing “waits.” It astonishes that most chores, once addressed, are easier than anticipated. What’s best is that completing each gives the incredible high of having “done it!”

All my chores involved cleaning. I handled a moldy refrigerator, a neglected chicken enclosure, and my gosh-awful cluttered garage. Accomplishing eased my mind, so that today on awakening, there wasn’t a “to-do” list running in my head and making me feel guilty. Now more free, I will tackle waiting chores that aren’t on a hot list.

I believe that working outside the home drives productivity inside the home. Being home day after day makes it easy to postpone chores that begin as routine, but neglected over time, evolve into demanding monsters. Now with an outside job and tending to organize better, I’ll more readily dispatch the homework.

Dear Friends: There’s a saying that a busy person gets more done, and the busier the more. Diana

Sunday, February 05, 2023

Today starts my three days off from work. I like short working hours and having daylight to feed critters appropriately and shop if needed. I’ve been focused on learning my working routines and haven’t planned to use this time off. So, I’ll play things by ear.

I love hiking with all the dogs, but getting them away is a problem. My SUV is the one available vehicle that accommodates all of them simultaneously. Unfortunately, my oldest dogs are arthritic, can’t easily leap into the SUV, and will ignore a loading ramp. They still can jump into my old Jeep, but it’s away for repairs.

It’ll help to think creatively. Then, three days off will allow for figuring out how to load everybody. For starters, I’ll give all the dogs some ramp training. Although ramping-up training wasn’t successful previously, it’s now essential.

It’s predicted that we’ll receive new snow. If so, I won’t be outside and training but inside and reading.

Dear Friends: Have a great day. Diana

Saturday, February 04, 2023

The header image is of a female Fantail Beta in my small aquarium. It’s a perfect capture of grace and beauty.

Public Television has ignored viewers like me in changing from “Plus” to “World.” One of my favorite PBS shows is Amanpour & Co., which appeared nightly at the awful hour of 10 p.m. Awful because I had to stay awake waiting for its start.

I had this same problem with the wonderful 10 p.m. PBS series that preceded Amanpour, the nightly roundtable interviews by Charlie Rose. He was one of the brightest and best interviewers ever. His talent and guests were legendary until several years ago when Rose disgraced himself. He was discovered using his influence to be a sexual predator.

My disappointment at Charlie’s exit from PBS softened when his replacement turned out to be Christiane Amanpour. Her past experience included a wealth of international frontline reporting. A talented interviewer, she routinely could ask direct tough questions and could respond appropriately.

In its change from, Plus to World, PBS reset Amanpour & Co., so that now, it’s at 1 a.m. So, I must catch it on sleepless nights or on another day online with PBS Passport.

Years ago, I asked PBS why Charlie’s interviews didn’t have an earlier time slot. I learned that Charlie didn’t have enough viewers. It’s probably the same with Christiane’s series. Now that it’s in a more awful time slot, I’ll be saved by Passport. I always will wonder why great shows don’t attract more viewers.

Dear Friends: On reflection, viewing is influenced highly by one’s politics and worldviews. Diana

Friday, February 03, 2023

I have begun reading The Tale of Genji. This ancient work in translation is a straightforward read, and contrary to my expectations, it’s easy to follow. It was written at the beginning of the 11th Century by Murasaki Shikibu, a noblewoman in the Heian Japanese Court. The Court’s official language was Chinese, but Shikibu wrote in Japanese.

In the Heian period, the court language was Chinese. The Japanese language was primarily used by women. So, Shikibu’s work wasn’t taken seriously. In addition, most of her story was written in prose, which wasn’t considered equal to poetry. Shikibu’s story has 54 chapters of prose infused with Japanese and Chinese poetry; it has one main character and is regarded as the world’s first novel.

Murasaki Shikibu, 973-1014, was a Japanese novelist, poet, and lady-in-waiting at the Imperial Court in the Heian period. That time was the peak of the Japanese imperial court, noted for its art, especially poetry and literature. Traditionally, Heian women weren’t considered intelligent enough to be taught Chinese, which excluded them from the written language of the government. But Murasaki was raised in an erudite father’s household and showed a precocious aptitude for the Chinese classics. As a result, she acquired fluency, becoming a unique figure as a woman master of the Chinese language and classics.

Murasaki is a fascinating individual, and I have ordered her diary.

All this is preparatory and background before I read the mid-1950s classic novel, Masks, by Japanese writer Fumiko Enchi. Like Shikibu, Enchi was a precocious child who became a fascinating writer. For Masks, she borrowed themes from The Tale of Genji.

Dear Friends: Sadly, but fortunately, I’m a late starter to Asian literature. Diana

  

Thursday, February 02, 2023

I’m surprised to be about to start reading this ancient Japanese tale, supposedly the world’s first novel. Written by Murasaki Shikibu, born in 978; she was a poet in the court of Empress Akiko.

This is all because I had begun reading, Masks, a novel by Fumiko Enchi. Written in 1958, it’s considered an essential, beautifully written Japanese classic authored by a woman. I was struck by the story’s excellent writing and interesting pace early on. Then, I looked into reviews and discovered that Masks incorporates themes from The Tale of Genji, which is recommended background reading. So, I’ll read the ancient fantasy and then resume Masks.

If I’m aiming to read a modern classic that originated in a non-English language, I should prepare in the best possible manner by doing the background work. Rather than tackling these readings independently, I’d prefer to participate in a literature class with a subject matter expert. But what the heck, I’ll go for it as a challenge.

Dear Friends: I’ll dream about ancient Japanese literature on this beautiful day at work. Diana