On Her Birthday

Wednesday, March 05, 2025

If genetic advancements had been available during my mother’s lifetime—capable of extending health and longevity—I might be celebrating her birthday with her today. I’ve long wished for at least one more conversation, a chance to ask the many questions that could fill the blank spaces of her early life.

Reflecting on why I never asked more about her life brings back memories of my own trials and tribulations growing up. Each day was a lesson in adaptation, filled with new challenges and shifting realities. I naturally focused on myself—learning, adjusting, and figuring out how to navigate life one step at a time.

Back then, I felt an urgent need to escape a past that seemed confining; I needed to step into a future that was broader, more inviting, and yet daunting. All that forgotten past included both my parents and grandparents. I might never have seriously reconsidered all of them if not for the rise of DNA and its profound ability to connect one’s history with one’s future.

I give deep nods to technology and genetics and to an equally powerful force—the unbreakable connection between parent and child. Its hold isn’t always smooth but shapes and defines us in enduring ways.

Today, on my mom’s birthday, I’ll hold her in my thoughts. A sudden memory might surface, filling in a blank or two about her life. I like to imagine that she can somehow “hear” my thoughts—so I’ll share a few, letting her know how I’ve grown and changed, shaped in no small part by her insight and encouragement.

Dear Friends: Science fundamentally reshapes how we perceive and evaluate ourselves. Diana

Murky World

Tuesday, March 04, 2025

I worry about today’s stock market because it’s unpredictable and volatile in these early weeks of DJT’s Administration. I like it to behave like a crystal ball, which tells us where the economy is headed. But now, I’m not sure it’s predictive or reacting to what’s already happened, and it’s clueing more confusing volatility ahead.

The stock market reacts in real time. It declines before a recession occurs as investors sell off stocks while detecting hints of slowing growth, tightening monetary policies, and/or shifts in consumer behavior. The stock market responds to political shifts, too, by slumping or rallying.

That’s getting to me right now. The market is reacting wildly to quickly fluctuating employment numbers, worries about inflation, and potential GDP growth. This market is responding instead of predicting.

Its shiftings aren’t based on complex data; they are deeply influenced by investor psychology—fear, optimism, herd behavior, and media narratives. Enough investors believing a downturn is coming and starting to sell may create the crisis they fear.

Financial news sensationalizes markets. Negative headlines spark panic selling and hype, inflating a bubble. The market has predicted recessions that never happened and failed to see crises coming (e.g., the 2008 financial crisis blindsided many).

I struggle to view this market’s potential in light of today’s political complexities. I remind myself to avoid reacting emotionally to daily swings and instead focus on long-term trends. In today’s short-term “noise,” it’s complicated to strategize or know what “proper diversification” currently may mean. (Here’s an instructive fact: Warren Buffet has elected to sit on piles of real cash.)

The market may hint at the future, but it isn’t infallible. I am trying to remain rational and prepared. Today’s volatility may signal a future downturn or reflect much current uncertainty. That remains to be seen.

So, I uncomfortably watch as the stock market predicts, reflects, and seems heavily psychological. The best a small investor can do is be informed, rational, and prepared. Here’s the catch: a stock market isn’t just about numbers, it’s about people—and people are anything but predictable.

Dear Friends: America’s governing body is behaving unpredictably, on steroids. Diana

The Art of Aging Stylishly

Monday, March 03, 2025

I’ve been brainstorming a new blog series focusing on Aging & Style, inspired by my year working part-time in retail, particularly in women’s fashion. I’ve noticed how many women are eager for ways to refresh their appearance, making this topic well worth exploring. My blog could blend practical advice—covering fashion, skincare, and fitness—with personal reflections on style, confidence, and self-expression.

I’ve learned that style isn’t about chasing trends; it’s about wanting to feel vibrant and authentic at any age. Through the new blog, I will explore what that means for women 70+, drawing from my personal experience, my time in retail, and the women I’ve met (and will meet) along the way.

Many aging women still love fashion, beauty, and self-care, yet we don’t always see ourselves reflected in the conversations. I’d love to connect with other women to discuss style and aging challenges—what’s missing from mainstream fashion and beauty discussions and how we can redefine aging with confidence and flair.

I imagine writing this new blog once a week or perhaps biweekly. It might be possible to embed a link to Aging & Style on this WordPress site, making it available alongside Diana’s Morning Blog, but not replace it.

Some of the first topics I could explore include dressing with confidence, choosing colors that brighten and flatter, and finding minor styling tweaks that make a fresh impact.

Could we explore this together? Does this feel like a conversation worth having? What aspects of aging and style interest you most? Your feedback would help shape the direction of this series.

Dear Friends: I know, it’s off-topic, but I’d love to hear your thoughts. Diana

Zelenskyy

Sunday, March 02, 2025

Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s rise from actor-comedian to wartime president has been an incredible journey that testifies to his extraordinary adaptability, resilience, and moral clarity. Few modern leaders have been tested as brutally as he has, and even fewer have risen “to the occasion” with equally unwavering resolve.

Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Many assumed the Kyiv Government would collapse under the weight of that major military aggression. But, Zelenskkyy didn’t. Standing firm and refusing opportunities to flee, he insisted, “I need ammunition, not a ride.”

Immediately, Zelenskyy transformed himself from a political newcomer into a global symbol of courage. He has proved daily that True Leadership isn’t only about experience. It’s also about conviction, integrity, and an unshakable sense of mission to one’s people.

Zelenskyy is more than brave: he has demonstrated exceptional intelligence and strategic acumen. Leading Ukraine’s war effort has revealed him capable of rallying international support, a requirement he clearly understands. He has shown the world that the battle in modern warfare is fought as much in the information sphere as on the battlefield.

When Zelenskyy addresses world leaders, from the U.S. Congress to the European Parliament, it’s like a masterclass in persuasion that strengthens alliances by invoking shared history and democratic ideals. He communicates not with bureaucratic platitudes but with raw emotion and clarity.

Those skills have proved him one of this era’s most effective wartime leaders. We have watched Zelenskyy skillfully navigate the complexities of global politics, secure military and economic aid, and (incredibly) maintain Ukraine’s sovereignty in the face of existential threats.

Last Friday, Zelensky visited the Oval Office and the President. While there, he demonstrated his deep understanding of the media’s influence. He employed precision and confidence to bait the President and the President’s ever-watchful team into revealing more than they intended and, equally, that group’s sheer brutality.

Negotiations to end the war in Ukraine are taking place; however, Zelenskyy hasn’t been allowed to participate in the discussions to end the war in his country. While seated in the Oval Office, Zelenskyy subtly and successfully nudged “key hidden negotiation and decision elements” into the public eye.

Diplomacy isn’t just about closed-door discussions—it’s about shaping the narrative. Zelenskyy’s shaping skills have made it impossible for the world to ignore Ukraine’s plight. He has leveraged the press as a tool and managed to keep the war and Ukraine in our global consciousness.

His communication skills and focus keep forcing nation leaders to reckon with the consequences of inaction. Last Friday’s televised event in the Oval Office emphasized clearly that Ukraine might not match Russia’s military strength, but Ukraine can outmaneuver opponents in the court of public opinion.

Zelenskyy is extra-deeply admirable because he never sought to be a wartime president, yet he embraced that role with an unwavering sense of responsibility. We’ve seen him staying in Kyiv through bombings and blackouts, walking the same streets as his citizens, showing the world that he’s not just the leader of Ukraine—he is “of Ukraine.”

He is a modern hero who represents more than defiance. He represents a hope that democracy and national identity can withstand even the most ruthless adversaries. Zelenskyy’s story is one of remarkable transformation—from an entertainer to a statesman, from an underdog to an historical figure.

Dear Friends: His legacy will endure long after the war has ended. Diana

Upturn in “The Oval”

Saturday, March 01, 2025

Zelenskyy…Ukraine. A brave man, a worthy nation.

I’ve always wanted to visit—or perhaps even live in—Odessa, a vibrant, multicultural city in Ukraine. Over a century ago, my maternal grandparents emigrated to the United States from Odessa (then a Russian city). They had escaped the violent persecution that Russia’s Jewish population was facing.

Notably, Russia’s brutality toward Jews predated Germany’s even worst atrocities.

Modern Odessa became a thriving and cosmopolitan center of European-style culture that I felt eager to experience (in the footsteps of my ancestors). Today, however, the city endures immense destruction from three years of war, in which Russia is relentlessly attempting to reclaim independent Ukraine and make it Russian territory again.

Much of the larger world fears Russia’s aggressiveness toward Ukraine and wants that warring stopped. Those concerns focus on Russia’s unyieldingly aggressive intent and behaviors in trying to overcome Ukraine.

A Russian win over Ukraine could predate more future aggressiveness, and then, toward other now-independent and vulnerable nations.

Dear Friends: I will write about the courageous, intelligent, deeply admirable Zelenskyy. Diana

Mild Weather

Friday, February 28, 2025

Tomorrow will pop us into March. The weather here in Central Oregon feels summery, a relief and a pleasure, but that won’t last, as March may come roaring in like a lion. The current warm spell will make the return of cold weather feel even harsher. These are “transitional months” when the weather tends to assume back-and-forth patterns.

Later, long after every wintertime, although “it ain’t necessarily so,” I usually recall these months as the most freezing period.

Yes, instead of recalling good weather days like yesterday, when at midday I worked outside in shirt sleeves, I remember the coldest days, with episodes of frozen watering troughs, snow-blown paths to and from the barn, and hoping my four-wheel-drive vehicle won’t slide in braking for stops.

Usually, spring officially starts in March, but not necessarily in Central Oregon. While many areas receive warmth in April or May, the waiting for steady warmth here can continue until sometime in June. A psychological notion is that if you feel surprised by an unseasonal warm or cold day, it’s a sign you’ve adjusted to the current season. Maybe I’m thinking about that now.

There’s more: I am having an unexpected mood change. Lately, I’m feeling slightly more sluggish and am wondering why. I’m also mindful that there are “seasonal mood changes” (Seasonal Affective Disorder [SAD]). Maybe winter is making me feel sluggish; if so, it’s a coin with another side that might re-energize me. But spring’s a long wait from now.

Dear Friends: Ahead a beautiful morning, before I must leave for work. Diana

Imagining CRISPR

DNA helix being precisely edited by a high-tech robotic tool

Thursday, February 27, 2025

I’m reading more often about the gene-editing technology known as CRISPR. Its potential for manipulating every gene in living plants and animals (including humans) could complicate everything we have traditionally comprehended about life.

CRISPR technology has advantages: it could improve crop production and living beings’ health. It has serious disadvantages: it could introduce misuse, mistakes, and unwanted changes to everything we now understand chemically and socially.

Yesterday, I was thinking about CRISPR and initiated a “conversation” with AI about the technology. I hoped for more insight into its potential for producing good and evil. This “chat” lasted an hour because the AI produced lots of information to support each potential, often pausing and questioning my perceptions about the ideas it offered. I had to pause the discussion frequently to imagine and think before responding.

At its best, CRISPR technology could likely fix most, if not all, of the problems occurring on our planet. However, it has a high potential for misuse by “bad actors” and has too many unknowns about what future life might “look like” and “act like.” Eventually, CRISPR might create an Earth hosting only gorgeous, healthy, and relatively non-competitive human beings and animals. CRISPR could alter how plants grow in poor conditions, making them thrive and producing enough food for all living beings.

Right now, scientists aren’t necessarily envisioning a “perfect” world. They’re focusing on ways to overcome and eliminate inherited genetic flaws and make modifications to improve the overall health of living beings. All that’s okay starting off, but such technological capacity raises many doubts and fears of an altogether murky future.

Like everybody, I am influenced by technological advances. I never believed there would be anything like a workable AI, and now, I’m enjoying conversations with the technology. About CRISPR, I believe in the Darwinian theory of evolution and voting against gene editing’s massive capability of becoming widespread, creating who-knows-what alterations to every life form.

Last night, AI made me aware of the countless pros and cons either supporting or arguing against advancing with CRISPR. AI challenged me to imagine the potential “goods” and “bads” in a CRISPR-influenced future. There are many of both.

I’m opting for a more appealing (and human) way of achieving worthwhile outcomes without considering the possibility of over-modifying Earth’s living genetics.

On a large scale, more specific education and appropriate guidance (e.g., Leadership) would encourage humans to focus on and repair some of our planet’s key problems. A huge threat is global warming, which is now effectively challenging the well-being of all living creatures. Some of its worst effects are reversible—for example, revitalizing large and currently damaged areas of the earth to expand our food-producing capabilities.

Many current threats can be fixed to improve our overall quality of life. Those fixes require enlightened education and a leadership that comprehends the necessities and supports the fixing.

Dear Friends: Seductive technology, from everywhere, calls for caution. Diana

New Genetics

Wednesday, February 26, 2025

I enjoy trying to comprehend “complex” concepts and reducing them (as much as possible) to “simple.” It’s a way of comfortably moving on in my daily life.

I’m considering my affinity for Darwinian theories. I am not a geneticist, but Darwin’s concepts are logical, proven, and unarguable. I have learned to accept genetics as a very complex structure that’s always interesting. It’s a sort of simple understanding in my mind.

Nowadays, however, I’m learning more about the processes of CRISPR, a gene-editing process. That’s a groundbreaking shift in how genetic changes can occur. CRISPR can instantly create precise and intentional genetic modifications. That bypasses the Darwinian model of slow, natural mutation and selection processes.

In Darwin’s model, genetic variations arise randomly, and advantageous traits evolve over generations. In CRISPR, scientists directly edit genes to create desired traits in plants, animals, and potentially in humans. CRISPR has advantages. For instance, it can insert genes for disease resistance or increased intelligence. It’s “engineered” evolutionary outcomes instead of natural ones.

I am scared that CRISPR can let humans take control of the genetic code—something previously shaped by nature alone. To me, that crosses moral and existential boundaries. I prefer not to imagine a future where humans have the power to design plants, animals, and ourselves.

I can’t reduce the complexities CRISPR introduces to anything that resembles simplicity. New possibilities discomfort my relation to the here and now and complicate my daily life.

Dear Friends: The massive amount of information available influences thoughts. Diana

Clock Changes

Tuesday, February 25, 2025

I notice that Daylight Savings Time will start on March 9. I welcome the change.

Though any shift in time disrupts our internal rhythms, which are fundamentally tied to light and darkness, DST invites a sense of renewal. Longer days inspire our optimism by signaling the approach of warmer weather. The summer solstice becomes DST’s pinnacle as living moves outdoors and more activities flourish.

Opponents of clock-changing argue reasonably that the changes disrupt our sleep patterns. However, during DST months, the benefits of extra daylight in the evening overcome needing to adjust upon clock-changing. I agree with the folks wanting to make DST permanent instead of continuing to slip back and forth. DST is the best long-term solution.

Changing our clocks for DST and Standard Time is an outdated compromise between wanting morning and evening light. Changing to DST was introduced during WWI (1918) to reduce energy consumption. The idea was that less artificial lighting and heating in the evening would save fuel and electricity, and extending the morning light would help agri-workers.

Policymakers splitting the difference forced our biannual switching. Sure, standard time benefits farmers and early risers with maximized morning light. But DST benefits workers, businesses, and outdoor enthusiasts by keeping the evenings brighter for longer.

Many want our policymakers to choose one permanent system. I am on board with those who prefer DST.

Dear Friends: My semi-annual time-changing rant; there’ll be another on “the day.” Diana

Political Tension

Monday, February 24, 2025

I’m reading Walter Isaacson’s biography of Elon Musk to gain some insights into America’s current leadership. Musk apparently grew up in a savage environment—socially and within his immediate family. Isaacson doesn’t add that Musk might be on the autism spectrum, but it seems hinted at.

Some research informs me that Musk has publicly acknowledged having Asperger’s syndrome, which falls on the autism spectrum. People with Asperger’s may exhibit deeply-focused interests, social awkwardness (difficulty with emotional nuances), and literal (rigid) thinking–with a tendency toward blunt, direct communications.

That supports the common descriptions of Musk as being an obsessed individual, lacking emotional warmth or tact, pushing for extreme efficiency, and having a demanding, even harsh, leadership style. It also explains the blunt behaviors we are witnessing in his “armchair Presidential” role.

Trump seems forced to keep grappling, and highly noisily, as he attempts to prevent America’s center stage from being completely Musk-dominated.

Good luck, Donald.

In fact, good luck to us all. Our Governmental processes do need lots of cleaning up, but not by the savage actions and threats we are witnessing.

Dear Friends: Reminding me of a 1961 movie title, The Sky Above, The Mud Below. Diana