2006-08-10

After Jim’s and my Morning Offering was made, Jim put on his Jim’s Lawn service cap and went to dance with the nature devas as he groomed various large lawns. I spent the morning working through the part of Chapter One in The Choice 101 where I talk about the unity of all of creation as seen through the lens of science. Since I am not a scientist, writing about the flow of history in science is a challenge.

To make sure that all my facts are in order and also to encourage Bear to finish a written discussion of his refinements upon Dewey Larson’s Reciprocal System of Physics, which I had hoped to include in that section, I sent that part of the chapter’s text to Bear out west. It is great to have good advisors, and Bear is a scientist who will set me straight if I have said anything amiss. In the process of the rewrite I got into string theory web sites and declare them an adventure to visit!

It has always struck and thrilled me to see that no matter into which discipline of knowledge you explore, you learn enough quite quickly to see that not only are the core elements of the study wonderful but also the discipline opens like a flower and each petal is more seductively interesting than the one before it. In a way I still miss the exploration of new things at school with a good teacher to talk with. Self-education does not have the same punch as that reading and discussion routine.

After lunch I cleared my desk all the rest of the way, having found yet another pile placed in an unexpected area of the upstairs office. I am very glad we recently got an official Inbox for snail mail up here, because now I imagine the mail will always come to one place. Unless some mail has been delivered to my supply closet, I think I finally got it all!

Then I did some e-mail, just skimming the surface of a bad backlog. Firstly, Ian had asked for some text which goes with the order form. We have a Free Book Policy. People can write in, explain why they have no money, and ask for any of our books. We will send that book to them, free.

Of course the contents of the books are also free on the internet but the elderly and prisoners often do not have access, either because they are prohibited from using computers or because they do not know how. We do not send out more than one book at a time because prisoners have, in the past, gotten the free material only to trade for items they wanted. Sending out expensive printed material so an inmate can have cigarettes does not come within our non-profit purposes! I fished out the actual written policy from Gary’s computer, which used to be mine and upon which I had written that policy years ago, and sent it to him so it can be clicked-upon, on the finished, newly revised, on-line order form, if a surfer wants to see it.

I wrote Aaron, who will be talking with me over Labor Day Weekend about web site work. She finally explained to me why I never heard “It’s Hard Out There For A Pimp” when I saw the movie, Crash. It turns out that song is from Hustle and Flow, which I just got confused with Crash because the themes of the two films are similar and they were released the same year and up for the same Oscar year.

I wrote Carmen, who was a participant in the Rangers Gathering at Avalon last year, letting her know that we have new rules for those who wish to volunteer for L/L Research, in that we are no longer offering volunteer slots in our home, having not found that a good way to support volunteers or have them support L/L Research. From now on we will require people who volunteer to support themselves financially.

At 3:30 I left a sunny Anchorage to drive over to Crescent Hill, about twenty miles towards Louisville, and by the time I arrived the heavens were sobbing furiously and with much windy vigor. I got so soaked! Fortunately I was there for a mini-facial as well as a haircut and was able to dry my sopping garments while I enjoyed getting my face restored to non-itchy-ness, a marvelous luxury.

Louisville is not a town used to severe weather and it took me an hour to get home. And if you think a little heavy rain discombobulates southerners, you should see us with snow! Oh my! I believe it can safely be said that southerners are bad foul-weather drivers. What to do? Panic! But it was a beautiful world out there, letting my idling engine pull me along in the vast parking lot of the interstate. The rain was coming down and bouncing back up about three feet while the wind was driving the sparkling, glinting curtain of bounce-back drops almost horizontally. Every few seconds lightning would flash across the viewscreen. It was eerie and sensually riveting. I was so glad to be alive and fell into a state of ecstasy, there in my little silver car, as I watched the Creator express Itself. I felt I was part of a poem.

Melissa reported, after I got back from the salon, that all her efforts to get us logged in properly to Amazon Advantage’s vendor software had failed. As she is leaving us at the end of the month, she very much wanted to help Mick get this snag worked through. Bless her for her extraordinary efforts on our behalf! I cannot even know the hours she has put in on this and other L/L Research projects because she often works on them at her home. Kudos to Melissa!

Jim had managed to get all his lawns cut and even do extra work for one of his customers spreading more mulch before the rains hit. Apparently the huge storm did not arrive this far east. So he and I were both happy in the bath and enjoyed a pleasant and leisurely evening, saying good night around 11 PM.