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January 20,2021
Biden Signs Executive Orders on Face-Mask Mandate, Keystone Pipeline, Paris Accord - WSJ
Mr. Biden signed 15 executive orders and two executive actions on his first day in office, far more than any of his modern predecessors, none of whom signed more than one. President Trump signed an order on his inauguration day aimed at reversing the Affordable Care Act, while Barack Obama didn’t sign any on Jan. 20, 2009. Bill Clinton signed an ethics order on his first day. All of them signed additional orders during their first week in office.
Executive Orders used so broadly siphons off power from the Legislative Branch and removes the voice of the electorate from the process. Congress really ought to be more jealous after 12 years of this behavior.
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Haiku
January 20,2021Mid-Afternoon Walk
A change of routine,
Walking in the daylight. Well,
Fun, but need morning.
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January 20,2021
Secret Service Agent Heroically Dives In Front Of Strong Breeze That Could Have Killed Biden
Cole, who appeared completely unscathed by a direct hit to the chest from a breeze that came within inches of Biden and might have caused the president to lose his balance and fall, potentially breaking a hip or suffering a stroke from which he would never recover.
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January 20,2021
Net Neutrality and Big Tech’s Speech Hypocrisy - WSJ
Facebook and Twitter turned out to be more threatening than under threat. Broadband providers haven’t attempted to block content or competitors since the FCC repealed net neutrality. But social media, app stores and cloud providers, which were never subject to the rules, all have engaged in censorship repeatedly in recent weeks.
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Haiku
January 19,2021Filing System
Years of PDFs,
Sorting, saving, discarding.
Memories now flow.
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Reading
January 19,2021
Currently reading: I Will Teach You to Be Rich, Second Edition: No Guilt. No Excuses. No BS. Just a 6-Week Program That Works by Ramit Sethi 📚
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January 19,2021
MLB Beginning To Suspect Pirates Just A Mob Front
“It must be some kind of money-laundering operation, because they’re clearly doing the bare minimum to keep that place open,” said Commissioner Rob Manfred
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January 19,2021
At this point, it’s just embarrassing how hard it is to move Apple Watches between phones.
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January 19,2021
Leaving Evernote for good this year. I ended up just using it as a digital filing cabinet for PDFs, but now I can use iCloud or Dropbox. All writing heading over to Ulysses, which can be exported in the future if needed.
In the end, Evernote’s poor search engine was the primary driver of this decision.
🗂
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Haiku
January 18,2021Generic Failure
They say it’s the same,
My head disagrees strongly.
Need new solution.
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January 18,2021
“This is a slight break in tradition but it’s necessary because Biden is just so incredibly popular and loved by the people,” said Nancy Pelosi.
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January 18,2021
Democrat States Follow The Science By Doing What Florida Did Back In May - The Babylon Bee
“We must follow the science by doing what Republican states did eight months ago,” said Governor Cuomo. “Now that Biden will be our president, it is time for the pandemic to end.”
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Reading
Book Review: In Praise of Walking 📚
January 18,2021I’m an avid reader of The Wall Street Journal, but I must admit that when it comes to the style and lifestyle articles, I’m not a good fit. WSJ is a mainstream newspaper published in New York City, and as such, many of the viewpoints of its authors are cosmopolitan. Each week, they feature a number of book reviews. That’s where I first learned of In Praise of Walking. I transitioned from running to walking nearly a decade ago. I never really liked running, but a recurrent case of IT Band Syndrome, and my reluctance to properly address it through physical therapy permanently ended my running days.
The thing is, I prefer walking. My review of the literature revealed that walking confers essentially the same level of health benefits as running, albeit taking slightly longer per exercise session. I was drawn in by the title of the book.
Written by the Irish brain researcher Shane O’Mara, the book takes a deep dive into the science of walking. Indeed, the subtitle, “A New Scientific Exploration” is as advertised. The author is a university professor, and clearly delights in all the deep science that proves the universal benefits that walking confers. The technical language and obsessive coverage of studies proved to be quite dry, partly contributing to the five months it took me to digest this relatively short book. It was more like attending a lecture or seminar than consuming the content for pleasure.
In between the scientific review, there was plenty of goodness sprinkled in. The point of the book was made: a regular habit of walking has deep and far-reaching positive benefits for the human body and person. O’Mara drives the point home most clearly and succinctly in the Afterward, though I wish he’d landed the plane sooner.
The core lesson of the book is this: walking enhances every aspect of our social, psychological and neural functioning. It is the simple, life-enhancing, health-building prescription we all need, one that we should take in regular doses, large and small, at a good pace, day in, day out, in nature and in our towns and cities. We need to make walking a natural, habitual part of our every day lives. Pound the pavement; get the wind in your face; let the light of day and street lamps of night dance on your eyes; feel the rain on your face; sense the ground beneath your feet; hear the sounds; talk — if only to yourself; relax into the rhythm of walking and let your mind wander, deliberate, contemplate; journey into your past, delve into your possible futures; or think of nothing at all. Although walking arises from our deep, evolutionary paths, it is our future too: for walking will do you all the good that you now know it does.
In the end, the heavy science makes this read a drag and beyond the scope of the casual reader.
Would I recommend: NO
ISBN: 978-0393652086
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Catholic Husband
January 18,2021This is the time that we build the relationship that we’ll share for my lifetime. These are the days when they store the memories of “my dad” growing up. This is my chance to make a real impact on their formation, to set them up on a course to go through life confident in their identity as human persons.
➕
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Haiku
January 17,2021Under Cabinet Lighting
Thanks to my friend Hue,
Very nice kitchen lighting.
Makes a big difference!
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January 17,2021
Two years since I quit Google. Life is still good!
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January 17,2021
Sunday evening grilling.
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January 17,2021
Winter Into Spring by George Winston
🎵
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January 17,2021
Ugandan Presidential Candidate Bobi Wine Says Soldiers Stormed His Home - WSJ
Uganda’s government has said that America’s election crisis shows Washington doesn’t have the authority to monitor Uganda’s elections.
They may have a point insofar as the myriad court-ordered rule changes mid-campaign.
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Haiku
January 16,2021Weekend Warrior
Project list shrinking,
I’m more productive this way.
Outside tomorrow.
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Reading
January 16,2021
Finished reading: In Praise of Walking: A New Scientific Exploration by Shane O’Mara 📚
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January 16,2021
I keep the book that I’m currently reading in this drawer. It’s always a delight to open it up at the end of the day and enjoy the cover art.
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January 16,2021
This BBQ place smells sooooo good.
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January 16,2021
Biden’s First Spending Blowout - WSJ
The first point to understand is that this blowout has nothing to do with economic stimulus. Nearly all of the money is for income redistribution—some to people in genuine need, but most to advance long-term Democratic social policies, and to massage constituencies like teachers unions and state politicians.
A brilliant response to this fantasy proposal.
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January 15,2021
“If you are between the ages of 49 and 52, were born in Iowa but now live in Ohio, reside exactly 3.25 miles from a hospital, or have bowled a 300 game, you should proceed to a medical facility to receive your Covid vaccine,” said Anne Schuchat, deputy director at the CDC