Month: July 2009

Tim and Teatown

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Last Friday Tim finished the first of his two two week stints at Teatown Reservation. It’s a nature center and Tim loves summer camp there. Brigid took the first two pictures on Friday and Tim had taken the turtle shots on Thursday.     This is one big turtle – about the size of a medium … Read more

Another weapons system we don’t need, can’t afford, and that should have been cancelled years ago

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The F-22. An "uncancellable" program. Too many contractors in 40 states. I believe in national defense, not stupidity and waste. High-Priced F-22 Fighter Has Major Shortcomings – washingtonpost.com The United States' top fighter jet, the Lockheed Martin F-22, has recently required more than 30 hours of maintenance for every hour in the skies, pushing its … Read more

An inadvertently amusing feature on how a restricted calorie diet may extend life expectancy

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Here's an interesting and speculative feature in the science section of this morning's NY Times, about a long term study of rhesus monkeys. Dieting Monkeys Offer Hope for Living Longer – NYTimes.com It's filled with amusing lines like "Although people are similar to mice in many ways, they differ in other ways…" There's an insight.

The papal encyclical and economic justice

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I posted a tiny video a couple of days ago.  The Pope's social justice encyclical: "Charity and truth are the essence of Christian revelation"  Here's a good analysis that is not too long. Prints out at five and a half pages. OSV | Our Sunday Visitor July 19, 2009 | Pontiff espouses economic justice in "Caritas … Read more

British sex ed program doubles teen pregnancy rate

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I don't think that was the idea … £6m drive to cut teen pregnancies sees them DOUBLE | Mail Online The Government-backed scheme tried to persuade teenage girls not to get pregnant by handing out condoms and teaching them about sex. But research funded by the Department of Health shows that young women who attended … Read more

Joe, off to first job this morning

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Joe has his first job* and it started today. He’s going to be doing some computer setting up in the BOCES system in this area. He was very lucky to get the job, which came at the invitation of the Dad of one of Tim’s friends. It’s a good first-time job, especially in the current … Read more

Health Update

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Yesterday was my six month trip/check-up at Sloan Kettering with lymphoma guru Dr. Andrew Zelenetz. No CAT scan – that's only once a year now – just bloodwork and a quick examination and meeting. Everything was fine – in fact Dr. Zelenetz seemed almost a little surprised that everything is still going well, three and … Read more