It is hard to believe that it has been almost four years since I have posted to this account. Naturally, a lot has happened in the intervening time. I don't know if anyone still reads LJ or not as FB now seems to be the thing. But FB is shallow and doesn't provide any breadth or depth. In any event, I'm taking a break from FB until Labor Day just ( Read more... )

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http://www.ceiig.ch/Report.html

I have a new favorite wine.

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Les sanglots longs
Des violons
De l’automne
Blessent mon coeur
D’une langueur
Monotone.

Tout suffocant
Et blême, quand
Sonne l’heure,
Je me souviens
Des jours anciens
Et je pleure;

Et je m’en vais
Au vent mauvais
Qui m’emporte
Deçà, delà,
Pareil à la
Feuille morte.

Paul Verlaine

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In every sale, the buyer and seller negotiate a price that each feels is a "bargain." The seller feels that the money he is getting in exchange for the item sold is at least marginally more valuable than the thing being sold. The buyer feels that the thing is is acquiring is at least marginally more valuable than the sum of money he is giving up ( Read more... )

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My neighborhood is an old one, as far as Bellingham is concerned. A European would laugh out loud, but there are pictures of my street that go back to the late 19th century, and that's old for a new state like Washington ( Read more... )