A Collection of Daily Wisdom by Dennis Sylvester Hurd since September 2003.

I always arrange life so that I have a very light teaching schedule. For example, I won't go back to teach a class until November. People occasionally ask what I do with my extra time. Umm ... I guess I think. If one has the opportunity to think then there's no such thing as extra time. This leads me to a personal view I've got to share.

Cell phones are great technology but I often see people who can't seem to find the off switch. On the SkyTrain or bus, they waste precious minutes of their lives involved in meaningless conversations. They spend half an hour asking where the other person is and about other verbal debris. These people are sitting beside me but are 'virtually' in some unknown space. I wish they could shut off the phone, look out the window and just think a little!

Labels: complaints, transit

Jay went to work today and is signing up for permanent part-time with benefits at Covenant House Vancouver. It looks like he'll have to work shifts every other weekend. His job at the YMCA might be curtailed in the future as they construct a new building without hotel space.

Labels: Vancouver

Last night was cool and damp. The gas fireplace was switched on for the first time this season. I was looking for an excuse to scan old photos, so the lack of heat is a good intro for the picture below!

It was taken in 1983. I worked in Kuwait at the time and during spring break, four of us chose to take a road trip through Jordan and Syria. The gals couldn't drive through Saudi as non-family members and thusly flew to meet us in Jordan.

On the evening of this picture, we were stranded in a snow storm in the mountains of Jordan. I believe we were near Al-Karak. A local family from a small village offered us food, hospitality, and warmth. Trevor Clark (right) and yours truly (middle) were wearing the head-gear for the fun of photo taking.

Labels: Kuwait, weather, world

The hour of light are getting much shorter. This is especially noticeable on a grey day. The kitchen lights need to be on at quarter to six!

Labels: weather

Happy Birthday, dad!

Labels: New Hampshire

Here's a note received from Lori Preston. How very thoughful and nice of her to send it. Some people may not be able to answer an email, but Lori can go a step farther ...

Dennis,
I loved seeing your picture of you & sandy, it brought back school memories. Things seemed to be wonderful in your life, I'm so glad to hear that. You deserve it, you've brought many smiles to my face throughout the years. We see our school year friends so seldom and yet the memories of good times spent together are so vivid. Wishing you well.
Lori

Labels: New Hampshire, pets

In British Columbia, there are u-brew wine shops. They are businesses where customers pay a fee to make wine on their premises. Legally, before the 30-bottle batch gets started, the kits contain food, and are therefore, untaxed. The customer adds the yeast to the kit and then must return in four to six weeks for bottling. The interim filtering and aging are completed by the shop. There are two main benefits: the wine is a natural product without chemicals, and the cost is around US$2 a bottle!

(Quote from Nature.com) Red wine blocks a cellular compound thought to be a key factor in heart disease, a new study finds, bolstering claims that red wine carries more health benefits than other alcoholic beverages. The finding may help explain why the French, who often drink red wine with meals, appear to have a lower risk of heart disease than people in Britain despite eating a similar amount of saturated fat - a phenomenon known as the 'French paradox'.

Labels: food

Labels: balcony, New Westminster

It's cold and gray today. Wasn't it just last week we all feared running out of water and were busy complaining about the heat?

I will go to pick up Jay at the airport at about noon today. I've been able to follow the entire journey on Cathay Pacific Airways and The World Clock - Time Zones. He phoned from Hong Kong too. He had gone home to visit his seriously sick mother. Although she will not recover, her body keeps holding on to life. It must have been a real struggle to have witnessed this for the past month. My prayers go out to the whole family during these trying times.

Labels: errands

This week's picture of H3, got me to thinking about past pets. This picture must've been taken about 38 years ago. The collie was named Sandy due to her color. I don't really even remember her as a small puppy. If there's enough space and time for attention, every kid should have a dog!

Labels: New Hampshire, pets

I was driving down from the mall yesterday and noticed how nearly all modern cars and trucks have hidden gas caps. All the little doors on the side of the cars suddenly looked strange to me. Are we supposed to think the vehicles don't need to carry around a cache of fossil fuel? Maybe designers just think it's easier not to have to deal with a gas cap. (Why?). As a kid for a few summers I pumped gas at Osborne's Garage. Those were the days before self-serve islands and I think gas was less than 50 cents a gallon. Designers of big old tanks such as Buick, Oldsmobile, and even Plymouth used to hide the caps behind rear license plates. At the end of each summer I always had a collection of them!

Labels: cars

This is Elizabeth and Chris.

They are my niece and nephew.

Labels: Laurie