Happy Birthday Babe Ruth!

Happy 123rd Birthday Babe! Here's something about the legendary baseball player Babe Ruth you may not know…. Born George Herman Ruth,  at the age of seven he was sent to a reformatory where he learned to play baseball from one of the teachers.

At age 19, Ruth was playing ball for Jack Dunn, the owner of the Baltimore Orioles. He had to have a legal guardian sign for him to play, so Dunn became his guardian. The joke was that Ruth was now "Dunn's new babe." That's how Babe Ruth got his nickname. And on his death from cancer at age 53, Ruth remembered his past and how he got his start in life. He left most of his estate to the Babe Ruth Foundation for underprivileged children.

The role of Faith in the Age of Trump

There is a case, I suppose, for forgiveness and love in your heart for all mankind. In the case of the President-Elect Donald Trump, I would say the time for action is now. Dr King told us: "Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter." I believe that the time to be vigilant has come. Not simply for people in the faith community, but  for Progressives who are concerned about war, parents worried about their children's future both as a military concern and a moral one, and the parents of young children who don't know how to explain this man who is a habitual liar and has molested women and is now rewarded with the highest office in the land.

We don't know the reason as to why Trump was elevated to the office of President or the Grand Scheme of things. But there must be some reason that we are being tested by this dark time in the history of the United States. I believe we could be stronger together, and find out that Love Trumps Hate if we do continue to believe that our best days are not behind us and we can organize and be uplifted by faith in each other. I know that some faith leaders, Sister Simone and Pope Francis, Reverend Barber and other faith leaders have spoken out against the divisive hate and ugly rhetoric spewed by this man.

But the point is this. No one can stay silent. The role of faith in our religion teaches us that we must put our words into deeds. And that means mobilizing if necessary, and marching and protesting against racism, sexism, hate speech and against war. There is a time for prayer and silent contemplation, but in this Brave New World, the time for action is now. Dr. King also said, "In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends."

The $64,000.00 Question in the Information Age

In continuing my quest to Understand Media, I've again returned to the ultimate source, Marshall McLuhan's book written over sixty years ago. After reading McLuhan, here's my personal take on how he predicted our dilemma in the 21st Century work force:

We started with the Typewriter and ended up with the computer keyboard. These two instruments have altered the mental habits of writers and artists. Many times I've heard writers, especially older ones, talk of the need to simply write things down in a notebook or journal, unfettered by the addition of the computer and all its subsequent baggage. In writing on the keyboard, the typing creates a performance for the composer. The meaning is simply typing. Capote had it right. It's not writing, it's typing. Hence the slogan: the medium is the message. We can understand this clearly when we see the emphasis placed on Project Management and Team Leaders. The work is divided into segments, fragmented and doled out in short bursts that create more work and the illusion of productivity.

The next translation of the transformation of the work place comes when we see energy transformed into a new form. One example was turning trees into lumber, or clay into bricks. Now, in the office, the number of office workers goes up as the actual production goes down. One startling conclusion from McLuhan was that the internal relations, those in offices who gather just SELECT information has become the principal source of wealth in this Information Age. From about 1960 through 1992, this has slowly emerged and is now the norm. So in today's world, if  you do know how to market information, or to fix broken computer connections, or to program and create software, or graphics and can manipulate data, you are desirable. These select tasks all lead to the Information Age jobs in the world we live in today. All predicted by McLuhan many years ago.

In the Mechanical Age of the Industrial Revolution, work meant processing materials on the assembly line. The work was fragmented by parts and design, and it was given to those managers to delegate authority within the hierarchy at the plant or factory where you worked. In this new Computer Age, programming means the effect of information plus knowledge. It basically cuts out the middle man. Many jobs are delegated to online graphic designers and marketing firms. The website is built by someone who may live in another country. Or, in other terms, the composer, or business person, may compose the compartmentalized piece that is given directly to the individual to play (or to work). Where does that leave us?

The fragmented age means an individual could achieve success with just the illusion of imparting valuable information. For example, there is the book that was a best-seller: "The Art of the Deal". The historian Boorstin was scandalized by the fact that celebrity in the Information Age meant fame could be achieved not by a person's actual achievements. They could become celebrities and do nothing but simply become known for being well known! 

This is where we find ourselves in today's world. Celebrity has actually flooded into the worlds of  entertainment and television plus politics and foreign policy. The two worlds have converged and given us Donald J Trump. That is one explanation of why we are now dealing with the after-effects and fallout of our fragmented societies that have been cobbled together in the Information Age through internet connections and television celebrity.

Where do we go from here? That is the $64,000.00 question!

On Writing of our Dead Dogs

Here is a small addendum to add to the essay about all the dogs we’ve loved before...and to add to the list of the fallen is my Chloe. She was so full of energy, so full of boundless energy, and I knew as I lay with her on the rug and they were getting ready to simply give her the sedative to put her down that she would have none of it. Rage, rage against the dying of the light came to my mind, but in her case, simply Rave! Rave! against the dying of the light. She wanted to lift her head to the last minute, and if I could bottle up that energy and spread it out in the universe, I would...

She was a classic Setter, inquisitive, clownish, loving, sweet, funny, gentle and ready for anything at a moment’s notice. She ran full speed ahead to every adventure in her life, and we loved her and she loved us and as Josey Wales would say, “I got no complaints.”

At some point, if you live long enough, you go through the painful ritual of putting a dog down more than once. So it goes that this depressing task has fallen to me more than one time in my life. And inevitably, I knew the day would come when my beautiful little Irish Setter, Emma, would leave this Earth. 

Still, it’s a depressing and sad thing. So instead of writing about the pain of loss and separation, I would instead choose to remember what a joy my Emma was, and how much satisfaction she brought to bear in my life.

I got her at a time of more unbearable sorrow, after losing at an early age the dog of my heart, Hannah. I chose to take on a rescue dog, and when Emma came into our home, she was skinny and skittish, afraid of men and too cautious of everything. She was scared of thunder, and had lived outdoors for the first three years.

Soon, when she discovered the joys of couches and pillows, of treats and car rides, of naps and petting and hugs and indoor living, she blossomed before our eyes. She loved to run and she loved our regular trips to the dog park. To watch that beautiful streak of red as she took off through a field was a joy to behold.

Setters tend to be clowns, and she would enjoy the ritual of being gently scolded and reprimanded for getting into mischief. Once, I found her sitting on a bag of apples she had absconded with from the grocery bag. She loved to know that all reprimands ended with her being loved and petted.

She also took to mothering our younger setter, Chloe. Not knowing how she would take to another puppy, I told her to “groom the baby.” She thought it over and set to licking and grooming Chloe every day of her life. This was a ritual, and extended to the little malti-poo, Abby, and even our family cat.

Emma was a treasure and a delight and a joy to behold. She was a beautiful soul, inside and out. She will be missed as we talk about the Rainbow Bridge where our dogs await us in heaven. But Emma will be inspecting and grooming and mothering and clowning about as we seek our reunion with her. She was a special soul, my Emma. Of course we will seek to grasp for the heavens, as we know our dogs have paved the way.

The Readers Hub Newsletter

Saying Goodbye to the Dog Days of Summer!

Greetings to all my friends and followers! Saying goodbye to the Dog Days of Summer is never hard! In our house, the dogs welcome each new season. Here are the three amigos together: Emma & Chloe &  little Abby.  If you have pictures of your dogs, please send them to me to post on my magazine “Doggie in the Window”, as I love to hear about your pets-speaking as one dog lover to another…

That's why I've created a contest. We'll vote to find who’s got the cutest “Doggie in the Window” picture!  The winner gets a basket of goodies from my “The Book of Malti-Poo" site. You’ll win Natural pet products and more if your dog’s picture is chosen!

The cookbook is coming together. I’ve got a rough draft ready to go, and hope to have it done by the end of the month. It’s one “baby” that I’m anxious to introduce to the world.

Speaking of babies, our extended family has just welcomed Baby Noah, my niece’s first baby. Waiting for Noah is one of the things I’ve written about on The Writers Hub. I’m so excited about my new improved site here at the Writers Hub. for someone as “low-tech” as me,the new look, complete with new graphics and layout really makes everything look…well, as if I knew what I was doing!

Please follow me on my Facebook Authors Page and on Twitter @mljtpa. My Flipboard magazines are updated daily, with news and politics, film and fashion, cooking and arts, and trending topics to boot! Don’t forget to go to 6 Degrees of Film to sign up for my Fall Newsletter. It’s just out and I’d love to hear from you about which new films you’d like to see. Send me an e-mail at mljtpa@6degreeswriter.com to comment or keep in touch. I’d love to hear from you and don’t forget-send me some of your favorite dog pictures too!

Thanks for stopping by…ML

The Known Unknowns....

Not being a huge fan of Donald Rumsfeld, I find myself much in sync with him on the subject of the things we know and the things we don't know that we don't know! Instead of waxing lyrical about the military capabilities of the United States, I stick with a much smaller sphere of influence. For me, it's the computer. Although I've had this MacBook for about a year, I've been reluctant to make the switch from PC to Mac.

The learning curve, you see, is just one more bump in the road, one more thing I didn't need. The laziness innate in me, my reluctance to abandon the soft comfort of my compartmentalized knowledge and the fear of the unknown all combined to hold me back. But the inevitable slowing of my trusty PC and the demands of my work forced me to turn on the machine with the Apple logo.

Now, I'm learning what I didn't know I didn't know. As Rumsfeld should have said, it's the Known Unknowns that get you in the end. It's not really that bad. It's not too hard to learn. It is time-consuming and interesting to learn new things. It's empowering to learn a new operating system. And it brings back memories of the first time I learned to use a computer.

Reminiscent of the Apes of 2001 fame, I cocked my head to the side and first pressed the power key on the machine many moons ago. Those of us who are Baby Boomers remember the computers the size of a small car, the blinking D.O.S light and the box with the computer when it first arrived. And then we had to figure out where to put the thing!

Knowledge is power always. We are still learning the Known Unknowns and should be grateful and loving that fact. Perhaps we take it too much for granted these days. We should bow our heads to the Known Unknowns in our lives, both now and in the future. May we all rise above the fear and embrace the power even as we strain under the yoke and attempt to master the future unknowns together.

Waiting for Noah

I’m reminded of the famous play, Waiting for Godot, where the action centers around two people anxiously awaiting the arrival of someone who never appears… The watched kettle in our family is little Noah, who will make his appearance sometime around the end of August.

His mama is my niece, my little Kirsty. Little Kirsty was just a baby herself a blink of an eyelash ago. Now she is getting ready to give birth! The night she arrived on the planet, we were all so happy for my brother, our family went to celebrate at the local landmark restaurant, the Colonnade. Since the Colonnade is no more, we’re going to have to figure a way to survive the highs and lows of life without that landmark place as a constant.

Where shall we wait for Noah?