There is an iconic photo of Judy Collins on the beach, seagulls overhead, powerful waves behind her. She has an expression of spiritual bliss and ecstasy. We tried to recreate this scene with the HotPot image generator, using a simple prompt of “Judy Collins on the beach, large waves behind her, seagulls flying overhead.” It […]
Category: Heros
Ursula Gertrud von der Leyen; née Albrecht; born 8 October 1958) is a German physician and politician serving as the 13th president of the European Commission since 2019. She served in the German federal government between 2005 and 2019, holding successive positions in Angela Merkel’s cabinet, most recently as federal minister of defence. Von der […]
Honoring Karyn Today’s post honors Karyn, daughter of an Elder. Karyn wanted to become a professional singer, and wanted to share her financial success with the homeless. She is age 18 here, and had just done a street mission project in Calgary with an organization called the Mustard Seed, that was originated in Edmonton by […]
“Wars don’t start with explosions. They start with silence.” 20 Days in Mariupol 20 Days in Mariupol 20 Days in Mariupol is a documentary film by the AP and Frontline. A very brave film crew hears rumors of war, and heads over to Mariupol. “We pulled into Mariupol at 3:30 a.m. The war started an […]
Joan of Arc (1412-1431) is one of the most fascinating historical figures. Short BiographyJeanne d’Arc was a peasant girl who became a national heroine and the patron saint of France. At a crucial period of the Hundred Years’War, she led the French resistance to English invaders and turned the tide of the war. A mystic […]
The people of Texas, like the people of America and all freedom-loving people around the world, are behind the brave people of Ukraine. Maybe one day, we will be talking to Ukrainians who speak English with a Texas accent and wear big cowboy hats!
Celebrating Valerie Thomas
Today we celebrate Valerie Thomas. She showed that the magic of fascination can often lead to concrete scientific applications for real-world problem-solving. – Black Inventor Valerie L. Thomas (born February 8, 1943) is an American data scientist and inventor. She invented the illusion transmitter, for which she received a patent in 1980. She was responsible […]
Texas Slang for ENGin buddies ENGin is a wonderful program that connects English speakers with Ukrainians – sort of like pen-pals on Zoom. Conversation practice, cultural exchange, recipes, jokes, stories, friendships…. Very cool, innovative, and impactful non-profit started by Katerina Manoff. Katerina has 5+ years of experience teaching English and managing online language learning programs. […]
White Rabbits, Part II
[ed. note: thanks to UC#2 for today’s topic] Marginalia Marginalia (or apostils) are marks made in the margins of a book or other document. They may be scribbles, comments, glosses (annotations), critiques, doodles, drolleries, or illuminations. Wikipedia The British Library Medieval killer rabbits: when bunnies strike back Vengeful, merciless and brutally violent… yes that’s right, […]
White Rabbit => Bolero Connection She said that the music was heavily influenced by Miles Davis’s 1960 album Sketches of Spain, particularly Davis’s treatment of the Concierto de Aranjuez (1939). She later said: “Writing weird stuff about Alice backed by a dark Spanish march was in step with what was going on in San Francisco […]