Watts, Wesley and Winkworth, rev. 2026

The topic covers three faith traditions--Puritan/Congregational, Methodist and Lutheran. I say tradition rather than denominations because there have been many divisions. These divisions and traditions developed during a time of great cultural changes in the arts, technology, and politics over three centuries.

There are many biographies available on the internet, so I've linked to only one site, but after reading several, they don't all agree. And I've added a link to a recording.

Isaac Watts (1674-1748) Nonconformist (non-Anglican), dissenter, English

Known as the "Father of English hymnody," Isaac Watts wrote approximately 600 hymns. He showed literary genius even as a boy. He learned Latin at four, Greek at nine, French at ten, and Hebrew at thirteen. His parents were "Dissenters." That is, they were not Anglicans, which was a treasonous offense in those days. Frustrated with the heartless psalm singing of his time, young Watts sometimes criticized the singing at his church. A dissenter among dissenters, I'd say. Listening to his concerns one day, Watts' father challenged him, "Well then, young man, why don't you give us something better to sing?" He rose to the challenge by writing his first hymn. It was well received by his congregation, and for the next two years, Watts wrote a new hymn for every Sunday. He is known for Christianizing the Psalms.

Isaac Watts - The Center For Church Music, Songs and Hymns

https://youtu.be/iYYXWxDzEmM?si=piM_5tB7KAda78-f O God our help in ages past, paraphrase of Psalm 90, a good hymn for the New Year

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JMK9QHaoqpo podcast about Isaac Watts

At The Cross: Isaac Watts, The Father of Hymns

Charles Wesley (1707-1788) Church of England, Methodist, Missionary to Georgia, English

"Charles Wesley wrote over 6500 hymns [some sources say 8,000], which would be writing at least two hymns a week, every week for 50 years, from his conversion in 1738 to his death in 1788. His hymns came out of what he saw as important occasions. His own life inspired hymns: his conversion, his marriage, things he had seen, the death of his friends. Public events inspired hymns: the earthquake panic, rumors of an invasion from France, the defeat of Prince Charles Edward at Culloden, the Gordon riots. He wrote hymns for all the festivals of the Christian faith.

Wesley’s hymns can be generally classified as hymns of Christian experience, invitation hymns, sanctification hymns, funeral hymns, and hymns on the love of God. In his hymns, he referenced all but 4 of the books of the Bible. He used more than 45 different meters. It has been said that Wesley’s hymns clothed Christ in flesh and blood and gave converts a belief that they could easily grasp, embrace with personal faith, and if necessary, even die for."

Charles Wesley - The Center For Church Music, Songs and Hymns (excerpt)

Why Wesley Still Dominates Our Hymnbook - Christianity Today Really good article, but it is 17 pages long

https://youtu.be/9Bwn0k0k8xI?si=pbrUv266Izp907kr "Hark, the Herald Angels Sing," Charles Wesley

Catherine Winkworth (1827-1878) studied with Unitarians, English, best known as translator of 17th century German hymns

"Winkworth was a prolific translator of German hymns She became interested in translating these hymns when Chevelier Bunsen, the German ambassador to England presented her with a copy of Andachtsbuch. This devotional book showed her the treasures in German hymnody. She published two series of Lyra Germanica, in 1855 and 1858. The first had 103 translations from Bunsen's Versuch eines allgemeinen Gesang und Gebetbuchs (1833). The second had 121 more translations from the same book. She also published the Chorale Book for England (1863), which contained some earlier translations with their proper chorale tunes, and Christian Singers of Germany, (1869) biographies of German hymn writers."

Catherine Winkworth - The Center For Church Music, Songs and Hymns

https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-now-thank-we-all-our-god Now thank we all our God, Martin Rinkart

Dementia Awareness Week, posted by my cousin Jenny

If I ever get dementia, I’d like my family to hang this wish list up on the wall where I live. I want them to remember these things.

1. Every time you enter the room announce yourself. “Hi- it’s ………...” NEVER ask- Do you know who I am??? That causes anxiety.
2. If I get dementia, I want my friends and family to embrace my reality.  Careers included.
3. If I think my dead friend is still alive, or if I think we’re visiting my parents for dinner, let me believe those things. I’ll be much happier for it.
4. If I get dementia, don’t argue with me about what is true for me versus what is true for you.
5. If I get dementia, and I am not sure who you are, do not take it personally. My timeline is confusing to me.
6. If I get dementia and can no longer use utensils, do not start feeding me. Instead, switch me to a finger-food diet, and see if I can still feed myself.
7. If I get dementia, and I am sad or anxious, hold my hand and listen. Do not tell me that my feelings are unfounded.
8. If I get dementia, I don’t want to be treated like a child. Talk to me like the adult that I am. 
9. If I get dementia, I still want to enjoy the things that I’ve always enjoyed. Help me find a way to exercise, read, and visit with friends. 
10. If I get dementia, ask me to tell you a story from my past.
11. If I get dementia, and I become agitated, take the time to figure out what is bothering me. 
12. If I get dementia, treat me the way that you would want to be treated. 
13. If I get dementia, make sure that there are plenty of snacks for me in the house. Even now if I don’t eat I get angry, and if I have dementia, I may have trouble explaining what I need.
14. If I get dementia, don’t talk about me as if I’m not in the room.
15. If I get dementia, don’t feel guilty if you cannot care for me 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. It’s not your fault, and you’ve done your best. Find someone who can help you, or choose a great new place for me to live.
16. If I get dementia, and I live in a dementia care community, please visit me often.
17. If I get dementia, don’t act frustrated if I mix up names, events, or places. Take a deep breath. It’s not my fault.
18. If I get dementia, make sure I always have my favorite music playing within earshot.
19. If I get dementia, and I like to pick up items and carry them around, help me return those items to their original place.
20. If I get dementia, don’t exclude me from parties and family gatherings.
21. If I get dementia, know that I still like receiving hugs and plenty of laughing 
22. If I get dementia, remember that I am still the person you know and love.”
In honor of someone you know or knew who has dementia. In Honor of all those I know and love and lost who are fighting Dementia/Alzheimer’s.

Someone once said if you take care of someone with dementia, you lose them more and more every day. When they get the diagnosis, when they go through different stages, when they need treatment, and when they pass away.

 
This is called "the longest goodbye ". As the brain slowly dies, they change physically and eventually forget who their loved ones are. They could end up lying in bed, not moving and not eating or drinking.
There will be people who will scroll past this post because

 
dementia has not touched them. They may not know what it's like to have a loved one who has battled or is still battling dementia.

A special thank you to anyone willing to put this on their timeline for Dementia Awareness Week.

Amiodarone side effects

My husband was diagnosed in January with acute heart failure and was first assigned to an a-fib clinic, and then heart management then to surgery for a pacemaker with defibrillator. Along with a clutch of other drugs including Lasix he was prescribed Amiodarone on January 24.  After that he just got sicker and sicker to the point he can do little other than sleep in a chair and open an eye to watch football. If we have 2 good days in a row, we call it good, but today his vomiting was as bad as I can remember, but mostly dry heaves since he hadn't eaten yet. 

So, let's look at Amiodarone side effects, which seems to be the primary culprit and is for abnormal heart rhythms. He was removed from it about 2 weeks ago. Because he was on it for months, who knows if we can get out of his system. BTW, no one has suggested staying out of the sun or that he might have skin or eye problems from this.

This is AI generated from about 3 sources--something any of the many doctors, RNs or Nurse Practitioners could have looked up or used talk to text. Words like "monitoring" or "immediate attention" are a joke. We could walk to the clinic faster than getting a call back. . .except he can't walk.

"Amiodarone is a potent antiarrhythmic medication known for causing a wide range of side effects that affect multiple organ systems, ranging from common, mild issues to rare, life-threatening toxicities.

Common Side Effects
Most patients experience mild gastrointestinal and neurological symptoms, including nausea, vomiting, constipation, loss of appetite, dizziness, tremors, and fatigue. Dermatological effects are also frequent, specifically photosensitivity (sun sensitivity) and a reversible blue-gray discoloration of exposed skin. Corneal microdeposits occur in nearly all long-term users, often causing blurred vision or halos around lights, though permanent vision loss is rare.

Serious Adverse Reactions
The most critical risks involve pulmonary toxicity (lung inflammation or fibrosis), hepatotoxicity (liver damage), and thyroid dysfunction (both hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism). Cardiac complications may include bradycardia (slow heart rate), heart block, and QT prolongation, which can paradoxically worsen arrhythmias. Other severe reactions include optic neuropathy (potential blindness), peripheral neuropathy, and severe allergic reactions such as Stevens-Johnson syndrome.

Precautions
Patients must avoid grapefruit and sun exposure while taking this medication. Regular monitoring of lung function, liver enzymes, thyroid levels, and eye exams is required to detect toxicity early. Symptoms such as persistent cough, shortness of breath, yellowing of the skin, or unexplained swelling require immediate medical attention.

The End of Aging articles in National Geographic

When we say/write "media" does that include National Geographic? Yes. I've been trying to read "End of Aging" series in the Sept. 2026 issue. (It's a bit late for me, but never mind.) Here's the quote: "Scientists needed immature stem cells--cells that exist in humans before they begin to differentiate into our organs, nerves, and blood--for much of their research work. BUT THE NATURALLY OCCURRING SOURES, DISCARDED EMBRYOS FROM ASSISTED REPRODUCTIVE EFFORTS, were tricky to obtain. The U.S. government, for instance, had all but prohibited their use since 2001."

That's not true. President Bush had stopped government funding for buying fetal material, much of it from abortions and IVF, with our tax money except for lines already in use. Private funding continued. There is no prohibition for venture capital or foundations. "On August 9, 2001, President George W. Bush announced a policy limiting federal funding for human embryonic stem cell research to certain lines already in existence as of that date, subject to ethical conditions described by the administration (including derivation from surplus IVF embryos with consent and without financial inducement). The White House fact sheet preserved in the George W. Bush Presidential Archives captures the official framing of that decision."

This was a good decision because without that, many women could have become cell line producers for money (and there are women who would have done it, too, just as some women are using other women's wombs to bear their kids so they don't have to stop careers or mess up their figures.)

Of course, President Obama who also loved abortion on demand and partial birth abortion, reversed that act in 2009. (I think he announced it at a Catholic university.) Meanwhile, Induced pluripotent stem cells (reprogrammed from adult tissue) and adult stem cells are generally less regulated federally, with fewer ethical hurdles than embryonic stem cells. They still require compliance with human subjects protections if classified as research involving humans.


https://stemcellhistory.com/us-embryonic-stem-cell-policy-dickey-wicker-bush-obama/ (although this link shows its bias toward "progressive" ethics of using human stem cells, it's the best I could find in a few minutes)

Jerusalem, My Happy Home

The morning reading today included the hymn "Jerusalem, my happy home," and I was not familiar with it, so I flipped to the bibliography and found even more I didn't know. The author was listed as FBP, 1583, meter CM (8686) and it's in the public domain (you don't have to have permission to use it). Who is FPB? I asked self. My three little hymn story paperbacks were silent that such a hymn was in use, but I did find the hymn in "Lutheran Book of Worship" which we use in our traditional services (from mid-1970s). It added the tune name American, Land of Rest. So I turned to the internet and after 2 tries with AI which was really out to lunch, I found: "F.B.P. These initials appear over the text of ‘Hierusalem my happie home’ (‘Jerusalem, my happy home’*) in a manuscript book in the British Library (Add. 15,225). The hymn is of 26 4-line stanzas, entitled ‘A Song Mad (i.e. ‘made’) by F:B:P. To the tune of Diana.’ The text is based on a passage from St. Augustine’s Meditations beginning ‘Mater Hierusalem, Civitas sancta Dei’. In the version ascribed to ‘F.B.P.’ the text suggests a Roman Catholic origin (as opposed to a Protestant text by W. Prid, for which see JJ, p. 581). There are references to ‘Our Ladie’ who ‘singes magnificat’, to Saints Augustine and Ambrose, and to Mary Magdalene: ‘There Magdalene hath left her mone’. The initials..." I don't have a subscription to that source, so it's all I got.

Another full source (see link below) added some verses (different than what I was reading) and possible 2nd author. Both Catholics and Protestants use this hymn and there's no doubt that the author was in some danger for writing it.

Jerusalem, My Happy Home: Lyrics, Meaning & Story - Happy Sabbath

Happy Guardian Angel Day, October 2

Guardian Angel Day is today, October 2, when we thank spiritual beings believed to watch over us. This day, also known as the Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels, is a time to reflect on divine protection and express gratitude for guidance. Give thanks for the blessings in your life, share stories of miraculous protection, and honor your spiritual companions. Our UALC study group spent about 6 weeks on this a few years back--more than 100 verses. Jews, Muslims and Christians all acknowledge these beings in their sacred scriptures.

ABRACADABRA actually means Father, Son and Holy Spirit using Hebrew words to summon an angel. I think it's being used as a superstition, but that's a fact.

I'm suspicious that my Guardian Angel has been napping or on strike.

There are 9 orders of angels, from highest to lowest, in groups of three. I could only remember 6 so I asked AI. And angels are the bottom rung.

Seraphim – The highest order, closest to God’s presence. They worship Him with burning love and purity, often depicted with six wings (two covering the face, two covering the feet, two for flying)

Cherubim – Beings of great wisdom and knowledge, guardians of sacred spaces (e.g., Eden) and divine mysteries

Thrones – Symbolize God’s justice and power; they serve as intermediaries between the divine and lower orders

Dominions – Oversee cosmic order and divine authority; they govern the lower orders

Virtues – Associated with divine strength and the ability to resist evil; they maintain the harmony of creation

Powers – Guardians of the spiritual realm; they protect the world from chaos and evil

Principalities – Leaders over nations, communities, and major spiritual matters

Archangels – Prominent messengers and leaders (e.g., Michael, Gabriel) who deliver divine messages and guide humanity

Angels – The general class of messengers, sent to guide, protect, and serve individuals and communities

So, Happy Guardian Angel Day.

How the Biden administration became human traffickers.

Easy peasy. Lure immigrants to make the dangerous trek to the U.S. border with help of American NGOs. As you look ahead to whom will receive your donations at Thanksgiving and Christmas, look closely at the NGOs, The so-called non-profits. Even the Christians. Killers with compassion. You may be destroying the cultures and way of life of the subsistence farmers who were able to buy all sorts of modern goodies with the little villages which rose up overnight and responded with housing, clothing and feeding them. A few nights in their new encampments and send them on their way to Arizona or Texas or flights to New England resort towns.

When Trump shut down the illegal trafficking, the abuse and rape of women and children and labor slaves, the money spigot was shut off. The new way of life for the ethnics and locals was shut down. Well paid U.S. CEOs suddenly lost their paycheck. Graduate students in Columbus and Chicago studying on grants had no stipend. So of course, Trump and not Biden-Harris was blamed.

Chinese, Afghans, Haitians, Venezuelans, most young military age men, many women with children, some children "borrowed" to create the look of a family only to be lost and sold in the U,S., sometimes came through in the thousands. I doubt if you saw them if you watched the main stream media, but Fox showed well dressed, clean shaven and well fed immigrants--all taken care of by NGOs' and their thriving businesses run by the locals.

What were the locals to do? Let them starve? We've got wealthy American teens who will kill for fancy shoes or the latest i-phone or do smash and grab just for fun. So, we should expect higher standards from indigenous people living in the Darien Gap?

Then the illegals were dumped in rural areas of the U.S. where they sopped up scarce resources for schools and hospitals and housing--again helped by churches and NGOs preaching pious Bible verses, but with no thought for abortions or poor schools or dropping birth rates.

Wake up Americans. Especially Republicans. Democrats are probably beyond hope.

https://www.fairus.org/issue/panamas-darien-gap

The Long Journey North: How the U.S. Manages Migration through the Darién Gap — International Relations Review

Poverty appeals to Christians

In the past 2 days I've seen the same appeal for money from organizations that should know better--the Salvation Army and a local Catholic congregation. It reads something like this, "Inflation is forcing Columbus families to turn to food pantries . . ." and you know the rest. . . please give what you can for our annual appeal.

Poverty in the USA is at its lowest level in my lifetime. In 2025, approximately 10.2 percent of the population was living below the national poverty line in the United States. This reflected a 0.5 percentage point decrease from the previous year. Most recently, poverty levels in the country peaked during the Obama years in 2010 at just over 15 percent. Inflation following the Biden administration has been cut in half. Median household income (2025): $87,460, up 2.6% from 2024 — the highest on record. Removing illegals has also lowered the cost of housing. Let's have a gratitude, God is good, collection!

Except for gasoline, inflation and prices are at an all-time low. Gasoline remains expensive because the greenies wanted it high so people would turn to "alternative and sustainable fuel," and wouldn't let refineries be built. The wars--which always seem to be with us--Russia and Ukraine, the Middle-east, proxies for Iran, Africa, etc. need more than one side to agree. Every plan Trump came up with worked, but the Demedia raged and lied.

Feeding the poor (giving alms) is actually a command, not a suggestion, from Jesus. If your pension or investment plan have been good to you, then share your blessings--don't lie about it!

Food pantries used to be the domain of the churches with special appeals at Thanksgiving and Christmas. I recall in 1968 attending neighborhood meetings that were urging we all work together and create large food storage areas (food banks) that all the pantries could use and large campaigns like "feeding America" were organized. It was going to solve the food shortage. It was compassion--and lucrative for some. They became massive non-profits with highly paid staff and CEOs. Someone (surprise!) learned to make a generous living helping the poor and taught the poor how to manipulate the system. They learned to make do on 27 days on their food stamps and use the pantry for the short days. The government changed the word "hunger" to "food insecurity" 20 years ago which meant access was not what you want for the fullest life.

Even during the Clinton administration decades ago, it was shown that to avoid poverty 3 things are required.

1) Finish high school,
2) be over 21 and married before having children, and
3) have a full time job.

So, from FDR's food surplus program during the Depression to the most recent $70,000 appeal my church had because some people in the media terrorized local leaders about tariffs and stopping fraud in government grants (which cut off some poverty funding) we've had about a century to "feed America."

In the worst days of Jim Crow, Blacks had a higher marriage rate and lower unemployment than whites. And now the poorest cities have the lowest marriage rates, and surprise, most have Democrats in charge of the wallet,

https://www.statista.com/statistics/200463/us-poverty-rate-since-1990/

Airplanes made of latex

I had been reading some of my old blogs written during the Covid era (2022) and was stunned at how stupid the experts were (who listened to Fauci), and switched over to OSU Gabbe Health and Wellness Center a few miles down the road from where I live. What is called "wellness" these days on college campuses is beyond bizarre. Scrolling, I discovered there is a wellness condom club for students that with a membership offers 25 condoms a day for only $5. So, I googled that one. Against STIs, condoms offer 80-95% REDUCED transmission risk, if applied absolutely 100% correctly. Would you fly in an airplane with stats like that? Would you fly in an airplane made of thin latex?

Democrats have become the anti-progress party just as they were in the 19th century with slavery

The party that calls itself "progressive" (and then moved on to socialist and then Communist) is now the "anti-progress" party. Bernie and AOC want to put a fence around AI (artificial intelligence) and drive it out of the country. President Xi of China wants to invite 100,000 of our brightest and best young people to China for a look-see at what China is doing with AI. What could possibly go wrong? What, another 100,000 Tim Walzes to run for president with a huge fraud base? 

Xi’s 100K invitation to America’s youth sets off alarm bells over what could follow them home

David Sacks tells of an emperor in the Ming Dynasty (1300s) who forbid maritime commerce just as Europe was expanding its horizons. Until then the Chinese culture and wealth was ahead of Europe. It never caught up. 

But it can do it now with AI. Democrats want to stop US expansion in AI for 2 reasons: 1) because they are desperate to stop anything that Trump does. If it brings down Western Civilization, so be it. It's then Trump's fault. 2) Also, most of the corporations now leaders in AI in the US are left leaning--big donors to Democrats. They want to control the market and can do that more easily with Democrats controlling everything and make it illegal to compete with them. No matter if it cures cancer or dementia, or if it goes beyond the moon. They must stop Trump and take over the country.

 Ming Dynasty Establishes Maritime Prohibition

Obamacare going up and up

Obamacare insurance costs will rise again in 2027. Now don't blame Trump! He tried to undo that mess during his first term, and I think it was a Republican who worked against him. That's how much some hate Trump. They'd rather get rid of Trump or defeat his agenda than help the American people. ACA premiums proposed increase is 14%. Healthcare costs went up under Obama, not down--ACA went up 20% in 2025. It looked tempting in the beginning because of the subsidies, and we Americans still believe someone else will pay the bill. New Yorkers fell for that--Mamdani. Californians always go for--and Minnesotans--and increasingly, Texans. There is no free lunch--only socialism and communism. 

(Reported by ABCNews in BottomLine, Sept 2026, although the opinion part is mine)

Students using AI assistants and the professors who have to keep up

I was glancing through a bibliography of a medieval monastic reform movement (Cistercian Reform) and clicked on something that offered help from "Leo AI." Wondering who or what that was, I found I could have a chat with Brave Leo--for a price:

"Chat Privately with Brave Leo

Brave Leo is a private AI smart assistant that enhances your use of the web. Leo is free to use with limited access. Brave Leo Premium offers more models, higher limits and gives subscribers early access to new features. The default model will change from time to time. See the Brave Help Center for more details.

By default, when you ask Leo a question about a website or page you are viewing, the content of the webpage you are viewing or any text you highlight on a page, as well as your search query will be sent to Brave servers in order for Leo to provide a response. In some cases, Leo will send queries derived from your input to Brave Search and use the search results to better answer your question. Brave does not guarantee the accuracy of responses, and responses may include inaccurate, misleading, or false information. Don't submit sensitive or private information to Brave Leo, and use caution with any answers related to health, finance, personal safety, or similar. You can adjust Leo’s options in Settings any time. Go to Settings > Leo.

Leo does not collect identifiers such as your IP address that can be linked to you. We do not train our models based on your data, including your search queries or Brave Leo’s responses. No personal data is stored on our servers, or retained by Brave. See the privacy policy for more information."

Then I was supposed to click on "I understand." But I don't. So, I didn't. How does a college professor of some age ever evaluate a paper of a student who had help from Brave Leo?

Michael Smith, guest blogger, on Democrat voters

I'm not shy about saying that to the Democrats, your life and the lives of your family and friends are worthless.

 
That's not me just issuing hyperbolic rhetoric, it is a proven fact based on their on policy positions, priorities and actions.

First and foremost, this is a party that has gone from saying abortion should be "safe, legal and rare" to approving elective abortion until birth - and even then, they loudly support mothers who have killed their own children.

They have little interest in stopping the cross border flow of deadly drugs like fentanyl, costing thousands of lives every year.

They release hardened criminals back on the streets to commit more crimes that often include murder and rigorously defend them once they do commit criminal acts, enthusiastically prosecuting anyone who tries to stop their rampages.

They openly call for the abolition of any effort to stop illegal immigration or removal of illegal aliens and ignore ICE detainers of proven serious criminals, even to the point of helping these criminals avoid detention and deportation.

 
They cheer the political violence that has led to unsuccessful assassination attempts on Donald Trump, and the successful assassinations of Charlie Kirk and Brian Thompson, the CEO of United Health Care. Never forget that they idolized the Boston Marathon bombers, to the point of swooning over Dzhokhar Tsarnaev's glamor photo on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine.

Factions within their party openly support Hamas, Hezbollah, and Iran and those who don't, try to minimize or excuse the open antisemitism and attacks on the Jewish community both here in the US and abroad.

They use the argument that "if it saves one life", it is justifiable to abridge your Second Amendment right to keep and bear arms while openly calling for a weak or open border to allow more illegal aliens to enter, even though some of those aliens murder, get drunk and drive and kill. The Democrats facilitate vehicular homicide, in the name of compassion for our "neighbors", by handing out commercial driver's licenses to aliens who do not speak or read our language.

Self-identified "lifelong Democrat" Elizabeth Carter admitted during a hearing this week that that she is "ashamed" of her party’s handling of the immigration issue after her son, William Micah Carter and his newlywed wife, Jennifer Lower, were killed in a car crash after their vehicle slammed into a jackknifed big rig driven by illegal immigrant Rajinder Kumar in late November. Kumar's CDL was issued by the State of California.

 
She agreed with the statement that "They just don't care" as an accurate assessment of the Democrat Party's view.

At worst, they hate you and want you to die, at best they see you as a disposable tool for their agenda and yet they sell their party as the party of compassion.

They are going all out to make you believe they care about you.

They don't.

Believe then when they show you who they are.

Children and poetry

For our next meeting of TEPG, The Estates Poetry Group, we're going to look at hymns as one of the earliest ways children learn and memorize poetry (and it's also the final way we hear poetry even with dementia). Again, I used AI and am not filled with terror that the Democrats and their funding sources in the AI industry have pushed on us the last 2 weeks. My question was about the meter 11.11.11.11 compared with a more standard meter like 8.6.8.6 and I was told that was impossible to know because there are too many hymnbooks. At least Chat gpt didn't tell me to ask a librarian like Co-pilot did with my last question. That meter is used for "Immortal, invisible God only wise," one of my favorites. Count it.

https://youtu.be/6YCBO5bGrdE?si=mCsbJKKd5jJC6QhF

Bill Gurley (venture capitalist) discusses how to respond catastrophes

Covid is still dividing friends, colleagues, church members and residents of senior living residences. This may be the most important explanation you'll read today, this week, or ever. Yes, I'm no click bait. This is real. At the recent symposium by All-In 2026, Bill Gurley discusses how societies respond to catastrophes. Surfside, Florida collapse, Boeing 737 MAX crashes, Hurricane Katrina, etc., and then how it responded to Covid-19. In the past the media jumped in to provide the solutions. But with Covid? It became the channel of misinformation allowing the real criminals to get away with murder.

https://singjupost.com/transcript-of-bill-gurley-searching-for-feynman-at-all-in-summit-2026/?

You can watch this, listen to it, or read it (transcript) Gurley analyzes the root causes of some recent disasters--you'll remember them--Surfside collapse, Hurricane Katrina, etc. The researchers and the solutions to prevent the next one. Sometimes it was a small failure overlooked. But Covid? Nope. No big search for solutions and prevention for next time. There are blockers and searchers. He notes 5 women Alina Chan, Katherine Eban, Emily Kopp, Zeynep Tufekci and Alison Young who are heroes but are still being ignored by the blockers and the media (who were critical in previous solutions but became political in Covid). Some of you know how to be sleuths, so get busy.

Guide to AI

 The 2026 IBM Guide to AI

Although Kamala may not understand AI or how it works, she knows she and her backers benefit if she can slow it down. And why not? If someone with a better widget shows up, just have a law that says no new players in the game--or it would just be too dangerous.

Harris backs AI slowdown amid growing safety fears - POLITICO

It's never enough for Democrats, but Republicans?

Enough is never enough for Democrats, so I'm only writing for Republicans who believe the affordability lie, yet understand there is a very real war in the middle east and the witch hunt AI doomers.

1) Inflation has been cut in half since the Biden years. OK, finished with that one.

 
2) Yes, Trump said no more wars, but he also said Israel is our ally and Iran couldn't have a nuclear bomb to wipe us out (been attacking US and allies for 49 years).

 
3) Democrats have tried to kill Trump several times and they lie incessantly about gender, fascism and white supremisim while screaming "free Palestine" and shut down Jews on college campuses. So, do Republicans really think in their wildest dreams that AOC or Kamala have any understanding of even the meaning of the words or history, or do they think more Muslims in Congress will improve their lives, or the lives of women? Get a life!

This poem has one sentence

From Pádraig Ó Tuama e-mail (Sept 13)

"In my first Poetry Unbound book (Poetry Unbound: 50 Poems to Open Your World), I wrote an essay about a magnificent short poem from Rafiq Kathwari’s collection In Another Country. It’s a short poem. In fact, the title is longer than the poem itself.

"On Receiving Father at JFK after his Long Flight from Kashmir" 

 As I fling my arms wide, he extends his hand.

(From Rafiq Kathwari’s In Another Country, published by Doire Press)

That’s it. If you’re reading this on a phone, it may be that there are line breaks in either the title or body of the poem, but in the book, the title and poem are simply one line across the page each."

Read in context of Mr. Kathwari's family history, this is a beautiful poem.  Even one sentence. I read it to our poetry group at the Estates yesterday.  I don't think the group quite understood my enthusiasm. 

Dear Classmates

Must be a rerun. Found it cleaning out my files, too old to be AI, but could still be a fake.

Dear classmates of 1957. Erma Bombeck, one of my favorite writers, said this when she found out she was dying of cancer. We’ve made it this far—near or at 80, so enjoy the ride!

If I had my life to live over, by Erma Bombeck

I would have gone to bed when I was sick instead of pretending the earth would go into a holding pattern if I weren’t there for the day.

I would have burned the pink candle sculpted like a rose before it melted in storage.

I would have talked less and listened more.

I would have invited friends over to dinner even if the carpet was stained, or the sofa faded.

I would have eaten the popcorn in the ‘good’ living room and worried much less about the dirt when someone wanted to light a fire in the fireplace.

I would have taken the time to listen to my grandfather ramble about his youth.

I would have shared more of the responsibility carried by my husband.

I would never have insisted the car windows be rolled up on a summer day because my hair had just been teased and sprayed.

I would have sat on the lawn with my grass stains.

I would have cried and laughed less while watching television and more while watching life.

I would never have bought anything just because it was practical, wouldn’t show soil, or was guaranteed to last a lifetime.

Instead of wishing away nine months of pregnancy, I’d have cherished every moment and realized that the wonderment growing inside me was the only chance in life to assist God in a miracle.

When my kids kissed me impetuously, I would never have said, “Later. Now go get washed up for dinner.” There would have been more “I love you’s” and more “I’m sorry’s.”

But mostly, given another shot at life, I would seize every minute, look at it and really see it…live it and never give it back. STOP SWEATING THE SMALL STUFF!!!

Don’t worry about who doesn’t like you, who has more, or who’s doing what. Instead, let’s cherish the relationships we have with those who do love us.

Are we doomed or is this just another Fauci psyop?

Have you seen the guy with round glasses who looks like a 20-year-old with a doomsday message about AI? I saw him interviewed on Fox, but I think all the networks had a version, plus WSJ. Although he had no reputation, almost no job history, no social media presence and no one knew who put him up to it, this "Whistle blower" suddenly had about 100 million fans. views, interviews and overnight became more popular than Dr. Fauci. So, I used AI to look him up based by my description. 

"Jacob Coxon, a 27‑year‑old former researcher at Anthropic and OpenAI Gizmodo."

 
There are several doomer psyop groups and if you use the old term "follow the money" you'll find Bernie--maybe--or according to Mr, Coxon it's too late and the beings will just kill all of you because they are reproducing themselves.

This morning I listened to the Friday edition of All-In, and here's how Friedberg summed up how fear of risk and the "new" are built into our beings:

"Friedberg supplies the historical pattern that makes the panel skeptical of the doomer framing generally. Al Gore's documentary An Inconvenient Truth leaned on IPCC forecasts that have since proven overstated (15:45). Public health officials predicted COVID would require total lockdown, with consequences that included the inflation and debt spiral that followed (16:12). After the Three Mile Island accident, the United States effectively stopped building nuclear plants, and the price shows it: producing one gigawatt of nuclear power costs about $15 billion in the US today, versus roughly $1 billion in China (16:36). Each case, Friedberg argues, followed the same shape: an unprovable existential claim, amplified until it became the default social assumption, used to justify centralizing control in the hands of whoever raised the alarm.

"The US will be the tribe in the Amazon that has never seen civilization. 'Cause civilization will evolve all around us." - David Friedberg [20:36]

This summary leaves out a lot, but here is a full podcast https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=cvxjqbfLVk0 If I know anything about technology above e-mail, it's these guys.

I wonder where they find their titles

 Ohio Poetry Association.  

Founded in Columbus in 1929, the Ohio Poetry Association serves poets and those who appreciate poetry at all levels. We provide a variety of programs and other opportunities for developing and professional poets.  Ohio Poetry Association | Facebook

Ohio Poetry Journals & Presses

Looking to submit your work or read the work of another poet? Explore these Ohio poetry publishers.

Antioch Review
Ashland Poetry Press
Bottom Dog Press
Cleveland State University Press
Crisis Chronicles Press
deep cleveland press
Dos Madres Press
Full/Crescent Press
Kattywompus Press
Kenyon Review
Mid-American Review
NightBallet Press
Oberlin College Press
Ohio State University Press
Ohio University Press & Swallow Press
The Orchard Street Press
The Poet's Haven
Slippery Elm
University of Akron Press
Writing Knights Press

You can also explore Ohio's book publishers on the Ohio Center for the Book website here.

Affordability--it's a Democrat hoax

Affordability.

I'm really sick of that word. In 2022 inflation was 8%; today it's 3.36% even with the war in the middle east, it is lower in the Trump administration. All week-end the news has reported on the huge crowds traveling--despite high costs. Duh. So, affordability is OK, because prices aren't keeping people home to picnic in the neighborhood park, right?

In 1962 we bought our first house which we (Bob converted to a duplex) bought for $14,000. The government CPI says $14,000 would now be $140,840, about the same for a low income neighborhood in that town that we paid. 1,000% inflation, so I think only the government creates inflation. Fauci fooled both Trump and Biden and messed up the entire country. And from what I hear among Democrats, some of them still believe Fauci and think we are still virtuous for importing illegals to take jobs from Americas. .

Canadian retirement woes

At least he's not blaming it on Trump--the fact he can't afford to retire. Bruce Grierson is a Canadian free lance writer--which has never been a secure, stable job. Affordability. I'm starting to hate that word. I'm not gloating, but I gave up a lot when I was younger so I would have enough to live on when I couldn't support myself.

But I did talk to one of my neighbors this morning at our independent living residence and complained that I was having a problem with the double verification code with my OSU e-mail password, and would you believe my friend blamed President Trump? And he was serious! His reasoning was that if Trump could rename Lake Ontario then he had messed with my e-mail login. And it's a shame too. He's such a nice guy other than that ugly Trump derangement syndrome.

https://macleans.ca/longforms/retirement-is-dead/

UALC is 70 years old and we've been there 52 years

 

We raised our hands by decade this past Sunday in worship at Lytham Road UALC. So, I'll repeat the letter from Pastor Joe Valentino (Lytham Road campus) that came in my e-mail, August 27, 2026. I'm pretty sure that Helen sitting in the pew in front of me raised her hand for 70--she's 100+. We began attending in 1974 and joined in 1976--and the next day Bob lost his job.

"This fall, UALC celebrates 70 years of life together, faithful service, and care for our community.

In July 1956, a group of men and women came together with a shared hope: to build a community rooted in faith, shaped by grace, and centered on the truth that Jesus is enough. What began as a small Lutheran congregation serving Upper Arlington has grown into a community that reaches across northwest Columbus and supports God’s work far beyond our local neighborhoods.

As we celebrate this milestone, we remember that UALC is more than an organization or a building. UALC is people: families, friends, volunteers, staff, longtime members, new faces, and neighbors who bring their gifts, time, and care to something larger than themselves. By God’s grace, we are part of his ongoing work. UALC is you.

Throughout these 70 years, God has brought together people with many different gifts, skills, and talents. He has grown our faith, knit us together as one body, and used this congregation to draw people to himself.

God is at work in our community, and he has chosen each of us to be part of what he is doing. As we look back with gratitude on the past 70 years, let us ask him to continue using UALC for his glory and for the good of our neighbors."

Lake Ontario

President Trump amazes me with the ways he tweaks the noses of both his Democrat Party challengers and our global trading partners. Like renaming Lake Ontario. For decades our woke and DEI advocates have been changing names of schools, sports teams, even pronouns and biological functions (like "chest feeding") to promote their philosophies. They've demanded we call Fred Frederica or lose our jobs. Well, he's a patriot, Has been as long as I can remember. TV -- I remember seeing him on the Oprah show when he was just a Democrat celebrity--maybe 40 years ago.

 
https://youtu.be/bFrpsx3r--Q?si=dYjeUX7-ECU8FIYX

Donald Trump's wardrobe hasn't changed, his beliefs about other countries "Ripping us off" haven't changed but look at that audience. 40 years later we all look like we're dressed for a circus or working in the garden.

Our poetry group at The Estates

We use AI a lot more than we think, but my most recent "event" was asking it, "How to start a poetry group at a senior living facility." We're ready for our 3rd meeting. Got some good stuff going.

https://www.statista.com/chart/35426/how-americans-want-ai-to-support-them/?

Syncope in older adults

 Syncope in Older Adults - What You Need to Know

Or why are you fainting?

What is syncope?

Syncope is also called fainting or passing out. Syncope is a sudden, temporary loss of consciousness, followed by a fall from a standing or sitting position. A syncope episode is usually short.

What causes or increases my risk for syncope?

Syncope is caused by a decrease in blood flow to the brain. When blood flow to the brain decreases, oxygen to the brain also decreases. Any of the following conditions may cause syncope:

Medicines such as blood pressure medicine or antidepressants, or use of multiple medicines

A medical condition such as severe anemia, a nerve disorder, asthma, or hyperventilation (breathing too quickly)

A heart condition, such as a narrow artery or an irregular heartbeat

Dehydration

Problems with the blood vessels of your brain

Bleeding, especially in your stomach or intestines, or a blood clot that passes through your lungs

A rapid drop in blood pressure after a body position change, such as moving from lying to sitting or standing

Straining during bowel movements, a cough or sneeze, or a stressful or fearful situation

What signs and symptoms may occur before syncope?

Cold, clammy, and sweaty skin

Fast breathing and a racing, pounding heartbeat

Feeling more tired than usual

Nausea, a warm feeling, sweating, and lightheadedness

A headache or dizziness

Tingling sensation or numbness

Spots in front of your eyes, blurred vision, or double vision

How is the cause of syncope diagnosed?

Your healthcare provider will examine you and ask about your symptoms. Tell your provider everything you know about your syncope episode. Include where you were when you fainted and what you were doing before symptoms started. Your provider will ask about your medical history, including any heart conditions in your family. Ask anyone who saw you faint to come with you to tell the provider details of what happened. Your provider may order the following tests to find out what is causing your symptoms:

Blood tests may be done to find the cause of your syncope.

Telemetry is continuous monitoring of your heart rhythm. Sticky pads placed on your skin connect to an EKG machine that records your heart rhythm.

An echocardiogram is a type of ultrasound. Sound waves are used to show the structure and function of your heart.

A stress test may show the changes that take place in your heart while it is under stress. Stress may be placed on your heart with exercise or medicine. Ask for more information about this test.

A Holter monitor is also called a portable electrocardiography (EKG) monitor. It shows your heart's electrical activity while you do your usual activities. The monitor is a small battery-operated device that you wear. It will show how fast your heart beats and if it beats in a regular pattern. Your provider may recommend this if you have syncope often over 2 to 3 days.

How is syncope treated?

Treatment depends on the cause of your syncope. To prevent syncope from happening again, you may need any of the following:

Medicines may be needed to help your heart pump strongly and regularly. Your healthcare provider may also make changes to any medicines that are causing syncope.

Tilt training involves training yourself to stand for 10 to 30 minutes each day against a wall. This helps your body decrease the effects of posture changes and reduces the number of fainting spells.

What can I do to manage syncope?

Keep a record of your syncope episodes. Include your symptoms and your activity before and after the episode. The record can help your healthcare provider find the cause of your syncope and help you manage episodes.

Sit or lie down when needed. This includes when you feel dizzy, your throat is getting tight, and your vision changes. Raise your legs above the level of your heart. Your provider may also recommend that you keep the head of your bed elevated. This can help keep your blood pressure from dropping too low.

Check your blood pressure often. This is important if you take medicine to lower your blood pressure. Check your blood pressure when you are lying down and when you are standing. Ask how often to check during the day. Keep a record of your blood pressure numbers. Your provider may use the record to help plan your treatment.

Use assistive devices as directed. Your provider may suggest that you use a cane or walker to help you keep your balance. You may need to have grab bars put in your bathroom near the toilet or in the shower.

What can I do to prevent a syncope episode?

Know and avoid your triggers. Certain events may bring on syncope. These events may cause you to feel under pressure, upset, or fearful. When you feel the symptoms, you can make movements to prevent a syncope episode. For example, make a fist, cross your legs, squeeze your thighs together, or tighten your arm muscles.

Move slowly and let yourself get used to one position before you move to another position. This is very important when you change from a lying or sitting position to a standing position. Take some deep breaths before you stand up from a lying position. Stand up slowly. Sudden movements may cause a fainting spell. Sit on the side of the bed or couch for a few minutes before you stand up. If you are on bedrest, try to be upright for about 2 hours each day, or as directed. Do not lock your legs if you are standing for a long period of time. Move your legs and bend your knees to keep blood flowing.

Follow your healthcare provider's recommendations. 

Your provider may recommend that you drink more liquids to prevent dehydration. You may also need to have more salt to keep your blood pressure from dropping too low and causing syncope. Your provider will tell you how much liquid and sodium to have each day. Your provider will also tell you how much physical activity is safe for you. This will depend on what is causing your syncope.

Watch for signs of low blood sugar. These include hunger, nervousness, sweating, and fast or fluttery heartbeats. Talk with your provider about ways to keep your blood sugar level steady.

Do not strain if you are constipated. You may faint if you strain to have a bowel movement. Walking is the best way to get your bowels moving. Eat foods high in fiber to make it easier to have a bowel movement. Good examples are high-fiber cereals, beans, vegetables, and whole-grain breads. Prune juice may help make bowel movements softer.

Be careful in hot weather. Heat can cause a syncope episode. Limit activity done outside on hot days. Physical activity in hot weather can lead to dehydration. This can cause an episode.

https://ubiehealth.com/doctors-note/vasovagal-syncope-age65-causes-prevent-fainting-37123exp4

Advice about nutrition from Tufts

Advice from the Tufts Health and Nutrition Letter (Aug. 22) 

I think these are probably correct--I've known a long time that plant burgers are processed food, and that lunch meat wrapped in anything contains a lot of sodium, and that granola bars are really candy bars, but they are all on our senior living company's recommended diet.

PLANT-BASED BURGERS

Plant-based burgers that look and taste like meat are all the rage. But the truth is these "meat" products are highly-processed foods that bear resemblance to the plant foods from which they come. [These are served in hospitals and retirement and nursing homes and schools.]

TURKEY IN A SPINACH WRAP

Contrary to what you’ve read, turkey in a spinach wrap is not a wise choice. Deli turkey is sky-high in sodium and the wrap typically contains refined grains and only trace amounts of spinach.

GRANOLA BARS

Granola bars seem healthy, but many are just crunchy delivery mechanisms for sugar. Chocolate and other coatings can easily bring the total to 20 grams per bar – the same as a Snicker’s Bar!

BUT, I really wish I could find out what Tufts advised about Covid and what money it took or whose careers were ruined 5 years ago. I haven't been able to dig it out. 

Jim Wigtil, a friend met late

 About 9 years ago I began chatting with a woman at the gym and we became friends.  We started having long talks about our careers at Ohio State, our childhood years (we were the same age,) and faith, and I often went out for coffee with her and her husband, Jim.  They had a full and active life. In recent years be had periodic illnesses and JoAnne, his wife, turned her time to care giving. Then we moved a year ago to a senior retirement community, and meeting became difficult. Recently he died and I'll be attending his funeral. We met late, but it was a good friendship.

James Wigtil Obituary - Columbus, OH

Should it be so hard to buy Folex?

I wonder why people buy on-line. Well, I know why, but the math doesn't work.

 If I drive to Lowe's and buy one bottle 32 oz of  (carpet spot cleaner) I don't know exactly what it costs, but recall it's about 6 or 7 dollars. On line one 32 oz is $6.88 (although it varies), and on line 3 bottles same size are $34. Let's round up--I'm not the best in math--but isn't $21 less than $34? Couldn't I buy 5 singles for about the same as 3 singles if sold together?

 
Are customers so math challenged that they think larger or packaged together is cheaper? And why if I specifically ask the AI whozit "cost of Folex at Lowe's" I first get every imaginable product and size I don't want not in Lowe's and not in the store?

Who is dumb? Customer? Algorithm? AI?

Although I can't verify each claim, I've read about most in "updated" science articles

If you had trusted the settled science of the day, here is how it would have gone.

1890s: you dose the baby with Bayer's new cough syrup, the non-addictive alternative to morphine, marketed for children. It was heroin. They named it after the German for heroic.

1900s: you rub calomel teething powder on your infant's gums. It is a mercury compound, and it leaves a generation with pink disease. Swollen, peeling hands and feet, screaming for months, and some of them died.

1910s: you cook in Crisco, launched by a soap and candle company, because cottonseed oil is modern and lard is what your mother used. The process that made it solid produced trans fat, banned outright a century later.

1920s: you drink Radithor, certified radioactive water, on prescription. Eben Byers took fourteen hundred bottles for his vitality. His jaw was removed in pieces and he was buried in a lead coffin.

1930s: a chemist dissolves a new sulfa drug in diethylene glycol, which is antifreeze. It kills 107 people, mostly children, and only then does America give the FDA power to demand safety testing.

1940s: your doctor lights a Camel in the surgery. More doctors smoke them than any other brand, and the advert runs in the Journal of the American Medical Association, which sold him the page.

1950s: DDT is sprayed over your kitchen, your garden and your children at school. The man who found its insecticidal properties has already been given a Nobel Prize.

1960s: your wife takes thalidomide for morning sickness because it is remarkably safe. More than ten thousand children are born with missing and shortened limbs.

1970s: the country puts down the butter and picks up the margarine, on the instruction of the American Heart Association. The fat everybody switched to was banned in 2015 as unsafe at any level.

1980s: the fat comes out of everything and sugar goes back in to make it edible. Obesity begins a climb it has never come off.

1990s: your father is prescribed OxyContin, because fewer than one per cent get addicted. The company later pleads guilty to criminal misbranding, and the overdose count runs into hundreds of thousands.

2000s: you take Vioxx for your knee. It is pulled in 2004, and the FDA's own safety officer estimates tens of thousands of excess heart attacks.

Not one of those was fringe. Every one had a professional body, a literature and a man in a white coat standing behind it.

Nobody who followed that advice was stupid. They were obedient, to the most qualified people available.

Settled is a word about money. It means the questions stopped being funded, so they stopped being asked.

So which of today's instructions will your grandchildren read out in disbelief.

The oil washed in hexane and built into every cell you own. The statin that blocks the pathway making your hormones, to prevent one heart attack per hundred people. The injection where a third of the loss is muscle. The infant formula built out of vegetable oil.
All settled. None of it funded to be otherwise.

https://x.com/samahoole/status/2088832696155820150?s=46
See less

Sama Hoole on X

Remember what we were told about butter, coffee, and eggs? And look what has happened to the obesity rate based on "science" and "nutritionist" advice,

Women being assaulted by women in WNBA

I've been watching the latest WNBA antics and the Sophie Cunningham neck chop. Bunch of violent lesbian owners and players. And back in the day when you could trust domestic violence statistics, it was clearly reported 2 decades ago that rate of domestic violence was highest among lesbians/bisexuals within all the combinations--but that includes verbal assault. Today no one can define a woman, including a DEI appointee Scotus justice (the president even said that), and their idiocy has come home to roost on the basketball court.

 
There are former NBA gentlemen who have decided to step up to demonstrate the silliness of the women, On August 7, 2026, Enes Kanter Freedom announced via X that he is “officially declaring myself a WNBA prospect” for the 2027 draft, saying he has “carefully examined” the WNBA’s eligibility criteria and believes he meets all requirements. They were outdone years ago by Zuby, a professional British weightlifter who entered competition as a female, and no one could stop him. He cleaned house, just to prove a point about "trans." He's an author, podcaster and musician. I adore him. He was born in England, raised in Saudi Arabia and is a graduate of Oxford University. His parents are ethnic Nigerian, and he has an American accent. He's definitely a man.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/08/updates-sophie-cunningham-speaks-after-chicago-sky-player/

Enes Kanter Freedom Declares For The 2027 WNBA Draft: "I Meet Every Requirement Necessary" | Video | RealClearPolitics

About | ZUBY: Independent Rapper

Fauci got the rights we didn't

I believe Dr. Fauci should have pled the 5th. And he did. He destroyed our Constitutional Rights but that's no reason to return the crime. It doesn't solve what we will do the next time the government and the media collude. And will our churches stand up and object the next time?

"What we do know, though, is that Anthony Fauci has finally come to see the value in the Bill of Rights, having spent the COVID years routinely trying to trample the First Amendment rights of those who would dare publicly disagree with him.

His ire was routinely on display whenever the Great Barrington Declaration reared its ugly head. The authors of that declaration simply asserted that “Adopting measures to protect the vulnerable should be the central aim of public health responses to COVID-19.” Fauci and his merry band, on the other hand, pushed for and got lockdowns. The healthy and the sick, the strong and the vulnerable, all fell into the same bucket, and that bucket was placed behind a locked door.

And anyone who disagreed was to be silenced, First Amendment be damned." 

Anthony Fauci (Finally) Discovers the Bill of Rights

Medicare increases for 2027

Notes from Kiplinger's on the 2027 Medicare increases

https://hwww.kiplinger.com/retirement/medicare/medicare-2027-how-much-premiums-are-set-to-rise

"Medicare premiums are set to rise again for 2027. The latest Social Security and Medicare Trustees Report (page 207) estimates that Part B premiums will climb 3.5% in 2027, reaching $209.50 per month, up $6.60 from 2026. While another price hike is never good news for retirees, the increase is a relief compared to the almost 10% spike experienced in 2026.

Unlike Part B, Medicare Part D is sold through private insurance companies, either as a standalone drug plan alongside traditional Medicare or as part of a Medicare Advantage policy.

Because individual plan costs vary, the average premium enrollees pay is typically lower than the base beneficiary premium. According to the latest Trustees Report, the Part D base premium is projected to reach $41.33 per month in 2027.

Medicare Part B pays for doctor visits, outpatient care and some home healthcare. When enrolled, you pay both a deductible and a monthly premium. For 2027, the premium is currently projected to rise 3.5% to $209.50, up $6.60 from $202.90 in 2025.

The Part B deductible is projected to reach $292 in 2027, a $9.00 increase from $283.00 in the previous year. On a percentage basis, it's an increase of 3.2%, in line with the estimated increase of the Part B premium.

The projected Part B increase impact on Social Security benefits

The 2027 Social Security COLA is projected to rise 3.8%, after accounting for the June CPI. In terms of dollars, if implemented now, that would translate into an increase of $79.14 per month or $949.68 per year, when using the average Social Security check amount for May 2026 ($2,082.76) as the base amount.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) automatically deducts the Part B premium cost from the Social Security benefits of most Medicare recipients. For 2027, the average Social Security check would fall from $79.14 to $72.54, subtracting the projected Part B increase ($6.60) from the projected COLA raise (79.14). In that scenario, the Part B increase would consume approximately 8.3% of the monthly increase.

Understanding Medicare Part D premiums

Unlike Part B, there isn't a single "standard" Part D premium, as it varies by plan. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) establishes a standardized base premium amount used to calculate late enrollment penalties and to determine Part D IRMAA surcharges. For 2027, the base premium is $41.33.

Most final premium and deductible amounts won't be announced until late October or early November; however, most of the Part D amounts have been finalized.

Annual deductible: The standard Part D deductible will increase to $700 in 2027, up from $615 in 2026. That's a steeper increase than in 2026, when the deductible rose to $615 from $590 in 2025, a $25 increase.

Out-of-pocket spending cap: On a positive note for 2027, Medicare Part D's annual out-of-pocket prescription cap will rise to $2,400, up $300 from the $2,100 limit in 2026. Once beneficiaries reach this cap, they no longer pay out-of-pocket costs for covered prescription drugs for the rest of the year.

Premium protections and stabilization: To shield enrollees from steep rate hikes, the premium stabilization provision of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) caps annual base beneficiary premium (BBP) growth at 6% yearly through 2029, while limiting how much extra cost plan sponsors can pass along.

While an IRA demonstration program previously stabilized average monthly premiums, CMS scaled back that support in 2026, stating in a memo that reducing federal subsidies is meant to help the Part D program "return to operating under regular market conditions."

Notes from Newsweek

https://www.newsweek.com/medicare-update-new-estimate-of-how-much-premiums-will-increase-12256344

Five Star no longer exists; we are now part of Sinceri

https://www.mcknightsseniorliving.com/news/sinceri-discovery-tutera-among-operators-assuming-management-of-116-five-star-communities/

"AlerisLife/Five Star was one of the largest senior living community operators in the United States.

In the 2025 ASHA 50 list of largest operators, AlerisLife was listed in eighth place, with 132 properties and a total of 19,056 units as of June 1.

AlerisLife/Five Star also appeared in sixth place on Argentum’s 2025 list of largest senior providers. That list, released in July with data current as of June 30, 2023, reported that AlerisLife/Five Star had 9,836 employees and 19,492 total units across 138 communities, including 10,123 for independent living, 7,539 for assisted living and 1,830 for memory care.

AlerisLife filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act notice with the state of Massachusetts on Sept. 3 [2025] indicating that 179 employees would be laid off between Nov. 3 and Dec. 31. In an updated notice filed Sept. 30, the company indicated that the layoffs would take place through March 31, 2026."

Senior Living REITs are hot.

Looking back a 2022 and Five Star/Aleris

"A news-filled 2022

News of the acquisition at the beginning of 2023 comes after a news-filled 2022 for AlerisLife:In January 2022, Five Star Senior Living announced a new name, AlerisLife, for a parent company under which the Five Star name would continue to be used for a senior living management services division and the Ageility name would continue to be used for its rehabilitation / fitness services division. AlerisLife also announced plans to expand into active adult management services and home care and concierge services.

In February 2022, AlerisLife announced that it had closed on a $95 million senior secured term loan to obtain “increased liquidity to use at our discretion and additional flexibility for the coming years as we execute on our strategic business plan,” then-President and CEO Katie Potter said at the time.
In May, AlerisLife announced that Potter had resigned and that Chief Financial Officer Jeff Leer had been appointed to succeed her on an interim basis as the company hired a consulting group to review operations.

Leer’s appointment was made permanent in June as the company announced plans to cut costs and make operational changes to try to increase occupancy. In August, Leer said that AlerisLife would reduce costs by approximately $14 million and invest approximately $4 million under recommendations made by the consulting firm it had hired, to “drive efficiencies and standardize processes that will enable us to better serve our residents and customers and stabilize our financial performance.”
In November, Leer said that continuing progress on the company’s restructuring plan had resulted in occupancy gains in the third quarter that were the largest in recent years.

Also in November, AlerisLife reported that it faced possible delisting by Nasdaq because the bid price for shares of the company’s common stock had closed at less than $1 for the past 30 consecutive business days. The company was given until May 8, 2023, to come into compliance with the minimum bid price continued listing standard.

AlerisLife was No. 6 on the 2022 American Seniors Housing Association’s ASHA 50 list of largest senior living operators, falling from No. 5 in 2021 and No. 4 in 2020. But the company moved from No. 5 in 2021 to No. 4 in 2022 on Argentum’s list of largest operators."

Trump's role in the Fauci downfall

Although I think Fauci is guilty of all they accuse him of, I also believe President Trump put him in power hoping to be the hero of a virus no one understood. Trump was right in the beginning calling it the Wuhan virus, but he appointed the man he thought would be best qualified to control it. He was wrong; his usual good instincts about people failed him and us. Fauci got rid the other advisors who would contradict him.

 
Trump was also the godfather of PPP which was to replace incomes during the shutdowns, which was ripe for fraud and even compromised churches and non-profits. Fauci was then a gift to the Democrats from Trump. Children have lost years of schooling, the elderly died alone, people lost jobs and careers for refusing unsafe "vaccines," and millions of people learned the government should take care of them.

Democrats may be dysfunctional, insane and suckers for falling for Communism, but the Republicans during a crisis were just sloppy and disorganized, terrorized by social media and the traditional media and fractured by their own internal problems.

I also think Fauci should continue to rely on the 5th Amendment. Let that remind us that the "Democratic Socialists" aka Communists, want to dump the Constitution.

Growth in senior living communities real estate--demographics and demad

"By 2035, the U.S. population aged 80+ is projected to grow by 56%, adding nearly 8 million seniors, reshaping long-term housing needs. In the first quarter of 2026, construction on new senior living units fell to its lowest level since 2012, and year-over-year inventory growth hit a record low of 0.4% in the first quarter, down from 0.5% in the fourth quarter of 2025. 2026 first-quarter senior living occupancy increased to 89.5% — up from 89.1% in the fourth quarter — with independent living occupancy higher than 91% and assisted living reaching 87.9%. A rapidly expanding cohort of higher-income seniors is driving demand for premium living environments featuring autonomy, wellness and lifestyle amenities, especially within continuum-of-care campuses." . . 

"Our communities are located in high-growth markets where 75+ populations are expanding rapidly and household incomes exceed national medians, supporting both demand affordability. Our team specializes in the operational and financial intricacies of senior living, partnering directly with operators to enhance care delivery, optimize NOI and elevated resident experience. We collaborate with established regional providers who bring deep clinical expertise, strong reputations and a proven ability to tailor services to local market needs. We actively benchmark performance, oversee capital planning, evaluate repositioning or disposition opportunities and maintain a rigorous focus on financial outcomes."

RMR Senior Living | Communities for Long-Term Demand

Alternative asset management companies are investment firms that focus on non-traditional assets outside of conventional stocks, bonds, and cash. Their goal is to generate returns that are often less correlated with traditional markets, providing investors with diversification benefits and access to unique investment opportunities.  These firms typically work with institutional investors, high-net-worth individuals, and family offices, designing customized portfolios that align with clients’ risk tolerance and financial objectives CGAA.

What is an alternative asset manager and how do they work?

Trump's days at war against Obama's years

I keep hearing people (Democrats) complain about the number of days of Trump's war, but nothing about Obama's years--eight--a record for any President, seven wars or maybe more. Large-scale, sustained ground wars, or broader military operations including air campaigns, drone strikes, and special operations.

Afghanistan War (including later counterterrorism campaigns)

Iraq War (including 2014–2017 campaign against ISIS)
Libya intervention (2011 NATO-led bombing campaign)
Syrian Civil War (U.S. support for rebels, later direct strikes)
Counterterrorism operations in multiple countries (Yemen, Somalia, Pakistan, etc.)
Some tallies also include Yemen and Somalia as separate military engagements

https://www.warcosts.org/presidents/obama
Obama has a lot to say about everything but his foreign policy | Responsible Statecraft

Craft day at The Estates

I'm not very crafty, but today we made greeting cards with buttons and scraps of yarn and cloth. Mine is the yellow with heels and the green one with a basketball, So, if you have a birthday or a good day you might hear from me.

Trafficking and slavery and Kafala

Before Trump makes deals with Saudi Arabia, he needs some deals to free foreign domestics in that country who are enslaved by their kafala system. Particularly Kenyan and Filipino women. There are many more slaves today than in the 18th century Atlantic slave trade and yet some Americans seem more concerned about racial sneers and DEI than true slavery. It was Arab Muslims enslaving Africans and Asians in the 17th and 18th century and it still is.

  Saudi Arabia: Migrant domestic workers face severe exploitation, racism and exclusion from labour protections - Amnesty International

https://www.respicio.ph/commentaries/ofw-abuse-in-saudi-arabia?

https://www.cfr.org/backgrounders/what-kafala-system?

Global: Filipino domestic workers exploited and subjected to sexual abuse in Saudi Arabia - Amnesty International

Obama's key campaign promise to end the war

When I hear members of Congress grilling members of Trump's war advisory group it makes me wonder if they remember that Obama continued a war he promised to end for eight years. Getting out of the war in Iraq was his key campaign promise, and yet he gave them the ability to create the monster that Trump is trying to slay.

From L.A. Times: "U.S. military forces have been at war for all eight years of Obama’s tenure, the first two-term president with that distinction. He launched airstrikes or military raids in at least seven countries: Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen, Somalia and Pakistan.

Yet the U.S. faces more threats in more places than at any time since the Cold War, according to U.S. intelligence. For the first time in decades, there is at least the potential of an armed clash with America’s largest adversaries, Russia and China.

"Obama slashed the number of U.S. troops in war zones from 150,000 to 14,000, and stopped the flow of American soldiers coming home in body bags. He also used diplomacy, not war, to defuse a tense nuclear standoff with Iran.

But he vastly expanded the role of elite commando units and the use of new technology, including armed drones and cyber weapons."

https://www.latimes.com/projects/la-na-pol-obama-at-war/?

Obama’s Tarnished Legacy in the Middle East – The Cairo Review of Global Affairs

President Obama and the Middle East: a Mixed Legacy : IEMed

Needs or wants in the affordability argument

"When young people struggle to buy a home and start a family, we shouldn’t be surprised to see a loosening attachment to heteronormativity." The American Conservative, June 2023 article about wokeness. 

Just because both the right and the left constantly preach this same affordability myth doesn't make it fact.

I did what the mythmakers should have done. I looked up housing prices and inflation. We bought our first home in 1962 for $14,000 at 6% interest. To call it a fixer upper would be a joke. A gravel driveway, no garage, and a dirt floor basement on a street zoned for business in a racially mixed neighborhood. Based on inflation figures, that would buy a house for $155,500 today. And I found several by checking the real estate ads. In that county one can find a slightly run down 3 bedroom, 1 bath ranch in need of a strong 24 year old with a wife and baby, very little money and some home repair skills learned in high school. I'll leave out the part where he hired a young ex-con as part time help who left after one day.

Along with inflation since 1962 there have been a number of generous government programs to add to a low wage job which makes that home very affordable (and btw virtually no adult works at federal or state minimum--realistically entry at McDonald's is about $16/hour with benefits). What today's young homebuyer would have to give up today would be the same things we didn't have--college loan payments, eating out, travel, nice clothes, multiple tech toys, phones, TVs, and leisure activities.

It's not that a house today isn't affordable. It's the lifestyle, and that's something we choose. Get out of New York City or DC or Seattle or LA and there are plenty of places to live and jobs with opportunity. 325,000,000 of us manage to live outside those money pits (Co-pilot figured it out for me).

Soccer. World Cup.

Trump made it happen; the nay sayers have to eat their words. And even I watched yesterday--although I didn't have a favorite and I really didn't understand much. At lunch today our table of 5 ignored politics (some were Democrats) and had a lively conversation on how much FIFA and the World Cup has contributed to not just the sports world but to the U.S. (to say nothing of the economy of the localities).

We also talked about how expensive it is to raise up a little one to play soccer. One couple has a granddaughter entering the teen years and decisions have to be made NOW and it will be very expensive. Another at the table has a granddaughter who is a soccer coach on the side at $50/hour so her players can qualify just for the middle school level.

I wonder why politicians aren't factoring in costs of private lessons and travel to games into the "affordability" school/family costs conversation. All I hear about are houses.

FIFA World Cup 2026 Task Force – The White House

The Lakota language

 Today on Facebook I saw something about a Lakota prayer. I'd seen that before, so I asked an AI assistant whether it was the British or French  who developed a writing system (alphabet, grammar, etc.) for that native American language group.  This brilliant assistant said--neither, "it was developed by missionaries,"  Duh! And what was their language? Oh well. I reworded my question several times and finally left out language and used evangelized and got Jesuits, Franciscans, Baptists, Methodists and later the Lutherans. Since Lakota was upper midwest and Canada and several language groups, I'll just have to let you do the research.

Poetry Jam at The Estates?

I enjoy writing (but not publishing) poetry. There are at least 5 of us here at The Estates who have expressed an interest in having poetry events or Jams occasionally. We did have a gathering in April (poetry month) with readings in a variety of styles. I think 11 attended. Today I came across the story of Anne Channing Porter who published her first book of poetry at 83. Might become an inspiration or our guardian angel. If I were to average our age it's about 92.

Anne Porter's poetry highlights faith, suffering and the wisdom of age | National Catholic Reporter

Anne Porter | The Poetry Foundation

A Short Testament by Anne Porter - Poems | Academy of American Poets

Adam Weybright, 1974-2026

 I was shocked to learn yesterday of the death of the son of my college roommate, JoElla Masterson Weybright, Adam Weybright, of the Seattle area.  I couldn't find an obituary, but I think he died around April 19, 2026 based on a GoFundMe report. There is a TV report on his sudden death because he was a well known teacher and coach.  This is AI generated.

"Adam Weybright was a 51-year-old science teacher at Nathan Hale High School and Lacrosse coach at Shorecrest High School in the Shoreline and Seattle communities.

He died suddenly in April 2026 following complications from a routine medical procedure.

Weybright, who previously worked as a scientist before becoming a teacher, is remembered for his profound impact on students and athletes. His legacy is honored through a "Live Like Weybright" (LLW) campaign by his lacrosse team, an assembly at his school, and a GoFundMe established to support his widow, Elizabeth Weybright, and their three children."

JoElla and I were childhood friends, having met in first grade in Forreston, Illinois, where her father was the school superintendent.  Our parents also knew each other from college days and we attended the local Forreston Lutheran church and were also members of the Church of the Brethren. Her husband Myron (Mike) and I are distantly related--something like third cousins.  Our grandmothers, both Weybrights by marriage, used to correspond. JoElla and I usually corresponded around birthdays and Christmas, but had talked on the phone in the last year or two. I had kept up on her children's activities, education, marriages, children, etc. over the years.  I had only seen Adam as a toddler when JoElla and I were both visiting our parents in Mt. Morris.

Also: Shoreline Area News: Shorecrest lacrosse coach Adam Weybright dies unexpectedly

 

Trump vs. Smithsonian

President Trump didn't attack the Smithsonian; the Smithsonian attacked the United States, so being a patriot, President Trump is suggesting more fairness and honesty in a Report.

Smithsonian-Report-Saving-Americas-Story.pdf
The United States government legally owns the Smithsonian Institution, holding its land, buildings, and collections as a perpetual public trust. Congress created the Institution by statute in 1846 after accepting a private bequest from British scientist James Smithson, and its charter is codified at 20 U.S.C. Chapter 3.

The Board includes members drawn from all three branches of government and the private sector:
The Vice President of the United States
The Chief Justice of the United States
Three Senators, appointed by the President of the Senate
Three Representatives, appointed by the Speaker of the House
Nine citizen members, appointed by joint resolution of Congress (two must reside in Washington, D.C., and no two of the remaining seven may be from the same state). Sounds like the Board needs a shakeup.

Who Owns the Smithsonian Museum? A Federal Trust - LegalClarity

Read through the report and the riots and attacks on police and the DEI in the classroom might become clearer. No surprise we're being taken over by Communists dressed up like Democrats