Knowledge is cool.

One time for 2022 - FOOD

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 31 Dec 2022 14:29:00 +0000

No, literally, I'm going to blog once this whole year. It has been a year of personal and professional growth, but as you can tell, it's been offline. Frankly, the lines between personal and professional have been hazy these last couple years and this year I got a better grip on that.

What knowledge could I possibly impart on this last day of 2022 that would matter at all? I guess I'll just say the following things about something deeply personal and important to me: food.

First, I've tried new food things, especially plant based things. I made tofu tacos and they were great. Tofu gets a bad rap. I want to explore more and more this coming year - new spices and lots and lots of new soups. My dziadek would be proud.

If I can make a recommendation for a blog AND a book, I would say Love & Lemons. Jeanine and Jack make a plant-based diet so accessible and delicious with all of their wonderful recipes. Gonna' buy this book for myself, not gonna' lie. Got that spiral-bound for heavy use.

Next, I love growing stuff I eat. To be clear, I'm only talking plants here. I'm not a great gardener. In fact, I have a little plot of dead seedlings I was experimenting with downstairs right now. However, I won't give up. There's something really great about having my own little patch of land where I can grow things that I can harvest and enjoy throughout the year. There are tons of resources out there, but here's a few of my favorites:

Book: The Garden Primer by Barbara Damrosch
The joe gardener Show podcast

My absolute favorite purchase in the last year or two has been my compost machine. Yes, I have a compost pile way in the back, but it takes a long time and frankly, I kept adding to it, never really having a complete pile. Now, I use Vitamix's FoodCycler FC-50. It's worth every, single penny. It's also made me much more in tune with how much food waste we're producing. Hopefully it will help my sketchy garden journey, too!

Lastly, I've really taken a liking to tracking my food and drink by simply making quick pages with a bunch of days and happily track along as I see fit. I journal if I'm feeling the spirit, but sometimes, I just want to mark what I consumed and get on with it. It's flexible and perfect. Hopefully I can incorporate more meal planning, but that's an ongoing struggle.

Have a safe and happy new year!

Dividing Lilies

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 06 Nov 2021 16:53:00 +0000

Plants are great. They are so chill that they are like, hey, if you divvy us up, we'll propagate more, free plants and flowers. I am very new to the gardening game, but I'm going to take advantage of these last few relatively warm fall days and divide some lilies. Here's a page from my garden journal (that is a sticker, I am not that skilled). Also, I enjoyed both of these helpful videos on the matter.

Podcast on migraines and new developments in treatment and prevention

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 11 Jul 2021 14:27:00 +0000

In general, I don't experiences headaches or migraines. A blessing, indeed. Yet, many friends and family have struggled with migraines for quite a long time and I never really understood them or why they are so debilitating. The cause of them hasn't been understood very well, until now.

This podcast from the BBC World Service was really amazing in not only explaining what migraines are, but some new developments in treatment and prevention. Peter Goadsby is Professor of Neurology at King's College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, and describes migraines as:

"...a disorder of the way the brain deals with incoming information. Of how the brain perceives or overperceives [light], sounds, or smells. Areas of the brain that you don't well understand that help someone concentrate are not working in the synchronous way they should. That broad brain dysfunction is what produces the broad manifestations."

The professor goes on to talk about the visual aspects of migraines, the auras, that get the most attention. I only experienced the auras in a single reliably remembered instance. I certainly could not concentrate and being at work while my vision was changing was a nightmare. Thankfully, I did not live far from home and left for the day. Real migraine attacks are not nearly as tame.

If you'd like to learn more about migraines and some of the newest research out, I definitely recommend listening in.

Summer and the grilling is easy. And safe.

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 10 Jul 2021 01:05:00 +0000

I have family members that have long been in the food safety industry, so I really can't be messing around when making food for them. Since I do a lot of grilling, I especially want to keep things safe when handling meat, fish, and poultry.

The CDC has a nifty Grilling Safety Infographic and the bottom corner has the most important info (pictured to the right). If you're a carnivore or eat fish, make sure your food reaches the listed temperatures.

Don't overcook your food in the name of safety. If you can, spend a bit of coin on a good instant read thermometer. I have this Lavatools Javelin PRO thermometer and I love it. I'm actually on my second one because I accidentally submerged my first one in water. Overnight. It's easy to use and accurate. It takes a second to check and it will be worth it to keep germs out of your family and friends' bellies.

Checking your sunscreen and hand sanitizer for bad news benzene

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Mon, 05 Jul 2021 23:18:00 +0000

During the summer months, my pale skin will get crispy quick. Each year, I stock up on some spray on, 50 SPF protection stuff. I love the Neutrogena stuff because it does not irritate my skin and doesn't feel gross.

The other night, my mom told me something vague about a recall on sunscreen. Investigating further, I found that a company called Valisure "has tested and detected high levels of benzene, a known human carcinogen, in several brands and batches of sunscreen." The company found benzene in 43 out of 224 sunscreens and in 8 of 48 after-sun products. The FDA guidance suggests that no level of benzene is safe, and it is not permitted in these or other products.

Naturally, I immediately went to the study and found the product I use (the list starts on page 12) to see if I've been spraying carcinogens on myself for years. The lot number on my product did not appear on the list, but the product itself did.

Perfect. If the sun's radiation doesn't get you, the shield you apply to your skin will. Stay as safe as you can out there. Remember, a tan is you just damaging your skin cells. Apply and reapply often.

Oh, also, the same company tested hand sanitizers and the findings there weren't great, either.

Shipping and solipsism

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Mon, 17 May 2021 12:11:00 +0000

The older I get, the more comfortable I force myself to be with change. It has been a long time since I read something that was like, "Hey, create something for others, not for yourself." Seth Godin's The Practice is doing that for me right now.

For a long time, I wondered, is art still art if no one has seen or experienced it? This book is making me reflect on that question. I have long wanted to force myself to write. When my father died, I went to journaling and compulsive note taking. I want to practice for myself, learn for myself. This book is making me realize it might be time to shift that focus. My healing will continue through journaling and note taking, but the writing, the creation, that's gotta' be for the people.

So here I am.

OED's words of 2020 and also: cognoscente

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Wed, 24 Mar 2021 04:01:00 +0000

In the olden days, I started a Twitter account to keep track of vocabulary words. Sometimes a word just hits different and today I had to share this one with you: cognoscente. Make sure to listen to this one's pronunciations - flavors include "fancy" and "normal". I chuckled listening to the differences between an American and UK speaker.

cognoscente, n. - One who knows a subject thoroughly; a connoisseur: chiefly in reference to the fine arts.

From my #1, the Oxford English Dictionary:

Also, don't forget to check out the words of 2020. I know, I know: 2020 was some bullshit. Yet, the report is worth the download and wow, our use of language tells the tale.

Search the Collection: The Metropolitan Museum of Art

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 06 Feb 2021 20:40:00 +0000

Much like in most of the Midwest, it's dang cold in Michigan and I'm not interested in leaving the house. If you are looking for something to do in the comfort of your own home, head over to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. I just delighted in browsing the collection for two hours. Don't forget to take stretch breaks!

Roasted Chicken

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 09 Jan 2021 15:00:00 +0000

There are about a million ways to roast a chicken. I looked. For my first chicken roasting attempt, I was dismayed to find the grocery store shopper picked out a monster, 6.5 lb. bird. Was it going to be raw? Was it going to overcook? I had no idea, but you gotta' start somewhere and apparently this beast would be my first roast chicken. I needed a base recipe and could improvise from there. I found a two step process that I will cherish.

Step 1: Brine that bird.

I dry brined the bird. This means salting the hell out of the whole chicken, and seasoning with additional flavors. On the skin. Under the skin. In the cavity. Do not fear the seasoning. The bird's mighty girth made maneuvering a bit difficult, but I got the job done. Have it sit in the fridge between 24-72 hours. I did 48 hours. I did not truss the fatty, but this did not seem to be a problem.

Link: Best Dry-Brined Roast Chicken from Simply Recipes

Step 2: Cook that bird.

The bird cooked at 350°F in a roast pan on the second from bottom rack (had to take one out). The regular heat method called for 20 minutes for each pound, plus an extra 15 minutes. My final cook time would be 2 hours and 25 minutes 😳. That seemed...excessive. I seriously thought I was going to pull a lump of coal out of the oven. I pulled it out and let it sit for about 20 minutes as I prepared the sides.

Link: How to Roast Chicken: Tips and Techniques from one of my long-time favorites, Allrecipes.com

It was perfect. Juicy. Crispy skin, flavorful meat fell off the bone. I also learned I need some better kitchen shears, but the struggle was worth it. I really should have taken a picture, but it really didn't look that amazing. It appears looks can be deceiving.

New habits for the new year

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 03 Jan 2021 17:08:00 +0000

Recently I finished a book called The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg. This book sat on my "To-Read" shelf in Goodreads since 2016! It was time, and there was no better time, frankly.

Interestingly, I gave this book a piddly 3 of 5 star rating. When I looked it up for this post, I updated it to four. I haven't stopped thinking about this book for the last couple of weeks. It prepared me to get ready to make real changes in the new year with a focus on good habits.

The book talks about both sides of the habit coin - the good and the bad. Exercise is a great habit. Gambling is not. Habits give our brains the ability to go into auto pilot on some things (morning hygiene, driving to work, etc.) so that we can give energy and literal thought to other, more complex stuff, like reading, using a new tool, solving an equation, etc.

I FINALLY learned more about the "reptile" part of the human brain - the great basal ganglia. It's a more primitive part of the brain that is about the size of a golf ball and is "primarily for motor control, as well as other roles such as motor learning, executive functions and behaviors, and emotions." This area controls your habits.

My favorite and most actionable learning from this title was about the habit loop. This really simplified it for me and got me thinking about my own habits. This habit loop helped me articulate three simple, new habits for 2021.

Water Habit.

Cue: "Dang, I'm dehydrated."
Routine: Every morning after I make my coffee, I now also empty the tea kettle and prepare some drinking water for the day. The reason I have drinking water out of the kettle is because I hate buying plastic bottles and I have sensitive teeth, so a nice, tall glass of lukewarm water is my jam. I fill up the kettle and boil it for the next morning.
Reward: As I ripen, dehydration impacts me a LOT more, so I'm trying to stay juiced with H2O. I have fewer stomach problems, my skin is less dry, and I avoid sugary beverages and snacks by constantly sipping.

Breakfast Habit.

Cue: My stomach contracts into painful hunger pangs throughout day. Also, need to take Vitamin D with a meal. Was scolded by primary physician. 😒
Routine: While I mention oatmeal in that example, I'm really going to focus on keeping breakfast quick and simple. I'm going to bore myself to death with a week-long, repetitive breakfast with the goal of taking my Vitamin D with a meal. So far so good, but I have a lot of oatmeal I don't want to waste, so I will be bored to death with oatmeal breakfast until spring, probably. I will say this - I get really friggin' intense hunger pangs in the morning. The moment some coffee hits the belly, it triggers my metabolism in an unpleasant way.
Reward: Since I've been eating this boring ass oatmeal every day, I haven't had hunger pangs at all and my appetite is a little less, uh, ravenous throughout the day.

Gratitude Morning Meditation. There are lots of studies out there that tell us the positive impacts of gratitude. Feeling grateful for stuff is a practice in mindfulness. And while it's not easy for me to sit still, I know I have time for this quick meditation.

Cue: It's important to feel gratitude every day and preferably first thing in the morning.
Routine: Set timer for one minute and focus on or say aloud the following: "I am grateful for this water. I am grateful for this food." (I should mix in a few Sun Salutations or a walk with this habit, but let's not get ahead of ourselves.)
Reward: I will have set the tone for the day. Even if the rest of the day falls apart, I will have started the day being grateful and positive.

Yes, these are pretty boring, lowkey resolutions, if you even want to call them that. But they were spawned by the ideas around habits and how they form. I'm also quite interested in getting more and more habits developed, but I don't want to overload myself and get discouraged.

This year, I'm looking at habits around writing and reading that are more specific than I've committed to before. Reading more and writing more is great, but what does that even really mean? I really started listing out some initial goals and thoughts. A blog post a month. An article for a newsletter I put together for a group at work. And journaling and counting how much I write every day. The word count has been eye-opening.

One of the most important points that I picked up from Duhigg's book is that following and maintaining good habits leads to more good habits. And shortly after finishing the book, I heard Seth Godin on the Design Matters podcast, where he said: “Do enough bad stuff, and some good stuff is going to slip through, no matter how hard you try.” The quote captures the design thinking spirit. It let me break free of worrying about the perfect being the enemy of the good, but it also got me thinking about getting my writing out of my personal journals and notes and into the world, beyond what I do for a living. Design thinking comes through again, friends.

Good habits will lead to good things. And let's be honest, after 2020, we can all use a little more good in our lives. Cheers.

Arm yourself to battle fake news and misinformation

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 11 Oct 2020 17:16:00 +0000

It's not easy for American citizens to wade through the onslaught of fake news. There are many forces in play and the strategy to manifest this mess of misinformation has been a strategy of the powerful for a long time. I can't tell if I'm supposed to be really impressed or infinitely horrified. Both, I suppose.

Sadly, many Americans admit getting their news from social media, and we all know social media is the cesspool of society. Then, we don't have trustworthy leaders. I'm sorry, say what you will, but just one example of this is the White House and Center for Disease Control regularly disagreeing and providing contradictory info. This foolishness is confusing Americans about literal life and death situations. Lastly, public education has been poo-pooed by the United States for a lot of decades and it shows.

Intense propaganda (domestic and otherwise), conspiracy theories, chipping away at the U.S. public education system... these are the ingredients cast into the cauldron of confusion, and the result includes everything from apathetic voters to violent plans to kidnap state governors and overthrow the government.

What is a confused citizen to do? Here are 2 resources that will give you a great start to combating misinformation in less than 40 minutes.

Watch this TED Talk (~12 minutes). Mona Chalabi was a data editor for The Guardian newspaper when this was recorded. Now she is an artist and illustrator in New York City. In her TED Talk, she offered three questions to take a closer look at statistics - ANY statistics.

Can you see uncertainty?
Can I see myself in the data?
How is the data collected?
Listen to "Fake News: How to Spot Misinformation" (~26 minutes). The Life Kit podcast is good for all kinds of stuff and offers another five recommendations to stay alert and informed.

Both of these start with skepticism. It's okay to question stuff, but are you asking the right questions and do you know where to find the next step to the right answer?

Good information is hard to get, but by following a couple of these tips, you will be well on your way to sniffing out the nonsense.

Constructive Conversations for Societal Change

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 06 Jun 2020 15:39:00 +0000

The lives of 100 people taken by COVID-19

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 31 May 2020 15:47:00 +0000

This is not the most chipper post ever, but I felt a whole lot of feelings listening to the NY Times The Daily podcast from May 29, 2020. Also, it's the year 2020, so chipper has proven to be a relatively unlikely and unexpected mood, anyway.

The NY Times podcast linked above was produced after the United States passed the awful milestone of 100,000 COVID-19 related deaths last week. The podcast remembered 100 people of those 100,000. A handful of stories were expounded upon. Many got a one-fact line - "loved Elvis" or "was a renegade nun". Many of the last ones were names and ages. With about four minutes left to that segment, I paused the podcast. I didn't know if I could go on. I hit play again.

I had two separate thoughts as I listened:

When I have been in New York City, I always was interested in how people were able to make it in the Big Apple. My Midwest mindset found the big, BIG city life simply astounding and wondrous. New York just made me so much more interested in people. Dare I say, New York cracked open my ability to be empathetic. It exposed me to the incredible beauty, art, diversity and culture we humans can smash into our civilization. There's another side to that coin, but we'll just stick with the good one for now. Also, please note that these 100 people are from all over, not just NYC. It's just NYC is often on my mind, and it was on my mind listening to this.
When I started in prospect research, I read a lot of obituaries. When I no longer did that work, I kept reading obituaries. All my life I have been interested in how memory, life, death, and writing intersect. An obituary is one of those incredible intersections, something that is sad and celebratory, or short and heartbreaking, or some other combination of length and tone. I really appreciate great obituaries, as I found myself paralyzed and completely immobilized with sadness when trying to write my father's. I remain impressed with anyone who can focus enough to produce a great obituary, a piece about loss.

The very last line of the 100 lives segment was someone's last words. I completely broke down and uttered "I hope that's the last one" through tears. Even a veteran obituary reader like myself found this hard to get through. Glad I did it, though.

The front page that day was pretty incredible, too. This was much like what Italy shared - the newspapers filling up with obituaries and death notices. Very powerful and so frightening.

Reader, prepare your tissues.

Being that it's 2020, surely you have them handy.

Portion Control

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Fri, 01 May 2020 10:31:00 +0000

At my work, we have a great employee health program. There is this online, self-directed nutrition coach and it send outs a lot of really great tips on nutrition and exercise. One thing I struggle with is portion control - what IS a portion, anyway?

Here are portions paired with common items to give you an idea:

1 cup of cereal = a fist
3 ounces of meat = a deck of cards
1 medium fruit = a tennis ball
2 tablespoons of peanut butter = a Ping-Pong ball
1.5 ounces of low-fat cheese = four stacked dice
1 teaspoon of oil = a standard postage stamp
½ cup of pasta or rice = ½ baseball

Podcast: Population Healthy Podcast

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Fri, 10 Apr 2020 14:19:00 +0000

I am listening to a lot of podcasts while I work from home and Population Healthy really stands out. Great information from the University of Michigan's School of Public Health.

About Population Healthy
Population Healthy is a weekly podcast that digs into the important public health topics that impact our everyday lives. Produced by the University of Michigan School of Public Health, the show brings together experts to discuss population health issues from a variety of perspectives—from the microscopic to the macroeconomic, the social to the environmental—and to explore the factors that affect the health of all of us at a population level.

Poem: The End and the Beginning

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 18:31:00 +0000

A repost:
My friends and I are constantly sharing poems with each other. SO MANY POEMS. Since April is National Poetry Month, I wanted to share one of my very favorites, a poem called "The End and the Beginning" by Polish poet, Wislawa Szymborska. I love it more each time I read it. It really speaks to my Polish heritage.

The End and the Beginning
by Wislawa Szymborska

After every war
someone has to clean up.
Things won't
straighten themselves up, after all.

Someone has to push the rubble
to the side of the road,
so the corpse-filled wagons
can pass.

Someone has to get mired
in scum and ashes,
sofa springs,
splintered glass,
and bloody rags.

Someone has to drag in a girder
to prop up a wall,
Someone has to glaze a window,
rehang a door.

Photogenic it's not,
and takes years.
All the cameras have left
for another war.

We'll need the bridges back,
and new railway stations.
Sleeves will go ragged
from rolling them up.

Someone, broom in hand,
still recalls the way it was.
Someone else listens
and nods with unsevered head.
But already there are those nearby
starting to mill about
who will find it dull.

From out of the bushes
sometimes someone still unearths
rusted-out arguments
and carries them to the garbage pile.

Those who knew
what was going on here
must make way for
those who know little.
And less than little.
And finally as little as nothing.

In the grass that has overgrown
causes and effects,
someone must be stretched out
blade of grass in his mouth
gazing at the clouds.

Victory Gardens in 2020

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 04 Apr 2020 14:08:00 +0000

I've been waffling on creating a garden in the backyard for just about 3 seasons (maybe 4, whatever). The coronavirus outbreak got my butt in gear. I started listening to podcasts, started a garden journal, bought supplies and seeds and plants. And hopefully my first season as a vegetable gardener isn't a total bust. Yesterday I was surprised by a soil delivery that I wasn't expecting for another week!

I subscribed to a couple newsletters to help with my second gardening season (first vegetable) and have REALLY enjoyed them both so far. They are both providing me with great beginner info AND engaging me with cool history.

Journey with Jill - Beginner's Garden🌱
Honestly, until I looked up the link, I had no idea that Jill was like super Bible study lady. I'm a secular gal, myself, but her gardening newsletter is awesome. It doesn't have any religious undertones. Plus, the faith of others doesn't bug me one bit. Her knowledge and willingness to share it will definitely bless my garden! Check it out.
Old Farmer's Almanac 🌱
This an oldie, but goodie. As a librarian, I always wondered if the Almanac was full of nonsense, but after subscribing to their newsletter, I'm hooked. They had a fantastic post about Victory Gardens. My head was already there and then this post came through. I was fascinated to learn this nugget (emphasis added by moi):

"Eleanor Roosevelt began a new Victory Garden campaign after Pearl Harbor was bombed and Americans dug in once again for Uncle Sam. By the end of WWII, 40% of the country’s produce came from backyard gardens."

Let's Goooooooooo (garden)!

Flour and Yeast

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 28 Mar 2020 15:21:00 +0000

With all this new found time, I decided I wanted to try to learn to bake bread. Well, turns out it's hard to find yeast in the stores right now. My bread making will have to wait, but in the meantime, I learned these fun little tidbits from McGee's On Food and Cooking, cause I was like "What the hell is yeast, anyway?"

p. 531 - Flours
Both pastry and cake flours have low levels of weak gluten protein for making tender baked goods. Cake flour is distinctive because it's treated with chlorine dioxide or chlorine gas.

Leavenings are ingredients that fill doughs and batters with bubbles of gas, thus reducing the amount of solid materials in a given volume and making the bread or cake less dense and more light and tender.

p. 532 - Yeasts
The yeasts are a group of microscopic, single-celled fungi, relatives of the mushrooms. More than 100 species are known.

Coronavirus Information

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Mon, 23 Mar 2020 10:35:00 +0000

While I don't let myself get sucked into too much COVID-19 news (gotta' stay sane, man), I do like having some go-to resources to peek in on.

The University of Michigan also has some great stuff, too:

Campus-related news: Public Affairs’ COVID-19 website
Public Health in the news: School of Public Health Information
Michigan Medicine expert advice: Michigan Health Blog

And of course, a great tune to wash your hands to:

Refinancing boom? Not everyone's getting approved.

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 22 Mar 2020 01:07:00 +0000

The other day, WWJ's Murray Feldman shared that with interest rates trending down, many homeowners could refinance. However, he said 1 in 4 refinancing applications are denied, often due to a high debt to income ratio . Your bills, expenses, etc, should be between 36% and 43% of your income.

Podcast: The Feldman Report - The refinancing boom (3/17)

Air frying is great + cookbook recommendation

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 08 Mar 2020 18:55:00 +0000

In my house, we like to use all kinds of gadgets in the kitchen, from little garlic mincer machines, to stuff like the Instant Pot and air fryer. I have had much more success with the latter.

Air frying is a great way to cook with much less oil. As with any new gadget, it takes a second to get used to and probably the biggest complaint about air fryers is that they are too small. As with any recipes, you'll have to think about how many you'll be cooking for and opt for the proper size air fryer.

Also, when getting an air fryer, I would recommend making sure the dial for the temperature can turned at 5 degree increments. Mine only does 25 degree increments, i.e. 300 to 325 to 350 degrees and requires adjusting times and stuff.

I found a book that was pretty great and gave me tons of ideas and temperature/time charts to work with: The Super Easy Air Fryer Cookbook by Brandi Crawford. I checked it out from the library and will immediately be adding it to my book birthday wish list to own.

Five stars ★★★★★ for both the book and the cooking method.

Always go too far

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sat, 25 Jan 2020 14:26:00 +0000

Learning about billionaire libertarians and their mind boggling perspective of injustice

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 19 Jan 2020 12:00:00 +0000

The Koch Family. Phew. I'm already tired, fam.

The book I am reading right now - Dark Money - is not flattering to the family, particularly the two that at the helm of Koch Industries: Charles and the now deceased David. This book is a dizzying portrait of how some very wealthy people classify government regulations as injustice.

Um. Are you kitten me right meow?

Let's pause. The perspective of the ultra wealthy is surreal and distorted, albeit fascinating, in ways I completely overlooked or underestimated. My mind is blown by the idea that a billionaire has any clue what injustice is, but here we are.

Today, I learned what Charles Koch thinks is not just. This person, just like his father before him, hates government and the regulations the government imposes on companies and business. All of it. He hates taxes. He hates environmental regulations. He hates the idea of being transparent in his business dealings.

Koch Industries has been burned by quite a few lawsuits and settlements. In one case, a guy worked with benzene all the time and the company tested his blood annually. The company was supposed to share the results with employees if there were alarming levels, but Koch Industries didn't tell this guy for like two years. The worker got sick with leukemia, kept going to work, but when he got too weak to work, he was friggin' let go with six months pay (basically his sick bank). The widow thought the company would take care of them. Not even close. Thankfully she fought. The day before they were to go to court, the company settled.

In another case, the company didn't update an aging gas line which resulted in a couple people trying to start their truck and EXPLODING INTO A HUGE FIREBALL. The father of the driver won a $296 million dollar settlement. Instead of addressing the bad pipelines, Koch Industries just sold it. In another case, a whistle blower went to report Koch industries when they reported a completely falsified report on how much pollution was being created by a facility.

Okay, so this guy Charles Koch, the main dude at Koch Industries, is listed ninth on the Bloomberg Billionaires list. His company has annual revenue of $110 BILLION dollars. And this is the person who feels that the government making his company report alarming blood results to coworkers is not just. He doesn't think he should have to worry about bad gas lines his company is profiting off of. This guy's company ripped off Native Americans by purposefully mis-measuring oil taken from indigenous lands. This guy thinks having his pollution-spewing, employee-killing, ethically questionable company regulated is injustice.

This would be laughable if it wasn't straight up terrifying.

The Freedom School: "We're not anarchists, we're autarchists" - yeah okay pal

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 12 Jan 2020 15:00:00 +0000

This book I'm reading, Dark Money, is pretty disturbing. I'm not even halfway through and I can't tell if I'm supposed to laugh or cry. Do I continue to believe in humanity, or make a hermit plan and escape society? I'm gonna' stick around, but, dang humanity. Do better.

This book starts off with some history on the Koch family and about libertarian movement. I always fancied libertarians as harmless. Just some sweet little anarchists that want to smoke pot and get a prostitute legally. Nah, I was wrong. They aren't harmless. The ones in charge are dangerous and they are very, very smart.

And of course some are crazy af. Like this Santa Claus-looking dude Robert LeFevre that created a fringe group called the Freedom School in 1957. LeFevre hated Communism. Simultaneously, he favored abolition of the United States government. He also thought he had supernatural powers, floundered into bankruptcy, and was obsessed with a 14 year old girl.

Listen to the crap this Freedom School belched out into the world of ideas (real shit ideas, I might add):

Taught a revisionist history that painted robber barons as heroes and the Gilded Age as the U.S.'s golden era.
Taxes were theft.
The weak and poor should be taken care of by the wealthy, not by government.
The South should have been allowed to secede and people "should be allowed to sell themselves into slavery if they wished." (No, I'm not making this up.)

It's no surprise a group of teachers that went to the Freedom School for a session immediately called the FBI after they returned. The teachers said the school was proposing the Bill of Rights be reduced to "just a single one: the right to own property" and calling for no police, no fire, no help for the poor, etc.

While, this LeFevre freak clearly should not have been an inspiration to any-damn-body, the book says that the Freedom School was "seminal to Charles Koch's political evolution."

Welp...

E-reading about eels

noreply@blogger.com (Eva G.) — Sun, 05 Jan 2020 17:27:00 +0000

Lately, I've really been enjoying reading magazines on my tablet. I find it somewhat ironic that I only started getting into e-books and e-journals/magazines after I stopped working at a library. However, now that I'm a patron, I love it. I love all the access to all the things.

In my swiping right through various publications over the holidays, I came across an Economist article that I'm still not sure why I read. But I did, and learned that eels mysteriously go to the sea to reproduce, but literally no one has every witnessed them actually doing the deed. Then they return from sea and, boom, baby eels.