By the way, Amazon is really, really busy today. I am having a devil of a time getting on to the site this morning.
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TrainWreck
It certainly appears "push will come to shove" with regard to health care premiums, deductibles, and co-pays in 2016. My hunch is that the US Supreme Court will find a way to extricate itself from this mess and put it back in the collective laps of Congress. It won't be pretty. Even under the best of circumstances, ObamaCare premiums are going to increase significantly.
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Global Warming
More than half of the Manitoba (Canada) canola harvest damaged by frost. Similar problems in North Dakota with freeze damaging the corn crop according to Don.
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A Note to the Granddaughters
We were a little behind in getting Sophia, the youngest granddaughter into the pool. There were some extenuating circumstances: moving into a new house and 15 days of rain in northern Texas. So, that put us behind by about four months. She will soon celebrate her first birthday; I had hoped she would be comfortable with the water by six months. But it was not to be. Her mom had taken her weekly to the indoor pool during the winter for "Mommy and Me" swim dates.
Two days ago, I was finally able to have Sophia alone in the outdoor pool. She was timid at first, but after about 45 minutes she was really enjoying it. As long as she felt secure in being held tightly.
Then last night, another 45 minutes alone with Sophia. The oldest granddaughter was studying for final exams and the middle granddaughter was playing indoor soccer (she should have been outside, but the outdoor soccer fields are all under water). Wow, Sophia has made great strides. As soon as she saw me come in the door, she appeared eager to get going. Usually I have her sit on the edge of the pool with her feet dangling in the water until she feels comfortable; last night she did not want to sit on the edge; she wanted to get right in. And surprisingly, she did not want me to hold her upright; she wanted to be on her stomach, kick with her feet, and "swim" with her hands. She is not quite ready to go underwater. The diving reflex is still solid at six months, but I'm not so sure at one year of age. So, I won't "dunk" her though her mother says may be she might put her underwater this weekend. We'll see. I think she's a bit too fragile (timid of the water) to do that.
On another note, I started reading F. Scott Fitzgerald's This Side of Paradise and Oscar Wilde's A Picture of Dorian Gray at the same time. I found Paradise a bit tedious after the first two chapters but will eventually finish it, slog through it. On the other hand, I found Dorian Gray incredibly good, on so many levels. I'm re-reading it now to pick up some of the things I missed the first time through.
Interestingly enough, coincidentally, I am also reading a biography of the Duveens, perhaps the biggest art dealers in the early 20th century. It is amazing how much the Dorian Gray makes the Duveen biography that much more interesting, or vice versa. If one is interested in the history of early 20th century art dealing, Meryle Secrest's biography of the Duveens is simply superb. I picked up my copy of the book at the Norton Simon museum in Pasadena last summer; Norton Simon bought the entire Duveen collection years ago for his museum.
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They Already Proved Themselves
Lots of talk today about the women who did not graduate from US Army Ranger School.
Just talk.
They already proved themselves.
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