www.markholder.org

Author, editor, blogger, and so much more Shaun Mullen has passed. Noting his blog  Kiko's House  hadn't been updated in a while, I did a search and discovered his  obituary . My friendship with Shaun goes back to 2006. While living in Australia, I'd discovered his blog when searching for informed commentary on US foreign policy in the Middle East. Sadly, much of that policy remains unchanged 14 years later, but that is for another post. Shaun  had noticed that his blog wasn't rendering correctly in Internet Explorer and asked if anyone could suggest a fix. I, being a bit of a tech head at the time, suggested Firefox or similar browser, and the problem was solved. We kept in and out of touch, finding common ground in music (I mentioned my love for the Grateful Dead and Shaun sent a dozen CDs of concert recordings. By International mail. The man was generous to a fault.), worldview, and more. My old site got its greatest number of hits when Shaun linked to a few of m

May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.  - Edward Abbey

Some chemists, having synthesized a few compounds, believe themselves to be better chemists than nature which, in addition to synthesizing compounds too numerous to mention, synthesized those chemists as well.  - Dr. Robert de Ropp

Out With The Old, In With The New I'm sure you've heard the story: somewhere-in-line-for-the-throne Prince Harry and wife Meghan are leaving Britain and stepping back from their Royal duties for a new life in the US. And one can be sympathetic, considering her merciless treatment by the British press. With the popularity of the royal family riding high partly in thanks to the popularity of such shows as The Crown, trendy America will be more than happy to welcome a real live prince to its shores. Look a bit closer and things get interesting. Not only is Harry a member of the Royal Family, he's also a  Lieutenant Commander of the Royal Navy, Major of the British Army and Squadron Leader of the Royal Air Force; if such qualifications were applied to someone else, that person would immediately be considered a spy. He is married to an American (bonus point) actress (double bonus point) of multicultural heritage (21st century trifecta). They may hope for a quiet life,

To go fishing is the chance to wash one’s soul with pure air, with the rush of the brook, or with the shimmer of sun on blue water. It brings meekness and inspiration from the decency of nature, charity toward tackle-makers, patience toward fish, a mockery of profits and egos, a quieting of hate, a rejoicing that you do not have to decide a darned thing until next week. And it is discipline in the equality of men — for all men are equal before fish.  - Herbert Hoover

Bitcoin is going to (insert 6 or 7 figure number here) by 2020! or Bitcoin is a scam/fraud/only useful to criminals/going to zero in 2020! Digital currency is the future, like it or not (I prefer the anonymity of cash, myself). Whether Bitcoin or any of the thousand or so other crytpocurrencies will survive central and commercial banks developing their own digital coins remains to be seen. In the meantime, the major cryptos remain actively traded. But how does one trade an ephemeral yet seemingly permanent asset? It doesn't help when articles like this appear on the same website, on the same day: Bitcoin and crypto in general rose in price during the recent US/Iran exchange of hostilities, but that doesn't necessarily make it a good hedge against chaos, as price fluctuation is a mainstay of crypto at this time. As always, invest only what you can afford to lose, should you decide to enter the market. And, as always, what your reading is merely opinion and not to

The book that won Hemingway a Nobel prize in literature, "The Old Man And The Sea" tells the story of a down on his luck fisherman in Cuba. After going a month without a catch, Santiago, the story's protagonist, hooks the largest fish of his life, only to have fate cruelly step in. The novella is  a simple masterpiece and justifiably listed as one of the 20th century's greatest works. I've often said I am more a fan of Hemingway's method of writing than his actual works, but this book hits all the right notes. Even when re-reading the story, I find myself wishing victory for Santiago, although I know it isn't his fate. The Old Man And The Sea has been adapted for film at least a couple of times. As a fan of animation, I recommend a short and beautiful version of the book, found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5ih1IRIRxI&list=WL&index=8&t=16s