Quip–a witty remark. E-Quips (think e-book or email) is hopefully a witty blog – dedicated to word play such as parodies, puns, and word parallels and stories about libraries that you may not have heard before. It has also expanded to include a few book reviews, nature and observational essays and poems, stories about military and veterans, and tips about writers and writing. It has evolved into an online journal. I also include select re-blogs to admire or inspire.
Hope you enjoy the ride and the fun.
Please let me know if there is word that deserves a riff or a library that has a story to share.
I got a lovely email from Hal’s niece Jana about how much the poem meant to her and the family. That email string (of about 4 emails) somehow attracted the the unsolicited interest of AI. This was the AI summary (which was eerily accurate).
I have now begun noticing AI summaries when a single email multiples into a string! I do not like it at all and have no idea how to opt out of the AI monitoring synthesis.
Thou Shalt Not the Bwanas brayed Their sense of power on parade The captured bowed their heads and prayed But deliverance was again delayed the captured continued to be dismayed Bwana power still arrayed.
AI generated image of Bwana power–I had been thinking of rich old White Men.
Has the US gown too big for its britches puffed up on self-importance armed troops and riches
Back before the two World Wars without Trump around to settle scores Roosevelt talked about the Bully Pulpit now a bull horn where Trump runs full tilt
It was meant to espouse a cause Not a Truth Social chance to break more laws From where our leaders sometime lead without falsehood lies, truth left for dead
We tell Iran to stop the killing but here are home we are more than willing to shoot first, God can sort it out later Were the cops or the protestors the instigators?
We made reservations months ago Long before the storm was identified One of the last flights out of the airport We notified the management company of our absence and asked him to have someone could please check the place for things like burst pipes Glad to miss the storm but concerned about what may left behind Should we stay or should we have gone?
Loved it’s fresh take on eat or be eaten, kill or be killed.
Yes I am female and yes I am white and Christian, which is two thirds of what is valued in Trump’s America. As a woman of a certain age, I am too old for most of his restrictions on women’s health. One of the few times I am happy to be this mature or at least aged.
One of the benefits of that speech, it that it could apply to US citizens as aptly as it does to countries. If you are part of any group associated with Trump’s Revenge, Retribution, and Retaliation Tour, you may be in trouble. Ask any brown or black skinned American citizen who has been swept up in ICE raids because ICE decided the legal system could sort it out later. So much for due process
Within the span of 5 minutes, I found several YouTube videos about Trump’s dementia, the cabinet allegedly invoking the 25th amendment where the President can be removed if judged unfit for office and Trump’s unorthodox plan to invalidate that action using the courts, when I searched Trump and Carney. Is any of it true?
Will we even have midterm elections in 2026? I saw an article from Rolling Stone, “President Donald Trump is musing about canceling — or refusing to accept the outcome of — the 2026 midterms.” They have not retracted it and I have also seen no other source echoing that information. So will he or won’t he? It would not be the first election he has denied so there is a track record on that topic.
We had one final day before the temperatures dropped on Friday and the cross country storm arrived, beginning Saturday night and continuing into next week with double digit snowfall and below freezing temperatures until at least midweek. We found all three donkeys grazing in the front pasture. When Bob hee-hawed Chow-Call all three heads came up. Nobody approached the fence until Bob got there waving the plastic containers of warm sweet potato medallions. Unfortunately, for the greedy guts, there were no carrots or apple slices to expand the offering. Even Buddy condescended to eat sweet potatoes that had slipped out of his slurping lips and fallen to the ground.
We hear you, but show us the food first.Buddy and Whitey waiting for food service to begin.Buddy talking with food in his mouth,
The food melted away quicker than the expected snow and ice. Bob disappeared into the, returning more quickly than normal because of the limited dessert choices. The Fig Newtons were again popular with the still hungry donkeys. Buddy still felt compelled to show me his best side, even in that short a time period.
Holly eating a piece of fallen food while the boys remain hopeful.Guess who is not happy having to wait for dessert.Whitey wondering if this shot makes his nose look big.
I hope the donkeys realize this is the last feeding from us for a while. I told Bob we needed to bring more food next time, since all three acted like this was their last meal. When Whitey opened his mouth wide for his first bite, I notice the first brown tartar stains that both his parents have. Maybe David can find an asinine dentist.
Buddy ain’t happy , his ears are back.Pissed off donkey, not enough food
Central Virginia had enjoyed a too brief January thaw buds are emerging grass greens slights flies congregate in the pales sunlight hitting the white church side
Inside more flies have expired or twitching in diminishing circles on or off the labyrinth
Mindfulness partially means not smishing the living and the dead while mincing the tight turns of white cloth 6 cycle labyrinth
On January 21st, Squirrel Appreciation Day recognizes a critter some consider a pest and others see as just fascinating. The creator, Christy Hargrove, is a wildlife rehabilitator in North Carolina and is affiliated with the Western North Carolina Nature Center. According to Christy, “Celebration of the event itself is up to the individual or group — anything from putting out extra food for the squirrels to learning something new about the species.”
According to the Integrated Taxonomic Information System of North America (ITIS), over 200 species exist in the world. Some of the oldest squirrels categorized on the list include the nocturnal arrow flying squirrel (validated in 1766) and the Black Giant (validated in 1778). Of all these species, they fall into three types.
Ground Squirrels
Tree Squirrels
Flying Squirrels-Flying squirrels glide greater distances giving the impression they can fly. When they jump from tree to tree or building to building, they spread their legs wide and float on the breeze escaping predators or perhaps other snarky tree squirrels with a nut to pick with them.
HOW TO OBSERVE SQUIRREL APPRECIATION DAY
Learn more about these fascinating creatures. Tell us your favorite squirrel story or share a picture of your squirrel visitors.
Set up a squirrel feeder and watch them as they feed. Can you identify what kind they are?
Go to a park and watch the squirrels as they travel from tree to tree. How many are there?
Squirrel watching is similar to bird watching and nearly as fascinating. Study their behavior and note their differences.
Watch a squirrel documentary to learn more.
Rat boys rule the yard dominating the feeder so the birds have to wait to get the seeds squirrels dribble on the porch
Is there really such a thing as a squirrel proof bird feeder?
AI says Squirrel-proof bird feeders use designs like weight-activated shutters, cages, or slippery poles to block squirrels, allowing birds access while frustrating squirrels.."
We are made of bits and pieces Some from ancestors Some from twists of fate Some from our parents life choices Some from our own perceptions Or mis perceptions
Are we the sum of our parts Or some of our parts?
AI generated sum of our parts (not what I expected)
Hard to believe it wasn't until 1742 that Ben had the idea to move the heat of the fireplace out into the room where the heat could be better dispersed rather than going up the chimney
Franklin stove in front of the Stone Cottage Fireplace
Rumi, religious founder and poet saw the world differently than most Favorite of many thoughtful people as his poems offer fresh points of view to familiar object members of your household can also be the thoughts in your head
Translated by Coleman Barks
This being human is a guest house. Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness, some momentary awareness comes as an unexpected visitor.
Welcome and entertain them all! Even if they’re a crowd of sorrows, who violently sweep your house empty of its furniture, still, treat each guest honorably. He may be clearing you out for some new delight.
The dark thought, the shame, the malice, meet them at the door laughing, and invite them in.
Be grateful for whoever comes, because each has been sent as a guide from beyond. Jalaluddin Rumi
When conversation is tedious to escape some of us get devious Excuses fly straight off our lips as interest wanes, conversation slips
This happened to me when one lady escaped upstairs to a bunker she has created for herself. I was not even that interested in prolonging the conversation since she seemed more comfortable with plants than people. I wanted to be a face palm rather than get a palm in the face.
On a warmish midweek day after New Year’s we went out to visit the donkeys. All three were grazing in the front pasture, ignoring us until Bob hee-hawed Chow Call. While all three heads came up away from the grass, nobody moved towards the fence until Bob grabbed the plastic trays of sweet potato medallions and sliced apples moving there first. Then Buddy lead the family to meet where Bob stopped to feed them at the fence.
We hear you, but show us the food.Lunch.Now you are talking so we’will begin walking.
In one respect, the donkeys were lucky. We had had cheeseburgers, homemade macaroni salad, and chips for lunch at Wyant’s so the fig newton dessert course was already waiting in Bob’s jacket pocket, but that did not mean that we served lunch fast enough for Buddy.
Ears down mean he is getting tired of waitingHolly and White are more patient
All the donkeys were greedy guts, gobbling/dropping food and slurping fingers as soon as it could be shoved into gaping mouths. I barely got a chance to take any pictures during lunch. Even Buddy condescended to eat food as it dropped from his or Whitey’s mouth. Holly and Whitey also did their share in making sure no food was left behind. This applied to sweet potatoes, apple slices, and fig newtons.
Burrish Burro?I faithfully promise to let no food drop in vain.
Whitey looked even more burr-infested, while both of his parents looked like they may have been groomed. David was not in the store for us to ask about it.
e-Quips 