My first game comes from the WNBA, and has my Indiana Fever playing the Atlanta Dream. Start time for this game is scheduled for Noon CDT. Go Fever!

The second game for me to follow is a MLB game with my Texas Rangers playing the San Diego Padres. Opening pitch for this game is scheduled for 3:05 PM CDT. Go Rangers!

And the adventure continues.

I re-download the app to my phone. I open up Facebook. There's a default feed in front of me. I don't understand it.

There's a post from UNICEF Ireland. The white text on black background reads “This week, a 12-year-old girl in a tent in Gaza was shot...” and I'll spare you the rest of the quote.

I scroll down a post. There's a humorous post from some entity I am not familiar with. The Scottish Sun. It's a picture of a handsome young man surrounded by attractive young women. The caption in the picture reads “Boston braces for Tartan Army baby boom as smitten locals enjoy kilted flings”. An accompanying quote reads “It takes a real man to rock a kilt.” I giggle.

I scroll down. There are posts from entities that I do deliberately follow. Most of them are posts about posts from other entities. ...Which is literally what I'm doing right now. For what it's worth, I'm using my own words. I navigate over to some of their pages. A lot of it is screengrabs of posts with snarky commentary or “right on” commentary. There's little to no original content.

I click on “feeds”, I click on “friends”, and there's a feed in front of me of posts from friends, and the posts are in some order I don't understand. No context is given to me that helps me understand why I'm looking at what I am looking at, in the order that I'm looking at it. It isn't chronological. Some posts are higher up. Some are further down. Some are left out altogether.

Was some of it worth seeing or engaging with? Sure. Am I any more informed about what some of my friends are up to or thinking about? Also, sure. But why do I feel like such a sucker every time I log on there?

Deep down I know why. I ignore it.

In my subconscious somewhere, I recall the stat that only 8% of Facebook interactions are between friends these days. Sounds about right. I'd say about 8% of my time and interactions there are with friends myself. How did that happen? I got trained into disconnecting from my friends by a “social” network.

The bell rings. I salivate. I remind myself that everyone is susceptible to this stuff and it is not a good use of anyone's time. Facebook may not be the only offender these days, but you can quickly trace a direct line between everybody else's behavior and Facebook's.

I snap out of it after about fifteen minutes. Thankfully, before I can even get to “reels” this time.

I navigate over to the “memories” or “on this day” feed and see if there are any tasteless old posts that need deleting. I log out. I remove my login information from my device. I get back to living life.

Repeat tomorrow. Hopefully minus the fifteen soul sucking minutes.

-Ira

Many Roads—

Do flatter you Often turned- to brake and sea In fitting front For lights of men And quantum war United States For things above To reflect the air Assistant drive,- To derelict of fortune Seeming all for furniture The distance night,- and fights, Vancouver If this were day, in stopping war Of calling cinder The precipice of Maitland Sheering nights of city And calibrate, the nurture Of taught suggest- that fire new and clementine A mercy for the Vatican This early May and wonder The syntax, fear- to going men and be A Fox in fortune The ties for distance then And future free to know- the search for friends in fallow Made to land at Drury Cove The night’s new main above The hurried stars in brew And palms advanced to Water In tightness be to their Altered waking now And Earth be ranged with follow- to their place in sceptre The man across a city bridge Caught for Hist’ry war And hallowed change, a lock For favoured let and far Perdition’s chance in sight The lonely Cavalier at way In Kingdom sight and might The Jury of such wonder And in McAdam sure The ferry lights to Peter And woven breath to light- and friend Apocalypse renoun- and favour night to them The fortunes of a car and axle And History wrote a poem For human book and isle We seek in proper chance Unsolid but rewarned In thought to PEI The precious day For night and all in Sut And Heaven view to all it for The Navy has a way And great to sparrow Of Wintered guess and war And Gypsy, Maine might wonder The treed and rider high So rately few, all spin And shouts for crystal joy This certain peace in verity blight A witness to AI Who cared a few to mention The frost of light inject To make all dew and merry they The search for light at Hope In fresh advance A Hister And lightly new to men The Scotch and prison- across the sea To married guest at Winter Living thanks to night That very few alone- will thought to be as mine,- And Heaven in that well To keep but known astroll For early war and reason This night had courage time For prospect in them And buried all to cousin rain The Kew for then to show Our ballad silver and maroon To Beckham blue in sight And gifted war to summon In books bereave we sour With cages fair and blame From distance men we are A spectral course alone The mercy at- a giant wind For lightning stood to shore Our fits at land This plagerant at void And very car to know And as the sky ahead At distal Ron Who saved the island sea And words of love to then- a solid and a strike For grateful steady To reprise the dawn at night And Heaven bechance to follow- the tidings of a pond For verses new in breath To Dawson at its core And History best in Captain The rain and rod are clear For Sun and tide at one Anthropic terse to May- that was all view,- and made to West- as simple Island Sky For better Wolfe The shining best in suppose The very Spruce we saw,- to hidden in the low And tallest dark remember A painful, solemn past And fair unfew but present The day in this express.

Ottawa

And the day folding South Office for us to remain In living standard at par Giant shadows of unwar Liberations to beguile And Citizen Rome Deep from afar A naming country in verse Of flat camber and steer The rightful news in 3D Going home and then forward The nights of entail And wherewithal Daytime for the Watch we keep Innocent and long The till of ten thousand Seamless to go And hiding our rank as we are Fortune delivered This day will unpass and reune The fitful Earth Hiding our game to renew Setting Dusk A misery an hour but Holy In the Oblast of Peter Thirty times to our Constitution- its Heart and ever Behest and made anew To the people who spoke And Sunways to edict Nine or ten men And cue this war on the reveal Earth had its way to bespoke Lines of fair fathom and grace Minotaur by the wrecklands- and a way to appeal Justice to the Bread and high tide The venerations to God are beknown Icicles three and snowbank Roses beneath and are fit for resurrection A sympathy to four-leggeds The entrance to Peter of Heaven Yesterday claw- The pine-edged repeat of new tidings Fading low and I tempered Style of repeal to the greatest Extravagant win as we are And to the sea back and mend Nightly grace for assumption Authority of Her Our Queen of great nobelisk Redemptions to fold without then Days set unfree But beguiled for and lift The auteur and the spent of renew Things of re-love The license of intention adore And sitting to roster Days of our time for all ways- And the Captain bringing us to verse Water to thirst and to field Our mission of this Tightly being renew Delivered to far and intend Mercy is making our home Jets to the shore Bettered in freedom to wrest And confiding all new Necessity bars to begin The Knighted of Rome And Earth early by its rest A Victory few And called to propose The distance to fusion in peace Right and thenso Make and redeem on our own Our own path and way Citizen on time to be here A solemn and labour- distance to amend This is the seat of the government And in terms to the West that we are Earth made amends to our suffering Lights of November in haste And therefore our will Citizens know our name- and our day- And it is Canada The House re-une of our deep- In this place as yours Timely professed The tame of the land at its best A gold star for all saints and renew And peace ever shall be.

New York

Mind over fences And to you, Rough Water Rials and risks And Infirm Island The Kennedy at pay Distance war unprepared and unkempt License for closure Citizens chill Clouds of esteem and Europa Empathy and N-Marks Quartered for the war Likeness of esteem Brave for the call In Romania, they win Times shining until- We descend upon one Woman The Victory of a star And Stonehenge of night The real velocity of time An Groot and more than that Hister forgot- and delivered in Maccabees We were shown what we had And were given a week For portions blame Intelligent and few This the unrandom And only at key We wondered but we were told- and then we weren’t The right hand has the answer And the left hand collects Supposing the Sun Had become of her sacred Tiled and at war Ebola knows when And all that Winter to sue Inviolable to you,- the Sun were to be Handing out masks And Tylenol And pain Grey clouds of fever To know when we can Am I a live virus With a window view Made a day able To round up and axis The mercy of it all,- we know a great fear To Justice mount,- and to see what we are seeking for Wednesdays are for scanning Until then an infirm And the most of an individual To pay rent and to hydrate Flee and return Insight to when Apostles of war and redemption This Peace our remembrance A holiday for the New Year The remark, and The Lord Opprobrium and file Making the great fallow That some places when- do end in Babel And others, the Night Trust Between every number And they in grade two,- the World was it all And taking a number And a witness And the way Between our dismemory That we filled on our way out A place like no other And a place- Nearly gone Every day for the wishes That were collected on time Three cars in my path And not a lightning of rule In seething to October While we jettisoned our less Bemeaning to fear Without either afflict And thanking hard Philosophy and cardstock The place to reveal We were here all along And intend to go back.

13 June 2026

Read Paul Klee's Pedagogical Sketchbook (1953) based on his Bauhaus lectures for the first time today before getting to work and felt reinvigorated by it. Evergreen. Over time I’m planning to sit with each of its subdivisions (below, as organized by Sibyl Moholy-Nagy) in depth…

I: Line as point progression Line as planar definition Line as mathematical proportion Line as coordinator for the path of motion

II: Line as optical guide Line as optical reason Line as psychological balance

III: Line as energy projection

IV: Line as symbol of centrifugal and centripedal movement Line as symbol of will and infinity Line as symbol of color mutations and kinetic harmony

…but for today I’m noting the first principles he lays out because they’re helping me think through the spatial inquiry that’s starting to happen in my studio (the Delimitation Stacks). With the caveat that I’m trying to submerge these things after learning them as I make—their relationship to intuition feels very important to preserve.

Anyway, to begin with, I think the categorization of active, medial, and passive lines (with respect to their cause, impact, and effect) relates to what I’ve arrived at recently in thinking about the goal of an optical essence of a space as a stack (vertical for now) of independent elements, which can then be individually (and endlessly, though not aimlessly) augmented to arrive at new structures. Which, when done well, seem to point towards inner relationships. Which Klee traces to nature—how we can think of line as it relates to the rhythms, patterns, and forms of human anatomy, plans, and earth, water, and air.

And so I think what’s crucial to implementing his teachings is to internalize them to the point where I can take an “active line on a walk, moving freely, without goal,” yet still honor certain instincts of the eye as they relate to emotional honesty. The toggling of delimiters through active, medial, and passive lines can be a playful, exploratory exercise. Even the simple notion of finding a space between an active and passive plane feels like it could be generative for an entire painting—an active/passive gradient—or a single choice to move something stagnant into a more dynamic range.

JOURNAL

20 juin 2026

J'ai cinq minutes pendant que les poussins se préparent. Ka chan leur manque et à moi aussi. « mais quand elle va revenir ka sensei ? » Ils sont trop mignons. Elle prépare son examen de juillet, ka chan, et travaille beaucoup, c’est très dur le droit. C’est jour de pluie ici, malgré tout ma princesse est venue pour aider au dôjô. On n’est jamais trop nombreuses ici pour assurer la sécurité. Je dis pas que la sécurité sur les tatamis, mais aussi dans les vestiaires et les douches. Depuis que je suis ici j’y veille spécialement et les filles sont enfin tranquilles. C’est pas un pays pour les filles le Japon, on le rappellera jamais assez et ka chan et moi, on sait de quoi on parle.

• * *

Ce soir encore on dîne ensemble, toute l'équipe sauf les kendoka qui me font toujours la gueule. Ils sont trop cons ces deux-là genre machos ils supportent pas une femme sensei et en plus supervisant toutes les activités, pourtant je leur fous la paix, je ne leur refuse rien mais ça les fait chier de me demander à moi. Ils essaient encore de passer par mon frangin qui les envoie à moi, et ça les vexe encore plus. Alors ils préfèrent encore rien demander du tout. Je me demande s’ils en arriveront à payer le papier hygiénique eux-mêmes pour pas s'abaisser à me signaler que ça manque. Faut en tenir une belle couche. C’est tout à fait encore l'image du Japon. Une femme, c'est on lui donne des ordres, et rien d'autre.

Before the dates for my denomination’s camp meeting were ever announced, before calendars filled up and schedules collided, I had already made plans.

About six months ago, I booked a vacation.

Not because I wanted to get away.

Not because I needed a break.

But because, in many ways, it’s a Make-A-Wish trip for my son, Vinnie.

For ten years now, he’s battled bone cancer.

Ten years.

He’s getting skinnier, yet somehow keeping his weight. The doctors can explain it medically; I just know what my eyes see. And what I see is a young man fighting a war that never seems to end.

So every year I load up the family and point the car south toward the Gulf Coast.

Fourteen hours.

Fourteen long hours.

The Gulf of Mexico.

Orange Beach, Alabama.

Gulf Shores, Alabama.

Sunshine.

Salt air.

Rolling waves.

Pelicans gliding across the water like little prophets of peace.

And every single time we go, something happens.

Vinnie comes back stronger.

Kaylee comes back refreshed.

Leo and Sydney come back smiling.

I come back breathing easier.

We all do.

The drive down hurts.

The drive back hurts even more.

Because you’re leaving something behind.

You’re leaving serenity.

You’re leaving tranquility.

You’re leaving peace.

But the pain is worth the destination.

And that’s when I think about Jesus.

Jesus talked about counting the cost.

He spoke of a king sitting down with his advisors before going to war, calculating whether he had enough strength to face an advancing army.

Count the cost.

Calculate the price.

Know what’s required before you begin.

And then Jesus applied that principle to discipleship.

He said if you’re going to follow Me, you’d better know what you’re signing up for.

Because following Christ costs something.

Are we willing to surrender our plans?

Our dreams?

Our reputations?

Our comfort?

Our pride?

Would we give up our Isaac like Abraham?

Would we surrender our son if God asked?

Would we surrender our future?

Our job?

Our popularity?

Would we endure being mocked by the world?

It’s one thing not to be conformed to the world.

It’s another thing entirely when the world turns around and laughs at you because you belong to Jesus.

Count the cost.

The world says, “Live your truth.”

Jesus says, “Follow Me.”

The world says, “Do what feels right.”

Jesus says, “Take up your cross.”

The world says, “Your will be done.”

Jesus says, “Thy will be done.”

Truth over lies.

His way over our way.

His kingdom over our kingdom.

His life over our life.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done.

On earth.

In earth.

In me.

As it is in heaven.

And today, I’m not counting the cost.

I’ve already counted it.

I know what it takes to get to Orange Beach.

I know what it costs to get to the Gulf.

The gasoline.

The hotel.

The weariness.

The aching back.

The fourteen-hour drive.

I’ve counted that cost.

But I’ve also counted another cost.

The cost of heaven.

And here’s the good news:

I don’t have to pay it.

Because somebody already did.

The nails paid it.

The cross paid it.

The blood paid it.

Jesus paid it.

The price of my salvation was not silver or gold.

It was the precious blood of the Son of God.

And because He paid what I could never pay…

Because He purchased what I could never afford…

Because He conquered what I could never conquer…

I get to go.

Not because I’m good enough.

Not because I’m strong enough.

Not because I’m worthy enough.

I get to go because Jesus made a way.

And if you’ll trust Him…

If you’ll believe Him…

If you’ll surrender to Him…

You get to go too.

**************

Luke 14:25-28,30-35 NIV

Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: [26] “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even their own life—such a person cannot be my disciple. [27] And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. [28] “Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Won’t you first sit down and estimate the cost to see if you have enough money to complete it? [30] saying, ‘This person began to build and wasn’t able to finish.’ [31] “Or suppose a king is about to go to war against another king. Won’t he first sit down and consider whether he is able with ten thousand men to oppose the one coming against him with twenty thousand? [32] If he is not able, he will send a delegation while the other is still a long way off and will ask for terms of peace. [33] In the same way, those of you who do not give up everything you have cannot be my disciples. [34] “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? [35] It is fit neither for the soil nor for the manure pile; it is thrown out. “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”

Lydia's Weekly Lifestyle blog is for today's African girl, so no subject is taboo. My purpose is to share things that may interest today's African girl.

This week's contributors: Lydia, Pépé Pépinière, Titi. This week's subjects: The Corporate Girlie’s Guide to Lingerie-Inspired Fashion in Accra, Quality clothing? China, the other side of the coin, Anemia, and Au Grand Ecuyer

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The Corporate Girlie’s Guide to Lingerie-Inspired Fashion in Accra. Before HR starts sweating, let’s be clear: We’re talking lingerie-inspired fashion — chic, polished, and office-appropriate styling that whispers elegance instead of screaming bedroom playlist. The Golden Rule: Suggest, Don’t Shock: Corporate lingerie styling is all about subtlety. We are inspiring curiosity, not starting emergency office meetings. Keep it classy by: Layering strategically Avoiding overly sheer fabrics Choosing neutral tones for work settings Keeping hemlines and fits polished Because the goal is fashion editor energy, not “the office group chat discussing you before lunch.” Confidence Is the Real Outfit: The beauty of lingerie-inspired corporate fashion is the balance of strength and softness. It reminds us that power dressing doesn’t always have to be stiff blazers and black trousers every single day. Sometimes power dressing is: Silk instead of cotton Lace instead of plain basics Confidence instead of playing safe. And the Accra girlies? Oh, we know how to do both business and beauty effortlessly. Now excuse us while we strut into the office looking like the CEO of elegance. Quality clothing? What to look for? Look for signs of wear, if already the item has snags, premature peeling or bubbling on the fabric, likely caused by friction from people trying on the garment, it's probably not a quality purchase. Turn the item inside out. Does it look as good on the inside as it does on the outside? If so, it's a good indication you've got a decent quality garment. Look for quality hemming, button holes, buttons, are the button holes at the right place for the buttons? What about the zip, does it look quality? Does it run smoothly? Is it stitched in and invisible? While the piece is inverted, lightly tug at the seams that join the panels of fabric together. They shouldn't be loose or show any big gaps when you pull at them. Consider the material. It should make sense for the purpose of the garment. For example, if you're buying a sweater, choose one with a material that will keep you warm, like wool. If you're buying summer clothes, choose fabrics that will keep you cool, like linen. If you're buying swimwear or sportswear, you'll likely need a synthetic performance or technical fabric. Don't conflate durability with quality. If a garment falls apart in the wash, it's not necessarily a bad piece of clothing. Silk or clothing with beading and embroidery, may need handwashing. Read the labels. What material is it? Are there proper washing instructions?

China, the other side of the Chinese yuan coin (also called renmibi). China, superpower, super copier, factory of the world, making robots, electric cars and the iPhone. Right now they are building the longest bridge, the deepest tunnel, the highest building, what not. They have moved from the 3 years of hunger (1959-1961) when about 40 million people died of hunger (Ghana has about 36 million people) to a country that is now economically challenging the world order (where the USA claims to be on top). So a loud Ayeeko is not out of place. But? Europe has about 6 % unemployment, the USA 4.3 %. And the Chinese? Similar figures, except for young people, 16% cannot find a job. So they go for anything they can get, like delivery services for those who are busy with their job. And here is the interesting part. Those who have a job work so hard and so much that they don't have time to make friends. So if they want to have a nice dinner they hire a companion. Someone who does not have a job. Or to go to the cinema. Or to go hiking. It’s a big business, 200 million people, 14 % of the Chinese population is available for rent. To do shopping for you or to go shopping with so you don't have to feel lonely.

Anemia. The latest (2022) Ghana Demographic and Health Survey claims that 40 % of Ghanian women of reproductive age have anemia. And amongst pregnant women it is 50 %. Some regions have higher figures, like 70 %. What is it? Your blood mainly consists of red and white blood cells (and a host of other things), the red blood cells carry oxygen to where it is needed to get energy (organs, cells, muscles), we get oxygen by breathing. Anemia is insufficient red blood cells (RBC in your lab results). Anemia symptoms often include headache, dizziness, palpitations (the sudden, abnormal awareness of your own heartbeat), pallor (an unnatural paleness or loss of colour in the skin), tiredness and out of breath. And low birth weight children. How come? Assuming you are not “sick” (not suffering from illness such as malaria, sickle cell, or severe blood loss) you mainly get anemia by not eating sufficient iron rich food. What is iron rich food? Beans, beef, (chicken) liver, chickpeas, dark chocolate, eggs, lentils, oats, pumpkin seeds, sardines, spinach, tuna. Trick: add vitamin C to every meal, like bell pepper, tomato, orange or lemon for better iron absorption, avoid tea, coffee, milk, yogurt and cheese 2 hours before meals, they block iron absorption. And don’t overcook those green leaves.

Au Grand Ecuyer. Ring Road, opposite Fire Service Headquarters, Osu, Accra , popularly called the French restaurant, though they sell many local and African dishes as well, is one of my favourites. They sell a very good local tasty tender beef steak at 200 GHC, no need to import from Argentina or Australia, it comes with potato chips, mashed potatoes or green beans (you could choose others) and if you want with black pepper sauce. Popular is attiéké (also spelled adjèkè, acheke) with tilapia, you mostly will not be able to finish this huge fish and have to go for take away. Their shrimp avocado salad is also nice and fresh, they add tomato on request. There’s more, much more there, prices are a bit reasonable.

Lydia...

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