Meanderings 11 September 2021
Good morning, friends!
How grateful I am for Reuben McMillan, Andrew Carnegie, and all those librarians who recognized and encouraged my love of books. How grateful I am for the public funds that have made possible all the libraries I’ve used over the years in every town where I’ve lived. I still find myself delighted to read the titles of newly arrived books at our local library. How grateful I am for all that libraries have done to expand e-book lending during the pandemic and other safe options for borrowing books.
I realize I’ve written only about books, but I am amazed at the array of services our local libraries offer, including COVID tests! Even when our libraries were closed, local residents could park nearby and use the wi-fi, an important benefit if the family budget doesn’t permit broadband connections. There are reference librarians to help with any information request, homework help, language classes, computer and printer access, and so much more. Children’s librarians not only offer creative programs but work with children to help them find books they will love.
I have a hard time thinking of another organization which does so much for my community and does it with excellence. My library wins “Five Star” awards yearly and awards for financial reporting excellence. It’s the one part of my property taxes I have no problem paying, or increasing when it is needed. I also realize state and federal funding is an important part of library funding. If you believe encouraging lifelong learners is a worthy investment, I think this is one of the best ways to use public funds that will bring a great return on investment.
A new discovery by a British archaeologist at UK’s Cambridge University reveals that in ancient Greece there was a thriving pop culture.
Professor Tim Whitmarsh, studied a little-known text written in ancient Greek showing that “stressed poetry,” the ancestor of all modern poetry and song, was already in use in the 2nd Century CE, 300 years earlier than previously thought.
In its shortest version, the anonymous four-line poem reads “they say what they like; let them say it; I don’t care.” Other versions extend with “Go on, love me; it does you good.”
The experimental verse became popular across the eastern Roman Empire and survives because, as well as presumably being shared orally, it has been found inscribed on twenty gemstones and as a graffito in Cartagena, Spain.
By comparing all of the known examples for the first time, Whitmarsh noticed that the poem used a different form of metre to that usually found in ancient Greek poetry. As well as showing signs of the long and short syllables characteristic of traditional “quantitative” verse, this text employed stressed and unstressed syllables.
Until now, “stressed poetry” of this kind has been unknown before the fifth century, when it began to be used in Byzantine Christian hymns.
OSWEGO, Ill. (WLS) -- Andrew Schultz began the school year with no friends, and lunchtime was particularly difficult.
However, that all changed after his mom took to social media to ask for help.
"Tears of sadness that I wept for my son and now just filled of joy for him. I'm so happy for him," said Lisa Schultz.
Now, that mother's desperate plea for her son with autism turned his lunchroom loneliness into a field of dreams filled with new friends.
"They were, like, the best people who I've ever met in my life," said the Oswego East junior, referring to the players on the high school sophomore football team.
That connection Andrew made was the answer to his mother's greatest hope.
"I basically went in prayer and said, 'God, send Andrew one friend,'" Lisa said. "He just said that he was sitting in the cafeteria by himself and just completely alone."
She was heartbroken, so Lisa reached out on an Oswego Moms social media page pleading for someone to help.
"I just became desperate for my son," she said.
The response started with one girl joining Andrew for lunch.
"Almost felt like I was being with people all of a sudden," he said.
Then, sophomore football coach Tyler Allison got wind of the situation.
"I got my players in a group message and texted them, anybody that had that lunch, go and visit him and if you didn't have the lunch just say hi to him in the hallways," Allison said.
The next thing you know, Andrew had players sitting with him at lunch.
"At first, I didn't want to hang out with them but then on Friday when we went to their game, it was like literally one of the best things I've ever seen," Andrew said. said.
Andrew got invited to be the team manager and even got to do the coin toss before last Friday's game.
CHICAGO (NewsNation Now) — Students in Illinois will soon be able to take up to five mental health days off school.
A new bill signed by Gov. J.B. Pritzker last month will allow for five excused absences from school without the need for a doctor’s note beginning in January, according to NPR.
Strains of the coronavirus pandemic that have been placed on children throughout the country is a major reason for the bill being signed.
“Many students feel stressed and have developed anxiety and depression because they’re not able to see teachers and friends, and may have lower grades due to remote learning,” said State Representative Barbara Hernandez.
The hope for this bill is for children to get the help they need. At the beginning of the pandemic, mental health emergencies skyrocketed from months March through May.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mental health emergencies increased 24% for kids aged 5 to 11 years old and 31% for kids 12 to 17.
Mike Bird on “episcopal” church government as biblical:
A while back Scot McKnight wrote up a summary of Alistair Stewart’s argument for the origins of the episcopacy (i.e., bishops as leaders of the church).
I thought I’d add my own 2 cents and point out why I think episcopal church governance is biblical and good!
The Episcopalian form of church governance centres on the bishop as the fulcrum of faith, order, and ministry. This form of church government is practiced by the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Orthodox, and Lutheran churches (in some Methodist churches too, but the bishop is not considered above the clergy and functions more like a superintendent).
The diocese is the basic unit with a single bishop overseeing a number of priests and parishes. The bishop is distinct from and above the priests and deacons, who serve in an individual congregation. A bishop can be subservient to an archbishop in charge of a large diocese. A bishop can also have a suffragan or assistant bishop in a larger diocese. Bishops are either appointed by Rome (Catholicism), or elected by a synod or standing committee (Anglicanism).
Several arguments, biblical and historical, are often used to justify an Episcopalian form of church government.
WATFORD CITY, N.D. (AP) — First came the roughnecks and other oil field workers, almost all men.
Lured by steady wages as the nation climbed out of the Great Recession, they filled McKenzie County’s few motel rooms, then began sleeping in cars, tents, trailers — anything to hide from the cold wind cutting across the North Dakota prairie. Once empty dirt roads suddenly were clogged with tanker trucks. Crime rates spiked.
Soon everything shifted yet again: The workers’ spouses and children arrived. Classrooms swelled. Apartment buildings cropped up beside oil rigs. And the newcomers made this Northern Plains community their own.
The growth made McKenzie the nation’s fastest-growing county during the past decade, according to the Census Bureau. It swept through like a twisting dust devil, shattering the rural innocence of a region known for inhospitable winters and long summer days perfect for growing crops. But it also brought youth, diversity and better wages — breathing new life into somnolent towns that had been losing population since the 1930s.
Dana Amon, who grew up in a double-wide trailer on a farm on the edge of the county seat, Watford City, remembers riding her horse across fields now dotted with tracts of modest housing lit up at night by flares from nearby oil wells.
“Our little town just blew up at the seams,” she said.
One of those “what to say” news reports:
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. (KRON) – A San Francisco home just sold for $2.1 million over its asking price after receiving 15 offers in 11 days.
177 Belgrave Avenue was listed at $3.5 million, and it sold for $5.6 million.
The home has been coined a treehouse in the sky by Compass realtors because of its “breathtaking city views from every room, sprawling outdoor space, and an unparalleled level of privacy.”
This was the first time that the home hit the market in 50 years. It was built in the 1970s and has only ever had one owner.