I sincerely hope that neither of those seasonal greetings offends you. Apparently, even with all the real problems we face in the world, some people find time to be upset about the use of one or the other of those phrases. Because nothing will affect America's future like which holidays we celebrate, and how we choose to talk about them....
Regardless, today is Christmas Eve eve, and whichever holiday you may or may not celebrate this season, I hope you are warm, safe, and happily surrounded by friends and family. Wherever you are and whatever you believe, please remember those who are less fortunate. Tis the season, after all, and everyone deserves to experience it as we do.
As always, happy Wednesday and happy reading.
This Day in History
1888 - Vincent Van Gogh cuts off one of his ears while dealing with severe depression. Not exactly in the holiday spirit, I know, but unfortunately I have very little control over who does what and when, so today is the 127th anniversary of the day Van Gogh cut off his own ear.
If there is a takeaway here, it could be that our stigmatization and treatment of mental health issues hasn't improved much since Van Gogh maimed himself. In fact, in our current debate on guns, we seem very eager to blame gun violence on the mentally ill, but very loathe to address the high rate of gun suicide that may disproportionately affect those same people.
Missing Links
Last week I tried to share a link that I billed as the Cliff Notes on Climate Change. The link was broken. In 2015, that's called a #fail. So without further ado, here's take two (from the NYTimes). When I shared the link last week, I tried to keep it quick and succinct, and I will try to do so again here, but in the spirit of climate change, I'm going to theme this week's digest around nature. After all, it's generally much more uplifting than Van Gogh's struggles.
Something Worth Saving
They say a picture is worth a thousand words. As a writer, I don't necessarily love that, but when you see certain pictures, you realize why it's said. Personally, when I see certain photos of life on our planet, I realize that we truly do have something worth saving (from Medium). If these pictures can't convince people how fortunate we are to live in the amazing world we do, then I'm not sure it is possible to convince them. Take a moment to appreciate these pictures. They're spectacular, and a great reminder of the majesty of our planet.
One-Upping Myself
The previous pictures were worth 1,000 words apiece. This next group is likely worth double that (from Medium). My artistic skills and know how can be described very simply as non-existent, but it blows my mind that anyone is able to capture birds in flight with the clarity and precision shown in these photographs. I find them to be simultaneously artistic masterpieces and testaments to the beauty of life.
There be Ants Here
Trigger warning: the next link contains ants. I love ants. I think they're incredibly interesting. Ants are farmers, architects, slave-traders, and of course communists. Apparently when it rains enough, they're also a living life raft (from Fox Carolina). There are no gratifying and beautiful pictures included in this link, but there is an example of the fascinating intricacies that life on planet Earth has evolved.
A Very Merry Puppy
If none of the previous links and pictures could convince you that we've got something special going on here on the 3rd Rock from the Sun, then maybe this fella will. George should need no introduction as he has appeared in a previous digest, but how can anyone say no to this picture!?!? In case you need a reminder, George is a leggy puppy who lives with his wonderful humans Chris and Lizzie in Texas. George has a puppy's energy, but of course that means he also needs his fare share of naps. As you can see, he excels at napping. Also, he loves Christmas. Also, he's just really cute. All of these are very good reasons to give George another week being featured in digest.
If you're keeping score, this means George has appeared in the digest one less time than Vladimir Putin. My priorities are seriously out of whack. But not so out of whack that I'll forget to give a shout out to Chris and Lizzie for sharing George (again).
Will's Weekly Trivia!
As always, please remember to send theopt-in form to friends, and to fill out the feedback form if you have any recommendations or want to share an article link or dog. Thank you to those who have!
The overall number of contestants has waxed and waned over the last few weeks, but there is still enough interest to keep trivia going. Keep the answers coming!
IF you choose to answer the question, respond to staton.will@gmail.com with your answer. Please note that by competing you are giving me permission to publish your first name in the trivia leader board each week.
TRIVIA!
Last Week: How many nations agreed to the Climate Accord in Paris?
Answer: 188 or 196; 196 nations attended the summit, and 188 agreed to the accord. Either answer was accepted.
This Week: What is the annual date of Earth Day? Which year was it first celebrated?
LEADER BOARD
1. TN: Natalie - 2 points
1. NY: Alexa - 2 points
1. OR: Joe - 2 points
1. NY: Mike - 2 points
2. MS: Meghan - 1 point
2. MS: Steve - 1 point
2. TX: Chris - 1 point
2. NY: Joe - 1 point
2. MS: Bill - 1 point
