Those capricious blog gods have been giving me quite a lot of trouble lately, prompting me to consider bidding fond farewell to all my cherished blog readers around the world. I've so much enjoyed connecting with each and every one of you, but it's getting quite challenging now to even continue. But let's give it one more try to see if we can still make a go of it.

Last evening, about 6:30 pm, while I was eating supper at our home in West Virginia, I saw 3 young does suddenly emerge together from a grove of trees, then amble rather nonchalantly across our yard to disappear into the nearby woods. Fortunately, our dog was inside with me or she would have gone crazy.

A Spanish-English interpretation just request came in, but, of course, I cannot accept it from here: TransPerfect is requesting your availability for an onsite consecutive interpretation session for Asylum/Immigration subject matter in Arlington, Virginia, on Friday, August 29, 2025, from 08:30 AM to 12:30 PM EDT.

I would have loved to be an interpreter on an immigrant/asylum matter, though, of course, the interpreter is not allowed to intervene whatsoever, which is hard sometimes.

I got a chance to speak a little Spanish today when ordering from a Mexican Restaurant, Mi Ranchito, located right here in Berkeley Spings. When I asked in Spanish where the proprietors were from, they said Guadalajara, near the Pacific coast a little north of Mexico City. How did they ever get here?

Below is Union Station, only a few blocks away from my old home on Capitol Hill back in Washington, DC. I often used to walk over there to eat lunch or take the metro.

The National Guard has now taken over DC's Union Station. Why is Donald Trump actually doing all this? Does he even know why himself?

Flags were flown at half-staff at the US capitol after the deadly school shooting in Minneapolis.

The "right to bear arms" still seems to take precedence in the US over the right to life.

Daily Beast, Citizens Refuse to Indict D.C. Subway Slinger in Blow to Trump A federal grand jury has refused to hand down a felony indictment for the man who threw a Subway sandwich at a federal agent in Washington D.C. The panel of citizens rejected demands from prosecutors working for Jeanine Pirro.

Political observers around the world have ridiculed President Donald Trump’s latest fawning Cabinet meeting, describing the sycophantic display as a carnival of “butt-snorkeling” and “boot-licking”. The meeting lasted 3 hours.

Members of Trump's Cabinet took it in turns to fawn over the president.

Wash. Post, Bolton continues criticism of Trump foreign policy following FBI raids“Donald Trump’s Ukraine policy today is no more coherent than it was last Friday when his administration executed search warrants against my home and office.”

Trump has indicated that he now wants to expand use of the death penalty. He certainly needs to explain why.

NY Times, 2 Weeks After Trump-Putin Summit, Russian Air Attack Kills at Least 18 in Kyiv

The strikes, which hit an apartment building and buildings used by European governments, were the largest on the Ukrainian capital since the Alaska summit.

Wash. Post, I srael’s unprecedented slaughter of journalists in Gaza

Now, how about having Israeli leaders tell the world why? Isn't this a war crime?

NY Times, Rabbis Emerge as Growing Voice of Criticism of Israel’s Tactics in Gaza

Israel's reputation worldwide has certainly plunged to a new low, though Trump continues to give Israel unstinting moral support as well as generous financial aid, ignoring its continued atrocities against civilians and journalists, making our country complicit in these crimes.

Hudson Institute, Speak Up for Jimmy Lai, China’s Most Dangerous Dissident — And for Hong Kong’s Liberties

Multicolored living succulents have been created that actually glow in the dark.