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The End of Times

Strife, war, famine, corruption, killing... all are amongst the vast array of ways in which humankind treats one another when they act selfishly and only promote their own interest. We as humans, being social creatures who live in a highly organized society, SHOULD have as a goal the idea of service to others. There is no better calling I can think of for myself than being a frumpy, furry-faced professor... for I am allowed the freedom to devote much of my work life to that of service. Service to my students, service to my fellow faculty in the form of committee work, and service to "the greater good" by my efforts in the laboratory as I strive to discover new knowledge.

During my walk today, I heard a description on NPR about a show I have forgotten about for the last year or so when things became so tough. It is a show called the "American Experience" and it is a wonderful program that is akin to the documentaries and biographies of previous (of a high caliber and deeper focus like the documentaries of the 1960s and 1970s). I cannot wait for their return with new editions of this series this Fall. I will also look for rebroadcasts of some of the editions I missed this past year.

In reference to my title... The End of Times... it was a bit of a humerous play on words. At the end of [the] Times.... that is, the New York Times... which I read this morning, there is an add for a new Ann Packer novel. The book looks reasonably interesting, but I have questions for you, my readers. I suspect some of you may have read one or more of her novels. Is she an author you would recommend? If she is, would you recommend her to everyone, or only to readers who are female (Is she an author of "female genre" literature, or is she an author of a more "universal genre" who happens to write literature that has females as the primary character in her novel)? Would a furry-faced, frumpy, pipe-smoking professor likely find her work enjoyable to read?

PipeTobacco