I joined the November Knitting Challenge by the American Cancer Society, in memory of a former student who succumbed to cancer last month. I have 3 sweaters and 3 hats to make, so knitting every day this month should be no problem. Here is one of the type sweaters I hope to complete.

Just finished this wood duck hat for a fund raiser to help our Council on Aging.

“If there’s a place where Christ isn’t present, you go there. Christ will be present this way.” I think it is this transformative place of living from presence that allows us to resonate with others—meeting them in their presence, rather than through our ideas about them, or their ideas of us.

I wrote to my alma mater the other day to express my disappointment over a deal the university struck with t. Today I received a thoughtful and well written reply from the president of the university.

While we were distracted: The U.S. has quietly drafted a plan to end PEPFAR, a George W. Bush-era program that has saved millions around the world from AIDS, according to documents obtained by The Times.

The local clothes closet, which provides free clothing for families has asked for mittens. I generally like the look of knitted mittens better, but crocheting goes so much faster. I found a crocheted mittens pattern that I love. I am experimenting now with adapting it to a smaller size.

They say in the US There are no neutrals there You either stand for freedom Or bow to billionaires My daddy was a veteran And so were his sons They fought for our freedoms That I won't see undone l.facebook.com/l.php?u=http...

Someone suggested that we need protest songs like we had in the 60's. I thought of "Which Side are You On?" by Pete Seeger and set to thinking of new lyrics. My start is in my next post. Feel free to add.

I'm attending No Kings's event, “NO KINGS Northampton” - sign up now to join me! #aftvotes www.mobilize.us/aft/event/79...

It is definitely spring. I have hung loads of laundry outside, the turtles are sunning on the logs, and the blue herons have returned to their nest.

www.msn.com/en-us/money/... To make it even worse, if you do create an X account to check Social Security info, you have to give your SSN and username to log into the site, thus given Felon Musk access to both.

A sure sign of spring—egg masses in a nearby vernal pool.

Saw this critter while walking with the dog the other day, the first spotted salamander I have seen in a while. The dog and I stood guard as the salamander made its way safely across the road.

Taking a break from commenting on the chaos that surrounds us to celebrate harbingers of spring. Most people look for robins; I look for the return of red wing blackbirds. No red wing blackbirds on today’s walk, but I did see my first blue heron of the year, greenery on our lavender, and crocuses.

Justin Trudeau's official statement. We have made an adversary of a formerly strong ally.

Third pair of mittens.

I believe that is important to do whatever we can, wherever we can to help others, no matter how small or trivial our contribution seems. Thanks to my mother, I have been knitting mittens for over 60 years, so here are a couple of pairs I made recently to donate to a local clothing closet.

I wish I could post all the details here, but it would be too lengthy a post. One Trump action that has flown in under the radar is the firing of the National Archivist. I urge you to look into all the duties of this position as well as the illegality of his firing.

Anyone know of plans for a general strike of federal employees? A general strike of all employees? If so, please let me know.

A former student told me about an app called 5 Calls. It facilitated contacting your state and federal representatives and senators. Not only does it call the officials for you, but you can choose the topic you wish to contact them about and it will provide you with ideas of what to say.

I tried posting something about Musk's takeover of sensitive government computer systems, but it would not go through. Folks, we are in the midst of a hostile takeover, allowed to have gotten this far thanks to the spineless GOP who kowtow to every one of Trump's whims.

Worth watching: youtu.be/yi46WIRwXSk?...