Minimalism.

Today's Tids Issue 4,481

S-i-m-p-l-e:

How interesting would it be to bring the minimalist styles in art and music to life? Reducing needs to essential elements. I decided to ponder minimalism today, in our world of ever-growing complexities. Minimalism does not mean giving up, but merely refining. Maybe going from three-piece suits to untuckits is minimalist in a way. Maybe it is a good time to get out from under the glitter and the demands of extravagance. The Quakers understood minimalist living. And they were happy being who they are; eliminating the anxiety of wanting. If you think about it, the simplicity of a classic colonial roof line has not been surpassed. We strive to change and often give up perfection, in what we see, what we do and who we are. We disguise ordinary music with costumes, light and smoke and mirrors. But simple tunes never leave your head. We see in our loves, the character, the person over the packaging.  Sorry, sometimes pondering turns into disconnected rambling. If I keep on, this Tidlet will be anything but minimal.

Don’t you have that feeling that when the Fed cuts interest rates it means the economy is weakening? Somewhere.

LL Bean has some nice new fleece. It’s time.

With cocktails named Elijah, Ezekiel and Obadiah, it wasn’t long before the bar owner drank away all of his prophets.

P-r-o  L-i-f-e may be meaning something after all. Despite court rulings, legislative rulings and marching in the streets, it appears from an AP report just out with formerly unrevealed statistics, that Abortions are at their lowest level since 1973. The Guttmacher Institute, a group that supports abortion rights, says that abortions went form 1,000,000+ in 2011 to 926,000 in 2014 to 862,000 in 2017. The peak for abortions was 1.6 Million in 1990. The report obviously does not cover abortion rates following the current flurry of abortion bans. Abortion supporters like GI are hoping the decline will take pressure off of the Court to overturn RvW. Abortion foes think that 826K is still too many kids not making it. Guttmacher issued the report as a call for more contraception. A simple solution.

The Question:

Who was Scott Fahlman?

The Headlines:

--Markets Lackluster After Rate Reduction; Futures Lower.

--Even With US Top Of The Line Security Defenses, Saudi Could Not Stop Oil Flied Drone Attack.

--Netanyahu Is Asking Rival Gantz To Join Him In A Unity Government.

--Jerry Is Next Hurricane; Most Likely It Will Turn Up Bermuda’s Way.

--Powell Passes Baton To President Saying That US Needs To Stabilize Trade Bouncing Ball.

--Support For No-Deal Brexit Fading Fast.

--Autistic, Blind Singer Kodi Lee Wins AGT Championship; V.Unbeatable Surprisingly Only Fourth.

--Viet Nam Wall Coming To Newport RI For Last Weekend Of Summer.

The Washington Post just leapt far ahead of the NY Times on the integrity scale.

Speaking of minimalism, the Fed’s Powell is exactly what we need. Studied scrutiny offsets careless rampaging.

The ole NFL pickers are licking their wounds after last week. And they aren’t seasoned with Cheeto Dust. Yuck! Every week I say, “No more upset picks,” but then I feel frisky. 9-7 last week brings us to 22-9-1 (70% - Note: Like Politicians, I only show percentages when they are favorable) Ok. Week 3. Tonight, it is the Titans, who let me down last week, against the Jags. I pick Tenn to rebound. The big games, as I see them, are Ravens at Chiefs, Saints at Seahawks, and Texans at Chargers. The Ravens have looked quite strong and the Chiefs have looked like what the Chiefs were predicted to be. Both have exciting QBs – Larmar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes. Could be a dandy, but I have to stick with the Chiefs. It could be an upset. The Saints are good, but Brees is out. They need this game but won’t get it against Seattle who is at Home. The Texans and Chargers were both early favorites in their divisions.  I like Texas, But I’m picking the homer LAC. Another squeaker is Colts at home versus Atlanta. Jacoby Brissette, a kid I like, is a good player back up to Luck and I’ll go with the Colts at home.

There are some really good teams playing some not so good teams, like The Pats playing a dreadful looking Jets team with now a 3^rd string QB. Pats all the way. (Pats have scored 76 points versus 3 for the opponents.) I’m taking the Vikes at home over Oakland, The Dolphins don’t have a chance against the Cowboys.  Nor do the Broncs against the Pack. I like the Bills, but Bengal’s will give them a tussle. I go home team, good “D” Bills. Newton is out for the Panthers and the Cards looked reasonable last week. I’m picking them. Eli was sat ignominiously, as Giants look for anything for a win. Is Jones the answer? I pick Tampa Bay, and I’ll watch NYG fans howl. The Niners and Steelers are a good match up, but Pitt must break in a new QB. Have to pick SF. The Browns are at home and played a little better last week, but it was the Jets. They play the LA Rams who are among the elite. Very tough pick. Have to go Rams. I tend to pick the Skins a lot, but also like the Bears. This is my coin flip game. Hang on while I find a coin. Heads it is Bears; Tails it is Skins. Ok, flip. Tails! Go Skins. So, that’s it for another week. Maybe I should reflip the coin until I get my way. Nah. Then I’d be no better than the NY Times.

I read a lot of news outlets to snag my headlines, but I am nervous about grabbing anything from CNN.

Is it a wake-up call to learn that the Saudis using the latest and greatest defense technology from the US couldn’t stop the attack on the oil field? Yikes!

Envy maybe the underlying cause for much of the national angst.

Nobody, it appears, is safe from being turned into some authority for some small incident.

I think Justin Trudeau got screwed by the new wave of sanctimonious “Gotcha” sweeping the world,

A lot of the competition shows like AGT, Voice and Dancin’ have these personal life story packages designed to tug at heart strings. I’m wondering if they have too much influence on voting.  A good minimalist producer would just let them sing, dance or fly through the air.

The Answer:

In 1982 Scott Fahlman invented the ubiquitous denizen of today’s communications. He was a computer scientist at Carnegie Mellon involved in complex technology much too convoluted for my mind to interpret into a simple sentence. But, along the way he gave us 😊.

What a nice simple way to express a little emotion in your heart. Cheaper than roses and it doesn’t die.