Inks, Links, and Drinks

(A blog post in which I muse without purpose, but suggest books, articles, music, and beverages.)

The NYTimes has a lovely article about a the work of a biology prof at A's university:

     “You can live a perfectly happy life never having heard of Shakespeare,” he says, “but your life is in some ways a  little diminished, because there’s such beauty there.

      “And I think the same is true of nature. Much of it is useless to us, and that’s O.K. It’s not true that every species that goes extinct is like another rivet off the plane and the plane’s going to crash. We lost the passenger pigeon and the U.S. economy did not tank. But we lost the passenger pigeon and we lost some of this remarkable music made out of atoms and DNA.”

(h/t to Melanie for pointing out those lines)  Read the article with an autumnal beer; but if you get the book (The Forest Unseen, highly recommended) see if you can get some of Tennessee's own Jack Daniel's Gentleman Jack to sip while you read it by the fire.  For the kids?  Eggnog (non-alcoholic, or course) with plenty of nutmeg.

Looking for another great read by the fire reminds me that a new issue of Touchstone is here!  From the announcement:

-Two articles by Anthony Esolen: One on the Theological Depth of Spenser's Neglected Wedding Hymn and another on the ninth-century Advent hymn, Conditor alme siderum, "Creator of the Stars of Night." 

So, because the husband claims he is trying to eliminate paper, I buzzed onto Amazon and found that I could subscribe via Kindle for Android (and most other Kindle devices) and get a free 1-month trial of Touchstone, cancel any time.  The going rate for the paper magazine is around $30 for 6 issues, but e-mag style via Amazon, it's only $1.99 a month.  Touchstone, for those who are not familiar with it, is "A Journal of Mere Christianity" with a variety of authors writing from a Christian perspective.  As one might expect from the description, the publishers have a fondness for Lewis.  As do I.  So, cider with this issue?  I think so.

Speaking of Mere Christianity, the (audio) book  itself is keeping P awake at night.  Warm milk may be the remedy.

Also?  This photo made me happy today; photographing a more elusive common yellowthroat did not.

Don't get angry, get even, as the saying goes.  I thought this might make me laugh, and it did.  It's a great first birding book for the toddler/preschooler who plays Angry Birds better than you do on your smartphone while waiting anywhere.:

National Geographic Angry Birds:  50 True Stories of the Fed-Up Feathered and Furious.

Finally, a little Byrd: