Queen Victoria’s Coronation, 28 June 1838

♦

That people in the first half of the 19th century were no strangers to illness and death is richly illustrated by the antecedents and birth of Queen Victoria of Britain (r. 1837-1901). Born 24 May 1819, she was originally fifth in line of succession to the throne, but in the 18 years that elapsed between birth and coronation, the people nearer the throne than her all died, her father, Prince Edward, Duke of Kent and Strathern, in 1820 of pneumonia, less than a year after her birth. By 1830, she had become heiress presumptive.

Not that England stagnated during the years prior to Victoria’s coronation: her immediate predecessor, William IV, oversaw an updating of the poor law, the restriction of child labor, and the abolition of slavery in the the British Empire. As if this were not enough, the Reform Act of 1832 was passed by Parliament during his reign. No small achievements, these.

Diminutive, obstinate, and honest, Victoria oversaw the continuing transition of the United Kingdom into a constitutional monarchy even as the British Empire reached the peak of its power. As an adult, she wrote more than 2500 words a day, an achievement any professional writer could admire, and most of her diary survives, a telling account of the Queen’s personal influence during one of the greatest periods of prosperity in human history.

There are no perfect monarchies, and certainly Victoria’s reign produced its share of difficulties, even as the intellectual ferment characterized by the works of Darwin and Marx would go on to shape battle lines in the 20th and 21st centuries. But Victoria helped provide a framework of peaceful political evolution, at least in Britain, the hope that mankind can indeed produce, in the words of Tennyson, “a Parliament of Man.”

The world is working towards a new synthesis, one that is more inclusive, just, and loving. As much as any person in modern history, Victoria has helped set the stage for what may end up being humankind’s ultimate achievement, a prosperous world at peace.

♦

Image: The coronation of Queen Victoria (1838). Author: Edmund Thomas Parris. WikiCmns; Public Domain.

*

Harappa, Dying to Live, and an Unexpected Surprise

*

RT has been silent of late; much has been on his mind. Here is the latest:

1) RT’s hypertension, the product of his current medication cocktail, has gotten serious, and he is now taking blood pressure meds and going down on his other meds with the aim of getting off and onto something known to reduce BP over the long-term. The transition will take place slowly so as not to place undue pressure on his mom, who is herself significantly improved on her new meds. RT for his part will be making yet another call to a doctor, this one to get help with a BP meds script. What with all the news and doctor’s visits, things are a bit tense here, and RT has been taking his mental escapes where he can find them.

2) The bed bugs have begun to bit again, and RT suspects that there is a fourth treatment in the duplex’s future, and a not-too-distant one at that.

3) RT has just finished watching a wonderful video on YouTube, Dying to Live. It concerns a twenty-something lady who was diagnosed with stage-4 breast cancer at 23 and was given 2 1/2 years to live. She is still alive at 27 and counting, and has started a BC-awareness foundation, Coppafeel. She has displayed remarkable intelligence and bravery during her fight, in RT’s opinion. The video is definitely worth watching.

4) RT’s ongoing excursion into video-land has led to a predictable project of his own, a video to accompany a recording of his reading the prologue from Gilgamesh. The number of free resources out there for such a project is greater than one might think, and RT has made good progress in putting together something watchable (and listenable!).

5) In the middle of all this, RT is fomenting a post on Harappan Civilization. All the signs of mortality are reminding him of an important fact: history may be humankind’s most effective response to death. Sumer and Harappa, powerful civilizations at the beginning of history (and the people who created them), live on. Dust, stone, and writing systems are still talking, and we listen with a keen interest. Or, to put it another way, by learning what happened to others, we become more expert at dealing with what is happening to us.

There it is, and RT might even get out that Harappa post tonight…

*

Map: Extent of Harrapan Civilization at its Height.  User: MM. Wikipedia; CC 3.0 Share-Alike, Attribution, Unported.

*

 

Picture of the Day- January 9, 2014

*

some happiness from Ireland…enjoy!   RT

(reposted from Natalia Maks)

*

Picture of the Day- January 9, 2014.

The Great Rhythms

RT is no stranger to the Winter Blues; he’s dealt with them off and on since he was a teenager. For whatever reason, this year the arrival of winter has struck him a little more deeply than most changes of the season. But not to worry: RT has been taking steps to deal with blah feelings and is doing better.

But this particular episode has reminded RT that our lives ride on profound currents of energy and mood. Women are traditionally supposed to be the moodier gender, but the tides of emotion that run through men are all the more powerful for being hidden under still waters.

And the currents that everyone deals with do not necessarily dissipate in a few months or even years. These are the great rhythms, which flow through us for decades and must be regarded with the utmost respect. Swimming down into their pull and struggling to change and understand them is a part of every health life. Feelings have to be processed, and in a busy life these can accumulate until they overwhelm us. We need time to assimilate, to explore, and to grow more skillful.    RT

*

Photo: Picture of the moon dark. Arjun. WikiCmns. Public Domain.

*

Autumn in Black and White

RT figures he was introduced to Autumn when he was 3 or 4; his family had returned from Brazil to Washington D.C., for what turned out to be about 6 years. He has some sharp memories of growing accustomed to the change in light, and one Thanksgiving in particular, when we drove out into the country to share the holiday with friends. Vivid images of the newly bleak landscape, punctuated with maple reds and muted gold, everything under the slanting light, lodged in his mind.

Light is a powerful thing, and so are shadows. RT recalls the story of another little boy who came back to the United States from Brazil (and specifically, from the treeless environs of the newly dedicated Brasilia): this particular boy was scared by the shadows that trees cast. One can only imagine that his first fall back in the country was an uncomfortable time for this child.

Halloween is the day the dead walk: they have long memories and tell us things we’ve forgotten. RT suspects it is better to overcome fear and listen to what they tell us; not all their news is troubling.

RT

*

Photo: Gathering Weather (1898); Alfred Horsley Hinton. WikiCmns; Public Domain.

*

The U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees–Part of the Solution

*

Think about this: there are 45 million refugees in the world today; 207 nations each have smaller populations than this figure. Yet refugees, people who have fled terrible conditions in their home countries or who have been forced to leave, have no government.

Or think again: refugees do have a government of sorts–one that is administered by the United Nations and that is responsible for delivering the most basic of services: food, clothing, housing, and medicine. What is this amazing organization? The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.

This is what UNHCR does: 1) advocate for the basic rights of refugees; 2) ensure clean water, food, basic housing, and medical care; and 3) seek long-term solutions via repatriation or resettlement. In its efforts, UNHCR has an indispensable partner: the World Food Program. WFP provides food, on average, to 90 million people each year.

The labors of these two organizations rarely make the press, and yet there can be no question that they have eased the suffering and saved the lives of millions over the several decades they have operated. UNHCR and WFP should be incorporated into any future world government or coordinate as part of the essential services it provides. And surely, any world government’s primary goals must include, when possible, the repatriation of all refugees.   RT

*

Photo: Distribution of high energy biscuits and medical supplies in Kibati, Goma, Congo (2008). Author: Julien Harneis, WikiCmns; CC 2.0 Generic.

*

George Bizet, Etienne Carjat, and Crowdsourcing

*

RT has been testing the waters of crowdsourcing the last two weeks or so; he’s pretty sure that an upcoming post will detail his latest venture into economic self-sufficiency. In the meantime, he offers yet another superb portrait, this one of the composer George Bizet, by Etienne Carjat; your loyal publisher is willing to wager that some reflections on Carjat will appear in these pages before much longer.

There is also the matter of RT’s toothache and his search for affordable dentistry. Never a dull moment…    RT

*

Photo:  George Bizet (1875); Etienne Carjat. WikiCmns; Public Domain.

Carrot Pineapple Coconut Cake

•

some of RT’s favorite ingredients–go ahead, dig in!  RT

(reposted from I WANT TO COOK THAT)

•

Carrot Pineapple Coconut Cake.

super sleepy

*

october invites naps…  RT

(reposted from carrieblueberry)

*

super sleepy.

RT has registered for Medicaid!

It is with some relief and more than a little pride that RT can report he has registered for Medicaid. In all, the process required a handful of telephone calls and about 15 minutes on the West Virginia Medicaid web site. RT gives the overall service so far an A-. Registration was not very hard to do, and RT was particularly impressed by the WV Medicaid online application, which was written in a straightforward, easy-to-understand vernacular.

RT will have to follow up on the registration: find out when to expect receiving the Medicaid card and making sure nothing else needs to be done. But for the moment, he’s feeling good about the process.

As for the accompanying chart, RT isn’t sure how to explain the difference between expanding Medicaid and not expanding. He has a hunch, however, that this is another liberal vs. conservative issue. As RT finishes out this post, someone in the computer lab is registering for healthcare online.    RT

*

Chart: ACA Medicaid Expansion by State. (Dark Green=expanding Medicaid; Medium Green=debating expansion; Light Green=not expanding). Author: Kurykh. WikiCmns; CC 3.0 Unported.

*