music, thoughts, books, dreams, more

Just my world of dreams, music and thoughts. Author of two books, one a novel of Love stories set in Framingham, Mass, Secrets of the Heart the 2nd book an autobiography of growing up in Framingham, Mass. Small Town America, Framingham My generation was the first teenage generation, that was when the word was coined. Ours was the generation that started cruising through town and to the drive in theater and drive in restaurant. In our area, Ernie Kampersal,from Holliston, drove his bucking car through town, picking up girls. It rose in the air, like a stallion! We went to the soda shops and played the juke boxes. It was a different town, a different time, and it belonged to us!

Saturday, March 19, 2011

The Devil in the White City

An unusual book, that will keep you interested, it is about a character that lived in Chicago at the time of the World's Fair, and it steeps you in the sounds, smells and aura of the city as it grew.

Tommy Edwards-Please Love Me Forever

Pray and hold good thoughts, we can get through this world catastrophe! Remember the Dorsey brothers, they had so many hits...!!!

Brook Benton and Dinah Washington - Baby (You've Got What It Takes)

We've got what it takes to make the world a better place to live...

It's All In The Game - Tommy Edwards

Morning Side Of The Mountain; Please Mr. Sun

This brings you back to the 50's a time of beautiful music, relax and enjoy three songs

Lenny Cocoa & The Chimes - Once In A While

Music heals the heart!  Songs that never die

Gladys Knight & The Pips - Midnight Train to Georgia


Whie we are healing from the worst disaster the world has known since the end of the 2nd World War, it is time for music....Most likely I published this in my blog in the past, but, it is one of my favorites for rhythm, and sound.                                                           

Friday, March 18, 2011

Redundant cooling...why not use wind turbines at nuclear plants

Madlyn FafardDave DeCenzo


Dave, what do you think about this....would it make sense to plan to close down any of the plants immediately that are on faults, and to build new ones that are the pebble type, not able to have a melt down....this would seem intelligent, with a long term plan of phasing out the old plants that pose such danger to the public. Can we afford this type of a catastrophe, this loss of life and contamination? We need leadership , we can not allow this type of danger to exist when we have new technology, my mind tells me...what say you?

19 hours ago ·LikeUnlike · · View Feedback (2)Hide Feedback (2)

Dave DeCenzo The 200MW VHTGR being built in Idaho for the DOE will provide a proof of concept. After that plant passes its commissioning tests in 2014, then copies can be built. Certainly, site plans could be done ahead of then and any enviro permits ap...plied for and so on for other sites. Existing plants on fault lines will not necessarily see a tsunami, but re-evaluation of cool-down redundancies after emergency shutdown is warranted. I would rather see the worst coal plants taken off line before the nukes if the nuke re-evaluations determine there are sufficiently low risks. Imagine how this would have played out if the Japan plants had had 3 or 4 WindTurbines of size 3MW sitting there as redundancy for the diesel generators and batteries. I have not seen a weather report yet where the wind stopped over there.

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18 hours ago · LikeUnlikeMadlyn Fafard great thinking Dave, there is no question the wind power would have been able to save the day...how can we get the Politicians to listen to this type of thinkingNuclear space vehicles using pebble bed reactors (SAE)

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Buckminster Fuller,

R. Buckminster "Bucky" Fuller




Bucky Fuller (July 12, 1895 – July 1, 1983) was an engineer, author, designer, inventor, and futurist. He published more than 30 books, inventing and popularizing terms such as "Spaceship Earth" and synergetics. He is best known for his invention of the geodesic dome. Carbon molecules known as fullerenes were later named by scientists for their resemblance to "Bucky's" geodesic spheres.



New Dimensions had the enormous privilege to sit down with Bucky on many occasions. We've recently digitized several of those programs. Bucky had a way of answering an inquiry in detail. His mind was so encompassing, he never talked in the kind of sound-bytes, which we've been so accustomed to hearing on the media. He takes us on a whirlwind tour of history, as he connects the dots of unfolding humanity. So, enjoy the ride with R. Buckminster Fuller.



The following programs can be downloaded as audio or transcript. Or, you may want both. There is something powerful in the transmission of his own voice, but you may want to follow along with the transcript, because he talks very fast, and his language patterns are very precise, but not what we are used to hearing.







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PROGRAM DESCRIPTIONS

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IS THERE ENOUGH TO GO AROUND? with BUCKMINSTER FULLER

Program #1570 - Buy Now $1.99 - MP3 Download or Transcript



Topics explorered in this dialogue include:



What was the highly developed geometry of the Babylonians

Why there are sixty minutes in an hour

Why churches fought progressive cosmology

How geometry as taught today still reinforces the "flat Earth" concept

What was the fundamental beliefs behind the rise of Marxism

How invisible realities have changed our world

What is the humanitarian potential of technology and industry

Why "we can no longer rationalize selfishness"

How invisible realities are changing the dynamics of history

What outer-space exploration taught us about human needs

What "the little individual" can do to help humanity and the planet

One of the most comprehensive and imaginative thinkers of our time is captured in essence here, as he gives an extraordinary overview of the state of the planet and human history. Asked whether there are enough resources to support our growing population, the late Buckminster Fuller, age 85 when this was recorded, responds with a tour-de-force capsule history of Western civilization—a refutation of the economics of scarcity first propounded by Thomas Malthus. His answer, spanning politics, religion, geodesic domes, the arms race and more, tickles and challenges our thinking about every topic in his path, as he describes the advent of a new world where selfishness is no longer necessary. Says Fuller, "We are on the threshold of a new wave."



He is the author of many books including Utopia or Oblivion (Bantam 1971) and Critical Path (St. Martin's 1981). To learn more about the work of R. Buckminster Fuller go to www.bfi.org







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AROUND THE UNIVERSE with R. BUCKMINSTER FULLER





R. Buckminster Fuller has been called, "the Leonardo da Vinci of our time." In this two-part conversation, the visionary inventor, philosopher and humanitarian gives his extraordinarily insightful picture of where the human race is now, and how to proceed from here. He describes "cosmic cost accounting," being a "comprehensivist" instead of a specialist, doing more with less, experiential knowing, and the ultimate challenge to the future of humanity. In his autobiographical book Critical Path (St. Martin's Press 1981), Bucky sums up a lifetime of deep thought and concern for the planet and humankind. This two-part conversation is the "summing up of the summing up."



AROUND THE UNIVERSE with R. BUCKMINSTER FULLER - Part A

Program #1606A - Buy Now $1.99 - MP3 Download or Transcript



Topics explorered in this dialogue include:



How to do more with less

What were the major shifts in our cultural worldview during Bucky's lifetime

What is the story of selfishness and hoarding in Western civilization

How specialization has blinded us

How we may develop "livingry" instead of weaponry

Why the number one instinct of the power structure has always been divide to conquer

What is the difference between wealth and money

AROUND THE UNIVERSE with R. BUCKMINSTER FULLER - Part B

Program #1606B - Buy Now $1.99 - MP3 Download or Transcript



Topics explorered in this dialogue include:



What is cosmic accounting: the real cost of what we consume

How the space program has changed our awareness of Earth

What you can do to contribute to the welfare of the planet

Why a triangle is the strongest structural shape

How private property evolved with corporations

How synergetic geometry makes it possible to understand nature's coordinating principles

How we can eliminate the use of fossil fuels



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Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Here is a site to review on the reactor information available to the public from MIT  go to this site and you will see recent blogs

bravenewclimate.com

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

When we were indomitable! United under one purpose

Hero's from the past, a movie of how we were able to use Navajo language to win the war in the Pacific.
Travel back in time with Ingrid Bergman in Casablanca , see the other movies, learn what we had for a country, a spirit,  The Longest Day,           Tora! Tora! Tora!
                                                                                         
                                                                                  

Wonderful book for good young readers

East of the Sun, West of the Moon (Usborne Young Reading: Series 2)

Sunday, March 6, 2011

A World Lit Only by Fire, William Manchester

This book is a favorite of mine.  I recall it frequently and now, it seems most appropriate to read it again.  Doesn't this review by Amazon remind you of the times we are now living in?  Would you guess that history repeats itself?  This week, I saw posts on Facebook by passionate people saying, TAKE MY SIDE!  You know that they are not wise in the ways of the world, when they blare out TAKE MY SIDE, they  know nothing of what they boldly want to allocate,  the waste of government funds, and other maneuvers that swallow up our money, the life blood of our industrious wonderful society, yet here they are pronouncing with passion, "Follow me, I know best!" Hopefully, we will grow more thinkers who will refrain from the positions of lambs following the pied piper.  What a wonderful read !

Amazon.com Review

It speaks to the failure of medieval Europe, writes popular historian William Manchester, that "in the year 1500, after a thousand years of neglect, the roads built by the Romans were still the best on the continent." European powers were so absorbed in destroying each other and in suppressing peasant revolts and religious reform that they never quite got around to realizing the possibilities of contemporary innovations in public health, civil engineering, and other peaceful pursuits. Instead, they waged war in faraway lands, created and lost fortunes, and squandered millions of lives. For all the wastefulness of medieval societies, however, Manchester notes, the era created the foundation for the extraordinary creative explosion of the Renaissance. Drawing on a cast of characters numbering in the hundreds, Manchester does a solid job of reconstructing the medieval world, although some scholars may disagree with his interpretations.

Thursday, March 3, 2011

Engelbert Humperdinck - This Moment in Time

A favorite from the late 70's?

The Black Swan, Nassim Nicholas Taleb

I have been reading this book along with a couple of other books, and was surprised to see the author on Charlie Rose last night, so I followed along.  His explanation often went to the most simple, and the easiest to understand.  Picture your own household budget, would you spend more money when you were in debt?  His argument is that those who have saved and acted responsibily in society , are being forced to pay for those who over extended and acted in a non responsible way.   Thus if you were responsible, your bank account is dwindling to pay for the ecessive spending of the people that did not have the money to spend.

He further states that Black Swans are unpredictable, and we need to always be prepared for one to pop up.  It is impossible to chart and look back and assume that going forward the same events will take place.  Not much different than our mother's and father's told us when they said, "save for a rainy day!" 

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

Richard Feynman

How could I forget this genius?  I had three of his books, I bought in a packet, gathering dust until I finally read them.  Once I got started I loved them.  I left them for my daughter to find, out in a conspicuous place, and sure enough after a few years, she too found them and delighted in them as I did.  Having grown up with  "mathitis,' who would have dreamed ?
Six Easy Pieces: Essentials of Physics Explained by Its Most Brilliant Teacher

Teaching children the magic of reading, recognizing problems early

For the Grandmother, who adores her grandchildren, or the Mom, who wants to bring magic to her child., read with them.!   Dad's ,you too will be amazed at how you can bond with your child.

You will probably remember this, "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,"as one of the best of Roald Dahl's books.   It is also a movie so I present the movie, the book and a whole set of Dahl's books.  You can not force a child to read, they have to discover the wonder of it, usually through guidance by an adult.

 My mother read to me on her knee,  I had visions of the stories  as she read  aloud my favorite books while a 3 year old.  It was  the Raggedy Ann and Andy series, I wanted to find the candy house, and searched for many years. Mom's ability to make the stories real carried over, they were so  believable! It also helped me learn to read before I went to school.  Children are ready to learn when they are interested, and excited about what you are  trying to convey.

It is not too late to get children interested in reading even in the higher elementary grades, use subjects they like and observe what words they stumble on, to get a clue as to why they are having a problem with reading.   Teach them to jump the word and get the meaning of the sentence, so they can guess the word from its letters.  Children learn to read in many ways,two ways to try and help, sounding out, guessing from the content of the sentence.


Do not force, push or bribe, make it exciting eve if you have to do the reading.....
 Remember, we are not all created equal, some children have a problem reading because they can not see a letter in a word, like in dog, they may not see the o.  If you discover this, Mass General has a program that can help, but the basic information is to teach them to jump the word and guess it from the content of the sentence and paragraph.  Some "kids" get good at this.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

The Black Obelisque Erich Maria Remarque

Remarque was famous for "All Quiet On the Western Front", but this , "The Black Obelisque", was my favorite and if you read the reviews you will see that I am not alone in that.

Hyperinflation after the first world war, and the struggle of the people to endure remains in my mind , probably read by me back in the 50's.  It was a book that remained with me with what seemed like forever.

Another favorite book of mine from when I was a young girl is the story of Madame de Stahl, her salon was famous in Paris, and I wondered at her influence as a woman of the time.  A book  I found in our small library in downtown Framingham.  Our librarians were pretty good at picking great books it also shows the value of a library, whether big or small.

Alma Mahler, was married to two genius' of her time, Mahler and Werfel.  As a young woman, I was struck that she had been honored to share the lives of such brilliant men.  It was an accomplishment not easily done, in her day.  I remember picking out the book in the Framingham library, being enthralled with the story of the time, as I was with the magic of our small library in the Framingham Town Hall Building

Wanda Jackson - One Night With You

did you know her?  I missed her, for some reason, but I recognize the voice....

a review of Secrets of the Heart

Please take a moment to read ....
One of my reviews from Barnes and Noble, there are more on BN and Amazon.  I appreciate this review which conveys the message I tried to give, it was a time long gone, yet you can feel like you lived then.

..AnonymousHighly Recommended Customer Rating Posted December 2, 2010, 2:32 PM EST: This is a wonderful quick-read that melds authentic history from the 30s to the present intertwined with personal stories that sometimes grab your heart and squeeze it. Madlyn writes with such passion, compassion and incite that I couldn't put this book down until I finished it. I didn't want it to end...wanted more. Such a grasp of the era. Love of family, friends, community and country. I loved how Madlyn included music of the times with Meggie's recollection of her intimate experiences. I literally flashed back there again with all its ecstasy and agony. Amazing! I know every one of those songs and it was thrilling to find them online and to connect them to this book. Such a unique concept. She captures the essence of each story in her writing style without extraneous detailing. Concise yet compelling. My first date was at the Totem Pole (which is mentioned in the book.) Madlyn's description brought me back there in an instant. I could see that glittering ball revolving overhead while we danced to a live orchestra (Baron Hugo, I recall) playing "Dream a little Dream of Me" in 1948. She brought me back to the end of World War II. Overwhelming range of emotions were enkindled. In my little community, there was confetti falling like snow, the streets were filled with people crying, laughing.such togetherness. We were all one in spirit. So much love exploding everywhere. Meggie's love of family was expressed so vividly. I was in awe of her spirituality, genuine awareness and acceptance of death. Undoubtedly, you will be astonished as your memory returns to your own experiences while so absorbed in each story just as if you are part of a hologram with the music playing in the background. When you get to know "Meggie", you will feel like you've always known her. You will long to continue a relationship with her. This book inspired me to reconnect to friends I had lost track of through the years and now my life is richer for it. I'm hoping this author writes more books!

Tuck Everlasting and Lost Horizon

A wonderful family story, that my family loved, is "Tuck Everlasting "and a real treat is a story that everyone in the world never forgets once they see it., "Lost Horizon,"  Both movies are about choices in life.
They do not leave you, they keep you thinking.  Buy the popcorn, and have a fun night watching these wonderful stories.