I've been thinking about how the world is full of small victories to win. Perhaps the accretion of enough small victories amounts to a larger success--perhaps small victories are their own reward. All I know is that I will choose my fields of contest-and try to occupy the higher ground.
I finished a short story in Asimov's science fiction magazine during lunch [turkey, lettuce, wheat bread, sauerkraut, salt, pepper, baked chips, diet Coke, all from a Whichwhich sandwich emporium]. In the story, a man and a robot struck up a friendship. The story was about what it means to be human, and what it means to care, and what being human and caring can do to make life livable. I really enjoyed the story--it reminded me of checking out books in the Arkadelphia, Arkansas Public Library when I was 13, and reading stories about the meaning of life and the meaning of rocketry.
I thought tonight how glib choices lead to disastrous results--and how there is no longer enough time in the day to make such glib choices--when we live in a time with so much to actually do. A television program showed Will Rogers' jibe at Calvin Coolidge, who presided over the last dose of false prosperity before a crash--"He did nothing--which is exactly what we wanted him to do!". People see terms like "straight and narrow" as a cliche', but so often the things I have known people to accomplish got done because they flew the beeline to the goal.
The City of Dallas determined to cut its public library budget by one third. I believe that budgets should balance, and that economic hard times require difficult measures. I also believe that when times are down the public library should be a force and a solace, and not a victim. Too much to do--and not time enough to dwell on one's own past and pains.