Thus Spoke Ginger

Thus Ginger Spoke

I began my adult life going down my yellow brick road when I returned from studying overseas at New College of the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. I got a job and the very next thing that I got was an Irish Setter, and her name was Ginger. Over the next handful of years, my three children came along. Ginger literally helped them to toddle their way down their long yellow brick roads of their lives.

Nearly fifty years later, I am still journeying on my yellow brick road, but the road has entered the twilight years of my life. In the past decade, I have danced with death twice and both times successfully. I've had a couple other dances, which weren't life-threatening. Nevertheless, dancing with death caused me to realize that the remainder of my journey is limited. Therefore, I took seriously these two recent concerns. I went to my internist who did dozens of tests and found out that neither would result in ending my journey in life.

The very next thing that I did was to get an Irish Setter puppy. Guess what her name is? Man, my new puppy brought back a flood of many memories. However, this Ginger is different, or, perhaps, I am more in tune and listen to my newest Ginger more than I did a half century ago with my first Ginger. My new puppy has a bed where she plays with her toys, but, more importantly, Ginger watches me while I teach online or as I write essays for my webpage.

Ginger in her bed

One day, I heard what sounded initially like purring. I turned toward Ginger, and she began to talk. Ginger wanted to talk about the political issues that interested me. She said that Nietzsche wrote a book, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, which is the English title of the Nietzsche's German title, Also sprach Zarathustra. Ginger sees herself as a modern-day version of Nietzsche. Ginger suggested that I used that as the title for this index page, Thus Spoke Ginger. Additionally, she suggested that I write about her observations on life in this newest section.


Legends Often Morph into Facts Resurrecting the Quest of Men in Black Before the Election
Legends Often Morph into Facts It’s Better to Burn Out Than to Fade Away
Ginger’s New Fashion Statement Ginger’s New Fashion Statement Keeping Her Happy and Healthy
Legends Often Morph into Facts It Was To Be a Short Phone Call But It Wasn’t
This Is a True Story... This Is a True Story... About Guts
Legends Often Morph into Facts Unexpected Events Can Create Opportunities for Greatness
Legends Often Morph into Facts Ginger’s Gift to Dr. Derrè Ginger Stated, “Dr. Derrè’s My Vet”
Mary Had Little Lamb Mary Had Little Lamb And PaPa Al Has a Big Irish Setter
Legends Often Morph into Facts On the Road Again Ginger, the Pooh Dog, and Me
Ginger’s 7th Birthday Ginger’s 7th Birthday What’s Life All About, Alfie?
Legends Often Morph into Facts Ginger’s Check-Up Again, at Purdue Veterinary Hospital
My Second Shot My Second Shot Or the First Insurrection
The Importance of Happenstance The Importance of Happenstance For Heavenly Clauses
Another Dance for Ginger Another Dance for Ginger Learn and Live in the Moment
Ginger's Gifts Ginger’s Gifts From Michelle
St. Francis Expanded My Learning St. Francis Expanded My Learning At Many Levels
Ginger’s Tribute to Her Vet Ginger’s Tribute to Her Vet “Thanks, But Can You Get Me Bigger Treats?”
A Golden Opportunity A Golden Opportunity Explaining Ti Ti to her Class
What’s It All About Ginger? What’s It All About Ginger? The Haunting Question
Ginger and Poisoning Ginger and Poisoning A Sequel
Ginger and I Ginger and I Our Trip Down the Yellow Brick Road
Than Than Myanmar’s van Gogh
What Drove My Father and Drives Me? What Drove My Father and Drives Me? Pain
Only This and Nothing More “Only This and Nothing More” Quote the Raven
Problems are Assets Problems are Assets Seize the Problems
My Twilight Hauntings... My Twilight Hauntings... About Immortality
A Message from Missoula A Message from Missoula And the Dangling Dog
Ginger is Now Six Ginger is Now Six As We Do the Dance
Picking Mentors Will Change Your Life Picking Mentors It Will Change Your Life
“The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men….” Reset and Carry On
Diversity Visas What’s That All About, Alfie?
Acclimating to the New World In Mt. Lebanon, Taunggyi, and Crown Point
I Have Miles to Go Before I Sleep
My Family in Myanmar: A Sequel to What’s It All About
Two Views of the Ides of March One for Caesar and One for My Family
History Is Repetitious Then and Now
The Tale of My Foot Years Ago and Today
When I Become a Billionaire… A Jaguar SUV Will Be in My Garage
Christmas: Past, Present, and Future
A Sickness Too Took Root Everywhere
Waking Up… To Getting Old
Ginger and I In Our Recovery Modes
A New World Order The World from Campbell’s Perspective
Happy Birthday, Ginger I Wish You Many More with Your Blue Dolphin
What Ginger’s Dances Taught Me Despite My Dances
Ti Ti and Education Why Is Education Critical?
The Pros and Cons… Of Replicating Our Parents
Realizing the New Normal What’s All About, Alfie?
What Can We Learn from Art? The Answer Is….
It’s Like Déjà Vu All Over Again For Ginger and Me
Ginger Doing the Dance And An Important Takeaway
Disinformation Is Deadly So, Why Lie to America?
Resurrection I’m Alive Along with My Computer, and Ginger
I Created an Artistic Masterpiece… For Ginger
One Year Hence Reincarnation of Gawain and the Fox
A Funny Thing Happened While on Zoom My Fourth La Danse Macabre
A Modafinil Moment…Revisited
Problems Are Catalysts for ChangeBut It Is Up to You
Dealing with RealityIn the Human and Canine World
The Story of Tom and JerryWhat’s in a Name?
Ginger and I Have Done the DanceAnd Are Alive
"Give Me a Place to Stand...And I Will Move the World.”
Plague DoctorThen and Now
GingerPart 3 of a 4 Part Series
KaylaDog Whisperer
My Home Looks Like the Uffizi GalleryPart 1 of 4 Parts
I Found Another Incarnation of Bo Bo GyiWhile on Inle Lake
Autotelic Vincent, Me, and Modafinil
What Fascinates Me About Ginger In Our Time Together
Ginger, King of the Mountain Taught Me a Lesson
Ginger’s Vet My Shrink
The Dog Days of Summer Without Air Conditioning
Nietzsche and Ginger Übermensch or ÜberGinger
My Dear Pooh Dog and Me The Bonding
Ginger, My Intelligent Dog… And Aerodynamics
From Mud To Macadam
Another Dinner and Date with Ginger On Election Night
Happy Birthday to My Ginger Pooh Who is Two
Ginger’s Vet… My Psychiatrist
The Woman in Green From Ginger’s Point of View
“Holy Mackerel” Thus Spoke Ginger
Ginger and Me Just the Two of Us
The Pearl of Death Or the Lesson of Life
The Invasion of the Sewer Snatchers They Are Coming to Take Our Sewers
Ginger Is the Love of My Life As Seen in Music That I Love
Deep State Bob Woodward and Me
Roger Stone and I What Do We Have in Common?
Parallels Between the Spider Woman and Me Money
It’s All Begins with Making My Bed— Which Ginger Unmakes
The House of fear - thumbnail The House of Fear And the Orange Pips
holmes-washington thumbnail Sherlock Holmes In Washington While We Drank Ginger Grog
holmes-death thumbnail Sherlock Holmes Faces Death The Times They Are Changin’
heart-issues  thumbnail My Heart Issues Both Hearts
water-horse thumbnail The Water Horse of Loch Ness And Our Water Horses of Life
dressed-kill thumbnail Dressed to Kill Ginger and I Watched Another Sherlock Holmes Mystery
terror-night thumbnail Terror by Night The Third of our Date and Dinner
gingers-world-2 thumbnail Ginger's World... Blends with My World
Scarlet Claw  thumbnail The Scarlet Claw A Date Night Movie
Dreaming Dreams  thumbnail Dreaming Dreams that Never Were... Asking Why Not.
Blue Eyes thumbnail Blue Eyes Cryin’ in the Rain While Plowing
Ginger World thumbnail Ginger's World... Blends with My World
Why Ginger thumbnail Why Ginger? The Hauntings of My Pooh Dog
Sherlock Holmes Secret Weapon thumbnail Sherlock Holmes and the Secret Weapon Watson and Ginger’s Roles
Edmund Fitzgerald thumbnail The Haunting of the Edmund Fitzgerald Doomed Before Setting Sail
Kepler Looking thumbnail What is Kepler Looking For? Intelligent Life in the Universe
Many Michelangelo thumbnail The Many Michelangelo Painters of the Cave The Renaissance of the Paleolithic Period
Tattoo of Pooh thumbnail The Tattoo of My Pooh and Me Ginger and Don Quixote
The Reason thumbnail The Reason Behind... Everything
Impulse Control  thumbnail Impulse Control Ginger and Trump
Morning Mist  thumbnail Morning Mist on the La Mancha Moor Learning About Love
Ginger Santayana thumbnail Ginger and Santayana Remember the Past
Ginger and I thumbnail Ginger and I Promises To Keep and Miles To Go Before We Sleep
Ginger Longshanks  thumbnail Ginger AKA Longshanks
A Child Educated  thumbnail “A Child Educated Only at School... Is An Uneducated Child.”
Mr. Lee thumbnail Mr. Lee and Mr. Rotteveel Two Stories: About When I Was Young and When I Am Old
Ginger and Ra Ra thumbnail Ginger and Ra Ra My Pet Family
Lammie Coo thumbnail Lammy Coo Was Crewed By Gingie Pooh
When Dreaming  thumbnail When Dreams Aren’t Realized What Should You Do?
The Issue of Kissing thumbnail Ginger And the Issue of Kissing
Minnows or Manhood  thumbnail Minnows or Manhood Or Scent of a Woman....
Ti Ti Poem thumbnail Ti Ti and I A Most Haunting Relationship
Unconditional Love  thumbnail Ginger And Her Unconditional Love
Birthday Cake  thumbnail Self-Portraits... By Vincent, Jack, and Owen
Dump Me Off thumbnail Just Drop Me Off And Ginger’s Toy Dog
Pledge Allegiance  thumbnail I Pledge Allegiance To Donald the Dumb
Donald the Dumb's Dilemma thumbnail Donald the Dumb’s Dilemma Falling from Great Heights
Breaking News thumbnail Breaking News from Ginger About Trump Colluding with the Russians and Putin
Jack and Owen's Creation thumbnail Jack and Owen’s Creation A Birthday Cake for Their Mother
Haunting of Hachi  thumbnail The Hauntings of Hachikō and Bobby… And the Haunting of My Gingers
Ginger's Predecessors thumbnail Ginger’s Predecessors And My Domesticated Carnivore
Morphing Of My World thumbnail Class, Easter Ham, and Kayaking... The Morphing of My World
I'm Not Going Silently  thumbnail Do Not Going Gently Into That Good Night I Will Rage
Ginger's World thumbnail Ginger’s World… Donald the Dumb’s Cave
The Meaning of Life thumbnail The Meaning of Life It Is All About Fighting the Good Fight for Others
Bowl of Cherries thumbnail Life Is a Bowl of Cherries Or the Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men
This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef thumbnail This Little Piggy Had Roast Beef... And Ginger Devoured the Little Piggy’s Ear
Pride Before Fall thumbnail Pride Before Fall Learnings from History
Chick Magnet  thumbnail Chick Magnet And the Hauntings
The Hauntings thumbnail The Hauntings About Bobby and the Gingers
Ginger's Bed thumbnail Ginger's Bed Fit for a Queen
A Tweet to God... thumbnail A Tweet to God... A Tweet from James Baldwin
Ginger's Explanation...  thumbnail Ginger's Explanation... For Her Man Cave
On Riding to Samara thumbnail On Riding to Samara Then and Now....
Invictus thumbnail Invictus Thank You, Mrs. Davis
A Dog's Purpose thumbnail A Dog's Purpose The Person's Purpose
Romney and Irish Setter  thumbnail Romney and Irish Setter The Political Right is Often Wrong.
Kennedy Socks thumbnail Kennedy Socks Presidents and Camelot
Thus Spoke Dr. Marchand...  thumbnail Thus Spoke Dr. Marchand... And Ginger
Ginger, Socks, and Poe thumbnail Ginger, Socks, and Poe Finding Lenore....
Lambs Eat Ivy thumbnail Lambs Eat Ivy And Ginger Eats Lamb Ears
The Meaning of Ginger thumbnail The Meaning of Ginger The Winter Solstice
Ginger, the Dances, and the Lady  thumbnail Ginger, the Dances, and the Lady It Is All About Determination