It was both a beautiful and peaceful, and productive day for us. We went to see Tania Woodward at the Mansion and collected huge sacks of gorgeous prom dresses. They’re going to Bishop Maginn on Tuesday, along with me.
Then Maria went out and finished building our fence to keep the rebellious sheep away from our neighbor’s grass.
Then I finished reading about Elon Musk and wrote a review of his biography (see below). And now I’m getting tired from all that thinking and want to spend the remainder of my waking time reading about the Royal Family. I managed to take some calming and soothing pictures, even iconic, at least for me, and I hope for you.
The first, above, is a photo I love. I took it at 3 p.m., chicken treat time for Maria.
This is, in so many ways, a Peaceable Kingdom. Maria was handing leftover Farro grain to the chickens, who loved it. They ate it all out of her hands. Fate sat nearby, leaving the chickens and their treat alone, and the chickens didn’t mind her being there one bit. Zinnia was sleeping at my feet just a few yards away. She didn’t move either.
This photo is iconic to me; it is the spirit of our farm. It is the Peaceable Kingdom.
After grazing and filling their bellies with grass, the sheep retired to the Pole Barn to rest. There is something very settling about sheep sitting around, chewing their cuds. It settles me and grounds me.
Donkeys have been living with people for thousands of years. I feel they know us well and tolerate us when they wish. I never tire of watching them move slowly and calmly around the farm, grazing, lying down, soaking up the sun, and watching us make sure we aren’t asking them to do something they don’t want to do.
I confess that I never quite get used to seeing my underpants flapping on the clothesline. It seems to me this used to be illegal in many places. I love the colors flapping in the wind. I can never resist this photo. I have nothing to hide, and it feels good.
Good night to you all, and thanks for following my life. I’m changing my whole idea of sleep and learning new sleep habits. I plan to write about what I have learned tomorrow. Sleep is a different thing for me now. I’m out of gas for tonight.
Jon…
Elon Musk is a fascinating individual. He has broad and thorough technical knowledge, and a keen sense for workable solutions and risk assessment. He also must have a good grasp of finance.
His record of achievement in high-risk ventures is incredible. Almost everything he has taken over has been improved, many to the extent of breakthroughs.
• PayPal, which allows people to buy online without a credit card. He sold it to eBay for $1.5B.
• SpaceX/Dragon, which takes astronauts to the space station.
• Starlink, a producer and launcher of communication satellite constellations. This approach enables connections without cable or phone lines, critical for those beyond the range of earth-based connections. In the 1990s, Motorola failed in creating a similar cellphone network, due to market misjudgments.
• Tesla, which some say created the electric vehicle industry. Tesla also makes batteries.
• Musk also owns Solar City. One can see the synergy between rooftop solar, storage batteries, and electric cars.
I haven’t heard much lately about the Hyperloop, a concept being examined for feasibility and scalability.
One key to Musk’s success is an ability to eliminate technical development distractions and unnecessary steps. But I believe Musk will be tested in his purchase of Twitter, an expensive excursion into the questionably rational world of online human behavior. According to Musk’s approach, he would differentiate Twitter as a visionary platform for free speech, unlike offerings of companies that have given social media a bad name.
Let’s hope that, at least, it won’t harbor disinformation, hate, or bullying. It’s worth a try.