A Note to Louie on a Cold Winter Day

Hi Louie~

Just a note to awaken your and my spirit this day.  I am shooting blanks 

today without a good idea.  This status is becoming all too familiar: 

Get up, eat a bagel, grapefruit, and coffee… then spend 20 minutes on the

treadmill, sit down, and try to think- think- think. 

It becomes more difficult, but we must keep trying, must keep stimulating the "squash.”

Yesterday, I again went to the Med School and had a session with two live 

patients and four ultra-live young students.  

Louie, what a wonderful time to be alive, to be 23 years of age, to have the ability of 

assimilation, to learn new facts each day, to assimilate, digest, and 

most importantly, to retain what one learns.  

Where has that capability gone?  

Now, one struggles with attention, assimilation, and hearing. 

We struggle with retention, facts are lost, digestion 

of material falls far short of mental assimilation and storage.  

But unless we organize a few thoughts each day, that day is a loss, not 

only for the twenty-four hours, but for the future of our ability to 

function. 

We need to exercise our brain, not intermittently as we do 

to our body, but constantly during the day.  

It gobbles up glucose from the more than adequate cerebral blood flow via the profound 

carotid artery directional flow, almost one-third of the cardiac 

output flows to the brain;  all that is asked is for us old geezers to 

participate to our fullest.  

But dammit, participation gets harder, and society helps little.

It seems that as one ages, one desires peace and equanimity and desires 

less societal distress and aggravation. 

Years ago, the old men peacefully smoked pipes with an air of peace, contentment, and 

ultimately, bad breath.

But they seemed quite peaceful.  

Now, the aggravation of the 36-inch HD machine in the den prevents a 

relaxation of over a half hour before the agitation of Dr. Oz and his 

nut cases takes over.

Or the aggravation of the Packer loss to the Giants. 

Or the bad timing of the departure of my brand-- the Saab.

Or, as you just wrote, the Republicans of Minnesota fix on a path of destruction.

Must take a break and go to "Coffee.”

I return after a visit to Milwaukee.

I visited my daughter, her son, and a foreign exchange student, age 14, from Austria.  He speaks 

English, and when I quizzed him, he stated that the three topics of 

profound interest in his primary school were mathematics and science; 

German, and English. He speaks well, sits comfortably in my grandson 

Paul's class and participates in discussions.

All of this after only 1 week here in Wisconsin.

It took me longer than a week to become acclimated to the Navy at the age of 18;  I did know English, and after one week 

understood "Navy Slang" and the mother words.

While at Med School yesterday, I was introduced to the new plan for 

future building and expansion of the school.  With ease of expression 

and fluency of presentation, the planned 23 million dollars was 

explained to me without pause for comprehension of just what 23 

million dollars meant, or where it was to be obtained;  just a casual 

statement, "That's the way it will be"” 

Sounds like the Obama plan to make the country whole again.

I did establish a writing correspondence with Charlie, and I look 

forward to gaining some insight into his adult life and memories 

thereof.  In grade school at St. Kilian's and in high school, he was so

accomplished in music and literature that he was an embarrassment to the 

rest of us.

It may sound strange, but I had great admiration for so 

many of our classmates, especially those who were talented in music-- even 

though Bob M. had a good voice.  But what has been of interest to 

me is the course of their lives and the variety of disease entities 

that plagued them throughout their lives and, in most cases, eventually 

took them.  Who would have thought one of our closest friends would develop malignant 

Parkinson's disease?  Some diseases were predictable…the family with

Huntington Chorea, those who developed carcinoma of the larynx, and others with carcinoma of the lung. 

And our friend who succumbed to a Chinese bullet, and the classmate with 

 polycythemia and eventual acute leukemia.

In my next note I aim to ask for a reference from you - a reference 

for a book publishing house. I recall your experience with publishing houses,

so I am going to the source.

Thank you for your ear, Louie, as I do what I can to keep these neurons moving.

Stay warm and keep the faith. 

Jim A.