Thomas journals

  Our mailed-in absentee ballots have been held up in Customs. From Dupage County we received e-mails with a sample ballot and instructions.  We printed those out, filled in the forms, signed them, and put them in separate ordinary #10 business-size envelopes.  We mailed them at our local Portugal post office 23September, sending them Express mail, with tracking (but no signature required).   In one previous example, that method took a week to deliver to an Illinois residence.  Then I sent a birthday card to my sister in Texas the same method, on 06October–it arrived 15October.  My mail ballot is still in Customs! Barb's ballot was sent in the same type of envelope, at the same time, same method. Both are held up in Customs. As of 27 October, here is the tracking information for my ballot: We queried the Wheaton Clerk's office, and they confirmed that they had no record of receiving our ballots.   I filed an inquiry on the usps.com website, lis...

  ​I just got vaccinated, at the Farmácia Central de Gaia (within sight of our balcony). Covid in the left arm; Flu in the right arm. This year Portugal provides it free for ages 60-84, and records it in our online SNS record (called "utente" number), that tracks our prescriptions, vaccinations, and anything done at the public clinics; includes our medical-wishes data (that we just filed a couple weeks ago, the "Rendev" document).     ​Our visa requires us to have private health insurance, so we use the parallel private system--a Lusíadas clinic is just a few blocks south of us.   We consistently hear that the private system is quicker and nicer, but the public system is better suited for the really serious issues.  Of course even the private health care here is much much cheaper than in the US, and all health care here seems to be a quality at least as good, if not better.    Two different friends, one US, one UK, with recent hospital & ...

Lessons for thinking, Archived from my 15-year-old thumb drive: Kluge: the haphazard construction of the human mind by Gary Marcus. Copyright 2008. 13 Summary lessons in the last chapter: 1- Whenever possible, consider alternative hypotheses 2- Reframe the question 3- Always remember that correlation does not entail causation 4- Never forget the size of your sample 5- Pre-commit, so as to reduce the influence of your own impulsivity 6- Don't just set goals, make contingency plans 7- Whenever possible, don't make important decisions when you are tired or have other things on your mind 8- Always weigh benefits against costs 9- Imagine that your decisions may be spot-checked 10- Distance yourself 11- Beware the vivid, the personal, and the anecdotal 12- Pick your spots 13- Try to be rational

  Above The Salt, a novel written by Katherine Vaz. Notes by Jeffrey Thomas, 14 April  2026.  Report for the Book Group at StJames Anglican Church. An epic historical novel that sweeps through 80 years, from Madeira and all around the United States. The term “above the salt” refers to an old English tradition about the placement of the salt-cellar on a large dining table – people seated closer to the host were “above the salt", socially-favored; by exclusion, those below the salt were on a lower social level. This expression is reflected in the narrative indirectly, in its theme of social distinctions that affect lives in tragic ways; and the author refers to salt often, in relation to tears and to the ocean. I was drawn to the novel by its Portuguese connection, and I enjoyed the language and culture references; but the romantic love stories and the evocation of life in the 1800s propelled the narrative. Occasional poetic metaphorical passages evoked the emotional state ...