EmPulse for Week of June 21, 2010

A.I.

A.I.— “Artificial Intelligence.” Def.- “the intelligence of machines and the branch of computer science that aims to create it.” [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AI]  AI, coined by computer-cognition scientist John McCarthy in 1956, is “the science and engineering of making intelligent machines.” [see John McCarthy, WHAT IS ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE? ©1993, Nikos-Drakos, Computer Based Learning Unit, University of Leeds].

It is obvious to all that we are truly dependent upon intelligent machines in our everyday lives. Machines that respond to us and then take action accordingly. The Terminator (1984, 1991, 2003, 2009, ?) kicked off the popularity of the idea in the early ‘80s. Coupled with films like A.I. (2001), and I-Robot (2004), we are prodded to ponder just how far AI development might take us (not to mention “Data” on the unending reruns of the TV/Film franchise, Startrek: the next generation). It gives pause to wonder about the expendability of we homo sapiens?

[But then again…, there is WALL-E . (2008) ]

The gadgets of today do not compare with the science fiction presented in the movies and TV series above. Ours are mere toys by comparison. Yet I find myself more dependent upon them every day. Some examples— I no longer “dial” a phone number; I simply say “Call John.” I pay bills electronically, online, not with a written check. My mobile smartphone holds my calendar, contact lists, personal reminders & notes, and a calculator. Did I mention it also connects to the Internet, allowing me access to 4 email accounts, text messaging, and browsing over the WorldWideWeb!?! Not to mention it serves as a clock, stopwatch, Internet-radio (I love Pandora), camera, Media Player (movies & itunes), & note recorder. Really…, take my wallet…, not my Blackberry! Oh, I forgot…, I don’t carry a wallet anymore.

The contributions that these gadgets have made to our society are wonderful, to be sure. But instead of freeing us to think about more important things they have rather lulled us into complacency. We tend to not-think at all, especially about the weightier issues of life. Though we may perfect incredible artificial intelligence we may find some of our own diminished.

Question— What do you think about? No, really; what thoughts engage the greater parts of your energies? Allow me to suggest some things worth thinking about—  Understanding WHO you are as a person. Learning comfortable congeniality in relationships. Being graciously honest. The value of establishing a richer relationship with God. The art of genuine, implemented forgiveness. Keeping commitments. Living by an oath to truth, or to another. How to put in an honest day’s work that honors your employer. Being honorable in all you do. Sacrificing…, not to feel good about it but because it is right.

Warning— DO NOT allow your intelligence to languish;  you may just find something else doing your thinking for you.

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of June 14, 2010

truth serum

“Sodium thiopental, better known as Sodium Pentothal, is a rapid-onset short-acting barbiturate general anesthetic. Sodium thiopental is a depressant and is sometimes used during interrogations – not to cause pain (in fact, it may have just the opposite effect), but to weaken the resolve of the subject and make him more compliant to pressure.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sodium_thiopental)

Do you ever wish you could simply administer a truth serum to everybody around you!?! Think of it—no cover-ups, no deceit, no more lies, no shaded truth, no hypocrisy, no more pleasantries & nice smiles concealing hidden animosities. Truth serum…, O the possibilities! People have trouble with the truth, and the Truth. We don’t like to hear it about ourselves, we don’t like to tell other people about their truths. It’s easier to avoid the truth, or the other people, or just to not face it altogether. We even prefer half-truth to the to the whole truth. [Thus the admonition is a Court of Law.]

The truth is hard to face. Live with it. It can hurt to hear it; it’s just as hard to speak truthfully to a friend. Live with it. But we need the truth (and the Truth): truth is the bearer of trust, of camaraderie; it is the basis of international alliances and clear communication. Truth is the keystone of relationships, the foundation for forgiveness, the essence of any business partnership that is to be productive over any given time. Truth is the key ingredient in Trust that can never be slighted; for if trust is betrayed, the “truth” can no longer be known.

So why is it so many of us find it so hard to tell the Truth!?! Where do children learn lying? Why do teens go silent and young couples hide things from one another? How can there be so many interpretations of “the Truth?” What is the TRUTH about God? Could the Biblical statements about origins, the purposes of life, and humanity’s brokenness in need of some serious salvation possibly be true? Then, closer to home, why do so many genuine followers of Christ find it so very difficult to tell other people the Truth about the God who made us!?! In a society where even a pale memory of genuine Christianity is down to around 7% of the population, where people have all but chucked any religious faith for their own designer-religion (transcendental golf meditation to improve one’s karma and balance the chi), why is it that true Christians have not endeavored all the more to express their faith in ways that today’s normal people can comprehend and embrace!?!

Actually, there is a simple, naïve answer. It’s just too much work. It’s just easier to go through an abbreviated summary of Truth, boiling it down to four propositional statements, lifted from life’s context, and to let the other guy reject or accept them…, so be it, whatever way it may be. We’ve done our job!

In the real world, though, Truth (truth) is always blended with three other ingredients—, a god-reflective life, interpersonal relationships, and the inner workings of the Holy Spirit of God. Life—because talk is cheap. Truth not reflected in godly living is no more than pretense. Relationships—because Truth does not exist for its own sake, but for ours: we need to know it. And the inner, mysterious, work of the Holy Spirit of God—how does anyone comprehend the wondrous work that God does in the human heart to draw the whole person to faith, forgiveness, and freedom!?! Repentance becomes that one small step at the beginning of a quite magical journey! Truth serum indeed… . It’s been around for eternity! Be about it!

I’ll take the first dose.

Have a nice week.

Gary

… just another day

Fall out of bed at 5:30 a.m. Brush teeth. COFFEE! MORE COFFEE! Feed the animals/read the paper. COFFEE & breakfast. Rural—to the fields to tend the crops, drop off the grain, hay, etc. Urban—rush hour/traffic jams, subways, daily commute. College—what’s 5:30 a.m.?!? Late to class, forget teeth, pull on yesterday’s clothes (now where are they?). Grab a Pop Tart. Whoops. Wrong class— it’s Monday.

Every phase of life creates its own pattern, its own routine. To a very large extent we are governed by the commitments we have made to the farm, our families, our jobs, or our education. Very few of us wake up at 10:00 a.m. and wonder what day it is and ponder what do I want to do today? We need to earn a living—work, to bring income into our bank accounts to meet our needs and some of our wants. [It is odd, though, that as we age, what we once considered a need we later realize was actually a want; and our wants grow less and less, falling under the perspective of time, wisdom and things that are truly important.]

Eventually, our routine, our life-pattern fades to become the backdrop for all we do. We become governed by the unconscious regularity of our daily schedule. We define ourselves by what we do, and lose track of any idea of who we are. Character development gives way to business savvy and the desire to get ahead; then we live for the weekends. In farming, we define ourselves by working sunrise to sunset, seven days a week. We are what we do, in North America; this is the way it has been since before the industrial revolution, more than a century ago.

Still, in those fleeting quiet moments, on the tractor or on the commuter train, even with the world swirling all around you, have you ever wondered if you might do just one thing that is significant? Have you ever wanted to make a difference on a grander scale, a national platform, a worldwide stage? In war, ordinary people find themselves heroes, merely by rising to the occasion. In ordinary life we rarely have to rise to the occasion. Or do we?

Try this—  For no other reason than to make a difference, give some money away to a worthwhile cause…, or to someone you know is going through hard times. Anonymously. Volunteer in a Mission soup kitchen, hire someone who needs a job and train them, join a short term mission trip to Haiti, Ghana, southern India, Appalachia, New York City, East LA. Do not do it to feel good about yourself. Sacrifice is about sacrifice, not calculated comfort or feel-good. It is about serving, loving, caring, giving—expecting nothing in return. [Example— read The Gospel of Matthew, The Bible.]

Can you really go on living just another day? Do something to make a difference!

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of May 31, 2010

driving to atlanta

Tim Norton lives just outside of Knoxville in Maryville, TN (locally pronounced Mur-ē-vul). On May 21^st, he had the occasion to drive to Atlanta, the very day a sink-hole appeared right in the middle of Interstate HWY 24, eastbound. Ergo—a simple four hour trip turned into a leisurely six hour drive to Atlanta, along the rural byways of Tennessee.

Tim recounts, “I was forced to go to the Internet and my printed, neatly folded 2006 edition of the Official Tennessee Travel and Tour Map (I don’t have GPS) for instructions on an appropriate re-route. Along the path of my pre-departure discovery, several re-route suggestions came my way via the internet, however radio reports made it clear that those published routes were clogged and delayed, so I set out to chart my own course.”  [Something many of us have done when life’s road has taken us over some unexpected bumps, or, in this case, around a deep, dark sink-hole.]

Tim continues, “From Nashville I departed southward on I-65, exiting on State Road 99 on a heading that eventually took me onto other routes through Lewisburg, Hudson State Park, Shelbyville, Lynchburg (population 361, and the famous home of the Jack Daniels Distillery), Winchester, Cowan, Sewanee, Saint Andrews, and Monteagle at which point I was well below the sinkhole’s location on eastbound I-24. In all, this detour consumed about 1 hour longer than what the normal interstate routing would have required. But, the journey was scenic, relaxing, and, quite frankly, felt like an adventure.” Well, well…, not a total loss then; and not even the anticipated two hour torture of stop & go traffic.

Unlike Tim, though, many of us are not willing to set out on our own, to chart our own course. We come up against a major sink-hole in life and stop dead. We cannot go forward, and the traffic of our past blocks us from making a U-turn to start over again to find another route. We are stuck! Some of us stay stuck for months, even years; some of us make it a life-time pattern and perspective—an attitude, never rising to Carpe Diem! We’re content to believe it’s all about carpeting.

There are no real explanations for people getting stuck. It’s just one of those things that happen to us; yet, until we get frustrated enough with the way we are, we will, for sure, remain in the sad state of stuck-ness. You may find yourself in many states-of-stuckness throughout life—commitments you never should have made in the first place, insistent loyalties to those who have long since disregarded you, starting projects (sheds, siding, books, ships-in-a-bottle, paintings, afghans) but never finishing them, complex problems that still need resolution (eg- the Poincaré conjecture)…, convoluted relationships. These are sink-holes all, that drain you of your focus, energy, time, and ability to think clearly about priorities and people that should take precedent, that should draw your attention to what is truly important in life and in the service of our fellow human beings on this planet.

Sometimes the shortest distance between two points is the Interstate. But though it may be the most direct route to success, or money, or power, or position, it may also hold such gigantic sink-holes that swallow you whole, dreams and all. You may not find yourself or the God who made you unless you set out on your own and chart your own course.  Thanks Tim!

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of May 24, 2010

placebo effect

placebo– def. (latin- “I will please.”) “A placebo effect occurs when a treatment or medication with no therapeutic value (a placebo) is administered to a patient and the patient’s symptoms improve. The patient believes and expects that the treatment is going to work, therefore it does.”  [http://www.enotes.com/alternative-medicine-encyclopedia/placebo-effect]

Funny things, placebos— they work, but for no apparent therapeutic or medical reason. There are all kinds of them too— prescription pills, psychological suggestion, alternate realities (avatars), short term love-lifes, rock concerts, even religious experiences. Sure, they can be real; but we can use them all as placebos.

Actually, we like placebos in our lives. Make-believe cures for serious illnesses, pretend solutions to real-life problems, fallacious corrections to failing relationships— quick fixes. Anything that takes away the pain, removes our anguish, or distracts us from the significance of our situation is more desirable than a truly therapeutic treatment. Like saying our Confession to a Priest, we get our sin off our chest; or we seek counseling to feel good about ourselves, all-the-while suppressing what we know to be true. True-lies, they’re called; still, don’t you feel better now!?!

A lot of us use God as a placebo. We go to church to check-in, to see if it’s like we remember. When we find it isn’t, we either fake our faith to blend in or fade to a grey-plaid, lost in a checkerboard of not knowing where to move next. Still, God is one of the best placebos around—we can take him or leave him at our convenience; go to church or just stay home and watch some TV preacher. Sometimes, even pick up a Bible! But don’t push it. That’s a big pill that might get stuck in my life.

The pitiful thing is that what God is offering us, all of us, is a vibrant, fulfilling relationship with Him, personally. Not some take-it-or-leave-it placebo effect that feels good for the moment—the quick fix, but a genuine, therapeutic remedy to life’s serious sicknesses, be they physical, emotional, or spiritual. He may not heal your broken heart the way you want it mended, He may not get you through that fever, or cancerous growth, or depression the way you had hoped. But He will be there for you at every turn of wheel.

God doesn’t mend broken hearts or heal all our illnesses; but He does offer the strength of His Spirit, His Holy Spirit, to buoy you through the toughest of life’s experiences. There is a spiritual perception that comes from seeing life through His eyes that changes you forever. Once you reconnect with the God who made you, you’ll have little use for any placebos again. For you are plugged into the source of all strength and sustenance.

Placebos, and other meds may genuinely be helpful to us in life; but, truly, we need so much more that can only be found in God.

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of May 17, 2010

peripheral vision- God on the edges

Eye exams— read the 4^th line down…, now read the lowest line that is clear to you. And you read “The Foundation of the American Academy of Ophthalmology.” Seeing things clearly, seeing things as they are, is the function of eyes. Blurred vision misinterprets reality…, really; ask any Impressionist; ask any pharmacist who prescribes allergy relief medicine. Ask any Navy, Marine, or Air Force recruiter interviewing a potential recruit who says, “I want to be fighter pilot.” What’s the recruiter’s reply? How’s your vision? They want to know if you’re 20/20, but they also want to know what your peripheral vision is. If you are flying a fighter jet at Mach2, you need to be keenly aware of not only what lies directly in front of you, but also what lies just outside of the corners of your eyes. Yes, modern military aircraft are loaded with all sorts of sensor arrays that keep a pilot informed; but you still need to be aware of what lies on the edges of your vision.

Many of us are so focused in our lives that we miss God on the edges. We miss the little things, which, in the grand scheme of things, turn out to not be so little. We miss His work in people’s lives around us that bolster and underpin the focus He has commissioned us to fulfill. WE miss those subtle connections, serendipitous surprises, and gentle movements of His Spirit that cause all things to work together for good. Still, it is good to move through life with our focus on a goal to be achieved, on a mission to be accomplished, a purpose for which to be used up entirely. There are very many distractions in the rush of information-age life to keep us from fulfilling God’s design on our life. Who do you know who is not busy…, all the time!?!  Work, family, school, seeking a mate, another grad-degree, the gym, sports, chauffeuring kids, church, working on the house, the lawn, fixing the car, etc.

Two things start to become clear—we are too focused, we are too busy. And we are all moving so fast, that it is a wonder we have any sensitivity to the movements of God anywhere, directly in front of us, let alone on the edges. It is true that some personalities naturally move f-a-s-t-e-r than others; however, others seem to be stuck, anchored in some kind of life-muck that not only keeps us from moving ahead, but blurs our peripheral vision at the same time. Either way, we miss the majesty of God all around us. We whoosh past Him just like cars on a freeway; we do that notice He is there, but not exactly. Or worse, we just stop and stare at Him…, and do nothing. “OMG, O yeah…, god; I forgot.” Whooshing by, or stuck staring…, doesn’t matter. If our peripheral vision is not conscious, we could be setting ourselves up for a crash— big time.

So…, what to do about it? For one, challenge your focus; is it inclusive enough, expansive enough to pick up on its own inferences? Reexamine your mission to include/exclude developing variables. Secondly, consider if God is trying to influence you at the edges of your life; commonplace coincidences, marginal insights, intuitions (gut feelings), could be more significant than a passing reflection might notice. Third, ponder more— reflect on the day’s encounters and accomplishments to sense any new movements of God’s Spirit from the edges of your life to its core. Finally (at least for this brief commentary) consider what changes might be well past due in your life that you missed because you were so singularly focused.

Maybe it’s time some of we all had our vision checked again. Get in line…, right behind me.

Have a nice week.

Gary

mediocrity for dummies

What a great string of books! Computers for Dummies. Democracy for Dummies. Electronics for Dummies. Relationships for Dummies. George Bush for Dummies. The Bible for Dummies. Alimony for Dummies. Thermo-Nuclear War for Dummies. Mandarin for Dummies. There simply is no end to the intellectual vastness that these (mostly) quite helpful books can cover.

I’d like to see them assault one more area of dumbness— mediocrity. It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to realize that striving for the mediocre doesn’t take a great deal of effort. Although, staying there does. Seriously. Some men and women are satisfied to work an eight hour day, come home, watch TV, get up the next morning and do the same thing all over again. On the weekends they play with their expensive toys (flat-panel TVs, jet-skiis, jeeps, snow mobiles, boats, planes, etc); and then back to the same routine on Monday. After 15-20 years they wake up to discover that they are really bored with everything. They realize that buying more just won’t cut it this time. Maybe their marriage is stable (not exciting, but lasting), maybe not. Maybe they’ve been through numerous relationships; nothing satisfies. They’ve got more stuff than they know what to do with…, and they’re bored with it all. Truly, they have striven for “the dream” and, instead, have arrived at mediocrity.

They’ve wanted it ALL, and have settled for stuff, or not enough stuff…, yet, or a job that they could do in their sleep, or a marriage that has about as much zing to it at last week’s lettuce. Mediocrity.

If that’s all life is about then, seriously, why bother!?! If all you want is stuff, then, eventually, you’ll probably have it; and you’ll want even more. If its excitement you want, there are plenty of ways to pump the adrenalin after the scary movie scene doesn’t do it for you anymore: motor racing, rock-climbing, speed-skating, lugging, bungee-jumping (nah, forget the rope), sky-diving… from 80,000’.

Mediocrity, like personal pleasure and happiness, is the natural byproduct of a life centered upon itself. Genuine fulfillment in life, a life richly lived, is the byproduct of a life focused on making a difference, on counting, on contributing to the needs of the world and blocking the spread of evil. Nothing done to make a difference, to count, is insignificant, mediocre; it always matters.

For the past 15 years I’ve grabbed onto a tag-line for my life that I want to stick. Allow me to suggest it for your reflection— “Honor God, honor people…, make a difference.” ‘Nough said.

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of May 3, 2010

When your number’s up…, what?

Spring is here! Things are growing again—flowers, trees, bushes, weeds, mold spores! There, wasn’t that too much realism for you!? Me too; especially the allergy exciting stuff. But it is good to see things going green again (apologies to my few southern hemisphere readers).

It’s a good time to get outdoors again. Exercise—remember? Ouch! Hurts more this year, eh!?! But exercise alone won’t do it. Nor will simply getting on the scale and rocking it back & forth to drop it a few pounds. There’s a medical check-list that recent research suggests we all need to keep in mind. They’re our numbers—heeding them could quite literally add years to our lives. Here is a list of the optimum levels of the numbers you should be keeping track of:

Blood pressure: 115/75 Waist size: Less than half your height TSH (Thyroid Stimulating Hormone): Less than 2.5 mIU/L LDL level: Less than 100 Fasting blood sugar: Less than 95 HDL level: Greater than 45 Vitamin D blood level: More than 50 ng/l

There are the numbers that will help us keep our BODIES fit for life. But what about our emotional side? What are we doing to manage the stress, maintain balance, give and receive love? Emotional equilibrium is just as critical as physical health for us all. To be a specimen of health and an emotional wreck most of the time is self-deprecating. Then there is the spiritual aspect of our life. What numbers should we be keeping track of for our souls?

Measuring on a 1-10 scale, what are your numbers?

Talking with God (prayer)- ____ Caring for people in need- ____ Sacrificing- ____ (when you have little) Listening to God (prayer)- ____ Feeding your soul (time alone)- ____ Serving others lavishly- ____ Learning from God (Bible)- ____ Taking risks of faith- ____ Worshiping God- ____

So, maybe you are a specimen of health—jogging, exercising daily, eating salads morning, noon, & night. Maybe your psyche is in perfect harmony with the universe and all created beings. But when your number is up…, when it comes your time to make the transition from life to beyond, will your soul be in sync with the God who made the universe and all its creatures?

What are your numbers when your number comes up?

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of April 26, 2010

cat outside the door

How can you tell if there is a cat outside the door? If you own a cat (as much as anyone can own a cat) the probability and expectation is greater that there is, in fact, a cat outside your door; most likely, longing to be let in to be fed. Then it’s back out to do some seriously cattin’ around.

Some people think cats are sneaky, devious creatures. I think cats take on the character of their owners. Others think cats are lazy. They may have a point; most cats, from cutsie widdle kittens to lions, sleep 80% of their lives. [Is there a link between cats & teenagers!?!] But there are some who truly understand cats. They honor their independence while providing them with food & shelter. They don’t de-claw them—taking away their only means to climb trees to escape danger. Rather, they learn cat-whispering to inform the cat it is not OK to use the furniture as nail sharpening apparatus. They form a symbiotic relationship with the cat to their mutual benefit.

If you are a dog-lover you are now nauseated beyond description and want to vomit and write a really nasty retort to this emPulse. But bear with me a little, o impatient canine aficionado! In defense of cats are not so much sneaky as they are soft on their feet, silent, stealing smoothly into our lives. We may not want them always, but eventually, we will find them stealthily nuzzling up beside us, warmly purring, and making themselves quite at home. And, to our distaste, we find ourselves uncomfortably comfortable with that. We like it, but we will never admit it to a soul.

When I was eight or nine, I was sick a lot. I had a cat named Tabby. We snuggled and nuzzled constantly. I was perpetually breathing fur. When Tabby gave birth to her 4 kittens in the clothes dryer in the basement it was a wonder to behold to my young eyes. After awhile she would carry them up two flights of stairs to where I lay in bed, clean them up, daily, and leave them with me for the day while she went out, cattin’ around. She had come to trust me; and I would not let her down.

It’s that way with God too. For those of us who do not need to be smacked-up along side of the head, Christ waits softly, quietly, outside our door, waiting for an opening. He will not force His way in…, He will wait, and wait, and wait—just like a cat. When bidden an entrance He will graciously nuzzle up beside us and wait for our reaction. If we shove Him off the couch, He will get the point. If we relax and grant Him safe haven, He will become a safe haven for us as well. For there is a symbiotic safety in learning to relate to the Lord God on His terms and not on ours. “Trust in the Lord…, and lean not on your own understanding.” (Proverbs 3:5) Trust is a two way street; but it starts with us.

Maybe it’s time we all reexamined the way we relate to the Lord God of the Universe. Think of it! A symbiotic-safe place found in Jesus Christ.  Like a cat…, outside the door.  Meow.

Have a nice week.

Gary

EmPulse for Week of April 19, 2010

the contexts for Christianity

Mind games; let’s play. Topic— the contexts for Christianity. There are hundreds of religions on this planet (Buddhism, Islam, Hindu, Baha’i, power, sports, consumption-ism, etc). The one I believe offers the explanations that best describe the state of reality is the Christian faith. Do not think me naïve; the history of Christianity recalls some of the worst atrocities and passive approval of evil’s expression ever witnessed. Yet its basic understanding of the human condition is without parallel—

Humanity’s basic nature is not to do good but to preserve one’s self There is more evidence for a created universe than for one simply appearing and evolving Human community is the context for scientific discovery Two distinct sexes work better than one sex able to reproduce itself For the most part, life is about seeking meaning People have decided to deny their Creator and go their own way Evidence for the existence of real evil is overwhelming People seem to need personal salvation from themselves Jesus Christ backed up His claims to Deity with actions History is linear, not circular Justice is not found on earth Life can only be fulfilled in reconnecting with our Creator

Though the Church is clearly with its flaws & failures, genuine Christian faith among the masses is always seen in expressions of common decency, acts of sacrifice, love, and unswerving devotion to the teachings of Jesus. If anyone claims to be Christian and exhibits few of these characteristics, then their claim is false. Genuine Christians move among their networks of relationships as beacons of encouragement, vessels of Truth, and servants of others. They may not be able to explain their faith very well, because of present-day vocabulary-patterning, but their life of love needs little explanation.

Because of the model Jesus Christ set before the world, Christians have always played the under-dog in the grand scheme of things. Christianity’s worst days, whether in the era of the Crusades or in the rise of the conservative right, have always been when it was in a position of power. Truly, power dost corrupt: absolute power, corrupting most absolutely.

The primary contexts for Christianity have always resided in three places. First, in the lives of those who epitomize the pattern of godliness exemplified in God’s Son-on-earth, Jesus Christ. Second, in the communities of faith, within Scripture and beyond, that have served our societies as servants and fellow journeymen, together, seeking justice & truth. And third, within the interplay between the Lord God Creator of all that there is and this one, measly planet, Earth, on which He has focused His love and salvation. Crazy, isn’t it!?!

Have a nice week.

Gary