"History...is a race between education and catastrophe." (H.G. Wells)

.....Just read Forbes list of "best colleges" and I'll just share them with you. 1)Williams2)Amherst 3)Princeton 4)USMA 5)MIT 6)Stanford 7)Swarthmore 8)Harvard 9)Claremont McKenna???????10) Yale 11)USAFA 12)Wellesley 13)Columbia!!! Ha! It'a about time they got to my University. But I don't trust that number. There follows some schools I never heard of: Pomona, Carleton, Claremont McKenna, Harvey Mudd. Harvey Mudd????I wonder if Mudd has a football team. None of these schools, with the exception of the two military academies have tuition under $35,000! That means a four year education would cost parents $140,000 plus dorm, food, and book fees!! And some of these are state schools. One wonders what an out of state student would have to pay. Imagine how long it would take a student to carry on the burden of a loan. Of course if you are 6'11--black or white, or if you are 6'4 and weigh 310lbs, you probably would not have to pay a dime in some schools. I'm not certain if the first 10 on the list would have athletic scholarships. Perhaps valedictorians might get a break. But I'm very thankful that I don't have college age children any more. I did have four at one time, but only two made it to college. One went to Cornell and another to Oneonta in upstate NY. One got an MA degree and one received an honorary doctorate and had a dorm with her name on the building. The two who turned down college nevertheless went on to have excellent careers. The only problem I have now is that on August 27, two of them aver that they will turn 55. Then the collegiates--one claims that he is 58, the other that she is 59. I cannot accept these outrageous claims. Children ought not to prevaricate to their parents. I'm sure I brought them up better than that.

.....This afternoon RH+ and I went to a friend's 80th birthday party at a nearby restaurant named "Cafe Provence". This luncheon began at 12pm, a time when I usually have my breakfast. I was served a dish of shrimp on linguini. The sauce was very lemony and the entire dish was vile. I managed to chomp on one shrimp. I'm not accustomed to eat that kind of food fare for breakfast. Finally the dessert came--first a slice of birthday cake, and then some apple strudel. Not bad. I washed it down with a cup of coffee. At this luncheon I noticed six canes (not counting mine) and about five walkers. Everybody there looked at least 80 to me, with the exception of RH+ who sat next to me. I could tell just by looking at her that it would be a few years before she turns 80. The bad part is that when she's 80, I'll be 94, and who knows whether or not I will be non compos mentis, "sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything."