More Images From Istanbul

I've been learning a new software package for digital images (Luminar AI). More on that software soon. In the meantime, I've been reworking more images from my prior trips to Istanbul. I've recently posted these images. Here are a few more that I reworked today. This was a working vacation--I taught at two Turkish Law Schools, one of which was Kadir Has University. My friend Olguz--a student at Kadir Has--arranged for me to give the lecture. He indicated that I would be treated to lunch prior to the lecture and that it was a beautiful view. And, indeed, it was:

The next photo is from the lecture at Kadir Has:

I'll add two more photos from the inside of Hagia Sofia. I walked past this amazing structure almost every day I was living in Istanbul. I worked hard to get images that captured the size and splendor, but most of my photos failed.  Here are two that I liked.  First, here's a shot of the 2nd level of Hagia Sofia from a 2nd floor balcony:

Here's the last photo in this series: I shot through a big ornate light figure to capture the ceiling of the structure.  I liked this enough to blow it up - - it's currently hanging on my bedroom wall.

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Kahlil Gibran and the Kadisha Valley of Lebanon

Two years ago, I had the opportunity to walk through the Kadisha Valley of northern Lebanon. It is a gorgeous area and it also happens to be the birthplace of Kahlil Gibran. Thus, I will combine some of my photos with some of Gibran's better known quotes.

You may forget with whom you laughed, but you will never forget with whom you wept.

You talk when you cease to be at peace with your thoughts.

Keep me away from the wisdom which does not cry, the philosophy which does not laugh and the greatness which does not bow before children.

Out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars.

If you love somebody, let them go, for if they return, they were always yours. If they don’t, they never were.

Sadness is but a wall between two gardens.

They deem me mad because I will not sell my days for gold; and I deem them mad because they think my days have a price.

The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the greatest intention.

In the sweetness of friendship let there be laughter, and sharing of pleasures. For in the dew of little things the heart finds its morning and is refreshed. [More . . . ]

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Helen Pluckrose Discusses Obesity and Fat Shaming

It occurred to me to write this article because 'tis the season where we celebrate refined carbohydrates and overeating. Holiday eating automatically means a table filled with sugary treats. Here's another well-known fact: Here in the U.S. more than 70% of us are overweight or obese.

The thought of holiday sweets automatically puts me in defensive mode.  I've substantially modified my eating and exercise routines several times during my life. I've once lost more than 30 pounds and I've lost more than 20 pounds twice. I know from experience that I need to consciously watch what I eat, make myself get on the scale several times each week and force myself to exercise. If I don't do these things, I inevitably gain at least 2 or 3 pounds each month. Over the course of 12 months, that can add up to more than 30 pounds. My personal struggles and hard-won successes probably explain my lack of patience with the common claim that being obese is something over which they have no control.  Or the claim that obesity is something that can be healthy or even admirable. I bristle when I hear people accuse me of "fat shaming" when my careful words and motives focus purely on health issues faced by obese people.

I've followed the writings of British writer Helen Pluckrose on many topics, including weight loss and "fat shaming." I follow her on Twitter and really enjoy her matter-of-fact upbeat attitude. Pluckrose currently describes herself as obese and indicates on Twitter that she is working on losing weight. In the attached 2019 article, "Big Fat Lies: The Fat Activism Movement is Risking Lives by Suppressing Obesity Research," she offers the facts first, then her opinions, regarding obesity and accusations of fat-shaming. For starters, according to WHO, most of the world's population "lives in countries where an excess of weight now kills more people than being underweight."

The accusation of "fat shaming" often begins with the false claim that overeating has little to do with obesity.  Pluckrose does not buy this attempt to portray obesity as an immutable characteristic:

There are certainly plenty of people who insist they eat very little and yet are heavily overweight, but it’s hard not to notice that in regions where people genuinely don’t have enough to eat, none of them are obese.  Similarly, people who tell us they are obese because of their genes do not seem to have answers for where all these obese genes suddenly came from as our grandparents’ generation did not have the same problem

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