April 3

 Welcome to April. So far it has continued the pattern set in late March: rain (sometimes with snow mixed) and rollercoaster temperatures. We have also had some high winds. Checking my gardens I found one of my mum pots showing new growth and I hope it gets through to warmer weather. The other hasn't dared to peak yet so I have no idea if it survived. The bee balm, valerian, and one of the rosemary pots are all showing new growth. I still have two of the miniature roses to take out one of which isn't showing any sign of having survived. I had such problems with the mosaic disease that I won't keep roses unless I find a variety that is highly resistant. I still have a month and a half before any transplants can be put in. However, last year I waited until mid June because the weather was either too wet or too cold. We'll see what happens this year.

Found this item early today. We have thought that the growing demand by employers for applicants to have four year degrees was ridiculous. So many jobs could be done just as well by people who have the specific training or experience needed to do the job. There has been a vicious cycle for decades now. As the number of people graduating high school increased the demand for 4 year college degrees increased because the employers used that as a culling criterion then as the number of people with such degrees increased the demand for people with master's degrees grew as a way to narrow the field. The degrees weren't necessary for the jobs but employers found it easy to narrow down the applicants without having to think too critically about the process. The process has tragically excluded large numbers of good people and loaded a lot more with student loans as they tried to meet those requirements.

I have been reading a good deal lately about a "clash of civilizations" to use the term this article uses. Whether we talk about a "multipolar" or a "multi-civilizational" world we should expect a much more complex world and, considering the Russia-Ukraine situation, much more dangerous world. Here is another article on this topic which makes some interesting points but, on first read, also posits some ideas I think need reformulation among them the definition of "civilization."