Author Archives: jame4357

THE LUMP

For years now I’ve had this lump on the right side of my chest. The Doc noticed it first, when it was really small. I guess that’s part of what he does for a living—checks people for things. I’m sure there’s more to it than that. Has to be. Spending all day checking people for lumps doesn’t sound like much fun. Anyway, he pointed it out to mom and the two of them spent some time feeling it and talking about it. It made me a little self-conscious. I mean, I knew it was there but it didn’t bother me. Why, I wondered, should it bother them? It was a little weird, sure, but if I started worrying about everything I thought was a little weird I wouldn’t have time for anything else. Eventually they changed the subject and I assumed the business of the lump was over.
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YOU ARE WHAT YOU DRIVE

The automobile was not invented in Southern California, or, for that matter, in the United States. Though there is some debate on the issue, most would agree the first modern car was invented by Karl Benz, who obtained a patent to produce the vehicle in Mannheim, Germany, in 1885. America’s first significant contribution to the automotive industry was the Model T Ford. Manufactured on an assembly line with interchangeable parts, the Tin Lizzy was the first car affordable for the masses. From the time the first one was designed in 1908 until production ended in 1927, fifteen million had rolled off the assembly line and into American garages.
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TERMITES

I’ve never given a lot of thought to bugs. They seem to be everywhere, and except for the one or two ticks I somehow managed to pick up over the years they’ve never really bothered me much. Even the ticks didn’t really bother me—they bothered the folks, who started freaking out about the weird diseases they carry and why the medicine they were giving me to prevent getting them in the first place didn’t work.
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IMPULSE CONTROL

While hanging out with the groomer the other day I had some time to think about a few things. One of them was why I was hanging out with the groomer in the first place. I mean there are times when he comes for absolutely no reason whatsoever. I’m fine, it’s a normal day, then out of nowhere, he shows up with that diabolical truck and the next thing I know I’m getting a bath. It’s practically assault and battery and I’m sure it would be illegal for him to pull the same stunt on the Doc. But every once in a great while he comes for a reason. This was one of those times. I would have called him myself if I knew the number.
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ANATOMY for IDIOTS

The human body is a wondrous thing. Since the earliest days of recorded history it has been a source of fascination and inspiration for scientists and artists alike. This has been true whether the focus has been on the sub-cellular workings of mitochondria and RNA creating energy and building proteins, or the organism as a whole, creating thoughts and building cities. Yet it seems there are quite a few people unfamiliar with its various parts and their specific uses.
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