Trousered Ape

An exercise in presumption.

Thursday, May 22, 2025

State of the Ape XXXVII: Three Years Later

I’m posting a little early this month because today is (drum roll) the third anniversary of being diagnosed with prostate cancer. Thanks be to God, and your prayers, I’m still here and still carrying on. I also give thanks to St. Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem, PA, and to the doctors and nurses, technicians and helpers who work there, and especially to my oncologists, who have done so much to help me. And — last, but certainly not least — thanks to the Bride, who has been at my side throughout (as, indeed, she has been for nearly thirty-five years) and taken care of me (and would have done more but for my obstinate insistence on being as independent as possible for as long as possible).

Writing: Trying to finish the first draft of Edwina 3 ASAP, I merely rewrote Chapter 15; I’ll get back to the earlier chapters in the first revision pass. I’ve started Chapter 16 (all chapter numbers at this point are provisional).

Edwina 2 is still waiting to see the light of day. My cover designer and her husband bought a new house, so her time has been entirely taken up by moving.

And (sort of related to writing): I had heard of Project Gutenberg, but had never given it much thought, until I used it recently to find the Ingoldsby Legends. Poking around the site, I discovered there’s an index, so I downloaded it. WHY HADN’T I DONE THIS YEARS AGO?! Over 60,000 works in English; granted, most of it I wouldn’t be interested in, but even at one in every hundred that would be SIX HUNDRED things to read. In fact, the proportion is higher: the index is in a spreadsheet, so after sorting it by language, I sorted it by author; I’m not even through the Ds and I’ve tagged well over 200 to look at.
Literally, I have enough to last me the rest of my life!

Aaand — still more clerihews:

General Bradley
Looked on sadly
As General Patton
Downed another Manhattan.

Marshal Ney
Got in the way
Of a cannonball —
And that was all.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
Let out a bellow.
Again, the bath was too hot!
And he fired the maid on the spot.

Posted by Bob the Ape 6:31 PM