Marilyn's Photos - July 9 2025 - Fear of Missing Out

 

The New York Times has an article on AI int he classroom and reference the tech companies' sales strategy as being based on the "fear of missing out" - that students will be set up for failure if they don't use AI.   My generation is genuinely marvelling at what can be done by chatbots.  For people with low skills for composing, they are amazed at what is written on their behalf.  I listened to a conversation amongst people who I thought were educated. They had math and science skills and felt they didn't have good composing skills for emails and correspondence.  AI gets them up to and beyond the threshold of good writing.   That makes me think this is about the fear of missing out - of not being "good enough" or  being able to "keep up."  So would we expect it to improve their general writing skills?  I expect it will replace their correspondence and they will be dependent on it.  Is that what we want of school learning?  And I sure hope AI gets better at writing.  To me, a lot of what it writes is ingratiating, unctuous, flattering, insincere, obsequious, and fawning. There needs to be some AI to develop authenticity. Me, I seem to be going backwards. I've turned off spell-check. Gerry showed me where I could do this in my MAC so there's almost no word replacement, except for some programs online. I would rather have to read my work carefully than just blast along with a trail of weird words dangling behind.  Some of them were fun, though, and I will miss those surprise moments.  There's a colourful array of Muskoka Chairs.

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Marilyn's Photos - July 1 2025 - Verse 2

 

We are not strong on national anthems.  Once finished primary school, the lyrics drift off from the minds of most Canadians.  We recently updated them to be "more gender inclusive" or less discriminatory.  O Canada! Our home and native land! True patriot love in all of us command. With glowing hearts we see thee rise, The True North strong and free! From far and wide, O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. Would you like to learn Verse 2? O Canada! Where pines and maples grow. Great prairies spread and lordly rivers flow. How dear to us thy broad domain, From East to Western Sea, Thou land of hope for all who toil! Thou True North, strong and free! God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. Now on to Verse 3: O Canada! Beneath thy shining skies May stalwart sons and gentle maidens rise, To keep thee steadfast through the years From East to Western Sea, Our own beloved native land! Our True North, strong and free! God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. And finally, let's finish with Verse 4: Ruler supreme, who hearest humble prayer, Hold our dominion within thy loving care; Help us to find, O God, in thee A lasting, rich reward, As waiting for the Better Day, We ever stand on guard. God keep our land glorious and free! O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. O Canada, we stand on guard for thee. As long as there's the True north strong and free, we're ok with fixing the first verse and ignoring the rest. That was enough work. So let's stick with that and if you fell strongly today, sing the first verse a few times.

All those chairs, so many choices.

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It is Time for the Outdoor Chairs

Wake Up on the Bright Side I wonder how many pictures of Muskoka Chairs there are in my photo collection.  I'll start to gather them into a poster collage. If we were in the North-Eastern U.S. we would call them Adirondack Chairs. Wikipedia redirects one from Muskoka to Adirondack for information about the chair.   However, it doesn't explain how the chair migrated to Muskoka and got 'renamed'.  Back to Adirondack, the chair was originated by Thomas Lee in 1903 while on vacation in Westport.  He offered the design to his friend, a carpenter in need of winter income. That explains the patent by Harry C. Bunnell rather than the originator, Thomas Lee.  The article says that Bunnell registered the patent without telling Lee, and that Lee was surprised, but then didn't mind. Muskoka Chair Company is in Port Carling (that's in Muskoka), dedicated to making these wonderful, iconic, outdoor chairs.

Muskoka or Adirondack - What's in a name?

"The beloved Muskoka chair started out as the Westport chair, named after Westport, New York, where it was patented.  It later became known as the Adirondack chair, in honour of the mountains of the same name in New York state, where tuberculosis patients were sent to relax and take in the fresh air at a convalescent home." Over the years, improvements were made, such as using slats instead of a single slab for the seat and back. No one knows who brought the first one to Canada or the start of the term Muskoka chair.  But there it is: Muskoka or Adirondack - nothing different.  Both are the epitome of summer comfort and relaxation. What better way to enjoy the calendar's slide between July 1st and July 4th!   Facebook Twitter Website Blogs at: http://opengardensniagara.blogspot.ca http://blog.marilyncornwell.com Purchase at: http://www.redbubble.com/people/marilyncornwell http://1-marilyn-cornwell.artistwebsites.com