1. I had fun today making Debbie and me cups of espresso and heated/frothed milk. I'm learning a bit more all the time about how the moka pot works. I have some work to do regarding proportions of espresso to milk. So far, when the espresso comes out of the moka pot, it's a bit too bitter for me to enjoy straight, so, over time, I'll work on seeing if I can make it less bitter. The heated/frothed milk, however, cuts the bitterness and our cups of, what?, latte? cappuccino? have been enjoyable, but I think maybe I have been using a bit too much espresso -- trial and error.....trial and error.
2. Were it not for my decision to read the entirety of the Leah Sottile booklist I've mentioned several times, I never would have read American Terrorist: Timothy McVeigh & The Oklahoma City Bombing. I'd read about McVeigh in other books and I listened to the entirety of Leah Sottile's podcast on the Oklahoma City bombing, and I thought I was done.
But, here I am, learning more and here's my next installment reviewing what I read today.
I've mentioned, possibly in passing, that Timothy McVeigh was a scrawny kid when of school age and he got picked on, got bullied.
At least two aspects of his character developed out of this experience.
First, predictably, he hated bullies. He hated seeing the weak being pushed around by the strong.
Second, he empathized with and was quick to take the side of underdogs, whether humans or animals.
So, as a soldier, McVeigh felt conflict within himself.
On the one hand, he loved the discipline, the weaponry, and the physical and mental challenges of life in the Army.
On the other hand, he hated that the USA involved itself militarily in the affairs of other countries. In fact, he regarded the US government as a bullying force.
But, McVeigh obeyed (most) military orders and even though he hated that the US was sending soldiers to fight in the Gulf War, he was able, in part, to justify fighting in the war because he regarded Saddam Hussein as the epitome of a bully.
McVeigh hated to kill and when he killed two Iraqi soldiers, it haunted him.
He would have much rather confronted Hussein, the bully himself, and put a bullet between his eyes.
The poverty and the carnage he saw that the Iraqi forces and Iraqi people suffered shook McVeigh to his core.
One of the orders he disobeyed was that he covertly helped out some impoverished Iraqis he came across. In one instance, he dipped into his squad's supply of food and gave a healthy amount of it to a family he encountered on a roadside.
As I ended my reading session, McVeigh had returned to a hero's welcome in the USA and was about to begin the process of trying out to be a member of the US Army's Special Forces, a dream he'd had for a long time.
I also read that we, as readers, were about to witness a turning point in Timothy McVeigh's life.
3. Whenever Debbie pops into Grocery Outlet, she always comes home with delicious food. Today she bought a couple portions of pre-seasoned salmon and some very thin stalked asparagus spears. She baked the salmon and roasted the asparagus, creating a simple, nourishing, and very delicious dinner.
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