In the spring of 2015, Pope Francis released a profound encyclical (letter) to the world called “Laudato Si’” (“Praise be to you”). The letter lays the moral foundation for our collective obligation and responsibility to protect Mother Earth. In Pope Francis’ case, he uses the teachings of the Catholic Church to build the foundation of […]
Author: Texas Toast
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Motivational Monday
October 6, 2025 – Stewardship “Let us develop respect for all living things. Let us try to replace violence and intolerance with understanding, compassion and love.” —Jane Goodall (1934 -2025)Primatologist, Ethologist, Anthropologist, United Nations Messenger of Peace About the United Nations Messengers of Peace
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The Love of Money
I find the following misquotation fascinating: Money is the root of all evil. The actual quote is: The love of money is the root of all evil. The quote comes from the 6 Timothy, in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. 9Those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many […]
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Spore Spa
Austin is mold-friendly: warm and humid, and proximity to the State Capitol offers plenty of decaying organic matter. It’s basically a spore spa. To satisfy the absolute minimum OSHA requirements, we placed DIY mold test Petri dishes in various locations of the sprawling WLBOTT campus. And we waited…. Lab Results Some disturbing results from the […]
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Agnes of Sod
Two Weeks Notice This whole “human experience” has been interesting, but it’s getting tedious. A few bad apples really do spoil the bunch. So I’ve put in my two-weeks notice and applied for species reassignment. Thinking about the vegetable kingdom. Turns out the process is more complicated that I thought. Lots of paperwork, and a […]
“It is difficult to get a man to understand something when his salary depends upon his not understanding it.”– Upton Sinclair What it is Why it’s controversial Flashpoints this week Jason K. Pargin – A Prophet for the New Millennium We manually transcribed, verbatim, a video essay of a Facebook post by Jason K. Pargin. […]
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Perog-y-thon 2025
Dateline WLBOTT HQ: 2025-10-01After successfully concluding all WLBOTT corporate business, the Elder culinary break-out team got to work. For inspiration, let’s reflect on Steven Fromholz’s beautiful poetry: Six o’clock silence of a new day beginningIs heard in a small Texas townLike a signal from nowhere the people who live thereAre up and moving around’Cause there’s bacon to fryThere’s biscuits […]
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Oh Fortuna!
Let’s say Oh Fortuna! is a statistically probabilistic phenomena. That means most days will be a blend of good and bad, yielding a tepid and flavorless day. Some days will be weighed heavily toward Fortuna Buena, but unfortunately those days will be marred by suspicions of undeserved happiness. And then there are the bad days […]
The WLBOTT Ladle & Lube cooks have consulted with The Great Chefs of Europe, as well as Elder KM (she knows her varenyky!) We have collected a variety of stuffing suggestions. This Conclave of Cooks, the Potsdam Perogy Plenary, has long been a favorite subject of Renaissance painters. Results of the Chefs’ Conclave Savory & […]
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Motivational Monday
September 29,2025 – Forgiveness “Forgiveness says you are given another chance to make a new beginning.”Archbishop Desmond TutuNobel Peace Prize Winner (1931 – 2021) “Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.”Mahatma GandhiIndian political and spiritual leader (1869-1948) Elder JZ: When I get exasperated with life, the universe, etc., I find comfort in John Prine’s whimsical […]