sad but true

Normally, I am saddened, even distressed, by the suffering of others. It really bothers me, particularly where victims are innocent or unable to prevent their predicament. But yesterday, sadly, I experienced a definite sense of Schadenfreude, completely without warning.

NPR was running a story on how there was an explosion of sorts at an Exxon facility in Baytown TX that caused an oil-laden mist to cover a nearby apartment complex with brownish sludge. I don’t have any explanation as to why, but I simply burst out laughing as the woman who was being interviewed talked about how she went to take her grandchildren to school and found that her car was covered in oil. Maybe it had just been a rough day.

Today We Celebrate a Genius

Two hundred and fifty years ago today, a genius was born. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart possessed a remarkable native genius that was nurtured from a very early age by the music of his father. By the time he died, he had written over 600 compositions. He is a prime example of the productive power of genius.