The Silent Corner - Dean Koontz

When I visit Teri in the nursing home, I often read to her. Her vision troubles have made it difficult for her to enjoy books on her own, and she deeply misses the joy of reading. She says my reading feels like listening to an audiobook, which she finds comforting and engaging. Sharing these stories together has become a special way to connect with something she loves. Recently, we finished Dean Koontz's The Silent Corner.

Dean Koontz’s The Silent Corner is a gripping thriller that introduces Jane Hawk, an FBI agent investigating her husband's suspicious suicide. As Jane uncovers a chilling pattern of other "voluntary" deaths, she stumbles upon a sinister organization using advanced mind-control technology. This discovery propels her into a high-stakes battle against extraordinary evil.

Jane Hawk is a compelling protagonist, blending intelligence, determination, and vulnerability. Her courage and resourcefulness make her relatable and admirable as she faces betrayals and deadly encounters. Koontz’s prose is dynamic and descriptive, creating vivid scenes and maintaining relentless pacing with short, punchy chapters that keep the tension high.

While the mind-control technology’s intricacies and philosophical implications might slow the pace for some readers, the story’s action and suspense outweigh these moments. The villains, though exaggerated, serve their purpose in creating a clear divide between good and evil.

As the first in a series, The Silent Corner effectively sets the stage for Jane Hawk’s ongoing battle while delivering a satisfying conclusion. Fans of fast-paced thrillers with strong female leads will find this book an engaging and exhilarating read, showcasing Koontz’s storytelling prowess.

 

And We Settled Down for a Long Winter's Nap...

 

My Mother's Wedding Dress

I ran across these when scrolling through my photos. This is my mother's wedding dress, worn on February 9, 1957, yellowed with age. 

 

Verity by Colleen Hoover

 

Verity by Colleen Hoover is a gripping psychological thriller with a twist of romance. The novel follows  a struggling writer who’s given the chance to finish a series of books by the famous but ailing author named Verity Crawford. If you’re a fan of psychological thrillers that keep you on the edge of your seat, Verity will not disappoint. The twists, dark atmosphere, and complex characters make it an unforgettable read. Just be prepared for some serious moral dilemmas—and don’t expect a comfortable conclusion.

An Overview of Leading AI Systems

In the world of AI, there are a lot of tools out there. The leading AI systems are ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Gemini. Each of these comes from a different company and serves a unique purpose, but all of them are designed to make our lives easier in different ways.

ChatGPT, created by OpenAI, is a general-purpose AI that can do pretty much anything—answer questions, write essays, generate code, you name it. It’s like a jack-of-all-trades. Whether you're looking for a quick answer or need help brainstorming ideas, ChatGPT is there to lend a hand. Its ability to generate human-like text makes it useful for everything from customer support to content creation.

Then we have Claude, developed by Anthropic. Claude’s main selling point is safety and ethics. The team behind Claude has designed it to be more careful with the responses it gives, reducing harmful or biased output. It’s built with the idea that AI should align with human values, which makes it a great choice for high-stakes or sensitive environments where you want to be extra sure the AI stays on track.

Next up is Copilot, a collaboration between GitHub and OpenAI. If you're a developer, Copilot is a game-changer. Powered by OpenAI’s Codex model, it helps generate code, suggest improvements, and even debug. It’s like having a personal coding assistant that can autocomplete lines of code, saving developers tons of time. It works in a variety of languages, making it a go-to for anyone writing code.

Lastly, Gemini is Google’s latest offering from DeepMind. It’s designed to handle both text and images, making it a more advanced, multimodal AI. If you're looking for something that can analyze text, generate images, or do both at the same time, Gemini is the tool to turn to. Google is clearly aiming to push the envelope with this one, integrating it across their suite of tools for an all-in-one AI experience.

In short, while ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, and Gemini all offer powerful AI capabilities, each one brings something different to the table. Whether you're chatting, coding, or looking for something more advanced, there's an AI for you.

A Haiku

Music plays softly
Crocheted threads weave through stillness
In peace I find strength

It's a Little Warm in Here

The temperature in my classroom. I thought I was going to faint.

For My Friend, Teri

 I could not have done this, and definitely not so quickly, without Mike's help. 

My friend Teri had a stroke on June 20th that necessitated a craniectomy and left her partially paralyzed. On July 10th she was moved to sub-acute rehab, and on August 29th was moved to long-term care at Elderwood Nursing Home. I'll have more to say about Elderwood later, but for now I asked her what her favorite color is and got my big brother on the phone. 

Mike coordinated the colors and purchased the yarn, and I crocheted this in record time. It is big enough to cover a hospital bed, which is unfortunately just what Teri needs right now. 

I am hoping desperately that she will have some recovery after a cranioplasty. What she is doing now is not 'living' by any stretch of the imagination. 

Doing the Laundry

 

For Damari's Mom