Larry Fike's New Blog Location

Larry Fike's blog is now located at:  larryfike.net/mofoblog.
See you there!

Eh, I

It can seem like readers find words when they need them.

So last night I'm trimming the stitches that go up to the corner of my eye. I am wondering how to describe that spot clearly.

This morning I'm reading an article in the New Yorker about facial recognition - of cows. It's about this company:

https://www.cainthus.com/

Ross and David Hunt call their company "Cainthus" because that corner of the eye is called the

lateral canthus

That's the part of my eye I was trying to describe clearly to myself last night. And now I know the name of it.

The extra "i" in their company's name is a teeny insider pun because that way you have a reference to "AI."

BTW, the New Yorker article has implications, naturally enough. It's called, "Here's Looking at You" by David Owen, p. 28 ff. of the December 17, 2018 issue.

At one point Owen writes: "...to an unnerving degree the algorithms, not their creators, determine which similarities and differences are significant and which are not."

So, apparently, it can seem like writers can find what I call, "Magic AI" when they want to.

The first electric bread toaster was invented by Alan MacMasters in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1893. I can imagine the advertisement: "To an unnerving degree the toasters, not their creators, determine which similarities and differences are significant and which are not, thus releasing the toast from its metal sensors at precisely the optimal time to ensure a pleasant tea-time for all."

Just as an automatic toaster would have appeared utterly magical in 1893, so the Ray Kurzweils of the world are reifying our contemporary environment as we await the emergence of consciousness from our contemporary contraptions.

I can hear MacMaster's late 19th Century fans asking him, "Do you think it knows we're watching it go about its cooking business?"

If he wanted to maximize profits, the obvious answer would have been: "Why, it well may!" And more significantly, MacMaster's sense of personal responsibility could be conveniently transferred to the "for all we know conscious" contraptions.

The relinquishment of responsibility, the surrendering of privacy, the abrogation of integrity: these are among the most ignored and most important concerns of our contemporary Magical Thinking age.

Larry Fike - Genealogy

GENEALOGY SHARDS – AT LONG LAST

Lawrence Udell Fike, Jr.

Last updated:  August 22, 2016

Family Members:  Please contribute by sending me corrections and expansions.  fike@aol.com

In Scotland, at a time presumably many years prior to March 28, 1890, William David Scott Polson married Agnes Jane Lowe. For it was on that date that their thirteenth child, Ena Scott Polson, was born. She died on January 8, 1965, and was cremated on January 13, 1965. She and her husband, Benjamin Abbott Flowers, were married on May 3, 1915, in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chicago, Illinois, and as of March 25, 1999, the certificate of their marriage is in the possession of Kenneth Abbott Novak.

Benjamin died on February 27, 1934, and was buried in Acacia Park Cemetery on Irving Park Road, also in Chicago, Illinois. He had been a member of the Masonic Lodge, and so had a Mason’s burial ceremony. (William David Scott Polson, Ena’s father, is buried in Wanderer’s Rest Cemetery in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.)

Two of the thirteen children of William and Agnes moved to Vancouver Island, British Columbia. One of these two, William Burnette Scott Polson, fathered thirteen children by two wives, including two sets of twins who died very young. He died of abdominal cancer and is, to the best of my knowledge, buried on Vancouver Island. The other, Charles Darcey Polson, was I believe buried on Vancouver Island on February 10, 1940. There is more information on these two sons who moved to Canada, presumably in jottings from a book titled Physiology For Young People, copyright 1884, 1885, and 1889 by A. S. Barnes & Co., that was in bookends on the end-table of Bernice Ena Novak’s residence at the time of her death on July 9, 1998. Later I’ll try to get this book from Kenneth Abbott Novak, now in possession of it, and expand that part of this genealogical tracing.

Ena Scott Polson, now Ena Flowers, bore three children fathered by Benjamin Abbott Flowers: Bernice Ena Flowers, born May 30, 1916, in Chicago, Illinois, and died July 9, 1998 at Beverly Hospital in Whittier, California; William David Flowers, born July 23, 1918 and died August 28, 1976; and another child, who died in infancy. I do not have any dates or other information pertaining to the birth and death of this third child. William married Evelyn Truher, who was born on March 17, 1918, and died October 31, 1975. The reader can see that William, or Bill, died very soon after the death of Evelyn, his beloved wife. After her death, he wrote me a series of extremely bitter and profane letters in which he denounced Christ ( whom he had for years before professed to be his savior), and suffered a series of heart attacks in close succession. Since I was only fourteen years old at the time and yet he chose nonetheless to send me several long, detailed, and bitter letters that one would think suitable only for an adult audience, it can probably be inferred that he was not of sound mind -- a fact that may comfort some who might otherwise be troubled by his denunciation of his faith.  The letters he wrote me are long since lost.

William and Evelyn had two children: James David Flowers, birthdate unknown; and Diane Carie Flowers, birthdate also unknown.  My understanding, however, is that Diane Carie's second marriage was to Bob Pierson of Elkhorn, Wisconsin.

On October 23, 1937, Bernice married Edward Leroy Kane, who was born January 28, 1918, and who died on October 31, 1985. (Both Evelyn and Edward Leroy Kane [Sr.], then, died on Halloween, exactly ten years apart.) Bernice bore the following children fathered by Edward Leroy Kane: Edward Leroy Kane, Jr., born in Chicago, Illinois, on August 5, 1938 at 5:45 a.m. in Cook County General Hospital; Robert Neil, born in Chicago, Illinois, on July 28, 1940 at 5:45 a.m.; Sharon Belle, born in Chicago, Illinois, on September 1, 1942 at 9:30 a.m. and died November 15, 1970, arriving Paso Robles Mar Memorial Hospital at 6:25 a.m. (buried November 19, 1970 in Los Gatos, California) [married at time of death to Floyd Bechler] ; and Gary Allen, born in Lincoln, Nebraska on June 19, 1945 at 12:15 a.m.

On December 3, 1948, Bernice remarried, to John Walter Novak, Jr. (born November 22, 1912; died in Los Angeles, California, on June 8, 1969), and gave birth to Kenneth Abbott Novak in Whitter, California, on July 27, 1955 at 7:30 a.m. in front of Beverly Hospital (in a taxi cab).  Kenneth Abbott's first marriage was to Diane Serna, and they together have two daughters:  Jennifer (born June 4, 1979) and Melissa (born June 22, 1981).  Kenneth Abbott later remarried to Yolanda, and they together have twins Elizabeth and John, born March 15, 1994.

After they wed, John Walter and Bernice Ena initiated adoption procedures for Robert Neil, Sharon Belle, and Gary Allen.  Ed, Jr., eventually went to live with his father in St. Paul, Minnesota.  In the adoption paperwork, all children were listed as having been born in Chicago, Illinois.  As mentioned above, however, Gary Allen was actually born in Lincoln, Nebraska.  Because of this, Gary Allen's adoption was not finalized.  In 1959, Gary Allen was taken to Saint Paul, Minnesota, where the intention was to leave him with his father, Edward Leroy Kane, Sr. -- this is the first time Gary remembers ever having seen his father.  (The story that Bernice told me on at least six separate occasions was that Edward Leroy, Sr., had in fact left her when she was very close to giving birth to Gary.)  On this trip to St. Paul, Gary also met his brother, Ed, Jr.  When Gary became aware of the plan to leave him in St. Paul, he objected so much that he was allowed to move with the family to Los Angeles, on condition that he retain the Kane name.  The apparent reason for this condition is that family difficulties had begun to be associated with the Novak name, and for practical reasons John Walter ("Johnnie") thought it best for Gary to retain his birth name.  Hence is it that today the surviving children are called by the names Edward (Ed, Eddie) Leroy Kane, Jr.; Robert (Bob, Bobby) Neil Novak; Gary Allen Kane; and Kenneth (Ken, Kenny) Abbott Novak.  John Walter's concern to limit the expansion of the name "Novak" can be interpreted radically differing ways, since he himself had changed his name from the Polish name, "Dowiarz."  He had therefore already encountered some issues surrounding the significance of names.

Although much still needs to be filled in, my own immediate genealogy continues as follows: In Tijuana, Mexico on May 22, 1960, Sharon Belle Kane wed Lawrence Udell Fike, who was born in Phoenix, Arizona on June 23, 1943. I was born at General Hospital in Los Angeles, California, on March 1, 1961, at 11:13 a.m.. My brother, Aaron Bill Fike, was born Arron Bill Fike in Wichita Falls, Texas, on December 22, 1964. My sister, Patti Lynn Fike, was born in General Hospital, Los Angeles, California, on November 5, 1966.  (My dad and I are usually called "Larry."  I also am called by private family nick-names, and increasingly people now simply refer to me as "Lar," pronounced, "lair.")

I married Laura Denise Altman on August 16, 1980. The marriage ended May of 1984. I then married Mitzi Gayle Sheppard on January 29, 1987. That marriage ended in divorce on December 15, 1992. She adopted and now retains the name Mitzi Sheppard Fike. Our son, Ian Lawrence Fike, was born in Babies Hospital, New York City, Upper Manhattan, on Friday, September 13, 1991, at 11:24 p.m.

I married Stephanie Catherine Pruett on December 25, 2007.  Our son, Lawrence Udell Fike III, was born on October 11, 2006 at Arrowhead Regional Hospital in Colton, California.  We were divorced March 18, 2013.  My parental rights over Lawrence Udell Fike III were removed entirely by the Honorable Lisa M. Brown of Clark County, Nevada on September 16, 2015, after a 5 day trial.  Custody was given to Connie Marie Harris, the maternal biological grandmother of the child, the biological mother -- Stephanie Catherine Pruett -- having no interest in retaining custody.

Much of the history of the Fike, or paternal side of my family is yet to come.  I have already mentioned that my father, Lawrence Udell Fike, Sr., was born in Phoenix, Arizona on June 23, 1943.  But even beginning with his parents, the record on this side of the family is in a state of disarray.  On my birth certificate, my father's listed age is incorrect (it states that he is 20, whereas in reality he was only seventeen; my mother was eighteen -- see above) .  My father's parents are Udell Wayne Fike (died December 7, 1998, and buried December 10, 1998 at the Veteran's Cemetery in Phoenix, Arizona) and Martha Ellen White, born Martha Ellen Wooster, but who was then adopted by Edna Ida Scott.  My father's sisters are Patricia Elaine Vrtis, born Patricia Elaine Fike on November 6, 1951; and Beverly Lynn Smith born Beverly Lynn Fike, October 7, 1954, in Maywood Hospital, Maywood, California.  My father died on July 21, 2000, the same date on which I narrowly escaped being bitten by a rattlesnake while trailing running by jumping off of a cliff.  He was hit by a van while out bicycling late at night in his final home town of Fort Smith, Arkansas, where he is now buried.  I presided over the details of his burial.   My siblings did not join me.  I paid for everything, although later I was partially reimbursed by his widow, and hence my step-mother, Della Cook, also of Fort Smith, Arkansas.

My sister Patti Lynn has six children:  Krystina Marie O'Brien, born Sepetember 25, 1985; Allyson Hagler, born January 23, 1991; Ashlie Hagler, born February 5, 1992; Tracy Hagler,  born June 7, 1993; Holly Hagler, born December 14, 1994; and Alton Hagler III, born September 20, 1996.

Please help me make this more complete and accurate.  If you spot errors, can make corrections, and/or can provide additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me: 

Thank you, Grandma Bee, for leaving behind a sheet of paper containing many of these details.  I requested these details of her in January of 1992, but did not discover the letter, with her replies filled in, until March 28, 1999 -- almost one year after her death, and more than seven years after my original request.  Never say never.

Lawrence Udell Fike, Jr.

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