Well, I didn't get to see Tom Waits in concert in Atlanta earlier this month. BUT, NPR is streaming it online for free. It saves me $100 bucks or so. Now if I could just get it on my iPod...

Miscellaneous Culinary Commentary

I have really, really enjoyed our Emeril All-Clad non-stick 12-in. skillet. So far, it's been worth the money spent on it. It has better non-stick capabilities than our Calphalon infused anodized non-stick cookware (which, by the way, does a better job of browning than the Emeril).

Adding blackstrap molasses and nuts (relatively inexpensive walnuts this past time, absolutely expensive cashews in the future) to my granola recipe has vastly improved it. Yummy!

The Joy of Cooking has been an invaluable source for our cooking needs. Sure, it has a lot of recipes, but what I love about it is that it instructs you about cooking ingredients and methods, which allows you to know how to change a recipe of you need to. A great reference resource. In addition, of course, to Alton Brown and Good Eats, which is simply an incredible TV program. These in combination will make you a whiz in the kitchen.

Although in my head, if not out loud, I made fun of the hand blender we got as a wedding present, I am loving it. (I mean, c'mon, with a name like Smart Stick what's not to make fun of?) We got jipped, though: some models come with a mini food processor and whisk. The latter would make making whipped topping or mayonnaise (both of which we have done) a lot easier than whipping by hand (which I did for the latter).

Yet Another Summer Project That Doesn't Involve Writing

I am this close (note: I am pinching the thumb and forefinger of my right hand very close together) to finishing staining (or, finishing finishing) the bookcase we recently purchased from the woodshop of a local drug and alcohol rehab facility. We didn't like the color or gloss of the finish or the decorative pieces of the ones they sell in their thrift store, so we got them to make us an unfinished bookcase to which I added our own decorative pieces and type of finish.

Looking back on the whole process, I think I would still have done it this way, even though it has cost me more money and much more time, effort, and headache (sometimes, literally). But it really does look good--not fantastic or immanently impressive, but good. It was even called "beautiful" by a visitor, so maybe it's better than good, but I'm usually my own worst critic.

I would've preferred building up layers of a wax finish over the stain to someday give it that deep, old antique look. But, the wood being pine, and pine being very porous and thus very difficult to stain without the over-contrasted zebra effect of stain soaking into some of the grain more than other, it was better to go with a stain/poly combination rather than putting down a sealer coat then stain then finish, since the stain/poly combo sits on top of the wood (while still allowing the grain to come through) more than it deeply penetrates it. It thus has a bit more of a hard sheen of a poly finish rather than the equally smooth but more woody-natural and muted look of a wax finish. I haven't researched it, but I'm guessing that wax finishes don't really go on poly finishes, but if that were possible I may consider it.

Tomato plant update

I can't find the pics I took of our first tomato--it didn't look all that great, but it sure tasted good! Better than those from the farmer's market, even, IMHO. Not biased at all.

As of now, there are around 15 green tomatoes of various shapes and sizes on one of the plants that are well on their way to actualizing their tomato potential, reaching their eschatological climax, and fulfilling their fruity final purpose: getting big, red, and juicy and making their way into our tummies.

So, the other tobacco hornworms were mere larvae compared to this monster (thumb for scale purposes only):


This beast at every bit of leaf off of a whole branch of my precious tomato plant and was well on his way to finishing up another for dessert. I must have missed him in my previous roundup. This time I didn't squash him--David says his chickens would love a worm or two, and since his chickens supply some of my eggs, I will be more than happy to hand the worm over to his sustainable agriculture death. The thing is...I think he's already dead. I left some leaves in the tupperware that I put him in to fatten him up even more, but being out in the sun must've cooked him. And scared him or something--he left a lot of poop behind before he frizzled. Regardless, I'm sure the chickens will appreciate the morsel.

Poll:

Would you pet the worm?

After having done 5 more minutes worth of research into the worms on my tomato plants, it turns out that there are tobacco hornworms eating my tomato plants. Go figure.

Tomato Hornworms Die!

Why is it that my tomato plants have become the impetus for writing anything in this blog?

Anyway, I had two plants per big pot on the patio, but as they have grown rather large I needed to replant--a dangerous thing once their roots have been established. Well, one pot grew rather large, while the other remained a bit anemic. The thing is that in potting them, I didn't take into consideration that the potting soil I bought has nearly zero nutrients--it's basically a neutral breeding ground. One pot of plants had only potting soil; the other pot had some nutritious soil from a friend (the pot was his gift to us), and it was these plants that grew bigger.

After having procured a couple of big pots that formerly housed small trees, I proceeded to uproot and replant. But when I took them out of their tomato cages (or, rather, wire-cutted the tomato cages from around the plants), they were too big to hold themselves up (they were already 3-5 feet tall) and one of the big ones broke right in half. Into the trash heap, oh doomed tomato plant! I managed to get the other three into their own pots, with a mixture of potting soil and composted soil (from another good friend), and after a few days of the largest one wilting on me every hot afternoon, I nursed them back to good health. Whereas before they were producing a bunch of buds but no fruit, now they are producing both buds and fruit!

Whereas before they were not infested with tomato hornworms, now they are infested with tomato hornworms. I just noticed an hour or so ago that a bunch of the leaves had multiple holes in them; this is rather easy to spot. What is not often so easy to spot is that whole halves of leaves and even whole leaves were missing. What the heck is eatin' my 'maters?! Nothing to see on top of the leaves. But underneath--that's where the action was. I found eight of these little munchers on my plants!

They're pests, but they look pretty cool, huh?

A Time To Die

Pre-smash

Post-smash

Looking up these punks on the almighty internet, I found this interesting tidbit:

This insect is parasitized by a number of insects. One of the most common is a small braconid wasp. Larva that hatch from wasp eggs laid on the hornworm feed on the inside of the hornworm until the wasp is ready to pupate. The cocoons appear as white projections protruding from the hornworms body. If such projections are seen, leave the infected hornworms in the garden. The wasps will kill the hornworms when they emerge from the cocoons and will seek out other hornworms to parasitize.

I saw a red wasp in our patio area for the first time today, but I don't think that kind likes the worms. I didn't notice any white projections from the bodies of the worms, but when I do, I'm leaving that leaf-nabber as is. It sure would be sweet to see the wasp go after a fat, juicy worm-snack!

Pedro the Lion on Clark Howard

The opening of "Indian Summer" off of the incredible album Control served as intro background music on the Clark Howard radio show today. Sweet! It's probably a good thing that it didn't reach the lyrics--the song is kind of depressing (not surprisingly) and a little shocking to the uninitiated, at least in one part.

Oh, Yeah...

And let us ne'er forget how well my Chia Professor is doing (thanks to my thoughtful father-in-law)!

Green Thumbs and Red Aphids

Well, our tomato plants seem to be negotiating the hazards of city life fairly well. I have an eerie feeling, however, that my lack of knowledge and adequate research into the subject of growing tomatoes in a pot on a patio will prevent us from having a nice crop of fleshy red vegetables/fruits in our kitchen and, consequently, in our bellies.


That, and the fact that these nasty little creatures are absolutely loving the heck out of the tender undersides of my tomato plants. It is difficult to tell in this photo, but I'm pretty sure these little nasties are potato aphids. Supposedly they rarely end up killing the plant, but they can reduce yield and lead to stunted growth due to their feasting on the nutritious and delicious sap in the plant. I want to get rid of the buggers.

We have of late been attempting to fill our pantry (metaphorically speaking, since we have no actual pantry to speak of) when we can with chemical-free goods from local, sustainable sources. (The dogmatic slumber that has taken over after having once ingested much of Wendell Berry's and other contemporary agrarian types' work has recently been reawakened by a second reading of The Omnivore's Dilemma. We'll see how long it takes for me to fall back asleep.) So, I hesitate to take the advice of the plumber who woke us up this morning to fix the shower: just sprinkle the plants with insecticide. Hmph. I'm sure he is right that his friend grows tomato plants 10 feet high, perhaps as a result of protecting them from the aphids that are chomping on mine, but that ain't gonna happen in a pot on a porch.

Nonetheless, I will attempt to engage in a bit of local sustainable agriculture on my back porch rather than give in to the all-too-easy solution of chemical overburn. I read that mint is a natural repellent to aphids. Fortuitously, we started growing some mint (along with basil, oregano, and rosemary) in pots on the porch as well. Not-so-fortuitously, the mint has yet to produce very much. And there are a LOT of aphids on my tomato plants. I just put some mint seeds at the base of my tomato plants to see what will happen.

I also read that lady bugs find the aphids quite the delicacy. So, now to search for lady bugs. If I can get a colony of them going on my porch, hopefully that will take care of my tomato plant munchers and yield decreasing horrors.

Being reminded from my plumber friend, who thankfully pointed out the aphids to me, that I need to be more husbandly toward the plants under my care, I underwent a closer inspection of our herbs. I found this fat worm half-buried in our basil-mint planter.

I'm not sure what he is, but I'm pretty sure he's been getting his gushy bulk from my basil plants. You can see below that some of the leaves have been eaten in half, while others are riddled with holes.

The seed package says to thin out the plants after they've grown a couple of inches, but I really want to keep them all. The classic paradox: in order for there to be maximum potential yield for the plant, sometimes potentially productive parts need to be taken away. The parts are sacrificed for the whole. Utilitarianism in the garden? I prefer the phrase biotic holism myself.

That reminds me...I need to go kill that fat little worm.

Whaaa?

Part of a recent email sent by a student of mine:

also, if the properties do not show up I can meet you at your continence to show you the original from my laptop.

I can't imagine what was behind this slip-up. In fact, I don't WANT to imagine it.

Odds 'N' Ends

Since my last sleep disorders post, I went in for another sleep study to try a CPAP (Continuous Positive Air Pressure) machine. It continuously shoots air, via a mask around the nose, down one's throat to keep the air passageway open to keep one from not breathing during the night. I got my CPAP machine yesterday and tried it out last night. (If I can figure out how to download pics from K's camera, I'll post a few for laughs!) It will take some getting used to--I kept waking up during the night 'cause I couldn't get into a comfortable position with the alien object attached to my face and head. The mask itself is comfortable enough, though some red marks on my face suggests I had it on too tight...or else I'm allergic to the soft gel outer rim.

K and I went on a camping trip last weekend. (Again, if I can figure out her camera...) We didn't have too many fights. :) Seriously, it was a good time in NE Georgia, camping Friday night near Three Forks and then hiking up Rabun Bald on Saturday. We found a good car-camping spot, with decent toilets and everything (for the girls :)). I still peed in the woods.

We started a compost pile in the only plot of ground we have at the apartment: a 3' x 5' space. We don't know a heck of a whole lot about composting, but it sure cuts down on the trash. Perhaps in a few months it will be ready to feed the new tomato plants and herbs we've got growing on the patio! Man, I LOVE home-grown tomatoes. I planted them a bit early--it's been too cold the past couple of nights for them--but I think the cold spells are about over. At least I hope so, 'cause the planter that one of the plants is in is HEAVY! We've got basil, oregano, mint, and rosemary growing in a couple of other planters that someone left behind when they moved and which we have claimed as our own. At least until WE move. I've been looking at getting--or making, more likely--a compost bin. There are little flying bugs hanging out quite a bit around the pile, and I imagine they'll only get worse once it gets good and hot during the summer.

I have been issued an ultimatum to purchase a grill this month. Time is running out, but I think I found a good one at Lowe's the other day. Can't wait to do some grillin' soon!

Sleep Disorders 'R' Me

I have found over the years that even after what should be a full night's sleep, I am often tired during the day. Caffeine, of course, isn't the answer--although I am quite fond of a good cup of French press brewed coffee--as it only tends to make the afternoon crash harder hitting. So, I had a sleep study done a few weeks ago to see what is going on with me during the night.

The study is a bit artificial, being hooked up to a bunch of wires and probes and mouthpieces, so I'm not sure how much the findings reflect my normal sleep patterns. The results?

1) Obstructive Sleep Apnea Syndrome, moderately elevated respiratory disturbance index and moderate oxyhemoglobin desaturations.
2) Poor sleep efficiency with frequent prolonged awakenings and significant sleep fragmentation.

Translation: I'm waking myself up a good bit at night so that I can breathe, which means I'm not getting good deep sleep. I'm also waking myself up with limb movements, probably the result of Restless Leg Syndrome. Great.

Now they want me to come in for a CPAP study where I once again get hooked up to a machine, a different machine, a machine that shoves air into my mouth to keep my soft palate open so that I won't be waking myself up trying to breathe. If I did end up using the machine at home (which is the one thing K didn't want to happen), it could be only temporary. Losing more weight may shrink my soft palate so that it won't close at night. One of the things that would help, too, is to not sleep on my back, which I generally don't do, anyway.

My doctor also gave me some medication to control my limb movements, a medication used (in larger doses) for Parkinson's sufferers. Here is a rather humorous bit from the medication information packet:

MIRAPEX is a prescription medication used to treat primary Restless Leg Syndrome. It can also be used to treat Parkinson's disease. Just because you are taking MIRAPEX for one of these conditions does not mean you have or will develop the other.

Whew, that's a relief!

Wedding Photos

Kathryn and I finally got our wedding pictures! Ahh, it seems so long ago... :) If you're interested in perusing hundreds of good wedding photos, click here.

LOST 4x05

Okay, so I'm going to skip a few episodes (that I may or may not get back to in any great detail), because this last one simply cannot wait on the others.

When Desmond started doing all of that crazy time-jumping business, I immediately thought of Kurt Vonnegut's Slaughterhouse Five. It tells the story of Billy Pilgrim, who keeps getting unexpectedly zapped to different places in the timeline of his life (and also, as it happens, to another planet, occupied by creatures that see in four dimensions: three-dimensional space and time).

The opening line of Slaughterhouse Five:

Billy Pilgrim has come unstuck in time.

Okay, so already we have here another connection to Desmond's time-jumping, a connection in the way in which it is expressed, for this "unsticking in time" is how Oxford-Faraday described the time-jumping of his rat. Continuing now with the opening lines of the novel, it seems to describe well what Desmond is (was?) going through:

Billy has gone to sleep a senile widower and awakened on his wedding day. He has walked through a door in 1955 and come out another one in 1941. He has gone back through that door to find himself in 1963. He has seen his birth and death many times, he says, and pays random visits to all the events in between.

He says.

Billy is spastic in time, has no control over where he is going next, and the trips aren't necessarily fun. He is in a constant state of stage fright, he says, because he never knows what part of his life he is going to have to act in next.

What was going on while Desmond was jumping from one point in time to another? Why couldn't Desmond remember in real-time that he had time-traveled? Why didn't Faraday remember, while on the island, that Desmond had come to see him while he was in Oxford, but Penny did remember Desmond's visit to her? Heck if I know, but it might be fun to think about. Actually, it would probably just be a waste of time. And, yet, here it goes.

Relativity theory has this notion of four-dimensional spacetime--not just space, and not just time, but the two together in one unit--and this spacetime curves in keeping with the mass of objects that occupy it. Think of the curve that a bowling ball would create on a trampoline. (This, by the way, is how gravity is understood in an Einstenian system, as opposed to a Newtonian system. In the latter system, gravity is a force acting instantaneously on things at a distance, which is admittedly very weird. In the former system, on the other hand, gravity is the pull of one object toward another due to how much the object is curving spacetime. If you put a marble on the trampoline, it would slide toward the bowling ball because of the curve in the trampoline's surface. Anyway...) If there was an object massive enough, it could possibly bend spacetime to such an extent that different points in spacetime would get very close to one another, and, if you could find a way to get from one point to another, you could travel to a different time and a different place. It's hard to conceptualize spacetime, but think of it as the (rectangular) trampoline. On one end, make a dot to indicate a particular place at a particular time; at the other end, make another dot to indicate a different place at a different time, say, in the future. If we had an object massive enough, we could bring those dots very close together; a wormhole is what would bridge the dots and make nearly simultaneous spacetime travel possible. I have no idea how any of this would work, or even if it is completely consistent with theoretical physics, but there it goes.

In the episode Desmond's going into the past (from the present) didn't seem to affect the present, at least not with regard to Desmond's memory/consciousness. Other people's futures, such as Penny's (but not Faraday's, it seems) were affected by Desmond's actions in their present, that is, Penny remembered Desmond's visit such that it was "stuck" in time. But when Desmond found himself in another spacetime, found himself unstuck in time, his body at the previous spacetime was as if it were uninhabited. So, it was as if his consciousness was transferred at different spacetime points but without altering his prior conscious states. That is, the changes happened at the spacetime points, but they didn't get stuck in one particular spacetime branch.

My tendency is to think of traveling into the past like beginning a new branch off of the present one, beginning a new spacetime, such that if you travel back to the original branch from the new shoot, it will not include the things that were affected by going back in time, since those things are part of a completely different spacetime. But this doesn't seem to completely account for Desmond's situation. If the multiple universe hypothesis is applied to Desmond, when he goes back in time he begins another spacetime branch, one in which Penny remembers that he visited. But when he returns to the "present," he is on the original branch, in which case Penny would have no memory of his visit, in which case she wouldn't be looking for him, in which case she wouldn't have expected his call on Christmas Eve. But since it seems that these claims are false (i.e., that she does have memory of his visit, etc.), it can't be that Desmond's time-travel created a new spacetime branch. But why could he not remember that he'd traveled in time? Perhaps because it was his consciousness en toto that was transferred to/from different spacetimes, such that his consciousness of events didn't "stick" in the past because it was they that were transferred back to the present. In each transference, each instance of being unstuck, he carried with him the memory of the trips, but if the memory of the trips remained with him, then they didn't get stuck in the past and thus retained in the natural timeline to the present. They didn't get remembered because there was nothing to remember.

Now, the (or, at least one) problem with this is that we might have more than one Desmond, which is admittedly rather weird. The Present Desmond seems to go unconscious when he gets unstuck, but what about the Past Desmond? It happens to him, too--in Faraday's office, at Camp Miller(?). He zones out. But if he zones out, then how does Past Desmond become Present Desmond? Crap, I don't know.

My brain hurts, and I need food.

Calls to Repentance

The Old Testament prophets came to God's people at a time when they were well entrenched in generations of sin against God and one another. They were stubborn, heard-hearted, and at times indifferent to the covenant obligations that they should have been but weren't keeping. What did God call them to do? Point out their guilt toward God, prophesy judgment on their sin, call them to repentance, and promise the hope of God's restoration as a result of their repentance and of God's faithfulness to his promises to them.

Christ as prophet did the same with the coming of the New Covenant: He reminds us of our guilt toward God, of judgment on our sin, of the need for repentance, and of the promised hope of restoration by the faithful Father if we but turn to him in faith and repentance. There is now no need for prophets to bring this word to us, for Christ is the Word and the Prophet, the summation, consummation, and fulfillment of what God had previously revealed to his people.
We are continually called to repentance as the promised Holy Spirit does his work in us.

This concerns our covenant relationship with God. I suspect we have a similar relationship to one another: to exhort, to admonish and rebuke, to restore in communion with God and with one another. But as with the prophets and Christ, our authority to do this does not come from ourselves but from God and is to be rooted in his Word.

Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another... (Col. 3:16)

Now I myself am confident concerning you, my brethren, that you also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another. (Rom. 15:14)

All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness... (2 Tim. 3:16)

Although this is important as we are in fellowship with one another generally, covenanted as it were to one another as the Body through Christ our Head, I suspect that it has especial importance for the covenant of marriage. We have obligations to one another as members of one Body, and we, as husbands and wives, have obligations to one another as one flesh. Marriage, perhaps more than many other relationships, affords many and frequent opportunities for repentance and forgiveness, both of which should come often and without strings attached.

If we are truly to mirror Christ to one another, to be prophets to one another, it seems that our relationships, when they are marked and marred with sin, should also be marked with exhortation, rebuke, admonishment, correction, forgiveness, repentance, and humility, looking to Christ as the authority and putting away damning pride and self-centeredness. When we, like Israel, are well entrenched in our sin against God and one another, we need to be called to repentance, not only by an inner prodding of the Spirit but also by one another. Sometimes we just need to be slapped about the head--an interesting means, I suspect, of the Spirit's work. This is how we love one another. And when we do this in Christ, "in a spirit of gentleness" (Gal. 6:1), rooted richly in Him and the Word, it is, as with the prophets, Christ speaking through us and doing his work through us,

that he might sanctify and cleanse [the church] with the washing of water by the word, that he might present her to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish. (Eph. 5:26-27)

Yeah, okay, so I'm messed up: getting married didn't lead me to blog after such a long respite but LOST did!

We are still waiting on the official wedding pictures, but it seems everyone had a great time at the wedding and reception. We're just now putting some final touches on finding places for all of the great stuff we've received from our many dear loved ones--at least, I'm guessing (read: hoping) that they are the final touches. We've been truly blessed!

We're getting used to our schedules, K working three nights a week and me trying to get my work done and not goof around too much--you know, as in spending way too much time reading and writing about LOST! Ugh.

I bought a new iPod recently and gave K my old one. Got her an FM transmitter so she can listen to it in her car and some gizmos to watch TV shows (read: LOST) from my iPod on our TV (since we don't have any TV channels to speak of at the moment). Ah, technology. "I love technology. But not as much as you, you see." Everybody sing!

Soon we'll change the layout of the blog but will keep this address. Hopefully we'll both be posting on it, but who knows. Maybe we won't post at all, to keep with my recent blog trend. Consistency is key, after all. It takes time to add to this thing, and, honestly, it's not the first thing we think of doing when we want to tell people what's happening. But, then, it sure beats going over on cell phone minutes. Between this and Facebook, keeping up can be a real time stealer.

Today we booked some places to stay in Charleston in March for our "real" honeymoon. Hopefully it will be good weather and we'll be able to enjoy some beach time. And hopefully I won't feel like I need to get a lot of work done!

LOST 4x02 - Confirmed Dead

Ahh, now it's back, and it's good! I don't have time for a decent running commentary, so I'll just jot down some notes for the time being...

The Team from the Freighter:

Daniel Faraday

Flashback: Daniel is upset while watching the news re: Flight 815 but he DOESN'T KNOW WHY. Naomi calls him a "headcase" later in the episode.

While on the island: Daniel prepares for opposition when he lands, but hides the pistol, pretends to be casually taking off his helmet, and has a story of the rescue ready for Jack and Kate.

Side note on the name "Faraday": Michael Faraday, 19th century scientist who aided understanding of electromagnet fields. "The Faraday effect: The plane of polarization of linearly polarized light propagated through a material medium can be rotated by the application of an external magnetic field aligned in the propagation direction.

• Daniel notes that the light on the island is "strange" and "doesn't scatter quite right." Faraday effect on the light due to the magnetic field around the island?
• Helicopter had electrical problems (due to getting struck by lightning, according to Frank) and burned a lot of fuel coming in. Due to magnetic field around the island?
  

Why is Daniel on the team? To help figure out some of the weird physical things about the island. In the next episode, he is surprised by the time difference of the payload and says that it can't be good.

Miles Straume

Flashback: Miles talks to dead people. Knows about the stash (of cash and drugs).

Why is Miles on the team? There are some strange things going on on the island. Perhaps he is there to talk to Jacob, which means the team leader, Matthew Abbadon, has some knowledge of what has been happening.

Charlotte Lewis

Flashback (Charlotte): Anthropologist. Interested in the Flight 815 finding. Polar bear bones found in the Tunisian desert. Is VERY excited to find a Dharma hydra station collar among the remains. Knows about Dharma. Knows about a connection between Dharma and Flight 815/the island?

Was prepared for confrontation: bullet-proof vest.

Why is Charlotte on the team? Dharma knowledge?

Frank Lapidus

Flashback: Connected to Flight 815--supposed to be the pilot. Knows that the TV coverage of flight wreckage is staged.

Why is Frank on the team? Pilot, knows Flight 815 recovery was staged.

Naomi Dorrit

Flashback: put in charge of the team on a "high-risk covert op in unstable territory" by Abaddon, who went to visit Hurley in a mental hospital (in a flashforward). "Headcase": Daniel. "Ghostbuster": Miles. "Anthropologist": Charlotte. "Drunk": Frank.

Naomi: "What if there are survivors of 815 on the island?"
Abaddon: "There were no survivors."
Naomi: "Yes, I know. But what if there are survivors?"
Abaddon: (emphatically) "There were no survivors of Oceanic 815. Don't ask questions; just do what you were hired for. Every member of this team was selected for a specific purpose. Everything relies on you getting them in, getting them out, and preventing anyone from getting killed."

Miscellaneous

Who is George Minkowski? Seems to be someone in charge.

Talked to Jack and Kate on Naomi's phone.
Naomi talked to Minkowski, telling him she met with hostility.
Talked to Daniel privately in front of Jack and Kate.
Miles wanted to talk to Minkowski, but he couldn't come to the phone. (Why not?)
When Daniel called about the payload, Frank said to hang up if Minkowski answered.

Ben doesn't know what the black smoke is.

Why do they want Ben? Who are "they"?

Locke is lost, has no direction.