Random Soapbox for Saturday 10/31/15

I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but ...

... it's time to start my boycott list down here in southern Florida.

[NOTE:  This post is NOT about the announced merger of Walgreens with my former employer RiteAid ... *that* will come on an upcoming Monday.]

If you don't remember my boycott list from back in Chicago, it's almost always specific stores (not whole chains), with the exception of WellsFargo, which doesn't deserve a dime of mine (or anyone else's money) for how they treated me when I was wrapping up my father's affairs in the months leading up to his passing.  In the twelve years I spent in Chi-town, the Subway on Clark was on the list (from the day they yelled at me because I was taking too long to pick the cheese for my colleague Shannon's sandwich) ... as was the 7-11 next to Wrigley (for the time an over zealous parking lot attendant fresh from gangland somewhere, replete with teardrop tattoo, was too aggressive in getting me to leave their lot).

Back to my new locale ... and the Walgreen's at the corner of Andrews and Sunrise will NO longer ever be visited by me again.  I've spoken of it at least once before, the day the underage kid tried to get cigarettes by referring to me as his dad, but the straw that broke this camel's back was this past week when I was denied my white privilege of being able to use a credit card without ID.  Specifically, I was told at the counter that I could only use cash or a debit card ... and when I pushed back to say I had a credit card, I was told that it would not be accepted without matching ID.

Admittedly, this store in the chain is located in the ghetto, and I knew the risk by living ghetto-adjacent as I do (the rent's cheap ... and by living on a corner and with an alarm system and two pit bulls, safety isn't as much of an issue), but I will not stand by and be judged, even if the store is on my Tuesday walking path route and the closest to ye olde (new) Florida homestead.

From now on, I will drive a 'hood over ... a few blocks OUT of the 'hood ... where I can use my card without being judged and where store employees do not assume that everyone is a criminal (there's that white privilege again).  And as for my Tuesday walking path route, it's already been adjusted by two blocks so that I needn't pass the boycotted spot to be reminded by my dissatisfaction on a weekly basis.

Take *that* dirty Walgreen's on the corner of Andrews and Sunrise!

MY CHICAGO BOYCOTTS:
http://capcognition.blogspot.com/2013/01/random-soapbox-for-saturday-11213.html

NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE WHITE PRIVILEGE CONCEPT?:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/02/22/nyregion/at-new-york-private-schools-challenging-white-privilege-from-the-inside.html?_r=0

SPEAKING OF CREDIT CARD RULES AND REGS:
http://consumerist.com/2014/07/19/10-answers-to-credit-card-questions-we-get-asked-all-the-time/

Random Posting for Penn State 10/31/15

Here are 9 Nittany Nuggets from today's game:

1.)  Who doesn't like a shut-out every now and then (besides the opposing team, of course)?
2.)  In other news, that was kind of like punting practice for Illinois, no?
3.)  That's 6 and 0 for home games this year .. let's keep that going for the last home game on the schedule!
4.)  And, with last week as the exception, that's another game in the books with no score from the opponent in the first quarter.
5.)  Hey JO-EY, chin up.  Feel free to research the FICKEN story ...
6.)  I was somewhat expecting the point after blocker ... the biggest guy on their team ... to spell his name BANE (instead of BAIN), but that's probably because I got thing for the Bat.
7.)  Hey there HACKENBERG ... not happy enough with all the records you broke last week so you had to go score yourself a reception today, eh?
8.)  Hey there announcer dude ... the first time you mentioned SAQUON's "massive" legs, you were being descriptive.  The second and third times ... it got kind of creepy.
9.)  And yes, R Kelly, especially after that touchdown where he lost his shoe, I believe SAQUON can fly ...

In closing, thanks to all those who worked to install the new turf at the stadium ... and here's to the road trip to Chitown (well, Chitown adjacent Evanston) for next week's game against NU.

BAIN WAS THE BANE OF THE POINT AFTER TODAY:
http://www.fightingillini.com/roster.aspx?rp_id=2247

WHAT ONE FINDS WHEN ONE GOOGLES SAQUON'S MASSIVE LEGS:
http://www.mcall.com/sports/varsity/mc-district11-track-championships-barkley-panek-20150511-story.html

R KELLY WAS SINGING ABOUT THE SAQUON:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIQn8pab8Vc

Random Flashback for Friday 10/30/15

So *this* seems like the right photo to choose for today's flashback to twenty years ago, no?

Truth be told, the murder mystery we did on LVC's campus for Halloween of 1995 (one of the last times we performed these there, seeing as how I had finally and officially graduated in the spring of that year) did NOT include an actual scene in a graveyard.

But it was scheduled for the "holiday", and so, when we took the black and white press pics in preparation for the show, it seemed a no-brainer to sneak on over to an ancient cemetery and pose for a photo or two.

Of course, to be respectful, we chose an unmarked grave (or maybe it was the *back* of the gravestone) in the oldest part of the graveyard ... although, technically, I suspect that we "broke in", seeing as how it was after dark.  For that reason, and because I don't know the statute of limitations for trespassing in central PA, the exact site of the shoot will have to go unnamed.

Oh ... and in other news ... Happy Halloween (to those who celebrate)!

Random Thought for Thursday 10/29/15

Sometimes ...

... and VERY rarely for me ...

... no additional words are needed, because an image captures everything just perfectly ...

... except maybe a word of thanks to the half dozen or so of my friends and family who shared this image with me on the Facebook.

It's always good to be remembered ... whether for bacon or for Cher or for anything else that pops into your head associated with me.

Oh ... and ... as it says ... don't forget to "Cher" the time change with your friends ...


THIS WEEKEND ... YOU *CAN* TURN BACK TIME!:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsKbwR7WXN4

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW (COURTESY OF THE USA TODAY):
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2015/10/28/daylight-saving-time-5-things-know/74737608/

10 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT THE ELECTION (COURTESY OF THE CHER):
http://www.billboard.com/articles/news/6715366/cher-twitter-2016-presidential-election

Random Wordplay for Wednesday 10/28/15

Zaftig Zeppelin and/or Big-Boned Dirigible

Used in a sentence:  "Perhaps I'm being too sensitive in light of my recent 'fatso' situation (see link below), but as I follow along with the coverage of the military blimp dragging its tether all across my birth state of Pennsylvania, it strikes me that the word 'blimp' seems somewhat pejorative and so I found myself wishing that the commentators would refer to it with the more friendly and less judgmental turns of phrase, such as zaftig zeppelin and/or big-boned dirigible".

After all ... this blimp .. I mean curvy aircraft ... was born this way and we should celebrate it for how it is and not weight-shame it in our usage of descriptive words as we let it take over the 24 hour news cycle before tonight's debate.  Let's show a little respect for the pleasantly plump flying machines, people.

THE AFOREMENTIONED FATSO SITUATION:
http://www.capcognition.blogspot.com/2015/10/random-soapbox-for-saturday-101715.html

YES, PEOPLE ... WE HAVE CHOICES FOR WHAT TO SAY:
http://ultragross.blogspot.com/2010/08/30-ways-of-saying-fat-and-other-fatty.html

THE LATEST ON THE BLIMP (AS OF THE TIME OF THIS POSTING):
http://abcnews.go.com/US/military-blimp-loose/story?id=34799147

Random Tune for Tuesday 10/27/15

Courtesy of a recent PBS special on-demand called 'Back Into the Wild' ... which, interestingly enough, seemed to be more like an hour long commercial promoting competing books that were written by the estranged parents of AND the siblings and half-siblings of the main character from the original 'Into the Wild' movie ... I was reminded how much I enjoy the Eddie Vedder solo work in that film's soundtrack.

In particular, I re-introduced myself to the lyrics from one of my favorite songs off of said soundtrack: 'Guaranteed'.  Mind you, I currently have too many creatures dependent on me to just drive off and disappear completely into the wilds of nature (and, happily, I have enough of the wilds of nature from fixing up the back yard) ... but, as has been proven, I do have no qualms about moving around across the country as life has dictated ... in part, because, in the selected words of the bard of the Pearl Jam:

Got a mind full of questions and a teacher in my soul
And so it goes

Don't come closer or I'll have to go
Owning me like gravity are places that pull

Consider me a satellite forever orbiting
I know all the rules but the rules did not know me

Guaranteed

ON BENDED KNEE IS NO WAY TO BE FREE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mA-Xn2Dx-s

Random Memorial for Monday 10/26/15

[Almost] Gone but not forgotten:  Puerto Vallarta.

And having to add that qualifier of "almost" is probably a good thing, in retrospect.

It's just that I was following the biggest, hugely powerful, worst ever on record storm named Patricia (which, I'm assuming everyone was saying wrong and should probably have been pronounced "puh-TREE-see-a") -- not just because I was once in Puerto Vallarta (at an all-inclusive resort paid for as a prize for my region's outstanding performance back before the Great Recession put the kabosh on such corporate expenditures), but also because I didn't want it to track to my new environs in southern Florida (ten years ago, Wilma also stopped by Mexico this time of year before coming over and doing a lot of local damage [although, meteorologically, that was a different ocean basin]).

Turns out the hyperbolic hurricane was NOT as bad as it could have been, and dissipated quickly enough, so crisis (or crises) averted.  It does make me wonder, though, would Trump's wall have kept Patricia on that side of the border with the (alleged) criminals and rapists?  He might have to reconsider his plans ...

Regardless, party city of mine (circa 2007), courtesy of some good luck and wacky storm behavior, you were missed (by the storm), and therefore won't have to be missed the other way (for being gone)!

BIGGEST, HUGELY POWERFUL, WORST EVER, CATEGORY 5++ (ISH):
http://www.weather.com/storms/hurricane/news/hurricane-patricia-mexico-coast

ALL KIDDING ASIDE, IT'S A GOOD THING THAT THE STORM ACTED THIS WAY:
http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/hurricane-patricia-did-little-damage/

PUERTO VALLARTA -- STILL OPEN FOR BUSINESS:
http://visitpuertovallarta.com/

Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 10/25/15

What southern Florida is talking about this week:

The bear hunt!

Although, as the map shows, it's only certain parts of southern Florida (and certain parts of the rest of the state), that are really affected.

It's not come about without some controversy, as the reasons for the hunt have been varied but seem to come down to a humane "culling of the herd" versus an overreaction to a few attacks in areas where humans are encroaching on bear territory without taking into account basic bear-proofing strategies like using bear-resistant trash cans.

As for me, and to no surprise to anyone who knows me, I believe the answer to the issue exists somewhere in the middle as a compromise.  I don't begrudge a hunter his or her pastime (so long as the whole deal is regulated, and the person in the hunt is aligned closer to the midpoint of the Nugent scale of hunt-fanaticism) ... but I also talk to the animals way too much to participate myself.  (I've said it before ... one of my biggest fears living in these apocalypse-adjacent times is that I wouldn't be able to feed myself once the end times begin, and I'd end up a vegetarian right quick).  In the end, I also want to know that we've done everything we could BEFORE we got to the bear-slaughtering solution.

According to the latest numbers (as of the typing of this post), 207 of the allotted 320 bear-icides had happened, with certain areas being closed for hunting today (Sunday) with quotas having already been met (or exceeded).  For perspective, the black bear population has gone from (an estimated) 11,000 back before humans arrived ... to less than 300 back in the mid-seventies, (when they were considered a threatened species ... although hunting them wasn't stopped until 1994) ... to many more when they were removed from that list in 2012 ... to a supposed 3000 at the latest count (hence the 10% that were deemed "fair game" in this week's hunt).

Final thought ... I wonder if the bears ever get together and consider that they should eat more people ... maybe just a reasonable 10% or so of the excess population.  And, let me be the first to say, that if these bear-meetings do happen, I can help prepare the list for the 10% cull of the extra humans.  Just sayin'.

HEY PEOPLE ... THE BEARS WERE HERE FIRST (SO WHY DON'T *YOU* ADAPT):
http://myfwc.com/conservation/you-conserve/wildlife/black-bears/

THE NAT GEO TAKE ON THE BEAR HUNT (& SOURCE OF MY BEAR COUNT STATS):
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2015/10/151023-black-bear-hunt-florida-animals-conservation/

NUMBERS AND SUCH REGARDING THE HUNT (AS OF THIS WEEKEND):
http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2015/10/24/florida_black_bear_h.html

Random Posting for Penn State 10/24/15

Here are 9 Nittany Nuggets from today's game:

1.)  Woo-hoo!  And with *that*, we are ...  Penn State AND we are ... bowl eligible!
2.)  No offense ... but I kind of forgot Maryland was now in the Big 10.
3.)  Boy that PERRY is a bit of a ball hog, no?
4.)  I am fully aware that when HACKENBERG does it ... it's genius.  (What can I say, I'm biased.)
5.)  Good thing those official review guys don't get paid by the review.
6.)  Ummm ... however they found a way to quiet NASSIB and SAQUON, let's make sure they don't tell anyone, ok?
7.)  Hey announcermen ... it took me way to long to realize you weren't being noncommital in your play by play when you overused "likely" today (as in "likely breaking loose"), but that the other team had someone *named* LIKELY.
8.)  Hey announcermen (again) ... "tossed out of the saloon".  Really?  Where did *that* phrase come from?
9.)  Hey announcermen (for the last time) ... it's a good thing I was already planning on having chicken for dinner tonight, because that's all I could think of after you pronounced one of these teams being without the "shake and bake".

In closing, thanks to the Terrapins for deciding that it WAS sportsmanlike to shake hands before this year's game (unlike last year's ugliness) ... and here's to the home-oween game next week at noon against Illinois (with plenty of time to go get costumed for candy afterwards)!

OH RIGHT ... MD JOINED THE BIG 10 LAST YEAR:
http://www.bigten.org/genrel/070114aaa.html

SPEAKING OF THOSE CRAZY ANNOUNCERMEN:
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/article/2000052441/the-funny-things-sports-announcers-say

IT'S A NOON HOME-OWEEN GAME!:
http://onwardstate.com/2015/10/19/penn-state-vs-illinois-to-kickoff-at-noon-on-halloween/

Random Soapbox for Saturday 10/24/15

I don't mean to go off on a rave here, but ...

[... remember, one rave a month on the day I normally rant, 'cause it's better for the soul ...]

... life is good.

Admittedly, maybe it's old age and the clarity that comes with it ... or the fact that my Weltanschauung (worldview, in case your German is spotty) got simpler after 9.11.  Meaning, upon reflection, once that tragedy happened, my approach to life changed in that I used to have consecutive five year plans always driving toward something in the future, but knowing that the future can disappear so quickly and so randomly, life became more about surviving and enjoying each day, one after the other.  And, to be clear, that made me happier ... so no, the terrorists didn't win.

But I digress.  I was sitting outside the other day here in sunny Florida, looking over to the new planter featuring the butterfly plants, and I watched a butterfly alight and began its meal.

And *that's* when it hit me that life was good.  I have a job with tasks that change often enough to keep me occupied ... an overabundance of food at my fingertips ... more than enough time to engage in my hobbies (which include eating bacon ... but also feeding my television addiction and micro-blogging for fun and to stay sane) ... a well stocked archive of memories of life before when it was more complex ... and I get to travel just often enough to keep me on my quests and to visit with old friends whilst occasionally making new ones.

Plus ... I get to reflect on all of that in a recently done-over yard, where I can sit and talk to the aforementioned butterflies ... and the various types of lizards ... and the birds that dare to come for a dip in the birdbath ... and the squirrel that never runs lower than the top of the fence ... and the rarely seen stray cat (or, even more rarely, the stray 'possum) ... and the biggest, fattest spiders who finally learned to build their webs just above the 5'10" mark so that I stop walking through them.

Yep, life is good ... especially when it's simple, and especially when you're surrounded by those you love and those who love you back. It's my wish for you and yours, from me and mine ...

WHAT'S YOUR WELTANSCHAUUNG?:
http://wordsmith.org/words/weltanschauung.html

DON'T THINK THOSE PICTURED MADE THE TOP 10 LIST:
http://floridafriendlyplants.com/plant_database_results.asp?TLst=4

YEP, EXACTLY ... LIFE IS GOOD:
http://optimisticquotes.org/life-is-good-quotes/

Random Flashback for Friday 10/23/15

Four weeks into what will be six weeks of photos from the murder mystery we did on the LVC campus twenty years ago around Halloween of 1995, and it seems like I'm just restating the same information in different ways.

I only have two things to add this week ... first, this space, one of the stops in the show that moved around all over campus. was the fishbowl career placement office that was underneath the stairs of the Mund College Center. It no longer exists (courtesy of a recent renovation to almost the whole building)

Second, look at those faces.  That's acting, folks,  Even my long lost hair is in on the conveying of the emotion ... not to mention Suzanne W's death stare into the camera.  No additional words are needed!  (Boom ... drop the mic!)

Random Thought for Thursday 10/22/15

Just in case you haven't heard of this relatively new initiative ...

Today is Buddy Check day.

Hell, *every* day could be Buddy Check day ... but to make it easy for folks to remember, and to draw attention to the horrific statistic that 22 veterans commit suicide every day, a call to action has been put out for individuals to check in on a veteran they know on the 22nd of each month (at a minimum).

Two minutes of your life might save another.

And *that's* a statistic that can defeat the other statistic.

Remember ... "If you or someone you know is having suicidal thoughts, call the National Crisis Hotline at 1-800-273-TALK.  For help specific to veterans, choose option 1."

HELP SPREAD THE WORD:
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/buddy-check-22-day-contact-a-veteran-you-know-and-ask-how-theyre-doing

NO REALLY, HELP SPREAD THE WORD:
http://wreg.com/2015/09/22/buddy-check-day-raises-awareness-of-veteran-suicide/

HELP IS AVAILABLE (VETERANS, PRESS 1):
https://www.veteranscrisisline.net/

Random Wordplay for Wednesday 10/21/15

Knee-hab.

Used in a sentence:  "In the modified words of the late Amy Winehouse, 'they tried to make go to knee-hab, and I said "oh, oh, oh!"'"

(Side note:  that's a quote within a quote within a quote, hence the five quotation marks at the end [two doubles and a single {'cause that's how I roll.}])

(Additional side note:  those are braces within brackets with parentheses, cause that's *also* how I roll.  The more confusing, the better!)

Anyway ... I digress from the MAIN point, which is that I'm currently experiencing my first setback in my long term plans to lose weight by way of habit/routine change.  As part of phase I of my sixteen month plan, I was establishing a baseline and seeing what a normal routine of exercise might be for me (benefiting from any pounds that I lost in that stage of the process).

I had started jogging a few blocks on my hour long lunch walks each day, beginning with just one block and adding a block every week.  I made it up to seven blocks (not necessarily consecutive, but never with more than one recovery block off in between the jog-blocks) and that's when my right knee started talking to my left knee behind my back and they unionized and went on strike.

According to the doctor, it might also be that I haven't lost pounds quickly enough to support my full weight jarring down on those joints.  So she suggested running on grass or sand (unfortunately not as direct a part of my urban environment) OR switching to swimming (despite my affinity for the water, I've never learned how) or biking (which was a part of my phase II plans for the new year) until there was less of me hitting the pavement during the activity.

Additionally, I now have the brace ... and an ice pack ... and some good old Aleve to deal with the immediate after-effects of my recent decisions.  Also, come next month, I'll be adding in some exercises at the home gym to help strengthen my knees, in anticipation of returning to this aspect of my plans as soon as I can.  But, for now, my jogging plans are severely reduced (I'm going to try one day a week instead of six), although I'll still get my walk on each day ... and I'm officially in knee-hab mode.

I AM NOT ALONE:
http://fitness.stackexchange.com/questions/5624/how-do-i-overcome-this-muscle-knee-pain

TIME TO SWITCH OUT SOME EXERCISES IN THE HOME GYM:
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/5-leg-exercises-bypass-knee-injury.htm

COME ON, YOU KNOW THIS SONG IS IN YOUR HEAD NOW:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUmZp8pR1uc

Random Tune for Tuesday 10/20/15

Nothing personal, Mike D, MCA and the late Ad-rock ... it's just that it's your turn to end up as a Discarded Cassette in my ongoing series every other week where I'm finally purging the old cassette collection *so long as* there is a corresponding identical CD in the CD collection.

Which, for the classic 'Licensed to Ill', there is.

And speaking of classics ... how do I choose from the debut album with such great anthems of my youth like 'Fight for your Right' and 'No Sleep 'Til Brooklyn'.  I was *this* close to honoring the drinking side of my past by featuring 'Brass Monkey' (that funky monkey) ... but instead chose a song that I did NOT hear when I was lucky enough to see them in concert back in Chicago in the mid-aughts ... the seventh (?!) release from their debut album ... the slightly misogynistic (well, very misogynistic ... but, in the rap game, I'm afraid it got worse and not better after this) ... the vibraphone heavy and simply rhymtastic rendition of ... 'Girls'.

FOR THE DISHES, THE LAUNDRY AND CLEANING UP THE BATHROOM:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0e8j3-TuzCs

Random Memorial for Monday 10/19/15

Gone but not forgotten:  life in Richard Scarry's Busytown!

You know ... you reach a certain age and you see something mentioned somewhere and ... boom! ... all of a sudden, your childhood memories are released from wherever they were in storage and you recall all kinds of good times spent doing something ... in my case, reading about the world created by Richard Scarry.

Because, yes, although a wiki search today informed me that Busytown graduated into other mediums in later years (and, apparently got PC-ified as well [PC as in politically correct and not personal computer {I'm not talking about the removal of confederate flags .. but references to cowboys and Indians and the like were modified}]) ... when I lived vicariously in Busytown it was through the page.

That which is no doubt the reason, especially combined with my Avon-influenced affinity for all things Sweet Pickles, that I regularly talk to animals I've anthropomorphized, you are missed!

I REMEMBER ME SOME BUSYTOWN:
http://www.csmonitor.com/Books/2012/0604/Richard-Scarry-s-10-best-books/Busy-Busy-Town

LOWLY WORM DRIVES AN APPLE CAR!:
http://everythingbusytown.wikia.com/wiki/List_of_Busytown_characters

THE KING OF SENSORY OVERLOAD:
http://www.famousauthors.org/richard-scarry

Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 10/18/15

What southern Florida is talking about this week:

How it's planting season (now that the hottest time of the year is behind us)!

I know that many of you are wearing jackets ... or seeing snow for the first time since last winter ... or looking at trees with falling leaves ... or harvesting seasonal items ... but not down here where the temps are always warm and the sun is always shining.

And that's why the "dead" section of the back yard at ye olde homestead (just beyond what will one day be a firepit area and just under the avocado tree) is now a raised garden bed with some various tomato and zucchini options for a little experiment (sadly, the nursery did not have any bacon or mulch plants ... so ... you know .. that's a missed opportunity in light of how much of each of those this household consumes).  After all, living apocalypse adjacent as we all do means that you have to consider being able to support yourself when the zombies attack and/or the Tea Party gets elected and/or the Democrats take all the guns and/or the terrorists kill the electric grid and/or the monkeys rise up to rule, etc etc.

In lieu of the traditional companion links that accompany these daily posts, I'll add a few "before" and "during" photos to go with this "after" shot.  Keep an eye out for the helpers with this task AND for the all natural-pesticide solution (that creature, probably about as big as my ear [and I have the big old ears of my paternal family line]) is actually in the foliage directly above the garden).

If all goes well ... holiday visitors will get tomatoes for gifts!

Random Posting for Penn State 10/17/15

Here are 9 Nittany Nuggets from tonight's game:

1.)  It probably goes without saying, but the first quarter was my favorite quarter of the game.
2.)  Which, by the way, was a quarter in which the opponent did not score, a tradition this season that continues ...
3.)  Of course, I'd rather we win ... but losing to the number one team that is undefeated relieves the sting a little bit.
4.)  You all saw that right?  Franklin's "jazz hands" performance before half time?
5.)  It's still hard to adjust to this talk of "cold nights", watching the game as I am sitting here in southern Florida in the AC with the temps outside still in the 80's.
6.)  I wonder if the Pope blessed the "rhythm count" method when he was in the state the other weekend.
7.)  Regardless of the outcome, let's not forget to celebrate the return of LYNCH and SAQUON.
8.)  I remember when *we* used to have two quarterbacks ... in other news, I wonder whatever happened to Rob BOLDEN.
9.)  Could it be one of the next few games that we "celebrate" HACKENBERG's 100th time being sacked (I believe his lifetime number is at 87 after tonight)?  I mean, I know "celebrate" is not the right word ...

In closing, thanks to whomever figured out that spelling matters in college and corrected Braxton's jersey AND to whomever ejected Camren WILLIAMS (you're a douche for trying to take a victory lap for getting kicked out for targeting ... what an embarrassment to your mother .. and your coach ... and your team ... and your school) ... and, that having been said, here's to a good late afternoon in Baltimore next week (boy, our bye week is late this year)!

TURNS OUT JAZZ HANDS HAS A PLACE IN FOOTBALL AFTER ALL:
http://www.redandblack.com/sports/jazz-hands-and-backup-dancers-what-s-the-meaning-behind/article_04ad192c-66b6-11e5-85de-f72bbe3f753b.html

FLASHING BACK TO THAT TIME WHEN *WE* HAD TWO QUARTERBACKS:
http://articles.philly.com/2011-08-17/sports/29896851_1_rob-bolden-jay-paterno-quarterback-system

SO THIS IS HOW ONE "CELEBRATES" A LOT OF SACKS:
http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2015-09-08/penn-state-buried-film-temple-sacking-christian-hackenberg-10-times

Random Soapbox for Saturday 10/17/15

I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but ...

I'm *pretty* sure I was called "fatso" last week ... and it kind of threw me for a loop.

To set the stage, as inspired by the death of my biological mother (after having lost my biological father a few years back) and realizing that, in the overall scheme of things, I'm next ... I'm a few weeks into a long term weight loss journey (officially originally looking to drop 50 pounds over 16 months after hitting a high of 252.5 lbs), and the plan is all about habit change ... which means it's built on the concepts of "routinizing and incrementalizing [trademark pending]".

One of the routines is consistently taking my hour lunches as walk-breaks out and about in the neighborhood (a definite perk of working from home AND of "home" being in southern Florida), and one of the things happening in increments is that each week, I add one more block that gets jogged instead of walked (this week, I'm up to seven jog-blocks).  I'm still all new to this, so it's not quite a situation where those seven blocks happen in a row (more like two on, one off, etc) ... but I'm getting it done despite my knees thinking about unionizing and going on strike due to the new expectations of them.

It's also true that I do all of this topless (again, see factoid about living in southern Florida ... I do almost everything topless down here) ... primarily because I'm a hard-core sweat-er -- I've learned that even the webbing of my fingers sweats during this exercise in the midday sun.  (As a side note, I see that as even more evidence to dispute my father's fourth wife's repeated attempts to convince me that my father "was whomever my mother said it was" [my father's fourth wife was a *real* sweetheart {sarcasm alert}], seeing as how I have memories from when I was younger of my father being drenched just from mowing the lawn.)

Because I know this about myself, I do try to make it a point to do the jogging part of this routine on the quiet side streets of my 'hood, in case I look funny ... or jiggle too much ... so that only the various dogs that cheer me on along the way have to witness what I look like as I do it.  The problem is that as I increase the number of blocks jogged, I eventually have to do some of them on the bigger four lane roads that are part of my walking paths.

It was on one of those corners that the aforementioned incident happened.  As I completed my seventh block, out of breath and on shaky legs while waiting for the traffic light to change (as a newbie, traffic lights are actually my best friends as they let me stop and recover surreptitiously), a car drove past and someone yelled out "fatso".

My first thought was that I misheard.  But try as I could to come up with an alternative exhortation that sounded like "fatso" that might have been what was said instead ... I ended up with nothing.

My second thought was that I heard it correctly ... and it was just karma.  You see, I was once the person who would yell out of the window when going over a bridge at anyone walking on it, screaming out "don't jump" as I went past.  I finally stopped because it struck me that, what with driving along at an advanced speed, the passers-by were probably only hearing the second word of my shouted advice, which was the exact OPPOSITE of the message that I was trying to send.

My third thought was ... "what a dick"!  I didn't see the face (or the body) of the person who yelled, and it could very well be that whomever it was had negative body fat percentage (if that's even possible) and regularly poses for any open casting calls for Adonises as needed.  But regardless, and I blame the social media world, where everyone has a comment and thinks that everyone else wants to hear it, there was absolutely NO sign I was sending that I was currently seeking any feedback about my status.

My fourth through four thousandth thoughts were also about how the guy was a dick, truth be told.

My four thousand and first thought was that it was time to rise above the hater, and to realize that I have never been much of one who behaves based on caring about what others think ... and that that wasn't one of the behaviors I was trying to change.  To the contrary, the most formative years of my life were all about disproving those who were certain that I would fail ... or not make it to college .. or not return to college after taking a semester off for an internship opportunity ... or not survive law school after a rocky period ... etc., etc.  The thoughts of others expecting me to not succeed were fuel to my fire for years.  So if he-who-called-me-fatso wanted to stoke that flame so that it moved me closer and closer to my goal ... well then so be it.

Here's the reality ... one "fatso" in the overall scheme of things actually doesn't amount to all that much.  Because, although one "fatso" cut a little deeper into my psyche, it was because I let it happen that way ... and because I had forgotten that, since starting this whole thing, I'd actually gotten more cat calls that belonged in the positive category.  Just today I got a "looking fine" from some party girls in a van who drove past ... and the girl hooker on a bike gave me a "hey baaaby" the other day ... and, in what I'll take as a positive development, the boy hookers glare at me like I'm trying to horn in on their turf (here in southern Florida, hooking is an equal opportunity activity ... and my Friday walks take me behind the Sears where the boy hookers hang out) ...  plus I've had some horns beeped in my direction over the last few weeks that I will interpret as honks of encouragement.

So you know what, Mr. Jack-douche ... I don't care what you think of me.  I don't care that you felt the need to provide your commentary about my situation.  I only care about accuracy.  Seeing as how I had already dropped 10 lbs by the day you shouted out at me, I just wish you had done your research and yelled "4% less fatso than the fatso you were when you started" at me that afternoon.

Or, you know ... that you had just kept your own fat mouth shut (I was recently assured that skinny people can have fat mouths ... so it's okay for me to stoop to that level).

WHAT I FOUND WHEN I GOOGLED FATSO:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-553-15797-0

WHAT I FOUND WHEN I GOOGLED SHUT YOUR FAT MOUTH (ADULT LANGUAGE):
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=shut+your+fat+mouth

REMEMBER, YOU'RE THE ONLY ONE WHO MATTERS:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/stephenie-zamora/how-to-handle-life-when-e_b_4920116.html

Random Flashback for Friday 10/16/15

So ... I've done a few group pics from our audience participation murder mystery on LVC's campus of twenty years ago around the Halloween season of 1995.

Tonight, I thought I'd feature a photo of just one of the regulars (we were doing the same cast in different roles looong before Ryan Murphy made it popular on American Horror Story ... although, admittedly, Jessica Lange never performed with us).

And, if I'm being honest, I'm really choosing this one so that Lisa E (E at the time, U now) can brag to her kids that she used to dance on the top of the bar back in the day.  (Twenty years later and almost everyone has kids ... or pets ... or pets they treat like kids.)

Admittedly, I don't think she danced so much as climbed up to get everyone's attention ... and I don't think it was her so much as her character ... and I'm not sure whether the "bar" at the LVC Underground counts the same way as a typical bar ... but, anyway, you get the idea.

More of the same kind of photos next week (and the week after ... and the week after that)!

Random Thought for Thursday 10/15/15

Woo-hoo!  I'm cured!!

Or to be slightly more specific, according to the doctor, I am no longer pre-diabetic.

According to the comparison of bloodwork, in the last six months, half of them spent with my new weight loss routine of consistent exercise and minor minor tweaks to my caloric intake (because I can't yet deal with giving up the bacon), my overall cholesterol dropped from 212 to 154 and my LDL dropped from 140 to 82!

And specifically to the diabetes scale, I went from a 5.9 to a 5.5 (anything below 5.7 means you are in the clear ... anything above 6.4 means you are confirmed to have "the sugar" .. anything in between flags you in the warning category of pre-diabetes).

In other news ... it looks like I'm gonna live a little bit longer and annoy everyone just a little bit more ... and ... you're welcome.  All kidding aside ... thanks to loved ones in both the real world and the virtual one for the support on this journey (that continues ... )

HEY!  I CAN CHECK OFF A BUNCH OF THESE:
http://www.webmd.com/diabetes/features/prediabetes-diagnosis-what-to-do

SO I'M DOWN TO ONE A DAY (ALMOST ALWAYS):
http://www.quiglees.com/week-28-beware-the-beverage/

SOMEHOW THIS SEEMS A MATCH FOR ME:
http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2010/02/15/how-to-build-your-own-workout-routine/

Random Wordplay for Wednesday 10/14/15

Waggle Dance.

Used in a sentence:  "The Waggle Dance is not the craze that's going to replace you watching folks whip poor nae-nae ... but it is an amazing discovery about how bees communicate with each other, proving yet again that we humans are not as unique as we think we are."

And, to make matters even more potentially astounding, the Waggle Dance also incorporates general math-iness by communicating both distance and location of a food source as compared to the sun through its choreography.  Who would have thought that watching tiny bees swivel and shake their little bee hips all Elvis-like would actually be the witnessing of a message that ensures the hive can continue about its business?

So the next time you see a bee out and about, you feel free to encourage it to "get down and shake its honey maker" (note:  I'm assuming you are still stuck in the 70's and speak the language of the disco) ... unless, of course, you're allergic.  And then, you know, just run like hell, as the Waggle Dance is not for you.

MORE ON THE WAGGLE DANCE:
http://www.hiveandhoneyapiary.com/TheWaggleDanceTalk.html

WATCH A BEE WAGGLE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-7ijI-g4jHg

OKAY NOW WATCH KIDS WHIP AND NAE NAE:
http://www.vh1.com/news/32039/whipnae-nae-videos-cutest-videos/

Random Tune for Tuesday 10/13/15

In honor of the lady who has finally come out of hiding (okay ... maybe she wasn't hiding so much as just happily living overseas for a bit) ... and her recently released 11th studio album ('Unbreakable') ... I'm going to take it back to when I was growing up and go a little old school to pick a tune from Janet (Ms. Jackson if you're nasty) to feature for today.

It's actually a song I had completely forgotten until hearing it again a few weeks ago on the 90's music channel on the TV (working from home, I have a different channel chosen for each day to have on in the background to make my own muzak variety for the "office").

Even though it had been years since I had last heard it, I found myself immediately singing along, word for word, up until the end when she (and maybe me) welled up to deliver the phrasing where she (and maybe me) emotionally breaks her voice.

I don't care if the critics called it treacly ... I heard 'Again' again ... and I fell in love with 'Again' again ...

POETICALLY JUST (IF YOU CATCH MY DRIFT):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6rIKEEB92jY

Random Memorial for Monday 10/12/15

Gone but not forgotten:  having to respond to the call for "assistance needed at the blind cutters".

[Yes, this will be yet another memory tied to my time at Hills Department Store.  What can I say?  There were a lot of good times to remember from my years working there back in the day.]

Oddly enough, this particular one came rushing back to me a bit unexpectedly ... whilst walking through Lowe's this weekend preparing for an upcoming back yard project (garden-in-a-box, if all goes well).  Over the loudspeaker I heard the call go out that assistance was needed, and something deep within my muscle memory felt like maybe I should go "do the needful" (a little phrase I picked up from my international friends).

For yes, after a certain amount of time put in at ye olde department store of yore, veteran associates were expected to be able to handle the fancy machine back in domestics (similarly, at my other job of my youth at McDonald's, veteran associates *over the age of 15* got to work the deadly tomato slicer).

Activity that often had to be done two or three times before the right "cut" could be gotten (what can I say ... it was non computerized equipment from the early 90's) ... you are missed.

SADLY THE VIDEO DIDN'T GO INSIDE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBBts-sy6Eg

IF THEY CAN DO IT ... WHY CAN'T WE?:
https://www.facebook.com/Hills-Department-Store-42-Reunion-839588122750137/timeline/

BLIND CUTTING ... ALL MODERN LIKE AND COMPUTERIZED!:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfv46p6LpMU

Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 10/11/15

What southern Florida is talking about this week:

Fall!

Well ... southern Florida's version of fall.

Turns out pumpkins tend to rot on the front porch after but a day or two in these temperatures, so not all of the traditional fall activities make complete sense (although that didn't stop the Fall Festival from letting people buy them).

But, in the spirit of the season, out near the Everglades at the Flamingo Gardens and Nursery, there are some hayrides ... and some scarecrow decorations ... and some pumpkin-y things ... and, especially on point for me and mine this time of year -- an APPLE festival.

In addition to what I scored in the last of the photos below (provided in lieu of the customary links that usually accompany these posts), there's the item in the main/first photo -- made especially for fall festivals that happen in 80 degree temperatures -- FROZEN apple cider!

Happy all-things-fall to you and yours from me and mine!

Random Posting for Penn State 10/10/15

Here are 9 Nittany Nuggets from today's game:

1.)  Well SOMEONE today had to end up 5 and 1 ... so glad it could be us!
2.)  And that's 5 ... as in 5 in a row ... all home games as they were.
3.)  Hey announcerpeople ... I'm guessing back up quarterback Zander (DIAMONT) would probably you rather talk about something other than how his hair doesn't move when he takes his helmet off ... just like his soap opera star father.
4.)  Speaking of Zander (DIAMONT) ... I could have all but predicted he'd get hurt ... he looked like a tiny little thing, what with him being a buck eighty and all.
5.)  Speaking of back up quarterbacks, hello again MCSORLEY.
6.)  Speaking of quarterbacks, I guess when the rain *finally* goes away on game day, our ball goes up in the air (when you aren't carrying it over the goal line yourself), doesn't it HACKENBURG?
7.)  Oh JO-EY!  Or should that be "Oh no JO-EY!" ... twice.
8.)  Rest up SAQUON and LYNCH ... hoping to see you again real soon ...
9.)  Darn those sacks!  (I said 'sacks' and not 'socks'.)  I think we're at 19 now ... let's NOT beat last year's total of 44 before this season ends, okay guys?

In closing, thanks to the Gesicki family for apparently informing the announcerfolks that it's a hard G at the start of his name and not a J sound ... and here's to the big night game next week in Ohio and the hopes that I might be in a local Penn State bar watching it (local to southern Florida that is)!

BOLD *AND* BEAUTIFUL, WITH HAIR THAT DOESN'T MOVE:
http://www.indystar.com/story/sports/college/indiana/2014/10/21/iu-football/17682919/

GESICKI WITH A HARD G SOUND:
http://www.pennlive.com/pennstatefootball/index.ssf/2015/10/penn_states_mike_gesicki_says.html

THE SITE OF NEXT WEEK'S GAME (VIEWING):
http://www.parrotlounge.com/

Random Soapbox for Saturday 10/10/15

I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but ...

... "temporary inability to move or talk (sleep paralysis) for up to several minutes while you are going to sleep or waking up" may be a possible side effect of the new Belsomra drug?

Lookit, I get it.  Chronic insomnia is a bad thing.  Regularly not getting sleep hastens your death.  Anyone dealing with that malady needs to get help, any way possible.

But paralysis?  *That* seems a bit drastic, no?

Admittedly, and to channel the bad-ass pope of our times, "who am I to judge?"  It is rare that I can't sleep.  But on occasion, either the dogs kick me out of bed and I have to move to the couch OR my creative brain forgets that it is nighty-night time and I have to get up and fill out a few index cards with all the thoughts (most of them story ideas) running around in my head.  The reality is that I have my own remedy ... and instead of counting sheep, I count the number of places where I've regularly laid my head and made my bed (note I say "regularly" as I don't want to try to recall my former one-night stand style sleepovers).  Once I hit the two dozen mark (yep, I'm moved a lot in my life to date), I'm almost always snoozing.

By the way ... back to the ad currently in heavy rotation ... don't get me started about how anti-dog it is (why's the creature representing the illness got to be the dog, yo?) ... or how those furball creatures could just as easily be at home in a horror film with just the use of a different lens and a special effect or two ...

What it all comes down to for me ... if I *was* someone who couldn't sleep ... I have to think that the fear of sleep paralysis would be strong enough to override the drug as I lay there in the bed, frightened out of my mind, unable to move, feeling dead while alive, trapped in my body.  Just sayin' ... maybe this drug can go back for a *little* bit more development before it's re-released?

THE AFOREMENTIONED COMMERCIAL:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_kMzVNnv78w

THE AFOREMENTIONED SIDE EFFECTS:
http://www.belsomra.com/side-effects/

MAY I OFFER AN ALTERNATIVE OR TWO:
http://www.everydayhealth.com/sleep-pictures/0708/8-cheap-and-natural-insomnia-remedies.aspx

Random Flashback for Friday 10/9/15

Another Friday *in* October 2015 ... means another Friday *from* October 1995, twenty years ago, when the group of us was preparing for the revival of the audience participation murder mystery 'Revival'.

As was the construct, there were (almost always) just five leads in the cast ... and when you had to do promotional photos when one of your leads lived far away and wasn't in town for the shoot ... you had to get creative.

Like we did in last week's photo ... and like we did again here, using the same stand-in for the actual missing actor ...

What we were really trying to do was capture some of that Beatles 'Paul is dead' mojo through the images we chose ... (if you don't know that marketing gimmick, just google that phrase to envelop yourself in some late sixties style conspiracy theory) ... or maybe we were just fascinated with the concept of siamese quintuplets connected by the hair ... (note that we do NOT recommend googling that phrase).  Regardless ... it was ... as the kids say ... good times (without Florida or James Evans, as one can tell from this black and white photo ... of all white kids).

Random Thought for Thursday 10/8/15

On this, the completion of my fifth year of working from home (that anniversary either *just* happened ... or it *will* be happening in the weeks ahead, as my company first started completely transforming back in the fall of 2010), it strikes me that I get to have a Mister Rogers' moment at the end of the day.

Much like his traditional shoe and sweater change, the end of my work day involves signing out of the thirty some systems we use (don't ask ...) before closing down the work laptop ... and then opening up the personal laptop for some micro-blogging and Facebooking and such in some ceremonial passing-of-the-laptop scenario.

What I haven't yet figured out ... the song I should sing whilst performing the ritual ... asking people to be my neighbor when I work in a virtual environment and get spared from having to deal with many people outside of the e-world doesn't seem to be on point ... and the day is pretty much over for me to be spouting off about how I'd like to make the most of the beautiful day ahead.  Something will come to me ... I'm sure ...

DROPPING SOME MR. ROGERS KNOWLEDGE:
http://thefw.com/10-things-you-didnt-know-about-mister-rogers/

NOT SURE THAT WORKING FROM HOME IS RELATED TO MANLINESS:
http://www.artofmanliness.com/2015/01/15/10-tips-for-successfully-working-from-home/

SO MANY GADGETS ... SO LITTLE TIME:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/paul-fidalgo/when-is-it-one-gadget-too_b_4785173.html

Random Wordplay for Wednesday 10/7/15

Armchair "'Mass-Shooting'-ing"

Used in a sentence:  "Remember when our culture only had Armchair Quarterbacking as a pastime instead of Armchair '"Mass-Shooting"-ing'?"

It was only a matter of time.  What with the ease and comfort with which social media allows each of us to offer up our own opinions about ... you know ... pretty much everything ... the latest Armchair activity was bound to make itself known.

I've previously commented on Armchair Ethic-izing (coined during the Penn State Sandusky trial) and on the propensity for everyone back home in Chicago to be Armchair Educators (the system *is* pretty screwy there) ... and now Dr. Ben "Euthanasia" Carson (I gave him that nickname because his tone and delivery puts me to sleep when he talks) has offered up the "let's roll" approach to surviving a mass shooting.

Thing one:  Dr. Ben E Carson ... meet Chris Mintz.  Chris Mintz ... meet Dr. Ben E Carson.

Thing two:  It's very easy to say, in hindsight, what one would do when one is not directly in the situation, isn't it?

Thing three:  Can we please let the dead bodies be buried and permit the families to grieve before we co-opt the news cycle for personal gain on the presidential trail?

Thing four:  Is there nothing our society can't pervert from its spot in the e-Armchair, pulled up and plugged into the social media outlet?

Thing five:  As the young kids say:  "Get up out the Armchair folks!"  It is time to ACT and to make a difference!

BEN ... MEET CHRIS ... CHRIS ... MEET BEN:
http://abc7news.com/news/heroic-umpqua-student-charged-straight-at-gunman-to-save-lives/1013550/

SO ... I HAD TO LOOK THIS UP TO MAKE SURE I WAS USING IT CORRECTLY:
http://grammarpartyblog.com/2012/01/20/pass-time-versus-pastime/

THE LAST ARMCHAIR ACTIVITY THAT I THOUGHT DESERVED A BLOG POST:
http://www.capcognition.blogspot.com/2012/07/random-scandal-sheet-for-sunday-71512.html

Random Tune for Tuesday 10/6/15

One could argue that I did these last two entries in the ongoing discarded cassettes series in the wrong order ...

[As a reminder, these are cassettes I'm finally throwing out now that I have cross-referenced them to the existing CD collection.]

Last week, I featured the tune from the *second* cassette in this mini-collection ... and so this week I have to catch up and choose a song from cassette one of Garth Brooks' 'Double Live'.

As with last week, the special live version with the bonus third verse of 'The Thunder Rolls' was *almost* chosen ... as was the reworking of the Billy Joel hit 'Shameless' ... or the musical hope for the future that is 'We Shall Be Free' ... but instead, I'm going to have to pick the song to which I can't sing along without tearing up a bit (of course, it was probably just my contacts ... yeah ... that's the ticket ... my contacts).

After all ... everybody knows, including this boy ever grateful for the support system that saved him, that "dreams can come true, with God's great angels like you ..."

GUIDING MY HEART TO FIND THIS PLACE WHERE I BELONG:
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xpnw8e_it-s-your-song-garth-brooks-legendado_music

Random Memorial for Monday 10/5/15

Gone but not forgotten:  that dozen shrimp.

Which dozen shrimp?  That dozen shrimp that were purchased at Publix on this past Thursday and last seen in the cart on the way to the checkout lane.

It's unclear if they were purchased (the receipt has since been discarded), but they were definitely reported missing last evening when it was determined that they were not in the freezer or the refrigerator.  They also weren't in the car, which was checked despite recognizing that they probably would have made their presence known if they had slipped out of the grocery bags in the trunk or the back seat and had hung out in the automobile in the hot southern Florida weather for the last few days.

Oh well .. those fancy stone ground grits purchased in the hills of Tennessee will have to choose a different companion ... and items that made me sing "where oh where have my shrimpies gone ... oh where oh where could they be ... with their tales still on but their poop chutes gone ... oh where oh where could they be"  ... you will be missed.

THE RECIPE WILL HAVE TO BE POSTPONED:
http://allrecipes.com/recipe/220903/shrimp-and-cheesy-grits-with-bacon/

THE SOURCE OF MY SHRIMP MODIFIED TUNE:
http://forum.wordreference.com/threads/with-his-ears-cut-short-and-his-tail-cut-long.1039653/

WHAT YOU FIND WHEN YOU GOOGLE "LOST SHRIMP":
http://www.lostvirtualtour.com/lost/tours/Circle/(6)%20Shrimp%20Truck_index.html

Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 10/4/15

What southern Florida is talking about this week:

Duende!

Depending where you search on the interwebs, you might find that Duende is a dark goblin (gasp!) ... however, it seems that local leadership would rather have you invest in this definition:  "a quality of passi​on and inspiration; a spirit; having soul, a heightened state of emotion, expression and authenticity.​​"

Regardless, it's the name for the celebration wrapping up this weekend for the county's 100th birthday.  And if 100th birthday celebrations sound familiar, this is the *second* big one this year in southern Florida ... the first happening in the spring for nearby Miami Beach.  And so I'll say now what I said then ...

"Seeing as how me and mine have only been here just over a year, we have but 1% of the local histories as a frame of reference ... but I will admit I was kind of surprised that it's so young, relatively speaking.  What with the state of Florida also laying claim to the oldest city in the nation (St. Augustine, 1565), a mere ten decades makes the environs seem like it's but a baby.

So here's to living in such a young vibrant place (surrounded by old listless people) ... Happy 100th!"

APPEALING BUT DARK AND DANGEROUS?:
http://duendedrama.org/duendees.htm

OR, *THIS* INSTEAD:
http://www.broward.org/Broward100/GrandFinale/Pages/Duende.aspx

THE ORIGINAL CENTENNIAL CELEBRATION POST FROM THE SPRING:
http://www.capcognition.blogspot.com/2015/03/random-scandal-sheet-for-sunday-32215.html

Random Soapbox for Saturday 10/3/15

I don't mean to go off on a rant here, but ...

... what if Umpqua is *your* fault?

Look, I recognize, you didn't pull the trigger.  You weren't on campus.  You might not even own a firearm.

But what if you contributed to the underlying sickness in society that devalues life?  What if you support the rampant intolerance of anyone not like yourself that is the foundation laid so that beings can be more easily discarded?

What if you tend to write off whole groups of people with a simple label because getting to know a person as an individual is too complicated ... the left, the right, the conservative, the liberal, the anyone-not-like-me, the anyone-who-doesn't-practice-faith-as-I-do, the anyone-who-loves-differently-than-I, the anyone-of-different-race-color-religion-national origin-age-sex-orientation-gender-etc-etc-etc.?  What if that pervasive "fear of other" manifests itself in our nation's collective subconsciousness as permission to eradicate the different and the dissimilar?

What if the root cause of this repetitive cycle of random extinction at the hands of the armed and unsettled is not only the deprioritization of funding for mental health resources ... or the extremism interjected into any discussion by powerful lobbying groups ... or the intractability of government entities for whom compromise is no longer a quiver in the arsenal of advancing a society ... or the excessive media coverage that encourages the copycats to take action ... what if the root cause of this violence is how dismissive you have become of anyone not like you ... a dismissiveness that has spread throughout the common culture faster than any wildfire aided by the winds of social media ... a corruptive cancer of your soul that has damned the souls of others?

What if you thought before you spoke ... before you posted ... before you tweeted ... before you shared ... before you hated?

What if it's your fault?  And then, if so, what if you can also be the solution?  What if you can change and start to make a difference?  What if you can change the world?

What if it all starts with you?

WHAT IF?  ... JOIN THE DEBATE:
http://www.debate.org/opinions/is-it-possible-for-one-person-to-change-the-world

THE POWER OF THE ONE:
http://www.one.org/us/2014/04/30/9-acts-of-individual-defiance-that-changed-the-world/

COME ON PEOPLE NOW SMILE ON YOUR BROTHER:
https://vimeo.com/23661693

Random Posting for Penn State 10/3/15

Here are 9 Nittany Nuggets from today's game:

1.)  Hey announcermen ... what's with those long coats and gloves?  And what does 44 degrees mean?  That's *half* of the year round temperature to which I am now accustomed.
2.)  So Edgar Allan Poe and Jon Voight both play for Army?  Does everyone on that team have an alias?
3.)  That's a lot of our boys out on injury this week ... thoughts are with you each for a speedy recovery.
4.)  Statistic I like ... 1st time since '08 that we're undefeated at home.
5.)  Other statistic I like ... we've scored first every game this season!
6.)  Last statistic I like ... we're in the midst of our longest homestand since 1922, when one of the teams played was Lebanon Valley.  Hey -- I *know* that school!
7.)  Now a statistic I don't like ... with 3 more sacks today, the average sacks-per-game stays at 3 even instead of falling further as I'd hoped.
8.)  Hey announcermen (reprise) ... I don't think describing someone as "being built like a bowling ball" is quite the compliment you all intended.
9.)  Disconcerting signals ... NOT the name of a college rock band ... but a rarely used PENALTY.  Play nice, Army, play nice!

In closing, and despite nugget #9, thanks to the military, honored today during the game ... and here's to another early game next week, this time in conference play against the Hoosiers!

THE AFOREMENTIONED 1922 SEASON:
http://www.sports-reference.com/cfb/schools/penn-state/1922-schedule.html

KEEP YOUR SIGNALS CONCERTED PLEASE:
http://www.footballoutsiders.com/extra-points/2012/officiating-disconcerting-signals

ONE OF MANY GROUPS AFFILIATED WITH TODAY'S ACTIVITIES:
http://www.backtolifecampaign.org/