1.16.2016

But not a minute sooner

Kyle Long says Bears will be in playoffs next year

 

I tried to ignore this, but in the end I couldn't


Our heart goes out

Stock Prices Sink in a Rising Ocean of Oil - The New York Times

"The oil glut — the unsold crude that is piling up around the world — is a quandary and a source of investor anxiety…"

I'm fine with oatmeal

Really, I like the stuff. I make it with cinnamon and maybe some berries or a good glop of yogurt on top. But it’s just not the right thing for a dark, cold, rainy January morning like the one we have here, now.

So I was setting up to make eggs and sausage when I had this thought: What about a nice peanut butter and banana sandwich?

Political donors don't support candidates; political donors support themselves

Republicans now see a Trump-Cruz race, with time for a shift running out - The Washington Post

"Republican donors, who had long assumed that the outsider candidates would self-destruct and that voters would rally around someone such as former Florida governor Jeb Bush, are suddenly adjusting their thinking and strategies."

1.15.2016

Imagine our dismay

Sorry, Vegetarians: There’s a Cauliflower Shortage - The Daily Beast

"In late December the Produce Alliance, a manager of 50 specialty distributors, rated the level of cauliflower, which usually ranges from high to low, an 'ACT OF GOD.'"

Actually we kind of like cauliflower, and it’s also good4U. But it’s not like we’re going to starve without it. We have plenty of potato chips and other stuff.

News we don't care about at all

Caitlyn Jenner is mad at Ricky Gervais.

A good Samaritan returning a $3K Chanel bag is cited as an example of “real New York values."

 Sean Penn is sad nobody cares about his article in Rolling Stone (possibly Rolling Stone is too).

GOP debate was “rollicking."

Looks to me like Jeb!'s lost his !

Did Jeb look last night like a guy who’d wandered into a buzz saw or what? Loath as I am to see another Bush (or Clinton) in the White House (these are the only two people in the entire country who can do that job?) I still have to think Jeb is the most decent man in the Republican race. Granted, it’s a pretty low bar. But still. His father is a decent man, I think, not that I agreed with him on much. And I don’t even want to think about the other one.

Meanwhile Bush has landed Lindsey Graham’s endorsement, so there’s that.

1.14.2016

Whence comes this strange obsession with political candidates making sense?

Hey, Ted Cruz, diss New York and you diss the land of winners | New York Post

"New York’s taxes may be high, but it’s not a net taker from the federal till. On the contrary, it’s one of the biggest net subsidizers — while Cruz’s state, Texas, gets back more from the federal government than it sends to it in taxes."

Who are these guys anyway?

Have you seen the Ted Cruz / Duck Dynasty campaign ad? | RedState

Apparently this is joyful news. 

1.13.2016

But what about Saturn?

Why Curing Cancer Is Not a ‘Moonshot’ | TIME

"Here are some things that have been compared to moonshots: Google Books, nuclear fusion, Google Glass, artificial brains, drone delivery, getting from New York to London in one hour, a really big home run.

Here are some things that actually are moonshots: going to the moon."

Also brushing your teeth

Oregon State: 'Bias' In Starbucks Orders | The Daily Caller

"Michele Ribeiro, Oregon State’s interim mental health promotion director, explained that going to Starbucks and purchasing coffee involves implicit bias and relates to white cops shooting black people 'because it is a common, everyday thing people do.'"

Who needs the Comedy Channel when we have Republicans?

Ann Coulter: Deport Nikki Haley | TheHill

 

The revolution in Oregon is over…

Oregon Occupiers to Announce Exit Plan - The Daily Beast

…and it’s a good thing, Apparently the rebels were running critically short of body wash and French vanilla creamer, not to mention boxer shorts—had the makings of a real tragedy. (In fact it almost was.)

Bomb the whales

Australia: Bombs Best for Beached Whales - The Daily Beast

"The skull on a whale is quite thick and it’s virtually impossible to shoot it with a high-powered rifle…"

Get nagged about your carrots (you're welcome)

Admit it, you didn’t know this about baby carrots - The Washington Post

There is good news today and it is…

…I don’t believe in wind chill. If I did it’d be pretty nippy out there (I spent the morning doing errands and laundry); it’s blowing so hard there is, I’m told, an Advisory. (I don’t believe in advisories much either. I might if I were driving a boat or a truck or even a car but I’m not, I’m just walking around, so who cares?)

Everybody knows that in the winter, the wind feels cold. Wear a hat.

Otherwise, it’s a perfectly pleasant January-in-New-England day, 25-ish and cheerfully sunny.

Everywhere you look, pesky kids

Wisc. HS athlete suspended for tweet protesting chant policy - NY Daily News

"Too often in recent years with the rise of social media, student-athletes and students have developed a misplaced idea that they can say whatever they want wherever they want and get away with it."

There must be easier ways to save a buck

Not his lucky day - Texan falls in hole on way to buy lottery ticket | Reuters

"Officers were able to climb into the hole and give the man aid before pulling him to the surface, police said."

1.12.2016

the angst in Beantown

Dan Shaughnessy: Things haven’t fallen into place for the Patriots - The Boston Globe

"It feels different this year. The Patriots have dutifully signed up for the playoffs with their usual first-round bye and second-round home game (thank you, Buffalo, Miami, and New York), but this year it feels that in order to go to the Super Bowl, they are actually going to have to (gulp) . . . earn it. Imagine."

Did PETA want to monkey around with monkey's money?

Monkey cannot own copyright to 'selfie,' U.S. judge says | Reuters

"'Although we are disappointed, we are celebrating the fact that this is a historic case,' he said. 'For the first time we are arguing that an animal can own property, rather than merely being a piece of property himself. [Sic—shouldn’t that be ’theirself’?]'"

Oh, Right. 

"PETA argued he [the monkey of the second part] should be declared owner of the photos and receive damages for copyright infringement that would be used for habitat preservation."

[Italics mine.]

There'll always be an England

The shining: UK commuters told trains delayed by sunlight | Miami Herald

"Past culprits have included 'leaves on the line' and 'the wrong type of snow.'"

1.11.2016

Hint: Imagine the biggest smoothie in the world

Where Does Your Food Go When It's Confiscated at the Airport?

 

So, if they test another bomb we'll attack ourselves?

U.S. flies B-52 over South Korea after North's nuclear test | Reuters

"The United States deployed a B-52 bomber on a low-level flight over its ally South Korea on Sunday, a show of force following North Korea's nuclear test last week."

I’m not quite comprehending the symbolism here. 

But who needs four downs anyway?

Why Alabama Is Terrible On Third Down | FiveThirtyEight

"Did you notice the team going 1-12 on third down while it was dismantling Georgia 38-10 earlier this season? Or 4-12 while squeezing the life out of Michigan State in the semifinals?"

Eating potato chips makes you good at math (or maybe not)

You Can’t Trust What You Read About Nutrition | FiveThirtyEight

 

Terrorists in fur

Opinion: Squirrels are bigger threat than hackers to US power grid - CSMonitor.com

"Yes, squirrels and other animals cause hundreds of power outages every year and yet the only confirmed infrastructure cyberattack that has resulted in physical damage that is publicly known is Stuxnet."

Hawks get as hot as possible in Minneapolis (not very)

With Ball’s Lace Facing Wrong Way, Seahawks Win by a Thread - The New York Times

"Perhaps only in Minnesota would people go to a hockey rink to get warm."

1.10.2016

I'm going to see if I can do this (I'm not sure)

I don't remember the last time I stayed indoors all day. And it's warm today—January 10 in New England and we might reach 50º. But it's raining. Still this side of an al-out downpour, but pretty wet nonetheless. And I have no real reason to go out in it, so why?

Maybe I'll just stay right here. Or see if I can.