"I do not understand. Explain yourself!" he commanded.
In my short time living "in the future", I had been prepped for this.
"I am looking to reunite with my long lost family who sold me as a baby to child-traders of a European customer visiting from new Canada back in the day when we all lived in Chitown."
Captain Sandy AND my IntransiGent friends had told me that referencing a past in Chicago would all but guarantee me that I could get through any questioning that I would face at the border, because that city had been through so much.
Epic stories about epic locations provided epic cover -- or so they had assured me.
"I just want to learn the story of my past," I stated, with the puppiest of puppy dog eyes I could muster.
It appeared that just one gentleman stood between me and my entry to East America via the port of Old Orleans. If I could only convince him that the papers with which I had been provided were sufficient, I would be an accepted immigrant in a 2084 world.
Clearly way too much authority had been entrusted to one human.
"Not all the stories have happy endings," he said, with a sadness I wasn't expecting from he who passed as a border agent in that future world.
"I'm sorry?", I said.
He didn't specifically reply. "I'm going to stamp your papers. But I want you to know that I can't promise you that what you'll find will be of comfort to you."
I nodded my head My mentors had clearly communicated that, above all else, I was NOT to engage. My problems of being an illegal immigrant some sixty plus years after an era in which I once belonged were mine to bear.
The night about which I am sharing was all about me getting access to then new world in which I found myself. And I was successful.. As to what came next, I'll have to share that with you on the last day of the month next, as that is the only window of time in which I can communicate.
Until then, I remain Troy in 2084 -- now known as Ilion -- as brought to the future by t1a7n72.lif (my SQ, IQ and EQ files uploaded to the Vitalnet) communicating with you through the use of Troy in 2018's social media accounts.
Talk to you soon!
Wednesday, January 31, 2018
Random Wordplay for Wednesday 1/31/18
Used in a sentence: "Me and mine were *almost* gentrified, but I am pleased to report that we'll be staying in place until at least the end of this decade."
You know "gentrified"? It's that thing where your 'hood starts changing ... and you suddenly notice more private coffee shops and craft breweries and artisanal things all suddenly within walking distance? And all the homes where the poor Haitians live get sold ... and rehabbed ... and "flipped". And then when your lease is up, your landlord announces a 45% increase?
The good news -- that 45% increase apparently *can* be negotiated down to only 40% ... and, in an even better outcome, the landlord is actually amenable to a TWO year lease instead of just ONE (despite the rapidly changing complexion of the 'hood) ... which is all the long way to say that we will be able to stay here at the same address until 2020 (at an admittedly somewhat higher cost [damn you Zillow!], but there's a new refrigerator promised as part of the deal).
Between now and 2020, though, I'll be looking for the one true sign that the jig is up, as taught to me by my good friend Adam M back in Chicago -- once the streetlamps change and get all cutesy, the upper middle class takeover will truly begin and us poor folk will have to leave. Until then ... I am happy to now announce that you can send your holiday cards to the same address for Christmases 2018 AND 2019!
TO BE CLEAR ... IN FLORIDA, IT'S IN FAVOR OF THE LAND BARONS:
https://www.sapling.com/7879461/rent-increase-laws-florida
WHAT GENTRIFICATION WAS LIKE BACK IN CHICAGO:
https://chicagotonight.wttw.com/2018/01/09/how-gentrification-takes-shape-across-chicago-neighborhoods
WHAT GENTRIFICATION MEANS HERE IN THE SOFLO:
https://www.theroot.com/color-of-climate-is-climate-change-gentrifying-miami-s-1797516942
Monday, January 29, 2018
Random Memorial for Monday 1/29/18
ALSO gone but not forgotten: Ingvar Kamprad -- the founder of Ikea.
Those two statements are actually connected because, upon learning of his passing, my mind immediately started to think about making an inappropriate comment about whether his family would be able to put the Ikea-branded coffin together in time for the service. And then, when I went looking for an image to accompany tonight's post, I found out that there was already a contingent of assholes like me willing to mock a man whose body wasn't even cold yet.
Ingvar, who ended up teaching me that I am not alone in my impishness (even though I should have been nicer to him as he just treated me to a complimentary birthday meal of swedish meatballs), you will be mocked -- then missed.
FOR INGVAR:
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-42851668
FOR EVERYONE ELSE LIKE ME WHO HAS NO MANNERS:
http://www.ebaumsworld.com/articles/ikea-founder-gets-roasted-by-the-internet-after-his-death-at-age-91/85567308/
AS PENANCE FOR THIS POST, HERE ARE ACTUAL COFFIN ALTERNATIVES:
https://www.comparethecoffin.com/content/bamboo-coffin
Sunday, January 28, 2018
Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 1/28/18
Kids in handcuffs.
Specifically, the son of Mercy Alvarez, who was led away from school in handcuffs just this past week, after being caught playing with his food in the cafeteria*. It's getting a lot of press, and, despite not personally having any children in school to be handcuffed, it did make me wonder what I really thought about the whole thing.
Did it matter that the boy in question was 7 years old in first grade? After all, a 7 year old playing with his food sounds like a 7 year old being a 7 year old, no?
Did it matter that the "playing with his food" wasn't actually the offense that got him into handcuff territory? And that the reason for the asterisk above is because (*) after being told to stop doing whatever he was doing with his food, he started to attack his teacher ... and then he didn't stop attacking her even after he was restrained. (The teacher says she's pressing charges ...) So now *some* kind of higher level of response sounds more warranted.
Did it matter that this was the second "tantrum" the kid had in school in three months? Which only makes me feel like I can't really make an armchair quarterback child-discipline call without knowing what happened the last time there was such an outburst.
Did it matter that the school took things a step further and used the Baker Act (the law for how to forcibly put people into psychiatric care without involving family members) in order to send the child for a psychiatric evaluation after the incident? That seems a bit more drastic.
Did it matter that one of the theories is that the boy is "acting out" due to excessive bullying? 'Cause, let's face it -- kids can be downright cruel. And it's not always as obvious as a seven year old putting a beatdown on the teacher.
In the end, the one thing I know for sure is that there is little that I know for sure. Does "kids being put in handcuffs" sound like something extreme? Yes. Might there be extreme circumstances calling for some kind of escalated response? Yes. What was the right thing to do for this wrong situation? I just don't know. All I *can* say is ... here's hoping all parties take the appropriate action to recover from this situation and that *everyone* gets the unfettered assistance that they need.
THE STORY OF THE BOY IN HANDCUFFS:
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article197039799.html
IN KENTUCKY, THIS KIND OF THING ISN'T ALLOWED:
https://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/handcuffs-little-kids-unconstitutional_us_59e127fce4b0a52aca1809ad
ON BAKER ACT-ING CHILDREN:
https://flaglerlive.com/64617/baker-act-children/
Saturday, January 27, 2018
Random Soapbox for Saturday 1/27/18
... as I've said previously, I am very worried about our future because I fear we have all gone soft.
Exhibit B? (I already presented Exhibit A back in 2013 in the post linked below/to follow). Dominos now offers a little something something called "Carryout Insurance" -- just in case anything goes horribly wrong between the time you pick your pizza up at their location and the time you arrive at your destination to start chowing down. Should you find yourself in that situation, you simply return to the store (within two hours of purchase) for a replacement.
Back in my day, if you dropped the pizza, you picked it up, brushed it off and you ate it -- 'cause five second rule. And you know what? If you happened to pick up a little dirt as an unexpected extra topping, you actually were better off ingesting it because it built up your immune system so you weren't allergic to every damn thing you might run across in the world.
Lookit, you generation of whiners and softies and victims (note: actual victims who have been silenced by the patriarchal society are excluded from this group) -- I can all but assure you that you will have to face a lot more challenging problems in this f'd up modern life than a dropped pizza. If you think that you are owed restitution for your own pizza-klutziness, then you are a part of the problem and not a part of the solution.
Or, said another way -- if YOU drop your damn pizza, YOU better m-f'in DEAL with it!
IT'S A REAL THING YO:
http://creativity-online.com/work/dominos-timber/53317
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE MAKE YOUR KIDS A TOUCH LESS SOFT!:
https://www.cnn.com/2015/10/14/health/grit-teaching-resilience-children-parenting/index.html
THE LAST TIME ALL Y'ALL DISAPPOINTED ME:
https://capcognition.blogspot.com/2013/12/random-soapbox-for-saturday-121413.html
Thursday, January 25, 2018
Random Taste for Thursday 1/25/18
Here we go again for the 3rd year ... a brand new set of tastes for 2018 ...
here's the THIRD of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA
(coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!
Establishment: Giardino Gourmet Salads
Location: (new to) Ft Lauderdale
Website: http://www.giardinosalads.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/giardinonorthftl/
TroyScore: 42 out of 50 -- aka 84, a B
THE FULL REVIEW (AND ALL THE PHOTOS) CAN BE FOUND HERE:
Wednesday, January 24, 2018
Random Wordplay for Wednesday 1/24/18
Used in a sentence: "It's time for that thing I do where I occasionally update my last will and testament via social media ['cause that gives me so many more witnesses to my final wishes] which I do being of mostly sound mind & rapidly aging body."
Seeing as how this might be the first time I'm officially memorializing this on the blog as opposed to just a random FB status update, I should probably summarize the decisions I've made so far and include the one I've just added. To whit:
1.) Please cremate me. But one of all y'all needs to slip some bacon into my pocket (or wrap me in it if the guy in control of the oven permits it), so that I take that smell with me into whatever comes next.
2.) Please be sure to sprinkle my ashes in the bodies of water adjacent to where I lived my life (that's the crick in Adamsville, the Quittie in Lebanon/Annville, the Memorial Lake at Ft Indiantown Gap, the Rhine in Koln, the Susquehanna River in Harrisburg, Lake Michigan beaches in Chicago and the Atlantic Ocean here in the FTL). Important note: if I die by drowning, then do NOT sprinkle my ashes in these bodies of water as that seems exceptionally cruel.
3.) And tonight's update: please play Glen Phillips' "Grief and Praise" at my memorial service (or, you know, whenever you think of me fondly). To see why I chose this particular song as my dirge, here are the full lyrics to my designated funereal song:
Oh you sisters encircled, you children of mine
You humble my heart and sharpen my mind
Though we're scattered and wearied and change is upon us
We are bound 'til the end, still a family I promise
Though all that you love will be taken some day
By the angel of death or the servants of change
In a floodwater tide without rancor or rage
Sing loud while you're able in grief and in praise
For so many years we swam into the tide
And we would not abandon, heroic and kind
Shared our sweat and our shelter, our bodies and blood
Godspeed and good fortune, I will miss you my love
For all you hold dear will be taken some day
By the angel of death or the servants of change
In a floodwater tide without rancor or rage
So sing loud while you're able in grief and in praise
Now we meet at well of sorrow
Dug down to the heart of the earth
Where it's joined at its source to the spring of hope
Drink deep while you can and give thanks for your thirst
For all that you love will be taken some day
By the angel of death or the servants of change
In a floodwater tide without rancor or rage
So sing loud while you're able in grief and in praise
Sing loud while you're able
In grief and in praise
[NOTE: I'm not tryin' to die any time soon. I'm-a just hedging' my bets in case my first heart attack happens when no one else is around (a risk of working from home ...)]
WHEN GLEN NAILS IT, HE NAILS IT::
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i1mosSw4Hh4
Monday, January 22, 2018
Random Memorial for Monday 1/22/18
Just to confirm, I am not showing this photo to protest how wac (sp?) crack is ... nor am I (necessarily) doing something inappropriate on the almost sixth anniversary of her last bath ... I'm just continuing the ongoing series where I'm throwing out the cassettes from the late 80's and early 90's that are duplicated as CDs in the master massive music collection.
As for the tune to feature, I'll skip over all the ballads to select the most up tempo song on the album (I mean cassette ... I mean CD) -- the one that *was* released but that stopped the record of consecutive #1s at seven since it didn't get that high on the charts -- the one that a little boy in high school who was super close to finally running away from home heard and though that Ms. Houston might have been talking to him:
Even though you feel abandoned and alone
Child, you ain't the first to experience the hurt
So don't panic when you hit the danger zone
When you're feeling down and out
And you've got troubles on you mind
Love will save the day
When you're feeling full of doubt
And fear has got you in a bind
Love will save the day
When your worlds falling apart
All you have to do is say a prayer
And love will save the day
There's an answer in your heart
So let your light shine on my dear
And love will save the day
SPOILER ALERT ... LOVE *DID* SAVE THE DAY:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfk-JIwSlRM
Sunday, January 21, 2018
Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 1/21/18
The government shutdown.
If Stephen Sondheim taught me nothing else via 'Last Midnight' from 'Into the Woods', it's that:
"Of course what really matters
Is the blame
Somebody to blame
Fine, if that's the thing you enjoy
Placing the blame
If that's the aim
Give me the blame-"
And luckily the current President has an already established well documented position as to whom should accept the blame for government shutdowns, so that case is closed ... that issue is decided ... that blame is placed -- by official Presidential Trump-inion.
(Note: the danger when you run your mouth all the time about things you don't really understand is that they become a matter of record. And the google search is pretty damn powerful. Let that be a warning to all y'all ... me included.)
Here's hoping real leaders step up to fill in the void where leadership is lacking ...
IT'S THE LAST MIDNIGHT ...:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aasECsxrSzQ
HOW (IF?) THIS SHUTDOWN AFFECTS YOU:
http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/20/politics/what-next-government-shutdown/index.html
FOLLOW UPDATES ON THE DRAMA AT THIS LINK:
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/government-shutdown-senate-vote-to-end-shutdown-government-reopen-latest-news-live-updates-2018-01-22-watch-online-stream/
Saturday, January 20, 2018
Random Soapbox for Saturday 1/20/18
... in the modified words of none other than Marie Antoinette: LET THEM EAT TIDE PODS!
All I'm saying is that sometimes the herd needs to be culled. And that some things shouldn't have to be said. And that if we lose a few folks to the Tide Pod eating craze, then maybe ... just maybe ... we can consider it a blessing that we got them removed from the gene pool before they had a chance to procreate.
Also -- don't yell at me how I don't understand the tremendous influence of peer pressure. After all, I'm now old enough to get away with posing the time honored question "and if your friend told you jump off the roof, would you?" very convincingly, even if I have to update it for the teenie-boppers (or millennial-boppers?) to say "and if your friend told you to chow down on a delicious mix of Alcohol Ethoxylate, Alkyl Ethoxy Sulfate, Alkyl Sulfate, Amine Oxide, Citric Acid, Cyclodextrin, Enzymes, Ethanol,.Hydrogen Peroxide, Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonate, Percarbonate, Perfumes, Polyethylene Glycols, Polyethylene Oxide, Polyoxyethylene, Polymers and Polyvinyl Alcohol, would you?"
My apologies in advance to any of you older folks who might have raised Pod-eating children -- I can only hope that you followed "Little House on the Prairie" rules (also known as "the Pope won't let my husband wear a condom" rules) and that you ended up with a few more kids than you needed knowing that not all of them were going to make it.
[Note: I reserve the right to remove this post if, on the last Wednesday of the month when I feature a unique bacon dish, I discover that bacon wrapped tide pods are actually delicious.]
CULLING IS GOOD FOR THE HERD:
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2010/oct/25/deer-culling-environment-herd-sustainability
FROM WHENCE THE LIST OF INGREDIENTS CAME:
https://tide.com/en-us/about-tide/innovation/detergent-ingredients
YOU *CAN* DRINK THIS DRINK THOUGH:
https://www.supercall.com/news/tide-pod-shots
Friday, January 19, 2018
Random Flashback for Friday 1/19/18
To that point, here's my biological mother (who passed a few years ago) holding on to the last of her grandchildren to arrive (Kristin B), as captured in late January/early February of 1988. I know this for sure because the back of the photo says "Grandma Drey and Kristin 2 1/2 months", and since Kristin was a Thanksgiving(ish) baby, math confirms it. (Plus, it's in the very very front of my 1988 photo album, so there's that ...)
Putting all the pieces together, that also means that my mom Mary made the trip from way out west (Montana I do believe) in to the suburbs of St. Louis (where my sister and her brood were living at the time). I too would one day make a trip to St Louis ... but not until 2004 -- so you'll have to wait until 2024 to see that pic in this series (assuming the interwebs are still free and all on that future date ['cause net neutrality]).
Thursday, January 18, 2018
Random Taste for Thursday 1/18/18
Here we go again for the 3rd year ... a brand new set of tastes for 2018 ...
here's the SECOND of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA
(coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!
Establishment: Stone Crab & Seafood Festival
Location: Ft Lauderdale
Website: https://www.goriverwalk.com/greater-fort-lauderdale-events/stone-crab-seafood-festival
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/594444477345974/?active_tab=discussion
TroyScore: 33 out of 50 -- aka 66, a D
THE FULL REVIEW (AND ALL THE PHOTOS) CAN BE FOUND HERE:
Wednesday, January 17, 2018
Random Wordplay for Wednesday 1/17/18
Used in a sentence: "In case you didn't go to school in these modern times, let me introduce you to something the kiddies are apparently learning: the CRAAP model for evaluating your sources."
When *I* was young (and walked uphill to school BOTH ways, barefoot and pregnant), we learned about Strunk and White's 'Elements of Style' in high school ... and about various citation styles in college.
Modern life being what modern life is, apparently the young folk need to learn about how to approach the interwebs in a scholarly manner, and so the CRAAP model was created. With a focus on making sure that which you find in a google search has "Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy and Purpose", the analysis provides a rubrik for kids nowadays to have a way to be extra careful about referencing just any old thing they find on the world wide web.
To that end, and in hopes that fewer of my Facebook connections might end up as Russian pawns, I encourage all y'all to consider CRAAPing yourself next time BEFORE you post/repost/share/comment/etc.
THIS STORY WAS FROM NINE YEARS AGO, SO IT'S 58 NOW!:
https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=103140512
THAT WHICH I LEARNED IN COLLEGE:
https://ctl.yale.edu/writing/using-sources/why-are-there-different-citation-styles
HEY -- YOU! -- CUT THE CRAAP!:
http://researchguides.ben.edu/c.php?g=261612&p=2441794
Monday, January 15, 2018
Random Memorial for Monday 1/15/18
OR maybe that's Martin -- of Christopher, George and Martin, seeing as how they are the only three people for whom national holidays are named in the US.
OR maybe that's Martin -- of Michael, Martin and Colin, as depicted on the latest cover of 'The New Yorker' done by an artist who feels like kneeling at sports events would be exactly what the 89 year old MLK, JR would be doing nowadays -- if he hadn't been cut down by hatred long ago that is.
In a country where the promise of a "post-racial" society turned out to be "fake news" because the nation instead went all MARA (Make America Racist Again) ... you are most surely missed.
CAN YOU TELL ME WHERE HE'S GONE?:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZfRyWPZAII
THE QUOTES YOU *WON'T* SEE ALL OVER THE FACEBOOK TODAY:
http://mashable.com/2016/01/18/martin-luther-king-jr-quotes/#1TbjjNWzySq2
A PRIMER ON THE HISTORY OF MLK DAY:
https://qz.com/1178668/the-contentious-history-of-martin-luther-king-jr-day-in-photos/
Sunday, January 14, 2018
Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 1/14/18
A little something something from the weekend that happened 4700 miles away.
Not since my earliest college days when Billy Joel sang about how "cold war kids were hard to kill under their desks in an air raid drill" has the thought been on our collective minds of what the protocol might be if there's an unexpected flash in the distance OR you know, an "official" notification from your state government that death and destruction is en route ( ... that isn't recanted for a good 38 minutes).
Maybe it's my proximity to Mar-a-Lago that caused the story to resonate with me ('cause, lets face it -- that location has got to be targeted what with that fool spending more time there than the White House). After checking to see how many miles away I had to be to be somewhat safe (good news [I think] -- at 42.4 miles as the google map flies, I'm not likely to be incinerated immediately) ... and after considering whether it might make sense for me to start a petition to get Dennis Rodman to switch coasts to live in *our* 'hood ('cause you know that his little chubby Asian bball friend is going to spare 'The Worm' and anyone within his general proximity), the reality of the situation began to sink in.
Luckily for me, I ran across the resource featured in the accompanying image ... made by someone who just so happens to be a celebrity doctor on the islands AND is someone with whom I once worked back when I was a young 'un in Chicago (yeah, I name drop celebrities now). All kidding aside (remember -- we laugh so we don't cry) ... it is something that everyone should watch (right after you view any active shooter training you can locate).
After all, modern living means being as informed as possible in order to give you a slightly higher chance at survival in a world gone mad. Stay informed ... and stay safe!
STAY INFORMED ... AND STAY SAFE:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o00vUG_uKbQ&feature=youtu.be
38 LONG SCARY MINUTES:
https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2018/01/pandemonium-and-rage-in-hawaii/550529/
IN CASE YOU WANT TO MOVE FAR ENOUGH AWAY FROM A TARGET:
https://www.sciencealert.com/watch-how-far-away-would-you-need-to-be-to-survive-a-nuclear-blast
Saturday, January 13, 2018
Random Soapbox for Saturday 1/13/18
[sure enough, man cannot live by rant alone, so in 2018, for once a month {and all through lent and the thanksgiving season), I'll flip the script on Saturdays and rave instead of rant]
... if you haven't found 'Happy!' yet on SyFy, you're missing out.
Although I should probably present a disclaimer right up front -- it's a bit of a twisted mind f**k, so please go into it expecting that end result OR skip it if your normal day to day life already sates your mind's appetite for mindf**kery.
Once you accept the fact that there WILL be an animated child's imaginary friend (voiced by the one and only Patton Oswalt, who replaced giggly Bobby Moynihan after he landed his [since pulled] CBS sitcom), and that you MIGHT see about as much of Christopher Meloni's ass cheeks as you did if you watched 'Oz' and that there IS as much violence in each episode as is contained in the entire Tarantino oeuvre, then there's a (possibly?) sweet (or at least semi-sweet) redemption story unfolding.
In a jaded world where you're likely to think that you've seen EVERYTHING ... I can all but guarantee that you've seen NOTHING like this. But again ... just to be absolutely clear ... this is NOT for the faint of heart! So if your heart's not much for fainting, then come join me and get 'Happy!'
HAPPY! (THE TV SHOW):
http://www.syfy.com/happy
HAPPY! (THE COMIC BOOK ON WHICH IT IS BASED):
https://www.amazon.com/Happy-1-TP-Grant-Morrison/dp/1607066777
HOW PATTON REPLACED BOBBY:
https://www.thewrap.com/patton-oswalt-to-replace-bobby-moynihan-syfy-happy/
Thursday, January 11, 2018
Random Taste for Thursday 1/11/18
Here we go again for the 3rd year ... a brand new set of tastes for 2018 ...
here's the FIRST of FIFTY tastes of FLORIDA
(coming to you on sequential Thursdays. All. Year. Long.)!
Establishment: Chinese Lantern Festival
Location: Lauderhill
Website: https://www.chineselanternfestival.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/events/1406907156054273/
TroyScore: 35 out of 50 -- aka 70, a C
THE FULL REVIEW (AND ALL THE PHOTOS) CAN BE FOUND HERE:
Wednesday, January 10, 2018
Random Wordplay for Wednesday 1/10/18
Used in a sentence: "In hopes of spreading the message that iguanas have infested the SoFlo ecosystem in such a way that they may create environmental havoc, there are some who are trying to convince the locals of the tastiness of the critters who have taken over by referring to them as the chicken of the trees."
Me personally, I'm fond of most creatures, so I still can't quite grasp the extreme danger that these animals from farther south allegedly pose ... but apparently, there are those who think that the infestation is as bad as the one out in the Everglades where pythons are eating everything in sight.
Mind you, we haven't had a frozen one falling from our back yard trees since this time last year, but even if one does, I'm likely to be the kind that wraps a towel around the creature instead of trying to pair it up with bacon for the evening meal.
Or, said another way, I'll take my chicken as my people have always done ... as the egg-laying ones who taste best broasted. Broasted iguana? No thanks ...
IN CASE YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE CHICKEN OF THE TREE REFERENCE:
http://keysweekly.com/42/the-iguana-assassin-goes-after-chicken-of-the-tree/
JUST 'CAUSE THEY ARE FROZEN DOESN'T MEAN YOU HAVE TO EAT THEM:
http://www.cnn.com/2018/01/05/weather/iguana-cold-florida-bomb-cyclone-trnd/index.html
BUT IN CASE YOU DID WANT TO EAT THEM ...:
http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/restaurants/six-ways-to-cook-iguana-6392248
Random Memorial for Monday 1/8/18
Seeing as how this is another entry in the discarded cassettes series (where a musical relic from last century gets thrown away because the exact same item exists as a CD [which, admittedly, is also a last-century-music-delivery-method,.but that's another post for another day]), it's my job to choose just one song from the release to feature.
I was but a sophomore in high school who had never really been in love (I had much bigger issues at that time) .. and yet somehow I knew that when Ms. Whitney sang about how she counted her teardrops and at least a million fell, there would be a day when I would understand that sometimes life hits you hard with those who move on without you. Or maybe ,,, just maybe ... I really liked a huge dramatic chord change in the middle of a song for the dramatic effort ...
THE SMILE THAT USED TO GREET ME BRIGHTENS SOMEONE ELSE'S DAY:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1Y5Ln9PzVw
Sunday, January 7, 2018
Random Scandal Sheet for Sunday 1/7/18
The one year anniversary of the deadly airport attack here in the FTL.
Because the wheels of justice turn slowly, the trial of the shooter won't even be until this upcoming June (unless it's postponed yet again) ... but the occasion still presented itself as a time for reflection.
And because people are people, much of the "reflection" so far has been finger pointing and blame placing, but the hope is that the tragedy will eventually lead to improvements locally when it comes to emergency coordination and to changes to the way airport safety is evaluated at all similarly situated "soft" targets for domestic terrorism such as was perpetrated on that January day a year ago less than 10 miles away from ye olde (new) homestead.
On this day in particular ... our thoughts and prayers go out to the families who have to relive the incident -- those of Shirley Timmons, Olga Woltering, Terry Andres, Micahel Oehme and Mary Louise Amzibel (not pictured above) -- slain that day in yet another act of senseless violence.
THE STORIES OF THOSE FIVE:
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/fort-lauderdale-hollywood-airport-shooting/fl-fort-lauderdale-airport-shooting-victims-20170107-story.html
NEW IDEAS COMING OUT OF THE TRAGEDY:
http://totalsecuritydailyadvisor.blr.com/policies-training/new-ideas-security-improvements-fort-lauderdale-airport-shooting/
REFLECTIONS FROM THE FRONT LINE:
https://www.local10.com/fort-lauderdale-airport-shooting/first-responders-doctor-reflect-on-response-to-fort-lauderdale-airport-shooting-
Saturday, January 6, 2018
Random Soapbox for Saturday 1/6/18
... I *want* to like Fox's 'The Four' ... except that I just don't get the appeal of DJ Khaled and his ilk.
I will be completely honest ... maybe I'm simply too old to appreciate the younger folk ... but I just can't get over the fact that said big boned DJ seems to pronounce every word one syllable at a time like he had some vocal coach who had had just taught him how to say it prior to the broadcast (yo!) -- except he sometimes put a little too much emPHAsis on the wrong syllABle.
Plus I know that the younger generation is big on the artifice of "hype" to make a career out of being famous for doing nothing at all ... but I can tell you when your only contribution to a song is to shout out your own name over and over again ... or to tell people to stand up and/or to raise your hands and/or to make some noise ... I can't quite understand the "artistic" contribution. (And I'm contrarian enough to stay seated silently with my hands down 'cause I trust my own judgment as to when to engage in any of that activity and I don't need no fool to instruct me to do so ...)
And lookit -- I love me a cliche as much as any other -- so if that's all that the "judges" have to offer every time they open their mouths, then ... whatever ... but I kind of wished that the show offered me a way to view it with the judges muted.. Just sayin'!
SO .. THIS GUY HAS BEEN AROUND AWHILE:
http://www.miaminewtimes.com/music/dj-khaled-s-journey-of-success-started-long-before-snapchat-8203155
IF ONLY THEY WOULD ALLOW YOU TO MUTE THE JUDGES:
http://www.thefourmusic.com/
A SCHOLARLY INVESTIGATION INTO THE HYPE MAN:
https://www.vibe.com/featured/hype-man-history-flavor-flav-spliff-star/
Friday, January 5, 2018
Random Flashback for Friday 1/5/18
In other words -- as we do around these e-parts, Friday night flashbacks are for telling the story of my life -- only twenty years after the fact.
In 1998 ('cause for those of you who struggle with math, that's the year when we count backwards by two decades), my bio-moms was visiting her oldest daughter Bonnie in Missouri (Missoura?), who had just added her youngest granddaughter into the mix, and because she was good about these things ... she sent me (in Lebanon at that time) a picture of that set of Midwestern offspring.
And that's all the long way to say that I'm kicking off the look back to 1998 with my nephews and niece Ryan, Tyler and tiny little itty bitty Kristin.
Thursday, January 4, 2018
Random Taste for Thursday 1/4/18
Although, let's be honest right up front -- due to somewhat unpredictable circumstances, the 2017 reviews are currently a few months behind. In order to not always be in a perpetual state of "catching up", the next few weeks will consist of both moving forward with the 2018 edition of presenting new reviews AND providing details about meals eaten but not yet documented on the blogs.
So ... as originally presented a few years ago, here are the rules ... "one NEW place (at which I've never before eaten) each week, with a year end best-of wrap up in Dec 2018".
Here's to, yet again, another 50 establishments for the year ahead! Here's to 2018!
FOLLOW THE OFFICIAL REVIEWS FOR 2018 HERE:
https://50tastesofflorida.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, January 3, 2018
Random Wordplay for Wednesday 1/3/18
Used in a sentence: "Oops -- after checking out the list of resolutions from last year, it looks like I may as well just repeat the vast majority of them this time around ... to whit -- here is I Resolve (the Reprise)."
I resolve to finally do the 2 things on which I actually made NO progress last year: joining twitter and getting back to Days of our Lives.
I resolve to continue doing the 4 things on which I BARELY made any progress: improving my financial health, working through my backlog of periodicals, doing more pushups and cleaning up the front and side yards more regularly.
I resolve to revive the 1 thing on which I was successful: travelling -- although, with an eye toward setting more realistic expectations, the focus on 2018 will be returning to PA this upcoming September.
And, seeing as how it is 2018 so there should probably be 8 items, I will add 1 *new* thing (although truth be told it that might have been on one of those lists from one of the years past) -- I resolve to finally get a handle on the digital photo collection before the internet crashes forever.
Here's to a better rate of success on the reprise ...
LAST YEAR'S LIST:
https://sosaystroy.blogspot.com/2017/01/random-scandal-sheet-for-sunday-1117.html
IF YOU NEED SOME SUGGESTIONS:
http://www.newsweek.com/new-years-resolutions-2018-15-ideas-setting-goals-new-year-763466
IF YOU'RE PART OF THE BACKLASH AGAINST RESOLUTIONS, HERE'S SOME HELP:
https://experiencelife.com/article/resolution-backlash/
Monday, January 1, 2018
Random Memorial for Monday 1/1/18
Lookit -- I love me a list. I love me a countdown. So I really really love me a list that is ALSO a countdown. In other words, here is the EIGHTH (!) annual "best of" list looking back at the SEVENTEEN best things of 2017 (as always, presented in alphabetical order) ...
1.) BEING WOKE AND RESISTING: Just sayin'. I refuse to drink the kool aid -- from *either* kool aid stand. But I also refuse to follow the crowd who can't see that the emperor has no clothes. I embrace independent thought ... and power to the "other" ... and anyone who over-uses labels to dismiss that which they refuse to understand can simply #stfu. By the way -- how many damn times this year did I console myself by blasting P!nk's 'What About Us' to remind myself that there were more who felt the same way.
2.) (C): Who'd have thunk it ... but we're almost at the 20th anniversary mark (stop back to the blog/the Facebook near the end of Sep 2018 for more details). Obligatory disclaimer: that's only assuming the now-gall-bladder-less-one can stay out of the hospital for more than a year at a time in order to truly celebrate.
3.) CASANOVA and OZZIE: Quite simply, they are the best puppies (although at the age of four human years, they probably aren't really puppies any more) ... And they are proof that you don't always plan for who will come into your life at what time ... but that you need to be open to accept those who will give you unconditional love at unexpected moments.
4.) ECLIPSE, 2017 edition: This is not to be confused with the 2024 edition (obviously, since that is still seven years away). Me and mine spirited away to Atlanta (actually, I think we southwested) and drove to the zone of totality to observe the natural phenomenon on the side of the road at an abandoned gas station that seemed like the set of 'The Walking Dead'. Regardless, it was THE most impactful just-under-three-minutes-of-the-year, what with how it proved how small we (and our problems) were in so grand a universe.
5.) IRMA, the HURRICANE: Finally ... I got to experience an honest-to-goodness hurricane (although some would argue that the winds, once they hit the FTL as part of the "dirty quadrant", were more like a serious tropical storm). We still miss all of the greenery we lost in the back yard, but seeing as how our power came back within 36 hours of the storm, that afternoon spent living life "Little House on the Prairie style" (i.e. reading by the light that came through the window) was memorable since we all survived with minimal damage.
6.) JOB CHANGE (yet again): For the third time in seven years, my position with my company was eliminated. But, just like twice (not thrice) before, I was lucky enough to have another role lined up for me into which I could transition. Here's hoping this one sticks for just a little bit longer ...
7.) KITTENS (2for1 RESCUE): No one anticipated that the "family" would grow by two kittens last year. But in the midst of a week long rain storm a few weeks prior to the hurricane, there was a yammering and a yowling out in the back yard that drew our attention. A little stray kitty was spotted in the section of the yard known as "no man's land", but despite our best efforts to get her to come in out of the rain (where "best efforts" equaled pieces of turkey lunch meat), she didn't trust us. Cut to two days later, and the same howling was heard from within the car engine in the front yard. Luckily, that time we were able to grab the abandoned kitten who was making all the noise .. .and, much to our surprise, she had her quiet little brother with her. By year's end, they were an unexpected, unplanned-for part of the family.
8.) QUINT CHERRY CHERRY WHISKEY: Let's be clear -- I haven't given up on my Guinness. But when it comes to being the old man who used to bar crawl but now drinks at home a night or two a week, a Red Stag cherry whiskey with five cherries does the trick. And by "trick", I mean makes a middle aged guy play sappy songs from his CD and cassette collection on the regular.
9.) SAN FRAN 10 YEARS LATER: In 2007, me and mine visited San Fran for the first time with some bowling buddies of ours ... and in 2017, I got to return as part of a "subsidized vacation" that doubled as an entry in the "chasing the Super Bowl" tradition (long story short -- my work held its annual conference in Vegas each year in the week after the Super Bowl, and so with a little careful finagling, something extra special could be arranged as a part of those travels). This trip, ten years after my first visit, I got to see the Golden Gate bridge (and super belated thanks to my relative Suzanne M C, who picked me up at the airport.).
10.) SHANNON D and the VEGAS BOWLING ALLEY: Lookit -- I'm not a-scared of admitting when true emotion takes over. At that work conference of mine, I distinctly remember chatting with my former supervisor Shannon D between frames at the company outing, and I also remember that I had to apologize for the tears flowing freely as we chatted. What she didn't know at the time was that one of my most passionate papers that I wrote for Professor Kearney's Family Law class during my law school years was about how the "system" was too quick to separate siblings caught up in the trappings of the process because so few potential parents could handle multiple adoptions of children from the same family. Shannon, though, accepted that challenge when she grew her family through adoption, and, in retrospect, it was no wonder that I was so emotional when catching up with her -- seeing as how I was in the presence of an angel.
11.) SURPRISE CHER CONCERT: That company meeting in Vegas I just referenced? It just so happened to coincide with the certain premier of a certain classic performer's latest Vegas show.. And it just so happened that I got a call in the middle of the conference from a dear college friend (see #13 below) who let me know that she had two tickets to the opening night of said concert. And that, dear readers, is the short version of the story equivalence to me winning the lottery.
12.) TOAD the wet SPROCKET in the FTL: I spent the 90's in college -- and, yes, just in case you don't know me and my story well enough, I do kind of mean I spent that WHOLE decade at my undergrad. And that's why I thank the guys from TOAD for providing the soundtrack of some of the most formative years of my life. Now that they are touring again, I try not to miss any chance to see them ... and just a few weeks ago -- they were in MY town for a show locally that took me back to some of the best years of my life.
13.) VISITATION: ERIN (M) L: Here's the rule ... when you are in the same town as someone from your past, you HAVE to connect. We call it #forTara, named after a former LVC classmate of ours who embraced that concept ... and who passed unexpectedly shortly after one of her visits. Since then, there's a group of us who honor her memory by making sure that connections are maintained. In 2017, Erin and I connected *twice* -- when she called me up out of the blue with the aforementioned Cher tickets in Feb when I was in Vegas for work ... and again in December when she was in my neck of the woods for a family cruise and we got to "do lunch".
14.) VISITATION: HOLLY and JYM: This is not the first time that Holly has appeared on my year end best lists. Knowing how challenging a year this was for her in her personal life as she suffered a family loss, I will choose to focus on the few days she made it down here ... and to the good times we shared for a few hours that culminated in an evening walk out a pier to enjoy the sunset over the Atlantic Ocean, each of us surrounded by those we loved. I understand why she wants to forget 2017, but I have to selfishly hope that her efforts to remove the year from her memory do NOT include the time she and her husband spent visiting with me and mine.
15.) VISITATION: TAMSIN: If you count your blessings by enumerating the times you were privileged to spend valuable time with quality individuals (and I do) ... then the tally goes up by one for 2017 due to Tamsin's visit. We got to bask in some local nature ... we got to eat some local vegan food (which was a bit out of my comfort zone) ... and we got to engage in conversations that had simply been put on pause for a decade or two "Good times", as the kids say: "good times"!
16.) VISITATION: WALT and DOLLY and JAC: The ONLY thing that makes the separation from the Indiana family that results from moving across the country even remotely palatable is knowing that family will visit once a year. In 2017, we may have had a slightly less busy itinerary for these visits ... but that just left more room for the games of Yahtzee or Michigan Rummy at the end of the day that we will never be able to recreate. And don't even get me started on how lucky we were to have our nephew Jac K visit not once but TWICE in 2017 to hang out and experience the best that SoFlo has to offer.
17:) YOU: These are trying times, full of division and focus on what separates us instead of what unites us. However, I refuse to let others dictate my world view. Sure -- I have my days where it's hard to bite my tongue and to not try to comment on those that seem so misguided in their misplaced righteousness. But I do my best to rise above all of that ... and I appreciate all of you for being you -- I see your triumphs and your sorrows, your successes and your challenges, your blessedness and your heartache ... and I am thankful to have you in my e-life.
Therefore: 2017, memorialized as you have just been, you will NOT be missed (because I'll always have the memories from the year that was and I'll always be able to refer back to this post to remind me) ...
JUST ONE MORE ... documentary (January 2018)
JUST ONE MORE ... documentary.
Here's the thing -- I started this particular series nearly two years ago (this is the 23rd edition) as a concept to embrace incremental change in order to empower folks (or just me) to stay positive and solution-focused in a day and age where problems often seem insurmountable, control often seems out of reach and apathy often seems to be running rampant
Understandably, that may beg the question as to how exactly watching a fact-based movie might fit into that concept. Here's my take -- doing so is a modern way to update that old adage about "not judging someone until you've walked a mile in his or her shoes". Of course, be cautious. Documentaries may be a presentation of the facts, but in this world of "alternate facts", a healthy suspicion about exactly what agendas the director and editor might be advancing is in order. Hopefully, though, the docs you find are the ones that leave you slightly uncomfortable and moderately challenged as to what you *thought* you always knew to be true.
Over on the Facebook, I'll suggest some specific titles on a weekly basis as I reminder readers of this month's challenge ... but here's hoping you get to open your eyes to the experiences of the "others" not like you for the purpose of adding to the love and understanding that is in short supply in this world. Admittedly, that's a bit of a lofty goal ... but I think we can do it if we manage to expose ourselves to just one more ... documentary.
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