1/3 empty?

Happy Saturday. That ever-welcome Spring warming trend is underway. What is also ‘underway’ is our quickly disappearing stash of coffee (a couple more days). This means that there is a run to Costco in my near future, and here comes the best news: our ‘Big-Mack’ I-471 bridge that caught fire (arson) back in November will be re-opened tomorrow evening – a month early and when in use it’s easily the best route the nearest Costco. Hence, I’m writing with a smile on my face.

What’s in the TV ad below mixes our need for a coffee purchase run along with thoughts of my Frozen 5K race from last Saturday. It’s a great vintage ad.

The Frozen 5K — last Saturday started right at freezing which was both perfect and a nice warm-up from weather earlier in the week. Pleased with the event, however, it did cause me a bit of reflection.

I think many of us perceive ourselves as being somewhat younger than what our calendar age would suggest. And just like we see our kids and grandkids staying at the same age until an event makes us realize that in fact, they’ve ‘jumped’ a decade or so along ‘maturation road’. Looking at the results of the Frozen 5k — I realized that now I had become that wizened old man on the course.

Out of 2,259 entries I came in at number 1,572. Not bad – it looks a little better when parsed out for gender and age grouping, there I was number 10 (males in age bracket 70-99). See, just like politicians say, numbers never lie.

Where I did receive a bit of a shock was that for the first time, I realized I was the oldest entrant.

Without a doubt, looking at my own ‘aging’ process I realized I had advanced 15 to 20 years in under an hour.

Overjoyed – (Little) Stevie Wonder: Last Sunday Marcia and I went to a small gathering (200 or so, which filled the venue to capacity) Jazz performance. The Phil DeGreg trio had Phil  arrange Stevie Wonder’s compositions into an afternoon of wonderful Jazz music. As DeGreg told us; “Wonder’s melodies and harmonies are pure genius.” I learned that Stevie, blind since birth first performed on stage at age 4, and at age 11 signed with a major Motown label under the professional name of Little Stevie Wonder.

For the afternoon the Trio had invited guitarist Brad Myers to play alongside. Myers has played with any number of Jazz greats and over a 20+ year career has been involved in projects as far ranging as Jazz, Funk, to Western Swing.

It was only natural that the afternoon began with a piece we all knew; “You are the Sunshine of My Life”.

I captured a very different piece, “Overjoyed“, which was played as a duet with DeGreg on the piano and Myers on guitar. It’s a little-known number and was one of my favorites of the performance, not a big tempo upbeat number, but oh so melodic and lovely.

A Historian – Now that our newly installed President is performing much like an “Energizer Bunny”, and is quickly securing a likeminded team around him, I thought it proper to give you some quotes from one, John Mearsheimer. Who is Mearsheimer you ask? He’s an internationally recognized political science professor at the University of Chicago. He’s a foremost scholar of international relations and is best known for his theory of  ‘offensive realism‘.

“Are humans fundamentally social animals who strive hard to carve out room for their individuality, or are they individuals who form social contracts?”

“In the anarchic world of international politics, it is better to be Godzilla than Bambi.”

“Bandwagoning is a strategy for the weak.”

“If there had been no decision to move NATO eastward to include Ukraine, Crimea and the Donbass would be part of Ukraine today” then “For Putin, the illegal overthrow of Ukraine’s democratically elected and pro-Russian president —which he rightly labeled a coup— was the final straw… and there would be no war in Ukraine. “

If you’re into Football, be sure to watch the Super Bowl tomorrow evening.

If you’re not, remember that for the very first Super Bowl (1967) held in LA’s Memorial Coliseum, they couldn’t fill the stadium – about 33,000 tickets went unsold, leaving the stadium 1/3 empty. I mention this to prove that you’re not alone.

Life is AMAZING!

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

A few miles east of here along the Ohio River in Point Pleasant stands a small, wooden, 2-room house, the birthplace of our 18th President Ulysses S. Grant (April 27, 1822). But “Ulysses” wasn’t his real first name. Which one of the following was his genuine first name?

1) “Jesse”
2) “Albert”
3) “Thomas”
4) “Halmer”
5) “Hiram”
6) “Josiah”

Importance of Correctness

Happy Saturday. One of the very few mornings where I must carefully judge my coffee intake – one cup max. After that water hydration is all it’ll be. It’s quite early and in an hour and a half the Cyclone’s Foundation annual Frozen 5K will start. At that moment I’ll be the grey-haired fellow somewhere in the mix of a couple of thousand ‘nut-cases’.

Today, four short weeks, and then Spring will have arrived. Whenever I walk by this place, I’ll know it is by the lines formed in front of these two small windows. Yes sirree, Spring is just four short weeks away when our area’s harbinger of Spring comes to life. The St. Bernard Dairy Queen will be open again.

Prayers for the families who lost loved ones in the air tragedy at Reagan Airport outside DC. It’ll be weeks before a definitive answer as to the ‘why’ will be issued. In the meantime, our power elites should reflect on how they too were instrumental in this catastrophe.

This from former House Transportation and Infrastructure Chair Peter DeFazio Democrat, OR:” For years, the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority warned Congress that the region’s airports were at capacity…….The airport said, ‘Don’t do it [add more flights] and they did it….Every senator in particular wants a nonstop flight to and from wherever they live.”

Over the years I’ve used Reagan many times. Each time I parked in the nearby lot I remember walking by a special parking area near the entrance which was marked as being ‘reserved’ for Congressional members. It only makes sense to add more flights whenever possible.

If you felt the President’s DEI comments regarding the FAA inaccurate, look up nomination of Mr. Phillip Washington who then Secretary Pete Buttigieg exclaimed as an “excellent” FAA Admin choice. And as an aside, why are we still using floppy discs on FAA systems?

Auto Centric – Our city is in the throes of implementing an idiotic plan foisted by the former federal Administration. Here we’re already beginning to be ‘introduced’ to early efforts by our city administration implementing what is euphemistically labeled as: “Connected Cities”.

Most of it is nut-case – follow the $$$ — stuff. However, what it has brought to light is just how auto centric we (and our whole nation) are. In and of itself it’s not so much a car issue, it’s how any design is from an auto-first vantage point. As someone who walks a number of miles weekly, I am totally aware of this implementation, and it’s not necessary. If this ‘Connected-City’ stuff were worth anything (which it isn’t), attention to walking and pedaling would be equal. Sidewalks that actually connect. Bike lanes that receive as much attention for snow removal as for cars. Crossings which allow people to comfortably and safely cross. Car driving rules that are really enforced.

The ’Nati is actually comprised of 52 separate communities. About two blocks away is one such community, Saint Bernard – it has its own city council, Mayor, Police/Fire, and Public Schools. This also means that they implement their own rules and enforcement.

As a walker, almost weekly, I must deviate my walking due to some driver’s antics, never with any concern by the driver. Here is what I spotted on a new sign walking in St. Bernard this past week. Thank you!

Senate Hearings – Watching the Senate Hearings, these seem to have devolved into a search for a “gotcha’ event. No rational discussion. No allowance for a proper response. Mainly a method to create a perfect ‘meme’ to aid one’s re-election. Being a bit of a history and political buff I have been around long enough to remember it being different.

Watching the shouting circus this week let me remind you how different it was until recently. John Kerry was nominated as Secretary of Sate under Obama; he was a divisive candidate. The Senate confirmed him with a 93 – 3 vote with just 3 Republicans voting ‘Nay’. It was not a nonsensical display of ineptitude by the various Senators (such as grilling the nominee for the office of Budget and Management – OBM – on his position on abortion) – good grief, the guy is a CPA dealing with budgets!

Weekend Washout – Last evening our Local News showed video of various road puddles, yard floodings, and more, as the quick thaw and super cold-water intake caused water mains to burst. Every year we hear of one here or there, this year there are 89 and counting.

Beyond these 89, are the myriads of breaks in homes and businesses. Not mentioned on TV was last Saturday’s burst water pipe at our condominium building. This occurred in an isolated room where water was gushing from the ceiling and down the wall where all the electric meters are mounted.

I shut off the water for the building (we have no way to isolate it). It was overnight and till early afternoon the next day before the plumbers showed up.

To alleviate the stress of all my affected neighbors I offered to head for Kroger’s to buy each unit a box of adult ‘Depends’. I went on to suggest that we all wear one and assemble in front of the building for a group photo. Marcia was not impressed – my neighbors were never polled on the idea.

The 5K – Last week I asked; “Have you ever seen a six + lane steel bridge burn?” and posted a link to a newscast update on the reconstruction. I drove it one time on the northbound (open) lanes, but it was difficult to really see what all the repair entailed. In a little while I should be able to get a better view of it from the ground – at the same time I best watch out and not trip.

Last evening it was a bit of a “this-or-that” time. To relax and allow for sleep it became a watch Bob Ross (of paint little trees fame) or listen to a couple of numbers by a cute/fun group from Bavaria; Gruppe Lumpamensch – die Allgäuer Mundart Band im Bayrischen Fernsehen. I opted for Gruppe Lumpamensch. It worked, made the right decision and slept like a log.

For anyone missing The Ramblings in their normal ‘long-form’, sorry with this short version. Or as my French cousin Guillaume is fond to say; “Sorry, sooo Sorry!” Now, I’ve got to run (not a pun since I’m walking).

Life is AMAZING!

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Breakfast all over the country offers a cake from a griddle, then filled with a syrup or filling. Depending on where, you’d be ordering the same item with a differing name. Which five (5) of the following are regional alternatives?

1) “flapjack”
2) “scones”
3) “hoe cakes”
4) “paw prints”
5) “hotcake”
6) “pancakes”
7) “Johnycake”

Ol’ Man River

Happy Saturday. It’s wonderful to sit back a bit in a warm room keying these Ramblings. All week long I’ve been hearing; “worst ever” in regards our weather. And yes, it has been cold, bitter cold. And, cold enough where much of the snow, now ice, wouldn’t melt.

But in my lifetime, it’s been worse. This week forty-six years ago, the Ohio River froze over. People walked between Ohio and Kentucky. It didn’t take long before our Mayor, Jerry Springer (yes, THE “Jerry, Jerry” of TV fame) put a halt to the happy ice-walkers. It was pointed out that underneath the ice the river was still flowing; “fall through and it’ll pull and drag you under the ice”. Whoops! Hadn’t thought of that. See, we were all young and foolish once.

Love that little piece of “Ol’ Man River”? It’s from Paul Robeson singing in the musical Show Boat (London 1928)

Before I forget, last week I promised that I’d report on our emergency stash of Aldi’s coffee; Thumbs Up, we’re enjoying even as I’m writing.

Katie Hopkins – an English commentator columnist and professional ‘controversial gadfly’ who has been described as a professional troll by the Huffpost.

Her take on the last-minute indoor inauguration on Monday was that this was the plan all along.

Her Quote: “Word on the street – inauguration pulled indoors to keep the President alive & get him in the White House”.

Personally, I think it was primarily related to the weather.

So now it’s a bright new day, the Don shines.

OK – I had to do some research this past week. Basically, to get access to some missing pages in a book. Okay, no problem, we have a large County-wide Library system. Strike one, they didn’t have a copy.

All right, now it was the Amazon route, strike two. A trip to our largest, we-have-it-all, bookstore. Strike three and I was out.

Or was I? It’d been a long time, but I remembered that something called the Internet Archive; Digital Library. This is a free non-profit entity and over time had amassed the following, all easily accessible:

• 835 billion web pages
• 44 million books and texts
• 15 million audio recordings (including 255,000 live concerts)
• 10.6 million videos (including 2.6 million TV news programs)
• 4.8 million images
• 1 million software programs

The old account still worked and after no more than five minutes I had the pages, snapped a picture of the ones I needed and at about fifteen minutes there was one happy pup!

Breaking News – Just released, this coming May expect another Periodical Brood XIV cicadas. Lucky you if you happen to live in one of the following States: Georgia, Kentucky, Indiana, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, and Ohio.

If we’re lucky it will revive the magical mania caused by the Snappy Tomato Pizza spoof jingle versions going back to the 80s; Snappy Cicada Pizza.

My small number of favorite bands – shrunk a bit this week. Whatever it is, but something in the sound of a specific group just sets it apart. It’s not necessarily an individual musician as much as how it becomes the total package. And the sound (on my list) is all over the place. They are as varied as Tedeschi Trucks, Tuba Skinny, Black Pumas, Grateful Dead, Dave Matthews Band, or St. Paul and the Broken Bones just to get you thinking.

One of my top dozen or so was The Band. This week we lost the last surviving member of The Band, the glue to their sound, Garth Hudson. His parents had him study classical keyboard, although he also played Sax, Accordion, Harmonica – my favorite Hudson work was his work on the Lowrey Organ.

The Band made their name and sound as Bob Dylan’s backup. Hudson informed his parents that he was off traveling with a new rock group. With mom & pop this was an absolute NO! Garth came back and told them that he was heading out with them as their ‘music teacher’ – a first real paying job. He then told his bandmates that each to pay him $10 per week as their ‘teacher’. The rest is history.

Cincinnati Chili – is a nationally recognized, little crazy and wildly popular, chili. A supply of noodles, the (heavily cumin laden) chili, topped with a mound of shredded cheese. Onions, beans, and such can be added. Plus, a side dish of oyster crackers completes a proper serving. The largest of the chili parlors in the area is Skyline Chili (founded in 1949) with 138 locations.

Now it’s a first. Our local, premier, Ice Cream creamery is Graeter’s which has been around since 1870. Now it has developed a one-time only batch – Skyline Chili flavored ice cream complete with oyster crackers. Buy it at Kroger’s grocery stores beginning Monday. Previewed on TV newscasts it was nothing but positivity.

The Bridge – Have you ever seen a six + lane steel bridge burn? Last November Cincinnati’s Daniel Beard Bridge which carries I-471 across the Ohio River to Kentucky did just that. As an aside, Daniel Beard after whom this bridge was named was a Cincinnati native who “founded the Sons of Daniel Boone in 1905, which Beard later merged with the Boy Scouts of America” (Wikipedia).

Watch: Daniel Beard Bridge repair Crews show the repairs being done to Big Mac Bridge | Watch

Yet, as the old song goes, “The Ol’ Man River — He keeps on rollin’ along”

Have a great week, till next Saturday goodbye and good health. Not certain exactly how it’ll work next Saturday since I am participating in the Cincinnati Cyclones Foundation’s annual Frozen 5K – and yes, the route is along Ol’ Man River.

Life is AMAZING!

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Colorado outlaws the sale of auto dealerships to sell cars on Sundays (boats and snowmobiles, etc. are exempt). Which three (3) of the following states also have similar laws?

1) “West Virginia”
2) “Kentucky”
3) “Indiana”
4) “New Mexico”
5) “Delaware”
6) “Louisiana”
7) “New Jersey”

Amen, change is Forthcoming

Happy Saturday, ours is a tame one weather wise. Early next week it’ll do a flip with below 0 temperatures. We’re brave at this end. Yesterday I made note that we were running short on coffee; couple that with a shopping trip to Aldi’s. Not ready for creating a Costco event I purchased coffee at Aldi’s – a pound each of two differing brands. Should I remember, I’ll give you a full report in a week.

OK – The other night I lost too much sleep with worry. I couldn’t remember if I inserted QWERTY or if I mistakenly inserted LTQBITSENUF in a document. Should I worry? Is this something major? Or is just a minor faux pax that should be glossed over? Thanks.

’41 La France at work – Jay leno at the wheel of his 1941 American LaFrance fire engine leaving a trail of Chicken and Ribs as he delivers food to first responders at the Los Angeles fire disaster. Good to see positivity such as his efforts during such a stunning disaster.

When I was – much, much younger I spent way, way too much time with craziness (i.e. Science fiction) material. Stuff such as The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. But before that, in the ‘60s, there was Robert A. Heinlein’s science fiction novel Stranger in a Strange Land. Buried in Heinlein’s book there was a new name introduced, ‘Grok’ meaning, “to know intimately.”

Now it’s 2025 and Elon Musk just introduced via ‘X’ his X Ai Grok vs2 a chatbot. I downloaded it! And I am having a blast. In fact, it’s quickly coming to the point where Marcia is done with anything chatbot related and my enthusing over same; “Don’t Panic.”

Ai Exploration – Part of my exploration and testing of Ai Grok Vs.2 had me ask Grok the following question: “write a 200 word article on the status of Ai generated content”, After about 2 seconds the system answered; here is Grok’s answer – zero input on my part. Pretty cool huh?

“The landscape of AI-generated content has evolved significantly in recent years, transforming how digital content is created and consumed. By 2025, experts estimate that up to 90% of online content could be AI-generated, highlighting a dramatic shift in digital media production. This growth is fueled by advancements in generative AI technologies like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and DALL-E, which can produce everything from text articles to visual art and even music. These tools are not only improving in quality but also becoming more accessible, allowing even non-technical users to create content that was once the domain of skilled professionals…………”

Then I tweaked it a bit: Grok, “write a 100 word lighthearted and funny article on the status of Ai generated content”, and before I could take another sip of coffee, here is what I received:

“In the ever-evolving world of tech, AI-generated content has become the new jester in town. Picture this: robots penning poetry that rhymes “byte” with “might,” and AI chefs creating recipes with a dash of “data” and a pinch of “pixels.” From tweets that sound like they’ve had too much coffee to blogs that seem penned by Shakespeare’s distant, digital cousin, AI content is a wild ride. Sure, you might get a news article where the hero is a glitch, or a love letter that’s all code. But hey, at least it’s keeping us on our toes, laughing all the way!”

I think we’d stunned were we to see just how much content, visual, music, and written, already is being pumped out right now by Ai.

The Big something – As long as I’ve been around, I’ve made note that people with (I think) much more intellectual capacity than me have spent their whole life thinking “Big”. Never certain on the correctness of what seemingly was a naming consensus, the idea was given a name even a kindergartener could visualize – the Big Bang theory.

However, there were still many gaps which were best filled with other “Big” ideas, like really BIG. So now, bolstering the Big Bang, they’ve added the following Biggies: The Big Rip, The Big Freeze, The Quantum Tunnel, The Big Crunch, and The Big Bounce.

Meanwhile, as mentioned earlier, I’m still stuck on Douglas Adams’ The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. Adams convinced me that at the end of the Universe there’ll be a Restaurant. Once there it’d be interesting to reach my hand through that final end ‘curtain’ only to find that Restaurant’s short-order cook shake it. Mind you, this last bit, the handshake, is purely conjecture.

It’s about getting wet – really, really, wet. As a six- or seven-year-old my family was on vacation on the shore. Long story (for another time) but I fell into an underwater trench that was being dug to free a stranded ocean freighter. None of that three-bobs-and-under-you-go business – I went straight down. Apparently, a guy close by scraped me off the bottom and dragged me to shore. All went well.

Back from our vacation adventure my parental units signed me up for swim lessons at a nearby pool. I did learn and have always enjoyed water. However, little to no remembering of my lessons, except for one bit. The pool had a walking bridge across the middle. I remember a wide belt being put around my middle. The belt connected to a line, which went to a ‘fishing’ pole. On that bridge was my instructor full of motivational speeches – back and forth.

Our kids (and others) look at me with one of the “here’s another tale” looks whenever I describe my lessons. This week I ran across this old photo. It was taken in the 1920s so it’s quite a bit prior to my lessons. But it’s the technique people!

And let’s not forget that this weekend, finally, it’s the end of Bidenomics! The end of fiscal maladministration. Now best prepare for the Polar Vortex quickly charging towards us.

Life is AMAZING!

Adeus e boa saúde (Portuguese: Goodbye and good health)

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Which two of these actual town names do have an exclamation (!) mark in the name? By the way, these are the only two towns to end with an ‘!’ in the world, the other 4 named towns do not!

1) “Hamilton!” Ohio
2) “Westward Ho!” England
3) “Humpybong!” Australia
4) “Orgy!” France
5) “Cyców!” Poland
6) “Saint Louis-du-Ha!-Ha!” Quebec, CA

A thing-a-ling kind of Week

Happy Saturday, a cold one. Our Mr. Coffee coffeemaker has just begun its “I’m nearly done growl” (or is it its ‘death rattle’)? The Mr. Coffee is just fine; I really have little need for something such as a $30,000 La Marzocco Strada AV 2 coffee machine by the Australian workshop Specht Design – even a used one.

And also, be assured, in no way shape or form do I consider myself a MAMIC (Middle Aged Man into Coffee). Or should that now be OGIC (Old Geezer into Coffee)? The acronym thing is in reference to the LSSU list of banished acronyms, words, and phrases (below).

Skibidi – and another handful of words and expressions made this year’s banished word list. Period, 100% that is! And the dear people at Lake Superior State University (LSSU) calls this year’s listing a ‘game changer’. And here IYKYK (if you don’t know, you know) are the remaining of the top 10 words/expressions which made this year’s light-hearted LSSU list: Cringe, Era, Dropped, Sorry not sorry, Utilize.

And, even after reading the various definitions, I still have no clue what ‘skibidi’ means.

Quotation: “Love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is done well.” – Vincent van Gogh (1853 – 1890) Dutch Post-Impressionist painter.

This was written by someone who would have been in long term treatment this day and age. Van Gogh who sold only a single painting in his day (he created 2,100). Who gave a painting to his doctor in payment, who in turn gave it to his mother, who in turn used it as a cover for a hole in her chicken coop. Yet today, 99% of the people in the wealthiest nations in the world would be strained to purchase one of van Gogh’s works.

In the White – Axios Crypto recently published its list of both slowest and fastest cities for driving. The way it was calculated was taking rush-hour driving over 6-miles. The ‘Nati made neither list. Having said that, this past week we would have made the top end of the slowest city (New York). Eleven inches of snow coupled with crappy preparedness locked the city and made it so that schools were closed most of the week.

Our useless, current, city council and mayor seem to forget that we are a Northern city, and we do get snow regularly this time of year. Certainly, it’ll be very little for a few years, but then we’ll get whacked. This year we got a monster.

If you remember, a few weeks ago I participated in the Mt. Adams Egg Nog Jog. This week, for 3+ days the residents of Mt. Adams had no (as in 0) snow removal whatsoever. Other than walking in and out they were stuck – the area has no food stores or pharmacies. The city ‘leadership’ had excuses galore; but what was not addressed was the fact that snowstorms earlier during the past century managed to have a successful cleanup responses.

Yesterday afternoon and into last night it was snowing and we were expecting 3 to 5 inches more of the white death – which looks like it was achieved. At least we’re not dealing with 100-mph winds and flames along with similar crappy response (P.S., my family in southern CA are all fine as is their property).

Devotional – Just before the Holidays I picked up a daily devotional which has a short read for each of the days of the year.

As just mentioned and like everyone else, I couldn’t help but hear about the massive fires out West and the disastrous ineptitude preparing and handling these. In the meantime, most of the cars on our street are still buried in snow and miles of side streets have barely seen a plow. Then, and totally unrelated, Adrianne and Tevita had the need for 4 HVAC calls to ensure they had heat; problems, problems!

Yup, I was a good day to grumble.

Yesterday, sometime around lunch, I picked up my devotional and turned to Friday, January 10 and began to read:

“Please help me learn to appreciate difficult days—being stimulated by the difficulties I encounter rather than becoming distressed. As I journey through rough terrain with You. I gain confidence from knowing that together we can handle anything…..”

I think I am back on track.

Batesville, IN – You know this little town. About 45 miles from the ‘Nati, and it’ll be the place your next burial casket comes from? It’s also been the place (for the past 60 years) where the small family-owned Schmidt Bakery makes and sells their Cherry Thing-A-Ling fritters – last year’s ‘Fritter Frenzy’ snapped up over 250,000 of the things during the 5-days per year they’re sold.

These are sold in mere days celebrating Presidents’ Day, and then they disappear for another year. “How popular” you ask? People line up for the 4am day’s opening and will wait for hours! Online ordering starts this Monday – store pickup lasts 5 days beginning February 13.

And I can’t talk Marcia into a short daytrip to Batesville.

For anyone in the Netherlands, next week, make plans to head for the Paradiso Amsterdam. My cousin Karin and her choir (Koninginnenkoor Amsterdam) will entertain with a fun afternoon of music and songs. Next Saturday, January 18 at 3:30pm, is when the party will be in full swing and think, only a mere € 3.-.

Life is AMAZING!

Vaarwel en een goede gezondheid (Dutch for: Goodbye and good health)

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Surprising duties for the U.S. President. Which 3 are true?

1) “approves truck weight limitations”
2) “right to create a personalized Presidential Seal”
3) “serves as head of the Boy Scouts”
4) “arranges seating order for the Press Briefing Room”
5) “selects coin design for Army~Navy game toss”
6) “manages the White House beehive”

Passing through Quantum?

Happy first Saturday of the year. Listening to the weather gurus it’s Armageddon at the doorstep. Our energy and internet providers have already prepped us by Messaging many paragraphs of dire ‘possibilities’, i.e. “warnings”. So, what did Marcia state was an absolute necessity? A haircut!

Now that she’s moved another year further into adulthood it’s also apparent that one gets both older and colder quicker. Hence, as a prep, should the weather types prove accurate, she’s testing out her wearable blanket, a “Comfy”.

Thursday, we celebrated Marcia’s Birthday at the Element eatery. We all gathered for a good time and three hours of good food, fine talk, with live music. Even burned a candle, sang Happy Birthday, and closed out with individual little Cheesecakes.

Just wondering – whether everyone’s head has cleared after the New Year’s celebrations. If still ‘foggy’ or headachy you should have lived in Kiribati (island nation in the central Pacific Ocean and formally the Gilbert Islands and not too far from Tonga) on this day in 1994.

See, that year, Kiribati skipped New Year’s Eve Day altogether. What? It made sense. Turns out the International Date Line cut right through this nation. The net result being that the Eastern islands of the nation were 24 hours off from that west of the Line. The net result was that there were only three days a week to conduct business.

So, a ‘carve-out’ of the Date Line was made to place all of that nation into a single time zone. To accomplish this, voila, the western islands of Line Islands and Phoenix Islands skipped the last day of December 1994. Now, don’t you feel better? If not, pour yourself another coffee.

Public Domain Day – Every January 1st is Public Domain Day, books published in 1929, and movies distributed in 1954 are now free for anyone to share and reuse. My favorites, Tintin and Popeye the Sailor Man, are now such classics, as is the art created by Matisse and Frida Kahlo. In music we find works of ‘Fats’ Waller (“Stormy Weather”) as well as Gershwin’s “Rhapsody in Blue” and an “American in Paris”. Even some older, classic, movies:

U-Haul – trucks are swarming the ‘hood. It’s an end of month thing and we’re used to it. Leases are up and, musical-chair-like, there is a wild dash from one apartment to the new. This means that almost everything U-Haul has available is on the road or in a driveway. We see tiny 8 footers all the way to the largest box trucks available – with a few trailers thrown in for good luck.

What makes it all novel in these parts are the industrial sized, black plastic, trash bags. The trucks are loaded to the gills with bags of clothing, bags of shoes and boots, bags of kitchen items, most everything in a plastic bag. Moving is a grand shuffling of trash bags. Marcia enjoys watching it all to the point that I suggested she begin maintaining a spread sheet on their movements.

Quantum Theory insights – Death in a Timeless World – A number of years ago, at an after-wedding gathering I met up with an old acquaintance, Bryan. As these ‘after-the-event’ things can move along with a certain level of boredom, he and I got caught up quite a discussion. See, Bryan is a (now) retired tenured Professor of Physics, and at that time was heavily into research on Quantum Theory.

Ever since that discussion I perk up whenever things under the rubric of Quantum Theory pop into my arena. With that as backdrop, I’ve been reading on the subject. If interested, type the above heading into Google and a world will open. Anyway, ponder on the quoted couple of paragraphs below; I find them fascinating:

“Our current way of thinking goes on to assume that the world has an objective existence independent of the observer. However, numerous experiments have suggested otherwise. We view life as the activity of carbon and other molecules: we live for a while and then decay into the ground. This belief leads us to accept the concept of death, primarily because we identify ourselves with our physical bodies, which eventually perish. However, biocentrism, a theory proposed by Dr. Robert Lanza, argues that if we incorporate life and consciousness into the equation, many scientific puzzles can be explained, including why the universe appears fine-tuned for life.”

“In a timeless, spaceless world, the idea of death does not hold. In this context, immortality wouldn’t imply a perpetual existence in time but rather an existence outside of time altogether. This idea aligns with recent experiments showing that light particles can communicate instantaneously as if there were no space or time separating them. Such findings suggest that our understanding of time and space-and, by extension, life and death-is deeply flawed.”

https://tinyurl.com/fw8snvma or https://tinyurl.com/preview/2bcyzkb

Quote: So, now that we’ve learned so much more about us, the Universe, and our relationship in it; I think it’s summarized perfectly by Mel Brooks – “Humor is just another defense against the universe.”

Sun – Tied into this little-bitty Quantum Rambling I thought I’d pass along another subject of interest to ‘Moi’. Back in 2018 NASA launched the Parker Solar Probe to explore the Sun’s outer corona. After placing a bunch of heat shielding the probe, adding a couple of swings around Venus to build up speed (430,000 mph), and this past week it successfully touched the sun as it swung by and observed the corona from a ‘mere’ 4-million miles out. I found this stunning first picture – hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

Life is AMAZING!

Meilleurs vœux (French for: wishing you well)

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Which of these animals change their color to white in the wintertime?

1)   “ptarmigans”
2)   “Arctic lemming”
3)   “Peary caribou”
4)   “least weasel”
5)   “Stoat”
6)   “mountain hare”

Old Year? Or New Year Old?

Happy Saturday. Especially when most of this week already feels like it’s been one long, extended, Saturday. Wait a minute, I’m retired and unless I jump on a project, every day feels just like this one.

Today we’ll be touching 60-degrees and with the whole gang coming over to celebrate our belated family Christmas, that warm snap is totally appreciated. Now for some coffee, I just heard Mr. Coffee’s finishing up with its raspy bubbling.

Egg Nog Jog – Yup, last weekend’s Mount Adams annual 5K Egg Nog Jog has become a tradition with me. It’s only several hundred participants – and yes, they do have a costume judging as part of it. With the hills enroute my tracking applications told me that we climbed the equivalent of 14 flights of stairs.

So here is how I ended up. Out of 110 walkers I placed number 53. The chip calculated that I placed number 19 in my gender category. There were two of us over age 80 and I placed 1st in that category with a pace of 16:46. Ok, have I bored everyone enough? I’ll shut up now – but first, let me explain that the ‘real-feel’ temperature when I left home was 18 degrees.

Weather – OK, so I mentioned a chilly temperature that greeted me last weekend. This led me to pay attention to the latest news, “New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) ratified climate alarmist legislation last Thursday that will have the state confiscate billions of dollars from American oil, gas, and coal companies as reparations for bad weather ($75B)”.

And so it goes, the money grab that is. It’s amazing, climate change has been a reality since time immemorial. As a Mr. Laakonen wrote recently; “does the sun control the climate or is it cows this week?”

Also, this past week I came across this from the National Snow and Ice Data Center, University of Colorado Boulder. The picture diagram shows that the Antarctic Sea ice extent is 17% higher today than it was in 1979. So where is the lie, is it the ice or the constant blathering from self-serving ‘climate’ scientists?

Chaos & Mayhem – has purposely been left off the radar. There is always so much here that a weekly update tends to lose its punch. However, let’s finish up the year with a couple of this week’s events. As Marcia always says, “why watch television when I can sit here and be entertained.”

The picture with the cruisers I have no knowledge of other than a youngish lady was given a pair of sparkly bracelets and escorted into the back seat of one of the cruisers. The dump-truck, registered to the City’s Water Works, sat for a while with flashing lights on. Eventually a tow-truck as large as you’ll ever see arrived and picked up the front of the Water Truck as if it were a Little Tikes Cozy Truck.

Eagerly awaiting the arrival – Not of Santa or even St. Nicolas, but of the kids and grandkids. Marcia is busily arranging for the onslaught. I made my staple; Hummus.

Marcia has already done her grocery shopping on line. And what through the front door did my little eyes spy but the delivery guy. Now we’re all set for kids arrival.

Then, this year I went all out. In Michigan, sister-in-law Dia baked her specialty, “Kruitkoek” (Dutch Spice Bread). I was transported back to my childhood and for the rest of the weekend was seen hovering by the kitchen island where her Kruitkoek happened to be. I made an earnest plea for her recipe. So, guess what the rest of the family will be offered this afternoon? Yup, made sure all the required ingredients were assembled, all mixed in correct order and quantity, and two loaves were baked. Feast your eyes on the result!

Also to be introduced is a new ‘table-game’ for so inclined (which usually is everyone except “Oma don’t play games” Marcia). Of course there is a list of older staples such as Scattergories. But this one could be a winner, Wheels vs Doors.

Life is AMAZING!

HAPPY NEW YEAR and the best for 2025 – health, happiness, peace, and love to all.

Robert Burns, Scottish Poet (1759 – 1796) and regarded as the national poet of Scotland. Wrote Auld Lang Syne (“old long since”) i.e., times gone by, in 1788. The singing of old long since at Hogmanay (Scottish; New Year’s Eve Day) is an old Scottish and now world tradition.

In original Scottish: “For auld lang syne, my dear, For auld lang syne. We’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet, For auld lang syne. And surely ye’ll be your pint stowp! And surely I’ll be mine! And we’ll tak a cup o’ kindness yet, For auld lang syne. Chorus. We twa hae run about the braes, And pou’d the gowans fine; But we’ve wander’d ………….”

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

During the holiday period it’s an annual tradition to be barraged with sporting events. No small part of the game offerings is the role of the cheerleader. This weeks Bonus Points will be offered if you can name the four (4) Presidents who were Cheerleaders in their earlier life:

1) “William Howard Taft”
2) “Ronald Wilson Reagan”
3) “Thomas Woodrow Wilson”
4) “George W. Bush”
5) “Franklin D. Roosevelt”
6) “Theodore Roosevelt”
7) “Dwight D. Eisenhower”

A Short Jog and Goodbye Big-Boy

Happy Saturday. In Latin this day is: ‘Bruma’ which is derived from brevima, brevissima (“shortest”) or better yet: it’s the winter solstice as being the shortest day of the year (started at 4:21 AM Eastern time this morning).

However, relating to that period of the year use the word; ‘brumous’ which in the 1850s referred to days made up as being foggy, grey, rainy, cloudy, or murky: i.e. Wintry. And that’s exactly what our week back home in the ‘Nati has been like, brumous. And this definitely calls for a hot mug of coffee.

The Ramblings – will be short since as soon as these are done, I’ll be off to participate in the “Mt. Adams Egg Nog Jog”. This Mount Adams jog is great. A late year, event with a route around and about one of the city’s prettiest hillsides with its live theater, Conservatory, art museum, parks, and Ohio River views.

Last Weekend – was perfect. Perfect except for our GPS generated route which we used to avoid “lake-effect” snows. I never knew that one half of the nation’s traffic lights were situated in the little towns we blew through on the trip.

It was both fun and relaxing to have a few days in Michigan. Great seeing Marcia’s sibs. And a huge thanks to both Dia and Paul for putting up with us.

Also, after a year of refusing to walk with one, Paul handed Marcia a beautiful cane which she’s been using ever since. When she first walked into the room, we were all startled. Marcia was standing ramrod straight. She actually looked ‘statuesque’.

As a bonus, my love for Dutch dishes were catered to the extreme – Ouwe Amsterdamer Kaas, Gehachtballen. Dia, ever the kitchen fiend, baked “kruitkoek (the Dutch version of English Christmas fruitcake – but tastier); and I was given the recipe. This week I busily assembled all the fixings, guess what I’ll be up to later this weekend. Thanks guys!

About five miles before reaching home I managed to capture one of those meaningless highlights that nevertheless, people find quite meaningful – the F150 crossed the 94,000.00-mile mark.

Mentioning Food – I ran across this little video preparing a deviously more involved simple item – the Pancake. Like preparing food? You’ll appreciate this fun video – Pancakes prepared by 12 different chefs:

The Death of Big-Boy – My earliest memories of Cincinnati include Frisch’s Big-Boy restaurants – about 80 of them in the region. Basically, these were a ‘burger joint’ that thought themselves a family restaurant complete with some talked about deserts (especially Pumpkin and Strawberry Pie).

I first met one of my really good friends, Walton Lee, at Frisch’s. In nearby Mariemont was Frisch’s Mainliner drive-through – during the 1960s and ‘70s this place was the teenager’s ‘meat market’ and as such the place where brother George met Sandy. My uncle Harry would celebrate springtime at Frisch’s with fresh Strawberry Pie – exclaiming “extra whipped cream please.” Everyone has a Frisch’s Big Boy story.

But over time things do change. A handful of years ago Frisch’s was sold to a financial holding company. The money ‘squeeze’ had begun. This past month, in small groupings, clusters of Big-Boys closed. This past week it was the commissary which shut its doors. Laid off (days before Christmas) was the man who had prepared their amazing deserts for 40-years without a day off. And yes, around and about, one does hear people talk wistfully about “Big-Boy.

Now some fresh coffee for Marcia when she gets up, and some protein (couple of eggs) for me before heading out. With a ‘feel-like’ temperature of 18F (-7.8C), hardly any wind, and dry, conditions couldn’t be better.

Life is AMAZING!

And a very MERRY CHRISTMAS

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Alexander Graham Bell — the inventor of the telephone — who received a patent for the device on March 7, 1876 suggested that we answer his invention by saying —? One of these is correct.

1) “yes?”
2) “ahoy”
3) “hello”
4) “hi”
5) “greetings”
6) “you alright/good”

“No-one is above the law” (and other meaningless prattle)

After hearing the above harped about for the past four years: no further explanation is necessary.

Now on to better stuff. Happy Saturday morning. Got your coffee made?

You probably missed the fact that in the middle of this week (December 5th) Sinterklaas was busily spreading cheer, and gifts, to the kids in The Netherlands.

But since I brought up The Netherlands I want you to open up the attached YouTube. You absolutely will find it astoundingly informative and mind-blowing. You’ll want to pour an extra coffee and put up your feet, then sit back. Wow!

Were you aware that The Netherlands added enough land to create a brand-new Province – Flevoland? To gain Flevoland’s land, the only ‘war’ they fought was not with soldiers: their ‘troops’ were engineers. Then, have you heard of a Dutch company with the name of ASML? The base model of the machine they make is priced at $100million – and they have a years-long backlog! That Holland is the largest agricultural product producer in Europe. In part done with an area the size of Manhattan under cover and totally technology driven, growing fruits and vegetables far beyond what can be done with earth grown crops.

Is all of that enough of a teaser? Ok, here you go:

The Who – Mid week, 45 years ago, tragedy struck the ‘Nati. At the time it was a common practice to offer “General Admission” tickets – ‘first in’ standing room up front. The Who were going to be playing, and a large crowd had gathered outside Riverfront Coliseum. A final bit of a sound check made people think that the concert had started. The crowd surged! People got crushed! Eleven died!

The event caused a worldwide change in people management at these large events, i.e. no more “General Admission” tickets.

A boondoggle – It seems that our dear leader, Joe Biden, is apparently contemplating extending ‘prospective’ pardons. Folk such as Fauci, first brother James “Jim” Biden, Liz Chaney, Mayorkas, Representatives Schiff and Pelosi could be on such a ‘pardon’ list. This requires to be all hastily planned stuff; implemented prior to Trump getting inaugurated.

As has become the norm with this administration there is a bit of an issue. Although the pardon could be legal, in years past the Supreme Court ruled that the individual to be pardoned must admit to their wrongdoing and apologize for their action. Whoops. Spot the ‘monkey-wrench’ here?

Old Testament brought today – Last Monday I had the privilege of spending an evening with Dr. Jordan Peterson. It was a full house, and his insights were what the Brits would label as, “spot on.”

No cameras or audio possible, so instead, I believe this short piece of Dr. Peterson at Queen’s University will make my point:

Quote: “Of course I’m old, but that doesn’t mean I shouldn’t think young” ~ unknown with initials dp

Flying with Rattan – OK, this is a bit of a deep dive (and I hadn’t planned to post this on Pearl Harbor Day,  the day of the Japanese attack). Shortly after the end of WWII, and shortly after normalcy had set in, a (then) sleek, metal airplane flew into our town – it was a 3 engine Ford Tri-Motor or “Tin Goose”. It was a big deal since the world’s very first engine powered flight occurred just a mere 47-years earlier.

For a fee we could take a short ride above and around our city. My mother was a ‘no-go,’ so little me joined my dad, and we climbed aboard. I have two distinct memories: entering through a small door near the rear of the plane, and then climbing uphill to our seats. Second, the seats were cool looking rattan, something I’d never seen.

Over the years I have mentioned to family and friends these strange seats. They must have made a ‘yuuge’ impression since other than a lot of noise I have virtually no memory of the flight itself.

This week I ran across a photo of the interior exactly as I remember. Point of interest; let me know if you can spot a seatbelt anywhere.

Landing – Just a quick point of interest, SpaceX’s Falcon-9 reaches a flight rate 30 times higher than the Shuttle did, at 1/100th of the cost! Finally, here is the promise of; “in the future we’ll have quick and reuseable space launches”

This coming week Marcia and I will traipse north to Michigan. We’re really excited and looking forward to spending a little time with her sibs. This past week’s weather gave some concern (possible traveling issues), but now it looks perfect. OK, as you can see, Marcia is busily practicing her greeting since it’s been a while.

Hence: Next Saturday there will NOT be the regular Ramblings

Life is AMAZING!

Slán agus beannacht (Irish for: Goodbye and blessings to you all)

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

Here are some antiquated “wintertide” terms from the 16th and 17th centuries that have fallen out of use. Which words are from these times?

1) “algid” – feeling cold
2) “crapulence” – overindulgence at feasts
3) “Ninguid” – area of much snow
4) “apricity” – feeling of sun on face in winter
5) “doniferous” – a time of gift bearing
6) “brumal” – meaning of or belonging in winter

Family Gathering

Happy Saturday morning. Here’s my earnest wish that Thanksgiving was a delightful gathering for everyone. We gathered here yesterday and it was wonderful. Thursday, Marcia stayed at home, and I did a 5k through the city center. For our get together, the Ongoleas with their vast collection of grills did the ‘bird’ (Adrianne ended up using the oven). Marcia did her sought-after baked beans, Cathy deserts and vegetarian protein. See, all bases were covered. And, yes, we live in the mid-west so therefore a green bean casserole did make it to the table. Add to the eats a few sit-in-a-circle games with much laughter – how good can it get?

And this past week really would not be Thanksgiving Week with the cast of WKRP in Cincinnati making it special – for the 46th year since the time everyone started talking about it, Turkey’s Away!

The whole family knows me. Therefore, I guaranteed that no politics would be discussed.

In the meantime, the people who manage the ‘Limber-Lost’ camp a couple of kilometers north of our “Northern Comfort” cabin showed people riding around on snow mobiles. It does prove that Jason and I timed the closing of the cabin perfectly.

What comes around – When Covid 19 first spread I became quite vocal that based on what I knew and what I learned was that there was no way I would subject my body to the primarily untested mRNA-based vaccines by Moderna and Pfizer. I believed we were being hoodwinked and made ‘lab-rats’. So decided that I’d take the older technology vaccine offered by J&J.

At the time all other input was were excluded and censored, Thousands of scientists too had their input censored, similar to what we were being subjected to. This included the idiotic lockdowns.

Now, it’s come full circle. The CDC has been ‘punched in the nose’ and Stanford senior scientist, Professor of Health Policy, Dr. Jay Bhattacharya will head up the N.I.H. under the new administration. I am THRILLED.

5k – Thanksgiving morning our town held its 115th Turkey Trot, both 10k & 5k (I did the 5k). Over 11,000 participants from 46 states and 5 nations joined in the fun. All was made even more enjoyable with an after-race party at the FC Cincinnati soccer Stadium.

Thoroughly pleased I placed 1st in my (geezer) age bracket with a 49.17 time. Bottom line, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.

Monday evening will be special – During my walks I listen to any of number of podcasts. In my top five are discussions/interviews held by a Dr. Jordan Peterson. Peterson is a tenured clinical professor of psychology at the University of Toronto who also conducted research at Harvard University.

Monday, he’ll be in the ‘Nati and I snagged a ticket to the event (in case you wonder, yes, I did ask Marcia to come along and received that “you got to be kidding?” slant-eye look).

“In We Who Wrestle with God, Dr. Peterson guides us through the ancient, foundational stories of the Western world. In riveting detail, he analyzes the Biblical accounts of rebellion, sacrifice, suffering, and triumph that stabilize, inspire, and unite us culturally and psychologically. Adam and Eve and the eternal fall of mankind; the resentful and ultimately murderous war of Cain and Abel; the cataclysmic flood of Noah; the spectacular collapse of the Tower of Babel; Abraham’s terrible adventure; and the epic of Moses and the Israelites. What could such stories possibly mean? What force wrote and assembled them over the long centuries? How did they bring our spirits and the world together, and point us in the same direction?”

I am both enthused and excited.

Quote – “To learn is to die voluntarily and be born again, in great ways and small.” and this “Don’t be a slave to stupid rules.” ~ Jordan Peterson

Closing – Since I started the Rambling with a mention of walking, let me close likewise. Earlier in the week I came upon this scene. I have no idea why the cop was standing by the driver’s window – we can only guess. Maybe he was getting a warning. Maybe he was getting a ticket. Maybe he was being asked for an autograph for being amazingly clever. I should have stopped and asked but didn’t.

This week we lost our neighbor up north, Bob Baxter. Many an evening was spent next to a campfire. Bob spent 30 years as a Forest Ranger and always had some insight to pass along on those evenings. In fact, it was Bob who taught me how to skin a bear (then he donated the hide to an Amish family to serve as a seat cover for their kids on the cold winter buggy rides to school). We all did enjoy a spectacular Bear roast dinner after that event. RIP Bob, it was a good ride I should say, paddle.

Life is AMAZING!

Slán agus beannacht (Irish for: Goodbye and blessings to you all)

Dirk

BONUS POINTS:

The Secret Service uses code names, prominent folk, Presidents, and First Ladies. The following First Lady names are all the correct code names, except for one. Good luck pinpointing that false one.

1) Jackie Kennedy: Lace
2) Edith Wilson: Grandma
3) Mamie Eisenhower: Springtime
4) Lady Bird Johnson: Velvet
5) Pat Nixon: Starlight
6) Betty Ford: Pinafore
7) Eleanor Roosevelt: Rover
8) Hilary Clinton: Evergreen
9) Michelle Obama: Renaissance
10) Melania Trump: Muse