Exeunt 2024

2024 comes to an end.  I am staying in tonight...did have options, but 1) I am tired (not having slept well); 2) I am feeling something of a cold; 3) the weather is meh (very old person, I know), and 4) there are plenty of things to do here -- a pile of documentaries and movies to get through.  I also decided to make some peanut butter cookies for the brother-in-law as my sister invited me over for pork loin tomorrow; I was told not to bring anything but that just will not do!  I am disappointed in myself for not doing more -- reading, watching stuff, chores, etc.  To be sure, I guess I did a lot, but I could have done more... not that I believe in NY resolutions and such, but if I had one, it would be to be more disciplined and achieve more things.  

As it is, I will have read 52 books this year, having finished Rickey tonight.  Quite good; he was an interesting character.  I can see why teams wanted him -- the OBP, the running, the stealing -- but also why they didn't, as he could be...different and difficult.  To be sure, compared to a lot of people, he was... quite fine, but people do concentrate on what a player does not do and seldom on what he does.  My goal was 50, so I am ahead, but... yet another thing on which I could do better.  Or read thinner tomes, though that is sort of cheating.

Demolition of the bathroom began in earnest today; no plumber, but the vanity and sink is gone, the medicine chest is gone (leaving me with a Pittsburgh potty), the shower curtain, the molding... Thursday they will be back with a full crew and they will start on the walls, the shower, the rest.  It is about time, and even though it will be odd having people trucking around, having them move my truck over in the garage to store crap (I should move stuff around to give them more room)...well, there was some palpable excitement at Chateau Mattie as stuff was coming down.  I would hope it is done in three weeks, though I have my doubts.  I mean, I want it done, but I know it will take time.

Bob Lefsetz, the Man Who Was ‘So Mean’ to Taylor Swift - WSJ
I need to get on this guy's list!  More seriously, dare I say he seems curmudgeonly, but...has a point or two?

How Donald Trump transformed mass culture - POLITICO
Um...maybe?  I mean, for one, we saw this the other way under Obama, so some of this is just reversion to the mean, and some of it is just there being a new zeitgeist in the White House, so the GOP side is a bit ascendant.  Given the Electoral College and voting results, there may be something more to this, but color me skeptical that it will last.  I would quote "Ozymandias" here but I think we get the point!

Catching Up

Three days without a post; sort of embarrassing, actually.  Last night I just crashed; I guess I was more tired than I thought.  As for my time in the meantime... some more cleaning and organizing, for one.  The bathroom people will finally start tomorrow (I hope), so I had to empty out the bathroom (should have done this a bit ago), with most going to the trash or the OC pile.  I also decided to move as much furniture in the living room out of the way to minimize breakage, and -- because they called -- to remove the pictures and hanging stuff from the adjoining walls.  I would not say that it took a long time, but with everything -- taking it down, moving, finding a new temporary home -- it was longer than I expected.

Anyways, other things of note...OC duty Saturday, and the count was but 59.  Not sure why, though the main reason was that traditionally we are not open the week between Christmas and New Year's, and this time we were, but very few knew about this.  I think this is correct, and it was fine; people got plenty of stuff, we rotated some stock, had volunteers clean a bit, and generally got stuff ready for next month (when I will spend as little time as possible at the OC).  We also had a family fest Saturday, which was nice; I made a jello the night before (allowing me to clean out the email folder, read the current book, and watch a documentary or two).  It was fun; my sister and Favorite Niece even joined us, surprisingly, so it was an extra-large poker table.

Sunday I did the usual morning routine -- Mass, gym -- and then went to a final Christmas party out in North Ridgeville.  On the way home, I decided to cross off a place on my food list and went to Cozzeria Pizzeria in Elyria -- yes, a bit far, but I was in the area -- and got a seafood pizza and a chicken parm sandwich.  And...it was pretty good!  Good size, lots of seafood on the pizza, not greasy; I mean, I am not a huge pizza guy, but this was worth it.  I think the pizza -- or fatigue, or both -- affected me, because I crashed hard last night.  Of course, here I am now, not able to sleep...

Much has been said about the passing of Jimmy Carter, and I don't think it is unfair to say that while much is being said about his post-presidency, not as much is being said about the total failure of his presidency, which is having effects (and affects) now...  maybe it is politeness, maybe it is liberal bias, or maybe it is selective memory, but I think we cannot separate them...

A Sense of Transition

I guess my day was somewhat productive, albeit not as productive as I would have liked.  Did a couple of minor chores this morning, then off to the OC to help with the Friday deliveries -- we do not have that much meat, but plenty of bread and probably enough produce.  Funny; I am not sure as to the crowd we will have tomorrow -- after the record the first week, things have been more normal (albeit still Bidenomics-related elevated, ahem), so if that holds... it shouldn't be too bad.  And, usually, we are not open between Christmas and New Year's, so... the word might not be out.  On the other hand...people are hurting, everyone else's counts are up, and I suspect that people still want free crap.  I did tell next month's manager that aside from our parish duty, I will not be there the rest of the month, and he laughed.  While things have not been that bad, it has still been...busy.

In the afternoon, I started a seven-layer jello for a family fest and did some more light cleaning.  I got a call from the bathroom contractor -- they start Monday, and among the advice I was given was to take off all the stuff from the adjoining walls, which is actually pretty good advice (as I had not thought of it). I guess this really is it, and I am looking forward to it!  I hope it will be done by the end of the month, and then -- once it is paid off -- we move on to windows.

I also got some progress done on cleaning off the movie list.  I watched a documentary -- "The Silence of Others" -- about the efforts to undo Spain's "Pact of Forgetting" and bring those responsible for murder, torture, etc., to justice.  I can see why it was passed in the 70s, but now... it seems less good.  Also,. we tend to forget that, say, unlike Hitler (who was elected, if you will), Franco took power by a coup and overthrew the democratically elected regime.  Being anti-Communist in the aftermath of WWII helped, ahem, if you get my drift about forgetting, but...it is not exactly a bright spot in the history of US foreign policy.  Later on I opted for some lighter fare and watched "The Arrested Development Documentary," which was humorously reflective; I mean, I liked the show, which probably explains why so few others enjoyed it.

Cutting the Deficit Is Easy—It’s Just Unpopular - WSJ
I don't know; I would think that the surge in interest rates was caused in part by all this debt -- we had to offer notes at higher rates to get people to buy them, and the debt service -- getting larger -- makes it more difficult to spend more in the future.  Certainly there are plenty of people in the US who are seeing this now, and while it may not be politically expedient, I think now is the time where the message just might have a bit more reception...

Israelis See Chance to Remake Middle East in War’s Wake - WSJ
This would be a good thing, but I will believe it when I see it...

Holiday Sales Reveal a Split in Consumer Spending - WSJ
Quite true; I think this explains quite a bit -- the oddities of consumer confidence, our surge in food pantry visits, why the mall was crowded (South Park is in an oasis of affluence, and GOPism, oddly, snark), and why people -- some of them -- are still spending, despite high interest rates.  And with a "new" GOP President...well, happy days are here again!

Vacation time

Dare I say that all three of today's bowl games were entertaining?  Shame BGSU lost, but Toledo defeating a team from a power conference...well, that is good for the MAC, at least.  Not that I had the TV on all the time, but while I was doing stuff here and when I was out and about...  anyways, today was a good day, not as productive as I wanted, but... we expected that.  Finally caught up on J!, went in the attic, got some stuff down for donation (one nice thing about running a food pantry, a ready place to take stuff), got some other things ready for the trash and to give away, watched a brief documentary, off to the gym, to my sister's for leftovers, and then home for some catch-up on work.  I do need to watch more stuff, do more work, and try to clean more of the house, but... I guess I am off from work, so I can do... more work?  Yes!

One bit of good news -- I crossed my 50 book threshold, and am now at 51.  Rah.  50 was Prisoners of the Japanese -- about the POW experience in WWII -- and 51 was When McKinsey Came to Town, about the role (poor!) they have played in all sorts of crises and catastrophes.  In each case, I was all for immediately stringing them up, which may be extreme, but not completely so.  In the meantime, I moved on to 52, the new -- and sadly timely -- biography of Rickey Henderson by Howard Bryant.  I just started, so he is still in Oakland in high school, but it is interesting so far.

Inflation was the cause, not the result, of the ‘hot’ labor market, research shows | CNN Business
Dare I say this is correct -- namely, that as firms had to staff up after the pandemic, they had to hire people, and on top of already higher costs they had to pay more in wages.  And yet...I can't help but think that part of the surge in the labor market was due to the fact that people had to go back to work to cover all of these higher costs -- that, or they went out and got new and better jobs, so people at the bottom at the wage scale saw a boost as they filled those roles.  On the other hand, though, lots of costs were due to material scarcity, and someone have seen that coming.  That they did not is why will we have a President Trump again, and I guess that is...ok?

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Day, at least, comes to an end; last nite I went to my sister's and we had a good time -- some food, presents, and a game.  I used my knowledge of the periodic table to help win "Smart Mouth," which, as you can imagine, drew endless snarkery from my loving family.  But it was good!  Got some books, some music, some slippers, a Caitin Clark T-shirt (less crappy than the usual presents from Favorite Niece), rah.  Yesterday I also decorated the tree -- put some lights on, two boxes of ornaments, the usual fixings -- and of course it looks beautiful.  All Christmas trees are beautiful, of course, but as always, mine is... wonderful.  Does put you in the mood for the holiday.

Of course, it being Christmas Day, I went to Mass -- remembering to park on the legal side, just in case -- and it was quite good.  The church was beautiful, as always -- I went to the choir loft to get the Communion order (8 this year!) and I immediately knew that I had to go back there to get a panorama picture -- wonderfully done.  Mass was fine -- music was just right, as was the homily -- and then it was off to the gym for some pre-visiting workout.  I was surprised (ok, not really) by how many people were there, but it is a good time to go, and I am sure people were like me.  Then it was home for a bit, where I did some room cleaning and organizing in the spare room.  ALL of the piles were put away.  The mess of shoes in the corner were neatly organized, with some of them being culled and will be sent to the OC.  Found some piles of old medical receipts which need to be shredded.  But it looks much neater, you can see the floor, everything is in a spot, and I was impressed.  I intend to do more of this this long weekend!

Then it was off to do some visiting -- friends, godchildren, etc.  It was fun, nice, and pricey (kids love gifts); I ate too much, of course -- heavy apps across the board, despite the running around and hanging out.  Christmas does come but once a year, and there it was... funny; I drove by the Shoppes at Parma on the way home, had my gym bag, and decided to do a leg double, so as to burn more calories (one visit was cut due to my friend and his wife being too hungover, which amused me, but tomorrow is another day).

I was still keyed up when I got home, so I decided to enter the playroom and start some cleaning there.  This is easier said than done, as I put all the (empty) boxes from the Christmas stuff in there, so...half of the floor space is taken, and it is a bit hard to maneuver.  To be sure, there is much I did -- cleaned off the desk, took some boxes downstairs, put the Nintendo box in the closet (will I ever use it again?), and cleaned off some of the other furniture.  My collection of baseball stuff -- which occupies 105% of one bookcase -- will need to be moved, but as I am not going to add to it, or even use it... well, I need to get some sort of curio cabinet in the basement for that.  Alas.  Tomorrow I will try to clean out the other mini-desk (Favorite Niece used it to play school, and it has not been touched since) AND go in the attic and take stuff down/put stuff up.  I would not exactly say that I am getting older and at the point in my life where I need to de-crap, but... if things can be sent to a better home...

This and That

I don't want to continue the trend of "Hey kids get off my lawn," but...it was sort of funny; I tried to sign up for my 401K (finally!) and then check on my prescriptions, and of course both websites were down, so I had to use the phone and call to get these things set up.  The 401K setup went well, aside from the fact that they were under the impression that I already had an account, and that took a while to untangle.  The prescriptions...I called and they said yes, both prescriptions would be ready in an hour, so in two hours, when I arrived at the drug store... well, they had half of one and none of the other, and it was Xmas, I didn't want to ask what happened in the 90 minutes to change everything around.  Oi.  I mean, it's not a crisis -- I should get everything Thursday -- but the technical pretensions, if you will, are... a bit much.

My digestive system is better but not good; my diet has been more restrained -- save for a few peanut butter cookies I pulled from the trays I baked for my brother-in-law.  Mind you, not good is the word, and I hope things normalize tomorrow; I would hate to alter the season of Christmas feasting.  My plan to decorate the tree was altered as I did not do it, running errands and such, so tomorrow after the gym it will be.  I already sense my plans for intensive productivity are falling away...

“No person is above the law!” - by John A. Lucas
The more I think about it, saying that Biden is senile and/or incompetent, and thus everything he has done up to a point is moot, is something we should do.  Of course, we probably won't, but to me the advantages far outweigh the disadvantages.  Either you win and reverse things, or you don't, but then you have to drag every Dem through the works to show that Joe is not senile, and that will provide...well, endless opportunities for trolling and the like.  Does anyone think he could win a case to show that he isn't?  

Victor Davis Hanson Explains Why He Thinks Tom Homan Is Targeting Major Dem City First For Deportations | DC Enquirer
One, I think this is exactly correct, and two, I do love an example that uses pour encourager les autres as an explanation.  More to the point, much like the previous example, is this a bad thing to push this?  If you win these guys are off to jail, if you don't, you have the example of out-of-touch Dems defending them, and again it is meat to the base.  I would think this fight is as easy to win as the first, but if we do not try...

Returning

A blogging hiatus, as my friend Stephon came to town for three days.  It was good to see him and hang out again, but I will admit, it was a bit of a challenge -- I am not exactly good with change, change to my routine, and dealing with people, and here we are...  Like when he decided to use my TV and cable system to log into his streaming accounts.  This was fine, but as I told him, he had to show me how to navigate this, and to make sure that I could escape if need be...and of course, he could barely do that.  I mean, it is cool, but... I am not sure it is worth the squeeze.  We did watch "A Man on the Inside" -- the Ted Danson Netflix comedy -- and it was quite funny.  But cycling through his show selections...well, I was quite convinced that my time is better spent reading, blogging, and doing social justice.  :)

We dined at Omizu Friday night -- quite good, if a bit spicy (I didn't see the pepper on my menu choice), and then last night we went to Seoul Garden.  That was good, albeit spicier -- Korean food tends to have heat -- and the result was today I was in a state of intestinal flux, to put it mildly.  I was not helped by the fact that after I took him to the airport I had visiting -- birthday party, Communion distribution to my Polish friend, and then the Team XI cookie party (which was good - both to see people and to nibble on snickerdoodles).  I nibbled the whole day, and... well, I felt it.  At least I got home about 8:30, went to the bathroom, and then caught up on all my J! back episodes.  (Got all the Finals, phew!)  So we are somewhat back to normal.  Also, the presents are delivered -- mostly -- and wrapped, thanx to the mall trip.  Quite busy!  Good to see, though I wonder how consumer spending will come in.

I daresay we survived the bad weather on the West Side; about an inch.  My friend is from Houston, and he was unpleasantly fascinated by all of this (he grew up in Miami, to boot); the snow and the cold and the wind, but I was like "it could be worse," and it seemed that by noon Saturday it was over -- a bit warmer and less wind.  I do not think he will be visiting me in the winter again.  

Tomorrow is work, decorate the tree (or at least start), bake some peanut butter cookies for my brother-in-law, and dare I say... rest?  I will be off for the week between Christmas and NYD, and I am looking forward to it -- sleep, watch some films, do some reading, some cleaning.  I think I deserve it, in some ways, but also I want to do those things, and it is time to do some adulting.

Film Fest

Here we are in TV stadium -- my living room -- watching the TCM presentation about this year's additions to the National Film Registry.  I have Tivo'ed the late ones, and so far they have aired three:  "Annabelle's Serpentine Dance" (a silent film), "Pride of the Yankees" (which I have seen but not in a long time), and "Powwow Nation," a 1989 Native American film, which was not exactly bad... I mean, it was good enough, and had a cute ending, so it was fine enough.  Next time is "Uptown Saturday Night, which will get me to 845.  Rah.  Then to bed, despite my being not-over-this-cold, and I drink enough coffee as it is.

I was listening to a history podcast about the bakers of Washington's army, and -- this is why I am not married -- I was fascinated.  An army does march on its stomach, and the description of the process of baking bread -- 5-pound loves -- was fascinating.  Building the ovens, obtaining fuel, cleaning out the ash, baking, running crews 24/7... it was quite impressive.  Hard to believe it was just done with but 24 men...

The Next Big Fed Debate: Has the Era of Very Low Rates Ended? - WSJ
I am glad they are cutting rates again, but slowing down on the rate cuts...well, I think that is terribly unwise, given that high interest rates have a negative effect on many things -- HELOC rates, credit cards, consumer confidence.  Our new Cleveland Fed Chair was the vote against it, which...does not exactly bode confidence.  

American Men and the Emerging Culture Shift - Chronicles
Interesting... and I hope it sticks!

Mom tackles, punches 6-year-old daughter inside Target - cleveland.com
I read this and was like 1) Why isn't this woman getting the chair for her activities?  and 2)  Why wasn't her husband charged? Really, we can do better as a society than letting people like them have kids.

Listomania

Operation Clean the House -- which is why I didn't blog yesterday -- is almost complete, as I cleaned both bathrooms.  Did laundry this morning, swept the kitchen floor (need to vacuum), wiped down the counters, even got the recylcing and garbage ready to be taken to the curb tomorrow.  Exciting.  More importantly, I unpacked all of the Xmas stuff and decorated the house.  This is nice, but when I was done, I realized that I did not buy the tree (tomorrow!) and I will have to be very careful when getting it in the house to make sure I don't knock anything over.  Oops.  In the meantime, I have plenty of J! episodes to watch, so I will try to do some of those this evening.

25 movies will join National Film Registry: See the full 2024 list
This is the big news of the day; I have watched 5 of them, but will record 3, as two of the ones I have watched...it was 25 years ago, so I may as well re-watch.  I will credit myself for "No Country for Old Men," "My Own Private Idaho," and "Beverly Hills Cop."  This "brings" me to 841 of 900.  I suspect most of these are not that hard to find -- the library or if I ever decide to sign up for a streaming service -- so once I start watching, I should make some progress.  Actually, tomorrow on TCM they have a mass showing of a few, as well as interviews with the Librarian of Congress, etc.  So we can start on these immediately.  I should also start listening to the National Recording Registry, but...one list-o-mania at a time.

As Liberals Implode in Canada, Conservative Leader Decimates Them in Powerful Speech for the People – RedState
Good speech.  We were discussing this at work a couple of days ago, and I wonder...Justin Trudeau has went to kiss the orange pinkie ring already, and I highly suspect that Trump will not levy tariffs against Canada (for now); one, he can get more from negotiations at this time, and China is a bigger/juicier target. That said, what happens if and when the Trudeau government falls and the Conservatives take over?  One, where will all the US libtards who went to Canada go?  :)  More seriously, Poilievre is a Trump-like Conservative (in so far as Canada has them), so would the Donald make trade moves to endanger a potential ally (especially compared to the Mexican government)?  Ok, he might, but there are some Tom Hagen-types floating around, and they might be able to soothe the savage beast (for a while).

Elizabeth Warren Demands Conflict-of-Interest Rules for Musk, and Trump Camp’s Response Is FIRE – PJ Media
This is hilarious!  Pocahontas, 1/1024th, I just love it.

The Mainstream Media FINALLY Admits Obamacare Is a Failure – PJ Media
The Daily Chart: The Failure of Obamacare | Power Line
Obamacare is the missing word as Democrats rage against healthcare system - Washington Examiner
This could be me -- and yes, the GOP has been burned by health care -- but this could have been a card to play in the election; namely, health care costs are through the roof, medical bankruptcies are climbing, on top of other inflation this is too much, etc.  And, of course, the ACA has a large role in this.  Someone should have brought this up, and yes, we would have to develop a replacement plan, but the system is not working -- CEO homicides notwithstanding -- and the GOP could have easily pinned this on the Dems.  And as there are fewer RINOs running around nowadays...

Spasms of Semi-Productivity

So, I was lying on the floor, watching the "Holmes vs. Doyle" series on PBS; it's quite interesting... mind you, I saw that as a Sherlockian, but it is good to look at how Doyle viewed his famous character, and how Holmes affected his life.  After the show, I went to get up, and lo and behold...I had this incredible muscle cramp in my left leg, just about the knee, on the inside of my thigh.  It was literally the most painful Charley horse in my life, and unlike the other ones I have had, I couldn't figure out how to get it to hurt less; I couldn't get up to put any pressure on it.  Massaging it didn't help; hell, I couldn't even figure out how to adjust myself to get it in a position so it didn't hurt.  Eventually I laid on my stomach, sort of spread-eagle, and (while saying 100 Hail Marys to Our Lady of Guadaloupe), after a while...it just passed.  Right now I didn't even have any muscle memory from it.  But, for 15 minutes, it was the worst moment of my life.  Oi.  Maybe I am old, maybe I need to sleep more, maybe I need less caffeine and pop and more water, but...this was not fun.

‘We Look Like Idiots!’ Van Jones Continues His Post-Election Tear Against Democrats
Dare I say long may this continue?  It does say a lot about Trump that he was able to pull this off, but I also think it was easier for him -- as a showman, as a man obsessed with image -- than the Harris campaign, which seemed to want to keep her bottled up.  I think Trump does score higher on the beer/likability scale, and the fact that he was able to go on Theo Von and Joe Rogan and not seem like an idiot...well, if you believe that Trump ran up the score in the bro-sphere (probably true!), going to meet people in that sphere is the way to do it.

Grandfather Of Teen Killed During Burglary Says AR-15 Made Fight ‘Unfair’
Dare I say that if you do not want to get shot, you shouldn't rob houses (especially in the red states)?  Do I feel badly for the grandfather?  Yes, but...my sympathies are with the people who follow the rules and work hard.  As I am so fond of saying, we do not have a crime problem, but a criminal problem, and eliminating the criminals...well, you solve the crime issue.

Funny; last night they were discussing the freezing rain this morning, but it appeared we seemed to have missed it; the roads were pretty good on the way to Mass.  People seemed to be driving a bit gingerly, and I will admit I was closer to the speed limit than I usually was, which I guess was fine...not that the roads were exactly jammed as it was (alas).  I hit a slick spot walking to the gym, but I just stumbled, feeling fairly foolish about it.  The weather should be warm for a few days, if wet, so I should go out and get some stuff done!

Catching up

Funny;  I meant to post yesterday, but between everything, and then just crashing at night, I just didn't.  Alas.  Anyways, the day was...fine?  OC duty in the morning, and the count was 142; as I told the volunteers, after 211, this was...wonderful?  I mean, it was cold, and I was on computer duty, so I used the tablet until my fingers got cold, in which case I switched back...we had enough volunteers and enough produce, so it went smoothly -- even got the tables sterilized and the floors cleaned.  Phew.  

Afterwards I went to Bob Evans for lunch to burn through my gift card; I have decided that Denny's has a better breakfast, if only because they probably clean the grills less.  I mean, it was fine, but I am not sure breakfast was worth $17 nowadays...of course, what is?  Then I had a bunch of errands to run -- grocery shopping and the like -- and then home, where I got the Xmas stuff down from the attic.  I need to move some furniture around to fit the tree, followed by finding a tree, and then decorating.  Oi.  I ended up taking a brief nap (I felt myself doing it before and I popped some coffee down) and NOT doing laundry, which I need to do tonight.  Adulting is hard.

Fr. Alex consecrated my pyx before Mass today -- I didn't realize that it didn't necessarily have to be done during the Mass; he simply said an appropriate prayer, spread some holy water on it, and off we went... Gaudete Sunday today, which, as I like to say, is just a way to say ten days til Xmas.  

Let The WNBA Die Already
In their defense, every sports league is subsidized by taxpayers quite a bit, so the WNBA is no different, but..it seems rich, if not odd, that no one has suggested they make a little more money...

It's Time to Break Up Big Medicine - BIG by Matt Stoller
Interesting take; I agree with much of it, and while I do not think Trump will want to tackle too much with health care, the fact of the matter is that we could do all of these things and -- save for the lobbyists -- the public would approve.  Now, paying for this is still a problem, but these would be baby steps.

The Catholics in Trump's administration could take GOP in a whole new direction - POLITICO
Hard to believe that a nondenominational President would be actually more Catholic than the supposedly Catholic one, but of course, this is true of most Catholics now, given the current Pope, so...

Realizations

My college roommates were trashing the Belicheck to NYC news.  I don't see it.  For one, let's not doubt the will of a guy who wants to coach, can't get an NFL job anywhere, and thus goes to plan B?  More to the point -- Tom Brady aside -- I would think having arguably the greatest NFL coach in the living room would be one heck of an awesome recruiting chit.  And, in this day of NIL and constant transfers, you really can build a team in a manner similar to the NFL; you can find new players, get rid of guys you don't want... and, dare I say, wouldn't the alumni stuff be easier, too?  I am not sure he has the charm and BS needed for some aspects, but all those wins and Super Bowls can make some profitable autographs.  I mean, I am not sure it is the best fit, but I think it can work, and in some ways you have to give the UNC AD credit for trying something that, if not exactly new, is new enough.

 Principles-Based Illustrative Reforms of Federal Tax and Spending Programs — Penn Wharton Budget Model
This would be a good start, but you need to cut spending as well, as that has been the crux of the problem --- for both sides.

Quite a winter punch this morning, and I was damn glad to be working at home, instead of tooling off to the East Side.  Quite cold, too; I bumped up the furnace a bit for the pipes, and I guess it was worth it -- it has been a bit warmer.  I was thinking that for one day, I will survive.  I also realized that 1) I still need to get a tree and get the Xmas stuff down and 2) I have a lot of piles of stuff lying around, and if not this weekend, during my holiday week off, I should start handling them.  I do not have to bake brownies for the church fest this weekend, which is good; actually, I have very little on the schedule (for now) so I should go and get the Xmas stuff handled.  Some of it, at least!

I made a salmon filet from the freezer this past weekend, and I finally finished it today.  I bought it on sale, and considering I was able to get dinner for six days out of it, it was quite the bargain.  I have been having a PB-coated baked potato from the 10-lb bag I bought for $1.99; even the small ones are perfect for lunch, and you can nuke them, so...I know it is a bit monotonous, but it is also fairly healthy -- a not unimportant consideration, too.  I realize my frugality is a it overwhelming at times, but on the other hand, there is something to be said for economy, no matter the reason...

Off to Bed!

Watched the first part of the Nova documentary about the rebuilding of Notre Dame.  Quite interesting -- trying to save the structure, figuring out the secrets of the construction, trying to rebuild it exactly as it was -- including the lead roofing tiles, all quite cool.  It doesn't seem quite so odd now that it took five years to rebuild, and when they mentioned that they could remake the structure as it was by getting rid of centuries of candle soot...well, it reminded me of how we redid the Shrine, and how nicely that came out.  Of course, people still attend Mass at the Shrine...

Rebel Yell - Tablet Magazine
Sort of long -- especially part two -- but I think it is quite interesting and mostly correct.  Of course, I wonder if this new renovation of the GOP will last, with or without Trump...

Colby Covington Shreds LeBron Over His 'No Party Like A Diddy Party' Comments | OutKick
This is pretty funny.  You know, I am not a UFC fan, but I should be, not only because President Awesome is a fan, but they seem to have a lot of fighters who appeal to my sense of...culture?  Not that I want to see people beating the crap out of each other, but... 

Floored

Humorously (sort of), I fell asleep on the living room floor last night; it was after the show on PS about the real Doyle vs. Holmes -- interesting, with some things that I didn't know.  Anyways, it was 3:30 AM when I woke up; the lights were on, so was the laptop, and I of course immediately thought of the electric bill.  (That the gas bill came today didn't exactly help.)  Ok, I then shuffled off to actual bed, where I got some more sleep.  Funny; I sort of feel my cold breaking up, but I not tired now, though I should probably pack it in and get this thing beat.  Course, there is no point in lying in bed and thinking about things, not sleeping.

I didn't do half of the stuff I wanted this weekend, not sure why, though maybe I am just not moving as fast as I should (or once did).  My sister finally sent me an Xmas gift, so there is that, but... well, I will get it ordered tomorrow, what I can, and shop for the rest, but there have been times I have done -- save for the wrapping -- by this time, and of course I am unsettled.  Let us not discuss the concept of the tree, the Xmas decorations in the attic, etc.  

One consequence -- though I expected it -- was that I didn't hit early Mass today, and so I went to 5:30.  It was... fine.  I do prefer the early Mass, when the sunlight comes through the church, and there is something sepulchral about the Shrine early in the darkness.  But the important thing is that we did not have Democrat Holy Day, which is what counts...

iden shrinks from view ahead of Trump’s return to Washington - POLITICO

This could be me, but hasn't Biden been checked out for a while longer than since the election?  I mean, I could argue he has been in the cooler since he bowed out of the race.  I have no problem with this -- like many Dems, I share the "forgotten not gone" theme of the campaign, but it is...vastly amusing.

A Record Again

Food pantry duty today, and it was...a record week, with a count of 211.  Considering that we started at 8:15 and closed right at 12, it was...well, a very steady zoo.  Steady zoo is indeed an apt description, as even our pain in the rear clients were not too PITA,  but there were just a lot of people today; lots of cars with 2 or 3 people, lots of walkers -- despite the cold and the snow and the unshoveled sidewalks, despite the fact that the Thursday crew left us without rock salt -- it was a wonder no one slipped and fell.  Indeed, the first thing I did after our shift was to head to Lowe's and buy some.  Oi.  Anyways, it was good -- I guess -- to help all these people, though, of course, it is quite the surprise that, after all this Bidenomics, that we should have any people at all!  Humorously, my blood sugar was low all afternoon, so no gym trip, just lunch at Wendy's -- the salted caramel Frosty is pretty good -- and then some errands.  I got home later than I expected, but... here we are.  I just finished cycling through the 'Net, and aside from the after-action report, I am done for the day, so I can do some contract work/read/watch a movie or something.  Joy.

Don’t cancel Aristotle – we need his ideas to hone ours | Aeon Essays
Interesting.  I haven't read any Aristotle since high school.  On the one hand, I should read it, as a literate person and all, but on the other hand, there are so many other things I have to read. 

Why did Silicon Valley turn right? - by Henry Farrell
Also interesting; I am not sure I agree with it, but the author points out he may be wrong, and I think he is right about a good many things, especially the whole part about the close links between Silicon Valley and the Obama Administration (how soon we forget).

The world of tomorrow - Works in Progress
Dare I say part of the problem (if you will) is that people quickly adapt technology, it becomes commonplace, and thus the wonder is gone.  I mean, 20 years ago a mobile phone was still rare, GPS wasn't a thing, and while we had the Internet, it was not nearly as comprehensive as it is now... hell, the idea that the Internet can be down, in the era of mobile phones, has rapidly become a thing of the past.

At the Top of Trump’s Team: Angry Vets Who Want to Upend U.S. Foreign Policy - WSJ
Dare I say that this is a good thing?  A generation comes along, sees the mistakes of their elders, and rather than go and do the same mistakes, works to not make them?  Again, this makes me more likely to support people like Hesgeth, Gabbard, and Vance compared to someone who parrots the party line.

The Walking Less Than Dead

I have to admit, getting almost 8 hours of sleep yesterday was quite the blessing; I feel better, have more energy, and I think (conditionally) I turned the corner on this cold.  I will do so again today, and I think it will help...I ate some oranges today, and popped some vitamin C, but on the whole, I think it is rest.  Hit the gym today, and while falling blood sugar prevented cardio, it was good to do arms; I had skipped a few days with the weather and the illness, and while it was a bit cold, I need to get back to the daily routine (and soon, I should go back to the twice-a-day routine).

I was nerding out about the employment stats today; for one, if you don't count the 33K Boeing workers who are now not on strike, the numbers would have been below expectations.  The idea that workers on strike are counted on the scale is a bit odd, but... retail workers were down -- indicative of the fact more people are shopping online -- but warehouse workers were up but 3400.  I don't think the robots have taken over yet!  Construction jobs were up 10K -- this is seasonal but also indicative of the fact that no one is hiring to finish up houses and such before the year.  Dare I say it was fun to do so -- like old times, if you will.  I realize this is just me, but...

Pete Hegseth’s Crusade to Turn the Military into a Christian Weapon - POLITICO
Dare I say that this makes me (and most GOPers, I suspect) more likely to support the guy?  Part of this is that the Trump administration is a 180 from the current one -- no Rachel Levines here! -- and I am not sure that this is a bad thing.  

Donald Trump Ends Decades of American Dominance - POLITICO
Dare I say that that was then, and this is...now?

Don't Call It A Comeback

I stayed up to watch Duke-Auburn yesterday, and while health-wise I am not sure it was a good idea, in every other sense it was.  First four minutes it looked as if they were going to be run out of the sanctuary of basketball that is Cameron Indoor Stadium, and I -- ashamedly -- rued my choice.  But, O ye of little faith, the Brotherhood recovered, and we soon had an impressive basketball game.  Defense, threes, key plays...it was awesome beyond belief.  It had to be, because -- as several others noted -- this was a must-win game, given the high-profile losses and the fact that the AZ win has lost some luster.  In the meantime, the ACC was...2-14 in the ACC/SEC challenge.  Who is coaching these teams, Ryan Day?  Good Lord.  Come March this sort of thing is going to keep teams out of the tourney, though that might not be a bad thing.

I had a breakfast meeting with our SVDP President this morning, which was... well, interesting.  The commute was surprisingly good; my side street was not plowed, but the main roads were, and they were better when I came home.  We had to change locales due to unexpected closures, but...it went well.  He had some good ideas, we talked issues about my District and Conferences, and he was bemused by my action lists... I told him that I often complete them, but also merge them into new lists.  I showed him my 24-item list from our last meeting, which had 23 crossed off (8 were OC things I did separately) and the other merged into the new one.  He kept my list to two, to which I added six more.  It is how I roll, I guess.  

Other than that it was work, drink coffee, and think about how I was going to bed early tonight, hell or high water.  I was going to watch a documentary, but tomorrow is another day, and with the weekend that is suspiciously clean, I may be able to do some list-knocking-off, which -- as yet another person discovered -- is one of my favorite activities.

Amusements

 It is official:  I have a cold.  Grr.  Funny, sort of, as I went to bed early last night, and was woken up by the low blood sugar alarm three times (12:30, 2, and 5), and I dutifully snacked each time.  Oi.  Anyways, I skipped the gym today due to work/sickness (oi). and all I can do now is try to sleep and load up on vitamin C.  Duke is on tonight, and while I fully intend to watch, if I nod off...well, I will just give in and head to bed.  Coach K can chastise me later, of course!

I am amused by the cycle about the Hesgeth nomination; I would rather not have nominated him, given his issues, and, again, there are other candidates who are less of a lightning rod.  The idea of Ron DeSantis as the Desanctimonious Secretary of Defense amuses me.  I mean, on the one hand, all of the rivals are one big happy family again.  And, I think he would be good at the job.  On the other hand, do we want to lose him in FL?  But it is a high-profile role.  Of course, I could see him saying no -- he has kids, he doesn't want to leave, etc. -- but of course, he has a Lady Macbeth, and... 

Civil War Buffs Drill for the ‘Hardest Test in History’ - WSJ
This is pretty cool!  I mean, I love listening to a lot of history podcasts, including Civil War ones, and the LBGs -- and Gettysburg -- seem to be disproportionately represented on these things.  Of course, people want to go there, so... I am not surprised?

Note on the FBI - by Matt Taibbi - Racket News
Dare I say that this is largely correct, and, I (and most Trump voters) am looking forward to seeing some reforms, like it or not.  I suspect the Epstein list has long been sent to the shredder, but many of the other abuses -- targeting churches, ignoring sexual abusers -- is going to be resolved, and people are going to lose their jobs.  And that is not a bad thing.

Also amusing to me is the war of coaches and ADs regarding the CFB playoff rankings.  I mean, I guess this is a variation of the "smart enough to understand the game but dumb enough to think it is important" meme.  More seriously, the one way around this -- and it would work but only too well -- would be to only invite conference champions to the playoff.  Now, I know this would rule out the service academies and Notre Dame (perish the thought), but you could put in something about an independent team getting a bid as well.  If not, why not develop an NFL QB-style rating to rank all of the non-champion teams and invite them?  You could weight for stuff like SoS and playing good teams on the road.  Of course, it would work, so it would never work...

Surprise

Weird; sort of have this cold, mainly from not getting enough sleep and the change in weather, but I feel mostly fine -- bit of a sniffle, bit cold, but other than that.  I had planned on going to bed early last night but of course that didn't happen, as I had health care claims for the HSA, an Xmas list to create and get out, SVDP stuff to do, and of course some work.  Rah!  Tonight, I just might get to bed early, as one benefit of doing everything yesterday means today all is off the table, if you will. I still have to schedule a training mission for ServWare client management software -- harder than I thought -- but this juggling issue will eventually get settled.

Had an MD appointment today, and it was...fine?  I have slight anemia, need to take folic acid, but all else is well.  The MD noted that despite having diabetes for a very long time, I was in very good health, which he attributed to my taking care of myself.  I guess that is true -- or at least I try to -- but on the other hand... well, he is not the first medical professional to make such a comment to me, which makes me wonder.  Either 1) most other diabetics are fuckups (which I find hard to believe) or 2) they are over-estimating the number of diabetics who are fuckups (which I also find hard to believe).  Odd.  Maybe both are true?

Trump’s Return Heralds Litigation Peace for Crypto - WSJ
Is this necessarily a bad thing?  Not sure.  I mean, yes, I think a lot of crypto is scam heaven, but on the other hand, so is the lottery/casino gambling/many other things, and they are legal.  And -- much to the chagrin of SBF -- some people can lose their money and gain it back!  I guess my point is that if people know they can lose everything in this shadowy world, and people want to invest anyways... that's ok?  I guess I would prefer a system where the obvious scams are prosecuted, but the great mass of people are allowed to gamble as they wish, provided, of course, they are aware of the risks.

My Night at the Roxy

 Busy second half of the weekend, I guess.  Saturday I did not have OC duty; one of my friends asked me how the food pantry was, and I told him great, as I was not there...  Anyways, I slept in a bit, ran some errands, had coffee with a friend, and caught up on some things.  I had a wedding that evening, so I missed the OSU game, or at least the end of it, which was probably good; not that I am an OSU fan, but that was a game they had to win, and they didn't.  As I have noted elsewhere, if that was the best Ryan Day could do, he should clean out his desk.  His buyout, FWIW, is much but not as much as others, and I suspect they could find people to pay it off if need be.  Duke won on a walk-off -- my team beats its rivals -- and it should be noted that they have had a wildly successful season, 2-0 against its rivals and 9-3 overall.  Not that they expect championships there, but what they have achieved is... impressive.

The wedding I attended was interesting, as they had a weed bar...it is legal now, I guess.  They kept it outside (in the cold), or tried to, but the scent, if you will, found its way inside... it was not exactly fun, and the suit will be taken to the cleaners tomorrow.  Let's just say that if I ever get married, that amenity will not be included.

Sunday was good; church (slightly late due to a pastoral miscommunication on the schedule), gym, a visit to my sister, and then home a bit... and then it was off to see Real Friends at the Roxy in Lakewood.  Bit cold out (for now, it seems early, more on that later), but... not bad.  Actually, I liked the venue -- next to Mahall's, and while it is a bit selective in terms of space, I rather like it, as you can get close in, which is what you want when you attend a show.  Real Friends was the headliner but the other three bands were quite good, and I made a note to listen to them in entirety.  I got some autographs after -- dating myself instead of a selfie, I guess -- which was an added kick.  Funny; they were trying to get people who had never crowd-surfed to do so, and this one (cute) chick wanted me to, but I was like no way... honestly, having been kicked in the head/slammed by fat chicks too many times, I just do not see the thrill of it.

I wanted to get fourth meal at Denny's after but.... it was closed.  Closed!  They don't have a lock on the door, so they shut the lights, blocked the door, and yelled "closed." Very disheartening.  I went to Taco Bell which was good but not quite the same...  Mind you, I do not need fourth meal, and I should lay off -- especially with Turkey Day still rattling around.  Sigh.

Inflation Is Low But Living Costs Are High - Apollo Academy
I think this is why Trump won --20% in five years is a lot, especially since 1) for a lot of people, inflation has still outpaced wages; and 2) inflation is higher in products that people use/see every day. It is hard for people to take.

The pardon...I echo the part about how Biden has absolutely no credibility anymore, though of course he never had much anyways... the issue what do Republicans do about it?  There have to be consequences, and not just, say, freeing the J6 rioters.  Going after other Bidens, including the President?  Hearings/criminal charges about his competence?  Those should be a start at the very least...