Politics + Red Lobster & Hooray for Hot Dogs & Exploding TV + Some Political Anxiety

fitbit Friday

fitbit Update

I've been struggling to get my 10,000 steps per day. That's a goal that fitbit has arbitrarily(?) set for me. Whatever.
        FRI a.m. update:  I typed most of this entry on Thursday night. This morning I took Sammy on a longer walk than usual, so I amassed 2,648 steps toward the ever elusive, ever arbitrary goal of 10,000 steps. Double whatever.

Political TUE . . . on FRI

From "Omaha World Herald" (2/10/16):  "Red Lobster catches Beyonce's 'Formation' wave. Red Lobster says it's feeling the 'Beyonce' Bounce.' The seafood chain known for its cheddar biscuits said sales surged 33% on SUN, compared w/last year's Super Bowl SUN. The increase came after the release of 'Formation,' in which Beyonce' says she took a man to Red Lobster after sex."  [Not that I make it to Red Lobster more than once, maybe twice per year anyway, but it looks like I'm going to have to find another place to feast on crab legs.]

Food for Thought

Also from OWH (2/11):  "Burger King to add hot dogs to menu. BK is looking for a new crown:  Hot Dog King. The Miami-based chain said it plans to put hot dogs on its menu nationally for 1st time starting Feb. 23. BK said its ability to flame-grill meat makes hot dogs a natural fit on its menu. BK's 'classic' hot dog will be topped w/ketchup, mustard, chopped onions & relish."  [At about 8:30p, when I was typing this last night, I developed such a craving for hot dogs that I suspect it will show up on today's grocery list.]

Some WED Whimsy . . . on FRI

Also from OWH (2/11):  "Stray bullet pulls plug on surprised man's television. An Omaha man thought a picture tube in his old TV had blown TUE night when the screen went dark. It turns out that a stray bullet had ended his channel surfing. 'I just heard my TV make a noise & saw the picture go out, so I thought the picture tube had blown again,' James Milton said WED. 'I got to looking around, & I found a bullet behind the TV, laying on the stand."  [I can neither confirm nor deny that this man was watching Rachel Maddow at the time.]

Shameless Stealing from the OWH Comics Page (2/11)

I chose these two comic strips because I identified with them. Totally.

Pickles:  [Two friends on park bench] "FRIEND: How's your day going, Earl? EARL: Not bad. I ran my first 10K this morning in record time. [Long pause] EARL: Just kidding. I finished off a box of pop tarts in record time."

Baby Blues:  [Conversation between Mom & daughter] "MOM: How many valentines do we need for your class? DAUGHTER: Four. I only like 4 kids. They're all bozo-brained weirdos. MOM: Why do you say that? DAUGHTER: They call people names."

There Is No Place Like . . . 

Nebraska!

Also from OWH (2/10):  "'Choose life' plates would direct money to prenatal care. Nebraska's governor supports legislation that would create a specialty license plate for those who want to take their opposition to abortion on the road. Lt. Gov. Mike Foley, speaking for himself & on behalf of Gov. Pete Ricketts, backed a measure TUE that would make NE the 30th state w/what supporters call 'choose life' license plates."  [I recently responded to a link somebody sent me on FB. The content was re:  a Super Bowl ad by Doritos, involving an unborn baby desperately trying to reach out for a father's Doritos. Apparently this ad engendered many angry responses from pro-abortion advocates. For years I have avoided using the term "pro-choice" for these people, but I will use it if the context is "pro-choice" as in "I choose to support a choice for murdering an unborn baby." Why? Because, aside from theological & moral imperatives, scientific & rational arguments preclude any arguments other than an unborn baby being human life. Therefore, choosing to abort an unborn baby is choosing to abort human life.] *
* And that's my sermon for today. Maybe.

Mental Health MON . . . on FRI

Reasons for Anxiety

Also from OWH (2/10):  "FBI can't unlock terror couple's cellphone. FBI technicians have been unable to unlock encrypted data on a cellphone that belonged to the terrorist couple who killed 14 people in San Bernardino on Dec. 2, the FBI director said TUE. The failure has left investigators in the dark about at least some of the married couple's communications before they were killed in a shootout w/police." [Wait . . . what? The heroes on "Person of Interest" seem to have no problem cracking the code on most of the bad guys' cellphones & laptops! Wait, I remember. Not to worry. Weren't we told that our enemies are only the j.v. anyway? And our greatest enemy is global warming? I guess I can sleep easier.] *
* No, I can't.

From Readers' Digest (Dec 2015/Jan 2016):  "How Bad Is It...to nap next to a space heater? Pretty Bad. It may seem harmless to doze off, but the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission estimates that space heaters cause more than 25,000 residential fires every year. That's mostly owing to human error (like leaving a space heater too close to long drapes). If you want to fall asleep next to the heater, put the appliance on a timer so it will shut off automatically."  [I nap almost every day, but never by the space heater. However, now I'm anxious for any of you readers who might.]

Some Political Anxiety. Maybe.

I am beginning to get just a little anxious about a possible presidential race that might involve "He who shall not be named" & "She who shall not be named." *
* Then I remind myself, as I've previously blogged, that there's a difference involving nervousness, nervousness, & a chronic anxiety disorder. **
** And, while I'm ranting, I don't get all these people who seem to be enthusiastically supporting these two candidates, along w/Bernie Sanders, despite (a) their lack of credentials; (b) lack of integrity; (c) support for political policies that have proven to fail again & again & again.