Random Gripe o' the Day

Good grief.

So, since the government couldn't afford to (immediately) enforce the 100-watt incandescent bulb phase-out, they're relying on the honor system.  Anyone selling such contraband should feel deeply ashamed.  Very dishonorable of you, you know. 

This is such an important issue.  Thank goodness the powers that be are staying on top of it. 

...If we can't be trusted to decide what kind of light bulbs to use in our own personal private lamps and fixtures at home, no wonder "They" think we can't handle our own retirement accounts and health insurance...

Sometimes you don't know whether to laugh or cry... or buy a punching bag to take out your frustrations on...

Was It 24 CARROT Gold? ;o)

What a fun news story (for a change)! 

"Swede pulls up carrot bearing long-lost ring."

A woman loses her wedding ring in her kitchen.  Sixteen years later, long after she and her husband have given up the search for it, she finds it around a tiny carrot harvested from their vegetable garden!  Amazing! 

What in the...

So, apparently 60 Minutes edited the following statement out of their recent interview with Obama:

“The issue here is not going be a list of accomplishments. As you said yourself, Steve, you know, I would put our legislative and foreign policy accomplishments in our first two years against any president — with the possible exceptions of Johnson, F.D.R., and Lincoln — just in terms of what we’ve gotten done in modern history. But, you know, but when it comes to the economy, we’ve got a lot more work to do.”

                              
...Okay...  Whatever you say, man. 

Good grief!  The sheer ego of some people!

Gosh...

Been browsing Awkward Family Photos (.com) for a laugh.

Found a few:

A Face in the Crowd

Come Together

The Fetal Position 2

...among others.

(There's also an Awkward Family Pet Photos, by the way.)

Facebook = :'- (

"Author Says Facebook Is Making Us Miserable".
(What have I been saying-- to myself, if not others?)

"Facebook is making us unhappy by making everyone else look really, really happy."

Author Daniel Gulati blogs for Harvard Business Review.  He says all that shared information is creating a subconscious "ranking" among friends as our curated selves broadcast online are compared in real life. 

"Facebook is bringing down a lot of people's daily sense of well-being."  

Well, that's a big part (not all of it, but a very big part) of why I deleted my personal Facebook account.

I realize that it sounds kind of namby-pamby-- if not downright pathetic-- to admit that you start to feel a little dissatisfied with your own life just because Facebook makes it seem like everyone else on the bloomin' planet is thoroughly fulfilled, living up to every potential, happy-happy, 100% perfect (or at least Better Than You), and generally peachy-keen, but to tell the truth, I noticed that every time I visited the site, I came away feeling a degree or two sadder... discontented... somehow deflated. (So maybe I am namby-pamby.  Oh well.)

Anyway, it's always nice to find another Facebook decrier.  ;o)

P.S. If you love Facebook, I have nothing against you personally.  I just secretly hope for the day when your favorite social media site goes up in flames. :o)  On to the next thing!

It's About Time

Via Drudge on Twitter, I read a short article this morning.  Why he linked to a Canadian paper, I don't know.  Maybe no American paper covered the story?  (Can't be bothered to google it.)  In any case, the headline is "Hurricane predictors admit they can't predict hurricanes."  (Heh.  That's probably why this article was selected.  Funny headline.)

Brief excerpt:

Two top U.S. hurricane forecasters, revered like rock stars in Deep South hurricane country, are quitting the practice because it doesn’t work.

William Gray and Phil Klotzbach say a look back shows their past 20 years of forecasts had no value.

First of all, I wouldn't say that the hurricane forecasters are "revered like rock stars in Deep South hurricane country".  I happen to live in Deep South hurricane country-- right in the heart of it-- and the people I talk to generally seem to agree that the weather forecasters don't really know whether a year's going to be more or less active than usual.  They've gotten pretty good at forecasting the general area where a storm will make landfall, but they've proven they can't tell how many storms will develop in a given period of time. 

Second, good for them!  It's nice when experts are willing to admit it when they realize that something doesn't work.  (Of course, many of us had already stopped paying serious attention, anyway.)

What a Sad-Looking Tree!

We finally put up our Christmas tree over the weekend!  Isn't it beautiful? 

Ok, this isn't really our Christmas tree.  It's just the top portion of our (artificial) tree, put in the stand for the fun of it.  Trixie thought it looked pretty pathetic (and was a little concerned that it might topple over on top of her). 

Our (fully assembled and decorated) tree looks much the same as it does every year.  Still, maybe I'll take a photo or two before it comes back down again...

More VITAL News Via Twitter

"Mythbusters" put a canonball through a home and a minivan (on accident, which isn't necessarily immediately obvious, with that program), and some idiotic head teacher in Britain turned off his school's heating on one of the coldest days of the year to show students how the school could reduce its carbon footprint.  (Because simply lowering the heat wasn't bold enough, I guess.  I wonder if anyone explained to him how much more energy it takes to heat a very cold building versus keeping it fairly level at moderate warmth...)

On the other hand, Alec Baldwin was kicked off an airplane (before take off, in case you were wondering) because of his immature behavior... So it's not all bad news, this morning...

For Posterity

Read this morning (on Twitter) that "government to receive archive of every tweet ever sent".  I didn't bother to click the link to read the full story, but when have I ever let a piffling little detail like that stop me from reacting/commenting?


First reaction:  Well, that's creepy...

Second reaction:  *thinking back over what I tweeted, back when I actually tweeted, wondering if there was anything incriminating or otherwise potentially damning in the eyes of The Government...*

Third reaction:  Of course, this isn't really news, is it?  I thought we already knew that the Library of Congress was going to archive all tweets (or something like that...).  Also, I'm writing a blog.  On the Internet.  If "They" are interested, they already have access to plenty of information about me.  (I don't actually believe they are that interested, at the moment.  Just to show that I have no delusions of grandeur.)

Fourth reaction:  Wow. If they're keeping these tweets "for posterity", everyone in the future will know exactly how stupid, spoiled, and disgusting so many of our contemporaries are.  (Were?  Whatever.)  There'll be no denying it, now...