tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-77769513427915385202024-03-17T23:00:48.535-04:00THE DAILY DROIDYou never know what you'll find.... Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.comBlogger4367125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-14566290062898712212024-03-17T17:59:00.041-04:002024-03-17T20:09:23.278-04:00Mixed Reviews: Poor Things<p><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"></span></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bSnLYUuBdBeRvpXt75tnsFT868zD4SMjThyphenhyphenbnsUwhoBJyvSUexytzuJ9OyWEV2C8hLlk7Rdiqoi6JSJCAAD3Q-GdYKM0MvIRW3Xekmu5P8s0hvBjkMPIKWwuePmXWEb6xLLSZLAeUpd1JKyHEqs8GQj9IHprPg1UdKSfaBcymqn__bVgKYuUFntSY_1s/s1600/ems.cHJkLWVtcy1hc3NldHMvbW92aWVzLzQ5ZDhmYTM0LWIzMjctNDY5Yy1iOWY5LTQzMmYyMjcwZmI5My5qcGc=.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1120" height="410" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7bSnLYUuBdBeRvpXt75tnsFT868zD4SMjThyphenhyphenbnsUwhoBJyvSUexytzuJ9OyWEV2C8hLlk7Rdiqoi6JSJCAAD3Q-GdYKM0MvIRW3Xekmu5P8s0hvBjkMPIKWwuePmXWEb6xLLSZLAeUpd1JKyHEqs8GQj9IHprPg1UdKSfaBcymqn__bVgKYuUFntSY_1s/w287-h410/ems.cHJkLWVtcy1hc3NldHMvbW92aWVzLzQ5ZDhmYTM0LWIzMjctNDY5Yy1iOWY5LTQzMmYyMjcwZmI5My5qcGc=.jpeg" width="287" /></a></span></span></div><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">Last week the televised Academy Awards came and went and I never noticed. But I did hear about the winners the next day, and once again I shook my head in disbelief about who was passed by and who was lauded. Now I like the actress Emma Stone as much as anyone else I've never met, but it seems clear that she won the Best Actress award for her boldness in showing her vagina to the world.</span></span><p></p><p><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: georgia; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">I haven't seen the movie, scared off by the reviews. They all mention that Stone, playing a demented child-woman, sticks all sorts of things into her vagina in her quest for and love of orgasms. Call me old-school, but watching people have orgasms (or sticking stuff into their vagina, for that matter) is not what I look for in a film. </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia;">Still, hating to rush to judgment and miss out on a cinematic milestone, I read a few reviews. Some excerpts follow:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="box-sizing: border-box;"><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>Rex Reed:</b><i><b> </b>"</i></span><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(26, 26, 26); color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><i>Poor Things,</i></span><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(26, 26, 26); color: #1a1a1a; font-style: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"> </span></span><span face=""Libre Franklin", sans-serif" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(26, 26, 26); color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">a surreal mix of science-fiction and pornographic fairy tale, may not be the worst commercially intended movie ever made. But it is unquestionably the filthiest. In a chaotic cacophony of mixed reviews, it has been described as weird, exhausting, repugnant, raunchy, garish, demented, twisted and bonkers."</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span face=""Libre Franklin", sans-serif" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(26, 26, 26); color: #1a1a1a; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The Guardian:</b> "That cooing note of kindness in the title is misleading- in fact, there is pure vivisectional ruthlessness in this toweringly bizarre epic.<i> Poor Things </i>is a steampunk-retrofuturist Victorian freakout and macro black-comic horror."</span></span></p><p><span style="border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; caret-color: rgb(26, 26, 26); color: #1a1a1a; font-family: georgia; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b>The New York Times:</b> "As the story stalls out and all the showy minutiae, the viscera and icky yuks just keep on coming, the cumulative effect becomes bludgeoning. It isn't long into <i>Poor Things</i> that you start to feel as if you were being bullied into admiring a movie that's so deeply self-satisfied there really isn't room for the two of you."</span></p><p style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.0905rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.25rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><b style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(18, 18, 18); color: #121212; font-family: georgia;">RogerEbert.com: </b><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(18, 18, 18); color: #121212; font-family: georgia;">"It's the best movie of the year."</span></p><h5 class="contributor-bio--name" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 0.9816rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><br /></span></h5><h5 class="contributor-bio--name" style="border: 0px; box-sizing: inherit; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-caps: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 0.9816rem; margin: 0px 0px 0.5rem; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: small;"><br /></span></h5><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: small; font-weight: normal;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); color: #333333;"><br /></span></span></div>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-66112680799661393082024-03-15T10:49:00.004-04:002024-03-15T10:50:26.934-04:00The End of Evolution: Sheeple<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisBaYLnpY-WeL3HyRc8WGvd7z3gqIZ0dNsRAV00ybnGGiFrBzwzDoxi2caucpc2sBqaToYpZCuUEeAg9sLTIcv9GDDyCkmFrFa9SwzNZoxYzylNjLYR-fEJtYQrFUwC6Of1xUHMqeXFSOeGh07UVIe0ZN8ftii-b3hyphenhyphenry1ew3Gw3g2fJhwRWbkAYs2mA2m/s259/images.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisBaYLnpY-WeL3HyRc8WGvd7z3gqIZ0dNsRAV00ybnGGiFrBzwzDoxi2caucpc2sBqaToYpZCuUEeAg9sLTIcv9GDDyCkmFrFa9SwzNZoxYzylNjLYR-fEJtYQrFUwC6Of1xUHMqeXFSOeGh07UVIe0ZN8ftii-b3hyphenhyphenry1ew3Gw3g2fJhwRWbkAYs2mA2m/w376-h282/images.jpeg" width="376" /></a></div>Honestly, I can't believe how many people no longer have individual likes, original thoughts and personal opinions about anything and everything. It's frightening, bringing to mind the classic sci-fi movie, <i>Invasion of the Body Snatchers. </i>These days I go around checking the back of people's necks to see if they have a telltale red mark indicating they are not a person but a pod.<p></p><p>How else is it possible that everyone listens to, wonders about and follows the comings and goings of Taylor Swift and her football-playing boyfriend, as if they matter? </p><p>How can fashion trends in clothing and hairstyles come along and appeal to everyone, regardless of how appropriate they are to their particular body shape and facial structure?</p><p>Why do most men have beard these days, when they used to only have mustaches or be clean-shaven? </p><p>What can explain the need, desire or compulsion to watch the latest movie or TV show deemed a "must-see" by the makers of such films?</p><p>What inspires <i>so many people </i>to spend so much of their relatively paltry incomes on tattoos, especially those full sleeves on arms and legs that cost from the high hundreds to thousands and serve no purpose whatsoever?</p><p>Why is the need to be indistinguishable from everyone else the number one need among our younger generations?</p><p>What makes people watch award shows like The Academy Awards, the Grammys, and all the rest, then rush out to see those movies and hear that music in order to feel "with it?" With <i>what</i>?</p><p>DO YOU EVER WONDER: WHO IS IN CHARGE?</p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-32381770944213408242024-03-14T20:04:00.003-04:002024-03-14T20:04:46.174-04:00Pick A Side!<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqfkrOk3qg8pQkvArKkZC4zeQ_wvoMDXReFAyKORXV1M96hk3kbLWRhdP45RJorV88EWt1yEvHz5AsY1a-Op6hf84qE4DoNlVOx2G_lpw3uzduR7c_N-r76UY8qtP8f65fTyQZn3Ny18rTmxsOVimtz99Rcy4nkULvzVdfZfCleooDr9bxU36DCXasVZuA/s1200/Cat_August_2010-4.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="1200" height="365" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqfkrOk3qg8pQkvArKkZC4zeQ_wvoMDXReFAyKORXV1M96hk3kbLWRhdP45RJorV88EWt1yEvHz5AsY1a-Op6hf84qE4DoNlVOx2G_lpw3uzduR7c_N-r76UY8qtP8f65fTyQZn3Ny18rTmxsOVimtz99Rcy4nkULvzVdfZfCleooDr9bxU36DCXasVZuA/w595-h365/Cat_August_2010-4.jpg" width="595" /></a></div><br />I am so sick of transgenders! Get over it, be a boy or be a girl, be whatever the heck you ARE. Actually, I am sick of being a human, I'd much rather be <i>any other species,</i> humans are so embarrassing. <p></p><p>Boo hoo, poor me. </p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-39807951335464682202024-03-14T17:47:00.016-04:002024-03-17T18:21:13.470-04:00The Ringling Brothers In the White House<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-ASohvU0ZneLD-Ou40up5T1zSy9Peq_4jOz8UPIkCWd6UoU5kjY56WBKBj4cjvU2DTXcSEK0IIvwRqpgU1-IQaMKrYjQChrjTdPoW8JpMXMqCwgVwJrqoZIcskjpxsdAidSGLq2EJ8Ov2HviW7X-CBAK9ppBrdeou0CCftQFywD1jrOs9sBOmKIfT5ZW/s225/Unknown.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="334" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjt-ASohvU0ZneLD-Ou40up5T1zSy9Peq_4jOz8UPIkCWd6UoU5kjY56WBKBj4cjvU2DTXcSEK0IIvwRqpgU1-IQaMKrYjQChrjTdPoW8JpMXMqCwgVwJrqoZIcskjpxsdAidSGLq2EJ8Ov2HviW7X-CBAK9ppBrdeou0CCftQFywD1jrOs9sBOmKIfT5ZW/w334-h334/Unknown.jpeg" width="334" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Barnum, at left, and Bailey, yukking it up.</i></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="font-family: georgia;">Kamala Harris, our Vice President and appointed Border Czar, has never made it to our southern border overrun by thousands of illegals swarming into our country, but did find the time to visit a Minnesota abortion clinic yesterday because, as she put it, <i>"W<span style="caret-color: rgb(16, 16, 16); font-size: 17.16px;">e are facing a very serious health issue in the U.S." <br /></span></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Joe Biden, our President, never said one word about Laken Riley, the 22-year-old nursing student who was murdered by an illegal immigrant on the University of Georgia campus, but today released a statement saying that "he and his wife are heartbroken" about a non-binary teenager who committed suicide<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-size: 15.6px; letter-spacing: 0.156px;"> in her high-school bathroom because of being bullied. <i>"Every young person deserves to have the fundamental right and freedom to be who they are and feel safe and supported at school and in their communities,” </i>Biden said.<i> “Nex Benedict, a kid who just wanted to be accepted, should still be here with us today.”</i></span><i> </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Personally, I think the flood of incoming immigrants, one of whom killed Laken Riley (who should still be with us here today), poses a greater threat to each and every American than the need for people to change gender.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Remind me: How is it that these two clowns are running our country?</span></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-66146874125693768662024-03-13T07:55:00.019-04:002024-03-13T08:46:58.334-04:00What Are Gay People So Proud About?<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf1mY1kn5EZ-Zi0gHdJhqC0_Nh52klZ_JIEJOeMeThT1xcLQq3-28mnK-A6mU0u2KRUgTD691trxP6h0a29JJhsYWEqX-5iUkmkiWiWkOg5cctq7xjl2Lgkzu7ZYIuZT_ATuU4_ykFneioQmOTfpJVvLeLpq_SBzK9CX6_LwnF7jlPHmV1Cj3CBToy8LSr/s350/71APAytqqJL._AC_UF350,350_QL50_.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="350" data-original-width="270" height="415" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjf1mY1kn5EZ-Zi0gHdJhqC0_Nh52klZ_JIEJOeMeThT1xcLQq3-28mnK-A6mU0u2KRUgTD691trxP6h0a29JJhsYWEqX-5iUkmkiWiWkOg5cctq7xjl2Lgkzu7ZYIuZT_ATuU4_ykFneioQmOTfpJVvLeLpq_SBzK9CX6_LwnF7jlPHmV1Cj3CBToy8LSr/w320-h415/71APAytqqJL._AC_UF350,350_QL50_.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">It takes one male and one female to make a baby. Can we all agree to that? It's not my opinion, it's a fact and has been a fact since the beginning of time. You know, Adam and Eve and all that.</span><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Yet some people -- a recent Gallup poll concluded that 7.1% of adult Americans identify as LGBT --<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 34); color: #202122;"> feel differently about this. Fine, that's their business. So why does it have to be <i>my</i> business? Or yours, or everyone's? </span></span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #202122;">Go ahead and be gay, or bisexual, or abstain from sex altogether-- do whatever you want. But please, just shut up about it. </span></span></span><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="color: #202122;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Why be so proud about being "different"? Do we really need to </span><span style="font-size: medium;">celebrate</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> the fact that some men like having sex with other men and some women like having sex with other women and some people hate sex altogether with p</span><span style="font-size: medium;">arades</span><span style="font-size: medium;"> across the country? Why is that a good thing? And who the hell </span></span></span></span><span style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">cares?</span></p><p><span style="font-size: medium;"><span style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia;">What I care about is puppy mills and starving children and cancer and war and poverty, not who puts their penis into what </span><span style="color: #202122; font-family: georgia;"><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 34);">receptacle. </span></span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(32, 33, 34); color: #202122; font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Come on world, grow up.</span></span></p></div>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-89520591125071044992024-03-11T17:59:00.146-04:002024-03-12T17:02:14.996-04:00Democrats Are High On Something<p><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;"></span></span></span></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit03hWgAhWUMA88IV6FsYz2OlZPWaYI5BX62dikTCG3TdY_md9iQkx-n1On5JSpWRlxXFfZZjGeVbjWeEncC6m_dIVRM3wTk-xOLgX-ouIC9vHRwEsngcDanwdy1fxos2DlA0B1MJoymDpviMypAprmfUqZEzw36gbur49mSBkBdIOrHY2uppCyf0KoSSo/s180/Unknown.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="156" height="314" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit03hWgAhWUMA88IV6FsYz2OlZPWaYI5BX62dikTCG3TdY_md9iQkx-n1On5JSpWRlxXFfZZjGeVbjWeEncC6m_dIVRM3wTk-xOLgX-ouIC9vHRwEsngcDanwdy1fxos2DlA0B1MJoymDpviMypAprmfUqZEzw36gbur49mSBkBdIOrHY2uppCyf0KoSSo/w272-h314/Unknown.jpeg" width="272" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: medium;"><i>Typical Democrat voter</i></span></td></tr></tbody></table><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;">Come on, admit it: Biden's <span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5);">State</span> of the Union speech was a freak show. An angry old man high on a speed cocktail that had him yelling insanely from start to finish, he touted his alleged "accomplishments" without actually naming any. Referring to the recent murder of a young woman as an <i>illegal </i>citizen, he added, "But how many have been killed by <i>legal</i> citizens?" Oh well, then never mind. </span></span></span><p></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: medium;">Yet somehow his loyal subjects stood and clapped after just about every hollow word, while Republican Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, seated behind Biden, telegraphed his shock and disbelief to the world with subtle facial expressions that bordered on hilarious. </span></span></span></p><p><span><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5);">As odd as that display was, I am most confused by the fact that the Democrats actually<i> believe</i> their lives are better under Biden than they were under Trump! How could they, when the following things were true during Trump's administration: </span></span></span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><i><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5);"><span style="color: red;">Gas was cheap and plentiful.</span> Inflation was low.<span style="color: red;"> </span></span><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5); color: red;">There were no wars; Putin waited until Trump was out of office to invade Ukraine. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5);">Nobody crossed our borders without having been fully vetted. </span><span style="color: red;">A roaring economy was obvious to the average person buying food and other goods. </span><span style="caret-color: rgb(5, 5, 5);">Our allies worked with us, paying their fair share of joint ventures instead of America footing most of the bill. </span></i></span></p><p><span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">Anderson Cooper, Jake Tapper and Rachel Maddow may hate him, but Trump enjoyed friendly relationships with many world leaders, including those of China, Russia and North Korea. Somehow the left-leaning media painted this as a problem, but I felt a lot safer when Putin was chummy with our president. (I've said it before but it bears repeating: I'd rather we be in Putin's pocket than in </span></span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">his sights.)</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">So exactly what drugs are the Democrats on? I might need to get some of those to survive these trying times.</span></span></p><p><span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></span></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-4634214144318597602024-03-11T10:44:00.042-04:002024-03-11T11:16:55.713-04:00 Frontier Airlines: Non-stop to Hell<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Hx1Yo-sSqqakUA5fvx4TYMnPer9x4e0UyH0tOYeVqjTX5Jiq8aCRw1EeLr2k29VjYgByLOS6lrpoius9UByJ2i_MwcZsljAIUeMJX5iXVWQ2lVohH14KL2FfLJAJ50pvHntH7_dz0vAhSv2tzbIroZBdCQ2SvSzvicls_S8eL31bNFfPnjee303p-R19/s2803/IMG_9782.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2803" data-original-width="2035" height="432" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9Hx1Yo-sSqqakUA5fvx4TYMnPer9x4e0UyH0tOYeVqjTX5Jiq8aCRw1EeLr2k29VjYgByLOS6lrpoius9UByJ2i_MwcZsljAIUeMJX5iXVWQ2lVohH14KL2FfLJAJ50pvHntH7_dz0vAhSv2tzbIroZBdCQ2SvSzvicls_S8eL31bNFfPnjee303p-R19/w313-h432/IMG_9782.jpg" width="313" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">We asked for his name, but he refused.</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table>Yesterday my husband and I embarked on a trip to the Twilight Zone. It was not fun. <p></p><p>After getting up at four in the morning for a 9:30AM flight a two-hour drive from our hotel, we skipped breakfast, assuming we'd have plenty of time for that at the airport. Wrong. Though we arrived two hours pre-flight, when we went to check in we found a scene reminiscent of the Woodstock music festival, but without the benefit of being high. </p><p>A crowd of about 200 people filled the ticketing area, where all the computers were down and all the agents were standing around doing absolutely nothing. The free-standing kiosks allowing for self-check-in were also not working.</p><p>After an hour we reached a ticket agent in order to check our luggage, a service for which we had already paid when booking the flight. The agent was a surly, disrespectful young man whose other job must be an MS-13 gang member.<i> (See photo.)</i> He yelled,<i> "Go away! You're too late! </i><i>Your flight is already gone. The doors are shut, you missed it." </i>Pointing somewhere off in the distance, he said, <i>"Go re-book another flight."</i></p><p>But how could that be, since it was another 50 minutes until flight time? Being intelligent and of sound mind, unlike that clearly idiotic ticket agent, my husband suggested we run to our flight gate, bags and all, some distance away. We did so and found that boarding had not yet begun! We got on, unaware that our nightmare had.</p><p><span style="color: red; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-large;"><b>"WHATEVER ELSE YOU DO IN LIFE, </b></span><b><span style="color: red; font-family: helvetica; font-size: x-large;">DO NOT FLY FRONTIER AIRLINES."</span><i><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;">-- Everyone who ever flew on Frontier A</span></i></b><span style="caret-color: rgb(255, 0, 0);"><b><i><span style="font-family: times; font-size: medium;">irlines</span></i></b></span></p><p>Once on the plane, in our tiny seats barely big enough for a Munchkin (which for extra fun did not recline), we sat there, on the ground, for the next two-and-a-half hours. For the first hour there was dead silence from the cockpit, with no explanation as to what was happening. Finally a voice on the loudspeaker announced that because of a last-minute crew change we were "waiting for a Captain to fly the plane." Oh, good, there was going to be someone flying the plane. At least that.</p><p>After another half-hour the Captain finally arrived, but then we were told that one of the two runways was closed so it would take about 20 more minutes before we could be cleared for take-off. Next we learned that we were cleared for take-off but behind many other planes, so it would be awhile. At no time did any flight attendant of any gender offer us water, coffee, tea or anything at all. They remained out of sight, I guess for fear of their lives, what with unruly passengers the norm these days.</p><p>Once airborne we were permitted to buy a bottle of water for $4.49, and some other things like cheese and crackers and almonds for an arm and a leg. Not having eaten since dinner the night before, and it was almost noon, we indulged. (The $12 Bloody Mary helped.)</p><p>Early this morning my husband received an emailed survey from Frontier asking him to rate his experience. He's still writing.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-22920675354053329082024-03-08T07:18:00.014-05:002024-03-08T10:34:19.089-05:00Biden's World<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div><span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwA45X0JAuQmMPS-kU_OpFmlRS7i6IHHjVCU-tVwfubyilBLzTUyc7ILRwQHPCTlV-F4hH4kAtnscDodNmrfdToBwocUsMsWDH62lp97vYECajxSBRpFHrKdPxYEVX4jpuIylvUa6sp7vpLEt2nz3A-f5R1NLqSWL5JKROxGCaKWUZt69m1-u-sCPrrksN/s129/Unknown.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="129" data-original-width="125" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiwA45X0JAuQmMPS-kU_OpFmlRS7i6IHHjVCU-tVwfubyilBLzTUyc7ILRwQHPCTlV-F4hH4kAtnscDodNmrfdToBwocUsMsWDH62lp97vYECajxSBRpFHrKdPxYEVX4jpuIylvUa6sp7vpLEt2nz3A-f5R1NLqSWL5JKROxGCaKWUZt69m1-u-sCPrrksN/w187-h193/Unknown.jpeg" width="187" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;">Last night in his State of the Union speech Joe Biden painted a picture of an imaginary America where everything is fabulous! I wish I lived there. In Joe's world, all the people are happy and hard-working, there are millions of jobs, prices are low, there's no crime and the border is secure. As an added bonus, the Vice President is a great leader! </span></span><p></p><p><span style="font-size: large;">I guess it's all those new Alzheimer's drugs. A side benefit is they make your skin as smooth as a baby's bottom, even when you are an old coot. Suddenly I'm looking forward to senility.</span></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-46327761318617813562024-03-07T09:07:00.019-05:002024-03-07T13:41:53.709-05:00Palace Intrigue<p>Let me say at the outset that I watched <i>The Crown</i>, twice in fact, and loved every minute of it --okay, not the episodes about Diana, but all the rest. Still, even though Princess Kate has been AWOL since Christmas, giving rise to many speculative stories and conspiracy theories about her alleged "abdominal surgery," I can go on with my life. That does not seem to be true for the entire British citizenry, who are obsessed with Kate's insides and demand to know where the heck she is.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1t_cUncwf_eocLku9LtBVA5c_DTxuPR4btX_eRNZiIxOmaLu5y9DXhYUBbPBk9xZkG_tkplDB6J042eVty8DJzNzANXPCBgKYDv2809cfjlLngWppFhIaXHXYlT6jMXsIkhkT7JzLEvGAYVTXDCVZ6V6XMMFtb_DxrlD_H6KvzSMxREDLGZRT_JJw-NF/s225/images-1.jpeg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="225" data-original-width="225" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO1t_cUncwf_eocLku9LtBVA5c_DTxuPR4btX_eRNZiIxOmaLu5y9DXhYUBbPBk9xZkG_tkplDB6J042eVty8DJzNzANXPCBgKYDv2809cfjlLngWppFhIaXHXYlT6jMXsIkhkT7JzLEvGAYVTXDCVZ6V6XMMFtb_DxrlD_H6KvzSMxREDLGZRT_JJw-NF/w297-h297/images-1.jpeg" width="297" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Botox? Nose job? Cheek implants?</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table>Don't get me wrong -- I like Kate Middleton. She's very pretty, seems sweet and most of all has incredible posture, something I envy since I have been slumped over since 4th grade when my breasts showed up and had me in a D cup by the age of 12. Anyway, Kate is great in my book, and while I certainly don't want her to die prematurely, I can survive without knowing what's up with her.<p></p><p>The British people, however, are sick in the head when it comes to the Royal Family. My husband's explanation is that they are like "pets" to the British people, which makes the most sense of anything I've heard. </p><p>They want to know what <i>kind </i>of surgery (a hysterectomy does not require four months of recuperation), where is she<i> now</i>, where has she <i>been</i>, who's taking care of her kids, has she been in a coma, is she still in a coma, did she suffer complications, did she have plastic surgery -- maybe a tummy tuck -- is she already dead and was that lady recently seen driving in a car with Kate's mother really her.</p><p>Enough already with Kate! What I want to know is how anyone in their right mind can vote for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.</p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-60483782781257276202024-03-05T07:49:00.009-05:002024-03-05T07:51:41.549-05:00Keep Obama In President<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj810EjEzgwLxDur4OIJInKeRtfp6_WmnyL0oEEq32c5tbehB6wURxd991vc0Kobc8Kh278y-4srDnj63K11vU6QiHID8bO8XFrdEScjNRqhW7eTEX8YMdncpz3CQcs0OCAyDUU9KXVXhjLX3i4R_jeBpiXcVi1idoUnyOT1Qsw5JUjaoqvctf5umIU2Q-h/s305/images.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="305" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj810EjEzgwLxDur4OIJInKeRtfp6_WmnyL0oEEq32c5tbehB6wURxd991vc0Kobc8Kh278y-4srDnj63K11vU6QiHID8bO8XFrdEScjNRqhW7eTEX8YMdncpz3CQcs0OCAyDUU9KXVXhjLX3i4R_jeBpiXcVi1idoUnyOT1Qsw5JUjaoqvctf5umIU2Q-h/w437-h236/images.jpeg" width="437" /></a></div><br />Months ago my husband contacted a high-school girlfriend he saw on Facebook. Recalling their sweet childhood friendship, he inquired how she was doing. Her response soon after was, "Are you still a right-wing MAGA nut?" She then called out Trump as an antisemitic neo-Nazi. <p></p><p>I won't dignify the woman by repeating anymore of her ramblings. Instead I direct you to the fact that MAGA has become a <i>slur </i>to the lunatic lefties, even though the acronym stands for "Make America Great Again." Hey, sounds good to me!</p><p>Clearly the Democrats don't share that desire since their candidates strive to do the opposite, welcoming swarms of un-vetted, ill-prepared, penniless aliens, mostly young, single men, many who are drug dealers and gang members, who seem not to care a whit about America being great but will surely vote Democratic thanks to all the free stuff they get from them. </p><p>How else to explain the current abysmal state of the country, with violent crime ramping up daily along with all the other ills of a third-world country? That famous lady said it best years ago: "Keep Obama in President!" And surely he is.</p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-34013282083833577512024-03-01T08:27:00.013-05:002024-03-01T08:31:17.634-05:00Kicking the Bucket<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOOJczYzF4Kz90kPpJTby1dLCpTYzrfSBwCWBcITUxG0dSLCVW10CZV43wS9CuEghil2RswMu14rXb6ycfcuCwtk4Lw5dWpsYEpIvWxawagfxtkkhOIC9Qy8Xz2lVbtR9j1lWNI6QyE9mxzhWtvO1eEFI5THvSzI7JDLlBS06D4vHc5pHTwbtrZGY-zI9D/s309/Unknown.jpeg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="309" data-original-width="255" height="376" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOOJczYzF4Kz90kPpJTby1dLCpTYzrfSBwCWBcITUxG0dSLCVW10CZV43wS9CuEghil2RswMu14rXb6ycfcuCwtk4Lw5dWpsYEpIvWxawagfxtkkhOIC9Qy8Xz2lVbtR9j1lWNI6QyE9mxzhWtvO1eEFI5THvSzI7JDLlBS06D4vHc5pHTwbtrZGY-zI9D/w310-h376/Unknown.jpeg" width="310" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Richard Lewis, truly one of a kind.</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table>Sadly, the comic genius and resulting hilarity of Richard Lewis will no longer be available to lift our spirits, except in reruns of course. Lewis died of a heart attack just days ago at the age of 76, after years of suffering from various health issues. Still he remained active, making us laugh on TV's <i>Curb Your Enthusiasm.</i> Despite his ongoing challenges, a mutual friend who knew him well reported that Lewis was optimistic about life until the end.<br /><p></p><p>It's ironic that Lewis is gone while many infirm and depressing people hang around, doing nothing to lift our spirits at all. For example Joe Biden, 81, who went to the wrong Texas town yesterday and shuffled around with a few border agents for a photo op, mumbling that it was all Trump's fault, still lives and breathes and bums everyone out. He does follow orders, however. Perhaps Obama could put a bucket in front of him and tell him to kick it.</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-75442393405125674332024-02-28T10:16:00.002-05:002024-02-29T07:29:29.687-05:00Wolf in Sheep's Clothing<p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><br /></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikBEaUfR1nuoIWaxBrO8ctc4j1yahUr2yhurSy9cbv0gX6sSkEBp4JlV8ax6X19EKUbKgS-Uh2uuBeV90gU3ijQeGbkpSMajoeJmKCyoHnPOSuQi8Xs3BJbgI822qKdjuZwQpgi4Z_6E8Dc4wUOAelPBGSAfNsHnK72tctMmztg3RAvmrWTw9HEoylMojd/s181/images.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="181" data-original-width="167" height="306" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikBEaUfR1nuoIWaxBrO8ctc4j1yahUr2yhurSy9cbv0gX6sSkEBp4JlV8ax6X19EKUbKgS-Uh2uuBeV90gU3ijQeGbkpSMajoeJmKCyoHnPOSuQi8Xs3BJbgI822qKdjuZwQpgi4Z_6E8Dc4wUOAelPBGSAfNsHnK72tctMmztg3RAvmrWTw9HEoylMojd/w282-h306/images.jpeg" width="282" /></a></div>Poor old Joe. Everyone thinks he is responsible for the mess this country has become since he took office. But seriously, does anyone really believe that he, a loser with a history of doing nothing in Congress for 40 years and lying about his past accomplishments, in cahoots with his drug-addicted sketchy son and slowly losing his mind to dementia, is the President? No. He's the Sheep, doing the bidding of the Wolf named Obama.</span><p></p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.45em; margin: 0px 0px 18px; outline: currentcolor; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: medium;">Unconvinced? On Oct. 30, 2008, shortly before the presidential election, Barack Hussein Obama told a crowd in Columbia, Missouri, <span style="color: red;"><i><b>“We are five days away from fundamentally transforming the United States of America.”</b></i></span></span></span></p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.45em; margin: 0px 0px 18px; outline: currentcolor; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><span style="font-size: large;">And indeed he has, but not for the better. The crime waves inundating virtually every large city -- thefts, carjackings, murders, rapes -- in tandem with hordes of homeless drug addicts camping on the streets and the influx of illegal migrants overrunning our non-existent borders are quickly turning our once-great country into a third-world pit of despair. </span></span></p><p style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; font-feature-settings: inherit; font-kerning: inherit; font-optical-sizing: inherit; font-size-adjust: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-alternates: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-ligatures: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-variant-position: inherit; font-variation-settings: inherit; line-height: 1.45em; margin: 0px 0px 18px; outline: currentcolor; padding: 0px;"><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: medium;">But hey, the Democrats will get those freeloading parasites non-citizens to vote for them in exchange for free food, health care and housing, assuring they will remain in power forever as the invading foreigners soon outnumber the rest of us.</span></p><p><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-40125731607002120142024-02-26T08:07:00.051-05:002024-02-26T08:47:20.301-05:00Hollywood Half-truths Rule the Day<p>My husband and I recently attended a local screening of the five Oscar nominees for Best Documentary Short Film. As expected they were woke as hell, since Hollywood wants nothing more than to be seen as committed to diversity, equity and inclusion. A mix of preachy films touching on the plight of poor blacks trapped in poverty, the tough road traveled by gays in America and the lives of two very old Chinese women, the most egregious was called <i>The ABCs of Book Banning </i>that had me doing a slow burn in my seat.<i> </i>Not a documentary, it was a 27-minute commercial<i> </i>for a political point of view.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdna8iZlRFA4Bi9aGjj6O8FcsSh2kX9hj4FZTH-bzP0_rrLjgGJw6hyphenhyphenv9kseVZX_K0rCRZWGum_TmKW6Hrkbis08P5E1aYM206Bnyw1rQH9TINfuYSabuQq-SbigToT22PXMBxMz24tZoYJTQZHE5un_UYQEeOfZYU6-vFIYYL7L95e3DFYDPy0Nt_gFY8/s190/Unknown.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="161" data-original-width="190" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdna8iZlRFA4Bi9aGjj6O8FcsSh2kX9hj4FZTH-bzP0_rrLjgGJw6hyphenhyphenv9kseVZX_K0rCRZWGum_TmKW6Hrkbis08P5E1aYM206Bnyw1rQH9TINfuYSabuQq-SbigToT22PXMBxMz24tZoYJTQZHE5un_UYQEeOfZYU6-vFIYYL7L95e3DFYDPy0Nt_gFY8/w261-h221/Unknown.jpeg" width="261" /></a></div>First off, let's be clear: there are no books BANNED in America --at least not in this century! You can still find any book you want to read, online or in a bookstore or library somewhere. Secondly, no books have been BURNED in this century either. Yet this film blithely shows scores of book jackets and dramatically stamps them as BANNED or RESTRICTED or CHALLENGED! One person says "Banning books is burning books." (Uh, no it isn't.) <div><br /></div><div>Missing are a few important details, like <i>why, where </i>and <i>when </i>they were kept from the public, and exactly what "public" was impacted. While the "banned books" were removed from school library shelves in Martin County, Florida -- damn that Ron DeSantis! -- they were all still available and in print. Quotes shown from the targeted books were cherry-picked to make them sound perfectly wonderful and innocent, leaving out any offensive parts that had deemed them inappropriate for young children.<p>Elementary school students were restricted from reading <i>Maus</i>, the award-winning opus by Art Spiegelman, not to hide the atrocities of the Holocaust but because of nudity and language. But if their parents had an edition of <i>Maus </i>at home they could read it under the watchful eyes of Mom and Dad. Similarly, the film's snarky narration that accompanied book jackets flashed on-screen lacked any explanation of<i> why</i>, and what age groups were affected.</p><p>Also BANNED was Toni Morrison's <i>The Bluest Eye.</i> Doing some digging when I got home, I learned that "the moral issues explored are extremely mature and include incest, rape, sexual dysfunction, racism and prostitution." How nice for the tots. And hey -- don't parents have some authority over what their young ones are exposed to? </p><p>This film, boring from start to finish, is an embarrassing display of manipulative, exaggerated over-reach and groupthink by the rabid leftists -- so what else is new? My money is on it winning the Oscar.</p></div>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-68598653006109706472024-02-23T20:06:00.001-05:002024-02-23T20:06:59.738-05:00What's A Palestinian Worth?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: red; font-family: courier; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOHxE83UOminMOANwcrkV_0AkrRPjVALC7x4XPy7jnrnaf88vMrYgCgFUdvuYNKY2lkRBxbZuREq_4jjhF3nYwrlSZQXme45wqod9roDicroYvLvs_VgJmuxQ79BNvwCC4fT5coyBHihqO6KfW8ydgjXCoTpAaEeGRt2syWwyB7EXTiicC6IdbKT4dTGO/s1600/imbalanced-scale-angel-devil-conceptual-illustration-silhouette-unbalanced-vintage-head-its-pans-36843751.jpg.webp" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1290" data-original-width="1600" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEOHxE83UOminMOANwcrkV_0AkrRPjVALC7x4XPy7jnrnaf88vMrYgCgFUdvuYNKY2lkRBxbZuREq_4jjhF3nYwrlSZQXme45wqod9roDicroYvLvs_VgJmuxQ79BNvwCC4fT5coyBHihqO6KfW8ydgjXCoTpAaEeGRt2syWwyB7EXTiicC6IdbKT4dTGO/w426-h343/imbalanced-scale-angel-devil-conceptual-illustration-silhouette-unbalanced-vintage-head-its-pans-36843751.jpg.webp" width="426" /></a></div><span style="font-size: large;"><br /><span style="font-family: georgia;">A recent report at NPR News states that Israel and Hamas are embarking on talks in Paris to negotiate a six-week cease-fire: </span></span><p></p><p><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(51, 51, 51); letter-spacing: 0.36px;"><span style="color: red; font-family: georgia; font-size: large;">"According to the Egyptian officials, some prisoners serving life sentences on alleged terrorism charges will be among the 3,000 Palestinian prisoners to be exchanged for 50 of the civilian Israeli hostages."</span></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><span style="letter-spacing: 0.36px;">In other words, one Israeli is worth 60 Palestinians. That sounds</span></span><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(255, 0, 0); letter-spacing: 0.36px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; letter-spacing: 0.36px;">about right.</span></span></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-23556605708601367522024-02-23T09:34:00.006-05:002024-02-24T07:15:15.738-05:00Signs of Maine<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIss3GV-HYQ-9yNPdHcUvIDLUQR-OktKscf5rwlkRB34Ilq3ix2j0h7TMnYFgcUkHjUZOmSXQVXnH5DW13iyeW8INcdDCQxGFnDKedToFE1cryjxVjulL06_iU85dt5ugNJl2oY_qa2CwMNsieStY2Ltw6JNVBQnrpJSRyGJpN9qLaT_D5YMIY5WmV9Cj/s275/Unknown-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="275" height="361" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsIss3GV-HYQ-9yNPdHcUvIDLUQR-OktKscf5rwlkRB34Ilq3ix2j0h7TMnYFgcUkHjUZOmSXQVXnH5DW13iyeW8INcdDCQxGFnDKedToFE1cryjxVjulL06_iU85dt5ugNJl2oY_qa2CwMNsieStY2Ltw6JNVBQnrpJSRyGJpN9qLaT_D5YMIY5WmV9Cj/w542-h361/Unknown-1.jpeg" width="542" /></a></div>Judging by the lawn signs here in my little town of Freeport, Maine, population 8,784, black lives no longer matter, except to two families on Pine Street and a few more in the outlying areas. What the locals care about these days is being nice, which they telegraph with lawn signs that read, "Be Nice."<p></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2HdX0GYtpH4qYusnz0Aaoolo2ftkxsiSBIs2ZvZfY7LYhqOnu6w0HBlF6iMgSpDcFfeNtCDJZEEWTZDSpQQk1wd15tK5_ZM_kn3Tut5wtEC6G_oyMyLzMqdsNECp7OkTNEJ-Uhw8AQ1-2Sv0weB2gL4iororLS_vJnjaNzdH1Scc4p0nB1cKzz3OgnxAi/s259/Unknown-4.jpeg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="194" data-original-width="259" height="194" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2HdX0GYtpH4qYusnz0Aaoolo2ftkxsiSBIs2ZvZfY7LYhqOnu6w0HBlF6iMgSpDcFfeNtCDJZEEWTZDSpQQk1wd15tK5_ZM_kn3Tut5wtEC6G_oyMyLzMqdsNECp7OkTNEJ-Uhw8AQ1-2Sv0weB2gL4iororLS_vJnjaNzdH1Scc4p0nB1cKzz3OgnxAi/s1600/Unknown-4.jpeg" width="259" /></a></div>This is odd since, as I have written in this space before, the people who live here, both in Freeport and all over the state of Maine, are notoriously <i>not </i>nice. Instead they are insulated, cold, taciturn, humorless, mean, introverted and possibly even a tad antisemitic.<p></p><p></p><p></p>Just like those "Black Lives Matter" signs really meant <i>"Please don't break into my house and hurt me, I love all black people,"</i> the "Be Nice" signs mean <i>"I wish I could figure out how to be nice but since I never learned as a child growing up here it's too late to start now, anyway I hope you are nice to me."</i><p></p><p>Another sign you see frequently around here is "Watch Out for Moose." I have lived in Maine for 15 years and have travelled the state, and have never once seen a moose. My husband says they put those signs up for the tourists to make them feel like they have gone someplace foreign and interesting and Maine-ish. I have to agree. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc5rUD3LVaBw7W5ZO7OXCPxnCt1977qgUuV8S4vdjjfZ2b377Hziz3UfP8TyJrREStS8xjiR9yfSadBeh-xunRTbvc-oh4X67LOWhgSQYZIF21JWlKXr6aztD7GWkWzFYEvlfdifLUdaPRaKWs7cbH6MraiIt2aoC3r9dsp1Hf3-xePr3uD1BWzi6p-sd3/s300/shopping.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="300" data-original-width="284" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjc5rUD3LVaBw7W5ZO7OXCPxnCt1977qgUuV8S4vdjjfZ2b377Hziz3UfP8TyJrREStS8xjiR9yfSadBeh-xunRTbvc-oh4X67LOWhgSQYZIF21JWlKXr6aztD7GWkWzFYEvlfdifLUdaPRaKWs7cbH6MraiIt2aoC3r9dsp1Hf3-xePr3uD1BWzi6p-sd3/w185-h195/shopping.jpeg" width="185" /></a></div>In fact, the only sign that means what is says here in Maine is "STOP." My husband learned that the hard way and ended up in jail for a few hours because he didn't. Stop, that is.<p></p><br /><p></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-58510792385445041692024-02-22T09:30:00.006-05:002024-02-22T09:32:13.339-05:00What Are You Watching?<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xLJbUXCXv9JmFOzn8CF14KsZDsXFuIQLjwOmN_EbvHL7wRKqeidBqyukTV0_7gSp61gbL6-uM1yN-LPKTI0X6HWLJ6rojpzejom9RKaa2luvZm-ANTV4hkR1HWflUD9uVjNWmsBrSYp9utcAXXiaDn0vlHW9o1hw4cCfpuY_UBMA9Yn2kKVrsIX7i-yc/s1200/stan-2021-the-nanny-looks.jpg.webp" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="675" data-original-width="1200" height="317" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3xLJbUXCXv9JmFOzn8CF14KsZDsXFuIQLjwOmN_EbvHL7wRKqeidBqyukTV0_7gSp61gbL6-uM1yN-LPKTI0X6HWLJ6rojpzejom9RKaa2luvZm-ANTV4hkR1HWflUD9uVjNWmsBrSYp9utcAXXiaDn0vlHW9o1hw4cCfpuY_UBMA9Yn2kKVrsIX7i-yc/w563-h317/stan-2021-the-nanny-looks.jpg.webp" width="563" /></a></div><br />I saw an old friend yesterday, someone I hadn't seen in several months. After the usual greetings and opening pleasantries, we got down to business: "So, what are you watching?" There's even a Facebook group called "What Are You Watching on TV?" It has 4.3 thousand members, so nothing to sneeze at. At a friend's behest I clicked, eager to see what's grabbing the attention of the healthy young masses these days, since I live alone (except for my workaholic husband who travels often) and my friends are older, thus considering surgery, getting ready for surgery, recovering from surgery or just plain miserable.<p></p><p>What I've learned is that, for many people, "watching" has replaced "doing." Night after night, people the world over turn on their TVs -- or their iPads, computers or iPhones -- and plug their brains in Matrix-style to a make-believe world that blots out real life. And why not? Real life is abysmal these days, with wars, political disharmony, inflation, starvation, homelessness, mass shootings, drug ODs and alien invasions at our borders. </p><p>Any fool knows that a good night's sleep depends on mellowing out beforehand, and what better way than with fantasy friends played by good-looking people leading interesting lives? The choices are endless, literally, although a tad cookie-cutter. </p><p>For a breath of fresh air I've been watching <i>The Nanny, </i>a CBS sitcom that aired from 1993-1999. It's hold-your-sides funny. Fran Drescher, the lead, is drop-dead gorgeous and as wacky as Lucille Ball in her heyday, dressed in outrageous outfits of the day. Every episode features a surprise guest star who was major back then and in some cases still is. The script beats anything written these days since the show was created pre-woke, so mocking at all sorts of things like sexuality, obesity, stupidity and all the rest of what is verboten today was commonplace then.</p><p>Now streaming on Max.</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-6152766234862069622024-02-21T09:17:00.000-05:002024-02-21T09:17:58.207-05:00The Travel Bug Hasn't Bitten Me<p>I just received a belated Christmas Letter from a friend who explains she was late sending it out because she was traveling and gives the details: January in Mexico and NYC; May in Sicily; June in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania; July in Germany; August and September staycation at her Maine island home; November the Dominican Republic; and December in Argentina and Antarctica.</p><p>No spring chicken, this particular friend has undergone two knee replacements and a couple of hips too, yet somehow she has the energy, stamina and will, whereas I had to take a lorazepam just from reading her letter. In fact, planning for my upcoming week-long trip to Florida in early March already keeps me up at night.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilEoN0c1rwgvDMqRGXbbOc5UtfpX_XVX26BEk2cDEiYMFQQn9rKnSfK-90Zq6GOQ_B6Nii-xPOCmj-hd8KveX-yS2LVV1QpZU3KBF01KLDKvCxiOesQ1SgfCmiyurETy7IfcRB7rL_Z0EuTUc2MlpoilxGA_JNEcT3KlN2R1gvpGNmzygdHUE4b1jJBz-k/s712/travel-tourism-air_travel-air_hostesses-flight_attendant-overbooked_flight-air_steward-bwhn1976_low.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="712" data-original-width="615" height="367" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEilEoN0c1rwgvDMqRGXbbOc5UtfpX_XVX26BEk2cDEiYMFQQn9rKnSfK-90Zq6GOQ_B6Nii-xPOCmj-hd8KveX-yS2LVV1QpZU3KBF01KLDKvCxiOesQ1SgfCmiyurETy7IfcRB7rL_Z0EuTUc2MlpoilxGA_JNEcT3KlN2R1gvpGNmzygdHUE4b1jJBz-k/w316-h367/travel-tourism-air_travel-air_hostesses-flight_attendant-overbooked_flight-air_steward-bwhn1976_low.jpg" width="316" /></a></div>Travel has become a nightmare, plain and simple. If you can spare a few hours of your day you may eventually book an affordable plane ticket, but can you afford those necessary <i>extras:</i> a seat and your luggage? Yup, those'll cost you. And forget creature comforts: pillows, blankets, food and even a TV screen on which to watch a movie are now all part of history. And don't forget your earphones or you'll have to buy those on the plane. As for civility, unruly passengers are becoming commonplace, so pack bandages in case someone punches you in the nose for asking their kid to stop kicking the back of your seat.<p></p><p>Cruises might be fun if you can spare an arm and a leg, and if your idea of a vacation is relaxing with 6,000 other people including children and pets, aboard a floating theme park/Vegas nightclub/shopping mall that could sink. Or you might just get seasick and throw up a lot.</p><p>Instead, I vacation at home. Today's agenda includes three healthy meals that will be delicious and <i>not cold</i>, plenty of coffee and snacks available without waiting on any lines, and fun activities like hot-tubbing after an afternoon facial and workout in the basement gym. There will be excursions into Portland and South Portland, dinner at home with a friend and an evening show of my choosing. Plus no worry about cancellations, delays, crying babies and mean-spirited flight attendants making me take my seat when I get up to stretch my legs or need to use the bathroom.</p><p>The best part is that it's all free! (Excursions extra.)</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-16161286599659768692024-02-20T17:05:00.017-05:002024-02-20T17:09:24.963-05:00Alice's Wonderland Makes More Sense<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbY-koFEuMzRdf8XSTHiLFA1DKNJAty_D_DbeIyw4hXKFSi1xeJp1BIfIEKTXMSvG85sZPylt0NzLiJHE5aVzCNYBBkRx4zWqBXEkzKpyq2LNaZnRuoe24VEDvsIzn2LYrqd-6raGeZCYancBbou7KuPrmMtn033WFWFEsvcft1ndGElSAxydajW0D-1xv/s290/images.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="174" data-original-width="290" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbY-koFEuMzRdf8XSTHiLFA1DKNJAty_D_DbeIyw4hXKFSi1xeJp1BIfIEKTXMSvG85sZPylt0NzLiJHE5aVzCNYBBkRx4zWqBXEkzKpyq2LNaZnRuoe24VEDvsIzn2LYrqd-6raGeZCYancBbou7KuPrmMtn033WFWFEsvcft1ndGElSAxydajW0D-1xv/w470-h282/images.jpeg" width="470" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i><span style="font-size: medium;">Dr. Jill and Joe Biden hosting their biggest donors.</span></i></td></tr></tbody></table><br />I heard on the news that Joe Biden's reelection campaign raised $42 million just in the month of January. That's crazy talk! Who is throwing money at an 81-year-old man with a failing memory, increasing dementia and long a history of illegal activities and outright lies so he can be our president? And what is that money being used for? TV commercials denigrating the opposition and billboards, lawn signs, bumper stickers, buttons and pamphlets featuring Joe's creepy, crepey face. Not to mention all those lattes, pizzas and hotel rooms for the staff. And if you write a big enough check, maybe you'll get a fancy dinner at the White House with Joe and Dr. Jill.<p></p><p>There are countless better ways to spend my money, and anyone else's too. Like food for the poor, homeless shelters, and blah, blah, blah -- you know the rest. Politics these days is a hideous waste of money in light of how many Americans are standing on street corners holding signs that read, "hungry, anything helps." </p><p>Imagine if a candidate said, "Donate to my campaign and I will give it to the following causes," listing things like the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and so many others. That candidate would have my vote, regardless of party. But no such candidate exists in what has become a reality show where the poorest candidate gets voted off the island. I am old enough to remember when the issues facing the country were what mattered, not the size of a candidate's war chest.</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-89812985793762630992024-02-19T14:43:00.025-05:002024-02-19T17:40:42.450-05:00The Coming Civil War<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhptBosevWTdR3_mx5PVgztpzpafZYy8TGlLdfKo7lxJEmyMwniPqJfYFApV0uD1VLXWP9fBkcvdsSP0AKLTzyeFk9j0dR7cExTLuxM0wRMp02x_XxMsRx5QihEwAye25FZY8KiolOhP5AW0X-uxTjCTC0Zbg52YFVu5cFZVfN7kDI43tfOJgRJ8VCiv7pr/s1200/6lcnj5xhp67c1.jpeg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1043" data-original-width="1200" height="335" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhptBosevWTdR3_mx5PVgztpzpafZYy8TGlLdfKo7lxJEmyMwniPqJfYFApV0uD1VLXWP9fBkcvdsSP0AKLTzyeFk9j0dR7cExTLuxM0wRMp02x_XxMsRx5QihEwAye25FZY8KiolOhP5AW0X-uxTjCTC0Zbg52YFVu5cFZVfN7kDI43tfOJgRJ8VCiv7pr/w386-h335/6lcnj5xhp67c1.jpeg" width="386" /></a></div>There's a new movie scheduled to arrive sometime in April or May, and the trailer for it are running on YouTube now. I watched it and was only slightly worried since it seems to me America has been embroiled in a civil war for many years, so no big deal. When they start shooting and bombing, like in the movie trailer, then I'll worry.<p></p><p>Fortunately I have rid my daily life of most of the enemy, and thank God my only child has finally seen the light and come over to the side of reason and sanity. As for the rest, ta-ta, too bad, so sad.</p><p>We are living in a country where nobody has any idea who is running it, certainly not Joe Biden, who was recently deemed "too old and feeble" to stand trial for his past crimes but is somehow still allowed to run for re-election. It's nuts. Anyone who tells you "Joe Biden is fine" is not fine. (At least Trump is cogent enough to go to court, all too often IMHO.) </p><p>When the next civil war starts I shall bolt my doors, turn out the lights and start eating from all the prepper foods we have stockpiled in the basement. Better get some water.</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-75048269763555779512024-02-19T08:34:00.000-05:002024-02-19T08:34:04.326-05:00If You Only Had A Brain<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; font-size: large; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje-98l1VcDoZa6yO7kaW7z5oAGB-RgJdKEGaSzMNxVogjHSga1drfmWvZ1AB9tJlSnEgj0Mlyrp8R2hO_hawI5QlkbugmohA-CuO0-7jPKjkbhqhXIQECWB6XEh7TXMkSzStbmwD6_SRo1aaSy76YA10rgs3pq2hWAC6LWkgYno2XpgpcqTuMqH6I1TAK6/s212/Unknown.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="170" data-original-width="212" height="246" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEje-98l1VcDoZa6yO7kaW7z5oAGB-RgJdKEGaSzMNxVogjHSga1drfmWvZ1AB9tJlSnEgj0Mlyrp8R2hO_hawI5QlkbugmohA-CuO0-7jPKjkbhqhXIQECWB6XEh7TXMkSzStbmwD6_SRo1aaSy76YA10rgs3pq2hWAC6LWkgYno2XpgpcqTuMqH6I1TAK6/w307-h246/Unknown.jpeg" width="307" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;">I once spent time with a woman who lives on my street. We pretended to be friends but never were, mostly because she was incapable of discussing anything real. So we skimmed the surface, getting together for dinner with our husbands when we would all follow her strict rules forbidding talk of politics, world events, race, gender diversity and anything else that would expose her ignorance about them all.</span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">One day she came for lunch with some other ladies. I served iced tea with lemon, placing a straw into each glass. The aforementioned woman literally<i> shrieked</i> in horror, saying she was "shocked" by my action. I had no idea what she meant. Turns out it was my using plastic straws. <i>"Don't you know they are killing the environment? <b>How could you?"</b></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">She had heard that somewhere, probably on CNN, her only news source. I explained that the four plastic straws we were using in my kitchen would end up in my trash and be incinerated and not choke any seagulls, or whatever she was worried about, but she simply could not grasp that. To her we were picnicking on the seashore and leaving our straws in the sand where they would float out to sea. <i>"Don't you know about the plastic island near Hawaii?" </i>she cried, visibly upset. Apparently all plastic straws end up there. </span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;"><i><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(40, 40, 41); color: #282829;"> </span></i></span><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(40, 40, 41); color: #282829; font-family: georgia;">Lack of clear thinking, or thinking at all, has become a huge problem in America and is responsible for the deep chasm that exists between our two warring political parties. </span><span style="font-family: georgia;">According to health physicist Steven Jerkins writing online, </span><i style="font-family: georgia;">"<span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(40, 40, 41); color: #282829;">The war on plastic straws is just the latest virtue signaling issue that is a meaningless diversion from the real issue of ocean dumping of garbage."</span></i></p><p><span style="background-color: white; caret-color: rgb(40, 40, 41); color: #282829; font-family: georgia;">Hopefully, scientific advances will eventually allow for brain transplants, and people like Mary can one day enjoy the benefits of thinking for herself.</span></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-3526063528768900572024-02-15T17:56:00.006-05:002024-02-15T18:04:56.737-05:00The Truth About Being Old<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6tb4icy0WAGQW0UHcJ1m2ZCS7NTqgsVFAaDyf2hOAD668ifAPHxX-4R5D5VJt7II91CbHpbIp_M_6dX9EPaCkJ3iuD5MwYASCBDe-j2G90oPjdIzIHCjfT27VXs56y-F_N0UvuEFBZ_je_c4NM9CDH9pQCYv2NFRXkKGDUAHNjUwQR5x7sQDMrl71Job/s325/images-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="155" data-original-width="325" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS6tb4icy0WAGQW0UHcJ1m2ZCS7NTqgsVFAaDyf2hOAD668ifAPHxX-4R5D5VJt7II91CbHpbIp_M_6dX9EPaCkJ3iuD5MwYASCBDe-j2G90oPjdIzIHCjfT27VXs56y-F_N0UvuEFBZ_je_c4NM9CDH9pQCYv2NFRXkKGDUAHNjUwQR5x7sQDMrl71Job/w572-h273/images-1.jpeg" width="572" /></a></div><br />The worst part of growing old is that most of your friends are doing it too. I say most, because a bunch of them are already dead. In fact, that's the real drag. And while you can certainly make new friends, you can't make new <i>old </i>friends.<p></p><p>The other thing about aging is that you and your also-old friends spend most, if not all, of your time together catching up on everyone's ailments, surgeries, treatments, hospital stays and doctor visits. This at least has one benefit, which is finding out that someone else has it worse than you, or just as bad, which lets you stop thinking, "Why me?"</p><p>Hollywood stars are hiding the truth of their lives behind facelifts, tummy tucks, liposuction, body sculpting and Botox injections, but believe me, they're all in the same boat. You can bet that new hips and knees go along with those more glamorous elective surgeries. </p><p>And that's it. Otherwise being old is just like being young, only quieter.</p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-50665428485671431362024-02-14T16:12:00.009-05:002024-02-14T18:07:11.970-05:00St. Valentine's Day Ripoff<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzlI87iryGct3qHRiYK-u8cePs5M6hBbg9_agJcgjcxd3cGaERcYdpawlPdAJRsuuY7GmabvXa52-v2LqWduto8VEcB4i0KV5S2EBc80zlAt2Nrf7j4YUlVpHGhL36iYE4nyfIs3K30BscNJT1vFNX9qhv5Y9efZYuO16wtcvQz6PnbS8QdH8KpcmTS-XU/s271/images.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="167" data-original-width="271" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzlI87iryGct3qHRiYK-u8cePs5M6hBbg9_agJcgjcxd3cGaERcYdpawlPdAJRsuuY7GmabvXa52-v2LqWduto8VEcB4i0KV5S2EBc80zlAt2Nrf7j4YUlVpHGhL36iYE4nyfIs3K30BscNJT1vFNX9qhv5Y9efZYuO16wtcvQz6PnbS8QdH8KpcmTS-XU/w463-h285/images.jpeg" width="463" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>I went shopping for a Valentine's Day card for my husband, even though we both agreed beforehand no cards. Or gifts. Since it's a dumb holiday and brings to mind a mob shooting in Chicago in 1929 known as the Saint Valentine's Day Massacre. Very unromantic.<br /><p></p><p>Anyway, I was in the CVS and there were aisles of cards, candies, stuffed animals, wrapping paper, ribbons, balloons, and lots of trinkets in pink and red that basically took over half the store, so I decided to check out the cards. I found one that I liked well enough but it was priced at $8.99! </p><p>Are they kidding or what? A card is read, looked at once more, set aside and then tossed in the trash a day or two later. I decided my husband would rather have the nine bucks. (Maybe I'll put it in a pink envelope.)</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-66916227566994634322024-02-13T16:22:00.050-05:002024-02-14T08:32:12.516-05:00Nightmare in the ER<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKLhZXy2hDy2cQREmgc7pO5wN2I3vyUvGcPcnj3QARtqWn5Qqi9ESC5QygnXZ0S0MKFpOUWQtYB2MnE2OHavTl266VWCJV8MjL7nDraJJwLE9piLBsFfx9AYY5Itm-HtXKSemwmQ1NuDIBm2FrscQBczxrqfCIlEPkwFCQ41U4sqRH3kr6d5M7e2VDxShE/s1013/health-beauty-a_e-accident_emergency-beheadings-decapitation-casualty-CX920430_low.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1013" data-original-width="800" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKLhZXy2hDy2cQREmgc7pO5wN2I3vyUvGcPcnj3QARtqWn5Qqi9ESC5QygnXZ0S0MKFpOUWQtYB2MnE2OHavTl266VWCJV8MjL7nDraJJwLE9piLBsFfx9AYY5Itm-HtXKSemwmQ1NuDIBm2FrscQBczxrqfCIlEPkwFCQ41U4sqRH3kr6d5M7e2VDxShE/s320/health-beauty-a_e-accident_emergency-beheadings-decapitation-casualty-CX920430_low.jpg" width="253" /></a></div>Last night I had the misfortune of spending fours hours in an emergency room. I was ready for it, having read <i>Dante's Inferno </i>in college -- the ER was the 10th Circle of Hell -- but still it was shocking. Naturally I was in a crabby mood, feeling sick enough to go there, but my mood worsened considerably when I saw the other patients. It was like a meeting of Weight Watchers, but without the hope. Everywhere I looked I saw incredibly out of shape bodies. One of the very fattest belonged to a male doctor who waddled around the place like a penguin. The whole scene was nightmareish.<br /><p></p><p>An image burned into my brain that I'm hoping will go away soon is of an elderly man sitting directly across from me, hooked up to an IV pole. He looked like hell but was eating a Whopper and pulling French fries from a greasy paper bag positioned on his lap. In my delicate condition, extremely nauseous and thinking I was having another heart attack, the food odor totally grossed me out. Here he was in the ER, on an IV drip, and chomping down a burger and fries. Is that even legal?</p><p>Two women in their twenties were having a great time together, laughing and scrolling their cell phones as if they were at a singles bar. Neither one seemed the slightest bit sick, unless they had gone there for obesity: the thinner one with the hospital bracelet probably weighed in at 210, while her friend may have hit 250. I wanted to ask why they were there but my husband thought that was in poor taste. </p><p>Most of the other people were quiet and despairing, staring into space or nodding off. I fell into that category. </p><p>I left early, after all my tests but before I got the results, which I was told would take about another hour. I went home and went to sleep and woke up this morning and was thrilled to see that I had not died. I also understood that our health is the only true treasure we have that must be guarded at all costs. To that end, having seen the obvious correlation between obesity and health problems, I may never eat again.</p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-13766724202137737262024-02-11T12:13:00.005-05:002024-02-11T13:40:49.084-05:00Age Is (Not) Just a Number<p>Painting Donald Trump as a geezer just like Joe Biden, a front-page headline on today's<i> New York Times</i> reads, "Views Are Split On Candidates Of Similar Age." All I can say about that is, "Oh please." For starters, Trump is 77 and Biden is 81, a difference of four years. But their energy, body language and behavior makes them seem at least a decade apart. Where Biden appears skinny, old and frail, Trump looks burly, tan and ready to rumble.<br /></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1qBgmynW2ogEfKRvpufyqoKJpD_AXm5MsU-rfLbhyphenhyphenbO0LwDdTTaDyHCWrUqGAXD1ibxUJHNyL6QeGTwuD9AOUEiajA4HthXrmjZgKgqmZn3azjXrUnrWKh87mphWCLwkabVuioz2iZ4OINDrIqlWUddVIECIvnG1dePzQNCc-GnxjFI_T3xQ_qBAS7Fl7/s238/images-2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="212" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1qBgmynW2ogEfKRvpufyqoKJpD_AXm5MsU-rfLbhyphenhyphenbO0LwDdTTaDyHCWrUqGAXD1ibxUJHNyL6QeGTwuD9AOUEiajA4HthXrmjZgKgqmZn3azjXrUnrWKh87mphWCLwkabVuioz2iZ4OINDrIqlWUddVIECIvnG1dePzQNCc-GnxjFI_T3xQ_qBAS7Fl7/w315-h354/images-2.jpeg" width="315" /></a></div>Being 77 years old myself, I am not "of similar age" to Joe Biden in any way. Besides walking several miles daily, I work out with a CrossFit trainer twice a week -- lifting weights, doing planks, using a rowing machine, running on a treadmill and riding an Assault bike. Biden can hardly climb a flight of stairs without tripping.<p></p><p>Trump runs round the country, holding rallies where he talks non-stop for hours. He meets and greets his fans as often as possible, between court dates of course. He is often seen on TV talk shows and giving interviews to the press. In fact, he is nothing if not in your face. He plays golf regularly and appears fit, albeit a bit too robust. </p><p>Meanwhile, Biden hides out at one of his three homes. He does <i>not</i> give interviews. He does <i>not</i> meet and greet the public. On those rare occasions when he finds himself in front of a microphone on a podium somewhere, usually inside the White House, he fumbles and mumbles and makes a general mess of the situation.</p><p>Several reputable physicians have recently stated that Biden has some sort of senility or dementia, possibly early Alzheimer's, and has worsened considerably since he took office. They agree that there is no possibility of his condition being cured, or even slowing down. A recent report described him as "an elderly man with a failing memory." Who knows how long he will last.</p><p>Face it: A vote for Joe Biden is a vote for Kamala Harris, and God knows my cat Lurch could do a better job.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p> </p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7776951342791538520.post-72718341520590653102024-02-09T12:35:00.016-05:002024-02-09T16:23:51.014-05:00The Future Looks Grim<p><span style="font-family: georgia;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: georgia;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5WRTDF7JS-JHw9ZTw9nw-ITSNi6WsyBPxwmlPej4xXjCmzIJl50dqIdvPuWvXDd0OCeo9ITBLfEaXpYGXO1fgaM5vfiddFjx9Rtwpte_K6_8D3W9QvgQ454Es1jtBrI4LyC2Ev1-5xN89wSKFhCxiJpbOuEHNskFptHIDi98BEDRPk_25vuMKV7MnBhZa/s300/images-1.jpeg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="168" data-original-width="300" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5WRTDF7JS-JHw9ZTw9nw-ITSNi6WsyBPxwmlPej4xXjCmzIJl50dqIdvPuWvXDd0OCeo9ITBLfEaXpYGXO1fgaM5vfiddFjx9Rtwpte_K6_8D3W9QvgQ454Es1jtBrI4LyC2Ev1-5xN89wSKFhCxiJpbOuEHNskFptHIDi98BEDRPk_25vuMKV7MnBhZa/w564-h316/images-1.jpeg" width="564" /></a></span></div><span style="font-family: georgia;"><br />Writing this blog is a daily challenge, one that I often pass on when no subject seems interesting enough to be a worthy read for a wide range of people. Apparently the chief editors at the<i> Wall Street Journal </i>do not suffer from the same restriction: Today's paper contains an article about the unexpected pleasures of <i>not </i>wearing high heels, written by a woman recently diagnosed with foot problems and advised to wear only flat shoes forevermore. </span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">As a former newspaper writer I skimmed it with my mouth agape, shocked that this silliness was deemed appropriate to print. Who is the intended audience? Possibly transgenders with no history of high-heel wearing, but that's about it.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">The dumbing down of our country continues apace, with every day bringing new evidence of how the national IQ is dropping faster than CNN's ratings. A perfect example is my husband's employer, a 200-plus organization that employs no African Americans and only two Jews, yet they have a designated Diversity Officer and an annual, all-staff, mandatory "Diversity Training" day. (Just in case, I guess.)</span></p><p><span style="font-family: georgia;">Maybe it's the national pastime of playing pointless video games -- there are currently 831,00 of them available -- or the increasing consumption of stuffed-crust pizzas and White Chocolate Mocha Creme Frappucinos (550 calories) that's eroding our brain cells and enabling a frail, demented old man to remain as POTUS. Whatever it may be, I implore today's parents of young children to jump in and turn the tide. Our future is in their hands.</span></p><p><br /></p>Andrea Schamishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07977834384963907707noreply@blogger.com0