I'm Surprised the Suicide Rate Isn't Higher

An article in today's New York Times has alerted me to a trend called "looksmaxxing" that has taken over the current generation known as Gen Z, those born in the mid- to late-1990s through the 2010s. What it means is that how you look, how attractive you are, matters more than anything else and thus requires you to focus all your energy and time on improving your sexiness. Yet oddly enough, those people who engage in it don't have or want to engage in sex. They shun relationships, instead spending every minute of every day improving their looks, including using extreme measures like "bone smashing," or hitting their faces with a hammer to re-structure a jaw, and using crystal meth to stay lean. 

The leader of this trend is an influencer who goes by the name of Clavicular. Born a normal kid in normal New Jersey, somewhere along the way he decided his self-worth was to be found in his looks, which honestly weren't all that great. Today he is much better-looking and has 762.6 thousand followers on TikTok and 176.8 thousand followers on Kick (where he earns $100,000 a month). 

Humans are in such a bad place now, I can only thank God, (Thank you God) for the fact that I was born long before all this and thus avoided having to navigate this bizarre world as a young, single woman, most of whom are largely ignored by men who are busy looksmaxxing.

Thankfully my own son, a Millennial born in 1987, is naturally very handsome, so that's one thing he doesn't have to worry about. But if he opts to have a child now, I hate to think how deranged things will be in a dozen or so years when my future grandchild hits puberty.

Things Could Always Be Worse

It's bad enough waking up with a cold and body aches all over which sounds more like the flu, and also with a blood clot in my calf that could, maybe -- probably not but still the possibility exists -- break apart and a little piece could make its way to my lungs and cause a pulmonary embolism that kills me, so did I really need to see that article on AOL, which is where I get my email, about a 20-year-old college student who gave birth in her toilet at home, then let the baby die and buried it inside a trash bag in her backyard before dashing off to appear in a school play? 

The answer of course is a resounding "No!" Yet the powers that be at AOL decided that was a great bit of news to share with their readers. To what purpose, I have to wonder. Are humans so debased that only the most heinous stories will satisfy their lust for horror? Or is it in some twisted way to make people feel better about their own lives? As in, I have never killed an infant so I guess I'm doing pretty well?

So in a way, except for my cold (or possibly flu) and my clot, for which I'm taking medicine, having never killed an infant, this day is off to pretty good start.

Look On the Bright Side

In case you feel all alone in the world because your parents are both dead, or you have no siblings, or you grew up in an orphanage, or whatever the reason you think life has dealt you a bad hand, here's an item I found online to cheer you up: 

 "Police were called to a home in upstate New York about a deceased individual inside the residence. Troopers found Philip Knickerbocker, 63, deceased on a couch, New York State Police said. 

"Investigators soon determined that Philip was allegedly strangled to death by his son, Hans Knickerbocker, 40, who allegedly intervened in an argument between his father and his wife, police said.

"During the argument, Philip poured coffee on Jacqueline’s head and tried to punch her, the documents allege. Hans, who was in his bedroom, became upset, according to the documents, confronted his father and allegedly beat him with his fists."

So relax, call a friend and go for a walk. Things could be worse.

Marching Forth Into the Unknown

Exactly two weeks ago tomorrow I had a brand new adventure: I got a blood clot in my leg! This was less exciting than taking a water taxi on the Grand Canal in Venice or a helicopter over the Grand Canyon, but equally, if not more, impactful. 

Since the clot showed up, several different doctors, nurses, radiologists and physical therapists have offered their advice after A, going to medical school many years ago or B, researching the problem online for the latest info, and so I have gotten conflicting recommendations as to how to proceed. Meaning I am now utterly confused and don't know how to proceed.

The one person in my life who would have known exactly what I should do died 16 years ago, and since then I have been on my own, medically speaking. My wonderful uncle and friend, Dr. Melvin L.Keller, could instantly assess any medical condition and determine a course of action. He was magical in that way. Naturally, being so anxious and fearful of dire things happening to me, I had him on speed dial.

Today is his birthday. He loved to say he was born on the only date that was a command: March Forth! If I could have any wish granted, it would be for him to be alive again, young and healthy and funny and smart and loving as he always was. Also, he could tell me if I could go back to CrossFit, or use a rowing machine, or do planks and sit-ups, and all the rest. Short of that, I'd like some doctor who is alive and knows something to tell me what to do next.

Time to Vote Republican

Bartender AOC doing the work God intended for her.

If Donald Trump discovered the cure for cancer, Democrats would accuse him of being racist for not finding a cure for sickle-cell anemia, a disease that mainly afflicts African Americans. That's how misguided, misinformed, messed-up and mistaken they all are. And I do mean all.

I have few friends left who vote Democratic. The closest one is a tireless workaholic who spends every minute of her life helping others, be it through her work as a nurse, her role as a daughter to an aging parent, or as a mother and grandmother.  Naturally she has little time to educate herself on world events, and being a true bleeding-heart she naturally thinks all immigrants should be allowed in no matter their status and sure, let's give them a nice clean bed and healthcare, everyone else be damned. I get that, and I love her anyway.

My few other Democrat friends skim the surface of what's going on and consider themselves up to speed because they watch CNN or MSNBC and read the opinion page of The New York Times. On the other hand, all the Republicans I know are deep into learning everything they can about what goes on in government. They watch all the news, read all the newspapers and listen to various podcasts with differing political slants. 

There is simply no comparing the two parties. For example, Republicans Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Senator Ted Cruz, Senator John Kennedy, Senator Rand Paul, Senator Tom Cotton and Senator Josh Hawley are all super-smart. As opposed to Kamala Harris, Rep. Jasmine Crockett, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Governor Gavin Newsom and Pete Buttigieg, who are all clearly idiots yet are named as possible front-runners for the 2028 presidential race.

Come on people, do some research before you damn Trump as "orange man bad," as if his hair color has anything to do with anything. And if you mean his skin, well that's just racist.

Don't Believe A Word of This!

Jeff and me, old college buddies, met for a drink just before his arrest.

Recently a photo was circulating online showing Hillary and Bill Clinton laughing with Jeffrey Epstein, the deceased POS that everyone loves to hate. It was incendiary because just the day before, Hillary had sworn under oath that she had never even met Epstein! So there she was, caught in another lie.

My husband wondered at the photo's veracity. Checking various sources online, we learned that indeed the photo was a deep fake. Stunned, we wondered just how easy it is to make a phony image and decided to try. So Mitch prompted Grok, the AI app from Elon Musk, to "make a picture of Jeffrey Epstein with this woman," sending along an old (and quite unflattering I might add) photo of me. 

Surely that wouldn't work, we mused. Yet less than one minute later, a reasonably believable photo appeared, which is shown above. I then texted that photo to five of my friends, saying I knew Epstein in college and visited with him shortly before his incarceration. Only one of those friends doubted it, texting back immediately, "Nice AI!" Two others fell for it whole-hog, and one other half-hog.

Here's the thing: Mitch is no expert on how to do this sort of thing, and yet he accomplished the task in no time. Just imagine the results when someone well-schooled in AI manipulation exercises their skills! We can all agree that public trust is over. Be on the alert: Whatever it is, if you can't touch it, taste it or smell it, it's likely not real.

People Who Know Nothing But Should Know Something

Some days it's exasperating just being alive. Today is one of them. Owing to an unfortunate health emergency -- a blood clot in my leg -- I had to purchase a pair of knee-high compression socks. So off to the drug store I went, and asked the pharmacist where I might find such things. He directed me straight to them, saying, "They go by your shoe size." 

Only they didn't. The package said nothing about shoe size. Instead the directions were to measure at the widest part of the calf and also the ankle to determine your size. Thinking that might be the case, I had brought a tape measure with me.

As I was busy measuring my leg, the pharmacist called over to me, "Can I help you? What are you doing?" I explained, after which he muttered something under his breath, shook his head and turned away.

Moral of the story: Whatever it is, if it's possible to do it yourself, do it yourself. People you think will know more than you usually don't.

Things Really Were Better Then

Crazy people today are so much crazier than the crazies of the past. For example, today I read about an elementary school teacher who had sex with a dog and posted a video of it from her cellphone, and a transgender kindergarten teacher who identifies as a wolf and told his/her students as much.

This goes along with other dire developments in our evolution, like fat people being much fatter, mass shootings becoming commonplace and suicides rising among young people. In fact, almost everything is worse today except the number of cereals available in the supermarkets and going to the dentist.

I loved being a mother and I still do, but if I were a young woman this minute and became pregnant I would abort without a second thought. One can only imagine how babies born now will fare in the coming years. Will they all have sex with their teachers in elementary school ? Will they be obese by age eleven and have heart attacks and diabetes on the regular? Of course none of them will actually know anything since everyone will have an AI device implanted in their brain by their fifth birthday. Will they still know what trees and flowers and birds are? 

While growing old in today's youth-obsessed society is no picnic, what with random ills and diseases showing up willy-nilly, at least one has fabulous memories of when things were so much better. Here's a quick walk down memory lane to the good old days before the invention of the Internet, which has gradually turned our world into a waking nightmare.

The Good Humor Man drove past your house every night in summer!

1. Doctors valued their patients and took the time to educate them on how to be healthy.

2. People only wore pajamas and slippers at home, never out in public except if they were insane.

3. Obesity was rare and to be avoided rather than celebrated.

4. Elected leaders were reasonably intelligent, unlike Kamala Harris, AOC, Mayor Pete and Governor Hair Gel, all leading candidates for the 2028 Democratic Presidential nomination.

5. Music had recognizable melodies and lyrics were more than just illegibly shouting to a beat while grabbing one's crotch.

6. Flying was fun and special, with lovely stewardesses treating you like royalty, as opposed to today's short-tempered and often unkempt flight attendants herding you like cattle into a holding pen.

7. There were no people named Spam Risk, Spam Likely and Probably Fraud calling you on the phone.

8. The ice cream man drove right by your house every night in summer! (See photo.)

Everybody's Mommy Dies, Savannah!

Savannah Guthrie, a TV celebrity who became really famous to millions of people who never heard of her before when her mother was mysteriously abducted three weeks ago, just posted a video online saying how sad she is without her mommy. Her heart aches for her. She can hardly sleep.

Well guess what, Savannah: It happens to everyone. Every mommy eventually dies, as does every daddy. And every doggie and kitty and worst of all, sometimes a child of still living mommies and daddies. So just suck it up, we have all heard enough.

My own mommy died at the age of 62 of early onset Alzheimer's and it wasn't on the news. She started losing her mind at age 57 and could no longer speak or recognize anyone after a few years. You had your mother for an additional and relatively healthy 22 years. Be grateful for that.

Go Fund Me, Please

Eric Dane and daughters.

Last week I slipped on the ice while carrying four heavy bags of groceries into my house and since then I have been in a lot of pain with a torn soleus muscle in my calf and a sprained ankle. Not only that, I am also grieving because the actor Eric Dane died and I liked him a lot back when he played Dr. Mark Sloane, a.k.a. McSteamy, on Grey's Anatomy. 

And not only that, but my beloved cat is 19 years old and has lost a lot of weight and doesn't play much anymore and hardly eats anything. And now it's snowing really hard outside and very cold and windy too and we may lose power. So please, help me out!

I would set up a GoFundMe page for myself but apparently that's just for rich people. Like the aforementioned recently deceased Eric Dane, who died with a net worth of approximately $7 million, but still his two teenage daughters need help! Although they live with their mother who is very much alive and an actress herself, with a net worth of $5 million, still they need money for things, like private school and paying the pool boy and going to summer camp and on skiing vacations, and judging by the photo shown here, food!

So if you want to help me out, just email me at andreajrouda@aol.com and I will send you my Venmo address. Thank you.

The Nancy Guthrie Diversion

Like many people, I don't watch morning TV shows. So I had never even seen Savannah Guthrie before her mother was abducted.  Naturally, it follows that I don't care about her mother. At least not much. While it's sad that such a crime was committed, so many crimes like that occur that we never hear about. What makes this case any different, causing it to dominate the news for the last three weeks?

One can only wonder what very important things are all of us not seeing while our attention is diverted towards an unknown missing 84-year-old woman who held no public office and who mattered only to her family and close friends.

Something big, I assume.