Your Bag of Nothing for Tuesday, January 14, 2025

  • Troy speaks the truth, as hard as it is to accept.

  • Save the dolphins:
  • The National Archives is looking for volunteers who can read cursive.
  • Speeches by politicians banned at 80th anniversary of Auschwitz’s liberation
    • Director of the memorial says he wants the focus to be on the last survivors of the Nazi concentration camp
  • Users worried about TikTok ban appear to be downloading a different Chinese social media app
    • RedNote, or Xiaohongshu, as it’s known in China, is the No. 1 free app on the Apple app store as of Monday, followed by TikTok’s photo-sharing Lemon8 app and OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
  • Coyote rescued from Aldi fridge section in Chicago

  • The Atlantic:  The Walmart Effect
    • “Walmart makes the places it operates in poorer than they would be if it had never shown up at all. Sometimes consumer prices are an incomplete, even misleading, signal of economic well-being.”
  • That’s an impressive real-life takedown.

  • Pat Riley on coaches wearing suits:
    • “I think all coaches should conduct themselves, if you are running the most important part of building. A multi-billion dollar organization, their frontman has to not only present themselves in a manner that people respect, but in press conferences and everything.”
  • Over the weekend, I became familiar with the great Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, the Father of the Nuclear Navy. Surely, he was teased as a kid with a first name like that. How important was this admiral who preferred not to salute or wear his uniform? Well, he only served in the Navy for 63 years and was forced to retire at the age of 82. He was sharp-tongue, combative, and abrasive. But get this: former President Jimmy Carter served under him and stated other than his father, Rickover was the most influential person in his life. Check out this old 60 Minutes interview. It’s well worth your time; you’ll be shocked, amazed, and entertained. After discovering this interview I did a deep dive into all things Rickover and learned quite a bit.
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Your Bag of Nothing for Monday, January 13, 2025

  • This was a nice way for Habitat For Humanity to Honor President Carter.
  • While watching the first half of the Cotton Bowl from AT&T Stadium, my screen would randomly freeze or become out of focus. It was very similar to what the Tyson/Paul fight looked like on Netflix. That stadium is cursed. The Longhorns certainly don’t play well in it; they are 1-2 in games there.
  • Any Longhorn fan complaining about Quinn Ewers is a bonafide idiot. All the guy did was go 27 straight games with a Passing TD (longest active streak in the FBS), go 21-5 over the last 2 seasons, and returned the program to relevance by taking them to the College Football Playoffs two straight years. Also, beating Alabama and Michigan in their home stadiums is a pretty big accomplishment, even if Michigan wasn’t as strong a last year. It is crazy that his former roommate at Ohio State sacked him and caused a fumble that he was able to run back for a touchdown. It amazes me how life can be more unbelievable than fiction. If you saw that written in a story or in a movie, you’d roll your eyes.
  • I understand it’s only January, but this will be the best run in all of football for 2025.

  • I think Ed Werder might be on to something.
  • This man is a genius.

  • I’m not sure why I found this old video about checking frozen ground so interesting, but I did and wanted to share it. I guess I just never thought how it was done.

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Your Bag of Nothing for Friday, January 10, 2024

 

  • This video of the LA wildfires is insane.

  • There’s nothing like a state funeral for a president. Solemn, sacred, pomp religious overtones, and the pageantry and distinctive elements of military tradition get me every time.
  • What was distinct about President Carter’s funeral was that two of his eulogies came from people who died in 2006 (President Gerald Ford) and 2021 (Vice-President Walter Mondale). Their respective sons delivered both. People forget how much Carter and Ford disliked each other and then became close friends post-presidency.
  • When I took BoyGeeding and DaughterGeeding to Washington, DC, two summers ago, I made sure we took in the National Cathedral. It was moving to stand on the spot where many dead presidents in coffins were placed for their funerals. It was also interesting to sit and pray in the pew seat sitting presidents have used to attend ceremonies and take in the history.

  • In case you didn’t know, the National Cathedral is an Episcopal Church. During the tour, the tour guide and I got into a fun conversation, and he mentioned that he thought one day I would be part of the Episcopal Church. And, in 2024, I was confirmed in an Episcopal church.
  • I had to research the friendship between Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter and Garth Brooks, who sang at both their funerals and celebrated his 100th birthday with him. It’s bewildering that John Lennon’s Imagine, the song that literally starts with “Imagine there’s no heaven,” was sung for one of the most devoutly religious presidents in history who taught Sunday school at his Baptist church for decades. This is what I found.

Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood developed a close friendship with President Jimmy Carter and his wife, Rosalynn, through their mutual dedication to humanitarian efforts, particularly their collaboration with Habitat for Humanity. Over the years, the couples worked together on numerous projects, fostering a deep bond rooted in shared values of service and community building. – People

Their performance of John Lennon’s “Imagine” at both Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter’s funerals was a tribute to the Carters’ appreciation for the song. Despite its secular lyrics, including the line “Imagine there’s no heaven,” the song resonated with the Carters’ vision of peace and unity. It’s reported that President Carter had a particular fondness for “Imagine” and had requested Brooks to perform it at his funeral. – Tennessean

While some observers noted the contrast between the song’s secular message and the Carters’ devout Christian faith, the choice reflects the Carters’ broader humanitarian ideals and their hope for global harmony.

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Your Bag of Nothing for Thursday, January 9, 2024

  • School’s closed today and tomorrow, thanks to an impending winter storm. The kids really lucked out, snagging two days off during their very first week back from winter break—what a way to start the new year! It got me thinking about my own school days as a small-town kid in the Eighties.

    These days, parents get emails, texts, and alerts, not to mention the school district’s name popping up on the TV screen crawl. Back then, it was a whole different ballgame. Mom would be stuck redialing the school office, only to be greeted by that relentless busy signal— there was no informative voicemail greeting and leaving a message wasn’t even an option, just the sound of “try again.” Meanwhile, Dad would hover over the radio or keep an eye on the TV, hoping to catch the news. Waiting for our tiny school district to show up on the TV crawl felt like a lost cause.

  • Honestly, I can’t even remember the last time I heard a busy signal on a phone. It’s funny how something so small can stir up such vivid memories.
  • Last night, I saw the kitten still on my back porch when I got ready for bed. BoyGeeding and I made him a little shelter and set out some cat food and milk. But I couldn’t find the little fella in the morning, and he never made another appearance. How. Freaking. Rude. I laid out the welcome mat, made his bed, provided a meal, and he left without as much as a thank-you. I hate cats. They are just rude. Uncouth, I tell ya. Not even a thank-you. Here’s hoping he returned to his owner and is warm inside a house.
  • During my recent deep dive into the details surrounding JFK’s assassination, I came across something surprising about the widely circulated autopsy photos. When I first saw them as a young adult, I was shocked that such graphic and unsettling images could be made public. The image of his naked body and lifeless eyes staring open haunted me—it felt as though all dignity had been stripped away.What I’ve since learned is that these photos were not officially released by the government or the Kennedy family. In fact, all official autopsy photographs remain under the strict custody of the National Archives, where access is tightly controlled. While many researchers believe these public images are likely authentic, there’s no definitive way to verify their origin or whether they were part of the official autopsy. Some argue they could be altered or unrelated, leaving room for doubt about their authenticity.
  • President Biden welcomed his first great-grandchild yesterday after his granddaughter Naomi had a cesarean section birth in Los Angeles. Biden, 82 and just 18 years younger than the late Jimmy Carter, is believed to be the first sitting president to be a great-grandfather while in office, according to The Associated Press.
  • I think this 100-inch virtual display has potential. But I’m not sure of the $950-a-year subscription model.

  • I’m fortunate to have made a few Canadian friends because of this silly blog, and I always enjoy bantering with them, learning more about their government and culture. With President Trump floating the idea of annexing Canada, one of my Canadian friends stated that would hurt Trump and his party because most of Canada would be blue. He also had a few questions about how adding Canada to the U.S. would affect the Electoral College, something he was unfamiliar with. Curious, I asked Perplexity AI  that question. For your entertainment, here’s the interesting answer.

    If the U.S. annexed Canada and transformed each province into a state, the Electoral College would be significantly altered. Here’s an estimate of how the Electoral College might look for the new Canadian U.S. states:

    1. Ontario: 38 electoral votes
    2. Quebec: 26 electoral votes
    3. British Columbia: 16 electoral votes
    4. Alberta: 14 electoral votes
    5. Manitoba: 7 electoral votes
    6. Saskatchewan: 7 electoral votes
    7. Nova Scotia: 7 electoral votes
    8. New Brunswick: 6 electoral votes
    9. Newfoundland and Labrador: 6 electoral votes
    10. Prince Edward Island: 3 electoral votes

    These estimates are based on population comparisons with existing U.S. states and the current Electoral College system. Each new state would receive a minimum of 3 electoral votes (2 for senators and 1 for representative). It’s important to note that:

    1. The total number of electoral votes would increase from 538 to approximately 668, changing the majority needed to win from 270 to about 335.
    2. The Canadian territories (Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut) would likely remain as territories without electoral votes due to their small populations.
    3. This annexation would significantly impact U.S. politics, potentially creating new battleground states and altering the existing two-party dynamic.
    4. The addition of these new states, which tend to be more liberal, could shift the balance of power in the Electoral College.
    5. Existing Electoral College votes for current U.S. states would need to be recalculated and redistributed to account for the new population balance.

    This hypothetical scenario would require a complete overhaul of the U.S. political system and would likely lead to the formation of new political parties or coalitions to represent former Canadian values and interests

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