Bag of Randomness for Tuesday, January 16, 2018

  • I think a simple way for me to explain the feeling of grace to a child is for them to recall how they feel when they wake up for school and find out it’s unexpectedly canceled due to bad weather.
  • I think it’s been two years since TICKET listeners got to hear Michael Irvin announce school opening delays or closings to due inclement weather. It’s funny to think of all the confused looks on readers faces who have no idea what I’m talking about.
  • Some people simply have the natural ability to cleanly open a sealed cereal box without ripping the flaps of the lid. I do not have that natural ability.
  • Unprovoked, WifeGeeding has expressed interest in taking over BagOfNothing.com after my back surgery. I told her she needs to tap the brakes. My surgery in on Friday morning, I should be able to blog without skipping a beat to post something on Monday. In case you were wondering, I’ve only allowed her to post one other time – when we were in Vietnam back in May 2007.
  • One of the worst pains a man can experience, and it’s something we just can’t prevent from happening every now and then, is getting a little bit of soap in the urethra.
  • The Social Security Administration has a limit on the number of replacement cards they will issue youYou may receive no more than three replacement social security number cards in a year and ten replacement social security number cards per lifetime. We may allow for reasonable exceptions to these limits on a case-by-case basis in compelling circumstances.
  • Virginia’s outgoing governor has pulled a prank on his successor
    • An image of former governor Terry McAuliffe was plastered on his pillowcase, emblazoned with one of the go-go-go ex-governor’s favorite sayings: “Sleep when you’re dead.”
  • I caught a special on the Smithsonian channel on the Queen discussing her coronation.
    • It started off with a white-gloved assistant placing her Coronation crown in front of her and the narrator explaining how only three people are allowed to touch it bare-handed (her, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Crown Jeweller). She then kind of manhandles the thing, poking and prodding it and flicking a hanging pearl or two. Her relaxed approach was hilarious. She complained about how heavy and uncomfortable it was wearing it and not knowing which was the front or the back. Interestingly, she has only worn the crown once.
    • She also complained how uncomfortable it was riding in the gold coronation carriage.
    • Her kids stayed at home for most of the Coronation. They were there for only ten minutes or so.
    • It was revealed the Crown-Jewels were buried in a biscuit tin under Windsor Castle during WWII. She was totally unimpressed about this. I think there was an urban legend they were stored at Fort Knox during the war.
    • Part of the Coronation involves the applying of anointing oil. It was a moment considered so sacred that television cameras were turned away out of respect, as she was anointed before God under a portable canopy.
    • Until this special, I had no idea England had a civil war which brought an end to the monarch. Charles I was beheaded in 1649 and the original jewels were melted down and sold, except for a golden spoon in which is used for the aforementioned anointing oil.
      • Beroe Charles’ beheading, he asked for an extra shirt to stay warm. He didn’t want to appear to be trembling in fear.
      • After his beheading, many spectators dipped their handkerchiefs in this blood to keep as a momento.
      • The day after his execution, his head was sewn back on his body, which was embalmed and placed in a lead coffin.
      • Charles II, his son, returned to the monarchy in 1660.
    • She talked about her father’s Coronation and how he made her write down her memories of the event. It was neat seeing the document and her hand-writing as an eleven-year-old and how she simply referred to him as Papa.
    • The maids of honor had smelling salts in their gloves in case they felt faint after three hours of standing. I wonder if smelling salts are still used in the NFL?
    • She said she was bored by the end of it, “At the end the service got rather boring as it was all prayers. Grannie and I were looking to see how many more pages to the end, and we turned one more and then I pointed to the word at the bottom of the page and it said ‘Finis’. We both smiled at each other and turned back to the service.””
    • When the Queen dies I will watch The Naked Gun in her honor. Random scenes: Her passing a hot dog at Dodger Stadium and participating in the wave. The woman who portrayed her is 90-years-old and has played the role quite often in movies. In case you didn’t know, the real Queen Elizabeth II attended her first baseball game in the U.S. in May 1991 when the Oakland A’s played Baltimore Orioles.
Posted in Personal | 4 Comments

Bag of Randomness for MLK Day 2018

  • If you are notified by legitimate sources you’re about to be hit with an ICBM, which probably carries a nuclear warhead, you’re going into a mode most people can’t comprehend. Some people may have even prepared to kill themselves. However, with all that said, I think the employee in Hawaii who made that drastic mistake shouldn’t be fired because I’m certain he or she would never make that mistake again. I imagine the guilt and shame that person feels is overbearing.
  • Elvis Presley lived 15,561 days. As of yesterday, I’ve lived 15,478. I have to live 83 more days to outlive Elvis Presley.
  • WifeGeeding’s best friend lives in El Paso and her daughter is in the Girl Scouts. She was going door to door in their neighborhood trying to sell Girl Scout cookies and one lady asked in a jovial way, “Do you know who I am?” The little girl and her mother didn’t have any idea, but the lady revealed she was the CEO of the Girl Scout. While she didn’t buy any cookies she gave her a special patch.
  • I’ve been rooting for Case Keenum and the Minnesota Vikings all year. Keenum’s father used to coach at Hardin-Simmons University when I was a student and he was very active in Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). He’d help run the FCA summer camps and I’d help him out as an RA. I wasn’t close to him but really respected the guy. You may recall that I’m one of several trustees of an FCA sponsored memorial scholarship. A few years ago, Case made a sizable but anonymous donation to it totally out of the blue. The scholarship is named in honor of my friend Micah. Case was a friend with Micah’s step-brother who unexpected died and made the donation to honor his friend’s death. This news has never been public until now.
  • The Minnesota Vikings beat the New Orleans Saints yesterday. Steve Gleason is a legendary player for the Saints, so much so there’s a statue of him outside their stadium. Sadly, Gleason’s battle with ALS left him paralyzed. However, the man has a great sense of humor, check out this tweet he sent out yesterday:
  • Sometimes I just miss the simpleness, and I dare say humbleness, of using hymnals and a piano (and maybe an organ) in church.
  • I wonder if it’s possible to attend a church worship service in which an overhead projector or television isn’t used.
  • I love the rock band U2. I love the band’s guitarist, The Edge, and think he’s pure rock and roll. However, The Ege wearing shorts and hiking sandals is not very rock and roll and something I never wanted to see. It’s like seeing Chuck Norris wear a skirt.
  • Baptist preacher’s crusade against ‘sinful’ school vouchers steps on Texas GOP leaders’ toes
  • Chernobyl’s Transformation Into a Massive Solar Plant Is Almost Complete
  • Car soars into second-floor dental office in bizarre California crash
  • Getting back to football: Ex-Cowboy Babe Laufenberg shares son’s cancer battle
  • Fla. Mom Mistakenly Killed in Murder-for-Hire Love Triangle
  • One of London’s leading restaurants will today start pioneering a new pricing model based on the travel industry, with different charges depending on the day of the week and time of your booking.| Article
  • Pregnant? Pee on this IKEA ad and you’ll get a discount on a crib
  • David Letterman’s Netflix Show
    • I loved it, but I wonder if I loved it because I’m a very nostalgic person and I yearn for the days of when Letterman and Obama were a part of my everyday life.
    • The show is filmed in a studio in New York and the audience doesn’t have any clue who Dave’s guest will be, which I think is a great concept. However, even though the show is named “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman”, Dave still introduces his guest.
    • While there is an audience, it seems they are encouraged to be reserved. This is great, and for the most part, you think Dave and Obama are alone.
    • I love the pace of the show, there’s no rush with the interview or conversation trying to wrap things up before the next commercial break. I’m sure a decent amount was left on the cutting room floor, but it seems like their conversation was quite lengthy and they could just enjoy each other’s presence.
    • I wonder how different it felt for Dave to not be sitting behind a desk during an interview and not having any notecards and such. Simply eliminating a desk makes a conversation or interview more engaging and open.
    • Dave is still quirky and self-deprecating, but now he does it in a more wiser and reflected manner.
    • I liked it when Obama started to ask Dave questions and wish Dave would have gone with it more.
    • I’d love to see Jon Stewart have a similar show.
  • Last Jedi stuff:
Posted in Personal | 5 Comments

Bag of Randomness for Friday, January 12, 2017

Posted in Personal | 2 Comments