Because I am an ardent Birder: This.....

 

A Trio of Trumpeter Swans.  No copyright infringement intended.

From an Article at Reuters.  HERE's The LINK to Article on Reuters News Page

Analysis: After pardoning turkey, Trump moves ahead with lifting bird protections
By Dino Grandoni

A few days after pardoning a turkey for Thanksgiving, Trump is moving forward with giving a reprieve to oil producers, electric utilities and other companies that accidentally kill birds.

Trump officials took another step toward easing fines for “incidental” death or harm to birds under regulations set by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

While few were paying attention the Friday after Thanksgiving, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published an analysis saying the change “would not cause unacceptable environmental harm.”

Trimming the wings of the 102-year-old law is just one of several regulatory actions the administration is aiming to accomplish before its exit. The Trump administration is expected to finalize easing fines before Jan. 20.

Sunday Stealing: Weight

Hi! I'm your host Bev 2 Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". . Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This 3 feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal 4 all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise 5 to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and 6 intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves! 

 Now that we've had a big Thanksgiving dinner, here are some questions about weight from Adventures in Nonsense.

1. My biggest barrier to weight loss is.. Well, I've lost nearly 35 pounds, in all, from being sick.  I SO have to stop this! Lol

2. What is your relationship with food like?  My family was poor.   I got just enough food to eat to keep up with being a little hyperactive girl who ran or walked everywhere.  I generally walked a mile and a half to school and then back nearly every day.  

Anyway, I stayed pretty trim for the first 20 years of my life.  Outside of singing and academics, PE was my favorite thing, so that helped in those early years.   Unfortunately, as soon as I could get enough to eat, I had a weigh problem.  Calories in/calories out were no longer on the negative side.  I had to learn to count them.

3. What was the last time you had fun that made you smile for a few days. Playing with friends in our MMPOLG.

4. What are triggers in your life that lead to eating?  hmmm..  Anger, maybe.  I was last seen scooping a few spoons of chocolate chip ice cream when that Dumb OX did something that dissed the wounded vets.

5. What inspires you to be healthier Love...

6. Name two foods that you think are “bad”.  That's dead easy.  I never buy either one because I can't trust myself to not eat the whole box/bag.  Fritos, and those little round crackers ... what are they called?  Risko?  Ah!  Ritz!  I LURV them so never, EVER do I buy them. Boy, are they good though. 

 

7. Are your expectations for yourself too high?  Were..  I liked to do well at everything I put my hand to. However, life taught me that  striving for perfection in everything isn't wise.  You'll only drive yourself nuts this way.  Do your best and be happy. I quit trying to be "good enough" to be loved by some people in my life.  They weren't worth the effort.

8. Would you like more fun in your life? I think a person can to make their own fun.  So I have as much fun as I can probably stand.

9. What is your one comfort food?  One?  Darn.  I guess it's ice cream. When something near to this  question was asked of a 76 year old grandmother one year, her answer was, "Eat more Ice Cream".  I'm totally DOWN for that!

10. How would you give someone encouragement?  I would probably advise them to set small reasonable goals. And then, after achieving those, set bigger ones.  I'd also tell them that getting deflected from one's goals is one of the tests in life. 

"Eyes on the Prize" How long have the blacks and poor been after the goal of equal protection under the law?  Everyone who wants this knows it's a long, hard road but it's something that is one of the most worthy goals for a nation of people.  "Keep your eyes on the Prize". 

 And yes, BLACK LIVES MATTER! To anyone out there who doubts it!

And now, my own little rags to and riches heritage:  

Here's a link to a NYT article about "Hillbilly Elegy" This film is excellent.  I have a McCoy great grandparent in my background from my maternal grandma, who married my grandpa, much to the dismay of his aristocrat Mamá.  My grandparents fell in love over the music of the Kentucky Hills.  He was a Heavy Equipment Mechanic called to the hills by a job, and she was a coal miner's daughter.  She sang, and he played guitar.  They had a good life together but both died much too young.

11. Do you get enough sleep? No, but I can take naps; so about three times a week  I'll catch up with a nap.

12. What activities make you feel more relaxed  I love to knit, to read (apparently) angst filled non-fiction books, cozy mysteries, and watch mysteries on Netflix and Prime, "The Great British Bake Off" and .  I watch various chick flicks from the home collection, like, "Romancing the Stone", "Princess Bride" and my all time favorite movie, "Milagro Bean Field War".

13. Where do you need to practice forgiveness in your life?  Forgiving people who caused me or my children some real harm.  I've just forgiven that, over and over, in my mind until it's almost only a whisper now. I can just brush it off my shoulder now, like a little Fritos chip.

14. What is one thing you have not done because of how you looked?  Looks never stopped me from doing something I wanted to do, because I never really cared that much about how I looked.  Of course, now, I wouldn't be caught DEAD in a swimming suit. haha  

"Killer Whale Spotted, Body Surfing, at Black's Beach!  Film at 11!"

15. What would you like more of in your life? Being healthy enough to re-build my garden that has been destroyed by drought, wind, and neglect.

And now, HERE is a link to answers this week from all the other participants in this MEME.  Give it a spin.  It's fun!  Lord knows, we need more fun in our lives.

 
 
 

Saturday 9: Black

BLACK

Welcome to Saturday 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

1) This song was chosen because yesterday was Black Friday, the traditional day of sales. Have you begun your Christmas shopping?  Yes

2)  Was there an adult beverage served with your Thanksgiving feast? Wine, red.

 
3) Did any pets enjoy scraps from your Thanksgiving table? Wolfie got a few small pieces of my grilled chicken.

4) Are there any Thanksgiving leftovers in your refrigerator right now? No. We didn't have pie this year, but that would be in there if we did. 

5) Football is a popular Thanksgiving weekend pastime. Will you be watching any games over the next few days? If yes, which team(s) are you rooting for?  No.  We do watch bits and pieces of a random game when the rest of the family gets together at a sil's house,  but not here at home.

6) This week's song is by Dierks Bentley. He wrote it for his wife, Cassidy Black, who appears in the video. They met in eighth grade, dated on and off, and then eloped when they were in their late 20s. Has anyone ever surprised you by going off and suddenly getting married?  Ok.  surprised?  That would be one of my sister-in-laws, and her first husband.

7) 2016 was a good year for Bentley. This song was one of three hits he had that year, he co-hosted the CMAs and was nominated for Male Vocalist of the Year and Video of the Year. As 2020 winds to an end, do you feel it's been a successful year?  Well, a friend in the Rockhounds used to say, "Any year above ground was a good year." So, yes, it was, a good year. Lol...

8) In 2016, David Bowie died. Do you have a favorite Bowie song? I only one I've ever could say that I liked is "Space Oddity".  I've heard them all, maybe not the ones recorded at private sessions, but all the others.  If he did co-write "Imagine", then yes, I love that one.

9) Also in 2016, CBS telecast reran How the Grinch Stole Christmas for the 50th time. What's your favorite Dr. Seuss story?  I really can't pick a favorite.  I read them ALL to my kids ( and then they read them themselves) when they were small.  I think these amazing books helped them to learn how to navigate some of the obstacles in the life among the wolves and fakers.  It's a vicious little world out there, so guard your children well. 

Like to join in or see other posts?  Go HERE  To Sam's Blog

 

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

A Wordy Wordless Wednesday

President Obama signs a note for a soldier's daughter to take to her teacher, for missing class.  She was attending a special day for Wounded Warriors at the White House.  I think she is a little Darling.

HERE is the link.  It is from the US News and world report collection, "Obama Behind the Scenes" . 

Rick Snyder, a Republican with the spine of an Eisenhower or a Lincoln.

Rick Snyder:

“Trump is a bully,” said former Michigan governor Rick Snyder, a Republican. “He’s famous in many well-documented instances of asking or doing things that are inappropriate in most people’s view. I don’t think it would be surprising that he’d do something inappropriate today.”   

Now there’s the fiery sort of Republican I remember from my youth!

Another from the Washington Post Opinion page:

"Trump set the tone for his relationship with urban America in January 2017 when he ripped Lewis for declining to attend his inauguration by saying that the civil rights legend was “all talk” and “no action.” This was a ludicrous line of attack: Only one of these men was nearly beaten to death by police for protesting racial injustice, and it was not Trump.

“Lewis should spend more time on fixing and helping his district, which is in horrible shape and falling apart (not to mention crime infested),” Trump tweeted. “Lewis should finally focus on the burning and crime infested inner-cities of the U.S. I can use all the help I can get!”

Trump said this about John Lewis!  That Trump has ANY black supporters is beyond me! 

Tweaking Code...

How to make a music video stay in a blog post and PLAY FROM THERE...

Go get the "Save to Blogger" thingie THAT creates it's own post on your blog...

 and then: Go to your blog and look at the new post it creates....

Switch Over to HTML.  See that code?  Copy it into notepad or something similar.  That's the code for the music video. 

NOW...
Create a NEW post, 

You will see that this new one comes with a tiny piece of code,  When you
SWITCH IT to HTML, you will see it.

NOW: Put THE SAVED CODE AFTER the HTML tag fragment- NO EXTRA SPACES
E' voila...Bob's your Uncle.  PITCH THE FIRST POST.  YOU WON'T NEED IT NOW....

Sunday Stealing: Thanksgiving Questions

Hi! I'm your host Bev 2 Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". . Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This 3 feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal 4 all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise 5 to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and 6 intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!

 

Some Halloween questions from Huffington Post.

More than most people would ever want to know

1. What did you do for Thanksgiving when you were a kid?  My mother cooked a turkey, and she and I made the side dishes.  And then we ate.  There was a special set of dishes that mother had that were only used at the holidays and birthdays, so we washed them and got them ready to be used.

2 .What’s your favorite family tradition? Well, the last 15 or so years we have had a Thanksgiving potluck.  That isn't going to happen this year.  So, gathering for the meal of Turkey and stuffing etc, is over for now.  The family is split on what is safe, but we are too old to be going anywhere near someone with whom we haven't been isolating.

3. What’s your favorite way to give back and help others?  Donating monthly to causes that benefit children, the SPCA, and the environment.  I used to, with Mr.Z, deliver meals on wheels.  We did that for over 10 years. We also donated for decades to the San Diego Shoe Fund every year so that kids can have shoes to wear to school. It's a nice, helpful, and local charity. 

4. Name one person who can make you laugh, even months later. Why? My hubby can always make me laugh. He has a good sense of humor, and he and I think the same way.  Mostly. lol

5. What is the funniest thing you remember about a Thanksgiving past?  The year we tried Tofurky.  It wasn't very good, was very dry and no one wanted to eat it. It has improved LIGHT years over time, and I still don't want to eat it!

6. Do you have any unusual traditions, rituals or habits around Thanksgiving?  None that I can think of.  We bring our dishes, we talk and then we eat, and I guess there's always a football game going on TV.  Pretty traditional. Maybe it's the Whipped Cream pile contest when pie is served?  That's pretty funny.  We also play a game after dinner with quarters.  It's a lot of fun. 

7. What time do you eat your Thanksgiving meal? Early evening.

8. Name one ancestor that you think about on Thanksgiving and tell us why.  No. *Chortle*  That would be my relatives on my dad's side. The Native Americans.  It would be like the weirdest experience to be holding this holiday and not be think of them, so I quietly do.

9. Is there a family heirloom at the Thanksgiving table? What its story? There aren't any.

10. What is your favorite part about Thanksgiving Day? Getting together with the family.  We once went out to Joshua Tree and had thanksgiving out there.  So many memories.  The drum circle, the rain, lol....

11. What is something that was done for you this year that makes you grateful this Thanksgiving? I finally got back on the same page with my GP.  She's helped me overcome some problems.  I'm very grateful.

12. What foods do you usually have for Thanksgiving?  Pretty traditional American fare.  

 13. How has the celebration of Thanksgiving today changed from when you were little?  My family was out in California by itself when I was little.  So, it was just our nuclear family.  When it became Generational, it was a lot more fun.  I loved having so many cousins when three of the  families all relocated to California.

14. If you could share Thanksgiving dinner today with one person in history who would it be? Why? (Note: it can be a relative)  I'd like to be able to share a meal with my sister and her hubby.  Just this once, she would be the one I would choose.  I don't understand this, from History thing.  Maybe my native American, great grandmothers or great grandfathers?  I wouldn't want to drag my daughter back into this world for a gazillion dollars. 

15. What is one wish you have for the next generation as they begin to establish their own Thanksgiving traditions.  I wish them a peaceful world with no madmen anywhere doing bad things just because they think they are extra special or are specially chosen by God.  That includes Anyone who thinks this way.  As my Turkish friend once said,  "It's best to Live and Let Live."  

Please go HERE if you would like to participate in the MEME.   It's fun.  Give it a Spin...

 

Saturday9: Walking on Broken Glass

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love to answer the questions, however, and here is today's questions!

Saturday 9: Walking on Broken Glass (1992)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.  

This is an amazing song video!  Loved it .. 💟 Thanks Sam!

1) Annie sings that she feels she's walking on broken glass. What's the most recent item you broke?  A Thermometer. 

2) She sings about being cut until she bleeds. Tell us about a time you needed stitches.  I had stitches for tear duct surgery a couple years ago.

3) This week's featured artist, Annie Lennox, was born on Christmas Day. Do you know anyone whose birthday falls on a holiday? I don't. 

4) When Annie met Dave Stewart, with whom she'd form the duo The Eurthmyics, she was living in Australia and staying in a tiny apartment called a bedsit. The occupant has his/her own combination bedroom/livingroom with cooking facilities, but must share a bathroom. Tell us about one of your early apartments.  My earliest apartment was a little studio very similar to Annie's.  Only it was one story of converted barracks and surrounded by Big trees and green space.  It was very pleasant to live there.

5) After the Eurythmics broke up, Annie went out on her own. Would you rather work independently, or as part of a group?  I'd rather work with a group of people.

6) Among her many honors, Annie Lennox was named chancellor of Scotland's Glasgow Calledonia University. What's the last college campus you visited? What brought you there? In 2014 we attended our daughter's graduation at UC Berkeley.  Quite an accomplishment for a kid battling a potentially fatal disease and trying to work as well as go to school.  I'm glad we were all there to celebrate a big milestone in our family's history.  A happy time.  

7) In 1992, the year this song was recorded, compact discs outsold cassette tapes for the first time. Back in the day, did you enjoy making your own mix tapes? I loved tapes but didn't mix any.  I like tapes better than discs.  But alas, life marches on.....

8) Also in 1992, Johnny Carson made his last appearance as host of The Tonight Show.  The catchphrase, "Here's Johnny!" was associated with the show. Can you think of another popular TV catchphrase?  I'm not familiar with much on TV, so no, I can't think of any at the moment.  As I read other people's Saturday9's, though, I'm sure to recognize some of them.  

 9) Random question: Think of your past week. Now look ahead to the coming week. Would you like it to be more, or less, exciting?  I've had far too much excitement to want anymore of it.  I'm hoping it's less exciting.  I need to just sit and knit and watch my little YouTube favorites and some DVDs.  It's time for me to drop out and chill.  But, before I go....... 

here is the Linkie for this weeks Meme..  

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

  

Trump: Where we are at Present

 I'm putting this here so as not to lose the link.  I think it's an important piece of analysis.  I hope that this doesn't sound angry, because I'm not angry, I'm sad, actually.  Except at the end.  That part was fun.  

This is a sort of horrid way for things to end, and I'm too old to do a darn thing about it.

This is Politico's take on what the Republican party is doing to rip itself apart.  Please don't dismiss this out of turn.  This is excellent journalism even if you don't want to hear what they have to say, and they have a deep knowledge of the political nuts and bolts of  US elections.  

I would wish that there were less hide bound ideologists among the electorate, but it's apparently not the case.  John Bolton, who has a fine mind despite his cheer-leading at one point, has tried to use reason and logic to end this thing.  But even he may have given up.

Here's the Politico article.  

There isn't a credible news agency on the Conservative side that supports trump in his tantrums but if you find one you can leave a link.  I'll see what they have to say.  Meanwhile, we have a country to save for at least 60 million non-voting age Kids!  

 

Oh, and Trumpty Dumpty,  YOU"RE  FIRED!

Sunday Stealing:

Something Completely Different 

Hi! I'm your host Bev 2 Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". . Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This 3 feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal 4 all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise 5 to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and 6 intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves! 

Thanks for the suggestion by Country Dew, I'm going to start posting Sunday Stealing on Friday instead of Saturday, to give everyone more time to answer.

 

 

Something different.  Many (most?) Sunday Stealing people post photos to their web site so I thought I would try something different this week.  The “answers” will all be photos, something you've taken or something you've found somewhere else.

  

1. Something held together with ribbon, string, or rope.

Couldn't Resist!

1.5 The real sticks and strings....

"String" holding "Sticks" together

2. Something related to travel

Monterey Bay, looking across to Santa Cruz

3. Some Place People Travel 

4. Something cold/frozen

Nebula

5. Something with a hole in it.

Well, here's a LOT of things with a hole in them.

6. Something striped

7. An animal.

8. Something cute.

My Googly eyed Knit fabric Pebble weights 

9. A food.

Puzzle Game Desserts!  Yummy!

10. Something warm

  

Hand Knit socks - Cozy toes!

Saturday 9: All of Me

 

Welcome to Saturday 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so to speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love memes, however, and here is today's meme!

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) John Legend sings he loves his woman's "perfect imperfections." Tell us something quirky or imperfect about a loved one that you would not change.  

I can see that you want to get me killed.  Lol....OK,  without saying who it is, I will try:  I love the way this person always tries to minimize critics by making fun of themselves.  I love this person with my whole heart, but that's his/her quirkiness. If my kids are reading this, No, it isn't you.  It's not your Pa, either.  

2) John wrote this love song to his wife, Chrissy Teigen. The couple recently lost their baby after pregnancy complications. To whom did you most recently send a sympathy (or "thinking of you") card or message?   

Not recently, those were to us.  But I do fear this may change as the US has the WORST record against Covid-19 in all the world.  It's going to get worse before it gets any better.
 
3) While adventurous in his creative career choices, John admits his taste in food leans toward the tried and true. His favorites are chicken (rotisserie or fried), macaroni and cheese, and steamed vegetables. What's on your weekend menu?  

 Well, I'm not sure.  We eat whatever we both decide we want to eat.  I'd say that "tried and true" fits me nowadays.
 
4) When he was growing up, John's mother, Phyllis, helped support the family as a seamstress. Are you any good with a needle and thread?   

I made my own clothes for years until my shoulder and arm decided it had enough.  Now that it's fixed itself, HaHa, I'm trying to get myself to sew again.  It's an uphill struggle.

I also had a small business doing alterations and custom sewing when the twins were finally in grade school. It morphed into ceramics and jewelry but it started out as alterations and custom sewing.  I really should have stayed with Custom and alterations! lol

5) As a child, he was such a big fan of Andy Griffith and Matlock that he wanted to be a lawyer. If you grew up to have the same occupation as the TV character you liked best as a kid, what would you be doing?   

I'd be a Comedian!  I still Love Lucy....💓💝

6) John is a judge on The Voice. Do you watch that show? Or America's Got Talent, or American Idol? 

 Nope, but I knew I had seen this man somewhere.  I've only have watched a few of those two shows on YouTube. 
 
7) In 2013, the year this song was popular, twin baby pandas were born at Zoo Atlanta. Their panda parents had been given to the US as a gift from the Chinese, with the understanding that any offspring would be given to China. So, in 2016, the panda cubs were flown to a Chinese conservation center. They had a hard time adjusting at first, confused by jet lag, unresponsive when spoken to in Chinese, unimpressed by their new diet. Have you ever found yourself similarly overwhelmed when you traveled far from home? (BTW, the pandas are doing just fine now in their permanent Chinese home.)

No, not really comparable to something like being ripped from my family and sent to the other side of the earth.  

We all had a short and scary time of it on one long trip to Northern California.  Mr. Z woke up with what turned out to be a case of Bell's Palsy.  Not knowing what it was, and the fact that it looked like he'd had a stroke, didn't help at all.  

I can't imagine how those poor baby Pandas felt though.  It has to be hard on them. 

8) Also in 2013, The Pope posted his first tweet. What social media platforms do you regularly use?  I use Instagram, IRC, Blogger, and some Bulletin Boards. I also like Pinterest, but "Love" is more like it for Pinterest.
 9) Random question: Have you ever a) written something on a public wall or b) carved anything into a tree of bench?   

No.  I'm such a stick in the mud.  I have READ things on bathroom walls though that were hilarious!

 👉  If you would like to see other posts from the rest of our Gang of Niner's, please Go HERE 👈

 And now a note from our Founder and Esteemed Prez...

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend!

The face of selfishness in the face of other people’s deaths

 This is a quote from an article in the New York Times article 

“A ‘Terrifying’ Coronavirus Surge Will Land in Biden’s Lap”

“Kathleen Skeins, a travel agent outside Detroit, used to be busy planning all-inclusive trips abroad for her clients. Now, she said, she is among the many business owners in America who are ‘barely starting to get back on their feet.’ 

‘We’ve already had so many people that have lost their dreams in the first shutdown,” said Ms. Skeins, 51, who said she cast her first ballot in about 30 years last week, and voted for Mr. Trump. While she doesn’t take the virus lightly, she said, she remains firmly opposed to any restrictions that could hurt her business.

“The virus is never going to go away,” she said. “It’s just a part of our lives.’”

My take on this:

I’m thinking that this emergency is a testing ground for character, kindness, unselfish fellow feeling, and, yes, Christian values.  Nothing else can convince me that it’s anything less.  

We are being tested, our love and our character are being tested.  Travel is the way this spread all over the globe so rapidly.  And my guess is that Ms. Skeins is not tracking cases of covid19 picked up by her clients and passed onto their unsuspecting co-workers, or their families. 

Rescue: Poor Dog Was Dumped in Sadness, Despair, Helpless, Alone

Wolfie was nearly in this poor of a condition when he first arrived at the pound and, then, with a lot of love and care at animal control (San Diego's was a no kill shelter) he came home with us.

 It's scary how close our wonderful little dog was to dying on the mean streets. Don't shop. Adopt. 

 

Sunday Stealing

 More Random Questions

 

 Hi! I'm your host Bev Sykes of the blog "Funny the World". .

Welcome to Sunday Stealing. This feature originated and published on WTIT: The Blog. Here we will steal all types of questions from every corner of the blogosphere. Our promise to you is that we will work hard to find the most interesting and intelligent questions. Cheers to all of us thieves!

Stolen from Random Question Generator

1. What’s something no one wants to hear but everyone should?  

I really have no idea what to say.  But.....Try this on:  We've just been though a semi-civil war of words while under lock and key caused by a pandemic.  So, I'd say, 'Forgive, Forget, and GET TO WORK fixing this rift. Do it for the Children!"  After all, Christmas is coming, and it should be a time of "Peace that surpasses understanding".

2. What’s the most annoying animal you’ve ever encountered?  That honor would go to a neighbor's son's dog.  It was the most beautiful little puppy, and what happened to it shouldn't have happened to a ..well, a dog.  It was locked up inside a meth house for months, and came out crazy.  It barked incessantly and five hours a day. It attacked people by jumping over the fence and chasing them down the street.  I just remember the lovely little puppy and felt sad about it. 

3. How much does language affect our thinking?  Does this mean something like the "language of love", or the "language of war"?  Rhetoric?  I think how something is presented has a big effect on how we react to words, spoken or written.  Angry words can inflame passions.  Loving words can defuse tension.  However, the same sentence can come out differently if written or spoken without inflection, or even dramatic punctuation.    

4. Do you prefer to watch movies in the theater or in the comfort of your home?  Home.  I hate going to theaters now.  Theaters are, to me and my aging body, both uncomfortable and inconvenient. 

5. What topic could you spend hours talking about?  Geology I love that, and Art, immensely.

6. If you could run away from it all and start fresh somewhere new, would you? No.

7. What’s the most polarizing question you could ask a group of friends?  That would be any thing to do with Politics. So, I don't ask, don't tell, usually.

8. Do movies have the same power as books to change the world?  Nothing can tell a story like a book.  Movies are also powerful but unless it's a series, have you ever seen a movie that does much justice to a very good book?

9. What would you rate 10/10 ? The courage of a soldier under fire, Medical personnel in big emergencies,  Firefighters.  They are the three 10/10 courageous groups on the planet. 

10. What are you really good at, but kind of embarrassed that you are good at it?  

I'm really good at keeping my mouth shut around people of "dubious loyalties".  I envision myself as an Orc Warrior sometimes, and that helps me keep my mouth shut.  For the sake of peace. This policy makes me feel a bit two-faced, but I'm tired of fighting about stuff. 

 

 Namasté 😇

11. Who do you go out of your way to be nice to?  That would be little Kids.  They didn't ask to be born.  And yet, here they are, trying to make the most of it in a hostile environment. 

12. What problems will technology solve in the next 5 years? What problems will it create?  Fusion Energy.  I can't see any problems.

13. What from the present will withstand the test of time?  Well what ever it is, I can assure you it will be made of Plastic.

14. What movie would be greatly improved if it was made into a musical?  Probably, "The Spawn of the Slithus", and a Campy Musical would suit my mood right now.  

15. What is something common from your childhood that will seem strange to future generations? Polio.  And I will never forget that this scourge is gone because of the doctors who worked hard to find a cure.  My mother worried herself sick over polio.  She fretted if we got any sort of fever and there was real fear in her eyes when she took our temperatures. 

 

Saturday9: For All We Know

Sorry about this kids.  I'm not paying enough attention to detail.  I thought yesterday was Friday.. And it wasn't.   Sometimes reality just escapes me.  It isn't Age but it is Angst !

Welcome to Saturday: 9. What we've committed to our readers is that we will post 9 questions every Saturday. Sometimes the post will have a theme, and at other times the questions will be totally unrelated. Those weeks we do "random questions," so-to-speak. We encourage you to visit other participants posts and leave a comment. Because we don't have any rules, it is your choice. We hate rules. We love to answer the questions, however, and here is today's questions!

For All We Know.....

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

1) This song is about newlyweds looking ahead to a happy life together. What are you looking forward to today?  Results of the Election

2) They look forward to getting to know one another better. Tell us about someone who knows you well. Is it the person who has known you the longest?  He's my hubby, and yes, he has known me longer than any other person besides my brother and sister.  

3) The song lyrics are credited to "Robb Wilson" and "Arthur James," but those aren't their real names. Robb Royer and Jimmy Griffin were founding members of the 70s soft-rock group Bread. Are you familiar with that band? If so, do you have a favorite Bread song? (Find their greatest hits here.)

I am familiar with their music and my favorite song is their best hit, 

"It Don't Matter to Me" 
 
4) Richard Carpenter discovered this song on his afternoon off when he and sister Karen were on tour. He took a few hours to unwind at  the movies, heard this song in the film Lovers and Other Strangers, and decided it would make a perfect Carpenters record. How do you like to unwind?  I meditate and listen to the wind, or the recordings of streams in the mountains. 

And HERE was supposed to be a Cat Steven's song, "The Wind".  However, it doesn't come up, even with the little bit of code CountryDew showed me.  So.... just click on the link.. Hope that works for you....

https://youtu.be/yXuq6XpoasE 

5) Karen Carpenter drank unsweetened iced tea, every day, all year long. Do you prefer your tea hot or cold?  I like iced tea, and also hot tea. No preference.

6) Elvis was a fan of Karen's and, according to the recollection of singer Petula Clark, hit on her when she and Clark visited him backstage in Vegas. Pet recalled Karen was very innocent and said, "I felt responsible for her so I got her out of there." Tell us about a time when you looked out for a friend.
My friends have almost always been older than I, so I really never felt this. 

7) President Richard Nixon was a Carpenters fan, too, and invited the duo to perform at the White House at an official dinner for West German Chancellor Willy Brandt. If you could hear anyone perform live in an intimate setting, like a dinner party, who would you choose?  That would likely be James Taylor. I still hear a lot of his songs in my head.  "Fire and Rain",  for one.

 8) Today Richard collects classic automobiles. He has a 1964 Ford Thunderbird, like the one Beach Boys sang about in the song "Fun, Fun, Fun." Can you think of another song that mentions a car? Yes, "Little Duece Coupe".  Another Beach Boys song.

9) Random question: Do you tend to feel more content at the beginning of the day, or at the end? I'm  beyond ever feeling content again, so this just isn't pertinent to me.  I'm worried.  I've basically been worried for the last four years.  I could hear the freight train coming and couldn't get anyone off the tracks.

 If you would like to see other blog owners Contributions, Please, Go Here..

Thanks so much for joining us again at Saturday: 9. As always, feel free to come back, see who has participated and comment on their posts. In fact sometimes, if you want to read & comment on everyone's responses, you might want to check back again tomorrow. But it is not a rule. We haven’t any rules here. Join us on next Saturday for another version of Saturday: 9, "Just A Silly Meme on a Saturday!" Enjoy your weekend! 

Blondie - Heart Of Glass (Official Music Video)

 I feel like I have a heart of glass sometimes.. and these be the times...

Neil Young - Harvest Moon (Official Music Video)

I love this song..... It's just so pretty... Enjoy! 

Sasha Baron Cohen on Bigotry and Racism

Something to think about, this strange and murderous trait that has followed us, relentlessly, from the jungles of Africa to modern city life.

It's something Anthropologists call, "Consciousness of Kind".  It's ugly, and never really helped anyone, not even at the tribal level.   

This phenomenon, Xenophobia is another word for it, is a holdover from the time that we climbed out of the trees, crossed the savanna and learned to swim.  It served it's purpose back in the day.  Now it's just a deadly cause of strife and hideousness in Modern Homo Sapiens.

  

So, back to the knitting... and the reading... see you Saturday at the latest..... Bonne Chance!

Bloom Where You Are Planted

I'm reading like my life depended on it.

 There is so much to know and so little time.  The time for sleepwalking is over. 

Two of the books mentioned in Sunday Stealing are like brand new "Lands" to me.  

The book, Rage, is heartbreaking.  I feel like I’m leaving three Hostages to Fate (my children) in this world.  When leadership gets this crass, venal, and money hungry, Houston, we have a problem...trump and all of his enablers make me sick.