America reacts!

In response to the carnage witnessed over in Paris, the President has placed all America on a HEIGHTENED ALERT STATUS! Obama has also issued the following directives and advice to take effect immediately:

1. Obama has ordered the TSA to make airline passengers go through the scanners TWICE, prior to boarding. That should work out well....
2. Obama has DRAWN A NEW LINE in the sand, daring ISIS to cross it! Well, he did!
3. Obama wants NYC to go on full alert! You know that city with a police force that doesn't give a crap. [Also Ferguson MO is locked down to prevent potential rioting]!
4. Obama will immediately ask Congress for MORE MONEY! Billions of which will go to the 50 special forces on the ground in Syria to enable them to train a few kurds in the fine art of retreat and surrender. What?
5. Obama plans to make himself much harder for terrorists to fine. (Rumors place him on a golf course somewhere for the duration of his term).

Remember citizens, if you see a terrorist charging at you...DUCK AND COVER, DUCK AND COVER! Uh wait, wasn't that for something else??

Editors note: I fully understand the gravity of events unfolding all around the globe. But, if lose our sense of humor, then we can only become grim and of sour disposition.

Critique: Banquet's new mini meal offering!

In past posts, I've often hammered the Banquet brand, and for good reason. This critique will also be along the sames lines. Sigh..

For lack of a better descriptor, I'll call these products from Banquet, Mini Meals. This particular meal deal was billed as a Salisbury steak with mac and cheese! Oh yummy! Interestingly, that 'steak' is comprised mostly of chicken and pork! So, it might be better termed a 'Salischicknpork' patty. Not sure how well that would fly...

The directions are pretty easy, as is the case for most of the Banquet offerings. Slit the film, nuke for two minutes, open the film and stir and the seal and nuke for two more minutes. See! Easy sleezy. At just 300 calories, you'd think this would be a pretty good tasting diet meal. And you'd be correct assuming you were like fifteen years old. If you're an adult and one that is concerned with your salt intake, then take a major pass! This small meal deals out about 50% of your daily sodium allowance! And, yes! That's why it taste pretty good! Add enough salt to crap and it might be edible....

Bottom line, a 7 score for taste and a 0 for health. You could this stuff, from time to time, just don't bet your life on it!

Country Mart offers take home Turkey dinners for the Holiday!

Just in time for the Thanksgiving Holiday, when many of us are stressed out from working, doing choirs are having relatives over for a feast, Country Mart located in Forsyth MO is offering three varieties of Thanksgiving meals with all the fixings!

As you enter the store, on the left, is a table with application forms. Just fill one out well before November the 26th, get it over to the Deli and your all set! I've included a copy of the form below.

It's depressing to be depressed!

One of the pitfalls of living in the 'information society' we all currently exist in, is how overwhelming it has all become. Whether it is cell phones, computers or pads, the staggering array of devices we now sport, insure that we are continuously 'future shocked' about to death! And to add insult to injury, getting informed is addictive, especially among the younger citizens. If you doubt this, just get out and observe the young set. I'll bet a dollar to a doughnut, any kid you spot will likely have their faces buried in a smart phone! While they are pursuing a a virtual social life, the real thing is passing them by!

I would contend that all that information, impacting our central nervous system for most of our waking hours, can have a depressing effect over time. Personally, I've begun to try and wean myself off the addiction by making what I hope are a few intelligent moves;

1. I gave up my smart phone for a dumb phone.
2. I limit my time on my computer to just a few hours per day.
3. I try and keep the TV off during the morning and evening hours.
4. I try to get out more and to interact with others.
5. Most evenings I sate my addiction by reading a good book!

And guess what, my personal periods of depression have begun to shrink! Sure, I may no longer be fully aware of what is 'happening now', but in the full course of time, did it ever really matter?

Random Thoughts for November 2015

Posting in the 21st Century is troubling for lots of reasons. At any given micro second, here in 2015, there are hundreds of millions of words, blogs and mindless texts being created by would be authors who toss their creations out into the ether we all know as the Internet. The vast majority of which, like sperm striving to impregnate some intellectual egg, will ultimately fail and be rejected by an unfeeling digital matrix. (I completely understand that reality and personally have billions of dead sperm words lying stillborn about my feet). Still, I rise up each day, and hit the keyboard as though it was a blushing virgin and I an anxious teen.... Well then, let us go bravely forward...

Mediacom, just a symptom of the times or a full blown Internet disgrace?

When one finds oneself intimately [or at least contractually] associated with an Internet service provider, (which is all too often the only Internet provider available), well one might take a pause before dissing said partner in print! Truth be told. I no longer really care. As the recipient of substandard service over a protracted period of time, I've grown very accustomed to inferior or substandard performance. Even the simple act of writing out this blog entry was subject to problems.

But, I do dwaddle and so apologize to my very few readers. Let me now get to the real meat of this issue. (For as I have been often told, the meat is sweetest as one gets nearer to the bone of an issue).

Mediacom is really just a simple phone company. Did you know that? That's how the government classifies them, at any rate. They are licensed under the FCC, and are charged with providing  reliable Internet communication. Ah, but as Shakespeare might well have intoned, there is a rub. Q: Is their concept of the word 'reliable' the same as mine or yours? Put another way, are they providing the very best service they can or, are they performing a crude balancing act? You know, where you max corporate profits even as you test the patience of your subscribers to near a breaking point! And, are you charging very healthy corporate fees while riding on the back of an antiquated, rotting and aging digital infrastructure? Good questions to ask. After all, wasn't it President Obama, who boldly promised America a better and faster Internet for all in 2008? I dunno. Personally, I've become pretty disgusted with this group over the past decade and suspect the problems I experience are shared with many of the other providers. What say you?

Fox News! A media gem surrounded by really horrific advertising!

I get it that the stuff that comes over my TV daily is politically massaged by whatever station I happen to listen to. It's fun, at times, to switch my channel to MSNBC or ABC or CBS or even CNN which tries to look like a politically centralist channel, so damn hard, it makes one cry. And then there is the Fox Channel - a real gem in that they seem to actually try and be fair in what ever story they happen to be 'reporting'. I mean, they even have token Left leaning commentators who are black for chrissakes! What's more fair than that?

But, let me get right to the chase! Of all the media reporting channels I watch, none are as insulting as the sheer advertising crapola put out by Fox. I find them to be either insulting (pills for that special moment), degrading of the poor (what's in your gold portfolio), or downright scary as a cadre of pharmaceutical propaganda machines attempt to convince you that you must take their Cadillac crap.

And, sadly, this media outlet is offering a GOP debate - you know men and women candidates that may dictate your future if elected - only people like me will not have the ability to watch it on my cable TV as Mediacom doesn't feel like offering it as part of a basic package to the like of me... nope, I'd have to pay for a premium service package. What the fuck is wrong with you people that you are letting a bunch of bat wing leftists take over this Republic?

[More on this topic later in a later rant].

Hillary marches boldly on!

In truth, I secretly respect Hillary and those humongous balls she must have hidden somewhere under her skirt. The word scandal clings to her persona like a second skin. These days, she's like some insane General marching madly down a hill in WWII, filled with exploding bombs and whizzing bullets! The women appears almost magical. And should she become our next President, I will die laughing!

Think I'll pass on Trump! My picks for Presidential candidates!

Trump, to me anyway, is first and foremost a performer of the comedic ilk. He's a lot like the one we've had in office for almost seven years, and frankly, my sense of humor has waned.

Let me see now. What have we got in terms of looking at both party's viable candidates? I think the number is something like this:

Democratic Candidates

Hillary Clinton - Here' someone so mired in one scandal after another, it's hard to keep track! I'm betting she will be indicted shortly and thus not a player.

Bernie Sanders - Whoa boy! This Marxist wannabee actually strikes a chord with our fringe population. Other than that he's all show and a no go.

Joe Biden - Now here's a potential winner for the left. Joe baby is kinda hanging out while he waits for the hammer to come down on Hillary - I think he has the best potential to carry forth the far left and their dingbat concepts.

Republican Candidates

Donald Trump - Old Donald has been a great distraction for everyone who is sick an tired of career politicians and their get nothing done mantra. It's too bad he also comes off as narcissistic, authoritarian and brutish. A big turnoff for a lot of conservative voters.

Dr. Ben Carson - What Donald lacks in the social graces, the doctor practically oozes out of his pores. I personally like this man and could stand to see him elected as my leader. What he might lack in experience would be more than made up for by his cabinet to be.

Ted Cruz - A real sleeper, in my view. This guy has experience out the yahoo and appeals to a large segment of Hispanic and Latino voters. A man that will bear watching as we head into the meat of the season.

Carly Fiorina - Now here's a person who I consider to be a real pit bull. She's a fighter, a successful business woman and a lady who spots a really thick skin. and while I don't think she has a chance as President, she would make for a dynamite VP with Presidential potential on down the road.

So who do I think will win the big enchilada? 

Critique: Bean with Bacon soup!

I was somewhat surprised to find that many individuals out there don't think they would like Bean with Bacon soup! That is, until I remembered a time in my distant past that my dad made me eat some for lunch. after that I was hooked on the wonderful taste and texture!

As with most soups that emerge from a can, BwB is easy to fix for a fast lunch and the cans store well in the cupboard. At about ninety cents per can and figuring you can make up two hearty meals, it is therefore somewhat cost effective if your on a tight budget. Nutritionally, you get about 140 calories from a half cup serving. There's little in the way of saturated fats (1g) and the cholesterol is also a very low 5 mg. The only fly in this culinary ointment is the sodium content. It comes in at a whopping 980 milligrams, and no matter which way the debate is currently raging about salt in our diets, I just don't feel comfortable with the high amount!

As I said earlier, fixing up a batch is simplicity itself; just dump a can into a small pot, add a can of water, heat to boiling and she's ready to go! Please give this a try and see if you don't also make it a regular staple at your home!