Welcome, visitor! [ Register | Login ] 

Purchase Ad

What I Heard This Week 04-20-2023

What I Heard This Week April 19, 2023

Earth Day 2023 April 22. We really need to take care of this Earth because we don’t have another one to move to after we mess this one up. Today’s lesson: The difference between Biodegradable and Compostable. As caring people, we want to make planet-conscious decisions, and do what is right for the environment, but sometimes we just don’t know what to do, or how to do it properly. Biodegradable products break down VERY SLOWLY decaying into smaller pieces of the material that they were made of. Compostable goes one step further in protecting the environment, because once they have broken down, the decay supplies the earth with nutrient-rich materials and the process takes much less time. Look for a leaf and arrow-shaped tree or the actual word “compostable” on the packaging itself. Yes, compostable is the way to go – I just ordered compostable trash and poop bags.

You have to hold yourself accountable for your actions, and that’s how we’re going to protect the Earth. – Julia Butterfly Hill

I thought of Chappaquiddick on this one. Last week, a woman was pulled from a partially submerged Jeep, only 40 feet from a boat ramp at Lake O’ the Pines, about 8 miles west of Jefferson, Texas. A local fisherman reported the vehicle and 18 minutes later deputies determined it was too dangerous to wade out, so they waited for a wrecker to arrive. The fisherman then took the wrecker employee out in his boat to attach a hook and cable to pull the vehicle out of the water… at which point they found a woman inside. An alive woman. The fisherman and the wrecker employee managed to get the woman out of the car and into the boat (while the deputies, hmmm, watched, I suppose because… it was dangerous, so close to the boat ramp). The woman said she had been in the submerged vehicle for several hours, was then treated for hypothermia, and transferred to the hospital. That was one lucky girl to have the fisherman and the wrecker employee. Wouldn’t you love to know the rest of the story? Was she drinking or on her phone? Was she mad at her husband, perhaps mad at the Jeep, or just following her GPS? Turn left in 200 ft. So many unanswered questions. But I did learn that if that ever happens to us – you or me – and you don’t have one of those seatbelt cutter window-breaking safety hammers in your glove box, then pull out your headrest and use the metal rods which are actually built to be window breakers. Hmmm. Never heard that before. I can only hope that all law enforcement in that county now require swimming lessons, or at least inflatable arm floaties in all vehicles. I did hear that law enforcement served cookies and coffee to all involved. Just saying. Evidently Myth Busters did a few episodes on how to save yourself from a submerged vehicle. Old crank windows might be handy.

The 45-year-old California dermatologist accused of poisoning her husband, after he secretly put home surveillance cameras in their kitchen, now says that she was mixing drain-clearing chemical lemonade cocktails (Drano) to kill ants, not her husband. The husband first noticed a chemical taste in his hot lemonade, then was diagnosed with ulcers, gastritis and esophagitis. He put the cameras in place. Once he covered his lemonade with plastic wrap – she removed the plastic wrap, spiked the drink and replaced the plastic covering. The wife will only face a maximum of eight years and eight months in prison if convicted on all counts. That’s not enough.

OK – this one was important enough for me to remove part of my column so I could get this information to you today. NBC is paying tribute to our beloved comedian and actor Carol Burnett, on the occasion of her 90th birthday, with 90 Years of Laughter + Love which will air on her birthday, April 26th and stream the next day on Peacock (which I don’t have but may have to get). It’s a two-hour special for our dearest Carol Burnett. Sounds like one heck of a big party and celebration, full of big stars paying tribute, interviews, the world’s funniest clips (YES!), music, and more. Just thought you might want to know.

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Actor Christine Lahti of Chicago Hope is 72. Writer-producer David E. Kelley of Ally McBeal, The Practice, Doogie Howser, M.D., Picket Fences, Chicago Hope, Boston Legal, is 66. Magician David Blaine is 49. Bassist Mel Schacher of Grand Funk Railroad is 71. Original Mouseketeer Darlene Gillespie is 81. Actor James Roday Rodriguez of Psych is 46. I loved the hyper-observant consultant detective, fake psychic, Shawn Spencer. Singer Allan Clarke of The Hollies is 80. Actor Brad Garrett of Everybody Loves Raymond is 63. Actor Steven Seagal is 71. Singer-guitarist Dave Edmunds is 80.

Actor Ron Perlman is 73. Beauty and the Beast. Actor Robin Wright is 56. Singer Pat Travers is 69. Musician Herbie Hancock is 83. Musician John Kay of Steppenwolf is 79. Singer J.D. Nicholas of The Commodores is 71. Actor Andy Garcia is 67. Actor Claudia Cardinale of Pink Panther films is 85. Actor Emma Thompson is 64. Composer Bill Conti (Rocky film theme song) is 81. Guitarist Ritchie Blackmore of Deep Purple is 78. Carol Burnett is 90.

When we show our respect for other living things, they respond with respect for us. – Arapaho Proverb

National Oatmeal Cookie Day
April 30th. According to the Farmers’ Almanac this is the BEST EVER OATMEAL COOKIE.
3 sticks salted butter, not fully softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup dark brown sugar (packed)
1 extra large egg
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1 ¼ cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon cinnamon
⅛ teaspoon (a pinch) ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not instant)
1 cup dried fruit, raisins, chopped dates, mission figs, (I might do dried cherries)
¾ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
Preheat oven 350°F. Line cookie sheets with parchment.
Cream butter and sugar using a stand mixer or hand mixer. Add egg and vanilla, mix. Scrape sides of bowl.
In separate bowl mix dry ingredients except oats and whisk or sift together to distribute evenly. Add dry ingredients to the wet, a bit at a time. Then add oats, a bit at a time. Add dried fruit and nuts and mix briefly. Drop by heaping tablespoon onto prepared cookie sheets. Slightly dampen (not wet) fingers, flatten into disks. Edges can be somewhat irregular.      Leave at least an inch or two between cookies, because they spread. No more than a dozen cookies on the sheet at a time. 4 rows of three. Bake 11-13 minutes, or until golden brown. Set a timer! Cookies will rise, then flatten out and brown. Watch carefully. Rotate pan during baking for even browning. Cool on wire rack. Makes about 36 cookies.

What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another. – Chris Maser

Elon Musk has a company called The Boring Company, listed as an American infrastructure and tunnel construction services company – working towards electric car-based underground public transportation systems. Musk wants to work quickly to dig underground tunnels for freight, utility and transportation, in order to help eliminate carrier congestion. I’m not sure how that would work but it sounds invasive to me. In the process of building these underground tunnels, he would be releasing around 140,000 gallons of treated wastewater into the Colorado River near Bastrop, every day. The Boring Company set up a construction site in Bastrop two years ago; the company now known for violating regulations, housing people in mobile homes without sewage facilities, installing silos without permits, building without approval, and ignoring state safety laws, just doing things his way. Residents of Bastrop are skeptical about him releasing wastewater because the community uses the river for recreation, and farmers and ranchers use the water on crops and livestock that feed you and me. They’re all worried that it would harm the water quality. Hmmm. You think? One resident has suggested they reject the permit unless Elon Musk and his kids agree to go swimming in the Colorado River every day, with another stating even billionaires need to follow the law. It might be important to mention that some of the water being dumped would come from a different SpaceX site. Hmmm. Would it be in MacGregor, 17 miles outside Waco? or Boca Chica Village near Brownsville (once a haven for retirees, snowbirds and outdoorsy people) where the maiden voyage of SpaceX Super Heavy rocket and Starship spaceship was postponed this week, to April 20th because of a problem with a frozen valve.

McDonalds’s plans to improve the Big Mac and double cheeseburger with softer, pillowy golden-brown buns, hotter gooier cheese and a juicier, caramelized taste since the onions will be placed on extra-seared patties while they’re still hot on the grill. There will also be more Big Mac sauce.

Several nutritionists were asked to share information about one drink that they never or rarely drink. Their list included diet soda, regular soda, energy drinks (one 8-ounce can of Red Bull has 27 grams of sugar, more than a woman should have all day), fruit drinks – not fruit juice (almost as much sugar as the Red Bull – just grab an orange – whole fruit has fiber), alcoholic drinks – (4 ounces of margarita mix can have 26 grams of sugar – just like the Red Bull). They stressed that there is room for all beverages in a healthy diet, but some drinks should not be consumed very often at all. See above.

Leaked documents say Egypt is now supplying up to 40,000 missiles to Ukraine after talks with senior U.S. officials, abandoning an original secret plan to send them to Russia. Whoa. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has been found to have quite a few errors in his financial disclosures. The “World” generated a record 10% of its electricity from wind and solar in 2021 and clean sources accounted for 38% of total power supply – even more than coal. Apple and Facebook provided customer data to hackers pretending to be law enforcement officials. Hmmm.

Land really is the best art.- Andy Warhol

If someone said to you, “mammoth meatball”, you would probably imagine a giant ball of savory meat, seasonings and breadcrumbs sitting on top a bed of steaming pasta. Nah. An Australian cultured meat company, Vow Food, which cultivates meat from animal cells without the slaughter of animals, has produced a meatball that incorporates DNA from the extinct woolly mammoth. I just report what I read. I could never make up stuff like this.

Since there is only one of me, does that make me endangered or a limited edition? Have a great Earth Day. Hope you plant a tree, a garden, or build a spot to compost your vegetable scraps. If everyone will do their part…

Lisa

Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com

What I Heard This Week 07-14-2022

What I Heard This Week July 13, 2022

Our cars are getting so hot inside right now. In triple digit heat your car’s interior will get to over 160 degrees. Cracking a window just a bit doesn’t let in any rain (hah, rain) but will allow some hot air to escape. Have you ever left a bottle of water in your car during the heat of the day? Well, you need to quit doing that. Leaving water bottles in your car during summer is a bad idea, and not just because chemicals from the plastic can leach into your water when it gets hot (which is very disturbing if you ask me), but plastic leaches its component chemicals into the water much faster when heat is applied. (Is there AC on the 18-wheeler delivering the pallets of water to stores? NO.)  It was described much like being when you put mint leaves in your tea. The heat extracts the mint-tasting molecules faster in hot tea than it does in cold tea. I like it when they put information in real life terms that we can understand.

A plastic bottle of water can also set your car seat on fire if sunlight hits it at just the right angle. If the conditions are right on a hot sunny day, light can shine through the front windshield, through a full water bottle, focusing heat onto one point. That concentrated beam can exceed 400 degrees onto a darker surface within seconds.

Now, back to my original point about hot cars. A few weeks back I had a doctor’s appointment because of all the beautiful sunshine that I enjoyed when I was younger – water skiing, camping, scuba, gardening, tanning beds, etc. – is now claiming bits and pieces of my skin for its very own. This was my third basal cell; they removed it from my ear, then took tissue/skin from the side of my face and placed it on my ear. Except for the fact that I couldn’t get the areas wet for a couple of weeks, it was pretty simple. Anne-Elisabeth was sweet to wash my hair at the kitchen sink. But at this rate, I may look like a completely different woman by the time I’m 80, with so much skin swap. (You know the pictures I’m talking about.) So, on the way back to LJ from the surgery, I figured I might as well treat myself to a quick trip to Total Wine since it was on my way home. I picked up 6 bottles of my “favorite at the moment” summertime Pinot Grigio. The next day when I got ready to leave the house, I remembered that box of wine in the backseat of my car. Yikes. It got so hot in my car that the corks had popped up on three of the bottles. This is serious. It’s so hot outside, it’s affecting our wine.

Her Majesty, the Queen has a new shorter hairstyle this summer. The very famous Butter Cow statue at the Iowa State Fair (August 11 – 21) in Des Moines, will weigh over 600 pounds. Ohio State University won trademark for the word THE, always said with emphasis such as, THE Ohio State University. To you and me, it’s just another everyday word, but to Buckeye fans, it’s a beloved tradition. There has been a third case of remission after a stem cell transplant using umbilical cord blood on an HIV patient. The Nord Stream 1 pipeline from Russia to Germany began a temporary suspension for maintenance, but now some fear Russia will not turn the supply back on.  A 23-year-old American tourist fell into Mount Vesuvius, an active volcano in Italy, after trespassing to take a selfie, then dropping his phone and trying to retrieve it. He was saved by park officials. French health authorities say they have confirmed a link between nitrates added to processed meats and colon cancer.  Good-bye charcuterie trays. Nitrates are added to a range of food products to improve their shelf life and flavor, and to help give pork-based products their pink hue. Beto O’Rourke will be visiting Lake Jackson on Wednesday August 3rd at noon.

Are you worried about your pet choking on a dog treat or rawhide? Well, a Florida family woke up to find that their Lab puppy, Scout, had found a potato chip bag that he put his head into, and it created a vacuum seal as he inhaled, suffocating him. Evidently it happens often, especially with pet treat bags, cereal box liners, bread bags and other plastic bags. So, before you recycle or dispose of the bags into the trash, cut along one side. Store pet food in plastic containers with an opening smaller that the pet’s head and serve snacks in bowls rather than straight from the bag. Hmmm. Can you imagine!

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Bassist Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath is 73. Actor Lucie Arnaz is 71. Actor David Hasselhoff is 70. Country singer Luke Bryan is 46. Singer Dion is 83. Teenager In Love, Runaround Sue, The Wanderer, Ruby Baby, and Abraham, Martin and John. Actor James Brolin is 82. Singer Martha Reeves of Martha and the Vandals is 81. Bluegrass singer Ricky Skaggs is 68. Actor Elizabeth McGovern of Downton Abbey is 61. Singer Vikki Carr is 82. Guitarist Brian May of Queen is 75. Guitarist Bernie Leadon of Eagles & Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is 75. Singer Urs Buhler of Il Divo is 51. Bassist John Lodge of the Moody Blues is 79. Country singer T.G. Sheppard is 78. Actor Donald Sutherland is 87.

Guitarist Carlos Santana is 75. Singer Yusuf Islam aka Cat Stevens is 74. Cartoonist Garry Trudeau of Doonesbury is 74. Actor Louise Fletcher is 88. Singer-actor Bobby Sherman is 79. Actor Danny Glover is 76. Singer Don Henley is 75. Actor-comedian-director Albert Brooks is 75. Composer Alan Menken of Little Mermaid, Little Shop of Horrors is 73. Singer-actor Selena Gomez is 30. Actor Woody Harrelson is 61. Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child is 42. Singer Kim Carnes is 77.

Larry Storch, the funny Cpl. Agarn in the 1960’s Western spoof, died at 99. Although F Troop lasted only two seasons from 1965 to 1967, it became a cult favorite in reruns. Devoted fans could recite almost all of the adventures of the incredibly incompetent soldiers of Fort Courage and the members of the nearby Native American tribe who only pretended to be at war with them. Monty Norman, the composer who wrote the iconic theme for the James Bond films, died at 94. James Caan died at 82.  His Oscar-nominated performance as Sonny Corleone, the recklessly hotheaded son of Marlon Brando’s Mafia Don in The Godfather, is sure to be remembered as long as there are gangster movies. Sonny’s violent end, being riddled with dozens of bullets, is one of the most memorable scenes in the film. He died well. Caan also had notable roles in films including Misery, Elf, Thief, Godfather Part II, Brian’s Song, and The Gambler.

The iconic James Coney Island at the corner of Shepherd and Richmond in Houston closed recently. “We bought a lot of real estate 25 years ago when we started expanding Coney Island. They’re worth a lot of money today,” JCI President Darrin Straughan said. “The unit economics is too much to sell hot dogs out of. We made a decision to start selling off our real estate. We’re going to open Coney Islands in smaller footprints with drive-thru’s.” Ahhh. So, it’s called unit economics when your property is worth more than you can make selling your product.

Elon Musk is pulling out of his $44 billion agreement to buy Twitter, so Twitter is in a bad situation of going to court to try and force the billionaire to make the purchase. His offer was for $54.20 a share, Twitter stock fell 11% to around $33 a share, losing value since late April when Musk made his offer. If he walks away, he could be on the hook for a $1 billion breakup fee. Like they were engaged and now Twitter wants to keep the engagement ring.

Pringles is asking all chip fans to sign a petition to rename the Kidney Garden Spider (that looks like it’s sporting a mustache, just like the Pringles “Mr. P” logo) to the Pringle’s Spider. The chip company also has a program that allows people to adopt a Pringles Spider. You get official adoption certification once you adopt, but you don’t actually get sent a real spider, obviously. Change.org

Wake up guys. Since the Supreme Court overturned Roe vs Wade, women are now asking more of men concerning shared sexual responsibility. Like being equals. What a cool idea. Men, if you are finished having kids: get a vasectomy as soon as you can. For young men, many are saying that the best birth control plan is to harvest the youngest and best swimmers as early as possible, put them in a freezer under lock and key, then get a vasectomy. The end. No unwanted pregnancies, no abortion, fewer deadbeat dads. Then the only thing you would have to worry about is venereal disease and men lying about having had a vasectomy… but no babies. Well, it’s not free, but neither is labor and delivery, food, clothing, and college.

Brandy Bottone, 32-year-old Plano mom, said she could not be one minute late to pick up her son, so she made the decision and took to the HOV lane on Dallas North Tollway. You remember the lane reserved for buses or vehicles with several occupants, typically marked with large diamond shapes on the pavement.  When you drive in the HOV lane, you have to have more than one person in the vehicle. Brandy was 8-months pregnant, so when the officer pulled her over, she pointed to her very pregnant belly and told him that the baby in her belly now counts as a person. She said the stand she’s now taking on the ticket isn’t for or against abortion, but that the law should be uniform. “If there’s a pro-women category, that’s my stance,” she said. “One law is saying that this is a baby and now he’s telling me this baby that’s jabbing my ribs is not a baby,” said Bottone. “Why can’t it all make sense?” Yes, indeed.

This could be your opportunity to own a 76-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton when Sotheby’s auction house offers a Gorgosaurus skeleton on July 28, (which also happens to be Geek Week.) This boney fellow is almost 10 feet tall and 22 feet long. Plenty of dinosaur skeletons have been auctioned off in the past, including Stan the T. Rex, which sold for $31.8 million in 2020; a meat-eating Allosaurus which sold for $2.36 million in 2018; and Sue the T. Rex, which sold for $8.4 million in 1997 to the Field Museum of Natural History. Experts are saying that this guy could bring up to $8 million. Paleontologists say individuals owning fossils rather than public institutions, prevents them from being viewed by the public and studied by researchers. Tina says that if she had one at her house, all the neighborhood dogs would be too scared to continue pooping in her yard.

The invasive giant African land snails are back in Florida. If you haven’t seen a picture of one, you need to. They can grow up to eight inches and can consume at least 500 plant species, but if they can’t find enough vegetation to munch on, they can also eat the paint or stucco off your house. The first battle Florida had with destructive mollusks was in the late 1960’s when 17,000 of the pests were collected over a 7-year period at a cost of $1 million, then they were found again in 2011 and 2017. In the past two weeks, 1,016 of the destructive mollusks have been collected from 29 properties. They also spread meningitis. Just when you thought it was safe to come out at night. I always use a jar lid full of beer to get rid of the snails in my garden. You would have to put out a kiddy pool full of 6-packs or kegs for these guys. Follow me next week for an Easy Garlic Escargot recipe. 😊

In southwest Virginia, Linda Skeens won quite a few ribbons at the county fair. In fact, she won first, second and third place for best cookies, and all three awards for candy, and savory bread, cake, pie, brownies, sweet bread and best overall baked good (which was strawberry fudge.) Wait, there is more. She also won for canned tomatoes, canned corn, pickled peppers, sauerkraut, relish, spaghetti sauce and both jelly and jam. Then she took top honors in quilt embroidery. People compared her to a great athlete, like NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt.  She said, “Comparing me to Dale Earnhardt, Sr., I said no way I could ever be in his category. He’s my hero.”  I believe she was being very humble. Especially after I read that last year at a different county fair, she won 40 ribbons. Sounds like a best-selling cookbook to me! Don’t forget to do something nice for someone TODAY. Thanks for taking the time to visit us.

LISA

Send comments to Lisa Baker at lisa@thesourceweekly.com

What I Heard This Week 04-07-2022

What I Heard This Week April 6, 2022

This week, a particularly good, and funny friend, sent me a picture of what looked like a gun shop loaded with walls of firearms. Like the wall in Academy. Below where the guns hung, there was a bakery counter stocked full of fresh donuts, eclairs, puff pastry, cinnamon rolls and more… right next to a rolling cart stacked high with pastries that they hadn’t yet put out. Her note attached said, “My political views are whatever this is!” I can see where she’s coming from.

Elon Musk, a frequent Twitter critic, is now joining the platform on their Board of Directors. Hmmm. This announcement came one day after he acquired a 9.2% stake in the company, making him by far the largest shareholder. Musk has also been known to tweet misinformation, along with less than complimentary statements about journalists and other individuals; like comparing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Hitler, which was quickly deleted. Twitter’s stock jumped 27% Monday. Elon Musk’s net worth is about $300 billion, $100 billion over Jeff Bezos.

Tiger Woods announced that he will play in the Masters Tournament and believes he can win. He’s just worried about all the necessary walking.  A number of Republicans have criticized Mitt Romney because he is backing Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson for the Supreme Court.  GM and Honda are teaming up to build a $30,000 electric car. JetBlue has now offered to buy Spirit Airlines for $3.6 billion. Wait, hadn’t Frontier Airlines agreed to buy Spirit for $2.9 billion? Hmmm. Someone is having a bidding war.  A West Virginia angler landed a 51-pound Muskie (white filleted flesh compared to lobster when prepared with butter), setting a state record for the species. He called friends for assistance in taking photos and keeping the fish alive until it could be released back into the lake.  Flowering plants in Antarctica are growing at an unprecedented speed, a rare spectacle showing a tipping point of the climate crisis. Yep, we now have flowers where it used to be too cold.

On April 13th in NY, the Bonhams Space History will auction lunar dust collected by American astronaut Neil Armstrong from the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Just think… man’s first steps on the Moon. The sale of this specimen marks the first time a part of the Apollo 11 contingency sample, which has been evaluated and verified, can be sold at auction. Still in the case from NASA, it is estimated to bring between $800,000 to $1,200,000.

A man named Simon who lives in Oklahoma, found a green tree frog in his boxed lettuce from Whole Foods. Because society seems to be looking for everything, and everybody that seems to ‘wrong them’ in the world, I was sure this story would end up with the guy throwing a fit and suing. No. This is an incredibly happy story. Simon said it was too cold outside on the night he found the little guy in his lettuce, so he put him back in the lettuce box, made him a bathtub with water in a Mason jar lid, and named him Tony. The next day Simon bought Tony worms to eat and upgraded him to a little orange habitat that stayed in the bathroom. Tony was happy. Simon was happy. Tony escaped a few times but was always found. At Christmas, he even had his own stocking. All along, Simon just wanted the best for Tony… release him or keep him? Then Simon got Tony a terrarium mansion, and knew the frog was going to stay with him. Oh, now I need to tell you the best part of the story. When Simon was 10, he was given a 50% chance of surviving leukemia. While he was sick in the hospital, his favorite companion in his hospital bed was a stuffed green tree frog. I saw the pictures. I am blubbering right now.

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Singer Peggy Lennon of the Lennon Sisters is 80. I remember watching them on the Lawrence Welk Show at my Granny and Pawpaw’s house. Guitarist Steve Howe of Yes and Asia is 74. Bassist Mel Schacher of Grand Funk Railroad is 70. Singer-actor John Schneider of The Dukes of Hazzard is 61. Singer Julian Lennon is 58. Actor Robin Wright is 55. Actor Patricia Arquette is 53.

Actor Michael Learned of The Waltons is 82. Country singer Margo Smith is 79. Actor Dennis Quaid is 67. Actor Cynthia Nixon of Sex and the City is 55. Actor Keshia Knight Pulliam of The Cosby Show is 42. Actor Kristen Stewart of Twilight is 31. Actor Elle Fanning of Because of Winn-Dixie is 23. Musician Lil Nas X is 22. Singer Jackie Evancho is 21. Actor Steven Seagal is 69.

Estelle Harris, 93, the actor known for playing George Costanza’s mother on Seinfeld, died at 93. Bobby Rydell, American singer, actor, and teen idol, died at 79. His songs included Wild One and Volare, and he appeared in Bye Bye Birdie in 1963.

The Dairy Bar Celebration, in recognition of its 70 years of doing business in LJ, was postponed in September due to Hurricane Nicholas. Well, Let’s try again. SATURDAY, APRIL 9 from 11:00-2:00 p.m. on the grounds of the LJ Historical Museum. Food, Music, and 1950’s Fun. Mary Harnden, daughter of long-time owners Dorothy and Slim Harnden, will present an oral history in the museum rotunda at 1:15. Period clothing encouraged. So, grab your bobby socks, poodle skirts, penny loafers and more, head over there to say thank-you, and help them celebrate. If you have never had a Dairy Bar Cheeseburger, then you are probably the only person in town that hasn’t. Good memories.

Sometimes I talk to myself, then we both laugh and laugh.

I have shared this with you before, but it spoke to me again, so here it is. Sometimes you get what you want. Other times, you get a lesson in patience, timing, alignment, empathy, compassion, faith, perseverance, resilience, humility, trust, meaning, awareness, resistance, purpose, clarity, grief, beauty, and life. Either way, you win.

Jon Batiste walked into the 2022 Grammy Awards with the most nominations (11) then walked away with the most wins, picking up five prizes. Yes, five, including Album of the Year, Best Music Video for his song Freedom; Best American Roots Performance and Best American Roots Song for Cry; and Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media for the animated film Soul which was a fabulous movie. Following him was Silk Sonic with four awards. I LOVE Jon Batiste, and I love Silk Sonic. It was a good night for music.

In California, a man found a 7-foot Vietnamese blue beauty rat snake coiled up back behind his couch cushion… in his home. Not his garage, shop, or back porch. The snake removal man says that this breed of snake is a rare find, adding, “You’d be luckier (likely) to find a Rolex sitting on the ground than a snake like this.” Hmmm. No one knows where it came from. Thank you, but I’ll take the Rolex.

We’ve been given a warning by science and a wake-up call by nature; it is up to us now to heed them.”
– Bill McKibben

A 59-year-old Florida man was driving down a road in the middle of the night and hit an 11-foot alligator, which caused him to veer off the road, crash, and overturn into a ditch, where he was pronounced dead at the scene. An A380 superjumbo jet just completed a flight powered by sustainable aviation fuel or SAF, made mostly of used cooking oil and waste fats, and operating with a single Rolls-Royce Trent 900 engine Ken Burns has a new two-part, four-hour PBS documentary about Benjamin Franklin.

There are now only five remaining rhino species worldwide, and all are threatened. Some sub-species have already vanished like the western black rhino of western Africa, which was declared extinct in 2013, due to poaching. The last male northern white rhino died in 2020.  They were poached for their horns, which are coveted ingredients in traditional Asian medicine. An extremely rare Sumatran rhino, the world’s smallest rhino, was born at a sanctuary in Indonesia recently. I saw her picture and she is definitely so ugly, she is cute.

“We are being governed by a bunch of children,” says Illinois Republican Rep. Adam Kinzinger. “By a bunch of people that are not serious about running the United States of America and truly don’t understand the threat that’s out there from Vladimir Putin, from China and from some of these actors in the world that want to destroy our place here.” He continued, “The world order is being challenged for the first time since World War II and they’re sitting around thinking today about how we can win our next election, what the newest outrage is, what’s the next thing we can do to get people angry and upset and get their money from them for our re-election.” I wonder if anyone is listening.

Reese Witherspoon’s production company has adapted the bestselling novel, “Where the Crawdads Sing” for the big screen due to be released July 15, 2022 and will feature a brand-new song by Taylor Swift. It was Amazon’s most sold fiction book for all of 2019.

Will you miss switching your clocks forward and backwards? In a surprise move, the Senate unanimously passed (wow, they agreed on something) legislation making daylight saving time, which began last month, permanent for the entire U.S. starting in 2023, after input from airlines and broadcasters. It is called the Sunshine Protection Act. The National Association of Convenience Stores opposes the change, telling Congress “We should not have kids going to school in the dark.” I can’t find whether the decision has been made whether to support daylight or standard time as the permanent choice. We will wait to see if Biden signs it.

“The war doesn’t let us choose who survives and who stays in eternal silence.” Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky

The war still rages in Ukraine, but now we are actually seeing and hearing the horrors that are so extremely hard for us to unsee. Civilians being blindfolded, hands bound, and shot in the head. Women raped in front of their children. Mass graves, children killed, all while Putin continues with lies and deception to his own country. Please keep them in your prayers.

May your week be filled with good thoughts, kind people and happy moments. Don’t forget… Art Car Parade April 9th. That always makes me happy.

LISA

What I Heard This Week 03-17-2022

What I Heard This Week March 16, 2022

What is a PieCaken? Hmmm. I’m so glad you asked. It looks like something by Picasso when you cut into it… a three-layer cake with two pies inside. Researching this recipe was a time-consuming rabbit hole that was absolute fun! For Thanksgiving you can use premade pecan pie for your bottom layer, then layer cinnamon buttercream frosting, then pre-made pumpkin pie with another layer of icing, then top with round of spiced pound cake and buttercream the whole thing. They patted on an oat crumble to the sides and topped with apple pie filling, then caramel sauce. Yikes, it was beautiful. I guess you could use cherry, apple, and peach pie with white cake. The secret is cutting the pies into the same size rounds as the cake layer. Several other recipes called for whole pies to be surrounded by cake batter and cooked, then iced. Did you know that you can whip regular canned icing so it’s easier to spread? Or add some whipped cream to the canned icing for an even tastier, and easy-to-ice consistency. I did not know this. Watch some of the videos if you get a chance. It’s quite a pretty dessert and no one else is going to show up with it at your next family get-together. Don’t have time to bake?!? No problem. With help from Three Brothers Bakery, you can order the Pumpecapple Piecake that serves 40 (hah), is 11” tall and weighs 23.5 pounds. It is known as the “turducken of desserts.” There are three layers – homemade pumpkin pie baked in a pumpkin spice cake, a homemade pecan pie baked in a chocolate cake, and homemade apple pie baked in a traditional spice cake, then iced with cream cheese frosting, garnished with pecans, and drizzled with homemade caramel. This beauty sells for just $250 with store pickup in Houston. Just look at the picture. If you haven’t ever enjoyed a treat from Three Brothers Bakery, prepare yourself. Everything they sell is delicious. Breads, apple strudel, pies, cakes, cookies, and more. Right now, they have cookies iced like the Ukraine flag if you are looking for a way to support the cause.

A party without a cake is really just a meeting. – Julia Child

An Irish Bank Robber
It’s Saint Patrick’s Day, and an armed hooded robber bursts into the Bank of Ireland and forces the tellers to load a sack full of cash. On his way out the door with the loot, one brave Irish customer grabs the hood and pulls it off revealing the robber’s face. The robber shoots the guy without hesitation! He then looks around the bank to see if anyone else has seen him. One of the tellers is looking straight at him and the robber walks over and calmly shoots him also. Everyone by now is very scared and looking down at the floor. “Did anyone else see my face?‘ screams the robber. There are a few moments of silence, then one elderly Irish gent looking down, tentatively raises his hand and says, “I think me wife may have caught a glimpse.” 😊

Basement to Attic Tour of the 1892 Bishop’s Palace in Galveston on March 19th, a guided tour that includes places not usually seen by visitors. www.galvestonhistory.org.

“Hate to say it,” he began, “but we need to increase oil and gas output immediately.” said Elon Musk, billionaire developer of the signature electric car of our age, the Tesla. “Obviously, this would negatively affect Tesla, but sustainable energy solutions simply cannot react instantaneously to make up for Russian oil & gas exports.”

Fans of sci-fi Stars War franchise can hop aboard Galactic Starcruiser at Walt Disney World Resort for an immersive 2-night hotel adventure featuring Rey, Chewbacca and Kylo Ren. Saudi Arabia killed 81 in mass execution of people convicted of crimes of killing to belonging to militant groups. Jonah Hill will play Grateful Dead front man Jerry Garcia, in a Martin Scorsese directed biopic about the psychedelic rock band. Tom Brady announced (yawn) that over the past two months he realized his place is still on the field, not in the stands, and will rejoin the NFL for a 23rd season and play for Tampa Bay.

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Musician Elton John is 75. Actor Hal Linden is 91. Country singer-guitarist Ranger Doug of Riders in the Sky is 76. Drummer Carl Palmer of Asia & Emerson, Lake and Palmer is 72. Guitarist Jimmie Vaughan of Fabulous Thunderbirds is 71. Actor Holly Hunter is 64. Model Kathy Ireland is 59. Singer-keyboardist Rose Stone of Sly and the Family Stone is 77. Actor Timothy Dalton is 76. Actor Matthew Broderick is 60. Actor-comedian Rosie O’Donnell is 60. Actor William Shatner is 91. Singer Jeremy Clyde of Chad and Jeremy is 81. Sportscaster Bob Costas is 70. Singer-guitarist George Benson is 79. Composer Andrew Lloyd Webber is 74. Singer Diana Ross is 78.

Singer Chaka Khan is 69. Harmonica player Lee Oskar of War is 74. Actor Robert Carradine is 68. Actor Kelly LeBrock is 62. Film critic Gene Shalit is 96. Singer Anita Bryant is 82. Actor Paul Michael Glaser of Starsky and Hutch is 79. Actor Alan Arkin is 88. Actor James Caan is 82Singer Steven Tyler of Aerosmith is 74. Singer-actor Vicki Lawrence is 73. Actor Martin Short is 72. Talk show host Leeza Gibbons is 65. Actor Jennifer Grey is 62. Dirty Dancing. Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. Director Spike Lee is 65.

William Hurt died at 71. Hurt won a best actor Oscar in 1986 for his work in Kiss of the Spider Woman. He earned another nomination a year later for Children of a Lesser God and another one the following year for Broadcast News. He was also up for an Academy Award in 2006 for his supporting role in A History of Violence. Children’s author Shirley Hughes died at 94. Johnny Brown died at 84. On Good Times, he played Nathan Bookman, the building superintendent. Conrad Janis died at 94. He was best known as Mindy’s dad on Mork and Mindy. Actor Mitchell Ryan died at 88. Actor Laurel Goodwin died at 79. Star Trek. Tim Considine died at 81. He was eldest son Mike on My Three Sons.

If we’re not meant to have midnight snacks, why is there a light in the fridge? 

The only time to eat diet food is while you’re waiting for the steak to cook. – Julia Child

Ukraine became an independent country in 1991 after the fall of the USSR and since then, the country’s flag has been a symbol of freedom. Now, as Russia invades Ukraine, the Ukrainian flag is being flown by people around the world in support and solidarity. Grapevine Gifts is now carrying the Ukraine flag. It is a very well-made flag that would normally sell for much more than $7, but these guys dropped the price so the citizens of Brazoria County can afford to show their support during the saddest of situations happening in our world right now. Go pick up one and display it for Ukraine.

There is no sight on earth more appealing than the sight of a woman making dinner for someone she loves. – Thomas Wolfe

Easter Basket Idea: Brach’s candy company is debuting their Late-Night Taco Truck pack, with margarita, churro, salsa, and beef taco flavors. Actually, it sounds fairly good to me. U.S. veterans and other volunteers with useful skills are boarding planes for Ukraine to join the fight. President Zelensky is creating an international legion and is asking for volunteers to help defend his nation against Russia.

Living legend Dolly Parton never fails to impress. At 76, she says she is “extremely flattered and grateful” to be nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame but doesn’t want the votes to be split because of her nomination. So, she’s respectfully bowing out. “I do hope the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame will understand and be willing to consider me again – if I’m ever worthy,” she said. “This has, however, inspired me to put out a hopefully great rock n’ roll album at some point in the future, which I have always wanted to do.” The woman never slows down. Dolly created The Dollywood Foundation in 1988 for literacy and education, and she made a $1 million contribution towards Covid-19 research. All tuition costs including fees and books, are offered for employees of Dollywood Parks & Resorts pursuing higher education. She’s had hits on country music charts since 1967 and has 3 billion worldwide streams of her music and 50 Grammy nominations. Now she is in partnership with Duncan Hines so you can make Dolly Cakes right in your own kitchen. Last week Dolly and best-selling novelist James Patterson (his sales top 425 million worldwide), released a book they wrote together, Run, Rose, Run. Several days before the book release, Dolly debuted a new album of 12 songs based on the book’s characters. Wow.

Additional Note: The other nominees for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction 2022 are Beck, Pat Benatar, Kate Bush, Devo, Duran Duran, Eminem, Eurythmics, Judas Priest, Fela Kuti, MC5, New York Dolls, Rage Against the Machine, Lional Richie, Carly Simon, A Tribe Called Quest, Dionne Warwick, (who are some of these people?) and cough, cough, Dolly Parton. Yep, she is still on the list. You can cast your ballot in the Fan Vote if you have an authorized email address, by going to vote.rockhall.com. You can vote once a day (who has time for that) and when I voted, the top five artists were Duran Duran, Eminem, Pat Benatar, Dolly Parton and Eurythmics, but you can vote until April 29th. Really, is rapper Eminem considered rock & roll? Dolly, just accept it graciously and go for it. We love you…

My weaknesses have always been food & men- in that order. – Dolly Parton

There is so much science in cooking. I was trying to make room in the cabinet for new spices (some people buy new nail polish colors… I buy spices), and I came across an old bottle of cream of tartar. In the past, I have used it for making meringues and divinity, plus an occasional recipe, but I had no idea what it was made from or other uses. I was surprised. After reading about it, I realized that I am not using it to its full potential. It is an acidic byproduct of fermenting grapes into wine. The acid in cream of tartar gives snickerdoodles their distinctive tangy flavor, and the chew happens because cream of tartar prevents sugar in the cookie dough from crystalizing into crunchiness. Science! If you ever run out of baking powder, substitute 1/4 teaspoon baking soda plus 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar for 1 teaspoon baking powder in a recipe. Add a pinch of cream of tartar to boiling vegetables to help them keep their bright, fresh color. A pinch of cream of tartar also helps stabilize whipped cream to prevent it from deflating. There is a ton more that I will tell you later.

March’s Full Worm Moon is March 18th. It is called full worm because of the earthworms that wriggle out of the ground as the earth begins to thaw in March. Pfizer and BioNTech are seeking authorization for a second coronavirus booster shot for people 65 and older. Elon Musk has challenged Russian President Vladimir Putin to single combat, one-on-one fight, with the “stakes” being Ukraine. So far as I could find, Musk has yet to receive a response from Putin.

What I read… the odds of finding a four-leaf clover on your first try are 1 in 10,000 and the odds of a five-leaf clover are 1 in a million. I sent the newspaper picture to my daughter at college, who has always had the uncanny ability to find four-leaf and some five-leaf clovers every single time she sits down in a clover patch. She laughed because just weeks before, she had handed me a baggie full of four-leaf clovers that she was getting ready to throw away. Happy Saint Patrick’s Day. Thanks for reading us this week. Please keep Ukraine in your prayers.

LISA

What I Heard This Week 03-10-2022

What I Heard This Week March 9, 2022

When I was a kid, refillable soda bottles (and milk bottles) were the norm. In earlier days, we left our milk bottles on the front porch for the milkman to pick up. The coke machines had racks on the sides of the machines to put your empty bottles to recycle. Could refillable bottles make a come-back?  Coca-Cola says that by the end of the decade it will sell a quarter of its drinks in refillable packaging, a big step towards helping curb plastic pollution, but that is 7 to 8 years away, and it’s only a projected 25% of the product produced. I wonder what would it take to have refillable bottles everywhere, for everything?

Always make sure your kilt is short enough to do a jig, but long enough to hide your Lucky Charms!

Starbucks is introducing the Pistachio Latte, described as rich and creamy with a brown-buttery topping. When given a new pen, 97 percent of people write their own name. Actor Dakota Johnson is supposedly in talks to join a Spider-Man spinoff as Madame Web, a blind woman with psychic powers. According to The Washington Post, Trump’s impenetrable southern border wall has been breached more than 3,000 times. AMC Theatres revealed that they will employ surge pricing and charge more in North America for tickets to Batman starring Robert Pattinson. About 64% of Americans are fully vaccinated, but only 28% have received a booster dose.

As you are aware, my children bought me a Roomba robot vacuum cleaner for Christmas, and I am so in love with it. It doesn’t dust, clean toilets, or buy groceries, but the floors are incredibly clean, and with four furry family members, it’s just so much nicer.  My phone app receives messages if Cousin Greg slacks off, gets stuck, his battery runs low, or even if his filter is dirty. The basics. But today I was back in graphics talking to Tina and I could hear my phone beeping, and beeping. Well, it was an SOS from Greg, and my phone said he was “stuck near a cliff.” Well, I tried to imagine where that could be. I have a one-story house and it’s close to the creek, but not a cliff. When I got home, I found him on the edge of a sisal rug, which might be just a tiny bit scary if you are used to the height of regular carpet, stuck between a cabinet piece and Teller’s crate. To this cute little vacuum cleaner, it must have seemed like The Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. I saved him!

One of our long-time customers commented today, that his own customers are making appointments with him, then never showing up for the gun safety classes. That’s not very nice. Small businesses are still hurting from the past 4-5 years of hurricanes, freezes, and a pandemic. Help us out. Commitment means staying loyal to what you said you were going to do, long after the mood you said it in has left you. Anonymous

QUIZ: Which president could simultaneously write in Greek with one hand and in Latin with the other? Answer below.

According to Wikipedia: Because Ireland became isolated from mainland Europe by rising sea levels before the last ice age had completely finished, it has fewer land animal and plant species than Great Britain or mainland Europe. There are 55 mammal species in Ireland (about 490 species in the U.S.), and of them only 26 land mammal species are considered native to Ireland. Some species, such as, the red fox, hedgehog and badger, are very common, whereas others, like the Irish hare, red deer and pine marten are less so. Aquatic wildlife, such as species of sea turtle, shark, seal, whale, and dolphin, are common off the coast. About 400 species of birds have been recorded in Ireland. Many of these are migratory, including the barn swallow. There are no snakes in Ireland, and only one species of reptile (the common lizard) is native to the island.

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Guitarist David Gilmour of Pink Floyd is 76. Actor-director Rob Reiner is 75. Singer Kiki Dee is 75. TV personality John Stossel is 75. Singer Peter Wolf of The J. Geils Band is 76. Guitarist Ernie Isley of The Isley Brothers is 70. Songwriter Carole Bayer Sager is 78. Actor-director Micky Dolenz of The Monkees is 77. Bassist Randy Meisner of The Eagles & Poco is 76. Singer Gary Numan is 64. Considered one of the foremost pioneers in electronic dance music. NBC News anchor Lester Holt is 63. Country singer Mickey Gilley is 86. TV anchor Charles Gibson is 79. Guitarist Robin Trower of Procol Harum is 77. Guitarist Jimmie Fadden of The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is 74. Singer Edie Brickell is 56.

Singer Mark Lindsay of Paul Revere and the Raiders is 80. Actor Emmanuel Lewis of Webster is 51. Actor Chuck Norris is 82. Singer Dean Torrence of Jan and Dean is 82. Actor Sharon Stone is 64. Magician Lance Burton is 62. TV journalist Sam Donaldson is 88. Singer Mark Stein of Vanilla Fudge is 75. Singer Bobby McFerrin is 72. Don’t Worry, Be Happy. Country singer Jimmy Fortune of The Statler Brothers is 67. Actor Barbara Feldon of Get Smart is 89. Actor-singer Liza Minnelli is 76. Singer-songwriter James Taylor is 74. Singer Bill Payne of Little Feat is 73. Singer Marlon Jackson of The Jackson Five is 65.

Gary Brooker, founder and lead singer of Procol Harum (A Whiter Shade of Pale) died at 76.

Some days are just better than other days. One of our favorite readers (well, he is definitely one of our favorites NOW) stopped by the office to remind us of Saint Urho’s Day, celebrated on March 16th, the day prior to the better-known feast of some minor saint from Ireland (cough, cough, Saint Patrick), who was alleged to have driven out the snakes from that island. That’s nothing. The legendary Patron Saint of Finland chased the grasshoppers out of ancient Finland, thus saving the grape crop and the jobs of Finnish vineyard workers. Reading between the lines, this tells me that he also saved all the wine. The legend of Saint Urho originated in Northern Minnesota in the 1950’s. The story says Saint Urho did this by uttering the phrase, “Heinäsirkka, heinäsirkka, mene täältä hiiteen” – which roughly translated means, “Grasshopper, grasshopper, go to Hell“. His feast is celebrated by wearing the colors Royal Purple and Nile Green and is nearly always represented with grapes and grasshoppers as part of the celebration. I have relatives in Finland, so Happy St. Urho’s Day, Patrick, Emma, and Elias. I know you thought you were named after St. Patrick, but I bet now you wish they had named you Urho especially after learning all this new information. I guess this means corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, grasshoppers, AND wine to help us celebrate properly this month. Don’t you just love it when people take time to help educate you?

My Favorite Irish Toast:
May the light always find you on a dreary day; when you need to be home, may you find your way.
May you always have courage to take a chance, and may you never find frogs in your underpants.

Across Hollywood, studio execs are pulling upcoming movie releases from Russia. So far, Paramount and Sony Pictures have joined Walt Disney Co. and Warner Bros. in pulling upcoming films. It seems that cinemas in Russia are privately owned, not government owned, but many of the media-advertising platforms are state-owned. Without the global banking system SWIFT, studios may not be able to get any money back from their Russian distribution partners. The Academy is urging producers to terminate any business dealing with Russian companies, reminding them, “that the business that will use your films, pays taxes to the Russian budget, which finances the army that violated the borders of an independent state and buys missiles to bomb the civilian population of Europe.”

ANSWER: James Garfield was ambidextrous and was reportedly able to pull off the feat of writing in Greek with one hand while writing in Latin with the other. My mother always said that I couldn’t even walk and chew gum at the same time.

The Senate approved a $107 billion overhaul of the U.S. Postal Service. This will provide relief for the agency to modernize and invest in efficient service. “The Post Office usually delivers for us. Today we’re going to deliver for them,” said Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer.

All of my life, I have believed that people look better tanned. When I was going through chemotherapy, I put on loads of self-tanning cream, so I looked healthy, even though I really wasn’t. Today there is a tanning nasal spray that you inhale but it is not FDA approved, and the potential side effects include nausea, increased blood pressure, dizziness, and vomiting.  The inside of your nose is very absorbent. The tanning nasal sprays are just full of chemicals that you would be absorbed into your body. So, no.

After Harvey Weinstein had a face-to-face meeting with one of his attorneys, he was searched, and they found a box of smuggled Milk Duds. “This was an innocent misunderstanding,” Weinstein said. “It will not happen again. I have been a model inmate, following the rules and regulations and I am sincerely sorry.” Sounds like he was more apologetic for the candy than he was for rape and sexual assault.

Just ten hours after the call for help, Elon Musk announced Starlink’s activation in Ukraine for internet access. Starlink is basically a satellite-based internet constellation intended to blanket the planet in high-speed broadband. Stolichnaya Vodka has now rebranded as Stoli Vodka, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. I’ll tell you more on that next week. For Disneyland Paris’s 30th anniversary, Minnie Mouse is debuting a new look. Her red and white polka dot dress is staying in the closet, and she will be wearing a stunning blue and black polka dot pantsuit with a blazer and hairbow designed by Stella McCartney, along with much more sensible shoes than her normal heels.

Irish Blessing: May the Good Lord take a liking to you…but not too soon!

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, from a Russian-speaking Jewish family, has remained dignified, resolute, and articulate, all while trying to avoid more war. In the process, he has earned the respect and admiration of the world, but it won’t do much good if Putin kills him, which he plans to do. Putin continues his erratic behavior and lies indicating he was provoked, and everyone else is at fault. Babies, children, civilians, soldiers and pets continue to die. The people of Russia still don’t know the full truth about what is happening, and Russian soldiers feel that they have been tricked with lies. Since Putin is the longest serving leader of Russia since dictator, Joseph Stalin, he has been in office since some of his Russian soldiers were born. Some are so young that they have never known any other kind of government. Former Ukraine President Poroshenko says Putin poses danger to the whole of humanity. That’s you and me. If you’re not alarmed by the attack on Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant, then you’re not paying attention. The Russians are now in control of that plant.  It’s scary as hell to think about a madman running a country and the nuclear power plants. The World needs our prayers.

My friend Serena just called to ask if I remember what I was doing 30 years ago today? Well, of course I did not remember. She reminded me I was having a dinner party with make-your-own pizzas, and the next day she went into labor, having Trevor 3-weeks early. We decided it must be marinara sauce because Gage arrived after an evening meal of spaghetti and meatballs. Serena, thank you so much for the sweet memory! Readers, be sure to make your own memories this week. Life is short.

LISA

What I Heard This Week 12-30-2021

What I Heard This Week December 29, 2021

Aren’t the new security doorbells great? I watched a video about an Amazon delivery driver helping save a teen being attacked by a dog. “You’re a bad dog!” Then there were several deliveries where the packages are being chucked from a very far distance like they were throwing a ball… a bowling ball. One time it was more like a Frisbee. Then there was the Amazon guy that ran into a spider web on his way to the front door, swiping at the web as he accidently let go of a package that flew straight up into the air, landing on the roof. Proof of an accident. And then there was the Amazon guy that spit on the packing tape, then smeared it in before he walked off. Do you find any irony in the fact that Amazon now owns Ring Doorbell?  Then, best of all, recently a man told his wife that he wasn’t feeling well enough to go on a family trip, but their doorbell camera showed that he had visited with a half-naked woman sharing his home while the family was away. Gee, I bet there are so many people wishing they had been lucky enough to have doorbell cameras available years ago… might have saved a ton heartache.

My wife just stopped and said, “You weren’t even listening, were you?” I thought to myself… “That’s a pretty strange way to start off a conversation.”

The FDA has authorized the first antiviral pill to treat Covid at home. It is called Paxlovid, made by Pfizer, and is taken orally twice a day for five days in combination with a second medicine called ritonavir, a generic antiviral. Hopefully it will help keep people that are infected from getting so sick that they need hospitalization.

A woman thought she had found a bargain hotel room through Airbnb near Times Square in NY. The photos online had showed a room with a view of the city. The couple arrived late at the hotel, it was dark, and they went straight to bed. The next morning, she went to the window thinking she was going to see a building, a skyline, or something other than… a window that looked straight into the restaurant, with a table less than a foot away. She said she could have opened the window and joined the people eating their lunch.  The wall of the restaurant is mirrored so the customers could not see her. The company apologized and will make it right… because she posted a TikTok video.

Michael Fanone, among the most severely injured fighting the Capitol mob on January 6th and later one of the most outspoken against those playing down the riot, has resigned from the D.C. police force. He deserves our thanks and respect for enduring a frightening cruelty that should never have happened.

Human kindness has never weakened the stamina or softened the fiber of a free people. A nation does not have to be cruel to be tough.  Franklin D. Roosevelt

A New Year’s Resolution Idea: Go do something kind for someone right now. Don’t wait. It can be a sweet note left on a windshield or 3-course meal, a small plant, or even a stop during your walk to pull a few weeds for an elderly neighbor. Just do something nice, and you do NOT have to sign your name.  There is a very valuable consciousness-raising practice of doing daily acts of kindness without letting anyone know you did them. At times we may do something nice for someone because we appreciate the gratitude or recognition, but the simple truth is that there is so much more reward in doing something good without the recognition… you will feel so good about yourself. They say that the true test of a man’s character is what he does when no one is looking, but is your character defined by the good things you do only when you know someone is watching and taking notes. Do you have to tell people how wonderful you are? In pursuit of being the best people we can be, we could all afford to do at least one kind, unrevealed, good deed each day. I’m going to do better in 2022. Our world needs more kindness right now. From everyone.

Get your hanky ready. The ruler of Dubai, who has six wives and 30 children, was ordered to pay his princess ex-wife (wife #6 and daughter of the late King Hussein of Jordan) and their children more than $730 million, the most expensive divorce settlement in British history, where they now live. $14.5 million a year is set aside just to provide for their security cost, mainly because their main threat is their father.

Why, when the doorbell rings, the dog runs to the corner of the living room? He’s a boxer.

William Shatner, 90, was involved in an LA car accident. Everyone is ok. Wasn’t it about two months ago that Captain Kirk blasted into space on Jeff Bezos’ rocket? I guess there is a lot more traffic in LA.

As our Earth continues to warm, we are finding some crazy stuff when the ice melts. According to Current Biology, scientists in Russia have revived a bdelloid rotifer – a multicellular microorganism found in wet environments – after the invertebrate spent 24,000 years frozen 11 feet beneath the Siberian permafrost. Researchers believed these tiny creatures could slow their metabolisms down to almost stagnant and survive frozen for up to 10 years. Well, it might just be a little longer than that, since the 24,000-year-old rotifer was able to reproduce and feed after being thawed.

Remember there’s no such thing as a small act of kindness. Every act creates a ripple with no logical end. – Scott Adams

The following case is now used as an example of how media and bias can adversely affect a trial or public opinion. In August 1980, a nine-week-old Australian baby girl was reportedly taken from a tent on a family camping trip. The mom said that she had seen a dingo with the baby. Her body was never found; the mother was tried for murder and spend more than three years in prison despite there being no body, no evidence of motive, and no eyewitness evidence. Officials said there was evidence in the car showing where the child had been murdered. The father was also put in jail for a period of time. Campers, rangers, trackers, searchers, or local police never doubted that a dingo could have taken a baby. In the mothers’ defense, eyewitness said there had been a dingo sighting in the campground earlier in the evening that the baby disappeared.  A hiker found some of the garments the baby had been dressed in, a snap-buttoned jumpsuit, an undershirt, and pieces of a diaper, nearly three miles away by dingo dens. But a little jacket was still missing. In 1986 a rock climber fell to his death in that same area. During the search for his body, partially buried in the sand outside a dingo den, was the missing jacket. The bloodstains in their car turned out to be chocolate milkshake, and the copper ore dust was overspray from sound deadener applied at the car’s factory. In 1988, the Australian High Court awarded the couple $1.3 million in damages, not even enough to pay for a portion of their legal expenses, let alone enough to compensate them for pain and suffering. I would have hated to be part of that jury.

A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees.  Amelia Earhart

The U.S. Secret Service stated that nearly $100 billion at minimum has been stolen from COVID-19 relief programs. Boston will now begin banning unvaccinated people from going to all restaurants, bars, nightclubs, sports arenas, fitness centers, movie theaters, concert venues, museums, and entertainment venues. Boston Smart. Boston Strong.

“All these people who have not been vaccinated: you have an obligation to yourselves, to your families, and quite frankly – and I know I’ll get criticized for this – to your country,” he said. “I honest-to-God believe it’s your patriotic duty.” President Biden

Many thanks to Duane and Janet for organizing the maintenance and upkeep on the entrance of our subdivision. We all met a couple of weeks ago on a Saturday morning and had all the rose bushes cut back, hauled cuttings to the side of the road for the city to pick up, and were on our way to our next Saturday project by ten, or so. Mulching the bed is next on the list. Without them organizing us, I would have still been in my pajamas around ten, eating a big bowl of oatmeal. Thanks to Kim for the pretty little poinsettia and for Teller’s Christmas Cactus toy. Teller is now celebrating life eating homemade dogfood that Jaimee and David gave him. Thank you! He just loves it…  I overheard him whispering to another dog at the dog park, “I’ve got my own chef!” What a dog. What great friends.

We can’t help everyone, but everyone can help someone. Ronald Reagan

Supposedly, there was a Bob Hope & Bing Crosby movie where Bob orders a sissy drink in a tough guy bar, then Bing elbows him and adds, “in a dirty glass,” so Bob will look tougher ordering his sissy drink. I don’t know. I couldn’t find anything about it. Maybe it was Star Trek and it involved Metamucil in a dirty glass. I don’t know, I do know that I have been thinking about that dirty glass a lot. I thought the last two years of life in a dirty glass was about over for us. Well, 2021 is not ending exactly like I thought it was going to. I am a glass half-full kind of person, and the ending of this year is a little bit more like half-empty, lipstick stained, fingerprinted, chipped, and worn, kind of dirty glass that I would normally toss out in the recycle. But I know we can do it. Let’s just keep trying.

Don’t forget to eat your good luck food. Seriously, we need everyone to do their part this year. I’m sticking with black-eyed peas and cabbage, but I’ll still be in the garage polishing my glass.

  1. Pork represents prosperity and progress because pigs are plump and root forward when they eat.
  2. Greens like spinach, cabbage and broccoli are green like money, bringing wealth in the new year.
  3. Lentils are an Italian tradition representing luck and prosperity due to their similar appearance to coins.
  4. Grapes are a Spanish tradition – to bring luck for the next 12 months, eat 12 grapes in the first 12 seconds after the clock strikes midnight.
  5. Long Noodles in China and Japan signify longevity – the longer the noodle the longer life you will have.
  6. Cornbread symbolizes gold and who couldn’t use a little more gold in their life.
  7. Whole Fish represent prosperity because fish always travel in schools and the scales resemble silver coins. Plus, they always swim forward.
  8. Pomegranate is for prosperity in Turkey. The more seeds your fruit has, the richer you will become.
  9. Circle-Shaped foods like donuts and bagels represent the year coming full circle.
  10. Pretzels are eaten at midnight or before breakfast to bring good luck.

Thanks for taking time out of your year to spend it with us.

LISA

What I Heard This Week 12-23-2021

What I Heard This Week December 15, 2021

As you make your way down the grocery aisles, you may notice that the word Diet is being used less, having been replaced by the words Zero Sugar, especially for carbonated soft drinks. The word diet is out of style for Millennials and Gen Z-ers, who just do not like to use that word. It is now all about the branding because companies must sell those sodas. Later, I found an article about salt. Yep. It said we eat too much salt. The FDA says 70% of excess salt actually comes from packaged, pre-prepared, or restaurant food, so they are asking manufacturers to use less, hoping it will help reduce customer intake over the next few years. I enjoyed reading their suggestions on how we can improve our diet with alternate seasoning of foods using spices, pepper, plus lemon, lime, and orange zest. They suggested replacing sandwich meat and cold cuts with fresh chicken or turkey. Be sure to drain and rinse your canned beans or veggies, and eat less bread… well, I never thought about bread. That will be a tough one for me. I just love bread. The Seedelicious and the Asiago Cheese bread from HEB is absolutely delicious and since the kids have been in school, I take the leftover bread and make croutons… with butter, olive oil and spices that are not on their list of alternate seasonings. They’re delicious.

“Well, I don’t know what to say except it’s Christmas, and we’re all in misery.”  Ellen Griswold from National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation

If you do not want to hear about Covid, then move right along to the next paragraph. The past two weeks have been fast-paced and interesting, but scary. Globally, there have been more than 5.3 million deaths from Covid. The U.S. hit 803,000 for numbers of American deaths. Yep, 803,000, but hold on for Omicron, which sure doesn’t want to be left behind. It has had almost two years to study, educate, take notes, and now fully understands how to make much wiser, and more deadly epidemic decisions. Omicron now appears to spread at twice the rate as the Delta variant, due to a combination of contagiousness (70% more contagious) along with an expert ability to dodge our body’s immune defenses, especially on the unvaccinated. I told you about the poop sleuths last week. You know, a mere seven days ago. Omicron has surpassed the Delta variant in collections taken from wastewater sampling sites in California. A sampling this week showed Omicron now represents almost 100% of the strains found. In one week. Seven days. It is moving fast.

Like plants too much? You may be a hoarder culturalist. (My friend Marcie sent this! I am still smiling.)

“The” recent tornado wrecked 122 new Chevy Corvettes, damaged beyond repair at their Kentucky production facility. The mayor of Anchorage admitted he turned off the fluoridation of the city’s water supply for around five hours before discovering that he was not actually allowed to do that because it is required by city code. Elon Musk says he will pay more than $11 billion in taxes this year, also stating he will pay more taxes than any American in history this year. Yikes. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, Musk is the richest person in the world with a net worth of $251 billion. Well, thank you, sir. It looks like we could really use that money right now. An Idaho man was charged with cannibalism in addition to being charged with the murder of his 70-year-old neighbor. He told police that he believed he could cure his brain by cutting off portions of flesh and consuming them.

The Grass is Always Greener Where You Water It. Shop Local.

BMW is being sued because the cupholders on the X7 SUV can leak through the center console and cause electrical problems… like airbag control modules inadvertently deploying, wet wiring related to the shifter, and restrain system failures. So, you can still look really good while you are sitting behind the wheel, just do not expect there to be a place to set your 32 oz. Big Gulp while you eat your burger.  😊

RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Singer “Duke” Fakir of The Four Tops is 86. America’s Most Wanted host John Walsh is 76. Keyboardist Bob Carpenter with The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band is 75. Actor John Amos of Roots and Good Times is 82. Guitarist Mick Jones of Foreigner is 77. Actor Eva LaRue of CSI: Miami is 55. Actor, singer, and voice artist Nichelle Nichols is 89. Best known for her portrayal of Nyota Uhura in Star Trek. Actor Anthony Hopkins is 84. Actor Tim Considine of My Three Sons is 81. Singer Patti Smith is 75.

Actor Barbara Carrera is 80. James Bond: Never Say Never Again. Actor Ben Kingsley is 78. Actor Tim Matheson is 74. Singer Burton Cummings of The Guess Who is 74. Actor Bebe Neuwirth of Cheers is 63. Actor Val Kilmer is 62. Singer-actor Joe McIntyre of New Kids on the Block is 49. Actor Frank Langella is 84. Singer-guitarist Country Joe McDonald of Country Joe and the Fish is 80. Comedian Don Novello is 79. Father Guido Sarducci. Actor Patricia Clarkson is 62. Country singer Suzy Bogguss is 65.

Singer Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary is 84. Actor Rick Hurst of The Dukes of Hazzard is 76. Deputy Cletus Hogg, Boss Hogg’s cousin. Actor Maggie Smith is 87. Harry Potter. Downton Abbey. Singer-keyboardist Edgar Winter is 75. Born in Beaumont. Actor Denzel Washington is 67. TV personality Gayle King of CBS This Morning is 67. Country singer-guitarist Marty Roe of Diamond Rio is 61. Actor Jon Voight is 83. Actor Ted Danson is 74. TV host Meredith Vieira of Today & The View is 68.

Mexico’s musical legend and king of ranchera music, also known as El Rey (the King), Vicente Fernández, died at 81. For over 40 years, he was considered the greatest living singer of Mexico, with an operatic vocal range, and a love of ranchera music.

Carlos Marin of Il Divo died at 53 from complications of Covid, after being placed in an induced coma.  Simon Cowell discovered Il Divo in 2003. Marin was born in Germany and raised in Madrid. As a Spanish baritone, he sang opera, Broadway, pop, you name it, and all in Spanish, English, Italian and French. If you have ever been to one of their concerts, the four hunks that look like they came straight from the cover of a cheap romance novel, would walk out in their shiny designer suits with Marin’s shirt always very carefully opened at the neck. They would patiently wait for all of us fools to quit clapping, then Marin would ask in his heavy accent, “Ded you mees me, or eezs et jus mey curl?” referring to his beautifully well-coiffed, slicked-back, dark hair that always had a perfectly placed, fallen curl that had somehow fought its way out and jumped on to his beautiful forehead. Sigh. I will just tell you that it was everything… plus the curl, and I don’t really care how the curl got there. They just sounded so beautiful together.

Small businesses are the heartbeat of our neighborhoods, the spine of our local economy, & spirit of our small towns. Please shop local and help keep us in business. Use local restaurants, coffee shops, gift shops, stores, and yes… newspapers. Thanking you in advance.

A Colorado man that was recorded assaulting two officers during the January 6 insurrection has been arrested on a number of charges. Of all things, he was identified after he was seen wearing the same clothes he wore in Washington, DC. Now you say to yourself, “How could they know from his clothing?” Well, the guy was wearing a faded red baseball cap, a dark scarf or neck warmer, a blue jacket with a distinctive logo, white athletic shorts with wide black stripes, and some kind of leg warmers. There’s really no mistaking the outfit. It was not pretty. Wait, this gets better. An Illinois man was arrested for taking part in the siege on the U.S. Capitol after his own mother and a middle school classmate identified him as the originator of his own incriminating social media posts depicting himself inside the Capitol building. Bet his momma was proud.

Peppermint candy is hard to find this year. Yes, global supply chain disruptions, congestion at ports, shortages of truck drivers and service workers, along with raw material and ingredient shortages… like cream cheese. Poor bagels, cheesecakes, bakeries, and restaurants. Actually, the shortage was due partly to a cyberattack on Schreiber Foods in Wisconsin, a major cream cheese producer. Hackers compromised its plants and distribution centers at the height of cream cheese demand. Kraft Heinz, owner of Philadelphia cream cheese, are calling their customer offer “Spread the Feeling,” and are giving $20 vouchers to 18,000 holiday bakers who have had trouble finding cream cheese, so customers can feel good about purchasing another dessert instead. Sigh. Let’s face it. If it wasn’t this, it would be something else.

“All of my colleagues, all of them knew that what happened on January 6th was an assault on the constitution. They knew it at the time, yet now they are defending the indefensible… How we address January 6th is moral test of our generation.” Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY)

In Denmark, 64 of 150 guests tested positive for Omicron after a high school lunch. In Sydney, an event held by fans in celebration of Taylor Swift’s recent album release had almost 100 attendees test positive afterwards. In southern Spain, nearly 70 nurses and doctors working in the hospital ICU have tested positive for Covid-19 after 173 of them attended a Christmas party. Brian May (guitarist for Queen) tested positive for covid. He posted on Instagram, “Yep. The shocking day finally came for me. The dreaded double red line. And yes – definitely NO sympathy please – it has been a truly horrible few days, but I’m OK. And I will tell the tale. PLEASE take extra care out there, good folks. This thing is incredibly transmissible. You really do NOT want it messing up YOUR Christmas. With love – Bri”

Remember that a canceled event is better than a canceled life.

Since Gage is home from Boston, I zeroed in on his space one morning and asked him what he was doing. The reply was, “Watching a video about a pet lobster named Leon, purchased at the grocery store.” The owner had un-taped Leon’s claws and was feeding him earthworms, nursing the starving lobster back to health, and exercising him to help get back the use of his claws. It was happy and sad. I just love my kids.

Sometimes it takes only one act of kindness and caring to change a person’s life. Jackie Chan

Most years, on Christmas morning, I make Homemade Cinnamon Rolls. Tina was telling me about this recipe which would make it a much simpler and easy clean-up morning, so I could get back to my toys.
Preheat oven to 350.
Two cans of cinnamon rolls (separated), each cut into 8 pizza shaped pieces.
Place the cut cinnamon rolls in a 9×13 pan after spraying with cooking spray or 4 tablespoons of melted butter. Butter Better.
In a bowl, mix WELL 2/3 cups heavy cream, 4-5 large eggs, 2 teaspoons each, cinnamon and vanilla extract.
Pour the mixture over the cinnamon rolls, then pour a ¼ cup of real maple syrup over the egg mixture. Don’t use Aunt Jemima. You will thank me for this suggestion later. At this point, Tina and I both agree that you could add some chopped pecans or walnuts.
Bake for 30-35 minutes until the top is golden brown and puffy.
Heat your canned icing for 5-10 seconds, then drizzle over the top. Or you could smother it in homemade cream cheese icing, if you can find any cream cheese. Yum.
Tina and I both agree that a little maple syrup could be added to the icing before you pour it over the casserole and it might taste even better, but only if at this point, you garnish it with a big old handful of cooked, chopped, bacon. Yep. Bacon.

Merry Christmas to you all and thank you for hanging in there with us this year. Please be safe. Wear a good mask and DON’T WORRY, it’s just a mask, not a bumper sticker. 😊

LISA

  • What I Heard This Week 10-26-2023

    by on October 25, 2023 - 0 Comments

    Former US astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, recently remarried for the fourth time, which also happened to be on the occasion of his 93rd birthday. This time it was to Dr. Anca Faur, his 63-year-old, long-time companion (who looks like she wants to be 27), has a PhD in chemical engineering, and is now the executive vice president of Aldrin’s company, Buzz Aldrin Ventures.  He was first married to Joan Ann Archer in 1954 until divorcing in 1974. The next year he married Beverly Van Zile; they divorced after three years. His third marriage was to Lois Driggs Cannon in 1988 on Valentine's Day, divorcing 23 years later. Looks like he hasn’t given up on ‘love’ quite yet. He has sued two of his children and his former business manager claiming they stole money from him and are slandering his legacy, and that they also undermined his "personal romantic relationships" by forbidding him from getting married. His children say he is also spending money at an alarming rate. Sounds like those children are out of luck. There is a new sheriff in town and her name is MRS. Aldrin. ☹ Notes: Aldrin is also a strong advocate for human exploration of Mars. In 2002, he escaped assault charges after punching a man who demanded he swear on a Bible that the Moon landing was not staged. Good for him. He also said, “Tang sucks. “

  • What I Heard This Week 11-30-2023

    by on November 29, 2023 - 0 Comments

    Former US astronaut Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, recently remarried for the fourth time, which also happened to be on the occasion of his 93rd birthday. This time it was to Dr. Anca Faur, his 63-year-old, long-time companion (who looks like she wants to be 27), has a PhD in chemical engineering, and is now the executive vice president of Aldrin’s company, Buzz Aldrin Ventures.  He was first married to Joan Ann Archer in 1954 until divorcing in 1974. The next year he married Beverly Van Zile; they divorced after three years. His third marriage was to Lois Driggs Cannon in 1988 on Valentine's Day, divorcing 23 years later. Looks like he hasn’t given up on ‘love’ quite yet. He has sued two of his children and his former business manager claiming they stole money from him and are slandering his legacy, and that they also undermined his "personal romantic relationships" by forbidding him from getting married. His children say he is also spending money at an alarming rate. Sounds like those children are out of luck. There is a new sheriff in town and her name is MRS. Aldrin. ☹ Notes: Aldrin is also a strong advocate for human exploration of Mars. In 2002, he escaped assault charges after punching a man who demanded he swear on a Bible that the Moon landing was not staged. Good for him. He also said, “Tang sucks. “

  • Much Ado About Nothing - Texan in Winter

    by on December 6, 2018 - 0 Comments

    The power went out at my house last night for four hours. While this may not seem like a major catastrophe as it was the middle of the night and […]

  • Much Ado About Nothing - “Human Bait”

    by on January 16, 2020 - 0 Comments

    My dad always told me to have a backup plan in case my current job doesn’t work out. I wasn’t sure what that’d be until I saw this ad: “HUMAN […]

  • What I Heard This Week! December 20, 2018

    by on December 20, 2018 - 0 Comments

    The AK-47 is a type of assault rifle originally manufactured in the Soviet Union in 1949. A 17-year-old Humble High School student accidently shot herself recently with an AK-47 that […]

Archive

Local Events

Upcoming Events

Did You Know?

Cocktails of the Week

This wonderfully refreshing drink hits the spot on a hot afternoon

Recipes of the Week

Shop Local

  • Ad 1
  • Ad 3
  • Ad 2
  • Ad 4

Disclaimer

The content of the The Source Weekly web site is provided for information purposes only. The Source Weekly makes no claim as to the accuracy or authenticity of this content. Furthermore, The Source Weekly does not accept liability to any person for the information or advice provided on this web site. The Source Weekly does not accept any liability for loss or damage incurred as a result of reliance placed upon the content of this web site.

We serve all of Southern Brazoria County, Texas

223 Parking Way
Lake Jackson, TX 77566
Published in Lake Jackson


TEL: 979-285-9200
FAX: 979-285-9255

Retail Sales: sales@thesourceweekly.com
Classified Sales: classifieds@thesourceweekly.com
Graphics: graphics@thesourceweekly.com

© 2025 The Source Weekly. All Rights Reserved.

G-8Y5YRBLLHL