What I Heard This Week! 08-20-2020
Because Americans are finding it harder to find money to pay their bills as the pandemic continues, they are surprised to find that credit cards companies are doing what is necessary to reduce or limit their risk of defaults by canceling cards and lowering credit limits by as much as $5000, to cardholders of all different income levels. It doesn’t even matter if it is a seldom-used account. Reasons can be credit score decreases, late payments or inactivity in the account. So, don’t miss a payment. Put one of your subscription services (Netflix) on a seldom-used card, use your cards wisely, and if your credit is lowered and you have a good credit score, ask to have your original limit restored. According to Consumer Report, the pandemic has focused more concern on credit reports, so the three major credit agencies—Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion—are offering free weekly reports through April 2021. (Normally you can get a free report only once a year from each.) Go to AnnualCreditReport.com.
If you wear your jeans 5 days in a row, they become all baggy and it will appear that you are losing weight. Follow me for more quarantinelife pro tips.
Have you seen the very clever people (this is a facetious remark) that are wearing masks that look like they’re made out of sheer netting or mesh – actually, I think some of them look like they’re wearing a thong or lacy underwear over their mouths. They say, “Super AMAZING! Very breathable and not suffocating at all.” It is their independent way of saying they think the mask mandate is ridiculous and I don’t have to do anything you’re telling me to do. I bet they were difficult children to raise.This kind of mask is not helpful to them or to others around them. Do you remember at first, the virus was called the ‘novel’ coronavirus – that was because it was so new to scientists, and no one knew anything about it. Time passed, more and more is now known, but there are still so many unanswered questions. We were first told to wear a mask to protect people from US, then we were told that we were protecting ourselves AND each other with the mask. “My mask protects you and your mask protects me.” It was to shield us from the gigantic clouds of sticky virus particles that come flying out of the mouths and noses of infected people. But our immune system is quite complicated and there was so much unknown six months ago. Now studies are showing that a mask may be even more important than first thought. Some studies and growing evidence show that by cutting down on the amount of virus that takes root in your body, it could protect you from developing a serious case of COVID. But also critical is how your body responds to the virus, the health of the individual, exhaustion, stress. So much unknown. The only way to answer these questions is with experimental challenge studies, which would involve intentionally infecting healthy volunteers in order to study the disease and treatments. But the severity of this virus makes this method a little evil, like tormenting animals for entertainment.
I don’t think anyone expected that when we moved our clocks forward in March for Daylight saving time, we were going from Central Standard Time to The Twilight Zone.
Have you seen the video that the Reverend Lonnie Lacy did for his congregation at St. Anne’s Episcopal Church in Georgia, with his parody of the song “You’ll Be Back” from the Broadway hit Hamilton? If you have not seen it, look it up…whether you like Hamilton or not, it is genius, and so entertaining.
Girls Scouts of the USA announced that a new cookie will be introduced this year called Toast Yay. “The name is designed to be a play on words for ‘toasty,’ which evokes the warmth and joy we believe people will associate with this great new French Toast-inspired flavor,” said a representative for Girl Scouts. “Each toast-shaped cookie is roughly the size of the palm of your hand, thin and crunchy, with the texture of a frosted animal cookie. A thin layer of frosting covers the top of the cookie and tastes vaguely of maple syrup and is reminiscent of icing that’s hardened on top of a cinnamon roll.”
RECENT BIRTHDAYS: Director James Cameron is 66. The Terminator. Singer Madonna is 62. Actress Angela Bassett is 62. Actor Timothy Hutton is 60. Actor Steve Carell is 58. TV personality Kathie Lee Gifford is 67. Actor Gary Clarke is 87. Steve Hill in The Virginian. Actor Julie Newmar is 87. Original Catwoman. Country singer Billy Joe Shaver is 81. Actor Bob Balaban is 75. Actor Lesley Ann Warren is 74. Actor Robert DeNiro is 77. Casino. Singer Belinda Carlisle is 62. The Go-Go’s. Actor Sean Penn is 60.
Musician John Deacon is 68. Queen. Rock musician Gary Talley is 73. The Box Tops. Actor-screenwriter-producer Julian Fellowes is 71. Downton Abbey. Actor director Robert Redford is 84. Actor Edward Norton is 51. Actor-comedian Martin Mull is 77. Mary Hartman Mary Hartman.Musician DennisElliott is 70. Original drummer for Foreigner, then went on to become a sculptor.Former President Bill Clinton is 73. Country singer Lee Ann Womack is 53. I Hope You Dance. Actor Matthew Perry is 50. Actor John Stamos is 56. Actor Kyra Sedgwick is 54.
Singer Johnny Nash is 79. I Can See Clearly Now. Actress Jill St. John is 79. First American Bond girl in Diamonds Are Forever. Country singer-songwriter Eddy Raven is 75. Rock singer Ian Gillan is 74. Deep Purple and known for his powerful high-pitched banshee screams. Actor Gerald McRaney is 72. Actor Peter Gallagher is 64. Actor Adam Arkin is 63. Singer-songwriter Gary Chapman is 62. Country singer Clay Walker is 50.
Connie Culp, the first person to receive a face transplant in the US, died at 57. Her face was damaged in 2004, when her husband shot her in an attempted murder-suicide. Her nose, cheeks, roof of her mouth, and one eye were destroyed, and it left her nearly blind, as well as unable to breathe, speak or smell and in need of a surgical breathing opening in her throat. Culp underwent 30 surgeries before her historic near-total face transplant surgery in 2008. The operation took 22 hours and involved doctors rebuilding her nose and replacing tissue, muscle, bone, and more with the donations of an organ donor who had recently died. After the operation, Culp was again able to talk, breathe, smell and taste food, and smile. Sometimes stories come to my inbox that I am meant to see and feel.
Doris Buffett, philanthropist, and older sister of billionaire Warren Buffett died at 92. She was also known as the ‘retail‘ philanthropist because she believed in small and direct grants to people with financial difficulties, donating $100 million of her own money, mostly to needy individuals, and often taking the time to call and write to them personally so she could determine the best way to help them. She was founder of The Sunshine Lady Foundation, The Learning by Giving Foundation, and The Letters Foundation which she co-founded with her younger brother. Buffett attracted attention with the publication of a 2010 book titled, “Giving It All Away: The Doris Buffett Story,” which she pursued at the urging of her brother Warren Buffett and the lead singer of U2, Bono. She intended to give all her money away before she died.
Teddy Bear Clinic: An interactive, online activity for kids from UTMB Health. Call today. Along with their favorite stuffed animal or doll, children can visit with health care providers to learn about hospitals and what happens there. Ages 4-11. Register 832-632-7721. Aug. 21st, at 9am-10am-11am or noon.
American women were finally allowed to vote 100 years ago. Almost 150 years ago, Susan B. Anthony was arrested and convicted in a widely publicized trial in 1873, for voting as a woman, then fined $100. Anthony protested what she called “high-handed outrage upon my citizen’s rights” and said she would “never pay a dollar of your unjust penalty.” She never did, and the authorities declined to take further action. This week Anthony received a presidential pardon.
An ad popped up for Vital Farm Eggs today. It received my full attention because when I can, I buy this brand. Actually, when I can afford them, I buy these eggs, because they are Pasture Raised and Certified Humane in the way the chickens are raised. There is so much fake labeling on our food, and these guys try to do their part to educate the public (in a very funny way that I can’t print here) on the difference between Pasture Raised (the only truly ethical and humane way) vs Cage-Free which means each chicken gets a space about the size of two shoe boxes, one square foot, in a cramped warehouse crammed right next to each other, with a light bulb. Pasture Raised means the hens are supposed to get 108 square feet each in a pasture, in the sun, eating nutritious bugs and acting like chickens are supposed to act like, in addition to having indoor barn space. This makes for happy healthy chickens. Consumers do not understand the difference. Many companies have plans in motion to switch to cage-free eggs from conventional ones, which is better but it’s still not great. Just imagine where you would want to live your life if you were a chicken. E-I-E-I-O
Why did the chicken cross the playground? To get to the other slide.
After recent heavy rains, a family in Pennsylvania noticed dark lines of honey running down their wall. They followed the honey and found an estimated colony of 20,000 – 30,000 bees, in the attic. They worked with beekeepers to move the bees to a different location. Two out of three teachers prefer to start the school year teaching online, and 82% say they are concerned about returning to in-person teaching. A lost dog found nearly four miles offshore in the middle of Lake Michigan and ‘likely treading water for upward of an hour’ was rescued by a family on a boating trip and returned to its owners.Luckily, the dog was micro-chipped. Lori Loughlin and Mossimo Giannulli have downsized to a $9.5 million residence after relisting their Bel-Air for $28.65 million and then selling it for $18.75 million. 08-17-2020 was National Thrift Shop Day. Oh, I love thrift store shopping, especially Goodwill on Wednesday evenings after the paper is finished. Don’t forget to also donate to Habitat and SPCA. Such great causes.The Big Ten Conference has postponed the 2020 football season because of the pandemic. Not only is it bad for the school, it takes millions of dollars away from small businesses that benefit from spending during football season, but it is what it is. Simon Cowell broke his back in an electric bike accident, so Kelly Clarkson and Kenan Thompson are filling in for him on America’s Got Talent, while he recovers.
A Red Lobster employee found a blue lobster in a shipment and recognized just how rare the creature was. Red Lobster co-workers sprang into action and found him a new home at the Akron Zoo. Only one in 2 million lobsters are blue. The color is a result of a genetic defect that causes the lobster to produce an excessive amount of a particular protein. The protein mixes with the red molecule astaxanthin to form a complex called crustacyanin, which gives the lobsters its blue color.Throw him back so he can make baby lobsters.
Bicycle sales have gone up 50% since this stupid pandemic started, so be careful when you are on the road. There are a lot of people riding. I see them cruising past the front of my office every day. If you have a bike that is just setting in your garage, call us and we will help you find a wonderful new home for it. An appreciative home where the tires will be filled full of fresh air and the seat will be warmed and polished by the loving derriere of a human being.
“When the spirits are low, when the day appears dark, when work becomes monotonous, when hope hardly seems worth having, just mount a bicycle and go out for a spin down the road, without thought on anything but the ride you are taking.” Sir Arthur Conan Doyle 1859-1930, author of Sherlock Holmes.
August 29th is Mary Poppins’s birthday. If I had small children, I believe it would be a perfect day for a tea party, best manners, flying a kite, watching the movie, speaking in an English accent, or learning how to spell supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.
