Tuesday Tidbits

One more day till Northlandia.

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It was usually around this time of year when one of the networks would show The Wizard of Oz.  Marj would fix or buy peanut brittle for some reason and we'd be transfixed by the color and those damn flying monkeys.  I remembered reading once that in the book they care called Scabbernates.  This scene always scared the bejesus out of me.  

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I don't usually watch stuff with commercials anymore, but watched Pawn Stars and American Pickers the other day.  Do you realize  that their sole business model is to screw over people.

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Our politicians really do suck.  When was the last time you heard anything about banning, nationwide, those bump stock add-ons that enabled the Las Vegas shooter.  And why whenever there is a shooting they say it is always too soon.  Remember the Sandy Hook massacre?  Twenty 6 and 7 years old kids.  Little kids.  Six adults.  This isn't a rant about the NRA or money in politics.  It rests squarely on the politicians.  For those gun guys out there, I'm not advocating taking guns away, just a little tightening of who can get them.

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I posted this for a couple reasons.  One, is for Mrs. Wombie who likes all things musical.  The other is that this is a most remarkable performance from 65,000 people.  

1.  How did Green day follow that?

2.  Freddie Mercury's Bohemian Rhapsody is 42 years old.  Imagine that 42, and this crowd of 65,000 people and the song has spread so far for so long that this group was able to sing it IN PERFECT TIME.  These 65 people had nothing in common except wanting to be part of a Green Day concert.  And yet they were so perfect in duplicating this old song that they even split themselves into two groups to sing the counter chorus.  They know the length of each bridge and even know the nonsense words.

3.  As Scientific Philosophy explains:  we humans not only pass on genetic information be we also, and we are the only species who can, pass along memetic information, too.  Language is a meme.  Civilization is a meme, too.   You know those meme's, right.  Those are like those little square things that people spread all over social media and Facebook.  Cute little fun things that we quickly read and then scroll past.  They last a short while on the web then are quickly forgotten.  Information that has no practical information.  This is really wild, if you think about it.  One person started this and spread into a perfect song.  It started with a meme.  A spark of an idea that has nothing to do with anything, and yet, very likely this moment may be the thing these people savor most, even more than the concert that they spent big bucks to attend.  And they are just sharing an idea.  This is how culture is created.  Countries.  Civilizations.

4.  And maybe the most fun thing is when faced with the choice to sing "Bismillah! No we will not let you go." or  "Let me go!" they pretty much choose "Let me go!"

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Texas executed a couple guys last week.  Whenever I see one of these articles I usually read the last words.  Last words have always fascinated me.  Last words.  Final excuses?  Denouement?  Plea to listeners or to God?   Bravado or crushing sadness?  And last words from the soon to be executed would seem to be more prescient than those uttered in a drug-induced hospital setting.  As they say, nothing focuses the mind quite like an immanent demise.  Wonder if anyone has ever compiled a list and categorized them? 

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I have asked and been granted a day off each week from babysitting.

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While at Vinoy Park last weekend I noticed this father-son-family dog trio heading down the sidewalk.  The kid's motorized scooter was what first drew my attention.  They never had stuff like that when I was growing up.  With those the Wombie and I could have terrorized two towns instead of one.  

Then the dad stopped but the kid kept going.  I wondered why until dad got off his bike and started picking up dog poo down the sidewalk.  Poor dog - had to perform that bit of business on the run.  

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If anyone has one of these sitting in their garages and wants to get rid of it - call me first.  I have room at the Cabin in the Woods.

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I don't know about you but when I'm watching something and people go into another room and the camera pans through a wall it reminds me its a set and takes a bit of the enjoyment out.