We are all full of weakness and errors; let us mutually pardon each other our follies – it is the first law of nature. —Voltaire
Oh, wait, we forgot to talk about a few things
Oh geeze, it’s Friday already. How did this happen? The lawn needs to be mowed, the house is a mess, the laundry is piled up and I don’t have anything thawed for dinner. I’m so behind on editing I don’t even want to think about it at this point. On top of that, there are no fewer than a dozen topics on my board that we haven’t had a chance to talk about this week. Writing takes up a lot of time and there just hasn’t been enough of that time available.
So, since most everything is somewhat timely, let me see how many of these follies I can reduce and get into one article. You can click the links for full stories in most cases. Or not.
Leica announced a new stripped-down version of its digital camera that sounds exactly like what I need. No LCD screen, no stupid video eating up battery, no wildly high ISOs, none of the stupid filters and shit that all the amateurs think make their cameras cool. This is a real photographer’s camera. One has to know what they’re doing and not rely on presets and the “auto” setting. I like the look and sound of this camera. What I don’t understand, though, is why the damn thing costs over $5,000! With all the nonsense stripped down I would expect a price significantly lower. I Â was all ready to put one on my shopping list until I saw the damn price tag.
I’ve always thought that, being a child of the 60s and 70s, we grew up with some of the best music ever written. Now, there seems to be some evidence that as, for the first time ever, older catalog music is outselling new music. Â Some are trying to blame this on streaming services while others say that the whole retro vinyl thing is a factor. To an extent, both arguments may have some validity to them. But, the bottom line, and we all know it, is that older music is just better. Only a fool would choose Taylor Swift over the Beatles or Stones, One Direction over AC/DC or Three Dog Night. We had the best music ever, and now even the kids are beginning to recognize that fact.
Durham, NC ad agency McKinney has the perfect response to their home state’s controversial HB2 law: flush it. To make that action more accessible to people, they’ve printed HB2 on toilet paper. The rest should be self-explanatory. The only problem with the concept is they didn’t seem to make any provision for it being widely  accessible. If you write the company, they might send you a roll. You should know what to do with it.
Funniest thing I’ve seen on Twitter all week:
Today I overheard someone say, while on the phone, “well, who took your underpants? Do you have more?” No context given.
— VSESLAV (@Coffinsyrup69) April 27, 2016
Speaking of funny, if you’ve not followed Berkeley Breathed’s Bloom County on Facebook this week, you’ve missed a special collection of real gems. Since Breathed decided to publish his work on Facebook rather than through the creative-squashing syndicate, we’ve seen some delightfully wonderful strips, but this week has taken the hairball (so to speak) as the cartoonist stretched Monday’s World Penguin Day into a full week. Well, almost. Bill the Cat got his dues in today. Still, this week’s strips have been a prime example of why Breathed is a treasured talent.
There, that clears out the most important stuff. Follies are best on Friday, I suppose. That’s the only way the alliteration works. There are still a couple of scraps lying around, but I’ll leave those in case I get desperate over the weekend. The grass on the lawn isn’t getting any shorter with me sitting here. Not that I’m going to cut it. I just need to find someone in the neighborhood who can use an extra $4.37.
Follies. Hehe.
Morning Update: 06/07/24
Fridays are supposed to be fun, aren’t they? At least, that’s the general premise. We take our time at work, complete what absolutely has to be completed, and then go out with “the gang” for drinks and frivolity. At least, that’s the myth that gets spread around. Honestly, I think that scenario probably ended sometime in the 1980s, but it’s still fun to think that it might happen. Of course, the reality is that we have to work like hell to get everything done by the end of the week that we’ve been putting off the other four days. By the time we finally do get around to leaving, we’re too tired to go out. We go home, drink alone, and then pass out.
None of that, either the myth or the reality, will be happening here today. There’s still no check in my account. That likely means that there won’t be anything deposited until Monday at the earliest. This puts Tuesday’s doctor’s appointment in jeopardy because I won’t be able to afford a fucking ride. Once Medicare kicks back in on July 1, they’ll pay for the transportation, but until then, I’m on my own. We’re out of milk and butter (margarine) but there’s no point in walking to the store because we already know that they won’t have any more milk until Wednesday of next week.
I think we’re okay on other food as long as no one wants to sit around and snack. Giving credit where it’s due, I have to congratulate G on doing a wonderful job with dinner last night. He made chicken with fresh asparagus and it was absolutely delicious. It really helps a lot that he can cook as well as he does. There are so many times when 5:00 rolls around and I’m struggling just to sit upright. Yesterday was definitely one of those days so his volunteering to cook is greatly appreciated.
My knees have been screaming at me since before Jack Jack forced me out of bed this morning and my hips aren’t feeling much better. Is this a chemo effect or arthritis? I have no idea how to tell. All I know is that it hurts like hell and I really don’t want to leave my chair.
Other things killing my mood this morning are these headlines:
St. Louis lawyers who waved guns at protesters get records expunged, want guns back. These idiots should have been disbarred in the beginning. They threatened to kill people. They don’t have the right to get their guns back or be a part of normal society.
Methodist church regrets Ivory Coast’s split from the union as lifting of LGBTQ ban roils Africa. It’s a poorly written headline, for starters. There’s a lot going on but at the core of it all, Africa is stupid conservative and acts like it’s afraid that LGBTQIA+ people are going to eat them or something.
Georgia to move ahead soon with bill curbing LGBT rights. They’re talking about the country, not the state, although something tells me the state would probably try something similar if they thought they could get away with it.
Tennessee governor OKs penalizing adults who help minors receive abortions, gender-affirming care. Tennessee likes to project this image of “Southern hospitality,” but the last thing they are is welcoming to anyone on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum. In fact, they may be the most dangerous state in the union for anyone who is not cis. Don’t buy the fucking lie. Tennessee is not friendly, not safe, and should be avoided like the plague it is.
I think I may just shut my door and avoid directly interacting with people for the rest of the day. I’m toxic at the moment and the only thing that’s likely to improve my mood is that check hitting my account. I’m going to have to completely delete my current shopping cart and start over because all the sales are going to end before I have any money. I fucking hate being dependent like this. The government is not reliable. It never has been. I can remember Grandpa Slover having to wait on his check at times as well and that was 40+ years ago.
What’s worse is I don’t see anything changing. Happy fucking Friday.
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