Happy Birthday To Pete Best

November 24, 2024, at home

Happy 83rd Birthday to Pete Best !!!

Happy Birthday Aunt Laura

November 24, 2024, at home

Happy 103rd Birthday to my Great-Aunt Laura. All the best and all our love, Debbie and Bill !!! (She was married to my maternal grandmother's brother.)

November 24, 2024, at home

Happy 103rd Birthday to my (Italian) Great-Aunt Laura. (She was married to my maternal grandmother's brother.)

1973 Stranded Release

November 24, 2024, at home

On November 24, 1973, Roxy Music's third album "Stranded" was released. My favorite song from this album is "Serenade," mainly because of the double, layered guitar solo by my favorite guitarist Phil Manzanera. The other main members of the group are Bryan Ferry (lead vocal, keyboardist, songwriter) and Andy Mackay (saxophone, oboe). My favorite keyboardist Eddie Jobson joined the group on this album, replacing Brian Eno. Jobson also plays electric violin. (I attended two Ferry solo concerts in 1988 in Philadelphia and in New York City.)

https://youtu.be/v45eYZjdRcA?si=dP6DLnRAk1eKw4ki

National Sardine Day

November 24, 2022, at home

I think that I tried eating a sardine once decades ago and didn't like it. In fact, the sardines in the photo look like what I used as bait when I went fishing as a teenager in the 1970s. I prefer eating anchovies in moderation, especially on pizza or in a Caesar salad.

Verstappen 4-Time F1 Champ

November 24, 2024, at home

YEAH !!! Congratulations go to Max Verstappen on his 4th consecutive F1 championship !!! I just watched him (on TV) win the championship at the finish of the Las Vegas Grand Prix, the 22nd of 24 races this season. He finished in 5th place in this race.

Las Vegas Grand Prix

November 24, 2024, at home

I am watching live coverage of the twenty-second race of the 2024 Formula 1 racing season. The Las Vegas Grand Prix is being broadcast on ESPN from a feed from Sky Sports F1. The race started at 10 p.m. local time on November 23, 2024 (1 a.m., November 24, 2024, Eastern Time in the United States).

Below is a diagram of the Las Vegas Strip Circuit in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA. Almost all of the races are on actual circuits (tracks), so this street circuit is relatively rare. Each circuit around the world has a different configuration, therefore a different dynamic, regarding turns and elevation fluctuations.

This season's 24-race schedule is as follows: Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Australia, Japan, China, Miami, Italy, Monaco, Canada, Spain, Austria, Great Britain, Hungary, Belgium, The Netherlands, Italy (different circuit), Azerbaijan, Singapore, Austin, Mexico, Brazil, Las Vegas, Qatar, and Abu Dhabi.

The first two races this season (in Bahrain and in Saudi Arabia) were held on Saturdays due to the Islamic observance of Ramadan. All other races will be held on Sundays, as usual, except for the Las Vegas Grand Prix which is being held on Saturday.

Before each race, there are two days of practice/qualifying. The races run every week or every other week from March into December, with a month-long summer break.

In Formula 1 racing, there are 20 (male) drivers, with zero drivers from the United States. A driver from the United States made it more than halfway through this season, but he was replaced.

There are 10 teams (with two drivers on each team), so not only do drivers compete against their rivals, but they also compete against their teammates. There are two championships: one for the drivers and one for the constructor teams.

This season, as with last season, there are three races in the United States. In fairly recent years, there were no drivers from the United States and no races in the United States.

Formula 1 racing is the only sport that I actively follow. I have been a fan for decades. I watched my first F1 race decades ago on television at the home of one of my many Austrian cousins while on vacation in Austria.

Today Is ...

November 23, 2024, at home

Every November 23rd, Fibonacci Day honors Leonardo Bonacci, one of the most influential mathematicians of the Middle Ages. The date corresponds to the first numbers of the Fibonacci sequence: 1 1 2 3.

I remember attempting to understand the Fibonacci sequence when I was a reporter/writer/analyst of commodities trading for an international wire service in 1990 into 1991. My bureau was based in New York City. I covered futures and options trading of the coffee, sugar, cocoa, cotton, and orange juice markets in real time, plus the weekly money-supply meetings at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York every three weeks.

November 23, 2024, at home

I love an espresso, but my coffee of choice is a ristretto, which is a "short shot" of a more highly concentrated espresso. It is often enjoyed in Italy as a quick pick-me-up in the middle of a busy day.

November 23, 2024, at home

Cashew is one of my favorite nuts, along with filbert (hazelnut) and Maroni (roasted chestnut).

November 23, 2024, at home

I do like sweetened, dried cranberries.

Dating These Days

November 22, 2024, at home

This EXACTLY explains what has happened. The sign on the desk refers to the MGTOW Movement (Men Going Their Own Way) where men swear off women in an effort to live happier lives.

News Again

November 22, 2024, at home

Now that Trump is president-elect, I am watching the news on TV again so that I can get some good news. I watch Fox News for information, and sometimes MSNBC and CNN for implosions and hatred.

I have also downloaded news apps on my phone: Fox News, The Epoch Times, The Washington Times, Newsmax, and New York Post.

November 22, 2024, at home

Cranberry Relish

November 22, 2024, at home

I like it with the whole berries.

Today Is ...

November 21, 2024, at home

Happy 82nd Birthday to Tweety !!!

November 21, 2024, at home

I ate stuffing for lunch. I particularly like chestnut stuffing.

November 21, 2024, at home

Gingerbread cookies are OK, but they are mostly too plain for me.

November 21, 2024, at home

Wear red mittens today in support of Canadian athletes.

Pick 3

November 21, 2024, at home

olive oil, pickled capers, minced garlic

Fudge & Absurdity

November 20, 2024, at home

I prefer plain chocolate fudge.

November 20, 2024, at home

I love absurdity, which is why I enjoy discussing politics with liberals and men's rights with feminists.

God Says No

November 20, 2024, at home

God has answered every one of my prayers. He said "no" to 99 percent of them.

Dinner

November 19, 2024, at home

Many thanks go to my wonderful wife for making turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and gravy, with white shoepeg corn.

Six Pillars

Today (November 19, 2024) is International Men's Day !!! Here are the Six Pillars.

My Men's Day Video

November 19, 2024, at home

This afternoon, I created and uploaded a video onto my YouTube channel to celebrate International Men's Day today.

International Men's Day (Nov. 19, 2024)

https://youtu.be/HxcjP5jsbPU?si=0wQVrBmDCWTTvPif

International Men's Day

Today (November 19, 2024) is International Men's Day !!!

Odd Story On Men's Day

November 19, 2024, at home: "An Odd Story on International Men’s Day"

Today (November 19, 2024) is one of my most favorite days of the entire year: International Men's Day !!! I have celebrated this special, celebratory day every year since the early 1990s, when I officially became a Men's Rights Activist, when I was in my early 30s. I still fight the good fight for men's rights and father's rights, although these days, in a mostly mellow manner.

One particular Men's Day found me in a rather awkward, unnerving situation. Thirteen years ago today on a Saturday (November 19, 2011), I attended a strange Eggplant Parmesan-making "party" in southeastern Florida. I thought that it may have been an actual sleep-induced nightmare, but it was real because here is a photo I took outside of the house where this rather bizarre, annual event took place.

Basically, I was the ONLY man in a house filled with seventeen (17) women, and my wife was the ONLY woman there who was NOT a lesbian. (no joke) ... So, there I am, a Men's Rights Activist on International Men's Day surrounded by a whole bunch of lesbians wielding sharp knives. Uh, yeah.

Seriously, I had fun, and everyone was nice, but I will admit that my stress level was through the roof, especially during a rather uncomfortable, seemingly condescending interrogation by one particular lesbian with an icy stare who asked me in a slow, calculating voice: "So, you play the piano," as she cuddled with her girlfriend. I simply replied, "Yes," which was followed by endless silence and continued staring.

Is there a lesson here? Maybe: Step out of your comfort zone. It may be, well, uncomfortable, but ... uh ... I don't know ... something about creating empathy or not ever doing that again, which I never did. LOL

Monopoly & Beverages

November 19, 2024, at home, International Men's Day

In the 1990s, my friend Tom and I used to play games of Speed Monopoly, meaning we played the game of Monopoly as fast as we could. One afternoon in my dad's living room, we played FIVE games in three-and-a-half hours. I lost all five games.

I also have a French version of the Monopoly game (using French Francs) that I purchased in Paris, when I was taking two university courses in Massy, France: "French Conversation and Composition I and II" (six credits in three weeks). That was in 1984, when I was 23 years old. I graduated from Villanova University in December 1984 with a bachelor's degree in communications with a minor in the French language. (I took 18 credits/six courses of French.) I would later graduate from the University of Missouri in Columbia in May 1988 with a master's degree in journalism.

Today Is ...

November 18, 2024, at home

I am fairly sure that I have eaten Vichyssoise. It was most likely when I was a young kid in the later 1960s, maybe early 1970s.

November 18, 2024, at home

Many decades ago when I was a teenager in the 1970s, I received a bit of (potentially controversial) advice from a now-forgotten, jaded, older-and-wiser gentleman. He told me:

"Never marry a woman whose father calls her Princess because she believes him."

Happy Birthday Mickey

November 18, 2024, at home

Happy 96th Birthday to Mickey Mouse !!!

Bizarre Behavior

November 17, 2024, at home

Many women are shaving their heads and swearing off men in protest of Donald Trump's victory and Kamala Harris's defeat in the 2024 U.S. presidential election. I say, hey, do it, if you want. Express yourself.

Feminists around the world have been wearing their hair short in protest of the so-called "patriarchy" for decades. It was even mentioned by William Shakespeare in one of his plays in the 1600s.

I was a journalist from 1982 to 2017, and also a lifelong Republican, so I am in favor of free speech and free expression of beliefs. As for me, I find the derangement of these particular women entertaining and humorous, mainly because nobody is taking away any of their rights. In fact, the lives of these women will get better.

I just watched a short, sad, humorous video on YouTube. A bald woman said: "I have cancer. I'm not stupid."

Popular with many women is the South Korean-based "4B" protest movement:

no sex with men (Korean: 비섹스; RR: bisekseu),

no giving birth (비출산; bichulsan),

no dating men (비연애; biyeonae), and

no marriage with men (비혼; bihon).

There was a book written many years ago where the women stopped having sex with men to stop a war they were fighting. 4B seems related, but it is being done out of spite and is just a blatant example of misandry rather than being positively productive.

Reactions to 4B:

Some people have said that the 4B Movement is actually good because it actually brings these radically liberal women to conservative values. Some people have said that the 4B women are the women that men don't want anyway, so it's Darwinism in action. One conservative woman on television said: "Then, the conservatives will outbreed you." One woman said that you can't threaten to take something away that nobody wants in the first place.

Many of these women are also advocating that women wear masks so that men are not able to see their faces. Hmm. That sounds like women in Middle Eastern countries.

As per my observation, many of these liberal females wear oversized eyeglasses.

WARNING: If you see a woman wearing a blue bracelet, run away. She is one of them.

BIZARRE !!!

UPDATE (11.18.24): There will also be fewer abortions, so there are many benefits of 4B.

Today Is ...

November 17, 2024, at home

Memory: 1985, Dippity Donuts, Babylon, Long Island, New York, 2 a.m., many Sundays, gyros, baklava, with Cousin Scott

November 17, 2024, at home

Today is also National Homemade Bread Day.

November 17, 2024, at home

Today is also National Butter Day.