Archive for the ‘Uncategorized’ Category

Daylight Saving Time

March 10, 2023

Daylight Saving Time

At 2:00 AM this Sunday morning people in most of the United States will set their clocks ahead one hour as we begin Daylight Saving Time. Many households will also change the batteries in their smoke detectors. In Arizona, where they don’t believe in Daylight Saving Time, people mark the day by putting fresh ammunition in their handguns.

The continental United States observes DST beginning on the second Sunday in March; the European Union on the last Sunday in March. Tunisia, Bangladesh, and Fiji have joined Arizona and no longer observe Daylight Saving Time. We do not know if these counties also concur with Arizona’s denial of Climate ChangeWater FluoridationInternational Law, and Evolution.

Why does Arizona reject Daylight Saving Time? Perhaps the state’s many retirees can’t figure out how to change the time settings on their old VHS machines.

So “Spring Ahead,” even if Spring won’t actually be here until March 20th. And your lost hour of sleep? You’ll get it back on November 5th.

More on Daylight Saving Time here. And change your batteries and stuff.

More:

“Daylight saving time begins Sunday: 8 things to know about ‘springing forward,’” Brian Resnick, Vox

“Five reasons why the US should stay on daylight saving time permanently,” Steve Calandrillo, Quartz

“With clocks springing ahead, lawmakers want more sunshine,” Niels Lesniewski, Roll Call

(more…)

The Best of the ‘Best of 2022′ Lists

December 12, 2022

The Best of the ‘Best of 2022′ Lists
2022 “Year-In-Review” lists you may have missed:

“Top Lobbyists 2022,” The Hill

“The 8 Most Brain-Melting, Chronically Online Internet ‘Scandals’ of 2022,” Kevin Hurler, Gizmodo

“Best Inventions of 2022,” Time

“The 20 Best Horror Movies of 2022,” Paste Magazine

“The Best Video Games of 2022,” Richard Newby, Time

“Top10 Best WWE Superstars Wrestlers 2022,” Amanpreet Singh, SportsUnfold

“‘AudioFile’ Magazine’s Best Audiobooks of 2022,” Jim Milliot, Publishers Weekly

“The Top 10 TikToks You Couldn’t Stop Watching This Year,” Passant Rabie, Gizmodo

“The 10 Best Anime Of 2022,” Isaiah Colbert, Kotaku

“The Best Poetry of 2022,” Elisa Gabbert, New York Times

“Top Japanese baby names 2022,” Japan Data

“The 10 best comics of 2022,” Susana Polo, Polygon

“Best Heated Blankets 2022,” Caroline Igo, CNET

“The Best Cookbooks of 2022, From Wok Manifestos to Dessert Bibles,” Adam Rothbarth, Vice

“Top 10 K-12 school food service stories of 2022,” Tara Fitzpatrick, Food Management

“Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries of 2022,” HeritageDaily

“The 19 Best Swimsuit Brands of 2022,”Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure

“Best Snowshoes in 2022,” Josette Deschambeault, Explorersweb

“2022’s Best Hacks, Cybersecurity Breaches, and Leaks, Ranked,” Lucas Ropek, Gizmodo

“Top 10 healthcare dining stories of 2022,” Mike Buzalka, Food Management

“Top 10 Patient Safety Concerns 2022,” Emergency Care Research Institute (ECRI)

“The 10 best-selling weed strains of 2022,” Amelia Williams, Leafly

“The top 10 hacks and cyber security threats of 2022,” Olivia Powell, Cyber Security Hub

“Top 10 personal tax stories of 2022,” Lynnley Browning, Financial Planning

“Worst Countries To Live in 2022,” World Population Review

 “Top 10 Chinese architecture projects of 2022,” Christina Yao, Deezen

“Odd 2022: The 10 oddest Guinness World Records of the year,” Ben Hooper, UPI

“The Most Compelling Science Graphics of 2022,” Amanda Montañez, Scientific American

“Top 10 NASCAR Paint Schemes Of 2022,” Luken Glover, Frontstretch

“Striking findings from 2022,” Katherine Schaeffer, Pew Research Center

“Most Popular Cookie Recipes of 2022,” Nina Moskowitz, Bon Appétit

“Top 10 ADHD News & Research Highlights of 2022,” ADDitude

“The Best & Worst Places for Expats in 2022,” InterNations

“Best Rechargeable Hearing Aids Of 2022,” Jessica Lester and Megan Bilodeau, Forbes Health

“Top 10 Data Center Energy Stories of 2022,” Kate Shapiro, Data Center Knowledge

“The 7 Best Pizza Stones of 2022,” Tanya Edwards, Better Homes & Gardens

“The biggest Pinocchios of 2022,” Glenn Kessler, Washington Post

“The best comic books of 2022,” Christian Holub, Entertainment Weekly

“The 79 Best K-Pop Songs of 2022,” Teen Vogue

“The Biggest Medical Breakthroughs of 2022,” Ed Cara, Gizmodo

“Best bat flips of 2022,” MLB on YouTube

“The Whoppers of 2022,” FactCheck.org

“The Best Photos From Mars in 2022,” Isaac Schultz, Gizmodo

“The 20 Best Red Carpet Fashion Moments of 2022,” Carolyn Twersky, W Magazine

“Best Emergency Power Stations of 2022,” Tony Carrick, Futurism

“Top 10 Worst Toxic Algal Blooms of 2022,” EIN News

“2022’s Best And Worst TikTok Food Trends, From Butter Boards To NyQuil Chicken,” Taylor Tobin, HuffPost

“Top 10 trucking toys of 2022,” John G Smith, TruckNews.com

“The Top 10 Scams of 2022, According to the Government,” Jody Serrano, Gizmodo

“The Best Book Covers of 2022,” Jason Kottke, Kottke.org

“The Best Architecture Interviews of 2022,” by Romullo Baratto and Diogo Simões ( translator), ArchDaily

“The 50 Best Cover Songs of 2022,” Cover Me

“18 Cringey And Hilarious Corrections From News Outlets In 2022,” Emerson Malone, Buzzfeed News

“15 Best Experiences in Theme Parks and Fan Destinations 2022,” Sabina Graves, Gizmodo

“Top 10 LPGA moments in 2022: A stirring revival, a stunning collapse and big-money Sundays,” Beth Ann Nichols, Golfweek

“Boxing’s best of 2022: The knockouts, fights and fighters of the year,” ESPN

“New Netflix Christmas Movies in 2022 Ranked from Best to Worst,” Delia Harrington, Den of Geek

“The 10 Best Anime Of 2022,” Isaiah Colbert, Kotaku

“Cigar Aficionado Reveals the Best Cigars of 2022,”Maxim

“The Ten Best Basketball Shoes of 2022,” Pat Benson, SI FanNation

“The top 10 MedTech Regulatory Stories of 2022,” Chris Newmarker, MassDevise

“List of top 10 Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (2022),” Stuti Titus, JagranJosh

“The 9 Best Fast Food Comebacks of 2022,” Angela L. Pagán, The Takeout

“Top 10 Plant-Based Food Marketing Moves of 2022,” T.L. Stanley, AdWeek

“Top 10 Epidemiology Stories for 2022,” Kate Bishop-Williams, Healthnews

“The Most Mesmerizing Video Game Box Art Of 2022,” Isaiah Colbert, Kotaku

“The Top 10 Inequality Victories of 2022,” Sarah Anderson, Inequality.org

“Gender Equality in 2022: The Best, The Worst, The Most Surprising, And The Most Ridiculous,” Sia Nowrojee, United Nations Foundation

“See the Hottest Celebrity Bikini Moments of 2022: From Gwyneth Paltrow to Victoria Beckham,” Samantha Holender, US Magazine

“The 10 Best Chrome Extensions of 2022, According to Google,” Khamosh Pathak, Lifehacker

“Best Turkey Calls of 2022,” Josh Honeycutt, Field & Stream

“The Top 10 Judicial Review and Civil / Commercial Appellate Cases of 2022,” Torkin Manes LLP, Lexology

“The Juiciest (Alleged) Cheating Scandals Of 2022,” Tomi Obaro, BuzzFeed News

“Best ‘Tourism Villages’ of 2022,” World Tourism Organization (UNWTO)

“The 10 Best Things We Bought at Trader Joe’s in 2022,” Mackenzie Filson, Kitchn

“The Best of 2022 on Entomology Today,” Entomology Today

“Popular global TikToks of 2022,” Max Barnhart and Estefania Mitre, Goats and Soda, NPR

“The Coolest Archaeological Discoveries of 2022,” Isaac Schultz, Gizmodo

“The Top 10 Busiest Airports Of 2022,” James Pearson, Simple Flying

“Top 10 new species of 2022,” Dr. Martin Cheek, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

“Who Lost the Least? Top Performing Crypto Assets of 2022,” Tim Hakki, Decrypt

“Top 10 Kickboxers of 2022,” Timothy Wheaton, MMA Sucka

“The Top Retractions of 2022,” Ellie Kincaid, Retraction Watch, The Scientist

“The Worst Technology of 2022,” Antonio Regalado, MIT Technology Review

“The Top Ten Dinosaur Discoveries of 2022,” Riley Black, Smithsonian Magazine

“The Best and Worst Marketing Stunts of 2022,” Rebecca Deczynski, Inc.

“Top 10 Animal Victories of 2022,” International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW)

“The Most Important Art Events of 2022,” ARTnews

“Who attracted the most attention in the political world in 2022,” Philip Bump, Washington Post

“The Best Photos From Mars in 2022,” Isaac Schultz, Gizmodo

“Yes, It Was Down: The Top 10 Internet Outages of 2022,” Chandra Steele, PC Magazine

“The Most Scathing Book Reviews of 2022,” Dan Sheehan, Literary Hub

“10 of the Deadliest Natural Disasters in 2022,” Brianna Navarre, US News & World Report

“Top 10 Underrated Astronomy Papers of 2022,” Paul M. Sutter, Nautilus

“The Year in Review: Fashion’s Biggest Moments of 2022,” José Criales-Unzueta, Vogue

“Most Compelling Science Graphics of 2022,” Amanda Montañez,  Scientific American

“The Worst tweets of 2022,” Gawker

“Top 10 health insurance stories of 2022,” Jakob Emerson, Becker’s Payers Issues

“The 8 Worst Food Trends We Should Leave in 2022,” The Takeout

“5 Of The Best Powerlifting Athletes In 2022” Alex Polish, BarBend

“The 13 Worst Health and Fitness Trends of 2022,” Beth Skwarecki, Lifehacker

“6 Weird and Wild Animal Behaviors Revealed in 2022,” Andrea Thompson,  Scientific American

“Ten of the most popular fact checks of 2022,” Glenn Kessler, Washington Post

“Top 10 COVID-19 stories for pulmonologists in 2022,” Kristen Dowd, Healio Pulmonology

“The 15 best shots of the year from the 2022 PGA Tour season,” Luke Kerr-Dineen, Golf Digest

“The Best Whiskies From Around the World in 2022,” Kirk Miller, InsideHook

“The Top 10 Cannabis Marketing Moves of 2022,” T.L. Stanley, Adweek

“The top 10 science stories of 2022,” Ross Pomeroy, Big Think

“22 Of The Best Wedding Photos Of 2022,” Kelsey Borresen, HuffPost

“The Best Audiobooks of 2022,” Lauren Christensen, New York Times

“The Best Animated TV and Movies of 2022,” James Whitbrook, Germain Lussier, et al., Gizmodo

“The 10 most bizarre celebrity apologies of 2022,” Ashley Fetters Maloy, Washington Post

“Fourteen Discoveries Made About Human Evolution in 2022,” Ryan McRae and Briana Pobiner, Smithsonian Magazine

“The 7 Most Important Athletes of 2022,” Will Leitch, New York Magazine

“The best movies of 2022 … you may not have seen,” Adrian Horton, Catherine Shoard, Scott Tobias, et al., The Guardian

“The Most Disappointing Gadgets of 2022,” Michelle Ehrhardt, Florence Ion, and Andrew Liszewski, Gizmodo

“Here Are The Messiest Kardashian Controversies And Scandals Of Of 2022, From All The Photoshop Fails To Their Out Of Touch And Entitled Comments About Work From out-of-touch business advice to multiple photoshop fails, this year has been nothing short of drama for our favorite family.” Leyla Mohammed, BuzzFeed News

“6 Best Corkscrews of 2022,” Melissa Vogt, Food & Wine

“What did Tucker Carlson defend in 2022?” Adam Gabbatt, The Guardian

“The Weirdest Medical Cases of 2022,” Ed Cara, Gizmodo

“50 wonderful things from 2022,” Linda Holmes, NPR

“The 100 Best Documentaries of 2022,” Christopher Campbell, Nonfics

“Batgirl to Wagatha: 15 flops and blunders in culture in 2022,” Steven McIntosh, BBC News

“Top 10 Breakthroughs of the Year for 2022,” Hamish Johnston, Physics World

“The 41 Most Defining Memes Of 2022,” Julia Reinstein, Ikran Dahir, and Steffi Cao, BuzzFeed News

“The 20 Best Tabletop Roleplaying Games of 2022,”Linda Codega, Gizmodo

“Florida Man 2022: The bizarre arrests made this year by law enforcement,” Fox 35 Orlando News

“Drugs hidden in candy, gun in a chicken: TSA’s weirdest finds of 2022,” By Andrea Sachs, Washington Post

“The Best Movie Posters of 2022,” Jason Kottke, Kottke.org

“The Top 100 Close-up Photographs of the Year 2022,” CUPOTY.com

“Oops! The Worst Political Predictions of 2022,” Zack Stanton, Politico

“The Top 10 Inequality Victories of 2022,” Sarah Anderson, Inequality.com

“Top 10 Title Sequences of 2022,” Lola Landekic. Art of the Title

“The 100 best male footballers in the world 2022,” The Guardian

____________________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-CIm

Image (“Best of 2022, after an 1895 Engraving”) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht,NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Try Me

October 2, 2022

“Try Me,” written by Jimmy Radcliffe and Buddy Scott, recorded by Esther Phillips, 1966. Sax solo by King Curtis.

_________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-B3x

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Sing Along With Space Force

September 26, 2022

“Semper Supra” is not a menu item at an ethnic restaurant, it’s the name of the U.S. Space Force anthem. “Semper Supra” (“Always Above”), written by veteran armed forces musicians Jamie Teachenor and Sean Nelson, was wheeled to the launch pad on September 20th. Blast-off was greeted by a galactic chorus of “Meh.”

Of course, in space no one can hear you sing.

More:

“With new official anthem, the Space Force hopes to land on your radar,” Michael Andor Brodeur, Washington Post

“Space Force Song Shoots for the Stars, but Some Think It Falls Flat,” Michael Levenson, New York Times

“‘It’s not a banger’: response to Space Force official song is less than stellar,” Martin Pengelly, The Guardian

Related:

“Space Force: A Guide to Trump’s Most Misunderstood Creation,” Margaret Hartmann, New York Magazine

________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-BrY

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Bagel Day

September 11, 2022

Bagel Day
Tuesday was Bagel Day at the software development center, and I favored Bagels & Baguettes near Stanton Park. There was a line when I got there, around 8:30 AM. The shop was near the Senate office buildings and the Heritage Foundation, so there was a TV tuned to CNN to keep news-obsessed customers occupied.

By the time I got my two dozen hot bagels, the damnedest thing was on that television. An airplane had crashed into a World Trade Center tower in New York, and the building was on fire. It was September 11, 2001.

I went to the office break room and put out the bagels, cream cheese, and smoked salmon. I guess I was making coffee when the second plane hit the other tower. I figured people still had to eat.

(more…)

Lay Down My Heavy Load

September 4, 2022

“Lay Down My Heavy Load,” written by Esther Wilson, recorded by The Trumpelettes, 1977.

_________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-Apg

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Jealous Guy

July 31, 2022

“Jealous Guy,” written by John Lennon, performed by Huntertones with Akie Bermiss, 2016. Arranged by Dan White.

Akie Bermiss (vocals, keyboards) Justin Stanton (trumpet), Jon Lampley (trumpet), Dan White (saxophone), Chris Ott (tombone), Michael Valeanu (guitar), Adam DeAscentis (bass), John Hubbell (drums),

Huntertones website

Akie Bermiss website

________________________
Short Link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-zvk

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

Military Genius Trump Blasts Combat Vet Mark Esper

May 11, 2022
Military Genius Trump Blasts Combat Vet Mark Esper

High School Cadet Capt. Trump. Thank you for your service.

The latest horrifying details about the Trump administration come from former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, who revealed that the 45th US Commander-in-chief wanted to attack Mexico with missiles, order combat troops to shoot police brutality demonstrators, and strip US forces from South Korea as payback for the success of Samsung TVs here.

Trump responded to these revelations by calling his former SecDef “weak.”

West Point graduate Mark Esper was Trump’s more-or-less 5th Secretary of Defense. Dr. Esper, a veteran of the Army’s 101st Airborne Division, was awarded the Bronze Star for his service in Iraq. Donald J. Trump was a cadet at New York Military Academy, a private high school.  You may recall that Mr. Trump has a service-related disability: he was gravely wounded as soon as he became eligible for the Vietnam draft lottery, and was treated (on paper) by a podiatrist at a Queens NY storefront he rented from Fred Trump, Donald’s dad.

Updates:

“Trump wanted to court-martial prominent retired officers, book says,” Dan Lamothe, Washington Post

“Trump Kept Asking if China Was Shooting Us With a ‘Hurricane Gun,’” Asawin Suebsaeng and Adam Rawnsley, Rolling Stone

“Trump complained US Navy ships ‘look ugly’: Esper,” Olafimihan Oshin, The Hill

“‘I Want to Meet With the Taliban’: Tales of Trump’s Head-Scratching Diplomacy,” Mark Esper, Politico

“Trump Wanted to Execute Leakers But Was ‘Biggest Leaker of All,’ Esper Says,” Daily Beast

_________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-z0L

Top image: Cadet Capt. Trump’s high school picture. Download a copy here.

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

The Best of the ‘Best of 2021′ Lists

December 30, 2021

The Best of the ‘Best of 2021′ Lists

2021 “Year-In-Review” lists you may have missed:

“Best face masks of 2021: Doctors share their favorite masks,” Nicole Saunders, NBC News

“The 20 best podcasts of 2021,” Hannah J Davies and Rachel Aroesti, The Guardian

“The Best Sweatpants of 2021,” Sean McCoy, Gear Junkie

“8 of the best TikTok accounts from 2021 to follow,” Kaitlin Hatton, The Verge

“The 8 Best TV Shows of 2021 for Entrepreneurs,” Zack Miller, Inc.com

“The 10 best memes of 2021, from Bernie Sanders in gloves to Aaron Rodgers’ face,” Charles Curtis, USA Today

“The Best Wellness Products of 2021, According to You,” Tiffany Hopkins, Bon Appétit

“The 10 Best Boxed Wine Brands for 2021,” Mark Stock, The Manual

“13 Best Dog Food Subscription Boxes (2021),”Adam Bryan, Urban Taste Bud

“The biggest Pinocchios of 2021,” Glenn Kessler, Washington Post

“Best Sneakers of 2021: Top Sneaker Releases of the Year,” Bredan Dunne, Riley Jones, Zac Dubasik, Matt Welty, Ben Felderstein, and Mike Stefano, Complex

“The Most Disappointing Gadgets of 2021,” Gizmodo

“The 10 weirdest celebrity apologies of 2021, from a ‘seductive’ Bible dance to making fun of Madonna,” Emily Yahr, Washington Post

“The Best Movies That Didn’t Release In 2021,” Charles Cameron, Screen Rant

“10 of the Deadliest Natural Disasters in 2021,” Brianna Navarre, US News & World Report

“The Best Book Covers of 2021,” Matt Dorfman, New York Times

“Gastro Obscura’s Favorite Cookbook Stories of 2021,” Sam O’Brien, Gastro Obscura

“Best cryptocurrencies of 2021 that delivered mindblowing returns of up to 51,000%,” Pawan Nahar, The Economic Times

“Here are the best vanity plates I spotted across Rhode Island in 2021,” Antonia Noori Farzan, The Providence Journal

“The best Canadian poetry of 2021,” CBC

“The 50 Best Cover Songs of 2021,” CoverMe

“The best stuff we didn’t report in 2021: Our staff’s year-end notebook dump,” Golf

“College football bowl game gift bags: the best and worst of 2021,” James Dator, SBNation

“15 Best Video Game Characters of 2021,” Daire Behan, GameRant

“The Best Beauty Looks From Music Videos in 2021,” Gabi Thorne, Allure

“Striking findings from 2021,” Katherine Schaeffer, Pew Research Center

“The 11 Coolest Archaeological Finds of 2021,” Isaac Schultz, Gizmodo

“The Worst Political Predictions of 2021,” Zack Stanton, Politico

“2021’s Top Five Oddities Of America’s Broken Redistricting Process,” Kate Riga and Matt Shuham, TalkingPointsMemo 

“The Best Swells of 2021,” Matt Pruett, Surfline

“Worst Climate Disasters of 2021 Included Heat, Drought, Flooding – Even a Deep Freeze,” By Jan Wesner Childs, The Weather Channel

“The top data breaches of 2021,” Maria Henriquez, Security Magazine

“The Top 10 Beers of 2021,” Untappd

“Notable Deaths of 2021,” Washington Post

“10 Things That Didn’t Suck About 2021,” Lauryn Schaffner, Loudwire

____________________________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-ymW

Image (“Best of 2021, after an 1895 Engraving”) by Mike Licht. Download a copy here. Creative Commons license; credit Mike Licht,NotionsCapital.com

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.

 

The Korean War Is Over! Sorta. Maybe. Possibly.

December 14, 2021

“South and North Korea, China and the US have agreed ‘in principle’ to declare a formal end to the Korean war, almost 70 years after the conflict ended in a shaky truce, the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, has said.

But Moon conceded that talks on the 1950-53 war were being held back by North Korean objections to present-day ‘US hostility’.

Speaking in Canberra on Monday during his four-day visit to Australia, Moon said he believed the four main parties agreed in principle to a peace declaration.

But he added that North Korea had made an end to US hostility a precondition for talks.”

— Justin McCurry, The Guardian

More:

“President Moon Jae-in: End to Korean War agreed to ‘in principle,'” Rebecca Falconer, Axios

“Is South Korea close to officially ending the Korean War?” Julian Ryall, DW News

_____________
Short link: https://wp.me/p6sb6-yhs

Comments are welcome if they are on-topic, substantive, concise, and not boring or obscene. Comments may be edited for clarity and length.