Fake News and Facebook

People are finally *yawn* over the whole Facebook phenomenon.  At first everybody over shared everything and nobody read the fine print in the disclosures stating Facebook sells all of your information and everything that you post is their property.

People finally figured it out.

Now it's nothing more than a platform for fake news and political rants.  No, we are not your personal army here to carry out your self-righteous causes.  Facebook is just radicals on both sides trying to shove their opinions down everybody's throat.

"A random Facebook post totally changed my life and enlightened me to how WRONG I am and how RIGHT you are," said nobody.  Ever.  

Facebook political rants have the same impact as door-to-door prostlyzers.  They just annoy the living (blank) out of everybody and convert no one.

Please, go back to posting pictures of your kids and dogs.  Just spare us the details and photos of how many squares of toilet paper you used in the bathroom that was previously the picture you posted of your lunch earlier.

I'll give the standard "like" reply and comment "love and miss you TONS!!!!  You are the BEST"

Gag me.  Wait.  Facebook is not just fake news.  It's fake friends but real enemies.

Native Hawaiians

Here's some interesting Hawaiian trivia you might not know.  Before I get started, the one that REALLY shocked me was that native Hawaiians do NOT have the same aboriginal rights that native Americans do.  Why?  My guess is that billionaires have no interest in commandeering cold, windy continental prairies with few natural resources to build lush vacation homes.  Hawaii, however, is another story.   Just ask Zuckerberg.

1.  Hawaii has a unique way of giving directions. To point people in the right path, local residents use “makai,” which means toward to sea and “mauka,” meaning toward the mountains;

2. The Hawaiian alphabet consists of only twelve letters. The five vowels are A,E, I, O,U. And the seven consonants are H,K,L,M,N,P,W;

3.  Iolani Palace, in Honolulu, is the only royal palace in the United States. Electric lights illuminated Iolani Palace four years before the White House in Washington D.C. had them;

4.  Hawaii is the most isolated population on earth.  It's no joke how people get "island fever"

5.  Hawaii is the only state that has a tropical rain forest;

6.  Hawaii is the only state that grows coffee;

7.  C and H sugar stands for California and Hawaii;

8.  Hawaii does not have any professional sports teams.  It's all about the H (University of Hawaii sports)

9.  Hawaiians call white people "haoles" (meaning without breath and without soul - breath is the sacred life force)

10.  Newcomers are called "malihine"

11.  It is NOT a term of endearment to be called a haole malihini (white newcomer).  Given the fact that people like Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates try to buy entire islands forcing locals out and don't give them aboriginal rights, do you blame them? 

Death Bed

I was at a lunch meeting yesterday with my work group.  One of the guys in the group is divorced and is dating again after 25 years of marriage.  I've listened to his stories on the dating scene.  It's ugly.  The disrespect people show each other is appalling.  The common justification used in being disrespectful to people is, "it's ONLY a casual dating relationship and I don't OWE you anything."

Wanna bet?

You do OWE people basic courtesy, manners, and respect.  The fact that it is a casual dating relationship does give license to treat people poorly.  This guy has been dumped via text, stood up, and loaned money to women only to have them get angry when he created boundaries stating that kind of behavior is not going to fly with him.  Good riddance. 

One woman got extremely upset with him because he would not drop what he was doing on a Saturday and help her move.  Another got upset because he would not purchase her a $5,000 necklace she saw in a shop window.  Another one thought that he should sell his vacation house to pay off HER debt.  What are these women thinking?  They are the sames ones who dumped via text, stood him up, and loaned them money...and they think they don't OWE him anything.  How about basic tact and manners? 

Still, this guy has a soft heart.  Some of the women he has dated I have also met.  The one woman who got upset because he would not purchase her the $5,000 necklace is now dying of cancer.  She's only in her mid 50's.  Sure, that relationship did not work out but I saw a picture of this woman in good health and then he showed me the video of her on her death bed saying her goodbyes to everybody.  She's not even allowing visitors at this point because death is that close.  I could see how upset he was.  He still cared about her despite it all.  

The dying woman is sorry now that she treated people as disposable tools for her gratification.  Too bad it's too late.  Next life? 

Eye of the Hurricane: Yin and Yang

It's the proverbial sh** storm out there, people.  Nobody is happy and people are taking to the streets.  Everything is so polarized politically.  It's like being caught in a category 5 hurricane with forceful rhetoric blowing at us picking up large objects and hurling them at us causing chaos and damage. 

Just remember that the world is imperfect.  It always has been and always will be imperfect.  With every so-called advancement there is a retreat somewhere else.  It's the yin and yang of the universe at work.  Nothing is purely good or purely evil. 

I'm going to remain in the eye of this hurricane and refuse to get rattled emotionally and caught up in the destructive outer winds.  I'm going to mindfully gather my energy and focus it where it will have great impact with laser-like precision.   No wasted exertions.   I'm like a coiled up rattle snake.  You will hear me hiss and rattle my tail.  You will be warned before I strike.  When I do strike it will be fast, sudden, and deadly.  I don't strike often, but you will remember it when I do.  Just ask anybody who has pissed me off;)

Quizno's Subs

I don't know why I find this commercial for Quizno's so amusing.  It came out a long time ago.  I need something brainless to focus on as everything else seems overwhelming this week.  Enjoy. 

7 Billion People and Growing

What's the earth's population?  I think it's about 7.5 billion people and growing exponentionally.  Each person needs an income whether they generate it themselves or they are dependent upon somebody else's income.  Mother Earth is suffocating from all the people and toxins draining her.  We all talk like we want to save her, but we're not.  The only truly environmentally "sustainable" job is farming and living off the grid.  That's not happening and it's not going to happen.  Only a small fraction of the population lives in genuine harmony with nature.  The rest of us are total hypocrites addicted to our modern conveniences while loathing their impact.

What do we do with the majority of the population?  How are they going to earn incomes to feed themselves and their families as the population swells while resources dwindle?

Well, for jobs we've created only totally meaningless bureaucratic jobs that are mandated by government regulations.  We've created form filler-out-ers and agencies with complex departments with even more form filler-out-ers with more bureaucracy and regulations  that clog up anything anybody is actually trying to accomplish that actually produces a tangible end product or result.

But wait.  We can't really produce anything because production is harmful to the environment.   There's a complex law for  everything it seems.  We can't even tie our own shoes without some ordinance telling us how to do it and a reporting requirement that ultimately gets ignored and filed away when violated.  We can't actually measure anything because there are so many variables in the formula that constantly change. Meanwhile the population continues to grow.  Mother Earth is tired.

How do we continue to find work for 7 billion form-filler-outers?   Work for google?

Meaning of Life and Airport Delays

I'm going on a bipolar rant today.  First, I'm going to rant about airport delays.  Here's what irritates the living (blank) out of me.   As we all know, traveling is stressful.  Add to the mix the joke of security that TSA provides, terrorists blowing things up and shooting people, crowds, people taking obscene amounts of luggage and trying to cram it in overhead compartments....yup it's a real JOY.

Whew.  You finally make it to your gate.  You've checked in for your flight and kept abreast of any possible changes through your mobile app (or whatever).  Good.  No changes or delays.  People on the other end of your flight have made arrangements to meet you, give you a ride, or whatever.  Everything is going according to plan.........

UNTIL.................

About 20 minutes before boarding when it's announced your flight is delayed an hour.  You contact the people who have graciously offered to pick you up at the airport.  OK.  The hour passes.  Another announcement comes saying that the flight is delayed an additional 30 minutes.  Now you're getting peeved.  Repeat cycle.

OR.....you are boarded on pull away from the gate.  You sit on the tarmac for 1.75 hours.  Trapped.

 I'm living this scenario right now.  The reason for the delay is because of another delay of an inbound flight to SFO.  Really?  They just NOW decided to tell us this?  Thanks a (insert profanity) lot.  Why do airlines even bother with flight status apps when all they say is that everything is on time and honkey-dorey UNTIL IT'S TOO LATE TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT ANYWAY?????

Oh, I know... they are in cahoots with the airport bars and restaurants that do nothing but profit from irritated travelers stuck there.  Now I know why I see people drinking at airport bars at 7:00 in the morning.

Now, switching gears altogether which puts my complaining about everything in total perspective.  

OK.  Here's a crush I have on a guy who nobody would think movie star sexy.  I LOVE Eric Idle.  He's funny, sweet and smart.  Of course, I have never met him in person and all of my perfect illusions of him could be shattered in an instant.  I'll be realistic in saying that I love the Eric Idle I see in the Monty Python movies.  Who really knows what he's like in real life.  Speaking of life, I LOVE the Monty Python movie "The Meaning of Life"  and Eric singing The Galaxy Song.

Cycle Sluts from Hell - I Wish You Were A Beer

Here's a trip down memory lane.  I remember when this song came out in the early 90's.  I heard it on the radio and laughed.  I then saw the music video on MTV (yes kids, MTV really did have music videos back in the day) and laughed even harder at the brilliant stupidity of it.   The next time somebody gets on your nerves point at them and say, "I wish you were a beer."

Those with a sense of humor and who are half way with it will immediately put down their arms and smile.  Both of you will instantly forget what you were even arguing about.  Dense people with no sense of humor will just prune up their faces and glare at you. 

Sooooooo 2009

Social media has hit the wall with the public.  Finally.  Facebook and other social media sites are sooooooooo 2009 and soooooooo last decade when the novelty was just taking off and everybody overshared everything.   Government agencies, internet companies, and businesses have gleefully collected your personal information which was freely volunteered by your insatiable ego's quest for "likes."

Since 2009 many relationships and marriages have suffered trauma incurred by somebody's thoughtless post.  Yup.  Busted.  Now Facebook is nothing more than what email is now.  At first a useful tool to communicate and is now just a noisy nuisance full of urban folklore, snake oil salesmen, fake and sensationalized news, and bragging/preaching posts by individuals.  People are finally figuring it out and being more selective about what they share.  People are deleting their social media accounts.  Businesses and the government have also figured this out and it's no longer the low-hanging fruit of information collecting.   However, there is a danger more insidious.  It's your computer web cam, smart phone web cam, and that thing people are wearing on their wrist.

Just know that there is technology available that records you when you think the camera is not on.  All of these gadgets coming on the market with Siri sitting on the kitchen counter are capturing more than "what is the weather in Denver" while you're chopping onions.  That thing you wear on your wrist is collecting more than how many steps you do in a day and your heart rate.  Also know that the chances are that your computer, smartphone, and thing that you wear on your wrist were manufactured in China.  The public is lined up and paying big bucks for this stuff.  Are you putting all of this together yet?????

Happy New Year!!!!!

Yeah, I know I'm a day late.  I love New Year's Day.  Why?  Because the stress of fulfilling Christmas obligations with decorating, parties, shopping, cooking, etc., are done.  Nobody is expecting presents on New Year's Day.  The new year is full of fresh promise and hope.  It's a new beginning for us as individuals and for the world.  Other than New Year's Day being one of my favorite holidays the other one is Thanksgiving because each year I try to perfect the meal I'm cooking.  I suppose it's the bookends of the traditional holiday season - Thanksgiving to New Year's Day.  The time in between can stress me out, but I have a strong beginning and a strong finish.

What will 2017 bring us?  Hmmmmmmmmmm  let me look into my crystal ball......

1.  ObamaCare:  The new administration wants to strip away ObamaCare.  My question is to replace it with WHAT?  We are still putting it into place and figuring out the quirks in the system.  A social policy change of this magnitude can take YEARS to implement and figure out as there are so many moving parts to health care between hospitals, insurance plans, pharmaceutical companies, doctors, patients.  It's not a simple fix.  Again, the politicians have NO idea what goes on to make the cogs in the machine operate properly.  The politicians get in front of a camera and open up their mouths.  The audience gives an emotional reaction.  The politician walks away from microphone.  We are left with the IMPOSSIBLE task of dealing with the rest and then people wonder why things are so screwed up and change takes forever if it happens at all.

2.  World Peace:  Never has happened and it never will.  The future is always full of peaceful promise, but history is violent.  If the public knew the magnitude of intel information and the delicate state of politics they would all be freaking out.  The Bored Moms on Prozac would quickly realize that there's more to life than complaining about loud leaf blowers and the color of paint the neighbor chose to paint their house.  If they only knew.....  As I said before, I wish the world could be just one big liberal arts campus, but it's not. 

3.  Terrorists:  They come in all shapes, sizes, religions, and ethnicity.  Want the profile of a terrorist?  Look in the mirror.

4.  I smell another housing bubble.  For the life of me I can't figure out how real estate in Sonoma County has appreciated to ungodly levels while incomes have remained relatively stagnant.  I guess everybody is moving up here from San Francisco, but still...

5.  On the positive side I think that people are figuring out that the media is a bought and paid for joke at our expense.  We are figuring out that the earth is a living, breathing being like ourselves and it needs to be cared for.  Well, the native Americans and other tribal societies figured that out a long, long time ago - we just thought them 'savages' and did not listen.

6.  My biggest hope for 2017 is that people of all walks of life, especially politicians, THINK BEFORE THEY SPEAK.