Showing posts with label coronavirus. Show all posts
Showing posts with label coronavirus. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 17, 2020

Capticity - Day 89 Don't Trust the Aardvarks



Remember alarm clocks?  Before phones?
The things that wound up or had an LED display?
When you were late, you could blame the alarm.
Not so much now - it's not like your phone forgets to alarm you or runs late.
Except mine.
I jumped up, checked the time, and ran like mad. THEN the alarm went off.
20 minutes late.
HOW does a phone's alarm go off late?


Idiotic Idea of the Day
"instead of sending 2 police officers, send 1 police officer and 1 social worker.
protester in New York City

For the most part, we do not negotiate with terrorists.
Why are we negotiating with Seattle protesters?



It's, without a doubt, another one of those days.
You know it's not going well when the first thing you do is pick up a trash can and the entire contents fall out and decorate the stairwell. Then a 6' piece of heavy plastic spontaneously throws itself to the ground. Open the fridge and an open soda launches itself at you before you are awake. The 7am mower, and your tjnryping has gone to hell (further), tripping on everything (even things that aren't there). I'm trying to ignore the smaller bits of stuff that have levitated and are singing - what's worse is I don't like the songs. Yesterday too.  If this keeps up, I will need either a great idea for revenge, or a painless way out. I can burn it, but sleeping is difficult on the lawn.


When you have to make a window bigger or smaller, you grab the outside of the window. To move it, you grab the top bar of the window. People have trouble grabbing the outside of the window because it requires fine movement. I have no problem; I hit the outside most of the time. It's hard for me to hit the top bar.
I. Do. Not. Do. Drugs.



Apple is reopening 70 stores. You are required to wear a very expensive, upscale mask to enter the stores.

Ok, I've had my fun - let me show you something impressive: You can say 'Hey  Siri, I'm getting pulled over' and the iDevice will record the stop and send a location.



Vice President Mike "Praise the Lord" Pence says the Flying AIDS numbers are too high because of testing. Either this is really complex or incredibly stupid (I'd go for the latter). "There was no flu til we started testing for it. As we tested the numbers went up." Does your head hurt too?


If you have T-Mobil, you had an outage yesterday.
The head of the FCC is pissed. He said it's unacceptable and is launching an investigation, which is more than he's done since he got the job. Mark my words: if they are found guilty, there will be some serious wrist slapping.


Scientists Say Most Likely Number of Contactable Alien Civilizations Is 36.
Coincidentally, this is the same number of people who can put together Ikea products.



If you are a customer of  Cougary, Gay Daddy Bear, Xpal, BBW Dating, Casualx, SugarD, Herpes Dating, and GHunt. In all, the researchers found 845 gigabytes and close to 2.5 million records, your data is open to the internet. Hopefully the data will be locked down shortly, but that's closing the barn door after the hay got out.


The lady who set 2 police cars on fire during the Philly riot was found and now has charges against her.  


CNN: Flush carefully. Study suggests coronavirus could spread in spray from toilet.


By centering the cuisines of immigrants and Black people, Padma Lakshmi's new show Taste the Nation feels like a direct response to the overwhelming whiteness of American food media, writes @scaachi






Can we all get along?

Wednesday, April 1, 2020

Wear the Mask, Don't EAT the Mask

Couples: if one of you ain't putting out because of virus fears, remind them that you're both ok and working from home.

Be careful of Fido, though. A few dogs have shown symptoms, so make sure he wears one of those silly masks. And good luck getting it on him.


  • The mayor of Philadelphia, Jim Kenney, is on board with the shelter-in-place order, except for gun crimes and people who don't pay their soda tax. Mayor Kenney said they deserve to be shot anyway.
  • Illegal Aliens will be allowed to move into City Council, much to the chagrin of City Council. The denizens of Philly are surprisingly behind the move, as the illegals will no doubt steal less than City Council proper.
  • I kid - Kenney will order all $250/night and up hotels to house the illegals.


But seriously... we wouldn't know what to do if Penny got sick. She has some 'habits' that would prove... difficult. Every night when I get in bed, she races me to my pillow and licks my face until she has to be physically removed from me. Even Mrs lefty doesn't do this, so we're not sure what the dog finds appealing (as opposed to appalling).


  • Staying in has really cramped this blog's style. Some of you are surprised to discover this blog has any style.
  • I'm just kidding: I barely go out anyway. I actually have masks, but different kinds.


Can you imagine that, in some country that is not the US, people are coming to this blog to learn what it's like for Americans? This should guarantee fat aid packages from overseas.


  • Are you missing live sports?
  • I'm not.


Even uncontacted tribes in Brazil may face coronavirus risk
Of course they do - the cannibals may eat infected hunters.



In times of emergency, you have your people who operate with good sense, and you have your Type-A overachievers who could use some serious medicine: the people who build themselves standing desks. These are the people who should be tested first, just so they get out of the house.


Now that you're mostly housebound, here's a factlet to share with friends and family: vampire bats bond by grooming first to build trust before sharing blood. So sleep with your neck exposed: maybe the little f'ers will get coronavirus.

A third of men carrying out rough sex acts such as biting and choking do not ask for consent, a survey finds. One must really learn to behave, especially in the current climate. If one takes a bite out of another, one should ask first. A stupid little virus and people go cannibal...



  • Senator Rand Paul has tested positive for the virus, but he's asymptomatic. Which gives me an idea.... let's quarantine all politicians. Hopefully they can do a lot less damage there.



GameStop will temporarily close all storefronts to customers.
No one will notice the difference.


  • Harvey Weinstein tested positive. I'll bet nobody's visiting.


Today I identify as   Area 50  (Area 51's old, disused relative)




  • OOPS - all 16 Dead Sea Scroll fragments in the Museum of the Bible are fakes, most likely by the same source.
  • Museum changes name to Museum of the Bible, forged.




Mozilla is removing FTP from Firefox shortly. FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It's ancient and not secure. They can replace is with the secure SFTP (Secure FTP) but won't, perhaps due to the weather. It's been quite a while since I've used Windows, but I remember a program called Filezilla for FTP. If you rely on FTP, give it a look. I think Microsoft Explorer does FTP but it's been a while and let's face it - who wants to use Explorer?



  • Faceyspaces to lower video quality in Latin America, following Europe
  • Now if they could only raise their reader quality...



Hackers were caught by white hat hackers after getting into the Instagram account of an unnamed porn star and demanding $5,000. I'm thinking to myself, my mom would say "now is the time to put your skills to the test." She's right. Plus the fringe benefits would be wild.


  • Our favorite pizza place is open. So remember: stockpile garlic.



SJW Hits Corona  - spot the made-up story

Speech recognition algorithms may also have racial bias.


Upset that Coronavirus hits cis hetero whites less than blacks; calls for deliberate infection of Patriarchy.




there's nothing like a Chow

Sunday, March 22, 2020

Captivity - Day Two

TV is getting interesting. Rather, the commercials are getting interesting. I'll bet you never thought that would happen. Food delivery has expanded and become less expensive. A large hoagie chain offers buy one/get one. A large pizza chain has deals (although they shouldn't be allowed to call that stuff pizza). I feel sorry for the people and businesses who are hurt.

Financial institutions are offering emergency loans. Guitar companies are happy to ship anything you want, and get it on sale. Eastwood is having a sale on lefty guitars only.

Amazon is hiring another 100,000 employees to deal with the expanding volume of orders. Amazon employees are very unhappy because it's business as usual, with no precautions. Perhaps the additional 100,000 are replacements (sshhhhhh). Comcast offers basic service at a basic price for a while. If you're a customer, you're welcome to keep your service at the bargain rate of $265 per month, if you have tv, and $100 if you only have internet.

I can't find breakfast foods, like Raisin Bran. I may have to make some angry calls. If you want yogurt, you had better be mad for raspberry lime, because even starving people won't eat raspberry lime. Don't worry - it's available in great quantities. Until I locate Raisin Bran, I have no choice but to eat my weight in chocolate chip muffins. Fair is far.


==================================


But seriously.
No.

Screw you, Governor, you haven't interrupted my routine. I even got up early for a Sunday, around 11.  And then again at 3. You know you're doing well when your first nap of the day doesn't occur for hours after you get up.

We were getting all sorts of bored, so a grocery trip was planned. It's pretty sad when you're excited about grocery shopping. All I saw was signs talking about social distancing. They recommend 6'. I had a tremendous idea: I'd dress like an antenna, with each of the radials being 6' long, in each direction. Wife would have been impressed, had she been listening. She says it's hearing loss, which is certainly a creative excuse. But 6' is a tremendous idea normally, although I prefer 50' in all directions. Someone told me my way of life has finally been vindicated.

I thought now would be a great time to own a t-shirt company. COVID Collector, COVID Donator, Back Off, Leave me alone - I might have it. You know, the typical antisocial stuff. I don't know why, but I'm often told my 'great ideas' are not appropriate for my age. I'll be making fart jokes as they plant me.

A huge imitation burger chain now offers hands-free drive through. A very popular electronics store with a yellow sign also offers hands-free driveup.

Off to the grocery store, I'm impressed with the amount of food and lack of shoppers. Announcements about social distancing play and there are signs stating that certain items are restricted. It looked good, it felt good, and it was good, right up til we hit the 2nd aisle. It weird to see full shelves with 10' gaps, where stuff used to be. Very little water and toilet paper was pure unobtainium. The bakery section was all there and fresh. Cereal was funny - chocolate covered chocolate bits were there aplenty. I wanted some decaf coffee for later in the day, lest the blog entries get even more frantic. Barely one box.

No bread, no peanut butter, and no soup, unless you like cream of cauliflower. Let's face it - these cans go back 25 years, to when the store opened. Even the rodents in the store won't eat cream of cauliflower. Literally no soup. No pasta, no sauce. Tons of salad dressing, but it would only be good on cream of cauliflower soup because romaine lettuce was ridiculously expensive. They weren't price gouging - apparently this is what lettuce costs. No iceberg lettuce. Most other fruits and veggies were well represented. No frozen pizzas (HORROR!) and only very expensive ice cream. Either they had lots or none.

We left and went in search of frozen hot chocolate at Dunkin Donuts. We heard that they were open, but takeout only. Annnnd they were closed. We hope it was just closed for the day. We'd miss our drinks, plus our friends there aren't in good shape to suffer closure. No one is.

Tomorrow I work, again from home. The traffic was murder on Friday. There was a backup due to dog toys on the steps. My coworkers are all concerned about working from home.... well, what I mean is their wives are all concerned about them working from home. Fighting Hours are from 7am to 11pm, plus they get agitated when their boyfriends can't come by during the day.


Still - throw the governor out.

Saturday, March 21, 2020

Captivity - Day One

Idiot governor Tom Wolf declared closure as of last night, so Pennsylvania is locked down.

I got up early this morning, around 1pm, and surveyed the damage.
It was sunny, which only served to add to the confusion. This happened because idiot governor and state legislature ruled that it can only be sunny once a week at most. Mother Nature obeyed.

The guard posted at our door nodded good morning. I invited him in for coffee; he seemed about ready to come in, then he recoiled. For some reason, we're the only house on the block with a guard. He has a hazmat suit, so I figure he's one of idiot governor's boys. We make coffee a lot and leave the door open, so he can smell the rich aroma of French roast. If they're going to stand outside, we're going to play with them.

Mrs lefty had been on the phone. This is not actually different from normal. She talked to all our relatives, plus some other people's relatives.  She revealed the discussions to me, when I fell down the stairs at 1pm. Everybody was calm. Most knew there was something off with this. There is nothing sweeter than vindication.

If you're going to be held hostage in your house, the present is a decent time, strictly in the area of technology. You have the internet, phones, and video conference. Unless, of course, the other end of the video has an iDevice, then you're f'd. iDevices use Facetime, which no other device on the planet does, so you have to find another way to do things.  Hint: the encrypted text messenger called Signal has video too, and runs on all phones or computers.


Me? I'm still furious.
We are big boys and girls. We can make our own decisions. If we want to play at Corona Playground, there's no reason we shouldn't. We have had our movement restricted for no good reason, nor is there a good reason to restrict movement.

Stay with me a moment, please.
If you have a brain cell in your head, you're not going out close-dancing. You're going out for food, medicine, and hopefully to help others. There is no radical change - you use your best sense. We do not need to be restricted in movement. The government isn't going to rid us of anything but tax money. This is a perfect explanation of why we don't need Big Government. In fact, many Big Government roadblocks have been removed, so food and services can continue. Just like the libertarians said. You don't need all that crap to live your life. The roadblocks aren't helping anybody.


  • most importantly: remain calm
  • if absolutely necessarily, watch the news or check social media ONCE a day. More than that is toxic: it focuses you on Bad.
  • help others, especially the elderly and sick - there have been all sorts of stories of neighborhoods getting together, maintaining help groups and keeping in touch by email.
  • make Family Time. This ancient art existed before Faceyspaces. Play board games. Tell scary stories. Watch some absolutely hideous tv.  What manly men haven't played Barbies with their little girl? What manly men haven't played Barbies without their little girl? What manly men haven't played dress up like Barbie? Please don't respond to that question.

Mrs lefty stated that the captivity will have some consequences: family feud, divorces, alcoholics, and Corona Babies. Please use contraception unless you are already trying for a baby. I'm thinking about alcoholism, but my old boss suggested drugs. He said it took too long to get good at alcoholism. RIP, you big dummy.


I'm thinking of removing our car's muffler and painting FREE CORONAVIRUS on the sides of the car, so I can go cruising. If you're in the hood, stop by and see me. I'll be just in front of the police car with the flashing lights. You should probably wait the til police car goes away first. You don't want idiot governor to throw you in gulag without hazmat suit.

Friday, March 20, 2020

If You've Got a Virus Up There, I'm Not Scanning for It

Let's start with some good old "hey, that's cool!"
Arcimoto is testing its electric rapid responder with a fire department
It's a 3 wheel electric vehicle. The fire company is having fun with it.  I always wanted to be a fireman, but I discovered there aren't a lot of positions for firemen who can't stand heights or when it gets too hot. Other than that, I'd be #1 on the squad.



  • Huawei expects a 20% drop in phone sales, thanks to lack of Google apps
  • Hell - if the hardware didn't come from China, the lack of Google apps would be a plus for everyone!


Dear Russia:
We have read many stories of alleged interference with our elections.
We have noticed a serious uptick in the number of Russian readers, for which we are thankful. IF any of you have come here to affect the next election, whoever you're getting your intel from is smoking crack again. This blog couldn't influence anyone's choice for lunch, no less an election.

I'm kidding.
Thanks for coming by.





Because of MASS PANIC over CORONAVIRUS, ridiculous steps are being taken, such as working from home. We did some research on occupations not yet endorsing work-from-home....
  • pilot
  • sanitation engineer
  • breast lump checker
  • dog
  • bra fitter
  • Well Heeled Oral Retention Expert.
  • bus driver
  • mob enforcer




  • There's a reason Morning and Monday start with the same letter....





Jesse Jackson now endorses Bernie. This should cause your decision to be made, for or against.  Bernie said he'd endorse Biden, should Biden win. Reached for comment, Biden said, "The percolater's on the roof and the cardboard needs refreshing." At his last appearance, it took just over 20 seconds to start an argument about guns.

Biden extends lead over Sanders
---> in a tiny nod toward sanity, old white socialist losing ground.
---> in a nod toward Politics as Usual, old white, somewhat forgetful former VP whose former boss won't even endorse him, gains lead.


Let's step back for a moment and look at what we have here:

  • on the rep side we have a president who was voted in as a protest and is the literal example of divide and conquer, even before he took office
  • on the dem side, the primary field was shockingly... weird, led by a socialist.  At this point it's coming down to the socialist and the former VP, a cranky old guy who is prone to misstatements, forgetting things, and has the people skills of Kim Jong be Illin, without all that nasty self-confidence
  • I weep for my country
  • meanwhile, the best man for the job wears a boot on his head (and won the MA libertarian primary)


DHS claims 2020 will be the 'most secure' election in US history
Where were you when the first piece of software was a total failure?
These people couldn't secure their pocket change.

Exclusive: Critical U.S. Election Systems Have Been Left Exposed Online Despite Official Denials


“If nothing else works, a total pig-headed unwillingness to look facts in the face will see us through.”
~ General Sir Anthony Cecil Hogmanay Melchett.



BULLETIN: Menstrual cup misuse can cause pelvic organ prolapse

I have questions....
WHAT is a menstrual cup?
Can you drink coffee from it?
Do you wear it on your head?
Why does it look like the front half of a condom?
How do you know if you're misusing it?

WARNING: we hope the veracity of this article is not tainted by a country that sends people to the gynaecologist.





  • 10 actors you forgot guest-starred on Deadwood
  • hint: Dusty Hill and Billy Gibbons




Today I identify as   a menstrual cup



  • There are many kinds of fish, but 2% are mouthbreeders: they keep their fertilized eggs in their mouth
  • ThermionicEmissions would never stoop to under-water blowjob jokes 




Each generation has its own cross to bear. The current one is "Life and struggle after YouTube fame".  As you giggle, remember this is called schadenfraude (joy in the misery of others).




CONTINUED CORONAVIRUS PANIC

People who can't spell their middle name have suddenly memorized COVID-19.

More BBC news: Health Minister Nadine Dorries tests positive for coronavirus.
Also: Iran's health minister tests positive for coronavirus
You can't make this stuff up....

US health insurers will cover costs of COVID-19 testing and treatment.

Coronavirus grows up: officially a pandemic!
PPPAAANNNNNIICCCC!


  • One of the things my father will be remembered for was his love of Coast to Coast radio, with George Noory.  He called him Nardi. No one knows why.



Some people make the same mistakes over and over again, without noticing.
Some notice. Some insist on replicating the mistakes over and over again. As far as going to IHOP, I'm in the latter category. My mom likes it there and they're very consistent from restaurant to restaurant. Well, the food is rather consistent - the noise isn't.

Last time I asked for the No Screaming Children section and they sat me 3 feet away from a real screamer. This time there were about 4 tables full and an empty restaurant. We were roundly ignored til the cook took pity on us and found us a table.

Within minutes the table next to us broke out into bawling children.
Minutes later, the table on the other side went NUCLEAR, with the little gentleman screaming his fool head off at the top of his precious little lungs. His mother was practicing a new style of parenting... she simply ignored the Duke of Decibels and continued to give her order as if he weren't there screaming so loudly that the IHOP in the next town asked him to turn it down.

This gorgeous little man (I think - I can't tell by screams alone) continued to try outdoing the volume and ferocity of his previous outburst. Mom was quite consistent in her parenting: she consistently did not shut the child down. That took effort. And balls.

My mother, half deaf, kept jumping in her seat, as Bob Marley's Wailer exploded in shriekdom. At one point he was doing a story he wrote, with Spiderman and Batgirl in it, playing both parts simultaneously.

Four hours later, we noticed the side order of pancakes never appeared, so they brought it by, because they're nice that way.

As we can no longer stand the children and didn't bring hearing protection, we got ready to leave. At this point, the prime instigator kept leaping up, looking at my mother, then hiding. Much to our surprise, his mother's training program fell apart and she scolded him for jumping up. She did not say a word while Young Pavoratti serenaded several restaurants and blew out untold numbers of eardrums, but he could not be allowed to jump up in his seat.

My mother was aghast as we left. Her kids put her through hell, but only when they were teens. I hear stories that we were perfectly behaved when we went out. As you can tell, we got worse as we grew up. It's at times like these that I'm thankful for dogs. And maybe impotence.




Heroes of the Stupid

Florida seventh grader sends 41 to hospital when he mistakes pepper spray for body spray.





Saturday, March 14, 2020

My Service Elephant has Coronavirus

Thirdhand smoke wafting off moviegoers hurts air quality in theaters
Thirdhand smoke? Is that the smoke by the candy stand?
When was the last time you saw someone smoke at the movies?

UPDATE: Are you ready? Thirdhand smoke is the residue of smoke left on coats and clothes. Think of the benefits... you can smoke without smoking! Just go to a theater and inhale. You'll still get cancer, but at least you didn't have to light anything.

  • You can now jailbreak an iPhone with an Android phone
  • No, I did not write that headline.

Linspire 8.7 Is Trying to Persuade More Windows Users to Use Linux
I'd recommend Xubuntu, but take a look.


  • Harvey Weinstein moved to jail after heart surgery
  • Yeah, sure. Convenient walker, convenient heart surgery. Upcoming: convenient AIDS. His entire body is failing before prison - this is unprecedented. And shocking! He's trying to escape, one piece at a time.



SJW Speakings

Described as a horror drama, Antebellum tells the story of a 'modern-day social activist who finds herself traveling back in time to the 1800s.' It's Blog Gold here at ThermionicEmissions.

  • The citizens immediately institutionalize her because she has green hair.
  • They burn her at the stake, because she has a bone through her nose.
  • She gets wooden teeth! Every time she says something about women running things, people hit her in the mouth with a 2x4.
  • Her sex life is exactly like it was in 2020: even her fellow inmates think she's too crazy to have sex with.
  • frequently accused of being a weird man
  • her fellow inmates at the Happy Place<tm> keep asking who Hillary is and why women should vote for her. Also, what is vote?
  • Insists that women are just as crazy as men, so why aren't there more women in the Loony Bin?
  • Never makes it back to 2020 because she was killed after trying to explain that men can have periods too.

We went out for dinner just for fun. Usually this involves people dying (and we hoped it wasn't us). As we walked in, there were ladies handing out roses for Women's Day.
Women's Day?
I couldn't hear the explanation because of the blood boiling in my ears. She refused to give me a rose. I told her I identify as a woman, and can get pregnant like a woman, and even menna... minister... mennistrate..... but she did not recognize me as a woman. Next weekend we're picketing the place. I'm bringing in the Ladies Guild: at the front of the march will be 20 very large women with facial hair and signs, demanding gender equality. And free food.




  • Alanis Morissette's debut - Jagged Little Pill, is 25 years old.
  • And still sounds like a cat having an operation without anesthetic


Ya know Virgin Media? A data breach exposed 900,000 customers' info.
In other words, a breach made them Virgin no more.


  • Microsoft, Faceyspaces, Amazon workers told to stay home because of coronavirus
  • And because nobody likes them 



Special Coronavirus Coverage

The coronavirus has spread to Venice, California.
Governor Newsom is passing a law against it.

Speaking of coronavirus, we have it locally now. 
Why?
Because some idiot who has it attended a function. 5 schools are closed.
They need to jail this person, but I have it on good authority that you can't arrest someone for excessive stupidity.

Some local groups have canceled weekly meetings, claiming there are cases closeby.

People are going insane in stores, like they do here when 1/4" of snow is forecast: they buy all the bread and milk. Now they're buying masks and flu medicines. And condoms, because you gotta do something while you're stuck inside.


There has never been a better time to have some strange neuroses, especially with coronavirus running rampant, like Congress running to vote itself a pay raise.
  • Agoraphobes are now being celebrated - they don't leave the house!
  • Germphobes take all sorts of precautions and never shake hands.
  • Obsessive Compulsive hand-washers are now being recognized as The Neurosis to Have, according to Time Magazine.
  • The paranoid wear masks so no one knows who they are. Now they blend right in. Plus facial recognition doesn't work with masks.
  • The depressed don't feel like getting out of bed anyway.
  • The bipolars are running to the store to buy everything, but.. they're... probably.. gonna... stay...in...bed... for.... a...while.
  • The schizophrenics don't go out because they're having a perfectly nice conversation. With the front door.


Today I identify as   a 5 day Postal Service delivery box that costs $24.99 to mail across town.



  • I asked Wife why coronavirus doesn't attack the eyes.
  • She said nothing.
  • I asked again.
  • She said nothing again.
  • I think she's onto me.


Most people are in PANIC mode, not helped at all by the 24 hour TV/Radio/News/social media barrage. It's quite frankly not fair. Nobody talks about the Good that the virus will bring

  • you will finally be able to get a seat at that restaurant (although you'll probably be ignored for 30 minutes when you first enter)
  • there will be no traffic at all, when you paint CORONAVIRUS on your car
  • while police and fire get right of way, World Health Organization will always get in first
  • there will be a coronavirus baby boom, but the kids won't know what that means
  • there will be a divorce boom, after husband and wife are forced to be in the same house for a few weeks




  • I just discovered I'm dyslexic. Mrs lefty asked me how it took so many years to figure this out.
  • Because I see the year 2020 and read it as 1970.



In the time I have had my last 2 phones, my dear wife has had only one. The screen is cracked (in letters that spell her name). The case resembles a pair of jeans that just gave up and keeps ripping itself, hoping its owner will finally develop sense and throw it out. I think it has encephalitis: it randomly changes account pictures and phone numbers, so you never know who you're dialing. This week, I'm Dr lefty Giancanna, with a picture of her sister's dog. Nobody in or out of the phone industry has ever seen this before. It's not a virus.

Normally this would not bother me at all.
But this is my house we're talking about. The phone rings only when I need to be undisturbed. Mrs lefty sets an alarm when she takes a nap. I know this because the alarm goes off 6 times because the phone was left near me, not taken to the bedroom. She has alarms set to remind her there are alarms set.

The worst, and I mean worst, thing about the phone is that it randomly changes ringtone. I made her a bunch of ringtones from her favorite songs, guaranteeing we'll never hear any of them. The current tone sounds like... stay with me for a moment... take a set of stairs, with about 20 steps. Line up a marching band, complete with instruments, 2 per step. Push the top person down, starting a domino effect, taking the rest of them down, one step at a time. If anyone doesn't fall over, the second set of marchers will go down, so we'll have several lines of marching band, falling down the steps, playing their instruments.

And that's what the ringtone sounds like.



  • Before we invented civilization, the White House area was nothing but swampland. Since we upgraded civilization, the White House is a beautiful building, occupied by mud, mosquitos, and lethal parasites.



We got one of those horrible noise alerts coming from our phones the other day. We hoped it was a test of the Emergency Broadcast System, because those are cool. It turned out to be a serious weather warning: EXTREME SUN FORECAST FOR THE NEXT 2 DAYS. REPEAT - EXTREME SUN FORECAST FOR THE NEXT 2 DAYS. Keep small children inside and use plenty of sunscreen, especially if you're walking to your car.

Fortunately we had a Family Plan, so after we got done yelling PANIC PANIC, we consulted the family plan. We just got done spending two days in the basement, where it was cold and dark, like every other day. That was a close one.







Wednesday, March 11, 2020

Cat Urine as Cat Soap

I don't want you to take what I say as gospel. I'd prefer that you take it as a starting point to do your own research. Toward that end, a great reading room is The Black Vault. Owner John Greenwald, at a young age, discovered the Freedom of Information Act. He became a real star at getting official government documents - all legal.

John has an unbelievable vault of these FOIA documents... UFO, declassified, unknown, message forums.  I strongly urge you to take a look. Remember: this is not opinion.... this is official government documents.




Dear lefty

  • Where do you come up with this shit?
  • Where do you come up with that alleged mustache?



Using drag queens to unite communities (in Serbia and Kosovo).
Imagine a world where Israeli drag queens dance openly with Palestinian drag queens. Where normal drag queens perform with SJW drag queens (they're already in costume). Where national news drag queens mince it up with Fox drag queens. Where Trump-supporting drag queens perform with Trump-hating drag queens (let's not push it).




  • Brain waves common during sleep also show up in awake sheep.
  • So stop diddling sheep- this is your final warning.




Today I identify as   a hose that I ran over with the lawnmower



  • I never thought I'd be typing this, but there's another Microsoft update with another bug. Win 10 KB4535996 (optional) has been causing Blue Screen of Death, random freezes, and other performance issues. Also failed installs and sound issues.




Hey, remember that Walgreens was putting together an in-store ad system that profiled you? Their app was just found to allow users to access other users' information. Yet another great reason to avoid Walgreens. And store apps, of course.



  • I have sensations in my breasts again!
  • The woman was a good candidate for breast cancer, so she had a protective double mastectomy. A new surgery allowed feeling in her reconstructed breasts. This was also a factor with implants, but has gotten better.
  • You thought I was going to go wild on this, didn't you?
  • I would never make fun of an area so close to my (and her) heart.


British sisters campaign against gender-based street harassment, modeled on a French law.
I would tell them to go f- themselves, but that's already illegal in Britain.
These sisters are what we call useful idiots: they help the state's campaign to limit rights/speech/whatever else.

Britain already has draconian limits on speech, especially compared to us fat, obnoxious Americans. One of the worst things you can do is racially harass someone, followed by saying f-. You can literally be locked up for 'disturbing public order.' Not happy with that, you can also be reported for doing this online. These useful idiots are just helping the assault on free speech in their native country. Understand that freedom of speech is moreso a concept (Britain), as opposed to being guaranteed (US), so it's easier to gut it. Since it's gender-based, it would appear that it does not apply to women 'harassing' men.




  • GoodRx stops sharing personal medical data with Google, Faceyspaces. They got caught by Consumer Reports and swore to do better (not get caught again). Betcha didn't know they did, eh?  Time to let them know how you feel. HIPAA does not protect your data in this case! If you look at the blog post, they haven't exactly stopped sharing...
  •  +1 855 268 2822 is the customer support number. You can email them at https://www.complaintsboard.com/goodrx-b124007


SETI@home gives it up after 21 years - "Reached a point of diminishing returns."
Really? Who coulda seen that coming?
Looking around for random signals over 21 years and finding exactly one false alarm. In business, this would've been a loser in under a year.

I believe this was a convenient distraction.
If you're looking for life elsewhere, you'd have a better chance of finding something interesting on whatever those things are that fly in ways our technology can't.  I'm not saying what they'll find, but they're way more likely to discover something interesting than listening for signals with radio telescopes. Seth Shostak, SETI's Grand Ambassador, is part of the Denial Squad: a number of people trotted out every time there's a sighting, to say it's an easily-explainable event (swamp gas, anyone?).

Oddly: Help cure coronavirus with your PC's leftover processing power.



The lastest AMD processor is called the Threadripper.
That's kinda harsh.
Nobody asked me for help in naming their chips...
  • Brainsucker
  • Pancreas Puller
  • Eyebrow Threader
  • Nipple Extruder
  • Ball Kicker


Protein discovered inside a metiorite
Coronavirus!



  • Simple systems have less downtime
  • We can all make a lot of money with studies like this 
  • Smaller cars use less gas
  • Electric cars use more electricity
  • Breathing extends like of test subjects




So it's been a bad day.
In pops the dog, jumping up to see if I'm ok.
She looks at me, signals she wants to give me a kiss.
I bend down and urrrrrrrrrrp, she burps in my face.
Dogs are sometimes a metaphor for life.


  • Microsoft Reveals a New Design for the Windows 10 Start Menu
  • "We prefer to keep our customers guessing"







Tuesday, March 3, 2020

More on Vagina-Scented Candles

After giving vagina-scented candles some more thought, I am (almost) ashamed to admit that I'd buy one. Not Gwyneth Paltrow's vagina - but her company could be bigger than Amazon if she offered them in 'flavors'.

Emilia Clarke


Vanessa Hudgens


Adriana Lima

Mila Kunis

The only problem is how to explain this to your wife...
Just tell her it's her scent...




Dear lefty:

  • Why are you so negative?
  • Why are you so positive?


  • Win 10 privacy guide: settings everyone should use
  • IRS tax-saving tips everyone should use..



Extreme Geeking:
Would Star Trek's transporters kill and replace you?


Stop being so offended by everything. You’re embarrassing us in front of aliens.    @avianwordland



Google Chrome privacy concerns
I'll save you the trouble: do NOT use anything with Google in front of it. If you must use it, use Iridium Browser. It's a much safer, de-Googled Chrome, available for Windows, Mac, and linux



  • In a long-awaited Up Yours, Indiana Chief Justice Loretta Rush ruled that removing a small unmarked (tracking) device from your car isn't theft.
  • This occurred after a man 'stole' the unmarked tracker from his car, via removing it. Warrant thrown out.



Did you know you can cook the perfect fried rice with your phone?
It's true - pick up your phone and call for some fried rice.




  • Intuit is buying Credit Karma
  • What could possibly go wrong (with your data)?




TOLD YOU SO

Oversight subcommittee seeks information about Ring's agreements with police and local governments. Your doorbell video, police acquisition, and sales.


Airbnb just launched new surveillance bugs to make sure guests behave.
We call them spy cameras. How long til the footage finds its way to Pornhub?

Google faces state lawsuit alleging misuse of schoolkids' private data.
I spoke to a mother whose kids attend school, using 'free' Chromebooks. I explained the risk. Her eyes glazed over and she said "So what?". Start the kids off young.

Smart speakers mistakenly eavesdrop up to 19 times a day.
This is an outrage. The correct number is always.
Good readers - you pay to put these devices in your home.




Today I identify as   chocolate pudding


Coronavirus outbreak has 'pendemic poteltial' but it's not there yet, according to the WHO.    Coronavirus is sad and feels inadequate.

Speaking of sad, ScienceNews tells us how scientists wrestle with grief over climate change.     Climate Change should start a support group with Coronavirus.


The Defense Information Systems Agency exposed personal information of government employees, including social security numbers. The DISA is in charge of managing communications for the White House.   Feel secured now?




  • Just Announced-in concert: the Sad Summer Festival
  • Sounds uplifting 




Greetings to new visitors from Myanmar and Turkimenistan.
I welcome everybody, but have you noticed that we don't get visitors from Chad and UAE?


Since (I assume) no one has done any studies on this sort of thing, I was wondering...
  • What is porn like in different countries with different politics or social structures? Some is.... different.
  • Why is (simulated) incest so popular in porn?
  • Most importantly, who owns all the expensive guitars and amps in the background of some movies?


The Emotet virus returns. Hooks up with the coronavirus. Killer duo.
PANIC!





Sunday, February 23, 2020

A Clean Colon is a Happy Colon

I had an interesting weekend, so I thought I'd share the highlights with you, dear friends. And when I say an interesting weekend, I mean it would have been better to work 7 days, 7am to 7pm.

I took off V-Day for V-Day. It took me a while to figure out this would be a 4 day weekend, because I can never remember when I have off work. I am among the top 11% in IQ, so I miss qualifying for MENSA by 1 percent. You'd know if I were in MENSA because I'd mention it within 3 minutes of meeting you, like vegans do.

Four days. It's like heaven to any normal person.
Uh-oh.


Day One: This was the day we were celebrating. So we slept til 3pm. We didn't do anything fun - we just slept til 3pm.

Day Two: After repeatedly telling Wife I didn't want company on our next try, she invited my mother. This made me unhappy, and when I say unhappy, I mean there's an entire wall I have to replace. I suggested she take my mom. As any smart woman would do, she did. I stayed home and made sure the couch stayed in its spot. It was good of me to stay behind and make sure the couch didn't get up to anything - it might upset the dog.

Day Three:   A Sunday. During which most places open late and close early, just in case we wanted anything. First, we pulled into an optician, because I still need glasses. I will get my colonoscopy about 4 weeks after my colon gets removed. And the store is clooooooosed!  A good author would say something about this foreshadowing the rest of the day, but I'm only a blogger.

Down the street there's a mall. I love this mall like I love colonoscopies. I told Mrs lefty that this mall was voted World's Second Worst Mall, right after the one 30 minutes down the road. Imagine my surprise when we discovered a plaque on the wall: Welcome to Bob's Mall - voted World's Second Worst Mall! Sometimes it's uncanny.

This mall has 3 floors of nothing. How, you ask, do they cram nothing into only 3 floors? It's a closely held secret, like Rob Schneider coming out as conservative, a few times, yet still nobody knows.  What does one do in a mall crammed full of nothing in only 3 floors? Damn if I know - I was there under protest. I prefer to do most things under protest: this way, I never have to guess whether I did something under protest or not.

When I was young, I was the happiest kid in the world when the new Victoria's Secret catalog came out. I memorized their entire inventory. Ok, I memorized their entire palette of models wearing their entire inventory. The catalogs still show up, but now there are stores in malls! Every mall! In the same spot! With the same layout! I used to love the stores - especially going in with Mrs lefty, where I could preview what I hoped I'd be doing later that night. For whatever reason, perhaps marriage, it was no longer fun to visit there. Plus we finally realized that no matter how many things we bought there, she wasn't going to look like the model in the picture right above it. She would, however, smell just like the models smelled after putting on their perfume, so that was an acceptable purchase... also because they were a great gift, so we usually left with a small number of them (40). I asked why were in there - she orders everything online. She said she gets bras there. No, she gets those online too, because Victoria's stocks only sizes that fit on models. I suggested she stop hitting her head on the metal doors, even if it feels better when she stops. Did you know that in spite of the mall being 2nd worst of any mall, they have very comfortable padded benches outside of some stores? I tried my hand at holding it down and making sure it didn't get up to anything, like my couch. There was no way of knowing, but mall traffic makes it difficult to concentrate on what the phone says (never mind what the voices say). I had to cross to the other side of the mall at the Apple store - I can't stand the way it makes my skin burn, even though I like the way every device in there goes haywire when I walk by.

On our way out, I noted that the mall certainly lived up to its billing as the 2nd worst mall anywhere. Mrs lefty noted that a mall is in trouble when 90% of what's there fails to grab her attention.

2 years ago, when my father was still around, we stopped at a donut shop, on a long trip. They had a crushed ice coffee drink that brought tears to 4 sets of eyes. They had donuts that were larger than most - around the size of a tire. And delicious. We made a verbal note to get back there at some point. We talked of it frequently, and I found one of their stores close to us. My father left, my mother is working on her new hobby: driving everyone crazy, and we never got around to getting that incredible drink. Until today, because it was our special day (or at least our third try at our special day). 30 minutes later we pulled into the parking lot, excited, and went inside, where we couldn't find our drink on the overhead menus. I asked. The answer was no, they did not have our drink. I thanked the nice girl and left. Then I blew up, in a lightning and thunder-ish fury that cannot properly be described, other than to say power to half of the county was out for a few hours, glass was broken for a few blocks in every direction, and the entire parking lot had turned to hot liquid tar, in 23 degree weather.

Wife attempted to explain to me that perhaps they were not franchised and could carry or not carry whatever they wanted. If this was designed to make me feel better, it had roughly the effect of pouring gas on hot, smoking tar.  After the number of years we've been married, you'd think she'd know what sets me off. HEY - WAITAMINNIT... of course she knows what sets me off... that's why she said it!

At this point we agreed we'd have to make dinner instead of going out. If we went to our pizza place, they'd be out of pizza. If we went for malts, they'd be out of ice cream. If we went to Wendy's, it would be their first ever instance of being out of burgers. I haven't had this much effect on the universe since an entire chicken chain went out of business when I tried to order a sandwich.

We made dinner at home, just like I friggin' said in the paragraph above. Do I really have to repeat myself? I helped out by grabbing a pan with an uninsulated handle, rendering the entire block without electricity or functioning toilets. Here's a tip: when you burn yourself badly, do not put a hot baked potato on it.

Just as dinner was finally ready, Mrs lefty's last nerve finally snapped and tried to kill her, by wrapping itself around her neck, rendering eating impossible, like finding something you like at a mall. Not to be outdone, I ate some, then got put off food when she put the tv on.

Hours later I was hungry and figured I'd finish my cold, previously-baked potato. I picked up a piece, which promptly took a leap into the sink. I tried again, which revealed a black spot I just ate, after which it took a leap, this time to the floor. Sad but undaunted, I took the remaining half of potato and carried it out of the kitchen. I took a bite and large pieces rocketed to the ground. I figured I'd give the dog a treat. I took another bite and the entire potato rocketed to the ground. I was hungry, but perhaps I shouldn't have tried to eat.

We have one more day until I have to go back to work. I am very afraid of what Day Four of our attempted celebration will do to me.  I tried to give my vacation days back at work, but they won't take them. Apparently I'm the first person who ever asked.

If we go for glasses tomorrow, they will be out of them.



Dear lefty:

  • What's the only thing more useless than a tv injury lawyer?
  • Two tv injury lawyers.


400 Americans trapped on cruise ship with coronavirus get to go home.
It's great that they will escape their captivity.
For a 14 day federal quarantine.


  • When did overweight become curvy?


Today I identify as   curds, but not whey




What do you call something so insipid, vacuous, meaninglessly trendy, completely without merit, and non-deserving of anyone's time; that can suck your brains out your nostrils, like ancient embalmers did to kings during mummification?

Daytime tv, of course.



lefty ruins film classics:

If Vincent Price's character in The Raven took his medicine, he wouldn't hear the bird talking to him.




  • Search giant Baidu released an open-source tool to detect whether individuals in crowds are wearing face masks.
  • If we didn't have this software, we'd never know.




Best Headlines:

  • Jellyfish snot can sting swimmers who never touch animal
  • Israeli soldiers tricked into installing malware by Hamas agents posing as women. This could get very ugly very quickly.
  • Fish monsters, barking dogs, and roach patties: the films of Bong Joon-ho
  • a 13 year old girl who got pregnant with a 10yo boy has signaled that she wishes to become a social media 'influencer'   Who says America isn't leading the pack?  Mom: "Initially we thought she had food poisoning..."



Stop and consider: living brain tissue experiments raise new kinds of ethical questions. Tissue contains our awareness and memories. Same with organs.






Random Observations

  • Melena Kanakeredes(?) is now on one of those cops shows (Hawaii 5-0?). I remember being very sweet on her many years ago. She has barely aged and has not had surgery.  Some women have great skin. Why is this crap on my blog? Don't ask me - I just type what the voices tell me to type.




All the coronavirus news you can stand (and more):

Coronavirus cancels F1 and Formula E races, could make EU miss CO2 target. Pushes Chinese concerts online.
Also threatens to cancel movie premieres and entire seasons of tv shows, if it doesn't get what it wants.

Head of Wuhan hospital critically ill with coronavirus.

Chinese authorities 'disinfect' Wuhan with fleets of trucks spraying chemicals in the air.



SJW Something 

The struggles of getting a haircut as a non-binary person.


Accounts run by men receive roughly double the retweets of those run by women. Even online, we are talked for and talked over. Even online, men’s voices carry twice as much worth. It matters. When you see women writing about things that interest you, retweet us. It’s that simple.







Thursday, February 20, 2020

Walmart Ate My Coronavirus

Not everything must be complex and involve computers and hacking.
A teen walked into a Walmart in Joliet, IL, wearing a mask and a sign that said I have the coronavirus." He sprayed Lysol on produce, clothing, and other products. He and his buddy were arrested for disorderly conduct, retail theft, and criminal tresspass.

This is the kind of independent thinking we need in our youth today. Anybody can phone in a bomb threat - this took preparation and setup. I think we should start a fund for his defense.



  • My friend's boss gave him a new term: maintenance window.
  • I think he jumped out.



Tom Steyer, Dem hopeful, is calling for a $22 minimum wage.
It's great to see such naked pandering so early.




  • We finally figured out how mosquitos sense our warmth. Part of it is exhaling carbon dioxide when we breathe. If we don't want our blood sucked, the only reasonable solution is to stop breathing.



Curious about the US budget?
Check out Science magazine.
They identify it as Trump's Budget, then mention it drowns science agencies in red ink. I'm sure there's implicit bias, coming from Science magazine.
What's very interesting is not the budget cuts, but the Budget.
It is incredibly difficult to elicit my sympathy for a 6% cut to the National Science Foundation, when the final number is $6.328 billion. If you read it this way, it might be considerably more interesting. The numbers are for the research component, so the figures may not be the entire budget for the unit.
That said, the remaining budget for these research areas is 59.951 billion.
Add many other departments, plus the Black Budget, and you begin to understand why your taxes are so ridiculously high. Imagine if you were 'allowed' to keep most of your own money.


Taking a momentary break from defending the planet, or whatever it is they do, Space Force is desperately searching for a short name to call themselves, like the short names the other branches of the military have. Therefore, they're crowdsourcing it. Back on the Old Days<tm>, we just Asked People. Now we crowdsource. Speaking to the internet is probably not the smartest idea....  none of the pre-existing suggestions are any good (Guardian, vanguard, sentinel). Therefore it is incumbent upon us to help out...
  • UFO Fighters
  • Spaceheads
  • Tax Increasers
  • Zero Gravity Jockeys
  • Rocket Humpers
  • Satellite Farmers
  • Space d00ds
  • Paratrumpers

Humor me for a minute.... 
The navy has ships.
The air force has planes.
The army has tanks.
The marines have scuba guys who do Bad Stuff for the CIA.
What does Space Force have?
If I understand correctly, the newest tech we've seen, aside from the secretive triangular thing that just got tested, is still the Saturn V (40s technology from former nazi, Werner von Braun) and the Space Shuttle. Any follower of history or even casual observer, knows there's something else we aren't privy to. How does Space Force get to Space? Do they cruise the moon to pick up Space Chicks? Do they run around in the Aurora, a triangular craft? Is there something newer, something triangular, that might be able to hover in-place and sometimes gets mistaken for a UFO (that doesn't exist)? Maybe they just do weird stuff to other countries' satellites.


While we're on the topic, Popular Mechanics ran a story on the government's UFO program. It's interesting. It gives a view into secret government programs too. Worth a read, keeping in mind that this is the public level; the one you're allowed to see. UFO research has been going on forever, but this particular 'disclosure' is somehow being allowed to go public. If you think UFO research started a number of years ago, with a $22 million program, I have some nuclear cold fission patents to sell you.







Today's Special List of concerts the promoter knows I want to see, starts out with Janet Jackson and Backstreet Boys. Ummmm... guys - it's time to fire your algorithm. Yeah, Frankie Valli too: we don't really have 4 seasons here. On a positive note, the Black Crowes are touring, as is John Fogerty.



Dear lefty:

  • What do I do with my erection?
  • Just keep it away from women - we don't need you reproducing.




VITAMIN D ALERT

This is a warning to avoid vitamin D: it is very troublesome.
It comes in tiny little football-shaped capsules, and without fail, it will roll off any surface it's on. I spend 10 minutes every morning, trying to locate the little bastard on the carpet. It blends in.



  • Stop what you're doing and watch this. Joe Bonamassa and Eric Gales jamming. It will tear your head off. I'm still looking for mine.



Today I identify as   a plaid suit



I am pleasantly surprised to read that Trump just signed an order to test the US infrastructure's vulnerability to GPS outage. I guess he's secretly reading this blog. For my next trick, I suggest that we figure out what happens to planes and other things if GPS goes down. We also need to secure our insecure infrastructure, like power generation.



  • Today's best line: You just cannot kill everybody who doesn't agree with you.
  • Uh-oh


Bloomberg considers Hillary as running mate.
Sound the air raid sirens! Barge the bilge! Muck up the mizzenmunch! Stock up on babies to snack on -- Satan's personal representative is back! But wait a minute... wasn't the Chosen One supposed to be president? Bloomberg is sexist!



  • Sex robots may cause psychological damage. 
  • Paid for by the League of Frightened Women  





Heroes of the Stupid

Pets in China are being forced to wear bizarre face masks because their crazy owners are terrified they may catch coronavirus.



Heroes

There's no question about it - social media is toxic. It's best to take a break to get back in the real world for a bit. Somewhat less toxic are the email groups, for special interests. There's a (police/fire) scanner group, with all the technical people and knowledge you can ask for. Most recently, there were a ton of messages to and from "Robert." The last one had Robert thanking everybody for not making fun of him; he's autistic and takes a little longer to understand things, but really likes his scanner. Looking back over the previous messages, one could see many in the group helping Robert, step by step if necessary, to get set up.

There are many stories like this. They just get swallowed up by the words of assholes.




SJW Slop



Transgender ideology can take on a comical character, as in a recent American Civil Liberties Union commentary objecting to sales tax on tampons and similar products while pondering: “How can we recognize that barriers to menstrual access are a form of sex discrimination without erasing the lived experiences of trans men and non-binary people who menstruate, as well as women who don’t?”