2024

Time for another entry in my annual list of things I'd like to see happen next year.  But first, let's see how this year stacked up to last year's list, with comments in ALL CAPS:

A rising stock and bond market.

STOCKS UP NEARLY 25%, BUT  BONDS FLAT.

That Vladimir Putin is purged as a leader.  Any mysterious and/or violent way is acceptable.

IT WAS A BIG ASK.

Newly remodeled bathrooms in my house.

100%

Me attending a major sporting event.

DOES A KANSAS BASKETBALL, NOTRE DAME FOOTBALL, OR INDY CAR RACE COUNT?

Elon Musk leaves Twitter, or I leave Twitter for another similar service.

NO BUT PROGRESS HAS BEEN MADE.

Drought relief for the western U.S.

NOT REALLY.

Me getting a golfing hole-in-one or eagle.

NOPE.

MAGA-death, and a crop of moderate presidential candidates for 2024 who aren't aged 70s or 80s.

UNFORTUNATELY, LOST GROUND HERE.

More acceptance and usage of plant-based proteins.

I SUPPOSE YES, BUT NOT AT ALL WIDESPREAD.

And now, my new annual list of things I'd like to see happen next year:

The demise of the MAGA movement via defeat of their candidates in the 2024 elections (repeat).

Streaming service mergers and resulting price decreases.

Downside my residence -- or in the alternative, have my trailer trash neighbors relocate.

Finally get my Real ID driver's license.

Delegitimization of the LIV golf tour.

Consistently avoid working on Mondays and/or Fridays.

More pay-at-the-table restaurants.

A new technology device or service I want but don't have

It Isn't WOITH It

Over a decade ago, I started to write a number of blog posts about people (politicians) I considered to be Whacked Out In The Head, shortened to the acronym WOITH.  I stopped adding to it years ago, it seemed / seems a juvenile thing to do, it took time away from other things I wanted to write about, and frankly, there would be no end to the list.

However, due to the overwhelming number of very deserving new candidates that have crawled out of various holes since 2016 or so, I've decided to make one last(?) update of WOITH award winners.  There are really too many to list, so I'm simply going to name it as a group:

Every so-called MAGA republican.

This includes now high-ranking folks in the U.S. Congress, including current Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, a truly weird, conspiratorial, and homophobic person.

It includes a new, even crazier generation of Iowa politicians, mostly (but not all) older white guys who think people want them to ban books, legislate medical care, and minimize vulnerable people.  

And of course, it includes the leader of the band, DJ Trump, a malignant narcissistic, grifting, admittedly fascist, wannabe dictator.  He's as WOITH as it gets, and unfortunately very good at trying to get weak-minded folks to be more like him.

The Anti-Thanks

We're acknowledging a life-changing milestone today.  No, not the 60th anniversary of the Kennedy assassination, or the 60th anniversary of my conception (if I do the math backwards nine months from my birthday).  It's the 15th consecutive year (14th anniversary of the beginning) of my annual list of things for which I am not currently thankful;

The non-tech, political opinions of tech executives

Airline travelers flying with non-service pets

So-called Freedom Caucus members of the U.S. Congress

Potholes

Vendors who still don't accept Apple Pay

Porch pirates

Convenience store pizza

Reality talent shows on broadcast or streaming TV

People who don't pick up after themselves

Cats

Major college super-conferences

The Charles Schwab investment advisory platform. (professional item)

Sending Us Their Worst And Brightest

With one year to go before a presidential election, the Republican candidates are ramping up their presence in Iowa for the January presidential caucuses.  Most of them have been in the state for months already, either in person or by way of their persistent, local media advertisements.

Now's a good time for my one-sentence review of the viable contenders, each trying their best to appeal to the farthest right of the far right political spectrum, which now dominates the entire GOP.  Not going to comment on the four-time indicted, democracy-hating, malignant narcissist former president who's also running (from something as much as for something).

Ron DeSantis -- An Ivy League educated, military veteran who offsets that by being a demagogue who's consistently awkward when campaigning in person.

Nikki Haley -- The only one who occasionally says some moderate-sounding things, which is probably why she's concentrating more on the New Hampshire primary.

Tim Scott -- Something oft-putting for Iowans about about a single, soft-spoken, southern black man trying to show everyone how conservative he is.

Vivek Ramaswamy -- An annoying, weird, egotistical rich guy who everybody agrees is the least likeable candidate, which isn't great for him.

Chris Christie -- Credit to him for being the only candidate to call out the ex-president and his MAGA cult, but he's really just playing the role of spoiler.

Mike Pence -- He's dropped out, and he may have temporarily saved democracy by doing his job as VP, but wanted to say how much he deserved the disdain he received from all sides.

Waking Up The Echoes

My childhood happened during the pre-cable / satellite television days, meaning there were four analog channels (including public TV) to watch.  On Sunday mornings, this meant religious programming was the only thing on, with one autumn-time exception:  Notre Dame Fighting Irish football reruns.

Not just any rerun, but a condensed, one-hour version of the game played the day before.  I'm not sure why this was on, or who sponsored it, but I remember it well.  I even remember the commentators -- Lindsey Nelson on play-by-play and Paul Horning (former Notre Dame star) as the analyst.  

Notre Dame was a football power then, even more than now.  Consequently, they usually won, and watching them play in these Sunday morning reruns basically made me a Notre Dame fan, even if I knew the outcome of the game beforehand.

The reason all of this matters is because last month, I did something I've wanted to do since childhood -- I attended a Notre Dame home football game in South Bend, Indiana.  It turns out there's a lot more to a Notre Dame football weekend than the game.

Friday afternoon, there was a variety of activities to attend, including free lectures, band and vocal performances, and other sporting events like a soccer or volleyball games.  I attended a lecture that just happened to be given by one of my favorite economists, and also went to the volleyball game, allowing me to see the Joyce Convocation Center.

(Back in the day, the JCC was where a huge pre-game pep rally was held, but apparently not anymore.  It's still home to Notre Dame basketball, and has banners displayed from some great players and teams.  I remember watching on TV as the Notre Dame men end the 88-game winning streak of UCLA in 1974, a famous game from a bygone era.)

Saturday pre-game, there were more free lectures and music performances on the beautiful Notre Dame campus, including a bagpipe band and an a club cappella ensemble.  These happenings seemed to take the place of traditional parking lot tailgating, as it appeared visitors mostly swarmed around these events or other notable campus sites like the Grotto or library.  Meanwhile, there were numerous food tents run by various campus groups for people to get food and beverages.

The late Saturday afternoon game itself wasn't much different than any other major college football experience.  The student section was probably bigger and more active than most, and the fight sang is famous, but otherwise the game was the most ordinary thing of the entire weekend.  I still enjoyed the thought of how many meaningful games held at Notre Dame Stadium that I'd seen on TV in my life, and all of the legends that had been there before me.  And yes, Notre Dame won.

I realize not everyone is a Notre Dame football fan, and I've largely grown out of it myself in adulthood.  But I'll always appreciate the entertainment I got from their Sunday morning football reruns.

Best Song Lyrics (Part XXV)

Over the summer, I spend many evenings on my deck listening to mellow rock.  This is usually done by tuning into the Yacht Rock channel on satellite radio, or something similar on another station or streaming service.

In doing this, you hear a lot of the same artists, like Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers.  But one group I noticed move of this summer was 1970s and 80s icon Chicago.

Chicago has/had such a unique sound, thanks to with the brass horns the band often put out front.  They also had some tunes with unique lyrics, like Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is, and the strangely titled, marching band favorite 25 or 6 to 4.  (It's the time of day, either 3:35 or 3:34.)

For me, however, none of their many hits had lyrics as good as the classic song Saturday In The Park.  It really made you feel like you were spending the day at the park.  [I've edited the following to avoid repetition.]

Saturday in the park

I think it was the Fourth of July

People dancing,

People laughing

A man selling ice cream

Singing Italian songs

Eh Cumpari, ci vo sunari

Can you dig it? (yes, I can)

And I've been waiting such a long time

For Saturday

People talking

Really smiling

A man playing guitar

And singing for us all

Will you help him change the world

Can you dig it? (yes, I can)

And I've been waiting such a long time

For today

Slow motion riders fly the colours of the day

A bronze man still can tell stories his own way

Listen children all is not lost

All is not lost, oh no, no

Funny days in the park

Every day's the Fourth of July

Funny days in the park

Every day's the Fourth of July

A Home Where The Bison Roam

About a year ago, after a trip to the mountain west region of America, I mentioned I'd been to all but two U.S. states -- North Dakota and Alaska.  The North Dakota deal is a little crazy really, since I grew up only about a half-day drive from its southern border.  But I never got closer than northern South Dakota.  (Is everyone keeping up directionally here??)

So now an update...I've only Alaska left to visit, after taking a side trip earlier this summer from Minneapolis to Fargo, North Dakota.  What did I miss from a life having never seen North Dakota?

It turns out, not a lot.  Typical upper midwestern landscape of farmland and prairie grass.  Also: Flat.

I did find the city of Fargo to be quite pleasant.  I was there on a Sunday, and the downtown area was modern and vibrant.  It even looked like one establishment was setting up for an early-evening outdoor concert.

Fargo is also the home of North Dakota State University, which I'm sure is a great economic engine for the city.  Lots of school colors (green and gold) and school mascots (bison) to be seen.  And don't forget the Fargo Dome, which predictably had lots of hotels and restaurants around it.

Remember now, this was summertime.  I can only imagine, and hope never to see, what the city looks like when it's a snow-covered, below zero temperature climate.  I guessing no one would describe the downtown area as 'vibrant' then.

Be that as it may, I'm glad I visited, and glad to have only one more state to go.  Alaska seems like a great place for a retirement cruise sometime in the not-too-distant future.....