The Giving Pledge

Cool, huh. More people should do it. I was a little disappointed that Jeff Bezos name wasn't included but then he just gave away 10 BILLION dollars so I got over it.

https://givingpledge.org/Home.aspx

Dogs are cool and so is Purdue

Purdue taking part in life-long study of dogs health

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WTHR) — Researchers are looking for America's oldest dog.

They don't want to teach him new tricks, but they are hoping he could teach them a few things.

And your dog could be part of their life-long scientific study that's looking to learn from pets nationwide.

More than 40 scientists and researchers from across the United States – including one from Purdue University – are looking for dogs to participate the national study of the general health and wellness of dogs.

The Dog Aging Project will be looking at dogs of all breeds and mixes from across the nation. This is the first major longitudinal study involving dogs, and it's scheduled to last at least 10 years.

“We are going to look at a lot of different aspects of dog’s lives that affect their health and longevity,” says Audrey Ruple, a veterinary epidemiologist at Purdue.

“Dogs are good models for humans,” she says. “They have similar genetics, share our environment, and they also have similar diseases and health issues. We will be asking, ‘How do dogs age healthfully?’ in order to help better understand how we can age healthfully, too.”

Dogs of all age ranges, breeds and sizes are eligible to participate in the study. Owners go online to register their dogs, then create a personal profile to track health, home life, diet, environment and lifestyle.

Dogs will need to make regular veterinarian visits every year. If a dog is assigned to a specific group, the owners may get a kit for their veterinarian to collect blood, urine or other samples during the annual visit.

Participation is voluntary and there is no cost to participate.

“It’s important to get dogs from all parts of the U.S. because of the different environmental factors present,” Ruple said. “And we’re trying to find the oldest dog in America, as well.”

All dogs registered will be eligible to participate in various studies. The group conducted a soft launch with 4,500 dogs registered earlier this fall. Recently, the researchers reached 75,000 dogs for the study.

“Our study population just keeps growing and growing and growing,” Ruple said.

Researchers hope to find out more details on how genetics, demographics and environmental factors such as chemical exposures and noise pollution impact health and longevity.

Ruple says one goal of the study is to not just improve the health and longevity of dogs, but also extend those findings to improve human health. “By studying aging in dogs, we hope to learn how to better match human health span to life span so that we can all live longer, healthier lives,” Ruple said.

Funding for the Dog Aging Project comes from the National Institute of Aging, a part of the National Institutes of Health, as well as from private donations.

Remember When

Toys R Us
Dress Barn
Thom McAn
Kinney Shoes
Blockbuster
Any Brainy
Marshal Field
Tower Records
Merry Go Round
Casual Corner
Sharper Image
KB Toys
Levit Furniture
Mervyn's
Circuit City
B Dalton
HH Gregg
Sam Goody 
Radio Shack 
The Limited 

I miss some of those places

my public service announcement

In case you're like me....

https://www.msn.com/en-us/autos/ownership/heres-how-far-you-can-actually-drive-on-empty/ar-AAH8Y4B?li=BBnb7Kz

This is REALLY, SUPER, AWESOME information!!!
You're welcome  :-)

Superbowl complaints

Did you watch the Superbowl? No, I didn't. You don't even have to watch for the commercials anymore because you can see them all on YouTube! I did watch the 1/2 time show though. I've heard recently that there have been A LOT of complaints filed about it. That J.Lo and Shakira were too under-dressed and that their dancing was to sexual. I don't know. It was Latin dance and Latin music done by Latin singers. I think the camera people didn't need to show us close ups but that didn't really have anything to do with their show. I don't know. I feel like so many television shows are a lot worse! 

Surprise!

I LOVE it when a movie surprises me. Do you have a favorite surprise ending movie? The only thing I don't like about them is, it isn't as much fun to see it for the 2nd time. I love movies, so I can think of a bunch of them that actually surprised me;


Planet of The Apes - there's no way anybody saw that coming
Soylent Green - oh COME ON! That was awesome!!!
Primal Fear - man oh man was Edward Norton great in that role or what!?
The Others - that was pretty slick. I thought she was just crazy, until the end
The Prestige - yeah, didn't see that coming
Presumed Innocent
Music Box
The Usual Suspects
I guess you can't leave out Sixth Sense. That was pretty great. Even though some people say they had it figured out.


Also, sometimes the death of a character really surprises me. I HATE that. Especially if it didn't do anything for the story. Then I feel like I wasted my time watching it. Almost everyone who knows me knows to tell me ahead of time if one of the main characters dies. If I know that going in, I don't mind as much...I won't get attached to any of them. Like, Pay It Forward. That was such a stupid ending.
Same for City of Angels. That really pissed me off. Not necessary to the story.
But I was so surprised and sad when Star Trek killed off Spock! Oh, and any dog movie. But hey! If you haven't seen Togo, it's really good. He lives a long life and you don't have to watch him die. I liked that one. 

childless

I don't have kids. Well, I have step kids, which I helped raise. But I don't own one of my own.
Those teenage years are rough but in general, I really like kids. I just never wanted to be a parent. I'm pretty old now and I still don't regret that decision. I've always known that I didn't want to have one.
When I was 16, the most amazing thing happened. It was a Friday, English class. 1975. We were all caught up so our teacher let us goof off. She even just answered questions from the class. One question was, do you have any kids? She said, no, I don't want children. There was an audible gasp. What?!!?! How can you not want kids?!?! You know what I thought? I thought, OMG! I don't have to have kids??! AWESOME! Whew, cuz I was worried I would have to do that someday. As I got older, and people would want to know why I didn't want kids, I was honest. Because I'm selfish and I don't want to give up all my time. People seem less judgmental about that these days. But, this was the first mainstream article I ever saw about the subject  :-)   :-)   :-)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/lifestyle/voices/the-simple-reason-i-decided-not-to-have-kids-i-just-dont-want-to/ar-BBZpjw4?li=BBnb7Kz

Shut up and sing

That's the title of a book I haven't read. I can guess what it's about though and I whole heartedly agree.

I stopped watching award shows a long time ago. Granted, it was partly because I'm no longer relevant to popular culture. But part of it was because of some entertainers attitudes. I don't want to listen to your political diatribe when you're accepting an award for a movie or album that I helped to further your career with. If I purchased your CD (or whatever) I'm responsible for your elitist lifestyle. Show some respect. I didn't plunk down my hard earned dollar because I care about what you think about religion or politics or climate change. I gave you my money because I want to be entertained so I don't have to think about all of that!! 

I loved the Dixie Chicks music. I could care less how they felt about the president. What really got me though, was when they got pissed that country music fans didn't like their opinion! Such hypocrisy. We have a right to free speech! Of course you do. But your fans don't have to like it. That's where they lost me.

It's not just their views of the world either. Sometimes it's their careers. Sean Connery says he HATED playing James Bond. Well screw you mister! James Bond made you. You shouldn't disrespect your fans like that. Jerk.

My all time favorite Country music act was Brooks and Dunn. I saw them live several times. I even traveled to Nashville to attend their final concert. I've seen recently that they're going to do a "reunion" tour.  I could've been excited, but I'm not. Ronnie Dunn spent months after they 'retired' telling anyone who would listen that he was so sick of Brooks and Dunn and he would rather stick needles in his eyes than get on stage with Brooks again. Asshole. 

Just shut up and sing.

Woof!!

The Westminster Dog Show starts tonight! We love this annual tradition. We love dogs. This past year, the AKC recognized 3 new breeds. The Azawakh, which will be shown this year;

and the Barbet and the Dogo Argentio. We won't get to see them in the ring until next year though.

I'm already a fan of the Barbet. What's not to love about something so fluffy!!!

This year, the favorite to win is a Whippet named Bourbon;

I can't wait to see them all!

KISS!

When I was 13 years old, I saw Sammy Davis Jr., live. I guess my fondness of live entertainment goes back a looooong way. Anywho, when he sang The Candy Man, he passed out candy kisses to anyone who came up to the stage. I was pretty excited! So I got to run up to the stage and Sammy Davis Jr. handed me a candy kiss!!!! It was a treasure to me! I put it in my jewelry box. That's where I kept all my special things in my jewelry box.

Fast forward 4 years...I get in my jewelry box for a ring and my candy kiss was missing! I looked in all the drawers but it was GONE! Nooooooo. Not my special candy kiss, given to me by Sammy Davis Jr.!!! What!??!?! How could this be????

I'll tell you how...my 12 year old little brother ATE IT! OMG I was so angry and heartbroken. I just wanted to beat him up! 

40+ years later and I'm sitting at my desk at work, listening to 70's music and The Candy Man came on! Needless to say, it brought back all those memories. So I called my brother and said, you butt head!! I'm still mad at you!!  We had a good laugh.

Yesterday, Amazon delivered a mystery package to me. You'll never guess what it was.
A GIANT Hershey's candy kiss!!! It wasn't from Sammy Davis Jr. but I guess I forgive my kid brother now - he's pretty cute.

WARNING-foul language ahead

I kind of have a potty mouth anyway, but watch out!

Oh for the love of god...

http://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/mitt-romney-violated-senate-rules-by-drinking-chocolate-milk-out-of-a-bottle-during-the-impeachment-trial/ar-BBZpR9a?ocid=ientp

Are you fucking serious!!!!???? THIS is what you, as a "reputable" news outlet, want me to know? OMG!

Wait, there's more...

https://www.wthr.com/article/indiana-bill-would-allow-immigrants-without-legal-documentation-lawfully-drive

I have to provide a notarized, state/county issued marriage license, because my name changed, proof of residence and my birth certificate OR my passport, to get a fucking drivers license!!!! You MORONS!

...and still more...

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/debanjalibose/christmas-school-expel-student-rainbow-cake

I hate that the gay community ruined the use of the rainbow for anything other than being or supporting said community. But come on! The parents are now suing the school but honestly, why?! Why would you want to send your child to a school that's so fucked up!?!?!?

And this is just a tragic local story but it's really got me scratching my head.

A little over a year ago, a 24 yr old woman who was driving (a small pickup truck) and not paying attention, hit and killed 3 children (siblings) when they were crossing the street to get on the school bus. You're supposed to stop when the school bus does, with the flashing lights and STOP arm extended. Tragic on so many levels, for everyone involved. Anyway, she was found guilty of reckless homicide, convicted  and sentenced to serve 4 yrs in jail, 3 yrs of home monitoring, 3 yrs probation and a 10 yr license suspension. Here's the head scratching part...she's appealing her conviction, contending that the tragedy was "just and accident and not a crime." I can't think of single fucking thing to say about that doesn't include saying the F word!

Whew. OK, now that I've got that out of my system. I'm going back to fucking work now.

The decade in review

You know I love lists! There are lots of them this month :-)

First up, the most looked up word every year for the last decade;
2019 - they
2018 - justice
2017 - feminism
2016 - surreal
2015 - -ism
2014 - culture
2013 - science
2012 - socialism
2011 - pragmatic
2010 - austerity

Next, TIME's "person of the year"
2019 - Greta Thunberg, environmental activist
2018 - The Guardians and the War On Truth
2017 - The Silence Breakers; those women who broke out and spoke up about sexual harassment, etc.
2016 - Donald Trump
2015 - Angela Merkel, Chancellor of Germany
2014 - The Ebola Fighters
2013 - Pope Francis
2012 - Barack Obama
2011 - The Protester
2010 - Mark Zuckerberg

Top searches on Goggle
2019 - Disney Plus
2018 - World Cup
2017 - Hurricane Irma
2016 - Powerball
2015 - Lamar Odom
2014 - Robin Williams
2013 - Paul Walker
2012 - Whitney Houston
2011 - Rebecca Black, a YouTuber and singer
2010 - Chatroulette, an online chat website
These say a lot about today's world, don't they.

10 Species that went extinct
Tacoma Pocket Gopher
Po'ouli, a Hawaiian bird
Hawaiian tree snail
Eastern puma
South Florida rainbow snake
Ozark pyrg, a freshwater mussel
Pinta Island tortoise, the last one was 100 yrs old when he died in 2012
Clouded leopard in Taiwan
Bramble Cay melomys, it's a mouse
Florida Zestos Skipper, a butterfly found only in the Florida Keys

And this is a list of the top medical advancements of the last decade - facinating!
https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/medical/50-notable-medical-advancements-of-the-decade/ss-BBXEoSA?li=BBnb7Kz#image=1

The top grossing movies of the last decade
1. Star Wars: The Force Awakens
2. Avengers: Endgame
3. Black Panther
4. Avengers: Infinity War
5. Jurassic World
6. The Avengers
7. Star Wars: The Last Jedi
8. Incredibles 2
9. The Lion King
10. Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

Top 10 best selling books of the last decade
1. Fifty Shades of Grey
2. Fifty Shades Darker
3. Fifty Shades Freed
4. The Hunger Games
5. The Help
6. The Girl on The Train
7. Gone Girl
8. The Fault in Our Stars
9. The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo
10. Divergent

The most watched TV shows every year of the last decade...The Superbowl

Excluding sports, the most watched tv shows of the last decade were American Idol, The Voice and This is Us.

Critically, the top 10 "best" tv shows of the decade were
1. The Leftovers, hbo
2. Fleabag, Amazon
3. Breaking Bad, AMC
4. BoJack Horseman, Netflix
5. Hannibal, NBC
6. Veep, hbo
7. 30 Rock, NBC
8. The Americans, FX
9. Parks and Recreation, NBC
10. Atlanta, FX

And on Amazon, the top selling product from 2010 to 2015 was the Kindle. In 2016 and 2017 it was Echo and 2018 and 2019 it was the Fire Stick

that was fun 

19 things happy people never do

1. Compare their lives to the lives of those around them.
          Happy people know that comparison is the thief of joy
2. Spend all their time on social media.
3. Bully others
4. Avoid their emotions
5. Focus on what they don't have
6. Blame others
          For the most part, happy people view their life as their own responsibility
7. or try to convince other to change
          happy people know that they can't control other people's behaviors and don't expect              other to change to suit their liking.
8. or live their life to please others
          they respect other people's opinion but they don't derive their value and worthiness                on the basis of what people think of them.
9. Forget how to live in the moment
          happy people live in the present moment, finding things to enjoy in the now, rather                than obsessing over things that happened in the past or fixating on their hopes and     
          fears for the future
10. or try to control the future
11. Make assumptions
12. Feel sorry for themselves
13. Hold grudges
14. Dwell on failures
15. Surround themselves with unpleasant people
16. Neglect to address things that bother them
17. Keep score with their friends and partner
         in a great relationship, whether romantic or platonic, there are no 50-50 splits of  
         responsibility. Happy people accept the reality in that.
18. Let work take over their life
19. Resist change

Sometimes I don't think I'm a happy person and sometimes I think I'm pretty happy. There are a few things on this list that I should let go of but for the most part, most of this list is true of me. Yay!

Things to make you smile

It's a brand new year! Let's start it off with a smile;

Otters hold hands when they float -  omg so cute

Dolphins give each other specific names

A single strand of spaghetti is technically called a spaghetto

German Chocolate cake is actually just named after an American with the last name 'German'!!

Herring fish communicate by passing gas - come on, that made you laugh

Sperm whales have BFFs, and they never forget them

Some types of aquatic turtles can breathe through their butts

Popsicles were invented by an 11 year old - never discount a child

Cuddling releases Oxycontin - yeah, do that more!

2 teenagers started UPS - ah the enthusiasm of youth!

Blind people smile even if they've never seen anyone else smile - how awesome is that?!!??!

Fresh air is scientifically proven to given you more energy - get out!

Ducks shake their tails when they're happy - I know you just visualized that and smiled

The national animal of Scotland is a unicorn - I like them so much more now

Children of identical twins are genetically siblings, not cousins - Mind. Blown.

The blob of toothpaste that goes on your toothbrush is called a "nurdle" - I bet you think of that every time you brush your teeth now

The Cookie Monster's real name is 'Sid'

7% of American adults believe that chocolate milk comes from brown cows - ummmm

broadway

Chuck's daughter and I have seen all the best plays!
Chicago
Menopause the Musical
Wicked
Rock of Ages
Lion King
Hamilton
Jersey Boys (she missed that one)
Plus, a couple stinkers...We Will Rock You for sure.

Rock of Ages was the most fun! Trust me when I say, the movie stunk!!
Also, Menopause the Musical was hilarious.
Lion King was the best by far.
Chicago was fun too.

As for Hamilton...it's like a civics lesson done in rap and hip hop. I don't like rap. Or hip hop. But it was ok for the story telling part. It's a great story too. I wouldn't see it again but it didn't suck. It was so exhausting though! 

I try to be open minded about new things. You know, every generation has it's 'thing'. I don't have to like it, but I get it. I appreciate that every generation needs to be different and take ownership of their own style.

Maybe someone would like to see Book of Mormon with me?