Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 213

On Politics
The fact that President Obama and House Speak John Boehner met this week is a good thing. The fact that they haven’t met in 14 months is not.

Although Congressional Republicans have been outwardly obstinate, I wonder if Congressional Democrats have also been quietly obstinate.

Given the odds are high for overreach, maybe it’s a good idea that one party doesn’t control Capitol Hill and the White House.

Comments by rocker Ted Nugent about President Obama are an example of one of the downsides of today’s information highway. As many elected Republican shrugged their shoulders and danced around the situation, cheers to Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), and several others for stepping to say Nugent was out of line.

For those waiting on the edge of your seat with high anticipation, please relax because Nincompoop will not seek the 2016 Republican presidential nomination for one reason – a loss would damage her brand.

I enjoy listening to Michael Smerconish on an XM radio political channel (124). Coming soon – He will have a new, Saturday morning show on CNN (I believe starting next weekend).

On This Week’s Headlines from The Onion
American Airlines to phase out complimentary cabin pressurization
Man who keeps keys on carabineer must rappel into office building every morning
Self-conscious flasher fully clothed under trench coat
Fourth-grader named Jackson to fire you someday
Report: Local gas station would not be hard to rob

Bonus Onions
Worst selling frozen dinners
Dogs who know fun

Interesting Reads
FBI and Osama bin Laden
The Smithsonian writes about the Monument Men
How a trust can reduce taxes
Interesting thoughts about the study of economics
Interesting images of sand art
Interesting graphic about crossbows

On Potpourri
Barbeque lovers know that macaroni and cheese is a great accompaniment. Chef Michael Symon takes it to the next level with this recipe. I haven’t tried it, but I delivered an OMG when I saw him make this.

WLWT is a long-time Cincinnati television station. This commercial for them caught my attention, and it’s a good way to you to see scenes of my city, including my beloved Skyline Chili – but I’m not sure the two kids are eating Graeter’s ice cream.

Saturday is a new month, so I hope to put month-long celebrations in the next Monday Morning Entertainment. After all, I still want you informed.

Jim Lange, former host of the original Dating Game, passed away this week. Here’s a list of star-to-be that appeared on the show: Karen Carpenter, Steve Martin, Farrah Fawcett, Michael Jackson, John Ritter, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Andy Kaufman, and Suzanne Somers. Does anyone remember the episode when comedian Don Rickles stood in for a shy girl to select here date? Here it is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXzu8qgkINs

Here are your weekend celebrations (Wow … there are many!)

• (Weekend) Snowshoe Days
• (Fri) National Chili Day, Public Sleeping Day, Floral Design Day, DNA Day, Pockets Day, Car Keys and Small Change Day, Read Me Day, Tooth Fairy Day, Chocolate Soufflé Day, Rare Disease Day
• (Sat) Beer Day, Bachelor’s Day, Underling’s Day, Go Bowling Day, Wear Yellow Day (for endometriosis awareness), Horse Protection Day, Peanut Lovers Day, Pig Day, Plan a Solo Vacation Day, Retire but Not Retired Day, Share a Smile Day, Compliment Day, Sock Monkey Day, Days of the Seals, Self-Injury Awareness Day, Holy Experiment Day,
• (Sun) Banana Cream Pie Day, Daughters’ and Sons’ Day, Pyramid Day, Old Stuff Day, Dr. Seuss Day, Book Day, Silly Putty Day, Babysitter Safety Day, Cat-in-the-Hat Day, Frozen Food Day

This past week was very difficult, but at least I made it to Friday. The project is finished, and I made progress in terms of packing.

Over the past few weeks, I haven’t written or visited others, as I prefer to do. I thought cutting back to three posts per week would help more than it did. With that in mind, common sense tells me that I have to step away from blogging even more until after the move. Knowing that I will have a difficult time doing that, I will soon temporarily fade into the abyss …BUT … I hope to put together some timed short posts to keep you entertained during my absence.

Earlier this week we learned of the passing of actor Harold Ramis – and to me, this fun song from one of his movies is perfect to send everyone into the weekend. Have a safe weekend and in the words of Garrison Keillor, Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.

On Satire Bits: Vol. 87

It’s midweek and my mind is fried. Between preparing two online presentations, dealing with packing, and not sleeping well, my mind is fried …  so I hope your week is a good one. But, I took care of myself on Tuesday by joining a friend at this bar that serves fantastic burgers! See the menu options here (and the Burgundy Mushroom is awesome!)

In the last Opinions in the Shorts I mentioned announcing the next act to Life: The Musical. A big oops on my part as my mind is elsewhere.

My mind is so wired that I can’t think of much to write, so it’s on to the mid-week dose of satire from The Onion to move you to toward the weekend. For those who dare, use the info in the headlines below to create your own headline … and as always, my combo is at the end (which doesn’t met the standards I set for myself). As tempting as it was, I avoided using “eating” as my keyword. Have a good rest of the week!

Local woman takes 15-minute break from being radical feminist

Photos unclear if grandpa having a good time

Inconsiderate woman on bus eating live tuna

Red Lobster welcomes back “Defrosted Shrimp Days”

Hip-hop man enjoys making musical rapping sounds

Dad’s tough exterior hides angry, resentful center

Delusional man somehow thinks he’s going to get Oscar nomination

Nation surprised it wants more John Travolta

Pee Wee hockey player wishes dad cared enough to fight at games

Netflix Instant thinking of adding good movie

My Combo: Musical man thinking of making rapping sounds to local woman at Red Lobster

On a Monday

After a few days of a weather-flirt with spring, the week ahead appears to be a return to winter temperatures. After our abnormally cold winter, I’m ready to move toward complaining about the summer heat and humidity.

How was your weekend? Come on now … tell us what you did!

It was an odd weekend for me. While I’m home slaving away packing for a move, my wife is with her sister cruising in the Caribbean. Sorry … but that just doesn’t sound as much fun as wrapping paper, bubble wrap, boxes, and tape. Plus, I (for some ridiculous reason) took on a short project for a client. On the plus side, it provides a break from packing. Also, believe it or not, I did go to a dance studio.

Celebrations for your calendar!

• (Week) Pancake Week, Homes for Birds Week, Pickle Time Week, New Idea Week, Bird Health Awareness Week, Secondhand Wardrobe Week
• (Mon) Tortilla Chip day, Trading Card Day, Cupcake Day, Museum Advocacy Day, Bartender Day
• (Tues) Chocolate Covered Peanuts Day, Quiet Day, Let’s All Eat Right Day
• (Wed) Thermos Bottle Day, Tell a Fairy Tale Day, First Movie Cartoon Day, For Pete’s Sake Day, Pistachio Day, Personal Chef Day
• (Thurs) No-Brainer Day, Kahlua Day, Polar Bear Day, Chili Day

To start your week with a chuckle, this video reminds me of last February’s trip to Italy. Thanks to Debra (@ Bagni di Lucca and Beyond) for this one. Enjoy … and have a good week.

On Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 212

On the Olympics
I get so used to watching the Olympics I expect them to keep going – but they close this weekend.

The women’s hockey final between US-Canada was an epic encounter. Congratulations to the Canadians.

The ice dancing finals were very enjoyable as the top five pairs were awesome! I’m not a judge, but it’s a shame their was so much whining from the silver medalists and their fans.

The ski cross and snowboard cross races are exciting and entertaining!

For sure, for sure … and speaking for myself … there is considerable amounts of eye candy present among the athletes.

On This Week’s Headlines from The Onion
Scandinavian conquers ransack seaside village of its gold
Emergency crews attempt to rescue Olympic figure skater who fell through ice
Nation’s girlfriends admit absolutely everything riding on Valentine’s Day
Superstitious man puts bags of trash outside house every Thursday
Netflix introduces new “Brose Endlessly Plan”
Keyboard’s second row a veritable who’s who of special punctuation characters

Interesting Reads
The yoke of history by Columnist Maureen Dowd
A science and religion study
And these people are also eligible to vote
Reasons to visit Etosha National Park in Namibia
Multiple choice questions and critical thinking in science class
Economics and the Sermon on the Mount

On Potpourri
The situations in Syria, Ukraine, Thailand, and Venezuela are bothersome. Interesting how so many events are about power.

Thursday I heard a fascinating interview about US-Russia relations. Listening to experts (and not politicians) is a refreshing change of pace and a learning experience.

Our accountant lives on the opposite side of town, so earlier this week I took advantage of meeting him when he was closer while at his wife’s medical appointment. The list of doctors on the office door included Warren G. Harding III – yep – grandson to a US President from the past.

Because I hope to get one more act in before the actual move, I’m aiming for Act 2 of Life: The Musical next week … probably Wednesday night. Look for an announcement on the next edition of Monday Morning Entertainment.

For those interested in movie tidbits, here’s a slideshow about some of the films with Cincinnati as the set.

Here are your weekend celebrations

• (Weekend) Texas Cowboy Poetry Weekend,
• (Fri) Mother Language Day, Sticky Buns Day, Card Reading Day
• (Sat) Sword Swallowers Day, Margarita Day, Tongue Twist Day, Open that Bottle Night, World Thinking Day, Be Humble Day, Tooth Fairy Day, Single Tasking Day, Inconvenience Yourself Day
• (Sun) Curling is Cool Day, Diesel Engine Day, Dog Biscuit Day, Tennis Day, Tootsie Roll Day, Banana Bread Day, Rationalization Day

Regarding Tongue Twister Day, here are three links:

• For those who want to try
• For those who want to learn about
• For those who need a chuckle

For whatever reason, Quarterflash popped into my head … so here’s their 1982 hit Harden My Heart to send you into the weekend. Have a safe weekend and in the words of Garrison Keillor, Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.

On Satire Bits: Vol. 86

Unbelievably, a warm wave has bestowed itself upon Cincinnati. In order to accommodate the melting water, over the past two days I’ve chipped away at the ice blocking the water flow … and hooray … it’s moving! The rest of the week will also provide some rain … maybe even storms … so now I wonder when the flood waters will arrive. Although I’m high and dry, I grew up in a river town that flooded.

The phone has dominated my last two days with necessary conversations with movers, utilities, our accountant (it’s tax season), banks, deliveries, and others. When I’m on hold, I kill time by packing some items.

Enough of my week, how’s yours going?

For those needing a chuckle, here’s your mid-week collection of satire courtesy of The Onion. For the daring, rise to the occasion of using the information in these headlines to form a new headline. My combo is at the end.

Have a good rest of the week!

Man doesn’t need to have fun to drink

Local company now 95% interns

Buddhist extremist cell vows to unleash tranquility on West

Man doesn’t know how parents ever going to payoff massive student loan debt

Man upset with girlfriend changes profile picture back to truck

Parents finally cave in and buy 33-year-old son PlayStation 1

Lunch rebuilds friendship ruined at last lunch

Report: Fritz a fine name for a boy

Man confidently hits “Send” on worst job application company ever saw

Individuals unaware they constitute area man’s support network

Man unknowingly purchases lifetime supply of condoms

My Combo: Fritz the Buddhist vows tranquility with lifetime supply of condoms