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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 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.

71 thoughts on “On Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 212”

  3. I’m not a big fan of the olympics, but if you read my latest post, this one hits home today: Nation’s girlfriends admit absolutely everything riding on Valentine’s Day

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  4. From our local paper…
    Area man blamed his GPS when his car got stuck on railroad tracks.
    Officers were called for a report of a car stuck on the tracks. The driver admitted to doing it. He told officers he followed his GPS.
    He appeared to be intoxicated and failed sobriety tests with a bac of 0.15%, double the allowed limit. He was arrested and faces one drunk driving count.
    – – – – –
    It wasn’t me, even though I have the right T-shirt.
    = = = = =
    Test question development takes a tremendous amount of skill. I worked for a company that does so for statewide exams. It involves much more that most people think.
    = = = = =
    My brother thinks the next winter olympic sport should incorporate ice dancing and the biathalon. Pausing to shoot at targets after some triple jump-double toe loop combinations would add an impressive element.

    I would like to see the half-pipe ski event done in groups of 4 skiers at a time. They do that with some other ski and snowboard events.

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  5. Because I’m TV-less (for the time being) and streaming on my 13″ ancient MacBook computer screen gets old fast, I have not watched a second of the Olympics this year, Frank. Hopefully I’ll have a new set in time for the 2016 summer games. I’m dreading watching the Oscars under these first world problem conditions (and I don’t feel like watching the broadcast at a friend’s place).

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      • I might end up streaming it on my iPhone. How pathetic must that sound but, it’s a his res picture. I haven’t decided how to proceed, but I’m not shelling out for a new idiot box until the spin bike is paid off. That’s not happening until May. And yes, Frank dear, I rode it for 40 minutes this morning and sweated harder than Mike Tyson taking an algebra exam.

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    • Catherine,
      It was a great game, and in the end, it’s a prime of example the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat. Personally, I thought the US team tried not to lose, which allowed the Canadians to the necessary pressure. Oh well … on to the men’s game today, which I won’t be able to see. 😦 … well, unless I head to a sports bar.

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  10. If you were from Canada you might get a different perspective on the silver win by the skaters–it was not sour grapes–there is some reality to their gripes–that said it does not take away from the gold medalists, but it was heartbreaking for the Canadians

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    • LouAnn,
      There is no doubt that the spirit of competition drives a viewpoint. Unfortunately, figure skating has a degree of subjectivity .. it always has, and probably always will. On the other hand, this morning some are questioning the judging of the women skating as the US skaters were left off the podium. I say they clearly weren’t good enough. In terms of the ice dancing, it wasn’t that the US pair was marred with flaws.

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  13. Speaking of eye candy in the olympics, how about that ice-dancing champion Meryl Davis? Her profile is at once both beautiful and odd. She seems rather Greek in appearance. Isn’t it a testament to genetic variability in our species?

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    • Jim,
      What an interesting statement because 1) I personally don’t find her attractive … but 2) in the light of genetic variation, absolutely so! Wish I didn’t have such a full plate at the moment because you have stimulated a thought for a post.

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  14. Good thing my comment is typed & not spoken. Because right now I’m tongue tied.

    Per my son’s request – Hubby & I allowed our son to stay home from school today to catch the olympics (specifically – men’s hockey USA vs Canada). The convo when I called the school was a bit humorous. The girls have half days on Fridays. So- they will catch most of the game or the ending of it live by the time they get home.

    Have a FUNtabulous weekend Frank 🙂

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  16. Thanks–the tongue twister chuckle was especially fun! I needed a laugh–this week has been long and getting worse trying to prove to people that an account they imagined existed never existed. I have been accused of keeping a secret about that investment account that never existed–there has to be tongue twister in there somewhere! Have a good weekend!

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  17. The twister chuckle – man, he could talk fast! and I used to jam on Harden my Heart! Definitely an 80’s flashback! 🙂
    Have a great weekend, Frank!

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  19. You’ve provided a lot in your potpourri, Frank. I’m having trouble keeping up with all I would like to do–I’m blaming it on the Olympics. I haven’t been quite as aware of the eye candy, but there certainly is a lot of talent and ability. I hope you have a great weekend, Frank. I will look forward to the new musical post!

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  20. First, love this song.

    Next, my pick is the entire weekend; Cowboy Poetry!

    Your selections of articles was great. I especially loved “And These People Are Eligible to Vote”, it does make you wonder doesn’t it? Truthfully though, I am reading the ‘Economic Lessons’, I have bookmarked the site so I can read part 2 when it is published. All of them were good as usual.

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  22. Thanks for the positive vibes I got from reading “Misconceptions of science and religion found in new study.” I liked being reminded why I’m perfectly happy on a sunny spring day out on a golf course with valued friends who may sincerely believe that the earth is 6000 years old.

    Also thanks for “An Economic Lesson from the Sermon on the Mount” which reinforced my belief that the New Testament primarily focuses on individuals and personal behavior AS OPPOSED to the Old Testament which deals more with the conditions of nations.

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  24. Oh, that ice dancing. I saw way too little of it. As with the floor gymnastics at the summer Olympics I can never get enough.
    I inadvertently celebrated Open that Bottle Night (not alone there, I would guess) and am now pondering a suitable ritual to honour Dog Biscuit Day.

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    • Cuttlefish,
      Cheers to your love for ice dancing and gymnastics. Our coverage here is so choppy, we only saw about 6 pairs of ice dancers … but I find it very entertaining and interesting. …. and cheers for your celebrations. More to come on the next post (for Monday).

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  25. I’m all about patriotism, but when it comes to the Olympics I tend to venture out. That little pixie Yulia Lipnitskaya really had me rooting for her. In four years time, I think we’re going to be looking at a superstar of the sport. I’m happy for Canadian hockey, and hopeful that some day soon a Canadian team is hoisting the Stanley Cup again because it IS to those peeps what the NFL is to us.
    As for Dowd, I love her. That piece on W is her wheelhouse and she gets right to the crux of our problematic remedies for the tribal conflicts which arise on a daily basis in these regions of the world.
    And Rindy Ross was my big crush once upon a time. She was a looker with sultry pipes and man, she knew her business when it came to the sax.
    Great post, sir.

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    • Cayman,
      Glad I was able to provide a flashback to a crush … and yes, …. sultry pipes is a good description. Good point about Canada’s NHL teams. Swedes look tired today. Should be interesting to see if young Yulia stays with her sport.

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  27. Thanks to the link to the movie slide show …. so many movie I never heard of – but I knew that “The Ides of March.” had Cincinnati as the set – Great movie!!!! And the music great too … never heard about neither, learn something new everytime I land here.

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