Opinions in the Shorts: Vol. 253

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Interesting how much Governor Mike Pence (R-IN) danced around answering questions about recent religious freedom legislation in his state, then changed his dance. Answering questions with direct truth must be against a politician’s credo … and the Republicans don’t have a corner on that market.

In this speech announcing his candidacy for the 2016, Republican presidential nomination, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) stated, “It is the time for truth” – and in that spirit, here’s a fact-check of his speech.

The Naked Cowboy is one of New York City’s multitude of personalities. Did you know he is from Cincinnati and a University of Cincinnati graduate? Here he is.

We booked a future vacation with Vacations To Go. A tip-of-the-cap to them for discovering a mistake at their end AND correcting it beyond our satisfaction.

Monday is Opening Day in Cincinnati, which means baseball season starts. If the weather is nice, I hope to spend a few hours in the city among the many dressed in red. As of now, the weather is iffy.

My time for reading your wonderful blogs continues to be small. Yuk!

Thursday was our 38th anniversary, thus a tribute to 38 is about ready. Because I know the throngs outside the aFa Theater for the Performing Arts were getting restless, I chose to debut the musical on our anniversary instead of next week. Nonetheless, we had a wonderful dinner at this local restaurant.

Opening Night for Meals: The Musical provided quiet the variety of songs, so we are off and running. To my surprise, you provided more songs that I didn’t know. 🙂 I believe Act 2 will be easier than Act 1, but you will have to wait for the theme.

My selection of Frank Zappa opening Meals: The Musical surprised some. Here’s an interesting explanation of the musicality behind St. Alfonzo’s Pancake House.

Last week’s Explore took us to the Iguazu Falls along the Argentina-Brazil border. It turns out the a visitor here posted about her visit, which brings a personal touch to this wonder. Thanks, Madhu!

Prepare yourself for a journey on the Explore series this weekend.

To lead you into The Onion, here’s their take on paying college athletes.

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This Week’s Headlines from The Onion
Siblings quietly relieved oldest brother setting bar so low
Cost-cutting measures force company to start hiring more female employees
Man who baked banana bread spends entire party anxiously watching it go uneaten
Senior citizen keeps mind active by contemplating death
Man thinks going to Vegas for things other than gambling somehow less sad

Interesting Reads
Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech that mentions my birthplace
The grand piano in Gaza
Studying the DNA of a nation
From National Geographic: Why Do Many Reasonable People Doubt Science?
Urine-based recharging of phones
A Nazi hangout in Argentina?
Technology improving sex

Your Weekend Celebrations

• (Fri) Chocolate Mousse Day, Walk to Work Day, Hot Cross Buns Day, World Party Day, Workplace Napping Day, Sow the Seeds of Greatness Day, Don’t Go to Work Unless It’s Fun Day, Tweed Day, Pony Express Day, Find a Rainbow Day
• (Sat) Walk Around Things Day, Vitamin C Day, Hug a Newsperson Day, Chicken Cordon Bleu Day, Tangible Karma Day, Rat Day, Birding Day, Victims of Violence Day, Tell a Lie Day, Square Root Day, Kids Kick Butts Day (anti-tobacco), Pillow Fight Day, Every Day is a Tag Day, Chocolate Milk Powder Day, Mine Awareness Day
• (Sun) Lava Lamp Day, Bell Bottoms Day, Deep Dish Pizza Day, Plum Pudding Day, Go for Broke Day, Caramel Day, Read a Roadmap Day, Raisin & Spice Day, Dandelion Day, Stories Day, Check Your Batteries Day, Baked Ham & Pineapple Day, Accelerate ACL Awareness Among Young Women Day

Here’s a 2-fer to send you into the weekend. First is a leftover from Act 1, while the second has a fitting title for the 2-fer. Have a safe weekend and in the words of Garrison Keillor, Be well, do good work, and keep in touch.

(Double Vision, Foreigner)