Everybody's Working For The Weekend

Friday, at last! Whoo hoo. These five-day workweeks are killers.

Our 70-day drought is supposed to end this evening. That will be welcome.

You can rent just about everything nowadays. Luckily, we are not renting project managers at my place right now.

We should top out at 66F on Saturday. That's like the high in summer up in the mountains. That makes me think of last year when I captured this photo.

This is for you Harry Potter fans. It is the story of HP as told by people who have never seen or read it. Not surprisingly, they are close (but no cigar) to it.

Did I hear you say that you like Dr. Seuss books? This clever video from Yahoo gives you a lot of interesting facts about him. I enjoyed it.

Do you have any inspiration photos or photographers that you would like to emulate. Usually (and fairly consistently), it is Ansel Adams for me. However, a contemporary photographer I really like is Trey Ratcliff. Here is an example he posted a few days ago of the Golden Gate Bridge at night. You can see he took it from over in the Headlands, and he used a 200mm zoom. I want to capture a shot like this.

And that will wrap up this post, and today wraps up February. So, wrap up the leftovers and get outta here. It's time for the weekend.

I Survived Wednesday Night

What does that mean? It means Survivor is back, baby. No, I did not expect the blindside during the final vote. I don't think it was a wise choice, but it was fun.

Did you notice that I posted this a little later than normal. I don't know why. I kind of checked a few websites for posting ideas, then drifted over towards work and only just now realized I had not made my final comments and published the post. Sorry.

Maybe what constrains you is something frees me? That sounds like something a psychiatrist might say, right? Today's CoV is actually about constraints in project management.

Teacher Daughter was reading to her niece when said niece wanted to get a selfie with both of them looking surprised. How did they do?

This article is about a type of transplants that I never knew existed. I didn't even know it was something people considered transplanting.

For some reason, this song was going through my mind earlier. I suppose there are worse songs I could have been thinking about, right? It came into my head, but I could not remember who sang it. Then, I looked up the lyrics and it had that video link, so I had to watch it.

What's for lunch? Usually, I know because I bring it with me. today, though, is our February team outing and we are touring a candy factory and eating beforehand. We are going here and the team member who organized today says a) it was featured on Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives, and b) they do have a vegetarian pizza.

I have a lot to finish before we head out mid-morning, so no time to sit and lollygag. You are welcome to lolly without me, but no gagging, OK?

72 is Coming

We are supposed to drop below 80F in a few days. Whoo hoo. That means we are moving back towards our winter temps.

We still do not have smartphones. Based on that, these so-called phablets may have moved on to the next big thing before we get started.

Now, some of these photos are pretty funny and real. This pushes my Millard Fillmore references to two weeks in a row. Some of them, I think, were doctored. How about you? Time travel, anyone?

I know that some of you love your Starbucks favorites. I have tried a few myself. However, I don't know that I would try some of them after seeing these depictions of what is in a few. It is an interesting way to compare the drinks to other common foods or drinks.

I called SS last night to find out if a Whole Foods Market was close to where our Chorale concert was. He noted, "That is why you need to have your own smartphone." Instead, it seems I have my own smart aleck. Anyway, this article talks about using one as a GPS, even if you are offline. Have any of you tried it?

I did not have time last night to research alternatives for lowering that cable bill (which, admittedly, includes home phone, internet, and cable). I think I have options of Verizon FiOS, DirecTV, Dish, Century Link, or even Netflix, Hulu Plus or Amazon Prime with Apple TV or Roku. Even if we make a TV change, I may stay with them for internet.

Not much to share today, so I won't prolong the agony, and the ecstasy of moving on to more important endeavors is always so sweet (how about the clever literary reference, huh?). Have a good Hump Day.

Silent Night (No, Not That One)

As I write this on Monday night, I just realized that, with no GRANDS here tonight, it is really quiet. So, I called the post 'Silent Night'. I am sooo clever.

To create today's CoV, I had to do some research into President Obama's campaign promises. I did not care whether he kept them or not. I just wanted the promises in the strip to sound like real campaign (or health care) promises.

It is supposed to reach 84F tomorrow. That makes me dream of cooler weather.

Here is what I just found out that happened on this day in history. The USA got its first black congressman. And it was from Mississippi. And it was in the 70s. The 1870s. "On Feb. 25, 1870, Hiram R. Revels, Republican of Mississippi, became the first black member of the United States Senate as he was sworn in to serve out the unexpired term of Jefferson Davis." Curious indeed.

Have you ever heard of Gravity Glue? Have you wondered what type of person creates those little stacks of rocks you sometimes see while on vacation? Watch this video for a little hint.

If you know my family, you know they are nuts for Disney and Disneyland. We have not made it down to Disney World (well, maybe one of us has been there), but did you see that they have raised their prices? I imagine that Disneyland will, too. Isn't there a limit to how much fun can cost?

Oh, I was fixing to sign off, but there is something I forgot to mention. I paid our cable bill last night, and almost choked on how expensive it is now. They raised their rates (do they hire ex-Disney employees or something), just a little bit on each part, but the total went up over $20 per month to over $300. Yeah, I need to talk to the family and see how we can cut that back down. It may be time to look at DirecTV or something. I may also give up our landline phone. I know. I am surprised at myself, too. I did see stories about dropping cable here and here.

OK, Tuesday is already started and I am behind. See ya.

PB&J

Today's post is a post-birthday post (could I use the word 'post' any more in that sentence). So, that is the PB for the title. We had a pile of siblings come into town for Mom's birthday. We played some games (Scripts and Scribes and Gunrunners). A good time was had by all. And the J is grandson in the photo below.

This month marks six months of eating vegan (looking back over my blog posts, it looks like I started around August second). Has it made a difference? I am not sure how to tell. Do I feel better? Well, I don't feel worse. It is hard to remember exactly how I was feeling in every respect. Will I continue? Yes, for now. Should you convert? That is a decision I cannot make for you.

When you hear the phrase 'blood, sweat and tears', do you think of a singing group from the 60s-70s or do you think of Winston Churchill? In the future, maybe you'll think of Clarity of Vision.

Here is Mom and me spending time with some GRANDS (and GREATS).

Did you watch the Closing Ceremonies from the Olympics? I didn't. We had a Chorale concert last night, so it was nearly 9pm before I got home. Then, I still had to create today's Clarity of Vision. So, no TV. However, there WILL be TV this coming Wednesday night. Why? Survivor is back, baby.

My interweb scan did not reveal any additional links or tidbits to share, so I will let us both start our Monday. Whether your Monday involves Tai Chi, San Diego, the daily job, or watching last week's recordings of The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, let's get it going. We can visit again tomorrow.

Workday Four of Workweek Eight

So, do you prefer icons and screen images that align with the physical world (skeumorphism), or does it matter to you?

Signs from our recent foray to cool weather. First, the name of the place we had Sunday lunch.

And next, a couple of signs that LMW liked because they are cool looking (which is only appropriate in a cool weather locale).

Remember today's CoV? It was about a bookshelf. One that most of us are familiar with is the Expedit from Ikea. Do you have one, or maybe you used to at some point (like during college)? We do. Anyway, what if you heard they were going to discontinue it. I would be surprised, and yet...

I forget. Did you say you are watching the Olympics or not? Anyway, This slide show demonstrates what sometimes happens to the venues after the Games end.

Would you want to look like the cover models you see everywhere? Some women were made over into their fantasy selves and the results were surprising. Read about it.

Would you watch a show called Joking Bad? This video shows us that it looks unbelievably like a TV program that recently ended its multi-year run. This is from Jimmy Fallon's Late Night days. Do not watch it unless you watched all of the predecessor show.

Speaking of Fallon, here is the Chickeneers version of Ho Hey.

And with that, my time is up. I used too much of it watching that Joking Bad video, so I need to get some job deliverables completed so I can come back Monday. See you then.

Oh, and Happy Birthday to Mom tomorrow.

Two Millard Fillmore-related Posts in One Week

Here is someone who really enjoys their meals. Can't you just see it on his face? Baked in Pinetop is probably his new, favorite place.

Daddy and son out for a walk in Pole Knoll Recreation Area.

And now, it is his grandfather's turn.

Sometimes, my mind plays with words in ways that surprise even me. This CoV came about because I combined Wall-E and firewall.

Did you see the article about the "most influential candy bar"? Which one do you think it is? I was way off. I am not going to spoil it. Read it for yourself.

I am watching the CBS Sunday Morning program as I write this. Right now, there is a story about Millard Fillmore on the program. And I recently mentioned him in my Clarity of Vision comic. Crazy, right?

I have watched the first two Fallon Tonight Shows and they were not bad. He is a likable guy and is bringing skits and stuff back to the program (a la Johnny Carson). Will I watch it every night? No, I am sure that I will not. What about you? Have you seen any of them? If not, check out this barbershop quartet singing a Justin Timberlake song.

I could not find a way to make sure that every paragraph in today's post has a link. In fact, by adding this paragraph, my percentage has dropped to only about 50%. Oh well. Y'all have a great Thursday.

The Week is Flying By

At least, it seems to be flying by since it is Hump Day, but only my second day of work for the week. Nice, right? Now, if only there were some way to make tomorrow the last day of the workweek.

Both of the granddaughters are reading "chapter books" now. So, in honor of hearing them read and struggling with a few of the words....

Do you recognize these tracks? I saw them in the snow, but was not sure what they were from. A rabbit, maybe? Except I am not sure why they would drag their paws (pronounced 'pauls' by young kids) between jumps.

How about these? OK, maybe these are a bit more obvious. Maybe they are from a wolf chasing a young kid who cannot properly pronounce 'paw'?

OK, these do not belong in anybody's house, regardless of the holiday or purpose for owning them. There are a bit too creepy.

However, if you have an extra $40K, this is something that might belong in your house. Plus, you would have saved $5K by purchasing it now. Be sure to read about the review comments.

BTW, I made my first quinoa dish last night. It seems I might have used too much water (I followed the recipe and not the box instructions), so we'll see how it tastes at lunch today.

A dude has stopped by nice and early today. I hope this does not mean I will actually have to work today. Just in case, though, I will get going. l8r, sk8r.

Post-President's Day Post

Officially, the US Government refers to President's Day as Washington's Birthday. Yeah, they seem to have left Lincoln out of it. What's up with that? As you may have noticed, I did not post because the company gives us the day off (maybe since we are an education-related company). Anyway, it also meant I did not create a Clarity of Vision, but I did create one in celebration of President's Day.

During the weekend, we scooted up to cooler climes in the northeast part of the state. How cool was it? Well, for those of you in other parts of the country, this scene may look way too common. For us, where it was reaching 88F at home, this was very welcome.

At lunch one day, the restaurant had a shuffle board type game where you push a metal disk toward the other end of the table covered by sawdust. She mentioned it was like curling and I said "Yes, it is" without thinking what she meant. So, after we ordered lunch, she went over to play and placed the disk on the table. She then picked up the brush you can see in the right hand gutter and pushed the disk towards me and began to sweep of the sawdust in front of the disk. Yes, I did have to laugh and then told her the sawdust was important and it was played differently than curling.

I have actually been watching the Olympic coverage as I type this on Monday night. I will end it now to see if the American pair can win gold. We will finish the post on Tuesday morning from work.

And...we're back. if you are reading this and you can see this sentence, it means we both made it to Tuesday. And it means I can announce that the US skaters did indeed win Gold. Congrats to them.

I am sure I have highlighted this type of thing before, but here is a funny review for a book in Amazon. The book, Avoid Huge Ships, seems like an interesting read, doesn't it?

My early morning perusal of all things interweb did not bring up anything else I want to share today, so let's start our day a little early. Come on. It is only a four day workweek for many of us, so we need to work 25% harder each day to get our week's output completed.

Friday Brain Freeze (And Not Because of the Weather)

Did I mention that we have been watching some of the Olympics? Last night, we watched some curling before we went to our vegan cooking class and men's freestyle skiing after class. One of those inspired today's Clarity of Vision.

However, I did not remember to load up photos after the class. So, it's just you and me, sitting here, quietly waiting for the other to raise a topic that we can discuss....

The cooking class was nice. It was lower key than last month. She left topics up to us, saying the overall theme would be "How to convert your favorite recipes to be healthier". Healthier may mean just that, or it could mean to go all the way to vegetarian or even vegan. So, we asked about a Mexican casserole that SS and I used to devour. Holly gave us some ideas, so we might try it.

If you could know how long you will live, would you like to know? If you knew, you could maximize on those things that are important to you, but you might worry as the time ticked away. If you did not know, would you or your family feel sad that you missed out on anything? Anyway, I know this is totally unscientific, but this quiz asks lifestyle questions to give you a number. I will apparently make it to age 83.

Want to know some options for hanging family photos? This houzz article has some cool options.

Apparently, I've got nothing today. So, since it is just you and I, we can each go our separate ways and get Friday over with so Saturday will arrive. have a pleasant weekend.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Shh. Listen closely and I am sure you will hear words of wisdom.

Well, maybe if you listen to someone else, you will hear words of wisdom. Anyway...

Speaking of 'Do You Hear What I Hear", watch this clip about a breakup using only movie titles. They show you the DVD box for every movie, so you can track what they are saying. It is very creative.

Hey, I came across this photo of a flower at Disneyland that I hadn't really looked at before. It's kind of nice.

Speaking of The Dis, here's a cute little corner over in California Adventure.

Let's see one more flower before we leave the photos behind.

Have you got a few more seconds? It will only take 26 seconds. Watch this clip of lasers and Olympic athletes.

Vegan cooking class tonight. Tonight's topic is how to adapt recipes to be more healthy. Sounds interesting, right?

Before then, though, is a full workday. So, let's get this party started.

A GRAND Post

It is interesting how people or children unfamiliar with a phrase might hear it in a totally different way.

As you sit there reading this blog, think back to reading to your kids, or maybe your grandkids. Don't they seem to always go back to the same books, over...and over...and over again? Here our grandson is asking TD to read to him.

Here he is letting his sister read to him.

And here he is asking Pops to read to him. Did I? What do you think?

Speaking of GRANDS, JV+KLIK came by tonight for a quick visit and a pizza dinner. No, I did not partake, sticking with quinoa salad and kale salad. Maybe their visit made me use their photos above and have them in today's CoV.

The grandkids are the children of my son and his better half. Speaking of sun, check out this cool video of the son. Whew, I had to really stretch that one to make it work. I'm not sure it was worth either of our times.

How many of you out there would give up cable (or DirecTV or whatever) to save money? This guy talks about going from $150/month down to $20/month. He subscribed to NetFlix and Amazon Prime and so, can watch a few of his favorites. I've read before about these people, but I am not there yet. We are watching some Olympic event on the NBC cable channels as well as on regular NBC. The GRANDS like Disney Channel when they are over. I catch Mythbusters and Pawn Stars and Storage Wars and The Walking Dead on different stations. What can I say? After all, it's only slightly less expensive than my vegan meals at Whole Foods.

Whoops. It is late and I thought I had already published today's post. Here you go. Please be a responsible consumer and recycle this when you finish. Thanks.

Shh, Don't Tell

I got chosen to be the project manager for a project I cannot talk about. I guess that's good, right? I hope it will be fun, but I don't know what it is about until I sign some non-disclosure papers tomorrow.

Those of you in a business environment hear a lot of buzzwords, I am sure. I wonder if they always mean what they imply.

How long did you wear your jeans before you first washed them? Some of you probably washed them before the first wearing. Others may have gone 2-3 times, right? Apparently, we should have worn them a long time before washing them. Who knew?

Have you ever been peacefully working on the computer when you are suddenly surrounded with animals? Not very often? Well, MBH certainly knows how it feels.

Here I am with OD (oldest granddaughter) playing a game. It is Disney Clue: Haunted Mansion. I think it is a fun twist on an old classic.

I think that Preacher Bro jumped over Matt 18:15-16 and went straight to verse 17. Sure, he wrote yesterday's comment to me, but all of you can see it, so this seems like he is treating me like a tax collector. What am I talking about. It seems I was incorrect on the rules of the Beaver game that I shared yesterday. Go look at his comment to see the real rules. I knew something seemed wrong, but I couldn't find anything online and, as he notes, i am getting older.

[Tuesday Treats] Last night, MBH was watching TV and petting the Grumpy Old Dog (Hmm, that acronym would be GOD. I'll think about an alternative). He suddenly turned and snapped at her. We made him get down and stay away from us. This is a reminder we must be really careful to watch the GRANDS around him.

I just saw that Shirley Temple Black died. No matter your age, I sure you have heard of Shirley Temple. I have seen several of her 1930s-ish movies. She was a little cutie and even FDR made mention of the impact of her upbeat movies. I did not find any mention of her religious beliefs, so I am not sure how upbeat she is feeling now.

I am quite sure I will not be eating an apple this way. And what about the chicken wings? Would you take the time to get them mouth-worthy by doing what is suggested?

As I often do, I was writing on today's post until I hear the noise level around me reach the "We're burning daylight" level. What exactly is that level? If you don't know, I can't tell you. Sorry. Anyway, it means I need to sign off and go put my lunch in the fridge. Have a terrific Tuesday.

Honey, I'm Hooooome!

Did you just hear anything freezing over? I know that is when I was expecting the comic creation website bitstrips to actually become available again. However, it is here today (it could have been anytime between early Jan and now since I stopped checking it about then). So, today's post title is referring to the opportunity for new Clarity of Vision comics. Whoo hoo. Anyway, we'll start off with an Olympics-related strip.

A couple of weekends ago, we took the GRANDS to a park. At one end of the little lake is a waterfall that our kids used to play on. Now, the GRANDS enjoy it just as much as their Daddy did.

Shortly thereafter, one of the dogs decided that chasing ducks is fun, even if it means jumping into the lake. As soon as she hit the water, though, she decided it was not as much fun as she thought and started trying to jump out. We pulled her out and walked a while longer until she dried out. She is still totally wet in the shot, but her fur doesn't show it in the shot. You can see her paw prints on the sidewalk, though.

While at the park, we also had a picnic. We tied the dogs to the stroller while we ate.

Growing up, whenever the family would take road trips, we would play games during the drive. One of them was trying to see license plates from as many different places as we could find. Another we called Beaver, where you would shout out "Beaver" each time you saw a car coming in the distance. The first to say it got the point. If it was a truck (pickup or semi), you lost a point. I used to say it when I saw road signs until I got glasses. I was the subject of much ridicule (of course, had it been them doing that, I would have been equally merciless, so it's OK). My point is there is a new app for playing games during trips. It uses the actual landmarks and towns that you pass through as part of the game. You can read a little about it here.

Blasphemy? You decide? Just remember, though, that it was J.K. Rowling that said it.

[Monday's Meanderings] All of the above was written Sunday night. Recently, the whole post has been written on the morning of the posting date. Today, though, I don't really have anything to add. There are no interesting links that I ran across. I created the CoV last night, now that I can write new ones. I added my photos last night as I watched the Olympics. Photos in non-company websites are being increasingly blocked, and even some formerly available sites like boardgamegeek, so it is not as easy to find content I want to include. All of which means...we are done for today. Back tomorrow.

Funeral, Friends, Food = Fun?

Yesterday afternoon was spent at a funeral memorial for the son of longtime friends. Certainly, it is a sad occasion, but the event was surprisingly upbeat. For me, it probably helped that the body wasn't there. The minister (our former pastor from that church) did a good service tying sin and death in the world, loving parents, his baptism of this man, and ultimate reunion in heaven made it a nice memorial. We saw many old friends we have not seen in years and had a good time visiting. One man told me I was getting a lot more snow on the roof. I told him I would refrain from the typical furnace reply. One lady told me that she hadn't seen me in years and regretted never telling me that her kids felt I was their favorite worship leader at church when I used to fill in there. That's nice of her. Families brought lots of sweets, but I was good. And the GRANDS were there, so we got to see them again.

We got home feeling a little drained and I did not think about today's blog posting. You know what that means. No photos. Again. Sorry. Again.

This morning, I do have a classic CoV because I can access them at work.

Did I mention that SS and LMW brought me some blood oranges after their mini-vacay last week? They brought sweets and things for the others, but knew I couldn't eat any of that. Isn't that nice? They are really good.

I will not say where they went, but I did see this article related to that place.

I am glad they didn't bring me this dessert from Sochi. I wonder if it comes with "Coffee in lap"?

We recorded the last Jay Leno Tonight Show, but have not watched it yet. The online buzz says it was clever, especially Billy Crystal's singing group, the Shut Your Von Trapp Family Singers.

Oh, the singing duo on Sunday is not a trio. That's OK. We have to practice at 7:30am on Sunday. That's less OK. Tenor notes at 7:30? Not fun.

I'd better go warm up now. Just in case. See you here on Monday. 7:30am? No problem.

I Blew My Nose and Then, I Blew My Mind

Apologies to the Rolling Stones for the paraphrase in today's post title. I blew my nose as I was working on the post and that song popped into my head.

Have you seen the Consumer Reports ratings of overall vehicle satisfaction? I'll give you a hint, the top brand starts with "Toy". We had a Camry before we moved to Mexico, but now drive one of the bottom vehicles, a Jeep.

I did upload the recent photos my my home laptop, but we spent our time posting them to Facebook and I did not have access to load them here. Sorry. Go check them out there if you want. I'll share some here soon...maybe tonight.

MBH and I have a funeral to attend this afternoon for the son of some longtime friends. I think he was in his 40s. Pretty sad. You can keep that family in your prayers.

Less sad is another CoV rerun, proudly presenting your favorites from days gone by. Here is a Mt. Rushmore inspired comic from July, 2009. That's why I placed the characters in the order shown.

Are you going to watch the Olympics? I will probably take some looks, but I am not overly psyched. I will not rearrange my schedule for them. What if they were in a time zone where they were more likely to be live? I don't know. Maybe. I will catch some of the opening tonight.

Our new (to us) washing machine is doing just that. Washing. We are glad.

Have you ever flashed your headlights at someone to warn them of a speed trap you just passed? I certainly have, and have been warned of them before. No, I don't (usually) exceed the limit by too much (7-9mph at highway speeds), but with a police officer watching, I would slow down. Well, one town was ticketing drivers that did that, but a judge has said they cannot enforce that.

You cannot force me to write anymore today, either. And I don't need a judge to tell me that. I can just walk away...and so should you...until tomorrow.

Git 'Er Done

It is a full hour after my normal blogging time, so today's blog post will really be short and sweet. I did not write it last night since I had Chorale practice and then food shopping at Whole Foods (whew, that place is not cheap). I did take a few minutes to load the last couple of week's worth of photos onto my computer, but it was late and I did not review them nor upload any to the blog.

Tonight, I meet with a woman from our Sunday School class to practice for singing Sunday morning. It is just a hymn, and only the two of us, so it should be straightforward. No, I cannot tell you which hymn as I do not remember the name (it is not one of your common ones, although I do remember it).

It appears I was aware of Twitter back in 2009. I am no more conversant in it here almost five years later, but this could still work.

I did see this article on the best way to hold a hamburger to avoid wearing it for the rest of the day (it would probably work for a veggie burger, too!).

Whew, I whipped this out pretty quickly. Do not look at the edges or you will see I did not have time to do it properly. Using the word whipped above reminds me of the way they talk about that word a lot on Family Guy. Haven't seen any of those episodes. Read about the Stewie pronunciation here.

More tomorrow, I promise.

It's a Clean Machine

The Beatles may have sung those words in Penny Lane, but it is not actually true of our new (to us) washing machine. We went and got it last night from a friend who is retiring. It has a bit of rust damage to the lid, but, most importantly, it runs. They have a new one at their new house, so this has not been used in a few months. Needless to say, we wanted to run a few loads through it with some bleach and then some vinegar to clear out the musty smells. After that, I ran a load of towels through it and they came out clean and did not smell bad. Whoo hoo. Success.

I'm going to use that as my excuse for why I did not do any photo uploading last night. It also means we have not placed any weekend photos of the GRANDS on the Book of Face.

You know, this vegan diet had better pay off in the next few years by reducing serious illness and hospital visits because, for now, it is stinking expensive. It costs a lot more to eat healthy than junk food and fast food. I guess I need to get a couple of non-stick pans and do some of it. Sure, it looks real easy when I go to that vegan cooking class and she has all the ingredients and all the cooking utensils and has done it before. Then again, Dad is picking up the cooking thing fairly well. I'll keep you informed how it's going. For tonight, though, I'll hit Whole Foods on my way home after Chorale practice.

As you know. I refer to my family by their initials or initial chosen for them. These include MBH-My Better Half, TD-Teacher Daughter, SS-Salesman Son, LMW-daughter-in-love, JV+KLIK-Son and his family. Ex-NZ Niece-a niece who spent 1-1/2 years in NZ as an ex-pat, CPA Cuz-you can guess that one. Anyway, as I wrote the previous paragraph, I thought about calling Dad by a set of initials. I changed my mind when the best one, My Old Man, would have had me call him by a weird set of initials. I toyed with finding words that would let me call Mom DAD, but could find the clever words to do so.

Today's Blast-From-the-Past CoV seems torn from today's Obamacare headlines.

What US state would you guess is the "most religious"? Assuming that they asked people about how often they attended, etc, I would have said Utah. I would have been wrong...it was #2. Which state takes the crown? And which state is "least religious?" Read this article and all questions will be answered.

Would you pay $25K or so for an electric car with a range of 75 miles per charge? Sales of the Nissan Leaf are up 25% over the previous year. It would be cool to avoid gas prices, but I could only use it as our commuter car. It wouldn't be practical for CO or CA trips, or even reaching JV+KLIK.

Do you watch Shark Tank. We do, and I like it. I also used to enjoy the program Pitchmen, about the guys to make infomercials and all the product pitches they used to see. Back to Shark Tank, have you thought about how important the TV time is, even if they do not get an offer from a shark? This article talks about one such product. I thought it was interesting.

Gots to go, folks. I types past my normally allotted time for blogging, so now, I am in a hurry. I don't have time for a clever ending sentence, so let's just awkwardly turn away from each other and walk away.

Where Did My Brain Go?

I was not too emotionally invested in the Big Game last night. Even before it was obvious that Denver missed the bus and they sent in a substitute team, I thought it would be cool for Peyton to win, but neat for a newcomer team to win. Still, I would have liked a more evenly balanced game. And how about those commercials? Yeah, not so much for me. I suppose that a few were cute, but it was not a memorable year for them, either. And what about the half-time show with Bruno and RHCP? I liked Bruno, but not RHCP. That is an unscientific result based on my preferences.

And how about today's photos? Yeah, not so much for you, since I didn't upload any. We do have some new ones of the GRANDS I can share, but I did not get around to it after the Game. I was distracted, and we wanted to catch a TV program (since we have lived Disney Channel for the past 48 hours).

And how about today's CoV? Finally, we are both in better luck as I can make that happen right now. Please hold while I transfer your attention.

What about links to share with you? Again, not so much for you. I decided not to link anything about Philip Seymour Hoffman. I searched for a definitive link with all of the Game commercials from yesterday, with this being the closets. I did not see all of them, so I won't comment on their rankings. I did find one related to the type of topic Salesman Son might comment on. However, I know that he would counter that one of his favorites did not make the list.

Did I hear the factory whistle going off? I'd best get this week underway. Man, these five-day workweeks are killing me. Let's get back together soon.