A Sweet Piece of History

April 26, 2018

If I say that you may not be able to get Necco wafers anymore, you may say, “Eh, no big deal. I’ve never heard of them.”

If I say that the company who makes those little Valentine’s Day hearts with sayings on them is going out of business, you might say, “Oh, that’s a shame!”

Those hearts are Necco wafers in heart form. Normally they’re just—round wafers.

Some other things I didn’t know Necco wafers until recently (Thank you, Daniel Neman of the Post-Dispatch):

Union soldiers carried Necco wafers in the Civil War. The U. S. government issued them to soldiers during WWII because they didn’t melt and didn’t break in transit. (The article didn’t mention anything about Necco wafers and WWI. Maybe the government thought that giving the soldiers hardtack left over from the Civil War was enough of a treat.)

Admiral Byrd brought 2-1/2 tons of them on his first expedition to the Arctic, and in 1913 explorer Donald MacMillan brought them with him to give to Inuit children. These wafers are woven into the fabric of American history, even if we didn’t know about them.

So, if you run across some Necco wafers before they go out of business, grab yourself a piece of history. Savor the moment.

More Great Ideas for Dealing with School Shootings

April 22, 2018

Here are some more ideas about how to help teachers and students deal with mass shootings:

Activated by the sound of gunfire, robots could glide out of hidden recesses in school hallways, sneak up behind the shooters, and whack them with a mini-bat, or perhaps something more sturdy.

Armed drones, activated by the sound of gunfire, could hunt down the shooters and disarm them by any means necessary.

AK-47 owners could stage a demonstration for superintendents, politicians, and NRA officials: Take them to a shooting range, start shooting at targets, and ask who wants to jump in front of the shooters and throw rocks to try and stop them.

How About a Pitching Machine?

April 21, 2018

A school district in Pennsylvania gave teachers mini baseball bats in case of an armed attack. The superintendent said that they were a symbolic “last resort” for teachers who wanted to fight back, not just hide and wait.

Another school district in Pennsylvania handed out buckets of rocks for students and teachers to throw at shooters.

If you’re looking for bizarre solutions, why not just install a pitching machine in every classroom? Teachers could aim it at the doorway and then duck, hoping that a fastball would bean the shooter before he shoots the machine.

Or they could aim it at the next official who comes up with a stupid idea about how students should deal with shooters.

I Asked and I Received

April 19, 2018

In “Ask and Ye Shall Receive” (September 18, 2016) I said that I’d like to be able fly to the Berkshires to see the leaves at their peak, or to DC to see the cherry blossoms, without having to plan a vacation in advance that might miss the best dates altogether.

Then I discovered that Pere Marquette Park has beautiful foliage within an hour’s drive. All I needed, I said, was some cherry blossoms nearby, and I could dispense with the private jet wish.

Done.

The botanical garden’s cherry blossoms aren’t as spectacular, I assume, as the ones in Washington, D.C., but they do put on a pretty good display.

I asked and I received.

They Are Not Excelling

April 12, 2018

If Google wants its Google Sheets to be taken seriously, why on earth didn’t they include the Group Worksheets function in their spreadsheets?

Until they do, I’m sticking with Excel.

M. Thenardier Would Be Proud

April 15, 2018

The hospitality industry is getting extremely creative about ways to charge fees. An article I read today mentioned a hotel that charged an extra $7 for a room on the top floor.

It reminded me of the innkeeper in the musical version of “Les Miserables”:

“Charge ’em for the lice, extra for the mice, two percent for looking in the mirror twice.
 Here a little slice, there a little cut, three percent for sleeping with the window shut!”

Let’s hope none of these creative geniuses ever saw “Sweeney Todd.”

Criminal Carelessness

April 14, 2018

A woman who applied for a job at a county jail in New Hampshire was arrested

when employees discovered that she was wanted by police in Maine.

Mice Try!

April 13, 2018

A judge in Pilar, Argentina was skeptical of the explanation police offered for the disappearance of 1,000 pounds of pot from the police warehouse.

The officers’ theory?

Mice must have eaten it.

The officers will have another chance to explain the disappearance when they testify before the judge on May 4.

Ducks and Geese and Kids

April 9, 2018

In an Op-Ed piece for the Kansas City Star, Charles Hammer notes that it is illegal to hunt ducks and geese with shotguns that hold more than three shells. If a magazine holds more than three shells it must have a plug that can only be removed by disassembling the gun.

He feels that our children (and other citizens) deserve the same protection as the ducks and geese, and that perhaps we should adjust our gun laws accordingly.

I think he makes a fair point.

Relax, They Won't Hurt You

April 9, 2018

I understand that WalMart is raising eyebrows by selling something called Funeral Potatoes.

If you come from the right part of the country, you’ll know that that means they’re a casserole dish that’s often taken to funerals.

If you don’t, they might make you nervous.

Tech Talk

April 6, 2018

As I was changing the sheets this morning, my husband said he was uninstalling and re-installing a program on the computer.

“Huh”, I said to myself. “I guess I’m uninstalling and re-installing sheets.”

I'll Bet Jack Reacher Doesn't Have To Put Up With This Nonsense

April 4, 2018

I wrote to an author whose series I read, and I asked if a) Somebody else could try solving the crime for a change and b) the heroine could rescue somebody else instead of being rescued for a change.

That got me thinking: In how many series where women solve the mysteries are they being perpetually rescued? I don’t keep track, but I think the answer is, “A pretty fair number.”

Then I started wondering, “How many times do Jack Reacher, J.P. Beaumont, Elvis Cole, Joe Pike and Sean Dillon have to get rescued?” I think the answer to that one is, “Rarely, if ever.” (I know that Elvis Cole got kidnapped once, and Joe Pike and Jon Stone tried to find him; but I can’t remember if they saved him or he saved himself.)

So I think that authors who write about women protagonists need to step up their game a little.

August 20, 2018

Oops! I forgot to mention that Sheriff Dan Rhodes has sometimes been pulled out of a sticky situation by his deputy Ruth Grady. Way to go, Bill Crider!

Looking Out For The Teachers

March 30, 2018

I was happy to read in the paper that some school districts are providing clinics especially for teachers.

When teachers have to go to the doctor, they often have to take a half-day’s vacation, because the doctor’s office may be behind on appointments and keep them waiting. So some teachers won’t go. When they do go, the district often has to hire a sub for a half-day. It’s inconvenient and expensive all around.

The clinics allow the teachers to have firm appointment times that can be fit into a lunch hour or other schedule break, alleviating the necessity for subs and vacation time.

I’m glad that school districts are taking an approach that’s not only practical, but humane. Kudos.

Were You Really Surprised at Facebook?

April 2, 2018

Were you really surprised that Facebook has been collecting and distributing your data?

The first time you got an ad on Facebook for something that you’d clicked on while browsing the internet, wasn’t that a tipoff?

When you listed the college you graduated from on Facebook and immediately started getting targeted ads and info for it, wasn't that a tipoff?

I connected with a colleague on Linked In and was suddenly getting friend suggestions on Facebook for her Linked In contacts.

I would say that Facebook has been pretty blatant about playing fast and loose with our data.


So really: Were you surprised?




Now I understand that if you stand in your kitchen and mention that you need a toaster, Alexa, even if it’s positioned in another room, will see to it that you start getting ads for toasters. Your TV can track what you watch, Netflix gives you suggestions based on your viewing picks…

So don’t be surprised. Just be careful.

Don't Churches Have Faith?

March 25, 2018

The poor pay that church workers receive is legendary. Churches like to say that low wages are a sacrifice, and part of doing God’s work.

What ever happened to casting their bread upon the waters and finding it again (Ecclesiastes)?  In other words, be liberal in bestowing good things, for you will be rewarded in time.

Churches don’t seem to be taking that advice to heart. Perhaps they should try it.

Or don’t they have any faith?

(I hate to say it, but televangelists reward themselves handsomely, and the money keeps rolling in. I’m not saying that churches should fleece the gullible; but maybe they could try paying their workers a decent wage and see what happens.)