Life In The Weeds

Thanksgiving, a real treat!

Thanksgiving is a great holiday!

It's one of the few where you really just spend time with the family and do nothing...eat, talk, watch football, eat some more, nap, talk, more football, then eat again.  Now that is a routine worth repeating year in and year out!

We enjoyed seeing lots of relatives on both sides of the family...it was a real treat!  We truly have so much to be thankful for in our lives!

mj

Secrets, Confidentiality

Have you ever asked a friend if he can keep a secret and had him say, "No"? Ever?

Do you keep secrets that someone else has entrusted you with - all the time? some of the time?, it depends? well, I just tell my spouse? Which is it?

Keeping a bona fide and juicy secret is the most challenging form of temptation. Everyone wants to be the focal point of information and to prove that they know something that someone else doesn't.

That's why this saying rings so true: "I don't have any problem keeping secrets, it's the people I tell that can't keep their mouth shut".

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

November 20, 1954

In Elmhurt, New York, the weather on this day was unseasonably warm, at 64 degrees. 

Two young adults were standing at the alter sharing there vows..."I will love and honor you all the days of my life"

55 years later, with 6 children and 16 grandchildren, my parents are still going strong!

Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad.

mj

A Free Meal

So, here is a follow up to my recent post regarding a free meal for Veterans on Veteran's Day.

How hard would it be for, say, McDonald's, Burger King and Wendy's, to give away free meals for an entire day, once a month.  How much profit could they really loose?   I'll bet a program like this would be a non-factor to the bottom line.

You see some chains offering "specials" all the time...kids eat free, free appetizers, buy two get one free, etc.  Why not coordinate efforts and actually do some REAL good for the world?

Obviously, there would be some significant logistics to make something like this work...but if there were a consortium of restaurants involved, I like the chances...

mj

Veteran's Day

I know I am a little late on this post, but thought it was worthy to get it out there...last week, Wednesday, 11/11, was Veteran's Day.

My father was a Marine and spent almost 2 years in Korea (1950-52)...each year, my brother and I try to out do one another by seeing who can get the first phone call "in" to thank Pops for his service.

This year, I was quite impressed with how Applebee's handled Veteran's Day...ANY Veteran who came through the doors at Applebees last Wednesday received a free lunch.  This was not a local campaign that I caught wind of...rather, I saw a few national commercials highlighting their commitment to Veterans leading up to last Wednesday.

A few other chain's stepped up as well...but fell a little short.  For instance, Outback Steakhouse offered a free "Bloomin' Onion" for Veteran's...not an entire meal.  That's like saying, "hey, thanks for your service...but I'm really not that impressed!"  I guess it's the thought that counts...

I know am late with this post, but it's never to late to thank a Veteran!

mj

Rental Rip-off

I just rented a car form Avis.  I am heading up to Boston for a meeting and decided to drive, rather than fly.  I am a loyal Avis customer and have never had a problem with their cars or their service.

I usually do not pay much attention to the service agreement, as we have a corporate contract.

Like most people, I've rented many, many cars...hundreds over the years.  And, like most people, I know that if you bring to rental car back with an empty tank of gas, then you will be charged a premium to fill the tank upon your return.  This is not an Avis thing, it is a universal car rental thing.

So, upon departing this evening from Avis, the agent reminded me to bring the car back with a full tank of gas, "or we will charge you $8.00 per gallon for each gallon below full."  $8 buck. per gallon. 1,2,3,4,5,6,7, EIGHT per gallon.

Can someone please explain this logic?  How is it possible for rental agencies to get away with this?  It's the same gas from the same gas station, but they can charge the customer almost 4x the price?

This must be violating some sort of SEC, FDA, FAA policy...or, at least, one of the Amendments!!

mj

Free press

In America, we have a free press, guaranteed by the Constitution. As a capitalist, here's what I don't get.

In most instances, newspapers, magazines and other media outlets are permitted unfettered freedom to seek and acquire  information for free. Then those outlets package that information and charge customers and advertisers for access to it.

So, for the public, the news in the Wall Street Journal, which the WSJ acquires for free, under guarantee of the Constitution, is not available for free to the citizenry of the United States. Taking another view, if Lance Armstrong is named Sportsman of the Year by Sports Illustrated and the edition sells more copies than any other issue of SI in history, the magazine reaps a financial bonanza but Lance gets nada from the magazine sales.

Why don't the subjects covered in the news get a share of the financial gain, since they are the providers of the material that generated the sale and profit?

O.D.O.o.O.D.B.

Soccer is for Girls

Soccer is a beautiful game.  It is the ONLY sport, worldwide, that is still a players game.  Once the whistle blows, their is absolutely nothing a coach can do to truly effect the game.

It is often said that Women's soccer is a prettier game to watch than the men's game...women are very technical, play a more finesse style game and play a "cleaner" brand a soccer.

Take a look at the following woman's collegiate soccer highlight.  This clip played on ESPN over the weekend and has received millions of hits...unfortunately for all the wrong reasons.

I am a big believer in playing hard and leaving nothing on the field...I certainly was not the cleanest of players...but, this athlete went over the line. 

FYI, the University suspended her indefinitely from the program.

mj

If the Shoe Fits

Marcus Jordan, the son of Michael Jordan, is certainly not making a name for himself!  Well, maybe he is, but, maybe, not as he would like! 

Recently, Marcus, who attends University of Central Florida (presumably on a full ride) refused to wear the standard issue Adidas sneakers during a game.  Rather, he chose to wear his NIke Air Jordan sneakers.  His actions are a violation of the agreement that UCF and Adidas have in place...thus, UCF has lost their exclusive 3 million dollar deal!   He says that during the recruiting process UCF "promised" he could wear his NIke's...talk about living in the shadow's of your old man.

UCF should yank Jordan's scholarship and/or bench his skinny ass until he laces up some Adidas!

Must be rough...I wonder if his silver spoon get's in the way of his jumper...does he ride the team bus OR demand to fly first class!

You would think Marcus would want to transition into his college career with as little fanfare as possible...create new friends and his own identity...I guess not!

It wouldn't bother me to know that Marcus to a "spill" on campus "tripping on his Air Jordan's"...

mj

Trader Joe's

Well, Princeton finally has a Trader Joe's.

I have been to a few Trader Joe's over the years...there is really large one in NYC...some people swear by them...I was not all that impressed.

Don't get me wrong, it was nice.  Very clean (as you might imagine) and the service was great.  I thought it seemed a bit small and it does not carry any alcohol.  Apparently, they have applied for the license to carry alcohol and are waiting for approval.

As Kim and I wondered through the aisle, we both agreed that, while the food is healthy and organic, it's just not a perfectt fit for a large family.  All the products are sold in small portions and it's not cheap!

Trader Joe's seems like a great place to go when you are having a dinner party or want to spice up an evening cocktail party...it's certainly not your regular, once a week grocery store.

mj