Update on NOTEFLIX’s production of” Troubles in the Garden”: On New Year’s Eve several members of our cast went to the local wine bar to see what all the wine drinking ‘hoo-hah’ was about. They overheard many people in the bar making Resolutions to ‘Cut Back’ on their consumption during the next year – while at the same time gulping the wine down with a fever pitch. Stuffed animals do not drink wine, so they could never understand any of this. Can you tell how many bottles were consumed at the time this picture was taken? If it takes you more than ten seconds, you might consider ‘Cutting Back’ yourself. (*Answer at bottom of post)
MOSTLY ECONOMICS RELATED…:
- TESLA has agreed to…”make changes to its ‘Passenger Play’ feature that allowed games to be played (by the driver) on its touchscreen dashboard while the car is in motion.” Not only is Musk smart and the ‘Person of the Year’ – he is agreeable, as well.
- TikTok is the world’s most trafficked site. Bigger than GOOGLE and FaceBook, even. …And I was just beginning to learn how to use the Googler and the FaceBooker and now I am out of sync, again. What is next? …OOOOPS, It was just announced META has taken over the first trafficked position…leaving TikTok in 2nd place. What is going to happen next next?
- AMAZON is the most trusted ‘Institution’ in America – after the U.S. Military. How come I never get asked to participate in any of these polls? What about TikTok and META ?…How come they aren’t trusted more than Amazon? They are never late and they don’t charge anything…well, I don’t think they charge anything as far as I can tell.. As for the Military, who does not trust them more than anything?
- BAD NEWS: 30% or $66.7 billion worth of products will be returned this holiday season. The cost gets passed on to retailers, over $20 per return. And so they pass that along to consumers. 6 billion pounds of returns end up in landfills every year. Better you should send gift cards next year.
- TRADE ALERT: Near the end of an episode on a Television series, Carrie’s husband – a Mr. Big – dies from a heart attack (in a very unrealistic way) after taking a Peloton class. Within hours of the show airing in the US – shares in Peloton dropped 11 per cent. How crazy is that? Is this ‘Form following Television Series”? If this method of ‘playing’ stock trades were to go viral…then watch out for the Market if people watch “Don’t Look Up”.
- CHIMERICA: …is a term used to describe the closely interlocked economies of China and the United States. It plays on the word “chimera”, the mixed-species monster of Greek myth. I know there are those who think China is an enemy…but our economies are in a symbiotic dance and we are co-dependent in this waltz for the foreseeable future, are we not? I am reminded of Pogo’s famous quip when he returned to the swamp after being lost for a few days. He said: “We have met the enemy and he is us.”
THOUGHTS NOT MATERIAL:
- GRETA THUNBERG is one of the most famous people on earth because of what she says we must do – and everybody just loves her; but nobody really wants to do what she says we must do. It must be confusing to be Greta.
- TRUMP: The thing I admired most about TRUMP was his position on warm showers. He wanted Americans to have bigger shower heads so more warm water could pour out on them. I was all behind that. You don’t hear Biden talking about bigger shower heads, do you?
- HARD PANTS: In case you have been living under a rock for the past year, and we know many of you have been, you are not familiar with this term. It refers to ‘real pants’, the type you used to wear before you slipped into your soft sweat pants with elastic waistbands during ‘Covid’. It appears that many who might have to R.T.O. (Return to Office) are holding out until they are cleared to sport SOFT PANTS in the office. Now. you know everything you need to know to get you going in the New Year.
- Every week I try to find some news items which moves my needle towards ‘Optimistic’. Here are two nuggets I pulled out of the pile: 1) In Barcelona, they are using busses which run on sewage for fuel. I suppose this is a good thing; but I wonder how the people feel about it who have not yet lost their sense of smell. And 2) The U.S. Wildlife Dept. is ‘trying’ to save the manatees. I hope Manchin does not hear about this Government expenditure and block it in the name of whatever he does in the name of whatever. Come to think of it, I trust the U.S. Wildlife people even more than I trust Amazon…and parts of the military; but that’s just me.
And now a word from MATHUZALA, our Guest Columnist:
MATHUZALA SPEAKS:
- Hard Pants, TikTok, Gift returns, Returning to the Office, Warm showers and bigger shower heads, Killer exercise bikes, People wanting to play games while driving…We know it is hard trying to be a human. Come join us in our way of life. We scurry about in the ever growing landfills and have a good time of it…no worries…
If you want to know more about MATHUZALA and his ever growing Chumpers Movement, please go to Amazon or Barnes & Noble and buy “THE RAT PAPERS” and learn how to become a Chumper yourself.
NOTES FROM TUSCANY:
- It is more than difficult, learning the language they use over here. The verbs, the pronouns, the masculine/feminine – all too complicated. But there is an advantage: I do not know what anybody here thinks about: Abortion, Gun control, Redistricting, Taxing the Wealthy…or whether they are closed minded bigots, conspiracy theorists or left leaning libs. I get friendly “Hellos” from people who have no clue how many odd ideas I have…and I give Smiling nods back. This inability to communicate might have possibilities for the future of mankind.
Here is some vocabulary for your next trip…
Two quotes:
- “Everybody talks about the weather; but nobody does anything about it.” -Charles Dudley Warner (often attributed to Mark Twain, a neighbor and friend of Warner’s.) The point here is: 130 years later, Greta faces the same problem…
- “Nothing is worth more than this day.” -Goethe
And a piece of unrelated Wisdom:
- “Some people find oil. Others don’t.” – J. Paul Getty
(* 3 Bottles of Wine – Gone from the wall)
A Happy New Year to you and “Hello” to Andi, wherever you are.
