Catherine O'Hara, Dead at 71

 

This one, I couldn't believe - she was just watching her career blossom again after Schitt's Creek, Beetlejuice 2, and The Last of Us, and appeared so healthy!

You may also remember her from the first Beetlejuice and Kevin's mom in Home Alone.

I personally have been a big fan since her early days as part of the original cast of SCTV (she's a Second City-Toronto alum) and part of the ensemble cast in a string of Christopher Guest comedies (except Spinal Tap).

She seemed so vibrant and healthy!?!

Except she did suddenly look overly thin and as if she had aged a decade at her last public appearance at the Emmys in September ...

... I don't know for sure, of course, but it looks like ... cancer.

It was described as a short illness, though, so I'm wondering if it wasn't one of the cancers usually only caught at later stage because of mild symptoms ignored symptoms, like colon cancer or especially pancreatic cancer.

Incredibly gifted, comedic/improv actress, rest in peace 😢

The Advantages of Getting Older (And Being a Former Struggling Single Mom)

So after the snow turned to a wintry mix on Sunday, our parking lot is still largely frozen with snowy ice clumps.

Our new apartment complex has garages available, so Mark and I opted for one - so at least Mark didn't have to chip ice and shovel out, but it was still tricky navigating the parking lot.

However, some people did not op for a garage, and this young couple was trying to get out to get to class today, and I realized their mistake trying to back out, spinning their wheels. 

The girl was talking on her cell phone on speaker to someone, who I think was her sister, asking what to do because she had to go to class, but her sister had to go to a meeting. 

So I hollered ... 

Me: "Hey, Guys, Good Morning! I have some cardboard boxes from where we just moved, do you need some? You can put them behind the tires." 

 

Young Couple: "We have some behind the front wheels, but nothing." 

 

Me: "Yep, but it's your back wheels that are spinning, trying to back out, up and over the ice, out of the pocket. What if you tried putting the cardboard behind the back wheels, too, far enough to get up and over the ice? We just moved so we have a ton of broken down boxes, if you need?"

So they did so and voila, out in 5 seconds!

They gave me a little excited thank you wave, I smiled and winked, gave a little thumbs up and clap, and off to class they went. 😊

We older adults often think it's common sense, forgetting that we, too, learned from experience ourselves long ago, if someone didn't tell us first.

So young ones - or people who aren't used to snow - snow tires help, but won't get you out entirely. So if you don't also have chains to put on your tires (few do here, and they help more with deep snow than ice anyway) - then the next best thing to use is sand, but who has that lying around?

So try cardboard behind all 4 tires, or at least behind or in front of whichever tires are the issue, depending on whether you're going backward or forward.

(This also works for mud, btw.)

Now, if your car actually breaks down or something, I can't help you 😊 (Well, I can maybe tell you what's wrong, at least, based on sound, but only certain things - but I can't fix it).

Things you learn as you go, especially if you had no one else around to help.

Resourcefulness ... something aging, former struggling single moms have in spades. 

PS - Bovino Out From The Backlash, a Comment Elsewhere ...

 

Greg Bovino, chief border patrol agent/head of the ICE operation in Minnesota - who sometimes likes to play Nazi SS dress-up for interviews and special occasions, for what reason, we don't know ...

 - is OUTTA THERE, woo hoo!

(Or at least Trump said he was, later today.)

He's not fired, he's just being removed from Minnesota.

Kristi Noem's job/power now hanging by a thread, too. Love IT.

Like I said, when Republican veterans and 2nd-amendment/gun advocates get involved, things will change.

So ... I never comment anywhere anymore because ... why, right?

But yesterday, I was viewing these videos and someone legitimately asked the question about Alex Pretti, "What's he holding in his hand?"

I said "It's a cell phone he's holding because he was filming."

I totally forgot about it until I got an alert on my phone because some douchebag -  who commented to everybody, but was not the OP (original poster) of the video, replied to me ... and I ended him ... erm, I mean it, ended it. 😂

Hehehe.

That oughtta have him scratching his head for a second. But just for a second, because then he'll go back to earning his paycheck as a paid troll.

At least I hope he's a paid troll ... because since he's not the OP, running around leaving pro-ICE comments all day, to every single commenter, without even getting paid, is even sadder 😂

Then he's just dreaming, from his mom's basement, that one day, ICE will stop rejecting his applications and accept him, maybe if he posts enough pro-ICE YouTube comments😂

Dream big, my friend, dream big.

When Veterans Take Notice: Alex Pretti Shooting Videos Again Contradict ICE/Homeland Security/Trump Administration's

 

ICE/DHS and the Trump Administration said that Alex approached them with a gun, attacked ICE with intent to kill.

Several video angles disagree.

Here is ABC's timeline walkthrough.

After ICE pushes 1 shouting protestor down, trying to pin her (orange backpack), Alex begins yelling at them to get off her and begins filming - the object in his hand is clearly a cell phone, not a gun.

Alex walks closer, still filming and shouting.

Two ICE agents walks over to him and pepper spray him in the face.

He continues to yell at them to get off the orange backpack protestor.

They now push him down, hit him in the head with a metal object at least 5 times, black-beanie guy shoots him once, another guy a second time, then the group backs up some and it's unclear who, but at least 5 more shots were fired.

Here's what's different about this shooting and what's raising even Republican alarm bells with veterans taking up his cause:

1. Alex was an ICU nurse at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Minneapolis, who had taken care of many Trump Republicans and had been a part of several honor ceremonies for them - and they and their families remembered. 

The VA, veterans, and their families have pressed conservative press about why they're not mentioning him, not showing the videos, and worse, villainizing him if they do mention him, when they knew him - and thus, veterans began sharing the videos themselves on social media.  

Since then, military press has honored Alex with his story.

Further, veterans have called their own local Republican senators requesting a congressional investigation.

 

2. Alex had a conceal and carry license and was a gun owner, and though he had one in his belt at the time, he never drew it - the object in his hand was a cell phone. 

 

Gun-owner advocates have sounded the alarm about gun ownership in his case - because he had a license and belted his gun legally, and though he easily could've pulled his gun and used it in self-defense, he didn't. 

That is exactly what they advocate, responsible gun ownership and training - try everything else to defend yourself before you shoot - proving it is ICE who is poorly trained and has no restraint.

In fact, his GoFundMe page to pay for his burial has now reached the $1 million mark.

Conservative press cannot spin this one and villainize him because of his work with the VA and care for veterans, but that doesn't stop  them from trying ... see how Fox News is finally mentioning him today ... 

Yeah, that's not gonna work either, Faux News.

Of course protests are organized through a network of text messages, but not just the far left - moderate, left, and far left alike, as well as religious groups were in on this one - and there's nothing wrong with organized protests, keeping track of how many at what location, as long as they aren't plotting violence!  

(I'm pretty sure y'all know that after January 6th.) 

What exactly is your point, anyway?

Are you saying the far left forced Alex and several thousand other non-far-left protestors to protest against their will, as if they were at gunpoint? (Nope - that was you all that put a gun to his head.)

That it's the far left's fault y'all shot Alex Pretti at least 7 times?

Beyond victim-blaming, it doesn't even make any sense!

So desperate for any way to spin this, but you can't, so you're throwing up nonsense.

Almost no one is buying your BS propaganda, this time, because veterans have shared the video you didn't.

Stop trying to gaslight us for what we can clearly see ourselves!

And if your press has actually shown you the video versus what ICE/DHS/Homeland Security says, and you think that statement even makes sense, you're either totally brainwashed, a total idiot, or a sociopath or psychopath, trying to gaslight us about what we actually saw with our own eyes.

Snowstorm Streaming (All Is Well, So Far ) - The Pitt

*Edited - content added.

 ... although I wouldn't exactly call this a snowstorm/ice storm, at least not yet.

Apparently, the storm shifted up and broke up a bit, so the snow part wasn't as bad as predicted - just  about 1.5 inches. But now is the wintry mix part, the ice, is starting, so we shall see.

So while everyone is hunkering down at home, it's a good time to catch up on favorite shows and watch new ones (though there aren't many, this time of year).

So we began watching the first season of HBO Max's multi-award winning "The Pitt" a few days ago and can't stop. 😂

Because as my little sister said, "I loves me some Noah Wyle."😂

It's true, who didn't have a celeb crush on sweet, awkward "Carter" from ER in the 90s?

We sure did, back in the day.

Well, some ladies dug George Clooney more, in the vehicle that launched him into super stardom, but with George Clooney being so cocky and shallow, back then (he's grown up more now), many of us were on Team Carter instead. 

During NBC's "Must-See TV" era, at the same time the ladies were crushing on Ross, Chandler, and Joey from Friends, 2 hours later on NBC, you were also crushing on Drs. Ross and Carter.

In fact, because they both premiered the same year (1994) and were both hits - Clooney and Wyle actually showed up on an episode of Friends, to go on dates with Rachel and Monica!

However, Rachel and Monica got into an argument, mimicked the other one in front of the docs, spilling all their personal secrets, which of course sent the docs running briskly away. 😂

Back to The Pitt, the main differences are Noah Wyle is now all grown up and in charge, playing a different, more edgy character, Dr. Robinowitz (called "Dr. Robby" for short).

It's still a dramedy, funny, serious, then back to funny to ease tension, just like real life.

It can bring tears to your eyes at times, just like ER - actually, not just bring tears, but you  may discover they're actually rolling down your face after the scene is over (particularly with children), it can be intense - but the issues are also updated.

And whereas ER was a different day each episode, the entire first season of The Pitt is from just a single day in the ER, showing you how much can go on there, especially at ERs that have been designated trauma centers. 

In many ways, the dramedy that was ER - initially written and produced by Jurassic Park's Michael Crichton - was ahead of it's time - diverse, soulful cast, hot-button issues like LGBTQ, school shootings, police brutality and much, more more that people don't want to talk about/pretend doesn't exist, and yet ER staff sees every day, especially in larger metropolitan areas.

ER was woke before woke was a thing - because it's reality.

So if you are "anti-woke," then don't ever work in an ER in a major metropolitan U.S. city. Not only will your patients have different skin colors and be from different cultural backgrounds, but your coworkers do too. 

Actually, I take that back - please DO work for an ER in a large metropolitan area so that you can see that your fears about people with dark skin, LGBTQ, immigrants, and non-Christian faiths are mostly based on the worst-case scenarios you read about in the news rather than every day reality.

And as much as we love The Wyle, who won both an Emmy and Golden Globe, this year, my second favorite character is charge nurse, Dana. Oftentimes charge nurses are your bulldozer-type personalities because they have to get things done, fast, rather than your nurturing caretaker type of nurses. 

In this case, Katherine LaNasa as charge nurse, Dana Evans, proves it is possible to be the eyes and ears and quick-acting charge nurse AND the encouraging caretaker. 

When Dr. "Robby" introduces the students to her as "the most important person in the room" in the very first episode, he proves he is 100% correct - she is the eyes and ears of everything that is going on and doesn't miss a trick, while simultaneously making sure everyone has eaten, is supported when overwhelmed, and perhaps needs a 5-minute breather.  Essentially, she's everyone's mom.

(I understand that in the last episode of the first season, something happens to her that may affect whether or not she continues, but I haven't gotten that far yet.)

The show in general has more empathy than ER did - with ER, it was more like certain characters did while others were kind of dicks, and there was a lot of hazing of new staff going on, which was lighthearted and funny. 

That's actually likely more accurate, but there are certain places still where staff is chosen particularly due to their empathy skills and encouragement skills with patients and staff alike, as well as being a good doctor/nurse.

Just about everyone in this show encourages each other, checks on them if overwhelmed or burned out and asks how they can help, and at most, might lightly rib each other in an almost flirty fashion, except I haven't learned yet why Dr. Robby is so hard on Dr. Mohan yet.

FYI, Dr. Mohan is my 3rd favorite character on the show after Dr. Robby and Dana. Well, it's actually a tie for third with Dr. MacKay.

She is encouraging to everybody, regardless of their status at the hospital, and refuses to treat patients like a fast-food drive-thru and really listens to them, much to the chagrin of the hospital administrators.

She is also part of a study regarding racial inequities in healthcare, but she doesn't just study and report, she directly intervenes in real time, i.e. with overly restraining EMTs with a sickle-cell patient in  sickle-cell vaso-occlusive crisis in her chest. 

They assumed her writhing and screaming was because she was a homeless street druggie who was drug-seeking, but she was actually in her pajamas rushing herself to the hospital in the middle of vaso-occlusive sickle-cell crisis. 

In sickle-cell patients, not only is this particular form of vaso-occlusive crisis life-threatening, it's one of the most painful conditions a human can experience, not to mention inability to breathe.

They call her "Slo-Mo," and Dr. Robby is especially hard on her, although he agrees with that philosophy, and I don't know why yet.

Tying as third favorite with Dr. Mohan is Dr. MacKay, the oldest resident, becoming a doctor at 42 - who besides also being a great doctor, treats not only her coworkers with empathy and understanding, like a big sister - but each patient, regardless of what they've done, with empathy - but particularly single mothers and the homeless, who others dismiss.

Having been a drug addict previously herself, now 5 years sober, she currently wears an ankle bracelet for what reason we haven't found out yet (but I understand we do before the end of Season 1, which I haven't gotten to yet).

Dr. MacKay is actually the most inspirational character, having beaten her own personal demons to become the fantastic doctor, without any of the opportunities that the other students had.

My fourth favorite character, though we don't see him as much, is ER Nurse Mateo Diaz, and here's why: 

Not only is he the right hand of Charge Nurse, Dana, he's the nurse  responsible for going out into the jungle that is the ER waiting room full of people, taking vitals and doing initial assessments; thus, he takes a lot of shit - for being a male nurse, for being Latino, and just  because he's the first actual clinician patients see and thus the whipping post for them after waiting so long - and he does it all with a smile on his face, a kind word balanced with assertiveness, and a sense of humor.

Plus, he's cute, I admit, but the above is also very true 😂

But of course there's one obvious exception to this lovefest - one overly competitive/ambitious bully - isn't there always at least one in every group?

Dr. Trinity Santos - played by Isa Brione - is a super smart medical student, but also arrogant, overconfident, overly competitive, and overly ambitious, stepping on everyone but the attending doctors to get where she wants to go.  In short, Dr. Santos is a bully.

An ingratiating ass-kiss to the attending doctors, she otherwise tries to intimidate, bully, and publicly humiliate everyone else, steal their patients if they're interesting cases, take credit for their work -  including the residents above her. 

She likes to capitalize on the mistakes of her fellow students and ridicule them/humiliate them publicly and create nicknames based on their mistakes, all to deflect off her own even bigger mistakes.

She is also overly eager to do complex procedures without considering how they are affecting the patient and has no bedside manner at all. 

She also rocks on her heels and rolls her eyes during moments of silence for lost patients or "honor walks" for organ donors that passed as if she's bored.

And even if/when she's right about a diagnosis or a suspicion, her way of handling these things unsupervised can be just plain scary.

Now, in the old days, that one boss's ass-kiss bully in the workplace was ostracized, much like the toilet paper lady from 9 to 5. 

Nowadays, in our current political climate, intimidation and bullying  are now cool, with that 1 bully often trying to recruit others  into a mean girl troupe like it's junior high, successfully or not, blaming the victim for their own bullying.

Nice to see that The Pitt is not having it, though - they're onto her reality-TV style strategy, even the attendings, especially after she failed to run cases by her senior residents 3 times out of her own arrogance, which ended up adversely affecting patients, and the attendings found out about it. 

We did see part of what makes her tick, she apparently was sexually abused as a child, and threatens a father she suspects of molestation with his life, and though that gives us more insight into her behavior, it does not excuse it - plus anyone I've ever met who'd been sexually abused does not usually struggle with overconfidence, it's usually the opposite!

Apparently, Vanity Fair magazine has written several articles on Dr. Santos, saying she's a polarizing character, with some saying she was a feminist hero and the one we should've been rooting for all along?

Okay, what ethnically-challenged, bully-bitch narcissist, posing as a  liberal feminist journalist, wrote THAT garbage?

No, no, and no - let's think more about the actual character of the people we deem heroes before we write stuff like that, shall we?

I'm also not buying the "she was humbled later by her experiences" stance some of these article authors are taking, because she keeps doing them -  and any leopard that lacks empathy for her prey to that degree isn't going to change her spots overnight - sorry.

I agree that double-standards for the exact same human behavior are maddening - but I also really hate it when women think the goal of feminism is behaving like the most toxic stereotypical white-male they know, then demanding equal acceptance for it, when the actual point is - maybe no one should be behaving like a toxic human being, regardless of gender?!?

Not only is that perspective actually anti-feminist attitude in that it's encouraging women to handle things like (toxic) men instead of women simply standing up for being valued and paid equally for who we already are - but it's an insult to the men who do NOT behave like that in leadership.

And FYI, Vanity Fair, when I Googled "Dr. Santos The Pitt" for the above pic, among the top Google search terms was "I hate Dr. Santos" 😂

So I initially applauded the beginning part of her sexual abuse speech myself - but then she threatened the patient's life!

Also. let me count the ways below in which she's put patient's lives, their families, the staff, and the hospital itself in physical or legal jeopardy.

But the gist of this list is, as frustrating as it may be, doctors take an oath to heal - NOT RENDER JUSTICE. 

They can report familial issues to Child/Elder Abuse services or police, but it is not their job to actually render justice and hold a patient's life in ransom.

In fact, they've even been situations where they have to treat both the perpetrator and the victim.

Specifically breaking down the multitude of ethical issues and loose-cannon legal liability issues with Dr. Santos for the morally/ethically impaired ...

1. So the mom poisoned the dad - whom she's still married to and living with - with progesterone (hormones), because she believed he was molesting their daughter, in effort to chemically/hormonally castrate him. 

Even if the molestation accusation is true ... that's a super cray cray thing for the mom to do, still married/living in the home with the dad, and should send up a red flag for BOTH parents! 

The appropriate response to suspected molestation is call the police and social services to investigate and intervene?!?

I get the fear of not being believed as women and the fear of retaliation, the temptation to take matters of protecting your child in your own hands, but at least try the legal routes first?

Plus you cannot medicate someone out of pedophelia/incest using your own birth control -  pedophilia/incest is, at present, an untreatable condition - and if the goal was chemical/hormonal castration, you especially cannot accomplish that using your birth control pills, without knowing what drugs/hormones actually do!  

 

My opinion is, both of her parents are likely unsafe and CPS should be called in to investigate them both! 

2.) The daughter never confirmed it/gave no indication it was true - and Dr. Santos tried to pressure her/approached the subject with a 14-year-old like a bull in a china shop, untrained to do so, and without consulting a supervisor or the hospital social worker first. 

 

And it's not the first time she's done this, out of her own arrogance, which resulted in adversely affecting the patient's health as well as putting the hospital in legal liability, and she's been raked over the coals for it and doesn't care. 

3.) Thirdly, you do not EVER threaten to kill a patient under any circumstances, even if you had proof they were an actual serial killer.

Doctors in particular take an oath to save lives and heal - even if they personally hate the patient, even if the patient is a proven evil psychopath - they are not God and justice is not in their purview - they are there to heal and save lives - and at most, report to authorities.

This is also why doctors do not operate or prescribe for people in their personal lives, regardless of positive or negative emotions - they can't be objective. 

And if their personal opinion of the patient cannot be separated out, they step out/refer elsewhere/ask someone else to take over, if possible. 

If it's not possible -  it's an emergency or they're the only specialist around that can do it -  then they have to numb that shit out/shelve it as best they can in some way before they work on the patient, with staff reporting any abnormalities. 

 

4.) She did not even attempt to separate her own experience with sexual molestation versus this family's potential experience (which hadn't been proven yet) before she acted.   

She clearly was acting out of wanting to punish her own abuser out of her own personal experience, rather than separating these issues out first. 

5.) Her little speech and actions weren't done out of trhe empathy or even sympathy for the child, she did it because she was enacting justice based on her own experience - and we can't ignore  how much she lacks empathy in general.

So no, Vanity Fair, you are 100% wrong, and in fact, are bordering on socially irresponsible for writing this garbage. 

Like I said, we appreciated her beginning speech, we understand her sentiment, but she threatened a patient's life out of her own experience with sexual abuse. What you are cheering on/condoning is wildly inappropriate, violates several ethics policies, legal obligations for the hospital, and last but not least, the hippocratic oath!

But I digress, I also like it because I tend to geek out on health issues, but Mark likes it because of the interesting people - but he does often ask me to interpret. 😂

Okay, I've been a medical transcriptionist for 27 years, and people think that means they can go "I have this rash, what is it?" without realizing I don't usually see the stuff, I just type what the doctors say and research conditions, make sure the documentation is correct for patient care and billing  😂

In other words, I know about enough to tell you when you should see a doctor, and that's about it! 😂

But yes, I can interpret for him most of what the abbreviated orders they rattle off are and mean, why they ordered this test or that one, what they're looking for/ruling out, why they chose this med or that one, including the dangers of them - but some of these cases presented on this who are pretty rare/obscure. 

However, taking Pharmacology in school at present, it's cool to learn the exact mechanism of action with each of the drugs, what neurotransmitters and receptors they work on, why some are chosen versus others in specific cases, etc. 

So when it comes to The Pitt?

Just like the original ER, maybe even a bit better - 5 stars, super, super good!

Big Snowstorm Coming Here ... or Not?

 

So I realize Snowstorm Fern is going to hit somewhere, we just aren't sure where yet - we have a 50% to 60% chance here, at present.

The Lexington Herald Leader has an article today about the biggest snowstorms you can remember here.

The article seems to be focused just on snowfall, when for me, it's more about the true ice storms than snowstorms - or snowstorms accompanied by ice.

We are never as prepared here, as the northern states, that's true, but the biggest memories for me in Lexington are the ice storms which didn't make the list. 

They're either caused by rainfall just before the snow that freezes so you can't see it under the snow OR that wintery mix where the temp is right at or just above freezing, where it feels like tiny darts hitting your face in the wind.

Besides car accidents, power lines snap, giant branches of trees snap off and fall, people slip and fall. 

When this happens, because the snow causes of a blanket of silence overall, the only thing you can hear when there's ice involved is the crackling and snapping of limbs falling off from trees all around you for miles, and worse - the crackling and snapping of powerlines - it's creepy as heck.

The ice covering everything is beautiful, but also deadly.

It's funny how you mostly remember the ones when you're an adult, because when you're a kid, it's heaven - you're out of school, you can still play outside if you're bundled up, and the ice and snow mix are great for sledding.

You remember tornadoes and hurricanes from childhood, but snowstorms, not so much, unless your power went out for days - you mostly remember the fun you had!

Except I do remember living in Cincinnati when the blizzards of 1976/77 and 1977/78 hit - but only the after effects because we were in Florida both times.

It actually lightly snowed there, too, which is rare, and we have pictures where we were visiting St. Augustine in heavy winter coats with hoods, and the next year, Disney World in sweatshirts and heavy jackets.

But I remember my friends' accounts when we got back PLUS the pictures coming in from the Cincinnati Enquirer of people walking across the Ohio River because it had frozen over!

This happens with northern rivers more frequently, but it has only happened 3 times with the mighty Ohio in Cincinnati -  1917/18 and those two times when I was a child, 1976/77 and 1977/78.

I was like "Mom, can we drive back early so we can walk across the river, too?" 😂

Yeah, no ... of course not!

I mean, I'm at Disney World, but wanted to cross the frozen Ohio, for some reason, can you believe it?

Yeah, I was a weird kid.

And that's actually a very stupid thing to do!

Other than that, though I remember the big snowstorm here in Lexington in 1998 with 12 inches within hours, I mostly remember the 2002 ice storm where we were out of power for 4 days and started huddling around the charcoal grill (outside, of course) for 10 minutes at a time, but luckily, it warmed up after 48 hours. The power just didn't come back on for another 2 days

Then the 2021 ice storm where we couldn't get the doors open on our apartment without using a hair dryer first (the ice damage causing the wood to peel off and break later).

And in 2023, when we lost power for 8 hours, huddled by the fireplace, and were just about to check into a hotel when the power came back on!

This one promises both snow and ice somewhere, we just don't know where yet, or even if it's going to be as bad as they say, or maybe even worse.

Just in case, if you haven't been to the grocery yet, get thee to the grocery now, because we went last night and it was already almost cleared out - and you would've thought it was Black Friday at Walmart in the 90s, and there were only 10 Tickle Me Elmos for sale!

Okay, not that bad, but people were breathing heavy and there was a lot of snatching/grabbing, going on. 

For the record, yes - I did get up at 4 a.m. on Black Friday in 1996, to show up at the Nicholasville Walmart to try to get my daughter a Tickle Me Elmo at Walmart. 😂

I went there because I thought less people would go to that one, but when I asked the people in the line in front of me what they were there for, and heard "Tickle Me Elmo," I realized I had virtually no chance with at least 50 people in front of me, but still waited anyway -  until the doorman shouted they were all gone. 

No fights broke out here, people were orderly, but the general national craze was cray cray!

I wouldn't have fought anyone over it anyway.

I have always been of the mindset that if people want something so badly they're willing to hurt others to get it, emotionally or physically, then I say "Here, just ... take it, it's not worth all of this drama on everybody. You can demean yourself get down in the gutter if you want to over it, but don't expect me to follow - - but ill gotten gain does no good, ya know."

And no worries - in the end, after I told her dad she wanted one and I had tried and tried, he somehow bribed somebody at work out of theirs and she got one! (Thank you, Z! lol.)

Then I think she played with it for about a year and never touched it again! 😂

And there's the lesson - how long was the child going to play with it anyway?

Sometimes I wonder if people that were willing to treat others badly to get what they want, for survival or not (usually not), ever ask themselves - "Was it worth it?"

But then I remembered that most non-therapized people always believed they're justified AND I remembered ... I really don't care how things turned out for them, in the end. 😂

Regardless, let's settle down, people, this isn't a zombie apocalypse or even a hurricane, it's a snowstorm.

Preparedness and caution is warranted, not panic.

Be careful, be safe, be prepared, but also, be kind ... and help others if/when you can!

PS ... Just Received A Customer Service Follow-Up Call

 

The situation is now resolved, but a supervisor just called me anyway, just to follow up. I guess. That's the reason he left on my iPhone call screening, anyway.

However, from the get-go, his tone seemed like he'd rather be anywhere else but on this call and he was just checking off a follow-up box. 😂

(That may have something to with the snarky tone of my last email, completely frustrated, before they finally resolved it. 😉Or it could just be he really dislikes doing follow-up calls. Or both.)

I explained that my biggest concern was not being given specific guidance/instruction on specifically what was missing on my submission, and thus having to guess what's wrong, when I only had 5 attempts to upload documents to verify my ID, having used 3 already, and that they were being extremely nitpicky when even Homeland Security's I-9 forms aren't as nitpicky.

Supervisor: (explaining the obvious) "We have to intentionally be vague in our instruction so as to not help criminals pretend to be someone else, let's say if they won a million dollars."  

 

Me: (Realizing what's NOT being said is that this isn't just about fraudsters, it's about preventing undocumented immigrants from playing the lottery):

 

"I get that, I really do, that makes sense - but I'm just trying to buy a ticket, not claim a prize. Surely there must be a better way, because aren't you also deterring legitimate, US legal customers by admittedly providing vague instruction, causing them to guess, since we only get 5 shots at identity verification?" 

 

"And let's follow that logic out. So let's say your team had just clearly and directly instructed me: "Hey, you're missing a signature on Document X" rather than the blanket-generalized statement "Your information needs correction."  

I would then sign it, upload it, and then you'd know instantly whether I was a fraud or not because you could compare the signatures on all the documents -  PLUS - you'd have tangible proof I was a fraud in terms of prosecution?" 

 

"Surely there must be some other way to do this without needing this much documentation and being this nitpicky, when even the Department of Homeland Security isn't lol. 

 

Supervisor: *Crickets.*

 

Me: "Maybe I'm wrong, but that's the the way I look at it, you may disagree. Can you understand even a little where I'm coming from? " 

 

Supervisor: "Not really, no." 

 

Me: "Alllrighty. Well, is it safe to assume that your phone CSR and I were both correct that there was actually nothing wrong at all with the 3rd reason for denial, my profile not matching - the one after the signature thing -  since it's been approved since? 

 

Supervisor: "I ... don't know." 

 

Me: "Ohhh .. kay. (Sitting for a minute, waiting for him to say something, anything at all.)  Okay, well, thanks for your time." 

 

Supervisor: "Have a ... good night."

Click.

*Sigh"

Half of me felt embarrassed and stupid, like he was laughing at me and I was being a Karen or something.

The other half felt totally man-splained to, that he clearly wasn't interested in even trying to see where I was coming from, he was just checking off a box. 

HOWEVER, since I was calm, tried to joke a little, tried to meet him halfway and even conceded on 1 point - and he, in turn, clearly had zero interest in even giving the appearance of doing the same, just checking off a follow-up box  - my final thoughts on that call are these: 

As my Pap said, you cannot get blood from a turnip. 

If there's no interest in feedback, even though they're asking for it - no interest in even trying to understand where you're coming from, they're just checking off a box - then you really ARE an idiot or a Karen to even try to continue the conversation and it's best to just thank the person for their time, take your toys, and go home, as I did. 😂

The End. 

😂

_____________________

PS to my PS 

My husband heard the end of this conversation and said ...

 "No, this guy was being a dick, I heard him, and you're back to being too nice again because you felt bad about finally getting snarky, why do you do that? Sometimes you should be a Karen. You shouldda responded to his "Have a ... good night" with "Yeah, you too... asshole." 😂

That makes me feel somewhat better, at least. 

Having said all that, I hope some impoverished undocumented immigrant who moved here, just wanting a better, safer life, buys their lottery ticket instead from the corner store and wins the Powerball jackpot, I really do, I would LMAO and love that, almost as much as if I won it! 😂

If You Move/Change Your Address, Be Prepared for Extreme Vetting By Government Organizations Now

So as mentioned, we just moved. 

I had everything but personal items labeled in boxes since before Christmas. I also changed my address for everything, everywhere before the move - utilities, credit card, bank, etc, as you do -  so it was mostly a breeze.

So I went to get my driver's license changed, which you can't do online for address change, only renewal.

I discovered that because of the cuts to state funding, they no longer have 3 locations in town, they only have 1 per county.

So there'd be a wait -  okay, I can deal with that. It used to be that way years ago.

So I went on a Saturday and there was a long line, but they were very efficient and we were out in an hour.

Also, they were and always have been very nice at the DMV here. The people waiting aren't always  nice to them, but the staff themselves are nice. In fact, we chatted and joked a bit.

They did ask me if I wanted to get a Real ID - which you now need to fly even to another state - meaning Mark and I cannot fly and visit family with a Real ID instead of a driver's license and a passport isn't enough.

It takes a lot of documentation I didn't have with me, so I just got the regular driver's license for now. 

For ID verification, I used my old license, my social security card, and the new lease we had signed to prove new address, being that mail wouldn't work as it's still being forwarded until systems update.

So I get my picture, etc. - and then they tell me they don't give you the actual driver's license card anymore immediately, they mail it to you later - it will take 2 weeks to receive your new driver's license.

They hand you this lame temporary paper and paper clip it to your driver's license. Not sure how that flies if you're pulled over and I don't want to find out. 

This is apparently because they want more time to investigate your citizenship even to renew your driver's license or because you changed your address!

When the DMV attendant told me that, I laughed and said "Ya know, pretty soon, we're just gonna have to write 'I love Trump' on everything to get anything." 😂

She about fell out of her chair laughing. 

(Of course, that will never happen - I'd take 2 to the head from ICE before I'd ever write "I love Trump" on anything lol.)

I don't really get upset easily by stuff that upsets other people,  meaning most other white people - I've survived too much and am grateful, not entitled. 

In fact, CSRs have actually remarked on how I stay so positive and friendly, even when things are extraordinarily effed up and other people are Karening out, and how much they appreciate my kindness.

Like I said, it's because I've been through worse, so I don't sweat the small stuff usually. Having to wait in lines or even rude people don't really bother me.

If they do, I don't go all Karen about it and ask for a manager, I usually just accept that it is what it is and go elsewhere if I can - and in extreme situations, at most, I will tell them I'm going elsewhere and why - and then I will leave.

Luckily, no need to in THIS situation, the DMV attendant and I just laughed it off - oh, but wait, there's another situation just after this, proving that sometimes, you really should act like a Karen and not be afraid to.

So I buy my lottery tickets online at the kylottery website. While there, I sometimes play their online lottery games - I won $500 once and have won other big prizes. 

Keep in mind, the Kentucky Lottery IS run by the state government - a board of directors that answer to the governor. 

Also keep in mind that although our governor is a Democrat, virtually everyone else is Republican.

So I changed my address in the profile, right?

All of the sudden, this screen pops up asking me to verify my identity with driver's license, social security card, utility bills, and/or bank statements or W2s.

What the ??? 

I've played for 3 years and no one ever asked that and all I did was change my address.

But okay, I upload my temporary driver's license paper and my social security card.

I can't upload any mail because it's still being forwarded, and most companies wait until the next billing cycle to change address - and I'll be danged if I send the Kentucky Lottery my W2 or a bank statement or my W2, just to buy a lottery ticket online , that's none of their business.

I'm denied because it's a temp driver's license, which I anticipated, no big deal.

I did explain that this is what you get now, you have to wait 2 weeks for the card. They said to upload the actual card when received.

So when I got the card, I did that, back and front and resent my social security card. 

But I'm denied again because apparently I never signed my social security card. 

I've it almost 9 years, since I remarried and my name changed, and no one - including actual Homeland Security when filling out the I-9 for employment - has either ever noticed that nor cared, because your driver's license is right there as backup! 

But whatever - I signed it, uploaded it again.

Then they come back "There is information in your profile that needs correcting" - without bothering to tell me which "information needed correcting. 

Um, that's the reason we're in this situation to begin with - I changed my profile on the website, like I did for everything else, when I moved, and y'all asked me to verify my identity.

So I compare the profile with my driver's license and social security card and it matches my profile exactly - so at this point, I have no idea what they're talking about nor how to fix it.

At this point, I would've said "Eff it, I don't gamble that much anyway" - but I don't particularly care for my identity being called into question to this degree by the kylottery corporation, for goodness sakes, when the DMV didn't even give me this much grief!

I call the phone CSR and upload them again and she doesn't see a problem either and also has no idea what the verification team is  even talking about.

She sends the verification team a message to please re-review, there shouldn't be a problem - and additionally, I asked if a supervisor from that team could review my documentation and tell me exactly what I need to do, not "your information needs correcting" without telling me what information needs correcting.

She was great!

Now, I understand the temporary driver's license being an issue somewhat, but that is what the DMV does now, they mail you the card later to verify citizenship.

I even understand the social security card not being signed - despite the fact that Homeland Security didn't even blink when I presented it on the I-9.

But what I do NOT understand the profile not matching stuff nor this many roadblocks in general to buy a freaking lottery ticket online, this is just insane.

So I received an email shortly after that from the verification team techs again (supervisor hadn't reviewed the situation yet), who said I only had 5 chances and I used 3 -  like I'm trying to hack or something or not who I say I am!!!

Okay, that's it - THAT pissed me off - I don't take well to having my identity scrutinized to this degree BY THE KENTUCKY LOTTERY WEBSITE, just to buy a lottery ticket, not claim a prize!!!

So NOW I get snarky.

I said something like ...

"Then please elaborate on what you mean by "information on my profile needs correcting," because both your phone CSR and I compared them and they match exactly. 

You have my driver's license and my social security card and that should suffice. 

I would've given up and gone elsewhere if I wanted to gamble, but the proceeds go to education and I don't particularly care for having my identity questioned to this degree being a natural-born U.S. citizen and long-term Kentucky resident. 

Geez, even the DMV didn't give me as much grief! 

You are not Homeland Security or ICE, you're the ky lottery  - stay in your lane and get over yourselves!"

Too much? 

Probably.

And I also wrote the I also wrote the Kentucky Lottery Board about it because it's absurd.

Karenish?

Yes - but also, this proving citizenship crap has gotten way, way out of hand.

And here's the thing ... if I WAS an undocumented immigrant, do you think I'd be dumb enough to sign up at the Kentucky Lottery website, rather than go down to the corner store and buy my lottery tickets there?

Starting to piss me off, just saying.

_________________

PS - The supervisor reviewed it early this morning, bypassed all their nitpicking nonsense, and I was restored immediately. 

Thank you, phone CSRs and verification-team supervisor, you're great - your email helpdesk and verification team could use some work, though - or maybe they'd be better suited working for ICE than the Kentucky Lottery?😂

Because much like ICE, these techs have been so literal, getting hung up on minute details rather than looking at the documentation that's been amassed, and then go with their knee-jerk/trigger-happy natures anyway instead!

Having said that and on a venting-rant roll, speaking of ICE and the DHS, I'd tell Kristi Noem that she can kiss my lily white, natural-born US-citizen ass, but I don't want any of her fake face fillers left on me!  😂

Ziggy's New Favorite Chair ...

 

So we just moved and are still organizing, and I bought these chaise sofa chairs from Amazon that we put together. They are lighter cream than I thought they would be, and yet Ziggy has fallen in love with them and I get it because they're super softie and comfy!

(Yes -  you can hook them together to make a small sofa and they are advertised that way, but I wanted 2 chaise chairs/sofa chairs, so I kept them separate).

Otherwise, posting will be light - I have returned to school (University of Cincinnati) part-time to become and ODS-C (Certified Oncology Data Specialist, formerly known as a cancer/tumor registrar). 

So the semesters are divided into two 6-week timeframes, and the classes are rapid-paced. For example, Pharmacology, a 3-credit course, is the first 6 weeks, and then I take two 2-credit courses  for 6 weeks starting in February, after I complete this one.

When I say rapid-paced, I mean we went through 6 chapters last week. 

Good news, though - I completed all assignments, chapter quizzes and final test on the total of the 6 chapters with an A+!

Not bad for an old lady, right? 

PS - Video of the Renee Nicole Good Shooting Appears to Contradict Trump, Noem, and ICE Officers' Account, But You Decide

Law enforcement has just announced that Renee was blocking the road; however, the video doesn't show that (or at least begin there). 

In fact, it begins with her being pulled over by ICE agents, an ICE agent approaching her on foot and seems to be trying to open her door, she screams "No!" then backs up and attempts to drive off, - and he shoots her. 

Again, Renee is a white American citizen.

Though it is unclear what transpired before the video began, one thing is clear - this was in no way self-defense NOR was it "using her vehicle as a weapon" as the officers, Kristi Noem, and Trump have said. 

I warn you, the video is graphic ...

 

My take?

Even if she had been blocking the road - even if she attempted to drive away - this was not cause to shoot her.

Regardless, our constitution states that all citizens have the right to due process of law. 

ICE "Background Checks"

  

After protestor Renee Nicole Good was shot and killed yesterday - without due process of law - I started looking at the qualifications for ICE agents.

It may or may not surprise you to learn that although there is a background check, all criminal charges are "adjudicated" - meaning if it comes back with criminal charges, a decision is made regarding fitness for duty.

(The link above is directly from ICE.gov.)

We don't know what that means - for all we know, it could actually mean the more aggressive you are, the better fit you are for the role. 

I mean, ICE's leader, Kristi Noem, admittedly shot a puppy she considered untrainable, for God's sake!

Also, we don't know anything at all about the training, how much or what kind, but apparently, it's not a long process.

What I hope for is that some investigative journalist will be brave enough to go undercover and expose this for us. 

For now, all I can say what happened to Renee was not only heartbreaking, it's frightening for the direction this country is headed in.

I don't care what justification Trump and Republicans are giving, every person in this country has the right to due process of law and Renee was unarmed and she wasn't destroying property.

As I've said before, it wouldn't be long before we'd have another Kent State-style      shooting on our hands and here we are.

And with the justifications given for it, I can see it won't be the last.

Wake up, Republicans - this is exactly what you feared this country would become.

But it's okay when it's YOU doing it?

Operation FUBAR 😂

I just popped up from being neck deep in unpacking and putting things together after moving to note the following about our ridiculous incursion into Venezuela. 

But before I even get to how the rationale we're being given of stopping a supposed drug-lord president can't possibly be the real reason - because Trump just pardoned a convicted international drug trafficker and former Honduran president, Juan Orlando Hernandez, brought to justice in the U,S., convicted and sentenced in 2024 and imprisoned in West Virginia  - let's talk about the ridiculous name of this ridiculous incursion ...

"Operation Absolute Resolve." 

That is, of course, the lamest name for a military operation I have ever heard. 

They are always melodramatic, sure - and though we've had some ridiculous ones before, most of them sounded at least somewhat cool and mighty. 

I mean ... "Hey Venezuela, Operation Absolute Resolve, coming at you" ... just doesn't cut it, does it? 

It sounds like someone for whom English is a second language thought of a cool name in their native tongue that didn't exactly translate well into English? 😂

Or maybe even some American President with a limited vocabulary heard someone else use that phrase and borrowed it, not knowing it's true meaning. 😉😂

Like someone said "I am going to approach the issue of world hunger with absolute resolve" and Trump thought that sounded cool, not realizing it's typically used for either work tasks or situations in which we are trying to resolve humanitarian problems - not things like ... oh, I don't know, invading other countries under blatantly false pretenses like Putin!

I mean, you might as well call it "Operation Unwavering Steadfastness" or "Operation Unflinching Perseverance!" 😂

Not scary!

Not mighty!

Not even cool!

It's just ... lame.

Now - it amazes me that crazy conspiracy theorists who spend all day connecting dots that don't actually connect, support Trump, completely ignoring legitimate red flags for government coverups and BS rationalizations.

Like the multitude of evidence we now have that Epstein and Trump were very close friends for a very long time and that Epstein himself said Trump at least knew of what he was really doing with young girls versus others who didn't. 

Or I don't know, as mentioned above, claiming you're now attacking Venezuela, kidnapping its President, and going to "run" that country because of drug trafficking, despite the fact that you just pardoned a proven convicted Honduran President and drug trafficker, Juan Orlando Hernandez??!

But crazy conspiracy theorists are like "Nah, man, Trump and his government are completely transparent, nothing to see here, we trust him/government completely."

???

What do I think this is really about?

Well, so as not to go down that crazy conspiracy road myself and believe my own speculation is fact, I'll just go with I suspect this is about - what it's always really about - oil.

Venezuela has the largest oil reserve in the Western hemisphere (and the second-largest natural gas reserve)  - and Trump wants  it - period..

Oh, and there's that thing he does where he makes everything about politics and punishing/bullying anyone who doesn't agree with him - since Maduro is a left-wing dictator instead of a right-wing dictator, that is not okay - especially because he's standing in the way of the largest oil reserve in the Western Hemisphere!

Helping along that theory is that JOH, the President from Honduras whom he pardoned for drug trafficking, is right wing.

 

Don't get me wrong - authoritarian dictatorship governments are ALWAYS bad, right OR left - I'm just saying, why cherry pick?

Dear Crazy Conspiracists and Other Republicans,

Hellloooo?

I would think you'd be all over this, because this military action really IS clearly and blatantly based on a BS rationale - one that we can actually prove is BS - but it's a nothing burger to you?

Allllrighty.

Just go back to wearing tin foil hats and looking for aliens then -   or trying to prove innocent pizza places in D.C. are actually Democrat pedophile rings. 

Continue to fall for Republican fear-mongering tactics without proof every time - AGAIN -  just like you did with Bush's pre-emptive strike on Iraq over what we now know was non-existent WMD. 

We tried to tell you there was no proof of that and it was  all BS - that this was likely really over oil rights and personal vendetta with Saddam Hussein rather than actual WMD in Iraq or even Osama bin Laden, who was in Afghanistan the whole time -  but you called us unpatriotic for doing so.  

Later, you  agreed with us, but are too stubborn to admit we agree on that now😂 

In fact, Bush himself later said it wasn't true, blaming it on "bad intel" rather than abject lying. Because if many of us, the uninformed American public, knew there wasn't any proof, then he should have.

Meanwhile, we'll continue using our tax dollars and young people's lives to attack other countries who haven't attacked us, unsanctioned again - because you learned nothing from that are are still too easily manipulated/gullible.

We'll just wait for you to catch up again, after you're done being easily distracted by shiny objects and manipulated by pseudo-Christians.   

How long did that take for you to realize that, though, like 20 years?

Guess we'll wait another 20.

Or probably even longer, since you see Trump as some sort of Messiah.

*Sigh* - God love ya, Republicans - sometimes ya just can't see the forest for the trees or that the smeller's the feller, can ya? 

 

Love, 

Your fellow American sister

 

(You know, the one you called crazy because she questioned the pre-emptive strike on Iraq without actual proof of WMD, then agreed with 20 years later, but won't admit it 😉 )