Creamy, lickin’ good.

Today's Tids Issue 3,563

Opening Stuff:

Maybe they should have had as our state’s motto, ”The Smilin’ Place! Because, that‘s all you see around d here in anticipation of the annual openings of seasonal ice cream stores. Can you say ecstasy! I’m sure you have your favorite sweet places across the country. Frosty Freeze in Newport and Hilltop Creamery in East Greenwich are the traditional signs of Spring. I know them best, but like Grey’s and Brickly’s there are plenty more around this cool and delectable place. I thinly the Medical association should get together and declare it an Ice Cold holiday for diabetics. I’ll be there.

I like sitting in my house in the morning listening to the rumble of giant engines pushing big ships up the Bay. The slow, methodical chug-a-chug. I can see the huge bow thrusting water aside. It’s certainly far more soothing than cars with boom boxes blaring on city streets.

I’m seeing layoffs coming in various industries around the country, but also heard that there is an opening at the hospital gown factory. Brrrr.

It used to be that a baseball player retired and the team management tossed a little party at home plate and gave him a car. But not for the new breed of prima donnas. The Red Sox David Ortiz wants a year long retirement tribute excursion! In fact, they even had a practice Tribute in Spring Training. I’m already tired of it. Like so many other former great traditions, the promotion and PR people are over doing it.

The Question:

What were the top ten most watched TV programs last week? And, Fox News announced a first time ever achievement. What was it? Bonus: Name the three most famous roles for Richard Chamberlain. Speed Bonus: What was the name of Rogers and Hammerstein’s first Broadway Musical?

The Headlines:

--Stocks Ready To Close Out Good Quarter And Great Month.

--Yesterday Abortion Gaffs Looked Like The End Of Trump; Matthews, Maddow High Fiving; Many Say, Don’t Count Him Out Yet.

--Turkey Car Bomb Kills Seven Police; Injures Many In Vicinity.

--Boeing Announces Big Layoffs Up to 10%; Euro Economic Confidence Levels Declining.

--China Warns US To Be CarefuI In The China Sea.

--Massive Bridge Failure In India Kills At Least 14, Traps 150.

--US Women’s Soccer Teams Wants Higher alaries.

Rape of the Land, Department:

Two things I really have a problem with are the concept of affordable housing and Fed and State mandates. When you put them together you are doing a disservice to the the public, attacking people in their towns. The gang up at our state house are going to mandate affordable housing levels for towns which seem basically impractical, and decennium to me. I can only see their objective as primarily creating business opportunities for their relatives running unions and construction companies. They point out beautiful rural areas like Little Compton and West Greenwich as being far below the required arbitrary limits. Bulldozing pastures and forests would be criminal, and in the end we wouldn’t help the affordability. The new state slogan could be Cooler, Warmer and Crammed.

It was nice today to see both Conservatives and Liberals on the Supreme Court side with a land owner in a dispute with The EPA and their mandated, draconian permitting requirements. Maybe the SC understands that the people and their land is more sacrosanct than political agendas Hooray. (See above)

One of the great things about a nice cold winter is that cold and fever germs hibernate.

Had several complaints yesterday about the answer to the Q. I used Seward’s Icebox which was one of two common slurs against the SOS, but most thought Seward’s Folly Should be number one. Newspapers of the day also had some of their unkind cuts. But, in reality, the uproar against the purchase wasn’t bad at all. It was just the media shouting as usual. Nothing is really ever new.

America can no longer handle the truth. How will we ever fix problems?

If while reading you have noticed some words that look like they should have included “Cs”, you are right. The C key is misbehaving.

I see where the President commuted the long sentences of about 58 drug users, dealers and others associated with the scourge. So, that’s his plan to improve poor neighborhoods -- Eliminate the stigma of drugs. Lowering the bar is not a solution for a great country.

The Parking Lot: Chapter 52 continues…

   The keeper of the gate put Nancy through to her boss without even asking for the name. Maybe the games were over, she thought. Maybe even the AG was getting the message. They were more than ready for her, so she would be very careful about what she said.

  “Hello Ms. Hicks. I am all yours.” He was now all sweetness and cooperation. “Is your associate listening too?”

  “Are yours?” She smiled and noticed his pause. “Ok,” she started, “I’m going to give you some juicy stuff and also information that you as our chief law officer should find interesting.

   “I’m all ears.”  I

   “The state may not be happy with what I have to say because it wants to make a lot of money off the big casino.” She paused. “I Can block the entire project.”

    She heard some noise from the army of state people probably crowed in the room. That’s all I’m going to say about that for now. What I can tell you is that a lot of bad guys want a piece of the action. I’m sure that you know nothing about that. But f you check out some recent misfortunes that have come to criminals in Fall River, and Tiverton, you may find a few clues about who is trying to shove out the state. Then you can investigate the fire that burned down my hosue. That should keep you busy. I’ll be back” She hung up.

   She breathed out. “We’re on!”

The Answer: The Top ten shows last week were The Big Bang Theory, Little Big Shot, The Voice (Tues.), Voice (Wed), Little Big Shot (3/8), Blue Bloods, Voice (3/9), NCIS NO Special, Survivor and 60 Mins. For the first time ever, Fox News beat out standard programming like ESPN and TBS for the entire Q1 2016.. Primary coverage also gave CNN and MSNBC enormous gains, but they lagged about 40% behind Fox. Bonus: Richard Chamberlain first made it big with Dr. Kildare, and solidified his stardom with Shogun and The Thornbirds.  Speed Bonus: Oklahoma was numero uno for R&H.

Email me your favorite flavor of Ice Cream. Tidsters have great taste

Lying in green fields looking at puffy clouds.

Today's Tids Issue 3,562

Opening Stuff:

I remember clearly years ago walking through fields of high grasses and wildflowers, enjoying the sight of redwing blackbirds flitting; their colorful markings blending with yellow coreopsis, white daisies and blue cornflowers. Isn’t it always interesting how powerful small memories can be? How little incidents, visual pleasantries or brief meetings leave an indelible mark somewhere in our most amazing brains. How you can always pull out a moment to savor, a smile, a color, a laugh; a sensitive feeling. Red winged blackbirds bring me back to a perfect place. Who woulda thunk it.

Patty Duke was good at what she did, and was a good person doing it. Sorry to see her go, but many lives have been touched by her.

One thing I do like about Trump is that he likes simple, uncluttered food. It’s highly unlikely that Melania would be giving us food pyramids and all of the guilt that goes with it. That’s worth something.

The Question:

What was the name of the US Secretary of State who 149 years ago arranged the purchase of Alaska from Russia? How was the Purchase described by the sarcastic press?

The Headlines:

--Stocks Up Nicely; Wall Street Loving Yellen’s Concern Over Slow Global Growth.

--Iran’s Ayatollah Takes Aim At the West And Iran’s Moderates; Says “His Nation Would Remain Strong Through Its Missile Program, Not Through Talks With Other Countries.”

--States Moving To Require Work For Food Stamp Benefits. Maine Follows Kansas In Clampdown After Finding Big EBT Card Expenditures In Disneyland.

--Apple Can’t Explain How FBI Cracked the IPhone Code.

--US Soccer Missies Out On Olympics Again; Loss To columbia Nixes Summer Fun; A Second Men’s Team Keeps Hope Alive For World Cup With Decisive Win Over Guatamala..

--Trump Continues To Talk Too Much About His Manager’s Arrest.

Heraldo Rivera was axed from Dancing with the Stars, and with good reason. He was just plain awful. I wonder if Tids Guy qualifies as celebrity – I could go on next year.

Politics, Department:

At the beginning of this primary season wrote that I only hoped for one thing – that the Repub candidates don’t destroy each other in the process. Could it be any worse? –With the ABT forces out there thumping away it was just a matter of time until Trump would waffle on the pledge to support the other candidates. –Because of the rigged super delegates it is unlikely that Bernie can win. But his success is telling us that The Hill has some big flaws and Dems are looking around. –Bernie’s success is also telling us that there are a lot more socialists in this country than we should. --There just has to be better candidates in this country. Maybe if we took the sniping press out of campaigns, good people would step up.

The Voice was good last night with Adam Wakefield growling out some cool country blues. Unfortunately, another of my favorites Peyton Parker had to walk the deadly last mile.  One of the problems with Night two is that there are no “Steals” left for people like Peyton who was certainly better than a couple of those previously stolen. I was happy to see Moushumi retained by Pharrell. She has a very nice voice, although she was lackluster last night. BTW, her competitor Nick was also stealable. I was also impressed with Tamar Davis who could hang around for a while

Amazing disgrace in the New America, Department:

The State of Maine has found that 4,000 welfare recipients have won $22 Million in the State Lottery! Double Yikes.

I never pick up phone calls where the caller is indicated as “Unavailable”, “Unknown” or “Private Caller” – or any of several out of state numbers. I figure if it is important the caller will leave a message. That happens about once in 346 calls.

Our RI governor Gina Raimondo has been named by Fortune magazine as #38 among “The World’s 50 Greatest Leaders. Say what! She must have a great PR Person. Yesterday she unveiled the new State logo, which was cumbersome visually, with a slogan “Cooler and Warmer”, which was mind boggling. She said she thought it was terrific, but even as a great leader in the world she had trouble defining it, saying  “Warmer” could mean beaches in the summer or the friendliness of people, or…you know. Oh yeah, cooler meant “We’re Hip”. It looks like the convoluted effort of committee made up of state employees near retirement. 96% of FaceBook observers marked it “Stupid”. A local columnist gave us some alternatives, “RI – 3% Larger at Low Tide” and “Mobsters and Lobsters”. I submitting this in the “My state is worse than your state” contest.

A good percentage of Americans think their government officials are thieves, but the folks in small town Buchannon West Virginia just learned that their mayor was a full fledged, authenticated, verified thief, Texas arrest a warrant and all. Yes the elected mayor there did some nefarious things as an official in San Antonio and was about to be arrested. He left town and slipped up into the middle of WVa. Who could find him there. Unless of course he was brian dead and decided to run for a high visibility post where he was sure to be seen. And he was.  

The Answer:

“Seward’s Icebox” as it was called, was purchased by William Seward on this day in 1867.

I have noticed that if you take away the presidential race and the daily crudeness and absurdities, there is not really much news, at least news fit to print in the Tids.

Bigger and better Tids tomorrow.

If you can't reach it, try harder

Today's Tids Issue 3,561

Opening Stuff:

Enabling bad behavior, sub-standard performance and general all around lowering of the bar has been eating away at the fabric of America like moths at a wool eating contest – with catsup, mustard and chili sauce. This was my theme for today, as I see us at times looking like a third rate country with declining signs of standard s of civility, respect and internal motivation. I was wondering what to say when low and behold a sports writer from the Boston Globe comes out with a column today decrying the perfection of the UConn women’s basketball team. Instead of suggesting that all other teams should be working to catch up, he insults the hard working, well tuned huskies. He seems to want their great coach to let up, instead of suggesting raising the bar for all, including his alma mater, Boston College. There is little in sports I enjoy more than watching perfection, even when I am pretty sure of the outcome.

I’m wondering who started the petition which now has about 34,000 signatures from people who think it is a good idea for attendees to the GOP Cleveland convention to come packin’! Are they nuts!

This is the time of the year when you get all of those proxies to elect boards of directors to various companies. 99% 0f the stock owners have little idea who these people are and yet they demand participation. “Trust us”, they imply. Talk about sham elections.

BTW, let’s hope some of those boards are hiring security experts. Word across the sand dunes is that companies will be the next big target for ISIS.

The Question:

What made Vangelis famous? Bonus: It’s time for your favorite “Do you know these people” Tids Q. Today we have Christopher Lawford and Brendan Gleeson. Speed Bonus: Quick – Which college/university has both a men’s and women’s team in the Basketball Final Four?

The Headlines:

--Stocks On A Nice Roll Today.

--Trump Campaign Manager Arrested On Charge Of Misdemeanor Assault On A Reporter. Says He Is Completely Innocent.

--Egyptian Plane Hijacked; Hijacker Nabbed In Cyprus after short Hostage Standoff; Hijacker Wanted To See His ex-Girlfriend!.

--China Giant Mysterious Insurance Comp Up’s Bid To Take Over Starwood; Marriott Had Looked Like Winner.

--Delay Says That If FBI Recommends Indictment Of Hillary, USAG Will Hire Special Investigator To Move Action Past Elections.

--More Antiquities Than Expected Found By Syrian Troops Entering Palmyra.

--ObamaCare Costs Threatening Employer Plans.

With the news that 147 FBI agents are working on the Hillary caper, and that an Indictment is certainly looking more possible, Joe Biden is fretting, “But, I really am looking  forward to retirement.”

I see where there is a new push on to have a States Rights National Convention. Article V of the US Constitution allows for a minimum of 2/3’s of states to convene a convention which could call for changes to existing amendments like Taxes and term limits, or work to achieve a balanced budget amendment (Reagan came out in the 80’’s in favor of a “Balanced Budget Convention”.) The convention can legitimately argue for new amendments, bypassing congress. The Congress used to be the People’s representatives, and now many think states can do it better. So far, six states have signed on – Alabama, Alaska, Georgia, Florida, Indiana and Tennessee.

On a similar subject, I have been watching a woman named Karen McBeth, whi is Chairman of the RI Oversight committee looking into a large legislative most piossibly fraudulent gaff. She has announced she is changing parties to republican, because recent issues she is close to indicate to her that “Democrat politicians who control the house, the senate and governor’s office are still not listening to eth people.” Ir this any different thana national election looking for something   better than bought agendized politicians?  

After the horrendous Pakistan Taliban Easter execution event designed to Kill Christians, the White House just had to say, “But Muslims were killed too.”

When a politician vehemently proclaims innocence, it is generally a sign of significant guilt.

People protesting power plants has become an American cliché.

The Voice: I Really liked Alisan Porter and her beautiful, moving take on Joni Mitchell’s River. She was the best of the night, although I also enjoyed Katie Basden and “Gypsy” (Maybe because  I like Stevie Nicks). Owen Danoff, a sweet sounding folk singer would be another I’ll be looking forward to on upcoming shows. I have liked Hannah Houston from the beginning, and she was good last night but a little loud at times. Three others I could easily vote for are Emily Keener, Shalyah Faring (Infectious personality) and Paxton Ingram who was great with “Hometown Glory”. Ryan Quinn looked like a real contender before last night, when perhaps his song choice let him down. He can sing. On to tonight!

The Parking Lot: Chapter 52 continues…

   Nancy sat up quickly, as if her mom had yelled stop dreaming, it’s time for school. At once her eyes were focused. “Time to get this rolling.” Then she smiled and looked at Jared, took two steps, bent and kissed him. It was one of her soft yet amazingly exciting kisses, just dragging her lips cross his forehead to his cheek.

    “You’d better stop,” he said. “We’ve work to do…Then sheepishly, “Don’t we?”

   “Yes Jared, it is time to move.” She opened her brief case and pulled out the landline phone from her home, plugged it into a filter and then into the wall phone jack. She dialed and listened. “Oh, hi, this is your friend who you keep trying to evade. She was smiling and sounding very friendly, but Jared knew the other person was squirming. “So put your boss on the line. I really think he is ready to talk.” Jared couldn’t hear the other side of the conversation, but he got a strong thumbs up.

   “Mr. Attorney General, so nice of you to be there today.” She frowned and gave me the thumbs down. Apparently he wasn’t being quite as friendly. Nancy pressed the button to put it on speaker. “Why yes, I do have it now on speaker phone. I thought you might say something important and I wanted my entourage to hear every one of you words.

    “Turn off the speaker or this conversation is over.”

    Click! Nancy hung up the phone. “Let him stew. She stood and gave Jared the look. “What should we do to pass the time. I think he should have an hour to think it over”

  

The Answer:

I am a big Vangelis fan and you probably knew he made it really big with his score for Chariots of Fire. He is also known for the score for Blade Runner. Some of his other great electronic scores are for Opera Savage, Antarctica, Alexander and Cosmos. Bonus: Chris Lawford is the son of Peter Lawford which makes him a Kennedy. Like many Kennedy’s he had a serious drug dependency which slowed his career. He was on soapies All my Children and General Hospital. Some of his movie acting jobs were in Terminator 3, Russia House and Thirteen Days among many others. He was a lawyer executive in H-Wood and probably made his best deal acquiring the rights to American Graffiti. Brenda Gleeson is one of those faces you have seen often. He won an Emmy for his portrayal of Winston Churchill. This grizzly faced Irish actor was also in Michael Collins, The Treaty and several Harry Potter films. Speed Bonus: Yes, Syracuse has both the men’s and women’s teams in the 2016 Final Four.

It is truly a beautiful breezy day. Nothing I like better than being shoved around by a late March gust.

Your mother wears army boots.

Today's Tids Issue 3,560

Opening Stuff:

Wasn’t the Easter respite from politicians pleasant? Doesn’t Trump sound smarter when he doesn’t speak? Frankly I just can’t take the childish, crass, illiterate schoolyard rants of any of the candidates anymore. I just turn them off. Leaders of the free world, my ass. Hey, I’m sounding like them. What a mess.

Nothing has shown people’s ability to adapt and adjust more than technology. In fact people from all generations have adapted so well that they are now beholden to their networking communications, and instant information. We leave one devil for another. Power companies will have to employ trauma specialists for hot lines in the event of power failures. People who generate mobs to protest the building of energy centers will be the first to get on their knees to pray for the return of their new gods. The golden calf lives. There’s always something, as the great old comedienne said. Sometimes it’s good, and sometimes not as good as it seems.

I think I finally found somebody in the presidential race to follow – Mrs. Kasich! Yes, in an interview, Greta van Sustran asked her about her work as Ohio First Lady trying to improve food and exercise habits of Ohio children. In the question, Greta mentioned there are “so many ‘bad’ foods in grocery stores.” Karen Kasich answered the question responsively, finishing with the phrase, “And, I don’t think there are any bad foods.” She went on to emphasize that her concern was teaching moderation as what should guide us most in our eating habits.” From now on I’m only eating 15 Cheeto’s at a time.

The Question:

When and where was the first Mormon Temple dedicated? Bonus: Which First Lady planted the Cherry trees in Washington, and which City’s mayor presented the first two of them to DC as a gift

The Headlines:

--Death Toll Of Christians Murdered in Pakistan By Taliban Expected To Rise Over 75; Bombing Widespread in Islamic Nuclear State.

--Stocks Up Early As Some Producers Turn Off Oil Spigots; Stock Hanging In During Noon Hour; Analysts Beginning To See Signs Of Volatility Which Could Make Next Several Months A Bit Bumpy.

--Bernie Builds Mo With Strong Wins In Alaska, Washington and Hawaii; Wisconsin Throngs Cheering Socialist Madly.

--Georgia Governor Veto’s “Liberty Bill” as Anti Gay; Bill Would Have Protected Those Business refusing To Do Biz With gay People.

--Feds Invite Hillary In For A talk About Emails.

--NK Ramps Up Rhetoric; New Video Shows Nuclear Strike On Washington DC; Country Says It Will Devastate SK For Ridiculing Leader Jung-Un.

--Final Four: Villanova Versus Oklahoma; Syracuse Versus north Carolina; ‘Cuse Is First #10 Seed To Reach Finals.

--Putin Hails Recapture Of Palmyra And Russia’s Role.

--Death toll Of Americans In Brussels Rises To 4.

Personally, I like being civilized.

People I have talked to and others commenting on TV after seeing Batman Vs. Superman, agreed it was not that great a picture. But that didn’t stop people from spending $170 Million over the weekend. I guess I could be enticed to sit tough the mayhem – after all who didn’t as a kid love Batman and Superman. I only fear that Hollywood will over-alter my own image of my heroes past.

Every time Yahoo has a management coup, I lose contacts on my email lists.

Here are five psychological biases I picked up from a writer named Jennifer Nelson that can really cost big money, and even destroy relationships and family 1. Status Quo Bias – This going to a high priced restaurant you can’t afford just to keep up. 2. When In Rome Bias – Habit of buying something you shouldn’t. This occurs often on vacation when you buy often to just buy as part of a vacation. 3. Inertia Bias – This is when you spend as you always have even when experiencing a change in life situation, like having kids in college. 4. Prince or Princes Bias – Spouse or partner who always demands the best even when it causes financial problems. 5. Lifestyle Creep Bias – This is the often unwitting process to allow lifestyle expenses to grow faster than your income. These all look pretty similar to me. Basically it’s about all parties knowing and understanding what the resources are and controlling the temptation to obliterate them.

(On Friday, I sent out what I thought was a link to the “ending of Mahler’s 2^nd Symphony played by Conductor Dudamel and the Simon Bolivar Symphony”. What I learned was that the link could be received differently depending on the type of device -- smart phone, tablet, laptop of desk top.)

In response to last week’s “Q” about fashion designers of men’s clothes, a reader writes with this tidbit:  Hugo Boss was main producer of Nazi Unifirms and thelittle outfits fro youth

I had to walk through a casino the other day and I can only describe them as glitzy ghettos.

We will never again see the glory of Palmyra’s antiquities, and that is sad too.

Media Shenanigans, Department:

A quite right leaning media outlet ran the headline: “Trump: I’d never rule out war with China.” Nowhere in the accompanying story did I see Trump saying that. He basically said that too many politicians say too much to media about what they may or may not do, and I refuse to do that. But, the war quote is now in print forever, and the anti Mr. T forces will promote him as a war monger who could start the nuclear catastrophe. Maybe freedom of the press has lost its way. Meanwhile, I remain a man without a candidate.

My nine year old grandson told me yesterday that his teacher told the class that Trump is a racist. Am I a dinosaur, or do new parents really want the NEA to own their kid’s soul?

Aren’t you glad the Prez forsook the Belgian massacre to honor the communist at a baseball game. Let’s see what Brother Fidel had to say in a “bristling” 1500 word letter to “Brother Obama”. “We don’t need the empire to give us any presents,” was the tone.” His advice to “O” was, “My modest suggestion is that he (Obama) reflects and doesn’t try to develop theories about Cuban politics.” The old revolutionary leader picks apart Obama’s speech line by line, seemingly most riled by his talk of Cuban-US business ties. “”No one should pretend that the people of this noble and selfless country will renounce its glory and rights, We are capable of producing the food an material wealth (For high government officials?) we need with the work and intelligence of our people.” I say let’s keep Gitmo humming and bring back the Islamic war criminals. After all, that is the best place to keep them.

Meanwhile, another headline in the same News source says, “Obama sees tide shifting in Cuba…” It ain’t over until the communist sings.

The Parking Lot: Chapter 52.

   Jared sat mesmerized as Nancy Elizabeth Hicks told the story of her ancestors Richard and Eliza and Jeremiah and Mulatta Elizabeth Hicks. He looked at Nancy, feeling this new depth of her character that made her so entirely beautiful. He also sensed the fear that may be growing, as it is clearly becoming obvious that the Howlands are fighting to make amends for the past. But, probably more so trying to gain control of the land that would be the Casino.

   He was drawn back into the colonial pre-Revolutionary War era when strong willed people pioneered settlements and growth. Her family and The Howlands were surely that. He could see how Nancy was tied to this land as it was not only her father-in-laws by deed and gift from the tribes, but her right, as a descendant of the Wampanoags. This was her land in so many ways, and even more important, her tribe is the one acknowledged as the governing body to legalize the casino operation.

   Nancy seemed to be in the early seventeen hundred’s, drifting perhaps along a path through lush forests, or standing on the shores by her father’s settlement on the Sakonnet Bay. She had been raised in peace but never stopped being a fighter, like her ancestors and in particular Mulatta. Jared let her dream, and absorbed her beauty.

The Answer:

The first Mormon Temple was dedicated in Kirtland Ohio in 1836 by Joseph Smith. Bonus: The first two cherry trees 0f 3,000 were a gift  of the Mayor of Tokyo Japan, and they were planted by Japan Ambassador to the US, Visountess Chinda, and Helen Herron Taft.

Easter is done, chocolate bunnies are earless,

This day of light shines the way for so much more

Spring matures, windy morns seduce the fearless.

On grassy hills above the sea, we hear shouts -- Fore!