Merry Christmas To Our Troops...

Ironically, the last thing we want to think about on Christmas Eve is death, murder, danger, bombs, children screaming in pain, and the like...right? But we should make it a priority. Especially on Christmas.

These brutal realities of war are daily occurrences for many thousands of our fathers, sons, daughters, brothers and sisters in Iraq and Afghanistan.

How can we possibly enjoy a peaceful Holiday without a mere thought or prayer for our troops?

How can we possibly form the right thoughts in our minds without being thoroughly informed about the realities of life for our loved ones in arms?

On this Christmas Eve of 2008, I made a Squidoo lens with war videos by Casey Porter. He took it upon himself to show us what's really going on in Iraq, by letting the soldiers and images speak for themselves.

Watch these videos! It's the least you can do for our troops - as a Christmas present.

Stop the loss - Iraq war realities on video.

Photo courtesy of takomabibelot. Thank you.

Grocery Store Shelf Injuries!

I wonder if there have been law suits, already...

About 2 years ago, grocery stores in my area (and probably nation-wide) started re-fitting their shelves with acrylic "guards" of sorts. I assume the reason for this was too much product slipping off the over-stuffed platforms. So far, so good.

Moronically, these "guard" panes have sharp edges. Every time I have to reach deeper into the shelf space to get a few extra packs of coconut flakes, I scrape some skin off my lower arm.

It hurts to shop for more than what's conveniently located up front! Huh? Who came up with that brain fart? It hurts to buy more?

I'm already at peace with the fact that sometimes a quart of sour cream is more (?) expensive than two individual pints. But being rewarded with bloody scratches for throwing more money at the big chains seems to be a bit of a stretch, to me.

The photo is an exaggeration, of course. Courtesy of rbatina. Thank you.

What does "Wow!" taste like?

Ever watch the Food Network's "Bizarre Foods" with Andrew Zimmern?

He eats bugs and stuff.

Raw lamb hemorrhoids.

Fish (stinky) that was buried in the ground for 300 years. (Great with a squeeze of fresh lime!)

Admittedly, he does dislike some of those bizarre concoctions. Most of the time, however, he loves any foods that none of us spoiled brats would dare touching with a pitchfork from a hovering helicopter.

How do I know this? Because he says "Wow!"

He might get a bit more descriptive and declare something along the lines of "so tender, so fresh!", or "you can really taste the ocean in this!". Can't we have more creativity here?

Maybe I'm nitpicking. I'd just hope that a chef could do better than that. Maybe not? Maybe it's really impossible to describe accurately what your taste buds experience when they get hit with a jiggling snake testicle...

Wow!

For Sale By Owner

Huh?

Who else could sell it anyway?

By "owner"?

I sure hope so.

Men don't get it!

Isn't that what commercials tell us?

Men can't pick a good deal. Women spy instantly the best phone contracts, health/car/medical supplemental insurance deals...men seem to have the clues of a klutz. No less.

Don't get me wrong - I actually believe that overall - women have a better grip on most things "life".

What I'm wondering is why ad designers choose this route of psychological breast strokes? (Sorry.)

Is it funny that men are dumber? Endearing? Cute?

Obviously, products sell better if the one not thinking about buying them is a loser. He's not just unaware of the great offer and needs to be enlightened - he's an inferior member of the human race because he is unaware.

How this strategy of pitching us against each other can get out of control is easily observed in our political scene: Right is right, left is wrong (or vice versa).

End of (non-existing) discussion.

Antidote: How to say I love you


Photo courtesy of Jim Frazier. Thank you.

Jitterbug

I just saw this TV commercial.

Actually, I saw a cartoon of a couple doing the "Jitterbug".

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a cell phone. Or something.

Being way too fascinated by the dancing couple I completely missed what this commercial was selling.

Whoever paid for this thing missed a whole lot more than I did.


Photo courtesy of Roadsidepictures Thank you!