Five Thoughts on a Friday – The “Soggy Summer Swan Song” Edition

Good morning everyone, and welcome to this week’s edition of Five Thoughts. We’re coming to you live from a soggy, steamy, foggy, gray morning in southeastern Michigan today. A quick check of the calendar reveals that we’ve had a full moon this past week, so yeah… no shortage of weirdness in the news this week! And with that in mind, let’s get to it!

1. I knew this one was going in the second I saw the headline. I mean, how do you top a headline that reads “Herpes-Infected Monkeys Invade Florida“. Yeah… I got nothing. Except for a feeling of gratitude that I never ended up moving down there. Oh… and if anyone asks, don’t touch the monkey. (No not going with the ‘Shock the Monkey’ song here. We’re going with The old SNL ‘Dieter’ bit)
   
2. Speaking of Florida, I was shocked when I read this next article. Because it wasn’t from Florida. No, this one comes to us from New York (Long Island), where authorities found 850 snakes (!) in the home of an animal control officer. Apparently, the guy has a thing for snakes.
3. Speaking of snakes…. Or, not snakes as the case may be. When is a snake not a snake? When it’s a legless lizard from California, apparently. A new species of legless lizard has been discovered in the dunes just west of Los Angeles Airport (LAX). Heh, they aren’t fooling me. I know what they’re up to. If they look like a snake, they’re a snake. And that close to an airport? They’re snakes trying to get on a plane. I’m on to them!
   
4. Since we’re talking about LAX airport, I wonder if those ‘legless lizards’ are trying to sneak onto THIS plane. Yeah, I don’t get it. To me, a Hello Kitty themed Boeing 777 is straight out of the ‘What in the hell??’ department. I just don’t get it.
5. This last one comes to us courtesy of our resident college football junkie, PB. He may have found it. The college football game played each year where the ‘winner’ takes home the ugliest trophy in all of sports. It’s worth a read, just for the picture of the ‘trophy’ alone. Not to mention the author taking a shot at the stunt the University of Michigan pulled last week. After all, that’s what’s supposed to make college sports fun.

Okay folks, that’s five and I’m out of here. We’ve got a busy agenda on the docket this weekend, including an Oktoberfest celebration tonight.  So, here’s hoping that as we wind down summer, things will dry out just a bit and we can get one last heatwave.

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer

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Five Thoughts on a Friday – The “Wait, Beer’s actually back?” Edition

Aloha folks!

Yep, I’m finally back. Now to see if I can remember how to write one of these posts. And why is it I finally get back from a holiday, only to find myself staring down a holiday weekend? How does that happen, anyways? Anyhow, before I get started, a big thanks to PB for filling in ably for me while I was away (Although we need to work on getting him to add tags to posts). And now… Let’s see If I remember how to do this…

1. Holy casting news, Batman! Yes, I realize it’s actually kind of old news by now, but really…  I guess the part that most people are sort of overlooking is Ben Affleck isn’t going to be playing Batman in a Batman movie. It’s for the next Superman movie. And it’s been back in the news a bit since it’s been announced that it will be filming in Detroit. I’m gonna go out on a limb and say they’ll be using Detroit as a Gotham City backdrop. Not Metropolis.
2. Speaking of movies, one of my favorites remains “The Princess Bride” which brought us many great lines, including “You keep using that word…”
   I mention this because of a headline I saw today on Yahoo!. It was for an E! Online article and the headline read… “Kate Middleton to Make Surprise First Official Public Appearance Since Giving Birth to Prince George“. See, here’s the thing… if it’s being announced in the press? It isn’t a “Surprise”. Which made me think… I do not think it means what you think it means.
   
3. On a completely different note…  We’ve talked about Florida a bit in the past, and I’ve made no secret that I just don’t get why it seems to be such an odd place. And yet, here I am again talking about “The Sunshine State” in a weekly post. This time after reading an article about how they’re fighting a giant snail infestation by using… dogs. Labrador retrievers to be exact. Now, I think Labs are fantastic dogs. But I just don’t get it. I mean, the article has this quote, “They’re very good at detecting the Giant African Land Snail”. Yeah, I would think damned near anyone with a working set of eyes would pretty good at spotting a giant snail that can get to be the size of a rat! And they need a dog to help them? Florida, I just don’t get it.
4. You know, there’s an awful lot going on in the world right now. Much of it being of the “very serious” nature. Of course, you wouldn’t really know it from the general news or social media, because even off on the big island of Hawaii and insulated by a six-hour time change, I couldn’t escape the news about Miley Cyrus. But it appears she may have really crossed the line this time. She’s now being taken to task for her act, and being called out for it being degrading…. To the foam finger she used by the originator of the foam finger! Yeah, I got nothing to add. Didn’t see it, don’t care.  I was busy drinking on the beach. Or something.
5. Lastly, simply put… I think this gentleman may be my hero. A British man is making money every time a telemarketer calls him. He changed his phone to the U.S. equivalent of a 900 toll line. So the longer the telemarketers are on the line, the more they have to pay him! As the guys in the Guinness ad say…. “Brilliant!”
   

Okay folks, that’s five and apparently I still know how to do this (allegedly).  And with that, I’m off to enjoy a holiday weekend. So, even thought I’ve used it before… I think this one is fitting. After all, I just back from and no I’m planning on observing… a “Holiday”

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer

Five Thoughts on a Friday – The “Gonna need more coffee!” Edition

Good morning everyone, and welcome to another coffee fueled edition of Five Thoughts. The good news is, I have internet access today, so I don’t need to call in an emergency reliever (Big thanks to PB for subbing last week!). The bad news? Hehe… I have internet access this week and get to write today’s post! Let’s see where we land, shall we?

1. I saw this one, and I knew I’d have to use it. This really does fall into the heading of, “If you use this for your PIN… you probably DESERVE to what you get”… Ladies and gentleman, the 10 Worst PIN numbers. (And why to we say PIN number? That’s what the N is for! If anything it should be PI Number!)  And of course, I couldn’t read that article without think of this scene from Spaceballs!
   
2. Next up as anyone who reads the blog knows, I like to post articles abut drones. And here comes another one. Except, this time they aren’t spying on you or shooting at anyone. They’re spying on Hurricanes. I think it’s cool, so I’m posting about it. Although now I have this mental image of a kid at a NASA drone pilots house running around going “Mom, where do hurricanes come from?” Yeah, I’m weird sometimes.
3. Moving along, we have a public service announcement………
   EVERYBODY PANIC! WE’RE ALL GONNA DIE! THEY FOUND A GIANT HOLE IN THE SUN! Okay, you don’t have to panic. But we are all gonna die, eventually, that’s how life works. And they did find a giant hole in the sun. We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming, already in progress.
4. As for this one… I’ve often wondered about it myself, but frankly I don’t think there really is any explanation. Even though they try to offer several theories. I think much like the Bermuda triangle, we just have to expect that when weird stuff happens, odds are it’s happening in Florida.
5. Lastly, but certainly not least. A little something for you to ponder this weekend as you’re having a few cocktails. Because, what’s a weekend without a few drinks, right? That syrupy, sugary thing you’re calling a Daiquiri? You’re doing it wrong. Here’s what it used to be (And is supposed to be).

Okay folks, that’s five and I’m cutting out of here to start the weekend. We’ve got a car show, a concert, and even a fireworks display on tap for the weekend! Speaking of taps… yes. There will be beer involved. Hey, if you’re gonna go, go all the way. Right?  (How’s THAT for a blast from the past?)

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer

 

Five Thoughts on a Friday – The “Laissez Les Bon Temps Roulez Boondoggle!” Edition

Good morning folks and welcome to this week’s Five Thoughts. As the title suggests, you’ve got me in full Boondoggle mode again. Where am I off to now? Well, the title should give a bit of a blatant hint, but if that doesn’t do it, just read on till the end and we’ll remove all doubt. Now, let’s see what’s up for today’s post!

1. It’s usually not too hard to get people to roll their eyes or see them suffer a shiver running down their spine. All it usually takes is one word. Florida. But well, this time there’s more. As in an 800 person “python challenge” in the Everglades. Now before anyone gets too worried, there is some training required. “The training came down to common sense: Drink water, wear sunscreen, don’t get bitten by anything and don’t shoot anyone.” Now, I’d like to think that “Don’t shoot anyone” would be common sense, but again… Florida.
2. Under the heading of “Your brilliant plan… You did not think it through”, we bring you the article about the woman who was arrested for stalking herself. There’s that lack of common sense thing again. Surprisingly, this one was NOT in Florida (Or would that be disturbingly?)
3. The joke has been around for ages. Now Subway is getting drawn into the joke. What am I talking about? Well, it would appear that some of the Subway Footlongs, may not actually be a foot long. And that’s as close to that joke as I’m going to get in this post. I’m sure you can figure it out.
4. And back down to Florida again, it appears there was what is being described as anywhere from a “Collision” to “clipping of wings” between two jet airliners at Miami International Airport. Good news, no one was hurt. But we did learn something though. What was it? Well, based on this line in the Detroit News article… “The Herald reports the passengers arriving from Argentina were allowed to get off the plane at the gate. The passengers heading to France had to pick up their luggage and wait in long lines to reschedule their flights.” Apparently it’s better to have your plane collide with another once you’ve arrived at your destination!
5. I have to say I’ve been impressed with my picks so far for the NFL playoffs. The fact that I’m hanging on at the .500 mark is something I find impressive, considering that as much as I enjoy watching football, I don’t follow it all that closely all year long and really don’t know much of anything about the teams in the playoffs – other than most of them could (or did) beat the Lions this year.

Okay, that’s five and I can now set my otherwise occupied mind to some other tasks. Like concentrating on being in vacation mode. You see, after yesterdays picks to see who gets to go to New Orleans, well…. Lets just say I already know someone who’s going for sure. Yep. You see, I know this great place to get some cajun food…. Yep. Beer’s off to New Orleans! Cajun food and zydeco jazz here I come. In the meantime, just like the title of this post says… Let the Good Times Roll! I’ll save the zydeco for when I get back!

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer

Five Thoughts on a Friday – The “Wait, it’s Friday again already? Holy Crap!” edition

Howdy folks, and welcome to another edition of Five Thoughts. As you can see from the title, I’m trying to figure out where the week went to. Don’t get me worng, I love the fact that I’m staring down the weekend already. I’m just trying to figure out where my week went to. Anyways, let’s get things rolling, shall we?

1. A while back, my co-blogger was pondering the hockey question… What’s wrong the with New Jersey Devils?  Here’s a microcosm of the problem right here…
   
2. Changing gears… almost literally for this one. I’m a huge fan of advanced automotive technology. I like new things, even thought I’m a die-hard muscle car guy at heart. Still, there’s one change on vehicles that’s come along that I don’t think I’ll ever get used to. The cap-less fuel fillers. That’s right, no gas cap. None. Nada. Zilch. You just put the nozzle of the gas hose into the filler. It just doesn’t seem right.
   

   It just don't seem right, does it?

3. Once again, the Black Friday deals have “leaked” out in advance. Let me repeat that…. *Once Again*. Funny how these “leaks” occur just as people start making plans on where to go shopping on Black Friday, isn’t it? Almost like it happens on purpose. That couldn’t be what’s happening, could it? I mean, then they wouldn’t be “leaks”!
4. An interesting piece on the decline and impending demise of residential phone books. You know, the white pages. I guess their time really has passed due to technology and all. Still, there are a couple of interesting things from the article. What I want to know though, from a line near the end of the article,  is how the hell you do a doctoral dissertation on phone books??
5. Ok, this guy came straight out of the loony bin. Restraining orders against President Barack Obama, Jesus Christ, and.. Tim Teebow? Yeah, I think a lot of people get those three mixed up all the time. You have to read the article. And I have to get in touch with some of my friends in Florida and find out what exactly they’re putting in the water down there.

Ok folks, that’s five and it’s time to get the heck on out of here. Need to find something to listen to and relax. You know, unwind a bit. This should do it.

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer

Five Thoughts on a Friday – The moving on up edition

Good morning, and welcome to a snowy Friday morning. It’s time once again for Five Thoughts, so let’s get started.

1. In a bit of a rush today, we’re being moved around at work. Apparently after several years, we’re now sitting in the wrong place. Who knew? The funniest part though? Some coworkers got moved yesterday. We played a joke on them this morning, and it’s currently lying in wait. Those are the best pranks you know. The ones that slowly develop and no one sees coming.
2. Once I saw it, this one was basically a given:  Are the Olympics ready for … pole dancing? I don’t know about the Olympics, but I know a bunch of guys who would probably say yes. And people thought my idea of racing 4 bobsleds down the track at once was far fetched…
3. Saw a reference to a Florida Room, which isn’t usually a big deal. But it was by someone in Florida – Which begs the question, “People in Florida still have Florida rooms?? Don’t they by default have entire Florida HOUSES?” Just curious. Is the room with the really good air conditioning the “Michigan Room” or the “Canada Room”?  And why does it have to be a Florida Room? Can’t it be a Georgia room? Or a Jamaica Room?
4. I need to clear a couple of things up that I’ve heard about the impressive Team USA men’s hockey win over Canada that my co-blogger covered. It was NOT what NHL hockey should be. Unless you want a 6 or 8 team NHL with team payrolls around $220 Million each. And it was not ANYTHING like the Miracle on Ice in 1980 at Lake Placid. Those were kids beating arguably the best team on the planet. This was NHL pros beating NHL pros. Huge difference.
5. And in what’s becoming a regular occurrence while catching the Olympic updates, I caught this gem on Wednesday of this week: “American Lindsey Vonn crashes in Giant Slalom and breaks finger – will not medal”. Well, thank you ESPN. All this time I thought crashing was HOW you get the medals in skiing. Instead of, you know, finishing the race with the fastest time.

Ok, that’s five for today and the movers are here. Guess I’ll go see what George and Weezie are up to.

Have a great weekend folks!
-Beer