another Friday post

I decided not to get all snarky today, although there is plenty going on in the world to be snarky about. Who besides me doesn't care a bit whether Beyonce lip-synced the National Anthem during the Inaguration ceremony? I could not believe that was the lead story for the following two days.

So let's forget about that, and not keep speculating whether she will lip-sync when singing at the Super Bowl halftime show. Instead, let's have...

...some fun with Pickles
Earl is sitting, watching Opal fold laundry and he says, "You know what I would really like to do?"

"No, what?"

"I would love to write a book about all my travels and adventures."

"Seriously?"

"Absolutely."

Then Earl thinks a minute. "Of course, first I'd have to go out and have some travels and adventures."

Picture Courtesy of ShutterStock

 From B.C.

Wiley's DIctionary word of the day is "fandango."

The definition: "What to do when Dango gets heatstroke."

From Non Sequitur
Adam and Eve are in the Garden of Eden. Adam has picked all the apples from the apple tree, and Eve is giving him one of those looks that women have perfected from that time on. Adam says, "Yes, I took all of them. It's my invention called 'banking.'"

That one had me laughing out loud. I didn't say I couldn't share some snark from the funny papers. (smile)

Literary Lessons:
"Death walked like a man among men, and we fell like leaves, like dust around him. The Knight struggled against the Specyor, each one winning even as he lost."  Easy Rawlins, a character cereated by Walter Mosley, doing some deep thinking while watching a movie "The Seventh Seal." From the book Blonde Faith

Just For Fun

There is no book review for today, so I thought I would share a link to a terrific site that has book reviews: So many books, so little time    The most current review is of   The Dark Side Of Night by Cindy Dees  

The site is owned by a terrific lady, Lainy, and I have enjoyed her reviews a lot.

On the fun side of today's post, I have a few things that caught my eye in yesterday's comics section of the newspaper.

First off is a cartoon from Non Sequitur. Two ladies are sitting in a booth to raise funds for a charity. The sign reads: Help find a cure for egocentricity. A man stands in front of them and says, "Sure, I'd like to help, but what's in it for me?"

This is from Pickles - one of my favorites. Earl and Nelson, his grandson, are sitting on the couch watching TV. Earl says, "I rmember the day I got my first pair of glasses. I could finally watch the radio without having to squint."

Nelson:  "You watched the radio? Don't you mean the TV?"

Earl: "Nope. We didn't have TV. We all sat around each night and stared at the radio. Those were the happiest times of my childhood."

The next panel has Nelson walking away, talking to the dog. "That explains a lot about Grampa."

This last one is from The Argyle Sweater. Three cowboys are sitting around a campfire at night. The man in the middle looks decidedly uncomfortable. The caption reads: "As the distant cry of a lonesome coyote pierced the tense silence, Grady regretted asking if the Tucker boys were on Pinterest."

Candidates' Qualifications

A recent Non Sequitur cartoon showed a man in an interview saying, “My qualifications are that I’m not nearly as unqualified for the job as the other applicants are…, who are all members of a satanic cult, buy the way.” He is carrying a sign that reads: Hire me or the terrorists win. The interviewer is looking over the applicants resume and says, “Oh, nice list of celebrity endorsements.”

In the bottom right of the panel Wiley Miller, the creative genius behind the strip wrote, “If we hired people the same way we elect them.”

I laughed when I read it, then I cheered. And I wished it could be a wake-up call for the voting public. If only enough people could see the truth behind the humor of this cartoon and start calling for change in the political process, I would be a happy camper.

In following the presidential campaigns, I have seen little being discussed that has anything to do with how a candidate would do the job. And the debates, especially the most recent ones, disgust me. There is no respect shown, candidates don’t answer the questions, and there is a lot of name calling.

Gee, remind you of Kindergarten anybody?

I’m tired of the candidates sniping at each other. I’m tired of the media telling us who is likely to win because he or she has the most money. I’m tired of the candidates avoiding a direct answer to a direct question. And I’m tired of everyone focusing on things that have nothing to do with a candidates ability to serve the office he or she is campaigning for.

Is it possible to change this political system, or are we forever tied to this huge machine that keeps clanking away and leaving the people in the dust?