NUGGETS

WISDOM THAT BEFITS ME  

(Also, things I learn from my children.)  

The older you get . . . 

The days last longer but the years go faster. 

Enjoy the day!

EXTRA! - EXTRA!

The Draconid Meteor Shower is heading toward Earth.  It is made up of a broken comet.  Pieces will bombard our atmosphere for three or four days but the peak should be visible in our area this evening, Thursday October 8.  The top time to see a "shooting star" is about 9 pm EDT.  Normaly this group of debris will produce about five to ten meteors per hour.  What a great time to wish upon a shooting star.  Hope for clear skys - dress for cool weather.  

Your friendly astronomer.   

BENGAL BRIEFS

 After winning the first two this year, I never expected to be 2-2 after four games.  I certainly never expected the Browns to be 3-1.  The Ravens are 3-1 also but may have an injured quarterback.  The Steelers only looked good against the Bengals and are also 2-2.  We thought the teams we beat were very good teams but maybe not:  the Buccaneers and the Texans are both 0-4. 

The clash with the Jaguars last weekend was a tight one.  It wouldn't have taken much more for the Bengals to win - and it wouldn't have taken much for the Bengals to lose by a bunch.

The receiving group is a mess.  We lost our top receiver in the first half to a concussion and our number two in the fourth quarter to a groin strain.  Our rookie receiver, Colby Young, was held out from the beginning with an injury. Andrei Iosivas is on the Reserve/Injured list for a few more weeks after hand surgery.  We've got Dohnte Meyers pretty healthy but he's basically a rookie.  We picked Mitch Tinsley off Houston's practice squad on Tuesday - he knows some of the plays.  What a mess!  

On top of that, our top safety and defensive play caller, Bryan Cook was out hurt and a guy named Yeast who we brought off of the practice squad for this game had to play a lot.  

Enough belly-aching.  Every team has injury problems.  We had our whole offensive line and our two running backs but managed to almost set an all-time record for running futility.  Somethings got to be done.  Joey B had a pass tipped and intercepted and another that no pro-QB should have thrown.  The refs called so many penalties that the game had little continuity.

This coming Sunday the Bengals are in Miami to play the winless Dolfins.  Barring a deluge by the coming tropical storm - things should look better.  Let's hope, anyway.  

MIDWEEK PRAYER

 A truth to remember concerning the human race:  Every heart that we recognize as being full of goodness and kindness has at least a little pinch of evil within it - so be aware - and every heart that we are sure is full of evil and hardness has at least a pinch of redeemable goodness within it - so do not judge too harshly and do not give up on them.  

Dear Lord Jesus, you came to Earth to show everyone the way to your Father.  In metaphor, you described yourself as the Good Shepherd who would leave the flock to recover the one lost lamb.  You explained that, like a doctor, you came not for the healthy but to heal the sick. Show us the way to find and help the lost lambs and to recognize and care for the sick.  Remind us that it is our duty in this life.  Amen

WATCH OUT

I always think I know what's going on around here but I didn't know until recently that there is a Cincinnati Watch Company.  It has been making specialty watches here for 8 years now.

Founded by locals Rick Bell and Mark Stegman, they sell uniquely-designed high-end watches.  Precision watches designed and assembled right here in town.  The watchmaker is Jordan Fricklin.  He is a certified fine horologist. 

Looking for a special Christmas present for a special person?  Go to www.cincinnatiwatch.com 

LISTS

 That's right - my lists will never stop.  Since we are now deep into the college football season and the NIL (Name Image and Likeness) debacle will not go away, here is the sports worlds' (The Athletic megazine) estimate of money supporting the top programs.  I think it's shocking!  Each estimate given had a 3-5 million dollar range - I've just used the top end.  I've taken some minor liberties with my groupings and dollars.

Ohio State, Oregon, Texas   $55 million

LSU, Texas A&M, Miami   $50 million

Notre Dame, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Alabama, Texas Tech   $42-48 million

USC, Indiana, Michigan, Florida   $41 million

South Carolina, Auburn, Nebraska   $35 million

Georgia, Oklahoma   $34 million

Clemson, Penn State, Wisconsin,   $32 million

Missouri, UCLA, Mississippi St.,Virginia Tech, Florida St.   $30 million

Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, NC State   $28 million

Ark, Lousiville, TCU, Maryland, Mich St., Northwestern, Wash, BYU, NC   $25 million

Cal, Virginia, SMU, Baylor, Rutgers, Arizona St., Illinois   $24 million

Kansas St., Minnesota, Utah, W. Va., Syracuse  $22 million

Colorada, Iowa   $21 million

Pitt, Purdue, Stanford, Wake Forest, UCF   $20 million

Houston, Oklahoma St., Kansas, Arizona, Iowa St.   $18 million

Cincinnati, Duke, Boston College   $13 - 16 million

Think about it now.  That's how much money these schools are giving to their players.  It blows my mind.  Some get more bang for their buck than others.  I think it's disgraceful.  How low can higher education go?  They already put out generally ill-prepared graduates and now boost their sports teams with cash to draw more suckers.  

NUGGETS

WISDOM THAT BEFITS ME

Don't put off until tomorrow what you can put off until the day after tomorrow.  And, always remember to smile when you do it.  

😀

BENGAL BRIEFS

I don't hate anyone.  I really try to keep that in my mind.  If I don't like someone, I'll just stay away from them.  But, I do allow myself to hate other things as long as they are not indiviuals.  Here goes:  I hate the Pittsburgh Steelers.  It make me puke to say the words.  

Now, the game:  The Bengals did a lot of stupid things last Sunday.  They did a few amazing things, too.  I have no idea why we didn't put more pressure on that aged quarterback throughout the game.  It did come to light that our new safety, Bryan Cook, missed most of the game.  He is the quarterback of the defense.  Also, he's not afraid to tackle a tight end like some of our DBs.  The decision to go for the block of the punt has become one to argue about.  The punt receiver, Ke'Shawn Williams, got his head in the way.  Not sure he was the best option we had.  The last few years, the Bengals have been one of the least penalized teams in the league - not this year.  Why?  With all that, we had a great chance to win or go into overtime in the end except Joey B had to go for the hero play.  Oh well, they weren't going to win them all anyway.

Next up is the Jacksonville Jaguars.  These are not the Jags we used to laugh at.  This group won 13 games last year.  They are 2-1 right now and sit atop the AFC South.  Trevor Lawrence still has the hair streaming out of his helmet but he's looking better than ever.  They whipped the AFC champ N.E. Patriots last week 35-6.  The gamblers have made the Bengals a 2.5 point favorite.  Because the game is played here, that means it's a toss-up.  Keep your eye on Travis Hunter who should be playing DB for the Jags.  He came into the league as a two-way threat and was picked second overall in the draft.  He's quite an athlete.  

MIDWEEK PRAYER

This is the last day of September, 2026.  It is my son's birthdate.  Why do we say "happy birthday" instead of "happy birthdate"?  Birthdate has to be more correct.  Oh well.  Thinking of him, I want my prayer today to be one of thanks.  Of all the wonderful gifts I have been given, he is a special one.  (His sisters were pretty good too)

Jesus Christ, my Lord and God, I give thanks for your loving-kindness and all the blessings You have richly bestowed upon me. I fall down in worship and adoration before You, the King of Glory.

I praise You, I glorify You, I bless You and I give thanks to You for Your great goodness and tender mercy. To You I come, my sweet Lord and loving Master.

Shine in my heart the light of Your grace. Enlighten my mind, that I may walk uprightly all my life by keeping Your commandments. Glorified and exalted is Your holy name, now and forever. Amen.

HAIR LOSS

I'm looking into human hair loss. Not because I hope to regain my lost mane but just to inform you, my curious readers.  "Curious minds need to know" ya know.  Who said that?

Head-hair loss is called alopecia to us medical paraprofessionals. Here's some facts. Losing 50 to 100 strands of hair per day is considered normal. You were born with all the hair follicles you'll ever have.  Hair grows at about 1 centimeter per month.  (I've been alive about 975 months so my hair could be 975 centimeters long.  For you unmetricized individuals, that is about 32 feet long.  Somehow, I doubt that.)

Rogaine (Minoxidil) is a FDA-approved medicine that can be prescribed to stimulate hair growth.  It is not FDA-approved for women (except, maybe, the bearded lady in the circus.)  Other meds are in the testing process for men and women.

My mom thought my wearing a ball cap all the time caused my early hair loss.  Later, she said she thought the war caused it.  Why didn't she notice that her dad was totally bald?  

Real causes of excessive early head-hair loss include genetics, of course, and hormones and environment.  Temporary hair loss can be caused by stress, medication, illness and body changes such as childbirth. Some autoimmune desease sufferers, like those with rheumatoid arthritis, have been able to regrow hair with the medications they take.  This is being studied now. On the other hand, everyone knows that most chemotherepy meds will cause temporary head-hair loss.

To conclude, bald people do not like to be called "Chrome Dome", "Cue Ball", "Mr. Clean", "Baldilocks" or even, just plain "Baldy".    

I wouldn't mind  "Baldilicious" or "Smooth operator."

LISTS

 Here I go again.  More lists.  

You're going to love this one.  This is a list of the most often used cuss words in non-English speaking European countries plus Ireland and Russia.  So, you want to be multi-lingual?

Ireland   "Feck"                                Poland   "Kurwa"

Iceland   "Fokk"                               Belarus   "Pizdec"

Portugal   "Caralho"                         Ukraine   "Suka"

Spain   "Joder"                                 Russia   "Blyat"

France   "Putain"                              Greece   "Malaka"

Netherlands   "Tyfus"                       Romania   "Pula"

Denmark   "For helvede"                  Bulgaria   "Kur"

Norway   "Faen"                               Turkey   "Siktir"

Sweden   "Javlar"                              Italy   "Cazzo"

Finland   "Perkele"                            Switzerland   "Scheisse"

Estonia   "Kurat"                               Luxemburg   "Putain"                           

Latvia   "Dirsa"                                 Belgium   "Putain"

Lithuania   "Pzda"                             Germany   "ScheiBe"

Hungary   "Kurva"                            Cyprus   "Malaka"

Austria   "Oida"                                Malta   "Qafca"

Croatia   "Jebote"                              Albania   "Qifsha"

Serbia   "Jebiga"                               Czechia   "Kurva"

Moldova   "Pizda"

Now, guess what they mean.  

NUGGETS

The future of war seems to be largely unmanned.  We now have:

Drones!  

Drone bombs and rockets!

Drone aircraft!

Drone naval ships!

Drone tanks!

and in the future you'll have 

Automatons!  Drone men!  Drone creatures!

Just like a sci-fi movie.

Don't worry. Just have your personal robot fix you another cup of tea.

BENGALS BRIEF

 The Bengals win over the Texans was heartening.  The guys from Houston were tauted to have a great defense - and maybe they do.  They had two young edge rushers - one we couldn't handle one-on-one.  Luckily, the Texans were without top receiver Nico Collins and a couple of  defenders.  The Bengals were the beneficiaries of great field position throughout most of the game and, of course, there's the incomperable Ja'Marr Chase. It's a big thing to beat a good team at their home field.  "Two and Oh" has a great sound to it - one we haven't heard for a few years.  Maybe the reworked defensive unit is as good as we hoped.

This week our boys travel to Pittsburgh.  L

ast weekend, the Steelers played like they never saw a football before.  That's good and bad.  Pro teams seldom play two really bad games in a row.  Note that even the Browns found a way to win last Sunday.  It would be great if the Bengals jumped out to an early lead or the Steelers do something really bad the first time they get the ball.  I'd love to see the Pittsburgh fans turn on their team.  Let there be boos.  

"Three and Oh" sounds even better than "Two and Oh".  

Please don't fall into a trap.  And Lord, don't let T.J. Watt hurt Joey B.  And don't tell me that Porter guy is coming back.  "Just saying the word Pittsburgh makes me puke"

I have a great-grandson with a birthday, today.  Mac is two and I really do have underwear older than that.  He's fresh and cute as a button, unlike my underwear.  

MIDWEEK PRAYER

 HERE'S ONE OF MY ENTRIES FROM FOUR YEARS AGO.  I LIKE IT.  I LIKE IT A LOT!

3/30/2022

MIDWEEK PRAYER

 First, a note:  I only call this the midweek prayer because I do it on Wednesdays - you can use it any day of the week.

I've often thought about how people greet each other and how that has changed over the years.  As best I can remember, "Hi" and "Hello" were the standards when I grew up.  As in many languages, "Good morning, afternoon or evening" are very common.  

Somehow, in the seventies and after, it has come to "What's up?" and then "sup?"  "How you doin'?" and "How YOU doin'?" "How's it going?" and then "How's it hangin'?"  

Well, I could go on and on (it's kinda fun) but what does this have to do with prayer?  My thought is that we hear in the Bible, more than once, Jesus greet others with "Peace be with you."  That is a prayer in itself and one Catholics hear at mass but not often elsewhere.  

Jews still greet other with "Shalom aleichem"  meaning "Peace unto you" and reply "Aleichem shalom"  or "Unto you, peace."  It is a wonderful way to greet someone.  This week let's try to wish or pray that others have peace.  Not only peace as opposed to war, but peace as opposed to the angst and anxiety that so many carry with themselves every day.  

I'll move to song for help in a prayer today.  

"Lord, let there be peace on earth, and let it begin with me.  Let there be peace on earth, the peace that was meant to be.  As God is our father, brothers all are we.  So let me walk with my brothers; in perfect harmony."  Amen

try this:

  

https://youtu.be/uGoEJyV7Snw

TACO TUESDAY

 Not so much about tacos, but about food...and it is Tuesday.

The latest craze among old people (my pals) is to load up on proteins for breakfast.   What a great idea.  You gotta love proteins.  Bacon!  Sausage!  Ham!  Chicken!  Steak!  SPAM!

Yes, SPAM!  SPAM is one of my essential foods.   I'm not sure where it sits on the current food groups' chart - all I know is that it tastes good.  It's basically a combination of ham, pork, salt, some binders and preservatives.  You can actually buy several variations with less of some things or other meats added.  I like the Original.  

SPAM was developed in 1937 and really got going after World War II.  All the GI's came home from the war and had been indoctrinated in living on ready-to-eat food in a can.  It was an instant success.  Now, it's sold all over the world by Hormel Foods.  It provides over a quarter of your daily need for protein in just a 3-1/2 oz serving.  What a great way to start your day.  

Sadly, it became a bad name in the age of computers.  Spam is such a terrible thing to call unwanted e-mails and text messages.  What a shame.  I have a great idea in that regard.  I hope all of you are with me in this.  Let's start calling unwanted junk on your phone or computer by the name "cauliflower".  For me, it would be so much more appropriate.  Let's do it!