Day: August 6, 2019

Google Search Results

Fandango28 Comments

In the wake of last week’s brouhaha over the harvesting of WordPress bloggers’ post by the tygpress.com site, and the collective efforts taken by many of us to stop the unauthorized theft of our intellectual property, I’ve been checking that site several times a day to verify that it’s still “tentatively” down. And so far, it is.

But what is kind of cool is that when I type “tygpress.com” into Google and scroll down the results displayed, one of my posts is on the first page of results (on my iPhone, at least), along with those of some other WordPress bloggers, including Lorraine of Blindwilderness, Di of Pensitivity101, and a number of others.E321CD37-57F7-474D-9066-03517567646EAnd on the Google Images Page, there are two of my blog’s images near the top of the results.87BEDFD6-F2BB-4FAA-87A8-E6A37A5838F9I have to admit that I was kind of chuffed — a term I learned from Rory (A Guy Called Bloke), which is a British word meaning “very pleased” — to have seen my posts listed among the top search results in Google.

Anyway, the point of this post isn’t to brag. If you posted anything about tygpress over the past week, you may want to go to Google, search tygpress.com, and see if any of your post blurbs about tygpress are listed in the Google search pages. Let me know in the comments if you do.

And just so you know, having a blurb from one of your posts showing up in Google is very different than having your entire blog harvested and readable on tygpress.

Big Pharma

Fandango12 Comments

B0C95A59-5E88-4A7F-A000-E8653A385FC3Dr. Harold Schaefer stood up. He was handed a microphone and began to testify to the panel of legislators sitting at the head of the chamber. “No one is talking about the elephant in the room,” he said. “Big Pharma has a history of always making the big promise, but the reality is that they are motivated only by their intent to achieve the big payoff.”

Several members of the panel squirmed uncomfortably. Dr. Schaefer continued, “All you need to do is pull back the curtain to see that these drug companies are curtailing the production of certain drugs that are critically needed by a very small segment of the population but which do not generate sufficient profits. And we all know that making obscene profits is the true north of Big Pharma.”

Dr. Schaefer wasn’t used to speaking in public, much less before a congressional committee. He took out a handkerchief and wiped the perspiration from his forehead. “These so-called orphan drugs don’t generate profits, but they do save lives, and as a physician with patients’ lives on the line, I need to, at the risk of seeming to taunt you, demand that you do your jobs to protect the public.”

The committee chairman banged the gavel. “Thank you, Dr. Schaefer,” he said. “We appreciate your time and will take your testimony under advisement. Meeting adjourned.”

Dr. Schaefer gathered his papers, stood up, and walked out of the chamber, knowing that his words would be evanescent, soon forgotten by those in front of whom he testified.

Written for Paula Light’s Three Things Challenge, where the things are “north,” “payoff,” and “promise.” Also for these daily prompts: Word of the Day Challenge (elephant), The Daily Spur (history), Ragtag Daily Prompt (intent), Daily Addictions (curtain), Fandango’s One-Word Challenge (orphan), Nova’s Daily Random Word (taunt), and Your Daily Word Prompt (evanescent).

Going for Gold

Fandango9 Comments

611C1152-73B1-4054-988A-AE9C29259DDERory, a Guy Called Bloke, has given us another one of his “Question Fun” prompts. This one is all about “Going for Gold” (i.e., personal goal setting and achievement).

What are your greatest strengths?

My modesty and humility.

What are your worst weaknesses?

My modesty and humility.

What are your personal values to life?

To live each day to its fullest without killing myself.

What drives you through the day, each day?

My car.

How do you feel about setting goals, be these small, little or large?

It’s always good to set goals, but I rarely do, especially now that I’m a man of leisure (i.e., retired).

Do you achieve them, every time?

See above.

How do you celebrate when you do achieve them and equally how do you react when you do not reach what you set out to acquire?

Since I don’t set them, I neither achieve them nor fail to do so. I do celebrate waking up alive each morning, though.

Do you set unrealistic goals and targets for yourself?

The reason I don’t set personal goals is that I know it would be unrealistic for me to reach them.

When thinking about making goals or targets for yourself to set upon, how do you work that into your daily routine?

I don’t.

Are you realistic when thinking about what you wish to achieve for yourself?

Absolutely realistic, which is why I don’t bother setting goals.

Do you set a schedule and ‘simply go for gold’, or are you a little more relaxed about the whole affair?

What affair? I’m not having an affair. I swear, sweetheart, I’m not!

Do you ever deliberately set yourself challenges that take you out of your comfort zone?

I rather enjoy staying in my comfort zone, so no.

What would you do, if you suddenly had a lump sum of one million in your currency land on your doorstep with the instruction of ‘spend how you wish?’

I would spend it as I wish. I’m good at following instructions.

If ‘fear’ wasn’t an issue for you, what would you do?

Set goals.

What do you love doing more than anything else, but haven’t done recently – why not?

Downhill skiing (fully clothed, by the way). Why not? I’m old and would likely end up breaking some bones.

Forget three wishes, you have been granted one wish that will grant you 100% instant success in whatever you next think about achieving – what would you do with that wish?

Get rid of Donald Trump and Mitch McConnell.

Do you find quotes inspire you? If so, please provide three quotes on the subject of personal inspiration.

47C2ADCE-A99C-417B-99FA-A7992B184258533378A6-22AF-46FD-B264-C67E21BDC12A8A674F6F-7C43-4FA9-8C20-F2BAF4BCB1F7

What music inspires, motivateds and enthuses to get up and go for it, supply three song titles [and links if you wish] please.

I just posted three songs yesterday that pretty much do the same thing in Laura’s Weekly Song Challenge, so HERE is that post.

If you wanted something badly enough, would you pay to achieve it, or simply work damn hard to achieve it for yourself?

My philosophy is why do it yourself if you can afford to pay someone else to do it for you?

Please can you provide an image that inspires you to ‘go for gold’ when you are looking to achieve your goal?

24573a57-3afb-4785-bbe7-51c6ec35e94e.gifYada, yada, yada.

Finally, what goals, challenges or accomplishments have you enjoyed success with in the past, that make you feel ‘proud’ to have done so.

Finishing this post!

Mysterious Questions

Fandango10 Comments

328884D4-0276-4113-A192-A9D9FE73C742My blogging friend, Leigha Robbins, was recently nominated for the Mystery Blogger Award. Leigha is a wonderful poetry and flash fiction blogger, so it’s no mystery why Sadje (Keep it Alive) nominated Leigha.

Leigha is also someone who regularly responds to my daily FOWC With Fandango one-word challenges. So when she posted five questions in response to her Mystery Blogger Award nomination and opened it up to anyone who wanted to answer them, how could I not?

Would you ever want to be famous with the lack of privacy most celebrities have?

No. I’m a private person and like it that way. Now I wouldn’t mind having the money that most celebrities have.

What country would you most like to travel to?

I’ve always wanted to go to New Zealand so that I could, if nothing else, flush a toilet and watch the water flow down in the opposite direction.

What is your dream home like?

Mortgage-free and maintenance-free.

If you could co-write with anyone (blogging world or published author) who would it be?

I’d say Stephen King, but he has an unnatural aversion to adverbs and I use adverbs frequently and gleefully.

(weird or funny question) You wake up in a jail cell… what is the crime you just committed?

Sedition.

Twittering Tales — Down There

Fandango6 Comments

A9925407-639E-4638-8AFE-35B664F636EAHelicopter patrol above the big city park was fairly routine. A fracas of some sort every few days, an occasional fender-bender. Mostly boring.

“Down there,” Sam pointed to a small clearing between the trees. He picked up the radio mic. “Rape in progress at Hippie Hill. Respond.”

(279 characters)

Written for this week’s Twittering Tales prompt from Kat Myrman. Photo credit: David Reed at Pixabay.com.