Day: February 12, 2023

Super Bowl LVII

Fandango19 Comments

I watched the Super Bowl tonight. There are three reasons to watch the Super Bowl: the game, the commercials, and the Halftime Show.

My experience watching NFL Super Bowl games over the past 57 years is that the best part of the telecast are the commercials. Followed by the Halftime Show. And then there’s the game itself, which often is not a very good football game.

But in tonight’s Super Bowl, the best part of the telecast was actually the game, in which the Kansas City Chiefs beat the Philadelphia Eagles 38-35. I didn’t really care which team won, as none of my favorite teams were on the field. But it was an exciting, well played game. And I enjoyed it a lot.

The Halftime Show? Well, if you are into Rihanna, then I’m sure you enjoyed it. I’m not into Rihanna. So….

The commercials? There were a few really well done, funny, and effective ones, but for the most part, meh. That said, one commercial amid the beer and tax software and car commercials stood out. To me, anyway. There was one 30 second commercial and one 60 second commercial that were selling Jesus Christ. The shorter one had the tag line, “He Gets Us.” At the end of the longer ad, the message “Jesus loved the people we hate” appeared onscreen.

The purpose for these commercials was to increase the relevance of Jesus in American culture. Hey, as an American, I think there is already plenty of awareness of Jesus in American culture. And given that the cost to air those commercials came to about $20 million, Jesus has quite a generous PR budget for someone who’s been dead for more than 2,100 years. I wonder if the money used to produce and air those commercial could have been spent in a more Jesus-like way.

Weekend Writing Prompt — Jejune

Fandango10 Comments

The month was June
At the blue lagoon
Under the full moon
I sang you a tune
Perfectly I did croon
You did not swoon
You said I was jejune

(Exactly 30 words)

Written for Sammi Cox’s Weekend Writing Prompt, where the prompt is “jejune” in exactly 30 words. Image created by AI Art.

Cellpic Sunday — 2/12/23

Fandango5 Comments

John Steiner, the blogger behind Journeys With Johnbo, has this prompt he calls Cellpic Sunday in which he asks us to post a photo that was taken with a cellphone, tablet, or another mobile device. I thought this might be fun so I decided to join in.

My laptop. My separate larger monitor. My modem/router. My printer. My desk lamp. My clock. My external hard drive. Maybe a few other things I can’t think of right now. These are all of the things I had plugged into two, multi-outlet surge protectors.

Unfortunately, it was not neat. There were wires, cables, and cords all over the place. Like someone randomly and with little forethought, plugged the devices into the surge protectors and then just walked away.

When we moved to our new house three years ago, I promised myself that I wouldn’t replicate this mess. I’d arrange all of the plugs, wires, cables, and cords in a neat, orderly manner.

How’d I do? Much better, right?

If you wish to participate in this fun cellphone photo prompt, please click on the link to John’s post at the top of my post to see his photo and to read his instructions.

Rory’s Morning Dawdler — 02/12/23

Fandango14 Comments

Rory, the king of questions, also known as the Autistic Composter, has come up with a new series of questions that he calls “The Morning Dawdler.” He poses four questions three times a week, questions he says are “inspired by life, humor, conversations and observations, town life, blog posts, writers, gardening, news stories, television, entertainment, and human curiosity, and so on.”

Here are Rory’s four morning dawdler questions today.

What is it about writing that you enjoy?

I feel that I can express myself much better in writing than I can verbally. Writing down my thoughts, opinions, and perspectives gives me an opportunity to read what I’ve written and to refine it, sometimes multiple times, until it expresses exactly what I’m thinking or feeling. I also enjoy how writing gives me an opportunity to flex my imagination and hone my composition and crafting skills when I write short pieces of flash fiction. Finally, I enjoy the interaction with other bloggers here on WordPress.

You have twenty minutes to take five practical everyday items from your house that will fit into a backpack that you will need to survive for two weeks in the wild – what do you take?

I’m not exactly a survivalist and I doubt I’d ever find myself spending two weeks in the wild. But I think I’d need these six items at a minimum.

  • My iPhone and charger.
  • A large water bottle.
  • A sleeping bag.
  • A warm jacket.
  • Thick socks.
  • Hiking boots.
  • Oh, one more thing: a box of kitchen matches.

Have you ever experienced road rage while driving in your car as a driver or passenger in someone else’s car?

I get angry when I see drivers do really stupid or dangerous things on the road, but I try to keep my rage in check. As my wife often reminds me, in the U.S., you never know who may be armed.

Do you complain or keep quiet if you receive lousy service when out and about and what is most likely to tick you off the most?

I will complain if I’m served the wrong dish or if something that should be served hot is only like warm. What ticks me off the most is when the person I’m dealing with is downright rude or nasty.

Spam Comment of the Week — Week 6 2023

Fandango24 Comments

I get some interesting spam comments on my blog, most of which are captured by Akismet, WordPress’ spam blocker. I generally do a mass delete of all of my spam comments after checking to see if any legitimate comments got caught up in Akismet’s spam-catching net.

I thought it might be fun to select a particularly interesting or unique or outrageous spam comment and highlight it each week.

This week’s featured spam comment was from Lupe Kimbiel and was in response to my “Who Am I” page.

Can I simply say what a comfort to discover a person that actually knows what they are discussing on the web. You certainly understand how to bring a problem to light and make it important. More and more people should look at this and understand this side of your story. I was surprised that you are not more popular because you certainly possess the gift.

I am certainly pleased that my “Who Am I” page was such a comfort to you. I am a bit confused, though, about what problem I brought to light. That said, Lupe, like you, I too, am surprised that I’m not more popular, given the gift I possess.

Anyway, have you read some catchy spam comments that you’d like to share with us? If so, put them in the comments or create your own post and tag it #FSCW.