North Korean Generals are like raccoons....

....they like to collect shiny objects.  "Sorry guys.  We can't give you any food, but how 'bout a few medals?"  

Some of those medals look suspiciously like coke bottle caps that have been beaten flat.  Did you ever do that as a kid?  I wonder if they have their bicycles with baseball cards clicking the spokes just off camera?

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A few weeks ago I decided to give up foods and drinks containing the artificial sweetener aspartame.  I had read that one of its side effects was joint soreness and my knees were killing me.  I put away my beloved Coke Zero's and I feel much better today.  I did take an anti-inflammatory for a couple of days so that might have had some effect, but basically I think I just OD'd on aspartame.  Next....yoga?

Maybe not.

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Has anyone heard any gossip about the next iPhone?  I'm eligible for an upgrade and I'd really prefer to stick with another Apple vs a Samsung, but IMO the one thing Samsung has over Apple is their much larger screen.  I just read that worldwide this past quarter Samsung outsold Apple 70% to 21%, leaving 9% for everyone else.

I'm hoping Apple still has some of Steve Job's passion left in them and will get out a worthy competitor with a comparable screen size to Samsung's.  As it is now they're getting creamed.  If the next iPhone doesn't have a bigger screen, am I going to have to wait another full year for them to get their act together?

That's all from me today.  If it's snowing where you are, stay warm.  If it's pretty out, enjoy.  ;)

S

The Rice Krispie Symphony

You know how good it feels to wake up in the morning and streeeeeeetch really big?  These days I do that like always, but I sound like a one-man Rice Krispie Symphony....Snap, Crackle, and Pop.  Multiple ankle bones, right knee, neck, left elbow, and more finger-knuckle pops than I have knuckles.  (How is that even possible?)

I've been trying to figure out why my right knee is hurting so much.  It's so bad I've actually had a little limp when I walk lately.  Then I read somewhere that one of the possible side effects of aspartame (the artificial sweetener) besides constipation, diarrhea, varicose veins, an abnormally long left arm, web feet and premature ejaculation, is sore joints.

Hmmmmmm.  I wonder?

I drink a lot of Coke Zero's.  I drink it like most people drink coffee....3 or even 4 a day.  With all the talk about high fructose corn syrup in soft drinks I thought I'd give a diet drink a try.  I remembered how nasty the first group of diet drinks years ago tasted, and frankly I wasn't optimistic I'd find one I'd like.

But surprise, surprise....Coke Zero tasted GOOD!  That's been my caffeine of choice for a couple of years now.  I guess that also means I like aspartame, as that's what makes Coke Zero taste sweet.  Could it be that all that aspartame is backing up on me?

For a few days now I haven't been drinking anything containing aspartame.  I'm drinking a few Pepsi's, some sweet tea (sweetened with cane sugar), a morning bottled frappuccino, and any water that happens to trickle down my throat when I brush my teeth.  Oh, and an occasional adult beverage.  

So far, I think my knee feels a little better.  I say "think" so it might just be all in my head.  (Lord knows, there's plenty of room in there for other stuff.)  Another few weeks might give me a definitive answer.  I'll let you know.

Happy Saturday everyone.  Limp on!  ;)

S

A gray, crooked day in Dallas

It's gonna be a cool, dreary day in Dallas.  I opened my blinds this morning to find gray skies as predicted, but within just a few seconds right before my eyes a fog bank rolled in and now I can't see across the street:

Just beyond those trees is an office park of 10 story buildings.  This reminds me of SF Bay area fog it's so thick.  While we get on average 232 sunny days a year, this is NOT going to be one of them.

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I think I'm getting more anal retentive in my old age.   Every other week our housekeeper comes and cleans up after us, and I've begun to notice how she leaves things a little bit cockeyed:

I don't know if she's always been like this or if I'm just now seeing it. I'm pretty sure I would have noticed this as it's right across from my comfy chair.  I'll watch TV and see it out of the corner of my eye, then my eye moves back and forth from the TV to the crooked pictures, and finally all I can do is stare at the crooked pictures, screw the TV.  (UGH....that reflection off the photos....maybe I should have sprung for the non-glare glass?)

And another thing:  Webster calls this being "anal retentive, or just anal for short."  So is he saying someone who is "anal retentive" is really just an asshole?

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I heard on the news that researchers have concluded the artificial sweetners in diet drinks can make you 40% more likely to suffer from depression.  I drink 3 or 4 Coke Zero's a day and this has me worried (not really).  

So will my Coke can soon have printed on it, "Possible side effects from drinking this might include:  Depression, nausea, dry mouth, constipation, diarrhea, headaches, fatigue, insomnia, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, vomiting, sore throat, runny nose, coughing, shakiness, muscle pain, blurred vision, anxiety, hot flashes, yawning, indigestion, abnormal dreams, fever, sweating, seizures, coma, and death"?

I think I'll take my chances.  :)

Have a wonderful weekend everyone.  

S

Sunshine Blog Award

The rules of the Sunshine Blog Award are simple…

#1 Thank the person who nominated you with a link back to their blog.

#2 Answer a few questions about yourself.

Favorite color: Blue, although I must admit I'm not that passionate about any particular color.  Red, green, orange....they're nice, too.

Favorite animal: Dogs - They give so much and ask for so little.  And they're just so unpretentious.  I like that.

Favorite number: 1.  Hey, I'm a Leo.  ;)

Favorite non-alcoholic drink: Coke Zero, although recently I've been enjoying Arnold Palmer's Half & Half Iced Tea/Lemonade.

Facebook or Twitter: Neither.  I'm much too private to want people to know everything about me and everything I do.

My passion: Automobiles, aviation, college football, history, reading, and of course....my wife.  ;)  (Passions....plural)

Favorite flower:  It depends on who's maintaining them.  If it's me, I'd have to say "plastic".  Anyone else....the more, the brighter, the better.

Favorite movie: (Again....plural.)  All over the board:  Dr. Zhivago, Blues Brothers, and more recently I've liked Midnight in Paris.

Favorite painting: A real head-scratcher as I'm not very artistically literate....maybe a LeRoy Neiman sports theme?  Something more contemporary for sure. 

And finally, nominate a few other blogs and include links to them


Bugs Eye View


Thoughts From My Corner of the Couch


Westy's World  (I just need to light a fire under her to POST MORE!  *hint*)


Thanks for the award, K.  :)


S