Locator: 49787ARCHIVES.
Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro: announces holiday vacation in the United States.
- says that since the Canadians aren't visiting, he's taking advantage of empty theme parks.
Iran's Khomeini: looking on with interest.
- getting out the scrapbook; reviewing how the Shah was ousted/overthrown;
- measuring drapes for new Moscow apartment;
- will get credit check / reference from Bashar al-Assad who recently moved to one-room apartment in Moscow;
- not known if apartment included a landlord-provided refrigerator.
Bake sale alternatives -- Minnesota daycare centers: #1 fundraiser for terrorists in the Mideast; who wudda thought
- has been driving force for at least a decade;
- where has Amy Klobuchar been?
- can't blame the governor; he was campaigning with KH;
- had his hands full with tampons and deconstructing the VP's word salad;
- NYT broke the story in November, 2025; story ignored; for once, The NYT got it right; no one listened;
- rest of media didn't learn (alternate spelling: lear) of this until December, 2025
EVs: BYD overtakes Tesla as #1 plug-in EV manufacturer;
- Pyrrhic victory; sales are declining everywhere except in Europe;
- EVs: experiencing the seventh level of hell. Link here.
- Europeans exchanging dependence on western oil for dependence on Chinese batteries.
Trump's one big beautiful bill: no tax on overtime, social security, or tips --
- and people are still complaining
Tariffs: Trump says enough is enough; will start dropping tariffs --
- and people are still complaining
National Guard: departing Portland, LA, and Chicago --
- and people are still complaining
Alabama college football: clobbered by a northern college in the Rose Bowl --
- and no one's complaining.
- Nick Saban is rolling over in his bed on a Vrbo vacation
- asked what the point spread was in their loss, most of the Alabama linemen couldn't do the math.
- for the record it was 35 points (38 - 3).
- new coach says there will be some changes after that loss. Perhaps a new coach?
California: landlords now required to provide refrigerators for renters.
- LG, Whirlpool and Café scrambling to meet demand;
- think about this -- literally overnight, all landlords need to ensure all renters have a landlord-provided refrigerator
- is it "Lowes" or is it "Lowe's" and what are the tickers for Lowe's and Home Depot?
- Back to Minnesota: according to U-Haul, United, etc., state-to-state migration, Minnesota is has a net outward migration, state-to-state
- one of the most popular destinations for Minnesotans leaving the state: North Dakota (I can't make this stuff up);
- Minnesota has one of the faster-growing states in population; how can that be? Must be the Canadian influx.
Duolingo: does not currently offer a Somali language course,
- you can find Somali lessons on other platforms like Ling app or Transparent Language.
- similar to Duolingo, Ling is a strong alternative for Somali, while Transparent Language also offers comprehensive content for a subscription fee
- Minnesota day-care centers: may or may not offer English-as-a-second language
- Farsi is an alternative
- Duolingo doesn't offer Farsi either; alternatives are Clozemaster and/or Pimsleur.
- best kept secret another great resource: the US DOW's Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA; link here:
Monterey, California: as a vacation destination in California where does Monterey rank?
Personal note: without going into classified details, I visited and spent some time at the DOD DLI two decades ago. Farsi and Urdu were two very popular languages being taught at that time. Chinese was the #1 language being taught; if not #1, it made the top two list.
Must-read: America's military is back. This "look-back" is truly shocking! Puts things in perspective. The best thing that ever happened, giving President Trump a break of four years.
Changeover: it will be interesting to watch who leaves / who comes in during the Trump second administration.
From Trump's point of view, his cabinet must look pretty good. His likely targets: arm's length replacements -- top bureaucrats in agencies, starting with "the Fed." Next, Department of Education, followed by HHS -- the CDC, the FDA, and the NIH are separate operating divisions within the Department of Health and Human Services.
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Today's Recipe: Deer Sausage
Google: stove top sausage how best to cook one inch diameter -- simmer-sear method.
- large skillet; add water but do not completely submerge sausages; cover skillet with lid;
- bring to boil and quickly back off to simmer for 5 - 10 minutes; flip halfway through;
- remove lid and let water evaporate;
- once dry, continue cooking 5 - 7 minutes; turning frequently to brown to a crisp on all sides
- internal temp: 160°F.
