South Of Someplace

Tuesday, March 8, 2016

New York Minute 27 - Primary Optimism

Today, I saw a young man with three John Kasich buttons pinned to his backpack. Hope springs eternal!

Saturday, March 5, 2016

Why Christie Endorsed Trump

Were you confused when you saw Chris Christie introduce Donald Trump at Trump's press conference on Super Tuesday? You weren't alone.

The two former rivals have worked out an arrangement for future cooperation. Althought the terms have not yet been made public, some details have been leaked to the press. To no one's surprise, most of it has to do with branding.

- The Atlantic City boardwalk will be renamed to Trump Atlantic City Boardwalk.

- The Garden State Parkway will change its name to The Garden State Trumpway; the Turnpike will be called the New Jersey Trumpike.

- Giants Stadium will be called Trump Stadium At The Meadowlands.

- A grand casino and development project will be erected near Fort Dix in South Jersey. The project's working title is Big Dix.

- The New Jersey Devils will change their name to the New Jersey Real Estate Moguls.

- Newart International Airport will be rebranded as Trump International Skyport.

- New Jersey Transit will be become Trump Railways.

- New Jersey's toxic waste sites will be repurposed and donated to a new water company called Trump Crystal Springs.

- The Delaware Water Gap will be developed and renamed to Trump Canyon. Paterson Falls will be known as Trump Waterfall.

- The City of Newark will be converted to an adventure style theme park called Trump Gangland.

- Rahway Prison will become the Trump Immigrant Detention and Waterboarding Complex.

- Princeton University, along with New Jersey's school systems - including some of the best school districts in the country - will be managed under the Trump University brand.

- Barnegat Lighthouse will be called Trump The Barnegat At Long Beach Island.

- The Pine Barrens will be known as Trump Fertile Pines.

- The entire Jersey Shore region will be rebranded as Trump State Shoreline, the longest contiguous stretch of exclusive private beach developments in the world.

- The formal name of the Governor's Mansion will be changed to Trumpthwacket, also known colloquially as Sell-Out City.

It's going to be huge!

Wednesday, March 2, 2016

Sometimes You Just Need A Woman

Sometimes, you just need a woman ... to run your country.

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

New York Minute 26 - Delayed Delivery

Today, I saw a cop question a bicycle delivery guy. The guy stood beside his bike while two bags of food hung from the handlebars.

The policeman asked the guy for ID. The guy fidgeted nervously but said nothing. The cop asked again. I have a feeling that someone's lunch never arrived.

Monday, February 29, 2016

Happy Leap Day!

:-)

Sunday, February 28, 2016

Spend You Tax Time Wisely

Time spent can never be recovered. Spend it doing something useful and gratifying - unless you're in the middle of tax season, in which case you should spend your time doing something useless and not at all gratifying.

Filing your taxes won't be enjoyable, and it seems like a big waste of time. But look on the bright side - if you don't muck it up too badly, it might help to keep you out of prison.

Saturday, February 27, 2016

Trump Momentum

The Trump campaign is a media phenomenon. It plays like the grotesque injury from last night's football game. Regardless of how shocking or hideous it gets, no one can stop talking about it.

"Did you hear what Trump said?" "Now, Trump is angry with X." "People are saying X about Trump."

To the media, Trump is the gift that keeps on giving. Even the other candidates can't stop talking about him.

Trump has momentum. His popularity has never waned, and people are becoming numb to his shocking comments and questionable ideas. It's as though a Trump tide is rolling onto American shores, an irresistible force that pushes everything else out of its way.

The last candidate with similar (but not matching) momentum was Ronald Reagan in 1980. People feared the idea of a Reagan presidency. He seemed too extreme. He was blunt and uncompromising and determined to change things as he saw fit.

But many voters saw Reagan as a savior. He hammered the idea that a weak, tentative Democratic administration had left the country in bad shape. That message resonated with voters who were hungry for change.

Supporters were convinced that Reagan's bold style and aggressive policies would get the country back on track. "Let's Make America Great Again." That was Reagan's campaign slogan. Does it sound familiar?

In the general election, Reagan ran against two candidates: a knowledgeable but polarizing Democrat with whom the country had grown weary, and an idealistic Independent with glasses and white hair. Does any of THAT sound familiar?

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Happy Birthday Son

This week, my 'little boy' turns 31. I remember the the roller coaster adventure at the hospital as though it just happened a couple of weeks ago. I remember bringing him home, changing him, rocking him to sleep. I remember the middle of the night feedings. I remember watching him play in his play pen, learning to sit up, to crawl, to walk.

I remember Christmas when he was two-and-half. I remember watching his excitement build with each successive present.

I remember afternoons together at the park, trips to the video arcade at the mall, and going to Toys R Us to see if there were any new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles figures. I remember the movies that we enjoyed together and the ball games that we invented. (Home plate!)

I remember our travels and adventures by car and by plane. I remember watching him become a young man - and then a grown man, a man who got up every morning without complaint, rose to every challenge, and worked hard at anything that he put his mind to accomplishing.

On one of the best days of my life, my no-longer-little boy stood beside me as the best man at my wedding.

True happiness, as they say, is knowing that you have raised nice children.

Monday, February 22, 2016

Sanders Gets More Votes Than Trump

Political thought of the day: Bernie Sanders is getting more votes (and a larger percentage of the vote) than Donald Trump. Trump is winning primaries because the opposing votes are being split among a number of candidates. Sanders has to contend with one very strong opponent in his party.

Washington's Birthday

Happy 284th Birthday, President Washington!

:-)