This made me chortle

I assume this was a happy accident. But it's a classic.

Bitchin' Dave's Newsletter July 11

  

July 11, 2023 Insights, news, ramblings, and other serious nonsense from Dave

Dave’s Musings

Lots going on, so its been a some time between newsletters. My plan is to produce something weekly, but there may be some gaps here and there.

Anyway, here are some hot topics that have come up recently:

• The Supreme Court finds itself at the center of controversy based on recent rulings, ethics questions, and what might be called "judicial activism"
• The Tour de France started! For some reason, I find this to be one of the more intriguing events each year, and I pretty much have it on in the background every day during its month

On a related note, I am getting back into podcasting, to talk about topics of interest on a decidedly (for now) irregular schedule. I'm picking up with the "Just what do you think you're doing, Dave?" and recently shared my thoughts about the court, and last year talked about the Tour. Feel free to check it out:

https://pca.st/podcast/cb671760-4298-013b-f171-0acc26574db2

  

There have been some recent articles about Voyager 1 & Voyager 2, which launched a few weeks apart (amusingly 2 launched first), in 1977. No one anticipated they'd last for more than 40 years, and continue to transmit data. But they still do! We've learned more about interstellar space and the universe than we could have ever imagined. And we still do. You can read more about the missions here: https://www.space.com/17688-voyager-1.html

Nature always continues to astound. There were two scientific discoveries recently, that caught my attention. The first was that an entirely new species was discovered: Miami Herald: New Species The second was that scientists discovered a new material that they had never seen before: Science Alert: new material I find these to be amazing discoveries!

Over in Disney World, we see a number of reports of "thinner crowds during the summer." And no one has a logical or rational explanation for it - there's a lot of speculation and innuendo about it. The first question is whether this report is accurate. It seems like even some of the unbiased reports may be a little biased. And the second is, assuming it is true, what it means. Set aside the stupid rhetoric and realize that Disney has made good on its promise of spreading crowds throughout the year, the price point is fairly high (and even the CEO admits it) which will keep some people away, and in a general sense, people have money saved up post-pandemic and want to travel. It's possible that Disney is not at the top of their list today.

There's a really cool visualization of working hours by country over here: Visual Capitalist Working Hours I love how they use graphics and a line graph to represent the data in a simple and easy-to-follow way.

One Little Spark …  … for your imagination

Climate change is real, and a concern to us all.  I see no real harm in taking action.  I mean, heck, the budget for the US military was $877 billion (more than the next 10 countries COMBINED!).  Why not take a portion of that, say 5% and put it toward research and action?  

5% isn't much of that total, but is still $9 billion dollars. That would go a long way toward helping, and would maybe be a better use of our resources that continually spending on war, prevention of war, or weapons of war.

There are those who say climate change isn't real, or isn't important.  Here are some  cogent answers to some of these items.

https://www.rainforest-alliance.org/everyday-actions/6-claims-made-by-climate-change-skeptics-and-how-to-respond/

Dave’s latest video

I've recently taken up hydroponics as a way to garden. I made a video about my getting started: https://youtu.be/1mlPdq8yioY

-----

To subscribe, unsubscribe, contact > geezergamer92@gmail.com

Ron DeSantis Says the Left Doesn’t ‘Want People to Be Happy,’ Then Awkwardly Eats Pizza (Video)

This is what I've been saying, and now (mo)Ron is telling us it's accurate. I think, maybe, he said the quiet part out loud.

Some of those in authority do not want you to be happy. Full stop.

Apparently the interview is weird all the way around. "THEY want to control you…but that's MY job" says the fascist dictator of Florida.

And watching him eat pizza might be funny. If it weren't so absurd.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/ron-desantis-says-left-doesn-041427185.html

Listen to my latest podcast episode

Listen to the most recent episode of my podcast: The Supreme Court. https://anchor.fm/david473/episodes/The-Supreme-Court-e26g52r


Short. Sweet. To the point. That's the beauty Dave's iPhone.

Big changes in life are emotionally exhausting

They say that's the case. And sure I've been through others and they were. But losing my job as I inch closer to retirement really has been exhausting.

Possibly, I could have changed jobs at some point here in the next few years, or maybe could have retired a little earlier than expected. And I have no doubt those would have taken more or less the same emotional toll.

3 decades of doing something consistently, and it ends. You have to adapt. We as humans like that consistency. It's hard for us.

Even if for some reason I went back to the company I used to work for, it would be different. Sure the trappings might be familiar, but I would feel different.

Anywho, I had a weird ass dream last night. Someone at my old company texted / called me to offer a job. I was conflicted about it, but was going to take it.

And then I woke up, and I was very disoriented. After a few minutes, I started to understand what was bothering me about the situation the other day.

While the old team moving into a department I wanted to go to was jarring, it was the conversation I had with old work friends that got to me.

I told one friend I had no real intention of going back, but for a good opportunity I might consider it. And in my head I was thinking that someone would have to reach out and want ME for it to be a real consideration.

What I came to realize was that in all the time I was looking - both before and after my notification - no one actually helped in any way.

Some people listened, made what seemed like good suggestions (that were dead ends), and even helped with my resume. But there were no solid offers of jobs, even for things I applied and interviewed for. A side note: the company is VERY slow to hire - even internally - so it's hard not to take it a little personally.

I might be inclined to make an exception for the person that thought I was the top candidate for a job. But given that it was never actually offered? That's just noise.

No one cares about me and no one remembers me, really.

And the part that really stings is that no one will ever call and say they want me.

That realization sums it up. My being upset. My dream. It all comes from there.

I've mentioned before that years ago there was a guy who left, and they had a big party for him. "Great guy! We'll miss you!" Lots of people came. Some even offered him (seemingly real) opportunities to stay.

And then for me? I mailed back my laptop and no one really said goodbye.

Soarin' Challenge (odd update)

There are some shenanigans going on. For some reason, points were removed and I find that my auto player is in spot #4. 🤔

Doesn't really matter. I was at the top and I have the screen shot to prove it.

Don’t Get Confused about the Trump Indictments