A semi-regular attempt to address some of life’s minutiae that might otherwise be overlooked…..

I will not poke fun or criticize government employees fearful of losing their jobs. Anyone who has ever been fired or “downsized” understands their concern. Having said that, the insane overreaction to Elon Musk & DOGE is baffling. First of all, the amount of waste and absolute corruption that has been found is quite alarming, yet way too many people seem to be completely ignoring it. Secondly, the whole point of Musk asking government workers to reply to an email stating five things they do on the job is simply to prove they actually exist. Why?? Apparently there have been federal employees & social security recipients receiving checks who a) are 150 years old 🤔 or b) never existed in the first place, which obviously raises alot of questions. Also, if a government agency had 15k employees five years ago but has 25k now, I think asking why that number ballooned so exponentially in just the past few years is fair. If 10k people lose their jobs it is unfortunate for them and no one is denying that, but it is also clear that those 10k jobs were superfluous. If the agency ran smoothly with less employees then the additional staff is, in the big picture, wasteful. Elon Musk was hired to trim the fat, and he is doing exactly that. It happens in the private sector on a daily basis. It is understandable that people would be upset about losing a gig that, in most instances, pays well and offers good benefits. It makes even more sense that people who, in some cases, lose a rather comfortable gig that pays them well while not demanding much, would be angry. Having said all of that, may I suggest that, instead of acting like a petulant child after losing a job that, in the grand scheme of life, was apparently unnecessary, you instead channel that energy into moving on to something bigger, better, and more worthy of your skills & talent.

Rewatching the same movie or television show again & again isn’t a sign of laziness, it is actually a form of emotional regulation. When life feels overwhelming or unpredictable, your brain craves familiarity. Watching a show or movie you already know gives you a sense of control, comfort, and stability. There are no surprises & no tension. You know exactly what happens next, and that predictability helps calm your nervous system. A study from the University of Chicago found that people are more likely to return to familiar movies & TV shows when they feel depleted or emotionally drained. Rewatching provides a way to restore energy and regain a sense of peace. In moments when the world feels uncertain your brain reaches for what it knows.

Pop star Katy Perry is NOT an astronaut. Neither is Jeff Bezos’ wife Laura Sanchez or Oprah Winfrey’s gal pal Gayle King. I don’t want to engage in wacky conspiracy theories, so we will proceed on the assumption that Blue Origin’s space dildo did actually take flight. Contrary to King’s whining, what those ladies’ participated in was indeed a joy ride, not a mission. They barely penetrated space for ten minutes. I am sure it was a very cool moment, but instead of simply expressing gratitude for an opportunity they most certainly didn’t earn, an experience that was handed to them based on fame, fortune, and connections, they could not stop themselves from pompously bloviating in an effort to convince the masses that they’d accomplished something meaningful. I’ve had bowel movements that lasted longer than their little jaunt into “space”, and the fact that it received more media coverage than the March rescue of actual astronauts that had been stranded on the International Space Station for nine months is nauseating. Society’s culture of celebrity worship is misguided at best, and a sad symptom of much bigger issues.