Down South In New Orleans

 

 The wife and I took a quick trip to New Orleans for several reasons.

One was I hadn't been to "Nawlins" (checking the calendar) in forty-two years.  Ronald Reagan was in his first term. I flew down to New Orleans on Eastern Air Lines. Unfortunately, Eastern Air Lines went out of business in 1991.

Another is I promised my wife I would one day take her to New Orleans to go to The Cafe du Monde. The Cafe du Monde is a little place where they serve fried dough topped (and I mean TOPPED) with powdered sugar. 

The fried dough is called a beignet (pronounced "Ben YAY"), and it is served with chickory coffee which is strong, but it supposedly has health benefits like growing hair on your chest.

Here is a quick review of my trip.

TSA:  The TSA recommends you arrive at the airport at least two hours before your flight. Unless, of course, you live in Atlanta. If you live in Atlanta, you should arrive at the airport two weeks before your flight.

Do You Still Have To Take Off Your Belt?  Yes. 

How About Your Shoes?  Yes.

Bra?  Depends if you are carrying a concealed weapon.

Airlines:  We took Delta, which as an Atlanta area resident, we are obligated to fly, just like we are compelled to drink Coke products because we feel, in our hearts, that the Lord is leading us to do this.

We sat in Delta Comfort. Delta Comfort is better than the regular seats, but not as good as First Class. They got mixed drinks for the flight in First Class. Since New Orleans is not over 500 miles from Atlanta, Delta now has a "rule" they don't serve anything besides coffee, hot tea, and water to non-First Class passengers. Speaking objectively, understanding the business pressures that face a major airline like Delta, I can honestly say this totally sucks.

 

Hotel:   We stayed at The Four Points by Sheraton owned by Marriott Hotel. It is on the corner of Bourbon Street and Toulouse Street. As the song says, "I want to get too loose on Toulouse Street".  You can't get more French Quarter than this hotel. It is a very nice hotel with a good breakfast.

The hotel has good security, so you don't have to worry about the riff-raff coming in and informing you, for money, that they without a shadow of a doubt, can tell you where you got them shoes.

Our room was on the courtyard side of the hotel, which means you could almost, maybe, if you tried with the hotel-supplied ear plugs, block out the Bourbon Street partiers. But hey, you knew what you getting into when you booked the room.

Public Nekkidness: As everyone knows, New Orleans has a tradition where women obtain beads by lifting up their shirts, exposing their bosoms, and going "Woooooooooo." However, it is not known if they get beads without the "Woo".

We did not see any of this behavior, per se. Instead, we saw a young lady bend over to pick up a bead and, in my wife's words, "flopped out."

We also saw a man in his 60s to 70s, wearing only thong underwear, shaking what he thought was his money maker. He made no money and was terrible for the Bourbon Street bars and restaurants business. They soon ran him off because nobody wants to see that.

But, all in all, I'm happy to report that a vast majority of people kept their clothes on

Other Events: We saw a couple of impromptu parades with guys on stilts, which was very brave because Bourbon Street is pothole city. Somebody in one of the parades threw me a bead, and I gave it to my wife even though neither of us lifted up our shirts and went "woooooo."

That's our story, and I'm sticking to it.

There were a lot of young children banging on plastic Home Depot buckets for money. That struck me as sad.

There was a young African-American man standing on top of a pick-up truck singing Tim McGraw songs better than Tim McGraw.  I really hope he becomes famous.

 

Jackson Square:  For me, Jackson Square is my favorite part of New Orleans.  It is well kept and lots of shade, which is important because New Orleans can get swampy.  The statue of Andrew Jackson, who is in the top five of crazy Presidents, is in front of The St. Louis Cathedral is just a neat landmark.

Cafe du Monde:  Across from Jackson Square. My wife and I ate fried dough in the world's most corrupt city.  It was marvelous. Simply marvelous.

World War II Museum:  Back in the late 90s, a University of New Orleans history professor wrote what in the history biz are called "popular histories" (ie: history books that make money).  His name was Stephen Ambrose and he got the World War II Museum built in New Orleans. If you knew anybody that served in World War II, you need to see this museum. It is a gem.

Paul Simon called New Orleans "the city of my dreams". I don't know about that, but it is a good place to visit with good food. Just keep your shirt pulled down, missy.

The Golden Bachelor

 

This was the first sentence of a story in Variety.

"After years and years of teasing it would happen, ABC has finally given the green light to its long-awaited senior citizen season of 'The Bachelor'."

I like the use of the word "finally."  We've been waiting for so long, and the Lord heard our prayers, and no longer will we wander in the wilderness because the senior citizen version of "The Bachelor" is coming on.

In case you are one of the lucky few that has never watched "The Bachelor," it is a game show in which hot young women compete to win the affection of a hot young man.

The young man gives out roses, and at the end, he proposes marriage to one of the young ladies, even though they usually have nothing in common except mutual hots for each other, which is essential. Still, there's much more to marriage than passion.

Marriage is also about figuring out where to go on "date night", even though you got married so you wouldn't have to go out on dates again.

Then they came out with "The Bachelorette," in which (watch carefully)  a young lady would give out roses to her young suitors. Generally, they were hunky males in their late 20s that were brain surgeons, superheroes, or Ivy League-educated attorneys that volunteered at the weekend soup kitchen.

There was always one guy with a really good sense of humor, which women claim to like. I can tell you from personal experience that if you look like a gargoyle, you won't find many women that like your knock-knock jokes.

One part of "The Bachelorette" that I liked was the behind-the-scenes where the dudes all bad mouth each other by saying they're not here for the "right reasons." True love is the right reason, but guys get so competitive that one forgets about all that mushy stuff.
 
We here at Manis Manor use to watch the various "Bachelor" shows mainly to make fun of the people involved.  But after a while, we forgot about "The Bachelor" because it was the same old thing. 

"The Golden Bachelor" is going to be a bit different.

According to Variety, "ABC describes the new series as showcasing a “whole new kind of love story — one for the golden years.” The network’s synopsis says a 'hopeless romantic is given a second chance at love in the search for a partner with whom to share the sunset years of life. The women arriving at the mansion have a lifetime of experience, living through love, loss and laughter, hoping for a spark that ignites a future full of endless possibilities. In the end, will our Golden man turn the page to start a new chapter with the woman of his dreams?"

There's no word how old "Golden" is on the show show.  Will he be in his 60s? 70s? 80s?   If I know guys (and since I've been one all of my life), the Golden Bachelor may have snow on the roof, but he's got a fire in the living room, which means Grandpa wants someone much younger than himself. 

I'm sorry. I just report the news.

Here's a news flash:  his "second chance at love" translates into his brain as "next chance for nookie."

Variety also reports, "One of the big changes with an older lead would be the hometown dates, which could feature visits home to children instead of parents."  

Dad brings home Mom's replacement. Again, there's a warm and fuzzy family moment.

If I know millennial children as I do, they will be imagining Dad and his TV Gal Pal doing the South Carolina Lovey-Dovey as they look at her face trying to figure out how much plastic surgery she's had.

Love may be more comfortable the second time around, but I doubt it.

 

The Kennedy Reboot

 

 It was big news. Sort of.  President Grandpa has another opponent for the Democratic Party's Presidential nomination besides that space cadet lady.

The candidate has a pretty big name, especially in Democratic Party circles:  Kennedy.

That's right, Robert F. Kennedy, Jr has thrown his hat into the ring, and even though he has never held a political office, he has a respectable 14% of Democratic party voters saying he's their man.  Although, honestly, it is probably 14% of people that recognize his name.

In today's cynical climate, you would not believe the adoration the Kennedy name evoked.  In the 60s and 70s, they were the Royal Family of The USA.

John Kennedy became President after Dwight Eisenhower. Although Eisenhower saved Western Civilization, he was old and bald.  Kennedy was young with hair.

This was a big deal in the early '60s. Kennedy didn't wear a hat because he had hair a hat would mess up. The hat industry hasn't been the same since. That's Presidential power.

Oh sure, there were tensions with Russia. We later learned he liked to fool around on Jackie. He didn't write the book he won the Pulitzer Prize for. But all in all, everybody liked good old JFK.

Then came Dallas.

His assassination by Lee Harvey Oswald/The CIA/Lyndon Johnson/The FBI/Ted Cruz's Dad/500 others capitulated Kennedy into America Superstar unseen since Lincoln was assassinated

People wrote songs about him.

"Anybody here....seen my old friend John?
  Can you tell me where he's gone?
  He freed a lot of people
  but it seems the good they die young."

John Kennedy had a brother, Robert F. Kennedy, Sr, ("Bobby") who was Kennedy's most trusted advisor and Attorney General.

Lyndon Johnson became President upon the death of President Kennedy. This was a problem because Johnson was, historically speaking, a very homely man.  He had big ears and a big nose. He didn't have a lot of hair. What hair he had, he slicked back with a Vitalis sixty-second workout   Robert Kennedy hated him.

There was a war going on back then. It was called The Vietnam War. You may have heard about it. It was in all the papers.

Johnson decided not to run for re-election in 1968 so Bobby Kennedy jumped in the race.  It looked like he was going to win the Democratic party's nomination for President. But, and stop me if you heard it, Bobby was shot and killed, too.

Next in line for the Kennedys was the youngest brother, Edward ("Teddy") Kennedy.  However, Teddy drove a car off a bridge into a tidal pond. Teddy got out of the car and swam to safety. Unfortunately, a young woman named Mary Jo Kopechne was trapped in the car and drowned. Teddy didn't inform the police until about 8 hours later because he forgot.

That happened in 1969 and Teddy did not run for President until 1980, when he ran against President Jimmy Carter.  

The Kennedy Magic was pretty much spent by then and Teddy could not beat President Jimmy even though you had high inflation, unemployment, and 44 hostages in Iran.

Here we are, forty years later, and Robert Kennedy, Jr. has decided to run against President Pea-paw for the Democratic nomination.

Kennedy is for, per his website, "Honest Government".*  

He says, "A democratic government is supposed to be of, by, and for the people. But government institutions have betrayed our trust. The intelligence agencies spy on our own people. Government and tech platforms conspire to surveil and censor the public. Regulatory agencies have been captured by those they are supposed to regulate: Wall Street controls the SEC. Polluters and extractive industries dominate the EPA and BLM. Pharma controls the CDC, NIH, and FDA. Big Ag controls the USDA. Big Tech has captured the FTC. No wonder trust in government is at all-time lows. It’s time to earn it back."

He wants to "Heal The Divide." His website states, "Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has clear positions on most of today’s divisive trigger issues like abortion, guns, and immigration, but he knows that both sides have legitimate concerns and legitimate moral positions."    

Sounds good, right?

Also, and this is totally irrelevant, Kennedy is married to Cheryl Hines who plays Larry David's ex-wife in "Curb Your Enthusiasm".  In the eyes of this political commentator, she's pretty cute.

Well, he's got a couple of problems.

One, while he is younger than Biden, he's no spring chicken. He's sixty-nine years old.  The younger Gen Z-ish Democrats won't trade-in one Boomer for another.

Two, he anti-vax.

During the bad old days of Covid, we had daily arguments about the Covid vaccine. It was produced rather rapidly, and when it was introduced, Trump was still President, so you had Democrats saying they were scared of taking a "jab".   

Then Biden became President, and you had Democrats loudly proclaiming they were for the vaccine, science, and supported the President's effort to make taking the vaccine a condition of your employment, even if you didn't work in health care and it made you grow another ear.

But Kennedy has been consistent. He doesn't like any vaccines, including the ones babies get, because he says it causes autism. 

Still, this gives him a cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs image and this doesn't fit within the current framework of the Democratic Party primary voters half of which confuse Bobby Kennedy with Bobby Brady.

While there are a lot of people who would like a Camelot reboot, this seems like a reboot Hollywood trots which has Pete Davidson playing Indiana Jones.  It seems like a good idea at the time, but that time has gone.

 

 

*Just once I would love to see a politician claim to be in favor of "Dishonest Government".  "More Money For Me" could be his campaign slogan.

Like It Or Lump It: "The Diplomat"

 

Welcome to the latest feature of this blog, "Like It Or Lump It," in which we recap a new series on one of the streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Peacock, Hulu, Paramount Plus, Paramount Multiply, Apple, Disney +, Disney  -, Kinda of Peacock, Amazon Too Cheap To Spring for Prime, etc.

Today we recap: "The Diplomat."

"The Diplomat" stars Keri Russell as Ambassador Felicity, a formidable, no-nonsense Diplomat who solves complex world problems by cussing at them. This is known in the US Foreign Policy community as "Dirty Hair Diplomacy" because it looks like Ambassador Felicity hasn't seen a tube of Prell shampoo in years.

Ambassador Felicity is married to The Man Not In The High Castle, a loose cannon by the powers that be in Washington. He has a lot in common with Ambassador Felicity in the sense they both hate each other. He is an Ambassador too but it looks like he washes his hair.

Ambassador Felicity wants to be sent to the Middle East so she can cuss at some people there, but President Lenny has bigger fish for her to fry.

President Lenny, who reminds you of a particular current President that eats a lot of ice cream, wants Ambassador Felicity to be the Ambassador to Great Britain.

However, President Lenny has instructed his chief of staff to tell the second in command at the embassy, The Big Forehead Man, to evaluate Ambassador Felicity to become Vice President.

This is a prominent subplot in the series because everyone except Ambassador Felicity knows that she is being "vetted" to become the new Vice President, even though she has dirty hair, can't button her blouse, and cusses like a sailor. Just what the American people want in a leader.

However, the big, super-duper plot in the series is finding out which country attacked the British destroyer, The HMS Marmalade, killing 41 British personnel.

At first, it seems like Iran did it, because, hey, let's face it, Iran does things like this. Then, however, Ambassador Felicity points out that Colin Powell said something wrong in 2002, and we spent the past twenty years in Iraq.  So, of course, Iran didn't do it.

Ambassador Felicity figures out who did the attack but I can't tell you because I don't want to spoil it for you. So I will say this:  Lots of things go "BOOM".

"The Diplomat" doesn't answer some critical questions. Such as: "Why do the Brits say "Atall" instead of "At All". I mean, my gosh, it doesn't make any sense. That and calling the trunk of a car "the boot". And don't get me on their calling cookies "biscuits"—no wonder they're no longer an empire.

Basic Information About "The Diplomat."

The Acting:  It is okay. You feel sorry for The Big Forehead Man.

Language: Lots and lots and lots of F-bombs.

Example: Maid: "Would putting F-word milk in your F-word tea, offend you sir?

                 British Man: "Not F-word atall".

Smoking:  This is a big deal because Netflix always warns you if you will see somebody in a show smoking. No worries, chap. Nobody except Not The Man In The High Castle and the Bald Headed British Foreign Minister's Sister . They smoke a joint and then go skinny dipping in a pond because that's what relatives of leaders do in Great Britain during a crisis.

 

 

Sex:  What Ambassador Felicity's husband did with the Foreign Minister's sister was not sex because the husband's manhood doesn't work unless he is with Ambassador Felicity. So it is not adultery if you lost your Mojo and are swimming around naked with another woman. Former President Bill Clinton wrote this scene.

Other General Nekkidness:  You see Ambassador Felicity's hiney. It is not a stunt butt.

 

The Verdict:  This is a show for people vaguely aware there is something called "government" and like hearing people cuss.  They will Like It.

 

Are You Sure Don Would Do It This Way?

 

 One of my favorite TV shows of this century is "Mad Men".

"Mad Men" was about a Madison Avenue advertising agency and its creative director, Don Draper.  Don Draper was a genius because he could come up with a catchphrase ("It's toasted") out of thin air and bed every woman in the Tri-State area because he was, as the girls at Wheeler High School would have said in the mid-'70s, a "hunk."

Don worked at Sterling-Cooper. Roger Sterling was the son of one of the founders, whose primary job was drinking and smoking. Bert Cooper was the original living partner, and his job was to walk around in his socks and quote Ayn Rand.

A subplot during the show was the CEO of McCann-Erickson (an actual ad agency) was always trying to hire Don because Don was such a great, brilliant talent that was a hunk. Finally, during the final season of "Mad Men," McCann-Erickson managed to corral Don but they had to buy Sterling-Cooper to do it. (Actually, they had to buy the agency Sterling-Cooper morphed into: Sterling, Cooper, Nixon, and Agnew.)

One day, Miller Beer came in to give McCann-Erickson a look at their new product: Diet Beer. Don got up and walked out of the meeting. Really. He hopped in his car and drove all the way to California, where he came up with the prize-winning Coca-Cola ad: "It is time to make the donuts."  "I Like To Teach The World To Sing."

(If you were around at that time, you remember the commercial. It showed a bunch of diverse people in the sense that they were all young.  The idea is that if they could teach the world to sing, the world might buy a Coke.) 

Here's what Don missed when he left the meeting: he missed Miller Beer's profile of their potential customer.  The customer was a fat Mid-Western man who drinks beer but doesn't want to gain weight. Beer has been known to do that.

There was nothing about Miller's Diet Beer lifting the Cro-Magnum Man out of his primordial soup and dragging him into the 20th century.

That beer, Miller Lite, had classic  commercials  in the '70s and '80s using the tagline: "Taste Great, Less Filling." Miller made a bundle off their Diet Beer, so much so that the King of Beers, Budweiser, devised their Diet Beer: Bud Light.

Maybe you have heard of it.

Bud Light's sales have been flat, which is never a good term to use regarding beer.  So Anheuser Busch did what major corporations do on occasion-hand the problem off to a graduate of a Ho-Dee-Do Ivy League School, which was their first mistake.

Alissa Heinerscheid, Bud Light's Vice President of marketing, focused like a laser beam on the brand's problem: their existing customers.

Ms. Heinerscheid said, "I’m a businesswoman, I had a really clear job to do when I took over Bud Light, and it was ‘This brand is in decline, it’s been in a decline for a really long time, and if we do not attract young drinkers to come and drink this brand there will be no future for Bud Light."

So far, so good.  The head of marketing is supposed to grow the brand. 

Then, like many intelligent people, she didn't know when to shut up. Instead, she said she had a "super clear" mandate "to evolve and elevate this incredibly iconic brand." She aimed to do this by "inclusivity, it means shifting the tone, it means having a campaign that’s truly inclusive, and feels lighter and brighter and different, and appeals to women and to men."

She finished with this: "We had this hangover, I mean Bud Light had been kind of a brand of fratty, kind of out of touch humor, and it was really important that we had another approach."

Her big idea: hire a Tik-Tok (it's all the rage) influencer named Dylan Mulvaney, who may/may not be a man who identifies as a woman. I can't tell if he's serious or if this is some sort of performance art.

They put Mulvaney's face on Bud Light cans. That was Heinerscheid's big idea to elevate the iconic brand.  Exactly how this was going to happen is anybody's guess.

The only thing that did happen was to generate publicity for Bud Light, but not in a good way.  It looked like just another corporation caving into the woke crowd that gets everything it wants without any type of discussion.  First, they came after our children, and now they want our beer. 

Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth issued a statement that was the word salad we all expect from a modern-day CEO.

He said, "As CEO of Anheuser-Busch, I am focused on building and protecting our remarkable history and heritage. I care deeply about this country, this company, our brands and our partners."

Mr. Whitworth continues: "I am responsible for ensuring every consumer feels proud of the beer we brew. Moving forward, I will continue to work tirelessly to bring great beers to consumers across our nation."

Whitworth said the company and the Clydesdales never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people.

In other words: Blah, blah, blah. Beer. 'Merica. Beer.

Don Draper encountered some moments when he had helped a product like Heinz Baked Beans draw in a younger crowd.  Heinz's idea?  Get The Rolling Stones to sing "Time Is  On My Side," except use the words "Heinz" for "time".

 It is an age-old dilemma: getting young people interested in something that old people do.  It happens in politics, music, and even religion.

The way NOT TO DO IT is the way Bud Light did it. I don't think Draper would have done it this way.

The Venn Diagram Of Trump

 

 

 If there was a Venn diagram of Trump and his 2024 Presidential candidacy, it would look like this:

The first circle would be Trump himself.  If there's one thing Donald Trump likes to talk about,  it is Donald Trump. The boy loves himself, that's for sure.  If he lost the nomination in 2024, I'm sure he'd run again in 2028.  He likes seeing himself on TV and having his name on everybody's tongue.

The second circle would be the MAGA people. These people love Trump almost as much as Trump loves himself. Trump does no wrong except when he listens to "RINOs."  

For example, The New York Young Republicans issued this statement when Trump was indicted by the New York District Attorney for the reason that Trump paid blackmail money to a horseface porn star:

“President Trump embodies the American people—our psyche from id to super-ego—as does no other figure; his soul is totally bonded with our core values and emotions, and he is our total and indisputable champion. This tremendous connection threatens the established order,” The fix has always been ‘in’ against our President, but his motivation and love for the American people drove him to pursue the national excellence that his unique vision perceived lay within our reach. In doing so, he opened so many eyes to reality.”

 Geez, guys. Get a room.

 As much as I like lower gas prices, higher wages, and a conservative Supreme Court, I don't think Trump "embodies the American people" unless skipping the draft, marrying three times, and swearing like a sailor is part of our core values.   

They say Trump is for the "liddle guy."  The guy the hooty-snooty news media do not like because he doesn't need a biologist to define what a woman is.  Trump took on all of the "Swamp Creatures", both the Democratic and Republican (RINOS!) and beat them.  He ran circles around them, and they never knew what hit them.

The third circle, of course, would represent the Democrats.  They need Trump because they have a "Joe problem".

The problem with Joe Biden is that he is way too old to be President and it shows.

His reaction to the awful school shooting in Nashville illustrates it.  First, Joe meanders into a room full of people. Then, instead of commenting on what is on everyone's mind, Joe talks about what is on his mind: ice cream. Here's the official White House transcript.

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  My name is Joe Biden.  (Laughter.)  I’m Dr. Jill Biden’s husband.  (Laughter.)  And I eat Jeni’s Ice Cream, chocolate chip.  (Laughter.)  I came down because I heard there was chocolate chip ice cream.  (Laughter.)

By the way, I have a whole refrigerator full upstairs.  (Laughter.)  You think I’m kidding, I’m not.

Ben, how are you, pal? 

SENATOR CARDIN:  Well.

THE PRESIDENT:  One of the best guys in the United States Congress, Ben Cardin.  (Applause.)

Folks, welcome to the White House.

AUDIENCE:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  And it’s a delight to have you all here.  And who are those good-looking kids back here?  (Laughter.)

MS. BLAKELY:  Those are my kids.

THE PRESIDENT:  They’re your kids?  All four of them?

MS. BLAKELY:  Yes.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, stand up, guys.  (Laughter and applause.)

Well, I want you to know, like you, I had two brothers — there were three in our family, three brothers, and one sister.  And my sister is smarter than all of us.  (Laughter.)  Not a joke. 

She used to be three years younger than me; now she’s 23 years younger than me.  (Laughter.)  You know, she managed every one of my campaigns for office, even back when I was in high school.  We went to the same university two years apart.  She graduated with honors; I graduated.  (Laughter.)  And we had a simple rule in the family: Listen to Val.  (Laughter.)  My sister, Valerie, is incredible.

So, guys, be nice to your sister.  You’re going to need her.  (Laughter.)  You’re going to need her.  I promise.

It’s the same lineup.  You’re the oldest?  Who’s number two?  Number two?  Who’s number three?

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  It’s both.

THE PRESIDENT:  You’re twins?  Are you guys twins?

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  No, we’re not twins.  (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Okay.  All right.  Just how — just how it was in our outfit.  Well, I’m so glad to see you all, and thanks for coming with mom.  Okay?

You got to take care of your mom.  Dads are much harder to raise.  But, you know, we’re — (laughter) —

There's a "you think I'm kidding" (why would we?), a "no joke" (true I did not see a joke) and some Las Vegas style banter. (Hey, we got somebody from Maryland in the HOUSE!)

The website I consulted "fact checked" the snarky mean old right wingers saying it was "out of context". The President was there to give a speech to women's summit and it did eventually get around to mentioning the Nashville shooting.  Even putting it "in context", it was odd.

The Democrats know the President is a couple of months away from doing a press conference in his bathrobe and pajamas. You can't run against a young man (DeSantis) or a young woman  (Haley). You have to run against Fatty McNarcissist to have a chance.

Thus, the biggest smiles this week over a poll showing Trump expanding a thirty-point lead over DeSantis were at The White House. The Biden people know they beat Trump once and they will beat him again.

You know who is not in The Venn Diagram. Most people. Trump won in 2016 because he wasn't Hillary Clinton. He lost 2020 because acted like a baboon. Biden won because he wasn't Trump. I don't see how Trump can win the states he lost in 2020.  Even in my beloved state of Georgia, we have little tolerance for that loudmouth loser Yankee.

If Trump is the nominee, will I vote for Trump?  No. 

Will I vote for Biden?  No, child, no

 

Mr. Guilty

 

 "Call me Mr. Guilty,
Mr. Guilty, that's my name.
Without a doubt it is all my fault,
I'm the one to blame" ~ Loudon Wainwright III

 

Apologies are in order.

I watched the last minute of the Kennesaw State versus Xavier University game.  I thought Kennesaw (pronounced "Kenny-saw") State had more than a puncher's chance to defeat the Mighty Musketeers of Xavier University in a basketball game between two comical college nicknames.

Kennesaw State's cheer is "Hooty Hoo".  That strikes fear in the hearts for their opponents. 

I'm not sure of the correct pronunciation of Xavier. Is it "X-avier" or is it "Zavier"?

I will say both The Owls and Musketeers are better nicknames than what Whitter University, the Alma Mater of Richard Nixon has:  The Poets. So how do you cheer for The Poets? "Way to rhyme" is about it.

Kennesaw State won the ASUN Conference Championship by defeating Liberty University.  Because of this, Kennesaw State won a spot in the NCAA Division I Basketball Tournament, better known as "March Madness".

Poor little old Kennesaw State, the college up I-75, down the street from The Cracker Barrel, was the only Georgia college invited to "March Madness".  It wasn't the Bulldogs, and it wasn't The Yellow Jackets. It was The Owls.

To say I and the other Kennesaw State alums were happy is an understatement.  We were thrilled. We were ecstatic. 

Kennesaw State started as Kennesaw Junior College. From there, it became Kennesaw College. It had "rolling admissions, " meaning anybody could enroll in Kennesaw College.  That's how I got in. 

Back then, it was a charmless place to go to school.  Kennesaw was trying to make a name for itself, so the classes were challenging, and the grading was often arbitrary and capricious. At least it seemed that way. Actually, I learned the phrase "arbitrary and capricious" in a Business Law class, so maybe I did learn something.

The professors seemed like they'd rather be somewhere else, like at a real school, without all of these dumb-dumb students.

The students hated it because they had heard about the great time their friends had at UGA, Auburn, Alabama, et al., with students their own age. At that time, the average student at Kennesaw was "non-traditional" (old as dirt).

After I graduated ("Praise Lawd" instead of Cum Laude), things began to change at Kennesaw.  It became Kennesaw State College and offered MBA degrees, allowing all those working Bulldog graduates to become Kennesaw State Owls.

In 1996, Kennesaw State College became Kennesaw State University. However, Kennesaw State lacked one thing:  Big Time sports.

Kennesaw State had sports teams.  I used to take my son to Kennesaw State baseball games. There were some games we were the only ones in the stands not related to a player.

The same way for basketball. Sparsely populated stands watching a fairly competitive NCAA II team. They even won the NCAA II championship one year.  I don't think there was a parade.

Kennesaw State finally began a football program and had some success in the FCS.  The Kennesaw State-Jacksonville State game I attended was one of the most enjoyable football games I've ever seen.

Somewhere down the line, basketball fell down the wayside.  Georgia and Tech were not doing any better, but the Owls hit hard times. Three years ago, Kennesaw State was 1-28.

Then last week, out of nowhere, Kennesaw State "punched their ticket," as they say on TV, to "The Big Dance."

I figured Kennesaw State would be a 16th seed. But, nope, they were the 14th seed and played the 3rd seed, Xavier.

Here's where I come in.

Ever since the Falcons' Super Bowl loss to The New England Patriots after leading 28-3, I have become convinced that I transmit "loser rays" to my teams, causing them to mess up. 

When the Braves won The World Series, I didn't watch any of the games because the Houston Astros would hit a home run or something as soon as I did.

In fact, in the 9th inning, with Braves up 7-1 in the sixth game, I turned on the TV to see an Astro stroke the ball to right field.  It was only a single, but I turned off the set and watched the game via Tweets on Twitter.

My wife had the game on in her office. She instructed me:  "Don't you dare come in here and watch this game".

My wife would holler out the score to me.

Finally, with a minute left, Kennesaw State was within striking distance of Xavier, and I made the fateful decision to watch the last minute of the game.

That's when Xavier started to pull away and ultimately won the game.  They even showed a "sad" Kennesaw State fan, which I never thought I would see in my life.

So, it was all my fault. Next time, I will listen to my wife and not watch to prevent anything like this to happen again

But, hey, y'all were there, and sometimes that's a victory too.