Author: Rev. Joe Dirt

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Inflation Happy Dance

“William Meaney, the CEO of Iron Mountain (a data storage and management company with a current market capitalization of $12 billion) told Wall Street analysts in late September, high levels of inflation helped the company increase its margins — and that for that reason he had long been “doing my inflation dance praying for inflation.” A few years before, Meaney explained “I pray for inflation every day I come to work because … our top line is really driven by inflation. … Every point of inflation expands our margins.”

While the rest of us stand in the supermarket aisle gasping for breath at the price of food… among other places and other things.

Source – Robert Reich

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Earwig Redux

A subscriber to my silly little blog “thanked me” for so cleverly inserting a Tom Dooley earwig into his cerebrum.

As with all things Curmudgeon, there is a bit of a back story.  This Kingston Trio song  rose to the top of the charts in 1958. I would have been six.  Tom Dooley is the first popular song of which I remember singing the lyrics.

But…my mother had a favorite story about the four year old me being completely enamored with the Elvis Presley version of Hound Dog  in 1956. Apparently I would sing the song loud and often.  I am sure I was entirely precious!

As a favor to my subscriber…the best way to get rid of an earwig is to replace it with another one. So without further ado here is Elvis singing Hound Dog…

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Door Hangers

The last several times I have stayed at a hotel/motel for a duration of more than one day, housekeeping has not come into the room  to straighten it and make the bed.  It does not seem to matter what hotel chain or their level of service.  I attribute this to three causes.  First, during the pandemic these chains were super cautious and bragging about their amped up level of cleanliness. It was a way to keep staff safe.  Secondly, after the pandemic Continue reading “Door Hangers”

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An Old Man’s Tonterías

In Victorian times there was a very prescribed dress code, the window of acceptable clothing was fairly narrow.  At least this is the impression I have gathered from the many Victorian novels I have read.  I also received the impression that this applied less to the lower classes than those more socially advantaged.

Even in the first part of the 19th century, the acceptable styles were very much dictated by society.  There is hardly a man without a hat on in pictures from the 20s, 30s and 40s, if they were outside.  Men’s clothing was almost always some dull color.  Women had a little more latitude, but not much.  I was a teenager in the 60s before mother dared Continue reading “An Old Man’s Tonterías”

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Not tonight…

I took a trip down to Mississippi for a few days to visit my buddy down there, and to get in a few rounds of golf with my old  – now really old – group of Mississippian golfing companions.

As is our wont each night Señora and I touched base  to hear each others’ voice and see how our respective days had gone.

My last night there towards the end of the phone call I suggested phone sex to Señora, more to pick at her than anything else.

She replied with little hesitation, “Not tonight Dear, I have a headache.”

Oh the thrill is gone.

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A Common Attitude of Viejos???

As one of my brothers so delightfully pointed out to me, I have entered my 8th decade. For most of my adult life I have more or less tried to live a reasonably healthy life style.

I put down the cigarettes when I was 31. Drugs have never been my thing, and even if they had been, keeping a job in corporate America would have put them on a back burner.

I have and still do exercise regularly. Currently I do a combination of stretches, weights and aerobic exercises for an hour or more on an average of five times a week.  With Señora’s help Continue reading “A Common Attitude of Viejos???”

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Word of the Day –Backronym

I do not usually do two Word of Day in succession, but I received an email listing contronyms. While not related, they are readily lumped together.  See this link to see a lits of contronyms: 75 Contronyms (Words with Contradictory Meanings)

  • Noun: Backronym
    1. an existing word, phrase, or abbreviation that has been made into an acronym (= a set of letters in which each is the first letter of a word in a name or phrase):
      • The Amber Alert system came from the name of a missing child, but later the backronym “America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response” was created.
      • BASIC is an acronym (for Beginner’s All purpose Symbolic Instruction Code), not a backronym.
  • Synonyms:
    1.  not unsurprisingly – could not find any
  • Usage:
    1. “ A more reputable source, the fact-checking site Snopes, debunks this theory, noting that the acronym “chicken and lettuce under bacon” doesn’t appear in any sources prior to the advent of the internet. It is more likely a backronym inspired by the classic BLT sandwich. So where did the name really originate?”
  • Encountered:
    1. While reading What Does The ‘Club’ In Club Sandwich Really Mean?

To see more Words of the Day, visit this link: Words of the Day

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Rev. Joe’s Random Thought #8,600

yeah I know you did not ask!

Divorce is never easy, sometimes very necessary, but never easy.  While going through mine during the last century I came across the following that accurately described how I felt at the time.

Divorce is like hacking off one of your limbs, yourself, using a rusty, very dull, undersized pocket knife.

Oucher for sure.

I was thinking about divorce for reasons I do not need to get into here, but when do you know it is time to get a divorce?  Obviously, it is a very complex situation with many factors, and it is different for every person/couple. Getting divorce can be expensive, time consuming, and emotionally devastating. Frequently it is not for the weak of heart.

However, I think the when can be summarized by saying it is when one or both persons in a marriage stop treating the other person with respect, especially if it is a long term pattern.  It is time to go.  It is time to split the blanket. Life is too damn short to live like that.

And so it goes… about 50% of the time in the United States of Acrimony.