1. If you can schedule it, what would you like for your last meal?
Among the menu items for my last meal, there would definitely be an ICE CREAM dish, preferably a big ICE Cream Sundae....
2. Where would you like to be buried?
Since I more than likely will be opting for CREMATION, I will be sent to the Mortuary's INCINERATOR to have the useless body reduced into a heap of ash. Hopefully the mortuary will scoop up most of my ashes and put them in an urn for disposal later... though I think some will end up on the floor in the INCINERATOR and be swept away.
3. What will they place in your coffin to be buried with you?
Coffins are expensive, so I am going with INCINERATION which equals to cremation. Maybe I'll burn up my old iPOD TOUCH 4 with the long dead, built in battery along with my useless corpse. I HATE BUILT IN BATTERIES... They lead to an early death while the device is still functional.. Why can't they haveiPhones and other devices that have batteries that end users can easily replace???? I hate built in obsolescence!
4. Who will sing at your funeral?
I will choose one of my playlists from either SPOTIFY or YouTube Music to stream my favorite songs. LIVE singers are never good as the record unless you have enough money to hire the original artists.... which is impossible in my INCOME bracket.
5. Who will deliver your eulogy?
At this time... ME MYSELF and I... I might audio record something really short and just have that play at some point in one of the above playlists... Easy to do with a YouTube Music mix since they allow you to upload up to 50,000 of your own MP3 or AAC files for free. I could probably put my very short eulogy at the beginning, middle and end of the music mix.
On another note funerals... are they even necessary? It's just another added expense to the death process.
1. What’s the strangest food you’ve eaten out of a can?
The usual canned foods I eat are tuna and sardines. Once in a blue moon spam or corned beef. I can't think of anything strange. When it comes to food I tend to go with what is familiar. I am not adventureous.
2. What food most recently made you ill?
I can't think of anything recent. As for something years ago, the only thing I remember are the runs as if my stomach was being pumped. Mamacita's pasta... lovely... gross.
It was most likely spaghetti years ago from Mamacita (I think that is the name) of the Ala Moana Center Food Court complex, which recently closed... for good... After getting sick from their awful food, I never went there again.
3. What movie makes you really want to eat?
Here at home anything that is longer than a half hour on streaming will get me to go back and forth to the fridge or pantry. Most recently it was the movie Tetris on Apple TV before my free subscription ran out. It's a good movie about the development and marketing of the popular computer game Tetris. Developed in the old Soviet Union, sold and pirated on PCs and how it got to the Nintendo Game Boy during the transition of the old Soviet Union into the "new" Russia. Good movie.
4. What haven’t you eaten in a really, really long time?
My Mom's Thanksgiving stuffing and macaroni potato salad. It is something I will never ever eat again considering Mom passed away in 2015 and stopped cooking about two years before that. I miss Mom.
5. What did you most recently eat in a moving vehicle?
My commute to anywhere is generally short, so I can't remember what I recently ate. In the past I've eaten burgers and fries after ordering them through the drive-thru.
It's SATURDAY October 7. The following questions came from the Friday 5 blog.
1. How easily are you startled?
Very easily. I don’t like sudden, unexpected things that pop up.
2. What music do you find scary?
Gangsta rap music and any type of ghetto (black) music associated with threatening messages, disrespect for the law, disrespect for our flag and country, espousing urban and rural violence, etc. That is the kind of rap music I would not want to be caught someplace where people love that stuff congregate. It is threatening.
3. When did you last attend a performance you didn’t think highly of?
I rarely ever go to live performances. I think the thing that offends me the most about paid live performances, is not the performers or the performance itself, but mostly the high ticket prices and zeroing on those horrid, mandatory “service fees”. Looking at you Ticketmaster. Blech!!!!
Of course I know way in advance as to whether or not I would like the live performance by the type of content it would be… like I would go to some rock show and never ever go to a rap or hip hop concert.
So the chances of attending something I don't think highly of is fairly minimal at best.
4. What caused your most recent small cut or scrape?
Razor.
5. When was your ego most recently bruised, and what did you do to recover?
Can’t remember anything of recent times. I generally avoid situations where something negative may happen to me.
You probably don't want to be in the same room with me if that happens.
2. With whom do you have a friendly, long-running argument, and what is it about?
A person I know who supports rail and I don't. Been simmering since 1992. "Rail is not a right".
3. What was your most recent argument about?
Alexa.
4. When did you most recently overhear an argument between people you don’t know?
From the upper floor of my building where I live occasionally we can hear late night arguments on the street with who know who! Sometimes very loud and police are called.
5. What’s an unpopular opinion you have about food?
Organic food is just a way for the food industry to push more expensive food on consumers.
1. Who was on the other end of your most recent high five?
Lisa.
2. To which movies, television shows, albums, or books have you recently given thumbs up?
Recently....
TV: Recent: 1883, 1923, Star Trek Picard - All on Paramount +. Also watching The Expanse on Amazon Prime. All thumbs up worthy shows... plus of course my old favorites such as Babylon 5, the original Hawaii Five-0, Crime Story,The X Files, Fringe, Doc Martin, The Avengers, The Prisoner, Classic Star Trek and Star Trek The Next Generation.
Record Albums: Most recently Whitehorse's album I'm Not Crying, You're Crying. There are a ton of classic albums that I'd give thumbs up to over the last 50 years.
Books: Lisa listens to a lot of audio books, and some I really like, but for now the titles escape me.
3. What’s happened to you recently that others would cheer about?
I always try to keep a very low profile. Therefore I don't do anything worthy of anyone cheering me on, except for at home with Lisa..... doing mundane stuff like getting my hair cut or using a new soap that she got for me (via Amazon).
4. What have you most recently and literally clapped for?
Some people who were honored at my workplace.
5. When has someone recently given you an encouraging word?
More than likelyLisa whenever I am feeling down. She is a very positive soul living in a negative world filled with a lot of personal pain. Visit Tropical Toes (one of her blogs)
The following questions come from the Friday 5 blog.
The song is "Just One Look" by Doris Troy. 😀
1. When did you most recently drop something off with someone?
I'm dropping off the mail today. One envelope to the U.S. Postal Service. There are plenty of someones working there. Otherwise the last time I dropped off anything with one person, was probably with my sister a few years ago.
2. Who is drop-dead gorgeous?
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. So who I may think is drop dead gorgeous may not be agreeable with you. Of course celebrities are easy to pick without getting personal. So in a nutshell...
Musicians - Stevie Nicks, Linda Ronstadt
Actors - Sandra Bullock, Racquel Welch (RIP), Dawn Wells (RIP), plenty of others.
Models - Cindy Crawford
All of the above are now older women. Can't recall the names of women celebrities younger than me.
3. On what are you waiting for a price drop?
Any and all tech items... cameras, computers, related accessories. Mac Mini M2. Hope springs eternal here.
4. What were the circumstances when you once dropped the ball?
Good thing I don't play ball since that would be dropped more times than ever.
5. What news recently made your jaw drop?
Invasion of Ukraine by Russia. That was more than a year ago now. What the hell is Putin thinking? Butthead.
1. When did you recently pass the baton to someone?
A few years ago when I gave up being marketing director for Assistance League of Hawaii. I will be passing the baton (hopefully) as their newsletter editor sometime this year.
2. What do you wish you never fiddled with?
Updating this answer: My website that I forgot what the complicated password is! Ugh tried one of three recovery methods so far, not working. It involves tweaking some lines of code on the backend. Ugh!
3. What do you plan to reed in the near future?
I don't have a saxophone or clarinet, so there is nothing to "reed" in the future. Alas if it is "read" then perhaps a good book or magazine or something more than likely online that requires reading.
4. How’s the weather in your neck of the woods?
RAINY this weekend in Hawaii.
5. What have you lately been nuts about?
Cashews. I also like Macademias, Walnuts and Pistachios.
I can't remember anything specific that I had to cobble together with tape and miscellaneous objects recently.
2. In what way were you spontaneous this week?
I am not very spontaneous. Mostly everything I do I have to think about the consequences and cost of the action... or in-action.
3. What have you recently completed at the last minute?
Last month's newsletter for Assistance League of Hawaii and likely this month's edition too. The good thing is that it is totally electronic and I have most of the pieces sent to me. All I have to do is meld them together into a congruent whole.
4. How good are you at thinking up a quick lie?
See #2 above. I have to think about it first.
5. What’s your personal organizer system like?
For the life of me, I am terrible and hate organizing paper files. I still have plenty of paper, but if you looked at my place, it would be fairly chaotic with paper documents all around.
Since the late 1980s I have done most of my organizing using a computer, such as this Macintosh Plus in 1988. Getting that Plus was the beginning of trying to get typed documents saved and organized.
Through many years, in addition to typed documents, my filing needs had to evolve into storing, organizing and archiving scanned images, digital photos, PDFs, eBooks, numerous audio files of all formats and videos.
Needless to say the ol' Macintosh Plus got replaced with more powerful computers with greater storage options over the years... Mac IIsi, Mac Centris 650, Power Computing Powercenter 150, Quicksilver G4 Mac tower, MacBook Pros, Chromebooks, Android devices and an iMac. Storage and organization also moved or was backed up to the cloud... Google Docs, Google Photos, Google Drive and a few others.
Despite all of this, I still have to struggle to find stuff. At least most of it is not on paper.
Oh and I do have vinyl records, cassettes, CDs and a few DVDs... So there. More media mediums and storage options.
This post catches up on two week's worth of Friday 5s. The questions are sourced from the usual place... The Friday 5 blog.
August 5, 2022 - WHMS
WHMS - A radio or TV station or just a fancy way to say "whims".
1. What’s the farthest you’ve ever driven in one trip?
Um.. since I live in Hawaii there is not too many places you can go. They are mostly near, but go over an hour, then that's far. That said... on the Big Island of Hawaii.... Honokaa to Ka'u on the south-side of that island. Did that in 1984 when we took my grandmother on a drive back to the area she grew up during the early years of the last century. It was a fun, multi hour trip for the day that covered more than 200 miles I guess. We did that with my parents' Ford Granada.
I've been to the continent, but none of the trips I drove there were "far"... Las Vegas to the Hoover Dam and a little over the boarder into Arizona... Um.. ok...more sand and desert, we turned back avoiding an even longer, unplanned trip segment.
2. What are you very particular about when ordering in a restaurant?
Make sure they have free iced water. Some restaurants don't. I do not do alcoholic beverages or sugared soft drinks.
3. Which of your friendships goes back the furthest?
My sister! Knew her since 1965 (baby time). We keep in touch. Friendships with my cousins go back more than 50 years, though I am not very close to most of them. After that my ongoing friendships (mainly through Facebook and other social media platforms) with some grade/high school classmates (1970s). After that some of my college friends (late 1970s)... and then professional friends from the 1980s onward. Not mentioning any names, but if you follow me on Facebook, you may know who some of them are.
4. How do you feel about romantic comedy films, and what’s your favorite?
Um... I can live without them... That said, the ones I enjoyed the most:
Splash
Sixteen Candles
Pretty in Pink
Sleepless in Seattle
Romancing the Stone
5. How did you spend last new year’s eve, and how would you like to spend the next?
I stayed at home. I did the same the previous year and will probably do the same this coming new year. Ho hum. Not much to celebrate as I grow older.
6. Bonus question, since it’s the sort not everyone can answer: What’s your favorite song from Oklahoma!?
Checked some YouTube clips. Don't recall any of them, though I do remember Shirley Jones who went on the star in The Partridge Family from 1970 to 1974.
July 29: Scattergories Part 12
This is the random generator one. Let's see which letter option I'm gonna do:
[Spin]
Ding! I gotC and we know "C is for Cookie!"
1. What geographical feature should be renamed in your honor?
Cape of Mad Mel - You know way down south near South Africa and Antarctica. A menace to navigation!
2. Who should play you in a movie about your life?
Clint Eastwood. Heh. One of my favorite actors currently alive, though his characterization of me would probably not match since I associate him with "tough guy" roles. More to my liking and still alive is Tom Hanks.
3. What are you chasing?
Elusive CASH.
4. What’s getting in your way?
Lack of CASH
5. What are you especially grateful for this week?
CASH! I found a dime on the ground the other day. Plus I can use cash to pay for COOKIES! I am always grateful for cookies that I can eat and not the evil ones I have to delete from my browsers.
I don't get the connection to "flaming O", but here are the answers to these fowl oriented questions. As usual the questions come for the Friday 5 blog.
1. Among stuff people have told you recently, what’s been most difficult to swallow?
"You stink". Ugh.
2. What swan thing from last week you’ll spend time reflecting on this week?
Probably reviewing this video that I produced from last Saturday.
3. What are you waiting your tern for?
Money that is not coming, otherwise nothing in particular.
4. Who do you suspect is robin you blind?
Been to gas station lately? The price per gallon is climbing way over $5. And who is responsible for this? JOE BIDEN of course. The rickety old man cut the Keystone Pipeline on the first day of his presidency. It is time to let the oil flow on through our own continent and in our own country once again. Never mind the Middle East, Indonesian and Russian crude.
The U.S. should be and could be pursuing a goal of energy self sufficiency in all sectors, including coal, oil, and nuclear in addition to all the "touchy feely" green energy that tree huggers and progressives love.
We suffer from high prices because of the progressive agenda. We could also lose more of our freedoms because of progressives who learn horribly socialist.
5. To what cause or effort are you planning to pigeon sometime soon?
1. What do you have two of because while you knew you had one, you couldn’t find it so you bought a new one?
Got plenty of these. They include combs, scissors, keychains, scotch tape, thumb drives, SD cards, batteries, and a number of other small items that I misplace and find it easier to buy a new one... most of the time.
2. What do you own none of because it’s convenient to borrow it from someone else?
Nothing at this time.
3. What do you own an old version of because it still works fine even though it’s very old?
My 1993 Toyota Corolla. Still works. Still goes. Why should I buy a new car with all that computer crap built in that is destined for obsolescence on the next software upgrade???? Look at those cars that have components that become or will become obsolete soon because they have 3G technology built in.
Electric cars will become prohibitively expensive after their batteries die. So what do you do? Fork over $8000 to $10000 for new batteries or just scrap your old Tesla or whatever and get another new $50,000 one???? Yikes!!!! The whole EV thing is a huge conspiracy to put you on an endless upgrade trail just like computers and cell phones. Ugh!
I also have my old Power Mac G4 computer, Chromebook from 2013, 2013 iMac and a 2011 MacBook Pro...
And then there are cameras... digital: Canon 600D, Canon S5iS, Canon Powershot G5, Canon Powershot S9000, Fujifilm HX10, several others... Film cameras... Olympus, Minolta (many), Yashica GS. Old records. Old CDs. They all work just fine.
4. What do you own identical versions of because you like to have one in different places?
Two Amazon Echo Smart speakers that are not very smart. Ugh!
They were on sale this past Christmas and I got them for a good price... less than $24 each. They are a blessing and a curse. Good for listening to music you don't have... plus audio books, news, etc. Plus you can also stream other bluetooth devices to them such as a phone or computer... whatever.
They do have some huge privacy issues, most of which I turned off. I also don't like the ads they throw at you to buy this and that from Amazon. I am not interested in buying ANYTHING through those speakers. I turned that function off and it still bombards me with ads.
5. What are you most likely to upgrade when an upgrade is available, even if you’re happy with the one you’ve got?
I probably am going to have to bite the bullet and get either a new Mac computer and/or a newer Chromebook. Still deciding. Ugh!
Friday 5 for May 20: Do-Re-Meme
1. When have you yelled at a cat?
I like cats. I don't yell at them.
I don't like dogs. I usually try to avoid them. I've had to yell at one last month after he bit someone who was walking in front of me. The dumb owner could not control her stupid dog. Those kinds of dogs should not be allowed out in the public.
2. Would you please tell us you’re looking forward to the weekend without telling us you’re looking forward to the weekend?
Relaxation?
3. What first-world problems have you recently complained about?
Not in order but all first world problems.
Biden (he is also a 2nd and 3rd world problem too)
Inflation
Gas Prices
Shut off of Keystone Pipeline by Biden
Illegal immigration
Crime
Environmental extremism
Green agenda
AOC
Price spikes for groceries, consumer goods
High priced new vinyl records (I stopped buying years ago)
Smartphone Tracking
Intrusion on our Privacy
Built in batteries that are next to impossible to replace
Taxes
High cost of living in Hawaii
Constant Upgrades to Devices
Built in obsolescence
Amazon orders being messed up
Jumping through hoops on phone system calls
Call centers
Spam calls
Spam emails
Phishing Scams
RAIL (Honolulu, Oahu only)
Democrats
Progressives
The Left
Socialism
Y2K generation embracement of socialism
Assholes
There is plenty to complain about!!!!
4. You have one job this weekend: what is it, and how might you mess it up?
One of them is putting together the monthly newsletter for Assistance League of Hawaii. The occasional typo might slip through, even though we proof it a few time.
5. What did you learn when you were today years old?
I'm old. There is always something new to learn. Like this past week I learned how to whisk whipped cream. Never did that before! (See photo above - Orange Jello with Whipped Cream).
Whatever task I was doing but not putting a full effort into was good enough if I completed it satisfactorily. Then I went home.
2. What are a few songs you'd include in a middle-of-the-road playlist?
Here is a rough list I compiled of soft rock / pop / easy listening music through the years. Some of the biggest pop and rock artists have made songs that can be considered "middle of the road" or "adult contemporary". You can listen to the music by scrolling further down this list.
1. Yesterday Once More - The Carpenters
2. The End of the World - Skeeter Davis
3. Chances Are - Johnny Mathis
4. Can't Help Falling in Love With You - Elvis Presley
5. I'm Sorry - Brenda Lee
6. Calcutta - Lawrence Welk & Orchestra
7. Strangers in the Night - Frank Sinatra
8. Never on Sunday - Connie Francis
9. (I Left My Heart in) San Francisco - Tony Bennett
10. Michelle - The Beatles
11. You're My World - Helen Reddy
12. Can't Smile Without You - Barry Manilow
13. Sundown - Gordon Lightfoot
14. Don't Expect Me To Be Your Friend - Lobo
15. Open Arms - Journey
16. On The Wings of Love - Jeffrey Osborne
17. Hard To Say I'm Sorry - Chicago
18. Always - Atlantic Starr
19. Hello - Adele
20. Fallin For You - Colbie Caillat
Hopefully you like the examples I have presented here and are able to create your own playlists with similar music.
3. What is the most ordinary thing about you?
My body parts are pretty much the same with some fixing as most of the species classified as homo sapien.
4. What do you like most about an average day?
Sleeping. Meh is the topic right?
5. What do people seem to think is wonderful while you think its just okay?
My photography, though most of the pictures I have shot I consider "meh". Whatever. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
The following question gathered from Scrivener's Friday 5website. Enjoy!
1. Have you ever asked someone for their autograph?
No.
2. What do you think happens when we die?
Depending on what you believe, I think our spirits move on to a new eternity, hopefully with God our Heavenly Father... at least for the good people... The less than worthy and downright bad people probably have a place to go where it will burn for their entire eternal existence.
That said, our physical bodies will start to break down as all of the stuff that holds us together start the process of decay.... rotting very slowly, becoming a vessel for scavengers to consume very slowly as the body rots. Of course there are ways to prolong the dead body by having it chemically treated at a mortuary in order to keep it in near normal, though "petrified" condition, at least so that it can be viewed at a funeral service.
Of course there is the tried, true and cheap solution... just get the body cremated in a very hot furnace (at an approved crematorium) and have all that liquid and other goo burned down to ash, where about the only items that remain are fragments of bones, traces of mechanical stuff added to the body through its life (pacemakers, fillings, artificial replacement parts, etc.). I think the ash is mostly gray and can fit into anything that can be declared as an urn.
Even cheaper than cremation, there is always the option to send your un-needed body to some academic institution where doctors, nurses, coroners and others in training can use it for real life exercises. Scientists can also use dead bodies for medical research.
Beyond that there is always some kind of memorial you can set up, the most simple though not the cheapest is to have the body buried into the earth and have a headstone placed above to "mark your grave". That has been kind of a standard for centuries, though unmarked graves were also common in ancient and recent history.
I think one of the better ways for you to be remembered long term, beyond death is have an online memorial to yourself or loved ones set up. Memorializing your social media pages are an option, and many people do it. I also notice Funeral Homes set up memorial pages for their clients who have passed where visitors can leave items of remembrance behind.
For me, after I die, one of the best, free long term memorial for my life will be having my profile set up at FamilySearch.org, a genealogical site run by The Church of Jesus-Christ of Latter-day Saints. It is open and free to use by the public. You can create or maintain profiles of people who have passed on, including a profile for yourself to maintain so that your memories of life can be preserved from your point of view instead of someone else writing "I remember my friend... etc., etc." after your death.
Profiles of the living are not activated on FamilySearch for public viewing until AFTER you die. In the meantime you can set your site up so that what you want to be put there is set up by you and not someone else... though others can contribute to your profile after you pass.
Anyway, so much for the topic on death. There are a lot of other things that you can plan for before you go to the great beyond....
3. What’s your favorite action movie?
Most of my favorite action movies are from the late 1970s and 1980s, which is a decade that I watched a lot of movies. I cannot nail down just one, so again here is a top five, though the order may and will probably change if I have to revisit the subject again.
Star Wars- It's got good action, a definite line between good and evil, and as a standalone movie, holds up very well more than 40 years after is 1977 release. Runner up in the series for me is The Empire Strikes Back.
Raiders of the Lost Ark - This is a classic action adventure and the first and best of the four movie franchise (1981).
The Terminator - It was groundbreaking in its release year of 1984 and definitely cemented Arnold Schwarzenegger as a major box office draw. "I'll Be Back".
Die Hard - Bruce Willis was never better in the first of these action yarns.
Rambo II - Of all the Rambo movies, this one was the best for me. Lots of action between Rambo and the rouge Vietcong soldiers.
Aliens - OK there was a lot of screaming in this movie and our heroine Ripley is once again set up to fight the brutal xenomorphs that made their appearance in the first movie of 1979. This 1986 sequel stands out as a high action yarn in a scifi setting.
Predator - Our action hero Arnold Schwarzenegger is at it again, battling a nearly indestructible alien entity sent to Earth to scout out and eliminate our life form.
Gladiator - This is a great action yarn set in the historic times of Rome where gladiators were rounded up to provide entertainment to the death for the Romans. Russell Crowe won the "Best Actor" Academy Award for this picture. It was also the Best Picture of the Year 2000 as voted in by the same academy.
Ben Hur - 1959 action yarn starring Charlton Heston as the main protagonist in this Academy Award winning story set in the time of Christ. The chariot race is the highlight of this movie, which also contains several other action sequences.... "Ramming Speed" ahead!
Romancing the Stone - This is a good one that weaves hard action with comedic elements. Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito are unforgettable characters in this comedic action adventure. (1984)
4. What’s your favorite smell?
Hmm... The answer to this question hasn't changed since its first appearance (for me) last week.
"Lavender, jasmine, citrus, kimono rose and several others that I can't remember are nice aromas that my friend Lisa puts into her lighted diffusor."
5. Exercise: worth it?
It is but so hard to be disciplined enough to do it.
Merry Christmas! And now to answer the weekly Friday 5 questions.
1. If you owned a new professional sports team (pick any sport!), what would you name it, and what be its team colors?
Out here in Hawaii, owning a professional sports team is totally unfeasible for maybe the exception of one type... Minor League Baseball. In order for that to be successful, there has to be 1. fans willing to come to a small ball field to watch games all the time 2. connection to a MLB team preferably on the West Coast 3. A good radio and streaming TV contract rights 4. Ability to probably have to pay for competing teams to fly over and stay in Hawaii for each game 5. and last but not least a good small stadium that has plenty of parking and near the metropolitan area where some people could walk to the games for a day/night of viewing.
Cue up the old Honolulu Stadium. This was a reality back in the day and that team was called the Hawaii Islanders. It was for more part very successful in urban Honolulu at the small rickety wooden facility.
The team pretty much went back north after the forced move to Aloha Stadium and probably the increased costs, distance, etc. from their fan base.
So yes, in an ideal, and somewhat nostalgic way, a revival of the Hawaii Islanders baseball franchise could be doable. Heck they could even elect to play at 4 or 5 home "stadiums".... Honolulu U.H. stadium (with a good rental agreement as to not interfere with the UH team in scheduling) , Maui, Hilo, Kona and maybe Kauai, though the population there may be too small.
It could be something worth looking into as long as they do not have to play at a large overpriced, costly and as of yet unbuilt Aloha Stadium replacement.
All in all this would be a super expensive venture that has a huge share of risk.
Answer: Minor League Baseball team, Hawaii Islanders (revival) depending on who owns the right to that name.
2. If you owned a new restaurant, what would you name it, and what kind of cuisine would it serve?
Restaurants are the most mortal business anyone can take a risk at starting and running. Most restaurants go out of business in a very short time unless they have some kind of unique selling point. I for one would never go into this business. I am not passionate about cooking or even eating out, given COVID-19 and all the regulatory crap that goes along with it. Plus restaurants are so highly regulated I have to ask myself is it worth the time and money?
That said, the cheapest thing I could think of coming up with is a shaved ice stand with just a minimum offering, a tiny space or a mobile set-up. Mel's Shaved Ice and Cheap Snacks
3. If you owned a little independent retail shop, what would you name it, and what would it sell?
A record and CD music store that sold used music including vinyl, CDs, tapes and maybe some videos. It is a big risky kind of business to go into since it requires a lot of inventory, with most not selling very quickly. Plus the competition from digital and online streaming is huge... so a store such as this would be a very niche operation.
We have two record stores that I know of in this city and maybe that is enough. The market for physical music media is not that huge.
Name? Desert Island Discs? I dunno.
4. If you launched a charity, what would be its cause?
There needs to be a charity for those people with serious long-term body injuries or conditions, who live below the poverty line, and cannot afford to pay for needed surgery to correct their condition. Is there such a charity where people in need can be funded for major surgery that Medicare nor Medicaid are willing to fund?
Tell me about it or someone or group with deep pockets, please start one. Thank you.
5. What kind of recreation is sorely lacking in your town?
Over the years Hawaii has seen the decline or elimination of the following:
Here are my answers to the latest Friday 5 blog entry.
1. When did you recently do something on the sly?
If I had to tell anyone, it would not be "on the sly". Pleading the 5th and moving on.
2. Which of your plans for the coming week is still up in the air?
All of them. I live mostly day to day, though I have a plan that will be in motion come January 3. This coming week... nah....
3. What’s happening across the street?
Noise. Big trucks honking their horns, driving to the loading bay area at the nearby supermarket discount store. Directly across the street, cars and other vehicles are passing by, a homeless person is lying on the sidewalk, with birds occasionally chirping.
4. What have you heard recently through the grapevine?
5. What kinds of videos on YouTube are likeliest to send you down the rabbit hole?
I love YouTube mainly because it is FREE and has all kinds of short and long subject videos. Surely most of it is not high brow television, but there are a lot of good stuff to be viewed there. And all of it is FREE... no subscription fees required except for your internet service.
Oh and if you are annoyed by ads, on a Mac computer just use an ad blocker. 99% of the ads are gone. That said the Top 10 video subjects that pull me down the rabbit hole:
1. MUSIC - Whether it is the latest music videos, audio of albums I am thinking of getting or looking up old and obscure music, this is the place to be. Plus there are a ton of full on concert films, concert video clips and documentaries, opinion pieces and everything else about music artists, genres, history, technology, etc.
2. PLANE CRASH VIDEOS - A morbid but fascinating subject. There are several people posting air crash videos and the most interesting ones are those that give you the outcome of the crash investigation as to why that aircraft went down.
3. TECH NEWS and VIEWS - If you are into tech of all types, YouTube has everything. The entire TWIT slate of podcasts and live video stream here for free. Learn a lot about your Mac, iPhone, Android, Windows, Linux, Google and a whole lot more not only on the TWIT channels but also from others. Smartphone videos, internet privacy, dumb phones, old computers, old handheld video games, record players, cassette recorders, TV antennas, cord-cutting are all great subjects for tech news, views, instructional videos. Yay!
4. FOX NEWS CLIPS - Since I don't have cable and am to "pake" to subscribe to any news service, I watch the clips Fox News post to YouTube just to see what Ann Colter, Sean Hannity or my other favorite commentators have to say about the current stupidity in our nation.
4a. STOSSEL - Gotta love John Stossel's videos.... love most of his practical ideas.
5. NEWS in GENERAL - I can also watch live streaming from ABC, NBC and CBS on YouTube... big tornado or other storm hits, you go here and jump from channel to channel... terrorists, war, disasters, political crap live from wherever, yep... you can count on the live feeds from the news networks here... This also includes SKYNEWS, BLOMBERG, The Weather Channel, etc. Good for cheap news junkies (not to forget that a lot of this stuff also streams for free on Pluto TV).
5a: Our local news channels have clips and occasional live feeds. KHON TV, Hawaii News Now, Big Island Video News, Hawaii State Legislature, etc.
6. SPACE - NASA TV, SPACE X and more. IF you love stuff about outer space... well you can watch it all here. Live launches and splashdowns, activities on the space station, views from the space station (24-7 live), planetary exploration, Mars, opinions, history, the future, etc.
7. DUST - Occasionally I love watching the DUST channel full of short, interesting science fiction stories.
8. MOVIES - If you know where to look on YouTube there are free streaming movies. Some fairly well known, others classics and many obscurities + public domain films. YouTube itself has its own free streaming movies (with commercials) as well as pay option movies. But there are others putting movies up that you can watch for free. Can't say they are legit or not, but they are there.
9. DISASTERS - Shipwrecks, earthquakes, volcano eruptions, terrorism, fires, storms, current and historic. I can start on one and never end... go from Titanic to possible calamity that may explode at Yellowstone... and speculative video on the end of the world and when our sun becomes a red giant 5 billion years from now... or was it 5 million? Oh well....
10. And everything else... YouTube bloggers, families, wildlife, animals, cats, dogs, car crashes, Hawaii, stupidity, you name it... it's there. YouTube!
From Scrivener's weekly Friday 5 blog are these questions and these questions:
SEPTEMBER 3 FRIDAY 5 : THE WEEK THAT WAS
1. What did you do too much of this week?
Spent too much time watching YouTube (mostly music videos) and other streaming video sites. I stay at home, away from maddening, potentially COVID diseased crowds.
2. What did you not do enough of this week?
Clean my house. I need to get rid of excess stuff, clutter.
I hate these big ass cockroaches.
3. What surprised you this week?
An intrusive, invasive, B52 sized cockroach that trespassed into my living area the other night. Could not do anything else until that bastard was cornered and killed. I hate when they fly. Ugh! Disgusting creatures.
4. What elated you this week?
Nothing really. I don't get excited about much these days.
5. What happened this week that’ll lead to something good next week?
Nothing significant that I can think of. I will eat, sleep, do stuff (hopefully) and repeat the cycle over again the following day. Being thankful that I did wake up to see another day, everyday is a good thing.
I have plenty of cameras in my collection.
AUGUST 27 FRIDAY 5 : ITEMIZED
1. What item do you own more than one of, while most people own exactly one?
I have plenty of cameras, flashes and other photography gear. Most people today who are not photographers, are satisfied using just their smartphone as a camera.
2. What item do you own none of, while most people own exactly one?
I haven't had a TV since my CRT one died in 2011. That is the same year I cut my cable cord. I now just stream everything that is TV or video related of my Mac and Chromebook computers, and occasionally a smartphone.
I certainly don't have a CABLE TV subscription either. I subscribed to cable TV in 1984 and discontinued in 2011 when more streaming options became available. Plus the price of the standard TV package went up annually and frankly most of the channels offered in that bundle were ones I never watched like CNN, Lifetime, all sports, shopping, and music channels that morphed into stupid reality TV show channels. Why pay for crap you don't watch?
So streaming via the internet became a good option even in 2011 when the only options were plain old YouTube (which was free) and for me Amazon Prime video which just came with Amazon Prime. So there.
Over the years many new, free streaming TV options have showed up and I use them all from time to time. When I am not paying for channels I don't watch I don't care.
PLUTO TV is the best FREE streaming option since they have close to 300 live channels on various subjects and genres. I like the news channels, some of the older show channels like all Star Trek The Next Generation. Other free streaming options I like include TUBI TV, Peacock (their free tier), the free YouTube service (grand-daddy of video streaming), and many others.
I'm still trying to figure out how to get free over the air TV signals on my computer without having to buy expensive gear. I guess I could buy a TV for that, but I don't want a smart TV with built in apps... just a dumb TV with a tuner that can get free over the air digital signals.
I also subscribe to two services: Amazon Prime (long time), Hulu ($2/mo. special to the end of November) and Apple TV (free one year promotion through T-Mobile).
3. Among stuff you own, what item is most likely to be borrowed by an acquaintance?
Bluetooth speaker.
4. What item are you most likely to borrow from an acquaintance?
Scissors.
5. What did you most recently purchase and not use?
At this point in time, everything I recently purchased has been put into use.
Scrivener's Friday 5questions of the week.... Rx..
1. What’s your prescription for a case of Weekend Uncertainties?
Deny it all, listen to music, read or watch videos all day.
2. What’s your prescription for a persistent case of Restless Munchies Syndrome?
Eat something or at least drink water.
3. What’s your prescription for Streamer’s Indecision?
Keep on adding more movies and TV shows to the watchlists I have on Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and TUBI-TV. After that go to YouTube and watch short videos of just about anything, discover someone's new channel there and add that to my long list of subscriptions or add videos the hundreds of playlists I keep there. Many, many music videos, aviation videos, automotive videos, computers, Android, record collecting and other stuff. So much indecision.
And then I go watch something on some other free streaming service that I don't always view. Hello Pluto TV, Roku Channel, Crackle and Shout Factory. Heh.
There's audio, and while I pay for almost none of it, I do have massive playlists and stations on Spotify, YouTube Music, Accuradio, Tuned-In, Pandora, iHeartRadio, Stitcher and Audible. Time to listen to another good book or an episode of Classic American Top 40 with Casey Kasem. Yay!
4. What’s your prescription for a hypersensitive Get Off My Lawn reflex?
I live in a condo, so I have no lawn to shoosh people or stray animals from. Simple! Now I just hope my aging multi-story building does not decide to crash down on me in a big pile of concrete and steel. Ugh!
5. What’s your prescription for an inflamed FOMO?
I don't really have a fear of missing out on anything. I am not that much of an "experience" or "thrill-seeker" type of person. I am just happy to be an observer with my camera or at my computer doing stuff or watching a video.
The following questions are taken from its usual source... The Friday 5 blog.
1. When did you most recently find money?
Last week I found a penny on the ground. Picked it up and kept it. How many of you see pennies on the ground but don't bother to pick it up?
2. When have you lost something and got it back because someone submitted it to a lost-and-found?
I thought I lost my wallet last month, but it turned out to be in my car after calling the "lost and found" department. Oh well. Better there than being permanently lost!
3. What did you discover about yourself at your favorite place of employment?
There is always someone that will take your place. You can be dropped just like that, on a whim because your supervisor may no longer likes you.
4. What was the last thing you peeled? Orange, last week.
5. What was the most recent gift you unwrapped? High end shampoo block.
Since this topic title came up, this band and their famous song has been on my mind....
