Things I Know

I’m late with this, and I’m sorry.  If you’re old enough and lived either in Buffalo, NY or Richmond, VA, you probably grew up listening to Shane Gibson who can be described as a legendary rock DJ in both markets.  He usually didn’t use his last name on the air, instead calling himself “Shane Brother Shane,” or “the Cosmic Cowboy.”  It was my honor to work with Shane, briefly, near the beginning of my relatively brief radio career, at WLEE in Richmond.  Shane passed away last February at the age of 78.  In his later years, he was a golf instructor.  RIP Shane.  You were a heck of a talent, a real original, and I’m one of many who miss you.

In June, Dairy Queen advertised that the Blizzard of the Month was made with Thin Mint Girl Scout Cookies.  I thought I had missed out, but I didn’t.  I was in my local DQ earlier this month, and apparently the Thin Mint Blizzard is available all summer.  So, I bought one.

I have a four-year-old computer printer.  It works fine, but for some reason, it decided to disconnect from the internet on Wednesday.  Connecting that printer to the internet is pretty damned complicated.  I hope they’ve improved the error messages and the way Brothers printers connect since I got the one I own.  That’s the only thing I really don’t like about mine.

Nobody consulted me on this. They probably shouldn’t have bothered anyway because I don’t patronize Arby’s all that often.  But Arby’s has eliminated potato cakes from the menu.  I liked those and I’m sorry they’re gone.

Things I Know

Bill Cosby’s conviction for sexual assault was overturned last Wednesday on a technicality.  That means he is now considered not guilty.  There’s a difference between not guilty and innocent.  He wasn’t declared innocent and he wasn’t vindicated either.

I don’t know if it’s Hate Dogs Day everywhere, but it certainly is tonight in my neighborhood.

Happy Independence Day.  Since “Independence Day” and “The Fourth of July” have the exact same number of syllables, if we could get everyone to call it Independence Day, we could have a three-day weekend on the first weekend in July every year.

This is a mistake that happens more often in radio and TV reporting than in newspapers, because newspapers are more likely to have reporters who actually go to the courthouse.  But indictments are handed up, not down.  I raise it because the NY Post made the mistake in reporting the apparent suicide of computer-security exec John McAfee.  In presenting an indictment, the foreman of a grand jury, accompanied by the DA, or an ADA, comes into a courtroom.  The judge is seated on the bench and the foreman hands the indictment up to the judge, not down.

Ruth Eckerd Hall doesn’t love me any more.  Ruth Eckerd Hall is a concert venue in Clearwater Florida, not a person.  I saw the Blue-Collar Comedy Tour there, probably in the year 2000.  Nice theater, good show.  The theater emailed me dozens of times over the ensuing years, telling me of other events I might like to see.  Okay, but according to Google Maps, that’s around 1,200 miles from where I live, so it’s not someplace I’m likely to pop into on a whim.  I don’t know when the emails stopped, but I noticed during the pandemic.  So, I looked to see if it went out of business.  It hasn’t.  From this I conclude that sending massive amounts of email is essentially free, but still, someone will probably cull the mailing list every twenty years or so.

 On several occasions recently, I’ve been prompted to sign into Reddit using Google.  I thought anonymity was the entire point of Reddit. 

I got a message from Google telling me to go to my account profile and enter my birthday.  The message said it was needed to avoid violating a law.  I didn’t go further, to find out what law.  However, I bet Google already knows my birthday.  Lots of other websites do.

A few months ago, I ordered some aluminum foil from Amazon.  I did that because stores in my neighborhood don’t carry the 18” variety.  I wanted to do it again, but now Amazon sells aluminum foil through Fresh. I kind of understand this because I usually buy aluminum foil at a grocery store.  But, this means instead of getting free delivery because I’m a Prime member, I’ll have to pay $4.99 to get it here.  And it costs just as much no matter what delivery option I select.  Understandably, I’m looking around for stores nearby that do sell the 18” foil.