from Bruce
Anecdotes
Nieces
• At the 1992 Olympic Games in Calgary, which is located in western Canada, several members of speed skater Bonnie Blair’s family were in attendance to show support. One sign hanging in the audience section said, “Dear Aunt Bonnie, Skate Fast. Love, Brittany.” Brittany was Ms. Blair’s niece and perhaps her tiniest fan—she was only four-and-a-half-months’ old. The sign must have helped, for Aunt Bonnie won two gold medals.
Olympics
• After Julie Foudy won an Olympic gold medal as a member of the United States women’s national soccer team, she enjoyed showing it off. One day, she showed it to a Federal Express delivery driver. A little later, a knock came at the door, and her regular mail carrier asked, “Is it true there’s a gold medal here?” A little after that, another knock came at the door. This time, it was a UPS delivery driver, who said, “I hear there’s an Olympic medal at this house.” Of course, her husband’s parents were proud that their daughter-in-law had won an Olympic medal. After a visit, her husband’s parents left behind a roll of film. Ms. Foudy had the film developed—the photographs all showed her husband’s parents posing with the medal in different rooms of the house.
• When Dominique Moceanu was just an infant, her parents decided to test her strength to see if she could become a skilled gymnast. They stretched out a clothesline, allowed her to grasp it with her hands, then let go of her. They were prepared to catch her if she let go of the clothesline, but she held on to it. This test of strength convinced them that Dominique could become a skilled gymnast and they made plans to help her get the training she needed to succeed in gymnastics. In 1996, she won a gold medal at the Atlanta Olympic Games as a member of the United States women’s gymnastics team.
• Canadian Elizabeth Manley won a silver medal in the 1988 Olympics. During her amateur career, her mother financially supported her, even going $26,000 into debt for her. Ms. Manley eventually turned professional, received a $50,000 bonus for signing with the Ice Capades, and immediately used the money to pay off her mother’s debt.
• Being a winner acts as an aphrodisiac—to fans. After figure skater Katerina Witt defeated Rosalynn Sumners for the gold medal at the 1984 Olympics Games, she received 35,000 love letters.
Parents
• Even as a child, Nobel Prize-winning geneticist Barbara McClintock was unconventional, and her parents were unconventional. Her father, a physician, didn’t believe in homework, figuring that if a child worked hard during school hours, the child should be able to pursue personal interests at home. Young Barbara often played hooky from school, with her parents’ full approval. Once, she disliked her schoolteacher, so she stayed home from school for an entire semester. On another occasion, a woman in the neighborhood scolded Barbara because she didn’t wear dresses and act like the other young girls. Barbara told her mother, who called the woman and told her, “Don’t ever do that again!”
• Andrew Tobias knows a couple of gay men who are raising a daughter who is trilingual. The gay men speak English and French around the house, and the babysitter speaks nothing but Spanish. Not allowing their daughter to watch TV, the gay men bought her instead a bunch of Disney videotapes—all in Spanish. For a long time, their daughter thought the TV set spoke only Spanish.
• When world-class gymnastics coach Bela Karolyi works with gymnasts in his gym near Houston, parents are allowed to watch their children—but only from either a balcony or from benches placed behind a large window. Why? Mr. Karolyi says, “I don’t go in their kitchen and advise them what kind of soup to make for dinner.”
• Experience has taught Beth Joiner, a children’s dance teacher, that kids say the most embarrassing things. For example, one young student told Ms. Joiner that the student’s father liked picking him up after dance class because he could see Miss Beth wearing her leotard.
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© Copyright Bruce D. Bruce; All Rights Reserved
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Presenting
Michael Egan
has returned to semi-retired status.
In memory.
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
BANDCAMP MUSIC
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION OF BANDCAMP MUSIC
Track: "In Hell I’ll Be in Good Company"
Album: GOOD COMPANY
Artist: The Dead South
“The Dead South, a gold rush vibing four-piece acoustic bluegrass set from Saskatchewan, infuse the genre's traditional trappings with an air of frontier recklessness, whiskey breakfasts and grizzled tin-pan showmanship. Their original and current lineup includes the gnarled baritone of Nate Hilts, Scott Pringle on mandolin, whistling cellist Danny Kenyon and virtuosic banjo player Colton Crawford. The four-piece, acoustic string-driven approach puts the interplay of unique and versatile voices front and centre, with Hilts, Pringle and Kenyon all sharing lead vocal duties.”
Coachroach Greg, a fan, commented about the above video, “I was drinking water while watching this and now it’s moonshine.”
Price: $9.99 (CAD) for 14-track album
Genre: Americana. Folk.
Links:
GOOD COMPANY
The Dead South on Bandcamp
The Dead South on YouTube
The Dead South Official Website
Other Links:
Bruce’s Music Recommendations: FREE pdfs
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog #1
David Bruce's Blog #2
davidbrucebooks: EDUCATE YOURSELF - Free PDFs
David Bruce's Blog #3
David Bruce's Apple iBookstore
Reader Suggestion
Michelle in AZ
Stephen Suggests
End of the World Party
New Venture
Michael Egan
BRUCE'S RECOMMENDATION
Three-fer
Other Links:
David Bruce's Smashwords Page
David Bruce's Blog #1
David Bruce's Blog #2
David Bruce's Blog #3
davidbrucebooks: EDUCATE YOURSELF - Free PDFs
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Reader Comment
Re: Tom Mix
Hi Marty,
On three day summer holiday weekends a group of us would drive the back way (AZ 77 to AZ 79) from Tucson to go tubing on the Salt River in Mesa. Stopped many times at the Tom Mix Memorial.
On a somewhat related note, one of the best steakhouses in Tucson, The El Corral, has one of Tom Mix's movie costumes on display in their foyer.
When in Tucson El Corral is always worth a visit.
Dave in Tucson
Thanks, Dave!
FWIW, Tom Mix was born & spent his early years in
Mix Run, PA - the area is popular with local hunters.
Bonus Links
Jeannie the Teed-Off Temp
Reader Comment
Current Events
Cats (& dogs) & hot weather
Was reading an article where an owner asked for ideas on how to help cats stay cool in hot weather. Besides the usual idea of an ice cube or two in the water bowl, this struck me as an interesting idea--a towel or cloth-wrapped frozen water bottle to play with or lay on. Not sure if it would work, but it's an idea to keep in mind and possibly try. (Might help dogs too.)
Most amusing short video:
that Mad Cat, JD
In The Chaos Household
Last Night
So, I bought a little chocolate bundt cake at the store.
It was labeled "Triple Chocolate Fudge" and had it all - color, texture, sheen, tiny chocolate chips hanging on the frosting.
A picture of baking perfection.
But with the first bite, all I could think is WTF is the chocolate?
Maybe someone waved a Hershey bar over the batter, but that cake was more closely related to a brown crayon than anything chocolate.
Yeah - that describes it - brown, not chocolate.
Gives Health Update
Ozzy Osbourne
Just a month after undergoing “major” surgery and battling Covid-19, Ozzy Osbourne was back in action this weekend as the singer appeared at San Diego Comic-Con to promote his upcoming LP and give an update on his health.
Osbourne appeared alongside legendary comic artist Todd McFarlane — who has made the videos in support of Ozzy’s new album Patient Number 9, and made a special edition comic book to accompany its release — Saturday at Comic-Con, where he briefly spoke to Entertainment Tonight about his health after the operation that was “really going to determine the rest of his life,” as his wife Sharon previously revealed.
“It’s great, it’s great,” Osbourne said of his Comic-Con. “I like to see people, you know. That’s been the hardest thing of the past few years, because I’ve been trying to recover from my surgery. I’m getting there. It’s a slow climb back, you know?”
The day before hitting Comic-Con, Osbourne released the album’s latest single “Degradation Rules,” a collaboration with his longtime Black Sabbath band mate Tony Iommi. Osbourne previously shared the title track from the LP, featuring the McFarlane-directed video.
Ozzy Osbourne
Weekend Box Office
‘Nope’
Jordan Peele ’s UFO thriller “Nope” topped the North American charts in its first weekend in theaters with an estimated $44 million in ticket sales, Universal Pictures said Sunday. Though it doesn’t come close to the $71 million debut of “Us,” it is still significantly impressive for an original, R-rated film — and the biggest of the pandemic for an original screenplay.
“Nope,” which opened on 3,785 theaters in the U.S. and Canada, is the most expensive film Peele has made to date with a reported $68 million production budget, not accounting for marketing and promotion costs. “Us” cost around $20 million to produce, while “Get Out” was made for only $4.5 million. Both films ultimately made over $255 million worldwide.
In limited release, “Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” continued its expansion and made $846,950 from 590 theaters.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. “Nope,” $44 million.
2. “Thor: Love and Thunder,” 22.1 million.
3. “Minions: The Rise of Gru,” $17.7 million.
4. “Where the Crawdads Sing,” $10.3 million.
5. “Top Gun: Maverick,” $10 million.
6. “Elvis,” $6.3 million.
7. “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank,” $3.9 million.
8. “The Black Phone,” $3.5 million.
9. “Jurassic World Dominion,” $3 million.
10. “Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris,” $1.4 million.
‘Nope’
‘Rumble in the Jungle’ Belt
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali’s championship belt from his 1974 “Rumble in the Jungle” heavyweight title fight was sold at auction on Sunday for $6.18 million.
The winner of the heated competition for the belt was Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, according to Heritage Auctions in Dallas.
In a tweet Sunday, Irsay confirmed he acquired the belt for his collection of rock music, American history and pop culture memorabilia that is currently touring the country.
The 1974 fight was one of boxing’s most memorable moments. Ali stopped the fearsome George Foreman to recapture the heavyweight title in the African nation of Zaire. Ali won the fight in a knockout in the eighth round.
Muhammad Ali
Former Laker Auctions Rings For Ukraine
Slava Medvedenko
Former Los Angeles Lakers player Slava Medvedenko is selling his two NBA championship rings to raise money for his native Ukraine.
Medvedenko was a power forward on the Lakers’ championship teams in 2001 and ’02, playing alongside Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal.
SCP Auctions is donating the entire final sale price of both rings to Medvedenko’s Fly High Foundation. Its goal is to support Ukrainian children by restoring the sports infrastructure of the war-torn country’s schools and launching a network of social sports clubs.
The auction runs from Wednesday through Aug. 5. The Laguna Niguel, California-based company estimates both rings will raise at least $100,000.
Slava Medvedenko
A Sunday Miracle
Jan. 6
In a rare moment on Fox News, its viewers heard the truth about Jan. 6 — thanks to Rep. Liz Cheney, one of two sitting Republicans on the committee investigating the Capitol attack. Despite Bret Baier’s attempts to push the Fox/Trump narrative that the Jan. 6 committee is biased and a sham, Cheney debunked talking point after talking point.
“But what we aren’t gonna do, Bret, is blame the Capitol Police, blame those in law enforcement, for Donald Trump’s armed mob that he sent to the Capitol.”
Cheney continued, “Clearly there were intelligence failures. Clearly the security should have operated better than it did. But this was a mob that Donald Trump sent to the Capitol, and I think that’s important to keep our eye on.”
“We also know that on Jan. 6 while the attack was underway, Donald Trump did not place a single phone call to anyone at the Pentagon. He didn’t place a single phone call to anyone at the Justice Department to say, ‘Deploy law enforcement,'” Cheney said, adding, “The notion that somehow he issued an order is not consistent with the facts.”
Later in the interview, Cheney pointedly noted that other conservative media outlets run by Fox News owner Rupert Murdoch have characterized Trump as unfit for office.
Jan. 6
Healthcare For Profit
Amazon
Amazon will acquire the primary care organization One Medical in a deal valued roughly at $3.9 billion, marking another expansion for the retailer into health care services.
The Seattle-based e-commerce giant said Thursday it is buying One Medical for $18 per share cash. Its one of Amazon’s biggest acquisitions, following its $13.7 billion deal to buy Whole Foods in 2017 and its $8.5 billion purchase of Hollywood studio MGM, which closed earlier this year.
One Medical, whose parent company is the San-Francisco based 1Life Healthcare, Inc., is a membership-based service that offers virtual care as well as in-person visits. It also works with more than 8,000 companies to provide its health benefits to employees.
As of March, One Medical had about 767,000 members and 188 medical offices in 25 markets, according to its first-quarter earnings report, which also showed the company had incurred a net loss of $90.9 million after pulling in $254.1 million in revenue. The total deal value announced Thursday includes One Medical’s debt.
For Amazon, the acquisition deepens its foray into health care services, the latest industry the company has sought to disrupt. In 2018, it bought the online pharmacy PillPack for $750 million before opening its own online drug store that allows customers to order medication or prescription refills, and have them delivered to their front door in a couple of days. Last year, it began offering its Amazon Care telemedicine program to employers nationwide. Experts say the latest deal will allow it to bolster its employer clientele, which its been aiming to build up.
Amazon
Fired Engineer
AI Chatbot
When Blake Lemoine worked at Google as an engineer, he was tasked with testing whether a robot the company was developing exhibited any biases.
He made news recently for his controversial belief that the Google AI chatbot was sentient. The bot was known as LaMDA, short for Language Model for Dialogue Applications, and Lemoine had been tasked with testing it.
On Friday June 22, Lemoine was fired, both he and Google confirmed. In a statement to The Washington Post, Google spokesperson Brian Gabriel said the company found Lemoine's claims about LaMDA were "wholly unfounded" and that he violated company guidelines, which led to his termination.
Lemoine, who is an ordained Christian mystic priest, wrote in a June 13 tweet: "My opinions about LaMDA's personhood and sentience are based on my religious beliefs."
Lemoine, who spoke to Insider before his firing, said that his philosophical conversations with the robot rivaled those he's had with leading philosophers, and that convinced him of something beyond a scientific hypothesis: that the bot is sentient.
AI Chatbot
6 Peacocks
Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart is mourning six of her pet peacocks after a coyote attack.
The lifestyle mogul, 80, revealed on Instagram on Saturday that her birds were killed "in broad daylight."
"The coyotes came in broad daylight and devoured him and five others including the magnificent White Boy," the Martha Stewart living entrepreneur wrote in the tribute. "Any solutions for getting rid of six large and aggressive coyotes who have expensive tastes when it comes to poultry??"
She also revealed that she's made some changes to their living arrangement in the hopes of avoiding future coyote attacks. "We are no longer allowing the peafowl out of their yard, we are enclosing the top of their large yard with wire fencing etc," Stewart said.
Martha Stewart
‘They Wouldn’t Let Me Do It’
Medal of Honor
The Former President Donald Trump admitted Saturday that after he flew to Iraq aboard Air Force One that he wanted to give himself the Medal of Honor — the country’s highest award for military valor in action — but was told he wasn’t allowed to.
“As president, I wanted to give myself the Congressional Medal of Honor, but they wouldn’t let me do it…they said that would be inappropriate,” Trump the loser said on July 23 at the Turning Point USA summit, whose “mission is to identify, educate, train, and organize students to promote the principles of freedom, free markets, and limited government.”
The Congressional Medal of Honor, which is typically presented by the president in the name of Congress, represents values of “bravery, courage, sacrifice [and] integrity,” and is only awarded for military valor in action.
Many expressed their frustration of Trump the shameless conman’s statement on Twitter, pointing out his disregard for the award’s legacy for honoring “military valor in action” and his lack of knowledge for how the award is given. One user noted that Trump the grifter avoided the military draft for the Vietnam War five times.
Medal of Honor
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