See the “Annoying Commercials” thread for what would’ve been showing, over and over, during some of those breaks.
Wait, do you mean even blacked out the players milling around, the huddle, and lining up for the next play?
I smile when I see you’ve posted, if that means anything to you. 
You’re pretty cool.
Good luck with your gefilte fish. I’ve never had it, but I’ve been gefilte-curious for some time now.
Thanks.
I cannot really say whether gefilte fish is objectively good. It’s so bound up in memories of holiday and family, that it’s impossible for me to isolate the experience of eating it.
I know Mannishewitz is objectively terrible wine. But I love it because of the above reasons.
Having grown up with Manischewitz, I now think Yehuda is 10x better.
Oh, sheesssssss.
First : My Mom. She could die any day, or in a year. I have no idea. She’s in bad shape. 93 years old. COVID screwed up the Assisted living things for her.
I’m a programmer. I can work from anywhere in the world if it has a good internet connection. So knowing what is coming, I tried to get my mom to allow me to update her internet to fiber. I will need to be there because it will require access to her house. I need this connection so that I can work through a fast internet connection when the time comes. I’ve explained that. But she just gets mad.
She thinks it’s going to destroy her email, which she did quite well the other day (she deleted her gmail account). I’m still trying to fix that. Fuck.
Nope, she won’t allow a faster connection. No way. She will not allow it. Why? She can’t explain that. I will pay for it all. It’s going to be about $20 more a month. Sixth(?) time I’ve talked to her about it. But. nope, not going to happen. 
I can afford to pay ALL her bills.
So when she dies, I will move into her house for a while while I sell it and do an estate sale as well. I live 100 miles away. So, I can’t work from my Mom’s house because of the internet connection that she will not let me upgrade and pay for. I bought her a system that I could work on. Just need to upgrade the internet. But she absolutely refuses to let me update her internet connection (which is essential for me to work). Work is very understanding though. So I got that going for me.
When I stay with my mom on weekends, It’s on a blow up bed in the living room. I’m thinking about getting an efficiency apartment near her or something. I’m 61 years old. This is getting ridiculous.
Second : My cousins are having a similar battle. One never really worked, but can at least get some money from Social Security. What she really needs is to get on Medicare so she can get her cataracts fixed. But she needs to get on SS to do it. Her sister is really trying to help with this. But the cousin with cataracts got quite mad at me when I brought it up.
The big problem with my cousins that I see is that they are co-owners of a small apartment building 50-50. The one that has never worked (and has zero insurance) and can’t see will not agree to sell. So when she eventually ends up in the hospital, it could wipe them both out.
The apartment building is what they have.
I see an attorney in their future.
Maybe me too. Shit.
Facebook has been sending me ads for offshore medical schools. I do not appreciate this, since one category of recurrent nightmares over the years has me repeating med school, a truly ghastly prospect.
The latest ad has a pop-up video showing an odd tableau in which a graduating student is apparently overjoyed at getting into a U.S. residency. “Hoboken for family practice!!!”
I suppose that has its attractions, but “Passaic for plastic surgery!!!” would be even more fun. 
Maybe they want you to be a professor.
The pay is low, but there are said to be other attractions.
“So, you have a small island, limited responsibilities, hookers, Cuban cigars and rum. Check.”
Facebook has been telling me that my Modesto Adventure is calling me. Apparently I’m too boring for the islands.
I just got the funniest call from a scammer. I kind of felt bad because I’m sure this person doesn’t have the greatest opportunities but come on, you’re a criminal, so it’s hard to be too sympathetic.
A call came from WIRELESS CALLER in California somewhere. I was sure it was a scam, but I answered anyway. A robot voice said AT&T had sent 2 new iPhones to me and asked me to press 1 to confirm or 2 for more info. I was way too curious and pressed 2.
A man with a heavy accent came on and claimed to be from AT&T. He said two devices were being sent to an address in New York with some name on it and asked if I recognized any of it. I said no, playing along, and asked why they were asking me.
He said that it was associated with me, and so I asked, okay, then what’s my name? Surely AT&T knows that. He got confused and wasn’t sure how to respond. I then asked how I was associated with this if he didn’t even know who I was? He hung up.
This scam was really not thought through at all.
My Halloween costume this year was going to either be Me TV’s Svengoolie, or a black zentai (a body stocking covering you from the soles of your feet to the top of your head) covered with bright twisty clown balloons. I fgured there would be plenty of other Svengoolies. So I bought a black zentai at Spirit. I have (of course I do) plenty of twisty clown balloons. But, they are of questionable quality and a no name brand. Today I finally had a chance to stop in to Party City. I was eager to buy a bag of Qualitex balloons. They cost more. But they expand to a reliable size. They stand up to more punishment. They have a MUCH lower failure rate etc. They’re just better. Naturally, the store only had no name balloons.
So, my reading of this is that you passed up the opportunity to get two free iPhones, and in addition managed to piss off AT&T and hurt their feelings! 
P.S.- Nowadays I never pick up any call whose name or number I don’t recognize. In fact, lately I’ve gotten so cynical that I often don’t even bother checking the call display. I figure if it’s anything legitimate they can leave a message. In the past I would sometimes pick up and play along with scammers, but life is too short for this bullshit.
I pick up because I can never remember numbers and there have been more than a few times it’s a doctor’s office calling to confirm an appointment or other actual important call.
We’ve turned our landline’s ringer off. The handset in the kitchen makes a quiet beep, but that’s it.
Actually, I’ve long since done the same. The only phone in the house in which the ringer is enabled is in the kitchen, and I should probably turn that one down. I spend a lot of time at my desk and my desk phone has a visual indicator of an incoming call which is much more peaceful than abrupt ringing or beeping, even if I didn’t hear the phone down in the kitchen. It’s the same light that blinks when there is a message. Convenient and civilized.
One time I was getting so many calls from some determined spammer that I went one step further. I went down to the basement and disconnected the entire phone system for a couple of days. Anybody I’d be interested in talking to has my cell number anyway.
I knew right away that it was a scam but went along because I wanted to know what it was about. It was just so bad.
If they were smart they could have said your phone number was associated with this order. Of course, they’d still have the problem that the real AT&T would have all my info but it would be better than what they did.
I met Rich in 1982; he was dating my GF’s roommate (they’re still best friends). He was the funniest human being I’ve ever met… which is odd because he thought I was. We were a foursome on vacations for years, had our kids at the same time, spent holidays and birthdays at each others houses.
The two of us in a room were like having Colbert and Carell in the same room each and every time. Current events, politics, science… it was all non-stop until everyone in the room was laughing until they cried.
About seven years ago he got up in the middle of the night to use the commode… and he just died. His wife asked the Medics who said, “he’s gone”.
And that was that.
I’ve lost a step since then; health wise and professionally. I’ve never been as funny since. I will say that sometimes, just sometimes, I’ll use one of his bits… and it will get laughs. I don’t do that for me though; I don’t need the applause that badly.
You see I’m Agnostic/Atheist… but I know that energy leaves the body when we die. And I know that energy can neither be created nor destroyed; it only changes form. So, when one of his bits still gets laughter, later that day or that night, I’ll look up into the sky and say,
“See? You’re Still funny. Told you…!”
…
( Love you guys too! Thanks for having me over… )
I mean this sincerely and as a statement of appreciation- Thank you for sharing that with us.
I started a diet at the beginning of the month.
FB has cranked the food posts up to 11. Now I’m alternately craving steamed dumplings and fried foods.
I’ve been working on loosing weight for a while, and actually managing pretty well. Unfortunately, one of my FB friends is always posting recipes, which is not helping my resolve. The other day it was slow-cooker bratwurst and sauerkraut.