Friday, February 14, 2025

A SECOND INTERESTING DVD

The other DVD in the sleeve in which I found the one I just wrote about contained more recordings of men playing folk and country music, a lot of gigs this time , including one for the children's home in Peterborough. One of the acts at this latter gig was Harold and Eleanor Davis. 


Then it shifted to people playing at a house with relatives singing along occasionally and making comments on the music. Guy mentioned his wife being ticked off at a quip he made after she broke a beer bottle.


Then it shifted to someone playing by himself with I presume his wife and a child in the background. The phone rang. 


It then shifted to music being played in a backyard with kids playing and people opening beers. There was also a dog. One of the kids said they wanted the rocking chair. 


There followed some clips of live gigs with members of the audience complimenting the performers.


Then there was more of people playing in a home setting.


There followed more live gigs, including one outdoors at night with crickets.


This disc seemed like it was dubbed from a videotape so I presume the other one was as well.

Thursday, February 13, 2025

ANOTHER INTERESTING DVD

Came across a DVD of a bunch of guys having a song circle, playing country and folk music. One of the men was named Bob. One of them lived in Cordova. One talked about a unique instrument he saw somebody play when he and a few other people went to someone's house after an Ian Tyson concert. The couple whose house were the song circle was had a daughter named Katie. One of the other guys had a dog named Jake he had brought along and whom he had to get home to feed. One of the guys told a dirty joke about a seance. There was also talk of course about the songs and their instruments.


Then it shifted to a chili cookoff that was a fundraiser for a new building, headed up by some guy named Elwood Hamilton. The leader of the trio, Nothing Fancy, was also mc-ing. The other members of this fiddle group were Bill Hornsby and Stubby. After a few instrumental selections, Glen Hubble was featured on vocals. One of the children told an adult they were going for a walk.


Then the DVD shifted back to the couple's house, this time with Katie dancing, I think a younger version of hear than appeared in the first segment. The fiddler had an old English guy playing with him this time. Katie got a little fussy at certain points. Katie started crying and one of the musicians asked, "What are you, the competition?" A TV was on in the background. Katies mom went to help Grandma with dishes. Katie later accompanied the musicians on a toy piano. Then she drank from her bottle. Her mom came in and put Katie back in her tracksuit. This segment was filmed near Christmastime because there was a lighted tree in the room. Someone knocked at the door. Katie proceeded to do a whole lot more dancing and general enjoying of the music.


It then shifted to another jam session possibly several months later. There was a NASCAR race on in the background. A couple women talking about what they'd made for dinner.


It shifted again, back to baby Katie in the mix. There was another child featured. Later both Katie and the other kid were dancing in the kitchen to the music. The phone rang.


Another jam session featuring Katie. One of the musicians asked another if he taped "Wrestlemania" for someone and how the tape turned out. There was a dog present who found his ball. 

Monday, February 10, 2025

DISASTER AFTER KANYE WEST'S ACCOUNT HACKED BY KANYE WEST

Babylon Bee

 

Disaster After Kanye West's X Account Hacked By Kanye West

Celebs

Feb 8, 2025 · BabylonBee.com

 

U.S. — Disaster quickly unfolded after Kanye West's account on X was hacked by none other than Kanye West.

 

Disturbing, racist rants were posted in rapid succession, apparently posted by Kanye West after he managed to log in to Kanye West's social media account.

 

"We believe that unfortunately, a psychotic, Hitler-loving hacker named Kanye West managed to infiltrate and post messages on the account normally run by Kanye West," said a spokesman for X. "We are looking into the matter as we speak, and hope to have control of the account restored back to Kanye West shortly."

 

Sources report that this is not the first time that Kanye's accounts have been hacked by Kanye. "It's become a recurring issue," said software engineer Delmar Billings. "Weirdly, it seems to happen every time that Kanye goes off his lithium. We're still working on a fix."

 

At publishing time, X had announced that Kanye West's account had been secured and was at least temporarily safe from Kanye West.

HERE'S WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU EMAIL BILL MURRAY AFTER HIS SUPER BOWL COMMERCIAL WHERE HE APPEARS AS A DOG

Entertainment Weekly

 

Here's what happens when you email Bill Murray after his Super Bowl ad where he turns into a dog

Murray's 15-second Yahoo ad is just the beginning of a dizzying three-email saga that also stars his brother Brian Doyle-Murray.

By Wesley Stenzel  Updated on February 9, 2025 10:46PM EST

 

Bill Murray is looking ruff, and his emails are open.

 

The elusive Ghostbusters star launched a Super Bowl ad campaign for Yahoo where he looks into a mirror and sees himself as a dog. “Have you ever looked in the mirror and not seen yourself?” he asks in the ad.

 

In an elaborate gimmick, Murray holds up a legal pad with an email address on it: Billhimself@yahoo.com. "I don’t think I need professional help, but a skilled amateur — maybe? Little help?"

 

What happens when you email Murray's address? More than you'd think.

 

Once you fire off your first email to the Groundhog Day star, you'll get an automatic response with a photo of the Murray-dog with a bizarre first-person message about being stuck in canine form.

 

"People ask, are you a cat person or a dog person? Dog person. And, now, literally a dog person," part of the message reads. "The fear hits but I remember my neighbor, Dr. Gerry, a legendary veterinarian totally qualified to respond to any canine emergency."

 

There's also a video attached, featuring Murray addressing the camera (seemingly into a smartphone) and explaining that he had an elevated heart rate, so he went to the emergency room — but there was a line around the block, and since he thinks he's a dog, he went to the vet instead.

 

Murray then says the vet has referred him somewhere else and asks readers to guess where. It doesn't matter what you type, though, because as long as you respond to that email, you'll receive a second one in a new thread.

 

Bill Murray, Yahoo Commercial

Bill Murray and his dog self in a Yahoo Super Bowl ad. Yahoo/YouTube

 

The second email reveals that Murray is going to a pet psychic, "Platinum Pet Premonitions," with a link to a website for the business. The actor says the site "seemed legit," but if you click "Book your appointment today" on the page, the button text changes to "Fully booked!" and humiliatingly subjects you to hear the Yahoo yodel.

 

Murray also appears in a second video in this email, this time in the Platinum Pet Premonitions office.

 

"She went into her finding-mode, where she reached her hands out, and then recited every dog's name that there is, starting from A," he says, recounting his experience with the psychic. He then reveals that the $99.99 cost of her service was actually per minute, and she just wasted 55 minutes of his time.

 

"What now? Email some advice, a poem, a recipe," he writes.

 

If you respond to that second email, you'll get one final message from Murray. "So I turn to family," he writes. "Brother Brian arrives on a moment's notice. Or should I say, comes when called? With him as my mirror, he looked back at me and saw what was missing. What I had been missing and couldn't see."

 

Unsurprisingly, there's a third vertical video attached to this email, too. Murray turns the camera around to his brother, Brian Doyle-Murray, who identifies the pooch. "I think it's Peppy, our dog who loved to chase cars until Dad took her upstate," Doyle-Murray says.

 

Murray agrees with his brother and addresses the dog in the mirror. "This has been a really nice visit, but you gotta go away, don't ya? Take care of yourself," Murray says as he turns the camera back to the mirror, which first shows the dog and then morphs back into the Groundhog Day actor.

 

The video leaves you with more questions than answers, but Murray offers a little clarity in the text of the third email. "I never got to say goodbye to Peppy," he writes. "Until today. What the heck, Super Bowl Sunday. It was Peppy I was seeing in the mirror. After all these years, she came back to say goodbye to me and to let me say goodbye to her. Maybe she liked me the best of all the kids."

 

Murray continues. "I suppose we should never be horrified by what we see in the mirror. Or maybe we should never wish to be content with what we see in the mirror. Take care."

 

That's the end of the correspondence, no matter how many times you write back to Murray. So the whole endeavor was a full-circle journey for Murray to say goodbye to his childhood dog? Why does the actor still look human in all of the videos? Do either of the brothers understand the premise of the campaign, or is it just an improvised series of videos without consistent internal logic? Was the whole point of this to sell audiences on the idea of email?

 

We really don't know what to make of any of this, but email Billhimself@yahoo.com to see for yourself, if you must.

 

The commercial was co-written by Murray in collaboration with Doyle-Murray, and frequent collaborator Mitch Glazer. Watch it above.

UK UNIVERSITY ADDS 220 TRIGGER WARNINGS TO SHAKESPEAREAN PLAYS, INCLUDING POPPING OF BALLOONS

New York Post

 

UK university adds 220 trigger warnings to Shakespeare plays — including ‘popping of balloons’

By Zoe Hussain

Published Feb. 7, 2025, 11:01 a.m. ET

 

Much ado about nothing.

 

A UK university has bizarrely issued more than 200 trigger warnings on classic works by William Shakespeare — even flagging harmless things such as storms, extreme weather and “popping of balloons.”

 

The University of the West of England issued the warnings after a series of complaints from sensitive drama students, according to the Sun — cautioning over the Bard’s most famous works, including “Macbeth,” “Romeo and Juliet” and “the Tempest.”

 

It quickly sparked outrage, with author Toby Young, the leader of the UK’s Free Speech Union, saying: “If I was a University of the West of England drama student, I’d be furious about being treated like such a snowflake.”

 

The 220 warnings included versions of adaptations of Shakespeare’s works for the theater as well as mainstream TV, including national broadcaster the BBC.

 

“Macbeth” has content warnings for blood as well as “murder, suicide, violence, knives, and family trauma,” while the timeless love story “Romeo and Juliet” is flagged for references to “suicide, distress, and mourning.”

 

Students are warned that “the Winter’s Tale” has “accusations of adultery” and “references to wild animal attack.”

 

Most bizarrely, “the Tempest” was flagged for “extreme weather” and “storms” — and for a stage adaption including “the popping of balloons,” the report noted.

 

A spokesperson from the Bristol-based University blamed the move on students.

 

“Content warnings were previously requested by students with sensory processing issues and experiences of trauma,” the rep said.

 

The UWE’s trigger warnings are the latest move by universities in the United Kingdom to flag content in courses.

 

In October, The University of Nottingham placed warnings on Geoffrey Chaucer’s The Canterbury Tales over “expressions of Christian faith,” the Telegraph reported.

 

In November, biology students at the University of Reading were warned of potentially upsetting depictions of the human body, the outlet also reported.

MAN POSTS VIDEO OF HOTEL ROOM FEATURING FULLY-FUNCTIONING BOEING 737 IN THE MIDDLE

New York Post

 

I was shocked to see a Boeing 737 plane in my hotel room — even the cockpit was fully operational

By Brooke Steinberg

Published Feb. 6, 2025, 10:30 a.m. ET

 

There’s nothing grounded about this aviation-themed hotel room.

 

A man went viral after showing off his hotel that had a giant airplane in the middle of it.

 

Ryan Guy felt like a “giant kid with a big toy” when he entered his hotel room to find a “fully functioning” plane next to the bed.

 

“It was so funny waking up, looking over and saying: “There’s a plane in my hotel room,” the 25-year-old personal trainer from Northern Ireland told What’s The Jam.

 

Guy posted a video to TikTok, which has garnered 24.5 million views, revealing the Boeing 737 during a “hotel room tour.”

 

The plane was complete with seats, lights that turn on and a full cockpit with buttons and controls that guests can “fiddle with.”

 

His stay at the Corendon New West hotel in Amsterdam, part of the Marriott group, was gifted to him by a client of his — and while it certainly looked luxurious from the outside, nothing could’ve prepared him for what he would find on the inside.

 

“I didn’t expect there to be a plane. In fact, I had no idea what I was in for, as I wasn’t told anything before I arrived – so it was crazy to see [it],” Guy shared. “I was completely blown away. My reaction was genuine, I was like what the f–k.”

 

After showing the standard hotel items — such as the wardrobe, bed, TV and chairs — in his hotel room tour, he panned over to the City of Amsterdam jet that takes up a majority of the room and said, “Oh look, there’s just a plane.”

 

“It took me a while to get used to it, but after looking around it and seeing that it was like, I was able to appreciate how cool it really was to have a plane in my hotel room,” he said. “I felt like a giant kid with a big toy.”

 

People in the comments couldn’t believe what they were seeing.

 

“This takes roleplay to a whole new level,” one person said.

 

“Sir, that’s a Boeing, it was never fully functioning,” another quipped.

 

“can’t park there mate,” someone added.

 

“This is my worst nightmare, it gives me the creeps,” one person shared.

 

Booking.com even chimed in, saying, “No commute to the airport.”

 

The plane room in the hotel appears to be the only “unique” one available, starting at about $310 for two people for one night.

 

Guy was impressed with the hotel and said he would “100% stay here again” — just for the plane.

 

“The room overall was amazing – it was like a penthouse and was numbered 737, like the Boeing aircraft, so that was cool,” he shared.

 

“It also had some cool gadgets, like in the bathroom, it had a red light that would shine heat on your back while brushing your teeth.”

 

However, Guy tried to do some research on the plane and couldn’t find any information, leading him to believe it was an old used one.

 

“Searching around it was class, as it’s not every day you get to sit on a flight deck and fiddle with all the buttons with no repercussions,” he said. “You could access everything and when turning the lights on, the voice of a captain welcomes you.”

 

“It all felt really authentic – if anyone loves aviation, they’d be in heaven,” he added. “Sleeping next to it was grand, I thought it might be weird, but it didn’t phase me. This was a crazy and great experience.”

TAYLOR SWIFT BOOED AT SUPER BOWL 2025

Entertainment Weekly

 

Taylor Swift booed at Super Bowl 2025 — watch her reaction

The multi-Grammy winner laughed off the experience in video captured of the moment.

By Nick Romano  Published on February 9, 2025 08:54PM EST

 

The attendees filling up the stadium during the Super Bowl this Sunday did not react kindly to seeing Taylor Swift on the jumbotron.

 

Sports fans booed the multi-Grammy-winning artist when she appeared on the big screen during the big game. While seated next to rapper Ice Spice and friend Ashley Avignone, Swift visibly didn't realize what was happening until she heard the crowd's reaction. She can be seen in video captured of the moment making a face and appearing to mouth the words, "Wait, what is going on?"

 

The official NFL social media accounts shared video of Swift's jumbotron appearance, but they removed the audio. Other non-official video posted online from bystanders revealed the full moment. Fortunately, for her, she seemed to laugh off the situation.

 

From the first time the Kansas City Chiefs, which includes Swift's boyfriend Travis Kelce as tight end, ran out onto the field at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, it was clear the particular ticket holders on site largely weren't rooting for them. It appears Swift experienced the brunt of that by association.

 

Swift supporter and tennis star Serena Williams, who later appeared in Kendrick Lamar's halftime show, voiced her support for the Midnights superstar. "I love you @taylorswift13 dont listen to those booo!!" Williams posted on X.

 

Swift always gets attention when she appears at sporting events to support Kelce, though even those have turned into polarizing events. Some criticized the overnight cultural obsession with her football cameos, while her fans appear to have gotten in on the football fun because of it.

 

Swift wasn't the only celebrity to appear at the Super Bowl this year. Jon Hamm officially welcomed the Chiefs onto the field as a celebrity announcer, while Bradley Cooper did the same for the opposing team, the Philadelphia Eagles. Others spotted include Top Gun: Maverick star Miles Teller, Saturday Night Live alum Pete Davidson, Kevin Costner, Paul Rudd, Jay Z, Adam Sandler, Paul McCartney, and President Donald Trump.

DOMINO'S LAUNCHING PEPPERONI-INSPIRED PERFUME FOR VALENTINE'S DAY

New York Post

 

Domino’s launching pepperoni-inspired perfume for Valentine’s Day: ‘What could be more attractive?’

By SWNS

Published Feb. 10, 2025, 10:05 a.m. ET

 

Domino’s has launched a pepperoni-inspired perfume to entice pizza-lovers this Valentine’s Day.

 

The limited-edition eau de toilette is a nod to its Pepperoni Passion pizza and is said to have irresistible notes of spice, pepper and a woody, warm base.

 

To mark the launch of Eau de Passion, Domino’s launched steamy content featuring Married at First Sight UK star Luke Debono on a quest to find passion, with Luke being shown spraying his chiselled physique with the bespoke pizza-shaped bottle.

 

The former bodybuilder, known for his sculpted body and memorable one-liners during his time on MAFS, certainly put his bod to good use for the camera.

 

Those looking for love can enter a competition to get their hands on the 30ml bottle by heading to their website between February 10-17.

 

The perfume is the first scent launched by the pizza company, which has previously created a heat suit for its drivers to keep them warm in the winter months, and a jetpack suit to help deliver pizzas to hungry festivalgoers in Glastonbury.

 

It comes as Domino’s revealed it typically sees a 50 percent increase of its Pepperoni Passion pizza each year on Valentine’s Day, based on a five-year average of day-on-day increases.

 

The pizza producers are also expecting to make over one million pizzas for lovers on February 14 this year.

 

Luke Debono said: “I’ve learnt a lot about romance over the past year, and this is the perfect gift for passionate pizza loving couples looking to spice things up this Valentine’s Day.

 

“What could be more attractive to a partner than a smoky, spicy scent that sparks passion?”


AH: I don't know about this product, though granted, people do like the smell of pizza.

CANADIAN CLEANING PRODUCTS

Here is a list of a huge variety of cleaning and other products manufactured by Canadian companies in Canada for Canadians.


Most of these I had never heard of.


Good to see so many eco-friendly and natural brands on the list. 

CANADIAN CEREALS

Though I don't eat cereal myself or even oatmeal that much, here is a list of Canadian cereal brands.


Incidentally, the above was the only article I could find and I would have gladly linked to another one instead because the above piece is not accessible for the blind. All the information, if there actually is any under each brand name, appears in graphic form. 

CANADIAN COFFEE BRANDS

With all the talk about tariffs and just being Canadian in general lately, I thought I would write a series of posts about Canadian products one doesn't normally think about. You see, there are those brands and products people know are Canadian, such as many different brands of alcoholic beverages and Red Rose tea among other things, but there are others we don't realize are Canadian and there are whole product lines I've never heard homegrown emphasis put on.


To that end, I had never thought of Canada having its own brands of coffee, but here is an article listing lots. 


It's from last summer, so there is the possibility it may be slightly out of date. 

A COUPLE HUMOUROUS ANECDOTES

A couple years ago I was at a bar I had begun to frequent. The female bartender who served me that night and who'd served me before didn't know I had light perception and could thus see where the other side of the bar was by its shadow. When I had finished my drink, I took advantage of her lack of knowledge of this fact and pushed my glass as close to the opposite edge of the bar as was safe to do. She then said, "Alex, your glass is right on the edge of the bar. Don't push it any further."


The next evening I was at a fundraiser that involved square dancing, in which I eagerly participated. My partner was the wife of someone I knew, who didn't get on the floor because his back was bothering him. I'm not all that familiar with square dancing, so when my partner told me to pick her up, meaning take hold of her as I quickly found out too late, I instead tried to actually lift her in the air. 

WHAT KILLED ALL OF CANADA'S CAR BRANDS?

This video is chock a block full of interesting information.


It's cool how many makes of cars Canada manufactured at one time and that we still actually manufacture some vehicles to call our own, albeit they're ultraluxury cars instead of everyday models you'd see on the road. 


We should start producing the latter type again. 

CHURCH IS NOT ABOUT FEELING BETTER ABOUT YOURSELF

This corrects a mistaken belief so many people still have today.


Churches that have as their main mission to make people feel good when they come out Sunday at noon don't end up having much of an impact. Lots of people say they want a church like this, and some people follow through and go to feel-good churches, though not nearly the number who said it was what they wanted. 


See the first chapter of Lamentations

FOOD NOTES: SUPER BOWL FEASTING AND MORE

Quality Street candies used to come in big tins. Then they came in small tins. Now they come in small packages in small boxes.


Ate smoky bacon chips last night and didn't mind them when, normally, my main chip flavours are regular, salt and vinegar, and sour cream and onion.


    Nerd gummies: sounds appetizing. 

MEDIA-RELATED STUFF: SUPER BOWL AND CBC

The local mid-day show on CBC Radio One in Quebec is called "Radio Noon", which is what the Ontario mid-day show used to be called.


Glad that on Wednesdays, "Ontario Today" is doing a two-hour show throughout the provincial election. Reminds me of the old days when the program was always two hours in length.


I like the Tim Horton's "Football Song" commercial. Gently satirical. 

Saturday, February 8, 2025

NATURE NOTES: SPACE AND YOUR OWN BACKYARD

Anyone noticed the winter birds acting strange this year?


The wind rustling through leaves on a winter's night is still a wonderful sound.


Two canyons bigger than the Grand Canyon have been discovered on the moon. The heavens declare God's glory and the firmament shows His handiwork. 

PET STORIES: A SNEAKY DOG AND A NOT-AT-ALL SNEAKY KITTEN

My aunt and uncle were sitting a dog. It was only allowed to walk on tile floors, such as my relatives had in their kitchen, but not on wooden floors, such as they had in the living room. One night while my aunt and uncle were watching TV, they noticed the dog gradually inching from where it had been lying on the kitchen floor into the living room.


This same dog was also forbidden to eat chips. Once, they left a bag of chips out and briefly had to leave the room. When my aunt and uncle re-entered, they noticed some of the chips were gone. They then heard the dog, who had ambled down the hallway away from them, eating his ill-gotten gains.


Last Saturday, as I was about to leave Mom's house after having eaten dinner there, her kitten stood between my foot and the door, stock-still, as if to say, "If you're heading out of here, so am I." 

MEDIA-RELATED STUFF: PRIVATE MEDIA MATTERS

The Wolf Peterborough's sure been playing Metric's "Combat Baby" a fair amount lately.

 

Find it at least a bit humourous that the guy who voices the ads for Sub-way also narrates a PSA concerning talking to your kids about pot.


John Irwin, the voice of He-Man, has died. He inspired a generation of boys to wreak havoc in living rooms, TV rooms, rec rooms, and anywhere else young males had televisions.


Cool Frank Morano had a guest on talking about Arthur Conan Doyle's non-Holmesian works Thursday night.

FOOD NOTES: HERE AND AROUND THE WORLD

Had tomatoes with salt and pepper the last two nights for supper. A summer treat in the dead of winter.


Am hoping to someday try venison curry and venison vindaloo.


Really like the jasmine scent of Basmati rice. 

Friday, February 7, 2025

RADIO-RELATED STUFF: SOME CBC NOTES

The Brazilian woman who was on "Commotion" Tuesday morning deserves a slap.


Glad Radio One's schedule now features more repeats of music programs.


Why is the morning show promo that airs Thursday nights before the 7:00 news always screwed up? It's either for the wrong morning show or an outdated spot for the correct one. 

Wednesday, February 5, 2025

MADOC'S OPEN MIC THIS FRIDAY FEBRUARY 7 6:30 P.M. AT THE LEGION

Dear Friends:

Looking forward to seeing everybody this Friday!! :D

I know people have been practicing and getting ready to play and others are just keeping the date on their calendar to come out and have a good time.

There has been a lot of talk recently about the atmosphere at the Legion. Too Bright!! We've been hearing - has been the main one. So just want to let you know that we are working on it!! And you'll see some changes THIS week. (: Lower lights. Curtains on the walls around the stage - temporarily covering the dart boards. So that NO musician needs to be nervous about being a target! :D Improved stage lighting. And other changes are in the works!!

We are happy to have Jerry Whyte bringing his sound equipment and helping us all to sound our best. And I wonder what the February Mocktail of the month will be?? Guess we'll find out Friday night - but sure that Tracey is working on it. (:

So come on out for Live Local Music - and the company of fellow musicians and a friendly audience.

See you Friday!!

Elizabeth and Robert