I was at the hospital today, and I have thoughts.

I love how Americans are all brainwashed with stupid shit like "sOcIALiZEd mEdiCiNE is THE WOrSt becaUSE You haVE tO wAIT sO long FOR aN APpoinTMeNt!"

And then the doctor tells me "You need to have this done so we can have an idea what we're dealing with. Here's the number you call for an appointment." And then... "The soonest appointment is the second week of October." So I'm like "Um... pretty sure my doctor is needing this to see what's wrong with me, is there any way to get me in sooner?" And the answer is... "Not unless you're admitted to the ER. October is only available because there's a cancelation. Usually this would be into December."

It's sad that most 'Muricans are such stupid fucks that they believe politicians when they talk shit about Medicare for All, because most of them are too fucking ignorant to understand that the politicians are bought and paid for by the insurance companies to say that.

And all I can do is think "Well... that's how our political system works, and people don't seem to give a shit about fixing it, so... here we are." And it's even true here in Washington State where our politicians are as fucking deep in payola as any of them.

But in a Blue way!

Jesus. I don't know what it's going to take before Americans get sick of paying the highest possible price for our shitty fucking health care, but this is who we are, thanks to the powerful insurance lobby.

I may be melting from working too hard when it's too hot, but don't you fear... because an all new Bullet Sunday starts... now...

   
• LIFE-CHANGING NEWS! I WILL NEVER BE BUYING KETCHUP AGAIN! Tonight I wanted a burger for dinner. I had used the last of my ketchup, so I went to grab a fresh bottle... and... I DON'T HAVE ANY! CANCEL MY AMERICAN CITIZENSHIP, BECAUSE HOW DO YOU RUN OUT OF KETCHUP IN THE USA? But I had tomato paste, so I Googled a recipe. There are many. All of them have vinegar and sugar, then spices. And so I decided to just roll my own and wing it on the spices until it tasted good. I just kept adding them... black pepper, garlic powder, oregano, onion powder, chili powder, mustard, celery powder, berbere, and a little cayenne. INCREDIBLE!

I COULD EAT THIS OUT OF THE BOWL! IT WAS SO GOOD ON MY BURGER THAT I AM COOKING FRIES SO I CAN SMOTHER THEM IN IT! I WILL NEVER BUY STORE KETCHUP EVER AGAIN! LOVE. LOVE LOVE LOVE. Guess running out of store-bought ketchup was a blessing in disguise.

   
• Exploding Kittens! Netflix has an animated series that takes its name from the Exploding Kittens card games which doesn't really follow the game. Instead it focuses on God and the Devil being banished to earth as... cats? They had Tom Ellis who played Lucifer for six seasons, so the fact that he's God now is clever casting...

It's pretty well done, over all. Some hilarious moments and pretty good stories. If you've got Netflix, it's worth checking out.

   
• Manny! So... The Hollywood Reporter has taken a quote completely out of context to use as a headline, and it's pretty bad. Especially given what Manny Jacinto actually had to say. My comment left on their Facebook follows...

"I understand that you have to create click-bait headlines so people will visit your site... but was it really necessary to pull this quote completely out of context so it makes him seem like a raving prima donna instead of being grateful to have the job and be a part of the movie? — 'There was this sense of where the film was going [on set], like I can see them focusing the camera more on these [other] guys and not taking so much time on our scenes. Fortunately, it still was a great experience — you get to see this huge machine at work, see how Tom Cruise works, and you get to be a small part of this huge franchise.'"

What a shitty fucking way to misrepresent what Manny was trying to say. He seems like a nice guy. I loved him in The Good Place and he's darn good in The Acolyte. But I guess you can't have an Asian guy making it in Hollywood. Gotta crush him by making him look bad to everybody and turn them against him. Just goes to show that there's an agenda in all "reporting"... even when it coes to entertainment "news."

   
• I CANNOT EVEN! Prague, one of the most beautiful cities on earth, is home to one of my favorite restaurants on the entire planet: Lehká Hlava (Clear Head). So to see the spreading of bullshit lies about Czech restaurants gaining traction out of ignorance is rage-inducing. Fortunately, Honest Guide is on the case...

It's like... come on. Can't people do the bare fucking minimum of looking into "injustices" before spreading idiotic crap like this? The answer is obviously no! because the truth isn't what's important any more. It's getting views and clicks.

   
• M3GAN! Okay... I tuned into this movie because it's got a 93% on Rotten Tomatoes, but wasn't expecting much. I thought it was going to be a Chucky rip-off. BUT NOPE! This movie is nuts! In the best way, of course. SO DISTURBING!

If you've got Peacock, it's streaming there for free and is well worth your time.

   
• And Now... a Reminder! "There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that 'my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.'" ― Isaac Asimov

And it's getting worse every fucking day.

   
• The Olds! And so the inevitable happened... President Biden pulled out of the race. As somebody who is not a fan, I shed zero tears. He's too old to be president, and it's ludicrous and cruel that he was ever being considered in the first place. Interesting to note... with Biden gone, that makes Trump the oldest person in the history of the United States to be on the ticket for president. Blergh. He's too fucking old too! He's only three years younger than Biden, for Christ's sake. And his mental abilities are decidedly worse, because he doesn't have Biden's stutter to keep distracting his brain while he's speaking. When are we going to stop with all these politicians who are too fucking old and out-of-touch to hold office?

   
And now I return you to our regular scheduled programming.

Another day, another data breach notice in the mail. These companies do not give a single fuck about safeguarding your data because the cost of the consequences of a data breach are cheaper than putting the protections in place. It's always "Oopses! Here's a year of credit monitoring" like that fixes the fact that your address, phone number, purchase history, and everything about you is now out on the internet. The fact that our politicians are paid to LOOK THE OTHER WAY while YOUR PRIVATE INFORMATION IS DISTRIBUTED is abhorrent. There should be consequences so serious for a data breach that companies start to give a fuck. But that won't happen so long as our "political representatives" are on their payroll.

Just when you think it can't get any hotter here this July, I drop in to prove you wrong... because an all new Bullet Sunday starts... now...

   
• I don't want two mommies! Tig Notaro's latest special (on Amazon Prime) is hilarious, as I knew it would be. If the end of this clip doesn't convince you that you need to see it, I don't know what will...

Stand-up is a highly specific talent to have. Tig makes it look so easy.

   
• NEWSFLASH! Oklahoma state superintendent announces all schools must incorporate the Bible and the Ten Commandments in curriculums. So... all schools in Oklahoma are now Christian schools. So much for that pesky "freedom of religion" thing we were so proud of back in the day.

   
• NEWSFLASH! New Drug Provides Total Protection From H.I.V. in Trial of Young African Women A miracle from science. Cue the anti-vax dipshits in 3... 2...

   
• Celine! Wow. This Celine Dion documentary on Prime Video is tough to watch. I mean seriously tough to watch. I feel so bad for her...

And yet... she has shitloads of money to help her get through her health challenges, and that's tempering my sympathy a bit. Because the entire time I'm thinking "What about the poor people going through this kind of thing who have no money for cutting-edge treatments, personal nurses and staff, and the ability to not work and still survive?" Regardless, there are moments where they show her performing or using her music... and it takes my breath away as it always has. I wish her the best of luck because the world is a better place with her music in it.

   
• Don't Drop the Baby! I'm telling you right now. If Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce break up, I will be more devastated than I've been for any breakup I've personally ever had. This is so great...

Travis talked about it in the season finale of the New Heights podcast...

   
• Miyazaki! There is no greater animator than Hayao Miyazaki. I am an impossibly massive fan, and have been since first visiting Japan in the mid 90's where I was exposed to his work (starting with 1988's My Neighbor Totoro). This video dives into something that seems simple on its surface, but is actually a rather complex take on a legend...

So... not really hating America, after all. I was very lucky to have attended one of Miyazaki's rare American appearances in the USA, and he was nothing but gracious and kind.

   
• Buh-Bye! After the price increase for ad-free HBO Max earlier this month (it's now $169.99 a year, whereas I was paying $99 a year then $129 or something like that) I dumped them because I am not watching any fucking ads. So instead of getting $129 a year out of me, now HBO will get $34 a year out of me because I'll just subscribe for one month ad-free every 6 months to watch the stuff I want to see. Which ain't a lot. And so... there goes $95 in revenue. And I have no regrets. The genie is out of the bottle. Watching without ads is the ONLY way to go. If my option is to watch fucking ads, I'd rather go without.

   
Back to pulling weeds in the heat.

Did I watch the debate? Oh fuck no. Why torture myself? I despise our choices and already know who I'm voting for, so it's senseless. Biden may be too old, too far into mental decline, and a politician I can't stand, but at least I'm confident he will listen to smart people when it comes to making decisions. Trump is also too old, also too far into mental decline, and also a politician I can't stand, but I have zero confidence he'll listen to anybody. Including the dumbass sycophants he surrounds himself with. I also have zero confidence that he won't continue to grift the country for personal gain as he always has... all while doing everything possible to fuck over poor people so that rich people get richer. And fuck over women and LGBTQ people so that his demented far-right Christian base can have even more power to fuck over women and LGBTQ people. This is a definite "lesser of two evils" situation that's not even close. Even if it seems cruel to even have Biden on the ballot. Because my God.

I'd ask why these two pathetic options are what we're stuck with... but I already know the answer. Republicans and Democrats have fired up the hate to such stratospheric levels that there's no need to find competent candidates. People don't vote based on who's competent... they vote against the party they've been conditioned to hate most.

And the entire country suffers for it.

One way or the other.

We are so fucked.

Last year I bought a power washer that was on sale because it seemed like a handy thing to have. Turns out that I could have saved the money because I can get the same "pressure" with a garden hose nozzle. There is a nice thing about the power washer, however. You can put cleaning solution or window cleaner or whatever in it to wash while you spray. That's a handy enough feature that I don't regret buying the thing. Though I do wish I. Would have gotten the electric power tank instead of the battery power wand. That would have been more powerful, I think.

I wish I could say that I'm talking about power washers because I power washed my house when I got home but, alas, it was because I fell down a power washer art rabbit hole...

If you search for power washer art on YouTube, you'll find all kinds of cool stuff.

AND THEN I fell down another rabbit hole of HOAs fining people for not pressure washing their driveway.

AND THEN I fell down another rabbit hole of HOA assholes.

AND THEN I got this in my feed...

Alternative facts. Jesus. Really hoping we don't get a repeat of this bullshit.

I had a really rough night and ended up watching a boatload of YouTube videos to take my mind off the stabbing pain that was shooting through me. Sure it meant I only got 3 hours and 42 minutes of sleep and was exhausted all day long, but it beats having to take painkillers that wreck havoc on my internals.

One of the standout videos I watched was Jenny Nicholson at her most hilarious. The longer this went on, the funnier it got. I think I have a hernia now...

   
BUT THAT'S NOT ALL! There was more Jenny madness to be had: "I guess I don't know that guy's nationality just by looking at him... so... maybe in his case it is okay to be doing this." In this video she's taking a look at this Canadian church which has become famous for their Easter plays. I WAS NOT AT ALL PREPARED!! As she runs through them, things just keep getting more unreal as the years go on. I cannot fathom how much time is spent on these productions. But it's a lot. TIME THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN SPENT WORSHIPPING THE LORD! GAH!

   
Another great thing I saw was the trailer for Moana 2, which looks gorgeous and hilarious...

   
I finally joined Nebula to watch Thomas Flight's exclusive videos and discovered Mary Spender. What a phenomenal talent. She's on YouTube too and worth a listen. She's got her original music there, but she also comments on music in general. This video on the song Dreams by Fleetwood Mac is so good. What a wild story...

   
And now it's today! I've always loved Antonio Banderas. Even when the film isn't great, he puts his all into his role and is always worth watching. What's so great is that the guy never stops working. The first thing I saw him in was Philadelphia. But the movie I first really remember him from was "Desperado." Then there was Mask of Zorro and The 13th Warrior and Once Upon a Time in Mexico which cemented him as a favorite. Right now I am watching a 2017 film called Security on Netflix. I liked it. Banderas has lost absolutely nothing. And then... BEN KINGSLEY?!?? It's kinda Die Hard in a mall, but in a good way. Plenty of action, some dark turns, and Banderas killing it...

Enjoyed it quite a lot. In a day when fascist assholes are wanting to close libraries, ban books, and keep kids from reading, it's nice to remember more literate times.

In other news...

As usual, neither the Left nor the Right is happy with my reaction to the Trump verdict, but I'm getting used to it. Because what I have to say is this... "Great! Now let's go after the rest of these corrupt politicians and purge the government in BOTH parties."

Overwhelming evidence. Guilty on all 34 counts. That's what his party wants representing them in government? But then I look at Democrats and their love of Nancy Pelosi and her corrupt insider-trading ass, which they excuse away because her husband made the actual trades, and it's like... yeah. She couldn't have possibly told him to sell their Google stock right before Google would be sued over antitrust violations. That totally tracks.

Americans need to wake the fuck up. The only reason that 90% of these politicians are in government "service" is so they can exploit their office for money and power. Period. Ban politicians from trading stocks or accepting money from PACs and lobbyists, make the penalty for corruption be death by firing squad, and watch how fast most of them abandon a job that once meant guaranteed money and power.

Corruption is built into our political system, and the ones who can stop it are the ones running it.

Which is why I pledge fealty to no politician or political party. I am sick of all of it.

I'm deep into home improvement projects, but don't despair... because an all new Bullet Sunday starts... now...

   
• Read a Book! Two excellent documentaries A Beatles doc on The Beach Boys (Disney+) which was very good, but had a horrible sound mix. The music is blasting... sometimes over the dialogue. And then there's the Reading Rainbow doc (Netflix) which is perfect...

Well worth your time. Especially if you're familiar with the program. I remember it would play in the lounge at college even though it was meant for kids. But it was not dumbed-down entertainment, so it was watchable for everybody.

   
• Sixty-Nine, Dude!! So there I was, ready to turn in for the night this past Tuesday when I saw a bright light flickering out my window. At first I thought it was just a plane because the light looked red. But it never moved, so I pulled out the StarWalk 2 app on my phone and found out it was a comet named 13P/Olbers which comes around every 69 years. It won't be here again until 2094, so I hope you saw it while you had a chance...

Sweet! Really makes me wish I had a telescope!

   
• Beautiful Cabin Crew Scarlett Johansson! When powerful people want something and you won't give it to them, then they just take it. Doesn't matter if that power comes from money... or people who are controlling a powerful force in our lives like A.I... what's yours is theirs. In the case of Scarlett Johansson, OpenAI. took her voice after she told them she didn't want to work with them. Hope with all your might that powerful people don't want something you have.

   
• I'm Good, Thanks! Sonos released the news that their new "Ace" headphones will release on June 5. And it's like they honestly think I would buy their shit? I couldn't use Dolby Atmos on my Sonos soundbar because it took years for them to fix the "pop of death" that plagued it. YEARS! Their interim solution was to "turn Atmos off" WHEN THAT'S THE ENTIRE REASON I BOUGHT IT! Between that and their shitty fucking app that makes using their gear a horrendous ordeal (I am filled with rage every time I have to scroll through a playlist because it keeps pausing to load), there's zero fucking chance I'd spend $450 on a pair of their fucking headphones. It's weird to think that Sonos was once the pinnacle of audio equipment with incredible features you just had to have (considering you could afford it), but now I honestly don't care if they flame out and shut down.

   
• Smell That Freedom! France has released a stamp that smells like baguettes! Nifty. BUT ALL 'MURICAN STAMPS SMELL LIKE FREEDOM! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-! U-S-A-!

Except I still want some of those baguette stamps. Who wouldn't?

   
• Enter The Sandman: Part Two! I have been anxiously awaiting to see who gets cast as the remaining Endless for the second season of The Sandman, and here they are...

Perfect. But I am still waiting for an adaptation of Death: The High Cost of Living. I don't understand why it's not been announced. It would be relatively cheap to produce. Just write a check for a fraction of the money you gave to Zack Snyder to crap the Rebel Moon movies out of his ass and call it good.

   
• Pigment! Wonderful look at a 300 year-old artisanal pastel shop in France...

I love stuff like this. In an age when computer-generated A.I. "art" is all the rage, it's nice to see the craftsmanship that goes into the tools of creating actual art.

   
• Corruption. the only REAL bipartisan issue! I saw this last week and it hasn't left my head. And yet we keep voting for this fucking bullshit instead of persecuting them all for treason...

Treason, which I'll remind you, is punishable by death in this country.

   
Until next time, buckaroo.

Kapgar left a comment on Monday's entry which reminded me of something that always puts my stomach in a knot: The Chicago Blackhawks sexual assault scandal.

Kyle Beach was on my radar when he came up to the practice squad in the Blackhawks because I saw that he had played in Spokane (which is across the basin from me in Washington State). He never made it to any NHL play, so I lost track of him fairly quickly, but I absolutely knew of him back then.

A decade later in 2021 he came forward as a victim of sexual assault at the hands of a coach during his time with the team. He was 20 years old at the time. When the news broke I was still a diehard Blackhawks fan, because the Kraken had only just started playing and I wasn't invested with the team yet.

I will never forget hearing Beach's interview about his assault at the hands of coach Bradley Aldrich. It was so incredibly painful to watch him break down as he talked about feeling so utterly alone and afraid as he had to endure ridicule by his teammates. Even worse, he was told by the organization that what happened was his fault, which means he got no support from the staff who essentially called him a liar.

The interview was heartbreaking, but incredibly important...

That hurt me to watch back then. A lot. In some ways it hurts more now, because the entire scandal irrevocably changed my relationship with my favorite hockey team.

Seeing how horrifically this was handled by the Blackhawks and Beach's teammates soured me on them instantly.

Indeed, it was directly responsible for me becoming a fan of the Seattle Kraken, where I could start anew with my love of hockey. That they are my local team just made it all the easier. I've never left the Blackhawks behind completely, but it's seriously tough to follow the team when Kyle Beach is still fresh in my mind. My Blackhawks jersey still hangs in my closet, where it's been ever since. I think the only way I'd wear Blackhawks gear again would be if I got a customized Beach jersey...

Because I'm just going to say it: Beach is a fucking hero for coming forward and advocating for change. Nobody deserves what he went through, and I wish every single man everywhere could see this so they understand that assault can happen to anybody, and our toxic masculinity culture means that nothing and nobody will save you. Instead you get dismissed, called a liar, and ridiculed. This isn't the way it should be, and things have got to change.

Lucky for all of us these assaults are finally being dragged kicking and screaming into the public eye. And we have heroes like Kyle Beach to thank for it. He says that he received a lot of support after speaking out. I sure hope that's true because he deserves nothing less.

Harrison Butker, a kicker for the Kansas City Chiefs, delivered a commencement speech at Benedictine College this past Saturday. He's a hardcore regressive Catholic. Benedictine College is a Catholic college. So it should shock absolutely nobody that Butker unleashed a grotesque missive that was steeped in everything from misogyny, antisemitism, and homophobic bigotry to COVID misinformation, toxic masculinity, and general hatred of anybody who dares to not share his "values." He also decided to take a jab Taylor Swift (who's regarded as nothing more than "a teammate's girlfriend"), for which I can only hope that her boyfriend kicks him in the fucking dick.

No, people shouldn't have been at all shocked. And yet shock people he did.

Do I think it was crass that this asshole would stand up in front of young women who have worked long and hard to graduate from college only to tell them that until they are wives and mothers their lives don't mean shit and their entire purpose is to be barefoot and pregnant? Of course I do. But what did everybody think that he was going to say? That's Christian female gender roles in a nutshell.

Do I think it was disgusting that he would take jabs at the LGBTQ community with his "deadly sin pride" bullshit and prop up toxic masculinity by telling men to fight against ideas and people he doesn't consider culturally "masculine" enough? Absolutely. Gotta be an alpha-male for Jesus!

And am I even remotely surprised that it's now being brought to light that Butker hooked up with a male cheerleader at Georgia Tech when he went there? Oh fuck no. That's the easiest thing to believe out of any of this. History has shown us again and again that the harder a homophobic bigot attacks the LGBTQ community, the more skeletons they have in their own rainbow-painted closet. They're always compensating for something...

UPDATE: And of course TikTok removes the video. Butker can drone on with his homophobic, misogynistic, antisemitic bullshit no problem... but anybody dare to retort to that and it's REMOVED FOR BULLYING TIME! Well, the internet is forever, so if your browser can support video embeds...

The minute Harrison Butker came for the gays, it was only a matter of time until we found out why. I'm just surprised it took this long. Usually you can clock the tea on an egg timer.

Oh well. Here's hoping that Harrison Butker gets the life he deserves.

Which of course includes Travis Kelce kicking him in the fucking dick.