manlypoodlekip

A big news day. First the economy. The DOW was over 15,000 for a bit and closed at a record high. The unemployment rate fell. Maybe it’s time to give retired teaches a big bonus but only if we agree to spend it within hours. This might help to get younger Americans back to work. We could only spend it where they are working or would be hired. You can now see why the President
has not hired me as an economic advisor. France is going into recession and the the Eurozone unemployment rate may reach 12.5%. Egypt’s birthrate is climbing. Egypt has a population of 86,000,000. It has a lot of land but a lot of sand. And tourists are staying away. I wish them well.
Read an article on GM crops in Scientific American. There are some super weeds. In my next movie retired teachers superheroes will battle the weeds to save the world. Iron Man gave us a middle aged superhero. It’s time for the oldies.

The good news is that we just keep on and you have babies, adopt animals, find new loves , new places to eat and great adventures around the world. Kip and I both agree that the positive greatly out weights the negative. The solar powered airplane has taken off from near San Francisco. One negative note on solar power several workers on a solar panel project have come down with Valley Fever or something like that. I used to think that just effected those who disturbed the final resting places of mummies. On that note I close and wish you great weekend.

There is a giant storm on Saturn and it’s eye is 12 times as big as the UK. The winds are over 330 miles per hour . That is fast but I read that someone was trying to make a car that would go 1000 MPH. What a fast and furious way to get to work if it would drive itself. Oh just say the movie, Mud. I don’t give stars in my reviews.But I felt that it was DURN GOOD! And speaking of storms just read that a number of people were killed in flash floods in Saudi Arabia. All the papers ran a story of cannibalism in Jamestown in the terrible winter of 1609-10. Those were some really tough times. And one of my big crisis is not finding a mate for my socks.

Good news for feral hog lovers. It seems that wild hogs are now present in 47 states and are causing significant damage to crops and the environment. Rules about messing with these wild porkers-don’t. They are big, aggressive and meaner than a teacher in the morning who hasn’t had their 7-11 coffee. But if you love to hunt them it is good news. Also just read in a study that women liked men with a heavy stubble. Apparently, the study says, women feel they would make better fathers. A light stubble did not have the same effect. No study of the appeal of a white beard except children liked it when connected with reindeer, presents, and a ho! ho! ho! from the rooftop. Oh, almost forgot about the Tiger Sharks. Apparently they fight to the death before they are born. Only the baddest live to help the species be the more baddest. It would probably not be wise to be a passive unborn Tiger Shark. On that note I wish you a wonderful May Day.

Just read that Facebook was planning to introduce a Facebook smartphone. The technical department of Manlypoodlekip is exploring the idea of producing a nottoosmart MYphone. All content will be free but it will cost $100 a month to turn it off. Other news, a pair of hang glider pilots set a new record of over 470 miles landing not too far from my home town. Speaking of flying, read another article about how dragon flies are the fiercest predators. Apparently they lock on to a particular prey and are not distracted by other prey. They can fly upside down, backwards and really fast. What if someone tried to weaponize them. If you could make a really really small missile and train the insect what a weapon! But wait? What if they mutated and turned on their controllers. Would that be worse than killer robots? Or maybe this could be a movie about retired school teachers returning to fight against an Attack of Giant Killer Dragonflies.

On the world scene, the dispute with North Korea increases in intensity, Apparently Kim Jung un is going to use his Apple Computer if he launches an attack against Austin, Texas. Is it not time to name Dennis Rodman as an envoy to Pyongyang. Maybe we could get the most superior one to stop development of atomic weapons, if we offer to build a Disneyland with a giant-world’s tallest structure, a statue of Mr, Kim.
, plus an NBA team for North Korea. Just a thought. Finally some law school graduates are thinking about suing the schools because they say they were misled about employment potential. Luckily I got out of college at a time the selective service was still working. I had a sure job waiting at some military training facility. And I didn’t owe over $100,000.I hope everybody gets a good job that they really like and they don’t ever get drafted.

Since I shoot baskets in my backyard am I an expert? That is like asking if a  Congressperson knows how to solve all  the nation’s problems. Anyway, would it not really be exciting to see Harvard win? I like UCLA but it has had its time. This was Harvard’s first tournament win. And this on time of Jeremy Lin’s Volvo commercial. Which team will win the NBA? I don’t know but my favorite team is San Antonio. Maybe it is because I spent 3 months there in the summer of 62. Saw the Alamo and was disappointed because I expected to see a big mission with outside walls and lots of grass. It is sort of downtown. Enough about sports. Just read that for a working mother, Japan is the worst place to live. 70% of women quit with their first child. Japan’s birthrate is 1.37. Replacement rate is 2.1. Japan could loose 1/3 of its population in 50 years. But there is good news. Ultra high definition TV is here. Samsung has an 85 inch set for only $39,999. It sounds so exciting I’m tempted to buy with one click.

Some hopeful news in the world. Israel has apologized to Turkey for the attack on a flotilla sailing to Gaza in 2010. And the Kurdish leader in Turkey has called for a cease fire in a long running conflict. Maybe the leaders could come together to watch March Madness on their new Ultra HD sets. Bad news for those that wanted LA to be one of the world cities with the worst air quality. Apparently Chinese diesel fuel has 23 times more sulfur in its emissions than does US diesel. And they are adding more cars and trucks than we are. Just a word of caution. Before you use on of those defibrillators that are out there, know that since 2005 45,000 have not functioned correctly. Best advise, don’t have a heart attack! Finally good news for older TV fans. Bob Newhart will appear in a episode of The Big Bang Theory. They are trying to reach out to we seniors. Remember to eat a lot of green, nuts and olive oil. Just put them together in a bowl and down a greasy handful.

Could this be the basis of a four part movie that combines the classics and so called” God Particle”? Almost a sure fire hit. In the same vein Voyage has just left the Solar System. Curiosity is going to be restarted soon. It shut down because of a computer malfunction. As a teacher my m sometimes went blank as a precaution against senioritis. There was another article about how senioritis was getting worse. That seems impossible. Maybe its all tied to the Higgs boson. I wonderful if that had anything to do with the problem of the Lululemon yoga pants. You won’t see me out in those babies.

Will Russia bail out Cyprus? Remember Cyprus is divided into a Turkish part and a Greek part. Anyway though it’s a small country it’s a dig del as far as the stability of the Eurozone. We know that the first marathon was in Greece. And congratulations to the runners in the LA Marathon. Who was the first marathoner? In a recent dig near Athens it was discovered that a man still living was the first runner. I am not at liberty to divulge his identity but will give you a hint. He was a AP US History and AP World History teacher and leadership leader.

Finally another idea for another movie. There is a plot against America from terrorists. In order to obtain the information enhanced methods were used. Was it water boarding? No much worse! Schmitt Sitting on hot asphalt on a summer day in the MIdEast was used. Will this make the movie too horrible for the intended male preteen audience?

Can good eyesight be a bad thing? Just read that the neanderthals had a bigger eye socket and therefore had bigger eyes and better vision. That sounds good but the theory is that it took more of their brain to process the enhanced visual input. That left less of the brain to develop higher reasoning and social interaction or something like that. So to those who saw less well went the world and the internet and the social media. Also just learned that roosters seem to have an internal clock and even if kept in constant light will crow at daybreak. I feel better knowing this and I’m not sure they will ever develop the ability to think critically.

I just read that Karl Rove and Sarah Palin are not getting along too well. I missed the CPAC and again Saturday Night Live. But did learn that learning Hebrew has become popular in Gaza. Iran has just launched a new destroyer that was built in that country. Also read that a group of men in Iran captured a pick pocket and actually took a vote on his punishment. In his defense one of the citizens quoted Tolstoy. That apparently won the day as he was let go by a vote of 10 to 5. Am now trying to think of a quote from Tolstoy.

What about a movie about old retired teachers leaving an old retired teacher’s home in Florida to help a struggling school. The scores are low on standardized tests and the students are zombies. Picture the teachers with cowboy hats and the long coats and boots, squinting into the sun as they start to do battle with low scores and the flesh eating living dead. Could it end with a battle against the zombie students and their allies the vampires and werewolves  or on a sweeter note as the zombies win the National Academic Decathlon.

Got back home with Manly Poodle Kip before the rain. As I walked in the door I passed the fica plant that has the humming bird nest. I have heard that they build the nests from spider webs. That’s amazing but it may upset the spiders. I think the bird must have abandoned the nest. But what if you could build a drone the size of a humming bird? Should it be used in class rooms? Would it be morally ok to zap a student who was sleeping? Did Rand Paul mention this in his filibuster? I wonder if that 13 hours is available on a DVD from Amazon? There is some good news. Unemployment is down, consumer spending is up, and they want Teach America students to be certified to teach English learners. Many of the teachers at LACES became CTEL trained. What a life changing experience. I passed the test but don’t remember all the words that will change lives.

I read that they are going to place Hugo Chavez’s body in a glass coffin like Stalin and Lenin used to be. Don’t think I would like that for me nor is it likely to be purposed. Just read that they found the bones of a large early camel in Canada and they have also discovered the bones of a wooly rhino that lived in very cold conditions. Speaking of the temperature I think that I read that last year

Glad tidings exist among the distressing reports of new shootings, North Korean nuclear tests, and the fact that billions of years from now our universe may simply be replace by a new one . It has something to do with the concept known as vacuum instability. But probably none of us will be here in billions of years. What are these rays of hope. Well, first for all you giant armadillo lovers a baby was born in a Brazilian zoo. That is great news as they are very rare and seldom seen in the wild. And in the realm of wild life a rare Sumatran tiger was born in a US zoo. Maybe that was cg species that starred in the Life of Pi. Once again I have not been invited to the Oscars so one again I don’t have to worry about what to wear on the red carpet. What a relief.

To all of you that are in school or working, thank you. Retirement leaves a void once filled by getting up before the sun came up, listening to NPR on the long drive to LACES and then responding to the bells. One thing I really don’t miss is finding four people ahead of me in the bathroom with class about start. And it is nice to get paid for not working. Perhaps I should volunteer for a worthy cause like clearing land mines or be a docent at the two-headed snake museum. There is a lot time to look at my iPhone 5 waiting for something important to happen. So far nothing of note. Am studying Spanish online and progressing very slowly. I need one of those universal translators from Star Trek.

Maybe I will write the next great American novel about an old man who fights with a great white whale while floating down the Mississippi during the French Revolution. Look for it on Amazon. If I get rich I will share it with all of you and give part of it to the scientific study of cloning a unicorn. My you have a wonderful and enriching day.

Several news sources had articles about the killing abilities of the house cat. It seems that they slay billions of birds and even more billions of little mammals. And usually not the dreaded rat. Little bunnies and chipmunks and other furry little critters are their prey. Now I would not like to be attacked by a herd of rabid rabbits or crazed chipmunks. But in a world of fewer little mammals might their tastes change? I would not like to be the first humans brought down by a prowling pack of predatory Persians. That being said, my late semi-outdoor cat, Jellybean, was perhaps the worst hunter in feline history. She once brought a live mocking bird into our house. I managed to get the bird outside and it was really mad. Usually she brought a sock, a glove, and often times a leaf.

Speaking of billions, another article stated that there may be four and one-half billion earth like planets in our very own Milky Way. What if each of these is a parallel world and that all of our what if’s are lived out. What if one you dumped you didn’t and they were beautiful or handsome? Or maybe they were serial killers or vampire slayers. What if a school had me grading a zillion papers and doing all kinds of great things and Mr Rutschman just stood in front of a class with his hat on backwards saying whatever popped into his stream of consciousness? There would be no end of weirdness. And on the subject of weirdness, moles are blind but they smell in stereo. They use this ability to find food. Can you see yourself in a giant mole tunnel and hear the creature coming toward you tracking with that stereo snout?