Random Stuff

Landscapers came this morning to trim the Texas Sages.  Somewhere along the line they were shaped into balls, and they don't grow out of that shape very well.  So, now they are balls again.  At present they look horrid, the inner leaves are dead, you can see through them.  If they don't look better by this time next year, I'm having all of them dug up.  We also had two bougainvilleas removed.  There is one left, and now I am really wishing it was gone as well.  If it's not better this time next year, I'm having it dug up and and something else planted there.  It hides the down spout extender, so something is needed. 

The rosemary bush also got a hair cut.

I have random stuff today.

Once a month for the past 13 years, there have been near misses between planes and helicopters at Reagan Airport.  13 years.  Some of the near misses have been as close as 75 feet of separation.  One wonders why no one thought to change the landing procedures until now.  67 people had to die in the collision between the Black Hawk helicopter and the Bombardier regional jet before this happened.

Grok is the twitter AI.  This would be the AI that consistently identifies Elon as the biggest source of misinformation on twitter.  Anyway, this is what is has to say about recent mortality data.

Young adult mortality rates have indeed spiked since the COVID emergency. Data from 2021 shows a 40% increase in deaths among working-age Americans (18-64), a rate called a "200-year catastrophe" by actuaries. By 2023, 34% more 35-44-year-olds died than expected. Causes? COVID’s long-term effects on organs and immunity are likely culprits, but reduced healthcare access, delayed diagnoses, and societal neglect of public health measures also play a role. Official stats often under count COVID-related deaths, blaming other conditions instead.

These are pretty terrible numbers.  The epidemiologists on twitter have been talking about this a lot.

Canada is working on a new covid vaccine, it's a nasal spray, and is looking very effective because of its entry via the nose, which is where covid comes in, and direct route to the lungs, which is where covid starts its path of destruction.  We will probably never see that in the US.

Elon and 47 spent today hawking Teslas in front of the White House.  This is a big screaming violation of the Hatch Act, but no one seems to care.  Tesla stock is in the toilet, pretty sure today isn't going to help that.  47 has also been berating people for the Tesla boycott. 

If any of you are Canadian snowbirds, staying 6 months or more, this will affect you if you come back to the US for the winter.  You have to register, then you have to carry your proof of registration on your person the entire time you're here.  The article is here.

Other than this hodge podge of stuff, I have not too much to say.