February 9, 2026

Thanks and hugs for my hearts -- really nice. Now, if someone could transplant a

real one into the heartless bastage in the WH....

February 4, 2026

Am totally discouraged. Got the thrill of my life when I received an I-phone 17 this

Christmas. But am struggling to use it. Even ordered a tutorial book.

It's my first I-phone -- had only flip phones before. People keep messaging me, but it's only words. No expression, no feeling behind the words. It's difficult to respond in a way I would want. Struggle to capitalize words and place proper punctuation.

So I'm missing phone calls where I actually spoke to real people and heard how they felt. Not just words.

What's wrong with me? It feels so empty and it's making me dislike the nice gift I got from people dear to me.

February 4, 2026

Homes needed for Border Collies in S Ga./N Fla. Thursday morning deadline

for applications... I'm not affiliated with their org., but thought I'd pass this along.

Our humane society has taken in 17 beautiful Border Collies in need of new homes. These dogs came to us after their caretaker (an AKC-registered breeder) realized he could no longer provide the level of care they deserved. With so many dogs, it became clear they would benefit from individual attention and loving homes.

They are different ages, from 7 months to 8 years, and simply gorgeous. Sadly, they are all under socialized. They will need families who understand the breed and will give them time to acclimate. Although used to living outdoors, they will do fine as indoor dogs. In fact, indoors is preferable for these guys, particularly in the summer months.

Border collies are an exceptionally smart breed, and generally quite easy to train. Several are heartworm positive, but will be treated here by our amazing medical team.

Email reception@hsscg.org for questions.

APPLICATION REQUIRED: https://hsscg.org/adoption-application/
Accepting applications through Thursday morning.

https://www.facebook.com/HSSCG/posts/pfbid0GXiG97ckdXgngwMioAFniKnVSek224cuqRpgDZq2n57t6yhDWyWyJrrxhPpwDqYJl?rdid=jWcDoDKM07uzZsdA#

January 25, 2026

Yes, It's Fascism

The Atlantic - By Jonathan Rauch

Until recently, I thought it a term best avoided. But now, the resemblances are too many and too strong to deny.

snip

Glorification of violence. Every state uses violence to enforce its laws, but liberal states use it reluctantly, whereas fascism embraces and flaunts it. Trump thus praises a violent mob; endorses torture; muses fondly about punching, body-slamming, and shooting protesters and journalists; and reportedly suggests shooting protesters and migrants. His recruitment ads for ICE glamorize military-style raids of homes and neighborhoods; his propaganda takes childish delight in the killing of civilians; and we have all seen videos of agents dragging people out of cars and homes—partly because the government films them. Like the demolition of civic decency, the valorization of violence is not incidental to fascism; it is part and parcel.

Also characteristic of fascism is what George Orwell called “bully-worship”: the principle that, as Thucydides famously put it, “the strong do what they can and the weak suffer what they must.” This view came across in Trump’s notorious Oval Office meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, in which Trump showed open contempt for what he regarded as Ukraine’s weakness; it came across explicitly, and chillingly, when Stephen Miller, the president’s most powerful aide, told CNN’s Jack Tapper: “We live in a world, in the real world, that is governed by strength, that is governed by force, that is governed by power. These are the iron laws of the world that have existed since the beginning of time.”

snip

Police-state tactics. Trump has turned ICE into a sprawling paramilitary that roves the country at will, searches and detains noncitizens and citizens without warrants, uses force ostentatiously, operates behind masks, receives skimpy training, lies about its activities, and has been told that it enjoys “absolute immunity.” He more than doubled the agency’s size in 2025, and its budget is now larger than those of all other federal law-enforcement agencies combined, and larger than the entire military budgets of all but 15 countries. “This is going to affect every community, every city,” the Cato Institute scholar David Bier recently observed.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/opinion/yes-it-s-fascism/ar-AA1UWfO5

January 25, 2026

Wintry cold FYI: Is it too cold to walk your pup?

Generally speaking, no dog should be taken out for a walk if the weather drops below 16°F, as they cannot withstand these below-freezing temperatures. A good rule of thumb is that if it's uncomfortably cold for you as the owner, it's likely too cold for your dog.

Beyond that, more specific advice depends on the size of your dog and the density of its natural coat.

"Temperatures around 25°F and below are too cold for short-haired dogs, while long-coated dogs can handle slightly lower temperatures, down to 16°F," says clinical animal behaviorist, Rachel Rodgers....

A Siberian husky, Samoyed, or Newfoundland can withstand the cold better than a short-haired breed.

https://www.countryliving.com/life/kids-pets/a70113056/when-is-too-cold-to-walk-dog-winter-storm/

January 24, 2026

Person shot has died.

January 24, 2026

Bloomberg: Measles spreads to five more states

Measles is surging across the US with five new states reporting cases this week, including California, Minnesota and Washington.

Idaho and Kentucky are the other two states with new cases, according to new data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This follows reports of measles earlier this month in nine states: Arizona, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Utah and Virginia.

snip

Of the 416 cases reported in the US so far this year, 94% were related to existing outbreaks. Three cases came from international visitors. Last year, the US had 2,255 confirmed measles cases — a 34-year high and more than 600% higher than the previous year.

snip

The majority of new infections this year are among young, unvaccinated children. The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is 97% effective in preventing disease after two doses.

The disease had earned the status of "eradicated" in 2000.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/us-measles-cases-rise-to-416-spread-to-five-more-states/ar-AA1UPTYb

January 23, 2026

A London journalist views Trump's Davos trip and The Emperor's New Clothes

Opinion by Kat Brown, The Independent
Kat Brown is a journalist and author based in London.

Excerpts:

-- So then, here is Trump’s current draft of the Gaza “board of peace”, a rendition of the word more in keeping with George Orwell’s Ministry of Peace in 1984, which the Trump administration, with its Department of War, increasingly seems to be taking for an assembly manual.

-- Invitations went out to 60 countries, and 21 said yes. Presumably few could resist the option of forking over a billion dollars to ensure a permanent place in Trump’s own Goons Show.

-- The past decade of US populism has been like living in an extended rendition of the Emperor’s New Clothes. Trump’s administration, useless, feckless and mean with power, will only spout that their leader is magnificently clad.

-- As the story goes, it’s only an innocent child that can puncture the illusion by pointing out that the Emperor is naked. On Wednesday, that child was Minnesotan Liam Ramos, just five years old, still in his school backpack and blue bunny hat, being used by Trump’s ICE police as bait for his family before being sent to a detention facility in Texas, alone. The child in the story can’t stand up to the US. It’s time the grown-ups in the room recognised that they need to – and must.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/voices-can-anyone-else-spot-the-glaring-thing-wrong-with-this-photo/ar-AA1UNbNw

January 20, 2026

Word of caution when traveling: Hotels Getting Rid of Proper Bathroom Doors

We might do well to check this out before checking in....

Wall Street Journal

First they came for the closets. Then they took the bath tubs. Now, hotels are stripping away the only thing separating us from the animals: the bathroom door.

Guests are waving goodbye to the luxury of a fully-closable opaque barrier between the restroom and bedroom, checking in to find sliding barn doors, curtains, strategically placed walls and other replacements that aren’t as proficient in the art of noise and smell containment.

In some cases, they’re not even good at hiding the view.

“You couldn’t see the fine details, but you could see everything else,” said Denise Milano Sprung of the frosted bathroom door of the hotel room she shared with her husband at the Calgary Airport Marriott. “I’ve been married for 25 years, I love my husband, but I don’t want to see him use the restroom.”

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/hotels-are-getting-rid-of-proper-bathroom-doors-and-guests-are-revolting/ar-AA1UznDx

January 20, 2026

My chuckle of the day is Gavin Newsome in Davos speaking of T-rump: "He's a T-Rex...

he mates with you or he devours you."