Mishmash Musings

I don’t know what’s going on, but for the past few days I’ve been having some problems with my Google Toolbar in Firefox. Upon startup it sometimes isn’t there. When I go to the Add-Ons tab, it looks like I’ve just downloaded the toolbar, as I get options like “Install” or “Cancel”. But nothing happens when I try to install and restart Firefox.

The crazy thing is, when I hit “Cancel”, things actually start happening. First, Firefox crashes and sends its little error report to Mozilla. Then, when I restart after the crash and after trying to cancel the Google Toolbar install, the toolbar magically appears, with all my regular settings intact.

WTF??? I have no idea what the hell is going on here, but it’s highly annoying!

It’s become something of a tradition in recent years for national chains to offer consumers a few freebies on April 15th to mark the income tax filing deadline. Did you take advantage of any of these offers yet? If not, there’s still a bit of time left.

• Free coffee at Starbucks if you bring in your own mug (I did this)
• Free mini cupcakes at Cinnabon from 6pm-8pm
• BOGO Meals at Boston Market (coupon required)
• Free dinner for child 12 or under w/purchase of adult meal at IHOP (4pm-10pm for the rest of the month)

Enjoy!!!

I was talking to an old friend the other day and we started wondering about some people we used to work with about 10 years ago. We had a blast at that company, but we didn’t keep in touch with anyone. Well, we decided to start looking a few of them up on Facebook, and sure enough, we spotted a couple of profiles. I even contacted one of the guys we were talking about (Ted).

Ted seems to be doing very well these days. We friended each other, so I got to look through his pics and see what he’s been up to. One photo album shows all the countries he has traveled to in the past few years (there are a ton!) and another shows him in a Dale Earnhardt Jr jacket posing with Dale Jr himself at the Daytona 500! Wow, Ted must have some damn good connections to get up close and personal with the drivers like that!

Anyway, it’s fun to catch up with people like this, but what happens next? That’s the problem with Facebook. It’s like you can’t just say hi, but have to become involved long-term again.

I haven’t done one of these in ages, so I thought I’d give a quick list of current TV shows that are my favorites (in no particular order):

1. Burn Notice
2. Modern Family
3. Castle
4. 30 Rock
5. House

Are any of you planning to try the new KFC Double Down when it officially rolls out tomorrow? This is a bunless sandwich that consists of two boneless Original Recipe filets, two bacon strips, two slices of Monterey Jack and pepperjack cheese, and the “Colonel’s Sauce”, whatever that is. The sandwich is a relatively manageable 540 calories, but packs in a whopping 32g of fat and more than 1300mg of sodium.

I’d be willing to try one, but I doubt that I could eat more than a few in my lifetime without worrying about clogging my arteries. Seriously, I’d probably have to run out and buy a no exam life insurance policy after consuming one of these things just to feel safe. Yikes!

There are a few news blurbs that I wanted to comment on today, so here goes!

– Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens will retire during President Obama’s term. Well, it’s about time! The guy is nearly 90 years old, which makes me wonder how sharp/effective he is on the bench. I do NOT like the idea of lifetime appointments on the Supreme Court. I think there should be a mandatory retirement age of like 75 or something. Please don’t tell me some 90-year-old geezer is ruling on cases that affect the entire country!!!

– Tiger Woods shot a 2-under 70 today for a 2-day total of -6 at the Masters. He currently sits in a tie for third, two strokes behind leader Lee Westwood who still has most of the back 9 to play. Wouldn’t it be amazing if Tiger actually pulled this off? I have a personal distaste for him now, but I would love to see the reaction if he won amidst all the controversy!

– I just read a green study that shows shopping online is better for the environment than shopping at traditional retail stores. Cool! This is what I do anyway, so now I can say I’m helping protect the Earth!

Remember Elian Gonzalez, the Cuban refugee who was found floating on an inner tube off the coast of Florida 10 years ago? The Clinton administration decided to send him back to Cuba to be with his father, even though his mother lost her life trying to get the boy to relatives in the United States. Armed government agents staged a midnight raid to seize Gonzalez and send him back.

Anyway, here it is 10 years later and the Cuban government has released photos of a now 16-year-old Gonzalez. He is seen in a militaristic school uniform, waving a Cuban flag.

I might not agree with all of President Obama’s politics, but one thing’s for sure: I love the way he pledges allegiance to the White Sox whenever he has a chance! Today he threw out the first pitch at the Nationals game to kick off the 2010 MLB season. He donned the home team’s jacket, as is tradition, but right before he tossed the ball, he pulled out his favorite White Sox hat from a pocket and put that on. Love it!!!