Random Notes from a Crank

Here's some interesting factoids from the two most recent Harper's Indexes:

• Percentage by which women are more likely than men to be interrupted in Senate committee hearings: 10
• By which such interruptions are more likely when they are discussing women's issues: 15
• Percentage change since 2010 in the average cost of an electric vehicle battery: -89
• In the average price of an electric vehicle: +80
• Average salary U.S. college students expect to make in their first job after graduation: $103,880
• Average starting salary for a U.S. college graduate: $55,260
• Percentage by which Americans drink alcohol less often than the average person worldwide: 18
• By which they get drunk more often: 58
• Percentage of Democrat-voting college students who would not go on a date with a Trump voter: 71
• Of Trump-voting college students who would not go on a date with a Democrat: 31
• Portion of U.S. pools that will be closed at some point this summer due to a lifeguard shortages: 1/3

I know if I were single I would screen potential dates on whether they support Moscow Don or not. That issue shows one's character. And if someone supports that criminal clown, they probably have all kinds of other issues, like mental illness and STIs. 

As much as I'm happy that the recent bill that was passed will give all kinds of incentives for people to buy electric vehicles, I'm worried that it is going to make crooked car dealers jack up the prices of EVs. 

One of the survey questions for a recent YouGov survey was this one: "Would you support or oppose a ban on single-use plastic water bottles?" I'm solidly in the support category in response to that question. Plastic water bottles are a menace, and bottled water is stupid. What a monumental scam that is destroying the environment with its terrible plastic waste. 

Christian Pulisic needs the get the hell out of Chelsea. I'm sure Spurs or Leeds United would take him off Chelsea's hands.

Music Friday: "Downtown Girls"

I finally got around to the buying the new album by American Aquarium, but after I listened to it the first time, iTunes proceeded to play Dances for the Lonely because it was next in the album queue as I was doing work this morning. 

I was reminded of how much I like this song. 

Fumbling Toward Culinary Talent: Shrimp and Squash Rice Bowl

The person who has the office next to me gave me some zucchini and yellow crookneck squash the other day. She offered me some tomatoes and cucumbers, but I have plenty of those this summer from my own garden. 

I usually don't have luck making squash, but I tried something yesterday that worked. 

Now I don't remember any Chinese-inspired dishes that use zucchini or yellow squash, but I used some soy sauce and leftover rice to make it Chinese-like. 

Ingredients

• 1 small onion, chopped roughly
• 1 medium size zucchini, cut into thin half moons
• 1 yellow crookneck squash, cut into thin half moons
• 2-3 TBs of rosemary-infused olive oil
• Healthy smattering of Penzey's Mural of Flavor seasoning
• 2 handfuls of thawed and already cooked shrimp
• Salt and pepper
• Soy sauce to taste
• White or brown rice

Process

Put the olive oil in cast iron skillet (or wok I guess) on medium-high heat and dump in the onions. Sweat them for approximately ten minutes and then put in the squash. Move the heat down to medium. 

Add salt and pepper and Mural of Flavor seasoning and move the squash around so the sides don't get burnt. After the squash are relatively soft, add in the shrimp, and add the soy sauce. Turn off the heat and let the residual heat warm up the shrimp but not overcook them. 

Put newly cooked or leftover rice in a bowl and ladle the shrimp-squash-onion concoction over it. 

Music Friday: "Master of Puppets"

I've noticed that Metallica has become trendy because of the latest season of Stranger Things using one of its songs. 

If I remember right, I'm still stalled in season 3 in that series, so I haven't gotten to the season that made Metallica and Kate Bush popular among the youths. 

Regardless of popularity, when I think of Metallica, here's one of a handful of songs that immediately comes to mind.

Random Notes from a Crank

I'd venture to guess that the people who say "America is the greatest country in the world" haven't been to many other countries. And if they've been to other countries, it's not been for a long while, possibly only on a vacation. 

I know of family who has had to have fundraisers to help pay off their debts because their father, who died recently, had cancer. The US has to be one of the few, if not the only, first-world industrialized countries in the world that doesn't have universal health care.  

We don't have one of the best health care systems in the world, but it's certainly one of the most expensive. 

I think there needs to be a Karen/Karin support group out there. Being a "Karen" has been a negative epithet for a few years now. I've never thought of the name Karen in a negative light. 

One of my former girlfriends in high school was named Karen. And she provided fabulous hand jobs. So when I hear something along the lines of "you're being a Karen," all I have is fond memories. I smile and have an overwhelming feeling of good. 

The past month or so when I wake up in the morning I have found one of my bird feeders and the hummingbird feeder knocked down. My bird feeders are "squirrel-proof" because they have a mechanism on them that shuts the feed holes if a rodent weighs down on the feeder. So I was nonplussed about how a squirrel cracked the code. 

I pulled into the drive the other night and discovered the perp who has been knocking down my feeders. It's a raccoon. 

When my son was young, I remember watching a PBS nature documentary on raccoons. The scientists were tracking their movements in the city of Toronto. It was amazing how active they are and how many they are. They're everywhere. 

Music Friday: "A Night in Tunisia"

As I was walking the dog tonight, I got this song in my head because my daughter wants me to make her lablabi before she goes off to college.

This version features the percussive talents of the indomitable Art Blakey. 

Musing of the Moment: Thirty Years Too Late & EV Rebates

As much as I'm happy the "Inflation Reduction Act" is getting passed and finally addresses the need for action on climate change, a bill such as this should have thirty years ago. 

The planet is not waiting around with its negative feedback loops happening at the poles as recounted in The Washington Post: "Climate Change's Impact Intensifies as U.S. Prepares to Take Action."  

The best takeaway from the research is what the lead author of the study, Peter Reicher, has to say: "Reich called the Inflation Reduction Act a 'good first step' but added that 'even in the most optimistic scenario, there’s going to be a lot of pain and suffering. It’s going to take an economic toll on poor and rich alike in the future,' he said. 'We shouldn’t pat ourselves on the back and say, ‘Mission accomplished.’"

I like the bill's incentives for people to purchase electric vehicles, but analysis shows that the point-of-sail rebates won't take effect until next year. 

I worry that these rebates are going to provide incentives for dealers to jack up prices (they're car salesmen, after all), but $7,500 off when you buy one is nice. 

The bill has made me take a look at some EVs such as the Nissan Leaf and the Ford F-150 Lightning. People with more spending power than me might makes some changes, I hope, in 2023.

Music Friday: "Shed a Little Light"

James Taylor sat in with Stay Human at the The Late Show with Stephen Colbert this week, and I was reminded of how much I like him.

And here's one of my favorite songs of his. 

Random Notes from a Crank

I get annoyed about how some people complain about having to ask for straws or having to use non-plastic straws because of environmental concerns. 

When I'm at an eating establishment that provides water or whatever non-alcoholic beverage in an open container, I don't need a straw. I'm a big boy. I'm not some child who needs a straw to drink my beverage. Using a straw in an open container is like an adult drinking out of a sippy cup. 

I've been watching the only season of Alone that's on Netflix. Of the reality programs out there, this is one that intrigues me because of the ingenuity of the participants. 

The fact that so many of these contestants go days without eating is remarkable, but the show also makes me think about how early hunter-gatherers had to be fanatical meat eaters once they got their hands on some wild game. 

From a pure caloric standpoint, fish or game provides a ton more calories than a plant-based diet based on foraging. Also, from an evolutionary standpoint, the Homo sapiens eating meat helped grow their brains and made them stronger. 

While I get being a vegetarian from an environmental standpoint, I would have a hard time being one. I'm not a fervent meat eater, but I'd like to be more intentional about the meat I eat. 

In a positive political story, Kansas voters rejected changing the state's constitution to support an abortion ban: "Kansas Abortion Vote Shows Forced-Birth Zealots Should Be Very Afraid." 

My hope is that access to abortion will be a major issue in the mid-terms that will help pro-choice candidates on the ballot.