Good Thursday, everyone.  Cool but a bit warmer for today and the next couple of days before the temperature tanks early next week.  We still expect little or no precipitation of any kind.  Our snow drought continues.  I was rather productive with needlework yesterday.  I finally got the last two little figures attached to Mom's Great-Grandmother's Jacket.  They have only been on my design board for about two years.  I also finished the embroidery on a table scarf.  My goodness!!  Blazing speed, here.  And, yeah, that is a jab at the champion procrastinator--me.

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Happy Friday to you all.  Nothing of much interest on net yesterday.  Not exactly true.  I did read a good bit but nothing I wanted to comment on.

However, today may be a bit different.  I will start with this piece which illustrates something I absolutely hate about today's media.  What you may wonder would I find so distasteful.  Well, it is the notion that Paul Ryan's comments represent some kind of movement on the GOP side.  The only movement I see is not tying the debt ceiling increase to spending cuts NOW.  Rather they want to tie it to spending cuts in a few months.  This is not a clean increase in the debt ceiling.  They still are holding the economy hostage.  They just aren't going to blow it up immediately.  But you won't see that bit of honesty from the media.  By the way, I hear the same kind of stupid remarks from CNBC's talking heads.  I don't know how many more are going to take a big dose of enthusiasm/hope by hearing only the first half of Ryan's comments (short term extension of the debt ceiling) while ignoring the last half (to give more time for the Democrats to cave in and agree to tie long term debt ceiling increase to spending cuts).

And something from the local (Chicago) news:  politicos there are considering banning the sale of 'energy' drinks on health grounds.  I asked, on hearing the story, if Rahm Emmanuel is trying to become the Michael Bloomberg of the midwest.  Do we really need a new nanny on the block?  I have always thought the Red Bulls and 5 Hour Energy drinks are a ridiculous response to feeling tired and washed out.  And I never believed the hype the manufacturers put out.  And I don't buy the notion that unless you are actively doing something every moment of the day (and somehow that doesn't include finding time to eat healthy meals and sleep) and accomplishing several goals at the same time, you aren't really living.