Bag of Randomness

One small thing I love about “living in the future” is the ability to look at our purchase history for whatever reason.

I’ve been chewing on this quote as of late:

Nostalgia is memory minus the pain.

I’ve kept in touch with a co-worker I met circa 2010. She was in her early twenties, and this was her second job out of college, while I was in my late thirties. We were exchanging texts a few weeks ago, and she reminded me about a note I had written myself (of course, it was inspired by something Bono and Edge once said) and stuck on my monitor: “You don’t have to, you get to.” This is what she texted:

I’ve been reminded of the post it you used to keep at your desk about getting to, not having to. A needed reminder as I’ve been frustrated with my own situation

I’d forgotten about that stretch of my life when I finally stopped treating everything like a burden and started seeing it as a privilege. Funny how that shift changes everything. It got me thinking about the impressions we leave on people, how sometimes it’s the tiniest, most throwaway moments that end up sticking. And while that’s a nice confidence boost, it also makes me wonder about all the little negative moments I’ve let show. I hate knowing that for some folks, that’s the version of me they remember.

I was fortunate to have a swimming pool in my backyard. I can’t believe I never thought to try something like this.

“handmade” goggles
byu/Newisance inDamnthatsinteresting

 

I thought this was a creative way to use AI. We’ve all seen plenty of slideshows of photos at funerals and such, but I like the idea of scanning multiple Polaroids and seeing them come to life.

Not a bad idea if you only have one child. If that baby ever has siblings, they will likely feel a tinge of jealousy.

What a great idea for a giveaway!

Here we are, face to face
A couple of Silver Spoons.
Hoping to find,
we’re two of a kind
Making a go,
making it grow.
Together,
we’re going to find our way.

 

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Bag of Randomness
Friday, October 10, 2025

One of my former coworkers from the IRS sent me this screenshot of this article yesterday. It got me thinking that the morale of federal employees is at an all-time low since the new administration let DOGE on the loose. DC is essentially located in Virginia, where a plethora of federal employees and contractors reside. Maybe I’m wrong, but I have a feeling conservatives are going to have an uphill battle in Virginia.

Interestingly, before the government shutdown, I was getting inquiries from job recruiters trying to fill IRS positions. They explained that it seemed DOGE had used a chainsaw instead of a scalpel, and they let key people go without a solid plan to ensure the work they were already behind on would get done. But now it looks like the Trump administration is going to use this opportunity to let even more IRS workers and contractors go and “shrink” the size of government. Again, I think they are confusing what they really want; there’s a difference between limited government and the size of government.

On Tuesday, Trump suggested not all furloughed workers will get back pay from an Oval Office he decked out in gold. Talk about horrible optics and a lack of common sense.

But then again, these were the same folks who confused the Four Seasons Hotel with Four Seasons Total Landscaping when they needed to hold a press conference.

I sure didn’t expect the NY Football Giants to beat the Philadelphia Iggles last night.

I’ve mentioned that almost all of my interviews are done by AI. In case you are wondering what that’s like, the AI tool I’ve had to use the most is Apriora, and this is the sample interview they provide as a guide. Also, here’s the Candidate FAQ.

Here are some screenprints of the end of the video, which show you how the AI tool scores or evaluates the interview.

This might be old news to you, but it was new to me.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump at the White House in July, sets aside $85 million to relocate the space shuttle Discovery from its current home at the National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in northern Virginia to the NASA-run Johnson Space Center in Houston.

But the Smithsonian Institution, which operates the National Air and Space Museum, is fighting to keep the spacecraft. In a message sent to Congress, the organization said it would be “unprecedented” for the federal government to remove an object from its collection and send it somewhere else.

“The space shuttle Discovery is not on loan to the Smithsonian from NASA,” the message read. “Ownership was transferred to the Smithsonian’s National Air and Space Museum.” It’s unclear if Congress even has the authority to order the Smithsonian to transfer an artifact. And yet NASA and the Smithsonian agree that the minimal cost to move the shuttle ranges from $120 million to $150 million, much higher than the $85 million previously authorized by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Transporting Discovery, the roughly 1,200 miles between Virginia and Texas, would be a complicated undertaking. The two Boeing 747s specially equipped to carry space shuttles, known as the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA), are both retired and on display, one in California, the other in Texas. On top of that, NASA and the Smithsonian say the Discovery shuttle must be disassembled to move.

Man, talk about a waste of taxpayer dollars. Right now, to see Discovery is free, but it would cost $30 after the move to Houston. I took the kids to see it a few summers ago.

In other Smithsonian news:

Wary of changes under Trump, ‘citizen historians’ are documenting the Smithsonian

www.CitizenHistorians.org

I commend President Trump on this peace deal in the Middle East. If it holds, give him the Nobel Peace Prize next year. I think giving it to him this year would be premature. But then again, he’s declaring war on ANTIFA, which isn’t even an official group or organization.

Citizen Trump on who’s to blame and is accountable for a government shutdown.

This you, Trump?

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— Governor Gavin Newsom (@governor.ca.gov) October 1, 2025 at 4:03 PM

Massive traffic jam at China’s largest toll station

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Friday, October 10, 2025

Bag of Randomness

On the Fox pregame show, Jay Glazer reported that the Cowboys would have four injured offensive linemen who would not be active to play against the Jets. Going into the game, I expected a plethora of false starts, along with an uptick in holding penalties and quarterback pressures from the Jets.

To my surprise, that didn’t happen. The line only had two penalties for 15 yards: 5 yards (false start) + 10 yards (holding) = 15 yards.

I asked BoyGeeding what he and his class thought of their trip to the George W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum.

“We all agreed it was more fun than last month’s trip to the Dallas Holocaust Museum.”

We were studying Luke 6 in Sunday school yesterday morning. Something in it caught my attention, and when I researched it on my laptop (yes, I bring my laptop to Sunday school so I can easily look up more background and context than I can on my phone), I stopped paying attention to the discussion. But then I kept hearing people say “God Führer.” I was so confused, so I spoke up and said I had never heard of the term before. Everyone looked at me in disbelief. I couldn’t believe it, so I took the time to explain my confusion even further. It turns out they were saying “God fearer” and their Texas slang was making it sound German. Well, at least to me.

When I hear the name “Mary Ann,” I automatically think of Gilligan’s Island and the tropics. Interestingly enough, a senior at my church who grew up in Hawaii has that name. Sometimes she’ll close our class by praying in the Hawaiian language, and it’s pretty cool. To stay in shape, she swims a mile every morning at her local pool, which takes 36 laps. For each lap, she prays for a specific individual. I admire that discipline and her effective use of her time to combine physical and spiritual exercise. The first 20 laps are reserved for her family. But she recently shared that I made the list as I work through my brokenness and unemployment.

Rain. Snow. & a double rainbow in Laramie, Wyoming.

When I saw the video below, it reminded me of these shoes a friend bought in high school to increase his vertical. I think you had to order them out of the back of a magazine. Man, now that’s something I haven’t thought about in a while. But in case you are wondering, they didn’t really help.

If you’re a fan of the Little Free Libraries you spot in neighborhoods, you might like the idea of a FreeBlockbuster.org. San Antonio just opened one, but I couldn’t find any DFW franchises.

I shouldn’t be surprised that the Religious Right would be so blatant with such an abuse of power. And the emphasis on the signoff. What disappoints me the most is how Christians, Evangelicals in particular, aren’t offended or understand how insulting this is to Christ and turns people away from the faith. And yes, it’s real.

It will be interesting to see what the post-Trump era looks like, whenever that is. He has shown us that rules, regulations, the law, or any moral decency don’t matter. One day, if this country survives, the opposing party will be in power. Do they respond in kind and follow suit or do what they can to ensure abuse of power like this never happens again? Sadly, it’s probably the former.

More cool stuff at the Sphere in Las Vegas.

When Dua Lipa played in Austin last year, she wore a Texas Longhorns football jersey. In this video, she’s giving the Cowboys and Stars a lot of love. But it makes me wonder how often she does this with other cities. Her Instagram has some other cool Dallas-related stuff here and here.

@dualipaofficialdecked out in Dallas♬ original sound – Dua Lipa

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Bag of Randomness
Wednesday, October 1, 2025

Last Thursday, Secretary of Defense/War Pete Hegseth requested that all admirals and generals be physically present at a speech he was giving in four days, on Tuesday, in Quantico, Virginia.

I can guarantee you that at least 94% of the audience, at one point, thought, “This couldn’t have been communicated by an email?” If you’ve worked in corporate America, you know exactly what I’m saying.

I also bet at least half of the audience had this type of question go through their head, “This man who retired as a major called all active duty generals and admirals on four days’ notice just to lecture all of us in person.”

He told our enemies to “FAFO.” Hey, I understand he’s trying to emphasize it’s the greatest and most powerful military in history. But let’s not give our enemies any added motivation to harm the people who defend us.

He also said it’s unacceptable to see fat generals and admirals walking the halls of the Pentagon. Again, I get what he’s saying, and I don’t necessarily disagree, but shouldn’t leadership start from the top down?

I want to know the story about the man sitting in the middle wearing blue. Did he forget to wear his uniform? Nothing is on his shoulders, so I think it’s a suit and not a uniform. Was there assigned seating? If so, who’s at fault? Prank of the year?

Stand-up comic Cristela Alonzo has a new Netflix special, and I caught a clip of it, which made me laugh.

White people are the only ones that name their kids Jesus. White people do that. I love that for you. White people name their kids friends of Jesus, you know? Hey, there’s Mark, there’s Saul. There’s Joseph.

Josh Meyers, brother of Seth, does a great impression of Governor Gavin Newsom that’s SNL-worthy.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Jimmy Kimmel Live (@jimmykimmellive)

Extreme snacking.

I can verify the first part is true, but not the second. Funny, yet sad, if true.

Lindsey Halligan, the attorney selected by Donald Trump to bring criminal charges against James Comey, has never prosecuted a case.

But, like Trump, she did get her start in reality TV — with a brief cameo on South Beach Tow.

Here is Halligan’s newly resurfaced TV moment:

[image or embed]

— Anna Bower (@annabower.bsky.social) September 30, 2025 at 9:58 PM

 

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Wednesday, October 1, 2025