Saturday 9

You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To (1943)

Unfamiliar with this week's tune? Hear it here.

 
1) In this song, Dinah Shore goes on about listening to the breeze. Is it windy, breezy, or still where you are today? It's pretty still.

 

2) The August moon is bright in Dinah's musical fantasy. Let's look at your calendar. Is anything special coming up in August (birthdays, anniversaries, vacation getaways ...)? Classic film murder, mystery and mayhem at The Music Box.

 

3) Dinah was one of TV's pioneers. Her first show was a 15-minute variety show that ran two nights/week in 1951. What's the most recent show you watched? I'm watching a Dick Van Dyke Show rerun as I answer these questions. I'm enjoying it thoroughly.

4) She followed that in 1956 with the Dinah Shore Chevy Show. It was an hour long and sponsored by the car company. At the end of every show Dinah encouraged her viewers to "see the USA in your Chevrolet ..." Today Chevrolets are still the most popular cars manufactured by General Motors. Tell us about your car. No car

5) From 1970 to 1991, Dinah hosted daytime TV talk shows and found tremendous success, winning 6 Emmy Awards and repeatedly appearing in the Gallup Poll of America's most admired women. Do you remember her? Yes. I'm sure she was a lovely lady, but I didn't get her show at all. Too much cooking and grandma music. (Of course, now the music I like is considered grandma music, so ...)

 

6) Dinah was such an avid golfer that, in 1972, she founded one of the LPGA's major tournaments. Though now officially titled The Chevron Championship, it's still often referred to as "The Dinah Shore" in her memory. Do you golf? If not, would you like to learn? Nope. It looks like I'd need to buy a lot of accoutrement and I have enough stuff around here.

7) In 1943, when "You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To" was popular, so were tablecloths. It was common to have cotton tablecloths for everyday use, fun and festive ones for 4th of July and Christmas, and linen for formal occasions. Do you use tablecloths in your home? Nope. I've been known to use a Bounty paper towel as a placemat. I'm a very low-brow kinda gal.

 

8) Beatle George Harrison was born in 1943. Which of the Fab Four is your favorite? If you have to ask, you don't come here often.

 

9) Random question: Would you rather live on a houseboat or in a trailer? I'm told that houseboats are never still very long and can be smelly, and yet, I'd still like to try it.

A few quarts low on compassion

Let me preface this by saying Twitter is a hellscape. So I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that cruel memes about Hunter Biden's drug addiction are the order of the day. The thing that saddens me, though, is how many of the meme-makers and meme-spreaders are self-proclaimed Christians.

Addiction is a disease, not a character flaw. Would these same Trump supporters mock Hunter Biden if he had a physical disability? Maybe. After all, it didn't bother them when their candidate made fun of reporter Serge Kovaleski. Apparently among these particular Christians, mocking the afflicted is a real knee-slapper.

If addiction hasn't touched you personally, you're lucky. It's estimated that 20.4 million Americans abuse alcohol, illicit drugs or prescription medication. Each of those 20.4 million Americans is someone's relative, friend, or neighbor. Do the math. A shit-ton of our fellow citizens are coping with this in a very real way. If you're not among them, maybe instead of stigmatizing Hunter Biden you should say a little prayer that your loved ones have been spared.

When I went to Sunday School, I was taught that "whatever you did for the least of our brothers and sisters, you did for me." I don't understand how making fun of someone with an illness fits with that. I guess instead of the Book of Matthew, their New Testament has The Book of Schadenfreude.

I will be so very grateful and relieved when Trump's grip on my countrymen and my faith is loosened.

Five days and still no word

I hate the postal service. There's a form I had to return to Social Security. It has to be returned by mail -- no downloading, no fax. Naturally, since it's regarding Social Security, it includes my SSN.

I was uncomfortable mailing this. So instead of dropping it into a mailbox, I took it to the post office. I handed it to a clerk, who said it was going Ground Advantage. For $8.80, it would travel the 12 miles from my neighborhood to the local Social Security Office and would arrive in 2-5 business days. A signature would be required upon receipt. I had a tracking number.

Here we are, five days later, and according to USPS Tracking, my envelope has just been "received." There is no record of it moving from my local post office.

I called the #800 on the receipt. I said, "My envelope has been lost or stolen, hasn't it?"

No, I was told. It's likely just not been scanned for some reason. It's probably on its way.

Probably.

I was given a "case number" and was advised to call again Monday.

I called the Social Security office and asked if it had been received. Not yet. The representative I spoke to was exceptionally nice and understanding and told me they flagged my name/number and will call me if/when the envelope is delivered.

But here's the thing: my SSN, address and signature are floating around out there somewhere. Yes, I am certain I will be the victim of identity fraud because of this.

I am very, very stressed by this.