In one more astonishing display of self-aggrandizement and megalomania, soon-to-be Ex-President Donald Trump tweeted that the source of perhaps the most serious cyber attack ever on America was China, not Russia.

Notably  the only one supposedly in the know that fingers China instead of Russia, Trump wrote: “The Cyber Hack is far greater in the Fake News Media than in actuality. I have been fully briefed and everything is well under control.” The media, he said are “petrified” of “discussing the possibility that it may be China (it may!).”

Well under control? Well under control?! Who briefed you, Mr. President, Spanky the Clown?

Even your own people say it’s likely the Russians. And it’s far from under control. Some compare it to an act of war.  Just when it appears that you can’t throw any more mud on your credibility, you come up with this?

My repeated message to Republicans: You’d better get together soon on a viable, smart and emotionally healthy candidate for 2024. Joe Biden will have made a hash of the United States, but if Trump runs again then, as he has hinted, Republicans again will lose.

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I was having a mellow Monday. Slept in until nine. Kickin’ it back by catching up on the news and sports. I even went for a short walk to get some fresh air. Life was cool…..and then I checked my e-mail.

Here’s one from Donald and Melania. Hmmm…wonder what they want? Probably money! Oh wait….they want me to sign their Christmas card. It says it’s their OFFICIAL card. I better get to it soon since Christmas is less than a week away. Okay, I’m a good American. I can sign a card if it’ll help our country.

Hey, look at this…I get to leave a personal message in addition to my signature. Hmmmm…what should I write?

Don and Melanie,
There are less than thirty days until you leave the White House and hopefully are gone from our lives forever.
Please try not to do anything that will cause the country embarrassment or get you a prison sentence,
although Don, it may be too late for you.
Happy Holidays,
HM

I know…I know…probably not my best work, but I was under a time crunch. After all, Hanukkah is over, Festivus is just two days away and Christmas is on Friday. I needed to make sure I got my greeting on his holiday card in on time. I didn’t want to miss out, right?

Well, at least it didn’t cost me any money. I hit send and I’m sent to another page. DONATIONS!!!!

Wow! Donald wants me to give him money to add my name and heartfelt greeting on his Christmas card. Shocking that grifters are going to grift. Do you think that by deleting that page, I’ll be eliminating my chance to share my greeting with America?  I’m so disillusioned.

I’m thinking this won’t work out. Sad! Maybe one of America’s other leaders would like me to sign their card? I’m going to check my email for a message from Mike Pence.

Related Post: Is Donald Trump going to pardon his youngest son, Barron?

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I don’t know about anyone else-although early orders of the new Hummer EV edition may be a predictor, but I am glad to witness the return of the Hummer. I always wanted one but couldn’t quite bring myself to pull the plug. I had the pleasure of driving all 3 versions in the press fleet. In just hours, the new electric edition Hummer EV has sparked a lot of interest. Starting at $112,595, this new iteration doesn’t come cheap.

Hummer H1, the first vehicle in the Hummer range was based on the Humvee. Released in 1992, it was designed by American Motors’ AM General subsidiary for the U.S. Military. Hummer H1, H2 and H3 sold for several years before GMC pulled the plug.

Now the GMC Boulder has arrived. Well, at least the idea of such a vehicle.. It appears we may have the promise of a “Hummer Jr,” in the Boulder. Created by Ryan Schlotthauer, a Transportation Design student in Detroit, the Boulder is an electric off-roader designed to look somewhat like the new Bronco and two-door Wrangler.

According to Schlotthauer, he always tries to design a blend of aesthetics with functionality, challenging how people can use vehicles. Using an electric platform, he notes, “allowed him to use a unique graphic breakup of the vehicle.”

A very unusual trunk, covered with a green acrylic acting as sunglasses, allows the driver to look directly into it. The Boulder is smaller than the Bronco and built for two. Storage is maximized with attachments, and the vehicle is built for escaping everyday life!

GMC’s aim: To stand out as a “premium off-road brand.” The interior is built more like an off-road vehicle than one that is conventional. For instance, there is not a transmission tunnel.

And, there will be lot of space next to and ahead of the driver. The concept’s interior feels spacious despite it’s small size. It’s boxy design, says the designer, gives it a “bit of a Suzuki Jimny vibe.” It may be small, notes GMC, but it is capable.

There is much that will appeal to those off-roaders if the Boulder becomes a reality. It’s futuristic look reminds one of the space Rover. Be sure to watch its progress as it takes aim at the new, long-awaited Ford Bronco.

When you buy a gallon of milk today in the United States, you do so without the fear that it might kill you.

The same is true for when you open up a can of vegetables or a can of meat, or a can of any food product, you do so without the fear that what you’re about to eat, won’t kill you.

But it wasn’t always that way.

Upton Sinclair wrote a book that changed how people felt about meatpackers and the food industry in general as THE JUNGLE, a best-seller at the time of its release in 1906 outlined in detail the lack of sanitary conditions in the production plants that brought beef, pork, and sausage to America’s kitchen tables.  THE JUNGLE outlined problems that a chemist/physician/author/professor by the name of Harvey Washington Wiley had been trying to get Congress to address for more than twenty years.  Wiley had come close to securing legislation to address conditions that were so foul, such as the grinding up of human remains into sausage links, that even staunch business advocates and lobbyists for the likes of Armour, Cudahy, Wilson and Swift could no longer sugar coat with Congress and the American public, especially America’s mothers.

Harvey Washington Wiley didn’t give up when he tried to get a food safety bill passed.  His detractors cited a loss of business and in turn jobs for American workers if the use of chemicals, such as Borax, were forbidden in the canning and packaging of meat.  The lobbyists enlisted the papers to taint Wiley as un-American and too progressive, much like what happens today to those who advocate for clean green energy.  But Wiley, one very obsessive determined individual found an ally in the woman’s suffragette movement.  Although women couldn’t vote, they could influence their husbands and they did control the power of the purse when it came to purchasing the weekly groceries.  Wiley also found a food manufacturer, Heinz of Heinz 57 fame, who embraced Wiley’s ideas and saw the advantage in the opportunity to “clean-up” the industry of food processors.  Heinz realized that if they emphasized that their ketchup was manufactured without the use of harsh chemicals that could affect digestion, and was a “pure” food product, the mothers of America would embrace their offerings and buy “pure,” over tainted any day.  Heinz found that their sales skyrocketed from an ad campaign featuring their workers, many of them women, dressed in hairnets and sanitary uniforms at work stations that emphasized cleanliness, a form of Godliness that any Mom could relate to.

Teddy Roosevelt noticed when women in western states that had the right to vote, made it known that they and mothers throughout the U.S. would not tolerate conditions that were simply awful for their workers as well as their consumers.  With TR’s backing in 1906, The Pure Food & Drugs Act finally was passed with overwhelming bipartisan support.  The newspapers, the major media venue, also saw the writing on the wall and began to back Wiley in spite of attempts by the lobbyists to taint the man as less than patriotic.  TR tried to take credit for the legislation, but the public responded differently calling the new legislation, “Wiley’s Law.”

Wiley eventually got pushed aside by President Taft and other powerful Senators who found the man too progressive in his obsession to impose even further regulations for food safety.  But a popular magazine offered Wiley an ideal position as their editor regarding health and food topics that eventually lead to his creation of what we now know as the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval.  Women were influenced by that affirmation when they selected products that they bought for their home and families.

Harvey Washington Wiley is a man with a great legacy even if today he gets very little credit for his determination and will to GO DO GOOD when it came to keeping Americans safe then and now.

R.B. Pest Solutions specializes in providing effective and reliable pest control solutions for residential and commercial properties. During this winter season, Robiar Smith, CEO of R.B. Pest Solutions, shared with me what business owners should be doing during the winter months on top of operating in the covid pandemic. She said, “As the seasons change in this unique time of COVID it is important for business owners to be very aware of the uptick in pest activity especially if your business space is temporarily closed. Rodents, roaches and flies represent a large influx of this activity. If not addressed immediately they can cause serious harm to your business.”

Question: Restaurants have felt the brunt of the pandemic head on. How is the Covid Pandemic and the business shutdowns impacting the rodent population?

Answer: With the restaurants closed, there are significantly fewer food sources so they are much more aggressive and desperate. You do not want to leave a rodent problem in your business untreated if you are closed because they will multiply quickly. Anything or any area which is undisturbed will be options for where rodents can thrive. Not only Rodents, but also roaches and flies find these spaces ideal. Low foot traffic has provided the pest refuge with limited interruption and restaurant owners should have measures in place to deal with an infestation.

Business environments that store food, have standing water, beverages, and garbage disposal close to premises are areas that attract the highest levels of activity. Along with the nauseous the threat of infection and disease if high when not addressed properly. According to the National Pest Management Association, Cockroaches are known to spread 33 kinds of bacteria, including E. coli and Salmonella species, six types of parasitic worms, and seven kinds of human pathogens.

Contact R.B. Pest Solutions if your business needs extermination, Inspections, Preventative measures and/or Monitoring.

Question: Robiar, your story is pretty incredible. Tell me more about how you came to be in the pest control business.

Answer: When my mother was pregnant with me, she and my father were a young couple and my mom wanted to make sure he stayed on the straight and narrow and had a way to provide for the family. They lived in Bronzeville and one day my mother walked into Aberdeen Pest Control which was in the neighborhood. It was run by a married couple, Curt and Dorothy. My mom walked in and asked if they had any jobs available. They said yes and my mom sent my dad down there to work. Fast forward to today, my father has trained hundreds of exterminators and he is well known in the city of chicago.

My work history includes being a professor of technology, teaching business courses, entrepreneurship, professional development, and IT. One day I had an epiphany and decided to take all I knew and had been teaching to start my own business and since my father is so knowledgeable in pest control, I knew that where I should create my business. My father passed all his knowledge to me and he planted a seed of excellence in me. Pest Control is not just about money for me. This is about my father’s legacy. R.B. Pest Solutions has contracts with the city of Chicago and we are licensed through with the Environment Protection Agency.

I now have a seat at the table and through me, my father also has a seat at the table. He provides that extra care and service to provide the best experience. We have married his 4 decades of old school customer service, experience, and knowledge and added my new school efficiencies and technology. We are an amazing Father Daughter Team. Everyone calls him Pops and he trains all my new hires.

I’m often amazed that I went from teaching business to having this amazing Black Owned Business. I went from an idea to fruition. Our retail store is in Chatham and the store is truly there to hire from the community and to educate the community. Our staff is 100% from the community and very diverse. We offer competitive pay, bonuses and benefits. Pest control is essential and we are here to be a solution for and in our community. We currently have a staff of 25 and will be hiring four more people.

The letter “B” in the name R.B. Pest Solutions is in honor of my father, Michael Benton. Since my parents, Michael and Dolores, didn’t have any sons, it is important for me to carry on my father’s legacy with this company. His work ethic and business strategies will not go in vain. Generations to come will know about the man who taught me so much! He’s the best teacher a woman could ask for. My mother introduced her husband to extermination. In return, he showed his daughter, a little black girl from the south side of Chicago, the true meaning of entrepreneurship. I learned to create my own lane and live my dreams while fulfilling my other responsibilities.

R.B. Pest Solutions is a locally owned business. For more information, visit the website https://rbpestsolutions.com or call 312-217-9605. The retail store is located at 8243 S. Cottage Grove.

Click here to read Part 1 of this interview for Winter Pest Control Tips for your home.

I keep seeing references to the 1943 song “I’ll be Home for Christmas” as if other writers are pointing out yes, we’ll all be home, let’s make our own fun. But those writers are missing the point of the song.

Here (with a little help from LyricFind.com) are the words to the song:

I’ll be home for Christmas
You can plan on me
Please have some snow and mistletoe
And presents by the tree

Christmas eve will find me
Where the love light gleams
I’ll be home for Christmas

If only in my dreams

I’ll be home for Christmas

If only in my dreams

As explained here  by Vintage News, the song was meant to portray a U.S. soldier in World War II telling his family he’ll be home from The War for Christmas — “if only in my dreams.” In a way, it’s a Christmas version of “Memory,” the show-stopping tune from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical “Cats.” The singer is remembering the time he “knew what happiness was” at Christmas, not describing how happy he is.

Bing Crosby had the original hit record, but I first noticed a more recent version; my favorite performance of the song is by Alan Alda, of all people, in a 1973 episode of “MASH.” Alda’s character, Hawkeye Pierce, is exhausted and trying to find out who’s responsible for the Korean War. He remembers several war-related songs, and his rendition of “I’ll be Home for Christmas,” his voice choked with tears, is appropriately heartbreaking for a character who didn’t know when he would go home.

So if you can’t go home because of the virus, or because there’s no one left to go home to, this might just be the song for you this Christmas. Just think of that “If only in my dreams” as a variation on “Let the mem’ry live again.”

Peace and comfort be with you, wherever you are this Christmastime.

Margaret Serious has a page on Facebook.

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  I moved to Chicago from the south suburbs in 1986. I have diverse interests, but I love writing about what I’m interested in. Whether it’s a personal interest or part of my career, the correct words to get the idea across are important to me. I love words and languages — French and Scottish words enrich my American English. My career has included years as a journalist and years working in museums, and the two phases were united by telling stories. I’m serious about words and stories. So here I am, ready to tell stories about words and their languages.

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I recently joined Tik Tok. I was lured by the Tik Tok posts my friend Corri (@corrbette) has been sharing on Facebook. She’s found a way to showcase her point of view, writing, humor and presence, all in a one minute time frame. Her followers have grown to 19.2K. Impressive, right?

I have 3 followers. Most of my videos get NO VIEWS. Impressive, ri–? Never mind.

I am on Tik Tok with equal parts shame and enthusiasm. Afterall, I’m of a certain age. I’d prefer my 13 year old spend no time on Tik Tok at the same time that I am posting videos. I’m sure the app is an elaborate algorithm that steals your soul but still, I’m enjoying posting content.

For better or for worse here are 5 reasons I’m on Tik Tok

1. I am a creator: As a kid, I wasn’t a big reader (unless it was plays). I wrote stories and forced friends to reenact episodes of the television show Fame. I made up skits, practiced singing, and memorized passages from The Outsiders. Since I turned those hobbies into my profession as a writer, actor and director I forgot that they were also the things I did for fun in my down time. So, I’m leaning into that creative energy to pass the time and Tik Tok is an immediate outlet for what I create.
2. It’s a challenge: On my YouTube channel I use to create sketches that were 5-7 minuets long. My podcast episodes (Tania’s Take race, culture and the culture of race) run 30-45 minutes long. Those involve extensive editing and sometimes reshoots. Tik Tok has a 15-60 second limit. As a writer it’s a fun challenge to get my point across with brevity. It works a muscle I don’t often use.
3. I’m bored: I envy my husband who is a prolific reader. My attention span is shot, partially because “fuzzy brain” is one of the longhaul symptoms that lingers since I had Covid 19 in March. I have to admit that Tik Tok is a good match for my level of concentration right now. While I limit my time on it, the format suits my current situation. I was actually able to watch a whole movie the other day so maybe it’s even helping. (Okay, maybe that’s a stretch.)
4. It’s bonding: My kids like to scroll through Tik Tok with me. My 13 year old is impressed that one of my videos got 237 views. I can keep up on trends that they follow and finally understand all the random dance moves they do at the dinner table.
5. It’s trivial: I say this with the utmost love, the world is a dumpster fire. Watching people dance or give baking tutorials, watching mini kitchen vignettes, collecting decorating tips and seeing just how creative people can be is a nice break from the news and the harsh realities of 2020.

Would it be nice to have more than 3 followers? Sure. Am I doing it to get followers? No. I’m doing it for my own amusement. If you’re lucky enough to do what you love for a living don’t forget that you use to do it for fun.

My mantra is, “Do what you love and the rest will follow. Or not.” At least I won’t be bored.

Here’s one of my videos. Deep stuff, right? You can find me on Tik Tok @trichard51

Are you on Tik Tok? What do you like about it?

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