Who says Easter is a holiday that’s just for the kids? Your days of hunting colorful eggs filled with candy may be over, although I hope you’re still enjoying a Cadbury Egg or two this season. And why limit yourself to candy? You’re a grownup with grown-up tastes.

This Easter, I’ve compiled a basket full of goodies that will put Peeps to shame. (Does anyone really like Peeps, anyways?) Trade up from jelly beans to luxurious moisturizer, coffee with an adult twist, and other household treats you’ll love. Send this segment to the Easter Bunny in your life or hop on over to the store and create your own Easter basket!

I wish you and yours a HOPPY Easter filled with the treats you love! When Easter rolls around, you’ll find me sipping a mug of Cask & Kettle if you need me!

THE VORTEXIQ™ 40 CORDLESS STICK VACUUM

Make adulting less stressful and provide an easier Easter clean-up with this new smart, lightweight vacuum. Key features: 5 power levels of suction power to clean up an array of messes. Anti-entanglement design reduces hair/pet hair entanglement. Has a long run time and easy to store!
Available on Levoit.com and Amazon.

CORE 600S SMART TRUE HEPA AIR PURIFIER

Its official Spring! Allergies can put a damper on a fun Easter holiday at home with the family. Levoit’s Core 600S Smart True HEPA Air Purifier Uses HEPASmart technology which helps create a cleaner, healthier home. Capture particles such as pollen, dust and more. It’s equipped with smart technology, giving real-time air quality readings, allows users to control settings, create schedules, and access voice assistants to customize indoor air quality.Works with Alexa and Googlevoice Assistant. The powerful, smart controlled air purifier designed for large rooms purifying air in a 3,177 ft room in 1 hour.

CASK & KETTLE COCKTAILS

Cask & Kettle is a women-owned spirits brand! Did you know that less than 4% of spirits companies are owned and run by women? So, being a women-owned brand is pretty remarkable. The founders, who are friends, and business colleagues were in a meeting when someone joked they wished they had booze in their coffee. The business was swiftly founded after that initial idea and is now thriving with five flavors available online and in many big retailers like Walmart, Meijer, World Market, Kroger, and several specialty stores. There is a store locator on their website https://caskandkettleusa.com/where-to-buy/

You can also buy the product on their website: https://caskandkettleusa.com/shop/ to be shipped to all states except AL, AR, MA, MI, MS, NC, OK, OR, SD, TN, UT, or VT

SPA TECHNOLOGIES

Perfect for an at-home spa day.They offer anti-aging skincare products packed with sustainably harvested seaweed. Their Detox Bath Kit is the perfect item to upgrade your home spa ritual
They just added to their line: ECO DEFENSE DAILY MOSITURIZER with SPF 45, which keeps skin highly nourished, hydrated and glowing after a nice warm bath. The main ingredients is Aloe Vera which is organic and locally grown at their lab. Aloe Vera is known to prevent and soothe sunburn and works as an anti-inflammatory.Perfect for outdoor Easter activities or spring travel

One of my Facebook groups always asks — when they aren’t fighting about the original versus the reboot — how something could have occurred In-Universe. The answer is usually because the writers didn’t understand how science works and didn’t devote a lot of time to World Building or consistency. But it does raise a good question.

If you google “How Realistic Should Sci-Fi Be?” you’ll find a lot of thinky-thoughts on this subject matter and I’m gonna try to define mine.

Not surprisingly, there really isn’t a consensus on how realistic Science Fiction needs to be. Some people feel that as long as the story is good, they are willing to ignore glaring plot holes and even conflicting information.

“The amount of ‘suspension of disbelief’ I give must be proportional to the amount of entertainment the artist is providing.”

Others feel that there should be some stricter following of the Laws of Physics and other sciences.

“I don’t like modern scifi that has interstellar travel that doesn’t take decades or centuries. I just don’t think it possible and it strains my ability to enjoy it if the book has things like traveling between solar systems in hours or days or, even more annoying to me, the ability to communicate across light years in real time.

Others just want things to be consistent.

“Having FTL is fine. Having FTL which isn’t entirely understood is fine. Having FTL which is supposedly entirely understood, has hard rules on exactly when it can be used, and then breaking those rules Because Plot is… Less fine.

Likewise, having the rules change (especially in significant ways) without anyone inside the story even noticing is not fine. Yes, we get it, you backed yourself into a corner. But we the readers/watchers dislike wondering if we misremembered key things about your universe.”

Growing up, I ingested a lot of science fiction through books, movies, and TV shows. In my early years, there wasn’t always a lot of World Building, as I mentioned earlier. Most TV shows didn’t know if they would be picked up for an entire season and many movies are based on a book that someone wrote as an existential metaphor on the human condition. Finally, a lot of the stuff I read were short stories that don’t have time to waste on explaining things; you just accept that aliens developed laser pistols similar to our guns.

One of my favorites is Logan’s Run, both the Movie and to a lesser extent the TV Show spin-off. I’ve started rewatching it and I see a glaring plothole in the first five minutes. If people cannot survive outside the City of Domes, and the Runners escape to find Sanctuary, why not just let them? Either they die or they survive, but the end result is the same: one less person consuming resources.

But that doesn’t make for an exciting movie. You need conflict. And the point of Logan’s Run was that overpopulation was a thing we would have to deal with and the solution was, apparently, to kill people before they became too old.

So now about my answer. First off, I agree with Just Dan that as long as I am entertained with a good story, I can willfully suspend a ginormous amount of disbelief. Sleepy Hollow, essentially American Revolution CosPlay, was just ridiculous in terms of believability but the chemistry between the lead actors was so good that it was an enjoyable show.

Second, I do want some consistent and well-thought-out World Building. You don’t have to explain everything in Episode One but you need to leave yourself enough room for things that will come up later. Don’t write yourself into a corner by forgetting something you wrote a few episodes earlier.

Finally, I want my Sci Fi to be as accurate as possible. I’ll accept spaceships that move at the Speed of the Plot and dogfights in space, but let’s think it through. The Expanse is a great example. They explain that the guns used in-ship fire rubber projectiles that can kill a human but not damage the ship.

I’m not asking a lot. Just tell me an entertaining story that has some plausibility grounded in science.

Namaste

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Ethan Hearn (Photo by Stephanie Lynn)

AAA

Toledo 8, Iowa 6

Game Recap

A day after Iowa rallied for three runs in the 9th in a comeback win Toledo turned the tables.

Iowa jumped out to a 3-0 lead but this one would ultimately turn into a back and forth affair. Three Cubs would homer and Dixon Machado was once again highly effective out of the leadoff spot.

It would come down to the 9th inning where Ben Leeper was called upon to nail down the victory. Leeper had come into the game with a runner on in the 8th, and gave up a double to the first batter he faced, but eventually got out of the inning with a pair of strikeouts and a one run lead still intact. The first batter he faced in the 9th took him deep however, and then one out later he would surrender a double and a walk.

From there the Cubs would bring in veteran James Bourque to try and preserve the tie. He’d strike out both batters he faced, unfortunately he also threw a couple of wild pitches while doing so, which allowed both runners he inherited to score.

Top Performers

Dixon Machado: 2-2, 2B, R, 3 BB, 3 SB (5, 6, 7) (.292)P.J. Higgins: 1-4, HR (1), R, 2 RBI, BB (.167)Narciso Crook: 1-4, HR (`1), 2 R, RBI, BB (.188)Levi Jordan: 1-4, HR (2), R, RBI (.200)Zach Davis: 1-3, RBI, SF, SB (2)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

Dixon Machado reached base safely five times and stole 2+ bases out of the leadoff spot for the second time in the I-Cubs first 9 games.

It wasn’t Leeper’s best outing but he’s no longer flying under the radar:

Ben Leeper flew under the radar when he first signed with the Cubs as a non-drafted free agent.

But after a huge 2021 season, Leeper is now a prospect that everyone is paying attention to. https://t.co/1QoYwfFoWh

April 15, 2022

AA

Montgomery 5, Tennessee 2

Game Recap

It was a rough 1st inning for starter Cam Sanders. He did not have his control, as he allowed a single and walked three men before hitting the organizational pitch limit and being removed with two outs in the inning. Blake Whitney came on and allowed a bases clearing triple which put the Smokies behind 4-0. Whitney would put up four clean innings after that, but the damage was done.

Nelson Velazquez did crank his first homer of the season in what was a relatively quiet offensive day for Tennessee.

Nelson Velazquez blasted off for his first HR of the season tonight. Also blasted off the pitcher’s hat. pic.twitter.com/uM5ezrdIFZ

April 15, 2022

Top Performers

Nelson Velazquez: 1-4, HR (1), R, RBI (.348)Darius Hill: 2-4 (.375)Harrison Wenson: 1-2, 2B, RBI, HBP (.222)Blake Whitney: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K (0.00

High-A

South Bend 7, Fort Wayne 2 (Game 1)

Fort Wayne 6, South Bend 2 (Game 2)

Game Recap

Fabian Pertuz had a rough 2021, but he’s gotten off to a fast start with South Bend this year, consistently making hard contact. The Cubs have a lot of young infield prospects and he is easy to overlook, especially given his paltry line last season (.223/.287/.308) but the 21-year old has utility man upside. In game one of the doubleheader he launched his second homer of the young season to help South Bend to victory.

The Cubs also received a strong outing from last season’s 1st rounder Jordan Wicks. He tossed 3.2 scoreless frames while reportedly working in the 93-95 range, showing good command, and mixing his pitches well.

Yohendrick Piñango also hit a long homer run in game one. He then joined Pertuz and Alexander Canario (who doubled twice on the day) as the only Cubs hitters to reach base in game two. Piñango walked once in each game, and already has three walks in his first five games, after drawing just 31 in 108 last season. If the 19-year old outfielder can add a bit more patience and power to his game in the coming years to go along with his advanced feel for making contact he becomes a very interesting player.

Top Performers

Jordan Wicks: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, BB, 5 K (0.00)Dalton Stambaugh: 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, K (0.00)Fabian Pertuz: 2-5, HR (2), 2 R, 2 RBI, HBP (.286)Yohendrick Piñango: 2-6, HR (1), 3 R, RBI, 2 BB (.294)Alexander Canario: 2-5, 2 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB (.182) Scott McKeon: 1-2, RBI, 2 BB (.333)Owen Caissie: 1-3, 2 R, RBI, BB (.053)

Injuries, Updates, and Trends

Outfielder Jordan Nwogu has joined South Bend after a brief stint in EXST to begin the year.

Low-A

Myrtle Beach 3, Augusta 2

Game Recap

The Pelicans would make the most of their four hits on the night.

Down 2-0 in the 6th, Liam Spence hit a double to knock in a pair and tie the game. Tyler Schlaffer, Jose Gonzalez, and Adam Laskey combined to hold Augusta to just two runs on the night.

It all came down to the 9th. Catcher Ethan Hearn helped stop a potential GreenJackets rally in the top half by throwing out a runner at third base to end the inning. Pete Crow-Armstrong single to open the bottom half. A sac bunt and two walks followed to load the bases. After Reginald Preciado struck out, Hearn delivered once again, this time with a walk off single.

Top Performers

Liam Spence: 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, SAC (.300)Pete Crow-Armstrong: 2-4, 2B, R (.250)Ethan Hearn: 1-4, RBI (.188)Tyler Schaffer: 4 IP, 2 H, R, 2 BB, 5 K (5.40)Jose Gonzalez: 3 IP, 3 H, R, 0 BB, 4 K (6.23)Adam Laskey: 2 IP, H, 0 R, BB, 0 K (W, 2-0, 0.00)

Wednesday night was Barb’s book club night–a return to in-person book chat after pandemic-driven Zoom sessions. With Barb out of the house, I settled into my favorite chair, Cooper at my side, to watch the next few episodes of Slow Horses, my new favorite TV streamer on Apple TV+.

After maneuvering the proper remote controls (it takes three for us to get to Apple TV+) I prepared to click on Episode 4 of this series about the characters who swim in the bottom of the barrel of the British Intelligence service.

“What the F,” I exclaimed, as the TV screen informed me the episode would be available starting FRIDAY. “I want my Slow Horses now!”

How the times have changed. If you are from my generation, or from the Greatest Generation before me, your TV viewing was rigid. You had your TV Guide, you knew what nights your favorite shows were on, and you were satisfied with one episode of Bonanza, Mission: Impossible, or The Dick Van Dyke Show a week. Miss it, and you could hope to catch it during the summer rerun season. Otherwise, it was gone until, like I Love Lucy, syndication would immortalize it.

The video-cassette recorder was the start of an evolution. Whether you were into VHS or Betamax, you could now go bowling on Thursday night and still catch that week’s episode of Hill Street Blues during some free time over the weekend. No need to ever miss Furillo and Davenport getting hot under the sheets.

That technique served our family well for us for many years. Even in the early 2000s, when some people discovered TiVo and began to record their favorite show digitally, I still loaded a cassette into the old VCR every Sunday night to tape Tony Soprano and friends, praying the cassette wouldn’t break.

Finally, in about 2013, Barb and I discovered streaming. We had started watching Parenthood on NBC during its 4th season. Barb wanted to know how the Braverman family had gotten to where they were. We discovered we could find the old shows on Netflix, and began a ritual of watching an episode of our current favorite show every night. After Parenthood came Breaking Bad, and the Sons of Anarchy, and on and on— through Offspring and many more to our current favorite Yellowstone. (We are on Season 2 while you may be watching Season 4. )

So with the very few exceptions of the shows that we keep up with on a weekly basis (This is Us, The Walking Dead), I expect to have episode after episode of a show available to me–a full season at my fingertips. No stewing through seven long days waiting to find out what is going to happen next.

Thus my frustration with Apple TV+ and Slow Horses. I want to know how these lovable losers are going to screw up next–and I want to know!

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As a small-business owner, you might be looking for ways to protect your business. To enhance your business’s security, you must combine both efforts digitally and physically. Ensure you improve your security by utilizing the tips below.

1. Place Security Cameras at Entry Points

Security cameras are an excellent way to catch whoever is trying to break into your place of business. Plus, they can deter any criminals from taking action if they see they’re on camera.

However, you should ditch the traditional security cameras and upgrade to wireless. Smart security cameras let you set up from the best angles. Additionally, they give you peace of mind because you can access them from wherever you are through your smartphone. So you can keep watch on your business at all hours of the day.

Furthermore, you can place them indoors to capture whatever is happening inside your store.

2. Hire a Security Team

If you’re in a high-crime area, you might consider hiring a professionally trained bodyguard for safety. Having security guards around your place of business can provide you some relief. That way, you’re not constantly concerned about protection.

You can take extra precautions by making your business feel safe when you have someone taking care of your security 24/7.

3. Check for Poorly Lit Areas

Dark alleyways and areas with inadequate lighting are hotspots for criminals to hide. Ensure the outside of your business is well-lit. Doing so will deter thieves from targeting your property, and it ensures your employees’ safety after closing up.

4. Utilize Keyless Entry

Small-business owners and their employees have a higher chance of compromising their business’s security when they lose their keys. Consider using a keyless entry system instead.

For instance, a cloud-based control system gives you access through a smartphone app or keyfob. Using these keyless entry systems, you enhance your building security and have increased control over access management. Furthermore, keyless entry systems give you real-time data. So you can track whoever is entering your building with the latest software.

5. Use Encryption to Process Data Safely

Part of enhancing your business’s security is through customer data protection. Cyberattacks can surface regularly for small businesses. You might think data breaches only happen for large corporations. However, bigger companies have the resources to protect sensitive information. In a 2020 report, 28% of data breaches targeted small businesses.

Small businesses are more vulnerable to hackers because they know employers are less likely to invest in IT security. Either this is because they don’t have the funds or aren’t sure where to start. Consider using encryption software when customers enter their payment information. Encryption can secure customers’ data when it processes through the web portal.

6. Shut the Blinds After Hours

Avoid letting anyone have a chance to peek inside your business. When your blinds are open, thieves can see what valuables are inside your store. Ensure you keep the blinds closed after hours and make this part of your closing routine, so employees remember.

Closing blinds will discourage passersby from looking inside your office. Therefore, you’re making your place safer in the long run.

7. Update Your Firewall Protection

Malware and other malicious viruses always have a chance of making their way to your computer, causing harm to your network and physical devices. While working on your company’s computer, make sure your firewalls are up to date.

Any chance your computer’s security software is not up to date is an opportunity for cybercriminals to steal your company’s data.

8. Beware of Strange Email Attachments

It’s more common nowadays for small businesses to correspond with customers and suppliers by email. Often, these emails include attachments that can contain viruses. Once you open the attachment, the virus will download a malicious code — making your computer vulnerable to thieves.

Never open a suspicious attachment unless you know who sent the email. Another way to keep things secure is to install viral protection software on your device. That way, you’re taking extra measures to protect your environment.

Keep Your Business Safe

Small-business owners have plenty of ways to keep their business safe. They just have to utilize the right tools and sources around them. Follow these tips for good measure, and you’ll ensure the protection of your customers, employees and yourself.