MORNING THOUGHTS. Previously posted on my Facebook Page.

News: “`'Influencer fatigue' is real and young people are getting tired of it.” What do we expect? They are all over the internet: Facebook, Twitter/X, TikTok, Instagram, WhatsApp, YouTube, WeChat, Telegram, Snapchat, and many more. True, it’s a “legit” job for mostly the young. Seated 24/7. And “influencing” is bound to be The Job as A.I. implements a.k.a. robots accomplish most of the physical/manual duties. “Future shock” is an understatement. 🤖📱📲

Kiss had sold their catalog etcetera in a deal estimated to be over $300 million. That is not big news. Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen, David Bowie, and Joni Mitchell are a few of huge names in music who sold their songs. Major reason: “Public domain.” Copyrights are forfeited after 70 years of the license. In most countries, the term expires 70 years after the death of the author. May as well sell them now. Also saves stress from A.I. freely stealing them, anyways. 🎼💲🎼

“NBA player misses free throws so Clippers fans get free chicken.” He is 7’4” Boban Marjanovic. Anyhow, the game was his team’s last for the season since Houston Rockets was already out of the playoffs. The Serbian giant is fun. More famous for his funny TV commercials, he was also in some movies. He is the assassin Ernest who quotes Dante's “Divine Comedy” in “John Wick 3,” who fought Mr Wick (Keanu Reeves) in the NY Public Library. 🍗⛹️🤣

We get older. And I think about my dad, who inherited properties. He could have allotted us, nine children, enough cushion to start the pursuit of life. But dad and mom were consumed with our present then over the future. They instead raised us as it was. Live life. Not perfect. But we evolve in a sense of independence in unity. Tight. Now I see my grown up children. Not perfect but they are individual energies, self-sufficient. What they gained, they worked for them. 🌬🌦☀️

CNN. “Biden unveils new plan to forgive student loan debt for up to 70 percent of borrowers.” Meanwhile, those who already paid their loans after years of 3-jobs toil and those who didn’t go to college will help cover for those billions$ via taxes–while they struggle with mortgage payments, credit card woes, and car dues. Gargantuan taxpayer money, for the meantime, is tossed to two ongoing wars as President Biden’s military aid to his favored side. 😵😵‍💫😵

I always read “Only in America!” and “Only in the Philippines!” and those are negative retorts. Seldom, people post good stuff about their country? Many post the bad to be cool? Really. Or because when people praise their home country, they’d be stereotyped as nationalists or conservatives? Influencers on this side of the political narrative would consign you as evil because you love your country? You see, our country is not necessarily the government. 😧😵😵‍💫

News: “Actress recalls Johnny Depp berating her on set for laughing.” Not that I am saying Johnny is some “good boy.” Yet this same bloated drama is common these days. Kids are told that being castigated by a teacher for undone homework or guilt from being late by 15 minutes to walk a dog means additional dosage of antidepressants. Ah. To think that I was trained by an editor whose famous temper and bad words would make Gordon Ramsay an altar boy. 😼😭😼

Unlike most who obviously enjoy them, I don't share hate memes or insulting GIFs that mostly pertain to partisan politics and religion or Christianity. I don’t also respond (to Facebook chats/posts) with a link to an article although reading stuff online (and offline) is a daily regimen. I don’t deepfake myself. I don't tweet/X or Tiktok. I don't share TMI family dramas or talk about my ex’es. Yet I obviously post a lot on a daily basis. Just being me. 😼😾😼

New York Times: “The Raunchy Christians Are Here.” Really? Although advocates of Christianity in America have dwindled to 210 million or 63 percent (from 90 percent in the 1970s), the global community sees the U.S. as a Christian nation. Yet I get the reasons why many give up the religion. But do we need to malign Christianity per se just because we hate some of the Faithful? Due to the overkill of insults, I see the evil in those who slur than the slurred. ✝️💖☮️

AFP: “`Real threat': Presidential long-shot RFK Jr. alarms Democrats.” Democratic Party hardcores or Joe Biden zealots should ease hate Trump fireballs and instead worry about Bobby Kennedy’s son. The Junior embodies ideals that the Old Left espoused and got lost in the New Left’s blurry paradigm. Meanwhile, Donald Trump’s faithful stay solid as rock. And so as Joe loses the Blacks and the young, which he gained in 2020, RFK Jr. could gather those votes for him. 🏛🗽🏛

About Dogs and Cats and their Buddies. And other quick jokes.

Previously posted on my Facebook Page.

PEW Research says most U.S. parents pass on their religious faith and ideological beliefs to their children. Not me. My most virulent activism years were when my kids were little. I never brought my Leftist angst home but I provided tools (movies, books, music) of their choosing. They evolved into adulthood pretty much different from me yet each shows parts of what I am. Like, my son can go naked on Facebook. Me, I don’t even show my nekkid feet, LOL! 👶👧🧒

WHY do dogs take so much space in bed? Experts say it could be love and affection and a sign that you are part of their pack and family. It could also be dominance and a way for the dog to tell you she's in control of the space and control of you. But if you really want your space back, as I do, Fizz The Wiz, who acts as bedroom President, told me: “You may type up a formal complaint, then we will discuss–you, Arrow, Ching, and me. Let’s do this peacefully and as grownups.” 🐕🛌🐈

DOGS can feel a wide range of emotions, from fear and love to anxiety and contentment. Having a calm dog is something many people wish for, but it is important to remember it's just one of many different behavioral traits and emotions they can display. Just like humans. Just like you and me. Although you don’t have to smell another human’s butt to say “Hello, there!” That is inappropriate. Shake hands. 🐕🐩🐕‍🦺

MOST dogs can't recognize faces on phone screens or tablets. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't FaceTime or Skype with your pets while you're out of town! It won't harm them, and they may even recognize and be comforted by the sound of your voice. Now, have you upgraded your dog’s iPhone? Y’know, iPhone 15? 🐕📲🐕

HUNTING dogs, which are innately interested in moving objects, can get more captivated. Hound Arrow hasn’t been watching dog shows though after she finished these: It’s Bruno, Gunther’s Millions, Pet Stars, Dogs in Space, Phantom Pups, Sharkdog etcetera. Fizz and Ching? Their laptops are set to bird and fish videos, 24/7. In fact, I think we’ll bring Ching to a shrink to treat her bird/fish video addiction. She watches a lot! And I always catch her watching at 4 AM! 🐈📺🐕

HERBAL teas are known to bring calm to daily life. Tea ingredients like rooibos, rose petals, lavender, passionflower, and chamomile reduce stress and mild anxiety when taken in certain doses. My friend Booma is perennially stressed out so she drinks lots of herbal tea but it doesn’t work unless she also smokes lotsa weed. Her “destress” budget for a week or so: $22.80 for tea + $318 marijuana. That’d be excluding insurance-covered antidepressants. True story. 🎋🫖🍃

CAN you teach your dog how to drive a car? Cute, clever, and memorable. What you might not know or might not remember is that there were three dogs that were trained on driving a car and had their moment of unveiling in December of 2012 when they were showcased by driving a car on an outdoor track (the YouTube posted video has amassed millions of views). Now, okay–let me remind you, you are a 7 year old in the body of a 38 year old person. Don’t do that at home!!! 🐕🚘🐕

WHY do dogs steal shoes? Attention seeking. It's a form of play (to them). If still, your dog doesn’t get your attention, she will conspire with the cat to either hide them “Nike Air Yeezy 1 Prototypes” and Brunello Cucinelli Cordovan “dress shoes” in the attic or ruin them totally. Totally! Or they will snap a picture of you while you sleep with a wide-open mouth, “decorate” crazy emojis and stickers around it, and post it on Facebook. So pay attention to your dog. (And cat.) 🐕👟🐈

RECENT survey says 42 percent of kids have a phone by age 10. By age 14, cellphone ownership climbs to 91 percent. But that doesn’t really make them smarter. They just learn how to google info as “weapon” to tell you house rules are bad, reading books is incorrect, or dating at 11 years old are fine because that’s what they say in social media; and how to type cryptic words, complete with emojis and enhanced by TikToks. By the time they reach 16 or 17, they’d have their own A.I. versions. 👶📱📲

DOGS do not have the instinctive behaviors of cats per litter box. While many succeed with litter box training, you need to be aware of the risk: some litter box-trained dogs may continue to have "accidents." Fizz The Wiz: “Fake news! Some dogs are smart. Arrow has an IQ of 136. She knows the box isn't hers. You dig? But cats have an IQ average of 256. I explained to Arrow the scientific reasons why she needs to go out for bathroom routine. Besides, she loves snow.” 🐕📦🐈