Temptation Avoided

In bygone days I might well have succumbed to the temptation. 20-lb. tom turkeys that had been priced at 99¢ / pound were marked down by $10, i.e. they were half-priced.

Getting the turkey would have involved a one-day obligation to prepare, roast, and carve the bird. And to what end? To add 20 pounds of leftovers to those already in the refrigerator.

Tangible objects--turkeys, computers, cars, houses--are not only assets but liabilities. They require a commitment to use, consume, maintain and repair.

The cost of the $10 turkey markdown greatly exceeded the benefit when one assigns a slightly positive amount-even $2/hour--to one's time to extract value from the purchase. I looked at the toms wistfully, then moved on.

A2 Milk: a Product That May Take Off

(Stephen Lam/Chronicle photo)

"A2/A2" may sound like the latest Star Wars character, but in real life it just may represent the future of dairy:

Alexandre Family Farm is one of the country’s only producers of A2/A2 milk, which is touted as a superior, easier-to-digest dairy. Many lactose-intolerant people say they can drink it without any discomfort. Chefs from Michelin-star restaurants are clamoring for the unusually luscious, delicious milk...

A2 milk’s growing fanbase — which includes a growing number of top Bay Area chefs — believes it’s the future of dairy. The global A2 milk market size was valued at $2.24 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow particularly fast in the United States in the coming years, according to Fortune Business Insights. The rise of A2 milk comes as the broader dairy industry is in crisis, facing declining sales amid the explosion of plant-based milks. A2’s proponents hope it will stage a comeback for dairy.

“It’s not going to happen overnight but in 20, 30 years I think all milk will be A2, or pretty close,” said Stephanie Alexandre, co-owner of Alexandre Family Farm, whose creamery is in San Leandro. “It’s changing the industry.”

...A2 milk’s road to mainstream consumption is not without challenges. It’s significantly more expensive than conventional milk. At $7.99, a gallon of Alexandre A2 milk costs twice as much as the average in the U.S. Alec’s Ice Cream pints aren’t cheap — around $9, though it depends on the store. For farmers, it’s costly to breed and maintain a fully A2 herd of cows, who must be milked and kept separate from other cows, Alexandre said, especially without the processing resources of a large, commercial dairy business.

Speaking as one who avoids dairy products because of lactose intolerance, I don't mind paying a higher price for A2 milk if it means I can occasionally partake of cheese and ice cream; it will represent a small increase to the food budget, equivalent to visiting Starbucks a couple times a week. While A2 may remain a niche product, I'm betting it will take off.

Happy Thanksgiving

The turkey's halfway done. It needs to be turned and basted.

The hen is smaller than the birds we have bought in years past, but it's just us and there will still be enough leftovers to last through the weekend.

One element of the holiday hasn't changed: we have much to be thankful for, and family is a big part of that attitude of gratitude.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Falling Into the Future

illustration: Kiersten Essenpreis/WSJ

Last spring I tripped over a garden hose and fell face forward onto the dirt. I thrust out my arms protectively and luckily wound up only with a scraped elbow. I am now extra mindful to concentrate on walking and keeping distractions like my phone at bay. I haven't fallen since.

Falling by the elderly has become an epidemic.

More than 1 in 4 people over age 65 fall each year...Every year, falls among older Americans result in about 3.6 million emergency room visits and 1.2 million hospital stays, at a cost of roughly $80 billion. Nationwide, 41,000 senior citizens die from falls annually, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In recent years, prominent figures such as comedian Bob Saget, former Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman and Ivana Trump died after a fall...

Nationally, the death rate from falls jumped 41% from 2012 to 2022, the latest period for which statistics are available. Among seniors, the contributing factors for falls are frustratingly complex. Reaction to prescription drugs, impaired vision and even such basic things as loneliness or ill-fitting shoes often add to the risk of falling.

“There has also been research on dual tasks, like doing more than one thing at a time,” [Arkansas prof. Jennifer] Vincenzo notes. “It’s hard for you to focus on movement if you’re focusing on doing another task, talking on the phone or texting, so that if you have impaired balance or walking problems, you’re not going to pay attention to that and potentially fall.”

My parents fortunately suffered only minor injuries from falls at home. Being unable to get up by themselves, even with the help of their spouse, eventually prompted their move to assisted living.

I hope that I am years away from having to follow in their missteps, but the tumble that I took in the spring showed that it-will-never-happen-to-me is an attitude I no longer can afford to have.

There is Still Hope for Us

The rest of the country may consider Northern Californians irredeemable, but this shows there is still hope for us. [bold added]

The weekend before the opening of the Bay Area’s newest Costco [in Pleasanton] brought a now-familiar sight: crowds of people camping out to secure their place in line on opening day. A similar encampment had formed in advance of the opening of the Napa Costco in October — though that hadn’t fallen during an atmospheric river.

These campers descend on new Costco stores largely in search of one item: booze, particularly rare bottles of bourbon.

The devoted drinkers have been eagerly speculating online about whether the Pleasanton Costco, which opens Wednesday at 7200 Johnson Drive, might carry bourbons that have been present at other Costco grand openings like Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, Russell’s Reserve 15 Year and, most coveted of all, Pappy Van Winkle, which notoriously goes for thousands of dollars a bottle from online resellers.

I prefer scotch, but if someone offers me a sip of any of the aforementioned bourbons, I wouldn't turn it down.

Talking Turkey

Our 15-lb. hen cost 99 cents/pound.

The cost of Thanksgiving dinner is going down. [bold added]

The average price for a turkey this holiday season is projected to be down for a second year in a row, said the American Farm Bureau Federation in its annual report released this week. The lower cost for the headline attraction looks to cut costs for those hosting Thanksgiving dinner this year, but some favorite side dishes will remain stubbornly expensive for shoppers.

The Farm Bureau projects the average price for a Thanksgiving turkey to fall 6.1% to $25.67, or $1.68 a pound, this year...But cheaper meat is only part of the story, as the cost to make many family-favorite side dishes continues to rise. For example, fans of mashed potatoes may find the cost for that dish a little steeper. A smaller North American potato crop this year due to adverse weather issues and a change in consumer demand has the U.S. potato price up 7.6% year over year, said commodities research firm Expana in its own report issued this month, citing data from the USDA.

Prices for processed goods also are on the rise. The Farm Bureau said that it expects prices for a 14-ounce package of stuffing mix to increase by more than 8% from last year to $4.08. The price for a dozen dinner rolls also is expected to rise by more than 8% to $4.16.

Even worse for those with a sweet tooth, prices for some pies may be increasing, with Expana’s Thanksgiving Pecan Pie index up 8% from last year, due mostly to higher prices for pecans that are offsetting cheaper costs for sugar, vanilla and butter.

Overall, the Farm Bureau forecasts the cost of the average Thanksgiving meal for a group of 10 people at $58.08. That’s down 5% from the previous year, and down 9% from the record of $64.06 set in 2022, the highest since the Farm Bureau began its yearly assessment in 1986.

Feeding ten people for $58.08 sounds incredibly cheap until one realizes that the Farm Bureau has assumed that most of the dishes have been made from scratch.

Cost reductions aren't enjoyed by city dwellers, who tend to have small Thanksgiving gatherings and opt for convenience over cost. We will roast our own turkey, however, and take special enjoyment from its $15 cost, which will be spread over meals throughout the weekend.

David Mamet: "America..will go one with Nineveh and Tyre. But not today."

David Mamet: the America-in-decline narrative is akin to
Israel's 40 years in the wilderness. (image from Medium)

Pulitzer-winning playwright David Mamet says that America's decline, prior to the November election, was due to individuals' fear of challenging the dominant narrative: [bold added]

Yet half of America not only abides but fervently supports a codependent decline to poverty, crime and a nascent police state. Why? The leftist politicians and their media courtiers and designated beneficiaries profited from the perks of power. But why did the everyday American endorse them and their fear mongering? The actual threat wasn’t global warming, Islamophobia, the Supreme Court, the police, Immigration and Customs Enforcement or Mr. Trump. It was exclusion from the herd.

An existential secret is one whose revelation would destroy the group. If dad is a drug addict or a sex criminal, acknowledging it would shatter the family. The protection of the secret becomes the family’s unifying endeavor. If anyone says anything, it might reveal that everyone is in on the secret. The sick family devotes all necessary energies to collusion—to mutual and self-censorship.

During the past four years, American politics has been dominated by a coalition each of whose members, like codependent kin, has its own investment in group integrity and the power it derives therefrom. The superrich, academia, Islamists, Marxists and the media have colluded to suppress the true and impose the false.

We know that their perfidies, lawfare, slander, blacklisting and civil persecution were practiced on conservatives and Republicans, particularly on Mr. Trump. But the suppression was targeted primarily at their own voters.

To remain unthreatened by reason, the liberal populace had to be convinced to endorse various lies and fantasies: Black Lives Matter, Israel’s perfidy, unlimited abortion as a woman’s right, men’s right to compete in women’s sports, the abolition of the police, Mr. Trump’s demonic power and so on.

Why would rational people vote to destroy their borders, their cities, their jobs and their children? For the same reason the sick family must tolerate its dysfunction: The co-opted liberal electorate was terrified that any deviation would result in destruction of its protective unit. As it would.

While a reader may disagree with David Mamet's list of "lies and fantasies," there is no denying that Democratic voters were asked to accept abrupt reversals of positions this year--from President Biden's sudden cognitive decline to the newfound acceptability of fracking, law enforcement, and Christianity.

Even the one theme that they stuck with to the end--Trump is Hitler--was cast overboard the day after the election by Democratic politicians who promised to work with the President-elect and opinion-writers eager for an interview.

The important lesson, IMHO, is not the wrongness of Democratic policies but the fact that their thought leaders didn't even believe their own arguments. They look like people who will say anything to acquire power, and, if I were a follower, I wouldn't believe anything they had to say.

Chicken Feet

While shopping at 99 Ranch I passed the display of chicken "paws." The price was $5.49 per pound, and no, I didn't buy any.

My paternal grandmother used to get chicken feet free from the Honolulu Chinatown butchers. When one has to feed nine kids, no part of the animal is wasted.

Grandmother had several go-to recipes. What they all had in common was long hours of cooking. The feet are tough and require heat over an extended period to break down the cartilage.

My father never lost his childhood fondness for chicken feet and would always order a dish at dim sum restaurants. Nostalgia can be a powerful motivator.

California Forms Scam

We first wrote about form scams 15 years ago. The grifters are still at it, evidenced by the "501-LLC, Declaration of Members and Managers" (not a real California form) I got in yesterday's mail. As I wrote back then

Limited Liability Companies that are operated by harried small-business folk provide especially fertile ground for the scam artists.

A plumber or painter can't be expected to know every form that needs to be filed by his LLC, consulting with his accountant and lawyer costs money, and they may well say that he needs to pay the fee anyway,

The form scam is sufficiently widespread that California has devoted a web page to it:

Certain business entities have reported receiving misleading solicitations like this sample (PDF) urging the business to submit an order form and processing fee to a third party to file a Statement of Information on their behalf with the California Secretary of State or suffer penalties, fines, suspension or seizure.

The "501-LLC" I received demands a payment of $243 for filing the same information required by California Form LLC-12. The latter is a biennial Statement of Information for LLCs that takes less than five minutes to complete online. The fee is $20.

Empire of Lights

Empire of Lights (1954), (Christie's/WSJ)

If you asked the man on the street to name twenty artists--alive or dead--the odds are extremely low that René Magritte would be on the list. Yet, earlier this week his "Empire of Lights" sold for $121.2 million at a Christie's auction:

Magritte, who lived from 1898 to 1967, is known for his dreamlike takes on everyday objects, from smoking pipes to green apples to bowler hats. With this sale, he joins an elite club of fewer than 20 artists whose works have commanded nine-figure sums, including Pablo Picasso and Leonardo da Vinci. The sale, to a telephone bidder after a nearly 10-minute bidding war, also represents the first time this year that any artist has crossed the $100 million mark at auction.

...“Empire of Lights” was one of 17 canvases that the Belgian painter created between 1949 and 1964 that offer variations of the same surreal scene: A suburban house sitting in seeming darkness and yet backed by a day-lit blue sky. Sometimes, the house has a red door; other times, green shutters. Often, Magritte surrounds his houses with towering trees or a stream of reflective water. In whatever form, the juxtaposition of night and day is widely considered his masterpiece—and his bestselling motif. Christie’s version on Tuesday stood out in part because it was the biggest example to ever come to market, at 4 feet tall. It was also the first to include watery reflections.

The Impressionists and Post-Impressionists have had and continue to have their day at art auctions. The nine-figure valuation of Empire of Lights shows that the surrealists are closing fast.

The Son of Man (Singulart)

Note: although aficionados call Empire his "masterpiece," Magritte's most recognized painting is The Son of Man (1964). The apple, the bowler hat, and the hidden face have all rippled through popular culture. Concerning the apple,

Paul McCartney owned one of Magritte’s works titled Le Jeu De Morre in which the painter has featured yet another apple. Inspired by this, McCartney named the Beatles’ record company ‘Apple Corps’. This further inspired Steve Jobs to name his company ‘Apple Computers’.

Enjoy the Dance While You Can

Nick Bosa 49ers GIFfrom Nick Bosa GIFs

The "Trump dance" is taking the sports world by storm, with football players, mixed martial artists, soccer players, and even golfers using the dance to celebrate a triumphant sports move. The dance was first performed on November 10th by 49ers defensive end Nick Bosa (above gif from tenor.com), who was fined $11,255 by the NFL for wearing a Make America Great Again hat in a post-game interview.

“All the guys wanted me to do it. I wasn’t even going to do it, but the boys reminded me. And it was fun,” Bosa told reporters, per the San Francisco Chronicle...

At UFC 309 on Saturday, with Trump in attendance, Jon Jones commemorated retaining his heavyweight title by busting out the dance before acknowledging Trump at ringside.

Afterward, Jones made his way over to the president-elect, with the pair shaking hands and Jones allowing Trump to hold his heavyweight title belt.

On Sunday, there were multiple renditions across the NFL of the ‘Trump dance,’ with Detroit Lions defensive end Za’Darius Smith, Las Vegas Raiders tight end Brock Bowers and Tennessee Titans wide receiver Calvin Ridley all performing it.

Nick Bosa and the 49ers' celebrations have been tempered by injury and last-minute losses. Even making the playoffs will be an uphill battle for last year's Super Bowl runner up. If the team goes nowhere, the Trump dance and the MAGA-hat fine may be what the season is remembered for.

A Regular Responsibility

The air filter on our Lennox furnace should be changed once a year, but I let it go for 17 months. The blackened filter, probably due to two summers of wildfires, showed that I should have adhered to the schedule.

Looking after our stuff (cars, appliances, landscaping, and heating, hot water, and security systems) has become problematic. Each item by itself is not burdensome, but together they add up.

Maybe downsizing or even renting is in our future. Let someone else shoulder these regular responsibilities.

Cupertino Contretemps

(Illustration from them.us)

Just when I thought the Chronicle was a decent newspaper that kept its news and opinion sections separate, it produces this headline:

A Silicon Valley teacher used pronouns in a TK class. Parents demanded they go back ‘in the closet’

The slant from the headline? Pronouns are relatively harmless, "back in the closet" harks back to the historic suppression of homosexuality, and "parents demand" hints that they're intolerant uneducated rubes, probably religious. However, digging into the article reveals that non-binary pronouns are being taught to four-year-olds in Transitional Kindergarten.

The individual at the center of the battle teaches 4-year-olds in transitional kindergarten at Dilworth Elementary School and was placed on leave in August after parents complained that they were discussing content they did not believe was appropriate for young children. Supporters of the teacher, including many experts in early childhood development and instruction, said the criticism appears to be leveled against the teacher’s gender identity, not what they’re teaching.

The reporter's bias is evident. She accuses the parents of transphobia ("against the teacher’s gender identity, not what they’re teaching") by using the "many experts...said" ploy. She also adopts trans pronoun language ("what they're teaching" not "what she's teaching").

I agree with the parents that non-standard pronouns are wholly confusing for kids who are learning the alphabet and basic arithmetic. Teach four year olds the fundamentals, then branch out to nuances and exceptions when they're years older. Parents' protests, IMHO, have nothing to do with animus toward the teacher's personal characteristics, just the content of his or her instruction.

Get the woke ideology out of elementary schools, and the kids will have a much better chance of getting into a good college (if that's what they want).

Heaven from a Shoeshine

Executive Shoeshine, Charlotte

A lawyer catches a glimpse of the divine when his shoes are shined at the airport:

Hunched over, he toiled for what seemed an impossibly long stretch. The diligent and humble effort reminded me of something St. Thérèse of Lisieux said about the merits of redemptive suffering. “I prefer the monotony of obscure sacrifice to all ecstasies,” said the 19th-century Carmelite nun. “To pick up a pin for love can convert a soul.” From where I sat, that’s what the worker was doing: a small thing with great love.

There seemed no past or future, only a continuous present in which he was fully engaged. How often I selfishly worry about tomorrow or dwell on yesterday. Yet this man knew, as the proverb goes, how to be where your feet are.

His efforts breathed new life into my wingtips. Shoes that could have been mistaken for the worn-out kicks of the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s Mr. Bojangles suddenly looked good enough to pass military inspection.

When it was time to settle up, I asked what I owed for his services. “Whatever you think it was worth,” he said. Surprised, I asked the question again but got the same answer.

It had been years since I’d been to this shop, but I recalled its prices and figured they hadn’t changed much. Inspired by this man’s trust, I paid him a premium. Our circuitous path to price discovery got me thinking.

A cynic, Oscar Wilde said, is a man who knows the price of everything and the value of nothing. This most uncynical man demands no price for payment, only value for consideration. I think I understand why. Transactions in the material economy may be zero-sum—a dollar in his pocket was one out of mine—but ones in the spiritual economy never are. The abundant trust he placed in me didn’t diminish his stores of unperishable virtue.

How man sees himself and the world around him largely depends on which part, matter or spirit, he identifies as the seat of his authentic self. By transacting in values, the laborer chose the better part. As with shoes, I suddenly realized, so with people.

It’s fitting that a boot polisher would be the one great-souled enough to help me make this connection. He surely knows how life’s curb spares nobody, but that no matter how abraded our exterior, we’re never without intrinsic value. Once the imperfections are lovingly made right, interior magnificence is visible, and we are again glorious bodies.

A typical transaction in a capitalist economy this wasn't. Not only did the vendor insist that the buyer pay only what the buyer thought "it was worth", but the shoeshine man told the customer to do so after he rendered the service, i.e., after he had lost all negotiating leverage. He had made himself vulnerable and had to trust the customer to do the right thing. The latter did, and for just a moment the curtains of the world parted, and we caught a glimpse of the divine.

I'm Gonna Be On Time Next Time

Hat on sale from Etsy

WSJ columnist Joe Queenan does not believe that the chronically tardy are being deliberately disrespectful. They are "aspirationally chronometric":

But lately I have come to realize that the chronically tardy are not late because they can’t keep time or because they don’t care that they have kept you waiting or because they never leave enough time to catch the train or find a parking spot. They are late because they practice something called “aspirational chronometry.”

The aspirationally timely are people who honestly think that time can miraculously expand to accommodate their needs, people who are always surprised to discover that the train has left, the cake has burned, the game is over, the blind date has up and left.

People who are always late are like people who are always befuddled that their diets never work or that their new clothes never fit. Just like people who buy a size 8 dress or size 34-36 trousers in the vain hope that they might eventually fit into them, the aspirationally chronometric honestly believe that by saying the words, “I’ll be there in five minutes,” they will actually be there in five minutes. Arriving 40 minutes late always comes as a shock.

I do not believe that the chronically tardy should be excoriated or ridiculed or cast out into the darkness. Just as some of us are insensitive and some of us are cheap and some of us are not so great around children and some of us tell inappropriate jokes in refined social settings, some people couldn’t arrive on time if their life depended on it.

There is nothing to be done about it; the behavior cannot be cured. Making people feel guilty about their maddening tardiness is only going to make things worse. The best course of action is to grin and bear it.

Mr. Queenan's tolerant attitude ends when the tardy person is or could be one's life partner:

You only see your friends from time to time, but you see your partner every day—which means your significant other is going to keep you waiting every day.

How to deal with this? At this point it might be, well, too late. But if you notice early in your relationship that your partner is always, always tardy, it’s likely best to pull the plug on the love affair and move to someone who is more chronometrically reliable.

Just as you would bring down the curtain on a relationship with someone who had a bad drug habit or who seemed way too fond of World War I-era ordnance, you should immediately walk away from a prospective partner as soon as you realize that they’re going to be a half-hour behind for everything for the next 65 years.

One should always practice charity and tolerance. But do not voluntarily enter a relationship where one must practice said charity and tolerance every day for the rest of one's life. That's being too aspirationally virtuous.

SFO: the Bounce is Gone

(WSJ photo)

During my working years I flew on United Airlines dozens of times (nothing compared to the marketing guys who were members of the million-mile club), and I grew very familiar with the moving walkways in Terminal 3 at San Francisco International Airport. The 400-ft.-long rubber coverings will soon be replaced with metal plates, and, surprisingly, there appear to be more than a few travelers who will miss the rubber bands:

The bouncy walkways at SFO’s Terminal 3—three are inside the passenger connector to the building—have been around for at least 30 years—even airport officials aren’t exactly sure when they were put in. Unlike the ones more common with movable metal plates, these are made of a long, continuous piece of rubber, and sit on rubber wheels.

Kids like to hop and skip on the "bouncy," and the padding is easier on aging hips, knees, and ankles. However, these modest benefits do not outweigh the economic costs.

The bouncy has been no fun for mechanics, though. At the three other terminals at SFO, which all feature more conventional walkways, [SFO spokesman Doug] Yakel said those belts are made with metal modules that can be swapped out if one breaks. But since the bouncy is made from one continuous section of rubber, he said a malfunction often means the entire belt has to be replaced.

“There’s only one outfit that makes these and there are very long lead times, and these are very expensive to procure,” he said. “It’s simply not a cost effective moving walkway anymore.”

Of all the places and things that have bowed to the ravages of time the rubber-band walkways are far down the list, IMHO, of items that will be missed. For the vast majority of travelers who do not have mobility problems it's better that they walk and do not ride anyway.

Not Getting A Head

In traditional Chinese cuisine no part of the animal is wasted. At the barbecue counter in 99 Ranch a roasted pig's head was placed next to the cash register. That's an impulse purchase that you won't find at Safeway or Lucky.

I proceeded to the refrigerated egg section and picked up a six-pack of century eggs for $6.25. They were imported from Taiwan and boasted "no lead added." Good to know.

I threw a couple of chopped eggs into the pork jook that had been simmering for a couple of hours. They would add complexity to what would have been a plain-tasting dish. There will be enough in the pot to last until Sunday.

Two Became One

Synchronized contractions when poked (Nature gif)

Two comb jellies merged into a single organism in a Massachusetts lab:

In a strange episode in the animal kingdom, a captive marine animal merged with another of its kind to become a single individual.

The organisms that merged are comb jellies, translucent invertebrates that resemble jellyfish but belong to a different group of marine animals called ctenophores. They grow to about 4 inches long by 2 inches wide, eat plankton and are found throughout the northern and southern Atlantic Ocean.

Marine scientists discovered the merger when one comb jelly went missing from a laboratory tank, while another appeared unusually large. After taking a closer look, the researchers found that the big one was two individuals now sharing digestive and nervous systems...

The researchers fed the combined comb jellies fluorescent brine shrimp and watched as the bits of food made their way through their shared digestive system.

[Postdoctoral researcher Kei] Jokura speculated that the animals—also known as sea walnuts—sustained minor injuries in the tank, which activated the merger process. To prove this, he and colleagues put 10 pairs of injured comb jellies near each other. Nine of the 10 pairs successfully fused together.

“In just about two hours, their muscle contractions became synchronous in functional fusion,” he said. “It was remarkable and incredible.”

This discovery has possible implications for human health. Just as in the case of anglerfish sexual parasitism, the sea creatures lose the sense of self that distinguishes foreign tissue from their own. Overcoming this normally valuable protective mechanism is crucial to prevent rejection in transplant surgery.

Notes: the Modern Private Diary

2008: view from office with first iPhone

I began using the Notes app when I got my first iPhone 16 years ago. It was the repositor of random musings, then shopping and to-do lists, passwords, progress on YMCA exercise machines, drafts of emails not sent (but too good to trash), and sundry items. There are now 53 Notes in total; one could almost say Notes has become an extension of my brain.

For lots of people, the Notes app has become an extension of their brains. Its popularity has spurred Apple to introduce richer features like document scanning and checklists with check boxes. But users and tech-industry analysts alike say its simplicity is what has made Notes a cultural touchstone since its 2007 debut. Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande and other celebrities use it to express their feelings in a relatable way—so do the keepers of world-famous pygmy hippos.

Apple doesn’t say how many people use Notes, though it’s preinstalled on most of the 2.2 billion Apple devices active globally. Goodnotes, Notion and other similar services with more features—and broader compatibility with Android and Windows—have each been downloaded around 50 million times from 2021 to October 2024, according to market-intelligence firm Sensor Tower.

...TikTok has become a repository where people share what they deem their most “unhinged” Notes app entries.

The hashtag #notesapp has more than 90,000 posts, with users sharing revenge speeches, breakup rationales, love-song lyrics and cry logs. (Yes, people use Notes to record the days when they cry.) One popular trend, which even singer Chappell Roan jumped on, was “never go through a girl’s notes app.”

Apple's iPhone data is encrypted and therefore gives users a (false?) sense of privacy. It's a place to vent, save inappropriate jokes, and store our true impressions of people. Just be careful which icon you tap: Notes are very easy to send to or share with other people.

Veteran's Day

Below is my post from 2013, slightly edited:

November begins on a personal note with my birthday. In recent years the celebration has been muted. (I'm at the age when I look back more than I look ahead.)

Dad, near Tokyo in 1945

Today, Veteran's Day, we remember my father and his five brothers, World War II veterans all, who have passed on. Dad's ashes are at the family church, while the others are interred at Punchbowl.

On November 19th the nation will honor the 161st anniversary of the Gettysburg Address, Lincoln's great speech in the aftermath of an horrific battle. And on November 22nd the nation will remember the life and death of John F. Kennedy 61 years after his assassination.

In a strange way revisiting traumatic events such as WW II, the Civil War, and the JFK assassination gives rise to hope. The obstacles that the nation overcame 61, 80, and 161 years ago dwarf those that it faces today, and there is no good reason why we shouldn't be equally--and ultimately--successful in solving our problems as well. © 2024 Stephen Yuen

The Episcopal Church: plus ça change

Bishop Austin Rios

It's no secret that the vast majority of Episcopalians, both clergy and laity, are politically liberal; in various gatherings around the Bay Area I have never met an Episcopalian who will admit to conservative or Republican leanings, although, to be fair, lay people rarely initiate political discussions.

Austin Rios, who was installed as our Bishop three months ago, has words of reconciliation (complete message after the break) after first stating his own disappointment in the election's outcome: [bold added]

As a long-term supporter of immigrant rights and the former director of an international refugee center, I do not believe mass deportations, promised by the Trump campaign, will make America greater or stronger.

As a former resident of small towns in Texas, Wisconsin, and North Carolina, I have seen how misinformation can easily manipulate the views and feelings in more insular communities.

And I’ve also seen how small communities can sometimes show-up for their neighbors who are in crisis more consistently than those who call big cities their homes.

There is no denying the cognitive dissonance that arises from many Americans preferring an older white male felon to a younger multiracial female prosecutor.

I was uncertain when Bishop Rios was elected, but now it's clear: the Diocese will be led by another social justice warrior for at least a decade. The giveaway is in the last sentence, where the Bishop assigns virtue or vice based on a candidate's sexual and racial identity. I'm disappointed, but as a believer in democracy, I accept the will of my fellow Episcopalians!

BTW, there's a decent chance that all his convictions will be overturned on appeal, and all charges will be dropped in other cases. Will President-elect Trump still be a "convicted felon"?

Costco: the Good Times are Back

Next to the $14.99/lb ribeye were steaks going for $59.99. A second look revealed that the price was $59.99 per pound. It was wagyu beef, which we had seen in Japan decades ago for $100 per pound, so the Costco price was a relative bargain.

In past years we have gawked at the occasional Costco offerings of $550 hams and $2,150 cognac. Of course, we never pulled the trigger, nor did we do so on the wagyu steaks with the cheapest package going for $240.

Nevertheless, the marketing and buying geniuses at Costco would never have displayed the luxury ribeyes unless there was a good chance they would be bought. The good times are back.

The Executive Function Coach

(Illustration by Kilbride/WSJ)

Here's another child-raising specialty that didn't exist when our kids were growing up. Demand is exploding for the Executive Function coach.

Executive function skills fall under three big headings: working, or short-term, memory; inhibitory control, which involves putting urges and impulses on hold; and cognitive flexibility, the ability to plan, reason, solve problems and manage multiple tasks. In practical terms, EF might coaches show students how to break down assignments and projects into bite-sized pieces and estimate the time each will take; establish a daily schedule, with time for study, exercise, socializing and sleep; and develop a plan to avoid getting distracted by technology and social media.

Psychologists in schools and private practice report seeing a flood of requests from parents for executive function help for their kids, and experienced EF coaches are struggling to meet demand...

The rise in demand for student EF coaches coincides with a rise in ADHD diagnoses and mental health problems in young people. Technology is fragmenting kids’ attention, and student life has become far more demanding. Juggling school, sports, extracurriculars, volunteering and college admissions requires careful time management.

“The number of choices available to a young person has increased so substantially,” says Grant Leibersberger, founder and principal of Boston-based Focus Collegiate, which offers EF coaching to kids with learning differences who are going to traditional colleges. “Their brains aren’t wired for all these choices so early on.”

Your humble blogger has observed young adults who have not been able to deal with electronic distractions. We see them on the road every day and give them a wide berth.

Executive Function training isn't just for kids.

Peggy Noonan's Take

(WSJ graphic)

Former Reagan and GHW Bush speechwriter Peggy Noonan could not bring herself to support Donald Trump. However, her personal feelings about the President-elect do not prevent her from performing an insightful analysis of Tuesday's results:

It was a triumph for the Republican Party—a sweep, a rout—and a disaster for the Democrats. Much has been written about the demographic facts but when a single candidate increases his totals in almost every group but one, white women, something big happened. Donald Trump will likely receive a majority of the popular vote—the first Republican to do so since 2004. Republicans handily won the Senate and appear poised to take the House. This amounts to a legitimately claimed mandate.

Mr. Trump’s is the biggest political comeback since Richard Nixon, whose career flat-lined in embarrassment in 1962, after a failed gubernatorial race and stumbling news conference—“You won’t have Nixon to kick around anymore”—only to roar back to the presidency in 1968. It isn’t enough said that Mr. Trump did this while enduring a shooting, a second, thwarted assassination attempt, and credible intelligence reports that Iran was trying to kill him. He went into all his rallies knowing that. He showed a lot of guts. Mass media didn’t dwell on this, but regular people did.

As for Kamala Harris, Mr. Trump in 2020 lost the Catholic vote. This year he carried it with a healthy 56%. That’ll teach her to blow off the Al Smith dinner.

What did it all mean? The people did what they wished. They revolted. They looked at the past four years of Washington and said no. They said “Goodbye to all that,” to the years 2020-24—to the pandemic, to the pain and damage of that era, which affected every part of our lives. That is the real turning of the page I think, from a time they hated that made them view their government as bullying and not that bright. In terms of issues it was illegal immigration, inflation and a rejection of the deterioration all around them—of drugstores locking up the shampoo and the beleaguered Walgreens employee late with the key to the cabinet and in a bad mood because he’s afraid of thieves and crazy people and it’s wearing him down. It was the woke regime, which people have come to experience as an invading force in their lives. It was Afghanistan, and other wars, and the sense Washington isn’t getting foreign policy right and perhaps barely thinking about it. They just seem to be staggering through each day. The country’s been waiting for years to hear from its leaders: What are America’s interests?

In September, pondering the race, I wrote: “This will be a path election, not a person election.” Once we chose a shining John F. Kennedy, who would choose the path. You chose dazzling Ronald Reagan, and he’d cut a path through the forest. This year I felt people would be choosing a path, not a person. “And I’m not sure they want to go down the Blue Path any deeper than they already have.”

I think that’s what happened. Tens of millions of people who didn’t like Donald Trump voted for the path he promised.

America, after its long journey through the 2010s and ’20s, is becoming more conservative again.

Lest her readers think she has changed her mind about the man, she adds:

As for me, I don’t like the SOB, I think him a bad man who’ll cause and bungle crises almost from day one, but he’ll be the American president, and we all deserve grace. I will pray for him, support what I think constructive and oppose what I think destructive, call it straight as I can and take whatever follows.

Such language, Peggy, what would the Gipper say?

Post-Election Rally

November 6, 2024: the "fifth-best one-day showing ever"

The stock market rocketed higher over Donald Trump's clear-cut victory last night. [bold added]

Wall Street has rarely been more excited by an election.

U.S. stocks’ capitalization rose by $1.62 trillion on Wednesday, their fifth-best one-day showing ever, following Donald Trump’s decisive election victory. The surge highlights the opportunity that investors, bankers and others in finance are hoping to embrace over four years of tax cuts, deregulation and economic expansion.

While all sectors benefited, investors were particularly enthusiastic about the possibility of a lenient antitrust regime and a less stringent regulatory environment:

Dealmakers expect mergers and acquisitions to come roaring back, with the installation of business-friendly regulators replacing those backed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.), a noted dealmaking foe. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley were among the strongest performers on Wednesday; those firms are among the most deal-oriented....

Among the biggest beneficiaries of a Trump administration are U.S. banks, a group that has been under regulatory scrutiny that is likely to ease in the next four years.

Bank stocks surged Wednesday in a wager that a strong economy, increased dealmaking and lighter regulation will spur higher profits. Some of the firms that have been under the most pressure from their overseers during the Biden administration surged. Wells Fargo jumped 13% to a new high. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley both rose more than 10%.

IMHO, the stock market is moving too fast. Staffing key positions will not happen immediately, plus senior and mid-level positions are filled with bureaucrats who not only do not support but actively resist Mr. Trump's policies, as we saw during his first term. I won't be a buyer for at least several weeks.

Voting in Person on Tuesday

2020 election: plenty of space

Foster City tore down its Recreational Center in the month before today's election. The timing was unfortunate, in that the spacious Rec Center was Foster City's sole in-person voting location. (The City began planning the $66 million construction project in 2017.)

Signs directed us to a room in City Hall, next to the fire station. The room was packed with voting booths; about half were occupied.

A volunteer asked me to "register"--she quickly corrected the phrase to "check in"--and I filled out a form with my name, residential address, and date of birth.

Another lady checked the information against her computer (no identification was requested), and directed me to an empty station.

I made my selections on the touchscreen, printed out the ballot, and dropped it into the box. The whole process took half an hour.

To be perfectly honest, I wouldn't have minded taking another minute to show a picture ID, but California is unlikely to reinstate that requirement in my lifetime.

I'll Have Some News With Those Jokes

Tyrus gesticulates

On the eve of an election which is again the-most-important-election-in-my-lifetime I'm tuning out all the reporting on the polls. Predictions range from a late break toward Harris to a clear-cut Trump victory. The most common poll result seems to be a statistical tie.

This week I've been watching Gutfield, Fox's late-night humor show. Tonight there was this nugget.

George "Tyrus" Murdoch: You are from the mean streets of Northern California.

Greg Gutfield: San Mateo.

Tyrus: You didn't play.

Gutfield: I cut my teeth at the Hillsdale Mall.

Tonight I learned that Greg Gutfield, like Tom Brady, Kris Kristofferson, and Merv Griffin, is another San Mateo kid who moved away and hit it big.

It's a pleasant surprise when you go to be entertained and pick up some knowledge in the process.

Happy Birthday, Again

On my birthday I knocked over the dietary guardrails and ate a week's supply of beef, dairy (clam chowder and ice cream), and sugar.

The penalty will be short-term only (I hope), but the memory of this outing with the family will linger for months.

When I was a child, I liked opening presents and being the center of attention. After I grew up, birthdays came and went for 40 years with little recognition. Now I'm beginning to appreciate them more...

Warren Buffett Thinks Taxes are Going Up, and So Should You

The Berkshire Hathaway shareholders' meeting in Omaha last May.

Continuing its liquidation of Apple stock, Berkshire Hathaway sold a lot more in the third quarter: [bold added]

The Omaha, Neb., company ended September with $69.9 billion of the iPhone maker’s shares, according to a quarterly report released Saturday. That means Berkshire sold about 25% of the 400 million Apple shares it brought into the third quarter. Berkshire held slightly more than 900 million Apple shares at the end of last year.

Even after the sales, Apple was Berkshire’s largest stockholding at the end of September. Apple has been a major bet for Berkshire, and one that paid off big time as tech-hungry investors drove the stock ever higher in recent years.

This year, Berkshire has slashed the position, though Buffett has continued to praise the company. He told an arena of shareholders at Berkshire’s annual meeting in May that Apple was “an even better business” than American Express and Coca-Cola, two other big holdings, and hinted that tax considerations might have played a role in the decision to sell some shares.

Apple shares are up 16% this year and trading near records.

Market commentators generally have explained Berkshire's actions to be the result of portfolio-risk reduction (overconcentration in one stock) and the perceived over-valuation of Apple stock according to several metrics. However, the impact of higher corporate income tax rates after 2025 should not be underestimated in Warren Buffett's decision-making. Higher tax rates have a direct, immediate negative impact on cash flow, while portfolio diversification increases portfolio returns probabilistically but are not guaranteed.

Unless the Republicans make a clean sweep of the Presidency and Congress, tax rates are likely to go up. And even if the Republicans do win, the Grand Old Party still has traditionalists who are fiscally conservative. Higher-income taxpayers would be foolish not to take into consideration the likelihood of higher tax rates after 2025, and some are taking action now.

Among the moves investors might want to make if they are convinced taxes are headed higher is to sell stocks. Selling now would lock in capital gains at the current 20% top rate.

Kamala Harris proposes a new top capital-gains rate of 28% for high earners. She is also proposing to increase the investment income surtax. Although Donald Trump has campaigned on extending the 2017 law, taxpayers are also worried taxes could move higher if he wins, because of the nation’s finances and economy...

Potential changes to capital-gains taxes, more likely with a Democratic sweep, are prompting some taxpayers to sell stock or shares in a business. In addition to the higher capital-gains rate for those earning $1 million or more, Harris proposes increasing the 3.8% investment income surtax to 5% for taxpayers with income above $400,000.

Your humble taxpaying blogger may make some income-accelerating moves, such as converting traditional IRA moneys to a Roth IRA before year-end, but will wait till next year to take action after the election smoke clears.

Crouching Lion

I always had a hard time envisioning the lion (Peebles/SFGate)

My father liked to load the kids in the family car and "drive around the island" on weekends. We would head to the North Shore and return via the single-lane highway on the Windward (eastern) side.

The 2-3 hour trip seemed interminable to this Island kid, and the Crouching Lion rock formation signalled that we were 30 minutes from Kaneohe, which was 30 minutes from central Honolulu.

60 years later I no longer rush through the route, choosing to stop and savor the moment:

Because we don't know when we will die,
we get to think of life as an inexhaustible well.
Yet everything happens only
a certain number of times,
and a very small number really.
How many more times will you remember a certain afternoon of your childhood,
some afternoon that's so deeply a part of your being that you can't even conceive
of your life without it.
Perhaps four or five times more, perhaps not even that.
How many more times will you watch the full moon rise?
Perhaps twenty. And yet it all seems limitless.
--Paul Bowles, The Sheltering Sky

(Krause/SFGate photo)

Now there's another reason to go to the Windward side. The Crouching Lion Restaurant has re-opened.

Perched above the ocean, the restaurant remains one of the few dining establishments available in the windward neighborhood. It has changed hands throughout the years because of financial challenges. Eventually, it closed down. It was a daunting prospect for potential investors because of its remote location. It also required a significant amount of investment to restore.

But it was a challenge that new owner Eddie Kim was willing to take on, and he purchased the property in 2022 for $3.7 million. “I wanted to try something new,” he says. “After years of being an educator, it was time for a new adventure.” The restaurant officially reopened this past May. While Kim is new to the restaurant business, his goals are simple: “I wanted to create a restaurant where I would want to eat at and bring family and friends.”

For decades I've noticed the cars parked outside but never stopped. It's time I did.