A LITTLE BIT OF A LOT

The major television networks-- ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News and NBC --agreed today to suspend pooled coverage of President Donald Trump after the White House yesterday refused to allow CNN entrance.  This is an incredible and extraordinary escalation of the showdown between Trump and the White House press corps.

“Effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President,” Bryan Boughton, the Washington bureau chief at Fox News, wrote in a note to television pool members today, which was obtained by The New York Times. (Boughton is the acting chair of the television pool consortium; the networks rotate the chairmanship on a quarterly basis.)

Here is how pool coverage has previously worked:

• They share the news, splitting, financial costs and distributing footage among themselves carried by news organizations worldwide.
• ABC, CBS, CNN, FOX News and NBC rotate covering all White House activities.  CNN was today supposed to follow Trump today at the U.N. General Assembly.
• Of course, print, radio and wire journalists, along with still photographers will still show up.
• CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued the Trump administration over this ban.

Of all the participants, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian will arrive in New York tomorrow for the United Nations General Assembly.

• Iran is a founding member of the UN.
• But the presence of an Iranian delegation on the home turf of a country with which remains at war is unprecedented in recent years.  However, in 1987, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei addressed the General Assembly when he was president, two years before he became Supreme Leader.  He was the one the U.S. and Iran assassinated  on the 28February2026 first strike.
• U.S. sanctions will prevent them from purchasing luxury and other goods.
• Actually there have been no USA strikes on Iran for more than two weeks.

Switching topics to your health, I am scheduled to take my annual flu vaccination in a week.   Why does this matter? I asked Google AI the current status:

Traditional Inactivated Shots: Standard egg-based or cell-based shots widely available for all eligible ages (typically 6 months and older).

High-Dose and Adjuvanted Shots: Specially designed for adults 65 and older to trigger a stronger immune response.

Recombinant Shots (e.g., FluBlok): Egg-free options produced without influenza viruses or eggs, approved for people ages 9 and older.

Nasal Spray (FluMist): A live-attenuated vaccine option that eligible people ages 2 through 49 can use.

mRNA Vaccine (mFLUSIVA): A newer mRNA-based option from Moderna approved for adults 50 and older.[1, 2, 3, 4]

I have generally gone Moderna for my COVID vaccinations, so I'll see if this latest mRNA-based option is available.

• This the first flu vaccine in the U.S. to use messenger RNA technology, the same platform used in COVID shots.
• Late-stage clinical trials found this version to be 27% more effective than a standard flu shot.

• 
  As this type can be made faster, it should be easier to keep up with changing flu strains.
• Moderna's is a trivalent vaccine, targeting two A and one B strains.
• No serious safety problems have surfaced for it.
• There could be injection-site pain, fatigue and headaches, but only mild to moderate.
• Medicare will fully assume cost and most health insurers will cover the vaccination.  Otherwise, the price is from $154 to $171 per dose.

• 
  ONLY available for those 50 and older.
• One huge benefit about living at 15 Craigside is that the pharmacy comes here for mass inoculation.
• CDC recommends getting vaccinated by the end of October.
• Of course, this shot does not protect you from COVID. 
• Which means there must be one coming up, hopefully before my next trip, which will be in December.

The Merriam-Webster Dictionary added 1400 new words in its new November 2025 edition.

• Slop:  Named the 2025 Word of the Year, meaning low-quality digital content produced in large quantities by artificial intelligence.
• Looksmaxxing:  an online subculture and self-improvement trend focused on maximizing one's physical attractiveness.

• 
  Meme coin:  a cryptocurrency inspired by internet jokes, viral trends or pop culture rather than a technical purpose or financial utility.
• Cuffing season: fall and winter period when single people feel a strong desire to find a short-term romantic partner to get through the cold weather and holidays together.

This is a huge day for international and national observances:

International Observances

International Day of Peace (World Peace Day)
World Alzheimer's Day
World Gratitude Day
International Ataxia Awareness Day [1, 2]

National & Fun Days

National Chai Day:  not just any tea, but Hindi tea, and there is a masala chai recipe.
National Beef Stroganoff Day
Miniature Golf Day
Batman Day
Pepper Jack Cheese Day

National Pecan Cookie Day
• This is the one that seems to most be celebrated in the U.S.
• Pecan is the state nut of Louisiana, Georgia, Alabama, Arkansas, California and Texas.
• Georgia produces the most pecans in the USA.  About a third, and is called the Pecan Capital of the World.
• 
  Here is something you did not know.  Pecan is the only EDIBLE tree nut native to North America.
• Pecan pies are a lot more popular than cookies.  And there is a National Pecan Pie Day:  July 12.

Earth, Wind & Fire Day (celebrating the famous date from the song "September") [1, 2]
• So you ask, why is today EW&F Day?  The first two lines are:

Do you remember

Twenty-first night of September

• Why?  Band founder Maurice White, a co-composer of this song, thought 21st made the song more phonetic than any other date.  Plus, was close to an expected family birth.
• This EW&F day was proposed by the City of Los Angeles in 2019.

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