We leave today for San Diego.  Probably will go to the zoo, some rank as  #1 in the world .  Here is another video of  how to visit the zoo .  There is also a hop-on-hop-off trolley system, with a stop at our hotel, the Marriott Marquis. But our primary purpose for this trip is Paso Robles to taste Petite Sirah.  We have relatives in the San Diego area, and four of us will drive from San Diego to Paso Robles, then back a few days later. The cities are 332 miles apart, a drive of 6 hours without stopping.   If you're a fan of this blog, you know by now that my favorite wine is Petite Sirah from Paso Robles.   There is a lot of history going back more than half a century . I tasted a very early version of this wine when it was not yet bottled.  I was spending a summer at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the early 70s and knew a colleague whose last name was Concannon.   James Concannon founded the company in 188...

But first, maybe  President Donald Trump's 20-point Gaza Peace Plan is showing some progress .   No one expects the Hamas to accept all of them, but they did agree to release all captives and the act of handing over administration to Palestinian technocrats. So far, in the Gaza Strip, 66,288 have been killed and 169,165 wounded.   On 7October2023, almost two years ago, 1139 were killed in the initial Hamas-led attack. About my topic of the day, I've long been lamenting the overflow of watchable films and series available on Netflix and Prime.  Why expand into the plethora of other streaming options when I can't keep up with what I have, which costs me around $30/month.  And, of course, why venture out to a movie theater to end up watching a film that will cost me around that amount of money, when you add the popcorn, drink, gasoline cost, time it takes to get there and back, and the risk of a car accident or worse.  Oh, also getting infected with ...

Been writing about the Putin-Trump summit in Alaska, which was somewhat disappointing.   However, various sources reported on the life of Vladimir Putin, and here is one where Mark Levin of Fox News digs into  Putin's behind-the-scenes life .   How Putin survived 43 assassination attempts . From ITV News a month ago,  the evolution of Putin:  bullied child, KGB man and autocrat .   From CNN a few years ago,  dark reason why Putin keeps his daughters a secret .  Has had only one wife, Lyudmila, now 67.  Top photo. 72-year old Putin lives with partner, 41-year old Alina Kabaeva, with whom they have 2 sons and also linked to 49-year old Svetlaana Krivonogikh and one daughter. Putin's Billion-Dollar Palace off the Black Sea, with views of his secret bunker. Taylor Swift announced that she will release her 12th studio album,   The Life of a Showgirl,   on October 3.  The world reacted in orange.  Huh?  You'l...

My posting yesterday ended with the #1 song half a century ago, which was  Jive Talking.   I mentioned that the shortest tune reaching #1 on Billboard was the 1960  Stay .   So before entering my blog of today, I was wondering what was the  longest song to hit #1 on Billboard , and consulted Guinness. This was difficult to find because Google kept sending me to the #1 song that spent the longest time in that slot. The 10-minute version of Taylor Swift's  All Too Well  went on for 10 minutes and 13 seconds.  But this was the extended version of this ballad that originally in 2012 appeared on the album Red, and was only 5min29sec long, which was re-released as a single at that length.  Here is her  10-minute version .  Did she attend the  NFL preseason game yesterday ?  No. So I guess Don McLean's 1972  American Pie  is the longest chart-topper at 8min37sec. But according to that chart above, Swift. As an asid...

But first, about doings in the world today. The ceasefire in the Gaza Strip is in trouble .  The Hamas indicated there would be no hostage trade this week, blaming Israel for not honoring their commitments.  No doubt President Donald Trump threatening to occupy the site forever influenced this development. More tariffs coming from Trump. The courts are stifling Trump edicts.  But he defies their orders, with plans to appeal eventually to the Supreme Court.   Do we have a Constitutional crisis?   Even  NBC thinks so . Trump further stated that  he is serious about Canada becoming our 51st state . The Donald told the Treasury to  stop making pennies , for each one almost costs 4 cents to make.  The nickel might be next, for that is costing nearly 15 cents each. Have you been affected by this  shortage of eggs ? The Philadelphia Eagles wiped out the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl 59, with Trump prevailing over  Taylor Swift. Ken...