One of the daily newsletters I get had a short article today about the fact that the US Supreme Court is back in session and a list of some of the big cases it has on the docket. And then it asked “Wondering how the Supreme Court became so influential?” And my immediate response was, “Because people can’t take no for an answer anymore.” If they feel they are in the right, even when they are NOT, even when lower courts and judges have ruled against them, they keep appealing until it gets raised all the way to the Supreme Court. SUPREME! THE FINAL ANSWER! Only it’s not, because they can, and have, overtuned previous judgements. There is no Supreme Court, especially when it’s stacked one way or the other. Everything these days seems partisan, to my consternation, and our own damnation.
I find it ironic that when I googled “turn off AI overview google” the answer I received with instructions on how to do it was provided by the AI overview. And you have to do it for every device and browser if you are using Google. Seeing articles about how much site visits to news sites and information sites has dropped because people see the AI overview and go no further is disheartening. I’m downloading and installing DuckDuckGo to give it a whirl. It promises to block cookie popups as well, for which I would have installed it earlier if I’d known. These are not the kinds of cookies I love, these ubiquitious, annoying, choices between ACCEPT AND REJECT. EVERY SINGLE TIME, EVERY SINGLE SITE, sometimes every single page! Over and over! I reject!
Today, I received an email confirmation from the excellent Chicago Board of Election Commissioners that my ballot for the midterms has been received. They are very thorough, and when you email them, they always reply. They let you know the status of your registration, they send out information and ballots on time, and they let you know that your ballot is going to be counted. I mailed both Karin’s and Martin’s after mine (Martin’s only this past week), so they will be getting their confirmations in another week or so. I know that it would make more of a difference if I could vote in Michigan, as an American abroad, but my last address was in Chicago, and that’s the one I have to legally use. Both kids use my Chicago address as well. Martin could technically use his last address in Michigan, since he lived there much more recently than I, but I suspect he wouldn’t remember or bother to vote at all in the US elections if I wasn’t pushing him to.
According to Wikipedia, the politics of Michigan, a swing state in presidential elections, are closely contested. Until 2016, Michigan was considered part of the Democrats’ “Blue Wall.” Prior to being a swing state, it was a Republican stronghold, voting Republican all but once from the founding of the GOP in 1854 until 1928. The Michigan Legislature is currently split between the two parties. Illinois is considered a blue state, one of the three largest states that consistently supports Democratic Party federal candidates alongside California and New York. Following the 2018 elections, all six statewide elected offices are held by a Democrat. There is a significant division between Democratic-leaning cities and college towns, and highly conservative rural regions, which continue to be dominated by Republicans, but are drowned out due to their relatively low population.
I worked from home today because I had 3 Teams meetings scheduled this morning, the first one at 8:30 AM, and 2 more scheduled for the afternoon. One of the morning meetings got postponed until Friday (because the person requesting it wants to meet in person) and one got cancelled (by me, because it’s a standing bi-monthly meeting with one of our US counterparts and we didn’t have anything much to discuss this time). I also felt, again, this morning, as if I’m developing a head cold, mostly brought on again by the fact that I am constantly stuffed up. I can’t breathe through my nose most of the time at all. I’m semi-addicted to nasal spray now (this has been going on for well over a month), and I’m trying really hard to break it. I’m trying some non-addictive nasal sprays, which surprise! don’t work very well, and I’m taking Tylenol cold tablets night and day in the hopes that the antihistimine properties will allow me to breath and negate the use of spray, but so far my success is middling, at best. SNUCK.
There are 2 pending registrations for AIC membership that I’ve been trying to reach for quite awhile now. The first one I have tried calling on 5 different days, sent her an email and several SMS messages. To one of them she responded, “Sorry but I’m really busy with important things.” which kind of put my back up, because, rude. Since then she hasn’t responded at all, so I guess I am still not one of the important things. The message I left on her voice mail tonight said that I’ve tried 5 days, multiple times, and it’s now on her to contact me at her leisure. I give up. The other one I reached during Saturday afternoon on my first try, but she was out and busy, so we arranged that I would call her on Monday after work, which I did. No answer. Tried twice yesterday and once today, have also sent her SMS’s. Have sent them both an email now. Sigh.
Out of 161 members, only 85 have paid their dues (+ 1 lifetime member), which means I have to start chasing 77 people. They were supposed to pay September 1, and it’s now October 6. That’s nearly HALF the membership I have to make an extra effort to contact. I send individual emails, and I send them messages on FB (if they have it), and then I send SMS messages as well. Only 19 people have been deactivated so far because they actually wrote back to say they weren’t going to renew or they had moved. It’s the same every year, and quite often, it’s the same people. I hate to just deactivate them, but eventually I will have to if I still get no response.
Feeling kind of grumpy and off today, is it obvious? Heh. Time to call it a night.
Mood: grumpy and a little off
Music: Boston—More Than a Feeling
Deactivate them all!!!! no need for them. no more second chances!
Take No for an answer! and deny all cookies! except the ones made out of cookie dough. or just eat the dough… it’s way better that way. or eat it in ice cream. even better.