Get What’s on Sale

As one financial guru said,
“Get what’s on sale,”
So today here’s what I gathered:
A pack of red apples from BC,
Frozen mussels from Chile,
And frozen okra from India.
Apple shake it is for dessert,
And sauteed mussels with okra
A cure for my war-torn heart.
MLJ20092026StopTheWar

Increase in Gambling Disorders: Who started it?

 Who's protecting the youth?

All I Ever Needed

A portable typewriter.
A canopy of trees. Benches
To sit on and type. Type. Type.
A safe campus. A quiet library
With staff that hushed the loud.

No electronics. No internet.
No scrolling. No swiping.
There was no need for speed
Just pondering. Contemplating.
Endless debating. Questioning...
MLJ20092026LetHumansThink

Who's in charge?

 

Why? Why? Why?

 

Deadliest year on the roads

 Speeding, driving under the influence, distracted driving... Any other way to die? I'd love to have a peaceful one in my sleep. Not on the road, please. Zzz...

AI & Education

 

Anyone still wondering why there's no AI oversight?

 

What have we done to Johnny and Susie?

They inherited a smart home,
Not a muscle to move.
They inherited AI and humanoids,
Not a neuron to use.

Until there’s a glitch.
Until the system is down.
Until there’s service outage.

Now Johnny can’t unlock the doors.
Now Susie has to hold in her pee.
Without gadgets, children are cranky.

Now Susie can’t order meals.
Or get cash. Or shop for groceries.
And Johnny can’t start a fire.
O put up a tent. Or dig for an outhouse.
Unused brain cells are dead.

Out there, no farms. Just data centers.
Out there, no water. No lake. No river.
It’s 2050. Trillionaires live on the moon.
Johnny and Susie with no brains or brawn
Blaming their parents for something
They don’t even know…
MLJ07092026MankindEnslavedByTech

When will they raise the minimum wage?

When workers go on strike? 

Wages should be increased every year to keep up with inflation. 

Who disagrees? The billionaires and trillionaires who need to buy engineers and scientists who will start their settlements on the moon and Mars? Peace! 

To Impress

Hair extensions. Check.
False lashes. Check.
Lipstick. Check.
Fake nails. Check.
Heavy perfume. Check.

Impressed! My child’s teacher surely would.
With my fine clothing, shoes, bag, tattoos.
And she’d probably say,
“You have a lovely mother!”

So there we sat as I stared
At the teacher’s plain face.
Wearing hardly any make-up,
Clothes from the thrift shop.

What she said didn’t register:
Daily conversations, home reading,
Extra math practice. Journal writing.
Not to worry about school supplies,
She’d find ways to provide.

So there we sat as I stared,
Feeling bad about bringing allergens.
Her eyes tearing up. Red nose sneezing.
But my fancy phone was buzzing.
MLJ13082026ParentTeacherConferences

Mad Stampede

We didn’t sleep with open encyclopedias.
We didn’t sleep in Scott’s red phone booths.
We didn’t sleep by our rotary dial phones.

AI is a tool.
Cellphones are tools.
Unless we’re on call surgeons.
Unless we’re on call firefighters.

Carpenters don’t sleep with hammers.
Mechanics don’t sleep with wrenches.
Electricians don’t sleep with screwdrivers.
Plumbers don’t sleep with plungers.

The giants snare you with the latest,
The slimmest, the lightest, the fastest,
The coolest gadgets. For addiction.
For entertainment. For memory loss.
Of the stagnant minimum wage.
Of the ever-widening payment gaps.
Of being slaves to the 10%
Who are moving to space.

But you continue to camp out for Black Fridays,
(Or stay online, stay awake in front of the screen,
Saving the store staff’s lives from the mad stampede!)
MLJ12082026MadStampedeOfSlaves

Who's deciding what?

 

How are your children doing?

 

What have we done to ourselves?

 

Merch! Merch! Merch!

Merch, merch everywhere!
Merch, merch all over!
Up and down, left and right,
In every space there is
For your wallet’s might.

Indeed it takes Herculean strength!
To fight the urge, impulse, push,
To refuse accumulation of weight,
Especially one against
Your luggage and muscles!

Instead, leave with the experience,
With unforgettable memories.
Never mind the wind, cold or heat,
But treasure time with family, friends,
Before this borrowed time retreats.
MLJ31072026UniversalStudiosJapan

Filipino Ingenuity

 What can you do with old tires?