Sanctions, POTUS cleaners and Pig Wings....

Politics: Annoyed  is an understatement  when referring to our fraudulent Royal Orange King and his  "courtiers" who recently lifted sanctions on yet another group of rich Russian thugs - and the end result will help Putin acquire more undeserved riches.

Added garbage: the illustrious Treasury courtier Mnuchin pushed for this- he's a buddy of Len Blavatnik - who is rich enough to play every side of the aisle - Mostly Red, (M.McConnell  is the lucky recipient of some of his millions - surprised?) some Blue and he sweetens the damage by including big bucks to Harvard Medical School. His family came from the Ukraine in the 1970's - he earned graduate degrees from Columbia and Harvard) and he's "ungeshtupt with gelt" - couple of billion - mas o menos. But I guess the more you have the more you want; Blavatnik is a buddy of Derapaska - and all buddies lead to Putin!  And Pootie boy is cozying up with China, making nice with Little Rocket  - and can you smell WWIII???

Whatever happened to the  McCarthyites and other Republicans who used to see Communists under every chair, table or bed and now are so chillingly quiet as Putin, his oligarch buddies  and flock of slaves (many former hard core Communists) work hard at destroying us and other democratic countries?

Needed: Laughter! I'm always glad to have a laugh in the kitchen - where I spend most of my happy hours. Just got a news release that made my day!

Something new from the innovative New Metro Design Group (I use their remarkable BeaterBlade attachment on my KitchenAid Mixer which scrapes the sides of the bowl as it mixes!): the ANGRY POTUS Microwave Cleaner!

Using language familiar to this creature: ANGRY POTUS is absolutely the greatest, bigliest way to clean your microwave. All you have to do is remove POTUS’ hair - add vinegar and water, stick him in your microwave for 3 minutes on medium high. Hot steam comes out of POTUS’ head – really! – which softens crusted, stuck-on microwave dirt and stains. Let POTUS sit for about two minutes- remove him – and wipe the inside of the microwave with a sponge or rag. Voila! Sparkling clean – BIGLY!!! About $15 at Amazon. (There's a less  expensive model – ANGRY MAMA – available if you have a problem cooking the Orange King!) 

More foodie news:
Robots on campus in Virginia: If you're a student, faculty, or staff member at the Fairfax VA campus of George Mason University and feel the need for a nosh - contact your local robot:  Sodexo Inc. and Starship Technologies launched robot food delivery services to the campus. The service is supposed to integrate with student meal plans and food and drinks will be delivered anywhere on campus!

And if you see Pork Wings on the menu next time you eat out - not to worry,  pigs are not flying (as of now) .This item on the menu refers to cuts from the animal's leg known as shanks. The Pioneer Meat company in Michigan gets the credit for promoting this relatively new snack type food. Their pig wings include a small attached bone (from the hog's fibula) making it easy to hold while nibbling. The company estimates  about 5 to 7 million pounds of pig wings are sold annually at this time!

Ninety - or Chai 5!!!* for me. A bumpy year for the Orange King!

Welcome to 2019!
What's on the Orange King's agenda? How about some more delusions? Like
"I could be a great general!" Really? Not after the podiatrist in his father's building attested to Orange King's "bone spurs" - (unfit for military). Podiatrist  was rewarded with quick repairs to his apartment by landlord Fred Trump!

The Orange King's  "friends/sycophants" are rolling their eyes after his story about Russia's invasion in Afghanistan. My own take on Afghanistan: no need to be there - takeovers tried since mid-19th century - and everyone left - the Brits, the Russians, etc. After 18 years of wasted men and money maybe it's time for us to leave; I'm assuming Orange King wants to leave because he sees no Trump Towers rising there. (Probably the only time I agree with the King.)

And Nancy Pelosi is a shining example that age "numbers" are meaningless when you're a smart, politically savvy politician. Brava Nancy!!

The new House Representatives added a bit of spice with a newcomer from Michigan, Democratic Congresswoman Rashida  Tlaib. She's interested in impeaching the Orange King and used an expletive to express herself at a party:  Democrats will “impeach the motherf….r” Although this is not my choice of words and does not really advance the Democratic Party’s  goals it's interesting to note the rush to criticize her.

How quickly we forget – especially if the speaker is a “man”. Dick Cheney once told Sen. Patrick Leahy to “go f..k yourself” on the floor of the United States Senate. He did not apologize – but went on to say that he believed his colleagues felt the same way and his comment was “badly needed to be said”!  (He received praise from Conservatives and was seen as “strong”.)

 Like father, like daughter -  Cheney’s daughter, a congresswoman from Wyoming was also quick to criticize Tlaib!

Fun stuff:

I celebrated my 90th birthday on the Celebrity Infinity - a short cruise in the Caribbean with most of my family. My "kid" cousin Florrie, her daughter Barbara and granddaughter Carly really surprised me - timing their arrival in Fort Lauderdale in time to greet me before we boarded our ship. (Florrie, my closest favorite cousin will reach the ChaiXFive in May!)  And thoughtful Carly came supplied with Prosecco for a toast!

I love travel on any water - ocean, river, whatever. Where we sail is not too important. We sailed on Celebrity's Infinity and once again - I can only rave about the service level on Celebrity ships. Every staff member - from officers to those polishing hand rails was always quick to ask if we needed help and,

always with a smile. Interesting note - I was able to rent a walker for my husband for the cruise and it was waiting for him in our cabin when we arrived! (We just left it in the cabin when we disembarked; Celebrity wheeled my husband on and off the ship with their wheelchairs.)

Celebrity staff sent flowers, champagne, wine to my cabin and posted a big Happy 90th sign on my door.





Happy group - Sarah, Miriam, Joan, Susan, Lee . me, standing; Ben sitting.

Birthday cake in the Tuscan Grill Restaurant:

Celebrity Infinity docked in Cozumel







*For my friends who are not familiar with CHAI: "Chai" is a word formed by two letters in the Hebrew alphabet: Chet (ח‬) and Yod  (י‬); the combination means  "alive", or "living".
 If one assigns numbers to the Hebrew alphabet, chai adds up to 18 and this is considered a lucky number. Chai X five thus equals 90!