ODDS & ENDS

 My earlier concern for the BALLY'S CASINO in Chicago disappeared as they got a new partner who chipped in 800 MILLION to keep the ball rolling. A 34 story, 500 room hotel which includes a 3,000 seat performing arts center and a 2 acre public park. Inside the casino will be 3,300 slot machines and 173 table games along with 6 restaurants plus a food hall. Now let's see if they can get it done.

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Another in a long list of irritating commercials....Noticeably overweight people with type II diabetes are happy as pigs in mud as they sing the JARDIANCE song and dance thru public parks, the town square and the office at work. Stop yourself right now. 

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In Paris, they have announced that NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL should be fully repaired and opening for business in December. The repairs cost $760 MILLION DOLLARS and all of the money came from private donations around the world with 340,000 donors from 150 countries having donated almost a billion dollars to cover the costs. The church burned in April of 2019.

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BRUMBY & WILLUM, the two koalas have arrived from China and are relaxing in a decompression area until they are ready to go out on their own to meet other animals at the zoo. They never have to worry about running out of food because eucalyptus leaves are fatal to most animals. They also relax with bamboo shoots.

Did you know that Brookfield Zoo no longer has any elephants? Not since 2010.

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My lightning bugs show up around 8:45 and they're gone by 9:30. Why? I think I remember chasing them for hours as a kid until mom & dad yelled that we were stirring up the mosquitos. Who doesn't like lightning bugs? But only 45 minutes?

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Proud to announce I'm a brand new uncle to two baby mourning doves who were born over the weekend. Mom lets me look at the newbies from the other side of the gazebo screen as she feeds them 'pigeon milk' which is generated in her stomach. The babies will only be here for two weeks before they leave the nest but then they stay with mom for another week or so hiding in a bush before they are totally on their own and then their diet consists of seeds. If you have a bird feeder in your yard, the doves gather on the ground underneath the feeder and collect all the spilled seed. They also eat weed seeds as those plants mature and an occasional berry.

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Ok, let's finish up with two weird ones. Did you know that a snake can still bite you even after you chopped off it's head?!?! True story from Texas. Guy sees a EASTERN DIAMONBACK RATTLER in his yard and beheads it with a machete. Two hours later, he picks up the head to show his wife and BAM!  HERPOLOGISTS report that they have reflex muscles that still activate more than two hours after being killed and poisonous snakes (like the eastern diamondback) still have venom in their fangs. Guy spent two days in intensive care but he's going to be ok.

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And finally, Texas, Alabama and Oklahoma now allow ammunition to be sold from vending machines. You slide your ID into the machine and it uses facial recognition to verify your identity and you're good to go. The one in Tulsa offered .38 caliber, 9 mm, .45 and a variety of rifle/shotgun ammunition. Just insert your credit card, press a button and the box falls to the bottom just like a candy bar. Scary fact....There is no federal regulation preventing vending machine sales of ammunition. YIKES!

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Ok, that's it for now. Stay cool.

HALF WAY HOME!

 Well, we've reached the imaginary half way point in the baseball season with the all-star break so it's time to hand out the report card for Chicago baseball.

Worst baseball team....Sox. We knew they would be bad but this bad?

Most disappointing team......Cubs were the co-favorite to win the division. Baseball writers recently gave them this award and I agree.

Guys not earning their LARGE paychecks..... DANSBY SWANSON...ANDREW BENINTENDI

South Side Guys who should not be on a major league roster......JASON LEASURE...MIKE SOROKA...MARTIN MALDONADO......DANNY MENDICK....ELOI JIMENEZ

North Side Garbage.....KYLE HENDRICKS....HAYDEN WESNEWSKI....TOMAS NIDO...MIGUEL AMAYA...MILES MASTROBUONI....CHRISTOPHER MOREL...PATRICK WISDOM

Sox most like to be traded this month....MICHAEL KOPECH...TOMMY PHAM...ELOI JIMENEZ...ANDREW VAUGHAN...LUIS ROBERT...PAUL DEJONG (maybe 20 more)

Cubs to be traded in July.....None because they still believe they're a playoff team😮😮

Worst manager....PEDRO wins hands down. Very very bad.

Best non-pitcher on the Sox...I guess it would be LUIS ROBERT if he can stay healthy.

Best non-pitcher on the Cubs...it's a tie. MICHAEL BUSCH and SEIYA SUZUKI.

Best park...GUARANTEED RATE FIELD

Best food...GUARANTEED RATE FIELD

Best Parking....GUARANTEED RATE FIELD

Best Tailgating...GUARANTEED RATE FIELD

Best pre-game drinking spots...Wrigleyville

Best post-game drinking spots...Wrigleyville  

Best place to buy drugs...Wrigleyville

Best place to buy drugs inside the park...Bleachers in Wrigley  

Not much more to say. One team is rebuilding and has ZERO chance of competing for the next few years and the other has continued the freefall that started in 2018 with key players getting long in the tooth. KYLE HENDRICKS, SHOTA IMANAGA, MARK LEITER, HECTOR NERIS,DREW SMYLY, JAMESON TALLION, TOMAS NIDO, DAVID BOTE, DANSBY SWANSON and PATRICK WISDOM are all over 30 and that ain't good.

I guess we can all keep our fingers crossed for the Bears. Later.

HOLIDAY MADNESS!

WE'RE NUMBER ONE! WE'RE NUMBER ONE! No, you silly goose, it's not the Cubs or the White Sox because they're both in last place and it's not the Bulls or the Blackhawks because this is their off season so let's move to a different area.

CHICAGO IS NUMBER ONE with more shootings and homicides over the holiday weekend than any other city in the entire United States!! How about that?!?! ONE HUNDRED AND NINE SHOOTINGS!! C'mon, admit it, that's a tremendous amount of perforated human flesh in just a matter of a few days and NINETEEN of those were shipped to Boot Hill. 

The jungles on the west and south sides erupted, resulting in 96% of the shootings as the ghetto rats tried out all their new fire power.....and it wasn't even hot this weekend!

Now remember that Mayor Big Teeth (MBT) has constantly stated 'that we don't need more enforcement, we just need more programs for the inner city youth.' WRONG.

Back to basics......MBT says it's a community problem and he's partially correct but to be more specific, it's a BLACK COMMUNITY PROBLEM. Nobody can deny it and there's no argument. In the ghetto neighborhoods, the criminals that you deal with have a dropout rate of OVER 80% and they constantly fall back on the old adage of 'survival of the fittest' which today means whoever can shoot fastest and straightest...wins. Simple as that. 

And NOW, after the weekend carnage, the mayor wants people arrested and held accountable. WHAT?? No more holding hands and singing Kumbaya?

The problem CAN'T be fixed. And it doesn't matter if you provide summer jobs, after school basketball programs, reparations or more teachers and more police because the ghetto rats only know one way of living and that's drugs, guns and violence resulting in either death or long terms spent in prison and trust me, if they are fortunate enough to get paroled early, they're not coming out with a master's degree in English Literature or any other formal education because you have to be able to read and write to advance. 

PLEASE stay out of Chicago and keep your family & friends safe.

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Only in Chicago......How the hell does a casino deal get screwed up? Bally's may be bailing out of a permanent casino site because of financial problems. Incredible.  And it doesn't help that MBT doesn't like the idea even though it would provide much needed tax money for the city. Probably too busy working on his facials and manicures.

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BIG JOE says 'He ain't going anywhere' and will stay in the presidential race, even after the Thursday Night Massacre two weeks ago. I admire his spirit but why do I keep thinking of the Titanic every time I see his face?

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RIP to actor DONALD SUTHERLAND who passed several weeks ago at the age of 89. Sutherland had over 200 credited roles in both tv and movies, with featured roles in ANIMAL HOUSE, MASH, KLUTE, THE DIRTY DOZEN and the HUNGER GAMES.

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Congratulations to Chicagoan Patrick Bertoletti who won the annual NATHAN'S HOT DOG EATING CONTEST on the 4th of July in Coney Island by downing 58 dogs and buns in just 10 minutes. He also has several other records like 275 jalapenos in 8 minutes, 10.6 pounds of corned beef in 10 minutes and 21 pounds of grits in 10  minutes. YIKES!

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You still have a chance to see the best local fireworks show this coming Sunday night at Peterson Park in Mchenry. They have a carnival all day long and end it with the big show which can be viewed for free from the LARGE parking lot which is actually a grass field. Bring a cooler and lawn chairs and relax after the show for about 45 minutes while they empty out.

It's route 120 to route 31 and north about 1/2 mile and then west on McCollum Lake Rd. for another 1/2 mile to Petersen Park. You won't be disappointed.

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Just a reminder that the opening ceremonies for the Summer Olympics start Friday, July 26 and run thru August 11.

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I'm a little confused. I totally understand commercials inviting you to visit Las Vegas, New York, Italy, Chicago, New Orleans, London and other famous places but ...NEBRASKA? Now I'm sure there are plenty of friendly farmers willing to show off their corn crop and large haystacks along with a massive amount of soybeans but for a vacation? I have seen endless commercials and included with this past Sunday's Tribune was a catalog that weighed about 3 pounds and it was all Nebraska from front to back. Go figure.

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TSA has seized just over 3,000 weapons at national airports in the first 6 months of the year and 38 of those were discovered at O'Hare and 27 at Midway. Will people never learn?

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Think hacking only happens to mega corporations? Today I went for a post-op exam at Illinois Bone & Joint and their computers had been frozen from Eastern Europe and the hackers were demanding ransom to release the freeze. I don't know the outcome but that's a little scary to me.

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Finally, ZERO CICADAS set foot or wing upon my property. Fake news.

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That's it for now. Super hot weather returns later in the week so stay hydrated and better yet, stay inside. And stay out of Chicago. Later, dude.