Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History

Sometime this past summer, I took these OYYO sculpture images at the entrance to the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History in Philadelphia.

Reading more about the White Supremacist and Holocaust denier that met for dinner earlier last week with the Orange Turd, reminded me of the first time I visited the Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC.

I was shocked to learn that when you enter the Holocaust Memorial Museum, you are given an identity card with the name of a real person who was persecuted by the Nazis. Photographs, artifacts, audio and video footage are shown through the exhibit, including a railcar that was used to transport Jews to concentration camps, and that you as visitor are allowed to board. Throughout the exhibit, visitors are given a chance to learn the fate of the individual on their assigned identity card.

It was a disturbing experience to realize how these Jews were killed simply because they practiced a different religion and were part of a different ethnic group. The Museum is free, so I encourage anyone who is visiting Washington DC to learn the truth about the Holocaust by seeing their historic exhibits. It is an experience you will never forget.

Inviting a Holocaust denier to your home for dinner validate these people and validate their views in a way that allows this toxic hate to grow. In the meantime, all we hear from the Republican party is crickets.

Glutton For Punishment

In 2009, I learned about a little problem I have with water retention. It took me a couple of years to manage but so far it is not a big deal, is also under control.

Therefore, I have to watch the sodium intake of everything I eat, and take my water pill religiously. It hasn't been easy, I don't cook and almost always I eat outside. German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche said, "what doesn't kill you will make you stronger".

Last week I was in Delaware helping a friend to check out a motorcycle he was planning to purchase. Afterwards we stopped at Boston Market, one of my favorite rotisserie chicken meals. Their sodium levels are off the charts, but since I haven't had Boston Market for several years, I figure why not. 

Saturday, I went to the local motorcycle dealership to purchase a few items to start getting my bike ready for winter storage. Next door to the dealership there is a KFC restaurant, another one of my favs that I had to stop eating due to their high sodium content. I noticed that now KFC even added a red high-sodium warning label to their menu. 

I was hungry so I ordered a box meal. As you can imagine, now I am paying for it. Swollen ankles and feet are the order of the day after eating junk food twice in the same week. Philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche is correct, what doesn't kill me will make me "bloated and swollen." 😀

The Best Money I Ever Spent

In 2015, a few weeks after I purchased my first DSLR, a used Nikon camera, I quickly realized that to be able to take better pictures, I needed to take a photography class.

To be honest, the camera had so many menus, knobs, dials and buttons, that I felt kind of overwhelmed and had no idea what I was doing with the digital camera despite having purchased lots of gear. 

A friend suggested to register with an "Introduction to DSLR Photography Class", which I did. The other students and myself, four in total, met with the instructor at the Constitution Center in Philly. In less than two hours I was able to learn to use my camera controls/settings.

I noticed right away how much I improved taking pics by activating the Live View mode. Live View allows me to see what my DSLR camera sees in real time by displaying it on the back of the LCD screen.

When it comes to photography, this was the best $30 dollars I ever spent.

The top picture of our group, was taken using the camera timer and a tripod.

Video Recording - Stage One

Today, I finally completed to install a video editing software on my computer, to begin recording and uploading videos on YouTube.

In hindsight, I regret not capturing/recording a few video clips during my Paris trip earlier this year. I also failed to use my GoPro action camera to record snorkeling underwater in Puerto Rico, and filming the kayaking tour adventure in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, this past summer. Those video clips could've been used for the channel introduction. 

To get used to the recording process, in a few weeks I am going to start by creating a test video to make sure the sound, lighting and camera settings are set correctly. 

On the first video I will be Painting in Light my motorcycle in the garage at night. It should be fun, and once the video is finished and uploaded, I will post a YouTube link to it. 

Enjoy the pictures! 

The Sea Has No Mercy

I just finished watching video footage of the Florida devastation, including homes toppled into the ocean after tropical storm Nicole landed in Florida yesterday.

I don't understand why, as is always the case, home owners are surprised when something like one of these catastrophic events happen, and their property is completely destroyed even though they have a beachfront property.

Don't they realize this is the one of the consequences of building a home next to the ocean? People need to get into their heads that global warming and climate change is real.

The Red Wave That Wasn't

I frequent a political internet forum, where for the past two years the right wingers, and MAGA Christian extremists folks have been screaming their views at the top of their lungs, and promised a giant "red tsunami".

Republicans made gains, but the "red wave" failed to materialize. Their dreams of a "red wave" fizzled, the giant tsunami failed to emerge. At the political internet forum the coalition of Trumpists, bigots, religious zealots and neo-fascists have gone so quiet, the silence is deafening. Now all I hear is crickets.

I expect them soon to begin the same rhetoric about the 2024 White House race soon. 

Powerball: You Need To Play To Win

Here we are, it is already Thursday folks! I am looking forward to this weekend! The weather has been unseasonably warm, so we may as well take advantage of it.

Did you play the Powerball last night? Nobody won the Powerball jackpot last night, and now it swell to $1.5 billion dollars. What would you do if you win $1.5 billion dollars?

No winner matched all six numbers. I read somewhere that the odds of winning the jackpot are 1 in 292.2 million, but that didn't stopped me from playing $2.00 dollars. Remember, you need to play to win!

Cruelty Is The Policy Position Of The Republican Party

Last night I watched Hillary Clinton one-on-one with Joy Reid, and Clinton basically said: "if you vote for a candidate who laughs about an 82 year old man being hit with a hammer in his own home, there is something wrong with you". 

It is kind of depressing the distortion of reality displayed by leaders of the GOP mocking Paul Pelosi, and regurgitating QAnon absurd homophobic conspiracy theories after being hit with a hammer in his own home. It is obvious the Republican party has gone extreme delusional.

These right wing Republicans fail to realize that next time a deranged mentally unbalanced person attacks, they or one of their family members could be the target. They simply don't care.

Recently I saw the footage of Nancy Pelosi sincerely concerned for Mike Pence's safety on Jan 6. Clearly the Republican leaders do not possess the same human decency.