Sunday, November 10, 2024

Happy 249 USMC!

After a three-month absence due to writing and things, I return to wish the United States Marine Corps a happy birthday. Alas, they have not escaped the rot of wokeness, but seemed to have weathered the onslaught better than some of the other services. May they continue to be always faithful.
 Fishing Stage

Friday, August 16, 2024

Ticketmaster Data Breach Update


Twinkl
After an email exchange, a Ticketmaster employee could not explain why my information was on a Ticketmaster website, or third-party cloud, why I couldn't sign up for a year of free credit monitoring services offered by Ticketmaster, and, since there's no record of me even registering for Ticketmaster, when I would be removed from the data base that exposed my data in the first place.

As of Tuesday morning, there has been no word from Ticketmaster.

More t/k.  



Monday, August 12, 2024

Ticketmaster Data Security Breach

 

St. Bonaventure University Online
Ticketmaster sent me a letter that my info had been compromised because of a breach in their security. Here's my email to the company:

Hello,

Received a letter from Ticketmaster stating that some of my personal information may have been compromised by a hack.

Ticketmaster offered credit monitoring via a TransUnion company called Cyberscout.

I logged onto the www.mytrueidentity.com url listed in the letter. However, the website would not allow me to open an account. The website listed a number to call.

Calling the number, I was directed to a call center possibly in Mumbai or elsewhere in the Indian subcontinent. The person attempting to assist me spoke and understood English with some  difficulty. For example, she was unaware that U.S. phone numbers are prefaced with an area code. After a number of attempts, I politely ended the call as we were unable to communicate.

Do you have any suggestions how I might obtain the credit monitoring services offered?

PS: I wasn't aware that I even had a Ticketmaster account. It must be prehistoric.

 

Here's Ticketmaster's response:

success tick icon

Thanks, we’ve received your request

You should receive a reply from one of our Fan Support Representatives in 12 hours, or sooner.

Times may vary depending on volume and demand.

 More t/k

Saturday, July 20, 2024

Back from the Northwest

Mount Rainer peeks out from behind the trees on a back-country road in south-central Washington state. 

Back from visiting my sister, who is in the hospital. A long-time MS sufferer, she's recently sustained kidney and nerve damage. The care facility is a mixed bag of outstanding nurses and nurse assistants and odd, ill-trained goons. The doctor in charge is a breezy fellow, according to my sister, who is loath to spend much time with his patients. Possibly it cuts down on his main function: billing Medicare.

More soon as we battle to get my sister the care she needs.

Wednesday, June 26, 2024

A Big Dish of Peas

An old Internet favorite of Orsen Welles wrangling with a suit over advertising copy.
 
 

Monday, June 24, 2024

A Hat Trick of Bad Health

 Ever since my return from way down yonder in New Orleans, my health has been many things, none of them positive.

My wife took ill on the plane-ride back to Los Angeles. Naturally, that meant that I would take ill several days hence. Sure enough,  I came down with a bad fever, much worse than COVID. It was like having mononucleosis once more. I slept, napped, woke up, then went to bed. However, I did drop ten pounds, a poor man's weight loss program.

Getty Images
 

Just as the fever abated, I came down with a urinary tract infection. Spending the night peeing out five drops of bloody urine helped eliminate my recent sleep overage. As a male, UTIs often mean trouble in the kidneys and/or bladder. At an UrgentCare, I was given a kidney/bladder ultrasound, a cocktail of antibiotics injected into my butt and a prescription for big plump antibiotic tablets. I took them all, but it felt like the injected obliterated the infection.

So, feeling good, except I noticed a rash developing all over my body. At first, I thought it was some kind of prickly heat. But that night, I woke at 2 AM unable to sleep, because the stinking rash itched like blazes. I pressed the skin, took cold showers, thought of picnics and adorable kittens, but nothing checked the relentless itching.  

And the rash and itching were spreading to unrashed body regions.

Getty Images
 The next day, the dermatologist said I was undergoing a drug reaction to medicine. Ah, but which medicine? The doctor took a pair of biopsies to nail down the culprit. Meanwhile, I was instructed to finish out the plump UTI tablets, then stop taking my normal medication for cholesterol and high blood pressure. Once again, my bottom received another injection—cortisone. The itching diminished that day and the next and the next. Now I must lather my rash daily with a medicinal cream plus pop a pair of over-the-counter medicines. Slowly, the rash fades.

Anyway, several days have passed without me visiting a doctor. I'm delighted. If this keeps up, I might even start running again.

Getty Images


 


Thursday, June 06, 2024

Disturbing Good Cheer

Fun? Of a sort. A "festive" figure on greets riverboat passengers dockside along the Mississippi River in New Orleans.

Tuesday, June 04, 2024

Tuesday, May 21, 2024

A 10k along the Sand

Back from Ventura and a weekend 10k. The blessed marine layer stayed on until well after I'd completed my 6.2 miles. In addition to a finisher's medal, I placed first in my age group, beating out another old guy who finished second. My wife, Joy, completed her first 10k. We ran the same serene beaches as hosted my 2021 marathon. After admiring the sea, we met a friend of Joy's at a coffee shop, ate a large breakfast then drove home in our sweaty clothes.
 
Bemedaled me outside Ventura City Hall.

Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Monday, May 13, 2024

Marvels Pitch Meeting Restarts the Sun

A bit dated, but worth a peek. I love this comic and his inane writer/Hollywood exec. characters. Watch the writer sell the exec. the klunky plot in Disney's The Marvels.

 

Pitch Meeting

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'Twas suggested I post a few episodes of my work in a pleasant spot. I've chosen here. Sadly, not everything I've written has y...