now this is basketball

This is good.

Very good.

the guacamole song

Get ready for the game on Sunday. (BTW, I'd go with the recipe in the song rather than Kraft's recipe at the end of the video.)

betting on mugabe

The economy of Zimbabwe has been contracting for a decade. Hyperinflation has been a fact of life for going on two years. Currently prices are doubling every day.

Zimbabwe has a cholera epidemic. Cholera is a completely preventable disease. Its victim are the poor and weak. Cholerea is actually a symptom of economic collapse.

How does Robert Mugabe stay in power?. No leader survives with hyperinflation for this long! This Christmas he went on vacation to Malaysia. That shows his confidence. Usually a weakened leader does not leave the country for fear of a coup in his absence.

Tonight I checked the betting odds at Intrade.com of Mugabe staying in power. The odds are actually going Mugabe's way. As you can see on the chart there appears to be only a 6% chance he'll leave office by March 31st. (Rule 1.8: All bets are off if Mugabe dies before leaving office.) As you can see, the odds of him leaving office have been falling.

I do not understand this. The only way this makes sense to me is if the smart money thinks the only way Mugabe will leave office is feet first (i.e., Rule 1.8).

a short video for january 22nd

Found on her facebook page.

wanna be a trillionaire?

Move to Zimbabwe!

Zimbabwe is introducing a Z$100 trillion note, currently worth about US$30 (£20), state media reports.

Other notes in trillion-dollar denominations of 10, 20 and 50 are also being released to help Zimbabweans cope with hyperinflation. ~ Source: BBC News

Pictured is a Z$50 billion note, worth less than two cents US.

Link found at Greg Mankiw's Blog.

die ohrwürmer von weihnachten

A song, or an advertising jingle, that invades your consciousness and won't leave. There's no word for this in English.... Here's where German comes to the rescue, with Ohrwurm, literally "ear-worm." You can almost picture the cute little fellow camping out in your ear, singing the inane ditty over and over, cheerfully evading your increasingly desperate attempts to silence him.
~~ German Joys.

This is the time of year when I suffer an infestation of ear-worms. I call them die Ohrwürmer von Weihnachten, literally the earworms of Christmas.

I'm talking about Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer, dogs barking Jingle Bells, plus many others of which I do not wish to be reminded. Being reminded only awakens the little buggers.

I have only heard part of Leroy the Redneck Reindeer once but now I am afraid to turn on the radio for fear that I might have another Ohrwurm implanted.

To control the infestation I must avoid all commercial radio. If I must have something on, I limit myself to NPR. However, even this strategy is not without risk.

On Christmas Eve, complete radio silence is imperative. On this night you cannot trust anyone.

Die Ohrwürmer von Weihnachten may still come alive without taking countermeasures. So I listen to carefully screened CD's of Christmas songs, carols, and hymns. Yes, these songs may have their own Ohrwürmer as well. However, these ear-worms build you up and cause you to focus on what Christmas should really be about. They actually have a positive, therapeutic effect.

You may not be completely rid of the little buggers, but at least you may be able to influence which ones are active. The right ones can actually help bring alive the original, authentic awe of Christmas to your soul.

Be blessed and Merry Christmas!
RB

bailout light

Found here.

Watch and listen to this music video for at least for 1 minute and 11 seconds. You'll be better for it...


Found here.

two shopping days left: dave barry's 2008 gift guide

Dave Barry's Gift Guide: 14 items guaranteed to inspire 'Oh, you shouldn't have.'
[MiamiHerald.com may require free registration.]

order this book now and get it by xmas!

[RB found video here.]

more toilet economics: cost-effectiveness in zimbabwe

At around 231 million percent, Zimbabwe’s hyperinflation rate...is currently the highest in the world.

Blog reader Ben Saltsman sent us this photo of a restroom sign in South Africa, which hints at one use for Zimbabwe’s severely devalued currency:



But is it cost-effective for Zimbabweans to use money instead of T.P.?

A roll of toilet paper costs about $1.50 U.S. dollars and has about 352 sheets per roll. That means each sheet is worth about US $.004, or 3,600 Zimbabwe dollars, according to OANDA.com.

So according to these calculations, using a ZWD 1,000 note in place of a piece of toilet paper is a wise financial decision.

~ source: today's Freakonomics: