QUARANTINE BLOG # 479

July 22, 2021

If it is on the Internet, you know it is true.  We know that because Abraham Lincoln said it.  At least that’s what the Internet says.

I remember being so excited when Michael, Matthew, and I logged onto our first bulletin boards using our 2400 baud modem (which was connected to our Tandy 1000TL computer).  The pictures loaded slowly from the top of our 5 color monitor to the bottom of the screen, and we were spell-bound by the “quality of the graphics.”  I’d upload one of my columns I’d written for The Augusta Chronicle, or the boys would upload a game they had created, and we’d be awarded with more download opportunities.  Man, it just can’t get any better than this!

Well, 25 years or so on, people using the Internet just can’t get any more stupid.  Oh yeah?  Someone puts something outlandishly outrageous on social media and before long everyone in the uncivilized world has heard it, has believed it, and is passing it on.  Is my inner curmudgeon showing?  This current rant started when a young friend of mine said she would not get the coronavirus vaccine because taking it would prevent her from becoming pregnant.  That idea, and a large supply of other buffalo biscuits, are out there streaming.  Here are some more, and some debunks.

Myth: Vitamin and mineral supplements can cure COVID-19.

Fact: Vitamins D and C and the mineral zinc can indeed boost your immune system and protect against viruses. This is mainly true for people who lack these supplements. But there’s no evidence that they are a cure or treatment for COVID-19 if you already have the disease.

Myth: Taking a hot bath can stop COVID-19.

Fact: The idea behind this myth is that high temperatures can kill the coronavirus. But taking a bath in water that’s too hot can burn your skin. The best way to ward off COVID-19 is to wash your hands with soap and warm water. Washing gets rid of viruses on your hands that you could transfer to your eyes, nose, and mouth.

Myth: I have allergies, so I can’t get a COVID-19 vaccine.

Fact: In rare cases, some people have had a serious allergic reaction (called anaphylaxis) to the COVID-19 vaccines. If you’re allergic to any ingredient in an mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, don’t get the shots. But if you have an animal, food, pollen, or other types of allergies, you can get vaccinated.

Don’t accept what you read at face value.  Check it out.  Verify.  A good place to start is snopes.com.  Be safe.  Be smart.

👉  If you are ever on a cruise ship you will quickly learn that no matter how nice your stateroom is, how friendly the crew is to you, how great the food is, or how incredible the ports of call are, the vessel will still have people who let trifling things sink the whole experience.

After being stuck on land for 15 months, cruise lovers are finally able to set sail again.  But instead of celebrating, the complaints and complainers are back.  As insane as it sounds, some Carnival Cruise Line passengers have become downright irate over the fact that they are now charging $3 for the tasty popcorn offered during movies shown on the Lido Deck.  And many were upset to hear that room stewards on Carnival Cruise Line would, for the time being, only be servicing rooms once a day – in full and complete conjunction with health and safety protocols to limit the number of times crew members entered passenger staterooms.

My response has always been, “Hey!  You are on a cruise!  How bad can it be?”

I am pretty sure we’ve sailed with her.  Several times.

👉  Well, after two “Debbie Downers” let’s lighten up with some great movie lines.  Do you remember these?

Airplane! (1980)

–  Quote: “I am serious.  And don’t call me Shirley.”

–  Character: Dr. Rumack

–  Actor: Leslie Nielsen

Leslie Nielsen’s deadpan delivery comes after the perfect set-up, “Surely you can’t be serious.” Airplane’s slapstick silliness reveled in wordplay and sight gags, but popular culture fell in love with this line as the ideal rejoinder to use upon hearing “surely.”

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

–  Quote: “Hasta la vista, baby.”

–  Character: The Terminator

–  Actor: Arnold Schwarzenegger

There’s something about Arnold Schwarzenegger’s line deliveries – he performs in a way that’s both stiff and also infused with sincerity. Since he plays a robot in the Terminator franchise, his dialogue is rife with humor. The script co-writer revealed that he and director James Cameron used to say this catchphrase to one another, but Schwarzenegger made it one of his trademarks.

Planet of the Apes (1968)

–  Quote: “Get your stinking paws off me, you damned dirty ape.”

–  Character: George Taylor

–  Actor: Charlton Heston

The first Planet of the Apes film premiered in 1968, with five additional films through 1973. Director Tim Burton rebooted the series in 2001, and audiences have flocked to new films beginning with Rise of the Planet of the Apes in 2011. Charlton Heston delivers the famous line as the marooned and imprisoned astronaut Taylor, with his characteristic emotional grit. Rise of the Planet of the Apes repeats the line, but gets a response this time: “No!” from leader Caesar.

👉  Some quotes for amusement:

👉  And some great comic strips:

👉  How is your knowledge of theme songs from the 80s TV shows? I must not have watched much TV during the decade because of the 31 tunes played, I knew the shows for only 6 of them.  How did you do?

👉  As we close today, we continue in Psalm 119, with a meditation from Praying with the Psalms, by Eugene H. Peterson.

“The unfolding of your words gives light; it imparts understanding to the simple” (Psalm 119:130).

When we first look at the word of God, it is like a bud – a small concentration of beauty.  As we hold it before us in meditation, it unfolds, layer by layer, until the full flower is in blossom, ready to be viewed in all its intricately related parts.

Prayer: O Father, there is so much that I am eager to learn from your word.  I have seen so little, but that little has whetted my appetite for more.  As I hunger and thirst for your righteousness, fill me with your Holy Spirit.  Amen.

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