Category Archives: Loose Pollen

Before I begin, I want to do a full disclosure: Cole Herbals did not offer me anything to post the following. I’m doing it because (1) I want to commend this company to all y’all, both for its fine products and for its excellent customer service and (2) I want to give y’all a heads up about Amazon’s insidious new relationship with the FDA.

I recently received an offer to receive a gift card if I posted an “honest review” of their hemorrhoid balm at Amazon. I responded: “Thanks, but no. I bought my first and second tins on Amazon; the first was great, but the second was meh. Then, I heard from a friend that Amazon uses Last In, First Out (LIFO) to stock its inventory. If stock gets low, the stuff they send could have been sitting at the back for weeks, months or even years. I bought a third tin directly from you and it works great. I’m guessing the meh tin was a LIFO orphan. So, no. I will only be buying directly from you in the future.”

Linda Langenbacher, Co-Founder & Owner, wrote back the same day.

“Hi Chrissy,

“I know that about Amazon. That is why we are so very frustrated having to sell on that platform. We take care of our customers. Always either answer the phone or get back to them immediately if they have any complaints or questions.

“However, since you DID purchase our product once on Amazon, you can still help us out by giving us a review there. If you do, I will:

1) Send you the money that you spent on the bad product.

2) Send you another product of your choice from our website coleherbals.com

3) Give you $25.00 off on any other products that you would like to purchase from us.

“Right now all organic products (not just ours) are under attack by the FDA via Amazon. The more current good reviews that we receive, the more likely we will be able to prove to Amazon that our products DO what we say they do.

“All I need is a link to the review and I will do this for you.”

A few days later, I wrote back. “Two days ago, I updated my original review @ https://www.amazon.com/review/create-review/edit?ie=UTF8&channel=glance-detail&asin=B073WKHCV3. I was waiting for them to notify me that it had been uploaded to send you the link. I just got back the other 6 reviews I wrote right after yours, but not yours. The original content I posted years ago is still there, but not the update. 

“The four reviews they accepted were for dish brushes, purse caddies, hinged boxes, and my 2024 day planner. The two they rejected were for an herbal digestive aid and a Boiron homeopathic remedy; I gave both 5 stars. I don’t understand what in the community guidelines I violated; I did talk about what they helped me with, but neither (acid indigestion, cold) is a serious medical condition, which is all that I see mentioned in the guidelines.

“And I don’t know why my Cole’s update just didn’t get processed at all. Maybe I hit the wrong button, but I don’t think so, because it sent me to the ‘what else do you want to review?’ page. I’ve been reviewing at Amazon for years; this is the first any have been rejected. I honestly thought my reviews fit the ‘helpful for other consumers’ guideline. Is this part of what you mean by under attack? Do you have any advice about what passes muster under this new regime?

N.b., While I was writing this post, I went to Amazon to take a screenshot of my original 5-star review, which I posted in 2018. It was there as of January 22, 2024. Now it is gone!

Her reply came today. “Yes. What you are experiencing is what we have been experiencing over here. It now seems to be ‘illegal’ to even post reviews that make claims that products work unless they have actually been proven to work by the FDA. I will be giving out a reward to you for your help as soon as I return to my office. Linda”

I want to stress again the high quality and effectiveness of Cole Herbals products, provided you order them from Cole Herbals, so you will know they are fresh. I am already using their “Stress Relief Formula” to help with the chronic Restless Legs Syndrome that keeps me awake at night. I am really looking forward to trying something new with my reward, probably “Digestive Support.”

I encourage you to check out Cole’s “Find your remedy” page @ https://coleherbals.com/pages/findyourremedy and also their helpful blogs @ https://coleherbals.com/pages/blogs.

If you do order, be sure to take advantage of their generous first-time discount and, of course, free shipping for orders over $35.

BORDER: CLICK https://rumble.com/v492j7c-ted-cruz-goes-off-exposes-senate-border-bill-the-swamp-is-trying-to-pass.html [5:30] to hear Ted Cruz vent.

• https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/4427478-senate-conservatives-opposition-border-deal/

FIDUCIA SUPPLICANS: Pope Francis dismisses critics of homosexual blessings as “small ideological groups.” He further dismissed the African bishops opposing the document, because “for them, homosexuality is something ‘ugly’ from a cultural point of view; they do not tolerate it.”

Among them are Cardinal Gerhard Müller and Father Nicola Bux. Cardinal Müller is the former head of the Congregation (now Dicastery) for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Vatican office that issued Fiducia Supplicans. Father Bux is a Vatican theologian who, prior to retirement, worked as consultant to the Congregation.

Müller called the controversial Vatican declaration Fiducia Supplicans a “failed document” that needs to be “rewritten.” He commended the African bishops, saying it is “a very important moment in [the] Church history that now the Africans are entering the place and taking over the leadership in the Catholic Church, and it is a very good thing they are doing,”

Bux also commended the African bishops for correcting the errors of Fiducia Supplicans which he believes “does not belong to the authentic Magisterium.” He called on the document’s author, Cardinal Victor Fernandez, to resign. 

• https://www.lifesitenews.com/episodes/breaking-pope-francis-attacks-critics-of-homosexual-blessings-as-small-ideological-groups/
• https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/pope-francis-my-critics-are-small-ideological-groups-african-church-a-special-case/
• https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/leading-vatican-theologian-says-fiducia-supplicans-is-not-part-of-the-authentic-magisterium/
• https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/cardinal-muller-calls-fiducia-supplicans-a-failed-document-that-needs-to-be-rewritten/

HETERODOX: Leftists think we should all jump on the pro-homosexual, who-cares-what-Jesus-said German Catholic Church. Hmm … maybe not. Bishop Georg Bätzing of the Diocese of Limburg heads up the German bishops’ conference. He has famously called for a change to unchangeable Church teaching on homosexuality and female deacons, and has supported optional clerical celibacy. In 2023, he ordained zero new priests.

• https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/german-diocese-led-by-head-of-bishops-conference-ordained-zero-priests-in-2023/

HISTORY: [13:06] – This is fascinating!

MILITARY: [2:38] – CLICK https://twitter.com/bennyjohnson/status/1751978216535781849 [:26] to hear a terrible human being belittle the deaths of three American soldiers.

• https://notthebee.com/article/breaking-three-us-troops-killed-dozens-injured-in-nighttime
• https://notthebee.com/article/kjp-sends-condolences-to-the-three-folks-who-died-fighting-for-this-administration

RENOVATIONS: When we had our roofing replaced, they discovered a whole section where the rafters just stopped midway between the ridge board and the ceiling joists.

TEXAS: The union representing U.S. Border Patrol agents has declared, “Rank-and-file Border Patrol agents appreciate and respect what TX [Texas] has been doing to defend their state in the midst of this catastrophe that the Biden Admin has unleashed on America. We want to be perfectly clear, there is no fight between rank-and-file BP agents and the TX National Guard, Gov. Abbott, or TX Department of Public Safety.”

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/border-patrol-union-posts-defiant-message-says-agents-have-no-issue-with-texas-border-stance-5575703

VAXXX: CLICK https://twitter.com/kevinnbass/status/1749575650334130325 [:31] to hear an old clip of Fauci reveling in his ability to force people to comply.

• https://notthebee.com/article/in-newly-resurfaced-interview-dr-fauci-claims-when-you-make-it-difficult-for-people-by-making-the-vaccine-a-requirement-they-lose-their-ideological-bull-and-get-vaccinated

GRAMMY NOTES: The single most useful class I took in high school was typing. One day, long after she had retired, I was honored to make a presentation to a women’s group to which my long-ago teacher belonged. I am so grateful that I got to tell her, in front of her friends, how grateful I am for the tedious hours she spent drilling us.

CONSTITUTION: CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/TrRniSbE3q0 to hear Michael Knowles explain where “separation of church and state” and “America was in no way founded on the Christian religions” came from and how they do not appear in any founding documents.

• https://usconstitution.net/jeffwall.html
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Tripoli

COVID-19: A book entitled “What the Nurses Saw” by Ken McCarthy has become a bestseller at Amazon. The Amazon description says, “No human activity can ever be free from error, but to be clear, this book is not about the kind of error all human beings are prone to. As you will learn from the eye-witness accounts and technical information presented in this book, calling the failed COVID protocols ‘errors’ is not accurate.

These protocols were explicitly ordered by those who took dictatorial control of the medical system early in the Panic (spring of 2020). Further, when they were shown to be demonstrably failing and harming many thousands of people, experienced healthcare professionals who raised informed concerns were silenced through demotion, firing, and organized campaigns of harassment promoted by the news media and enabled by companies like Google, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok, in some cases in collaboration with the White House and the Department of Justice’s FBI.

If this sounds very bad, it’s because it is. What the Nurses Saw is documentation of what happens in the real world when bureaucrats, in this case bureaucrats in Washington DC, take literal dictatorial control over the practice of medicine.”

CLICK https://lionessofjudah.substack.com/p/niall-mccrae-the-shocking-testimony to read a review by Niall McRae.

PRAYERS: Please remember our dear friend, Lonnie, in your prayers. She has been battling cancer for some time. Friday night, she succumbed to pneumonia.

SAN FRAN: “How dare you?!”

SIN: Love the sinner. Hate the sin. IMO, the most important thing is to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit about how to best love specific sinners in real time. I read a personal testimony once that impacted me greatly. The woman had been a dedicated Planned Parenthood abortion clinic worker who became interested in Christianity. She began meeting regularly with a minister to talk about the Bible etc. She said he brought up her job once; she replied, “Don’t go there.” He didn’t for a YEAR of meetings, by which time she had learned enough and grown enough in the Lord to bring it up herself. She quit her job and is now a pro-lifer.

TRUMP: [2:55] – I want this man back in the White House.

GRAMMY NOTES: We’re having one of those beautiful days where it looks like God shook powdered sugar all over everything. ❤

SHORTS:

CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/tgZgxFJ-jrs and grab a tissue. ❤

AFFORDABLE CARE ACT: As seems to be a truism with Democrat-sponsored legislation, the warm-fuzzy name they put on the thing is exactly the opposite of what the thing will do to us if enacted.

• https://www.heritage.org/health-care-reform/report/obamacare-has-doubled-the-cost-individual-health-insurance

CANADA: [1:36] – On Tuesday, a Muslim gunman entered Edmonton’s City Hall where he lit several Molotov cocktails and fired rounds from a long gun into the ceiling, walls and windows. He was detained without incident and no one was hurt.

CLICK https://twitter.com/Joe_Roberts01/status/1750296328821780483 [:20] to see the manifesto he posted before the attack in which he clearly says he felt the need to rise up against the leaders “responsible for genocide in Gaza.”

Prime Minister Trudeau had nothing to say about the incident and, apparently, neither did anyone much in the media. I remember they had a whole lot to say about Canadian truckers protesting the COVID restrictions that were putting them out of business. But a jihad-inspired gunman lighting up molotov cocktails inside the capital of Alberta? ::crickets::

The few stories I found were all in Canadian media; they mainly stressed the “lone gunman” and “nobody hurt” aspect. MSN did a single story about the projected cost for repairing the building; in the lede, they described the jihadist simply as “a man.”

• https://torontosun.com/news/national/warmington-this-was-a-jihad-like-terror-attack-in-canada-that-no-one-seems-to-know-about
• https://globalnews.ca/news/10244633/edmonton-city-hall-lockdown-january/
• https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/one-person-arrested-after-edmonton-city-hall-evacuated-following-weapons-complaint-1.7092198
• https://edmonton.citynews.ca/2024/01/24/charges-edmonton-city-hall-shooting/
• https://www.msn.com/en-ca/news/canada/damage-in-edmonton-city-hall-attack-estimated-at-100k-meetings-canceled-next-week/ar-BB1hjRnY

INVASION: CLICK https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/1750683563593547832 [:50] to see a land invasion in La Jolla, CA. I call it in invasion, because these are not economic refugees; that lost shoe looks brand new. They almost all appeared to be young males who came in on a small boat that had been well stocked with fuel. IOW, somebody must have dropped them off, probably in international waters. They all appear to be wearing “black bloc”, the identity camouflaging garb favored by Antifa. And they knew exactly how and where to land and where to run. In addition, it appeared there were vehicles waiting for them.

PROTESTS IN D.C.: [8:32] – Within 24 hours, two extremely different marches took place in Washington, D.C.: The March for Life and The Women’s March. The annual March for Life is the largest pro-life event in the world. This event is prayerful, patriotic, and joyful. In complete contrast, the Women’s March promotes abortion, feminism, gender ideology, transgenderism, and homosexuality. This event is woke, angry, and vulgar.

TEXAS: CLICK https://twitter.com/TuckerCarlson/status/1750943686567834008 [6:24] to hear Tucker report on the border situation. According to Governor Abbott, 10 states have already given National Guard assistance to Texas and he would be surprised if the rest of the 25 Republican-led states which have pledged support wouldn’t do the same.

It beats me why SCOTUS ruled that the federal government has the right to violate its own mandate to protect our national borders. See second Not The Bee link below for “Seven Reasons Supporting a Strong and Secure Border is the Loving Christian Thing to Do.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/watch-tucker-carlson-interview-greg-abbott-about-the-border-showdown
• https://notthebee.com/takes/7-reasons-supporting-a-strong-and-secure-border-is-the-loving-christian-thing-to-do

GRAMMY NOTES: When hubby and I were very new parents, we spent the evening visiting with my folks who lived nearby. I remember so clearly having one foot inside the car when I suddenly remembered that our newborn was asleep in a bedroom. My mom had come outside, I thought to see us off, even though she never did that. But no. It was to see how far we’d get before we remembered our precious newborn baby girl.

BHO: [8:18] – Tucker Carlson interviewed Larry Sinclair, the guy who was famously ignored when he reported having met Barack Obama in 1999 outside a bar, then having had sex and using cocaine with him afterwards. The oddest part of this story to me is not that the media suppressed it, but that when it allegedly happened, Obama — who was a state senator at the time – gave his full name to this total stranger, then happily took him to get cocaine and have sex with him. I mean … either this guy made it all up or Barack Obama is quite possibly THE dumbest politician on the planet. But maybe it’s true. What’s-his-name at Hillbuzz said years ago that Obama was a well known cruiser in the Chicago gay scene long before he hit the national stage. Maybe he figured the Democrat Machine would always have his back, in which case he was right. So maybe not so dumb. Just corrupt as hell. And going to you know where.

BORDER: A while back, Gov. Abbott ordered the Texas National Guard and state troopers to begin defending the border. FAUXTUS objected; SCOTUS agreed with him. Gov. Abbott says he doesn’t care.

“President Biden has violated his oath to faithfully execute immigration laws enacted by Congress. Instead of prosecuting immigrants for the federal crime of illegal entry, President Biden has sent his lawyers into federal courts to sue Texas for taking action to secure the border.“

• https://www.texastribune.org/2024/01/24/texas-border-wire-supreme-court/
• https://notthebee.com/article/welp-trump-just-urged-all-willing-states-to-send-their-national-guards-to-texas-to-help-with-deporations

CANADA: CLICK https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=1424473325112751 [:54] to see footage of folks enjoying the world’s largest natural ice skating rink. The Rideau Canal Skateway in Ottawa is nearly 5 miles long!

• https://rideaucanalskateway.com/

DEI: [7:54] – Victor Davis Hanson delves into how Barack Obama set our country back 50 years. If this doesn’t embed properly, it’s @ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faPNpovMeu.

FAUXTUS: CLICK https://twitter.com/saras76/status/1750604669573837193 [:09] to hear why CNN is calling for Biden to campaign from his basement again.

• https://www.bizpacreview.com/2024/01/24/stay-hidden-van-jones-urges-biden-to-repeat-2020-basement-strategy-to-win-1430599/

LIFE: [1:34] – CLICK https://www.facebook.com/watch?v=285568904524225 [:19] to see a 4D ultrasound of a 9-week fetus wiggling in the womb. Sooooooo not a “clump of cells.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/have-you-heard-of-everylife-the-pro-life-diaper-company-causing-quite-a-stir-with-its-make-more-babies-campaign

OHIO: Kudos to the legislators of this great state who successfully voted to override Gov. DeWine’s veto. The new law restricts the use of puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or surgeries for transgender youth. The bill does not restrict the use of this care on non-transgender youth with specific medical conditions, such as precocious puberty or abnormal sex characteristics.

• https://notthebee.com/article/state-senate-overrides-dewines-hb-68-veto-the-mutilation-of-minors-is-now-banned-in-ohio-

GRAMMY NOTES: Bootz is learning to serve at the altar! 🙂 ❤

2024: Trump won New Hampshire by about 11 points, despite more than half the voters being undeclared or Democrat. Nikki Haley told her supporters, “This race is far from over.” Uhhh, based on those exit polls, I’d say, yeah, it is. CLICK https://twitter.com/CitizenFreePres/status/1749965719943430498 [:27] to hear one of Haley’s “supporters” say out loud that he plans to vote for Biden.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/trump-defeats-haley-in-new-hampshire-primary-5570986
• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/haley-after-2nd-place-finish-in-new-hampshire-this-race-is-far-from-over-5572478
• https://notthebee.com/article/70-of-nikki-haley-voters-in-new-hampshire-were-not-registered-republicans
• https://www.newsmax.com/us/donald-trump-new-hampshire-gop/2024/01/23/id/1150723/

DIABETES: I had a request to revisit the resistant starch issue for a diabetic who loves her rice. The starch in cooked rice is easily digested in the small intestines, causing a rise in blood sugar. But when cooked rice is cooled, the starch changes into a form that can not be digested. Instead, it passes through the small intestine, then is fermented in the large intestine. In addition to not causing a blood sugar spike, fermented resistant starch greatly benefits your gut biome. I was so pleased to see that more research has been done on resistant starch since the last time I talked about this. If you’re interested in this, here are the three best resources I located –

Johns Hopkins Patient Guide: What is Resistant Starch?

“Try cooking rice, potatoes, beans, and pasta a day in advance and cool in the refrigerator overnight. It’s ok to reheat the starch before eating. Reheating doesn’t decrease the amount of resistant starch.”

• https://hopkinsdiabetesinfo.org/what-is-resistant-starch/

What is Resistant Starch + Sources + Cooking Tip

“Type 3 – Retrograded starch that forms after type 1 or 2 are cooked and then cooled. Type 3 can be reheated at low temperatures to keep the starch from becoming digestible.“

• https://selfhacked.com/blog/reistant1-what-is-resistant-starch-sources-how-to-increase-diet/

Short: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/MoYixIKbXoM < short video showing a real life glucose monitored test of just cooked vs. cooled overnight rice.

FAUXTUS: Catholic Vote, one of the nation’s largest Catholic advocacy groups, has officially endorsed former president Trump. CatholicVote President Brian Burch highlighted President Trump’s achievements in office, including overseeing a robust economy and appointing three Supreme Court justices, leading to the overturning of Roe v. Wade. “We need a general to lead us,” he asserted. Not, you know, this guy > CLICK https://rumble.com/v48kb2o-supercut-the-best-of-the-worst-biden-gaffes.html [2:00] to see “SUPERCUT: The Best of the Worst Biden Gaffes.”

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/catholicvote-endorses-trump-our-catholic-way-of-life-is-on-the-ballot-5571808

MICHIGAN: CLICK https://twitter.com/GovWhitmer/status/1749854462338896379 [1:16] to see Gov. Jackboots promote her program for free community college. My #1 favorite comment is last:

“Hey remember when you prevented people from growing their own food?”

“I looked to see if this was supposed to be a parody. Idaho is offended.”

“Wow. This isn’t very inclusive for the other members of the vegetable family. How come only potatoes are represented? Do better.”

“This video gave me tuber-culosis.”

“This is not apeeling at all.”

“Which one was the potato?”

“I’m glad to see Brian Stelter landed on his feet.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/michigan-governor-posts-video-with-professor-potato-to-revolutionize-higher-education

MAGA: Dean Phillips is a Democrat challenging Biden. During an interview on CNN, he said, “I’ve got to tell you guys, I went to a Donald Trump rally a couple nights ago. Never been to one. I had an event across the street. I saw the line of people waiting in the cold for hours and I thought, what the heck, you know, I’m going to be a leader who actually invites people, doesn’t condemn them. I met probably 50 Trump people waiting in line. Every single one of them, thoughtful, hospitable, friendly, all of them so frustrated that they feel nobody’s listening to them but Donald Trump. A diverse crowd. People who had never been to a Trump event before. My party is completely delusional right now, and somebody had to wake us up. And if that’s my job, so be it.” Or you could, you know, switch parties.

CLICK https://rumble.com/v48zppt-charles-payne-goes-nuclear-on-liberal-over-bidens-pure-hatred-for-maga.html [3:55] to hear the Charles Payne clip from Fox News. The last minute isn’t worth watching.

• https://bongino.com/democrat-dean-phillips-my-party-is-completely-delusional

POPE FRANCIS: CLICK https://rumble.com/v48sm72-this-cannot-happen-again.-pope-francis-time-of-confusion-will-end.html [5:06] to hear Fr. Charles Murr comment on how Catholics can deal with the confusion in today’s RCC.

SIN SICK MAMA: CLICK https://twitter.com/CollinRugg/status/1749936166844141954 [1:40] and pray for this woman. She needs Jesus. Police were reportedly called but there is no news at this time about what has happened to the boy. One commenter said she’d heard he was with his grandma. Let’s pray for them as well. And thanks to the shoppers who stepped up. When that witch tossed a package of frozen food on to her shivering boy’s bare foot, I just wanted to vomit.

• https://notthebee.com/article/concerned-shoppers-call-police-give-coat-to-shivering-toddler-after-mom-brings-him-into-walmart-wearing-only-a-diaper-watch-the-video

SOUTH CAROLINA: [3:12] – Mom tells the Wake County Public School Board how woke ideology is impacting kids in classrooms. The best advice I ever heard about when a kid is ready to learn about sex and sexuality is not before they are having those feelings in their bodies.

WISCONSIN: CLICK https://twitter.com/libsoftiktok/status/1749682244195889294 [:32] to hear a medical student say she’ll leave the state if she can’t do full term abortions. Somebody then says, “That will do nothing to help our shortages.” I dunno. Maybe it’ll encourage pro-life OB/GYNs to move to Wisconsin, so they can’t be forced to participate in abortions! So my reply to this chick is … “Don’t let the door hit ya where the Good Lord split ya.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/future-obgyn-says-she-will-leave-wisconsin-after-graduation-if-she-is-prevented-from-aborting-full-term-babies

GRAMMY NOTES: I was making something in the blender once. While it was running, I carefully measured out a teaspoon of something, took the lid off and chucked the entire spoon in.

BIBLE APP: Download for free @ https://www.bible.com/app.

DELTA: CLICK https://twitter.com/gregg_re/status/1749835450804576370 [:53] to hear the pilots and air traffic controllers talk about this. It never ceases to amaze me how calm these people are. “If you look out your windows, you can see the Grand Canyon” comes out in just the same deadpan voice as “One of our tires just fell off and rolled down the runway.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/daily-airline-update-delta-boeing-757-loses-nose-wheel-on-takeoff

J6: We all know by now how deeply committed Democrats are to transparency (coughillarycough) and preserving federal documents (coughbidencough). So color me shocked to learn that the Dems running the J6 Kangaroo Committee encrypted and deleted 117 files before Republicans could take over the majority in the House.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/jan-6-committee-deleted-over-100-files-before-republicans-took-control-of-house-congressman-5571465
• https://nypost.com/2024/01/22/news/house-jan-6-committee-deleted-more-than-100-encrypted-files-days-before-gop-took-majority-sources/
• https://notthebee.com/article/report-january-6th-committee-erased-over-100-encrypted-files-in-the-days-before-republicans-took-majority-i-wonder-why-they-would-do-that

OHIO: CLICK https://twitter.com/FoxNews/status/1749101959934591006 [:52] to see the sheriff of Trumbull County, Ohio, arrest Commissioner Niki Frenchko, the lone Republican (and only female) on the County Board of Commissioners.

At one of the Weekly Commissioners’ Public Workshops back in 2022, Frenchko read a letter written by the mother of a man who had died while in Trumbull County’s jail. The mother said her son had not received adequate healthcare while he was locked up. Apparently, Frenchko made the sheriff uncomfortable, because the next thing she knew, she was being dragged off in handcuffs for “being disruptive at a public meeting.”

On Wednesday, federal Judge J. Philip Calabrese ruled that the arrest had (surprise!) violated the First Amendment. “Here in America, we do not arrest our political opponents,“ the judge wrote. “This case tests that longstanding norm as well as our Constitution’s robust protections for free speech that allow us to criticize our representatives and public officials.

“Without question, the disruption that led to Commissioner Frenchko’s removal and arrest was her speech itself. And not just any speech. The speech of an elected official, delivered at a public meeting, addressing a matter of public concern. Speech that communicated a message disfavored by those in power. Speech highly critical of another elected official.”

Judge Calabrese also said that qualified immunity did not apply to those named in her lawsuit, meaning she can sue them for monetary damages. I hope she takes them to the cleaners, cuz you know what Deputy Frank says. “Warnings don’t work.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/this-republican-county-commissioner-was-arrested-for-calling-out-her-sheriff-during-a-commissioners-meeting-and-a-judge-just-ruled-that-no-here-in-america-we-do-not-arrest-our-political-oppon
• https://www.co.trumbull.oh.us/commissioners/

TRUDEAU: The Federal Court of Canada has declared that the Trudeau government’s use of the Emergencies Act during the 2022 trucker convoy in Ottawa violated the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

• https://notthebee.com/article/federal-court-canada-rules-trudeaus-emergencies-act-freedom-convoy-illegal

GRAMMY NOTES: I grew up in Ithaca, NY, home of Cornell University which is both built on a steep hill and reputed to have more foreign students than any other American university. EVERY winter was like this!

SHORTS:

CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/a4rCmCoero4 to see why we should embrace gender differences.

2024: CLICK https://rumble.com/v48o4ct-trumps-old-letterman-interview-is-going-viral-because-it-was-prophetic.html [2:42] to see David Letterman interview a young Donald Trump.

DIE: Plus, you know, actual diversity … of gender for one thing. There are no guys in that picture! Also of beliefs, religions, education, professional and personal life choices.

J6: CLICK https://rumble.com/v48knv5-dnc-january-6th-pipe-bomb-surveillance-video-released-what-it-shows-is-biza.html [6:40] to see newly released security footage of the finding of the famous pipe bomb that some “terrorist” allegedly left outside DNC headquarters.

Revolver News has been covering this weird aspect of the January 6^th events for years. See link below to see all their stories. One very telling point was that, a year ago this month, the FBI Washington Field Office, ATF Washington Field Division, and Metropolitan Police Department announced a $500,000 reward for information leading to the arrest of the Capitol Hill Pipe Bomber. Nobody collected.

Comments on the announcement suggest a very good reason why nobody ever collected: “Did you ask people in your own department?” “All they need to do is go through their own records and look up who they paid to do it.” “Translation: ‘Our PR department decided that we need to craft public perception to believe we’re actually interested in doing something about this.’” “Thank you for getting on this so quickly!”

• https://revolver.news/?s=pipe+bomb

MARCH FOR LIFE: Despite the frigid temperatures, pro-lifers turned out in large numbers. CLICK https://twitter.com/March_for_Life/status/1748442432180490716 [1:27] to see a time lapse video of the marchers in D.C.

• https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/time-lapse-videos-show-impressive-turnout-for-2024-march-for-life/

MASON JAR HACK: I love my mason jars, so this fun hack really caught my fancy.

ORGANIZING: [17:00] – This is the best beginner how to video I’ve seen on how to succeed at transforming a cluttered mess into something that works and keeps on working. I know it says it’s 21 minutes long, but the last four minutes are about not letting other people crumble our self-esteem.

S&G: On January 21, an angry parent posted her kid’s homework on Facebook. On January 22, Libs of TikTok promoted the story. Within hours, the school district had deleted its social media account.

• https://www.libsoftiktok.com/p/daily-briefing-virgin-atlantic-dei
• Original post from angry parent @ https://www.facebook.com/groups/691040948079576/permalink/1761343431049317/

GRAMMY NOTES: I’m really getting into decluttering micro-projects. My latest win-win is pictured above. My embroidery hoop was like the jar of mancala beads was … a thing that got pushed here and there, because it was always in the way of something else, and thus a thing I could never find when I needed it. In the spirit of “My Stuff Management System should tell me where to find things“, I decided it needed to be inside my embroidery floss box. I wanted the box top to close nicely, so Dearest cut notches in the foam core dividers for me. The hoop now nestles in there perfectly, out of sight and right where I can find it.

2024: DeSantis has withdrawn from the race and endorsed Trump, leaving only Nikki Haley holding out for some kind of Hail Mary from her RINO and Dem supporters.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/desantis-drops-out-from-2024-race-endorses-trump-5570603

BATTERIES: Heat over 85ºF can shorten battery life and power delivery, so garages and attics are a poor choice for storing them. But even in our most comfortable living spaces, the heat can go above 85ºF. The “Life Storage Blog” says, “we recommend investing in a climate-controlled storage unit if you can.” Oh, really? Uhhhhh … we pretty much all own one already. It’s call a “refrigerator.” I keep all my spare batteries in a single bin at the back of the bottom shelf of my fridge. Besides keeping my batteries at a steady temperature and all in one place, the bin keeps me from losing leftovers in that hard-to-see, harder-to-reach area.

• https://www.lifestorage.com/blog/storage/how-to-store-batteries/

CHEESE: Dearest’s Italian grandfather got his start in the U.S. buying fresh cheese from farmers in Italy, warehousing it over there until it was yummy, then shipping it over here to sell. He married a lovely first generation Italian lady whom he met when he ate in her parents’ New York City restaurant. She was waiting tables. She told me they started their family here, but decided to move to Italy. “On his income, we were thousand-aires here, but in Italy, we were millionaires!” I was shocked to realize my very frugal mother-in-law had grown up going to private schools and summering at their second home on the Italian coast. I was less shocked when I learned the Nazis had confiscated their big, beautiful home and booted them out. A neighbor let the ten of them live in the space above his store. If I recall correctly, the only water they had was what they could get from a community tap on the street.

DISCECTOMY: On January 10, 2024, BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders published a study entitled “Association between spinal manipulative therapy and lumbar spine reoperation after discectomy: a retrospective cohort study.” Researchers at the University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center compared two groups of patients who had had lumbar discectomy surgery. In the group that received chiropractic care following their first surgery, 7% required a second operation. In the control group, 13% needed a second operation.

• https://bmcmusculoskeletdisord.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12891-024-07166-x
• https://www.theepochtimes.com/health/chiropractic-care-may-reduce-the-need-for-future-back-surgeries-study-5567836

EVs: Ford Motor Co. is moving about 1,400 employees from its EV plant to plants building the Bronco, Bronco Raptor, Ranger, and Ranger Raptor gas-powered vehicles. Ford stated that they’re still confident in electric vehicles’ future “for specific consumers.”

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/article/ford-to-scale-down-ev-production-transfer-crew-to-gas-vehicle-assembly-plant-5569443

J6: Last month, SCOTUS agreed to hear an appeal by Jan. 6 defendant Joseph W. Fisher, one of the victims of the Biden administration’s novel use of an Enron-era evidence-tampering law. If the court finds in Fisher’s favor, it could potentially erase some of the charges pending against President Trump and overturn many of the J6 felony convictions. The case has not yet been scheduled.

• https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/us-supreme-court-action-alters-course-of-jan-6-defendant-sentencings-5569464

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES: [3:03] – Coin Mail, Fertilizer Ban, and Hawaiian Mongoose.

GRAMMY NOTES: When my oh-so-brainy-but-kinda-ditzy daughter served up the Chicken Parmesan she’d made from scratch, she apologized ahead of time. “I forgot to take the recipe to the store, couldn’t remember what kind of cheese I was supposed to get, so bought sharp cheddar.” After we got off the floor from laughing, we discovered that Chicken Sharp Cheddar is delicious!

SHORTS:

CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/VnrudwDGXWQ for more cheesy goodness.

COMMON CORE: CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/bdaUwU5k7-k to hear Dr. Betsy Grunch, a board certified neurosurgeon, ask anyone and everyone how to answer a question on her 3rd grader’s math homework. Her plea ends in a funny way, so watch to the end. Then, enjoy smacking your forehead with me when you read the simple answer provided in the comments by a retired 3rd grade teacher. “If the wholes are different sizes, then they’re not equal. Example: 2/3 a large pizza isn’t equal to 4/6 of a small pizza.”

DOPPELGANGERS: The photo of Barron Trump was cropped from one taken while he was attending his maternal grandmother’s funeral.

• https://notthebee.com/article/this-pic-of-barron-trump-went-viral-because-people-are-comparing-him-to-caesar-and-alexander-the-great-and-the-memes-are-fire

FRIDAYS WITH FRANK: [3:42] – “Warnings don’t change behavior.” ITA. We once had a neighbor with two dogs he let run freely whenever he felt like it. I was out walking one night and they backed me up against a bank of mailboxes, taking turns lunging at my ankles. Thankfully, I got home safely, but the fact that they were engaging in pack hunting behavior scared me, particularly for the little kids who lived on our street. But when I called to report the situation, the animal control officer said he had been to the owner’s home repeatedly. “He doesn’t care. The only thing that’s going to get through to him is being dragged into court. But that means somebody has to sign a complaint. So far, your neighbors haven’t been willing to put their names to anything.” It took me just moments to weigh “our jerk of a neighbor dislikes me forever because I signed” against “child gets maimed or killed because I didn’t sign” and I went in that day. A few days later, the dogs were gone.

SLIPPERY SLOPE: Polyamory is “the practice of engaging in multiple romantic (and typically sexual) relationships, with the consent of all the people involved.”

• https://notthebee.com/article/the-slippery-slope-is-real-these-major-publications-want-you-to-know-that-polyamory-is-what-all-the-cool-kids-are-doing-now

GRAMMY NOTES: I love our mancala set; we’ve had it since the girls were small. But it had never played nicely with our other games. It’s too long for the shelf and the jar of glass globs is always wandering off. Earlier this week, I brainstormed and came up with this. Mama calls it “functional décor.” I’m so chuffed!

SHORTS:

CLICK https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6hfFGojpepY for a good one from R*CKST*R.