Flannel Shirt

How much paranoia can you handle?

This?

Wurstfest in Mount Angel

Joan and I took the nice sunny day of Friday and drove south to Mount Angel, a small German settlement here in Oregon. They have an Oktoberfest in October and this time of year they have a wurstfest. We figured it would be less crowded while folks were in work, and it was. We were among the youngest people there. Lots of buses brought folks from retirement homes to the fest. There was a polka band and beer and sausages.

Stay away from the curly fries.

Olympic fashion

Americans in Fukushima radiation

The first responders got it again.

Within a day of Fukushima One's March 11, 2011, melt-down, American "first responders" were drenched in radioactive fallout. In the midst of a driving snow storm, sailors reported a cloud of warm air with a metallic taste that poured over the Reagan.

Then-Prime Minister Naoto Kan, at the time a nuclear supporter, says "the first meltdown occurred five hours after the earthquake." The lawsuit charges that Tokyo Electric Power knew large quantities of radiation were pouring into the air and water, but said nothing to the Navy or the public. 

Had the Navy known, says Bonner, it could have moved its ships out of harm's way. But some sailors actually jumped into the ocean just offshore to pull victims to safety. Others worked 18-hour shifts in the open air through a four-day mission, re-fueling and repairing helicopters, loading them with vital supplies and much more. All were drinking and bathing in desalinated water that had been severely contaminated by radioactive fallout and runoff.

Then Reagan crew members were enveloped in a warm cloud. "Hey," joked sailor Lindsay Cooper at the time. "It's radioactive snow."

Read it all.

Velveeta shortage!

And the Super Bowl is coming.

Playoff parties may have one fewer dip option this year.

Kraft Foods says some customers may not be able to find Velveeta cheese over the next few weeks. A representative for the company, Jody Moore, didn't give any reasons for the apparent shortage, saying only that they happen from time to time given the “nature of manufacturing.”

She noted that the lack of availability is more noticeable because of the seasonal demand during the NFL playoffs. The company has been airing TV commercials featuring a recipe for a chili con queso dip made with Velveeta.

The trade publication Ad Age reported the issue Tuesday, quoting an employee at a Brooklyn-area grocery store who didn't expect shipments again until February due to “a plant issue.”

Representatives for supermarket chain operators Kroger and Safeway were not immediately available to comment on whether they were having difficulty stocking Velveeta cheeses. The shortage affects only the Velveeta hard cheese products, but was not limited to a specific area.

“It is possible consumers in any part of the country may not be able to find some Velveeta products,” Moore said in an email.

Moore says it should be a short-term situation and that Kraft hasn't yet heard from any customers who are having problem finding the products. She did not say whether the company experienced a similar shortage last year.

Kraft Foods Group Inc., based in Northfield, Ill., also owns brand including Jell-O, Oscar Mayer and Maxwell House.

 

We're ahead of Romania!

Don't go near the water

Don't go swimming where agitated pirahna are.

Piranhas on a Christmas Day feeding frenzy injured some 60 people in the Argentine city of Rosario, officials said Thursday.

Those injured in the attack Wednesday by the ferocious fish included a girl who lost part of a finger, Health Undersecretary Gabriela Quintanilla told reporters.

Quintanilla said the attack occurred Wednesday off the coast of Rosario, some 310 kilometers (200 miles) north of Buenos Aires.

A medical official, Gustavo Centurion, said the attack which began at mid-morning on Christmas Day was "very aggressive."

"There were some people that the fish literally had torn bits of flesh from," he said.

The region has been hit by a heat wave with temperatures soaring to some 38 degrees Celsius (more than 100 degrees Fahrenheit) prompting thousands to seek relief in the waters of the Parana River, which is packed with carnivorous fish.

Officials said the unusually warm weather also was apparently responsible for the fish congregating on the river's surface before the attack.

Newly engaged

National Pastry Day

Zimmerman's in trouble again

That guy who shot the Travon Martin, then after he was found not guilty threatened his wife, seems to be in trouble again.

Former neighborhood watchman George Zimmerman was arrested following a domestic violence incident on Monday, according to multiple reports.

Authorities confirmed to The Orlando Sentinel that Zimmerman had been taken into custody.

TMZ also confirmed that Zimmerman was involved in the domestic violence incident in Orlando.

WESH-TV’s Bob Kealing reported that Zimmerman had been arrested for domestic violence against his current girlfriend.

After being acquitted for the murder of slain teen Trayvon Martin, Zimmerman faced accusations over the summer when authorities were called to the house of his wife, Shellie Zimmerman, to respond to a domestic dispute.

Shellie Zimmerman accused him of threatening both her and her father’s life, but no charges were filed in that case. Zimmerman has also been pulled over twice for speeding in recent months.

Update, 3:30 p.m. EST: Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Zimmerman’s girlfriend claimed that she was pregnant, making the domestic violence charge an automatic felony. Zimmerman reportedly was not eligible for bail.

Update, 5:14 p.m. EST: ABC News reported that Zimmerman was charged with aggravated assault, battery and criminal mischief in connection with the incident.