No Brainer: AI is the Biggest Threat to Journalism Today

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the worst thing to hit journalism in a lifetime.

We're already seeing the effects of AI where it generates inaccurate or misleading information in newsrooms across the nation. Public trust in the news is sinking faster than the Titanic when it hit an iceberg. It's already obvious that AI can potentially replace some aspects of a journalist's work with automated content creation. The quality and ethics of AI raises many concerns.

Last year experts warned Congress that AI poses a grave threat to journalism. Media executives and academic experts testified before the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology, and the Law about how AI is contributing to the big tech-fueled decline of journalism.

Those experts explained that the rise of big tech has been directly responsible for the decline in local news. "First Meta, Google and OpenAI are using the hard work of newspapers and authors to train their AI models without compensation or even crediting the source," said Senator Richard Blumenthal during the hearing.

The result? Using these models to compete with newspapers and broadcasters has cannibalized readership and revenue from the journalistic institutions that generate the content in the first place.

Since the rise of the digital platforms a decade ago the tech companies and the news industry have been in conflict, which has resulted in tech platforms profiting as many news organizations have gone out of business. Researchers at the Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications at Northwestern University found that America has lost almost a third of its newspapers and almost two-thirds of its newspaper journalists since 2005.

Fighting Back

Countries around the world are starting to take action to force big tech to support their local journalism industries. I like what Canada did in 2023 when they passed a law requiring tech companies to pay news outlets for any content featured on their platforms. Australia led the way with a similar law in 2021.

Here in the United States, there have been numerous lawsuits between big tech and the news industry. The New York Times vs OpenAI last year has been the highest profile case yet. 

Billions of dollars in statutory and actual damages have been charged against OpenAI who responded by claiming it actually helped support a healthy news ecosystem. The case is ongoing.

The news industry has borne the brunt of having to vet content in order to determine whether AI stories are genuine and accurate. One example; following the Oct. 7, 2024, terrorist attacks on Israel, fake photos and videos reached an unprecedented level in social media in a matter of minutes! Of the 1000s of videos that one broadcast network sifted through to report on the attacks, only 10% of them were authentic and usable.

While Congress dilly-dallies around this AI threat it continues to expand like a cancer in all of the communication platforms. It's no wonder that the American public is losing faith in newspapers and broadcasters. There's never been a greater threat to our democracy than what AI poses today.

As it Stands, democracy does die in the darkness. The Washington Post is a good example because AI tech and a right-wing publisher have turned off the lights.

Why Would Anyone Go on a Cruise Ship?

I just don't get it. Why would anyone pay to be confined on a ship in the middle of the ocean and risk getting a stomach virus, or worse, falling overboard? 

Last year was the worst year in a decade for gastrointestinal illnesses on cruise ships, primarily caused by norovirus. Concerns about hygiene and sanitation are well placed. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) reported that inspections highlighted the cleanliness problems on cruise liners.

A few days ago, seventy-nine passengers and nine crew members were sickened with norovirus on a cruise ship that left from Florida, according to CDC's Prevention's Vessel Sanitation Program. This is the second example of norovirus sweeping through a cruise ship in the last month.

Somethings never change. People are pigs and when you have a group of about 3,000 pigs (a typical number) eating from the same trough you can expect a disease to spread rapidly. 

The joys of going on a cruise are quickly watered down when it comes to other incidents that occur on board. Carnival Cruise Line has had the most incidents, including overboard accidents, crimes, and accidents, compared to other cruise lines last year.

The fact is things aren't improving when it comes to bacterial and virus outbreaks on cruise ships despite what billionaire CEOs claim. Throw in "horrendous smells" and plumbing issues that plagued cruise ships in 2024 and you begin to get a picture of anything but a good time for thousands of adventurers who risked a ride on the open seas crammed in like sardines. 

I just read a 2025 report by Forbes that said cruise outbreaks are at a 12-year high which proves my point that things aren't getting better.

Cruise ship activities - such as water and air pollution, overcrowding and increased stress on local communities and ecosystems - have led to questions about cruise industry practices at destinations. 

When a ship does make port passengers have a limited time to visit the local sites and sometime destinations are abruptly cancelled because of weather or politics. This is one of the joys of going on a cruise - standing in long lines and paying a fortune for food and souvenirs in some exotic port where the locals probably hate you.

On a typical two-week voyage, a large cruise ship (with 3,000 passengers and crew) is estimated to generate 210,000 US gallons of sewage; 1 million gallons of graywater (from sinks, showers, and laundries); more than 130 US gallons of hazardous wastes; and 8 tons of solid waste.

Over the past 100 years, there have been 24 full-sized cruise ships that have sunk. A good record I suppose, except if you were on one of them. 

The most recent example is the Costa Concordia a ship that set out on a Mediterranean cruise on January 13, 2012, with about 3,299 people onboard that veered off-course and hit large rocks that caused severe damage to its hull. Everyone on board had to be evacuated, and 32 people died.

Not everyone is suited to go on a cruise. You have to be prepared to stand in endless lines at ports or when you belly up to the food line during the day. 

You have to be able to ignore the drunken idiots stumbling from one deck to the next - or just plain idiots who hang around the pool areas making a display of themselves like a pod of whales in skimpy bathing suits. Caution: avoid pool areas because they can leave unwanted memories burned into your brain forever. No. Cruises are not for everyone. Period. End of story. 

As it Stands, I'll keep my cruising to cars!

Do Rats Deserve Their Bad Reputation?

Rats and mankind have warred over the centuries, locked in an eternal combat for survival.

Rats are disease carriers and are often associated with garbage, sewers, filth, etc. But is that all there is to know about rats? No. It's more complicated than that.

I discovered that views on rats' worthiness vary from the Western world to the Asian world. Westerners generally hate rats. Asians on the other hand have a more positive view of rats. For example, many Hindus regard them as semi-sacred, because the mount of the god Ganesh is a rat. Asian cultures see rats as playful, affectionate, intelligent and personally very clean, and consider them a popular pet.

Then there's the cuteness factor. If you look at a squirrel - which is in the same rodent family as a rat - it's bushy tail and the fact that they're not associated with filth automatically gives them points in the grading system people go by when judging cuteness. Squirrels are seen outdoors in trees in the sunlight while the lowly rats are huddled up somewhere in a dank hiding place. But admit it, squirrels are just like tree rats. They just hang out in different neighborhoods!

It's clear from the English language that rats have a bad reputation in Western culture...

"You dirty rat!"

"I smell like a rat."

"Like a rat deserting a sinking ship..."

Maybe it's time to re-examine how we look at rats.

There's been a recent discovery about rats that will probably shock you. A study, in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science says the rats WERE NOT to blame for the spread of the plague during the Black Death.

Frankly, I was surprised because rats are disease carriers, but researchers have cleared them by concluding that the Black Death, "can be largely ascribed to human fleas and body lice." I highly recommend checking this study out. It may not change your opinion of rats, but it'll clear up the myth that their actions resulted in the loss of over 25 million lives.

Rats have been getting a more positive reputation in recent decades. 

As a matter of fact, there's parts of Africa today where rats are helping save lives and fight disease.

The charity Apopo, working with the Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania, trains rats (photo right) to react to the scent of explosives, enabling them to detect landmines in countries like Tanzania, Mozambique and Cambodia.

The detection of landmines is usually an expensive business, and countries often lack the resources to carry-out the time consuming and complicated work. Rats are cheaper than dogs and they are also light enough that they don't set off the landmine. There's no telling how many lives they've saved thus far.

But there's more.

Rats can also smell out the odor specific to tuberculosis. Every year, three million people infected by TB go undiagnosed and therefore do not receive the care they need.

Rats to the rescue! Apopo say that their trained rats can screen 100 samples in 20 minutes - a task that would take a lab technician four days.

Finally, owners say rats make good pets and point out that rats are clean animals and spend more time grooming themselves than cats.

As far as farmers go rats will always be a nuisance. And they can be pests of the worst kind. I get that. But perhaps it's time to separate the good, bad, and the ugly ones in all fairness.

As it Stands, I hate rats for personal reasons, but they deserve to have their whole story told.

They Say Anger Can Be Good

Because I have PTSD anger is one of the challenges I have had to cope with even after years of counseling. 

Anger management classes armed me with methods to control my anger. 

Nevertheless, anger hasn't entirely disappeared from my emotional responses and - as a matter of fact - I still embrace moderate anger to this day.

Let me explain. Anger is not just aggressive action. It often provides us with information that allows us to better engage with the world around us (as well as ourselves). 

If we see anger as something that makes us more informed, we can adapt our response accordingly to better our position according to researchers. 

To this end, here is a list of benefits anger can provide when the appropriate level of the emotion is attained.

(List published by GoodTherapy.org)

1. Anger is designed to promote survival. Our fight response, which evolved so we could defend ourselves from an enemy or danger, stems from anger.

2. Anger's discharge is calming. Anger helps you cope with stress by first discharging the tension in your body, and by doing so it calms your "nerves."

3. Anger provides a sense of self control.

4. Anger energizes us,

5. Anger motivates us to solve problems.

6. Anger makes us aware of injustice.

7. Anger drives us toward our goals.

8. Anger injects optimism.

9. Anger protects our values and beliefs.

10. Anger is a bargaining tool.

11. Anger increases cooperation by making you stand up for yourself.

12. Anger improves negotiating positions.

13.Anger covers painful feelings.

14. Anger pushes us to reach a deeper self.

15. Anger can lead to self-improvement.

16. Feeling anger enhances emotional intelligence.

Despite an unfavorable reputation, the concept of constructive anger (who knew?) is gaining more empirical support from researchers and can have a beneficial role in our lives. 

As it Stands, Needless to say, it's nice to know that I can still get angry sometimes without feeling guilty.

Yawn! A Primer of the Lazy Lifestyles of Some Humans

Before we explore the burning questions about who was - and is - the laziest person on the planet I want to say up front, it isn't me, regardless of what my wife says.

Let's warm up with some historically idle contestants starting with an Englishman named Jeemiah Crlton, an heir to a large fortune at 19 years old.

In his exceedingly short bio, it says that he took to his bed and stayed there for the next 70 years, just because he wanted to. He had more than 40 servants who took care of all his needs and bathed him until he died at 89.

Then we have the case of the 19th century prime minister Lord Melbourne as a candidate for the laziest man in history. Somehow, history fails to explain how he became the Prime Minister by accident and then slept his way through seven years of British history. In his long life he proudly failed to do pretty much anything.

Now that we have had a little history of lethargic legends let's take a look at current sluggish candidates and information on how to join Montenegro's Laziest Citizen contest. 

The Guinness World Book of Records doesn't keep track of records for laziness because it's not possible to objectively measure this quality.

However, you can still see a new annual slothfulness record set at the annual Lazy Citizen Competition in the Montenegrin village of Brezna in August. 

The lack of action centers on contestants remaining in bed in hope of winning a 1,000-euro prize for the one who remains horizontal for the longest time.

While some people may appear "naturally lazy" there's no credible evidence to suggest that anyone is inherently born lazy; instead, differences in motivation and energy levels, along with environmental factors, likely contribute to varying levels of effort people put into tasks, making it seem like some are naturally inclined towards laziness.

Top 5 Countries with the most sedentary lifestyles

(according to a Stanford University Study)

1. Indonesia tops the chart of most inactive countries with the lowest average daily steps, clocking in just 3,513 average steps per day.

2. Saudi Arabia is on the list with 3,807 average steps per day.

3. Malaysia comes in third with 3,963 steps because of urbanization and their preference for motorized transport is the key reason behind this trend.

4. The Philippines marks 4,008 steps per day.

5. South Africa ranks 5th with an average of 4,105 daily steps.

As it Stands, I'm giving Bernard Williams the last word on laziness; "I like the word indolence. It makes my laziness seem classy."

Three Cheers for Cheerleaders!

I lusted after cheerleaders in high school like millions of other "hormone raging" young men back in the 1960s.

 I even dated a cheerleader/song leader off and on during my junior and senior years. There's just something magic about cheerleaders I can't fully define - beyond the obvious lust factor. Their cheerful faces and exuberant personalities make them stars in any setting. 

But it wasn't until after I got out of the Army in 1971 that I got a cheerleader for life on August 31st, 1974. 

I married Shirley Ann Holloway (photo right) who just happened to be a cheerleader at Buena Park high school in Orange County, California. She's been my biggest booster ever since.

Cheerleading runs in the family as our granddaughter Carissa is a cheerleader (has been since she was a freshman) and is getting ready to graduate this June. Her cheerleading squad came in 2nd Place in the Oregon Cheerleading State Finals, recently, an achievement that hasn't happened since 1994 at her high school. 

Did you know that cheerleading originated as an all-male activity in the United States? 

As early as 1877, Princeton University had a "Princeton Cheer" according to The Daily Princetonian. The very first cheerleader was University of Minnesota student Johnny Campbell (photo left) in1898. 

Campbell directed the crowd with this cheer, "Rah, Rah, Rah, Ski-u-mah, Hoo-Rah! Hoo-Rah! Varsity! Varsity! Varsity, Minn-e-So-Tah!"  

Women didn't get in on the fun until 1923, when the University of Minnesota allowed women to participate in cheerleading. It took other schools' years before they gave women the green light to be cheerleaders. 

Author Kieran Scott wrote in his book Ultimate Cheerleading: "Girls really took over {cheerleading} for the first time in the forties when collegiate men were drafted for World War II, creating an opportunity for more women to make their way onto sporting event sidelines." 

The first cheerleading camp was created by Lawrence Herkimer, a former cheerleader at Southern Methodist University and inventor of the Herkie jump, in 1951. 

It was held in Huntsville, Texas and there were 52 girls in attendance. It was so popular Herkimer was asked to hold a second, where 350 young women were in attendance. Oh yeah! Herkimer also patented the pop-pom.

Herkimer also created the National Cheerleading Association to help grow the activity and provide cheerleading education to schools around the country in 1951 around the time professional cheerleading began.

Today professional cheerleaders and dancers cheer for sports such as Football, Basketball, Baseball, and Hockey. There are only a handful of professional cheerleading leagues around the world. 

As it Stands, "a good cheerleader is not measured by the height of her jump but by the span of her spirit." - Anonymous             

A Short Take of Some Tall Tales

Tall tales are told to entertain us by pretending they are truthful when in fact they're not. 

They have a foundation of hyperbole and exaggeration and are usually told in a good-natured way.

Paul Bunyan, a giant lumberjack, is a great example of a tall tale. He dug lakes, created the Grand Canyon, and tamed a river...not to mention many other daring and totally unbelievable acts. He also has a buddy named Babe the Blue Ox who travels with him.

Pecos Bill is a fictional cowboy and folk hero in stories set during the American westward expansion into the Southwest of Texas, New Mexico, Southern California, and Arizona.

According to legend Pecos Bill was responsible for creating many landmarks. One landmark he is said to have created is in the Gulf of Mexico. Texas was in the thrall of a terrible drought, so Pecos Bill rushed to California and lassoed up a storm cloud and brought it back to Texas.

Dona Flor is a benevolent giant that lives in the American Southwest. 

She is so tall she plucks estrellas (stars) from the sky and grabs snow from the mountaintops to wake herself in the morning. 

Her tortillas are so big that her neighbors use the extra ones as roofs.

Why Do Kids Tell Tall Tales?

Young children (ages 4-5) often make up stories and tell tall tales. Don't worry. This is natural. They enjoy hearing stories and making up stories for fun. Sometimes they may blur the distinction between reality and fantasy.

What Makes a Good Tall Tale?

It's all about exaggeration and creating a picture that is impossible and funny. For example, "One-time snowflakes fell so large in Oregon that the ladies put handles on them and used them for umbrellas."

The Shortest Tall Tale

Ernest Hemingway supposedly wrote the shortest tale ever. His six-word tall tale was, "For sale: baby shoes, never worn." But that's not the end of this short, tall tale. Researchers have long since proven that Hemingway's baby shoe story has been around since at least 1906.

For the record, most tall tales are associated with the United States. One of the few examples that isn't is found in America is from a German collection, Baron Munchausen's Narratives of His Marvelous Travels and Campaigns in Russia."

For example, it includes such humorous tales as one about a soldier who loaded his rifle with a cherry pit, fired it into the head of a stag, and later found a cherry tree rooted in its head.

A famous American known for telling tall tales is Jim Bridger, a mountain man and wagon trail guide. He enjoyed sitting around the campfire and telling incredible tales about native Americans and his death-defying adventures. 

As it Stands, it's all about having fun and lying like a rug!

Sipping 'Tree Spirits' Sounds Scrumptious

To all you drinkers of alcoholic spirits I have a surprise for you.

I just discovered a spirit that will delight your senses and give new meaning to maple syrup.

If you ever go to Naples, New York there's a unique distillery where you can sample "Tree Spirits." Hollerhorn Distilling makes one-of-a-kind spirits that are categorized as "Spirit Specialties," as they fall into an area of spirit distillation that is yet to have its category. In layman's terms, they are brand new to the world of booze.

The Hollerhorn Distillery's website explains, "Our Tree Spirits are most akin to a rum in production. Rum uses sugar (molasses, cane, etc.) as the sugar source for fermentation. We use the same approach, but with maple syrup as the sugar source and with different fermentation practices. Our Tree Spirits are double distilled (twice rectified in a pot still) at no more than 160 proof. They are not a whiskey, which is a grain-based mash bill."

For the record I didn't get paid for running this post about Hollerhorn Distillery. I shared it because it's new and unique.

A Casual History of Distilling

Because the two ingredients necessary to alcoholic fermentation are widely spread and always appearing together, civilizations in almost every part of the world developed some form of alcoholic beverage very early in their history. Poitin, an Irish spirit, is considered by some to be the world's oldest distilled spirit. It's been produced in Ireland since the sixth century.

The first distilled spirits were made from sugar-based materials, primarily grapes and honey to make grape brandy and distilled mead, respectively. The earliest stills were composed simply of a heated closed container, a condenser, and a receptacle to receive the condensate. These evolved into the pot still, which is still in use today.

Early hand methods of filing, labeling, corking, and other operations have been replaced by highly mechanized bottling lines, with bottles cleaned, filled, capped, sealed, labeled, and placed in a shipping container at a rate as high as 400 bottles per minute!

Spirit strength may be designated in several ways - weight per gallon, percentage by weight, or percentage by volume, all these having reference to absolute (i.e., pure) alcohol and water. The higher the proof the higher you get!

You may be surprised to learn that Jinro Soju is the most consumed liquor brand in the world. I sure am. I never heard of it. It's a Korean distilled spirit made from fermented grains, sweet potatoes, or other starch ingredients.

As it Stands, may your neighbors respect you, trouble neglect you, angels protect you, and heaven accept you. Here's to those that have seen us at our best, and our worst and can't tell the difference!

10 Crazy Collections That Will Leave You Feeling Uneasy

Some collections are crazier - or more passionate - than others by virtue of how exotic and downright weird they are. I'm not about to judge any of the 10 examples that I'm sharing. I'll leave that to you dear reader.

1. Collecting vomit bags. There's an Air Sickness Bag Virtual Museum that you can find on Google. The top vomit bag collector (for 40 years) name is Niek Vermeulen. 

He has accumulated 6,016 different airline vomit bags. Isn't that sweet?

2. Moist Towelettes. There's a website run by one Michael Lewis who welcomes visitors with these warm words: "Welcome to the exciting world of moist Towelette Collecting." How exciting is it? Google and see.

3. Weird Fortune Cookies. I always thought that fortune cookies were funnier than weird. I stand corrected. Just Google Weird Fortune Cookie Collection and check out their fantastic gallery.

4. Mammal's Phalluses. There's a man who lives in Reykjavik, Iceland who started his own museum after collecting 282 phallus specimens of 93 species and 350 artistic objects related to phallology. If you're a man, the museum is asking you to donate your phallus to the institute post-mortem. Any takers?

5. Condoms. To be clear, we're talking about unused condoms still in their original package. An Italian guy named Amatore Bolzoni entered the Guinness Book of Records with his impressive collection of condoms. He brags that he's been collecting condoms since 1980 and currently has 2,077 of the interesting little packages from Europe, Africa, the Americas and the Far East.  

 

6. Uranium Glass that glows under UV Light. Collecting this special contaminated glassware is unusual and I would not recommend parents/grandparents letting their young charges anywhere near them. They do emit small amounts of radiation.

7. Hot Chili Sauce. The largest collection of hot chili sauce in the world belongs to Vic Clinco who has over 6,000 bottles, including Blair's Million Reserve, also known as the hottest chili sauce in the world. My hats off to the brave souls that not only collect hot chili sauce but also use it on their food.

8. Death Cards. Believe it or not there was a time in Victorian America when morbid stuff associated with funerals etc., were popular. Fancy Death Cards vied with photos of dead people as collectibles. For all I know there are folks collecting these morbid artifacts.

9. Used Band-Aids. Yes, used band-aids complete with dried blood and all are collected by people fascinated by the macabre and medical oddities. As one collector noted, "Each band-aid tells a story of a wound healed, a mishap, or a moment of care." 

10. Belly Button Lint. Don't laugh. Some people take this hobby seriously, saving each piece of lint in jars or containers often categorized by color and texture.

As it Stands, collecting unusual items as a hobby can range from quirky and endearing to bizarre and straight-up gross.

Cold Stories on a Winter Day

Most of America is freezing. Here in Medford Oregon, it's 30 degrees in the afternoon and snowing. 

Looking out my window at the frozen landscape gives me a hint of what it must be like living in Alaska. The piles of built-up snow have rounded the edges of fences and cars. It looks like an alien world outside my door.

Let me state unequivocally that I hate the snow, and winter isn't my favorite time of the year. With that said let's move on to some interesting cold stories. In honor of Mother Nature's icy and relentless wrath, I present to you the biggest blizzards and worst snowstorms in United States history.

                            The Great Blizzard of '88

In 1888 the Northwest was faced with one of the worst blizzards in American history. They called it the Great White Hurricane because it left 55 inches of snowfall in some areas and caused disaster wherever it went. Brutal winds hit Washington, D.C. to Maine causing catastrophic damage. Over 400 people were killed. It was so bad that the people of Boston decided to create the first underground subway system in the country.

The Knickerbocker Storm -1922

On Jan. 28, 1922, more than 2 feet of snow fell on Washington, D.C. The weight of the snow collapsed the roof of the Knickerbocker Theatre, killing 98 people. This led to stricter building codes to prevent such a tragedy from ever happening again.

The Great Appalachian Storm - 1950

I was born on November 7, 1950. A few weeks later on Thanksgiving weekend, as much as 62 inches of snow blasted the central Appalachians. As if that wasn't enough, the area was also beset by frigid cold and intense windstorms. At least 160 people died.

The Blizzard of '78

On Feb. 5 a nor'easter broke snowfall records in Boston (27.1 inches) and Atlantic City (20.1 inches). Throw in hurricane-force winds and coastal flooding for three straight days. An estimated 100 people lost their lives.

The Storm of the Century - 1993

I still remember when the great cyclonic storm formed in the Gulf of Mexico in March. As the storm progressed up the East Coast, it began to snow in regions as far south as Alabama and Georgia. The snowstorm stretched from those Southern regions into Maine and even Canada. Affected areas were battered with unseasonable frigid temperatures, power wind gusts and up to 60 inches of snow. At one point every major airport on the East Coast was closed. About 318 people lost their lives despite the storm being predicted several days in advance. It's known as the deadliest American storm of the 20th century.

The Great Blizzard of 2003

On Valentine's Day to Feb.19, the Great Blizzard of 2003 swept across the Mid-Atlantic and the Northeast. Every major city from Washington, D.C. to Boston was covered in an enormous blanket of snow, with many areas getting up to two feet. Airports across the Northwest suspended flights and shut down operations completely, while New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia transformed into icy ghost towns as residents hunkered down against the bitter cold. There were 27 deaths.

Snowmageddon - 2010

In February of 2010, two blizzards - one on Feb.4-7 and one on Feb. 9-11 - hit within days of each other. I'll never know how they came up with the name Snowmageddon, but it wreaked havoc across the country, icing down roads in New Mexico and shutting down the federal government in the nation's capital. The massive storm led to transportation shutdowns and power outages and killed 41 people in the U.S. and Mexico.

Snowzilla - 2016

It seems like as the years ago pass, we have sillier names for snow events. I mean...Snowzilla. Really? It paralyzed the entire East Coast. Snow fell in the Florida Panhandle, Alabama, and Georgia. The death count was no joke, however. 55 people lost their lives.

December 2022 North American Winter Storm

The most recent storm raged on from Dec.21 to Dec.26. Here we go again, another dumb name for a snowstorm was the North American Winter Storm Bomb Cyclone that weatherman excitedly reported on. It was so widespread that 60% of Americans felt it's deadly effects. As a result, 106 people across the United States and Canada lost their lives.

As it Stands, it's time to have a mug of hot chocolate and be thankful you're inside because Baby It's Cold Outside! 

Enter the World of LARPs

  Ready to have some fun? I just found an activity that has become popular in the last two decades - Live Action Role Playing (LARP) - that transports you to other worlds for days.

Let me be clear. Role playing activities have been around forever in America and around the world. What I'm talking about today is role playing on steroids for four to six straight days. Total immersion into fantasy and historical worlds designed to challenge your senses and reality. 

Renaissance Fairs have been popular worldwide for a long time, but they only scratch the surface. Visitors are encouraged to wear theme clothing but it's not necessary and there are generally staged shows - knights jousting and stuff like that.

Now compare that to a recent Medieval LARP in Texas last year where hundreds of people bought tickets and agreed to immerse themselves, (they sign a contract) in the themed activities. There's numerous LARPs out there. One of my favorites is... 

                          WASTELAND WEEKEND  

When you arrive at the LARP location you are given an identity and tasked with different challenges that take you all around the huge, themed park over the course of four days. Themed food is offered throughout the different sections of what feels like a movie set. Authenticity is encouraged and is even rewarded with prizes.

I highly recommend going to YouTube and watching past LARP events to really get the complete picture of what's going on. I watched one that was Mad Max themed and was in awe of the vehicles the participants built for the event. You really feel like you're in a movie or another world.

The whole concept is centered around escapism which doesn't surprise me because so many people (of all age groups) are dissatisfied with the world around them. The LARPs are a reflection of other realities created by innovative and twisted minds that want to share their visions with like-minded individuals. LARPs are held all over the world with each one sharing different themes that attract thousands of adventurous souls.

As it Stands, what's true is people throughout the ages will always go to any extremes for a good time. Think ancient Roman gladiators fighting for their lives to entertain a bloodthirsty audience.