HAVE YOU READ THESE ABSURDITIES OF THE WEEK?

HAVE YOU READ THESE ABSURDITIES OF THE WEEK?

Parents of children called Alexa say their daughters are being bullied because it is the same name that Amazon uses for its virtual assistant. Some have even changed their child's name because they say the barrage of Alexa jokes is “relentless". They are calling on Amazon to change the default wake word for its devices to a non-human name. Amazon says it is "saddened" by these accounts, and that alternative wake words are available. My advice is get a life, get a life, get a life!

There are hundreds of thousands of stray animals across Turkey. They are generally healthy-looking, as activists, volunteers and residents feed and groom them Figures from 2018 indicated that there are 162,970 stray cats and 128,900 ownerless dogs in Istanbul,. The dogs are generally tagged, spayed and neutered. I just wondered if there were actual animal census takers and how did they keep track of the cats?

In order to reduce personal contact during the pandemic, the mayor of Florence has signed an ordinance banning people from wandering around popular areas on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings until further notice. Access to six areas of the historic city centre is not allowed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., unless people are using the bars and restaurants there. Anyone breaking the rules will be fined between €400 and €1,000. It is a sad commentary that leisurely strolling is now considered law breaking in Florence - one of the greatest wandering cities in the world!

Recently, Kataluna Enriquez was crowned the first openly transgender winner of Miss Nevada USA pageant When asked to comment on her selection she said, “People think pageantry is just superficial beauty, but it’s beyond that. The direction of Miss Universe and Miss USA going forward is expanding the definition of beauty and the definition of womanhood, and that’s something I want to be a part of.” Who knew beauty pageants were performing such a valuable service?

Most of us were occasional spelling bee contestants during our school years. The Scripps National Spelling Bee, is quite famous. Did you know that since 2008, a South Asian American kid has been named a champion at every Scripps bee? This year, two-thirds of the semi-finalists were of South Asian descent, and at least nine of the 11 finalists are of South Asian descent. Over the past two decades, spelling bees tailored to South Asian children have proliferated. So have spelling bee coaching companies founded by South Asian Americans. Flyers for local bees are handed out at Indian supermarkets, and the activity is spread through word of mouth at temple events. Who knew? I didn’t. But more importantly, what does it really mean?

How has the absence of a Canadian Governor General affected your daily life over the past six months? I am sure that most Canadians are unaware of this gross negligence on the part of our esteemed PM. Former Governor General Julie Payette, resigned in January 2021 and no permanent replacement has yet been announced. I challenge you to name the temporary fill-in! Smiling Justin has formed a committee (that’s his new share-the-blame technique) to vet potential candidates after he screwed up so badly in his initial appointment. An announcement is expected in the near future (possibly to commemorate Halloween or as a Christmas gift)!

And just in case you missed it, Joey Chestnut won his 14th Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest in dominant fashion devouring a new record 76 franks in 10 minutes to keep his mantle atop the sport. Chestnut, who goes by "Jaws," put on another eating clinic to claim the Mustard Belt, out-eating second-place finisher Geoffrey Esper who ingested a paltry 50. Chestnut has now won 14 of the last 15 hot dog eating contests. The event was televised on ESPN, thus elevating this piggish display to a sporting event! I questioned Texas Hold’em Poker as a sport in the past , but I have now discovered a new sport(?) to shake my head over! Perhaps the Scripps Spelling Bee and the US Beauty Pageant should also apply for status as a sport! Why not, it seems anything goes!