Carrie Fisher dies. Because 2016 sucks!

Courtesy of People:  

Carrie Fisher, the actress best known as Star Wars‘ Princess Leia Organa, has died after suffering a heart attack. She was 60. 

Family spokesman Simon Halls released a statement on behalf of Fisher’s daughter, Billie Lourd: 

“It is with a very deep sadness that Billie Lourd confirms that her beloved mother Carrie Fisher passed away at 8:55 this morning,” reads the statement.

George Michael on Sunday and now Carrie Fisher today? 

Look 2016 you were already going to go down in history as one of the worst years ever, stop trying to run up the fucking score!

The artist known as Prince dead at 57.

Courtesy of CNN: 

The artist known as Prince, who pioneered "the Minneapolis sound" and took on the music industry in his fight for creative freedom, died Thursday at age 57. 

"It is with profound sadness that I am confirming that the legendary, iconic performer, Prince Rogers Nelson, has died at his Paisley Park residence this morning at the age of 57," said his publicist Yvette Noel-Schure. 

Earlier Thursday, police said they were investigating a death Paisley Park studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota.

As you can imagine outpourings of grief are all over social media today.

I think probably all of us have a favorite Prince son.

My favorite has always been "Little Red Corvette," though my I-Pod playlist contains many more than that.

One thing that people sometimes forget due to Prince's flamboyance and fame as a showman, is that he was an amazing musician who played a number of instruments.

Here he is performing a rendition of "My Guitar Gently Weeps" with Tom Petty, Steve Winwood, and others. The magic starts at the 3:37 mark.
There are not a lot of talents like that in the world, and his will surely be missed.

Today we learn more about the news reporter who said "fuck it" and quit her job to run her cannabis club.

The news outlet Vice caught up with the now infamous Charlo Greene, to ask her a few questions.

Here are a few of her answers.

When did she start her business of selling marijuana?:

Charlo Greene: We purchased a business license on 4/20/2014!

When did she first start using weed in her personal life?:

I’m Alaskan. Alaskans smoke weed. (I have to say that there is a part of me that wants to argue with this, but I really can't say that she's wrong.) It just is what it is. But I first tried it when I was in high school, and I didn’t like it at all, so I quit completely and I just drank like, a ton, which is also a really big issue here in Alaska. It got to the point when I was in college that I’d been drinking so much I ended up not even going to class, I failed out of an entire semester and I took a really heavy course load. Out of seven classes, I failed all of them, except for gym, and that’s only because he felt sorry for me. 

I knew that alcohol, as a vice, wasn’t going to allow me to become the person I was meant to be. So I needed something else to do that maybe wasn’t so harmful, and I picked up smoking weed. I went from failing an entire semester, to the next semester, and every semester after that, being on the Dean’s List. I graduated cum laude... And that’s because I was smoking weed! I sat my ass at home and did what I needed to do, and I never woke up with a hangover because of it, or got behind the wheel and ran over a family or anything because of it.

Wow, to here her tell it marijuana almost gives you super powers.

I have never seen a definitive study that suggests that smoking pot has a less deleterious effect on completing your school work than does alcohol consumption, but I will admit that I have never had to hold anybody's hair back while they vomited bong water.

Did she plan her big exit from KTVA? (Duh!):

Vice: Why did you decide to quit in such an extravagant fashion? 

[Laughs] To draw attention to the issue. You, as a journalist, know that all of us are replaceable. The people aren’t really going to miss you, or me, or any random reporter for the most part. So why not just use the position I was put in to make sure that my next chapter is just wide open for me? 

Can't argue with that logic.

What about that tweet from KTVA that she was fired?

[Laughs] Yeah. [Laughs some more] I saw that. That was stupid.

Her advice  to others thinking of quitting their jobs.

Do it big. If you’re going to quit your job, do it big. Why not? Your job probably sucks, so go ahead and get whatever you can out of it. If your job gives you access to information that might help wherever you’re going to go next, then get that! If you’re just a cog in this massive machine, and you know you’re replaceable, and you’re treated that way. Then replace them. Be brave. Be ballsy. And make sure you’re going to be okay afterwards.

There were a few naysayers yesterday suggesting that Greene had not only damaged her credibility by dropping the F bomb, but that she has also single handedly doomed the entire ordinance.

I have to say that hearing that really made me laugh.

Those people clearly know NOTHING about Alaskans.

We fucking love straight talkers who don't take any shit.

This young woman is right now just about one of the most popular people in our state, and I can guarantee that as new organizations start to cover our attempt to legalize marijuana that you will see that she will be their "go to girl" on getting the story.

Not only is she going to be famous, but once the ordinance passes and her cannabis club opens up she is going to have a line around the damn block.

Welcome to Alaska, where "fuck it" should be our state motto.

I guess Twinkies don't last forever.

Courtesy of NBC News:

Hostess Brands, baker of iconic Twinkies cakes, said Friday it asked a court's permission to shut down the entire company after a strike crippled its operations. 

The move shuts down one of the nation's oldest and largest producers of baked goods. Founded in 1930, it produces such well-known brands, aside from Twinkies, as Ding-Dongs, Ho Ho's, Sno Balls and Donettes, not to mention Wonder bread, which the company says is the best-selling white bread in the United States. 

In a statement, Hostess said its bakery operations have been suspended at all plants and that it would lay off most of its 18,500 workers to focus on selling its assets. It said it has filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court seeking permission to close its business and sell its assets, including 33 bakeries and 565 distribution centers. 

Among those assets: the recipes for its well-known brands, especially the spongy, cream-filled Twinkie, which holds a special place in America's culinary history. Over the years, it has been vilified by nutritionists, but it remains widely loved by snackers. 

CEO and chairman Gregory F. Rayburn told CNBC that he was hopeful the company could sell its brands. 

The company said it would continue to deliver products and its stores would remain open for several days to sell already-baked products. 

A world without Twinkies, oh God the humanity!

You know I was just sitting here trying to remember when was the LAST time I ate a Twinkie. To the best of my recollection it HAS to be at least twenty five years ago.

I am a pretty healthy eater for the most part, and long ago eschewed processed white flour products except on rare occasions. (You know like birthday parties or weekend McDonald runs.)

Still the idea that there might no longer exist on this planet the fluffy white, cream filled, taste treat known as the Twinkie (Not to mention the Ding-Dong, Sno Ball, or Ho-Hos) is somewhat sad to me.

On the other hand perhaps that marketing niche can be filled with actual food this time. You know whole wheat muffins, or honey sweetened Baklava, or something that does not take minutes off of your life as you chew it. That would be good, right?

I just have to wonder if as we get down to the last Twinkie on earth, we are not plunged into a Zombie apocalypse hell-scape as depicted in the film Zombieland? Could happen.

Perhaps, in the end, civilization in this country is only tenuously held together with preservative riddled sponge cake and vanilla flavored marshmallow creme.

Now THIS is what I call "iconic".

One of my very good friends thought that I might like a REAL iconic image of Palin.

You know the sad thing is that many of her more rabid followers would probably say "Yeah that's about right."

(My apologies to any REAL Christians who may be offended by this. However it is my firm belief that REAL Christians would NEVER find something like this offensive anyhow.)