mike@mikelilley.com

“Rescued by Ruby” star put down after illness.

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A Rhode Island dog whose inspiring story of going from shelter dog to lifesaving police K-9 became the subject of a recent Netflix movie has been euthanized.

State Police said Sunday K-9 Ruby was put down Friday following a “sudden, acute, and untreatable illness.” She was 11 years old.

Col. Darnell Weaver, superintendent of the state police, expressed gratitude for K-9 Ruby’s years of service.

“K-9 Ruby dedicated her life to serve the citizens of Rhode Island and make a positive impact on every person she ever interacted with,” he said in a statement. “She became a symbol of hope for all shelter dogs, showing the world what a shelter dog can do when just given love and the chance to shine.”

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Crawfish Etouffee

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Crawfish étouffée is a simple dish of sweet and meaty crawfish served up in a rich and flavorful gravy that is made from a quick roux. The dish includes the Cajun holy trinity of onions, bell peppers and celery, along with lots of garlic, spicy Cajun seasonings, and fresh chopped herbs. The name itself, étouffée, is … Read more

CDC: Rising overdose deaths hit record

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After a catastrophic increase in 2020, deaths from drug overdoses rose again to record-breaking levels in 2021, nearing 108,000, the result of an ever-worsening fentanyl crisis, according to preliminary data published Wednesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The increase of nearly 15% followed a much steeper rise of almost 30% in 2020, … Read more

The World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2021

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Restaurant Noma in Copenhagen has once again been named the best restaurant in the world at The Word’s 50 Best Restaurants 2021 ceremony in Antwerp, Belgium.

Wearing a shirt designed by his daughter, Rene Redzepi, the chef and owner of the restaurant, thanked his team, and said this would never have happened without them.

Noma had previously topped the list four times, but after closing in 2016 and reopening in a new location in 2018, the restaurant was deemed to be an entirely new entry on the list. This makes them the only restaurant to have topped the list in two different locations, and comes just weeks after Noma finally received its third Michelin star.

“This is a celebration and a goodbye at the same time,” Redzepi said, referring to the new Best of the Best category, which means Noma cannot take the number one spot again without relocating for a third time.

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Supreme Court has voted to overturn abortion rights, draft opinion shows

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The Supreme Court has voted to strike down the landmark Roe v. Wade decision, according to an initial draft majority opinion written by Justice Samuel Alito circulated inside the court and obtained by POLITICO.

The draft opinion is a full-throated, unflinching repudiation of the 1973 decision which guaranteed federal constitutional protections of abortion rights and a subsequent 1992 decision – Planned Parenthood v. Casey – that largely maintained the right. “Roe was egregiously wrong from the start,” Alito writes.

“We hold that Roe and Casey must be overruled,” he writes in the document, labeled as the “Opinion of the Court.” “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.”

Deliberations on controversial cases have in the past been fluid. Justices can and sometimes do change their votes as draft opinions circulate and major decisions can be subject to multiple drafts and vote-trading, sometimes until just days before a decision is unveiled. The court’s holding will not be final until it is published, likely in the next two months.

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Growing crisis of housing affordability

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When the government released March inflation data, it showed that prices increased by 8.5% from a year ago,the fastest pace since December 1981. Gas (+48.8%),food (+8.8%) and used cars (+35.3%) showed eye-popping advances, but another line item is also worrisome: shelter, which increased by 5% annually.

That may not seem so bad when compared to those other categories, but shelter accounted for nearly two-thirds of the monthly increase in the Core CPI, which removes the volatile food and energy figures.

The U.S. has a burgeoning housing affordability crisis, and it’s likely to persist longer than high prices in grocery stores and at gas pumps.

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Generation X Milestones: Growing up in the 80’s

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1976
Apr 1 – Apple Computer founded in Los Altos, California, U.S.

1979
Mar 16 – The China Syndrome, Jane Fonda, Michael Douglas
Mar 28 – 3 Mile Island accident
Jul 12 – Disco Demolition Night, Comiskey Park, Chicago, Illinois

1980
Feb 22 – The Miracle on Ice, Lake Placid Olympic Center,New York
Apr 27 – Ted Turner announces the creation of CNN, the first 24-hour cable news network.
Apr 28 – The U.S. makes attempt to rescue American hostages held in Iran since Nov 1979.
May 01 – Rubiks Cube released
May 18 – In Washington State, Mt. St. Helens erupts, killing more than 50 people.
May 21 – “The Empire Strikes Back,” premieres in movie theaters.
May 22 – The Pac-Man video game is released in Japan, followed by its U.S. release in October.
Jun 1 – CNN launches
Nov 21 – A record 350 million people worldwide watch “Dallas” to find out who shot J.R. Ewing.
Nov 04 – Ronald Reagan wins the presidential campaign
Oct 30 – Sherman Oaks Mega Mall Opens, Los Angeles
Dec 8 – Singer John Lennon is assassinated in front of his New York City apartment.

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Steve Jobs 2005 Stanford Commencement Speech

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This is a prepared text of the Commencement address delivered by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, on June 12, 2005.

I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I’ve ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That’s it. No big deal. Just three stories.

The first story is about connecting the dots.

I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?

It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: “We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?” They said: “Of course.” My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.

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1st Round – 2022 NFL Draft

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Here are the pick-by-pick results for every draft pick in Round 1 of the 2022 NFL Draft as well as full analysis and grades for every pick. Here are the best available players heading into Round 2. Jacksonville Jaguars: Travon Walker, DE, GeorgiaDetroit Lions: Aidan Hutchinson, Edge, MichiganHouston Texans: Derek Stingley Jr., CB, LSUNew York … Read more