Power moves

My takes on TikTok, Aaron Rodgers, the Oscars, Kate Middleton and more

—Thought: I’m not happy that Dylan Cease is no longer with the Chicago White Sox—but at least the weather’s better in San Diego. Thanks for all you did here, Dylan.

Photo by Mick Haupt on Unsplash

—Thought #2: When people say “It’s an honor just to be nominated,” that’s typically true—the first time it happens. After that…

—Small world: “Shrinkflation” is definitely a real thing. 

The move to have smaller packaging of grocery items while increasing prices has been happening for years. However, now that inflation is peaking, everybody is noticing. I really noticed when I saw that a package of Matt’s Cookies is pretty much half the size, with crumbly cookies and a price that’s a couple bucks more than it used to be. What gives? Well, your wallet…

—Movie kind of love: As for the Oscars, the ceremony itself was … solid, as was host Jimmy Kimmel. Ryan Gosling certainly brought the “Ken-ergy” and Da’Vine Joy Randolph’s acceptance speech for Best Supporting Actress was, for me, one of the highlights of the night. And no one will forget John Cena’s appearance for a while.

By the way, I was five for six in my Oscar predictions that I published a couple weeks ago—yay, me! I wish that Lily Gladstone had won but there’s no denying Emma Stone’s brave performance in Poor Things, which I just saw.

—Better Kate than never: I wish people would leave Kate Middleton alone (although that certainly won’t happen, especially in England). If she wants to update you on her status, she’ll do so—although, at this point, people might not believe it’s her.

—Lemon squeezed: So X/Twitter honcho Elon Musk decided to cancel The Don Lemon Show after the former CNN journalist interviewed him.

Was Musk, who calls himself a “free-speech absolutist,” being hypocritical with this move? Yep. Was he trying to flex his “might” and making a power move when he cancelled the airing of the interview? Double yep.

But…