Two things about the Major’s visit this week are worth following up.
SST Sandwich Sunday
I have talked about SST Sandwiches many times before now. In fact, since 2013 – and even earlier – I was writing bits like this 2018 advisory: Coping: The 5th Annual “Turkey Leftovers” Column.
To save you a romp through the archives, the SST sandwich is leftover turkey, fresh mushrooms sautéed with some white wine and garlic, in a cream sauce over toast points and topped with several pieces of bacon, all topped with fresh-ground Parm and then broiled to brown.
Divine. And when paired with a Chardonnay or a White Zin? Do we really have to work today? I just want to sit down and read (and snooze…who am I kidding?).
When the Major came down, the decision to feed him a big turkey dinner with gravy was strategic. He got a great “home-cooked” meal (with stuffing). And we would have leftovers – chilled well or frozen.
Today, the Ures truly will be “cleaning up” and a fresh fat loaf of an Italian masquerading as French bread, sliced and toasted will offer a bit better chew than “average white bread” with the crust cut off.
Here’s the “Strategic” Part
We are fans of “edge keto.” Not scrawny thin. With a deliberate downsizing of grains, partly to limit refined carbohydrates, avoid unnecessary food additives, and keep a suspicious eye on high-fructose corn syrup. Any health claims are best taken either with a grain of salt – or somebody else. We like lower-sodium thinking best.
Turns out, “running the numbers” that lean turkey is one of the better animal-protein options for people prioritizing high protein with lower fat and calories. Preparation matters: skin, dark meat, ground products with added fat, or processed deli versions change the profile substantially. Both poultry and lean red meat can fit a healthy diet; turkey simply tends to win on leanness and calorie efficiency for most people.
The tryptophan effects are generally wildly over-claimed. But rest assured, my personal research into the matter will continue at early evening.
I am all over the science on this stuff.
Stocking Cap Research
Although we’ve been pals for 73, or so, years now, the Major and I have developed different views of hats.
His choices were informed by officer life; hats have their own manual in the military. Worn this way – or that – under this list of conditions, and so forth. Especially if you put helmets in the same category.
While he was here, I noticed he was wearing a knit head cap when he got up and wandered out on coffee patrol toward the kitchen. At the time, I remember thinking “The Major looks like he’s wearing Louie-the-Drug-Dealer’s doo-rag. He may know something.”
Today I got to that Research Item
According to the research compute, a sleeping cap is one of those old-school habits that can quietly earn its keep if your hair is still worth protecting. The main upside is mechanical: cotton or linen pillowcases create friction that roughs up the cuticle, especially on finer or longer hair. A soft silk, satin, or even a simple knit cap reduces that abrasion overnight, which can cut down on breakage, split ends, and the kind of morning frizz that makes a man look like he slept in a wind tunnel.
It also keeps oils, leave-in treatments, or whatever the Major uses from transferring straight into the pillowcase, so the hair stays cleaner longer between washes. For someone who still has a full silver mop, that modest protection can help the hair look denser and shinier instead of thin and dry at the ends.
Some people also sleep cooler or warmer depending on the fabric and climate; a light cap can keep the scalp from chilling in a cool room without the bulk of a full nightcap.
The trade-offs are mostly comfort and hygiene. A poorly fitted cap can feel tight, trap heat, or make you wake up with a damp scalp if the room is warm or you run hot at night. That extra warmth sometimes disturbs sleep more than it helps, particularly if you’re used to a bare head.
Fabric choice matters: for men with already short or thinning hair the benefit drops off sharply—there simply isn’t much length left to tangle or abrade. And a few people just find the thing fussy or old-fashioned enough that they abandon it after a week. I vowed never to wear one after one of our kids (back in a previous life when parenting) developed cradle cap (infantile seborrheic dermatitis) for reasons that are still unclear.
There is almost no PubMed-indexed clinical research specifically on adults wearing ordinary fabric stocking caps, sleep caps, or nightcaps while sleeping. The closest related medical literature involves specialized cooling caps studied for insomnia. Small trials (including work presented around 2011) tested soft caps circulating cool water over the forehead and found that frontal brain cooling could shorten sleep latency and increase slow-wave sleep in people with primary insomnia.
BUT! A larger randomized trial published in 2018 involved 106 adults. It found improvements on several secondary sleep-onset measures, although its two primary outcomes did not reach statistical significance.
In the Major’s case, he’s not a “hot head,” and his “Marlin Perkins-like” mane suggests good genetics, consistent care, or both. Or the onset of something unmentionable.
I figure there’s a survival angle to it as well – feeling a bit warmer while sleeping. But, if the shit hits the fan that badly, I will go to one of those full-head, faux-fur “trapper hats” and stop trying to look like Louie.
Coffee is cooling – it’s time to turn the…
News Compressor: ON
Concern warranted. Panic not indicated.
1. WARIFIER — Ukraine’s Winter Energy War. Concern: HIGH
Russia struck Ukrainian power facilities around Kyiv on Saturday, damaging infrastructure as temperatures fall. The attacks compound pressure on Ukraine’s electricity and heating systems ahead of anticipated US-brokered talks.
Our BlinkLab interpretation: Infrastructure destruction is becoming a bargaining instrument. Watch for attacks extending beyond Ukraine or changes in NATO involvement. The primary risk is escalation beyond an already devastating regional conflict.
Reread “Report from Iron Mountain” if you haven’t already. Think “NATO needs a plan.”
2. WARIFIER — Iran’s Post-Election Uncertainty. Concern: HIGH
US Central Command has established a task force to disrupt Iranian weapons-supply routes, including land and Caspian Sea pathways. The military posture remains tense after the American midterms.
Our BlinkLab interp: The election calendar’s restraint is no longer a reliable brake. Look for actual military movements, fresh strikes, and shipping disruptions—not merely inflammatory speeches. The Strait of Hormuz remains the critical energy-market tripwire.
Reassess your “Nuke Iran before the New Congress gavels-in” bets now.
3. MONETIZER — The AI Shock-Market Hangover. Concern: WATCH MONDAY
Friday’s rebound didn’t repair Thursday’s damage. The Nasdaq recovered 1.1% Friday but finished the week down 3.4%; the S&P 500 lost 2.7% for the week.
BlinkLab figures it this way: This looks like a repricing of AI growth expectations and political risk, not evidence of a completed market bottom. Tuesday’s inflation (8:30 AM EST) report may matter more than Sunday’s market commentary. We still like the Over-the-Horizon summary which riffs on Lifetime Piling UP by the Talking Heads. Little tiny “atoms” of news combine into “molecules” in regional reactors. Then we’re off into criticality avoidance land.
The important question is whether recent selling represents a normal correction or the beginning of broader financial deterioration. Well, duh. Only a Wave 1 down – when it’s over – then 2027 is when the Geigers come out, as we dart-toss it.
4. TAXIFIER — Washington’s New Political Geometry. Concern: MEDIUM
Democrats’ congressional sweep has altered expectations for AI regulation, tariffs, spending, and the Iran war. Republicans are debating the movement’s direction following their election losses.
With Miller’s ascent to power in D.C., the political outrage machine has shifted into overdrive. Now we’re being treated to the screaming headline version: “He wants to arrest journalists!”
Well, hold on. There’s a considerable difference between prosecuting someone who illegally leaks classified information and threatening a journalist with jail to force disclosure of a confidential source. The first can be a legitimate national-security prosecution. The second raises serious First Amendment and press-freedom questions.
BUT – and many people can’t think this many moves ahead, anymore: What happens when it’s reported?
Publication of leaked classified information does not automatically make a journalist a criminal. The Supreme Court has recognized substantial First Amendment protections for publishing information lawfully obtained from a source, even when the source obtained it illegally. Specific conduct and circumstances matter. BUT if illegally obtained? Now we’re over in the hard rock yard.
Liberal media (see example in Trump’s “war-time consigliere” and the Miller Doctrine) even goes to far to as allege insight into Miller’s dreams. Marvelous. If our Proofing Monster has trouble with our fact-checking, perhaps I should be working on something in this area. It’s a dream, right?
The Justice Department denies the left-media account. So perhaps we ought to establish what was actually said before firing up the outrage generators.
Apparently, though, facts are now optional equipment in Washington. Available at extra cost, dealer installation required.
From the people who brought you imported voting. So, on that sour note, I’m out to work in the shop – still lots of tools to put away and then on to figuring why the tower is binding when it’s raised.
Ork – maybe “trouble getting it up” becomes generic at this age.
Write when you get….uh…no, I won’t say it,
George@Ure.net
P.S. — The Proofing Monster has finished his Sunday rounds, checked the spelling, inspected the punctuation, and found civilization still teetering on the edge of something expensive. OK, and stupid, too.
As always, if you spot a typo, wandering comma, broken link, or sentence that escaped adult supervision, send it along. Corrections cheerfully accepted. Opinions about the author’s mental condition will be forwarded to the appropriate authorities, assuming we can find any still functioning.
The Monster would have stayed longer, but the SST sandwiches and corned beef hash with Yukon gold…except wasn’t he talking about downplaying carbies?