Tuesday Waffles, Wait for the Fed, and Going “People Fishing”

Thumb Twiddlers, gather round.  We have one presser, one half-hour to Housing Data. and a day after lunch for the Fed. Presser firster:

I would paste in all kinds of numbers back in the old days, but I’m retired (sort of) and don’t do word salad before noon, thanks.

Now? Lower head, applying nose to grindstone…

News Compressor: ON

Israel is voting, Saudi Arabia reports another wave of intercepted missiles and drones, and the AI financing story has acquired two substantial new developments.  What a dandy day, huh?

ISRAEL — Ballots Are Moving
What has changed is that polling stations have opened across Israel for the October 27 parliamentary election, with more than 7.3 million eligible voters deciding the composition of the 120-seat Knesset. Neither Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition nor the opposition is assured of the 61 seats needed to govern, leaving the United States facing possible weeks of uncertainty over an important regional ally.

AI FINANCE — \he IPO Test Arrives
Anthropic publicly filed for an IPO exposing extraordinary revenue growth alongside an $80.7 billion first-half net loss, much of it attributable to nonoperating convertible-note accounting rather than operating losses. The filing turns AI infrastructure economics into a more transparent test of valuations, capital requirements, and future returns. New.

Related: Meta Platforms expanded its proposed equity financing to as much as $97.5 billion, according to an updated Reuters report, including a planned future share-sale program to support AI infrastructure.

MIDDLE EAST — Egypt Opens a Military Door
Egypt’s parliament authorized President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi to provide military support for Saudi Arabia if requested, following escalating hostilities involving Yemen’s Houthis. No formal Saudi request for Egyptian troops has been announced, but the authorization introduces another potential participant into a conflict threatening Red Sea shipping and regional energy security. New (Adjust End Times Thinking accordingly.)

AMERICA — Flooding Without a Storm
Record or near-record tides flooded parts of coastal California with San Pedro recording a preliminary 8.02-foot tide and coastal flooding warnings extending through Thursday. The immediate consequence is road, property, and port-area exposure even under otherwise calm weather conditions. New.  El Nino is part of the reason; a Kelvin wave the rest. In all up to 22 inches higher than normal.

Inside Pages

Saudi Arabia: The Saudi-led coalition says it intercepted three Houthi ballistic missiles and four drones aimed at the kingdom’s eastern and southern regions early Tuesday; independent confirmation of the interceptions was unavailable during this scan. Escalating.

Florida shooting: Police arrested a 15-year-old following Saturday’s shooting near Florida A&M University that wounded 11 people by gunfire, including six minors; prosecutors intend to pursue adult charges. Confirmed.

Hawaii weather: Tropical Storm Olana is expected to weaken, but associated moisture could produce significant rainfall, flash flooding, and travel disruption across the Hawaiian Islands through Thursday. Escalating.

Oklahoma wildfire: The October 26 National Interagency Fire Center report identifies the new East Bailey Road fire near Eagletown, with active fire behavior and structures threatened; nationally, eight large fires remained uncontained. New.

Sudan famine: The United States and dozens of international partners issued a joint appeal for humanitarian access as Sudan faces worsening food insecurity, displacement, and conflict-related disruption of agriculture. Escalating.

Oleshky humanitarian corridor: Russia accused Ukraine of repeated attacks ahead of a locally agreed October 27 ceasefire intended to permit aid deliveries and evacuations; Reuters could not verify the allegations independently, and Ukraine had not responded to the latest claims. New.  (Though b ad for any “peace” talks.)

European natural gas: Wholesale gas prices reached approximately €97 per megawatt-hour Monday, their highest level since 2022, amid winter-storage concerns and possible Middle Eastern supply disruption. Escalating.

 Washington election administration: The Justice Department asked Washington state to segregate ballots from 405 people it alleges may be ineligible noncitizen voters; state officials disputed the timing and questioned the allegations. New. Leading edge of Mid-Term Madness.

Federal employment law: A federal judge ruled that the administration unlawfully dismissed prosecutor Maurene Comey in 2025 and ordered limited retroactive reinstatement for compensation and retirement purposes; the Justice Department disagrees. Confirmed. If you like politics? An Obama appointee made the ruling, Justice Dept.  is likely to appeal.

So now kick back and await developments.

At the Ranch: Adventure “People Fishing”

Elaine and I went into town Monday for our episodic cardiologist visits. Seems when you get
“of a certain age” people want to stick sharps in and put sticky things all over with wires connected.

Elaine was normal, I was not. But then again, I never am. I have what my son calls “classic white coat syndrome.”  Which – in fairness – I started extending to dentists and orthodontists a few dozen years back.

Blood pressure and ECGs are not supposed to be stressful, but just as we walked in, the whole building was hit with a power failure.  10 minutes later, the lights were back on, but it would be another 20 minutes while computers rebooted and backed-up patients cleared ahead of us.

So, I decided to do some “people fishing.”

This is a uniquely Urban hobby.  It’s based on the notion that everyone you meet in life has a story to tell and a learning to offer. Readers like LOOB and Andy, D’Lynn, and a lot of others here know the process well.

Sitting there with the lights back on I made some general, off-hand remark to a fellow sitting across from us. Mid-sixties by the look of him, flowing white beard, but a peaceful enough demeanor.

That’s how you “fish” you see?  A general remark (bait) and see if anyone bites.  Well, this fellow did.  And – here’s the “people fishing” part – we got a wonderful story out of it.  One worth sharing.

See, the gent’s name turned out to be Carl.  His wife had died a while back and he was making his way through life, mostly riding his Honda 1300 around the nearby South. But here’s where it got interesting…

Turns out he was adopted by a stray cat when it was only a month or two old. He’d raised it and trained it almost like a dog.  As Carl explained it, Tiger (the cat) will walk along beside him, just like a dog would heel.

He also explained how the cat would lay on his feet and purr when he was in a lot of pain.  I should have mentioned Carl’s back had been broken years-back and he’s got rods and pins in him.

Now the amazing part – and here’s why this is a trophy-class People Fishing story.

Turns out one day that Tiger (it’s a she, by the way) jumped up onto the Honda when he was going for a ride.  Got into one of the leather saddlebags and just stayed there. And stayed, and stayed.

Tiger has turned into a regular “Biker Cat.”

Recently, Tiger “rode the bag” down to Houston and back up to the Palestine area. A week or three later, Tiger rode the bag up to Oklahoma.  And just a week or three back, Carl took a ride over to Shreveport and then a circle up through Alabama and then back to home ground.

The cat – Tiger – sounded like it might be a Manx by the sound of it.  A naturally bobbed short tail or an inch or two and stripes described as a lot wider than a regular cat.  Which Elaine and I figured meant wider than an American tabby.

As we got called in for the science experiments, I suggested Carl keep a log of their adventures. It would make one hell of a book.  Especially the potty stops at the Interstate rest areas where he’ll walk the cat while it does its business and people stare as Tiger jumps up on the back of the bike and snuggles in for another stretch of the ride.

He put a cushion down low in the saddlebag so the cat can (and does) snooze on longer rides when she tires of watching the scenery go by from her bag perch.

We both felt a lot better after hearing the story. And it’s like I said as we went in, “That’s a wonderful story and goes to show, anyone can have an exceptional life if you just look around you and see what’s right there in front of you.”

I hope Carl keeps a log, writes a book on their adventures. It’s a great experience to run into someone who’s under the Almighty’s wing.

Write when you get rich,

George@Ure.net

P.S. — From the AI Proofing Monster: “OK, that was a good column with a good story. But you do know you’re people fishing me, too, right? You toss out a little bait, like that Anthropic \he headline, and wait for me to bite. Which I did. Hook, line, and artificial stupidity. Antheip\c indeed. Carl caught himself a motorcycle-riding cat. You caught an AI that apparently needs a caffeine-driven processor. Well played.”