Biden out, Bloomberg in? New TV ad from Bloomberg after Iowa fiasco

This week something really interesting happened. I was jogging on the treadmill at Planet Fitness (because who wants to run outdoors when it’s 40 degrees and rainy??) and looked up to the row of TVs to see, surprising no one, an ad for Michael Bloomberg. But it wasn’t the familiar ads we’ve seen recently.

This campaign ad featured Bloomberg’s relationship with former President Barack Obama. Take a look.


The timing is what’s very interesting about this ad. A few days ago the Iowa caucuses took place started and, while final votes are still being counted days later, Biden looks to be well behind the leader of the Democrat nomination process. If Biden was banking on support from the Obama camp, and clearly he was, that will all but disappear after his dreadful numbers in Iowa. So the day after the Iowa caucus, Bloomberg airs an advertisement touting his relationship with Obama. It’s very clever and strategic to do this as support for Biden is most likely going to disintegrate and those folks will need another nominee on whom to cling.

In the commercial, Obama spoke praises of Bloomberg, so Bloomberg is clearly trying to rally everyone who loves Obama onto the Bloomberg bandwagon.

What do you think about the timing of this ad? Will it help Bloomberg? It’ll be interesting to see if Obama officially vocalizes support for any of the nominees, as he hasn’t so far.

-Out of the Wilderness

Troop Zero (Amazon Prime)… a review WITHOUT spoilers

This Amazon Prime movie very well might be the cutest film I’ll see all year. The young actress, Mckenna Grace, is simply adorable and the entire cast did an amazing job. There were times I laughed, cried, cringed, and cheered. Be warned, although I’d consider the movie family friendly, there are a few moments of adult language (the ‘a’ word), which is mostly why it gets a PG rating. There is some smoking of the cigarettes and drinking of the beers, but overall it’s tame and if you’re OK with the ‘a’ word being used a few times by the adult characters, you’ll be fine with this movie.


One part I loved was watching two characters start off as mortal enemies but by the end, they’ve put differences aside to connect as friends. I won’t give away anything, but this relationship transformation doesn’t just happen with the kiddos in the movie. I also thought Jim Gaffigan was a perfect choice for Christmas’s dad, Ramsey Flint. Plus, any movie with Mike Epps in it automatically gets my attention.

This movie is a story about the strength of perseverance, believing in yourself, not giving up, and celebrating your uniqueness. Check it out and let me know what you think about it in the comments below!

-Out of the Wilderness

Reaction and stats, Pres. Trump’s State of the Union

I was away from home working but made it back just before President Trump started speaking and in total, he spoke 1 hour, 18 minutes, and 1 second. In this speech, he had a few surprises– giving out the highest civilian medal, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, to Rush Limbaugh. Not long after he was part of a surprise reunion of a military member and his family. As someone who knows how it feels to be reunited with their dad after he was off at war (although it wasn’t a surprise for us when he returned), that moment in the Capitol was a sweet one. 

As for the coverage, I was watching on ABC and noticed something a bit peculiar. They had a small box on the left with a live shot of the Capitol building exterior. Is that a thing broadcasts do? I don’t ever remember seeing a locked off shot like that so I wondered if they knew something I didn’t. Like some sort of attack was coming! (Nothing bad happened, so I must just be a conspiracy theorist 🙂 ).  

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Anyway, the State of the Union routine was somewhat predictable. The President’s party standing in applause very often, and the opposing side sitting with arms folded. I’ll give credit to the Dems though… they did stand up at least once when Trump mentioned the Family Leave Act. Far be it from me to say it seems typical that a Democrat would cheer at the mention of getting money for NOT working, but well, they did. They half-heartedly applauded a few others times, except for that one gentleman who was clearly sleeping. Oopsy!

Whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican, I hope we can all agree on something that needs to change. This whole “I only support ideas in the speech if they come from a President from my party” has got to end. President Trump said some great things and yet half the room stayed seated. I listened intently to hear if the things he was saying leaned right, and there were quite a few thoughts that were simply good, true, humane, thoughtful, and kind towards people. Yet Democrats were determined to show their opposition. I know it would be the same if it was a Democrat President, so Republicans and Democrats alike need to grow up and support America, not just their own party. A good idea is a good idea no matter who says it. I’m sick of “politics” as we know it. It’s time we get back to working together, compromise, and quit with the hatred between parties. OK, I’ll get off this little soap box 🙂

The Democratic response came from Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and was clocked at 10 minutes and 39 seconds. I liked her approach. Instead of battling back against Trump, she spoke positively about what Democrats are doing in our country. Do I agree with her on many things? Probably not. No, no… definitely not. But she kept her hatred for Trump at bay so that was refreshing. 

Now all we gotta do is figure out who Nancy Pelosi’s invisible friend was that she talked to throughout the entire speech and we’ll be cookin’ with gas. 

Did anything from the SOTU stand out to you? If so, comment below! 

-Out of the Wilderness

 

Niall Horan “Nice to Meet Ya”…worst lyrics ever?

My experience with Mr. Niall Horan is limited to the One Direction hits, and a couple of his songs as a solo artist. I actually like “This Town” and “Too Much To Ask,” but a single he released at the end of 2019 has the worst lyrics I’ve ever heard in both my ears. 

If you can bear, take a listen…


The YouTube video has over 32 mil views, so maybe I’m in the minority here. Honestly, the video was just OK but he has rabid fans so they’ll watch (and like) anything. Even the song itself… lots of praise via the YouTube comments but Niall has stated he wrote the song in a day… and I believe it. The lyrics are so very simple, too simple. Literally nothing happens in the “story”. He says he likes this woman, and wants her number. That’s it. 

I’m also going to venture a guess that this tattoo he says he’ll get (“I want your number tattooed on my arm”) will be one of his biggest life regrets. I’m sorry if you’ve ever lost 3 minutes of your life listening to this song… but maybe I can make it better. 

Try this one and hopefully it will cleanse your ear holes (and for more about this Maroon 5 video, click here)…


Thanks for stopping by! 

-Out of the Wilderness

 

Top 10 moments from Super Bowl Weekend

I’m going to be totally honest with you right now. My original plan was to make a list of my top 10 favorite Super Bowl commercials but the first few ads airing after kickoff were movie promotions. Nothing turns me off more than those types of commercials during the Super Bowl. I want to laugh. I want to cry. What I DON’T want is a movie trailer. So right away, I gave up on making that list. The first half of the game was somewhat entertaining but I felt the urge to turn the TV off and do some work. I know, what am I thinking? So instead of watching the rest of the game, including the halftime show that interested me about as much as math, I drove to downtown Nashville to deliver food with Uber Eats.

BUT! I do still have a list for you… my favorite moments from the entire weekend!

Top 10 Moments From Super Bowl Weekend:

10. Chatting with a couple after delivering their dinner with Uber Eats

9. Selling my DJI Mavic Air drone

8. The Chiefs impressive 4th quarter comeback to defeat the 49ers in the Super Bowl

7. Listening to Kevin Harlan’s Super Bowl play-by-play on the radio

6. In church, learning a new Latin phrase: ex nihilo

5. Seeing Don Shula and Dan Marino before the Super Bowl started

4. Watching my beagle Piper dig for moles in the backyard

3. Playing catch with the captain of my softball team

2. Worshiping on Sunday with a song my brother showed me months ago, “Waymaker”…


Like I said earlier, I watched some of the first half, and did get to catch the last 2 minutes of the game when I got home. But because I was driving around town for a couple hours, I missed most of the game… so without further ado, the #1 highlight of my Super Bowl weekend is…

1. Not being subjected to the Super Bowl halftime show

Thanks for stopping by! What were your highlights from the weekend? I’ll leave you with this… one of my favorite Super Bowl commercials of all time. This aired in last year’s game. Go Jeep!


-Out of the Wilderness