Exfloofutive Order
Exfloofutive Order (floofinition) – Directive issued by an animal, particularly a housepet, that manages how circumstances or a situation are expected to be handled. Origins: 1904. Although many Exfloofutive Orders pre-existed, the first recorded Exfloofutve Order was written and numbered under the heading, “Care and Feeding of Animals in the Urban Household”, establishing by Exfloofutive Order by Mittens that, “…all animals dwelling with humans in Dayton, Ohio, will be given proper care and shelter, including meals, treats, brushing, bedding, and water.”
In Use: “Charlie issues a single woof each day at dinner, which became known as Charlie’s Exfloofutive Dinner Order.”
In Use: “Before going on vacation, Natalie regarded a list titled “Exfloofutive Orders”, which delineated how and what her cats, dogs, and fish would be treated and fed, along with where — because some of them were very floofticular.”
Saturday’s Theme Music
Ashland, Oregon — April 4, 2026.
Sunshine graces the valley again. 52 F, blues skies, spring. High in the upper 70s projected for our afternoon.
Yardwork and house chores are in my future. Looking forward to being out there and getting things done.
War continues in Iran. The quiet news cycle is about Trump thinking about more cabinet replacements as the war flounders in Iran. Two aircraft were shot down. We’re not sure why the A10 went down — yet — but the F15E Strike Eagle was shot down. Speculation swirls about what type of system took down the Eagle.
Personnelente had a comment on it in “The Price of Folly”: “Iran has shot down several US aircraft: at a minimum an A-10, and two F-15s. Russia is supplying advanced anti aircraft weapons to Iran even as Cadet Bone Spurs lowers sanctions on Russia and backs off helping Ukraine.”
Yes, Trump has baffled us by lowering sanctions on Russia, who supplies Iran with military equipment and advice, along with intelligence support. You gotta wonder…
Papi inspired The Neurons for today’s morning mental music stream. He’d come in from the sunshine and approached for…something. Papi isn’t really a communicator. But when I mentioned treats, he came to rest with an expectant gaze. As I got his treat, I sang out, “Gimme gimme good eating,” playing on a rock song from my youth. That’s Crazy Elephant with “Gimme Gimme Good Lovin'” from 1969.
Hope your day is full of good things for you. My future sees coffee.
Cheers
Thirteen
I follow and enjoy Ron, who writes imaginative and frequently humorous poetry.
Today, he had a great piece, “I’m with Elmo”. Its origins go back to Poets and Stories. They offered a challenge: take one of five famous quotes about April, and use it as inspiration.
Here is my piece, “Thirteen”.
Cooperating
I drove down Siskiyou Boulevard under bright sunshine. Traffic was light. We traveled at 30 MPH, just over the speed limit.
The blue Subaru in the left hand’s right turn signal began blinking. The driver started over. Realizing that my car occupied the space, they veered back into their lane.
I dropped back to give them turning space. Seeing that, they completed their turn, and gave a big wave of thanks out the window.
Laughing, I waved back and headed on toward the coffee shop. That simple exchange gave me a shot of happy energy.
Things go so much better when we cooperate and don’t turn everything into a competition.
Friday’s Theme Music – Tariffs & Travel
Ashland, Oregon — Friday, April 3, 20226.
33 F when I got up but sunshine was clearing the mountains and trees, lighting up cloudless blue sky. Today’s high will be 71.
With no news from home about Mom, I turned to the net for updates on the world. The US economy added 178k jobs in March. It surprised economists, and it surprised me. Economists warned that the war in Iran could cause problems, because it’s driving up costs throughout the supply chain.
Higher gas prices in the US will also mean less discretionary funding, which could be especially troubling as the US heads into May and the first of the big US travel holidays. Air travel could be harder as airlines such as United cut back flights to deal with increased fuel costs.
The economic is taking another hit from a sharp rise in fertilizer prices, affecting farmers which were already struggling with tariffs, broken trade agreements, and weather issues. Those challenges could result in lower yields and higher food prices at the store.
Not satisfied with high gas, diesel, and oil prices, Donald Trump declared tariffs on prescriptions drugs. Not immediately effective, they come with an opportunity for companies to agree to build facilities in the US to avoid the tariffs.
Today’s song comes from Papi and I stepping out onto the back patio. The gingerboy was already out there, grooming and sunning. His satisfied demeanor invited me to join him. I was still thinking about my dreams at that point. As I lifted my face up to the sun, the opening lyrics of “Kashmir” entered the morning mental music stream: “Oh, let the sun beat down upon my face.”
Here’s to you and a hope that peace and grace find and carries you, today and every day.
Cheers
Michael Seidel, writer 