Headlines about ultra-processed food abound.  I don’t know what the difference is between processed and ultra-processed. AI Overview tells me there are 4 categories: Unprocessed or minimally processed - e.g. washed, frozen or packaged are minimal Processed ingredients - vegetable oils, butter, sugar, salt Processed foods - canned vegetables, canned fish, simple bread, cheese, jam Ultra-processed - soft drinks, chips, packaged snacks… So are we ok with 1 to 3 and just not 4? It makes me think that there is very little that is unprocessed.  The supermarket has many variations of washing, coating with waxes, and putting things like vegetables in packages that add nitrogen.     Nitrogen is the way we keep apples and pears in such perfect condition.  “sleep” storage is what it seems to be called - makes me think of  Sleeping Beauty.  These are considered good and ok. Compare that to sweet potatoes - they are cured and not stored in nitrogen.  Sweetness is the factor involved - they are processed in controlled, warm, humid environments for 4-10 days converting starches to sugars and healing skin wounds. Then they are moved to cooler storage.  This is considered good. Our modern concern is about ultra-processing - between 70 - 73% of the total U.S. food supply available in stores is ultra-processed.  The numbers would be the same in other countries - UK and Canada for sure.  What was the percent in 1950?  Less than 5%. No wonder this is a big headline news item.  Somewhere in the dark corners of my iMac operating system is  AI “intelligence” with the proof being this image.  I don’t think I’ve ever tagged an image with the keyword “food” - lots came up today - all the Marvelling the Mushroom series, and others not related to food (which makes me quite sure it is AI at work.)  This pair of decorative strawberries were a display item at the Hildreth Farm Stand where I buy fruits and vegetables.

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Marilyn's Photos - Jan 14 2026 - Awards Show Wardrobes

 

The costume show of awards shows is a significant percentage of the show.  I wonder where we would put that?  Up to 50% of the show? Definitely somewhere between 30-60% of the show.   That looks like a lot of red dresses this year. This is the collage that is presented by Google. the headline gives the answers right away:  Amal Clooney, Kate Hudson, and Kylie Jenner are the Olympic winners.  I wonder if there are medals as well. It is fun seeing the outfits, and then deciding which are your favourites. Here are that article’s top three.  In the picture below, I think they have cut George Clooney out of the picture with Amal Clooney.  He’s a bit of a show-stealer, perhaps, given we’re talking women’s outfits. Don’t forget this year’s heroes are the Heated Rivalry duo who have joined the royal set.  They got royal treatment when they were seated with Julia Roberts, one of Hollywood’s royals. Here’s a shot of them together.   “Williams wore a white peak-lapel dinner jacket trimmed in grosgrain, paired with a white silk evening shirt, black evening trousers and a white grosgrain cummerbund, all by Giorgio Armani. He added a Bulgari necklace for some shine.” It is hard for me to figure out what makes for success.  It seems more of a gossip columnist’s dream - quotes from bad boys and sassy girls making “wild remarks”  and then there are the snubs and surprise wins of the awards themselves. You can go to the best and worst moments of the 2026 Golden Globes and decide. One article we can access for free is this one HERE.  Or go to the abcnews coverage HERE.   OK, here’s my own gossip moment.  Take a look at pictures of Sean Penn - he’s 65 years old looking like an 85 year-old. That’s a demonstration of the effects of chain smoking. Experts say that is a significant factor today explaining why we look so much younger at older ages than previous generations. Here’s one of those manipulation pictures of the St. Joseph’s stained glass windows.

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Marilyn's Photos - Jan 12 2026 - Toilet Talk

 

There are more quirky products at the consumer electronics show this year and it looks to me like the press enjoys reporting on these.   The Lollipop Star candy that transmits sound through vibrations in the jaw and skull while it is in the mouth.  Bite down lightly to activate the vibrations. You can buy one for $9.00. A smart feeding and drinking station for cats uses AI, cameras, and pattern-recognition software to analyze a cat’s behaviour and facial expressions.  The purpose is to monitor well-being and flag potential problems in real-time.  Makes me think we could get trained in cat language with something like this - a Dr. Doolittle talk to the animals training machine.  This one’s price tag is between $199 and $299. And don’t forget toilets. The smart toilet idea has been around a while.  The newest smart toilet sends an alert to family members if the owner doesn’t use the toilet for more than 12 hours.  This one is priced at $4,990.  Seems an expensive way to monitor the elderly or disabled to me. Do you phone them and then if they don’t answer or call back, you wait. And then the toilet calls that they haven’t been to the bathroom for 12 hours.  Then do you decide you might do something?  There’s a smart toothbrush using AI and gas sensors to detect volatile organic compounds associated with over 300 health conditions.  That one is called the Halo. No price tag yet on this one. Here’s a favourite image from Chanticleer Gardens in Wayne, PA near Longwood.  I consider this to be the top Romantic garden in North America.

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Marilyn's Photos - Jan 11 2026 - Who's Counting?

 

The “humanoid” robot is here, so they say. That’s accourding to the Consumer Electronics Show 2026.  And by humanoid, they mean serving tea, fixing picture frames, carrying laundry, vacuuming, collecting groceries, and so on. Your butler has been built. Are you counting down the days?  Will we will be saved from the mundane soon? The CEO of 1X says that it is in the “not so distant future.” The humanoid is Neo Gamma. Here are the two pictures - one a sad-eyed, mouthless boy, and the other more menacing - a Star Wars warrior of sorts. You can order the sad-looking “boy” - seems more boy to me with its wide forehead and large chin.  Anyway, the he/she/it is ready for the home market.  For the disabled or elderly in need of home care, this is something to notice.  Here are some of the specifications: “NEO represents a generational leap in humanoid hardware with the addition of Human Level Dexterity (22 DoF Hands) and a head-to-toe soft body made of custom 3D lattice polymer structures. At just 66 pounds (29.94 kg), NEO is capable of lifting over 150 pounds (68 kg) and carrying 55 pounds (24.95kg), and has a noise level of 22dB — making it more silent than a modern day refrigerator. Additionally, NEO possesses built-in communication with WiFi, Bluetooth, and 5G as well as a three-stage speaker in the pelvis and chest area, giving owners a built-in mobile home entertainment system.” And the who’s counting part?  Neo can be purchased on the Early Access program for $20,000 U.S.  or for $499/month. Does that seem like a lot or not?  I asked AI to do a business case - it came back with a “value proposition” that says for a high-income household spending $200 a week, the investment pays off in two years, and then recommended the monthly subscription as a better investment.  The business case brought back memories of MBA assignments. Maybe it has access to some of our old ones from the 1980s. Watch the Keynote video here.   Here’s another happy summer flower picture.

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