Hi everyone,

Welcome to the start of spring!  How are you?  We had a busy day with Dad Clutter yesterday.  It was a productive stretch, so that's good.  BDH and Little Buddha tell me today's to-do list is a little shorter, but it does still involve some more running around.  That's fine.  One of the errands is finally picking up the Mammoth WVH VIP concert items I had framed, so I'm excited for that. 

I'll see what else the guys have scheduled for me later.  First, let's check out the headlines.  There's a fresh pot of coffee on the counter,  so grab yourself a nice medium DD, because it's time to clear out some Wednesday Clutter.

We have teamed up with Clearly Balanced Days, a NH-based/women-owned CBD company.  Enter promo code "cmoore" to get $5 off your next purchase!

Supposed billionaire Donald Trump has been unable to secure the $464 million bond he needs for his appeal of the guilty ruling in his NY civil fraud case.  Trump needs to raise the money by March 25 to prevent the judgment against him from being collected.  If he can't find someone to front the money for him, he'll have to start liquidating assets. 

It's not breaking news that the con man is a complete fraud who has been lying about his wealth this entire time.  The concern here is that a candidate who is in this kind of desperate financial situation leaves himself wide open to corruption.  Trump will sell himself to the highest bidder without hesitation if that's what it takes.  The United States can't afford to have that kind of vulnerability in the White House.

The walls are closing in on Donald Trump.  (pic via baynews9.com)

Donald Trump made it obvious he would be fine with a 15-week national abortion ban if he returns to the White House.  Trump is more than happy to give anti-abortion extremists whatever they want, if that's what it will take to keep himself out of prison.  However, the reality is clear:  Republicans are completely out of touch with the majority of the country on this issue.  We see it time and time again, voters don't want the government controlling their health decisions.  Abortion has been a losing topic for the GOP ever since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and that will continue in November.

Former Trump adviser Peter Navarro began his four-month prison sentence yesterday after being convicted of contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena from the January 6 committee.  He's the second former Trump administration member to be found guilty of this charge.  However, Steve Bannon's judge is allowing him to stay out of jail while his appeal proceeds.  Everyone in this cult thinks they're above the law.  Navarro may be the first aide to finally go to jail for January 6, but he shouldn't be the last, and his master should join him.

There's a new documentary about Stormy Daniels on NBC's Peacock streaming service.  We should probably find a time to give that one a look and learn more about the adult film star who had the courage to stand up to Donald Trump.

No one expects the Federal Reserve to announce an interest rate cut today, but investors will be paying attention to what officials have to say about the possibility of moves happening later this year.  The Clutter investment team suspects the door will will be kept open for now, but our crew wouldn't be shocked if nothing happens in 2024.  To be clear, that's not a prediction, just a guess.  These people have said time and time again they'd rather keep rates high for too long, instead of lowering them too early, and it's clear the fight against inflation isn't over yet.

We're sorry to see that JetBlue is having financial problems.  It's hard to imagine what could get us on any plane again anytime in the near future.  However, our spring training trips "back in the day" on JetBlue were always a comfortable experience.  If we did have to fly again, JetBlue would be our preferred airline.

A new study says people who engage in intermittent fasting have a 91% higher chance of dying from cardiovascular disease over a median period of eight years.  It sounds like much more research has to be done in this area, but we'll take a pass on the whole idea, thank you very much.

On the flip side, another study showed that getting the COVID-19 vaccine can dramatically reduce a person's chance of heart failure and blood clots after they are infected.  It's clear, these vaccines are an amazing scientific accomplishment.  The damage that the right-wing has done to our national public health in the pursuit of political power is infuriating. 

The Boston Red Sox announced that Brayan Bello will be their Opening Day pitcher on March 28 against the Seattle Mariners.  Given that the team just signed the 24-year-old to a contract extension, it's no surprise that they made this move.  Bello has a lot of potential, but the club is already leaning hard on a young pitcher who hasn't shown yet that he can be consistent for a full season.  Hopefully it won't backfire on them.

The Boston Globe's baseball writers made their 2024 MLB predictions, and shockingly, none of them have the Red Sox winning it all/making the playoffs.  Personally, we're still trying to figure out where to set the over/under on Red Sox wins this year.  Finishing the year with an above .500 record feels like a major stretch for this team, but isn't optimism the backbone of baseball?  We'll keep working on it.

The Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly had the same reaction as everyone else to Shohei Ohtani's proposal to defer the majority of his new $700 million contract:  What?  It really was a remarkable situation, one we can't imagine many/any other players will repeat.  Ohtani makes a fortune while still ensuring that his team still has plenty of financial flexibility to compete.  That's a rarity.

Former New England Patriots tackle Trent Brown signed a one-year deal with the Cincinnati Bengals, to which we say - good riddance.  There's no doubt Brown is a talented player when he's in the right mood, but he seems like a miserable human being.  Whatever the Patriots lose by not having him on the field, it's balanced out by his absence in the locker room.  Brown might survive one year in Cincinnati without complaining, but we wouldn't bet on it.

We missed this one a few days ago:  Quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo agreed to a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Rams to be the backup for Matthew Stafford.  The 32-year-old is coming off a horrible year with the Las Vegas Raiders, and he's suspended for the first two games of the regular season for violating the league's PED policy.  Add in ongoing injury concerns, and it will be interesting to see if Jimmy G. finds a way to rebuild some value this year, or if this ends up being the end of the road for him.

Actor Jonathan Majors is being sued by an ex-girlfriend for assault and defamation.  Majors was convicted last year of reckless assault in the third degree and a non-criminal charge of harassment of Grace Jabbari, the woman who is now filing this lawsuit.  We wish her the best of luck with this case.  In the meantime, Majors' sentencing is scheduled for April.

Bill Hader, Quinta Brunson, and Bowen Yang have all been cast to star in an animated Cat in the Hat movie.  We're completely on board for that, but the film won't be released until March of 2026, so let's put it on the back burner for a little while.

The rom-com Anyone but You comes to Netflix on April 23.  Is this something we need to see?  That feels like something we can skip.

Despite repeatedly claiming otherwise, it's official:  Steven Moffat is returning to Doctor Who.  The former showrunner said time and time again he was done with the show, but now he admits he's written an episode for the new season.  However, it's still not clear if we're talking about a regular show, or the Christmas special.  Regardless, we can't wait to see what Moffat has come up with for the 15th Doctor and Ruby Sunday.

Jim Parsons shared a few thoughts about what it was like to reprise the role of Sheldon Cooper for the upcoming series finale of Young Sheldon.  We have no idea how the last episode plays out, but we'll be surprised if this is more than a tw0-minute appearance at most. 

Hey, look at that - we might finally have a reason to watch Max again:  The new season of Conan O'Brien Must Go arrives on the streaming service on April 18.  Check out the trailer:

It's good to see Bruce Springsteen is performing again after he was forced to postpone the remainder of his tour last year due to health issues.

Hey Queen fans, you can buy Freddie Mercury's final home for the low price of $38 million.  It doesn't come with any of his belongings, but still, who knows when an opportunity like this will present itself again?

Do you want to take a guess which tune Forbes declared as "The Biggest Song of All Time?"  The answer probably won't surprise you, but do you agree with it?

Okay kids, that's going to do it for now.  Let's have Moby and Lady Blackbird close things out with their new tune, "dark days" for today's, "Song of the Day."

Thanks for stopping by, folks.  It was great to see you, as always.  Oh, hold up...BDH and Little Buddha want to remind you that you're welcome to come back tonight if you want to watch the new "One Chicago" episodes with them.  Also, feel free to bring cookies if you like.  Otherwise, enjoy the rest of your day, be good, and we'll catch up with you again soon.  Until next time, that's today's Clearing out the Clutter, and we are outta here.