Black Friday, Mashed Potatoes, And Coffee Longevity

Holiday noise gets loud fast, from doorbuster ads to breathless headlines, so we took a slower route: a grateful recap of a Thanksgiving that felt right, a hard look at a tragic news story, and a practical sift through food claims and wellness studies. We start with why Black Friday isn’t worth the 6 a.m. scramble, then share the joy of a daughter’s home decked out for Christmas, great turkey, and the small win of not overeating. It’s the kind of family moment that makes the next segments matter more—because what we read and repeat shapes how we show up for the people we love.

When the conversation turns to the death of a National Guardsman, the emotions are raw. We question accountability and the rush to certainty, acknowledging how hard it is to balance grief, facts, and responsibility. From there, we pivot to the viral clip about Campbell’s and so-called “3D printed chicken.” The company denied it and moved quickly, which raises the bigger question: how do we maintain trust in the brands that anchor our holiday tables? Marketing surveys like the State of the Sides can be part ad and part mirror, but they tell a story—mashed potatoes vs. stuffing, mac and cheese rising, and the way regional tastes become family identity.

We close with a curious find: a study linking three to four cups of coffee a day with slower biological aging in people with severe mental illness, potentially through antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. It’s nuanced and not a free pass for everyone, but it’s a nudge to read beyond the headline and appreciate how daily rituals—like a cup of black coffee—can support well-being. Along the way we keep it candid, a little nerdy, and grounded in what actually improves a day: honest talk, good food, and the habits that help us feel more like ourselves.

If this resonated, follow the show, share it with a friend who loves mashed potatoes, and leave a quick review—what’s your number one side, and how do you take your coffee?

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Liberty Line each week on Sunday, look for topics on my X file @americanistblog and submit your 1-3 audio opinions to anamericanistblog@gmail.com and you'll be featured on the podcast. 

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Chapters

• 0:00 Black Friday And Retail Memories
• 1:24 Thanksgiving At Our Daughter’s Home
• 2:18 Tragic News And Accountability Rant
• 3:47 Campbell’s Executive And 3D Chicken Claim
• 5:20 Ranking America’s Thanksgiving Sides
• 7:42 Coffee, Aging, And Study Caveats
• 11:53 Question Of The Day And Sign‑Off

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:30

Hello, good morning. Happy Black Friday, I guess. Have you guys do you guys participate in Black Friday? That is not the question of the day. I do not. I've never have. I thought it was a bunch of bunk. It's not real. It's just hyped up sales. They hype up the hype up the amount and then say they marked it down. It's all dumb. No, especially with online nowadays. But I have worked a few Black Fridays in retail, and I'm going to tell you something. I loved it. I loved working in retail. I know I'm a strange one. Alright, we need to. I hope you guys had a great Thanksgiving. We went over to the daughter's house. It's our second year in a row with her hosting it. And I'm going to tell you something, and I need to tell her this instead of telling you all this. She has really made a cozy little home for herself. I am so happy and proud of her. She had her Christmas decorations up and she did a really good job with the turkey. We brought some sides, you know, she did some sides, and my son brought the dessert with his family. But um, it was a good time. It was a really good, good, good time. I did not overstuff myself, believe it or not. Normally I do. Every year I will eat myself till I will eat so much that I feel miserable for three days afterwards. But I didn't do that last yesterday. But it was all real good. Alright, we need to move on. I hope you again hope you had a great Thanksgiving. I have a couple of stories out here. Oh my gosh, those National Guardsmen. The woman um passed away. Some of the reports that I had read were that the guy shot her in the chest and then came up close to her and got her gun and then shot her in the head. I don't know how true that is, and I know I shouldn't even be re repeating it if I don't know that it's true. I don't know. But obviously it was fatal. She passed away of her of the gunshot wounds. Oh my gosh, just horrible, horrible, horrible. And this guy is here. But Joe Biden has this on his hands. I don't care how old and decrepit or cancer ridden he is. I would like to see him prosecuted for this and put in prison. I would. There, yes, I said it. I don't care if he had I don't care. Somebody, maybe somebody around him needs to do this since he wasn't really in charge. Who else was around him that did this? Maybe those people need to go to prison. It's just, it's horrible. Horrible, horrible, horrible. There's a few N New York Post pieces out there too, talking about how this American family hosted him and how he worked for this, you know, he was one of the assets that we had for the CIA, working on the ground over there in Afghanistan. And then there's a there is a organization group that helped them get over here because they helped us. Oh, it's just horrible all around. Horrible. I can't, I can't even imagine. I can't. But we're not gonna talk about that. We're gonna go talk about some other stories that I put out here. I'm trying to find light pieces that are not gonna be horrible. But you know, let's say we're gonna move on. Campbell's says it doesn't use 3D printed chicken, and it fires the executive who allegedly made those shocking remarks for the New York Post. You you guys saw the video on Pat Gray. Um, Campbell's Vartin Bali was caught describing the soup as bioengineered meat and saying, I don't want to eat a piece of chicken that came from 3D printer. Now, obviously, he was not saying I mean he was just implying that maybe he was trying to use an analogy or comparison that fake meat, you know, I don't know. Campbell said the remarks were untrue and that the executive was no longer at the company on Tuesday. Damn. The comments heard on the recording about our food are not only inaccurate, they are patently absurd. The 155-year-old company stated on its website, uh-huh, sure. We do not use lab grown chicken or any form of artificial or bioengineered meat in our soups. Uh-huh, sure. Yeah, tell us more how you don't use that. Okay, you can go finish reading that if you'd like. We need to move on. I know I really didn't cover it hard. Um right, since we were talking about Thanksgiving, let's talk about this beloved cheesy, cheesy dish is rising the ranks of America's most popular Thanksgiving side. Find out where your holiday favorites fall. Again for the New York Post. Let's see what they're gonna say. And if it's BS or not. Turkey Schmirky. When it comes to Thanksgiving, everyone knows it's all about the sides. Campbell's, of course, we're gonna talk about Campbell's again, one of the most well-known soup and sauce brands in America, has released their fourth annual State of the Sides report analyzing holiday side dishes and recipe trends to or for the November holiday. The report, which surveyed over 5,000 Americans across all 50 states, emphasized America's love for the side dishes, with 63% saying they prefer eating sides over turkey at Thanksgiving. Okay, I love it all. I love turkey. I do, I like turkey. Generations have turned to Campbell's to create their holiday side dishes over the years. Blah, blah, blah. All right. Obviously, it's an advertisement for Campbell's. Um, for those who cook Thanksgiving meal, 81% said that preparing the side dishes is how they show love for their family. Well, can we get on to what you say is the is the side dish? Let me see if I can oh uh up from fifth place last year. Mac and cheese is ranked fourth this year, and green bean casserole is now in fifth place down from fourth last year. While stuffing kept the crown for the favorite side nationwide, ooh, gross. Some states had a different top choice. New York and Florida are more into the cheesy stuff, choosing mac and cheese as their number one side dish. So I guess mac and cheese is it? What about corn casserole? Here we go. Overall, stuffing, also called dressing, was named the top side dish this year. Gross, those 5,000 Americans are wrong for the second year in a row with mashed potatoes keeping it second place. No, mashed potatoes need to be in first. Corn casserole can be second. I love meat some mashed potatoes. I could eat mashed potatoes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, every day, a snack, a midnight snack. I could eat mashed potatoes over ice cream any day. I love meat some mashed potatoes. Okay. Alright, next thing up, their last one is about coffee, of course. Again for the New York Post. And this many cups of coffee a day may help slow the biological aging. I'm all about this article. I have not read it, so we're gonna read it together. Go ahead and pour yourself that extra cup of Joe. Coffee drinkers may already know the benefits that come with their morning pick-me-up from feeling happier to fending off illnesses such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even Parkinson's disease. What? And now your morning ritual may add healthy years to your life. No wonder I feel so young. I drink a ton of coffee. That's why. And I drink at black, unless I'm getting Starbucks, which I don't get Starbucks anymore. Haven't had it in going on two weeks now. Although the husband did buy me one of those store-bought Starbucks drinks in a bottle, and I did have one yesterday. But it wasn't from the st from the store store. It still had a ton of sugar. And I think I can drink it as a treat every once in a while. Alright, moving on. But mainly I drink my hot coffee black with nothing in it. Unlike chronological age, which is the number of years you we've been alive, biological aging measures the age of our cells and organs. It's influenced by factors like genetics, lifestyle, that is true. Lifestyle for sure. Environmental exposures and diet, yes, and apparently the amount of coffee we drink. A study published this week in the BMJ Mental Health Journal found that three or four cups of coffee a day may slow biological aging in individuals with severe mental illness. Oh. Well that's a letdown. What the hell? What do they mean with severe? Maybe I have severe mental illness. Maybe that's why I feel like I'm so young. Why do they have to attack that on? They could have started off with that. Oh dear, oh dear. I mean, do you really want to caffeinate the severe mental illness people? Compared to non-coffee drinkers, those who downed mug after mug gained five additional biological years. Holy cow! But this is saying with severe mental illness, this is crazy. That's what the paragraph said above, right? Okay. Four eight ounces cups are about the recommended daily amount of caffeine for adults by the Food and Drug Administration. The new research suggests that coffee consumption may improve aging by reducing oxidative stress and imbalance between antioxidants and free radicals that damages cells and DNA. But why does this only affect the severe mental illness people? Huh? I guess they're not going to address that. Oxid okay, now we're going to get in some scientific terms. Oxidative stress can affect telomere length. I don't even know what that means, or the caps at the end of the chromosomes that keep them from fraying, like the plastic tips on a shoelace. Okay, shortened telomeres can be an indication of biological or cellular aging. Okay, that's interesting. While shortened chromosomes happen naturally, the researchers noted that they appear more often in those with severe mental disorders, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. What? The study authors show okay, whatever. Do I need to go on with this? I'm kind of disappointed now. I'm still gonna take it as me being aging slowly. Okay. One reason that researchers think coffee slows biological aging, that it's powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory compounds. It's an interesting article, I guess. If you want to go finish reading that, you can. Alright, question of the day. Alright, you know what? I am gonna do the Black Friday question of the day. Do you or have you ever participated in going out at six o'clock in the morning on a Black Friday to get a deal? No, I have not. And no, I will never do it. Okay. I gotta go. Thanks for listening. The gent and I should be back on Sunday with an episode of our Brood Awakening. And then I'll be back on Monday too. Okay. I gotta go. Thanks for listening. Have a great weekend.