Welcome to the Speakeasy! Pull up a metaphorical chair and relax with everyone. Chat about whatever you want, just be nice to each other (and no bigotry).
Speakeasy #5
{advertisement}
About the author
{advertisement}
745 thoughts on “Speakeasy #5”
Comments are closed.
Sorry about that y’all. It might have been a glitch or something, bc I didn’t close down Speakeasy #4. I was asleep and woke up to a message saying it was closed. Very strange. Sent a message to the Wizard, and I’m checking out a couple of things on my end. Maybe it was our little supernatural friend who haunts the place?
[edit]
Just realized that I have comments for all threads set to remain open for 30 days, and the last Speakeasy was opened on September 16, so that’s why it closed down. So sorry about that folks.
Thanks for opening a new thread, Tony! !
Yay!
I was starting to worry. I wanted to complain about that ill feeling I’ve been having all day at work, and the fact that Colleague was out from work on Thursday with a rather serious bout of vomiting… And yes, I took the train, today of all days. Whee!
Also, it’s getting dark during the day again. 🙁 Increased cloud cover and consequences of the northern hemisphere. Must be autumn.
+++
In other news, I’m finally getting around to watching Lathe of Heaven. So far so good, got about 20 minutes in this morning before I had to go to work.
Also, recently watched The Great Gatsby. In high school when we analyzed it, the main theme was stuff about New Money and Old Money and that sort of thing, but watching it now, I’m amazed at the toxic masculinity that shines through – and the fact that this toxic masculinity is held up as an ‘incorruptible dream’. In the end, I couldn’t figure out if it was meant to show through so much and the ‘incorruptible dream’ bit was a kind of irony, or if Gatsby is really supposed to be seen as some amazingly romantic hero… I did once again confirm that no, I am not a fan of DiCaprio’s acting. He does terrible accents, especially when it comes to consistency.
So that doesn’t happen again, I disabled the time limit on threads. I can’t imagine I’m going to pay attention to when I’ve started a new thread, and I don’t want that to happen again, so now comments can go on indefinitely (or at least until I set up a new iteration).
Oh good. I thought I broke the Speakeasy.
Sweden opens worlds first male rape centre.
rq, oh dear, you certainly don’t need the plague. [comforting hugs and soothing tea offered]
I made myself go out to breakfast this morning even though I didn’t feel like it was worth the effort. Then I went to Target because we needed more nyjer seed for the voracious little dinosaurs, um, goldfinches, and I wanted to look for more summer pj pants. Alas, it’s winter at Target, and arctic winter at that*, so no nice cotton pants. But I got the birdseed, and I bought frivols – some Halloweeny lights for the Husband to play with, and a doll for me. Yes, I bought myself a dolly. She’s a “Monster High Fright-mare”, she looks like a cross between a centaur and a sea monster, and I think she’s cute. I haven’t decided yet whether to put her with the mermaids or the My Little Ponies, or someplace else in my little room, maybe with the art dolls.
So the morning has been fairly pleasant so far. Ha!
Oh, pooh, the edit still doesn’t. Anyway, footnote because I forgot it:
*So Cal is never all that cold, we’re in the midst of record drought and record high temps, we don’t need warm winter woolies. And yet, we are subject to the whims of a bunch of execs on the east coast. Why is this so hard to comprehend?
Anne:
What’s the coldest it typically gets there?
Where I live? We do get nighttime lows in the 30s in the winter sometimes, but not for a couple of years. Right now, with the heat and humidity, we’re lucky if the low gets below 70, and it’s expected to heat up again later in the week. Like triple digits heat up.
I can remember at least one Thanksgiving a few years ago with howling Santa Anas and temps in the triple digits and several major brushfires. I think that was the year the high school had to close for a week because everything around it burned. This winter we’re supposed to have torrential rains, but I’ll believe it when I see it.
On the other hand, at least we don’t (usually) have tornadoes or major hurricanes. Yet.
Thanks, Anne. I’m hoping that with a good amount of chamomile tea and ibuprofen (because of that feverish ache in the shoulders), I can at least make it home without any accidents. Or the plague will just pass me over (though it’s the wrong season for that and I have no goat’s blood on hand – or was it sheep’s?).
I’m glad your morning is a good one, so far! Serves it right. 😉
So today I went to the local monthly Captain Awkward meet-up. We talked about films and books and shows and fanfic, mostly, plus a bit of politics and Weird Workplace Issues. Optional badges for name-and-preferred-pronouns (which I like, because I am so rubbish at remembering people’s names). It was nice.
Elder Daughter’s camera is home again! Yay! Weather permitting (ie, not too horridly hot and/or raining), I’ll be dropping her off at the arboretum Monday morning. Fullerton arboretum is part of Cal State Fullerton’s campus, so Younger can get a lift as well.
Things are going pretty well. Maybe too well. [looks overhead suspiciously for Shoes of Damocles]
Been seeing this around Tumblr – a mini clothes washer that connects to a sink:
http://breelandwalker.tumblr.com/post/130269275484/pseudocoding-onlyblackgirl-jopara
Aren’t there several regulars currently stuck with bus rides and laundromats who could really use such a thing?
Pteryxx:
Does indeed look useful.
Anne:
We’re having unseasonably warm dry weather here as well.
*hugs* to all! Get them while they’re fresh.
—
Pteryxx
That’s an awesome little thing! Thanks for sharing.
—
For EU dwellers:
Hungary closed its border with Croatia. Isn’t that a violation of the most basic EU obligations? Why is Hungary still in the EU? Are any counter measures being discussed?
—
I finished watching a Russian TV show which had a couple of good US-related questions which I want to pass on:
1. In the very early 20th century Alabama passed a law which prohibited pouring salt on railroad track. Those who were caught doing it were punished severely, some even getting the death penalty.
Question: why and for what purposed was such a law passed?
2. This one is tricky, but I can’t link an image without revealing the answer. Instead imagine a pair of sturdy goggles with a black plastic rim that covers the lower half of the goggle, preventing the person wearing them from looking down.
Question: for whom were these goggles designed and what purpose do they serve?
Trigger Warning: suicide
This is a link to a Facebook post by 26-year-old Ashley Hallstrom, a trans woman who took her life recently. She wrote a suicide note that she wanted shared.
You’re going to need spoons to read this one. Right now, I can’t stop crying. Fucking transphobia.
Here is the post.
Alive.
AlexanderZ,
Well, operations between Croatia and Slovenia seem to be running smoothly if a bit more slowly than before. Of course, it’s becoming colder so this slowdown is not good. More appropriate accommodation is being built for those passing through but it’s for a limited number of people and I doubt it would be good enough for a longer stay during the winter.
I don’t know what will happen if countries like Austria and Germany close their borders.
Tony,
Thank you for sharing that letter
To add to the list of things you do not expect while working alone in the lab on a Sunday: cats falling out of the ceiling.
Fine, it was just the one cat. Still somewhat unexpected.
rq,
that story needs more information. Did she drop out of a hole in the ceiling? Did she drop through the ceiling? Was she an actual ceiling cat or just a pretender?
While we’re on the topic of cats… has anyone hear from CaitieCat recently?
Beatrice
rE: CaitieCat
I emailed her a while ago, but with no response. I will have to try again. (I know Portia – who is doing well but is busy as always – also tried emailing her relatively recently, with the same result.)
And this was a REAL CeilingCat. It has now fallen from grace, while creating a hole in the ceiling. She fell through a ceiling tile, in fact. After spending a good hour walking around in the ceiling space while I tried to figure out where all that mewling was coming from. And for the record, if Colleague had been sitting at her desk, CeilingCat would have dropped down right on top of her.
So now we have holes in the floor and holes in the ceiling. Wunrful.
REAL CeilingCat!?!?!? Does that mean it’s a miracle and Colleague’s desk (and the ceiling above it, of course) are now a Holey Site (or a Holy Holey site, even)???
How is the cat?
And to add my plangent voice; I don’t suppose anybody has any news of Ogvorbis either? 🙁
rq,
I’m imagining photographic evidence you’re going to give for the lousy state of infrastructure at your facility.
[insert photo]
Caption: The hole in the laboratory ceiling where a cat fell through.
Hark, here is Ye Holey Site wherethrough Ceiling Cat made her daring entry into the Mortal Worlde!
Whereupon Ceiling Cat let out a mighty HISS and made for the door.
(So yes, I’m guessing, from the attitude, that Ceiling Cat was just fine. The real mystery is how she even got up there, since she’s not one of the regular lab visitors and it’s a rather difficult climb up to the upper floors. There must be a ventilation shaft somewhere. *cue action movie music*)
I could laugh but I’m really crying on the inside.
I know we (at work) agreed on postponing submission for a month, but I’m getting the feeling that things might move forward a lot faster than that. Which is going to rub a lot of people the wrong way. But it’s like the building’s warranty just expired: shit keeps happening with increasing frequency.
Beatrice
I’m imagining that blank confused stares we’ll get with that.
Although we’ll probably get the usual routine from management: “What is this? What are you trying to say with this? WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?”
And then nothing will get done except some platitudinous “we’ll call someone about this” and “we wrote another letter to the chief of police”. Thus giving us grounds to proceed further.
I probably shouldn’t be typing all of this on the work computer, but heck, it’s not like the state of our lab is a state secret… OR IS IT???
opposablethumbs
Unfortunately, I have no leads on Ogvorbis at all. 🙁
AlexanderZ,
Update on that supposedly good situation with the transport of immigrants: (spoiler: it’s not so good any more)
Slovenia is accepting approximately 2500 people a day, the number they consider they can process and house during that time. There are 50 empty buses in a camp in Croatian waiting for the green flag to take people to Slovenia. Meanwhile, there are now 40 buses full of people waiting on the Serbia/Croatia border for more than 10 hours because Croatia isn’t letting them in yet.
Ceiling cat fell through?
Catastrophe…
A harbinger of impending cataclysm.
A catalyst for disaster, I agree.
It must be cats all the way down.
Tony!, of course it is – cat fur surrounds us and penetrates us and binds the universe together. May the fur be with you.
Anne:
Sorry, in this household with my dog Krystal, it is dog fur that surrounds me 🙂
It’s still cats all the way down. But your dog can stay.
I’m going to have a liedown, but I’ve refilled the hugs and brewed a fresh pot of tea. Later, gentlebeings.
Heard this song on the radio today. Loving it.
(Sometimes I hear good songs on the radio but I always have to listen to them at home again to make sure they’re really as awesome, since sometimes they just happen to hit the right note to go with my thoughts while driving. This one, still resonates. And no, it’s nothing new or amazing or anything like that, but… it resonates. So I’m sharing with y’all because y’all matter to me, too. In any case, nobody’s going to build a monument to me, probably ever, but I feel like I’m trying to at least make an indelible mark. The next few weeks will show. ♥)
In other words, thanks y’all for being a sounding board and a place wherefore to complain or vent when I need it. Apologies if it seems like I’m ignoring other people or other issues, I agree, I’ve been a bit selfish and wrapped up in my own issues lately.
hullo
URgh, first cold of the year slightly caught the little one, bounced off and hit me full. But in good news, my exams are on the 20th and 25th of November, so I have a bit of air to breathe.
rq
Have you and your colleagues considered contacting the media as an ultimate means?
+++
IN the meantime I’m having some fun with Trapunto designs (google images, it’s a gorgeous technique) on the embroidery machine. Everybody gets pottholders this christmas. Maybe I’ll even make the girls real quilt. IT’S something I wanted to do for a while but I’ve debated designs. Sure fairies and horses would be everything right now, but a quilt is too much work to be for “just now”. These designs would be more timeless and hopefully still apeal to a teenager, shoukd they not manage to skip fast forward to veterinarian…
rq:
I don’t normally speak for others, but I think it’s safe to say that you’ve left an indelible mark on the group here.
rq, I think that’s kind of what we’re here for??!?!? FSM knows you’re always there for everybody with a helpful or supportive word; I think we’re only too happy to be a venting-sounding-board-place for you too!
rq, yeah, what they said. [hugs]
Yeah, what opposablethumbs said.
This article is infuriating. It highlight the serious restrictions on alcohol consumption in Utah. For those unaware, Utah’s state government is heavily influenced by the LDS Church and they are anti-alcohol. They get to exert their will on the population, creating such annoyances as the ‘Zion Curtain’:
restrictions on the number of drinks in front of you as well as the amount of alcohol per drink:
and even buying alcohol as a private buyer:
All bc religion is mixed up in politics.
rq
No apologies needed. You’re not selfish, you don’t come across as selfish and I’m happy to provide a virtual shoulder to cry on/punch with infernal fury.
Re: job – Giliell has solid advice. Also, I’m not sure agreeing to wait a whole month is a very good decision. Procrastination, particularly when everyone is already aware of your intentions, is rarely a good plan. Not to mention that any delay can be later be exploited to claim that the problems aren’t as serious as the workers claim.
Perhaps our ceiling deity, in its eternal wisdom, has decided to provide you with a good reason to re-examine your decision to postpone?
—
Beatrice
I hope Croatia doesn’t try anything stupid just to spite Hungary or appease its own bigots.
Fuck Eurocrats. The one time you need them to be active and it’s the only time when they decide to sit quietly in the corner.
Tony!, that’s not a part of the USofA, that’s a theocracy.
Delurking to say: rq, you have been one of the most consistently kind, compassionate, and caring people I’ve ever come across in the wilds of the Internet. No one who knows you would ever think that any inattentiveness on your part came from a lack of concern. That would be the nottest of the not posssiblenesses.
Please do whatever it takes to care for yourself. We all have the right, or we should at any rate. But even if such a thing needed to be payed for you have earned it many times over.
FossilFishy:
Weeo Weeo Weeo
Please step of the car Mr. Fishy. I’m afraid I’m going to have to give you a ticket for your violation of proper grammar rules. There will be no room for debate. You will comply and become the mostest assimilated of the assimilatedest.
Hullo? Anybody remember me? I’ve been sooooo sick. I think rq sent the plague from Latvia. (Didn’t know you were that powerful, didja?)
This isn’t any flu as I’ve known it, but it also isn’t like any normal cold. I feel like I’ve got shards of glass in my sinuses and muscle spasms on my muscle spasms. It must be the Crud, officially. Convenient that I’ve got a doc appt on Tuesday, but that means I actually have to get up and get presentable. Urgh.
Hi all. Issashiburi desu!
Thanks to AlexanderZ for the heads up.
Biped, oh dear, poor thing! You’re sick, I don’t think you have to be all that presentable.
Whine follows: Husband decided to try another whole chicken on the bbq experiment for dinner. That’s the good news. Unfortunately, he really likes hot peppers, and if he likes them, everybody should like them. So he’s doing baked potatoes with the hottest salsa he could find cooked in with them, and he’s hurt that the rest of us asked for ours sans salsa. At least he was willing to do two potatoes with plain chopped tomato, but they’re still wrapped in bacon. I fear there will be hurt feelings when I don’t eat much because of the Gallbother. I know my limits, and I already had my bacon quota for the weekend before he decided to cook.
Sigh. One of the things that triggered the initial attack was his cooking, and he still thinks I can eat the way he does. I never could, and now have even more reason not to, and he just doesn’t get it.
CatieCat! You sure are fast. I’ve been going through my entire log figuring ways to contact you. Great to see you here. As they say, stay awhile…
—
Speaking of which, opposablethumbs sorry, but I have no way to contact Ogg. He’s very elusive.
—
Biped!?
Get well, get well soon, we wish you to get well. Get well, get well soon…
*hugs*
—
My cat is sleeping beside me, moaning, snoring and farting with ever increasing speed. I think it means that I should be going to bed. See you all tomorrow.
Ugh. Sorry to hear about the sickness Biped.
****
So good to hear from you CaitieCat!
Anne:
It sounds like your husband isn’t taking the preferences of the rest of the family into account. That’s not kind. If you’re going to cook for people other than yourself, you ought to consult them about matters like this. Especially spicy food, which many people cannot eat (or simply don’t enjoy). Personally, I’d have cut the whole chicken up and added the hot salsa to one portion. Alternately, I’d have used the salsa as a topping/dressing at the end of the cooking process, and then only on the portion *I* was planning on having.
The chicken is fairly plain this time. I think he figured that out after a few dinners nobody else could eat at all. This time it’s the potatoes that are getting the hot sauce treatment. I agree, it’d be a lot better if he’d refrain from cooking with the hot sauce, but I can’t get that through to him.
Of course he also bought the biggest tub of the hottest salsa he could, and since he’s the only one who can eat it, it’s probably going to go bad before it’s finished. Seriously, is this an old guy thing, tastebuds going numb like hearing going? Or is it just a way to defy his age? Husband’s been wanting spicier and hotter as he ages, and it’s become a running joke in the family.
Anne:
It just boggles my mind that he ignores your concerns like that. It’s not like it’s some great trouble to not make things spicy.
Tony!, I think the problem is that he thinks of cooking as experimental chemistry and relaxing fun. Producing an edible meal is way down the priority list, and anyway, if he can eat it, what’s the problem? Usually the girls can handle his level of hotness, but I think it may be too much even for them this time.
Eh, I’ll manage, and at least we’ll have chicken for a few days, assuming it works. I am just too good at guilt-tripping myself about not eating his cooking.
Anne, I have, in the past, been rude enough to wash the sauce off the piece of meat before eating it. This was after I said I can’t eat really hot things, and the hotness was added anyway.
If he’d done the chicken in hot salsa, I would have no qualms about that. Problem is, he’s basically cooking the baked potatoes in bacon and hot salsa, and there’s no way to avoid the hot or the greasy. At least he listened to the rest of us and did two potatoes without salsa. That’ll be enough for me and the Daughters, and Husband will just have to eat all the rest of them. And he did get some french bread when I asked, so I can eat a bit of potatoes and fill in with bread.
I guess I just don’t have the experimental chemist/cook mindset – when I cook, it has to be edible and acceptable to everyone. I should be easier on myself, let Husband do his thing, and fix my own dinner if I can’t eat his, but, like I said, I guilt trip myself. I’m an idiot.
You are not an idiot….. You, like most of the rest of us are a well-conditioned woman. And your husband is being selfish. I AM an experimental cook, and I always make sure what I am presenting is edible by my guests.
Thanks, Biped. Yes, my parents trained me well, and my ex reinforced it.
I think part of Husband’s problem is that his cooking really is experimental – edible is secondary. I get upset if I waste food, he doesn’t care, as long as he has fun. He’s a development coatings chemist by trade so I guess it goes with the territory, but in that case he shouldn’t expect everybody to eat the results. And don’t ask me about his cookie experiments. Puréed brandy-soaked raisins… [shudder]
I love him, and he’s a good person, but he does have his annoying habits. As do I, so I should just try harder to stand up for myself.
Anne:
I *hate* wasting food. I think it goes back to being poor as a child. We were taught to make use of what you had available and to do your best not to waste. It’s one reason I still eat leftovers today (and quite enjoy them). When I cook for myself, even if I burn something or it turns out not quite right, I’ll still eat it (granted, if it was burnt to a crisp, I wouldn’t).
As for pureed brandy-soaked raisins…pardon me, I need to hurl.
Tony!, the cookies…
I have a basic cookie dough recipe that you divide and add stuff to, and he got creative when we were making Christmas cookies. I think he was the only one who ate the raisin cookies. They were… peculiar. Oh well, at least the Daughters can cook normally when I can’t. I’m going to lay in a good supply of Lean Cuisines before my surgery, though.
Thanks, everybody, for letting me vent. The chicken turned out pretty well, the salsa-free potatoes got eaten by the girls (I snagged a bit), I had bread and chicken and veg, so I’m satisfied. Husband will just have to eat the remaining three potatoes with salsa and bacon himself, that’s all.
I need to deal with the guilt and my food issues, although I’m afraid it’s a bit late for either.
Thanks, everyone. I just feel kind of bad for being so focussed on ME right now. I swear I will do better!
(Also *hugs* for FossilFishy and CaitieCat, long time no read!!!
And some *hugs* for everyone else, too!
With *extra hugs* for Anne. Experimentation is well and good except when you have special requests from people you love.)
AlexanderZ
Our intentions haven’t been telegraphed that far, yet. We’re still sticking to the minor complaints, and I don’t think anyone in management is yet aware that we are preparing the Thingie. And considering this weekend, we just might move submission up again and damn all hurt feelings. It’s just one of those things where, having the time, it’s best to make sure that nobody takes things personally (as in, “You waited until I was on vacation to do this!” or “You waited until you went on vacation for your underlings to do this!”) and creates more kerfuffle.
Giliell
We have considered media – but due to the nature of the lab and our work (sensitive, also personal information) that one’s a bit down the road, but we do have contacts and have discussed it.
We’ll be having another unit meeting today.
ORDERS from HeadQuarters for rq. You are hereby instructed as follows:
1. Focus on you and your immediate environment, to the full extent necessary to resolve the issues you face.
2. Issue progress reports at least daily.
3. Your allowance for feeling bad is exhausted: get over it.
4. Consult the Speakeasy as needed.
5. That is all.
;-Þ
*hugs* all.
Welcome CaitieCat, Hi Fossilfishy, Biped.
I saw that Ogvorbis’ information on the Pharyngula wiki had been edited, and left an edit there with a link here; otherwise I don’t know how to get hold of him either.
Morning
I still feel like mashed potatoes, but the littel one is out and about again. She had her “ready for school” medical exam today. The verdict was “the right kid tos tart such a day off”.
Caitieeeeeeee
*soft non-contageous* puncehug*
*or however you spell that
Anne
Seems like your husband needs to think about the phrase “intent is not magic”. Seriously, I’m the one here who prefers her food spicy. That’S why I have a big variety of things I can use to spice things up once they’re on my plate.
rq
Often reminding the powers that be of the existence of the media works wonders.
And don’t worry, we all have our times when we need to be ab it more self-centred.
+++
In the bad news: A rightwinger tried to murder the candidate for the Cologne Mayor. Bevause he hates foreigners. Thankfully the woman survived and got elected by a huge majority. Probably the only mayor ever elected while in coma….
Hi all. Hugs, higs, or hearty handshakes as you please.
Anne re: spicy food
My Honey is the same way. He apparently can’t taste something unless it’s drenched in some sort of hot preparation. Hot things actually hurt my insides, and for a long time he just didn’t get it. One day, I asked him calmly and seriously, “Do you think I’m lying about my problems with spicy food, or do you just not care about my discomfort?”
Yeah, it was a dirty, manipulative trick. But it did finally get the point through his dear little skull.
Also, sorry,
special get-wells for Giliell and Biped!?
special welcomes and good-to-see-yous to CaitieCat
special you-are-specials to rq, seconding all the rest here.
Sorry if I missed anyone.
Oh dear. I think Husband’s cooking got me anyway. Probably the zucchini-tomato thing – he decided that it was too dry, so he added grease from the chicken, and it was too much fat for me. I was up and down during the night with intestinal problems. Then Patches decided that since I was obviously awake, I should come out and play with her. At 3:30 in the morning. Next time he cooks, I’m going to be rude and be more careful about what I eat and don’t eat, because it’s only going to get worse from now on, especially once the Gallbother is out.
If I didn’t have unavoidable errands this morning I’d consider going back to bed, but I do, so I won’t. Lots of tea, that’s the ticket, and a nap after lunch.
Just dropping by to give a non-contact *pouncehug* to Catie . great to see you name again.
rq Good luck with your work and you’re not selfish! Unless you’re a an oyster……….oh sorry, I misheard.
Anne I do most of the cooking for my family and I always put people’s preferences first. Why provide food that people won’t enjoy?
Oh man, am I ever sick. I haven’t been this sick in ages. I’m glad hubby is working from home so someone can hear me moan. I got this damn bug from him. Problem is, whenever he gets something contagious, I get it ten times worse. Comes from having an iffy immune system. Back to bed. Urgh.
Biped, poor budgie! I hope you feel better soon, and I’m glad your hubby is there where he can help if you need.
*waves* and *hugs* at folks I haven’t seen in a while and extra for those of you who are sick
Thanks Anne and Beatrice. I’ve dispatched hubby to the pharmacy with a long list. I certainly could do justice to the death scene from Camille.
Biped!?
I hope you get well real damn fast!!! *sterilized hugs*
bragimike
Hope you are well, too!
Anne
*hugs* Feel better soon! And I hope you manage some sleep, too.
Also Biped!? there’s definitely something appealing about moaning out loud while sick when you know someone’s around to hear. Hope the drugs kick in and do you some good!
Random news:
-Eritrean immigrant murdered by Israelis because they thought he was helping Palestinian attackers. Important note : reporter (on our tv) calls this “fatal misunderstanding” which really makes it sound a bit like the event being just fatal and not a misunderstanding (that is, the beaten man being Palestinian) wouldn’t make anyone bat an eye.
(http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/eritrean-dies-israeli-guard-shoots-mob-attacks-34568891)
– In Swiss parliamentary elections, their anti-immigrant far right party gained the most votes (http://www.newsweek.com/switzerland-swings-right-election-384575)
– Conditions at the border are worsening.
The weather is horrible (rain, rain and more rain – we have floods all over). There is also a chain reaction of several countries lowering the number of immigrants they let pass each day, one after the other, because no one wants to be that sucker that ends up with tens of thousands of people no one else wants.
Since no one knows what is going to happen ,a lot of these people aren’t even in camps but on/between borders themselves, where they wait in mud and rain.
*serves Coke and Bretzeln to biped
Food again
I think this is kind of a guy thing. You know, in “traditional families” women do the everyday cooking and are expected to cook something everybody likes, probably putting her own tastes last. If men cook it’s the “specials”. As a result many men think that their personal tastes are The Law™.
I know my dad in law’s one of those people: Food is good or bad depencing on whether he likes it. Their spoiled rotten younger son is totally OK with imposing his whims on everybody else. I remember the times when he only ate meat twice a week but couldn’t be bothered to schedule one of his meat days on the roleplay days and expected everybody to check with him if he would be willing to eat meat or not on any given day. Do I need to mention that my mum in law occasionally prepares 4 different kinds of veggies to suit everybody’s taste?
Good Things
#1 spent all afternoon at her friend’s, who’d called to invite her. All those here who parent non neurotypical kids (or have been) know how much that means.
I voted!
re Good Things, Giliell – yeah, know how very very much that means. It can make all the difference in the world. Yay for #1 and friend-of-#1! 🙂
General hugs all round – especially to those who are ill – and especially to the lovely Cats and Fish we haven’t see in a while! – and to the llamas and bipeds and bass-players and well just hugs.
The clarinet and the bass clarinet are just the bees knees. I shall brook no argument. ::iz unreasonably adaman(tine) about it::
Bugger, I meant adamant(ine) of course. Stupid fingers, eyes and brain.
Those who are feeling under the weather have my sympathy. I haven’t had a cold yet, but it’s only a matter of time.
I’m a dad who likes spicy food, and I’m the one who cooks here, but I don’t make it so others won’t enjoy it. I mean, that’s the reason I like to cook — so others will enjoy it.
And, as I posted on my Facebook today —
I was going to go out and take some more fall pictures this morning, but the thermometer in my truck said we were hovering just above freezing, and I’m not willing to suffer quite that much for my hobby.
I know my brain is all ecstatic about ‘no more Harper’ but I’m wondering is another Trudeau that much better? Cute dimples and all…
So I’ve been seeing this going around on FB, with many people insisting the husband is a really awesome dude to point out that he loves his wife anyway.
Which he is.
At the same time, though, if I want to gift my husband some young-looking, cleaned-up pictures of myself that make me feel better, shouldn’t he appreciate that, too? It just seems like another way to cater to a different type of male gaze: the proprietary one that insists that one’s shared life with a man should always be visible to remind oneself of all that has been.
Well, what if I just want to forget for a little while every now and then, and pretend…?
Just like there’s that video of dogs annoying cats with their affections, and it’s a slow progression of the cats eventually learning to enjoy being licked by dogs, and what with the usual cultural assignation of dogs = men and cats = women, I can’t help but see the disgusting rape culture undertones.
Se Habla Espol:
I meant to say I guffawed quite loudly when I read this:
****
rq:
I hadn’t seen that meme about the retouched photos. I’ll check that out.
****
Apparently I should watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I’ve never seen it, and multiple FB friends have responded uniformly with YES in response to my query if I should watch it.
[Waves at everyone, with a specific semaphore for Dalillama, Tony, opposablethumbs and rq.]
So, I have an odd question.
What do you folk think of the sounds that this guitar effect makes? The first 2:30 are enough for those who can’t stand it.
I really, really like some of the stuff that it does, especially during that first 2:30. As he’s articulating a simple minor arpeggio he’s rocking a foot control that sweeps some of the effect’s parameters. Later in the clip the pedal is just producing noise, it’s okay for thems that want that, but not something I can see using.
I’ll explain how the thing makes those sounds later, if I might? Knowing how it works definitely affects how I feel about it, strange as that might sound.
I’m mostly wondering if the knowledge of what it’s doing would change anyone else’s opinion of it. You know, for science!*
*Not really. This is the sort of thing I wonder about all. the. damn. time. I suppose it beats thinking about the Canadian election that I have no say in anymore.)
So, have y’all heard about the rare mirage that looks like a cloud city floating above China? I’m sure you’ll be incredibly surprised to hear that conspiracy theories have sprung up around it.
FossilFishy
I have to say, I find the effect rather appealing. If used in the right sort of moderation, of course, but it seems that it could be applied variously with great success.
White noise makes things sound mysterious to me. And either lonely or extra-angry, depending on the speed and style where it is applied.
Though once it gets into that ambient/white-noise-as-music stuff (they call it ‘freestyle music’ here), it gets a bit much (for me). So… upvote from me?
Tony
I hadn’t heard about that, but that seems so… awesomely fantasy / science-ficiton-y. Like something out of a book. Sure beats cats falling out of the ceiling.
good morning!
Cold seems to be retreating. And it looks like ALL guests will show up for the little one’s party. Two years ago nobody showed up. Could they maybe spread that out a bit over the years? But we’ll be five adults to go with it, so we’ll manage….
Fossil Fishy
I quite like the effect as well. As rq said, nice for adding some mystery etc.
opposablethumbs
Yeah, that’s good times. I’ve been half joking that I know which schoolt o send her to after next year: Whichever one her friend goes to. We also have some funny name quirks going on: The kid’s older sister has the same name as I do. And her mum has the same name as my older sister…
rq
I’m with you there. I especially find the complaining to the photographer to be way over the top. You know, as if they had to ask the man for permission. Just because this complaint goes in the opposite direction than the usual complaints about women’s bodies does not mean that it doesn’t betray a deep sense of feeling entitled to those bodies.
Giliell
Yup, what you said. When I read the husband’s letter, I think it was the phrase ‘documentation of my children’ that jumped out at me… excuse me, ‘my’? He’s discussing the stretch marks on his wife‘s body. Because she should always remember she’s a baby-machine for him.
And this:
Maybe that’s what she wants to look like, for whatever multitude of reasons. (A large part of which, even a majority, are certainly due to cultural norms that constrain women’s abilities to feel good about the way they are, sure, but still…)
One final thing:
I wonder how many ‘joking’ comments he’s made about that baking and those goodies as she’s been enjoying them over the years…?
Monty Python and the Holy Grail: probably not quite as funny as I remember it (because you always preferentially remember the best bits) and includes some bits I’d rather it didn’t (because scenes-for-women-written-by-men-for-man-laughs) but nevertheless, yes! Definitely worth a watch imo and has some very very funny bits iirc. I’d say that crying with laughter at some moments while wincing at others is a possibility. YMMV of course 🙂
There’s white stuff falling out of the sky. No, not in the lab (thank all the ceilings). Outside. What is this?
rq
It’s God’s wrath. Have you said your prayers tonight, Desdemona?
rq, white stuff from the sky? Is it the fur of the Ceiling Cat? Is it the Catapocolypse?
We had some wet stuff last night, and it wasn’t our Phantom Widdler*, either, just enough rain to dampen things and scare Shadow.
I had a happy thing happen this morning, my car passed the smog check at the special test-only Star Smog Check station. First time test for this car, never been there before, but they seem very nice and very honest and didn’t try to talk me into things I didn’t need**, so yay and also whew!
I have made tea and refilled the hugs basket, and I’ll be over here in a comfy chair, destressing, if anybody needs me.
*Some nocturnal critter likes to get onto the patio roof, which is lattice covered in honeysuckle, and *ahem* relieve itself, of an evening.
**At least I have a plan for that – my mechanic is right on the way home, so I was going to drop by and show him the list if it came to that. But it didn’t.
The Wrath of God seems awfully sparsely distributed. And no, not Ceiling Cat (unless it’s the dandruff – Ceiling Cat herself was black all over).
I’ve heard of this beast called ‘Winn-tur’ that comes bearing a thing called ‘Sno’. Could be.
white stuff from the sky?
Oh, so sorry. I haven’t shaved my head in a week, so it’s probably my dandruff.
Perhaps Ceiling Cat has archcats, one for each season, and the one who’s been shedding on you is named Winn-tur. I must consult the archives.
Tony is Ceiling Cat?
Tony’s alternate ego is Ceiling Cat Winn-purrrrr.
Me and ceiling cat one and the same?
I’ll never tell. But consider how often we’re seen at the same time.
rq, yes!
Well… I never did get a very good look at Ceiling Cat, and there’s no photographic evidence of Ceiling Cat hirself, just the hole in the ceiling…
Anne
but they seem very nice and very honest and didn’t try to talk me into things I didn’t need**, so yay and also whew!
Congrats! That’s the nice thing about a “test-only” station – they don’t do repairs so typically you won’t get “sold” something. The good ones will explain what might be needed if the car fails, as they have no vested interest.
Good that you had a plan though.
(My main car has always had to go to a test-only station – since about 1998 – so I’m maybe too familiar with the process. Plus I’m a car geek…. 🙂 )
Arrgh, borked the blockquote and the edit function didn’t seem to work.
I think you can figure it out…..
Beatrice
Some people who are suspected in this were detained, but it looks like there will not be any arrests made. The security guard that shot him for the crime of running while black is not even a suspect. I’ve heard people supporting the lynching, saying “one less African rapist”.
In addition to that, at least four more Palestinians were executed. That is, four more that were obviously of little danger and could have easily been apprehended, the actual death toll of innocent or otherwise non-dangerous Palestinians is 21, with 20 more being likely suspects of various terrorist acts, and that’s not counting the mundane killings which are part of day to day occupation.
In one case two policemen grabbed the wrong man, thinking that he was involved in a stabbing in Jerusalem. The first police officer knew that the man wasn’t dangerous but decided to use a pepper spray on him. That angered the onlookers (yes, the situation was so very very dangerous that a crowd had gathered) who demanded blood (the detained man was Palestinian), so a second policeman came closer and shot the man dead.
In another case a mentally unstable Palestinian woman armed with a knife was standing in the middle of Afula, doing nothing (literally, she just stood without moving), completely surrounded by security personnel. One of them got bored and shot her.
The article talks about “soul-searching”, but that’s a lie. Very few people are ashamed. Ministers from the coalitions and even the head of the opposition both called to kill anyone who looks like a threat. Calling to shoot first at anyone carrying a knife or a stone.
In the past week there were over 100 cases of settlers throwing stones at IDF soldiers. None of them was shot – that would be unthinkable. A few days ago a Jewish criminal in Bat Yam grabbed two knives and ran towards a policeman who was called to the location. The policeman shot him dead and is now being questioned on why he hadn’t used non-lethal means to stop the man.
Murder is explicitly reserved only for Palestinians (whether they’re Israeli citizens or not) and for Africans, who are now honorary Palestinians, I think.
No, folks.
tony cannot be a ceiling cat. He’s a ceiling shoop.
+++
Well, those quilts. If I really want to make each girl a full size quilt I need make 196 blocks*. I have 16…
*Half of them are just “quilted” blocks, not trapunto blocks at least…
I can’t be the ceiling cat 🙁
I suppose it would be hard for me to make the 5,000+ mile trek from Pensacola to Latvia anyways…
You’ll always be my ceiling cat, Tony.
If you’re Ceiling Cat, Tony, no distance is too small for you to travel instantly! After all, the rules of physics do not apply.
I almost didn’t drive down the mountain today for my doctor’s appt. because I’m too sick. And I learned something significant… Having a bad cold and an ear infection then reducing your elevation by 6000 feet is a recipe for painful disaster. Now I am home, I’m going to take a ton of meds and go to bed. Later.
Tired.
Still haven’t sat exams for a single certificate. No time to study.
Can’t even write any more.
But it’s nice to read you in greater numbers than lately, seeing names I haven’t seen in a while.
*hugs*
*higs* and *hugs*
Biped
I hope the meds work their wonders and get you back in functioning order really soon!
(As for the altitude, I once flew with a sinus infection… I may have felt a tiny piece of your pain. *sympathy*)
Urgh, I’m sorry, biped
+++
Ah yeah, the “refugee crisis”*
Slovenia blames Croatia and Austria, Croatia blames Serbia, Austria blames Germany, incidentially for having welcomed the refugees…
*Or as I like to call it, the “European governments not getting their ass off and doing shit crisis”
… And the Latvian government has (a) decided that refugee financial aid will be less than 200 euro per person per month and (b) supported notions that winter is a really bad time to try and settle refugees here.
LOGIC! I don’t know where it is, but they swear it’s there.
rq
No kidding, eh? I mean the people freezing in the rain at the Slovenian border probably didn’t think hard enough before walking across an entire continent. There was an interesting segment on one of yesterday’s news panels: The UNHCR begged member nations to fund its work in the refugee camps in Jordania and such. But hey, no money! You know, if we hadn’t decided collectively to let them starve there, maybe they wouldn’t try to reach countries where starving in the streets is such bad PR… Not that I blame anybody for trying to reach a country where you might have a chance at more than survival, but fact is that many people would not risk the way to central Europe if the conditions in the refugee camps and the countries housing them* had been bearable.
*Many of them don’T allow refugees to work. So how are you supposed to survive?
Crowdsourced advice time (content warning – suicide):
I have been assigned to reply to a Notice from the Superiors re: suicide in the police ranks, due to the high prevalence of such noted this year. The Superiors are asking for suggestions in creating a better support/networking/prevention system (for want of a better word – basically, ways to raise awareness and responsibility for co-workers, I suppose).
We had discussion in the unit about this, so I have an outline of points that we (specifically) want to make, as pertains to us.
However, the Notice also addresses the fact that persons in high-risk groups should be sent for psychological evaluation (note: not necessarily therapy), and that such persons in high-risk groups should not be kept employed (this is more implied than stated outright, but it’s there). I feel that threatening people already in high-risk groups with unemployment, however indirectly, will not create a supportive atmosphere. Rather, one should address ways of (possibly anonymously) having access to (outside?) psychological support by having visible (or easily accessible) information on such assistance and support (i.e. phone numbers, contact persons, etc.).
Because right now, the Potential Persons at Risk are discussed as sort of… manipulatable entities, where their co-workers should be aware of changes in behaviour and report them to the Superiors and then the Superiors take action. I feel that one should propose individually accessible support that does not necessarily involve all of one’s colleagues in the process.
I get a low-key sense of victim-blaming re: one’s psychological fortitude in a stressful job, and too much emphasis on intervention from other people rather than having resources available, guilt-free, to those who might not wish their state of mind to be particularly… public.
Anyway, the short of it is, should I also mention this in the reply (personal access vs. outside intervention)? Or would that be considered beyond my competence?
I can’t Internet much, because my work computer hates me, so I’d like to drop off a large shipment of *hugs*…and this, relating to racist Star Wars fanboi outrage.
*crossing fingers and hoping that Traitor Computer doesn’t spontaneously reboot (again) and lose my post (again)…*
–
rq
Sounds like a good idea. If I understand correctly, the current proposal doesn’t have any way to actually treat or help the personnel. Advertising hot-lines and external services that are theoretically already available can be presented as both more professional and more cost saving method.
Just make sure it won’t be span around into RQ’s Grand Proposal so that you would be blamed if anything goes wrong in the future.
Scratch that. Suicide is a problem that solves itself: either the proposed methods help, or the numbers will be too high for the ministry to ignore and a real, professional committee will be called in.
Besides, you’re not qualified for this and you have enough shit to deal with as is. Not to mention that the department’s mishandling of the subject will be relevant later.
I didn’t have time to check the news during the day, and I’m a bit tired now to look into things in more depth, but it looks like situation at the borders (various borders – Slovenia/Austria, Slovenia/Croatia, ..) is chaotic.
Austria police has (supposedly) put on barricades, there’s been a fire in a camp in Slovenia (still unclear whether it was deliberate as protest, or accidental )..
rq,
I like where you are going with your suggestions. Yes, if things became really bad, I would appreciate it more if there were resources at hand for seeking help rather than nosy colleagues snitching to the boss. I mean, it’s probable I wouldn’t actually seek help even if it was discretely just there, but I can’t imagine how colleagues being able to basically organize my dismissal would make anything better.
This just in: 4 people were finally arrested for their involvement in the lynching of the Eritrean man. Don’t get your hopes for any real justice, though.
Bibi keeps digging in. I’d say it’s a bit odd for a politician who has based his entire career on Holocaust fear mongering (and whose father is a historian) to be so ignorant of it or to be so easy on Hitler, but then I remember that his first campaign slogan, back in 1996, was “Bibi is good for Jews” and everything falls into place.
Let’s just say he’s much closer to Viktor Orban than to Angela Merkel.
Death toll keeps rising. Many Palestinians (both Israeli and Palestinian), particularly those who work in constructions, can’t find any work. Many Jews refuse to hire construction managers who work with Palestinians.
Surprising (or not so much for those of us who served decades earlier) development: surveillance camera footage shows IDF soldiers running in terror from terrorist or even assumed “terrorists” on many occasions. Apparently, they aren’t used to shooting Palestinians who are fighting back. The lynches were carried out only when the subject was of no danger.
One blogger saw a connection to witch hunts: the peasants of Europe faced a real problem when dealing with witches, how can you overpower someone who is goofing around with the Lord of Darkness himself? The answer, as presented in Malleus Maleficarum, was that the witch does have overwhelming power, but she loses it the second a goodly Christian lays his hand on her. Thus the “guilty” should only be murdered when they can’t possibly do any harm.
The Shoop Roost is being slow again.
—
Massive *hugs* to everyone I’ve been ignoring lately. I promise it’s not intentional. Special big doublegood*hugs* for Biped?!
—
Beatrice
It’ll be used against her. The moment the first policeman (since the new rules) commits suicide they’ll use it against her. It wouldn’t matter if her proposal is accepted or not, if her name is on the final document she’ll become a target for those in charge.
Not saying that she should never try to help other people, but there will be a price to pay.
AlexanderZ,
I understood “they” were just asking for suggestions from people, not planning to put their names on any documents. They obviously shouldn’t to that. Random employees are neither qualified nor should bear responsibility for important policies that are way out of their field.
very tired, need to go to work. *hugs* for all.
AlexanderZ
Beatrice has the right of it, it’s an informal contact-me-by-email suggestions type item, not an official document. Basically the human resources department is trolling everyone else for stuff they should already know, and they’ll be putting together a document (with no names) eventually.
I just wanted to point out that it’s better to have more preventive measures rather than trying to catch people right on the breaking point. But the psychological support system within the police is notoriously poor, so…
Thanks for worrying so much, though. 😀 I appreciate it.
Good morning
From today on, no person in this household is younger than 6. Andon e person in this household is overworked from making cake, especially since my Rüblitorte fell apart. Serves me right for “estimating” 200g of carrots and 30g of starch.
And I know, I know, beauty is a fucked up concept and all, but can I just say that the kid looked beautiful as fuck this morning? The black dress with the flowers, the new sparkling blue earrings matching the blue of her eyes, her blonde hair done up?
rq
It sounds to me like the powers that be don’t care so much about people killing themselves but more about people killing themselves while being police officers. I think there are actual studies that show that employment and such are stabilizing factors and that suicidal people are usually no risk to randomn strangers….
Also, re: refugees
I’m waiting for the first deaths to occur. From exhaustin, cold or plain violence. I think at this point it’s less an “if” but a “when”. One day our grandchildren will look at us with disgust an ask “how could you?”.
The bitter cynic in me also can’zt help to notice that for once in two centuries Germany didn’t react with bombs but something remotely resembling humanity and somehow we’re still the baddies who made all those people come to Europe. Because letting them suffer under Orban’s petty fascism would have been a sane and logical alternative…
Giliell
Congratulations on the aging children! 🙂 Just another few years and they’ll be moving out!
I think I’m just going to write the email with the phrasing that ‘preventive action is just as, if not more, important than reaction to crisis’ or some such, and list a bunch of things that they could do to prevent people from even resorting to more final solutions. And you’re right, Giliell, the Superiors don’t really care – but mostly out of ignorance, because psychological well-being is a concept that has only lately become accepted as something that should be paid attention to (never mind specific things like PTSD, for which many officers sought help after that grocery store collapse two years ago, and never received it adequately). This is no excuse, of course, considering we’re in the EU and supposedly a developed country, but there’s currently no training or education about this. Just the general information that there are two (for the entire force) psychologicsts available for consultation. Phone numbers available upon request. :/
rq
That sounds like a wonderful plan.
“Boss, I’d like the number of the psychologist”
“Sure, here you go. BTW, we don’t employ people with mental health problems…”
+++
OK, I’m almost ready for the party. Cake is ready, cupcakes are ready.
Here’s the cake she took to daycare. And the kid…
Dalillama, [hugs]
Giliell, Happy Birthday Little One! She is beautiful, and I love her dress.
Giliell
Your daughter looks fantastic in that dress.
And the rest of the cakes
Giliell,
Merry happy birthday to the littlest one (who’s not so little any more)!
You are an awesome seamstress, I’d twirl and twirl in that dress. And the cakes, cakes are soooo pretty.
—
I’m in an incredibly good mood. All because of the dance class this evening. I need to keep taking that class, definitely. I was corps-like this afternoon and now I could climb a mountain! Wheeeeeee….
So. There’s a Pro Woman Conference being held in Zagreb. On a Wednesday. From 9 ’til 16. It costs 50 Euros.
.. .yeah, that’s going to be well attended.
/sarcasm
I went from Yay I’m calling my friend so we can go together!!! to Oh, 50 euros all they way to Wednesday? What the hell were they thinking?! in a span of about 2 minutes.
Too bad I don’t have a Facebook account or I’d note on their page that they are incredibly working woman friendly. Not to mention poor woman friendly.
Giliell
I. Love. That. Dress. Your daughter looks amazing in it.
I want one just like it now. (I really do. Same colours, too. But your daughter would probably still look better. 🙂 )
And the cake is so much fun! I love the octopus.
(Pretty cupcakes, too!)
Happy birthday to the new half-dozen-year-old!!
Beatrice
If you ask me, a little bit of dance heals all things. 🙂 Yay!
Giliell
Happy birthday to your daughter. And echoing barkeeperin, she looks fantastic in that dress.
Any USB-versions of those cakes? 🙂 They look delicious.
Giliell, all your creations look wonderful. Really wonderful.
Giliell:
I agree with others-your daughters’ dress is beautiful and she looks so adorable.
Y’all remember the camerawoman that tripped a refugee carrying his child? She says she’s going to sue him *and* Facebook.
FSM forbid she actually take some responsibility for her own actions. Argh!
Tony!
I wonder if there is a Guinness record for assholery. Note that she’s thinking of moving to Russia. It seems that even Hungary isn’t fascist and xenophobic enough for her.
—
Beatrice
Yay for dance lesson! My cousin used to go to dance lessons every week. Said it did wonders to her self-confidence.
—
Giliell
That’s one pretty dress, one pretty girl and one spooooky cakes (and a bunch of cute cupcakes). Very well done! Happy birthday to your little one!
—
Dalillama
Reciprocal *hugs*.
—
cicely
I liked how the article weaved all the recent instances of “white male victimology” from SW to Gamergate to Sad Rabid Puppies to the Tea Party to Trump. One thing to note is that this very real privileged bigotry is paired seamlessly with fraud and mercenary profiteering. The TP has been caught in quite money scandals, which unlike ACORN and Planed Parenthood, were and still are real. The Puppies turned out to be a promotional tool for VD, and Gamergate is always happy to accept not only people who have no interest in gaming, but people who actively campaigned to ban VG.
This SW “outrage” is no different. They were fan of the series that had Lando and Mace Windu in very significant roles, but are going to boycott a movie because there was a black guy for a couple of seconds in the trailer? Riiiight
They should be more honest – they’re racists who feel the time is ripe for them to crawl out from under their rocks.
Also *hugs* to you and all!
Yesterday I played with beads and elastic cord.
Beady braceletry
[crossed tentacles and hopes I got the code right]
Morning
Urgh. I feel like mashed potatoes. My bodyis telling me in no uncertain terms that it would have liked some rest duringt he last days, which it didn’t get. Thanks for all the nice words about kid, cakes and clothing.
Anne
Those bracelets are pretty! I like the donut beads a lot.
beatrice
Yay for dancing. Something i want to learn at some time over the course of my life. It probably says a lot about me that my dreams for “winning the lottery and no longer having to work” include a lot of “I want to learn this, I want to learn that, and this, and that as well”.
+++
And I thought the people who crashed backwards into our baby stroller and then sued us for the damage to the car were assholes lacking self-awareness….
I’m about to head to sleep, but wanted to leave this-
Commission decides selective tax advantages for Fiat in Luxembourg and Starbucks in the Netherlands are illegal under EU state aid rules.
Quiet in here today 🙂
I forgot to mention that I second Jim B’s request for some USB cupcakes Giliell! They looked quite tasty.
When somebody calls me a jackass, do they mean that I’m acting like an asshole or like a moron?
AlexanderZ:
I would use the insult to mean someone is acting like an asshole.
Afternoon everybody.
Crip Dyke!
So lovely to see you!
And here I was expecting a cry of
What kind of bartender are you?
========================
I assume that once I make a certain number of non-asinine comments the moderation goes away?
If not, Tony!, you’ve really put a lot of work on your plate authorizing every comment.
Speaking of work, how goes the money making in Florida?
AlexanderZ
More towards asshole, but not quite at the same level. A mild form of assholery, with a bit of random stupidity mixed in. Is how I use that term.
Why, what happened?
Crip Dyyyyyyke!!!
*free hugs* for everyone.
One more week until submission and my nerves are already wracking. But hey, what could possibly go wrong, right?
@rq:
As it turns out, I’m mildly threadrupt. Your mentions of submission upthread in Speakeasy #5 don’t tell me what “submission” is. I’m sure there’s a place elsewhere you’ve discussed it, but I wouldn’t know where to look. Mind repeating yourself?
CD:
Money-making is virtually non-existent.I’m still unemployed, though I’ve been making ends meet by selling my comics off. I sold the bulk of my collection last a month ago or so (though I *still* have those books you wanted set off to the side for shipping; I haven’t forgotten).
Speaking of authorization, I don’t know if WordPress is wonky or not, but I’ve had to authorize each of your comments, which is strange bc usually I only need to authorize one, and people are free to continue commenting whenever they want. Strange. Well it’s not like I’m doing anything else.
Crip Dyke
I’m so happy to see you here! I was wondering when you’d show up.
—
Tony! and rq]
Thanks for the explanation. I was arguing with someone about regarding how much care corporation give to their workers’ safety (it was about the 1st Robocop). My point was, among other things, that even when it’s perfectly rational for a company to make sure its workers don’t drop dead, the company won’t necessary take that position because greed, shortsightedness and simple incompetence are all human constants and CEOs aren’t immune from them.
Eventually the person said that they “agree to disagree, jackass”.
I was confused whether the person thought I was viewing humanity in an assholishly negative light or that I was making a stupid argument.
Almost forgot:
Stay strong, rq. I believe in you!
Ok, WordPress is on my nerves now. I had to approve AlexanderZ’s last comment, which is just bizarre. I only have a small number of words that trip the moderation trap and none of them appeared in his comment.
(Ok, that comment needed no approval; I give up trying to understand this)
****
AlexanderZ:
regarding that conversation, it sounds like the person disagreed with your assessment about corporations. I mean it’s not like we don’t have evidence of corporations valuing work over the health of their employees. I don’t know how different it is in countries across the pond (though I imagine it isn’t *that* different than in the US), but companies had to be forced to provide things like minimum wages, 5-day work weeks, no child labor, and more. They don’t operate out of the kindness of their hearts and if it were up to them, they’d milk us dry. The person you were talking doesn’t seem to acknowledge the human toll taken on workers by corporations and how badly workers have been treated by so very many companies.
I finally have a bit of money for those books as well.
I don’t have a paypal acct, but I could get one, I suppose.
CD:
I’ve found PayPal to be very convenient (especially since I began selling stuff on ebay) and easy to use. If you choose to set up an account, it’s pretty painless.
Tony!
Have you tried going to Discussions -> Settings and unchecking the various moderation options? It may be that things were reset in a recent update.
—
I completely agree with you about corporations. It’s impossible to read the history of workplace conditions, particularly during the industrial revolution, and not see how much force was needed to make companies provide even the most basic services.
I was just taken aback by that person’s comment. I’m not used to talking to libertarians and that person seemed so reasonable at first.
AlexanderZ:
From what you’d said, I got a libertarian vibe too. And I wasn’t there!
Oh, and I just checked the moderation options. The only thing I have checked is before a comment appears, a comment must have already been approved. Maybe the system is slow or something.
D’oh. I just realized why CD’s comments are needing approval!
*And* I know why your comment-AlexanderZ-needing approving. I had the word ‘dyke’ on the list of terms that sends a comment into moderation. Things should be fixed now.
WordPress was worried about too huge a quantity of sexual charisma all in one place, wasn’t it? A sexual magnetism so great not even an asexual person could escape? That’s it, right? How terribly, terribly attractive I am? Tell me that was it.*
——————————
*In other news, Crip Dyke is neither a narcissist nor insecure, because reasons.
Yup.
A veritable black hole of sexual charisma. But such charisma cannot be contained forever. It must be released. So where is the white hole?
Husband’s been laid off. He was going to retire at 65, almost exactly a year from now, so this is even more shitty. At least, if what they told him was correct, we’re going to be covered by health insurance long enough for my surgery, assuming it ever gets scheduled. And I thought I was stressed before…
I’ll be over in the pillow fort trying not to either swear and break things or cry, because neither will help anybody.
Anne:
Oh, shit! That’s awful.
I’m so sorry to hear that.
A week ago I had a riddle for you, and since I know you all are doing to know the answers here they are:
1. To stop train robberies. These robbers would pour salt on the tracks, which attracted local cattle. The train would have to stop to avoid hitting the cows, at which point the robbers would climb aboard.
2. It’s these goggles. They provide a good way to train basketball player in dribbling without looking at the ball.
Anne
That’s despicable behavior from your husband’s employers. I hope that at least they didn’t lie about the health insurance.
Texas woman with a concealed gun accidentally shoots a patient in her doctor’s office.
****
This 23-year-old Google employee lives in a truck in the company’s parking lot and the writer of this article seems to treat this like it’s a good thing, rather than shitty conditions for someone to be forced into bc they couldn’t afford they couldn’t afford to live in an overpriced San Francisco apartment.
Anne, that is so shitty. And it has very serious long term consequences. It is one of the things that should be illegal here in the fucking USofA.
I am still down for the count. I’ve developed an ear infection and the cold has settled down into my weakened lungs. Methinks this is going to be a long haul. And I can’t get a flu shot until I am well. Shit
Anne, I’d join you in the pillow fort but I’m still contagious and you sure as hell do not need my cold.
Bikped!?
Sorry for the typo Tony. Ah’ve been sick, yaknow.
No worries. I hope you get better soon. ::hugs::
Biped, there are no diseases in the Speakeasy. The alcohol scares them away. Come on over, I could use a hug.
Thanks everybody. We’ll manage somehow, but the timing is pretty crappy – he’s going to get screwed out of the annual bonus as well, and he’s a year short of Medicare and Social Security. Bastards.
I expect people will be calling him for help next week; he was supposed to meet with some important person from back East to watch a batch being made, and nobody else wants to do it.
Anne *HUGS*
Biped (or should I stick with Bikped for now?)
I hope the drugs do their thing – swift recovery to you! May I present this uber-comfortable sterile bubble for all your comfort needs?
Crip Dyke
Because it’s late, in short – causing a ruckus for a cause at work. We have shitty conditions and since we’ve developed by now three holes in our floor, we finally have a very steady legal-type foot to stand on (sad it takes actual holes in the floor for us to feel that way, but that might tell you a thing or two about our management and risk prevention etc.). The ‘submission’ is a documentation of our most specific and material complaints. I think upthread has some more explanations, some of which might also be rather vague, but the threat we’re holding over the Employers’ heads is basically a shut down of all criminal DNA analysis in the country. Because we’re the only ones doing it and last-ditch is us walking off the job en masse.
Also, is the term ‘yaknow’ anyway related to ‘cow orkers’?
Anne, big hugs for you. I had forgotten that the Speakeasy is germ proof.
Might I suggest that you consult an attorney re age discrimination. Especially if they might be “calling him back” for short tasks. You don’t need to sue, you might just need to threaten. Please do not be afraid to pull out the big guns. What have you got to lose that you haven’t already lost?
rq, so grateful for the uber-comfortable sterile bubble. Much needed and appreciated.
On a happier note, my new puppy Pippi (aka Pipsqueak) is now five weeks old and is thriving. She is the runt of the litter, is half the size of her siblings, and we weren’t sure she would make it. Tony, can I post some pics here? I think you might have already seen them on FB.
Biped (and anyone):
Feel free to post any pics you want 🙂
Biped, it’s up to him. He’s going to make some calls on Monday. Management won’t call him, but the people he was working with may if the can’t figure something out. I suggested he tell them he’s now a consultant and charges a fee. Talking to my mother this afternoon is going to be interesting – we’re not telling her yet, and I’ll have to try to sound CHEERFUL and HAPPY because she haz a sad. Blah and pfui. I am so tired of being everybody else’s support person.
I’m looking forward to Pipsqueak pics promptly (or, you know, whenever convenient).
@rq:
This is a truly delicious description of the flakiness of your employer and of the process as a whole.
Still in moderation?
Weird.
Boy, Tony!, you’ve got your work cut out for yourself. Sorry I’m adding to the load. Still, so long as it’s not too large an imposition, it is good to chat with you and the Horde again.
grrrrr….
How did one comment make it through but not another???!!!
Oh, it’s no imposition at all. I’m just sitting on the bed alternating between between being distracted on Facebook and writing a new blog post.
I have hugs but no real content.
I left out the astericks on hugs because those be wild cards on some systems.
Crip Dyke
It’s rather sad, really. Because if there’s one thing they can’t ignore, it’s the fact that we have three holes in our floor. And they’ve been ignoring us for years. ENFSI probably has a secret Worst Labs wall somewhere, and I bet we’ve been right smack at the top for at least five years running, as everyone else laughs at us in sympathetic horror.
It may be a short and disappointing fight, but we’re putting it up.
+++
It’s a sunny, low-wind morning. Probably the last good weather with brilliant fall colour. I think we might go here, in lieu of all the emergency pre-winter gardening that needs to be done. After all, why not??
*freeee hugs*
Enya is making a comeback.
Hi folks
I’m joining y’all in the pillow fort. After almost 4 months on dry land, my mother is back in bed with her BFF alcohol again. She couldn’t even get her ass downstairs to gratulate the little one for her birthday yesterday.
Sorry, no cupcakes left. They were a bit dry anyway, baked them for too long.
Anne
Fuck. What utter assholes. And yes, your husband should refuse any work that isn’t paid. I know it’s hard when you think “but it isn’t my colleagues fault”, but fuck that shit, that’S how they make profit: unlike them, their employees are decent people.
Good morning, everyone! It’s a beautiful fall weather over here. I have stuff to do, but maybe I’ll go for a nice walk. There was a time when I tried to teach my cat to walk on a leash. He was already too old for that even then (he was 12, I think) and the experiment didn’t go well: A police car startled him with its siren, so he ran forward (stretching the leash to the max) and immediately jumped back, throwing the collar off his neck and over his head.
—
chigau
Every time you disappear I wonder whether it’s because you unearthed a precursor artifact and must keep low to avoid the Illuminati.
AlexanderZ
SHHHHHHH. Just typing that name is like sending out a psychic signal, you’ll put them on chigau’s trail!!!
Hello.
*waves* at Crip Dyke.
Everyday sexism:
At a bi-annual meeting at the company a friend of mine works for, sector directors give short summaries of what each worker has done the past 6 months.
He listed some accomplishments of her male colleagues and for her just said: “And ______ has been planning her wedding.”
She was rightfully furious.
Cool stuff:
Taste of Home: A Kitchen Run by Refugees
(the kind of cool stuff you can donate for)
So…
Does anyone know any reason I shouldn’t take 10 or 20 mg of lorazepam to sleep tonight?
It’s decidedly over the dose I’ve actually been recommended to take, but nothing like the 3000mg you would need to take to even seriously approach a life-threatening dose.
I’ve had no alcohol in many weeks (that’s typical for me, anywhere from 4-40 weeks between days on which I drink is pretty normal). I’m not currently taking any other meds that are listed as potentially dangerous combos with lorazepam. Doses far in excess of 20mg are used in hospital settings in certain circumstances where docs believe it is appropriate, though admittedly I’m not going to be medically supervised the way I would be in a hospital setting.
Finally, I’ve used the drug safely for years, occasionally exceeding the recommended dose, but not by this much.
beatrice
The guys probably thought that funny. Hahah, we all know what you did, can’T you take a joke?
CD
I am not a doctor. Can you try and get hold of Dianne? She might have some good advice for you.
CD:
*pouncehugs*. Probably a bit late now, but I expect that you’re fine for the pill(s) you’re planning on. It sounds like you’ve plenty of experience with it, and probably have a better idea than the doctor of what’s needed at any given time.
Stupid grumblegrumble cats growlsnarlgrrr. Patches’ tummy clock went off around 4:30. Then the Gallbother started in. So I’m up way too early. Just wait until the alarm doesn’t go off Monday morning. The Great White Whalecat is not going to be pleased with the new order of things.
Seen on Facebook:
DON’T!!!! dress up as a serial killer this halloween!!!! it is appropriating white culture.
**
Sent me into a fit of uncontrollable giggling for a minute.
Tony
😀 Unless I do it correctly as a white person – after all, it’s a part of my culture, right?
+++
There is a Star Wars re-enactment going on upstairs in rather broken English. It is hilarious but unfortunately untranscribable. (End of Empire Strikes Back, if you must know… a lot of ebil laughter from Vader.)
Also it turns out on Friday some girls in Eldest’s class laughed at him because he apparently doesn’t believe in god because he believes in evolution (short version). He was quite frustrated, because, as he says, he does believe in god, he just happens to believe that evolution is true, and the big bang theory, too, and it’s not like god made the stars, they’re an accumulation of dust, so how can they know whether he believes in god if they (the girls) don’t even the science behind evolution and cosmology? This turned into a conversation about separating faith from science and holding personal beliefs and being closed-minded, and that all he can do is try and educate those girls and learn more himself (he waffles between belief and non-belief all the time).
Anyway, he seems to have a pretty decent attitude towards knowing things and believing in things. After all, he does still believe in Santa Claus, and he’s only 8, so I think he’ll be fine.
Crip Dyke
CD, I’m not a doctor but I’ve been on GABA enhancers and their “overdose” requirements are very misleading. Even a small dose of them can lead to suicidal thoughts and suddenly decreasing the dosage (such as the night after taking a huge dose like the one you’re talking about) WILL lead to severe insomnia (leading to many lethal scenarios in everyday life). It’s very dangerous, and that’s without talking about the possibility of developing tolerance, addiction and the drug’s hallucinogenic effects.
The reason that this type of drug are regulated is because those other side effects will kill you long before you can overdose on the drug itself!
Please meet a doctor face to face to discuss why are you thinking of taking this much pills in the first place. There may be a much better solution!
P.S. If you’re curious, I take my current GABA agonist (Clonazepam, 0.5 mg) with my paint killers (Tramadol, Rokacet – it’s the standard mix of Paracetamol, Caffeine and Codeine and sometimes Percocet) which helps me with anxiety and insomnia as well as with my chronic spinal pains.
CD, I forgot to mention that because of how I take my drugs, my daily intake is at minimal or near minimal dosages.
—
Tony!
Right.
*rq not Tony. Or both. Whatever.
Aged Mum’s and our shopping accomplished, everything sorted into the proper household and packed into Husband’s car as appropriate. The girls came with me, we had a nice wander around Cost Plus and got drinks at Starbucks. I still need to go over the receipt, figure out what my mother owes, and transfer the funds, but the heaviest part of the job is over.
Maybe after my nap, I’ll start playing with the supplies for my Japanese journals. I need to decide how many I’m making (at least three as gifts and a couple for me), and choose the cover and page stock and the colors of perle cotton to bind them. That’ll be fun, and fun is something we can all use.
Hugs available, get yours now.
My mother lost her credit cards. All of them. And she needs to pay her bills tomorrow.
*sigh*
AlexanderZ:
That’s awful.
Is there any way she can contact the company and get the needed information (such as numbers and expiration dates) so she can pay bills with them?
Tony!
No, that violates security measures. She did ask for the new cards to be delivered as soon as possible and they’ve promised to deliver them by the end of the week. Hopefully that will be enough (bill collection can sometimes be reasonable here). If not I’ll see what I can do.
The only good news is that nobody has used them thus far, which is very encouraging. What’s not so encouraging is that she was keeping ALL OTHER CARDS in that wallet, including her Health Insurance Organization card. That one will take several weeks. At least her driver’s license is safe (and that’s only because she preemptively forgot it in her car).
It’s so annoying because it’s one of those micro-crisis that could be entirely avoided.
Tony
She has a great voice, but things I’ve read about her make her sound a bit pretentious or full of herself. I still have a lot of her stuff on my iPod.
Anne
It really does sound like a crappy time to lay someone off. It’s like a supervillain, or a CFO, said what’s the best way to screw workers over and save some money? I know — on year before retirement!
***
Next weekend is the last official weekend for camping. They turn the water off, so the water lines don’t break when the temperature goes below freezing. The store has vastly reduced hours. When I was younger and my mom was the manager at the campground, I would go up year ’round. It’s like a whole different realm when there are only 6 or 8 families there instead of a couple hundred.
The other “benefit” is that when we bring all our food home, it forces us to clean out our refrigerator, and now it looks like we have a brand new one — clean, and mostly empty. It always surprises me how much crap we buy and use once for a recipe and never find another use for.
Catching up on Pharyngula, and holy crap is this comment from Tom Foss on “But of Course He Is”, spot on as a response to dictionary atheists. (Keeping my fingers crossed that I did the link correctly.) I know, most if not all of you have probably read it, but I’m a day and a half behind — downside of camping on the weekends.
I actually haven’t read it. My reading of Pharyngula has tapered off from what it once was.
Ye gads, this was unironically published in the Globe and Mail. o.O
Justin Trudeau files 35 million workplace harassment complaints against Canada, from the Beaverton. Grain of salt.
Don’t worry, Justin Trudeau will never be hurt by sexist objectification. Though ‘never’ seems a bit extreme (didn’t the Conservatives try to use his pretty looks against him?), I think it’s safe to say that he won’t be politically devastated by millions of fans around the world finding him attractive.
Y’know, I’d forgotten how much “fun” it was listening to dictionary atheists argue about how you can’t add anything on to atheism. And by fun, I’m talking root-canal-without-anesthetic-fun.
barkeeperin:
Thanks for linking to Tom Foss’ comment. That was indeed a thing of beauty!
Stupid truck ran over 12 kids from the cycling school slightly to the north of the capital. Okay, the truck collided with an Opel which was pushed into the crowd of kids, just out for a training ride (it was the accompanying vehicle).
Reports so far say they’re all alive though about half have been taken to hospital with rather serious injuries.
I dunno, I needed to share that particular piece of bad news today.
One building, ten floors – ten identical one-room apartments (one per floor). Individualizing the spaces. It’s neat to see how different people use the same space, the things that are similar and the things that are different.
Egads! Threadrupt in The Speakeasy ?!….
Later: Okay, I scanned, hopefully DID NOT
Echo of Tony’s thanks:
>barkeeperin:
Thanks for linking to Tom Foss’ comment. That was indeed a thing of beauty!<
—
Man, did that comment come out as weird as I think it did ?
Edit function is messing with my head, man !!!!…. : )
Most important part that should have gotten through:
*hugs*….
Tony,
re: your FB post regarding the phrase ” everything happens for a reason”.
Yeah, platitudes like that drive me around the bend, too !
Another that sets my teeth on edge:
“Anything that doesn’t kill you makes you stronger ! ”
I have often wondered if others are bothered by that bit of sadomasochistic pretzel logic ?
[Discuss and get back to me, won’t you ?] 🙂
Giliell, Dalillama, & AlexanderZ:
Thanks, all.
Got to sleep. Got to functional the next day, albeit it a bit late. Yes, insomnia Sun night after hard sleep Sat night, but that wasn’t hard to predict and didn’t have any bad consequences. Mostly it’s been a very productive night, actually.
*free hugs*
That is all.
*Free* hugs? Just think of the money you could make if you charged $950 dollars per hug! You’re missing out on so much money rq.
Tony
I like to stay affordable. 😉
Being very sick can have its advantages. Dreams….. I always have them, and they are usually unpleasant. But the last few nights they have been ridiculous. In my drugged state I don’t recall too much, but last night’s took the cake. Imagine…
I am cavorting up on a cloud doing not much of anything except cavort when I stumble across god slumbering away. My stumble woke him, and he seemed bemused for some reason.
“Ah, it’s you” says he.
I giggle and say “What in hell are you doing up here?”
“Catching a much needed nap” says he.
With all due snark, I reply, “Yeah, from the look of things down on the ground you’ve been asleep at the wheel for a while, so-ta-speak.”
“Harumph” snorts he. “You’ll pay for that comment.”
Again I giggle and ask, in my best Brooklyn accent, “Will you take that payment in trade, honey?”
He roars, “I will!”
I fall over laughing and counter,”I thought you only did that when necessary and only then with ghostly intermediaries.”
“Don’t believe everything you read,” laughs he.
We lunge at each other and roll off the cloud in peals of laughter.
“This is going to be fun,” thinks I.
Biped:
That story made me bust a gut. Thanks for sharing!
barkeeperin
I’ve bookmarked it. It’s pure awesome.
—
bluentx
In the army we had the modified version: “Anything that doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Anything that does kill you makes your mother stronger.”
As stupid as that is, I never cared enough to even bother being offended. If anything it makes me laugh because “anything that doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” is just a macho spin on “it’s all for the best”. It’s pathetic and cowardly and sad.
—
Crip Dyke
I’m glad it worked out well for, just be careful.
—
Biped!?
Now THAT’S a nice dream. So… how did he look?
I’ve been listening to some filk music recently (which I didn’t even knew was a thing until some time ago) and I’d like to share:
Elf Glade – Meg Davis
The Moon Miners – Diana Gallagher Wu
The Gods Are Not Crazy – Leslie Fish
For Trekkies: Julia Ecklar – Vow of Vengeance
…
Not filk, but still very nice:
The Voice by Celtic Women
—
Goodnight all. Sweet dreams 🙂
AlexanderZ
Look here.
AlexanderZ
Sadly, I have no specific idea how he looked, just sort of generic diety-like, yaknow, beard, white robe, that’s about it.
Uh-oh.
Also, appropriation.
And I just saw this. I love how the Captain has only the one line, and he looks both slightly guilty and indignant.
Heya
I’m not much fun right now, so beware of lots of bad things I’m rambling about…
First of all, my aunt seems to have decided that enough is enough and she won’t put up a fight against her cancer anymore. Which is her decision, which I support, because it’s hers. But it also means my sister is in the thick of things again because the rest of my family is good for nothing. While I’m sad about my aunt, I’m worried about my sister.
And then you get some smug vegetarians/vegans who will gleefully push that “meat causes cancer, just like smoking*” article/infografic (which is actually quite good to give an overview) in your face with an air of “just deserts” as if anybody deserved cancer. Yeah, I unfollowed a bunch of people. “Ethical vegetarian/vegan” is something different.
*Yes, it does. Only of course the risk is much, much lower. Also, so do fries which are totally vegan.
bluentx
I hate that shit. It’s not even “logical” because what doesn’t kill you can leave you broken, maimed, and seriously fucked up. You know, there’s a reason why intentionally breaking the bones in their feet is NOT a standard training procedure for world class runners, right?
biped
Thanks, that dream made me chuckle.
She’s dead. No long battle, no long suffering. Fuck cancer.
Giliell, all my thoughts to you and your sister. I’m very sorry for your loss. And I’m glad, in that backwards-way-round sort of way, that there was no long suffering.
I’m expecting similar news some time in the next few weeks … yeah, cancer is really fucking shit. :-(((((((
Fuck cancer, indeed. *hugs* Giliell
Giliell, [hugs]
hugs
Giliell, I’m so sorry.
Hugs for Giliell.
Giliell:
I am so sorry. My condolences to you and your family.
Condolences to you and your family, Giliell
And also to opposablethumbs.
I fucking hate cancer. And I was fortunate that mine was essentially curable – thyroid removal 20 years ago.
General condolences and gestures of support to anyone who might be dealing with cancer, either directly or indirectly.
On another note, I’d almost forgotten how much I despise Thunderf00t’s supporters.
Giliell,
My condolences.
*hugs*
Giliell
Please accept my condolences. And hugs.
Giliell
*hugs* and sympathies.
I didn’t know it was his wedding. Perhaps more conversation and more communication would have helped things.
rq,
Daughter sounds a bit assholish, but considering the delivery I’m not even sure how much step dad is to be believed. He is most certainly a giant ass.
In I’m through with Tuesday bc the racist bullshit is through the roof–
http://www.rawstory.com/2015/10/georgia-confederate-themed-bar-serves-nierita-shot-with-tequila-and-watermelon-liqueur/
Tony!:
The link is broken
Here’s a new version, which hopefully works.
Thank you all for your sympathy. What a year and it’s not over yet. On the one hand I will finally finish college, something I didn’t possible 5 years ago. On the other I’m burrying the third member of my family…
++++
You know, I can’t find much sympathy for people who think that 250 guests are a small number or that 40-50k are a reasonable sum to spend on a wedding.
Dalillama:
Your’s is borked too 🙂
I think mine is fixed now though.
Tony!
It’s a ‘Confederate themed’ bar. They need to keep it authentic, don’t you know.
Seriously, I don’t expect anything more from the racist that run the bar. They advertise their racism, they cater to racists and they wallow in their racist shit. No surprises there.
What really pisses down my windpipe though, is the South Park reference which reminds me that the mainstream is only “a joke” away from the most racist fringe. Fuck society.
—
rq
I’m with Beatrice – we can’t believe anything that guy says since he effectively admits to being an asshole. However, if what he says is true, the bride is also assholish. As is her biological dad. And probably many of the others involved. Come to think of it, maybe they needed fifty grand for a wedding because they had to hold it in a giant chocolate starfish. With caviar hors-d’oeuvre for the guests.
—
Dalillama
Thanks, but that’s how I got to those videos in the first place. I can’t say that I like all filk. Some of it can get a bit boring and too folksy. But when it’s good it’s really good.
—
In other news:
Poland is now ruled by a single right wing party that wants to ban abortions and deport immigrants. One wonders how would they feel if UK were to deport all of their Polish immigrants.
Bibi envisions Israel’s future as that of an eternal war and wants to revoke the residency of Palestinians who live in certain east-Jerusalem neighborhoods.
Furthermore, the government is currently taking funds away from struggling Israeli towns in Galilee, in order to transfer those funds to yet more settlements.
A 17y.o. in Dimona stabbed four Israeli Palestinian workers. They’re likely to survive. The boy is charged with attempted murder, probably because he’s from a lower class family.
Apparently in a fit of anger when he was younger, Ben Carson almost stabbed his friend Bob, ran home, locked himself in the bathroom, and found god.
No. Sorry. That’s not right. His friend Bob is the one who ran away.
Hold on, that’s not quite right either. It wasn’t his friend Bob. It was a boy who pushed him too far.
Sometimes this happened at his friend Bob’s house. Other times, it is uncertain where it occurred.
And the knife is sometimes a pocket knife and other times it’s a large camping knife.
Man, the Carson stabbing story is full of holes.
Yes, I’m aware he did this when he was a teen. I’m not holding that over his head. I just find it strange that the story-which he claims is such an important one (it led him to god) and one that he has shared multiple times since he first talked about it in 1996-has changed so much.
Beatrice, Giliell, AlexanderZ
Oh, I’m not saying the bride’s a stellar example of humanity. I think they’re all assholes there, esp. as Giliell said – 250 guests, “small”? (My wedding was huge by local standards – and we had less than 100 guests; but then, I did go to a “small” wedding of some friends of Pakistani origin in Canada, 500 guests…)
I think I was particularly struck, though, by the stepdad’s sense of entitlement – I’m paying, so my guests are coming, too! I wonder if the bride even knows these people, if he needed to make a special list.
That makes a very very interesting picture. I picture half of them with fishtails.
Good morning
WEll, at least the kids took the news kind of well. They knew she was very sick and not getting healthy again. Still I expect some aftermath…
+++
I thought abortion was already pretty illegal in Poland? The hypocrisy of people who are “anti immigration” in countries which have a huge amount of emigrants who are often discriminated against is astounding. But to be honest, he right shifts all over Europe have me pretty scared….
+++
rq
I’m more struck by the entitlement of expecting somebody else to pay what is essentially a nice downpayment for a house for your own wedding. But seriously, in the end I couldn’T care less about about a bunch of entitled assholes being entitled assholes to each other.
Giliell
I suppose I’m somewhat biased by growing up in Canada where super-expensive weddings were… kind of the rule. Ha. Wow. That kind of shows the kind of crowd I had around me, right up to university.
As for the down payment bit, well, the stepdad never actually mentions whether his stepdaughter demanded that kind of a wedding, or whether he volunteered for that kind of a wedding. Anyway. There’s a lot of missing information in the post itself, the more I think about it. I didn’t mean to start such a huge discussion about it, it was just something that triggered my outrage and that I felt like sharing late last night. 🙂
Also, kids are surprisingly accepting of the realities of life… similar reaction last year, when my dad died. The kids had a bit of an emotional reaction, but overall, they were very accepting of the fact that, yes, he was sick and yes, he didn’t get well and yes, he died. (It helped that we’d seen him recently in hospital, I suppose.)
I have:
-banana bread with choholate chunks and cinnamon ginger glazing
– a new post up on School of Doubt
I have cut out covers for ten Japanese stab-bound journals, six in assorted yuzen prints, one in shades of purple and blue metallic, and three experimental ones from teaboxes. Yes, I got carried away with the project.
I’m taking a break for a cuppa and to rest because I stood up for too long and I’m achy. Next, bookcloth for the corners, I think. Then I can put away all those supplies before I tackle endpapers and page stock. I love doing these, especially the stitching, but there is a lot of prep.
Giliell
Please explain this ‘cinnamon ginger glazing’ concept. I am le fascinate.
SO, SO, SO sick and fucking tired of people who dismiss the outrage and anger of marginalized people who are tired of being treated like shit by society. Where the hell would we be if people didn’t get angry that women were denied the right to vote or have control of their reproductive anatomy? Where the fuck would we be if LGBT people didn’t get fed up and Riot at Stonewally in 1968?
Outrage serves a very good goddamn purpose and I’m sick of it being diminished by assclowns with privilege bursting at the seams.
rq
about 2 tbsp of powdered sugar, a teaspoon of ground ginger, a teaspoon of cinnamon, a bit of lime juice and a bit of milk, applied on the warm cake.
I also tried the Santa Fé chicken Tony presented. It turned out really nice, but if you’re going to make it beware that after the shredded chicken has been reintroduced it soaks up a lot of salt and flavour. I’d been afraid that I’d used a bit too much Cajun spice for the kids but I ended up applying Sriracha and Harissa to my serving.
Anne
I know that feeling. It reminds me of the year I got carried away making Halloween lights
Giliell, good essay.
Giliell:
I’m glad the recipe worked for you!
I love your Halloween lights!
Random thought that I would love to expand into a long rant:
One of the tracks people take in defending Germaine Greer is that criticism of her is often based in scorn or even hate for older generations of feminists. While generations warring against each other is nothing new, age being just one of many many things people are willing to base their bigotry on, I think the older folks have a couple of advantages here.
We should respect our elders for their wisdom. They have been through a lot, they have better understanding of life than us whippersnappers.
On the other hand, how often do you hear that someone’s bigotry should be excused because of their advanced age? They are just “a product of their time”. Or they might be a bit forgetful or sick, or old enough to be able to afford crossing boundaries and occasionally just going a bit too far, or they are weary of life and all the associated bullshit and should be excused for just being sick of everything and taking that out on others…. I’m sure you could think of more.
See, these two just don’t go together all that well, unless you want a convenient cop-out for unacceptable behaviour. You can’t be excused as a “product of your [their] time” and respected for wisdom of old age at the same time.
Giliell
*belated hugs*
Paul just went looking for political news on TV, but it’s been preempted by more important breaking news – a href=”http://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/fighter-jets-track-military-blimp-drifting-over-pennsylvania-n453106″>
there’s a military blimp drifting over Pennsylvania.
Yes, it’s a hazard, especially as it’s sinking and dragging a cable that’s hitting power lines. I hope no one gets hurt, and that property damage is minimal. But still, a rogue blimp loose in our skies. I may hurt myself laughing at poor Brian Williams, who is trying to fill time while they wait for developments.
Rats, blew the link. Let’s try that again.
there’s a military blimp drifting over Pennsylvania.
Tony
I love recipes where you just throw everyting together. I don’t have a crockpot, though, but it still worked well on the normal stove.
Anne
Thanks in both accounts
beatrice
1. There are plenty of people Greer’s age who are not horrible TERFs
2. She’S been a TERF for a very long time now. That’s not a position she came to after a long life of feminist activism.
3. I’m 36 now. I think by now I can call myself an adult. I refuse to be told to sit down and listen to my elders because how could I possibly know?
WMDKitty
Thanks
I give up. You folks know how to use the Googles. I’m going to take a nap. I’ve been awake since 4:30 this morning, no thanks to Patches.
Anne, if your comment is still open for editing, just remove an extra ” from the end
I still can’t get it to work. I think my brain has run away from home.
Anne,
It will come back when it’s ready. Just let it know you still love and accept it, don’t go denying evolution or hatin’ on feminism while it’s away!
Beatrice, no danger of that. I might start believing in woo, though, so I’ll just go take a nap until Brain comes home again.
Have a nice nap, Anne.
I’ll stay up for a while yet. I’m finally getting a bit more productive regarding studying for certification.
I’ve been meaning to ask, Beatrice what’s the time difference between you and I? It’s currently 2:39 pm, central standard time where I live.
Tony,
it’s 8:42 pm here.
Beatrice:
I was thinking it was sometime in the evening given your comment about ‘staying up for a while’.
Tony,
I can’t get used to the time change. It’s dark when I get out of work so I keep thinking it’s later than it really is.
Giliell:
I just read your ‘Crime and Punishment’ piece at School of Doubt. Quite a good read. I excerpted a portion and posted it and a link to the article on FB.
Mother to Son by Langston Hughes, as found via an article about the 16-year-old assaulted by a cop while in class.
Giliell:
I think you have more experience dealing with TERFs than I do. Am I imagining red flags around freja’s comments in that thread?
rq
Ethnic weddings can be very large and very expensive (particularly if it’s Yemeni, where the bride is supposed to wear a golden chain-mail), but there ends all similarity to the event in question. Nobody, and I do mean nobody, is expected to shoulder the entire cost by themselves unless we’re talking about very rich people. Also, in ethnic weddings every little detail is hammered out in advance in front of multiple people from each side. Because ethnic weddings are a big deal and nobody wants anything going wrong.
Your imagination is much more charitable than my own. 🙂
—
Giliell
Oh, it’s not hypocrisy. It’s much easier to abuse other people when you yourself (or, more likely, “your people”) are being abused. It justifies everything.
It’s like in my favorite joke:
-“When a slave is not a slave?”
-“When they’re a slave-master.”
Excellent post.
—
Tony!
Recently a person asked me why I was being so intolerant of his opinions. Wasn’t tolerance supposed to be a staple of the Left?
The opinion in question was his support of Bibi’s plan to take away the residency status of tens of thousands of people summarily without even looking into each person’s case individually.
Behold the World Clock! Their Time Zone Map is also nifty. For example, you have the same time as Barbados, but not Columbia (even though it’s within your time zone), nor Venezuela that is always half an hour behind you.
I just love time zone craziness.
—
Beatrice
Completely agree with you. Though I should add that “wisdom of old age” is almost always overrated. The only times when age is relevant is when the person is a minor or already has dementia.
At any other case only the person’s words and their experience with the subject matter are important.
Me neither! Why do we even have it when neither you nor me live that far from the equator to make a difference.
Tony,
And now you’re oppressing freja and witch hunting her and trying to silence her because she’s a woman and something and something else.
…. can you tell I’m getting tired of interneting? My cynicism reaches new and previously unknown levels whenever I go online lately.
Well, other than in this place. But it’s difficult to restrict oneself to only one place when there’s so much to read (and some habits like Pharyngula to hang on to).
AlexanderZ
Point taken about ethnic weddings. I was mostly commenting on the concept of ‘small’ re: weddings. 🙂
Also,
“… the six o’clock news; six thirty in Newfoundland …”
(Okay, okay, so I don’t remember the exact phrasing, except for that “[hour plus thirty minutes] in Newfoundland” part.)
Giliell
Got around to reading your piece. *thumbs waaaay up* You really do have an excellent way with words and making them do things your way.
Tony
Freja is a total idiot as she proved multiple times over at Jason’s blog. I don’t know what her personal issues are. I have the feeling that she has some deep unsorted issues about her own gender identity which she deals with by being an asshole.
+++
Thanks for the compliments on the post
And now I’m off to bed. The cough potion lists “sleepieness” as a side effect. I would really welcome that…
I can’t figure out what freja wants, unless it’s absolute power to control who can identify as a woman. If so, she can just make a noise like a hoop and roll away, as far as I’m concerned.
I haven’t commented on that thread, because I can’t say anything that you folks haven’t already said better. I’d just be piling on.
Back to cutting page stock.
Now that you mention it, Anne, I’m not sure what she wants either.
Disney ladies with reimagined as warrior women.
I like Snow White’s sliced apples, Mulan’s outfit, Jasmine’s weapon, and Belle.
From what I grasped during the other discussions she thinks there’s some fundamental difference between “identifying as” and “being”. Not that it makes any sense. She’s a woman because people told her so and she’s being treated as one and she has the genitals and that’s it so therefore somehow “if you say you’Re a woman you are one” excludes her. You know, as if being AFAB made her more “woman” than people who “only” self-identify.
I love Belle. But Mulan already was a warrior woman and Rapunzel wields a deadly frying pan.
I admit that I quite like Rapunzel, even though Mother Gothel triggers me. If you want to know howmy mother is, that’s her. Minus the baby stealing* and magic flower stuff.
*One of the most problematic things in that movie is how “gypsielike” Mother Gothel is drawn. Really, such a cheap stereotype.
Giliell
I actually found she looked stereotypically Jewish…
There’s probably an overlap of some kind.
rq
Probably doesn’t matter much in terms of “stereotypes you really shouldn’t have used when creating a character who steal a super-blond white baby”
+++
Holy fuck
I’m reading an academic German text from 1987 that constantly uses the N-word. I knew better back then and I was 8
I slept until nearly 6:30 this morning. If Patches said anything, I didn’t notice. That’s new and different. Maybe I should have a glass of wine in the evening more often.
Today, I assemble page blocks for my journals. Lots of work with awl and hammer, so I’ll have to wait until everybody’s left.
Oooooooooooooooooh maaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan… Submission’s tomorrow. There is reason to believe that the internal reaction from other units within the force will not be unanimous, unconditional support. Seems we’re already vaguely pariah-rized throughout the entire system.
In which case, what have we got to lose?
Nerves, bloody unsettled nerves. I’m going to have more tea. And then I’ll polish the sledgehammer.
That “I DON’T KNOW” thread gives me a sense of déjà vu. Speaking of which, a note for Greer’s feminist supporters:
It’s not a “thoughtcrime” if she’s expressing her thoughts in words. If she does, it becomes regular hate speech, which is a crime in quite a few places. I know it’s difficult, but at least try to pretend you’re not the stereotypical feminist straw-woman that MRAs keep talking about. Thank you.
—
rq
Nothing but your chains. Good luck!
If anyone is looking to buy cheap blu-ray movies, I’m selling a bunch on ebay.
Up
Burn After Reading
A Bug’s Life
Tropic Thunder
Wanted
Kick-Ass
Lonesome Dove
Jarhead
Jennifer’s Body
Star Trek (’09)
Justice League: Doom
The Wizard of Oz (’09) Emerald Edition
500 Days of Summer
Wonder Woman: The Animated Movie (’09)
Batman: The Movie (the 60s Batman)
Batman: Gotham Knight
The Graduate
I’ll be adding more as soon as November hits, bc I’m limited to 100 items per calendar month to sell, which is annoying.
Pretty ‘rupt. *hugs* for all, Solidarity for rq.
Am having a pretty crap week so far; broke the screen on my phone on Tuesday, and have missed work yesterday and today with a stomach bug. I can’t afford to miss any more work, especially since the weekemnd is the busy time for us, so I really hope that I’m on my feet again tomorrow.
Best of health, Dalillama!!
Dalillama
I hope it’s one of those 48 hour bugs and you’ll be well tomorrow. *hugs*
Get well soon, Dalillama!
I haven’t posted any strange recipes lately so here it goes (and this one is really for Tony’s strange foods posts):
I had a pumpkin and I had some seriously wilted chard. I still have two thirds of a pumpkin, but the one third and the chard are safely stored in a risotto.
So there I was, roasting the pumpkin on some oil, then adding the rice and water. All there was left was chard. Meh. That’s all? So I figured I had this bottle of sweet and sour sauce that I wanted to use. And, you know, sweet and sour sauce goes with everything, right? So immediately after the chard, it went in.
But there was still something missing.
And there it was, half a package of ricotta cheese. Lovely ricotta, so good with chard.
So, I have the whole strange mess on my plate. And it’s still missing something.
Parmigiano, grated on top.
Bloody hell, but it works. I love it. It would probably work without the sweet and sour sauce, but the pumpkin I have wasn’t best quality and the sauce helps it a bit.
Beatrice:
That does sound like an odd dish. Glad it worked for you though.
Oh, and sweet and sour sauce does indeed go with everything (ok, maybe not cereal).
Hi y’all,
Still coughing and wheezing and sneezing and sniffling. Not fun.
Enough of that. About pumpkin… I love it. The problem is that all the pumpkins you find in the market this time of year taste like bleagh. They are meant for carving, not for eating. I looked up what kind of pumpkin Libbie’s Co uses for their canned variety and it is a yummy one not sold in markets. It is a variety called Dickinson, developed by Libby, and is closer to a butternut squash than the pumpkins you normally find. So if you want to make your own homemade pumpkin whatever from scratch, go get a nice butternut squash.
Just a tidbit of slightly useful information.
rq
Good luck tomorrow!
——
Dalillama
Hope you’re feeling better soon.
—–
Beatrice
That sounds….interesting? I’m having trouble wrapping my head around the sweet and sour sauce in there, but if it worked….*shrug*.
—-
OK, back to work. Tony!, can you pour that double into a “to go” cup for me? Thanks. 🙂
Get well soon, Dalillama
+++
We had butternut squash soup tonight. I still don’t understand how ‘muricans divide pumpkin and squash. I still have some Hokaido and Muscat squash/pumpkin which will go into the freezer.
Ugh, pumpkin.
Ugh, squash.
I may yet request Future Emperor Incumbent Tony to get rid of those nasty, nasty orange things. Except as decorations around this time of year, and possibly as pumpkin pie (though I’m still waffling on that one).
Ugh.
Giliell,
I have no idea if mine was pumpkin or squash, I can’t tell the difference either.
Giliell
It’s quite simple: If it’s a round, ribbed, and orange (or sometimes white) winter squash, it’s a pumpkin. Otherwise it’s some other squash.
Pumpkins of any sort will remain in my New World Order. I eat the seeds. Speaking of which, just a few more days, and I’m going to buy some really cheap pumpkins! I’m excited!!!
I noticed a few people worried about derailing the ‘I Don’t Know’ thread. If anyone wants to drop a link to here so that people can discuss off topic stuff, I’m fine with that. I’d do it myself, but then I think that looks…umm…I can’t quite think of a word. Just not good. I don’t want to push my site on PZ’s blog.
Tony!
Disloyal? Treacherous? Treasonous? Mutinous? Perfidious? Traitorous?
Oh.
Well, I can’t do it either as I already have a bad reputation. And it wouldn’t be very wise since that troll pretending to be you tried to stir shit a couple of months ago. Besides, Caine has invited people to continue the conversation on her discussion thread and one person has already took her up on her offer.
—
rq
He’s the future Emperor?
Curses, foiled again.
AlexanderZ:
Nah. Nothing that bad. It just looks like I’m hawking for my site. Like I’m trying to steal PZ’s readers. Which isn’t the case at all, but I could see how me saying “Hey, if you folks want somewhere to come discuss off topic stuff, come to the Speakeasy” might come off the wrong way if it came from me.
Tony
A niece tells me “…after working in the restaurant industry as a general manager for 9 years. […] … I [now] work as a project manager, working to certify and manage a shared commercial kitchen space.”
Perhaps you could translate the above into English ? [Hint: She did mention writing a letter requesting a variance for a grease interceptor.]
Having worked in food service [eons ago] and now in Water/Wastewater treatment I understand [bits] of the FB chat conversation but, perhaps you [oh, Reataurant/Bar Guru Tony] might be able to refresh my memory/ update me on the terminology before I engage with my [smarter than I ] niece. : )
Bolding doesn’t seem to work for me (tried various methods within The Speakeasy) so:
Giliell….. as per the comments 10/27:
My condolences. You and your family have been in my thoughts since reading about your loss, though I wasn’t able to comment right away ! **HUGS**
Caregiver E called this afternoon. She says that caregiver M may be pilfering, and E is being treated unfairly, and she may have to quit, and so forth and so on. Caregiver M has been telling me that she thinks E has been pilfering.
I don’t know what to think. Aged Mum is fuddled enough that I won’t get sense out of her, and I certainly can’t and won’t drop everything and go up there and take over – all I can do is listen. I have a headache and a stomachache and I just want to crawl into a hole and cry. And it was a pretty good day until then…
Gah. I’ll be over in the pillow fort.
bluentx:
At a guess (it’s a little beyond my wheelhouse), I’d say your niece is dealing with bringing a kitchen space up to legal code. What all that entails, I’m not entirely sure. For all that I’ve worked in restaurants all my life, I haven’t been involved in the startup portion of them.
****
Anne:
I’m sorry. Hugs and sympathies.
****
Dalillama:
Hopefully you can get the phone fixed soon. Hugs.
rq:
It’s all your fault. I went to the store and bought a bag of edamame and just ate all of it. So good. Once I heated it in the microwave and threw them in a bowl and tossed some salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes on top and OMG…so good!
“I haven’t been involved in the startup portion of them.”
Me either… but thanks ! I feel so much better knowing that ‘not knowing’ is normal ! : )
—–
ANNE: *hugs* ( extra pillows and… bubbles [https://youtu.be/XhDsj-LzRr4])
AlexanderZ
You have a bad reputation at Pharyngula? Did not know!
Tony
Well, in addition to growing brussels sprouts on my windowsill, I will also start the underground Anti-Squash Anti-Pumpkin movement (aka ASAP!). WHO’S WITH ME!
Yeah, I’m surprised that you think you have a bad reputation as well AlexanderZ.
Oh, dear ! Veggie Wars ! They’re not just out to get my peas and cilantro anymore … it’s on to brussels sprouts, squash and pumpkin, TOO?!
https://youtu.be/akAj-TWUq0E?t=11s
Don’t worry, the squash and pumpkin are safe. So’s the cilantro. The peas and brussels sprouts though? They can count the days down til their extinction!
YOB:
Hope all is well. Noticed you’ve not been around in a while, though I suspect you may be lurking and reading.
Just did submission.
I am having a mild case of the anxieties, so I am eating chocolate cake with whipped cream. In roulette form.
I know, I know, it’s useless to stress out because it’s Friday afternoon and nobody might even see anything until Monday and even then it’s doubtful there will be a sudden loud response and it might just all fizzle into the background quietly and be totally not worth all the nervous energy I’ve put into worrying about it so far.
I’m having more cake. Anyone?
Good luck with everything rq . I know it’s impossible not to worry. I hope it all works out. I’ll share some cake with you. You can have some of my home-made Medeira cake. It’s good, I promise!
Madeira cake sounds lovely, bragimike</strong, thank you! I hope you (and your family) have been well (are well (again)?)!
I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to be so emphatic!
rq, [hugs] and a cup of tea, if you like.
Fluffybutt decided that 4 AM was time for breakfast. I hadn’t really slept much anyway. It’s a very good thing I love her, or I’d be tempted to go all Duke of Coffin Castle on her ass (and her lovely soft fur). No, she didn’t get fed early anyway, but now I’m seriously peeved at the universe.
rq The medeira cake was lovely, even if I say so myself!
The family is doing fine at the moment. My daughter has a Halloween party this afternoon and she’s been excited about it for days. She dressed up in a ladybird costume and looked really sweet.
At the moment she’s in the process of changing from nappies at night to not, so we get shouts at 5.30 telling us that she needs a wee. Hopefully she’ll be able to go by herself soon too!
While I disagree with your assessment of your reputation on Pharyngula, AlexanderZ, I think I understand what you are getting at.
I have to admit that the whole place soured for me even before the whole dust-up regarding Ophelia and the dissolution of community threads. I both read and comment less than I used to, which is doing wonders for my free time and study time so it’s not that bad.
Oh well. Places change, people change, habits change.
I am now also being reminded more and more about why I read and comment less at Pharyngula, too. Not that I was uber-prolific or anything like that.
rq,
yeah, I posted my comment and then it was “case in point… ”
Anyway, to clear up something important – I used squash yesterday, not pumpkin.
And to something actually important: best of luck with your complaint, rq!
You’re right, it’s improbable that anyone has had a chance to go over it yet, so you should at least try not to spend the whole weekend worrying about it.
Beatrice
You’re probably right, except for the phone call from one of the Superiors (ostensibly on vacation) about an hour and a half after we submitted… And the late arrival of (at least one) car to the courtyard after normal working hours… I mean, it could all be coincidence, since Superior talked to Boss about stuff not about our complaint and sometimes the chemists have rush jobs to finish.
But coincidences sure do leave me a bit edgy these days.
Anyway. Going home!
Hi all!
I’m dehydrating tomatoes today! For whatever climate reasons, the tomato crop has come in late but bountiful. So into the dehydrator they go. A far easier task than canning, for sure. Also, I’m cleaning up the house and reading cookbooks. And hanging out in online forums. Doing all kinds of things to avoid actual work. Sometimes I just need to let myself be lazy.
I think I’m finally coming out of the dark cloud that’s been hanging around for the past month or so. The anxiety is still poking at me, but the pure shitty hopelessness is retreating. Yay?
My dad came over last week to fix my front lamppost light. It kept shorting and burning out bulbs. I consider myself a reasonably scientifically literate person, but electricity will always be magic to me. I won’t touch that stuff. But dad has no fear of the sparky beast, and made whatever incantations it takes to repair frayed wires. He’s 77 years old, and he got up on a ladder and fixed my lamppost for me. Then he went over to my brother’s house to help install insulation. I hope I’m as physically fit at his age. Actually, I should be so fit now.
Oh, funny dad anecdote:
He’s in the backyard playing with his 2-year-old grandson and a foam sword. Kid picks up sword and pokes the ground. Dad says, “No, no. Do like the Christians do!” and runs across the yard gleefully howling and waving the sword over his head.
I just thought it was funny.
So, ah…How y’all doin’?
New Ocean’s 11 film to be all-female and led by Sandra Bullock.
I can’t help it, I’m watching the continuation of 5th season of Haven.
I have a nasty suspicion they are going to do the same kind of queer-bating that I hear Supernatural has been doing for years now.
(male main characters , who fandom ships like crazy start suddenly having vaguely homoerotic moments – in this case: finding out the woman love interest (to both) is herself again (don’t ask) was like “yeah, cool, whatever”, but when the two of them had a moment alone it was a long hug that would have totally ended up with a kiss had one of them been a woman)
To add to the previous:
Why do we need love stories and love triangles in every show?
This show could have been about three friends overcoming problems to deal with the supernatural together, but no… there had to be a major, to-death-and-beyond love story and a third angle to add tension. Why? I don’t like how shows “handle” emotional connections between people, interpersonal relationships and drama by simply writing a love story and considering they are done with it.
I would have loved the deep and complicated friendship these three characters have, especially the two male ones who aren’t exactly tough macho types of stereotype and have complicated history together … but the love story, the jealousy, that just mucked up everything
… and no more complaints about the show no one but me is watching. 🙂
Thanks everyone, but you’re biased – you can tolerate me! 😉
Beatrice has it right, though. I still read and occasionally comment, but I see little use in any prolonged discussion or argument.
It’s funny. In that whole debacle I’ve lost much faith in certain cis men than in one woman. It’s reassuring to the comments you’re referring to and see that I wasn’t mistaken.
—
awakeinmo
I’m happy things are beginning to brighten up for you.
This is priceless! 😀
—
rq
No need to worry now, when trouble comes you’ll be the first to know.
But I hope it doesn’t come. Good luck.
—
bragimike
Pictures! Also, what fun 🙂
—
Anne
Have you considered installing hidden cameras?
I know it’s becoming very popular here because people can watch them at work and make sure the caretakers aren’t abusing the elderly or stealing from them.
—
bluentx
You need to use the strong tag to bold here (b and html5 aren’t the best of buddies). As rq has demonstrated 😉
Dear god!
I’ve just reread my 1st paragraph and it sounds like a bloody secret cipher.
The significant owl hoots in the night!
I need a vacation from my leisure internetting. Bah, humbug.
—
Beatrice
Hack writing.
Further symptoms may include “it was all just a dream”, “major character death” and “guest appearance”.
Heya
I’m done with the Halloween preparations for tonight. We’ll go to friends, #1 as a black cat and the little one as a mummy (the wrapped in bandages, not the having kids kind). I made pumkin ice cream, prepared the fly pudding and baked the red velvet cake, which will stay in the pan and be topped with cherries and custard frosting.
rq
Free hugs
beatrice
No clue. Because it actually seems like the kind of thing that never happens in actual life…
+++
Oh, we have an update on Mr’s job situation. Currently the union is negotiating with the company for the conditions and they look not too bad. Same pay with same extras and 8 years of “right to return” in case the new company doesn’t work out. Most important is that 8 years means they’re actually planning to keep that new company in business and not as we feared at the begining trying to get rid of that part and the people working there ASAP. ‘Muricans please don’t hate me for this, I know us Germans are pampered when it comes to worker protection.
AlexanderZ,
But the guest appearance was from Brandon from Beverly Hills so that’s ok! And I heard they will have William Shatner in one of the following episodes.
I’m pretty sure “it was all just a dream” was covered in one of the baddie of the week episodes. And one of the major characters was thought dead for a while, before she appeared as an incarnation with no memories of her previous self, who actually remembered her previous self, who was actually a whole ‘nother evil character coming “back” as a personality.
…
Oh
that’s a whole lot of hack writing, I suppose.
—
You are not being tolerated, AlexanderZ. Seriously, you’re worse than me. That’s not recommended.
And I think I mostly understood (or at least think I understood) your ciphered comment so that’s a bit worrying in itself.
—
So now I realize that these wine glasses I got for my birthday are really deceptive. They are huge and every time I pour, I only fill the bottom, but considering the level in the bottle… Oh well, it’s Friday.
—
(edited to close the italics tag)
Giliell
I am actually drooling at the description of your red velvet cake.
Also, fingers crossed that all goes well with Mr.’s job.
Giliell, appendages crossed for the Mr’s job.
My mother called while I was lying down. Elder daughter saw the message on the machine and called her back. Aged Mum said it wasn’t anything important. Elder Daughter said, that’s good, I will talk to her at the usual time. So now I’m worried about why she called; she’s been fairly good about not calling just because she’s bored, so this may mean she’s trying to guilt me into calling so she can complain about something. Gah.
Giliell,
Hm, you’re right.
Wish fulfillment?
Beatrice
You’re right. It’s going to sound very silly, but I’ve been on edge recently because of a dream. Yes, really. It was about a person who I was trying to forget for many years and the dream hit all the wrong notes at once.
Stupid squishy brain. I can’t wait for the singularity.
—
Giliell
You have Halloween in Germany?
Hope everything goes well!
They do happen in real life, but never as the TV depicts them. It’s just a lot of passive-aggressiveness and poisonous environment.
—
The edit function works again!
Any bakers in here? I was at Walmart last night and passed by frozen biscuits and thought they looked tasty. Then I had another thought-could I make biscuits from scratch? I have flower and baking soda. I have zero experience with this kind of thing and suspect I’ll fuck it up massively. But I have a lot of time on my hands and I’m kinda curious to see if I could make something edible (I’ll work my way up to good eventually). Any tips or recommendations for basic recipes?
Oh, and Beatrice, I am so with you on being tired of love stories in tv shows and movies. It’s like creators don’t think people will be interested if there isn’t some romantic tension. I can understand it sometimes, but damn, it’s like part of the basic formula for every tv show and movie there is!
Beatrice
Well, I’m not watching it right now, but the recent episodes are stacking up on the DVR. 🙂
Giliell
I second awakeinmo – the cake sounds delicious and I hope all goes well for Mr and the job stuff.
I don’t know what DVR 🙁
(besides digital video recorder)
I just posed a question on FB:
If we got Herman Cain in the running for the 2012 GOP nominee and we got Dr. Ben Carson running for the 2016 nomination…who will we get in 2020.
A friend just posted this:
Alan Keyes?
I’m still running in horror from that. Seriously, Keyes turns my stomach worse than Carson.