Althouse: Whatever...

February 5, 2009

Whatever...

Whatever crazy chaos you'd like to drag me into. I'm yours. Say it! Just say it!

72 comments:

Ron said...: Geez! Looks like blood-soaked Barbed Wire... Tough day?

Any other AltHousekeeters("Whose the writer of the blog that's made for you and me?...") mourning the death of Lux Interior, lead singer for The Cramps? Sad...; 2/5/09, 9:47 PM
The Dude said...: Looks like a quiet winter scene to me. Peaceful and quiet.; 2/5/09, 9:56 PM
Anonymous said...: Has anyone watched Roman Holiday lately? An amazing movie.

I'd be interested to know if anyone else has even heard of or seen one of our favorite movies, The Reluctant Debutant?; 2/5/09, 9:59 PM
Methadras said...: Choas. The errant child of Whatever.; 2/5/09, 9:59 PM
LonewackoDotCom said...: The dean of Yale Lawschool might go to work for Hillary. That dean either can't see the problem with massive illegal activity and political corruption, or he does see the problem with enabling illegal activity and he doesn't care, or he's just corrupt.

Call him up and ask him which it is, and then print what he says. Or, ask someone else to do it.

(This introduction to the general topic is actually a couple years old and needs to be updated, but it's a start to understanding the issue.); 2/5/09, 10:00 PM
Methadras said...: Quayle said...

Has anyone watched Roman Holiday lately? An amazing movie.

I'd be interested to know if anyone else has even heard of or seen one of our favorite movies, The Reluctant Debutant?

I've got suckered into watching The Dirty Debutant 12, 13, & 14 once. I also got suckered into watching Nights in Rodanth too. That scarred me.; 2/5/09, 10:00 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: Bâtons rouges; 2/5/09, 10:06 PM
Simon said...: It!

It it it!; 2/5/09, 10:06 PM
BJM said...: Fabulous photo Althouse! A few seconds of delicious vertigo as my mind grappled with the false horizon, or maybe I've had too many post-dinner sips of excellent Shiraz.; 2/5/09, 10:10 PM
author, etc. said...: "I'm Yours." -- good title for an unwritten short story. On another pressing point, I watched a bit of Olbermann tonight and I think he's snagged himself in a self-constructed mental briar patch not unlike the one in Ann's photo. I'm thinking I should start tivoing his show so as not to miss the implosion when it comes.; 2/5/09, 10:14 PM
Ron said...: Simon:

What!

What What What!

I love Roman Holiday; Bogie turned down the Peck role...It's why I tried to make up for that error by doing Sabrina.; 2/5/09, 10:16 PM
The Crack Emcee said...: Fine, I'll say it, you KNOW I've wanted to:

The fact you mentioned the cult shit and then dropped it, like that, is totally bogus. You so-called conservatives who are really yuppies (like Glen Reynolds) seem to sit around wondering what's going on but you offer nothing to the rest of us who claim to know. I got to the cult shit first - long before everybody else - but you guys don't link to me. You let Rush carry the mantle of "Last Man Standing" when I haven't given an inch either. He talks about liberal cultism - but not in nearly the detail that I understand - and I get bupkiss. I feel totally isolated out here because y'all seem to play bullshit favorites when I've been offering a simple solution to a resurgent conservatism:

Learn to understand, and then treat, their nutso religious beliefs the same way they treat yours.

If you had shown black people the occult connections to Hillary, Oprah, and Obama, there wouldn't have been a dark-skinned churchgoer in America (that's black or Hispanic) who would've gone near pulling a lever for a liberal.

Your a bunch of ignorant fools.

But I love ya!!!; 2/5/09, 10:16 PM
Palladian said...: Today I watched an older woman in a fur coat scream "FUCK YOU! JUST FUCK YOU! I'M SO FUCKING SICK OF YOU! FUCK YOU!" at her small dog as she was trying to get it to walk up onto an ice-covered curb.

I cannot bear to see people abusing their dogs or children in public so I yelled "Hey! Stop abusing your dog? Why do you have a dog if you're just going to abuse it?". She pretended not to hear me. An old woman wearing a white fake-fur trimmed parka who was walking by the scene said to me "It's too bad the dog can't talk back to her!" and I responded "Ah, but it can do something better than that..." I turned back toward the woman with the dog... "it can BITE THE NASTY BITCH!" The woman with the dog screamed "FUCK YOU TOO! FUCK ALL OF YOU!" without looking back as she walked away.

The old woman wearing the white fake-fur trimmed parka laughed as she crossed the street. "Isn't it funny how clearly you can see the truth of people in the bright afternoon of a cold winter's day?"

My revulsion at the abuse of the animal was suddenly joined by gratitude for a bit of poetry from a stranger, delivered in the middle of Second Avenue in the intense sunlight of a clear, cold winter's day.; 2/5/09, 10:17 PM
Ron said...: ur, "he" not "I". Sorry, self-identification showing!; 2/5/09, 10:17 PM
author, etc. said...: I bet that dog worshipped the woman abusing it. Dogs are saps for tough love. I'm sure it was thinking, "Whatever crazy chaos you'd like to drag me into, I'm yours."; 2/5/09, 10:27 PM
Jason (the commenter) said...: I have these crazy upstairs neighbors who play loud music for hours on end. Last night I was really getting annoyed at them. Then I heard my next door neighbor scream to his girlfriend, "I'd go upstairs and kill them if you'd let me!" And I heard her laugh, and I laughed too.; 2/5/09, 10:28 PM
Palladian said...: "I bet that dog worshipped the woman abusing it. Dogs are saps for tough love. I'm sure it was thinking, "Whatever crazy chaos you'd like to drag me into, I'm yours.""

No, it had its head down and was shivering.; 2/5/09, 10:29 PM
Meade said...: "Say it! Just say it!"

Sounds like a hybrid ad campaign from Nike and Nancy Reagan to encourage stoner joggers whose tongue the cat has got not to completely give up.; 2/5/09, 10:37 PM
Simon said...: author, etc. said...
"'I'm Yours.' -- good title for an unwritten short story."

I love Natacha Atlas' version of I Put a Spell On You - she conveys a sense of sheer abandon and unilateral devotion in the way she sings the climax of the second verse: "I love you, I held back and I love you anyhow; and I don't care if you don't want me, I'm yours, right now."; 2/5/09, 10:39 PM
Darcy said...: Oh, Palladian. From a dog lover and nasty bitch hater: Thank you.; 2/5/09, 10:40 PM
Palladian said...: "Oh, Palladian. From a dog lover and nasty bitch hater: Thank you."

You're welcome. To balance out this nasty bitch/dog story, I once saw a heavily surgically-altered old woman (also wearing a fur coat) in a car on Fifth Avenue putting Chanel lipstick on her Shih-Tzu.; 2/5/09, 10:43 PM
Simon said...: Ron - read post again carefully. I think the penny will drop. ;); 2/5/09, 10:48 PM
Donna B. said...: Go Palladian. I should trade dogs with that woman. I'm pretty sure she wouldn't talk to my Great Pyrenees that way.

Then, there is the possibility I might feel the same way she does about small dogs.

What is it about small dogs that make me go... ick, ewwww!

Yet, my big dogs can get a kiss anytime they want it.

It doesn't make sense, does it?; 2/5/09, 10:50 PM
Palladian said...: And let me tell you, a Chanel lipsticked Shih-tzu is far scarier than any Maybelline-wearing pit bull, at least in an existential kind of way.

Of course you can put Chanel lipstick on a pit bull, but it's still...; 2/5/09, 10:50 PM
Palladian said...: "What is it about small dogs that make me go... ick, ewwww!

Yet, my big dogs can get a kiss anytime they want it.

It doesn't make sense, does it?"

My dog is small. Does she make you go "ick, ewwww"?; 2/5/09, 10:52 PM
Meade said...: "My dog is small. Does she make you go "ick, ewwww"?"

No, but I don't exactly want to kiss it either, thank you very much.; 2/5/09, 10:58 PM
Chip Ahoy said...: Here's a new thing I learned.

Ultrawide lenses.

Like the Nikon 12-24mm f/4 AF-S DX, are not designed for the faint of heart. The general misconception about these lenses is they're for fitting more into the frame. Not so. They're for maniac photographers, risk takers, who want to put their viewers right into the picture. The idea is to get as close to the subject as possible, usually within a few inches, then to be supremely mindful of the corners. Don't just fill up the corners with "stuff," but rather, angle the framing so that the lines emanate from the corners toward the center of the frame. Anchor the bottom corners, don't let the subject material just float there in the corner. A few degrees variation in the angle of the shot makes a gigantic difference in the resulting photograph. For example, if you were photographing a desert, get the camera right down to the sand and let everything spread out from that point of view. If you're photographing a statue, try getting a few inches away from the face. The sense of distance between face and foot will be exaggerated, but choose your angle and distance carefully, mindful of of how the frame is filled and all of the angles therein.

That is all.; 2/5/09, 11:01 PM
Darcy said...: Oh, gosh. Glad I peeked in before bed again. That dog is adorable, Palladian. We had one of those named Cricket. Loved her!; 2/5/09, 11:01 PM
Freeman Hunt said...: We had three dogs while I was growing up. Later I had my own dog.

Loved all those dogs. But now that I've gone years without a dog, I don't know that I ever want another dog again.; 2/5/09, 11:04 PM
john said...: Palladian -

So your dog is small, it looks abused and it's standing out in the (ice cold undoubtedly) rain with whatever's left of its tail between its legs. What gives?
;); 2/5/09, 11:05 PM
john said...: Our 4 yo part ridgeback part lab has lymphoma. He is on a prednisone remission now, but there is no telling when it will relapse. When it does, I'm told it will come on with a vengance.

We priced out chemo; about a years worth of college tuition, which is our major financial hurdle. Chemo however is rarely effective beyond a year, if that, so our vet and a couple of other dog owners have told us. Prednisone might make him last a year or more too, with good health and vigor. About $175.

I won't go into how it's affecting me thinking about it, but it's going to be awful to let him go. We've never put a pet down before.; 2/5/09, 11:13 PM
Maxine Weiss said...: "You might wonder why, at age 71, I am launching my first blog."

http://janefonda.com/2009/01/?cat=21; 2/5/09, 11:21 PM
Wince said...: I'm sure it was thinking, "Whatever crazy chaos you'd like to drag me into, I'm yours."

Up to a point, the dog probably thinks you are just barking like they do. But then again, a dog knows when you're angry, and that's why dog trainers say you should not shout a dog's name to correct or scold, because thereafter they confuse their name with your anger.

Even a dog distinguishes between being stumbled over and being kicked.
- Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr.,
The Common Law, 1881; 2/5/09, 11:26 PM
Meade said...: "You might wonder why, at age 71, I am launching my first blog."

"Categories: My Blog"

Jane, you ignorant slut.; 2/5/09, 11:30 PM
blake said...: Drag? Or merely lead the way?

(Or perhaps just point and watch?); 2/5/09, 11:51 PM
Palladian said...: "You might wonder why, at age 71, I am launching my first blog."

I thought you already had a blog, Maxine?; 2/5/09, 11:59 PM
Ron said...: Simon: Oy, literalism here at Althouse? No wonder I was flummoxed! :); 2/6/09, 12:22 AM
Zachary Sire said...: I thought you already had a blog, Maxine?

LOL.

I am laying here with my dog right now, and it's lightly raining outside (first rain of the year here in Southern California). Today at work, my whole bay of cubicles started ranting about that freak who had o8 babies, it was fun. Then, I decided to admit to myself that I have a huge crush on a co-worker. I'm not one to shit where I eat, so I don't plan on doing anything about it. I'll just have to keep staring at him from across the room like a dork.; 2/6/09, 12:31 AM
Nichevo said...: Whatever crazy chaos you'd like to drag me into. I'm yours. Say it! Just say it!

Er,

Baby let's fuck?; 2/6/09, 12:33 AM
Donna B. said...: Palladian, that is not a small dog, that is a medium to small dog. HUGE difference.

I'm talking about the wormy looking, rat skinny tiny ankle-biters that have the personality of a screaming meamie (whatever that is, it's extremely unpleasant.)

I'm talking about dogs too small to kill something other than a roach. Dogs that can fit in a small purse and be smuggled into restaurants. Your dog obviously does not fit that description.; 2/6/09, 12:53 AM
Joe M. said...: Simon:

I don't have audio on this computer, so I'll have to watch Ms. Atlas's rendition later, but I very much doubt that she can top Screamin' Jay Hawkins.; 2/6/09, 2:42 AM
Joe M. said...: Ron:

"Any other AltHousekeeters ..."

I do hope that you meant "Althousketeers." (I've elided the 'e' to save us from "Althouseketeers").

Unless you're suggesting that we spread malaria? (Worry not!--only to poor people).

(Deliberate ambiguity can be fun--but only when a woman is not involved).

((A bit much?))

(((Here at Althouse? Never!)))

((((Alright, I've had a few too many parentheses this evening, and am cutting myself off before I do something truly uncouth. A good night to all.)))); 2/6/09, 2:54 AM
Revenant said...: You might wonder why, at age 71, I am launching my first blog.

A desperate bid for attention?; 2/6/09, 3:12 AM
Ann Althouse said...: @Chip I've been thinking about buying that lens for months. Do you have it? I understand what you're saying about using it, because that's how I use the fisheye. It's very exciting. I didn't know that lens would feel as extreme. Being able to zoom would help.; 2/6/09, 3:51 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Well, Nichevo, I don't know what you look like, but I'm thinking Cary Grant... or... no....; 2/6/09, 3:52 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Sing it with me: Who's the leader of the club that's made for you and me? A-N-N-A-L-T-H-O-U-S-E....; 2/6/09, 5:32 AM
Ann Althouse said...: How come I'm the only one here now? Even Revenant has left. And I think his name means "awakening." Wake up, everybody!; 2/6/09, 5:33 AM
Michael Haz said...: Today is Friday. Friday is Anything Can happen Day!

Apart from that, I awoke with a major craving for a donut. A fresh cake-style donut, no frosting, and a cup of black coffee for dunking.

I believe I will make an extra stop on my morning route today.; 2/6/09, 5:39 AM
Michael Haz said...: If we are going to be Althouseketeers, I call Bobby.

Althouse should be Annette.

Trooper York can be Roy.

Titus can be Cubby.; 2/6/09, 6:27 AM
Ron said...: Uncle Walt for me...Hopefully, Scrooge McDuck, if available....; 2/6/09, 6:28 AM
Ron said...: Sing it with me: Who's the leader of the club that's made for you and me? A-N-N-A-L-T-H-O-U-S-E....

I like my lyric tweak at the top! If we all chip in a file of us singing the song, we could have a YouTube video before you know it...; 2/6/09, 6:30 AM
Darcy said...: john: I'm so sorry about to read about your dog.; 2/6/09, 7:43 AM
The Dude said...: The aptly named CrackheadMC wrote: "like Glen Reynolds" - his name is Glenn Reynolds. You can look it up.

Then, to confirm that he is semi-literate and a hateful troll, wrote "Your a bunch of ignorant fools."

I am sure you are working up to your potential - now go back to whatever remedial class you skipped to post here. Affirmative action will only get you so far.; 2/6/09, 7:43 AM
American Liberal Elite said...: If you don't already have one, I think you should buy the 18-200 VR. Mine is almost always on my D40. It was the only lens I took to Sicily last fall. The VR, combined with a high ISO setting (I leave mine on AUTO ISO), allows you to get great non-flash shots in low light, especially at the shorter focal lengths. If you need to go wider, your 10.5 fisheye is a nice pocketable second lens, while the 12-24 is so hefty I usually leave mine at home.; 2/6/09, 8:00 AM
DaLawGiver said...: Althouse sounds rather odd this morning. I've never heard her sing before. Is she in love?; 2/6/09, 8:21 AM
Nichevo said...: Why professor, in fact I am tall, dark, handsome and charming. How nice for you! I'll do you good.

Let me see when I can fit you in....or rather, why don't you see when you can fit me in...IYKWIMAITYD ;>; 2/6/09, 8:24 AM
Simon said...: Jane Fonda said...
"You might wonder why, at age 71, I am launching my first blog."

Self-absorption, I'm guessing.

Lawgiver said...
"Althouse sounds rather odd this morning. I've never heard her sing before."

She sang the podcast theme for one episode. She has a lovely speaking voice...; 2/6/09, 8:31 AM
Simon said...: Joe, she doesn't - I just like the way she sings that line. My favorite version of the song is still this one, however: David is King. When he's on, no other guitar player comes close - not Hendrix, not Vai, no one.; 2/6/09, 8:40 AM
Joe M. said...: I like that one. Thanks.

My favorite guitarist has to be David Rawlings. For reasons like this. Just watch what he does with that capo leading into and out of the solo. And this. (This concert is one of the better ones I've ever seen recorded).; 2/6/09, 9:09 AM
Nichevo said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 2/6/09, 9:23 AM
Nichevo said...: And as I mention in the thread below, Professor, I will sweep you off your feet. ;>; 2/6/09, 9:23 AM
Simon said...: That first one is great - I once heard Gillian Welch described as what country & western sounded like before Nashville poisoned it. I don't know about that, but I like her a lot; I fell in love with Revelator a few years ago. Would love to have heard her and Rawlings, uh, triet (to coin a verb) with Johnny Cash.; 2/6/09, 9:24 AM
sonicfrog said...: Then, I decided to admit to myself that I have a huge crush on a co-worker. I'm not one to shit where I eat, so I don't plan on doing anything about it.

Well Zach. I'm relieved your not going you're not going to shit on the guy you like at work. That would probably be a bit of a turn off for him... unless he likes it!; 2/6/09, 9:49 AM
Ann Althouse said...: "shit where I eat"

What a horrible expression! It makes shitting, eating, and sex sound disgusting.; 2/6/09, 9:58 AM
sonicfrog said...: BTW: I may not know my flowers, BUT I KNOW A BITCH WHEN I SEE ONE!!!!; 2/6/09, 10:01 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Wow. Sonicfrog, that was hilarious!

You know, the term "gay deceivers" is used in the play "The Glass Menagerie" to refer to the big powder puffs the mother inserts into her daughter's dress to make her breasts look larger. We did this play in my high school, and I played the daughter. That was a pretty weird experience for me.; 2/6/09, 10:21 AM
Nichevo said...: Is that where Heinlein got it?!; 2/6/09, 11:12 AM
Nichevo said...: Perhaps I should say with President Obama (or Sen. Obama as he was then):

You're busty enough, Ann.

But intellectual integrity demands that I see for myself.; 2/6/09, 11:29 AM
Palladian said...: "Like the Nikon 12-24mm f/4 AF-S DX, are not designed for the faint of heart."

"Chip I've been thinking about buying that lens for months. Do you have it? I understand what you're saying about using it, because that's how I use the fisheye. It's very exciting. I didn't know that lens would feel as extreme. Being able to zoom would help."

I have the lens. It's a wonderful lens and quite flexible, much moreson than the fisheye. You may also consider the Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X. It's a bit sharper, and it's cheaper than the Nikkor, though if you are interested in the zoom aspect of the Nikkor, go with that one rather than the Tokina. Here's a shot using the Nikkor 12-24mm lens. As you can see, it can produce images that are simultaneously normal and strange.; 2/6/09, 11:55 AM
BJM said...: I love when real life intersects with cyber life. Cornus Sanguinea, aka Bloodtwig Dogwood, is featured in the current issue of Horticulture Magazine.; 2/6/09, 1:13 PM
Palladian said...: "Cornus Sanguinea, aka Bloodtwig Dogwood, is featured in the current issue of Horticulture Magazine."

You can lead a horticulture but you can't make her think.; 2/6/09, 3:22 PM
traditionalguy said...: The play Glass Menangerie is in its essence about a gay person leaving Atlanta for new york watching his straight brother (the girl) being controlled by the stifling southern culture that was gone with the wind and in the depression.; 2/6/09, 4:59 PM