... it’s another day without a sunrise photo. I can’t do my morning run when it’s below zero out there. I’ve got a few more of these double lockdown days (that is, days of confinement caused by Covid and by coldness). But it’s snuggly warm inside, so let’s settle in for some conversation.
Did you watch the Trump trial? I did not. Even with the double lockdown, I did not. Did anything new come out? I’ll read the news in the morning. My sense is that what was presented is what I have already heard. But who knows? Maybe they nailed him today.
Other topics are most welcome. For example, have you written any poetry at any point in your life (and if so why), what is your favorite smell, have you ever joined or considered joining a cult (and if you had to be in a cult, which cult would you join), would you ever support a violent revolution (and would you have been a Loyalist in the American Revolution), are you trying to lose weight (and what are your diet tips?), and... anything else you would like to add?
Posts
142 comments:
Damn, my wife left the king cake out on the counter. Kicks me right out of keto. Laissez les bons temps rouler.
I mentioned this on an earlier thread
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=s3A_EdNRdZ4&list=PL8MltkN01lMTi1SMQpauEqZmx17wwhPC3&index=1
Keto bread and tortilla shells have come a long way.
My son in law is going fishing tomorrow near Ashland WI forcast is for -34.
Oil paints
I wont watch the trial either. Never written any poetry, but I'm trying to encourage my kids to do so for a poetry contest coming up!
The snow is coming down here in Pugetopolis. It's 29-deg F, but so far it's just sticking to the grass and shrubs, with the pavement being just wet. The forecast is for 6 in. to 12 in. over the next few days, which is a huge amount for Pugetopolis. It'll turn to rain on Tuesday the 16th.
A very petty person
https://amp.dailycaller.com/2021/02/11/nancy-pelosi-denied-claudia-tenney-son-watch-gallery-swearing-in
Marjorie Taylor Greene: Yummy!
The girl's got Plenty Good Lovin'.
Justice what a quaint notion
https://mobile.twitter.com/nypost/status/1360013921508347912?s=21&fbclid=IwAR3TdbIeL_Eo4uZctVZEpuelGhnGT1lSOPh7DJj3wwLv7XVqgJ-X7mTpzaQ
Good Grammar rule for Feb. 11:
Place pronouns as closely as possible, especially in long sentences (as of ten or more words) to their antecedents.
I wrote poetry when I was a teenager--I haven't gone back in a long time but I'm pretty sure it's all terrible.
I got married 4 weeks ago today, to a girl I first dated in high school.
4 days ago she gave birth to our daughter--bit of a surprise since she was only 26 weeks along.gvbf Both my girls are doing well but it's been an eventful few weeks!
Someone earlier posted the outline of possible gun legislation.
It looked like something that would require troops and razor wire around the Capitol.
Haikus are my thing
They just pop into my head
And I write them down
"A very petty person"
Nancy Polosi is from an old mafia family so I guess these things matter to her. It also explains her politics, we now are ruled by people who use mafia tactics, give me money or I will make your business a little less profitable, like, burning it down.
That would be moi.
Si
As if
https://www.wsj.com/articles/fact-checking-biden-family-business-11613082711?reflink=desktopwebshare_facebook
Congratulations, HoodlumDoodlum!
Filibuster next?
Biden Family Grafting. Pay bribe, will travel. Est. 1972.
Of all the nerve
https://mobile.twitter.com/barnes_law/status/1360044487074979843
Got my second covid vax shot yesterday, and my wife got her first today. The process was very well organized in our little Southern town, with practically no waiting. We're 77, and we seemed to be among the youngest folks being shot (lots of fogies here). I would love to start going around maskless now, because I suspect the arguments for masking the immune are specious, but I'll be a good citizen for awhile. Thank God and President Trump for Operation Warp Speed!
Bruce Hayden, AllenS alive and well.
Illegitimate Admin* floats shutting down travel in FL.. I hope they keep going.. Keep pushing
The supercar is accelerating uncontrollably towards the turn where the big oak tree stands.
It really was a mess, and she wrote the screenplay, first tip dont do it
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9AYVX6_6R2U&t=1351s#menu
Congrats and good luck, HD; good news, FullMoon.
Diet advice: pushaways.
I never wrote poetry, only doggerel, and most of it non-PC; song parodies a specialty but today I'd be canceled for the stuff, and they'd throw away the key.
Narr
And I never eat anything bigger than my head
This is thing I'm working on. Maybe it's done; maybe not. But there was no sunrise picture today, so ...
From ice to sky
Between the trees
Dark is frozen in
About a winter lake.
Comes a runner,
Fast-rising Sun.
Colors streak and break,
About a winter lake.
King Jay I of Washington has really screwed up the vaccine delivery. The big hospital near us, Overlake Medical, has filled all its appointments thru early April and is not taking any appointments for April 3 or later.
He's decreed that 3/4 of the state can move to Phase 2, with 25% indoor dining capacity. No reason why the other 1/4 can't go to Phase 2. He's been getting a lot pressure from a bill that does just that. He probably thinks that he can torpedo the bill by opening some of the state.
There are two smells that I have a deep attachment to -
The smell of my son when he was a baby (obviously not when he needed a diaper change). He never spit up, so he never smelled like vomit. I quit wearing perfume because it would rub off on him and change his smell. I really disliked smelling my mother-in-laws perfume on him.
The smell of the desert after a rain. I think this is actually the smell of creosote. Reminds me of my childhood.
I do not believe that I would have been a loyalist. I have 12ish revolutionary ancestors (9 proven then I hit some roadblocks). I don’t have any loyalist ancestors but I do have some Quakers that sat out the war. They moved to Canada for a few decades before coming back.
Were the people of washington state on crazy pills. Why would you promote him?
I’m trying to lose weight by rowing at a place called Row House. I’m liking it.
I would NOT have been a Loyalist, but I’m half Irish. I hate royalty.
Congratulations HD.
Are you saying you are locked down in Madison? Subject to fine or imprisonment for going places, seeing people and doing things?
Or are you just one of those women who take everything - like this covid scam - way too seriously?
You live in WI and you won't run or bike in cold weather?
Man, you have some needs, don't you?
You know how that city council is
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=J5Jo_tNzR40
Funny you should mention poetry. I used to write quite a bit, in college. I have been considering my life lately, a reverie brought on by my total absorption these past few years in my mother’s memoir. She is French, had a bit with the Resistance during the war, and very colorful European ancestors...a Belle Époque opera singer, an Egyptian diplomat, a selfish father who loved to race cars. I have come to the conclusion that I am an anachronism. Born in the wrong time. I was raised to be accomplished in the arts, music, literature, history. My great grandmother’s beautiful lemonwood Bluthner piano sits in my dining room still unused. I used to play, but am surrounded by practical people, in a culture obsessed with efficiency. Everything I know how to do well is worth nothing in such a world. I am old enough (Ann’s age) to see this now as a corrective to the professionalising tendency of modernity. I sew, I make art, I set a beautiful table and make good conversation. Circumstances are conspiring to induce us to withdraw more and more from the culture, and the stock of the domestic sphere, over which I serenely preside, is rising. I am eyeing the piano.
I pulled a twisted up lamb out of a ewe last night, first time in 45 years and first time without my prison guard of an aunt barking orders at me. I was sure she was having twins and didn't want to fish out 2 legs from different lambs. It was successful and both lambs and the ewe are doing fine. The most rewarding thing I've done in a while.
83° here today, had to turn on the AC for the first time this year. ("Had to" = fiancee told me to.)
Marjorie Taylor Greene: Yummy!
I felt dumb clicking on that link, but it was worth it for this quote:
"My impression is that she knew he might take over the gym and she wanted to be there right alongside him."
---
'And to be more than what you were, [a gym owner,] you would
Be so much more the man.' -- Lady Macbeth
I know Biden supporters who have been vaccinated and they are absolutely looking forward to visiting, open schools and travel. Will they take being shoved back into "safer at home", wear a mask or maybe two, no visiting, close the schools, stay off the planes? Will they finally ask a few questions? Tune in again in a few weeks.
Used to write some poetry but it all rhymed and had a galloping cadence, much like that of Kipling.
Like commenter 'reading', I love the smell of a baby. Especially when I was nursing them and their baby smell was mingled with the fresh, warm milk smell. Very special.
My ancestors include both Revolutionary soldiers and Loyalists. I would most likely have been a supporter of the Revolution.
Thanks everybody!
I was working on losing weight with the idea that I'd be in good shape by my wife's due date, so my goal now is to get fit fast so I'll be solid when my daughter comes home from the NICU.
Good luck to everyone else writing and improving themselves out there.
Fauci has said [I think] that the current protocols have to stay in place until at least the end of the year. Remember Two weeks to flatten the curve!? Man, oh man!
Yes, congrats, Hoodlum! You don't waste any time, do you? ;-)
Oh! FullMoon!!! God is so good!! I’ve been praying that all was well, too. Love that guy!
New life in the Hood for Hoodlum-congratzi and I humbly offer my prayers for u and yours, as well.
I’m not watching the play acting of the special people- it makes me angry and ashamed. They have no clue wtf they’re doing and Leahy- judge and jury that he is- is an idiot. I’m very surprised Ann is not watching, law professor, being... I’d think it historically important if I were knowledgeable of such things.
I love poetry. I’ve always written quirky thoughts that flow as small poems- form is fun. The past few yrs I’ve shared haikus w/my sister- but haven’t the past few months. I’m getting a bit beat down- husband had a heart attack which sounds way serious but Dartmouth put in a stent and he seems so golden. Catholicism isn’t a cult no matter what Crack says- it’s a way to show love to our Creator-if done properly and: is it ever. We can only try harder. I love the smell of drying hayfields- Rowan is especially sweet. I love About a lake. I used to be thin- then menopause happened and I not thin anymore- but not fat. Just not idk- where I would like to be. And, what would a Loyalist be loyal too? Country as is? Or was? Many in my family fought and died for both this Country and for the French in Canada- how we got here. Idk have to know more-
I’m almost motivated to do poetry. I’m inspired by the Jungman and Waugh thing-y.
There’s something poetic there.
IMHO.
Its an absurd exercise as cruz pithily encapsulated buts thats only the beginnimg
Beautiful thoughts, Caroline, for the passing of a whole way of life, and Flat Tire-- just wow.
The ice coating brought some limbs down around here, but we only lost a medium size limb from one of our twin magnolias. The forecast was typically apocalyptic, but my prediction was closer--a little ice, a lot of cold. Rah.
What if I had been around in 1776? It's an absurd question facially, but in the spirit of the thing . . . it depends.
I have the historian's obligation to see the issues and choices fairly, to try to understand the realities of the interaction of interest and idealism in all the players, and not to read back what seems obvious to us now.
History at its best is an exercise in imaginative empathy. We shouldn't try to hide the follies, crimes, and delusions but we also shouldn't pretend that's all there ever was; we
shouldn't try to smooth out and dumb down the complexities, and we should never never never
think that the 80 billion or so people who were here before us were just stupid.
Narr
Did I say never?
Congrats HoodlumDoodlum!
Exactly nine years ago, I reunited with my High School flame. It's nice to celebrate anniversaries and Valentine's Days at one fell swoop. DYSWIDT?
After the fall of the USSR, America was the most admired country in the world. And it deserved that admiration.
Look at it now. It’s feckless and unreliable, either as an ally or as an adversary. Its universities are tanking. Its biggest companies are untrustworthy cheating monopolies drunk on power. Its pop culture is Cardi B. Its racial neurosis is a toxic effluvium. Its constitution teeters on the edge, its elections are clown shows, and it seems hell-bent on imposing racial quotas, producing hyper-inflation, and pursuing vendettas against dissenters. Even presidents can be censored.
Can a rich country become a shit-hole country at warp speed? If not, you certainly get an A for effort.
Pynchon was definitely on to something with his Thurn und Taxis theme, btw. If you want to control the present and the future, you have to control the signals.
Narr
Comms 101
Rt41Rebel
Cool. I re United with mine, after a couple marriages, 20 years ago.
Wow Caroline. Way to class up the place.
"Can a rich country become a shit-hole country at warp speed?"
If any country can, America can.
Narr
The difficult we do immediately . . .
I haven't worn out my first wife yet.
Narr
She does take longer to crank, though
I can only answer a few - about poetry and scents this evening as revolution and cults aren't my cup of tea just now. A gentle snow is falling in the greater Puget Sound area and we are in for the night and maybe a couple of days. I wrote a haiku last Spring about swimming because I was missing our Masters' team workouts and our coach solicited haiku from the team. A favored smell is rain after it's been dry; another is chlorine, redolent of swimming pools; a third is the jasmine blooming in southern Sweden in May.
" ...have you written any poetry at any point in your life (and if so why)".
oh you know why.
It wont be fine
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ha9gO_i8B-g
I see where people adopt weird pets like ocelots, pythons, or ferrets. Why do this when a dog serves every possible use you would want a pet to have, other than being exotic or expensive?...I feel the same way about literature. Why attempt the far shores of Joyce or Pynchon when Shakespeare serves to fulfill anything you might wish for in great literature...I have less and less interest in current events, current fiction, current music, or current currencies (bitcoin). Partially because of the pandemic and partially because of increasing age, I'm retreating into my own bunker and closing down the hatch. It's quite comfortable, and I've got no complaints. Zen. If you live long enough, sex, money, and status no longer tie you to this world.
I ventured a haiku in hpmage to one of Prof's photos back in the summer.
Carp swimming with blooms.
Ripples bulge with water light.
One pink flower floats.
One person liked it.
Narr
Well kids, it's been real but I'm heading bedward
homage, not hpmage.
Narr
Stupid computer!
If you attempt poetry or revolution, the probabilities don't favor your success.
@Ken B and HoodlumDoodlum
Dr. Nancy Kalish is recognized as the top expert on rekindled romances and lost loves, and is author of Lost & Found Lovers: Facts and Fantasies of Rekindled Romances. It's a great read, and available through the Althouse Amazon Portal.
Rebel
I'll take a look, thanks.
Have I ever written poetry? Yes. Why? For a woman, of course.
So, a Andrew Cuomo administration official has confessed to obstruction of justice, covering up nursing home data to keep it from the U.S. Department of Justice for fear of investigation into Cuomo's complicity in the deaths of nursing home residents.
Thank you Caroline. I feel the same way though my life has been more rustic. We've lost so much.
Where's Hunter's Laptop?
And what was on Wiener's laptop?
The people who work for us won't tell us...
Watch - No
Poetry - Class assignment
Violent revolution - Yes - Vietnam 68/69
Loyalists - Never
Diet - Eat less. Seriously, eat what you like, but eat less.
"(that is, days of confinement caused by Covid and by coldness)"
The Womens are idiots. Your sex makes you stupid. lmao
Joe,
Hard to say.
He has a new one by now. Might even have a touchscreen..which..nevermind...
"Where's Hunter's Laptop?
And what was on Wiener's laptop?
The people who work for us won't tell us..."
The laptops and all the copies were lost in a boating accident taking them across the Potomac for the grand jury investigation. Case closed.
An interesting column was published today in the NY Post. Worth your time. It's by Bret Stevens, a member of the Noo Yawk Toimes editorial board. He was moved to write about the sad fate of Donald McNeil at the hands of Artie Sulzburger's crew of fascists. Artie spiked Stevens' column, but a free speech holdout hiding in plain sight at the NYT leaked it to the Post.
Here's my question for Althouse or anyone not outraged by the wokeratti's unceasing attack on the basic freedoms established by our Constitution: Everyone knows what is implied by the n-word, by which I mean the literal use of that absurd euphemism, ergo why it the term acceptable and nigger is unacceptable?
Definitely wouldn't have been a loyalist in the Revolution, but might not have been a revolutionary either- probably more like a criminal. I come from ornery people- Hatfields and McCoys on both sides of the family tree.
TFB for that NeverTrumper POS Bret Stephens. No one cares what he has to say. Certainly he is not someone to hold up as some free speech hero.
HoodlumDoodlum: CONGRATS!
"Everyone knows what is implied by the n-word..."
Kind of like typing 'F*#k.'
I wonder what it really is?
: )
Our hostess is just trying not to get de-platformed...so can't really blame her.
The censorship and wokeness is out of control...
Quaestor,
Of course, it doesn't actually make any sense in a rational way. However, while I initially thought his firing was inappropriate, on having someone online give a different viewpoint on McNeil's actual behavior as described in his own letter, I now like that he was fired. I only dislike that he was fired for the entirely wrong reasons.
McNeil's response to the query from the student should have been along the lines of "She was 12 years old at the time of the offense, for goodness sake, I don't care what the reason was she used the word- she should not have been suspended full stop." Instead, McNeil tried to determine the level of sin of a 12 year old, and hung himself in the process.
Someone linked to this takedown of the entire McNeil affair a couple days ago, but I don't remember who to credit.
President Biden: "We've now purchased enough vaccine supply to vaccinate all Americans."
Brave, brave Biden! Purchased enough vaccine to vaccinate everyone. Only Biden could have accomplished this. Only Biden.
Next you will be telling us Biden managed to wipe his own ass today without the aid of his wife or the secret service detail. For Biden, that would be the more impressive accomplishment.
One of the best compliments I ever received in college was from my English Professor, (Creative Writing, Poetry) Patrica Clark Smith: "That's a fine poem, Johnny, a fine poem." The poem was, "North to Santa Fe, and Back". It was about visiting my dad's grave in the Santa Fe National Cemetery.
I would not have been a Loyalist and yes, I would support a violent revolution.
No cult but I was an AF C-130 aircrew member. (Navigator.)
Smell: Baking bread. Mom could bake some good bread. Also, the smell of carne adovada and pinto beans cooking. Every once in a while I get a faint whiff of cigarette smoke - It is dad checking on me, I'm sure.
I have cut out all added sugar except for my morning coffee, no soda or candy or cookies, and limit desert to maybe once a week. I also ride my ebike when the weather allows, and do a video yoga session three times a week.
A cold front is supposed to hit Sunday. I'm going out tomorrow to preposition for a quick Saturday javelina hunt. It will be the first time I have hunted since the early 80's, and the first time I have hunted javelin. I'm tempted to use my M1 Carbine but will probably go with the Colt M4 in 5.56. Luckily you can use FMJ on the javelin because the only soft nose ammo I have is for a 30-30 and my Marlin 336 needs to see a gunsmith.
@Quaestor
George Carlin did a set about how "shell shocked" evolved to "PTSD," and how "colored people" became toxic, and later in the progression of acceptable terms, "people of color" became PC.
Also, I've noticed that "brown people" seems to be a new (and for the moment) acceptable term; let's see how long that lasts.
Mutaman said...
President Biden: "We've now purchased enough vaccine supply to vaccinate all Americans."
You can not be this stupid...
President Biden: "We've now purchased enough vaccine supply to vaccinate all Americans."
Is that an actual quote? What he did was place an order. I did that all my professional life with thousands of 30 sec phone calls. I did that the last time I entered the Althouse Amazon Portal. That's actually impressive for Joe, though, that he could make a few phone calls.
The bottom line in the black community in the big Dem cities is: no vaccinations, no schools. I'd like to think there's going to be big mobilization on behalf of those communities. I'd like to think that glib lies to the effect that "That's how they want it in those communities" aren't going to fly among the Woke. I'd like to see a campaign to explain the vaccines. I'd like to see cities dig in to get the schools open. I'd like to think politicians really fear how those communities might vote if they get left behind in this awful way. But these days I'm not seeing much I like and this horrible, horrible treatment of the black community is line with all the rest of the initiatives of The Elect.
I missed the cult question in the original post! No, I wouldn't join a cult, though if I could get in at Castle Anthrax...... who knows.
"Hello, is this Moderna? I'm Jill Biden, my sister. I'd like to order 700 vaccines for uh, the thing.... Come on man! You got my credit card number!"
Not a lot of free flowing hate tonight. Where have you gone Michael K?
Thanks for the link, Yancy. Super vid!
I missed the cult question in the original post! No, I wouldn't join a cult, though if I could get in at Castle Anthrax...... who knows.
Zootism.
Requires a zoot suit with a reet pleat.
Unless you dedicate your soul to Dingo. (She's in charge of Doctors Piglet and Winston, btw.) Just lie back and submit.
I'm convinced more now, than when I moved to FL two years ago, that the future of this nation will be decided by State Governors. I'm proud that I have one of the best. Yesterday, Biden's earpiece threatened to impose travel restrictions on FL for being successful in managing normal life and Covid far better than any of the lockdown states. DeSantis brushed Biden's earpiece back, the last statement from Biden's earpiece indicated that no travel restrictions are being considered.
Some N-Words
nabalism nabalitic nacarat nacelle nacket nacre nacreous nadir naevous naevus nagor naiant nail nailage nainsook naissance naissant nakedize nancifully nanism nanity nanization nankeen nanocephalous nanoid naology naos napaea napifolious napiform napoh napoo nappe nappe napper narcocracy narcohypnia narcolepsy narcology narcomancy narcomania narcose nares narial naricorn nariform narquois narratology narrischkeit narrowback narrowcast narthecal narthex nary nasal nasard
Don Imus could have profited from learning the word napifolious.
Narr said...
"Can a rich country become a shit-hole country at warp speed?"
The current example is oil rich Venezuela.
I wrote a few poems when I was younger. These days I'm more interested in writing songs.
https://www.soundclick.com/music/songInfo.cfm?songID=6325067
100th comment! Our 29th anniversary is tomorrow, long strange trip but very blessed.
I pulled a twisted up lamb out of a ewe
That's a helluva way to tenderize meat.
and how "colored people" became toxic, and later in the progression of acceptable terms, "people of color" became PC.
From low information attribute: "colored people" to identity defined by skin color: "people of color". Progress is an unqualified monotonic function: one step forward, two steps backward.
@Hoodlum, please accept my congratulations as well.
@Althouse, if you haven’t watched. the Senate’s show trial then from whence your critiques of Trump’s lawyers? Oh, and I read that the Democrats have introduced into the record the old claim that Trump claimed there were “good people” among the neo-Nazis in Charlottesville. Also introduced a doctored video of the mob actions into the record. Comments?
Windows open and 65 degrees this morning. It's the best time of year to be here.
I'm going to plug Saadar and Marshall and their Realignment podcast for the rest of the early risers out there. If you like the politics, these enterprising and informative young men deliver some excellent content and interesting takes. They drop these early AM and I am usually listening to them (when available) while scrolling the overnights here at AA. Recommended. Here's their pod from yesterday morning - on China and industrial/state espionage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJLnN6wMiKo&ab_channel=TheRealignment
Joe Smith said...
Where's Hunter's Laptop?
And what was on Wiener's laptop?
The people who work for us won't tell us...
2/11/21, 10:49 PM
And why the cover up of Seth Rich??
The silly, high-school level circumlocution of using "n-word" has its charms.
Everyone knows what you are saying. Principal Poop said you can't say it. So, like typical teenagers, you say it without saying it. But you never said it, so you can't be sent to detention. Meanwhile, the high school administration hopes you'll move on to something else.
Your classmate Karen is all upset. Her Mom (Big Karen) has written to the school board. The wiseacre on the school board said he doesn't know what Big Karen is talking about, and could she be more specific? Vicious crosstalk comedy routine worthy of Lou Costello being interviewed by George Carlin follows.
Or, you could just agree that it is a word with a horrible history that has been printed over 6,100 times in the NYT, and using it as an epithet is fraught with danger. A polite person doesn't call another that name, and if you do, be prepared at best to get the deep freeze. Great writers from Mark Twain to Joseph Conrad to Flannery OÇonnor to James Baldwin to Randall Kennedy have used it for effect and to reflect reality.
None of that impacts Althouse and the rules she must impose to keep this blog going. And she has said that she is personally deeply opposed to using that actual word for reasons she has clearly stated.
That is good enough for me.
-2, feels like -2, this morning. I'm skipping the dawn walk today.
I wrote poems to my girlfriend, now mrs. stevew, back in the day. I experimented with rhyming and non-rhyming styles. Went heavy on symbolism and metaphor. Always telling a story, not always a love story. They were not terrible, but certainly nothing I would have shared with anyone other than mrs. stevew. Shortly after we married she explained that she never understood poetry even though she loved that I wrote them for her. So I stopped except for the occasions of her birthday and our anniversary.
I would have participated in the American Revolution, would not have been a Loyalist.
Might have watched the impeachment proceedings if I thought it would have been a fair trial, but it never would be that so I skipped it.
In about 1976 I was recruited by the Church of Scientology. At the age of 19 I was open to listening to their pitch. They gave me a book. But never having been a joiner of clubs and such I passed on the offer. They all seemed very nice though.
So Biden has purchased enough vaccine for all Americans? Funny, there's a shortage where I live. Check's in the mail, so to speak?
Very pleased to hear about the new baby. Congratulations, Hoodlum Doodlum.
Coincidentally, not two minutes before reading about Hoodlum’s baby, I was thinking to myself that it would be good for me to see a baby today: I’m in hospice sitting next to my Mom, who is breathing her last as I type this.
She had a massive stroke on Friday morning a week ago. I woke up to bring her her morning coffee and she was non-responsive.
She was looking forward to watching the Super Bowl with my wife and me and rooting for Tom Brady. So we did that.
Took her off life support the next day.
So... circle of life, eh?
RIP Kathleen Mary Mateer (neé Egan) 1947-2021
See you soon, Mom!
Stephens wrote a good column but ruined it with the obligatory slap at President Trump. Lefties just can't help themselves.
I’ve listened to about 3 seconds of the joke of an impeachment trial. When I heard Eric Swalwell, I switched channels.
The Dems have utter contempt for the American people to appoint as a House Manager a guy who was fucking a China spy. The CCP knows they own us.
I met Swalwell. Over at Power Line I wrote, “He gives me the smarmy and sleazy politician vibe. Think Senator Geary in Godfather, Part II.”
For once, DDB was right.
Lesseee. The smell of sedge on a summer day. Brings back memories of canoeing in Canada. Cult? No. I'm too egotistical to join any cult. I'd blindly follow me if I wasn't such an asshole. Violent revolution? I'm probably too old to be much use, but if we're fighting for our natural rights , I'm in. Just cut back on carbs and fats. I do eat fruit though. Lots of salads and chicken and fish.
Question for the group.
What is the optimal number of magazines for a pistol? If you're carrying and if you're not carrying. These are, of course, theoretical pistols and magazines.
Thanks all for comments: so many histories, outlooks, paths forward. Even (especially) in mundane or artless form your words glow with life. Even at this distance, mere words give off a sensible heat on this cold winter’s night. We are not strangers here.
Jason @ 5:25: prayers up.
The family lore is that my great-great grandfather (born in 1809) would never talk about his father's family, who lived in the Connecticut River Valley, although he was proud of his mother's family, saying he was from good Revolutionary War stock through her. We always thought that his father's family were counterfeiters or horse thieves. It appears that it was worse. His grandfather (my great-great-great-great grandfather) apparently fought for the British in Rhode Island, was thrown into jail in Hartford at the end of the war for six months, and emigrated to Canada (York Township), although his sons stayed here in up-state New York. Apparently, if I were a Canadian citizen, I could put UE after my name as a descendent of a United Empire Loyalist.
I suppose the old boy had his reasons, but I prefer life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness to peace, order, and good government (the ideals of the British North American Act).
Repeating the Charlottesville Lie but putting it in North Carolina and when correcting the town put it in West Virginia. They can't even lie correctly
“[Swalwell] gives me the smarmy and sleazy politician vibe. Think Senator Geary in Godfather, Part II.”
He'll go far in politics. Look forward to Sen. Swalwell. We have Durbin in IL. He is the worst.
Sorry but Schumer is in class all by himself.
I am in continued amazement the good citizens *cough* of New York elect slime balls such as the aforementioned senator and governors like Cuomo. I know they have a D beside their name but find somebody with a nanoparticle of charisma.
Amadeus 48 said...
“[Swalwell] gives me the smarmy and sleazy politician vibe. Think Senator Geary in Godfather, Part II.”
He'll go far in politics. Look forward to Sen. Swalwell.
Swalwell has a terrible record of failures, embarrassments, and betrayals, yet no consequences. He's being protected, an extreme case of failing up. My only question is, will we ever find out why?
Humperdink said...Sorry but Schumer is in class all by himself.
I am in continued amazement the good citizens *cough* of New York elect slime balls such as the aforementioned senator and governors like Cuomo
I haven't paid much attention to Schumer in a long time, but when he got his start, he was a very talented pol who knew what his constituents wanted. He was Clinton without the sexual baggage. And he was an old-style politician. The kind who will beat you up on the floor all day, then go out with you for drinks after. It wasn't personal.
20 years later, Schumer may be a shell of that man, but he's been in office a so long, he'll be there till he dies.
Mom's braided bread loaf and girls- first Gee Your Hair Smells Terrific, then White Linen, then after stepping out of the shower
Is that group with Zut in the castle a cult? I'd look into that one...
Two mags total if you pocket carry one. three's okay if you can hide the mag holder. I fugure if I need more I'm in a fight I won't win or battlefield pickup will become an option.
Been lucky so far but too much change in a short isolated period of time for me.
I've been grinding with an excellent coach on the golf swing. Still inconsistent but I'm thinking of competition again...
You get the dirty limerick I'm thinking of...
The bobcats have been in the yard. Squirrels not happy. Strutting around like house cats . They're walking around the foundation of the house, like looking to den or something. Tomorrow they might meow to come in...
HoodlumDoodlum said...
4 days ago she gave birth to our daughter--bit of a surprise since she was only 26 weeks along.gvbf Both my girls are doing well but it's been an eventful few weeks!
February 8, 1966, my brother and his wife had a similar experience except it was twin boys at 2 lbs 13 OZ apiece. Now they are fathers (one a grandfather), husbands, runners (one a Ironman competitor) and computer programmers with decades of experience. My brother and his wife both quit smoking (and stayed quit) so they could come home sooner. There was a brief flirtation with goats milk that sparks a memory of how bad goats milk smells after being spit up by a baby. Can't promise there won't be bumps in the road, but babies (those tiny creatures) can be incredibly tough when need be.
My Dad was a steelworker who had to quit high school to support brothers. He was always a reader but his vocabulary/grammar reflected his lack of education. After retirement, my mother. who had had some college, got him playing Scrabble. They always kept the letter tiles in a Royal Crown bag and kept a running total each year of the games played. Dad's improved grammar and vocabulary were evident and he eventually started writing poetry.
Both my parents are gone now, but I have often wondered often how each would have reacted to this COVID pandemic. I wrote a short story based on how I thought Dad would have reacted and realized that poetry - but from his voice - had to be included. So the last time I wrote poetry was in December.
Never wanted to join a cult, but I am Mormon so I have often been accused of being in a cult.
I have not been watching the "trial". Had they simply gone for a censure, I may have been able to support that, but impeachment is the wrong tool. Words have meaning and they fail with the word "incitement" in my opinion.
The weather here has been snow on the ground and in the teens for over a week with another week to 10 days of it to go. Praying for an early spring.
@tim maguire ... Schumer may be an awesome politico, but my point was his manner and presentation for the nationwide audience. He is the senate majority and therefore his face is front and center. Captivating he is not.
As an aside, I feel badly for the blond chick who is always seated at his right when he is at the senate podium.
Not really a diet, but I do intermittent fasting. For those that are unaware, you consume food in an 8 hour window. For me, that's noon to 8PM. Waiting until noon to eat is a little tough the first few days, but then it becomes normal. IF helps control blood sugar if that's an issue for you.
I also use an app called LoseIt! to keep track of my calorie intake. Easy to use.
Poetry? I wrote this for an Althouse post where she asked for examples of Clerihew:
Ann Althouse
Larry's her spouse.
He helps with blogging.
And the sink when clogging.
I started writing poetry in high school when a girl I fancied told me she liked poetry. Most of it was crap but it served its purpose. She was my very first real girlfriend. It didn't last long (most high school romances don't) and I was devastated when she broke up with me. In a fit of pique, I ran against her for Student Council president and lost. Many, many years later, she flew in from the north to attend our 40th high school reunion. She never came to the earlier ones. She told me the only reason she came was to see me again. That meant a lot. The morning after the reunion, we met on a local beach and talked for a few hours. We both left with peace in our souls, knowing that we learned from all our choices so many years ago.
THEOLDMAN
Lost 15 pounds in three months with this not-too-unpleasant diet: No bread, no potatoes, no desserts, no fruit juice. I did cheat a bit on the "no desserts" part.
@rehajm, the bobcats are looking for places where field mice have made winter burrows next to your house.
Mice? Sonofabitch. I know they are around. My exterminator is supposed to be alert and diligent for signs of them near the house.
Hopefully the cats are hungry...
I love the smell of napalm in the morning. It smells like...victory!
Ken B @10:08: I agree with most of your appraisal but, you see, while I'm allowed to talk about my mamma, you're not. Besides, yo mamma sucks. ;-D
He lies, he cheats, I’m sure he’d steal if he knew he’d go scot free.
In order to avoid pain he gives all his pain to me.
When it’s his turn to buy the round, he tiptoes out the door.
He’s clearly dear to only me, but he’s found at least two more.
Moral of the poem: don’t fall in love with a British accent. I blame the Beatles.
Jason, you gave your Mom a beautiful eulogy. She knows it.
Brave man to sit between life and death and speak back to it.
@jason, poignant moment. I am sorry for your loss. The exact same thing happened to dear friends last week. They knew That Mom’s worst nightmare would be to linger in a twilight of not really living, so they opted for hospice. What makes it so agonising is that the docs always have one more surgery up their sleeve— nothing that could reverse the condition, but might restore a toe wiggle. Takes a lot of resolve to stand firm and let her go. Eternal rest grant unto her.
The sun,
The clouds,
The trees,
The stones.
And underneath,
Dinosaur bones.
Fresh baked bread is always a winner, but the scent of my wife's hair after being out in the rain is a close personal favorite.
Raised Tridentine Roman Catholic after Vatican II, so sorta culty, or at least heretical.
I have supported violent revolutions, anti-communist ones, and would have supported separation from Britain after reading the Declaration of Independence.
Optifast liquid diet for 3 months can lose you 90 pounds. It did for me. Women lose weight much more slowly than men on Optifast for reasons biological, not political. One woman in my group says she only continued on the diet by mixing vodka with her evening milkshake.
Let me add that when you decide political issues, asking yourself if individual rights and personal liberty are increased by your decision, or not, is always a good guide to the correct thing to do.
Hoodlum Doodlum, congratulations. I skim comments most days but don't comment for obvious reasons. My wife and I got back to together after 25 years apart.
Jason, sorry for your loss. My former partner's wife died a week ago and my wife is having a hard time with it.
Thanks for the AllenS update FullMoon. Been wondering about my fellow NoWI native, but thought I might have missed some grim news and didn't want to throw a clunker out into the conversation by asking.
Congratulatons, Hoodlum! Sounds like you have plenty going on. Enjoy!
Caroline: lovely essay. Could go straight to publishing.
Jason, beautiful thoughts on a terrible loss. My condolences.
Born and raised Mormon. Some say it's a cult. Mission, graduated BYU, then left. That was 20 years ago. Entire family and extended family of lots and lots of people are still in it. Weird.
I'm having a lot of success losing weight using Noom. 21 pounds in just under three months. It doesn't feel restrictive. It's largely about mindfulness regarding intake; the app makes logging meals pretty easy. No foods are restricted per se, but they are classified as being green, yellow or red depending on their calorie density (fruits and veggies are green, liquor and chocolate are red, etc.) I read about 5-10 minutes of the daily lessons posted at the app.
I have written bad poetry after a breakup, but I am too practical to really enjoy it. The smell of green apple takes me back to my high school days when I believed that a new shampoo and Bonne Bell lip gloss would turn me into a high school glamor queen (it never happened). My Loyalist ancestor left his property in Virginia for his property in Kentucky but was accidentally killed by one of his sons on the way. Ironically, the rest of the family made it to Kentucky where they were captured by the British and forced marched first to Detroit and then to Canada for the remainder of the war, not being released until 1783. My mother's ancestor's, however, were all staunch Revolutionary soldiers. Yancey, one of my many times great-grandmothers married Ephraim Hatfield in SW Virginia after her husband had been killed by Indians in Haysi and had 6 children with him.
Thanks again, everyone, for the well-wishes and stories of encouragement!
Amadeus 48
I also have ancestors from the Connecticut River Valley, from both Massachusetts and Connecticut, and from upstate New York.
I am not aware of any Loyalists.
You might be interested in (and perhaps are already aware of) the series Turn on AMC, about Washington’s secret spy ring on Long Island. This was after Nathan Hale’s death.
Fox News, I see on their website, did a recent piece on this:
https://www.foxnews.com/media/nation-kilmeade-culper-spy-ring-washington-revolutionary-war
Washington’s Spies: America’s First Spy Ring, is the book Turn was based on.
A more recent book, The Martyr and the Traitor, is about Nathan Hale and Moses Dunbar, who were both from Connecticut and were both hanged, but on opposite sides in the war.
Like Hale, ancestors of mine include “Elder”John Strong and his wife Abigail. Elder John was a tanner by trade, and the ruling elder at the Congregational church in Northampton, Massachusetts. The first preacher was Richard Mather (Cotton’s uncle I believe), the second was Solomon Stoddard, a big advocate of the “half way covenant” and known as the “pope of the Connecticut River Valley,” and the third was Stoddard’s grandson and an important leader of the Great Awakening, Jonathan Edwards.
Elder John and Abigail had 16 children and I think John had 2 with his first wife, who I believe died either shortly after arriving here or shortly before.
My Strong ancestor who fought for the Revolution lived in New York. But other Strong ancestors still lived in Coventry, Connecticut, where Nathan Hale was from.
Even if not directly about ancestors, I find books such as those above provide context about what their lives were like and culture as it has passed through the generations.
>>Clerihew
Thanks. I was trying to remember that term. The classic example to me has always been:
Sir Humphrey Davey
Abominated gravy
He lived in the odium
Of having discovered sodium
One or two of those are probably the nearest I've ever come to writing poetry. The only one I can remember is:
Max von Plack
Attacked and sank
With a quizzical, physical touch
He asked "How much?"
--gpm
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