Althouse: Backyard snowdrops.

March 24, 2023

Backyard snowdrops.

Open thread in the comments.

29 comments:

Jupiter said...: The problem we don't talk about.; 3/24/23, 6:56 PM
gilbar said...: no flowers over here in northeast iowa yet.. Grass thinking about getting green though; 3/24/23, 7:04 PM
Political Junkie said...: Dave B - Who will it be tonight, Creighton or Princeton?; 3/24/23, 7:23 PM
Chuck said...: The Drudge Report: PSYCHO DON

In slightly related news; I understand, from extended, repeated personal experience that there are few things that trigger even the most casual Trump voter quite like... "Peter Strzok."

Well... trigger alert!
Lololololololol.; 3/24/23, 7:36 PM
donald said...: Flop Tide Flop.; 3/24/23, 8:03 PM
Drago said...: Have we received confirmation yet that the "envelope" containing "white powder" as a supposed "threat" to Alvin Bragg was mailed from the 7th floor of FBI Headquarters and contained a note which read "This is MAGA Country!"?; 3/24/23, 8:21 PM
Big Mike said...: Hard on the heels of efforts to ban gas stoves comes rumblings of banning air conditioners. By 2024 Joe Biden will be the most hated man in America.; 3/24/23, 8:45 PM
Lem the artificially intelligent said...: About that Nick Cave v ChatGPT songwriting post earlier.

The good song is always rushing forward. It annihilates..."
"... to some degree, the songs that you’d previously written, because you are moving forward all the time. That’s what the creative impulse is—it’s both creative and destructive and is always one step ahead of you.

An example 'creation' from a 1983 hit song by Chaka Khan - Ain't Nobody

Ain't nobody
Loves me better
Makes me happy
Makes me feel this way
Ain't nobody
Loves me better than you

And now, in 2023, 30 years later, a song by Miley Cyrus - Flowers, captures what some people might call the 'destructive' spirit of today.

I can buy myself flowers
Write my name in the sand
Talk to myself for hours
Say things you don't understand
I can take myself dancing
And I can hold my own hand
Yeah, I can love me better than you can

While some people hear defiance in the Myley song, I hear sadness.; 3/24/23, 8:57 PM
Lem the artificially intelligent said...: Bruce did it the right way (Bruce didn't compete against women) and for that, Caitlin must be punished?

link to reddit post; 3/24/23, 9:43 PM
Lem the artificially intelligent said...: State of the modern film industry

Top Gun 2 is not in theaters anymore?; 3/24/23, 9:49 PM
Dustbunny said...: That looks grim.; 3/24/23, 10:38 PM
Dave Begley said...: Down goes Princeton!; 3/24/23, 11:05 PM
rcommal said...: My son shared with me a wayback-machine thing.

“ “A Chip Off The Old Block

This has been a father-son day. While I've been blogging, editing some foreign-policy articles, doing a (very little) bit more on our home re-arranging project, mapping out plans for some special events I need to organize, and tending to my gray roots, the "boys" have been running errands, eating out, and seeing "The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe." (My husband has been reading the whole series to our son for several months now.)

They came home all male-bondy and in-jokey, of course (just the sort of thing a mommy/wife loves to see!).

Which, I suppose, explains why my husband, on being asked for a snack by my son while he played in our sunroom, DH casually placed a small bowl of wasabi-coated dried peas on my son's little snack table.

(Now, lest you get all hot and bothered about whether this is inappropriate, please be aware that my son has quite the taste, for his age, for the spicy--like his dad and even his mom, by most people's standards. I've come to believe that's genetic, to a degree. And these aren't actually all that spicy. Also, my son has a taste for unusual things: If asked to name favorite foods, he'll include such things as seaweed salad, mixed spicy greens, and falafel, and his very favorite food--outside of candy--is broccoli, and has been for years.)

I found DH standing in the shadows in the dining room, peering through the window to the sunroom, waiting for a reaction.

My son pulled out a couple of the peas and ate them somewhat absent-mindedly. After a few seconds, his eyes grew a bit larger (significantly, though, no tearing of any kind). He examined the bowl and its contents closely, then took a small pawful and popped them in his mouth.

"Daaaaaad! Get in here! Hottttt!" (But swallowed every bit and then smiled.)

"You got me, Dad!" (Laughter--followed by a dose of chocolate.)

Here's the reason I'm blogging about this:

A bit later, my son wandered into the kitchen and started to rummage through some items on the kitchen table.

"What are you doing?!" I asked, trying to figure out why the heck he'd started to peel an old, pungent onion that I'd slated for some home-made soup I'm making tomorrow, since I knew it would be too sharp for any raw use.

"Getting a snack for daddy," he replied, with that sly innocence which only kids of his age can carry off.

What a big laugh emanated from the sunroom just a few minutes later!

Gamely, my husband cut off thin slices and ate them with exaggerated gusto.

But you know there's a twist, right? As DH did so, he said, "Wow! These are those special sugar onions! Mmmmmmm."

After about five bites, son could stand it no longer. "Dad, can't you share it with me?"

Well, of course dad could! Now, this bite ended in the trash, and it was pretty clear that my son--though laughing--was already planning Round III.

Blood really does tell, doesn't it, sometimes? My father-in-law has the exact same sense of humor as my husband ... and, as is now clear, as my son does as well.

And off to bed my tyke went, happily detailing the kinds of pranks we all could pull in the future.

Sometimes, life is good.” - Readeriam blog, December 2005; 3/25/23, 1:28 AM
gadfly said...: Ok, white wildflowers intermixed with spring groundcover otherwise known as dead leaves. I will shortly have blue and purple wildflowers intermixed with snowdrops growing to be followed by tulips popping up through the sod.

And when the wildflowers disappear, the kid next door runs my mulching mower over the yard. Wind whirling around in a heavily wooded neighborhood brings late-falling pin oak leaves from all yards around.; 3/25/23, 1:32 AM
gadfly said...: Jupiter:
Funded by radical millionaires, VDARE is an American far-right website promoting opposition to immigration to the United States. It is associated with white supremacy, white nationalism, and the alt-right.

I respect your right to expose yourself to these minority views, but you are not listening to normal people.; 3/25/23, 1:49 AM
Big Mike said...: A little less chortling, please, Dave. Some of us were hoping Cinderella’s dance would last just a little longer.

I cannot imagine that there is an unblown bracket left anywhere in the US of A. The highest seed left is #2 Texas. Plus two threes, a four, two fives, and apparently wildly under-seeded #6 Creighton and #9 Florida Atlantic.

Okay, I gotta say it. Go Blue Jays!; 3/25/23, 3:19 AM
Big Mike said...: This comment has been removed by the author.; 3/25/23, 3:21 AM
wendybar said...: Notice the party of "Environmentalism" doesn't care about whales and dolphins anymore??

"If the offshore farms are not a problem for marine mammals, then a detailed environmental impact assessment should confirm that determination…as long as it is conducted based on real science and not politically-driven, narrative science."

https://legalinsurrection.com/2023/03/house-republicans-call-for-halt-to-offshore-wind-projects/; 3/25/23, 3:58 AM
wendybar said...: "At publishing time, Hunter Biden was reportedly asking his lawyers about this loophole only to be told it's not an option due to the fact that he's legitimately guilty of obscenely horrible crimes."

https://babylonbee.com/news/trump-exploits-little-known-legal-loophole-where-you-avoid-indictment-by-not-committing-a-crime; 3/25/23, 6:11 AM
Ann Althouse said...: Congratulations, Dave.; 3/25/23, 6:20 AM
Humperdink said...: My grandson tells me he has Creighton all the way in his bracket.; 3/25/23, 6:35 AM
alanc709 said...: "Chuck said...
The Drudge Report: PSYCHO DON

In slightly related news; I understand, from extended, repeated personal experience that there are few things that trigger even the most casual Trump voter quite like... "Peter Strzok."

Well... trigger alert!
Lololololololol."

Hadn't Rolling Stone written about this yet, or couldn't you find anyone less creditable? Did you see the Babylon Bee, btw Mr. Chuck? https://babylonbee.com/news/trump-exploits-little-known-legal-loophole-where-you-avoid-indictment-by-not-committing-a-crime; 3/25/23, 7:35 AM
Scott Patton said...: Just commented on a future post regarding precarious housing, likening the subject house to the one in Amazon series "Bosch". I liked the series. Also, it was fresh in mind because recently the actor that played the chief, Lance Reddick, just passed away at 60. What a shame.
Anyway, there is a sequel where Bosch's daughter joins the force. At first look it's not nearly as good as the original series. The actress playing the daughter Maddy is so frail that the entire premise is just too implausible. A strong wind would aid and and abet the getaway of her suspect. Maybe she'll hit the gym and put on 40 or 50 lbs for the second season.; 3/25/23, 7:52 AM
Mike of Snoqualmie said...: We got snow last night. It stuck on the straw, hogs fuel and grass but not bare ground. Just a thin coating.; 3/25/23, 8:29 AM
Big Mike said...: Seen on Instapundit:

"If the managers of [Silicon Valley Bank] knew the difference between a banking textbook and an L.L. Bean catalog, SVB would have never bought securities so sensitive to interest rates w/o hedging those risks."

"...it was like a rock, only dumber."; 3/25/23, 9:40 AM
Jupiter said...: "I respect your right to expose yourself to these minority views, but you are not listening to normal people."

Gadfly, the article says that 40 white people were killed by black people in the US during a single month, which happened to be "Black History Month", the shortest one. There are photographs and links to news accounts. Are you suggesting that it is not true? Of course its true, and you know full well it's true, and there will be another 40 this month. If the only place you have encountered that information is Vdare, then the news sources you employ are inferior to Vdare. Clearly.; 3/25/23, 10:56 AM
Jupiter said...: "Funded by radical millionaires, VDARE is an American far-right website promoting opposition to immigration to the United States. It is associated with white supremacy, white nationalism, and the alt-right."

I assume you're quoting the "baseless, discredited" SPLC. FYI, Vdare has a website, but it is a lot more than a website. It is "far-right" because of course it is. Has anyone ever heard anything called "near-right"? It opposes illegal immigration. And "is associated" is a weasel phrase. Associated how? In your fevered imagination?; 3/25/23, 11:01 AM
Jupiter said...: Oh, look! Must be March!; 3/25/23, 11:26 AM
farmgirl said...: Rcommal- :0)
I like the “sometimes life is good” outlook much better than my standard: “life is hard.”

Gotta remember that. The Wayback Machine- for sure.; 3/25/23, 8:36 PM