(Scott Meyer’s website)
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If it weren’t for pet posts and furries, there wouldn’t have been any happy threads this past week, would there?
Anybody got plans to make their weekend less depressing?
Reader Interactions
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ABL
FIRST!
(I bet people frown upon that here.)
Ija
Dressing up as a furry rabbit seems like a nice, relaxing idea. Kidding. I’m baking and eating lots and lots of pies this weekend.
morzer
I intend to tell Comcast to fuck themselves backwards with a self-automating jackhammer. Then, I shall switch to RCN.
Small steps towards happiness, but still……
Oh, and something about writing a novel.
And good coffee.
piratedan
after the NFL and college hoops, thinking about a Farscape marathon here…because I finally broke down and got the DVD’s….
stuckinred
Almost time to take the pups to the bakery for their morning sniff! Yes with pigskin and the hoop!
eemom
@ABL:
good ABL, do you know on what unspeakable blog that practice ORIGINATED??
@stuckinred:
checked out the thread at the unspeakable place that you mentioned the other day. Then went for a decontamination scrub at the local nuclear power plant.
DO wish I could have seen that post of yours that sent poor old eunuch-in-waiting “RBG” into a moderating frenzy though. Tee hee.
Dave in ME
Spinning class this morning, xc skiing this afternoon, and then dinner at my gf’s restaurant. After that who knows, maybe get together with my girls and do something outside but it is f’ing cold in ME right now.
Oh and keep reading BJ. This place has become a welcome respite from my fucked up life situation and the larger fucked up world!
Ija
So I posted this in last night’s open thread, but it was late at night, so few people probably saw it. Cross posting it here, hope it’s okay.
Fellow BJers, I have a weird request, but please bear with me. Slate Audio Book Club is allowing readers to vote for the book they will discuss in the month of February. The book club is basically just three Slate writers talking about the book, and you can download the podcast. I really, really want to hear them talk about The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell, which is my favorite book of 2010 (and a book Obama read during his recent vacation). Currently the book is getting its ass kicked by Room by Emma Donoghue, a book I also read and found tedious.
So, if you guys want to make a fellow commenter really, really happy, I would appreciate it if you could go to this page and vote for The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (scroll down about halfway down the page to vote). Of course, if you have your own favorite book among the choices, you should vote for that instead.
http://www.slate.com/id/2280713/
I know, I know, what am I doing still reading Slate. But the book club is usually pretty decent, maybe because the people involved are the culture writers, not the people from the contrarian political side. Here is a link to past podcasts of the book club in case anybody is interested. They talked about Freedom recently.
http://media.slate.com/media/s…..C/abc1.xml
Thanks for your help. If this is inappropriate, I apologize.
A little background about The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet. It’s basically a book about a Dutch trader in Japan at the end of the 18th century who fell in love with a Japanese woman. My first impression was, yeah yeah, another book about a white guy coming to the Orient and falling in love with a cherry blossom beauty, how tedious. But Mitchell managed to overcome the limitations of the genre through his plot and gorgeous writing. The Japanese characters are equally fleshed out as the white guys. In fact, the title is probably pretty misleading, since there are long stretches of the novel where Jacob disappears completely and it’s all about the Japanese characters. It’s a wonderful book, and I’m not usually into historical fiction. So that’s my pitch for the book. Here are links to some reviews. Michiko Kakutani likes it, so there’s that. (Although that might be a turnoff to some people).
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06…..9book.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07…..ers-t.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..04512.html
Please let me know if this is considered inappropriate electioneering or something, and I’ll request deletion. Thanks everyone, and have a nice weekend.
dan
@Dave in ME: Fucked up life situation? You get to go to the gym, then cross country skiing, and your girlfriend has a restaurant? And you live in Maine? Cry me a fuckin’ river.
Ija
So I posted this in last night’s open thread, but it was late at night, so few people probably saw it. Cross posting it here, hope it’s okay.
Fellow BJers, I have a weird request, but please bear with me. Slate Audio Book Club is allowing readers to vote for the book they will discuss in the month of February. The book club is basically just three Slate writers talking about the book, and you can download the podcast. I really, really want to hear them talk about The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell, which is my favorite book of 2010 (and a book Obama read during his recent vacation). Currently the book is getting its ass kicked by Room by Emma Donoghue, a book I also read and found tedious.
So, if you guys want to make a fellow commenter really, really happy, I would appreciate it if you could go to this page and vote for The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet (scroll down about halfway down the page to vote). Of course, if you have your own favorite book among the choices, you should vote for that instead.
http://www.slate.com/id/2280713/
I know, I know, what am I doing still reading Slate. But the book club is usually pretty decent, maybe because the people involved are the culture writers, not the people from the contrarian political side. Here is a link to past podcasts of the book club in case anybody is interested. They talked about Freedom recently.
http://media.slate.com/media/s…..C/abc1.xml
Please let me know if this is considered inappropriate electioneering or something, and I’ll request deletion. Thanks everyone, and have a nice weekend.
Ija
A little background about The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet. It’s basically a book about a Dutch trader in Japan at the end of the 18th century who fell in love with a Japanese woman. My first impression was, yeah yeah, another book about a white guy coming to the Orient and falling in love with a cherry blossom beauty, how tedious. But Mitchell managed to overcome the limitations of the genre through his plot and gorgeous writing. The Japanese characters are equally fleshed out as the white guys. In fact, the title is probably pretty misleading, since there are long stretches of the novel where Jacob disappears completely and it’s all about the Japanese characters. It’s a wonderful book, and I’m not usually into historical fiction. So that’s my pitch for the book. Here are links to some reviews. Michiko Kakutani likes it, so there’s that. (Although that might be a turnoff to some people).
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06…..9book.html
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07…..ers-t.html
http://www.washingtonpost.com/…..04512.html
dan
As for plans to make the weekend less depressing, its guinea pig day. I’m gonna get a guinea pig for the kids. My wife will scream and yell, so it will be stressful, but ultimately life will be less depressing, especially for the kids. I can’t speak for the guinea pig.
dan
lja, you are trying to hijack this thread an fly it into Slate.
gene108
Not really.
I’m about to do some much needed cleaning to my place. Then I’m going to hunker down with home work (gone back to school for my MBA) and then go to work tomorrow (yay, working on weekends…not).
On the bright side, if I get enough stuff done, I’ll try to go see a movie.
On the unlucky side, I’m post #13 :-(
Montysano
My plan is: the local fresh-roasted Tanzanian coffee in the morning, some good Pinot (and lots of it) at night. In between: “The King’s Speech”, and probably some P-Funk on the turntable.
Phyllis
We are going to take advantage of the first pretty Saturday in weeks to grab a meal at the Blue Marlin in Columbia SC, do some furniture shopping and finish off our ‘odds and ends we need for the new place’ list.
Tomorrow and Monday? I plan to park it in my chair and finish Hellhound on His Trail by Hampton Sides about James Earl Ray and then start and attempt to finish Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand. They’re library books that are on reserve for subsequent readers, so if I don’t get them done before they’re due, who knows when I can get them back again.
And I’m going to attempt pozole for Sunday dinner.
Brachiator
Happy birthday Wikipedia, which is ten years old today. In its short existence, it has become the greatest threat to humanity since the atom bomb. Daily, hourly, it serves as a challenge and rebuke to those who prefer to remain ignorant. It is so threatening that people have sought to insert fabrications into its articles, and the most frightened have created alternative pedias that reflect their narrow world views.
When the Intertubes becomes one vast pay wall, the Wiki may be the last remnant of knowledge, a techno library of Alexandria.
Stefan
Anybody got plans to make their weekend less depressing?
I’ve got an orgy planned, so that’ll be fun.
But man, I don’t look forward to writing all those thank you notes the next day……
Ija
@dan:
Sorry! Actually I find if you just ignore everything by William Saletan, John Dickerson, Jacob Weisberg, Jack Shafer, Christopher Hitchens and Anne Applebaum, Slate isn’t that bad. Honest. You guys should try it again sometimes. It’s even better now that Mickey Kaus has departed for Newsweek. The guy replacing him (Tom Scocca) is quite good.
morzer
@Stefan:
Just have everyone wear bags over their heads… that way, you won’t be able or expected to write thank you notes… right?
Or you could all sit down and have coffee and cake instead.
Rosalita
I wish had plans that were less depressing. Seriously. It’s -2 here right now and all the snow on the roof is causing a leak in one of my bedrooms. I have to attend a wake. Boyfriend is sick with a cold. I had to put a kitteh down Thursday night. I guess I’ll spend the time in between tasks hiding under the bed. Help!!
PS the good news I do have a remaining kitteh purring on my lap so thank the FSM for him.
Matthew B.
Mayonnaise pizza is ubiquitous here in Japan. I also see lots of “dessert pizzas” — thin-crust pizza topped with banana and chocolate sauce, say, or marshmallow and crumbled Oreo cookies. At least those ones usually go without the mayonnaise.
R-Jud
So sorry about your cat, Rosalita. One of ours is ailing in his eyes and otherwise poorly. The vet didn’t seem too worried, but it’s never fun to see Zeno moping around.
We attended a funeral on Monday, learned there may be alarming health issues elsewhere in the family on Tuesday, and I started chasing a client for payment (again) on Wednesday. On Thursday morning I realized that trolls have been sneaking in the house overnight to shorten all the Bean’s clothes, so we’ve just come back from a kiddie shopping spree. Homemade bread and homemade caldo verde for lunch, and then a 10k run in the wind and rain should help.
Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen
Dog-sitting and house cleaning today. Tomorrow shall be spent in the woods looking at the remains of old buildings. So, not depressing at all to me, just proof I’m Super Geek!
@Stefan: Clean up is a right bitch as well. See you … What time does this thing start again?
Bobby Thomson
I suppose that depends on your view of kittens.
ETA: Ah, jeez, so sorry Rosalita.
Southern Beale
We’re going to see The King’s Speech this weekend if that counts.
debit
My plan this morning was to have some coffee and peruse the intertrons for amusement. That ended when I let Chloe out to pee at 6:00. She zipped out the door and around the corner of the house. I waited, then called, “Are you done? Chloe? Chloe?” And then it was a flurry of putting on my boots, grabbing my coat and flying out the door. She was well and truly gone. I don’t know if she saw a rabbit, or if she just had a hankering to scamper off, but she was gone.
I spent the next hour jogging around my neighborhood calling her, nearly in tears. Did I mention I was still in my pajamas? After I covered every block where we normally walk, I trudged home, thinking, it’s been an hour. She’ll be waiting on the front steps. She wasn’t. I walked to the back, just to check. Nope. I called a few more times, then walked back to the front, now crying. And she wiggled around the snowbank at the end of the driveway, curved into a little comma shape like she does when she thinks she’s in trouble.
I don’t know where she went, or what she did, or if she heard me calling and ignored it, but she’s not in trouble. I asked her if she wanted in, and she bounced up the front steps. She’s now sleeping next to me, all tuckered out.
And so my plans for today are to go to Petco and get a light nylon tie out line which will be attached to her collar henceforth every time she goes out to pee.
(Tomorrow is the one year anniversary of her adoption. She’s never once left the yard. Not once. Guess today had to be different.)
harlana
@Rosalita: I am sorry for your loss and also your many recent travails! Hope you will try to get some relaxation in this weekend in order to recover. Best wishes.
RAM
Well I plan to watch the Bears’ game Sunday, but I’m pretty sure that won’t qualify as “less depressing.”
harlana
@debit: Not a great way to start one’s day.
stuckinred
The entire University of Texas swim team showed up at the bakery in a bus! Go Swim Dawgs!
debit
@Rosalita: I am so sorry.
@harlana: I hadn’t had any coffee, either. But she’s back, so all is well.
harlana
In other news, I know many of you have seen me on here occasionally whining about being unemployed going on 2 years. Well, I now have a FT job, going on about 3 weeks, in a work situation that promises to be challenging, stimulating and rewarding. More than I ever hoped for. I am deeply thankful.
My shattered self-esteem is slowly being restored and I am slowly rejoining the land of the living. (Being unemployed that long basically turned me into a reclusive zombie).
It’s interesting that I have heard many anecdotes about people who finally find something after 2 years. I don’t know what that’s about
harlana
@debit: Even worse! But I’m glad she didn’t get away!
tamiedjr
Steelers game this afternoon. Which I can imagine will not be relaxing, but hopefully not depressing.
harlana
@Rosalita: I had to put 2 kitties down last summer. People would suggest, to help with my depression in general, “get outside and go running” but for some reason, that is when the tears would flow and I would be running down the street alternately crying, and then making fake smiles through tears to passersby, then back to crying. Needless to say, running didn’t help. It just plain hurts.
Ash Can
Our Christmas tree was so pretty this year that I didn’t have the heart to take it down last weekend, so that will be happening today. And we’ll still be a couple of days ahead of the deadline for bringing the tree to the local park for recycling. Apart from that, I plan on watching football, hockey, and Doctor Who at various times throughout the weekend, having date night with the husband tonight, and basically having two Saturdays in a row since both of the boyz have Monday off.
ETA @Rosalita #20: My condolences on your loss.
Phyllis
@harlana: Congrats. The same thing happened to my boyfriend-he drew his full 99 weeks of unemployment; started the new job the Monday after his benefits ran out.
frosty
My weekend just got less depressing by browsing Scott Meyer’s archives. Here’s one that’s topical: “How to talk to someone who’d depressed”
mr. whipple
@Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen:
That sounds interesting. Can you tell more?
harlana
@Phyllis: That’s great, congrats to him. Strange anomaly that, however.
debit
@harlana: Congratulations! I know what you mean about unemployment turning you into a zombie; before I my current job I was unemployed for six months. It was not fun. I laugh (bitterly) when people talk about it as it’s being on vacation.
aimai
@Southern Beale:
I really want to see that! I’m reading a very long but extremely readable book: “The Rise and Fall of the British Empire” and I just got to the part where they put on the huge, Imperial,–man, having a huge senior moment and can’t remember the word–event showcasing the industrial and cultural works from all over the empire. Apparently not only did it lose money but the King’s stammering speech made everyone angry. Plus, imperialism.
I am doing the following things to cheer up: worked with first/second graders in a local school to make valentines as part of the Martin Luther King Day of Service we are organizing for Monday. Their valentines will be delivered to local elderly people who get meals on wheels or other food deliveries. Best moment: the cranky teeny fairies with whom I was working, who wanted to keep the valentines for their own families. One of them wanted to give it to her dead grandfather. “He’s in the sky–that’s just like not being able to get out!’
Also, I’m beginning to cook for a women’s homeless shelter. And Mr. Aimai and I are going out to see a play about Freud meeting Dali tonight.
aimai
Ash Can
@harlana: That’s great about your job. I too job-hunted for two years, after I got out of grad school in the early 80s (the last time the job market tanked like it has now). Temp jobs got me through that period, but there’s nothing like job security to make you feel happy and relieved and all-around worthwhile. Congrats.
scav
Working up to coffee. May treat myself to a nap. The chilling heights of my ambition for luxurious pleasure.
Rosalita
@harlana:
Great news on the job! I’m glad you are feeling better.
harlana
@debit: Thanks! And it is especially scary in this economy, to be unemployed. Terrifying!
harlana
@Rosalita: Thank you!
morzer
@aimai:
The Great Exhibition, perhaps?
I forgot the name of Subway the other day, which caused me considerable soul-searching about whether a descent into dementia was imminent. Luckily, I show no signs of voting for the GOP, so perhaps disaster is not round the next corner.
harlana
@Ash Can: So true! I didn’t know what I had until I lost it all. I actually was temping for the last 3 years or so, unable to land anything secure. My last assignment ended after 9 months, right when the economy tanked, and then, nothing! Panic! I actually thought I would be begging for temp assignments at half my previous salary until the end of my days
morzer
http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/01/14/school-threatens-tacoma-student-for-steelers-jersey/
Time for John Cole to armor up and ride to the rescue!
Stefan
Clean up is a right bitch as well. See you … What time does this thing start again?
10:00 PM to whenever…
aimai
@morzer:
No, that was in 1851 (looked it up) this one was closer to WWII. But, yes, beginning noun loss now.
Also, Harlana, I wanted to congratulate you on your new job situation. I hope the process of healing from the last two years is fast and I wish you a lot of success and great new experiences in your job. Thank you for sharing such wonderful news with us. I have been reading and enjoying your comments for a long time and its great to think things are getting better for you.
aimai
Stefan
Just have everyone wear bags over their heads… that way, you won’t be able or expected to write thank you notes… right?
What are we, savages? I still have to write the notes — we still have some semblance of civilization, after all.
Though I suppose a generic “thank you for coming” works pretty well in this circumstance…..
Ash Can
@morzer: Two of the most important attributes for working in primary education are a sense of perspective and a sense of humor. These people obviously have neither.
Lojasmo
Snowboarding today. My son is bringing a friend, and they ski, so i thought i would be alone, but an old friend is going to be there, so i won’t! Maybe a movie tomorrow.
morzer
@Stefan:
Better than a Dear John note, I suppose….
Benjamin Cisco (mobile)
Treadmilling as we speak, house and car cleanup afterwards. This has been a long week.
morzer
@Ash Can:
I just find it hard to imagine that anyone thought this was remotely justifiable. I mean… a compulsory Seahawks Appreciation day? This is fandom and ‘roid-rage combined.
harlana
@aimai: Thank you so much for your kind wishes! In these times, I feel very fortunate to finally be employed. I had to do the whole career change thingie in the span of those two years, which was rough at my age. You just don’t realize how much your identity is wrapped up in your profession until all that is taken away. Also, learning new things is hard when your brain is old! But in the end, I think I am going to be better off in this new profession (working in the medical field) as I am surrounded by compassionate, caring people, a wonderful environment in which to thrive. Thanks again for your kind words.
El Cid
Conservatives continue to defend the 1st Amendment.
These guys sure are bold in muddying the waters.
“Ugly sounding talk” = alleging that Sarah Palin advocated murder.
And if you don’t accept that version, he’ll sue you. Ordinarily this would prompt for a quick dismissal, I would think. But you never know when the Supremes might feel like overturning some precedent.
de stijl
Trying not to obsess over one brother in the ICU puking blood, another brother being sentenced to a 4 month halfway house stint in an effort to prevent him from drinking himself to death, and an uncle in the ICU with a brain bleed. Alky bro’s Sister in law has iffy coping skills and doesn’t think that Al-Anon will be helpful. Oh yeah, my mom is freaking the fuck out.
You know how they say that time heals all things? I wish time moved faster right now.
PS – Don’t feel obligated to send me good tidings. Actually, please don’t. I’d be happier if you called your parent, sibling, child, friend and told them how much you loved them and treasured them.
harlana
@Phyllis: Yay, a fellow SCian! I am from that area, the northeast side. I love Columbia.
Ash Can
@morzer: My son’s school has special days like that, but it’s never compulsory, and that’s the way it should be. Making something non-curriculum-related compulsory defeats the purpose — it takes the fun out of it.
Ija
@El Cid:
Well, at least it’s a change from Sarah Palin who thinks that 1st Amendment means people can’t criticize her for what she says.
PurpleGirl
@harlana: Congratulations!!!!!!!!
I’ve also been unemployed over two years now, so maybe there is hope for me. And it is so easy to become a home-bound zombie.
El Cid
Other people having their 1st Amendment rights revoked include one of our Lords of the Commanding Heights of the Economy:
It is disgusting that the government is saying that Sarah Palin called for the death of these regulators. They should be sued.
El Cid
@Ija: Are you saying that Sarah Palin urged your murder?
PurpleGirl
@debit: I had one friend start to tease me about being semi-retired. I did not appreciate it.
harlana
I am so sorry to do this, as it is a very uncivil thing to say, but the Tea Party is nothing more than a bunch of shameless scumbag, white trash, dirt-eating, knuckle-dragging pieces of shit that even blue-bottle flies would avoid. What, were these people raised by wolves? WTF??
(apologies in advance to wolves everywhere, it’s just a figure of speech)
Suffern ACE
@El Cid: I found it odd that he only laid 100,000 on the line for Sarah (who as far as I know hasn’t specifically called for the murder of anyone) when he claims that it is his honor that is being attacked as well. Is he hiding behind her less toxic tone? I wonder what one might find if one looked at his transcripts. But since he’ll sue anyone who does, what’s the point?
MikeJ
@Ash Can: It doesn’t sound like that one was compulsory either. It’s a school that wears uniforms, and if he didn’t want to participate he could have worn his standard uniform. He doesn’t get to make up his own day. What if he had come dressed like Nick Gillespie and said he was doing ’50s day while everybody else did Seahwaks day?
It’s interesting that in the story the school is never named and it’s never mentioned if it is public or private.
flukebucket
First they came for the Four Loko
abscam
@ aimai & morzer
Oh, thank dog! I’ve been falling into noun loss for the last six months and thought I was the only one. Quelle relief to find I have company.
JCT
@Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen:
One of my favorite things as well, are you going to do some shooting? (With a CAMERA, people) Good light + old buildings = photographic joy, especially in B&W. One of the reasons I am losing my patience with cold winters, many months without photography.
For my weekend fun I will be trying to complete a “doubles” day of p90X complete with HIIT (may kill me), finishing restoring an old Press Camera I’ve been working on for months and pack for a business trip. For the latter it is one of those times that I am cranky about being female as I have to pack 3-4 different pairs of shoes. What a pain.
@Rosalita — so sorry about your puss. Sounds like you have a rough week coming.
jeffreyw
@harlana: Yay! You go, girl!
PurpleGirl
Aimai: I think you mean Exposition.
Luci
@Stefan… So, where are the invitations to this thing then?? How come no one let me know?? ;)
@Rosalita… I am so sorry about your kitty, and I hope the rest of that stuff is not too horrid! I dunno… it seems like hard stuff comes in bunches, and I hope your bunch gets taken care of and then you go on to something happier!
@Harlana… Congratulations on the job! I’m happy for anyone who finds work now. :)
As for the weekend… well, I have to clean and get rid of junk and do that sort of thing, but on the bright side, I can do it at my own pace, which is always good. It’s when I’m under the gun and HAVE to do it I get crazy. This is a good thread. It’s fun to read!
PurpleGirl
I’m thinking about going to a yarn shop this afternoon. If I don’t do that I may spend the afternoon crocheting.
I should do some food shopping and maybe some cleaning but I spent five hours yesterday getting medications at the hospital pharmacy. (But they cost me only $2.00 each now that I’ve applied for medicaid.)
Ash Can
@MikeJ: This is still a case where perspective is in order. The purpose of the day was to display support for the local pro sports team. The purpose of school uniforms is to maintain an orderly atmosphere. Whether it was a public school or a private school, carrying rigidity this far is pointless at best.
de stijl
@JCT:
If I might be so bold, I’d suggest getting out and about with your camera during the winter and take some pictures. I actually prefer winter light for outdoor shots – I’m not a pro and I have no idea why really, but for some reason I think that winter light makes for better photographs.
morzer
@abscam:
Oh no! We are all senile. I blame Cole.. or ED Kain.. or Matoko-Cudlip.
I was fine before I began reading this.. whatchumaycallit?
BruceFromOhio
@Rosalita: Condolences to you, Rosalita. May your purring friend help you through.
And zinc & vitamin C for your bf.
brendancalling
“depressing”? what are you talking about?
I have felt GREAT since I imposed a news blackout on myself. It’s been freeing. I’ve been playing more music, learning the ropes of my new job, and visiting prospective sites for my 2012 wedding. In fact, the longer I go without reading the news or listening to NPR, the more reluctant I am to start up again.
Better yet, since my am station does “traffic on the 2s” I can generally constrain my listening to local road conditions.
I never thought I’d say this, but Barbara Bush was right: “Oh, I mean, it’s not relevant. So why should I waste my beautiful mind on something like that?”
There’s nothing you can do to change anything, so you might as well enjoy yourself as much as you can.
Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen
@mr. whipple:
For whatever reason, the county I live in has a lot of parks and public land that was once farmland. (Compared to the county I used to live in, which developed the shit out of everything.)
Aside from creating a few trails, this county allows the land to do its own thing. As a result, a lot of woodland around here is Geek Heaven. A few miles from where I live there’s an entire neighborhood that was built in the 30’s on the land of a house built in the late 1700s, unfortunately the entire thing was bulldozed but it is still interesting and I hope to one day find the latrine pit for the old house. (There’s a non-disgusting reason for this, trust me.)
Last weekend we found a farm with six outbuildings and one not too old house still standing. We assume the newer house was built after another house nearby burned down.
On my personal 1 – 10 scale of awesome that’s about a 50.
And after I did some more research I realized there are some other buildings we missed.
Strangest thing ever found in the middle of the woods: An in-ground swimming pool, probably built in the 40’s.
BruceFromOhio
@harlana: Seconded. I’ve been using “soulless ratfuck bastards” for awhile now, so your description is accurate, imho.
And the wolves understand.
jurassicpork
Assclowns of the Week #86. It’s not long on laughs, considering the subject matter but it’s a start.
My birthday’s tomorrow (the Big 5-2, whoo hoo ) and the Missus and I are going to forget our money problems for a few hours and watch the Pats play the Jets in the 1st round of the playoffs at a local sports bar.
JCT
@de stijl: I couldn’t agree more, actually learning how to balance contrast and tonal range in a snow scene is a classic exercise and a serious challenge. Burned through a lot of Tri-X in my younger days.
Unfortunately for me I have a vascular problem that has worsened with age, so no skiing, no winter photography and no motorcycle riding past October. But then again, I’m free from shoveling snow. All in all, aging sucks.
Omnes Omnibus
@Montysano: Matinee of the “King’s Speech,” lunch with one of my wife’s colleagues and her boy friend, workout, then Packer game (on TV, not in person).
BruceFromOhio
Football, beers with friends at the local microbrew tonight, football, continue plowing through the Battlestar Galactica box set a very thoughtful MrsFromOhio put under the Solstice Tree, with breaks for football.
@de stijl: I woke up this morning, found my youngest tapping out a school assignment on her laptop, put my arm around her shoulder and gave her a kiss on the top of the head, and told her how awesome she is. Suddenly it has *a lot* more meaning. Will repeat with all other family members throughout the day, and sending you what positive vibes I can spare, like it or not.
mr. whipple
@Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen:
I’m sure there is. Very cool!
R-Jud
@harlana:
Congratulations! When I finally landed a job after a period of unemployment I felt 25 pounds lighter. It’s amazing the physical toll it takes on you.
Brachiator
@harlana:
Congratulations. So glad to hear not only that you found work, but that the job is promising to be so rewarding.
kerFuFFler
Depressing weekend?
And to think I assumed everyone was psyched for the big anti-conservative “pogrom”! 8D
BruceFromOhio
@JCT:
I know the technology is obsolete, but a Wratten 25 Yellow in front of the lens takes the heat off the highs. It only cost a quarter stop, but there’s almost always enough light to make up for it. I had a tendency to pull the development by 30 seconds or so at the end, it kept the separation in low- and mid-tones while keeping the highlights from running too hot.
TMax was more forgiving than Tri-X for snowy winters, though Tri-X kicks total ass on a rainy afternoon.
Digital has taken almost ALL the fun out of everything b&w. Almost.
aimai
@Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen:
Sounds like a scene out of S.M. Stirling’s “Change” series that begins with Dies the Fire. Watch out for those open cellars and abandoned pools, they could be dangerous. Finding the midden/latrine would be very cool. You could find a lot of neat stuff.
aimai
Barb (formerly Gex)
@Rosalita: Just had to put my kitty down last Tuesday. I feel ya. Please take care of yourself through all those trying events.
BruceFromOhio
@de stijl:
If you live in the northern hemisphere, winter light has a rake effect (slanted in from an angle, rather than directly overhead). If you live where it snows a lot, the snow reflects light into everything from below, lighting up faces differently, and making landscapes sort of ‘reversed’, cloudy skies and bright ground are backwards from the usual outdoor lighting of darker ground and lighter skies. With all the leaves off the trees and ground cover absent, there’s more opportunity for unique lighting and natural features being exposed that you don’t typically see in the other three seasons.
That and the bare tree branches gives everything outside a sort of forlorn look, except after a big, fresh snowfall, when the surface is unbroken and every branch, fence, other objects, is weighed down with snow. I like to find the creek or other water source not frozen over in the dead of winter, the contrast between water, snow is … eerie.
This all assumes you don’t live in the heart of some metropolis, though even cityscapes can be interesting in winter for some of the same reasons.
morzer
@aimai:
I wonder whether Tim Pawlenty would make a good Norman Arminger?
/sorry, geek reference.
Omnes Omnibus
@Thoughtful Black Co-Citizen: One of the things that I really enjoyed the last time I was in the Boston area was going out to Concord and seeing the foundations of the homes of two direct ancestors in front of the main building in the Minute Man National Historical Park.
Steeplejack (phone)
At work now, but looking forward to dinner tonight at Chima, a sybaritic Brazilian steakhouse. Then my weekend.
JPL
Balloon Juicers are an amazing group. Rosalita is having a depressing week but takes the time to congratulate harlana on the full time position. I’m thinking about both of you. Losing an animal is so difficult and it takes time to lessen the pain.
R-Jud, I just clicked to your site hoping for little Bean pics and noticed your new blog. I’ll be checking in often to see how you do.
SiubhanDuinne
@harlana #32
Well, Obama’s been President for two years. That’s probably a total coincidence, though.
Seriously, congratulations on the new job. I hope it’s worthy of you.
de stijl
@BruceFromOhio:
Thank you for ignoring my wishes. I didn’t know it would help, but it meant a lot to me. Sure, you made me cry for five minutes or so, but it was a good and probably necessary cry. My best to you, your daughter, and your loved ones.
Gary Farber
I do!
Hi, Anne Laurie! Hi, John! Hi, Tim F! Hi, other BJ bloggers and commenters!
And y’all BJ readers: I’m offering some Balloon Juice, and a place to spit.
It’s late notice, but if anyone is in the Bay Area, you’re invited to this, on Saturday.
Which is also this.
And Mysterious Things are Happening At Obsidian Wings..
It’s not your grandmother’s Obsidian Wings, even if it looks like it on the surface.
No, Hilzoy only visits for a comment once in a blue moon.
Meanwhile, do feel free to visit one of my parties. You are invited.
Spread the word, please?
Thanks muchly.
Also, I’m only a dog on the internet. Consider.
Lastly: you’re all invited to Friend me on Facebook, if you simply drop me a sentence that gives me a clue where you know me from, such as, well, I suppose not “Balloon Juice” any more, but that works fine for me. A clue to your handle is nice, but not necessary, since I probably won’t remember anyway; almost certainly not.
But feel free to not be a complete stranger.
See you when I do!
Virtually, or in the Bay Area, tomorrow, or next week, or whenever.
Peace, love, but death to evil, save that we’re all dead in the not very long run, anyway.
Meanwhile: be here now. Or there. Or over there.
Toodles!
Gary Farber
Also, you’ve probably helped out Lance Mannion, and helped out Roy Edroso.
That last post is far too long, and this is the same, but do help Roy and Lance, if you haven’t.
Gary Farber
Remember to be kind. It won’t kill anyone.
Jay Cornell says “hi,” Anne Laurie. Virtually. We once used to almost co-edit a fanzine, you, I, and him. Via other folks. Life is full of odd webs, isn’t it?
Ask Deb Notkin and Alan Bostick what they think of me these days. Or ask me. Just a thought. Be well, and love to Stu S for me.
JR in WV
Hi,
Well, I’m packing for a 4-week working trip to Cochise county, Arizona, where we own 10 acres of a foothill in the Dragoon Mountains. There’s 60 mile views of 6 or 7 mountain ranges, and we’re building a winter camp at 5,500 feet.
It’s a lot of hard work, 3 friends going with so we’ll get a lot of work done. I’d put in a picture I took last winter of a fox, but I don’t know how to do that.
Ms. Giffords is our Representative, which has made the past few days kinda roller-coaster, to say the least, but we’re looking forward to seeing our friends and relatives out there.
Also, I’m a rock hound, and there’s a lot of good geology laying out in the open in AZ, and Tucson hosts a huge mineral/gem show next month, which gives me a chance to visit with a bunch of Geo-friends.
Leaving Monday or Tuesday…
Whoot!
JR (still) in WV (but not for long)
Gary Farber
Last thought: blog siloization isn’t a good thing. Maybe necessary, but we can all do our own part to reach out.
If we wish to.
Steelers R Bradys Bitches aka 2liberal
so is there going to be a pre-game NFL open thread so that Cole can start whining about the officiating before the game starts?
jnfr
We saw The King’s Speech yesterday and it really brightened my day. Great picture, incredible acting.
aimai
@morzer:
Heh. That’s a good one. If you go through the Republican line up you can’t get to a good one to one comparison but you do start to see inklings of where each of them would go: Mittens, of course, would have ended up with the Saints (actually, he would have starved to death when no food was delivered to one of his mansions); Haley Barbour would attempt to recreate the old south, slavery and all. The lack of electricity wouldn’t affect him but the lack of firepower would. Boehner would just end up a lackey of someone stronger. ETc…etc..etc..
aimai
morzer
@aimai:
I rather thought Ol’ Haley would have ended up as the head of a tribe of Eaters. Not much of a change from current reality, but still….
morzer
@Steelers R Bradys Bitches aka 2liberal:
Cole never whines. He just pre-complains.
JCT
@BruceFromOhio: Oh Bruce, we may be dinosaurs with this film stuff. Just mixed up a 6-month supply of Xtol last night. My darkroom is still one of my “calm” places. And hell, I have a cool old set of Kodak Wratten gels including a 25 right here — for fun I shoot an old Super Crown Graphic and I’m compulsive about only using “original” lenses and filters with it. Txp320 + diafine is awesome for low light. I’ve started using the TMY2 in the past year and so far I am very pleased. Started with Tri-X with my dad 40 years ago – old habits die hard.
I did exactly the same thing to my youngest (though he’s 16 and much bigger than I am) after I woke up to the soul-shattering picture of little Dallas Green crying at his sister’s funeral.
Priorities in life matter.
Gwangung
@RAM:
sure it is. If you’re a Seahack fan, you’ve been playing with house. Money. If you’re a Bears fan….well, it’s self explanatory.
harlana
Thanks everyone for your congrats. It is deeply appreciated. Purplegirl, hang in there, your time is coming. If it could happen for me it will certainly happen to you.
Mark S.
Bill Maher on teabaggers:
aimai
@Mark S.:
Made my day.
aimai
aimai
@Mark S.:
Made my day.
aimai
jrosen
To make the weekend less depressing: The Steelers edge out the Ravens and the Pats whomp the Jets.
Steelers R Bradys Bitches aka 2liberal
@jrosen:
hopefully with a lot of injuries on both sides.
gravie
Going to a birthday banquet celebrating a gentleman’s 100th birthday.
Dave in ME
@dan:
Yeah that is the topline good stuff. I am also dealing with being separated from my wife, trying to raise two young daughters in this fucked up world and have little job security.
Think you can handle that?
delosgatos
My 4 month old daughter tried rice cereal for the first time today. Just a couple of teaspoons. She seemed to like it.
Dave in ME – ouch, hang in there.