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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Friday Night Open Thread

Friday Night Open Thread

by John Cole|  November 4, 20119:56 pm| 171 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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Cabernet for me. You?

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Reader Interactions

171Comments

  1. 1.

    schrodinger's cat

    November 4, 2011 at 9:59 pm

    Vicodin, Ibuprofen and Augmentin with probiotics.

  2. 2.

    Punchy

    November 4, 2011 at 9:59 pm

    A margarita, a few diapers changed, fixing the baby’s eye boogers, and some greyhounds walked.

    Just thinking about what my Fridays used to be 15 years ago is wicked depressing.

  3. 3.

    Gordon, The Big Express Engine

    November 4, 2011 at 10:03 pm

    There’s been a lot of Charlie Pierce love around here lately. Here is an interesting piece from him on paying college athletes.

    Chard tonight. Chalone 2008.

  4. 4.

    Origuy

    November 4, 2011 at 10:04 pm

    12-year-old Oban and whatever IPA looks good at the grocery store.

  5. 5.

    Roger Moore

    November 4, 2011 at 10:04 pm

    I’ll let you know when I can finally get the hell out of work. It’s been a hell of a week; TFSMIF.

  6. 6.

    Joseph Nobles

    November 4, 2011 at 10:05 pm

    Night shift for me. I did use a Stella for a pork shoulder braise.

  7. 7.

    Perfect Tommy

    November 4, 2011 at 10:05 pm

    In all the media frenzy surrounding the Lululemon murder trial, no one appears to be bothered by the testimony of the employees from the Apple store next door:

    “I heard noises coming from the right side of the store- something heavy sounding,” Apple employee Jana Svrzo said, reports CBS affiliate WUSA. “Like it was being hit or dragging, some grunting and some thudding.”

    “We approached the area of the store where the sound was the loudest. At that point we heard some screaming or yelling. It sounded hysterical,” Svrzo said, according to WUSA.

    Svrzo reportedly said she heard two female voices, one hysterically, “God help me, please help me.”

    Do iPhones not have 911 capability? It’s been almost fifty years since the Kitty Genovese slaying. Some things never change…

  8. 8.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:06 pm

    Brandy.

  9. 9.

    smintheus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:07 pm

    Is this meant tongue in cheek?

    All over America this week, parents faced a very modern problem: how to explain the Kim Kardashian divorce to their children.

    Seems straight out of The Onion.

  10. 10.

    Gordon, The Big Express Engine

    November 4, 2011 at 10:07 pm

    @Punchy: I have three kids under 5 years old (and THREE X boxes beeyotches*) and my Friday nights are so far what they were even 6 years ago, it is like I am a different person, which I am…

    *not true – we only just got cable 2 years ago – we’re lame like that…

  11. 11.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    November 4, 2011 at 10:08 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Cold coffee.

  12. 12.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:08 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): I win.

  13. 13.

    James Hare

    November 4, 2011 at 10:10 pm

    Beer for me here in America’s Socialist Paradise, Vermont.

    Just moved and I must say, all the crap I heard about yankees not being polite was completely off base. These folks are the nicest folks I’ve met in a long time. The drivers let you in when you need a space, complete strangers hold doors open for you and I don’t think I’ve met a single Republican.

    I don’t know what people are thinking moving South. New England has it going on.

  14. 14.

    SiubhanDuinne

    November 4, 2011 at 10:10 pm

    Fat Bastard Shiraz.

  15. 15.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:10 pm

    Just spent two hours in the tap room of the Peacetree Brewery in Knoxville, IA. It’s easily the best beer I’ve tasted brewed in Iowa, and the folks who run it are awesome, They’ve only been around for a little over a year, but if they keep making beer this good, they’ll blow up as quickly as they want to. If you’re in Iowa and have the chance, check their beer out, especially if you like hops. Their Hop Wrangler and Hop Sutra are bad news in the best possible way.

  16. 16.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:12 pm

    Also, on our way to the brewery, we stopped by one of those bridges in Madison County. The bridge was nothing special, but the graffiti was awesome.

  17. 17.

    srv

    November 4, 2011 at 10:12 pm

    Am trying to remember if 90 Minute is on tap at Lucky 13. My memory is always fuzzy about that place.

  18. 18.

    lamh34

    November 4, 2011 at 10:14 pm

    eating some pineapple slices. and watching Fringe.

    Oh, and as a self-acclaimed Michelle-Obot, I saw this and thought it was awesome. FLOTUS will be on ICarly for a special Military Family themed episode in January I believe. Here is sneak peek!

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0cA6uJVcTs&feature=related

    I’m sorry, but I really do like this woman. Time will tell, but I would lay a bet that once the Obama presidency has ended (4 or 8 years) and history is written, Michelle O will be considered one of the more accessible and down to earth First Lady’s ever, IMHO.

  19. 19.

    BD of MN

    November 4, 2011 at 10:14 pm

    Started off with a Schell’s Snowstorm, this year it’s a 7.0%abv Wee Heavy, which is very nice. Then I moved on to my homebrewed Robust Porter…

  20. 20.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 10:14 pm

    Mrs. inD just got home from three days away at work. Her dog, after dozing for 72 hours in a chair, is losing his mind now. We may have to net and sedate him. Speaking of sedation, Scotch for me. And soon.

  21. 21.

    Hill Dweller

    November 4, 2011 at 10:15 pm

    Issa is going to be on Maher’s show. I hope Maher has a competent staffer who prepared him for Issa’s bullshit.

  22. 22.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:17 pm

    I do have a Rogue Dead Guy in the fridge, along with some Big Sky Slow Elk Oatmeal Stout…

  23. 23.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 4, 2011 at 10:19 pm

    Um…

  24. 24.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:19 pm

    @Brian S:

    I do have a Rogue Dead Guy in the fridge

    Big fridge?

  25. 25.

    Raven (formerly stuckinred)

    November 4, 2011 at 10:20 pm

    Fresca, no-sugar added fudge pop, sleep.

  26. 26.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 4, 2011 at 10:21 pm

    @James Hare:

    I don’t think I’ve met a single Republican.

    Just don’t cross the Connecticut River, OK?

  27. 27.

    gnomedad

    November 4, 2011 at 10:21 pm

    @smintheus:

    All over America this week, parents faced a very modern problem: how to explain the Kim Kardashian divorce to their children.

    The Bajoran occupation is a sticky subject, too.

  28. 28.

    schrodinger's cat

    November 4, 2011 at 10:22 pm

    Recovering from dental surgery and even with all the medications listed above (see comment 1), it still hurts like hell.

  29. 29.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 10:22 pm

    Damn Gopher women beat my Bulldogs today but the men are holding their own against Denver – I am lucky enough to get that one on TV. 2-1 Denver at the first break – they had better wake up because they are getting beat to the puck. During intermission I can watch the Gopher-Sue game – can I root for a meteor?

  30. 30.

    Suffern ACE

    November 4, 2011 at 10:23 pm

    @smintheus: Of the thousands of things that need to be explained to children, that doesn’t seem like it should be too hard.

  31. 31.

    schrodinger's cat

    November 4, 2011 at 10:23 pm

    @gnomedad: Garak is my favorite Cardassian, who is yours?

  32. 32.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 10:25 pm

    Jim Beam and a salami sub waiting at the Big 10 for friends to come out of the men’s hockey game. When both teams are at home, the women start an hour earlier and their games are about a half hour shorter thanks to not needing to push and shove each other after every whistle. (The men are playing North Dakota, so they need to take even more time for the 187 penalties that will be called. I hate the Fighting Sociopaths with an unholy passion.) So I snag a table when I’m done and watch the lastr period and a half there.

    Gopher women won 4-1. I just don’t understand all the love for Duluth. At all. Yes, they’re young, but that’s not why they play completely disorganized. They play that way because that’s the way Shannon Miller coaches them. They were undisciplined last year as a veteran team and they’re going to be undisciplined this year as a young team. The problem is behind the bench, not on it. The world of women’s hockey has changed, and you can’t win that way anymore. Minnesota and Wisconsin are just better teams, and the Bulldogs aren’t going to catch up under the current regime. Arlan Marttila may be getting paid to write about women’s college hockey, but that has to do with the relentless decline of USCHO as a hockey site.

    The men are up 2-0 on North Dakota with 7 minutes to go.

  33. 33.

    Gravenstone

    November 4, 2011 at 10:25 pm

    Diet Mt. Dew. Yeah, I live dangerously. Might break out the bourbon or Spotted Cow tomorrow night.

  34. 34.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:26 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat: I recommend scotch. Of course, I am neither a medical doctor nor a dentist and following my advice is likely to be catastrophic. Nevertheless, I recommend scotch.

  35. 35.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:27 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Roomy. Fitting the Double Dead Guy in there is a bit of a chore tho.

  36. 36.

    Reality Check

    November 4, 2011 at 10:28 pm

    So now even Democrat and former Jimmy Carter speechwriter Chris Matthews says that Obama faces an “uphill climb” and a “steep path” against Romney in the 2012 swing states for Obama, and how its “scary” for the White House.

  37. 37.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 10:29 pm

    As for beer I am enjoying a Bridgeport Hop Czar, but earlier I had a couple of these: Super Fly Rye and one of these: La Ferme de Demons.

  38. 38.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:31 pm

    @smintheus: I think it would have to start with the sentences “a man named P.T. Barnum once said ‘there’s a sucker born every minute.’ Some of them love watching stupid shit on television.” and just go from there.

  39. 39.

    a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q)

    November 4, 2011 at 10:31 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Clearly. Hell, stuckinred’s combo wins compared to mine. But I had a fabulous beef bourgignon* for dinner, so I’m not complaining (much).

    *Carry out (fill the pot) from a fine tiny French joint down the road.

  40. 40.

    BD of MN

    November 4, 2011 at 10:32 pm

    @J. Michael Neal:

    at the Big 10

    the Big 10 in Arden Hills?

  41. 41.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 10:33 pm

    @Reality Check:

    Wake me when some pundit says an election is not such a big deal and you should go take a nice walk. Because it is, but you still should.

  42. 42.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 10:35 pm

    @BD of MN:

    the Big 10 in Arden Hills?

    No, the one on campus.

  43. 43.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 10:36 pm

    @J. Michael Neal: I never get a chance to see the women’s team to do any analysis, I can only get the written recaps. It would not surprise me that the game is evolving, that would be only natural. Miller has won them a boatload of championships and has a big contract so I doubt anything will change.

  44. 44.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:36 pm

    @a hip hop artist from Idaho (fka Bella Q): That sounds quite tasty.

  45. 45.

    nitpicker

    November 4, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    Elijah Craig 12-year-old bourbon with a chaser of Flying Dog Raging Bitch Belgian-style India Pale Ale.

  46. 46.

    Linda Featheringill

    November 4, 2011 at 10:37 pm

    The daughter unit appeared in a community college production of Euripides’ The Trojan Women. I saw it tonight. Little theater, about 100 seats, really close to the action.

    Quite a play. I know it got him into trouble but don’t know if it was what resulted in his exile. Research time, I guess.

    They have a 3-night run with tickets sold out for all performances. I guess that means it’s a success.

  47. 47.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:40 pm

    @Linda Featheringill: Brava to the daughter unit.

  48. 48.

    Waynski

    November 4, 2011 at 10:40 pm

    I’ve figured out why we hate the French. They’re cooler than us. They went into the southern US and said, you can have it. They went into the wilds of the upper Midwest and said, you can have it. They went into Vietnam and said, you can have it. We went into Iraq and they said, non, merci. There’s no little France, or France town anywhere in the US. Why is that?

  49. 49.

    smintheus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:41 pm

    @Reality Check: Was that before or after Romney came out with a proposal to gut Medicare at the Koch Bros. freak fest today?

  50. 50.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 10:41 pm

    @S. cerevisiae:

    I can watch the Gopher-Sue game – can I root for a meteor?

    Hey, at least the Gophers won.

  51. 51.

    James Hare

    November 4, 2011 at 10:43 pm

    @Gin & Tonic:
    I’ll take that advice. As a new New Englander, I want to stay in my cocoon of liberals as long as possible.

  52. 52.

    leinie

    November 4, 2011 at 10:43 pm

    God I hate the Gophers with more passion J Neal hates the Sioux. Credit though to the Gophers tonight, they played better. They’re gonna ride that goalie far. Now for some Fringe.

  53. 53.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:43 pm

    @Waynski: There are cities and towns with French names all over the upper Midwest. And, contra your point about the upper Midwest, the French fought like hell to keep control over it.

  54. 54.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 4, 2011 at 10:44 pm

    @Waynski: Paris, Texas?

  55. 55.

    Linnaeus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:45 pm

    Molson Canadian right now. Probably a porter when I go to the pub.

    There’s no little France, or France town anywhere in the US. Why is that?

    New Orleans would like a word with you.

  56. 56.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 4, 2011 at 10:46 pm

    @James Hare: They’re crazy east of the river, at least until you get down south (i.e. Mass)

  57. 57.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 10:46 pm

    @Waynski:

    Detroit has adopted English-like pronunciations for all of the French street names. This puzzles visiting Quebecois.

  58. 58.

    Linnaeus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:47 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I was gonna point out that little conflict, but you beat me to it.

  59. 59.

    gnomedad

    November 4, 2011 at 10:48 pm

    @schrodinger’s cat:
    Um, I can’t say I’ve given it a great deal of thought, but Garak was certainly one of the most layered of them.

  60. 60.

    Linda Featheringill

    November 4, 2011 at 10:49 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Thank you.

  61. 61.

    Linnaeus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:50 pm

    @RossInDetroit:

    I’ve long thought that it would be cool for Detroit to recover more of its French heritage and culture. I know the city’s got much bigger problems right now, but something to consider for the future.

  62. 62.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 10:50 pm

    @S. cerevisiae: Women’s hockey has reached the point that the players have been playing their whole lives. For a long time, the skill levels were such that the coaching challenge was just to get them playing individually at a high level. (There was also a long period where your freshmen were your best players, since they had started younger than your seniors. That’s over, too.)

    That’s not the case anymore. You can’t just throw the puck out and tell them to play. Miller’s coaching is to have her players go out and try to turn everything into a helter-skelter game. What happens now is that, when the Bulldogs succeed in getting the Gophers to play that way with them, it’s a very even and exciting game. Unfortunately for UMD, about half of the time, the Gophers manage to stay in their system, and that half of the game is a rout.

    I’m biased on this, of course. Not so much because I’m a Gopher fan; I think I’m pretty good at looking at these things objectively. It’s because there’s another part of Miller’s style that I can’t stand. The women Bulldogs hook and hold constantly, on the assumption that chickenshit refs (I’m looking at you, Elam) aren’t going to call even half of it. And I lost my temper tonight when the refs refused to call a delay of game penalty when she decided to argue over who should go to the box on a too many players penalty. Then there were the four times when the ref signaled no more changes, and then five Bulldogs wandered off of the bench to play and they never did anything about it. Start calling a couple of delay penalties, and her bullshit will vanish.

    I still root for UMD over North Dakota, of course.

  63. 63.

    smintheus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:50 pm

    @Linda Featheringill: Euripdes wasn’t driven into exile. His Trojan Women did well in the dramatic competition that year (415 BCE). Often said to be a reflection on the brutal Athenian subjugation of Melos that year.

  64. 64.

    Brian S

    November 4, 2011 at 10:51 pm

    @Linnaeus: Lafayette and everything south and west of there to the Texas border have a thought or two on the matter as well.

  65. 65.

    hhex65

    November 4, 2011 at 10:52 pm

    @Reality Check: whoa, you shouldn’t watch MSNBC you’ll get a stroke from the liberal bias

  66. 66.

    jurassicpork

    November 4, 2011 at 10:53 pm

    Koolaid, 2004 vintage.

    Last night, Mike Flannigan published the Liberal Manifesto. Today, came the conservative answer.

  67. 67.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 10:54 pm

    @Linnaeus:

    I’ve long thought that it would be cool for Detroit to recover more of its French heritage and culture. I know the city’s got much bigger problems right now, but something to consider for the future.

    In another decade you could probably buy it for couch cushion change and do what you like. If a number of news articles are to be believed, large vacant portions of it are being turned into productive community farms.
    Ironically, the name is originally French and means ‘the straits’. It referred to the river, but has never been more appropriate.

  68. 68.

    smintheus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:55 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Nope. I’ve lived in both states, and there are good people in both. In fact NH drivers are far more polite (north of masshole territory, anyway).

  69. 69.

    dead existentialist

    November 4, 2011 at 10:56 pm

    Just cleaned the old pipe for the first time in a long time. Gooey.

    Also, scotch and water*.

    *soda is a kind of water.

  70. 70.

    Cacti

    November 4, 2011 at 10:56 pm

    Well Mitt Romney has formally declared his intent to privatize Social Security and voucherize Medicare.

    So who will be the first to tie this around his neck?

  71. 71.

    James Hare

    November 4, 2011 at 10:57 pm

    I have a feeling this is going to get kind of ugly:
    http://www.reddit.com/r/Libertarian/comments/m11eh/incestuous_marriage_and_child_pornography/
    I realize asking a bunch of teenage libertarians to defend the indefensible is kind of weak sauce — yet, I’m really surprised at how many will jump at the bait. I’ve already got one defending both child pornography and incestuous marriage and several who don’t have a problem with incestuous marriage.

    Glibertarian doesn’t even come close. Sociopaths is a better description.

  72. 72.

    Suffern ACE

    November 4, 2011 at 10:58 pm

    I’m wondering. Rob and Laura Petrie lived in New Rochelle. Where is Old Rochelle?

  73. 73.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:58 pm

    @Linnaeus: Forts Duquesne, Niagara, Detroit, and, of course, Michilimackinac. The passage from Green Bay down the Fox River to Portage where, oddly, one portaged to the Wisconsin (originally Ouisconsin) and thence down river to Prairie du Chien to join the Mississippi on its way to NOLA. No French names at all. No DePeres, Marinettes, Allouezes, Langlades, or Marquettes around as place names either. I’ll stop now.

  74. 74.

    El Cid

    November 4, 2011 at 10:59 pm

    Bottled Guinness “draught”, maybe followed by a French Pinot Noir, tastefully poured from a 3L box.

  75. 75.

    Linnaeus

    November 4, 2011 at 10:59 pm

    @RossInDetroit:

    Ironically, the name is originally French and means ‘the straits’. It referred to the river, but has never been more appropriate.

    Grew up in the area, so that irony is not lost on me.

  76. 76.

    Hill Dweller

    November 4, 2011 at 10:59 pm

    Maher’s show is awful.

  77. 77.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:00 pm

    @Hill Dweller: Tonight? Or is that your general opinion?

  78. 78.

    General Stuck

    November 4, 2011 at 11:01 pm

    When it rains it pours. I am having all kinds of computer problems and Firefox problems. Firefox, I suspect is moving to fucking fast and leaving a lot of loose ends and incompatibility issues in it’s wake. Especially with add ons and plug ins. And I can’t watch Netflix movies due some exotic error code and DRM permission. Anyone else having this problem? Then there is the Scribefire blog editor that has been upgraded to some kind of too complicated monster that doesn’t work with FF 7, or the beta 8.

  79. 79.

    Linnaeus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:01 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    Went to Fort Michilimackinac several times as a child and teenager. A highlight of my summer vacations Up North.

  80. 80.

    PurpleGirl

    November 4, 2011 at 11:01 pm

    Going crazy from the noise from a dysfunctional ventilation fan motor. Wish I had some nice sedation so I could sleep.

  81. 81.

    Cacti

    November 4, 2011 at 11:03 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    There are cities and towns with French names all over the upper Midwest

    All along the Mississippi River, really. St. Louis, New Orleans, etc.

  82. 82.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 11:03 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: An interesting thing about Michilimackinac – my ancestors took that fort using a lacrosse game as a ruse. Cool story.

  83. 83.

    MikeJ

    November 4, 2011 at 11:05 pm

    Cabernet for me. You?

    Started with Bullet Bourbon, switched to Full Sail wassail because it was here.

  84. 84.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 11:05 pm

    @S. cerevisiae:

    The old ‘hey mister can we have our ball back?’ gambit. Very crafty.

  85. 85.

    schrodinger's cat

    November 4, 2011 at 11:06 pm

    What does Tunch drink?

  86. 86.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 11:06 pm

    @J. Michael Neal: Enjoy Haukula (sp?) this year – I’ll bet he is on the Aeros next year.

  87. 87.

    Calouste

    November 4, 2011 at 11:07 pm

    @Suffern ACE:

    La Rochelle Major French port during the Age of Discovery. Mostly Protestant though, which caused problems with the Catholic French kings and its eventual demise.

  88. 88.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:08 pm

    @Linnaeus: I went in 2009. Kenneth Roberts’ Northwest Passage was childhood favorite book, so it was rather cool to see the place. Also too, on my French-Canadian ancestral side, I have people who were in and around the place. This guy is a great, …, great uncle.

  89. 89.

    dead existentialist

    November 4, 2011 at 11:08 pm

    @dead existentialist: If my other comment got past moderation, here’s a funkier rendition by Lou Rawls.

  90. 90.

    Calouste

    November 4, 2011 at 11:08 pm

    Btw, Cruzan Black Strap Rum for me. It’s like drinking molasses mixed with alcohol.

  91. 91.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 11:08 pm

    Oh man that was a sweet move by UMD freshman Herbert – he is a good one.

  92. 92.

    MikeJ

    November 4, 2011 at 11:08 pm

    @Suffern ACE:

    I’m wondering. Rob and Laura Petrie lived in New Rochelle. Where is Old Rochelle?

    On the Bay of Biscay.

  93. 93.

    wasabi gasp

    November 4, 2011 at 11:09 pm

    Weed. One of the only things still normal rolling into the seventh day without power.

  94. 94.

    Gin & Tonic

    November 4, 2011 at 11:10 pm

    @smintheus: Of course there are. But this is the Internet, where me make gross generalizations based on personal biases. Or based on reading about the NH State legislature.

  95. 95.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:11 pm

    @S. cerevisiae: One suspects that our ancestors met.

    @Cacti: I was limiting myself.

  96. 96.

    Waynski

    November 4, 2011 at 11:12 pm

    @Suffern ACE: France

  97. 97.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 11:13 pm

    @wasabi gasp: “Dope will get you through times with no money better than money will get you through times with no dope” /Freewheelin’ Franklin.

    I assume the same is true with electricity.

  98. 98.

    binzinerator

    November 4, 2011 at 11:14 pm

    @RossInDetroit: Boblo is pretty close to the sound of the original. Although it’s not a street. On the other hand when the girl doing the narration on the boat to the island told the story of how the name Boblo came from the original French name for the island, Bois Blanc, she pronounced it “Boys Blank”.

    C’est la vie.

  99. 99.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 11:15 pm

    @S. cerevisiae: I think you mean Haula. I’ll have to ask my friends who go to the men’s game, but the really public knowledge is that Bjugstad won’t be back.

    All I know is that, barring career ending injury, the freshmen I root for will be here for four years.

  100. 100.

    Hill Dweller

    November 4, 2011 at 11:16 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Tonight’s show is awful.

    Issa said little during the show. Bill Engval is fucking clueless, which explains his ardent support for the Republican party. Patterson was actually good(especially during the ‘overtime’ segment), and his quip about Coulter was great.

  101. 101.

    Lojasmo

    November 4, 2011 at 11:16 pm

    8 pints of Surly Furious. The boy has spent the whole night, excluding dinner, with a beautiful young asian lady.

    I am lucky he has a great mom.

  102. 102.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 11:16 pm

    Looks like some shit is going down at Occupy DC, or did.

    Tried to blockade attendees in a Koch event. Some people were hit by vehicles. Situation tense and agitated. Hope it didn’t/doesn’t turn uglier.

  103. 103.

    S. cerevisiae

    November 4, 2011 at 11:23 pm

    @J. Michael Neal: That’s the one. As a Bulldog fan I know all about losing promising freshmen to the NHL. Hell we lost our best D-man to the pros in the middle of last season then lost Faulk this summer. The young D is going to have to step up because I think offense will be OK.

  104. 104.

    James Hare

    November 4, 2011 at 11:25 pm

    @General Stuck:
    FIrefox is trying to change their release schedule to better match Chrome’s. They don’t seem to realize that Google has more money than God.

  105. 105.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:26 pm

    Busy day today and evening, so just home and watching the first 15 minutes of Rachel. Anybody else catch her piece on Herman Cain?

    I’m doubling down on calling him an Uncle Tom. Sorry, but there it is. His performance today for the Koch Brothers seals it.

    It’s sad but true.

    Anyone disagree?

  106. 106.

    binzinerator

    November 4, 2011 at 11:29 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: A boy at Sault Ste. Marie
    Said, “To spell, I will not agree,
    Till they learn to spell ‘Soo’
    Without any ‘u’
    Or an ‘a’ or an ‘l’ or a ‘t'”.

  107. 107.

    MichaelF

    November 4, 2011 at 11:31 pm

    Moderately priced Bordeaux — Chateau Thebot. Ten years ago it might’ve been a poor man’s marguerita — rum & Fresca…

  108. 108.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:32 pm

    @BGinCHI: Do you consider calling him an asshole as disagreement?

  109. 109.

    J. Michael Neal

    November 4, 2011 at 11:32 pm

    @S. cerevisiae: I really enjoy spending my time rooting for a team where I know they’ll all be here for four years. Amanda Kessel won the WCHA Freshman of the Year award just like her brother. Unlike Phil, she’ll be here on Senior Night, too.

    She got called for roughing towards the end of tonight’s game, which was ridiculous. I don’t think Amanda Kessel is physically capable of roughing anyone. The girl can fly, but if she weighs 100 lbs, I’d be kind of surprised.

  110. 110.

    ellenbrenna

    November 4, 2011 at 11:32 pm

    Albarino and some little cookies made of ground hazelnuts and dipped in dark chocolate.

  111. 111.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:33 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: I grew up near Fort Ouiatenon on the Wabash (Ouabache), just a few miles outside of Lafayette.

    So I knows me some French names.

  112. 112.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:34 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: No, I think “that asshole is an Uncle Tom” works pretty well.

    I’m really starting to loathe what he’s doing and who he is. It’s more than shilling.

  113. 113.

    Origuy

    November 4, 2011 at 11:34 pm

    Correcting myself: It’s a 14-year-old Oban, not 12. Costco has Lavagulin now but I’m going to finish this bottle first. I ended up getting Gordon Biersh Fest Bier at the store; Oktoberfest only comes around once a year.

  114. 114.

    Waynski

    November 4, 2011 at 11:37 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:@RossInDetroit: I’m sure the Quebecois pronunciations puzzle Parisians as well. I was honestly just throwing a little mischief into the open thread, but was heartened to see such a defense of the French influence in the US. I only visited France for two weeks on two separate occasions but was struck by the mostly live and let live attitude they seem to have adopted, which I believe is a consequence of having suffered so much in the last century’s wars. Anyone who makes a joke about the French Army surrendering should read about the first battle of the Marnes and the defense of Paris in 1914. When someone hands you a uniform while you’re walking down the street, throws you a gun and tells you to get in a cab to the front…well

  115. 115.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:41 pm

    @BGinCHI: I think we have now successfully beaten Waynski’s point to death.

    ETA: @Waynski: It is one of those things that pushes my buttons. The “cheese-eating surrender monkeys” thing too.

  116. 116.

    Tom Levenson

    November 4, 2011 at 11:45 pm

    Ignoring the intervening thread: Chilean Syrah/Cabernet blend. Best $7.00 bottle I could find…;)

  117. 117.

    Bruce S

    November 4, 2011 at 11:45 pm

    Bulliet Rye!

  118. 118.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:46 pm

    @Tom Levenson: Chilean reds give great bang for the buck.

  119. 119.

    James Hare

    November 4, 2011 at 11:46 pm

    I have another comment in moderation. Wanna see the ugly side of glibertariansim? Look here:
    http://www.reddit.com/r/Libertarian/comments/m11eh/incestuous_marriage_and_child_pornography/

  120. 120.

    Jeffro

    November 4, 2011 at 11:48 pm

    Not as hip as Charlie Pierce, but Colbert King lays it all out:

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/the-post-racial-america-of-ann-coulter-and-pat-buchanan/2011/11/04/gIQAmHvanM_story.html?hpid=z3

  121. 121.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:49 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Argentinians too.

    And I don’t just mean in a Governor Sanford way either.

  122. 122.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:50 pm

    @Tom Levenson: Tom, if you’re around…any chance you caught Science Friday on NPR today?

  123. 123.

    RossInDetroit

    November 4, 2011 at 11:51 pm

    @Tom Levenson:

    Thx for recommending Matt Strassler’s blog. This is very interesting reading. Subjects I like, and well written posts.

  124. 124.

    Nellcote

    November 4, 2011 at 11:52 pm

    @BGinCHI:

    I’m really starting to loathe what he’s doing and who he is. It’s more than shilling.

    Kock spokescandidate?

  125. 125.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:52 pm

    @Jeffro: Good lord, giant case of white privilege or obliviousness here, but I just noticed the possessives in Coulter’s “Our blacks are so much better than their blacks” comment. Unfuckingbelievable.

  126. 126.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:55 pm

    @Nellcote: Yes and yes.

  127. 127.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 4, 2011 at 11:55 pm

    @BGinCHI: Haven’t had a lot of Argie reds. I’ll give some a shot.

  128. 128.

    Tom Levenson

    November 4, 2011 at 11:56 pm

    @BGinCHI: Didn’t — I’m in (a) failed migration from an old computer hell and (b) administrative, hell is other people, especially colleagues hell. So no Ira for me. What was Sr. Flatow on about?

  129. 129.

    Tom Levenson

    November 4, 2011 at 11:57 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Yup. So much so that with my wine glass in the running dishwasher, I just grabbed a glass mug to have my last little bit before going to bed.

    Simple pleasures…;)

  130. 130.

    BGinCHI

    November 4, 2011 at 11:58 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Malbec is the obvious choice, terrific for the money. But also try a Bonarda (it’s a varietal) if you get a chance. Carmenere (a varietal) is also good, from Chile or Argentina.

    And for white, you gotta try a Torrontes from Argentina. Excellent stuff.

  131. 131.

    BGinCHI

    November 5, 2011 at 12:02 am

    @Tom Levenson: Brain imaging, but to a degree I’d not heard of. Just amazing stuff.

    At one point the guy Ira had on said that they were going to image one square mm of brain to the extent that it would take something like a hundred thousand terabytes to store the info (I may be underestimating here). But then he said at this point, to do a whole human brain would be impossible because the data, for one brain, would be greater than all the information in the universe.

    That blew my mind.

    I wanted to call in and suggest they start with GW Bush’s brain, you know, for a smaller data set, but I didn’t think Ira would honk his laugh at that.

  132. 132.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:08 am

    @BGinCHI: One will investigate.

  133. 133.

    Larkspur

    November 5, 2011 at 12:10 am

    Two buck Chuck.

    I once knew someone who claimed to have had a teacher who insisted that “jazz” was pronounced “jahz”, “blues” was “Blewz” and “Detroit” was “dehTwah”. In the end, she moved to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, and changed her name to Guinevere Mortimer. Je jure c’est vrai.

  134. 134.

    suzanne

    November 5, 2011 at 12:15 am

    Ethiopian food: So good going in, but on the way out… awww shit.

    Perhaps that’s why I embroiled myself in an internet fight with a bunch of Mormons who are insisting that they’re Christians, and that the LDS Church doesn’t get involved in political issues like global warming, but only in purely moral issues like hating da queerz.

    Maybe I need a glass of wine.

  135. 135.

    suzanne

    November 5, 2011 at 12:17 am

    Ah, damnit. I got myself stuck in moderation. Damn damn damn.

  136. 136.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:19 am

    @suzanne: Wadja say to do it?

  137. 137.

    JCJ

    November 5, 2011 at 12:19 am

    @BGinCHI:
    Having grown up in West Lafayette I have enjoyed this outpouring of French names. My favorites from Indiana are Versailles and DuBois County because of how they are pronounced. For non-Hoosiers don’t think French, pronounce them as “Versails” and “Due Boys” – no, I’m not kidding.

  138. 138.

    BGinCHI

    November 5, 2011 at 12:23 am

    @JCJ: Good to see a fellow Tippecanoe county native here. Mispronouncing foreign names is an Indiana tradition. Tons of French names around the Chicago area, most of them pretty well pronounced.

  139. 139.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 12:24 am

    @Larkspur: C’est ca.

  140. 140.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:24 am

    @JCJ: A long time ago, I dated a girl from Versailles, Ohio. She corrected me when I pronounced her hometown as Ver-sigh. Later, I realized that we might not be meant for one another when, in a letter to me, she described herself as a “reck.” Then I meat a cool South African girl…. But that’s another story.

  141. 141.

    Larkspur

    November 5, 2011 at 12:24 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Yeah, Suzanne. It couldn’t have “damn damn damn”.

  142. 142.

    JCJ

    November 5, 2011 at 12:25 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Looking forward to seeing my beloved Boilers tomorrow in Madison. Unless Bucky is moping from the last two games Purdue has no chance. Taking my nephew (a fellow Purdue grad) who just moved to Madtown and my daughter, a student at UW. Should be good!

  143. 143.

    suzanne

    November 5, 2011 at 12:27 am

    @Larkspur: No, “damn damn damn” wasn’t what did it. It was comment #134.

    FYWP. Or shall I say, “DDDYWP”?

  144. 144.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:29 am

    @JCJ: Just remember, in Wisconsin, Old Fashioneds and Manhattans are made with brandy. Also too, they have been doing utility related road work in places so give yourself plenty of time.

  145. 145.

    BGinCHI

    November 5, 2011 at 12:29 am

    @JCJ: The beer and food will be good. The football will reek of slaughter.

    Do try the New Glarus. It eases the pain.

    There’s always basketball season.

  146. 146.

    Larkspur

    November 5, 2011 at 12:33 am

    @Waynski: Etes-vous corriger mon français? Je ne sais pas, et vous remercie aussi. Tout ce que je connais parler français que j’ai appris de Google Translate. Hier stehe ich; ich kann nicht anders. Je suis pathétique.

  147. 147.

    suzanne

    November 5, 2011 at 12:36 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    I dated a girl from Versailles, Ohio. She corrected me when I pronounced her hometown as Ver-sigh.

    When I lived in Tucson, I met a few people that lived on Medici Street. One time in conversation, I pronounced it “MED-uh-chee”. At least five people looked at me quizzically. UGH.

  148. 148.

    burnspbesq

    November 5, 2011 at 12:37 am

    College football on Friday night is an abomination.

    Colorado was punished for its sins.

    Fight On!

  149. 149.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:37 am

    @suzanne: How does one pronounce it there?

  150. 150.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:39 am

    @BGinCHI: No fucking chance.

  151. 151.

    burnspbesq

    November 5, 2011 at 12:40 am

    @Calouste:

    Which explains why New Rochelle HS’s athletic teams are called the Huguenots.

  152. 152.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 12:43 am

    @Larkspur: Waynski’s attempted response. Am I making fun of your French? Non. All I had was “c’est ca” perhaps used incorrectly. I’m not using Google translate, just spit-balling with French One. Then there’s something that appears German, and no, you’re not pathetic. How am I doing?

  153. 153.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:48 am

    @Waynski: The German was a Martin Luther quote. “Here I stand; I can do not other.” MLK used it in his Letter from Birmingham Jail as well.

  154. 154.

    burnspbesq

    November 5, 2011 at 12:51 am

    Here’s what I’m hoping to see over the remainder of the college football season.

    1. The winner of tomorrow’s LSU-Bama game (more likely to be LSU in my opinion) loses to South Carolina in the SEC championship game.

    2. South Carolina gets killed by Clemson in the cross-state rivalry game.

    3. K-State beats OKSt.

    4. OU beats OKSt in the Bedlam game.

    5. Stanford and Boise win out.

    6. The BCS decides to fuck the only remaining unbeaten teams, puts one-loss Bama against one-loss Oklahoma for the national championship, sends Stanford to the Rose Bowl and Boise to the Fiesta. Stanford kills Nebraska and Boise lights up LSU.

    7. The resulting uproar leads, finally, to the demise of the BCS.

  155. 155.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 12:54 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Clearly, my German’s not what it used it to be, but I’d be proud to stand with anyone here, mostly.

  156. 156.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 12:58 am

    @burnspbesq: I cannot believe you put that level of thought into this. Not judging, of course. I just want the Packers to win.

  157. 157.

    Larkspur

    November 5, 2011 at 12:59 am

    @Waynski: @Omnes Omnibus: I love y’all. Waynski: I have no French, nothing, nada. Your French One surpasses everything I know. Omnes Omnibus: Yup. It is the most significant religious statement in a bunch of centuries, so I have repurposed it into a BJ comment because I am just that pious.

  158. 158.

    JCJ

    November 5, 2011 at 1:03 am

    @burnspbesq:
    If all of that happens I hope you have already placed your wagers. The demise of the BCS would be most welcome.

  159. 159.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 1:04 am

    @Larkspur:

    because I am just that pious.

    Well, duh.

  160. 160.

    burnspbesq

    November 5, 2011 at 1:16 am

    If any of you have your DVR set to record the early Premier League game every Saturday, be advised that you have to reset it for tomorrow. Daylight time ended last Sunday in the UK, so the game starts an hour later in the US.

  161. 161.

    suzanne

    November 5, 2011 at 1:28 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Med-EEE-see.

    Ugh.

  162. 162.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 1:30 am

    @suzanne: I would be lost there.

  163. 163.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 1:39 am

    Let’s see if we can’t get this thread to 200… To hell with the Irish!

  164. 164.

    Yutsano

    November 5, 2011 at 1:42 am

    @suzanne: I’d scream. And still say it properly. Suddenly I’m glad I didn’t go there. :)

  165. 165.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 1:44 am

    @Waynski: I am down with the 200 thing, but I have no dog in the Irish fight. Knock the WASPs out out Mass. or the Frog-Canucks and you got my attention; otherwise, not so much.

  166. 166.

    Larkspur

    November 5, 2011 at 1:54 am

    When I first landed in California, I was not sure about how to pronounce “Vallejo” or “La Jolla” or other words that I cannot remember right now. Back then it really bothered me to risk a bad pronunciation. Now I am oldish and I realize that life is too short, so I just point and ask “How do ya say that?” followed by “What? Speak up, sonny!” if I’m uncertain.

    Okay, so, yes, good night, the rest of the road to 200 is out of my jurisdiction as of three, two, one….

  167. 167.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 2:15 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Fair nuff. I’m with Larkspur. Done. Cats vs. Dogs? Maybe? 200 is right around the corner.

  168. 168.

    Omnes Omnibus

    November 5, 2011 at 2:17 am

    @Waynski: Bed soon. Sorry.

  169. 169.

    Waynski

    November 5, 2011 at 2:24 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Bon soir, mon amis.

  170. 170.

    Steeplejack

    November 5, 2011 at 2:29 am

    Late shift checking in very late. Drinking a Yuengling Lager, from my brother’s miscellaneous collection of what he jokingly calls “artisanal beers.” Hell, he may be serious. He is a wine guy. My other choices of what was cold in the refrigerator were Corona and Michelob Ultra. I think he just collects stuff that people bring for parties and leave behind.

    Didn’t get off work until 11:15, thanks to the slowest of our store’s managers. But I am dogsitting this weekend, so I have the use of the bro-man’s Mini Cooper while he and his partner are out of town. Yee-haw! Gave a coworker a ride home, saving her an hour of bus transit and walking time, then came over to hang with the dogs: an exuberant two-year-old rescue greyhound and an ancient Italian greyhound, increasingly crotchety but still remarkably perky.

    I’m doing that night-owl thing, catching up on the Balloon Juice threads and thinking about something big or complicated to cook this weekend. Maybe chili, with some exotic twist. The weather is perfect for it.

  171. 171.

    Raven (formerly stuckinred)

    November 5, 2011 at 6:26 am

    Say Goodbye to the King of the Cowboys

    I used to watch you
    When I was little
    The games I played
    I learned from you
    I kept dreaming
    You kept playing
    When I woke you were 62

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