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You are here: Home / Open Threads / Open Thread

Open Thread

by $8 blue check mistermix|  May 10, 20129:02 am| 51 Comments

This post is in: Open Threads

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Previous Post: « Mitt Loses His Shit
Next Post: Clive Crook does not live in the same America that I do »

Reader Interactions

51Comments

  1. 1.

    flukebucket

    May 10, 2012 at 9:07 am

    I like it. I love it. I want and need more of it.

  2. 2.

    Linda Featheringill

    May 10, 2012 at 9:09 am

    I actually managed to sleep late this morning and woke up with no pain. It’s really a very, very nice morning.

    Happy day, everyone.

  3. 3.

    JPL

    May 10, 2012 at 9:10 am

    Kelly Ripa’s audience cheered loudly at the President’s decision. Her co-host was quite complimentary. I think it might be Nick Lachey but not sure. They both spoke about how important it is not to waffle on issues. teehee

  4. 4.

    JoyfulA

    May 10, 2012 at 9:11 am

    Today’s my husband’s birthday. I’m letting him sleep late. Then I’m taking him to his favorite restaurant for lunch. I like him.

  5. 5.

    jeffreyw

    May 10, 2012 at 9:19 am

    Having first cup of coffee, strong and sweet. Playing with new tablet.

  6. 6.

    Linda Featheringill

    May 10, 2012 at 9:20 am

    @JoyfulA:
    Lucky man! Have fun today.

  7. 7.

    JPL

    May 10, 2012 at 9:22 am

    TPM livewire has a story from the Post about Mitt while he was in prep school. Here’s the link from the Post.
    Mitt never built character that his father thought so important.

  8. 8.

    rlrr

    May 10, 2012 at 9:22 am

    Gay marriage – the only issue Romney has been consistent on….

  9. 9.

    chopper

    May 10, 2012 at 9:23 am

    my 3 year old was extra nice to me this morning.

    now off to see how the garden is doing.

  10. 10.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    May 10, 2012 at 9:27 am

    Ha Ha funny e-mail from my cousin in Australia.

    One day God was looking down at Earth and saw all of the misbehaving that was going on. So he called one of His angels and sent the angel to Earth for a time.

    When the angel returned, he told God, ‘Yes, it is bad on Earth; 95% are misbehaving and only 5% are not.

    God was not pleased. So He decided to e-mail the 5% that were good, because he wanted to encourage them, and give them a little something to help them keep going.

    Do you know what the e-mail said?

    Okay, I was just wondering, because I didn’t get one either

  11. 11.

    Cacti

    May 10, 2012 at 9:28 am

    Not sure if this has been mentioned yet, but mighty interesting. In his prep school days, Romney was a homophobic bully who organized an assault of a suspected gay classmate.

    Confirmed by at least 5 people who remember it.

    What a creep.

  12. 12.

    Litlebritdifrnt

    May 10, 2012 at 9:29 am

    @JPL:

    Just saw that on Twitter. It is amazing that the campaign is not denying it. Hard to believe that Mitt “doesn’t recall the incident.” Yeah right.

  13. 13.

    redshirt

    May 10, 2012 at 9:29 am

    Quitting smoking sucks, but I kinda like it too, cuz I’m a masochist.

    The hardest part is not the physical addiction – it’s the mental. Specifically, the set pieces built into your life that revolved around the nasty things. Once gone, they don’t seem so nasty anymore, and it’s like losing an old, dear friend.

    Also too: It’s so surreal to miss something so much that you once never knew about nor in anyway need.

  14. 14.

    rlrr

    May 10, 2012 at 9:29 am

    Mitt Romney (via Conservapedia)

  15. 15.

    jibeaux

    May 10, 2012 at 9:30 am

    The pro-Amendment one forces had a party Tues. night. I know that’s not great news in & of itself, but the N & O reported that it had a seven-tiered cake, with plastic figurines on top, and a cash bar. (The newspaper was silent on whether or not The Electric Slide was played, but I have a guess.( Has a better unintentional argument for gay marriage EVER BEEN MADE?

  16. 16.

    Raven

    May 10, 2012 at 9:32 am

    How bout some mornin moon?

  17. 17.

    chopper

    May 10, 2012 at 9:32 am

    @rlrr:

    and even then he used to talk all up and down about guaranteeing gay rights back in the day. to a gay crowd, of course.

  18. 18.

    Gin & Tonic

    May 10, 2012 at 9:34 am

    @redshirt: Good on you for quitting. It gets easier, and you’ll stop missing the rituals. After 20-25 years, you’ll hardly think about them any more.

  19. 19.

    jibeaux

    May 10, 2012 at 9:35 am

    @rlrr: ha ha ha ha ha ha

    The lack of criticism of Romney by the mainstream media suggests that they want him to win so that they can defeat him in the general election.

    widely but incorrectly supported

    Doesn’t look like it’s been updated yet to get the fuck on board.

  20. 20.

    redshirt

    May 10, 2012 at 9:39 am

    @Gin & Tonic: I’ve quit many times over the last ten years or so – for months at a time in some cases. At this point, I harbor few illusions that I’ll be “quit” even years down the road. 20-25? Maybe, if I’m lucky. :)

    Addiction is a perfidious thing.

  21. 21.

    JPL

    May 10, 2012 at 9:41 am

    @Litlebritdifrnt: What a joker that Mitt is. May a dog piss on his suit. That would be real funny.

  22. 22.

    Schlemizel

    May 10, 2012 at 9:42 am

    @Litlebritdifrnt:
    God made the world in 6 days flat
    On the 7th he said “I’ll rest.”
    So he let the thing
    into orbit swing –
    to give it a dry run test

    A billion years went by
    when he looked at the whirling blob
    His spirits fell
    as he shrugged, “Oh well”
    “It was only a 6 day job”

    YA Harburg

  23. 23.

    RossInDetroit

    May 10, 2012 at 9:43 am

    It’s 9:40 and I’ve been up for 5 and a half hours. Insomnia sucks.
    On the plus side, I did get another turntable running, so my future SIL can play her records.

    It’s odd but despite the President demolishing hetero marriage yesterday I didn’t feel single this morning. When exactly is fifty centuries of civilization going to come crashing down as we’ve been assured will happen?

  24. 24.

    Raven

    May 10, 2012 at 9:45 am

    @RossInDetroit: That’s me schedule too!

  25. 25.

    RossInDetroit

    May 10, 2012 at 9:46 am

    @redshirt:

    Quitting smoking is easy! I’ve done it a dozen times.
    Jokes aside, it does suck. Especially the first one in the morning. I compromised with the gum. Nicotine is relatively harmless and it’s an easy transition.

  26. 26.

    RossInDetroit

    May 10, 2012 at 9:48 am

    @Raven:

    Well, I went to bed at midnight, so 4:00 am wasn’t in the plans. I should probably just quit screwing around and go to work.

  27. 27.

    Raven

    May 10, 2012 at 9:51 am

    @redshirt: Quit in 1968.

  28. 28.

    Gin & Tonic

    May 10, 2012 at 9:53 am

    @redshirt: I quit when my first child was born. She turns 30 soon. I almost never think about having a smoke any more.

  29. 29.

    Corbin Dallas Multipass

    May 10, 2012 at 9:57 am

    http://whenobamaendorsed.tumblr.com/

  30. 30.

    Cacti

    May 10, 2012 at 10:03 am

    @JPL:

    TPM livewire has a story from the Post about Mitt while he was in prep school. Here’s the link from the Post.

    I think team Willard is concerned about this. They’ve already released a statement calling the story “exaggerated”.

    As it stands, it’s a pretty ominous story…

    Teenage son of the Michigan Governor leads a gang of boys in holding down a “sissy” and giving him a forced haircut.

    That kind of thing gets you charged with a hate crime these days.

  31. 31.

    JoyfulA

    May 10, 2012 at 10:14 am

    @Linda Featheringill: I’ll try to have fun today. You, too!

    But first some work.

  32. 32.

    kindness

    May 10, 2012 at 10:18 am

    Tell me something good. Tell me that you like it.

    Uhhh….not sure how to reply to that….it’s kinda an awkward set up, no? Where’s Barry White when you need him?

  33. 33.

    Hewer of Wood, Drawer of Water

    May 10, 2012 at 10:18 am

    I’ll tell you something good. You got me to listen to Chaka Khan again

  34. 34.

    Lee

    May 10, 2012 at 10:21 am

    A really interesting read about an economic experiment our Canook neighbors are doing.

    A Town Without Poverty? Canada’s Guaranteed Income Experiment

  35. 35.

    Mnemosyne

    May 10, 2012 at 11:29 am

    @redshirt:

    I remember seeing an essay by Garrison Keillor (yes, yes) where he said that he successfully gave up smoking by giving up a specific cigarette until he didn’t miss it anymore. So, for example, first he gave up the after-dinner cigarette, and when he didn’t miss that one anymore, he gave up the 3:00 work break cigarette, etc. He said that helped him break the habit, which needs to be done in addition to breaking the addiction.

  36. 36.

    ruemara

    May 10, 2012 at 11:36 am

    I had a good phone interview last week. It’s not an offer, but it was so long since I’ve had one, I’m still happy about it.

  37. 37.

    redshirt

    May 10, 2012 at 12:22 pm

    @Mnemosyne: Tried that. Doesn’t work for me. Its all or nothing at this point.

    6 days in and I know I’ve gotten through the worst of it, but I also know the many pitfalls and traps that wait.

    I’ve been trying a theory called “pretend you never smoked” wherein I will not let myself think about it, and have gone to great lengths to change my routines so I avoid the worst of the habitual reminders.

    This sounds shallow, but I put a lot of blame (not really, but kinda really) on American Spirit cigarettes. They’re so much better than your typical Camels/Marlboros et al that they got me back on cigarettes from having quit for close to 2 years. And since then I’ve had a very hard time sustaining quitting, cuz frankly, they’ve not limited me in many ways – I was running 3 miles every other day and still smoking, for example.

    But I digress, and this all goes against my “pretend you don’t smoke” strategy.

  38. 38.

    Mnemosyne

    May 10, 2012 at 12:39 pm

    @redshirt:

    I’ve never smoked so I don’t have any real tips, but there is an interesting factoid that I’ve learned about nicotine: smoking helps you burn about an extra 100 calories per day, which is why people gain weight after they quit smoking. What people often don’t realize is that it can take your body up to a full YEAR to re-adjust, so any boost you do to your exercise and/or cut you make to your diet to compensate for that extra 100 calories you’re not burning anymore will have to be done for at least a year to counterbalance the nicotine effect.

    Good luck with the quitting. It’s hard, but it can be done — my dad finally managed to quit after 50 years of smoking and hasn’t started back up. Unfortunately, he had already done irreversible damage to his lungs (smoking + decades of untreated asthma = COPD when you get old), but I still think he’s better off with that monkey off his back.

  39. 39.

    handsmile

    May 10, 2012 at 12:41 pm

    @redshirt: (#37)

    Just now reading through this thread and wanted to add my voice to the chorus of well-wishers and advice-givers on your struggles with this particular “perfidious addiction.”

    Never been a smoker myself, but mrs. handsmile cold-turkeyed her longstanding habit shortly after we met. (Not for me, mind you; it interfered with her training for the NYC marathon.)

    All best wishes for each day’s, and the next day’s, success. Those whose lives you brighten will be so happy to have a healthier you around longer.

  40. 40.

    flukebucket

    May 10, 2012 at 2:26 pm

    I just got an email from a wingnut friend. He was hysterical about a youtube showing Obama launching “African-Americans for Obama” back in February. He called it an almost impeachable offense and wonders what would happen if Romney had a “White People for Romney” program. I sent him this

    Lunatics. Every damn one of them.

  41. 41.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 2:29 pm

    @flukebucket: Maybe it’s because I’m trans, but wingnut and friend are mutually exclusive concepts to me. Wingers fucking hate me and wish I was dead, generally speaking. I haven’t found any exceptions yet.

    ETA: It *does* keep my spam-box rather empty though. Just the standard “penis enlargement” stuff, which I find endlessly amusing.

  42. 42.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 2:41 pm

    FYWP. If there’s a moderator here, please unflag my comment.

    And if you guys need any help adjusting the dumbassed word filter, I’ll help, gratis. The word filter is probably the stupidest thing about this blog.

  43. 43.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 2:43 pm

    @flukebucket: Maybe it’s because I’m trans, but wingnut and friend are mutually exclusive concepts to me. Wingers fucking hate me and wish I was dead, generally speaking. I haven’t found any exceptions yet.

    ETA: It does keep my spam-box rather empty though. Just the standard “p3n1s enl4rgement” stuff, which I find endlessly amusing.

  44. 44.

    flukebucket

    May 10, 2012 at 2:47 pm

    @gaz:

    I live in the Land of the Lost Cause. If it were not for wingnuts we would have no nuts at all. Wingers around here do not hate me but they are baffled by me. They cannot figure out what caused my political retardation.

    And by the way, it is Confederate Memorial Day. Where in the hell is Dennis G?

  45. 45.

    Egg Berry

    May 10, 2012 at 2:48 pm

    @flukebucket:

    if Romney had a “White People for Romney” program.

    It’s called the GOP.

  46. 46.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 2:49 pm

    @Egg Berry: win

  47. 47.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 2:54 pm

    @flukebucket: I have a few libertarian friends, including a really close friend. She has a bookshelf filled with ayn rand’s garbage, but I can at least respect her – she’s intelligent and thoughtful, even though we vehemently disagree on politics. She voted for Bush. Twice.

    Still I wouldn’t label her as a wingnut. Wingnuts are a special breed of stupid. They don’t think. They emote. They are universal haters. They hate teh queers, hate women, hate the message of Jesus christ (while clinging to the bible).

    Fuck them. They aren’t worthy of my friendship. I like myself too much to debase myself the way they would like me to, in order to be in their company. If I were surrounded by wingnuts, I’d simply have no friends. It wouldn’t bother me as much as the alternative.

  48. 48.

    gaz

    May 10, 2012 at 3:02 pm

    @Lee: Awesome sauce! Thanks for the link. That’s fascinating.

  49. 49.

    Glildwrith

    May 10, 2012 at 3:53 pm

    I got myself a vanilla orchid for Mother’s Day. Squeee! Only $30 and I never thought you could get them commercially. I’ve also got another orchid that last bloomed for me two years ago and I just found TWO flower spikes on it. Yeehaw!

  50. 50.

    Glildwrith

    May 10, 2012 at 3:56 pm

    Why did I trigger moderation?

  51. 51.

    Soonergrunt

    May 10, 2012 at 5:18 pm

    No earthly clue.

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