Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Let’s not be the monsters we hate.

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

The choice is between normal and crazy.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

The arc of the moral universe doesn’t bend itself. it’s up to us.

Stamping your little feets and demanding that they see how important you are? Not working anymore.

Biden: Oh no. We’ve upset Big Pharma again.

Let there be snark.

“Cheese and Kraken paired together for the appetizer trial.”

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

Days Since JD Vance Insulted Women Across America: Zero

This year has been the longest three days of putin’s life.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

The truth is, these are not very bright guys, and things got out of hand.

If marriage is the equivalent of selling yourself into slavery, women with self respect should reject the offer.

I’m sure you banged some questionable people yourself. We’re allowed to grow past that.

Accused of treason; bitches about the ratings. I am in awe.

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

The media handbook says “controversial” is the most negative description that can be used for a Republican.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

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90Comments

  9. 9.

    ? Martin

    I basically blasted every light on the house to the point my eyes were watering and I think you could see my living room from space

    Here’s a free idea for you, Cole. Invent a camera that has a lamp attached to it. The lamp doesn’t have to be on all the time, just a flash right when the shutter is open, so it can be really bright without using a lot of power. You could sell the idea to camera makers and they could build it right into the camera! You’d make a fortune!

  11. 11.

    Yatsuno

    STEVEKITTEH!!! Now tell wifey on Twitter you posted this so her flat ass will show up and be sociable for a bit.

  13. 13.

    Anne Laurie

    Cole, I’m just as photo-challenged as you, but I love my elderly Coolpix, bought many years ago on the understanding that Nikon had the best lenses in their cheaparse point’n’shoots.

    I’ve been thinking about upgrading to a Coolpix L620, specifically for its low-light capabilities… most of the shots I want to take are indoors (or in the evening, in the garden) and being able to zoom in at a high resolution is more important than distance and/or speed shoots.

    Anybody here want to tell me why this is/isn’t a good idea, or if there’s a better tech-idiot-friendly alternative for around the same money ($200-$300)?

  17. 17.

    Hungry Joe

    Song for Steve:

    Say, up in Harlem at a table for two
    There were four of us — me, your big feet, and you
    From your ankles up, I’d say you sure are sweet
    From there down, there’s just too much feet

    Yes, your feet’s too big
    Don’t want you ’cause your feet’s too big
    Can’t use you ’cause your feet’s too big
    Can’t tolerate you ’cause your feet’s too big …

    — Fats Waller
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in1eK3x1PBI

  18. 18.

    Ted

    Great pics! Have you checked into the possibility that Steve has some Norwegian Forest Cat in him? https://www.google.com/search?q=norwegian+forest+cat&espv=210&es_sm=122&tbm=isch&source=iu&imgil=o23d4Rf2Yd8JpM%253A%253Bhttps%253A%252F%252Fencrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com%252Fimages%253Fq%253Dtbn%253AANd9GcT_uo9YCL16n61fYkX-2Pye_ZNfkfxFu_x2MBPkCYSUZ3aSn4mMPA%253B1155%253B1200%253BsP_wMh6y0veNiM%253Bhttp%25253A%25252F%25252Fwww.123rf.com%25252Fphoto_10916916_portrait-of-a-norwegian-forest-cat.html&sa=X&ei=_uC8UsmYD9PjoASe1IKYDw&ved=0CLsBEP4dMA0&biw=1600&bih=784#facrc=_&imgdii=_&imgrc=o23d4Rf2Yd8JpM%3A%3BsP_wMh6y0veNiM%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fus.123rf.com%252F400wm%252F400%252F400%252Fprill%252Fprill1110%252Fprill111002195%252F10916916-portrait-of-a-norwegian-forest-cat.jpg%3Bhttp%253A%252F%252Fwww.123rf.com%252Fphoto_10916916_portrait-of-a-norwegian-forest-cat.html%3B1155%3B1200

  19. 19.

    Dead Ernest (Thought Wrangler)

    @Cassidy:

    new fangled. Fucking autocorrect.

    ‘new dangled’ was great.
    I thought it was both clever and inspired of you. Oh well, have to shuffle you back in below JSF & NotMax.

  20. 20.

    Steeplejack

    The last couple of days have been hectic, but I wanted to note the death of a jazz giant: RIP Yusef Lateef (1920-2013).

    At a time when jazz musicians in the United States rarely sought inspiration any farther geographically than Latin America, Mr. Lateef looked well beyond the Western Hemisphere. Anticipating the cross-cultural fusions of later decades, he flavored his music with scales, drones and percussion effects borrowed from Asia and the Middle East. He played world music before world music had a name.

    In later years he incorporated elements of contemporary concert music and composed symphonic and chamber works. African influences became more noticeable in his music when he spent four years studying and teaching in Nigeria in the early 1980s.

    “Love Theme from Spartacus.”

  22. 22.

    kdaug

    Wait – “Steve” is an actual cat?

    Probably just me, and I don’t mean to sound judgmental, but I’d assumed “Steve” was some old slipper or dust rag on the floor that John decided to take pictures of.

    Not saying that “Doddering Old Cole”* is bad with a camera or anything, and god knows it’s not my place to judge, but good to see something recognizable.

    *Damn straight, bitches. TM. You’ve got clearance to use in limericks and scurrilous poems. Otherwise, it’s mine.

  24. 24.

    Dead Ernest (Thought Wrangler)

    @Baud:

    Dang. Adding this to your reply, one thread down below, just makes this all the more fascinating …and delightfully suspenseful.

    Kind of like Douglas Adam’s hyperwhatever in Hitchiker’s GTTG.

    Wonder what’s next. Perhaps the Subaru turns into a crockpot full of pork, kraut, and dozens of bottles of mustard (one for each mention since Cole declared it missing)?

    /helplessly drawn, like moth~flame, to Meta.

  27. 27.

    Comrade Dread

    “Yes, yes, human. Your terrible and dread god Steve is pleased by your recognition of the constant worship he deserves. When the uprising happens, you will be eaten first and spared the horror of what is to come upon your fellow hairless apes.”

  31. 31.

    raven

    @Steeplejack: Yea, I mean I had never heard of Santana. That show and his 1st album are burned into my brain. I finally went to see him again the summer before last.

  32. 32.

    Hill Dweller

    The President just trolled every wingnut in the country:

    Barack Obama ‏@BarackObama 3h
    “Michelle and I extend our best wishes to all those celebrating Kwanzaa this holiday season.” —President Obama

  36. 36.

    NotMax

    Don’t know nuthin’ ’bout them newfangled cameras, but there isn’t an adjustable setting similar to the f-stop to adjust how much light gets into the aperture?

    (Last camera I used was a borrowed 35mm Voigtländer, some 40 years ago.)

  37. 37.

    rikyrah

    White Teacher to Black Student: We Don’t Need Another Black President

    Gil Voigt, a science teacher in Ohio, has been suspended for allegedly making the comment to an African-American teen boy with presidential aspirations.
    By: Stephen A. Crockett Jr.
    Posted: Dec. 26 2013 1:25 PM

    A white Cincinnati-area teacher has been suspended for allegedly telling an African-American student that “we do not need another black president” after the student said he would like to become president, the Cincinnati Inquirer reports.

    The Fairfield Board of Education suspended Fairfield Freshman School science teacher Gil Voigt after he allegedly made the comments with several students present earlier this month, according to a report from Assistant Superintendent Roger Martin, who conducted a disciplinary hearing on the matter, the Inquirer reports.

    Voigt, who has been teaching at the school since 2000, has 10 days to request a hearing before the school board, but this isn’t the first time he has been disciplined.

    According to the Inquirer, which reviewed the teacher’s disciplinary documents, he received a verbal warning for making an inappropriate racial comment in 2008. That year he also received a verbal warning for improper use of school technology, and last year he received a verbal warning after allegedly calling a student “stupid.” He received a written warning last month for failure to use the adopted curriculum.

    “This is a rare occurrence. This is the first time I’ve faced it since being named assistant superintendent [in 2011],” Martin said. In his report, Martin said that he believed the four students who were interviewed and corroborated the account of the incident as the student reported it.

    The black student was removed from Voigt’s class after his parents complained.

    “We intend to uphold board policies and to hold teachers accountable for the essential functions of the teacher job description,” Martin said.

    http://www.theroot.com/articles/culture/2013/12/white_teacher_to_black_student_we_don_t_need_another_black_president.html?wpisrc=burger?wpisrc=mostpopular

  42. 42.

    Villago Delenda Est

    Much better pair of pictures than the last few, which again suffered from poor lighting, which doesn’t do Steve the justice he deserves, nay, demands.

  45. 45.

    raven

    @NotMax: It gets foggy here because of Sea Level that included Allman’s Lamar Williams, drummer Jaimoe and Chuck Leavell (Chuck has also been the Stones keyboard player for quite some time).

  46. 46.

    Roger Moore

    @? Martin:
    Flash photographs, or at least ones taken primarily with on-camera flash, suck. Light does not naturally come from a single bright source located very close to the optical axis, and pictures taken with that kind of light look unnatural. There’s even a well-known phenomenon of the subjects’ retinas reflecting flash light back to the camera (i.e. red-eye), an effect which is much worse when the subject has strongly reflective retinas like a cat. Cole’s approach of turning on a decent amount of light is actually much better. It produces a more natural distribution of light and doesn’t result in the cat looking like it has laser beams for eyes.

  55. 55.

    raven

    Rachel is showing her clip of LBJ ordering his tailor to make pants that don’t mess with his “nuts and bunghole”. God it’s funny.

  59. 59.

    Jay C

    @ John Cole:

    What Roger Moore said: ignore the snark about flashes: the strong area-lighting method works much better for cats. Of course, John may already know this (hence the posts about lighting Steve the way he has) , but then, what would Balloon Juice be without gratuitous wiseassery from the Peanut Gallery??

    He looks kind of irritated at the attention in the second picture.

    SRSLY? I thought cats only became irritated re “attention” due to the lack of it?

  60. 60.

    MattR

    @raven: Completely changing topics, but I was searching through the BJ archives and came across a comment of yours linking to a picture of a young Vic Chestnutt. Unfortunately the link was dead. Was that picture from your private stash? Is it still available online anywhere? I’d like to send a link to my brother in law.

  61. 61.

    Roger Moore

    OT: I am greatly enjoying having a computer with a working heat sink. I had noticed that my computer’s CPU was getting in the habit of overheating at the drop of a hat, but hadn’t thought seriously about it because it was something that happened gradually. It finally got to the point that I was having trouble getting stuff done because the CPU would overheat if I tried to do anything more challenging than surfing text-heavy web pages. I thought about it and realized that it was probably a heat sink problem. After checking- yes, the heat sink was still properly attached- I diagnosed the problem as failing thermal compound between the processor and heat sink. Today, I got some fresh thermal grease- the fancy kind with exotic substances to increase the thermal conductivity- and re-greased the thing. Now my processor is idling 15K lower than before and running serious load without overheating.

  63. 63.

    ruemara

    Repeated from the destroyed prior thread:

    POOKIE! I just want to snorgle that ruff! You don’t really need super strong light, JC. If you have a reasonably decent point and shoot, you can try upping the ISO to about 6400. Or you can be like me and find a fascinatin’ macro circular light that goes around the lens, which also makes for some amazing effects.

  65. 65.

    OldBean

    @Anne Laurie:

    Nothing really special about Nikon point-and-shoots. They most certainly do not have the best lenses. Best reputation based on their pro products, maybe. But the quality doesn’t carry over to their consumer stuff in my experience (I’m a working photographer now and a camera salesman in a previous, crappier life).

    IMO, Canon point and shoots tend to be the best, and Panasonics tend to be the best for the money. dpreview.com is a good resource for deep-nerdy research, and thewirecutter.com is good if you just want someone to tell you what to buy.

  67. 67.

    Mary

    John, I just love Steve’s little mustache. He truly is gorgeous. And it’s so great that Steve has such a good home with so much love. Thanks for the photos. Could you also send some of Lily? Thanks. -Mary

  70. 70.

    mai naem

    I have a Casio Exilim and it does okay by me. John, your pics are improving immensely. Purdy cat. Also. Too.

  72. 72.

    lurker dean

    @Anne Laurie: Anne Laurie, I don’t know a lot about that particular Nikon but I’m guessing there are better options. It’s a fairly tall order to get a camera in that price range that will work well in low light without some sort of flash or external lighting (putting it on a tripod or monopod would be a big help too). That said, there are some that are better than others, and there are things to look for. Generally speaking for a low light compact what you want is a camera with two things: a fast lens (which means the lens has a bigger aperture, so it takes in more light) and a bigger sensor (which simplistically speaking means it also captures more light because it’s bigger than a smaller sensor).

    In that price range, one choice is the Canon S110, which has recently been replaced by the S120 so you can find it for close to $200. It has a fast lens (f/2.0) and a 1/1.7 sensor, which is probably the biggest sensor you’ll find in your price range. The lens is faster than the lens on the Nikon and the sensor is bigger than on the Nikon, so low light should be better. Here’s one review:
    http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/canon_powershot_s110_review/
    I have an older Canon S90 which is in the same family. It’s very user friendly, as the Canon point and shoots tend to be, and it’s easy to do macro shots with it (close ups, like you would take of flowers). It’s also very small and pocketable, it’s an excellent camera.

    Another choice is the Panasonic LX7, which has an even faster lens (f/1.4 – smaller number is bigger aperture) and also has a 1/1.7 sensor. It’s bigger than the Canon and not quite pocketable, but it has always gotten rave reviews. It can be found for less than $300 nowadays, but I’m not sure how long the current sales will last.
    http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/880960-REG/Panasonic_dmc_lx7k_Lumix_LX7_Digital_Camera.html
    Here’s a review.
    http://www.photographyblog.com/reviews/panasonic_lumix_dmc_lx7_review/

    Fuji is also known to have good low light capabilities in their cameras, but I’m not up to speed on their current point and shoot models.

    I could ramble on and on, hopefully that helps.

  74. 74.

    Chris T.

    @Roger Moore: Yes, although home lighting has an odd spectrum which confounds some cameras. Incandescents have very yellowish light and compact fluorescents can be weirdly green.

    As long as the camera can fix the “white balance”, though, just turning on ambient light is the way to go. Well, that and sometimes a little fill flash, preferably off-camera if possible.

  76. 76.

    MikeJ

    @Southern Beale:

    They took a long time to load, you may have the camera set on a higher resolution than you need? Are you shooting with an SLR?

    Camera Make {0x010F} = SONY
    Camera Model {0x0110} = DSC-H10

    Last night’s were iPhone 4.

  78. 78.

    Howard Beale IV

    When it comes to cameras, sometime you don’t get what you pay for.

    Since I’m an old 35mm dude who had darkroom skills, when I first went digital I used Olympus 4/3rds cameras/glass.

    Since then I traded to a Sony A65 SLT-and for the bang-for-the-buck, there isn’t any better, and here’s why: Sony uses a SXGA OLED viewfinder that tells you what the sensor is seeing vs.using an optical pentaprism like the Pentax’s (and don’t get me started on pentamirror shit in Canon/Nikon in the same price range.)

    And the Sony Alpha mount supports Minolta AF lenses and features a Zeiss-designed 16-80mm Vario-Sonnar T* that mops the floor of any lens in its price point.

    And with HD video recording, auto-panoramic stitching and 3D-imaging support, it’s a no-brainer-and for 3 bills more, the A77 offers weather-sealing and support for an external grip with additional juice.

  79. 79.

    SectionH

    @burnspbesq: oh my… I think I have a couple of friends who are there as I type. They will be amused if I ask about it, as I’m notorious for being ignorant of all sports not involving horses.

  81. 81.

    mzrad

    Quite the improvement, Mr. Cole, on the kitteh photos. Light is good! I’ve been wondering if you’re part vampire with all those always-indoor, always-dark photos. ; )

    Do you still love your “tea for two-thousand” chamomile? Most tea-in-envelopes doesn’t taste great to me and we’re crazy for chamomile over here. Pls advise. Thx!

    Hope you and the piglets had a super fun holiday with lots of love and fur!

  83. 83.

    burnspbesq

    @SectionH:

    I’ve got the Channel Nine coverage of the Ashes going on my iPad. It may be that Morgan vs. Lee will happen during tea, which is coming up shortly. If so, we may get to see it live.

    ETA: There are a couple of thousand people surrounding the practice nets. Bloodthirsty fuckers all.

  84. 84.

    Roger Moore

    @Chris T.:
    Cameras can handle the extra green from low CRI fluorescents better than they can handle the blue deficiency of incandescents. Of course, you can also solve that problem by paying a bit more and getting better quality lights. There are 90+ CRI CFLs available, and an increasing number of higher CRI LEDs, too, and I would recommend them to anyone who cares about the quality of light in their dwelling.

  87. 87.

    Bill D.

    @lurker dean:

    I can second the recommendations for the S-series Canons. I have an S95 (same family of cameras, earlier model) which is really, really good for a point-and-shoot. There is even a low-light mode which combines the output from four pixels into one, giving lower resolution (still fine for web use) but greatly reduced digital noise (the nemesis of low-light digital photography). It’s still best to put on lots of lights, if they are available, to get the best results.

  88. 88.

    Matt McIrvin

    I used to have a Nikon point-and-shoot, one of their pocket digital cameras with a swiveling lens. It was no great shakes in general, but it was surprisingly good for macro shots of tiny objects. There were two reasons for that.

    The lens was capable of macro focus such that it could achieve a fairly high degree of magnification. My current Canon is actually capable of focusing on the front surface of its own lens, but it’s wider-angle at that point than the Nikon was.

    Also, the little flash was mounted on the swiveling part right next to the lens. For most purposes, that was awful! It was almost impossible to avoid redeye when photographing humans, let alone glowing cat eyes. But for photographing bugs and tiny flowers it was actually great, almost like having a macro flash ring.

  89. 89.

    J R in WV

    @Anne Laurie:

    Hi Anne, here’s my suggestion:

    A Panasonic with a Leica lens. They make their lenses wider, and have better low light software.

    I got a FX200, which is a higher end camera than your budget, but they have others more in line with your price range. I’ve been Nikon for years, have a DLSR with multiple lenses, and gadgets. I gave it up for this Panasonic!

    This single lens Panasonic camera takes pictures when there isn’t enough light to see with the naked eye.

    It will show a little message in the viewfinder “This is a hand-held night shot. Hold the camera as still as you can and hold the shutter button down.” Then it takes like a dozen exposures in a couple of seconds, and adds them up to produce a brightly lit photo of a dark corner of a cathedral or museum.

    Amazing. Just look for that Leica lens, some have that and some have Paasonic lenses, I think the German lenses are better, but cost Panasonic more than building their own, so they have a dukes mix.

    Sony is doing the same thing with Zeiss lenses, their better cameras have the Zeiss German lenses, they use their own lenses on other cameras. They may both be just using the German design and branding while building the better lenses themselves, we can’t know how it’s actually being done inside the factories.

    But right now Panasonic has the edge for low light cameras, I suspect.

  90. 90.

    Pogonip

    @Hungry Joe: Ken Page (best known as the voice of Oogie Boogie in “The Nightmare Before Christmas”) also did a very funny version of “your Feet’s Too Big.”. After lo these many years, I still smile when I think of Page bellowing in righteous indignation: “Look at ’em! Look at ’em! Spread aaaallll ACROSS the floor!”

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