Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

It’s easy to sit in safety and prescribe what other people should be doing.

I see no possible difficulties whatsoever with this fool-proof plan.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

The revolution will be supervised.

I really should read my own blog.

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

Hot air and ill-informed banter

They fucked up the fucking up of the fuckup!

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Fuck these fucking interesting times.

If you are still in the GOP, you are an extremist.

Is it irresponsible to speculate? It is irresponsible not to.

Seems like a complicated subject, have you tried yelling at it?

Their freedom requires your slavery.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Thursday Afternoon Open Thread

Thursday Afternoon Open Thread

by | 71 Comments

This post is in: 

I’m busy, busy, busy, but the least I can do is post an open thread. Here’s a pet shop I saw in NYC. I didn’t go in, but my kiddo did, and she came out with a golden high-five cat, which was fortunately made of plastic rather than a live critter.

aqua star

Please feel free to discuss whatever. Hopefully someone stomps on this post with something more substantive soon. I apologize for the lack of coherent output, but hey, y’all are used to that.

Here’s the box the aforementioned golden high five cat came in. I have no clue what the hell it is. But its arm is battery operated and delivers high fives.

20140724-143632-52592474.jpg

Reader Interactions

71Comments

  2. 2.

    Punchy

    a golden high-five cat

    Can I google this on a work computer, or is this slang for something that might get me fired?

  4. 4.

    Tone In DC

    Looks like a location for a John Cassavetes film circa 1975.

    Was he in the Seven-Ups? Helluva chase at the end of that flick.

  6. 6.

    Amir Khalid

    @Punchy:
    I actually know what Betty’s talking about. It’s a good-luck charm commonly found in Asian homes, and it looks like a cat holding up its right front paw for a high-five. The cat is usually covered in gilt or depicted with white fur.

  8. 8.

    Waynski

    @Tone In DC: An old friend’s Dad was the cinematographer on that film, Urs Furrer. He unfortunately, the Dad, died in his forties from a sudden heart attack on set in South America. He did some fantastic work though. The crash at the end of the chase scene was filmed about a mile from my house. Great movie. Another great movie of the same era was The Taking of Pelham 1,2,3. Pretty good chase scene in that one IIRC.

  9. 9.

    Rich (In Name Only) in Reno

    The waving cat is “maneki-neko.” They’re sometimes called “good luck cats, ” and are a common sight in Japanese-run businesses.Their gesture is meant to signify beckoning to the customer.

  11. 11.

    gbear

    @Punchy: I think BC is talking about the little cat statues where the cat is sitting with either its left or right front paw up in the air. One side is for money and the other for relationships, but I can’t remember which side is which.

  13. 13.

    Comrade Mary

    @Betty Cracker: Is your cat going on your third floor? That’s supposed to be luckiest.

    OTOH, you may not have a third floor. I have a basement, a main floor, and a top floor. Can I count the top floor as the third floor?

  14. 14.

    beltane

    @Amir Khalid: I’ve seen them in businesses to. I’ve always thought they were good luck/prosperity charms, very much like Americans us hroseshoes, four-leaf clovers, etc.

  17. 17.

    Trollhattan

    Have wondered since a kid waz I, what the waving kitteh was about, and now I know. Braise Bieber, it’s another BJ miracle. Need to buy one for my kid, she’ll love it.

  19. 19.

    Tone In DC

    @Waynski:

    The original Pelham 123 was on Retroplex, Reelz or IFC a few weeks ago. I only caught part of it, but it seemed like a good film. As I recall, Matthau glowered quite a bit.

    Movies like these are why I keep adding to the old DVD collection. Might have to watch The French Connection this weekend, if it rains too much.

  20. 20.

    Roger Moore

    @Comrade Mary:

    Maneki-neko!

    AKA Beckoning Cat. It’s supposed to bring good luck or, when it’s holding a gold coin like this one, wealth. FWIW, Hello Kitty is supposedly originally based on the beckoning cat.

  23. 23.

    Nicole

    I’m sorry you missed the pet store farther uptown on Broadway that downstairs has an enormous free-roaming tortoise.

    Speaking of NYC pet ownership I am high-fiving myself for calling out a guy who let his little frou-frou dog (off leash) wander out of his sight, where it took a dump. As the dog ran back to him and they both headed toward home, I shouted to him he needed to clean up after his pooch. He wasn’t dickish about being caught, I’ll give him that, but seriously?

    I hate conflict; it makes me anxious, but the number of dog owners I see here who do anything they can to avoid picking up after their dogs just brings out all my angries.

    Also, again, off leash on the city sidewalks. Not cool.

  29. 29.

    mm

    I was told when I bought my high five cat in an Asian store that it has to be displayed within sight of a window.

  30. 30.

    gogol's wife

    A friend of mine who was an anthropologist specializing in Japanese religion had her whole house full of these, plus foxes. Plus live cats (but not live foxes).

  31. 31.

    Pee Cee

    @gogol’s wife:

    It’s been my experience that neko of the live variety want to kill the maneki-neko … particularly if said maneki-neko are the solar-powered ones that wave continuously.

  32. 32.

    Betty Cracker

    @Nicole: I am also sorry I missed the tortoise! I was amazed at the number of dogs in Manhattan and wondered how people managed dog ownership with no yards. It must be a giant pain in the ass. My dogs are in and out all day. I’m guessing city dogs just learn to hold it and go at preset intervals?

    Good for you for calling that dude out. We have a dog park nearby that has poop bag dispensers all over the place and cans everywhere, and some no-good rat-bastards still don’t bother to clean up after their dogs. It pisses me off!

  36. 36.

    Pee Cee

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    We have one cat who looks for any weak seam in a stuffed toy and then proceeds to remove every last bit of stuffing from the toy through that seam. He’s just like a Build-a-Bear workshop, only in reverse.

  37. 37.

    Tone In DC

    @schrodinger’s cat:

    Apropos of nothing, I thought you may want to read this review.
    It’s for the Schrodinger’s Cat Executive Decision Maker.

    Don’t blame me, blame amazon.com. And George Takei. ;-)

    This is the perfect gift to give yourself or a co-worker. Asked a simple yes or no question from the boss, such as “Will the report be done on time?” or “Will you be able to cover the books for me while I’m away?” the box legitimates “yes…and no” answers.

    “Hang on, let me consult Schrodinger’s Cat Executive Box” for that answer. “Aha! See? It says the answer is both yes, and no. That is, right now, knowing nothing other than your question, the answer could be either yes or no. But when we actually get to that point, we’ll know whether it actually was yes, or no.”

    “But that box always gives that answer.”

    “So does quantum physics, and no one is arguing with that.”

  39. 39.

    Trollhattan

    @Pee Cee:
    Hopefully the Case version of Neko isn’t similarly inclined. That would be hard to explain (but entertaining, I’m certain).

  43. 43.

    gbear

    @Betty Cracker: I live in a neighborhood where an old brewery building was converted into a large number of artist lofts and a lot of these new renters have dogs. I was really happy to see that a doggie bag dispenser and disposal bin was installed on the corner up the street from me, and another just down the street from that one. I’m glad that the developer installed those dispensers to remind the new tenants that they needed to pick up after their dogs. They all seem to have gotten the hint (not to mention it’s the law to clean up after your dog in St. Paul).

  46. 46.

    FlipYrWhig

    @Iowa Old Lady: @Betty Cracker: I get it sporadically on Firefox and had just gotten it twice in a row, when I loaded this thread and then when I popped downstairs. But now it’s come up clean a few times. Unpredictable.

  48. 48.

    geg6

    @Pee Cee:

    That is my Koda puppeh, too. She loves nothing more than tearing out stuffing. But she also won’t give up the poor limp toys once all the stuffing is gone. One of the first toys we bought her when we got her was a porcupine. That’s been a year and a half and the poor porcupine has not a shred of stuffing. Just limp bit of cloth. But she loves the porcupine and won’t hear of it being tossed out. We got her this weird looking stuffed monkey right after she finished off the porcupine stuffing that has a body about three and a half feet long. Monkey lost his arms first thing, then his ears and eyes and now only has about four or five inches of stuffing at either end. On the other hand, we got her a stuffed chicken made from some very strong knitted material at the same time we got the porcupine. Whatever that knitted stuff is, it’s stood up to every attempt to find a weak spot so the stuffing is still as full as it was when we got it. Made by Martha Stewart’s pet toy line. Have been looking for other dog toys like it to no avail.

  50. 50.

    Nicole

    @Betty Cracker: As an NYC dog owner, yeah, your dog just has to learn to hold it, though a number of small-dog owners set up piddle pads in their apartments (ew). Some of the parks have off-leash hours, but that’s a whole ‘nother issue- owners overestimating their own dog’s ability to behave appropriately off-leash, and or their own willingness to keep an eye on their dog when it’s off-leash.

    9-5ers have to hire a dog walker to get their pooch out for a midday pee break. It ain’t cheap- $15 if your dog can be group-walked, as much as $30 if it has to go solo.

  51. 51.

    geg6

    @Nicole:

    Are New York dogs special for some reason in that they must pee during the day? Because we leave our dogs at home all while we work and they pee before we leave and after we get home just fine. Is it something about NYC water, maybe?

    I do not understand this dog walker thing at all, unless we’re talking about people working doubles or who travel for work. 8-5 without a pee break is fine for our dogs.

  52. 52.

    Trollhattan

    Did somebody say UNLIMITED CORPORATE CASH?

    Gov. Jerry Brown continues to expand his massive financial advantage over Republican Neel Kashkari in his bid for re-election, reporting Thursday that he had $22.4 million on hand as of June 30.

    The Democratic governor raised $5.7 million in the first half of the year and spent less than $270,000 in the primary election. Brown finished first anyway, and is polling far ahead of Kashkari early in their general election contest.

    Brown’s major donors include the Democratic State Central Committee of California, labor unions [“union thugs!”] and myriad business interests [“covering their butts!”].

    http://www.sacbee.com/capitol-alert/##storylink=cpy

  53. 53.

    wasabi gasp

    Firefox users can disable autoplay by going to the plug-ins section of the add-ons screen and setting the Flash plug-in to “Ask to Activate.”

    Chrome users can disable autoplay in the settings. There’s a toggle in the plug-ins section of the content settings: chrome://settings/content

    Good luck.

  54. 54.

    geg6

    @wasabi gasp:

    Firefox users can disable autoplay by going to the plug-ins section of the add-ons screen and setting the Flash plug-in to “Ask to Activate.”

    I suppose we could if we had any idea what any of that means. ;-) I’m sure I’ll be flamed as a trogolodyte know-nothing for admitting to this, but it’s truth.

  56. 56.

    Randy P

    @Tone In DC: The French Connection has a famous chase seen with a car chasing a subway, running through Brooklyn at high speed.

    THEY DIDN’T CLEAR THE FRICKIN STREETS FOR THAT SCENE! THEY DID IT ON THE ACTUAL STREETS! WITH ACTUAL CARS AND PEDESTRIANS!

  58. 58.

    Bill ORLY

    Funny story… I was in Tokyo several years ago with a British coworker. As we walked around he said that his neighbor asked him to bring back “one of those cats with their paw up in the air.” Neither of us had any idea what they were talking about. As we turned the corner into the shop row in Asakusa, we walked directly into a store that sold NOTHING BUT these things.

  59. 59.

    Nicole

    @geg6: Certainly dogs can do it, but it doesn’t mean they’re comfortable. Maybe you regularly do not urinate for nine-hour stretches of your waking hours, but I certainly can’t, at least not without extreme discomfort the last few hours. Dogs are better than we are at hiding discomfort, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t experiencing it. Ergo the midday pee break. Not to mention, for many dogs it minimizes destructive behavior when left alone because it’s nice to get some exercise and stretch their legs.

    NYC owners can be loons about their dogs, absolutely, but in the case of hiring a dog walker to give the dog a break when it’s left alone 45 hours every week, I think it is money well spent. Which doesn’t make it not frickin’ expensive. But every owner and every dog is an individual, ymmv.

  61. 61.

    seaboogie

    @geg6: Among my favorite memories of my late beloved Golden Seamus, was arriving home at the end of my workday to discover some toy that he had found on an outing with his walker.

    Whenever he found something, he would
    a) turn immediately around to go back home with his treasure
    and
    b) wait patiently for me to get home, show it off to me – and then proceed to destroy it. I think he must have felt like a little kid at Christmas with a stash of presents under the tree, waiting until he could tear into them.

  62. 62.

    John Doe Walker

    Governor Scott Walker (Ranidan Kochsucker, Wisconsin)

    Walker told reporters Mitt Romney did not run for president based on his business experience.

    Before I forget; During WPR’s morning show, reporter Shawn Johnson played a clip of Scott Walker answering a question about the Wall Street Journal’s criticism that he’s using the same argument against Burke that Obama used against Romney-outsourcing to overseas countries.

    Walker answered by saying Romney didn’t run on his business experience.

    Walker: “Mitt Romney did not run his campaign on the basis of his arguing his experience in the business world as a reason to vote for him. If he did, than I think it would be fair game to look at all the experience.”

    Clips and the rest of the story at http://democurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2014/07/walker-told-reporters-mitt-romney-did.html

  63. 63.

    Mnemosyne

    @Randy P:

    That baby carriage they almost run over? Real mother. Real baby.

    There’s a reason William Friedkin has a hard time getting work in Hollywood: he’s a frickin’ loon who has absolutely no regard for on-set safety, and producers became afraid of another “Twilight Zone” incident.

  64. 64.

    Talentless Hack

    @Amir Khalid: Usually the cat is a calico. Those are especially lucky. We have one who will actually do the thing with the paw, which is soooo cool.

  66. 66.

    g

    It’s a maneki-neko, and it’s for good luck. The gold ones are supposed to be focused on luck that brings money.

  67. 67.

    Nikolita

    @Amir Khalid:

    In the West, when you want someone to come over, the palm is up. In Japan that is considered rude (or so I am told), so the palm is down.

  70. 70.

    Arnie

    The cat is not high-fiving, but washing its face. A cat watching its face signifies you will have visitors, which is something a business would consider lucky.

  71. 71.

    Armadillo

    It has nothing to do with the color of the cat. Or rather, the color of the cat may reflect its purpose, but do not determine it. The characters written on the banner the cat is holding say “Summoning Wealth, Summoning Luck.” That’s how you know what it is doing. Sitting on a giant pile of gold coins is another clue. They are common throughout Japan, China, Korea, and Vietnam. Maybe other parts of Asia as well. There may be other variations, but the ones I’ve seen in China are all summoning wealth.

Comments are closed.