Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Do not shrug your shoulders and accept the normalization of untruths.

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

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

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

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

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

I did not have this on my fuck 2022 bingo card.

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

Not all heroes wear capes.

Let there be snark.

Balloon Juice has never been a refuge for the linguistically delicate.

Infrastructure week. at last.

The willow is too close to the house.

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

Authoritarian republicans are opposed to freedom for the rest of us.

The republican caucus is already covering themselves with something, and it’s not glory.

This has so much WTF written all over it that it is hard to comprehend.

Usually wrong but never in doubt

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

Speaking of republicans, is there a way for a political party to declare intellectual bankruptcy?

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

Bark louder, little dog.

Fuck the extremist election deniers. What’s money for if not for keeping them out of office?

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Moar Chickens! (Open Thread)

Reader Interactions

127Comments

  3. 3.

    Steve in the ATL

    When reading balloon juice on safari on my iPhone, it sometimes send me to myspace.

    Question: wtf?

  4. 4.

    Buddy H

    I remember one time, during a drunken but good-natured insult contest, I exclaimed “You’re so low you walk into a chicken coop and say ‘Whoa, cathedral ceiling!'”

  6. 6.

    greennotGreen

    Cold rain today, an improvement from ice and 10 degrees. I’m finishing the patchwork curtains for my guest house in anticipation of spending time there while my new house is being built. Obviously, considering the ice and snow, we did NOT break ground last week.

  9. 9.

    Elizabelle

    What is the story behind that very fine piece of art?

    Who or what is at the wheel? A dog? A cat? Blue dog? Why are the chickens looking back? Regret? Unanswered prayers? They couldn’t figure out how to properly use their seatbelts?

    Story in that art.

  10. 10.

    trollhattan

    @Roger Moore:
    If chickens formed a housing cooperative, would it be a coop co-op or a co-op coop? If the management board were overthrown by disgruntled chicken members, would it be a co-op coop coup?

  12. 12.

    Trentrunner

    Well, well, well, Mr. O’Reilly.

    “I can provide some eyewitness information on this matter because I was one of the correspondents in Buenos Aires with O’Reilly and the rest of the rather large staff of CBS News people who were there “covering” the war. To begin with “covering” is an overstatement of what we were doing. Corn is correct in pointing out that the Falkland Islands, where the combat between Great Britain and Argentina took place, was a thousand miles away from Buenos Aires. We were in Buenos Aires because that’s the only place the Argentine military junta would let journalists go. Our knowledge of the war was restricted to what we could glean from comically deceitful daily briefings given by the Argentine military and watching government-controlled television to try to pick up a useful clue from propaganda broadcasts. We — meaning the American networks — were all in the same, modern hotel and we never saw any troops, casualties or weapons. It was not a war zone or even close. It was an “expense account zone.””

    “O’Reilly, in defending himself yesterday against Corn’s “Mother Jones” piece, said “We were in a combat situation in Buenos Aires.” He is misrepresenting the situation he covered, and he is obviously doing so to burnish his credentials as a “war correspondent,” which is not the work he was performing during the Falklands war.”

  14. 14.

    Iowa Old Lady

    Harvard calls its co-op bookstore the Coop.

    I’m trying to register for a local Society of Children’s Bookwriters and Illustrators (SCWBI) conference. There are many steps. That’s ok. I have a glass of wine to help.

  18. 18.

    Violet

    I’m cleaning my house too. Well, I’m not sure I’m at the cleaning stage. I’m more at the going-through-things stage. Filing paperwork related to my parents’ health issues. Sorting out stacks of things that have piled up over the last year when I was swamped with other issues. Just generally working on making the mountain of paperwork more of a slight hillock of paperwork. Boring.

  19. 19.

    ruemara

    Still giddy. Heading out to get some exercise and enjoy sunshine. Plus, I need apples and batteries. If I can get this air bed inflated, today, I sleep on a bed. Which could be spectacular. Maybe my neck will stop hurting so much too. It’s been a day of win. Not sure if it can get much better.

  21. 21.

    NotMax

    @raven

    Dunno if you’ve ever seen it (comes ’round periodically), but the other day TCM showed the short Sword Fishing, about fishing for blue marlin using bow and arrow.

  22. 22.

    Tenar Darell

    Snowing on the South Shore; good thing I made it back from food shopping about an hour ago. Plus, my father all set with supplies, driveway and walkway widened by me, and his whole two level roof and the garage was cleared by two men this AM. Now, here’s hoping that my flat topped apartment building handles the upcoming load.

    On a completely unrelated note, the play Inherit the Wind might be 60 years old, and the acting from the 1960 movie more than somewhat over the top, but it still speaks to today. I got home about halfway in, in time for the Matthew Brady testimony.

  24. 24.

    Betty Cracker

    @Elizabelle: It was a present in honor of my old car and hens. I think maybe there are other chickens driving, but it’s not entirely clear.

    @Trentrunner: I figured people would pipe up. O’Reilly is such an arrogant prick; he can hardly count on colleagues to cover for him. I hope his lies bring him down, but given that he works at the Ministry of Mendacity, I guess that’s unlikely.

  26. 26.

    Violet

    @efgoldman: I need to do that sort of thing too, but right now I need to be able to see the table and the floor. At the moment it’s all piles of paperwork. First things first.

  28. 28.

    dmsilev

    @efgoldman: Trying to break the laws of physics never seemed to end well on Star Trek…

    I had a similar flat-cookware-stuff storage issue a few years back when I moved into my current place. There was a nice little nook between the fridge and the sink, maybe 6 inches wide and going back the full depth of the fridge. Perfect for storing cookie sheets, cutting boards, cooling racks, etc., except I couldn’t find any sort of shelving system that would fit narrow-and-deep. Ended up saying ‘screw it’, ordering some metal plate and rod stock, and spent some quality time in the machine shop at work making it from scratch.

  30. 30.

    FlyingToaster

    It’s snowing in Watertown; we did the errands this am and early afternoon. I’ll wrap tomorrow’s present (classmate birthday party) and do laundry tonight.

    I have a 15′ pole that was only long enough to whack at the longest icicles. Fortunately, they’ve been breaking and falling on their own.

    I’m seriously considering ordering a 30′ Unger pole (attach your tools at the screw end), because this shit is ridiculous. You can’t use a cherry picker here because of power lines; you can’t put up ladders because the yard is 3-4 feed deep in compressed snow. The porch roofs are 3′ deep, and the icicles on the south side are now columns in that porchtop snowbank.

    WU says we’re getting snow until midnight, then sleet, then rain, and we’ll be all done and well above freezing tomorrow morning. I hope so.

  31. 31.

    Renie

    Rudy “Noun, Verb, 911” Guiliani, after doubling down and saying Obama was influenced by socialism and communism, is now stating he is getting death threats because of what he said. Can we be so lucky that death threats will make him shut up and go away?

    Snowing here on Long Island, NY.

  32. 32.

    MattF

    @Betty Cracker: O’Reilly has always had a ‘give and take’ relationship with reality. In any event, his defense against all unapproved facts generally comes down to ‘my audience is bigger than yours.’ Which, honestly, is true.

  33. 33.

    trollhattan

    @Smiling Mortician:
    That’s a real who’s who list in the comments. Maybe this really will get traction, although that presupposes Fox views it as anything other than free publicity.

  35. 35.

    jl

    As soon as I saw the pic I knew it was a BC post. Didn’t even have to look for the name.

    BC has added chicken blogging to the vast range of BJ topics, as well as Florida boondocks blogging. One of the features that truly makes BJ a full service blog.

    One of the things I miss about life on the farm is them damn chickens. In both farms I spent time on as a kid, there were ‘inside’ chickens and ‘outside’ chickens. Inside chickens were the ones that we managed to keep in the yard. Outside chickens were the ones that escaped into the great beyond. On the CA farm, one occasional chore was to go around at dawn or dusk and round up dozing outside chickens that were roosting on low lying limbs. In AK, outside chickens didn’t last long enough to bother, so tight coop and yard security was essential.

  36. 36.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    I decided to try and have a healthy lunch by going to Le Pain Quotidien instead of The Melt. And I ended up getting a grilled ham and cheese anyway.

    Sigh. At least it came with a salad and not fries.

    Also, you know your new cut and color looks good when the homeless guys try to flirt with you instead of just asking for money.

  37. 37.

    mdblanche

    @Renie: I saw a good line about Giuliani the other day about how his big accomplishment was being the only elected executive not in a bunker on 9/11. Because his bunker was on fire.

  39. 39.

    Buddy H

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Have you seen the film “The Reluctant Dragon”? Fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the Disney studios, circa 1940. Look for Alan Ladd in a tiny part as he introduces the “Baby Weems” storyboard. And some actual, legendary animators make appearances, playing themselves, as well as the gentleman who portrayed Donald Duck.

    The film didn’t do well, and the strike was going on during its opening. I think Walt called all the strikers communists and tried to ruin their careers.

  41. 41.

    gogol's wife

    @trollhattan:

    One of my students whom I asked to read out loud from Notes from Underground the other day read something like, “What if I think the Crystal Palace is no better than a chicken co-op?” I tried not to laugh too hard.

  42. 42.

    JPL

    @Trentrunner: Fox news will open their pocketbooks and pay some good money to keep this story for spreading. Eric Jon Engberg will be disgraced in the same manner as Dan Rather, They already paid off the aide that worked for O’Reilly, that O’Reilly would call at home for a little sex talk.
    He might be a sleeze but Fox knows how to treat there scum properly.

  43. 43.

    jl

    TPM is covering the Great Vocabulary and Volume War against our enemies. Been a steady stream of BS from reactionaries and our miserable and increasing stupid corporate media on how apeshit Obama needs to look and sound in order to ‘git ‘er done’ against our every increasing list of existential threats.

    !!!!!

    Saw a tweet from Chuck D that expressed something that has been in the back of my mind, in 140 characters; paraphrasing: it is a bad example for our 6th graders to see adult engaging in so much 6th grade discourse in the media. I heartily agree.

  44. 44.

    jl

    Problem for media is that, Ukraine? IS/ISIS/ISIL? Islamic (of course it is only Islamic even though recently a weirdo racist Christianist has killed far more) terrorism in Europe!? WTF do they know about that stuff. Would have to do some HW, read and stuff, maybe have to do some research on who is an expert. That would be ‘hard’. Better to have producer book a savvy insider, or political hack to BS. And apparently McCain has been in Europe pounding tables and yelling at people about ‘doing something right now’ and ‘showing resolve’ in Ukraine, so he is not available, which is surely a big crisis in some corporate media booking circles.

  46. 46.

    gogol's wife

    Will it ever stop snowing? I had gotten into a better mood this morning, but I am so sick of looking at this stuff falling.

  47. 47.

    jl

    @efgoldman: Chuck D managed to include some subtle snark in his 140 characters, and what you expressed was part of it. I am not worthy to paraphrase Chuck D, I admit that.

  49. 49.

    Gin & Tonic

    @efgoldman: I just spent my own time (and my own Aleve.) Since the garage has a flat roof, about 16×20, that was critical. I’ve cleared that roof twice, and most of the rest of the roof (pitched) once. Back-of-the-envelope calculation is that I shoveled between three and four tons of snow.

  50. 50.

    jl

    @efgoldman:

    ” ETA: Did I mention that it’s snowing? ”

    Why would you need to? Please shovel westward. Then the next person shovel westward, and so on until the snow piles get to the plains. By that time someone will have figured out how to get out to the pacific coast.

    I understand that the cold and snow is a reasonable obsession right now. I can see how NYC and DC based news networks would mention it more often. Would be nice if they could spend more than a ten seconds a month explaining how it is part of a predicted (yes, my friends, I believe that if you look through research it was predicted) part of global warming, climate change, carbon air pollution problem.

    They do spend ten seconds a month on it, from what I have seen and heard: ‘still dry out west, scientists say 2014 second warmest year on record, now we will spend next hour on cold and too much snow.

    Edit: particularly the way too much snow part for eastern US was predicted.

  52. 52.

    Gin & Tonic

    @efgoldman: Funny. “Up to a foot of standing water in some places is making cleanup difficult, according to police. ”

    Those police, so smart.

  53. 53.

    FlyingToaster

    @jl:

    Please shovel westward.

    You do realize that you’re asking us to shovel uphill, right?

    cold and snow is … predicted … part of global warming
    still dry out west, scientists say 2014 second warmest year on record, now we will spend next hour on cold and too much snow

    That’s east-coast dominance of the news for ya. Also not mentioning climate change, even on the weather channel, when there’s no other explanantion.

    Makes me want to sit down the head honchos at Comcast and make them read Kim Stanley Robinson’s trilogy.

  54. 54.

    raven

    I found a film called Gift Horse that was filmed on the last surviving four stack destroyer. My dad served on one so I’m very interested to see it.

    “The St Nazaire Raid or Operation Chariot was a successful British amphibious attack on the heavily defended Normandie dry dock at St Nazaire in German-occupied France during the Second World War. The operation was undertaken by the Royal Navy and British Commandos under the auspices of Combined Operations Headquarters on 28 March 1942. St Nazaire was targeted because the loss of its dry dock would force any large German warship in need of repairs, such as the Tirpitz, to return to home waters rather than having a safe haven available on the Atlantic coast.”

  56. 56.

    Bystander

    Trying to watch Animal House on VH1, but the commercials are trying my patience. Cesare Danove, gone too soon.

    Meanwhile Colorado Green Chili for dinner.

  57. 57.

    Dee Loralei

    Playing in a Hold Em tournament for the Memphis Humane Society. It’s a wonderful and fun tourney. Tickets still available, beer and bourbon free bar. Prizes for top 10, including a 50 inch hdtv. $60.00 at the door at Memphis Humane Society on Farm Road. We’ve raised over 10K the previous two years. hoping to double that tonight. Anyone in area come out, and say hi to me, Dee!

  59. 59.

    Bystander

    Oh…and didn’t Al Franken pretty much prove to the world that O’Reilly is an inveterate liar, from his Peabody Award and on and on? If his career didn’t suffer an iota then, why should Corn’s relitigation make any difference now?

  60. 60.

    Steeplejack (tablet)

    @Bystander:

    The DVR is not only your friend, it’s practically mandatory equipment now. Even if you don’t record a program, you can pause for a bit to build up a buffer so you can skip the commercials.

  61. 61.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    @raven:

    My bride is off to a goofy “clothes swap” in a bit so the joint is trashed.

    I’d wear something I didn’t want any way.

  63. 63.

    trollhattan

    @Gravenstone:
    California has a little-known law against metal trimming poles–they must be non-conducting. (Directing an orchestra with one is right out.)

    Downside is most I see are heavier and more bendy than aluminum.

  64. 64.

    Mike in NC

    @raven: Not a bad movie. Early 50s, kind of low budget. Starred Trevor Howard and Richard Attenborough. Sometimes Hollywood feels a silly need to rename British war films for American audiences, in this case it was called “Glory at Sea”. Shows up on cable from time to time.

  65. 65.

    jl

    @FlyingToaster: I’ll have to go back and find my little collection of climate change articles on my ‘puter at work to check to make sure. Not sure the repeated unusually extreme drops in temp were predicted, but much more snow was definitely predicted for back east. As was extreme drought in Great Basin and western plains just east of Rockies. And the moderating effects of pacific marine currents on pacific coast. Just read a news article about research on how changes in marine currents, particularly interaction between those involved with el Nino and Nina, and currents coming from AK gulf are playing crucial role in what is going on out here, which rings a bell, but I will have to check.

    I remember reading predictions of less extreme drought on pacific coast, but that would be comprised of years of really really extreme drought interspersed with really heavy and intense rain, as describing inter year patterns, but they seem to describe intrayear patterns as well. But the research could not, and still cannot, distinguish anything that happens over less than a few decades.

    Anyway, kind of spooky, since this is research, particularly on pacific coast that goes back to early 1990s. Not sure I want to go dig up the articles, might spook me out even more. Scary to see this stuff happen right before you eyes and no one in power does even half enough, and Congress of course doesn’t do squat, and GOP which will continue to win way too many Congressional elections determined to march over the brink.

  66. 66.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @lamh36: Cripes. I was deluded enough to think that story was going to be about conservatives being tired of Guiliani’s demented rants. But no. They’re tired of being accused of racism.

  67. 67.

    trollhattan

    @Steeplejack (tablet):
    That’s how I watch football now. Although it does require I turn off the phone and any computer while watching. Heck, I even had to tell my bro “No spoilers!” once when he called during a particularly close-fought game.

    Probably saves ninety minutes/game.

  68. 68.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @jl: My Florida relatives said they’d read that climate change might means Florida gets fewer hurricanes because they either hit farther up the coast or into the Gulf.

  69. 69.

    Tenar Darell

    @efgoldman: I missed this.

    The break occurred shortly after 6:30 a.m. in the area of Harvard and Portland streets and has since spread to Broadway and Main Street.

    This will freeze really badly. Makes crossing the Charles into a car skating adventure.

  72. 72.

    Gravenstone

    @trollhattan: One summer during college, I was working on the student maintenance staff. I got stuck on the “dirty jobs” crew apparently, as my first chore was cleaning all the exterior windows on site. My implement was a telescoping brass pole with a brush on the end, that we would connect to the nearest spigot. Heavy ass sucker that I eventually broke when it got away from me and fell from its max height of 40′, snapping the brush head.

  73. 73.

    jl

    @Iowa Old Lady: I guess that is a good thing. But what difference will that make to them if they are wading in 3 feet of water all the time anyway in foreseeable future?

  75. 75.

    jl

    @trollhattan: Why would anyone with half a brain complain about criticism of Giuliani, even before he talked insulting nonsense about Obama.

    I can see point that there was no open and patent racism in Giuliani’s comments about Obama not loving America, and ‘different’. Besides no open mention of race, not much different than charges of treason against Democrats that have been flung from that side for decades. But that was more than enough basis for criticism, and I am glad that there was, since those kind of charges were not met with strong reaction for a long time, going back before Obama.

    But all we had to do is wait for Rudi to open his yap again and yammer about how he cannot be racist in attacking Obama because, hey, he had a white parent after all. W T F!!?? What now, reactionaries? Holy Jesus God please save us, what is a sane person supposed to say about that?

  76. 76.

    FlyingToaster

    @Gravenstone: Inside my yard with both hands on the pole, I’m far enough away from the power lines to not hit them with a roof rake. And trust me, in this weather I’m wearing insulated mittens and rubber-soled snow boots, so I’m pretty sure there’s no path to ground through me.

    Living on a postage stamp has its disadvantages, to be sure.

  77. 77.

    Pogonip

    @trollhattan: His ramblings are so confusing I never figured out which side he was on other than that he was against the U.S. government. Pity the poor snoop who’s assigned to read his e-mail.

  79. 79.

    Suzanne

    Y’all are freezing, but it’s tank-tops-and-flip-flops weather here today.

    I am going to take a nap, because I can. The part of the day that involves removing one’s pants is just indescribably awesome.

  80. 80.

    Roger Moore

    @Bystander:

    If his career didn’t suffer an iota then, why should Corn’s relitigation make any difference now?

    Because Brian Williams just got taken down for about the same thing. Now that it’s obvious that lying about your record as a war correspondent can get you canned, lots of people want to earn their reputation by taking down somebody big.

  81. 81.

    Cckids

    @gogol’s wife:

    Will it ever stop snowing? I had gotten into a better mood this morning, but I am so sick of looking at this stuff falling.

    Your winter reminds me of Laura Ingalls’ The Long Winter. Blizzards from October through April, rarely more than 3 days between storms. Starving & freezing on the plains.

  82. 82.

    Woodrowfan

    where’ BiP to tell us that the nurse story is true, that the “porn star” is really a CIA false flag!!!

  83. 83.

    greennotGreen

    @lamh36: I read that article and was surprised at how Dave Weigel seemed a lot less fair-minded than I’ve seen at other sites – maybe he writes to his audience? But he didn’t seemed to understand the difference between Obama criticizing W’s action of running up the national debt as unpatriotic and Guiliani’s accusation that Obama simply doesn’t love America. One is a criticism of policy, the other of a person.

    And Republicans get criticized as racist because, by and large, they are.

  85. 85.

    Redshift

    @Iowa Old Lady: Geez. I’ve got a simple answer for them: if you’re tired of being accused of racism, stop saying racist shit, especially if you have a history of using blatant racism to advance your career.

    “All they wanted to do was accuse Obama of being an anti-American radical,” and they got accused of racism. Boo-hoo, everyone else wouldn’t go along with their ludicrous framing, and saw through it to the obvious motivation! How unfair!

  88. 88.

    trollhattan

    @Pogonip:

    Pity the poor snoop who’s assigned to read his e-mail.

    Note to self (upon receiving that assignment): “Never beat the boss in golf again.”

  89. 89.

    Snarkworth

    @Iowa Old Lady: Speaking of conferences, I’m trying to decide whether to attend the Edgars Symposium, sponsored by Mystery Writers of America in NYC. I joined last year, which you’re allowed to do even if you haven’t published a mystery. Mine is written, not yet published.

    The symposium is kinda spendy, and maybe too rich for my blood. But it might be interesting.

  91. 91.

    tsquared2001

    I did my taxes today. When I made $28000 a year, it was hard to not pay in. Now that I am more comfortable, I get serious ducats back from Uncle Sam. What the fucking fuck?

  92. 92.

    Roger Moore

    As if the Supreme Court isn’t in position to fuck up enough things for us, it is apparently set to rule on the legality of Arizona’s redistricting commission. The grounds for the argument is that the US Constitution says “the times, places and manner of holding elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed in each state by the legislature thereof,” so districts may only be drawn- and presumably election law only written by- the state legislature, not by a redistricting commission or ballot initiative.

  93. 93.

    geg6

    I know we don’t have it as bad as New Englanders, but I have had enough winter now, thanks.

    Horrible roads today, what with snowing all day. Got warm enough that the roads turned slushy but it’s gonna freeze tonight and then again tomorrow evening when we’re headed below zero again. Looks like we’ll be stuck at or around that for another whole week. I have horrible cabin fever. Don’t know how the New Englanders are doing it. Seriously. Even Koda just goes outside to do her business and turns right back around to go back in the house.

    At least we have a good meal planned and plenty of wine. And the Pens are on, so we’ll be entertained, I hope.

  98. 98.

    Steeplejack

    The snow has finally stopped in my corner of NoVA. Can’t tell exactly how much we got, but from the second floor it looks like the high end of the 2-4" predicted. Wintry mix and freezing rain tonight, then allegedly up to 43° tomorrow, which would be seasonally appropriate but much warmer than we have seen in a week. Not too bad, all in all, but I’m still glad I’m not going anywhere. May blow off dinner at bro’ man’s house tomorrow if it still looks mucky out.

    Just tested the cheapo wine-bottle foil cutter I bought on impulse at Total Wine today. Sheer luxury! Why have I denied myself this for so long?

    Didn’t actually open the wine, though. Think I might have a bit of the bubbly cava later.

  100. 100.

    Pogonip

    I’m bored! Can now get around the house pretty well but steep porch steps are still giving me trouble so I only go out when absolutely necessary. I have read all 3 of Bernard Cornwell’s King Arthur books this week. They’re good–Cornwell is one of those increasingly rare historical novelists who does his homework. Those 10-page battles get a little repetitious once you understand the shield-wall tactic, but you can always skip to the end of the battle where the storyline picks up again. I did the same thing with the 20-page Quidditch games.

  101. 101.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @Snarkworth: Yeah, you have to weigh the expense. The conference I’m registering for is within driving distance which cuts down on the cost. In the past, I’ve gotten a lot out of it.

    Does the conference you’re considering allow you to participate in a critique group or meet agents or editors? That’s useful. The talks can be great and sometimes it’s just exhilarating to be around other writers.

  103. 103.

    Pogonip

    Spring will soon be springing–there’s golf on TV!

    I never understood the appeal of televised golf. I can see why people would enjoy playing golf themselves, but watching someone else play it seems about as exciting as watching grass grow.

  105. 105.

    Snarkworth

    @Iowa Old Lady: It’s not really a writer’s conference so much as a glittery shindig for the industry. Big authors, publishers, black tie awards ceremonies, etc. But as you say, it could be exhilarating and memorable.

  106. 106.

    Iowa Old Lady

    @Snarkworth: A friend of mine won an Edgar in the kid lit division a few years back: Dori Butler, The Buddy Chronicles, about a dog detective looking for his lost family and solving mysteries along the way.

  107. 107.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @greennotGreen: @lamh36: I read that article and was surprised at how Dave Weigel seemed a lot less fair-minded than I’ve seen at other sites

    You have more patience than I. Maybe I’m too lazy on a Saturday afternoon, but that struck me as some authentic YoungishCon gibberish. I did like the line about how when the dealt with Reagan, the Iranians knew they were dealing with a tuff guy! I guess that means Khomeini paid more for those weapons than he wanted to?

    I used to think Weigel did a decent job if you took him for what he was– an conservative, Paulite, “pro-life” opinion journalist, but I read a couple of pieces he did at Slate about Trey Gowdy and BENGHAZI! and he came across as Troo Beleever.

  108. 108.

    trollhattan

    @Pogonip:
    Those “Baby Einstein” people got their start putting music to teevee golf but decided to use hand puppets instead, as it kept the two-year olds more engaged. Teevee golf is aiming somewhat lower.

  109. 109.

    BruceFromOhio

    The good news is it stopped snowing for the moment.

    The bad news is the plow finally nailed the mailbox.

    Good thing someone had already fetched the daily mail.

  110. 110.

    gelfling545

    @Iowa Old Lady: They could manage that pretty easily: just stop saying racist, uh, stuff. They don’t even have to stop actually being racist. They just would have to shut up about it.

  111. 111.

    Elizabelle

    @jl: Howdy. Will you post links to the climate change articles? I’ve got a file too. Of sorts. Would love to see what you’ve collected.

  112. 112.

    tsquared2001

    @Roger Moore: Home interest and student loan deductions.

    But still.

    It just makes me sick that labor is not taxed at the same rate as capital.
    Cause I got no capital.

  114. 114.

    FlyingToaster

    @gogol’s wife: One of the things I don’t miss from suburban KC: mailbox on a post across the street that the plow is guaranteed to take out.

    However, our forecast has been changed from “snow, mix, rain, mix, snow” to “snow, rain, more snow, stop and stay above freezing for 8 hours, 24-hour drop to below 0”.

    I think that’s not an upgrade.

  115. 115.

    Steeplejack

    @BruceFromOhio, @gogol’s wife:

    There was a plow guy going up and down my street on and off this afternoon, in the middle of the snow. No mailboxes to take out, but lots of parallel-parked cars that he was coming uncomfortably close to as he shaped little mounds and berms here and there. Weird.

  116. 116.

    Pogonip

    I went out wondering how long it would take me to clear 7 inches of snow from around my car, because I would have to keep stopping to rest my leg, and a nice man came over and cleared it for me! I tried to give him some $ but he wouldn’t take it. He’s not the usual snow-angel neighbor, he’s a new person. I will have to find out his name and where he lives so I can thank him. I couldn’t ask him because he’s deaf. God bless him. I swear I’m considering getting a storage locker rather than move off this street. We have the best neighbors ever, at both houses.

  117. 117.

    shelley

    Blimey! I don’t know where everyone else has gone off to

    O, John Cole, why hast thou forsaken us?

  118. 118.

    max

    The snow has finally stopped in my corner of NoVA. Can’t tell exactly how much we got, but from the second floor it looks like the high end of the 2-4″ predicted.

    A foot here, so far, still coming down. Walking through the stuff is like walking through powdered sugar. In which you sink to your knees.

    The neighbors from 2 houses over had her black labish looking dog get loose. I saw him running up when I was coming back from shoveling the street. Was trying to get over to him, got spun around and I lost track of him. When trudging down the side of the house, figured he had gone back, came trudging back and there was was, eyeballing the neighbor’s trashcan (from three houses over from his house). Trudge trudge trudge. Looks up at me with this guilty look and I tell him he has to go back so he takes off for home. Trudged after him, couldn’t see, trudged back to the house and could just barely make him out through the snow out of the back patio of his house. The neighbor let him.

    Always runnin’ around like a crazy person, that one. Dumbass dog.

    max
    [‘Sweatin’ like it’s a hundred degrees outside. Gonna make a fucked up risotto and watch Midsommer on DVD. Fuck it.’]

  119. 119.

    shelley

    Only seen two movies up for Oscars.

    Grand Budapest Hotel. Really loved it. Ralph Fiennes is a hoot

    Birdman. What a big yawn. Kind of like a male version of ‘Black Swan.’

  121. 121.

    shelley

    I see CPAC is convening this week. I also see that it’s another venue that’s giving Sarah Palin the cold shoulder
    ###########
    Oops, I stand corrected. She’s a speaker. I guess they missed her last speech.

  122. 122.

    jl

    @Elizabelle: I will try. Scattered all over my work computer. Might take awhile. I need to do it though,sooner or later. After a sudden warm spell melts all the snow too quick someplace east of Mississippi River (like it has several years) or super duper killer hot spell back east during summer that Fox News will be strangely silent about, would give me incentive.

    I’d like to see any that you have.

  123. 123.

    jl

    @shelley:

    ” Oops, I stand corrected. She’s a speaker. I guess they missed her last speech. ”

    Just as likely they did not, and just loved it.

  124. 124.

    FlyingToaster

    @Tenar Darell: Other side of MIT from the water main break.

    According to posters at UHub, there have been 6 water main breaks in Cambridge in the past 24 hours. Which does not surprise me in the least.

    At this point, I suspect the Harvard Bridge is whited out. I would not want to be riding the Dudley Bus today.

  125. 125.

    Suzanne

    @efgoldman: The place is full of Republicans and their special kind of damage, but there has to be SOME reason that people live here.

    Having said that, when it’s July, and going outside feels like walking into an oven, I will pay for this. Shit balances out.

  126. 126.

    geg6

    @Suzanne:

    You’ve obviously never been to Pittsburgh in mid-July. Same weather as you then, same weather as Chicago in February. Can’t say it doesn’t keep one on her toes.

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