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Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Sadly, there is no cure for stupid.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

When I was faster i was always behind.

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

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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

Hot air and ill-informed banter

Their freedom requires your slavery.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

He really is that stupid.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

Let me file that under fuck it.

Hey hey, RFK, how many kids did you kill today?

Celebrate the fucking wins.

Disagreements are healthy; personal attacks are not.

Those who are easily outraged are easily manipulated.

This country desperately needs a functioning fourth estate.

There are more Russians standing up to Putin than Republicans.

Oh FFS you might as well trust a 6-year-old with a flamethrower.

“But what about the lurkers?”

Speaker Mike Johnson is a vile traitor to the House and the Constitution.

Our job is not to persuade republicans but to defeat them.

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You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / Saturday Morning Open Thread

Saturday Morning Open Thread

by Betty Cracker|  October 17, 201510:17 am| 157 Comments

This post is in: Domestic Politics, Open Threads

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It’s a beautiful day here. How’s the weather in your neck of the woods? Any signs of fall?

  

I should be doing chores, but I’m loafing instead. What are you up to today? 

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Previous Post: « Friday Night Open Thread
Next Post: Open Thread: PUTZ! JAB!… er, JEB!!! »

Reader Interactions

157Comments

  1. 1.

    Freemark

    October 17, 2015 at 10:20 am

    Digging a catch basin now that I finished the putting in a drainage pipe in my parent’s back yard.

  2. 2.

    TaMara (BHF)

    October 17, 2015 at 10:23 am

    I’m off to see the Martian and convince my friends that it’s either popcorn or lunch, I cannot do both. LOL. Lightweight.

  3. 3.

    01jack

    October 17, 2015 at 10:24 am

    Any signs of fall?

    Frozen bird bath was a clue …

  4. 4.

    AliceBlue

    October 17, 2015 at 10:26 am

    Perfect fall day in west central Georgia. It’s 55 degrees, not a cloud to be seen, and the leaves are starting to turn.

  5. 5.

    01jack

    October 17, 2015 at 10:29 am

    Hooked up the bird bath electric heater, and now off to take long walk with the dog. 30 degrees and sunny; a beautiful day.

  6. 6.

    Ken

    October 17, 2015 at 10:30 am

    Does Sen. Inhofe saying “It’s getting cooler, global warming is fake” count as a sign of fall? Probably not, he does it year-round.

  7. 7.

    Gator90

    October 17, 2015 at 10:30 am

    Attending the Miami-Virginia Tech game this afternoon and you know what I’m doing this evening. Go Treon!

  8. 8.

    MomSense

    October 17, 2015 at 10:31 am

    Heading out soon to apple pick and enjoy the sunshine.

    I wanted to drop this link to a piece I read last night at thepeoplesview.net by Trevor La Fauci. I can’t really set it up except to say that it is worth reading to the end. Wow.

    The Choice.

    http://www.thepeoplesview.net/main/2015/10/15/the-choice

  9. 9.

    Gimlet

    October 17, 2015 at 10:33 am

    It seems Dr Ben ‘s operated on his brain.

    Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., joined South Carolina radio host Vince Coakley yesterday to discuss the first Democratic presidential debate, where he said the candidates were “all trying to outdo each other in their disdain for the economic system of capitalism that made us great.”

    The Republican presidential candidate linked Sen. Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed democratic socialist in the mold of Northern European countries, to the murderous communist regimes of Stalin, Mao and Pol Pot, saying that “most of the times when socialism has been tried” there “has been mass genocide of people or any of those who object to it.”

    “It amazes me and it actually kind of scares me,” Paul said. “I’ve been spending more time going after Bernie and socialism because I don’t want America to succumb to the notion that there’s anything good about socialism. I think it’s not an accident of history that most of the times when socialism has been tried that attendant with that has been mass genocide of people or any of those who object to it.

  10. 10.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 17, 2015 at 10:33 am

    Mrs. Shoemangler has a cold; she’s drinking hot tea and resting up. This morning I walked to the farmers’ market and found a good deal on potatoes, onions and eggplant.

    The prices are better than the mega-supermarket (no middlemen) and the produce tastes better.

    Weather mid-40s and breezy. Leaves are golden.

  11. 11.

    HRA

    October 17, 2015 at 10:34 am

    All my trees are still green. It’s 39 here and the forecast is rain/snow for today plus tomorrow. This is the Buffalo, NY area.

  12. 12.

    WereBear

    October 17, 2015 at 10:35 am

    We are at a glorious peak.

    https://www.facebook.com/LakePlacidAdk/photos/pcb.10153670099131649/10153670097581649/?type=3&theater

    Facebook link.

  13. 13.

    Gimlet

    October 17, 2015 at 10:35 am

    I should be doing chores, but I’m loafing instead. What are you up to today?

    Hung-over from too many “Brown Bettys”?

  14. 14.

    greennotGreen

    October 17, 2015 at 10:36 am

    @AliceBlue: About the same here in Middle Tennessee. I’m off to Porter Paint to see what they have in mis-mixed paint so I can afford to paint the interior of my new house and the old ones (yes, two) I’m selling to pay for the new house. Then to the exotic pet show to buy a cage for my latest rescue bird, then out to the new house site to work, work, work. But a beautiful day!

  15. 15.

    Kay

    October 17, 2015 at 10:37 am

    @Gimlet:

    It amazes me and it actually kind of scares me,” Paul said. “I’ve been spending more time going after Bernie and socialism because I don’t want America to succumb to the notion that there’s anything good about socialism. I think it’s not an accident of history that most of the times when socialism has been tried that attendant with that has been mass genocide of people or any of those who object to it.

    Rand Paul has more time to go after Bernie than Bernie does to go after him, because Sanders actually has some supporters and a Presidential campaign. Rand Paul’s super-cool, libertarian-flavored Republican product doesn’t seem to be a real big seller in the Market of Ideas, even among the GOP base.

  16. 16.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 17, 2015 at 10:39 am

    @greennotGreen:

    I’m off to Porter Paint to see what they have in mis-mixed paint

    Mrs. Shoemangler is an aficionado of what we call “Oops Paint” and loves the great deals she gets.

    Recently did our living room and dining room in an antique pale yellow that she bought for just a few dollars for a big bucket.

  17. 17.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 17, 2015 at 10:40 am

    @Kay:

    I think it’s not an accident of history that most of the times when socialism has been tried that attendant with that has been mass genocide of people or any of those who object to it.

    Yes, the refugees are streaming in from Canada and Iceland.

  18. 18.

    Gimlet

    October 17, 2015 at 10:41 am

    @Kay:

    The propaganda about “center-right” America is strong nationally, but VERY strong in the nation within a nation of the GOP South.

  19. 19.

    MattF

    October 17, 2015 at 10:42 am

    It’s cool fall weather, bright sunshine, breezy. There’s an arts and crafts show in the nearby streets, I’ll probably walk around it later in the day. Otherwise, not much else– will probably spend most of the day reading.

  20. 20.

    benw

    October 17, 2015 at 10:42 am

    @Gimlet:

    “It amazes me and it actually kind of scares me,” Paul said.

    Better get some guns and hide out in your basement, Rand. It’s a scary world out there.

    SANDERS/ZOMBIE MAO 2016!

  21. 21.

    greennotGreen

    October 17, 2015 at 10:42 am

    @Gimlet: Rand’s right! You let socialism in and the next thing you know, we’re Sweden! (Murder rate less than 1 per 100,000 versus U.S.’s 5 per 100,000.)

  22. 22.

    shell

    October 17, 2015 at 10:43 am

    loafing

  23. 23.

    MattF

    October 17, 2015 at 10:44 am

    @greennotGreen: Yeah, but you’re not counting the Death of Freedum.

  24. 24.

    Iowa Old Lady

    October 17, 2015 at 10:44 am

    The trees are turning here, and the burning bush in my front yard is aflame. We had frost overnight. It’s just beautiful.

  25. 25.

    jeffreyw

    October 17, 2015 at 10:46 am

    It was 34 out this morning and cool in the house so we fired the furnace for the first time this season to cut the chill. Mrs J has been covering succulents. Soup sound good.

  26. 26.

    Kay

    October 17, 2015 at 10:46 am

    @Germy Shoemangler:

    You’ll be waiting a long time for Bernie Sanders to “go after” Rand Paul, because Bernie Sanders doesn’t have to give a shit what Rand Paul says:

    A defiant Rand Paul is brushing off weak fundraising and weaker poll numbers as would-be donors and home state Republicans push him to abandon an uphill presidential bid to focus on his Senate re-election.

    Rand Paul was supposed to be the revolutionary this cycle, dammit! It’s not fair that Bernie Sanders is more popular.

  27. 27.

    schrodinger's cat

    October 17, 2015 at 10:47 am

    On the agenda this morning, grilling and taking pictures in my backyard and then an afternoon run. Enjoying a beautiful fall day.

    That and blog pimping:

    I has the review of the second episode of Indian Summers on Masterpiece theater.

  28. 28.

    Jager

    October 17, 2015 at 10:48 am

    The only sign of fall here in SoCal so far is the sound of acorns falling off the California Oaks. When the wind blows up in our canyon it sounds like hail.

  29. 29.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 10:50 am

    @Kay:
    Oh noes! If Rand doesn’t stay in this race long enough, how will he look credible when he runs in 2016?

  30. 30.

    Mike in NC

    October 17, 2015 at 10:50 am

    Beautiful weather arrived last week: mid-70s with no humidity. Got a lot of yard work done and washed and waxed both cars for the first time in months. Wife asked if I was chugging energy drinks.

    Off to pick tomatoes at the local farmers’ market later.

  31. 31.

    bystander

    October 17, 2015 at 10:51 am

    Finishing up a great two weeks on Cape Cod. It’s been basically one beautiful fall day after the other. Most of the fall color is confined to the swamps and the bowls. To my surprise, fall comes to the Cape later than the rest of Mass. They’re also saying fall is late this year.

    BTW, thanks to President Kennedy for making this a national seashore. The beaches are beautiful and the shoreline isn’t McMansions cheek-.by-jowl like the Hamptons. The communities have also resisted Burger Kings and Gap stores and have retained their historic architecture. I wouldn’t get near the place after Memorial Day or before Labor Day, but October is perfect.

  32. 32.

    beltane

    October 17, 2015 at 10:52 am

    We have signs of winter up where I am. Does that count?

  33. 33.

    MazeDancer

    October 17, 2015 at 10:53 am

    Fall was a gorgeous four days this year in North East. Trees are still half green, half paintbox. The maples in my yard still all leafy green. But first hard frost tonight and tomorrow. So, show is done.

    This afternoon will be the annual cutting of the annuals. Every blossom gets harvested into a bouquet. Because, otherwise, tonight they die.

    Plants that over winter are being moved inside. Seeds that haven’t already been gathered will be over the next week. Except for the 10 and 12 foot sunflowers. (No kidding, from seed to jungle in one season. Called Hudson Valley Skyscraper. Gave me a temp hedge at new house.) Will save a few seeds for planting next year. But mostly hoping the birds enjoy them.

  34. 34.

    schrodinger's cat

    October 17, 2015 at 10:53 am

    Right wingtards destroy everything they touch we have seen it in this country. Right wingers are trying to destroy India’s tolerant, live and let live ethos. I fear for India. Righties have a reverse Midas touch.

  35. 35.

    BalloonJuiceLurker

    October 17, 2015 at 10:54 am

    If corporations are people, can the government put them in jail?

    Seems like a good idea to me. I don’t believe in the death penalty, but jail time for a corporation would be close to it for this “person”, who would be ordered to cease all operations for the duration of their sentence. Temporary death for a corporation.

    An excellent candidate for some “time away” is Exxon oil company, who was recently exposed to have been guilty of the same crime that the tobacco companies were infamous for back in the 90s – possessing scientific evidence that your product was putting millions of lives at risk, but covering it up and publicly saying the opposite, and spending millions of dollars to spread this dangerous misinformation.

    If we can’t break up Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, can we at least put Exxon in jail?

    Love ya, juicers!

  36. 36.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 17, 2015 at 10:55 am

    Expecting a hard freeze tonight, so yes, fall is here.

  37. 37.

    raven

    October 17, 2015 at 10:56 am

    Great day in Athens, do or die tonight!

  38. 38.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 17, 2015 at 10:57 am

    @Gimlet: Would it kill you to post a URL? I know you can do it.

  39. 39.

    beltane

    October 17, 2015 at 10:58 am

    I am listening to the geese flying overheard to someplace warmer. Right now it’s 33 degrees, cloudy, windy and raw.The geese have the right idea.

  40. 40.

    Kay

    October 17, 2015 at 11:02 am

    @Amir Khalid:

    It’s too much to hope for that he loses his Senate seat, but I am (of course) hoping he loses his Senate seat just because there should be some kind of check on that big an ego. Rand Paul isn’t “center Right”. He opposes the entire legal framework that supports everything from environmental regulation to civil rights laws. That he objects to Sanders based on “radical!” is amusing. If Rand Paul got his way you would not recognize this country. He’s way more radical than Sanders, but it’s far Right, so no one is rushing to the fainting couches.

  41. 41.

    schrodinger's cat

    October 17, 2015 at 11:03 am

    @beltane: Its 40 degrees where I am. Husband kitteh thinks I am cray cray to want to be outside in this weather. He is probably right. Heh in January we will be thinking that these temps are outright balmy.

  42. 42.

    Scout211

    October 17, 2015 at 11:05 am

    We have thunderstorms here in NorCal with flash flood warnings!

    It poured buckets about an hour ago!

    Lots of exclamation points!!!!!!!

    Yay!

  43. 43.

    dexwood

    October 17, 2015 at 11:07 am

    Another day of rebuilding my front porch… right after I finish this cup of coffee. It’s all framed and ready for paint. Tomorrow the metal roof panels go up. I’m getting too old for this. Damn, I’m sore this morning.

  44. 44.

    beltane

    October 17, 2015 at 11:09 am

    @schrodinger’s cat: My husband is out playing disc golf because he is insane.

  45. 45.

    Soonergrunt mobile

    October 17, 2015 at 11:10 am

    It’s a beautiful morning in SLC. We’ve had snow on the mountain tops for a couple of weeks. Should be in the mid-70s in the valley, upper 60s up by the ski resorts. The leaves have been very pretty. Something that I missed in Oklahoma. Going hiking in Big Cottonwood Canyon this afternoon. Right now getting the car fixed at the Ford dealer and eyeing a used Edge 4wd.

  46. 46.

    srv

    October 17, 2015 at 11:10 am

    @BalloonJuiceLurker:

    If we can’t break up Citigroup and Goldman Sachs, can we at least put Exxon in jail?

    Instead of putting them in jail, why don’t you put their candidates in jail? Your hero Clinton is the one who let Citi Bank become Citigroup.

  47. 47.

    kindness

    October 17, 2015 at 11:11 am

    Definitely fall here in N Cal. Cloudy. I like it.

  48. 48.

    ruemara

    October 17, 2015 at 11:13 am

    It’s fall like. With regard to leaf turning. Otherwise, yesterday was near 90°. I’m mixing up this here maple pumpkin filling, spreading that into some puff pastry sheets. I should slice some apples and put them in too, hunh? Or should it be chocolate? That being said, the filling is nice, you should try it in something. The secret is not to use pumpkin. Use kabocha or delicata. Pumpkin is only good for savory things.

    But right now, I should get out of bed and get ready for cast rehearsals and crew meetings.

  49. 49.

    schrodinger's cat

    October 17, 2015 at 11:16 am

    @ruemara: What about butternut squash. Currently I am swimming in it.

  50. 50.

    schrodinger's cat

    October 17, 2015 at 11:17 am

    @beltane: We should have a Balloon Juice meetup. Vermont is not too far from where I am.

  51. 51.

    Redshift

    October 17, 2015 at 11:17 am

    It’s in the 50s here, perfect weather for canvassing for my friend who’s running for the House of Delegates!

  52. 52.

    Soonergrunt mobile

    October 17, 2015 at 11:18 am

    @srv: Hillary Clinton did that all by herself?
    One wonders why she would want to be POTUS if she has THAT kind of power already.

    The silly season has arrived early.

  53. 53.

    henqiguai

    October 17, 2015 at 11:19 am

    It’s full-on Fall up here in Massachusetts, breezy and cool – and two cords of wood waiting to be stacked (with another two on the way). It could be worse; I could be looking at a replay of *last* winter coming up short a cord or two before the onset of Spring…

  54. 54.

    Steeplejack

    October 17, 2015 at 11:20 am

    It is turning a bit colder here in NoVA. Beautiful weather the last week, sunny with highs in the low or mid-70s. Now it’s 54°, only going up a few more degrees today, and there’s the chance of our first freeze early Monday morning. But it’s seasonally appropriate and feels good. And it might get back into the low 70s by Wednesday or Thursday. A mild autumn so far.

    The leaves on my tree-lined street are turning, but they are mostly drab browns and tans. There is one tree around the corner from my cul-de-sac that lights up in a blaze of yellow, but it hasn’t turned yet. Need to remember to get pictures.

    Nothing much planned today. I am riding a small feeling of accomplishment already this morning because I did some preliminary work on a batch of grant applications that I am reading and rating for a colleague’s foundation. Lots of interesting material to read. I’m glad I don’t have to make the final decisions on who “loses.”

    The housecat is sticking to her usual regimen: breakfast at dawn, early morning nap, late morning nap, stretching, perimeter check and water break around noon, afternoon nap, light dinner toward sundown, evening nap, snack before bedtime, bedtime. The heating pad at her workstation is set at 2 (“keep warm”). Will kick it up to 3 (“low simmer”) as the weather gets colder.

  55. 55.

    Tenar Darell

    October 17, 2015 at 11:23 am

    @bystander: Envious. It’s been so beautiful lately. That limitless blue NE sky, the orange, yellow, red of the leaves (where not too dry), the air turning crisper.

    (Okay, now I want to go to the top of Blue Hill today, to see).

  56. 56.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 11:23 am

    @MazeDancer: We planted sunflowers that hit 12 feet too, but it was just the common gray stripe. The squirrels and birds stripped the plants a couple of weeks ago (a few miles outside Seattle).

    Right now we are in the San Bernardino mountains, in a little cabin in Blue Jay. The deciduous trees are suddenly red and yellow, almost overnight. Today we take off the screen door and store it in the garage for the winter, and pack up the cat to head back to Seattle. I’m playing on the computer while my husband is still asleep, and it’s after 8am. The cat and I might have to wake him up in a little while.

  57. 57.

    Redshift

    October 17, 2015 at 11:23 am

    @Germy Shoemangler: Red-baiting by equating socialism and communism is the traditional way for conservatives to try to discredit socialism. Rand seems to expect everything without any effort on his part, so I guess it’s unsurprising he’d go for the lazy attack.

  58. 58.

    trollhattan

    October 17, 2015 at 11:25 am

    We had a cloud, that was fallish. And it’s not hitting 90 the last two days, so there’s that. Rain? Nope, that all fell in so-cal.

  59. 59.

    henqiguai

    October 17, 2015 at 11:25 am

    @Iowa Old Lady (#24):

    …and the burning bush in my front yard is aflame.

    Always wanted to plant one of those in my yard, but I think they’re considered an invasive species around here and discouraged, if not out-right banned.

  60. 60.

    ruemara

    October 17, 2015 at 11:25 am

    @schrodinger’s cat: you can use that too. There was a mass of butternut squash recipes in a buzzfeed post I was planning to review. The pancakes looked interesting, but I ain’t making g pancakes for 12.

  61. 61.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 17, 2015 at 11:25 am

    @Steeplejack:

    The housecat is sticking to her usual regimen: breakfast at dawn, early morning nap, late morning nap, stretching, perimeter check and water break around noon, afternoon nap, light dinner toward sundown, evening nap, snack before bedtime, bedtime…

    Our housecat follows a slightly different routine: breakfast at dawn, early morning nap, late morning nap, perimeter check at noon, five minutes of frantic play with stuffed mouse or tossed crumpled paper ball, afternoon nap, watching by the window for large feral cat that comes into yard to flirt with her, evening nap, then sudden 11:00pm burst of energy, yowling and running from room to room because she wants to play chase (just as I am nodding off to dreamland).

  62. 62.

    JCJ

    October 17, 2015 at 11:26 am

    In Madison for the Purdue -Wisconsin game. Should be ugly.

  63. 63.

    Origuy

    October 17, 2015 at 11:27 am

    It’s fall here in the Bay Area; only up into the 70s and we’re getting a morning fog. Some friends and I are doing the Oakland Treasure Hunt today. It’s a set of puzzles. You’re given a map and clues to locations in the downtown area. You have to go to those locations and solve more puzzles that lead you to where you can answer a question. There’s a bigger one that we do every year in the old part of San Francisco.

  64. 64.

    Germy Shoemangler

    October 17, 2015 at 11:27 am

    @Redshift:Rand Paul… I really hope he loses his senate seat.

  65. 65.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 11:29 am

    @Scout211: Uh oh. You too? We are heading north partly because it’s time to go home and partly because we are tired of being under the flash flood watches and warnings. And the thunderstorms. We had a doozy two night ago and couldn’t sleep until about 3am when the giants stopped bowling on the ridge behind us. Just glad we don’t have a tin roof on this cabin because there was nothing romantic about the hail and pounding rain that was hitting the roof just a few feet above our noses. Our bed is in a gable upstairs and it was very noisy.

  66. 66.

    Scout211

    October 17, 2015 at 11:30 am

    @trollhattan:

    We have had over .75 of rain since 3:30 this morning here in NorCal. Thunderstorms, too.

  67. 67.

    Anoniminous

    October 17, 2015 at 11:32 am

    @Soonergrunt mobile:

    Bet your ass she did. Did you not know she is The God Empress of the US?

    Talked to a friend who lived in SLC for years and he heartily recommends 4wd or all wheel drive even for in-town use. Either are necessary to go up to the ski resorts, a course of action he does NOT advise as, “it’s a zoo up there.”

  68. 68.

    Scout211

    October 17, 2015 at 11:33 am

    @Pie Happens (opiejeanne):

    Yeah, the rain is wonderful but the flash flood warnings are not. Especially in the burn zones.

  69. 69.

    Mike E

    October 17, 2015 at 11:35 am

    @Soonergrunt mobile: The Troll is weak in this one…
    Good luck with the auto purchase. I envy your locale!

  70. 70.

    henqiguai

    October 17, 2015 at 11:36 am

    @Redshift (#57):

    Red-baiting by equating socialism and communism is the traditional way for conservatives to try to discredit socialism.

    Eh, most Americans don’t know the difference between socialism and communism and will shout you down if you try to explain the difference. So tiresome I stopped trying, years ago. And don’t even bother trying to discuss economic vs *political* socialism and communism with the usual accompanying authoritarian governments.

  71. 71.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 11:37 am

    @Origuy: How old are these treasure hunts? We lived in the East Bay for 9 years, ’92-2001, and my kids would have loved doing that if we’d known about it.

  72. 72.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 11:37 am

    @Kay:

    This is the same Rand Paul who didn’t think the Civil Rights legislation was a good idea and who’s father has more connections with Confederates than Stone Mountain.

  73. 73.

    Anoniminous

    October 17, 2015 at 11:37 am

    @Redshift:

    Illustrative graph.

    What is perplexing, to me, is the confusion about THE basic tenet of Socialism even among Americans who call themselves Socialist. Which is, and to wit: From each according to the ability, to each according to their work.

  74. 74.

    johnnybuck

    October 17, 2015 at 11:38 am

    @raven: They got this!

  75. 75.

    tesslibrarian

    October 17, 2015 at 11:39 am

    I’m listening to the Georgia Redcoats practice at the athletic fields up the street. Homecoming means alumni band–we’ve been hearing them since last night, notes wafting through our open windows.There’s also the sound of small planes coming in from Atlanta. Kickoff isn’t until 7:30pm, but there’s already some game parking on our street.

    The weather is perfect, cool and sunny, light breeze, and leaves just starting to turn (tops of dogwoods are turning red, a few golden leaves on our oak). The sky could not be a more brilliant blue. By the end of the game it will only be about 50 degrees. Heaven!

  76. 76.

    Ultraviolet Thunder

    October 17, 2015 at 11:41 am

    Frost on the roof this morning. Boo to that. Gonna be a chilly weekend in MI. Snow up north already.
    Monday I’m heading to Durham NC for a couple of days but I’ll pack warm clothes just in case.

  77. 77.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 11:43 am

    @Scout211: We were not in imminent danger but there may be some areas up here that will lose a bit of their slopes. The Old Fire in 2003 left Cedar Glen like the surface of the moon and we don’t think it will ever recover. That’s past Lake Arrowhead, so not directly threatening us, but we’ve been eyeing the slope up behind our cabin and noticed that there are signs of erosion on the “sled run”. It points at our patio and not at the house, so we think we’re good.

    Are you getting flash flood warnings? What area are you in?

  78. 78.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 11:45 am

    @Germy Shoemangler: And Denmark, Finland, Sweden, France, the UK….

  79. 79.

    sacrablue

    October 17, 2015 at 11:45 am

    It rained last night, almost .5 inch! Lots of lightning and thunder. The cats are confused. All of their outdoor cushions are soaked. “Ewww, Mom fix it. Fix it now!”

  80. 80.

    Baud

    October 17, 2015 at 11:46 am

    @Kay:

    Rand Paul’s super-cool, libertarian-flavored Republican product doesn’t seem to be a real big seller in the Market of Ideas, even among the GOP base.

    He made the classic grifter’s mistake of believing he could be more than a grifter.

  81. 81.

    Docg

    October 17, 2015 at 11:47 am

    Has anyone seen Trey Gowdy and Zippy the Pinhead together? Just asking.

  82. 82.

    Felonius Monk

    October 17, 2015 at 11:48 am

    @JCJ: Go Boilermakers!

  83. 83.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 11:50 am

    I have been contemplating the tail end of the thread just downstairs. It seems I am not universally beloved here after all.

  84. 84.

    Scout211

    October 17, 2015 at 11:50 am

    @Pie Happens (opiejeanne):

    Yes, our flash flood warning ends at 10:30 am but the downpours have already passed through and are pretty much done here. We are on the western side of Calaveras County. The heavy rain has moved east and now is over the Butte fire area so that is a worry. The warning for them ends at 11:00 am. It is a fast moving storm and should be cleared out of our area soon, moving to the higher elevations.

  85. 85.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 17, 2015 at 11:54 am

    Gorgeous, coolish day in Atlanta. I’ll be inside for most of it, however, for the MET Live in HD production of Verdi’s Otello. It doesn’t start until 1:00, but as always I’m at the theatre early to set up my table and distribute MET flyers and schedules. and today’s program and cast list. (I’ve been practically living at this cinema the past few days — Giselle, Last Night of the Proms, Hamlet, and now the opera.)

  86. 86.

    paulw

    October 17, 2015 at 11:56 am

    Am going mad today. Hope you dont mind

  87. 87.

    danielx

    October 17, 2015 at 11:56 am

    It’s 47 degrees, perfect blue sky and a north wind blowing. First hard frost last night, second one tonight, high of 52 today. I reckon that the current project of painting the back wall of the house will be on hold today, replaced by pulling vinca, marigolds, petunias, spousal unit’s much treasured calibrachoa. Might could get some more scraping and sanding done…..nahhhhh. Wait until it warms enough so that digits don’t need gloves while up on a ladder.

    Zoey the Menace was sitting at the back porch door a few minutes ago looking wistful – stuck her nose outside the sliding glass door for thirty seconds and said uh-uh, boss, too cold out there. Has since relocated to the couch, ensconced herself in a nest of couch comforter and blankets left by the daughter unit, and appears prepared to spend the rest of the day there. Tonight looks like an evening consisting of Penne Arrabiata, chianti, fireplace, and movies, with Eric (seen here in his, um, more active days) reclining in his kitty bed in front of the fireplace. At the ripe old age of 18, he spends about 90% of his time in said kitty bed now.

  88. 88.

    mkd

    October 17, 2015 at 11:59 am

    With frost warnings out, I harvested all the remaining hot peppers and some 6+ lbs of green tomatoes and made about 8 pints of spicy green tomato salsa for freezing, then started the dehydration of the remaining peppers, parsley, basil and rosemary. Our little 8×8 raised bed garden is now kaput.

  89. 89.

    Origuy

    October 17, 2015 at 12:01 pm

    @Pie Happens (opiejeanne): The Oakland one is only in its second year. The San Francisco one, the Chinese New Year Treasure Hunt, has been going on for about 14, I think. This was my tenth year doing it.

  90. 90.

    danielx

    October 17, 2015 at 12:04 pm

    Also too, must suggest that the appalled look on the face of that adorable little girl featured in Cole’s post last evening go down in BJ lore as ‘the Zoe’ – reserved for something like Louie Gohmert proposing a law required all college students to carry firearms at all times.

  91. 91.

    PurpleGirl

    October 17, 2015 at 12:06 pm

    It’s looks like it’s sunny and nice day. (I fell asleep after breakfast and I just woke up.) The Co-Op’s Children’s Committee is hosting a Pumpkin Patch Fair today. There will be inflatable rides and a pumpkin carving area. There will be also be street fair-type vendors. I’ll go out to walk through it in a little while. If the crepe makers are there again, I’ll get some crepes for lunch. Then maybe I’m heading out to Union Square for the Green Market.

  92. 92.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:07 pm

    @danielx:
    He proposed what!?

  93. 93.

    danielx

    October 17, 2015 at 12:09 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    Don’t worry, Amir, every blog has to have at least one fly in the soup.

    Edit: I was just goofing, although that does seem like a proposal that Louie Gohmert (Emperor-for- Life of all Teh Crazy) would come up with.

  94. 94.

    trollhattan

    October 17, 2015 at 12:09 pm

    @Scout211:
    Lucky! Not pushing over to the Valley, but a few more clouds have arrived.

    Kid has soccer in the Bay Area and it better bloody well not be thunderstorming, otherwise they’ll cancel and then it becomes Spend a Lot of Time in the Car for No Reason day.

  95. 95.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 17, 2015 at 12:10 pm

    @Origuy: My daughter is out there to run the Nike women’s half-marathon in the city tomorrow. Will the weather be reasonable?

  96. 96.

    scav

    October 17, 2015 at 12:10 pm

    @Amir Khalid: Will you accept beloved by m where m is a large number? That’s about as universal as snarling jackals get. And you’ve lapped most others. Are you just longing for the glory days of mattoon?

    Heading for our frosts here in the middle — They just blew all the water out of the sprinkling systems with a great roar in the quad below — and I’m somewhat intrigued that there was a great rattling in the interior steam heaters at the exact same time. The faint smell of heated dust has emerged.

  97. 97.

    Rich (In Name Only) in Reno

    October 17, 2015 at 12:11 pm

    Old locals here in Reno say our “true” Fall is kind of late this year. We’ve gone from high 80s record breaking heat a few days ago to high 60s rain and drizzles this morning. I can hear the rain tapping on the tin awning over the rear entry to our building as I type. It’s telling me “Time to start saving for new tires before the snow comes.”

  98. 98.

    SiubhanDuinne

    October 17, 2015 at 12:12 pm

    @beltane:

    Not sure where you are, but my cousins in the Georgian Bay of Ontario have had snow flurries.

  99. 99.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 17, 2015 at 12:12 pm

    @Amir Khalid: Almost universally?

    Since you mention tail ends of old threads, there was a familiar face on an open thread earlier this week, when the Dutch MH-17 report came out.

  100. 100.

    burnspbesq

    October 17, 2015 at 12:12 pm

    @Ultraviolet Thunder:

    Monday I’m heading to Durham NC

    Bullock’s is one of my favorite barbecue/soul food joints. Don’t miss it.

  101. 101.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 12:14 pm

    @Amir Khalid: Aw, I still love you. The ones who don’t are just poopyheads.

  102. 102.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:14 pm

    @scav:
    “Maftoon”, although I am as clueless as anyone else about the meaning of m_c’s special word.

  103. 103.

    burnspbesq

    October 17, 2015 at 12:15 pm

    The thunderstorms and mudslides were localized north of LA. We got nary a drop of rain in OC.

  104. 104.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:15 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    It seems I am not universally beloved here after all.

    If you were, I’d be advising you to reevaluate your life.

  105. 105.

    Pie Happens (opiejeanne)

    October 17, 2015 at 12:16 pm

    @Scout211: Thanks. I am plotting our course, not too difficult because it’s straight up the I-5, but was wondering if we were going to have to detour.

    I guess it’s a good thing we are not going over to Auburn to visit friends on this trip.

  106. 106.

    MattF

    October 17, 2015 at 12:16 pm

    @Amir Khalid: It often takes a few threads for a troll to, um, open the kimono, as they say…

  107. 107.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:17 pm

    @MattF: Wait… who says that?

  108. 108.

    Steeplejack

    October 17, 2015 at 12:21 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    You started to believe your own press, didn’t you? A classic mistake.

  109. 109.

    Origuy

    October 17, 2015 at 12:23 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: Should be perfect to run a marathon, partly cloudy and in the 60s during the morning.

  110. 110.

    MattF

    October 17, 2015 at 12:24 pm

    @different-church-lady: Oops, I sometimes forget the ‘no fucking metaphors’ rule and not vice versa either.

    ETA: Edited to echo Dorothy Parker.

  111. 111.

    scav

    October 17, 2015 at 12:24 pm

    @Amir Khalid: So, you actually do feature in the definition of your very own dictionary entry. Is that sorta like a MBE? Should we put up a blue plaque outside your birthplace?

  112. 112.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    In Cologne, Germany, a candidate for mayor has been stabbed in the neck while campaigning — apparently over her work as head of the city’s social affairs and integration department, which includes looking after refugees in the city. BBC quotes local police as saying Henriette Reker, 58, is stable but not out of the woods.

  113. 113.

    Josie

    October 17, 2015 at 12:25 pm

    @danielx: Wasn’t Eric the kitty who was attacked and survived? I’m glad he is able to enjoy his kitty bed and fireplace. I don’t have a fireplace, but I have two 17 year old kitties who sleep their days away in the living room.

  114. 114.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:27 pm

    @scav:

    Should we put up a blue plaque outside your birthplace?

    Alas, the hospital was demolished decades ago.

  115. 115.

    raven

    October 17, 2015 at 12:29 pm

    @tesslibrarian: See you there even if we don’t quite know each other. (Actually my bet is that we do)

  116. 116.

    benw

    October 17, 2015 at 12:30 pm

    Let’s go, Jackets!

  117. 117.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:31 pm

    @Steeplejack:
    I have press? I did not know that.

  118. 118.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:35 pm

    @MattF: No, I mean, who uses that metaphor, because I want to go hang out with them.

  119. 119.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:36 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    Alas, the hospital was demolished decades ago.

    Jeez, if they’d go to that length then I’m not sure how you ever got the idea you were universally loved.

  120. 120.

    Steeplejack

    October 17, 2015 at 12:38 pm

    @Germy Shoemangler:

    The housecat will occasionally run some laps around the apartment, usually after a particularly early breakfast, but it’s not part of her daily routine. It’s interesting to lie in bed in the dark and listen to the soft thundering of paws and wait for a crashing sound that never comes. Or to hear the thundering at the other end of the apartment and then suddenly she’s standing on the pillow by my head with her face kind of crazy. Good times.

    She also will occasionally go to the wide floor-to-ceiling window in the living room, ask that it be opened a bit—no matter the weather—and sit there sniffing the air and contemplating the street view for a bit.

  121. 121.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 12:40 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    I’m told that it’s the sign of a true troll that brings it up in a separate thread.

  122. 122.

    princess leia

    October 17, 2015 at 12:40 pm

    Took in 4 7-week-old foster kittens last night- 3 tabbies and one all black. So lots of scampering and playing. Super adorable!!!

  123. 123.

    danielx

    October 17, 2015 at 12:41 pm

    @Josie:

    Aye, the very same! He has recovered, more or less, and has achieved semi-legendary status among the local veterinary community as the only cat they’ve ever seen to survive an encounter with a pit bull.

  124. 124.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:41 pm

    @different-church-lady:
    There was some crazy talk about it on some American website.

  125. 125.

    MattF

    October 17, 2015 at 12:41 pm

    @different-church-lady: It used to be a phrase common among the high-and-mighty– now, not so much. I like it because it sounds dignified but is actually obscene.

  126. 126.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    October 17, 2015 at 12:41 pm

    Having breakfast at a beachside place in MDR after dropping G off at the airport. Yelp was right, this place has an annoying number of flies outside. Food is good, at least.

  127. 127.

    Gin & Tonic

    October 17, 2015 at 12:42 pm

    @Origuy: Great to hear, thanks.

  128. 128.

    Steeplejack

    October 17, 2015 at 12:44 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    Certainly you do. “Press” as in press coverage or P.R. You are a staple of the Balloon Juice celebrity watch. It’s one of the byproducts of being (almost) universally beloved.

  129. 129.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:47 pm

    @MattF: Dignified obscenity is the best kind.

  130. 130.

    Amir Khalid

    October 17, 2015 at 12:49 pm

    @Thoughtful Today:
    Oh look, a stalker.

  131. 131.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    October 17, 2015 at 12:51 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    To be fair, no one is ever universally beloved. They even killed Jesus for being too annoying.

  132. 132.

    benw

    October 17, 2015 at 12:54 pm

    Touchdown, Tech! Whoop!

  133. 133.

    raven

    October 17, 2015 at 12:54 pm

    @Amir Khalid: Fuck this douchebag.

  134. 134.

    Mnemosyne (iPhone)

    October 17, 2015 at 12:56 pm

    @different-church-lady:

    I think we should all start saying that. It’s a little more artful than “showing their ass.”

  135. 135.

    different-church-lady

    October 17, 2015 at 12:58 pm

    @Mnemosyne (iPhone): Now that I understand the context better, I would submit “open the raincoat” to be more illustrative.

  136. 136.

    Suezboo

    October 17, 2015 at 12:58 pm

    YAY ! I thought you needed to know that SA just beat Wales in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals. It was too close though – this team is actually below par for a Springbok team. I dread what will happen when we meet the All Blacks – NZ, best team in the world.

  137. 137.

    VFX Lurker

    October 17, 2015 at 1:01 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    I have been contemplating the tail end of the thread just downstairs. It seems I am not universally beloved here after all.

    I missed the last thread, but I would like to say that I also appreciate the contributions you’ve made in various comment threads, and I appreciate your perspective. You rock.

  138. 138.

    PurpleGirl

    October 17, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    The Fair is in full swing. I can hear a band playing, can’t really tell the type of music but there is sound wafting up from the walking path below. Heading out now. Be back later to report on it.

  139. 139.

    Baud

    October 17, 2015 at 1:02 pm

    @Amir Khalid:

    You saw the last debate? The nature of your enemies is something to be proud of.

  140. 140.

    Laura

    October 17, 2015 at 1:19 pm

    We had a clash of warm and cool air in Sacramento overnight with a rare thunderstorm and lashing rain. Worth getting up in the midnight hours to watch from the backdoor.
    It’s a soft day today with a wee rainbow over the causeway. Fall couldn’t be more welcome. Bring on the soup and sweater weather!

  141. 141.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 1:27 pm

    @Baud: @Amir Khalid: heh

    Says the guy who thinks slavery is funny.

    See how this game is played?

  142. 142.

    BalloonJuiceLurker

    October 17, 2015 at 1:27 pm

    @srv: I’d be okay with putting Exxon’s in-pocket politicians in jail.

    The banksters got nothing on Big Carbon – they may be able to crash the world economy, but they don’t have the guts to condemn today’s kids and their kids to unbearable temperature increases and refugees from underwater cities (like Miami, much of New York and Boston, and many others in the US, for starters). They knew it was happening in the 80s and they invested millions to keep it quiet, and to co-opt the conservative political culture here in the USA (which helps explain why no other major Conservative party in the developed world has embraced denial of climate change). These guys are public enemy #1 and should be shown no quarter, given what we now know.

    Srv, if The Donald can’t be bought, why is he shilling for Big Carbon just like a typical Republican sell-out?

  143. 143.

    tesslibrarian

    October 17, 2015 at 1:28 pm

    @raven: I suspect we’ve crossed paths. I’m section 134, 6 rows up on the aisle, but I have this idea you’re on the other side of the field?

  144. 144.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 1:31 pm

    @Baud:

    I actually was astonished at Hillary suggesting she was proud of having Iran as an enemy.

    It was pointlessly antagonistic considering she would have to negotiate with Iran as President. I would have hoped her time as a diplomat in the State Department would have taught her better.

  145. 145.

    Baud

    October 17, 2015 at 1:37 pm

    @Thoughtful Today:

    I’m not. As the President has said, we need to negotiate with our enemies as well as our friends.

  146. 146.

    Riley's enabler

    October 17, 2015 at 1:39 pm

    Low 80’s and glorious in south Texas. We may have seen the last of the 90’s, hallelujah. Took a trip to the big city farmers market this morning and nommed a wonderful crepe from Melange Creperie. Oh my. Kitties are napping in window seats and the dog keeps eyeing her lead for a walk. In others words, a nearly perfect day.

  147. 147.

    Baud

    October 17, 2015 at 1:41 pm

    @Thoughtful Today:

    See how this game is played?

    So you see this as a game? Interesting.

  148. 148.

    raven

    October 17, 2015 at 1:46 pm

    @tesslibrarian: First row upper deck right two sections from the bugle. I was in the end zone for a decade and they moved me about 6 years ago.

  149. 149.

    rikyrah

    October 17, 2015 at 1:54 pm

    @MomSense:

    That was a fabulous piece.

  150. 150.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    @Baud:

    You’re usually a more interesting troll.

    Yes, you need to up your game.

  151. 151.

    Kay

    October 17, 2015 at 1:55 pm

    @Thoughtful Today:

    who didn’t think the Civil Rights legislation was a good idea

    Oh, no. He thinks it’s a “good idea” (supposedly). However. He thinks the federal government can’t enact it or enforce it, so no civil rights for you unless your state enacts and enforces it. Your state will because as we all know state and local governments never violate civil rights. Only the evil federal government does that. State and local lawmakers are honest men of the soil, citizen-lawmakers, who treat everyone fairly and their handshake is their bond.

  152. 152.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 2:01 pm

    @Baud:

    Though I’ll add, no, I don’t see Amir making jokes about slavery a ‘game’, I don’t find it funny in the least.

    Since you’re rarely serious I don’t hold you to the same standards and sometimes you’re genuinely funny.

  153. 153.

    PurpleGirl

    October 17, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    Came back to my apartment to eat the sausage I bought. It was good. Going back out and will take a coat with me this time. Later peeps.

  154. 154.

    Baud

    October 17, 2015 at 2:11 pm

    @Thoughtful Today:

    Once again, we weren’t making jokes about slavery. We were making jokes about you, who tried to use Malaysian slavery to attack Amir.

  155. 155.

    Thoughtful Today

    October 17, 2015 at 2:14 pm

    @Baud:

    I suppose.

    It still came off to my ears like a Republican that was trying to sound tough and looking for a fight instead of trying to think about diplomacy.

    I’m not naturally diplomatic, you’ve read enough of me to know that, but I do appreciate those that are.

    It’s one of the things I’ve appreciated most about Obama.

  156. 156.

    tesslibrarian

    October 17, 2015 at 2:19 pm

    @raven: It’s possible you’re almost right above us!

  157. 157.

    J R in WV

    October 17, 2015 at 2:48 pm

    Watched the first 60% of the WVU-Baylor game. The Mountaineers did a good job at first, but then the Baylor coaches changed out some of their game plan and took over.

    I made a 3 pound pair of meatloaf to take to the afternoon picnic, dinner at 5… Should be nice fall weather, high of 55, probably a little warmer at the park, which is lakeside.

    Last picnic of the year. Will know most everyone, many folks we only see a couple of times a year. Fall is about upon us down here in the lowlands of SW W. Va.

    Too bad about the game, on the other hand, the Baylor team is being held far below their normal scoring, so nothing to be ashamed of. 42-24 the last time I peeked in.

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