Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Technically true, but collectively nonsense

New McCarthy, same old McCarthyism.

A snarling mass of vitriolic jackals

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

Optimism opens the door to great things.

Jesus, Mary, & Joseph how is that election even close?

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

Republicans are the party of chaos and catastrophe.

if you can’t see it, then you are useless in the fight to stop it.

We’ve had enough carrots to last a lifetime. break out the sticks.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

I like you, you’re my kind of trouble.

Everybody saw this coming.

So it was an October Surprise A Day, like an Advent calendar but for crime.

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

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

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

We are aware of all internet traditions.

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

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

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

And now I have baud making fun of me. this day can’t get worse.

You are here: Home / Greetings From My Underground Lair

Greetings From My Underground Lair

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I headed north on Sunday to visit ABC for a few days, and tomorrow I will be taking a megabus from Connecticut to Boston, where I will be for three days for work related things. I’m actually m ore excited about taking the megabus than I am the actual trip, but that’s just because I am a god damned weirdo.

At any rate, since I will be in the area, I was thinking of doing a potential Boston meetup. Or maybe not, as I am a fickle son of a bitch.

I DID BRING PANTS THOUGH!

Reader Interactions

149Comments

  3. 3.

    dmsilev

    A single tear drips down Joe Biden’s face when he learns that you’re not taking Amtrak.

  9. 9.

    SiubhanDuinne

    John, do the Boston meetup! I met a lot of the New England jackals a couple or three years ago, and they are great people. But don’t let that deter you.

  11. 11.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Dcrefugee:

    Just remember what not to say when ABC asks if you’re happy to be with her…

    Right. Mix it up. This time, say you miss Thurston. Or Steve. (ABC would never believe that you missed Rosie, so don’t even try.)

  12. 12.

    lahke

    Meet up! Meet up!
    So you’re here on Friday night or Saturday? Will you be downtown or in the burbs?

  16. 16.

    efgoldman

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I met a lot of the New England jackals a couple or three years ago, and they are great people.

    Why are you being nice? No need for that. Jackals is jackals, and we are the jackalsest.

  17. 17.

    max

    I DID BRING PANTS THOUGH!

    Check for the mustard, too.

    max
    [‘Also, definitely do not mop the bus in the nude. In case you got any weird ideas.’]

  18. 18.

    efgoldman

    @khead:

    I’ve always wondered what the folks on I-95 are going through.

    I’ve spent too much time on I-95 in CT. You don’t want to know or go.

  20. 20.

    Aimai

    If you have time for a meetup let me know at aimaiami at comcast dot net. I’m frantic with papers for my MSW but I would love to meet you.

  22. 22.

    germy

    New Democratic National Committee chair Tom Perez has asked for the resignation of every DNC staffer, NBC News reported Tuesday.

    Major staff turnover with new leadership is common. However, the move comes after an embattled election season in which DNC staffers were found to have attacked Democratic primary candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders.

  24. 24.

    RoonieRoo

    I am so proud of you that you remembered to bring pants this time. **sigh** Our John. Only our John.

  26. 26.

    Mike J

    I always assumed that even if the entire readership of the blog showed up in rural West Virginia, John would not appear at a meet up.

    Hey Bean towners, when you’re done with him, crate him up and ship him to Seattle.

  27. 27.

    lamh36

    @debit: me too. have you checked out the #BlackWomenAtWork Hashtag on twitter? inspired by he treatment of Maxine Waters and April Ryan today?

    You should!

  29. 29.

    efgoldman

    @Mike J:

    Hey Bean towners, when you’re done with him, crate him up and ship him to Seattle.

    We would, but once you say “Beantown” you’re on the shit list.

  30. 30.

    MomSense

    If you find a lovely navy blue hand knit scarf on the megabus let me know. My kid left it on his seat.

  32. 32.

    jacy

    No, no — I want to imagine you on the megabus in overalls, muttering into an empty carton of Ben & Jerry’s. Until the bus breaks down — because you know it will!

  33. 33.

    hovercraft

    @khead:
    I-95 can be a nightmare, okay so more often than not, I remember years ago it took us five hours to drive from Eastchester, ( Westchester County, NY) to Boston, we left around 3.30 on a Friday during the summer.

  39. 39.

    Steve in the ATL

    @efgoldman: are you still mad that the first baseball franchise, the Boston Beaneaters, left town and, after various different cities and mascots, is now the Atlanta Braves?

  40. 40.

    Mike J

    @Steve in the ATL: 1) I didn’t hear about it 2) I’ve actually come and gone a bit since the end of January, so it might not have mattered.

    I remember you were in Portland at one point, but it’s sort of a trek for a meet up.

  41. 41.

    Jim Bales

    John,

    If you (and your pants) are interested in a visit to MIT, including a tour of the Edgerton Center (where we take high-speed photos of milk drops going splash, balloons popping, and bullets going through things), let me know. Tom Levenson can vouch for me!

    Best
    Jim Bales

  42. 42.

    cain

    ABC please marry him so that we know someone will at least make sure that he has pants.. because clearly he needs someone to help project management his life!

    Anyways, I hope you will do a meet up, dude and introduce your girlfriend!

    I am sitting here having Irish whiskey because as the Irish told me once, I’m one of them (despite being Indian :-) Since then, I’ve held a torch to Ireland, and the Irish as a people they can never do any wrong. I am +4 on irish whiskey.

    ETA – so no bolt bus? Please support your local amtrak. :P

  47. 47.

    cain

    @Mike J:
    Da fuck? You were in Portland? Please let me know, I will arrange a meet up. I already handle all the open source events for Linux kernel events.. let me know if any of you are planning on coming to PDX. I will help you and you get the Indian hospitality that my mother has drummed into me since I was a kid.

  50. 50.

    cain

    @Mnemosyne:

    Nonsense.. meeting with his fans is part of the job. Besides, ABC wont mind, she’s going to be doing all the talking anyways, because sure as shit, John is not an extrovert.

  55. 55.

    Steve in the ATL

    @Mike J: I get confused about where I am too. I was in Portland one week, Seattle a couple of weeks later, somewhere in between i can’t even remember, and just this morning got back from a week plus in Denver and Breckinridge.

    I’ll be in Boston next Tuesday night; I would stay longer but have to get back to Georgia for the Masters (not playing this year; just attending!).

  56. 56.

    SectionH

    @TaMara (HFG): Cheap transportation on the East Coast (well, elsewhere too but in my exp. it skews that way).. Mr S says they’re owned by a Scottish company (Stagecoach).

    If Cole’s starting in CT, he should survive to Boston.

  65. 65.

    efgoldman

    @Steve in the ATL:

    are you still mad that the first baseball franchise, the Boston Beaneaters, left town and, after various different cities and mascots, is now the Atlanta Braves?

    My freshman year at BU. I lived 10 floors above what was the right field line at Braves Field.
    The remnants are now BU’s Nickerson Field – a bit of the bleachers and part of the outfield wall.

  66. 66.

    Pogonip

    Megabus offers a discount to customers who wear pants. Glad to see Cole’s saving up for the wedding.

  68. 68.

    efgoldman

    @Jim Bales:

    where we take high-speed photos of milk drops going splash, balloons popping, and bullets going through things

    My late father in law, as a very young man, worked as Edgerton’s assistant and set up/tool the early pictures.
    At family gatherings he’d haul out the old strobe and entertain his nieces and nephews.

  69. 69.

    Ruckus

    @debit:
    I’d just like to grow up. OK maybe not.
    Lets run the tests.
    1. If I don’t grow up I might be confused with a republican.
    2. If I do grow up I might just have to be responsible.
    3. If I don’t grow up I can eat ice cream and cookies all day long.
    4. If eat ice cream and cookies all day long I won’t have to worry about growing up.
    Hmmmmmm………

  73. 73.

    cain

    @Steve in the ATL:

    I’ll be in Boston next Tuesday night; I would stay longer but have to get back to Georgia for the Masters (not playing this year; just attending!).

    You attend the masters (and I assume golf?) Nice.

  74. 74.

    MomSense

    @Mnemosyne:

    And cheaper.

    O/T but dealing with a kid’s ADHD spiral. This is intense and I can’t do much of anything.

    Fuck fucking ADHD.

  76. 76.

    JMG

    Dear John: This Bostonian is super stoked to have you visit our fair city, whether or not it turns out I can attend a meetup, because I’m sure it will at least inspire some quality rants. But I will make extra effort to attend such a meetup should it take place. Lot of Bostonians here, hope they can arrange things. I’ll stay alert for new information.

  77. 77.

    SFAW

    @efgoldman:

    Why would Denali be naked on a Megabus?

    What’s scary (for me) is that your reply was the first thing I thought of.

    Well, actually, that’s probably scary for you, too, albeit for a different reason.

  81. 81.

    debit

    @Pogonip: Kelpie is good. Sleeping at my feet right now, having cavorted around the back yard for a good 40 minutes once I got home.

  82. 82.

    Roger Moore

    @Steve in the ATL:

    are you still mad that the first baseball franchise, the Boston Beaneaters, left town and, after various different cities and mascots, is now the Atlanta Braves?

    That franchise was originally known as the Red Stockings, a name which the newcomer American League team took over. They were the Braves for the plurality of their time in Boston, substantially longer than they had any other name, including when they left town.

  83. 83.

    Steve in the ATL

    @cain:

    You attend the masters (and I assume golf?) Nice.

    I golf because it’s a requirement of my profession. I attend the Masters because it’s close by and it’s awesome!

    Practice days are actually more fun than tournament days. You get really fun groupings.

  84. 84.

    LAO

    @Steve in the ATL:

    I’ll be in Boston next Tuesday night; I would stay longer but have to get back to Georgia for the Masters (not playing this year; just attending!).

    Glad you clarified that. ?

  85. 85.

    efgoldman

    @SFAW:

    I hear Rte 128 isn’t too bad, if you hit it at the right time.

    Inside joke.

    ETA: “The right time” being between 200am and 500am – IF there’s no construction

  86. 86.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @efgoldman:

    Why would Denali be naked on a Megabus?

    I couldn’t say; you would have to ask Denali. (Also, too, that elephant in my pajamas.)

  87. 87.

    efgoldman

    @SFAW:

    that’s probably scary for you, too,

    Nah. Mrgrderf years ago my AP English teacher really, really had a thing about antecedents.

  88. 88.

    SFAW

    @efgoldman:

    Inside joke.

    I was hoping you’d spot that.

    And I did consider putting 3AM as “the right time,” but thought that might be too obvious.

  90. 90.

    efgoldman

    @SFAW:

    I was hoping you’d spot that.

    I still don’t know why the geniuses didn’t designate the x-way up thru the city as I-95, and give 128 a circumferential even number, like the DC Beltway, I-295 around Providence, or I-495

    ETA: Altho what was originally supposed to be I-95 into the city never got built: starting at the I-93 interchange and following what is now the Orange line right of way. Frank Sargent, one of the last good Republicans, shitcanned it.

  92. 92.

    frosty

    @MomSense:

    Fuck fucking ADHD

    Been there with two, one of whom was dyslexic too. Other parents give you advice — which is useless. All the little behavior mod tricks (like the nickel in the jar every time they’re good) work for two weeks, tops. Then you have to find another one. Then you give up and grit your teeth.

    They both matured and turned into fine young men. So hang in there.

  94. 94.

    SFAW

    @efgoldman:

    I still don’t know why the geniuses didn’t designate the x-way up thru the city as I-95

    It’s a Boston thing. I seem to remember — although I may be confusing Boston with some other burg “what should know better” — that a lot of street signs are (or were) missing. Not due to theft/vandalism, but (apparently) because the planners figured “Hey, youse live heah, youse should know what street yer on.” Coming from the NYC area, it was kind of appalling.

  96. 96.

    SFAW

    @BBA:

    Oddly, the other major bus company (Greyhound/Bolt Bus) is also Scottish-owned (First Group).

    Yeah, sure, whatever. Next you’ll be trying to convince us that Budweiser isn’t American.

  97. 97.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @MomSense:

    O/T but dealing with a kid’s ADHD spiral. This is intense and I can’t do much of anything.

    Fuck fucking ADHD.

    I have no words and no advice, but I can offer unlimited virtual hugs. Here are a few.

    {{{{{{{{{{{{hugs}}}}}}}}}}}}

    More where those came from.

  99. 99.

    SectionH

    @BBA: Mr S says he knows that too. He asks Is that the Aberdeen outfit? (The transportation infrastructure of the planet isn’t My hobby, but it seems to be his, and he’s usually quicker than google.)

    Eta: I am amused. The Scots are still focused on getting away?

  101. 101.

    CaseyL

    Hi, everyone! Boy, did I miss this place.

    My computer was in the shop for a few days – corrosion on the motherboard, which they fixed very nicely, thank you, and also fixed my trackpad. I had no internet for nearly a week, unless I went to a kiosk, and couldn’t get into my email even from a kiosk because I couldn’t convince my email I was me.

    Definitely missed you all. Definitely missed my preferred news sources – I had to actually watch TV news, ugh.

    OTOH, I did get to read a LOT of books.

  103. 103.

    different-church-lady

    @SFAW:

    I-95 can be a nightmare,

    No kidding. But I hear Rte 128 isn’t too bad, if you hit it at the right time.

    Now CUT THAT OUT.

  106. 106.

    Anne Laurie

    @TaMara (HFG):

    What’s a megabus?

    Here’s one version: Bolt Bus. Basically, small-dollar intercity bus companies, renowned for their low prices. (And the occasional spectacular highway breakdown, which, given Cole’s history… )

    Here they mostly run between college towns (including Boston-NYC-DC) but I believe they’re popular for trips from the more run-down urban areas to reservation-based casinos.

  107. 107.

    laura

    Get on up! Upstairs on the Megabus is the place to be. Safe travels and enjoy the ride, the company and the Boston.

  109. 109.

    Anne Laurie

    @SFAW:

    I seem to remember — although I may be confusing Boston with some other burg “what should know better” — that a lot of street signs are (or were) missing.

    When we first moved out here, a native told us that the Bostonians removed all the street signs during the Revolution to confuse the British. It worked so well, as a source of entertainment, that they’ve only reluctantly put *some* of them back up!

  110. 110.

    khead

    @hovercraft:

    I-95 can be a nightmare, okay so more often than not.

    I-95 IS a nightmare between DC and….. anywhere. We live at a major choke point on I-95. Elkton, MD. I will never pay the MD/DE toll again.

    I still want to know about what goes on in a Megabus.

  111. 111.

    Anne Laurie

    Srsly, Cole, I hope you CAN bring yourself to meet your local commentors/front-pagers. Some of us would prefer at least 24 hours notice, since transportation between the ‘burbs and the city proper can require some planning in advance.

    You going to be down in the Seaport area, near the big conference center, or further out on the Rte 128 ring?

  112. 112.

    tobie

    @germy:

    Major staff turnover with new leadership is common. However, the move comes after an embattled election season in which DNC staffers were found to have attacked Democratic primary candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders.

    Aaargh. Anyone who cared about the prospects for the Democratic Party was irritated with the Senator from Vermont by April when he had zero chance of winning the party nomination. Staffers may have vented in emails but they did nothing to hurt or help either campaign. I’m so sick of the party leadership bending over backwards to placate a minority of the party even if they end up alienating the majority, that includes the party faithful who do the grunt work for elections every two years. Thanks, Tom Perez. I think I’ll hold off on my next contribution. I’m also pretty wary about purges. Sounds Stalinesque.

  113. 113.

    dmsilev

    @Anne Laurie: What I was told when growing up in the area was that the operating theory was ‘if you don’t know where you are, you don’t belong here.’

  116. 116.

    Mnemosyne

    @MomSense:

    Ugh. Yeah, pretty much all you can do is stand by, wait for it to wind down, and prevent any injuries.

    It might be worth asking the kid’s doctor to recommend an ADHD coach. Apparently some kids find that less intimidating than full-on therapy, and the coach is more focused on immediate problem-solving and process creation, like coming up with a process to help remember what homework is due when to prevent meltdowns.

  117. 117.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @tobie: The organization is in his hands now. He may have people who he wants to bring in. Also too, just because on asks for everyone’s resignation, it doesn’t mean that you will accept each one. Perez has done well everywhere he has been – including reviving the moribund DOJ Civil Rights division. I’ll back him until he shows me that I shouldn’t. YMMV

  121. 121.

    scott alloway

    @p.a.: Been there, done that. Lived in Portland. ex was from Caribou. At the time. north of Bangor was a two-laner (1969).

  122. 122.

    p.a.

    @dmsilev: was that an old NBC show? Supertrain, Megabus… With Cole on board it could be subtitled “Cranky in the Corridor”

    I bet a GoPro documenting his travels in his Subaru would be must-see utube.

  126. 126.

    BruceFromOhio

    Because Podesta isn’t the president of jack shit you fucking twat

    Someday, I’d like to collect a slew of these non-sequitur twits, and make a rap album out of them.

    What’s ‘jackals,’ precious?

  127. 127.

    scott alloway

    @p.a.: True that. Lived in Dover-Foxcroft. Going to anywhere was a challenge in the fall. In winter, …

  128. 128.

    jonas

    Homer: “Where are my pants?”
    Marge: “You threw them out the window in a fit of passion. You said you were never going to need them again.”

  130. 130.

    FlyingToaster

    John, just a word of advice:

    Be prepared to disembark at any time.

    I don’t know if I can make a meetup [WarriorGirl’s violin graduation this weekend, recital next weekend], but you should come across the river to Central Square in Our Fair City and visit Toscanini’s*. Just sayin. And Suan La Chow Show at Mary Chung’s.

    *I’m now a suburbanite in Watertown so I go to Ranc’s. Of course, the owner of Ranc’s is the brother of the owner of Tosci’s. Heh.

  134. 134.

    JanieM

    @FlyingToaster: And once you’re at Toscanini’s, get the burnt caramel with hot fudge sauce. :-)

    I’m heading to Cambridge in a few days as well, and would try to get to a Boston-area meet-up if the stars align..

  135. 135.

    danielx

    What, did Cole forget to put on pants before driving to ABC’s at some point? Help me out here….

    Not that I would be particularly surprised at any personal disaster involving pants, considering the source.

  136. 136.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Turbulence: He got up in the middle of the Madison, WI 2013 meet-up and went to play video golf. OTOH, his hand are the size of hams.

  137. 137.

    efgoldman

    @SFAW:

    that a lot of street signs are (or were) missing.

    Not just in Boston. In a lot of New England, easily visible street signs are considered a sign of weakness.
    Before GPS and Google maps it was REALLY fun.

  139. 139.

    efgoldman

    @khead:

    I-95 IS a nightmare between DC and….. anywhere.

    My kids live in Arlington VA and drive to NC (his family) twice a year. The bottleneck on that side, Northbound, is always, always in Fredricksburg.

  140. 140.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @efgoldman: When my family moved back to CT in 1976, people in Newtown were confused about our need to put the house number on our address. Our name and street should have been enough.

  141. 141.

    efgoldman

    @Jim Bales:

    What was his name?

    Tom Marzilli. mrs efg was his oldest daughter.

    ETA: For fun, on Saturdays if he had to work, he’d bring the kids in with him to the EG&G building across the street from Fenway. Apparently there was lots of fun stuff to play with. They knew Doc Edgerton, but Doc being Doc, I’m sure he forgot who they were a week later. I’m sure mrs efg couldn’t have been older than five, maybe six, which would have made it late 1950s.

  145. 145.

    rikyrah

    @TaMara (HFG):
    Cheap bus. Earlier you buy the tickets, cheaper it is. I’m in the Midwest, and like I said before, my sister could routinely get round trip tickets from Minneapolis to Chicago for $20-25. Takes planning, but if you Know when you are traveling, you can get a great deal. The Minneapolis-Chicago bus is usually a double decker. My sister loves sitting upstairs on it. They don’t go everywhere. They have expanded in the Midwest in the last 18 months.

    Doesn’t have the reach of Greyhound, but if you want to travel on their established routes, compare prices.

  146. 146.

    FlyingToaster

    @Aleta: I swear, Boston is the death knell for GPS’s. Mine is the ultimate in artificial stupidity. What portion of “if you start in Somerville you are not going to the airport via Boston; go via Chelsea” is so hard to understand?

    And don’t get me started on Storrowing…

  148. 148.

    Jim Bales

    @efgoldman:
    Got it. It’s not a name I’ve come across (I’ve only been here since ’98).

    If you and Mrs. efg are around, please come by! There are still some exhibits in the hallway to play with, and lots of pretty pictures :-)

    Best,
    Jim

  149. 149.

    Jeff R.

    I went to the November meetup with Anne Laurie and efgoldman. I’d be up for another one.

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