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

Saturday Afternoon Open Thread

by Betty Cracker|  July 22, 20173:43 pm| 278 Comments

This post is in: Domestic Politics, Food, Open Threads

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Remember when I made a Shrek birthday cake upon request for a family member a while back? A Puss in Boots (from Shrek 2) cake has been requested by another family member. I’m baking that cake now.

It’s going to be harder to get the decoration on this one right, I think. The future recipient specifically wanted it to depict the scene where Puss is all pathetic with the huge eyes.

Anyhoo, I’ll share pics later, nail it or nah. Open thread!

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Reader Interactions

278Comments

  1. 1.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 3:46 pm

    Eh. You mastered butter lambs. A PinBoots cake will go down just fine.

    Pictures, please.

    And thank you for putting up a fresh thread. I am sick of the Eeyore set, and those who would encourage them.

  2. 2.

    Iowa Old Lady

    July 22, 2017 at 3:52 pm

    Semi-good news then. I got a revise and resubmit on a short story I submitted to a good fantasy magazine. Yay!

  3. 3.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 3:55 pm

    @Iowa Old Lady: Yay!

    A palindrome, as you spell it.

  4. 4.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 3:57 pm

    @Elizabelle: If-then-else T wins, Ds lose. Reichtag fire blah blah blah.

  5. 5.

    rikyrah

    July 22, 2017 at 3:58 pm

    Can’t wait for the pictures ?

  6. 6.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 3:59 pm

    Well, the ac guy came. Sort of a goofball libertarian but he made a couple of Trump references and I said “well, I think he’s a loudmouth. punk ass motherfucker” so we didn’t talk about politics. He didn’t find anything major but decided it needed a good cleaning. $175 for a 90 minute saturday service call so I guess I didn’t piss him off too much.

  7. 7.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 3:59 pm

    I adore Puss in Boots from that movie. “Pray for mercy from…..Puss…in Boots!”

  8. 8.

    Mike in NC

    July 22, 2017 at 4:00 pm

    Netflix just started streaming a new 10 episode crime drama called “Ozark” starting Jason Bateman and Laura Linney as Chicagoans who run afoul of a drug cartel and relocate to rural Missouri. Really liked the first episode and the critics seem to be impressed.

  9. 9.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 4:01 pm

    @Mike in NC: Ohh, Laura is awesome. She was so great as Abagail Adams.

  10. 10.

    Nora

    July 22, 2017 at 4:01 pm

    One of the best scenes in that movie, IMO: “Now I will repay my debt!”

  11. 11.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:01 pm

    @raven: What was wrong with your a/c?

  12. 12.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:02 pm

    @Mike in NC: Laura Linney is great in everything I’ve seen her in. I loved her in “The Big C.”

  13. 13.

    zhena gogolia

    July 22, 2017 at 4:03 pm

    @raven:

    Did you see that they have Georgia playing the Ozarks in this series? I find that a little hard to stomach!

  14. 14.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:04 pm

    Besides strawberry shortcake what other strawberry cake can I make? I already made fresh strawberry ice cream yesterday.

  15. 15.

    Betty Cracker

    July 22, 2017 at 4:04 pm

    @raven: Haha! Good for you for expressing your opinion of Trump so decidedly!

  16. 16.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:04 pm

    @Elizabelle: As I was reading the let’s just slit our wrists now thread below, an image popped into my head: the Iowa caucus on Jan 3 – where you go stand in the corner of the room that is designated for your candidate. I was at the caucus as a volunteer, working for Obama, of course.

    Only this image wasn’t for candidates. You either stand with the group that is predicting the worst possible outcomes or you stand with ruemara and others say hell no, they can’t take our democracy away this easily!

    I know which group I’m standing with. The only way we have no control over the outcome is if we think the ending of this story has already been written.

    edited for clarity.

  17. 17.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:05 pm

    I’m going to count on this being a stopped clock example.

    Prediction: There will never be a USS Donald J. Trump.— Bill Kristol (@BillKristol) July 22, 2017

  18. 18.

    Karen

    July 22, 2017 at 4:07 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: you could make pie; I used to freeze extras and make jam or wine

  19. 19.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm

    Betty, I can’t wait to see your cake!

    @raven:

    well, I think he’s a loudmouth. punk ass motherfucker

    I love that so much!

    @Iowa Old Lady: Happy news!

  20. 20.

    Baud

    July 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm

    @Yarrow: Maybe we can rechristen the Titanic.

  21. 21.

    Betty Cracker

    July 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: We had strawberry pancakes for breakfast, and they were wonderful! I’ve seen yellow and white cakes with strawberry cream cheese or buttercream and strawberry icing but have never made one myself. I usually opt for strawberry pie.

  22. 22.

    zhena gogolia

    July 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    he does know how to turn a phrase. I’m going to memorize that one.

  23. 23.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:08 pm

    @Mike in NC: Damn, I thought it was going to be starring OzarkHIllbilly. This day is just full of disappointments!

  24. 24.

    Baud

    July 22, 2017 at 4:09 pm

    @raven: You brave. I would never trust a home contractor enough by talking politics with them.

  25. 25.

    zhena gogolia

    July 22, 2017 at 4:09 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    He’s probably not even an extra, since it’s filmed in Georgia (!).

  26. 26.

    sukabi

    July 22, 2017 at 4:09 pm

    @Baud: Hindenburg II, the drumpening.

  27. 27.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:09 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: You can make an actual strawberry cake. It’s very pink. Strawberry pie is another good choice. Spinach salad with strawberries.

  28. 28.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:09 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Why do you have so many strawberries? And you’re apparently not sharing with the rest of us.

  29. 29.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:10 pm

    @Yarrow: I can has recipe for the cake?

  30. 30.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:11 pm

    @WaterGirl: They were on sale, I was greedy. I brought 3 pounds.

  31. 31.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:12 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: There weren’t even any good strawberries at the farmer’s market this year. I do get strawberries from my hanging baskets every time I go out to water, but not enough to make anything. I just spray ’em off and eat them as I water. They are SO good!

  32. 32.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 4:14 pm

    @Yarrow: Well, the fan in the outdoor unit stopped work about 10 days ago. I replaced the capacitor and that seemed to fix it until last night. I found another capacitor this morning and it worked for a while then the fan stopped dead again. Decided it was above my pay grade so I called 3 different outfits and took the first one that showed up. Again, he found nothing specific but did test the capacitors and they were all good. He said the unit was really dirty (it was) so WE cleaned the coils and fired it back up. It’s running now but doesn’t seem to be hitting 80 on the thermostat. It’s really hot so maybe that’s just what ti’s going to be.

  33. 33.

    Gin & Tonic

    July 22, 2017 at 4:14 pm

    @WaterGirl: Absolutely. As I scan my family tree looking at the names of people I never had the opportunity to know because of their opposition to authoritarianism (which led to actuarially suboptimal outcomes) I cannot but agree.

  34. 34.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:14 pm

    @WaterGirl: They were like a $1.29 a pound at my local Aldi’s.

  35. 35.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 4:15 pm

    @Baud: I didn’t bring it up. I hung around and even pitched in so I probably brought it on myself.

  36. 36.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:17 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Sorry, I don’t have one I use personally. I’ve had it before and I know the person who made it used fresh strawberries (they told me) and it was very pink.

    I’ve been wanting to try this strawberry gazpacho. Sounds very different.

  37. 37.

    Cckids

    July 22, 2017 at 4:21 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Epicurious has a Strawberry Cake with Cardomom Cream that is wonderful. Can’t link from the kindle, but their search is good.

  38. 38.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:22 pm

    @raven: Ugh. What a pain. Did you have to clean it inside (like in the attic) or just the outside unit? The a/c guys told me to spray the outside unit with a hose every month or so to get the dust off it. Helps air pass through it better and it’s supposed to help it run better. I do it when I remember.

  39. 39.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:22 pm

    @Cckids: Thanks, I will take a look.

  40. 40.

    Lapassionara

    July 22, 2017 at 4:24 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: did I miss the thread where you posted the chutney recipes?

  41. 41.

    bemused

    July 22, 2017 at 4:24 pm

    @Cckids:

    Oh wow, that sounds delish!

  42. 42.

    Shell

    July 22, 2017 at 4:27 pm

    @Iowa Old Lady: Thats great!

  43. 43.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 4:27 pm

    @WaterGirl: Thank you. I agree. Join the resistance, don’t lie down in the street and guess which car is likely to hit you. “If not this one, surely the next.”

    Fuck that shit.

  44. 44.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 4:28 pm

    @Lapassionara: I just started a summer teaching assignment last week. So I haven’t yet had the time to write up the recipes or post the photos of the naturalization ceremony at Old Sturbridge Village.

  45. 45.

    Shell

    July 22, 2017 at 4:29 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Problem with strawberries is that they have so much moisture in them, can make any cake batter awash.

  46. 46.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 4:30 pm

    The actor John Heard died. Home Alone dad, and Sharknado too. Always kinda liked him.

  47. 47.

    cope

    July 22, 2017 at 4:30 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    I’m surprised nobody suggested strawberry cheesecake yet. I’ve got a blueberry cheesecake recipe that could easily be modified.

  48. 48.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:32 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: That’s an amazing price. I have heard you can get really tasty fruit at Aldi’s because they have the fruit that is maybe a bit older than they sell at regular supermarkets, so it is actually ripe and has flavor.

  49. 49.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 4:36 pm

    @Yarrow: It was the downstairs unit and we hit the outside part. The only thing nagging at me is that there are also coils in the air handler and a few years back they got dirty and caused problems. I brought it up more than once and he didn’t seemed to think that might be it.

  50. 50.

    stinger

    July 22, 2017 at 4:37 pm

    @Iowa Old Lady: Way to go!

  51. 51.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:38 pm

    @Gin & Tonic: I am surely not brave enough to give my life and I have always looked at anyone involved with the French resistance with awe, but we can’t just sit by and watch them drown our democracy in a bathtub.

    I think they will be shocked by the response once they cross that line that is a bridge too far, even for the people who are republicans.

  52. 52.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    July 22, 2017 at 4:41 pm

    Dunkirk is sticking with me more than I thought it would, both as an experience and a number of the creative choices.. I’m going to have to see it again sometime this week.

  53. 53.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    July 22, 2017 at 4:42 pm

    @Baud: The Vasa.

  54. 54.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:45 pm

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: That’s how I judge whether something is a good movie. Not just a fun moving, but a good movie. Do I think about tit after I have left the theater? Do thoughts of the movie pop into my head over the next few days?

  55. 55.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:46 pm

    @raven: Or maybe he just wanted to get on to the next appointment! On the positive side, I’m sure you’ll have the answer in the next couple of days.

  56. 56.

    Villago Delenda Est

    July 22, 2017 at 4:49 pm

    Betty, I have high confidence that you can pull off the Puss in Boots cake every bit as well as you did the Shrek cake!

  57. 57.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    July 22, 2017 at 4:49 pm

    @WaterGirl: I can’t say that. Thoughts keep popping into my head about really bad movies, too.

  58. 58.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:49 pm

    @raven: Could you clean those coils on your own? Maybe not worth it if it’s too much effort.

    The a/c in my house is old and probably needs replacing at some point in the (hopefully not too) near future. I’ve gotten so many conflicting stories from the various a/c guys about what to do. It’s vary frustrating. There’s a coil in the unit in the attic they clean with a chemical. I’ve been told it definitely needs cleaning, is too old to clean (it’ll destroy it, it’ll need replacing and that’s expensive and not worth it in a unit this age), and it’s in perfectly good shape and whoever told you it needed cleaning was wrong. How am I supposed to know what to do?

  59. 59.

    Villago Delenda Est

    July 22, 2017 at 4:52 pm

    OK, about and hour and a half away from the showing of Valerian. Probably great eye candy, for sure, if the trailer is representative, but we’ll have to see about plot, script, acting, etc.

    Confidence is not high. Oliver Willis (@owillis on twitter) has advised avoid this like the plague.

    I will of course report back once viewing has concluded.

  60. 60.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 4:53 pm

    @Yarrow: If it’s not broke, don’t fix it? With old computers, I tend to leave them alone, don’t upgrade the operating system, etc because in my experience, if you start to push them, you’re not gonna like the outcome.

    Maybe that’s relevant, maybe it’s not.

  61. 61.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:55 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: I don’t know anything about the movie, but I’ve seen a couple of commercials for it. I know about valerian root, so I was struck by the title. If the movie is like the root it should put you to sleep and reduce any anxiety you might have.

  62. 62.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 4:56 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Strawberry crumble. Fast and simple. Served warm with vanilla ice cream or whipped cream. I make this one.

  63. 63.

    Yarrow

    July 22, 2017 at 4:57 pm

    @WaterGirl: That’s the option I’ve gone with. If it’s a part that should be cleaned to make the a/c unit run better and also increase its lifespan (which is what some of the a/c guys told me) then maybe I should have it done. The most frustrating thing is the conflicting info. How can one a/c guy give me one recommendation and the next one give me the exact opposite recommendation. It’s bizarre.

  64. 64.

    zhena gogolia

    July 22, 2017 at 4:58 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    Chilly Scenes of Winter.

  65. 65.

    mai naem mobile

    July 22, 2017 at 5:01 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: thwre are strawbetry cakes. My niece had one at one of her birthdays. I happen to be the person who got it from a independent bakery here. It was really good but I have no idea how you make it. You could do a fruit salad or use them in a smoothie. If they start goong bad, you can freeze them and use them up later in a smoothie. You could make srikhand and use some up that way.

  66. 66.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    July 22, 2017 at 5:01 pm

    I’m also spending a lot of time listening to Hans Zimmer soundtracks. They’re really damned good, though I wish the film industry wasn’t so prone to chasing fads and would remember that there are other good styles for scores, too.

  67. 67.

    Mike in NC

    July 22, 2017 at 5:07 pm

    @Baud: Trump would only settle for the biggest Spanish galleon ever built, complete with a full cargo of gold doubloons.

  68. 68.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 5:09 pm

    @Yarrow:
    I’d be okay with naming, oh, a fleet oiler after him.

  69. 69.

    Booger

    July 22, 2017 at 5:10 pm

    @WaterGirl:I saw ‘Das Boot’ in its first run at a theatre by myself. Left after the credits just wiped out. Had to sit in the car and cry for a few minutes before I could drive home. It was exhausting.

  70. 70.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 5:13 pm

    @Yarrow: Hindenburg, a flaming gasbag, seems more appropriate.

  71. 71.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 5:14 pm

    @schrodinger’s_cat

    Not a cake (duh), however stuffed strawberries are fairly fast ‘n’ easy, fun to put together and oh so delish.

  72. 72.

    mai naem mobile

    July 22, 2017 at 5:15 pm

    They should rename one of those nightmare noro virus carnival cruise line ships after Dolt 45. He sure as hell is making a lot of Americans feel like they have norovirus.

  73. 73.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    July 22, 2017 at 5:15 pm

    @Booger: Das Boot was originally a German TV miniseries. It was six hours long.

  74. 74.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:16 pm

    @Booger: That was a tough one. Haunting.

  75. 75.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:20 pm

    @trollhattan:

    I’d be okay with naming, oh, a fleet oiler after him.

    I’m okay with that if it’s on fire. Perpetually on fire.

  76. 76.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 5:25 pm

    @Mike in NC:
    Won’t he be surprised when the doubloons turn out to be Hanukkah gelt. “Kushner, get up here NOW!”

  77. 77.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:28 pm

    Are any of the new TV shows any good?

    I used to watch 5 or 6 USA shows, but they cancelled all of them one by one and have mostly replaced them with shows that aren’t up my alley. I like Suits, but the ones I see advertised right now seem really dark. There’s something called The Sinner and Salvation, Shooter and Queen of the South, and a few others whose names I don’t recall.

    It seemed like there used to be a number of shows that would start in June and had 10 episodes in the summer. Wondering if I am missing all of them or if that’s a thing of the past.

  78. 78.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 5:31 pm

    @chris: Thanks, it looks like something I might be brave enough to attempt. BTW did you just tell me to go fuck myself in the last thread or is that another Chris? I am so confused.

  79. 79.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:32 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Strawberry popsicles! If you don’t have popsicle molds, you can always pour the fruit mixture into little bowls and just freeze those and eat them with a spoon. 2 ups of strawberries & some simple syrup, a blender, and you’re good to go.

  80. 80.

    Villago Delenda Est

    July 22, 2017 at 5:32 pm

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: FYI, “Boot” is pronounced “boat” in German :D

  81. 81.

    BBA

    July 22, 2017 at 5:33 pm

    @Yarrow: knowing Trump, he’ll order the Navy to rename every single ship after himself. In big, gold-plated letters.

  82. 82.

    Gelfling 545

    July 22, 2017 at 5:35 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: chilled strawberry soup
    http://thesuburbansoapbox.com/2015/05/07/chilled-strawberry-soup-brunchweek/

  83. 83.

    Villago Delenda Est

    July 22, 2017 at 5:35 pm

    @Yarrow: When I see “Valerian” I think “steel”, but I’m a GoT geek, so there’s that.

  84. 84.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:36 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: I never could have predicted a sentence that would include a polite thank you and “BTW did you just tell me to go fuck myself?”

  85. 85.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 5:37 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Looking forward to The Alienist, upcoming on TNT. Yes, intrinsically on the dark side (murder investigation) but lends itself to lush visuals.

    The book is solidly in the “can’t put it down” category (also meticulously researched) and reportedly its author is hands-on involved with the production.

  86. 86.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 5:38 pm

    @WaterGirl: Check out the last few comments in the last thread. At least three people did not like what I had to say, one who calls himself/herself Chris told me what I wrote in the comment to chris.

  87. 87.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 5:39 pm

    Storm passing through NoVA just knocked out the cable. Watching “Titanic.” How does it end? (/snark; gonna miss the actual sinking; darn.)

  88. 88.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 5:42 pm

    OK. Cable’s back. Ship’s afloat. Sorta.

  89. 89.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 5:42 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Warm crumble with real whipped cream (with a couple drops of vanilla) approaches nirvana. It also keeps well in the fridge so you can have it for breakfast, lunch, dinner and dessert.

    Also, certainly not! Musta been that capital-C Chris.

  90. 90.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 5:43 pm

    I have a neighbor problem. One of their pine trees died, and the likelihood is that it would take out my fence as well as a lot of landscaping that I put in. The worse case scenario is that it falls on my bedroom. I’ve already mentioned that I’m willing to chip in to take the tree down, but she had to speak to her husband. That was ten days ago. I’m tempted to offer to pay for the tree removal, and if that doesn’t work, then have my insurance company write a letter.
    ugh

    Yes they voted for Trump.

  91. 91.

    Aleta

    July 22, 2017 at 5:43 pm

    President Donald Trump’s administration has rescinded more than $2 million of grant funding intended for a Vermont nonprofit that is working to prevent teen pregnancy — decimating the group’s finances, according to one of its directors.

    The Charlotte-based Youth Catalytics has provided training and research to youth services organizations around the country for 35 years. During Barack Obama’s presidency, the group won a five-year federal grant for pregnancy prevention work that began in 2016 with $564,000 in funding. Earlier this month, the Office of Adolescent Health in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services informed the organization that it had terminated the remaining four years of the grant — a loss of about $2.25 million.

    “Due to changes in program priorities, it has been determined that it is in the best interest of the federal government to no longer continue funding for the Providing Capacity Building Assistance to OAH Teen Pregnancy Prevention Grantees program,” the July 5 letter read.

    The news came out of the blue, said Meagan Downey, Youth Catalytics’ director of special projects. “I’m on my honeymoon in Jamaica, and on July 5, I get this notice that our funding was being terminated June 30, 2017,” she said.

    “We were given no reason,” Downey went on. “The only change that we know of that has occurred are the appointments of some people who have led efforts to discredit and eliminate these programs.”

    The cut to the local organization is part of a more sweeping rescission, according to the Center for Investigative Reporting, which found that 81 institutions nationwide will lose a total of more than $200 million in teen pregnancy prevention grants.

    Trump has appointed several Health and Human Services officials who have endorsed an abstinence-only approach to pregnancy prevention and resisted sex education that includes birth control counseling. Among the appointees is Valerie Huber, chief of staff to the assistant secretary for health.

    Youth Catalytics, which reported about $1 million in revenue on its 2015 tax filing, was one of five groups whose grants were pulled at the start of July; most organizations were given one more year of funding, according to the Center for Investigative Reporting.*

    Through the now- revoked federal grant, the Vermont organization helped entities that run pregnancy prevention programs for vulnerable youth to improve their communications with teens, parents and other stakeholders. They also help groups with similar missions share their work with one another.

    -from Seven Days Vt

  92. 92.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:44 pm

    @NotMax: I’m fine with murder (also in the category of words I thought I would never say in a sentence!). Are there aliens involved? Or do alienist mean something else entirely? I added it to Tivo, which isn’t finding it in the next two weeks, at least, but it will record whenever an episode does show up.

    I like plenty of dark shows, I guess, I really like Broadchurch and that’s not a bundle of laughs, but devils and end of the world stuff isn’t grabbing these days (can’t imagine why!). I even liked Jericho and that was a catastrophic setting, so maybe it’s just the times we are living in. Whatever happened to TV as an escape?

  93. 93.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 5:44 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Don’t change. You are one of the peeps who keep me here. The people who were having trouble with you can go stick their heads in the oven.

  94. 94.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:46 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Oh I saw that, so I understood the context, but I just thought that was too funny: “thanks for the recipe, and by the way, did you just tell me to go fuck myself?” Only on BJ!

  95. 95.

    Aleta

    July 22, 2017 at 5:49 pm

    @Mike in NC: Thanks, perfect.

  96. 96.

    bystander

    July 22, 2017 at 5:49 pm

    @Elizabelle: Chilly Scenes of Winter was Heard at his best. A perfect Ann Beattie character, even if the movie is flawed.

    Coconut could make an awesome fur, but I don’t know what you do for those eyes except maybe muffin tops with royal icing.

  97. 97.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 5:50 pm

    @Elizabelle

    Oh, it was sad, so sad, too bad!
    It was sad when the great ship went down
    To the bottom of the sea
    Uncles and aunts, little children lost their pants
    It was sad when the great ship went down

    /campfire songs

  98. 98.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:51 pm

    @JPL: Ugh is right!

    I learned a bit about trees coming down when my huge tree crashed on my house 4 years ago. Part of my tree crushed my neighbor’s van – it was a huge tree! My insurance didn’t have to cover that because it was an act of god, but their’s covered it.

    Also, my insurance didn’t cover ANYTHING that was living. So it didn’t matter that I lost hundreds and hundreds of dollars worth of plants and trees that had to be replaced. Not one penny! But if something was in a pot, and the pot was broken by the tree, they covered that!

    You might think about asking your insurance company if that’s how their coverage works, and find out if it’s a different story if a tree is actually dead and is very likely to fall and damage property.

    Also, it cost about $6,000 to have what was left of my tree taken down – it was a really big tree – so you might want to get an estimate of what the tree would cost to take down before you offer to pay for all of it.

  99. 99.

    bystander

    July 22, 2017 at 5:51 pm

    @zhena gogolia: Missed the reference.

  100. 100.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 5:54 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Victorian term, explained at the beginning of the trailer linked to above.

  101. 101.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:54 pm

    @Mike in NC: Thanks, added that to my Netflix list.

  102. 102.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 5:55 pm

    @WaterGirl: And now the real Chris shows up (downstairs thread), afraid he’s been pied:

    to schrodinger’s cat: Two different commenters. Sorry, I hadn’t read the following thread yet and assumed that thanking me for a dessert cake-like substance was the euphemism of the day letting me know I’d just been pied/blocked.

    @bystander: Chilly Scenes of Winter. Zhena also recommended. Will have to see it.

  103. 103.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 5:56 pm

    @WaterGirl: Tomorrow I’m going to ask what’s up, and offer to have it taken it down, but since it’s on her property, I need permission. She loves her bamboo, but in order to reach the tree, a section of that will have to come down. If that doesn’t work, I am going to call my insurance company for advice. At least they will have that on record and then can sue their company. I’m sorta tired of playing nice with them, though.

    My insurance company will cover acts of god, but I’m not sure they will cover their negligence.

  104. 104.

    Karen

    July 22, 2017 at 5:57 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: I have used this recipe, there is one where you make with mix.
    http://allrecipes.com/recipe/60564/strawberry-cake-from-scratch/

  105. 105.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 5:58 pm

    @JPL: I went with the best tree guy in town, and they had to use a crane to take my tree out in pieces, taking it over my neighbor’s house!

    If you get a good tree guy, it might be that there is a way to take this one down without interfering with the bamboo.

    I have asshole neighbors for the first time in my life and it really sucks. It’s always best if you can get along with your neighbors, but I have learned that it takes 2 to get along.

  106. 106.

    Karen

    July 22, 2017 at 6:00 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Now I really miss my old garden, I loved it when strawberries were ready to pick: a good year would net me about 100 gallons of fresh berries.

  107. 107.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:01 pm

    @Karen: I can only have hanging baskets of strawberries because my dogs are total thieves! So they have to make do with their cherry tomatoes.

  108. 108.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    July 22, 2017 at 6:02 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Start with this Cherry Kuchen recipe. Replace the cherry pie filling with fresh fruit. We use strawberries, blueberries, and blackberries alone or in various combinations.

  109. 109.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 6:04 pm

    @JPL:
    LOTS of pictures from various angles and distances. Document the conversation. Contact your insurance agent and ask for suggestions.

    It’s literally life-threatening, not merely a threat to your house. Tree in the foreground came down with a deafening explosion of shattered wood and branches while my buddy and I were asleep in the tent. Three in the morning, dead still night, took seconds with no Hollywood dramatic creaaaakkkkk SFX beforehand. A couple feet over and I wouldn’t be writing this.

    ETA borked the link

  110. 110.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:07 pm

    @WaterGirl: The crane would have to go through their back yard, since mine has a chain link and wood fence. I do have a good tree guy though.

  111. 111.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    July 22, 2017 at 6:07 pm

    @WaterGirl: Alienist is an old term for a psychologist. The Alienist of the title is what we would now call a profiler.

  112. 112.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:08 pm

    @trollhattan: I think you are right.

    The neighbor said she doesn’t use email, and often her phone messages are full. I think I’ll start texting.

  113. 113.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 6:08 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Have begun watching El Barco on Netflix. Far-fetched premise (to say the least) but entertaining enough so far, although have a nagging feeling it will eventually go off the rails a la Lost.

    Oh, BTW, for those

    1) with a Roku
    2) fond of old movies

    you might want to add this hidden channel to your Roku line-up. Some gems, some clunkers; eclectic collection.

  114. 114.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 6:11 pm

    @JPL:
    Jeez, no email, no phone, buy a classified announcement in the local paper?

    Here’s the pic I didn’t link successfully above.

  115. 115.

    scav

    July 22, 2017 at 6:12 pm

    strawberries soaked rosé wine (or raspberries) and served chilled isn’t a bad way to go. Garnish with a little mint, maybe a little sugar if you’ve got that kind of tooth? I know I’ve done peaches in wine, but I forget which color . . . probably white? (the pear thing is red wine) . . . ok, yes, I’m clearly repetative with recipes.

  116. 116.

    Mike in NC

    July 22, 2017 at 6:12 pm

    The new show on CBS, “Salvation”, is yet another story that deals with an asteroid on collision course with Earth. After a couple of episodes we decided to pass.

  117. 117.

    raven

    July 22, 2017 at 6:13 pm

    Guns in labs in Georgia Colleges

    No shorts, no flip flops. Bring your heat.

  118. 118.

    geg6

    July 22, 2017 at 6:13 pm

    Making some bolognese for dinner. This is usually my favorite, but John specifically asked for my “good” spaghetti sauce (not that veggie only marinara for him!) for dinner. And I was quick to agree. Smelling yummy around here!

  119. 119.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:14 pm

    @trollhattan: My lot is 3/4 of an acre which is partially wooded, and years ago one of their dead trees took out part of my chain link fence, which my son and I fixed. Then I had a tree guy take care of the rest. At least it wasn’t near the house.
    Fences don’t necessarily help.

  120. 120.

    Another Scott

    July 22, 2017 at 6:14 pm

    @trollhattan: Yikes!

    It looks like your tent is sticking its tongue out at you, also too. I’d be careful about it in the future!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  121. 121.

    geg6

    July 22, 2017 at 6:15 pm

    Oh and count me in on the anti-Eeyore crew. Fuck that. I’m fighting back.

  122. 122.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 6:16 pm

    @schrodingers_cat: Whoa, that’s quite the thread. Fuck those guys, I’m with you.

  123. 123.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 6:16 pm

    Turns out I’m done with the conference earlier than I thought today, and I’m not even needed at it tomorrow, so I’m in a pretty alright mood all of a sudden.

    Two more hours.

  124. 124.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 6:18 pm

    @Another Scott:
    Heh.:-) “Lemme tell you, pal, I’m not stopping the next one,”

  125. 125.

    Ben Cisco (onboard the Defiant)

    July 22, 2017 at 6:18 pm

    @Mike in NC: Also triploons. And quadroploons. And quintuploons.

  126. 126.

    trollhattan

    July 22, 2017 at 6:21 pm

    @JPL:
    Biggest crane I’ve ever seen on a neighborhood street was in front of a house a mile or so away. They were sectioning and removing a drought-killed Ponderosa pine, easily 80′ tall, from the backyard, OVER the house and out to the street. Can’t begin to guess what that cost.

  127. 127.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 6:21 pm

    @Mike in NC

    Made me flash back to a TV series pulled before it had a chance to air.

    Guess even FOX has some standards.

  128. 128.

    Aleta

    July 22, 2017 at 6:24 pm

    @JPL: If the tree is completely dead, before offering to pay anything, I’d call the insurance co to get their advice, and then there’s a record started, so faster if claims on the neighbor’s insurance have to be made. Find out about your coverage at least.

    It seems like their insurance company might want to be notified; they may have influence since it might be their money.

    Then I’d ask for a free consult with a (calm-type) lawyer for advice, too. At the consult s/he should give you options and the cost, such as for sending one polite letter.

    Talking it over with the insur co and a lawyer can relieve some stress of worrying about how to handle it.

    If you decide to pay part, I’d make the offer through a lawyer’s letter instead of doing it yourself. The lawyer should be the calm, professional type, not confrontational or threatening. It gives a record of the agreement if it gets twisted, and a way to make sure the cost is shared and the work is done. A middle step might be having a tree surgeon give an estimate.

  129. 129.

    zhena gogolia

    July 22, 2017 at 6:29 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    Great minds think alike.

  130. 130.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:29 pm

    @Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism: Glad to know both of those things. Sounds like it could be a good one!

  131. 131.

    Steve in the ATL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:31 pm

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: wasn’t Das Boot a book before it was a miniseries or a movie? I read it in the late seventies and it was über awesome.

  132. 132.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:31 pm

    @Aleta: I’ll call my tree guy on Monday. Every one should have a tree guy. A few years ago, they had another tree that was questionable, and he offered to write a letter to them for me. They did remove that tree simply because I said watch it sway in the wind. Tomorrow I’m going to knock on their door and see what they decided. If the answer is they haven’t had time yet, I’ll also call the insurance company Monday for advice.
    It shouldn’t be this complicated though. If you have a dead tree, remove it.

  133. 133.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:32 pm

    @trollhattan: You are right. One of the limbs of my tree came straight down through the ceiling in my bedroom. I was in the living room. The limb didn’t actually touch the bed, but if I had been in bed when it happened, I’m pretty sure I would still be rocking in a corner, 4 years. later.

    We are both lucky!

  134. 134.

    Raven

    July 22, 2017 at 6:32 pm

    @Aleta: we had a huge storm over the 4th with giant oaks felled all over our neighborhood. If it didn’t hit a structure no one got shit. It’s worth checking but don’t get yer hopes up.

  135. 135.

    Elizabelle

    July 22, 2017 at 6:34 pm

    @chris:
    @geg6:

    Yay. Welcome aboard. geg, you bring the bolognese.

  136. 136.

    ??‍? Martin

    July 22, 2017 at 6:38 pm

    @JPL: Dead pine tree? Set it on fire. Then they’ll have to deal with it.

  137. 137.

    Uncle Cosmo

    July 22, 2017 at 6:39 pm

    @WaterGirl: FTR I was in a local Aldi’s a couple of Tuesdays ago & they were getting rid of the last of the strawberry shipment @ $0.50/lb. Checked carefully for mold & rot, found none, bought 2 lbs, sliced up & kept in the coldest part of the fridge for cereal toppings etc.

    There is an excellent recipe out there for a quick & easy cream cheese pie, very low-carb except for the graham cracker crust (but that can be finessed). Slice up the strawberries, layer them with sugar substitute, refrigerate overnight, & use them as topping for it. This non-low-carb version looks good too.

  138. 138.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:39 pm

    @Mike in NC: I was thinking that was on USA. Thanks for the info – I’ll pass on that one.

  139. 139.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:40 pm

    @raven: Wow, beyond stupid and wrong.

  140. 140.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:41 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Yippee!!

  141. 141.

    JPL

    July 22, 2017 at 6:41 pm

    @??‍? Martin: lol Since it’s closer to my house then their house, I’ll pass on that advice.

  142. 142.

    ??‍? Martin

    July 22, 2017 at 6:41 pm

    @Villago Delenda Est: Everyone panned 5th Element at the time as well, but it held up nicely over time. 2001 same thing.

  143. 143.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 6:42 pm

    @WaterGirl: Right?? Can’t wipe the grin off my face.

  144. 144.

    bystander

    July 22, 2017 at 6:45 pm

    @Elizabelle: If you get MGM on cable Chilly Scenes shows up there often.

  145. 145.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:45 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Merry Christmas?

    I missed the whole Merry Christmas thing here, so I have no idea why people have been saying that, so please forgive me if I am using it wrong.

  146. 146.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 6:46 pm

    @Raven

    Should you ever come across it, recently watched the WW2 film One of Our Aircraft Is Missing and thought it might be up your alley.

    Among the cast is a very, very young and svelte (!) Peter Ustinov as a Dutch priest.

  147. 147.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 6:46 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I missed the whole Merry Christmas thing here, so I have no idea why people have been saying that, so please forgive me if I am using it wrong.

    Is ‘here’, like… earth? This statement is confusing.

    I also can’t stop looking at this hilarious cat gif/rpg joke.

  148. 148.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 6:48 pm

    @chris: Thanks chris. You were a grad student in international relations, right? I remember many congenial back and forths with you over the years. The go fuck yourself Chris appeared after this Nov.

  149. 149.

    Raven

    July 22, 2017 at 6:49 pm

    @NotMax: Cool, I bought a year of Filmstuck and they have quite a few Pressburg and Powell’s.
    ‘

  150. 150.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:52 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: I should have been more specific!

    I missed the whole recent Merry Christmas thing here on BJ, so I have no idea why people have been saying that here on Balloon Juice in the middle of the summer..

    Does that help?

  151. 151.

    Uncle Cosmo

    July 22, 2017 at 6:54 pm

    Let me make a comment about the “gloom&doom” thread below.

    There is a world of difference between WWWAAAAAUGHWEREDDDDOOOMED! and sober consideration of “This is what they might try, we need to work out a counter to it.”

    IMO there is far too little thought on our side to the latter. It seems like every time they come up with a different wrinkle it catches The Good Guys absolutely flatfooted, & we’re scrambling around & we grab at anything that looks like it might work & 9 times out of 10 we don’t take time to think through counter-counter and counter-counter-counter moves & we get our arses handed to us in the court of public opinion (admittedly biased by an unfriendly media environment, but still…).

    This can’t be allowed to continue. We need to stop shitting on people who bring up unpleasant possibilities & start recruiting the sharpest minds among them to think like Rethuglicans & imagine those worst-case scenarios & devise counters for them. So we’re no longer adlibbing & getting ourselves into trouble when shooting from the hip hits our foot instead.

    Voter suppression? We know they’re setting up to do it. We should be looking at every state legislature & every body of laws & imagining every stratagem they might try & be ready to oppose them in the courts, in the media, & if nothing else fund & staff projects to get our voters compliant. Same for everything else.

    Know your enemy. If it means you have to sully your saintly soul by lowering yourself to conceive the dirty deeds they might be about, then get a little besmirched – you can scrub up later. It beats the shit out of having them sneak up behind us & bite us in the arse.

    (Edited for jumping-cursor typos.)

  152. 152.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 6:54 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: oh my god, that’s so awesome in spite of the fact that the poor kitty looks like Jabba the Hut once they put the dreaded hat on her head. I say “her head” because that kitty looks just like my kitty, Miss Willow.

    edit: I can’t stop watching.

  153. 153.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 6:55 pm

    @WaterGirl: People have been saying that here? I had no idea.

    Did you maybe install cleek’s merry christmas filter by mistake?

  154. 154.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 6:57 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    a grad student in international relations

    I wish, I’m a mostly retired jack-of-all-trades with a high school diploma living way back in the woods of Maritime Canada. But thanks and yes I have been quietly here since The Great Awakening.

  155. 155.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:01 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Here’s a link to a google search for merry christmas on BJ during the last month.

    https://www.google.com/#q=merry+christmas+site:balloon-juice.com&tbs=qdr:m

  156. 156.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    Fun fact: if you add e.g. ‘Chris’ to the pie filter, it also filters out ‘chris’.

    This has been added to the issue tracker.

  157. 157.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:02 pm

    @Yarrow:

    Have you seen “You Can Count on Me” with Mark Ruffalo? Both she and Ruffalo are great.

  158. 158.

    Baud

    July 22, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    Merry Christmas, everyone!!! ?

  159. 159.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:03 pm

    @WaterGirl: Weird! I think I remember the first time I saw that, now that I think about it.

  160. 160.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:04 pm

    @Baud: Okay Baud, spill the beans, please. Why are people saying Merry Christmas on BJ in July?

  161. 161.

    Uncle Cosmo

    July 22, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    @Booger: And the dialog would have fit on a 3×5 [email protected]Tissue Thin Pseudonym: And the dialog still would’ve fit on a 3×5 card.

    If you’re at all interested in the subject, look for the book U-Boat War by the author of Das Boot. Lothar-Günther Buchheim was an artist & photographer who was assigned to U-boats as a war correspondent. After the war he became a professional photographer in (IIRC) Munich. Decades later in his storage he ran across a pile of forgotten aluminum 35mm canisters that had exposed film in them. When he developed them he had an entire photographic documentary of the kinds of patrols he wrote about in the novel. Astounding.

  162. 162.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:07 pm

    Star Trek news from Comic-Con (including new trailer).

    Based on some of the dialogue, the ship ought to be named the USS Platitude.

  163. 163.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:08 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    President Donald Trump caused the name of a holiday to trend on social media over the weekend ― just not the one most Americans are about to celebrate.

    Speaking at an event to honor veterans and celebrate faith just days ahead of Independence Day, Trump brought up Christmas.

    “I remind you that we’re going to start staying ‘Merry Christmas’ again,” the president said at the “Celebrate Freedom” event at the Kennedy Center on Saturday night.

    Trump was speaking about the role of faith in American politics, including the First Amendment’s guarantee of religious freedom, when he fired off what might be the earliest-ever salvo in the so-called “war on Christmas.”

    While many of his followers were filled with the holiday spirit ― in July ― others were mystified by the random shoutout to a holiday still nearly six months off, causing #MerryChristmas to rise like Santa’s sleigh through Twitter’s list of trending topics.

    from HuffPo
    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/donald-trump-merry-christmas-july_us_59599f37e4b02734df332775

  164. 164.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:10 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    A local bakery with the unfortunate name of “Golden Delight Bakery” makes a fresh strawberry cake. White cake with a nice crumb, fresh strawberries and whipped cream between layers, and a whipped cream frosting. Best part is that you don’t feel full after eating it.

  165. 165.

    Mnemosyne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:10 pm

    @NotMax:

    I remember singing that with a group of other kids on a ferry that was crossing a really big river. It kind of freaked me out, because it was bad luck to sing a comic song about a shipwreck while on a boat.

    Not sure which river, but it was somewhere in west central Illinois, so if it wasn’t the Mississippi, it was probably a tributary.

  166. 166.

    Baud

    July 22, 2017 at 7:10 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Danke, SD. And Happy Holidays.

  167. 167.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:11 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Trump gave us permission.

  168. 168.

    Another Scott

    July 22, 2017 at 7:11 pm

    @WaterGirl: Trump brings up the War on Christmas in July.

    HTH.

    Curses! Foiled yet again by SD!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  169. 169.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:13 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Oh, for fuck’s sake.

    Thanks, I guess.

  170. 170.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:14 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne

    Shall stick with the Preston Sturges film, thankyewveddymuch. ;)

    However, Christmas in July has an operatic pedigree, of all things.

  171. 171.

    Aleta

    July 22, 2017 at 7:16 pm

    @WaterGirl: It’s always about the money though.

  172. 172.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Good thing I like pie although I’m too lazy to make it.

  173. 173.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @Baud:

    And Happy Holidays.

    Is it Groundhog Day again?

    And Happy Holidays.

    Is it Groundhog Day again?

  174. 174.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:20 pm

    @Elizabelle:

    He was Arthur Dimmsdale in PBS’s The Red Letter. Also in Cutter’s Way. I liked his earlier work a lot.

  175. 175.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:21 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Thank you! What an idiot that man is.

  176. 176.

    Jeanne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:21 pm

    @chris: Where specifically are you? I’m guessing Nova Scotia, but PEI would be amusing. My mom was born and raised in Newfoundland (yes, not the Maritimes, but still) and I’m genetically predisposed to love all things Canadian, especially the far flung parts.

  177. 177.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:22 pm

    @chris: Wait, which one are you?

  178. 178.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:23 pm

    @debbie: The family bakery my niece married into in Denver makes a cake just like that. They had that as one of their wedding cakes. I would kill for that cake. I hate frosting, but I love whipped cream. No one makes that around here. :-(

  179. 179.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: He’s the cake recipe chris, not the Fuck You Chris. Does that help?

  180. 180.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 7:26 pm

    @Jeanne: Southwestern Nova Scotia. Home for a quarter of my life now.

  181. 181.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    @Jeanne:

    Newfoundland (yes, not the Maritimes, but still)

    It’s interesting how graceful and mostly-under-the-radar was the shift from “the Maritimes” (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island) to “the Atlantic Provinces” (NB, NS and PEI plus Newfoundland & Labrador). I don’t recall any big deal being made of the change in designation; it just kind of slid into awareness and daily use.

  182. 182.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Kind of reminiscent (if one squints) knock-off icebox cake version.

  183. 183.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 7:27 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Strawberry crumble/Linux Mint/Chrome

  184. 184.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:28 pm

    @WaterGirl: not much of a mnemonic but I’ll take it.

    @chris: the last two aren’t that helpful since I don’t know Chris’s computer details

  185. 185.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:29 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    He’s the cake recipe chris, not the Fuck You Chris.

    So crc, not FYC.

  186. 186.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:31 pm

    @chris

    Ooh, the deluxe box of Crayolas!

    :)

  187. 187.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:34 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    The first time someone brought it into work, I was very leery, but now I push people out of the way to get at it! A friend had it as a wedding cake and they piped the icing to look like a woven basked (very tough when using whipped cream). Almost too pretty to eat.

  188. 188.

    WTF

    July 22, 2017 at 7:34 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo:

    Predictions with regard to how this will all unfold are tempting but rarely have they conformed with the outcomes we have witnessed. Trump is such a wild card that it really isn’t possible to predict what he will do to screw himself, except to continue to ignore the advice of those around him whose job is to protect him from himself. I think it is safe to say we have reached the point where the deck chairs on the Titanic are being re-arranged. This does have the effect of keeping us “flat-footed” in our responses.

  189. 189.

    Jeanne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:36 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Canadians are the masters of “no big deal”. A graceful society if there ever was one.

  190. 190.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 7:36 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Yup, we blame those damned Upper Canadians.

  191. 191.

    Lapassionara

    July 22, 2017 at 7:38 pm

    @Uncle Cosmo: Thank you. Take to the streets is not a plan. We need a plan for the various contingencies. That is not being defeatist. But we need more than slogans.

  192. 192.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:43 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: @Major Major Major Major: There you go!

  193. 193.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:44 pm

    @Jeanne:

    Canadians are the masters of “no big deal”. A graceful society if there ever was one.

    “Peace, order, and good government.” It’s in the Constitution!

  194. 194.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:45 pm

    @debbie: Why were you leery? Because of the awful bakery name?

  195. 195.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 7:45 pm

    @WaterGirl: Thank you for that.

    Back to cake. Years ago I made a butter pecan cake for a friend’s birthday. Recipe from the internet was simple: 1 box butter pecan cake mix, 1 tub butter pecan ice cream, combine and bake. I made a real butter pecan icing for it and it was wonderful if I do say so myself. Wonder if the same thing would work if you mashed the strawberries. Just a thought.

  196. 196.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 22, 2017 at 7:46 pm

    @Lapassionara: How is saying that

    T is going to fire Mueller
    KK is going to disenfranchise all Ds
    Rs are going to win in perpetuity

    Offering a plan?

  197. 197.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:46 pm

    @WTF: the problem with thinking you can plan against their moves is, at this point they’re operating entirely off of Cleek’s Law, and whatever we do, no matter what it is, will get used against us, and become part of “their moves.”

    Better to have some proactive things to do like building the party locally and fighting suppression, and keep our noses down and work towards goals there. Always room for reactive folks and people to fight rearguard actions, of course, but predictions of the enemy’s tactics aren’t especially helpful for a lot of what we want to do.

    See also that Ulysses S. Grant quote…

  198. 198.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:49 pm

    @chris: Real butter pecan icing? Is that like what goes on german chocolate cake, if you make it from scratch? Yum. That disgusting pecan icing in the can is, well, disgusting.

    Did you thaw the ice cream before you mixed it with the cake mix?

  199. 199.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:50 pm

    @chris

    Strawberries have a lot of water; heating them along with some sugar and lemon juice to make a thicker puree might work though.

  200. 200.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:51 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: So, the opposite of Trump!

  201. 201.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 7:51 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Yes, exactly.

  202. 202.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:54 pm

    @debbie: What were they thinking? If they had a catering business for weddings and such, they would no doubt call it Golden Showers!

  203. 203.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 7:56 pm

    @WaterGirl: I’m not seeing what’s so bad about the name Golden Delight.

  204. 204.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:56 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Still cursing you for that kitty link, I can’t stop watching.

  205. 205.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 7:57 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: @debbie: I think I’ll outsource that question to debbie. :-(

  206. 206.

    Just One More Canuck

    July 22, 2017 at 7:58 pm

    @chris: When I read ‘back woods of Maritime Canada’, I think northern New Brunswick. A couple of years ago, we drove from PEI to Toronto via Bathurst and then across the top of the province. We saw nobody, and I mean nobody, else on the road for very long stretches of time

  207. 207.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 7:58 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    So, the opposite of Trump!

    Actually, yes, as it turns out, although it was common in my day to contrast it with “Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” But looking through your lens, I would hate, absolutely hate, to equate the greedy, selfish, hedonistic Trump with that ringing Jeffersonian prose.

    ETA: I don’t necessarily see an inconsistency between the two phrases.

  208. 208.

    NotMax

    July 22, 2017 at 7:58 pm

    @WaterGirl

    Some botanist had a perverse sense of humor.

    ;)

  209. 209.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:00 pm

    @WaterGirl: A long time ago but it was something like this although the amount of sugar gives me the horrors now.
    I left the ice cream out overnight and made the cake in the morning.

  210. 210.

    smintheus

    July 22, 2017 at 8:00 pm

    Increasingly amazed at the obtuseness and timidity of various articles, such as this one, debating in all seriousness whether the president has the power to pardon himself for a crime. How hard can it be to figure this out?

    Consider the common Republican argument that such and such has to be rejected because the Constitution is not a suicide pact. Now consider that a president might hire someone to commit a crime (say, murder) and then pardon both the perpetrator and himself for the crime. How many Americans would we have to allow him to murder before we could agree that the president does not have the power to pardon himself?

    chiz

  211. 211.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:03 pm

    @chris: Sometimes it’s best to eat it without knowing the recipe.

    One year for my birthday my friend baked me some kind of cookie bar thing and it was so good that I asked for the recipe. She wouldn’t give it to me – she said I really didn’t want to know!

  212. 212.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:03 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: Just foolin’ around

  213. 213.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:05 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: So do you kind of feel like you’re Canadian, or at least part Canadian, even though you grew up in Oak Park?

  214. 214.

    Major Major Major Major

    July 22, 2017 at 8:06 pm

    @smintheus:

    Consider the common Republican argument that such and such has to be rejected because the Constitution is not a suicide pact.

    Wait, I thought the republicans thought the opposite.

  215. 215.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:08 pm

    @WaterGirl #213:

    So do you kind of feel like you’re Canadian, or at least part Canadian, even though you grew up in Oak Park?

    I feel very Canadian. Spent most of Grade 6 in Regina, have relatives who have lived in SK or ON steadily since 1954, visited countless times (especially during the nine years I lived in Michigan, when it was the easiest thing in the world to pop over for a meal or a weekend), and was employed by the Government of Canada for a quarter of a century.

  216. 216.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Sometimes it’s best to eat it without knowing the recipe.

    That’s my philosophy.

  217. 217.

    TriassicSands

    July 22, 2017 at 8:09 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Canadians. What is surprising about Canadians, to me anyway, is how much they are like Americans in some ways and how different they are in others. I moved not too long ago, same area, but at my old house I could see Canada from my front yard (for 20 years). I’ve spent a lot of time in Canada and made a number of Canadian friends.

    Fortunately for Canadians, almost all of their differences with Americans are positives for the Canadians. (I say “almost all” because there must be some things that aren’t better…) Proof they aren’t perfect — they elect conservatives. Of course, Canadian conservatives are not always trying to dismantle the safety net and attack poor people. Most of them, anyway.

  218. 218.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:11 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: I knew you worked for them, but I had no idea you had all those other connections. Can I ask why you spent 6th grade in Regina?

  219. 219.

    Another Scott

    July 22, 2017 at 8:12 pm

    @Major Major Major Major: The phrase seems to have an interesting history (from 2003).

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  220. 220.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:14 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Can I ask why you spent 6th grade in Regina?

    Yes, of course.

  221. 221.

    Another Scott

    July 22, 2017 at 8:15 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Oooh. Well played. >;-p

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  222. 222.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:17 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: walking off in a huff. (not really)

  223. 223.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 8:17 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    It sounds like one of those cheap Cantonese Chinese takeouts in New York City, the kind that are always shoving their menus under your front door, where the names of the dishes sound like bad Chinese translations.

  224. 224.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:19 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Can I ask why you spent 6th grade in Regina?

    Sorry, just being a smartass. In 1953 my aunt remarried, and her new husband was a Canadian and a church musician. He got a job as organist/choir director at a prominent church in Regina, and he, my aunt, and my cousin Dave (three years my junior, who had been brought up with us, so basically like another sibling) moved north. Dave didn’t know how to be an only child suddenly, and was causing some low-level mayhem in the stodgy apartment building where they lived — so the family decided one of us should go up to keep him company and help in the transition, and I got picked. Of course I had no idea of the ulterior motive, I just thought it was very cool to live in Canada for a while.

  225. 225.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:21 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Interesting! There are some things kids just don’t need to know about.

  226. 226.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:23 pm

    @Just One More Canuck: I live on a provincial highway, it’s exciting to hear more than one car at a time. After 10PM it’s more, “Hmm, I wonder who that is?”

  227. 227.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    @NotMax: Well, I”ll be dipped. Cake mix and strawberries. Daddy, was there life before the internet?

  228. 228.

    ProudGradofCatLadyAcademy

    July 22, 2017 at 8:26 pm

    Hello!
    Hot in the North, humid, sticky and rolling thunderstorms. I decided to stay in and just do fun things today. One thing I love is to experiment in the kitchen. I bought a two quart instant pot type thing, and really like it, but I don’t know beyond pressure cooking dry beans and tough cuts of meat, what fun things I can do with it. I also had one quarter wedge of watermelon I ate for dinner,(yes just the watermelon, #joysofsinglehood) leaving me with a rind. Decided to riff on a recipe I saw in passing here
    The riff came about because I had no lemons, only limes and am finding Asian cusine to be inspiring:

    Here’s my take:

    Asian Inspired Instant Pot Watermelon Rind Pickles:

    1 quarter wedge of watermelon.(probably about a big enough chunk for 1.5 cups of watermelon cubed)
    1 lime, sliced thin and if seeds( mine never have seeds) deseeded
    3-4 tsp of sugar
    1 tsp of salt
    2 tsp of low sodium soy sauce
    2 tsp of Chili Garlic Sauce(Huy Fong Foods Is my brand)

    remove the red flesh of the watermelon and save for another use(dinner) . remove as much as the red flesh as you can from the rind, some pink flesh is okay. Peel the dark green skin from the rind with a paring knife or vegetable peeler. I actually found it easier to cut the wedge into large chunks, and peel with the paring knife. Once peeled, cut into cubes and put in your electric instant pot type pressure cooker. Sprinkle salt, sugar, soy sauce and chili garlic sauce over the cubes, and stir to coat. Layer sliced limes on top. Set pressure to 10(10 minutes). Once timer beeps, manually vent the pressure. Spoon rinds only in a clean half-pint mason type jar, and pour the brine over the mixture. Chill in fridge.

    I don’t like spicy as rule, having acquired the Minnesota Spice Scoville Taste Bud index (Dijon mustard can be too hot sometimes). But these, I keep sneaking in for a taste, which is going to ruin my plans to use them later in the week as a garnish for my noodle bowls.

  229. 229.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    July 22, 2017 at 8:27 pm

    @smintheus:

    How many Americans would we have to allow him to murder before we could agree that the president does not have the power to pardon himself?

    It would most likely take only one before he found out the hard way that homicide is generally a state crime, and thus not something the president can pardon.

  230. 230.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:29 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    What is surprising about Canadians, to me anyway, is how much they are like Americans in some ways and how different they are in others.

    In a nutshell, you’ve just described the daily challenge of my 25 years with the Canadian Consulate General (EDIT: and anybody’s, of course; I was the smallest of insignificant fish).

    It’s a delicate balance between stressing the similarities and over-emphasizing the differences. Looking for and identifying common interests, while making certain our interlocutors understood that Canada is a sovereign country and not the 51st state — well, it was and remains a bit of a tightrope. I’m going to be watching the upcoming NAFTA renegotiations with great interest, having been there the first time around.

  231. 231.

    Steeplejack

    July 22, 2017 at 8:33 pm

    @Major Major Major Major:

    The issue is really that FYWP, at least as implemented here, is case-sensitive on nyms. So chris, Chris, CHris and CHRIS could all be different people.

  232. 232.

    TriassicSands

    July 22, 2017 at 8:36 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    In 1979, I was on my way to Alaska via the Canadian Rockies in both BC and Alberta. Given how often I’ve been back to those two provinces, we should have spent less time in them and more in Alaska, to which I’ve never returned.

    Anyway, the Canadians kept (playfully) giving us a hard time about our gas rationing — at the time Alberta was having an energy boom — and how could a civilized country have gasoline rationing? Fortunately, I had a much more powerful weapon in my arsenal — the breweries in Canada were on strike. What kind of civilized country would have a beer shortage? They conceded defeat.

  233. 233.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:41 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Exactly! Neither Dave nor I had a clue until we were both in, I suppose, our 40s. At that point it was just funny — and Dave’s childish crimes seemed barely mischievous. But it turned out to be a great thing for me and arguably could have made the difference between my getting the job with the Consulate or not.

  234. 234.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:42 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    LOL!! Not sure I ever heard of that (the beer strike, I mean; I remember the gas rationing all too well).

  235. 235.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:44 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Your 40s! Wow. I wonder why no one told you guys sooner than that. Inquiring minds want to know.

  236. 236.

    Steve in the ATL

    July 22, 2017 at 8:46 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I feel very Canadian. Spent most of Grade 6 in Regina, have relatives who have lived in SK or ON steadily since 1954, visited countless times (especially during the nine years I lived in Michigan, when it was the easiest thing in the world to pop over for a meal or a weekend), and was employed by the Government of Canada for a quarter of a century.

    Not one mention of hockey or Tim Horton’s. You hate Canada.

  237. 237.

    dww44

    July 22, 2017 at 8:46 pm

    @WaterGirl: Count me in your corner. On Slate yesterday evening some commenters were weighing in that demonstrations did nothing, i.e. like the women’s march. Said that if T fires M, then demonstrations don’t accomplish anything. I disabree they actually energize those who participate. I’m old enough to remember the sit-ins and marches of the 60’s. Change didn’t happen overnight, but without them, there would be no voting rights act.

    I’ll be joining the resisters out in the streets pronto if and when T fires D. or pardons members of his family. We cannot be supine in the face of the authoritarian moves of this President.

  238. 238.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:47 pm

    @Steeplejack:

    The issue is really that FYWP, at least as implemented here, is case-sensitive on nyms. So chris, Chris, CHris and CHRIS could all be different people.

    Is that true, though? I had occasion to pie someone a week or so ago. I don’t remember the commenter’s nym, but for the sake of argument let’s say it was Steeplejack (it wasn’t, I promise). Anyhow, I typed the nym into the box as steeplejack (uncapitalized) and the pie filter worked just fine. So I’m inclined to think it is NOT case-sensitive.

  239. 239.

    debbie

    July 22, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    @dww44:

    ome commenters were weighing in that demonstrations did nothing, i.e. like the women’s march

    They drive Trump nuts. That’s very rewarding.

  240. 240.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:48 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: There were several of them across the country in the 70s. Hard times.

  241. 241.

    TriassicSands

    July 22, 2017 at 8:50 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    What made it worse for the Canadians is that they were always going on (and on…and on…and on…) about how Canadian beer was superior to American “swill.” This was before the countless microbreweries and many high quality American beers. But with the strike on, everyone was limited to something like one six-pack of Canadian swill. The supposed high quality brands were all gone.

    The strike may not have been national. It may have been limited to BC or BC and Alberta. My most vivid memories of exchanges with Canadians took place in BC.
    Since we were on our way to Alaska, we never ventured east of Calgary.

  242. 242.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 8:50 pm

    @Steve in the ATL: Excuse me, sir, but I’m Canadian and I don’t like either one.

  243. 243.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:52 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: @Steeplejack: You are actually both right. If FYWP wasn’t case sensitive for nyms, then once Chris or chris or CHRIS was taken, no one else could create a nym with those 5 letters in that order.

    It appears the pie filter is not case sensitive because it sees those 5 letters in that order and matches it to any nym that has those 5 characters in that order.

  244. 244.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:52 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    I wonder why no one told you guys sooner than that. Inquiring minds want to know.

    I just think it never came up before that. Nothing nefarious, I’m sure.

    Well, I’m pretty sure.

    Uh, reasonably certain.

  245. 245.

    Mnemosyne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:55 pm

    @dww44:

    I would say that demonstrations and marches are part of the toolbox, but aren’t effective alone.

  246. 246.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:55 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    It appears the pie filter is not case sensitive because it sees those 5 letters in that order and matches it to any nym that has those 5 characters in that order.

    So if somebody had the nym of, say, Socialist, and I wanted to pie that person, I could type Cialis and that would do the trick?

  247. 247.

    frosty fred

    July 22, 2017 at 8:56 pm

    @scav: Strawberries with balsamic vinegar, simple and excellent.

  248. 248.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:57 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: For the record, I am looking at you askance.

  249. 249.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:57 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: I am about to pie “Duinne” as a test.

  250. 250.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:57 pm

    @Steve in the ATL:

    Whenever I drive up to see my cousins in Owen Sound, I always stop at a Timmy’s in Guelph for a maple glazed donut. It’s tradition.

  251. 251.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 8:58 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    LOL

  252. 252.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 8:59 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Can you post something that has nothing to do with food? The first comment I saw was about donuts, is that close enough to pie to be part of the pie filter?

  253. 253.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 9:02 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    But with the strike on, everyone was limited to something like one six-pack of Canadian swill. The supposed high quality brands were all gone.

    You know, now that you mention it, I do vaguely remember that. I’m not a beer drinker myself — Steve in the ATL would say I am No True Canadian — but I do recall some chatter about the beer being like cat piss.

  254. 254.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 9:05 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    We the People of the United States in order to form a more perfect union, establish justice, ensure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and provide the blessings of liberty for ourselves and our posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution of the United States of America.

    The quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog.

    Able was I ere I saw Elba.

    That do?

  255. 255.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 9:07 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: Yes. Adding Duinne to the pie filter does not pie filter you.

    edit: and filtering by comment number does not help with the chris Chris issue.

  256. 256.

    TriassicSands

    July 22, 2017 at 9:09 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    I’m shocked! I used the more polite “swill” to avoid the more common (from Canadians) “piss.” The “cat” was optional.

    Sadly, while not being entirely correct about the quality of Canadian beer, they were correct about American beer. Back then, I was living in Colorado, home of the fascist Coors family and Coors Lite was everywhere. I couldn’t imagine how or why anyone could drink it. Chilled to 5 degrees above absolute zero maybe it was refreshing. Maybe. But at those temperatures the “piss” flavor is hidden by the oral frostbite.

    At that point, I’d lived in Europe, so I wasn’t a believer in the quality of Canadian beer.

  257. 257.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 9:11 pm

    @scav: @frosty fred: Strawberries with sour cream and brown sugar.

  258. 258.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 22, 2017 at 9:28 pm

    @TriassicSands:

    Sadly, while not being entirely correct about the quality of Canadian beer, they were correct about American beer. Back then, I was living in Colorado, home of the fascist Coors family and Coors Lite was everywhere. I couldn’t imagine how or why anyone could drink it. Chilled to 5 degrees above absolute zero maybe it was refreshing. Maybe. But at those temperatures the “piss” flavor is hidden by the oral frostbite.

    I remember accompanying my husband on a business trip to Colorado one winter in the late 60s/early 70s. We drove from Denver to Boulder with a couple of Ken’s colleagues, snow as far as the eye could see in every direction, and one guy said conversationally “Oh, look. Millions and millions of unborn cans.”

    Maybe you had to be there, but you’ve never heard four people laugh so hard in ever.

  259. 259.

    MoxieM

    July 22, 2017 at 9:36 pm

    @chris: My paternal grandmother was from St.John (New Brunswick, I know). Most of her 8 brothers and sisters ended up either in Halifax or all the way down in the Boston area. She married a Yankee. When I was a kid we visited all the aunties, from Fredericton to Moncton, to EecumSeecum and back. Then I sent my kid to Gaelic College for a bit, up in Cape Breton. It’s just a gorgeous, lovely part of the world.

  260. 260.

    Bess

    July 22, 2017 at 9:41 pm

    @WaterGirl:

    Years back I needed to remove a very large (~80 foot tall) Sugar Pine that had died.

    The first company that bid the job wanted significant thousands of dollar. They were going to have to pay the utility company to take down electric lines, hire police to block off the road, remove neighbors’ fences and shrubbery. All sorts of complicated stuff.

    The next company that came to bid wanted small hundreds. The guy put on his climbing gear (spurs, safety belt, etc.) and climbed up the trunk cutting off branches as he went. He cut the branches a few inches from the trunk which left him a ‘ladder’ and no more need for the spurs.

    When he got to the top he hollered down to ask me how big my fireplace was and proceeded to cut off rounds of that length. Each round fell onto the bed of cut branches as he cut and climbed down the length of the tree.

    Get multiple bids.

    But before you do that contact your insurance agent and ask their advice. I suspect they will take a look and probably give your neighbor’s insurance company a call. Often policies can require people to take reasonable action to lower risk.

  261. 261.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 10:00 pm

    @JPL: @Bess: Interesting story! I am including JPL in this reply since she is the one with the neighbor & tree problem. My tree problem was 4 years ago.

    Your guy was probably an old-timer who learned before they had all the fancy equipment? Or was surely trained by one.

  262. 262.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 10:15 pm

    @WaterGirl: My parents have more than 30 trees on an ordinary city lot. They have an arborist with a degree in forestry and rock climbing skills. He trims their trees every so often – sort of like pruning roses and the like.

  263. 263.

    Chris

    July 22, 2017 at 10:29 pm

    @schrodingers_cat:

    Again, incorrect. I’ve been posting here since the fall of 2010. Sadly, I haven’t been a graduate student of international relations in a year and a half.

    By all means block me if you can figure out how to do the capital letter thing, but the “new Chris who appeared after November” is something you dreamed up.

  264. 264.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 10:31 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: 30 trees on their lot. wow, amazing. kitty in lap, no caps.

  265. 265.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 10:33 pm

    @WaterGirl: There is a lot of shade. OTOH, the lawn doesn’t do particularly well.

  266. 266.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 10:34 pm

    @Chris: You don’t have to be a dick.

    There’s you, Chris, and another chris, with no capital C.

  267. 267.

    WaterGirl

    July 22, 2017 at 10:35 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus: Nothing but shade, it sounds like. It must be a lovely old neighborhood? Maybe lots of groud cover that likes shade?

    I missed my shade terribly when the tree fell, but now I have my porch, so that’s good. I do like all the bright colors I get with my flowers now that they are in brutal sun, but damn, shade is awesome.

  268. 268.

    Chris

    July 22, 2017 at 10:47 pm

    @WaterGirl: @WaterGirl:

    No, I don’t, but with a person who randomly and baselessly accused me of being a new troll a few months back as part of the general “doomsayers are just trying to spread despair among us” shtick, and shows no sign of giving up that shtick even when it’s rarely targeted at me specifically, I don’t feel any particular obligation to be civil, either.

    I’m aware that there are two people with a capital letter difference, but I’m fairly certain neither started after last November. I definitely remember not being the only Chris on the blog well before that.

  269. 269.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 10:54 pm

    @WaterGirl: Not a particularly old neighborhood. The people who built the house were just very particular and wanted their trees to stay. It is an interesting neighborhood. The street my parents live on starts on flat land about four blocks from the Wisconsin River and then goes up a hill. The flat land stuff is 1960s. The top of the hill has a couple of actual mansions (the East Bay shoe people) and just below a bunch of McMansions (Congressasshole Sean Duffy lives three blocks up and one over). My parents’ house is halfway up the hill. Their neighbors are an elementary school principal and the County DA (a Dem).

  270. 270.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 11:18 pm

    @Chris: Look, you have always been a reasonable commenter. So has s-c. You have seemed to be on a rather pessimistic track lately. She is rather adamantly against that. You should note that she decided to become a US citizen after the election. We talk about doing something rather than just talk. Her ass walked the walk. She’s demanding that we back her up. I don’t think that she is wrong.

  271. 271.

    chris

    July 22, 2017 at 11:19 pm

    @MoxieM:

    It’s just a gorgeous, lovely part of the world.

    And people ask why I live here.

  272. 272.

    Chris

    July 22, 2017 at 11:29 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    As I’ve pointed out before, in the Trump era, there will be more pessimism than before, that’s the nature of the beast. It doesn’t mean people are giving up.

    But chiding people for excessive pessimism isn’t what I have a problem with. Paranoid delusion about longstanding commenters having ulterior motives because they’re not reacting to the Trump era in the approved way is.

  273. 273.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 22, 2017 at 11:37 pm

    @Chris: She was wrong in including you in the trolls. She wasn’t wrong in that there are trolls coming here to depress us. If you guys can’t work it out – although given your backgrounds – I think you could, that is cool. I just thought I might try to resolve what seems to be a misunderstanding between two reasonable people. I do this sometimes.

    ETA: Your ‘nym is common enough that she may have confused you with someone else. I try to assume the best interpretation of comments from regulars who seem decent. Sometimes, I am cranky and I fail. But I try.

  274. 274.

    MoxieM

    July 22, 2017 at 11:43 pm

    @chris: Milk in bags, perhaps? ;)

  275. 275.

    Chris

    July 23, 2017 at 12:03 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:

    A few like who, though? There are occasional trolls that are clearly here for ulterior motives, like the old Brinks Trucks dude – who are easily spotted and lampooned. But in the threads I’ve seen slammed for Eyeoreism, that’s pretty consistently not been what’s going on.

    Thanks for the good words in any case, however.

  276. 276.

    Omnes Omnibus

    July 23, 2017 at 12:17 am

    @Chris: Dude, I am trying to resolve a fight between two commenters who I respect. I don’t like disagreements between people i like. Work with me please,

  277. 277.

    WTF

    July 23, 2017 at 7:24 am

    let’s try this again

  278. 278.

    schrodingers_cat

    July 23, 2017 at 11:53 am

    @Omnes Omnibus: Thanks
    @Chris: I did not realize that there were two chrises until after the November elections. Your tenor after T’s election has changed considerably. Hijacking an existing nym is typical troll modus operandi, hence my confusion. Thanks for clearing it up. I have learnt a lot from your comments over the years. I most certainly don’t think you are troll and I have never pied you in the past or right now. I don’t pie comments in general.
    I do think that excessive pessimism is counter productive. If you don’t agree, that’s fine..
    As for the last thread, you were not even in the thread nor did I address any comment you had made directly and you came out of nowhere and told me to go fuck myself. So I was taken aback at that overt hostility.
    Any way that’s my side of it all.

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