Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Putting aside our relentless self-interest because the moral imperative is crystal clear.

Second rate reporter says what?

Not all heroes wear capes.

Within six months Twitter will be fully self-driving.

It’s time for the GOP to dust off that post-2012 autopsy, completely ignore it, and light the party on fire again.

Whoever he was, that guy was nuts.

You cannot shame the shameless.

đŸŽ¶ Those boots were made for mockin’ đŸŽ”

When someone says they “love freedom”, rest assured they don’t mean yours.

They are lying in pursuit of an agenda.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

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

Motto for the House: Flip 5 and lose none.

This blog will pay for itself.

I’m pretty sure there’s only one Jack Smith.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

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

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

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

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

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

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

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

You are here: Home / Pet Blogging / Dog Blogging / I Feel Ya, Dawg

I Feel Ya, Dawg

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Lily sums up the mood at the Cole household:

I found her like that when I went to take a nap a little bit ago. I am the most unfair dog parent, btw. I saw her like that and as I was climbing into bed I said “Hi Lily, do you mind if I join you sweetheart” and gently climbed into bed, at which point I noticed Thurston was under the covers too and I blurted out “Move over jackass” and pushed him with my leg.

Reader Interactions

93Comments

  1. 1.

    JPL

    Thurston might think his name is jackass, so for him it might be a term of endearment.
    You, the master, kinda acted like a jackass though.

  3. 3.

    SiubhanDuinne

    as I was climbing into bed I said “Hi Lily, do you mind if I join you sweetheart” and gently climbed into bed, at which point I noticed Thurston was under the covers too and I blurted out “Move over jackass” and pushed him with my leg.

    WEEPING with laughter here! Was there ever a more John Cole-ish sentence??

    But BTW, you never mention Rosie any more. Is she okay? I have a soft spot for her because of the way she insistently insinuated herself into your life all those years ago.

  7. 7.

    Mnemosyne

    @Major Major Major Major:

    Not true, but it probably doesn’t extend to stuff like that.

    I’m sitting on a lovely patio that overlooks Lake Arrowhead and getting ready to get back to work on my novel in blissful solitude. Writer’s retreats are highly recommended.

  15. 15.

    HeleninEire

    So what you’re saying is Lily is your favorite. Yeah we figured that out when on one of your first sojourns to ABC’s she asked “Are you happy to be here?” And your answer was “I miss Lily”

    Yeah men are dumb.

  16. 16.

    Schlemazel

    @Major Major Major Major:
    I was playing fetch with BILs dogs & alternating between them. One tried to take the ball away on the others turn so I took it & threw it for the first dog a second time. The second dog looked me right in the eye & pissed on the floor and walked away. She knew exactly what she was doing

  17. 17.

    Ridnik Chrome

    Amir Khalid, if you’re still around and still looking for an answer re major and minor blues scales, the major blues scale is basically the pentatonic major plus a flatted third, and the minor blues scale is the pentatonic minor plus a flatted fifth.

  19. 19.

    JPL

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    But BTW, you never mention Rosie any more. Is she okay? I have a soft spot for her because of the way she insistently insinuated herself into your life all those years ago.

    Maybe we will receive a response. Because of her aches and pains, I assume that Rosie’s days of jumping on the bed are over.

  24. 24.

    Alain the site fixer

    @Iowa Old Lady: Pretty sure’s it’s a Mark Twain quote: even a dumb dog knows the difference between being stepped on and being kicked. I’ve always thought that related a concept of fairness.

  26. 26.

    trollhattan

    Unrelated items that made me smile today.

    Robert Mueller is ‘going for the kill’ on Trump-Russia probe

    Republicans with close links to the White House increasingly believe that special counsel Robert Mueller is “going for the kill” in his investigation into links between President Donald Trump and Russia. Members of the GOP are said to have come to that stark conclusion based on Mueller’s hiring of lawyers experienced in dealing with money laundering crimes and the Mafia, as well as the intensity of his pursuit of both witnesses and evidence.

    Trump has previously warned that investigation of his financial dealings is a red line that Mueller should not cross. But that is thought to be exactly what Mueller is doing, including looking into a proposal made during the 2016 campaign to build a Trump Tower in Moscow.

    The new report comes just days after Trump’s former chief strategist, Steve Bannon, told CBS’s 60 Minutes that Trump’s firing of former FBI Director James Comey, which he called the worst mistake in “modern political history,” led directly to the appointment of Mueller to oversee the investigation.

    Mueller’s probe appears to have stepped up in recent weeks. It was reported last month that he had impaneled a federal grand jury in Washington and has issued subpoenas related to a meeting Donald Trump Jr. held with a Russian-government-linked lawyer in June 2016. Trump’s son-in-law and senior adviser, Jared Kushner, as well as his then-campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, were also at the meeting. Last week, Trump Jr. was interviewed behind closed doors by the Senate Judiciary Committee.

    Soak in it, here

    And, Viking Sword!

    On Friday, we received the incredible news that a sword had been found at high altitude in our county. The discovery was made during reindeer hunting. The pictures accompanying the news were just stunning. One of them showed a hunter holding an extremely well preserved Viking sword.

    Our minds were racing, but the immediate thought was that we had to inspect the find spot as quickly as possible. The question was whether this was an isolated find, or if there could be more artefacts here. After consulting with the Museum of Cultural History and the National Park authorities, two members of the Secrets of the Ice team visited the find spot yesterday, together with two of the reindeer hunters (including the finder Einar Åmbakk), a local metal detectorist and a local archaeologist. The group set out from a summer farm and reached the finds area after three hours of brisk walking up the mountain in strong wind.

    The reindeer hunters had not taken a GPS position for the find, but we were able to access the exact coordinates through the geographical data stored in the photos. This was very important, as experience shows that it could otherwise have been difficult to relocate the exact find spot in a terrain with few landmarks. Using a GPS, the find spot was quickly re-discovered.

    .

  30. 30.

    Mnemosyne

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    It’s freakin’ gorgeous. I’m probably going to be sending Alain some photos after I leave.

    It’s a TON of walking, though, and extremely hilly, what with being in the mountains and all. Turns out that opiejeannie’s cabin is nearby.

  31. 31.

    TenguPhule

    @trollhattan:

    I’d flip that to dogs have a sense of unfairness, as in “Wait, he gets
.and I don’t?!?” followed by some expensive clothing item later being stolen and perhaps destroyed.

    Odd, mine just hump on my leg or stick their head under my hand until I make it up to them.

  32. 32.

    CaseyL

    @rikyrah:

    Before his election in 2013? No.

    Before this year’s election? Yes – which is why he dropped his bid for re-election.

    A lot of people stuck with Murray after the initial charges, because no one could or wanted to believe them (also, he’s been a decent-ish mayor).

    But calls for him to resign began after, I think, the 3rd alleged victim stepped forward.

    And now? Now no one is defending him, SFAICT. They all want him gone, like, yesterday.

  34. 34.

    Major Major Major Major

    @trollhattan: A very good point, this is also a good description of how humans operate. I wonder if dogs have as finely honed an IGMFY instinct as we do (e.g. the studies showing we prefer a game where I get one and you get zero as opposed to a game where we both get two).

    @TenguPhule: Swords rarely contain people, TP.

  38. 38.

    Ruviana

    @Major Major Major Major: There’s some evidence that this is cultural. When these games are run in other societies people may prefer that everyone get a share as opposed to zero-sum games. Cites available upon request, preferably after my terrible headache goes away.

  40. 40.

    TenguPhule

    @Major Major Major Major:

    I wonder if dogs have as finely honed an IGMFY instinct as we do

    Only the ones who fight other dogs. Most of them will learn to otherwise wait until the other is finished before going for the unattended food/treat/toy.

    Cats, now cats are IGMFY incarnate.

  41. 41.

    WaterGirl

    @Major Major Major Major: I can’t speak for Baud, but I will elaborate based on life at my house.

    I throw a SunGold cherry tomato to Tucker.
    Tucker: Yum.
    Henry: Hey, Tucker just got a cherry tomato, where is mine? That’s not fair. Where is it? Where is it? Where is it?

    Kitties run in from the back of the house. Indignant. Meow, meow, meow. I sensed something food-related.
    Both kitties in unison: Hey, the dogs just got a treat where’s mine? Meow, meow, where is mine???

    Repeat for kettle corn from the farmer’s market, cheese, whipping cream, etc.

    I assumed life was like this for pet owners everywhere. Is it not?

  43. 43.

    TenguPhule

    @WaterGirl:

    I assumed life was like this for pet owners everywhere. Is it not?

    Its not.

    I have a fruit/treat snob dog and a don’t care what it is as long as it tastes good dog.

  44. 44.

    Mnemosyne

    @Shana:

    I did a couple of reviews, but threads have been going thick and fast here.

    Short version: Amazeballs!

    Longer version: I loved it, though I had a bit of a let-down feeling afterwards that I eventually realized was because I would never get to see it for the first time again. ?

    I’m blanking on our Hamilton’s name (Michael something), but he’s the guy who once played both Hamilton and Burr on the same day since he was the understudy for one and the alternate for the other. (He played Hamilton at the matinee and Burr at the evening show. On Broadway!) Joshua Henry was our Burr and he was terrific, too, even if he is a secret Canadian.

    Oh, and our Angelica was a woman who was in the chorus/was a swing for the original cast. That was actually great because you could tell that she had been observing Renee Elise Goldsberry and had thought about what she would do differently.

    Plus the director, choreographer, and musical director are traveling to all of the touring company cities for rehearsals in each location so it’s as close to their (and LMM’s) vision as possible.

  45. 45.

    The Moar You Know

    It’s fine, dogs probably have no conception of fairness.

    @Major Major Major Major: Completely not the case. They have a VERY highly developed sense of fairness, and if you’re treating your dogs differently they absolutely will notice.

    In my own personal dog news, last night marks the first night since our pup left his mama’s side that he has not slept in a crate – he slept in our bed instead. We’ve been working on this for months. It’s awesome.

  47. 47.

    TenguPhule

    Speaking of Dogs….

    The Justice Department should consider prosecuting former FBI director James B. Comey for actions that “were improper and likely could have been illegal,” White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said Tuesday.

    “I think if there’s ever a moment where we feel someone’s broken the law, particularly if they’re the head of the FBI, I think that’s something that certainly should be looked at,” Sanders said.

    She said that recommending such a prosecution is “not the president’s role,” and that the White House is not encouraging it.

    “That’s the job of the Department of Justice, and something they should certainly look at,” Sanders said.

    Asked to clarify, Sanders said this:

    “Anybody that breaks the law, whatever that process is that needs to be followed, should certainly be looked at,” Sanders said. “If they determine that that’s the course of action to take, then they should certainly do that, but I’m not here to ever direct DOJ in — in the actions that they should take.”

    Nonetheless, Sanders ticked through a list of actions or alleged actions by Comey that she said justified his firing by Trump, in May, and some of which, she said, may be illegal.

    Right then, who called a double down on the next day?

  49. 49.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Jeffro: I can’t keep straight all the sleazy sleazeballs in the Trump inner circle, but I believe it was a guy named Felix Slater who told his family that he and Trump would both be in jail soon, and implied that within the next 30 days, a very big shoe would drop. And that hint was in August.

    IIRC that big shoe involved testimony that Slater had given or was scheduled to give.

  50. 50.

    Alain the site fixer

    @Ruviana: I think that’s the case for a huge amount of knowledge created in the First/Western world. I remember learning in a class on the brain back in the late ’80s that psychoactive drug effects were somewhat cultural. For example, Greek agricultural workers were studied who smoked pot all day while working, and for them it helped stave off hunger, it didn’t give them the munchies or slow them down. For me, it was a big deal wrapping my head around the idea that so much of what we think is “normal” or “correct” or “how reality is”, is dictated by culture and language.

  51. 51.

    Mnemosyne

    @?BillinGlendaleCA:

    Turns out I like the mountains. Who knew?

    I had to come down from my perch near the top of the hill, though. The wind was up and the canopy over my head was creaking so much it was making me nervous.

  53. 53.

    Major Major Major Major

    @TenguPhule:

    Cats, now cats are IGMFY incarnate.

    Well that’s just not true, dude.

    @WaterGirl:

    I assumed life was like this for pet owners everywhere. Is it not?

    I have twice had more than one pet mammal at a time. For the pair of dogs, only the smart one cared when the dumb one was getting stuff he wasn’t. The dumb one was just really sweet and happy you were there. The smart one was a total asshole.

    The other time was a pair of ferrets, who didn’t give a shit.

    @Ruviana: I’d love to see those sites, should you get around to it :)

  58. 58.

    eclare

    @JPL: That is when you do what I did as a sap, and buy a pet-step so the dogs can safely get up and down from the bed.

  60. 60.

    Jeffro

    By the way I was just reading a short piece by Catherine Rampell ( about the hell incomes have gone nowhere since the 1970’s for middle-class men when adjusted for inflation) and then also another piece in the Washington Post noting how the GOP is gearing up for tax cuts ( but will likely not do any “reform” and just go for a budget busting straight out tax cuts instead)

    We already pay some of the lower income tax rates in the developed world. The sooner that the middle class wakes up and realizes that it is not the level of taxation that’s the problem, but that all of the gains keep going to the very top , the better .

    I’m not gonna hold my breath

  62. 62.

    JPL

    @eclare: My mutt will get on the kitchen table, but for some reason will not jump on the bed. He was able to curl up in my bathroom sink. I now shut the door when I’m gone, because I’m afraid he’ll hurt himself.

  66. 66.

    eclare

    @JPL: That is a thinker….I really got the step because my bed is high up, and I have hardwood floors, and the repetitive jumping off of the bed puts pressure on her hips. Of course I could just forbid her to get on the bed….nah.

    ETA> how big is your bathroom sink/dog?

  67. 67.

    Ruviana

    @Alain the site fixer: Yep, and a similar effect for Andean people chewing coca leaves. It cuts hunger and allows work to continue. This is the traditional leaves that people chew, not cocaine. Culture has a profound and pervasive effect that we mostly don’t think about.

    M4, when I track down studies I’ll post them.

  69. 69.

    Major Major Major Major

    @Ruviana:

    Yep, and a similar effect for Andean people chewing coca leaves. It cuts hunger and allows work to continue. This is the traditional leaves that people chew, not cocaine.

    Although in that case it’s not at all paradoxical with how non-Andean people experience the drug.

  70. 70.

    JPL

    @eclare: He’s only 18 pounds, and walks across the back of the sofa to a chair, and then crosses over the table to another chair. Yes he’s a dog. I adopted him when he was five, and his past is sketchy, but my guess there were cats involved.
    Oh he can walk on his front and back legs. Back legs when he smells bacon, and front to go potty.

  71. 71.

    rikyrah

    Russia Sought A Broad Reset With Trump, Secret Document Shows
    A Russian proposal obtained by BuzzFeed News reveals Moscow’s ambitious plan to break with the past and launch a major rapprochement with the United States.
    September 12, 2017, at 12:14 p.m.

    WASHINGTON – In the third month of Donald Trump’s presidency, Vladimir Putin dispatched one of his diplomats to the State Department to deliver a bold proposition: The full normalization of relations between the United States and Russia across all major branches of government.

    The proposal, spelled out in a detailed document obtained by BuzzFeed News, called for the wholesale restoration of diplomatic, military and intelligence channels severed between the two countries after Russia’s military interventions in Ukraine and Syria.

    The broad scope of the Kremlin’s reset plan came with an ambitious launch date: immediately.

    By April, a top Russian cyber official, Andrey Krutskikh, would meet with his American counterpart for consultations on “information security,” the document proposed. By May, the two countries would hold “special consultations” on the war in Afghanistan, the Iran nuclear deal, the “situation in Ukraine,” and efforts to denuclearize the “Korean Peninsula.” And by the time Putin and Trump held their first meeting, the heads of the CIA, FBI, National Security Council and Pentagon would meet face-to-face with their Russian counterparts to discuss areas of mutual interest. A raft of other military and diplomatic channels opened during the Obama administration’s first-term “reset” would also be restored.
    […]
    Besides offering a snapshot of where the Kremlin wanted to move the bilateral relationship, the proposal reveals one of Moscow’s unspoken assumptions – that Trump wouldn’t share the lingering US anger over Moscow’s alleged interference in the 2016 election and might accept a lightning fast rapprochement.

    “It just ignores everything that caused the relationship to deteriorate and pretends that the election interference and the Ukraine crisis never happened,” said Angela Stent, a former national intelligence officer on Russia during the George W. Bush administration who also reviewed the document.

  72. 72.

    Miss Bianca

    oh, JC,…you sound just like me talking to my dogs! Substitute “Luna” for “Lily” and “Stella” for “Thurston” and “Derp-hound” for “jackass” and we’ve pretty much got the dynamic nailed!

  74. 74.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    Bleh. I’m feeling worn out and tired. Part of it is watching Dirk’s mental and physical conditions decline, but I’m also just depressed. I have been for a long time. I’m not getting anything done.

    I have no idea what to do about it. I had a therapist I like a lot, but she no longer takes any insurance and I can’t afford $150 an hour out of pocket. The idea of going through the process of finding one I like just makes me want to sit back and do nothing.

  76. 76.

    Alain the site fixer

    @Ruviana: Oh, and hope the headache goes away? What kind is it? I suffer from barometric pressure-triggered migraines, but that’s not all that sets them off. I’m learning more about that trigger, though.

  77. 77.

    lgerard

    @rikyrah:

    We would bet any sum you cared to choose that the author of that letter was Hans von Spakovsky himself.

    He is #5 on my list of people I want to punch in the face

  79. 79.

    Mnemosyne

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym:

    Do you have a general practitioner who will prescribe a round of anti-depressants that you know work for you? Medication + therapy is best, but even just medication alone may give you that boost of motivation to find a new therapist.

    Your previous therapist may be able to recommend someone who takes your insurance — they’re usually pretty knowledgeable about who takes insurance and who doesn’t.

    ETA: Also, your oddball schedule is probably messing with your moods. The sooner you can get back to a normal schedule, the better. Sleep deprivation is a common and well-known depression trigger.

  80. 80.

    Tissue Thin Pseudonym

    @Mnemosyne: I’ve never tried an anti-depressant that had a noticeable effect on me. I probably am going to try asking my old therapist. Of course, my insurance will almost certainly be changing at the end of the year, for the fourth time in 24 months. That makes finding someone a real fucking pain.

    ETA: The schedule probably doesn’t help, but I’ve been depressed for a lot longer than that. And I have multiple sleep disorders anyway, so the schedule probably doesn’t hurt me as much as it would others, because I’m not much more tired than I am under the best of circumstances.

  81. 81.

    Mnemosyne

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym:

    I am not a therapist or doctor, so discuss it with an actual professional, but there are several different classes of anti-depressants and I’m not sure which classes you’ve tried. The SSRIs are the most common, but (for example) people with ADHD do better on Wellbutrin, which affects dopamine instead of serotonin. Make sure that your doctor tried a different class of antidepressant and not just different ones in the same class.

    But I do think the sleep deprivation and the constantly shifting schedule aren’t helping things on top of everything else.

  82. 82.

    debbie

    I’m curious about the dinner Trump is hosting for some Dems he’s hoping to win over on tax cuts. Will there be cake? Will he share?

  85. 85.

    Ohio Mom

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: Do you still have that crazy work schedule? Being physically stressed and exhausted doesn’t do anyone’s mood any good.

    Also, could you afford $150 every two or three weeks, instead of every week? Just trying to do some problem solving here. It *is* a lot of work finding a new therapist and breaking them in.

    I’m pulling for you!

    ETA: I see the crazy schedule has already been addressed

  86. 86.

    Mnemosyne

    @Major Major Major Major:

    I know that JMN has other neuropsychiatric issues, so I did do my warning that he should talk to a professional, preferably one that specializes in his issues. Complex comorbid conditions are complex.

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym:

    I know I’m obsessing about the sleep portion of it, but apparently there is some (inconclusive) evidence that a light box (like the ones people use for Seasonal Affective Disorder) can be helpful for shift workers. Again, consult a professional, etc.

  89. 89.

    Mnemosyne

    Also, before I get back to writing (I still have 2 more hours before dinner), I’m going to pull one of my older hobbyhorses out of the closet that I haven’t ridden in a while. This isn’t exactly directed at JMN, but it’s kind of related:

    I feel like people who are artists get sold this bill of goods that says that you have to be miserable to be a real artist. You have to constantly struggle with mental illness with no treatment, and if you do get treatment, that proof that you aren’t a real artist.

    Obviously, I think this is stinky bullshit straight from the bowels of Satan himself. Most artists who are depressed can’t create their art. The examples that people point to as “depressed people who were great artists” are almost invariably people who seem to have been bipolar and were able to create during manic phases.

    If you’re depressed, you can’t create. The energy just isn’t there. If you’re in a depressive phase, getting down on yourself for being unable to be creative is counterproductive.

    Go get someone to help you deal with the depression and your creative urge will come back. Honest. Depression doesn’t create, it only paralyzes.

    The End. Now I need to go find a spot to write.

  91. 91.

    No One You Know

    @Mnemosyne: Good to know. I’m having issues myself…daytime exhaustion, insomnia, just soul-weary misery from never-ending job search. Wish I could retire. A day spent painting is better than any thing except affectionate pets on the bed!

  93. 93.

    Madeleine

    @Tissue Thin Pseudonym: Can you submit the bills from your therapist to your health insurance to receive at least partial reimbursement? A therapist I used to see was willing to do that. She included the diagnostic code on the bill, showed that it had been paid, and provided it in duplicate.

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