Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

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

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

Trump should be leading, not lying.

If you cannot answer whether trump lost the 2020 election, you are unfit for office.

Human rights are not a matter of opinion!

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

Give the craziest people you know everything they want and hope they don’t ask for more? Great plan.

There are no moderate republicans – only extremists and cowards.

The snowflake in chief appeared visibly frustrated when questioned by a reporter about egg prices.

This is dead girl, live boy, a goat, two wetsuits and a dildo territory.  oh, and pink furry handcuffs.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

You come for women, you’re gonna get your ass kicked.

Giving in to doom is how authoritarians win.

Never entrust democracy to any process that requires republicans to act in good faith.

Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America’s future.

75% of people clapping liked the show!

Jesus watching the most hateful people claiming to be his followers

Republicans do not trust women.

Welcome to day five of every-bit-as-bad-as-you-thought-it-would-be.

It is not hopeless, and we are not helpless.

Well, whatever it is, it’s better than being a Republican.

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

Today in our ongoing national embarrassment…

You are here: Home / Politics / Domestic Politics / His & Hers (Open Thread)

His & Hers (Open Thread)

by | 151 Comments

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I’m back home for the time being, and it’s a gorgeous day, so the mister and I cruised around the countryside this morning:

My gran is hanging in there so far, the tough old bird! I tried to feed her breakfast the other day, and she brushed my offer of assistance aside, grabbed the plate and wolfed down a pile of eggs and grits.

Tonight is Drunken Aunties Cookie Night. It may or may not be live blogged. What are y’all up to today?

Open thread!

Reader Interactions

151Comments

  1. 1.

    trollhattan

    Good to hear your grams is hanging in. Clear and cold here–that ‘vert top is staying where it is–definitely not motorcycle weather.

  2. 2.

    Juju

    Probably decorating the tree, or at least get the lights on the tree. I was also thinking about making anisette toast. I’m smelling cigarettes that don’t exist, so I may not get to any of that because migraine. I hope I get the tree done by the 20th.

    It good to hear your grandmother is improving.

  3. 3.

    raven

    The wife’s brother and sister are coming from Virginia to help her celebrate her 60th. The will get here in a couple of hours and leave early in the morning. Of course this cause a major cleaning fit and now she’s at the hairdresser. Then we have to go up there xmas eve day and drive back the 26th, hang for a day and go to LA for the Rose Bowl. Oh yea, the stackable washer dryer broke and they are delivering a new one in the next two hours!

  4. 4.

    Yarrow

    Wow, so glad you’re grandma is doing well enough to eat that much! That’s a very good sign. Your weather looks lovely.

    I’m trying to make myself do laundry and go to the gym. So far failing at both.

  7. 7.

    JPL

    The recent snowfall caused several limbs to fall, and most I can ignore until after X-mas. There were two limbs that were causing damage to other landscaping that I removed this morning. Fortunately, the son came over and neighbors came out to help.

  8. 8.

    Brendancalling

    At the vet with my cat, who apparently has worms. Then unplugging except for Spotify and Netflix. Maybe going for a run.

    The past couple of days of news have really really depressed me. I feel really bad for our country.

  11. 11.

    hedgehog the occasional commenter

    Good morning Betty and Juicers. Glad to hear your gran is doing better.
    On the schedule today: I am taking mr. hedgehog to Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Arvada Center today; he’s wanted to see it for years.

  12. 12.

    Corner Stone

    @Brendancalling:

    The past couple of days of news have really really depressed me. I feel really bad for our country.

    I haven’t noticed anything extra evil or depressing the last couple days. What’s got your goat? The potential passage of the tax bill coming up?

  13. 13.

    laura

    Eggs and grits sure sounds good!
    Tonight is Festivus, so spouse will be unscrewing the hooks from the aluminum coat stand and I’ll be making sausage rolls.
    Otherwise, simmering rage about the tax fuckery and pending Mueller unterbusening will continue unabated.

  14. 14.

    Tazj

    I’m very envious of people enjoying the beautiful Florida weather. I’m going to work for a few hours, and then probably shoveling as it’s snowing here again. I have to shovel in front of my front door or I feel claustrophobic. My husband doesn’t care as long as the driveway is done. Maybe I’ll do some cooking baking tonight if I have the energy because I have shopping to do. I’ve never finished my shopping early.
    I’m too wimpy to ride a motorcycle, enjoy the road. I’m glad your Grandma has a healthy appetite.

  15. 15.

    Corner Stone

    I have a general feeling of just not feeling all that well. Nothing specific I can put my finger on but just a *bleh*.
    Also having random craving for an orange soda like Fanta.

    ETA, Holy shit! It just hit me. I have been asking to have all Sally Yates’ babies. Maybe I’m pregnant?

  16. 16.

    donnah

    So glad to hear your gram’s doing better!

    I’m getting my classic Pontiac back from the shop and will be heading to my cousin’s house for our Christmas party. Good food, lotsa fun. My two pumpkin pies baked beautifully without cracking, so I’m good to go.

  18. 18.

    efgoldman

    After 40+ years of marriage, mrs efg and I are long past the impossible to buy for stage.So I asked her straight out what she wanted, keeping in mind that I always want to get something she’d never buy for herself.
    So she’s getting a gift certificate for monthly housecleanig .

  19. 19.

    Corner Stone

    Tony Schwartz (ghostwriter Art of the Deal) on AMJoy is laying out some seriously spooky downside for our democracy, thanks to Trump.

  20. 20.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    G.O.Populism! from Rep Tom Cole

    As a member of the Appropriations Committee, he specializes in allocating funds for government programs, not raising those funds through tax policy. “I can’t tell you I’m a deep economic thinker,” he says.[…]
    “If someone wants to get serious about debt, come talk to me about entitlements,” he explains, pointing toward the Social Security and Medicare behemoths. “Tax cuts produce growth, entitlement spending doesn’t.”
    […]One is record-setting stock prices. “I’m in the stock market,” he explains, “and I’ve sitting here watching the collective judgment of the business community.”
    The other is colleagues on the tax-writing committee. Republicans there “tend to have more the mindset of Wall Street and the financial community,” he observes, and “they’ve done their homework.”

  21. 21.

    Alain the site fixer

    @Corner Stone: I add some liquid caffeine (powder dissolved in water) to my Fanta because orange soda needs a caffeine kick in my book. Fanta is delicious, even more so Alain-style.

  23. 23.

    trollhattan

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):
    How is that even remotely constitutional? I realize I’m asking re. the state who have given Steve King a permanent pass to D.C., but still….

    ETA, you do have very fun-loving sanitation services.

    “he was hit in the head by a garbage container launched from a city truck.”

  24. 24.

    efgoldman

    @Corner Stone:

    What’s got your goat? The potential passage of the tax bill coming up?

    The bastards are sunsetting the cuts eight years out . They can count , and they know it’s hugely unpopular and they expect a negative (for them ) outcome for st least a couple of cycles. after which they can blame the Dems.

  25. 25.

    NotMax

    @Alain the site fixer

    Nehi or nuthin’.

    ;)

    In actuality, have steered well clear of orange soda since kiddie days, after a tour of a facility where they made the stuff.

    It starts out a rather bilious green and all sorts of stuff is added to make it end up orange.

  27. 27.

    Mnemosyne

    Woke up feeling nauseous. Not sure if it’s a migraine, or not enough sleep, or too many NSAIDs, or a combination of all three. I just hope it’s not the nasty stomach flu that’s been going around our office.

  29. 29.

    Cacti

    Strange things are afoot with the new Star Wars movie.

    While critics are waving their pom poms for the latest Mouse House edition, it’s getting a decidedly tepid reception from the fans.

    93% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, but only 57% of fans liked it.

    86 average score from critics on Metacritic, but a 5.0 of 10 average from fans.

  32. 32.

    NotMax

    @efgoldman

    From the screenplay of The Man Who Came to Dinner:

    Freight office clerk: Mighty nifty-looking package. I had quite a struggle with myself…
    …before I decided not to open it.
    [snip]
    Know what I’m giving my wife? A pipe.

    Bert Jefferson: A pipe? That doesn’t sound very sensible.

    Freight office clerk: Just as sensible as the vacuum cleaner she’s giving me.

    :)

  33. 33.

    WaterGirl

    @donnah: I keep trying to catch you on threads so I can ask for a photo of your most recent art project. Any chance we can get a photo?

  34. 34.

    danielx

    Congratulating myself for getting the tree unobtrusively braced enough to withstand kitten assaults. Courtesy of two 40 lb bags of cat litter….

    Also pondering the appropriate punishment for someone who would do something like this:

    Dog found with metal trap clamped on its testicles

    If they ever catch the perpetrator, they could hang him or her in front of the nearest courthouse and nobody would raise a peep.

  38. 38.

    bemused

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    If Cole actually cared about how GOP economic policies affect most Americans, he would have gone deep on thinking long ago. I hate these people.

    Ha, just realized what I wrote. There is no deep thinking in Republicans. It’s all “feelings” with these jerks, that only they are the deserving.

  41. 41.

    d58826

    OT but this belongs in a rabbit hole somewhere – the Pentagon has announced that they have been looking for flying saucers from 2007-2012. At the request of Harry Reid. This is separate from the old project bluebook. They were asked to investigate unexplained aerial sightings by military pilots. This was a more restrictive search than the old project bluebook that logged every unexplained light (in most cases Venus) in the sky

  43. 43.

    Miss Bianca

    Moving slowly today, crock-potting a beef stew, and trying to psych myself up for driving 60 miles to Salida to help a friend move.

  44. 44.

    NotMax

    From last month, for the ‘Every job takes its toll’ file.

    The head of a Japanese rent-a-friend company reveals what it’s like to lead a double life

    · Started in 2009, Japanese company Family Romance hires actors to pose as people’s fake spouses, family members, coworkers, and more.
    · The company was founded by Ishii Yuichi, who has since hired 800 employees.
    · After eight years of leading thousands of pretend lives, Yuichi said he doesn’t date and has no interest in starting a family.
    Source

  45. 45.

    donnah

    @WaterGirl:

    Oh, thank you, WG! I am not sure how to post a link to an imgur file. I’ve been working on my Christopher Robin piece and would love to share it!

  46. 46.

    trollhattan

    @Miss Bianca:
    Is the friend leaving Salida? In that case at least a happy outcome. Since the name basically is “Exit, California” I’m surprised Texas hasn’t copyrighted it.

  49. 49.

    NotMax

    @Miss Bianca

    While it is practically inviting derision to rain down upon this gray head by revealing it, only this week re-discovered a long forgotten about crock pot recipe for liver which am anxious to try.

  50. 50.

    WaterGirl

    @donnah: last time I looked, imgur was still free. go to imgur.com – you can upload the images and it will give you a url, which you can then post here.

    edit: if you need more specific instructions, let me know and i can walk you through it.

  51. 51.

    Gravie

    Singing holiday songs with a local group for an assisted living center, then trying to get the lights up on our Christmas tree. We put the tree up yesterday but it kept falling over (and it’s 8 feet tall) so we had to tie it to a nearby doorframe before even considering decorations.

  52. 52.

    RobertDSC-iPhone 6

    @efgoldman:

    The Dems have an easy retort: it’s an Orange Atrocity policy, therefore it is automatically wrong. After 8 years, the 45 brand won’t be worth the rubles it’s printed on.

    No 45 policy should be continued once the next Dem President takes office.

  53. 53.

    burnspbesq

    Having lunch with a former BigLaw colleague who is in from Amsterdam. Expecting plenty of good-natured woofing about how fucked up the Tax bill is.

  54. 54.

    burnspbesq

    @Cacti:

    Apparently the new Star Wars movie has characters and a plot, which fans were not expecting and find disconcerting.

  55. 55.

    donnah

    @WaterGirl:

    I’m using the Imgur app, which has a different set up than I’m used to from Photobucket. This app doesn’t have a list of links, just the photos in folders. I just don’t know how to link to it. The albums are under donnahook.

    Sorry to be so dense!

  57. 57.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    I’ve never seen a Star War without Alec Guiness in it, and going back and watching the Jar Jar/Natalie Portman ones to be able to see the new ones feels like homework. Do the more recent ones, with Mark Hamill and Carrie Fisher back, stand alone?

  58. 58.

    zhena gogolia

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Apparently this one does. But I was bored out of my mind by the first three original movies, so the infinitesimal degree of my interest cannot be overstated. I just don’t get it.

  59. 59.

    Doug R

    @NotMax:

    In actuality, have steered well clear of orange soda since kiddie days, after a tour of a facility where they made the stuff.

    It starts out a rather bilious green and all sorts of stuff is added to make it end up orange.

    Explains Mountain Dew. They leaned into the billous green, added caffeine.

  60. 60.

    Comrade Colette Collaboratrice

    Making latkes, somewhat resentfully, for a party:
    – hosted by someone else
    – that was not originally announced as a potluck
    – for which I never explicitly volunteered, and
    – that has doubled in size since I first was arm-twisted into saying I’d make them.

    Scratch that first dependent clause. VERY resentfully.

  63. 63.

    Corner Stone

    @zhena gogolia:

    But I was bored out of my mind by the first three original movies

    One of the best scams ever pulled on the public was when they digitally remastered the original trilogy and got people to pay again to see them in the theater.

  64. 64.

    realbtl

    Good news about gram Betty. I’m trying not to be jealous of your mc trip. Mine has been in hibernation with less than 500 mi on it since my Sept hip replacement. Maybe by the end of March the snow will melt enough for me to get out. Happy riding.

  65. 65.

    RobertDSC-Mac Mini

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    You can see the new film and its predecessor without having to go back to the prequels. The prequels deal more with the finding, teaching, and eventual fall of Anakin Skywalker who became Darth Vader. The prequels aren’t mentioned in the new film or its predecessor very much, not that I can remember.

    I saw the new film last night. Still trying to process how I feel about it.

  67. 67.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    This would be comical if they weren’t going to get away with it

    Catherine Rampell‏Verified account @ crampell
    New provision inserted into final tax bill would offer a special tax cut to LLCs with few employees and large amounts of depreciable property assets, namely buildings: rent generating apartment and office buildings. I wonder whom that might help.

    the obvious answer is trump, also people named Kushner, and also very principled and concerned Deficit Hawk Bob Corker!

    Sen. Bob Corker, who was considered a potential “no” vote on the bill, abruptly switched his position upon the release of the final legislation. Federal records reviewed by IBT show that Corker has millions of dollars of ownership stakes in real-estate related LLCs that could also benefit.

  70. 70.

    Doug R

    @danielx:

    Congratulating myself for getting the tree unobtrusively braced enough to withstand kitten assaults. Courtesy of two 40 lb bags of cat litter….

    I can see what’s going to happen-don’t say we didn’t warn you-better keep that litter box spanking clean, is all.

  71. 71.

    germy

    Is George Lucas still a movie director?

    He starts his career as a production assistant (like most directors) learning his trade, then he directs THX 1138, then he makes a big splash with American Graffiti, then Star Wars. Star Wars becomes a franchise. He comes back to direct the prequels. He spends a lot of time tinkering digitally with the original releases.

    Based on American Graffiti and Star Wars, he could have had a long career directing a wide variety of film genres, like Spielberg. But he seems more like a Walt Disney, who launches a franchise and then watches while other talented people run with it.

    What happened?

  72. 72.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    IBT previously reported that 13 GOP lawmakers directly sculpting the bill —including U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan — have between $36 million and $163 million worth of ownership stakes in real estate-related LLCs. Those entities generated between $2.6 million and $16 million in “pass through” income and could benefit from the new provision.

  74. 74.

    Doug R

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Phantom Menace has about 30 minutes of decent action, mostly the speeder race, a “homage” to Ben-Hur. Attack of the Clones has about an hour of decent action, including a scene with Natalie Portman getting her tunic ripped strategically to reveal her six pack abs.
    Revenge of the Sith is the picture George Lucas actually wanted to make, and it shows. The “romance” is groan worthy at times, but overall worth it.
    My favorite since Return of the Jedi? Rogue One, the story of how the rebels got those plans. Fits neatly between Revenge of the Sith and the original Star Wars, almost an episode 3.5
    The force awakens was fun to watch, but it felt like a fan fiction remake of the original Star Wars.
    Still brewing on my reaction to the Last Jedi. Drags a bit, but overall worth the watch, I’d figure.

  76. 76.

    feebog

    We are back from our vacation in Mexico. Worst trip ever. New construction going on right outside our door. We knew about the construction, but did not know it would consist of jackhammmers breaking up concrete. Next, I had a severe gout attack. Try getting around when you have a torn meniscus in your left knee and a swollen right foot. Then we learned one of our dogs died. So, we packed up and came home. Still not over the gout, but it is improving.

  82. 82.

    cope

    Just waved farewell to our daughter, the grandkids and my sister-in-law after a very successful meal of meatballs, angel hair pasta, salad and garlic bread. That took pretty much all my steam for the day. Now I’m trying to rally to plant a mango seed the mrs. asked me to stick in a pot but I’m not too sure that’s going to happen.

  84. 84.

    jeffreyw

    I put a pork loin in the crockpot with onions and milk and it’s starting to come together. Added some fresh sage and a sprig of rosemary, couple of bay leaves. Wondering about sides, thinking corn or green beans and wild rice.

    Speaking of rice, I boiled a tray of bone-in chicken thighs, took the thighs out to cool and added in 6 cups of long grain rice – it’s all going to be bagged up for supplementing the dry food for the pupsters. They’re good dogs, Betty.

  85. 85.

    germy

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Rosebud was a hooker in Reno

    Rosebud was Hearst’s pet name for a certain anatomical part of Marion Davies, or so the story goes.

    He was pissed as hell when that word found its way into Citizen Kane.

  86. 86.

    Brendancalling

    @Corner Stone: that is, in fact, upsetting me. So is the CDC guideline story. But mostly, it’s the constant stress of watching the things that make America great get torn down while Republicans chuckle.

    These people should be gibbeted. It is dismaying and exhausting to instead watch them wreck things with impunity. I feel angry all the time. My only escape is Spotify and Netflix these days.

  87. 87.

    ARoomWithAMoose

    @germy: From what I gather, Lucas was the first Hollywood director to _REALLY_ get cross licensing for merchandising (Hamill introduced him to the whole comic/sci fi fandom and that apparently got him to notice). He was just too involved (and making WAY too much money) working the licensing angle for years (as well as running the ILM business and Lucas Films) to go back to directing.

  89. 89.

    Mike J

    @RobertDSC-iPhone 6:

    No 45 policy should be continued once the next Dem President takes office.

    Candidates always talk about the first day in office and what they’ll do. Sometimes they get around to doing those things. I’d like to see the Democratic president have a stack of executive orders typed up and ready to sign delay the parade to the White House by signing a ream of them.

    She can ice down her hand on the way, and when she gets to the White House, send a full slate of nominees to congress.

  90. 90.

    Mike J

    @Cacti:

    93% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, but only 57% of fans liked it.

    Many of the people leaving bad reviews for it on RT have never reviewed another movie. They showed up or were invented solely to leave a bad review of one movie.

  97. 97.

    eclare

    @zhena gogolia: I don’t get it either. Saw the first one when it came out, thought, meh, never saw another. Don’t get the love. Maybe I was too young, I was 7.

  99. 99.

    Gelfling 545

    Baking some cookies (not drunkenly because I have to fo out & get dog food later) listing to the Metropolitan Opera broadcast of Norma. Finished the pfeffernusse and the Russian Tea Cakes are coolin a bit befor the powdered sugar gets siften on them. I made cut outs earlyin the week but they aren’t frosted yet. Making shortbread demi-lunes and possibly trying a recipe for chocolate Mexican Wedding Cakes I came across next.

  102. 102.

    jeffreyw

    @donnah: I loaded the Imgur app and figured out how to link to a photo from the phone. Sign in, and from the home screen look on the bottom for a row of icons, click on the person icon to go to your acct, then click the share icon, a sideways “Y” looking thing, and swipe till you see copy to clipboard. Touch that then touch inside a comment box and “paste” should come up, touch that and you are golden.

  103. 103.

    Mnemosyne

    @Bostondreams:

    There are quite a few pop culture classic films that have draggy middles and blockbuster endings. The original Ghostbusters is one of them — I’m always freshly surprised by the dead spots in it.

    But it has a great ending, and that’s all that people remember.

  104. 104.

    germy

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist:

    Legend has it that Herman Mankiewicz used “Rosebud” as an inside joke, because as a friend of Marion Davies, he knew “rosebud” was William Randolph Hearst’s pet name for the most intimate part of her anatomy. This possibility was given some credence in an essay written for the New York Review of Books by Gore Vidal

  107. 107.

    HeleninEire

    Finished my Christmas shopping. Went to the busiest shopping streets, Henry St on the North side, and Grafton St. on the South side, cuz I am dumb. CRAZY. They are both outside malls with the streets closed to traffic, but it was nuts. Of course it was.

    Anyway I’m exhausted but done. Finished my shopping that had to be shipped to America on the 6th. An Post told me that they can’t guarantee Christmas delivery after the 8th. Everyone in America has their gifts. Took the regular 4-6 days.

    Glad I’m done.

  108. 108.

    Brachiator

    @germy:

    I haven’t seen the new Star Wars film, but apparently it features some entertaining supporting characters

    THIS MAY BE A SPOILER TO SOME. Promise it is very minor.

    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    .
    Some of these creatures are more annoying than entertaining. And for me none as lovable as BB8 in this film or The Force Awakens, or Groot in Guardians of the Galaxy.

  109. 109.

    Corner Stone

    @Kirk: I am waiting for all the episodes to come out so I can get the Enhanced Director’s Cut Blu-Ray set and binge watch them all in one sitting.

  110. 110.

    Fair Economist

    @Cacti:

    While critics are waving their pom poms for the latest Mouse House edition, it’s getting a decidedly tepid reception from the fans.

    93% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, but only 57% of fans liked it.

    Trolls. The really negative reviews are coming from new accounts that have never had any kind of activity. Established accounts are reacting like the critics – most favorable, some wildly so, some tepid likes, and an occasional “yuck”. I suspect it’s gamergate types pissed that there are characters other than white males.

  111. 111.

    WaterGirl

    @donnah: Not dense – everything is set up differently from everything else!

    Sounds like you have an imgur login, yes? Do you have access to a computer?

  112. 112.

    Mnemosyne

    @Brachiator:

    POTENTIAL SPOILER FOR THE OVERSENSITIVE

    I liked the new creatures because they weren’t sentient characters like BB-8 or Groot. They were just animals doing animal things. I liked having more nature show up.

  113. 113.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @cope:

    a very successful meal of meatballs,

    Which I read as “mothballs.”

    (Note to self: make appointment with eye doctor.)

  116. 116.

    Mnemosyne

    @Fair Economist:

    I think the Gamergaters hate it for more than that. I will restrain myself until more people have a chance to see it, but see my above comment about upending the mythology that fans have built around the series.

  118. 118.

    Brachiator

    @Mnemosyne:

    But it has a great ending, and that’s all that people remember.

    I think that Ghostbusters is all around a great shaggy dog of a movie.

    One of the things I like about it is that with a few tonal shifts, and different leads, you could have done it as a straight up horror movie.

  120. 120.

    PaulWartenberg

    Shopping at Countryside Mall and waiting to see The Last Jedi tonight with my friends.

    Waiting for the world to end beforehand because I know trump and the Republicans are evil bastards.

  121. 121.

    Brachiator

    @burnspbesq:

    Apparently the new Star Wars movie has characters and a plot, which fans were not expecting and find disconcerting.

    Trying to avoid anything like a spoiler.

    The movie has too much plot and maybe too many characters. The script is full of great ideas, but should have been worked on a bit more.

    The sad thing is that some of these films are almost guaranteed to make money, but locked in dates prevent the absolute best work from being done.

    I think the director of The Snowman, which absolutely bombed, was flat out not given enough time to finish the film. He said that the equivalent of 30 minutes or so was just never shot. They tried to fix things in editing, but failed miserably.

  123. 123.

    JMG

    In NYC meeting my son’s girlfriend’s mom, who’s very nice. We went to a Louis Vuitton exhibition where I learned that the invention of the automobile led directly to the creation of bags that were the first women’s handbags (early motorists and passengers had to carry a lot of stuff). Anyway, the local news Friday on the premier managed to find moviegoers who all looked and sounded like Comic Book Guy from the Simpsons. Cracked me up. They all wanted to talk for hours, but also didn’t want to give any spoilers. Their frustration was high comedy.

  124. 124.

    WaterGirl

    @donnah: Okay, I went looking for an imgur app. I found one called imgur browsr and was able to log in with my imgur account. i clicked “Images” and got a bunch of my photos on the next screen. I clicked one one of them, and then in the upper right hand corner there is a little share icon. If you click that, it gives you a choice of Facebook, twitter, email, etc. I chose “copy link” and then pasted it into an email I sent myself, so I would have it for the future. Or you could paste it directly into a BJ comment. That should work.

  125. 125.

    Mnemosyne

    @Dorothy A. Winsor (formerly Iowa Old Lady):

    Almost, but not quite. The way one review put it was something like, Rian Johnson took the baton that JJ Abrams handed him and then made a sharp left turn to run off the track.

    IMO, the movie takes us to previously unknown territory, and that’s what’s pissing off the fanboys. The prequels had a set ending that they were all building towards, and most of the other surrounding materials for that universe (the TV animation, the books, etc) all take place within the parameters set up by the first 6 movies. This jettisons us into an unknown and uncertain future. I love Rian Johnson’s audacity in doing that, and apparently Kathleen Kennedy did, too, because she gave him a three-picture deal.

  129. 129.

    zhena gogolia

    @Brendancalling:

    I am in the same place. Crossword puzzles for me, though.

    The swiftness of the destruction being carried out, and the ineffectual nature of what we all thought were checks and balances, is deeply depressing.

  130. 130.

    J R in WV

    I need to make a pineapple-upside-down cake for tonight’s party, this time with canned pineapple.

    In case anyone missed it, I used a fresh pineapple for Thanksgiving, which turned out horribly. Cheryl explained that fresh pineapple contains an enzyme which digests some portion of the cake batter, producing liquid waste on the bottom, and leaving a thin layer of batter to cook poorly on top of a thick layer of raw batter.

    For double ungoodness, it smelled bad too, the pineapple cake did, I mean.

    Yesterday I made a ratatouille (eggplant, squash, onions garlic and tomatoes, all fried separately and then combined into a layered dish and cooked together) and a big batch of cranberry sauce, not quite as good as the ad hoc sauce I made for Thanksgiving dinner, but tasty enough to take out. MA is roasting a turkey breast and a venison roast, probably a ham cut of meat, that’s the biggest piece of meat on a deer.

    It’s clear and sunny here, but cold. Will be good bonfire weather… actually more like a slightly large camp fire as the back yard gets narrow, their hollow is very narrow and steep. The Mrs is going in to the seafood shop to get a batch of shrimp, which most folks like. The ratatouille is vegan, for those who don’t eat meat or even butter. The shrimp is for everyone else.

    Well crap… I fell down fetching stuff from the car, banged my sternum on a step. OUCH!!! stubbed my toe too. At least the wine bottles didn’t break!! Screw baking a cake!

    I’m OK, just a little bruised and scraped, and pissed. Dammit!

  133. 133.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @zhena gogolia: The swiftness of the destruction being carried out, and the ineffectual nature of what we all thought were checks and balances, is deeply depressing.

    me too. I’m consistently amazed* to see the rage and dismay of professional Republicans (Rick Wilson, Ana Navarro, Stuart Stevens, Nicole Wallace, Steve Schmidt….) and the total acquiescence of the elected goopers, the former all having helped to put the latter in office

    * in the trump era, we need a single word that means “shocked, but not surprised”

  134. 134.

    WaterGirl

    @J R in WV: Wow, that sucks! Banging your sternum sounds painful, ouch is right.

    And your pineapple cake plans are stymied once again! If I were there, I would make it for you.

  135. 135.

    Mike J

    @Corner Stone: I’ve seen the two movies that came out after the prequels and remember almost nothing about them. There was a cool bit with a woman in a junkyard and a famous spaceship, but I couldn’t tell you the name of that movie.

  136. 136.

    Yutsano

    @J R in WV:

    Yesterday I made a ratatouille

    Ooh…I love a good ratatouille! The nice part about them is there really is no wrong way to make one. Every French grandmother has their version, and their version is always correct.

    If you have a mandoline slicer, add potatoes next time for something hearty. And herbing up the tomato sauce isn’t a bad idea either.

  137. 137.

    Kirk

    @Corner Stone: Well at least you’re not making us wait for the immersive AR interactive director’s cut with subliminal commentary to keep the spoilers away.

    (Yes another Scott, I know it was tongue in cheek. I did a poor jobof maintaining the tone in mine.)

  139. 139.

    J R in WV

    @Yutsano:

    Well, there’s garlic, and jalapeno peppers, and I ground Italian herb mix onto the squash and eggplant before I sauteed them. So herbs are in there! I spent a couple of hours frying vegges, salted the slices, then rinsed them, patted everything dry, browned the slices in olive oil with a little safflower oil to keep it from smoking.

    When I’m making it for people I know aren’t vegan I sometimes fry in bacon fat. I’m sure it will be tasty, I simmered it for half an hour this morning, and will bring it to a simmer next door before we lay out the buffet potluck spread.

    Other than a little scrape in my knee and my slightly stubbed toe I’m fine. I just hope the sparkling wine didn’t too all shook up. They’re parked outside against an inside corner of stone work, a cold spot, even with the air at 50 or so those cold stones will keep it cool. Too much food to put several bottles into the fridge!

  140. 140.

    Brachiator

    @Mnemosyne:

    You should read the spoiler-filled review by Film Crit Hulk.

    I will check it out. Thanks

    I co-sign everything he says. Slashfilm has a very good analysis as well.

    I’m listening to the podcast on my way to lunch (Thai food).

  142. 142.

    J R in WV

    @NotMax:

    I went for a small glass of bourbon, actually – to help me calm down. No real injury, just a scrape on my knee that still hurts, scrapes are the worst. Well, my chest hurts a little, not like a broken rib, just a bruise.

    Fortunately the party is next door, just half a mile of country dirt road from our house.

  143. 143.

    Central Planning

    Just picked my minivan up from the dealer. $1200 to fix the motor and cable that close the passenger sliding door.

    Thankfully I have the Honda extended warranty so my cost was $0. I have now actually saved money with the extended warranty. Winning!

  146. 146.

    J R in WV

    @Yutsano:

    Adding potatoes is a genius idea! I love potatoes, recently the local grocery started carrying more unusual potatoes, purple ones, purple all the way through, etc. I’ll try that next time I undertake the long fry of squash and eggplant!!

    Thanks!

  150. 150.

    JustRuss

    After a 2-day odyssey, including several hours in an ER and driving like a madman to catch a ferry two minutes before it departed, I succeeded in delivering my mother in time to watch my brother perform in A Christmas Carol. Am now gratefully enjoying the Full Sail Wassail he left in our rental. God bless us everyone!

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