I’m just exhausted by it all. The daily (hourly) insults to democracy without end. I know we need to keep our eye on the ball, but I just want to check out for a while.
Anyway, I owe you pics of the kids. Here you go. Scout is 6 1/2 months old and about 77 lbs – and Bixby is two weeks away from his 4th birthday. He hates having his picture taken, so that’s what’s going on above. He is back to his old self these days and as you can guess I’m relieved. Scout’s hormones have hit and we’ll have to ride that out until at least her first heat.
Meanwhile, there was fun times with Scout this week (from my FB post that day):
Here’s a fresh open thread…
LAO
A pet open thread, just what I needed. Thanks TaMara. I know that I will regret saying this one day, but I don’t miss the puppy days at all. I mean my dog was cute — but damn, the havoc was horrible.
PS I can only imagine how exhausting it is deal with a 77lb puppy!
Jeffro
No pet news here, so…how ’bout those Caps last night, hmm? Hmm? ;)
Also: just picked up a pair of tickets to see Social D later this fall. Always a good time!
LAO
I did not know this — Russia killing stray dogs and cats in preparation for the World Cup.
MomSense
Scout’s an angel. She was just trying to help you.
JCJ
@Jeffro: That was a heck of a game. A little tense in the third period…
HeleninEire
I’ll be Darth here: “THAT PUPPEH IS INNOCENT, TaMara.”
Amir Khalid
@LAO:
I can’t even begin to imagine the logic behind culling stray cats and dogs this way.
hilts
Unbelievable video of NJ police arresting a 20 year old female beachgoer
h/t https://www.buzzfeed.com/tasneemnashrulla/body-cam-video-jersey-beach-viral-arrest?utm_term=.bp1Lk255L#.cbqmGbRRm
LAO
@hilts: I’m going have to stop you at “unbelievable”… totally believable.
James Powell
I’m also exhausted. And it isn’t just the daily (hourly) insults to democracy without end. It’s the ~40% of Americans who approve of the daily (hourly) insults to democracy.
Fortunately, when I get home each day, there are three hounds who are always glad to see me.
RedDirtGirl
@LAO: Does your dog like going out more than he(?) did when he was a puppy?
LAO
@RedDirtGirl: She’s better about it now — except at night. How are you? Should we plan another New York meet up?
Mary G
Scout in her terrible teen years! She has grown so fast.
VeniceRiley
We dogsat a smush-nosed elderly somethingorother named Bailey this weekend, and she broke into my bathroom and turned all the trash into confetti. At least I didn’t have to wash her. Couldn’t stay mad at her long, since she had to endure repeated humping attempts by the supposedly fixed Chihuahua. Oh, Scrappy. No balls, but he can still get his tiny wood on. His owner was mortified. I just laughed, “If he manages to get it in, she won’t even notice.”
For distraction, I pointed my roommate in the direction of the Bad Lip Reading youtube channel.
Aleta
Thanks Tamara. “He stayed as far away from her and the crime scene as possible.” : )
Courtney Barnett – “Everything Is Free” (by Gillian Welch)
rikyrah
Scout is cute.
Bixby is so chill :)
Betty Cracker
My puppy has the most hilarious growl I’ve ever heard. He doesn’t even sound like a dog — more like a baby dragon from Game of Thrones, so I’m calling him my “lap dragon.” I’m also trying to figure out how to make an audio recording of his growls my ringtone!
RedDirtGirl
@LAO: I’m good! I was thinking we should wait to see if Major Major Major Major moves to town, but no reason we couldn’t have more than one!
Major Major Major Major
Can’t even fathom having a dog that big, let alone a puppy. Must be exhausting indeed.
ruemara
In the interests of promoting a calm atmosphere & general appreciation of adorableness, here is Sir Odoriki, waking me up with his ultra-gross, ripped to bits & stuffing removed fave mousie as a breakfast nosh. I found it on my bed when I woke up. Adorable. Filthy, gross love.
Yutsano
SCOUTPUPPEH!!!
So after a fur year lull, I FIALLY got an instructor gig at the IRS again! At least my manager didn’t pull the rug fro under me this time. Been working on that in between appointments, although had to take a break for now.
Manyakitty
@ruemara: Oooh! Lookit a kitteh!
Also, puppehs! Thank FSM for our critters. I know my cats make me smile every single day.
Elizabelle
These pardons are such a complete attempt to obstruct justice by signalling his coconspirators.
Do you think Mueller could use them as evidence? Because these are highly unusual and undermine the rule of law.
eclare
Puppehs and kittehs today, much needed.
Yutsano
FYWP!!! I just want to correct one fucking typo!
FOUR year lull. But fur is kinda funny now that I think about it.
The Moar You Know
@LAO: I got a golden retriever pup about two and a half years ago. He is alpha. He was the runt (adult weight 65 pounds, which is TINY for a male Golden) He was neurotic and OCD. He was (and still is) terrified of cars, but not in a good/useful way. He never wrecked anything in the house, but loves being disobedient. He’s very much like a very smart cat in a dog body. He is gorgeous and can put on the most unbelievable sad face ever, and so gets away with murder.
He finished turning my hair white and probably lopped another half inch off my hairline. We found a great trainer and got him trained for therapy and rally work (the rally training was a lifesaver) and now everyone just thinks he is wonderful, including me. I would not trade him for anything in the world. But goddamn, he was a rough ride growing up.
TenguPhule
@LAO:
As if we needed a new reason to hate Russia.
The Moar You Know
They did this for the Sochi Olympics as well.
Mnemosyne
In wild animal news, a Canada goose got on the field during the Tigers/Angels game yesterday. It eventually stunned itself by flying into the scoreboard and a woman in the stands was able to grab it and help security take it outside.
It’s now nicknamed the Rally Goose since Detroit came back and kicked the Angels’ asses after the rain delay. ?
catclub
@Betty Cracker: our cat – the tougher of the two, has a cute little growl when the UPS truck comes by, then runs and hides. Complete scaredy cat to everything outside of me, my wife, and the other cat… and lizards.
Mnemosyne
@ruemara:
Your last cat must have really loved you if he brought you the mouse heads. My ex’s mom’s cats would bring her the rest of the mouse body after eating the head since it’s apparently the tastiest part.
Aleta
@The Moar You Know: the grief of children attached to a street dog or people who’d been feeding a few cats
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Mnemosyne: A few weeks ago, when I took the girls out in the morning, I heard this horrible sound, like an animal being tortured. The sound grew louder and then I saw geese flying over the cave.
LAO
@The Moar You Know: I went through a period with Maggie when no pillow was safe in my apartment, especially bed pillows. Since I was unable to crate her at night — the baying was deafening — there were multiple mornings I woke up to a torn up pillow. And, yes, I never woke up since I apparently sleep like the dead. The weird thing about her was, 99% of her bad behavior would be when I was home but inattentive. To this day, I give her a “shower treat” ie something that will keep her busy for at least 10 minutes so I can shower without sacrificing a piece of furniture or my rug or my shoes. Mind you, she has free reign during the day when I’m at work. I think she enjoys seeing shock and horror on my face, like it’s a game to her.
LAO
@ruemara: you have the best twitter handle. (And your cats super cute too).
Jeffro
@Elizabelle: Mueller could add them in to his obstruction case (which also won’t go anywhere until we get a new Congress, but still)
Folks on Twitter making noise about Kaepernick vs NFL and Trumpov’s statements to Jerry Jones about how it would benefit him (DJT) politically. Looking forward to all that free time I’ll have this fall, not watching NFL games.
Jay
“To get a sense of what it means that Fred Fleitz has been chosen as the National Security Council’s chief of staff, you need to understand both the role of Frank Gaffney and his Center for Security Policy in the international neo-Nazi movement and the way that movement is seamlessly connected to and promoted by Vladimir Putin. While I cannot endorse everything Mr. Ahmed alleges and recommend double checking his sources and how he treats them, I do think his A Fourth Reich is rising across Europe — with ties to Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin is an excellent place to start your journey. It connects a lot of dots that need connecting, and it contains a lot of documentation that you can assess for yourself.”
http://www.boomantribune.com/story/2018/5/30/1593/38783
p.a.
No pets, but I was out in the yard (Mass:yahd. RI:yod) enjoying the sun telling myself “eh…the weeds will be there tomorrow. Get ’em then.” as a fledging catbird gave it the old college try. Flapping like a hummingbird while perched, then managing several 6-10 foot flights. Landed once in my (aptly named) firethorn bush. Took a while to escape.
The Moar You Know
@Aleta: Truly, that rarely happens. Russia, as does most of Eastern Europe, has a legit problem with feral/street-born dog packs. They are mean and dangerous. Kids run from them and should.
But the solution is not to just shoot them, although their societies seem just fine with that. America never was ok with shooting Fido in public, and although we have a horrendous problem as well, it plays out in shelters where at least we don’t have to confront our failure to spay or neuter our animals, and it’s getting better, because although it’s not enough, a lot of people here do neuter and spay their animals.
TenguPhule
Just a little reminder of what 2016 cost us.
Fuck those assholes.
/Wapo headline.
TenguPhule
Via Wapo.
Now we get to see if the last remaining pillar of the Republic will hold.
Mandalay
Samantha Bee:
There’s always some fucking idiot ready to run their mouth so that RWNJs can (justifiably) gloat that “both sides do it”.
Elizabelle
@Jeffro: I think the NFL owners kicked their own asses with that capitulation.
Use the days instead for voter reg and canvassing!
Patricia Kayden
@LAO: How delightful. Putin routinely kills his human enemies so not surprised at all that he does the same with pets. No wonder Trump loves him so.
raven
I came up from the beach @ 10:30 like I said I would. It was pretty mellow from 7:30 and Had intended to be there close to sunrise but my 5am grocery/gas/bait shop run turned into a hassle. It’s hot down at the water but they take up the rental umbrellas and chairs at 5 so I’ll go back down then. The 2 pompano I caught will be great on the grill for late afternoon dinner and the off to the wild blue yonder for red snapper tomorrow.
TenguPhule
How Donald Trump is weaponising the courts for political ends
kindness
I’m missing reading Charles Pierce’s posts at Esquire. I wonder where he is?
Jeffro
@Elizabelle: That’s a great idea!
Might kick out a letter to the editor/op-ed urging others to do the same.
TenguPhule
Baptist church threatens to destroy Christ statue deemed too ‘Catholic’
I can’t believe its not Florida.
Bex
Best happy ending for a puppy. https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/2018/05/22/meghan-markle-puppy-guy-beagle-kentucky-connections/633213002/
VeniceRiley
@Betty Cracker: Iphone? Try these instructions.
http://osxdaily.com/2013/03/04/turn-any-voice-recording-into-a-ringtone-for-iphone/
LAO
@Bex: I saw a picture of the pup riding in a car with the Queen. Not bad for a rescue.LINK.
raven
Here’s a web cam of the beach I fish.
rikyrah
This is who they are ?
Black ‘Good Samaritan’ killed
His killer brags about it on social media
https://twitter.com/keithboykin/status/1002245517760516099?s=19
JPL
@TenguPhule: Wake me up when it’s over.
Elizabelle
@LAO: I love the pic of Guy and QE2. A greatest hit for me.
@Bex: “The royal beagle.” LOL. Love it.
The Kentucky shelter Guy was transported from has a fundraiser out — $27 for a very nice tee shirt that says “duke duchess dog.”
Website’s got the photo of Guy’s little face, in the limo with the queen. Montgomery County, KY Animal Shelter. From the link:
Aleta
@Mnemosyne: A tale about the gift of rat heads. I stayed home one Christmas, refused a few invitations. I thought I wanted some quiet to grieve my mother’s recent death, but by christmas eve I was extremely low. I’d taken up sitting in the kitchen, in a big wooden chair at the table so I might write, but mostly I just sat there. That evening I’d even started to pity myself for being all alone … and not a single present, sniff. Next morning I got up and there were three rat’s heads under my chair in a neatly spaced row. From Charles aka Charley. Almost an O’Henry story really.
Shell
I think he’s on vacation.
Aleta
@rikyrah: May the killer and his friend burn in hell with the Tru,ps Pence and Sessions for a thousand years, after dying in prison.
Steeplejack
@TenguPhule:
It wasn’t “gridlock,” it was Republican obstructionism. Fuckers. (GOP and both-siderist writer.)
stinger
@Aleta: What a sad, sweet, story — and you owe me a new keyboard for that last line.
Shell
@Aleta: Very sweet. But I hope that wasn’t the gift that kept on giving…
Elizabelle
@Steeplejack: It’s that kind of stuff that makes me despair. The Guardian should know better, but they’re often purity pony central. (Some of their headlines make me wince.)
Elizabelle
@Aleta: Wonderful story. I see it as a series of pencil drawing panels.
schrodingers_cat
@Elizabelle: They love BS from Vt.
holaitsmonica
I love love love her paw reaching out to show possession of Bixby, “MY Bixby!”
Elizabelle
@schrodingers_cat: Yup. No money from me for The Guardian. They do some excellent articles on climate change, I gotta say.
And some of their writers’ concerns are a bit peculiar, very honestly. Someone’s got a fetish for publishing stories about body hair.
raven
@Elizabelle: I was telling my wife on the way down here that I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to like the Guardian.
Elizabelle
@raven: They do some what seems to be very good reporting (ebola, climate change; I didn’t read it, but the Cambridge Analytica stuff), and they also do some very leftwing crap, pushing the envelope, I guess, but making themselves parodies of clueless liberals. I speak of their opinion writers and essayists there, and not all of them. I cannot say if the stories are as outrageous as the headlines, because a ridiculous headline does not get me to click.
The more leftwing of them apparently have no idea of the U.S. that we actually live in. It’s not that easy.
NY Robbin
@TenguPhule:
Horrible!! It’s like they’re checking off a Super-Villain Handbook.
raven
@Elizabelle: I’ve read some really good stuff there , gasp, I still read the hated NY Times too!
Ruckus
@Jeffro:
Even better would be to write to NFL sponsors about why you are no longer interested in the NFL. It will get to the league if enough people do this.
Elizabelle
@raven: Yeah, me too.
RedDirtGirl
@The Moar You Know: What’s rally work?
SgrAstar
@raven: me too. Subscribe to the Guardian, NYT, WaPo. All worthy for different reasons. The Guardian « long reads » are exceptional. Also kinda partial to George Monbiot’s pieces….not to mention, The Racoons of the Resistance. YMMV.
Ms. D. Ranged in AZ
Scout the Scamp I love it!