Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

… pundit janitors mopping up after the GOP

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Incompetence, fear, or corruption? why not all three?

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

American History and Black History Cannot Be Separated

People are complicated. Love is not.

He really is that stupid.

The revolution will be supervised.

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

I know this must be bad for Joe Biden, I just don’t know how.

The republican caucus is already covering themselves with something, and it’s not glory.

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

Thanks to your bullshit, we are now under siege.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

An almost top 10,000 blog!

“Squeaker” McCarthy

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

In my day, never was longer.

When your entire life is steeped in white supremacy, equality feels like discrimination.

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.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

You are here: Home / Politics / Trumpery / Dolt 45 / Sunday Evening Open Thread: Speaking of Gifts…

Sunday Evening Open Thread: Speaking of Gifts…

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“Happy” Festivus! Here’s a Festivus wish even the Repubs can get behind:

Reader Interactions

192Comments

  1. 1.

    Schlemazel

    I forget how long it took the House to impeach RMN but I remember it was not fast. There were weeks of hearings. A lot depends on what Mueller reports. I admit the anger from Judge Sullivan scares me as he saw the Flynn report bare. There must be worse stuff than we thought in it. I hope RMIII does not go lightly on the traitors

  2. 2.

    OzarkHillbilly

    While I can see where Dana and Empty are coming from, I think they are being awfully optimistic considering today’s gerrymandered districts.

  4. 4.

    chopper

    i always assumed trump would get worse as he went along. he’s the sort of guy who eventually nobody with an independent thought wants to work for. trump will end up running everything himself, and horribly.

    question to me is how big an impact the mueller report will have.

  5. 5.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Schlemazel:

    I admit the anger from Judge Sullivan

    I took that anger as just a judge taking exception to someone trying having to have it both ways by being to cute by half. My experience in such situations tho extends only to my ex wife and her lawyers so it is very limited.

  6. 6.

    NotMax

    @Schlemazel

    More than two years from the break-in to the resignation (just ahead of an impeachment vote), with Ds in control of the House for that entire period.

  8. 8.

    Debbie(Aussie)

    Seasons greetings to all you wonderful jackals. Thank you for being smart and snarky, caring and generous and just overall really good people. May the new year bring us all the change we crave (we have a federal election coming up March to May, date tba),with the bastards receiving punishments that fit the crimes. Down under Deb. ?

  9. 9.

    Anonymous At Work

    Trump will stay the term and seek re-election now that criminal charges from fraudulent payments is in play. Re-election as President is his only way of avoiding a criminal trial, now.

  14. 14.

    Kayla Rudbek

    So two questions for the open thread: 1)does anybody use a bullet journal and 2)any recommendations for brands of journals to try?

  16. 16.

    NotMax

    Whiskey cake out of oven and on cooling rack. Last minute decision* to leave out any fruit and nuts this year.

    *as in totally forgot about adding them

    the Art of Blechman!

    OzarkHillbilly’s favorite artist?

    ;)

  17. 17.

    Schlemazel

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    My concern is that Flynn is much dirtier than expected & Sullivan saw that & wondered why he was getting off so lightly. Had it only been his BS “Nobody told me not to lie to the FBI” I don’t think he would have exploded like that. If the guy really did commit treason I want him held to account. Personally 0 jail time but a revolver with a single bullet would be acceptable

  18. 18.

    Martin

    Still believe they’re going to carry Trump out of the WH.

    Nixon isn’t really a benchmark for this sort of thing. Nixon was rational. Nixon didn’t have a debilitating personality disorder. That both makes it more likely the GOP will stick with Trump (from their perspective, he’s not that different from what the voters saw), and more likely that shit will be catastrophically bad when the tide finally does turn.

  19. 19.

    Schlemazel

    @NotMax:
    I was thinking more from the start of hearing to vote. I am hoping Mueller has the good because I think 2020 would be here before Congress gets their work done

  21. 21.

    Roger Moore

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    Gerrymandering shouldn’t have anything to do with Trump getting run out of office. The Democrats control enough votes in the House to impeach him. The question is whether they can get enough Republican votes in the non-gerrymandered Senate to convict.

  24. 24.

    debbie

    No way to link. Andy Borowitz on FB: “In Last Official Act, Mattis Revokes Trump’s Draft Deferments And Deploys Him To Iraq.”

  26. 26.

    James E Powell

    @OzarkHillbilly:

    While I can see where Dana and Empty are coming from, I think they are being awfully optimistic considering today’s gerrymandered districts.

    I think they are being awfully optimistic considering that ~40% of the country are still fully committed racists who always vote. And the press/media will still let the RW dictate coverage and will still exaggerate any flaws – real or imagined – in any Democratic candidates.

  27. 27.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @NotMax:

    OzarkHillbilly’s favorite artist?

    Definitely up there. Had me worried there for a moment walking up to a live thriving tree with a saw.. I don’t believe in cutting down old soul trees (young soul trees either) for something as small as a pagan solstice celebration. Pretty sure the old pagans didn’t either.

  28. 28.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Schlemazel: Again, that comes down to my limited experience with judges. I’ve seen them get pissed off before, at defendants, counsels and prosecutors, but I have spent as little time as possible in a court room, which unfortunately is far more than I would have liked.

  30. 30.

    lamh36

    Don’t ask me why, but I’m sitting here watching A Very British Scandal with Hugh Grant and Ben Winishaw. Has Hugh Grant really gotten that old or was it all makeup…Good lord Hugh Grant is fantastic at playing scoundrels gay or straight isn’t he.

  33. 33.

    Bruuuuce

    @Anonymous At Work: If there are sealed indictments on the payments or other charges that would ordinarily pass the statute of limitations after his term(s), he’s not safe from them. IANAL, but am assured that once the indictments are filed, the clock stops and he’s liable to answer them regardless.

  36. 36.

    Mnemosyne

    @lamh36:

    I saw Mary Poppins Returns this week and, while I mostly liked it, Ben Wishaw’s terrible mustache made me wince every time he came onscreen. I think it was his own hair, and yet somehow he managed to make it look fake.

    I’m a little surprised that I have not yet heard an outcry from racists that they put Black (British) people in the movie in supporting roles, but I may not have been paying attention. Either that, or they boycotted it as soon as they saw that Lin-Manuel Miranda was one of the leads.

  37. 37.

    FelonyGovt

    @Kayla Rudbek: I do. Mine is not pretty or fancy, but I like the idea of brief one-line notes each day and a monthly to-do list. Somehow writing things down feels more immediate than an online system.

    I started this year with a simple spiral bound lined notebook. Next year (next week!) I will start using a Leuchtturm dotted journal.

  39. 39.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Roger Moore: Gerrymandering has everything to do with everything (whether it should or not). If trump is impeached on a purely party line vote, in today’s political environment, do you really think 45% of the electorate will see that as legitimate? And if say 40% do not, do you not think that will be a problem for our democracy?

    My point is only that we are living at the edge of a precipice. Falling over it does not mean the end of everything, it just means the end of normal.

  41. 41.

    lamh36

    @Mnemosyne: Oh…I did hear from a review or two who mentioned it. It’s funny I was looking forward to seeing it but I don’t know why, but now I’m like meh.

  42. 42.

    laura

    @lamh36: I was just watching episode one and thought the same dang thing!
    I watched Love Actually during the insomnia hour this morning and the contrast was Wow……he’s aged a tad.
    lamh36, how’re you gonna top last year? You went and did and studied, and familied like a Boss.

  43. 43.

    Steeplejack

    @lamh36:

    Hugh Grant is excellent as a scoundrel in, of all things, Paddington 2, a very underrated movie. It’s like a really good British rom-com without the “rom” part. I saw it in the theater almost by chance when the movie I went to see was sold out. Currently showing on HBO. Check it out.

  44. 44.

    Kelly

    Watched Kurt Russell as Santa in Netflix’s Christmas Chronicles with grandchildren 4 thu 12 years old. A good time was had by all.

  45. 45.

    Steeplejack

    @FelonyGovt:

    I agree that writing things down (even with my wretched handwriting) feels better than working with something on the computer. I still get an At-a-Glance weekly planner every year and use that for my modest needs. Also serves as a basic record of what happened when, sometimes helpful in the flat landscape of retirement.

  47. 47.

    Mnemosyne

    @lamh36:

    You’ll probably like it — it’s charming, and Emily Blunt has a slightly different take on the character so she doesn’t seem like she’s trying to imitate Julie Andrews. And Lin-Manuel Miranda knows that he’s a supporting player despite his second billing and never tries to upstage her, which only makes him look better.

    I’m not a huge fan of the first movie, but everyone I know who is a fan and saw the sequel LOVED it, if that helps.

  48. 48.

    Dorothy A. Winsor

    I was clicking around on You Tube, following the stuff that shows up in the right hand column, and I wound up at Jim Henson’s memorial service. It’s ripping my heart out.

  52. 52.

    Ruckus

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    People in the elevator look at me a bit funny when they ask how I’m liking xmas time. I told a fellow the other day that my saying has 2 letters, BH. On a bad day 3 letters, BFH. He understood.

  53. 53.

    germy

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: There’s a clip of Kermit on a talk show ( I think it’s Arsenio Hall, but I don’t remember exactly ) and it was not long before Henson’s last illness. At one point Kermit has to stop talking so Henson can cough. No one at the time knew what it meant or would lead to.

  56. 56.

    zhena gogolia

    @lamh36:

    It’s a terrific show. I do think they’ve aged him a bit with the makeup, but I’m not sure. They’re certainly not trying to make him look good. But he gives a fantastic performance.

  57. 57.

    zhena gogolia

    @Mnemosyne:

    This doesn’t sound like a rave review! The NYT savaged it, the New Yorker liked it. We’ll go see it regardless, because LMM and Colin Firth. Duh.

  62. 62.

    zhena gogolia

    @raven:

    I’m not crazy about that reviewer — I take her with a grain of salt. Nevertheless, my hopes are not high. (I’ve never seen the original, BTW.)

  63. 63.

    OzarkHillbilly

    @Ruckus: I live 11 miles outside a small town with a super Walmart. The poor cashiers reflexively say “Merry Christmas.” to which I reflexively reply, “It will be merry when it’s over.” at which point I get a look of…. “We’re all in the same boat.”

  68. 68.

    Procopius

    @zhena gogolia: Yes, the song was great. I haven’t heard her for years, and I really like the range of her voice. I’m motivated to listen to more of her stuff. Fallon and that other jamoke were completely irrelevant, tasteless, and offensive. I will never forgive him for making me watch him ruffle The Donald’s hair. If I had known it was coming I could have averted my gaze. It took me by surprise and now I can never unsee it.

  69. 69.

    zhena gogolia

    @Steeplejack:

    Absolutely not. We went to see it right after our last two kitties died within a week of each other. We wept through the whole thing and loved it. It was the best thing for us at the time.

  71. 71.

    zhena gogolia

    @Procopius:

    I’ve forgiven him because I didn’t see it. He’s like a big puppy, I’m not offended by him. I thought he and the other jamoke (Mark Ronson) were forgiveable because they were just enabling the critique.

  73. 73.

    germy

    There are two movies I saw when I was very young. 101 Dalmations and Mary Poppins. I’m so old I saw them in the theater when they were first released. I was a very impressionable five year old, and I believe both films influenced the sort of surroundings I wanted to live in as an adult. I loved the house the 101 Dalmations guy lived in; I just loved its style. And the neighborhood in Mary Poppins. The look of the streets and the park.

    For twenty years I lived with my wife and children in a modern raised ranch and found the house unsatisfying. A few years ago we sold that house and moved to an older home in an older neighborhood. It’s near an old park. I find myself more content here, as does my wife. (the kids have flown the coop.)

    Recently I saw the old Mary Poppins movie on TV, and realized how much our current neighborhood resembles the set of that movie. It must have been some unconscious desire of mine to find a place like this to live.

  76. 76.

    Mnemosyne

    @zhena gogolia:

    I think you’ll like it — it really is charming. I haven’t read the New York Times review, but their reviewers hate whimsy, and the movie is pretty much nothing but whimsy.

    @rikyrah:

    The first big musical number with Mary Poppins in it is a straight-up tribute to Bedknobs and Broomsticks, so the movie is trying to be reminiscent of that whole era of Disney musicals, not just Mary Poppins.

    And Dick Van Dyke’s cameo is AMAZING. It really is him dancing, because he still dances to this day. I actually was able to see him dance live this summer at an event I went to. He turns 93 next year!

  78. 78.

    Shalimar

    @Schlemazel: I don’t assume that. I think the judge’s reaction was appropriate based on what we know aboit Flynn’s Russia-backed nuclear deal and Turkey contract. Flynn absolutely should have been charged with something relating to those two anti-US adventures.

  79. 79.

    Ruckus

    Don’t forget there was no internet in Nixon’s day. People didn’t have the access that we have now. Things were not electronic, like records, phone calls, cameras. We’ve been what 2 yrs now with the investigation and have guilty pleas, sealed indictments, people in jail. And haven’t even seen the top of the tree yet. And the break in was relatively small potatoes. So considering the scope of the crimes I’m amazed that we’ve gotten this far. And Nixon also shot himself in the foot by not destroying the tapes. This lot doesn’t seem anywhere near as smart as that.
    And I don’t think that individual 1 can last 2 more years. He’s getting worse, the world is closing off around him and he seems to be at least aware of that. He of course has himself convinced that there is nothing wrong at all with him, but he is flailing more and more as every day passes, there is only so much doom and gloom anyone can handle. He’s always managed to cruse on his lawyer’s back, and that’s not working at all now.
    One thing we do know, the end will not be pretty. Or anywhere close to that.

  80. 80.

    A Ghost To Most

    @raven
    No faith in his defense. Or too much. 4th and 4? They executed successfully, and still came up a yard short.

  81. 81.

    Steeplejack

    @zhena gogolia:

    I’m glad. It was an unexpected delight.

    I’ve been feeling a little morose this holiday season, so I may schedule a viewing. I think it’s on HBO tomorrow and Christmas Day.

    ETA: Yep. Tomorrow at 7:00 p.m. EST, Tuesday at 12:12 p.m. EST on HBOF, whichever one that is.

  86. 86.

    Procopius

    @Schlemazel: I agree with you. I’m often critical of the misuse of the word “treason,” because I see the definition of treason in the Constitution as meaning “war” only by taking up arms. I understand the word “enemy” as clearly meaning an entity which we are at war. The Supremes decided we were actually at war with North Vietnam, which was not even a real country, so I guess we were at war with Iraq, too. We have not been at war with Russia, yet, so dealing with them cannot be treason. However I’m sure Judge Russell does not throw the word “treason” around lightly, and I’m confident he understands it the way I do, so whatever he saw must be orders of magnitude worse than anything that’s been revealed to us. Now you’ve got my attention. I just don’t believe we’re ever going to be told what it was.

  90. 90.

    Gravenstone

    @Mnemosyne:

    Mary Poppins Returns

    Caught a brief report about Dick Van Dyke’s cameo in the new movie. It showed him showcasing various dance moves and handiwork with his cane. It’s stunning to realize he’s 93 and can still do things like that. Seriously, aside from the make up for the scene, he looked to be in his 60s at most.

  92. 92.

    Mnemosyne

    @zhena gogolia:
    @raven:

    When you said the NYT hated it, I thought, “I bet Manohla Dargis reviewed it,” and I was right. I have no idea why they let her review animated movies, because she seems to hate animation. Even the live action parts of Mary Poppins Returns feel a bit like animation.

    Dargis will forever live in infamy as the reviewer who watched Cars and became convinced that there had been a Terminator-like massacre of all humans by the cars somewhere in the backstory. She went on and on about it and didn’t really review the actual movie. It was bizarre.

  93. 93.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Dorothy A. Winsor:

    I remember very clearly being in a rental car on my way to visit Winthrop University in Rock Hill, SC, where I was to deliver the keynote address to their International Studies event, and heard the news of JIm Henson’s death. It was so shocking and unexpected, I had to pull over for several minutes. And I wasn’t even of the “Sesame Street” generation, but the news caught me in a vulnerable place.

  95. 95.

    stinger

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: I’ve got a new hobby — watching What’s My Line on YouTube. I don’t think I could take the Jim Henson memorial service right now. WML is urbane and witty, and it’s fascinating to see celebrities of the day up close and natural.

  96. 96.

    Steeplejack

    Possibly of interest: Vintage Roads Great and Small, just starting on PBS. Two old buffers driving old cars in Britain. The preview I saw was very scenic. One of the guys is from Top Gear, I think, but he’s not the asshole guy. This episode is “Inverness to the Isle of Skye.” Maybe worth a look.

  97. 97.

    Kayla Rudbek

    @Mnemosyne: I’m surprised that I haven’t seen any JetPens ads on Facebook yet (most of the ads I see are for planners, yarn, or Kindle books)

  98. 98.

    Doug R

    @lamh36:

    Don’t ask me why, but I’m sitting here watching A Very British Scandal with Hugh Grant and Ben Winishaw. Has Hugh Grant really gotten that old or was it all makeup…Good lord Hugh Grant is fantastic at playing scoundrels gay or straight isn’t he.

    You like that, you’ll probably love Paddington 2.

  100. 100.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @schrodingers_cat:

    That’s a great kitteh! But even reading the backstory you linked, I don’t understand why the pheran would be banned in the first place. What’s the rationale?

  102. 102.

    OldDave

    @Steeplejack: Sounds interesting, but neither of the stars are Top Gear alums. From the Intertubes:

    Christopher Timothy and Peter Davison, stars of All Creatures Great & Small, host this journey into the golden age of motoring.

  106. 106.

    raven

    @A Ghost To Most: Tough one, we were 4 and 11 and hadn’t stopped them in the second half. The intended receiver was uncovered but we put the second string (phenom” in and Bama’s defense sniffed it. I think Tomlin did what Kirby did, he rolled the dice and lost.

    ps ESPN is calling it “gutsy” right now.

  107. 107.

    Ruckus

    @OzarkHillbilly:
    You also have to understand I do all of this with a smile on my face and a bit of a laugh, and then tell them to have a happy holiday.
    Never leave them on a sour note. Confused is fine, but never a sour note.

  108. 108.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @stinger:

    I loved WML in the day — it was must-see TV in my house — and I’ve enjoyed watching clips on YouTube over the past few years. You are right, it holds up very well.

    (Although I never can look at Dorothy Kilgallen any more without remembering Jack Paar’s jibe about her “Novocain lipstick.”)

  109. 109.

    Steeplejack

    @Steeplejack:

    Okay, neither old buffer is from Top Gear. One of them, Peter Davison, was the Fifth Doctor. The other, Christopher Timothy, was his co-star on All Creatures Great and Small.

  110. 110.

    Amir Khalid

    @Steeplejack:
    If he’s an old duffer and he’s not Jeremy Clarkson, he must be James May.
    ETA: I see you’ve figured out who he is. It can be tricky to tell one of the English variety of old duffer apart from another.

  113. 113.

    NotMax

    @stinger

    John Charles Daly had a sly sense of humor. Good fun.

    Trivia: He was the anchor of the newscast on ABC TV while also the host of WML? on Sunday nights on CBS, and also occasionally filled in on Today on NBC during that time.

  115. 115.

    stinger

    @Dorothy A. Winsor: Dorothy, thanks for your recommendation of Bruce Holder a few weeks back. I ordered a couple of prints, which have come and which I’m very happy with. Pears and Pelicans — the pairing and the alliteration make me laugh, but I really like the artwork.

  117. 117.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    @germy: You’re reminding me of an old memory that I hadn’t thought of in some time.

    As a little girl, I saw a (Disney?) movie about a cat named Thomasina. I don’t remember much about it, except being thoroughly traumatized.

    I’m wondering whether the movie is really as traumatic as I remember it, or whether rewatching it now might put that to bed.

    I’m kind of afraid to google it, so if you–or anyone here–has a reco, yea or nay, I’d love to hear it. Thanks!

  118. 118.

    Viva BrisVegas

    @lamh36:

    We’ve all gotten older. Hugh Grant is 58.

    I was thinking he’s looking good for nearly 60.

    Love Actually was 15 years ago.

  119. 119.

    Steeplejack

    @zhena gogolia:

    Also, when was the last time we had a “declared” war? Despite being at war for much of the last 70 years (since the Korea “police action”).

  120. 120.

    Ruckus

    @Gravenstone:
    It’s rare but there are people in their mid 90s who don’t look or act like it. I once met a fella who looked to be about 60, walked without a cane, and like he had not a care in the world. Voice was clear and strong as was his mind. He was 95. If I didn’t know who he was and when he’d done what he was known for I’d have never believed he was that old. I saw him in person every year after till he was 103. He’d looked strong and great till 102. But after that he looked his age. He lasted one more year. 104. What about the oldest person in the US now? Lessie Brown, a woman in OH, she’s 114.

  122. 122.

    Mnemosyne

    @germy:

    I think Julie Andrews is really tired of people still wanting to talk about her first starring role since she’s done a LOT of films in the 50 years since then.

    Also, she lost her singing voice after a botched throat operation about 20 years ago, which is another reason she’d really, really like us all to move past her musical roles, thankyouverymuchly.

  127. 127.

    Steeplejack

    @Amir Khalid:

    Now I’m wondering what the difference is, if any, between a buffer and a duffer. I think buffer is slightly more pejorative, but not much.

  128. 128.

    Mnemosyne

    @thalarctosMaritimus:

    It was probably The Three Lives of Thomasina. It sounds like there’s a lot of traumatic animal stuff + uncaring father stuff that gets fixed by the end, but the traumatic stuff usually gets remembered more vividly than the happy ending.

    (The cat ends up alive and happy at the end of the movie, if that helps you decide to power through it.)

  130. 130.

    Ruviana

    @thalarctosMaritimus: Kids really do remember things differently. I was scared to death of a Superman cartoon that I can still remember. And the broom sequence in “Fantasia?” Scary shit! My high school friend was terrified of “The Shaggy Dog.”

  131. 131.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @thalarctosMaritimus:

    I love The Nine LIves of Thomasina! The actress who played the young girl, Karen Dotrice, was also the daughter Jane in the original Mary Poppins.

    And the good witch character was played by one of my favourite British actresses of all time, Susan Hampshire (the original The Forsyte Saga, Monarch of the Glen, and many other BBC costume dramas.) And the stern father figure was portrayed by the great Patrick McGoohan (The Prisoner, Secret Agent).

    It’s a terrific story, based IIRC on a Paul Gallico novella. Give it another try sometime.

  132. 132.

    NotMax

    @Mnemosyne

    First movie starring role. She had already made quite the name for herself on the stage in such little things as My Fair Lady and Camelot, plus Cinderella on TV.

  134. 134.

    Ruckus

    @NotMax:
    Three centuries. Now that’s a long time.
    Someone asked me once how old I was, I said half a century and then had to tell him the number of years, he didn’t get it. Haven’t made it to 3/4 of a century. Yet. But I am working on it. Mom once told us she was going to live to 91. She lied. She made it to within a couple of days of 95. My bosses mom is 92 and still drives. Now that’s scary. Boss told me that I should tell her not to drive any more. I’m not taking on that tiger unarmed.

  135. 135.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Ruviana:

    To this day, my cousin won’t watch Snow White. The scene where the evil queen transforms herself into a warty old hag was enough to put him off the entire film for life.

  136. 136.

    Steeplejack

    @thalarctosMaritimus:

    The Three Lives of Thomasina (1963). Wikipedia article here.

    Maybe traumatic because Thomasina dies and comes back to life? But the movie has very high approval ratings.

    Coincidence: the movie stars Patrick McGoohan and Susan Hampshire, who I saw together last night in an episode of Danger Man/​Secret Agent from around the same time. The director of both: Don Chaffey.

    ETA: I’m in the “rewatching it now might put that to bed” camp.

  137. 137.

    Michael Cain

    Re notebook software… A decade ago I needed such a thing. My list of requirements was — and still is — probably peculiar. I anticipated wanting to look at entries that were 20 years old. I needed it to be impossible to casually overwrite old stuff. Going back and annotating a 20-year-old page, yes, but not overwrite what I was thinking 20 years ago. Had to work across multiple operating systems. Overlaying lines and arrows and boxes and ellipses on top of the text and images that I put on the page, plus OS-independent, meant everything had to be pixel accurate. I ended up writing my own.

    None of the requirements have changed. The big one is, still, that in 20 years I’ll want to look at entries that are already 10 years old. I don’t trust any for-profit company to deliver that. Let alone that the notes I’m making on a Mac today will be readable on a whatever 20 years out.

  138. 138.

    raven

    @Ruckus: I just fell on my ass when I went to pick up Lil Bit from her doggie bed between the couch and chair. Like my wife isn’t worried enough about me!

  139. 139.

    Ruckus

    @Steeplejack:
    Like a lot of other things, life has changed in the last few hundred years and a lot of that has been in the last 70. A lot.
    We don’t declare war any more, we just go in shooting. Sort of like a lot of cops do. The expectations of our collective greatness seem to be a bit over played.

  140. 140.

    Wapiti

    @Anonymous At Work:

    Trump will stay the term and seek re-election now that criminal charges from fraudulent payments is in play. Re-election as President is his only way of avoiding a criminal trial, now.

    The Turnip Organization is still at risk. Were the payments laundered through the Org? Turnip might find that wearing multiple hats does not fully protect him.

  142. 142.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @NotMax:

    Best thing she ever did, though, IMO, was a non-singing role opposite James Garner in The Americanisation of Emily. I have it on DVD, haul it out every two or three years, and every time I’m just knocked out by how good it is.

  144. 144.

    Mnemosyne

    @Ruckus:

    I am acquainted with a local centarian, Ruthie Tompson, who has made it to 108 and could cross 109 in July.

    Last I heard, she was still living the good life at the Motion Picture Home and teaching all of the other oldsters how to use the iPhones and iPads their grandkids got them for Christmas. Her body is a little worn down, but mentally she’s still sharp as a tack.

  146. 146.

    Ruckus

    @raven:
    Did you break anything? Are you bleeding? Everything still working?
    If no, you are good to go.
    That’s a big thing the neuro gods always ask me, have I fallen down. I haven’t hit the ground but I have tripped more than once in the last 6 months over my feet not actually going where I think they are. Up/down stairs I have to watch every step and hang on to the rail. You’d think I was an old fart or something.

  150. 150.

    Steeplejack

    @Steeplejack:

    Huh. If anyone has the third-tier channel Charge! on their cable system, that episode of Secret Agent, “Are You Going to Be More Permanent?,” is coming on again shortly—at 9:15 p.m. EST.

  151. 151.

    zhena gogolia

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    Yes, I like her in that. Torn Curtain too.

    Hmmm. Although objectively I see that she was a very good singer, I can’t stand it when she sings. Interesting.

  153. 153.

    Ruckus

    Mems.
    Your link captured the reply button. Not that there is anything you can do about it.
    She sort of looks like my mom. I like that at least her mind is sharp. It’s amazing isn’t it to think how long some people get. I’ve seen 6 months as the limit and as we see, some get well over 100. Saw a picture of a woman who was in her teens – the second time around and she still smoked. Takes all kinds, types and one still never knows what’s going to happen next.

  155. 155.

    chris

    My neighbour, Ruby, moved out a couple of weeks ago to stay with her 74 year old daughter “just for the winter.” She had a hard time getting to the woodshed in the last snow because “the kids” don’t bring in enough wood when they come every single day. (Yes, they do, I’ve seen them.) She’ll be back in the spring she told me. Hope she makes it but she is 102.

    No, before you ask, Ruby would neither ask for help nor accept it when offered. Around here she’s known as hard ol’ rooster.

  156. 156.

    NotMax

    @SiubhanDuinne

    Released the same year, only months after Mary Poppins,

    Full confession: have never seen MP and continue to have a less than zero interest in doing so.

  159. 159.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @NotMax:

    I grew up on all the Mary Poppins books, and I’ve always been a big Julie Andrews fan. But I pretty much hate the movie, though I’ve certainly seen it enough to know all the songs inside-out.

  160. 160.

    NotMax

    Phew. Just transferred the contents of a 25 pound sack of flour into the two storage containers which together are enough to hold all of it.

    Even with laying down newspaper, it still manages to spread out enough to require vacuuming the floor afterward. That’s the quota of manual labor for today.

  162. 162.

    Geoboy

    Back in 1983 I was making a living selling sandwiches, salads and goodies door to door in Beverly Hills and West Hollywood. Started at 6:30 in the morning, went until 2, exhausting work, hauling the cooler full of meals over one shoulder and the huge basket of goodies in the other hand. Not many people could be bothered to help with doors, which were especially tricky. One morning I was leaving one of the talent agencies when somebody said “Here, let me get that” and held the door for me. I looked up and was staring right in Dick van Dyke’s smiling face. I’ve always liked and admired that guy – he was a real gentleman.

  163. 163.

    Amir Khalid

    @NotMax:
    You should see it. Dick Van Dyke’s Cockney accent is so hilariously wrong that the British are still not done mocking it.

  167. 167.

    Steeplejack

    The 1951 version of A Christmas Carol with Alastair Sim is coming on TCM at 10:00 p.m. EST. (Can’t remember which one people like. I’m agnostic.)

    Do you working stiffs have tomorrow off, or will it be one of those “We’re allegedly working but nothing will get done” days?

  171. 171.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    @Mnemosyne:

    The cat ends up alive and happy at the end of the movie, if that helps you decide to power through it.

    That helps immensely–thank you!

  172. 172.

    Lady raxterinok

    @SiubhanDuinne: My 2 brothers spent most of a movie theater showing of Dorothy and the Wizard of Oz under the theater seats.

    We saw it in the mid 40s, I think, and they were really too young to be there.

    Totally embarrassed ‘big sister’ me!

  174. 174.

    chris

    @Ruckus: A surprising number of people live very long lives here in southwest Nova Scotia and they’re all pretty tough. Not surprising after the lives they lived.

  177. 177.

    Lady raxterinok

    @Emma: Levenger super expensive, but oh what absolutely gorgeous products!

    Used to send off for their catalog now and then.

  179. 179.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    @germy: thanks! based on @Mnemosyne‘s, @Steeplejack‘s, and @SiubhanDuinne‘s recommendations, I will.

    @Ruviana: so true. I never stop being impressed at just how differently two people can react to the same thing.

    @Steeplejack:

    I’m in the “rewatching it now might put that to bed” camp.

    I believe you’re right, and that tomorrow’s a good day for it.

    Thanks, everyone, both for the recos and the knowledge that I’m not the only one.

  181. 181.

    Mnemosyne

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    You might not hate the new movie if you get stuck seeing it with a friend or relative when it’s on DVD. Blunt definitely uses some of the book character’s qualities to make the role her own.

    And they fixed/updated some of the things that bug me about the original, like making the mother give up her suffragette work in order to have the happy ending. In this one, the grown-up daughter (played by Emily Mortimer) is politically active and it’s one of the reasons Jack (Lin-Manuel Miranda) is attracted to her.

    Here’s Dick Van Dyke with his barbershop quartet this summer at a tribute to the Sherman Brothers:

    https://youtu.be/dGKPzq0VlZA

    @Steeplejack:

    I have the day off, though I need to do some last-minute running around.

  182. 182.

    thalarctosMaritimus

    If any FPer is around and can release my comment from moderation, I would appreciate it!

    I forgot that linking to people’s names to thank them counted against the link limit.

  184. 184.

    Mnemosyne

    @Steeplejack:

    Just turned it on. We recently watched one that was made in the early 1930s in England and was one of the first sound versions. It was pretty good, though compressed. The star was a guy who was famous for playing Scrooge on the stage.

    Sim is still the definitive Scrooge, though.

  185. 185.

    NotMax

    @Mnemosyne

    Seymour Hicks. That version does have some things to be said for it, particularly including many scenes most true to the original story.

    Also a scrawny, underfed Bob Cratchit, more in fitting with his finances and family size than in other versions. Too, AFAIK, the only film version to show Tiny Tim’s corpse.

    One favorite little blink and you miss it bit is the first time we see the door of Scrooge’s house, Jacob Marley is crossed out on the nameplate and E. Scrooge fit into the remaining space underneath that in a smaller font. Too miserly to spring for a new nameplate or pay for his full name to be etched.

  186. 186.

    PJ

    @zhena gogolia: Second greatest movie ever: Paddington

    ETA: Am I kidding? Maybe a little. But it and its sequel are stone-cold comedy classics, and I think because they are kids’ movies they haven’t gotten the respect they deserve.

  187. 187.

    Steeplejack

    @PJ:

    I have wondered about Paddington—whether I should check it out—because Paddington 2 was so good. But I wondered whether the second one was just a glorious accident and I would be disappointed by the first one. So now I’ll check it out.

  188. 188.

    Matt McIrvin

    What I’m afraid of is that Trump will indeed get much, much worse but he’ll bring 40+% of the country along with him, entrained in his wake. They’ve hung on so far.

  189. 189.

    Ruckus

    @Matt McIrvin:
    They just need permission to start not liking him. Remember they are followers, and they follow people who are not in any way leaders. Most people will stop following someone who wouldn’t know a leader from lederhosen. Numbnuts followers need permission to leave. Give them that and they will flock away in droves. Which is why the republican party sucks up to numbnuts, first they aren’t any better and second they are afraid that their support will leave as well. Some of it will.

  190. 190.

    zhena gogolia

    @PJ:

    We still haven’t seen Paddington. But we thought Paddington 2 was just superb. So many great actors — Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Brendan Gleeson, Jim Broadbent, etc.

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