Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

Wow, I can’t imagine what it was like to comment in morse code.

SCOTUS: It’s not “bribery” unless it comes from the Bribery region of France. Otherwise, it’s merely “sparkling malfeasance”.

Relentless negativity is not a sign that you are more realistic.

Historically it was a little unusual for the president to be an incoherent babbling moron.

FFS people, this was a good thing. take the win.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Everyone is in a bubble, but some bubbles model reality far better than others!

You are so fucked. Still, I wish you the best of luck.

The line between political reporting and fan fiction continues to blur.

They love authoritarianism, but only when they get to be the authoritarians.

“In the future, this lab will be a museum. don’t touch it.”

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

Why is it so hard for them to condemn hate?

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

Republicans firmly believe having an abortion is a very personal, very private decision between a woman and J.D. Vance.

Books are my comfort food!

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

A thin legal pretext to veneer over their personal religious and political desires.

Chutkan laughs. Lauro sits back down.

Nothing says ‘pro-life’ like letting children go hungry.

Be a traveling stable for those who can’t find room at the inn.

You are here: Home / Nature & Respite / Respite Open Thread: Sisters!

Respite Open Thread: Sisters!

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The bears wrestling is great, but the end is hilarious.

Duck update: Surprise, surprise. I believe Penelope/Pearl is laying eggs. It’s been a process of elimination – Maddie and Mabel only lay one egg a day and I’ve been finding random soft or broken eggs in the yard after collecting my normal two eggs.

Way too young and the eggs are soft or broken upon production because of it. I wasn’t expecting them until end of summer, but researching it looks like because she’s getting a layer diet (because I have no way of feeding her separately) she’s laying early. ???

Her egg laying should mature over the summer and produce viable eggs.

Always a learning experience…

Respite open thread.

Reader Interactions

53Comments

  1. 1.

    TaMara (HFG)

    FYI, the Wild Animal Sanctuary is about 45 minutes from my area. They rescue animals that are former pets (the tigers are heartbreaking), circus animals or other illegal or abusive situations – I believe those Grizzlies are from Russia circus.

  2. 2.

    kindness

    Have you thought about adding a male (drake?) and get ducklings? Yea, that is a whole ‘nother hill. Do male ducks act differently than females? I would imagine.

  4. 4.

    TaMara (HFG)

    @kindness: Ummm…no. I do not need more ducks. Or dogs. Or cats. (or gerbils, rats, hamsters, lizards, chinchillas…you get the idea, LOL)

    ETA: I’ve only had one drake and he thought he was a Great Dane, so I’m not sure about behavior of normal ones.

  8. 8.

    wmd

    Supplemental calcium in the form of oyster shell flakes can accelerate egg shell hardness.

  9. 9.

    MagdaInBlack

    @TaMara (HFG):
    I think we once discussed the numerical tipping point at which ducks change from fun pets to annoying as hell ?
    And drakes are aggressive and will sometimes kill newly hatched ducklings.
    As always, I love your duck updates.?

  10. 10.

    MagdaInBlack

    @wmd:
    And also, since she’s young, will make sure her bones aren’t losing calcium to shell production

  11. 11.

    wmd

    @kindness: Male ducks can be assholes. When I had Muscovy ducks the males would rape my chickens. They’d team up to herd them behind the coop. Chicken egg fertilization doesn’t involve penetration (roosters don’t have penises – that’s right cocks don’t have cocks), but ducks penetrate them; when I’d observe this phenomenon the hens seemed in great distress (and I’d try to break it up, but ducks have rather unique genital topology so that was problematic). Both male ducks eventually died – one to a raccoon, the other to old age. I’ve not had ducks since.

  12. 12.

    opiejeanne

    @wmd: Great idea. That’s what we used for our chickens when they laid a few soft-shell eggs.

  14. 14.

    MagdaInBlack

    @MagdaInBlack:

    Eta: Altho….I’ve never seen ducks eat oyster shell, I’ve usually added supplement to their feed.
    Not saying they won’t, I just haven’t seen it.

  16. 16.

    NotMax

    @MagdainBlack

    Last time mowed the property, spotted something in the grass, got off the mower to check and discovered half an oyster shell. No idea how or why it got there.

  21. 21.

    Amir Khalid

    @MagdaInBlack:
    I doubt Tamara would consider eating her ducks, any more than Betty Cracker considered eating her hens. It is harder to do once you develop a personal relationship with them.

  22. 22.

    trollhattan

    WWC first matches show France utterly dominant (v. a very suspect Korea) Germany not on their expected form and China willing to foul the utter hell out of a more athletic opponent. Now newcomer S. Africa is leading Spain and looking very feisty.

  23. 23.

    MagdaInBlack

    @Amir Khalid:
    That was part of the discussion of how ones mind turns when there are too many.
    And no, she would not, ever, that’s why I hesitated on the eating them part.
    Probably should have hesitated more, huh? ?

  24. 24.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Amir Khalid:

    What would Tamara do with a whole flock of ducks? Or their output of poop?

    Train the flock to slap around Canadian geese – naturally.

  25. 25.

    Luthe

    As this is an open thread, I have a question for the employed adultier adults in the audience:

    How do I explain in an interview the reason for leaving I put on the application is only part of the story?

    When I applied to the job I am interviewing for, I put “grant funding ended” because the funding for the position had ended the month before I was fired. Now, I will admit I screwed up because I have a tendency to overshare info with my coworkers, but at the same time the company was desperate to get rid of me because they didn’t have money to pay me, so they accused me of a) bullying a coworker (who admitted under questioning it didn’t happen) and b) spreading confidential information (see the oversharing) so they could fire me for cause and avoid paying unemployment (this was a frequent tactic with the company, which had extremely high turnover because of it).

    So now how do I explain in the (second) interview the reason for leaving I listed was accurate but not complete? And is there any way I can warn them my former managers are the types of people who hold grudges? I have separate references who worked with me at the company (one a former manager) who can attest to my virtue, but I know hiring managers often want the scoop from former bosses first.

  26. 26.

    Steeplejack

    @Luthe:

    I think you’re buying trouble. Just leave it at “grant funding ended.” Most companies, even evil ones, aren’t anxious to open themselves to legal peril by dishing dirt on former employees. So they just leave it at: “Yes, person X worked here.”

    Maybe think of this as another example of your tendency to overshare. ?

  30. 30.

    debbie

    @Luthe:

    The company where you applied shared what you said with your current employer? Jeez, I’d rethink working there.

  34. 34.

    jeffreyw

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Mmm… mayo with garlic butter.
    Going on 50 years ago now, I was on R&R in Taipei and went to a seafood restaurant where I ordered a giant lobster from a tank in the lobby. I was practically drooling through the prelim courses thinking about that lobster drenched in drawn butter and how good it would be.
    It came with all the meat mixed into a mayo type sauce. I was all wait! what? I grumbled a bit but managed to eat some.

  35. 35.

    Spanky

    @Luthe: What Steep said, although if there’s a high turnover rate for the listed reasons I would expect your former employer to have a pretty bad rep amongst its peers.

    Also too, if duck poop is like chicken poop, it would make an awesome nitrogen source for compost.

  37. 37.

    Steeplejack

    @debbie:

    The company where you applied shared what you said with your current employer?

    Where are you getting that?! I don’t think Luthe said that at all.

  38. 38.

    debg

    I’ve been to The Wild Animal Sanctuary and it’s utterly delightful. It’s going to become a birthday tradition for me. @TaMara (HFG), thanks for directing me to their Twitter feed.

  40. 40.

    debbie

    @Steeplejack:

    Here:

    so they accused me of … b) spreading confidential information (see the oversharing) so they could fire me for cause and avoid paying unemployment (this was a frequent tactic with the company, which had extremely high turnover because of it).

    If I misunderstood, I apologize.

  41. 41.

    TaMara (HFG)

    I feel like I should answer duck questions. Duck poop is great for the yard, plus they eat the fly larva and cuts way down on the flies one gets when one has large dogs.

    I don’t eat duck, but totally understand what @MagdaInBlack: was saying there. We did have that discussion.

    I am the world’s worst/hypocritical omnivore – if it’s named, I could never eat it. But when I was a kid, we helped my grandfather butcher (unnamed) chickens. And I come from a family of hunters and enjoy game. But, no, if I have to kill it, I’d be vegetarian. I can’t even stand to fish any more.

  43. 43.

    Redshift

    @Luthe: I agree with the previous comments. It’s very difficult to explain bad treatment by a previous employer in a way that doesn’t make them wonder if the problem is really you and you’re making excuses. They’re just meeting you, and they have no way to judge. Better not to plant the seed, especially if they like you enough to bring you in for an interview.

  44. 44.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Luthe: @Steeplejack: I agree with Steep. Many companies (if not most) will go no further than saying someone did work there and what their dates of employment were. More than that and they risk a lawsuit if the former employee doesn’t get the job. In your case, if they say that you overshared, the new employer may conclude that you gave away proprietary information to a rival when all you did was let the cat out of the bag about the surprise party for your boss’s birthday. .

  46. 46.

    Sab

    @Yutsano: I love mayonnaise. The whole point of almost any sandwich is multiple planes on which to spread mayonnaise.

    I would never defile lobster with mayonnaise. Butter!

    My husband loves peanut butter and mayonnaise sandwiches with pickles. On Wonderbread. I can’t even…. On the other hand, he is appalled by hummus, which I think is delicious.

    My brother in law’s cajun wife pronounces it “mynezz””. That’s probably closer to the original French.

  47. 47.

    Omnes Omnibus

    @Yutsano: It’s sad that we need to keep explaining this again and again. It’s almost as if no one is paying any attention. We are Cassandras.

  50. 50.

    debbie

    @Sab:

    I was just yelling at myself for having forgotten to get peanut butter. A mayonnaise sandwich is a lonely sandwich.

    I would never defile lobster with mayonnaise. Butter!”

    On a lobster roll? Grease city!

  51. 51.

    something fabulous

    @Luthe: I love the blog ask a manager! Here is a sample around her suggestions (she’s an HR person), but if you search within her blog, there’s lots more. Job searching is so exhausting, isn’t it? Good luck!

  52. 52.

    Steeplejack

    @debbie:

    That was all internal bullshit within the previous company, being explained to us by Luthe in connection with asking how to handle/​explain it. No mention at all that this was shared (yet) with the new company or that the new company shared it back with the previous company.

    Luthe above:

    How do I explain in an interview the reason for leaving I put on the application is only part of the story? [. . .]

    So now how do I explain in the (second) interview the reason for leaving I listed [“grant funding ended”] was accurate but not complete?

  53. 53.

    Yutsano

    @Another Scott: @NotMax: She does in fact know how to make it. She almost never does. Between eight horses and three grandchildren she almost never has time. One of these days tho.

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