Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Imperialist aggressors must be defeated, or the whole world loses.

You’re just a puppy masquerading as an old coot.

When tyranny becomes law, rebellion becomes duty. ~Thomas Jefferson

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

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

Cancel the cowardly Times and Post and set up an equivalent monthly donation to ProPublica.

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

There are more Russians standing up to Putin than Republicans.

Compromise? There is no middle ground between a firefighter and an arsonist.

Let there be snark.

I swear, each month of 2025 will have its own history degree.

The cruelty is the point; the law be damned.

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

The low info voters probably won’t even notice or remember by their next lap around the goldfish bowl.

If you thought you’d already seen people saying the stupidest things possible on the internet, prepare yourselves.

Let me file that under fuck it.

There is no right way to do the wrong thing.

Baby steps, because the Republican Party is full of angry babies.

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

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

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

The gop is a fucking disgrace.

Yeah, with this crowd one never knows.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Pandemic After a Year

Reader Interactions

148Comments

  7. 7.

    MisterForkbeard

    So this might seem a little out of the box, but hear me out:

    Mohawk, John. Mohawk.

  8. 8.

    sab

    Calm down. You still have a full head of hair, and your cat and your dogs love you.

    My last litle girl cat needs flea treatment and she is not having it. Her prior recalcitrance is why we are going through round two. I don’t know how to apply it without somebody being hospitalized. Hopefully the cat.

    ETA: my step-sons in their thirties would kill to have your beard.

  10. 10.

    Ken

    @SalterWobchak: For me, it’s vaccination 1, vaccination 2, two weeks at least of letting my immune system do… stuff*, haircut.  Don’t know where “new president” falls in that, but given the slowness of the rollout, most likely before vaccination 1.

    * Hey, don’t look at me, it’s not my field, and even people in the field don’t know everything about how the immune system works.

  12. 12.

    Benw

    I want a new vaccine, one that won’t make me sick…

    I want a new barber, one that won’t hurt my head…

    I want a new President, one that does what it should…

  13. 13.

    NotMax

    After 25+ years of service, the little handle on the ‘permanent’ coffee filter broke.

    Shoddy construction, I tells ya. (I kid, I kid.)

    /first world micro-problem

  15. 15.

    Roger Moore

    @Ken:

    even people in the field don’t know everything about how the immune system works.

    It’s a little better than you make it out to be.  I am not an immunologist, but I have worked around immunologists and listened to their seminars for 20+ years, so I have a decent understanding of this stuff.  We have a solid understanding of the basics of immunology, so that we really do know the gist of how vaccines function.  The stuff we really don’t know about is the details of how immunity is regulated, e.g. why your immune system sometimes overreacts and starts attacking your own body.

  17. 17.

    kindness

    You don’t look the same as the younger guy sitting on a tank.  Well, I’m glad you are no longer playing with tanks for a living.

  18. 18.

    Barbara

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Yeah, I wondered how long it would take after its name appeared in press stories about her involvement.  Oops.

    ETA: If she really didn’t tell her firm about this, that’s a big no no.  If you are appearing in a professional capacity in any way you need to tell them.  For one thing, even if you aren’t representing a party, it can still be a conflict.  Any professional legal activity of any kind has to be squared with the employer/partnership.

  21. 21.

    Kelly

    Vaccination then a vacation. Christmas 2019 Mrs Kelly and I decided we have too much stuff and future Christmas, birthday and anniversary present would be travel. This was not an effective plan for 2020. We did get a week on the Oregon Coast after we evacuated from the fires but it just wasn’t as relaxing as past Coast stays.

  23. 23.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    I’m not sure how long I’ll wait after being vaccinated. I’ll probably still be wearing a mask and minimizing outside contact, because I’d feel damned stupid if I took all these elaborate precautions for over a year and then died right as I’m coming out of lockdown.

    I guess it’s sort of a Sunk Cost Fallacy. I don’t want to waste all this locking-down I’ve invested.

    Meanwhile, my hair (approaching the 1 year mark since scissors last touched it) is back in a ponytail. The ladies love it (meaning the one lady who sits across the breakfast table from me). My daughters would probably hate it, as they did last time I had one 20 years ago. I’m neutral, but probably going to chop it off when I feel like doing low-priority errands like that again.

  26. 26.

    sab

    My last name ( married) has three standard pronunciations, only two of which are correct. It ends with a gh. Being German, you can’t ignore it or cough gently, as in Scottish names.

    The gh is either pronounced as  k, or as an f ( like  mishandling welsh  Lleweylyn.)

    The third way, where they pretend the gh is silent, is just nuts.

  29. 29.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @NotMax: First week, the coffee grinder broke. Just wouldn’t turn on.

    Ordered a new one, a hand grinder. Figured it would be more reliable since it had not electrical parts to break. Also figured it might be kind of fun.

    After about a month of that, I said the hell with beans and started ordering my coffee pre-ground. Still have about a half-pound of beans which are unground and likely to stay that way.

    @Pastafarian: I have a French Press but I’ve fallen in love with the Bialetti (Italian stovetop espresso maker). I make what the Italians call a 6-cup pot (which doesn’t even fill a mug) once or twice a day.

  31. 31.

    cain

    @sab:

    I got some CBD oil for my cats so that I can trim their nails. One of them is just not gonna allow me to do it. Turns into a waltzing ballerina trying to get away.

  32. 32.

    CaseyL

    Hey, I like the beard!  You look distinguished.

    If you shaved off most of it but kept the mustache-and-goatee, that would work, too.

    Vaccination and new President – from your mouth to FSM’s noodly auricle.

  35. 35.

    cain

    If you put on a Scottish brogue you might make an excellent cosplay dwarf at a comic con. :-) Ya look good, ya bum. :D

  36. 36.

    Shakti

    So I’ve been trying to register my parents (who are over 65 and have preexisting conditions) for a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination appointment through the county health department. Site opened at noon, but the link to some Microsoft Office 365 Outlook thing does not work and the phone just keeps hanging up.  But the Pulitzer Prize winning paper that had to cut down to twice weekly publication because of the ‘rona is ON top of updating this story! 

    This is worse than trying to score Hamilton or Super Bowl tickets, fun events with large crowds.  Of course, the socially distanced Super Bowl is going to be in Tampa this year.  My brother, who is in close contact with my parents, is making zero effort to reduce his exposure, save for wearing masks when required. He’s eating out every day, gymming, and going to all the sports ball games he can go to.

     

    Bah.

  38. 38.

    patrick II

    Sorry to be earnest here, but you might consider combining your intellect with some sort of daily exercise.  You don’t seem like the stationary bike kind of guy. Considering your love of animals and location, maybe bird watching?  Anyway, long walks with some goal.  Don’t be like Jared though.

    I’m in a similar spot by the way, but older. I need to get out more, but right now being around other people scares me to death.  I went for a drive Saturday and was witness to an accident, so without thinking I rushed out to make sure everyone was ok.  A crowd gathered, the police came, I gave a witness report — and then realized, Fuck! In the initial excitement when I got out of the car I forgot to put on my mask!  So I am sitting here all paranoid as hell. And the fucking president is betraying democracy.

    Sorry for the language.

  41. 41.

    Gin & Tonic

    Boy this thing is just great ” In addition to being filed on behalf of Plaintiffs without standing and (at least as to the state Defendants) in the wrong court and with no effort to even serve their adversaries, the suit rests on a fundamental and obvious misreading of the Constitution. “

  42. 42.

    Ohio Mom

    I think you look fine, John Cole. Your hair and beard look just right to me.

    The window light coming out of the middle of the top of your head looks a little goofy though.

  43. 43.

    Ksmiami

    No matter when I get vaccinated, I’m gonna do the Hong Kong thing and wear a mask but I’m definitely gonna jump on a plane to Hawaii and just decompress for 10 days

  44. 44.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym:

    I’m not sure how long I’ll wait after being vaccinated. I’ll probably still be wearing a mask and minimizing outside contact, because I’d feel damned stupid if I took all these elaborate precautions for over a year and then died right as I’m coming out of lockdown.

    I feel the same way, OTOH, I’m jonesing to travel. I’m wondering if masks will become if not the norm at least common, on planes for instances.

  45. 45.

    NotMax

    @Dorothy A. Winsor

    Mobile mechanic called in just prior to Xmas for that pesky tire problem on landlady’s car brought along a few of his youngish children the first day he showed up. As they were leaving, the kids rolled down the windows of his vehicle and while waving shouted to me, in unison, “Bye, Santa!”

    (Actually, had spontaneously trimmed the beard way back from mega Santa length around Thanksgiving.)

  46. 46.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    ETA:   @patrick II:  Sorry to be earnest here, but you might consider combining your intellect with some sort of daily exercise.

    I weighed myself for the first time since March on NY’s Day, and … Oh boy. I’m gonna have to break up with carbs for a while.

    Oh, Potatoes, Potatoes, wherefore art thou starchy?

  48. 48.

    germy

    @WaterGirl:

    thank you for the link

    So far, it sounds like what I predicted:

    “Every vote will count.  The system works.”

    It sounds like he’s begging republicans to turn out and vote.

    I wonder if he’ll be taking questions.

  49. 49.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @Gin & Tonic: I don’t speak lawyer but that was a pretty good read. I like the tantalizing teaser at the end:

    “Courts are not instruments through which parties engage in such gamesmanship or symbolic political gestures. As a result, at the conclusion of this litigation, the Court will determine whether to issue an order to show cause why this matter should not be referred to its Committee on Grievances for potential discipline of Plaintiffs’ counsel.”

    Oh please, oh please, oh please.

  52. 52.

    SiubhanDuinne

    @Gin & Tonic:
    I also don’t want to see the word “risible” anywhere in the opinion.

    (“ It would be risible were its target not so grave: the undermining of a democratic election for President of the United States.”)

  54. 54.

    NotMax

    @Roger Moore

    “How can you tell when it’s ready?”

    “Pour out a test cup. If you can clearly see your reflection in the sheen of oil on top, it’s done.”

    :)

  55. 55.

    citizen dave (aka mad citizen)

    @Ohio Mom: “The window light coming out of the middle of the top of your head looks a little goofy though.”

    I think that is just the start of his halo.

    I am watching the GA SOS.  Seems like he’s just telling people (republicans) to vote (so far).  Now mentioning a Zamboni and Rudy

    He’s explaining some video that the trumpers seem to be using.  It sounds like someone explaining how the sky is blue (reality).

  56. 56.

    Gin & Tonic

    @SiubhanDuinne:  “Plaintiffs’ theory that all of these laws are unconstitutional and that the Court should instead require state legislatures themselves to certify every Presidential election lies somewhere between a willful misreading of the Constitution and fantasy.”

  57. 57.

    WaterGirl

    Is it wrong that I think this secretary of state press conference is Republicans trying to get the other republican voters to turn out even when they have been told to protest the vote.

  58. 58.

    germy

    Cleta Mitchell:

    She married Duane Draper, a fellow Oklahoman from Norman, in 1973. In 1980, Draper moved to Massachusetts to take a teaching fellowship at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. The couple divorced two years later in July 1982 on grounds of “incompatibility.” Draper later came out as a gay man and became director of AIDS programming at the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.

    In 1984, Cleta Deatherage married Dale Mitchell.  In the early 1980s, the FBI began investigating Dale Mitchell for banking malpractice, and in 1992 he was convicted of five felony counts of conspiracy to defraud, misapplying bank funds and making false statements to banks, and ordered to pay $3 million in restitution; His conviction on one count was reversed on appeal and the amount of restitution reduced. According to Mitchell, his conviction convinced her that “overreaching government regulation is one of the great scandals of our times”.

    (wikipedia)

  59. 59.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Punchy: Did they not know Cleta was a whackadoodle? I knew that, I’ve known it for so long that I can’t even remember why I know it. I’m guessing she was a talking head in the days of the Great Clenis Hunt.

  60. 60.

    Soprano2

    Listening to someone on “Here and Now” making excuses for what Trump did on Saturday – “If he believes the votes are fraudulent, that might be his defense”. That would never pass for an average person, it makes me so crazy the way they make excuses for the horrible things he does over and over and over again.

  61. 61.

    Brachiator

    @Ksmiami:

    No matter when I get vaccinated, I’m gonna do the Hong Kong thing and wear a mask but I’m definitely gonna jump on a plane to Hawaii and just decompress for 10 days

    Do we just get the jabs and are ready to go, or do we need to wait until a critical mass of the population has been vaccinated?

    Also, I am in Los Angeles County and have been hunkering down hard as the infection rips through the area.

    And I dread falling ill just as I get close to my vaccination date.

  63. 63.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @WaterGirl: Yeah, I started to type a comment to that effect but deleted it. Technically he’s saying “everybody should vote” but he’s specifically saying “Republicans who are having doubts based on Trump’s statements should vote”.

    I’m glad I’m not the only one who felt like this was a partisan GOTV statement.

  64. 64.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @WaterGirl: invoking John Lewis to tell people who believe in voter fraud (that he just told them five times didn’t happen) that the solution (to the voter fraud that didn’t happen) is to turn out to vote to stop the people they delusionally think stole an election was… interesting

    ETA: FTR for those not listening, he didn’t name Lewis, but referred to those who have suffered and died for the right to vote

    ETA,A: people who suffered and died at the hands of the political ancestors of the people whining that the election was stolen because their votes didn’t count more than Those People’s

  69. 69.

    Gravenstone

    @CaseyL: If you shaved off most of it…

    But first, get yourself a nice sunburn immediately prior to shaving. The contrast is amazing! (yes, an exceedingly pale friend of mine did just this in college. it was epic)

  70. 70.

    Another Scott

    @Gin & Tonic: Thanks for the pointer.

    It is not a stretch to find a serious lack of good faith here.

    […]

    Yet even that may be letting Plaintiffs off the hook too lightly. Their failure to make any effort to serve or formally notify any Defendant — even after reminder by the Court in its Minute Order — renders it difficult to believe that the suit is meant seriously. Courts are not instruments through which parties engage in such gamesmanship or symbolic political gestures. As a result, at the conclusion of this litigation, the Court will determine whether to issue an order to show cause why this matter should not be referred to its Committee on Grievances for potential discipline of Plaintiffs’ counsel.

    Good, good.

    There have to be consequences for all of this bad-faith behavior or it will keep happening and keep causing damage.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  72. 72.

    CliosFanBoy

    Anyone else watch “The Watch” on BBC American Sunday night. I love the Discworld books, but thought this series was a hot mess.

  73. 73.

    catclub

    @eclare: I just put it in a ponytail.

     

    how does that work when the cat walks over it during the night? you don’t have a cat that walks over your hair at night? lucky you.

  74. 74.

    Elizabelle

    @germy:

    “And yet he persists.”

    Trump.  In lying.

    I just wish this guy hadn’t done the preamble that — if you think your vote was stolen, come out and vote!  I say no!  If you’re that much of a dumbass — stay home!  Let the bright people vote.

    Also all the language about the fight for the vote.  That …  kinda applies to the “cheaters” whose votes Trump does not want counted, no not at all.

    This guy needs to slow his delivery.

  77. 77.

    Elizabelle

    Mostly, you can tell how sick this guy is of Trump and his “legal” team and their shenanigans and lies.

    ETA:  Also, no doubt he’s had to make similar presentations to the GOP state government imbeciles.

  79. 79.

    citizen dave (aka mad citizen)

    @germy: Yes!  He just said “I’ve got such a long list”

    You get the feeling if we let him talk for an hour or more he’ll be raving and drooling* by the end of it.

    Pink Floyd Animals reference (original title to one of those tunes).

  80. 80.

    NotMax

    @CliosFanBoy

    Pre-broadcast word of mouth was brutal, especially about how far it deviated from (as in trod over with depleted uranium cleats) the source material.

  85. 85.

    japa21

    OT, but WG mentioned that some people were wondering how I was doing. Well,  first the good news.  It appears the rapid result test on Wednesday produced a false positive.  They always do a second look and on Thursday that showed up as negative.  I am trying to find out if I should get another test or not.

    I would have found this out on Thursday if the result had been loaded into the system properly.

    I am still dealing with viral pneumonia which is a PITA, but better that than the other.  Also helps explain why Mrs Japa is not experiencing any symptoms.

    Thanks for the concern.

  86. 86.

    Elizabelle

    Naming names!  Sneering at something “the founder of Overstock.com” came up with.

    Another conspiracy theory flying monkey.  Who got entangled with a Russian spy — was it that Maria B… whatever, the gun toting honey pot??

  88. 88.

    ballerat

    Fyi, something on the BJ home page causes my browser in my iPhone to continually reload. This does with Chrome, Safari and Duckduckgo.

    I’m leaving this here in this thread as this currently the top-most post on the site main page and is the only post I can get to before the site reloads again.

    Once I am in the posted thread it seems to function normally.

    Update: I can navigate to downstairs threads via the arrows at the bottom of the post and those threads works normally too. Must be something in the main page.

  89. 89.

    CliosFanBoy

    @NotMax: I saw that but decided to give it a chance.  Um, no.  Just no. It made little sense even on its own terms, let alone if you read the source books.

  91. 91.

    Salty Sam

    @Pastafarian: Two words: French Press. We switched 15 yrs ago.

    French Press is good, Aeropress is better.  I’ve been a coffee snob for decades, even ran the roaster at a local coffee place, and the Aeropress consistently makes the best cuppa ever.   Much easier to clean up than a French press too.

  93. 93.

    Roger Moore

    @Pastafarian:

    I’m personally an Aeropress person, though I used to use a Chemex.  French press is OK if you’re going to drink your coffee promptly, but it leaves fines in the liquid which tend to make it get bitter if it sits for very long.  Paper filters are better for that, though some very fine metal filters can also work.

  95. 95.

    Sister Golden Bear

    Santa Cole and the the district court opinion definitely brightened an otherwise dreary morning.

    In other news, my freelance project wrapped up, ending what little income I had coming in. Plus I did the math and the last check from the client will pretty all do to paying the estimated taxes due on the 15th.

    Thankfully, I’ve got retirement savings I can dip into, but I really hope the job market unfreezes. There are a lot of job postings for contract positions that are a lot more junior, but not much at my level. (If you know anyone looking for a user experience/product designer with 20+ years experience, feel free to email me.)

    The especially frustrating thing is I’ve gotten to a couple final round interviews that seemed to go really well — but I didn’t get the job. In at least one case I could see why (didn’t have some specific experience they wanted). But the others… not sure if it’s something I’m doing, or whether in video interviews they figure out that I’m trans, and/or that I’m order. (Ageism is a huge problem in Silicon Valley.) This is honestly my worse nightmare come true — losing my job and potentially never working in the field again. Especially when I’m still 5-1/2 years from being able to take early retirement, which isn’t something I wanted to do anyway, given the hit I’ll take on Social Security payments.)

    Sorry to vent. It’s just feeling like a bleak new year right now.

  97. 97.

    Elizabelle

    This guy is really really begging Republicans to come out and vote “so that your values will be represented.” It just sounds so off.

  101. 101.

    Faithful Lurker

    I’m seeing rumors, reports and gossip that the airport closest to Turnberry Golf Club in Scotland has been told to be prepared for a military type aircraft arriving on Jan 19.  Apparently, this is what happens before trump shows up. So, is he fleeing to Scotland in order to avoid the Inauguration? That’s so weird that I have trouble believing it. There are several problems, One, Scotland is in a stage 4 lockdown. Everybody is ordered to stay in their houses and only 2 people can gather outdoors at a time. Second, if he gets there on the 19th, at 12 noon on the 20th, he can no longer command a ride on Air Force 1 or any other presidential plane w/o Biden’s approval. Is he going to pay his own way back to the U.S.? Third, the airport is shut! and won’t reopen until maybe the end of January.

    Any thoughts?

    Sorry if this has already come up.

  102. 102.

    Just One More Canuck

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: Being a whackadoodle is definitely no impediment to being a partner in a law firm, as I’m sure the legal beagles here can attest. In some cases, it might help attract clients whose relationship with reality in tenuous.

  103. 103.

    patrick II

    @Faithful Lurker: 

    Is he going to pay his own way back to the U.S.?

    Do you think he’s coming back?

  104. 104.

    mali muso

    @Sister Golden Bear: Nothing productive to add in the way of advice or job leads, but just wanted to say that I’m thinking of you and sending positive thoughts and vibes into the universe.

  105. 105.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @Faithful Lurker: I saw that story flying around a couple of weeks ago, and checked to see if Martyn McLaughlin at The Scotsman– who’s been like a bulldog on trump’s dealings in Scotland– and didn’t see anything. But when I googled to double check his name, I see a story about this very topic one day ago at an outlet called “The Sunday Post”. I’ve never heard of that outlet, so I didn’t click on it.
    I doubt trump will go to Scotland in January.

  106. 106.

    citizen dave (aka mad citizen)

    @Faithful Lurker: It came up this morning but you’re like me, sometimes posting at the end of threads about to die.  Re-post in the new thread and you may get more responses.

  108. 108.

    Another Scott

    @Elizabelle:

    Oh, Lord, I just realized that the ass-kicking he's getting at this press conference is going to guarantee that the president* goes vastly off his nut tonight.

    — Charles P. Pierce (@CharlesPPierce) January 4, 2021

    Normally I’d say “ohpleaseohplease”, but …

    Fight for every vote!!

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  109. 109.

    JAFD

    Hello, Mr. Cole !

    I’d suggest you let your beard grow a bit longer.  Then appear at the Civil War reenactment, and (especially with the wire-rim glasses) you’ll get immediate promotion to brigader-general.

    Even wearing your blue shirt for the photo, you are !

    Seriously, thanks for all you do for us jackals.  Stay healthy, happy and hydrated, and have a great 2021 !

  110. 110.

    NotMax

    @Roger Moore

    Quite enamored of the Technivorm I saved up for and then splurged on a couple of years ago. Have come to fully understand and appreciate what people refer to as the “bloom” of well-brewed java.

    Although that nagging little voice inside saying “You laid out how much for a goddam coffee maker?” still makes itself heard from time to time.

  111. 111.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @NeenerNeener: there was another story a few months ago, very plausible IMHO, that a group “led by Donald Trump Jr” looking to buy OANN. I was genuinely surprised that story died, since I’ve always assumed setting up some personal media cash (and attention) cow (with Russian funding) was trump’s goal all along, from 2015 on.

  113. 113.

    Brachiator

    @Sister Golden Bear:

    Talk to your tax person if you have one.  You may be able to defer some of your Self-employment tax to next year, if this helps your situation and applies. This will be part of Schedule SE, Part III for 2020.

  114. 114.

    wvblueguy

    Looking at the picture of John Cole and the frustrated look he is displaying I feel compelled to mention something important for West Virginia Veterans in the VA system  (hopefully including  John Cole)…  Our Senator Joe Manchin  was extremely unhappy with the first release of vaccine to VA Hospitals as none was scheduled for what were identified as “Rural Hospitals.”  West Virginia’s VA Hospitals were considered  “Rural.”  His displeasure led to a Press Release by Senator Manchin before Christmas that the Moderna Vaccine was in the process of being shipped to all 4 VA Hospitals in the State of West Virginia. He got an agreement with the CDC to provide enough of same for every veteran registered with the VA in the state. There has been a lot of confusion (SNAFU) as to when Veterans would be able to receive the vaccine or how they can get on the list.  As a high risk and elderly Veteran I have been checking on the progress of this promise with the VA Hospital in Beckley.  I did contact my Dr/Provider at using the VA’s Secure Messaging System and that action resulted in her putting me on the list to receive the Vaccine.  I was also told last Thursday (New Years Eve) while at an appointment that the Moderna Vaccine has started arriving at the Hospital and that Front Line folks were being vaccinated.  If we all get the vaccine in the near future this could go down as a real success by Senator Manchin. If you are in the West Virginia VA system I suggest contacting your clinic at the VA to determine how you can get the vaccine.  I am still waiting for a phone call.

  116. 116.

    WaterGirl

    @japa21: Should you get another test?  Absolutely yes!  For you, for Mrs. Japa, and for everyone around you.

    Sounds like your pneumonia is not getting worse?  That’s good.

  121. 121.

    J R in WV

    @japa21:

    So glad to hear this news, mixed but better that it could be. I think many of us were concerned. Please do keep in touch going forward.

  123. 123.

    Roger Moore

    @sab:

    “Real coffee” is what they serve in Ethiopian restaurants.  Everything else is fancy schmancy stuff made by people too good to drink it the way they do in Kaffa.

  124. 124.

    Another Scott

    @Roger Moore: Too lazy to check right now, but my recollection is that the colonists (?) would boil coffee beans and eat them, throwing out the liquid.

    My brother came close to doing that when he was young – he would eat Folger’s Crystals out of the jar with a spoon…

    Cheers,
    Scott.
    (“Who is a tea drinker.”)

  129. 129.

    germy

    BREAKING: New York has confirmed the first case of the Covid-19 variant, @NYGovCuomo says.

    A man in his 60s in Saratoga County who had not traveled.

    The case was confirmed by Wadsworth Lab in Albany.

    — Luis Ferré-Sadurní (@luisferre) January 4, 2021

  132. 132.

    Kattails

    @Another Scott: We absolutely need the legal system to do some serious introspection and house cleaning after the last few years. I know, pigs/wings.

    But who is in charge of this? If enough citizens wrote to their own state AG’s saying I have lost faith in the entire judicial system for thus and such reasons– The courts have not been happy with the goings-on.  Some positive reinforcement? Just trying to hold on to a shred of my innocence here.

  133. 133.

    Roger Moore

    @Another Scott:

    Too lazy to check right now, but my recollection is that the colonists (?) would boil coffee beans and eat them, throwing out the liquid.

    I sincerely doubt that.  Coffee was an expensive import, and the people who imported it brought expertise in how to prepare it.  Early coffee drinking in Western Europe mostly happened at coffee houses rather than in the home, so it was prepared by professionals.

    What I have heard is that they believe that the first “coffee” drink was a tea-like beverage made from the leaves of the coffee tree, not from the seeds.  The whole plant contains caffeine, so a tisane made from the leaves would still be a stimulant.  IIRC, some people in Ethiopia still make a beverage like that.

  138. 138.

    Roger Moore

    @Elizabelle: 
    Tastes change. Lobster was apparently considered substandard food for a long time, to the point it was served in prisons. Similarly, I’ve read that many of the popular, and now expensive, cuts used in barbecue were originally chosen because they were the cheap left-overs. The same thing with chicken wings. They used to be an annoying left-over with too little meat. Then people in Buffalo invented the spicy wing, and now people are making “boneless wings” out of breast meat because there aren’t enough wings to meet demand.

  141. 141.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    You look exactly the same as the last selfie you posted. Maybe you’re part Irish Setter?

  143. 143.

    ballerat

    @WaterGirl: It’s happened twice. This time, and a few months ago.

    It’s no longer happening. I don’t know when it stopped exactly, I left BJ shortly after my first comment and came back later, maybe 30 min ago? and read some other threads. Remembered to check my comment to see if anyone responded and to note the reload thing has stopped.

    I haven’t updated or changed anything on my end since.

    Thanks for responding, intermittent stuff is hard to run down. But I suspect it’s some 3-rd party content that is doing it.

  144. 144.

    jonas

    The beard and hair may need a little trim-up, but you’re still rocking the stylish eyewear!

  145. 145.

    jonas

    @Gin & Tonic: It’s after this graf that you really need a cigarette:

    Yet even that may be letting Plaintiffs off the hook too lightly. Their failure to make any effort to serve or formally notify any Defendant—even after reminder by the Court in its Minute Order—renders it difficult to believe that the suit is meant seriously. Courts are not instruments through which parties engage in such gamesmanship or symbolic political gestures.As a result, at the conclusion of this litigation, the Court will determine whether to issue an order to show cause why this matter should not be referred to its Committee on Grievances for potential discipline of Plaintiffs’ counsel

  147. 147.

    bluefish

    Cole,
    You are one of my several but elegantly curated imaginary boyfriends. You look great.
    Plus… Walter! Love! Plus yr house. Love. Plus in love since W days.
    Didn’t write you sooner to say LOVE cuz I thought you’d reject me in a fit.
    Are you kidding me? You know what makes a man, a woman, an animal, a vegetable, or a mineral sexy?
    You, baby, you.
    Post pictures. Keep us alive, and infinite thanks to all of yr colleagues and front pagers. The best. For years, the best.
    Call me. Wink.
    Being reclusive and engaged when you can is the way. Scorpio, born in 55.

    What is yr sign? Love you. THANK YOU!

    Plus

  148. 148.

    bluefish

    Of course, I forgot to add love to those who post here. I sleep in random ways. Not much in any regular way for years now. Thanks to all for keeping me alive. Plus, what is yr sign, and can I buy you a drink? Hubba.

    We have a lotta work to do so let us get down to it. Still trying to figure out Baud.

    Forgive a tipsy lurker. Or don’t. But do. Love you all so much.

Comments are closed.