Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

There are consequences to being an arrogant, sullen prick.

This blog will pay for itself.

There are more Russians standing up to Putin than Republicans.

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

When do the post office & the dmv weigh in on the wuhan virus?

Never give a known liar the benefit of the doubt.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

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

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

American History and Black History can not be separated.

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

…and a burning sense of injustice to juice the soul.

Democrats have delivered the Square Deal, the New Deal, the Fair Deal, and now… the Big Joe Biden Deal.

If West Virginia and San Francisco had a love child.

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

How can republicans represent us when they don’t trust women?

Israel is using food as a weapon of war. Unforgivable.

Republican obstruction dressed up as bipartisanship. Again.

… pundit janitors mopping up after the gop

Democrats are back in array!

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

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

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

The rest of the comments were smacking Boebert like she was a piñata.

You are here: Home / John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House" / Greetings from the Retirement Community

Greetings from the Retirement Community

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In the past hour I made pudding, soaked my feet in epsom salt, and took a hot shower to loosen my back, which is what we in the business call the geriatric trifecta.

It’s pistachio pudding, btw, and I am so excited for it.

I made a ginormous bone-in ribeye that I will be eating for three days, and I gave Lily, Rosie, and Steve a lot because THEY’VE BEEN GETTING ALL THE TREATS the past few days.

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82Comments

  4. 4.

    hells littlest angel

    Always nice to have a late-night snack treat that you don’t need to put your teeth in for.

  17. 17.

    laura

    We had a nice dinner and I’m going to cook down some Santa Rosa plums into a jammy sauce for cake filling, crisps and yoghurts. The smell of fruit and cinnamon is really nice. Half way to a summer fruit dessert.

  18. 18.

    Suzanne

    @RandomMonster: That was my first thought.

    I am in a hotel in DC and there is a tornado warning and some crazy-ass rain/flooding. So we are all in the hotel lobby, sheltering away from the windows.

  19. 19.

    J R in WV

    So I bought a fresh loaf of French bread yesterday, which I baked with garlic butter today. I also made chicken salad, and had a fresh tomato which I sliced up. So we ate chewy bread with chicken salad and fresh tomato for dinner, with sparkling white wine. Now we’re having Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey for dessert. Yum.

    I also got some smoked salmon for later, and filet steak also for later. Since we’re talking about food here.

    And TFG is fucked pretty well by his tax records and the resultant indictments. What a bag of dicks. 15 felonies !!! Whee…

  20. 20.

    trollhattan

    Heh. A senior amuse bouche. The main course is far more…interesting.

    Bone-in ribeye will be the name of my Clash tribute band in the home.

  23. 23.

    WaterGirl

    I just ate a peach from the farmer’s market that was so good I had to eat it while holding a bowl underneath to catch the juice.

    On a different subject, I haven’t seen anything on BJ about Nancy Pelosi’s choices for the Jan 6 commission:

    ith her committee picks, Pelosi chose:

    • Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., who will lead the panel
    • Rep. Pete Aguilar, D-Calif.
    • Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo.
    • Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif.
    • Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va.
    • Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla.
    • Rep. Jamie Raskin, D-Md.
    • Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

    I’m not thrilled that she chose Cheney who is fine with all the awful Republican efforts to deny the right to vote and allow legislatures to overturn the will of the voters.  Ugh.

    I have no idea who Bennie Thompson is – does anyone know anything about him?

    Glad about Raskin and Schiff, neutral on Zoe L, but I don’t know the others at all.

  25. 25.

    NotMax

    So old can remember when the ribeye was snubbed as an inferior cut of meat. At a tavern we used to frequent, the ribeye sandwich cost about half what the cheeseburger did.

  26. 26.

    HinTN

    @NotMax:

    the ribeye sandwich cost about half what the cheeseburger did

    That must have been one hell of a cheeseburger.

  29. 29.

    Another Scott

    @WaterGirl: Pelosi’s statement was good:

    Washington, D.C. – Speaker Nancy Pelosi today named her appointments to a bipartisan Select Committee to examine and report upon the facts and causes relating to the terrorist mob attack on the United States Capitol Complex on January 6th, 2021.

    “January 6th was one of the darkest days in our nation’s history, with five people killed, 140 members of law enforcement physically harmed and countless more seriously traumatized,” said Speaker Nancy Pelosi. “It is clear that January 6th was not simply an attack on a building, but an attack on our very democracy: an attack on the peaceful transfer of power. It is imperative that we find the truth of that day and ensure that such an assault on our Capitol and Democracy cannot ever again happen.”

    “It had been our hope to establish a bipartisan, independent National Commission, but there is no prospect for that Commission at this time,” continued Speaker Pelosi. “Yesterday, the House established the Select Committee to Investigate the January 6th Attack on the U.S. Capitol. Today, I am proud to name Members who will patriotically honor our oath and our responsibility to the American people: to seek the truth.”

    The Members of the Committee are:

    * Chair Bennie Thompson: Chair of Homeland Security Committee
    * Chair Zoe Lofgren: Chair of Committee on House Administration
    * Chair Adam Schiff: Chair of House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
    * Rep. Pete Aguilar, House Administration and Appropriations Committees
    * Rep. Liz Cheney, Armed Services Committee
    * Rep. Stephanie Murphy, Armed Services Committee
    *Rep. Jamie Raskin, Oversight and Judiciary Committees
    *Rep. Elaine Luria, Navy veteran, Armed Services and Homeland Security Committees

    The Select Committee on the January 6th Insurrection will investigate and report upon the facts and causes of the terrorist mob attack on the United States Capitol on January 6th, 2021. It will also be charged with reporting its findings, conclusions and recommendations for preventing future attacks. The Committee will be bipartisan, with thirteen members appointed by the Speaker, five of whom will be appointed after consultation with the Minority Leader.

    “As we enter the Fourth of July weekend to observe the birth of our nation, we do so with increased responsibility to honor the vision of our Founders and to defend our American Democracy.”

    McQarthy apparently is saying that his people won’t participate (“or else”). It’s not clear to me whether the 8 are it or whether she’ll appoint 5 more when Qevin says “no”.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  30. 30.

    Nicole

    I’m pretty envious about that pistachio pudding. I like pudding and I like pistachios.

  31. 31.

    HumboldtBlue

    @WaterGirl:

    Bennie Thompson has been in Congress in ’93 and is the chair of the house committee on homeland security, a role he held during the Obama years as well.

    Via Wiki

  32. 32.

    Skepticat

    Wasted half a day going to the big island for a COVID test I need in order to return to the States, then ran all over hell’s half acre helping a friend retrieve guests coming in on the ferry. Did a little packing for Saturday departure, and now I’m watching storm track spaghetti models sneering at me and saying they’re going to rearrange my piles of salvage from Dorian. I’m drinking straight vodka and about to start soaking my feet (and perhaps my head) in epsom salt. Life is good.

  33. 33.

    James E Powell

    @WaterGirl:

    Pelosi chose Cheney to make sure there was at least one Republican because McCarthy is trying to keep Rs off altogether. If he changes his mind and appoints Trumpster Republicans, we’ve got one who isn’t.

  34. 34.

    NotMax

    @HinTN

    Most expensive item was the crab cakes, which as the hours became later came with a side of stinkeye from the waitress (owner/bartender’s wife, also the cook) when ordered, as they were made to order by hand.

  37. 37.

    James E Powell

    @Another Scott:

    Interesting factoid from wikipedia:

    On March 3, 2021, Thompson was the only House Democrat to vote against the For the People Act, a top legislative priority of House Democrats that would reform campaign finance and election laws and expand voting rights. Despite initially cosponsoring the bill, Thompson said his vote “was no accident”, explaining, “My constituents opposed the redistricting portion of the bill as well as the section on public finances. I always listen and vote in the interest of my constituents.”

    Doesn’t matter for the Jan 6 committee, probably doesn’t matter at all, but I thought it was interesting.

  38. 38.

    Ken

    @Another Scott: It’s not clear to me whether the 8 are it or whether she’ll appoint 5 more when Qevin says “no”.

    As I understand it, the rules say that she appoints all 13 members after consultation with the minority leader.  If that consultation consists of “Are you going to name anyone?” “No”, she can name five more Democrats.

    (Actually, and again as I understand it, she can name five more Democrats even if he gives her five names, but that might drive some members of the press to their fainting couches.)

  39. 39.

    Skepticat

    @O. Felix Culpa: I believe Nancy has veto power over any of Kevin McQ’s appointments, so she can keep the most noxious troublemakers out.

    Oh, please, lawd, I hope so.

  40. 40.

    Betty

    Sounds like a good committee, but I really wish Raskin was chair. He is so good. Don’t know much about Thompson. Hope they can expose the truth, especially with regard to elected officials.

  42. 42.

    Caphilldcne

    @Suzanne: that was a heck of a storm. Rain pretty much flying sideways for a bit. Seems calm now and I welcome 70 degree temps

    Welcome to DC!

  43. 43.

    Rob

    @Caphilldcne: ​  I’m in Silver Spring/Takoma Park just north of the DC line and all we had was a lot of thunder and a half-inch of rain. I did have my eye on the tornado warnings though. I’m glad you and Suzanne are safe​

    eta: Welcome to DC! May the rest of your stay be calmer

  48. 48.

    Caphilldcne

    @Rob: thanks Rob!  My neighbor’s cat Jackpot hit the deck and crawled under the couch as soon as the alarms went off. He’s feisty and loves to bloody me up so I knew to take it seriously.

  49. 49.

    Caphilldcne

    @Suzanne: it’s pretty unusual here too tho we do get thunderstorms. I appreciate not having to water but it looks like I lost one of my pepper plants.

  55. 55.

    Villago Delenda Est

    @Ken: but that might drive some members of the press to their fainting couches.

    The vermin of the Village can all go fuck off.

  56. 56.

    H.E.Wolf

    Bennie Thompson’s bio: https://benniethompson.house.gov/about

    Among other things, Rep. Thompson is one of the African-American Committee Chairpersons in the current US House… so it’s unlikely he’ll have much common cause with white supremacists.​​

    ETA: Gorram those data mice, they messed up the link.

    ETA2: the mice are not to blame for my misspelling (now corrected).

  57. 57.

    Caphilldcne

    @What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?: I think I might be signed up for warnings?  My phone went off with alerts about the tornado. Might want to check settings. Takoma may have been outside the warning. It was startling. I appreciated it. Also been getting flood warnings.

  58. 58.

    Spanky

    @Caphilldcne: I used to get those warnings, but I really don’t remember if they were from Verizon, NWS, or one of the other apps. Or even if I’m still subscribed and just haven’t had a warning.

    I’ve got a lightning detector app that is annoying as hell right now.

  59. 59.

    Caphilldcne

    @Spanky: I’ve got ATT but guessing it’s something you can add in settings. I’ll skip the lightning indicator. I just look at the flashes and count 1 alligator up until I hear the thunder to guess how far away it is.

  64. 64.

    Rob

    @NotMax: No, but I remember working at Jack in the Box one July 4 (and into July 5) when I was a teenager. It was the only place open that late at night so the line for the drive-in were several blocks long.

  65. 65.

    James E Powell

    @Betty:

    Rep. Thompson is the current chair of the Committee on Homeland Security. He was also chair from 2007-2011.

    I’m going to speculate that he has staff well-connected with the relevant federal agencies as well as relationships with people in those agencies. Likely to be critical in this investigation.

  68. 68.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Have some good news

    Apoorva Mandavilli @apoorva_nyc 1h
    NEW: The J&J coronavirus vaccine is effective against the highly contagious Delta variant, even eight months after inoculation, the company reported on Thursday — a finding that should reassure the 11 million Americans who have gotten the shot.

  69. 69.

    NotMax

    @Rob

    Scored a free steak dinner there once. It was grand opening for the Maui location. Stopped in after closing up my shop for the day to check it out, on the way to the night deposit at the bank. Place was packed to the rafters.

    Overheard the manager telling cashiers to make a point of asking for small bills as they were running very low on singles. Motioned him over and quickly explained my situation, upon which a big smile appeared on his face.

    Went and got the bank pouch from my vehicle, met him in his office and counted out 100 ones in exchange for a $100 bill from him and an ebullient “Order whatever you want, it’s on the house.”

  70. 70.

    Spanky

    Shit, I just pulled another lone star tick off my ankle. Third or fourth tick bite this year. I know he wasn’t on me 20 minutes ago.

  72. 72.

    Steeplejack

    @Caphilldcne:

    I get an odd mixture of weather alerts—some on my phone, some on my Chromebook. Although I realize that on the latter it’s when I’m streaming some video from Cox. (I’m in Falls Church.) I was fuming earlier because the alerts were interrupting Vera on WETA—“I know it’s raining! I don’t get flash flooding around here!”—and then I saw “Tornado warning.” Okay, you’ve got my attention now. They said Ballston, which is about two miles east of me, but the front was moving east at quite a clip, so I figured the tornado would have already hit me if it was going to.

    Biggest storm we’ve had in quite a while.

  75. 75.

    CaseyL

    Storm alerts on the phone? Sounds like fun if, like me, you love thunderstorms. Sounds like anything but fun, for tornado warnings.

    Weather doesn’t freak me out – the wilder, the better – but I think tornadoes would, because they’re unpredictable. It’s not like you get enough warning to evacuate, either!

  76. 76.

    Lyrebird

    @WaterGirl: ​
     

    Hey WG!

    Wishing you a great start to your Jul 4 weekend!

    I was feeling pretty feisty lately, bouncing back after the end of the semester slump. Felt a little self conscious after seeing those photos of Adam visiting TaMara with the great stories of Bixby, though, because the portions of his face left in the pics look so young. I am not much younger than Cole. More gray though.

    Ah well, seize the day one has I guess.

  78. 78.

    Ruckus

    @Ken:

    but that might drive some members of the press to their fainting couches

    Oh my god, the horror, Fainting Couches, what is the world coming to…..

  79. 79.

    hoosierspud

    1. I thought I was in granny mode this week, shelling peas and taking a quilting class. You win, Cole.
  80. 80.

    Boomzilla

    I thought Rosie was pining for the fjords.

     

    Now I like a big idiot.  Which is not an unusual feeling.

     

    It’s just larger than is typical.

     

    Boomzilla

  81. 81.

    What Have The Romans Ever Done for Us?

    @Caphilldcne: I got the warnings way earlier in the day but not last night.

     

    @Spanky: I’ve only been here for 10 years so that was way before my time.

  82. 82.

    HeartlandLiberal

    Thanks for the reminder, I need to get Epson Salts to work into soil around my tomatoes. Repeated testing of soil show magnesium deficiency, and good level of it in the soil makes for good tomatoes.

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