Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

The problem people have with Biden’s age is the color of the VPs skin.

Despite his magical powers, I don’t think Trump is thinking this through, to be honest.

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

At some point, the ability to learn is a factor of character, not IQ.

The US Supreme Court is on the ballot in november.

I’m starting to think Jesus may have made a mistake saving people with no questions asked.

Accountability, motherfuckers.

And we’re all out of bubblegum.

Let us savor the impending downfall of lawless scoundrels who richly deserve the trouble barreling their way.

The fundamental promise of conservatism all over the world is a return to an idealized past that never existed.

“Why isn’t this Snickers bar only a nickel?”

If you’re pissed about Biden’s speech, he was talking about you.

Ron DeSantis, the grand wizard, oops, governor of FL.

You don’t get rid of your umbrella while it’s still raining.

Every reporter and pundit should have to declare if they ever vacationed with a billionaire.

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

He seems like a smart guy, but JFC, what a dick!

Bad news for Ron DeSantis is great news for America.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

You don’t get to peddle hatred on saturday and offer condolences on sunday.

They were going to turn on one another at some point. It was inevitable.

If marriage is the equivalent of selling yourself into slavery, women with self respect should reject the offer.

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

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

You are here: Home / Balloon Juice / Sunday Evening Open Thread: Vernal Equinox

Sunday Evening Open Thread: Vernal Equinox

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Sunday Evening Open Thread: Equinox

We’re not putting the snow shovels away just yet (because New England), but this week has definitely felt like Winter’s back is broken.

Also, minor personal marker: This, according to the WordPress dashboard, is my fifteen thousandth Balloon Juice post. Which includes a few hundred posts that have (not yet / never) made it out of ‘draft’ status, but I’m gonna claim the 15K stat regardless…

How’s your weekend wrapping up?

Reader Interactions

86Comments

  1. 1.

    Baud

    fifteen thousandth

    Holy cow. That’s a big number. Mazel tov, AL. You are the content engine that keeps this site moving.

  3. 3.

    Scout211

    Well done Anne Laurie.  And not a clunker among all of those 15,000 posts.

    We are not worthy.

    But seriously, thank you.    

  8. 8.

    J R in WV

    Congrats on the 15k accomplishment!!! All above average, too!

    Spring has been sprung here for several weeks, since early Feb. Frog eggs have hatched into tadpoles in the tiny pond. I saw the first forsythia bushes with yellow flowers coming home this afternoon.

    Wife has been in the hospital since Thursday with pneumonia. Her lungs are weak and somewhat stiff from an earlier bout with pneumonia that caused sepsis, she was in the hospital for over 2 months back then. She’s doing much better the past couple of days, they may kick her out tomorrow. I mentioned the possibility of sending her to a rehab center for at least a few days to build her strength, dunno if that will happen.

    They are going to put her on a AVPAP machine, which is like a C-Pap or BiPap,  only “smarter” and able to adjust how much volume it pushes. This is good for both of us as  her sleep apnea is really loud. She needs surgery to correct a cervical stennitis, wherein her spinal cord is restricted by a misplaced disk in her neck, but needs to be healthy enough to survive the surgery.

    TL;DR She was pretty sick, but is getting much better! Dogs miss her, she misses the dogs!

  9. 9.

    dexwood

    15,000!!! Guess you’ve earned the coveted Balloon Juice employee of the month award. Well done and thank you.

  11. 11.

    West of the Rockies

    Your presence here stalwart efforts are greatly appreciated.  We love you, Anne!

  12. 12.

    J R in WV

    @Suzanne:

    I was thinking of you while visiting Wife at the Hospital. Like many large 70 y o facilities, parts of it are old, but many parts are quite new, or extensively rebuilt. Most lately she has been in a new wing, state of the art so far as I can tell. Great staff so far as the people who have been helping her directly, but for one or two.

    It is a WVU teaching hospital, although most of the WVU medical center is in Morgantown, our family practice doc was one of the first graduates in Charleston, back in the late 1970s .

    Thanks to all for the good luck and well wishes!

  14. 14.

    Dan B

    @J R in WV: Hugs for a speedy recovery for your wife. My partner had pneumonia every spring until I finally persuaded him that allergy medicines were excellent.  The last pneumonia was in Hawaii.  Sick on vacation sucks.  Pets to the dogs too!

  16. 16.

    SiubhanDuinne

    Congratulations, Anne Laurie! I, for one, am eagerly looking forward to you next 15,000 posts!

  17. 17.

    S. Cerevisiae

    Wow that’s amazing! 15,000!

    Tuesday we are expecting snow, anything from 4 to 14 inches depending on the temperature gradient near the Big Lake.

  22. 22.

    Doc Sardonic

    @J R in WV: Best wishes for a speedy recovery for your wife. Had neck surgery for disks and stenosis, any questions feel free to ask.

    Anne Laurie congrats on 15,000 posts, that right there is a metric fuckton o’ blarney ;)

  23. 23.

    Van Buren

    TIL that my dog gets a say in home decor. Ms. Van Buren switched the location of a chair in the living room and Rosie BARKEDBARKEDBARKEDBARKEDBARKED at it until I moved it back. Then she looked at me, wagged her tail, and went to lie down on her blanket.

  24. 24.

    geg6

    Congratulations, AL!  You are truly the backbone of this place.  And if there is a Pulitzer for public service in blogging, there should be no competition for your COVID posts every morning.  I know I am not the only jackal who wonders if I and mine would still be here and healthy if not for you.  Thanks for all you do.

  25. 25.

    brendancalling

    I didn’t realize you were up in this corner too, Anne Laurie.

    weekend is wrapping up ok. I took Praxis 2 for my teaching license yesterday, and think I may have passed. Last night I saw Vapors of Morphine, the survivors of the much-lamented  Morphine (RIP Mark Sandman). They were amazing.

    Tomorrow it’s back to the students.

  27. 27.

    Betty

    @J R in WV: Sorry to hear she has been through such a tough time and sending wishes for healing and building strength. The surgery sounds serious. Wishing her the best.

  28. 28.

    CaseyL

    15K is quite a milestone! Thank you for being one of the Great Sources for BJ news and commentary.

    @J R in WV:  I’m glad to hear your wife is feeling better, and is where she can get excellent care.

    Spring in Seattle: The rain is not quite as cold as it had been.  Woo hoo!

  29. 29.

    Suzanne

    @J R in WV:

    I was thinking of you while visiting Wife at the Hospital. Like many large 70 y o facilities, parts of it are old, but many parts are quite new, or extensively rebuilt. Most lately she has been in a new wing, state of the art so far as I can tell. Great staff so far as the people who have been helping her directly, but for one or two.

    Awwww, thank you! I am thrilled to hear that her condition is improving. Also glad to hear that the vast majority of her caregivers are good.

    Hospitals are intense places and I feel very fortunate that I get to spend so much of my career working on them. I hope the unit she’s in is comfortable for her and for you, if you’re allowed to visit.

  30. 30.

    WaterGirl

    Wow, Anne Laurie – 15,000 is a triple-boatload double-fuck-ton of posts!

    Congratulations and a huge thank you are both in order.  I’m pretty sure Cole is getting right on that, but in the meantime you will have to settle for the grateful thanks of the rest of us. :-)

  37. 37.

    JMG

    Dear Ms. Laurie: Your really hard work on the virus posts is the marker of your 15K achievement. The Cal Ripken, Jr. of front pagers!

    I know we don’t live too far apart, but in honor of the equinox, I made a duck breast. It’s resting now before carving while I wait for the butternut squash cubes in sage to finish cooking. It’s a hybrid spring/winter meal.

  39. 39.

    Odie Hugh Manatee

    @J R in WV:

    My best wishes to your wife and yourself. My thoughts are with you both and I hope for the best for her (and you!).

  41. 41.

    topclimber

    @WaterGirl: You have to be a top 1,000 blogger in your own right (eat your heart out, BJ) and that’s only on the quantity scale. Much higher on the quality and timeliness scale.

  42. 42.

    zhena gogolia

    This week I drove for the first time since breaking my elbow. My car is standard shift so I wasn’t able to do it before. I can take myself to P/T!

    But the world situation, and the situation of individuals I know and love, isn’t great, so kind of takes the edge off the celebrating.

  44. 44.

    realbtl

    Thanks for all you work AL.

     

    I decioded spring is here so did the summer/winter clothes exchange today, tomorrow it’s snow tire time.

  47. 47.

    Ruckus

    @J R in WV:

    Glad to hear she’s doing better. Best of luck and continued improvement.

    Anne Laurie

    Now that’s a milestone, 15K posts. Informative, well done, nice work.

  48. 48.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Happy…. sesquidecamillenial post, according to Wikipedia and a couple of guesses on my part.

    (And I figure there’s a let’s say forty percent chance someone will correct what I cobbled together from said wiki entry)

  49. 49.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    Ob Open thread, as I think Another Scott puts it (I shall refrain from commenting whether this is something good…)

    Todd Ruger @ToddRuger 13m

    NEW: Justice Clarence Thomas admitted to hospital Friday night with an infection, per the Supreme Court. Being treated with intravenous antibiotics, is feeling better and expects to be released from the hospital in a day or two.

  50. 50.

    Skepticat

    @Martin:  That really cheered me up, though as with most of those jerks, the rider was taking a risk. Wonder whether that driver was one of those livestreaming his pleasant comments.

  51. 51.

    JoyceH

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: I just saw this on the news – they said hospitalized with “flu-like symptoms”. And that it was an infection being treated with antibiotics. Question – if a patient has COVID and wants it reported as “an infection”, would the hospital do so? It’s not inaccurate, just incomplete.

  55. 55.

    Suzanne

    @JoyceH:

    Question – if a patient has COVID and wants it reported as “an infection”, would the hospital do so? It’s not inaccurate, just incomplete.

    Hospitals are supposed to report as accurately as they can. But hospitals are made of people who do WTF they want.

    ETA: If the patient’s identity is known, the hospital doesn’t have to say anything to the press.

  56. 56.

    geg6

    @Suzanne:

    Yes!  Especially now that warm weather is coming and they’re letting restaurants keep their outdoor seating in the city.  BJ meetup dahntahn!  That’s Pittsburgese, for those not in the know.

  57. 57.

    Skepticat

    @J R in WV: ​
     
    That’s such an ordeal for both of you, but the past tense is encouraging. Tell her to make like the dogs and heel/heal.

  58. 58.

    WaterGirl

    @J R in WV: Great news about your wife.  Especially with what you guys went through years ago, It’s probably hard to overestimate the worry you have been been experiencing.  Glad things are going in the right direction!

  60. 60.

    Spanish Moss

    Thank you so much AL! I really appreciate the wide range of material and cogent commentary that you serve up every day.

  62. 62.

    Jim, Foolish Literalist

    @JoyceH: I saw flu-like symptoms in another tweet and my first thought was, is this nutcase an anti-vaxxer?

  64. 64.

    grandmaBear

    @J R in WV: best to you and your wife. I hope she heals quickly and can be back with you and the pups soon.

    AL- wow! That’s really impressive, and I want to add that I watch for your posts every day and you are appreciated.

  65. 65.

    Suzanne

    @geg6: That was my thought, too…. we can finally do something because the weather is getting nice enough for outdoor dining. We’ll have to get something on the calendar soon.

  68. 68.

    JoyceH

    @Jim, Foolish Literalist: ​
     

    I saw flu-like symptoms in another tweet and my first thought was, is this nutcase an anti-vaxxer?

    My first thought was, ‘if it’s COVID, hope he got it from his wife.’ Second thought, ‘or gave it to her.’

    And, since we try not to wish death on anyone (sometimes we try and fail)… can we hope for Long COVID, like maybe five years long?

  69. 69.

    Alison Rose ???

    I believe the traditional 15,000th anniversary gift is a jar of mustard.

    But in all seriousness, mazel tov. You’ve done yeoman’s work here, and I’m still baffled as to when you actually sleep.

  70. 70.

    JoyceCB

    Thank you, AL, for all that you do – from a 99.9% lurker.  And I bet there are thousands of lurkers behind me who feel the same!

  71. 71.

    Bodacious

    Just want to add a ‘lurk-ish’ thanks as well. I always want to jump below the fold with you!

  72. 72.

    geg6

    @Suzanne:

    Let’s do it.  We should talk.  Ask WG for my email and we can make a tentative plan and get it front paged.  Maybe Cole will join us.

  74. 74.

    stinger

    Anne Laurie, that is a remarkable number of posts — drafts or otherwise! BJ readers have always seemed smarter than the average bear, and your hard work is part of the reason. Thank you!

  80. 80.

    Tazj

    Congratulations Anne Laurie and thank you for all your hard work.

    @J R in WV: Best wishes to you and your wife for her further recovery and a quick  return home.

    The local St Patrick’s Day parade provided some respite from all the troubles in the world. Many adults and kids enjoying themselves and many dogs on parade. There were Irish wolfhounds, Irish setters and about 30-50 corgis in costume.

  81. 81.

    Quiltingfool

    @Suzanne:

    Come sit by me, I’m vaccinated, boosted, and mean.

    I want to sit next to both of you!  I’m also vaccinated, boosted, and extremely mean and snarky!  It’s a family trait!

  82. 82.

    persistentillusion

    @debbie: I’ve had pneumonia three times.  I wish it upon him and his louse of a spouse a thousand times.  Yeah , I’m mean too.

  84. 84.

    J R in WV

    @Suzanne:

     I hope the unit she’s in is comfortable for her and for you, if you’re allowed to visit.

    It is nearly delux, and I visit for several hours each day. She is markedly better today than she was even yesterday. The Pulmonary people have called for an AVBAP device, a computerized BiPAP breathing gadget for her sleep apnea, which was diagnosed by the nurses listening to her snore and gasping.

    Thanks to all for your best wishes~!!~

  85. 85.

    J R in WV

    So many well wishers !

    Thanks so much,  dusty in here all of a sudden. Off to bed now.

  86. 86.

    Nicole

    Late to the party, but congrats on 15,000, Anne Laurie, and thank you for all the time and effort you have put into Balloon Juice over the years.  We readers are so lucky to have you.

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