Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

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

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

A Senator Walker would be an insult to the state and the nation.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

Nancy smash is sick of your bullshit.

Let’s delete this post and never speak of this again.

I’d like to think you all would remain faithful to me if i ever tried to have some of you killed.

Why did Dr. Oz lose? well, according to the exit polls, it’s because Fetterman won.

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

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. let’s win this.

No one could have predicted…

Today’s GOP: why go just far enough when too far is right there?

Republicans do not pay their debts.

Insiders who complain to politico: please report to the white house office of shut the fuck up.

That’s my take and I am available for criticism at this time.

The GOP couldn’t organize an orgy in a whorehouse with a fist full of 50s.

Second rate reporter says what?

But frankly mr. cole, I’ll be happier when you get back to telling us to go fuck ourselves.

You cannot shame the shameless.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

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

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Let me eat cake. The rest of you could stand to lose some weight, frankly.

All your base are belong to Tunch.

You are here: Home / Open Threads / Snowy Tuesday Open Thread

Snowy Tuesday Open Thread

by | 168 Comments

This post is in: 

Huh…it snowed overnight. I know, I know…Colorado…November – not exactly a newsflash. But it wasn’t really in the forecast, so I was not mentally prepared for the before-coffee shoveling. The ducks are happy, the dogs are happy. I now have coffee, so I’m happy.

Snowy Tuesday Open Thread

This a little catch-all of things I found interesting last night while scrolling through the smoldering ash of twitter…

Anyone watch Mike Pence and his fly do an interview on ABC? I could not be bothered. I do have the amazing Michelle Obama’s interview recorded to watch in a quiet moment. And she was also on Colbert last night, so I have that to watch, as well.

Never forget:

Now for some good vibes:

 

Wait for it…

 

Open thread

Reader Interactions

168Comments

  1. 1.

    lowtechcyclist

    I have a hard time watching TV for extended periods of time anymore (like more than a few minutes), but I’ve had a crush on Michelle Obama for years, so I’m gonna have to watch those.

  2. 2.

    WaterGirl

    I woke up to surprise snow this morning, too!  I stepped out on the porch to let Henry out and stopped in my tracks and heard myself say wow.

    For me, snow is the only good part about winter.  Love snow, as far as I’m concerned, we could have snow every day of winter and i would never tire of it.  It’s magical.

    *not the part where it turned into gray slush

  4. 4.

    Lady WereBear

    I have to admit Roku’s early sales have me pulling out the 15 year old, first flatscreen, from storage and set it up in the studio.

    All I can say is it’s the holiday season, so I’m going to celebrate like NOW, as the rest of American Capitalism has decreed.

  5. 5.

    Starfish

    That man was so concerned about the little elephant beside him invading his space that he was not prepared for the elephant behind him. 😂

  9. 9.

    Elizabelle

    @TaMara:   And then, you can enjoy the last big snow of the season too.  Like, on Mother’s Day.  Or later?

    I love Colorado too.  Its snows are not as oppressive as those in colder climes.

  11. 11.

    Josie

    What an infectious laugh that young man has. It was impossible for me to keep from laughing along with him.​
     ETA: Since I’m from Texas, if I see snow, I assume the power grid is about to fail.

  12. 12.

    TaMara

    Baby elephant and reporter still make me laugh.

    I just had blueberry crisp for breakfast – that’s healthy right? I mean it’s mostly blueberries and oats.

  15. 15.

    WaterGirl

    @TaMara: Just oatmeal with fruit!

    Oh, and completely OT, I made cornbread with one of the recipes in the comments.  “I’m sure I’ll like cornbread that isn’t too sweet like Jiffy cornbread mix is.”

    It was in the top 3 worst things I have ever made.

    #1 was my first broccoli casserole after moving out of the dorms and I had no idea that you had to cook the broccoli first, so it cooked all day.  It was so bad that my cocker spaniel – who I tried to offer it to because it wasn’t fit for humans – turned her nose up and walked away.

    #2 was so King Arthur Flour bread that had raisins and currants and nuts, and it was completely inedible.  I tried to eat some and then threw it in the garbage.

    #3 was the cornbread, i really tried to eat a muffin.  i tried putting honey on it.  Finally I gave up and literally walked it all out to the garbage.

    Live and learn.  I apparently like my cornbread lighter than that and sweeter than that.  It was like eating cardboard.  I guess you like what you grew up with.

  16. 16.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @lowtechcyclist: One of the many very silly things we do is watch “Waffles and Mochi”, the Obama’s kid foodie show, even though we’re probably about 60 years out of their target demographic.

    “Mrs. O” shows up as a character on every episode, and my heart does a little leap of joy every time. They were such good people to have in the White House for a little while.

    I also have her autobiography on my Audible library, and every once in a while I listen to a couple of chapters. The both of them have such a soothing effect on my blood pressure. I’m really glad we started to see Barack again in the last few months, it felt like he had dropped out of the public eye.

  18. 18.

    TaMara

    This thread…wow. I know it seems some of us are obsessed with twitter’s downfall, but to be honest, I’ll miss it. It had some dark places, but if you curated your feed carefully, lots of useful information with folks I might not otherwise interact with (looking at you scienceTwitter).

  20. 20.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @WaterGirl: ​

    That pretty much captures an interview I saw with George Conway, except it was about 2016.

    1. “Yes, I knew he was a crook and an all-round horrible human being back in 2016″.
    2. ΅΅”Who did I vote for? Trump of course. I wasn’t about to vote for Hillary.”

  21. 21.

    rikyrah

    So, the GOP might get the House.
    Oh well.

    Yes, Kevin, let’s bring the cut Social Security and Medicare bills to the floor.
    Yes, get every one of those muthphuckas on record for it.

  23. 23.

    Lady WereBear

    Wanted to say I appreciate all the Mastodon information, I am moving into that as a small businessperson. I can only afford to advertise in the book section of Amazon, as it’s the only one where I see a return.

    Also, I’ve been looking for some kind of adjust to my own WordPress comment section, where the conversation would be ongoing, and I think Mastodon offers that kind of outreach. WordPress has a plugin that lets me do that as a site.

    I still post on Facebook but every time I try to use it for actual engagement it confuses me, then asks for my password, and refuses to let me in. I don’t need to spend hours being frustrated by Facebook.

    I live in America. I get plenty of frustration.

  24. 24.

    geg6

    I watched the Michelle Obama interview on ABC. It was wonderful. I just love her so much. I want to hang out with her and her friends. They are my kind.

  25. 25.

    mali muso

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: I love that show!  Made to sure to get it in my kiddo’s watch rotation but I’d watch it myself without her just to spend time with Mrs. O. It’s also so sweet how they intentionally include diversity in the casting of the chefs and guests. Showing kids an inclusive world as normal is important, imo.

  27. 27.

    The Moar You Know

    I’m a native Southern Californian, and I’ve seen plenty of snow (wet snow) in the mountains here, but never saw a snowflake until I was 31, while visiting South Korea.

    I thought it was a feather at first.  But feathers don’t melt!

  28. 28.

    rikyrah

    And, everytime the GOP brings up the ‘ Hastert Rule’,

    Democrats need to be..
    Why you going along with a rule named for a child molester?

  32. 32.

    Alison Rose

    @The Moar You Know: NorCal here, and there was one single time in my life where it snowed on the ground, and no one knew what the fuck to do. It wasn’t just a dusting on the treetops or anything, it was a thick blanket covering everything–roads were filled, cars were buried, etc. We all came out of our front doors and just stood there staring, like………what. People had to call in to work and be like “Uh LOL I can’t come in” since it’s not like the cities around here have snow plows at the ready, and no one has snow shovels. It ended up melting off by mid-day but it was weird as fuck.

  33. 33.

    Elizabelle

    @TaMara:  Very sad.  Although:  others in the industry may be less judgmental than Elon.  Termination could end up being a badge of honor, and of being an independent thinker.

    Anyway, WRT Twitter:  Toto has pulled the curtain on Elon Musk.  Behold today’s Los Angeles Times, Business Section.  This one is long, and so worth a click.

    Actually, I think this article is worth its own blogpost.  It’s got subheadings.  Anger Management.  Toxic Avenger.  Accidents Happen.  Lockdown Shutdown. Union, Jacked.  Boundary Issues.  And, there’s more …

    Embedded within, a link to an earlier article, from Wired magazine.   Dr. Elon and Mr. Musk.  From 2018.   “Unfettered genius. Unpredictable rages. Here’s what it was like to work at Tesla as Model 3 manufacturing ramped up and the company’s leader melted down.”

    Anyway, the LA Times:

    Is the world’s richest person the world’s worst boss? What it’s like working for Elon Musk

    Elon Musk’s track record as a boss is an endless scroll of impulse firings, retribution, tone-deafness on race — and the impregnation of a subordinate.

    You just cannot buy publicity like this:

    In the last two weeks, thousands of Twitter employees have gotten a small taste of what it‘s like to work for Elon Musk: the out-of-nowhere firings, the threats and the bluster, the pubescent jocularity, the day-to-day uncertainty and the urgent demands to work through the night.

    If there’s such a thing as a warm and cuddly boss, Musk has long been the opposite to his employees, who now number more than 100,000. He burns through executives with the heat of a battery fire. He takes criticism personally, even when it’s a matter of worker or customer safety. He’s been known to fire people on a whim. Since buying Twitter, his public image is shifting fast, from self-described techno-king to unpredictable court jester and human tornado.

    Because Musk makes new employees sign tough nondisclosure agreements, and because he’s developed a reputation for exacting retribution on those who cross him, we’ll never know all the stories.

    But there’s plenty in the public record. Personal attacks. Union busting. A casual attitude toward factory floor injuries and other health concerns. A dismissive approach to workplace racism. And an allegation involving a horse and sexual favors.

  34. 34.

    TaMara

    @rikyrah: I’m coming, slowly, to terms with this. Sounds like it will be a shitshow front to back. And I agree, it will only help our 2024 election chances.

    I will miss the Jan 6 committee though.

  36. 36.

    evap

    Question about the Senate same-sex marriage bill:  Has it already passed the House and it just needs the Senate to pass it?

  39. 39.

    Geminid

    @TaMara: Your state’s Democrats sure did a  good job last Tuesday! Yesterday’s Politico Playbook linked to an article about the election from the Denver Post, headlined:

       Colorado Republicans are getting washed out by a blue tide, with no signs of ebbing

     

  41. 41.

    WaterGirl

    @OzarkHillbilly: Yes, exactly. That was right up their with my right-wing christian sister who said she was voting for Trump because Hillary doesn’t go to church.

    There’s not enough time in the world to cover everything in that statement that was refutable.  I didn’t both because it was clear she had no interest in facts.  Disgusting.

  43. 43.

    West of the Rockies

    @WaterGirl:

    Is the tangerine turd really going to announce tonight?  If so, I think we’ll sense a dual disturbance in the force, as if 35 million morons cried out with glee, and 30 million groaned in horror (and 75 million Democrats began laughing).

  44. 44.

    Geminid

    @TaMara: We still have the Commitee’s report to look forward to. They will probaby release it before this Congress ends in early January.

    I expect the report will be long and detailed, and will cover ground we did not see explored in the public hearings.

  46. 46.

    Baud

    The fact that people are still tied up in knots about the “go high” comment from 6 years ago doesn’t say a whole lot of good things about our side.

    Do people think Biden hasn’t gone high and been successful at it?

  48. 48.

    UncleEbeneezer

    And it begins… Texas has filed a bill that would make “consenting to gender affirming care” child abuse with prison sentences for parents. HB672 will mean a mass rounding up of trans kids if passed. It is the most horrifying piece of anti-trans legislation I’ve ever seen.

  49. 49.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @Baud: The biggest issue with “Go low, go high” is that the same people who will criticize Michelle for saying that are also the same people who always demand that our side “go high.”

  50. 50.

    West of the Rockies

    @Alison Rose:

    I’m in Butte County.   In Paradise,  we would get a foot or so of snow every two or three years.  In Chico it’s a dusting every ten.

  51. 51.

    Ken

    @Starfish: That man was so concerned about the little elephant beside him invading his space that he was not prepared for the elephant behind him.

    Let us all keep this metaphor in mind as we continue to deal with the Republican party.

  52. 52.

    Ken

    @Frank Wilhoit: It is questionable whether waterfowl are ever truly happy.

    Especially in winter, when they’re swimming and dunking their heads in the nearly-freezing water. Then to rest and, I guess, warm up, they hop out and stand on the ice.

  54. 54.

    Burnspbesq

    My sister who lives in Littleton has a brand new yellow Lab puppy that’s probably never seen snow. Hope there is video.

  55. 55.

    West of the Rockies

    @Lady WereBear:

    Mastodon seems an odd company name.  Are individual comments called Masts?  Did the company test that name?

    Too bad Trump didn’t call his social media company Shitter.  Individual comments would be Shits.  

  56. 56.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Baud: There’s been a lot of fear–and I have sure felt it myself–that American democracy is a dead man walking, that we’re in a civil war and too many Democrats don’t realize it. And that kind of fear makes people want their own side to go a little harder, a little darker. Think of all the times Scott Lemieux complains that this or that person is “not a wartime consigliere” (quoting a movie about romanticized mobsters). It’s a feeling that playing according to not just the letter but the spirit of democracy will always lose when the other side doesn’t feel obligated to do it.

    The fact that, even though Republicans took the House, voters seem to have decisively rejected the candidates whose whole brands were election denialism, conspiracy theories and open coup plotting–that is heartening. People don’t actually like that and they actually do care. It also suggests that we shouldn’t really go in that direction.

  57. 57.

    Burnspbesq

    @UncleEbeneezer:

    That a bill has been filed doesn’t mean it will get to the floor, or even get a committee hearing. Asshole Republicans file all kinds of crazy shit at the beginning of every session.

    But yeah, that’s pretty heinous.

  58. 58.

    Scout211

    @West of the Rockies: Is the tangerine turd really going to announce tonight?

    I wonder about that, too. He probably will do his 9:00 show because he likely can’t tolerate the humiliation if he cancels it. But I wonder if he will announce something like an “exploratory committee” to prepare for the possibility of running again. Not an announcement but not not an announcement that he will run again.

    But I don’t think there is an escalator at Mar-A-Lago.  Sad! Who could ever top that?  /s

  59. 59.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    @mali muso: Do you have any idea what’s going on with the production? There was one season in 2021, 10 episodes released in March. All indications I saw online were that 10 episodes of season 2 would be released in March 2022. Nothing happened. No release, no mention anywhere online that I could find as to whether a season had been filmed, nothing.

    Then in October, we got this new series, “Waffles & Mochi’s Restaurant”, but only 6 episodes. Again, no indication as to whether there will be more.

  60. 60.

    cain

    @TaMara: This is a good argument for forming a union to protect ourselves from this kind of crap.

    ETA: holy shit! #60! You know what happens when you divide by 30? That’s right #2!!

  61. 61.

    Cameron

    I dunno about Kari Lake being done.  Christopher Lee reappeared in an awful lot of Hammer horror movies.

  65. 65.

    Geminid

    @Matt McIrvin: Well at least your state has new Democratic Governor. Congratulations

    Now we Virginians are the ones stuck with a Republican in the Governor’s mansion. Blech.

  67. 67.

    Baud

    @Matt McIrvin:

    And that kind of fear makes people want their own side to go a little harder, a little darker

     
    What those people never do is lay out a case why that approach is more likely to be successful. It’s always just assumed in their argument, and folks who challenge the assumption are dismissed as hopelessly naive.

  68. 68.

    Lady WereBear

    @West of the Rockies: The Founder named it that, but further name plays don’t seem to be pertinent. I think it’s enough like Twitter for people to make the switch easily.

    I did run into a hideous Chrome Profile problem, and I swear it doesn’t do this to me until a few days ago. How do I log in? Everything is vague and won’t show me why my gmail password won’t work and how to get a new one since I have no idea what it wants now.

    And I got an invite from a member of the server in question. Which paved my way.

  70. 70.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Geminid: The blue waves in Colorado and Michigan are underrated stories here.

    Michigan is particularly shocking to me. The state was part of Trump’s breach of the Blue Wall in 2016, that blotch of huge Republican swing over the whole Great Lakes region. It had me thinking that the whole upper Midwest was probably lost over the long term. But it swung back hard.

    Colorado is less surprising–it seems like it’s been trending from a swing state to a blue one for some time. Looks like Boebert hung on in the end but that district wasn’t even supposed to be competitive.

  74. 74.

    Soprano2

    @Ksmiami: Two years of non-stop investigations of all the Fox News hobbyhorses is not going to go over with “normie” voters how they think it will. “Tell me again why I should care about Hunter’s laptop? Why are you impeaching all these people, what does that do for me and my family?” is how a lot of them will think. The regular press rarely talks about how R’s are handicapped by being in that media bubble, even though it really showed in this election. They think things that no one else cares about are hugely important.

  75. 75.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Geminid: That was a complete own goal by the Republicans–the people of Massachusetts are, I think, as willing as ever to vote for a Charlie Baker type Republican, especially if it’s Charlie Baker himself, but they had to dance to the national party’s music and nominate a MAGA loon.

    In other news, I just learned from LGM that Scott Brown has become a high-school athletic coach in Amesbury.

  77. 77.

    Ceci n est pas mon nym

    Nice to know. I live in PA, but being in the Philadelphia area, and as so many of the people I’m exposed to in the suburbs are Quakers, I get kind of a distorted view of the “average” PA voter.

  79. 79.

    MazeDancer

    Speaking of coffee, does anyone have a brand or blend they like? Must be available in stores or to order online, of course.

    Even though I live surrounded by roasteries, I dislike them all. Have ordered from all the big names, online. Ick.

    Have a burr grinder. Have a pricey maker. Have tried aero-presse and Hario. Not good.

    I like smooth, rich, full-bodied. Undernotes, if any, of vanilla, caramel, marshmallow. Not flavored, just the undernotes. Dislike everything Ethiopian ever tried. Do not like dark roast.

    Everything Peets makes taste burnt to me.

    I use half & half.

    Any help greatly appreciated.

  80. 80.

    dnfree

    @WaterGirl: not-too-fun fact:  Jiffy cornbread isn’t vegetarian. Nether are the Pillsbury pie crusts that would otherwise be great time-savers at Thanksgiving.  It’s annoying.

  83. 83.

    dnfree

    @WaterGirl: As for personal cooking disasters, my worst was the time I made borscht for my family.  My husband normally supported my forays into trying different things, but that time he told the kids we were going out for fast food.

  85. 85.

    Barbara

    @Matt McIrvin: ​ In addition to abortion, which I think resonated in Michigan, I also wonder about the impact of state legislators openly braying about refusing to accept the results of elections and creating a path to override the popular vote. The same was true in Pennsylvania, but in Michigan, elector panels (or whatever they are called) actually tried to block certification of Biden’s victory in specific counties. That is truly shocking stuff and it caused me more than a few anxious moments about what might happen in 2024.

  86. 86.

    Ksmiami

    @Soprano2: they also actually look and sound bugfuck nuts. I mean envision Marjorie Taylor Greene as a Committee chair- it’ll be a huge donation in kind to the Democratic Party.

  87. 87.

    West of the Rockies

    @Leslie:

    Grading is a life-draining form of torture.  Instead of water-boarding, it’s word-boarding (at least when grading essays).

    I was always envious of those whose grading meant throwing their tests into the Scantron.  Brrrrrrrrrrrrrip!

  89. 89.

    mali muso

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym: ​
     Not sure; we also watched the Waffles and Mochi’s Restaurant series and it felt like a continuation of the original one, so maybe that’s the direction they’re going? I hope it continues.

  92. 92.

    Sister Machine Gun of Quiet Harmony

    @Elizabelle: You know what I would LOVE to see before the new session of congress starts? Non-disclosure agreement reform. Obviously, this is something leaders who routinely break the law or come dangerously close use. That is an easy fix.

  93. 93.

    Old School

    @Ceci n est pas mon nym:

    Then in October, we got this new series, “Waffles & Mochi’s Restaurant”, but only 6 episodes. Again, no indication as to whether there will be more.

    No word.  From a recent interview with (the current) Mochi:

    TOUGHPIGS: Yes, absolutely. That was wonderful. I personally could talk about Waffles and Mochi all day because I love that show. Do we know yet if we’re getting a season three? I know season two just dropped but I just binged it all in the past few days.

    DAVID: I don’t know. A friend asked me today. My wife was really sweet. She put together a watch party today for me. We had a bunch of friends over and someone asked. They’re like, “When do you find out if there’s a season three?” And I honestly don’t know. I didn’t know there was a season two until I met with that producer and they were like, “We’ve got a season two and we’re flying to Mexico in a month. And I’m like, “Oh my god. Okay.”

    I really don’t know. You know, with TV shows it’s either you find out really soon or you find out six months from now, like right before they’re about to start shooting. But when I know, I’ll let you know.

  94. 94.

    West of the Rockies

    @MazeDancer:

    I always hear people rave about Jamaican Blue (which is available through multiple companies)

    Then again, I’m a bit of a coffee tramp.  Any cup that flirts with me, I’ll try.  Although I’m not fond of any flavored coffees.  Hazelnut?  Yuck.

  95. 95.

    FelonyGovt

    @WaterGirl: I hate snow, had more than enough of it growing up in NYC. We were dumb enough to buy a place in the mountains north of Los Angeles, where it snows. Stupid decision because we have trouble breathing at high altitudes, and both hate snow… sold it not long after.

  96. 96.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Barbara: As often as I drag Michael Moore–when he talked about a blue tsunami coming, I think he was accurately characterizing the situation in Michigan.

  97. 97.

    Geminid

    @Matt McIrvin: Well, my hunch may be wrong, but- I think this time next year, that high coach will be a candidate for Senator from the Bay State. Maybe not formally, but constructively.

  99. 99.

    lowtechcyclist

    @Elizabelle:

    Because Musk makes new employees sign tough nondisclosure agreements, and because he’s developed a reputation for exacting retribution on those who cross him, we’ll never know all the stories.

    This may be a less-than-earthshaking issue, but laws need to be written tightly limiting the use of NDAs to things like trade secrets and whatnot.  Similarly with noncompete clauses.

    Stuff like this pisses me off.  People should damn well be able to tell those stories without fear of the legal system being used against them.

  102. 102.

    zhena gogolia

    Disney+ is now demanding that you provide your birthdate and gender. I guess I’ll cancel. I’ve seen Hamilton a million times and Get Back twice.

  103. 103.

    TaMara

    @MazeDancer: Well, Cole doesn’t like it, but I get a regular delivery of Lavazza’s different coffees from Amazon – I like the Espresso, it’s a medium roast. The other two I like are dark, so you might not like them: Gran Selezione and Perfetto. But they have a lot of mild and medium. You can get them all from Amazon and most groceries carry at least a few of their flavors.

    I’m with you…I’m very picky. And the only local roaster I like anymore is a company called Kaladi – my client uses them exclusively and the best coffeeshop coffee in the area. Never over roasted.  I don’t buy it because, at about $20 for 16 oz, it’s out of my coffee budget.

  106. 106.

    Spanky

    @Geminid:

    Now we Virginians are the ones stuck with a Republican in the Governor’s mansion. Blech.

    Well  you can come next door to Maryland if when he gets too obnoxious. We’re getting a shiny new Democratic Governor after 8 years of meh.

  107. 107.

    Layer8Problem

    @zhena gogolia: ​
    I would say that just encourages one’s creativity! Just make a note of what was said, in case Disney Internal Security calls. They have a Stasi, right?

  109. 109.

    JoyceH

    @Ksmiami: I know. I have really mixed feelings about a Republican House. On the one hand, I imagine what this administration could do with both houses, and what an ungodly spectacle a GOP House will be. They’re going to have the power to make good people’s lives sheer hell! Poor Hunter, poor Dr Fauci…

    But on the other hand – two years will start the climate change provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act, a lot of the good things we’d like to see done probably can’t get done this soon anyway, and allowing the GOP enough power to really expose themselves could be just the stake in the heart the party needs.

    But – SIGH. It’s going to be both infuriating and exhausting. Gird your loins, folks, and we’ll have two years of prep work to get ready for the enduring progressive majority.

  111. 111.

    Geminid

    @Spanky: Thanks for the invite, but I’ll stick around. I’m looking forward to next year’s General Assembly elections.

    In the meantime, I’ll get to see Senate Leader L. Louise Lucas pantsing Youngkin, and watch Foungkin Youngkin’s initiatives bounce off of Lucas’s Democratic Brick Wall, and land in the Great Dismal Swamp.

  112. 112.

    rikyrah

    @Spanky:

    Well  you can come next door to Maryland if when he gets too obnoxious. We’re getting a shiny new Democratic Governor after 8 years of meh.

    The entire team in Maryland

    Black Governor

    Asian Lt. Governor

    Female SOS

    Black AG

  113. 113.

    UncleEbeneezer

    @Burnspbesq: I know, but it’s still terrifying that after an election where voters largely rejected anti-Trans bullshit candidates, states like TX and FL are immediately going right back to the well.  It’s just gross and sad.

  114. 114.

    rikyrah

    @JoyceH:

    I have really mixed feelings about a Republican House. On the one hand, I imagine what this administration could do with both houses, and what an ungodly spectacle a GOP House will be. They’re going to have the power to make good people’s lives sheer hell! Poor Hunter, poor Dr Fauci…

     

    But, all they have is:

    The crazy
    Unpopular stuff that will go nowhere.

    never forget – the GOP doesn’t know how to actually govern.  that would mean taking into account what people want and need.

  115. 115.

    MazeDancer

    Many, many thanks to all for the coffee tips. So very much appreciated.

    Will try them. Then report back at a later date if I have any success.

    Meanwhile, please the ideas coming.

    Thanks again!

  116. 116.

    Leslie

    @West of the Rockies: Yes, exactly. The need to give each essay thoughtful comments and constructive feedback, versus the need to deal with the stack expeditiously or it will take forever. It is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to do.

     

    @West of the Rockies: Wow, class of ‘81 here. We probably knew each other back in the day.

  120. 120.

    Sister Golden Bear

    @UncleEbeneezer: the Christofascists have moved on from simply trying to eradicate us trans people from public life to wanting to trying to eradicate us period.

    And they’re getting help from the FTFNYT’s which ran a hit piece on trans healthcare for kids yesterday—the first day of Trans Awareness Week. I’m sure you’ll be shocked that they disregarded the actual data — and medical consensus — to push their narrative that it’s harmful.  Hardly surprising when one of the two reporters follows Twitter a bunch of TERFs. Yet trans reporters are generally banned from covering trans issues because it’s a supposed conflict of interest—just as in years past Black reporters were banned from covering issues affecting the Black community.

    Absolutely enraging.

  123. 123.

    Matt McIrvin

    @Geminid: Are Youngkin’s approval polls high because people figure the legislature won’t actually pass extreme right-wing policies and are just grooving on vibes? Or is there actually some kind of cultural reactionary wave in Virginia?

  124. 124.

    Geminid

    @rikyrah: House Republicans also have some new caucus members who won purple districts, some of them carried by Biden in 2024. They also have a few like Don Bacon (NE) and Ken Calvert (CA-41) who barely hung on to purple districts.

    These Republicans are analogous to the Democrats’ Blue Dogs. Speaker Pelosi generally looked out for her party’s Blue Dogs, but I suspect that the Republican caucus’s ascendent radicals will not let Republican leaders look out for their vulnerable purple district colleagues.

    This will be a real problem for those Reps when they face a Presidential year electorate, I think. Republicans may eke out a majority in the upcoming Congess, but I would never make an even-money bet that they’ll control the next one.

  127. 127.

    DesertFriar

    @Ksmiami: We have the Somos Unidos Blend.  Has chili powder.  Gives a little kick in the morning.  Also supports the Somos Unidos Foundation.

  129. 129.

    scribbler

    @MazeDancer:  I agree with the Colectivo suggestion.  I’m lucky to live a block from one of their coffeehouses, and they make some delicious coffees, with a wide range of choices.

  132. 132.

    ellenr

    @MazeDancer: ​
      Try Gevalia, if available where you live. It’s a standard brand in Sweden, and the Swedish preferred roast is equivalent to US light roast. Full bodied, no burnt taste, non acidic. Mellow and flavorful. It’s in grocery stores here.

  136. 136.

    zhena gogolia

    @WaterGirl: There have been multiple editions of the cookbook, plus I think even in my book there are two different ones — one with sour cream, one without (which is fine, but drier).

  138. 138.

    Leslie

    @West of the Rockies: Haha, yes. This is the only place on the whole interwebz where I post under my own name. I remember you, of course. Nice to see you here! A lot of our classmates, I suspect, are less congenial these days.

  139. 139.

    scav

    @WaterGirl: Three recipes because they produce different types of cornbread and people have different tastes?  As you noted, people could very well prefer (or avoid!) the kind they grew up with. Corn bread, like Chili & BBQ, is a big tent.

  141. 141.

    Barbara

    @MazeDancer: ​ I buy high quality coffee in Central Virginia at Lexington Coffee Roasters, which changed its name to Roadmap: Link
    I haven’t visited since the name change, but it looks like they did it mostly because they ship everywhere.
    I also really like Stumptown, if you have not tried that. You can get it at some supermarkets, but it’s definitely available via shipping. I like Holler Mountain and Founders. Link
    Finally, I also found a coffee roaster in Richmond called Blanchard’s and tried its “Midnight Oil” blend which is really smooth. Link
    ETA​ I don’t know how true it is, but the reason things might taste off could be the coffee maker you are using. I stopped using drip or espresso machines and now do pour over or Bialetti type espresso pots. You don’t get any build up of scale or chemicals. Some people also say that Chemex filters are better at keeping certain compounds out. Yes, coffee addict here.

  144. 144.

    Geminid

    @Matt McIrvin: I do not think there is a reactionary wave, cultural or otherwise in Virginia. I have not followed Youngkin’s poll numbers, but if they are very high I think that, as you say, his inability to carry out a radical program contributes some.

    Youngkin says he will make an effort in next year’s General Assembly session to get a law passed banning abortion after 15 weeks of pregancy. This is an issue he succeeded at keeping in the background during both his campaign and his first year in office. With good reason: the issue is a loser electorally in this state.

    But Younkin is an ambitious man who wants to maintain credibility with the Republican base, so he has to push this issue now. That, I think, will erode his popularity, even though Senate Democrats will stymie him.

    And then in next November, both houses of the legislature will be up for election, and on a new map Since 2011, there have been 6 House of Delegates elections on a Republican-gerrymandered map. This time, the parties will contend on a map drawn by two special masters appointed by the state’s high court. The map was intended to be neutral, and as far as I know it is. I think Democrats will have a good year, winning back the House of Delegates and adding Senators to their current total of 21 out of 40. Abortion rights will be a good issue for Democrats, and I expect protecting existing gun safety laws will be another.

  150. 150.

    Bill Arnold

    @Frank Wilhoit:
    For many years I lived just east of a par 5 on a golf course. Regularly, the Canada Geese would assemble on the fairway just before sunset (northern hemisphere/west), usually in pairs, and would sit and watch the sunset. Then they would fly off to some nearby pond. They’re social animals.

  151. 151.

    West of the Rockies

    @Leslie:

    Thank you.  I always liked him.  Should either of you want to email, I think we can exchange addresses through WaterGirl.  I suspect we’re all a bit private and don’t wish to be intrusive, but it’s nice to connect with like-minded people.

  153. 153.

    West of the Rockies

    @Leslie:

    Saw her with D a few weeks ago from a distance.   Sort of lost contact around 2016.  I was going through a divorce and was depressed and very anxious.  I kind of found social interaction to be overwhelming if that makes any sense.

    Things are so much better now.  I’m remarried to a kind woman.  My daughter is doing well.   She’s in Eugene studying psychology.  I took her to a play at the Ashland Shakespeare Festival in September.

  154. 154.

    Frank Wilhoit

    @Bill Arnold: ​
     The key to your observations is that they were made from a good safe distance.

    Years ago, we took our smallchilds to a nearby lake — let’s feed the ducks, we said. It’s great fun, we said. Then two things happened, in order: we unwittingly got surrounded, and we ran out of bread.

  155. 155.

    Burnspbesq

    @lowtechcyclist:

    There are plenty of reasons why Eewon relocated the companies he controls from CA toTX. You just hit on one of them. California courts won’t enforce non-competes unless they are given in connection with the transfer of a significant equity interest in the company that is intended to benefit. And they think free competition is an important enough public policy that they gleefully ignore choice of law clauses.

  156. 156.

    Leslie

    @West of the Rockies: Sorry you went through a rough patch. 2016 was a hard time for most of us, even without any personal issues added on top. Really glad to hear that things are better now. I’m sure she’d love to hear from you and would understand why you lost touch. And yay for Ashland! I have such fond memories of that place.

    ETA: My brother says hello and sends his good wishes.

  158. 158.

    Bill Arnold

    @JoyceH:

    poor Dr Fauci

    If he gets dragged up to testify, I hope he gives them the televised open contempt that they fully deserve.

  162. 162.

    Gravenstone

    @zhena gogolia: I think (thought?) they only require birthdate is you opt in to the mature content. Been a while since I opened the app but I don’t recall being asked about gender.

  163. 163.

    J R in WV

    @MazeDancer:

    Speaking of coffee, does anyone have a brand or blend they like?

    We mostly buy Kroger’s Kona Blend whole bean. Wife likes it a lot, I like  it OK, not being a big coffee lover. I use half & half too, a tiny bit of sugar in a big mug. Kona blend is 10% Kona grown in Hawaii, and 100% Kona is mostly really good, ordered from Hawaii once, too expensive for all year ’round tho.

  168. 168.

    pluky

    @West of the Rockies: I’ve found  whole milk yogurt to be a decent substitute for sour cream or buttermilk in many recipes. The tricky part is allowing for the different water content. Note whole milk! The reduced fat versions are a no go.

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