Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

“But what about the lurkers?”

Proof that we need a blogger ethics panel.

Fear or fury? The choice is ours.

Whatever happens next week, the fight doesn’t end.

The current Supreme Court is a dangerous, rogue court.

The arc of the moral universe doesn’t bend itself. it’s up to us.

When we show up, we win.

People are weird.

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

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Narcissists are always shocked to discover other people have agency.

Let the trolls come, and then ignore them. that’s the worst thing you can do to a troll.

I was confident that someone would point it out and thought why not me.

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

Sitting here in limbo waiting for the dice to roll

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

We will not go quietly into the night; we will not vanish without a fight.

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

Since when do we limit our critiques to things we could do better ourselves?

The lights are all blinking red.

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

The revolution will be supervised.

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

You are here: Home / John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House" / Thursday Night Open Thread

Reader Interactions

103Comments

  2. 2.

    wenchacha

    We had FOUR  Eastern screech owls in our back yard this week: two adults and two fledgelings. It was cool.

  4. 4.

    David 🌈 ☘The Establishment☘🌈 Koch

    Labour has 19 pt lead over Tories in today’s poll

  17. 17.

    jonas

    Deer ate all my wife’s hydrangea buds and now I want to kill all of them. Oh, wait. That’s bad news. Yeah, as someone said upthread, SCOTUS told that ass judge Kacsmaryk and the Fifth Circuit to get all the way bent in a unanimous decision on whether the FDA can decide if mifepristone is safe.

  18. 18.

    Ksmiami

    The economy is doing great, Russia will get defeated, people are sick of Netanyahu- things will be ok if we make it happen.

  20. 20.

    mrmoshpotato

    Good news?  My AC is rocking in this 89° weather, and I massively enjoyed dogsitting and hottubbing at my sister’s last weekend when it was much cooler.

  21. 21.

    piratedan

    it kind of feels like a lull before a storm, we have the DJT sentencing coming up, the GOP party debacle and then the Paris Olympics.  Will be interesting to see which moves first, the Georgia case or the Fed case in Florida.  I also expect more to follow on the SCOTUS justices as they continue to give the finger to everyone, the more indy journos they piss off.  Also kind of wonder if some of these cases on the fringe start to break from Wisconsin, Michigan and Arizona regarding the false electors slates.  Plus there may be some movement on what the Perry texts will show.

    I think the stridency from the GOP is representative of how scared they are.

  22. 22.

    laura

    We’re having classic TV dinner for dinner- I fried some chicken thighs and we’re going to grab a pair o cobs and I’ll mash some potatoes. Spouse thinks it’s living the good life. And salad- farmer’s market tomatoes, red onion and tomato slices with home made buttermilk ranch.

  27. 27.

    JoyceH

    Whimsy’s stitches come out tomorrow. She’s destroyed two donut collars and one cone, but the last cone seems to be holding. Fingers crossed.

  30. 30.

    TBone

    @jamiedupree
    192 Republicans just voted to restore a Confederate monument to Arlington National Cemetery, which features a Black ‘Mammy’ holding a white soldier’s baby, and a slave following his master into battle. The effort from Rep. Andrew Clyde R-GA     lost 230-192.

  31. 31.

    mali muso

    Headed to the beach tomorrow for a week-long vacation. Going to try to just enjoy it and not look at the news too much if possible.

  36. 36.

    jackmac

    Still no cicadas at my Illinois home. So that’s our good news.

    They seem to be almost everywhere else and they are very LOUD.

  39. 39.

    Ohio Mom

    I passed my skin cancer check this morning. Okay, the NP froze off the same spot on the side of my nose she always freezes off but I’m not going to count that.

    That’s what most of my good news is, conditional and subject to change. But I can live with that.

    Like piratedan @21, I am optimistic about all sorts of things breaking our way over the summer.

  40. 40.

    bbleh

    @piratedan: you’re not the only one to think that.  Kind of a meme now that Republicans hollering CONVICTION BEST NEWS FOR TRUMP EVARRRRR!!! is more desperation than anything.

  42. 42.

    indycat32

    Olympic swimming trials are taking place here in Indy next week, so they built an olympic swimming pool inside Lucas Oil (football) stadium.  That’s pretty cool.

  44. 44.

    lowtechcyclist

    @TBone: ​
     

    192 Republicans just voted to restore a Confederate monument to Arlington National Cemetery, which features a Black ‘Mammy’ holding a white soldier’s baby, and a slave following his master into battle. The effort from Rep. Andrew Clyde R-GA lost 230-192.

    Definitely one of those “when they tell you who they are, believe them” moments.

  45. 45.

    Eric S.

    Good news: my vacation plans for August are coming together. I purchased my flights this week. Need to do some hotel planning.

  46. 46.

    SpaceUnit

    @indycat32:

    I was just watching a video time-lapse of them building it.  And holy cow is it cool.  I wish I were going.  It’s going to be awesome!

  49. 49.

    Leto

    My tomato plants are looking really good, with lots of little buds and fruits blooming. We’re excited to have some nice cherry tomatoes to just pop in our mouthes, or throw in salads. Yay!

  51. 51.

    Another Scott

    Some kinda good news, maybe.

    One for Suzanne – Phys.org – John Weigand – Cities with housing shortages are converting empty office buildings into apartments—here’s what they’re learning (a reprint from The Conversation)

    […]

    High vacancy rates are forcing developers to get creative. With reduced demand for older buildings, along with housing shortages in many American cities, some downtown buildings are being converted to residential use.

    These projects often include some percentage of affordable housing, underwritten by tax incentives. In October 2023, the Biden administration released a list of federal loan, grant, tax credit and technical assistance programs that can support commercial-to-residential conversions.

    As an architect, I’m encouraged to see these renovations of older commercial buildings, which are more economical and sustainable than new construction. In my view, they are fundamentally changing the character of our cities for the better. Even though only about 20% to 30% of older buildings can be profitably converted, architects and developers are quickly learning how to grade these structures to identify good candidates.

    From workplace to living space

    Converting commercial buildings to apartments didn’t start with the pandemic. In the decade leading up to the outbreak of COVID-19, developers converted more than 110,000 apartments from outdated hotels, office buildings, factories, warehouses and other buildings across the U.S. According to industry data, more than 58,000 apartments are currently being converted from office buildings.

    Several characteristics of older Class B and C buildings make conversion particularly attractive. These buildings typically have smaller floor plates—total square footage of space per floor. Importantly, they also have shorter “core-to-shell” distances—the distance from the building core that contains stairs and elevators to the window wall.

    Residential building codes generally require that natural light reach most rooms. Since living spaces, bedrooms and bathrooms are often separated by walls, a smaller core-to-shell distance allows more rooms to access natural light, making the conversion easier.

    In contrast, typical new office buildings have larger floor plates and core-to-shell distances that sometimes can exceed 50 feet. This makes them more difficult to convert to residences.

    But it’s not impossible. One creative solution involves moving the window wall inward by several feet to create outdoor decks. That’s an appealing amenity, but also an extra cost. In some conversions where the core-to-shell depth is greater than needed, developers have added interior vertical shafts or window wells to bring daylight to interior spaces.

    […]

    Thinking outside the box, and having a pre-sorted list of potential candidates, makes sense. Yeah, one isn’t going to know the details about the various bodies buried in the basement until one starts digging, but that happens in new construction, also too. Anything that helps recycle buildings in cities, and gets people housing that works for them, is probably worth looking closely at.

    More at the link.

    Cheers,
    Scott.

  52. 52.

    pajaro

    News:

    Good result from the Supreme Court.

    The port of Baltimore reopened today, as promised by its Democratic governor, Democratic Congressional delegation, and Democratic President.

    The US men’s soccer team tied Brazil last night.

    The stock market hit an all-time high.

    Gas prices are down.

  54. 54.

    Elizabelle

    Please do not be dispirited by the garbage the MSM puts out.  Yes, it’s a problem.  But:  they have reason to need to lie.

    If you are dispirited, it is doing its job.

  55. 55.

    Ned F.

    Trump’s 78th birthday is tomorrow.  They’re going to Chuckie Cheese.

    But 81 is too old.

  60. 60.

    Nina

    My friend K has been out of work or severely underemployed since the start of the pandemic.  She just got 2 job offers for dream jobs within days of one another, one of which she applied for four months ago and forgot was in the pipeline.

  61. 61.

    HumboldtBlue

    @SpaceUnit:
    The new era stadiums are extraordinarily flexible. New stadiums in London, Madrid (a massive upgrade of the existing Bernabéu) and here at home are able to host a wide variety of sporting and entertainment events.
    The Romans who built and ran the back of the house at the Colosseum would proud.​

  65. 65.

    MomSense

    My mom had a home PT visit today and loved it.  The PT is a young woman who lives in the same town and gave my mom hope that she will be able to climb stairs and fully recover.

  68. 68.

    MomSense

    @laura:

    I would devour that dinner!!

    I was thinking about the tv dinners and the weird desserts.  There was some kind of cherry or apple cobble concoction that I hated but sort of forced myself to eat because tv dinners WERE SUCH A TREAT!!

  69. 69.

    FlyingToaster

    Celtics are leading the Mavericks 3 games to 0.

    And in my leafy suburb, we have approximately 1 gazillion gorgeous baby bunnies, whiich has forced me to cage various garden plants in order to keep the babies from savaging them.  Yeesh.  Alas, our murderous turkeys don’t do anything about rabbits.

  73. 73.

    New Deal democrat

    @HumboldtBlue: And some of recipes are off-beat enough to be fun trying out.

    (For the record, I did try the pinto bean recipe and he was right!)

  75. 75.

    Kayla Rudbek

    And in good personal health news, I have driven my blood sugar and HA1C measurements back down into the low pre-diabetic range with diet and medication, and my doctor said that I can take less of the metformin. All I need now is a statin without freaking lactose in it (my triglycerides are lower but still too high) and to lose the last 20 pounds (I have lost almost 20 pounds since the diagnosis).

  76. 76.

    Soprano2

    The HVAC guy is supposed to be coming tomorrow to work on installing my central air, so that’s good news.

    My new dog has a cone for 7 days and two staples in her paw because she broke our dining room window in her excitement at seeing our cat out in the yard. That’s not such good news. I still haven’t heard from the man who can fix the window. Maybe he’ll text me tomorrow

    We’re at a Springfield Cardinals game, and it’s perfect weather for it. We got on the kiss cam!

  78. 78.

    mrmoshpotato

    @Soprano2:

    The HVAC guy is supposed to be coming tomorrow to work on installing my central air, so that’s good news. 

    What HVAC system are you using to retrofit?

  80. 80.

    Soprano2

    @mrmoshpotato: The one he installed for me last fall. At least that’s what I think he’s using. It’ll be nice, we’ve never had central air.

  81. 81.

    Soprano2

    @Jackie: It is, although I forgot his seat cushion. I feel bad about that, he doesn’t have much padding anymore. I wish I could give him 20 of my pounds.

  82. 82.

    kalakal

    The good news here is we are finally getting some desperately needed rain and, so far, it’s been in manageable amounts. My garden is happy and a million tiny tree frogs have decided it is time to party. The bad news is about 40 miles further south it’s been in unmanageable amounts.

    I was beginning to dread brush fires

  83. 83.

    zhena gogolia

    @jonas: I first read that as, “Done ate all my wife’s hydrangea buds.” I thought, this is a new one, even for BJ.

  84. 84.

    lgerard

    @smith:

    One of the commendable things Felonious Trump did for the waters of Florida was to ban offshore drilling, so yeah, more of that

  86. 86.

    hitchhiker

    @MomSense: That IS good news. A good PT can be the difference between mobility and being stuck, as mr hitchhiker could tell you, and would, if anybody asked.

    He went from, “this guy will never walk again” to functional community walking, thanks to a PT. Glad for your mom!

  87. 87.

    Gvg

    It rained yesterday in large amounts we desperately needed. Hoping the rainy season will finally get started as I am tired of watering.

    I found a couch set I like after about 3 years of looking. My tastes don’t march with the crowd. It’s a nice scan design set which is a chain of Scandinavian modern sellers. Used in good shape. I wouldn’t be able to afford it new.

  88. 88.

    karen marie

    @jonas:   You’re hallucinating.  They said, “Sorry, boys, we can’t help you but here’s a couple of roadmaps to help you make it happen.”

    The “opinion” advised the losers that they should take it up with Congress and/or the FDA.  When next Republicans have a majority in the House and Senate, it’s a pretty sure bet it will be banned.   If Individual-1 is elected, he’ll replace the leadership at the FDA and have them rescind its approvals

    Very sorry about your wife’s hydrangeas.

  89. 89.

    TBone

    @Baud: the twisted conspiracy theory BS the cult spun up about the deep state, the swamp and the Biden Crime Family.  Hunter’s guilty verdict was just a set up that somehow hurts Dotard. The FBI is in on stealing the 2024 election. Now I have to go take a shower to wash that off.

  90. 90.

    S Cerevisiae

    Definitely have some good news, booked our flight to Paris this fall for a week there and a tour in Morocco. We can’t wait, it’s going to be amazing.

  91. 91.

    RSA

    On Saturdays I walk dogs at a German shepherd rescue organization co-located with a kennel. This past week we had two adoptions. Yay!

  92. 92.

    O. Felix Culpa

    I had a nice time bottle-feeding neonatal kittens at the shelter today.  My foster kitten–aka The Terrorist–is learning not to bite my ankles. And I got my first set of hearing aids at Costco, so I am officially An Old, I guess.  Cool thing is I can listen to music and podcasts on them.

  93. 93.

    StringOnAStick

    @O. Felix Culpa: Which brand and model hearing aid did you get?  I’m in the market but having to replace our primary car made me postpone the purchase at Costco.  How are you adjusting to having them?

  94. 94.

    MichiganderGail

    Good things: found a local fellah who will do weed whacking, brush hogging, rototilling and other jobs for me so I don’t have to.  Newest dog (retired greyhound racer) has discovered that she actually likes pets and snuggles. The Detroit Tigers won today.  Fireflies!!  Brokenwood season 10 is available and season 11 is likely.  US/Ukraine pact.  Michigan’s leadership is doing good things.  We have a big, fat garter snake in the yard.  The orioles (the birds, not the baseball team) are constantly at our grape jelly feeder.  Our Democracy held today.

  95. 95.

    glc

    The local movie theater showed “Rushmore” this evening. Packed. Definitely beats watching on a TV. (Didn’t notice a lot of masks, but we wore ours.

    P.S. See there’s some chat about hearing aids. A topic of interest to me. I’m still using my Bose hearphones which are awkward but do some sort of job (and work well with the phone). One of these days I’ll make the jump to something newer and more straightforward … if I can get clear info about the bluetooth capabilities and the functionality of the app on an Android phone.

  96. 96.

    rebelsdad (aka texasboyshaun)

    Here’s some good news! While I continue my Social Security disability claim, my county approved me for emergency SNAP benefits. I’ve turned in all my paperwork for the more permanent ones, and for GA. If approved, I’d get $277/month for GA until I’m approved for disability. Better than nothing, and though I will continue to have to beg for help from others for a while, it’s a blessing to have food in the house again and some hope.

  97. 97.

    rebelsdad (aka texasboyshaun)

    @TBone: “The president’s son was found guilty through a legal process uninfluenced by his father. Here’s why that’s bad news for Joe Biden”

    Trump: “I prefer presidents who get their sons (and daughters) off”

  98. 98.

    rebelsdad (aka texasboyshaun)

    @MichiganderGail: I’m glad you specified, I would have been wondering why 12 or so grown men would’ve been eating grape jelly in your back yard. :)

  101. 101.

    artem1s

    @New Deal democrat: ​ 

    watch this guy but be sure to catch your breath after laughing too hard:

    OMG, brilliant. I grew up with those ‘WTH are these people thinking’ recipes. I love pinto beans but in no way shape or form would I think of using them as a basis for a cake. excellent protein.

  103. 103.

    O. Felix Culpa

    @StringOnAStick: Sorry for the delayed response; I just saw your question. I got a Philips Hearlink 9040 RIC T-coil at the Costco audio guy’s recommendation.  It’s an over the ear type. Not heavy or at all annoying,  though, even with wearing glasses.  I had the option of little ear buds that you stick directly in your ear, but knowing me,  I’d lose them.  Of course these things are not cheap,  but they should last a while.

    This is my second day wearing them and I like them. It tickles a bit in my left ear,  but I assume eventually I’ll get adjusted. I can hear higher tones that I didn’t realize were there,  e.g. the start-up beeps in my car. Haven’t tried them in settings with lots of ambient noise like restaurants yet.  The app gives you the ability to adjust for your environment and to increase or decrease volume.  The hearing aids are pretty easy to put in… and should get easier with practice. And the podcast feature works! I’m having fun with that.

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