I’ve been looking for things — anything! — to distract myself from… [gestures vaguely at smoking rubble]. Via the excellent “Wiser Than Me” podcast hosted by Julia Louis-Dreyfus, I recently learned about Isabella Rossellini’s “Green Porno” series.
Rossellini, who has a master’s in animal behavior, narrates and acts in short clips where she hilariously explains the reproductive habits of various animals and insects. It’s funny and educational, which is more than I can say for U.S. and world politics right now. You can stream episodes for free on YouTube.
Feel free to talk about non-educational and humorless politics, or any other topic, in comments. There’s a lot going on, as the zone is being deliberately flooded with shit. I just don’t have the heart to summarize even one of the myriad catastrophes right now.
Open thread!
Ocotillo
Open thread? We have a good boy named Zeke who is suffering from allergies and we are having no luck finding him relief. We are at the switching up food stage after getting a shot at the vet and some allergy meds from the doc. He’s a shih tzu.
MagdaInBlack
I always liked her sense of the humor. And now I know how earthworms do it. Thank you, Betty…I think.
Ron
I’ve been kicking ass on Duolingo since November.
Phylllis
I highly recommend Jacques Pepin’s cooking at home videos (I follow him on the face page, but I believe they are available on YouTube). Quick, easy, yet elevated dishes. And Jacques is so easygoing and encouraging. I plan to treat myself to one of his art pieces here soon as well. Because looking at them makes me happy.
Rose Judson
Rossellini is so delightful in that series.
I am currently enjoying trolling through the various known forms of divination used in the ancient world, including the practice of heating the head of a donkey or goat. There’s a master list of options on Wikipedia for the curious.
NotMax
Take a break from the trumpster fire. Weekend long watch.
To say it was an erratic life is a gross understatement.
Dorothy Parker documentary.
narya
I’ve revived my sourdough starter, and I’m even baking with it. Four loaves today: two Pain de Campagne, two Bird Seed (both from the KAF Big Book of Bread). I’m having trouble with the former: the dough is really slack, even after an overnight fermentation in a cold room (back bedroom is usually around 55 degrees). I cheated and added some yeast, and I’m letting it ferment a bit more. Also, since the oven will be on, going to make a double batch of sourdough discard crackers, a double batch of sourdough discard granola, and some almond cookies to send to Mom; her 90th birthday is next weekend. If the Pain de Campagne comes out, I’ll send her some of that, too. And leftover wine-soaked mushrooms go into an omelet for breakfast.
Baud
@Ron:
I’m about to start today’s Duolingo session.
Stevo
Had an egg and avocado on a bagel. Soon to be a $20 sandwich.
lowtechcyclist
Good morning, y’all.
Nancy
I enjoyed Isabella Rossellini’s instructive video. I never step on earthworms and I try to rescue them when I find them stranded on sidewalks after a big rain that floods them out of their burrows.
From one of the many contributors to NPR, I learned how lobsters make love–it begins with the female peeing on the male’s face. Far from outrage, his response is affirmative. They move into his cave and somehow, her shell disappears. Can’t remember if she ever gets it back. The male protects the female and brings food into the cave. Somehow the magic happens. Wish I could remember more. Other stories in that series can be saved for after breakfast.
Ocotillo,
I am sad for your Zeke. It’s miserable to see your pet suffer and it seems miserable for them.
A friend has had a long struggle with an allergic cat that involved special food and changing vets. Her cat eats the meds and special food and seems to be feeling better. I hope Zeke’s problems are resolved.
My Zeke the cat refuses to take medicine but will eat prescribed expensive special food. I’ve tried to hide meds in his food, but he eats right around the meds and leaves them in his dish. I would have to recruit an army of brave friends in armor to put a pill in his mouth. It is not a one-person job.
Likewise to get him to the vet will require another group of friends. He knows somehow even before the car carrier appears. I can’t get under the bed. I’ll need people to pick up the furniture he hides under.
He’s a very loving cat, but very wise in the ways of humans.
It’s funny when I’m not in the middle of the struggle. And so far, the vet doesn’t charge for cancelled-at-the-last-minute visits.
Good Luck Ocotillo and thanks for the respite, Betty Cracker.
Currants
@bettycracker Surely someone else has posted this but just in case—this, from Karen Attiah on BlueSky, Dec 19 around 8:35 am (no I do not know how to copy/embed a skeet for this purpose!)
I think everyone should get to know the west African term “wahala”.
It generally means “chaos”, “confusion”, or “drama”. A clusterfuck.
I’ve been on a mission for years to use it more regularly in my work.
Because—- *gestures at everything*
See wahala?!???
Glory b
@Nancy: I’m not sure I needed to know that much about lobsters lol.
I may try Duolingo, it’s seems to be highly recommended.
CCL
Rossellini was a hoot as the deposed queen in one of my favorite quirky films, the Imposters. I may need to dig that out and watch it again.
Baud
@lowtechcyclist:
Good morning.
TBone
Thank you for hipping me to this healthy method of distraction today, B.C.! I have been a fan of Isabella Rossellini for a long while and am very excited to see these!
NeenerNeener
@Ocotillo: I used to have Australian Shepherds, who all seemed to develop food allergies when they got to be about 5 years old. I tried various commercially available dog foods with “novel” proteins like salmon, venison or duck, which would help for a little while but then the itching and paw licking would start again. The vet finally recommended I try Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets Dog Ha Hypoallergenic
It’s chicken with whatever the allergen is removed. That worked, but it has to be ordered from Purina or bought at the vet’s office if they stock it. Let’s hope bird flu doesn’t impact the production of this dog food. It was already expensive when I had to buy it 10 years ago.
TBone
@Nancy: who is Zeke’s human? I am not up to speed, pls forgive
BlueGuitarist
Haven’t paid much attention to musk. vaguely recall his obsession with the letter x being associated with sexxxy. Something about car model names.
But in the light of the ridiculous pretense about the obvious Nazi salute not being what we saw,
And Musx insistence on sticking Xs in everyone’s face
the x looks like a barely covert swastika
And that he’s waiting to fake deny its a swastika, bully the ADL into denying it, and then revel in knowing that it is.
Fits with his whole arrested development, child of nazis, bow before my childhood wankpanzer drawings vibe
Sorry about pointing at a turd in the punchbowl.
Cleared the comment before posting in the previous thread, but can’t shake the headache. Found an NPR article about the x being “something of a mystery”
Maybe everyone knows this already, or maybe I’m wrong. Please tell me.
Do we still call it Xitter, or is there a way to improve the name.
in any case have a great day everybody!
And if it isn’t brighta, eat a little pickled herring by vita (for NotMax especially)
TBone
@NotMax: OH OH OH I love her so much, thank you for sharing!!!
TBone
Here is a great Sunday short read about finding your in real life allies, wherever they are and whoever they may BE!
https://www.robertleefulghum.com/unfinished-business/
WaterGirl
@Ocotillo: It’s so hard to see the itching like that!
Have you done the allergy testing to find out what your boy is allergic to?
I have had 4 dogs with allergies and that has been the first step with each of them. With Henry, my regular vet was useless, so I took him to the dermatologist at the vet school.
There is a drug called Apoquel that interrupts the itch cycle – it works wonderfully for Henry.
TBone
Squat is what I’m gonna do on Donold’s grave.
TBone
@Currants: new to me word points!
Percysowner
Pride and Prejudice fan? Give The Lizzie Bennet Diaries a try. Updates P&P to a modern setting and is fully delightful.
Professor Bigfoot
My big puppy, Sweetie, tore an ACL Friday. Doc says they get a lot back with just rest and medication and weight loss, so that’s where we’re going… but I am mentally preparing for an ACL surgery. [sigh]
She came to us with that name and as dumb a name as it is, it’s her. She is the sweetest natured doggo I’ve ever known, all 106 pounds of her.
eclare
@Nancy:
When I was growing up, it took three of us (me, my mom, and my dad) to give our cat Patches a pill. One person to hold her by the scruff several feet off of the floor, one person to wedge her mouth open, and one person to put the pill in her mouth. Then that person closed the mouth and rubbed her neck to make sure she swallowed the pill.
She lived til twenty as in indoor/outdoor kitty.
WaterGirl
@NeenerNeener: @Ocotillo:
It’s typically the proteins in foods that they are allergic to, and Henry is on the vegetarian version of what NeenerNeener mentioned.
Basically they break down the proteins which are typically at the root of the proteins. Henry was allergic to rice, sweet potatoes, etc, too. And Bailey was allergic to the kitties (!) but once you take the proteins out of the equation, things settle down even if you can’t eliminate everything they are allergic too.
If that doesn’t do it, then Apoquel.
Good luck!
P.S. I believe you can buy the food from Chewy’s, you just need the prescription from the vet.
Suzanne
@Professor Bigfoot: Good luck with your pupper! I’ve had two dogs tear their ACL. Both times, our vet recommended not doing the surgery. With the second dog, the vet said losing weight would be a big help, so we put her on a strict diet!
My next-door neighbor’s dog did have the surgery, and the recovery is rough. Something like eight weeks of no stair-climbing. With the last two places I’ve lived, that’s absolutely infeasible. Something to think about.
eclare
@TBone:
I admit I would turn around and go home! I am lost without a grocery list.
On second thought, if the store wasn’t crowded, I might do what that guy did. But if my store is crowded, you can barely get a cart down the aisle.
Scout211
@Ocotillo: Has your vet done a full blood panel? I ask because our pup was treated for allergies for years but when we had to change vets, the new vet ran a full blood panel and it turns out she was hypothyroid for years. Her symptoms improved after she started on thyroid meds.
I doubt that this is your pup’s problem but I bring this up when jackals comment about their dogs’ allergies, just in case.
rosalind
I looove the “wiser than me” podcast! highly recommend the Dolores Huerta episode. Such an inspiration. Co-founder of National Farmworkers Association. Mother of 11. Still here and standing up for workers rights. Julia is a really good interviewer. Sadly, she and her husband Brad Hall were among those who lost their homes in the Pacific Palisades fire.
me, i gave myself one week of comfort eating and drinking to lessen the shocks, and now shall return to a healthier way of coping. gonna be a long two-four years…
BlueGuitarist
Have heard great enthusiasm for Wiser Than Me, but i haven’t learned how to absorb podcasts.
Has anyone fluent in podcasts checked out Andrea Pitzer, Next Comes What? which LOLGOP often promotes?
Dorothy A. Winsor
@Ron: Good choice for taking your mind off things. I did that during the pandemic
Wapiti
I toasted some “smoked” almonds Friday. (I use liquid smoke).
When I was preheating the oven last night for dinner it just had a trace of the smoke smell; for me it was an olfactory comfort trigger. Cabins, woods, the background smell of wood burning stoves.
WaterGirl
@Professor Bigfoot: Sigh. Henry tore his ACL. The whole “hope it gets better” thing didn’t work, so he had the surgery.
There are two kinds of ACL surgery – one is more invasive and more expensive, but that’s the one we went with because with the other one they are more likely to tear it again in the future, and I only wanted us to have to go through that once.
Both surgeries were expensive, so I hope you have pet insurance! Also, I also got Henry the laster therapy (helps with healing) and 10 sessions of underwater treadmill – all to great success!
Fingers crossed for recovery with no surgery, but with a big dog I don’t hold out all that much hope for that. You will be a lucky dog indeed if it takes care of itself!
With Henry, it took less than a week to know that the “wait and see” method wasn’t going to work.
WaterGirl
@Scout211: Oh my gosh my cocker spaniel’s skin was terrible, and it was due to a thyroid issue, too. That was the one dog who didn’t have allergies!
I should have thought to mention that. Go you!
DFH
Well that certainly was something not politics! I think I’ll get dressed and take the litter out and feed the barn cats. Gotta be something else interesting. Thanks Betty!
stinger
Greetings, fellow Duolingo fans! During the pandemic and since, I’ve studied a number of languages that way. I found that Duolingo is good for brand-new learners who want to have some useful phrases. For some languages, that wasn’t nearly enough. Irish, for example, seems to have at least four ways of forming plurals. I could use information about grammar rules and exceptions, but Duolingo’s simplicity (an advantage in some ways) basically focuses on word memorization.
I’d be interested to know which languages y’all are using it for, how much prior experience with those languages you have, and how useful you find it as you progress. After a point, I feel the need for a human instructor!
AM in NC
I have so enjoyed Wiser Than Me!
I haven’t been able to make myself listen to the last episode with Nancy Pelosi, recorded just before the election.
I have been entertaining myself this week by calling Thom Tillis’s office and trying to get the staffers to accept their responsibility for what is happening – because if they aren’t fighting against it, they are causing it, and we see exactly what they are doing and who they are.
Just read where Senate staffers this weekend were overheard saying “These guys all want to think they’re John McCain, when really they’re all Thom Tillis”. Made sure to use that quote on the phone to staffers and ask how they like working for a guy who’s become the shorthand for “COWARD”?
Guessing I’m not alone in the calls, because his DC voicemail was full by yesterday. Local offices still have space, however!
When I talk to a staffer in person, they seem defeated when you talk to them nicely and with disappointment and disgust rather than anger. They know Trump is a NatSec threat and Hegseth is completely unqualified. They sound shaken up. The more cracks we can introduce, the better.
TBone
@eclare: there are a lot of opportunities to turn chicken shit into chicken salad hahaha somewhere if not at the market! I hope you find treasure where you least expect it.
lowtechcyclist
@eclare:
I’d just ask my wife to snap a photo of the list and send it to my phone.
Of course, this doesn’t work if you’re living by yourself.
TBone
@Professor Bigfoot: hugs to you both!
SiubhanDuinne
@eclare:
Since my phone is almost always within arm’s reach, I keep a running shopping list in Notes and just update it as needed. Mostly I can remember the basic stuff I need without having to consult the list, but I always take a minute to pull out the phone just to be sure I haven’t forgotten something crucial before checking out.
eclare
@lowtechcyclist:
Yes my critters do not have opposable thumbs!
TBone
@Wapiti: oh thank you for bringing me the smoky Proust madeleines today.
NotMax
@Professor Bigfoot
True story #1:
Looked after a Golden Retriever for almost a month once upon a time while the owner was on vacation.
Ditzy doggie. Truly, a wilted cabbage had more smarts. I renamed her Veggie and that’s all she answered to by the time the owner returned,
In my defense, no love lost between the owner and myself; but I was available and willing.
True story #2:
Living out in the bookies with a group of other people, off season at a summer camp. We inherited the only unwanted puppy from a litter of the camp owner’s (who was only there on weekends in the off season) dog and someone named it Bummer.
One day, could not find the pup anywhere. Figured she scooted out a door which had been left open.
So off we went, a group of long-haired hippies tramping through the woods at twilight shouting “Bummer! Bummer!” What the neighbors on the same road thought I can but guess.
Upshot was we gave up, went back in the dark and there she was, standing on an electric flat top griddle in the kitchen happily licking up grease.
eclare
@SiubhanDuinne:
I am still old school pad of paper and pen when it comes to grocery lists. For that matter, I always keep a pad of paper and a pen in my purse.
Habit drilled into me day one of working at Arthur Andersen.
Miss Bianca
BC, thank you for the Monty Python shout-out in your title, now I’m singing that little ditty in my head. :) Seems somehow appropriate after a restless night where I let Orangemandias invade my thoughts, if not my dreams.
Miss Bianca
@Rose Judson: Uh…methods of divination? How did you get onto that topic?
Currently reading Julian by Gore Vidal (some jackal or other had recommended it a while ago), and man, does divination come up a lot in that one! Apparently Julian the Apostate was nuts for signs and portents.
NotMax
@eclare
This.
Paper never needs recharging.
;)
comrade scotts agenda of rage
Sigh, one of the neighbor’s cats, big white fluff who would sleep on our front porch a lot, was hit and killed by a car Fri night.
They moved into one of the rentals across the street, had 5 kittens in tow from the same litter, let them roam here in a core Denver neighborhood. Wouldn’t get any of them fixed. We pulled in one (the schmoozer) and had him fixed, then released him. One of my neighbors feeds him and possibly one of the others.
Sigh, it’s so sad.
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@Miss Bianca:
That would have probably been me. The writing in fantastic. I would reread so many passages because they’d just grab me.
Hope you’re enjoying it.
lowtechcyclist
@SiubhanDuinne:
That’s the part of cell phone life I haven’t been able to manage: keeping it with me as I move from room to room. Is it on the shelf next to my end of the sofa? Is it on my desk in the guest room? Is it on the dresser upstairs in the bedroom?
I’ll get up and go to the kitchen or the bathroom with the intent of coming back to the same place, but then I go to another room instead, and then I might think of something that needs doing in the yard, and I’ll be away from my phone for hours without having even given it a thought. And then I inevitably forget to check for texts when I finally have my phone in hand again, so I can go most of a day without responding to a text.
At least I *almost* always remember to take it with me when I leave the house.
eclare
@NotMax:
Hahaha…true!
TBone
@NotMax: I love happy endings hahaha!!!
comrade scotts agenda of rage
@WaterGirl:
I dunno if you remember, but AL did some front page posts by me on our old 3-legged dog back in Central Misery (I think they ran around 2010).
Awful skin as in shar pei awful. We went thru blood panel, allergy, screening, etc. Ended up putting him on some kind of benign meds probably akin to Benadryl and bathed him in medicated shampoo constantly.
It mitigated things but we never cleared up the chronic nature of the problem.
eclare
@comrade scotts agenda of rage:
Oh that is sad. Poor kitty. Their humans failed them.
MomSense
Cory Booker is running a series called Shit that ain’t true. Lots of other senators breaking issues down with humor and direct language. It’s good.
TBone
@NotMax:
@eclare:
If I don’t take the time necessary to write it down, it flies right out the window! College note taking changed my brain I guess – but in law offices, mechanized reminders were crucial. Which is why I still write everything down now because I am retired and detest my computer!
eclare
WaterGirl, cool photo today! Do you happen to remember the location?
Citizen Scientist
@narya: that’s great! Best of luck. I revived my starter a few weeks ago and made a small multigrain loaf. Gotta remember to add 5 minutes to my baking time due to the aging oven.
Miss Bianca
@comrade scotts agenda of rage: *best Red Meat character voice*: “That was you?”
Yeah, I’m liking it pretty well. There are a couple lines in there about religious and political dysfunction that are definitely jolting me back to present times, but that’s part of the function of great, detailed historical fiction writing, like Mary Renault’s or Patrick O’Brian’s.
I find myself thinking from time to time, as I’m reading Vidal, how much the writing level for adult fiction has dumbed down even from the 1960s when this one was published – trying to imagine this book being published today! His editor would probably be telling him to tone it down with the 25-cent words and fancy philosophical ideas, because most of the market would be at a 6th grade reading level. Le sigh.
TBone
@MomSense: thanks, was wondering what that man has been up to!
eclare
@TBone:
Lots of lawyers in tax/accounting firms like Arthur Andersen, where I worked. Habits like writing things down form early and stick.
Jackie
@lowtechcyclist:
Pants pockets. After a couple of nasty trip and falls – thankfully non bone breaking – I trained myself to always have phone on hand. The thought of falling and not being able to get back up is my constant reminder.
My dad fell and broke his hip and somehow managed to painfully drag himself across the room to reach his portable phone and call me. I in turn called 911 and got to Dad’s house just as the ambulance arrived…
eclare
@Jackie:
There are a lot of stories like your dad’s, and I’m glad he was able to call you. I always have my phone with me for that reason. I don’t have stairs or rugs, but I have two cats who at times weave themselves around my feet as I walk through the house.
Miki
@eclare: I’m a combination lister. I have small white board on the fridge that I add to when I recognize the need. At some point before shopping day, I manually add the items from the white board to the Groceries feature in my Paprika 3 Recipe Manager app on my phone. I add items needed for specific recipes directly to the Groceries feature from the recipe in the app.
I’ve customized the Groceries feature by adding different stores for different items (Aldi, Morrelli’s Deli, Ace Hardware, Total Wine, Farmers Market, etc.). Theoretically I should never be without a list as long as I have my phone with me.
Nelle
@TBone: I usually begin the day writing three pages in one of those college composition notebooks. It is often random junk, but it clears my head and often helps me to get somewhere wiser than I was when I started writing. I seem to need to get the thoughts out of my head, in order to not get stuck and to advance my perspectives. I used to worry that others might come upon the drivel, but I write in cursive and know that it will be unreadable by younger generations.
Another Scott
@WaterGirl: [Someone probably already got there first, but I can’t resist…]
So that’s what they make Kitten Chow from. Interesting.
“They’re eating the kittens!!11”
:-)
Best wishes,
Scott.
NotMax
@Jackie
What with keys (house and car), coin pouch, wallet, checkbook, lighter and pack of little cigars, pants pockets are overstuffed as it is.
;)
Gloria DryGarden
@Currants: I think I’ll try “oh wahala” as my newest epithet. So accurate, so descriptive, so smooth-sounding.
Everyone,
I’ll look up this green porn, I love that kind of stuff.
I raised red wiggler compost worms in my kitchen for several years, and taught worm composting in a few schools. I kind of adore worms, and have been known to bring them in a baggie of dirt and leaves, to show children, in classrooms I visit.
last night’s diversion when I couldn’t sleep, was a documentary on Hulu about Jacques Cousteau. I hadn’t realized he was one of the early spokespersons in recognizing pollution and environmental destruction. And that he lobbied for the Antarctica treaty to not mine there or extract resources. Didn’t most of us watch his ocean dive films on tv?
I’m also frolicking on blue sky on the geography feed, and the micro poetry feed, where there are lots of sweet haiku. There’s a birds page, too, with lots of albatrosity’s photos. And an ecology page. Lots of beauty and wonder and world -love posts. I recommend these. Of course there’s blacksky, and there’s a plants feed, my city has a page, and an all in spanish feed. If you want to practice your French, the geography feed has loads of posts in French, super informative, info from all around the world …
oh, the fun you can have
Nelle
@Miki: I had a friend who, when trying to adopt a child, went for the “hard to adopt” category. She and her husband expected some sort of disability, but when they got a call, the “hard to adopt” part was that there were three siblings under the age of five that needed to be adopted as a group. They were up for it, but a huge change. She made her grocery list in the order of the store aisles (along with a three week, rotational menu).
That was in 1980. I still use the big peanut butter jars (for rice and bean storage) that she gave me. They went through a lot. The jars have been with me ever since, from Washington to Ilinois, Maryland, Kansas, New Zealand, Montana, and now Iowa. Good use, I say.
VeniceRiley
@Percysowner: a friend of mine made that show!
I’m just up from an afternoon nap, which I needed after doomscrolling overnight.
One hilarious thing I did read about is an AI called DeepSeek, which a couple Chinese guys released open source for the world. Better free open source code, and cheaper to run. If you’re into that, you can get it and modify the code however you like. I just love that they basically just punched the tech bros companies, Nvidia, and government billions spend dreams of their walled gardens right in the junk.
Suzanne
@Miki: I am similar about grocery lists, putting the items into an app, and I have tried a few. The challenge for my family is that someone will be going to a specific store, maybe on the way home from some other activity, and would text the rest of us and ask if they needed anything. Very considerate, but difficult to keep track if I got 2-3 separate text messages with a few items. So we now use a shared note for each store in the Notes app, and everyone’s responsible for adding their items. So far, mostly so good.
No one has figured out a good way to get dry cleaning done with an app yet, though! ;)
Dave Buchen
When I was a middle school teacher I showed some of these green porno videos to my students. The following week I was called into the office because a parent had complained. I sat with the school’s administrator and we watched the episode about bees. The administrator thought the video was great, but the moment when we learned that the male bee’s penis breaks off during sex was the moment that she said, “Yeah, that’s where you crossed the line.” I also overheard one girl who wants to be a marine biologist talking about the dolphins episode (freaky animals indeed) that she watched on her own over the weekend and how it was not what she expected. Sonar sex never is
frosty
@SiubhanDuinne: Here’s how I keep a running grocery list – it works great. I’ve sorted everything I buy by the aisles in our local grocery. Works better than Notes because all the foods etc are already there, I just have to tag them.
https://www.anylist.com/
ETA: Yes, I’m a list maker.
La Nonna
OMG, the Isabella Rossellini green porn, absolutely brilliant!!! Needed a laugh, And a refresher,,just perfect,,thanks BC.
Gloria DryGarden
@comrade scotts agenda of rage: im so sorry. Ouch. The city cats have to be smart, with all the cars.
Mine used to cross 14th avenue all the time, but he knew when to do it, and lived to a ripe old age.
narya
@Citizen Scientist: Every now & then, King Arthur has a sale on the fancy-ass Thermapen; I had points to use up, too, and it is awesome. Great on bread, but also meat.
Post-it notes! I have a huge pile left over from when I worked, and I use them for grocery lists, recipes, whatever. The other thing I started several years ago is a whiteboard that tracks what’s in my chest freezer–venison, fish (Sitka Fish Market subscription), beans in serving-size containers (labeled by type of bean), roasted veggies, stock, sauce, etc. I include the weights of the pieces of meat and fish so I can plan what to take out. The great thing about the whiteboard is that I can erase as I use it. And I try to package some things (e.g., the roasted tomatoes from last summer) in consistent weights, so I can just put a dot on the whiteboard.
CaseyL
My method for coping has been to bury myself even deeper in science channels on YouTube, particularly on geology and paleontology. Anything that reminds me our current era is not even an eyeblink in the planet’s history is comforting.
If you like science, well explained by enthusiastic people, my recs are: SciShow, Paleo Analysis, Lindsay Nikole, Dr. Becky on Cosmology, Eons. Eons has a series called Exploring Deep Time, where the host and a guest imagine themselves time-traveled to the past ages of the Earth and talk about how (if!) they would survive. The latest is a visit to the Cretaceous, a short time (a year, I think) after the asteroid hit.
In my more contemplative moods, I wish I could be around to see what the world becomes after this Sixth Extinction. Each time the planet recovers from the latest die-off, everything is vastly different from what it was. It just…takes a few million years for each scene shift.
frosty
@Suzanne: Any List lets you share grocery lists. I’ve gone to the store with both mine and Ms F’s.
ETA Unthreaded comments can be weird. The Sixth Extinction and what comes next followed by … grocery lists? OK, I wouldn’t have it any other way.
Professor Bigfoot
@Suzanne: Oh, wow… I hadn’t thought about that part (though the doc did mention the recovery period somewhat obliquely)- you cannot– CANNOT get in or out of my house without using some stairs.
Ay caramba.
Yesterday was her first day on the new med, and she seems a bit better today, so I’ve got my fingers crossed.
They’re all on a diet now; but Lieutenant Ripley, my chubby li’l Yorkie– okay, she’s a frickin’ sausage so I was much more worried about her, but (touch wood) she’s getting right along.
narya
@frosty: Honestly, it’s one of the things I love about this place.
Rose Judson
@Miss Bianca: Divination and prophecy are the topic for the next episode of my podcast (I just did an episode on the Book of Isaiah, which is prophecy, and also warns kings of Judah not to rely on “wizards who peep” into the future in place of God-approved prophets).
In re the post-it note discourse: I use them constantly when reading as the place where stray thoughts go, e.g., “look up [additional source on topic x] later” or “this should be its own section” or “use in different episode”.
I also occasionally write helpful reminders to The Child on them, such as “CHANGE YOUR SNAKE’S WATER,” and then stick them to her forehead when she comes downstairs in the morning.
Gloria DryGarden
@Nelle: I used to do this, but only once in awhile. I heard of writing 3 pages in the morning from the artists way.
how long do you spend ? It used to take me 45 minutes to hand write that much, and it was hard to keep it in my morning routine. I think it would help me, to do it.
CaseyL
@frosty: Sudden transitions FTW :)
OK, grocery shopping: sometimes I have a list. Even when I do, though, I generally just go up and down all the aisles, because there’s usually something interesting. Not necessarily something I’d buy: sometimes I’m just amazed at what humans will cram into their mouths. (The cold cereal and snack aisles are particularly good sources of appalled amazement.)
And sometimes I find something it would never have occurred to me to put on the list in the first place. Shirataki noodles – actually, I did try them a few years ago, when either they were dreadful or I had no idea how to properly prepare them. Now they come in all kinds of shapes and sizes and have become my go-to pasta substitute.
NotMax
@Gloria DryGarden
Jean Shepherd, “Worm King of Cleveland Street.”
Also too, his story of collecting worms via electricity.
;)
Loquacious Scribble
If Green Porno is your thing, I’d suggest dusting off The Loves of the Plants by Erasmus Darwin (Charles’ uncle and for my money the more interesting person of the two) The poem, written in historic couplets takes the Linnaean classification system of plants based on reproduction and highlights the “sexual and amartorial” aspect to appeal to the public, especially women. It’s from 1791 and you can find it online lots of places like the internet archives, Project Gutenburg, or a bookstore near you.
Five sister-nymphs to join Diana’s train
With thee, fair LYCHNIS! vow,–but vow in vain;
Beneath one roof resides the virgin band,
Flies the fond swain, and scorns his offer’d hand;
But when soft hours on breezy pinions move,
And smiling May attunes her lute to love,
Each wanton beauty, trick’d in all her grace,
Shakes the bright dew-drops from her blushing face;
In gay undress displays her rival charms,
And calls her wondering lovers to her arms.
Quinerly
Late to the thread. Didn’t read comments.
I absolutely adore her in these.
The duck one is one of the best.
Miss Bianca
@Dave Buchen: Ha, so you got called into the office too! I got called in (or out) for showing Kenneth Branaugh’s Much Ado About Nothing to my middle-schoolers. Yeah, it had one mildly hot scene, but nothing like breaking bee penises, lol!
Nelle
@Gloria DryGarden: Usually, it takes me 45 minutes. I light a candle, have a hot cuppa, and write away. Sometimes I have to do it later, after gym (we go first thing trying to beat out all the other seniors using the EGym at the Y – that often means leaving here at 5:30). But if it gets to be 10 am, it is too late. Too much daylight, too much regular brain, to do lists cluttering up my thinking. I just realized that I’ve been doing this for 15 years. A lot of fireplace fodder for my descendents.
Loquacious Scribble
@Miss Bianca:
It saddens me that the American education system has turned the plays of Shakespeare, bawdy romps meant to be viewed in public on a stage to yet another excuse to have students shut up, sit down, and read.
JanieM
Along the lines of the video in the OP, Dr. Tatiana’s Sex Advice to All Creation, by Olivia Judson (Judson? hmmmmm), which explains the reproductive mechanisms of all kinds of critters using the mechanism of a newspaper advice column that the critters are writing to. Read it a long time ago, remember enjoying it a lot.
ETA: Edited to fix link.
lowtechcyclist
@Jackie:
They just don’t work for me – I wear jeans, and if I’m sitting down, it’s a real hassle to dig the phone out of my front pocket. And of course I don’t want to sit on the phone, so it doesn’t go in my back pocket.
My phone is in my front jeans pocket when I leave the house, but other than when I’m driving (and the phone would just have to wait anyway), I’m vertical so it’s more manageable.
We still have a land line, and there are extensions all over the house. If something happened to me indoors, I’d never have to crawl further than about 20 feet to get to a phone. And if I’m doing anything nontrivial outdoors, I’m pretty good about tracking down my cell phone and taking it with me.
TBone
@Nelle: ha! That’s a great way to start the day fresh and simultaneously outwit the youngs hahaha!
It’s also why I’m usually here early in the AM sharing my thoughts but almost never outwitting anyone hahaha!
CaseyL
Thanks to Betty Cracker and JanieM, I now have two more sources of science entertainment!
Oh, and another rec from me, though I bet most BJers already know about this one: ZeFrank. Also on YouTube, has been since its earliest days. He did the “Dear Human” diaries for cats and dogs some years back, and his ongoing project is “True Facts” about all kinds of critters, where he is scientifically accurate and scatologically funny.
frosty
@lowtechcyclist: I’ve put my phone in the Levi’s watch pocket ever since the first LG flip phone which fit all the way in. Last one was an iPhone 6 SE. When it was finally totally obsolete the only one I could find in a store was a 13 Mini, and it only fit without a case, so that’s what I’m doing. Over half of it sticks out of the top of the pocket.
I’ll have to come up with a substitute location once this one isn’t supported any more. Dammit!!
Phylllis
@eclare: There’s something satisfying about scratching a line through a completed item on a list, isn’t there?
TBone
@Gloria DryGarden: correct usage of the internet points AND points for loving earthworms!
The ones we used as fish bait in Texas were not earthworms – those fugly things had TEETH ugh so scary looking – bloodworms!
Jeffro
@lowtechcyclist: one that that’s helpful is to get a Tile (or other rfid tracker) for your keys, and download the app on your phone.
That way, you can use your phone to find your keys, and use your keys (w/ a Tile on them) to find your phone.
Now if I could just remember where I put my wallet… =)
TBone
@Phylllis: it’s one of the purpose options for living through the Holocaust/ being imprisoned given by Victor Frankl – completion of tasks.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man's_Search_for_Meaning
Having a purpose, no matter what it is, is life sustaining.
eclare
@Phylllis:
Yes!
Kay
I’m reading The Living Great Lakes by Jerry Dennis. The author travels all of the lakes on various boats and ships.
The section on Chicago’s lakefront is really good. Chicago has a public lakefront stretching for miles because two relatively low ranking civil servants in a city property division set it aside in perpetuity. Subversives!
Very clever. Bravo.
Glory b
My favorite podcasts in no particular order:
“Behind the Bastards,” deep dives into histories worse actors. The host has a particular level of animosity towards Paul Manafort.
“If Books Could Kill,” the hosts debunk a number of self help books but go beyond that constraint into current affairs, they have a hilarious interlude about Eric Adam’s.
“Bravo Docket,” two attorneys use the legal woes of reality stars to instruct laypeople about the law. They have special guest lawyers to talk about specific subjects (like competency to stand trial. Lots of divorce, alimony, etc, as you’d expect, but a variety of topics, business, taxes, and others.
Ocotillo
Thanks for pup allergy feedback to all you shared, our next step is the HA Purina product, fingers crossed.
Glory b
@TBone: I’d NEVER touch a worm with teeth.
Then again, our Pittsburgh city parks are about as non urban as I usually get.
Another Scott
@eclare: Made me look…
Google Image Search says it’s Murano island in Venice, Italy.
HTH!!
Best wishes,
Scott.
TBone
@Glory b: only the fish love them!
kindness
I guess I’ve been out of the loop. I just read over at DKos that the Inspector Generals that Trump fired have told him no, he does not have the power to unilaterally fire them and he must go through the Senate to do so, starting with a 30 day notice to the Senate. I was unaware of this but I haven’t really been on line much lately. So Good for us! Yeay
On another note, I had had a great big shepard mix who blew out both ACL’s. He was overweight, 105 and should have been 85. When he blew the first one out he was only 5 or 6, so we had the repair surgery done. PT a couple times a week and after a couple months he was back to being good as new. Then a year later the other side blew out. Same thing, same results. If your dog is young, have the surgery done. It’s worth it.
TBone
@TBone: LINK FIX dang
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Man%27s_Search_for_Meaning
A Ghost to Most
Turn it into art.
eclare
@Another Scott:
Thanks! My first thought was Venice, but the canal looked too wide.
sentient ai from the future
i’ve heard about this from a friend but have yet to check it out. i’ll make sure to add it to my youtube feed.
(by the way, do folks know about the various open source projects to keep you from having to both look at ads and be subjected to whatever outrage-bait The Algorithm thinks will keep you viewing? On android there is NewPipe and on desktop there is FreeTube)
i’m a long time fan of Ze Frank, and its just such a moment of silly joy when a new episode of his comes up.
https://youtu.be/UY7qM_DtMRU
i’m also a huge fan of Dan Olson (Folding Ideas) and the waits are a lot longer between his releases but there is a new one out there, about young-earth creationists.
https://youtu.be/2UDXdqqJQPE
Miss Bianca
@Kay: that one sounds cool. I need to go back to Chicago one of these days…
Suzanne
@Glory b: I will second “Behind the Bastards”. Very entertaining and informative.
eclare
@kindness:
Yes I had a three year old pit mix blow out an ACL. It was expensive to fix, but he was as good as new after a couple of months. He also didn’t need or get PT.
lowtechcyclist
@NotMax:
I think of myself as a Luddite nowadays, but it’s been fifteen or twenty years since I carried a checkbook with me upon leaving the house.
I’m not sure when I stopped carrying coins in my pocket, but even that was sometime prior to the pandemic. When I get them in change (on one of those rare occasions I pay cash), there’s usually a tip jar handy to receive them.
And I’ve never smoked, thank goodness. So when I’m out and about, it’s just wallet, keys, and phone in my pockets.
Sister Golden Bear
I’ve been working my way through The Murderbots Diaries. Highly recommend
Murderbot’s mood and “eeewwwww humans” attitude resonates.
kindness
@eclare: My guy got the walk in water filled treadmill tub. I worked really well, especially in the beginning. Yes it was expensive. $2.5K each time. But family, you know? You do it for family if you can.
Kay
@Glory b:
I tried Bravo Docket on yoiur recommend. Thanks. It’s interesting.
lowtechcyclist
@frosty:
Just tried this: I can get maybe an inch of my phone into the watch pocket. It would probably fall right out when I stood up. But thanks for the suggestion.
Miss Bianca
@Sister Golden Bear: that reminds me, I need to get back to that series – I read three, or maybe it was four? – and enjoyed them immensely. How many are in the series now?
lowtechcyclist
@Jeffro:
I’ve had a system for my wallet and keys (and checkbook and change when I still carried them) since the 1980s at least: they have exactly one place they go when I take them out of my pockets. And of course I can always call my cell phone from the land line, or from my wife’s or son’s cells, if I don’t remember where I’ve left it.
Sphex
@NotMax: these both brought me so much joy. Thank you for sharing.
NeenerNeener
My first Aussie learned to pee on 3 legs from watching my male Cairn Terrier. She tore her ACL a few years later and insisted on standing on the bad hind leg to pee after I had it fixed and brought her home from the vet. As the terrier aged he started squatting to pee. Go figure.
Is no one using smart watches or fitbits that link to your phones?
Sister Golden Bear
@CaseyL: Even if you’re not into music theory, I’ve found 12tone‘s YouTube breakdowns of well-known songs fascinating and fun. Like why “Mr. Brightside” is such a popular sing-along, even at weddings (which is singularly ironic given the lyrics).
Quinerly
Currently reading “Charlie’s Good Night,” the authorized bio of Watts published after his death.
Last reads were Ann Hillerman’s third book, picking up her father’s Leaphorn and Chee characters, and Pattie Boyd’s memoir.
Next up Jonathan Alter’s 670 plus pages bio of Jimmy Carter.
Planning my upcoming trip to Silver City, NM and Spring trip driving Rt 66 to Needles, CA and then north to Kings Canyon and Sequoia NPs. May stop off at Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace in Bakersfield for kicks and grin. Definitely checking out Oatman, AZ and it’s wandering burros.
Sister Golden Bear
@Miss Bianca: Seven Murderbot books in total so far. Five novellas and two full-length books. FYI, the sixth book, Fugitive Telemetry, actually covers events before the fifth book, so you should read it that order.
BTW, in the last two books, ART (Asshole Research Transport) plays a large role. Gotta love a snarky, sentient transport ship that’s suspiciously far, far more intelligent than required.
Glory b
@Kay: Your welcome!
Have you listened to the ones about the Bachelor guy and the pregnancy accusation? Crazy!
Miss Bianca
@Sister Golden Bear: Yes, I think I met the sentient ship in one of those books, sounds like she becomes a regular character!
VFX Lurker
You’re the third person to recommend those books! I can borrow the entire audiobook series for free from Hoopla Digital, so I should check those out after finishing Gail Simone’s Red Sonja: Consumed and Ann Leckie’s Lake of Souls.
Ruckus
@TBone:
That should be some line.
I bet the mortuary will charge a fee for each visitor. Make millions, even at a $1/squat.
Ruckus
@Suzanne:
I did away with dry cleaning long ago.
All I did was just never buy or wear clothes that require dry cleaning. Now this might be easier for a male, especially one that absolutely refuses to wear a tie or suit. I still own one suit and 2 ties and am thinking of giving them to GoodWill or Salvation Army. I believe I’ve worn the suit twice. Now I used to own a tux as well, I gave that away when I retired from the job in professional sports that I had to wear it for once a year, for the annual awards banquet. It actually cost less to buy the tux than it did to rent one once.
Gloria DryGarden
Cute Baby giraffe pic
Miss Bianca
@Loquacious Scribble: So late back to this thread, but OMG, that’s amazing!
Dave Buchen
@Miss Bianca: my high school Latin teacher showed us clips of I Claudius and I remember him running to pause before an orgy scene