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Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

White supremacy is terrorism.

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

It’s pointless to bring up problems that can only be solved with a time machine.

Republicans want to make it harder to vote and easier for them to cheat.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

They are not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

Something needs to be done about our bogus SCOTUS.

Quote tweet friends, screenshot enemies.

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

If you don’t believe freedom is for everybody, then the thing you love isn’t freedom, it is privilege.

The real work of an opposition party is to hold the people in power accountable.

Wow, you are pre-disappointed. How surprising.

“Perhaps I should have considered other options.” (head-desk)

🎶 Those boots were made for mockin’ 🎵

Someone should tell Republicans that violence is the last refuge of the incompetent, or possibly the first.

I really should read my own blog.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

Of course you can have champagne before noon. That’s why orange juice was invented.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

Compromise? There is no middle ground between a firefighter and an arsonist.

Putin must be throwing ketchup at the walls.

Oppose, oppose, oppose. do not congratulate. this is not business as usual.

Damn right I heard that as a threat.

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

Saturday Afternoon Open Thread

by John Cole|  May 24, 20255:47 pm| 136 Comments

This post is in: John Cole Presents "This Fucking Old House"

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Yesterday afternoon at around 4:30 I lay down to take a nap. I didn’t wake up until 7pm to the sound of screaming cats wanting their very late dinner. Fed ’em, chugged a glass of water, stood over the sink for a second and pondered, and went right back to bed until this morning. It was glorious.

Honestly I could do it again, I think. I think I have been carrying a low grade chest cold since I got back, and this shit weather is not helping. Low 60’s, wet, overcast, breezy. And everything is damp. It’s like living in a chest cold factory.

Instead, though, I think I am going to sit back and have a very slow evening and watch Bosch Legacy. I loved Bosch, so this should be right up my alley.

I watched some of Trump at West Point and that was horrifying. I felt like George Bush when he whispered “That was some weird shit” to Hillary Clinton after they witnessed his first inaugural. Just crazy shit.

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  • Another Scott
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    136Comments

    1. 1.

      Raven

      May 24, 2025 at 5:52 pm

      For those who missed the Weiner Mobile Race at Indy!

       

      https://youtu.be/GMyES63Rgvg?si=y-BWMTRYRfeXqGiP

      Reply
    2. 2.

      David_C

      May 24, 2025 at 5:53 pm

      Just made some chicken soup, John. I only go as far west as Charles Town, WV to deliver soup, though. Glad you got sleep.

      Reply
    3. 3.

      JoyceH

      May 24, 2025 at 5:57 pm

      John, have you taken a COVID test? I got it last year and it wasn’t a bad case, felt like a cold, but I sure slept a lot!

      Reply
    4. 4.

      Gin & Tonic

      May 24, 2025 at 5:57 pm

      One of the things you will find as you get older, is that sleeping for 12, 14, 16 hours at a stretch is physically impossible.

      Reply
    5. 5.

      Raven

      May 24, 2025 at 6:01 pm

      @Gin & Tonic: Sheet, I shoot for 6.

      Reply
    6. 6.

      Suzanne

      May 24, 2025 at 6:01 pm

      I’ve been experiencing just insane allergy symptoms for the last couple of weeks. Everything is blooming.

      Reply
    7. 7.

      SiubhanDuinne

      May 24, 2025 at 6:04 pm

      I saw a couple of clips of the West Point speech on the MeidasTouch channel earlier. Horrifying is right! Rambling on about trophy wives and something about Gary Player (probably something to do with his being a South African white man, though that’s speculation on my part). I’m pretty sure our legacy media betters will just let it slide without comment.

      Reply
    8. 8.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 6:13 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: But what does George Clooney think?

      Reply
    9. 9.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 6:13 pm

      We had our reception for alumni and graduating seniors today. So many wonderful people. Everyone full of anxiety and uneasiness because people handed the country over to — well, you know the rest.

      Reply
    10. 10.

      comrade scotts agenda of rage

      May 24, 2025 at 6:15 pm

      I’ve spent years saying “I never thought I’d live to see the day…”

      For a while, it was about good things but anymore?

      Hair Furor at West Point is one of those moments.

      @David_C:

      A Charles Town reference!

      Reply
    11. 11.

      schrodingers_cat

      May 24, 2025 at 6:15 pm

      @zhena gogolia: His British-Lebanese wife is happy that the Genocide Joe lost.

      Reply
    12. 12.

      MagdaInBlack

      May 24, 2025 at 6:18 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne:  Paragraph 20 something of the nyt article I skimmed did mention he rambled at times.

      Reply
    13. 13.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      May 24, 2025 at 6:29 pm

      Here in VA on vacation for the next week in Williamsburg. The weather forecast isn’t as nice I’d like (some rain a few days) but otherwise should be nice temps. Looking forward to Busch Gardens in particular

      Have to say, I was impressed with some of the political ads the Dems running for statewide office have on TV. All about being fighters, protecting Social Security, Medicare, and standing up to Trump

      Reply
    14. 14.

      Jeffro

      May 24, 2025 at 6:30 pm

      I watched some of Trump at West Point and that was horrifying.

      I didn’t watch it but have read the reports and yeah.

      Fully prepared to throw it in the MAGAts’ faces from now ’til the end of time.  First the memecoin bribe payoff dinner, now this.  It’s worth reminding them that they’re following him ALL the way down the spiral…

      Reply
    15. 15.

      Nukular Biskits

      May 24, 2025 at 6:32 pm

      Grass cut. Weed/feed down in the front yard & sprinklers running.  Stupid showers never materialized except for a few minutes mid-day.  DAMN TRUMP’S NWS!!!!!

      Taking Ms. Biskits out for dinner tonight so y’all don’t do anything Cole would do.

      Until then, I’ll rest for a bit, comment occasionally, then go get my shower.

      Reply
    16. 16.

      Parfigliano

      May 24, 2025 at 6:33 pm

      @SiubhanDuinne: That’s their go to play.  Sane wash the babbling idiot.

      Reply
    17. 17.

      persistentillusion

      May 24, 2025 at 6:33 pm

      @Raven:

      Living in Chicagoland for years, I’ve been to many 500s.  This tops them all, the commentary is exactly spot on.  Never this many puns in Indy commentary though.

      Reply
    18. 18.

      Matt McIrvin

      May 24, 2025 at 6:36 pm

      Spent the day with my family at Lake Compounce, an amusement park in Connecticut. Rode their 1920s classic wooden coaster Wildcat with my daughter– this was once regarded as one of the most awful, roughest roller coasters in the world, but a recent overhaul has it running like a dream and we had a great time.

      Also checked out their gigantic mountainside coaster Boulder Dash, which I had a terrible ride on a few years ago–it’s a work in progress, with parts of it now running great and others still jackhammering. The track on the first drop has been reworked with steel track, but other bits seem to have been redone in wood, which I like to see. Good times.

      Reply
    19. 19.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      May 24, 2025 at 6:41 pm

      @Raven:

      @persistentillusion:

      Whoever thought of this idea at Oscar-Meyer deserves a raise. That was a fun race

      Reply
    20. 20.

      oldster

      May 24, 2025 at 6:42 pm

      Here in Upstate NY — think Buffalo, not Westchester — we are stuck in the same rain system. Rain for weeks now, it seems. The oldstress was just commenting that it is hard to believe that it is not raining like this all around the globe, and always has been.

      It’s my favorite time of year, with the longer days and warmer temps. But this spring, we are stuck in rainy 40s.

      At least the plant life is loving it. I look at our back yard and think, “lotta carbon sequestration happening!”

      Reply
    21. 21.

      NotMax

      May 24, 2025 at 6:44 pm

      @Raven

      6 is but a soft focus, sepia-toned memory.
      ;)

      Reply
    22. 22.

      Van Buren

      May 24, 2025 at 6:47 pm

      @Matt McIrvin: I am going there in a week with 30 5th graders. I’m sure I’ll have a great time.

      Reply
    23. 23.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 6:48 pm

      @Raven:

      Five hours here, and I’m only in my 50’s!  I even take a very mild, prescribed sedative.

      Reply
    24. 24.

      Goku (aka Amerikan Baka)

      May 24, 2025 at 6:50 pm

      @Matt McIrvin:

      That sounds like it was a great time!

      My father and I had an absolutely horrible experience when we rode the now torn down Green Lantern: First Flight ride at Six Flags Magic Mountain back in 2016. The staff didn’t balance the car right with all of the passengers and we got tossed around repeatedly in our restraints. It was physically painful

      Reply
    25. 25.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 6:50 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka):

      When JB Pritzker was on Kimmel he said that he thought people wanted a fighter and that’s what he was.

      Reply
    26. 26.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 6:52 pm

      @Nukular Biskits:

      I needed to build an Ark here in Memphis today.  We got several inches of rain with more expected Sunday and Monday.

      Reply
    27. 27.

      comrade scotts agenda of rage

      May 24, 2025 at 6:52 pm

      @Van Buren:

      I’m sure there are mostly-legal medications to help with that. ;)

      Reply
    28. 28.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 6:52 pm

      Michael Roemer RIP. Director of great films Nothing but a Man and The Plot against Harry.

      Reply
    29. 29.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 6:52 pm

      @eclare:

      He seems the best so far. Strong without trying to prove how much he hates his party.

      Reply
    30. 30.

      Raven

      May 24, 2025 at 6:53 pm

      @persistentillusion: I was born in Urbana and lived in Villa Park until 66. Went back to Urbana after the Army for 18 years and never went to the 500 or the Derby. On the other hand when I was at Ft Knox we’d go to Nap Town to see the cop man!

      Reply
    31. 31.

      cain

      May 24, 2025 at 6:53 pm

      @eclare:

      I’ve been taking cannabis gummies. I stay up late, and then eat like 1/4th of a gummy and I sleep well and don’t get up at all till 6;30am feeling decent

      Reply
    32. 32.

      Raven

      May 24, 2025 at 6:55 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): Gentlemen, start your weiners!!

      Reply
    33. 33.

      Matt McIrvin

      May 24, 2025 at 6:56 pm

      @Goku (aka Amerikan Baka): oh, God, I’ve never been there but that ride had a reputation. They tore it down and all the coaster fans cheered.

      Reply
    34. 34.

      Raven

      May 24, 2025 at 6:57 pm

      @cain: I did 1/4 and woke up in the middle of the night like I was shot out of a 105! I got a medical card here in Georgia but I think I’m done. 33 years of sobriety has a downside!

      Reply
    35. 35.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 6:57 pm

      @cain:

      Illegal here, and the only reason I care about that is that I could lose my CPA license if I were charged.  I worked too hard for that damn thing to risk it.  Once I’m retired, all bets are off.

      Surprisingly, or not, the mild sedative is the same one that my vet prescribed for my dog with separation anxiety.  I told my Dr that, he failed to see the humor that I did.

      Reply
    36. 36.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 6:58 pm

      @Baud: I hope he can rise above this country’s fat-ism.

      Reply
    37. 37.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 6:59 pm

      @Raven: This is definitely not an option for me.

      Strangely, unlike Drumpf term 1, I’ve been sleeping 7 hours straight, no problem. Maybe because I stopped all news sources other than BJ.

      Reply
    38. 38.

      frosty

      May 24, 2025 at 7:00 pm

      @Raven: Yeah, me too. Six hours is a good night’s sleep. Then I read all these articles about you need a minimum of eight to stave off dementia and it’s like, fuck it.

      Ms F and I average out to eight each. Does that count?

      Reply
    39. 39.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 7:03 pm

      @zhena gogolia:

      He can lie about his weight like Trump does.

      Reply
    40. 40.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 7:03 pm

      Since I mentioned it, Pritzker on Kimmel:

      https://youtu.be/KwJcUh_N0QU?si=DjsCl21g-7Pwfuou

      Reply
    41. 41.

      BlueGuitarist

      May 24, 2025 at 7:03 pm

      Happy Bob Dylan’s birthday to all who celebrate!

      “Political World” (1st song on the 1989 album, Oh Mercy)
      https://youtu.be/616VCMzBH-A?si=FkKxF5tKooTjHsIz

      Reply
    42. 42.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:06 pm

      @eclare: I let mine lapse because what with eldercare it was too expensive and pointless to maintain. My area was tax, and the summer courses were pointless because Congress morons re-wrote everything ( their lobbyists did)  the next Fall. So year end tax planning and next tax season  we had paid a lot for out of date information.

      I do feel a big twinge every year because I worked so hard for that CPA. And I would love to be a paid tax preparer still. But not worth it.

      Reply
    43. 43.

      Matt McIrvin

      May 24, 2025 at 7:06 pm

      @Van Buren: We also rode their silly shooting-gallery dark ride “Ghost Hunt” 3 times, which I imagine would have a lot of 5th-grader appeal. I broke 100,000 points.

      Crowds were light, since it was a cool day with some intermittent rain and the water park isn’t open yet. Their reversing launched ride, Phobia Phear Coaster, was basically a walk-on.

      Reply
    44. 44.

      frosty

      May 24, 2025 at 7:06 pm

      @Nukular Biskits: ​Until then, I’ll rest for a bit, comment occasionally, then go get my shower.

      That’s a busy evening you have planned!​​
      ETA: Oh I reread it, you had an afternoon of yard work. Never mind!​

      Reply
    45. 45.

      Nukular Biskits

      May 24, 2025 at 7:07 pm

      @eclare:

      With the exception of isolated showers, it’s been pretty dry down here.

      ETA:  Looks like the middle part of the state is getting hammered.

      Reply
    46. 46.

      schrodingers_cat

      May 24, 2025 at 7:09 pm

      @Baud: I am sure George Clooney will pen an op-ed about that in the NYT.

      Reply
    47. 47.

      Nukular Biskits

      May 24, 2025 at 7:09 pm

      @frosty:

      Damn! You updated it before I could reply because I was having to repeatedly refresh to get the stupid comment box to work.

      I was going to say, “Yeah, I’m about to strip a gear here …”

      You’d probably have to have grown up around rednecks to get that.

      Reply
    48. 48.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 7:11 pm

      @schrodingers_cat:

      Looking forward to the 150 articles about girthgate.

      Reply
    49. 49.

      frosty

      May 24, 2025 at 7:13 pm

      @Nukular Biskits: ​
       I was sure I grew up among rednecks but they were the north of the Mason-Dixon Line ones. Enlighten me!

      Reply
    50. 50.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 7:15 pm

      @eclare: I am so screwed. My nights are a series of 30 to 90 minute naps interrupted by leg cramps and/or trips to the loo. I haven’t slept a full night since about 2005.

      Reply
    51. 51.

      Another Scott

      May 24, 2025 at 7:16 pm

      Meanwhile, …

      I’m Sorry I Don’t Have A Plane To Give Hat
      ‪@kenwhite.bsky.social‬

      New York Times: Chinese women have small fingers

      Just mentioned this to Kid3 and she demonstrated that one of her fingers at least is not small

      Seriously, though? This is like 19th century shit

      ‪Julia Carrie Wong‬
      ‪@joolia.bsky.social‬
      10h

      like I dunno maybe if you are going to state something weird and racial about half the population of a country of 1.4 billion people you should have… a (?) source ? ??

      What does China offer that the United States doesn’t?

      Small hands, a massive, seasonal work force and millions of engineers.

      Young Chinese women have small fingers, and that has made them a valuable contributor to iPhone production because they are more nimble at installing screws and other miniature parts in the small device, supply chain experts said. In a recent analysis the company did to explore the feasibility of moving production to the United States, the company determined that it couldn’t find people with those skills in the United States, said two people familiar with the analysis who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

      May 24, 2025 at 5:09 PM

      The oh so serious FTFNYT providing another clear example of their “judgement”.

      Grr…

      Best wishes,
      Scott.

      Reply
    52. 52.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 7:20 pm

      @Another Scott:

      In a recent analysis the company did to explore the feasibility of moving production to the United States,

       

      I seriously question whether any such study exists.

      Reply
    53. 53.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 7:20 pm

      @sab:

      Yeah my area of practice is corporate tax, but that has dried up so I hope to make a career change.  But 80 hours of CPE every two years is a lot.

      Bonus:  I got randomly selected for a CPE audit.  I have the 80 hours, but you are supposed to have at least twenty per year, and I don’t have that.  We’ll see how bad I get dinged.

      Reply
    54. 54.

      Nukular Biskits

      May 24, 2025 at 7:21 pm

      @frosty:

      You usually would hear that said when someone would comment on one or more guys just sitting around doing nothing (usually towards the end of the work week) lying (humorously) they were hard at work.

      “About to strip a gear” references a gearbox so overworked it’s about to strip the teeth off one more more gears.

      Sorry if that explanation isn’t as humorous as the actual usage usually is … I be tired!

      Reply
    55. 55.

      Harrison Wesley

      May 24, 2025 at 7:22 pm

      @NeenerNeener: I hear that loud and clear.

      Reply
    56. 56.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 7:23 pm

      @NeenerNeener:

      Do you have a dr you can talk to about that?  Or a nurse?  That sounds awful.  And FYI one of the most effective forms of torture is sleep deprivation, it’s no joke.

      Reply
    57. 57.

      Another Scott

      May 24, 2025 at 7:26 pm

      @Baud: Yeah, Martin makes a pretty convincing case that it would take a very long time to duplicate the various supply chains that feed the “cheap” manufacturing in China and the Far East.  It’s not lack of tiny fingers.

      (I think it could be done if we set our minds to it, myself – e.g. the Defense Production Act is a pretty big carrot and a bigger stick – but it assumes sensible government policies that are stable for 5-10-20 years and that seems to be unlikely at present.)

      Thanks.

      Best wishes,
      Scott.

      Reply
    58. 58.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 7:28 pm

      @Another Scott:

      We need to start binding little girls’ fingers now.

      Reply
    59. 59.

      Jay

      May 24, 2025 at 7:28 pm

      @Another Scott:

      Nobody is going to pay $55,000 for a US made IPhone 29.

      Reply
    60. 60.

      frosty

      May 24, 2025 at 7:29 pm

      @Nukular Biskits: Got it. Said sarcastically about a guy doing nothing: “He’s working so hard that he’s about to strip a gear.”

      Having lunched at least one transmission I got the gear reference OK.

      Reply
    61. 61.

      Nukular Biskits

      May 24, 2025 at 7:32 pm

      @frosty:

      Bingo!

      Reply
    62. 62.

      Ohio Mom

      May 24, 2025 at 7:33 pm

      @Raven: That was discombobulating. I always thought there was just one Weiner Mobile and that I’d seen it twice — most recently, last December on a day trip to Louisville, Kentucky.

      I think this is how little kids feel when they keep running into Santas who are clearly not the same person.

      Reply
    63. 63.

      Repatriated

      May 24, 2025 at 7:34 pm

      Small hands?

      Should be in broadcasting then.

      “Wee paws, for station identification.”

      Reply
    64. 64.

      dnfree

      May 24, 2025 at 7:34 pm

      @schrodingers_cat: Evidence?

      Reply
    65. 65.

      Ohio Mom

      May 24, 2025 at 7:34 pm

      @NeenerNeener: Have you seen a doctor about this, like a sleep specialist?

      Reply
    66. 66.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:36 pm

      @NeenerNeener: Leg cramps might be hydration issue. More water?

      Reply
    67. 67.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 7:40 pm

      @eclare: I live in an area of Virginia that’s pretty much a medical wasteland, and being on Medicare makes the doctors even less interested in figuring out what’s wrong. Some of this may be my Multiple Sclerosis progressing, but there’s only one doctor in this area who specializes and he covers a 50 mile radius so it’s hard to get appointments. Some more of it may be living in a new house on a concrete slab, which is really hard on the legs at my age. And the more I hydrate the more trips to the loo….

      Reply
    68. 68.

      Another Scott

      May 24, 2025 at 7:43 pm

      @Jay: The Chicken Tax has been in place since 1964:

      The Chicken Tax is a 25 percent tariff on light trucks (and originally on potato starch, dextrin, and brandy) imposed in 1964 by the United States under President Lyndon B. Johnson in response to tariffs placed by France and West Germany on importation of U.S. chicken.[1] The period from 1961 to 1964[2] of tensions and negotiations surrounding the issue was known as the “Chicken War”, taking place at the height of Cold War politics.[3]

      Eventually, the tariffs on potato starch, dextrin, and brandy were lifted,[4] but since 1964 this form of protectionism has remained in place to give US domestic automakers an advantage over imported competitors.[5] Though concern remains about its repeal,[6][7] a 2003 Cato Institute study called the tariff “a policy in search of a rationale.”[4]

      As an unintended consequence, several importers of light trucks have circumvented the tariff via loopholes, known as tariff engineering. For example, Ford, which was one of the main beneficiaries of the tax, also evaded it by manufacturing first-generation Transit Connect light trucks for the US market in Turkey; these Transits were fitted-out as passenger vehicles, which allowed Ford to evade the Chicken Tax when the vehicles passed customs in the US. The Transits were stripped pre-sale of their rear seats and seat belts.[1] Similarly, to import cargo vans built in Germany, Mercedes-Benz disassembled fully-completed vehicles and shipped the components to “a small kit assembly building” in South Carolina, where they were reassembled.[8] The resulting vehicles emerged as locally manufactured, free from the tariff. Several such loopholes were subsequently closed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. Light trucks manufactured in Mexico and Canada, such as the Ram series of trucks manufactured in Saltillo, Mexico, and Canadian-built Chevrolet truck models, are not subject to the tax under the North American Free Trade Agreement,[9] and from July 1, 2020, the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement.

      […]

      Of course 47 is doing his best to break his own USMCA agreements.

      Pickup trucks are (just about) the only thing that keeps the US auto industry in business, and they’ve been cash cows for 60+ years because of the Chicken Tax.

      US consumers will put up with a lot, especially if they don’t know about other options…

      I have no idea what an iPhone 29 would look like. I’m just saying that the US Government has a lot of power to shape the markets here, and that includes spending mountains of money building up domestic industry. One could easily argue that Intel became the powerhouse that it was for so long because of DoD investment in the VHSIC program.

      FWIW.

      Best wishes,
      Scott.

      Reply
    69. 69.

      schrodingers_cat

      May 24, 2025 at 7:44 pm

      @dnfree:  I should have added probably. Many of the people who were behind the uncommitted movement lead by Tlaib’s sister have given interviews stating how happy they were with the election outcome.

      Reply
    70. 70.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:45 pm

      @eclare: There is a lot of seasonal work because the field isn’t structured so you can bring up young tax accountants. Nothing for them to do in the summer so they all quit. So a lot of old accountants hang on doing tax prep.

      My firm keeps hiring promising youngsters who move on elsewhere, mostly to bank trust departments.

      The three old women they hired are still here fifteen years later. The kids are all long gone.

      Reply
    71. 71.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 7:49 pm

      @zhena gogolia: 🙄

      Reply
    72. 72.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:49 pm

      @sab: My firm used to update their Reuters accounting guide series, but that got too expensive. I used to do the CPE work and tests at the back. Those were good and not too expensive.

      Reply
    73. 73.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:52 pm

      @NeenerNeener: So my water suggestion wasn’t good.

      Reply
    74. 74.

      lowtechcyclist

      May 24, 2025 at 7:52 pm

      @Gin & Tonic: ​
       

      One of the things you will find as you get older, is that sleeping for 12, 14, 16 hours at a stretch is physically impossible.

      Hell, even in my misspent youth, sleeping 12+ hours involved having been up all night the night before.

      Nowadays, if I can put together two stretches of 3+ hours each in the same night, that’s a big win. I’m gonna talk with my primary about seeing a sleep specialist.

      Reply
    75. 75.

      dnfree

      May 24, 2025 at 7:54 pm

      @schrodingers_cat: I find this….
      George Clooney’s wife of 11 years could find herself barred from entering the United States in the future because of her work with the International Criminal Court, according to a report.
      Amal Clooney, a British human rights lawyer, has reportedly given legal advice to the court in a war crimes case against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over the war in Gaza, according to the Financial Times.
      Per the Financial Times, the U.K. Foreign Office reportedly recently warned lawyers, including Amal Clooney, giving legal advice to the International Criminal Court that they could face sanctions due to a February executive order President Donald Trump signed.
      The executive order claims the court “engaged in illegitimate and baseless actions targeting America and our close ally Israel.  The ICC has, without a legitimate basis, asserted jurisdiction over and opened preliminary investigations concerning personnel of the United States and certain of its allies, including Israel, and has further abused its power by issuing baseless arrest warrants targeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Former Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant.”

      ….The executive order goes on to say, “The United States will impose tangible and significant consequences on those responsible for the ICC’s transgressions, some of which may include the blocking of property and assets, as well as the suspension of entry into the United States of ICC officials, employees, and agents, as well as their immediate family members.”

      Reply
    76. 76.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 7:55 pm

      @dnfree: They have a nice place in Lake Como and probably also in London.

      Reply
    77. 77.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 7:57 pm

      @sab: It wasn’t bad, though, either. I’ve tried that, potassium pills and magnesium gummies, baclofen and methocarbamol. Nothing has been a slam dunk, and getting the doctor(s) to automatically refill the prescriptions for baclofen and/or methocarbamol has been a surprising struggle. Usually they’re big believers in “Better living through chemistry”.

      Reply
    78. 78.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 7:58 pm

      @zhena gogolia: We don’t care that our awesome governor is a big guy.

      Reply
    79. 79.

      dnfree

      May 24, 2025 at 7:58 pm

      @sab: I think one article listed a few more homes!  Apparently they are in New York currently because George Clooney is in a play.

      Reply
    80. 80.

      mvr

      May 24, 2025 at 8:00 pm

      Since this is an open thread.  You can still comment on the president’s proposal to gut the civil service at:
      https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/04/23/2025-06904/improving-performance-accountability-and-responsiveness-in-the-civil-service?utm_source=chanda&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=urgent-take-action-to-protect-public-services#open-comment​
       

      There are some suggested things to say at:
      https://news.chanda.science/archive/urgent-take-action-to-protect-public-services/

      Reply
    81. 81.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 8:02 pm

      @sab: It wasn’t a bad suggestion, though, either. I’ve tried that, potassium pills with magnesium gummies, baclofen, and methocarbamol,  and nothing has been a slam dunk. Plus, the doctors here have been reluctant to prescribe the muscle relaxers on a refill basis.

      Reply
    82. 82.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 8:02 pm

      Wow today’s photo is gorgeous, WaterGirl.

      Reply
    83. 83.

      Ealbert

      May 24, 2025 at 8:03 pm

      My mother in law, some 30 years ago went through a program to help older women find work. She got a job at a company called Micro Switch where she and a whole bunch of other older ladies put in tiny screws with some kind of powered screwdriver. And no, my mother in law did NOT have tiny hands. She was an older lady with arthritis in her hands. This story is bunk.

      Reply
    84. 84.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 8:03 pm

      @sab: So my first 2 attempts to answer vanished. Let’s try this one more time.

      It’s not a bad suggestion, and that was the first thing I tried. In addition, I’ve tried potassium pills and magnesium gummies, baclofen, and methocarbamol. Nothing has been a slam dunk. And the doctors here have been reluctant to prescribe the muscle relaxers, especially on a refillable basis.

      My sister keeps bugging me to be tested for sleep apnea, too.

      Reply
    85. 85.

      Mr. Bemused Senior

      May 24, 2025 at 8:05 pm

      @eclare: And FYI one of the most effective forms of torture is sleep deprivation, it’s no joke.

      When our kids were babies Bemused Senior and I used to say we were being trained to resist interrogation.

      Reply
    86. 86.

      schrodingers_cat

      May 24, 2025 at 8:05 pm

      @dnfree: Well, George Clooney had no business leading the pile-on on Joe Biden, who was our best strategic bet to keep the presidency. These are the fruits of his advocacy in pushing Joe Biden out.

      Reply
    87. 87.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 8:06 pm

      @NeenerNeener:

      Gotcha.  Of course I have no idea how MS might affect sleep.  It’s too hard to see drs in so much of this country.  I’m so sorry.

      As others have mentioned, are gummies legal there?

      Reply
    88. 88.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 8:07 pm

      @Mr. Bemused Senior: Why? :)

      Reply
    89. 89.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 8:10 pm

      @Mr. Bemused Senior:

      As Colbert says of young children, they are relentless.

      Reply
    90. 90.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 8:11 pm

      @mrmoshpotato: I don’t either. But I didn’t care that Biden was old.

      Reply
    91. 91.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 8:12 pm

      @zhena gogolia: I didn’t either.

      Reply
    92. 92.

      mvr

      May 24, 2025 at 8:13 pm

      @BlueGuitarist: ​
       
      Happy he is still going strong at 84. The recent show in Tulsa was very strong.

      Reply
    93. 93.

      NeenerNeener

      May 24, 2025 at 8:15 pm

      @eclare: They might be; there’s a store right in front of the Walmart nearest to my house. But I may need a prescription for that, too. Can’t hurt to ask, though, if/when I see the neuro again.

      Reply
    94. 94.

      Another Scott

      May 24, 2025 at 8:17 pm

      Meanwhile, … BlueVirginia.US:

      NORFOLK, Va. — Congresswoman Abigail Spanberger today joined local leaders and Hampton Roads community members to lay out her plan as the next Governor of Virginia to make Virginia more affordable, particularly by lowering healthcare and prescription drug costs.

      Alongside community members at BROTHERS restaurant in Norfolk, Spanberger outlined the policy priorities her administration will focus on to make the Commonwealth more affordable for Virginia families. Earlier this week, Spanberger announced her healthcare affordability agenda to save Virginians money by cracking down on bad actors who inflate the cost of Virginians’ prescription drugs, improving access to affordable healthcare options in Virginia’s rural and underserved communities, and making sure no Virginian goes bankrupt because of a medical emergency.

      “Ever since I launched my campaign for Governor, the number-one priority I hear is that we have to make Virginia more affordable for everyone. And that includes here in Hampton Roads,” said Spanberger during the event. “Earlier this week, I announced a straightforward agenda to make healthcare and prescription drugs more affordable. And in the coming weeks, I will continue to lay out my agenda to lower costs for Virginia families.”

      Spanberger continued, “That’s what Hampton Roads deserves from their next Governor — someone who not only talks about problems, but someone who endeavors to fix them.”

      […]

      She’s expected to win in November against Winsome Earle-Sears (the current RWNJ Lt. Gov.) – one poll has Spanberger up by 17 points – but we cannot take anything for granted.

      As Geminid often states, Spanberger is a formidable and skilled politician. She’s almost certainly more conservative than my ideal, but she’s probably a very good match for the state and that’s what matters when it comes to winning here.

      It will be interesting to see how this message plays throughout the campaign, how she tweaks it, and who else runs with it during the midterms next year.

      Forward!!

      Best wishes,
      Scott.

      Reply
    95. 95.

      Old School

      May 24, 2025 at 8:20 pm

      @Raven:

      For those who missed the Weiner Mobile Race at Indy!

      Thanks for the link!

      Reply
    96. 96.

      Jay

      May 24, 2025 at 8:23 pm

      @Another Scott:

      Well, genetically USIANS have tiny hands and fingers,

      just look at DJTdiot.

      Reply
    97. 97.

      rekoob

      May 24, 2025 at 8:33 pm

      @Repatriated: Thank you for this. One of my father’s favorite jokes!

      Reply
    98. 98.

      Another Scott

      May 24, 2025 at 8:34 pm

      @Jay: OTOH, look at Robert Pershing Wadlow:

      The largest hands ever, though, still belong to Robert Pershing Wadlow (USA, 1918–40), the tallest man ever, whose hands measured 32.3 cm (12.75 in) from the wrist to the tip of his middle finger.

      Big dude.

      Best wishes,
      Scott.

      Reply
    99. 99.

      Baud

      May 24, 2025 at 8:36 pm

      @Another Scott:

      We’ll use him to make iPads.

      Reply
    100. 100.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 8:37 pm

      @Jay: What about Canadian-born bitchass, Shithead Ted?

      Reply
    101. 101.

      mrmoshpotato

      May 24, 2025 at 8:37 pm

      @Baud: LOL!

      Reply
    102. 102.

      Jay

      May 24, 2025 at 8:42 pm

      @mrmoshpotato:

      He’s not our problem anymore.

      He’s yours, and Cancun’s.

      Nickleback, well,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

      Reply
    103. 103.

      Jackie

      May 24, 2025 at 9:01 pm

      @eclare: I meant to mention that earlier… waiting for a WaterGirl appearance. Mike in Oly took a beautiful, truly tranquil pic. I exhaled and physically mellowed just looking at it. I can only imagine what it was like viewing it in person! Thanks for showcasing it, WaterGirl!

      Reply
    104. 104.

      Trivia Man

      May 24, 2025 at 9:05 pm

      @Raven: I was hoping to see the Mini. But that would have been far and away the fastest.

      Reply
    105. 105.

      Trivia Man

      May 24, 2025 at 9:08 pm

      @persistentillusion: amazing how slow 60 mph looks on that track

      Reply
    106. 106.

      Professor Bigfoot

      May 24, 2025 at 9:10 pm

      @mrmoshpotato: Prosperity; the Great Khan is clearly prosperous, and his people— his Horde— seem to be doing quite well under his rule.

      All hail the Great Khan!

      (tongue only slightly in cheek, Governor Pritzker looks like the real deal— got me considering joining the Nomadic Warriors, no lie)

      Reply
    107. 107.

      Matt McIrvin

      May 24, 2025 at 9:11 pm

      @Another Scott: It’s so strange to read this in juxtaposition with the people I’m reading on Mastodon who are basically saying we’re all going to be rounded into death camps.

      I’m going to dispute one point of what that Never-Trumper was saying the other day: the most dramatic doom predictions are coming from people not in the US. Brits and Australians. They’re not saying *they’re* headed for the gas chamber, they’re telling me *I* am headed for the gas chamber. I don’t know, maybe they’re right.

      Reply
    108. 108.

      BlueGuitarist

      May 24, 2025 at 9:12 pm

      @Jackie:

      @eclare:

      yes! fabulous serenity photo!
      And funny new protest sign photo

      Reply
    109. 109.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 9:15 pm

      @NeenerNeener: MS is a whole different ball game. Beyond my amateur information, most of which would be wrong for you.

      My stepdaughter’s mom had MS. Also my dad’s nurse’s son.

      Medicine is so much better than when Sarah’s mom had it. They could do nothing then.

      .

      Reply
    110. 110.

      Ruckus

      May 24, 2025 at 9:16 pm

      @zhena gogolia:

      Maybe that’s what helps me as well. No news isn’t good news but then it isn’t bad news either.

      I get a good 8 hrs most nights although on rare occasions I have a hard time falling asleep, but then that’s been my sleeping habit for literally decades.

      Reply
    111. 111.

      Trivia Man

      May 24, 2025 at 9:20 pm

      @Ohio Mom: once a year, when they named the new hot doggers, all of them would park in front of our building. I think the most ever was 8 + a mini version + a peanut mobile running on peanut oil.

      We had lots of weenie whistles to give away. Apparently those were a huge fad in the 50’s.

      Bonus: who can sing the second verse?

      Reply
    112. 112.

      sab

      May 24, 2025 at 9:21 pm

      Why the fuck are neighbors setting off fireworks. Oh yes, federal holiday two days away. Could you possibly let my dog and cats sleep in peace for two nights more?  Of course not. You are MAGA.

      Reply
    113. 113.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 9:24 pm

      @NeenerNeener:

      Go into the store and ask them, they’ll know the law.

      Reply
    114. 114.

      zhena gogolia

      May 24, 2025 at 9:27 pm

      @sab: We had fireworks on Good Friday. 🤨 Nothing tonight yet.

      Reply
    115. 115.

      NotMax

      May 24, 2025 at 9:35 pm

      @zhena gogolia

      The parable of the loaves and the flashes.
      //

      Reply
    116. 116.

      Princess

      May 24, 2025 at 9:37 pm

      @Professor Bigfoot: He is the real deal.

      Reply
    117. 117.

      PatD

      May 24, 2025 at 9:46 pm

       

      @Princess: even the “progressives” love Pritzker. Far above the rest of the field at this point which now includes Rahm Emanuel. What a disaster his candidacy would be… failing upwards ever since his exit from the House.

      Reply
    118. 118.

      Professor Bigfoot

      May 24, 2025 at 9:49 pm

      @Princess: He seems to be subtly leaning into the “Great Khan” thing, tongue *firmly* planted in cheek— I like what he says, and I really just like the guy.

      (I saw a list of Pritzker stuff— libraries, research facilities, museums and well, their existence says a LOT about the Pritzker family, and all of it very good)

      Reply
    119. 119.

      Geminid

      May 24, 2025 at 9:55 pm

      @Another Scott: I got that “formidable politician” label from former Lieutenant Governor Bill Bolling. He characterized Spanberger for Bearing Drift in August of 2023, after she gave Democrats a heads-up that she would run for Governor and they had an open seat to defend in 2024. Bolling wrote:

          Spanberger is a formidible politician, and I don’t think the Republican bench has anyone who can compete with her.

      Bolling could know; he won eight of eight of his races, including two statewide. If Virginia Republicans had held a primary instead of a caucus/convention process in 2013, I’m pretty sure Bolling would have won the race for Governor that year.

      As it turned out, Terry McAuliffe barely beat culture warrior Ken Cuccinelli, who would have lost to Bolling in a primary.

      I thought that and Dave Brat beating Eric Cantor in the VA07 primary the following year marked a downward inflection point for Virginia Republicans. Spanberger beat Brat in 2018, and now I expect she will be Virginia’s first female Governor ever.

      Reply
    120. 120.

      eclare

      May 24, 2025 at 9:59 pm

      @Professor Bigfoot:

      Someone, satby I think, posted a list of all of the Pritzker charitable endeavors here, and I was stunned.

      Reply
    121. 121.

      tam1MI

      May 24, 2025 at 10:04 pm

      @zhena gogolia: I hope he can rise above this country’s fat-ism.

      And the antisemitism.

      Reply
    122. 122.

      karen gail

      May 24, 2025 at 10:04 pm

      @Nukular Biskits: I grew up hearing “stripping a gear” as it related to shifting; usually from some male making comments about my driving abilities.

      Reply
    123. 123.

      Craig

      May 24, 2025 at 10:17 pm

      @Raven: thank you for that. Total magic

      Reply
    124. 124.

      Kristine

      May 24, 2025 at 10:18 pm

      @Suzanne: Same here. Burning through the tissues.

      Reply
    125. 125.

      dnfree

      May 24, 2025 at 10:22 pm

      @Ealbert: Microswitch?  In Freeport IL?

      Reply
    126. 126.

      persistentillusion

      May 24, 2025 at 10:37 pm

      @Trivia Man:

      I was there when they broke the 200mph record.  It was amazing, and the roar from the crowd was better.

      Reply
    127. 127.

      persistentillusion

      May 24, 2025 at 10:42 pm

      @sab: I am with you.  My poor dog has been under the bed for 4 hours.  I wish hemorrhoids upon their ears.

      Reply
    128. 128.

      Gvg

      May 24, 2025 at 10:50 pm

      @NeenerNeener: I was sent by my doctor to have a sleep study and the results kind of scared me. My oxygen was dropping to 75 and I was having breathing stop, I think it was 37 times that night before they switched me to trying the cpap machine half way through the night. Many people have trouble adjusting but I fell asleep right away and woke up feeling better than I had in a while. Then I had to bug them to get the results official and a prescription. I have now had the mask and matching 9 nights and feel my energy coming back. I am getting things done after work instead of just collapsing, and I feel rested in the morning. It’s a bit better each day.

      if you remember, when Covid was happening, they told us to call the doctor if our oxygen readings were below 90%. Reading up 88% is bad and 84% requires intervention. 75% is severe. And I have no idea how long I had it but I have been complaining about being tired for several years. It’s part of why I was seeing a weight loss doctor.

      There are lots of warnings that many people have trouble adjusting, but I have been running into real people who love their’s and talk it up.

      Reply
    129. 129.

      Soprano2

      May 25, 2025 at 12:23 am

      @Gin & Tonic: That’s true, no matter how tired I am I can rarely sleep more than 6 hours at stretch. It’s annoying.

      Reply
    130. 130.

      Soprano2

      May 25, 2025 at 12:29 am

      @eclare: We’re getting the same. We’ve had at least 5″ at my house since Wednesday, with more to come tonight and tomorrow, and next week. One good thing about it is that business at the bar is good tonight because people didn’t go to the lake or the river.

      Reply
    131. 131.

      Kayla Rudbek

      May 25, 2025 at 1:23 am

      @Professor Bigfoot: I think that I saw some artwork of Pope Leo giving Pritzker the Great Khan his blessing (probably over on Bluesky) like a medieval pope blessing the cavalry

      Reply
    132. 132.

      Gloria DryGarden

      May 25, 2025 at 1:27 am

      @Soprano2: I have a friend in your town. I’d like to send her to your bar. Is it ok to ask the name of your business?

      Do you have karaoke there? ( just guessing, because your nym is soprano2, so I expect you actually sing)

      Reply
    133. 133.

      Chris T.

      May 25, 2025 at 4:39 am

      @MagdaInBlack:

      Paragraph 20 something of the nyt article I skimmed did mention he rambled at times.

      He could just go “blibble ziggery sasquatch covfefe, the big beautiful bill is eating the dogs” for the entire speech and the FTFNYT would have a headline “Trump addresses crowd” with subhead “talks about budget bill”.

      Reply
    134. 134.

      brantl

      May 25, 2025 at 5:35 am

      @sab: Or electrolytes.

      Reply
    135. 135.

      NeenerNeener

      May 25, 2025 at 7:03 am

      @Gvg: They mentioned that they found nasal polyps on one of my MRIs a few years back, but nobody recommended CPAP back then. I’ll have to bring it up the next time I see my GP.

      Reply
    136. 136.

      Miss Bianca

      May 25, 2025 at 11:07 am

      @Professor Bigfoot: Right?? Ridin’ with the Khan! :)

      Reply

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