Here’s my favorite heron who resides on the western coast of Central Florida. His name is Igor:
He’s a smart bird; he can spot a fishing bucket half a mile away and hastens to that spot, hoping for a bait fish handout.
I’m gonna run out soon and get some stuff to make noodle salad. I make it with gemelli pasta (if I can find it, penne if not), Kalamata olives, sun dried tomatoes, basil, olive oil and cubed mozzarella cheese. It shall be delicious!
I hope y’all are having a wonderful Labor Day. Open thread!
japa21
And follow the advice in David’s post, please.
Adam L Silverman
@japa21: And don’t forget to hydrate!
OzarkHillbilly
When I was up in the Boundary Waters, the gulls would show up within just a minute or 2 of my cleaning the fish. Unfortunately for them, before I finished an eagle would spot the gulls waiting and fly in to steal all the guts. I don’t think those poor gulls got so much as an intestine the whole week..
rikyrah
this is a GROWN AZZED MAN that they are talking about..
DA PHUQ?
White House aides fret over Trump’s psyche now that bodyguard and ‘ultimate emotional binky’ Keith Schiller is gone
04 SEP 2017 AT 13:19 ET
Donald Trump’s longtime bodyguard Keith Schiller may not have left the White House due to scandal, but those close to the president worry about the effect his absence will have on him all the same.
According to Axios, people close to Trump are already musing about how it’ll affect his “psyche.”
“Schiller is the ultimate emotional binky for Trump,” New York Times‘ White House correspondent Maggie Haberman, a journalist whose access to the president is unprecedented, tweeted.
Along with reports about the private concerns of the president’s confidantes, Axios also noted that Schiller (who’s worked for Trump since 1999) was much more than a security czar.
“In the early, freewheeling days of this administration,” the report notes, “Trump’s old contacts had a method for getting around the Chief of Staff, Reince Priebus: If they wanted to reach Trump, they’d text Keith, and before too long they’d often receive a call from the president.”
In late June, ABC News reported that the House Intelligence Committee was interested in interviewing Schiller in their Trump-Russia collusion investigation.
rikyrah
FOREVER FLOTUS giving tribute to Beyonce on her birthday.
https://twitter.com/JasmynBeKnowing/status/904713964692656128
Achrachno
@rikyrah: “House Intelligence Committee was interested in interviewing Schiller” Oh, dear. I hope Keith has not gotten himself into any trouble.
Nahh!
trollhattan
@rikyrah:
At some point I’m hoping a “proper” investigative journalist or biographer writes Trump’s actual life story, presuming his acquaintances aren’t all under NDAs or mysteriously dead. At some time in his life surely he had something resembling a personality and ability to forge meaningful relationships, the tools to conduct business in a fashion not aping the mafia.
If he truly didn’t spend the ’70s and ’80s shoveling coke into his face (my pet theory) then something happened to give us the hollowed-out shell of a human we see before us. Medical condition? Accident? We have to endure this crap and deserve to know why is is what he is.
Roger Moore
@Achrachno:
They are still trying to find intelligent life in the White House.
feebog
Your recipe sounds delish. I make something similar, but add marinated mushrooms and marinated artichoke hearts. Everybody chill out today and remember the people who struggled and died in the labor movement. They are the ones who made this country great.
Nora
Is it really too much to ask the fucking New York Times to write ONE article, on LABOR DAY, talking about working people?
This morning in the business section they almost got it right — they were writing about Trump’s approach to worker protections, and they noted that it wasn’t unusual for a Republican to turn “business friendly” (translation: screw workers), but then they immediately turned it into a discussion of Trump’s “reverence” for entrepreneurs. Yeah, right. Trump has no reverence for anything but himself, and screwing workers out of protections is not encouraging entrepreneurs but screwing workers, and for once, just ONCE, I would like the Times to admit it.
Oh, yeah, and I’d also like to win the lottery. One’s as likely as the other, I guess.
Major Major Major Major
Today in I Never Thought Leopards Would Eat MY Face: Chaldean Christians.
Jeffro
@japa21: I still think stocking up on Bud Light before Irma gets here makes sense and should have been part of his post.
?
Adam L Silverman
@rikyrah: @Achrachno: Apparently he and Mrs. Schiller have a history of high returns on sketchy business dealings. This seems to have caught the eye of AG Schneiderman and, perhaps, Bob Mueller. I think the real worry inside the inner circle is that because Schiller has been at the President’s sign almost non stop for around 20 years or so that he knows everything. And given his own potential financial irregularities, as well as issues created from being the President’s personal hitter, he would be more vulnerable to being flipped by Mueller, Schneiderman, or both to save himself and his wife.
Adam L Silverman
@trollhattan: Read Wayne Barrett’s biography of him. As well as his biographical reporting.
trollhattan
@Jeffro:
True. If you have a low-flush toilet it’s about 4.5 cans of Bud Lite to fill the tank between flushes.
japa21
@Jeffro: I prefer Stella
Mike in NC
@rikyrah: There are so many things coming down the pike in September — budget, debt ceiling, more leaks about Russian hacking, etc. — that Trump is likely at some point before the end of the month to be found sitting in a corner, sucking his thumb.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Jeffro: Bud Light? Water’s cheaper.
Baud
I’ve been looking for a new job for a while now and I hate, hate, hate doing that more than anything else. I feel unpleasant these days.
Adam L Silverman
@Major Major Major Major: Completely predictable tragedy. They were abused in Iraq after the fall of Saddam Hussein and it was completely predictable that they would be abused here too if the President was elected. Or Senator Cruz. Or Dr. Carson. Because once you take the gloves off the immigration agents, those agents working at the tactical end could care less about the nuances of your immigration policies. It is above their pay grade and not their concern.
Major Major Major Major
@Baud: shadow presidentin’ not working out?
And I’m sure you’ll find something that fits well soon enough!
trollhattan
@Nora:
Our dead-tree paper has a whining op-ed from a building industry person today, warning that the prevailing wage portion of a housing bond bill going through the CA legislature will lead to WOE and DOOM and an $85k in unnecessary price increase/house. Really nice Labor Day optics.
Teddys Person
@feebog:
QFT
Mnemosyne
@trollhattan:
He’s a clinical narcissist. The only thing that “happened” is that he’s in the brightest spotlight in the world and it’s throwing every flaw he’s ever had into sharp relief.
He’s always been like this, but he has never been subjected to this level or scrutiny before. It’s possible that there’s some kind of looming dementia since his father had Alzheimer’s, but there truly is no center, no core to a narcissist. He will never grow or improve or learn, because he’s incapable of it. He will continue to be exactly what he is now forever.
Baud
@Major Major Major Major:
It’s awkward during interviews when they ask where I think I’ll be in five years.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: I hear ya; as an introvert, trying to market myself is worse than dental surgery.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: At my age that’s an easy question…probably dead.
Baud
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Definitely one of my problems. I feel like I either undersell myself or come off as arrogant and pompous.
Or both at the same time!
trollhattan
@Adam L Silverman:
Thanks for the recommendation, will check it out. I see Barrett literally died inauguration eve, sparing him the experience of witnessing it. Doubt that was coincidental.
dmsilev
@rikyrah:
She really is pulling out all the stops in her audition to become the official court stenographer.
Baud
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Family history tells me I will die early but I’ve seen pictures of you and you have much more than five years absent disease or injury.
West of the Rockies (been a while)
@Jeffro:
Sir, I admire your insights greatly…
But Bud F-ing Light?
trollhattan
@Baud:
Silly, you say “President, just ask my jackals.”
Major Major Major Major
@Baud: because you have to say prison?
Baud
@dmsilev:
They probably bonded over their hatred of Hillary.
Baud
@Major Major Major Major:
Impeached. Sounds classier.
Mnemosyne
@Major Major Major Major:
It would be nice to think that their relatives now regret voting for Trump, but I’m betting they double down on their support and will cry that the whole problem would be fixed if only the Czar knew …
mai naem mobile
@trollhattan: Scott speculated on one of the threads last night that he was brain damaged.I wonder if he was born brain damaged or suffered some kind of neural damage during the birth. That would explain the empathy angle. I also wonder if he was abused as an infant because according to Erikson stages if development that would explain the empathy angle too. I think he’s got a couple of diagnoses/illnesses going on,not just one. There’s a screw loose in there for sure. I can’t believe I am discussing a POTUS in this manner.
schrodingers_cat
@Baud: Good luck, not that you need it with your winning personality!
*pinky swear that’s no snark*
Adam L Silverman
@trollhattan: Start here:
http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/wayne-barrett-donald-trump-rudy-giuliani-peas-pod-article-1.2776357
There’s a reason the President is president and not a convicted felon who served his time and is now just trying to get by as a septuagenarian:
Baud
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
If you’re still here, what do you think of the new LG phone? Not released yet, but looks interesting.
schrodingers_cat
@dmsilev: She is fucking disgrace as is the newspaper that employs her.
Baud
@schrodingers_cat: I’m afraid I do need it and will take it gratefully.
schrodingers_cat
One of the stupidest things I read in a DACA related Twitter thread:
debbie
@Major Major Major Major:
The funny part is that they thought they knew what American Conservatism was.
Baud
@schrodingers_cat: No lie.
debbie
@Baud:
It’s tough not to wax apocalyptic, ammirite?
Just think of all the past interviews as practice for getting the job that matters.
Alternative Fax, a hip hop artist from Idaho
Igor is beautiful. Enjoy the holiday, and keep an eye on Irma’s track.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
his qualifications are… not evident to the casual observer
I’m gonna have to write out my conspiracy theory on this subject on all the walls of my house, but there’s some there there. I need blue duct tape, red yarn and seven 8x10s of Rudi Giuliani
Another Scott
@Baud: Job hunting is tough. Keep at it.
Network, network, network. Most positions are filled via friend-of-a-friend.
Best of luck!
Cheers,
Scott.
trollhattan
@Adam L Silverman:
Good lord, there’s a lot to unpack isn’t there? Is anybody in this tangle not mobbed up? Has Barron been putting hits out on classmates he doesn’t like?
Baud
@Another Scott: Yeah, I know. It’s the one time my sociopathy is a negative.
Baud
@debbie: But I didn’t get those jobs.
Baud
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
And DWS!
Aleta
Is he a younger Great Blue type heron? I don’t much know different herons. But once we went to Florida and met a Great Blue walking along the beach. They are known for extreme shyness in Maine — you can spook them from a long ways away before you even see them. I’ve only seen them suddenly in the sky flying rapidly away.
So in Fla. we froze, barely whispered. He kept calmly walking along. Eventually we would take a tiny step in slow motion. He didn’t let on that we mattered at all. We spent the longest time barely moving, until he’d finished wading and left. Apparently we weren’t close enough to disturb, whereas we’d never been anywhere near that close to one of him.
Later, realizing we’d looked ridiculous, we recovered our pride by mocking their big fake Maine act of being oh so shy while actually they’re leading a brazen life out front in Florida.
(Though it probably makes sense because they’re nesting in Maine.)
sukabi
@Baud: where you’ll be in five years? Ha. Want to find out if the company you’re working for has a future? Try asking the CEO what their long range plans are…(18 months out) if they swear that 6 months is long range planning get your shit together because the CEO, CFO are planning to loot the company and leave in short order.
Another Scott
@Baud: Not Billin, but I’ve got a V10 and like it a lot. The V30 looks really, really interesting to me. It’s a shame that it doesn’t have the “IR Blaster” any more, and some people are decrying that the selfie camera is only 5 MP, but I don’t care about that.
I miss the rapid OS updates of my Nexus 4 though, so I plan on seeing what the Pixel XL 2 (or whatever) is like before seriously considering getting one. But if the Pixel XL 2 is a kilobuck again, then the choice will be much easier. (I just got Nougat 7.0 on the V10 from T-Mobile about a month ago…)
Keep an eye on the early deals – it can be more appealing to try to get one early if the accessories are something you would want anyway, or if the discount is substantial. Otherwise, waiting ~ 6 months can make sense as it should be cheaper.
HTH a little.
Cheers,
Scott.
trollhattan
@Aleta:
Find the same thing with herons and egrets in my slice of California. They’re really skittish and hard to approach for observing and taking photos. It’s best to be in a spot they like and let them come to me.
Iowa Old Lady
@schrodingers_cat: I hadn’t realized all the boxes someone has to tick off in order to get DACA status.
They have to have arrived between certain years and be in a certain age range. That part I knew.
They have to have a GED, HS diploma, or be in school.
They have to pay $500
They have to have a security check to show they have no felonies or major misdemeanors
I think I’ve missed some. I heard this on the radio yesterday.
hilts
This Daily Beast post
http://www.thedailybeast.com/the-insane-gifts-saudi-arabia-gave-president-trump
includes the list of 83 gifts that the Pantload in Chief accepted from Saudi Arabia during his recent trip
The gifts range from the regal (“Artwork featuring picture of President Trump”) to the martial (multiple swords, daggers, leather ammo holders and holsters), to the baroque (tiger and cheetah fur robes, and a dagger made of pure silver with a mother of pearl sheath).
Another Scott
@trollhattan: Who’s a pretty birdie!
Nice. Thanks.
Cheers,
Scott.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
dear god, what a waste of beautiful animals
? ?? Goku (aka The Hope of the Universe) ? ?
@Nora:
Better not talk about the NYT like that. Some around here have a reflexive need to defend it and the rest of the media for some reason
Iowa Old Lady
@hilts: I hope Trump turned those gifts over to the US govt the way he’s supposed to.
trollhattan
@Another Scott:
Thanks! I find them endlessly fascinating, and excellent at snagging their frog/fish/crawdad prey. I just never want to see one alongside my koi pond.
sukabi
@hilts: has any body told him he can’t personally keep the gifts, they have to be turned over?
efgoldman
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Legal to import (the skins?). I thought I remembered something like that, similar to natural ivory/whalebone/scrimshaw.
efgoldman
@sukabi:
He can’t hear them lalalalalalalala
Baud
@Another Scott: Thanks. I’m definitely not paying full price. There were some good deals last Xmas season, but I didn’t need a phone then. I also plan to look at the Pixel.
Achrachno
@dmsilev: She says Trump relies on a binky. I can accept that, easily.
HinTN
So, on this android phone (S7) the site appears as the web version and the reply buttons are non-functional in the comments. It has been presenting thus for a good part of this weekend, but I’m thinking the reply was working. On the other android phone (S4) the site presents as the mobile site.
dmsilev
@hilts:
There are a lot of words I could think of to describe Trump, but I don’t think ‘regal’ would make the list. Unless we’re counting things like Hapsburgs after a few generations of inbreeding.
debbie
@Baud:
Interviews always made me nervous, but I got better at it each time.
Achrachno
@Roger Moore: “They are still trying to find intelligent life in the White House.” They should look under the holy grail.
HinTN
@HinTN: Yep, mobile and reply works. Happy Labor Day, site managers.
P.S.: fuggitaboutit for the nonce
jeffreyw
@trollhattan: Heron with a bluegill in this 10 second video
Baud
@dmsilev:
Rectal would work.
Hal
A Hillary book excerpt. Bernie’s 5 minute abs.
Achrachno
@Adam L Silverman: That’s very interesting, and about what I’d expect. My fingers are crossed.
Brachiator
@trollhattan:
Journalism and promises to protect confidentiality can be frustrating. I think that Maureen Dowd once said that she had been assigned the job to write about Trump from the society angle, and claims that she got to know him well. Other papers also followed the adventures of the Billionaire Playboy like he was Bruce Wayne.
You gotta wonder what these people saw. They are reticent about Trump, and have always been more kind than honest about the plutocrats who rule New York, and a chunk of the world.
But if some editor pulled the business, social and poliitical reporters into a room and put all the notebooks on the table, you’d have a hell of a story. But the reporters would have to decide that they were done with journalism, because no one would ever talk to them again off the record.
Baud
@Hal: Holy cow. I like retired Hillary (although I would still prefer President Hillary).
HinTN
@HinTN: Ok, now reply appears to work. Operator error and no impairment available to blame.
bystander
Nicky Hailey in Trump’s cabinet is like Giselle MacKenzie appearing in a road tour of Annie Get Your Gun. A mediocre talent framed in merde.
Another Scott
@Hal: Of course Hillary hates ponies. She’s still a Goldwater Girl after all.
:-/
Thanks!
It’s amazing the things she had to put up with…
I’ve pre-ordered the book and can’t wait to read it.
Cheers,
Scott.
Baud
@HinTN: You can still blame Obama.
Major Major Major Major
@Hal: ha! I remember that! Oh man, people are gonna hate that book.
Baud
@Another Scott: I can’t. Still too raw for me.
Another Scott
@Baud: Power on through it, man. We need to learn the right lessons for November, for 2018, and for 2020.
It’s painful, but we’ve got to keep fighting. Your country needs you!
[eta:] Seriously, think of how painful it is for her and Barack. Don’t give in to despair.
Cheers,
Scott.
Aleta
@Iowa Old Lady: In addition to all the records the Dreamers have provided, because they have admitted to being undocumented, the government does not have to spend time and resources proving that in court. Normally that is a major part of the government’s work when attempting to deport someone.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
Henry Kissinger taught her to hate ponies
Baud
@Another Scott: The only lesson worth learning is vote D.
Those two are stronger than I am, I admit it.
HinTN
Which gets me back to
@Baud: Try humor, “Well, certainly not president of the company but I see myself being valuable to you in X, Y, Z ways (which demonstrate that you know what they do and how you’d fit into that scheme.”
That said, interviews are tough and they take likes of practice, which is frustrating as hell.
Hang in there and GOOD LUCK!
Baud
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: Thank God we dodged that bullet.
trollhattan
@Hal: @Another Scott:
Wow, letter-perfect. #WhichHillary? #WitchHillary is devastating.
Beginning to suspect Hillary is a secret Jackal. #HillsReadsBalloonJuice
Brachiator
@Baud:
Good luck to you. I know it can be frustrating.
Also, I hope you can find a way to tap into some of the confident humor that you often display here.
trollhattan
@jeffreyw:
Nice appetizer!
Adam L Silverman
@trollhattan: Nope. But leave Barron out of it. The adult children are fair game. He’s not.
Another Scott
@Baud: No. The lesson is that needs to be learned is how to fix the problems so that close elections swing toward Team D as often as possible. It’s how to smartly allocate resources; how to fight disinformation; how to get marginally connected voters to the polls; how to reduce barriers to voting; etc. It’s about much more than “voting D”.
The system has lots of friction. We have to recognize where the friction points are and work around them until the system can be made fairer and more representative of the actual will of the people.
(I know you know this stuff, and I am amazed by the art of your pithy responses, but we have work to do here.)
Cheers,
Scott.
HinTN
@Baud: I have NEVER been able to get behind that particular meme. I know it’s framing for a lot of sub rosa frustration with the way idiots rule our lives, but I just can’t…
/comes down off high horse
JPL
@Hal: That was awesome, and so true. Bernie is a grifter and fk his supporters who voted for Trump.
CarolDuhart2
@trollhattan: Hell, except for a few inconvenient murders, they would be the mob.
MomSense
I saw a bald eagle today. It flew so close to us while we were hiking. Then it circled over a few times. They really are impressive.
Mike in NC
@hilts: What a haul of useless crap. But I’d enjoy seeing Trump show up at his next white power rally wearing the purple robe with white fur lining. Classy!
Miss Bianca
@Major Major Major Major: IKR? I’m done banging my head over the plight of people who were stupid enough to vote for Trump. If you couldn’t figure out that a white supremacist who openly campaigned on immigrant-bashing and hate, and then you are shocked, SHOCKED to discover that you are one of the targets…I have no words.
Brachiator
Unqualified president nominated unqualified man for government post. From NPR news.
Another sterling example of running government like a business. Running it into the ground.
FlyingToaster
@efgoldman: Diplomatic gifts can usually skirt the regulations, though many diplomats and officeholders decline to accept the really skeevy ones.
Trump will try to take them with him when he goes.
trollhattan
@Adam L Silverman:
Of course, it’s not about him but the nearly zero odds of him not turning out like the rest of the spawn. Maybe Melania has some sway, one can only hope.
Elizabelle
@Baud: Good luck to you, baud. Your eventual lucky employer cannot begin to guess the qualities you bring to the table. Laptop. Bench. Whatever.
Cheryl Rofer
@Brachiator: Sam Clovis also seems to be the guy who brought Carter Page into the Trump campaign. I know we haven’t heard much about Page for a while, but I think he’s likely to be significant as a Russian connection. Or perhaps just one failed attempt on the part of the Russians, among many, to get their people into the campaign.
Aleta
@Baud: It’s seriously unsettling. The effects can temporarily make one feel like a shell of one’s self. My sympathy.
sukabi
@Hal: now THAT’S funny. Spiteful me hopes she drags her haters for miles and miles.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: I’m still in the cave, though working on pics from last evening’s shoot @ Melrose. I’ve not seen anything about the new LG. The Note8 looks nice but is expensive.
Fair Economist
@Hal: OMG, I *have* to order Hillary’s book.
trollhattan
@MomSense:
Nice, what a rare treat for most of us!
During the eclipse, which I watched from the shoreline of a Sierra lake, I was entertained by a pair of osprey, circling then swooping dives for trout. After one would make a catch it would circle while clutching the catch, yelling its head off before going off (to a nest?). I don’t know if that’s the osprey way of showing off or alerting the kids that lunch is coming.
If there’s a bald eagle in the vicinity it will harass an osprey to try and steal its prey, which IIUC is one of Franklin’s reasons for not wanting those thieving birds as our national symbol. It’s a hell of a show if you’re ever able to watch.
Post eclipse I tried photographing them but they got skittish and I only captured winged blurs.
hilts
@Brachiator:
With each passing day, Trump gives new meaning to the word kakistocracy.
Elizabelle
Hope Igor the heron stays safe.
Where do birds like him ride out storms? I wonder at the animal and wildlife toll of Harvey and other storms. They’re irreplaceable, too.
Brachiator
@Cheryl Rofer:
According to Wikipedia,
Interesting.
Mnemosyne
@Miss Bianca:
They thought they counted as “white” because they’re Christians, and Christians all stick together, right? Right?
They probably should have read up on US and European history.
trollhattan
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
My Moto Android developed a swelling battery making it look like a pregnant guppy, forcing me into the market (kicking and whining the whole way) and I ended up with the Galaxy S8. It proves to be an excellent gizmo overall, very snappy response times and brilliant display. I’ve had some connection problems with other devices because it uses a new Bluetooth edition a lot of them are unable to communicate with lacking a firmware update.
The Note is rumored to be a thousand bucks, which is enough to keep me well away. Mine’s not cheap but a $300 rebate took it from nosebleed territory.
Aimai
@Hal: have slready preorderd my copy.
hilts
@dmsilev: @Mike in NC:
I’ve no doubt that Trump had a major league erection when the Saudis showered him with all of this crap.
@Iowa Old Lady: @sukabi:
Unfortunately, Trump can basically do whatever he wants because there’s no person or group that can truly hold him accountable.
frosty
@Adam L Silverman: Can we add “Don’t forget to hydrate!” to the rotating tags?
catclub
@Baud:
In prison for murdering a stupid interviewer?
frosty
@Adam L Silverman: Can we add “Don’t forget to hydrate!” to the rotating tags?
Mnemosyne
@Aimai:
Mine is already preordered, but G says he’s going to also order one now that he knows it’s going to be snarky and take-no-prisoners, because that’s the Hillary he likes.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@trollhattan: The Note8 retail is $930, the new iPhone will be over 1K.
Aimai
@Mnemosyne: thats not what the article says, interestingly enough. The Chaldeans interviewed are sayung outright that they won’t forget the people (democrats, aclu) who helped them and they see themselves as a viting bloc.
?BillinGlendaleCA
A couple of pics from Melrose: Women waiting for light, and woman with cool ear rings also waiting for light.
Both pics are IR.
efgoldman
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
That’s fucking ridiculous. First of all, no-one’s going to pay full retail; more important, does it make/get calls any better than my $20 multi-generations ago Samsung?
Mike in NC
@hilts: After the invasion of Iraq there were lots of pictures of the grotesque items found in Saddam Hussein’s palaces, including a gold-plated AK-47. Compared to Trump, Saddam seems in retrospect to have been downright ascetic.
MomSense
@rikyrah:
The best. I love her.???
?BillinGlendaleCA
@efgoldman:
Probably not, but it still get security updates and will take better pictures.
ETA: For the record, I’m using a Note Edge that came out in September 2014.
Ruckus
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
You are correct. Dental surgery on one’s self can not be fun. Can’t imagine that it’s more fun than looking for a job and probably can get as depressing as well. It’s one thing to be inflicting pain on someone else and a whole different ball game doing it in your own mouth.
MomSense
@Hal:
Pre ordered. I live for NFTG Hillary.
debbie
@Major Major Major Major:
I just remembered listening to Glenn Beck raising millions to bring Christians from the Middle East to America. I wonder if he’ll shoot his mouth off about this?
raven
@Mike in NC: The 3 Infantry Division museum in Hinesville has a bunch of that stuff.
MomSense
@Baud:
I hate job listings. I keep thinking I’ll start an anonymous blog where I just mock how stupid the job descriptions are.
Mnemosyne
@Aimai:
I hope that they remember that in November of 2018 when the next deluge of anti-Democrat propaganda rains down. I guess we’ll see. This particular group of people does have skin in the game and they personally know people who were affected, so hopefully that will help the lesson stick.
Ruckus
@Baud:
I think there may be a job with that as the description.
Underselling, pompous, arrogant male seeks job with sex toy company.
Bet you’d fit right in.
efgoldman
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
I’m not a good or frequent enough photographer to care. I also own a six or seven year-old perfectly good Casio zoom camera, takes nice pix.
I did add a 16 gb mini card to my phone for music storage. I have about 48-50 albums copied which I play randomly in the car on bluetooth.
Hal
@rikyrah: Love it!
Gelfling 545
@Mike in NC: I expect him to wear it to give his state of the union address.
BC in Illinois
Two book related items:
I have already pre-ordered HRC’s book. Looking forward to it more and more as snippets of it are revealed.
I have a book proposal ready for anyone who wants to take the trouble to write it.
Failure: The Donald Trump Story
Chapters:
Childhood, Inheritance, and Education — wealth, privilege, intellectual failings
Vietnam era — wealth, privilege, avoidance of responsibility, wasted youth
The Family Company — wealth, privilege, racial discrimination
Trump as businessman — bankruptcies, treatment of workers/suppliers/contractors
Self-service — shell companies, tax avoidance, lawsuits vs. him, lawsuits vs. others
Personal Life — women, marriages, family, sexual assault, etc.
Trump Foundation— and other scams
Business Failures — Trump U, USFL, steaks, airlines, Beauty Pageants, etc., etc.
Media “Success “— Howard Stern, TV, self-promotion, etc.
Left in his wake — a look at Trump effect on workers, neighborhoods, surroundings
Political “Success” — From Russia with malice
The Failed Trump Presidency — a story still being written
Conclusion — Trump, A Life of Failure
james parente
@?BillinGlendaleCA: When refering to Bud, Coors, or Miller Light “Beer” : “Its like makin’ love in a canoe. You know, fuckin’ near water!” John Cagney, Pub owner, Oyster Bay, NY. (deceased)
Another Scott
@efgoldman: It’s a hand-held supercomputer that takes pictures, movies, can record high-quality audio, can securely store up to 2TB (eventually) of information, and communicates with anyone else on the planet. It can do handwriting and voice recognition, also too.
They’re amazing little boxes.
My first PC (a 486/66 SCSI/EISA tower) was $4000.
Yeah, they’re spendy when introduced. In 6 months it will be cheaper. In 2 years, it will be cheaper still.
Early adopters willing to pay the inflated prices make things cheaper for the rest of us.
Cheers,
Scott.
Major Major Major Major
@efgoldman: smartphones make calls?
?BillinGlendaleCA
@efgoldman:
I agree, I had two cameras with me yesterday, the only thing I use my cellphone for involving photography is using it as a remote shutter. The cellphone manufactures are trying to market their phones as a great camera that you always have with you. The Note8 has two cameras on the rear of the phone, one to take wide angle and the other is a 2x zoom. Samsung even stopped making stand alone cameras.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Major Major Major Major: (adjusts onion on belt) Yes.
hitchhiker
@Hal:
Absolutely certain I shared that fb post.
JGabriel
Betty Cracker @ Top:
FYI, Orecchiette can be good for that purpose too.
Kathleen
@trollhattan: Years ago an execrable Cincinnati Enquirer columnist (since retired from the paper but, alas not from spewing his bile in other publications) complained about city workers in a Labor Day column. I wrote him and asked him if he ever had a “real job”. He replied that when he was 18 he did something something on a highway crew.
PAM Dirac
@trollhattan: My wife and I went on a kayak trip down the Potomac river and saw a bald eagle trying to get an osprey’s fish. Even if I was capable of doing more than stare in awe, I don’t know if I could have caught the action on camera. Those birds are big, but they are extremely fast, especially in a power dive and are capable of turns that don’t seem physically possible. It went on for a good there or four minutes right above us. In the end the eagle gave up and the osprey went on it’s way with the fish. Damn eagle could of had any number of fish for a hell of a lot less effort.
Kathleen
@Baud: Moving and looking for a new job suck. I’m sure you will get something that is worthy of you, because that’s how you have to look at it. Society is so eager to tear us down and make us feel that we are just just burdens that the Sacred Invisible Hand has to carry. You have a lot to offer. We all do. Don’t mention the campaign. They might think you’re a dilettante.
jeffreyw
@PAM Dirac:
“Stolen fishes taste better than ones you catch. It is known!” – J L Seagull
KS in MA
@Nora: Did you miss this one? Good big article, and actually rather well reported. (Oops, I guess it was in the Sunday paper.) https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/03/upshot/to-understand-rising-inequality-consider-the-janitors-at-two-top-companies-then-and-now.html?_r=0
Kathleen
@Mnemosyne: Hush! You’ll upset the pundits! When they’re older they’ll understand that there is no Kelly Claus that will leave them an coherent Donald Doll on Pivotmas.
Ruckus
@BC in Illinois:
You’ve written the book, the rest is just filler to give it heft, for those who think it’s not what the words say but how many words it takes to say it.
Kathleen
@Iowa Old Lady: Check e bay or Craig’s list.
Kathleen
@Achrachno: Subtext: “I’m so ‘in’ with the In Crowd I can be teasy & breezy! Aren’t I cute and cool?” (emoji if I could figure out how to do it in comment).
Ruckus
@Mnemosyne:
I would only slightly disagree with everything you said. And that is that he will get worse, not stay the same. And that’s because of that spotlight. Before now he’s never been anywhere near the level of attention that he’s at. He could fake that he was popular or rich or smart. He could walk away or sue someone. Now there is no faking, no walking away. He leaves no doubt every time he opens his mouth. The only people giving him praise are those who think he will respond to that praise with something, anything positive. IOW the people who either don’t recognize narcissism when it shits on them or who are narcissists themselves.
Patricia Kayden
@rikyrah: It’s odd that Maggie has unprecedented access to the White House while Trump continues to deride the NYT as failing and fake news. Her stories about him and his administration are always soft and useless.
Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism
@Hal: How the hell does Twitter decide what replies to show after a tweet? It always seems to be the most clueless comments possible. I’m sure there are more abusive ones that I don’t see, but I have only rarely gone to a tweet linked here and not come away feeling like I need a shower.
trollhattan
@PAM Dirac:
How great to see all that while on the water!
Occasionally look skyward when shooting my kid’s soccer matches because I never know what I’ll see. One day I took shots of what appeared to be crows harassing a hawk. When I enlarged the heck out of the dots at home it appears to be a pair of kites going after a golden eagle. Coincidentally my only confirmed golden eagle–flying battleships.
Kathleen
@Brachiator: Most of them are already done with “journalism”. Hence your insightful observation.
ETA And I’m not being snarky.
Baud
Thanks, everyone. I wish I could use you all as references.
Kathleen
@Another Scott: I’ve also ordered and can’t wait either.
Achrachno
@Kathleen: I liked my subtext better. Trump’s a big baby. :)
Kathleen
@MomSense: I’m hoping a NFLTG Obama follows suit in his memoir.
SiubhanDuinne
@Another Scott:
@Kathleen:
Just checked to make double-sure I had pre-ordered (I had). It will download on September 12 — a week from tomorrow. Can hardly wait!
SiubhanDuinne
@Kathleen:
And Michelle! I can’t wait to read Chellie Unleashed!
Kathleen
@BC in Illinois: Another possible title: Game of Throw Up
debbie
@Kathleen:
I’m seeing a couple reports that Obama will be making a statement after Trump ends DACA. I cannot wait!
Baud
My ideal job would be Hillary Clinton’s anger translator.
Kathleen
@Achrachno: @SiubhanDuinne: Oh, yeah.
Another Scott
@Baud: She’s got a book tour coming up. Send her a resume!
:-)
Cheers,
Scott.
MomSense
@Kathleen:
Michelle’s NFTG memoir would be epic.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Baud: How do you look in a pantsuit?
Baud
@?BillinGlendaleCA: Truth be told, I look better without one.
efgoldman
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
Better than in a kilt, I wot.
p.a.
@?BillinGlendaleCA: @Baud:
9/4/17 Balloon Juice jumps the shark
Baud
@p.a.: I thought we did that in November 2015.
Kelly
@Baud: Back when I was a mainframe IT guy our dept decided we needed someone that knew how to do that newfangled Java stuff. Java had just started to spread about two years before. When HR put out the want ads they specified 5 years Java experience. When we explained to them no one had more than a couple years Java experience they looked at us like we were quite daft.
Baud
@Kelly: Ha! I often struggle with how seriously I should take those minimum qualifications.
p.a.
@Baud: 11/6/2016 America goosed the bike to ramp speed. 1/20/17 jumped the tank, the landing ramp, the arena, landed in the dumpster, burst into flames.
Kathleen
@debbie: I can’t either.
ETA: Any way you could make meetup? I know it’s a haul for you.
germy
@Baud: Hillary’s anger translator. Here she is:
http://www.cc.com/video-clips/km09t5/key-and-peele-hillary-s-anger-translator—uncensored
Baud
@germy: Funny. But I can’t stand the thought of those two going at it.
Baud
@p.a.: Meh. There are worse ways to go.
Elizabelle
@Baud: You are moving too? A great distance?
Change can be good.
Baud
@Elizabelle: I hear Barcelona is nice. :-)
Probably not moving. Just hoping to change jobs.
debbie
@Kathleen:
Unfortunately no. I have night vision issues and so have to stay off the road. I’m looking forward to the post-report!
Brachiator
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
For most people, a smartphone camera is more than sufficient. It’s like in the ancient age, the 1960s thru 1980s, when folks would pull out a cheap Kodak camera or a Polaroid camera. And even back them, the camera film available was somewhat forgiving.
It’s also interesting that some people want flagship cameras boasting “great specs” and then add crappy effects to the pictures via Instagram or whatever is hot right now.
Still, these cameras are perfectly fine for decent, memorable snaps of family and friends.
ETA. Once I was coming out of one of the Gold Line stations when I noticed a few people taking pictures. Soon, people were even driving up, parking their cars, and jumping out to get some snaps. I looked around and saw a number of male peacocks sitting on the lower ledges of a building, spreading their wings. Not sure where they came from, but not entirely unusual in Pasadena. Everyone was using a smartphone camera because, yep, that was the camera they had with them. And they were having fun and creating a memory to talk about and to share. Can’t ask for much more than that.
But this also creates more room for professional and serious amateur photography.
BC in Illinois
@debbie:
If President Obama steps out in front of the cameras to speak about the students, veterans, rescue-aid heroes, workers, and community members that Trump wants to remove from the only country they have known, the response would be powerful. (The contrast between the two men would be absolutely stark.)
But let the campaign for 2018 begin at this moment. On the issue of what it means to be an American.
People will talk about partisan divides, but who in the world thinks that the GOP Congress will stand up for new Americans against Trump? The only answer is a new Congress. Let the fight for American values, for Democracy, for Voting Rights, (and an American government free of Russian control) begin and let it continue for the next 14 months. When we have a new Congress, then we can work on health care, voters’ rights, workers’ rights, climate change, protecting the environment, and all the things we should have been doing during the last seven months.
I can’t believe how excited I can become, simply at the prospect of Barack Obama stepping up to the microphone to address the nation.
Yes, I can see the push-back pushing back, but maybe it’s the time to stand up and speak up. We’ve had a lot of practice, starting on January 21st.
I have been in more marches — along with my wife and my daughter — more marches this year than I have been in since the ’60s. I think it’s time.
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
Ordered the hard copy. Bet it’s worth every penny.
Elizabelle
@Baud: Ah, Barcelona. Totes still enamoured with moving there.
debbie
@BC in Illinois:
F ’em, I say. Enough is enough.
ETA: It’s Politico, but still: http://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/04/obama-trump-dreamers-daca-242303
Baud
@Elizabelle: It’s a beautiful place.
p.a.
@BC in Illinois: @debbie: It would be awesome: the MSM would stroke out. It’s just not done!
Radicalism in defense of democracy is no vice.
Elizabelle
@Baud: filled with brave people, who do not scapegoat their Muslim community. They learned from history.
Baud
@Elizabelle: Like Balloon Juice, with architecture.
?BillinGlendaleCA
@Brachiator: I’m in mild disagreement with you on this; for snapshots of stuff, a cellphone camera is OK, but if you are traveling or shooting anything but people you need at least a point and shoot with a bigger sensor and zoom capability. When I went to Seattle for grad school, I decided to not take my OM-1; I still regret that mistake.
HinTN
@Baud: If you go we have connections.
Elizabelle
@Baud: and vermouth. And Tibidabo.
All the good stuff. Pets too. Although no stray cats. That was kind of unsettling.
Baud
@Elizabelle:
El soylent verde es gatos.
trollhattan
@Brachiator:
I took a picture of my camera with my phone camera.
SiubhanDuinne
@Ruckus:
I still adore the idea and the sensual pleasure of hard-cover books, but I must admit my elderly eyes are grateful for the ability to enlarge the font size and increase or decrease the brightness at the touch of a screen. Not to mention the ability to cart around an entire library of favourites on a single iPad. It was a very tough call for me (the daughter and granddaughter of bookstore owners), but almost all my book purchases these days are to the Kindle app.
p.a.
@?BillinGlendaleCA: I’m an android phone owner: galaxy s5. Camera is meh. I believe (some models?) of iPhone have add-on lenses that are optical zooms and do a nice job. Think there are some tumblr sites dedicated to iPhone photography. Some nice work.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@germy: is that Patricia Clarkson as Hillary ? I always liked Stephanie Weir, surprised you don’t see more of her. MadTV had some funny people
Elizabelle
@Baud: Yes. One worries.
debbie
@Jim, Foolish Literalist:
Those are some angry eyelashes!
Elizabelle
Out for a walk. Catch you jackals later.
Jeffro
@West of the Rockies (been a while): we all have our flaws, I guess
I seem to have developed a mid-life hops allergy, or at least a severe irritation to anything with much hops in it. Hence the preference for American Diet Beer Soda
Kathleen
@debbie: I understand that. We will miss you!
Brachiator
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
I don’t think we disagree. You are a serious photographer. Most people are not. Most people are happy enough with a good enough instant camera.
And here’s the key thing. It’s not just the camera. Most people are not going to invest the time in learning to be a better photographer. Or will spend time practicing, composing shots, etc.
But that’s okay. They will be happy with the shots they get. But yeah, when they decide they want better shots of more than just people, and they want to spend more time doing photography, they will want to step up to a better camera.
Brachiator
@BC in Illinois:
I dread what Trump’s announcement may be, but I think that if Obama responds, he cannot do so by himself. The other former presidents, a Republican big wig, would be great.
Ruckus
@SiubhanDuinne:
I bought the larger 27 in screen iMac just so I could easily zoom in print because of old eyes. And I have the Kindle app and it’s nice. Normally I would have bought the Kindle version but in this case, I just wanted the actual book. Of all the things I have, and it isn’t a lot, the two types of things I really like are tools, and books. And I have collected way too many tools, such that I no longer use most of them, ever. I’m rectifying that by selling them off as I figure out which ones that I’ll most likely never use again. For example, I own a very nice tig welding rig and a cart that I made to put everything on. And now my tremors are such that welding is pretty much beyond me, unless you just want something melted. That I seem to be able to do but even then it ain’t purdy no more. Used to weld thin wall steel and titanium tubing, now I just destroy it. Oh well life moves on.
Steeplejack
@?BillinGlendaleCA:
My Moto X dates from January 2014. Just checked when I realized that for some reason I still have the first photograph I took on it. Haven’t gotten any system updates from Verizon in a while, but so far I’m not feeling the need to upgrade.
Kay
My husband and I took our 14 year old kayaking. It rained but we like to say “it’s not kayaking if it’s not raining!”
He was gazing discontentedly out the car window on the way to the put-in and he said “I’m getting tired of this…. threesome” – that’s how he thinks of his family. As people he has to dump.
He was way behind us the whole way down the river and I was thinking “this river only runs one way buddy- you WILL end up with us”
Steeplejack
@Kay:
I love your bemused stories of slightly prickly family life.
LadyNorth
@SiubhanDuinne: I have a feeling that the book of President Obama will be extremely interesting, but won’t get into the nitty gritty of everyday politics. I hope he nails the republicans for their bad behavior though.
Origuy
@Kelly: I was sure that happened, but never had a specific incidence.
No One You Know
@jeffreyw: I’ve read that great blue herons (and, maybe, some long-necked relatives) have to learn how to eat, as well as how to hunt. Did the bird get the fish down?
PlaneCrazy
I think we used to see that bird, or his cousin, at my parents place in Sand Key near Clearwater Beach. We have some pretty bold ones here in NC at the Duke Gardens. https://flic.kr/p/7ypuAt. Or this magnificent fellow looking all moody and mysterious. https://flic.kr/p/7yGiPd.