Greetings, folks. I had a very lazy couple of days, in large part because pollen counts are through the roof and the weather keeps changing. Whatever. Quit your bitching old man.
I was driving home from the big city about a half hour ago and on the ride I looked out my window and several times saw people floating down the creek in inner tubes, and I thought to myself, “is riding an inner tube down a creek a uniquely American pastime? I don’t think I’ve ever seen a movie with people from a different culture do it, have I?
Not a minute later after having that thought I rounded a corner and there, surrounding a big ole pickemup trick, were a bunch of hillbillies gathered after tubing around the tailgate swilling beer, with the truck just right off the edge of the road so that you had to get over to not clip one of the fuckers. And to boot, the one fellow with his back to the road had his britches pulled down so that his entire ass was exposed. I then thought, if this is a uniquely American pastime, this is definitely the West Virginia version of it.
I’m sucked into Horizon Forbidden West (a video game). I’m gonna peace out.
Luther Siler
Aloy may be one of my favorite video game characters of all time. She is a raging asshole with absolutely no patience for anyone less competent than she is– which, it turns out, is everyone– and I love her.
Jay
Tubing is a big deal in Canada. We do it in the summer, down canals, rivers, creeks, lakes,……….. we also do it in winter on snow covered slopes, but it’s a much different experience.
Scout211
That’s a good question so I googled it and it is definitely not uniquely American. There are rivers all over the world that are good for tubing.
I used to go tubing in my 20s but switched to rafting because the rivers here are so cold even if it’s 90 degrees out. After a while your butt just gets numb from the cold so rafting is much more pleasant. I haven’t done either in years, though.
bbleh
WV has amazing rivers. Got many a sunburn (on the front) floating around in big inner tubes.
Btw, are there inner tubes now like there used to be? Hasn’t tire technology changed?
Whereaway
If you haven’t, I’d suggest playing Horizon: Zero Dawn first – it sets the story.
I’m about 60% of the way through Forbidden West, and It’s -almost- as good as first game.
And Aloy can be a raging asshole, but the fate of the world is on her shoulders. But – she has opportunities to be a good person…
Not being a console game player, I think this game is the best Playstation to PC port I’ve ever played.
Scout211
Silly bbleh, just order one from Amazon.
😉
Jay
@bbleh:
They were always at one time, large truck tires, which are still used. Usually off of semi trailers.
Now a lot of the “tubes” are a thin, light, urethane bladder inside a ballistic nylon cover, often with handles, tie off points and seats, purpose made for tubing, being towed by a boat or jet ski, or mild white water.
Gloria DryGarden
Thanks for the bad-assed funny story!
We sure went inner tubing down the platte near deckers, Colorado. ( water so cold we scraped skin off our shins and came out bleeding, but had no idea until we came out of the water. It was a blast!)
And on snow off a small hill off evergreen lake, up in the first foothills town.
(A friend got a broken arm from a multi sled/ inner tube pile up. But otherwise, it was a blast, too)
geg6
Heh, yes. Definitely the WV version. But damn, there’s a lot of good water there for tubing. Some really great white water for rafting, too.
japa21
@Jay: The summer tubing season lasts about three days, right?
Mart
I have been tubing in California, Missouri, and Texas. I think the West Virginia folks would get along fine with the Missourians. Maybe Texas, but only if the right people are floating with them.
Gloria DryGarden
Question about the periodic cicadas. Did anyone hear them? My pal in n Georgia just told me heard them in town. But not as far s as Rome.
2nd Q:
if the cicadas had made down to Rome Georgia, would they have been loud enough to drown out that MTG Person?
(If only)
eclare
Absent the beer swillin’ and ass crack, that sounds like a nice way to spend a hot day. As the closest river to me is filled with barges and agricultural runoff, it is not tempting at all.
Although I think some people do stand-up paddleboards on it.
smith
They are loud and constant here in Chicago right now. There are exoskeletons sticking to everything — counted 12 on one of my outdoor chairs, and you can frequently see them buzzing past. The seagulls that usually show up to eat them haven’t arrived yet, though.
eclare
@Gloria DryGarden:
No sign of them here in Memphis yet. I think the only thing than can drown out MTG is Jasmine Crockett. It’s hard to think of a comeback to “bleach blonde bad built butch body.”
HinTN
@Gloria DryGarden: They are here! A very different drone than the annual cicadas, and they are sacrificing themselves on windshields in maddening numbers. A neighbor said she mowed her yard and at least 50 mated with her 🙄 and it’s a small yard!
bbleh
@Jay: right. it’s like “dialing” a phone number. or “tuning in.”
SiubhanDuinne
@eclare:
I also loved AOC’s scorching “Girl. Baby girl. Don’t even play.” She had Madge simply sputtering in incoherent rage. It was beautiful.
MagdaInBlack
@smith: Out here in Arlington Heights, I have heard exactly 2 buzz, very briefly. I saw 1 dead on on the sidewalk. That’s it, so far.
lowtechcyclist
Been many years since I went tubing with friends, but I remember it fondly. Strictly western VA and eastern WV for me.
Dorothy A. Winsor
@MagdaInBlack: In Barrington, I haven’t seen any
eclare
@SiubhanDuinne:
I hadn’t heard that! Yeah, don’t mess with someone from the Bronx.
a thousand flouncing lurkers (was fidelio)
@eclare: here’s Larkin Poe from five years ago, with a haunting little tune called “Bleach Blonde Bottle Blues”.
Kinda catchy.
Here in Nashville right now we have the periodic cicadas by day and the regular cicadas at night and I’m not sure Jimmy Swaggert could make himself heard over them. It’s one long scream of desperate, horny insects.
SpaceUnit
Used to love tubing.
Sadly, the old gang has sort of broken up and gone different ways.
Starfish
@eclare: It’s West Virginia. Is a day without beer swilling and ass cracks a day at all?
eclare
@Starfish:
Hahaha…
Starfish
So in the west, we have tiny moats around our basement windows, and these are called window wells. A prairie dog has decided to take up residence in one. We thought he left, but this evening, he popped up again. How do we convince a prairie dog to go live some place that is not under the house?
MagdaInBlack
@Dorothy A. Winsor: My parts manager, who lives in Streamwood, has a yard full of them. In South Elgin, where I work, I’ve heard none.
Another Scott
@Starfish: When we were out at Yellowstone, we would see bison rolling around on top of prairie dog mounds. Apparently they use them to scratch itches.
You could borrow a bison??
Good luck!
[eta:] Seriously – Mammals don’t like hot peppers. Maybe spread some cayenne pepper and similar things around? I mix this stuff in with shelled sunflower seeds that I put in our bird feeders. It keeps the squirrels and chipmunks from eating all of it.
Cheers,
Scott.
Martin
The Red Lobster failure stories are really insightful – not individually, but collectively. Each one seems to blame a different bit of capitalist excess, from diners that would sit at a table for 4 hours to eat 30 servings of shrimp off their $20 all-you-can-eat menu items, to the seafood company that had minority stake in the franchise and forced the chain to cancel contracts with cheaper seafood companies, to the private equity group that had majority stake that sold off the land under the restaurants (and kept the proceeds) forcing them to rent back into a predatory leasing environment. It was a race to the end for each party of grifters to see who could get the most out of the chain before it was completely hollowed out.
Matt McIrvin
“Lazy river” waterpark attractions inspired by tubing are popular all over the world–the best one I’ve personally ridden was in Singapore.
prostratedragon
So far can’t hear them above the multiple fans down here on the South Side, but that could change next week with the festival of OLAC. Last year they were loud as the dickens.
Martin
@Whereaway: Agreed – the story is important here, so finish Zero Dawn first.
But Aloy isn’t an asshole – she’s trying to achieve a collective good and everyone is only focused on their personal wants. She doesn’t even ask them for their help, just to get out of her fucking way. And if you look at when she’s being a bit saucy, it’s around men who don’t believe that an 18 year old girl can accomplish anything useful.
I found her snarkiness to be pretty restrained. I would have popped off a lot worse on pretty much everyone there.
Jackie
@eclare: I’m sure you can Google it! 😂
RaflW
Six years after moving across town (and merging households with my long term partner), today was the day I finally set up the old fashioned component stereo system. I just listened to a late 1970s vinyl album (Al Di Meloa’s Elegant Gypsy), and now a Maxell 90 minute cassette tape is letting me — just slightly — re-live my rather inglorious youth (Cabaret Voltaire’s Micro-Phonies). Yes, I have eclectic tastes.
I’ve got over 100 vinyl records, and maybe 10 years ago the BF gave me a turntable with a USB out. I digitized like 3 albums, but the setup was on the dining room table in my previous, rather cosy condo, so it got put away and the project stalled for a looong time.
eclare
@Jackie:
I did! MTG picked the wrong people to mess with.
Typical bully. All hat, no cattle.
Brachiator
@Martin:
This was clearly not the problem. Not in itself. It’s stupid to create a loss leader that goes nowhere.
Financing the sale of the chain with a store leaseback scheme increased debt.
Control by a shrimp company who would not buy from lower cost competitors built in higher prices.
Various people were trying to close on the best deal. No one was interested in running a restaurant.
rikyrah
Women….buy you some property before November.
More reading of Project 2025
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTLtvQdqt/
NotMax
@Martin
The late, funny, rotund comedian Louis Pinella speaking of his stern admonishment at an all you can eat Chinese restaurant buffet:
“You been here four hour. You go now!”
:)
eclare
@rikyrah:
Good advice, and scary.
SpaceUnit
@Starfish:
Ha. I don’t know, but you sure as heck don’t want a prairie dog colony to get started on your property. Good luck with that.
NotMax
@Starfish
Drop in a handful of moth balls?
Martin
@Brachiator: Not in itself, but these same customers are upset that the chain went out of business, when they surely know they had their own small hand in the outcome. It’s one thing to see a good deal, it’s something else to occupy a table for two turns, deny the server the tips of a second turn, in order to absolutely maximize what you can get out of that $20, screaming at the manager when you can’t feed your family of 4 off of that one menu item.
Yeah, Red Lobster should have seen that coming, but at the same time, don’t ruin it for everyone.
Jackie
@eclare: Jasmine Crockett was on MSNBC or CNN this morning, and I caught the tail end of of her buying in to a copyright of one of the many versions of her and AOC’s words turned into song. 😂
eclare
@Jackie:
Love it!
NotMax
@Martin
The entire Red Lobster chain has been underwater from before this brouhaha. More often than not shows up on the ‘looks to be closing sooner rather than later” videos scattered on YouTube.
Years back, they opened up what was at the time the largest restaurant in the chain in Lahaina on Maui. Seating capacity of more than 800. Needless to say, didn’t survive all that long.
Villago Delenda Est
@Brachiator:
Textbook late stage capitalism.
Brachiator
@Martin:
It’s only a small number of people who are angry idiots. But I don’t blame customers for the stupidity of the Red Lobster management.
The Jack in the Box fast food chain recently had free food offers to celebrate Jack’s birthday and to get people back buying fast food. But the offer was for a limited time, only available to people who used the company’s app, and only featured a few items.
Again, the Red Lobster people forgot that they were running a restaurant.
Brachiator
@NotMax:
@Martin:
The Red Lobster Shrimp fiasco reminds me of a great Flip Wilson joke.
John Cole
@Whereaway: Played it several years ago.
becca
Trump got booed off stage at the Libertarian convention in DC tonight.
Sweet!
eclare
@becca:
Nice!
Brachiator
@becca:
Libertarians probably won’t vote for Democrats. But if they vote third party, it will help Democrats.
Jinchi
@becca:
The guy is such a natural charmer.
Quinerly
@becca:
From NBC:
“The audience yelled at Trump throughout his speech as well, a stark contrast to his typical crowds filled with adoring fans decked out in MAGA gear. At one point during Saturday’s speech, punches were thrown in the audience.
One member of the crowd shouted, ‘Lock him up!’ and another yelled, ‘Donald Trump is a threat to democracy!’ Moments later, someone yelled at Trump, ‘You had your shot!’
Others yelled at Trump, ‘F— you’ and ‘You already had four years, you a–hole.'”
My favorite part was the gal who said that she would rather eat her own foot out of a bear trap than support Trump.
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/trump-commute-silk-road-website-operator-ross-ulbrichts-life-prison-se-rcna154082
eclare
@Quinerly:
Thanks for the link! The woman who said she would rather eat her own foot out of a bear trap paints quite a picture.
Kayla Rudbek .
Why is it that the simplest knitting pattern elements are the most difficult to keep track of? Of course, doing 192 repeats of anything is difficult to keep track of. Undoing some of my mistakes and listening to the thunder. I should probably go turn my computer off.
50-mile ride today and I should check and see if any of my pictures on the C&O towpath turned out. For some reason the battery on my phone is dying very quickly these days.
RaflW
@becca: That was a surly sounding crowd. And not like his MAGA events, where people boo at the moments when Trump wants them too. In hindsight, that looks like a mistake move (or a sign of desperation).
Quinerly
@eclare: I hope to see some more reporting on Trump’s reactions to the booing and insults.
Quinerly
@RaflW: calling Trump a war criminal was a nice touch.
eclare
@RaflW:
He is desperate for the adrenaline that a cheering crowd gives. If he debates Biden (I doubt he will), it will be interesting to see how he does with no crowd. Plus with his mic turned off. Plus seated, so he can’t stalk Joe.
Big wins for Dark Brandon.
RaflW
@Jinchi: We’ve reached the Insult Comic phase already?
Fun.*
.
*Not a factual statement.
Jackie
@Jinchi:
That was a great sour puss TIFG moment! This was immediately after he basically told the audience they’d better vote for him or else!😂
eclare
@Jackie:
I have the impression most Libertarians don’t like to be threatened. As opposed to RWNJ’s, who for all of their blathering about being strong and principled, submit at the first opportunity. Too many examples, the latest being Nikki.
frosty
@Kayla Rudbek .:
50 miles on the C&O? That’s a good ride on a not-the-smoothest-riding-surface.
RaflW
Sounded like the crowd did not believe Trump when he claimed that he’d have a Libertarian in his cabinet. Libertarians are ridiculous, but they are capable of connecting TFG’s 10,000 past lies (undercount, I’m sure, but for illustration’s sake) to this ‘promise’ of a cabinet seat.
It all sounds very much of a piece with the Ric Grenell trip to meet MI Muslims, as blogged here. Like, this: “Grenell also seemed more concerned about how Arab American leaders in Michigan could help the Trump campaign rather than how the Trump campaign could help them.”
That’s always how the campaign comes off. Because that’s his core narcissism, and it always leaks — or beams — thru.
Jackie
@eclare: @RaflW:
Yes, Libertarians, for what they’re worth, can smell bull💩 at least a mile away. And, they weren’t buying TIFG’s 💩!😂
Kayla Rudbek
@frosty: no, only about 5-10 miles on the C&O towpath, the other 40-some miles were on pavement. Mr. Rudbek wants to see the eclipse in Spain from the Camino to Santiago de Compostela, and the videos of people cycling the pilgrimage route show a lot of dirt/gravel paths like the C&O. So we were practicing today. The trail was in mostly decent condition, although some muddy parts. Three turtles were sunning themselves at various points in the canal, one turtle was on the towpath on the way back.
Jackie
Here’s a snippet from ABC’s view:
prostratedragon
Been a long trip, but with the Libertarians throwing out the MAGA gatecrashers, he finally has got the treatment he deserves for that, if only by proxy.
From the even deader thread below, an apprpriate serenade.
eclare
@Kayla Rudbek:
What an amazing trip!
eclare
@Jackie:
The link doesn’t work for me.
Jackie
@eclare: fixed it.
Erin in Flagstaff
@Luther Siler: I am just finishing up Horizon Zero Dawn for the first time. I adore Aloy.
Erin in Flagstaff
@Whereaway: I had bought HZD on a Steam sale last year and just started playing it a few weeks ago. Wow. I’ve finished the main story and am working on the DLC now. It’s such a fun world to roam around in, and I look forward to Forbidden West. I’m so glad both games made it to PC and are good ports.
eclare
@Jackie:
Thanks!
Kayla Rudbek
@eclare: most of my pictures turned out reasonably well considering that I was merely holding my phone in my hand and pedaling along at about 8-10 miles per hour. Any interest for On the Road? I may also have some older ones from riding more of the length of the path.
eclare
@Kayla Rudbek:
I was referring to the planned Spain trip, but I’d like to see today’s too. I like seeing different parts of the US.
rebelsdad (aka texasboyshaun)
In Trump v. Libertarians, I’m rooting for injuries.
Gloria DryGarden
@HinTN: where’s “here?”
@MagdaInBlack: I lived in Arlington heights as a kid, for 8 years! Rode my bike to south jr high, bussed west on central to rolling meadows hs. Right around when they built wood field mall.
Gloria DryGarden
@HinTN: where’s “here?”
@MagdaInBlack: I lived in Arlington heights as a kid, for 8 years! Rode my bike to south jr high, bussed west on central to rolling meadows hs. Right around when they built woodfield mall.
Gloria DryGarden
@Kayla Rudbek: I wonder what the sunset Spain eclipse will do to the colors of sunset…
opiejeanne
@Gloria DryGarden: I’m going to guess H in TN is in Tennessee.
eclare
@opiejeanne:
I think that’s a pretty safe bet.
Seriously, from prior comments I think he is somewhere between Nashville and Knoxville.
pluky
@SiubhanDuinne: And that was only about 10% of the Full Bronx. AOC is not someone that MTG would be wise to come at, but then, this is MTG,
WaterGirl
@Jackie: I wonder if that was the song I posted in one of my threads last week. I thought that one was pretty good! And it finitely had the eyelashes and baby girl don’t even play, in addition to the 6 “B” words.
brantl
@Kayla Rudbek .: There are good portable solar chargers you could park on the handlebars of your bike.
brantl
@rebelsdad (aka texasboyshaun): Feck, I’ll even root for the Libertarians. They beat Stumpy’s Goopers all to hell.
Kayla Rudbek
@brantl: we have some small solar chargers, I just have to start carrying it again. That’s the only thing we’ve had stolen off our bike, so if we bring it, it comes inside with us. A good cellphone mount will hold the ones that I like.