Y’all are on your own again.
*** Update ***
I’m watching this fascinating documentary on Valentino on Showtime, and it really is quite bizarre.
Everything is so decadent and over the top and just hard to handle.
Paterson
Whatever happened to that bombshell?
Open Thread
My SNOWPOCALYPSE pics are up on Flickr.
Email me a link to yours and I might post a few in some new photo threads.
Comment Of The Day
Called my congressman’s* local office. The staffer I spoke to there(a former colleague) said they are getting ‘don’t pass the bill’ calls, because the people for it assume that because the Representative is for it, they don’t need to call. The staffer said people who are for it need to call.
Even if you think that your Congressperson is a safe vote, call anyway. You will make make it that much easier for him or her to cast that key vote.
Why Wait?
A senior Congressional legislative aide called me this morning on background as follows.
We must begin to organize a massive and unprecedented telephone call in campaign for passage of healthcare reform, to begin at 9AM EST on February 24th and extend through the entire day of the presidential healthcare meeting on February 25th.
This senior Congressional aide (who asked at this time to remain anonymous), advised that nothing less than a citizen outpouring the likes of which members of Congress have never seen, will be sufficient to get healthcare legislation passed.
I wish that I had better news for you guys. It seems unreasonable to ask for more calls after you already spent weeks talking Congress back from a ledge (granted, without you the party might be pavement pizza already). Now I have to pass on that Democrats are still hanging ten on a marble balcony and only a few more items on your long distance bill can maybe save them from themselves.
For the most part constituent pressure only works at the margins, so our chances of a win remain slim. On the other hand we don’t need very many votes to wrap this up. At least it feels better than shouting at the TV.
Switchboard: (202) 224-3121. Tell your Representative to Pass. The. Damn. Bill. Tell your Senators to get behind a reconciliation fix for the excise tax and whatever else is holding up the process. Call Republicans too! Give them hell for behaving like useless obstructionist twits, and ask whether they plan to support privatizing Social Security and Medicare.
Guide for first-timers here.
Poll.
If you need motivation, read Kevin Drum and this diary at Kos.
***Update***
Since Capitol Hill is closed, try your Reps’ local office. Those of you in PA, MD, NoVA, OH, DC and NJ might have to wait until Friday or next week.
Open Thread
Looking outside, the sky looks like an angry, swollen bruise- the kind of sky you see in movies like The Perfect Storm.
Time for Round 2 of Snowpocalypse.
Dry Feet Are Happy Feet
Admittedly this advice might come a little late for those of you stuck in the path of SNOWPOCALYPSE and SNOWPOCALYPSE II: The Quickening. Nonetheless, if you can get to a outdoor supply store I strongly recommend that you seek out a pair of gaiters to keep snow off your feet. Mine look like the pair below, but you can choose any kind as long as you don’t get cheap skier models with no heel strap.
My Honda Fit is comfortably burrowed in an alley that might get plowed in March, so I’m walking around a lot. Thanks to gaiters in the last few days Dr. Mrs. Dr. F and I have waded through waist-deep snow for hours with warm, happy toes. Boots are nice but not critical; today I wore gaiters over leather dress-y shoes on the way to work.
Tip #2: Car floor mats do more than protect the factory carpet. If you get stuck spinning your wheels, kick or dig out the small hill of snow that has built up in front of your drive tires. If that works, great! If not, take out your back floor mats and lay them under your primary drive wheels in the direction that you want to go. The traction boost gained by this little trick will amaze you. I rescued four cars with the floor mat trick just walking around this weekend.