Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Some judge needs to shut this circus down soon.

The poor and middle-class pay taxes, the rich pay accountants, the wealthy pay politicians.

I have other things to bitch about but those will have to wait.

I’d try pessimism, but it probably wouldn’t work.

So many bastards, so little time.

“woke” is the new caravan.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

If a good thing happens for a bad reason, it’s still a good thing.

Speaker Mike Johnson is a vile traitor to the House and the Constitution.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn.

Hey Washington Post, “Democracy Dies in Darkness” was supposed to be a warning, not a mission statement.

She burned that motherfucker down, and I am so here for it. Thank you, Caroline Kennedy.

If you cannot answer whether trump lost the 2020 election, you are unfit for office.

When I was faster i was always behind.

This isn’t Democrats spending madly. This is government catching up.

Make the republican party small enough to drown in a bathtub.

“I was told there would be no fact checking.”

There are a lot more evil idiots than evil geniuses.

Mediocre white men think RFK Jr’s pathetic midlife crisis is inspirational. The bar is set so low for them, it’s subterranean.

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

Dear Washington Post, you are the darkness now.

Jack be nimble, jack be quick, hurry up and indict this prick.

You passed on an opportunity to be offended? What are you even doing here?

Optimism opens the door to great things.

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Respite Thread: Moths and Hamlet

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Went down to Stratford-Upon-Avon today to visit with an American friend I met through Dems Abroad. We agreed not to discuss the election, as The Child was with me, and she finds discussion of politics equal parts tedious and scary right now.

50,000 years ago, on last Saturday, The Child and I had this exchange:

The Child: Guy Fawkes Night is Tuesday.

Me: Yes. Tuesday is also the night America elects its next president.

The Child: Oh, I don’t want to think about presidents right now. I’d rather think about Mothra.

— Rose Judson (@rosejudson.bsky.social) November 2, 2024 at 7:01 PM

You know what? She was on the right track. We visited the Stratford Butterfly Farm, and I managed to forget about the election for an hour. We walked through humid “tropical” environments and enjoyed dodging exotic butterflies as they whirled tipsily past our heads. There were also some free-range iguanas to look at. Here, have a selection:

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Take a Breath and Take Care

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I hate bullies.

Which is one of the reasons I hate what they did to Biden so much.

I see we’ve moved into the get over and get to work phase of the fucking over of Democracy.  Look, I love Kamala Harris, she was my choice in the 2020 primaries until she dropped out. Then I was all in for Biden.  AND I will be fighting for her like I would fight for Biden in 2024. I have a lot of anger to channel into this fight.

BUT, don’t kid yourself, this is a body blow for Democracy – and the outcome in November will determine if she survives the back-to-back blows of an attempted coup, the takeover of the courts, and the nulling of 14 million primary voters.

Every. Word. Of. This.

Two weeks ago I said that the Anti-Biden Brigade has it really easy. If he drops out and we win they can say ‘I told you so.’ If he drops out and we lose they can say ‘He should have done it sooner.’ If he stays in and loses they can say ‘I told you so.’ If he stays in and wins they can say ‘Our pressure made him work harder.’ Over and over. Every angle makes them heroes. Now here we are and all of us who opposed them, and the absolute chaos they cheered on, are busting our asses to pull together a coalition to win. Everyone to a person on this side has said “it’s time to pull back together and get to work. Recriminations can come later.” But…nope. Many have spent the last 24 hours saying “we were right! Look at how it’s working. We told you!” It’s working because millions of us are pissed off that we have wasted a month and want to get back to defeating Trump. So, sincerely. Shut the F up and get back to work. You got your wish. You fucked Joe Biden. A decent man. You aren’t the victims here. Now you are just a bunch of petty dicks. Im sorry some people were mean to you because you decided your full time job, for money, was to brigade a good man out of his job. Don’t fucking compare us to MAGA. We aren’t the ones that shit on our own side.
7:02 AM • Jul 22, 2024

So, if folks are telling you to get over it and get on board, I’m here to tell you, feel what you feel, grieve, be angry, walk away until you are where you need to be emotionally. Don’t let anyone bully you into thinking or feeling you have to rush this or you are somehow less-than if you need more than a minute to process the betrayal. I know you’ll come out fighting for VP Harris. I also understand the need for a breather before you do.

Take a breath and take care of you, please. We will need you in the fight.

That’s what I’m going to do. Step away from here for a while and focus on other things that are important to me and that bring me joy. But I didn’t want to disappear without leaving you with resources for respite. ‘Cause you know, I’m respite girl.

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On The Road – slipz – Paris at Lunch

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I’m guessing that this was submitted as part of the Paris series, but I somehow missed that!  Oh well, lunch in Paris works for me any time.

slipz

One of our favorite places to pick up a bite to eat while wandering the Jewish Quarter. Pretty popular if not exactly haute cuisine.

On The Road - slipz - Paris at Lunch 2
Paris - Le MaraisOctober 11, 2018

This is a lunch line. It’s pretty impressive, perhaps 50 meters long. You may wonder what french delight the draw is.

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On The Road – frosty – Giverny

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This is our last submission in this Paris After Dark series, so starting tomorrow we are back to just the morning OTR for awhile.

frosty

After our tour on Normandy in 2014, we took a day trip to Mont Ste Michel, then headed back to Paris. On the way we stopped in Giverny for a few hours.

I’m a bit fuzzy on which part of the site these pictures were taken – the captions are my best guess. They are all from early August that year and they were all taken by my wife who has a better eye, not me.

On The Road - frosty - Giverny 7
August 4, 2014

Monet’s house and garden

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On The Road – Tom V – Paris in December

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Tom V

My sweetie and I visited Paris in December of 2018 and had a little 3rd floor flat a block from the Pantheon and the Sorbonne.  It’s a great time to visit, uncrowded and relaxed, and the weather was only slightly colder than San Francisco. This is eight photos out of hundreds.  I hope you enjoy.

 

On The Road - Tom V - Paris in December 7
Paris

It’s Paris!  You have to have a picture of the Tour Eiffel!

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On The Road – way2blue – Limeuil, France In June

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(Our daughter spent a year at the University of Grenoble. In June we headed to Europe to help her pack up for home. Our first trip to Europe since our honeymoon… ) After we left Grenoble we took a couple sides trips (Copenhagen; Trondheim), then headed to the medieval village of Limeuil in the Périgord region of southwestern France, at the confluence of the Dordogne and Vézère rivers. Not far from the famous caves of Les Eyzies. My British sister-in-law’s parents have a cottage there (her father taught at the Sorbonne) and we arranged to stay for a week. And pretend we were French. Sort of.

On The Road - way2blue - Limeuil, France In June 7
LIMEUIL

View of the two bridges that cross the Dordogne and Vézère rivers.

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On The Road – way2blue – Paris in June

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way2blue

Our daughter spent a year at the University of Grenoble.  In June we headed to Europe to help her pack up for home.  Our first trip to Europe since our honeymoon…  We finished up in Paris, staying at a youth hostel across the River Seine from Nortre Dame.  Affordable even if they had a curfew and we slept on bunkbeds with the washroom across the hall.  Breakfast’d with British schoolkids on a field trip and their harried teachers.

On The Road - way2blue - PARIS IN JUNE 7
PARIS

View from our hostel room.  There was a church across the alleyway, and a shop next to the hostel run by nuns who sold honey & such.  Plus an outdoor Moroccan restaurant in the alley with café lights strung overhead.  Simple and delicious.

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