Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings posts give the Moose, old and new, a place to visit and share words about the weather, life, the world at large and the small parts of Moosylvania that we each inhabit.
Welcomings will be posted at the start of each week (every Sunday morning). To find the posts, just bookmark this link and Voila! (which is Moose for “I found everyone!!”).
The format is simple: each day, the first moose to arrive on-line will post a comment welcoming the new day and complaining (or bragging!) about their weather. Or mentioning an interesting or thought provoking news item. Or simply checking in.
So … what’s going on in your part of Moosylvania?
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NOTE: The comments page will now split off after 20 or so left margin comments with the most recent comments on the current page. To see the older comments, scroll to the bottom of the page and use the link.
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Good morning, meese! Friday … finally …
It is 45 degrees in Madison, on its way up to 50. Morning sun and afternoon clouds are in the forecast.
Gov. Bully and Gov. Bullier have been moved to the undercard debate! I was surprised about Christie because I think he was actually running for president (or vice president). Huckabee is running to gin up interest in his squirrel-cooking book and burnish his right-wing creds for his next Fox gig. Lindsey Graham and George Pataki were dropped completely. I am sure the networks are sad because Graham was at least entertaining. The leftovers in the undercard, Jindal and Santorum are one note johnnies, boring and dull.
So … the Bush family psychodrama continues with HW trying to help his son W out again and getting dissed by W: “Poppy is gettin’ old”. Someone suggested that Jeb!’s campaign was part of an effort to rehabilitate the George W. Bush presidency. Too soon … by about a millennium.
Ben Carson is going after the black youth vote! By reaching out with rap!! His spokesman:
For some reason, the Coneheads popped into my head. Trying to fit in in a world they don’t understand …
See all y’all later!!
Good morning Meese
Am rushing around – have company coming in a few hours and am tired from being on campus till pretty late last night
Scanning the news – oh Goddess – Snarly Fiorina is spouting garbage – again
Carly Fiorina Blasts ‘Progressive View of Feminism’
Guess she doesn’t get it that the first feminists were radicals and had ideological positions.
I have a feeling she’s on the Veep candidate short-list .
Ack!
Seeya later
Hey Denise – I mentioned your Hillary campaign-team makeup diary of several months back in the Hillary News and Views at GOS this morning. I said you said you were going to do all the candidates but since I hadn’t seen any more you might not have found anything to report. I hope I didn’t mis-state you on that. I should have asked first. sorry.
Thanks – I only did Hillary and Bernie :)
Wasn’t much to do on Bernie, comparatively speaking, but I’m sorry I missed that diary.
Thanks for going over there and correcting (with links – I’ve read the Bernie one now) – sorry I didn’t help by giving you the link to the thread.
Good morning, Meese, and happy Friday! It’s 64 F. in NoVa, on a gray, dampish morning, going up to 79 F. today. Think I’ll serve a seafood pasta salad for dinner.
Well, now Ben Carson is coming under the media microscope! Not a moment too soon, IMHO. And what a surprise that Poppy Bush has published a biography dissing Darth Cheney and Rummy! Will wonders ever cease? That people as ignorant as Carson and Trump could be at the top of the polls says volumes about the stupidity of people in this country. It’s depressing.
Must prepare to walk our neighbor to school in a few minutes. I walked her and Miss Pink Cheeks home from school yesterday afternoon and they had a great time playing together after tea. Hope everyone will have a good day!
Ben Carson, gift to comedians:
Was supposed to be raining this morning, but it isn’t. It is supposed to cool way down, though — 7am tomorrow (when my group meets) 56 & 60% chance of rain. I’m definitely going to need long sleeves. And it’s supposed to be even colder Sunday! It might even get into the 40s. I’mma need a hat. The high is only supposed to be 60, I might wear a long sleeve shirt under my AIDS Walk shirt. Hey, I’m a thin-blooded 5th generation Texan. 60 is long sleeve weather.
I listened to musuc on the way in, but my earworm is still Bad (which is my alarm sound). When I went to youtube for a video, I searched by date & found this from the London show with Patti Smith that has Bad then Gloria/People Have the Power, so this is the best link of that song for me.
It’s early, but I’m calling Tweet of the Day – Houston mayor Anise Parker, responding to a bigoted idiot about Tuesday’s vote: https://twitter.com/AnniseParker/status/662392928791232512
on the other hand, a sweet one about Phil Lynot from one of the Dublin tourist accounts I follow:
https://twitter.com/OldDublinTown/status/662625443363880961
Good morning, 39 and raining in Bellingham today. Cleaning and re stretching the carpet was more involved than there was time for yesterday, so it’s rescheduled for Monday. Fortunately we suspected that might happen so we only moved things I wanted moved anyway. But now we have to pack all the breakables so the furniture can be easily moved on Monday. Hmmmm…..perhaps I should edit as I do so!
Whales are in the news this morning……
Orca whales put on a killer show in Elliott Bay
Too kewl, princesspat! Thanks for sharing. I didn’t know until I started doing research on dolphins for my latest story that orcas really belong to the dolphin family. I love the sight of them in the wild!
47 at sunrise and a beautiful clear sunny if chilly day in Fay., AR. High is supposed to be in the mid 60s. I’m with anotherdemocrat – definitely long sleeves weather. In fact, long sleeves, mock turtle neck, scarf covering the ears, and gloves weather. :) Still trying to get my desk cleared for the week. Ha. Also trying to schedule a hair cut over lunch as I’m way overdue.
Over at GOS the Bernie people are getting desperate – not only are they writing rather vile diaries that are making the rec list, they are dropping in on and dropping crap in even the mild, new and views Hillary diaries they were ignoring while the bernmentum was growing. I’m doing my best not to feed the trolls – read the diary and then head back to the community stuff. We’ve had several fundraisers that have been solid – BFSkinner’s on-going as we’re trying to keep him in his home until his Disability kicks in next January, but several others were smaller amounts and have been met. And of course the pootie diaries. I really did come for the politics and stay for community.
Hope everyone has a lovely day, quietly preparing for what should be the quiet time of year that our society has stuffed major merchantile events into. {{{HUGS}}}
It’s too bad. But the presidency is a competition and forcible promotion of one’s point of view is a feature of blogs.
I have been troubled by Bernie’s tone for some time. It is not a very compelling argument to say “I said it first … nya nya nya!!” Progress is slow and everyone comes to their beliefs on issues at their own pace. It is somewhat disrespectful to say that the first adopter has some kind of moral superiority over someone who arrives at the same conclusion later. It is also a subtle dig at President Obama who also evolved on same-sex marriage. To declare sanctimoniously that people are not allowed to make mistakes and change their mind is not going to win friends.
Bernie’s people are even claiming he’s done/said first stuff he didn’t do/say first. And for the idea that he’s the stronger feminist! Well, you get the picture. No, not winning friends. Not sure how much to lay at his feet and how much is just that he’s the Idol of the Month for the Sux group over there – but there’s enough that’s him that he’s going to lose some supporters over it. There are things to like about Bernie, but most of them are stronger for Bernie in the Senate than Bernie in the White House.
Good morning, meese! Saturday …
It is 37 degrees in Madison, on its way up to 48. Partly cloudy skies are in the forecast.
I watched the MSNBC Democratic Party candidate forum last night and it was an excellent format that really highlighted (and lowlighted) the candidates stands on the issues and their general demeanor. In lowlights: Gov. O’Malley saying that Secretary Clinton came out “just last week” against the Keystone XL pipeline while he was against it a year ago!!! Er, no. She came out against it in public back in September and had chosen to not say anything prior to that in deference to her colleagues at State who had not yet released their report and recommendations. It maybe sounds good as a sound bite but as the truth, it sucks. And really, Governor, who exactly do you expect to gain the votes of by pointing out that Hillary Clinton was a Republican in high school and CHANGED HER MIND in college? You look stupid when you expect everyone to be born with a fully formed political identity … many, including liberal icon Senator Elizabeth Warren’s, evolved over the years.
But this was the definite highlight. When Rachel Maddow asked Bernie Sanders about the move by Republicans to restrict voting:
I am looking for a YouTube clip of that exchange because it should go viral. We should call Republicans political cowards every chance we get.
The lowest of the lowlights was that I stayed on MSNBC and listened to 5 minutes of Chris Matthews matthewsing … need eye bleach and brain bleach. Good lord, what a pompous ass.
Ben Carson lied about his biography and then went on a tirade about how no one ever investigated Barack Obama. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! He will not suffer for his resume puffing because Republicans do not value honesty any more than they respect science or the lives of people who are not like them … or the right to vote.
See all y’all later!
Agree with every word, JanF! You nailed it, Sis.
Good morning Meese
Am laughing at all the right-wing outrage against this viral video
(warning strong language)
Republicans are delicate flowers. Anger at political correctness is only allowed to flow in one direction. Meh.
Up for chilly & damp workout. It’s 57, so I’m wearing long sleeves & pants. I don’t hear any rain, but I’ll take my raincoat.
Good morning! It’s a true November day here—wettish, gray skies, chilly, the lot. It’s 61 F. in NoVa, going up to 63 F. Tonight we might light a fire in the woodstove and try to watch Miss Fisher on PBS again. We slept through the last one, not because she’s boring but because Thursday was the day we didn’t get Our Nap in the afternoon.
Fascinating news this morning. Is a lie only a lie if a Democrat tells it? Is anything spoken by a Rethug automatically authentic, as in “Hillary sent classified emails on her private server,” even though Secretary Clinton didn’t send classified emails on her private server? Didn’t watch the debate last night but I’m glad you did, Jan, and glad to hear she stayed above the fray. I started out liking Bernie almost as much as I like Hillary but that has gone by the wayside. The sexism and attack dog mode have lowered my previously high opinion of him.
Well, news on the home front: yesterday the woebegone realtor reported that a house very near us has lowered its sale price another $10,000. She said we would continue one more weekend at our current price but if there’s no interest, she advises taking the house off the market until next year. We agree with this, as we’re very tired of hiding the tea kettle, the coffee pot, the sofa coverings, etc. in order to Appear Spotless.
As a matter of fact, we’ve decided that if the house never sells, we’ll be happy to stay here. It’s been very nicely downsized. We’ve made some long-needed repairs, which have bitten out a large chunk of our savings, but if we stay we’ll get rid of nonessential services to save money. It would have been nice not to have to drive everywhere, and I loved the idea of not having to cook dinner every night, but hey, there it is. Not a big deal.
Wishing all in Mooseland a good day!
Eeek! This is definitely a bad sign: “a house very near us has lowered its sale price another $10,000”. You are wise to take it off the market if the next price decrease does not work. People know when a listing is old and when the sellers have had to lower the price; to keep doing that makes you look desperate. I was stuck in a had-to-sell situation about 10 years ago and the eventual buyer knew I would accept a low-ball because of the price history. I blame my real estate agent who improperly priced the house. I chose him because he liked the house and was willing to set a high price; in hindsight, I should have gone with the more realistic prices that other agents had recommended. I am glad you are “resigned” to stay there … maybe putting that out will make the house sell, kind of like when people who have been trying to get pregnant give up and adopt a child … and then get pregnant. ;)
Yes, Secretary Clinton stayed above the fray. One headline “Clinton Talks Past Sanders, O’Malley at Democratic Forum“. I don’t think it was a diss of any sort, simply her staying with her game plan. Rachel was asking her questions … she did not need to reply to the others.
All the repairs and downsizing work you accomplished (in record time!) should make staying in your home even more comfortable Diana. It’s good you have the option.
Looking at other news – the battle against discrimination:
Justice Department sues S.D. for racial discrimination
http://www.argusleader.com/story/blogs/markwalker/2015/11/06/justice-department-sues-sd-racial-discrimination/75316012/
Metairie landlords must pay $170,000 for racial discrimination
http://www.nola.com/crime/index.ssf/2015/11/metairie_landlords_ordered_to.html
Another reminder that whoever wins the presidency chooses the Attorney General who sets the priorities of the entire Justice Department. All the wonderful laws in the world are useless if there is no one interested in enforcing them. Attorney General Holder spent a lot of his tenure cleaning up the mess that Karl Rove had made of the Bush “Justice” Department. We don’t want to go backwards.
Good morning, 53 raining and windy in Bellingham today. Final election results are finally in and to my relief two progressive Dems were elected to the environmentally important Whatcom County Council and the proposal to build a new jail was defeated because funding for mental health issues was not part of the deal.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news/local/article43543755.html
Morning all – it’s still too warm here, but I think we’ll get that cold front tomorrow and finally drop down into the 70’s at least. It is sunny and beautiful – -Homecoming Day here for the Florida Gators, so I’m glad for all the folks in town for it. If you’ve never lived in a college football town like Gainesville, let me just say it’s….different. For example, practically everything in town, including the University, the public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade, lots of stores and services down town, were closed for the day yesterday because of the Homecoming Parade. I’m used to it now, but when I first moved here, it was really hard to believe!
I didn’t watch the forum last night, but all reports from you guys and in the media sound really good – informative and grown up. Of course, based on what’s happening in the Republican debates, I’m not sure that grown up and informative really appeal to a lot of voters these days. It’s worrisome, truly – the right wing is only a minority if Democrats actually get out and vote, and that’s our challenge for next year. Carson is truly a delusional man but it doesn’t seem to faze his supporters – I mean, seriously, the pyramids were granaries? It’s worse than fact free politics, it’s fantasy world politics.
Diana, I think you’d be wise to take the house off the market and see what you can do to stay there on your own – older houses can be difficult to sell, I worry about that for my house as well, but I’m not going anywhere until my big dog Max dies. He’s a rescue, this is his safe place and I’m not moving him again – he’s 8 1/2 I think, so probably 5 more years here. I love my house, and I’m fine here – I just wish I could pick it up and move it north to oh, New York State or Pennsylvania. Or Quebec province! I am reading a great mystery series set mostly in an imaginary small village in Quebec just north of the Vermont border, by Louise Penny (the detective protagonist is Armand Gamache of the Surete in Montreal) and really, I just want to move to that village! lol
Have a great day everyone!
LOL, Geordie! You’ve been bitten by the idea of that village in Quebec, it’s clear. I used to want to move to (imaginary) Pecan Springs, Texas, because I love the characters in Susan Wittig Albert’s books. Albert says she modeled the town on the San Marcos of the 1970s. Of course, as everywhere else, La Growth has overtaken San Marcos, I understand.
I could never really move to Texas, though. The heat, the aggressive religiosity, and the Republicanism would do me in the first week.
This is the problem: “the right wing is only a minority if Democrats actually get out and vote, and that’s our challenge for next year.”
Hatred and fear is a great motivator and it drives people to crawl over broken glass to vote; we need to create a sense of urgency in our voters about what happens when they stay home and let other people choose who runs the government. We start at a big disadvantage because a lot of our voters are people who don’t have flexible jobs or child care and for whom getting time off to vote is a challenge. We are in a dilemma now, though, because making it easier to vote is going to be impossible until we take over Congress and state legislatures. And while we are sitting here powerless, more and more people are being disenfranchised. I have given up on thinking that Republicans could be shamed into making voting rights true undeniable rights … once upon a time they might have felt that way but now they realize that the only way they hold onto power is to disenfranchise more and more people.
What we need is an awakening, something to get our voters to crawl over broken glass to take back our democracy – kick the bums out, restore voting rights, and make the right to vote safe from SCOTUS and state government interference.
Where’s my magic wand? ;)
Walked in the rain & cold. It didn’t start pouring till we were done — and coach went on with the stretches. Lunacy. I actually used the heater in the car. Did 5 miles in 1:36, which was excellent time for me. A warm shower, with the heater on in the bathroom — I may turn on the heat in my apartment tonight. Because I’m still a little cold.