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 …
It is 53 degrees in Madison on its way up to 68. Cloudy skies are in the forecast. It is not completely clouded over yet and the full moon is visible in the southwest sky.
Happy Earth Day! President Obama:
While I was following the news yesterday, I was struck by John Kasich’s comment about never allowing the District of Columbia to be a state because it would mean “more votes for the Democratic party”. I shook my head because I knew that DC already voted in the presidential election and then something Tweeted out made me realize that he was talking about votes in Congress. If DC became a state, their member of the House of Representatives would have a vote but, more importantly, we would have two new, probably Democratic, Senators. Aha!! DC, population-wise, would be bigger than Vermont and Wyoming and almost as populous as Alaska and North Dakota each of which have two Senators. Let’s do it!
See all y’all later.
Good Morning Meese
55 going up to 79 with rain here in Saugerties
Happy Earth Day!
The DC Statehood push has been around for a long time. When I lived in DC – we fought to even get a mayor. The Home Rule Act of 1973
changed that
We saw DC as a colony – like Puerto Rico.
Headed off to school today – semester is winding down! Yay!
It appears that DC Statehood will require a constitutional amendment so I will not put much hope in that way of picking up two Senators. :) I guess we will have to work within the current structure. Ed Kilgore thinks that we have a pretty good chance to get the 5 we need (4 if we have the vice presidency).
We might lose the Colorado and Nevada Democratic seats so a net gain of 5 would require that we get 7 of the Republicans seats.
He hopes we do better and bank a few seats because 2018 is going to be a really tough year for us. Midterm and the 2012 seats to defend. We really REALLY have to find a way to get people to care about the midterms.
Good morning, Meese! Waiting for rain this cloudy morning. It’s 64 F., going up to 73 F. today. We are so dry in this state that Shenandoah National Park is having forest fires.
Not much news to report. After my training yesterday I was so tired I didn’t feel like writing, especially since we went to a presentation yesterday afternoon. Came back and simply veged the rest of the day. Today, however, I have GOT to finish the Shakespeare blog.
Have been reading Spymistress and am appalled at the stupidity of the British upper class in the run-up to WWII. Elderly white males appear not to welcome any fresh, new ideas. One old general thought the well-equipped horse was the perfect answer to German tanks! Duh…
Wishing a good day to all! Tomorrow it will be 400 years since The Bard died. He’s on my mind the whole of April.
My daughter does not like The Bard. She asks me why he couldn’t have written in English!! I told her that he did … that is what English sounded like back then. She does like Macbeth, which is what she is reading now, better than some of the works she had to study last year. Maybe it is the witches? :)
Perhaps it is, Jan. :) “Witches are Crafty People,” says the bumper sticker.
It may be that your daughter is reacting unconsciously to the fact that Shakespeare’s plays are meant to be acted, not read. Is there anything more thrilling than Kenneth Branagh’s film version of “Henry V?” I actually cried at the end.
Tomorrow at Shakespeare’s birthday party, attended only by myself, Dearly Beloved, and Monty Beagle, I shall read aloud John of Gaunt’s speech from Richard II:
(II.i.40-50)
May I cross-post my Shakespeare blog here? There will be images! :)
Absolutely, feel free to crosspost!
Interesting about written versus spoken. I will run that past her and see if she likes the sound of it better than trying to read it. I know she went to a play with her middle school class and said she didn’t understand it but that was several years ago. She also did not like it because they spent nearly an entire quarter on the same play. I would resist enjoying it too!!
My savvy friend Marian makes her English class watch the plays and then discuss them. I roared when she told me about The Canterbury Tales. “Now, I’m not going to teach you ‘The Miller’s Tale,'” she primly announced to her ninth-graders. “I don’t want your parents or the principal getting after me for teaching you ADULT material!”
A couple of days later one student raised his hand. “Mrs. P., my sister in college sent me ‘The Miller’s Tale’!”
“Well,” my friend replied. “If she did that, I can’t stop you from reading it, can I?”
Most English teachers take the fun out of the classics, I think.
Rain is cleared out till mid-week next week. Houston is still dealing with huge floods — even the rice farms have too much water.
2016 hates us, or at least people who entertain us. Bowie, Rickman, George Martin, Prince, and I know I’m leaving some out. Sending healthy, protective thoughts to everyone I care about, because — it’s only April & if this pace keeps up….. Prince’s wife’s statement about him being with their son now just about killed me.
Head is playing U2’s Bad — and not just the intro, but the word part:
another, it’s always sad when someone departs this life before his time. He might have had 30 good years ahead of him, if not for Fate.
After the Beatles broke up I lost interest in popular music, although these days I find myself more and more watching orchestras play classical music on YouTube. So I barely know who Prince was, although of course I’ve heard of “Purple Rain.”
He will be missed by many people around the world. May he rest in peace.
I think I saw “Purple Rain” but can’t remember as the late 70s, early 80s were a blur for me. I am pretty much culturally illiterate so most of what people were saying went right past me. A lot of people were very sad and I will join them in sadness for a life cut short.
Morning all. I’m still very sad about the death of Prince – I loved his music, and I saw him in concert in DC in the late 80’s, best pop/rock concert I ever was at. His musicianship was astounding – he played every instrument on the stage, and his presence was electrifying. Tiny and perfect. The audience was the most diverse I ever saw at any concert back then – I was in my 30’s then, and I remember seeing a group of black women probably in their 50’s and 60’s, going nuts like the rest of us, and thinking, wow, maybe I’ll still be doing this too when I’m their age! RIP Prince – I changed my desktop background to the wonderful Hubble telescope pic of the Purple Nebula that NASA put out yesterday in tribute to him, it’s so beautiful.
I have to write my exam, post a couple more things at my class web site, then grade the exam next week (it’s being given on April 28th, but I don’t have to be there, student services will administer it for me), and then I’m DONE till next January. My dean asked if I’d be willing to teach in the fall rather than the spring for the 2016-2017 academic year, and at first I said yes. But then I reconsidered – I retired for a reason, and I need more of a break than just over the summer. I also want to get more involved in the election this year – Hillary and our local Dems are going to need all hands on deck and I really need to get out and help. So I told him no, I’ll teach in the spring again, but not before.
My brothers and I have a buyer for the last bit of property we inherited from my Mom, in Tennessee – and this time I’m handling the paperwork, so I need to get on that today, sending around the documents via e-mail for us all to sign. We’re all in different parts of the country, and this is so much easier to do with e-mail than it would have been in the days of snail mail and Fed Ex only. Have a great day everyone!
I knew he was super talented, I didn’t know the full extent of his genius till last night. Watching Van Jones talk about all the political stuff he did. And Yes We Code exists because of him. And so many other things.
And how he championed women musicians. Just, wow.
Check out this video of him with Tom Petty, Jeff Lynn and others at a 2004 tribute to George Harrison – he was an astounding guitarist. Circulating on twitter yesterday was this – ‘question to Eric Clapton – how does it feel to be the best guitarist in the world? Answer – I don’t know, man, ask Prince.”
Good idea to stay flexible with your time for the fall election – we will need everyone’s help and you live in a crucial swing state.
Good luck with your chores!
Happy Earth Day, Meeses! 48 at dawn, 56 now and headed for 75 this bright, sunny Friday. Got just over 20 KWHs yesterday and, if the sun stays with us, on track to do the same or better today. Just under 325 for the month at the moment – possible (not likely but possible) to reach 350 by the end of the day. Be close even if I don’t quite make it.
Soloing today so not sure how often I’ll be checking back, but I will some time or other before I log off for the day. Bright the day. {{{HUGS}}}
Thank you for reminding us of Earth Day, bfitz! My head is so full of Shakespeare I forgot. Hope you can get everything done—you seem to be soloing at the office quite a bit!
Mostly I’m waiting for another round of approvals before I can do the next steps. Which is why my desk will never actually be clean. I have stacks all over it in various stages and when one stack finally gets processed through it’s already got another project under it waiting to move into the “final stage” position. I’m soloing a lot lately because they keep pulling my office mate out for special projects dealing with a slew of hiring we’re doing for the Fall. Today is actually the only one that’s due to her taking some time off. (And even then she keeps an eye on her work emails and responds – something I never do. Once I’ve shut down my work email for the day, I don’t open it again until I’m back in the office.) But I’m taking at least a full week for NN in July, and may take a 2nd week to recover :)
Good morning, 53 and partly sunny in Bellingham today, even though it’s raining right now. I’ve got “in case of rain” plans in place for tomorrow’s birthday barbecue, but I really hope we can be outdoors.
I finished the dozen plaid napkins yesterday, flowers are ready thanks to my flower shop friend, the patio furniture is sanded and stained (thanks RonK!), so today is a cooking day, and the house will smell like chocolate cake :)
Oh, how lovely, princesspat, chocolate cake! Thought of you when I bought flowers this morning at Trader Joe’s.
Please send us your rain! We’re still waiting, here.
Good morning, meese! Saturday …
It is 38 degrees in Madison on its way up to 65. Mostly sunny skies are in the forecast.
The biggest news from yesterday was the news out of Virginia:
To all those kids complaining about “voter suppression” in the various states where there are rules about registration, about identification, about ballot access – get involved in helping to fix the mess that our voting system is in. That starts by electing governors and state legislators who will overturn voter suppression laws, electing members of Congress to restore the Voting Rights Act and to vote to confirm Supreme Court justices who will protect the right to vote. Yes, we need a president who will lead these initiatives but she or he cannot do it alone. You want it to be easier to vote? Vote downticket in 2016 … and 2017 and 2018.
Yesterday, on Earth Day 2016, Secretary of State John Kerry went to U.N. headquarters and signed the Paris climate agreement.
That is also a big huge deal.
The presidential weekly address is on “Building a Fairer and More Effective Criminal Justice System”. I will post it later this morning along with the promised National Park Week celebration.
See all y’all later!
Good Saturday morning Meese
I see The NY Times is speculating about Hillary Veep pick
It will be interesting to see who Repubs nominate and who is VP candidate – since they go first July 18-21 and we follow on the 25th.
I’ve been reading the speculation. Here’s another article.
I just have one thing to say: NO SENATORS!! I don’t want us to lose a single sitting Senator and put our expected majority at risk.
What the heck is going on with liberals hating on Julián Castro, Dee? Is it just Hillary Derangement Syndrome rolling down on anyone seen as an ally? I actually wonder if he is too young and I think she should take a closer look at Secretary of Labor Tom Perez.
I don’t understand it. I don’t have a problem with Castro – the argument that his resume it thin is really not important for a veep pick.
I think the most important factor should be regional – and agree – NO SENATORS!
They say that the regional impact is not that large. Paul Ryan did not help Mitt win Wisconsin – he did not even win the precinct he lives in!
I hate that the are talking about finding someone center-right to “draw in” disaffected Republicans. No no a thousand times no. That is DLCism, Third Way, No Labels, pardon my French, bullsh*t. Republican Lite does not work and the last thing you want to do is signal that you think one of those people would be suitable as president. This will be the last election won by the old Democrats – time to pass the baton to the next generation. To do that you need a veep who is the future of the party. That is why Castro is ideal: young, Latino, Texan.
President Obama needed a greybeard for his foreign policy. President Hillary Clinton doesn’t need a running mate to fill in a gap in her qualifications but she is 68 years old and she will need a young progressive to show that the Democratic Party is the party of the future.
Count me in on the NO SENATORS! And no governors for that matter. Hillary Hate has spread to Castro but I think there’s also a subliminal issue with his name – at least for another 10 years. I don’t really want him as Veep since historically that’s pretty much a deadend politically. I’d like him working in the system and getting ready for a 2028 or 2030 shot at the top. Perez is my current “druthers” for Veep – but I’m really happy to leave the choice up to Hillary. :)
Good morning, Moosekind, and happy 452nd birthday, William Shakespeare! It rained during the night. It is about to rain again. Thank you, Goddess!
Jan, I’d like to post my Shakespeare blog here. Is it possible to put a picture at the beginning and one after the last word of text at the end? Both pictures are highly relevant.
Most of the family is too busy to come to tea today, but Miss Pink Cheeks will be here to celebrate the Bard’s birthday this afternoon. Then we’re all going to a Passover Seder (our first) given by the parents of our daughter-in-law. They moved down here from Long Island this month to be close to their only grandchild. :)
Looking forward to Tuesday. I really would like Hillary to choose another woman as veep, but recognize that may not be possible. Like you, Jan, I do not want a sitting Democratic senator chosen. We need them all.
Will be back later—wishing a good Saturday to all!
Yes, you can include any number of photos in a post! You can only choose one as your Featured Image, though, and that will be what the Moose Tweets out and puts on the Moose Facebook page and also what shows with the story in the Featured Post column here.
I saw a funny Tweet about the VP pick. Someone was asked if it was really possible for Hillary to pick a woman as VP. The person being interviewed replied “Well, there is a lot of historical precedent for a candidate to pick a person of the same gender”. Indeed. It reminded me of this awesome quote by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg:
Ha!!
I love Ruth Ginsburg! She rocks!
For anyone interested, the blog, “Was Shakespeare a Stoner?” is now posted under “Just Grazin’.”
We’re finally having a dry weekend. No rain till the middle of next week. Going to sort out next week’s food, and see if I need to cook at all. Of course next weekend is the Ride, so I may cook ahead… I guess our great weather & minimal cooking needed means I am getting on my bike.
Good morning, 52, cloudy and windy in Bellingham today, so the indoor party plan will be more comfortable. I’m glad the patios are ready for fun, but our wet rainy spring means we’ll wait for a sunny day. I’ll serve snacks outdoors while the chicken is on the barbecue, but then we’ll be indoors, dogs and all.
Froma Harrop, at the Seattle Times, The liberal silent majority
HAHAHA!!! “Someone must have voted for her.” Indeed.
The “liberal silent majority” has mostly been watching in horror as an independent Senator from a state with 500,000 people, mostly white, has tried to hijack the party we have been rebuilding since the Republicans embraced the Southern Strategy as a way to punish the Democrats who voted for the Civil Rights Act. The awful statements of his campaign that the south doesn’t matter and that a majority can be forged with young mostly white mostly male voters cut me and others to the quick. I hope that those wounds can be healed.
Morning all! Cool and cloudy here this morning – the pest control guys came to do the shrubbery spraying, pesticide and fertilizer, so I’m hoping any showers hold off for another hour or so.
I think I’m oversaturated on election stuff today – I can’t stand looking at GOS at this point, even at the Hillary-safe diaries. I did look at Armando’s diary yesterday in which he posted Al Giordano’s great tweet sequence on his thoughts on the failures of the Sanders campaign and the state of the primaries, and the vitriol in reaction was sadly predictable. I’m a big fan of Al’s, so I think I’m going to stick to Twitter for following politics until after Tuesday’s primaries.
Today is opera day – a big one, Othello by Verdi, although I’m not positive it’s an actual live broadcast today from the Met – the entire cast seems to be Russian, except for James Morris, so I’m not sure. But worth a listen, for sure. I have to write my final exam, so that’s something I can do while listening!
Everyone have a great day – and Happy Passover to those celebrating, Happy Shakespeare’s Birthday (Guesstimate Version) to everyone!
Maybe it was Too Soon for Al’s Storify at the GOS. Even my friend Ono had some nasty comments in her diary – a well-reasoned (I thought!) letter to Bernie Sanders. Twitter is nice because I can use the “Zip It” feature from my Tweetcaster and mute someone for a period of time and not unfollow them. It is always a shock when they show up after their timeout because I go “how did THAT get in my stream???” Then I remember and re-zip. :)
About 78 here and sunny – feels cooler due to the breeze and inside it’s only about 63 – hope the house heats up enough I can open the windows soon (makes the kitties happy). I’m waiting for the water filtration guy to show up – I think it’s replace the charcoal filter time (the other possibility is the “acid wash” to get the grunge out of the system – they have to be done 6 months apart). If the breeze will die down I’ll go outside for a bit, but I was weeding out volunteer honeysuckle this morning and got something in my eye that’s still bothering me, so I’m not chancing a 2nd dose of whatever it is. Will probably check in at GOS – the pootie diary should be up by now – but otherwise it’s read or play solitaire until time to fix dinner. :)
Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}