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 (usually Saturday night with a Sunday date). 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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– Page One of Comments is HERE!
– Page Two of Comments is HERE!
Good “morning”, Motley Meese! The week begins …
Morning low of 63 degrees in Madison WI with an expected daytime high of 73. Thunderstorms are in the forecast.
Have a great day, all y’alls!!
Sunday Meese. 66 going up to 85 in the Catskills of NY.
A must watch
Thank you. That was excellent. I was listening for something – anything – about immigration though. I know it’s not the issue in SC that it is elsewhere – but kids kidnapped from their parents and put in cages, well, that’s not exactly a foreign concept in a former slave state. And a comment on disaster relief – even if she didn’t mention Puerto Rico by name. SC isn’t exactly a stranger to hurricanes either. She rang all the other notes I was listening for. #Khive !!!
I need to know how to change the you tube html so that they don’t post so huge!
Daily Kamala from Dfh1
Good morning, Moosekind! It’s a beautiful, calm day here in Asbhurn. The current temperature is 60 F., going up to 85 F. later. Yesterday was a good day too—still breezy, not horribly windy.
Nothing much to say except that we went to dinner yesterday evening with two of the residents down the hall and had a good old argy-bargy. Because it was Saturday the restaurant in the main clubhouse was far less crowded, so we received very attentive service. With the late afternoon sunlight pouring through the large windows onto the glossily starched tablecloths and napkins, and the view of green trees outside, it was a far nicer experience than we have on a weeknight.
Tomorrow brings a visit to the lavender farm. The campus shuttle will take us there and bring us back. I need my lavender fix!
Haven’t looked at the news yet, but will address a question to our sister bfitz: when you bake a dozen muffins at a time, how do you store them? Do you freeze the extra until you need them? I’m dying to make my favorite blueberry bran muffins, the recipe for which substitutes applesauce for oil or butter, but our freezer here is so small I don’t know what to do with the extras.
Oh, well, that’s a first-world problem. As much as I hate Daylight Saving, I do enjoy the lingering light of summer evenings. I’ve seen fireflies glowing in the dark, which cheered me greatly. At our old house they used to hover above the creek. Sometimes Miss Pink Cheeks and I would just sit on the screened porch in the dark, eating popcorn and looking at the moon and the fireflies.
Wishing a nice, peaceful Sunday to all at the Pond and beyond!
{{{Diana}}} – the muffins keep fine for up to a week in the fridge in a sealed container (cookie tin, Tupperware – just something with a tight lid). Zap ’em before serving. It’s about 30 secs for one or two. I’m not sure how much longer it would be if you’re trying to do more than two at a time. You might try pureed pumpkin in place of oil or butter sometime. I found it worked fairly well. Hope your recipe turns out well.
Thank you, bfitz!
My Sunday sermon
Slept in, watching the MSNBC morning show. Tea is steeping, quinoa is cooking. When I get home from church, I’ll cook the vegetables for next week’s lunch & mix it together. I may even have time & energy to go to the gym. I went yesterday, can only be a good thing to get in another 30 minutes on the elliptical.
Today’s dong is Mercy:
Love has come again
I am gone again
Love is the end of history
The enemy of misery
Love has come again
I am gone again
Love is justice, a charity
Love brings with it a clarity
Love has come again
I’m alive again
Alive…
The elliptical is good. Right now I’m doing treadmill only, as I’ve been away from the gym for awhile.
Well, last week of June (sort of – last 8 days). It’s 64 at the moment and dark enough we’re still in night mode. It’s been raining off and on – or rather alternating lightly and heavily – since about 5:30 yesterday afternoon. We got 12 KWHs bringing the m-t-d to 397 but I seriously doubt we’ll even make it to 400 today. sigh. We’ve got 8 production days left (counting today) so we still can make it to 500 but unless it clears off – which it’s not expected to – today isn’t going to help. Cats are all sleeping – the Twins on the chairs by the French window, Charlie on the chair by the table, Cloud on the box the laptop came in, and Murf on the pad on the hearth. I managed to sleep in (til 6:30) and am definitely groggy as well as creaky but have at least gotten a few of my Sunday chores done.
I don’t know about other religions of the world but there have always been EndTimers in the Xtian religion. Every generation has pointed to the war-famine-pestilence-death as signs it was almost here. Our current lot of EndTimers are trying to force it by starting Armageddon – one more reason we have got to vote them all out. Those of us who are not EndTimers see those Horsemen riding but we do not welcome much less encourage them. We fear, we ache, we cry – we act whenever/wherever we can to turn them back. We shall see whether or not we manage it this time. Be they willing, perhaps calling up the Wild Hunt to meet them would work. Or not. The Powers are not safe to be called on lightly – definitely not safe to try and force. Something the EndTimers really should think about.
OK. To the internets to actually read the posts I’ve been boosting. LOL. And maybe some more coffee. Bright the day Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
this:
made me think of the Wild Hunt in Seanann McGuire’s October Daye books. It didn’t start off….well, the intention wasn’t bad. But wow did it go wrong, and it took sacrifice to right the situation.
Yeah. That’s why the caveat – messing with Powers is not always/usually a good idea. No matter what the intension was.
The Wild Hunt, or the two dreaded Goddesses whose names should not be spoken unless one is actually invoking them for a punishment spell. Someone on Twitter was calling herself by those names the other day, but I begged her to stop. Speaking for myself, I would NEVER mess with those two Goddesses!
Yes. Invoking Powers without care is never wise. Infinitely more so if they are Powers of a culture not your own (as so many white idiots do with Native Powers like Kokopelli or Coyote). I doubt the twitter person will pay any attention. She doesn’t really believe they exist.
I read Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse, it is set in a post-apocalypse world (the ice caps melted, giving us the “Big Water”, then the New Madrid fault finally had it’s big earthquake, re-shaping the land. The southwest – west Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, is separated by a wall created in that earthquake. The old gods & monsters have returned, and our protagonist is a monster hunter. The reason I thought of this book is that the Trickster God plays a big part in her life. The book is full of Native imagery, and the Coyote is definitely not impish, funny or cute. It’s really good, I think it was/is Hugo nominated.
I have heard of it and her. The Native community in general and the specific Natives I know were very conflict about it. They were delighted that a Native author published a successful book. They were very unhappy that she didn’t use her own Pueblo culture and instead basically cribbed from the Navajo/Dine – appropriation is appropriation, even when it’s another Native. And those who appropriate don’t understand what they’ve taken. But no, Coyote is not funny or impish or cute.
Good morning, 54 and cloudy in Bellingham. Seems like I’ve been relearning life lessons in the garden this year. Deferred maintenance happens, but it’s easier to just keep up with the necessary tasks! We’ve got the basics and more done, so this week we can focus on resting our aching joints and getting ready for the family to arrive on Friday. We’re hosting a graduation party for Ryan next Saturday, and hoping for a sunny day. I’ve got a rain plan, but it will be more fun to be outdoors.
We’re going to our grand girls spring dance recital this afternoon, so I have to small bouquets to make. And I hope I can install the new Comcast router this morning. If I disappear you’ll know I lost connections :)
Best wishes to all.
I am object lesson in what NOT to do. I have two gardens that I kept “deferring”, and now both of them need to be totally redone. I’ve almost finished one. After I finish, I will be deconstructing another garden altogether and using some of the plants from that garden to refurbish the second too-long-deferred garden.
I made lunch for probably 2 weeks, and tea for maybe the week. I might have to make more by Thursday. I’m so sleepy I don’t think I’m gonna go to the gym. I might just stare vacantly at NCIS reruns.
Good morning, meeeses! Monday …
It is 64 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 73. Chance of rain and thunderstorms.
All eyes will be on the Supreme Court as it is the last week for opinions from the 2018-2019 session. There are two big cases left: the census citizenship question and the gerrymandering cases. Both cases will have ramifications related to the balance of power in the government for the next 10 years and I expect the Republican Supreme Court to stand with their party of white supremacists in both cases. That the census question was put in specifically to tilt power to districts that are majority white is not even important to the court – they have stated that they don’t care about the facts of the case in the least. The gerrymandering issue will be “to the victor goes the spoils” and any cheating or intentional ratfking is just “politics” and the “non-political” Supreme Court mustn’t weigh in, that would be unseemly. So existing gerrymanders will determine who draws the new maps, baking in undemocratic outcomes for another generation. :(
See all y’all later!
Monday Meese
61 here in Saugerties NY going up to 83
From standup comedian Cyrus McQueen:
Puerto Rico
At work on a rainy Monday. Rain is great — it cooled down our overnight low to the 60s. Got a lot of cooking done yesterday, probably 2 weeks or more of lunch. Quinoa, broccoli, spinach, black beans & sauce of avocados blended with tahini & line juice. Listening to Snow Patrol, drinking my tea & eating my overnight oats.
Good Moon Day morning, Meese! It’s partly cloudy and I hope it stays that way for the lavender farm visit. Currently it’s 64 F. in Ashburn, going up to 88 F. after the warm front comes in. We’re expecting thunderstorms tonight. All right.
There will be a campus shuttle waiting at the main clubhouse at 9:30 to transport the lavender farm visitors. We’ll return at 1:30, leaving me just enough to time to pick Miss Pink Cheeks from Art Camp.
The plight of the concentration camp victims at the border makes my heart bleed! I’m expecting a bit of money tomorrow so I’ll donate to RAICES.
Wishing a good day to all at the Pond!
Daily Kamala from Onomastic
It’s 62 outside and 67 inside in Fay., AR. We got almost 5″ rain this round (Saturday late afternoon through Sunday after sundown). The wind is nippy and it’s still overcast although the sun’s supposed to come out later today. Which would be really nice. We didn’t get a full 2 KWHs yesterday and the m-t-d is 399. Definitely not on track for 500 at this rate. But it’s still very possible in the 7 days we have left in June – if we get 4 decent days of sunshine. IF.
Evil Ones being evil. Where they aren’t killing outright they’re killing by criminal negligence. They have been working for decades to take full control of the government and it’s going to take a massive effort to stop them. Precinct-level organizing and GOTV can do it. Nothing else can. We can do some damage control here and there – and should. Save as many lives as we can along the way. Donate to folks like @Raices to help the refugees being abused at the border. To folks like Clinton Foundation for the work FEMA should be doing/should have done almost 2 years ago. Volunteer if you can. But we only stop the evil by getting government back. The massive marches & protests mean diddly – are just ‘performance art’ – if they don’t lead to those millions at the polls voting Dem.
So. to the internet. Boost what I can. Pray. Do what my hands can find to do. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Good morning, 55 and cloudy in Bellingham. We enjoyed out grand girls dance recital yesterday. The Dance Studio has been in existence for 40 years and the current director is the daughter of the founder. One of the dances featured parents dancing with their children, including Miss Britt dancing with her baby in a tummy pack and with her mom, Wendy Setter. Generations of family support and fun! The girls danced in all three performances so they had a full weekend at the Mount Baker Theatre.
I needed a nap when we got home, so I’ll try to install the new moden/router today. Best wishes to all on this chill Monday morning,
Good morning, Meesefolk; 66 when I got up with an expected high of 81. When I went to bed last night, my widget said the chance of rain today was 80% and because of the newly-planted plants I put in yesterday, I was actually happy about the prospect of rain. When I got up this morning, the widget was now saying a 36% chance of rain. I can’t even believe I’m saying this, but I really, really hope it rains today and then leaves tomorrow dry.
My weekend was highly productive, and I have almost completed renovating my side garden. I hurt everywhere and almost gave up on several occasions; if it weren’t for bumblebees***, I would have. While I was working, I noticed that my Geranium and Amsonia had become bee magnets. This may have always been the case, but it’s the first time I’ve noticed/paid attention to the sheer number of bumblebees. This became a problem to be solved, because my spring bloomers are on their last legs, and the renovation has left only late summer bloomers. Every time I thought about quitting, I told myself that I had to keep pushing so I could get my mid-summer bloomers planted for the bumbles. I’ll probably lose some blooming from plants I have divided, so I treated myself with a trip to the local garden center ($5 perennials!!!) and bought some mid-summer plants that will definitely bloom this year. I also want to get some Asters for the fall, but I have to see if they have any overwintered at the farm where I once worked; if not, I’ll have to wait until later in the season to be able to get any at a garden center. I may be sore and tired, but my head feels clearer than it has in a long time, and my stress levels plummeted. It’s probably a good thing that I have one more garden that needs a total renovation.
Good day to and for all!
***Or, as I was calling them when I was in the midst of wanting to quit, but feeling shamed by the bees: f’kn bumblebees.
I really miss being able to work in the garden. Touching the earth, working in it, is mystical. It grounds and centers you just automatically as you do it. Yes, clears the head and reduces the stress levels. And heals the disconnect our modern society forces on us. {{{HUGS}}}
Y’all are making me think of this song:
I needed an epson salts soak after my gardening stint on Saturday, but I share your conclusion…..
LOL, I bought Epson salts this weekend, because I use them to kill of the black walnut volunteers that I am unable to dig out (I cut down into the nub of the trunk that I leave and pour the salt into it. It kills off the volunteer slowly, but surely, without poisoning the soil around it.) Anyway, when I came home with the bag, Hubby wasn’t sure if I bought them for the trees or me. I may use the leftovers for me!
Good morning, meeses! Tuesday …
It is 63 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 82. Chance of thunderstorms today. Yesterday’s chance of thunderstorms manifested in some fierce storms that wiped out my satellite access for periods of time. Power outages and 1″ hail on the west side – just lashing rain on the east side. I was glad I did not have to go anywhere!
Neither of the hot cases at SCOTUS were decided – another day of opinions is planned for tomorrow. I am wondering what options we have if the Republican Supreme Court chooses to allow the citizenship question on the census in order to protect their white majorities? Can the House refuse to fund the census if it includes that question? Can they make answering that question optional? Can people choose to skip the question in an act of civil disobedience? I hope our electeds have some plans ready. I saw Nancy Pelosi telling people to answer the question – as much as I like her that is a pretty privileged view; she runs no risk of being deported if she answers the question – there is no such guarantee for non-citizens under Trump’s ICE. As for gerrymandering, I would like the court to decide that partisan gerrymandering – and certainly as implemented in Maryland and North Carolina and Wisconsin – is an abomination and find a formula that strikes down the most egregious instances. But I think John Roberts will pretend we have no way to recognize a went-too-far gerrymander (“wut are these new fangled computing thangs?”) and will declare that the court will not step in. I am less worried about the gerrymandering than the census question – I think that eventually the Republicans will find that they can’t gerrymander safe districts around the fact that 70% of young people hate them and their deplorable policies. The problem is that it will take another decennial to fix that and we run the risk that another 10 years of Republican rule will be the end of our democracy – and maybe our planet.
Busy day here as I prep for a big project – the end of the quarter is nigh!
See all y’all later!