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!
#OTD
Thanks, Denise! Did you see that today’s WaPo includes a whole section on slavery in this country? I will read it this afternoon.
Have not seen it – will go look for it – Thanks!
Leaving work early yesterday was great. I delivered the check to AIDS Services, went home & did some cooking — had bought some mushrooms over the weekend & almost forgot to get them cooked up. And Stargate Atlantis was on, so yay for that. Yes, I should have gone to the gym, but cooking & watching SG:A, and taking the recycling out and actually checking the mail on the day it was delivered made for a nice afternoon. Here, listen to Chocolate by Snow Patrol. It makes no sense; well each piece does, but how they’re related to each other….. and “chocolate”? I dunno. But this is my favorite:
Goodness knows I saw it coming
Or at least I’ll claim I did
But in truth I’m lost for words
Every time I see you mention SG: A, it makes me laugh. When my daughter was in college, she rescued a Basset hound, knowing full well she couldn’t keep it and counting on me to bring it home. (She was right.) As I was driving from OH to MI with the Basset draped partway across my lap, I had plenty of time to think of a name. I wanted a woman’s name that would signify strength and a spirit that wouldn’t quit. For whatever reason, I had a complete brain freeze when it came to historical and/or literary references. My Basset ended up being named Teyla.
That is hilarious! Great, right-on name.
Chef José Andrés should receive the Nobel Peace Prize.
Good Woden’s Day morning, Moosekind! At this writing, nearly 9, it’s 75 F. in Ashburn, under sunny skies. The high later will be 90 F., bringing thunderstorms.
Tea yesterday afternoon on the screened porch was very pleasant. My Irish neighbor appeared tickled pink to be asked and even complimented our little flat. (We’d turned off all the lights so it would look better.) Unfortunately, despite the sunlight it was a day when the wind was blowing the favorable way for airplanes coming in from Europe. Plane after plane flew over—Lufthansa from Munich was late as usual—drowning out the conversation.
The news is so bloody bad I will not comment on it this morning. Darling Niece texted to defer our lunch to next week because Great-Nephew brought home a nasty cold from school so she has it now. That makes the second deferment of the week.
Tonight The Home is holding a Roaring 20s cocktail party so I’ll see if I can squeeze into the outfit I’ve planned and go, if only for a little while. I keep meaning to exercise, either at the gym or by walking outside, but I sleep so badly that in the mornings I wake up aching. Not a good situation as I’m gaining weight with every breath I take.
It’s nine, which means I’ve got to get going. Wishing all at the Pond a good day!
P. S. Does anyone know what moose (meese?) think about all day?
{{{Diana}}} – Try taking gentle walks early in the day. For me the “wake up aching” means I need to move – but gently. Remember, the body evolved to wake up and forage for breakfast. That means walking but slowly enough to check for edibles as you go by. (Moose mostly think about eating and would love to have the problem you are complaining of. Especially going into winter when they need extra layers of fat to make it through. LOL) moar {{{HUGS}}}
LOL, thanks bfitz!
Started the day at 66 in Fay., AR – 100% humidity and heading for 90. Not sure I can get away with no A/C today – or for the next several from the forecast. But I’m gonna try. We got 17 KWHs yesterday (m-t-d is 44.75) which is great considering the time of year and the oak tree shade but isn’t quite enough to deal with A/C so the longer I can put off using the A/C the less I’ll have to draw from my KWH credit.
I’m going to have to sit on my hands this month as far as donating is concerned. I did more than I’d noticed last month plus a gift for someone (I finally found something I knew she’d really like) so the credit card statement I got yesterday was a jolt. Add to that I’ve got property taxes to pay this month, the roof repairs if the guy ever shows up to do them, and a pallet of wood bricks (in lieu of 2 face cords of wood) for winter. I will probably put the last on the credit card – which will mean next month’s statement will be a jolt without anything else over my budgeted giving. When I was working I could do the spontaneous donations to emergency needs. That is a very hard habit to get out of. All the harder because there are so many in desperate need. sigh. I will do what I can – and pray. A lot.
I need to close up the house and take a walk while it’s still cool enough. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Good morning, Meesefolk; 61 when I got up and going up to 72. That seems to be the story for the next several days; I’m good with that. There were supposed to be storms last night, but if they happened, it wasn’t in my neighborhood.
I survived the time spent with family, mostly because my first act at the first family gathering was to introduce myself to my sister. Everyone thought this was hilarious, and once the teasing commenced, the political differences were largely forgotten. I wish I could say this was my master plan, but I literally did not recognize my sister, and it’s only been 6 or 7 years since I last saw her. Publicly, I chalked it up to her weight lost (150 pounds or so) and her thick NC accent, but the truth is that I saw an animated, vivacious, social person across the room and thought an introduction was in order; I assumed it was a relative of my nephew’s bride-to-be. My BIL is so emotionally abusive and so controlling that over the years my sister has been Stockholm syndromed into something unrecognizable. Between the two of us, she was always the extrovert to my introvert; the bold personality to my withdrawn one; the life of the party to my wallflower. But in her 30+ years of marriage to Sh**head, her affect became flat; her social side withered up and died; and there was never laughter, only complaints and grievance. I’ve long assumed that my sister is gone, but she was fully present at the first family get-together…because my BIL opted to stay home. And because it was so long since I had seen my real sister, I did not recognize her. Sadly, BIL came to the wedding; my sister went missing again.
I’m back at work today and wishing I wasn’t. I put in some garden time yesterday and managed to disturb some nests of ground bees; 20+ stings and a trip to urgent care later, I’m fine if a bit welt-y looking. But between all of the driving and the Benadryl, I could use about another 12 hours of sleep. It probably doesn’t help that my attitude towards my job has cratered since being told I was being made redundant. I’m doing the bare minimum at this point, and while I should be more professional, all I can think is, “What’s he going to do? Fire me?”
Time to peruse the want ads and see if anything looks enticing. Good day to and for all!
Gad, sorry about the bee stings, DoReMI! How awful! Hope the meds will help.
WHAT DIET was your sister ON?
I want to try it!
She ended up opting to have her stomach stapled. When she was younger, she joined an exercise class at a local gym and just worked on portion control. It worked for her, but BIL made her quit going to the gym, because he was convinced she was going to pick up men. At the time, she had gone from 320 to 280, which in our fat-conscious world is hardly “cruising speed.” She lost all incentive after that. It was when she developed sleep apnea and diabetes that she had to defy him and have the surgery.
Such a sad story about your sister. The compromises that people make in order to stay married, even to people who are clearly abusive; the pluses must outweigh the minuses of having to go it alone. You would think that she would want to be the “animated, vivacious, social person” you saw at the initial gathering – maybe she thinks she can’t be that without being married as it would change her social standing.
Sorry to hear about the stings! Bee well!!!
It was having seven kids that kept her married, I think, although I have no idea why she sticks with him now. But then, my sister has always been more about defining herself relative to whom/whether she was in a relationship than was healthy. Both her first and current husband insisted on being the center of her universe, a fact that was obvious to everyone except her. My dad and mom were not keen on her taste in boys/men, but they tread carefully because they didn’t want their disapproval to push her into someone’s arms. My dad always said one of the great mysteries of the universe was how my sister and I could be so completely different when raised in the same home by the same parents!
OMG! The poor woman!
Well, I have 10 pounds to lose. I don’t think I’ll opt for the stomach-stapling surgery.
It’s good that she’s kept it off, though. I have a cousin that opted for that but sadly, she gained all the weight back again.
I honestly think she’s kept it off because it’s something she has done for herself and by herself, and she’s quite proud of herself. She no longer has sleep apnea and diabetes; I suspect at this point she’s healthier than I am! If she could shed the 200 pounds of toxic male, I bet she would easily live to 100.
When my cousin dumped the weight it did so much for her self esteem two years later she dumped the toxic male. Time it takes to get from “I’m not a problem much less the problem” to “& I’m getting rid of anybody & anything that says I am” – Holding the Good Thought for your sister. (& sending more Healing Energy to you.)
{{{DoReMI}}} – Healing Energy on all levels and to all purposes. And your sister may be coming back. That much weight loss is a very visible sign that she’s decided to start taking care of herself – maybe it’s the kids being grown now, who knows – but that is more likely than not to end in getting rid of the real “ugly fat” that’s been holding her down. Hold the Good Thought and give her time. More {{{HUGS}}} and Healing Energy to you.
Good morning, 61 and cloudy in Bellingham. I had a pleasant afternoon visiting with an old friend so my to do list is still waiting for attention. I have a dentist appointment this morning so I hope I can keep my focus this afternoon.
Nice photo of the crowd gathered in Arkansas to hear Ruth Bader Ginsberg speak.
https://twitter.com/ArUsPr/status/1169238402539171840
Best wishes to all as we cross off another day on the tRump go away calendar.
{{{princesspat}}} – Holding the Good Thought on the dentist appt & yes, that was a good crowd. We do have a bunch of decent people in AR – getting them to believe that so they’ll show up at the polls is the problem. more {{{HUGS}}} and Healing Energy.
Good morning, meeses! Thursday …
It is 52 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 73. Sunny skies are in the forecast.
Another day, another Republican House Member choosing to not run for re-election. This time, Jim Sensenbrenner of Wisconsin. I was a little shocked – I had expected him to retire in 2009 after the Democrats had taken over the presidency to go along with their takeover of the House in 2006. At that time, though, there was an air of comity because Democrats don’t govern scorched earth like Republicans do. I suspect that backbenching in the post-Trump post-TeaParty years will be pretty unpleasant and he really does not need it – he is a billionaire, an heir to the Kimberly Clark fortune. Plus he got his tax cut, he’s good! Lest anyone think that this would be a Democratic pickup, his district is R+80 and includes Waukesha and the mouthbreathing exurbs that spawned Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and his dimwit brother, whatshisname. The only thing that will make it interesting is that some of the reddest bits of his district were carved out and put into Paul Ryan’s old district to protect him from the bluish propensities of the rust belt cities of Janesville, Racine and Kenosha. One likely candidate is Leah Vukmir who because famous for losing bigly to Tammy Baldwin in the 2018 U.S. Senate race.
Speaking of Wisconsin, Joe Biden beats Trump 51 to 42 in the Marquette Poll, the gold standard of polling in our state. Warren and Harris tie with him 45 to 45 demonstrating that misogynism runs deep here – 3% would switch their vote to a literal pile of garbage if his opponent is a woman. :(
Money from military schools and daycare to fund tRump’s vanity wall! Well done, Republicans Who Pretend to Care About the Troops – your guy is depantsing you and you don’t even care.
See all y’all later!
Thursday Meese.
Still have a lot of people here. Today is a rest day – ceremonies start again tomorrow.
#Dorian. Please watch this.
The only thing that comforts me is learning that the Bahamas are part of the British Commonwealth. They’re independent now but they used to belong to the U.K. Therefore they may get some help. We know that The Occupant wouldn’t help.
Thursday morning. Got to keep reminding myself what day it is, short weeks mess with my mind. I think the endless, ridiculous heat is also an issue. It’s going to be 104 today, 103 tomorrow — and next week the weather guy said it should “cool down” to the upper 90s. Listening to Shut Your Eyes.
Shut your eyes and think of somewhere
Somewhere cold and caked in snow
Apparently Beto did well at the Climate Town Hall:
https://twitter.com/sunrisemvmt/status/1169450913456672769
Well, it’s 68 heading for low 90s (who knows on the heat index). At least the current 100% humidity is going down to 50% this afternoon. Before it starts up again when the sun goes down. sigh. I managed another day without A/C and hope to do it again. Yesterday we got 15.8 KWHs and the m-t-d is 60.6 – still on track for 400 for the month. The temps will be rising rapidly once the sun gets above the trees and I’ll need to close the house up before then. Take my walk, too. But I’ve got another hour before I need to get that done.
I didn’t watch the town hall or whatever it was called last night. I did check a couple of “live tweet threads” after it was over. As expected Castro and Harris have the best and most possible to actually happen plans. Not likely, just most possible. However I doubt last night changed anybody’s minds. For one thing most folks, having already decided, listened for certain key phrases and it totally didn’t/doesn’t matter if more of what they want was actually being given to them in a plan where it was phrased differently. So on we go. Choices are hardening – and only the candidates themselves can keep this from becoming a nasty, divisive primary. Maybe. Meanwhile my local people are starting to open their campaigns and ask for money. Which I’m fast running out of. And in fact until I get my roof & firewood situations dealt with I don’t have any over my living expenses. And already-budgeted giving which goes out the 1st of the month so is already gone. As to my personal friends, well, I help as I can. It’s never enough – the issues they have are expensive. Most of them stem from a health industry that would be criminal except that the folks who benefit from it also wrote the laws making it legal. Those are compounded by financial losses due to being ripped off by people they should have been able to trust. In some cases “friends” and even family. I do what I can…
I’m gonna do a quick tour of the internet then close up the house and take my walk. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
I won’t watch CNN and certainly not anything with Chris “Harris Birther” Cuomo. I was pleased to see that Inslee’s plan was getting an airing on Twitter yesterday.
He asked Warren a question that seemed to indicate that he thinks that solar energy only works when the sun is shining. It was unnerving.
One of the things I like about Harris is she does her homework. And if somebody else has got something better in their plan she adjusts her own – while giving credit to where she got it.
Good Thor’s Day morning, Moosekind! Cloudy today and the temp. at 9:30 a.m. is 68 F. Today’s high will be in the mid-70s. Tomorrow we’re supposed to have showers and 70s too. The 10-day forecast shows a decline in the temp. range so autumn is on the way!
The utter destruction of the Bahamas is mind-boggling. Climate change denial is equally mind-boggling. Did anyone watch Kamala last night on the climate change town hall? I thought she seemed tired, although her remarks were great.
Are all the fashion designers high on LSD nowadays? On Twitter I saw Ivanka in a green dress that made her look as if she were trying to be a dinosaur. Erin Burnett’s dress on the CNN townhall last night looked as if it wanted to be the Taj Mahal.
This morning while eating breakfast my eye happened to fall on a headline on the BBC website about so-called “honor” killings. The depths of misogyny exhibited by males (and their brainwashed female helpers) all over the world convinces me that only when there is economic equality will the hatred of women fade. As people gain more access to income their fierce devotion to religion fades away. Have you noticed this? Read 19th-century literature and notice how they were always invoking the prevailing male deity. Nowadays religion is fading. When I came home from Montreal I Googled “The Quiet Revolution of 1960.” Evidence of this is very noticeable today in Montreal—. the churches have been turned into trendy restaurants or apartment buildings.
Australia is an almost completely secular country. In fact, go into any church in Europe and you’ll see mostly old women wearing black, on their knees counting their rosary beads.
OK, end of rant. Time to get on with things. Wishing a good day to all at the Pond and a bad day to Vice President Q-Tip beyond!
Before I forget, don’t miss this tweet from Friend of the Blog, weatherdude:
Good morning, Meesefolk; 52 when I got up this morning (really!) and going up to 73. I could almost live with this year-round…until I remember that I really like playing in the snow. But a summer of this would be completely acceptable.
I only got one resume submitted yesterday; I have one with a deadline of today and another one I have to think about some more which has a deadline next week. The latter is a job I would have climbed over hot coals for 20 years ago; at heart I have always been an analyst. But now I’m not sure I want to take on that level of stress and sheer use of brain power; it’s exhausting under the best of circumstances. It’s also 30 miles/45 minute drive away, which is more than I would prefer but a typical downside of living in East Bumfk. On the other hand, my direct experience is very outdated, so I probably wouldn’t get the job anyway. All of this means I’ll probably apply but won’t be heartbroken when I don’t get past the first round.
Clearly I’m not paying much attention to politics these days except to the extent that I’m trying to apply for jobs in more-or-less recession-proof areas (lots of public sector and staying as far away from the auto industry as possible). My original backup plan was to keep the retail option open, but even that will require being selective. In the meantime, my plan is a daily search and submit one.
Good day to and for all!
Good luck on the job hunt!
Good morning, 61 and partly sunny in Bellingham. I managed to do a few errands yesterday but successfully ignored the desk, so that’s where I’ll be today. I’ve got a couple of easy garden tasks to do when I need a reward or a break :)
The news coverage of prez not so sharpie was blunt last night, and the word pathological was used. I hope the MSM digs into who is propping him up. This charade of a presidency needs the bright light of honesty.
Time for tea, as my stomach needs a break from Aleve and coffee as well as from tRump angst. Best wishes to all.
Good morning, meeses! Friday …
It is 64 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 73. Partly cloudy skies clearing later in the afternoon.
One good thing about the vulgar talking yam’s obsession with hurricane maps from 5 days ago is that it is distracting the pundits who cover the White House. There are too many of them bloviating on too many stupid things and to have them all run to that story like lemmings means that the actual news is easier to spot. The important stories are Hurricane Dorian – the Bahama recovery, the threat to North Carolina, the collapse of the UK government and the increased likelihood that Parliament will cancel Brexit, and the countless attacks on our government institutions being covered by news sources like AP, Reuters, Mother Jones, Buzzfeed, and even the NYTimes and WaPo. Yes, the mentally incompetent man elected by Republicans to give them tax cuts and the federal judiciary is dangerously unhinged. But he has been since he was inaugurated! The difference now is that the Democratic primary is forcing the press to cover our candidates and our candidates (except for the ones who aren’t really Democrats) are making sure that the people know that there are alternatives out there.
Busy day here as I try to get things put in place for weekend projects. The short week put me behind a bit.
See all y’all later!
Friday Meese
53 going up to 73 here in the NY Catskills
Prep day here – 100- 150 people expected tomorrow for the big ceremonial drumming event.
I can’t wait till Monday when I will get back to normal here.
Following Dorian- Bahamas closely-
CARICOM responding
Musician Lenny Kravits – whose mom’s family is Bahamian – asks people for support
there’s a shelterbox diary up at DK, but when I try to share it to FB, the box disappears
https://www.dailykos.com/stories/2019/9/6/1883780/-ShelterBox-2#comment_74873891
Well, they think we’ll hit a record high today of 103. And it’s the 40somethingth day over 100. I know the people dealing with the hurricane stuff have it much worse, but this heat is really tiresome. Here’s a sweet, happy pop tune: Ice Cream Sundae. Yes, the lead singer sounds like his dad at that age, but they’re good on their own. It’s not really a video, and the lighting isn’t strobe, but it’s blinky & may bother some people.
Um.
Wow. He’s just….. Wow.
Saint Bernard needs a new job, cleaning toilets.