43 Comments
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Jay Janney's avatar

Is it just me to think that it is buggy that our use of insecticides is harming hummingbirds?

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BikerChick's avatar

Yesterday was not a good day. Baby Josie was doing great after her open heart surgery but took a turn and had to be put back on the heart lung machine. Then I heard the snowy owl, which has been attracting hundreds of bird watchers, was found dead in the woods. 😭 Her cause of death has not been determined.

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Ann Robinson's avatar

I,m sorry on both accounts, but especially for the baby's bad turn. i hope things get better soon.

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Citizen60's avatar

Lighting a candle for Josie. Am thinking of you and yours.

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LucyTrice's avatar

I hope things are going well with your son's new job.

Prayers for the little on and her family.

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BikerChick's avatar

He’s doing great, thanks for thinking of him. 💕

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LucyTrice's avatar

:-)

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IncognitoG's avatar

Re: Snowy owl—Watch it be bird flu. It’s easy to overlook that it is absolutely raging in wild bird populations.

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BikerChick's avatar

I guess they can get aspergillosis too.

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Jay Janney's avatar

Aspergillosis was what killed my wife, Pam. She appears to have gotten it in the Bone Marrow Transplant ward, which is a very clean version of a hospital room (e.g. it has curtains, the air blows out and away from the patient, etc.).

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CynthiaW's avatar

Could have been age.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Prayers for Baby Josie and family.

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Rev Julia's avatar

There have been multiple sightings of rufous hummingbirds in NC, but it’s only “confirmed” if you get photographic evidence. You know, some of us don’t randomly carry around great cameras that can take good bird pictures.

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DougAz's avatar

Good morning. 55F at 5am.

The article missed the Southern Arizona nesting of Mr. Rufous hummingbird at DougAz backyard. They prefer the back which faces North. He his is relations over the last 17 years, have appeared in about 6 years.

They nest in a mesquite tree, even a large bush, and a palm tree.

They are pretty territorial and combative vs Anna and other hummers. They own their space.

Tomorrow I have a lunch with my 2 friends. Both divorced. Around 68 and 63. They need a talking space.

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CynthiaW's avatar

I hope you all have a nice lunch.

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Phil H's avatar

Good morning. A cloudy day ahead, currently 35 with highs in the 40s. It rained last night, with dire predictions of road icing late at night.

The mothership and the FP are both covering Trump’s outlandish proposal (which no one seems to either take seriously or dismiss outright) to take over the Gaza Strip, rebuilding it and turn it into a “Mideast Riviera”.

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BikerChick's avatar

So ridiculous.

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IncognitoG's avatar

I keep seeing the ad for it in The Morning Dispatch stub that I still get: the new Dispatch Premium membership tier. Is anyone signed up for it? Is there any big selling point? From what I can tell, it looks like you just get ad-free content in general and can attend two Zoom / virtual meetups per year with Jonah and Steve.

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C C Writer's avatar

I'm not paying them any increase until they fix the things that don't work right. And then still probably not.

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Citizen60's avatar

I upgrade just to help the financial health of TD; but they don't have a mechanism for an increased monthly premium to do so. $300 is a big chunk of change for me.

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Brian's avatar

I turned off auto-renew on my subscription yesterday. I love a lot about TD, especially engaging in discussion with others, but I don’t want to deal with all the negativity and loss of perspective any more. I’ve found that a lot of people don’t like it when I say the sky isn’t falling.

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DougAz's avatar

That is a healthy decision Brian.

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The original Optimum.net's avatar

Haven't seen that, but I will pass.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Should hold out for the Roman Senator subscription tier, which comes with shoulder rubs and a slave to peel your grapes.

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The original Optimum.net's avatar

Now THAT I would sign up for!

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Phil H's avatar

I’m not signed up. The main draw seems to be ad-free podcasts (I skip over podcast ads, not hard to do) and the “town halls” which seen to have replaced the Dispatch Live events. Those benefits are not worth the extra $200 a year over my regular annual membership.

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C C Writer's avatar

I often have problems with the podcasts cutting off before the end, and I have reason to suspect that it comes from the process of inserting ads. They need to fix that problem, not expect me to pay more in order to make it a moot point for them.

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CynthiaW's avatar

I have not. I find the outcome of my current subscription to be okay.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Yeah. If I had the time and interest to read, say, a tenth of their output, I’d sign back up. I still like their general value proposition, and agree with their aims and political inclination. But I just don’t read enough of anyone’s content regularly enough to justify a subscription. Heck, I still haven’t gotten back to the books I got stalled out on during the holidays.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Now that I'm reading Brandon Sanderson, I need other content only when I'm waiting for the next book from the library.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Had to look him up again, though I had done so earlier when you mentioned the name. Holy moly, that guy cranks ‘em out!

I like the Wheel of Time on Amazon, but didn’t know it as a reader. Reader reviews were displeased. (I thought it was fine, even without being a fantasy buff.)

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CynthiaW's avatar

Readers of this sort of thing are cranks about the text.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Good morning. I can get coffee in less than 10 minutes. We expect fairly light work this morning and to be ready to leave by midday. We'll drive halfway in the afternoon.

If all goes as planned.

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Citizen60's avatar

Safe Journey.

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BikerChick's avatar

Safe travels. Ice storm in southern WI has impacted my plans to go watch the grand for a few hours before pickleball.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Yikes! Ice is no fon.

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LucyTrice's avatar

Safe travels.

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IncognitoG's avatar

Morning. We had storms half the night, but it doesn’t look like they go much farther south. Sounds like a more laid back return trip.

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CynthiaW's avatar

We're too tired to do a straight ten hours safety.

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Phil H's avatar

I do those drives several times a year (just got back from one) but I admit, as I get more “mature” it gets harder.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Coming down was fine. We left Charlotte at 0630. We could stay here and do it in reverse on Friday, but there's no benefit to that.

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CynthiaW's avatar

Thanks. If we tried to drive straight through this afternoon, we'd hit bad traffic in the Savannah area and construction in South Carolina. This way, we'll get home mid-afternoon Friday and not be a total wreck.

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IncognitoG's avatar

A sensible choice. Afternoon traffic is heavier as it is, and therefore often slower in unpredictable ways.

Safe travels!

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