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CynthiaW's avatar

I see that Mohammed Sinwar is confirmed dead. Woo-hoo!

Kurt's avatar

I only had a vague idea of who he was and had to look it up. Whack A Mole comes to mind. And the hospital part. Pretty much every component of my world view is being challenged nowadays.

CynthiaW's avatar

The swamp was great, in a wet way. Some obviously repeat visitors were wearing knee high wading boots.

It was cool seeing the long leaf pine forest after studying it every year.

IncognitoG's avatar

Long-leaf pine sprouts to me resemble green toilet brushes.

Angie's avatar

In the 70's, today, 80s tomorrow, guess Spring is finally consistently here

I locked my keys in the car at work today...I was off yesterday and everything is a mess and everyone is yelling at me in emails...lol

LucyTrice's avatar

Here's hoping things settle down this afternoon!

Angie's avatar

Thanks, Lucy, they have. I put out all the fires...lol..this is the downside of being the only person who does many, many things...lol

Angie's avatar

Ha, many people are resistant to change, I know I am now, though I wasn't when I was younger

My beef with You Tube is I subscribe to a few specific podcasts and they are supposed to notify me when there is a new one and they don't...plus, for some, they say there hasn't been a new one for weeks, which can't be true...I don't go there often, for pods, and once in a while to hear some specific song, and at Christmas for Christmas songs at work

CynthiaW's avatar

I have the same with YouTube music. Sometimes podcasts just don't turn up.

Angie's avatar

Glad it isn't just me...thought they were doing this on purpose...lol

DougAz's avatar

https://www.sen.com

Free. Live streaming of Earth rotation, cities, deserts, sunrise and sunsets, from these ISS cameras.

Beautiful.

Also we met our new doggie yesterday. 'Zuben'. Zuen is a rescue Staffordshire terrier and bulldog mix about 75 lbs. Took to us instantly. We get him on the 23rd. #6 doggie

Zuben el Genubi is a star named by the Arabic astronomers. It means the Southern Claw of Scorpio.

One of our 3 goats was named Zuben el Genubi. Pinkis dad, who ground an incredible 1/20th wave f5.6 20" mirror in the 60s using a rotating washing tub mechanism, loved that's star name.

https://www.constellationsofwords.com/zuben-elgenubis

IncognitoG's avatar

Nifty link to the ISS! And nifty story about her dad, Doug. Hope the dog brings you joy.

CynthiaW's avatar

Best wishes to you and Ms Pinki and Zuben.

DougAz's avatar

Awww shucks! Thanks

Jay Janney's avatar

Good luck with the new dog. Our two dogs are 10 and 9. I think they will be our last dogs.

At least until Katie wants a new one....But she says she doesn't want any more dogs.

Midge's avatar

Cynthia, I saw this grammatically ambiguous headline and thought of you:

"Ancient tegu lizard discovered in Florida using artificial intelligence"

https://www.earth.com/news/ancient-tegu-lizard-discovered-in-florida-using-artificial-intelligence/

I like to think that Florida's a crazy enough place that at least some of the lizards in it are already using AI.

Another sentence I read today: "It’s like finding glitter at a unicorn party – you know what happened there."

No, I do not know what happened there. I don't know what unicorns do with glitter at their parties. (Or what humans who throw unicorn-themed parties do with their glitter.) Why would I know that?

https://scienceinsider.blog/mast-cell-markers-tryptase-cd117/

CynthiaW's avatar

That was a really interesting story about the tegu bone.

I've been to some My Little Pony parties, but parents don't usually allow glitter. You learn early what a bad idea it is.

Midge's avatar

Yes. I did — that is, I could already guess, which is why I hid the small stash of glitter I had for specific projects. But it was mightily confirmed by my kids’ stash raid.

Jay Janney's avatar

Is Tegu one of those low cost shopping sites that got hurt by the tariffs?

Midge's avatar

Maybe Tegu sells discount unicorn glitter.

CynthiaW's avatar

Chinese dragon glitter?

M. Trosino's avatar

If social media giants like CSLF think they're going to torment me by posting interesting TSAFs and other such stuff, they've got another think coming. I can just as easily take my doom-scrolling elsewhere, thank you very much.

There. That ought to convince that conniving Marque character not to ever mess with those Like or Comment buttons.

Jay Janney's avatar

I never have to worry about finding the 🚪because so many courteous people are here offering to show it to me! 😀 Y'all are too kind.😏

On the mothership they are saying inflation reports show it coming down, but because it is Trump, don't get your hopes up, something bad could happen and inflation might go back up. My guess is Trump will deport millions of chickens, causing egg prices to rise! 😡

DougAz's avatar

Chickens are already being incarcerated!!!

Millions and millions. Families separated!! Mothers from children. Nasty things happening!! Oh what is coming!!

Jay Janney's avatar

To keep chicken families from being separated I always order a bucket of chicken.

Kurt's avatar

The KFC here has a new advertising thing they put on the wall of their stores in highway rest stops...."Everyone Is Welcome At My Bucket!".

Beautiful sentiment, poorly expressed.

CynthiaW's avatar

Lol! One gets the point, but ...

DougAz's avatar

And, the knowledge of ‘knuggets’ is ‘knot’ for knaught amongst their flock.

Kurt's avatar

Le Depot de Maison...is constantly moving stuff around. There's an app for that.

LucyTrice's avatar

Lowe's Home Improvement does too. It is worthless and I have brought it to their attention numerous times over the past 20 years.

When you are looking for rope - in a hardware store - and type "rope", "rope lights" should not be at the top of the results.

C C Writer's avatar

That's AI for you.

C C Writer's avatar

I can confirm that.

I can also confirm that it's not so easy even for a store associate to access information about exactly where product XYZ is currently located, without the product in hand to scan, and maybe not even then. And no practical way to feed associates so much information about changes. It can be faster to just walk around and eyeball the shelves to find something that is not where it was the other day. Plus you have those freestanding displays that can be anywhere and the location isn't put in the system.

Kurt's avatar

There's an old guy at my store. He always knows where everything is. It's amazing. For a while, I was the only guy that knew he was the guy. The pattern was always the same...find that guy, and everything else falls into place. Now, there's always about 5 people surrounding the guy, waiting their turn. It was beautiful while it lasted.

Kurt's avatar

Per getting shuffled around by social media sites... It's just one more thing in the long list of things that's kept me from getting all that into it. I do like Youtube.

Being "new" at the whole internet conversational thing, I've dipped my toe in the water at a few Substacks and it's amazing how some mope will rise out of nowhere and take insistent insulting reaction to some comment I've made....just itching to fight. I don't know why anyone does it.

Midge's avatar

Having, for my sins, been identified as a relatively unmopey internet user and worked a gig as a content moderator once, why anyone does it can vary.

It's like cutting off others in traffic. Some people – the rude, aggressive drivers – make a habit of it. But even those who try to avoid it sometimes do it because they misperceive the traffic around them.

Usually, the patterns of who's mopiest become pretty clear with time.

Kurt's avatar

Right. The pattern. Certain folks do it like it's going to make a difference in the complexities of some otherwise unsolvable civilizational battle. It's another iteration of the existential cry into the void..."I'm here! I know what to do!!!!"

They're like the insistent horn honker guy. Everyone is trapped in a gridlock at 5:30, but if they honk enough it will get everyone moving.

Midge's avatar

I remember once moping at you for reasons I forget, then feeling that shame of having done a Dumb Human Thing Online after. I dimly recall realizing that whatever caught my mope was just part of what makes your writing interesting and funny.

Kurt's avatar

That's a very nice compliment. I only ever wanted to be interesting and funny. Maybe kinda rich, but interesting and funny mostly. Thank you.

If you moped me, I don't remember.

R.Rice's avatar

I gave up wading in at the mothership - though I broke that rule today for some reason. I'm not as good at it, or as determined as Cynthia and others here. Though I do have a character flaw of taking things too seriously.

LucyTrice's avatar

Taking things too seriously: you are not alone.

DougAz's avatar

It's been a common affliction! But solvable!

R.Rice's avatar

Does giving up drinking make it better or worse? I can't decide. Well giving up, except for weekends. And social events. And when my crazy elderly father makes me crazy. Or the Nuggets lose a game they should have won. Or a little snort of fireball after fishing. Except for that.

Kurt's avatar

I had to look up fireball. You might have a problem.

R.Rice's avatar

I think it's popular in part because it's usually displayed at liquor store checkout in little airline bottles, good for stashing in ski jackets and so forth. And the novelty of it... fiesta!!

CynthiaW's avatar

The young adults favor that.

R.Rice's avatar

The older outdoor bros with the Zin pouches like the combo. Cannonball. I sheepishly admit I like the Zin too - but just a few a day. It's my reward when sitting down to study a little spanish. It is a little strange habit for one that is otherwise may go overboard a bit with exercise and avoiding bad food. But what the hell. I don't think being an ascetic is healthy either.

Kurt's avatar

Their young bodies can withstand the pukefest.

M. Trosino's avatar

So, what you're saying is you gave up not drinking?

R.Rice's avatar

Well I am Catholic, but yeah I guess you could say that!

DougAz's avatar

I think you're in a good place!!

BikerChick's avatar

The grocery store where I shop is in the midst of a remodel. They’re moving everything around. Arghhh. Weather has taken a turn from the mid 80’s-90 to a high of the upper 50’s. The wind is sticking around though. 50 miler today.

R.Rice's avatar

The grocery stores are disorienting to me! For example attempting to pick out a tomato sauce from a score of choices, all red, similar labels. My vision gets blurry and I just want to get out.

JohnF's avatar

Try picking out bathroom tiles from a tile store that carries thousands of different tiles, many that only vary slightly from one another. One of the most stressful days of my life was spent being driven from store to store by a contractor who wanted me to decide on a tile that would cover a wall based on a two-inch square sample. I finally insisted that my wife and the contractor get together and narrow it down to five options.

R.Rice's avatar

I'm in that situation with some things now. My approach is similar. To my wife: I'll tell you which ones I hate and veto, and then you choose.

Kurt's avatar

Get a can of San Marzano tomatoes. I go with Centos...most expensive, but easily worth it when you compare it to the overpriced jars of ready made sauce. The first time I tried it, I was blown away. It hardly needs anything, but I add garlic and some oregano. Beats the pants off Newman's or any other ready made.

R.Rice's avatar

Good stuff, thank you! The problem I have with most tomato sauces, and really most Italian restaurant dishes, is the added sugar. Aside from the health issues, I can't stand the taste. Usually I avoid ordering at restaurants, but every now and then I take a chance and am invariably sorry I did.

Kurt's avatar

I predict you will be astounded. I was. I balked at the $5 per can price, but it's 28 oz. and ends up being the same or less than the premade sauces. And, it's so much better. No sugar, no salt, no nothing but tomatoes. The flavor is amazing, way better than the best rated sauces. I'll never get another jar of premade sauce. Crushed or whole, doesn't matter.

LucyTrice's avatar

Grocery sales marketing warps all logic. It wasn't as bad when we had fewer choices. More choices should trigger something like the Dewey decimal system.

Yes, I am feeling spurts of old and crochetty now that I am back from the beach.

R.Rice's avatar

Old and crotchety with a fresh tan is very attractive.

Phil H's avatar

Good morning. 64 degrees here, with highs later in the 70s and more rain. My grass is growing but rain means no mowing. The “moveable feast” of Trash Day falls on Thors Day here. Ladder Lady wants to come home but that ain’t happening for awhile.

The mothership is reporting on inflation reports (the “calm before the tariff storm”) and the Fed’s reaction. Gripping stuff. The FP is in high dudgeon (as well they should) about Qatar’s gift of a pimped out 747 to Trump.

JohnF's avatar

I thought Trump and Musk fired all of the people who count things like inflation and economic growth?

Citizen60's avatar

Axios has a great chart comparing the value of gifts given Presidents in the 21st Century, and the plane is 100 X their total value.

Trump wants that plane very, very badly. Almost as much as he wants a chandelier in The Oval Office.

M. Trosino's avatar

I have it on good authority that Room Rater, having once given Don Jr.'s office a rating of 0 / 10, has declined to rate the current Oval Office because it doesn't want to go to the trouble of reworking its ratings scale to include negative numbers.

Midge's avatar

"Almost as much as he wants a chandelier in The Oval Office."

Sadly, not to swing from –

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t9ilBHkH9Io

C C Writer's avatar

So much so that even some of his supporters are noticing.

C C Writer's avatar

Has me scratching my head a bit.

CynthiaW's avatar

Could they be realizing that they fell for an immense swindle?

M. Trosino's avatar

Not sure what all this fuss over that plane is about. What better for a POTUS who uses the Constitution for toilet paper than a four-engine 24-karat gold-plated toilet seat with wings?

I mean, come on, people! We shouldn't expect the Commander in Chief to have to use an ordinary Air Force plane so lacking in amenities that it uses plain, ungilded toilet seats which cost a lousy six-hundred bucks each! The man who puts the POS in POTUS deserves better.

My only question is this: When this new flying palatial throne touches down at Joint Base Andrews, will Pete Hegseth be there in the control tower sporting a brand new Hervé Villechaize tat and exclaiming "De plane! De plane, Boss!!" to announce its arrival?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DlnOcZK892E

Also wondering if the skid marks it will leave on the runway as it touches down will actually be rubber, or will Pete also have to call over the airport intercom, "Maintenance, clean-up on runway 3-Right"?

M. Trosino's avatar

Thanks. While the situation is anything but funny IRL with all this craziness going on, I try to remember these lines from Red Rider's "Lunatic Fringe", and figure as long as I can still laugh in the face of the lunatics, they haven't actually won...

We can hear you coming

We know what you're after

We're wise to you this time

We won't let you kill the laughter

LucyTrice's avatar

Amen! Preach it!

CynthiaW's avatar

Happy Odin's Day, everyone. It's also Trash Day here.

This is the first morning we've had daylight instead of heavy rain. My husband and I are planning to go to a Nature Conservancy reserve, the Green Swamp, to see the carnivorous plants.

My goal is for us to be out the door by 7:30. I'll have to keep nudging him with reminders about how hot it's getting!

M. Trosino's avatar

Was it heavy daylight or just light daylight?

CynthiaW's avatar

Moderate trending to bright.

Dsfelty's avatar

Enjoy Green Swamp! My family explored there a few years ago. Intriguing! The boys and I could have spent two days on the trail. Even my less-botanically inclined wife and daughter were excited about the flora. Lots of feathered fauna, too. Some lifers for us northerners.

CynthiaW's avatar

That was succinct and accurate!