I am swamped due to my boss and roomie both being out of town and lots more work...lol...and I am spoiled with Rick taking care of so much. WE finally have some money to pay bills at work so I have been doing that.
I love watches. I own...a lot...lol...at least 50 Christmas watches and more than that for everyday watches, I only have one fancy/really nice watch though...some need batteries and I have been procrastinating about buying them and putting them in....most of my watches are themed, or kitschy...today I have on a cat face watch with ears and fake diamonds...lol..I also like to match watches to what I am wearing...
I have a very tall grandfather clock that I inherited from my dad...unfortunately all the people who calibrate and repair grandfather clocks around here are not doing it anymore, and apparently no young people what to apprentice and learn. This is sad, mine sits there and isn't working , not even sure it can be fixed at this point. ( My dad collected grandfather/grandmother clocks)
Watches are the only jewelry my boss will wear...but, the likes the expensive ones....lol...he has told me to call the jewelry in the city he lives in to see if they have someone to fix my clock, but, they are like 45 minutes away and not sure if they would come out to me anyway, so I haven't called, and I bet it is pretty pricey.
I don't know what day it is today, as my site is broke and isn't sending me the emails...lol...
I am feeling hopeful about the indictment at least. Advisory Opinions ( I haven't listened to them in a while, and I used to never miss one, are commercials de rigueur now?...Sigh, if I pay, I think I shouldn't have to listen to ads...lol) had a good pod about it, for the most part.
I could have looked it up, but even when I went to the site last night it was off...I need it the night before for my thread on my forum...and I just didn't have time this morning.
I have a platinum dipped one I got from a friend for Valentine's day that I have on my desk at work...it is a not so subtle hint...lol...( it was actually one of the coolest gifts I ever got...and it surprised me and I was of the opinion ,as expensive as they are that this wasn't a "friend" gift...lol...)
Just saw this headline from Deadline: Donald Trump Arraignment: No Cameras, No Cellphones And No Electronic Devices Will Be Allowed In Courthouse As Networks Grapple With How To Cover Historic Proceeding
I guess there will be a rush to buy pencils and paper, and there's this thought. Networks grapple to cover the large non-story. What's to cover? He is being arraigned. I think that sums up the whole story nicely and the part about grappling with how to cover it speaks to the desperation of the media to make a big story out of it.
Well, Josh, it is a *big* story in so much as it's a "first" in our history as a country. That said, the press will do what the press - cable news in particular - always does with anything concerning the Donald...give him the usual blank check for unearned media. Which he will be all too happy to cash just as soon as possible.
When it comes to the amount of sensibility about "scale", "frequency" and "volume" regarding certain subjects as they relate to "reporting", you can pretty much mark the MSM down as having NSF.
Non-sufficient funds. Banks used to stamp NSF on bounced checks back in the day. Don't know if they still do. Been a little while since I bounced one, since I've kept my checking account properly inflated for quite for some time now.
My husband gets a weekly message from the hospital CEO: "One of our strategic pillars is Culture & Inclusion. We all strive to do what is right and have an understanding of our unconscious-biases, and being mindful of our use of words plays an important role in these efforts. Occasionally I have heard people share great work that their team has accomplished, and I am surprised when they refer to their team as, “the girls” or “the guys”. They are using the term in a familial, friendly way, yet the unintended consequence could be perceived as a “put-down or condescending” of these women or team members and undermine the message of the great work they had accomplished. Please continue to think about your choice of words, and whether they are supporting or undermining the message." He also told me he has to take a class on "unconscious bias" to maintain his IL medical license. Glad they are addressing these vital concerns in healthcare (EYE ROLL!)
Thinking about my choice of words here, I'm gonna' say I suppose the next thing likely will be that referring to one's team as 'they' or 'them' should be off limits, since without further clarification one would not know these days whether it was a team or an individual being referred to.
Me thinks perhaps a bit of defunding for the language police is in order, maybe redirecting those funds to...healthcare? I don't think there will be any collapse of any strategic pillars as a result. And if there are, it probably wasn't a great build job to begin with.
If I'm listening to a podcast and the host uses the pronoun "they" for a him or a her, I will stop listening because it annoys me to no end. How about use the person's name instead of corrupting a plural pronoun!! Who knew this would be something that would bug me one day?!
Now and then I'll see that usage in a news story from AP. Apparently, it's been officially adopted into their 'style book'. Jumps off the page at me like a grasshopper on a hot August day. (Threw in that last in honor of your being similarly bugged.)
Speaking of watches and clocks and in line with a note I posted yesterday about the use of words, this one comes to mind. There is a world of difference between saying "Your beauty could halt the passage of time" and "Your face could stop a clock." Be careful with the words you choose.
I am currently in the process of finding a person to repair/restore my husband’s grandfather’s pocket watch from 1890. It’s a process. It’s not like it’s a super rare or high quality watch. I’m pretty sure it was from Sears and Roebuck but it’s meaningful to my husband.
I remember watching a program on one of the streaming services about watch making. It really is fascinating. The other thing I love are those automatons! https://youtu.be/C7oSFNKIlaM
Good morning. Today's stories on the Mothership are an upcoming visit by Secretary of State to Communist China, complicated by the discovery of a PRC listening station in Cuba; and on the Supreme Court decision last week upholding a section of the Voting Rights Act for majority-minority districts, forcing Alabama to redraw its Congressional maps.
Today's special animal friend is the Nautilus, a cephalopod in a really cool shell. There are lots of extinct ones, but only six extant species in two genera, Nautilus and Allonautilus. The two Allonautilus species are believed to be descended from the Nautilus; this taxonomy was sorted out in the late 1990s. Allonautilids are found near Bali, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands.
Nautiluses, like all cephalopods, are weirdly fascinating. Unlike octopi and squid, which have tentacles, nautiluses have 60-90 appendages called "cirri." A cirrus is something like a tentacle, but it lacks the strength, flexibility, thickness, and sensitivity, so ... not all that useful? Maybe that's why they have so many. The very many cirri are ridged, and when they wrap around an object, the grip is very powerful. Cirri located near the eyes are different and may be used for smelling. Nautiluses have poor vision and are believed to locate prey by smell.
Nautiluses eat mostly shellfish, which they either hunt or scavenge. Like the giant squid, they have a sharp, powerful beak and a radula or serrated tongue. The largest species, Nautilus pompilius, grows up to 10 inches long, but most species are 8 inches or smaller, so you don't have to imagine them tearing and shredding you. Although it is hard to measure the intelligence of a shellfish, some experiments have been conducted that associated food with flashing lights, and the nautiluses were able to remember the correlation for up to 24 hours.
The nautilus is the only cephalopod that lives inside a shell. The animal can withdraw entirely into the shell and close the opening with a leathery "hood" using specialized appendages. The shell is made of aragonite, a type of calcium carbonate. The nautilus is famously "chambered," building out its shell as a "phragmocone" of "camerae" that increase in size as the animal grows. The camerae are separated by "septa" (plural of "septum," like in your nose), each pierced by a duct called a "siphuncle." At hatching, a nautilus has 2 to 4 tiny camerae, while an adult has around 30 of increasing size.
The arrangement is a logarithmic spiral and is really beautiful, especially because the interior is nacreous, that is, formed from a very smooth, iridescent, organic-inorganic composite material that is also known as "mother of pearl." Biology and mineralogy and chemistry aren't really different subjects, when you think about it. The shell is resistant to pressure up to about 2,600 feet deep; deeper than that, it implodes. The animal is able to survive at the surface as well as at depth.
Nautiluses reproduce very slowly, reaching maturity at 15 years of age; total lifespan is about 20 years. Females lay eggs one-by-one or in small batches attached to rocks in warm water. The eggs take up to a year to hatch, and both the eggs and the one-inch hatchlings are vulnerable to predators. Natural predators of adults include octopi and large fish such as triggerfish and grouper.
For thousands of years, nautilus shells have been collected as a curiosity and for the manufacture of ornaments. They are now protected from trade by CITES, but you know how that goes. Nautilus pompilius is listed as Vulnerable by IUCN, and there is concern about all six species.
"There are lots of extinct ones, " That made me think. Would it not be correct to say there were lots of extinct ones? Then again, they are extinct in the present and were not so in the past. Also, can we say, in the present, "There are lots of extinct ones, " when, in fact, there aren't any if they are extinct?
"...nautiluses have 60-90 appendages called "cirri." A cirrus is something like a tentacle, but it lacks the strength, flexibility, thickness, and sensitivity, so ... not all that useful?"
So, you can't say, "Cirri, pick me up a small shellfish"?
Of course. He's working for a non-profit here, after all. Don't know what his arrangement is with your all's Mothership. But simply doing good for the sake of doing good should be its own reward sometimes.
Good Morning Friends
I am swamped due to my boss and roomie both being out of town and lots more work...lol...and I am spoiled with Rick taking care of so much. WE finally have some money to pay bills at work so I have been doing that.
I love watches. I own...a lot...lol...at least 50 Christmas watches and more than that for everyday watches, I only have one fancy/really nice watch though...some need batteries and I have been procrastinating about buying them and putting them in....most of my watches are themed, or kitschy...today I have on a cat face watch with ears and fake diamonds...lol..I also like to match watches to what I am wearing...
I have a very tall grandfather clock that I inherited from my dad...unfortunately all the people who calibrate and repair grandfather clocks around here are not doing it anymore, and apparently no young people what to apprentice and learn. This is sad, mine sits there and isn't working , not even sure it can be fixed at this point. ( My dad collected grandfather/grandmother clocks)
Watches are the only jewelry my boss will wear...but, the likes the expensive ones....lol...he has told me to call the jewelry in the city he lives in to see if they have someone to fix my clock, but, they are like 45 minutes away and not sure if they would come out to me anyway, so I haven't called, and I bet it is pretty pricey.
I don't know what day it is today, as my site is broke and isn't sending me the emails...lol...
I am feeling hopeful about the indictment at least. Advisory Opinions ( I haven't listened to them in a while, and I used to never miss one, are commercials de rigueur now?...Sigh, if I pay, I think I shouldn't have to listen to ads...lol) had a good pod about it, for the most part.
Have a great Tuesday...
Today is National Rosé Day, National Sewing Machine Day, National Bubbly Day, National Applesauce Cake Day, National Higher Education Day
Thank you
I could have looked it up, but even when I went to the site last night it was off...I need it the night before for my thread on my forum...and I just didn't have time this morning.
It might not have been the same site.
True, the one I use was founded by a specific guy and was the first. On his site, Rose day was yesterday.
It would be okay if every day was Rose Day.
I am a 100% behind that idea, I love Roses...
I have a platinum dipped one I got from a friend for Valentine's day that I have on my desk at work...it is a not so subtle hint...lol...( it was actually one of the coolest gifts I ever got...and it surprised me and I was of the opinion ,as expensive as they are that this wasn't a "friend" gift...lol...)
Good morning!
Just saw this headline from Deadline: Donald Trump Arraignment: No Cameras, No Cellphones And No Electronic Devices Will Be Allowed In Courthouse As Networks Grapple With How To Cover Historic Proceeding
I guess there will be a rush to buy pencils and paper, and there's this thought. Networks grapple to cover the large non-story. What's to cover? He is being arraigned. I think that sums up the whole story nicely and the part about grappling with how to cover it speaks to the desperation of the media to make a big story out of it.
Well, Josh, it is a *big* story in so much as it's a "first" in our history as a country. That said, the press will do what the press - cable news in particular - always does with anything concerning the Donald...give him the usual blank check for unearned media. Which he will be all too happy to cash just as soon as possible.
When it comes to the amount of sensibility about "scale", "frequency" and "volume" regarding certain subjects as they relate to "reporting", you can pretty much mark the MSM down as having NSF.
NSF?
Non-sufficient funds. Banks used to stamp NSF on bounced checks back in the day. Don't know if they still do. Been a little while since I bounced one, since I've kept my checking account properly inflated for quite for some time now.
Wow, I had forgotten that.
My husband gets a weekly message from the hospital CEO: "One of our strategic pillars is Culture & Inclusion. We all strive to do what is right and have an understanding of our unconscious-biases, and being mindful of our use of words plays an important role in these efforts. Occasionally I have heard people share great work that their team has accomplished, and I am surprised when they refer to their team as, “the girls” or “the guys”. They are using the term in a familial, friendly way, yet the unintended consequence could be perceived as a “put-down or condescending” of these women or team members and undermine the message of the great work they had accomplished. Please continue to think about your choice of words, and whether they are supporting or undermining the message." He also told me he has to take a class on "unconscious bias" to maintain his IL medical license. Glad they are addressing these vital concerns in healthcare (EYE ROLL!)
Thinking about my choice of words here, I'm gonna' say I suppose the next thing likely will be that referring to one's team as 'they' or 'them' should be off limits, since without further clarification one would not know these days whether it was a team or an individual being referred to.
Me thinks perhaps a bit of defunding for the language police is in order, maybe redirecting those funds to...healthcare? I don't think there will be any collapse of any strategic pillars as a result. And if there are, it probably wasn't a great build job to begin with.
If I'm listening to a podcast and the host uses the pronoun "they" for a him or a her, I will stop listening because it annoys me to no end. How about use the person's name instead of corrupting a plural pronoun!! Who knew this would be something that would bug me one day?!
I alway prefer addressing people by their first names...it is the courteous and friendly thing to do...
They and them should not only be plural, but, you shouldn't be using them when addressing someone in person to begin with....sigh
I'm with you. I'll just use the name and avoid the pronoun.
Now and then I'll see that usage in a news story from AP. Apparently, it's been officially adopted into their 'style book'. Jumps off the page at me like a grasshopper on a hot August day. (Threw in that last in honor of your being similarly bugged.)
It's 2023. "Guys" has been non-gender specific for at least 30 years.
Yeah, I use it all the time for either /or/and...doesn't bother me...
( just don't call me dear, especially if you are female...roflmao)..
Or Ma'am because it makes me feel old...lol
Yes, dear.
This made me snort...lol
Maybe I'm naive, but I thought the main focus of healthcare is (how can I say this?) health care.
Speaking of watches and clocks and in line with a note I posted yesterday about the use of words, this one comes to mind. There is a world of difference between saying "Your beauty could halt the passage of time" and "Your face could stop a clock." Be careful with the words you choose.
HA
"Be careful with the words you choose."
Indeed, don't say "girls" or "guys," it could be "unconscious bias." Don't say "mothers" or "criminals" or "illegal" or "homeless" or ....
Yes..."or"...?? Hello? Cynthia??
Did the language police just hack your computer and cut you off? Sneaky b******s!!
I had to go to a meeting. For once, it was a meeting with no arguments!
Yeah
Good morning all,
I am currently in the process of finding a person to repair/restore my husband’s grandfather’s pocket watch from 1890. It’s a process. It’s not like it’s a super rare or high quality watch. I’m pretty sure it was from Sears and Roebuck but it’s meaningful to my husband.
A lot of independent jewelry shops will do watch repairs.
if you can find an independent jeweler.
Actually I can think of two in Austin. This might be worth exploring.
I remember watching a program on one of the streaming services about watch making. It really is fascinating. The other thing I love are those automatons! https://youtu.be/C7oSFNKIlaM
The plural of nautilus is nautiluses but the plural of cirrus is cirri.
English is nutty.
What's the plural of Siri, or are we to believe there is only one, omnipotent Siri? Of course, I'm asking sirisly.
Good morning. Today's stories on the Mothership are an upcoming visit by Secretary of State to Communist China, complicated by the discovery of a PRC listening station in Cuba; and on the Supreme Court decision last week upholding a section of the Voting Rights Act for majority-minority districts, forcing Alabama to redraw its Congressional maps.
Very cool. I'm a watch guy so will give it a listen.
I'm not a watch guy, but I'm a looker. A seer of sorts.
As long as you're not a peeper. If your name was Tom, I'd be a bit worried at this point and thinking we may need to keep a watch on ya'.
Today's special animal friend is the Nautilus, a cephalopod in a really cool shell. There are lots of extinct ones, but only six extant species in two genera, Nautilus and Allonautilus. The two Allonautilus species are believed to be descended from the Nautilus; this taxonomy was sorted out in the late 1990s. Allonautilids are found near Bali, Papua New Guinea, and the Solomon Islands.
Nautiluses, like all cephalopods, are weirdly fascinating. Unlike octopi and squid, which have tentacles, nautiluses have 60-90 appendages called "cirri." A cirrus is something like a tentacle, but it lacks the strength, flexibility, thickness, and sensitivity, so ... not all that useful? Maybe that's why they have so many. The very many cirri are ridged, and when they wrap around an object, the grip is very powerful. Cirri located near the eyes are different and may be used for smelling. Nautiluses have poor vision and are believed to locate prey by smell.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmE2gZMYC8A
Nautiluses eat mostly shellfish, which they either hunt or scavenge. Like the giant squid, they have a sharp, powerful beak and a radula or serrated tongue. The largest species, Nautilus pompilius, grows up to 10 inches long, but most species are 8 inches or smaller, so you don't have to imagine them tearing and shredding you. Although it is hard to measure the intelligence of a shellfish, some experiments have been conducted that associated food with flashing lights, and the nautiluses were able to remember the correlation for up to 24 hours.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5UYFCiV0r4c
The nautilus is the only cephalopod that lives inside a shell. The animal can withdraw entirely into the shell and close the opening with a leathery "hood" using specialized appendages. The shell is made of aragonite, a type of calcium carbonate. The nautilus is famously "chambered," building out its shell as a "phragmocone" of "camerae" that increase in size as the animal grows. The camerae are separated by "septa" (plural of "septum," like in your nose), each pierced by a duct called a "siphuncle." At hatching, a nautilus has 2 to 4 tiny camerae, while an adult has around 30 of increasing size.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hXPEH_wsZBM
The arrangement is a logarithmic spiral and is really beautiful, especially because the interior is nacreous, that is, formed from a very smooth, iridescent, organic-inorganic composite material that is also known as "mother of pearl." Biology and mineralogy and chemistry aren't really different subjects, when you think about it. The shell is resistant to pressure up to about 2,600 feet deep; deeper than that, it implodes. The animal is able to survive at the surface as well as at depth.
Nautiluses reproduce very slowly, reaching maturity at 15 years of age; total lifespan is about 20 years. Females lay eggs one-by-one or in small batches attached to rocks in warm water. The eggs take up to a year to hatch, and both the eggs and the one-inch hatchlings are vulnerable to predators. Natural predators of adults include octopi and large fish such as triggerfish and grouper.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NLfk6U0eiFE
For thousands of years, nautilus shells have been collected as a curiosity and for the manufacture of ornaments. They are now protected from trade by CITES, but you know how that goes. Nautilus pompilius is listed as Vulnerable by IUCN, and there is concern about all six species.
They are pretty fascinating.
The reason nautiluses have poor vision is that their eyes are lensless, like a pinhole camera -- a primitive form of the eye.
Thank you. I hadn't looked into that detail.
When I think Nautilus, I think James Mason and Kirk Douglas. Anyone with me on this?
I'm in league with ya' here.
I got that.
"There are lots of extinct ones, " That made me think. Would it not be correct to say there were lots of extinct ones? Then again, they are extinct in the present and were not so in the past. Also, can we say, in the present, "There are lots of extinct ones, " when, in fact, there aren't any if they are extinct?
"There are lots of dead people."
There are plots and plots of dead people in cemeteries.
he said gravely.
But not cryptically.
If Phil were to bury us both for this, would we get a twomb?
LOL
Good one, Cynthia! The videos are so interesting, and fun to watch!
Are Triggerfish considered automatic predators or semi-automatic? 🙄
I thought Cephalopods in general move very quickly, as we often see them leaving squid marks.
But they do have beautiful shells. I won't buy one because I don't want to encourage trade in them....
Good morning Jay. So your mothership alter ego is misbehaving as well?
That triggers me -- 🚪
I saw that one, too. 🤭
Triggerfish have big teeth, and Humboldt's Squid can swim over 15 mph.
People shouldn't buy products made from endangered animals.
"...nautiluses have 60-90 appendages called "cirri." A cirrus is something like a tentacle, but it lacks the strength, flexibility, thickness, and sensitivity, so ... not all that useful?"
So, you can't say, "Cirri, pick me up a small shellfish"?
Good morning Optimum. Your mind is like that multi-chambered nautilus shell -- all of them empty. 🚪
I made a similar joke at the Mothership, so depending on which site you're at you can show me the 🚪 here or there. But I wasn't first.
Perhaps there's a 🚪 between the two?
We know there are some pseudonyms here. Perhaps Phil's real name is Christian...
Or Albus Dumble?
?
Maybe He Whose Name Is Not Spoken 🤣
You’ve been busy this morning!
Well, that seems a tad harsh....
If it wasn't for me (and others of my ilk), you wouldn't have your door job.😎
It doesn't pay.
Rightly so.
Of course. He's working for a non-profit here, after all. Don't know what his arrangement is with your all's Mothership. But simply doing good for the sake of doing good should be its own reward sometimes.
The Doorman Cometh for all of us but has anyone ever seen him hail a cab?
Such a New York comment
You can. They make up in quantity what they lack in individual functionality:
"The very many cirri are ridged, and when they wrap around an object, the grip is very powerful."
Its pretty cool. I was trying to make a joke about Siri, but I clearly need more coffee...
Just keep at it. You know, make a siris of puns.
"Siri, help Josh out the 🚪 "
Nice try, but I'm an android guy. Siri and I don't speak. (This is your chance to make a droid comment.)
"Siri, tell me a bad pun."
"There are no other kinds of puns."
Speak for yourself...lol
Okay, it's time for a new line, Phil.
👍
Some puns just had a hard upbringing with no parental guidance. It’s not fair to pun-ish them.
Nice.
OUT!!
It was an okay joke. I just defaulted to "literal" because I need breakfast.
I know. Let's reconvene once we both have sustenance.