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Week-long Welcomings from Moosylvania: Jan. 11th through Jan. 17th

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Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings diaries 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.

In lieu of daily check-ins, which have gone on hiatus, Welcomings diaries will be posted at the start of each week (every Sunday morning) and then, if necessary due to a large number of comments, again on Wednesday or Thursday to close out the week. To find the diaries, 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?

…


Categories: Uncategorized.

/ 168 Comments

168 comments

  2. JanF

    Rupert Murdoch called terrorism a problem for Islam to fix. Yes! That one religion, out of all of the other religions in the world whose members commit atrocities in the name of their god, must “take responsibility”. The replies took aim at his ridiculous assertion:



    “We do not expect Buddhists to apologize as Buddhist extremists massacre Muslims in Burma or for their human rights abuses in Sri Lanka,” wrote Linda Sarsour, the national advocacy director of the National Network for Arab American Communities, in a recent New York Times Op-Ed. “I also don’t ask Christians to apologize for the genocide that Bosnian Muslims faced less than two decades ago at the hands of Christian Serbs, or for the Lord’s Resistance Army and Christian militias who have killed tens of thousands of civilians and ethnically cleansed Muslims throughout Uganda, the Congo and Central African Republic…All of us instead recognize that religious fanatics perpetuate violent acts for their own deranged reasons.”

    Indeed.

    Kareem Abdul Jabbar

    Another horrendous act of terrorism has taken place and people like myself who are on media speed-dial under “Celebrity Muslims” are thrust in the spotlight to angrily condemn, disavow, and explain-again-how these barbaric acts are in no way related to Islam.[…]

    Nor should we blame America’s foreign policy as the spark that lights the fuse. Poverty, political oppression, systemic corruption, lack of education, lack of critical thinking, and general hopelessness in these countries is the spark.[…]

    I look forward to the day when an act of terrorism by self-proclaimed Muslims will be universally dismissed as nothing more than a criminal attack of a thuggish political organization wearing an ill-fitting Muslim mask. To get to that point, we will need to teach our communities what the real beliefs of Islam are. In the meantime, keep my name on speed-dial so we can get through this together.

  3. DeniseVelez

    All of the towns in my area are in an uproar, and are holding town meetings to protest against the Pilgrim Pipeline. Quite a few have already passed resolutions against it.

    From Coalition to Stop Pilgrim Pipeline (CAPP)

    http://stoppilgrimpipeline.com/

    The Pilgrim Pipeline Proposal…

    WHAT

       Two parallel pipelines, 178 miles,  between Albany, NY and  Linden, NJ

       Bakken shale oil will be sent south; refined products (including kerosene) will be sent north.

    WHERE

       Crosses 5 N.J counties, 30 N.J. towns, & environmentally fragile areas/sources for water.  See the maps here.

       Much of route to use existing utility rights of way, but additional tracts required.

    WHY NOT?

       Major impact on environment, public health and property values.

       Communities bear all of the burden along the path.

       No upside, only negatives. Emergency response. Property values.

       Cements regional reliance on risky fossil fuel and oil infrastructure.

       Susceptible to corrosion and leakage problems.

       Transported products dangerous to humans and environment.

       Bakken shale oil is highly volatile, involved in many accidents.

       Damaging effects on urban communities and open spaces through which it passes.

       Areas include the Hudson Valley, Catskills, NY/NJ Highlands.

       Could see wetlands destroyed, critical habitats leveled and impact to waterways.

       Endangered and threatened species affected. More erosion due to construction.

       Leaks threaten the water supply for our homes, businesses, and schools.

       Federal inspection/regulation insufficient.

       Just 135 inspectors oversee 2.6 million miles of pipeline. Only 1/5th has been inspected in the past 8 years.

       Shale oil fracking has harmful impact. Contributes to climate change crisis.

       Water depletion, toxic air emissions, waste-water, methane release.

    Our Saugerties meeting was held yesterday.

  4. Diana in NoVa

    And it’s a sunny morning with mackerel clouds across a blue sky and snow receding from the grass.

    Feeling more Motley than usual. Just went over and ranted in the comments in Jan’s Front Page diary. Denise, read your diary on Orange and was extremely impressed, but did not leave a comment because others left about 600 comments. Applaud your courage in making a point that many prefer to gloss over.

    About to go downstairs and cook Dearly’s Sunday breakfast. Decided to save money this weekend by not getting my hair done and not going out for Sunday breakfast. In a few days I’ll be able to contribute more to anotherdemocrat’s Hill Country Ride fundraiser. That is such an important cause: here in DC we have the Whitman-Walker Clinic, which has done a powerful lot of good for those afflicted with AIDS. As well, they offer services to the GLBT community.

    I’ll be better able to face the news after breakfast. Hope it’s a good day for everyone in Mooseland!

  5. anotherdemocrat

    Eating breakfast, watching Up. I’m taking my friend out for lunch, so I’m going to have to clean out the passenger seat of the car — it usually has caps, sunscreen & stuff for walking.

    And this is weird – earworm is Invisible. Which is weird because that’s the first song in the mix I’m listening to now, and yesterday in the car, I was listening to California, which is the other end of the mix.

    Gotta think about what food I’m going to have for next week’s 4 work days.

  6. princesspat

    It’s a slow news day in the PNW…..the Seahawks won the football game last night, and our newly re elected state senator is a climate change denier.

    Climate change, taxes divide Whatcom senators, rest of Legislature along party lines

    On top of that, Inslee’s second-biggest new-revenue generator is a tax on industries that put carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases into the air, and the key senator who needs to support the carbon tax is a Ferndale Republican who isn’t convinced climate change is a problem. To complicate matters even further, that same senator, Doug Ericksen, announced on Wednesday, Jan. 7, that he and a colleague will push for a new rule that would require a two-thirds vote in the Senate for any tax increase.

    He makes me grouchy!

  7. bfitzinAR

    Doesn’t do much for the electricity generation (but the last 3 days have averaged 5 KWHs so today’s 1 isn’t the problem it was in December), but at least above freezing.  So wet, but no ice on the streets.

    Good news – or at least soon to be good news – Lodger got the apartment.  She moves out sometime the 1st week of February.  I can hold on to my temper that long.  I’m sure she’ll be happier and I know I will.

    Hope everyone had a pleasant and comfortable Sunday.  No, I haven’t looked at the news and I’m not going to (other that what may be in this diary).  Peace is not to be had when reading the news.  {{{HUGS}}}

  8. JanF

    It is 17 degrees in Madison with the temperatures dropping to a daytime high of 13 degrees. Sunny skies are in the forecast.

    The right-wing news-like sites are screaming at the president for not going to France with all the other world leaders, instead sending Attorney General Eric Holder who didn’t even walk in the march!!! Law enforcement!!! Where’s the WARRRRR???? Lindsey Graham was particularly unhinged going on to claim that Obama is a bad president because he won’t call this a religious war: “I have no idea why the president of the United States won’t call this a religious war when the president of Egypt does.” There you have it! In the World of Lindsey if President Obama does not agree with the president of Eqypt … KABOOM. Sorry, my head just exploded.

    Elsewhere, a Washington Post opinion writer opined that President Obama should not have a presidential library because there are already too many. Some Twitterers wondered if there is anything about this particular president that made people think now is the time to draw the line on all that library stuff.

    Nerdy Wonka @NerdyWonka

    Funny how this wasn’t a “concern” pre-Pres. Obama. RT @washingtonpost: Does every president need a separate library? http://wapo.st/1B5AufM

    Lots to read but I have to wait until I get some early morning work done. My vacation is officially over and now I need to get back to work.

    See all y’alls later!

  9. Diana in NoVa

    We have freezing rain and therefore a two-hour delay for school starting in Fairfax County. I have to eat breakfast, make the ham bone soup in the crockpot for tonight, and get ready to receive Mr. Baby.

    My son informed me that he quite likes cold, snowy, gloppy weather because it means a more relaxed start to the day owing to school delays and closings, and he can telecommute. In the neighboring county schools are closed.

    I can’t believe the latest criticisms of our president. Wish all the chattering classes would come down with colds at the same time. THAT would contribute to world peace!

    Wishing everyone in Mooseland a good day!

  10. DeniseVelez

    is giving me a headache.

    Though someone did point out – can’t find it now – that all those Benghazi screamers about the importance of Ambassadors – don’t think an Ambassador was enough to represent for us.

    Other press have ranted that Holder was not there – I see photographs of him being there – yes he didn’t march – he left to continue high level security meetings.

  11. anotherdemocrat

    Last day of my super-long weekend. I got hummus yesterday, so that’s lunch sorted. Just got to make sure I have 4 servings of quinoa & fruit left from last week. And I have to go to the dmv & get my tax thing for my car. And I never did that 9 mile walk…..

  12. princesspat

    I have three pre operation medical appointments this week, and a phone consult with a surgical nurse. The snafu re a renal screening exam should be cleared up today as well, so I’ll be busy. All this endless waiting will soon be over!

    Some good news re medical research and MS, a disease that is highly prevalent in the PNW.

    Experimental MS treatment halts disease ‘in its tracks’

    A Seattle man is among two dozen MS patients in a promising clinical trial that found high-dose immune-suppressing drugs and stem-cell transplants may stop the progress of the disease in those who’ve failed usual care.

  13. bfitzinAR

    the forecast said “partly cloudy” but the partly part seems to have been ignored.  Late getting here this morning because 1st day of classes and those who still haven’t gotten all they need have finally hit the panic-stricken mode.  Not all of that is lack of foresight – some of it is financial aid holds that just got cleared and transfer credits that just came in.  We try to help all of them, of course, but the latter category get our sympathy and presentation of “special case” to the instructors for overrides into full classes.  Also dealing with last minute things for people who graduated last month but have just been told they didn’t graduate because of a requirement they actually met but somehow didn’t show up in the system.  Sigh.  Anyway, taking this breather to check in.  Hope the rest of yez are having a quieter day.  {{{HUGS}}}

  15. JanF

    It is 3 degrees here with an expected high of 19. Partly cloudy skies in the forecast. A warming trend is on its way and we will see temperatures above freezing on Thursday continuing through the weekend.

    I have a dozen articles open in tabs to read later but one leaped out. In Albuquerque (thank you Firefox spell checker!) law enforcement officers WILL be charged for shooting and killing a suspect who was in the process of surrendering:

    Two Albuquerque police officers were charged with murder in the March killing of a homeless camper, a shooting that generated sometimes violent protests around the city and sparked a federal investigation into a police force that has been found to use excessive force.

    SWAT team member Dominique Perez and former Detective Keith Sandy will each face a single count of open murder in the death of 38-year-old James Boyd, Second District Attorney Kari Brandenburg said Monday. Open murder allows prosecutors to pursue either first-degree or second-degree murder charges.

    Police said Perez and Sandy fatally shot Boyd, who was holding two knives, during an hourslong standoff in the foothills of the Sandia Mountains. Video from an officer’s helmet camera showed Boyd, who authorities say had struggled with mental illness, appearing to surrender when officers opened fire.

    Helmet cam. Check. Recent agreement to revamp policies after U.S. Justice Department investigation. Check. New rules bypassing grand juries for simple finding of probable cause. Check. It does not have to end in a whitewash; nor do police actions against mentally ill people have to end in murder.

    See all y’alls later!

  16. Portlaw

    high will be twenty nine.  I don’t ask. I just accept. Everything seems so insane these days.

    Am about to devour coffee and the news.

    Hope it’s a good day for all.

  17. anotherdemocrat

    Getting up early after so many days off…. ouch. And it’s cold – 30-something. Which is cold for here. The news this morning showed clips from our historic snowfall of 30 years ago. Actual snow, not ice; and as much as 3 inches accumulated.

    Eating breakfast, drinking tea. Earworm is Song for Someone, which is way too mellow for this time of day, but it’s so pretty I don’t want to change it. So I’m eating breakfast, drinking tea, and getting ready to talk to way, way more people than I have for the past week.

  18. Diana in NoVa

    Like Portlaw, I’ve accepted it. I’ve also accepted my weight, as the machine at the Post Office advises.

    Waiting for the Verizon man to come and install a new hub or router or whatever it is. It’s going to mess everything up, just as Yosemite messed up my Mac. Upgrades are never an improvement.

    On top of all the other horrible news, the Metro here in DC screwed up yesterday, injuring hundreds and causing the death of a woman.

    A tiny bit of good news on the home front–I called BookBaby and found that my new book is available now on iBooks and Barnes & Noble’s Nook, so now I can launch the Web site, etc. Just sent off a bunch of updates to the Web guy.

    Hope princesspat’s medical treatment will proceed smoothly and that all will have a good day! And welcome back, Portlaw!

  20. bfitzinAR

    I lub deh sunshine!  Still working in “panic” mode – not me but the students – as it’s 1st week of classes/last week of enrollment and the desperate ones are getting more desperate.  Also finalizing the Fall classes in the system.  The faculty folks don’t seem to get that I can’t make changes, not even “swapping out classes” in the same time slot, once we’ve passed the deadline and I’ve handed off everything to the Dean’s office.  I’m hoping I can convince them since the deadline is Friday.  I hope the sun is shining or it’s warm (relatively speaking) or both wherever you are.  {{{HUGS}}}

  21. anotherdemocrat

    checked the hourly forecast & tomorrow at 6am (my before work walking time) 36 degrees & 40% chance of rain, Thursday it’ll be 33 degrees. I’m not walking before work.

    And yes, I’m a cold wimp. Give me 100 degrees any day. I’ll carry more water & take a cool shower when I get home.

  22. anotherdemocrat

    I wanted to paste this here – Chris Hayes did a really great segment on how crazy some of our responses to terrorism are:

    Christopher Hayes ‏@chrislhayes  12m12 minutes ago

    My monologue from tonight:

    How terrorism breeds bad thinking

    http://www.msnbc.com/all-in/wa… …

  23. JanF

    It is 6 degrees in Madison with an expected high of 25. Morning clouds, afternoon sun. Tomorrow we get above freezing for the first time in what seems like forever.

    So 2015 is already over and 2016 has started! Or at least that is what one would think from the headlines. There is going to be a battle royale in the Republican party over whose “turn” it is and which crazyguy will become the standard bearer for the christianist wing of the party. The fly in the ointment is Rand Paul who does not really slot into any part of the Republican Party, maybe because he is not really a Republican. In Jonathan Chait’s NYMag article  discussing how history will treat President Obama (worth a read, btw), he took time to mention how history often gets things wrong. This characterization of Andrew Jackson (with the snide reference to The Paul Klan) cracked me up:

    “Andrew Jackson, [who is] still introduced to schoolchildren as the hero of the common man, was a white supremacist with a fanatical hatred for any government role in economic development – a kind of 19th-century Ron Paul, but with a genocidal militaristic foreign policy.”

    I am not sure how Rand Paul Etch-a-Sketch’s away his family’s racist past. It will be interesting to see how far he gets.

    See all y’alls later!!

  24. anotherdemocrat

    Cold (to me) – 38, but not raining like they said. My pastor friend Jim said something brilliant again:

    Heaven is a symbol of everything you are searching for, but if you think it is another place, you will pass by it every day of the rest of your life.

    (this isn’t my friend with ALS, but another friend – he is a pastor here in town who is always there for all the right causes – he has made me cry at rallies for years, and is just an all-around great guy – if his church wasn’t way far north, I’d have converted to Presbyterian years ago)

    There is apparently a problem on the space station – the crew have all gone into 1 cabin because of a possible ammonia leak. Sending good thoughts their way.

    Earworm – the happy, bouncy California

  25. Diana in NoVa

    Three snowflakes have fallen, which has driven Fairfax County to shut the schools today–perhaps remembering last Tuesday, when 4 inches fell and they kept the schools open, much to the fury of parents, bus drivers, and students.

    The router guy came. He was very nice and did NOT change the name of our house system nor the password. It took him less than 20 minutes. He said he had no idea what he was expected to do when he arrived–the company never told him. What kind of company is this? Anyway, everything works, for which I am very grateful. I’m not going to rant about the Yosemite “upgrade” on the Mac. You would all die of boredom.

    Haven’t seen the newspaper yet, barely watched the headlines. They found the fuselage of the AirAsia flight in the Java sea. Romney’s going to run again? Someone please tell me that the third time is not lucky!

    Wishing all in Moosylvania a good day! Bfitz, that’s great about the lodger moving out next month.

  26. DeniseVelez

    this morning. It’s 1 degree here in Saugerties…have no idea what the windchill is but it is really cold downstairs here where the puter is – so I’m not staying on long…hope you all are warmer than I am 🙂

  27. bfitzinAR

    Waiting for the onslaught of desperate students needing classes they can’t get in because either the classes are full, the student doesn’t have the prerequisites, or both – they should start showing up in about 10 minutes.  Sigh.  I think I’ve got all the classes for the rest of 2015 entered into the system.  I think.  If nobody else changes his or her mind.  Tomorrow is the deadline to hand this mess off to the Dean’s office to run the room-assignment program.  Once they’ve got it the only changes I can make are to instructor or change the enrollment cap (as long as I keep it lower than the assigned room capacity).  I’ve been patiently explaining – over and over again – that, no I can’t just “swap out a course” should somebody decide they want to teach something else even if it’s the same size and time slot.  Oh well.  If the Registrar’s office doesn’t like dealing with late-change messes, then they shouldn’t require faculty to plan their future teaching load prior to and during the 1st week of the current teaching load.

    Anyway – while the forecast is again “partly cloudy” so far today I’d call it “mostly sunny” – much more to my liking than the “partly cloudy” that was totally cloudy on Monday.  Have the good day.  {{{HUGS}}}  

  28. princesspat

    Yesterday’s Dr. and lab appointment was early and long so I missed our morning check in. I needed a nap to recover and then the day was nearly over.

    Today’s medical task is to fine the missing orders for the renal scan and EKG I am supposed to have completed. Between medical portal pages that won’t open, voice mail messages, and lost faxes I’m losing my patience. It would help to be able to talk to a live person!

  30. Portlaw

    concerned about events in Paris since I have family there. Bur the world is also my family and that includes what is happening in Nigeria which is not making the news. We are all one.  I weep.


    Satellite images show widespread destruction in two Nigerian towns that were recently attacked by Islamic extremists, an international human rights group said Wednesday.

    Amnesty International said the detailed images of Baga and Doron Baga, taken before and after the attack earlier this month, show that more than 3,700 structures were damaged or completely destroyed.

    The images were taken Jan. 2 and Jan. 7, Amnesty International said. Boko Haram fighters seized a military base in Baga on Jan. 3 and, according to witnesses, killed hundreds civilians in the ensuing days.

    Daniel Eyre, Nigeria researcher for the human rights group, said in a statement that the assault on the two towns was the largest and most destructive of all the Boko Haram assaults analyzed by Amnesty International.

    The group said interviews with witnesses as well as local government officials and human rights activists suggest hundreds of civilians were shot; last week, the human rights group noted reports of as many as 2,000 dead. The Nigerian military has cited a figure of 150 dead, including slain militants.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…

  31. louisprandtl

    Suzanne Moore wrote in The Guardian this morning:

    Last week I asked for us to continue in our disrespect and I meant it. Why must I have respect for religions that have little respect for me? That seek to curtail the rights of women? That find me unclean? I am not just talking about Islam here, but pretty much all religion. So there is some equal opportunity offence for you. Faithophobia. Add it to the list of my crimes…

    http://www.theguardian.com/com…

    A lot of arguments back and forth on free speech since the Charlie Hebdo attack..Some are arguing the Feinberg’s Offense Principle whereas others are arguing in favor of the John Stuart Mill’s Harm Principle for Free Speech. This article from Stanford University might be helpful to this Free Speech and its Limitations discussion.

    http://plato.stanford.edu/entr…

  32. JanF

    It is 19 degrees in Madison on its way up to 35. Partly cloudy skies are in the forecast.

    Well, the House did it. They voted to deport 11 million undocumented immigrants, many of whom have been in our country for years, some of whom are married to our military, and many of whom are parents of American citizens. Not only that, they “repealed” DACA which would target for deportation people who signed up for the program since 2011. Normally one would laugh this off as another House Show Vote but this bill, because only 36% of the American people could be bothered to vote a couple of months ago, will be taken up by the Republican Senate for consideration. I do not doubt for one minute that the president will veto it but it is a sad place for our country to be in when the haters win. Oh … and they are also working on repealing birthright citizenship. Arghhhh.

    Busy day here. See all y’alls later!!

  33. DeniseVelez

    in the Catskills, but at least I can sit at the puter without wearing gloves.

    Yesterday I retreated to the warmth of the second floor.

    Old farmhouses may be charming, but they are very drafty, and no attempts at insulation have fixed the problem.

    I will probably have to break down and buy a space heater.    

  34. anotherdemocrat

    Still needed heavy sweater & gloves, but it is supposed to warm up by the weekend. And my training group is meeting out at a state park Saturday so – good thing: I can sleep in since I’m not driving for an hour to get to a workout; bad thing: I have to make myself work out on my own on Saturday.

    Anyway, I’m eating breakfast & drinking tea. Earworm is Invisible, which is weird, since that’s not what I was listening to in the car.

  35. bfitzinAR

    Waiting on a few students who have enrolled in absolutely nothing – when they get here we will try to figure out what I can find to put them in.  sigh.  Otherwise got to do the cost center balances (grants first as payroll will be running Monday and I’ve got to know who to pay how much from which grant so I can enter it before then) and Purchasing Card approvals.  Heigh-ho, another day in the neighborhood and all that.  Haz teh gud wun! {{{HUGS}}}

  36. princesspat

    I finally found a real person who listened, asked a few questions, and then found the missing orders, yay! So the scan will happen Fri. It’s a 3 hour appointment with Nuclear Imaging so I’m curious as to what will happen.

    I enjoyed a birthday dinner with an old friend last night. At age 66 she is counting the days for her first SS check and so appreciative of her medical care…..makes me furious the R’s are threatening her peace of mind.

     

  37. Portlaw

    Isn’t this the pig castrator?  Have we, as a nation, reached this point? Are they doing it because they want to give prominence to  a woman? I give up. And how many days will she have been in Congress?  Again, I give up.

    Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) will deliver the GOP response to President Barack Obama’s 2015 State of the Union address on Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) announced at the House and Senate GOP retreat in Hershey, Pennsylvania.

    “Sen. Ernst brings a unique perspective to the Senate. She is a mother, a soldier and an independent leader who serves in Washington because Americans voted for change in the last election, and Joni understands that middle-class Americans want Congress to get back to work and that they want Washington to get refocused on their concerns, instead of those of the political class,” McConnell said in a statement Thursday.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…

  38. JanF

    It is 28 degrees in Madison with the temperatures dropping to a daytime high of 25 degrees. Mostly cloudy skies. Yesterday the backyard weather station (thanks to the sunny day) registered 40!!

    The news looks interesting today and I have a number of articles open in tabs to read after I rebuild my to-do list and answer overnight emails. New Yorkers still support Mayor de Blasio by huge margins. The RNC is worried about the crazees beeing seen on people’s TVs and is planning 2016 debates — hold on a minute — without cameras and microphones! Excellent idea!! Then people won’t learn that one of your candidates compared the founding fathers to ISIL. Meanwhile Congressional GOP leaders are frantically trying to figure out how to let their crazees vote for wildly unpopular things to please their base while not making it impossible for their presidential candidates in 2016 to win any states besides Utah and Mississippi. Good luck threading that needle.

    See all y’alls later!

  39. DeniseVelez

    but the temp is going down, not up.  By tonight it will be -5 degrees (that’s not the wind chill)

    Al Jazeera has a great scoop – a long interview with former NYPD Detective Frank Serpico

    Serpico: I’d fire the NYPD officers who turned their backs on the mayor

    In his first TV interview in years, the legendary whistleblower speaks out about today’s police controversies

    http://america.aljazeera.com/w…

  40. Diana in NoVa

    up to 40 F. today. Looking out my window I can see a thick layer of frost on hubby’s red pickup truck in the street below. Ugh, I’m not looking forward to going out this morning.

    My book is finally available for sale from iBooks and Barnes & Noble. And the Web site is functioning. Every month I’m going to have a new, very short blog and a new super-short story in The Fiction Cafe. If you have a few minutes at lunchtime, do stop by to read “The February Lover” at

    http://goddessfiction.com

    In other news on the ranch, the washing machine has just broken down. And me with 10 little bibs to wash! Babylicious is getting a new toof so he’s like a leaky gutter.

    Speaking of gutting, what the Rethugs are doing to civil rights and other protections is so infuriating and horrible I can’t let myself think about it too much or I’ll have a stroke. Yesterday, Dr. Martin Luther King’s actual birthday, I thought about him and wondered what he would think of where we are today. I don’t think he’d be very happy.

    A good day to all–must rush downstairs to make the early morning tea!

  41. anotherdemocrat

    Ok, I know I had a 4 day work week, that followed a 3 day work week, and I have another 4 day week next week, but I’m so tired I could fall asleep at my desk right now. The walking coach for my group was talking about setting up a workout for those of us not going out to the park, but I just e-mailed her & said that I think getting up at 5:30 one more day would kill me. I’m sleeping in till at least 7 tomorrow.

    Anyway, eating breakfast, drinking tea. I’m told that bright yellow thing that was in the sky yesterday will make another appearance today, and it will even get up to the 60s.

    Playing California in my head very loud, maybe it’s bounciness will keep me awake.

  42. bfitzinAR

    Have a minute to check in as I’m waiting for multiple students to tell me which classes they want me to override them into!  Have handled a couple of phone calls to that end, which at least means I get an immediate answer when I ask for information.  I can’t decide whether or not I’m looking forward to the 3-day weekend (I hate Monday on Tuesday – it makes a short week feel longer than a regular week – and, well, Lodger is still there) but I’m certainly looking forward to the lovely weather we’ve got in the forecast!  Hope everyone has a loverly Caturday Eb and {{{HUGS}}}

  43. princesspat

    Mt sleepy eyes can barely read the screen this morning, and no coffee until the renal scan is over later this morning. Yesterday’s phone interview with the surgical nurse went well, but two more exams were ordered so I’m not done yet.

    This exam and lab schedule has been a lot to organize. I’m fairly tenacious, but it makes me wonder how someone older and/or really sick could keep it all straight. I’ve given up even trying to coordinate sharing lab results. Everyone wants to order their own so I’m just getting poked.

  44. Portlaw

    President Barack Obama says the likelihood is very high that nuclear negotiations with Iran would collapse if Congress moves forward with new sanctions. He says he’ll veto a sanctions bill if it comes to his desk.

    Obama is urging members of Congress including Democrats not to pursue new sanctions while talks are underway. He says there’s no good argument for undermining the negotiations.

    http://www.huffingtonpost.com/…

    Menendez is one of the Democrats who wants more sanctions. Just wrote him. Am sure John “Bomb, Bomb, Iran” is also one of the foremost Republicans among them. Am not happy that he is now head of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

    “Congress needs to show patience,” Mr. Obama said during a joint news conference in the East Room of the White House with Prime Minister David Cameron of Britain. “There is no good argument for us to try to undercut, undermine the negotiations until they have played themselves out.”

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01…

  45. JanF

    It is 30 degrees in Madison with an expected high of 38 degrees. Cloudy skies are in the forecast but thankfully they have removed the “freezing rain and drizzle”.

    Trying to catch up after being gone all day. It looks like SCOTUS will make a final ruling on same-sex marriage. That is a good thing because having two sets of laws about something as basic as marriage is creating huge problems. As a sensible person, I can’t see how the justices could rule for a continued split. But at least 5 of our justices are not sensible so who knows. The positive is that one of those 5, Justice Kennedy, leans towards gay rights. 2015 will be a HUGE court watching year. Between this and the ACA subsidies ruling, there is a lot of breath-holding.

    Sam Brownback has to raise taxes. HAHAHAHAHAHA!!! But like all Republicans, he raises sales tax, not income tax because the only taxes Republicans like are regressive taxes. Progressive taxes make their heads asplode.

    Republicans are really in trouble for 2016. Apparently the only thing that unites them is their hatred of President Obama. It is going to be difficult to run on that when Barack Obama will not be on the ballot.

    Busy day-after-travel-day day here. See all y’alls later.

  46. DeniseVelez

    much colder with the windchill.

    My internet was down most of the afternoon up until late night.

    Have a local Democratic Party Executive committee meeting this morning at 9:30 AM.

    We’ve been hard at work formulating a statement about what we believe as Democrats.

    We want to talk more about what we are for – rather than just simply being against Republicans.

     

  47. Diana in NoVa

    with fair skies. All sorts of exciting things are happening this morning: the woodman is here, stacking logs; the almond croissants are baking in the oven for breakfast; and the washing machine repair person is coming between 8 and 12, calloo, callay!

    There’s a sad story on the front page of The WaPo this morning, about how most public school children live in poverty. One teacher reported that her first question when her little students arrive at school in the morning is, “Are you clean? Did you eat?” If the answer is “No,” she cleans them up and feeds them. Income inequality has been going on for years, not just since 2008. These poor children begin school with a tremendous disadvantage.

    I’ve sometimes wished I could have an after-school Homework Club for these children so we could read stories and bake cookies in the winter and work in the garden in the summer. I started “reading” to Babylicious when he was two months old. Morning and afternoon we read little board books and he gets so excited when he sees me bring out his favorites!

    Looking forward to a writing weekend! In a minute I’m going to read Jan’s front page story and tomorrow I want to read Denise’s diary on Dr. King. Glad you got your Internet back, Dee! It’s a horrible feeling when you don’t have it.

    A good Saturday to all and I’m sorry for running my fingers like this. 😉

  48. Portlaw

    31,

    Bad news abounds. The news on climate change keeps getting worse and then the Pope comes out against contraception.  I think maybe I will just start reading the board books that Diana read to Babylicious.

    Hope it’s a good day for all.

  49. anotherdemocrat

    supposed to get up to 70 this afternoon

    Slept in, and I feel much better this morning. Now to convince myself to get in some exercise. Later. Right now, it’s breakfast & Up with Steve Kornacki. There’s a segment with a young woman who convinced her city to lower the voting age to 16 for local elections. Very good arguments, great reasoning.

  50. princesspat

    I’m so glad this week is over! Yesterday turned into a very long day…..three attempts for a working IV for the renal scan and all the other lab work this week have left me very bruised, and making sure all the results are sent to the right people has my head spinning. Apparently the Seattle surgeon and the hospital pre op departments don’t automatically share information…..grrrr!!!!  

    So my day ended with another long wait at my Dr’s office, getting the additional tests scheduled. I’m exhausted from being poked, prodded and scanned….and there’s more to come.

    Today will be fun though. My friend in the drapery business is coming to help me measure and write work orders for the last of the drapery sewing I’ve been trying to get done. It will be a welcome change of focus.  

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