At long last:
Recent Posts
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- Day 11: Harm of Fascist Regime’s Foreign Aid Freeze Comes Into View
- Day 10: The Fascist Regime Blames a Plane Crash on Nonwhite People
photobucket doesn’t seem to be agreeing with my iPad…luckily I have my clunky work computer here. or not….
How is everyone? I am finally enjoying a 3 day weekend after 2 months of total insanity at work (my last 14-hour day was Monday, and I really needed a rest). The fall weather is perfect today, much like in ask’s shot of Central Park above. We’re heading over to my mom’s for dinner tonight before she heads to Florida for the month, and tomorrow morning we’ll be spending time at the apple orchard with all the kids.
How about that Mitt Romney “binder” crap? I’m not sure what’s more depressing, the fact that his response to an “equal pay for equal work” question reinforced the establishment’s excuse for paying women less (you girls are always taking time off to take care of your kids and leaving early to make dinner, or taking adavantage of maternity leave to get a free ride while the men all devote themselves to their jobs fully), or the fact that so many people (women included!) didn’t get why his answer was so heinous.
Can’t wait for election season to be over. Here’s hoping we don’t all have to become expatriates when it is.
Hi CG! Its about 50 here and mostly cloudy, although I can see a small patch of blue here and there. Fall has painted the hills nicely, despite the summer drought, so we have swarms of people who have come to see the fabled Brown County State Park in all its autumn glory. The local fire dept. has wisely capitalized on the crowds for over a half century with a fish fry outdoors on the county courthouse lawn and I’ve been helping out over there. At one point earlier today, we had a waiting line about a half city block long.
It didn’t take long for a binder mockery site to spring up on Facebook and when I looked this morning, it was up to nearly 9,000 members. Worth a look if you need a laugh.
I have a couple of nice sites picked out in case things really turn bad here, except both are near the sea and water level would be an important consideration. I’d probably rent, rather than buy a place, just in case.
The colors here today are picture-perfect. I love October more than any other month of the year. The crisp morning air, the pretty colors of the leaves, and the warm sunny afternoons are just the best.
Hey, this sure is a pretty cafe. 🙂
14 hours days — ugh. You have all my sympathy.
Good afternoon!
Fantastic day here in NYC. Not one, but two trips to Central Park during the day.
Al fresco breakfast in the English Garden, here’s curly getting ready for Dia de los Muertos, which was being celebrated at El Museo del Barrio today.
Hard to believe you are right in the middle of a major city:
I love that top photo – very clever!
A bit of fall color – nearly gone.
Great colors!
Did the rain do that, take out the upper leafs and leaving the bottom half?
For some reason unknown to me, that particular maple begins dropping the top leaves first and works its way down instead of dropping them all at once. I suspect the top may be slowly dying out. Too bad ~ its consistently one of the most brilliant colored trees in our neighborhood.
With the rain and the wind, a lot of trees have been dropping leaves around here. We’ve definitely gone past peak color.
Ahhh! Thanks, Cabin. It’s good to have you back. We were getting a little restless.
Late for the party. I spent the day leaf cleaning and errand doing. The color is likely at its peak. I’ve got to get a photo very soon. Good to see you here, CG!
I’ll bet the color along your drive to work has been gorgeous.
Yep, in particular 2 spots. But it only just became that way in the last couple of days. I’ve got to get a shot or two.
Same thing in the city. Friday, it was mostly yellows and little red/orange. Yesterday we saw an explosion of red/orange.
Right outside my door:
I’ve got to get a shot or two.
Yes please.
Good morning!
Still some flowers around.
Bright, blue skies.
Beautiful!
Good morning!
Crappy night – up since 4.
We were up early and out at the orchard with all the boys-what a treat! Finny had an awesome time with his big brothers and parents, trotting around the apple trees, getting some cider and cider donuts (from the old donut robot machine that his older brothers used to check out when they were small). Now he is down for a long nap and I’m enjoying some computer and hopefully knitting time before he wakes up.
It feels so good to get some serious home and family time in. I’m trying to deide what to make for dinner…and I want to go running too. Not enough hours in the weekend, are there?
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The winds have been picking up and it’s raining acorns regularly.
We’ve got a storm of colored leaves here.
Got my latest Obama Victory Fund solicitation yesterday, 2 weeks out. When does the fundraising end?
2016, nope, 2020, wait a, 2024, well, never, now that you ask.
Lots of nice shots in here already, it’s hard to keep up with y’all.
Cypress fall
Great colors!
Is it drought or fall that causes color change in cypress?
Thanks, they turn this beautiful red rust color every year.
There are several cypress trees at the lake at the neighboring camp but I hardly ever notice the trees because I always get so fascinated with the shapes and reflections the knees make.
Andi, Any word from FM? I’m still hoping to send along my old ibook.
I was hoping he’d call me once he was settled in but I haven’t heard anything.
I’ll give him till next Monday and if I haven’t heard anything, I’ll call him.
Bald Cypress,
Cypress balled
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Bridging the humps at Turkey Run SP.
Now there’s a couple of lovely scenes! Thanks ~ both of you!
Do you hate all of those phone calls from candidates? If so, vote early. We did, and the calls have stopped.
If voting early would let people block political ads from their TVs, we would have 99% voter participation.
Vote early & often.
There’s nifty new software out that lets us know after someone votes and the new call lists drop that name. Makes GOTV much more efficient and, as you can see, diminishes the annoyance factor for the voting public as well. I’ve only gotten one GOTV call in the the whole cycle and that was from one of my team members who did it for a joke;-)
I approve of this message.
I would love it if who has voted could be coordinated with television ads. Once a person has voted, political ads would be blocked. Combined with early voting, I bet it would generate 99% voter participation. 🙂
We dumped our satellite service 5 years ago when we got access to DSL and have never regretted it. If we feel like a little TV nostalgia, we can always go over to The Ordinary where one of our kids tends bar and watch MSNBC. Its a Fox Free zone over there.
Well when the county’s plan for getting us high-speed internet with no tiny usage limits comes to fruition maybe we’ll be able to drop having a TV satellite too. (Me? Jealous?)
So the soup can and string thing isn’t working so well?
Hey, AndiF, don’t give up hope. We’re hoping to be hooked up to fiber optic some time in Jan. The cable is already dug in from the main line right up to the house at the farm.
Cool stuff. That should be universal.
It probably will be by the next cycle.
Sigh. I’ve spent the last 2 hours looking for the almost 14 year old b2 boy. He had apparently come home, and then disappeared. I had the state cops here, his mother frantic and friends out in the streets looking. It turns out that one of his friends had a birthday party at Chili’s. The friend’s mom (idiot) had indicated to us about a week ago that she (idiot) wanted to make such a party but never called back to confirm that it would actually occur. Instead, she (idiot) calls the b2 boy here at home today after school and came and picked him up. All unknown to us. They drive up to as scene of many folks milling about and several police cars with lights flashing. Did I say that the mom is an idiot? Well, if not, let me say it now. She’s an idiot.
Glad he has turned up ok. You’re absolutely correct about the mom in question. We have a small marker board with magnets that keeps it on the fridge. In cases like the b2 boy’s unexpected departure, we write a short message and leave it on the kitchen table. Works well when the cell phone battery didn’t get a timely recharge.
Thanks! Good idea!
OK. An adult behaving that irresponsibly!
Glad it was a happy ending to this unnecessary scare.
Thanks ask!
I cannot imagine how terrifying that was. I’m so glad it turned out okay. And yes, that woman is an idiot.
Thanks Andi. It’s a good thing she left after a while because I felt like going over and slapping her.
Glad everything turned out OK.
My nephew went missing once in an outlet mall. All it took was a second and he disappeared. They found him hiding in a rack of belts at the Levi store. Needless to say we weren’t amused.
I’m glad that he was okay. The b2 boy used to hide in those round clothing racks. I’d be walking around the store calling his name and he would suddenly pop out.
We were calling but he wasn’t coming out. Had the whole place in lock down.
Good morning,
Heading for the Berkshires this morning. Back to the city on Sunday, before the storm.
Enjoy!
Fresh from Florida.
Coming soon to a florist near you.
Shot these a a poinsettia festival at UF. Lots of new cultivars.
Lovely shot, Bob! Reminds me of how close we are to the holidays.
I saw Christmas stuff in Rite Aid yesterday. Sigh.
Yeah, I’m not ready for the annual onslaught either. The town workers were putting wreaths up earlier this week when the temp was 80 and it was all I could do to resist the temptation to yell something snarky at them.
Machine installing fiber optic cable
Hard for me to believe it’s happening, but supposedly in Jan they’ll be making the final connections to the internet via fiber optic cable.
(That ain’t me either digging or driving the machine)
And now I’ll be jealous of your treeless wonderland of high speed internet. If we ever get fiber optic cable, it will be because something much better, faster, and cheaper is in place everywhere but here.
* making an unsuccessful attempt to be happy for you *
Digging a trench or hanging line off a pole in ND in Jan.
Someone led a very bad past life.
Wow! 😀
Autumn’s Fire
10/21/2012
Dying Embers
10/26/2012
Wow! Great shots, and what a contrast.
It’s interesting that the low trees have a fair number of leaves on their branches. Nicely done!
The wind strips the leaves off of the taller trees first. The young beech trees (the copper-colored ones in the background) will hold there leaves for weeks and even months. They’ll become lighter in color over time, becoming translucent ghost-leaves, and will fall off just before the new leaves emerge next spring.
It’s so pretty. Hate to see it coming to an end. The high winds with the storm will take the rest of the down here, I imagine.
That’s amazing. We are probably going to lose the rest of our leaves in the winds tonight and tomorrow.
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Yes, but I do see a beautiful scene.j
Oops — that was supposed to be “wish you could see what’s ahead”.
I certainly wish I could see Sandy making a surprise turn out to see before it does any more damage.
We’ll sea. 😉
That’s a lovely scene. Think I’m content to view only it for a while. 🙂
Ready for the storm?
Gettin’ Chilly?
Back from the Berkshires last night, in time to prepare for the storm.
Hope you (and all of New York) get through it okay.
The greatest danger for the city seems to be the 10-12′ over normal high tide. Many high-risk areas are already flooded. We’re good on Carnegie Hill in Manhattan, though heavy rains may seep into the basement. Obviously, there is also the possibility of a major power outage.
My niece got a robo-call from ConEd saying that they were going to shut down power in lower Manhattan to protect the power equipment. Sounds like a dismal evening is ahead for many.
My first thought was a Sandy baby boom, but maybe not after all. Hope all our lower Manhattan friends like board games by candlelight.
Well my niece and her fairly new husband are in a dark and powerless apartment and have been thinking about having kids so maybe they’ll help make the myth a reality. 🙂
ooh, that would be nice!
The one and only kos actually responded to one of my comments.
Haha, I had read the diary, but not the comments.
“We’re not worthy ~ we’re not worthy!”
Hopefully this greeting finds everyone safe and dry.
I almost feel guilty here. Perfect weather. Monday was 74 degrees, clear skies, light breeze – a perfect Fall day.
Good morning!
Hope all you others in the NE got through the storm in good shape! All is well here, we still have water and power. Lower Manhattan and sections of Brooklyn is faring worse. The storm surge was brutal, with major flooding. Tunnels filled with water. Most of Manhattan below 39th St without power. No subway or bus service. All tunnels and bridges to Manhattan closed, except the Lincoln Tunnel. It will take a while to sort this out.
Daily Kos is down (the servers are in Manhattan).
Glad you guys are okay, but I’m sorry about the mess you and so many others are going to have sort out in NYC post-storm. Bizarre to think about DailyKos being down-I don’t recall that ever happening.
We still have water and power here too, despite high winds late last night – a minor miracle. My work servers are down, which is a blessing because it means I get a day off instead of being expected to work from home. 🙂
I think apple cake and potato-leek soup are in on order for today.
BooMan, I didn’t realize you were such a good cook!
I think apple cake and potato-leek soup are in on order for today.
Funny, we had potato-cauliflower soup and strawberry-rhubarb pie last night.
Good to see that you too rode off the storm OK.
Glad you kept both.
My niece is one of the ones without power at both her apartment and Sweet Revenge. It sounds like it may be some days before the power is back.
After watching the clip of the ConEd transformer explosion last night, I can guess there will be a lot of overtime getting the lights back on.
She’s not out of power because of that — she’s part of the intentional shutdown; so I hope that means she won’t have to wait as long.
Hope it won’t be long. Beleaguered New Yorkers will, no doubt, need their cupcakes to assist in the recovery.
I think I have cabin fever. Ready for the rain to stop so I can go for a walk with Finny and survey the damage in the neighborhood.
How are the winds? To me, that’s worse than rain.
They are strong enough here to blow our outdoor chairs across the deck so I’m guessing they are even worse for you.
A little levity in the wake of the storm.
Found this weekend. Hermaphrodite?
Oh my.
The GOP Family Values Police will condemn the entire gourd crop if they see that!
Ever see a Seguaro Cactus? In Phoenix, they are everywhere. They develop into all sorts of phallic symbols.
Ah yes ~ I find it hard to believe the repressed ones haven’t tried to eradicate them too!
Only if the gourd crop says it’s voting for Obama.
No power here. Waves to all, iPhone about to die.
Hope you’re back online soon. I just had a roofing contractor call – one of those “We’ll be in your neighborhood tomorrow to give free estimates on storm damage” lead-ins. I just tell them to forget it, my brother’s a building contractor.
Hope to see you back soon.
Simple Twist of Fate
Shot yesterday as Sandy was approaching landfall.
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Happy Halloween or Samhain, as suits your pleasure.
Caught any kids in the web?
Village Halloween Parade is postponed until next week due to the emergency situation here in NYC.
I was hoping to trap the grandkids for a little while, but they might not make it over to our place, since they’re about a half hour away and are probably toting a newborn around with them. Too bad the parade had to be postponed, but the kids will enjoy no matter when it is (or is it a kid friendly activity? ~ I’m not familiar).
or is it a kid friendly activity?
The jury may be out on that. It is in the West Village – a lot of flamboyance.
But I used to live only half a block off the route just after the starting point and would take the very young asklets out to watch. But then, I am a permissive progressive.
Well, I wondered, given the neighborhood. Its been many years since I was in Manhattan, but the Village is pretty unforgettable.
Power restored. No cable but I can live without TV.
Good to hear.
The TV machine is no necessity. Wifi, however, is a different story. Not part of your cable package, I assume.
That’s great, b2! Five years TV free for us. Wait a minute, I suddenly feel as if I’m sitting in a recovery group;-)
We have a traditional land line over which we get our DSL internet. It’s been in and out, out right now. iphone serves during the gaps.
Concerned about Errol…
I just realized we haven’t heard from Errol since the storm. I checked and his last activity was rating some comments Tuesday morning at 8:22 AM ET. His last comment posted was Monday at 10:32 PM.
He’s in New Jersey, right? I hope he’s okay.
I was just thinking about that rude (now hidden) comment by troll NealB on Monday night at 10:18PM (that 9 of us zero-rated) where NealB “Hexed” Errol for calling him a troll. I’m not superstitious at all but I worried that Errol might be.
Anyway, it’s on my mind. If anyone hears from him or knows how to reach him, please announce that he’s safe.
You are right Randy. She (we’ve met IRL) lives in one of the areas much affected by the storm and is very likely without power. May also have been flooded.
I have her email address somewhere, but don’t know if it is current. Will send a message.
I heard from Errol and she is okay. She has no power at her place but it didn’t flood. She’s staying at a place with power.
Sorry I didn’t think to post this info sooner.
Thanks. It just felt like one of the virtual tribe had gone missing. Very glad to hear she is safe.
I had no idea Errol was female. Not that it makes much difference, really. But do I ever feel foolish for assuming.
Don’t feel foolish for the assumption. Her handle relates to her place of origin.
Thanks.
Good to hear.
Glad you’re ok, errol, wherever you may be;-)
thanks for asking – I’m physically ok, depressed about the storm. And so much for my secred dream to work on GOTV in Indiana this year!!!
Why not come out until the power is back on at home? I’m certain you would have your choice of town and/or woodsy accommodations and the free deep fried biscuits perk offered to all BT visitors;-)
So wish I could, but everything scheduled for last Monday, Tues, Wed got moved to this week and must get done by the end of the week. deep fried biscuits in 2014 though;
Hello all, thank you for asking RandyH. I’ve been too depressed to post since Sunday. I’m camping out in Manhattan, but today went to a family event out of town and was offline all day. (finally had a shower, which was nice.) went back to NJ on Wed to get my car and saw that my place appears to have no damage, but there is so much ruin, and the prospect of a week to 10 days without power. It is very surreal around my place and a few blocks away people still trapped in their houses/ condos. People are being told not to return and yesterday they were shutting the city at 6pm (no in or out traffic).
RandyH thank you for and others for hiderating the trolls horrible comment to me. I appreciate that; I was so depressed I didn’t respond at the time – I saw and appreciated yours and others’ response thanks all!
Good to hear you’re okay and your home is still in good shape. Must be difficult without electricity but, all things considered, it could be alot worse. So you’re not hexed after all…
I’m still camping out though, we’ve been told not to return yet.
Glad that you’re okay though. I hope that you can get back to a regular life soon.
Yay for power!
Here’s what popped up on my walk today.
Embryonic Journey — Leo Kottke
Queixa — Caetano Veloso
The Wreck Of The Barbie Ferrari — John Hiatt
Sophisticated Lady — Karrin Allyson
Steal Your Heart Away — Bonnie Raitt
Miles From Our Home — Cowboy Junkies
Us Amazonians — Kirsty MacColl
I Got The News — Steely Dan
This Heart — Nanci Griffith
Say It (Over & Over Again) — John Coltrane
Glad to see that the Obama campaign has finally caught on to the power of the 4s.
May the 4s be with you.
Ya vell den, I t’ink vinter iss here!
We got 5″ on the level from Fri afternoon through to Sat morning.
There’s some chance this might melt too as there’s 41F highs within the 5 day forecast.
That’s purty (especially since it’s where you are and not than where I am).
Heh – javel, så er det vinter igjen. Sesong for lutefisk.
All the lutefisk makers I knew have passed on, however it is the season at some of the Lut’ran church fundraisers. I do eat it if it’s still hot when it comes around to me.
Just last night at the local Lut’ran church had potato dumplings(kumla)and ham, (passed on the salt pork.)Oh, forgot the melted butter, as in smothered in…
Truth be told, i’m not big on the lutefisk myself. But kumle (klubb – potato dumplings), with all the accoutrements can be a feast.
This December I get to celebrate xmas in Norway for the first time in 14 years. Looking forward to it.
Tonight I await the return of that elusive hour of sleep stolen from me last spring by the despicable Mitch, may he rot at Purdue forever. The winds of winter blow much colder there than within the fair hardwood forests of our southern climes.
It’s also in a very tight race with OSU for the ugliest campus in the Big 10 — though Mitch may tip the scales for Purdue since he makes it even uglier just be being there.
Although the power has been on for a couple of days, the phone and dsl internet have been on and off. Gas is still almost nonexistant. I saw one station that had it, with the expected long line of cars. Sigh.
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And now, that image is just a distant memory…
Yep. Here’s what it looked like yesterday:
That is either a photo of a polar bear eating vanilla ice cream in a snowstorm, or it’s being blocked by my still evil overlords. Hmm.
While it would kind of cool to have polar bears to photograph, I’m afraid I must tell you that you are still working for evil overlords.
Lovely, and yes – especially with Sniff and Bebo as guides.
Considering the amazing number of US political ads I’m seeing on my tv, I cannot imagine how inundated you all are. Ugh.
Haven’t seen any because we DVR whatever tv show we are going to watch that would have political ads and fast-forward through all the commercials.
I haven’t heard or watched a political ad in months.
My TV has been restricted to PBS, the DIY channels, the FOOD channels, the Weather Channel, and Mythbusters. Since the NHL isn’t playing, it really hasn’t changed my viewing habits too much. When we want to watch a show like Bones or Warehouse 13, we let it get a 20 min. head start and then FF through all the ads.
Are you missing the NHL?
I’m so turned off by it all, I could not care less. Indifferent, is how I’d describe myself.
The one thing that I do feel bad about, is that Alfredsson was going to come back one more year before retiring … he’s been a great captain and is quite an active member of community.
I miss the skating and stick handling. Since I don’t have a team I follow, I rarely watch a complete game.
My viewing habits are rather similar to the F’s.
I haven’t been in the city much the past several weeks, and out here in the boonies don’t even have a TV operable. Should I ever do so I’d definitely need one of them thar “parsing” devices to eliminate all the chaff.
Raining here tonight. Hope the temps are high enough tomorrow so the roads are not icy, although I would not expect that to dissuade any of the rural folk from voting.
NDD, I thought of you today when we had some snow, ha! 😉
Nothing sticky, but it came down in solid form.
I hope it goes well tomorrow!
I hope that the voting is going smoothly.
TV free for over 5 years at our house ~ Netflix instead.
Going out to my precinct tomorrow before 6 am and will be there all day. Hope everyone has a great day and all our wishes come true!
Well dang, if I have to watch them you all have to too! 😉
Seriously — the local news (not the national) channel tonight led with these three stories:
I was rolling my eyes so much, one fell out onto the floor. Ha.
I’m so glad we did early voting so we don’t have to mess with going to the polls. But hope the day goes very, very well.
Just voted with no problems other than trying to park by the polling place, our library. The parking lot is all torn up and under construction. Finding a spot was not easy.
Woo hoo! Glad it went well b2!
Thanks Olivia! Folks were actually parking in the nearby woods.
Sounds like a good turnout!
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* yet another hump day — not!
What are those little berry things? They look tasty. Probably not though, right?
I have no idea about either — we were hiking about 70 miles south of where we live (and along the Ohio River) and this was a shrub-sized plant that isn’t in our woods. I agree they look very enticing (and I’m betting the birds agree).
It’s a great day! We even dumped our big pharm congresscritter here in the Hudson Valley.
http://apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap121107.html
The next Flog is tomorrow and the theme is Black and white, but not limited to colour as suggested by BobX.
Half a foot of snow last night and high winds once again. It only took me 3 1/2 hours to travel my usual 1 hour commute.
Ack! Since you’re posting, I assume you arrived ok, so glad for that! Has fuel availability improved where you are? Prices have fallen around .30/gal. here over the last couple of weeks.
Sorry about the local election results. That had to be a real bummer amid all the happiness about Obama.
Thanks Andi ~ I’m actually more disturbed with the guv and lege. Thought the trade unions would make a few inroads there, as fired up as they seemed to be, although we did get a big surprise with Glenda Ritz’ victory. That was a thumb in their eye! Pence is already scheming at ways he can manipulate around her. Stay extra vigilant, teachers!
Fuel is a little more readily available, but I always seem to get there when only the premium is left.
Hope your drive home was much better … that’s awful b2!
Thanks, Olivia! It was much better today.
Here’s the link to the Flog diary [LINK]
Good morning! Some snow still lingering,
In Central Park yesterday
Treat or snowball?
Will be about 60 tomorrow, blizzard 2 days ago. Climate change is surely a liberal conspiracy.
Beautiful and 60ish here today in the Hudson Valley. May it be so everywhere.
Same here ~ tomorrow, 45 and soggy. Guess I should clean the rain gutters today.
Too bad you can’t channel the wind down the gutters. It would clean them out in no time.
I did use the wind in a way with a little help from a leaf blower. The only difficulty is, it guarantees getting slimed in the face at least once with a clump of smelly, decomposing leaves.
Woke up to rain at 3:00 a.m. and it just changed to snow a few minutes ago.
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Nope, work is right here.
I miss the foliage.
I don’t have that problem these days. Looking for work, though.
Civil servitude does have its benefits. 🙂
Ha ha! What are you doing out of bed so early, b2?
Its WFH here, so no problem. Also, there’s a lovely red maple across the street that’s miraculously holding on to its autumn display a little longer than most of the others.