When I was invited to an all! day! meeting! yesterday — and by “invited,” I mean, “told to show up on time, appropriately dressed” — I wasn’t exactly thrilled. There’s been a lot of sitting in my schedule lately, and besides being terrible for the bum and lower back, it’s just boring.
However.
Today’s meeting had a view:
So that helped a lot. And there was lunch, too. And the meeting wasn’t boring.
You know I bear no ill will toward Columbus, my hometown, but it does suffer from an acute lack of natural…anything. Like so many state capitals in the Midwest, it’s centrally located in a farm state, near no natural feature more interesting than its two muddy rivers. So I appreciate the blue straits, and Lake St. Clair, and the freighters that pass by during shipping season.
Much news happened while we were confined to the second floor of Bayview Yacht Club. Donald Trump is running for president, and from the photographic evidence, he’s stopped tinting his hair with Tang breakfast drink (as Dave Barry once observed about Strom Thurmond).
Let the jocularity begin, because what else can we have over this? Roy has an early gloss of the reaction from the right.
While we’re in New York, a great slide show from a New York tabloid photographer, c. 1980 and thereabouts.
Remember the Michigan tea party legislator I wrote about a while back? He’s the subject of a hot rumor these days. And, strictly by coincidence, I had another legislator profile in Bridge this week. Of course, it’s getting a fraction of the commenting attention being paid to a story about a toilet.
Science you can use: Why you probably hate the sound of your own voice:
Your body is better at carrying low, rich tones than the air is. So when those two sources of sound get combined into one perception of your own voice, it sounds lower and richer. That’s why hearing the way your voice sounds without all the body vibes can be off-putting — it’s unfamiliar — or even unpleasant, because of the relative tinniness.
Of all the Rachel Dolezal takes, I like Kareem’s quite a lot:
See, I too have been living a lie. For the past 50 years I’ve been keeping up this public charade, pretending to be something I’m not. Finally, in the wake of so many recent personal revelations by prominent people, I’ve decided to come out with the truth.
I am not tall (#shortstuff).
Although I’ve been claiming to be 7’2” for many decades, the truth is that I’m 5’8”. And that’s when I first get out of bed in the morning.
Wednesday! Time to get crackin’ on the story I would have started yesterday if I hadn’t been staring at the river.
Dexter said on June 17, 2015 at 1:47 am
If those nine photographs just whetted your appetite for more New York City scenery, click here for a true smorgasbord: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dirty-Old-1970s-New-York-City/108171812558551?fref=ts
205 chars
Sherri said on June 17, 2015 at 2:54 am
Kareem always has interesting things to say (and I loved his sky hook.)
The Patriots are no longer the biggest cheaters in sports: https://sports.yahoo.com/news/the-real-threat-for-cardinals-is-how-high-investigation-could-reach-191525747.html
246 chars
ROGirl said on June 17, 2015 at 5:36 am
Whatever else he’s doing to his hair these days, Donald Trump must have the world’s longest combover.
101 chars
Linda said on June 17, 2015 at 6:05 am
I have an evolutionary theory about Trump’s hair. It is a way to show how rich and powerful he is, a display of sorts. It’s like, I’m so rich I don’t have to bother having good or even human-type hair to attract hot females. That’s how rich I am.
246 chars
Dorothy said on June 17, 2015 at 6:13 am
Trump’s running for president and no David Letterman around to make jokes about him. Little did I know how bleak the future would be when Dave retired.
152 chars
alex said on June 17, 2015 at 7:07 am
Best thing making the rounds on the internet right now is a Photoshopped picture of Donald Trump in Dolezal hair. Wish I could find a way to link to it.
152 chars
Jolene said on June 17, 2015 at 7:22 am
Dave is probably feeling like he’s missing the opportunity of a lifetime, Dorothy. Last night on Comedy Central, both Jon Stewart and Larry Wilmore gave thanks to the comedy gods for Trump’s decision to run.
207 chars
beb said on June 17, 2015 at 8:48 am
When Dolezal said that there was no proof that her parents were her parents, that was the last straw for me. The woman is delusional and needs counseling.
A doorless toilet… I didn’t think there could be anything worse than a porta potty. One of the great tragedies about Belle Isle was that you couldn’t find a working toilet there. I think the state’s take-over has fixed that. It’s a shame that between vandals and scrapers Detroit can’t have nice things. Heck, they can’t even have shabby things.
Donald Trump. I can’t wait to see the oppo research on him. And it will all come from the Republican party, too.
Another sexual scandal for Republicans. I liked the rumor about who was bribing the governor to sign that odious anti-gay adoption bill. Sure politics is all about horse-trading but some people are just to vile to deal with.
849 chars
nancy said on June 17, 2015 at 9:26 am
Well, beb, if SCOTUS rules in favor of SSM on an equal-protection basis, the adoption law goes into the crosshairs, and a single lawsuit could obliterate it. They probably see that bargain as a momentary inconvenience for long-term gain.
237 chars
Julie Robinson said on June 17, 2015 at 10:18 am
Ack! Nancy!! You used four of your five exclamation points for the year!!!
Letterman may not be around anymore but his replacement couldn’t wait for September: https://youtu.be/OFVC3qYGYiE.
That bathroom is like the ones in my dreams that tell me it’s time to wake up and go. They are always without doors, on rooftops, clogged, etc. Anybody else have this dream?
Beb, that was my Dolezal moment too. She said her birth certificate hadn’t even been issued until she was a month and a half old. That’s about the same amount of time it took for both my kids’ certificates to be issued but so far neither of them has denied their parentage.
647 chars
Connie said on June 17, 2015 at 10:42 am
Donald Trump: ‘We’d Win Easily’ With Oprah As My Running Mate
I am speechless.
170 chars
Deborah said on June 17, 2015 at 10:57 am
Julie, I have that same dream where I have to use a toilet in full public view and it’s overflowing, but the circumstances are all a bit different. I always wake up in a cold sweat.
181 chars
Connie said on June 17, 2015 at 10:59 am
BTW I am quite proud of finally doing those tags on my link.
60 chars
nancy said on June 17, 2015 at 11:01 am
He said he was on her show last week? I thought she didn’t have a show anymore. Is he that far off his rocker?
110 chars
Jeff Borden said on June 17, 2015 at 11:05 am
I’m generally loathe to say anything nice about the National Review, the old Bill Buckley rag that once argued against desegregation with the same fervor it now directs at anything liberal, but this commentary on Donal Trump by one of their writers is just about perfect. The key paragraph follows…
Donald Trump, being Donald Trump, announced his candidacy at Trump Plaza, making a weird grand entrance via escalator — going down, of course, the symbolism of which is lost on that witless ape. But who could witness that scene — the self-made man who started with nothing but a modest portfolio of 27,000 New York City properties acquired by his millionaire slumlord father, barely out of his latest bankruptcy and possibly headed for another one as the casino/jiggle-joint bearing his name sinks into the filthy mire of the one U.S. city that makes Las Vegas look respectable, a reality-television grotesque with his plastic-surgery-disaster wife, grunting like a baboon about our country’s “brand” and his own vast wealth — and not see the peerless sign of our times?
Read more at: http://www.nationalreview.com/article/419853/witless-ape-rides-escalator-kevin-d-williamson
1195 chars
susan said on June 17, 2015 at 11:29 am
Jeff B @15 – That paragraph was two sentences: one short, one longer than a garden hose. Ugh. I don’t think I could read any more. The writer must have studied John Stewart Mill’s writing style, which I also couldn’t read.
222 chars
Jeff Borden said on June 17, 2015 at 11:39 am
True, but the witless ape line made me laugh out loud. So did the reference to the enormous wealth Trump had access to as an entrepreneur thanks to Big Daddy Slumlord. If you click on the link to NR, you’ll see a photograph of Trump’s absolutely, jaw-droopingly, horrible Manhattan penthouse. Omigod. It will reduce you to giggles.
331 chars
Deborah said on June 17, 2015 at 11:40 am
“his plastic-surgery-disaster wife”, Ha ha, I do not understand women who marry complete morons for the money. And those guys always have a bunch of ex-wives. That goes for Rush Limbaugh and that ridiculous man, Sheldon Adleson (although to be fair he has had only two wives).
276 chars
Jeff Borden said on June 17, 2015 at 11:40 am
Behold the garishness that is the Trump penthouse. . .
http://www.idesignarch.com/wp-content/uploads/Donald-Melania-Trump-Manhattan-Penthouse_1.jpg
150 chars
Jolene said on June 17, 2015 at 11:49 am
Nancy, I think Oprah does interviews on her OWN network. Haven’t watched, but. I’m pretty sure they’re there.
109 chars
Judybusy said on June 17, 2015 at 12:08 pm
Jeff, I really did one of those “Oh my god!” gasps and put my hand over my mouth upon seeing that pic of the penthouse. Also thoroughly enjoyed the NR paragraph.
That Mr. Singh sounds like my kind of guy. Wow, being able to travel as he did would have been so wonderful. I feel far too tied to work and homelife to do something like that now. For me, the best parts of travel are just talking to people. I drove my partner a bit crazy on the day of departure because I got to gabbing plants with the gardener at our hotel…while our van was waiting to bring us to the airport. Don’t tell her, but it was totally worth it.
625 chars
Jeff Borden said on June 17, 2015 at 12:29 pm
Deborah, My wife married a complete moron and she didn’t even get rich.
71 chars
Jason T. said on June 17, 2015 at 12:50 pm
A guy named Dick designed the restroom. Actually, Dick’s staff did.
The jokes, they write themselves!
#toilethumor
120 chars
Deborah said on June 17, 2015 at 1:05 pm
Ha ha, Jeff B.
14 chars
MarkH said on June 17, 2015 at 1:08 pm
beb, Julie Robinson – thanks for the voices of reason regarding Ms. Dolezal. With all due respect to you, Nancy, I’m not buying Kareem’s nonsensical PC. Otherwise, I, too have a lot of respect for him. And, I won’t diminish the work Ms. Dolezal has done for blacks in general, and the NAACP in particular. But a fraud is a fraud.
For further perspective, here are a couple of good opinion pieces from the Washington Post, the second from a female black law professor. Your views may vary, of course.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/rachel-dolezals-historical-fraud/2015/06/16/34631ae0-142c-11e5-89f3-61410da94eb1_story.html?wpisrc=nl_opinions&wpmm=1
http://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2015/06/12/what-rachel-dolezal-doesnt-understand-being-black-is-about-more-than-just-how-you-look/
Jason T. – great to hear from you here again. I am a regular visitor to Tube City Online, so knew you were still out there.
945 chars
Sue said on June 17, 2015 at 1:17 pm
Completely off topic, and I wish I hadn’t used up all my exclamation points.
So excited about this.
See, exclamation points are important.
http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2015/06/laurel_and_hardy_s_battle_of_the_century_pie_fight_reel_is_found.html
265 chars
susan said on June 17, 2015 at 1:30 pm
And behold, the the Donald Trump caterpillar. Oh wait… !!!! (I have one more to go…and endless ellipses…) It’s poisonous/venomous, of course.
249 chars
Heather said on June 17, 2015 at 1:43 pm
Ugh, that doorless toilet! No way. My recurring toilet dream involves having to go to the bathroom and not being able to find a private place. So this is literally my nightmare come to life.
I’m sure that dream says something significant about my subconscious but I don’t know if I want to know what it means.
312 chars
Sue said on June 17, 2015 at 1:50 pm
I would like to see Trump as president. I would like to see what happens when the man who handled the ‘Fuckface von Clownstick’ thing so well becomes Leader of the Free World and is kept waiting at some point by Vladimir Putin.
It would be hilarious, right up to the start of WWIII.
284 chars
Sherri said on June 17, 2015 at 3:15 pm
Grantland’s take on the Cardinal’s cheating scandal: http://grantland.com/the-triangle/2015-mlb-st-louis-cardinals-houston-astros-fbi-hacking-investigation/.
This is going to be a much bigger deal than any other cheating scandal, because the FBI is involved, federal crimes have probably been committed, and unlike the NFL investigating the Patriots, the Feds have subpoena power (and lying to the FBI is itself a crime.) The levels of stupidity here are so very high.
471 chars
Dexter said on June 17, 2015 at 3:27 pm
We all certainly have noteworthy toilet horror-show memories; mine is from the year 1992, Baltimore, Maryland’s Memorial Stadium, a hot summer’s day into nightfall. After the Orioles-White Sox game I tried to step into the men’s room, wondering about the rising water level in the concourse. I peeked inside to see horrid sewage and water erupting from every commode and urinal. It was the worst I had seen since the old barracks at Fort Ord, when solid fecal waste pumped oit onto our latrine deck and it was eight inches thick. I grabbed a duffel of my stuff and abandoned the barracks for a week and moved into an unused ward at the old wooden hospital there. Worst filthy conditions I ever witnessed,far surpassing anything in Mexico or Vietnam.
755 chars
Scout said on June 17, 2015 at 3:43 pm
I heard The Donald’s campaign slogan is going to be We Shall Overcomb.
70 chars
Brandon said on June 17, 2015 at 3:47 pm
There’ll be Hell Toupee.
24 chars
alex said on June 17, 2015 at 3:50 pm
MarkH, no disputing a fraud is a fraud or that her hijinks weren’t harmless, but I’m beginning to understand how and why Rachel Dolezal might have felt so icky about herself that she would go to the lengths that she did to change her identity. Check out this. She’s probably not the only person born into that culture who would wish to abandon it and join another.
519 chars
coozledad said on June 17, 2015 at 4:02 pm
Some frauds get rode out of town. Others ride that fraud straight to the White House.
http://www.utwatch.org/utimco/nativeson.html
131 chars
brian stouder said on June 17, 2015 at 4:41 pm
Leaving ‘the Donald’ entirely aside, there’s this –
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2015/06/17/mindy-kaling-shares-the-hollywood-secret-no-one-will-tell-you-about-filming-sex-scenes
Which was interesting.
the lead:
You know the drill: Whenever a Hollywood star talks about filming sex scenes for a movie or TV show, it’s generally accompanied by an eye roll and claims that it’s so weird and so awkward and there’s usually a giant dude with a camera hovering over you, gross. Mindy Kaling, however, would like to tell you the truth: Filming sex scenes is actually awesome.
613 chars
ROGirl said on June 17, 2015 at 5:05 pm
Scout, love it.
Christian fundamentalists: I will never get it. Sorry if that offends anyone, but I don’t know how else to respond.
134 chars
MarkH said on June 17, 2015 at 6:15 pm
alex — I hear ya, though I have seen nothing from her on the family fundie aspect dictating anything she is now famous for. A lot of moving parts here and, of course, there’s now a sex tape, according to The UK press:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3127173/Rachel-Dolezal-SEX-TAPE-ex-husband-forced-perform-sex-acts-camera-against-claimed-court-papers.html
Scout almost had the thread win, but got Trumped by Brandon. (groan)
441 chars
alex said on June 17, 2015 at 6:35 pm
I’d say Scout’s thread win is as snug as a bug in a rug.
56 chars
Deborah said on June 17, 2015 at 10:39 pm
Oh, I’m getting to be such an old crotchety lady. Tonight LB and I went to a concert at St. John’s College which is called “Music on the Hill”, they have them every Weds evening in the summer and we’ve talked about going many times but never did. We finally went tonight and it turned out to be a complete dud. Another supposedly fun thing I’ll never do again, as David Foster Wallace would say. We brought a tasty picnic and wine which was the best part. Don’t get me wrong the venue is great for young families who let their kids run around rolling in the soft grass. Nobody paid a hoot of attention to the music which was New Orleans jazz. I have never seen so much crunchy granola in one place, naked babies, long skirts, wild hair. On the one hand it was very satisfying to see so many young parents into their kids, but on the other hand, not my thing. Fun to watch the babies but after an hour it was time to go home. The most disappointing thing was the view, in my mind I was prepared for a spectacular view of the mountains but it might as well as been anywhere USA. Oh well, live and learn.
1101 chars
Deborah said on June 17, 2015 at 11:05 pm
have been not as been.
22 chars