Friday was payday, so I made the pilgrimage to Costco. We needed a re-up on paper towels, Cholula, olive oil, the usual. I selected my enormous cart and made my way inside behind a trim woman with flame-red hair.
As she turned to show her ID to the greeter, I caught a glimpse of her face and noticed she was a lot older than her backside would indicate — somewhere in her 70s, would be my guess. And then I noticed something else: She was wearing a thong.
She was wearing it Monica-style, in that the side pieces rose above the waistline of her pants. And it was lacy, too. And here’s the thing: Her waist and hips looked like they were carved from marble. If anyone has the figure to wear a thong, it’s this septuagenarian. Rock on, granny.
Probably a dancer, I figure. Dancers keep their bods until they’re lowered into the ground. Mary Tyler Moore was a dancer.
It’s funny, because a few weeks ago I attended an event populated with business people. I took note of a woman, also from behind, nice figure in a tight black dress, shapely bare legs ending in heels and a tumble of blonde, barrel-curled hair. My mind instantly filed her under “30s, on the make” until she, too, turned to show her face in profile and it’s like, whoa, hi mom. OK, not that bad, but older than me. Which would put her into her 60s.
There’s a lot of chatter out there about never body-shaming anyone, and that women can wear whatever they want and it’s nobody’s business how you look in a bathing suit, and I believe that. If you’re comfortable and happy, that’s good enough. I remember a TV commercial for I product I can’t remember that ran in the ’60s, in which a young man mistakes his girlfriend’s mother for his paramour, seeing her from behind. (Until the Sarah Palin juggernaut ran out of steam, I fully expected her to endorse some product, using precisely this sell: “Levi’s always pinchin’ my butt, thinkin’ I’m Bristol!”)
I guess, if you get up day after day and do your yoga or run your miles or pump your iron, you’re going to be, as they say, well-preserved into your AARP years. But there’s no way I’m doing barrel curls in my 60s. I couldn’t even figure out those fuckers in my 30s.
Other than that, a pretty quiet weekend. Finished “Stranger Things,” which I highly recommend. Bought heirloom tomatoes. Bought corn, bought bacon, bought breakfast for Alan and me Saturday at the market. A busy week ahead, though, moving Kate back to Ann Arbor on Thursday, and then on Saturday? Another trip for me, a hiatus for the blog. Remember the surfing camp I was musing about in, like, January? Well, I bloody well signed up and paid my money, and will spend Labor Day week in Orange County, California, at San Onofre State Park, being one of those inappropriately youthful women I just mentioned. Think good thoughts for me, and think a few more for my knees.
The itinerary is pretty loose for now. Saturday-night dinner with L.A. Mary, a week of surfin’, and I’m hoping to squeeze in a trip to the Nixon presidential library. Got Airbnb lodgings for the first and last nights, and otherwise I’ll be in a tent.
I figure I’m owed one last break before campaign season shifts into high gear.
In the meantime, a little bloggage:
The dangers of poll observers, from Politico.
One good thing that’s happening as a result of this insane political climate is, I’m spending less time on Facebook, in part because it’s so discouraging to see the same old shit being said the same old ways, repackaged the same old zillion-and-one ways. It’s a goddamn industry, it turns out. Lately, I choose Twitter, faster and funnier and, in the case of the Trump’s-doctor story, hysterically so.
Sometimes airbags can kill you in entirely unexpected ways.
Monday dead ahead.
Alan Stamm said on August 29, 2016 at 7:09 am
OK, skip the barrel curls . . . and also the bacon, maybe?
No judging or diet-shaming, mind you. Just amused to see “bought bacon” a paragraph after reflections on being “well-preserved into your AARP years.”
I’ll charitably assume you mean turkey bacon.
263 chars
kathy t said on August 29, 2016 at 7:43 am
I will put organic grass-fed, grass-finished (hey, do pigs even EAT grass? Didn’t learn that stuff growing up in Detroit in the 50-60’s) pork belly nitrate-free bacon up against that oxymoronic turkey product any day.
217 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on August 29, 2016 at 8:17 am
Mmmm, bacon.
12 chars
Julie Robinson said on August 29, 2016 at 8:27 am
Turkey bacon is an abomination of the devil. We don’t eat a lot of bacon, but when you have fresh tomatoes from your garden, only the real thing will do. Likewise putting anything but butter on fresh sweet corn.
Weekend was work, work, work. Playtime coming soon, but tomorrow we are taking Mom’s cat to the vet for her final time. She discontinued treatments 10 days ago when they stopped working and now the poor thing is vomiting, etc, and showing great discomfort. Mom’s 84, the cat is 17, and it’s going to be very hard on everyone.
541 chars
Deggjr said on August 29, 2016 at 8:50 am
Has anyone seen the name/role of the woman at the Trump rally who rolled her eyes when Trump called Clinton a bigot? As Jon Stewart said ‘Those seats don’t go to the 17th caller.’ (about Ahmed Chalibi behind Bush at the 2004 SOTU address).
Google hasn’t revealed the answer, at least not to me.
298 chars
LindaG said on August 29, 2016 at 8:56 am
“Levi’s always pinchin’ my butt, thinkin’ I’m Bristol.”
Nice bit of snark there. Thanks for giving me a giggle to start off my day, Nancy.
141 chars
brian stouder said on August 29, 2016 at 9:14 am
What LindaG said; I’m still chucklin’!
Aside from that – we scored three tix to the Omnibus lecture at IPFW, to be delivered by Jeb Bush on September 8.
Oughta’ be a pretty good experience for our young voters…
218 chars
Deborah said on August 29, 2016 at 9:18 am
Well good for you Nancy, on the surfing class. Hope you have a great time.
Our building trust (two sort of matching buildings) had a social event yesterday evening, out on the plaza that adjoins the two. It was kinda fun, met some interesting people. I was surprised to see so many old people, maybe the younger folks decided not to attend. One woman is 98, she has lived in the building for 47 years, she’s a graphic designer and still practices (and she still drives! Yikes) Can you imagine how many changes she has seen in the profession.
544 chars
Danny said on August 29, 2016 at 9:18 am
Water was 62 yesterday, Nance. Have fun. Maybe rent a spring suit.
66 chars
Judybusy said on August 29, 2016 at 9:28 am
I’m looking forward to hearing about surf camp!
Julie, I am sorry about the cat. Even when you know it’s the right thing to do, it’s heartbreaking. I imagine your mom won’t be able to get another–not that they can be replaced–but knowing it’s your last companion must be hard.
I am also spending less time on FB. I think I need to to start hiding people–not just for the political stuff, but there are a lot of people who I never see IRL, and while I’m glad their pets/kids are cute, going to school, etc, it doesn’t actually benefit me a whole lot. One acquaitance recently began selling some skin care product line, and now that’s what 90% of her posts are. Not like coming here.
We got some friends’ CSA box this week, as they were out of town. Both of us spent major time in the kitchen this weekend. End result: tomato-basil sauce, sweet corn fritters, gazpacho, tomato “paella,” and enchilada sauce. We just need to figure out what to do with the 2 large kohlrabi.
984 chars
Julie Robinson said on August 29, 2016 at 9:51 am
We’ve talked about adopting an older cat from the shelter–there are plenty of them, but she wants to give it time. When her last cat died she said she was too old for another and suffered depression without a furbaby. That’s when this cat showed up at her back door, hungry, filthy, and in desperate need. Both my kids have cats and would happily home another if/when necessary.
My Facebook feed is much happier since I started blocking all the right wing sites. A few still slip through but for me it remains a place for making connections. Last night I posted a picture of the old sewing machine my grandma gave me, and my feed blew up with stories about our family; some that I didn’t know and some I could pass along to others. A friend of another family member saw the picture and is going to share her family stories. Since we’re trying to solve a family mystery as to parentage it’s potentially priceless information.
928 chars
adrianne said on August 29, 2016 at 10:02 am
Definitely unfollowed quite a few right-wing creeps this season, mostly old grade school pals from my lily-white suburb of Philadelphia. Not worth it.
Nance, I’ll be singing “Surfin’ Safari” in my head this weekend as you tackle the California surf! Have a bitchin’ time.
274 chars
Bitter Scribe said on August 29, 2016 at 10:08 am
I wonder how many of the “Hillary is in poor health” crowd realize that she is actually younger than Donald Trump?
121 chars
Judybusy said on August 29, 2016 at 10:17 am
There is a lot to like about FB, Julie. That is a great story about the sewing machine! My wife recently accepted a new nursing position that she had heard about via FB. Her current employer is playing hardball during contract negotiations, and she complained about it on FB–and a former school pal messaged her that her clinic was hiring. Really cool as they do the same specialty care as the current position. She accepted the new gig on Thursday. It’s actually a full-time position (vs. .8 FTE at the current place) and they upped her hourly rate. The union at the current place also voted to go on an open-ended strike that will begin Labor Day. It’s just such a huge relief we don’t have to go through that. We spent Friday night drinking wine on the porch and talking about all the fun ways to spend the extra $: hot water heater, roof, carpet cleaning, and oh yeah, increasing our giving to our favorite charity.
921 chars
Sue said on August 29, 2016 at 11:03 am
Julie, I don’t know the method that will be used to put your mom’s cat to sleep, but if administering fluids is part of the treatment that you discontinued, I suggest you call your vet about maybe giving some fluids tonight or tomorrow morning. When we took Motley in earlier this month we hadn’t given him fluids for more than a day and he was dehydrated. Therefore, they had trouble finding a vein, and it caused him discomfort and fear when he should have been drifting.
Also, if you haven’t thought of it, you might consider having the vet give you an oral sedative to give to the cat at home tomorrow, make him sleepy and not that aware of what’s going on when you bring him in. You probably already know that though.
My condolences.
745 chars
brian stouder said on August 29, 2016 at 11:27 am
Kitty cats have been a part of our household since – forever.
Yesterday, Chloe (our 12 year old) and I hit the Zoo at about 6:30 in the evening. We love going late, as the crowds are way down, and the animals are mostly all up and looking for supper.
The pair of Canadian Lynx were up and animated (although not vocal), and the serval was up and pacing, and vocal! (Her supper was apparently late)
Ina (the lion), though, was quietly on her hill, awaiting dinner
471 chars
brian stouder said on August 29, 2016 at 11:29 am
Forgot the lynx links…
http://kidszoo.org/our-animals/serval/
66 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 11:48 am
Apparently Trump isn’t the only person confused about the impact of free trade on Everett, WA: https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/08/29/donald-trump-doesnt-understand-trade-or-the-politics-of-trade/?utm_term=.b6dccfa5d099
241 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 12:06 pm
This would have been a better, more complete story on th Clinton Foundation. The Clintons are unquestionably part of the Davos set, but so are others in government on both sides of the aisle, and so are some in media. Harder to paint the Clintons as more or uniquely corrupt: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/ap-hillary-clinton-article_us_57c1db75e4b0267344505818
366 chars
LAMary said on August 29, 2016 at 12:06 pm
We are going not just for dinner. We are having cocktails. I don’t drink, but there a bar that serves amazing cocktails we will be checking out. I think there will be photos.
175 chars
Jean Shaw said on August 29, 2016 at 12:14 pm
Looks like Huma has finally kicked Anthony to the curb. We watched “Weiner” Saturday night, and one of our friends, a retired clinical psychologist, was in the crowd. At the end, I said, “Okay Jules, in 25 words or less…” He replied, “I don’t need 25 words, I can do it in 2: Fucking crazy!”
293 chars
brian stouder said on August 29, 2016 at 12:15 pm
Sherri – great link at 18; quite enlightening – regarding manufacturing jobs (at a second link, within that article)
Mary – there has to be photos!!
158 chars
Scout said on August 29, 2016 at 12:58 pm
I go back and forth between FB and Twitter. Twitter is where I get the pulse of what’s going on in real time. It is also where I go to be delighted by people who are extremely clever with 140 character observations.
I have cleared my FB feed of anyone who will piss me off, and I keep my personal page 95% politics free. I have a separate page just for political stuff, mostly humorous. There are a few people in that group who post dumb, unsubstantiated articles from questionable sites as real news, but those are shot down pretty quickly by other members.
Julie, so sorry about your Mom’s kitty. Making the decision to let them go is so very heart breaking. Like your Mom, I plan to always have a fur baby or two until I depart this mortal coil, as long as I have plans for them in place with a family member or friend once I’m gone.
843 chars
Julie Robinson said on August 29, 2016 at 2:28 pm
This group is the best. Thank you all, and my condolences if you lost a furbaby recently.
89 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 2:32 pm
Reading about the airbag cartridges, I was struck by the fact that the driver of the flatbed trailer carrying hazardous material was only 20 years old. I did a little research, and it turns out that in many states, Texas included, you can get a CDL that allows you to transport hazardous material intrastate at 18. Minimum age for interstate truck driving is 21. I’m a little surprised that insurance premiums aren’t so prohibitive that hiring a 20 year old driver to drive a flatbed with hazardous materials can be worth it, considering how difficult it is for a 20 year old to rent a car. I’d say there’s a good chance this trucking company will no longer be in business to make this kind of hiring decision again. On the other hand, it’s Texas, where tort reform is the watchword.
783 chars
BigHank53 said on August 29, 2016 at 2:44 pm
Sorry to hear about your Mom’s cat, Julie. If she’s feeling nervous about adopting another, check if a local animal rescue needs foster homes; that’s less imposing than a lifetime commitment to another pet. Or look at adopting an elderly cat–they can have a hard time finding new homes.
It’s no fun whatsoever taking an animal for that final vet visit. It may help to remember that it’s often the last kindness we can do for them.
434 chars
brian stouder said on August 29, 2016 at 2:45 pm
I bet this all gives the (genuinely stupid-looking, from here) movie “Sausage Party” a bit more box-office (so to speak)
120 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 2:46 pm
I don’t do Facebook, but I do read Twitter. On Twitter, I don’t follow friends and family, I follow interesting people, and I can create separate lists of people I follow on different topics, so I don’t clutter up my main timeline with topics that I might not want to read about every time I look at Twitter. I like it somewhat for the real time (the noise can easily overwhelm the signal with the real time aspect), but I really like it for pointers to interesting articles. You can tell how much I’ve been reading Twitter in a day by how many links I’m posting here!
I do have a separate list for the election, so I can decompress from it. My main Twitter feed is a much more eclectic mix of science, sports, computers, humor, news, and writers.
751 chars
Danny said on August 29, 2016 at 3:31 pm
How I’ve been avoiding politics (aka How I spent my Summer Vacation):
Most of you who have undertaken to study another language and culture can probably relate that it often leads one to make new discoveries and to gain new perspectives on one’s own language and culture. And this has brought me to a new appreciation for the song, “Dream a Little Dream of Me,” written in 1931. This Depression-era standard is such an amazing tune with some of the most beautiful, poignant lyrics that it has not only been covered by many great artists like Ella Fitzgerald and Cass Elliot, but has had renditions in multiple languages, including French.
Here are my two current favorite versions, one in English and one in French, by a British band called, The Beautiful South (both featured in the film with Meg Ryan and Kevin Klein, “French Kiss”). Same Welsh singer in both, Jacqui Abbott, very good voice:
English version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u1s8vfihMbA
French language version:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rosTQGy6v20
Now, interestingly enough, the French version, as beautiful as it sounds, is not a translation of the English version, but more of a vague idea interpretation of two lovers separated by distance, kind of like how Gene Raskin’s/Mary Hopkin’s version of “Those Were the Days” was more of a idea “translation” of an original Russian song. And this is unfortunate because the French version loses a LOT in translation and who can not absolutely fall in love with the original English lyrics:
Stars shining bright above you;
Night breezes seem to whisper ‘I love you’.
Birds singing in the sycamore tree.
Dream a little dream of me.
Say nighty-night and kiss me;
Just hold me tight and tell me you’ll miss me.
While I’m alone, blue as can be,
Dream a little dream of me.
Stars fading but I linger on, dear –
Still craving your kiss.
I’m longing to linger till dawn, dear,
Just saying this…
Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you –
Sweet dreams that leave all worries behind you.
But in your dreams, whatever they be,
Dream a little dream of me.
And since, I’ve been fixating and falling in love with this song for a few weeks, I ran down a year-2000 NPR review of it and found out that the original lyricist, Gus Kahn, said something pretty neat along the lines that “most people don’t know how to tell each other they love one another and that the lyricist’s job is to teach them in 32 bars.”
All of this dovetailed into the news today of Huma Abedin’s separation from Anthony Weiner and as much as I despise that guy, I couldn’t help but think what a shame it is that marriages fail because one or both parties forget that they love one another and/or forget to tell each other they do.
2757 chars
LAMary said on August 29, 2016 at 3:39 pm
I recently adopted two cats. One is an older cat. She’s taking her time getting used to everyone, but she is sweet and affectionate. At first she wasn’t taking care of cleaning her coat, but now I give her a little brushing every day. As long as she will sit still, and she’s started to take interest in taking care of herself. The young cat we adopted at the same time strolled in and took over the place. No time at all to adapt to the new surroundings for him, but Clementine, AKA Her Little Ladyship, needs more time to fit in and I’m sure she will.
553 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 4:09 pm
RIP, Gene Wilder.
17 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 5:07 pm
Example number gazillion why I don’t have a Facebook account: http://fusion.net/story/339018/facebook-psychiatrist-privacy-problems/
Facebook is always gathering information about you, and it’s impossible to protect your privacy from them. They will give your information to third parties whenever it suits them, not when they have your permission, and in ways you don’t expect.
Google is bad enough, but Facebook is far worse. Google does have some standards.
465 chars
Deborah said on August 29, 2016 at 5:33 pm
Hey question to you FB users, when you comment on somebody’s post and it doesn’t show up, is that an indication that you’ve been blocked? I’m not a savvy FB user so I don’t know. I haven’t received any indication that I know of that I’ve been unfriended.
254 chars
ROGirl said on August 29, 2016 at 5:36 pm
The airbag story involves GM. Why am I not surprised? This is how they do business, this is how they control their suppliers, they dictate the contract terms, they manage risk through cost. Who can supply the cheapest part? If it’s riskier than the alternative, oh well.
http://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/27/business/takata-airbag-recall-crisis.html
349 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on August 29, 2016 at 5:52 pm
And Gene Wilder was listening to Ella as he died, bringing this thread full circle . . .
88 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 5:58 pm
Would it be tacky to have a recording of Ella singing “Someone to Watch Over Me” at my funeral?
95 chars
Danny said on August 29, 2016 at 6:03 pm
Jeff, and to double that circle, I’ve always thought that Gene never recovered from Gilda’s untimely passing. I’m willing to bet they were soul mates from which neither would do well without the other.
201 chars
susan said on August 29, 2016 at 7:16 pm
Danny – I still tear up when I think of Gilda Radner. She was one of those people that I would start laughing just looking at her. She didn’t have to do anything. Anticipation of something hilarious coming. (Lily Tomlin is another one.) Damn f*cking cancer. She and Gene Wilder were such an amazing pair of truly funny people. And I bet you’re right about them being “soul-mates.”
380 chars
Colleen said on August 29, 2016 at 8:01 pm
I’m so sorry about your mom’s cat. It’s so hard to say goodbye, even when we know we’re doing the right thing.
I haven’t blocked people on FB as much as I have blocked the sites they are posting from. So no more crap from “donald trump for president” and the like. I have an aunt who I otherwise just adore and she’s in the Trump camp. It makes me sad.
356 chars
Suzanne said on August 29, 2016 at 8:11 pm
Colleen, I’ve had that same issue of people I like & respect posting very pro-Trump stuff. I try to think that everyone has a different viewpoint, but nonetheless, I think less of them because of this particular viewpoint. And it makes me sad.
247 chars
Dexter said on August 29, 2016 at 8:42 pm
Brian Wilson and I have one thing in common: we have never surfed. We certainly saw many surfers. Much of the coast line and the beaches are wide open from Carlsbad to Encinitas and on down, and when driving or riding The Coaster train , where the waves were breaking, the surfers were there. We took a 2 hour dolphin and whale watching cruise…wrong time to see all but the most rogue whale, which the guide said they saw a couple days before we motored out to sea, but dolphins a-plenty. Jaded old me …I could not muster any enthusiasm for seeing dolphins. After the Cape Cod whale watching excursions we experienced 20 years ago, twenty pods of dolphins … ah, not so exciting.
I had never heard of surf camp, so good luck there. Hang ten. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNLuZfA4eO8
797 chars
Heather said on August 29, 2016 at 9:35 pm
Deborah, if someone has blocked you, you aren’t able to see or even find their FB page. If you can’t see your comment, either it was a blip or they deleted it.
159 chars
Jill said on August 29, 2016 at 9:52 pm
Julie, I’m sorry for your mom and you. It’s never easy.
Deborah, you don’t get a notice that someone has unfriended you. You can find out if you’re still friends by going to that person’s page and seeing if the friends box is checked.
239 chars
Sherri said on August 29, 2016 at 11:46 pm
I swear to God, after reading about how Anthony Weiner is casting a shadow on the Clinton campaign and after the AP has covered itself in glory lately, if Donald Trump were to shoot someone on 5th Ave, the headlines would read “Clinton, Trump have problems with guns on 5th Ave”
278 chars
Carter Cleland said on August 30, 2016 at 12:11 am
“Mrs. Burke – I thought you were Dale!”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3UnJSTpHsXc
84 chars
basset said on August 30, 2016 at 8:17 am
The last Beatles concert… fifty years ago last night.
55 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on August 30, 2016 at 8:34 am
If Trump were to shoot Weiner on Fifth Avenue, I think both campaigns would get a boost.
I tried an experiment on my Facebook feed, and posted my best shot at writing the *affirmative* case in 150 words for both Clinton & Trump; then I invited anyone else to add their reasons they were *for* their candidate, and stating that I would delete (in that particular post/thread) any comments that were about why you were opposed to the other candidate.
It’s probably gotten less traffic than anything else I’ve posted in the last month, and I’ve had to delete almost as many as I’ve got, maybe 4 affirmations (3 Hillary, 1 Trump). That’s what bugs me about this election all around — the most fervent campaigners are motivated more by what they’re against than any real sense of what they’re for, let alone who.
818 chars
brian stouder said on August 30, 2016 at 9:07 am
I am FOR Hillary Rodham Clinton for many reasons, including that she’s a woman and a mom, which means she’s very much in-tune with the real world, and things that really matter, both for this moment, and for tomorrow.
Aside from that, she’s been there/done that, with regard to high-level policy development/implementation. She’s one of those people who ‘does the reading’ – and then the thinking, and then the writing….and THEN the deciding, and then the re-reading and review. Aside from that, she really is a believer in the process (ie – if she loses, she won’t say “It was rigged!”), and did the door-to-door thing for Barry Goldwater(!!) in 1964, and pretty much every other aspect of real campaigning for things she believes in.
If she wins the presidency, I am confident that the United States will have a capable, competent, and contemplative chief executive, who will hit the ground running on day one of her administration
965 chars
Deborah said on August 30, 2016 at 10:53 am
Jeff, perhaps people didn’t understand your instructions about your FB post. I beleive I may have been one of those people.
So I’ll say it here. I too am for Hillary. I have no reservations about my support, at all. She is the most qualified candidate by far than any candidate in my lifetime.
296 chars
Deborah said on August 30, 2016 at 11:07 am
Here’s an interesting perspective on trigger warnings and safe spaces in universities and colleges http://www.vox.com/2016/8/29/12692376/university-chicago-safe-spaces-defense
I’m waiting out another storm in Bloomington, IL, it’s been raining the whole time since we left Chicago. We’re at the same Starbucks we stopped in on the way up. Tired of all of the rain on the road.
379 chars
Jakash said on August 30, 2016 at 12:38 pm
In addition to the fine case made by Brian, and despite the overheated case made against her by Bernie, anyone who prefers more of a Democratic agenda for the country than a Republican one doesn’t have to wonder too much about supporting Hillary. Civil rights, gun control, climate change, women’s rights, gay rights, health care, taxation and on down the line, she’s clearly on the progressive side and has been working for decades to make things better for all kinds of people. Even on defense, where she may be more hawkish than I’d prefer, she’s at least reasonable and willing to consider all the options.
If you’re a Democrat or a progressive independent, why would you not vote for Hillary? Because she acts too much like a politician too much of the time is about the only reason I see folks complaining about. “She’s a liar!” She’s no worse than most, and if that were a disqualification, we’d have no government at all. But, hey, if I’d been getting pilloried (which may as well be pronounced Hillaried) from the right for a quarter-century, I’d probably be a little lawyerly with my statements and behavior, too. Well, and she’s not ENOUGH of a lefty for some. There’s such a thing as allowing the perfect be the enemy of the good, which even folks like Noam Chomsky can see, this time around.
But I bet that’s way more than 150 words. Sad! ; )
1373 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 1:01 pm
My affirmative case for Hillary is that she has spent her adult life trying to make things better for other people, especially the people who need the most help. If a big problem fails, she’ll find a small program to get help,for at least some people. She has a broad range of knowledge and an eagerness to seek out new ideas for helping people, and has shown a willingness to get stuff done without having to take all the credit.
I don’t think she’ll tear down the structures of inequality the way the lefties would like, but I think she’ll chip away at them to try to build up the have-nots. She’s a patient builder, not a revolutionary.
And yes, I’m voting for her in part because she’s a woman. I think the idea of the “best” candidate is meaningless; there is no way of measuring that. I think we can determine a set of candidates who are above the threshold level necessary to do the job and align sufficiently with our values and positions, and once past that cutoff, I think that selecting a woman because she’s a woman seems not only reasonable, but a positive good.
As it turns out, now that we’re down to two candidates, there’s only one candidate above threshold, so the choice is easy even if I didn’t have an affirmative case for Hillary.
1262 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 1:21 pm
My point about the 5th AV shooting is the “both sides” way the press would cover it. Like they did with Hillary’s recent speech laying out chapter and verse the racist campaign Trump has run. Trump calls her a bigot. Headlines read, “Clinton, Trump exchange racial barbs”, as if the things wee equivalent.
305 chars
Dorothy said on August 30, 2016 at 1:40 pm
Jeff did you have a nice birthday on Sunday? I’m really just too swamped at work to type up anything of any value about the election but what Sherri said @52 sums it up nicely for me as well. I trust my gut, and my gut is telling me that Hillary is going to make a very fine President.
286 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 1:49 pm
Matt Yglesias with more context for the Clinton Foundation: Colin Powell’s foundation, run by his wife when he was SoS. Imagine, if he had had his private emails from AOL, we might have been able to make the same kind of innuendos!
http://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2016/8/30/12690444/alma-powell-clinton-foundation?
324 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 2:17 pm
Rebecca Traister says it better: http://nymag.com/thecut/2016/08/anthony-weiner-and-huma-abedins-divorce-isnt-political.html?mid=twitter_nymag
143 chars
LAMary said on August 30, 2016 at 2:18 pm
Ryan Lochte and Rick Perry are going to be contestants on Dancing with the Stars.I just thought I would throw that out there.
125 chars
Heather said on August 30, 2016 at 2:32 pm
Lochte and Perry both have about the same amount of brainpower, so it makes sense.
82 chars
LAMary said on August 30, 2016 at 2:55 pm
I wonder if Perry will wear his glasses to look intelligent while dancing?
74 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 2:59 pm
Can they be partners? I’d watch that!
37 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on August 30, 2016 at 3:06 pm
I hiked ten miles on Sunday afternoon, Dorothy, and it was exactly the present I needed. Then I helped with the first year induction ceremonies in the evening at Denison!
Deborah, you did not get deleted. And it’s still a cone of silence. More positive statements here, in fact, and thank you. I’m not trolling Trumpers, I’m just curious if I can get them to say in more than one sentence fragment why they support their candidate without swiveling to swipe at the opponent.
I did ask for “who would you say if you had to speak one name, immediately, in answer to the word ‘Hero'” and have over a hundred responses now on Facebook, almost all of them lovely. And it all goes into my September sermon series . . .
718 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 3:13 pm
Nobody does it like Charlie.
When it comes to the once and (perhaps) future president of the United States, the Newspaper of Record is the In-and-Out of nothing burgers.
http://www.esquire.com/news-politics/politics/news/a48173/new-york-times-clinton-coverage/
273 chars
LAMary said on August 30, 2016 at 3:14 pm
Lochte and Perry doing the Rhumba? I would definitely watch that. There would have to be a lot of fringe and revealing costumes.
128 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 3:38 pm
Oh, I’m thinking Lochte in his Speedo and heels, while Perry wears his A&M cadet uniform.
93 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 4:07 pm
Fascinating somewhat wonky post about political dividing lines and alignments: http://www.vox.com/polyarchy/2016/8/30/12697920/race-dividing-american-politics
159 chars
basset said on August 30, 2016 at 6:05 pm
JeffTMMO, what happens at the Denison induction?
48 chars
David C. said on August 30, 2016 at 6:27 pm
I know you’re supposed to consider the person, not the party, but I’m a Democrat so I vote for Democrats. On the basest level, I’ve always done better financially when Democrats have been in the White House (and State House). But beyond that, they care about human rights, civil rights, women’s rights, voting rights, and stitching together at least a basic safety net. So for me, it’s not at all difficult. Hillary is the Democrat so she gets my vote.
452 chars
Sherri said on August 30, 2016 at 6:39 pm
It’s called a clawback, Silicon Valley, and you shouldn’t be shocked. I’d like to see the US do something about the taxes you’ve been avoiding, too, and I don’t mean a corporate tax holiday so you can repatriate profits.
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2016/aug/30/apple-eu-tax-bill-silicon-valley-response
317 chars
Dorothy said on August 30, 2016 at 6:55 pm
David C: me too!!
18 chars
Julie Robinson said on August 30, 2016 at 7:52 pm
Dancing With the Stars has gone from B list to D, E, or F. Rick Perry? Desperation.
Well, we got through the afternoon at the vet’s. I guess that’s really all you can hope for. Mother didn’t want to be there at the end, so I took her over to Wendy’s for a Frosty and we talked about all the cats she’d had over the years. Then we went back and picked up Princess and brought her over to our house, where Dennis had dug a grave in a quiet place between two shrubs. Mother had a rock that came from her old house. Many years were shed, by all three of us.
Thank you to everyone for your kind words. We already had a trip to Orlando planned, so Mother decided at the last minute to join us and fortunately there was still a seat left on the plane. A change of location will be good.
786 chars
Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on August 30, 2016 at 9:52 pm
Basset — in a word, speeches. There’s a procession into the space (indoors this year due to threatening t-storms), cheering parents, stirring words from the class president, college president, chair of the faculty, and from the dean/vp of student development and/or institutional advancement. They sign the induction book somewhere in the line-up beforehand, are pronounced Denisonians during it, and sing the Alma Mater together at the end. Then many of us help in steering the students to their Aug-O groups and out, and parents to the door and their cars.
It’s the end of freshman/firstyear move in day, and it serves two purposes: to give the parents a clear signal “you can go home now” and for one of the above mentioned personages to make the annual statement “it costs about $100,000,000 per year to operate this chicken ranch, and your tuition and fees doesn’t quite cover $60,000,000 of that, so thank the alums and remember that we’re going to spend 4 years making you into one.” Plus 95% of the students get some level of financial aid from the school . . . insert debate over sticker-price of college here, but the fact is that you can’t have a “fair college on the hill” and pay for it with what the students or their parents give us. And they start reminding them of that fact about 40 minutes before you officially become a student here!
1357 chars
Deborah said on August 30, 2016 at 10:50 pm
Julie, you’re a good daughter to your mother. My heart goes out to you on having to do that. How nice that you buried the cat in your yard. That’s sweet. We had ours cremated and we haven’t decided what to do with their ashes. One died in Santa Fe and her sister in Chicago 2 years before. We finally got them both in the same place on a shelf in Santa Fe. We think we might pour their ashes into the concrete foundation of the next little building we do out in Abiquiu. But haven’t decided for sure. We got the idea from the D H Lawrence shrine in Taos. His ashes were incorporated into that building. And our cats were named after the Brangwen sisters in the Lawrence novel Women in Love, Gudrun and Ursula. So there’s sort of a connection. Stretching it though.
764 chars
Deborah said on August 30, 2016 at 10:52 pm
Oh and I’m in St. Louis tonight, I had a wonderful evening with old friends in the Central West End. Good times.
112 chars
basset said on August 30, 2016 at 11:04 pm
Signing the induction book and being pronounced Denisonians… guess you can do that kind of thing at a small private school, I don’t remember anything like it at IU in the early 70s. There may well have been an assembly for new students or something, they did it without me though.
Vanderbilt here in Nashville has some kind of freshman march where the new students walk across campus led by various big hats… I would refuse to be part of that. Come to think of it, the induction book and pronouncement stuff would scare me off. Jeff, do you know of anyone who got up to the book, took the pen in hand, and just refusing to go any further? And what happens if someone transfers or drops out… are they crossed out of the register?
742 chars
basset said on August 30, 2016 at 11:06 pm
Refused, I should say.
22 chars