I said I’d be back Tuesday, and here it is, Tuesday. A woman of my word.
For what it’s worth, I don’t think President Shit-for-brains is dead. I think he’s an old, sick man, but he’s still exchanging oxygen. We’re stuck with him, at least for another day. The bells will ring around the world when he finally kicks the bucket, there will be dancing in the street and party snacks, but I doubt there will be much of a delay before we know, not with JD Vance circling like a vulture.
Sorry to start your Unofficial Fall with bad news, but there you are.
What a weekend. Very busy. I’m still not recovered, so I will leave you with this thin gruel, in the interest of getting something done.
At one point this weekend, I was way up in the sky:
I swear, I could see my house from the 69th floor of the RenCen.
susan said on September 2, 2025 at 9:26 pm
Speaking of which, here’s a good headline:
Nation Mourns As 79-Year-Old President Shows Proof Of Life
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Julie Robinson said on September 3, 2025 at 9:47 am
While scrolling I caught two minutes of the news conference yesterday and decided it was back to written news only for me.
Spare a good thought if you will for our daughter’s ancient chiweenie. She’s been in decline for months but yesterday was newly traumatic, and a pricey vet visit brought no answers. I fear the rainbow bridge is near, and just wish it didn’t have to be on Sarah’s birthday.
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alex said on September 3, 2025 at 10:13 am
Here’s a gift article about a real billionaire who’s doing something constructive with his time and money.
https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/08/29/style/nicola-bulgari-american-car-collection-allentown-pa.html?unlocked_article_code=1.jE8.Po33.zba8uPgcYbg7&smid=url-share
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Icarus said on September 3, 2025 at 12:20 pm
Julie Robinson, same here. Who is that lady in the red next to Trump and smiling like a giddy school girl?
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Peter said on September 3, 2025 at 1:42 pm
Icarus, that was Stephen Miller in drag.
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Dexter Friend said on September 3, 2025 at 4:22 pm
I set a personal record, with calls to Spectrum Support + Disney Support , back-to-back for 4 hours and 45 minutes. After the first 2 hours I was not caving until the issue was resolved. Spectrum cable is giving out streams now, but damn it’s a nightmare cancelling your paid apps and getting the Spectrum app up. Peacock I found impossible yesterday. I cannot access it from Spectrum until I cancel the stand alone app, and man, what a process. If I figure it out, I may still be without service for up to three weeks while the change is in progress.
But good news, really good news. I am in negotiations to get my Medicare supplemental down from the new monthly bill of $634 down to $179. I previously had been getting bad advice; my agent died, the new supervisor was appalled that I was paying that much and unless the gremlins throw that damn monkey wrench into the gears, I will be saving enough to get myself into a mighty fine new-to-me car and not have to worry about another road-wrecker-situation. Sometimes Fortuna’s wheel spins and you win. Rarely, but yeah, sometimes.
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Julie Robinson said on September 3, 2025 at 5:21 pm
Peter for the thread win!
Good news, Dexter, and a refreshing change to have a bill down for once.
Doggie is still alive, so there’s that.
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David C said on September 4, 2025 at 5:37 am
We used to drink raw milk and we’re fine. Nah. Mom did all the work and you didn’t pay attention.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKDPast9WFk
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alex said on September 4, 2025 at 9:41 am
I still have over a year before I can get Medicare and I have no idea what the supplemental insurance will cost, but $634 is way more than I’m paying right now for my ACA plan.
If Congress doesn’t renew the subsidies for ACA, I’ll be paying a shit ton for insurance next year, but I’ve been reading that red state Republicans are in a big panic now because too many of their constituents rely on the ACA and jacking their insurance premiums before the midterms comes with too much political cost. So there’s some small hope.
So my brother is helping me sell my 2-seater convertible on Marketplace and it looks like a buyer from Cleveland is interested. I had mixed feelings about letting the car go even though we seldom use it anymore. I ordered my own Carfax report and it shows that it hasn’t even been driven a thousand miles in the last two years. Thanks to Carfax, I’m also getting bombarded with texts and calls from dealerships offering me trade-in value which is about half of its fair market value, so be forewarned if you ever request a Carfax report on your own vehicle.
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David C said on September 4, 2025 at 11:16 am
My wife’s Medicare supplemental plan is $155 a month from WPS. So far it’s working very well. Her Part D plan is from Wellcare and it sucks. We had the chance to change plans when we moved back to Michigan. We found that for the Parkinson’s drug she’s on, they all suck, so we stayed with Wellcare. But thanks to Joe Biden and Democrats, we’ll be capped at $2100.
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Sherri said on September 4, 2025 at 2:00 pm
First things first, I got a flu shot and a Covid shot this morning, so that’s good.
But, normally my insurance covers the full cost of all vaccines. Today, I had to pay $13.76 for the Covid jab. Obviously not a big deal, but I’ve had this insurance for years and never paid a penny for vaccines, so I tried to find out why. After looking online and failing to find any useful information, I called. The person on the other end was very nice and went down many rabbit holes to eventually find that Premera Blue Cross is now requiring us to pay 10% of their cost of the Covid vaccine.
Thanks, Bobby Brain Worm. It could be worse; some insurance companies aren’t covering it at all. The pharmacist who stuck me said that earlier this morning someone paid the full out of pocket cost to get jabbed.
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Julie Robinson said on September 4, 2025 at 5:45 pm
Sherri, I’m so glad you were able to get your vaccines. Still waiting on Covid here, and I think it’s due to our health commissioner, Dr. “We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Vaccines” Ladipo.
CVS told me they were in on Tuesday and just waiting for final approval which would be in a day or two, no need for a doctor’s prescription. She put me on her call list and it’s been crickets. (I’ve done this before and she always calls. They have a couple of outstanding pharmacists there, which was not the case in Fort Wayne.)
We were at Costco this afternoon and they don’t have any idea when they are coming. Ditto other places. I’ve got a cardiac patient leaving for a month-long trip next Saturday, and I’d feel a lot better if he had the shot first. Maybe he can get it somewhere along the way?
Dog seems to be rallying but long term I just don’t know.
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Sherri said on September 4, 2025 at 7:02 pm
Okay, what’s the worst news of the week?
A) the US blew up a small boat headed not to the US, but to Trinidad, likely with migrants, claimed it was drug runners, and screamed “TERRORISM!!!”
B) Schumer and Jefferies are considering a deal with Republicans to put off a shutdown that would just delay the cuts to the Obamacare subsidies until after the election. In other words, help the Republicans with a deal so they are more likely to retain control of Congress, so that the cuts can happen.
C) David Ellison, son of Larry Ellison and the new owner of CBS, reportedly plans to hand over CBS News to Bari Weiss.
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alex said on September 4, 2025 at 8:01 pm
Bari Weiss strikes me as more of a provocateur than a journalist and seems to have made a career out of overplaying the antisemitism card. Fuck CBS if it’s true.
I’m torn as regards the Obamacare subsidies. Much as I’d like to see the GOP take a drubbing in the midterms, I’d rather it be over everything else they’ve done or not done but leave my subsidies the hell alone.
Legacy media was still reporting that the bombed boat was drug runners, last I read anything about it; I hadn’t seen any information otherwise but it had occurred to me not to trust anything the administration had to say about it.
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