We’ve been having an exceptionally warm autumn so far. I know many of you enjoy this, but I suspect we’re headed for another SLAM BANG OK IT’S WINTER NOW seasonal transition, having missed out on the pleasures of fall, i.e., the slowly cooling days, the slowly turning leaves, all of it. Right now it’s in the low 70s, forecast to top out at 77 in late afternoon, and all I can think is: Where is sweata weatha? Love sweata weatha.
“You miss January, Nance?” a friend asked me last night. I do not. But it’s a week into October, and I was hoping to put away my sandals by now.
It’s not that winter won’t come. Winter is never all that far away from Michigan. But we’ve had a few of those SLAM BANG seasonal changes of late, and I’m not crazy about them. You spend Easter in down jackets, then four days later it’s 85 degrees and stays that way.
Oh well. My house has not washed down a mountainside, so this is just mewling.
Let’s go to the news! Ho-ho, this is amusing:
According to a computer analysis by The New York Times, Mr. Trump’s rally speeches now last an average of 82 minutes, compared with 45 minutes in 2016. Proportionately, he uses 13 percent more all-or-nothing terms like “always” and “never” than he did eight years ago, which some experts consider a sign of advancing age.
Similarly, he uses 32 percent more negative words than positive words now, compared with 21 percent in 2016, which can be another indicator of cognitive change. And he uses swearwords 69 percent more often than he did when he first ran, a trend that could reflect what experts call disinhibition. (A study by Stat, a health care news outlet, produced similar findings.)
Mr. Trump frequently reaches to the past for his frame of reference, often to the 1980s and 1990s, when he was in his tabloid-fueled heyday. He cites fictional characters from that era like Hannibal Lecter from “Silence of the Lip” (he meant “Silence of the Lambs”), asks “where’s Johnny Carson, bring back Johnny” (who died in 2005) and ruminates on how attractive Cary Grant was (“the most handsome man”). He asks supporters whether they remember the landing in New York of Charles Lindbergh, who actually landed in Paris and long before Mr. Trump was born.
Actually it’s not amusing, it’s terrifying, because the rest of the paper informs us this is still anybody’s race. I mean, I’m glad the newspaper that practically considered it a crusade to get Biden to drop out is finally turning its attention to Trump, but who is listening at this point? Nobody. The few allegedly undecided voters, aren’t. As soon as early voting opens, I’m going in, casting my ballot with grim purpose, then returning to scan real-estate listings in countries where the language isn’t too hard to learn, and has some sweata weatha.
How was everyone’s weekend? Mine was fine. We saw “Megalopolis,” two of roughly six people in the theater. I’d describe it as…an ambitious mess. Those critics who keep saying, “Remember, ‘Apocalypse Now’ was a laughingstock at first” either never watched “Apocalypse Now” or weren’t there when it opened. I think it had been in theaters one weekend, and people were practically stopping me on the street to talk about the first three minutes, with the Doors and the chopper landing strut going through the frame, and the napalm. Three days after seeing “Megalopolis,” what I mostly remember was…none of it, really. Lush visuals, silly story, not much else. The girder scene, maybe? Aubrey Plaza trying her hardest, checking my phone inside my purse because I couldn’t remember where I’d seen the actress who played Julia before (she was Missandei in “Game of Thrones,” and her name is Nathalie Emmanuel) and ticking off the members of the Coppola Family Players who had parts (Talia Shire, Jason Schwartzman, Laurence Fishburne) along with Dustin Hoffman, Jon Voight and others. I think the ultimate explanation was the closing title, after FFC’s, “To my beloved wife Eleanor.” Eleanor Coppola died in April; this has the feeling of her surviving husband writing last notes and closing books.
Speaking of which, you know how Francis Ford Coppola got his middle name? His dad, Carmine, was a flautist with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra from 1936-41, the depths of the Great Depression, and his son was born here. The Ford Motor Company basically carried the orchestra through the Depression, sponsoring their performances and keeping roofs over musicians’ heads and food on their tables. Carmine gave his baby the middle name in gratitude.
On Saturday, I went with a friend to see Jonathan Richman at the Magic Bag. The show was great, but short — one hour start to finish. Today I saw someone describe him as “Lou Reed’s nicer cousin.” He opened with this number, which I loved.
And now I’m going to enjoy this lovely Sunday. I leave you with this:
What we know is that these two men have 17 children with 6 different women but it’s women’s bodies that need to be controlled! pic.twitter.com/1oadrzY55i
— nazir afzal (@nazirafzal) October 6, 2024
Have a great week.
Ann said on October 6, 2024 at 3:45 pm
That Francis Ford Coppola story is one of the best pieces of Detroit trivia I’ve heard in quite a while.
Up here we’re getting international coverage of our state rep race. Republicans hoping to flip the Michigan legislature and we’re a target. https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/maga-karl-bohnak-michigan-trump-b2621577.html
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Jeff Borden said on October 6, 2024 at 4:00 pm
Good for you for rolling the dice on “Megalopolis.” Even if it’s deeply flawed, it’s an attempt at something special and not the usual superhero or rom-com release.
It’s hard not to be depressed this election cycle. Even if Harris wins, tens of millions of extremely gullible MAGAts will remain among us. I’ve no idea how you can deprogram those addicted to the lies, the hate, the envy, the fear and the cowardice peddled by the QOP.
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alex said on October 6, 2024 at 4:33 pm
Wonderful weekend here until I got stung by a yellowjacket while I was working up on the roof.
I got back from a Chicagoland adventure, hubby came home after an extended business trip and we attended a neighbor’s annual potluck and bonfire party on Saturday. Then this morning I decided to power wash algae and crud on our chimney, followed by a new coat of limewash. A yellowjacket found its way in between two digits of my left hand and delivered an excruciating sting and now I’m sitting here after applying Benadryl, followed by a salt paste, and taking a Vicodin. My hand is swollen up like I’ve never seen it before.
In half an hour we’re supposed to be attending dinner at the neighbors’ to help them polish off the leftovers from yesterday’s party. This has been the year of the yellowjacket. They’re abundant, they’re everywhere and we probably need a good hard freeze to make them disappear for the season.
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Vince said on October 6, 2024 at 4:50 pm
Alex, take that sting seriously and have it seen. I had a bee sting that inflated my hand like a balloon. A round of oral antibiotics did not work and my hand continued to swell and turn very hot. I could not bend any fingers. A second doctor’s visit included 30 minutes of antibiotics via I.V. That worked. The infection stopped proceeding up my arm. It still took a week for me to be able to use my hand again.
The doctor wasn’t sure if I was allergic to the bee or if my hand was dirty and the bee’s stinger pushed bacteria down into my blood stream.
I’ve had a Yellowjacket sting too and they feel even worse than bees. It’s the swelling you mentioned that concerned me.
(Hi everyone. I’m a lurker of 20+ years and friend of Nancy’s. I feel like I know you all from your comments. I’m not much for commenting online, but enjoy your discussions. This time I felt compelled to chime in over Alex’s well being.)
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nancy said on October 6, 2024 at 4:57 pm
Vince is no dummy. Take his advice, Alex.
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Julie Robinson said on October 6, 2024 at 5:08 pm
Alex, I’d also be worried about future stings. A good friend got the express ride to the ER when her throat started to close after a sting. She carries epipens now because they told her she wouldn’t have that much time the next time.
So, Hurricane Milton is headed our way, as in we’re in the middle of the cone of uncertainty right now. The hurricane box is still in the living room, bottles of water are in the freezer, wind mitigation completed and prayers said. We are too high to flood, though I fully expect to lose power. Many people have lovingly reached out and we even had an offer to evacuate to New Orleans(!!!). Four people, three animals, nine or more hours in the car? I’ll take no AC.
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David C said on October 6, 2024 at 5:33 pm
I think this is the week fro Emlo’s big robotaxi rollout. If it’s like his humanoid robot rollout it’s a guy dressed as a car running around the stage making Jetson’s car noises.
Another vote for don’t mess with yellowjacket stings. I got an infection from one too. Oral antibiotics knocked it out, but it was a miserable few days before I decided to have it checked out.
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tajalli said on October 6, 2024 at 6:18 pm
Read the book and will wait for the DVD at the library. Or not. The book was … forgettable.
We are into the 3rd or 4th day of temperatures wildly exceeding expectations, all in the mid 90s. Yesterday, the forecast for today was 82° but overnight was revised for 94°. Ha! It’s 100°F and hasn’t peaked yet.
Time for a cold shower.
Alex, don’t delay in getting something to reduce the swelling – if your circulation is compromised, you can have tremendous tissue damage.
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Jeff Borden said on October 6, 2024 at 7:08 pm
Need to induce vomiting? Watch Elmo at tRump’s hatefest yesterday. Guaranteed to work better than ipecac.
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Deborah said on October 6, 2024 at 7:20 pm
I’ve just finished listening to Autocracy Inc, by Ann Applebaum. On Audible. There is a real
threat of transnational kleptocratic crime syndicates masquerading as governments. Sarah Kedzior has been writing about it for years, telling us it has been happening under our noses in plain sight, and she has been criticized for being an alarmist. Honestly this stuff is creepy and depressing but there is still time to slow it down and maybe even stop it. I hope so.
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Deborah said on October 6, 2024 at 7:52 pm
Somehow I missed that early voting started in Chicago on Thursday. How did I not know that? I would have been in line that day. So anyway, tomorrow I will be in line in the loop to vote for Harris/Walz. We will be out of town for a few weeks starting Wednesday, We’re going to be in Boston for our project for a few weeks, then after that we’re going to spend some time in Maine to enjoy the changing leaves and relax. Maine is the last state in the lower 48 that I’ve never been. Now I have to get to Alaska and Hawaii, bucket list stuff before I’m gone.
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Peter Erdelyi said on October 6, 2024 at 10:18 pm
Jonathan Richman? Did he do Pablo Picasso? Old World? Sex With Insects?
What a treasure…
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Deborah said on October 7, 2024 at 5:36 am
Oops I meant we’ll be in Boston a few days, not a few weeks. After Boston we go to Maine, the whole trip is about 2 weeks.
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Pam H said on October 7, 2024 at 6:30 am
For sure tRump has dropped into senility and his party knows it. Have you noticed how they’re advancing JDV? One wonders who is really running for Pres. CBS did a follow up with a focus group in Wisconsin after the VP debate and 2 of the Undecideds said they would likely vote for JDV in Nov. Whoops! I was musing on whether the assassination attempts were just practice.
Deborah #10 “There is a real threat of transnational kleptocratic crime syndicates masquerading as governments.” I’ve believed this for years. I was wondering recently which is more powerful – Xi Jinping and his government or the Chinese Triads? Are they one and the same or do they work together? Russia clearly falls on the organized crime side, Mexico is close, the Phillipines, several Russian satellite countries. And more. Scary stuff.
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Dorothy said on October 7, 2024 at 6:39 am
My beekeeper husband said yellow jackets have been a real problem at the three places where he has his bees. He has some method of making a trap using 2 liter bottles but I don’t go with him when he puts them up, so I have no idea what that is. Maybe Google can show you if you really want to know. Also now I feel really stupid for something I did yesterday afternoon. I was in my sewing room in the basement and was about to let the dog out thru the sliding glass door. I saw a bee (it was actually a yellow jacket I learned later) on the screen. The fly swatter was upstairs so I reached for its wings, opened the door and flung it outside. I guess maybe next time I’ll at least grab a kleenex to do that and hope it doesn’t sting me through the tissue.
I have a serious question, Nancy, about your comment to research real estate outside the US. Is that really something you’d consider if he wins? Lots of people threaten that but I wonder how many actually follow through. If he wins again my psyche is going to be deeply DEEPLY wounded so here’s hoping Harris gets the momentum and buries him early on November 5.
Also I was diagnosed with bursitis in my left hip two weeks ago. I’ve been taking 500 mg of naproxen twice a day. But five days ago I started getting red welts that itched like mad on my arms and some on my legs. It took me awhile to connect this to the probability that it was a reaction to the medicine. So I stopped the naproxen over the weekend and sent my doc a MyChart message about it. I know you can develope allergies at any time but has anyone else here ever reacted to naproxen like that?
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nancy said on October 7, 2024 at 9:33 am
A lot would depend on how bad it got here, but I would certainly at least consider it. Alan is another matter. It would mean a huge, HUGE lifestyle change, i.e. selling everything we have, for starters. But if Kate went overseas and was able to put down roots, we would certainly follow her. For now, it’s mostly a fantasy. I talked to a high-school friend who has settle in the UK and says she’s never coming back. Her advice: Find a place you like first, then start the process.
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Jeff Gill said on October 7, 2024 at 7:12 am
Ohio & Indiana today is the last day to register, and early voting starts tomorrow, Tues. October 8th.
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basset said on October 7, 2024 at 7:29 am
Continuing from the previous thread… Joe, I knew your plane was a P-something, couldn’t think of Pilatus.
And going by what I saw on tv Saturday night, downtown was indeed out of control after Vanderbilt upset Alabama… fans pulled a goalpost down, paraded it around for awhile and threw it into the Cumberland River, then swarmed the entertainment/party district nearby.
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Suzanne said on October 7, 2024 at 8:56 am
Deborah @10, I have been following Sarah Kendzior for years as well. She used to be on the podcast Gaslit Nation which was a 1st alert for me. I read her book Hiding in Plain Sight which was eye opening. Too much of what she has predicted has been shown to be true. She has said for years that Merrick Garland will not go after Trump because he is too in the thick of it, friendly with too many nefarious players. It was from her that I discovered that Antony Blinken’s stepfather was Epstein confidant Ghislaine Maxwell’s father’s lawyer and one of the last people to speak to him before his untimely death from falling overboard from his yacht. I guess no Russian windows were available at the time.
I don’t want to be a conspiracy theorist but…
Read Kendzior’s free substack newsletter here and is worth reading. It is sobering:
https://sarahkendzior.substack.com/?utm_source=navbar&utm_medium=web
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Dexter Friend said on October 7, 2024 at 9:03 am
My middle name is Milton and that means that like me, Hurricane Milton is a bad, bad happening.
Jon Meacham is always referring to This Great American Democracy Experiment. Lara Trump said this election is Good v. Evil, but as Donny Deutsch said just moments ago, she flipped the script. Richard Milhous Nixon was evil, Ronald Reagan was evil, and certainly Bush43 was evil, but Trump is challenging Reagan for worst, most evil President and presidential candidate in our short history. Trump said people might hurt any Harris supporters in his crowd yesterday., Actually, he was hinting laughingly he would expect his minions to physically thump Harris people.
October 7. I am continually grateful Joe Scarborough points out how it’s not believable that the IDF and Mossad could not respond quicker than 14 hours to the kibbutz areas . Netanyahu still was telling Qatar to fund Hamas, even up to October 7, 2023.
I also did not like when Harris was asked by Bill Plante about criticizing Netanyahu, she simply said America is a staunch ally of Israel. She should have said regime change is the best option there…but I am dreaming. Netanyahu is a loose cannon just trying to hang on to stay out of prison.
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Mark P said on October 7, 2024 at 9:57 am
Have you seen the MAGAt shit coming out of the Helene disaster? FEMA spent all their money on illegals, the government is stopping volunteers, Biden was late declaring an emergency. It’s probably Russian disinformation, fed to willing/stupid MAGAts to repeat for their neighbors. Marjorie Taylor Greene has a new stupidity, vying with Jewish space lasers: the Democrats controlled the path of Helene to hit Red areas. Such stupid fucking morons. I have mentioned before listening to a historian talk about how tremendous social change can happen without anyone really noticing until it’s too late. I think we’re at the it’s-too-late stage. I’m wondering if partition is the answer. Mass migration of sane people out of stupid fucking moron territory. It would almost be worth seeing them descend into a combination of the worst parts of a Central American banana republic and Russia. Vance and Elon sitting in a tree.
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Jeff Borden said on October 7, 2024 at 11:33 am
I suppose the language barrier would limit us to the U.K. Coastal Portugal would be lovely, but that’s a tough language to master. We found Portugal to be the friendliest nation we’ve ever visited and the seafood is fabulous. But it does get very, very hot in the summer, making the coast most attractive.
Could a 73-year-old man and his 79-year-old wife pull this off? I wonder. But living in a nation ruled by MAGA maniacs would be a powerful incentive.
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jim said on October 7, 2024 at 12:53 pm
Jeff Borden, my choices are Belize and New Zealand re language and lifestyle. They both have relatively easy routes to permanent residency. Yes, I have been researching on and off since the 2020 election cycle.
Although NZ English would certainly take me awhile to get used to.
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Heather said on October 7, 2024 at 1:44 pm
A friend and I are thinking about retiring in France in about 10 years–it’s surprisingly affordable outside of places like Paris. I’d love to live in Italy again but not sure about how that country will fare with climate change. France will be hot enough, surely. I speak both languages (French less well) so we could manage, and the visa situation looks doable.
I love Portugal but I really prefer French, Spanish, and Italian food and culture. Plus, yeah, that language is tough, even for someone who knows other Romance languages. I can read it OK though.
No yellowjackets here, but my upstairs neighbor and I noticed a bunch of bees in our units over the past couple days. I looked at the building from outside with binoculars and don’t see a hive, although it could be on the roof or in the vents, I suppose. The invasion seem to have stopped for now anyway. I wouldn’t be that worried except I am fostering more kittens, and I have so many more allergic reactions these days, I wouldn’t want to find out I have a severe allergy to bee stings too.
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Deborah said on October 7, 2024 at 5:02 pm
I think if we had to we’d move to the South of France, language would be a barrier to me but not to my husband.
I had a stupid accident today that I feel terrible about. I was taking my laundry down to the laundry room and had to take the service elevator, a bottle of bleach somehow tipped out of my cart as I was stepping in and it landed on the carpet in the corridor and of course the lid popped off. I immediately went down to the office and told them about it and they sent a maintenance guy up post haste but it had already started to do what bleach does. Yikes, it wasn’t the whole small bottle that spilled but enough to leave more than a few spots. I went back after the maintenance guy left and tried to swab around it with some cleaner I have. I will try to figure out a way to dab it with fabric dye when we get back from our trip. I think I can figure out how to match the color, it’s grey. Our neighbors on the floor won’t be happy to see it for sure, especially the guy who lives across the hall. I will leave a note letting them know I did it, and that I’m sorry and it can hopefully get fixed.
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Julie Robinson said on October 7, 2024 at 5:40 pm
It’s all hurricane, all the time here. Gas line this morning was 25 minutes long, grocery had no bananas or bread, so we got buns and tortilla shells. Someone calls or stops by every 15 minutes. The 92 yr old is semi-hysterical which adds to the fun. There are actually people evacuating.
Another issue is the Helene debris everywhere. The city says it’s going to pick it up but it hasn’t happened. It’s much worse on the west coast, where people had to empty their entire homes.
Dorothy, you can become allergic to anything, but you’ve probably already heard that from your doc. Have they suggested PT? The work we’ve done with our trainer has eliminated 98% of my hip pain, and it was almost constant.
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Deborah said on October 7, 2024 at 7:09 pm
This is good, at least I thought so, David Frum writes about Vance’s vulnerability https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2024/09/tim-walz-debate-jd-vance/680060/?gift=e2EpXMuPtOgT-df8U_sJIKNXloa3wsftV3RDXvegPW0&utm_source=copy-link&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=share gift article from the Atlantic.
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Deborah said on October 7, 2024 at 7:43 pm
I voted today at one of the super sites, as they call them, in the loop in Chicago. For you Chicagoans, it’s easy, at 69 West Washington 6th floor and there’s another one on Clark don’t remember the exact address. Later in October they open more in many more neighborhoods . It feels good to have checked that box for Harris/Walz. Now if I get hit by a car or whatever, at least I got that done.
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Mark P said on October 7, 2024 at 8:00 pm
I guess we’re feeling the effects of Helene here in NW Georgia now. The toilet paper aisle was nearly empty when I stopped at the grocery store this evening.
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Colleen said on October 7, 2024 at 8:09 pm
Milton appears to be headed directly to our street. We’ve got the hurricane shutters up and are going to ride it out. Insane traffic makes evacuation not a practical option, plus, we have cats.
Why is the POTUS race so close??? Are we really that horrible as a nation? They aren’t even pretending they aren’t disgusting racists. Everything is the fault of “the illegals” who just happen to be brown people. No dog whistle needed.
I have a friend who has relocated to Portugal. I don’t know where I’d go if I could…but I can’t…I can’t do what I do from overseas (HIPAA regulations)and my husband would never move out of the US.
Got back from my European trip a couple of weeks ago. We had some weather issues, but it was an amazing trip. It was nice to be away from the firehose of Trump news. Met a couple from Australia who wonders WTF is going on here. I wish I knew….
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David C said on October 7, 2024 at 8:34 pm
I couldn’t go overseas either. ITAR (International Traffic in Arms regulations). I don’t think other countries would to too cool with having to take on my wife with Parkinson’s (We think. Won’t know for sure until February). One thing I wonder about is if other countries will slam the door shut if things go really off the rails like the US did to European Jews.
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tajalli said on October 7, 2024 at 11:13 pm
The email scam I was hit with has been described on Huff Post.
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/extortion-scam-house-address_l_67000a35e4b085d20297044f
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Mark P said on October 8, 2024 at 12:51 am
I violated my rule of interacting politically with my neighbors on Facebook. We belong to a local group including the valley to our north. It’s usually lost pets, who does house painting, is the road over the mountain open, things like that, but last week someone commented on how smart all the neighbors were, based on how many Trump signs they saw. I didn’t react to that, but today someone posted some of the absurd lies about how FEMA spent all their money on illegal aliens, leaving not enough for Helene victims, and all they were going to get was $750. Of course that’s bullshit. I pointed out that it was a lie, and that the $750 was immediate aid for food and things like that, but additional money would be available later. I pointed out that hurricane recovery takes a long time, not a few days. I pointed out that Congress just passed a FEMA funding bill, and the only people who voted against it were Republicans, including our own Marjorie Taylor Greene, and several from Florida and North Carolina. It all flew past him without even grazing his ear. He said he got his information directly from the people in North Carolina, not CNN, and I sounded like I worked for the government. It’s hard to believe that these otherwise decent people can be so stupid.
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Dorothy said on October 8, 2024 at 6:07 am
Yes Julie, she gave me some exercises to do. First she sent them in MyChart, but there was no hyperlink to click on. I messaged the office, and a nurse replied that she’d print them out and mail them to me. She forgot. I called the office 8 days later and said “Could you please send me the exercises?” They just arrived on Saturday. I didn’t make time to do them yet but I will today. yesterday I had a mammogram and did a blood draw ahead of my phlebotomy appointment tomorrow, but my iron levels were all fairly low or mid range, so I have a feeling I won’t need the phlebotomy. They’ll call me if that is the case.
It was years ago that a doctor told me you can become allergic to anything at any time so I already kinda knew that!
I really wish my brother in s-i-l in Palm Harbor (Tampa area) would have taken us up on our offer to come here. They are both in their 70’s and I just feel like they should have taken safe shelter rather than stay, primarily in case they lose power. That was his excuse to stay put. Their cat died a few months ago. There’s no reason they should stay there. I don’t know what I’d do if I were in their shoes.
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Dave said on October 8, 2024 at 8:13 am
Dorothy, I’ve been thinking about the folks in Palm Harbor a lot, I can’t remember if I’d said before that is where we lived for the six years we spent down there, in a 55+ community called Highland Lakes.
We learned that my wife’s brother, who lives in a condo not very far from the Clearwater Beach, lost his car to Helene, it was in a ground floor garage under the condo building. His brother-in-law lives in Palm Harbor in a non-evac zone and they told us they were going to go to his house for the storm.
Mark P., I try not to say too much about politics but over the time we’ve lived here, I know that my neighbors on both sides of us do not like that buffoon. Yesterday, we kind of stumbled into that topic and I finally said that I absolutely hated him and give my TV a one-fingered salute when he shows up and my neighbor laughed and said, “I do that, too”.
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alex said on October 8, 2024 at 8:20 am
Deborah @ 24, I had a similar incident not too long ago. We bought a bottle of bleach at the grocery store and placed it on the rear floor of our vehicle. Thank God we didn’t put it on the seat. It tipped over, the cap was evidently not secure and it ruined the carpet. I don’t know whether some asshole deliberately loosened the cap while it was on the store shelf, but it’s hard to imagine that it wouldn’t have made a mess already on its way to the store from wherever it was produced.
Early voting starts today in my community and I plan to go and get it out of the way sometime this week.
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Joe Kobiela said on October 8, 2024 at 9:10 am
Wife and I stopped in to early voting @8:05 in Auburn this morning and we were out by 8:20
Pilot Joe
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Suzanne said on October 8, 2024 at 9:45 am
Dorothy, you mentioned getting a phlebotomy. Since my leukemia treatments involved many, many blood and platelet transfusions, it caused a high ferritin level in my system that was beginning to cause liver damage so I was introduced to the world of therapeutic phlebotomy! It’s not terrible, but the next day, I am always wiped out. My ferritin level has lowered to a normal level so my doctor is monitoring but I expect to have more blood lettings in the future if it rises again. Fun times!
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tajalli said on October 8, 2024 at 10:34 am
Received phone messages from both the state and county that the vote-by-mail ballots have gone out. VBM drop boxes were open yesterday, so I’m just waiting for my ballot.
Our county elections office went from highly efficient/effective to bozo-byzantine over the past 5 years. I stopped serving as a polling inspector after they gave me 2 precincts and 1/2 the clerical staff needed (I’d recruited 3 of the 4 I had anyhow, needed 8). I overheard an inspector being told to recruit her own clerks (she had none!) the Friday before the election.
For the primary, I got a sample ballot with candidates for the east county while I live in the west county – different voting districts on several counts.
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