Welcome to The Moose Pond! The Welcomings posts give the Moose, old and new, a place to visit and share words about the weather, life, the world at large and the small parts of Moosylvania that we each inhabit.
Welcomings will be posted at the start of each week (usually Saturday night with a Sunday date). To find the posts, just bookmark this link and Voila! (which is Moose for “I found everyone!!”).
The format is simple: each day, the first moose to arrive on-line will post a comment welcoming the new day and complaining (or bragging!) about their weather. Or mentioning an interesting or thought provoking news item. Or simply checking in.
So … what’s going on in your part of Moosylvania?
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NOTE: The comments page will split off after 20 or so left margin comments with the most recent comments on the current page. To see the older comments, scroll to the bottom of the page (right before “Leave A Reply”) and use the Pages Tool, shown here with 3 pages of comments available.
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COUNTING DOWN THE TIME UNTIL DECENCY RETURNS …
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Good “morning”, Motley Meese! The week begins …
Morning low of 18 degrees in Madison WI with an expected daytime high of 28. Mostly cloudy skies are in the forecast.
Have a great day, all y’alls!!
Sunday Meese. 22 here in Kingston NY, going up to 37. The news on COVID is grim, and the internal terrorist threat continues. We’ll just have to help each other get through this.
Puerto Rico
There are 65 adult patients in intensive care and 71 on a ventilator. In addition, 2 pediatric patients continue in an Intensive Care Unit
Sunday music
The thought of music & drumlines accompanying MVP is just so very heartening. The sound of hope. And music to do the so-very-much needed work by.
Good morning, raining now and wintry mix or if we’re lucky, snow later. I wrote a diary about the AIDS Ride yesterday at the orange place – it it video-heavy. Got a couple of donations, will share it around some more today. Otherwise, watching the news & waiting for snow.
{{{anotherdemocrat}}} I’ll check out your diary sometime today & boost it on twitter. My Social Security comes in on the 20th and I’ll see what I can pry loose. Healing Energy & moar {{{HUGS}}}
Sry – just saw your diary this morning – sharing!
It’s 28 heading for 39 and can’t decide whether or not it’s gonna be sunny. sigh. But we did get 8.2 KWHs yesterday, best since November I think, so while we’re nowhere near on track, it was a good day and did a little catching up at least.
I wish people would get magic impeachment out of their heads. Impeachment doesn’t do a damned thing, change a damned thing, unless it’s followed by conviction and removal from office. Hell, even convicted doesn’t do anything unless it’s followed by removal from office. I want those evil, genocidal, traitors indicted and tried in courts not run by twitler’s enablers/handlers. I want as many of them as possible put in prison for life and their ill-gotten gains go to making restitution for the harm they’ve done. Impeachment-conviction-removal from office does none of that. Other than taking the benefits of serving away from the specific individual who’s impeached & convicted & removed from office, impeachment does nothing but let the federal, state, and local AGs start the indictment process. That’s it. Don’t tell me I don’t want accountability because I think impeaching in a kid who’s gonna be tried in his daddy’s court is a waste of time, energy, and political capital we need to spend on dealing with pandemic and economic depression.
Cat decided he was tired of being petted and bit. Hard enough to draw blood although not a real bite. And I need to do sausage this morning. I guess there’s gonna be some of my own blood in this batch. sigh. My hands hurt anyway so I’m doing my online stuff now in hopes they’ll warm up and stop hurting. But in a few I’ll go to Dee’s diary and start the music. Then get back to work. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Ye gods, bfitz! Was this one of the black formerly feral cats? I hope you can get your cat bite properly seen to—I have an aunt, much older than you, who decided to “ignore” her cat bite and consequently suffered horribly.
Just hope your day improves as it winds on. Blessed be!
Yes, but he never was really feral. Just dumped. A lot of cats do that. They want to be petted when they want to be petted but you better stop when they want you to stop or else. More times than not it doesn’t even break the skin. It’s not a real bite. This did break the skin but just barely. I washed it & treated with alcohol (since that’s what I had handy) immediately just to be on the safe side but truly not a “cat bite” within the meaning of the act so to speak. Those are basically injections of whatever bacteria happens to be in the cat’s mouth at the time and absolutely need to be dealt with medically. The signs are hard to miss. Your hand swells, feels hot, and turns red within an hour or less. (Yes, I’ve had one of those, too.) I promise you I’d have headed for the 24-hour walk-in clinic if that’d happened. {{{Diana}}}
Good Sunday afternoon, Moosekind! Sunday mornings are always so busy. It’s a glorious day here in Ashburn, although very cold and windy: so cold and windy I won’t even try to go for a walk. It’s 44 F. right now, going up to 46 F.
Despite the beautiful day I feel depressed. I don’t think the Rethugs will EVER be punished for their evil and their corruption. I just don’t know what to think right now, really. Later in the year, definitely after Labor Day, I’ll be working to get the state Dems reelected. I wish we had elections at the same time everyone else does. Ours are in off-years to keep Black people from voting. Huh!
The rugs I washed yesterday are drying in the wind on the screened porch. The stew for tonight’s dinner is simmering in the slow cooker. I have to look for a recipe for bread pudding for tonight’s sweet course.
Still have a lot of desk work to do today. It’s to be hoped that today I’ll actually feel like doing it. I also want to establish a “tax box” so I can file as early as possible. Michelle Singletary says do it as soon as you can and do it electronically before someone steals your identity.
With that cheery thought I’ll wish everyone at the Pond a good day.
Are you feeling better? I, for one, am certain that every time I have congestion for more than 6 hours, that I likely have COVID!! We probably forget how often we just get a little cold or just a snotty day. It will be nice when we are vaccinated and don’t have to worry, literally, about every little sniffle.
You are so right, Jan! Thanks, I did feel better yesterday and relinquished the title of “Mucus Moose.” Dearly Beloved kept taking my temperature and every time he did it got lower, leaving me with the impression that I was already dead. Well, dead or not, I can still type.
Good morning, 42 and mostly cloudy. I can see a bit of blue sky and it’s so welcome after this gloomy rainy week. To my relief Emma and her mom will be vaccinated on Monday. They both work for a pediatric dental practice so this will help them be safer from the dreaded virus. We should have an update from our doc’s office this week re when we can expect to be vaccinated, but I expect it will be several months before the rest of the family will be.
Last week I finally found a patio shelter that I think will fit on the lower patio and give us a rain cover so we can continue to have family gatherings outdoors without it being so much work to set up. It’s going to be tight though so I hope I measured accurately. And I hope it will keep us relatively dry and be stable in the wind. I know we can’t be safely indoors together for months to come so having an outdoor option will help me cope. And coping is about all I can do right now.
Best wishes to all and thank you for this coping together space.
Monday Meese. 18 degrees here in Kingston NY, going up to 33. Praying for the safety of our electeds as the crazies continue to foment insurrection.
Woke up around 1AM and haven’t gone back to sleep.
Puerto Rico
Sis, hope you were eventually able to get some sleep!
Good morning, meeses! Monday …
It is 21 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 30. Mostly cloudy skies are in the forecast.
The good news about Twitter suspending tRump’s account is that we don’t have to have dozens of articles from the lazy media describing his angry tweets – there are none! We don’t need to know how he felt about the PGA cancelling the tournament at his golf courses or major corporations cancelling donations to Republican causes. We don’t need to know how he feels about his supporters getting arrested and charged with felonies for their attack on the Capitol and we don’t need to know about how he feels that his new “place”, Parler, is essentially shut down because no one wants to be an accomplice in the plans for the next Capitol attack. We can begin to forget about him so that when he leaves in 9 days, it will be “Donald Who?” and it will be blessedly silent.
Nancy Pelosi has a good plan and fk all those people saying she is moving too slow; JHC on a popsicle stick, her House counterpart is literally one of the mob leaders and is bent on protecting his boss!! Nothing can happen without a vote and votes take time. We will have the resolution requesting Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment offered today, it will not be allowed to be pass by unanimous consent and it will be scheduled for a vote on Tuesday. It will pass on Tuesday, will be sent to Pence with a Wednesday deadline and when he ignores it, the Articles of Impeachment will be scheduled to be voted on Thursday. It can’t move any faster – Nancy Pelosi has no special powers to force a rogue president out of office and we would hate it if the Speaker of the House did have those powers. Are people so stupid that they don’t remember when Congress was Republican and they despised President Obama? tRump won’t be removed by a Senate trial in time to help but the second impeachment will lay down the marker for crimes that shall not stand. Jim Clyburn said they would not send the Articles to the Senate for a couple of months, allowing that body to begin confirming Joe Biden’s cabinet and passing economic relief bills. Like I said, it is a good plan.
I have a week from hell coming up as my weekend work plans hit roadblock after roadblock. So I need to try to clean up the messes, chart a path forward and then put my nose to the grindstone.
See all y’all later!
Good morning. Cold here, but the slow is all gone, at least in my neighborhood. It was so neat while it lasted, though. Watching astronomy on the Science Channel — and they’re showing my favorite episode, the “big bang” one with Georges Le Maitre who is really my favorite figure in physics/astronomy. He proposed the idea of the “primeval atom” 2 years before Hubble’s observations. Einstein said his math had to be wrong, but there was some astronomical event that bore him out and he was told on his deathbed that he was right. Anyway, today: astronomy, and music. I might get breakfast tacos delivered for lunch. And a symbolic walk.
Happy Belated Birthday! I hope you got to do something fun!!
It’s 27 heading for 42 but overcast again. sigh. We didn’t get quite to 6 KWHs yesterday and the m-t-d is only 50 one third of the way through the month. Not exactly a good sign, that. But then it’s like the rest of Life. We started January where December left off and it was always going to get worse before it got better. The magic thinking, that somehow everything would get better as soon as we elected Biden-Harris instead of worse while the Rs did as much damage as possibly while they still had the power to do it, SMH – what part of reality don’t these folks notice. (A-friggen-MEN! on what Jan said about Pelosi. She doesn’t have the powers people keep screaming at her to use and we’d be up a deadly estuary sans means of getting out if she did.)
Well, my hand isn’t in as good a shape as I thought it was. It’s not exactly swollen but not exactly not. My son, who some 25 years back did EMT training & keeps up the best he can, looked at it last night and said there’s fluid build up under the skin. He expressed out some, said it was clear and not puss. Also poked and prodded around the bite site. Since it’s not really painful – feels more like a heavy bruise – and the tissue isn’t inflamed, he said to “keep an eye on it” and elevate as much as possible (ha! It’s my right hand.) but Urgent Care or doctor wasn’t needed at this point and probably wouldn’t be. (Good! The last place I want to be in a pandemic is an Urgent Care facility. & I have places I’m planning for that money to go.) The signs for going to one are: actual tissue inflammation, the hand getting red and hot, and pain. None of which do I have. (Except for the Raynaud’s which is still flaring in both hands and confusing the issue but that’s more fingers, not the back of my hand.) So I will “keep an eye” on it – and do as little as I can get away with to give it the rest I didn’t give it yesterday. As with everything else, we shall see what we shall see.
Off to twitter to check my notifications and boost Aji’s stuff. After that, dunno. I wish I had a stack of little-kid picture books around. Colorful, easy to read, and no issues whatsoever to think about. Turning pages uses different muscles than mouse clicks and pictures/print on a page are so much easier on my eyes than pixels. Oh well. Talk about your 1st world problems! Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Sending thoughts of good health & comfort.
{{{anotherdemocrat}}} thank you. I appreciate them. & same back to you. Healing Energy & moar {{{HUGS}}}
Good morning, 54 and pouring rain in Bellingham. As expected Covid numbers are increasing in Whatcom County so our quiet days at home will continue. I’m trying to maintain a familiar routine because one day is blending into another. So yesterday I changed the beds and talked to my family via phone. And they were all doing the same :)
RonK brought some tulips and daffodils home from the store yesterday so I did have some flower fun. I’ll put the rest of Christmas away today. Best wishes to all.
Good Monday afternoon, Moosekind! The Moose Pond must have a tummy ache because I had to try four times to get in. It’s darkening outside already at 4:30 p.m. All day long it’s been very ugly and grey, but at 3 p.m. it began to lighten up a little and we even saw some streaks of blue in the sky. The current temperature is 42 F.
Dearly and I won the Vaccine lottery today! I received a phone call from a man with a hearty voice in the Sales Office, who said tomorrow a form would be left on the ledge outside our front door with instructions as to what to do and where to go to get our vaccines on Wednesday. Our second dose will be administered on Wednesday, 3 February. I was so pleased I promptly ate a small packet of trail mix.
Today’s selection of fine whines: I can’t decide whether I have a cold that has never left, or a severe allergy attack. Yesterday wasn’t as bad as Saturday but I’ve run right out of cold pills. I took Allegra and a Tylenol at breakfast time yesterday morning and got through the night by taking one Tylenol PM. Anyway, I am very reluctant to leave the campus for any reason, so I’ll put off visiting the store for more cold pills as long as possible.
Since the attempted coup last Wednesday I have been unable to focus on anything or do any work. It’s a little better today. I’m at least THINKING about working. I have some background material to read and a writeup to work on. The woman who interviewed me sent me a writeup of the interview. Regarding that, I have two words to say: one is “Oh,” and the other is “dear.” I’ll whip it into shape, but, uh, what happens the next time she interviews someone and writes it up?
Apparently we don’t yet know the HALF of what really happened Wednesday and it is going to get worse. I have to find out what a “boogaloo” is. Apparently they’re coming to town on Sunday and will be here to disrupt the Inauguration and kill everyone on Wednesday. I hope Biden-Harris’ security team know what the hell they’re doing. The Trumpanzees are crazy and evil.
Will try to be here earlier tomorrow. I love the fact that he’s no longer on Twitter. Hope everyone is having a good day so far.
Yay for winning the vaccine lottery!!! Which one will you get or do you know yet?
I don’t know yet, unfortunately, It’s probably Pfizer. A staff member just delivered the instructions. Our time window is 10:45 to 11:45 a.m. tomorrow.
After we receive the first dose I think I’ll feel more confident about going out to the grocery store. Have been staying very close to home because of the variant.
Stay close to home for at least two weeks after the first dose. The three House members who caught COVID from the Republican colleagues on Wednesday were vaccinated – it takes two weeks to be immunized and then you don’t achieve the 95% efficacy until you get the second dose.
I was excited to hear that they are releasing more vaccine and that the CDC (soon to be run by a real scientist – and trusted public health professional) has recommended that they start vaccinating 65 year olds regardless of medical conditions. That would include me! I am ready to get vaccinated and start the countdown to normalcy. We all need to stay masked in 2021 but soon we will see the light at the end of the tunnel.
Just signed up me and hubby – we are both eligible. Will now wait for appointment.
Good morning, meeses! Tuesday …
It is 21 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 34. Foggy this morning and mainly cloudy the rest of the day.
So Joe Biden is saying that he won’t be “cowed” and refuses to consider that it is dangerous to stand outside at the Capitol to take his oath of office. Goddess help us. It is not being cowed to take extreme precautions to insure the continuity of leadership 14 days after a murderous mob tried to overthrow the government and install a dictator. If he doesn’t change his mind, I will not watch the inauguration live but will view it later. I am 100% certain that tRump’s minions are being told that if the incoming administration is wiped out, tRump remains president. No, no he doesn’t. The president would be Nancy Pelosi unless she is foolish enough to attend an event 14 days after she was targeted for assassination. I hope someone has a plan for succession like they do for State of the Union Addresses – we won’t even have a freaking cabinet!! Here is all you need to know: security for the inauguration is being planned by the tRump malAdministration. Only a fool would put their lives in those people’s hands.
I need to run a much delayed FireFox update because I lost all my browser toolbars and can’t open news sites. Maybe that is a sign unto me to get back to work. ;)
See all y’all later!
Jan, I share your trepidation.
Tuesday Meese. 21 degrees here in Kingston NY going up to 38.
Took my car to finally get a new tire (it had been flat for 4 days) and wound up having to buy 4. There goes those gov checks that finally got here.
I’m tired of Always on Camera hogging the spotlight, when the Puerto Rican Congresswoman who does her job is virtually ignored.
Late start, I had to restart my computer. Cold morning — and we have freezing fog, so the weather people are talking about that a lot. Yesterday was nice: astronomy shows most of the day — then Captain Marvel was on (yes, it’s a movie made from a comic but it is a great feminist, self-empowering movie) And good food, too — I splurged on getting tiny pies delivered, chocolate pecan, about 4 bites each. Mmmmmm. And I ended the day with 39% of my goal raised for the Ride! So, a nice day. Today: hoping there’s no craziness at the opening of the legislative session; and I’m worried about needing to run in tomorrow (I’m going to seriously dash in, just pick up applications; will be out of the building by 8am, which is probably too early for even insane protesters).
It’s 30 heading for 50 and sunny. So possibly a pleasant day outside. Depending on the wind. Yesterday we got 6.4 KWHs (m-t-d is 56.8) but today could get over 8 if it stays as clear as it is right now. I’m cold at the moment though. Hoping the coffee and oatmeal will warm me up.
My hand is getting better. I can see more of the cords on the back of my hand and much of the current redness is from the band-aids. Still feels very bruised when I close my hand. But that’s about it. Apparently swelling a little by the end of the day is normal. My son tells me it’ll probably be a week before it looks normal. And to meanwhile continue keeping an eye on it and using the Neosporin. So I will. (The Raynaud’s flare isn’t helping any. My fingers are cold enough I could put the fingers of my left hand on the bite area in lieu of an ice pack. And have.)
I got a book from a friend yesterday. Set in early 20th century Scotland and England, mostly Scotland, with a bit of France thrown in. The person the story is about is a good enough guy but not my favorite of the three primary characters. This is a re-reader in a way, but I’m gonna be re-reading the secondary story line a lot more often than the entire book. I know this already. LOL. (& going back in time 100 years is a good distractor from what’s going on here and now. I’ll keep sending prayers for safety to our political leaders, among others, but I’m gonna keep my attention elsewhere. It’s easier on my tummy.)
Need to rest my hand today again, as best I can, but there’s still stuff I’ve got to do (joys of living alone) so I’d best get to them. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Good morning, bfitz! Glad to hear your hand is getting better.
What’s the name of the book you’re reading?
{{{Diana}}} thank you. The book is called Brodie and ashirs nani over at DK wrote it. I think she’s self-publishing but I’m not sure. It follows a Scotsman named Alasdair (Alec) Brodie from in his 20s in 1903 until his death in 1949. It’s not a light-hearted book but the characters are so real you get to know them. And care about them. (Even when you want to smack them.) And cry when they die. I can’t promise you’d like the book. I can only say that I did/do. 😁 moar {{{HUGS}}}
Good Tuesday morning, Meese! It’s gorgeous here in Ashburn, 38 F. with almost no wind! I know this because I just took Monty out. Our high today will be 46 F.
Yesterday in a long texting back-and-forth session with Elder Son, he revealed that even though he and DIL have only one child,he has to get up at 5:30 a.m. to do his run because that’s the only time he has available. (I can only suppose he’s changed his mind about going back to the gym.) Elder Son also said he’s reduced his sugar intake from 4 teaspoons a day (he likes it in his tea) to 1 teaspoon. He’s trying to move the family menus to vegetarian three nights a week. I’m impressed. They’re bringing up little Ethan to have good manners, too. I received a “thank you” video and audio file for the $5 and Happy New Year coloring page I sent him. Nothing from the other three, which gives me something to think about.
Both Dearly and I had a horrible sleepless night last night but despite that, I feel quite energetic this morning. I do need to finish getting dressed. After that all sorts of things might happen, including More Laundry.
Not much else to say except that Sheldon Adelson died. Cannot pretend I’m sorry to see him go. Now, if only the Mercers and the remaining Koch-head would pop their clogs, we’d all be a great deal better off.
Wishing all at the Moose Pond a good day.
Good morning, 53 and raining in Bellingham. The rain is supposed to ease by the end of the week so maybe we can put the rain shelter up then. It’s in a very compact box in the front hall, staying very dry for now!
I made some progress with laundry yesterday and will do more today. Busy work, rest, and a few solitaire games seems to be all I can manage right now. Best wishes to all on this rainy morning.
Good morning, meeses! Wednesday …
It is 27 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 37. Mostly cloudy skies are in the forecast.
I find myself riveted to cable TV news and I hope it is a habit that I can break after January 20th. I know it is not healthy but right now I need to know what is going on and understand what it all means. There is certainly a lot of hate watching: I especially enjoyed hearing yesterday that the Trump brand – and Donald Trump’s businesses – have been ruined and that he and his demon spawn will be penniless. I hope we can impeach and remove because we should not have to pay him a federal pension or pay for his post-presidency office or give him access to intelligence as is standard when a president leaves office. He would surely sell it or trade it for favors.
I have not changed my mind that Joe Biden should not do the inauguration outside on the Capitol grounds. Yes, you can set up a perimeter to stop people from storming the inauguration stands and probably keep the people there safe but do you really want to have to open fire on armed rioters, resulting in a literal bloody mess and the creation of a new set of white supremacist martyrs? I am fine with a simple ceremony broadcast to the nation.
The House has sent the official request to Mike Pence to invoke the 25th Amendment and he has already refused. Next step, impeachment – which will be bipartisan this time – and then on to the Senate. The Senate can take it up immediately if Mitch McConnell agrees and they can have a quick trial and vote to remove him and bar him from federal office forever. tRump always wanted to be a president described by superlatives – he can be the only president impeached twice and the only president removed from office. Historical!
I have a long to-do list today and I don’t want to get distracted so I am going to skip news reading. I will catch up this afternoon.
See all y’all later!