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 to view previous pages, shown here with 3 pages of comments available and Page 2 circled.
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Good “morning”, Motley Meese! The week begins …
Morning low of 12 degrees in Madison WI with an expected daytime high of 23. Partly cloudy skies are in the forecast.
Have a great day, all y’alls!!
I keep a saved comment stored in my welcoming template to cut and paste each week and today the morning low and daytime high and the skies were identical to the comment I saved off! Serendipity!!
I love when that happens. ;)
Cold Sunday Meese. It’s 5 degrees here in Kingston NY going up to 26. Haven’t even bothered to check the wind chill.
Book Banning
Look, I’m going to say it out loud. I’m done with understanding their little fee-fees and listening politely.
I hold these right-wing Christian nationalist misogynist white supremacists in the deepest contempt.
Puerto Rico
Some background:
Good Sunday morning, Moosekind! It’s a whopping 16 F. in Ashburn at the moment, heading for a high of 32 F. The good news is there’s no wind. Otherwise, there’s a blue sky beginning to lighten and the woods are being touched with gold. A pleasant sight, if you can ignore the fact that it is FREEZING. The strong sunlight yesterday melted all the snow off the trees, but it’s sticking around on the ground.
This day got off to a very bad start: I woke up at 3 a.m., resisted getting up until 5 a.m., then lurched bleary-eyed into the living room. I have planned a very active day of housework, which I hate, so this is disheartening. Then the dawg, who’d been sleeping quietly on the sofa while I sneered my way through the Washington Poop, suddenly leapt off and barfed green barf on the carpet. We’ve been trying our damndest to get Housekeeping to set a date for cleaning the carpet—now she’ll have an extra spot.
We’re having what Dearly considers to be a Proper Dinner tonight, so I need to look up a recipe. I might rather crossly make some yellow cake cupcakes and frost them with chocolate icing. I hate the modern fashion of putting vanilla icing on yellow or white cake and chocolate icing on chocolate cake. Overkill, I call it.
Little Ethan is coming at 5 p.m., and his parents are bringing his food. Like all children his age, he only eats certain things. I didn’t have time to go shopping yesterday, and so I told Elder Son.
Okay, Moosekind, I shall take my disagreeable self off to cook breakfast. Perhaps I’ll be a little nicer after coffee! Hope everyone at the Pond will enjoy a relaxing, quiet day.
Good morning. Warm weather again today, high in the 60s. But apparently it’s supposed to get cold late in the week, I’ll have to re-bunch & cover the plants Wednesday. Should get in a walk this afternoon.
Black Music Sunday
It’s 32 going to 56 and sunny. Imbolc weather seems to have come a week early this year. Except the breeze is winter sharp and not Imbolc soft. We got just over 8 KWHs yesterday and the m-t-d is 156.9 – so we should reach 160 a bit after noon. With tomorrow also supposed to be sunny, looks like 170 for the month is going to happen.
OK sleep. Hands still a problem. But I’ve gotten the bathrooms done – not to my mother’s much less my grandmother’s standards, but done – and have stripped the bed. Not that doing twitter stuff is going to rest my hands but different muscles. And resting my back and knees. No bending, squatting, or twisting to do twitter. LOL.
Everybody’s hanging on. Folks I know and all the decent folks in the country as well. Not in a good place, in a very bad place regarding some issues, but hanging on. Doing our best to not be overwhelmed by the current wave of Deplorable, kkkolonizer, genocidal hate. In its many forms. The loud ugly like the current banning books and refusing to mask. The quieter and worse suppressing votes, capping aid to folks who need it most, ignoring/erasing Natives and Disableds in everything from clean water to pandemic impact. sigh. But we are hanging on.
I’m off to Dee’s diary and twitter. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Monday Meese. 3 degrees here in Kingston NY, going up to 29.
Puerto Rico
Good morning from rainy Austin. Raining so hard I was glad I picked the raincoat over the umbrella. At least it’s not cold. In the office today. It’s kinda weird doing Monday and Friday, but I’ll take it.
Good Monday morning, Moosekind! It’s 26 F. here, white cloud is veiling the blue, and today the high will be 37 F.
Tonight at sunset Imbolc will begin. This has always been one of my favorite sabbats for some reason. Anyway, I’m supposed to join a Zoom ritual tomorrow night at 7. I’m so used to being a solitary I probably won’t know how to behave. Never mind, there will only be two of us and my Circle Sister has kindly provided a script.
The late great Carol Christ said that after a certain point she discarded the use of the athame, the pentagrams, altar cloths, candles, and whatnot. She simply practiced in her mind and in everyday living. That’s pretty much where I am as well.
Speaking of Carol, who died last July, here’s a quotation from her three-part series on Patriarchy from the Feminism and Religion blog:
So! She explains the intersectionality of war, religion, control of women’s sexuality, and property rights. So that’s why the patriarchs oppose abortion and contraception. Up until now I had thought, “If you don’t want to have an abortion, don’t have one, but don’t get into my biz.” But saving patriarchy is why they have to get into women’s business!
The WaPo this morning carried an article about how more than half the states will ban abortion if Gorsucks, Keggernaugh, and Coney overturn Roe. Other states, such as NJ, Vermont, and California will become abortion sanctuaries. Wish all the liberal wimmens would move from the stupid states to the Good States.
Wishing a good day to all at the Pond, and now to work!
Abortion will become a felony in Wisconsin. The governor, Tony Evers, vowed to pardon anyone convicted of “felony abortion” in the state as long as he is governor. He is running for re-election in November and I hope for the sake of the women of child-bearing age here that he gets re-elected. With the current legislature, and the gerrymandered legislature for the next 10 years AT LEAST, there will be no ability to repeal that old law. The Democrats here were negligent in leaving that law on the books after the Supreme Court protected abortion with the Roe v Wade ruling. Naive – and ignorant – to depend on a court ruling that can be repealed at any point. There were plenty of opportunities over the years to repeal the law with Democratic majorities and Democratic governors. Sadly, women’s reproductive rights – and women’s lives – are low priority. Bastids.
This: “The late great Carol Christ said that after a certain point she discarded the use of the athame, the pentagrams, altar cloths, candles, and whatnot. She simply practiced in her mind and in everyday living. That’s pretty much where I am as well.”
Me too! I call myself a kitchen witch and use everyday things – and my everyday self! – to celebrate the seasons.
It’s 45 heading for 65 and sunny. Last week of January pretending like it’s Imbolc & shoving Imbolc back into winter. Yesterday we generated just under 8 KWHs and start the last day of January at 164.9 – so 170 for January is pretty much assured and 173 (last year’s total) is very possible.
Lessee, I goudged my left hand with a bit of woodbrick and twisted my left ankle while sweeping yesterday. I really need that. ahem. Hands are otherwise about the same. Maybe a little better but if so it’s a very little. Sleep was decent. Unfortunately not all my brain fog, difficulty concentrating and memory loss, is attributable to lack of sleep. Oh well. I’m still doing better than just about everybody else I know. Amelia’s still dealing with the COVID cough. And the COVID exacerbations of her already pretty severe fatigue. Other than that, we’re all hanging on and doing the best we can.
I’ve got to find a sample ballot so I know what besides the city council race will be on it. Early voting starts tomorrow and I want to do it then, before the winter storm – rain, dropping temps, snow – starts Wednesday. Meanwhile, there’s twitter stuff to do so off to do it. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Good morning, 40 and partly cloudy outside my window today. I was in full retreat from life mode yesterday and forgot to check in so you were all spared my from my grumblings. I’ve got one must do item on my list for this month and as soon as that’s done I’ll be ready for a new month and a fresh start. Best wishes to all.
I’m ready to flip the calendar. I have been thinking it was February anyway so we may as well make it official!
Good morning, meeses! Monday …
It is 19 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 30. The weather widget says “variable cloudiness” but the reality is brilliantly sunny skies. My doggie and I just took a walk and with no wind, it was actually quite nice.
Well it is just after 11:00am and the news in the tab I opened 6 hours ago is quite stale. I will choose to avoid reading any of it and go catch up on my PDF newspaper reading. I had a lot to do this morning and I got the most urgent things done – I hope! I watched parts of the NFL championship games yesterday (mostly muted) and while I wanted both NFC teams to lose, the least objectionable team did win. It will be nice to see different people in the Super Bowl and since it will be Brady-less, I will probably watch it.
See all y’all later!
Good morning, meeses! Tuesday … Blessed Imbolc to all!
It is 30 degrees in Madison with an expected daytime high of 39. Mostly cloudy skies are in the forecast. Spring is definitely in the air.
So being castigated for calling Black women “lesser” is free speech that Ilya Shapiro should be able to spew from his platform at Georgetown? If you say so, white supremacist enabling garbage people. Anyone – ANYONE – who defends him is as disgusting as he is. There is no place in academia for someone who holds his opinions. And it is not just the next justice, Shapiro was racist when Sonia Sotamoyor was nominated. He should go back to the Cato Institute where he is only read by other right-wing racists.
It is the first day of February and I put too many things on my platter for today. I better get the quiet time work done while I can because when the sun comes up, I will be scurrying.
See all y’all later!
Good morning. It rained really hard all day yesterday, so now we have fog. Today’s supposed to be nice, got to water the plants ahead of a several-day freeze. The weather people keep saying it won’t be like last year, just a fairly normal cold snap.
Good morning and kickoff to Black History Month day Meese. It was 1 degree when I woke up, it’s now 7.
Kicking off Black History Month with bomb threats
More bomb threats are being announced …
May the white supremacist terrorists who are threatening HBCUs get Covid and pop off.
Puerto Rico
It’s 54 heading for 61 and sunny at the moment. Warmer than yesterday’s widget forecast – and the rain’s been pushed off until this afternoon. Yesterday we generated just over 8 KWHs and wrapped up January with 172.868 – less than a KWH from last year’s total. Not great but not bad either. February’s top generation thus far is 320.9 KWHs in 2016. No other year is even close. Next closest is 262 in 2017 – so that’s the goal for 2022. Anything over 200 is OK & 225 would put 2022 in 3rd place.
I just got back from voting. Haven’t even had breakfast yet (oatmeal’s cooking as I type). I’ll get milk and maybe a few other things after I get everything set up over on twitter. As far as I know, everybody’s pretty much the same as yesterday. Including me. (Funny thing – the wrist brace fits my ankle better than my wrist. LOL.)
Happy Candlemas, Imbolc, or whatever you celebrate. Off to read the Imbolc diary and do my twitter stuff. Bright the day, Meeses. {{{HUGS}}}
Good freezing Tuesday morning, Meese! It’s 33 F., going up to 41 F. It’s sunny, so I’m washing the bathroom rugs and then will put them outside to see whether they can get a little bit dry. If they don’t dry by 5 p.m., I’ll put them on the WarmRail in my bathroom.
Well, having entertained you with that bit of trivia, let me get on with the rest. M’Daughter just called me to give advice on a tech problem. We’ll talk more about it later.
She gave me a book, which was very long in arriving, called Out of Darkness. It’s a YA novel, and the first page is so gory that if she hadn’t given it to me, I wouldn’t continue. I don’t like graphic descriptions of rape, sex, murder, or catastrophe. Anyway, it concerns a love affair between young Black man and a young Native, and the town where they live hates them so much because of this that terrorists blow up an elementary school.
Anyway, this is Black History month, so I plan to read Black poets and writers. I have just finished Rita Moreno’s autobiography. It was fascinating, I like her very much, but to put it in a nutshell: a talented person who becomes famous pays a very high price on the way to achieving that fame.
Must get on with things, so everyone at the Pond, do have a nice day and happy Imbolc, if you celebrate it!
Good morning, scattered clouds and rain showers outside my window today. It’s nice to see some blue in the sky. I did do my onerous desk task yesterday, so today I need to do a few follow up tasks. I’ve just been doing the basics for a long time so it’s going to take some focused work to get back to an easier to manage desk. Best wishes to all.