Comments

  2. julian says

    @carlie

    I think there’s an open bold tag in there that didn’t get closed properly.

  11. otrame says

    I can foresee frequent variations on the theme “Come on over to thunderdome. I have something I want to say to you”.

  17. Gregory Greenwood says

    I think I may be suffering a cuteness overload from that bunny. I feel an almost irresistable compulsion to write long strings of gibberish along the lines of; Who’s the cutest little bunneh? You are! Yes you are!

    This will ruin my carefully cultivated reputation as a bitter and twisted cynic if I am not careful.

    Time to read a few incredibly annoying creationist screeds. That should return me to my usual curmudgeonly self in no time at all…

  20. says

    One of my rats got sick and got really thin and another one was jerking his whole body with every breath. A week on anti-biotics and thye have improved considerably. Picture of their younger days here.

    That stuff’s expensive though. $108 for the antibiotics when I haven’t worked in months and I’m not drawing unemployment. If all goes accordign to plan, U of I will finally give me the BA I finished in May on Friday and that should help me get work.

  23. CompulsoryAccount7746, Sky Captain says

    Think fluffy bunnies.

    Daaaw. Who’s got a vanishingly short life expectancy if released into the wild? You dew!

  31. says

    Yay, bunneh!

    While I love a well-intentioned, knock-down, drag-out fight, sometimes you just want a place you can have calm, orderly conversation without having to worry about being sniped by a slightly over-anxious embattled warrior.

    So yes, what this means is Kitty is back on the thread at least temporarily given I’m starting a two week night shift.

  32. says

    When my little brother was about two, he used to stick his finger in our cat’s cats mouth and say “Bite! Bite my fooner!” (Pronounced with the same vowel as book.) She would look miserable and try to move her head out of the way and shove his finger out with her tongue. Then, he tried it with a rabbit. He’s lucky he didn’t lose the tip.

  34. maddog1129 says

    I like the cute bunny picture, though the preview size made it look more like a deformed muffin.

  38. chigau (違う) says

    PZ
    In my first (under the New Rules) act of telling you how to run your blog:
    would you consider changing the name of the tab from “Dungeon” to “The Rules” or such-like.
    Dungeon is an in-joke and newbies have no way of knowing what the standards are.
    —-
    And what about the Mollies?

  40. fluffybunny says

    After years of lurking and not having anything to add I finally had to register so I could comment.

    Awwww cute little bunny.

    PZ, please use more bunny pictures instead of those silly octopodes that are much better when breaded and deep fried.

  41. dantelevel9 says

    My cat eats baby bunnies and leaves bloody hanks of fur on the front walk. Just thought I’d share that.

  43. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Okay, I’m back.

    I have been experimenting with tea! I found a tasty one that the cart in my building sells: this stuff. DELICIOUS.

  44. Monsterplow says

    Oooh, let’s sing hymns!!

    God hates puppies,
    He killed them in the flood,
    God hates baby elephants,
    He killed them in the flood,

    God hates kittens,
    He killed them in the flood,
    God hates fluffy bunnies,
    He killed them in the flood,

    God hates babies,
    He killed them in the flood,
    God hates panda cubs,
    He killed them in the flood,

    But ignore all that, God is da bomb,
    Because he killed the bad peeps too.

    Aaaaaaaaaa… Mennnnnn…

  46. Rev. BigDumbChimp says

    Pat Robertson blames Atheists for the Sikh temple shooting

    Today on the 700 Club, Pat Robertson said that “Satanic” atheists were to blame for the shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin. Robertson claimed that “people who are atheists, they hate God, they hate the expression of God,” and are responsible for the massacre, which was committed by a white supremacist. “They’re angry with the world, angry with themselves, angry with society and they take it out on innocent people who are worshiping God,” Robertson continued. He recommended that people “talk about the love of God and hope it has some impact” to stop violence.

  49. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    Pat Robertson blames Atheists for the Sikh temple shooting

    Because all disgraced white supremest ex-members of the US Army are atheists.

  50. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    I am moderately amused. I got new glasses. I previously had been a contact-lens person, but lately I’ve been getting this burning sensation from them. Talked to the optometrist, and got told that this happens, only thing to do was experiment with brands of lenses and fluid.

    Decided to go glasses full-time. Got new frames! I had a pair of glasses, but the frames were ancient. Went with a cute and trendy style.

    Bought them, had them fitted. Take them home, and noticed that inside the eyepiece is a little piece of text that says, “XOXO Hipster CE.”

    I bought hipster glasses.

    *buries head in hands in utter shame*

  51. AshPlant says

    Hang on, Esteleth, surely if it says hipster, it can’t be hipster? In a similar way that something that had ‘Punk’ in the brand logo wouldn’t have been punk?

  52. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Hang on, Esteleth, surely if it says hipster, it can’t be hipster? In a similar way that something that had ‘Punk’ in the brand logo wouldn’t have been punk?

    …

    You’re right. No self-respecting hipster would buy these. Huzzah!

    I am saved.

    I can proudly wear my “hipster” glasses with my skinny jeans (yes, I am wearing skinny jeans today) and my “Baking is science for hungry people” shirt in pride.

    …

    DAMMIT MY JAVA KEEPS CRASHING FUCK YOU JAVA *flail*

  53. says

    Today on the 700 Club, Pat Robertson said that “Satanic” atheists were to blame for the shooting at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin. Robertson claimed that “people who are atheists, they hate God, they hate the expression of God,” and are responsible for the massacre, which was committed by a white supremacist. “They’re angry with the world, angry with themselves, angry with society and they take it out on innocent people who are worshiping God,” Robertson continued. He recommended that people “talk about the love of God and hope it has some impact” to stop violence.

    Except the Sihk don’t’ worship God, Pat. That’s been your stance for the last several decades.

  56. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Does anyone know Java? Srsly, I just want to play with ImageJ. And I keep getting an “out of memory” error. FFS. My computer has 8 GB that I paid for so that I could do this work. It gives me a “Out of memory. All available memory (395MB) has been used.” error. Where is this 395 MB coming from?

  57. chigau (違う) says

    Adolescent magpies are overbearing, obnoxious, flying shit eaters.
    And if I can build a sling-shot, there will be fewer of them.

  58. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    Except the Sihk don’t’ worship God, Pat. That’s been your stance for the last several decades.

    All other religions do not worship the big sky daddy(Or at least the correct version there of.) thus making all other religions atheistic.

    Life is so easy when meanings can be bent into nothingness.

  61. Pteryxx says

    Esteleth: one common problem might be conflicting Java versions; if you look in Add/Remove and see a whole list of Javas, remove all of them except the highest version (should be version 7 update whatever). Same versions with different update numbers can conflict with each other too; or, just remove *all* Java and reinstall the latest version from scratch.

    Also, some programs just don’t play well with Java. It might depend on what program you’re using, sorry to say.

  63. Pteryxx says

    oops – also Esteleth, are you sure it’s Java causing the out-of-memory error, and not some other process or malware?

  64. Rev. BigDumbChimp says

    Aaaand my department (Sociology) just sent me a message offering a guest lecture from a psychic.

    I give up.

    They knew you’d say that.

  65. Owen says

    Whoever invented Java decided in their not-exactly-infinite wisdom to implement memory restriction on how much memory your program can use. Somewhere in the command line line or configuration there’s probably a parameter called -Xmax (or maybe Xmx? I’m not a heavy Java user) that controls it. Set to to something large like 7168 and it might be happier.
    Or it might be a 32-bit app in which case it’ll only ever use 2Gb of your memory anyway, so setting that to more than 2048 would be pointless.

  66. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Pterryx, I tried that. I only have the one (latest) version of Java installed. I’m using ImageJ, which isn’t supposed to be problematic.

    *weeps* I just want to overlay my immunocytochemistry images! *weeps*

  67. joed says

    @62 mouthyb
    If your skills are tuned up then perhaps it would be a perfect opportunity to show students the nonsense of psychic power.

  68. Stu says

    this

    to the fluffy wabbits of the world!

    Esteleth@56…are you running on Windows or Linux? Are you starting the java app from a bash script (.sh) or a bast file? Maybe your staring from a command line?

    In any case, you have to tell Java itself that its allowed to use more memory by doing

    ./jre/bin/java -Xmx512m -jar ij.jar

    see
    http://rsbweb.nih.gov/ij/docs/install/linux.html

    Hope this helps.

  71. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Theophontes:

    I’m going to need someone to pick me up off the floor. Oh wow. That pic rocks. Me with dredlocks.
    Thank you.

    @45:
    Thanks again. I’ve been Marley-fied. Dredlocks seem like a lot of upkeep. Far moreso than the low top fade I had when last I had hair (1990).

    ****

    KG:
    Are you channeling Anya?
    We do not tolerate anti-bunny attitudes here. Your punishment will be to go forth and spend one year breeding like a rabbit.

    ****
    Yippee Audley’s back!

    ****

    Esteleth:

    I have been experimenting with tea! I found a tasty one that the cart in my building sells: this stuff. DELICIOUS.

    I posed this question over in PET-I’m going to Starbucks tomorrow with T to show our support of the company and they apparently are anti American and don’t serve Coca Cola. For a tea newbie, do you (or anyone else) have recommendations?

    ****

    Janine @58:
    the genocidal sky daddy is also defined as love, so I’m thinking we need to invent our own language. Rot 13: the official language of Satanist Atheists everywhere.

  72. Louis says

    Seems reasonable to me. Maybe that’s because I’ve spent far too long on the internet recently surveying houses for an eventual purchase.

    And because I now live in London(ish), the price of just £276427542763526354635746276263 will get me the shitpile in need of desperate renovation of my dreams. Yay being a dull adult thing!

    Louis

  73. Stu says

    should read bat file and I also assumed you were using a real OS ..sorry (there is an equivalent chapter for Windows) :-)

  74. carlie says

    Aaaand my department (Sociology) just sent me a message offering a guest lecture from a psychic.

    Is this where you are now, or were? Because if it’s where you were, you could send a note to the alumni association telling them they’re getting no donations at all from you while this kind of nonsense is going on.

  76. Rev. BigDumbChimp says

    Not a fan, but damn, sometime I cannot get this tune out of my head. Obviously, not the first, second or third time I have posted this.

    Just in the mood.

    I’m a fan. Love that song.

  77. mythbri says

    For those of you who have hear of/been following the harassment conversation with regard to Readercon, they’ve issued a public apology. And it’s a real apology, not the not-pologies that have been so popular lately. It’s nice to see, even if it is belated, because I’d almost forgotten what they’d looked like.

    http://readercon.org/publicstatement.htm

  80. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Stu,
    I am running Max OS X 10.8.

    In any case, I figured the problem out. ImageJ has a “do not use more memory than this” setting. I nudged the number up, and now I can create my merges.

    Of course, now I just have to persuade my computer that I do in fact want to put the resulting image merge into Keynote. It is only 381 MB. As a .tif.

    …fuck this, saving the merge as a .jpeg.

  81. AshPlant says

    Woo! my good deed for the day. Now I can get back to…what’s the file on top of my intray? “Misc. evil; minor-to-ignorable malicions; general fondling” Hmm, slow day.

  82. says

    @Tony:

    And what am I, fried liver? :(

    Also:

    the genocidal sky daddy is also defined as love, so I’m thinking we need to invent our own language. Rot 13: the official language of Satanist Atheists everywhere.

    No. Then God will just be defined as ybir.

  84. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Tony,
    Starbucks carries Tazo brand tea. Tazo is … okay, in my opinion.

    Tazo’s vanilla rooibos isn’t bad. Give it a shot. Or you could go with a classic blend like their Earl Grey or English Breakfast.

  85. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Katherine:
    Fried liver?
    Nah.
    Fried peas perhaps :)
    j/k
    It’s wonderful to have you back as well!
    :::looks around to see if PZ stocked up the bar…finds champagne…pours glasses for all (sparkling water for Thunk)…proceeds to shake the bottle and spray everyone:::

  86. says

    *waves at Tony*

    We are all Audley. We never left.

    Louis Audley

    Okay, that is hands down the creepiest thing I’ve read today, Louis. Congrats?

    On a personal note: I finally told my asshole sister to step the fuck off. She hasn’t spoken to me in a week.

    *relieved sigh*

  87. onion girl, OM; social workers do it with paperwork says

    *clings* I have no time to catch up with TET the Lounge, but I am going to try anyway. I like the new rules and miss you all like crazy.

    And I will try to post more than just updates to DC Horde gatherings. :)

    If I can keep up. Will try!

  90. Stu says

    Esteleth@80

    Gah!

    I subconsciously discriminated against Mac! (Its obviously a product of my upbringing and social environment…plus the fact that I don’t like ’em)

    I apologize for any offence…I am trying to be a better person.
    :-)

  93. cicely says

    Huh. I didn’t realise that the Jehovah’s Witnesses hit businesses, as well as residential areas.
    –

    mundane
    I don’t like zucchini.
    People keep giving me zucchini.
    Is this stuff really food?

    Nope. Doesn’t work well as missile weapons, either, for anything except extremely short range. Pretty decent as short clubs, though.
    –
    *hugs* for Sophia. Bad/sad/mad situation you’re in. Sympathies and moral support.
    –
    –
    Audley! Kitty! Esteleth! onion girl!
    *pouncehug* flurry for returning peeps!
    –

  94. says

    I went ahead and posted the email on my blog, with addresses and contact information redacted, along with some of the attachments. There are some scary names on those lists.

  96. says

    Cicely:
    Hello hello hello!
    *hugs!*

    Teh lownge needs moar recipes.
    Challenge: my MiL bought me four eggplants (.50 each at her local farmer’s market!), but I’ve no idea what to do with them. Suggestions?
    (Difficulty: I’m already planning to make babaganoush and eggplant parm.)

    Also: how long will they keep?

  98. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    We are all Audley. We never left.

    Louis Audley

    So this is really Audley’s Lounge, eh?

    Oh yeah, before I forget, Audley when is your due date again?

  99. Louis says

    Nice work Audley!

    Now sew prawns into her curtains. Do it. DO IT! Be one of us. Be one of the Evil Ones.

    Louis

  100. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Audley:

    On a personal note: I finally told my asshole sister to step the fuck off. She hasn’t spoken to me in a week.

    Did you offer any explanation, or did you just say screw it?
    Also, what about the baby shower?

  101. onion girl, OM; social workers do it with paperwork says

    Zucchini? Is WONDERFUL! Zucchini bread, zucchini with squash stir-fry and a bit of tofu, zucchini casserole, roasted zucchini with garlic. Mmm…I need to go get some zucchini!

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
    Audley: I use eggplant in a stir-fry: with mushrooms and summer squash and garlic, it’s wonderful. And you can never have too much babaganoush. I’ve kept eggplant for a least a week in the fridge–but I also have Bluapple so that might help.

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

    *waves* to all. *runs* back to work.

  103. Nutmeg says

    Yay, people are back! I missed you all!

    ***

    mouthyb:

    Aaaand my department (Sociology) just sent me a message offering a guest lecture from a psychic.

    Can you go and heckle? Please? And post video?

  104. carlie says

    Audley – Hooray!

    eggplant – ratatouille. Well-cooked onions in olive oil, eggplant, tomatoes, breadcrumbs, sprinkle of sugar. Yum. You can add a zucchini, but it’s not necessary.

  108. carlie says

    Audley: Imam biyildi is pretty tasty.

    Oh holy crap yes. I think that was what I was actually thinking of.

  109. says

    Oniongirl:
    Oooo, stir fry! *marks down*

    (And I have a brand spankin’ new fridge, so hopefully things will keep well. I assume that when eggplant goes bad, it gets all mushy, yes?)

    Tony:
    She started in about my swollen ankles*, so I told her to stop being condescending and that I didn’t want her “advice” and that she needed to get the hell up outta my kitchen.

    Seems to have worked.

    *OMG, TOXICITY!

  110. says

    Platonic hugs to Mr. Myers and the fine commenters here that make this blog a delightful snorkeling dive of discovery, enlightenment, and spiky-sea-urchin attitude.

  112. Louis says

    Audley,

    I will accept heat registers. The Evil Atheist Conspiracy demands your action.

    Is your sister an atheist btw?

    Louis

  114. wholething says

    TET is the Vietnamese New Year. Are we allowed to set off firecrackers in here?

  116. Arkady says

    Hi Esteleth, glad you sorted out the memory problem (I had to do the same thing to create 50-image sequences for a timecourse analysis). If you’re doing the same thing repetitively in ImageJ it’s worth learning how to use/create macros, getting even basic image merges down to one keystroke is a great feeling (you have to save finished macros into the ‘startup_macros’ file but it’s easy enough). You can do some pretty fancy things for analysis too, the microscope facility manager at my faculty showed me a few ways to automatically select regions of interest and build those into analysis macros.

  117. jefrir says

    On the Readercon apology, I particularly liked this section:

    We welcome suggestions for other anti-harassment and pro-safety steps we can take. Please send your ideas to safety@readercon.org and the conchair and the program chair will compile them and present them to the safety committee once it has been formed. The duty of stopping harassment falls first and foremost on harassers and then on those with influence on harassers (their friends and others they respect, and people in positions of authority), so suggestions should be aimed at educating potential harassers, fostering an environment that discourages harassment, and making it safer and easier for people to report harassment. Please don’t send suggestions for how people can avoid being harassed or learn to cope with harassment.

    That strongly suggests that they really have got the message, and will do better in future.
    Now, if only TAM could do something like this.

  118. opposablethumbs says

    Aubergines (I mean, egg-plants, honestly) cut into thin slices make great fritters when deep-fried (quite fast) after being dipped in a batter made with a bit of crushed garlic, paprika, a hint of cumin maybe, dried herbs and whatever seasonings you like best …

  119. says

    Audley: You could also do a tempura. The batter is surprisingly easy, and then you can add sweet potatoes and assorted fresh veg to the eggplants.

  120. Pteryxx says

    tempura… hey, I have a sweet potato to use up. (didn’t fit in the stew.) Do they have to be pre-cooked or just bread and fry the slices direct? /cookingnoob

  121. Grumps says

    Yay, people are back!

    Hear, hear.

    As a long time lurker (7 years) and a very occasional, inconsequential commenter I have seen some comings and goings. but this recent thing was the worst.

    I have learned so much here from the horde. I have learned, laughed, screamed in frustration, been enlightened… fuck, you lot have helped me grow up (and I’m old..ish). Then suddenly loads of you disappeared and the comment quality kinda went downhill. I was bereft…. but y’all is back.. yay!

  122. says

    I just sent Black Hat people my survey on their conference and included a big heaping helping of “you’re making your conferences feel like they’re a boy’s only club as well as being unsafe for women to attend” planted at the very end like a firm boot square up their arse. (In relation to booth babes being allowed at two of the corporate sponsors’ booths and the sexual harrassment at Def Con)

  123. opposablethumbs says

    I think sweet potato might have to be pre-cooked – unless the slices were very thin.

    Greater expertise than mine requd.

  125. One Thousand Needles says

    For tempura sweet potatoes, I always cut my sweet potato into sticks about the size big french fries. These fry well without needing to be precooked.

  126. says

    Audley:

    On a personal note: I finally told my asshole sister to step the fuck off. She hasn’t spoken to me in a week.

    YAAAAYYYY!!!!

    Janine:

    Magpie To The Morning

    Lark in the Morning

    Happiestsadist forwarded me this:

    In a case that pits religious freedoms against gay rights, a rental consultant freely admits she denied a Brampton [Toronto area] apartment to a same-sex couple because the landlord is opposed to their sexual orientation.

    The comments are awful.

    Also, concern troll is concerned.

  127. cicely says

    No. My asshole sister buys into that wishy-washy “everything’s connected! Energies!” spiritual crap.

    Then she won’t mind if prawns are connected to her heat registers. That’s logic!

    *evil grin*
    –
    Eggplant is one of those veggies that I like the look of, but don’t care for, to eat. It’s the texture. Bleh!
    –

  128. Pteryxx says

    For tempura sweet potatoes, I always cut my sweet potato into sticks about the size big french fries. These fry well without needing to be precooked.

    …this opens the possibility of tempura zucchini ‘burgers’ with sweet potato ‘fries’. Awesome…

  130. thunk (MSL+MRO=pics!) says

    Kat: Ouch. I hope the clue-by-four works.

    Audley: Great! Asshole Sister can fuck off.

  132. says

    *looks around and makes herself comfortable*
    Looks like a nice place we’ve got ourselves here. Too bad I won’t be able to stay long at the moment. I’ve got a paper due tomorrow and two finals this week.

  133. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Caine:
    (from The Airing of Grievances thread)

    I’m a she and I <3 you right back.

    I toyed with the idea of referring to you by the proper pronoun, but then I wondered if some of the Pharyngulites prefer your anonymity to be extensive, hence my use of a non gendered pronoun.

  134. says

    Sweet potato cooks much faster than regular potatoes, so I typically don’t pre-cook.

    Here’s a recipe (page 1 includes the recipe for the dipping sauce, also easy): http://rasamalaysia.com/tempura-recipe/2/

    I use corn starch for the non-wheat flour (makes it light and ultra crispy), and the water actually does have to be ice water and ridiculously cold.

    Veg assortment is typically sweet potatoes, broccoli, eggplant, bell pepper, carrots, zucchini, squash, onion or really anything which is relatively firm.* Just make sure to pat the slices dry and not to slice thicker than about 1/2 inch.

    I tend to make this for the partner’s birthday, along with homemade sushi (have I mentioned I live in the part of town which hosts the Vietnamese, Thai and Chinese population here?). California rolls are pretty easy, and I can get a BBQ eel side (the whole side of the eel, not just a few slices) for $10, in sauce. And the fake crab in those markets is ridiculously cheap ($5 for a giant slab).

    * Very green tomatoes fit this description, and yum.

  135. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    I toyed with the idea of referring to you by the proper pronoun, but then I wondered if some of the Pharyngulites prefer your anonymity to be extensive, hence my use of a non gendered pronoun.

    *facepalm*

    Calling a self identified woman “she” will not destroy her anonymity.

  136. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Janine
    (from the Grievance thread):

    Caine is a woman, she does not hide it. Tony, you have been around long enough to know this.

    You’re correct. I do know this. Over the course of the last few weeks though, I’ve been wondering about the desire for people to remain anonymous and how far reaching that might be. While I know Caine is a woman, I didn’t know if that’s something she necessarily wants others to know. I meant no offense. I apologize.

  137. Crip Dyke, MQ, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    Hmph. I go away for a couple weeks during moving chaos, open TET for the first time in ages and find all these cute fluffy bunnies…nailed to the walls.

    Interesting decor choice!

    Well, still busy, but I’ll have more time w/ y’all soon.

  138. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Cipher:
    If by chance you see this, I hope you’ll reconsider. You are valued here.
    If not, please take care.

  140. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    Crip Dyke, just wait till you start wading through the threads you have missed.

    Seriously, very unpleasant.

    You have been warned.

  141. says

    Awww, is Cipher planning on leaving? But she’s done such excellent job on the link round-ups!

    I hope she’ll reconsider.

  142. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Audley:

    She started in about my swollen ankles*, so I told her to stop being condescending and that I didn’t want her “advice” and that she needed to get the hell up outta my kitchen.

    Seems to have worked.

    Wow.
    Was there a weight lifted off your shoulders after that?

  143. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Audley:
    You can also make lasagna by substituting thinly sliced eggplant for the noodles.

  144. Crip Dyke, MQ, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says

    @Janine:

    wait till you start wading through the threads you have missed.

    okay, considering myself warned. Fortunately this whole living with someone who loves madly thing takes some of the edges off nastiness.

    Of course, living with the littles makes getting dressed into a daylight invasion of the Korean DMZ about 1 day out of 5, but hey, that means getting the littles dressed should be relatively easy for the next 4 days.

    Right?

    RIGHT?????

  146. says

    [meta: Hello, everyone! Nice lounge. :)]

    On the Readercon apology and policy statement: Applause.

    On a related note: I was seriously considering volunteering for Eschaton in Ottawa, but I don’t think I want to go anywhere near CFI Canada, especially since Michael Payton seems to be one of those people who don’t like the “groupthink” here about feminism.* But I also found this little tidbit tucked in at the end of their harassment policy problematic:

    Conference staff will be happy to help participants contact local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the conference. However, any attempt to have an innocent person removed from the convention by falsely accusing him or her of threats will be itself treated as an act of harassment and will be dealt with appropriately.

    I mean, WTF? The policy itself is hardly adequate (basically “call the police if you actually have a problem and only physical threats or intimidation count as problematic”) but to stick in a “we assume that you lying bitches will make false reports, so be warned”, that goes to show where their heads are at. I can’t help but contrast that with

    Last but certainly not least, we apologize for contributing to a cultural environment where harassment is common, reporting harassment is difficult, and reports are often dismissed. We should have appropriately addressed the incident at hand and done our part to fix the culture that made such an incident possible. Instead, we became part of the problem.

    from the Readercon statement. Night and day.

    *I tweeted him to ask for confirmation on this point and was, presumably, ignored.

    —

    I stayed up way too late watching Curiosity and the JPL team (I may as well wait for the news conference…well, I might as well wait for the next Odyssey pass for the high res pictures…Oh, man, is it just about 4 in the morning already?), but it’s a good tired.

  147. says

    Hey Audley, sorry to hear about your asshole sister. This might turn out well for you: I’ve got an asshole brother who I stopped talking to back 3-4 years ago and it has been a giant weight off of me ever since.

  148. says

    Nutmeg: It would be fun, but I doubt I’ll have time. Once again, I’m taking four classes and working two jobs (not including the family and other responsibilities.) I anticipate a 60-70 hour work week.

  150. strange gods before me ॐ says

    Weird.

    Conference staff will be happy to help participants contact local law enforcement, provide escorts, or otherwise assist those experiencing harassment to feel safe for the duration of the conference. However, any attempt to have an innocent person removed from the convention by falsely accusing him or her of threats will be itself treated as an act of harassment and will be dealt with appropriately.

    Dealt with how? By calling the police?

  152. says

    Janine, in fairness, there are those here who prefer to be as genderless as possible, such as Ing and Pteryxx, so Tony was simply erring on the side of caution.

    FTR, Tony, I’m not at all shy about my femaleness being referenced.

  153. CT says

    You can add me to the ‘not comfortable with gendering’ thing — is that a word? gendering? anyway, hope you understand my intent.

  154. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    Caine, I was not talking about anyone who keeps their gender private.

  155. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    CT, gendering usually refers to adding a gender signifier to an object where it is not needed. Example, selling pink microscopes to girls. There is nothing wrong with a person revealing what gender they are, or what gender they prefer to be referred to as. That is not gendering.

  156. says

    From this thread. Posted without comment, except bold for emphasis.

    Hotinphx
    7/13/2012 6:24 PM EDT

    Many years ago–mid 1980s–I lived on MacArthur Blvd. Next door was a private school that was sold to the local Catholic Diocese and was being converted into a home for mentally disabled adults. During the renovation, virtually all women who used the bus stop were subject to the most disgusting treatment by the construction workers–not just hoots, whistles, and catcalls, but being asked to “give us a blowj0b” and the like.

    I called the number listed on the license and was connected to a Church office. I told them about the harrassment and repeated what was being yelled. The lady on the other end told me *I* had a “filthy mouth” to repeat it and stated that they had no control over the construction workers. I even called the police after that and was advised to take the next stop up to avoid the construction workers.

  157. Happiestsadist says

    Ibis @ 146: Very good to know my initial gut instinct when I first got to TO about them was correct. Ew.

    Audley: good on you for telling her off.

    Tony: If you ever feel the need to refer to me, I prefer “they”. Overall, I find the deliberate gender-neutral-ing of people who have preferred pronouns of other genders misguided at best. I mean, there are those who prefer neutrality/alternate pronouns, but I think deliberately de/mis gendering people is kind of unpleasant however you slice it. I mean, not knowing is different, but it kind of makes me uncomfortable.

  158. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    Cipher
    I really, really hope you change your mind.
    We would be poorer without you.

  159. theoblivionmachine says

    Cipher (quote mined from a thread soon to be deleted):

    this will be my last post on Pharyngula.
    Cipher out.

    I’m sad to see you go,it’s been a joy reading your comments, I’ve learned much from you, thank you for that.
    Take care.

  160. birgerjohansson says

    Regarding gendering.
    In Swedish, “she” and “he” is “hon” and “han”. In the Finn language there is only the gender-neutral “hen”. Some have started to import the Finn word into Swedish.

  161. says

    CT:

    You can add me to the ‘not comfortable with gendering’ thing — is that a word? gendering? anyway, hope you understand my intent.

    I understand and thank you for letting that be known.

  162. says

    Birger:

    In the Finn language there is only the gender-neutral “hen”.

    It’s a pity that wouldn’t work in English. Not only does “hen” refer to the fowl, but it’s informal slang for a woman in English, hence “hen parties” and “henpecked”.

  163. says

    In the Finn language there is only the gender-neutral “hen”.

    Actually ‘hän’, although ä is pronounced quite like the Swedish e (and vice versa).

    /picking nits :)

  164. carlie says

    mouthyb – oh yes. I could eat all the eggplants that way. I think it’s the sweetness and the onion mixed in. Now I really want eggplant.

    TET is the Vietnamese New Year. Are we allowed to set off firecrackers in here?

    Just be careful not to set the blanket fort on fire.

    I managed to snag Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything Vegetarian last week cheap. It is fantastic.

    However, any attempt to have an innocent person removed from the convention by falsely accusing him or her of threats will be itself treated as an act of harassment and will be dealt with appropriately.

    As Carolyn Hax says when faced with breathtaking displays of assholery: wow.

    Cipher, if you’re scanning I’ll put this here so it doesn’t disappear: I’m really sorry that you feel vulnerable here now. I’ll miss you a lot, and hope that you’re sometimes dipping in to read along and lurk.

  166. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Last week I responded to an article on The Inquisitor about the Chik Fil A crapfest:

    It’s not about freedom of speech. No one is saying Dan Cathy can’t speak about what he believes in. It’s about the hatred and intolerance in his statements, which he tries to mask with religious freedom. 50 years ago, the same type of bigotry and discrimination was used against black people to prevent them from marrying interracially. Hatred, bigotry and discrimination remain a pox on our society, no matter how they’re dressed up. [I should also mention that donating to organizations that are strongly anti-gay shows that the company’s “morals” are questionable].

    I remarked one more time and the response was interesting (in a dumb way):

    Tony Thompson what is wrong with Focus on the family? I love that company. I’ve been listening to their program since the late 80’s. They are a organization helping families. They give seminars on helping families with their finances, becoming better parents, raising healthy children, keeping kids away from porn, etc. That to you is a hate group? Plus when you said someone should give Dan Cathy a Bible, what bible are you reading from? No real theologian would agree with 8 forms of marriage. Ask any Jew or Christian if anywhere in the Bible do they know of 8 forms of marriage. In fact can you show that to me? I’d love to see where you came up with that.

    I’d finally calmed down after everything last week, and now this. I really feel the need to respond to this person, but I don’t know if I have the emotional energy at the moment.

  167. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Happiestsadist:

    If you ever feel the need to refer to me, I prefer “they”. Overall, I find the deliberate gender-neutral-ing of people who have preferred pronouns of other genders misguided at best. I mean, there are those who prefer neutrality/alternate pronouns, but I think deliberately de/mis gendering people is kind of unpleasant however you slice it. I mean, not knowing is different, but it kind of makes me uncomfortable.

    Understood.

  168. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    I once made a joke in my Japanese language class.
    hen へん 変 means “strange” in Japanese.
    The instructor brought a clock shaped like a chicken, so I said:
    変な時計です。
    (hen na tokei desu)
    (That’s a strange clock.)
    It was shaped like a chicken.
    It was hilarious!
    really
    Fine. So you had to be there.
    veal tip

  170. says

    Many, many Moments of Mormon Madness are being explored by Adam Gopnik in the August 13th issue of The New Yorker.

    Gopnik provides lots of detail, including this quote from Mark Twain:

    The book seems to be merely a prosy detail of imaginary history, with the Old Testament for a model; followed by a tedious plagiarism of the New Testament. The author labored to give his words and phrases the quaint, old-fashioned sound and structure of our King James’s translation of the Scriptures; and the result is a mongrel—half modern glibness, and half ancient simplicity and gravity. The latter is awkward and constrained; the former natural, but grotesque by the contrast. Whenever he found his speech growing too modern—which was about every sentence or two—he ladled in a few such Scriptural phrases as “exceeding sore,” “and it came to pass,” etc., and made things satisfactory again. “And it came to pass” was his pet. If he had left that out, his Bible would have been only a pamphlet.

    Gopnik goes on to offer his own Twain-like judgement:

    …a book as boring as this could have been inspired only by the breath of God.

  171. says

    Tony:
    I feel a bit better now about my asshole sister, yes. When I realized that she was completely ignoring me, I was a little sad ‘cos I know that the relationship is completely done, but on the other hand I know it’s for the best.

    Mr Darkheart and I will probably move after the New Year.

  172. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    I said this before but it must be kept in mind; you daughter does not need to be exposed to your sister’s sniping everyday while growing up. It is good to hear that you will be moving.

  175. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    When I was a teenager (partially in the 70s) I painted my bedroom white walls with black trim. The furniture was also painted black. the only colour was this:
    one of those weird google image links
    Fuck. I was kinda weird.
    (I went to post this in the New Rules thread because of a conversation there. But I stopped myself.)

  176. Muse says

    Audley – have you read his blog? Also awesome. I’m very fond of both his books and his blog.

  177. birgerjohansson says

    I bought “Fuzzy Nation” a week ago. I am going to give it to the local library so others can enjoy it. Yes, younger Swedes read untranslated `Merkun stuff.
    — — — — —
    A case when a royal person is actually doing something good: Swedish queen battles child sex exploitation http://thecnnfreedomproject.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/20/swedish-queen-battles-child-sex-exploitation/

    — — — — —
    Weed Monkey
    It’s OK. Nit-picking is what makes us human!
    — — — — —
    Carlie
    I liked Kang and Kodos’ “How To Cook Humans”

  179. says

    I like Scalzi’s stuff, too, but I have to warn you: Redshirts is terrible. Hated it. Multiple endings? Fuck that, I didn’t care about any of them.

    You know how good science fiction takes one simple premise and extrapolates it forward to an interesting conclusion? Redshirts doesn’t do that. It takes one bad, stupid SF convention (the frequent death of Trek redshirts), and then tries to twist the whole of reality to make it possible that it could actually happen. The whole improbably justification jars; if there’d actually been a clever explanation, I might have enjoyed it.

  180. says

    Another quote from Adam Gopnik (referring to comment #170):

    When, in 1978, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints abandoned the rule prohibiting blacks from serving as priests, one church leader, Bruce McConkie, explained, “It doesn’t make a particle of difference what anybody ever said about the Negro matter before the first day of June 1978.” You could find, or think you’ve found, a similar logic behind Romney’s blithe amnesia when it comes to the things he used to think and say.

    Link to page 5, where the quote above appears.

    Gopnik goes on to credit class, not creed, for most of Romney’s oddities, but I think he was right to note Romney’s greater-than-your-average-politician’s skill for revisionist history.

  183. says

    Dammit Ms. Daisy, that was funny/fucked-up shit. I just wish I could hear a recording from the soundboard without the room echo, my hearing is for shit and I’m sure I missed something clever when they were both talking.

  184. says

    PZ, thanks for the head’s up. I saw Redshirts in the bookstore and gave it a pass because Scalzi’s other books looked waaaaaaaay more interesting.

    I mean, I get it; we all get it. It seemed to take a little tongue-in-cheek humor entirely too far.

  186. dontpanic says

    Its been a while since I commented here on Pharyngula (or even paid much attention to comments here in general — spending too much time just keeping up with those on Ed’s blog), but with the new rules in place I may find myself back here more often.

    —————————————————-

    My contribution since both eggplant and zuccini have been mentioned:

    Ingredients:

    1lb ground lamb
    1 large or 2 small onions
    1 eggplant
    2 zuccini
    4 cloves garlic (crushed)
    1 can tomatoes (chopped,stewed)
    1/4 cup chopped cilantro
    2 tsp each paprika, curry, celery seed

    Brown lamb; add onions and cook until tender. Peel eggplant, cube in 1in squares. Trim ends of zuccini; quarter lengthwise, slice into 1in segments. Add eggplant, zuccini;. Heat through.
    Remove from heat, stir in tomatoes and spices. Pour in baking disk coated with cooking spray and bake, covered at 350F for approximately 30 min.
    Serve with tossed salad and pita bread.

    —————————————————-

    Re: Readercon — yeah! Saw that via Scalzi’s twitter feed.

  188. schweinhundt says

    Newbie question: Quoting posts w/a sort of mini screen capture; how is that done?

  193. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    schweinhundt
    I’m not sure if this is what you mean but my standard blahblah:
    .
    [put their ‘nym here]
    If you type
    <blockquote>paste quoted text here</blockquote>
    this will result.

    paste quoted text here

    [then add an insult, if that’s your style]

  194. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Caine: I found the octopus-hat pattern.

    Do you have a color preference?

  195. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Also, there are pics of what the finished product looks like. Do you have an email to send them to?

  196. schweinhundt says

    chigau (loyal NCO)

    I’m not sure if this is what you mean but my standard blahblah:

    Exactly; thanks.

  197. jefrir says

    Schweinhundt, what Chigau said for the blockquotes. If you forget the codes (which I certainly tended to initially), you’ll find some of the more common tags (for applying various formatting things) above the comment box.
    If you’re using firefox, you can also get a formatting toolbar add-on that allows you to just select a section of text and click a button, rather like in Word – much quicker, and less liable to feature offerings to Tpyos.

  198. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Safe space. Safe space. Hey, at least I can have one on the internet, even if real life now consists of rabid fear held together by a squawling poop-machine gorgeous, happy little guy.

    Oh well. Hey… maybe I can put my ‘spare’ time to good use – Audley with DarkFoetus – I’ve got MOUNDS of baby clothing I don’t need now the Squishy has grown out of them, if you don’t feel like buying heaps of stuff, I’d be more than happy to pop things in the post. International boundaries be arsed. Also, I’ve been crocheting a lot lately, so blankets, hats and various other bits and pieces are on the cards. Any Pharyngulites with spawn welcome to avail themselves of my slightly clumsy skill :P

    Other skills on offer – Digital artwork, costume design/making, patternmaking, medieval calligraphy and illumination, spinning, lucet cordmaking, making ridiculous hats, lace making, embroidery and wood carving.
    Just getting started on the carving, but I’ve managed to make two rather funky spoons so far, and am currently working on a lucet as my other one is back at my husband’s place and there’s no way in hell I’m going back there without a cadre of relatives and friends to help grab -all- my stuff.

  199. says

    Other skills on offer – Digital artwork, costume design/making, patternmaking, medieval calligraphy and illumination, spinning, lucet cordmaking, making ridiculous hats, lace making, embroidery and wood carving.

    Damn, you must be one busy person. Cool hobbies by the way.

  200. davem says

    Re aubergines – never found that they taste of much, but they do absorb other flavours really well. My fave is aubergine and Potato curry, taken from ‘An Indian Housewife’s Recipe Book’ – highly recommended, and cheap, too.

    450g potatoes
    1 large aubergine (225g)
    2 large onions
    60ml cooking oil
    1/2 tsp cumin seeds
    1/2 tsp black mustard seeds
    2 tsp tomato puree
    1 tsp salt
    1/2 tsp turneric powder
    1/2 tsp chili powder
    1 tsp tandoori masala
    1 tsp garam masala
    90ml water
    fresh parsley/coriander to garnish

    Peel the spuds and slice into large chips. Cut aubergine into same size pieces too. Chop onions into small pieces. Heat the oil, and add cumin and mustard seeds until golden brown (a few seconds) Add onions. Cook until golden brown. Add all the other ingredients, stirring and cooking for a few minutes. Reduce heat and add the water, simmer for 30-35 minutes stirring every 5 or 6 mins. Into large dish, add garnish. Serves 4 apparently, but I get 2 servings out of it myself. Enjoy.

  201. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    … uh… I have a lot more hobbies than that. Gotta keep the brainBeast occupied or it gets Angry… I don’t like it when it’s Angry. *cowers*

    Heh. But yeah, anyone needs a weird hat or some kind of pattern for a costume or a sketch or… a spoon… just let me know. :)

  202. says

    Wow, Sophia, that’s awesome!

    If you could drop me a line sometime, that would be excellent — my email addy can be found in the link to my blog. Right now I’m not sure what I need (grandmamas are chomping at the bit to start buying baby clothes!), but I’ll let you know closer to my due date. :)

  206. says

    Speaking of cooking…

    Can anyone point me towards “Chinese” recipes that taste like the take-out restaurant stuff, and not like the nasty over-salted sauces they sell at the grocery store?

  207. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    eggplant eggplant blah blah
    What about my zucchini?
    Deep fried chips are the best bet so far.
    Otherwise the compost awaits.

  212. One Thousand Needles says

    I no longer use my brain when cooking. I default to Smitten Kitchen for any and all meal ideas.

  213. says

    Can anyone point me towards “Chinese” recipes that taste like the take-out restaurant stuff, and not like the nasty over-salted sauces they sell at the grocery store?

    As the most common dish served in oriental restaurants around here is “stir fried things of your choice in translucent, slightly slimy and tangy sauce”, I’ll take a wild guess and think you mean sweet and sour. It’s usually a mixture of mild vinegar and sugar, with ketchup for colour, soy sauce for salt, and corn starch as a thickener.

    I know that sounds banal and not at all exotic, but it works. Here’s a tried recipe: Sweet and sour sauce.

    Add garlic, scallops, red pepper flakes or whatever. It’s just a starting point.

  214. says

    I also posted a recipe for orange chicken on the wiki (and, may I add, the day I made it we ended up licking the plates.)

  215. says

    Thanks for the link mouthyb!

    Weed Monkey, I like my “translucent, slightly slimy and tangy sauce” on the brown side, but I’ll certainly give the sweet and sour recipe a try next time I deep-fry something, which could be as soon as tomorrow. I’m pretty sure I have rice vinegar somewhere around here.

  216. Happiestsadist says

    My dinner tonight, as I was feeling lazy, and it’s all nice out so I wanted to make something balcony-dining-friendly: pasta salad with chickpeas, proper feta, cucumbers, tomato, fresh basil, onion, green pepper and garlic, tossed in olive oil and vinegar. And to drink: Gin (Hendrick’s), lime juice and cucumber slices, topped up with mineral water. Mmmm.

    Caine: For what it’s worth, you were being more than nice and generous.

    Oh, and for any Horde people who recall my state of constant freakout over HappiestDadist and his battle with the Big C, he’s now feeling absolutely fine. Especially now that his thyroid medication has been properly fiddled with.

    I am now in a new low-level freakout, over my latest diagnosis of Why I Hurt, and also because I’m considering maybe making a complaint against a doctor who did some really fucked up stuff to me a year ago. The two are related in a bunch of ways. Nice to be back, though.

  217. Menyambal --- Sambal's Little Helper says

    When my wife makes a grilled-cheese sandwich, she grills each slice of bread on one side, with butter—without getting the cheese involved. Then she flips the bread over and puts the sliced cheese onto the already-grilled side, tops the cheese with the grilled side of the other slice, and proceeds to grill both sides of the sandwich like a normal person does.

    There’s grilled and buttery goodness inside the sandwich!

    The bread slices are grilled on each side!

    It’s crunchy all the way through!

    Seriously, I had never heard of anyone doing that, and hadn’t noticed what she did, so when she asked me if I preferred sandwiches “cooked on one side” I didn’t know what the heck she was talking about. But now I know and now I want the bread slices grilled on both sides. Yes, please.

  218. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Zucchini?

    Zucchini and corn fritters. Best with fresh sweetcorn but frozen will do – just don’t get that awesome texture!
    This is a good recipe that also uses chickpeas – I omitted the mint because it’s blecchy in savoury recipes. :P
    This one is simpler but still yummy.

    Yeah, I also do the cooking thing, though being Aussie and not in possession of food-emailing tech, I’m stuck with the more mailable hobbies :)

  219. says

    Improbable Joe: I’m resisting giving a foodie mini-lecture on types of ‘brown sauce’ and why they taste different. Resisting!

    But I can, on demand.

  223. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    But Menyambal, why would you want it to be crunchy all the way through?

  225. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    chigau @195:
    how did you disable the blockquote function to be able to explain it?

  226. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    Crunchy grilled cheese sounds good to me!
    But, then again, I like fried spam.

  227. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Sophia:

    Other skills on offer – Digital artwork, costume design/making, patternmaking, medieval calligraphy and illumination, spinning, lucet cordmaking, making ridiculous hats, lace making, embroidery and wood carving.

    What a diverse array of skills.
    What exactly do you mean by “making ridiculous hats”?

    ****

    Happiestsadist:
    “proper feta”?
    Glad to know HappiestDadist is doing well.
    Hope you’re doing well too. I say go get that doctor.

    ****

    Caine:
    You were very polite and I thought for sure the apology you offered would be accepted. Alas…

    ****

  228. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    Tony
    If you want one of these < to show in a HTML string, type & lt ; (but no spaces)
    > is & gt ;
    (hint: less than and greater than)

  229. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Caine @221:
    Awww he’s just so darned cute.
    When I was kid, I had 5 gerbils (not at once). One of my favorite things to do with them would be to turn the light out in my room, and grab a flashlight and play with one of the little critters under my sheets. Watching them scamper back and forth was soooooo much fun. Cleaning the poop out of my bed…not so much.
    I don’t remember much from my childhood (no trauma, just bad memory), but I do recall having a gerbil who *loved* the ball. I’d put him in it and he would roll around the entire house. It was so cute.

  231. dontpanic says

    More zucchini recipes: Albondigas, a light soup with hearty chunks of vegetables and small meatballs.

    Ingredients:

    * 1 tablespoon cooking oil
    * 1 small yellow onion, chopped
    * four 8 jalapeño peppers, seeds and ribs
    removed, chopped
    * three 4-5 large zucchini, 1/2-inch dice
    * 1 1/2 bunches chopped fresh cilantro
    * 2 1/4 teaspoons dried oregano
    * 2 teaspoon ground cumin
    * 1.5 quart canned low-sodium chicken broth
    * 1/2 cup jasmine rice
    * 1 1/2 cups drained canned diced tomatoes
    (one 15-ounce can)
    * 1 3/4 teaspoons salt
    * 3/4 teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper
    * 1/2 pound ground beef (97/3)
    * 1/2 pound ground turkey/chicken (97/3)
    * 2 cloves heads 1/4 cup garlic (maybe more), minced
    * 1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
    * 1 egg, beaten to mix
    * 1 can sweet corn kernels (Del Monte Summer Crisp = best canned brand)
    * 1 tablespoon lime juice

    Instructions:

    1. In a large pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and half the jalapeños and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the zucchini,1 1/2 teaspoons of the dried oregano, and 1/2 teaspoon of the cumin and cook, stirring, until the zucchini starts to soften, about 3 minutes.

    2. Add the broth, water, rice, 1 1/4 teaspoons of the salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of the black pepper; bring to a simmer. Simmer for 45 minutes (for rice to soften/cook).

    3. Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine the ground beef, garlic, the remaining jalapeño, 1 teaspoon cumin, 3/4 teaspoon dried oregano or 1 tablespoon of the fresh oregano, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, the bread crumbs, and the egg. Shape the mixture into meatballs, about 1 inch in diameter.

    4. Add the meatballs, cilantro, tomatoes and corn to the soup and simmer until the meatballs are just done, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lime juice.

    Actually, I don’t do a lot of measuring for this — my spice usage is probably 2-3x whatever’s listed above. Oh, any if anyone’s planning on ragging on the use of cilantro in both my recipes … you can go drink soap for all I care. That cilantro is good stuff and if it tastes like soap to you its because you’re a mutant; I acknowledge your disability and pity you.

    ——————————————————–

    Tony King of Hellmouth. Basic HTML.
    & = &amp;
    < = &lt;
    > = &gt;

  232. Menyambal --- Sambal's Little Helper says

    But Menyambal, why would you want it to be crunchy all the way through?

    The cheese isn’t crunchy, it’s the bread that isn’t soggy, I should have said. The cheese is melty. (I do like cheese that has been crisped, though, by dripping onto the griddle ….)

    Improbable Joe: I’m resisting giving a foodie mini-lecture on types of ‘brown sauce’ and why they taste different. Resisting!

    But I can, on demand.

    Um, howabout if I ask nicely? This American is plumb ignorant about brown sauce.

  233. Happiestsadist says

    Caine: I am slain by the cuteness! Little bitty rattie face and hands omg!

    Tony: Proper feta as in actual Protected Country of Origin sheep/goat feta, as opposed to the crappy cow kind. (Which isn’t that bad, unless you, say, have an intolerance to the cow part, as The Mr. does.)

    And for the doctor thing…ugh. It was really fucked up, and the fact that it took me a year to realize how badly it fucked me up kind of really says a lot. TRIGGER WARNING FOR MEDICAL AND SEXUAL TRAUMA STUFF: When a patient comes in to a gynecology practice and says that they have a history of PTSD from sexual trauma and a severe phobia of this specific procedure, maybe offer some kind of medication? As opposed to treating them like a drug-seeker, telling them you won’t stop if they ask you to, and leaving them to hyperventilate and undress in the room next to the laid-out tray of large, nasty implements. Also a poor idea: When they scream from the pain because not only does it hurt, but they’re taking longer because of needing to switch implements due to size issues, don’t shush them saying they’ll scare the patients in the waiting area. The patient on the table is already scared. Worst idea: when they’re in shock and having a flashback afterward, don’t tell them they made you feel bad to guilt them into apologizing. And then send a patient who is visibly in shock home by themself.

  236. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    I can smell the local skunk but I don’t see it.
    It’s still light out so maybe later.

  237. says

    Tony:

    Awww he’s just so darned cute.

    Aww, thank you! I’m a compleat sucker for that face. He’s a mean boy, too. He got ahold of Zoe’s ear and was pulling her across the shelf earlier. We’re gonna have to have a little chat.

    Happiestsadist:

    I am slain by the cuteness! Little bitty rattie face and hands omg!

    Hee. Rubin’s crew are 26 days old today. Growing and learning fast!

    ImaginesABeach:

    Little Chas is cute, but rat trading cards – even better.

    Thank you! Carrot is next. Then, probably a series of them eating peas. :D

  238. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    @Ms. Daisy Cutter and Happiestsadist #126

    Happiestsadist forwarded me this:

    In a case that pits religious freedoms against gay rights, a rental consultant freely admits she denied a Brampton [Toronto area] apartment to a same-sex couple because the landlord is opposed to their sexual orientation.

    The comments are awful.

    That is specifically forbidden by the Human Rights Code in Ontario (covers Brampton). A forward of the offending comment/post to the Human Rights Board could bring on some action. I may be suggesting overkill here, but if the consultant purports to sell a service that is bigotted like that, then the “consultant” deserves some attention.

  239. Happiestsadist says

    Lyn M. I imagine that “consultant” is going to be having quite a few talks with the Human Rights Commission in the near future. Hopefully.

  240. Ray, rude-ass yankee says

    fluffy bunnies,fluffy bunnies,fluffy bunnies

    OK, I think I’m in the right frame of mind to comment!

    Audley Z. Darkheart@173,
    Definitely recommend John Scalzi’s books and blog. Funny, talented and entertaining guy.
    I also read and enjoyed the original “Little Fuzzy” book and sequels when I was a teen.

  242. Happiestsadist says

    Ray: Little Fuzzy! YES! That was a favourite of mine when I was a wee thing too.

  244. cicely says

    I am going to start on Charles Stross` new Laundry novel tomorrow.

    I’ve already read it, twice.
    :) :) :)
    –

    Other skills on offer – Digital artwork, costume design/making, patternmaking, medieval calligraphy and illumination, spinning, lucet cordmaking, making ridiculous hats, lace making, embroidery and wood carving.

    SCA???
    –

    Little Chas doing his part in eradicating the evil of peas.

    Well done, that rat! Have another pea, Chas.
    *pea*
    Less pea, more cute!
    –
    OMFG! *hugs* for Happiestsadist. That sounds…horrible.
    –

  245. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    dontpanic:

    Tony King of Hellmouth. Basic HTML.
    & = &
    = >

    It may be basic to some, but I’ve never dealt with any of that stuff. I’m a work in progress.

    ****
    Caine:

    We’re gonna have to have a little chat.

    Are you secretly a Doolittle?

    ****
    Lyn:

    I may be suggesting overkill here, but if the consultant purports to sell a service that is bigotted like that, then the “consultant” deserves some attention.

    I don’t think that’s even close to overkill. Religious beliefs have maintained such a tight hold over many societies for far too long. They need to start seeing pushback. Your suggestion (if applicable) quite sound.

    ****

    Happiestsadist:
    Some doctors have poor bedside manner. This individual is quite a bit worse. Did that doctor take ‘do no harm’ to mean only in the physical sense? Damn.

  246. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    cicely:

    Well done, that rat! Have another pea, Chas.
    *pea*
    Less pea, more cute!

    I think Chas looks positively adorable munching on peas. Perhaps we can round up all the peas in the world and ship them to Caine…

  247. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    @cicely
    However did you guess? :P

    @Audrey
    I shall drop you a line then – might try making you a blanket like I did my little guy, the design makes it stretchy so it’s difficult to kick off and breathable for minimum risk. If nothing else, socks and singlets. You go through them like nobody’s business!

  248. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Audley! Blah!

    Excuse me, my spelling gland is malfunctioning again. Must be low on coffee.

  249. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    I like peas.
    I ♥ peas.
    but I will contribute *shudder* cilantro.
    and
    Tony
    & hearts ;
    (as usual, no spaces)
    =
    ♥

  250. ImaginesABeach says

    I’m taking my Girl Scouts camping tomorrow. Me and six 13 year old girls. What could possibly go wrong? Good thing it’s only 2 nights.

    (Girl Scout rules state that adults may not share a tent with girls, which I explained to the girls when telling them that the 6 of them would share one 8 person tent and I would be in another 8 person tent). And for the record, there will be a second adult in a 3rd tent, but he’s only there for emergencies.

  252. says

    Tony:

    Are you secretly a Doolittle?

    I’ve been accused* of being such before, in regard to all kinds of critters, birds and insects in particular, due to my habit of talking to creatures I want to take a photo of and generally getting my way.

    *using this in a lighthearted manner.

  253. Happiestsadist says

    Cicely: Thanks. I like hugs. This whole thing has been really doing a number on my PTSD, and made my subsequent many, many medical appointments (thankfully with different doctors) even more uncomfortable.

    Tony: And considering the physical harm done during the procedure (damn, even with the saline mixed in, there was a lot of blood on the floor after), the guy was just all-around terrible. So at least for the sake of subsequent patients, I think I’m gonna have to make a complaint.

  254. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Well, now my sordid little medievalist secret has been discovered, I can answer Tony’s hat enquiry with photographic evidence. Bonus chaperon.

    Ignore the me. The hats are your friends.

  256. Nutmeg says

    ImaginesABeach:

    I’m taking my Girl Scouts camping tomorrow. Me and six 13 year old girls. What could possibly go wrong?

    *remembers multiple summers as a camp counselor*

    *passes ImaginesABeach a kit full of first aid supplies, chocolate, rain gear, flashlights, mosquito repellent, cards, books, fire-starting equipment, and some magical substance that will make 13-year-old girls stop fighting with each other*

    I guess it could be worse. There aren’t any boys for the girls to obsess over.

    I liked the 8-11 year old campers, but the older girls had WAY too much drama for my taste. Of course, truth be told, all of us staff members were about 16 at the time, so we had way too much of our own drama too.

  259. tim rowledge, Ersatz Haderach says

    I’m taking my Girl Scouts camping tomorrow. Me and six 13 year old girls. What could possibly go wrong? Good thing it’s only 2 nights.

    I think the number of possible things to go wrong is probably 6!^13/2! Or more.

  261. onychophora says

    I’m so depressed tonight. I’m a science educator. It’s a tough roe to hoe trying to teach evolution to creationists. They fight me continually. Each new day bring the same shit. I am Sisyphus.

  262. says

    I am going to miss the name Zombie Thread. *sigh*

    Ok now I know I’ve been watching too much Family Guy this week: I heard that one with Herbert’s whistly *sigh*.

  264. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    I don’t know if I can take this any more. I feel trapped, as if these lab reports are a heavy weight tied to my ankle, or maybe pressing down on my chest. Hope is fading. My will to live flickers as a candle about to be snuffed out in despair. I’m starting to contemplate whether this is really worth is or not – would living in a van down by the river really be so bad? I may have to live on beans and rice but at least no one will try to tell me that CuCl2 is a precipitate in aqueous solution!

    Maybe I should move to Australia. They don’t have grading in Australia, right?

  266. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    Alukonis
    Take the reports to a stairwell, toss them into the air.
    Those which land farthest get the better grade.
    or the other way.

  267. Amblebury says

    Hi everyone :)

    Audley, good for you. I did something similar with my mother, when my first daughter was born, and while if you have a (sense of obligation/desire to fix things/grief over what could have been) it can sometimes feel odd, and be difficult, it can also be the most liberating thing you’ve ever done.

    Happiestsadist Christ, what an asshole. That made me cry a bit. People like that shouldn’t be allowed within 600 miles of scorched earth of trauma victims and/or PTSD sufferers. Or possibly anyone. I’m so sorry that happened to you.
    –
    –

    Mt Tongariro, the volcano in NZ that didn’t, has calmed down. No fireworks. Mind you I think NZ has taken enough of a hammering in the “Ring of Fire” stakes recently.

  268. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    onychophora
    Go sit with Alukonis.
    and have some grog.
    it’s finest kind!

  270. Happiestsadist says

    Thanks, Amblebury. I’m sorry that it upset you so much, I thought maybe I shouldn’t have posted details.

  271. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    Thanks chigau, that’s a lot more constructive than “set them on fire” or “say I was mugged and they stole the lab reports” or “shred them for cat litter.”

    Also general apologies to everyone for being all melodramatic, it’s the end of the semester and I am pretty emotionally drained and low on sleep.

    Also I’m procrastinating being in here but I can’t help it grading is awful.

  273. Ray, rude-ass yankee says

    cute & fuzzy bunnies,cute & fuzzy bunnies,cute & fuzzy bunnies

    Caine@241,
    Thanks, still read the posts as much as I can, but don’t have as much time to get involved in reading comments as I would like, but I’m on vacation this week.
    I think I’ve missed alot more than I thought with all the reorganization around here!

    Happiestsadist@242,
    I remember being quite excited when they published the “lost” third book by Piper himself.
    I am sorry for your bad experience, I never know quite what to say when people share intense stuff like that, so often don’t comment about it. Will send USB warm fuzzies if you are so inclined.

    ImaginesABeach@250,
    Just did a few night stint with my son and eight other 12 – 15 year old Boy Scouts during their week of summer camp last month (we rotated several parents through the week as they were available). Except for a bit of rain we had a great time (don’t forget the rain gear!).

    Sophia@254,
    SCA stuff? Squeeee!

  274. onychophora says

    Seconded. Grading is truly and completely horrible. Check out this drivel I got on a student’s essay from this week: “If we evolved from the primates why are there still primates? I believe that all forms of life evolve to ensure their survival, so what was the need to evolve into humans?”

  275. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    @Caine
    Thankyou! I do, however, still think they’re wonderfully silly. I give them all horrible innuendo-ey nicknames, too. Those are variations on what I like to call the ‘flange’ or ‘cleft’ hennin. My latest effort, though much less elaborate is nicknamed “the scrote”.

  276. Happiestsadist says

    Thanks, Ray. I am often bad at figuring the right words too, so I get the feeling.

  278. onychophora says

    Pardon the second post, but LOOK at this SHIT I have to “grade”. LAUGH at it! LAUGH with me!

    “It would seem pretty far-fetched to think that we could be related to a skunk. There has to be a measure of faith and science working together. All humans came from a single set of parents, yet look at the vast differences among humans. To believe this requires faith, but what if this is incorrect? If we evolved from the primate linage, how do we explain the vast difference in the human race? There has to be more, something we as humans can’t see or understand.”

    lolsob. sob. *drink grog* lolsob.

  279. Amblebury says

    No, you’re cool Happiestsadist.

    I think the more those things are articulated, by people with courage like yours, and the shamers are shamed, not the victims, the more progress we’ll make.

    I’m just experiencing that sort of pelvic pain today – I seem to have flares. So I could empathise. I’ve had some wounding encounters with doctors in similar circumstances too. Just, yeah. Scorched earth boundary for them.

  280. Happiestsadist says

    Ing: That is a mental image I could have done without.

    Amblebury: Pelvic pain fucking sucks. *passes drinks, pastries* *solidarity fistbump*

  281. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    onychophora, I want that stamp.

    Also wow, that essay answer is, wow. Please put a pillow on your desk so you don’t concuss yourself when you *headdesk*

    I’ve got a guy that said if you add NH3 to Cu(II) you get H2Cu as a precipitate, which, I don’t even know how he got that. But this is the same guy that is doing questions out of the lab manual and couldn’t find section 4.2 in the lab manual so who knows what mysteries are occurring in his thought processes.

  282. says

    “It would seem pretty far-fetched to think that we could be related to a skunk. There has to be a measure of faith and science working together. All humans came from a single set of parents, yet look at the vast differences among humans. To believe this requires faith, but what if this is incorrect? If we evolved from the primate linage, how do we explain the vast difference in the human race? There has to be more, something we as humans can’t see or understand.”

    F for both style and substance.

  283. Ray, rude-ass yankee says

    cute & fuzzy bunnies,cute & fuzzy bunnies,cute & fuzzy bunnies

    It’s been “One Crazy Summer” hasn’t it?

    onychophora@272,
    I love that stamp! Makes me wish I had a use for it.

    Alukonis, metal ninja@271,
    My sympathies, I am grateful now for all the teachers who beat knowledge into my thick little head throughout the years. Thanks for doing that necessary, but almost thankless job.

  285. Amblebury says

    Happiestsadist. Does it fucking what.

    Fistbump right back atcha. And some of this chickpea and parsley soup I’ve made. And some fresh bread – out of the oven in about 20 :)

  286. onychophora says

    Alukonis,
    Hmmm. I guess we could play drunk, high, or stupid on this one. My bet is on “high” because H2Cu kind of rhymes. That’s mildly pleasant, no? It’s like the background music to your descent into madness!

  287. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    Okay onychophora I think you win.

    At least my students just get science wrong. They don’t DENY ITS VERY ESSENCE!

    *passes over more grog*

  288. strange gods before me ॐ says

    Check out this drivel I got on a student’s essay from this week: “If we evolved from the primates why are there still primates? I believe that all forms of life evolve to ensure their survival, so what was the need to evolve into humans?”

    onychophora, if it’s any consolation, even the students who accept evolution probably think that it’s need-driven.

  289. onychophora says

    Yeah, I got my Ph.D. for THIS? WTF was I thinking wasting my 20s like that? lolsob.

    Persevere, get those lab reports graded. I need to know more little ‘gems’ they surely have in store for you. They amuse me.

  290. onychophora says

    Thanks for the reminder chigau. I forget these things in pits of depression. Alas.

  291. says

    @ Happiestsadist:
    This just reinforces my opinion that a significant percentage of doctors are simply not fit to practice medicine. There’s no excuse for the way that doctor treated you. Sympathies and *hugs* if desired.

    @onychophora:
    Ouch. That sounds dreadful.

    @ Audley:
    Yay for getting rid of the asshole sister.

    @ Sophia:
    Those are indeed some nifty hats.

    Mild venting:
    New job goes reasonably well (part time school custodian), but my boss and the other employee at my school are exemplars of dudebroism, and have an unnerving tendency to throw around moderately misogynistic and transphobic language (Surprisingly, virtually no homophobic remarks, though. My boss even talked about going out to counterprotest the Phelps clan on behalf of his schools’ GSA club) I don’t really feel comfortable calling them on it, though, being the new guy and also not very assertive towards guys twice my size. It’s way out of my comfort zone, that. Also, I won’t get a full paycheck until the 31st, and the 1 week that I worked last pay period was only enough to cover my share of the electric, so I’m broke again until end of month.

    On the homefront, our houseguest has morphed into a roommate, making the apartment (And our bedroom, since that’s where we put her bed mattress) just a wee bit crowded. L and I also share a deep (and almost certainly unrequited; she likes buxom black women, and we’re both skinny white guys) crush on her, which definitely adds a bit to the awkwardness of the situation on our part. And no, that’s not really helping with the money situation, the reason she’s staying with us in the first place is a mental health crisis that cost her her job and her apartment. Justin, our other roommate is employed but also broke, due to debt and low pay.

  293. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    Question: List all species present in a 1.0 M ammonia solution.

    Answer: scarce Cu2+ and NH3 but mostly the complex ion [Cu(NH3)4]2+

    .____.

    MAGICALLY APPEARING COPPER!!!!

  294. Happiestsadist says

    Dalillama, Amblebury, cicely, everyone else who’s chimed in, including the irl ones who may be reading: Thanks. It’s nice to have people who can remind me that what happened is not just me being overreactive and irrational, and that I don’t deserve that. It helps a lot.

  295. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Apparently copper is god. Appears freakin’ everywhere when you’ve got no clue what the real answer is.

  297. says

    onychophora:

    “It would seem pretty far-fetched to think that we could be related to a skunk.

    Best not let them know they share DNA with a banana.

  298. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    @Happiestsadist
    You are NOT overreacting, crazy or to blame.
    I’m learning those lessons myself. I’m also learning that I’m not strong at all on my own, but with the help of people who care, I can just about scrape together enough enthusiasm to continue living.

  299. says

    Happiestsadist:

    It’s nice to have people who can remind me that what happened is not just me being overreactive and irrational, and that I don’t deserve that.

    Of course you aren’t being over-reactive and you certainly don’t deserve that. No one does, which is why this doctor needs to be reported, stat. Any physician who does not respect or take seriously a patient with PTSD has issues that need to be addressed, as they are actively causing harm.

  300. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    You guys now my top student is talking about NH^3+ instead of NH3.

    Ammonia: one of the greater mysteries of the universe. Apparently.

    Also LOL Oh Keanu!

  301. onychophora says

    Alukonis,
    Battle the ignorant and misguided! Defeat them! Let the red “blood” be spilt all over their crisp, cellulose bodies! Armies of fluffy bunnies are behind you!

  302. Ray, rude-ass yankee says

    G’night to all and sundry, my pillow cries out for me and I can no longer resist its siren song. I shall dream of cute & fuzzy bunnies until the morrow breaks.

    Or something like that.

  303. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    chigau:

    but I will contribute *shudder* cilantro.
    and
    Tony
    & hearts ;

    That reads like you’re going to contribute cilantro, ME and hearts. What the heck are you making with those ingredients?

    ****

    ImaginesABeach:
    Please have them bake me some cookies. I need the lemon tarts and the do si dos. I don’t like only being able to buy Girl Scout Cookies at the beginning of the year.
    One time, around ’98 or ’99, I bought 40 boxes of do si dos. I don’t know for certain but I think the young girl I bought them from might have been a top seller.

    *****

    Caine:

    I’ve been accused* of being such before, in regard to all kinds of critters, birds and insects in particular, due to my habit of talking to creatures I want to take a photo of and generally getting my way.

    *using this in a lighthearted manner.

    Wow. You talk to animals too?
    I haven’t known anyone else. With the rain that Pensacola gets (for the last month it seems like it’s rained *every* day), frogs love it here. After a shower, frogs love to congregate around the front door to my house (sharing recipes on how to cook flies, natch). When I get home, I “greet” each of them. I do the same thing for the geckos I find in the yard. I always thought I was odd.

    ****

    Sophia:
    I don’t know if I’d call those ridiculous hats. Unique, one-of-a-kind, certainly.
    How long did it take you to make the first one?

    ****
    onychophora

    Yeah, I got my Ph.D. for THIS? WTF was I thinking wasting my 20s like that? lolsob.

    Your commitment to science is important. I’d hate to wake up one day and read that all science classes are indefinitely cancelled because creationists have taken them over. I mean, what would there be to do in a creation science class? Goddidit is always the answer. The tests are cake. God did that. That was done by God. God was the designer of that. I mean testing like that could be done during REM sleep.

    I’m so depressed tonight. I’m a science educator. It’s a tough roe to hoe trying to teach evolution to creationists. They fight me continually. Each new day bring the same shit. I am Sisyphus.

    That’s a big bottle of suckage there. At least you can come here and vent.

    “If we evolved from the primates why are there still primates? I believe that all forms of life evolve to ensure their survival, so what was the need to evolve into humans?”

    What level of schooling do you teach? High School, college?
    I honestly cannot remember much about my science classes in high school. Heck, I don’t know if we even learned about evolution (I did graduate high school in North Alabama, which is smack dab in the bible belt).

    lolsob. sob. *drink grog* lolsob.

    YOu’re going to need something stronger than the grog. So am I after reading that. Damn.
    One of you wonderful non USians, if you’d be so kind as to ship via USB a delightful bottle of absinthe, it would be much appreciated. Half the bottle is to be shared between the resident teachers, while Caine and I will knock out the other half and talk to animals (by the end, we’ll probably be talking to imaginary ones too; Hello Mr Unicorn).

    ****

    Also general apologies to everyone for being all melodramatic, it’s the end of the semester and I am pretty emotionally drained and low on sleep.

    ****

    HappiestSadist:

    *passes drinks, pastries* *solidarity fistbump*

    would one of those pastries happen to be a lightly buttered fresh out of the oven croissant? NOM NOM NOM

    ****

    Ray:
    are you hungry or something? Are you craving some delicious cute and fuzzy bunny kebabs?

    ****

    You don’t need to apologize for how you feel. I’d say being able to express yourself without fear of ridicule is part of the appeal of The Lounge.

    ****

  304. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Happiestsadist:

    It’s nice to have people who can remind me that what happened is not just me being overreactive and irrational, and that I don’t deserve that. It helps a lot.

    You are most definitely NOT overreacting. Your health is incredibly important and this doctor does not need to be taking risks with YOUR health.

  305. says

    Tony:

    I always thought I was odd.

    Well, yeah. Nothing wrong with being odd. C’mon, we’ll break open that bottle of absinthe and be eccentric together.

  306. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    @Tony
    the first one there was my mark 1 prototype, with very little structure. Sadly it didn’t hold up too well after wearing. It’s also the least historically accurate.
    Thankfully I’ve managed to refine my methods and use a much more sturdy understructure. I’m also trying to find more and sillier hats to recreate :)

  307. chigau (loyal NCO) says

    Tony
    it was a recipe for haggis combined with instructions on how to make a ♥
    Wasn’t that obvious?

  308. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    chigau:
    I’m not sure how bald gay man tastes in haggis…

  309. Alukonis, metal ninja says

    @Tony #308

    TASTES FABULOUS OBVIOUSLY!

    (I could not resist I’m so sorry)

  310. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    mm. Speaking of haggis, odd anecdote.
    I had surgery to have most of my stomach removed a few years back. I wanted to keep it – either turn it into a hat or a haggis. The hat would have been awesome, but the sweet silly irony of eating and digesting my own stomach using… my stomach was too good to ignore. Pity they wouldn’t let me anywhere near it :P

  311. Azkyroth, Former Growing Toaster Oven says

    From the Rules thread:

    Wowbagger posted,

    While I don’t frequent this place quite as much as I once did, it’s still good to come back to it – though I’m a little sadness that it appears to have come at the cost of losing some people that I like.

    But I remain optimistic they’ll be back…

    Did I miss something?

  312. birgerjohansson says

    In China, the rich and powerful can hire body doubles to do their prison time for them. http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2012/08/china_s_wealthy_and_influential_sometimes_hire_body_doubles_to_serve_their_prison_sentences.html

    Lack of sleep makes you fat: Swedish study http://www.thelocal.se/42434/20120805/
    Let’s see…I sleep 4-5 hours of (fragmented) sleep and weigh 120 kg…
    .
    Greed was different in the Middle Ages, researcher says http://phys.org/news/2012-08-greed-middle-ages.html

    A promising step forward in prostate cancer treatment http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-prostate-cancer-treatment.html

    Scientists find new mechanism behind resistance to cancer treatment http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-scientists-mechanism-resistance-cancer-treatment.html

    Pupil dilation reveals sexual orientation: study http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-pupil-dilation-reveals-sexual.html

  313. Amblebury says

    Caine I think I might have comprimised Xanthe’s anonymity on the airing grievances thread – I’m beside myself – could you or another monitor get on to that?

  314. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    This is a rarity.
    Haven’t gotten laid since December.
    Been single for 10 years.
    Got bored tonigt and decided to check in on Grindr (cellphone guy meets guy app).
    Currently chatting with 2 guys, who actually think I’m HOT.
    I just asked one of them out on a date and he said yes.

  315. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    I’m glad to see the New Rules up and several eagerly awaited returns in commenters.

    Well, today was a busy and exciting day in my house. It was Little One’s first day of kindergarten! The school is right down the street so we get to walk to and from school every day together! The only school supplies we have a book bag, because we got it awhile ago. We were told not to get anything because the teacher would hand out a list. The teacher did give us a list with some things I wasn’t expecting but it all makes sense. I like that the teacher is going to combine all the supplies for the kids to share. Now I just have to figure out where and how to get the stuff. I things like Kleenex, hand sanitizer, and dry erase markers along with the usual list of things.

    Then I was stupid and we feel asleep way too early. I just woke up an hour ago. There goes my sleep schedule all out of whack again. I hoping the Little One just sleep right one through til it’s time to get up. =(

  316. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    Oh, also another cool thing from today. I won a free advanced copy of a book a week ago. It’s the second in the series. I started reading a different book since I was expecting it to take 4-6 weeks for the book to get here. I got it today in the mail. They included a copy of the first book in the series too!

    I just have the last 100 pages left and move on to reading my free books.

    Ok, now to catch up on threads while I eat.

    Today was such a great day.

  317. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    JAL:
    I’m happy to hear that the day went well for you and the little one. Hopefully it will be a trend.

  318. KG says

    KG:
    Are you channeling Anya?
    We do not tolerate anti-bunny attitudes here. Your punishment will be to go forth and spend one year breeding like a rabbit. – Tony, King of the Hellmouth

    Whaddya mean, anti-bunny? As Katherine Lorraine realised, I was simply outlining the future expectations of a baby fluffy bunny!

  319. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    Tony, now I’m jealous. That meet a guy app probably wouldn’t work for a woman, huh?

    But here’s hoping the date goes well.

  320. says

    Hi Amblebury, no need to worry. My Twitter and Facebook both use that name, it’s a very common name which is only going to be paired with Xanthë on the Internet – I am keen to divorce Xanthë from being used too widely as my real life name. So, no need for monitors to flag to PZ.

    And that thread is going bye-byes in under 8 hours, anyway.

  321. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    Tony,

    JAL:
    I’m happy to hear that the day went well for you and the little one. Hopefully it will be a trend.

    Thank you! I hope so too.

    —-

    While catching up, I saw people complain about the ugly new Dungeon. How bad is it that my first thought was “It’s not that bad.” and it didn’t bother my eyes at all. I must have terrible taste or gotten used to hideous websites.

  322. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    And now I have a date for the first time since the week before Christmas last year. Of course, in the back of my mind, thre’s this part of me that’s worried that this guy will do what so many other guys do, which is *talk* about how they want to casually date AND have sex, but really just want sex. What I can’t understand is I throw that option on the table too. It’s almost always “I’d like to take you out {and I’m almost always the one saying that} and I want to have sex. I’d prefer both, but if you just want sex, I’m good with that.” There have been more times than I’d care to count where guys *said* they wanted to date, but all they wanted was sex. I could see it if I didn’t lay the options out there in the beginning and let them decide.
    Just noticed that he’s 25. I don’t usually set hard and fast age limits, but 25 is a bit lower than I’d prefer. Not a deal breaker by any stretch, but it is a factor, at least initially (so too is the fact that he and I share the same type of sarcastic humor).

  323. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    By the way, I tried the coat-eggplant-in-spices and fry. Wowee, is that good. It is pretty much no carb, and if you use the right oil (olive oil for example) it is actually not a health hazard.

    Guess what I’m having for supper, too! I bought 4 eggplants and they are not going to last.

    JAL, that kindergarten day sounds lovely. It sure is a period I remember fondly with both my kids, and that’s 23 years ago for me. Hope it continues to go well.

  325. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    Tony, yeah an age gap can be an issue, but overlapping sense of humour is a good sign. Well, easy does it and you’ll get a sense of what can be once you meet. Good luck to you.

  326. says

    Amblebury:

    Caine I think I might have comprimised Xanthe’s anonymity on the airing grievances thread – I’m beside myself – could you or another monitor get on to that?

    Done.

  327. says

    And I should read all the comments first. Oh well.

    Tony:

    I just asked one of them out on a date and he said yes.

    Woohoo!

    JAL, I’m glad you had a good day. :)

  328. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    Ah… well, that’s sort of one less thing to think about. My lawyer got to me with the draft of the letter they’re sending to my husband. It’s nice and direct, no bullshit. I had to add in my own bits about exactly how he’s coerced us into this bad agreement in the first place and why it’s bad for the little guy.
    It’s a good symbol for me putting down some of his abusive behavious in writing, even if it’s only a tiny amount of it, so he finally has to confront it.
    Meanwhile, he’s still off convincing all our mutual friends that I’m an evil litigious bitch from hell and all I can do is sit by and bide my time. I just hope it all comes out in the wash.

    Terrified for this week though, he’ll shit bricks once he gets it, my lawyers advised me to deny him all access to the baby until he signs an agreement detailing visitation rights. Friday arvo will be hell :(

  329. Sophia, Michelin-starred General of the First Mediterranean Iron Chef Batallion says

    In less horrible news, I just got a spam email from Terry Gilliam. Apparently he’s fallen on hard times. Or spammers are Monty Python fans.

  330. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Lyn, you’re right. It’s just hard to not judge something new by what’s happened in the past, especially when it seems like certain things are crop up with some degree of regularity. Some of the trends I’ve noticed (warning, TLDR anecdotes ahead):

    1- Guys with a lack of emotional maturity and/or emotionally unavailable. The last guy, L (back in December) was so heavily focused on himself that it took me a few weeks to realize that he almost never did *anything* for me. But I continually made the attempt to do things *for* him, to show that I cared. I don’t mean this in a demanding, expecting manner, but when you’re in a relationship, given and take is healthy. I’m not talking about a point by point chart to keep score of who’s done what. . No, I mean basic stuff (paying for dinner and/or movies once in a while for instance). He moved from Miami to Pensacola* and on our first date (at his house) he told me about this martini he likes to make, but had been unable to find one of the key liquors in Pensacola. One day while I was out and about, I decided to check at a liquor store and sure enough they had it. So I bought it, too a picture of it and sent it to him. I’m not looking for equivalent actions, but I am looking for the person I’m dating to think about me for something beyond the sex.
    Oh, yeah, given my night hours as a bartender, and his morning hours as an anaesthesiologist we had the worst sleep patterns. One night I chose to stay over his house. We watched tv for a while, until he got tire and went to sleep. If you take a look at the time on many of my posts, I’m frequently awake in the wee hours of the morning. Because of my job, I’m wired to stay up late. So after he went to sleep, I laid there for about an hour. Then I got tired of watching tv. Couldn’t read anything b/c I didn’t want to turn the light on and disturb his sleep. I tried twice to *gently* let him know I was going to go home (to no avail). I decided to leave him a note on the coffee pot (the first thing he shoots for upon awakening). I explained that I wasn’t tired, but I was not going to just lay there in bed for 6 hours, and that I tried to gently awaken him. I also mentioned that I didn’t forcefully attempt to wake him b/c I remembered that he has a hard time going to sleep if he’s woken up. So I did all that and left. Within 15 minutes, I get a call from him bitching me out about how disappointed he was that I didn’t stay. My response? “WHat am I supposed to do for 6 hours while you sleep? Watch paint dry?” He actually understood that after a few minutes. We started dating in November. My birthday is in December (16). I mentioned the date to him a few times and that was it. Why then, when the day came did he forget to even say anything? I know it’s a silly cultural thing to acknowledge our day of birth and I know I shouldn’t have gotten irritated, but here was yet another case when he wasn’t giving too much thought to me. Worse still, when he took me out to dinner for my birthday, he embarrassed me at dinner. He was visibly and vocally exasperated that our server forgot to get silverware for us, so we had to eat our appetizer with our hands (never mind that he was eating tuna sashimi and I was eating edamame). He later criticized her for forgetting his glass of champagne, which even I didn’t hear him order, and I have excellent hearing. He again criticized her because she asked me if I wanted to be sung to for my birthday. He’d apparently told her he wanted it done. I politely declined, as it’s not for me. He got mad at her for asking me. THere I am thinking: It’s *my* birthday dinner. The capper came when he showed me how obnoxious he was being to some FB friends of his (during dinner no less)-deliberately. He took glee is being a fuckwad. AND he also relayed a story to me about how he plays volleyball brutally. He actually *aims* for people and/or faces. He told me he nearly broke this guys’ nose one time and he was damn near gleeful about it. Yeah, it turned me off. One might wonder why I didn’t say anything to him about any of my frustrations. I didn’t because he and I had tried to date a few years prior and the same personality characteristics were still on display. I knew things would fall on deaf ears. Needless to say I ended things with him the day after Christmas. I had gotten him a “Lost in Space” tee shirt, as we’d watched the first episode of the 60s show and he was citing every line of dialogue. I noted that he liked the show and I wanted to get him something unique. I found a nice shirt on Amazon.com (guess what he did…”is this my consolation prize?” NO you fuckwit, it’s your Christmas present). In his typical fashion he tried to make it all about him. I didn’t list all the reasons why I wanted to end it b/c he’s got a volatile temper and I was trying to minimize any drama. THe reason I gave him (which was valid) was that due to our completely opposite schedules, we didn’t have much time to date, and even sleeping together was a challenge b/c of our different sleep patterns. That was true. I figured that would be the most palatable explanation for him that would minimize any temper tantrum on his part. Of course, a few days later, he sends me a Temper Tantrum Text about how wrong it is to break up with someone on Christmas, to which I responded “when is it best to break up with someone? If it’s not Christmas, is it the day after? New Years Eve? New Years Day, Martin Luther King Jr Day, Valentine’s day? Friday’s? There is *no* perfect time to stop seeing someone. Up to this point I kept saying that I wanted to remain friends. That is until he told me the problem was me. That I was “emotionally unavailable”. I didn’t argue the point. I didn’t bother to mention how much I paid attention to him and what he liked and what he wanted or would appreciate so that when the time came, or even at random, I could do something nice for him. I didn’t bother to mention to him that the only time he did something comparable was buying me dinner. FOr my birthday. You know, the day many people expect *someone* to treat them out. As I left his house I pulled out my phone and immediately deleted his number. Here he was, 47 years old, and acting like a teenager (yes, a teen, for those people that think this is some slur against teens; his level of emotional maturity did not match what I would expect of the average 47 year old; it reflected someone who was very much self absorbed and unable to see outside of themselves or concern themselves with the needs/desires of others)
    the kicker in all that…this was the second time we had tried to date (which leads me to another trend:

    2-second chances. I got stood up by a guy several years ago, after we’d been dating a few weeks. On Thanksgiving Day. We had planned for a week to do something that night and I was supposed to call him when I got off work and meet up with him. No call. No show. I was pissed. Then I thought, well maybe something was wrong with him, so a few days later, I checked out his Facebook & Myspace pages. The former showed no signs of activity. The latter, however, had been active in the days since he stood me up. I was pissed off. This was the second time I’d tried to date this guy and give him a chance.
    In both situations, there was a degree of miscommunication on my part in the first dating scenario, so it’s not wholly the fault of the guys, but fuck, if you stand me up 2 weeks into dating and then don’t return my calls and ignore anything from me, you’ve lost my respect (yeah, his number was deleted too)

    Between those two, I’ve dated 6 or 7 guys (out of maybe a dozen) who fit one or both patterns. So yeah, rational or not, I’m wary when trying to start dating someone.

    *Initially he stayed at his father’s condo on the beach (beautiful view), but wound up moving into the city and getting an apartment. The apartment he got? The exact same apartment M lived in before he moved in with me. Can you imagine how awkward and/or creepy it would be to have sex in the same former home of your dead best friend? I felt icky.

    I think I’m done rambling now.

  331. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    Tony, my. I see what you are saying about a pattern. I tend to get into one myself, where I’m in charge of maintaining everything and the guy is in charge of telling me if I’m doing it properly. At least it feels that way in hindsight. In my case, I got trained into it by my father, who was hugely demanding and constantly critical. It sort of set me up.

    You seem to see the issues and you got out, which seems good to me. Took me forever to see what to do, but I did leave relationships when they got too one-sided. As for types of guys, perhaps there is something positive about them that initially attracts you? People don’t take to someone because they are absent or inattentive. You are clearly no fool, so I’m thinking something happens there.

    You sound reasonable, really, so I am going to predict that it is just a matter of time. Yep. As if I would know, but I do wish you well. Getting back into the relationship thing is not easy.

  332. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    And I agree about the apartment. What rotten luck.

  333. says

    @150,

    Conference staff will be happy to [help participants contact local law enforcement,] provide escorts

    I approve! That is indeed very accomodating, I’d go to that conference.

    Watching MSL mission updates, wasn’t the MRO pic of the parachute cool…

    Back in Thailand next week, it’s just too cold here.

  335. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    *Considers fabricating a crisis for Alethea. Thinks about it. Decides not to.*

  336. KG says

    Yay! Son spawn got 4 “A”s and 1 “B” in his Highers*! A in maths, physics, computing and technology studies, B in biology. The maths was the one we were most worried about: it was a tough paper, by general consent, and the course he intends to put first in his applications, engineering at Edinburgh, demands an A in maths. His results by no means guarantee acceptance there (he knows someone who got 5 “A”s and still got turned down last year), but he should certainly get on a good course somewhere.

    *Exams generally taken at 17 in Scotland, and which largely determine your chances of getting onto the university course you want.

  337. opposablethumbs says

    HappiestSadist, I hope you never, EVER, come across a “physician” as shitty as that again. And I wish no-one else would either, fuck but there are people who should be prevented from ever becoming doctors.
    .
    Tony, all the best for your date – meshing sense of humour sounds good; hope it goes well – and nothing like the earlier dating history you mentioned :( .
    .
    JAL, yay for your good day! Hope you get lots more, and that they keep getting better too.

  340. Pteryxx says

    *cheers JAL’s good day* *and congratz Tony*

    Tony: if it helps, you DO absolutely deserve someone who treats you fairly. ;>

  341. opposablethumbs says

    KG, huge, huge congratulations to SonSpawn and his parents – that’s a great result!

    Hope he gets the course he wants.

    (We still have to wait a couple more weeks for GCSE results down here … why oh why oh why did I ever leave and move south?!?!?)

  343. ImaginesABeach says

    Tony – Each Girl Scout Council is free to choose their own selection of cookies, although I think there are some that all Councils sell. So the lemon ones where I am have changed 3 times over the past few years, most recently we had something called “Savannah Smiles.” I am, unfortunately, out of Do-Si-Dos, or I would happily mail you some. I’m down to Thin Mints, Samoas and Trefoils.

  347. KG says

    KG – Yay for Son Spawn! And Yay for KG for having raised Son Spawn! – ImaginesABeach

    Thanks (and to opposablethumbs). But I must in all honesty assign most of the credit for the raising to Ms. KG!

  348. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Lyn:
    it appears there is a version for sexual orientations besides homosexuality.

    Grindr is a geosocial networking application geared towards gay men. It runs on iOS, Blackberry OS and Android devices. Available for download from the Apple App Store and Google Play, Grindr comes in both free and subscription-based versions (Grindr Xtra). The app makes use of the device geolocation, which allows users to locate other men within close proximity. This is accomplished through a user interface that displays a grid of representative pictures of men, arranged from nearest to farthest away. Tapping on a picture will display a brief profile for that user, as well as the option to chat, send pictures, and share one’s location.
    […]
    On September 8, 2011, Grindr launched Blendr, a similar app for people of all sexual orientations, with additional features intended to facilitate non-sexual friendships
    *(emphasis mine)
    […]
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grindr

    Most of the men I know of who use Grindr use it for hookups, but given the sheer number of users, it’s highly likely some of them do attempt to find dates through the site. I’m not sure how different Blendr is. One of the fun/cool things about the Grindr app is that it allows users to locate men in their proximity. For instance, when I clicked on the gentlemen I’m going on a date with, it said he was 49 miles away from me. My roommate, E has used Grindr before, and I recall taking trips with him and he’d say there was someone 15 feet away from him.
    You may want to pay special attention to the controvery and criticism section.

    ****

    Josh or Richard:
    Have either one of you used Grindr before? Did you get the impression it was more of a way to hookup rather than find dates?

    ****

    KG:
    Those grades are great. Congrats to son spawn.

    ****

    Thanks to everyone for the well wishes. He’s supposed to go get his TSA license today and has no idea how long it’s going to take, so we’re either going out later tonight or Thursday. Either way I’m rather excited (it does feel nice to have someone express in no uncertain terms that they think you’re attractive, especially for those of us who grew up thinking the direct opposite; 20 years later and the scars of being a teenager are still with me)

    ****
    ImaginesABeach:
    Thanks, I had a feeling the lemon cookies had changed. I thought I was remembering incorrectly. That said, the “Savannah Smiles”-are they the ones with the lemon glaze on one side? If so, dear sweet Loki those things are fantastic (though I don’t like how there’s only 1 sleeve of them).

    ****
    And don’t forget everyone, today is National Starbucks Appreciation Day for Marriage Equality. So if you’d like to see queer individuals gain full equality with everyone else, please support Starbucks today in a show of solidarity. I’d love to see them have record sales like Chik Fil A reportedly did.

  349. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Audley:
    hopefully you don’t have any issues. Good luck.

  350. lilika01 says

    I’m usually just a lurker, but I thought i’d pop out of hiding to congradulate KG and his Spawn on their defeat of high school!
    My own little brother is doing his HSC trials (Australian equivalent exams, but the trial version), and for him to scrape anything like those marks is looking like a miracle at the moment… he is getting me to teach him chemistry, which may have something to do with my aprehension… considering I failed chemistry miserably in high school.
    I hope Spawn Son gets into the university course he wants to, i’m sure he’ll have a blast!

  351. lilika01 says

    Holy crapulence, *congratulate*. Sorry!
    Also, while I have the guts to actually comment for a change, does anyone know any good materials that teach physiology in an engaging way? It’s a great subject, and shouldn’t be a hard one to teach, but the lecturer i’ve managed to get has to have the least enthusiastic attitude to the human body i’ve ever experienced at university…

  352. says

    Thanks, Tony!

    Gestational diabetes is one of those things that some women have to deal with. *shrugs* I’m not really worried either way, but the test itself is pretty gnarly (have to drink a nasty glucose solution before the blood is drawn. Yuck). But, on the other hand, it’s an excuse to take a day off from work.

  353. dianne says

    Hi, thread. Please excuse threadrandomness. I’ve read some, but not all, of the current thread.

    Happysadist: I’m sorry for what you went through! Not stopping when a patient says stop makes the proceedure an assault. Please get the person who did that in trouble, if you can stand the complaints process.

    Audley, re John Scalzi’s writing, exycuse me while I kvok, but I worked with Scalzi on a student newspaper during college. I think he actually wrote better then, when he wasn’t writing specifically to be commercially successful. I found The Old Man’s War to be a bit disappointing, partly because you could kind of see the outlines of the better book that he didn’t quite write within it. OTOH, the series actually ended really well and few poeple can write endings, so all was forgiven from my point of view, for the ending.

    Caine, I’m having to force myself not to beg you for a ratlet. I couldn’t actually take care of one and don’t know if you have any interest in giving more away, but…cute!

  354. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    Thanks everyone! I finished my book a couple hours ago (Equal Rites by Terry Pratchett) so now I’m moving onto my free books later today. I love my e-reader but I’ve missed physical copies of books. I didn’t realize how badly I missed them til I got the books yesterday. Little One and I are eating breakfast about to get ready to walk her to school again. XD

    It’s nice being so happy for a change!

  355. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Audley:
    Aren’t you worried about elevated levels of toxicity the doctor might detect (sarcasm)?

  357. says

    Eases slowly into the door, gives a short quiet wave, sits in a shadowy area in the back. Waits and observes. Been fooled before.

  358. JAL: Snark, Sarcasm & Bitterness says

    Still not fully caught up but I meant to post this sooner.

    Cipher, if you are reading, thank you for all the time, effort, blood, sweat and tears you put into helping making this a safe place. I’ve always loved your comments and you’ve helped make this blog a safe place for me and many others. I understand why you are leaving and hope the best for you. I would hope to see you back here someday but honestly you need to do what’s best for you. Thanks for everything. I’m sorry to see you go.

  359. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    *shoves grog to stranger in the back, postpones the Pullet Patrol™ from a gang hug*

  360. says

    *waves at the Jeffrey shaped shadow in the corner!*

    Tony:
    Ah, yes. Well, you never know: maybe my sister is right and I’ve fucked everything up with my laissez-faire attitude. Damn me for not stressing myself out about every little thing that might go wrong! I’m such a terrible person and all that.

  361. carlie says

    *opens a secret tunnel in back of the blanket fort for JeffreyD in case he wants to sneak in further*

  362. says

    Dianne, any member of the Horde would be free to adopt a ratlet. Or three. :D

    Jeffrey! :pounces, hugs ferociously: Good to see you here, Dearest.

    Well, off to round up Esme’s crew and take them into town for their wellness check. This oughta be interesting.

  365. birgerjohansson says

    Robots, archaeology and barren worlds:
    “Drones map ancient Peruvian ruins” http://www.newscientist.com/blogs/onepercent/2012/08/drones-map-ancient-peruvian-ru.html
    .
    “Two separate extinctions brought end to dinosaur era” http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn22137-two-separate-extinctions-brought-end-to-dinosaur-era.html

    Two big extinction-level events separated by only 150.000 years [a fortnight in geological terms]. No wonder the biosphere got trashed.
    And -apart for cute penguins- finally a cool use of the Antarctic!

  367. ImaginesABeach says

    Tony, Savannah Smiles are bite sized and have powdered sugar. Not nearly as good as the ones with the glaze, although still tasty for those of us who like a lemon cookie.

    Interesting discovery: I put un-husked ears of corn in a large ziploc bag filled with water to soak so that we can cook it over a fire, and it has produced so much gas, the bag is almost bursting after 36 hours.

  368. Sili says

    #325: This has been a test of the monitoring system. It was only a test. In the event of a real emergency…

    Well, … guess who just found himself making three comments in a row?

  369. Happiestsadist says

    Sophia @ #310: I like your sense of humour. :) Other idea: a wallet/changepurse.

    And again, thanks to everyone for being more numerous and convincing them my self-doubt and blame.

  370. says

    Mitt Romney’s campaign just sinks lower and lower when it comes to lying and issuing TV ads that are false. I’m not talking “it’s open to interpretation” or even that the Romney ads cherry-pick the facts. Nope. This is out and out lying.

    What kind of candidate bases his entire campaign on pulled-out-of-my-ass falsehoods?

    http://maddowblog.msnbc.com/_news/2012/08/07/13163204-the-scandal-behind-romneys-new-attack-ad?

    Some Republican governors this year asked the Obama administration for some new flexibility on welfare standards — the governors had some ideas about moving folks from welfare to work and needed the White House to sign off. Obama agreed — existing work requirements would stay in place, but states, if they want to, can take advantage of new flexibility when it comes to experimenting with existing law.

    …the ad shows President Clinton signing welfare reform into law in 1996, “requiring work for welfare.” The spot then argues, however, that President Obama “quietly announced a plan to gut welfare reform by dropping work requirements.” The voiceover tells viewers, “Under Obama’s plan, you wouldn’t have to work and wouldn’t have to train for a job. They just send you your welfare check…. and welfare to work goes back to being plain old welfare.”

    We then learn, “Mitt Romney will restore the work requirement because it works.”

    …The law hasn’t been “gutted”; the work requirement hasn’t been “dropped.”…

    The Republican nominee for president is working under the assumption that he can make transparently false claims, in writing and in campaign advertising, with impunity. Romney is convinced that there are no consequences for breathtaking dishonesty….

    The cynical response to an ad like this is that the lies are routine — it’s just something “everybody” in politics does. That’s wrong. An ad this dishonest is a genuine scandal and it’s time for political observers treat it as such….

    If Romney has any shame left, now would be a good time for him to take a long look in the mirror and come to terms with what he’s become.

    …the Obama administration is not removing the bill’s work requirements at all. He’s changing them to allow states more flexibility. But the principle that welfare programs must require recipients to move toward employment isn’t going anywhere. … “It’s ridiculous that these people immediately go to saying that the administration is trying to break the promise of TANF. That is beyond fictional,” Edelman says. [Peter Edelman, Assistant Secretary of HHS under Clinton.] Link.

    …The ad is blatantly false — the administration’s plan specifically maintains the work requirement, but allows states to experiment with other methods of transitioning recipients from welfare to work. This is a policy that the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities says will make Temporary Assistance for Needy Families a more effective program…. Link.

    I hesitate to bring it up, but Romney’s welfare ad is not just a lie, it sounds like a dog whistle to me. The message is that hard working white men are having their money taken away by the government and given to lazy folks. And we know what that means.

    Does this belong in the Thunderdome thread? I’m confused.

  371. says

    This a follow up to my post #369.

    The Senate bill provides states with with the flexibility to manage their TANF programs and effectively serve their low-income populations. Increased waiver authority, allowable work activities, availability of partial work credit and the ability to coordinate state programs are all important aspects of moving recipients from welfare to work.
    [Signed in 2005 by eight Republican governors, including Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush, Mike Huckabee, Haley Barbour, and George Pataki] Link.

    The Huffington Post’s Arthur Delaney notes:

    The proposal Romney supported may have provided for even broader welfare waivers than HHS is currently offering. While the health department today is willing to let states tinker with things like the definition of work activities and the calculation of participation rates, the 2005 bill would have waived “any requirement applicable to the program” — not just work requirements, but maybe even time limits for cash assistance, too.

    So, Republican Governors got less flexibility from Obama than they had asked for previously. They asked for a waiver of work requirements and didn’t get it. So now they claim that Obama did waive work requirements and is therefore a maximum evil socialist black man.

    Mitt Romney retroactively opposes whatever he used to support. And what he used to support was, in many cases, more liberal than Obama’s policies. Romney must start lying as soon as he wakes up in the morning.

  372. says

    This is a follow up to #369 and #370. And this makes my third post in a row, so I guess I’m toast.

    Salon added a few more details to the brouhaha over the Romney campaign issuing an ad that is based on a blatant lie. Salon’s Alex Seitz-Wald points out that Republicans have perpetuated the myth of “welfare queens” [Newt Gingrich] for a long time. Romney is just marching in the long parade. He is joined by one of the men being vetted as Vice President, Rick Santorum.

    Santorum said, “I don’t want to make black people’s lives better by giving them somebody else’s money; I want to give them the opportunity to go out and earn the money.” Of course, there are far more whites than blacks on welfare, but the attacks resonated and sparked a backlash because the stereotype of an inner-city minority mooching off the government’s doll has been salient for decades.

    All campaigns lie and all politicians change positions, but Romney’s attack on welfare stands out for its brazenness in hitting the trifecta: It’s false, contradictory and fraught with racial undertones.

    Full article here.

  374. Ariaflame, BSc, BF, PhD says

    Totally threadrupt and not read any of the lounge stuff yet, but wanted to find a comfy seat.

    Still, it’s 1am here and I have a pile of stuff to do before the weekend that I must get done before the weekend (because I’m going on long service leave after that… Yay! *armflail*). So I needs my sleep and I shall catch up later.

  375. says

    Lynna:
    I’m gonna tattle on you!

    Seriously, though, I think the three post in a row rule is flexible. Besides, what would we do without your moments of Mormon madness?

    Hey, Audley, maybe we could make a deal. You insert a post, preferably one about my awesomeness, after every two posts of mine. Then I’m golden, right? I will not have broken the three-posts-in-a-row guideline, and you will be saved the chore of tattling, which, let’s face it, would be a frequent chore indeed. And I can send you bourbon and bacon via USB.

    One of my many faults is not having my act together enough to put my thoughts about a given subject into one or two posts. It goes like this: type comment, preview comment, post and feel good, sip coffee, think of something I left out, type comment …. and so forth.

    Hey, ‘Tis Himself, pursuant to our past conversation about Romney’s advisors, others have noticed Kevin Hassett. Kevin Hassett, world’s worst economist, works for Romney.

    …What’s astonishing is why any aspirant to the White House would want to be associated with Kevin Hassett. Hassett’s track record on economic forecasting is the gold standard for disastrous mediocrity. All by himself, he demolishes any claim Mitt Romney might have to economic acumen. …

    Hassett’s prediction is now regarded as the worst stock market call since economist Irving Fisher declared in September 1929 that “Stock prices have reached what looks like a permanently high plateau.” …

    By Febuary 2001, with Republicans in control of the White House and Congress, Hassett was testifying before the House Ways and Means Committee, offering the strongest support possible for Bush’s tax cut agenda….

    Prior even to “Dow 36000″ Hassett had co-authored a paper exploring the question of what to do with Clinton’s budget surplus making the implied case that the best option was to use it pay for tax cuts. There wasn’t enough to fix Social Security for good, he argued, and Clinton’s proposals to invest at least half the surplus in initiatives in “health, education, childcare, transportation, school construction and the environment do not appear to contain meaningful cost-benefit analysis.”…

  376. hotshoe says

    Good morning everyone!

    I have to go in to the doctor tomorrow for a blood glucose test. Blech. Let’s hope that I don’t have gestational diabetes, huh?

    It’s almost too late for them to be testing for gestational diabetes. You’re already at seven months, right? The fact that they waited so long seems to be a good sign – indicates you don’t have any of the known risk factors.

    You’ll be fine. So will DarkFetus. If you do have g.d. dealing with it will be a little tedious, but probably not miserable. You would be told to cut out or cut way back on any foods that contain sugar. So, for example, no fruit juice, no cookies … things you probably already know aren’t “good” for you, but may have been eating because they were what you craved while pregnant.

    And you’ll be told: more exercise. Which genuinely does stink, because you’re already tired of carrying all that extra weight around and your feet are already sore, now someone wants you to go for an extra half-hour walk ? Tough row to hoe.

    I don’t think there’s any chance that they will put you on insulin right away; they’ll prescribe a finger-stick blood monitor and you’ll have to test and record your glucose reading every day for two weeks. Ow, ow, ow. Then they’ll review the results at your next appointment. And unless the results are extremely bad, they’ll just harangue you to do better with your diet and exercise for two more weeks.

    Thank gourd it will be over soon. Hang in there!

  379. says

    Whacky Facts are the new anti-education plan in Louisiana. Journalist Deanna Pan treats us to a list of wacky facts that will be taught using taxpayer money under a new law privatizing public education.

    You knew all along that various state laws aimed at privatizing public education were really meant to put the Good Lord first, right?

    The list:

    1. Dinosaurs and humans probably hung out: “Bible-believing Christians cannot accept any evolutionary interpretation. Dinosaurs and humans were definitely on the earth at the same time and may have even lived side by side within the past few thousand years.”—Life Science, 3rd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 2007

    2. Dragons were totally real: “[Is] it possible that a fire-breathing animal really existed? Today some scientists are saying yes. They have found large chambers in certain dinosaur skulls…”—Life Science, 3rd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 2007

    3. “God used the Trail of Tears to bring many Indians to Christ.”—America: Land That I Love, Teacher ed., A Beka Book, 1994

    4. Africa needs religion: “Africa is a continent with many needs. It is still in need of the gospel…Only about ten percent of Africans can read and write. In some areas the mission schools have been shut down by Communists who have taken over the government.”—Old World History and Geography in Christian Perspective, 3rd ed., A Beka Book, 2004

    5. Slave masters were nice guys: “A few slave holders were undeniably cruel. Examples of slaves beaten to death were not common, neither were they unknown. The majority of slave holders treated their slaves well.”—United States History for Christian Schools, 2nd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 1991

    For more, see the link.

  380. hotshoe says

    I’m just past the cuff of the latest sock I’m knitting. I had a whole bag of the same yarn (lemon, orange, aqua) and I’ve been knitting it all up into the same sock pattern so I won’t need to pair them up. So far I’ve finished 8 or 9 sock, and I’m finally looking at the last two balls of yarn. No more than 4, or maybe 5, socks left to go (if I combine leftovers into 1). Beginning to hope that I will – soonish – be able to move on to some new and interesting project.

    Like, maybe, a squid hat ?

    Esteleth – is your squid hat pattern publicly shareable ?

  382. onion girl, OM; social workers do it with paperwork says

    Happiestsadist: big *hugs*

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

    Caine: I think you need to set up a live webcam feed for rat & ratlet cuteness. Pictures just aren’t enough! :)

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞

    Jeffery! *waves* I’m sorta-maybe here too, since the demands on my time haven’t changed.

    But I’d be lying if I said at least part of the reason for my absence was some of the things the New Rules have addressed. So. I’m making an effort to keep up, at least minimally! :)

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
    Tony: *hugs* for you as well. The whole relationship thing is hard, and the dating world just sucks. As I can attest.

    ∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞∞
    Which brings me to MY dating frustration, which I have already vented about at length in PET, and the details are a little too personal to disclose here. But suffice it to say that I have had a major “Guys, don’t do that” moment, and a very uncomfortable and unpleasant reminder of just how fucked up our culture is about sex and relationships. In particular, the way that men feel entitled to do things without consent, and feel that not only is that ok, but that their actions are “cute” or “romantic” or “endearing.”
    And quite possibly without any maliciousness at all! Just the conviction, that society has repeatedly ingrained in them, that they have an absolute right to encroach upon women’s personal boundaries at will.
    It’s seriously fucked up. Seriously. And we don’t just quietly acquiesce to this, we create whole romantic comedies about men ignoring women’s consent and boundaries at will. Stalking means you really love someone, right? According to Twilight it does, and a generation of tweens are taught that obsession is just true love. Women just wanted to be controlled, right? According to 50 shades it does.
    *sigh*
    /end rant. Back to work!

  383. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Lynna:

    5. Slave masters were nice guys: “A few slave holders were undeniably cruel. Examples of slaves beaten to death were not common, neither were they unknown. The majority of slave holders treated their slaves well.”—United States History for Christian Schools, 2nd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 1991

    Even if this were true (which it is not), this conveniently ignores that being enslaved is inherently cruel. You fail basic human empathy, Bob Jones!

    hotshoe:
    The pattern-meister says: “I set the hat up with 10-15 or so rows of knit stockinette, then one round of purl stitches, and then the rest stockinette. For a “proper” octopus, I added two funnel-type things to the sides using a modified zimmerman thumb method. After I finished the hat, I picked up stitches from the purl row to make the legs, finishing them off by increasing to make a little triangle thing on each. You could probably reverse the legs and graft them to the hat just as easily. For the eyes, I’ve used both a sort of modified intarsia (where I pull the strands up to the next row, leaving some slack that I tighten up during finishing) and a duplicate stitch method.”

    Basically, make a standard st st hat. Add legs. Decorate as desired.

  384. says

    Lynna:
    I like that arrangement. And I’ve no problem trumpeting your awesomeness. ;)

    (How are you doing/feeling, by the way?)

    Hotshoe:
    Damn, you guys are keeping better track of my pregnancy that I am! You’re right, I’ll begin my 7th month this week (third trimester, woo!).

    I’ve got no major risk factors for gestational diabetes– for instance, no one in my family has/had diabetes or pancreatic problems– and since I’ve changed my diet to basically whole grains and fresh fruit/veg, my docs are confident that I won’t have any problems. However, I know that they usually start patients on a diet/excersize program, should they develop diabetes, instead of jumping right to glucose injections.

    All in all, I’m not terribly worried about it ‘cos even if I have GD, I know my docs will help me manage it. But I prolly don’t, in any case. :)

  385. cicely says

    Sophia: Awesome hats! My own attempts along those very general, not nearly as ambitious lines were…unwearable.
    –
    *extremely strong booze* for those oppressed by the demon Grading.
    –

    Of course you aren’t being over-reactive and you certainly don’t deserve that. No one does, which is why this doctor needs to be reported, stat. Any physician who does not respect or take seriously a patient with PTSD has issues that need to be addressed, as they are actively causing harm.

    Every bit of This^.
    –

    Currently chatting with 2 guys, who actually think I’m HOT.
    I just asked one of them out on a date and he said yes.

    WTG, Tony!
    :)
    –
    JAL, good to hear that you got a reprieve from drekkiness. I hope this is the beginning of a good streak for y’all.
    :)
    –
    KG: *high five* for Son Spawn.
    –
    Welcome in, lilika01.
    :)
    –
    Jeffrey!!!
    *pouncehug&chocolate*
    –

  386. says

    (How are you doing/feeling, by the way?)

    Recovering from a stroke if just fucking awful. But I am, bit by tiny bit, making headway. Making new ways inside my head for stuff to actually get done, for my left hand to do my bidding, etc.

    I still can’t walk with a smooth gait. I limp and dodder around, but I no longer fall down. Hurray for the constant bruising being gone, gone, gone. For awhile there I fell so repeatedly that the skin on my left hip looked like rotten yogurt.

    My left hand still occasionally thinks it is off duty when it is not. It just takes a little vacation and drops, all innocent like, whatever it is supposed to be holding. “What the fuck!,” I say to it. It does not reply.

    Reducing stress helps. In order to do that, I’ve cut down on my workload. Fuck the boss’s deadlines. He cannot apply them to me unless he wants me dead.

  387. hotshoe says

    The pattern-meister says: “I set the hat up with 10-15 or so rows of knit stockinette, then one round of purl stitches, and then the rest stockinette. For a “proper” octopus, I added two funnel-type things to the sides using a modified zimmerman thumb method. After I finished the hat, I picked up stitches from the purl row to make the legs, finishing them off by increasing to make a little triangle thing on each. You could probably reverse the legs and graft them to the hat just as easily. For the eyes, I’ve used both a sort of modified intarsia (where I pull the strands up to the next row, leaving some slack that I tighten up during finishing) and a duplicate stitch method.”

    Basically, make a standard st st hat. Add legs. Decorate as desired.

    Esteleth, thanks. That sounds possible to improvise with acceptable results.

    Now to check yarn for something squidly.

    P.S. If anyone wants some sock yarn, let me know. No, you can’t have the lemon-orange-aqua. But anything else … honestly, you’d be doing me a favor to take some off my hands.

    Contact at leslierussellgreen at that yahoo thingie.

  389. cicely says

    *hugs* for Lynna, together with a hope for swift progress in a forward-moving direction.
    –

  390. says

    If this is somehow not fluffy enough for the Lounge, please let me know.

    Does anyone else see where I’m coming from here and here? I think one can be pro-science, yet realize that science alone isn’t going to make one a better person. That’s not its job.

    I’m reminded of a comment I saw on, I think, the NYT some time ago, from someone who asserted that the only way to change the world for the better is through technology. Activists, volunteers, non-profits, etc. … all pointless, I suppose.

  393. carlie says

    And quite possibly without any maliciousness at all! Just the conviction, that society has repeatedly ingrained in them, that they have an absolute right to encroach upon women’s personal boundaries at will.

    Oh god yes. And then, if it’s a genuinely good guy who you like, you spiral into being mad about it, but then feeling guilty that you’re mad about it because he didn’t mean it like that, and then still being mad because it was a boundary violation dammit, but then feeling all the pressure and guilt about being mad about it, and then getting mad at yourself for giving into the guilt-trip, and all the while there’s this guy standing there with puppy-dog eyes wondering what he did wrong and why you’re mad and you don’t know how to make him learn not to do that without crushing his little spirit and why are people so hard anyway and how did he get to be this old without learning this somewhere else first?

  394. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    hotshoe, a marine biologist chimed in to say that real octopi only have one “funnel.” So it comes down to whether you care about accuracy or symmetry. Also, of course, the legs are symmetrically arranged around the body. In the hat that I saw, there was a gap in front (so that the wearer’s face wasn’t covered).

  396. onion girl, OM; social workers do it with paperwork says

    Oh god yes. And then, if it’s a genuinely good guy who you like, you spiral into being mad about it, but then feeling guilty that you’re mad about it because he didn’t mean it like that, and then still being mad because it was a boundary violation dammit, but then feeling all the pressure and guilt about being mad about it, and then getting mad at yourself for giving into the guilt-trip, and all the while there’s this guy standing there with puppy-dog eyes wondering what he did wrong and why you’re mad and you don’t know how to make him learn not to do that without crushing his little spirit and why are people so hard anyway and how did he get to be this old without learning this somewhere else first?

    QFT!

    Oh, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, FUCKING HELL YES! This. EXACTLY. This is EXACTLY how I feel right now. Especially the ‘be nice’ obligation that I HAVE to just ‘let it go’ because he didn’t mean it and it’s not his fault and I DON’T HAVE THE RIGHT to be mad when my boundaries are violated.

    ARGH. Clearly I am still mad about this.

  397. opposablethumbs says

    Could the gap in front be achieved by having a couple of tentacles artistically curled up out of the way without loss of accuracy?

  398. Happiestsadist says

    Lynna: That does sound incredibly frustrating, and I hope progress keeps, well, progressing.

    Daisy: Well, it makes total sense to me.

  399. says

    Thanks, all, for the good wishes. It is frustrating. I used to be the person who could stroll along a cliff edge and be confident in my balance. I used to be the person that hiked 600 miles of the Continental Divide Trail in one season. I used to be able to dance (still do in my mind).

    Now my goals are:

    1. Reduce mowing-the-lawn time from seven fucking climb Mt. Everest hours to pre-stroke time of two hours. So far I’m at 3.5 hours.

    2. Convince left hand to remain on duty during all waking hours. So far, instances of dropped food, typos, and iPhone threatening whoopsies have been reduced from dozens per day to one or two per day.

    3. Love the planting of a new tree and whatever gardening chores I can accomplish by myself, thank you very fucking much. I don’t need no stinkin’ help. So far, doing quite well in this category.

    4. Reeducate left leg and foot so that braking skills are automatic when driving, no more nano-second delays while instructions from the frontal lobes are received and acted upon, no more conscious adjustment of braking speed/force required. So far, complete success! No more warnings to the populace of my low-traffic town are needed.

  400. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Opposablethumbs:
    Probably. In that case, I don’t think I-cord would do the trick. You’d have to do flat tentacles, and have them move over via BO/CO knitting at either end. Alternatively, you could just knit them as in the original pattern and then go in and sew them aside.

  401. Pteryxx says

    Congratz Lynna on all that trackable progress so far; and may I say, you’ve made hardly any typoes at all recently. ;> It’s good to see your posting activity going up again.

  403. says

    It’s good to see your posting activity going up again.

    Damn straight. I forgot to add to my list of goals:
    5. Break all of PZ’s rules.

  404. says

    Actually, I’m much too nice, and delicate, and sweet-smelling to break all of Poopyhead’s new rules.

    Audley is doing her dark-hearted best to keep me from breaking the too-many-posts in a row rule, (Thank you, Audley. My awesomeness swells in appreciation), so I will have to settle for not breaking any rules.

    I could join the Republican Party. That would free me from the bonds of reality and leave me free to claim that I had broken all the rules. And furthermore, I was the first to break them. And PZ was helpless to stop me.

  405. sosw says

    While I’m probably way, way too far in the thread to be noticed…I have something to mention on a fairly positive note.

    One of my relatives got married just a few days ago. I always considered him one of the most conservative people among my close relations…but his wedding was awesome, and it looks like he has changed quite a bit. His new wife may be part of the reason, but I think that he genuinely has changed.

    No church ceremony (instead, a lovely musical performance).

    No official mention of god in the marriage ceremony (now that I know that one of my relatives can actually perform an official wedding ceremony, I’ll keep that in mind).

    There were religious references in other speeches, but they were up to the speakers.

    I’m a bit iffy on whether having an entirely vegan menu was a good idea…while I honestly liked the food, it seemed a bit light (and neither of the newlyweds are vegans, she’s flexibly “mostly vegetarian” and he’s even more flexible).

    But all in all it’s the change…he used to be the one person most strongly against me daring to question Christian doctrine, and I always diligently fought back. Thankfully, in our tradition, arguments aren’t just accepted but encouraged…this tradition is mainly due to his father, who is an outspoken blunt misogynist but loves to be contradicted by honest arguments and has always respected my positions, whether he agrees or not. It also means that arguments can get really heated at times (mostly due to me…).

    So I came away pretty happy about what I assume is social progress. I just wish it would be this way everywhere.

  406. dontpanic says

    Lynna,
    I’m glad you’re making what sounds like good progress, but what’s up with

    Reeducate left leg and foot so that braking skills are automatic when driving, no more nano-second delays while instructions from the frontal lobes are received and acted upon, no more conscious adjustment of braking speed/force required.

    Ah, checks feet … left … yeah, that left. Haven’t used it for driving since I sold my 5-speed Saturn SC for a boring automatic transmission Corolla. Only foot getting action while driving is my right. Pivot on the heel between gas and brake. Driving instructor in HS (1979) and dad both would have been horrified if I used the left foot for the brake; clutch or nothing. Is that something people were taught when learning to drive? I’m not coordinated enough to drive that way.

  407. says

    This is a Moment of Mormon Mashed Potato Madness, brought to us by one of our mormon congress critters, Mike Simpson of Idaho.

    True to Republican tradition, Representative Simpson abhors big government, but he stills want government to be big enough to make you eat more white potatoes.

    In June, Mike Simpson proposed an amendment to the House Appropriations Committee’s 2013 Agriculture Appropriations Bill requiring that the USDA include the white potato in its WIC food packages. The measure passed on a voice vote, and now awaits a yea or nay from the Senate.

    Americans already love potatoes. We eat about 126 pounds per person per year. But Mike wants anyone who gets assistance from his version of Big Government to eat more potatoes, specifically, white ones, preferably from Idaho.

    In keeping with another Republican tradition, Simpson is ignoring scientific guidelines produced for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.

    Simpson is mormon. Most of the 13 billion pounds of potatoes produced annually in Idaho are grown by mormons, by mormon descendants of generations of potato growers. All hail mormon potatoes, I love ’em, but Mike doesn’t need to pass a law forcing them on people who benefit from the WIC program.

  408. says

    Driving instructor in HS (1979) and dad both would have been horrified if I used the left foot for the brake; clutch or nothing. Is that something people were taught when learning to drive? I’m not coordinated enough to drive that way.

    I learned to drive on a stick shift. In fact, one vehicle used by my Dad for driving lessons was an old dump truck that required double clutching. Use of both feet, and of fine coordination between left and right feet, (as well as hand, of course), was required.

    The only problem I see with left-foot braking is that some dunderheads ride the brake and the gas at the same time.

    Some older vehicles may cough and die if you don’t apply a little bit of gas pedal pressure when idling, so there’s that problem too.

    I like a stick shift for 4-wheel driving in the mountains. And you need both feet in many situations.

  409. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Ing:

    Yeah I’m done with cracked

    Why?
    Too much idiocy?

    ****

    ImaginesABeach:

    Savannah Smiles are bite sized and have powdered sugar. Not nearly as good as the ones with the glaze, although still tasty for those of us who like a lemon cookie.

    Yeah, they’re good but I know which of the two I’d buy. Earlier in the year, when I visited Orlando, my sister and I ate at Dunkin Donuts and bought a box of the lemon cookies there on a whim. I loved them so much I bought the last box they had. Pure bliss.

    Lynna @379:

    I…I…I…don’t know what to say.
    Dragons?
    Humans and dinosaurs peacefully coexisting?
    Is there any way the FAIL could get worse?

    ****
    oniongirl:
    Thanks :)

    Stalking means you really love someone, right?

    Yup. Chalk that up in the same column as no & maybe meaning yes.
    I’m sorry you’re having to deal with that BS.

  410. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Ms. Daisy:

    Does anyone else see where I’m coming from here and here? I think one can be pro-science, yet realize that science alone isn’t going to make one a better person. That’s not its job.

    I think the subject material is perfectly suited here.
    And I think you are completely on the mark. I’m not certain how someone could come to the conclusion that science alone would make people better. That omits all the horrific acts done in the name of science. We need our humanity and empathy to walk that line between the two worlds.

  411. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    sosw:

    While I’m probably way, way too far in the thread to be noticed…I have something to mention on a fairly positive note.

    There’s no central topic here in the Lounge. People talk about all manner of topics and bob and weave through them. Not only is your story at home here, I’m very happy you shared it. It shows that people can change for the better. Real change. We hear far too often of the crappiness of the world (I’m not saying we shouldn’t). It’s nice to hear the other side.
    Thank you.

  413. says

    Lynna @379:

    I…I…I…don’t know what to say.
    Dragons?
    Humans and dinosaurs peacefully coexisting?
    Is there any way the FAIL could get worse?

    Yes.

    7. The Great Depression wasn’t as bad as the liberals made it sound: “Perhaps the best known work of propaganda to come from the Depression was John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath…Other forms of propaganda included rumors of mortgage foreclosures, mass evictions, and hunger riots and exaggerated statistics representing the number of unemployed and homeless people in America.”—United States History: Heritage of Freedom, 2nd ed., A Beka Book, 1996

    8. SCOTUS enslaved fetuses: “Ignoring 3,500 years of Judeo-Christian civilization, religion, morality, and law, the Burger Court held that an unborn child was not a living person but rather the “property” of the mother (much like slaves were considered property in the 1857 case of Dred Scott v. Sandford).”—American Government in Christian Perspective, 2nd ed., A Beka Book, 1997

    9. The Red Scare isn’t over yet: “It is no wonder that Satan hates the family and has hurled his venom against it in the form of Communism.”— American Government in Christian Perspective, 2nd ed., A Beka Book, 1997

    10. Mark Twain and Emily Dickinson were a couple of hacks: “[Mark] Twain’s outlook was both self-centered and ultimately hopeless…Twain’s skepticism was clearly not the honest questioning of a seeker of truth but the deliberate defiance of a confessed rebel.”—Elements of Literature for Christian Schools, Bob Jones University, 2001

    “Several of [Emily Dickinson’s] poems show a presumptuous attitude concerning her eternal destiny and a veiled disrespect for authority in general. Throughout her life she viewed salvation as a gamble, not a certainty. Although she did view the Bible as a source of poetic inspiration, she never accepted it as an inerrant guide to life.”—Elements of Literature for Christian Schools, Bob Jones University, 2001

    12. Gay people “have no more claims to special rights than child molesters or rapists.”—Teacher’s Resource Guide to Current Events for Christian Schools, 1998-1999, Bob Jones University Press, 1998

    13. “Global environmentalists have said and written enough to leave no doubt that their goal is to destroy the prosperous economies of the world’s richest nations.”—Economics: Work and Prosperity in Christian Perspective, 2nd ed., A Beka Book, 1999

    14. Globalization is a precursor to rapture: “But instead of this world unification ushering in an age of prosperity and peace, as most globalists believe it will, it will be a time of unimaginable human suffering as recorded in God’s Word. The Anti-christ will tightly regulate who may buy and sell.”—Economics: Work and Prosperity in Christian Perspective, 2nd ed., A Beka Book, 1999

    I know all of the above is seriously beyond the pale. But I particularly resent the swipe at Emily Dickenson, and the dog whistle use of “presumptuous” to describe her. Emily Dickenson is the bomb. Emiri Dikenson wa mono sugoi desu. How’s that for some globalization?

  414. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    *makes vulgar gestures at the crap Lynna’s quoting*

  415. says

    Tony @330 – My best to you on your upcoming date! It took until I was 44 to find my current love, and she’s the best(and was quite a surprise, actually). You just never know.

    Lynna, OM @399 – I’m so pleased to hear about your improvements. For the last ten years I’ve had issues with my right hand falling asleep randomly–so annoying!–but I can’t imagine it just ignoring me completely. Puts things in perspective. And your list of continuing achievements sounds fantastic! Yay!

  416. says

    What part of liberation for women is not for you? Is it the freedom to vote? The right not to be owned by the man that you marry? The campaign for equal pay? Vogue by Madonna? Jeans? Did all that stuff just get on your nerves?

    http://www.npr.org/2012/08/02/157728094/not-a-feminist-caitlin-moran-asks-why-not

    “The word ‘barren’ tells you everything you need to know. The word ‘spinster’ tells you everything you need to know about our attitude of women who choose not to marry. … Imagine if you saw George Clooney on the cover of a magazine every week with: ‘Is George broody? Is George gonna adopt a baby? When is George gonna have another kid?’ It would just seem weird. We’d seem demented, yet it’s totally valid for women.”

    On another subject:

    For the last ten years I’ve had issues with my right hand falling asleep randomly–so annoying!–but I can’t imagine it just ignoring me completely.

    The nonchalance with which my left hand occasionally takes a little vacation still astounds me. I don’t really know, but I think that signals from my brain are, temporarily, not making contact with the left hand, so the hand, quite understandably, thinks it is off duty. My brain is probably very busy routing left-hand instructions around some damaged area.

  417. dontpanic says

    Lynna, I learned on a three-on-the-tree Ford Torino stationwagon. Bright yellow … affectionately named “The Banana”. Clutch so stiff that my sister got dispensation to learn on the Honda Civic (back when they were small enough to drive up into the moving truck when we moved x-country — about the size of current Smart Cars) because she couldn’t push the clutch in and my father feared for the transmission. Dad said if we could learn on the Torino we could drive anything; it served me in good stead over the years.

    Manual transmissions are fine, heel-and-toe shifting (right foot on both brake and gas) was a necessary skill on the hills of SF, but I wouldn’t trust myself to get in the habit of left-foot braking in general for fear that in an emergency I might accidentally also push down with the right on the gas. I do sometimes wonder whether that sort of behaviour is involved in reports of run-away throttle incidents we’ve heard about. I think the natural instinct is to push down with both feet hard.

    As my slightly dyslexic (as am I) non-neurotypical (as am I) son approaches the age of learning to drive I have been giving these sort of things some thought — I remember trying to teach him to ride a bike. Some of the techniques he (stubbornly) used aren’t going to carry over. Well, jumping off/out when your brain can’t quite remember how to brake … probably not the best idea in a car.

  418. Amblebury says

    Well, I guess I was the crash-test dummy for the monitors. Things seem to be humming nicely under the hood. Thanks all.

    My sympathies to everyone having problems with their bodies and brains. That flare I was talking about last night really hit its straps. I ended up puking because of a surfeit of pain meds. Doesn’t happen often. Which is still too much. The lousy night’s sleep came at a bad time, because soon I’m getting on a last-minute flight, to go and help someone I love who’s having problems with the way their brain’s working right now.

    Stockpile the grog. I’m back on Saturday night.

    xxx

  419. says

    Does anyone want to buy a pretty nice guitar at a pretty fair price? Because I’m trying to sell my 2007 Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus, and I’m getting no local love. Many of you know the story behind the guitar, and that it means a lot to me, and I’d really like to sell it to someone who will actually love and appreciate it, rather than sell it to a pawn shop or to some jerk who will lowball me on the price and then flip it for a profit.

    I already don’t want to sell it, but I’d like to see it in a good home.

  420. says

    This is a follow up to comment #375 in which Romney’s economic advisor Kevin Hassett is mentioned, and excoriated.

    Greg Sargent of the Washington Post had a good idea. He started asking economists with much better reputations than Hassett’s to comment on the Romney and the Obama economic plans. Here’s some of what Sargent came up with so far:

    David Cutler, Harvard: Obama. He says:

    To understand the candidates on jobs, think about teachers, police officers, and fire fighters. Private job creation has been modest; the public sector has shrunk. There is no way we can have a real recovery without rehiring these vital workers. On this point, the plans are clear — Obama will better fund state and local governments, while Romney will slash support to them. The economic choice is clear: Obama wins.

    Eric Maskin, Harvard: Obama. He says:
    I think the Obama program is more promising for the economy in the short term. In particular, proposals to spend on infrastructure and prevent layoffs of public workers, such as teachers and firefighters, attack the unemployment problem directly. Romney’s plans are vaguer than Obama’s, but much of what he does lay out is likely to have either minimal effect (e.g., streamlining permitting for oil and gas exploration) or negative impact (cutting government spending at a time of struggling recovery).

    Maurice Obstfeld, Berkeley: Leans Obama, with reservations. He says:
    Romney’s plan is long on desirable goals — sure, everyone should get “a great school and quality teachers” — but short on specific means of attaining them, and doing so without busting federal/state/local budgets. As another example: How exactly does he propose to open new markets? The plan’s focus is not really on the short term.
    Obama, as well as Romney, appreciates that investment in education is necessary for long-term growth, but how to finance it? From what I see in California’s budget battles, the Republican position values low taxes far above investment in public education….

  422. says

    Sam & Havelock are being uncharacteristically quiet. I think they are freaked out that the ratlets up and disappeared for hours today. We did have fun doing a group bath when we got back from town. Agnes is the best bather, by far. She took a small swim, then promptly sat in the bath and furiously cleaned herself, while the rest were trying to figure out how to escape.

  423. khops says

    Hi Everyone!

    I am not sure how many of the regulars remember me since I have not been an active commenter for a while now (I am having the most ridiculous year I swear I will dance in the streets when 2012 ends, but I digress), although some of my are my facebook friends in semi-real life so I am still trying to keep up with y’all there. I’ve had to go back to lurking, and often not reading the comments given how nuts my life has gotten, but I figured I’d make a new attempt to stay current given the semi “reboot” that’s going on here (I still haven’t figured out what exactly triggered this but I’m just going to go with it).

    Anyway, just wanted to say hi and I’m sorry to hear about health problems and glad for those who are doing well!

    Improbably Joe@419 – I might be interested. How much abouts are you looking for/where is your geographical area? Mr. Khops is defending his PhD soon and while I have no knowledge or interest in guitars, that might be a good gift. I’m sorry that you have to sell it since it means so much to you!

  425. says

    khops,

    I’m in Richmond, VA. I’d be happy to sell the guitar for about $1300(new ones run about $2600). My wife picked it out for me, and I sold two other guitars to help pay for it. You can email me for details over on improbablejoe at gmail.

  426. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Improbable Joe:
    That was unintentionally funny.
    Now that I think about it, to someone who didn’t know, listening to Caine talk about her pets, I can see how someone would think she has hordes of wild rats running around her home :)

  427. says

    Howdy.
    I generally don’t participate in these here open thread thingies, but I’m in a very bad mood.

    So if someone can say “Hey Jafafa, cheer up!” and fix it, that would be cool, I’d give you a cookie. An internet cookie. From flickr. It’s expired. But I can email it to you iffin you want.

    Thanks.

  428. says

    khops:

    I am not sure how many of the regulars remember me since I have not been an active commenter for a while now

    I remember you! It’s been a while, since the thread on Dominique Strauss-Kahn back on Sciblogs. It’s great to see you back!

  431. says

    Joe:

    Wait… Caine, are you saying that you’ve got rats running around, and they have names?

    Yes, I do. We have two crews of ratlets at the moment and three adults. You can see many, many photos at my blog.

    Jafafa Hots, cheer up! *Hugses & love & booze & bacon & chocolate.* What’s going on with your situation, are you going to be evacuated?

  432. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Jafafa:
    It might be fun for you to make a list of things that would cheer you up (visuals probably work best) and then give everyone a little while to dig up some images…
    In any case though, I’m sorry you’re having a bad day.
    Would you care for chocolate, hugs, bacon or a good game of kick the deity?

  434. says

    Joe:

    I used to have a pet rat named Corporal Cecil Wormsborough St John Nobbs.

    Now that’s funny. Didja call him Nobby?

    I almost forgot, Gytha boggled for me today! :D

  435. says

    Caine, of course he was Nobby! And his brother was Dr. Simon Tam(Firefly of course). Lovely kids, gone too soon and still missed all these years later.

  436. khops says

    Hi Caine! Thanks!

    Having looked at the ratlet pictures and become semi obsessed, I am currently arguing over gchat with Mr. Khops about whether a ratlet should join our family. He is surprised that I want one so badly when I am currently waging nuclear war on some mice in our apartment (little jerks are getting into EVERYTHING). I fear this will go the same way as the time I wanted a snake. sigh.

    Also the first time you said “ratlet” I read it as “raclet” and now I want one of those too.

    Improbablejoe – I’ll shoot you an email later tonight. I want to talk to one of our friends who knows Mr. Khops musical instrument taste and knows things about guitars first just to make sure I am on track with thinking he’d like this. I am often wrong. I’m in Philly and have a relative in Williamsburg I’ve been meaning to see so this could work out.

  437. says

    Caine, no evac plans. But the idea sounds appealing.

    I’d like to be evac’d to somewhere interesting. Antarctica? To do some fossil hunting maybe?

    (Fossil hunting in the bay area kinda sucks. Fossils only a few hundred thousand to a few million years old? Feh. I was getting 600 million year old fossils when I was a toddler back in NY!)

  438. says

    Improbable Joe:

    Caine, of course he was Nobby! And his brother was Dr. Simon Tam(Firefly of course). Lovely kids, gone too soon and still missed all these years later.

    Aaaaw, they do steal your heart. Havelock & Sam are named after Vetinari & Vimes, of course, and Gytha, Magrat & Agnes after the Lancre witches. Our Esme (mom to crew #1) died on July 23rd.

    Khops:

    Having looked at the ratlet pictures and become semi obsessed, I am currently arguing over gchat with Mr. Khops about whether a ratlet should join our family. He is surprised that I want one so badly when I am currently waging nuclear war on some mice in our apartment (little jerks are getting into EVERYTHING).

    Oh. If you get a rat or two and after they settle in, let them free range a bit, you won’t have a mouse problem anymore. You might have much gore to clean up, though.

  439. says

    Jafafa Hots:

    Caine, no evac plans. But the idea sounds appealing.

    Can you at least open your windows now? Are things under control or just going to hell?

  440. says

    Caine:

    Noble names all around, and I’m sorry for the loss of your Esme. I had to bail out of the rat-parenting, I’m too soft-hearted to deal with the relatively short time you get with the small furry kids. Hell, I’m getting a little tears up thinking about the four I had, and it has been 6-7 years.

  441. says

    Caine, yeah we can open our windows. Chevron is having a propaga.. I mean a community meeting at 6pm.

    The emergency alert system here didn’t work. Sirens in San Pablo didn’t go off, and the automated phone calls never happened.

    Several people I know heard the initial explosions. Chevron denies any explosions.

    They regularly send teams out at events around town handing out Chevron t-shirts. I nabbed one with the intent of crossing their logo out with red fabric paint. (Maybe oily black is better?)

    That’s not the reason for my mood though. I got deliberately trolled by a bunch of occupy jerks using ableist slurs etc. My opinion of Occupy has been adversely affected.

  442. Happiestsadist says

    Jafafa Hots: Ugh, that’s a lot of bullshit. A lot of truly awful people really got into Occupy, and turned it into their own failparty.

    Got the apartment all cleaned, booked Cinnamon’s next blood glucose curve, gave myself a manicure/pedicure and am now slothing about waiting for The Mr. to get back from board gaming.

  443. opposablethumbs says

    Lynna OM

    I used to be the person who

    I hope you get to be that person again, if at all humanly possible. And however it turns out, I hope you get to meet, surpass and smash all your goals. You are damn awesome on every level.

  444. says

    Lynna, OM

    Thanks, all, for the good wishes. It is frustrating. I used to be the person who could stroll along a cliff edge and be confident in my balance. I used to be the person that hiked 600 miles of the Continental Divide Trail in one season. I used to be able to dance (still do in my mind).

    You are still that person, or at least that person is still in you. The bad news is that there’s only ever one best performance in any of us, and we all have to live with the downhill slope after that one best move. The sort of neutral news is that we’re all in that together, whatever the reason for it. The GOOD news is that even when you can’t reach the same level as you could when you were at your peak, you can usually attack life with the same spirit and feel the same thrill of doing more than you thought possible.

    You’re still really obviously someone who is out there kicking ass!

  445. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    ANGRY SCIENTIST SMASH

    I have been working on a fucking time course experiment for the past 2 days, which has featured going into work at 1 am for dosages.

    So! I finally get everything dosed, fix everything, and stick the plates in the reader.

    THE FUCKING PLATE READER IS BROKEN. No sign. No email going out warning people.

    All I can do is wrap my plates up, hope that the dye doesn’t degrade and/or bleach, and wait until everyone comes back to work tomorrow morning. >:(

  446. cicely says

    “Hey Jafafa, cheer up!”

    Life sucks…but not always, and not to a uniform depth.
    And it is frequently an improvement over the alternative.
    –

  447. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    @Lynna #379

    You quoted another source:

    5. Slave masters were nice guys: “A few slave holders were undeniably cruel. Examples of slaves beaten to death were not common, neither were they unknown. The majority of slave holders treated their slaves well.”—United States History for Christian Schools, 2nd ed., Bob Jones University Press, 1991

    Except for that part about making them slaves, you know.

    Reminds me of a quote from Henry Lee Lucas, serial killer, which IIRC comes from Robert Ressler’s book Whoever Fights Monsters,

    I been nice to folks all my life … except for killing ’em.

  448. Nutmeg says

    Jafafa Hots: Here, have some adorable fennec fox kits to make life a little better.

    Esteleth: I’m frustrated just reading about your broken plate reader. Here are some rock hyraxes for you. Hey, they kind of look like fluffy bunnies, right?

    My angry scientist rant for the day: Why do labs have to be so fucking full of people?!?! I can hardly get anything done because I get so antsy with all the summer students fluttering around the lab. And they all keep asking me questions! Argh! I can’t wait until they all go back to classes in September.

  449. One Thousand Needles says

    Life sucks…but not always, and not to a uniform depth.

    The Shittiness Indeterminacy Principle?

  450. Lyn M: dropping the f-bomb since 1962 ... of death says

    @ Tony

    Thanks for the reference to the apps. I have taken notes and when in North America will see about them.

  451. says

    @oniongirl
    I am always on the lookout to make sure I’m not that guy, because that’s a real asshole move on his/their part.

    @Lynna:
    best wishes, hope your recovery is rapid and complete.

    @mormon potatoes
    Unfrotunatle, ag subsidies (including WIC and food stamps) have always been operated on a pork barrel basis rather than paying attention to what agricultural products are actualle needed, appropriate, and/or useful.

    @Jafafa
    Haven’t seen you in a while. Cheer up, mate.

    @Happiestsadist:
    Yeah, I’m dissapointed by the way Occupy went too.

    General: I went to try to sign in at work, and suddenly the lounge was blocked by the filters. No other threads, just this one. It’s weird.

  452. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    [news flash]
    The worker finished up the back platform/ramp for the great Redhead escape Sunday, and the cement finally dried today. Tonight there was a neighborhood meet and greet for the neighborhood watch, and the Redhead wanted to go. Got her down the back stairlift, transferred (stood up, twisted, and sat back down) to the transport wheelchair, and we were on our merry way. Ramp worked beautifully. But the eroded/tree root cracked driveway required some tricky negotiation.

    Coming back was easier, as he driveway bumps were down, not up. Transfer to the stairlift was her bad turn way, but still successful first try. Zip up using the lift and transferred back in the main wheelchair. More mobility, with just one person to help. Good for morale.
    [/news flash]

  454. Nepenthe says

    I have a stupid blog related question: how does one search comments?

    When I type, for example, Nepenthe in the search bar up there, two posts come up in which I or my namesake are mentioned.

  455. John Morales says

    Nepenthe, Google is better — try using the site keyword for site-specific searches, thus:
    site:freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ nepenthe

  458. Lyn M: Humble Acolyte and Brainwashee ... of death says

    What a great bouquet!

    Toes tall vase behind the sofa.

  460. says

    So, my new job involves working for an African (Liberian) woman who’s a brilliant, hardworking stickler for professionalism, promoting energy efficiency, and helping create jobs for green-certified contractors and assessors. The office is full of progressive types. Racially diverse, age-diverse, even balance of men and women. In my work for the local politician’s campaign, frequently the candidate is the only man in the room.

    I feel like I’ve found my people.

    My only complaint is that the office really isn’t large enough to hold all this activity.

  462. thunk (MSL+MRO=pics!) says

    Well, as you may or may not know, I’m on vacation. And enjoying myself quite a bit.

    I probably won’t be around often, until the 14th.

    Also, I’ll try not to post too often, but as Louis said, the purpose of boarding schools is to learn to break rules.

    Long live the new poopyhead-dom!

  463. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    Sally, that sounds fantastic! Gainful employment + worthwhile work + a diverse, progressive environment = jackpot!

    And thanks for mentioning your boss’s country of origin, it’s a pet peeve of mine when people say “African” and leave it at that. It’s a huge place with fifty plus countries thousands of ethnic groups.

  464. Tony •King of the Hellmouth• says

    Thunk:
    I hope you have fun on vacation.
    It’s isn’t some religious boarding school is it? You’re not going to make a triumphant return born again are you?

    ****
    So the date is postponed until Thursday (he was stuck at the TSA much of the day).
    However, we’ve been chatting back and forth between cellphones, Facebook, and Grindr since 1:55 pm on Tuesday. 12 hours later and we’re *still* doing it (mind you, it hasn’t been consistently. there were small breaks in there). Does that equal a date?
    Sure feels nice though.

  465. says

    I complained about the post numbering in the grievance thread, and offered suggestions as to what would be required to fix it.

    As one suggestion, I realised if it wasn’t going to get done at the WordPress level, it could be done after the fact using Javascript.

    And if it can be done using Javascript, it doesn’t even have to be integrated into the site code. It looked like a simple enough problem that I could solve it myself.

    So I did.
    ________

    BAM! The Pharyngula Comment Renumbering Bookmarklet!

    WordPress strips out javascript links in comments (and quite rightly, too) so I can’t make this super-easy. But copy the following code, create a new bookmark and paste it into the URL field:

    javascript:(function(){try{pagesize=500;startnumber=1;pageid=document.URL.match(/comment-page-([0-9]*)/);if(pageid){pageid=pageid[1];startnumber=((pageid-1)*pagesize)+1;}else{count=document.getElementById('comments').textContent.split('%20')[0].replace(/[^0-9]/g,'');startnumber=(Math.floor(count/pagesize)*pagesize)+1;}document.getElementsByClassName('commentlist')[0].start=startnumber;}catch(err){}})()

    On any Pharyngula article, click your “Pharyngula Renumber” bookmarklet and, as if the dark arts themselves were at work, the comment numbers will suddenly reflect their true values!

    If there are fewer than 500 comments, you will see no effect. but once it’s rolled over to multiple pages, the numbers should be correct for whatever page you’re on. (You’ll have to run the bookmarklet on every page load.)
    ________

    It’s a bit more hackish than I would like, due to insufficient metadata being available in the page code, but it should work correctly in all cases. (And if it doesn’t work, nothing will happen at all, so you’re no worse off.)

    If it’s of value to others it should be simple to turn into a Greasemonkey script that runs on page load. (Even better would be to get numbering fixed in the site, of course.)

  466. says

    …and in testing the script on the last episode of TET, I’ve skimmed over all the pages I hadn’t read and got some context on the past days’ goings-on.

    Wow.

    The script was fun to write and I hope it’s useful to some people, but I must have sounded like a bit of an entitled ass given the circumstances…

  467. blf says

    The mildly deranged penguin decided to make her interpretation of Cassolette the other day — meaning it’s probably nuclear-powered or something — based on the traditional Languedoc style of duck and beans and things. The duck, of course, is the problem…

    Knowing how nasty those ex-dinosaurs can be, the mildly deranged penguin had purchased a duck-proof armoured suit. It works. Neither duck nor duckling has since bothered Her Penguinistaness.

    The suit is not, however, proof against beans. So it was really rather clever of the duck to have made an alliance with the beans.

    The effect was something like sealing yourself into a beekeeping suit only to discover the hive is also inside the suit. A hive of africanised bees. Annoyed africanised bees. Even extremely vexed africanised bees. Meanwhile, a duck is clinging on to the outside of the suit and trying to bite your head off…

    Assorted things did escape the suit during the ensuing freestyle battle-dance. Beans, penguin feathers — one is still embedded in the wall of the lair — and a tulip. The tulip was neatly fielded in midair by the extremely angry mouse, who wrestled it to the ground and then ate it. I was too slow to realise that meant the mouse had left the TARDIS and so maybe I could have reclaimed it…

    Both the duck and the beans eventually escaped, albeit without waking The Thing That Rattles The Toolshed. (By the sounds of the snoring and hiccups, it’s still sleeping off the results of last year’s party.) So the by-now extremely flustered demented penguin made a nuclear-propelled Lasagna from the remaining ingredients. And that meant she first had to subdue the pasta…

  468. Lyn M: Humble Acolyte and Brainwashee ... of death says

    Shoot! And I just have to deal with a typhoon going through.

    *Shakes head.*

  470. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    blf: That was a thing of beauty and a joy to behold.

  471. StevoR says

    Or this funny interview :

    http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-08-06/nasa-rover-to-attempt-mars-landing/4179284

    with Australian National University’s Dr Charely Lineweaver plus this :

    http://www.abc.net.au/lateline/content/2012/s3561983.htm

    Lateline interview with astronaut and NASA administrator John Grunsfeld.

    BTW. Five awesome clips Curiositywise can be found collected on this :

    http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2012/08/03/the-internets-5-best-things-on-nasas-curiosity-mars-lander/

    80beats blog post.

  472. StevoR says

    Hit submit instead of preview there by mistake there. Sorry.

    Oh well, nothing too much wrong with it. Just make the first line = some great Curiosity Mars rover links I wanted to share with y’all here.

  473. eveedream says

    Chigau: Just in case nobody mentioned it, your hen joke was hilarious. Daisuki desu.

  474. Pteryxx says

    Rage alert, plus donation opportunity:

    http://freethoughtblogs.com/lousycanuck/2012/08/08/gamers-against-bigotry-hacked-repeatedly-by-computer-savvy-bigots/

    This last one references the fundraiser kickstarter the project has put together so they can hire someone from IndieGoGo to prevent these hacks from happening. Apparently, they hadn’t been asking for money before those bigots began treating the site as their litter box, so the request for funds came as a direct result of these trolls’ actions.

  475. says

    This is literally the most fucked up thing ever this morning in my head: I have no idea where my parents live, or how to get in contact with them directly.

  477. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    Joe: How do you feel about that? I can see walking away from my fundie brother after my mother dies and never seeing or hearing from him again. If my dad had lived until I became an adult I could also see having walked, or ran more likely, away from him and not looking back.

    Audley: No book? I’m never more than an arm’s length away from something I’m interested in reading. If I leave the house without my latest novel or whatever I get all testy until I find a replacement. Mind you, if hair pulling is your only recourse could you send me some? My pate is getting so bald that my noggin is experiencing its an Older Dryas.

  478. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    New comments, now with 10% more “its” at no extra charge!

  479. Pteryxx says

    wow… wow, are there any FTB mathematicians in the house? Via Zvan, this is Maggie Koerth-Baker taking on one of the ‘fundies teach the darnedest things’:

    “What do Christian fundamentalists have against set theory?”

    http://boingboing.net/2012/08/07/what-do-christian-fundamentali.html

    Set theory actually has its origins in attempts to define infinity and deal with it in a concrete way in mathematics. Checking Wikipedia, you’ll learn that this “modern” theory was actually established in 1874. Why 1874? Because that was when a guy named Georg Cantor proved that there are different infinities and that not all infinities are created equal.

    […]

    Some of these folks get very touchy about the idea of infinity. Mark Chu-Carroll is a software engineer at foursquare and a math blogger. Unlike me, he was already aware of the fundamentalist objection to set theory, because he’s actually had people show up in his comment section railing about how the theory is an affront to God. Particularly the part about multiple infinities. Chu-Carroll told me that one commenter explained the problem this way: “There is only one infinity, and that is God.”

  480. blf says

    the blood draw… *pulls out hair!*

    Interesting way to draw blood.

    Thanks for the offer, but I won’t be taking you up on it. I’m cooking the dinner tonight. I’ve never found a good recipe for long pig hair. Long pig blood can be used to make a variety of interesting sauces, but they seem to work better with roast meats and stews and robust vins in the winter. Besides, I believe it will spoil quite quickly in the heat.

  481. says

    FossilFishy,

    No… I LIKE my parents! I just have no clue where they are, like I lost them at the Mall of America, except the mall IS America, and I know they’re in the food court somewhere but not anything more specific than that.

    They’ve been doing this retirement/relocation thing in the slow-motion weird way that my parents always do everything. They bought a new house in… March? April? They moved one car-load at a time over the last few months, and I guess they’re done moving because their phone is disconnected. They didn’t bother to give me their new address or phone number though.

  482. Pteryxx says

    for the bug watchers out there (via BB):

    https://www.zombeewatch.org/

    We need your help finding out where honey bees are being parasitized by the Zombie Fly and how big a threat the fly is to honey bees. So far, the Zombie Fly has been found parasitizing honey bees in California and South Dakota. We are teaming up with citizen scientists (like you!) to determine if the fly has spread to honey bees across North America.

  483. dianne says

    @476: Kids these days! When I was having a GTT, I didn’t have no fancy phone with internet access to keep me amused until the test finished…

    Grumping about your need to get off my lawn aside, sorry you’re bored and yet I hope you continue to be very bored because the test is utterly unremarkable.

  484. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    Joe: Yikes! Well, I’m sure they’ll get around to contacting you. Unless they told you they were going out for cigarettes. If they did you’re doomed because that’s code for “We’re leaving and never coming back, keep the CDs and don’t worry about the dog we had him put down.” ;)

  486. Paul says

    wow… wow, are there any FTB mathematicians in the house? Via Zvan, this is Maggie Koerth-Baker taking on one of the ‘fundies teach the darnedest things’:

    Not a mathematician, but have read some of MarkCC’s posts on set theory. Those fundie commenters are precious.

  487. says

    Woohoo, my wife is unemployed again!

    She got assaulted at work, and then the staff laughed at her, so she’s not going back. Cross your fingers and sacrifice chickens on your altars that she gets this consulting job she’s applied for.

  489. says

    Pteryxx,

    No shit. She’s a nurse, and she just started this job at a residential facility and apparently they don’t restrain, separate, or even identify violent schizophrenics, they just leave them wandering the halls to attack anyone who gets too close.

  494. says

    blf! mdp! People have been worried, you know. It’s beyond wonderful to see you again and to know you are alright. *whew* You’ll find the Rat Power™ has exploded Chez Caine, we has ratlets, 23 of them.

  495. Esteleth, Who Knows How to Use Google says

    Hell, your wife could even argue that the patients are being neglected. If they’re left free to be violent against staff, they’re being left free to be violent against other patients.

    Unfortunately, she might get further with that second argument than arguing on her own behalf.

  496. says

    My wife has decided, and I agree with her, that she should just walk away clean from this situation. She was only there a couple of days, she wasn’t injured, and she doesn’t need any sort of formal complaint being attached to her name/licence while she’s in the middle of looking for a new job. An anonymous phone call next week maybe, but beyond that nothing. She just got a second or third follow-up email from a place in Reno that is looking to pay her something ridiculously beyond belief. I mean really scary money, although it means she’ll be gone for 6 months. Enough money that when she gets back she can take 2-3 months off.

  497. blf says

    Twenty-five Forty Foot High Killer Rats™? Excuse me please, I’m running off to home how to hide under the bed…

  500. says

    blf:

    Twenty-five Forty Foot High Killer Rats™? Excuse me please, I’m running off to home how to hide under the bed…

    Um…Twenty-six. (3 adults.) Don’t worry, the little ones can only achieve 15 to 20 feet right now.