Sunday Book Thread 05/23/2021 [All Hail Eris]

Good morning to you all from the stately Dungeon of Discord. Welcome once again to the classy and luxurious Sunday Morning Book Thread, the plushly appointed mosh pit of opinion, snark, choler, jest and japery, and our continuing conversation on books, reading, writing, and propping up the Literary-Industrial Complex by buying even more books. Unlike that uptight square OregonMuse, I don't impose harsh moral strictures or expect my readers to obey outmoded notions of decency. If you want to read the Prose Edda pants-free, or bone up on Beowulf lounging in a silk shorty robe, who am I to judge? Nor will I judge you for wearing pants. Even if it's these Huggy Bear pants, that show those suckas your pimp game is strong. So join us in the Grotto for some light refreshment and convivial conversation. Don't worry about blistering narratives -- our books are waterproof.

***

Charity bookstore begs people to stop donating copies of Fifty Shades of Grey:

They made a book fort out of them! I can envision tiny Taunting Frenchmen atop this castle.

***
"The many critical and antagonistic narratives about America all serve one primary purpose -- dividing the American people."

By now I'm sure you've heard that Lt Colonel Matthew Lohmeier of the U.S. Space Force was relieved of his position as commander of the 11th Space Warning Squadron for comments made during a podcast promoting his new book, "Irresistible Revolution: Marxism's Goal of Conquest & the Unmaking of the American Military". His is the crime of heresy against the new Commie hotness, Critical Race Theory, being foisted on our troops. This is being deployed supposedly to combat perceived extremism within the ranks. I of course ordered a copy, even though it's pricey, just to stick it to The Man. LOL, I just saw that the dead trees version is temporarily out of stock!

"It is sad, but true, that many young servicemembers who take the oath to defend the Constitution do not fully appreciate liberty, the civil society, republicanism, and economic prosperity; but what is worse is that they do not fear their loss. Without becoming rooted in a proper understanding of the greatness of the American ideal, these great young Americans may never appreciate their liberty or recognize when it is under attack."

***
A playlist for a 19th century villain rejoicing in his fallen enemies:

***
Who dis:

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Epic Rap Battles of History: J. R. R. Tolkien vs George R. R. Martin

***
A brief and incomplete history of the SF/fantasy bookstore A Change of Hobbit, by proprietress Sherry Gottlieb:

The bookstore was a favorite hangout for science fiction and fantasy fans and the authors themselves. Harlan Ellison famously sat near the front window in full view of the public, like a storefront display, writing his short story collection "Strange Wine".

***
A Georgetown apartment with a library to die for:

This New York brownstone has a two-story bookshelf that doubles as a climbing wall:

***

***
It Pays To Increase Your Word Power®

INTUMESCENCE n. - Swelling. Why refer to the high tide, or the rising tide, when you can use a phrase as glorious as "the intumescence of the tide"?

INSPISSATE p. - To thicken, especially a liquid, by evaporation. "Excuse me while I inspissate the soup."

(From "The Superior Person's Book of Words" by Peter Bowler, an essential volume in every Horde library)

***
From our resident wordsmith Celia Hayes:

Eris, can I beg for a link on an upcoming book festival in Texas for a book thread in the coming week? I do not beg on my behalf, even though I do have a table there ... but it's an event featuring Texas indy authors, organized by Alan Bourgeoise, of his local author org (which has changed names several times since I joined! Although the focus on supporting independent regional authors has never wavered in the least.) The bash will be all along downtown Town Square in Seguin, Texas on the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend.
Alan is good people, and has worked tirelessly for at least a decade to support regional indy authors, to set up events and let us all in the membership know about them, and to make it easier to have our books sold by regional retailers.

***
To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium. In the meantime, send input, output, cockalorum, fanfaronade, bombast, braggadocio, huzzahs, and raspberries to me at ErisEnthroned@protonmail.com

Posted by: Open Blogger at 09:00 AM

Comments

(Jump to bottom of comments)

1 hiya

Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 08:00 AM (arJlL)

2 Who Dis? Clive Staples Lewis.

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 08:01 AM (PiwSw)

3 Finished the reread of the Mitch Rapp series. Now working on a re-read of the Last Jehad series by Joel C. Rosenburg

Posted by: Vic at May 23, 2021 08:02 AM (mpXpK)

4 Eris, I don't know if it's just me, but your "pants" link isn't working.

Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:04 AM (2JVJo)

5 Ah, the epic rap battle between J.R.R. Tolkien and George R.R. Martin. No contest. Tolkien wins hands down. Without Tolkien, there would be no Martin.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:04 AM (hQrcu)

6 Not first but not bad!

Posted by: Biden's Dog at May 23, 2021 08:04 AM (5HXH8)

7 Tolle Lege
And not enough time In a day
One chapter 6 of Alexander Solzhenitzyn's second volume of Gulag Archipelago
And chapter 7 in William Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:04 AM (Cxk7w)

8 I know that Dis, I just don't know him well enough.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:05 AM (jvt6t)

9 4 Eris, I don't know if it's just me, but your "pants" link isn't working.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:04 AM (2JVJo)

I so wanted to see the Huggy Bear pantalones.....

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:06 AM (jvt6t)

10 Who Dis is the guy who played Mel Cooley on the Dick Van Dyke show.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 08:07 AM (45fpk)

11 8 I know that Dis, I just don't know him well enough.
Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:05 AM (jvt6t)

To know him is to love him!

Posted by: CN at May 23, 2021 08:08 AM (ONvIw)

12 I guess "reduction" works better than inspissate.....

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:08 AM (jvt6t)

13 Currently working my way through the Erevis Cale series of novels set in the Forgotten Realms D&D campaign setting. They are basically about a pair of assassins (Erevis Cale and Riven), each of whom is more badass than John Wick. Yeah, I went there. Riven backstabs Mephistopheles, Arch-Duke of Cania, the eighth layer of Hell. Can John Wick do that?

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (hQrcu)

14 I'm reading "Terms of Service" That was recommended here recently. I'm enjoying it so far, I'm about half way through. Unfortunately I'm seeing some parts of the book in reality but it's supposed to be fiction...

Posted by: lin-duh at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (UUBmN)

15 Huggy broke

Posted by: scottst at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (AePd+)

16 Morning, all.

Not as hungover as I usually am on Sundays, so there's that. Sitting at my desk with a cup of tea and some cold pizza, with a Telemann flute concerto playing on the radio.

It's such a lovely day outside that in a bit I am going to go out in the yard, find a shady spot and read the day away. Just need to choose a book.

Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (2JVJo)

17 I couldn't recommend Gulag Archipelago enough, even if you only had the condensed version, the evil of Communism can't be exposed enough.
The first book was about the grab of people and the initial prison system and some of the publicity trials. This book is covering the workings of the Gulag system. How the Communists immediately after the revolution outlawed every other party ( and many were Socists) and sent them through the Gulag, and the Gulag system was started immediately as well.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (Cxk7w)

18 For a ruined city, Detroit still maintains some of it's architectural gems. The library is one. Being older, I recall Detroit as a thriving well off city. It's easy to blame the unions or the riots, but the story of the decimation of the auto industry has many other villains.

Posted by: CN at May 23, 2021 08:10 AM (ONvIw)

19 A few months ago I read The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. At that time it was recommended that I read the author's first work, The Night Circus, which I did this week. Ms. Morgenstern certainly has shown the imagination to create interesting, entertaining worlds, in this case a circus infused with magic; and she has the writing chops to tell a good story. In this work the story is about two illusionists pitted against each other in a diabolical competition. When they finally meet, they fall in love which threatens the existence of the circus. This is a fascinating book. I'll be eagerly awaiting Ms. Morgenstern's next book.

Posted by: Zoltan at May 23, 2021 08:10 AM (kiyX4)

20 Nice library pic. It's a shame what Detroit has lost in reference to architecture.

However, I still think there's a body on the stairs, down to the left.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:10 AM (jvt6t)

21 Shadout gets the hip flask of Valu-Rite Gold and a bag of pork rinds!

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:11 AM (Dc2NZ)

22 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

23 Hot Coffee...Biden is a page turner of disbelief

Posted by: Qmark at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (emnp2)

24 CS Lewis...duh...are the pork rinds spicy?

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (jvt6t)

25 This is the link associated with the pants, near as I can tell (there's an alt attribute got isself stuck in the href atrribute).

http://ace.mu.nu/archives/Pants523.jpg

Posted by: hogmartin at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (t+qrx)

26
Book fort >>> book fart

(And thus, today's quota for mentioning farts is fulfilled!)

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (pNxlR)

27 Eris -

Have you been to the Detroit Library ?

Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (arJlL)

28 Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:09 AM (Cxk7w)

You'd probably like Cancer Ward as well.

Posted by: CN at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (ONvIw)

29 24 CS Lewis...duh...are the pork rinds spicy?
Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (jvt6t)

Num num. Have some! *pushes pork rinds through usb port*

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (PiwSw)

30 Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Same on my iPhone. On my PC? Great. Phone...chingala!!

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (jvt6t)

31 Carried over

So i started on a new thing part of what one calls flint lock sorcery the powder mages series by brian mcclella an alternate 18th century world of adros (france) where a napoleon (field marshal tamas) deposes a king (mamlouch) because he allowed fez (spain) to kill his way

Posted by: Alien covenant was worse at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (hMlTh)

32 I'm still reading the Reacher novel Personal.

Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 08:14 AM (arJlL)

33 I never did George R.R. Martin's books. My wife (ex) bought me the first two books in hard copy when they first came out. I tried reading the first book and got through the first two chapters. didn't like it. Gave both books to the library.

Posted by: Vic at May 23, 2021 08:14 AM (mpXpK)

34 @5, Lord Squirrel is right.

Posted by: yara at May 23, 2021 08:14 AM (N7mou)

35 17 cont. Also fascinating has been looking up these monasteries that were turned into prisons. The first, Solovetsky Island is easily found on Google maps. Even sole Gulags seem now to be normal small cities with Lukoil gas stations.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:14 AM (Cxk7w)

36 Nice painting of the boy and his dog. Great perspective.

Posted by: Dr. Bone at May 23, 2021 08:15 AM (tVOev)

37 Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (PiwSw

Crunchy!

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:15 AM (jvt6t)

38 Nice Thread, Eris !

Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 08:15 AM (arJlL)

39 I can't read Ace of Spades on my iPad either. Slooowwly loads. Then crashes.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 08:15 AM (45fpk)

40 Morning book rons. Haven't been reading much lately. This whole past week seems every was busy. I'm supposed to be retired!

Sick of the rain. MP4 you're lucky. I'd love to sit out on my deck surrounded by my flowers and read a good book.

Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:16 AM (nxdel)

41 Zoltan,

The Night Circus has quite a few fans here including me. Members of my book group, who know my tastes pretty well, expected me to hate it but it was just the opposite. Erin Morgenstern has a rare gift for writing about totally implausible things and making them very interesting and drawing the reader in. Glad you enjoyed both books.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:16 AM (y7DUB)

42 I also read All Systems Red by Martha Wells. This novella is the first of the so far four-book series known as The Murderbot Diaries. Murderbot is what a security android calls itself after an unfortunate accident on a job assignment in the past. In this story he is the hero after hacking his governor module and saving a survey team on a distant planet. Only 148 pages, so it moves quickly.

Posted by: Zoltan at May 23, 2021 08:17 AM (kiyX4)

43 Sorry guys, CBD formats my tripe and I can't find the link.

But it's at the top of this page, which also showcases wide-legged polyester delights:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/1196337374508825/

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:17 AM (Dc2NZ)

44 My dog loves pork rinds. She whines if I eat them and don't share so I no longer get the spicy ones.

Texas Pete solves the issue a drop on a pork rind for me and none for the ones I give her.

Posted by: Big V Caffeinated at May 23, 2021 08:18 AM (6Pqz7)

45 The last couple of weeks, Amazon has had deals on Dorothy L. Sayers and Agatha Christie books. So I'm adding to my collection of Wimsey and Poirot, $1.99 at a time.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 08:18 AM (45fpk)

46 I have been re-reading books I haven't read in awhile. Just finished Starship Troopers and may look at Foundation again. But for sheer pulp fiction, I began Mario Puzo's The Godfather yesterday. I haven't read since high school. I had forgotten how big of a role Frank Sinatra, er, Johnny Fontaine, played.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (jvt6t)

47 I ought to be working on my own book, but I'm in a usual depressive mood and can't shake it. I don't know whether to go for history and read Amithy Shlaes' Coolidge bio or fiction and read The Midnight Band of Mercy, a novel I've had hanging around the house for years and never got to. Or I could go back to Around the World On A Bicycle, which I started years ago and still am only half through.

I really need to go up north, find an isolated cottage with no internet and hide for a weekto finish my own damned book. I don't know how you moron authors who have full series out do it.

Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (2JVJo)

48 Sick of the rain. MP4 you're lucky. I'd love to sit out on my deck surrounded by my flowers and read a good book.
Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:16 AM (nxdel)

I'd love to share some sun and heat with you. Things are hot, humid and scorched here in NJ.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (ONvIw)

49 27 Eris -

Have you been to the Detroit Library ?
Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 08:13 AM (arJlL)
---

No I haven't, and it's at the top of my list. It looks gorgeous.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (Dc2NZ)

50 7 cont
Rise and Fall of Third Reich I'm at the takeover by Hitler after the Reichstag fire, the Nazis as well like the Communists outlawed all other parties jailing and murdering opponents.
They used the Reichstag fire to scare the population of the Communists. ( and still convinced the Democrats are trying the same with the Jan 6 rally)

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (Cxk7w)

51 I never did George R.R. Martin's books. My wife (ex) bought me the first two books in hard copy when they first came out. I tried reading the first book and got through the first two chapters. didn't like it. Gave both books to the library.
Posted by: Vic at May 23, 2021 08:14 AM (mpXpK)

I tend to find Martin WAY overrated. He's a decent author, but he's not even on my top twenty list of best authors. In fact, much of his story is told way better in P.C. Hodgell's Chronicles of the Kencyrath.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (hQrcu)

52 Thank you Eris for an outstanding and super-cromulent Book Thread!

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 08:20 AM (PiwSw)

53 Eris you're doing yeoman work on the book threads, great job.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:21 AM (Cxk7w)

54 I really need to go up north, find an isolated cottage with no internet and hide for a weekto finish my own damned book. I don't know how you moron authors who have full series out do it.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (2JVJo)

I admire all of you who write, I have enough trouble keeping up with the grandsons, my husband's medical stuff, and the house and the garden.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 08:21 AM (ONvIw)

55
"The Wilderness Idiot", by Ted Alvarez, writer for "Backpacker" magazine, is a collection of twenty-four of his essays. The breadth of locations and experiences that he relates is a plus. The three stories that I enjoyed most concerned him sharing experiences with members of his family: sister, brother, dad and mom. Those in which his mom appeared I especially enjoyed. It's a light reading load and generally enjoyable, so I'll be putting this book in the lending library at my gym.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 08:21 AM (pNxlR)

56 Hogmartin, that is a link to Tolkien in baggy pants.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:21 AM (Dc2NZ)

57 Will take any rain anyone wants to send this way

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:22 AM (Cxk7w)

58 I read "Terms of Service" too, on recommendation from a fellow book-loving Moron, and enjoyed it. I've been trying and failing to finish Ken Follett's "Edge of Eternity" - it's a good read but these darn screens have fried my ability to concentrate long enough to finish more than a few pages.

Posted by: CarolinaGirl at May 23, 2021 08:22 AM (Kh9rg)

59 I'd love to share some sun and heat with you. Things are hot, humid and scorched here in NJ.

That's coming here I'm sure. We're normally in the mid 80's but can't seem to get past mid 70's. We need something to slap this rain pattern in the face and back where it came from.

Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:22 AM (nxdel)

60 Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:22 AM (nxdel)

Same here, but I know by July or August, I'll be begging for this weather.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (jvt6t)

61 There are American citizens still jailed, and maybe in solitary for crime of trespassing ( and that's dubious)on Jan 6.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (Cxk7w)

62 I really need to go up north, find an isolated cottage with no internet and hide for a weekto finish my own damned book. I don't know how you moron authors who have full series out do it.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (2JVJo)

In the age of Stinkfinger we're barraged with so much data on the wreckage of the country and world that I can't get any reading done. It's like the entire country's become a tabloid narrative that you can't look away from. It can't be mentally healthy but as a citizen you feel a compulsion to stay engaged.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (y7DUB)

63 I read "Alien Vault: The Complete Story and Legacy" by Ian Nathan, because of course I did. And now I threadjack my own Book Thread and turn it into a movie thread.

It got me to thinking: what if, after breaking quarantine regs, they took Parker's advice and froze the be-facehuggered Kane? Then they could let the Company medical team figure out what to do upon their return. Sounds reasonable, right? But at this stage they have no idea how big and destructive the "guest" will become, and they would be unleashing it on Planet Earth.

So, the movie was NOT the worst case scenario.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (Dc2NZ)

64 "Huggy broke
Posted by: scottst"

Here's $20. What's the poop on the street?

Posted by: Starsky at May 23, 2021 08:26 AM (Tnijr)

65
No I haven't, and it's at the top of my list. It looks gorgeous.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (Dc2NZ)

Make sure you get to the DIA , Fisher Theater, and the Fox theater. Mercifully, these things were spared.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 08:26 AM (ONvIw)

66 Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (Cxk7w)

That is the most disturbing thing to me. American Gulag.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:26 AM (jvt6t)

67 I never did George R.R. Martin's books.

If you feel like giving him another chance, I recommend Fevre Dream. No series or trilogy, just a story about steamboat racing on the Mississippi.

And maybe a vampire or two.

Posted by: Stephen Price Blair at May 23, 2021 08:27 AM (CX3cf)

68 Hogmartin, that is a link to Tolkien in baggy pants.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:21 AM (Dc2N

¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Take it up with the page source.

Posted by: hogmartin at May 23, 2021 08:28 AM (t+qrx)

69 Well I just spilled my second cup of coffee all over the counter. *sigh* Nursing the last 1/2 cup left.

Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:29 AM (nxdel)

70 >>To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium.

Say hi to Blofeld for me.

Posted by: Dr. Varno at May 23, 2021 08:29 AM (Sa40b)

71 Theres also the assassini series about an alternate venice where marco polo deposed the doges there are vampires the fallen werewolves (krieghund) who are agents of the holy roman empire thers the othello storyjammed in there.

Posted by: Alien covenant was worse at May 23, 2021 08:30 AM (hMlTh)

72 I tend to find Martin WAY overrated. He's a decent
author, but he's not even on my top twenty list of best authors. In
fact, much of his story is told way better in P.C. Hodgell's Chronicles
of the Kencyrath.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (hQrcu)

---
When GoT hit HBO, my wife dove into the books and suggested I do likewise. I was willing to try it, but my first question was: "Is the series complete?"

I'm old enough to have seen several promising stories crash and burn because the author couldn't pull all the over-ambitious plot threads together. It's telling that Martin still hasn't done so.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:30 AM (llXky)

73 61 There are American citizens still jailed, and maybe in solitary for crime of trespassing ( and that's dubious)on Jan 6.
Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (Cxk7w)

Our tech overlords probably share Scarborough and Kristol's vision: an America where Americans have been replaced by migrants who will obey. I'd still like to see Emma Lazarus cancelled for her wretched poem, after all she was raised on daddy's use of slave labor and the bodies of the kids killed in the Swill Milk Scandal.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 08:30 AM (ONvIw)

74 CN, I've been to all of those. Detroit has some magnificent architecture from a time of competence and optimism.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:30 AM (Dc2NZ)

75 I read that as filthy shades of gray and thought they made a fort with the donated books.

Back to bed.

Posted by: Infidel at May 23, 2021 08:31 AM (E0OEG)

76 I bought the kindle version of LTC Lohmeier's book. Hopefully they don't pull it from my account and throw it down the memory hole before I get to read it. I bought it more to show support for him than anything else.

Posted by: PabloD at May 23, 2021 08:32 AM (QdGgA)

77 Great job on the book thread Eris! I just cracked open a brand new nicely bound in purple copy (insert commas as needed) of the Foundation Trilogy given to me for my last birthday. I'd say it's been over 29 years since I first read it and don't remember much. We shall see if it can keep my interest.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 08:33 AM (Tnijr)

78 70 >>To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium.

**********

With any luck, he'll grow to be nine feet tall and will be covered with thick hair throughout his body.

Posted by: Sasquatch, the Original trans-Wookie at May 23, 2021 08:34 AM (xxG/v)

79 I tend to find Martin WAY overrated. He's a decent
author, but he's not even on my top twenty list of best authors. In
fact, much of his story is told way better in P.C. Hodgell's Chronicles
of the Kencyrath.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (hQrcu)

---
When GoT hit HBO, my wife dove into the books and suggested I do likewise. I was willing to try it, but my first question was: "Is the series complete?"

I'm old enough to have seen several promising stories crash and burn because the author couldn't pull all the over-ambitious plot threads together. It's telling that Martin still hasn't done so.
---
Like Martin's series, Hodgell's series is also incomplete. . The most recent book was crazy awesome and I hope she does continue to put out some more books in the series. However, it's pretty open-ended, so if she doesn't finish it, I'm not going to complain.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:34 AM (hQrcu)

80 No writing this week due to a tidal wave of distractions. Hopefully that will ease. I'm hopeful because Bombay Sapphire just came out with a raspberry and blackberry infused gin that is excellent. Gin tastes like creativity to me.

I did get through my new edition of First Things which was supremely excellent. Many good articles but "Reactionary Feminism" was particularly resonant, written by an ex-lesbian feminist who was abjectly miserable with her super-woke lifestyle until one day her grandmother matter-of-factly asked "so when are you going to grow your hair out and get a husband?" Stunned by the question, she decided to give it a try.

There's a great passage where she remarks that we live in a culture where the same women who advocate zero restrictions on late term abortion will also frown with disapproval at a pregnant woman sipping a glass of wine.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:34 AM (llXky)

81 69 Well I just spilled my second cup of coffee all over the counter. *sigh* Nursing the last 1/2 cup left.
Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:29 AM (nxdel)

Mrs. Sucio got up, had a problem with her phone I fixed and she said: I'm going back to bed. Smart woman.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:35 AM (jvt6t)

82
Elmore Leonard's "Get Shorty". I'll get right to the point: I liked the movie much better. The primary reason for this being that in it, the "Mister Lovejoy" script over which everyone waxed enthusiastic was only lightly elaborated upon, whereas in the book, it was described in great detail. Its story was pedestrian and hard to envision as one that just had to be made into a movie, much less one that would attract star power at the level that Michael (Martin, in the movie) Weir possessed. The tone of the book was less comedic than the movie, which did not help, either.

On the plus side, the characters are fleshed out more fully with considerable portions of their backstories being provided. Had I read the book beforehand, would I have viewed it differently? I cannot say, but I think that I would have been less inclined to view the movie had I first read the book. And that would have been my loss.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 08:35 AM (pNxlR)

83 I tend to find Martin WAY overrated.

-
Also, too many Rs.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 08:35 AM (VVEnO)

84 I tend to find Martin WAY overrated.
Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:19 AM (hQrcu)

Probably overrated, but his early collection of short stories, Sandkings, is great.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (xP36F)

85 Good news! I have completed my project of a built-in bookcase for my wife's birthday present. It turned out surprisingly well. It is in a smallish room (sitting room?) next to a gas log fireplace. Floor to ceiling, 48 inches wide with two matching vertical halves, 10 total shelves, plus a shelf for our internet connections (router, etc) and a single drawer which will probably turn into a junk drawer.

She is happily beginning to populate it with some of her favorite books.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (m45I2)

86 I can't see the pants but I'm sure they are fine.

Posted by: The Invisible Man at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (Tnijr)

87 Who Dis looks like Ed Wynn, but I'm sure I'm wrong.

********

I finished "A Coffin for Dimitrios," and it sure wasn't what I expected. I'd heard it described as a spy story, but I disagree. It read more like a police procedural. Interview after interview. Still, it was entertaining, and that's what I want from a book. I learned in college that I like stories, not literature.

*********

Followed that with a Perry Mason book that's been on the shelves for some time, "The Case of the Lonely Heiress." Buzzed through it yesterday afternoon.

With Mason mysteries, I tend to read them thoroughly until somebody is killed, then change gears and speed up, just glancing through the investigation and courtroom exchanges. When I caught myself doing it this time, I downshifted and went through the book more slowly. Made for better reading.

One last tidbit about this book: The heiress is named Marilyn Maxwell. I frequently kept seeing the name as Marilyn Monroe, who was nowhere near stardom when this was published (194

Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (V5lmZ)

88 I'm old enough to have seen several promising stories crash and burn because the author couldn't pull all the over-ambitious plot threads together. It's telling that Martin still hasn't done so.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:30 AM (llXky)

The problem with Martin seems to be that he got all the fame and money and attention from the ladies he'd been craving all his life and decided to enjoy that instead of write.

Which is awesome if it happ0ens when you're 20-50.

But, at 70+ there's no way those books are written. He needs to pull a Victor Hugo or James Patterson and let some lean and hungry authors write the concluding volume(s).

Although, the HBO writers garbagefest of a last season managed to kill off all interest in "GoT".

Good job all around, a-holes!

Posted by: naturalfake at May 23, 2021 08:37 AM (dWwl8)

89 Oh, and Happy Pentecost! I entered the Church 15 years ago on Pentecost.

(Yes, it usually happens on Easter, but my churching is...unique. Ask me about my three baptisms sometime.)

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:37 AM (llXky)

90 I just picked up "Inside War: The Guerilla Conflict in Missouri During the Civil War (1)" by Michael Fellman. This is the book that Paulette Jiles sourced her (excellent) fiction "Enemy Women" from. It's full of maps, letters, official dispatches, photos and illustrations. This was intense conflict, and as a native of the state, never heard about any of this. There were 4 entities, all hell bent on killing each other: Union regular army, from other states like Ohio and Indiana, Union "militia", toughs, drunks, and criminals from the bar-rooms and levee of St. Louis and other small towns. Then there were Confederate regulars, as well as the Guerilla's, or "Bushwhackers", Ozark Mountain men who were being summarily executed/murdered, and burned out. The women were shipped off to prison in St. Louis, while children were sent off to other family, or simply starved to death. I think the only thing more brutal than the institution of slavery was the means by which it was ended.

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at May 23, 2021 08:37 AM (7Fj9P)

91 I'm going back to bed. Smart woman.

Well, since I've already had about a cup and a half there's no point in going back to bed. Just hope the rest of the day goes better!

Posted by: Jewells45 at May 23, 2021 08:38 AM (nxdel)

92 She is happily beginning to populate it with some of her favorite books.
Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (m45I2)

Good job!

*Ace gives the stink-eye*

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 08:38 AM (jvt6t)

93 Both books the totalitarians after taking over wipe out even like minded opponents. In Gulag Archipelago many to the thousands of one party members end up in the Gulags they once were pushing. And the main driver of the Gulag system was a Jewish wealthy businessman, sent through the Gulag but emerged as a main driver of the system and died a wealthy free man again.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:39 AM (Cxk7w)

94 This martin guy looks like he should be piloting a whaling ship.

Posted by: Berserker-Dragonheads Division at May 23, 2021 08:40 AM (VwHCD)

95 Test

Posted by: Mr Aspirin Factory at May 23, 2021 08:41 AM (DD2Dd)

96 Muldoon congratulations on a finished job.
Now I'm out of miniatures, thinking of making a Little Free Library.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:42 AM (Cxk7w)

97 Muldoon, what a thoughtful present! It's like a Book Womb.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:43 AM (Dc2NZ)

98
Both books the totalitarians after taking over wipe out even like minded
opponents. In Gulag Archipelago many to the thousands of one party
members end up in the Gulags they once were pushing. And the main driver
of the Gulag system was a Jewish wealthy businessman, sent through the
Gulag but emerged as a main driver of the system and died a wealthy free
man again.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:39 AM (Cxk7w)

---
That's because all domestic opposition has to be eradicated. It's interesting to speculate on what would have happened in Spain had the Republic triumphed. In my last chapter, I imagined a Red Spain leading to Communist revolution in France, and an uneasy alliance of Britain, Germany and Italy fighting against Russia, Spain and Belgium.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:43 AM (llXky)

99 Martin looks like he should be avoiding a whaling ship.

Posted by: PabloD at May 23, 2021 08:44 AM (QdGgA)

100 Not book-related, but hey, this is a classy culture thread too, so:

I have loved Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring" since the second time I listened to it (my first reaction was "Waaahh??"). Here's an entertaining animated look at the piece itself and its riotous premier in Paris:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6UKrmPoJv-k

And here's the actual ballet performance:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h-3wI3Upvpw

This shows why the music itself was eventually celebrated.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:44 AM (Dc2NZ)

101 I really don't enjoy characters being abandoned, Martin excelled at it.
I'll not bother supporting authors who don't finish what they start by reading their other works.

I know I might miss a gem; but, I really hope more people will stop supporting writers/movie houses/news orgs/etc who are subpar.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:45 AM (6R9QC)

102
g'mornin', book-ish 'rons

Posted by: AltonJackson at May 23, 2021 08:46 AM (DUIap)

103 I would imagine that Eric Motley is a nightmare for the left. He's not acting oppressed and doesn't hate European cultural influences.

Having said that, I assume he's on the left. I don't know anything about the Aspen Institute.

Posted by: Emmie at May 23, 2021 08:47 AM (ofYez)

104 this....Mr. Lloyd...are the thin margins of History

Posted by: Qmark at May 23, 2021 08:48 AM (emnp2)

105 Read the first book in the Joe Gunther series about a police officer in small town Vermont. First of twenty something books by Archie Mayor. It was ok, but nothing exciting. Nothing in it to tell me that it would inspire a whole bunch of later books. Might pick up a later one in case they are better.

Posted by: Charlotte at May 23, 2021 08:48 AM (DKgtk)

106 So, the movie was NOT the worst case scenario.
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (Dc2NZ)

There were so many ways they could've gone with the series after "Aliens" and every single choice they made was a bad one. Amazing.

Sigourney Weaver's in her 70s now.

They've probably got one more shot at this if they want it.

Let the garbage movies be a hypersleep fever dream brought on by a ship accident or malfunction after "Aliens" that has caused Ripley to age. Newt's same age or older, and away we go.

I have ideas on what I'd like to see but so does everybody. Leave it to Hollywood or Ridley Scott in particular to fuck it up though.

Posted by: naturalfake at May 23, 2021 08:48 AM (dWwl8)

107 I tend to find Martin WAY overrated.

-
Also, too many Rs.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 08:35 AM

They stand for "Rape Rape".

Posted by: Taqiyyologist, Rickrolled by Jesus at May 23, 2021 08:48 AM (OssQ4)

108 I know I might miss a gem; but, I really hope more people will stop supporting writers/movie houses/news orgs/etc who are subpar.
Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:45 AM (6R9QC)
---
We live in a strange age. On the one hand, there is SO MUCH content being produced we have an endless supply of material to read/watch/listen to. On the other hand, it basically follows Sturgeon's Law where 90% is crap. The challenge is to find that mysterious 10% that is actually pretty darned good, or at least OK.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 08:49 AM (hQrcu)

109 I really don't enjoy characters being abandoned, Martin excelled at it.

I'll not bother supporting authors who don't finish what they start by reading their other works.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:45 AM (6R9QC)

---
I agree completely. It doesn't take all that much talent to start all sorts of intriguing and complex plots, introduce varied characters and constantly hint that there's going to be an amazing finish - and then not provide that finish.

Tolkien endures because he nailed the landing. Martin has yet to even attempt it.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:49 AM (llXky)

110 Even Solzhenitsyn was a die hard Marxist Captain on the front lines of WWII as a artillery officer one day and swallowed up into the Gulag the next day.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:50 AM (Cxk7w)

111 Has the drag queens book made the number one spot on the New York Times best seller list....I remember in NYC (my college years) when drag shows were in regular bars as entertainment, and they were advertised as just good talented performers who put on a show good show for mostly straight people.

Posted by: Colin at May 23, 2021 08:51 AM (G3FTV)

112 94 This martin guy looks like he should be piloting a whaling ship.
99 Martin looks like he should be avoiding a whaling ship.

Nice

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 08:52 AM (xP36F)

113 I agree completely. It doesn't take all that much talent to start all sorts of intriguing and complex plots, introduce varied characters and constantly hint that there's going to be an amazing finish - and then not provide that finish.

Tolkien endures because he nailed the landing. Martin has yet to even attempt it.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd

And that would be why I haven't ever attempted to write a book!

Based on the number of times I've read the Hobbit, LoTR, Dune, all of Heinlein, and all of Asimov I completely agree.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:52 AM (6R9QC)

114 George RR Martin was coaxed to come be guest of honor at a book conference in NY (Thrillerfest) two or three years ago.

We were all instructed not to ask when the next book would be out.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 08:53 AM (AwPyG)

115 I don't know anything about the Aspen Institute.

*****

The Aspen Institute is notoriously far-left. If I'm not mistaken (which I often am), they are particularly rabid on Climate Change.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:53 AM (m45I2)

116 Yes he found himself with the vlasovites the oun the social revolutionaries all the wrong people.

Posted by: Alien covenant was worse at May 23, 2021 08:54 AM (hMlTh)

117 Martin seemed like a funny, smart guy. It must drive the publisher crazy, that there's millions and millions of dollars just waiting there, and they can't get him to finish the book.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 08:54 AM (AwPyG)

118 Anyone had problem w/site locking their browser?

Posted by: BignJames at May 23, 2021 08:54 AM (AwYPR)

119 The Aspen Institute is notoriously far-left. If I'm not mistaken (which I often am), they are particularly rabid on Climate Change.
Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:53 AM (m45I2

Thanks, Muldoon! I'm not surprised.

Posted by: Emmie at May 23, 2021 08:55 AM (ofYez)

120 BignJames, my iPhone locks up on this site constantly. Though my phone is from the age of steam, so...

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:55 AM (Dc2NZ)

121 I'll not bother supporting authors who don't finish what they start by reading their other works.
Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:45 AM (6R9QC)
I agree completely.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:49 AM (llXky)

Not sure what supporting means here, but I don't think of buying books as being done to support, but just done because you want that particular book.
Unless I had something against the author personally, I'd still buy books I expect to enjoy.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 08:56 AM (xP36F)

122 I can't read Ace of Spades on my iPad either. Slooowwly loads. Then crashes.

Ditto. But I think it's an iOS problem, not a Pixy problem since it happens with Brave too. Turning off JavaScript helps but that kind of stinks as a solution.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 08:56 AM (nfrXX)

123 @89

You and Meghan Markle

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 08:57 AM (AwPyG)

124 118 Anyone had problem w/site locking their browser?
Posted by: BignJames at May 23, 2021 08:54 AM (AwYPR)

Not locking forever, but stopping it for a minute or two.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 08:57 AM (xP36F)

125 Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 08:55 AM (Dc2NZ)

I'm still running win 7...couldn't even read the blog yesterday...better this am.

Posted by: BignJames at May 23, 2021 08:57 AM (AwYPR)

126 Again the only reading I got done was in The Alienist for the book group, which everyone seems to be enjoying, particularly Jim Badal whom some of you know as the author of In the Wake of the Butcher: Cleveland's Torso Murders. The book is obviously very well researched since Jesse Pomeroy was a real person and just as creepy as portrayed in the book.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (y7DUB)

127 It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Complain to Ace. He can easily switch to a modern platform if he wants.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (Q9lwr)

128 OK, 10 o'clock and it's a lovely day outside. Time to sit in the yard, read and do my best to shake off my usual Sunday depression.

Hope you all have a lovely day.

Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (2JVJo)

129 Pixy and my phone are in cahoots!

Let's see whether I can fox them:

The Mason book whetted my appetite for more Mason, so I broke my resolution to read only what I own and ordered more PM books from the library.

*********

Speaking of the library, I wanted a change of pace from music for my drive to work, so I got a Wodehouse audiobook from same. Turned out to be a BBC radio adaptation of stories, some of which I've read. Now I want to read those other stories.

Still on the Wodehouse CD kick, I got "Cocktail Time" from the library. I read it years ago, and I look forward to how it will sound. I like Uncle Fred better than Bertie Wooster.

Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (V5lmZ)

130 My ATT iphone will not load this site; this is the only one I have a problem with

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (AwPyG)

131 Aren't iphone users suppose to buy a new phone every year? Me and my 4 year old Moto phone, (bought at Walmart for 80 dollars) I feel so left out around my relatives who love to show off their newest iphone.

Posted by: Colin at May 23, 2021 09:00 AM (G3FTV)

132 I find your lack of pants disturbing.

Posted by: Darth Karen at May 23, 2021 09:00 AM (DMUuz)

133 Not sure what supporting means here, but I don't
think of buying books as being done to support, but just done because
you want that particular book.
Unless I had something against the author personally, I'd still buy books I expect to enjoy.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 08:56 AM (xP36F)

---
Usually you read through an author's catalog because you liked what you saw and want more of it. Having someone say "Yeah, this guy's epic saga is kind of a hot mess that he'll never finish, but try his short stories," isn't very persuasive to me.

I'm more attracted to authors who follow through and who also aren't annoying public figures.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:01 AM (llXky)

134 I can't read Ace of Spades on my iPad either. Slooowwly loads. Then crashes.

It was working great on mobile when we had the "enhanced" site after the crash but once it reverted to the original 1997 software it got bad again. It's even starting to screw up in Firefox on my 12-core 32GB RAM desktop.

Posted by: Ian S. at May 23, 2021 09:01 AM (6XLoz)

135 I have Win 7 and dissenter. Never a problem on the old laptop. And I mean old. Prolly 08 dell.

Posted by: Infidel at May 23, 2021 09:02 AM (E0OEG)

136 particularly Jim Badal whom some of you know as the author of In the Wake of the Butcher: Cleveland's Torso Murders.

Badal is in your reading group? I met him years ago at a conference on Jack the Ripper. He was a bit standoffish at the start, but I grew to like him a lot. I have both IN the Wake of the Butcher and Twilight of Innocence: The Disappearance of Beverly Potts.

It's a small world.

Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (2JVJo)

137 Ha, ha! They gave up their copy of Fifty Shades but not the Hitachi "Body Massager" and boxes of wine.: )

Posted by: JROD at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (0jZnq)

138 Not a issue at all on Samsung tablet lately

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (Cxk7w)

139 Even Solzhenitsyn was a die hard Marxist Captain on
the front lines of WWII as a artillery officer one day and swallowed up
into the Gulag the next day.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 08:50 AM (Cxk7w)

---
If only Stalin knew!

Posted by: Every Marxist in the Gulag at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (llXky)

140 I couldn't care less about the author personally, only the story.

On the other hand, you get a good sense of the author when you read a book, so I think it follows that if you like the books you'd probably like the author on a personal level.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (AwPyG)

141 I have completed my project of a built-in bookcase

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (m45I2)

Pics or it didn't happen!

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:04 AM (Q9lwr)

142 I need coming out of coma coffee.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:04 AM (izndx)

143 Interesting storylines that never conclude?

You've just described the X-Men books of the '90s.

Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 09:05 AM (V5lmZ)

144 I have Win 7 and dissenter. Never a problem on the old laptop. And I mean old. Prolly 08 dell.

Posted by: Infidel at May 23, 2021 09:02 AM (E0OEG)

---
The site looks great on my Netscape Navigator! Of course my 486 takes 20 minutes to boot up...

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:05 AM (llXky)

145 >>> 109 I really don't enjoy characters being abandoned, Martin excelled at it.

I'll not bother supporting authors who don't finish what they start by reading their other works.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 08:45 AM (6R9QC)
---
I agree completely. It doesn't take all that much talent to start all sorts of intriguing and complex plots, introduce varied characters and constantly hint that there's going to be an amazing finish - and then not provide that finish.

Tolkien endures because he nailed the landing. Martin has yet to even attempt it.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:49 AM (llXky)

...finish???

Posted by: Jar-Jar Abrams at May 23, 2021 09:05 AM (d5OIB)

146 Still on the Wodehouse CD kick, I got "Cocktail Time" from the library. I read it years ago, and I look forward to how it will sound. I like Uncle Fred better than Bertie Wooster.
========================
I found his Golf Anthology a couple of years ago, and was really excited to read it. I was very disappointed. The first few stories were funny; but then it got repetitive and formulaic. I still love The Jeeves and Wooster TV series, despite Frye's pervertism.

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at May 23, 2021 09:06 AM (7Fj9P)

147 Who Dis would have been better off dismissing his tailor and having his suits made by his upholsterer!

Posted by: Biden's Dog at May 23, 2021 09:07 AM (5HXH8)

148 All Hail Eris

Superb Book thread. I even recognized the Who dis right off. That never happens with OM.

And the winner is Tolkien! What an entertaining clip. GRRR can EABOD, then DIAF.

Thank you.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at May 23, 2021 09:07 AM (u82oZ)

149 I couldn't care less about the author personally, only the story.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (AwPyG)

---
I care about the author if I'm made to care. Too many authors think the path to success is pissing off at least half of their potential audience.

The thing is, there are established authors - canonical, one might say - that I haven't gotten to yet. There are still works of Joseph Conrad I haven't read and I've yet to dive in the deep and rewarding works of GK Chesterton, so I'll prioritize that over the new hotness.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:08 AM (llXky)

150 Good morning!

Let's smile & be happy & strike fear in the hearts of killjoy leftists everywhere.

Already been to town, completed 4 errands ,and am back home. Early Sunday is the time to shop, for sure.

Posted by: NaCly Dog at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (u82oZ)

151 Since the Memorial Day Book Festival is in Seguin, Texas, let me recommend the story of Texas Alamo patriot Juan Seguin, "A Tejano Knight" by Bill Neely.

Americans should know his story. Juan Seguin dot com

Posted by: The Gipper Lives at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (Ndje9)

152 Usually you read through an author's catalog because you liked what you saw and want more of it. Having someone say "Yeah, this guy's epic saga is kind of a hot mess that he'll never finish, but try his short stories," isn't very persuasive to me.
I'm more attracted to authors who follow through and who also aren't annoying public figures.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:01 AM (llXky)

Ah! No, I can't agree, but now I see where you're coming from.

"Usually" here would be "never" for me. I never read through an author's catalog.
There's too many good books from other authors that are already on my list.
But it's a different mindset I think, because I also buy songs and CDs for the songs I've heard, not because I'm into a particular band.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (xP36F)

153 I had something of a surreal encounter the other day. The first part was that my local used bookstore was actually open. The second part is that the owner is, "Re-imagining and rethinking", his shelving strategy.
He's decided that rather than have the old boring categories by subject that he's mixing fiction and non fiction on the same shelves. So, if you are looking for, books on astronomy they'll be mixed in with science fiction. History will be mixed in with war fiction. I got a tad annoyed when he said he would be mixing in religious works with fantasy novels.
He has so many unshelved boxes of books stacked everywhere that in most aisles the two bottom shelves are unreachable. Anyone else encountered this before? Or, is he just a loon?
Terrific thread Eris! Thank you!

Posted by: Winston, GOPe, not one dime, not one vote at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (cJSGn)

154 Read the first book in the Joe Gunther series about a police officer in small town Vermont. First of twenty something books by Archie Mayor. It was ok, but nothing exciting.

Mrs. OB binge-listened to them on Audible, sometimes on car trips so I got some of them. I agree, as detective stories go, they're pretty lukewarm. Gunther works out of Brattleboro and I got a grin out of the occasional gentle dig at the Mary Cloggensteins.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (nfrXX)

155 Martin is a superb science fiction writer who made the shrewd but cynical decision to become a mediocre fantasy writer. His bank account supports the wisdom of that choice.

Posted by: Trimegistus at May 23, 2021 09:10 AM (QZxDR)

156 Any interesting prono movie titles? I don't watch them. I suffered when i was a tike. The VCR would only work backwards so i was quite backwards at courting.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:12 AM (izndx)

157 If we're creeping into video, Broken Harts on Discovery+ was mentioned on the movie thread last night. The Harts were a white, lesbian, Bernie Sanders-supporting couple who adopted six black kids. This, of course, makes progressive hearts go pitty pat. Too bad the two moms murdered all six kids and committed suicide. The show reveals the progressive illusion they were trying to live (or, perhaps, were trying to appear to live) for the false narrative it was. Ironically, this puncturing of the progressive daydream comes from a progressive narrative point of view. (The real progressive daydream has never been tried.) I see a lot of black victim/evil white oppressors in the commentary. One of the major commentors is a young (at least compared to me) blue haired, black, male, "journalist". I actually agreed with a lot of what he was saying but not for the reasons he was saying it. He talks, for example, about white saviorism but I interpret his remarks to be essentially anti-white racism rather than a legitimate criticism of using blacks as political props. Not the feel good movie of the year but well worth watching.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 09:13 AM (VVEnO)

158 @153

That sounds a little nuts, like a town that decides to have traffic go the opposite way than normal.

You wouldn't want customers to be dismayed and confused, one would think. Maybe he wants to guarantee that he gets involved in all book-searching.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:13 AM (AwPyG)

159 153 I had something of a surreal encounter the other day. The first part was that my local used bookstore was actually open. The second part is that the owner is, "Re-imagining and rethinking", his shelving strategy.
He's decided that rather than have the old boring categories by subject that he's mixing fiction and non fiction on the same shelves.
...
Posted by: Winston, GOPe, not one dime, not one vote at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (cJSGn)

Great scene in the TV show "3rd Rock from the Sun". Harry and Sally decide to open a video rental store and recategorize everything as "Good movies, Bad movies, and Movies I haven't seen yet."

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 09:13 AM (PiwSw)

160 @155

And you have to kinda admire the fact he has no fs to give. He'll eat what he wants, and write when he feels like it.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:15 AM (AwPyG)

161 Found Rise and Fall of Third Reich at used book store, been wanting to read it a long time. I prefer they keep categories by subject.

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 09:15 AM (Cxk7w)

162 Has anyone been following the story of jurgen conings? He is a belgian soldier who has gone awol after posting on social media he is going after the tyrannical government in belgium.

Unlike the various jihadi groups in belgium it looks like the government is being proactive and has started a manhunt for him.

Posted by: 18-1 at May 23, 2021 09:16 AM (iHxFY)

163 I think I had a couple army cooks who did a lot of inspissatin' in more than soups.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:16 AM (axyOa)

164 141 I have completed my project of a built-in bookcase

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (m45I2)

Pics or it didn't happen!
Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:04 AM (Q9lwr)
---

Yeah! We need to highlight Horde libraries again.

Do it, Muldoon!

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 09:17 AM (Dc2NZ)

165 ..Complain to Ace. He can easily switch to a modern platform if he wants. Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 08:59 AM (Q9lwr)

Ace isn't the problem here. Microsloth is. They've declared and end of support for Win7 as of August. But, they're not leaving 7 users alone till then. Nope, nope, nopety nope! I was running an older browser (12?), and one fine morning, it REFUSED to let me load live.com, redirecting me to an EDGE browser, over 50 attempts.

Support till August my aching eyebrows. They're doing the Cass Sustien "nudge" across all platforms, and are crippling functionality to MANY older operating systems and browsers. Affects phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, you name it. Minx 0.7 Alpha is just another victim, here. Alas, Ace runs like grease lightning in EDGE, but I'd like to sit as a student and be tutored by a talented gadget pro, so as to learn the ways of BRAVE or otherwise wean myself from the MS empire.

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:17 AM (QzJWU)

166 I met him years ago at a conference on Jack the Ripper. He was a bit standoffish at the start, but I grew to like him a lot. I have both IN the Wake of the Butcher and Twilight of Innocence: The Disappearance of Beverly Potts.

It's a small world.
Posted by: Mary Poppins' Practically Perfect Piercing at May 23, 2021 09:03 AM (2JVJo)

Jim's kind of a caricature of an English professor (he even admits he dresses accordingly) but he has a real passion for researching the subjects of his books and I think the police who doggedly pursued the cases appreciated his efforts. He really likes The Alienist, which is no surprise, and his literary tastes are usually quite good; although when he doesn't like something he's almost as outspoken as I am on badmouthing the work and whoever inflicted it on the group.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 09:18 AM (y7DUB)

167 "I also read All Systems Red by Martha Wells. This novella is the first of the so far four-book series known as The Murderbot Diaries............"

Love Murderbot. Make sure you read the remaining novellas and the novel. The recently published novella takes place between the 4th novella and the full length novel.

Posted by: Tuna at May 23, 2021 09:18 AM (gLRfa)

168 Thanks for the huzzahs! But really, CBD is to be commended for turning my primitive notes and links into a smoove groove.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 09:19 AM (Dc2NZ)

169 Reich n Roll.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:19 AM (izndx)

170 https://littlefreelibrary.org/

Who knew?

Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 09:20 AM (Cxk7w)

171 Artemis, you may be closer than you know. He's always following people around in the store and talks constantly.
He knows books, somewhat but the place is a mess, bordering on a dump and a fire hazard. I was looking for a couple of things but there was no sign of them.
Shadout, I never watched 3rd Rock but that makes more sense than what this guy is doing.
It's bizarre.

Posted by: Winston, GOPe, not one dime, not one vote at May 23, 2021 09:20 AM (cJSGn)

172 Any interesting prono movie titles?
======================
"On Golden Blond". Still my favorite.

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at May 23, 2021 09:21 AM (7Fj9P)

173 I'm concerned that the "Girl Genius" webcomic will never conclude. The Foglios and I are around the same age, and the story has so many aspects that haven't come to the fore yet, that I fear that either they or I won't live to see the end. And I've been with them since the beginning.

Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 09:21 AM (V5lmZ)

174 I never read through an author's catalog.
There's too many good books from other authors that are already on my list.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:09 AM (xP36F)

---
So if you think an author is superb, and know there are other highly-regarded books by that author, you avoid them?

Once I got into Waugh, I was hooked. Worked my way forward and backwards, and it was fascinating to see how his writing evolved. Doing that made me a much better writer. I also found works I'd never heard of that were superb.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (llXky)

175 Finished "Hail Mary" this week. Meh...The concept was interesting enough but Weir goes on his climate change high horse midway through the novel which kind of ruined or for me. Also not nearly as amusing as the "The Martian"

Posted by: Tuna at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (gLRfa)

176 132 I find your lack of pants disturbing.
Posted by: Darth Karen at May 23, 2021 09:00 AM (DMUuz)

I'm just following The Science! The CDC said pants aren't necessary if you've been fully vaxxed.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (Dc2NZ)

177 To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium.

Say hi to Blofeld for me.
Posted by: Dr. Varno at May 23, 2021 08:29 AM

He is to eliminate all free radicals.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (axyOa)

178 135 I have Win 7 and dissenter. Never a problem on the old laptop. And I mean old. Prolly 08 dell.

Posted by: Infidel at May 23, 2021 09:02 AM (E0OEG)
If you have Windows 7 or 8 you better hold on to it. Windows 10 is not WAS.

Posted by: Vic at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (mpXpK)

179 Ace isn't the problem here. Microsloth is. They've declared and end of support for Win7 as of August.

Of this year? I thought they EOL'd Win7 a couple of years ago. I liked 7 but gave in and "up"graded this laptop to 10 to get the security patches. Somewhere on my iPad I may still have a link to a site that describes how to get a free upgrade even though MS supposedly ended that offer quite a while back. I'll dig that out and post on the gun thread if I can.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (nfrXX)

180 "Excuse me while I inspissate the soup."

When there is a customer a BLM cook hates, he inspissates in his soup?

Two kitchen words I have forgotten ... what is the state of a sponge when it is dry, and won't easily absorb liquid (till it is softened by slowly absorbing liquid)? There is a word for that.

What is it when you pour cold water on a hot skillet/griddle, to clean off hardened grease? Sparge comes to mind, but that is not it.

Posted by: illiniwek at May 23, 2021 09:23 AM (Cus5s)

181 Mr. Robin. Ha ha.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:23 AM (izndx)

182 @133 "Usually you read through an author's catalog because you liked what you saw and want more of it."

I read Martin's (and Lisa Tuttle) Windhaven and loved it. So when GoT came out, i read the first couple of books. after that, i quit. all the characters were despicable and besides they were all killed. never going back.

pet word peeve: decimate != devastate

Posted by: yara at May 23, 2021 09:24 AM (N7mou)

183 Little Known Muldoon Fact #953: Some of Mozart's earliest works were composed for the player piano.

They were published in a compendium titled Amadeus ex Machina

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:25 AM (m45I2)

184 @175

I suspect that Weir is all-in on climate change because now he's published by Ballantine, and has to tow the lefty line.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:25 AM (AwPyG)

185 @183

Heh

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:25 AM (AwPyG)

186 161 Found Rise and Fall of Third Reich at used book store, been wanting to read it a long time.
Posted by: Skip at May 23, 2021 09:15 AM (Cxk7w)

Shirer also wrote The Collapse of the Third Republic, centering on France in the leadup to WWII.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:25 AM (xP36F)

187 Belinda Luscombe
@luscombeland
I'm guessing we will find we made a lot of mistakes handling the pandemic, much of it caused by the fact that nobody had any experience handling a novel virus. Hope we can endeavor to rise above finger-pointing.

-
Gosh, I'm pretty sure there's already been a lot of finger-pointing but, of course, you mean to rise above finger-pointing at you. (She's specifically referring to the over counting of covid cases and deaths).

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 09:27 AM (VVEnO)

188 Ace isn't the problem here. Microsloth is.

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:17 AM (QzJWU)

He's talking about iPads and the Safari browser, which have nothing to do with Microsoft.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:27 AM (Q9lwr)

189 Fasionably late to this elegant book thread

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at May 23, 2021 09:27 AM (IMQiW)

190 I gave up on Girl Genius several years ago when I came to the realization that neither of the Foglios knows how to end ANYTHING.

Posted by: Trimegistus at May 23, 2021 09:29 AM (QZxDR)

191 ..Of this year? I thought they EOL'd Win7 a couple of years ago.

I have only myself and my insufficient intake of covfefe thus far this morning, to blame. Win 10 for the win, so to speak.

Point being though, that they're not only stating an "end date" to the thing, but they're actively trimming it's functionality at the edges, quite deliberately.

Bass. Turds.

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:29 AM (QzJWU)

192 If we're creeping into video...

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 09:13 AM (VVEnO)

I would prefer not to.

Posted by: Bartleby'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:29 AM (Q9lwr)

193 Yeah! We need to highlight Horde libraries again.

Do it, Muldoon!
Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 09:17 AM (Dc2NZ)

My bookshelf has become much more practical since shared here. Holds the same books but more scotch and bourbon.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:29 AM (axyOa)

194 I think I had a couple army cooks who did a lot of inspissatin' in more than soups.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:16 AM (axyOa)

---
At a field feed during an exercise we lined up and got the slop plopped on our trays. Being Air Force, it was basically Dinty Moore beef stew, so hard to screw up, but when we sat down to eat, one of our airmen choked on his portion, pushed his tray away and threw his spoon at it.

"It's all burned and nasty! How can you eat it?" We all stared at him and peered at his tray. Ours was fine, but sure enough, the cooks had scraped the bottoms of the pan and filled his tray with the results. You see, he'd been one of them and transferred out, and now they were short-handed. Never piss off the cooks.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:30 AM (llXky)

195
Good news! I have completed my project of a built-in bookcase for my wife's birthday present.

Using plans from ace, I presume, Muldoon?

Oh, wait, you said "completed" ... my mistake.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:30 AM (pNxlR)

196 "Little Known Muldoon Fact #953: Some of Mozart's earliest works were composed for the player piano.
They were published in a compendium titled Amadeus ex Machina
Posted by: Muldoon "

One time when they were hanging out, Wolfgang allegedly told Ludwig "Start the roll over Beethoven!"

Posted by: The Invisible Man at May 23, 2021 09:30 AM (Tnijr)

197 Gosh, I'm pretty sure there's already been a lot of finger-pointing but, of course, you mean to rise above finger-pointing at you. (She's specifically referring to the over counting of covid cases and deaths).
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 09:27 AM (VVEnO)

Overstating a fake pandemic that wrecked lives and economies deserves finger pointing at her cold lifeless body hanging from a rope.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 09:31 AM (y7DUB)

198 ..He's talking about iPads and the Safari browser, which have nothing to do with Microsoft. Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:27 AM (Q9lwr)

I choose not to discuss iPads in polite company.. don't wanna 'mbarass the 'ettes.

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:31 AM (QzJWU)

199 I have only myself and my insufficient intake of covfefe thus far this morning, to blame. Win 10 for the win, so to speak.

Oh. That is new news to me. I'd better do some reading up on that. Thanks.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:32 AM (nfrXX)

200 So if you think an author is superb, and know there are other highly-regarded books by that author, you avoid them?
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (llXky)

So if you think an author is superb, and know there are other highly-regarded books by that author, and also have books by other authors you want to read, you always choose the newly found books over the ones you knew about first?

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:32 AM (xP36F)

201 Also, too many Rs.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks,

*raises eyebrow*

Posted by: J.R.R. Tolkien at May 23, 2021 09:32 AM (IMQiW)

202 Seems to me as though there's backpedaling going on about the flu, but none about the election, which is kind of interesting.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:33 AM (AwPyG)

203 Overstating a fake pandemic that wrecked lives and
economies deserves finger pointing at her cold lifeless body hanging
from a rope.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 09:31 AM (y7DUB)

---
Weird how the same people who obsess over wrongs that took place 170 years ago suddenly shift into "mistakes were made" mode over what they did within the last six months.

Oh wait, it 's not weird, its entirely predictable.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:33 AM (llXky)

204 Using plans from ace, I presume, Muldoon?

Oh, wait, you said "completed" ... my mistake.
Posted by: Krebs v Carnot

*****

Yeah, my building skills are such that I wanted to make sure the erection would last four hours before I started to brag about it.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:33 AM (m45I2)

205 ...and now they were short-handed. Never piss off the cooks.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:30 AM (llXky)

This is excellent advice.
Also goes to show tis better to be the inspissatator than the inspissatatee.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:34 AM (axyOa)

206 I do seem to recall the press blamed Trump for everything with the virus while he was in office

I guess he's the only individual government person in the whole world to blame

Posted by: 18-1 at May 23, 2021 09:34 AM (iHxFY)

207 196 "Little Known Muldoon Fact #953: Some of Mozart's earliest works were composed for the player piano.
They were published in a compendium titled Amadeus ex Machina
Posted by: Muldoon "
One time when they were hanging out, Wolfgang allegedly told Ludwig "Start the roll over Beethoven!"
Posted by: The Invisible Man at May 23, 2021 09:30 AM (Tnijr)

Damn. Damn! I *tried* to think of a funny response.

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:34 AM (xP36F)

208 "Never piss off the cooks."
I have a related rule - if you think the service at a restaurant is bad, wait until AFTER you've received your meal to complain. One of my relatives can be a bit abrasive with servers, and all I can think is "please don't mix up our plates if we order the same thing."

Posted by: PabloD at May 23, 2021 09:34 AM (QdGgA)

209 There's a great passage where she remarks that we live in a culture where the same women who advocate zero restrictions on late term abortion will also frown with disapproval at a pregnant woman sipping a glass of wine.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 08:34 AM (llXky)

They are very inconsisent.

One woman, my brother's age, played lesbian for over 30 years. When her partner dumped her, she went straight. It was always about confidence an opportunity

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:35 AM (ONvIw)

210 Life is too short to read crap.

I try to stick with the classics.

Posted by: JAS, AoSHQ addict at May 23, 2021 09:35 AM (xopIz)

211 Yeah, my iphone has an ace problem that's not microsoft-related.

And additional fun fact: if I try to wait for the phone to load ace's site, the battery gets completely drained, no matter how charged it was.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 09:35 AM (AwPyG)

212 "Yeah, my building skills are such that I wanted to make sure the erection would last four hours before I started to brag about it.
Posted by: Muldoon "

Ummm.......

Posted by: Tuna at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (gLRfa)

213 One time when they were hanging out, Wolfgang allegedly told Ludwig "Start the roll over Beethoven!"

****

Yeah. When the feeder mechanism on the box jammed they had to open up the Bach.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (m45I2)

214
Any interesting prono movie titles? I don't watch them. I suffered when i was a tike. The VCR would only work backwards so i was quite backwards at courting.
Posted by: Humphreyrobot

That explains your thinking that a stiff penis is an excellent vacuum cleaner for all the mayonnaise young comely women inexplicably find on their faces and persons.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (pNxlR)

215 o if you think an author is superb, and know there
are other highly-regarded books by that author, and also have books by
other authors you want to read, you always choose the newly found books
over the ones you knew about first?

Posted by: Stonn at May 23, 2021 09:32 AM (xP36F)

---
Yes, I strip-mine an author because often the books refer back to each other, and that's something I would miss if I took a break. My reading strategy is one of "take and hold," where I pick a designated author and explore them in depth. Sometimes I get distracted or can't continue (say because books aren't in print), but I like to immerse myself in a given topic before moving on.

It is a very rewarding way to experience an author.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (llXky)

216 ..Oh. That is new news to me. I'd better do some reading up on that. Thanks. Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:32 AM (nfrXX)

I didn't gather this by having read articles (which is fine, btw), but by the consistent denigration of performance on several household PCs and tablets, here. The function hits are consistent and of a pattern that cannot be simple machine decay. Not when MS screens pop-up in the place of desired 'sites, and "redirect" with admonishments and "suggestions". Nah, they're looking to PURGE the old, this time around, vs. merely "not support."

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (QzJWU)

217 iPads? Oh, it's that time of the month, huh.

Posted by: JAS, AoSHQ addict at May 23, 2021 09:37 AM (xopIz)

218 "Life is too short to read crap. "

What about short crappy comments?

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 09:37 AM (Tnijr)

219 So far Dr False should spend the rest of his life in a southern jail. Brazil.

Gain of function info, the rope.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:37 AM (izndx)

220 What about short crappy comments?
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 09:37 AM (Tnijr)

*golf clap*

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 09:38 AM (jvt6t)

221 I do not recommend Michael Strevens "The Knowledge Machine". The contents are a sort of gimish of history/ philosophy of science, the purpose of which is to show that the author has a better theory and understanding of the scientific method than Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn. He is wrong; this is a superficial approach to the subject which serves only to serve his theories on a platter. Peruse the book in a book store, skim the pages, but do not put yourself through the indignity of wasting precious hours reading this travesty..

Posted by: EdmundBurkesShade at May 23, 2021 09:38 AM (RJCvt)

222 I am reading out of my usual genre, a book that was enthusiastically recommended by a sweet lady I like.
It's general fiction, "The Lost amd Found Bookshop" by Susan Wiggs.
I'm midway and it's an interesting, gentle read, about a woman who quits her well paying job after her mom dies to take over an almost bankruot bookstore and care for her grandfather who has dementia.
Best part is no wokeness so far, at all.

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at May 23, 2021 09:38 AM (IMQiW)

223 You could be off reading a classic. But no. You're here.
As my mom would say "It's your own damn fault!"

Posted by: JAS, AoSHQ addict at May 23, 2021 09:38 AM (xopIz)

224 Karl Popper...he sure can play the harmonica.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 09:39 AM (jvt6t)

225 She is happily beginning to populate it with some of her favorite books.
Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 08:36 AM (m45I2)

Great!

All our built ins were built by Prof N during his sabbaticals. They still look great.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:39 AM (ONvIw)

226 Anyhoo...about reading.
I've been on a Viet Nam kick for the last week. Latest was Blood on Red Dirt by Cowart. Once you get past the shoddy editing you find in kindle, it's a good read. Turns out the author is a retired dentist now just up the road.
Most of the reading concentrates on 1967-69 era of the war. Some hard reading.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:39 AM (axyOa)

227 Yes, I strip-mine an author because often the books refer back to each other, and that's something I would miss if I took a break.

==

hah! thst's a great term
I am the same way

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at May 23, 2021 09:39 AM (IMQiW)

228
What about short crappy comments?
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 09:37 AM (Tnijr)

Twenty bucks, same as in town.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:40 AM (pNxlR)

229 Oh. That is new news to me. I'd better do some reading up on that. Thanks.

IIUC, it's not all Win10 that's reaching end of support, just the version released in 2019.

https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows /release-health/release-information (delete space)

By the way JimSND, as of today, Mrs. OB and I are officially relocated up the road from you in Alvin.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:40 AM (nfrXX)

230 I pick a designated author and explore them in
depth.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (llXky)

I used to do that in my callow youth, but I have found that as I grew older (not more mature), I had less patience for an author's less impressive works.

That being said, if one has the time, it is a wonderful way to read!

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:40 AM (Q9lwr)

231
Once I got into Waugh, I was hooked. Worked my way forward and backwards, and it was fascinating to see how his writing evolved. Doing that made me a much better writer. I also found works I'd never heard of that were superb.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (llXky)

He was a genius.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:41 AM (ONvIw)

232 So if you think an author is superb, and know there are other highly-regarded books by that author, you avoid them?

Once I got into Waugh, I was hooked. Worked my way forward and backwards, and it was fascinating to see how his writing evolved. Doing that made me a much better writer. I also found works I'd never heard of that were superb.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:22 AM (llXky)

Once I read a collection of short stories by Ron Rash and subsequently started reading everything I could get my hands on. I only stopped when I caught him repeating a plot device from one book to another and it put me off from pursuing anything further. He's still an excellent writer and I'll grab any new releases that come out.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 09:41 AM (y7DUB)

233 224 Karl Popper...he sure can play the harmonica.
Posted by: Jak Sucio

Mr Popper, the guy with the penguins?

Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at May 23, 2021 09:41 AM (IMQiW)

234 ..By the way JimSND, as of today, Mrs. OB and I are officially relocated up the road from you in Alvin.
Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 09:40 AM (nfrXX)

Congratulations! Drop me a line at my email, and let's plan some eats n' drinks!

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX

Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:42 AM (QzJWU)

235 One time when they were hanging out, Wolfgang allegedly told Ludwig "Start the roll over Beethoven!"

****

Yeah. When the feeder mechanism on the box jammed they had to open up the Bach.
Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (m45
***

Once they fixed it they went out for ice cream. Strawberry Schubert.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:42 AM (axyOa)

236 In the age of Stinkfinger we're barraged with so much data on the wreckage of the country and world that I can't get any reading done. It's like the entire country's become a tabloid narrative that you can't look away from. It can't be mentally healthy but as a citizen you feel a compulsion to stay engaged.
Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:24 AM (y7DUB)

That's where I am, basically. Anything written down in book form seems out of date, because of where we are these days. Same with movies.

I started Michael Malice's "Dear Reader," about North Korea, and it's written like an autobiography of Kim Jong Il. Interesting enough, but I know how this story ends. The North Korean people are starved and oppressed by an insane family that is pursuing nukular weapons. It just seems like old news.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:43 AM (ilonU)

237 One woman, my brother's age, played lesbian for over
30 years. When her partner dumped her, she went straight. It was always
about confidence an opportunity

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:35 AM (ONvIw)

---
There is a lot of data supporting the notion that female sexuality is more fluid and women often decide to go one way or the other. Bill de Blasio's wife is an ex-lesbian. Anne Heche - formerly "life partner" to Ellen Degeneres - dumped her and married a cameraman.

With men the transformation seems to require some form of trauma. My wife sent me a news item some months ago that MILO (formerly Breitbart's golden boy) has admitted that his gayness was the result of molestation and he's working through it. The US military has pamphlets for male on male sexual assault survivors noting that rape victims are often told that they are really gay and an attempt is made for them to accept this new form of living. I'm sure those will be suppressed, though.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:43 AM (llXky)

238 The summer reading season is finally upon me! Which means I pack my e-reader in a fanny pack, bike to the local botanic gardens, read a few chapters out in the fresh air and sunshine, and then bike back home. First up this season has been Armageddon - 2419 A.D. and its sequel, The Airlords of Han, both by Philip Francis Nowlan. These books were the basis of the Buck Rogers franchise. While I've never seen any later adaptation of Buck Rogers, I just know they butchered the books. One of the big sci-fi gimmicks of the novels is that the heroes wear anti-gravity belts that make them essentially weightless, and they travel by leaping from tree to tree like a ninja in a Naruto cartoon. Bet they didn't show that on a tv budget.

Sadly, I doubt there will be any further Buck Rogers adaptations. The central conceit of the novels is that the Chinese (the Han) have taken over the world, including the land that was once the United States. They are decadent and not very friendly, and have pushed the Americans out into the forests of the hinterlands, where they are hunted down like bandits. Like I said, that premise won't be put on screen these days....

Posted by: Castle Guy at May 23, 2021 09:44 AM (Lhaco)

239
Emerging from a vat of tallow,
Was a youth, both naive and callow.
"What's that?" they said
As they pointed overhead.
He ventured, "I think it's a swallow."

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:44 AM (pNxlR)

240
Once they fixed it they went out for ice cream. Strawberry Schubert.
Posted by: Diogenes

Strawberry Schubert, huh?

I'll add that to my shopping Lizst.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:45 AM (pNxlR)

241 Seeing the Glory That Was Detroit in that picture of the library's grand staircase (and others at the link), it should be recalled that Detroit, in 1950, had the highest per capita income of any city in America -- more than NYC, more than Chicago, more than Los Angeles, more than Silicon Valley.

The fall of Detroit should instruct us. But it won't.

We are uninstructible.

Posted by: Dan at May 23, 2021 09:45 AM (+NG5U)

242 "Once they fixed it they went out for ice cream. Strawberry Schubert."

Which dripped on their new sneakers. A trip to the Schumann was next on the to do list.

Posted by: Tuna at May 23, 2021 09:45 AM (gLRfa)

243 Most of the reading concentrates on 1967-69 era of the war. Some hard reading.
Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:39 AM (axyOa)

One of the MSU profs was very involved with LBJ's war plotting, but was also in Viet Nam for years in the 1950s with Diem, as an advisor. Probably he was CIA. He had a book called Viet Nam: Anatomy of a Conflict. He was a prof in AHLoyd's school, and had quite a reputation.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (ONvIw)

244 People look so hard for authentic art as a feather to attract a mate.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (izndx)

245 I'll add that to my shopping Lizst.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:45 AM (pNxlR)

Be sure to check the supermarket Mahler for good deals!

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (Q9lwr)

246 On the oddly organized bookstore; I haven't seen that but I did get a laugh when at the Book Barn in Niantic CT they had True Crime and Politics shelved next to each other with an explanatory note that it was a natural fit.

Started Mila 18 by Leon Uris and can already tell I will like it. I read Exodus years ago and enjoyed that, too. If your looking for a good read the better best sellers of the 50s and 60s are a great place to start. A few years back I read The Secret of Santa Vittoria by Robert Crichton and it remains one of my favorites. The books back then tend to be about something rather than a hot mess of introspective navel gazing.

Posted by: who knew at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (SfO/T)

247 Karl Popper...he sure can play the harmonica.
Posted by: Jak Sucio

Mr Popper, the guy with the penguins?
Posted by: vmom stabby stabby stabby stabamillion at May 23, 2021 09:41 AM (IMQiW)

No, you're thinking of the guy who makes the stuff where you don't have a bunch of colonels when you're done.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (ilonU)

248 Been to the supermarket and back. Anything stupid or enraging from the morning commie talk shows?

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (85Gof)

249
We are uninstructible.

Posted by: Dan at May 23, 2021 09:45 AM (+NG5U)

Sadly, this seems true, but I think a huge part of it is the billionaires' desire to be even richer. That requires undermining domestic manufacturing and killing it.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (ONvIw)

250 He was a prof in AHLoyd's school, and had quite a reputation.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (ONvIw)

---
He'll probably be unpersoned. We hate the past now. I was interested to see the push to rename JMC has been quietly dropped. What a bunch of idiots.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (llXky)

251 "Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself."

- Groucho Marx, observationist

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (HaL55)

252 190 I gave up on Girl Genius several years ago when I came to the realization that neither of the Foglios knows how to end ANYTHING.
Posted by: Trimegistus at May 23, 2021 09:29 AM (QZxDR)
---

Haven't followed it for years. Damn it was good though. Maybe I should reacquaint myself with it.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (Dc2NZ)

253 Good jobr, Eris. I love that G-town library.

I'm taking a breather from "serious" books and enjoying a few Nero Wolfe and Lord Peter Wimsey tales right now while continuing on with the daily Bible reading. I admit I was glad to finish up Leviticus but now I'm slogging my way through the thickets of Numbers. It's kind of a relief to come to the end of a Numbers chapter recording in detail the exact sacrifices made by every tribe of Israel so I can move on to a chapter from Acts.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 09:50 AM (HabA/)

254 who knew
That's a proper pairing of categories, True Crime an dPolitics. The guy here hasn't gotten that far yet. Might be worth a look if I get the chqance.

Having Lewis and Clark shelved with Louis L'Amour fits his idea but is still a bit disconcerting.

Posted by: Winston, GOPe, not one dime, not one vote at May 23, 2021 09:50 AM (cJSGn)

255 Love the painting of the little boy and his dog. That could have been me (I was a cute little kid) sixty-some years ago. Great memories!

Posted by: JTB at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (7EjX1)

256 anything stupid or enraging from the morning commie talk shows?

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (85Gof)

No, but there is a Guardian opinion piece that will make you want to go up into Big Ben with a rifle.

Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (Q9lwr)

257 "Learn from the mistakes of others. You can never live long enough to make them all yourself."

- Groucho Marx, observationist
Posted by: BackwardsBoy

******

I always look forward to your Marxist quotes! Thanks.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (m45I2)

258 Never even tried to get into Martin's Game of Thrones (swore off long series eons ago), but recall his short fiction ("Nightflyers," "Sandkings," and others being a lot of fun. Ditto his novel THE ARMAGEDDON RAG. Lisa Tuttle has a nice collection of short fiction called THE DEAD HOURS OF NIGHT that's well worth a look ("The Book That Finds You" is worth the price of admission all by itself.)

Am I the only one who wishes some intelligent publisher would reprint the complete works of Don Robertson? It's a sin that MYSTICAL UNION and MISS MARGARET RIDPATH AND THE DISMANTLING OF THE UNIVERSE (among others) are out of print. This guy deserves a Library of America edition.

Bests to all.

Posted by: Just Some Guy at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (JzDjf)

259
To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium.

Bullshit. He is on a quest to acquire a callipygian rump of his very own.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:52 AM (pNxlR)

260 I'm sure those will be suppressed, though.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:43 AM (llXky)

It's funny, but back in the day, it was more common to talk about this sort of trauma and the psychological aspects of sexuality choices. It was not unheard of for articles to be published in girls' magazines about how one will work through and outgrow feelings of inadequacy and fear of rejection.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:52 AM (ONvIw)

261 Started Mila 18 by Leon Uris and can already tell I will like it. I read Exodus years ago and enjoyed that, too. If your looking for a good read the better best sellers of the 50s and 60s

The movie Exodus was a late night television regular at one time. I haven't seen it for years.

Posted by: Brother Northernlurker just another guy at May 23, 2021 09:53 AM (cSyAR)

262 Like I said, that premise won't be put on screen these days....
Posted by: Castle Guy at May 23, 2021 09:44 AM (Lhaco)

A good corrective would be Robert Heinlein's Sixth Column.

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 09:54 AM (PiwSw)

263
It was not unheard of for articles to be published in girls' magazines about how one will work through and outgrow feelings of inadequacy and fear of rejection.
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned.

Now they spend all that time sorting through boxes of pronouns with which to "accessorize" their special selves.

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:54 AM (pNxlR)

264 but there is a Guardian opinion piece that will make you want to go up into Big Ben with a rifle.
Posted by: CharlieBrown'sDildo at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (Q9lwr)

yeah saw it. Sigh

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:55 AM (85Gof)

265 He'll probably be unpersoned. We hate the past now. I was interested to see the push to rename JMC has been quietly dropped. What a bunch of idiots.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (llXky)

Wesley Fishel was unpersoned while he was alive. But when he died the student newspaper ran with a headline "The Evil Bastard is Dead", or something close. MSU had major CIA tentacles in the 50s and 60s.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:55 AM (ONvIw)

266 To maintain his youthful glow and rumbustious vigour, OregonMuse is getting monkey gland injections at a Swiss sanitarium.
--------------
Bullshit. He is on a quest to acquire a callipygian rump of his very own.
Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:52 AM (pNxlR)

Listen, people should stop asking questions.

Have you not noticed since OM's "accident" the sudden increase in UFO sightings?

Think, people. Come on!

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:55 AM (ilonU)

267 A. H. Lloyd makes me think of authors I've taken a deep dive in their works

Joyce except Finnegan's Wake
Faulkner
Harry Crews
Raymond Carver
Milan Kundera
Danilo Kis (not a large number)

Any Henry James completists?

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 09:56 AM (y7DUB)

268 Good book trivia question

Who wrote the Children's book , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ?

Posted by: Cliff Clavin at May 23, 2021 09:56 AM (KUBIs)

269 Just saw a pic of bill gates in NYC from the other day..He is a fat fuck with tits

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (85Gof)

270
Listen, people should stop asking questions.

Have you not noticed since OM's "accident" the sudden increase in UFO sightings?

Think, people. Come on!
Posted by: BurtTC

You are asserting that probing questions are not out of line, then?

Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (pNxlR)

271
Now they spend all that time sorting through boxes of pronouns with which to "accessorize" their special selves.
Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:54 AM (pNxlR)

The idea that kids are heavily influenced by adult and peer perceptions of their physical attractiveness is kept under wraps these days. This is nothing less that criminal, IMO.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (ONvIw)

272 Good book trivia question

Who wrote the Children's book , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ?
Posted by: Cliff Clavin at May 23, 2021 09:56 AM (KUBIs)

The bookstore trannie?

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (ilonU)

273 Have you not noticed since OM's "accident" the sudden increase in UFO sightings?

Think, people. Come on!
Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:55 AM (ilonU)

Yes........

Posted by: The Smoking Man at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (jvt6t)

274 A good corrective would be Robert Heinlein's Sixth Column.
Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes

Please let us know when you perfect the staff's used in that tale.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (6R9QC)

275 Who wrote the Children's book , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ?
Posted by: Cliff Clavin at May 23, 2021 09:56 AM (KUBIs)

Ian Fleming

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (ONvIw)

276 If we loose the war, we will be forced to sex trannies. Its a joke to us but not to children.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (izndx)

277 Been to the supermarket and back. Anything stupid or enraging from the morning commie talk shows?
Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM

Well. The Supreme Leader in Oregon has declared that to enter any business you must show your vaccination papers. She has also said businesses will be required to oversee this, and if they fail to do so, fines will be levied.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (axyOa)

278 Who wrote the Children's book , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ?

******

Eric Swalwell?

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (m45I2)

279 Eric Swalwell?
Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (m45I2)

No, that's Shitty, Shitty, Fang Fang

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:59 AM (ONvIw)

280 You are asserting that probing questions are not out of line, then?
Posted by: Krebs v Carnot: Epic Battle of the Cycling Stars (TM) at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (pNxlR)

A gentleman always asks first.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 09:59 AM (ilonU)

281 Well. The Supreme Leader in Oregon has declared that to enter any business you must show your vaccination papers. She has also said businesses will be required to oversee this, and if they fail to do so, fines will be levied.
Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (axyOa)

Totally unenforceable and probably unconstitutional

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:59 AM (85Gof)

282 Amazon has Kindle versions of "The Constitution and Declaration of Independence", "Know your Bill of Rights", and "The Federalist Papers" all for 99 cents apiece. Yeah, I have physical copies of them but extra copies on the Paperwhite reader and search function is convenient.

We let the nieces and nephew know about them and they texted back immediately with interest. I like being able to mention such things to the kids who seem to have their heads screwed on right.

Posted by: JTB at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (7EjX1)

283 I always look forward to your Marxist quotes! Thanks.
I'm glad you do, Muldoon. Searching for his quotes is a blast, he was so funny and a master of wordplay, as were all his brothers. Finding new ones is becoming a challenge.

Haven't had much time to read lately, so I wouldn't have much to contribute to the thread. Still working on Dr. Jordan Peterson's latest tome. It's always fun to come here on Sunday mornings and just lurk for a while.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (HaL55)

284 Well. The Supreme Leader in Oregon has declared that to enter any business you must show your vaccination papers. She has also said businesses will be required to oversee this, and if they fail to do so, fines will be levied.
Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 09:58 AM (axyOa)

Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (ONvIw)

285 Been to the supermarket and back. Anything stupid or enraging from the morning commie talk shows?

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 09:49 AM (85Gof)

---
For the first few months of 2021, I had to exert willpower to avoid news. Partly it was curiosity, partly it was habit. Every time I did so, I got angry.

Now I'm to the point where I have to exert willpower to make myself look. It's all so boring and tedious. Yesterday some friends started talking politics and I just did not care. People wonder when the storm is coming and I tell them it's here, we're in it, and all most people can do is stress out over the individual rain drops. "Ooh, that drop, that one right there, that's the one that causes the dam to fail!" No. It's all working together and I'm tired of hearing about it.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (llXky)

286 staff's used

Sigh.
Should be staffs used.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (6R9QC)

287 Off to carpe the diem. Keep it classy and tasteful, book fagz!

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (Dc2NZ)

288 That rap battle is so one-sided it borders on abuse....Or it would, if the myopic manatee didn't deserve it. I got into the Game of Thrones tv show for a few years, read a few selected chapters of his books at the local library, but have since checked out. Right now, the most fun thing about him or his franchise is occasionally watching watching Gary from Nerdrotic rant about how the books are never going to be finished.

Posted by: Castle Guy at May 23, 2021 10:01 AM (Lhaco)

289 Wow! That is Detroit?
Hard to remember in the 50s that city was the economic engine of America, until the left decided to gut it.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:01 AM (Gj2lw)

290 Now I'm to the point where I have to exert willpower to make myself look. It's all so boring and tedious. Yesterday some friends started talking politics and I just did not care. People wonder when the storm is coming and I tell them it's here, we're in it, and all most people can do is stress out over the individual rain drops. "Ooh, that drop, that one right there, that's the one that causes the dam to fail!" No. It's all working together and I'm tired of hearing about it.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (llXky)
---

But back to say, YES. It's all just a turd churn at this juncture.

Posted by: All Hail Eris, She-Wolf of the 'Ettes 'Ettes at May 23, 2021 10:01 AM (Dc2NZ)

291 The Insincere Erection. A Jan 6 prono.

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 10:02 AM (izndx)

292 285

Same here. Other than what I read here I dont really know what is happening. I have yet to see a Biden speech.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:02 AM (Gj2lw)

293 Not book related exactly, but maybe book adjacent... I could use recommendations pro/con for a home use color laser printer. I've had it with ink jets that kill you with cartridge cost and, if you're lucky, last a year or two. I'm particularly pissed at my HP Deskjet at the moment but might still consider them for a laser printer.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (nfrXX)

294
Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.
Posted by: CN

Didn't they revoke business licenses in some of the blue hell-holes?

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (6R9QC)

295 Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (ONvIw)

Very likely unconstitutional but relatively easy to enforce. Hand pick a few businesses, wait for the violation and write the citation. Heavy fine. The rest will fall into line.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (axyOa)

296 Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM

Correct. No law. The first person who gets fined is going to get a payday courtesy of the governor.

Posted by: Mister Scott (formerly GWS) at May 23, 2021 10:04 AM (JUOKG)

297 Simple lesson for the kids:

all five of your first amendment rights were taken away by this flu--this flu that was orders of magnitude less lethal than anyone said it would be.

But even though we now know this was never an actual emergency, we are told we can't have those rights back unless we get this vaccine--a vaccine that doesn't have FDA approval yet--only "emergency" approval

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:04 AM (AwPyG)

298 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.
Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Have you considered that perhaps Apple has blacklisted this site.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:04 AM (kTaFw)

299 The idea that kids are heavily influenced by adult
and peer perceptions of their physical attractiveness is kept under
wraps these days. This is nothing less that criminal, IMO.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 09:57 AM (ONvIw)

---
A lot of the "trans" stuff is actually high school kids doing what they always do: test new identities. I wrote under several pen names in high school and of course nicknames (sometimes situation-specific) were ubiquitous. In fact, I know a kid who still goes by the nickname I gave him today.

The difference is that educations have gone batshit crazy, pretending that this is super-serious guys, and then we have rogue doctors who will inevitably be sued into bankruptcy for malpractice but will do a great deal of harm first.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (llXky)

300 BTW, I was subbing in an elementary school the other day, when I entered a 3rd grade classroom to work with a special ed kid. The rest of the class was being taught that global warming causes tornadoes, blizzards, and both drought and floods. Yeah, there were no blizzards in Wisconsin before whitey turned up and started polluting. It was the first example I've seen personally of stupid pc propaganda at the elementary school level - ALL severe weather is caused by global warming! Luckily, I was working with a kid whose task for the day was to learn how to count to 18 so I didn't have to participate in the propaganda session. I think my severely handicapped kid was the only one in that classroom learning anything remotely useful.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (HabA/)

301 Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (nfrXX)
-
I stopped buying HP years ago. Been with the same Brother printer models at 2 different locations using the same low-cost non-Brother cartridges. Not one thing has gone wrong.

Posted by: Biden's Dog at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (5HXH8)

302 Have you considered that perhaps Apple has blacklisted this site.
Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:04 AM (kTaFw)

Yeah I doubt that LOL

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (85Gof)

303 Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.
Posted by: CN

Didn't they revoke business licenses in some of the blue hell-holes?
Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (6R9QC)

One possible outcome of all this is mass migration from the blue hell holes to "free" states. I know many are talking about it, and I don't know if the numbers are too terribly meaningful yet or not. There's talk that Californica's loss of... is it one or two?.. congressional seats is a sign of this.

Migration might be the answer to avoiding all out civil war.

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (ilonU)

304 ace on ipad is a no go zone. any and all browsers. it works but painfully slow.

Posted by: chango lot at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (g741k)

305 @295

I've mentioned before that many of these "crack downs" that are well-publicized turn out to be actors hired for the cameras, to keep everyone else afraid.

I wouldn't be surprised if the recent spate of "arrested pastors" in Canada is the same.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (AwPyG)

306 Chitty Chitty Bang Bang was Ian Fleming, IIRC.

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (7Fj9P)

307 laser printer.
Posted by: Oddbob

I too tired of the inkjet type printers, they just seemed to be money pits mostly by the jets clogging
We have a Brother color laser printer which functions well.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (6R9QC)

308
Migration might be the answer to avoiding all out civil war.

Avoiding no, kicking it down the road yes

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (85Gof)

309 0 Now I'm to the point where I have to exert willpower to make myself look. It's all so boring and tedious. Yesterday some friends started talking politics and I just did not care. People wonder when the storm is coming and I tell them it's here, we're in it, and all most people can do is stress out over the individual rain drops. "Ooh, that drop, that one right there, that's the one that causes the dam to fail!" No. It's all working together and I'm tired of hearing about it.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (llXky)

Exactly how I feel.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (HabA/)

310 Trans is the new way to get dad pissed off. In the 60s it was long hair. In the 80s it was green hair and piercings. In the 90s//00s it was being gay. By the 2010s there was little left that would shock dad. So the next step was cutting your dick off.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:07 AM (Gj2lw)

311 Very likely unconstitutional but relatively easy to
enforce. Hand pick a few businesses, wait for the violation and write
the citation. Heavy fine. The rest will fall into line.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (axyOa)

---
That's what they hope, but it doesn't always work out that way. I will refer you to the multiple police agencies in Michigan that publicly announced that they wouldn't enforce the governor's decrees. And of course they were subsequently struck down.

It's not a strong play, it's a weak one.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:07 AM (llXky)

312 Colorado joins the growing list of states that are implementing a lottery for people who have gotten vaccinated. $1 million grand prize.

Because it seems the same people who believe they are assuredly going to die if they get COVID are the ones who are convinced that they are going to win a lottery with a 1 in 3 million chance of pulling the winning ticket.

People struggle with both very big and very small numbers.

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 10:08 AM (m45I2)

313 Lottery: a tax on people who dont understand statistics.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:09 AM (Gj2lw)

314 Picked up one of the Leiber Fafhrd and the Grey Mouser books to reread to break up some non fiction reading.

I suddenly realized it is essentially the Aubrey/Maturin dynamic from Master and Commander series: Blond brawling skilled northerner and the brilliant, learned, slippery southerner.

Granted, with witchcraft and elder gods, but then I suppose O'Brian would have put in and Elder god and Deep Ones if Napoleon had not been there, available.

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:09 AM (u0j5n)

315 293 Not book related exactly, but maybe book adjacent... I could use
recommendations pro/con for a home use color laser printer. I've had it
with ink jets that kill you with cartridge cost and, if you're lucky,
last a year or two. I'm particularly pissed at my HP Deskjet at the
moment but might still consider them for a laser printer.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 10:03 AM (nfrXX)

I have a color HP printer upstairs. The cartridges for that thing cost like the dickens. The black is always the first to go. I can no longer climb those stairs anyway.

Posted by: Vic at May 23, 2021 10:09 AM (mpXpK)

316 Lottery: a tax on people who dont understand statistics.
Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:09 AM (Gj2lw)

ana hardest hit.

Posted by: chango lot at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (g741k)

317 I figure Governor Brown of Oregon has just made the argument for Voter ID.

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (u0j5n)

318 @303

I think that's the only thing that stands in the way of the bad guys' plans--that this country is a republic.

The states are supposed to compete with each other for the productive citizens, which keeps everyone in line. The bad guys must hate the fact we are free to vote with our feet, even if our ballots are thrown out.

a perfect example is Florida, thumbing their nose at the lockdown, and proving it was all fake. Remember how Biden suggested that no one be allowed to enter Florida, at the time?

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (AwPyG)

319 299: Partly. Kids try out new identities, partially because they are concerned that their original ones are not up to par. They also seek out a group that will accept them, even if it's for negative reasons.

And as you said, adults' perception (educators, doctors, journalists) are a legitimizing force.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (ONvIw)

320 Good morning, AHE, good morning, Horde,

"Werdz werdz werdz" - Hamlet on Twitter

Posted by: callsign claymore at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (BnoVh)

321 Trans is the new way to get dad pissed off. In the
60s it was long hair. In the 80s it was green hair and piercings. In the
90s//00s it was being gay. By the 2010s there was little left that
would shock dad. So the next step was cutting your dick off.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:07 AM (Gj2lw)

---
The number of trans who actually do the surgery is a tiny subset within a tiny population. Most just want the attention. I guarantee you the pervy drag queens using the girls' locker rooms have no intention of cutting their junk off.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (llXky)

322 It's not a strong play, it's a weak one.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:07 AM (llXky)

I agree. Dumb.
But the gov there (I met her once) never struck me as being too bright. I have to wonder if something else is at work?

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (axyOa)

323 In fact, I know a kid who still goes by the nickname I gave him today.

*****

So, not yet 24 hours?

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 10:11 AM (m45I2)

324 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers.
Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the
embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after
the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Have you considered that perhaps Apple has blacklisted this site.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:04 AM

No issues on my ipad.

Posted by: Mister Scott (formerly GWS) at May 23, 2021 10:11 AM (JUOKG)

325 We have a Brother color laser printer which functions well.

I didn't know that Brother made machine tools until about 30 years ago. We had two of their vertical machining centers at one of the shops where I once worked. Good machines, sturdy and predictable. Controls were way different than any I'd ever seen, which were mostly Fanuc.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:12 AM (HaL55)

326 I still will recommend the "Girl Genius" comics. I think the earlier comment was too harsh.

The story does progress, with some key achievements, but I think the Foglios veer off course at times. We didn't need the subterranean and undersea kingdoms.

As of now, I project the series will need 10 to 15 more volumes. I may be retired by then.

Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 10:12 AM (V5lmZ)

327 I think the issue may also be whether you're using wifi or data plan.

Posted by: Cliff Clavin at May 23, 2021 10:13 AM (KUBIs)

328 @312

"People struggle with both very big and very small numbers."

I think this is deliberate, and part of the "dumbing down." Global warming used it, and still does. I try to explain to my kids that the earth's scale to the sun is a ping pong ball in a swimming pool, and they are incredulous

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:13 AM (AwPyG)

329 I love the idea of men donating thousands of Penthouse magazines to the library.

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:13 AM (6f1rg)

330 On the plus side, at every school I've subbed at, the kids stand up and say the Pledge of Allegiance every morning. I doubt that's true in the more liberal districts. And, despite all the propaganda directed at them, boys are still boys. During kindergarten play time, I watched with some dismay as a group of little boys hauled out a large dollhouse to play with. Then they filled it with plastic dinosaurs and the dino house promptly came under attack by airplanes dropping. One little future Karen came up to me to tell me "The boys are playing with the dollhouse ALL WRONG!" I told her to focus on her coloring and not worry about what the boys were doing.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:14 AM (HabA/)

331 I didn't know that Brother made machine tools until
about 30 years ago. We had two of their vertical machining centers at
one of the shops where I once worked. Good machines, sturdy and
predictable. Controls were way different than any I'd ever seen, which
were mostly Fanuc.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:12 AM (HaL55)

---
I have a brother copier/printer that continues to limp along after more than 10 years. I finally replaced it because the print drivers wouldn't load on new computers. It still works as a copier, though.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:15 AM (llXky)

332 "The boys are playing with the dollhouse ALL WRONG!"

******

That's awesome!

Posted by: Muldoon at May 23, 2021 10:15 AM (m45I2)

333 Out. Aluminum hats
In. Copper foil hats

Posted by: Humphreyrobot at May 23, 2021 10:15 AM (izndx)

334 Yet I doubt there is a law to enforce, is there? Just a decree.
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:00 AM (ONvIw)

Enforced by OR-OSHA with fines against the businesses.

I wonder if a massive call in campaign to turn in all businesses in the state would have a result? Once the lines are flooded with false tips how do they figure out what to do?

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:15 AM (u0j5n)

335 I wonder if a massive call in campaign to turn in all businesses in the state would have a result? Once the lines are flooded with false tips how do they figure out what to do?
Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:15 AM (u0j5n)

Decree that false tips lead to prison.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:16 AM (ONvIw)

336 330

When my kids were that age we lived ina hood where every house seemed to have kids that age as well. So all the neighbor kids would get together and play, boys and girls each with their toys. And inevitably the same thing would happen. The boys would shoot barbies and the girls would decorate Tonka trucks with pink bows. It was always pretty funny to watch.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:16 AM (Gj2lw)

337 think this is deliberate, and part of the "dumbing down.

-

There was a fantastic photo posted on a thread recently. IIRC it was a photo of a 70s Honda CB750. The caption read "30 years ago our owners manuals told buyers how to adjust the valves. Today they tell buyers not to drink the battery water."

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:17 AM (6f1rg)

338 Ditto. But I think it's an iOS problem, not a Pixy problem since it happens with Brave too. Turning off JavaScript helps but that kind of stinks as a solution.
Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 08:56 AM (nfrXX)

Imagine you are a gatekeeper with Apple. You want to stop your client base from accessing the HQ, and other right-wing sites, but a simple block would be too obvious. So you set it up that the pages load with great difficulty, and hope your clients just give up trying.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:18 AM (d1vw3)

339 Thanks for The Clifford D Simak reccs, I ordered a collection of his from Abe books and will start it soon.

Posted by: Funsize at May 23, 2021 10:18 AM (EiPf6)

340 There was a fantastic photo posted on a thread
recently. IIRC it was a photo of a 70s Honda CB750. The caption read "30
years ago our owners manuals told buyers how to adjust the valves.
Today they tell buyers not to drink the battery water."

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:17 AM (6f1rg)

---
I got a letter with BIG BOLD LETTERS what also had extensive use of yellow highlighting explaining that my new car requires regular oil changes and tire inflation and that the dealership can do this but if you don't have it done, the car will not work and the warranty will be voided.

People have enough money to buy cars and no idea how they work.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:19 AM (llXky)

341 Eris, Thanks for putting together another great book thread. That photo of the Detroit Library is like finding the Emerald City in Dresden after the bombing. Glorious.

Posted by: JTB at May 23, 2021 10:19 AM (7EjX1)

342 I still will recommend the "Girl Genius" comics. I think the earlier comment was too harsh.

The story does progress, with some key achievements, but I think the Foglios veer off course at times. We didn't need the subterranean and undersea kingdoms.

As of now, I project the series will need 10 to 15 more volumes. I may be retired by then.
----
The "Agatha H" series of novels condense a lot of that into a more readable format, I think. I really enjoyed reading the novels.

Posted by: Lord Squirrel at May 23, 2021 10:19 AM (hQrcu)

343 I agree with AOP. Apple is definitely fucking with AOS. Too much of a coincidence that it is only an issue with Apple.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (Gj2lw)

344 The wifi printer/scanner here at stately Casa Backwardio is an Epson we got back in '012. Still runs great, ink's not horribly expensive and makes good prints. The scanner software is slower than molasses in winter, tho'.

Paid $40 for it.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (HaL55)

345 I agree with AOP. Apple is definitely fucking with AOS. Too much of a coincidence that it is only an issue with Apple.
Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (Gj2lw)

I use Apple all the time and no problems.

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (85Gof)

346 173 I'm concerned that the "Girl Genius" webcomic will never conclude. The Foglios and I are around the same age, and the story has so many aspects that haven't come to the fore yet, that I fear that either they or I won't live to see the end. And I've been with them since the beginning.
Posted by: Weak Geek at May 23, 2021 09:21 AM (V5lmZ)

I know the name, but I've never actually looking into Girl Genius. However I do follow one webcomic that aspires to be an epic fantasy. I enjoy it, but I fully expect it not to end, just because of how long it will have to be in order to wrap up plot-lines that have barely been started.

Posted by: Castle Guy at May 23, 2021 10:21 AM (Lhaco)

347 People have enough money to buy cars and no idea how they work.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:19 AM (llXky)

That's why I'm glad I grew up turning wrenches. I still do all the work on my less computerized cars and my motorcycle.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:21 AM (jvt6t)

348 343 I agree with AOP. Apple is definitely fucking with AOS. Too much of a coincidence that it is only an issue with Apple.
Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (Gj2lw)

AOS was crashing this morning on my Galaxy phone.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:21 AM (ONvIw)

349 There was a fantastic photo posted on a thread
recently. IIRC it was a photo of a 70s Honda CB750. The caption read "30
years ago our owners manuals told buyers how to adjust the valves.
Today they tell buyers not to drink the battery water."

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:17 AM

I can't remember the last time I used a feeler gauge. It's been over 30 years I suspect. Same with spark plugs, I have only changed one plug in the same time frame and that was on a lawn mower.

Posted by: Mister Scott (formerly GWS) at May 23, 2021 10:22 AM (JUOKG)

350 "People struggle with both very big and very small numbers."
=====================
When ever people start throwing gubmint budget numbers around, I go through this mental exercise:
1 Million is 100, 100,000
1 Billion is a 1,000 million
1 trillion is 1,000 billion

Posted by: Brave Sir Robin at May 23, 2021 10:22 AM (7Fj9P)

351 Eh. I barely know how to check the oil in a car. I leave car maintenance to people who do. And funny thing is one of my cars, an Audi has no dipstick. The oil is checked by the onboard computer only.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:22 AM (Gj2lw)

352 I can't remember the last time I used a feeler gauge. It's been over 30 years I suspect. Same with spark plugs, I have only changed one plug in the same time frame and that was on a lawn mower.
Posted by: Mister Scott (formerly GWS) at May 23, 2021 10:22 AM (JUOKG)

I adjust the valves on my scoot every 5,000 miles. It's relatively simple.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:23 AM (jvt6t)

353 As always, late to the thread.

I spent many hours in reading rooms at DPL in early 80s while attending Wayne State. Only needed a Michigan driver's license to check out books, but never did because the collection had no computer books to speak of. Still a gorgeous and comforting place. A "jewell" of Detroit -- paid for by Michigan citizens.

Posted by: sinmi at May 23, 2021 10:23 AM (ZgjRZ)

354 I agree with AOP. Apple is definitely fucking with AOS. Too much of a coincidence that it is only an issue with Apple.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM (Gj2lw)

I use Apple all the time and no problems.

Posted by: Nevergiveup at May 23, 2021 10:20 AM

Same here, zero issues with my ipad. And I use it almost everyday to come here.

Posted by: Mister Scott (formerly GWS) at May 23, 2021 10:23 AM (JUOKG)

355 351 Eh. I barely know how to check the oil in a car. I leave car maintenance to people who do. And funny thing is one of my cars, an Audi has no dipstick. The oil is checked by the onboard computer only.
Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:22 AM (Gj2lw)

Cost of Ownership.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:24 AM (jvt6t)

356 Loading AOS on my iPhone usually takes 4 or 5 tries and eats 20% ofthe battery. But then its an iPhone 6 cause I'm a cheap bastard.

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:24 AM (axyOa)

357 People have enough money to buy cars and no idea how they work.

*

I personally know the superintendent of a water plant who got a call from a woman in a local $20M + gated community of homes that was calling to inform him that she was no longer receiving hot water.

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:25 AM (6f1rg)

358 That's why I'm glad I grew up turning wrenches. I still do all the work on my less computerized cars and my motorcycle.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:21 AM (jvt6t)

---
My father thought of himself as an intellectual and was ashamed of his blue collar ancestors who used hand tools and things. I was not taught these things growing up, and it has been a struggle to acquire that knowledge ever since.

I try to live life without regrets, but if I had to do it over again, I'd have skipped college and become a mechanic, especially given how bad universities are today.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:25 AM (llXky)

359 Support till August my aching eyebrows. They're doing the Cass Sustien "nudge" across all platforms, and are crippling functionality to MANY older operating systems and browsers. Affects phones, tablets, laptops, desktops, you name it. Minx 0.7 Alpha is just another victim, here. Alas, Ace runs like grease lightning in EDGE, but I'd like to sit as a student and be tutored by a talented gadget pro, so as to learn the ways of BRAVE or otherwise wean myself from the MS empire.

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX
Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:17 AM (QzJWU)

I am running Brave 1.24.86 (up to date, it says) in my Win7 machine, and it works fine. Many pages don't load because the script blocker is running, but i can over-rule that if I want to.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:25 AM (d1vw3)

360 Loved the story of A Change of Hobbit. It is so illustrative of the dynamics between an independent bookstore owner, the customers, and the authors. The few times I actually took a short vacation, a group of my customers would work out their own schedule of who would run the store when -- for free. (They were the best since they knew as much as I did about books, especially mysteries. A couple knew more than me.) William Kent Krueger and his lovely wife, Diane, had Kent's final signing at my store catered at their expense because his signing was my last before I closed. Unlike Sherry, I needed to have a table in the dealer's room. For me, interacting with the buyers and the other dealers recharged my bookselling batteries. I needed to be a part of the action. And since I still smoked in my con going days, I met a lot of great authors while stealing a cigarette break.

Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 10:25 AM (yD4aV)

361 "And funny thing is one of my cars, an Audi has no dipstick. "

Check behind the wheel.

Aw just funnin' ya

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (Tnijr)

362 Ive watched videos on how to do basic repairs on cars and was like fuck it. I can see the potential for me really fucking shit up. And it looks really dirty too, lol. So off to the mechanic I go.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (Gj2lw)

363 That's why I'm glad I grew up turning wrenches. I still do all the work on my less computerized cars and my motorcycle.
I spent my formative years under the hood of a car and at the little drag strip (DON'T do it) outside of town. Now it takes me two hours of recovery for every hour spent trying to do simple stuff like changing spark plugs. You know you're getting old when it hurts to have fun.

Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (HaL55)

364 AoS has been loading in a jerky way the last couple days -- scrolls up, down, up.

Using a newish Google phone.

Posted by: callsign claymore at May 23, 2021 10:28 AM (BnoVh)

365
I personally know the superintendent of a water
plant who got a call from a woman in a local $20M + gated community of
homes that was calling to inform him that she was no longer receiving
hot water.

Posted by: Moron Robbie is a bridge at May 23, 2021 10:25 AM (6f1rg)

---
This is one reason why I think the correlation of forces is so lopsided. On the one side, you have people with tons of degrees and credentials but no practical skills. Their kids can't even cook a microwave dinner or open a soup can, but they have masters degrees.

On the other side you have the plumbers, contractors, HVAC repairmen. The British had a General Strike in 1922 or so but it failed because the middle and upper classes were willing to get their hands dirty. Interesting to see what would happen today.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:28 AM (llXky)

366 You know you're getting old when it hurts to have fun.
Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (HaL55)

Talk about serving up a softball to the Horde...

Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:29 AM (axyOa)

367 Regarding issues with this site... IMO, based on 40 years in IT I think most problems are with the security settings for the browser in use, add-ons to that browser, security settings that deviate from the norm either set in the OS or an add-on security package. I would look at those things before doing anything else.

I've been using Edge for years here and have never had a problem, ever.

YMMV

Posted by: Martini Farmer at May 23, 2021 10:29 AM (3H9h1)

368 358

Same for me. No shame from my parents since it was a few generations ago. But my dad did not own a tool box when I was growing up. We had people mow the lawn for us too. Any kind of manual labor was verboten in the XiDen household.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:30 AM (Gj2lw)

369 Not when MS screens pop-up in the place of desired 'sites, and "redirect" with admonishments and "suggestions". Nah, they're looking to PURGE the old, this time around, vs. merely "not support."

Jim
Sunk New Dawn
Galveston, TX
Posted by: Jim at May 23, 2021 09:36 AM (QzJWU)

Hopefully, you have MS "automatic update" turned OFF!

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (d1vw3)

370 FIRST!!!!!

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (Zz0t1)

371 Posted by: BackwardsBoy - Psychos Rule! No, really. They're in charge now. at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (HaL55)

Yep. It does hurt, but then I think of the 95-110 per hour I'm saving and load up on the ibuprofen. Plus it gets me out of the house and in my garage. Smell of oil, gasoline, WD-40 does a man good.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (jvt6t)

372 Please do not INSPISSATE in my Cheerios.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (Zz0t1)

373 370 FIRST!!!!!
Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (Zz0t1)

Dammit. I never get first....

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (jvt6t)

374 347 People have enough money to buy cars and no idea how they work.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:19 AM (llXky)

My younger brother used to be a mechanic at a trucking company - that was 30 years ago. He got tired of working in an unheated garage in the middle of winter and went back to school and went into healthcare. But he's always been good with handyman stuff and does minor repairs and oil changes on his car. However, he told me he is flummoxed by the computerization - there are plenty of fixes he used to be able to do that he can't do now because he lacks both the knowledge and equipment to do so.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (HabA/)

375 @367

I don't have any of that stuff on my iphone. Ace won't load, and my battery gets drained if I try. And this is the only site with the problem.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (AwPyG)

376 Smell of oil, gasoline, WD-40 does a man good.
Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (jvt6t)

This.

I kind of miss this in my life.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (Zz0t1)

377 22 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

This. AOSHQ is almost unreadable on Safari unless JavaScript is turned off. The problem seems to start with those constantly cycling ads in the upper left sidebar. There is no problem with the Silk browser in a Kindle Fire.

Posted by: jwmiii at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (ii2y5)

378 Same for me. No shame from my parents since it was a few generations ago. But my dad did not own a tool box when I was growing up. We had people mow the lawn for us too. Any kind of manual labor was verboten in the XiDen household.
Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:30 AM (Gj2lw)
Not in my house. As a kid, we were made to do this stuff so we'd "make better choices" and go to grad school/professional schools. The thought was that if we did hard physical work (my brother and his buds were encouraged to take factory jobs during breaks) we would hate it enough.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:33 AM (ONvIw)

379 However, he told me he is flummoxed by the computerization - there are plenty of fixes he used to be able to do that he can't do now because he lacks both the knowledge and equipment to do so.
Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (HabA/)

Tell him to buy a code reader. 95% of the time, it tells you what's wrong and gives you a reasonably clear path to resolution.

There are those times where it doesn't, but that's what the internet is for.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:33 AM (Zz0t1)

380 On my iPhone getting to the comments is hard. But once in the comments it works fine, refreshing.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:33 AM (Gj2lw)

381 After CBD's Pre-Raphaelite art this week, I got out one of my copies of Tennyson poetry. Such imagery, depth and beauty.

Posted by: JTB at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (7EjX1)

382 Migration might be the answer to avoiding all out civil war.
Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 10:05 AM (ilonU)

No, I'm afraid not. The Left insists on complete submission or war. There is no modus vivendi possible with them. And the influx into red states will only complicate the latter's political picture, making secession (already ridiculously improbable) harder to conceive.

Posted by: Ordinary American at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (u9h5+)

383 Ive watched videos on how to do basic repairs on
cars and was like fuck it. I can see the potential for me really fucking
shit up. And it looks really dirty too, lol. So off to the mechanic I
go.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:26 AM (Gj2lw)

---
I think there's a difference between replacing a taillight and spark plugs. I'm also talking about the standard household repairs. Yes, I have the specialists do the oil change and full-spectrum service update, but I know how to check tire pressure and inflate it if one of them seems low.

And the point of the letter was that people were too ignorant to even know what an oil change *was.* Or that it needed to happen.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (llXky)

384
This. AOSHQ is almost unreadable on Safari unless JavaScript is turned off. The problem seems to start with those constantly cycling ads in the upper left sidebar. There is no problem with the Silk browser in a Kindle Fire.

Posted by: jwmiii at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (ii2y5)

Since the other browser is fine, I would point at the issue being with the shitty Apple product and not the site, but that's just me.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (Zz0t1)

385 378: And back at MSU, in the 70s, working summers in a UAW plant or for Goodyear, was an acceptable way to pay the bills.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (ONvIw)

386 Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:32 AM (HabA/)

I have several plug in diagnostic tools. They will narrow the issue down and then it's just testing everything. AN amp/ohm meter is your friend.

I would not want to do it professionally.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:35 AM (jvt6t)

387 Oops. Now the Silk browser has crashed, just not as soon as Safari does.

Posted by: jwmiii at May 23, 2021 10:35 AM (ii2y5)

388 Love the painting of the little boy and his dog. That could have been me (I was a cute little kid) sixty-some years ago. Great memories!
Posted by: JTB at May 23, 2021 09:51 AM (7EjX1)

Looks like a dead-nuts perfect homage to Norman Rockwell.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:35 AM (d1vw3)

389 @382

How do you explain the way Florida has single-handedly destroyed the plan for a 2 year lockdown, then?

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (AwPyG)

390 ways of BRAVE or otherwise wean myself from the MS empire.

Jim

Download it, install it, import all you can from your other browsers, start using it.
If you have any trouble you can still use whatever you are comfortable with at any time.

Posted by: AZ deplorable moron at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (6R9QC)

391 And the point of the letter was that people were too ignorant to even know what an oil change *was.* Or that it needed to happen.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (llXky)

And if the computers were removed from a modern car, it wouldn't even be capable of running. That's how they have become as efficient as they are today.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (jvt6t)

392 "95% of the time, it tells you what's wrong and gives you a reasonably clear path to resolution. "

If it is throwing a code. Transfer case motor on my truck is apparently not working, no code.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (Tnijr)

393 How do you explain the way Florida has single-handedly destroyed the plan for a 2 year lockdown, then?

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (AwPyG)

---
That was merely a single incident. A rain squall within the larger hurricane. Much more to come.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:37 AM (llXky)

394 Remember those letters/warnings are for liability purposes. Like the warning on plastic bags not to put them over your head. I doubt even the most stereotypical Millenial doesnt know what an oil change is. But they send the letters out so that if you go 3 years without an oil change due to laziness you cant sue Honda and say nobody told me I needed oil changes.

Posted by: Joe XiDen at May 23, 2021 10:37 AM (Gj2lw)

395 Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:34 AM (llXky

We still do minor household repairs and maintenance. We have the equipment. We have plumbing snakes, major supplies of tools, a shopsmith. Increasingly it's me who does these things, which I brought up earlier in the week when chainsaws were discussed.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:38 AM (ONvIw)

396 I know next to nothing about cars, but if there is one thing that was pounded into my head by my dad when I got my first car it was the importance of oil changes. Once, in my early 20's, when I noticed I had gone a few weeks over 3 months, I drove in a hurry to get an oil change. I was under the impression that the car might explode or something if I didn't change that oil immediately.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 10:38 AM (HabA/)

397 And for Tebow fans, I want to mention that the top 5 best selling items at the NFL merchandise site are Tebow items.

Again, the bad guys hate it when people can counteract the narrative.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:38 AM (AwPyG)

398 If it is throwing a code. Transfer case motor on my truck is apparently not working, no code.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (Tnijr)

Listen for the grinding.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:39 AM (jvt6t)

399 And if the computers were removed from a modern car,
it wouldn't even be capable of running. That's how they have become as
efficient as they are today.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (jvt6t)

---
I got a recall notice for my car. The software was wrong. I took it in, they did the thing and when I drove out, its performance was significantly improved. Idling was smoother, and acceleration was much, much quicker.

No idea what they did, but the results are undeniable.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:39 AM (llXky)

400
If it is throwing a code. Transfer case motor on my truck is apparently not working, no code.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:36 AM (Tnijr)

Part of the 5%.

Define "isn't working." Won't go into FWD or nothing moves? Sensors might not sense a gear or bearing failure.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:39 AM (Zz0t1)

401 And for Tebow fans, I want to mention that the top 5 best selling items at the NFL merchandise site are Tebow items.

Again, the bad guys hate it when people can counteract the narrative.
Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:38 AM (AwPyG)

They're already calling it white privilege, so doomed for failure because culture sucks now.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:40 AM (Zz0t1)

402 Finished both of the Preston and Child books. The first was "Cold River" which takes the true mystery of shoes with feet washing up in them on Vancouver Island, BC and places them in Florida. It's a fun read and you don't have to know the main character backgrounds but it certainly adds to the enjoyment.

The other was the second book in the new series covering spin-off character archeologist, Nora Kelly, from the Pendergast series. Funny thing is that the main character in these books is not Nora but Corrine Swanson who had mostly minor roles in the Pendergast series. The book "The Scorpion's Tail" deals with a lost treasure from the Pueblo revolt against Spain in the 1680s.

One bit that keeps recurring in both these series lately is injecting a scene about ignorant red necks that are anti government. These brief scenes are cliches on steroids. They add nothing to the books other than to reinforce the authors liberal bias.

Posted by: Beartooth at May 23, 2021 10:40 AM (q2jCh)

403 Weird how the same people who obsess over wrongs
that took place 170 years ago suddenly shift into "mistakes were made"
mode over what they did within the last six months.

Oh wait, it 's not weird, its entirely predictable.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:33 AM (llXky)

No, they will let us get to that, when all the people responsible are beyond retribution.

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (u0j5n)

404 I got a recall notice for my car. The software was wrong. I took it in, they did the thing and when I drove out, its performance was significantly improved. Idling was smoother, and acceleration was much, much quicker.

No idea what they did, but the results are undeniable.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:39 AM (llXky)

You can take any computerized car nowadays, throw a 'tune' at the computer and get 20 to 50% more horsepower and other improvements.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (Zz0t1)

405 No idea what they did, but the results are undeniable.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:39 AM (llXky)

Kind of like the F-35. They are still writing software and upgrading in the field to improve capabilities. The world we live in.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (jvt6t)

406 "Listen for the grinding.
Posted by: Jak Sucio "

No grinding. Hubs and vacuum stuff work. It's pretty easy to pull the motor off, once I'm mobile again. I hate this sitting around crap.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (Tnijr)

407 Kudos for the support of Celia Hayes. She's a great writer and a darned-good person.

Posted by: Ranten N. Raven at May 23, 2021 10:42 AM (8YAVU)

408 I have yet to receive my copy of the Magda Szabo book, The Door. Books move slowly at USPS

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:42 AM (ONvIw)

409 @401

You don't think he'll get a massive standing-O at Jacksonville, the first time he goes on the field? It will be like covering Trump; the network will have to cut away to commerical

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:42 AM (AwPyG)

410
No grinding. Hubs and vacuum stuff work. It's pretty easy to pull the motor off, once I'm mobile again. I hate this sitting around crap.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (Tnijr)

Got a bud that's recovering from knee surgery. Had a microfracture procedure done, so he's non-weight bearing on that leg for 8 weeks. He's entering week 2 and is going insane.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:43 AM (Zz0t1)

411 No grinding. Hubs and vacuum stuff work. It's pretty easy to pull the motor off, once I'm mobile again. I hate this sitting around crap.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (Tnijr)

Yeah, everything fails eventually, maybe a solenoid, if there? It sounds like a switching issue.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:43 AM (jvt6t)

412
No grinding. Hubs and vacuum stuff work. It's pretty easy to pull the motor off, once I'm mobile again. I hate this sitting around crap.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:41 AM (Tnijr)

Older Jeep Grand Cherokee?

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:43 AM (Zz0t1)

413 F-150

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:44 AM (Tnijr)

414 Weird how the same people who obsess over wrongs
that took place 170 years ago suddenly shift into "mistakes were made"
mode over what they did within the last six months.

Oh wait, it 's not weird, its entirely predictable.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 09:33 AM (llXky)

They are also very selective of who they pick out as guilty of "wrongs".

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:44 AM (ONvIw)

415 They're already calling it white privilege, so doomed for failure because culture sucks now.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:40 AM (Zz0t1)

---
Yeah, and that's why I don't get worked up by any of this. Just a reminder: when Franco began his march on Madrid in the summer of 1936, it was possible that if he took the capital, the war would have been only a couple of months long.

But in that couple of months there was a lot of arson and murder. Estimates run into the tens of thousands of dead. People are understandably reluctant to to "roll the iron dice." I'm afraid it's going to happen, and I don't enjoy watching the countdown.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:44 AM (llXky)

416 F-150......Push button FWD, then?

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:45 AM (Zz0t1)

417 Checked the solinoids and fuses. Before I pull the motor off I'll check and see if it's energized when switched to 4wd.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:46 AM (Tnijr)

418 I hope Tebow comes into the league, gets the starting role early on in the season and makes Gronkowski look like a piker.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:46 AM (Zz0t1)

419 FIRST!!!!!
Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:31 AM (Zz0t1)

I don't get it

Posted by: Doof at May 23, 2021 10:46 AM (mZUr4)

420

I don't get it
Posted by: Doof at May 23, 2021 10:46 AM (mZUr4)

I was thinking the same thing.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:47 AM (Zz0t1)

421

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:47 AM (Zz0t1)

422 @418

I don't think he has to perform, really. He's a hero, mainly because he's stayed in faith against a lot of outrageous slings and arrows, and people appreciate that.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (AwPyG)

423 Fauci Says He's No Longer Sure COVID Occurred Naturally

-
No finger-pointing!

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (VVEnO)

424 Its got a 4H -4L knob on the dash.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (Tnijr)

425 A great new book

The Indispensables -The Diverse Soldier-Mariners Who Shaped The Country, Formed the Navy, and Rowed Washington Across the Delaware.

Patrick K. O'Donnell, Atlantic Monthly Press, ISBN-13: 978-0-8021-5689-1

Posted by: MachiasPrivateer at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (EMi53)

426 > You can take any computerized car nowadays, throw a 'tune' at the computer and get 20 to 50% more horsepower and other improvements.

I remember when you had to actually buy the chip because there wasn't anyway to reprogram the EPROM in the ICM black box. My 94 BMW 3 series was like that.

Posted by: Martini Farmer at May 23, 2021 10:49 AM (3H9h1)

427 417 Checked the solinoids and fuses. Before I pull the motor off I'll check and see if it's energized when switched to 4wd.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:46 AM (Tnijr)

That's what I would have done, so yeah. The motor may be locked up (not used all the time).

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:50 AM (jvt6t)

428 Fauci Says He's No Longer Sure COVID Occurred Naturally

-
No finger-pointing!
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (VVEnO)

CHOOT!!!! CHOOT it NOW!

Posted by: Troy Landry at May 23, 2021 10:51 AM (Zz0t1)

429 424 Its got a 4H -4L knob on the dash.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (Tnijr)

That could be it. It's a pain, but you can prolly put an ohm meter and see if it checks out.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:51 AM (jvt6t)

430 I was given the first book of the GRRM fantasy epic as a gift by someone who heartily and strongly endorsed it.

I read about half of it and gave it up. Not only was it boring and lacking in likable characters but it wasn't fantasy, it was just a fake kingdom full of people being terrible to each other.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:51 AM (KZzsI)

431 I agree. Dumb.

But the gov there (I met her once) never struck me as being too bright. I have to wonder if something else is at work?
Posted by: Diogenes at May 23, 2021 10:10 AM (axyOa)

As long as there is a COVID emergency Brown has complete and total power over all of Oregon, the state Supreme Court has stated. That means she can do anything and her bestie and hand picked successor the Secretary of State is the one who does all the audits on agency budgets.

Also, she is apparently terrified that she will be assassinated.

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 10:52 AM (u0j5n)

432 You can take any computerized car nowadays, throw a 'tune' at the computer and get 20 to 50% more horsepower and other improvements.

And if you ever take it back to the dealer's service for anything, including a loose sun visor, they will reset it to factory settings and/or void your warranty.

Posted by: Oddbob at May 23, 2021 10:52 AM (nfrXX)

433 Its got a 4H -4L knob on the dash.
Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (Tnijr)

Yeah, sounds like the solenoid / motor that moves the gearing is failing. Might be internal, but wiring and voltage testing is a start to make sure the buttons are doing what they should.

Posted by: Sponge - Saying Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (Zz0t1)

434 When you guys are speaking car-speak I feel like I've had a stroke, or something.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (AwPyG)

435 1 Million is 100, 100,000
1 Billion is a 1,000 million
1 trillion is 1,000 billion
Posted by: Brave Sir Robin

Gal Gadot is a 1.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (VVEnO)

436 You can take any computerized car nowadays, throw a 'tune' at the computer and get 20 to 50% more horsepower and other improvements.

Most of them are deliberately tuned down to keep them from being as powerful and gulping as much gas as they would without the reduction.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (KZzsI)

437 I have tried to exercise the 4wd on the the truck periodically. The last time, it tried to work and then it didnt. It's not the kind of thing you want to find not working when you most need it so want to get it off my list.

Posted by: f'd at May 23, 2021 10:54 AM (Tnijr)

438 Fauci Says He's No Longer Sure COVID Occurred Naturally

-
No finger-pointing!
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (VVEnO)

Do people ever wonder how he comes up with this stuff? I mean, is he going into the lab every day, putting things in beakers, running computer programs, staring at things under microscopes?

He says something new today... where'd he get his info? Does he just wake up in the morning, and spout whatever nonsense comes to his tiny head? Or does he get a list of marching orders every day from... where, Gates? WHO? Klaus Schwab?

Posted by: BurtTC at May 23, 2021 10:54 AM (VrEgQ)

439 Fauci Says He's No Longer Sure COVID Occurred Naturally

Is there a better or even equal example of someone who has been given so much undeserved credit as an "expert" and so much undeserved deference and respect???

Posted by: Doof at May 23, 2021 10:54 AM (mZUr4)

440 Also, she is apparently terrified that she will be assassinated.

"The wicked flee when no man pursueth"
--Proverbs 28:1

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:55 AM (KZzsI)

441 434 When you guys are speaking car-speak I feel like I've had a stroke, or something.
Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (AwPyG)

We'll talk you down.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 10:55 AM (jvt6t)

442 408 I have yet to receive my copy of the Magda Szabo book, The Door. Books move slowly at USPS
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:42 AM (ONvIw)

Ordered a book in January. I got it last week.

Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 10:55 AM (PiwSw)

443 @438

There's a lot of deflection goiing on--with Gates, Bezos, Fauci, etc, etc.

We'll admit to lesser crimes if you'll ignore the big ones.

It gives one hope that there may actually be a come-uppance, in the pipeline

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:56 AM (AwPyG)

444 They're already calling it white privilege,

-
Yeah, the black man just can't buy a break in professional sports.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:56 AM (VVEnO)

445 I read about half of it and gave it up. Not only was it boring and lacking in likable characters but it wasn't fantasy, it was just a fake kingdom full of people being terrible to each other.
Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:51 AM (KZzsI)

A sword and sorcery soap opera?

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 10:56 AM (q2Ryn)

446 Gal Gadot is a 1.
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:53 AM (VVEnO)

Upon visual observation, yes.
When adhering to Rule #1, HELL NO!

Posted by: Doof at May 23, 2021 10:57 AM (mZUr4)

447 I can't believe I have to make a trip to Detroit to visit that library

Posted by: Deplorable Ian Galt at May 23, 2021 10:57 AM (ufFY8)

448 Ordered a book in January. I got it last week.
Posted by: I am the Shadout Mapes, the Housekeeper at May 23, 2021 10:55 AM (PiwSw)

Too busy building the spy apparatus. I presume

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:57 AM (ONvIw)

449 The story does progress, with some key achievements, but I think the Foglios veer off course at times. We didn't need the subterranean and undersea kingdoms.

I've been enjoying it, but yeah the deliberate sidetracking to avoid wrapping up the main plot does get a bit tiresome. Still, its fun to read just to be along for the ride and its rarely annoying. Lots of fun, creative ideas and imagery.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:58 AM (KZzsI)

450 I'm reading Medicine and Religion: A Historical Introduction by Gary Ferngren. The chapter on ancient Christianity is an eye-opener. As a card carrying Bible thumper, I thought the New Testament generally equated disease with demonic activity, but he points out there's only three such examples in the gospels. Most of the time, demonic possession is treated very differently than miraculous healings are. And until the late 4th century, most Christians thought the age of miracles, including miraculous healings, was over once Jesus and the apostles used them to secure their authority. Really interesting.

Posted by: Jim S. at May 23, 2021 10:58 AM (ynUnH)

451 Classic leftist ploy--play the victim to generate sympathy.

I'm in danger!

see: Meghan Markle

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 10:58 AM (AwPyG)

452 As a kid, we were made to do this stuff so we'd "make better choices" and go to grad school/professional schools. The thought was that if we did hard physical work (my brother and his buds were encouraged to take factory jobs during breaks) we would hate it enough.
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:33 AM (ONvIw)

A couple of summers working at the packing house gave me a strong urge not to work there, and a blasé attitude about meat safety. Of course after college, I my first 5 years were spent in engineering at a bunch of slaughter houses, so that didn't work out perfectly at first.

Posted by: Downcast at May 23, 2021 10:58 AM (Vuxrb)

453 I read about half of it and gave it up. Not only was it boring and lacking in likable characters but it wasn't fantasy, it was just a fake kingdom full of people being terrible to each other.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 10:51 AM (KZzsI)

---
The both the book and the TV show compare very unfavorably with "I, Claudius," which is just as dark but also witty and you can learn something about history.

"By the way, don't eat the figs."

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 10:59 AM (llXky)

454 Just finishing "Soldaten" by Neitzel and some other kraut authory (Neitzel's the historian). An analysis of German POW eavesdropped conversations, mostly in the UK but some in the US, during WWII.

Generally fine, with the lamest parts being the occasional forays into overly academic social psychology-babble.

But - and wow. A few stunningly odd and dubious references to .... war crimes and bestial behavior by ..... American soldiers, in Vietnam. And I peeked ahead at the rousing conclusion, to find an extended and incoherent/unconvincing discussion of some incident in Baghdad in 2007. WTFF?

Absurd, and it muddles and discredits the moral analysis, such as it is, in the book. I'm kind of breezing through what remains of the book, ignoring anything except specific concrete analysis of actual WWII issues actually involving the German POWs.

Posted by: rhomboid at May 23, 2021 10:59 AM (OTzUX)

455 Fauci Says He's No Longer Sure COVID Occurred Naturally

-

No finger-pointing!
Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 10:48 AM (VVEnO)

Fauci is trying to find someone else to take his blame. CDC inspected the Wuhan lab and reported that their biosecurity was terrible, and he kept funding them.

Posted by: Kindltot at May 23, 2021 11:00 AM (u0j5n)

456 A sword and sorcery soap opera?

That's the impression I got. With sex. More sex in every book, as I understand it, and with some very young girls. Eventually some fantasy elements are introduced but they are very, very light fantasy (some dragons, a guy who has an army of dead from the frosty north, and ice powers).

And longer than it needs to be. I don't mind a big fat book that needs to be like that and is well written but I have no patience with a gigantic doorstop book that is thick just because the writer felt it was more epic that way. EDIT.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:00 AM (KZzsI)

457 304 ace on ipad is a no go zone. any and all browsers. it works but painfully slow.
Posted by: chango lot at May 23, 2021 10:06 AM (g741k)

Ace on an iPhone is a no-go too. I think pixie has turned against us. If not, then Ace needs to demand getting this shit fixed. It's more than tiring struggling with it.

Posted by: Justsayin' at May 23, 2021 11:00 AM (Fs5vw)

458 NOOD

Posted by: Skip guy who says NOOD at May 23, 2021 11:00 AM (Cxk7w)

459 @451

In fact, the most amusing thing about Prince Harry's "I was worried that Meghan was being hounded so much that she'd meet the same fate as my mother" statement, was a journalist's request for anyone to point to a single photo where MM was running away from paparazzi, like the millions of photos of Diana doing so.

There aren't any

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (AwPyG)

460 452 As a kid, we were made to do this stuff so we'd "make better choices" and go to grad school/professional schools. The thought was that if we did hard physical work (my brother and his buds were encouraged to take factory jobs during breaks) we would hate it enough.
Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 10:33 AM (ONvIw)

I totally agree with that POV. The best of both worlds, is learning trade skills early in life, then obtaining educational skills. I think that's a fine balance for survival.

Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (jvt6t)

461 Sidebar on Fauci: In so many ways, he has led this destruction. It would be great if everybody could agree on that.

Posted by: m at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (Zsfob)

462 And until the late 4th century, most Christians thought the age of miracles, including miraculous healings, was over once Jesus and the apostles used them to secure their authority.

That is the general theology of the reformation, with some rare miraculous exceptions. Its not that God cannot and will not heal, its that the age of the Apostles was different than today, for specific reasons (which Jesus and the Apostles themselves pointed out in scripture).

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (KZzsI)

463 22 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Agreed!

Posted by: March Hare at May 23, 2021 11:02 AM (lwrAe)

464 I'm getting ready to board a flight out of Portland. I flew in for a long weekend and while I was here did my customary pilgrimage to Powell's. Since this is likely my last trip to PDX, I spent about $130 on books.

Posted by: Colorado Alex in Exile at May 23, 2021 11:02 AM (82dwe)

465 Since this is likely my last trip to PDX, I spent about $130 on books.

So, like a downpayment on a college book

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:03 AM (KZzsI)

466 463 22 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos. It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

Agreed!
Posted by: March Hare at May 23, 2021 11:02 AM (lwrAe)

I'm toggling back and forth between Safari and Chrome.

Posted by: m at May 23, 2021 11:03 AM (Zsfob)

467 Ace on an iPhone is a no-go too. I think pixie has turned against us. If not, then Ace needs to demand getting this shit fixed. It's more than tiring struggling with it.
Posted by: Justsayin' at May 23, 2021 11:00 AM (Fs5vw)

It's not broken. Works fine on Brave running under Win & here; works fine on Brave running under Linux Mint on my other computers.

Posted by: Alberta Oil Peon at May 23, 2021 11:04 AM (q2Ryn)

468
That is the general theology of the reformation,
with some rare miraculous exceptions. Its not that God cannot and will
not heal, its that the age of the Apostles was different than today,
for specific reasons (which Jesus and the Apostles themselves pointed
out in scripture).

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (KZzsI)

---
Funny thing about miracles: if you stop looking for them, you stop finding them.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 11:04 AM (llXky)

469 Started Mila 18 by Leon Uris and can already tell I will like it. I read Exodus years ago and enjoyed that, too.

-
The ending of Malcolm Exodus was sad.

Posted by: Anonosaurus Wrecks, Tyrannosaur Wrangler at May 23, 2021 11:04 AM (VVEnO)

470 Walk-in gun safe, wine cellar, 12-car garage, 150-yard rifle range... but no library! So clise to being the perfect Moron Manse. https://tinyurl.com/8w4bsc3d

Posted by: NaughtyPine at May 23, 2021 11:04 AM (/+bwe)

471 This blog software just gets worse on iPad browsers. Right now I'm on
Safari with JavaScript turned off which eliminates the embedded videos.
It's been particularly bad since restoring it after the crash.

Posted by: Captain Hate Won't Forget Ashli Babbitt at May 23, 2021 08:12 AM (y7DUB)

---
I stopped trying to access this site on my iPad years ago.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 11:05 AM (llXky)

472 Funny thing about miracles: if you stop looking for them, you stop finding them.

Tip of the hat to the Who Dis, Lewis said that the only miracles you have to believe in are the ones in the Bible and the ones that happen to you specifically. I'm always skeptical of other people's claims of miracles, because God doesn't typically work that way, nor does He need to.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:05 AM (KZzsI)

473 I have been doing a lot of online reading about the connection between many rich Northerners and the South. This was triggered by current events and someone ridiculing the name of "Slidell Louisiana". It was fun to point out that John Slidell was a native New Yorker who attended Columbia University (as did the big mouth)

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:06 AM (ONvIw)

474 246 Started Mila 18 by Leon Uris and can already tell I will like it. I read Exodus years ago and enjoyed that, too.
Posted by: who knew at May 23, 2021 09:46 AM (SfO/T)

Trinity is haunting.

Posted by: m at May 23, 2021 11:08 AM (Zsfob)

475 I totally agree with that POV. The best of both worlds, is learning trade skills early in life, then obtaining educational skills. I think that's a fine balance for survival.
Posted by: Jak Sucio at May 23, 2021 11:01 AM (jvt6t)

Those of us subject to that POV were not so enamored at the time, but came to appreciate it. People are still stunned that I can operate a sewing machine and grow vegetables.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:08 AM (ONvIw)

476 "Funny thing about miracles: if you stop looking for them, you stop finding them."

Whether you are looking for them or not, you're swimming in them.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 11:09 AM (AwPyG)

477 As a kid, we were made to do this stuff so we'd "make better choices" and go to grad school/professional schools. The thought was that if we did hard physical work (my brother and his buds were encouraged to take factory jobs during breaks) we would hate it enough.
Posted by: CN
---------

Spending a summer humping wheelbarrows of cement around a construction site is an inspiring experience.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at May 23, 2021 11:09 AM (1vynn)

478 I do minor repairs on my car. Actually in most cases I supervise my wife who does the work. My hands are often to big to get to the engine parts that need replacing. She's a good sport.

Posted by: Javems at May 23, 2021 11:09 AM (8SSHh)

479 I can't read Ace of Spades on my iPad either. Slooowwly loads. Then crashes.

It was working great on mobile when we had the "enhanced" site after the crash but once it reverted to the original 1997 software it got bad again. It's even starting to screw up in Firefox on my 12-core 32GB RAM desktop.

Posted by: Ian S. at May 23, 2021 09:01 AM (6XLoz)

No problem here on a Toshiba Qosmio laptop. Running Windows 8.1, older version of Firefox with AdBlock plus an NoScript. 16gig of Ram, Core i7 processor. Comcast IP.

Posted by: thatcrazyjerseyguy at May 23, 2021 11:10 AM (zkS5c)

480 Tip of the hat to the Who Dis, Lewis said that the
only miracles you have to believe in are the ones in the Bible and the
ones that happen to you specifically. I'm always skeptical of other
people's claims of miracles, because God doesn't typically work that
way, nor does He need to.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:05 AM (KZzsI)

---
I used to think that way, rationalizing things, throwing doubt whenever someone told me about something 'miraculous' and then I asked myself why I was so hostile to joy.

Suddenly, I started seeing miracles everywhere. It's like the world went from black and white to full color.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 11:10 AM (llXky)

481 Whether you are looking for them or not, you're swimming in them.
Posted by: artemis
-------

Very easy to forget, as is gratitude.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at May 23, 2021 11:11 AM (1vynn)

482 I think people define miracles differently. For some, any moment of happiness or wonder is a miracle: my baby being born is a miracle!

The Bible defines miracle as a supernatural event of direct divine influence acting outside the physical and natural world for a very specific purpose: to advance the cause of God's kingdom and bring Him glory.

Babies being born: wonderful but incredibly ordinary. Not miraculous.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:13 AM (KZzsI)

483 I've given up on color printers- using a brother laser now that has gone two years without a hiccup.

Posted by: free tibet at May 23, 2021 11:13 AM (NYUSO)

484 Good book trivia question

Who wrote the Children's book , Chitty Chitty Bang Bang ?
Posted by: Cliff Clavin

Frank Sinatra

Posted by: JT at May 23, 2021 11:14 AM (arJlL)

485 Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:13 AM (KZzsI)

Does the Bible specifically define "miracles"?

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:15 AM (ONvIw)

486 481 Whether you are looking for them or not, you're swimming in them.
Posted by: artemis

It's SOAKING dammit!! SOAKING!!

Posted by: Madge at May 23, 2021 11:16 AM (jvt6t)

487 Johnny Cash helped me get out of prison, long before Rodriguez stole that goat.

Posted by: David Allen Coe at May 23, 2021 11:17 AM (jvt6t)

488
No problem here on a Toshiba Qosmio laptop. Running Windows 8.1, older version of Firefox with AdBlock plus an NoScript. 16gig of Ram, Core i7 processor. Comcast IP.
Posted by: thatcrazyjerseyguy at May 23, 2021 11:10 AM (zkS5c)

We're talking about phones and iPads. Not desktops.

Posted by: Justsayin' at May 23, 2021 11:17 AM (Fs5vw)

489 Started Mila 18 by Leon Uris and can already tell I will like it. I read Exodus years ago and enjoyed that, too.
Posted by: who knew
------

Once a great novel, always a great novel. I have found that pre-war novels are generally very good. Among other things, they did not get published unless the publisher thought that it was worthwhile.

These days, things get printed almost on whim.

I know people who consume best-sellers as though they are candy, but have never read any number of fine books of the last century.

Posted by: Mike Hammer, etc., etc. at May 23, 2021 11:17 AM (DMQdU)

490 Does the Bible specifically define "miracles"?

Not in the sense of a dictionary, but every single example of something called a miracle in the Bible follows the exact same specific pattern of meaning. Its always some direct immediate supernatural event that defies the normal and ordinary course of events, and always to glorify God and advance His kingdom.

Making an iron axe head float: miracle.
Making someone feel better by a sense of comfort: not miracle.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:18 AM (KZzsI)

491 Re LtC Lohmeier: He is speaking the truth, as most of us know. I tell everyone I can if the topic comes up, I spent about ten years of a 20 year career training to go to war against Communism and now we're letting it in through the front door. i genuinely fear for our country and now i'm too old and crippled up to do much about it.

Posted by: Bill R. at May 23, 2021 11:18 AM (wzzJf)

492 Almost every single miracle in the Bible also is used as a device by God to signify divine authority granted to someone as a prophet, a way of showing this is someone you should trust and listen to because God has endorsed them.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:19 AM (KZzsI)

493 I have found that pre-war novels are generally very good. Among other things, they did not get published unless the publisher thought that it was worthwhile.

Oh, they published an ocean of crap back then too, its just nobody remembers or can find them because they were crap and did not stand the test of time. On the other hand, a lot of stuff praised as great literature in the past... ain't.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:21 AM (KZzsI)

494 The Bible defines miracle as a supernatural event of
direct divine influence acting outside the physical and natural world
for a very specific purpose: to advance the cause of God's kingdom and
bring Him glory.

Babies being born: wonderful but incredibly ordinary. Not miraculous.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 11:13 AM (KZzsI)

---
Miracles come in all sizes and some of the most powerful are ones you would likely consider to be tiny and insignificant.

But no soul is insignificant to God.

Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 11:22 AM (llXky)

495 We're talking about phones and iPads. Not desktops.

Posted by: Justsayin' at May 23, 2021 11:17 AM (Fs5vw)

Not a desktop. A laptop. Solution? Use your phone as a, I dunno, a phone. Use a real computer to open this site. Been here since 2008 and have only rarely had issues while on a decent laptop or, in the old days, a desktop. Some browsers as well can have issues here, but with Firefox, I haven't had any problems. Some mornings, things may be a little slower loading J.J's Morning Report, but not excessively slow.

Posted by: thatcrazyjerseyguy at May 23, 2021 11:26 AM (zkS5c)

496 Miracles come in all sizes and some of the most powerful are ones you would likely consider to be tiny and insignificant.

But no soul is insignificant to God.
Posted by: Ace-Endorsed Author A.H. Lloyd at May 23, 2021 11:22 AM (llXky)

Coming from a hospitalist perspective, I have believed that some of the cures we have today are, in fact, "miraculous" in their inspiration. Or is it just accidental that a scientist or physician created something like gemtuzamab or stumbled upon high concentrations of vitamin A and low concentrations of arsenic to be curative for a once deadly leukemia. Did they just throw up their hands and say "let's try arsenic" or was the thought somehow "inspired"?

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:27 AM (ONvIw)

497 I had a Christian, Lutheran to be specific, colleague explain to me that the miracle of the loaves and fishes was really Jesus changing the laws of economics (not physics or biology) that day and getting people to share with others. Maybe that is equally miraculous as scientific laws? I don't know.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:35 AM (ONvIw)

498 Christopher R Taylor, yes, miracles confirm the messenger and the message.

Take Eucharistic miracles, for example.

There's an abundance of examples of "bread" and wine" doing extremely unusual things -- like having blood type AB and exhibiting clear traits of myocardial tissue (Lanciano miracle, examined by doctors in the 20th Century)

Joan Carrol Cruz's "Eucharistic Miracles" is an excellent go-to read about them.

Posted by: callsign claymore at May 23, 2021 11:37 AM (BnoVh)

499 Spending a summer humping wheelbarrows of cement around a construction site is an inspiring experience.
Posted by: Mike Hammer

Carrying spools of tie wire up scaffolding all day ...

Posted by: Jean at May 23, 2021 11:38 AM (Xih1H)

500 Miracle means sign, it's a pointer to something. People who experience them in the Bible see that they're pointing to something before they even know what they're pointing to. (Beyond the fact that God just did something supernaturally.)

Posted by: Jim S. at May 23, 2021 11:42 AM (ynUnH)

501 I agree with Christopher R Taylor. We can take miracle to mean an event where God's presence is evident or we can take it to mean an event which could not plausibly have come about by natural processes. The debate over miracles is about the second definition.

Posted by: Jim S. at May 23, 2021 11:44 AM (ynUnH)

502 Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:35 AM (ONvIw)

Ah, does he also think that the Resurrection wasn't bodily, but just the apostles feeling that the spirit of Jesus was hanging around in some vague sort of way? Because how can a Christian who thinks the miracle of the loaves and fishes is not to be taken literally believe that Christ actually rose from the dead?

I take the explaining away of miracles as an attempt by embarrassed Christians to somehow rationalize their beliefs. They don't want to appear credulous or dumb. The thing is, any belief in God appears credulous and dumb to a dogmatic atheist. Wishy-washy Christians who try to rationalize the miracles are the theological equivalent of the GOP Inc. "If we waffle around and avoid making strong statements, our enemies will like us. " No, they won't.

Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 11:45 AM (HabA/)

503 Penicillin, where a scientist went on a holiday and accidentally left the windows in his lab open, so that spores landed on the agar plates.

If you really want to be dazzled, think about two single cells, a sperm and an egg, and how they touch off something-something so that a fully functional human being is formed, with a jillion different cells doing a jillion different functions

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 11:48 AM (AwPyG)

504 Miracles are happening in the Middle East and muslims are coming to Christ in response. God is working in supernatural ways where no other way could be permitted - by law or by culture. I hear of them regularly.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 11:48 AM (45fpk)

505 Never put God in a box.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 11:50 AM (45fpk)

506 @495

Such a scold!

I only point out that if apple is throttling ace of spades, ace should probably know about it.

It's like the twitter shadow-banning, where it's done subtly, so the operator isn't aware of it.

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 11:52 AM (AwPyG)

507 497 I had a Christian, Lutheran to be specific, colleague explain to me that the miracle of the loaves and fishes was really Jesus changing the laws of economics (not physics or biology) that day and getting people to share with others.

That was a common method in the first half of the 19th century. The first quest for the historical Jesus began with David Strauss repudiating these ideas and saying that the events didn't happen at all because miracles don't happen.

Posted by: Jim S. at May 23, 2021 11:52 AM (ynUnH)

508 The loaves and fishes was not a miracle? You don't grab a lunchbox and feed five thousand people with it by sharing. Uff da. Some of these Lutherans are whack. My guess = ELCA. Hardly Lutheran. Barely Christian.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 11:55 AM (45fpk)

509 Posted by: Donna&&&&&V at May 23, 2021 11:45 AM (HabA/)

I don't think his goal was to explain it away, but to explain it within the "laws of nature". Apparently he wasn't comfortable with a basket of bread that replenishes. The man was a weekly attender of services and devout, so I don't think he was being flippant or irreverent.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 11:56 AM (ONvIw)

510 The Gospel writers seemed to think the loaves and the fishes thing was pretty impressive.

It's the only miracle mentioned in all four Gospels

Posted by: artemis at May 23, 2021 11:57 AM (AwPyG)

511 I have to go see if I can get this app thing to work so I can watch Phil Mickleson do his thing, which he apparently is doing very very well.

Posted by: grammie winger at May 23, 2021 11:57 AM (45fpk)

512 Finished the book The Fisherman by John Langan. Weird fiction. Langan is a fine writer. The Fisherman is a 80-20 blend of Algernon Blackwood's The Willows leavened with some Lovecraft.

FYI it's not really about fishing as The Willows about trees.

Posted by: 13times at May 23, 2021 12:12 PM (paEPr)

513 The loaves and fishes thing was clearly (like water into wine) an act of sovereign creation by God. Making a small number of fish and a loaf of bread feed thousands is not "people sharing a lot" its supernatural and outside the laws of physics.

Water into wine is a less obvious one, but wine is of a different density and properties than water: its water plus a bunch of other stuff which did not exist before. Jesus' first miracle proved he was God by creating ex nihilo in a really humble and homey way for a wedding.

The first quest for the historical Jesus began with David Strauss repudiating these ideas and saying that the events didn't happen at all because miracles don't happen.

Yeah, that's the starting point for most of these kind of things: they presume before beginning that miracles do not happen, then proceed to try to figure out a way to explain away every miracle.

Posted by: Christopher R Taylor at May 23, 2021 12:16 PM (KZzsI)

514 If anybody comes back to read this: Leon Uris's The Haj should be required reading in every high school in America. The first time I read it, I thought Uris had jumped the shark. I thought the way he portrayed the Palestinians was just beyond belief. Then I discovered reality and realized Uris was dead on.

Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 12:58 PM (yD4aV)

515 Christopher R. Taylor -- I got about thirty pages into GoT and started getting a faint whiff of Wheel of Time. I immediately closed it and threw it across the room.

Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 01:08 PM (yD4aV)

516 "64 'Huggy broke
Posted by: scottst'

"Here's $20. What's the poop on the street?"
Posted by: Starsky at May 23, 2021 08:26 AM (Tnijr)

I'm in Frisco now, so the poop on the street is mostly human, with a bit of dog and just a smidgeon of pigeon.

Posted by: H.Bear at May 23, 2021 01:43 PM (RxdpM)

517 Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 12:58 PM (yD4aV)

My family always had whatever Uris wrote, I'll have to scout around the house for a copy.

I always suspected that he killed his second wife. She shot herself twice in the face? Maybe, but it seems odd. And why would she shoot her purse? Practice shot?

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 01:54 PM (ONvIw)

518 I came back late and since I seem to have started the Leon Uris discussion, I will say thanks to all who have convinced me that I should read even more of his books.

Posted by: who knew at May 23, 2021 02:14 PM (SfO/T)

519 196 "Little Known Muldoon Fact #953: Some of Mozart's earliest works were composed for the player piano.
They were published in a compendium titled Amadeus ex Machina
Posted by: Muldoon "

One time when they were hanging out, Wolfgang allegedly told Ludwig "Start the roll over Beethoven!"

Eine Kleine Notch Music

Posted by: goodluckduck at May 23, 2021 04:37 PM (V8zw+)

520 CN -- I hadn't heard anything about that.

Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 05:37 PM (yD4aV)

521 520 CN -- I hadn't heard anything about that.
Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 05:37 PM (yD4aV)

His wife allegedly suicided after 6 months of marriage and after an argument. He said she left the house and he heard 3 shots. So he called some of her friends, but not the police? It was ruled a suicide, but Spider Sabich was ruled an accident, so maybe celebrity was a factor? Shooting yourself twice in the face is pretty rare, and she was about 25 and drop dead gorgeous, so it's not like Uris was her only hope in life. He said they were "happy" but admitted at the inquest that he discussed divorce with his lawyer that day, which is very inconsistent. The whole thing sounded weird, IIRC. If you hear shots outside your house in the night, do you not call the police? I sure would.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 06:04 PM (ONvIw)

522 520 CN -- I hadn't heard anything about that.
Posted by: Captain Josepha Sabin, clinging bitterly to a deplorable life at May 23, 2021 05:37 PM (yD4aV)

He also said he had guns as there had been threats on his life that year after he wrote Topaz. That seems another good reason to call the police.

Posted by: CN, back from the land of the banned. at May 23, 2021 06:08 PM (ONvIw)

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