Sunday, November 09, 2025

Sugar Maple (all leaves from our new little tree)




 

27 comments:

  1. I imagine Susan is sewing, Cat is reading (or writing), W.A. is at Windycom, Alan is resting...
    What are you up to Renee and nordy?

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    1. As for me, I slept 5-10am, then stayed awake to watch a livestream of 10 yo granddaughter in a swim meet.
      I could use a nap, but I'm okay.

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  2. The Dept. of Agriculture has just ordered the states who funded SNAP to pull that money back. More Trumper bullshit. Susan

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    1. Just saw that. What the fucking hell?

      Whatever happened to states rights?

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  3. I'm having trouble with a project I'm working on, can't figure out what to do instead and just kind of "blah". I think I just need the rest of the day off to rest and get my mojo back. Susan

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    1. Have a nice cup of tea and a snack of some kind. Works every time.

      Alternatively, have a shot of vodka, neat. Much the same end result with more zing.

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    2. Back from Windycon. First dnow of the season last hight, melted by the time I came home. More snow predicted for tomight.

      A fair number of people came for my reading, although most were late because they had trouble finding the room -- this was literally the first time it had been used for any sort of programming (my reading was the first at the con). My two panels also went well.

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    3. Glad to hear it went well!

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  4. Just getting ready to have dinner. After that we have our weekly Zoom call with my family. My brother suggested that during COVID, and we just kept doing it.

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    1. Sounds like a great idea.

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    2. I wish my family stilll did that. There are just so many of us.

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  5. nordy -- drinking ginger ale and sleeiping.

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  6. I mean sleeping. -- nordy

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  7. One of the people who lives in my building, D, relies on SNAP.
    So a few of us are putting cash in envelopes and sliding them under her door. Hope we come up with enough to make a difference. -- nordy

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    1. God bless you! Of course, that's what neighbors do. (see the Good Samaritan. Not that the Great Orange Turd has ever heard of the Good Samaritan).

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    2. Ah, nordy, that gives me such a warm glow. Thank you and your kind neighbours for reminding us of how humanity works.

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    3. No one in Vermont is going hungry, because our moderate Republican Governor (who despises DT) worked with the Legislature and they're going to cover SNAP at the State level for now. ALL states ought to be doing this.

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  8. Replies
    1. I am keenly disappointed. We the People voted and showed the Dems we want them to stand firm. Less than a week later they're caving. The Republicans don't mind being cruel and letting the shutdown continue, so this just shows them that being cruel gets them what they want in the end. Why would they ever negotiate in the future?

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    2. I noticed that Dick Durbin was one of the eight and this I absolutely do not understand. He is retiring at the end of this term.

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    3. According to a comment on Substack to the article posted below, each of the eight is either retiring or else not up for reelection till '28 or '30. It was, as the commenter observed, a setup. Totally despicable, to my way of thinking.

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  9. BREAKING: Senate Democrats Join Republicans to Pass Bill to Reopen Government
    Aaron Parnas
    Nov 10

    It’s official: Senators have voted to begin the process to reopen the federal government. Several Democratic Senators have joined Republicans to pass a bill that will begin the process of reopening the federal government.

    Republicans needed eight Democrats to join them, and tonight, they got it done.

    The Democrats that joined Republicans in voting to reopen the government tonight are:

    Angus King from Maine (an independent who caucuses with Democrats),

    Tim Kaine (VA),

    John Fetterman (PA),

    Maggie Hassan (NH),

    Jeanne Shaheen (NH),

    Catherine Cortez Masto (NV),

    Jacky Rosen (NV),

    Dick Durbin (IL).

    Every other Senator, including Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, voted against tonight’s legislation. Online and on the ground, you could feel the divide settle in as Senators filed out, some frustrated, some quiet.

    Senator Tammy Baldwin, who has been involved at different points in the bipartisan talks, also voted no. Her explanation was blunt and left no room for interpretation. She said that a wink and a nod to deal with this health care crisis at some later date, with no actual guarantees, is simply not enough for her or for the Wisconsin families she works for.

    Her statement echoed concerns that many Democrats have been raising privately for days, concerns that tonight finally burst into public view.

    The legislation contains a continuing resolution that lasts until January 30. It includes a promise to hold a December vote on Affordable Care Act subsidies. It folds in a minibus of smaller bills, including measures that prevent future reductions in force and reverse layoffs triggered by the shutdown. It restores SNAP funding through fiscal year 2026. It guarantees full backpay for all federal workers and includes a promise that there will be no further layoffs. These are not small items. They touch every corner of the government, from kitchen tables to cubicles to the front desks of federal buildings where workers have been showing up for weeks without pay.

    But one key point is hanging over everything. The Senate is promising a vote to extend the ACA credits. The House has said nothing. Not a word. Even Speaker Mike Johnson, only three days ago, refused to promise a vote on ACA credits in the House. That silence is shaping the entire political landscape right now. It is the reason so many Democrats see tonight’s bill as a gamble with no guarantee of a payoff, a bridge that might stop halfway over the river.


    The legislative path from here stretches out over several days. Additional votes and procedural steps will be needed before this bill can leave the Senate for good. If and when that happens, it will land in the House of Representatives, where Republicans only need a simple majority to pass it. House Democrats are already united against the deal. Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries spelled it out clearly. He said he does not believe the House Democratic Caucus is prepared to support a promise, a wing and a prayer, from people who have been devastating the health care of the American people for years.

    The next chapter of this fight will unfold quickly. Tonight’s vote opened the door. What happens on the other side is still entirely uncertain.

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  10. Replies
    1. You really have to ask yourself why Dems always end up shooting themselves in the foot. I believe the term used on The West Wing show was "The gang that can't shoot straight." Bernie spoke out against this deal.

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