Warm again, and supposed to be clear. Might just end up that way too, if we’re lucky. Yesterday was mostly nice, if a bit overcast.
I spent most of the day alternating between errands, reading, and wrapping presents. Two pickups, a doctor visit, a quick stop at the newly remodeled Goodwill Outlet, and home. The Outlet is now a “Clearance Store” which only has clothes and shoes, and they are on sorted racks. Oddly, since it’s all stuff that didn’t sell, I found an UnderArmor T shirt that is like new, and a pair of Allen Edmonds shoes. $9 total. I miss the treasure hunt, and all the other stuff at the Outlet (bins) store, but I did ok in a 15 minute visit.
While the girls made cookies and watched Die Hard, I wrapped presents. I got everything for the kids and my wife wrapped, except a sign that needs some paint touchup, and lava lamp bulbs that will arrive today. I am still looking for the camera D1 wanted, but I’ll wrap that when I find it.
Plans to head to the BOL are in flux as D1 is working tonight. I thought we had it nailed down but I guess not. I am out of the loop and may just head up first some time today. We’ll see.
The stacked gifts worked out perfectly. I put some of D2’s gifts back in the stack for her birthday. D1 will need some more shopping before then. I had a lot more for W than I thought, which was nice.
In any case, time is running out if you aren’t ready for Christmas. Of course, I just realized that Hanukkah ended yesterday. A day late and a dollar short, but Happy Hanukkah!
Stack some things.
nick
Tuesday. Fast broken. Grocery shopping expedition starts…
I may be some time. Remember me kindly.
Take a rope and a FLASHLIGHT.
I don’t think it was suicide as much as Southern genetics and a lack of regular medical consultation.
I have a similar genetic background to Adam the Woo, and I was up until four specialists until I fired the sleep doctor recently.
At this point, I think the BP meds are overdone and they are affecting my ability to do my job, but, then again, job stress combined with serious lack of interest could be affecting my ability to do my job.
Instead of learning a C++ library for work with the shutdown week, I decided to refresh my iOS development skills sufficiently so I can play with the accelerometer on the Apple hardware devices I own.
It is rare that I have a current iOS phone with supported development tools like I do right now.
Microsoft has the Systemd lead developer on the payroll.
To run Windows on the Linux kernel, they would need to rewrite Systemd and create a new compositor for Wayland, but neither would be as significant an undertaking as rewriting all of their C/C++ code in Rust.
I believe that the Windows kernel is a significant competitive advantage since WHQL went mandatory because it forces a hardware vendor to decide where to devote driver developer resoureces.
I’ve also long believed that Microsoft would have been much better off broken up into halves, with Compilers and OS going to the Issaquah Plateau while Applications and Online Services remained in Redmond.
For reference, again, The Bandit’s 76 Trans Am was ~ 3400 lbs/1700 kg.
Knock the AWD and about 500 lbs off of the Crosstrek, return the stick, and those would sell even at the current base price.
Even in Oregon. AWD is overrated for the Northwest west of the Cascades. I took a front wheel drive Solara through foot high snow at times in Vantucky because our neighborhood never saw plows. I never got stuck.
A Crosstrek with a high ground clearance, FWD, and a low profile Boxter engine for $28k? Gresham Subaru wouldn’t be able to keep those on the lot.
My second car was a 1986 Honda Civic Si. I drove it in snow, sleet, whatever. Dad did provide me with studded snow tires for the winter. I remember driving home from work the night the blizzard of 93 was beginning. The roads already had several inches of snow on them. I made it home without any issues. That’s the only car I wish I still had.
The rest of you should head up and leave D1 at the house. I see no way that leaving a teenage girl at home alone for a few days, next to a rehab house, could possibly go wrong.
Annals of Electric School Buses: Kathy Hochul Loves Little Frozen Fingers and Toes
“ On the heels of a statewide mandate requiring all school bus purchases in New York State be electric by 2027, parents in the Lake Shore Central School District are speaking out, claiming some bus drivers are turning the heat down, or off completely, in an attempt to conserve battery life on their electric school buses.”
https://hotair.com/tree-hugging-sister/2025/12/22/annals-of-electric-school-buses-kathy-hochul-loves-little-frozen-fingers-and-toes-n3810147
Easy-peasy.
First day the legislature comes back, a masked squad of parents seizes control of the heating system and turns the heat down to 50, issuing the statement “Let’s see how effective these geniuses are when it’s pleasantly cool. Tomorrow we drop it to 40. “
Breaking News: Federal judge finds something in the Constitution that is actually there
https://redstate.com/bobhoge/2025/12/23/huge-judge-delivers-major-blow-to-cas-anti-parent-regime-rules-lying-teacher-law-unconstitutional-n2197402
Those were in the car anyway 😉
The fancy supermarket had a “collect stamps” thing going, with serious reductions on a range of Zwilling kitchen knives and utensils in exchange for a completed stamp card.
They are not the top-shelf Zwilling stuff, but certainly worth having at the special offer price. I noticed that none of the shoppers before us were taking their stamps, so I asked the checkout lady for theirs, and she obliged with enough for practically the full set of knives. Score!
Dinner this evening will be Wiener Schnitzel mit Pommes. Served with a slice of lemon and cranberry jam. The authentic dish would include an anchovy as garnish, but I will omit it.
Beating the meat is the best bit!
Well, as Insty says, the left wants you and your children miserable or, preferably, dead. This isn’t as good as a Li battery fire for that, but sometimes you have to settle.
That said the engineer in me notes that lot of the battery power is being turned into heat by the motors anyway, with the right design maybe they could capture that and recirculate to heat the cabin.
Why is it that aging causes all the wrong things to grow in the wrong places?
Hair growing in nose and ears instead of on the head…!
I remember when I was a teenager, we had a close family friend who was a professor of electrical and electronic engineering.
He was involved in a lot of research into electric vehicles, before that was fashionable. Already back then, he told me that EV’s would never be practical, because of the need for cooling passengers in summer and heating them in winter.
It hasn’t arrived yet but they’re calling at the Christmas Storm here in Southern California already.
Newscaster hype aside – we will be under a simultaneous NWS ‘High Wind Warning” and “Flood Watch” here from around noon today through Christmas Day.
Locally winds to gusting to 70 mph likely.
Best get out and get those gift cards now I suppose…
My German classes were 50 years ago, and I suffer from literalism in translation. Further, I recognize Pommes as French for apple.
TIL that German for “French Fries” is “Pommes Frites”, which I recognize as French so it’s borrowed in German. And it literally means “Fried Apples”, but I at least knew better for that. Because I knew the French call potatoes “apples of the Earth”., with the “de Terre” being understood and thus omitted.
It was nonetheless jarring to read for the first time.
Having said that, it sounds like a wonderful meal and brings back memories of my Bavarian trip 9 years ago.
Y’all remember my leg scrape? No, well so what. Anyway, the leg has become mildly infected. About one inch each side of the 4” long wound is bright red, sore and really warm. No oozing yet but I have to start watching it closely. If the infection has not improved by tomorrow I will go to the quickie clinic for some antibiotics.
The batteries themselves have to be kept within a certain temperature range in order to keep the vehicle from turning into a brick. Heating/cooling the cells has priority in the software.
A school bus would be a very large brick … and a serious disposal problem.
If you’re going to run “Die Hard”, “Lethal Weapon” should be next on the playlist.
And if you run “Lethal Weapon”, “Lethal Weapon 2” has to follow.
“Lethal Weapon” is the Christmas Eve redemption story. “Lethal Weapon 2” is the Christmas morning trip to Disney World to ride the old school “Space Mountain”.
Few directors pull off the trick of making sequels better than the original movies. Richard Donner did it twice, whether or not he gets credit for “Superman 2”.
With “Lethal Weapon 2”, you knew as soon as that “Looney Toons” fanfare played over the Warner logo.
Warner will be sorely missed.
Warner was Apple’s production partner on “F1”. That may well be their last hurrah.
Hair growing in nose and ears instead of on the head…!
– and shoulders. joy.
@Denis, I too read that as apples and I didn’t have the rest of lpdbw’s knowledge. My brain couldn’t quite reconcile the idea but then I serve roast apples with pork sometimes, so….
@steveF – #livingyourbestlife #bestparentingadvice #whatcouldpossiblygowrong as usual 🙂
– btw, wife says “no, that’s not what we talked about. I’m taking D2 and going up today. We have more cookies to make.”
@Ray, hit a doc in the box TODAY. You do not want an infection getting a beachhead in your body. Especially not in a lower extremity. Tell them you have a history of infection and get the good stuff or it will only get worse. Seriously.
————-
75F and a little grey out. I feel like I’m hung over. Something buzzing woke me at 6:00am and I couldn’t find it to smash it. Wife denies any alarms went off at 6. Actually, she claims all her devices are within her reach, not that none went off. Huh.
I’ve got coffee almost ready. I need to eat and start my day with some errands. Rx waiting. Insurance app to load and use. Plan is to roast duck one of the days. I might need a thing or two for that.
And there are a couple of present things to “wrap up” figurative and literal.
n
Follow-up:
OK U instructor canned
https://redstate.com/terichristoph/2025/12/23/see-ya-trans-oklahoma-u-instructor-sent-packing-after-failing-student-for-bible-based-essay-on-gender-n2197403
An objective reading of the 25-point criteria for the essay makes it clear that a “zero” grade was unwarranted, and the evidence further leads to the conclusion that it was blatant viewpoint discrimination.
It’s also clear that the instructor has a militant and combative mindset that seeks to punitively impose his minority values on others, making him unsuited for study in an area that will lead to him being able to do so from a position of authority.
@RayThompson
”If the infection has not improved by tomorrow I will go to the quickie clinic for some antibiotics”
If it starts moving north don’t wait.
I second the “go to the doc now” suggestion.
There will come a time during the unrest when we have to do without medical care. Use it while we still have remnants of Western civilization.
Added: Yes, I’m skeptical of doctors and the modern practice of medicine. But I also believe there are established, proven treatments to some common ailments, and antibiotics fall into that category. With limitations.
Ray doesn’t need “doctors” or “antibiotics”. Ray needs thoughts and prayers. Maybe some crystal healing. A drum circle can’t hurt anything.
Oh, wait. I already used up my day’s ration of bad advice.
Yah, Ray, you might want to get that looked at.
Rub some dirt on it p#ssy.
n
James Doohan, Scotty from original “Star Trek” also had quite the military career during WWII, landing on Normandy at D-Day and completing flight training just as the war ended.
If you pay attention during “Star Trek” episodes with Scotty, every now and then you will catch that Doohan is missing a finger, lost on D-Day as part of a friendly fire incident after successfully landing on the beach, taking out a sniper, and leading his men to a safe position.
RE: Rub some dirt on it p#ssy.
I down voted that as there are some things we should not screw up. Please recall that Bob shold have gottne treatment earlier.
Don’t forget cousulting the doula.
Saying a doula isn’t necessary is hate speech from the patriarchy.
No, seriously, Ray, see a doc-in-the-box today if your VA doesnt do walk ins.
@bob, yeah we need the /sarc tag.
I am a big fan of pain relievers and antibiotics. And orthopedic medicine.
Structural repairs are part of what they get right.
n
Go today. Christmas Eve can be nasty, a lot of holiday cheer related accidents, waits can be hours, even at quickie pay-cash -as-you-bleed-out clinics.
The attack surface for scrapes is actually worse than a deep short gash.
Or drilling a couple mm into yourself with a 0.5mm bit. Not that I would ever do that.
Ow.
Gift cards are bought. I took the back way into town and the only gas station I passed was the Chevron, which was $4.89 a gallon. But then they’re always the highest.
I wanted to get a pint of Patron for the trash man,who has always done a little extra things for me. But the good stuff is all locked away and the help was nowhere to be found.
I did fill up at the little market since the tank was at half. I was the only Anglo there among around 20 people, customers and staff.
Oh those crazy amish
https://fox8.com/news/3-kids-lead-police-on-pursuit-in-stolen-car-crash-into-home/
Mr. Ray, consider stocking a Jase Case or similar with antibiotics. It will keep for years in the fridge. Getting antibiotics when you are out in the RV could take a long time.
Oh, they good kids. They don’t mean no harm to nobody. They jus’ havin’ some fun.
It’s begun. Wind SSE 19mph. Santa Ana – warm and dry. Unplugged all the blowups so they won’t come on tonight. Rain coming for the next 3 days. The bikes and the trampoline for the grandkids not really going to be much fun. Oh well, they are getting plenty of other things to get bored over.
I went to Walgreens and got some antibiotic and pain reliever combined cream. And a big bandage to protect the site. It should be good. I may take six Amoxicillin tablets that I keep stocked for dental procedures. Having a joint replaced requires antibiotics before any dental work, including cleanings, to protect the joint from infection.
With the talk of Wiener Schnitzel , now I’m hungry for a batch of Jagerschnitzel .
I made Jagerschnitzel a few years ago. I didn’t know it was called that. What recipe? Just cook and add stuff to make it taste right.
We had company. And the weather decided to not be nice outside.
It wasn’t a big deal. Flour and brown off the “pork chops” we were going to grill, make gravy with the drippings and dump in a can of rinsed sliced mushrooms. Mix it all together, add salt and pepper, add the meat, cover the skillet and turn the burner to a hair above LO and let it all simmer for an hour or so. Boil some potatoes and mash them in the meanwhile.
One of our guests had been in the Army and stationed in Germany. I forget where. She said “this is the best Jagerschnitzel I’ve had since I was in Germany! How did you learn to make this?”
I don’t know. I just make this.
Huh. Pork chops in brown gravy simmered with mushrooms, aka “I tossed this together” has a fancy German name.
I have used ¾ inch thick hamburger patties too. Sometimes I toss in a hand of rice because I’m too lazy to boil potatoes. And I have cheated using a package of Pioneer brown gravy mix…. makes two cups instead of one and isn’t over salted like McCormick or store brand mixes.
As for “Pommes Frites” I had it figured out as something like “English Fries”. Yeah, I know “apple of the ground” for potatoes, that was a lot of French wine consumed to come up with that little retardation. Something the Frogs would say about the fried potatoes the pommies in England like with their fried fish. Grin.
Not near enough syllables to be German. Kartoffel gebraten. koph Maybe.
“Hackers stole over $2.7B in crypto in 2025, data shows”
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/hackers-stole-over-2-7b-190000884.html?guccounter=1
“Cybercriminals stole $2.7 billion in crypto this year, a new record for crypto-stealing hacks, according to blockchain-monitoring firms.”
Wait, I thought that crypto was totally safe and that no one could break it ?
“EXCLUSIVE: Trump Bars Five Europeans Accused of Censoring American Speech from Entering US”
https://www.dailysignal.com/2025/12/23/exclusive-trump-bars-five-europeans-accused-on-censoring-american-speech-from-entering-us/
“The State Department has taken steps to impose visa restrictions on five European individuals “whose entry, presence, or activities in the United States have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.””
“Two of these, former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton and Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Centre for Countering Digital Hate, are subject to deportation.”
Trump is serious about people messing with USA companies. Good, that is the main part of his job, protecting the USA.
Hat tip to:
https://thelibertydaily.com/
Sit them down to watch Dark Web videos on what happens to children in prison.
Doubt they are smart enough to understand.
The blockchain itself is well-designed and pretty sound. The exchanges and vaults tend to have substandard security. There are also dumb mistakes by users: trusting someone they shouldn’t, not securing their wallets, using idiotic passwords, and so on.
Playing around with the complications on my Apple watch. One of the complications is a decibel reading. Who knew that a fart could reach 96dB? I am seeing a new challenge for a personal best in the coming days.
Clothing muffles the sound. Hope this helps.
I went back into town again with the neighbor to pick up propane at Costco.
It was a total zoo there, though there was no-one in line at the tire center where we paid for propane ($72/24gals).
We filled up his truck at the pumps, $4.05 per gallon, cheapest in town.
Done driving for the day, I hope.
PSA: If your iPhone changed to the new Telephony layout with iOS 26, you can get it back to Classic in the little drop-down menu so that you know when you have a voicemail. Pretty much hidden in the new layout.
Good point. As does measurement location. But getting really close to the point of origin makes it hard to see the watch face.
Mr. Ray, consider stocking a Jase Case or similar with antibiotics. It will keep for years in the fridge. Getting antibiotics when you are out in the RV could take a long time.
I am very cautious about taking unprescribed antibiotics. I am very allergic to penicillin and keflex. I screwed up and took keflex a second time after hives the first time. The second time I got two inch hives all over my body 30 minutes later. And a screaming ten minute lecture from my GP who was afraid that he had killed me.
Mirror the watch display to your phone?
We filled up his truck at the pumps, $4.05 per gallon, cheapest in town.
Christmas is a big holiday. The muslims like to do crazy things on big holidays. I would fill up my vehicles before Christmas.
Yesterday I babbled whatever about the Starlink Mini. About the end of the power cable into the Mini needing ridges for gripping. And the power supply.
Well. I was wrong. You have the Mini. You have a power supply. You have a really long cable to connect the two,. Three parts.
Well. When putting things away, on the transformer it looks like the wire is molded in.
I woke up last night. Didn’t even have to pee. Just wide awake and thinking “you dolt”. I went and looked and duh, the cable unplugs from the power supply.
Sometimes I’m slow. I usually catch up.
Axios: 60 Minutes Lied About Trump Admin Response
https://hotair.com/ed-morrissey/2025/12/23/axios-60-minutes-lied-about-trump-admin-response-n3810179
CBS had Trump administration replies from three sources:
The segment aired in Canada. Why is not clear. But the aired segment did not use the responses.
Surprise, surprise, surprise! Turns out that :
Still haven’t checked Polymarket, but I’d like to see the odds that both get canned before the end of the year.
During, after, or both?
Channeling my inner SteveF, how about us Christians do crazy things on big holidays like killing everyone that looks like a moslim? Seems to be ok for them to act their way, let’s give it back.
Turn about being fair play. Right?
Oh! Ya wanna run a truck into a Christmas market? How about we drop a bomb on Mecca when the big gathering is happening?
To extend the idea, let us crack down on our dusky brethren, the OFE, when they get crazy and start looting.
Don’t have to kill all of them to make the rest behave.
-sniffle- Our little boy’s all grown up and making good suggestions. I’m not crying, it’s just dust in my eye.
Mirror the watch display to your phone?
– see, that’s the kind of “can do” attitude we want!
———-
Got my Rx, except the allergy meds, the F’ing feds have messed that one up. I’ll have to wait until the ones I got over the counter run out. Useless war on some drugs. Did meth go away? No. Did they find work arounds for the restrictions? Yes. Did the feds rescind the restrictions on pseudo-ephedrine as pointless? No they didn’t. Why? Because F you, that’s why. March to the pharmacy and present your ID every 20 days like a good little subject.
For some number, large surely, of citizens with allergies, the fedgov insists on tracking their location every 20 days and it gets entered in an online database. That HAS to be a violation. And where are the HIPPPA protections?
n
HIPAA.
And where did my ability go to tell my employer to pound sand when they asked for my medical history of Covid vaccination? Theoretically, no one else could force me to share that info.
If your crypto is not in a “cold” wallet, you are a moron. I assume these thefts were of online wallets and exchanges used by investors. That is a big risk.
“An interesting conundrum”
https://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2025/12/an-interesting-conundrum.html
“From Eaton Rapids Joe:”
So now 50+% of people are carrying crazy genes ? That cannot be good for society but it does explain the multitudes of crazies that running around today in the USA and the EU.
I know several “bipolar” people, two in my near family. They act ok then they go crazy and self medicate to stop hearing the voices in their heads. My theory from talking with them is that the left and right hemispheres of their brains hate each and the fighting goes active where the person can hear the disputes.
“Roomba’s bankruptcy may wreck a lot more than one robot vacuum maker”
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/12/20/roomba-bankruptcy-robot-vacuum-maker.html
“Product quality was one of the advantages for the Roomba in a flood of less expensive knock-offs, but that didn’t save it from the corporate bankruptcy its maker iRobot announced earlier this week. And cheap Chinese competition was not the only factor in its failure. An attempted 2022 acquisition of iRobot by Amazon, thwarted by regulators, and the changing dynamics around mergers and acquisitions, represent an ongoing concern for struggling tech companies that in the past have turned to M&A as not just an exit ramp, but savior.”
“The company, which Amazon agreed to pay $1.7 billion to acquire in August 2022, reported in a court filing last Sunday that it had between $100 million-$500 million in assets and liabilities, and owed roughly $100 million to its largest creditor, Shenzhen Picea Robotics Co., the contract manufacturer, located in China and Vietnam, which now owns it. In all, Reuters reported the company has $190 million in debt.”
Killed by the Chinese knockoffs. Probably from the same manufacturing line.
I am reading a new book where the EU and Russia trade a few hundred 30 MT nukes in 2032 AD in the first chapter. Then China and USA join the battle and hundreds of nuclear weapons become thousands of nuclear weapons used. I just realized that there is just about nowhere in Texas that you can go that does not have military installations or interesting technology within a hundred miles.
I mean, I have fifteen refineries and chemical plants within 30 to 40 miles away from my house. I have missile silos from the 1950s just 50 miles away from my house. Abilene has many missile silos surrounding it. There are active military bases all over Texas.
Texas is a prime candidate for 40 or 50 nuclear weapons should things go really really really upside down.
We’ve started our annual non-sectarian winter movie binging…
If you enjoy a good old-fashioned spy thriller, check out “Black Bag:”
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Bag
Wednesday. Christmas Eve. Really, it’s Tuesday bedtime, but I am up late…
Ray, please don’t take chances with that infection. Best wishes for a speedy recovery, and for Guinness Book results of your windy endeavours.
Schnitzel. Apologies, I ought to have translated.
Wiener (Viennese) Schnitzel is veal (I used silverside), sliced very thinly across the grain, then pounded even thinner, dredged in seasoned flour, dipped in beaten egg and coated in breadcrumbs, then fried in very hot fat until crispy and golden. The key to success is beating your meat and serving everything absolutely piping hot.
Authentic Wiener Schnitzel is garnished with a slice of lemon, a salted anchovy, cranberry sauce and parsley. Flat-leafed parsley is served raw, and curly-leafed parsley is deep-fried.
Schnitzel nach Wiener Art (Viennese-Style) is the same thing, but done with pork meat instead of veal.
There are all kinds of garnishes for Schnitzel. Jäger (Hunter) is Paul’s sliced mushrooms in a brown gravy, Zigeuner (Gypsy) is the same gravy, but with sliced bell peppers and a little chili instead of the mushrooms. There are cream sauces, peppercorn sauces, white mushroom sauces etc. etc. One of my favourite Schnitzels is Bürgermeister, which is served with fried onions and a fried egg on top.
Pommes is indeed short for Pommes frites, borrowed from the French for deep-fried “pomme de terre” (potato). US-Americans would call them French (or freedom) fries. The Belgians, who claim to have invented them, call them just “frites”.
Anyhow, regardless of terminology, the meal turned out great. Everybody, including one unannounced guest, ate their fill, and we still have enough veal left over to do something nice in the way of an appetiser another day. I might do oiseaux dans têtes…
Time to hit the hay. Tomorrow will be a busy day. Goodnight, all!
Ed Dutton has been ringing that bell for years. Childhood mortality rate in pre-Industrial Revolution England was 50% or even higher, lower for richer or upper class, higher for the poor. Childhood mortality in modern, industrial nations is well under 1%, with some fuzziness because of varying definitions of childhood mortality. (eg, in many European nations today, a child dying within 24 hours of birth is not counted as a live birth and infant death.)
For the most part, the children who would have died in the past but live today have something wrong with them: poor immune system, very low IQ, a parent with serious insanity.
Evidence is all around you. Just look at the people in any crowd and estimate how many would not be alive without the charity and medical support of a rich society.
If I wanted to wreck the US (and/or the world) and had the resources, I’d drop a Tsar Bomba on Old Faithful. The caldera is overdue for an extinction-level eruption.
Other than the Three Gorges Dam, I can’t think of any other single points of failure to wreck a nation.
Jeebus:
Judge Jeb Boasberg Orders Return of More Than 200 Illegal Aliens Deported to El Salvador
The best comment: Send Boasberg to CECOT. What the F*ck is with this guy?
Found a couple more presents while looking for D1’s last present. She wanted a camera, point and shoot. I’ve got a nice Lumix with carl zeiss glass. Can’t find it though. One more logical place to look, up in the attic.
W and D2 made it safely to the BOL. Google had an extra ½ hour of travel because of backups from wrecks.
Of course she’s pinging me about what to add to my list for tomorrow. I found another thing she wanted in just a minute or two. Wasn’t sure if I still had it, but I knew that if I did, it would be in a particular place. Actually, make that two things I found that way today.
n
Jeebus:
Judge Jeb Boasberg Orders Return of More Than 200 Illegal Aliens Deported to El Salvador
The best comment: Send Boasberg to CECOT. What the F*ck is with this guy?
Columbian immigrant who is bound and determined to wreck things for the USA.
Judges, congress critters, mayors, federal employees, etc should all be USA citizens born in the USA. No exceptions allowed. They are not loyal to the USA and they are not loyal to the USA Constitution. Prove me wrong.
And yes, Boasberg has earned a trip to CECOT.
“Still Using Passwords? Yikes. Here’s Why You Should Switch to Passkeys Now”
https://www.pcmag.com/explainers/still-using-passwords-why-you-should-switch-to-passkeys-now
“Passkeys offer stronger protection than passwords—and they have the potential to eliminate passwords altogether if more people adopt them. We break it all down and show you how to get started.”
Maybe. Sounds like anything can be compromised by these tricksters nowadays.
BC: Resolutions
https://www.gocomics.com/bc/2025/12/23
Me too.
@Lynn
Post-apocalyptic fiction of fifty or more years ago was a stretch*. Now a major nuclear exchange would be humanity’s death unless we had successfully exported a viable colony with a technological base. Too depressing.
*It was not something I ever promoted, but someone else probably did at some point: The same simplistic construction as the Drake Equation in an expression estimating the survivability of the race after modern war but having primary separate terms for nuclear, biological and alien and second-order terms describing the interactions. The nuclear part has three to six more zeroes than the original formulation would have in the early 70’s if I’d ever put real numbers down. Note there is no primary term for global cooling or warming, such being second-order effects and mere afterthoughts.
Misdirecting and squandering resources. If Camus were alive today he could easily write the tale of the child taught everyday to tie his shoe only to forget overnight and be retaught the next morning.
I quit for tonight. I’m going to have a new stout and contemplate the implications of the Everett interpretation on the uniqueness of snowflakes.
“Education Department to Start Garnishing Wages of Defaulted Student Loan Borrowers”
https://thelibertydaily.com/education-department-start-garnishing-wages-defaulted-student-loan/
“While the US government can seize borrowers’ federal tax refunds, wages, Social Securiity and disability benefits, the Education Department can legally seize up to 15% of a student loan holder’s after-tax income to apply toward their debt.”
“More than 42 million Americans have student loan debt, which now exceeds $1.6 trillion.”
“There are currently more than 5 million student loan borrowers in default, a number which could explode to roughly 10 million borrowers soon, the Education Department said in April.”
And here we go !
Post-apocalyptic fiction of fifty or more years ago was a stretch*. Now a major nuclear exchange would be humanity’s death unless we had successfully exported a viable colony with a technological base. Too depressing.
Any one who survived the nuclear blasts and the ensuing radiation sickness would get to experience first hand what a nuclear winter is expected to be. -20 F in Texas might not be too low.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuclear_winter
“51st state? Northern neighbor starts down path of secession”
https://www.wnd.com/2025/12/51st-state-northern-neighbor-starts-down-path-secession/
“Province gets OK to begin collecting signatures for referendum to leave Canada”
“According to Global News, Elections Alberta says the proponent, the Alberta Prosperity Project, and its chief executive officer, Mitch Sylvestre, have until early January to appoint a financial officer for its petition campaign, after which signature collection can begin.”
“The group then would have four months to collect just under 178,000 signatures.”
Oh my.
Tonight, along with half of Sugar Land, there was a 6’6″ guy roaming around HEB in a red and black tartan kilt and sleeveless muscle shirt. And army boots.
Not only in Texas.
Talked with one of my neighbors this evening. She lost her job at the first of November. She is in IT project management, though after talking to her for an hour I still don’t know what she actually did. It really felt like she just did reports for management.
She’s having a hard time finding a job. She is 56 and was working remotely for the last 10? years. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she might need to prepare for a long unemployment, or early forced retirement. Luckily her husband is gainfully employed.
Talked with one of my neighbors this evening. She lost her job at the first of November. She is in IT project management, though after talking to her for an hour I still don’t know what she actually did. It really felt like she just did reports for management.
She’s having a hard time finding a job. She is 56 and was working remotely for the last 10? years. I didn’t have the heart to tell her she might need to prepare for a long unemployment, or early forced retirement. Luckily her husband is gainfully employed.
At least half of the people who applied for my open accounting job wanted to work remote. That is so not happening. I provide a nice working space with everything needed. I am not going to run around like a rat helping out the remote workers get things done.
Try my local HEB.
I went in to exchange “spread” for actual margarine last night to make pizza crust, and the male ahead of me in line at the customer service counter had what looked like a really pricey designer purse with some embossed logo I had never seen before.
HEB wouldn’t cash his payroll check, however. Pricey designer handbag but no bank account.
BTW, Blue Bonnet is not margarine anymore.
A stick of margarine and ⅓ cup of vegetable oil are key to the Giordano’s crust taste.
The water part is overrated.
“Democrats from Minnesota, Ohio, Maine, and Boston Embrace Somalians”
https://www.breitbart.com/immigration/2025/12/23/democrats-from-minnesota-ohio-maine-and-boston-embrace-somalians/
“Democrats across the country are praising and supporting Somali migrants, despite growing evidence of massive anti-social fraud by the foreign arrivals.”
“As millions of dollars in more fraud and theft of state and federal welfare funding are uncovered in Ohio, Minnesota, and other places committed at the hands of Somali migrants, democrats are falling all over themselves to show their unmitigated support for the fraudsters.”
“In Minnesota, where fraud committed by fake Somali charities has reached into the billions of dollars and more cases are being uncovered on a near-weekly basis, Democrats have pulled a full court press effort to support the Somali community.”
Traitors.
I have scant sympathy for those in such straits, even remembering my own difficulties in repaying 4 figure balance decades ago. Still, there is a whirlwind of hate incumbent with those ridiculous numbers.
My friend’s wife says that that that fat content in butter is dropping the last few years, you have to really look at the labels even on the formerly reliable stuff. She bakes a lot and it makes a difference.
Adulturation is another form of shrinkflation.
It’s something to be wary of when using older recipes.
I got my son two new monitors, 1440x[something] to replace his 1080x[something]. I kept his one of his old monitors as my secondary monitor was so old it only supported VGA and DVI. It was 1080x[something]. Along with that I purchased two monitor support arms. Mostly because he no longer had the stand for his old monitor that I was taking. I got those installed, more difficult than it should have been.
Next is to wait for the 4 foot, 12 outlet power strip. That will be attached to the back of my homemade computer desk that I have been using for 35 years. It is 4 foot by 6 foot, ¾” plywood and continues to serve my needs quite well. I also need to run my monitor calibration software to balance the colors on the monitors.
My primary monitor is 1440x[something] and does not match the monitor my son gave me. That is fine by me. I only use the monitor for Outlook and stashing images I am working with in Photoshop and Lightroom. Color calibration is more important than resolution. The monitor I am tossing was a 24″, these two monitors are 27″ so the screen size also matches.
The monitors I got him, on Wednesday before Black Friday are MSI. Microcenter had them on sale for $150 marked down from $300. Seemed like a good deal.
Gaack. Too late to edit. 1920×1080 and 2560×1440 should be the sizes.
I’ve got a double batch (2 dozen) Cinnamon Rolls in the fridge doing their second rise overnight.
The Cream Cheese frosting is already done and in the piping bag.
My girlfriend always complains that the Christmas Cinnamon Rolls disappear before she gets her fill. Hence the double batch.
Stella Parks really makes you work at it, though. I’m up later than usual because I didn’t realize I’d have a 90 minute first rise before I could roll them out, fill them, roll them up, cut them, and place them in the pans to rise overnight.
It’s bedtime.
Somalis have likely been
fundingkicking back to local pols all along. You can’t engage in massive frauds without attracting attention. Everyone is wetting their beak. And now the protection the fraudsters paid for is being exercised.It’s how organized crime works.
—————
Had a tiny little fire and read for a while. One black cat was the extent of the wildlife tonight. I’m getting chilly from sitting still in the damp. Eldest is not home yet, and is asking to stay over with her friend. That was what we did when we’d been drinking.
In any case, this late night has pushed back my plans to leave in the morning. And I am not happy about that.
n
Had a tiny little fire and read for a while. One black cat was the extent of the wildlife tonight. I’m getting chilly from sitting still in the damp.
I have two bags of cat food leftover from when our cat recently passed away. So I am feeding the feral cats at the office on the front porch. And maybe a possum or two. Or maybe a deer or five. There are lots of wildlife because of the two 1 acre ponds that are full of bullfrogs and snapping turtles. Not much fish as the birds in the county come check out the ponds weekly. And the alligators.
Probably not a good thing to do but, I don’t care. Remy hated other cats so he would not like it either. But I refuse to throw the food away and I think that the bags need to sealed and in date for the county animal shelter to take.
I’ve been having fun peeking out the front window of the office to see who is eating. So far all I have caught sight of is a beat up old tortoise shell cat and a possum.
Wednesday morning. The morning of Christmas Eve. Still dark, but the Light of the World is forecast soon…
Those sound delicious! Recipe, please?
Christmas Eve morning is officially a working “day” here, so shops (but not banks or public service offices) are open for last-minute needs. I think I am covered for gifts, but I might pick up a fresh case of beer and some frozen fries for the pantry, just in case… maybe some dates and streaky bacon, if the local supermarket has them – I could roll the dates in bacon and roast them for cocktail nibbles. Hmm…
The house is still quiet. The calm ahead of the whirlwind. Thinking of absent friends and dear departed ones.
Wishing you all a blessed Christmas, especially those who might be lonely, worried or sick. Wishing that the Light will reach everyone with its tidings of comfort and joy.
I had a Mod Pizza for lunch and supper. Pretty good if you ask me especially since they made it extra extra crispy for me with my pepperoni, spicy sausage, black olives, spinach, pineapple, red sauce, mozzarella, and lots lots lots of onions.
https://locations.modpizza.com/usa/tx/sugar-land/19820-southwest-freeway
D1 will be spending the night at her friend’s house. I was reminded that they have restricted driving licenses and are not supposed to be driving after midnight. Everyone will get more sleep if she just stays there.
I’m off to shower and sleep myself.
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Denis, nice to know you’ll be ringing in the day before us. Bacon is good with anything, but I’d never have thought to wrap dates in it. Hmmm.
n