Comments

  1. carlie says

    Hm, this tweet has come out by Elyse Anders:

    Sad hearing stories of women leaving #TAM2012 early because of how they were treated this year. I guess we just can’t have nice things. :(

    It will be interesting to see what stories come out of that. Wonder if it’s coincidence that some people just had to leave and it’s being attributed to that, or if something bigger really did happen. :(

  2. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Wonder if it’s coincidence that some people just had to leave and it’s being attributed to that, or if something bigger really did happen.

    Makes me wonder how many different versions of reality will be expressed.

  3. mythbri says

    @carlie

    Is there any more information about what’s going on? I know about the T-shirt, and the lack of policy, but are the conference organizers contributing to this? Is it just other attendees?

  5. Psych-Oh says

    With summer, and the kids being home, and work… I’m really out of the loop. Maybe that’s a good thing. I haven’t followed this at all.

  7. Gnumann, quisling of the MRA nation says

    Luckily, that video was blocked in my neck of the woods.

    I get to see David Attenborough and fossiles on the TV instead. Wee!

  8. David Marjanović says

    When did palaeontologists and geologists abandon the Comanchic Period of the Mesozoic?

    Only North Americans ever used it, AFAIK. Increasing internationalization caused its demise.

    There’s something called Angocin.
    Based on cress and raddish and surprisingly effective (actual studies, I was surprised). Maybe that could help Jules?

    We’ll look it up. Of course everything’s closed today anyway…

    True, but there are a lot of factors that influence how many calories are actually “taken in” by each person’s body – turns out gut flora composition is extremely important, for example.

    The output is very variable, too; different people have quite different metabolisms, and the same people can change a lot under different conditions.

  9. mythbri says

    @Beatrice @Ogvorbis

    Yup, that’s the T-shirt I mean. I’m really disappointed that people’s experiences at TAM are being so affected that they would leave early. Makes me wonder what the next part of the conversation will be.

  10. stonyground says

    Walk the Dinosaur was a UK hit in 1987. How does this qualify as a new dance craze?

  11. Beatrice says

    And reading that thread on B&W, I see that there might be more to that t-shirt.

    rorschach [kill]​[hide comment] says:
    July 12, 2012 at 8:59 pm

    If twitter is to be believed, the rest of the t-shirt reads “I’m a skeptic, not a skepchick, not a woman skeptic, just a skeptic”.

    I doubt very much that Hall doesn’t know what that is about.

  12. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Beatrice/mythbri:

    Thanks. Given the past year or so, that t-shirt is, erm, odd?

    Walk the Dinosaur was a UK hit in 1987. How does this qualify as a new dance craze?

    We’re cultural illiterates over on this side of the pond?

  13. vaiyt says

    Walk the Dinosaur was a UK hit in 1987. How does this qualify as a new dance craze?

    You must be new to the internet.

  14. Beatrice says

    Ew, ew, ew.
    Doing a google search for “I’m a skeptic, not a skepchick, not a woman skeptic, just a skeptic” I accidentally stepped into the slimepit.

  15. mythbri says

    If the rest of the T-shirt reads that way, then she is a skeptic of both extraordinary and un-extraordinary claims. :/

  16. says

    OK
    I packed, unpacked and repacked. I’ll have to bite the bullet and by some water on the train.
    I managed to fix the small bagpack to the front of the big one.
    And I made name-tags for the kids with their first name and my phone number on them.
    The reality challenged will now claim that I’m a bad parent who plan on losing her children on the way…

  17. hypatiasdaughter says

    So is the T- shirt an official TAM shirt or something that some random attendee made up to give the finger to others – ya, know, like a TeaPary sign?

  18. says

    Trivia to add to our knowledge of Willard Mitt Romney — provided by an ex-mormon:
    I met Mitty (his name tag said “Mitty Romney”) when he was a missionary in Paris. I knew President Anderson and his wife. I heard about the car accident that killed Sister Anderson shortly after it happened. However I didn’t find out that Romney was driving until a couple of years ago.

  19. says

    I asked around. Surly Amy left early because she was harassed by a few assholes all weekend long.

    I think TAM may have just lost a sponsor.

  22. says

    A Mitt Romney joke created by ex-mormon Don Bagley:

    Mitt was walking on a beach when he spied a corked bottle on the sand. He thought he heard a muffled cry from within the bottle, so he opened it. The Devil was released from the vessel and promished to reward Mitt.

    “Make people vote for me,” asked Mitt.

    “I have great powers of persuasion,” said the Devil, “but that’s beyond my reach. Anything else?”

    “Make people respect my religion.”

    The Devil stroked his beard and said, “Let me take a second look at that voting thing.”

  24. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    The real problem, to me, with this image is the really cartoony looking eye on the male T-Rex. It makes the whole thing look weird and vaguely creepy.

    Also, the image of the sauropods mating in water, while ridiculously incorrect, made me realize that I’d probably get a bit of vertigo if I ever watched sauropods get it on.

  27. carlie says

    Well that was smart, to try and prove that TAM doesn’t need a harassment policy by harassing someone so much that they left early.

  28. mythbri says

    I asked around. Surly Amy left early because she was harassed by a few assholes all weekend long.

    I think TAM may have just lost a sponsor.

    FUCK. Assholes.

    Is there anything I can do? What the hell is DJ thinking?

    Assholes.

  29. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    What the hell is DJ thinking?

    Menz who harass women with impunity usually have more money than the women who are harassed.

    He likely counts on it making more financial sense to cater to the libertarians. This is after all a conference held in Vegas.

  30. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Will this be another ‘no, there was no harrassment,’ ‘no, no harrassment was reported to the organizers,’ ‘well, it was reported but I didn’t hear about it,’ ‘it was reported but it was minor,’ episodes? Or am I just being really, really, really cynical?

  31. mythbri says

    Count this as one more data point that women who speak up are targeted for harassment to knock them back down.

  33. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Count this as one more data point that women who speak up are targeted for harassment to knock them back down.

    But haven’t we been told that this is a myth? It never happens? It was invented by the mean feminists who hate men and hate sex and want the human race to die out?

    I’ll be curious as to how this plays out.

  36. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Good news, everyone:

    Jack the talking starling’s feather problems are clearing up! I’m relieved. Maniraptoran theropods just don’t look right without full plumage. I was also very worried that the problem was self inflicted, but it doesn’t appear to be.

    Now if only I could figure out a way to trim his claws without traumatizing the poor little guy…

  39. petermountain says

    I’m a member of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod and on June 22 our church President Matthew Harrison answered a question concerning “Theistic Evolution” I thought his response was interesting for a few reasons. I like how he acknowledged that science does not agree with the Biblical account. However, I think he backed himself in a corner when he stated that the story in Genesis is either myth or history.

  40. Nutmeg says

    petermountain:

    I think he backed himself in a corner when he stated that the story in Genesis is either myth or history.

    There are other options?

  42. petermountain says

    @Nutmeg
    There are no other options~ so why did he go there? I mean even he didn’t believe his answer and made up something called a “Story Telling” genre of history.

  44. A. R says

    Creobot related issue: So I was arguing with a Hamite creobot today, when they started off on an argument that I’ve never heard before. Something about the fact that sauropods were so huge that they had to be actively held upright by Dog himself. I explained that those calculations were based on false assumptions etc. but they kept going, eventually reaching “but Jeebus has to guide the right sperm to the egg,” before they stopped talking.

  45. says

    Nutmeg, I hope things are going well on the home front. My mother read my diary when I was 16 and from then on every adult who met me knew “what” I was so I feel for you. Doing it on your own is something I don’t claim to know.

    petermountain, what are you on about? Are you trying to find succor here for your atheistic thoughts? I don’t quite get it.

  48. Beatrice says

    Bluharmony? Is that supposed to mean something?

    A connection to slimepit, I think

  49. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    I hope it’s alright that I ask again, but does anyone here have experience with the Getting Things Done book and apps/websites like Remember the Milk?

    Do they work for hopelessly disorganised people, or is it just woo to soothe the folks who already love lists and know how to run their lives?

  51. Owlmirror says

    I mean even he didn’t believe his answer and made up something called a “Story Telling” genre of history.

    How does “Story Telling” differ from “myth”?

  52. says

    Who the fuck is this Maria Mastiva on Twitter and who rammed a giant bug up their ass?

    Bluharmony, slimepit chill-girl.
    She mostly got into this whole thing over at Greg Laden’s blog (on SB) on his post about dogs and men.
    We-ell, given the blog-owner involved, things went pretty nasty over an extended period of time with Greg being the asshole that he is and her being seriously frightening in the sense that I and several others were seriously concerned for her mental well-being (no, I wasn’t throwing the “mental health ableism” around then and I’m not doing so now. It was like watching a trainwreck in slow motion.) Actually it should be mentioned that even Greg Laden seemed to see that and removed most of the stuff (with actual notifiers) and stopped engaging her.
    The last thing is probably why she hates us so much.

  53. says

    If kittens’ adult teeth are misaligned for their mouths does that mean they’ll grow into them? Or does that mean they’re genetically fucked?

    I ask because my kitten, Tosha (my avatar), is having difficulty keeping his lower canines inside his lips, now that they’ve grown in. It pains me to see him lick his mouth constantly.

  54. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    @Sili I’m about as disorganized as it gets and I’ve used GTD techniques successfully in the past. I’d say it’s worth at least trying out the basics for a week or so. You can find all the info you need online so there’s no need to spend any money on books unless you really like it and want the “advanced” stuff.

  62. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Don’t you just love it when the preview image on a youtube video tells you everything you need to know about it?

    Out of curiosity, how many people have died due to the US love for lack of regualtions and socialised medicine?

  63. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Take good care of Jules and David, Giliell.

    I know we’re sensitive to people’s feelings here, so I won’t suggest you do any *nudge*nudge* *wink*wink*.

  64. petermountain says

    @51 Owlmirror

    How does “Story Telling” differ from “myth”?

    Exactly! This guy seems intelligent. I wonder what’s preventing him from taking the next intellectual step. I mean when you admit something is true in a “story-telling” sort of way then….

  65. Happiestsadist says

    It’s certainly something the degree to which misogynists will go to prove that every single thing we say about them is dead on. I feel terrible for Amy.

    Dark chocolate cherry biscotti in the oven. Mmmmm, my apartment smells GOOD.

  67. chrish says

    Well according to the previous article it should be “Everybody fuck the dinosaur”

  69. cicely says

    If her ear passage doesn’t stop being swollen till Thursday, she says her eardrum will rupture on the flight… again.

    :( :( :(
    A busted eardrum is no fun at all. Meds?

    I’m glad that at least her stomach is better.
    –
    –

    Walk the Dinosaur was a UK hit in 1987. How does this qualify as a new dance craze?

    We’re cultural illiterates over on this side of the pond?

    It was over here, too. It got a lot of play on MTV, back when they did…music.
    –

    I asked around. Surly Amy left early because she was harassed by a few assholes all weekend long.

    MRAs score yet another own goal.
    –
    Have fun, Giliell!
    –

  72. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Walk the Dinosaur was a UK hit in 1987. How does this qualify as a new dance craze?

    Everything old is new again.

    When we watched how fast retro was running through the decades, we all assumed that the trend would skip the 80es.

    But whaddayaknow.

  73. cm's changeable moniker says

    Sili:

    Getting Things Done

    It’s lists. Lots of lists. Some sensible stuff about putting stuff you’re never going to get round to on “lists of stuff I’m not likely to get round to any time soon”, but mostly just lists of stuff to do.

    I did like the 4 Ds: do (if you can), delegate (if you can), defer (if you want to do something, but not now), or delete (stuff hanging around that you’re never going to do).

    —

    Maybe also Google “inbox zero” for Merlin Mann’s take. (He’s fun.)

  74. FossilFishy (Νεοπτόλεμος's spellchecker) says

    Because sometimes I can be such a downer:

    One summer in my teen years my brother disappeared in our back yard. Or his bottom half did at any rate. He’d fallen through the rotting boards that covered an old septic tank that had long since been out of use. I laughed, and was secretly disappointed that the thing was no longer noxious in any profound way. Such is the love of brothers.

    It was known that there was another cistern out there under the lawn somewhere. I was given a spade and told to find it.

    Shwick, shwick, shwick…

    I randomly prodded the ground, listless and disorganised.

    It was beautiful day. The summer sun was broken by the papery leaves of our birch tree. Thousands of deciduous voices whispered in sibilant hisses, lulling in its gusting rise and fall.

    Shwick, shwick, shwick…

    This was getting nowhere fast. We lived in the kind of 50’s built suburb whose large yards and wide lots caused agoraphobia in inner city kids. Our back yard was huge, this was going to take some time.

    I sat under the tree and contemplated my task. Well, eventually I did. There might have been dozing, perhaps even napping. A plan came to me, eventually, in that gradual summer way.

    The septic had a system of gravel filled trenches that drained away from the settling tanks. Over the years they’d subsided causing subtle channels in the turf. The only consequence of which was to make our played-for-blood badminton a bit more challenging than was strictly necessary. But now they could narrow my search.

    Laying down flat and squinting across the lawn the pattern was quite clear. It had to be uphill from that point there, and was most likely a little west of centre.

    Shwick, shwick, shwick…a grid pattern’s best…

    Schwick, shwick, shwick…I should have brought out something to drink…

    Schwick, thump…..thump,thump! Holy crap, it worked!!

    And there I stood, heart racing. Anything could be down there, literally anything! Okay, maybe not a supermassive black hole or a Slaver stasis cube, but the possibilities were goosebumplely awesome. That feeling, that potential rushing up and down my spine chanting “What if, what if, what if!” is something I’ve felt all too rarely ever since.

    “We observe in our data clear signs of a new particle…”

    Thump.

    “…the 5 sigma signal at around 125 GeV we’re seeing is dramatic.”

    Thump.

    “We have reached a milestone in our understanding of nature…”

    Thump.

    We stand atop that hollow space, we now know where it lies to a near perfect certainty. It could be a dead end, full of spider corpses and mouldy dirt, mere confirmation of the known and the knowable. Or it could be full of wonders so beyond our expectations that not even the summer drunk brain of a teenage geek can anticipate what’s hidden beneath.

    We live in an age that step by inexorable step is slaying our ignorance of the universe-as-it-is, and I revel in it with wanton abandon. It charges within me that physical rush of possibility so often lost forever with passing of the lazy summers of youth. It keeps me young, this ecstatic dance of discovery, and if you kids don’t like this middle aged boogie…..here’s a spade, there’s my lawn, drink lots of fluids and the best of luck to you.

  77. says

    The easy way to spot groupthink is when dissenters are ganged up and run out.

    Irony because I am done with skepticism because these people have ‘run me out’

    I fucking hate this movement. I literally hate it so much.

  80. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    I just finished Pratchett’s Wee Free Men. What a delightful romp.

  81. says

    Sili, it wouldn’t be skipped. It’s quite simple really – each generation thinks the one just immediately prior to it is daggy and hopelessly naff beyond words; but the one two steps back is kind of cool.

  82. chiptuneist says

    Kind of behind, haven’t been home much the past few days.

    So, congrats Ing!

    PZ:

    I asked around. Surly Amy left early because she was harassed by a few assholes all weekend long.

    Goddammit. No doubt this is all you and your cohorts’ fault.

    Random prediction (AKA guess): female attendance drops again next year, and none of the blame is accepted by JREF or TAM.

    I like this song more than I can reasonably justify.

  83. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Have I mentioned lately that I love you, Fishy?

  84. says

    Damnnit I’m already pissy cause I had to talk to my father because he won’t answer anyone elses calls.

    Any idiot who gives the “TFBANNED FREEDOM OF SPEECH” bullshit deserves a folding chair to the back of the head.

  85. rowanvt says

    @ Krasnaya Koshka

    Unfortunately, considering your cat is a narrow-headed siamese, it’s likely genetically screwed up. :/

  86. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Hm. Google says that a “Glass Hammer” is actually a hammer you keep in your car to break the window glass in an emergency. Heh.

    My first aid instructor (lovely fat fella) showed us a memento from back when seatbelts were made mandatory: A knife you could attach to the belt, so you always had it at hand to cut yourself free if you got in an accident. Because, of course, seatbelts were gonna get people killed by trapping them in wrecks.

  87. Polistes says

    I wish I had a decent father-in-law. Seems, though, he’s afflicted with NPD and is firmly in the throes of Narcissistic injury. And what doubles down? We’re a same-sex couple. Meh.

  88. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Irony because I am done with skepticism because these people have ‘run me out’

    I fucking hate this movement. I literally hate it so much.

    Vigorously. Fucking. Seconded.

  90. says

    On the issue of not-at-all-extraordinary claims: that’s why the feminist link section of the Pharyngula wiki is growing like a damn weed.

    There’s PLENTY of proof, and a bunch of us are doing our best to demonstrate it. I don’t have hope for arseholes getting it, but there’s bound to be one or two people out there whose minds can be changed by evidence.

    Ya know, like skeptics are supposed to.

  91. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Sili, it wouldn’t be skipped. It’s quite simple really – each generation thinks the one just immediately prior to it is daggy and hopelessly naff beyond words; but the one two steps back is kind of cool.

    But, but, but … hairspray! Mullets! Short shorts! WHAM!!!

  93. says

    Also, because of the glibertarian bullshit which they insist is Constitutional law, I think the links need a section specifically for First Amendment arguments.

  94. Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says

    Because, of course, seatbelts were gonna get people killed by trapping them in wrecks.

    My favorite was the “what if I’m knocked unconscious and the car catches on fire, how can I free myself”. *facepalm just thinking about it*

  95. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    We’re a same-sex couple. Meh.

    Why should you be exempt from the curse of in-laws?

  97. says

    Ing: And that leads to a philosophical discussion, wherein I’m a total intellectual snob.

    The tl;dr version is that some people want dogma and will make it out of *anything*. :(

  99. says

    So this is the new status quo: Every single fucking topic every single fucking day will have TF and Slime Pit blathering on and trying to bait people.

    PZ, you really really fucked that one up good.

  100. ibyea says

    On the skeptic movement: You know what? Forget about it. It is freaking useless. I thought they all wanted to help people using evidenced based approach. Instead, a lot of them are a group of self absorbed wankers telling each other how smart they are.

  101. paul1 says

    I grow more and more convinced that Skepticism is just another bundle of beliefs and dogmas that is taking on a quasi religious tone ala Objectivism

    The really sad part is that Skepticism lately feels like the “Strawman Atheist” that my church used to always talk about (although they just called them Atheist). The claim was that they were that way just because they didn’t want God telling them how they should behave, or what they should do. So much skepticism nowadays just seems to be based on “don’t tell me what to do, the Constitution says I have the right to do what I’m doing. Also, the Supreme Court should rule that the Constitution reads the way I read it.”

  103. Nutmeg says

    Krasnaya:

    Nutmeg, I hope things are going well on the home front. My mother read my diary when I was 16 and from then on every adult who met me knew “what” I was so I feel for you. Doing it on your own is something I don’t claim to know.

    Ouch, I would have hated that. I had no clue that I liked girls until university, but no 16-year-old wants their diary to be read. I’m glad you made it through that experience.

    Things are fine, thanks for asking. I don’t feel like bringing it up right now, because I want it to be an upbeat, low-drama announcement and I’m not sure how to create a moment like that. My brother had severe depression requiring several hospitalizations while he was coming out to himself and my parents. I want to make sure that my folks understand that it’s not like that for me: I’m okay, I’m glad that I like girls, my friends don’t care, and it shouldn’t have a negative effect on my career. I may just wait until the next time they start talking about me meeting a nice boy, and then casually let them know that it’s a lot more likely that I’ll meet a nice girl.

    Giliell: Have fun on vacation!

    FossilFishy: I’m really enjoying your writing. If you have a blog, I’d love to know about it. Otherwise I will continue to appreciate your comments.

  104. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Dear person, thank you for helping out with the feminist links roundup! Unfortunately you weren’t signed in, so your IP was showing. I hid your edits, but the article should be as you left it. It would be awesome if you’d doublecheck that. Wikia signs me out unexpectedly from time to time also.

  105. says

    Paul1: Oh yeah. We all know the Constitution and over two hundred years of trends in interpretation and law are WAY less important than the opinion of random wanker.

    They definitely know better than all those scholars.

  109. says

    @Ibyea

    “Why would anyone follow some guy named Jesus or believe every word of a Holy Text as they misinterpet it and not even accept the idea that some ideas can be wro-ZOMG FOUNDFATHERS CONSTITUTIONS BALHALGHLAKGHALHGLAHL!!!!!”

    Skepticism has generated a wonderful new way to be an idiot.

  110. ibyea says

    @Ing
    People forget that slaves being 3/5 of a person was in the Constitution of the US to begin with.

  111. paul1 says

    We all know the Constitution and over two hundred years of trends in interpretation and law are WAY less important than the opinion of random wanker.

    They definitely know better than all those scholars.

    I’m actually strongly against considering the Constitution as some paramount ideal that we should try to conform to, instead of a living document that should be updated to match more modern ethics when appropriate. It disturbs me when people deify a couple dozen 18th century landowners, or various groups of 9 political appointees over the years. Even with two hundred years of improvements though interpretation and law, it could use some work. Not that I’m particularly arguing with what you said, just something I wanted to note since you mentioned “Constitution” vs. “random modern wanker”. Sometimes the wanker is right, but the problem with the ones in question is they argue based on “what is good for them”. Not a good basis for governing documents for a society as a whole.

    Oh, to avoid appearance of nym-shifting (not that anyone would really remember, but whatever), I posted on sciblogs as “Paul”. Had to add the 1 since it was taken and I didn’t feel like thinking of a new name to post under.

  115. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Hahaha nope, I certainly don’t see any threads about PZ getting email. Nope.
    —
    Work got better in some ways and worse in others. For instance, I took breaks today, some of which were just dogdog snuggle breaks. I even stopped and ate a snack when I realized I was sick from hunger. But I also stayed two hours past close, cut my hand open, and felt super guilty and may get yelled at tomorrow for something that I am well aware was completely not my fault.

  116. says

    Sigh…anyone know how the UUs are? are they giant dicks too?

    I swear you feminists have freaking ruined me. no sub culture wants me anymore now that you’ve spoiled me with your radfem ideas

  118. says

    Paul: Oh, I’m not saying to deify the Constitution, and I’m aware of the history and interpretation of the document. I mean merely that even if they wish to be in line with Constitutional scholarship, they’re wrong.

    I rather like some of the more recent opinions on how those things are to be interpreted. Not all of it, mind, but some of it.

    tigtog: I’ll look, but my entries are the ones which link to academic papers, as well as the statistics tutorials at the bottom of the page. I could be giving more thorough summaries, but I figure I’m doing free research and I don’t need to do a full literature review.

  119. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Ing:

    My parents are very happy in a UU church up in Maine. Much more discussion of making the world a better place and expanding human rights than god, sin, and the GOP.

  121. says

    My parents are very happy in a UU church up in Maine. Much more discussion of making the world a better place and expanding human rights than god, sin, and the GOP.

    If it favors humanism over objectivism it may be better than skepticism.

  122. Polistes says

    Why should you be exempt from the curse of in-laws?

    I didn’t say I shouldn’t be exempt. I’m just annoyed that this is where we are, given all the other and extra crap same-sex couples and people face. That’s all.

  125. Part-Time Insomniac, Zombie Porcupine Nox Arcana Fan says

    I’d send some rain your way Ing, but we need it where I am. Here’s hoping a storm works its way over to where you and spouse live and cools down the place.

  126. Beatrice says

    Spouse and I are now mostly nude shouting at the sky to rain.

    Actually, that sounds fun. Unless you are outside and/or in the view of the neighbors. They might have something else to say.

  127. says

    tigtog: Hmmm. Let me try again. My foot appeared to have wandered into my mouth.

    What changes would you recommend?

  128. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    ING: don’t many robots use laser sensors for their ‘vision’? Isn’t that the same sort of idea?

    Some sort of light-radar?

    Glowing eyes, or glowing eyespots with ‘real’ eyes just above or below? Or maybe one big cycloptic glowing ‘eyespot’? I think that could make for some dramatic imagery.

    *loves creature and monster design*

  130. Happiestsadist says

    Ing: I hope you get rain.

    I feel irrationally guilty because I somehow burned part of dinner (WTF, I did everything the way I usually do!).And the pain is starting up. But! I have a purring kitteh on my lap, amazing biscotti when I want some, and I’m visiting home next week!

    HappiestDadist is having surgery in two days to have his thyroid out. Gah, after the radical neck dissection, the last thing he wants is more cutting into his neck. But I’ll be able to visit and bring baked goods and generally distract him. We were talking the other day and he told me he found one upside to his vocal damage. “I AM THE BATMAN!”, he said in the perfect Bale-Bats voice.

    Now hopefully, I won’t be harassed about my reproductive status by a stranger in the airport waiting area like last time.

  131. Part-Time Insomniac, Zombie Porcupine Nox Arcana Fan says

    Happiestsadist – Good luck you to your dad. Also, DAFUQ? to “harassed about my reproductive status by a stranger in the airport waiting area like last time.” Some people really are just rude fuckwits.

  132. ibyea says

    @Happiestsadist
    I always wondered how Christian Bale did his Bat voice thing. Did post production modify it, or did he really do it?

  136. Happiestsadist says

    Ibyea: I assume it wasn’t by having all the lymph nodes and some muscle cut out of his neck.

    Part-Time Insomniac: Thanks, I think he’ll be feeling much better afterward. For some reason, nobody noticed his thyroid had been dead for years before the cancer.

    As for the stranger, it was so WTF. I don’t mind making small talk while passing time, but this dude was SO INSISTENT about how unfulfilled my life would be if I didn’t have kids, and how I’d make a great mother, blah blah. Even after I told him my tubes were tied.

  137. says

    mouthyb, not recommending any changes in particular to what you’ve already done, just generally a fan of not reinventing wheels where that applies, which it may well not in this case. I just find that the GF Wiki tends to be very clearly organised, which is a good thing to emulate where possible.

  138. chiptuneist says

    Ing:

    It’s overly post produced IIRC in DK

    That’s actually pretty surprising, it didn’t sound like anything other than bad ‘vocal fry’ technique to my ears…

  139. Owlmirror says

    Oh, to avoid appearance of nym-shifting (not that anyone would really remember, but whatever), I posted on sciblogs as “Paul”. Had to add the 1 since it was taken and I didn’t feel like thinking of a new name to post under.

    Dunno if you care, but the name you post with does not need to be the same as the name you log in with.

    Click on your name; click on “Profile”; scroll down and change your Nickname from “paul1” to “Paul”, then scroll down some more and click “Update Profile”.

    Or not.

  140. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    tigtog, it looks like theirs is organized as a timeline – since the feminist links roundup is more a set of resources not tied to particular incidents, I think the format wouldn’t work as well for us. But it would work if we created a separate page for the atheist movement controversies, as I’m considering us doing. Someone (I don’t recall who) did a timeline recently that we could just link to. I dunno.

  141. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    as I’m considering us doing
    *sigh*
    Please forgive me for being very, very obnoxious.

  142. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Hey, statistics tutorials! Thanks, mouthyb!

    Where?! Where?!

  143. says

    Cipher: Thank you. I was fishing for appreciation, which I should probably leave alone, but I appear to be eager to sit at the adults’ table.

    tigtog: The timeline on the entry you linked to is incredibly well organized. I may add an entry later, if that’s all right. I think it was the president of Harvard or Yale that addressed the graduating class for engineering by telling them women were just deficient in the ability to do math and science, so retention was pointless. I want to say it happened in 2009.

  145. Azkyroth, Former Growing Toaster Oven says

    So, I just discovered something startling.

    Steel cut oatmeal mixed with lowfat cottage cheese in about a 1.5:1 proportion is actually surprisingly good. O.O

  147. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    I LINKED TO IT! IT WORKED!
    *giant hugs to mouthyb* I appreciate your awesome help, to the amount of a million and five appreciations.
    So there.

  148. Paul says

    Thanks, Owlmirror. My crush on your intellectual and practical range continues unabated.

  150. Part-Time Insomniac, Zombie Porcupine Nox Arcana Fan says

    Ing: Was that a “DAMN YOU DO IT!” type “RAIN!!!!” or the celebratory type?

  152. ChasCPeterson says

    I fucking hate this movement [“skepticism”]. I literally hate it so much.

    Is there a ‘movement’?
    What’s the Movement?

    Bloggers?
    Organizations?
    Conventions?

    I’m extremely cynical–you might say ‘skeptical’–about Movements.

  156. chigau (女性) says

    Fuck rain.
    It can stop now as far as my garden and basement are concerned.
    [/self-centerdness]

  157. says

    chigau: We’ll totally take your rain over here in the US Southwest, where it’s 91 degrees at 8:40 in the evening.

  159. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    And here I thought TET was just quiet today. I forgot that when PZ creates a new thread, I have to click “notify me of followup comments…”
    I’ve been at work since 10 am and when it was slow, I would check my email, and only saw one or two new posts *from the last thread*…

    ~~

    Ing:

    Bluharmony? Is that supposed to mean something?

    Probably unrelated, but seeing the word ‘harmony’ brings to mind eHarmony, that online dating site which is such a *strong* supporter of same sex marriage (if this sentence could bleed sarcasm, it would be as dead as Zombie Jesus).

    The company, which did not admit wrongdoing, agreed to allow access to both its gay and straight dating sites with a single subscription, to display its gay dating services more prominently and to establish a settlement fund to pay people who can show they were harmed by the company’s policies.
    eHarmony Sucks

    Emphasis mine.
    So they don’t believe in same sex relationships, but when threatened with a lawsuit, they cave, but not because they did anything wrong. Screw them.

    ~~

    FossilFishy:

    And there I stood, heart racing. Anything could be down there, literally anything! Okay, maybe not a supermassive black hole or a Slaver stasis cube, but the possibilities were goosebumplely awesome.

    I hope you were careful. You could have run into Pennywise or Rick Santorum…

  163. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Ing:

    Spouse and I are now mostly nude shouting at the sky to rain.

    I think the heat has caused us to regress O-o

    Rick Perry tells me that praying for rain works…
    Or maybe there’s a way a local dowswer could help (I know their specialty is searching for water in the ground using their incredible power of guesswork water finding [related to water bending, just not as cool], but maybe they could be of assistance)

  164. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Starstuff:

    I can haz misogynistic troll?

    Bring a toothpick. These trolls get caught in newly sharpened fangs.

  165. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    David:
    Thank you for the assistance with href. I finally got it to work.
    Thanks also for the hint about xkcd :)

  167. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    P.S. Bluharmony was the asshole who threw a temper tantrum over having a wiki entry. It was removed and she continued to spout misinformation about why. I believe she still continues, despite the fact that I have repeatedly confronted her about it.

  169. Nutmeg says

    I’m thinking of heading out to my city’s Fringe Theatre Festival that’s going on for the next couple of weekends. I’ve never been to one of these before. Are there any Horde members who go to similar events? Tips on choosing good shows?

  170. carlie says

    She was the one who was a lawyer and said she was going to sue everybody for libel.

  171. Happiestsadist says

    Wordplague in the Excellent Plan thread is really reminding me that I can’t wait for summer to be over so I can grow back my pit hair. It’s too fucking hot for fluff as it is, and I miss having cute fuzz that pissed off cupcakes just by existing. It was such a magnificent douchebag detector.

  173. chigau (女性) says

    Nutmeg
    Fringing
    Go hang-out around the venues (or the beer tent).
    Listen.
    Read the local normal-press and compare the reviews to the local art-press.
    Did I mention the beer-tent?

  174. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    I’m very frustrated because I can’t find my favorite performance of No Good Deed by Eden Espinosa :( I found a short clip that sounds like it might be from it but I’m not sure.
    Well! I’m off to work on my reading about epitaphs.
    I have to open tomorrow. Hopefully I fall asleep soon.
    Sigh.

  175. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    SpokesGay Sleepover was great fun. SallyStrange and Ms. Daisy were here, along with my friend L. We watched a Bette Davis potboiler and John Waters’ “Female Trouble.” Good fuckin’ times.

    The menu (all homemade except the mac salad):

    -Hummus bi tahina

    -Guacamole

    -Pico de gallo

    -Fresh spring rolls (rice paper, marinated-grilled tofu, cabbage, carrot, spring onion and hot peanut/sesame sauce)

    -Crab rangoon (cream cheese, crab, Old Bay spice, spring onion, deep fried in Won Ton pastry)

    -Macaroni salad

    -All the booze

  176. DLC says

    Okay, so I should not read Huffington Post.
    And, reading Huff-Po, I should stay away from the Religion section. However, I saw this headline and just had to share it, due to the massive irony.

    “Man killed in witch hunt may be Africa’s first Saint. ”
    was how the link I followed read.
    within is a sad tale of a fellow who was a good bloke, a primary school teacher and practicing catholic. (okay, so he had a bit of delusion, but many people do) There came a time when several homes in his village were struck by lightning, and the village elders wanted to hire a Witch-Finder. The man disagreed, and was later found murdered. Apparently he was the victim of a lynch mob. So, one group of Fantasy Believers kills a man and another group of fantasists wants to make a saint of him.
    The story links fro Huffington Posts’ religion page, here http://www.huffingtonpost.com/religion/

  178. ImaginesABeach says

    I don’t even know what to think about this:
    http://www.twincities.com/localnews/ci_21081719/madison-lake-bikini-parade-marchers-raise-eyebrows

    A small town in Minnesota is getting worked up because a woman wants to have an entry in the local parade – several hundred women in bikinis.

    Normally, I would fully support her. However, she is doing it to raise money for a charity that promotes vitamin D for breast cancer prevention.

    I’m sure it’s just a coincidence that she owns tanning salons.

  179. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    HappiestSadist-it was! Git yo ass down her to lower Canadiastan Vermont and we’ll do it again.

    Ask Ms. Daisy about how she put her foot through my unintentionally booby-trapped register grating all the way through the dining room ceiling.

  181. says

    Cipher, the speech at Harvard was in 2005 (Larry Summers).

    I really like the way the links are set up in the Pharyngula Wiki round-up, and plan to add it to the links at FF101. You, mouthyb and all the other wiki contributors have created a valuable resource.

    I just figured that it sounded like a timeline was in the plan, so being made aware of another thematically=related timeline seemed like a good idea.

  182. says

    Spouse and I are now mostly nude shouting at the sky to rain.

    Oh. Is the mostly-nudity supposed to help? I’ll try pretty much anything, about now.

  183. says

    I am so jealous of the SpokesGay sleepover. But the odds of me making it to the US in the next 5 years are very low. :( Would you share your Pico de gallo recipe? Decent Mexican food is basically non-existent in Canberra.

  185. Wowbagger, Deputy Vice-President (Silencing) says

    Cipher wrote:

    I’m very frustrated because I can’t find my favorite performance of No Good Deed by Eden Espinosa.

    Huh. Did I mention I got to see her perform live (that song included) a few weeks back? Show needed a bit of tightening up – apparently that happened, according to friends who saw it after me – but she’s got a wondeful voice, and told some funny stories.

  187. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    Alethea-the Mexican here in Vermont is HORRIBLE too. I’ve had to learn to make my own. Luckily my BFF from college is Mexican and his mom shares her recipes. Here are two.

    Pico de gallo (basically two parts tomato to one part red onion)

    Tomatoes
    Red onion (only red onion; no other kind)
    Salt
    Lime juice
    Chopped cilantro

    That’s it. Dice the tomatoes and onion as fine as you can get them, discarding excess seed and wet tomato pulp. Add as much cilantro as you like, and enough lime juice to make a sharp taste on the tongue. Salt and refrigerate for at least two hours, stirring occasionally.

    Enchilada sauce (sorry I don’t have the metric measurements at hand):

    4 tbsp. all-purpose flour
    1/3 cup vegetable oil
    3tbsp (at least) chili powder
    4 cups hot water
    1 beef bullion cube or its liquid equivalent
    3 cloves garlic crushed
    1 6-oz can tomate paste, not sauce

    Get a large-bottomed skillet out and heat it dry. Yes, dry. No oil. Toast the flour, tossing and scraping with wooden spoon, until a deep golden brown. Expect some smoking.

    Add chili powder, mix. Add veg. oil and mix until smooth. Add hot water a little at a time, beating/mixing with spoon to keep it smooth and not lumpy. Add bullion, garlic, and tomato paste. Simmer covered, stirring occasionally, for at least 15 minutes. Taste as you go along and adjust seasoning to your liking.

    Then use for anything–beef, bean, cheese enchiladas.

  188. Part-Time Insomniac, Zombie Porcupine Nox Arcana Fan says

    I am up late cramming for my vaccines course. Quiz has to be submitted before 8:00 am. Curse my forgetfulness when I have lazy days!

  189. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    This actually gives me optimism. It’s a tweet from a guy who spent the last few days mocking the lack of a sexual harassment policy at TAM. He tweeted things like:

    @jref Fails to deliver policy on passing gas in elevators. Eyes are watering. ‪#TAM2012‬ ‪#obviousthingsareobvious‬

    He seems to have woken up (time will tell) perhaps due to Pamela Gay’s talk. He’s now tweeting (to Elyse Anders of Skepchick):

    @dELYSEious I’ve been in a bubble, and haven’t been actually seeing it. Or possibly doing it unconsciously myself. TAM has been eye opening.

    @jwpeddle @dELYSEious I thought the policy was unnecessary and redundant. Now I’m not sure.

    I made some pretty stupid tweets about the harassment policy, and apologize to @jref and @SurlyAmy for them. Dumb boys CAN learn. ‪#Tam2012‬

    Hats off to everyone who’s put up with the bullshit and abuse and refused to shut up. Apparently (I hope) it can pay off.

  190. rowanvt says

    My sister-in-law and I have a new foster kitten. He’s hilariously feisty/feral. I was offering him food on my finger tip and he was hissing and spitting until I got my finger almost in his mouth, and then he eagerly licked all the food… and hissed again as I pulled my finger away to get him more food. After about 5 times, he stopped hissing at my approach and was simply eager for noms.

    His name is Captain Jack. He has severe entropion of both lids of his left eye, which may be microphthalmic. We’re gonna get him looked at tomorrow and get an official diagnosis as well as tested for FeLV/FIV.

  191. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    AAARRGH. Borkquote. It should have read:

    I made some pretty stupid tweets about the harassment policy, and apologize to @jref and @SurlyAmy for them. Dumb boys CAN learn. ‪#Tam2012‬

    Hats off to everyone who’s put up with the bullshit and abuse and refused to shut up. Apparently (I hope) it can pay off.

  193. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    Ing. . .I’m sorry, could you clarify? I don’t know what you mean to say.

  195. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    @Ing- yes, you’re right. I’m taking my small comfort where I can find it. Perfectly aware that I’m being Rebecca of Sunnybrook Farm about it, don’t worry.

  198. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    I’m bitter too Ing. No apology necessary. I rain on everyone’s goddamn parade all the time.

  199. Wowbagger, Deputy Vice-President (Silencing) says

    I predict the scumbags – who must be aware they’re on the losing side by now – will take this as an ‘out’. They’ll still hate on FTB, but they’ll be less obstructive to changing con policy.

  202. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    Wowbagger—Actually, they’ll claim responsibility for implementing the policies and retroactively throw shade on the rest of us.

  203. Paul says

    Some assholes apparently wouldn’t leave her alone

    But they wouldn’t have harassed women if the idea hadn’t been planted in their heads by all this policy discussion! They’re probably false flag agents just trying to prove the point that a harassment policy is needed, so that the people that spoke up for a harassment policy can score brownie points hoping to get laid.

  204. Vilém Saptar says

    Hello!

    I’m still catching up, since I stayed out for over a day.

    Till now,

    Congratulations Ing. Here, have a smiley , :)

    Welcome back to David Marjanović! (Who’s Jules , if its ok to ask?)

    Commiserations to Ogvorbis.

    Audley, congrats on the auntying :)

    Giliell, have a great vacation!

    Josh, that must’ve been fun. Also, theophontes tells me you run a slush fund and I could contribute. If its ok with all you people, I’d like to, but it won’t be much. So tell me what to do.

    beatrice, I forgot to mention you in my comment about troll, so thanks to you too.

    Jadzia626, sorry to hear. Commiserations.

    kristinc, thats awful. Hope things get better for you soon.

    carlie awesome roundup of events during DDMFM’s abscence.

     

    If I missed out offering commiserations or congratulations to anyone, sorry and you have my commiserations or congratulations.

  205. Josh, Official SpokesGay says

    Josh, that must’ve been fun. Also, theophontes tells me you run a slush fund and I could contribute. If its ok with all you people, I’d like to, but it won’t be much. So tell me what to do.

    Theophontes is darling, but he is wrong. Just because I’ve got a couple hundred Chinese Yuan hanging out in my odds-and-ends jar in the kitchen (ahem:) doesn’t mean I’m running a Fund of Ill Repute.

    Here’s how it works:

    1. When a horde member is in financial distress, we take note.

    2. Many people voluntarily contribute.

    3. I voluntarily accept the money and administer it through my bank account, doing deposits and wiring money to the recipient.

    Here’s how it doesn’t work:

    1. I do not want to be sitting on a fund of donated cash.

    2. I do not want to use my bank account to hold donations until some indeterminate point in the future where they’ll be dispensed.

    3. I do not need the headache or potential tax consequences.

    All that said–the Horde generosity is marvelous and I’m delighted to facilitate it. But please restrict your charitable impulses to the immediate call for help; I can’t take money and just plop it in my account for the future.

    Thanks for understanding.

  208. Wowbagger, Deputy Vice-President (Silencing) says

    Josh wrote:

    Wowbagger—Actually, they’ll claim responsibility for implementing the policies and retroactively throw shade on the rest of us.

    Well, they’ve already stolen false persecution (amongst other things) from the Christian playbook; why not hgo back there for more ideas?

    On the plus side, it should cause a rift between those who are just opposing it because it’s what PZ, OB, RW etc. want and the real dudebros who hate the idea of being cockblocked.

  209. Vilém Saptar says

    Josh,
    Understood. Is there any such call right now?

    But I’ll keep this in mind and help out whenever I can.

  210. says

    On the plus side, it should cause a rift between those who are just opposing it because it’s what PZ, OB, RW etc. want and the real dudebros who hate the idea of being cockblocked.

    Observe the Dudebro in its natural habitat: the hotel bar at a conference without an anti-harassment policy. But this could soon become a rare site if the careless feminists have their way.

  212. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Oh if only the fight for same sex marriage were THIS easy.
    (found this site through xkvd, and I think I like it even more)

  213. Vilém Saptar says

    Alethea,
    Thanks for asking! So sweet of you :)
    Yes, I would’ve had to save if I went that way. But, I thought about it at some length and I can’t help but feel I’m obligated to my parents, so I’ve sort of given up on the conventional academic dream :/
     
    I’ll try to read and learn on my own and guess I’d have to make do with that.

  218. birgerjohansson says

    I am reading the latest Stephen King, the onewhere the protagonist goes back in time to save JFK.
    The story is an interesting comment on how much things have changed. Not only for black or gay people, but in the attitudes to women as well.
    — — — —
    Factoid: Not even the driving licenses had photo ID back in 1958, but somehow USA failed to be overrun by terrorists. Hmm… remind certain people about how the 50s had less surveillance next time they say the 1950s were so great. Watch cognitive dissonance set in.

  219. ChasCPeterson says

    Chas, for you.

    No thanks.
    (Do you see “skepticism” as having anything to do with the social-justice movements discussed in all those footnotes that article? Anything at all?)

    I think it was the president of Harvard or Yale that addressed the graduating class for engineering by telling them women were just deficient in the ability to do math and science, so retention was pointless. I want to say it happened in 2009.

    wow. Fascinating how that one’s evolving. It’s like a game of strawman-telephone.

  222. says

    Good morning Horde!

    I spent a (mostly) wonderful weekend with my parents. We were going to go into the city, but the Yellow Line was being repaired so no go. Instead we stayed at home, played board games, went out to eat FUCKING AMAZING Tapas, and then drove to IKEA to pick me up some furniture.

    The one issue was when we got into political talk – I’m the sole liberal in a family of conservatives. I’m progressive, they’re libertarian. It’s hard to talk to them and see my long-held ideas about my family being super compassionate and having that ground into the dirt because they espouse ideas which are summed up as “screw you I’ve got mine.”

    But I quickly deviated from that topic of conversation and got us off of it as soon as I could. My mother said pretty much “I don’t want to change your mind, I just want you to be informed” which is… a win(?)

    Anyway, that was my weekend, which brings me to another point. Stealing something from oniongirl here:

    Attention DC Horde:

    Game night. Good idea?

    I have a ton of board games, fun ones like Settlers of Catan and Ticket to Ride. I want to play with people who aren’t my family once every month or two. Would it be a good idea to make a kind of game night for the horde in the DC area? We could play a game, watch a movie, have delicious foods.

    Thoughts?

  223. Pteryxx says

    ooh, congratz on a great day Katherine, and I didn’t know you were a boardgamer! I’m not in DC but I’d be all OVER a game night if I were. (And there’s always Brettspielwelt… *hinthint*)

  224. carpenterman says

    “Walk the Dinosaur”?
    I was doing that in 1988!
    You are sooooo late to the party.

  227. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Wordplague in the Excellent Plan thread is really reminding me that I can’t wait for summer to be over so I can grow back my pit hair. It’s too fucking hot for fluff as it is, and I miss having cute fuzz that pissed off cupcakes just by existing. It was such a magnificent douchebag detector.

    Does it help that I shave it all year round now?

  228. Louis says

    Happiestsadist, #171,

    I hope I am not a douchebag or a cupcake, but I’m personally not a fan of pit hair on women (as in it’s not a look that in general appeals to me personally, although, on the right woman….RAWR…I’m not a pit-hair fascist!). Sure it’s partly my conditioning/socialisation and DEFINITELY not my fucking business if anyone wants to have pit hair.

    So from a relatively abashed partial-pit-hair-phobe, grow it out, sister, with my entirely unnecessary blessing! Your personal choices are, erm, well, YOURS and that’s that. I may have to ask the Mrs to rethink her clean shaven policy if the stuff is, as you say, so effective a douchebag detector. Just think of the fun that can be had…

    …I mean the plaiting possibilities alone…

    …too far? ;-)

    Louis

  229. birgerjohansson says

    Hmm. I have found possibly the only appropriate context for rape jokes: This very “creative” version of Genesis:
    http://www.fakebible.com/genesis-19.html
    — — — — — — — —
    Gen19:1 This is the story of Sodom. It’s like Krypton, but with more anal. And it proves gays are evil, assuming they’re also raving sex maniacs.

    Gen19:1 That evening, Lot was sitting in the center of the city when in walked God’s angels– his luscious, sensuous, six-pack-abs angels.

    Gen19:2 Lot: “Lords, my home is a rape-free zone, I mean, a great place for footsore travelers to get their feet washed. Consensually.”

    Gen19:2-3 The coy angels at first said they’d sleep outside, but Lot knew they couldn’t resist his yeast-free, hypoallergenic bread.

    Gen19:4 But after dinner, everyone in Sodom, even the GIRLS and WOMEN in some translations, formed a rape mob around Lot’s house.

    Gen19:5 Mob, to Lot: “BRING OUT THOSE GLOWY CUM-DRIZZLING MAN-SLUTS SO WE CAN ASSRAPE ASSRAPE ASSRAPE LOL”

    Gen19:6-7 Lot emerged, locking the door behind him. “Friends, these ‘sex-crazed mob Saturdays’ really hurt tourism.”

    Gen19:8 “Leave my guests alone. Look, I’ve got two virgin daughters. They’re hot and kind of slutty. Rape THEM instead.”

    Gen19:9 Mob: “You judgmental foreigner! Just to punish you, we have to TOP what we’re doing to these guys! I call dibs on his eyesockets!”

    Gen19:10-11 The angels opened the door, yanked Lot back, and blinded the mob. Mobs become harmless if you add the element of blind panic.

  230. dianne says

    Here’s a probable TMI re armpit hair and body hair in general: I don’t shave mine for the most unfeminist of reasons: My boyfriend doesn’t like the stubble shaving leaves behind. Yep, I’m a hairy legged feminist because my boyfriend tells me to be. The fact that it scares off the cupcakes is a bonus.

  232. Louis says

    Also:

    Hello all.

    1) I am generally multiply ‘rupt. Chucked a few bons mots the way of a few threads though. Eminently mockable idiot on Excellent Plan Thread is eminently mockable.

    2) Grog for all who want and need it.

    3) Dianne, I forgot to mention that I was sorry to read about your sick friend, I will raise extra grog for you. Possibly also a pasty.

    4) Caine, DOUBLE RATLETS? ZOMG! Have extra USB Rat Sitters, double grog, a pasty and sympathy.

    Hmmm My 3) and 4) implies I think DOUBLE RATLETS are worse than a friend with cancer…this is not true. Whilst I am genuinely sympathetic to Caine’s plight, I am genuinely VERY sympathetic to Dianne’s and her friend’s plight. Erm I didn’t mean to confuse the issue by implying a linear relationship between USB grog/pasties/sympathy and actual Real World™ sympathy.

    5) I will have missed things, people, summaries, things of people, people of things, summaries of things and people and sundry matters. I am truly sorry where this is the case and I humbly refer the honourable reader to my generic 2). Grog is available in non-alcoholic versions for those inclined. Although I cannot claim a slight eyebrow of disapproval will be raised.

    6) Speaking of which, this year’s often aborted and kept more in the breaking than in the observance Health Kick™ involving No Booze™, Healthy Eating™, and More Exercise™* has started today. I need the full psychic powers of the Horde to channel through the USB ports in order that I can gain some Willpower in the face of Bacon, Hot Sauce, Beer, Rum and Convenience (my current arch-nemeses).

    I can haz supahpowahz? Pl0x?

    Louis

  233. says

    I don’t like having body hair. So I remove it all. I have to admit I really like newly shaven legs. So there’s that. Very un-feminist of me >.<

  234. Louis says

    * from #232: Apparently masturbation doesn’t count. I call “unfair”. Some of you might call “foul” and I would reply “only if done right”.

  235. dianne says

    Morning minor issue that’s being blown out of proportion in my mind: The paper I wanted to submit this morning has a boring title. It was supposed to be kind of a placeholder until I thought of something interesting, but I failed to actually think of something interesting. Gah!

  237. dianne says

    I need the full psychic powers of the Horde to channel through the USB ports in order that I can gain some Willpower in the face of Bacon, Hot Sauce, Beer, Rum and Convenience (my current arch-nemeses).

    Willpower being sent through the USB port. But really you’re not going to succeed unless you can find some way to make it fun. Consider what healthy food you find yummy and what exercise you find fun. Also hot sauce is not bad for you unless you have an ulcer that is provoked by it or put it over something that is bad for you.

  239. dianne says

    Esteleth: Thanks! I actually came up with something at least vaguely better after posting the bit of panic here…The problem is I don’t do succinct well.

  240. Louis says

    Dianne,

    Hot Sauce itself is good, but as you have accurately nailed, it’s what it accompanies that is Teh Bad™.

    I mildly exaggerate my need for Health Kick for Comedy Purposes, and the willpower isn’t too bad, I was merely enjoying a First World Problem! ;-)

    I mean putting on a few pounds is one thing, but really, I shouldn’t have my own moons. I stood in a shaft of sunlight the other day and the angle allowed me to see rings orbiting my midriff. I’m not saying I’ve waited a little too long, but some of those moons had satellites in cleverly arranged orbits. It’s not good when your moons have evolved civilisations with GPS.*

    Louis

    * Actual lardiness may be grossly exaggerated for comedy benefit. Just like personal body hair for some, I dislike personal lardiness. Other people’s lardiness is not anything I care about, but my own annoys the piss out of me!

  242. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    carlie:

    I will take ALL THE CILANTRO THANK YOU.

    nom nom nom

    Share you will, please? :)

  243. dianne says

    Esteleth: Population level survival in patients with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. One thing that’s exciting is that the survival in young patients is about 98%, getting close to the point where it will be impossible to see further improvements because it’s so high to start with. (For comparison, the survival for patients with community acquired pneumonia is around 95%.) In the US, it’s lower, around 93%. The data isn’t there to definitively prove a reason for the difference, but chemotherapy is different in each country as is the health insurance system. It’s quite interesting data, IMHO, but hard to put all that in a title.

  244. cicely says

    Vilém, I also don’t have much to contribute to Pharyngulites in distress…at any given time. I’m finding it useful to drop the odd dollar or change into a can, wait until a need arises, bag it up and bank it, then send a check to our awesome, hard-working SpokesGay.
    –
    *gives carlie ALL THE CILANTRO*
    Enjoy!
    –

  245. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Katherine:
    Glad you had a good weekend with the fam. Do your parents understand any of your criticisms of libertarianism? Or does everything fly over their heads?
    Board game night sounds like a blast, but I don’t think the Florida Panhandle is in the DC area…

  246. Richard Austin says

    Guilty confession: I have “Walk the Dinosaur” on my iPod. Along with “Walk Like en Egyptian” and even “Love Shack”.

    Of course, I’ve also got Kermit singing “Rainbow Connection”, Holst’s “The Planets” (Royal Philharmonic), and “Doll Dagga Buzz Buzz Ziggety Zag” by Marylin Manson.

    Yes, putting it on “shuffle” tends to be a bit interesting.

  247. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Hmm. I’m not sure what a good snappy title for that would be, dianne.

    But the paper sounds interesting!

  248. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Jadzia:

    So I remove it all. I have to admit I really like newly shaven legs

    The feel of newly shaven legs is amazing. Especially when you have fresh outta the dryer linens. Amaaaaaaaaaazing.
    Yeah, I shaved my legs exactly twice. Just wanted to see how long it would take the first time, and the second time I think I was drunk. Setting aside my lack of understanding why women shave their legs in the first place, this took way too long (I shave my head in a quarter of the time), and it’s kinda awkward in the shower trying to get certain spots.

  249. says

    @Katherine

    Aww. Well, I’m not that hairy. I’ve often been asked if I shave my legs. I just like the feeling :)

    I’ve always been relatively androgynous anyway.

    Facial hair, ugh. Yeah. Not much left after 4 laser sessions – or is it 5? I forget. Fucking expensive though.

  250. Louis says

    Tony,

    …and it’s kinda awkward in the shower trying to get certain spots.

    {Insert compulsory story about incredibly inappropriate things I have done in my Rugby Playing Past here}

    Louis

  251. Ariaflame, BSc, BF, PhD says

    I love board games. But I am not near… :( Hey, anyone else got an account at daysofwonder.com? With the online version of Ticket to ride the cities light up so you don’t mix up Palermo and Pamplona.

    Wonder if the plaguer is the j5/shotsomething who got banned under one IP earlier.

    Frankly if anything he’s saying is true I’m astounded he still has a supervisor.

  252. says

    @Tony

    Yeah, I shaved my legs exactly twice. Just wanted to see how long it would take the first time, and the second time I think I was drunk. Setting aside my lack of understanding why women shave their legs in the first place, this took way too long (I shave my head in a quarter of the time), and it’s kinda awkward in the shower trying to get certain spots.

    It doesn’t take me long at all. A minute perhaps? When the hairs are short, you just need to drag the razor over once or twice. Maybe the 5-blade lady-shaver is a bit different. It covers a larger area. Maybe it’s different with dark/thick hairs too.

  254. says

    @Tony:

    The Florida Panhandle could be in the DC area! All you gotta do is scrunch up the corner of the map. Of course that’d do things like get rid of most of the southern states down there. But I doubt anyone would miss the Carolinas or Georgia.

    @Jadzia:

    Unfortunately for me, I’m a male-bodied transwoman, so yea, hairy :(

    @Aria:

    I have an account there, but I also bought TTR on Steam.

  255. carlie says

    *gives carlie ALL THE CILANTRO*

    Thanks! Happy to share with Tony and anyone else wanting some.

  256. dianne says

    Oops. Five year survival. The database isn’t old enough to get longer survival estimates. And in answer to the probable implicit question, there is a lot of concern about long term toxicity leading to early death even after cure from the original disease. (Yeah, I know you know that already. Just hoping to be helpful to the non-medical types.)

  257. says

    @Katherine

    Unfortunately for me, I’m a male-bodied transwoman, so yea, hairy :(

    Figured as much. I’m AMAB too anyway. Even if I’m naturally androgynous, 15 years of DHT did make a little impact. Luckily it has been reversible.

  258. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Katherine:

    But I doubt anyone would miss the Carolinas or Georgia.

    I’m rather fond of Atlanta though. Can we can them? Huh? Pwease?

  259. says

    Shh. Should I tell you a secret? Even XX cis women are mammals, and they’re hairy all over too. They have to work at that depilation stuff.

  260. Richard Austin says

    Tony:

    The feel of newly shaven legs is amazing. Especially when you have fresh outta the dryer linens. Amaaaaaaaaaazing.
    Yeah, I shaved my legs exactly twice. Just wanted to see how long it would take the first time, and the second time I think I was drunk. Setting aside my lack of understanding why women shave their legs in the first place, this took way too long (I shave my head in a quarter of the time), and it’s kinda awkward in the shower trying to get certain spots.

    Possibly “TMI”, but I shave everything off (‘cept my head) fairly regularly during the summer – especially if I’m going on vacation and will be in and out of pools/ocean/whatever or in the sun often. It makes it much easier to get even coverage with sunscreen (especially full-body tanning), and it also makes it much quicker to dry off.

    Mostly, it takes practice, but there are a few things that make it easier. It’s the longer hair that is hard to shave off, so getting something that can “buzz” it down quickly is best, then use a razor to just neaten it up. For full body, takes me about half an hour to forty-five minutes. The first pass is most of that; second pass with the razor is about 8 minutes.

  261. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Oh, shaving?

    It was funny. The EstelethSister came to visit me. She shows up, and announces that she needs to shave her legs, can she borrow my shaving cream?

    I do not shave.

    She was completely flabbergasted by this. So she had to walk to the corner bodega and buy shaving cream (and all they had was men’s, LOL).

  263. says

    Yes, PZ, we know :)

    One of the many secret thing we do when we go to the bathroom together is comparing hair removal equipment. Probably not very different than when the guys gather in the garage discussing power tools :D

  264. says

    Even XX cis women are mammals, and they’re hairy all over too.

    Listening to Dawky and Lalla reading The Ancestors Tale on commute to and from work, and learning that it’s all one big continuum from shrews to people anyway, just that the intermediates have died out, so hairy armpits or legs are just fine. Evolutionarily speaking.

  266. Beatrice says

    So she had to walk to the corner bodega and buy shaving cream (and all they had was men’s, LOL).

    I always buy men’s shaving cream. Women’s is either too expensive or stinks to high heaven (or, most often, both).

  267. carlie says

    she needs to shave her legs, can she borrow my shaving cream?

    She can’t just use soap? I have always just used soap. I bought shaving cream once, didn’t really see the point of another whole product for something the soap does just fine. Now and then when I’ve bought a conditioner that turned out to be bad I’ve used it for shaving just to get use of some kind out of it, but that’s about it.

  268. says

    I always buy men’s shaving cream. Women’s is either too expensive or stinks to high heaven (or, most often, both).

    Me too. Though I rarely use and shaving cream at all.

  271. Ariaflame, BSc, BF, PhD says

    I very occasionally do under the arms in summer. Mostly if I’m going to be wearing something sleeveless and going to be seeing my mother. (It’s less effort to do it than deal with the pointed remarks). Never felt any urge to shave anywhere else. Too lazy and don’t want the stubble phase. Plus have no desire to attract anyone romantically so that isn’t a factor.

  272. says

    I’ll find a way to fold up the map so all the cities are in the DC area!

    Smart! Then you can just poke wormholes in it to create instant-travel routes.

  273. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Esteleth:

    It was funny. The EstelethSister came to visit me. She shows up, and announces that she needs to shave her legs, can she borrow my shaving cream?

    I do not shave.

    She was completely flabbergasted by this. So she had to walk to the corner bodega and buy shaving cream (and all they had was men’s, LOL).

    What is the history behind women shaving their legs? Is it rooted in sexism? (seems rather silly to me that women are expected to shave their legs and men aren’t, unless you’re a society that considers the value of a woman to lie solely in their appearance (and where men get to define what looks acceptable).

    ~~~
    ARGH!!!
    25 years of cooking and I still cannot remove the shell from a boiled egg. I just ruined 3 of the four eggs I was looking to enjoy. And the remaining eggs in the carton are stuck! Dammit.

  274. Matt Penfold says

    I use baby oil to shave these days. It just like those shaving oils you can get, but about 1/100th the cost.

  275. says

    Yes yes yes, we all know that humans (and by obviousness, women) are mammals and mammals have hair and it’s the natural state of women to have hair and it’s often related to sexist thoughts that women have to have very little hair on their bodies and blah blah blah.

    I don’t fucking care.

    I get my legs waxed, shave my pits, and use Nair on my arms for me. I could care less if it reinforces some vague sexist ideal of women. I hate hate hate having hairy limbs just because it looks and feels gross. If I had the choice, no hair anywhere except on my head.

  278. Beatrice says

    Well, the soap gets used when I can’t be bothered to buy shaving cream.

    I shave pretty regularly during the summer. I do like the feeling of smooth skin, but I have to admit I’m doing it mostly for conformism. *shrug*
    I’m pretty self-conscious, going out in a short skirt and with unshaved legs would probably make me self-combust in panic from wondering about what people may be whispering about me.

  279. says

    @Katherine

    Now that’s just silly. Obviously all the cities will just get all crumpled up together in a big ball. May be a touch difficult to navigate, but that’s just how it’s gotta be.

    We should just make one huge megacity like on that one planet in Star Wars. Problem solved.

  282. Nutmeg says

    Katherine: How do you like the results of using Nair on your arms? I have fairly hairy arms, and I don’t like it. Luckily I’m blonde, but it’s still pretty visible. I’ve been hesitant to remove the hair because I don’t want it to grow back in darker like the hair on my legs.

    Actually, I suspect that my androgen levels are too high, and I’m going to get that checked out at my next physical. But I don’t have a lot of hope that an adjustment in my hormone levels would make a big difference in amount of body hair.

  283. thunk, sadly not in gale crater says

    Tony and eggs:

    One tip of advice: use older eggs.

    Some possibly less-useful advice:

    the thunk method of de-shelling.

    Find the blunt end of the egg. Tap it against something hard so the shell breaks and you gain access to the air pocket.

    Then, slide the finger under the shell and slowly move up to the other end of the egg, cracking shell along the way. Then come back down.

    Finally, remove the two remaining pieces of shell.

  285. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Katherine:

    Yes yes yes, we all know that humans (and by obviousness, women) are mammals and mammals have hair and it’s the natural state of women to have hair and it’s often related to sexist thoughts that women have to have very little hair on their bodies and blah blah blah.

    I hope I didn’t imply any judgment on my part with the question (I don’t like the way many in society *expect* women to shave their legs). I’m just curious as to where the idea for women to shave their legs comes from.

  286. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Thunk:
    Thanks for the advice. I shall try it out when the stork drops off more eggs!

  287. Beatrice says

    I’m wondering when it became the norm(?) that women shave their forearms. I’ve recently noticed that a lot of women do it here.

  288. thunk, sadly not in gale crater says

    Ah, map folding.

    Well, being the somewhat road geek that I am, I’m somewhat opposed, as the ends of i-75 would probably not match up.

  289. says

    @Nutmeg:

    I dunno how it’d work on blonde hair. I’ve got very dark hair, so it doesn’t look any more dark after growing back. It works pretty darn good though. Doesn’t come back too quickly, either. It misses some areas (sides of my wrists) but overall I’m happy with the results.

    Of course, that’s just my arms, I dunno how other peoples’ hair might react.

  290. Louis says

    PZ #259,

    “Have her shaved and brought to my trailer”, the refrain of the Rock Star Blogger everwhere.

    Louis

  291. says

    Kirk Cameron has put his foot in his mouth … again.

    Kirk made mini-propaganda films for NOM (National Organization for Marriage) before, and now he has made a new one for NOM’s Marriage Anti Defamation Alliance.

    Excerpt from coverage on Salon’s website:

    Cameron goes on to explain that his bestie God “speaks with authority on every subject including marriage, and his advice trumps Oprah’s every time.” Hm. Like the part where he says it’s cool to marry your half sister? Or have sex with your daughters? Or marry off your slave girl to your son? Or have lots and lots of wives? Or the part where, if your lady cheats on you, she should be stoned to death? And if you rape a woman, you ought to do her family a solid by paying them off and marrying the girl? Kirk, I like God and all, but that is the WORST marriage handbook I have ever read. So here’s a suggestion, “traditional” marriage defenders: Stop waving around the Bible as a defense for your selective bigotry. Because pssst, we can read it too.

    Excellent video also available at the above link … “excellent” if you rate Kirk’s videos by the number of facepalms and headdesks it prompts.

  292. Mattir says

    Kat, the Mattir Fabmilly Homeskool would love to join a game evening. I might not play games, but I’d be glad to contribute food and fiber arts, and SonSpawn has been bothering me about getting together to game with you literally since we first met. So, yeah, a DC game evening would be awesome.

    Also, January (MLK weekend 2013) will be CAMP PHARYNGULA, at an environmental education center nearish to DC. Merit badges are a possibility, although probably in subjects not normally covered by the official Boy Scout program.

  293. says

    @Tony:

    No no, it’s okay. Nothing directly at you. I just hate how often I get the ‘you don’t have to shave’ from people when I tell them I get my legs waxed. I don’t do it for anyone else’s comfort but my own, so stop telling me what I don’t have to do.

    @Mattir:

    I’d love to have the Mattir Family along! They’re fun board games, so you may even enjoy them.

  294. says

    And in answer to the probable implicit question, there is a lot of concern about long term toxicity leading to early death even after cure from the original disease.

    The other elephant in the room of course being, what stages of HL were looked at for this study ? I haven’t done any actual oncology for 10 years, so I’m out of the loop there a bit, but 98% 5-year survival sounds pretty grand. Guess they weren’t stage four’s ?

  295. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    I hate having underarm hair, because I hate how it feels, but I also REALLY hate shaving my legs. Hate it. Giant waste of my time, plus I am terrible at it and inevitably manage to jerk or twitch or just somehow slice myself up or miss half my leg or something. But I continue to have internalized shit about it being “ugly” or “gross” to have hair on my legs. Which is why, despite it being 90 degrees outside, I am sitting here in long pants. I don’t know whether I’d still be doing this without the whole self-body-shaming deal, because people would give me shit about it anyway. But misogynistic self-hatred is some bullshit.

  296. says

    I suppose everyone has seen by now the footage of a Romney campaign bigwig explaining that Romney “retroactively retired” from Bain Capital, but I thought I would post Comedy Central’s take on this anyway.
    http://www.indecisionforever.com/blog/2012/07/16/mitt-romney-retroactively-retired-bain-capital-time-lord

    In summary: Romney is retroactively not responsible for the terrible things that occurred as a result of leveraged bets by Bain Capital, which is a great and noble company that exemplifies Romney’s skills as a businessman possessing the skills necessary to restore the country’s economy.

    More coverage here: http://www.dailykos.com/story/2012/07/16/1110423/-Romney-spokesman-explains-campaign-s-announcement-that-Mitt-has-retroactively-retired-from-Bain

    From the Twitter stream: “New immigration plan: Instead of self-deporting, illegal immigrants should just #retroactively not come to America.”

  300. Rev. BigDumbChimp says

    GROAN

    Regarding the front-page article of July 7 (“Prayer breakfasts scrutinized”), here are some thoughts about the Freedom From Religion Foundation and its threatening moves toward legal action against the city of Augusta and Mayor Deke Copenhaver:

    Editorial: Let us pray
    Letter: What of religious freedom?
    LET THERE BE no mistake: The Freedom From Religion Foundation is, itself, a religion of self-exaltation and secularism, and a very aggressive one at that.
    While its members say they stand on the First Amendment – “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof …” – they attempt to use the law and the courts to impose their secular religion on others.

  301. chigau (女性) says

    I’d like to get to work in the garden but the cat is sleeping on my clothes.

  302. carlie says

    I keep my arms and legs shaved mostly for the whole “lifetime of conditioning to do so” thing, but also because as an overweight person, people automatically bias towards “slovenly and gross” for my body type. Anything that deviates from “clean and tidy and put together” just makes that perception worse, so I try to look decent according to societal norms.

    Julia Child’s method of perfect hard-boiled eggs (mostly):

    Put eggs in water. Boil. When the water reaches boiling point, turn off the heat and let the eggs sit for 17 minutes. (covered)

    Put eggs in icewater for at least 2 minutes.

    To peel, then put an egg back in the hot water for about 10 seconds.

    The icewater cools it down and shrinks the egg from the shell, the hot water expands the shell a little to separate it even more.

  303. dianne says

    I haven’t done any actual oncology for 10 years, so I’m out of the loop there a bit, but 98% 5-year survival sounds pretty grand.

    It was. Then. It’s improved. (Also note that this is for young people-age 15-29-survival is much lower in older people, although 30-39 may be catching up to the younger population. It goes way down to about 60% when you’re talking about age 60+.)

    Guess they weren’t stage four’s ?

    Sadly, both the US and German databases are in denial about hematologic malignancies having stage, so can’t definitively comment. But stage IV wasn’t removed or anything. It’s just all HL.

  304. ImaginesABeach says

    I remember having this same conversation about body hair in a women’s study class back in the late 80s. We decided pretty much the same as is being said today – the whole shaving thing is part of a body-shaming thing, but pretty small in the grand scheme of things (compared to body shape issues, for example) and women should just do whatever they want with their body hair and should not feel bad or be pressured to feel bad about shaving. Or about not shaving. Deodorant seems to work better when I shave. Hair rubbing on stockings or pants feels icky. So I shave pits, and shave legs in the winter. And by golly, it’s my hair to do with what I wish.

  305. ixchel, the jaguar goddess of midwifery and war ॐ says

    Ing,

    Sigh…anyone know how the UUs are?

    It depends on your local congregation. You can start by doing a search on their website to find those near you. At least the biggest one (and maybe others) will probably be a Welcoming Congregation.

  306. Richard Austin says

    We decided pretty much the same as is being said today – the whole shaving thing is part of a body-shaming thing, but pretty small in the grand scheme of things

    I actually think it’s a “youth” thing – even male models generally shave body hair, sometimes under duress, to look younger and more fit (shaved bodies seem to show off muscle more).

  308. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Looks like Hooloovoo and Jessa have been adding stuff too! Eeee!

  309. says

    Totally rupt, my new job has been shifting my schedule around and I spent last week as a sleep-deprived zombie. Unfortunately, I don’t get my first full paycheck until the end of next month, and unemployment cut off as soon as I was hired, so that’s fun.
    @ All
    @Ing:
    You got hired, yes? if so, congrats, if not commiserations
    @Josh:
    Yay for the cool party. Also, proper pico de gallo has crushed garlic in my book.
    @Katherine:
    I’d love to come to a boardgame night, if only I wasn’t on the other side of the continent.

    @shaving:
    I tried shaving my lower body a couple times (my upper body doesn’t have much hair), but I got really painful ingrown hairs on my scrotum, among other places, both times, so that was the end of that.

    @others:
    Yay and/or sad, as appropriate.

  311. says

    Tony at 285:
    Oh oh oh! I can answer this! Women started shaving because of an advertising gimmick. I shit you not.

    Between the turn of the 20th century and 1920 or so, a technique for the mass manufacture of sheer fabrics was developed. However, sheer clothing was a tough sell, so an advertising company decided to begin to sell razors to women for the first time so they could “wear the latest styles without the embarassment of unsightly hair”. As you may have guessed, the advertising campaign worked for both safety razors and sheer/short clothing.

  312. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    I actually think it’s a “youth” thing – even male models generally shave body hair, sometimes under duress, to look younger and more fit (shaved bodies seem to show off muscle more).

    I request body hair when commission pr0n in part to avoid feeling like a paedophile.

  314. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Dalillama:

    but I got really painful ingrown hairs on my scrotum

    That is painful, true.
    Doesn’t bean shaving with a Gillette Mach 3 razor and getting several nicks on your scrotum. Electric shavers fare no better when shaving de balls.
    I imagine women have to be very careful when they shave down there.

  315. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Audley:
    So it wasn’t rooted in sexism?
    Uh wow.

  317. Paul says

    Audley:
    So it wasn’t rooted in sexism?
    Uh wow.

    No more than this one, anyway. Keep in mind the environment that those advertisers that came up with the ad campaign were operating in. They weren’t trying to sell sheer clothing to men and telling them to banish that “unsightly hair”. Do we assume that commercials on TV nowadays aren’t sexist unless there is deliberate sexism by those making them?

    All that Audley’s post makes me think of is the tapeworm ads to help shed those unsightly pounds, or those ads to help women put on a few pounds to avoid looking sickly (oddly enough, you’d see both during the same time period). Just because it wasn’t a mustachioed Big Brother telling them how their body should look doesn’t make it any less rooted in body shaming or sexism.

  320. cicely says

    I imagine women have to be very careful when they shave down there.

    Indeed. These days I seem to have an enhanced chance of ingrown hairs, with added MRSA. So not worth it.
    –

  321. says

    birgerjohansson

    Hmm… remind certain people about how the 50s had less surveillance next time they say the 1950s were so great.

    Oh well that’s easy. There was less surveillance then because less surveillance was needed, y’see. Not so many uppity you-know-whos and you-know-whats looking to cause trouble.

    hair, extermination of
    I wax. Insert mandatory “terribly unfeminist” disclaimer here, I guess. I find wax (hard wax mostly with some homemade sugar wax now and again, although I like the hard wax better) to be less wasteful. less uncomfortable and more efficient of my time than shaving, and the pain doesn’t bother me much (esp. compared to razor burn and stubble) so yeah.

    Although in the winter I tend to let it grow, mostly because in the winter I want to minimize the amount of time I spend naked in our drafty bathroom.

    I really, really love the silky feeling of waxed skin, and if anything I wish that it was socially considered an unremarkable thing for anyone of any gender to do if they enjoy it. Kind of like makeup.

  322. ButchKitties says

    One of my favorite feelings in the world is putting on a pair of fresh-from-the-dryer pajama pants right after I’ve shaved my legs.

  323. Gnumann, メンズ権利活動家国家の売国奴 says

    Confession-time (TMI-sensitive people might want to skip this):

    Every time I hear a woman talk about waxing, I envision waxing my balls.

    Then I have to sit in my closet for some time…

  324. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    I don’t think anybody already linked to it here? But Natalie is going through a rough time. She’s mentioned that, if people are thinking of contributing to her tip jar, now would be a good time to do it. Just a heads up for people who may be interested/able.

  325. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Once upon a time (i.e. when I was an undergrad), if you’d seen me, you would have seen a pile of muscle, smelling strongly of chlorine. And all but hairless except on my head.

    Which is to say that I shaved my legs, arms, and back.

    (5 points and a grog to the first person who guesses why.)

  327. Gnumann, メンズ権利活動家国家の売国奴 says

    5 points and a grog to the first person who guesses why.

    Sanitization after skinnydipping in the slimepit?

    Seriously though, does waxing really help swimmers, or is it just a placebo? Sharks seem to go faster on account of an uneven skin…

  328. carlie says

    Indeed. These days I seem to have an enhanced chance of ingrown hairs, with added MRSA. So not worth it.

    C-sections require the area to be shaved.
    Then there is a large incision that heals, right in the same area.
    Ingrown hairs into healing incisions are Very Bad Things.

  329. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    *passes out grog*

    Waxing? Never waxed. Shaving, followed by a coat of vaseline, was my trick.

  330. says

    I missed most of the “Excellent Plan” thread while it was going on, as I was at the SpokesGay’s slumber party. Wordplague reads like a Poe generator. Also, my next band will be called the Vaginal Blood Burps. Either that or Lukimia of Fun.

    Hi, David! Long time no see. Hope Jules feels better soon.

    Kristin, #455, last thread: There are no words. Meanwhile, Jamie Dimon loses $5.8 billion, and he still has a job.

    Audley:

    Guess who’s an auntie x2? :) :) :)

    Congrats! :)

    Gnumann:

    I popped in at Zingularity to tell him that his use (any use really, except in a meta-discussion) of the word “bitch-slapped” is socially unacceptable.

    Don’t expect much.

    Chas:

    wow. Fascinating how that one’s evolving. It’s like a game of strawman-telephone.

    Yes, the particulars in that quote were wrong, but please spare us from a defense of Larry Summers, kthx.

    Beatrice, men’s shaving cream here smells strongly of cologne. I usually get the drugstore-branded women’s shaving gel.

    Carlie, soap doesn’t work that well for me as a shaving lather.

  332. says

    @kristinc

    I really, really love the silky feeling of waxed skin, and if anything I wish that it was socially considered an unremarkable thing for anyone of any gender to do if they enjoy it. Kind of like makeup.

    Agreed.

    Though I never use wax. I used to use an epilator, but if I wait too long between using it, it hurts too much so shaving is just easier.

    As for makeup, mascara is pretty much all I can be bothered with.

  333. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Gnumann:

    Confession-time (TMI-sensitive people might want to skip this):

    Out of curiosity, do we have any TMI sensitive people here?

  334. Gnumann, メンズ権利活動家国家の売国奴 says

    Don’t expect much.

    I didn’t – but: Yikes!

    Carlie, soap doesn’t work that well for me as a shaving lather

    It does if you get a good-quality badger brush. Far better than the ultra-dense tin-foams. Since it’s not so dense you’ll need to let it soak a bit more. So you’ll need to add a minute or two to your shaving times. Also, wetter hairs are easier on the razor, so you don’t have to change that so often. That should let you save in the cost of the brush in, say, 30-40 years of shaving.

  335. Rev. BigDumbChimp says

    Out of curiosity, do we have any TMI sensitive people here?

    No but we do have scrotal sensitive people here.

  336. cicely says

    C-sections require the area to be shaved.
    Then there is a large incision that heals, right in the same area.
    Ingrown hairs into healing incisions are Very Bad Things.

    Same thing for Hysterectomies With All The Trimmings™, at least where we’re talkin’ the transverse-the-entire-abdomen approach. They shaved everything south of my belly button. I didn’t have trouble with hairs ingrowing along the scar, but elsewhere…*shudder* At least the MRSA wasn’t an Optional Extra for me at that time.
    –
    I waxed one time. The owwies were too much for me to repeat it.
    –

  338. Louis says

    Okay who’s going to be first with the Dr Evil quote?

    I deny no one their personal preferences, live and let live sayeth I, but a perfectly hairless scrotum? Thanks but no thanks. The Gentlem Vegetables in general have that last chicken in the shop look, making them look like bald turkey neck to boot, I’m thinking aesthetic own goal.

    Don’t get me wrong, tidying the man bush and trimming the stray tagnuts is a healthy thing to do for the sexually active gentleman around town, but hairless balls? Might as well iron out the creases and have two billiard balls down there.

    Louis

  339. codobus says

    How strange, I start shaving my legs again after years, and suddenly it’s a topic on TET. I know how much other people hate it, and eventually I might feel the same, but for the feel of pants on shaven legs I’d go through a lot :D

    Since the subject is up. I’ve been thinking about waxing, bout how long does it last?

    I find it strange how so many women in this thread wish they weren’t pressured by society to keep shaven legs, yet I’m effectively relying on that expectation and pressure myself to reduce my dysphoria, and express who I feel I am inside, since I have so few avenues of expression available to me at the moment. In essence, the societal pressure is actually making me feel better, and that makes me extremely uncomfortable.

    I hope I’m clear in that paragraph, just woke up and might have left out some crucial thoughts here.

  340. says

    It sounds like nonsense but I’ve found the pain level really depends on the wax. I’m not sure why this would be except that between soft and hard wax, soft wax methods allow the skin to snap around and be pulled more. But then some people say that soft wax is less painful, so …

  341. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Louis:
    Plus if you shave completely, there’s less dental floss.

  342. Louis says

    Tony,

    A gentleman always flosses.

    Louis

    P.S. Never, EVER wax your balls. Rugby, again. Seriously, the list of stupid shit we didn’t do between the age of 7 and 30-ish is smaller than the list of stupid shit we did do.

  344. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    If you think waxing is painful, try Laser Hair Removal (LHR). 5 or 6 years ago, at the height of my workout phase, I began to realize how much I disliked some of my body hair, so I started LHR.
    Disclaimer:

    Me:
    I’m fairly certain society’s rigid gender role in place for men played heavily into my decision to remove unwanted body hair. I was also influenced heavily by the gay culture where sexualized men are rarely hairy and that was a group I wanted to belong to. I still do to some extent, but my desire for lack of hair was also practical. I simply hate taking the time to shave, and it was convenient.

    Over the course of 10 treatments, 4 years, and a few thousand dollars, I have much less back, chest, neck, and facial hair (in the cheek area). The first 3 or 4 treatments were the most painful, as the more hair present, the more intense the zap is. As you become less hairy, there’s simply fewer hairs to destroy, so it hurts less. The neckline was the most painful.
    Oh, and LHR isn’t 100% guaranteed to rid you of body hair. I still have some on the various parts I went through treatment on (which has resulted in me being a bit frustrated at paying nearly 4K on LHR that achieved maybe 75% of my goal). It looks odd on my face, for instance, when I go several days without shaving b/c you see patches of no hair.

    One wacky anecdote:
    The first 4 or 5 treatments, the smell of burnt hair was identical to movie popcorn.

  345. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Louis:
    Ever NAIR your balls?
    Ooooooh, not a good idea.
    I guess that’s why they put a disclaimer on the bottle to NOT do that.

  346. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Ms. Daisy:
    Since when are you a vile human being?
    You seem so sweet and innocent. Some might say ‘angelic’ :)

  347. says

    Lolz, Tony.

    The worst of the trolls on the Tosh thread called me a “vile human being” because, after he told us he’d been raped as a child, I’d expressed genuine sympathy for that while pointing out that it didn’t excuse his misogyny.

  348. Muse says

    Ing – this is why secular humanistic Judaism works for me. There is an extremely strong social justice thread in Jewishness.

    Kat – I game. I’m in.

  349. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Tony: Oooh, very nice shirt. Unfortunately I never wear white at all, normally, but I might be tempted to make an exception for that.

  350. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Two FtB questions:

    Why do some of the blogs allow direct replies to a specific comment, while others (such as Pharyngula) don’t?
    What is pinging?

    ~~
    Ms. Daisy:
    Sounds like that guy wasn’t thinking rationally. If you really *were* a vile human being, I don’t think you would have shown him any sympathy.

  351. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    TLC:
    Yeah, I’m liking the shirt too.
    I wonder if there are people who can’t make out the critter, and if so, what do they see?

  352. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Tony @350,
    Pharyngula does not allow nested comments. It gets too confusing after a bit.

    So we just use the method of referring to the comment number.

  353. Gnumann, メンズ権利活動家国家の売国奴 says

    Why do some of the blogs allow direct replies to a specific comment, while others (such as Pharyngula) don’t?

    Because nested comments are worse than Alisa Rozenbaum, but some FtB’ers are ignorant of this fact.

  354. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Ms. Daisy:

    I like your “Where I was. Where I am. Where I’m going’ post. From your comments, you’ve changed quite a bit over just a short period of time.

  355. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Esteleth:
    So each blogger can decide on allowing nested comments or not? Cool.
    I’m glad Pharyngula doesn’t have them. I didn’t understand the difficulty at first, but quickly came to ‘get’ it.

  356. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    Why do some of the blogs allow direct replies to a specific comment, while others (such as Pharyngula) don’t?
    What is pinging?

    It’s up to the individual bloggers whether they want their comment sections to be an unreadable mess, or if they prefer people to hold a conversation as here on Pharyngula.

  357. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Yeah I’m glad there’s no nested comments here. That’d be an absolute fucking nightmare. It’s bad enough on smaller blogs.

    Seriously. Imagine we had nested comments here. Imagine if you had to scroll all the way back through TET to see if someone replied to you. It’d be horrible confined to just the current iteration, and absolutely unusable if people were going back to old editions of TET to post replies.

    So yeah… keep the nested comments away.

  358. says

    Since the subject is up. I’ve been thinking about waxing, bout how long does it last?

    I find the complete smoothness lasts maybe a week. Not as long as most waxes claim, for sure, but longer than shaving, at least for me where the next day or 2 I have sandpapery stubble. Also, the hairs that grow in don’t feel as sharp because they grow in with their brand new baby hair edge, not a chopped-off-blunt edge. And yes, Virginia, they *do* get finer with time.

    I admit that a certain geeky and gross fascination with yanked-out hairs plays into my preference for waxing and my relative lack of minding the trouble it takes.

  359. Beatrice says

    Nested comments are evil.
    *sprinkles holly water grog in their general direction to ward them off*

  360. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Holly Grog?

    aren’t Holly berries toxic to humans?

  361. Beatrice says

    I’m going to pretend that extra “l” appeared there all by itself. It’s a mystery.

  362. Beatrice says

    And while I’m mentioning grog, have some, it’s on me.

    We’re celebrating the last day of doing surveys. It also means the last salary for the foreseeable future, but at least I’m done going to strangers’ houses (or rarely, calling them on the phone) and trying to convince them to give me detailed information about their finances. You can imagine how well that went.

  363. birgerjohansson says

    “Never, EVER wax your balls”
    Is this practice connected with the practice in Genesis of making an oath while holding someone’s testicles?
    — — — — —
    I have been thinking about the whole temptation of Christ story.

    It is obvious it was written by people who thought the Earth was flat, and that you don’t need oxygen in the stratosphere.

    Explaining away the story might be like this:
    .
    Q: Where did Jesus find the oxygen tank?

    A: They might been left behind by some careless sherpas…now concentrate on the moral message instead!

    Q: Why do they imply the Earth is flat?

    A: The story is just a parable.

    Q: Isn’t the Bible supposed to be taken literally?

    A: Mmm….Yes. Actually, just because the world is round now does not mean it was in biblical times.

    Q: So you mean, the Earth changed?

    A: Yes.

    Q: Like Midgård, after the sinking of Numenor when the Valar became physically separated from the mortals in Midgård?

    A: Don’t be silly! “The Silmarillon” is just a silly story!

    Q: As opposed to?

    (noise of pupil getting smacked on the head)

  364. thunk, not approaching gale crater says

    I’m somewhat impartial to nested comments– if done right, they’re not that bad.

    But they’re done wrong on FTB.

    The alternative straight comments aren’t bad either– they do simplify replying, but it’s sometimes hard to find an individual topic.

    And also, Jesus Haploid Christ, can we get rid of the fixed-width format? This is 2012!

  365. birgerjohansson says

    @kristinc

    “I really, really love the silky feeling of waxed skin”

    You are channeling the captain of the Undead Task Force
    (MTV’s “Death Valley”)!
    — — — — — —
    “the practice in Genesis of making an oath while holding someone’s testicles”
    Gives a new meaning to “handshake deal”.
    Dilapidation of the area would probably have been welcome,
    but good luck doing it with just bronze razors.

  367. cm's changeable moniker says

    can we get rid of the fixed-width format? This is 2012!

    No. ;)

    Text is easier to read in short lines. (See: newspaper columns.)

    The reason is that your eyes take in several words at a time, only making two or three stops on the way across, and it’s easier to find the next line if they don’t have to backtrack so far.

    Wide text is harder to read because it tries to thwart evolution. :)

  369. birgerjohansson says

    From another thread:
    “Calling a creationist a scientist is as offensive as praising a pyromaniac for their skill at carpentry, when all they’ve shown is a talent for destroying things, and typically have a complete absence of any knowledge of wood-working. Producing charcoal and ash is not comparable to building a house or crafting furniture or, for that matter, creating anything.

    .
    Brilliant! It actually covers populist politicians as well, you know,
    those who tear down functioning institutions to cut taxes a few cents. Make it easier for business? Just halve the funding of EPA (yes, zombie Reagan, I am looking at you). Help banks expand? Throw away regulations that have been painstakingly built since the great Depression.

    Spock: “Historically, it is easier to destroy than to create”
    (Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan)

  370. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    For example, making such an accused person feeling sad, depressed, guilty and lonely inwardly

    This is what passes for a harassment accusation “ruining someone’s life,” according to a troll over at Crommunist whom I can’t stomp satisfyingly because the thread is a week old. Boo.

  371. cm's changeable moniker says

    I’m somewhat perturbed that Rubin’s pups are sitting on the WSJ.

    (I wouldn’t have thought it the newspaper of choice for the Horde!)

  372. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Caine: Simply adorable.

    My wild rat is slowly getting bolder about leaving his nest and checking things out. Yeah, His. I was totally mistaken in branding him a little female. So glad I didn’t decide to get ‘her’ a female cagemate.

  373. says

    Beatrice:

    Esme’s spawn are adorable.

    I think so too. :D Thank you.

    cm:

    I’m somewhat perturbed that Rubin’s pups are sitting on the WSJ.

    (I wouldn’t have thought it the newspaper of choice for the Horde!)

    It isn’t, I swear! It’s available at Steffes, where Mister works. I asked him to bring home a bunch of newspaper for shredding and nesting purposes, which is a good purpose for it, eh? :D

    TLC:

    My wild rat is slowly getting bolder about leaving his nest and checking things out. Yeah, His. I was totally mistaken in branding him a little female. So glad I didn’t decide to get ‘her’ a female cagemate.

    Oh my! I’m glad you held off on a cagemate too. I’m jazzed to hear he’s getting bolder and more curious about things, good work, TLC.

  374. Owlmirror says

    “Calling a creationist a scientist is as offensive as praising a pyromaniac for their skill at carpentry, when all they’ve shown is a talent for destroying things, and typically have a complete absence of any knowledge of wood-working. Producing charcoal and ash is not comparable to building a house or crafting furniture or, for that matter, creating anything.

    In that thread, I got annoyed enough at scientist/creationist Henry F. Schaefer III that I wondered if a better analogy might be that of an architect/terrorist. One reason that “terrorist” works better than “pyromaniac” is that a pyromaniac has a psychological compulsion to simply destroy/burn, but a terrorist has an ideological commitment to some cause which then leads to wanting to destroy. A matter of nuance, perhaps.

    Schaefer is fine with adding to the “building” (quantum chemistry) he’s working on, and is also fine with attacking/demolishing the “buildings” that he’s opposed to, and thus not working on (evolutionary biology, palaeontology).

  375. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    I kinda want to get him a male cagemate… but I’m scared he’ll kill the intruder. Still… I feel bad for him being lonely in that cage.

    I’m sure it’s better than being killed as a pest, but still.

  376. birgerjohansson says

    “Dwayne Johnson Says He May Play Lobo” http://www.comingsoon.net/news/movienews.php?id=92572

    (I just have to say it) “Lobo: A Contract on Gawd” ?

    Or maybe a film adaptation of the album where Lobo meets the Easter Bunny, and Santa is an exploitative employer of the gnomes working in his sweatshop. (I could be confusing it with a “Hitman” story)

  377. Lonely Panda, e.s.l. says

    Tony @350

    Two FtB questions:

    Why do some of the blogs allow direct replies to a specific comment, while others (such as Pharyngula) don’t?
    What is pinging?

    Pinging: when someone writes on their own blog about some other blog post (probably with a different author), the blog software can automatically generate a comment on the referenced post linking back to the referencing post. This way there are links in both directions between the two posts.

  379. says

    TLC:

    I kinda want to get him a male cagemate… but I’m scared he’ll kill the intruder. Still… I feel bad for him being lonely in that cage.

    I wouldn’t worry about that now, work on getting him socialized with you. A lot of rats live as single rat pets and are perfectly happy doing so. Our first rat, Ash, was a single rat and seriously bonded to us. He was a very happy rat.

    Besides, what happens if you get a domestic rat and things don’t work out? Then you have two rats to house separately with both unhappy.

  380. cm's changeable moniker says

    [The WSJ:] newspaper for shredding and nesting

    I’m cm’s changeable moniker, and I approve this message. ;)

  383. thunk, not approaching gale crater says

    cm:

    I guess it just bothers me to see most of the screen blank.

    But with the threaded comments, this fixed-width format squeezes the text up against the right with several replies

    so
    it
    ends
    up
    loo-
    king
    like
    this
    ;)

  384. says

    My cat caught a cedar waxwing :( (I know. I KNOW. He’s supposed to be an indoor cat, I swear.)

    My kid managed to catch him and get the bird, which is alive, and I don’t see any gaping wounds although she was bleeding, looks pretty shocky, and it is far from improbable that she just might keel over from that alone.

    The nearest wildlife place is in Maple Valley, an hour’s drive away. Looks like our evening is shot. (Not as shot as the birdie’s evening is, though. Perspective.)

    Nggghhhhhhhhh.

  385. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Kristinc: With birds, puncture wounds from cats, even if not immediately fatal, will likely get deeply infected. At least that’s what I’ve heard.

    I like cedar waxwings, btw.

  386. Owlmirror says

    One way of dealing with WordPress nested comments:

    1) Use Firefox

    2) Install the Addon called “HackTheWeb” (a newer version of what used to be called Aardvark, except development on Aardvark stopped with Firefox 3.something)

    3) Right-click on the comments, and choose HackTheWeb (also works from the Tools menu)

    4) Press “w” (for “wider”) until the tooltip on the bottom left says:
      div, id: content

    5) Press “i” (for “isolate”). This removes everything except the post and comment text, and allows the text to flow all the way across the screen.

    6) Press “q” (for “quit”)

    7) Read.

    Note that the change is not permanent, so if you screw up, you just need to refresh the page, and everything will be back the way it was. On the downside, if you want to load more comments, you’ll need to do steps 3-6 again.

  387. David Marjanović says

    Welcome back to David Marjanović! (Who’s Jules , if its ok to ask?)

    A regular who hasn’t shown up often since the move to FtB.

    She’s much better now, probably because of the meds she told me to buy this morning.

    I’m wondering when it became the norm(?) that women shave their forearms. I’ve recently noticed that a lot of women do it here.

    :-o GAH! I was only told last year in Rhinebeck that some Americans do that now! And now it has already arrived in Croatia?

  388. says

    Nested comments are great – if you don’t have many comments. Over about 20, and it gets hard to follow. More, and it’s ridiculous.

    Carlie, stop hogging all the cilantro!!

    I don’t shave. Or do any other kind of depilation. I used to think that “shave and it grows back stronger” was true, because I really don’t have much leg hair. My bloke doesn’t shave either, though he does trim the beard. He tried shaving his head once, but it made him look like a thug, so it’s the no. 3 clippers now.

  389. says

    With birds, puncture wounds from cats, even if not immediately fatal, will likely get deeply infected. At least that’s what I’ve heard.

    I’m hoping they can give her antibiotics, yeah. I know that cat’s mouths contain some icky wee beasties.

    She’s very pretty (and so frightened. I wish I could explain to her).

  390. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Aww, kristinc. I hope she’s okay. :(
    —
    I’m sorta… pissy right now. Sounds are making me angry again, I’m rocking in my seat, and I can hear every single sound and my brain is apparently trying to listen to all of them at once. My mom just asked me what was wrong. What’s wrong? STOP TALKING is what’s wrong! AAAA! I was hungry and I’m having a headache that may be insufficient-caffeine-induced, so maybe those are why.

  391. Beatrice says

    And now it has already arrived in Croatia?

    It seems so. I’ve even gone and googled depilacija ruku and there are pages of (mostly forum discussions) about it. Note the pages with “teen” in the title. Even if it’s not the norm yet, it will soon become, with teens being taught that it’s “necessary”.

  392. Pteryxx says

    eeee Caine, Rubin’s ratlets have a potential golden too! and the white-nose is adorable… IIRC that’s an unusual patterning for rats. Thanks for the pics!

  393. Beatrice says

    I think I’m going to start using “go hug a cactus” for all the compulsive huggers who would just die if they couldn’t come up to strangers and hug them without asking.

  394. Nightjar says

    My cat caught a cedar waxwing :( (I know. I KNOW. He’s supposed to be an indoor cat, I swear.)

    Aww, poor bird. Hope she makes it.

    Some months ago, my cat (which is also supposed to be an indoor cat) escaped through an open window, caught a mole and brought it into my room. How the fuck did she do that in such a brief period of time and with practically no hunting experience I do not know. As far as I could tell, the poor thing was completely unharmed (but looked scared as hell) so I just released it outside.

    I mean, it was kinda cool, you don’t get to hold a mole in your hands and observe it everyday. But still, I wish she would let wildlife critters alone.

  395. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Nightjar: Having seen a mole once myself, would you agree that they’re probably one of the worst adapted animals for running?

  396. says

    Nightjar, I vividly remember the day my aunt’s cat caught a mole, and she put it into a small aquarium with dirt and brought it over for me to see. Probably not so cool for the mole, but I thought it was great. (My aunt let it go afterward, of course.)

  398. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Boy had a wisdom tooth taken out last week.

    Operation went like a breeze.

    Was put on Amoxicillin(sp? (Hala Tpyos adn lal taht!)).

    Last night he got hives.

    Hives got worse.

    We have now found the first thing that Boy is allergic to: penicillin.

    So he is now on prednisone (which spell check wants to change to prisoner?).

    Oh, joy and happiness unforeseen!

  399. Janine: Fucking Dyke Of Rage Mountain says

    Ms. Daisy Cutter, this was probably before you became a regular but I was once called a vile bitch by a christianist troll. So I used that as my moniker for a while. It was funny how many trolls would just refer to me as the vile bitch instead of my name. It was the beginning of my use of bitch in my monikers.

  400. Sili (I have no penis and I must jizz) says

    We had a cat once who systematically went after moles when she had kittens.

    –o–

    Just read PZ’s Maundering post. It turns out Google Maps has decided to ignore my childhood home.

  401. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    TLC:

    Having seen a young bull moose running eastbound (I was on the western end) at full speed, I’ll put in a vote for mooses as the funniest looking animal at full speed. They look like they have way the hell too many knees.

    Voles, on the other hand, manage to look like a small fuzzy brick moving across the landscape with nothing moving underneath.

  405. says

    @Tony

    If you think waxing is painful, try Laser Hair Removal (LHR). 5 or 6 years ago, at the height of my workout phase, I began to realize how much I disliked some of my body hair, so I started LHR.

    I think I’ve done the most painful hair-removal thing possible. Laser on the face. It works by transporting heat into the hair follicle. The denser the hair growth, the more heat absorbed, which increase pain – and leave burns and blisters that may last for a week.

    Beat that!

  407. carlie says

    I’m somewhat perturbed that Rubin’s pups are sitting on the WSJ.

    (I wouldn’t have thought it the newspaper of choice for the Horde!)

    “Snookums prefers the rubber Wall Street Journal to the rubber Washington Post.” +1 internets to anyone who knows that reference. :)

  408. says

    Pteryxx:

    eeee Caine, Rubin’s ratlets have a potential golden too! and the white-nose is adorable… IIRC that’s an unusual patterning for rats. Thanks for the pics!

    You’re welcome! Yes, the white blaze on Rubin’s nose is why we brought her home, because it was similar to Chas’s white blaze, although smaller. I’m looking forward to seeing what they’re going to look like.

    I’ve decided to move my studio downstairs, which is *huge* (and my current studio is pretty damn big) and will make for easier management of the ratses. This will take weeks to pull off though, and as I fell halfway down the stairs the other day, will have to wait for spine recovery too.

  409. Pteryxx says

    Voles, on the other hand, manage to look like a small fuzzy brick moving across the landscape with nothing moving underneath.

    Like a cursor!

    Cavies (guinea pigs) aren’t quite THAT flat, but when one escapes in a big yard, it’s amazing how fast something with practically no legs can haul.

    (random cavy videos because youtube has everything:)

    Gpigs racing for bets

    Gpig runs up stairs

  410. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Like a cursor!

    Yes! Not perfectly smooth– they don’t glide, the jerk really, really, really quickly.

    When I was in Colorado, I counted fifty crossing the dirt road I was at within 15 minutes. Near as I could tell, 80% were going west. “Go West! Young Vole!”

  411. cicely says

    Esme’s spawn are adorable.

    Agreed.
    –

    “Snookums prefers the rubber Wall Street Journal to the rubber Washington Post.” +1 internets to anyone who knows that reference. :)

    The Muppets Take Manhattan.
    –

  412. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Caine:
    The ratlets are so damned cute, they’re gonna make me cry!
    And you named one Giles…
    :)

  413. cicely says

    And I’m glad to hear that Jules is doing better.
    *hugs* and *chocolate*
    –

  414. Jessa says

    Score! I was sorting through my yarn stash and found five skeins of Mission Falls 1824 cotton in a lovely sage color. Looks like Darkfetus will be getting another hand-knit gift! *rummages around to find the BSJ pattern*

  415. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    David:

    I’m wondering when it became the norm(?) that women shave their forearms. I’ve recently noticed that a lot of women do it here.

    :-o GAH! I was only told last year in Rhinebeck that some Americans do that now! And now it has already arrived in Croatia?

    Guy here, but I used to shave my forearms. I like the feel of it wrapped up in silky sheets. I also think I see definition in my forearms with all that pesky hair buzzed off.

    ~~

    Beatrice:

    I think I’m going to start using “go hug a cactus” for all the compulsive huggers who would just die if they couldn’t come up to strangers and hug them without asking.

    Alternately, we could use that as a substitute for the porcupine meme…

    ~~

    Oggie:
    Hopefully the spawn won’t be suffering from hives much longer.
    I wonder, are allergies to penicillin common?

    ~~

    On the way to the gym today, I turned on a radio station (rare, as I usually listen to CD’s), and it happened to be a local soul channel. The host was remarking at how he and a few others (all male) were criticized recently by some of their female listeners. Why?
    Apparently, he [and these other men] made some comments about how women should be happy to have a husband who gives them the option to stay at home instead of work.
    He couldn’t understand why the women were upset.
    Gee, I wonder why.
    ~~
    Cooking dinner now. Oven roasted tilapia (seasoned with fresh sage, rosemary, lemon/pepper seasoning, garlic powder and cayenne pepper) and carrots (for T, not me; she likes almost anything edible, so the carrots are all hers; I’m putting mine over a side salad with romaine, spinach, sunflower seeds, this really awesome sweet granola crunchy stuff I found at Publix, raw carrots, and onions. Think I’m going to read some more of The God Delusion and the bible (wish there was a way to minimize the font on that; it doesn’t seem right to include those books in the same sentence)

    ~~

    Jadzia:

    I think I’ve done the most painful hair-removal thing possible. Laser on the face. It works by transporting heat into the hair follicle. The denser the hair growth, the more heat absorbed, which increase pain – and leave burns and blisters that may last for a week.

    I may have left it out of my post about LHR, but I had it done to my neck and cheeks. It was really painful just under my goatee, and on both sides of my mouth. So we can commiserate together :)

    ~~

    Caine:
    You fell down the stairs?
    I hope you’re feeling ok and that it wasn’t too bad a fall.

    ~~

  417. thunk, not approaching gale crater says

    Ooh. I managed to fly to the moon in orbiter. :)

    The landing was… weird.

  418. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Hopefully the spawn won’t be suffering from hives much longer.
    I wonder, are allergies to penicillin common?

    He’ll be on the corticosteroid for twelve days (decreasing doses) but the worst should be gone within 12-36 hours.

    As to commonness? Not sure. Father in Law is allergic to penicillin, but no one else in either family, other than Boy, is antiantibiotics.

  419. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    thunk:

    Did it make a ‘thunk‘ sound when you landed?

  420. thunk, not approaching gale crater says

    Og: No, you know I don’t land very fast.

    I don’t actually know how to land, so starting in low lunar orbit, I killed my 1650 m/s velocity with a long engine burn.

    Of course, gravity took hold, though I countered that with hover thrust.

    And soon enough, wheels were on the ground.

  421. Jessa says

    Caine:

    I fell halfway down the stairs the other day, will have to wait for spine recovery too.

    Ouch! Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery and less overall drama in the Caine household!

    Ogvorbis:

    Sorry to hear about your son’s ordeal. Hope he gets better and off the Prednisone soon. That stuff has some pretty nasty side effects*, but a 12-day course shouldn’t be too bad.

    *Relatively. I’d take the irritability and weight gain over massive itching hives any day.

  422. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    I’d take the irritability and weight gain over massive itching hives any day.

    When I had pneumonia a few years ago (well, actually, it was Acute Reactive Lung Disorder, which is what bronchial pneumonia used to be), that stuff gave me the worst hearburn I’ve ever had in my life.

  423. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    I think pretty much everyone I’ve known to shave their arms did it to show off their tattoos better.

  426. says

    I’m currently trying to read through all of that freethoughblahgs site. Why can’t I stop?! It’s disturbingly pathetic. Most of it is boring and almost unreadable, and the rest of it is vile stupidity. Someone help me D:

  427. carlie says

    *hands cicely an internet*

    We have now found the first thing that Boy is allergic to: penicillin.

    I’m so sorry. Our boy suffered a similar fate with zithromax.

    Alethea – in retribution for hogging the virtual cilantro, I was given a disaster of having the IRL cilantro in the fridge go bad right before we were about to use it. I had to eat salsa made with no cilantro! *sob*

  428. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Can I complain about my body?

    I have sebaceous cysts. Like ten of them. D:

    I need a dermatologist. Because they’re starting to become noticeable.

  429. Wowbagger, Deputy Vice-President (Silencing) says

    Oh, thanks Tony. I already have 20-something Threadless shirts I struggle to find time to wear more than once every six months(lousy antisocial tendencies)…

    [bookmarks anyway]

  430. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    carlie:

    I had a baggie of cilantro go bad in the fridge. Fermented cilantro is an odour that cannot be described in English. So, Мирисаше полошо од четири мртви ден коза опфатени во гранив пиперки!

  431. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    …very eloquent, Oggie.

    I am impressed.

  432. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    Роден е во Македонија,
    Се пресели во Ирак,
    Кралот Тут!

  433. Dr. Esteleth Dyke, Medicine Woman and Snark Machine says

    Я родился в Америке.
    Я американец.
    Я совершенно в неведении относительно остального мира (как и другие американцы).

  435. ImaginesABeach says

    Looking at the Rev.’s twitter map, I’m not surprised to see that the areas in my state that prefer church to beer are pretty much the same areas that vote for Michele Bachmann.

  436. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Oggie:
    Your steampunk link was borked.

    ~~

    Wowbagger:

    Oh, thanks Tony. I already have 20-something Threadless shirts I struggle to find time to wear more than once every six months(lousy antisocial tendencies)…

    I hear that.
    Funny thing: until M passed away, I really didn’t care for print tee shirts. I had a few, but I didn’t really look out for them. OTOH, M was a *huge* t-shirt fanatic. When we were boxing his stuff up, he had IIRC two dresser drawers full of rolled up tee shirts. Between 2010 and now, my appreciation for tees has skyrocketed. I even bought a couple of tees from Wal-Mart last night (one was charcoal shirt with the outline of a phoenix in orange). Target has some really cool tees as well. I love Roadkill too. (their offensive shirts are of questionable quality, so view at your own risk)

  437. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Finally got some photos uploaded.
    My tabby, Kayta eating yogurt.

    She found me back in 2000. I was living in Huntsville, AL. Returning home from a vacation to Atlanta in January, there was a little kitten outside my apartment door meowing. Winter in Huntsville was no fun, with average temperatures in the 20s and 30s for several months. She seemed like she was hungry, so I gave her some cat food (I had one cat at the time, Kara) and milk (it was many years later that I found out you’re not supposed to give cats human milk). I watched her eat the food, but felt sorry b/c I didn’t know what to do with her. After she finished eating, I turned around to go inside, and she trotted right in behind me, ran straight to my bed, and hopped up on it. The nerve of her :)
    She had a collar with a number on it, which I called, but it wasn’t in operation any more. I didn’t know what to do at the time, so instead of leaving her outside, I kept her. After a few trips to the vet, she settled right into the place. She used to be 18lbs. and people would always ask if she was pregnant (her belly used to drag the floor), but she has always loved attention, and is never scared of new people. The only thing she likes more than yogurt is being loved on. She is the only cat that I’ve encountered who drools when pet excessively.

  438. says

    Tony:

    The ratlets are so damned cute, they’re gonna make me cry! And you named one Giles…

    Aaw, thanks! Yes, Giles was the first one named, after Giles de Mer, a character in the Dragon Knight series. Giles is a selkie. :)

    You fell down the stairs?
    I hope you’re feeling ok and that it wasn’t too bad a fall.

    Not all the way, thank goodness. If I had, I probably would have broken my neck. As it was, I broke our brand new wireless unit on my way down. Got the replacement today. I whacked my head pretty good and seriously fucked up my back, which was bad enough. I haz goooooooood drugs, though.

    Jessa:

    Ouch! Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery and less overall drama in the Caine household!

    Thank you! Less drama would be a very good thing.

  439. says

    Free Will poetry from Ambrose Bierce :

    A leaf was riven from a tree,
    “I mean to fall to earth,” said he.

    The west wind, rising, made him veer.
    “Eastward,” said he, “I now shall steer.”

    The east wind rose with greater force.
    Said he: “‘Twere wise to change my course.”

    With equal power they contend.
    He said: “My judgment I suspend.”

    Down died the winds; the leaf, elate,
    Cried: “I’ve decided to fall straight.”

    “First thoughts are best?” That’s not the moral;
    Just choose your own and we’ll not quarrel.

    Howe’er your choice may chance to fall,
    You’ll have no hand in it at all.

  440. Nutmeg says

    I went out for ice cream tonight with my friend whose sister is expecting triplets. I wrote here about all their family problems a while ago. Things are going okay, and the caesarian is scheduled for Monday or Tuesday next week. That will be at about 35 weeks development, and the triplets are apparently doing pretty well. Two boys, probably identical, and one girl.

    I can’t imagine how crazy it’s going to be around there for a while. I don’t have any child-care skills to offer, so I think I’ll just make casseroles and muffins. Lots of casseroles and muffins.

  444. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Ing:
    That’s Oscar here in Bizarro world…
    (can’t believe I made that mistake)

  445. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    WeedMonkey:
    I love that image.
    Thanks!

  446. says

    OK, birdie has been dropped off at wildlife rehab center. They say if she recovers fully we may be able to help release her. She was looking much more alert by the time we got there, trying to stand up and responding to stimulus, refusing to stay wrapped in the soft rags.

    Get well, birdie!

  447. says

    Just had a review of my gym program with my physio. She says she’s impressed with my progress and my motivation. It’s hard for me to see that. (I can walk for a whole *5* minutes now, woo-frickin-hoo!)

  450. thunk, not approaching gale crater says

    And to boot, I got back from the moon.

    Lots of potential energy released, but I had an atmosphere to take care of that.

  454. echidna says

    Alethea,
    If you are getting feedback like that, it’s progress. I do understand the frustration. Hang in there. *HUGS*

  455. Cipher, OM, Fighting Fucktoy says

    Alethea, I’m glad to hear your physio is impressed, but I’m sorry it’s so frustrating right now :( *hugs*

  456. thunk, safe behind a toasty heat shield says

    Alethea:

    Don’t worry; you’re making good progress. *Hugs etc*

  457. says

    Thanks thunk, Cipher, echidna. It can get pretty depressing at times – all the stuff I usually like to do is off the table, and there’s still no obvious diagnosis beyond asthma and a wibbly wobbly post-infectious fatigue syndrome.

  458. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Sitting here watching a few episodes of Batman: The Animated Series. I never noticed it before, but the style of animation shares much in common with the Max Fleisher Superman cartoons from 1941/’42. The style of animation, in addition to the use of color are better than many other ‘toons in the 40s, 50s and 60s. In fact, I’d argue the animation is better in many ways than that of the 1980s era I grew up in.

  459. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    kristinc:
    She’s beautiful!
    Question:
    How does a layperson determine the sex of a bird?

    ~~

    Alethea:

    (I can walk for a whole *5* minutes now, woo-frickin-hoo!)

    Every little bit helps (cliched, I know, but it’s still true). You have to start somewhere and it’s not as if your goals are going to be reached in a week. How many minutes were you able to walk before? If it was less than 5, then there’s an accomplishment. Imagine how much more you’ll be able to do in a month :)

  460. ChasCPeterson says

    How does a layperson determine the sex of a bird?

    Depends on the bird.
    Waxwings difer only by the amount and darkness of the chin feathers. Not visible in the photos supplied.

  462. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Tony: Which animated Batman is this? Was there one in the 1960s?

    When I hear Batman: The Animated Series, I automatically think of the one I grew up with in the 90s. A show that simply oozed atmosphere and grit. Very quality. But, like you, I don’t think I realized it at the time.

  463. The Laughing Coyote (Canis Sativa) says

    Tony: What Chas said.

    I call my bird “Jack” and refer to him as “he” all the time, but “Jack” could very easily be a “Jackie”.

    Apparently as far as I can tell with starlings, there are very few reliable indicators.

  464. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    Tony, that was one of the Formative Shows of My Childhood. And it holds up as well as any of them*. Batman Beyond was actually quite good as well, although I didn’t watch that until I was older.

    I think alot of people don’t realize just how important that series has become in the canon of the Caped Crusader, what with Harley Quinn and the sympathetic portrayal of Mr. Freeze being worked back into the comic continuity.

    Kevin Conroy’s voice work was absolutely amazing. He had a voice for Bruce Wayne and an unmistakably different one for Batman without resorting to some kind of bad karaoke death metal singer. Whenever I read a Batman book, it’s Conroy’s voice I hear. And do I even need to mention Mark Hamill?

    *And it goes without saying that it beats the skinny pants off anything the Kids These Days might be watching.

  465. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    THIS sound like fun.

    But what about the rest of the alphabet? Voiland would like to assemble the entire alphabet from space, so if you’ve seen a letter, let us know and perhaps your contribution will be featured by NASA or Wired.

    The article mentions that this isn’t limited to the English language. Earth-from-space gazers should have a blast!

  467. says

    Tony, in 6 weeks (with some gaps), my treadmill time has gone from 3 minutes @ 3kph to 5 mins @ 3.8kph, so that is a really substantial increase. (It’s determined by a combo of heart rate and Borg dyspnoea scale.) I really do know that I have to try to focus on that, and not on what I could do 14 months ago. But it’s hard. So I’m whingeing a bit.

  468. ChasCPeterson says

    please spare us from a defense of Larry Summers, kthx.

    no problem. Wouldn’t think of it.
    (I learned that lesson long ago. Even though the only thing I’ve ever said on the internet about Summers is “but that’s not what he said”–I doubt I’ve ever seen anybody who brought him up paraphrase him accurately–that has invariably been interpreted as me agreeing with the person’s misapprehension of what he said.)

    I gave her some cat food…and milk (it was many years later that I found out you’re not supposed to give cats human milk)

    *raises one eyebrow at Tony’s refrigerator contents*

  469. theophontes (坏蛋) says

    @ Esteleth

    I have sebaceous cysts. Like ten of them. D:

    Ten! Aaaargh! I had one and that was already too many. I had it removed under local anesthetic, which was quick and painless – until the anesthetic wore off. Thereafter it felt like I’d been stabbed in the back with a poker.

    @ Alethea

    Sterkte!

  470. theophontes (坏蛋) says

    @ Tony

    Alphabet from space…

    Try buildings.

    T,H,L and I should be easy. They are common layouts in Cape Dutch architecture.

    I have seen C, E,O and U in China.

  471. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    Mmmmmm 1AM dinner: Tempeh, Lettuce and Tomato on toasted whole wheat sourdough.

  472. says

    So, in the age of automated systems and instantaneous updates, my cell phone will probably not be functional until the end of the week. The overdue bill was (finally) paid by my mother who was supposed to pay it…last Friday during the day.

    Gee. I was unaware that corporations were allowed to punish one for late payment by withholding service after payment is made. Oh, wait, it’s not withholding service, they’re just delaying reactivating it because of…because of…umm…uhh…because of…

    …umm…

    …come on…think…

    …because it somehow takes as long or longer to send a signal travelling at c to my Blackberry from somewhere on Earth than it would take to send the same signal to the edge of the solar system.

    Somehow.

  473. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    @Setar I feel your pain. I’ve had my internet turned off a couple of times while my check was literally in the mail (and the shutoff notice came after I posted it).

    Apropos of (ahem) nothing in particular I have composed a new verse for Phil Ochs’ “Outside of a Small Circle of Friends”

    Last night in the elevator a woman got harassed
    He cornered her for coffee but he didn’t grab her ass
    Maybe we should have some standards, try to use our brains
    But misogyny is so much fun and she’s got herself to blame
    And I’m sure it wouldn’t interest anybody
    outside of a small circle of friends

    Anyone feel like writing more?

  474. birgerjohansson says

    (Look at the map) “Extreme Weather Disaster Area: This Is What the Climate Crisis Looks Like” http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-gore/extreme-weather-disaster-_b_1675032.html
    Very red states…”The U.S. Department of Agriculture has named over 1,000 counties in 26 states as disaster areas — the largest declaration in history” Note that the affected area mostly coincide with states run by denialist politicians :-)
    .
    Satellite sees Western U.S. high mountain blazes http://phys.org/news/2012-07-satellite-western-high-mountain-blazes.html
    — — — —
    If a pregnant woman gets rubella it can cause serious dmamage to the fetus.
    This should not be a problem with widespread vaccinations, but the town Järna in Sweden is a center for the antroposophic movement who oppose vaccinations. As a result “herd immunity” is no longer working and they have a rubella outbreak. Doctors now warn pregnant women from going to Järna.
    (Swedish language link) http://www.dn.se/nyheter/vetenskap/nar-tro-vager-tyngre-an-vetenskapen
    Yes, we have organised stupidity in Europe, too.

  475. Nightjar says

    TLC,

    Nightjar: Having seen a mole once myself, would you agree that they’re probably one of the worst adapted animals for running?

    Oh yes. They look ridiculous when they try. Especially evident on my bedroom floor.

    Ogvorbis,

    Boy had a wisdom tooth taken out last week.

    Heh. I had a wisdom tooth taken out yesterday (three down, one to go). Which is why I went right to bed after my comment, the painkillers got me all sleepy all of a sudden.

    Sorry to hear about his allergy to penicillin.

    kristinc,

    OK, birdie has been dropped off at wildlife rehab center. They say if she recovers fully we may be able to help release her.

    Good to hear. She’s very pretty. :)

  476. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    Chas:
    If you look in my refrigerator, you’d see there is no room for dead bodies.

  478. says

    I never have any human milk around, but I do let my cats have small amounts of cows’ milk. They’re generic tabbies, and a lot of European moggies have lactase persistence from generations of farm life.

  479. tbtabby says

    Has anyone seen Five Stupid Things for July 16, 2012 yet? Apparently “Rape is funny and it would be really funny if you got raped because rape is funny” is actually some kind of sophisticated irony, and not just a hack comedian pushing buttons for cheap shock value. Normally I agree with stevelikes2curse, but in this case I think he’s giving Daniel Tosh far too much credit.

  480. dysomniak, darwinian socialist says

    It would be a shame if anyone missed this gem from the @JREF twitter feed*:

    There’s no special secret for how you talk to women/christians/ufo nuts. You speak to people respectfully. – Penn #tam2012

    One of these things is not like the others…

    *Can’t seem to figure out how to link straight to the tweet right now. I blame the late hour and the four pints of IPA. Well, one of ’em anyways. Probably the last, but no telling with that sort. Shifty bastards, IPAs.

  481. John Morales says

    Tony,

    If you look in my refrigerator, you’d see there is no room for dead bodies.

    What if the bodies are in conveniently-sized pieces?

    (3-D packing problem)

  482. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    TLC:

    Tony: Which animated Batman is this? Was there one in the 1960s?

    When I hear Batman: The Animated Series, I automatically think of the one I grew up with in the 90s. A show that simply oozed atmosphere and grit. Very quality. But, like you, I don’t think I realized it at the time.

    The 90s animated series is the one I’m talking about. Haven’t watched any of the episodes in a while, and a wild hair crawled up my butt tonight.
    I loved the grittiness and atmosphere. It was perfectly moody and even managed to become *more* sophisticated as time passed.
    According to Wikipedia, it is the second Batman animated series (the first being THIS). He and Robin of course appeared in all incarnations of Super Friends, as well as some 2 part episodes of Scooby Doo. The 60s camp Batman (which was live action) is locked up in some legal issues, which is why it hasn’t been released on DVD/Blu Ray yet.
    ~~

    dysomniak:

    *And it goes without saying that it beats the skinny pants off anything the Kids These Days might be watching.

    I can’t really get into Batman: Brave & The Bold. It’s too simplistic and the animation is too retro. When I think of a Batman animated show, it’s always the Timmverse Batman.

    Oh, and I agree about Batman Beyond. What a fantastic show.

    ~~

    Just watched

    This Year’s Girlfrom S4 of Buffy. Watching “Hush” right now, and I can’t believe this episode didn’t win any awards. Hush, The Body and Once More, With Feeling are some of the best Buffy episodes.

  483. Tony aka The Psychic Octopus [safe and welcome at FtB] says

    John:

    What if the bodies are in conveniently-sized pieces?

    (3-D packing problem)

    Well, I did go grocery shopping yesterday and did chop up some romaine, some carrots and a few other things. I’m thinking I would remember doing the Wolverine on a dead body.

  485. KG says

    Very red states…”The U.S. Department of Agriculture has named over 1,000 counties in 26 states as disaster areas — the largest declaration in history” Note that the affected area mostly coincide with states run by denialist politicians :-) – birgirjohansson

    Hmm, I’m wary of appearing to wish natural disaster on areas where climate denialism is strong, but if it has to be someone… I’ve also read recently that the US east coast is likely to see significantly more sea-level rise than most places. The Gulf Stream, which carries water from Florida to Newfoundland then across the Atlantic, is expected to slow (although not, according to current expert opinion, stop), and water will back up and slop over Miami, Washington D.C. and New York.

  486. says

    It’s settled.

    My book is ready to be written and finished. (I just have to write it)

    I’ve come up with the three acts finally. I know how they end and begin. I know how things are going to play out. The story is ready to be written out in its entirety. I am super-excited!

    It has a lesbian couple (who aren’t lesbian for ‘hey look I have a lesbian couple’ but they are just lesbians,) it passes the Bechdel test with flying colors, it has minority characters in important roles. It has drama, it has action, it has humor.

    This is the book I’ve been trying to write for 15 years.

  487. Louis says

    There’s no special secret for how you talk to women/christians/ufo nuts. You speak to people respectfully. – Penn #tam2012

    I…

    But…

    You know the…

    Firstly…

    Ok. I’m broken by the sheer dumb of that tweet.

    I have three coherent thoughts:

    1) Recalcitrant, persistent, wilful idiots do not deserve to be dealt with respectfully. More than that, it’s counterproductive to treat them respectfully. Happily the majority of Christians etc are not aggressively this type of person, but there is a definite line that, when crossed by anyone, signals the need to move on from “respectful communication” to different tactics whatever they are.

    2) WOMEN ARE NOT SOME HOMOGENEOUS GROUP DEFINED BY COUNTERFACTUAL BELIEFS! THE “BELIEF” THAT WOMEN ARE PEOPLE TOO IS NOT COUNTERFACTUAL!!!!!!!!! ARGH!!!!! LOUIS SMASH!!!!!

    3) Penn strikes me as a bit of an arse.

    Louis

  488. says

    Oh and this morning I decided that Karthus is going to be a Freeworlder rather than Trisha. Something irked me about the “white guy with black girlfriend” trope (it’s the ‘safe’ interracial option) so I went with the “black guy with white girlfriend” trope instead. And Karthus was one of those characters who was not quite developed in my mental image.

    So now we have a black man running the Investigative Unit. A minority – who has prejudice wielded against him – in a position of power. Eans is a Freeworlder as well, and he will still be killed to push Owin’s characterization.

  489. Nightjar says

    I, for one, am touched Penn would speak to me respectfully like he does to Christians and ufo believers. It is very considerate of him.

    *eyeroll*

  490. says

    Nightjar:

    I, for one, am touched Penn would speak to me respectfully like he does to Christians and ufo believers.

    I imagine Penn’s respectful approach, when it came to a woman would be braying sexism, expecting a woman to be happy at inclusion in the boy’s club. A Tits or GTFO method.

    Years ago, I felt sorry in passing for his daughter when he announced he was naming her Moxie. I seriously feel sorry for her now.

  491. carlie says

    I like how he was speaking to his audience on how to talk to women, implying that there weren’t any women in the audience.

  492. Louis says

    Caine,

    {Glassy look comes over Louis’ visage}

    [Menz™ Voice]

    I sorry I not read your comment because lack of TITS in.

    Please Lady Persons™ with your Pink Fluffy Lady Brainz™, try understand Menz™ need only TITS or SAMMICHES, with teh side orders like blow jobs and beers. Please to not be pretending to has status of real persons like Menz™.

    Naughty LadyPerson™ to has sorry feelings for a Menz™’s woman-possession. This could hurt his Man Fee Fees and cause Pee Pee Shrivellege, which is an criminal thing.

    You are to being more cautious with Viperous Lady Tongue™ from now on, or else Menz™ will administer Severe Looks™.

    [/Menz™ Voice]

    {Shakes head}

    {Glassy look dissipates}

    Whu?

    OH NOES!!!! DONTKILLMEPLEASE!!!!! IT WAS AUTOPRIVILEGE CHANNELLING OR SOMETHING!!!!!

    Louis

  493. says

    @Tony

    I may have left it out of my post about LHR, but I had it done to my neck and cheeks. It was really painful just under my goatee, and on both sides of my mouth. So we can commiserate together :)

    Ah, in that case. Yes, then you know what I’m talking about :)

  495. Louis says

    Nightjar,

    {Sounds of confusion induced cognitive dissonance and breaking from Louis’ brain}

    I…

    Bdurp…

    SPROING!

    Hrnnn hrn hrn Tits. Yuk guffaw snirk

    Louis

  496. says

    I’ve always been somewhat skeptical of Penn’s skepticism. After his outburst on twitter, I pretty much lost all remaining respect for him.

  498. Ogvorbis: Dogmaticus sycophantus says

    And that is the extent of my Russian.

    Not to worry. That was an attempt at Macedonian.