Hambone v3.0

Romance on the Holidays Friday Open Thread

Stephen Green at PJMedia rightly says…

It’s been nearly two decades since “Baby, It’s Cold Outside” earned the ire of our finger-wagging, no-fun, culture scolds.

but this,

The actual history of the tune is that Frank Loesser wrote it for himself and his wife to perform as a duet. And not just sung, but to be performed, perfectly staged, live at parties. The Journal spoke with their daughter, Susan, who said that “the reference to what is in the woman’s drink was common at the time, signifying only that having an alcoholic beverage was cool.” When I was a young boy in the ’70s, I can remember on many occasions my grandmother asking the very same thing when my grandfather had poured her a stiff one, and him replying, “Nothing I didn’t make for you last night,” or words to that effect. The same generation as the Loessers, middle age didn’t make them any less playful with one another.

Although for now, Green offers this and I cannot disagree,

For those of us who don’t need to make jokes — the ones who know how to be civilized grownups and take part in civilized grownup delights — I offer to you what is in my mind the definitive version of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”

Recorded in 1962 by Ann-Margret and Al Hirt, to me, their performance most perfectly captures the seductive nature of the lyrics. And the music, performed by a small jazz group including Red Norvo on vibes and Gerald Hirt on trombone, is appropriately and perfectly sultry. It’s virtually foreplay with their clothes on, and it became my all-time favorite version the first time I heard it, almost 30 years ago.

I hope you’ll enjoy it, too.

In 1964, I went to see Viva Las Vegas at the Oak Village theater on Long Point at Witte Road in Spring Branch. I wanted to marry Ann-Margret then and there.  Hey, I was twelve years old and she was only twenty-three.  That’s not such a big difference.

And there is this later version I am partial to…

May all my Christian friends have a wonderful, warm Christmas. If it is in the cards for you, might it be a romantic one, too.

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79 responses to “Romance on the Holidays Friday Open Thread”

  1. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    I guess that front slowed down a bit it’s 35 here down from 39 @ 4 AM! It was 53 at 9 PM last night and 56 at midnight so I figure 39 will be the high for the day since they were predicting 32 for a high. When I woke up at 4 AM I could hear the wind howling every now and then so it will be breezy today. Checking my weather station, 5-6 MPH is the highest wind so far.

    SO! Bundle up on the Friday and Mornin’ Gang

  2. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    From last night;

    How long has Super Dave been around here? It’s been a loooooong time.

    And I never had the tiniest inkling that he ever gave one whit about music of any kind.

    Ya just never know about people.

    HA! Texpat and Squawk got it right to some extent I am a history buff and naturally Alabama and Texas history always catches my attention but about music. I came of age in the 60’s and early 70’s so I listened to Rock N Roll all the time I even had a Pioneer 8 track, (two of them) but I didn’t keep track of the artists, if I liked it I listened to it. Except for around Christmas I only listened to the radio in my car or truck and that was about the only thing on the radio for years. As an adult I tuned into public radio some and before you frown they did have some good programs before the country lost it’s mind. After I turned 30 I just got tired of the same old music over and over and there was NOTHING NEW that was worth listening to. Not long after that Rush showed up and talk radio took off so all my radio buttons were set for AM, 560 KLVI, 700 KSEV, 740 KTRH, 950 KPRC and 1070 (don’t remember the call sign).  BTW; I was spoiled in the Houston area with many good stations, over here we have one talk radio channel and it’s FM the only AM’s left are one sports channel and a few religious ones. Without Sat Radio I’d not listen to much of anything. I have exactly one “music” channel programed on Sat Radio guess which one?……  71 Seriously Sinatra and I never listened to him until I was over 50.

     

  3. bsue54 Avatar
    bsue54

    If I recall correctly,  yesterday was the first day of winter… This morning it is 14 degrees here in the woods.

     

  4. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    and there was NOTHING NEW that was worth listening to.

    Yes. Sadly, by the time the 80’s rolled around, Rock was on its death bed, near-comatose. Disco, earlier, had delivered a mortal blow.

  5. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I don’t know about the rest of you, but the Ann Margret/Al Hirt video in the OC appears embargoed for me.

    I couldn’t find it elsewhere, but I did find this recording of it on YouTube:

    https://youtu.be/pVPqhtYG3VQ

  6. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Looks like we made it to 13°.

  7. bsue54 Avatar
    bsue54

    #6 Shannon – it must be all the trees over here that kept us so much warmer than ya’ll LOLOLOLOL

  8. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    36000 without power in metro Houston.  My heart goes out to them.

  9. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Did you see the cool video from Mars?

    No sign of the American Flag that Sheila Jackson Lee talked about.

  10. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    To add insult to injury the power company is delaying repairs because of high winds.  They will not put the bucket trucks up in winds over 30 knots

  11. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    The Ann-Margret & Al Hirt duet is auto-generated by YouTube and then somebody complains and it gets taken down.  It’s now back up…for a little while, I guess.

    Listen while you can.  It is a great version.

  12. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    OK it’s 30 now bright and sunny up from 29 @ 7 AM, I’ll call that the low. And with that enough weather for the day but just let me close with Brrrr.

    Listen while you can.  It is a great version.

    It sure is.

  13. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    It’s Hell Naw! degrees over here.

  14. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I’m sitting here with the sun right in my face.  It’ll move in a bit, but before then life will be difficult.  But no difficult that I can’t bring you today’s C&C:

    100% INJURED ☙ Friday, December 23, 2022 ☙ C&C NEWS

    (Yesterday’s little bird is back, trying to fly or peck it’s way through the glass on my back door.  It just flew away, but I’m sure it will be back.)

    Greetings and salutations, C&Cers; it’s Friday, the eve of Christmas Eve. Your packed pre-holiday roundup includes: the highest official ever in Australia testifies against jabs; scientists are baffled that Americans’ life expectancy took a sudden and unexpected turn for the worse last year; two brave Republicans take Coffee & Covid advice and file liability bill; guess what a surprising worldwide study shows actually increases life expectancy; Kari Lake makes a confident post-trial statement; Baby Alex; in a Christmas miracle, Sam Bankman-Fried makes $250 million dollar bail and will enjoy the holiday at home; holiday reading suggestions; and a warm Christmas message from our favorite clown doctor.

  15. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    From today’s C&C:

    Eat Cows, Live Long.

     

    ”Speaking of life expectancies, back in February the International Journal of General Medicine published an under-reported study titled, “Total Meat Intake is Associated with Life Expectancy: A Cross-Sectional Data Analysis of 175 Contemporary Populations.”

    The study — of 175 countries! — compared meat and carb intake with life expectancy, after controlling for a whole bunch of factors like caloric intake, urbanization, obesity, and education levels. Their conclusion:

    Worldwide, bivariate correlation analyses revealed that meat intake is positively correlated with life expectancies… In contrast, carbohydrate crops showed weak and negative correlation with life expectancy… Meat intake, or its adequate replacement, should be incorporated into nutritional science to improve human life expectancy.”
  16. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Maybe the doctor muzzling is ending?

    Australia’s News.com ran a surprising story Wednesday headlined, “Dr. Kerryn Phelps Reveals ‘Devastating’ Covid Vaccine Injury, Says Doctors Have Been ‘Censored’.”

    Because of her explosive testimony in the Australian parliament’s enquiry into “long covid” this week, Dr. Kerryn Phelps became the highest official in Australia yet to criticize the mRNA treatments.

    /snip

    This week, Phelps testified that BOTH she AND her wife, pictured above, have suffered serious, continuing injures from the covid shots. She also said she thinks the REAL rate of adverse events is much, much higher than has been admitted, thanks to underreporting and “threats” from medical regulators.

    Given the draconian measures instituted in Australia, to speak up like this is a great show of bravery. She reports that they did their homework before getting jabbed, but were misinformed.  I guess it’s not the right form of “misinformation,” though, because no one is going to jail.

    Yet.  I can hope.

    The list of neurological and autoimmune injuries that they suffered are severe.  She reports that they are not alone in the medical community, that others have suffered debilitatin injuries as well.  So why isn’t there more of an outcry:

    The AMA’s former chief testified that her family isn’t alone among healthcare professionals, but none of them will talk about it, because there has been a kind of official omertà to silence everybody, enforced by government officials threatening their medical licenses

    The medical board later backtracked their statement about censoring doctors, once it became a public issue.  They crawdadded that topic quickly.  Childers points out, though, that (1) Dr. Phelps’ testimony wasn’t swept under the rug and disappeared, and (2)Dr. Phelps now feels confident enough to go public with their personal battle with the jab. As Childers says, “The tide is turning.”

  17. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Those frozen-solid deck boards on the wheelchair ramp were pretty creaky this morning.

  18. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    More C&C:

     In a highly under-reported story, on December 1st, two courageous Republicans, Louie Gohmert (R-Tx) and Ronny Jackson (R-Tx), jointly filed House Bill 9366, titled “To amend titles III and XXI of the Public Health Service Act to hold vaccine manufacturers liable for injuries caused by vaccines subject to a public mandate, and for other purposes.”

    /snip

    It appears to be aimed at both liability protection as well as mandates, since the way it’s worded, it would discourage mandates and encourage granting religious (and other) exemptions.

    Unfortunately, I don’t have much confidence this bill will pass THIS YEAR. But massive props to Representatives Gohmert and Jackson for getting the ball rolling. We will remember them both when next elections come around. Language like this should also be slid into every massive appropriations bill that comes down the pike, and re-filed every single legislative session.

    /snip

    Things like this proposed bill — even if it doesn’t pass — are the building blocks of accountability. It’s happening, and it’s coming faster than I expected.

    I get a little happy thrill that someone in Texas is getting noticed by Childers.  As he says, the tide is turning, and we need to keep up the pressure.

  19. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    C&C contributor and supporter @Margaret Anna Alice wrote an important Substack this week, about the tragic, hair-raising story of Baby Alex, in her mother’s own words. Baby Alex’s calamitous death illustrates the dreadful dangers of mRNA-contanimated blood transfusions.

    Don’t wait for corporate media to tell you about this.

    Baby Alex: The Definitive Account—in His Mother’s Own Words

    I was worried about possibly needing a transfusion during surgery.  I asked about giving some of my own blood, just in case, but it needed to be done 2 weeks ahead of time.  Fortunately, I didn’t need one.

    I remember that the last time I gave blood, one of the questions inquired if I had taken any experimental vaccines or drugs lately.  When I said no, I was told that I could be a “whole blood donor”.  I don’t know if folks who’ve been jabbed can be whole blood donors, or if their blood has to be screened so they become, say, platelet donors only.

    If they ARE screening out jabbed blood, that does not bode well for our blood supplies.

  20. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

     For your holiday reading, I offer you yesterday’s Federalist article consistent with C&C philosophy, headlined, “Ordinary Americans Are Going To Have To Save The Country Themselves, One Town At A Time.”

    The sub-headline explains, “What can regular people do to take back their country from woke radicals? Take over local institutions, one at a time.”

    Exactly correct!

    It’s the C&C way. Jettison the Superman fallacy, that some magical figure will emerge from the soiled mists of politics, to save us from ourselves, and somehow stop Congress from wiring billions of tax dollars to an endless proxy war that is always right on the very brink of victory. Instead, we just need to roll up our sleeves and get to work — right where we’ve been planted.

    As a preview, here’s the last paragraph from the article:

    The same goes for the library, the school board, and every other local institution in every American town like Taylor. Conservatives have to take them over if they can. To answer the question we began with, THAT is what ordinary people can do. And they have to start now. No one is coming to help, and time is running out.

    /snip

    Here’s the link: Ordinary Americans Will Have To Save The Country Themselves.

     

  21. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I have to keep reminding myself that I’m not allowed to cross my legs.

    I didn’t realize how often I did that until I had to stop myself from doing it.

  22. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    The bird is back.  I anticipate I’ll be enjoying its company off and on for the rest of the day.

  23. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    Hadn’t occurred to me before a possible contaminated blood supply.

  24. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    Morning gang.  Woke up to 11 degrees this morning; up to about 14 now headed for a high of 23.  Condensate on the inside of some of the windows is ice this morning.  Went out for coffee this morning, and the streets were virtually deserted.  A few hard liners showed up, but I guess everyone else  is out doing Christmas stuff.  Larry’s not going to open back up until Tuesday, so I’ll be drinking coffee at home for a few days it looks like.  I rattled the cat food this morning like I normally do before putting it out in the bowl, and one cat remembered what that rattling sound was all about and came running.  I’m pretty sure it is the same cat that I named Crispy Too back before the winter storm of 2021 who disappeared for a while back then.  He’s been hanging around here lately and is more tame that the others, but he still will not let me touch him although I’m getting close.  The rest of them just scatter when I show up.  Birds are feeding on the bird feeder.  I’m sure the water trough is frozen over, but I’m not going out there to do anything about it – it’ll just freeze over again anyway.  No visible pipe damage so far.  I think UH plays football around 2PM, so I’ll be watching.  Air Force kicked the crap out of Baylor last night – that was somewhat surprising to me.  Of course, I do not know how many of the Baylor regular players skipped the game to prepare for the NFL draft or to enter the transfer portal.

    Brother’s family headed to Colorado from St. Louis got diverted to Austin last night.  Don’t know what the forecast for Denver is today.  Local brother and his wife are both sick and hiding out.

    You all have a great day.  This weather should bring out the Christmas spirit in everyone.

  25. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    Here’s Ammo Grrrll:  https://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2022/12/thoughts-from-the-ammo-line-456.php

  26. bsue54 Avatar
    bsue54

    #16 Shannon – yours are not the only ones LOL

  27. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    The story of Baby Alex is heart-rending.  The staff responsible for giving him vax-contaminated blood should be charged with negligent homicide, at the very least.

    Here is the Rumble interview with the mother by a New Zealand independent journalist.  In New Zealand, this is a source of huge controversy because the government has kidnapped an infant from its parents when they requested only non-vax blood be used for a blood transfusion for their child.

  28. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    One of our plants is on a Center Point power line and has no power.

    About as far out in the boonies as you can get for them.

    Thank goodness the rest are on San Bernard.

  29. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I needed a haircut a month ago. Factor in the no-water-for-a-shower this morning , which would’ve tamed the Bed Head rat’s nest, and you have a really bad hair day.

    That’s what caps are for.

  30. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Here is a site called The Covid Blog and they have run down everything they could on the doctor who authorized the transfusion that killed Baby Alex.  Lots more interesting details about the parents and the doctor, Eleane Beadle.  All searches of Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital medical staff indicate Eleane Beadle has been scrubbed from their sites which is not surprising.  She was a US Army doc schooled and trained at Walter Reed and Army bases so the American taxpayer paid for it.

  31. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Shannon

    Which well site is on Center Point ?

  32. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Texpat

    Only the Millheim Booster Station.

    Which we can bypass when necessary. But we still had a bunch wake up to no water this morning.

  33. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    28 Shannon

    Dang, what a headache.

  34. Katfish Avatar
    Katfish

    A balmy 25 in Katy – topping out at 30 today.

    Low Sat morning 24 – topping out at 41

    Low Sunday morning 22 – topping out at 48!!!

    It appears IF we were going to have plumbing issues we’d already have had such.

    *THANKFUL* it has not been worse this time around!

  35. Katfish Avatar
    Katfish

    One of the better versions I’ve ever heard! SING it Fellas!

    https://youtu.be/CwfkGj51S2c

  36. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    This appears to be a great book out now by two recovering academics.

    The opening paragraph quoted from the book:

    The average American college hopeful would be better off drilling a hole in his head than attending a present-day university. He’d learn about as much, wouldn’t be financially crippled with student debt, and would likely avoid acquiring a variety of sexually transmitted diseases. And if a drill to the head sounds like self-harm, what do you think four to six years of safe spaces, trigger warnings, grievance studies, and neo-Marxist indoctrination amounts to, if not an expensively acquired ritual lobotomy?

    Don’t Go to College: A Case for Revolution

    George Leef reviews the book at the James G. Martin Center.

    Robillard and Gordon reply that the country needs more people with skills. College does remarkably little to impart useful skills. The authors admonish young people who are considering college to look instead for apprenticeship programs that will start them on productive careers without the waste of time and debt load that come with college credentials.

    Far from preparing students for happy, fulfilling lives, college tends to retard maturity. The authors write, “Mass-manufactured collegians have given us a society where young graduates join the work force and run around cities and suburbs thinking like self-obsessed adolescents, yet aping many of the purposive movements of busy grown-ups who head families.” Thanks to college, a large percentage of young Americans suffer from arrested development.

    plus this,

    Until rather recently, a decision not to go to college raised gasps of horror, since most Americans have been led to believe that anyone who doesn’t get a college degree is destined for a life of drudgery. All “good” jobs supposedly require a college degree. But that claim is quickly crumbling as more and more employers turn to the assessment of abilities rather than using college completion as a screening device. Education researcher Bruno Manno relays the good news in his article, “Employers Are Shifting from Degree-Based to Skills-Based Hiring, and It’s About Time.”

    One of the suggestions distinguished law professor Glenn Reynolds made recently about reforming the legal profession is going back to allowing people to “read for the law”.  Independent study and apprenticeship and then allow those autodidacts to take the bar exam.

    Back in the 1970s, Texas Instruments offered extensive aptitude testing to everyone who wanted to apply for a job.  A friend of mine had a burgeoning millworks business and a poor, down on his luck employee decided to go take the tests at TI.  This guy came from a very destitute background, a dysfunctional family and had about a ninth grade education.  He looked the part, but the results of TI exams revealed a genius IQ and they hired him right into their advanced lab developing bubble memory at the time.  For the first time in his life, he bought a new car and a condo.

    Guess what ruined it all ?  Leftwing lawyers across the country started filing lawsuits against this practice by companies with claims it discriminated against minorities.  They won enough judgments that companies stopped doing it and opted to just require bachelor degrees for virtually all jobs.  This, of course, fed right into government/academic demand for all students to attend college, the vast expansion of federal loan/grant programs and the funding of hundreds of billions of dollars for higher education we never really needed.

    The higher Ed industry produced a lot of leftist people with useless degrees so they had to keep expanding the sector to provide jobs for these graduates or the failure of the scheme would be exposed.  Now we have a nation in which college administrators exceed the number of actual professors on campuses and are paid exorbitant salaries to flog idiocy like diversity, inclusion and equity.*

    It is beyond ironic the tide has begun to turn back and the private sector realizes in this era of labor shortages, college degrees have become so degraded they are being forced back to ways that actually worked and just might discover hidden talents in people otherwise excluded from the workforce.

    *I always write it so the acronym is DIE.

  37. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    No surprise here;

    Jesse Watters Makes History With Primetime Fox News Show — Sets All-Time Record

    Popular TV host Jesse Watters of Fox News has set a new all-time record with his primetime show on the network.

    “Jesse Watters Primetime” was the fastest-growing cable news program of 2022 and finished the year with the highest-rated 7 p.m. hour in cable news history.

    “For the first time in television history, a non-primetime cable program closed out the year as cable’s most-watched in total viewers,” the Fox News release said.

    Watters managed to set the record at 7 p.m. ET despite the fact that many people are still at their 9-to-5 jobs on the West Coast.

    Watters is also a regular co-host of “The Five” which airs at 5 p.m. ET.

    In 2022, Fox News had 13 of the top 15 cable news programs in total viewers.

    “In terms of total day viewership, Fox News was the only one of the top three networks to grow year over year in both the key 25-54 age demographic and in terms of total viewers,” Mediaite reported.

    And those Clowns on PMSNBCBSCNN can’t figure out how Fox does it. Pitiful jus pitiful,….Jed Clampett

  38. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Sounds like Ammo Girl has hated the  Dodgers a lot longer than I. 🙂

  39. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    I just got up from yet another nap.  My meds can lay me out without even trying.   Maybe it’s God’s way of getting me caught up on all that sleep that I lost over the years.

    I could’ve easily lain abed for at least another hour, but made myself get up.  Used the walker as I was still a little groggy and didn’t want to “fall over and lay there”™.

  40. Tedtam Avatar
    Tedtam

    Texpat

    Until rather recently, a decision not to go to college raised gasps of horror, since most Americans have been led to believe that anyone who doesn’t get a college degree is destined for a life of drudgery. All “good” jobs supposedly require a college degree. But that claim is quickly crumbling as more and more employers turn to the assessment of abilities rather than using college completion as a screening device.

    I remember being hired for a contract because I had both skills and a college degree.  Without the degree, the manager could not have hired me.  That puzzled and angered me, since all of the skills they wanted for this job were acquired after I graduated college, when I learned hands-on how build databases and write code.

    If I hadn’t had that degree after my  name, I could have been the best code jockey on the planet and it would not have made a difference. Well, the hiring company would’ve lost a great employee.  But I remember wondering how many qualified people were being overlooked because they didn’t spend four years learning stuff that had no bearing on the job?

    /smh

  41. mharper42 Avatar
    mharper42

    Well, my potted elephant ears are all droopy. The critters’ water tub is frozen. I don’t like winter. Think I’ll just go back to bed.

     

  42. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Shannon

    You were 2 years old and I was 5 the year the Brooklyn Dodgers announced their move to Los Angeles.  Mom must have been in a bad mood all summer long.  She couldn’t believe they were moving and never forgave them.

    Here’s some interesting background on the history.  I had forgotten about the New York Giants baseball team or that at one time New York City had three professional teams – two National League and one American League.  The NL agreed to the Dodgers’ move only if the Giants also moved to San Francisco.  Both teams opened the 1958 season on the West Coast.

    In many ways, the team’s journey to Los Angeles started in 1950 when Walter O’Malley became the majority owner of the team, purchasing enough shares from Branch Rickey to make the decisions. O’Malley’s biggest priority was to secure a new stadium for the Dodgers. His desire for a new stadium wasn’t purely financial. In fact, the Dodgers were the only National League team that turned a profit between 1952 and 1956. Rather, O’Malley recognized that the iconic Ebbets Field was old and outdated. It was too small, and with the rise of automobiles, there wasn’t enough parking for the fans who wanted to attend games.

  43. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    A decade or more before Roy Hofheinz built the Astrodome in 1965, in New York City…

    From the link in my comment at 1:06 PM

    O’Malley was nothing if not ambitious in his vision for what the team’s new stadium would look like. He wanted to build a 55,000-seat stadium with a dome and a movie theater on the premises. Such a stadium would have been groundbreaking and trend-setting at the time, so naturally, it was met with opposition.

  44. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    34 Tedtam

    It’s a national scandal and perpetual crisis, as far as I’m concerned.  The “Racial Industry” in this country has done untold damage to the American people, not the least of which have been minorities themselves.  The whole college degree requirement for the vast amount of openings (even in many STEM fields) was the result of “disparate impact” and “discrimination law”, close cousins of Critical Race Theory.

  45. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    Driving around doing errands the other day there was some sports guy on the radio who mentioned that Houston, soon to be the 3rd largest city, had one baseball team, the two cities above it had two teams each. I was in and out of the car so not sure the point he was making but I hadn’t ever thought of it like that, so I assume as long as the Astros stay a decent team they should have some advantage in jersey sales, fan support.

  46. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    I suppose you’d have to factor in that the Yankees and Dodgers both have fan support across the country, bigly, maybe if the ‘Stros keep this mini dynasty going they’d do so as well. After, everyone quit hating on them of course.

  47. Adee Avatar
    Adee

    Good still windy and cold afternoon, Hamsters,

    We have just made it to 32 at 3 pm after a morning low of 16 at 7 am.   The fountain’s water is frozen solid.  The birds could skate on it, but they are more interested in eating and finding places to keep warm in the sun.

    The nightmare of traveling by air just about anywhere in the country seems to be getting worse, not better.  Blizzard conditions in the Midwest, flights cancelled left and right, planes covered in ice, runways covered in ice, passengers stuck in airports rapidly filling up with more customers.  Chaos reigns it seems.

    Glad we are not going anyplace for the holidays.  Just watching the news is nerve-wracking enough.

  48. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Battleship Texas update.  They mention at the last that there are tours on the dock to see the ship.   Battleship Texas dry dock tours is only $150 during the holiday season.  Here is the link to register.

  49. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Anyone wanna sponsor me to take the tour?  I will pay for BSue ……. maybe.  I promise to take a butt load of pictures.

  50. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    Weird. I was thinking about looking for a fresh Battleship Texas update for this weekend.

  51. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    Once a con man, always a con man I guess.  Especially if you are a Dem donor.,  https://www.coindesk.com/consensus-magazine/2022/12/23/bankman-frieds-incredible-shrinking-250-million-bond/

  52. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    All the way up to 29 degrees with bright sunshine out here today.  Probably going to be the high for the day.  Roads are all ice free since no precip, but it’s bitterly cold out there if you are tempted to go out since it looks so nice from the inside.

  53. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Here is a perfect example why parents should not waste their life savings to send Johnny to college.  Get him a job as a plumber’s apprentice.

    Behold University of Rhode Island professor and Director of Graduate Studies Erik Loomis:

    “Science, statistics, and technology are all inherently racist because they are developed by racists who live in a racist society, whether they identify as racists or not,” Loomis tweeted in reference to a New York Times article.

    “This is why I have so much contempt for those, including many liberals, who ‘just want the data.’ The data is racist!” he continued.

    Loomis has come under scrutiny several times in the past for tweets and blog posts. He most recently made news for his blog post “Why was Michael Reinoehl Killed?” a reference to ANTIFA supporter Michael Reinoehl who was killed by police after killing Trump supporter Aaron “Jay” Danielson during an earlier clash.

    After a commenter called Loomis out for his position on his post, Loomis replied “He killed a fascist. I see nothing wrong with it, at least from a moral perspective.”

    Loomis’ latest comments come at a time during which “systemic racism” is a prevalent topic in academic circles.

    You have to ask yourself:  If all the data, all the intellectual content Professor Loomis has at his university is racist, why have the school at all ?  Why not fire Loomis, perhaps file charges against him and close the campus because they’re running a fraudulent criminal organization ?

  54. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    On Saturday, some tree-huggers protesting the removal of eucalyptus trees in the East Bay Hills decided that their hugs needed more intimacy, and stripped naked to hug eucalyptus trees (no nudity at this link) on the University of California Berkeley campus for a photography shoot.

    Roughly 50-75 people showed up for the protest, which was organized by the Tree Spirit Project, founded by Jack Gescheidt, who brought a six-man crew with photographer Ted Friedman snapping photos of the naked protesters.

    In October 1991, a huge wildfire in the area burned over 3,300 homes, killed 25 people and injured 150 more.

    In September 2014, 12 elected officials from the Berkeley area signed a letter sent to the Federal Emergency Management Agency to approve funding to remove the trees from Claremont Canyon. The eucalyptus trees were then marked for removal by the Federal Emergency Management Agency because of the fire-risk they posed to Claremont Canyon and surrounding areas.

    WARNING:  Get eye bleach if you decide to look to follow the link on the page to see the protestors.

    This hilarity involves several “environmentalist” organizations with conflicting goals, one of which wants to clear all the trees.  They are the only remotely sane ones.

    The first place I lived in California 50 years ago had a long driveway up a steep hill that was lined with eucalyptus trees on one side and walnut trees on the other.  I knew then those gum trees were heavy with eucalyptus oil and had to be at least as flammable as pine trees, if not more.  The eucalyptus trees are not native and were imported from Australia to California in the mid-1800s.

    Do enviromaniacs, clothed or naked, care about human life or animal life ?

    Of course not, they’re environmentally ill.

    These hardy plants have delightfully scented, volatile oil in all parts of the plant. The tree sheds bark and dead leaves, which make a perfect pile of tinder under the tree too. When the oils in the tree heat up, the plant releases flammable gas, which ignites into a fireball. This accelerates the eucalyptus fire hazards in a region and discourages firefighting efforts. Removal of the trees has been recommended largely due to eucalyptus fire damage but also because they are taking the place of native species. The plants are considered dangerous in fire prone areas because of their habit of shooting sparks if they catch fire. Eucalyptus oil and fire are a match made in heaven from the fire’s perspective but a nightmare for those of us in its path.

  55. mharper42 Avatar
    mharper42

    These cats don’t comprehend how lucky they are to live indoors. My wild visitors don’t comprehend how lucky they are to have food on the patio day and night, plus I just managed to dump and break up the 4-inch thick ice floe atop their water tub.

    *I* do realize how nice it was to have a long nap under the blankets and quilts, with several purring cats leaning on me.

  56. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Can someone explain to me why the government is stock piling Tamiflu?  Our beneviolent task masters are releasing Tamiflu to states that are short on it.

  57. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    More on the FTX scandal and the crooked prosecutors, the judge, and the whole convoluted mess.  The $250 million dollar bond that never existed, now admitted he was released with no bail at all.  Crooks, all of them.  https://apnews.com/article/cryptocurrency-technology-business-manhattan-extradition-1ba52134bcf7ad1ce80c6b34186f5496 See my #42 for starters.

  58. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    #45 – The answer should be obvious.  Hand it out to Dems who are sick, with hold it from states that vote the wrong way.

  59. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    The 18 traitor Republican senators who voted for the Bankrupt America Act this week got all the attention and deservedly so.

    Today, though, the House passed the same atrocity and nine crapweasel Republicans voted Yea for the bill.

    The nine include Reps. John Katko (NY), Chris Jacobs (NY), Brian Fitzpatrick (PA), Fred Upton (MI), Rodney Davis (IL), Jaime Herrera Beutler (WA), Steve Womack (AR), Adam Kinzinger (IL), and Liz Cheney (WY).

    I have emboldened the names of those who were either gerrymandered out of office, lost their race or chose not to run again.  Consider this vote their final eff-you to the American people.

    and finally…

    Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was the only Democrat “no” vote. Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) voted present.

  60. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    45 Squawk

    One of the warehouses where stockpiled medicine, and medical supplies, are kept.

    They are the size of seven Super Walmarts and there are a series of them owned by you and the other 335 million Americans, but they are all a secret and you aren’t allowed to know where they are.

    Congress authorized the creation of the SNS, then known as the National Pharmaceutical Stockpile, in 1999, the CDC says.

    The federal government originally created the SNS to combat chemical or biological attacks. It has since been used to help with outbreaks, such as the Ebola virus and monkeypox (now called mpox), but officials began to take note of its use when the pandemic led to drastic shortages of critical medical supplies.

    But despite its creation, budget cuts, issues with the global supply chain and manufacturing problems made the SNS ill-equipped to deal with the pandemic, according to an NPR investigation. Even nine months into the pandemic, the investigation found, the SNS still lacked critical medical supplies.

  61. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    I can’t tell you how glad I am Fred Upton is leaving the House of Representatives.  He has held numerous powerful committee chairs and wielded plenty of power in 35 years in the House selling out conservatives.

    At 38%, Upton scored even worse than Murkowski in the American Conservative Union ratings in 2022.  Adam Kinzinger scored 42% and Susan Collins rated at 41%.  When you look up RINO in the dictionary, there is a photo of Fred Upton there.  His only redeeming factor is his niece is Justin Verlander’s wife.

  62. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    It’s already down to 12° here before 8 PM.  I bet we’ll drop below 10° before sunup.

  63. Dr phil Good-E=1984 Avatar
    Dr phil Good-E=1984

    That Al Hirt Ann Margaret version ain’t bad.

    I still like Dino’s best.

  64. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Good grief

  65. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    I hate the gubernment.  Gotta go some guys with black glasses on are knocking at my door. They are saying something about me being a Jan 6 supporter.

  66. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Amazon is promoting a wireless meat thermometer with a 500 foot reach for the handheld monitor.  It’s the perfect gift for the lazy cook.

    GJT ?  Super Dave ?

  67. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    50 Squawk

    Back in 2017, I marched in the Israel Day Parade in New York City with the Lone Soldiers’ organization, the American volunteers who serve in the Israel Defense Forces.  I have on my brand new, super cool, prescription Ray-Ban sunglasses, fresh short haircut and I’m surrounded by dozens of short Jewish marchers.  At over 6′, I stand out like a sore thumb.  Friends see me on TV and texted to say while I’m parading, “Nice to know you, but you look just like an undercover FBI agent and the Jihadi snipers are going to take you out first.”

    I looked at news video later and they were right.

    https://hamous.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Israel-Day-Parade-2017.jpg

  68. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Amazon is promoting a wireless meat thermometer with a 500 foot reach for the handheld monitor.  It’s the perfect gift for the lazy cook.

    GJT ?  Super Dave ?

    Naw, I’m old school, stab in analog for me.

  69. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    I have to get up early, heat up some bath and shave water on the stove, and be at church by 9am.

  70. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    My #51 My boy is a pretty good smoker/griller with his fancy Traeger pellet smoker and he communicates with it using his phone. That’s fine but not for me and I don’t think I could go with a fancy Traeger hell it took me years to go from charcoal to gas but I still use charcoal for smoking.

  71. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Baby it’s cold outside! 24.7 degrees F, average wind 3.6 MPH, wind chill 20 F. TOO DAMN COLD!! Oh and I think our high today was 33.

  72. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Texpat

    Damn son you do look like one of those 3 letter guys.

  73. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Way too much fun keeping trolls out.

  74. Super Dave Avatar
    Super Dave

    Damn son you do look like one of those 3 letter guys.

    He sure does! 😉

  75. GJT Avatar
    GJT

    Amazon is promoting a wireless meat thermometer with a 500 foot reach for the handheld monitor.  It’s the perfect gift for the lazy cook.

    GJT ?  Super Dave ?

    I don’t remember the range but I have one from Thermoworks. Love it, one probe (I think it has six ports) to monitor fire or grill temp, the other for the meat.

  76. squawkbox Avatar
    squawkbox

    Super Dave

    Naw, I’m old school, stab in analog for me.

    Me too.

  77. Texpat Avatar
    Texpat

    Maywood, New Jersey Report

    We just hit 8°F 

    Windchill is -13°

    I’m worried about Texanadian and his Trophy Wife.

    Hah !

    Red Deer, Alberta, Canada Report

    Temp is -5°

    Windchill is -14°

    This is nothing for them.

  78. El Gordo Avatar
    El Gordo

    We made it up to 25 today, but it’s back down to 10 tonight they say.  Tomorrow will get back above freezing.  My pepper plants are done for the year, but I’ll do them again next spring.  They did well all the growing season and still have a lot of unpicked peppers on them,  My other plants are in larger pots, including some knock out roses, and I think they are supposed to go dormant in the winter and be cut back in the early spring.  One of those is doing great, a couple of others doing OK, and a couple that may not make it.  For sure they do not like the native soil around here and the only way I can get any growth and keep them alive is in pots.  I’ve already emptied most of my smaller potted plants, and this hard freeze will finish off the rest of them I believe.  Won’t be long until I start working with my greenhouse to get some seeds germinating  and ready for spring again.  Now that the days are getting longer, my sleep will start being reduced I guess.

    OK, about bedtime out here in the frozen rocks of centex.  You all have a good one.  More later.

  79. Shannon Avatar
    Shannon

    24° here.

    Headed for 18.

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