Weekend Open Thread

| April 2, 2021

Eastern bluebirds are one of the three most widespread bluebirds. (Elizabeth W. Kearley/Getty Images)

Eastern bluebirds caught in a snowstorm. They could be found in the part of the US east of the Rocky Mountains, and from Canada to Central America. Enjoy your weekend.

Category: Open thread

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Lurker Curt

first

TXNorsky

Congrats Curt!
I was lurking trying to grab it my self. Had a good Texas sized brisket smoking for the masses.

Got distracted again by work…

Lurker Curt

I’m not worth a damn at “lording”, but if anybody wants to swing by for some gin later, I’ll have a bottle of Bombay chilled!

Graybeard

Whelp, lookee here.

Rats of the Cong to Lurker Curt.

Now, where’s my beer?

Lurker Curt

I got some ‘Rona in the fridge, Graybeard 😉

KoB

Rats of the Cong on your FIRSTNESS Lurker Curt. Lord over and Bask in the Glory. I laid low till I saw your post, then I immediately buzzed out to get my Chinesecommunist Originated Virus Infecting Disease of 2019 Bat Flu Shot. My pill pushing medic called while I was waiting for someone to claim the Crown, Lady Friend was on the way to get me so we could get shot up with the J&J One Shot Dose. No side effects yet, my horns or tail haven’t gotten any longer…yet…but the day ain’t over.

I’ll have a shot of that Bombay, with a ‘Rona Chaser while you run over to TxNorsky’s place and snag that Brisket. Get the pot of baked beans too. Oh, and pick up some Yuenglings for Pappy, The Stranger. You know how he is.

Smoking Lamp lit?

Sparks

Congratulations Curt! It’s been so long since I hit a First I can’t remember. Probably before Jonn passed, but I would have to have the Sovereign Keeper Of The Firsts to verify that.

Claw

Sparks, you scored your one and only “First” at 11:04 am on the 04 July 2017 One Day Mini Open Thread.

My apology for not getting back to you sooner, but didn’t see your post until this morning.

Lurker Curt

Thanks Sparks! This was my second- if memory serves, I tagged the last First of 2019…memory is foggy tho

Claw

Your memory may be foggy, but the Coveted Book of Firsts has it down in black and white that you scored your first “First” on 29 Dec 2017 at 12:54 pm and another “First” on 12 Jan 2018 at 1:04 pm.

“So let it be written, so let it be done”/smile

David

2nd

David

Congrats Curt.

Lurker Curt

Thanks! Managed to stumble onto it, unmolested- still wondering how long KoB was watching, waiting…

SFC D

Present!

SFC D

Third!

TXNorsky

woo hoo!!
Top 5? maybe top 10!

Commissioner Wretched

All right Curt! FIRST for the WOT is something to be proud of! Be sure to lord it over all of us for your week on the throne! In the meantime, here’s this week’s trivia column – and, since Thursday was April Fool’s Day, it comes with the annual “find the three faked items” game. Good luck! DID YOU KNOW…? Can you find the three faked items in this year’s April Fool’s column? By Commissioner Wretched Once again, it’s time for my annual attempt at humorous competition – the April Fool’s column! Inside this week’s endeavor you will find the usual assortment of silly stuff that’s actually real … and three items that aren’t. Your mission – should you choose to accept it – find them. Now, no prizes are given, other than that wonderful feeling of accomplishment that comes with successfully meeting a challenge. But you’ll know that even I can’t fool you, and that’s something, anyway. Remember, three in here are faked. If you want to find out if your picks are right, just send an e-mail to me at didyouknowcolumn@gmail.com and I’ll let you know how you did. Or just check next week’s column. And no fair looking it up online! The game’s afoot! Did you know … … two of the planets in the Solar System rotate differently from the rest? Uranus, the seventh planet, rotates on its side. The planet’s north pole is 98 degrees off the vertical, due to a collision with another huge body billions of years ago. And Venus, the second planet, rotates backward. The Sun rises in the west, and sets in the east. This is because Venus is basically “upside-down” in space, with its north pole pointing in the direction the other planets’ south poles point. (There’s at least one in every crowd, right?) … the IRS has a consideration for a child who has been kidnapped? For tax purposes, the Internal Revenue Service considers a kidnapped child to be a dependent – at least until he or she reaches the age of eighteen, or is confirmed dead. (Ah, the… Read more »

David

Contranyms are commonly called Janus words (after the Roman two-faced god.) Another example “cleave”: you cleave unto someone by joining them, but when you cleave something with a blade you are splitting it.

Anonymous

Rabbits don’t have any fat? Why do cats eat them? (Well, beside because they can… )

Devtun

Have a great air force weekend.

Claw

Verified Valor Vultures Tote Board standings as of the end of 2nd Quarter, FY21:

Air Force – 0
Army – 4
Coast Guard – 0
Marines – 3
Navy – 5
Space Force – 0

AW1Ed

Go Navy. I am impatiently waiting for the first Space Force phony. It may be a while. Kind’a like a classic line from The Untouchables.

At the 2:11 mark. Here endith the lesson.

KoB

Welp, good to see that Navy can win some type of contest. They damn sure don’t do that well on a weekend in December. *snerk* 😛 GABN/HBTD/RTR

AW1Ed

Can’t help everyone wants to be a cool-ass SEAL instead of a dirt diggin’ Doggie.

rgr769

I resemble that offensive remark, since I did dig my own prone shelter with my e-tool (you prolly don’t know what that is) in the Viet of the Nam.

KoB

RLTW

Claw

And he prolly doesn’t know that our e-tool carrier (from way back when) had a little flap with holes and a clip strap that secured the bayonet to it when not in use./s

8465-542-5842 Carrier, Entrenching Tool, M-1956.

Sapper3307

And it is snowing again,, it was a nice bike ride last week.

Graybeard

Out weeding the garden today.

Mrs. GB is suffering a malaise from the 2nd Wuhan Virus vaccination, but not too badly.

Hope everyone has a great Easter.

He is Risen!

David

Amazed… had the second Moderna shot Tuesday and zero side effects. Actually, since back twinges have stopped, I feel better than a week ago.

Sparks

A Blessed Easter to you as well Graybeard. And yes, He is Risen!

26Limabeans

I’m just glad to be here after a very difficult week.
And a special thanks to all the health care workers that get
up every day and help people live their lives.

Oh, and congrats to Lurker Curt. Somebody’s gotta hold the Sceptre.

Graybeard

Hope things get better 26Lima.

We lost another church member this week. He was 93, but it is still hard. Also found out a friend had cancer come back. Life is hell sometimes.

If I couldn’t see my grandkids smiles and hear their laughs, it’d be a hard world.

KoB

Hang tuff, ‘beans, you got this. We can talk about ya, but we can’t talk without ya.

Graybeard, you need to just quit that gloating about having them Grand Babies so close. Mine are 400+ miles down the road. Up until 29 Mar of ’18 I made that trip ’bout 6 times a year. Can’t do that drive alone anymore so it’s maybe 3 times a year since, if I’m lucky. And flying from here is not a very good option. Enjoy them ’cause they do grow up real fast.

Graybeard

Yes they do, friend.

And believe me, Mrs. GB and I give thanks often for God’s Providence that put them nearby. Don’t mean to gloat, but we stand amazed at the blessings He allows us to enjoy.

In my thoughtlessness once, I was talking about the grands with a long time friend of mine, whose only son was killed in a traffic accident. I forgot he will never get to enjoy grandchildren. I have to zip my lip around him.

I’m sorry yours are so far away. Wish you could get to them more often.

LC

The Daily Mail is often about as credible as a Magic 8-ball, but they’re saying that people are saying that Gaetz is facing imminent arrest:

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-9430921/Matt-Gaetzs-arrest-imminent-sources-say-Joel-Greenberg-singing-feds.html

Nice weather, a COVID vaccine, and a lousy Congressman getting arrested would be a pretty good start to the weekend.

Hack Stone

Hack Stone told you guys that he would be late. Just got from a few day excursion to Frantic City. Lost the entire payroll for the proud but humble woman owned business that sells software to the federal government formerly located in Bethesda Maryland. Where the hell will I come up with $11?

Sparks

25TH

ChipNASA

Here folks.
I was at the indoor freedom seed garden center getting used to some new tools.
I’m not great but I got the seeds sewed in the proper direction even if they weren’t spread evenly or in a uniform formation.
I hope all have a lovely Easter weekend and Good Friday to all, I’ll be here lurking the next couple of days.
Smooches! 😀 😀 😀

Oh and RIP Billy Evans, Capital Hill Police Officer and prayers for the other (unidentified at this time) officer and the families of all.
🙏

Graybeard

New tools are fun. Glad you got to sew some seeds.

A Proud Infidel®™

Present and Honorary First once again.

((((OVER))))

gitarcarver

Gregory Edwards was an Army Medic who served in Iraq and Kosovo. He returned to the states and was diagnosed with PTSD and got on again off again (mostly off) treatment. (He would not attend sessions.) He also appears to have been addicted to huffing paint. On December 18, 2018, despite all of the signs of an emotional breakdown (per his wife’s statements) Edwards and his wife Kathleen went to a WalMart in West Melbourne, FL where Gregory attacked a charity worker in a WalMart parking lot. The police tazed, handcuffed and arrested Gregory and took him to the County Jail. His wife, despite saying he had all the signs of the onset of a breakdown before leaving their home, asked the police to not “Baker Act” him (which is Florida’s mental heath committal law.) They took him to jail. In jail, while being transferred from a holding cell to a booking area, Gregory had another episode, attacking correction officers. He was tazed, pepper sprayed, and a spit hood placed over his head while in a restraint chair. Sixteen minutes later, while not being monitored, Gregory died. There are some issues with the way the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office handled the case and they are being sued. The case became national news as the Sheriff refused to release the footage of the attack. Gregory Edwards became a poster child for abuse by law enforcement and Kathleen Edwards was one of the harshest critics. As you can imagine, this event was traumatic to his wife Kathleen who had also been diagnosed with PTSD after a being sexually abused in the military and suffering from an attack from an RPG in Iraq. After the death of Gregory, her mental health allegedly began to deteriorate. Sheriff’s deputies were called to the home for a wellness check and while there, someone from Child Protective Services noticed that the family pool did not have a fence around it to prevent the Edwards’ child, who was born after Gregory’s death, from falling into the pool and drowning. For whatever reason, Kathleen chose not to put up… Read more »

The Other Whitey

Been to far too many pediatric swimming pool drownings. That’s why I hate swimming pools. I don’t mind taking the kids to swim, but I refuse to have a pool at the house.

rgr769

There is nothing wrong with swimming pools, provided one doesn’t let children near them unsupervised. And they are fenced properly. My problem with them is that they are a PITA to maintain. They do kill more people than the so-called “assault rifles” every year.

Jeff LPH 3, 63-66

33rd;
I made a copy of both sides of a friends shot card to laminate along with her original so I used a 5MM scrap sheet I had and lined up the original and the two pieces back to back from the printer so I had a front and back of the copy. The original was on top and the copy below it and when I ran it through the laminator, the original which had her name and address on an address label came out blackish with part of her name and a little of her address showing but the printer copy came out perfect with the whole address visible. Could it have because it was a label on the original card that it blurred out. Any ideas??

gitarcarver

Yes.

There is a notice out that the cards are being printed on thermal printers. When the card is laminated with heat, the ink is reactivated and runs into a blob.

There are actually warnings about this going up here at vaccine sites because it is so common.

Jeff LPH 3, 63-66

Thanks gitarcarver for the info on the thermal printer.

The Other Whitey

For those interested:

https://www.deviantart.com/yt45

Got one niece’s F3H done, minus ordnance, in a girlified version of VF-21’s colors circa 1961 aboard the Midway. Just about wrapped up another niece’s F4F in a mix of 1942 Pacific Fleet colors and prewar ID stripes in yellow (her favorite color), with Butch O’Hare’s ID number from when he flew off the Lexington and earned his Medal of Honor. Both planes also have each girl’s favorite cartoon characters as well.

ChipNASA

I haven’t commented on your work much but I have to say you have a talent and a steady hand for sure.

The Other Whitey

I have neither, but thanks. I do like to think I’m getting a little bit better with each one, but the internet is full of people with actual skill and talent who make my best efforts look like a crayon-drawn stick figure. Lucky for me some of them are willing to share their secrets on YouTube.

KoB

Thanks for the update TOW, always good to see the progress. Really, really, REALLY looking forward to seeing the upcoming Bombers…’specially the nose art there of.

11B-Mailclerk

Don’t drive while buzzed!

https://notthebee.com/article/watch-a-firefighter-save-a-man-from-15000-bees-that-were-inside-his-car-

The Babylon Bee satire site folks also have a real news site. Both are worth a daily read.

Green Thumb

The False Commander “Phony” Phil Monkress (CEO of All-Points Logistics) works balls while avoiding calls seeking clarification of his highly dubious and potentially felonious Native American, Law Enforcement and Navy SEAL claims.

Claw

Items for discussion? (Just to show you that I don’t only do crosswords puzzles in ink on some of the nights I can’t sleep)

7310-00-234-3524 Pocket Stove
7310-00-263-8736 Stove, Gas, 2-Burner
8465-00-242-7843 Cup, Canteen, Folding/Flip Handle
8465-00-165-6838 Cup, Canteen, w/Butterfly Handles
8465-00-753-6488/6489 Cup, Canteen, Arctic, Insulated
8465-00-242-7860/7861 Handcuffs/Leg Irons
9110-00-263-9865 Fuel, Compressed, Trioxane
5120-00-595-8349 Entrenching Tool, M-1951 (Old Style)
5120-00-878-5932 E-Tool (New Style)
8465-00-889-3769 Collapsible 2-Quart Canteen
5180-00-408-1859 TE-33 Lineman’s Tool Kit
5110-00-813-1286 Machete, M-1942
1615-00-893-1534 Nut, Retaining, Main Mast Rotor (Oh,Jesus)/smile
5110-00-162-2205 Utility Pocket Knife
5110-00-310-8568 Cutter, Wire Rope, M-1938

26Limabeans

“5180-00-408-1859 TE-33 Lineman’s Tool Kit”

Made by Klein I’ll wager.

Claw

Oops, almost forgot this one:

1095-00-392-4102 12 inch KA-BAR