the_itsb (she/her)

My kid is in high school, and they communicate about emergencies through text, email, and automated calls. There are lots of jobs, especially low-paying ones, that will not let you check your phone during your shift, and they’re certainly not going to be okay with you leaving early to go pick up your kid. If the choice is “leave to pick up kid (who you know is safe with teachers), get fired,” versus “leave kid (who you know is safe with teachers), keep job,” it’s pretty simple math.

That sounds like a really good plan, thank you!

the_itsb = the Ill-Tempered Sea Bass, and though it’s a batfish and not a sea bass, I’ve always thought this guy conveys the ill-tempered part beautifully.

Who I actually am as a person is a little more like some kind of crab. There’s the strawberry crab, who is “small, brightly-colored … known to be quite toxic,” which sounds just like me without medication. 😂 And then there’s the black-eyed hermit crab, who “often inhabits shells left by massive moon snails … often covered with colorful pink anemone-like hydroids, making this critter even cuter.”

I’ve been wanting to do a pi lab myself someday, and your post is so encouraging! Were there any guides or other things you used to get going that you found particularly helpful?

They also only got the Supreme Court to agree to their extremely sketchy August date for the election along party lines.

Really rich, lovely quote from the article linked:

In fact, the Ohio Legislature explicitly banned August elections (except in very limited circumstances) in its omnibus election law that was enacted earlier this year. Ironically, the Legislature did so at the behest of LaRose who stated that “August special elections generate chronically low turnout because voters aren’t expecting an election to occur. This is bad news for the civic health of our state.”

It’s fucking gross. My husband and I went in person to the Board of Elections to vote early, and we were heartened to see the steady trickle of people coming in mid-morning on a weekday.

The original Rice Krispies Treats cereal was the best. The current is a pale imitation and lacks the depth of flavor the original had - it wasn’t overly sweet, and it had a perfect balance of vanilla and puffed rice flavor that is hard to explain.

conservative apologist

Isn’t he just a conservative? I know he likes to pretend that Trump gave him serious distaste for some of the more extreme parts of modern conservatism, but - considering the blood on Frum’s hands - I’m not buying it. Am I getting him confused with a different Bush speech writer or perhaps a different Iraq war cheerleader?

gently slaps side

“This baby can hold so many trips to the underworld!”

They’re called a kissing bug because they tend to target the lips and face, as they’re active at night and that’s typically what’s exposed when people are sleeping.

This is the second-worst news you could have given me on this subject, the first-worst being “and they’re in your pillows right now.”

I hoped to get some “fuck yeah, let’s never learn about those bastards TOGETHER!” in response but feared I would get informative replies like yours. I pine for my ignorance.

They live in most of the US

THIS IS PRECISELY WHAT I DIDN’T WANT TO KNOW 😂

dammit

Anybody else flatly refusing to learn more about kissing bugs? That name combined with the death toll gives me thorough heebie-jeebies.

Can you even imagine how anyone involved felt?!? The exultation and relief of the researchers when they not only didn’t accidentally kill their patient but fixed him, the mind-blowing reality that he can move again as it sinks into the patient’s brain… !!! I cry about every overwhelming emotion, good or bad, and I don’t think I’d be able to stop crying for weeks.

I don’t dispute for a second that Elon’s an idiot, but his ex-wife did ask him to buy and kill Twitter:

“Can you buy Twitter and then delete it, please!? xx” Riley allegedly texted Musk on March 24. “America is going INSANE.”

Maybe it’s not 3D chess but just transparent - yet effective! - stupidity. Buying Twitter was fiscally foolish, but it does seem like he’s gonna kill it, so 🤷

His ex-wife did ask him to buy and kill Twitter:

“Can you buy Twitter and then delete it, please!? xx” Riley allegedly texted Musk on March 24. “America is going INSANE.”

🤷

The fail whale!! 😍 What a cute and fun way that was to get an error! I had forgotten all about that but knew this image reminded me of something.

OP, this is awesome! The color and texture of the balloons, the expressive pose - it all adds up to something really special. Great work!!