We are a commune of inquiring, skeptical, politically centrist, capitalist, anglophile, traditionalist New England Yankee humans, humanoids, and animals with many interests beyond and above politics. Each of us has had a high-school education (or GED), but all had ADD so didn't pay attention very well, especially the dogs. Each one of us does "try my best to be just like I am," and none of us enjoys working for others, including for Maggie, from whom we receive neither a nickel nor a dime. Freedom from nags, cranks, government, do-gooders, control-freaks and idiots is all that we ask for.
The topic came up with friends the other day. Consider the speed at which some species fly (ducks over 50 mph, for example), not to mention the speeds of diving predators.
Last week it took 4 guys with trucks, saws, ropes, and a cherry picker to take down my giant dying Beech tree in 4 days. Not to mention a lot of $.
Last night, a damp heavy snowstorm took down a White Pine in an instant, around 4 AM. The quick way to down a tree. The boom woke me up. The main trunk missed my shed by 3' and missed my car by less than a foot, and somehow missed my flag. I uttered a Thanks to the Snow Goddess. It did knock down my fence, though.
White Pine is a fast-growing, brittle tree. It's best kept far from things that matter. Terrible landscape trees. This was about an 18" diameter main trunk, which snapped around 10' above the ground. Photo is (was) the top of the tree.
Just a couple of weeks left to get your new Wood Duck houses up, and, if you want to place your boxes in water, it's easier to do if you can walk on the ice and punch a hole to hammer a post into the shallows. That is, if you have any sturdy ice on your pond or marsh.
The males arrive to their breeding grounds in March, and hunt for nesting boxes and holes and crevices in trees before the gals arrive later in April.
If you have a stream or fresh water pond or marsh nearby, they will welcome your effort. Remember, there is no limit to the number of boxes you can place in or near a marsh - these birds are not territorial. I try to add one each year.
I place them on dead trees in the shallows of the beaver marsh, and nail a 3' aluminum flashing on the tree to deter coons and Blacksnakes. Some I put on a post in about 3-6' of water with a strong cement base. I always add a few inches of wood shavings on the bottom.
You can also put them in trees near ponds and marshes,
Our piece on Wood Duck here. I won't shoot a Wood Duck unless by mistake. They are highly edible, but too small. My joy is just to see them around, and my worry is just how many Snapping Turtles and egrets eat the young ones.
Many people dislike or disapprove of Trump's personality style, or disapprove of the way he lives and speaks. Or his tendency for hyperbole (to put it kindly).
Scott Adams likes to talk about his idea of personal "talent stacks" which can lead to success in individual life goals. If one's talent stack is not aligned with one's goals, success is possible but much less likely. Scott is not, politically, a Trump fan or voter, but admires his skills - his "talent stack".
Talent stacks of course include more than math talent, or rhetorical talent, or IQ, or musical ability. It includes drive and energy, adventurousness, adaptability, sense of humor, integrity (rare in politicians and criminals), charm, temperament, likability, interpersonal warmth and connectivity, neuroticism or lack thereof, toughness, generosity of spirit or the opposite, etc. etc.
Only one in a million have a single talent on which to build a world-class reputation without a stack (think Glenn Gould). And it's best to focus on one's talent stack instead on one's shortcomings - but those shortcomings sure can mess up your life goals. Reality's a bitch of a grader.
But to get back to my point (that should be a Maggie's trademarked phrase), Trump gave a 2-hour speech at CPAC which sounds like some combination of entertainment, reality/political TV, and hypomanic explosion. Yes, Trump is crude, impulsive, slippery, etc but he has instincts and has been doing his best for the country. At this moment in time, I doubt anybody could do better.
9:28 Now about eight days after these sayings Jesus took with him Peter and John and James, and went up on the mountain to pray.
9:29 And while he was praying, the appearance of his face changed, and his clothes became dazzling white.
9:30 Suddenly they saw two men, Moses and Elijah, talking to him.
9:31 They appeared in glory and were speaking of his departure, which he was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.
9:32 Now Peter and his companions were weighed down with sleep; but since they had stayed awake, they saw his glory and the two men who stood with him.
9:33 Just as they were leaving him, Peter said to Jesus, "Master, it is good for us to be here; let us make three dwellings, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah" -- not knowing what he said.
9:34 While he was saying this, a cloud came and overshadowed them; and they were terrified as they entered the cloud.
9:35 Then from the cloud came a voice that said, "This is my Son, my Chosen; listen to him!"
9:36 When the voice had spoken, Jesus was found alone. And they kept silent and in those days told no one any of the things they had seen.
9:37 On the next day, when they had come down from the mountain, a great crowd met him.
9:38 Just then a man from the crowd shouted, "Teacher, I beg you to look at my son; he is my only child.
9:39 Suddenly a spirit seizes him, and all at once he shrieks. It convulses him until he foams at the mouth; it mauls him and will scarcely leave him.
9:40 I begged your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."
9:41 Jesus answered, "You faithless and perverse generation, how much longer must I be with you and bear with you? Bring your son here.
9:42 While he was coming, the demon dashed him to the ground in convulsions. But Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the boy, and gave him back to his father.
9:43a And all were astounded at the greatness of God.
Snow Day! Winter wonderland. Gym uncrowded early this morning, car slippin' and slidin' a bit because no plowing that early. Fun. Got my third weights day done without having to wait for anything. Yes, all the regular morning gals were there.
As creatures of the market, modern voters are consumers first not citizens. They require something in return if a politician wants their vote. Accordingly, election campaigning is frequently marred by thinly disguised vote buying. The consequences of this for fiscal control are evident in budget deficits across the democratic world. Sadly, voters today would stare with either incredulity or confusion if any politician reprised John F. Kennedy’s “ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country.”
You want a ribeye as thick as you can get from the butcher. One inch is not really thick enough. Go for the 1 1/2 or 2". Worth the price. Please, never subject a ribeye to a grill.
The US Water Polo Team does 3 1/2 hrs of SEAL training (time condensed). A few months of this would toughen you up physically and mentally, if you do not quit. I love the SEAL tradition of keeping you in the cold water until one guy quits:
“Why you fool, it’s the educated reader who can be gulled. All our difficulty comes with the others. When did you meet a workman who believes the papers? He takes it for granted that they’re propaganda and skips the leading articles. He buys his paper for the football results and the little paragraphs about girls falling out of windows and corpses found in Mayfair flats. He is our problem. We don’t have to recondition him. But the educated public, the people who read the highbrow weeklies, don’t need reconditioning. They’re all right already. They’ll believe anything.”
– fictional character Miss Hardcastle, from That Hideous Strength by CS Lewis (h/t AVI)
Did you miss 
Just a couple of weeks left to get your new Wood Duck houses up, and, if you want to place your boxes in water, it's easier to do if you can walk on the ice and punch a hole to hammer a post into the shallows. That is, if you have any sturdy ice on your pond or marsh.