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.
Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods is a big deal in the supermarket sector, but its’s also deeply ironic and instructive for those familiar with the business philosophy of Whole Foods founder John Mackey— that business can and should operate on a higher moral plane, striving to manage itself in ways not just profitable but also that would serve some of the purposes of traditional philanthropy.
For you Maggie's newcomers, I blogged on this site about every other day for five wonderful, tumultuous years. This was through the heady election days of 2008 and 2012, so there was obviously a lot to talk about.
Then a bunch of things happened.
I:
- Helped with the construction of four 2-bedroom cottages — built from kits, no less — in a Colorado forest, as well as installing a large wind & solar installation to power them all. I was there for over two years.
- Helped birth a baby and whelped four litters of puppies.
- Lost my beloved to a brain aneurysm.
- Had a heart operation.
- Bought an extremely cool sports car that I didn't even know existed until an hour before I handed over the bread.
- Have lived in four states since the last time I blogged here, surrounded by champion show dogs.
Busy, busy, busy.
I'll relate the whole story below the fold, but for now I wanted to give a shout-out to a number of old friends who I see are still here.
Texan99 - My wonderful Texas belle.
GoneWithTheWind - Always one of the great voices of reason on this site.
Zach - Dude, you're the very definition of fortitude.
Dr.Torch, mudbug, Gringo, jma, bob sykes, Assistant Village Idiot, Sam L, JTW, rhhardin, JC, IdahoBob, Apple Pie, Clovis, Agent Cooper, Old Codger, BillH, Dorf, The Distributist, Claritas, Ben David, SgtBob, NJSoldier, faculty wife, Ken in NH, JLawson, BillH - Hey, doods and doodettes! It's nice to be back.
Side note: Boy, imagine how ol' Zach's going to feel when I pull out my (hold on a sec: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5...) 213 anti-AGW links. It won't be pretty!
And, of course, my best bud, feeblemind - By the way, guy, I noticed that some of your recent comments have actually made lots of sense. We'll have to work on that.
Bird Dog, Barrister, News Junkie, Gwynnie, Dr. Bliss, Bulldog - I'm honored to be back among such distinguished peers.
If you're curious, my main web site is here. The whole mess is comprised of 1,204 posts, 1.1 million words, 2,856 pics and 640 vids.
Parklike landscapes, even if unnatural in most areas, produce a pleasant feeling for most people. We can only speculate about why. Last week's hike went through open farmlands, hayfields, deep woods, and streamside wetlands. I do like the variety. Each microhabitat has its own specialized critters while the generalists range widely.
Middle-aged and older people suffer from the heartbreak of Apoptosis. In this case, age-related demise of muscle cells. Only strength-building can help us stay ahead of the curve of physical decay as long as possible.
Rippetoe makes the essential point, but most people would add pull-ups/chin-ups, dumbbell rows, and maybe dips to complete the list. That's enough to keep anybody busy for 2-3 hrs/week, since none of these heavy things should pushed to the limit more than once/week by the ordinary person over 40.
What about "curls for the girls"? Non-essential. Optional, for vanity (ie to impress the girls).
What's on your list of essentials for strength-building and/or strength-maintenance?
Nobody knows how, other than eliminating welfare - which will never happen. Perhaps, in a welfare state, people just have to accept a permanent dysfunctional and dependent underclass.
When I got to the stage, I did the first half of my talk as a sexist pig who loved Sharia law. I said women are terrible drivers and with Sharia, you don’t have to worry about broads driving ever again. I said it’s awesome because you get to punish your wife if she doesn’t want to blow you. You make her sleep on the couch and if she still refuses, you get to beat the shit out of her. I also said Sharia is cool because you don’t have to hear women bitching about rape all the time. She has to get tons of witnesses and even then her testimony is worth only half what a man’s is. Finally, I said I get too horny walking down the street and can’t concentrate, but if we could cover up these chicks we could focus on just hanging out with the guys.
Trump was elected to serve roughly 48 months. His progressive enemies are increasingly desperate. Despite an historic five-month assault that has demonized his person and ossified his legislative agenda, Trump is still systematically undoing the Obama agenda through appointments and Obama “pen-and-phone”-like executive orders.
In terms of losing state legislatures and governorships, the Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidency, the Obama progressive project has all but ruined the Democratic Party. And with such catastrophic losses of political power, the left grows less introspective and only more venomous—as if invective can do what appeals to voters have not.
But can Trump survive the incessant onslaught, as the street, the progressive party and the media ratchet up their collective subversions month by month? Is there any way out of the progressive labyrinth?
In an era before the goo-goo’s civil-service reform, Jackson fired 10 percent of the federal workforce and replaced it with people loyal to him. Was that so bad? Arthur M. Schlelsinger Jr. said it was a reform measure that helped restore the people’s faith in government, at a time when the bureaucrats had become a self-serving and unaccountable branch of government.
If that’s what job tenure for bureaucrats has given us today, maybe it’s time to take another look at it.
A considerable portion of America’s permanent bureaucracy, including elements of its intelligence community, is engaged in an illegal and unconstitutional mutiny against the elected commander-in-chief, President Donald Trump.
Because it is so interesting and intelligent. I do not always agree with him but he is a darn good speaker. Good explanation of the Trump phenomenon. Stay for the questions at the end.
The Eastern Bluebird is always a sight for sore eyes, and apparently their numbers are recovering from a decline. Their recovery is in part because of human assistance with Bluebird houses.
In New England, you can put up Bluebird houses in early summer because they often have two broods per season.
You won't see Bluebirds in suburbia because they are partial to good-sized fields, large lawns (ie over 4 acres), orchards, and forest edges. They like open country.
At the farm, we have about 15 Bluebird houses up on snake-proof poles. Half the houses are usually taken over by Tree Swallows, some are filled with sticks by House Wrens, and our cheerful Bluebirds use the rest of them. In meadows, the nest poles are good markers for large rocks - for mowing.
In New England, Bluebirds are semi-migratory, and can sometimes be seen in winter flocks foraging widely for fruits and berries.
Our friend Francis posted a photo of his wife's charming country garden (they also have a charming city garden). Along that garden path she has a wall of peonies and a row of nepeta. I wonder what they have for summer bloom.
I guess his photo gives me a little peony envy. We could use some peonies, but I don't know where I would put them.
Sports Conditioning class this morning moved outdoors, as it will be the rest of the summer rain or shine. Makes the hour much more cheerful and fun. The camaraderie is good. Some rain is just refreshing and welcome. Human skin is waterproof.
Warm-ups were stretches and jogs around the parking lot. For the real thing, sprints around the parking lot, lunge and presses around the lot, kettlebell swings, pushups on the grass, jumping jacks, hopscotch (really - it's an adult agility drill), Farmers Walks, jumping squats (ass literally to the grass), planks on the grass, burpees of course - calisthenics are much more fun outdoors. Just ask anybody who went through boot camp...
No rest breaks so you keep the heart rate continuously as high as possible. Darn thing pounds through your shirt in a scary but reassuring way.
Mrs. BD seems to appreciate the effects of the addition of tough calis on my attitude, energy, and physique. She wants a vigorous strong man with high energy regardless of age. She claims only old men sit around and read during daylight. Weights are essential for strength, but an hour of uninterrupted calis are great for body and soul. Good for strength maintenance and vitality, not to mention the cardio aspect. One hour is good enough. I am a believer in the three-legged stool of fitness but if I had to choose one, I'd choose hard calis 4 or 5 days/week.
If you have a sport you love, have a Coke and do it after a workout. You will have power, but a serene, controlled power.
Good conservation news:
Image is a c. 1850 ad, via 
Photo stolen from Ace 
The 
Our friend Francis posted a