We just got assistance from a government agency in filling out some forms that have been puzzling us and keeping us from handling our finances correctly. Anthony, thank you for showing us that there are still decent--and funny--civil servants who know what they are doing.

The night nursing staff kept me up most of the night chatting. Sitting in a hospital bed all day is lonely and exhausting. Human contact is so necessary. The morning tech just brought me a cup of real coffee from the cafe downstairs. I have been in pain for a month, and these folks are healing me.

Will our version of "But Mussolini got the trains running on time" end up being "well, Trump got all the fountains in DC running" ?

So the new director of intelligence is tasked with firing people. No doubt the ones on the chopping block will be the ones who held that invading Iran was a bad idea. But it's OK because the guy in the White House only listens to his gut and Bibi.

So I am stuck in the hospital for back issues. Let me give some advice to help navigate the American healthcare labyrinth: Take pictures of insurance cards--front and back- and keep them in a secure file on your phone. Take pictures of the labels of your meds, and keep those in a secure file.

A small Central Oregon town shoots down data center development share.google/BfCmt4beJRds...

I would try to stop my dog from barking and running from the front window to the back yard and back when the mailman arrives, except it is such good exercise. She also looks very proud that yet again, she has saved us from being brutally murdered.

Lazy breakfast: toast frozen waffles until crispy, drizzle on some of the good stuff, add a big dollup of cottage cheese.

American healthcare sucks.

Tell me it's a sport medicine waiting room without saying it is a sports medicine waiting room.

I am in big trouble with Miss Maisie because I cooked fancy Greek Chicken tonight instead of plain chicken. Greek Chicken had many cloves of garlic involved, so she cannot share. She is giving me the look of "how could you ruin chimken like that?"

How long before he shuts down the investigation into this shooting? I think we will soon find out. In the meantime.... Thoughts and prayers

Grading papers can be so droll: "Buddhism spread widely during this time, while Daoism and Confusion remained important in the belief systems." I blame AI, or at least spell-check.

My son just got cast as Don Jon in "Much Ado about Nothing," at his community theater. He has a very deep voice, which is perfect for the villain. Big step up from playing Larry the Lobster in "SpongeBob, the Musical."

Ya don't have to be hard on crime when you have these guys guarding you...and your entire country is the size of an average American shopping mall

Orban's defeat should remind us what exactly authoritarians need from us: our votes and our permission. We can beat them only by withholding both.

Wouldn't it be great if JD Vance were excommunicated by the Pope?

I have just put slices of avocado on my pizza. Amaze Amaze Amaze

TACO Tuesday, anyone?

After all of this, was it worth it, Pam? Kristi?

No one makes those thick, malty, frozen waffles anymore. It's not like you can stack two regular waffles and call them Belgian waffles.

If the GOP ever drops trump, it means they found someone who is guaranteed to win 79,000,000 votes in a presidential election.

The number of people who need to go up against the wall when the revolution comes is growing daily

So, if we are indeed recreating Germany in the 1930s, where is our Kit Kat Club?

My husband is currently sharing a hospital room. His roommate is unhappy because my husband sometimes gets confused at night and yells rather than pushing the call button for the nurse. The roommate, however, watches Fox News all day. I think that's fair.

I hate that my husband is in the hospital, but at least the cafeteria serves a kickin' broccoli cheddar soup.

4:30 am, and the dog had to go for a walk. Brisk 20 degrees F with 15 mph winds. She looked up at the roof and barked. Oh look, this hotel has one of those big plastic Great Horned Owls to scare away pigeons. Then the owl turned towards me and its eyes gleamed gold. My dog finds owls.

There must be a correlation between the outside temperature and the amount of time you must wait on one end of the leash for your dog to finish her business in the hotel parking lot.

A wren was flitting around inside the house this morning. I have no idea how it got in because the house is closed up tight. But our dog has had a wonderful time chasing it.

Maisie had to wear her coat to the dog park today, and I think she was embarrassed. Too bad, young lady, you don't have a double coat like the border collie.

Went shopping to prepare for the storm, but am too tired to cook any of the food I brought home

Longtime Northern California congressman Doug LaMalfa just died. What does this do to the Republican majority?

Kidnapping a president under the guise of illicit drugs was wrong when George HW Bush did it, and it is still wrong when Trump does it.

Dear Hive mind: I need suggestions on how to find reasonable contractors for a bathroom remodel. I have never done this before, and am too used to doing the work myself, but this is beyond my skill level.

Ah, my first full day of rest at the end of fall semester. Where am I spending it? In the Emergency Room waiting to see if my husband has a concussion after falling in the bathroom.

Fall semester 2025 is officially done. No need to use the thermometer, the grissle is falling off the bones. Spring will be vastly different. Four online classes, one of which I have never taught before. Oh, and everything must be ADA compliant. Good.

23 hours to get my grading done, and... My Internet is out. AHHHHHHHHHHHH

I am the biggest push over when it comes to deadlines for students. However, it is inevitable that one day I will say no. That happened today to a student who has had spotty attendance to a Zoom class and has not done any work since October. Do not contact me 25 hours after the deadline for all work

Is indenting the first line of every paragraph not a thing anymore? Asking for someone who is getting sick of writing that note on papers she is grading.

The first of three finals is underway. Watching much hand shaking from young ones unused to writing by hand. My favorite part? When students hand me their answers, I always check to see if their names are on the papers, then I thank them for being in the class and then we fist bump.

I am currently listening to Rachel Maddow's latest podcast series, "Burn Order," about the relocation and incarceration of Japanese Americans in World War II. My husband and I made a documentary in 1989 about this called "Without Due Process" while he worked at KIXE-TV. 1/

Sitting at the vetty-man's office because it is time for Maisie Mae's check up and vaccinations. She just wants to smell everything, especially where that cat was sitting. She is not happy to be here.

Hands off Dulles! IAD is an example of early 1960's modernism. Yes, the mobile lounges are relics and need to be replaced. They were designed as rolling bars that would take wealthy and drunk passengers directly to the planes, so no one minded the trip back then. As shuttles, not so much.

If I felt the same stabbing pain anywhere else on my body, I would get to a doctor. But the pain is in my lower back and butt, and I must accept that I am old and my body hates waking up every morning.

Did anyone else get a major shock when you looked at your student loan bill?

Senator Kaine, one of the Quizlings, has probably gotten an earful from the government workers in Virginia. He will not be up for election until 2030, so he hopes we will forget.

So far, we have been busy here at our voting precinct. Had a line of voters at 6:00 am. We also hand out the best stickers

Considering the "Roaring 20s" party at Mar-a-Lago: Let's not start comparing Trump to Gatsby. For one thing, Gatsby served in World War 1. Additionally, Gatsby seemed to have a conscience. Now, comparing Trump to Daisy...

Some days I feel that the billionaire class only tolerates us until they can replace us with AI or robots.

I hope there is a lake of hot urine on some level of hell, and those physicians who prescribe lasix and other diuretics to people with mobility issues are sent there