Please release me!
Waking Thoughts Department
Fevered Rabbit: “Rastafarian nose hair.
“I wakened with those three words cycling through my brain. There are so many combinations of three words I’d rather be thinking: I love you. God is good. I’m finally home. Oh, happy day!
“So why where these words even in my brain? I have no idea. Now they can be in YOUR brain, too! Oh, happy day!”
See world
Photography Division
Wayne Nelson of Forest Lake reports: “While on a short visit to Osceola, Wisconsin, we saw some beautiful monarch butterflies flying around from flower to flower, feeding on them. I was able to capture a few nice pictures of them while they were stationary.
“I hope that the readers will enjoy looking at them.”
BULLETIN BOARD SAYS: If they don’t, they’ve come to the wrong blog!
Oopps!
Or: Everyone’s a copy editor
Carp Lips of Wyoming: “Subject: Hey You, My Old Friend.
“John Shipley waxed poetic about former Twins manager Ron Gardenhire in Saturday’s paper. He gave examples of his wit and how he interacted with the fans and media over his 13 seasons as manager.
“You would think that everyone was well aware of Mr. Gardenhire. Apparently not the person in charge of headlines.
“The Page 3 continuation of the article is titled ‘Grady’s return.’
“Grady? Was that person streaming old ‘Sanford and Son’ shows during business hours?
“Hmm . . . the face looks familiar, but not the name.
“I’m sure Mr. ‘Gradenhire’ had a good chuckle.
“Welcome home.”
Muse, amuse
The Doryman of Prescott, Wisconsin (“temporarily of St. John’s, Newfoundland”): “The latest cartoon in my head:
“The drawing is of a elaborate chair with a tangle of electronic devices, chargers, joystick controllers and D&D boards hanging from it. The caption reads: Throne of Games.”
14,001 things to gripe about — or: Every party has a pooper! (responsorial)
Or: Life in Wisconsin
Birdwatcher in La Crescent: “In front of a bar in La Crosse, they have a sign which reads: ‘Monday August 21, Solar Beerclipse.’
“Maybe this would be more to the liking of Malcolm Tent.”
See world (responsorial)
Or: Our pests, ourselves
Gregory of the North: “I think Mounds View Swede has a much better way of dealing with Japanese beetles than I do, and certainly less icky. I found that if I put the tip of the blade of my pocket knife right about where the thorax meets the abdomen on the underside of the insect, then flick with a sudden upward movement, it will rupture their chitin. They fall to the ground and presently cease all movement. There they remain until consumed by some critter, or until they decompose. (Ants seem to like their bodies, as does, unfortunately, my dog.)
“After each ‘hunting’ expedition, I have to clean and hone the blade. Mounds View Swede’s method is a lot cleaner and unpretentious, so I think I’ll adopt his approach.
“Still, there is some sense of satisfaction that results from personally dispatching the destroyer of my roses.”
Our times (responsorial)
Inspired by IGHGrampa‘s note about the lost little girl at the Mall of America, here’s Kathy S. of St. Paul: “I am in the middle of six kids, so our family trips to the State Fair were quite the production. But Rule #1 for the day was: If you get lost, stay put. Once, a brother and I lost the rest of them, but followed the rule and didn’t move. Dad came back for us in an exasperated mood, but there we were.
“Maybe 20 years ago, I accompanied my parents to what was probably their last trip to the State Fair. Dad would march through the crowds toward his objectives, but Mom tended to stop to see things — especially in the Grandstand. When I saw Mom stopping to check things out, I stood still in an obvious spot in the aisle so Dad could look back and know that I knew where Mom was. Mom said it was her most restful trip to the Fair in years, because Dad didn’t get up a full head of steam over misplacing her.
“And re: lost kids in stores, etc.: Years back, a relative convinced me to not touch them, even though I am a woman — and now grandmotherly. I stand at a distance and watch until the child is reunited with its family. If a store employee comes by, I flag them down to help since they should help reunite lost kids. Occasionally a parent seems to feel I’m challenging their parenting ability when I watch their kids, which I’m not. They may have eyes in the back of their heads, but they don’t on the sides!
“My most memorable lost child was a little girl lost in Southdale in 1975 or 1976. She (age 4?) came charging through the crowd on the second level, crying her eyes out. I followed, talked to her, and herded her into a store, where we had her sit in a stroller. The store clerk called Security, which was already searching for her. The girl and her mother were in (Donaldsons?) at the end of the second level, and the girl ran toward Dayton’s, then down a side corridor in the mall. By the time we called Security, the mother was in meltdown.
“I didn’t wait to see the happy ending, but I still remember the scare.
“Years ago, I vowed to never be present when another child is grabbed, a la Jacob Wetterling. I figure I will never stop watching out for little ones.”
Our times
Semi-Legend: “Subject: Prescient pun?
“At Common Good Books in St. Paul today, I was browsing through ‘The Constitution: An Introduction,’ by Michael Stokes Paulsen, a law professor at the University of St. Thomas, and Luke Paulsen.
“I came across this sentence on page 54: ‘In practice, the impeachment power has been a high trump card that Congress mostly has kept in reserve.’
“I checked: copyright 2015.”
Band Name of the Day: Rastafarian Nose Hair
Website of the Day: What is chitin?
Bulletin Board 