• Mini-Posts

    #VoteHope North Carolina sets record for first day of voting with more than 350,000 ballots

    This gives me hope. People are literally crawling over broken glass, and the mess left by Helene, to vote in North Carolina.   “Haven’t stood in a line like this to vote since Obama 2008,” blogger Tom Sullivan posted on X, photographing dozens lined up out the doors of one Asheville polling place. Source: North Carolina sets record for first day of voting with more than 350,000 ballots

  • Mini-Posts - Politics, Schmolitics

    You BET We’re Better Off!

    Four years ago, an incompetent braggart screwed up the scientific, public health based response to COVID-19. The world economy was at a standstill. I was furloughed, spouse was job-hunting, we stayed home and hoped like hell things would improve after the election. They did, but not until 12:01pm, January 20, 2021. www.theguardian.com/business/2024/oct/18/us-voters-economy-inflation-growth-presidential-election

  • Cycling

    Gravel Cycling: Privateers Go It Alone For Better Money

    Next, someone should create a privateer gravel race with a pirate theme. www.theguardian.com/sport/2024/oct/17/good-money-no-team-tactics-and-cute-dogs-the-rise-of-pro-cycling-freelancers “For decades, professional cycling has been dominated by European World Tour teams. But in the last decade, American gravel privateers have disrupted that paradigm.”

  • Sewing And Quilting

    Go Pro Sew Show – Genius!

    This YouTube content creator shows his camera setup for recording sewing tutorials. It’s a GoPro on an articulated arm stuck to his sewing machine so there’s a clear view on the stitching and needle, using a bike helmet mount. Genius! m.youtube.com/shorts/AAjwsinqaG8 I don’t think I’m ready to be a YouTuber.

  • Mini-Posts

    Analysis | When a top Republican says Russian propaganda has infected the GOP

    The infection could be called the Helsinki Virus, but it probably started long before that. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul is the latest to point out the problem in his party.   …In an interview with Puck News’s Julia Ioffe, Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Tex.) — none other than the GOP chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee — flat-out said that Russian propaganda had “infected a good chunk of my party’s base.” McCaul suggested conservative media was to blame. “There are some more nighttime entertainment shows that seem to spin, like, I see the Russian propaganda in some…

  • Books

    Reading “Wings Of Fire” – Not The Dragon One

    Can’t finish this via audiobook – the reader’s soothing voice makes me sleep too well. It finally came up as an e-book at the library. As it’s NOT a boring book, I can read it faster than listening to it, without getting so relaxed I doze off. Wings of Fire, by Charles Todd, an Ian Rutledge mystery. The writing, pacing, and characters are solid and the style is beautifully melancholy. The Hamish character, a sort of inner voice, isn’t as intrusive as I thought he’d be.   UPDATE: Fell asleep and had a lovely nap after reading 7 or 8…

  • All Things Interesting - Home Improvement - Sewing And Quilting

    It’s #DeclutterChallenge2024

      My sewing room serves multiple functions – guest room, computer room, exercise room, extra TV room… and it needs decluttering and reorganizing to make those functions work. #DeclutterChallenge2024 youtu.be/Y_XxkKGDe0o And my multipurpose room was full of Xmess stuff, badly arranged furniture, and clutter. Day 1 was Garbage Day. Days 2-3 were for clearing out magazines & books, but don’t have many, and they’re in my home office. So I rearranged the furniture to open up space for my training bike – goal is to get it set up this weekend. Then today, Day 4, was to get rid of…