Post by M KfivethousandPost by M KfivethousandPost by M KfivethousandPost by M KfivethousandPost by M KfivethousandPost by M KfivethousandI have a friend who NEVER gets visibly mad. He never yells, like regular people do when they argue. In fact, the angrier he gets, the quieter he gets.
Except when he practices campaign answers. He doesn't really yell, so much as loud-talking while simultaneously fist-slamming, eyebrow ruffling, and frothing. I can't imagine anyone voting for a rabid candidate... but I guess we'll see.
Starting is always easy: "Mr Candidate, I'm unemployed, I lost my job 2yrs ago and can't pay the rent. What will you do to help me get a job?"
I space out after he does his first throat-clear (which is how he starts every answer). And then I think about flowers......
Then when he asks me "How did that sound?" I just say "GREAT ANSWER!.... [hhmm.... pretty flowers]"
It's hilarious. Seriously, it's like pairing up a construction worker with a ballerina. He picked a fine debate sounding board, didn't he?
mk5000
All the beauty in this whole life
Is reflecting your light
Cool tears obscure my sight
It’s the only way I see right--Brother Ali – All The Beauty In This Whole Life
I was deleting some emails from 2018 and was reminded
It seems that sometimes monarchs do not make it when it is super hot
They dehydrate and do not have enough liquid to create the pulmonary system
I know this was an unusually hot summer
Not much you can do about heat other than to make sure the cage is in a decent spot
I think that is why my sister puts a board on top so they attach to not overly hot metal
mk5000
3 am in the morning
Im thinking bout driving
Home to you
Yeah--Kofi – I’m Yours
My neighbor has been the official oak leaf caterpillar wrangler for our complex
She reports on their status daily
The trees are ravaged this year just like they are every year
However the number in the pool was minimal
About a tenth of years past
Possibly the weird weather is responsible, or maybe we will have a deluge next week
Today however i saw the oddest thing ever
Oak leaf caterpillars climbing up a metal painted handrail about 15 evenly spaced
They were instar one hyphens unlike the fatties that end up in the pool
The thing that was weird was they were all dead i assume and they were all sitting upright in the shape of a letter s , like a cobra getting ready to strike
All tiny little snakes just frozen there
I cannot come up with an explanation as to why they perished
It is possible the metal was too hot but it was not particularly hot today lower than eighty and the hand rail is in a shaded area.
I do not recollect it ever being too hot
How would the first one have gotten so far and why were they so evenly spaced
Weird
mk5000
The General stands at attention, West Point tall and straight
Gazing at row upon row of white headstones
On his shoulders lay the finality of their weight
Soldiers in his command, good men and women==THE GENERAL
Submitted By: threezix3
Well the anniversary passed with some attacks but nothing at the level it could have gotten to.
So far, everyone remains but all the kids were consigned to distance learning and people were asked not to gather to reduce risks of mass deaths.
A family friend sent me this interesting article
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/ukrainians-defend-their-cultural-heritage-russian-destruction-180981661/
Here’s an article about a coin competition that Ukraine won. The birds have a cultural meaning to Ukraine and the geometric designs are ethnic traditional embroidery
https://coinsweekly.com/ukraine-wins-top-coin-of-the-year-award-2023/
And if you watched Jeopardy this month, the answer to a question was Banksy. Ukraine put out a cool postage stamp featuring his art. He has been stenciling all over Ukraine this year.
https://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2023/feb/25/ukraine-issues-banksy-mural-postage-stamp
I walk twice a day with a neighbor. Walking her dog. Not genuine exercise but getting out of the house. It has been eighty here all week.
Sweet acacia, Vachellia farnesiana.. This plant is native to FL!
So there must be some here
mk5000
Stretch.
Don't feel guilty if you don't know what you want to do with your life. The most interesting people I know didn't know at 22 what they wanted to do with their lives. Some of the most interesting 40-year-olds I know still don't--Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)-- Baz Luhrmann
Whether or not Ukraine joins NATO, at any point, is not a relevant issue in this context, because Ukraine has no intent or desire to ever “start military operations” with Russia. Unlike Russia, Ukraine respects Russia’s sovereignty and would not ever question or otherwise impose on their neighbor’s borders or desire for independent self-rule.
You can be president of the world.
I’ll be the Secretary of World State.
mk5000
A destiny only they can fulfil
As they take Him by the hand
And walk with Him every day
With God’s vision for their lives
Jesus Baby Poem
THE GIFT OF A CHILD
M.S.Lowndes
In true Orwellian fashion
Putin alleged Ukraine attacked Russia
This is from February a year ago
President Vladimir Putin accused Western nations of ignoring key Russian
security concerns, following the U.S.′ refusal last week to concede to
Moscow’s demands over Ukraine and NATO.
“It’s already clear now ... that fundamental Russian concerns were
ignored,” Putin said at a press conference Tuesday, according to a Reuters
translation.
Putin said that the U.S. wanted to “contain Russia” and that it was using
Ukraine to do that, as he reiterated Russia’s position that any possible
membership of Ukraine in NATO would “undermine Russia’s security.”
“Let’s imagine Ukraine is a NATO member and starts these military
operations. Are we supposed to go to war with the NATO bloc? Has anyone
given that any thought? Apparently not,” he said, according to Reuters.
Nonetheless, Putin said he hoped dialog over Ukraine would continue and
that a way needed to be found to, as he put it, “protect everyone’s
security.”
https://www.cnbc.com/2022/02/01/putin-the-west-has-ignored-russian-security-concerns-on-nato-ukraine.html
It’s the first time that Putin has commented publicly about the
geopolitical crisis in weeks, despite a flurry of diplomatic meetings and
calls between Russian and Western officials.
Russia has denied it is planning an invasion, but trust in Russia’s word
has been low ever since it annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and
supported pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. Political analysts
believe that Russia wants to maintain its sphere of influence and power
over former Soviet states and to stop Ukraine’s gravitation toward the
West.
Russia has insisted that it just wants to protect its security interests,
particularly in the face of an expanded NATO that has deployed military
hardware to eastern Europe. On the build-up of troops along its border
with Ukraine, Putin has previously insisted late last year that Russia has
a right to move its troops wherever it likes within its territory. The
Kremlin has accused the West of stirring up “hysteria” over Ukraine.
Putin’s comments comes after Russia made a series of security proposals to
the U.S. in December, including its main demands that NATO does not expand
further to the east or admit Ukraine to the military alliance. It would
also like to see NATO rollback its military deployments in eastern Europe.
Putin echoed that position on Tuesday, stating that missile launchers in
Romania and Poland, both of whom are NATO members, “are a threat to
Russia.”
Last week, the U.S. responded to those demands, refusing to accept
Russia’s key proposals over Ukraine and NATO. Still, it signaled a
willingness to continue discussions aimed at calming tensions, and said
there could be room for compromise in some areas potentially.
On Tuesday, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken was due to speak to
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Russia’s official response to the
U.S. remains unknown, at this point, although it has reportedly delivered
a written response to the U.S.
Putin has not publicly commented on Ukraine since Dec. 23, according to
the New York Times, which noted that he had chided a British journalist
who asked, during Putin’s annual news conference, whether he would
guarantee that Russia would not invade Ukraine.
“It was the United States that came with its missiles to our home, to the
doorstep of our home,” Putin said.
“And you demand from me some guarantees. You should give us guarantees.
You! And right away, right now.”