The most recent 20 comments posted to Making Light by Tracie:

Show all comments by Tracie.

Posted on entry Open thread 132 ::: November 16, 2009, 08:15 PM:
SylvieG: My sympathies on the loss of your faithful friend.
Posted on entry Open thread 132 ::: November 16, 2009, 10:11 AM:
Well, I missed the Dandies and Quaintrelles tweed ride. Maybe next time.
Posted on entry Scraps. Bad. [Update: Doing better. See below.] ::: November 15, 2009, 12:27 AM:
I'm praying for you, Scraps and Velma.
Posted on entry $9,695 New Age sweat lodge session kills 2, injures 19 ::: October 16, 2009, 11:06 AM:
Larry #90: Here are the complete lyrics and tune. A ballad about (another) spiritual con artist, written by Pete Seeger.
Posted on entry Open thread 128 ::: August 26, 2009, 02:03 AM:
Aw, crap. Sen. Ted Kennedy has died.
Posted on entry Open thread 128 ::: August 25, 2009, 10:49 PM:
Argh. Double post ... sorry.
Posted on entry Open thread 128 ::: August 25, 2009, 10:46 PM:
TMy housemate's brother liveson 5th Avenue Place NE in the town of Hickory NC, where you can give directions like "Take 9th Ave NE going west (it's one-way); turn left on 9th St Dr NE, then take the next right on 9th Ave NE. If you stay on [the first] 9th Ave NE, it turns into 9th Ave Pl NE when it crosses 9th St NE.

Arlington VA is weird, too, with north and south versions of numbered streets and parallel roads, discontinuous streets, etc.

The many Atlanta streets named some variant of Peachtree are said to be a scheme to confuse invading Yankees. (Some folks in Georgia still worry about this, ya know.) In the north, the Civil War is taught as history; in the south, it is taught as current events.

Peachtree Corner Circle in Norcross (a suburb of Atlanta) is not a circle at all. The nearest Trader Joes to me (not very near, alas) is at the corner of Peachtree Corner Circle and Peachtree Parkway.
Posted on entry Open thread 128 ::: August 25, 2009, 10:45 PM:
TMy housemate's brother liveson 5th Avenue Place NE in the town of Hickory NC, where you can give directions like "Take 9th Ave NE going west (it's one-way); turn left on 9th St Dr NE, then take the next right on 9th Ave NE. If you stay on [the first] 9th Ave NE, it turns into 9th Ave Pl NE when it crosses 9th St NE.

Arlington VA is weird, too, with north and south versions of numbered streets and parallel roads, discontinuous streets, etc.

The many Atlanta streets named some variant of Peachtree are said to be a scheme to confuse invading Yankees. (Some folks in Georgia still worry about this, ya know.) In the north, the Civil War is taught as history; in the south, it is taught as current events.

Peachtree Corner Circle in Norcross (a suburb of Atlanta) is not a circle at all. The nearest Trader Joes to me (not very near, alas) is at the corner of Peachtree Corner Circle and Peachtree Parkway.
Posted on entry That Was Weird ::: August 24, 2009, 01:48 PM:
Caller: Oh, you don't subscribe/your subscription has expired? We have a subscription special offer running now. Just give us your credit card information ...
Posted on entry I'll show you mine if you'll show me yours ::: August 21, 2009, 07:08 AM:
Abi #88: Not that it adds much to this discussion, but a woman did not get "millions ... because her coffee was hot." The jury award of $2.86 million was reduced by the judge to $680,000 and later settled for less than that. Her coffee was not hot, it was unusually hot, hotter than it needed to be -- hot enough to cause significant 2nd and 3rd degree burns. She had originally sought $20,000 to cover medical expenses, which at that point totalled $11,000, but McDonalds offered only $800. That's when she sued. I would have, too.

Yes, the woman did something dumb, but not that uncommon, and the jury recognized her responsibility in the accident. A fairly clear summary can be found in, yes, Wikipedia (which is good for some things.)

I have a a personal interest in this case because someone once spilled a mug of coffee, fresh from the pot, on my lap while I was sitting, and it caused 2nd and 3rd degree burns and sent me to the hospital in shock. If the coffee had landed on my forearm, it probably would have only been 2nd degree burns, maybe not even that, but laps are (for most people) a bit more tender than forearms. As this happened at work on an Air Force base, no lawsuits ensued.
Posted on entry Open thread 127 ::: July 29, 2009, 11:55 AM:
Using bleach when washing a garment involves a much higher concentration of chlorine than wearing that garment in a swimming pool. Hence the warning not to wash the suit with bleach. Washing/rinsing the (swimming pool) bleach out is recommended.

Also, what Carol said @679. Manufacturers of swimsuits do not deliberately manufacture them them to disintegrate, but eventually they do. Sometimes sooner than later. (Photos possibly NSFW)
Posted on entry Open thread 127 ::: July 25, 2009, 11:49 PM:
Derivative works weirdness today. I went to Walmart today to see this t-shirt. Click on the image to zoom in and carefully examine the right shoulder of the shirt in the back. Yes, part of the collage includes a snippet from an SCA awards scroll from the Barony of Windmasters Hill (central North Carolina). There's more of the scroll on the bottom of the shirt. Weird.
Posted on entry Open thread 127 ::: July 24, 2009, 04:19 PM:
Periodically I get computer generated calls that promise, if I only stay on the line or call a certain toll-free number, that I will learn about grant and/or loan opportunities to help my business. I work for a large state university. Sometimes I stay on the line while shuffling paper. Upon reaching a live person or a recording, I'll intone mechanically, "You have reached the University of Georgia, an agency of the state of Georgia. If you have money for us, please call the governor at ..." I've gotten a chuckle once or twice from a live person who was probably having an otherwise typically crummy telemarketer day.

With other telephone solicitations involving a living caller, particularly at inconvenient times (like there's a convenient time for intrusive telephone solicitations) I just take a deep breath and interrupt the caller to say "I'msorrybutywedonotrespondtotelephonesolicitationspleasetakethisnumberoffyourlistputitonyourdonotcalllistandnevercallusagainthankyouandgoodbye." When I remember to smile and tilt my head, I sound impossibly cheery.
Posted on entry Open thread 127 ::: July 23, 2009, 04:55 PM:
From that Link ... I mean,link (not to be confused with Link):

"I ONLY EXPECT THE VIOLENT LASHING OUT AND VICIOUS ATTACKS TO COME FROM TEENANGERS, NOT ADULTS!"

I've met a few teenangers. Heck, I think a lot of us were teenangers once or twice -- I sure was. A great word, however unintentional.

Not that I actually read any of the story, but I did scroll to the bottom to find FOOTNOTES! Aieee!
Posted on entry Open thread 127 ::: July 21, 2009, 02:26 PM:
More of what editors do. Representatives of Vanity Fair's editorial, research and copy departments apply their red (and green and blue) pencils to Sarah Palin's resignation speech.
Posted on entry Open thread 126 ::: July 09, 2009, 12:19 PM:
Elliot @686: A lot of TSP nowadays is phosphate-free, too -- but still sold as 'TSP' -- which makes my head hurt.

Rather like "fat free half and half."

The FDA has assured us that this can be a legitimate labeling of certain milk products. Yum.
Posted on entry Open thread 126 ::: June 25, 2009, 10:35 AM:
Jesse # 258 -- The clerk is probably correct, if not complete. Distributors (of newspapers and other goods) are often reluctant to distribute to companies facing bankruptcy until after they have actually filed.

I got a nice Borders gift card for Christmas, which I made haste to use, since gift cards are often casualties of bankruptcy. I've been a long-time customer of Borders, and I hope they make it.
Posted on entry Open thread 125 ::: June 03, 2009, 04:22 PM:
Serge @ #65: She has a temper," Miranda said this afternoon after a Heritage Foundation event. "She has an attitude...

In other words, she's just a little Latin spitfire. [disengage stereotype]
Posted on entry Voicemail fail ::: May 27, 2009, 04:44 PM:
I'm particularly amused by the robo-calls I get at work asking me to stay on the line to hear more about "government grants" to help my business. When I have the time, I do stay on the line, and tell the person who comes on that the university is a state agency, and they really need to call the governor's office about this exciting offer. I actually got a telemarketer to laugh once.
Posted on entry Open thread 124 ::: May 27, 2009, 04:38 PM:
I grew up with a copy of Mrs. Ramussen's Book of One-Arm Cookery in my mother's collection. It's still there, along with other works by Mary Lasswell. When I got old enough (after college), she gave me a copy for my own. The revised edition, I think. Chortle.

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Total: 163 comments. View all these comments on a single page.