Open Thread – Best Conference Room Ever
This is the view from one of the conference rooms at the University of Alaska Southeast. Half the table faces in and half the table faces this. Wonder which side gets filled up first?
I haven’t had much time since I got to Juneau, but posts are forthcoming. And let me say that if you needed anything to convince you that Sarah Palin is crazy, walk around Juneau for a while and tell me that you’d rather hang out all year in Wasilla. I don’t know why the ex-half-gov didn’t like the capital, but I most definitely do!
A few years ago, I lived in Anchorage (Turnagain View subdivision) for year. Though I didn’t have a ‘view’ from my house, I didn’t have to drive too far to see beautiful scenery.
One summer night, as I was driving out to do some grocery shopping, I was at a red light, and while I sat in my car, looking at what was ahead, I remember thinking to myself; “Geez, I live in a flipping post-card” .
Lucky me.
Oh, funny, AKM! I totally agree with you about Juneau. I think one of the reasons Alaskans have wanted to maintain the capital there is because of its beauty and its awesome representation of a magnificent state.
If any of you have considered either a cruise or ferry trip up the Inside Passage (Alaskan or not), do it when you get a chance. I highly recommend the ferry, however, if you have even an ounce of adventure in your blood. It’s beautiful, fun, and informative. And, you get to stop at great places like Juneau. With the ferry, you can stay in these ports for as long as you like — get to know the town and its exciting activities.
Hey all! I didn’t fall off the edge of the earth. just tired. we had inventory at work today and all staff were busy preparing for it since our lead time was less than half the usual. had to be up 3 hours early this morning after closing the store last night. I can’t wait until I find a new job because I sure do dislike this one. off to bed early. night night.
“US Political Freak-Show Sarah Palin headed to India”
http://thelinkpaper.ca/?p=4766
Well! What an UnAmerikun article. I think we should invade and impose some gov’mint on them and teach them about Amerikun Freedoms and loving your freedom and free speech and second amendment remedies.
live streaming @ WI capitol:
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/afl-cio-2010-rally
Go Wisconsin!!!!
Uh, Irishgirl, that’s “On Wisconsin,” which, as you aren’t a Rill Amerikun, we couldn’t expect you to know, except if you were Rill Irish you’d know anyway because all Rill Irish are from New York and Boston, donchaknow.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zOYus1BE7jk
It’s one of the most popular school “victory” songs in the US. A gazillion high schools, including my alma mater, have used it for their own victory song. Played after every Rill Amerikun football touchdown.
I stand corrected. On Wisconsin!!! 🙂
Chris Christie gives Palin some advice.
“Republican Governor Chris Christie appeared on Face the Nation and Bob Schieffer asked him about potential Republican candidates for the upcoming presidential election. In addition to mentioning that he really likes Governor Mitch Daniels, Christie continued an odd pattern of not backing down from an invitation to knock Sarah Palin in the form of giving her some advice.”
http://www.mediaite.com/tv/gov-chris-christie-to-sarah-palin-you-have-to-have-some-unscripted-moments/
Since many in conservative circles like Christie, I hope that they pay attention to his advice about Palin.
Another good article from Sarah Jones.
Judge Issues Restraining Order Against Christian Palin Fan Who Threatened with “Crosshairs”
You may have been wondering just how Sarah Palin has the people of Alaska shriveled in fear. Well, this story shines a light on the underworld of the Palin cult who’ve been terrorizing citizens for years and no, that’s not hyperbole. A court in Anchorage Alaska recently issued a restraining order against Clare Goodchild, a devout Palin fan, who threatened Andree McLeod, a government watchdog. Goodchild threatened McLeod in a January post of the Anchorage Craigslist writing, “So I have my scope cross hair on her head! She better watch out, the request may have been her last!”
http://www.politicususa.com/en/palin-fan-crosshairs
I failed miserably but Dana Milbank was successful and he’ll be chronicling his month off:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/25/AR2011022506569.html
Another reason to like Jamie Oliver: he called Palin a fruit loop.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/26/jamie-oliver-sarah-palin-froot_n_828660.html
Hey Benlomond2: It has been snowing here off and on in Victorville, California all day. Last week it was 80 degrees and now it is 30 degrees. Snow is a rarity up here too! My daughter’s birthday was today and she was going to have a birthday party tonight in San Bernardino with all our family and friends, but the Cajon Pass is said to be a mess so we cannot risk going down, so she had to cancel the party. I told her we could postpone it until next weekend but she said “no”. But my other children and I have decided to give her a surprise birthday party next Saturday and invite all her friends! The snow was a damper on her birthday for today but we will make up for it next week!!
…put some of the snow in the freezer, when you have the party, they can make snowballs instead of water balloons ! we had snow last weekend up on the ridge where I work, 7 accidents in 30 minutes from the lookie-lous.. … I’ll just look at the great pics from AKM and stay indoors..
As beautiful as this photo is, it is deceiving — that expanse of white is a lake. It is beautiful in summer and waterskiers and skidooers have great fun in summer (but usually where wet or dry suits).
By tomorrow — it will be blowing snow and VERY COLD — Juneau is forecast to get steady winds of 40 with gusts of 80 and higher through Monday and temps will be 5 (or less ) for a low and 15 (or less) for a high…. BBBRRRRRRRRR!!!! The area where this photo was taken will have winds to 40 and temps of probably 10 below to maybe 15 above. Time to put on many layers, gloves, scarves for head and face, etc. if going outdoors. Better yet, it’s time to stay inside!
BBBBRRRRRRRR!!!!! Looks too cold for this boy !!! we actually had some snow flakes fall this am – woke wife up at 7 am to see them, which she did, then dove back into bed … snow in Santa Cruz Mtns a rarity…and we had 80 degrees just a couple of weeks ago…. 🙂 looks nice on a postcard tho’!
When AKM took this photo (assuming it was Friday or Saturday) them temps were about 30-35 degrees. A wonderful portent of spring to come!
Ben, two words: snowshoe golf.
chortle ! Do the balls have GPS inside ?
Hello to InJuneau and BearWoman!
What a time I had meeting you. Can’t believe it’s already over a year. You must come to San Diego!
SJP
Good evening! Yes, it’s over a year and loved playing hostess to you and our other mudpuppies who visited Juneau. Haven’t made it to California, let alone San Diego, but will definitely contact you if we head your way!
Other mudpups, if you’re coming to Juneau by air, Alaska Marine Highway or cruise ship, we would love to meet you and give you a personalized tour. I love showing our town, and we have mudpups who can vouch for us! Your tour is to what you want to see and how much time you want to spend. It certainly beats being herded around on a bus!
If you are coming to Juneau and would like to meet mudpups, just go to the forum and post a thread or send an e-mail to AKM and have her pass on to me or InJuneau!
might just take you up on that …wife did the land portion FAM bit ( she’s a travel agent) a couple of years ago) and has been after me to get with the program… We’re already booked for Mexico this spring, and some freinds of ours are on a cruise to Alaska this fall…. just trying to figure out how to do TWO of them in one year… Gosh darn job keeps getting in the way…
I simply wonder about politics today. Our spineless governor in Kentucky just signed into law a bill allowing optometrists to do “some” surgeries. Yes, some with lasers. These folks have had no medical training, but they sure contributed to the Reputhugs. It is really scary what they can do in the Eastern Kentucky part of the state, where people are not that well educated nor savy. I simply do not understand this trying to get us back to the middle ages.
Yikes, that’s really scary. Unfortunately in this country regulations are BAD and then it’s “Buyer Beware” situations.
I stumbled upon this looking for a Snot Walker recall petition that I could sign. In light of what is hapenning in Wisconsin,I felt it might be apropos for my friends: “If you are neutral in situations of injustice,you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality”. Bishop Desmond Tutu. I dare say you won’t be on the mouse’s Christmas Card list,either.
Great quote..
“Snot Walker” Spit coffee on the monitor. Can I borrow that tone?
Another quote for you – “When Elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers”
A couple of years ago, I wanted to catch an evening performance in a coffeehouse 2 hours from my home. So I figured I’d book a cheap motel about a half an hour further down the highway and keep heading west to visit relatives the next day. The motel clearly had seen better days, and I made the mistake of paying in cash- They gave me the drug dealer’s special and removed anything which could be removed from the room before giving me a key.
Next morning I got up early and wondered around a little, and there was this giant, used banquet/conference room with windows the length of the room overlooking the Erie Canal. My first thought was if this was in Boston or another big city where there were people and businesses, this place would be booked solid!
Read Across America Poem
You’re never too old, too wacky, too wild,
To pick up a book and read with a child.
You’re never too busy, too cool, or too hot,
To pick up a book and share what you’ve got.
In schools and communities,
Let’s gather around,
Let’s pick up a book,
Let’s pass it around.
There are kids all around you,
Kids who will need
Someone to hug,
Someone to read.
Come join us March 2nd
Your own special way
And make this America’s
Read to Kids Day.
The National Education Association (teachers’ union, don’tcha know?!) is preparing for our annual Read Across America celebration on Wednesday, March 2. Our local will celebrate Dr. Seuss’s birthday tomorrow afternoon at a local bookstore.
The high school service club I sponsor will be there, and on Wednesday, we’ll have our 5th annual Read Across America celebration with the elementary school right next door. We have games and songs and stories and arts& crafts and refreshments with all the first graders in their library, and send them home with goody bags (including info for families with suggestions for family reading fun).
Do you have a favorite children’s book? This is a great time to share it with a child (or library) in your life.
It won’t solve all our problems, but it will make a difference. Let those little lights shine, eh?
in solidarity, for the children,
thatcrowwoman
Oh thatcrowwoman – you are right there as usual. Please keep on doing what your are doing.
The Mitten (or just about anything by Jan Brett)
Diary of a Worm (I dare anyone to read it without laughing, no matter how old you are!)
any of the Olivia books (how can you not love a pig in striped tights?)
I got a nice compliment last week when, in honor of the 100th day of school (a very big deal in primary grades for some reason!) I read a story that I had written to all my classes, about a little lost elephant who’s trying to find his way home. The kids always enjoy it, especially since there’s lots of repetition that they can join in on. One of the 2nd grade classroom teachers, after I had finished, said that he hoped I was going to try to get it published. Made me feel all warm and fuzzy!
We used to do a big reading event in our school every year and we invited people from the community to read with the kids. Unfortunately, now we only have a librarian in our building 2 days a week and it’s too hard for her to coordinate something when she’s not in the building. It takes a lot of work and it just doesn’t seem to be a priority with our current administration. 🙁
Humph! Humphed a voice! ‘Twas the sour Koch-a-roo. And the young Gov’ner in his pouch said, “Humph,” too. “As for unions, there has never, and I do mean never ever, been a good one. They’re all thug-uns. I mean you” said Koch-a-roo.
You union thugs causin’ all this pain and misery, makin’ kids listen to this fascist Marixist, Leninist, Communist, socialist, dictatorist, Seussist, Obamaist propaganda and bein’ good to your neighbor and people that aren’t like you and working’ hard to destroy Amerika ’cause you don’t wanna live in a prosperous, great nation, but are workin’ hard to make Amerika unexceptional and third rate ’cause liberuls all want to live in a crappy country and all union thugs are liberuls and all liberuls are union thugs just like Polush sausage and Solidarity and Michelle Obama and her food dictatorship and Obama and his activist judge children’s book bein’ pushed down their throats by an interspecies hybrid liberian fowl not eney better then the hybrid car which is against nature and G– dontchaknow.
You go, Crow! Word! Little Bird! 😀
My daughter (5 yrs old — 6 this week!) is buried under books! There are so many wonderful books! My current favorites:
The Girl Who Loved Wild Horses (wonderful Native American story retold, fabulous illustrations, I’ve just bought another 7 books by the same author, Paul Goble, I think his name is).
Martin’s Big Words (super fabulous kids’ story about MLK and the civil rights issue)
Chronicles of Narnia (we are working our way through those one chapter per night)
Anything by Kevin Henkes!
Reading rules! Thanks wonderful teachers!
When we lived in the UK where she was born, there was an initiative that gave children a book bag and several library books when they were about 1 yr old. And our little village had a mobile library — such excitement on mobile library day!
We’ve donated dozens of out-grown books to Books on Wheels here in the Houston area. If there are any other Houston mudflatters with extra books please look them up.
When my kids were young, part of their birthday present every year was to make a list of their 5 favorite books from the year just passed…then they got to take the list to their school librarian and the two of them would earnestly discuss the merits of each book listed. There was usually a ‘hands down’ winner amongst the bunch, and *that* was the book kidlet had me purchase, brand new, and donate to the school for other kids to read…and enjoy.
After all these years, I can still see the two –the librarian and my son(s)– with their heads together in the hush of the library…gave me warm-fuzzies, then; gives me warm-fuzzies today. I’d like to take credit for it, but it was DS1s idea…he worried that if he had a favorite book checked out, some other kid wouldn’t be able to check it out; he reckoned if there were 2 copies of a really good book, he could check the book out as often as he wanted for a re-read/visit down nostalgia lane, and not deprive any one else of its treasures and pleasure.
I love it that my kids find such joy in the written word. I love it that they’ve had teachers and librarians –particularily librarians!– who’ve encouraged their love of books. beth.
My favorites are the classics —
Blueberries for Sal
Ferdinand the Bull
The Runaway Bunny
I have given away many, many copies fo these books.
My girls’ favorite picture books were
The Maggie B
and
The Cow That Fell into the Canal
mine was a book called Keeko and there was another Keeko book, too. I’m sure they wouldn’t pas the PC test these days, but their message was one of friendship, acceptance, kindness to animals, and learning from mistakes. The lessons from those books still come back to me these days.
Guess those books weren’t in some people’s childhood libraries.
When I saw this picture and the title, I thought AKM was referring to the frozen lake AS the conference room. I was strapping on my Alpine skis, ready to join any meeting that was in session! 🙂
But I’d have settled for the view in the middle of many a moribund meeting.
Irish Girl @ 31
I don’t think the Reps. give a damm as to what is legal!!!
Looks like the judges should take a look at this. They are always talking about the constitution–but must think it does not apply to them. They are like little kids that make-up their own rules.
“While the media has been focused on the efforts to gut the unions in Wisconsin, that is only a small part of the 144 page bill that Scott Walker has proposed and the Wisconsin House passed in a middle-of-the-night, seconds-long vote that prevented nearly half of the Dems from even registering their votes.”
Was that legal?
Good question, and I suspect that the 13 out of 38 Democrats who didn’t get a chance to vote will be looking into that.
Ironically, during his campaign, Walker “promised to sign legislation if elected governor that prohibits the Legislature from voting after 10 p.m. or before 9 a.m.” The vote took place at 1:17 am.
Yup, you guessed it…he never signed that legislation. And the Republicans slunk out of the chamber after the vote as fast as their slimy little legs could carry them.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/02/25/walker-midnight/
What-and you believed a rethuglican. Well I never.
Well, those of us who suspected that there was more to the Chris Lee story than originally revealed have been proven correct. Lee, if you recall, was the Republican Rep from western NY (my district, unfortunately) who was outed for sending half nekkid pics of himself to women on Craigslist. Since other Republicans have weathered much more shocking scandals without losing their jobs, some of us were surprised at the speed at which he resigned. Made you wonder if there was more scandal to come.
Welllll, the newest revelation is that he also seems to (allegedly) have a particular interest in connecting with transgender women.
From Gawker (which broke the original story): “In the past two weeks, two D.C.-area transgender women contacted us, each with a separate story about exchanging emails with the ex-congressman. One sent us an ad that Lee allegedly posted on Craigslist in search of trans women; the other sent us a never-before-seen photo that she says Lee sent her after they started chatting by email.”
That photo is remarkably like the one that started this whole brouhaha.
http://gawker.com/#!5769037/the-craigslist-congressman-and-the-crossdressing-prostitute
I am also curious about this whole affair (no pun intended) because, earlier in said evening, Chris Lee was apparently drinking in a bar with MY Rep., Bill Shuster (R), who, along with yet another married bar-crawler that evening – Duncan Hunter (R) – had already been admonished by GOP leadership for drinking and partying in a way-too-familiar manner with female lobbyists. I feel so sorry for these hypocrites’ wives. How embarrassing!!
teehee. chortle. too funny.
Bubbles-why not introduce all those poor women to Ike from Miowa,he is not interested in drinking,bar hopping.money.or life. Hell he could just as well be dead. Sorry I bothered you. Mike from Iowa.
Duncan Hunter is a real nut job. The following regarding bike paths and highways just proves the alcohol may have pickled his brain.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/01/28/duncan-hunter-bike-lanes/
Welllll, the newest revelation is that he also seems to (allegedly) have a particular interest in connecting with transgender women.
********************************************************
oh dear. that would not play well in Western New York. LOL
Actually, Rochester is pretty open minded. We have a very large population of LGBT folks and lots of multi-racial families. Quite a few of the students in my school have come from 2-mommy homes and there are all sorts of interesting ethnic and racial combinations that make for really beautiful kids. My choir will be singing in a concert tomorrow that includes the Rochester Gay Men’s Chorus, which is one of the most popular and respected groups in the area. What would really frosts our behinds is the typical Republican family-values hypocrisy rather than the gender specifics of the people involved.
However, as for the more rural areas between here and Buffalo which are also part of his district…perhaps not quite so accepting!
Mike – not sure around the state, but I would say 20 to 25.
In the meantime – Gov. Walker talks in a press conference about his discussions concerning the possibility of having trouble-makers infiltrate the protests. I am absolutely dumbfounded that he would consider it and think he can talk about it as though it is of no importance.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2011/02/26-1
Thanks for the link. I have said in the past that Walker only speaks with agents of Faux Noise. It snould make everyone wonder if he is owned by Murdoch in conjunction with koch Bros. These guys are as rw nutter as you can get. God,if he/she exists won’t be able to untangle this web that is being woven.
Are there any teachers in the house? I need to know average size of 4th grade classes in Wisc. but other states info could be used. I am grateful and indebted to all Pups.
Don’t know about Wisconsin but the numbers WFA mentioned would pretty much apply to my district in Rochester, although I think some of the other schools may sometimes edge closer to 30.
My school is one of the oldest buildings in the district and we max out at about 24 only because the classrooms are small and can’t fit more than that. Even at 24, it’s really tight in those rooms, especially in the higher grades where the kids and the desks are bigger. You can pack more kindergarteners into a room than 6th graders!
Thank you very much.
One of the states with Republicans in charge is considering upping the classroom size to 60. No joke!
I will try to make time to track that down, but it’s been the buzz of teachers here in Northeastern Kansas. Thankfully, Gov. Brownback hasn’t come out with much more than slashing budgets, firing people, cutting extra-curricula activities or increasing fees. Big meetings in the district planned soon to resist his budget proposals.
What I love about living in Johnson County, KS is that we are fighting for the right to pay MORE taxes to support our schools. How cool is that? The state keeps saying no to allowing us to raise our tax ceiling.
Our son, his wife, and our Grandgirlies live in Johnson County for that reason. Excellent schools.
Glad you think so. My husband has been teaching in the SM school district for over two decades and his schools have often won the Award of Excellence – not he alone was responsible, but there are so many great teachers here. It’s why we moved here in the eighties so our daughter could get in the gifted program. He had been teaching in a small rural school district that did not believe in special needs education of any sort (until I got the State called in, hehe).
Here in CA our Gov, Jerry Brown, is fighting to get a vote for us to keep some expiring taxes and fees. The alternative is cutting the school year among other things. The Cons are fighting and he needs a couple to break rank from a “no tax” pledge a bunch of them signed as they took the oath of office. What is it with R’s not wanting to think and/or negotiate anything. Hate to have one as a spouse or parent.
I would much prefer everyone paying a bit more in taxes to keep or improve the services we get – particularly education. I’ve never understood the small government mentality when there are so many benefits when we all pool our resources that we could not get if we only seek them as individuals. What is wrong with these people who keep harping on no new taxes. They have to be for zero growth birth rates and no immigration at all from anywhere for that to work. What poopheads.
What’s wrong is that they don’t care about anyone but themselves. They’ve got theirs and screw everybody else. Their kids are out of school or they don’t have kids, so they don’t want to spend money on the schools. They are incapable of understanding that it benefits all of our country when our children are well educated and healthy.
In CA, it can be 30-35
18 in grades K-3, 22 in grades 4-8, 25 in grades 9-12 here in Florida, as approved by voters in the 2002 Class size amendment to Florida’s constitution…but there’s some wiggle room through appeals to DOE, with exceptions granted to charter schools and others…
It’s all up in the air now, what with our new governor and redder majority in Tallahassee. Session opens in a couple of weeks. Here’s hoping we can channel some Wisconsin-style uprisings here in this right-to-work (right to freeload) state. There will be a rally in Pensacola this Monday, and many more scheduled throughout the state in the weeks to come.
Washington state tries to keep classes around 30 or less for elementary. For the youngest, I think there is something about having it even lower. I know when I taught second grade in Kansas eons ago, I loved the years I had fewer than 25. My first year with first graders I started with 32 and the other 1st grade teacher (also new) had 31. We were both overwhelmed. The rooms weren’t meant to hold that many kids and thankfully, the school board hired a 3rd first grade teacher. Her’s was a make-shift classroom in the library so she took 8 children from each of us. It was amazing what a difference that made.
But my last year there I had more than 30 again. At least I knew what I was doing, but at the end of the year I realized that I knew my trouble makers, my bright students, and the ones who struggled. But the average students who were well behaved were kind of lost in the shuffle.
People who say that it doesn’t make a difference when class sizes are so large have either never taught school or their expectations of education are much different than mine.
Leenie17–thank you for the thinkprogress link. I am in an online argument with a relative who sent me a forward going out from the League of American Voters. The LAV won’t say who they are funded by, but they have the same street and suite number as American’s for Tax Reform which is a Koch brothers group. The LAV has one employee and 3 consultants. The LAV is against unions, for extending Bush tax cuts, against health care reform, and against enviormental protection. David Koch’s group American’s for Prosperity has just dumped $325,00 into ad campaigns in Wisconsin. PEW says the Winconsin public pension program is one of the nations healthiest. This whole situation is Winconsin is really troubling. My relative (hard core right wing) has never heard of the Koch brothers. We have to get their names and motives out there to those conservative folks who don’t know they are being sold a bill of goods.
Auni, read my Kos diary above. The send them this. http://www.institutionalinvestorsecuritiesblog.com/2011/02/calpers_files_securities_fraud.html
This is real big time investors explaining just how Wall Street has ripped off some of the biggest investors in the country, CalPers Trust. These are honest investment managers trying to fight the corruption that has overtaken Wall Street.
I think a well written story about the no bid sale of the power plants in WI would also be good. Sorry, I don’t know of any so far but maybe another Mudpuppy will see one. This is just shameful theft.
Guess who jumped out of a second story window to avoid quorum on a vote he was opposed to passing?
I love this –
http://www.kmph.com/Global/story.asp?S=9803297
I didn’t like Raygun and I would not ne surprised to find out some day that he used this story,with himself instead of Lincoln,to slap around Dems.
While the media has been focused on the efforts to gut the unions in Wisconsin, that is only a small part of the 144 page bill that Scott Walker has proposed and the Wisconsin House passed in a middle-of-the-night, seconds-long vote that prevented nearly half of the Dems from even registering their votes.
Think Progress has a list of 10 other policies that are part of Walker’s plan for Wisconsin.
It is simply astounding that an elected official could make such a blatant attempt at ripping away power from the legislation and awarding it to himself and his corporate friends. Disgusting and terribly frightening if this man does not get stopped. This is the future of our country if the radical right wing governors and Congresspeople get their way. The Citizens United decision by the SCOTUS has gone a long way towards destroying this country.
http://thinkprogress.org/2011/02/26/report-top-10-disastrous-policies-from-the-wisconsin-gop-you-havent-heard-about/
This needs to be better known. The selling off of the heating and cooling plants to Koch Industries via no bid contract should even have R’s up in arms.
Another in depth piece is http://www.huffingtonpost.com/george-lakoff/the-real-issues-a-wiscons_b_828640.html
Out of all of this I sure hope we Dems get some strong “talking points” to help all Americans understand just how far down the rabbit hole we are.
This is much worse than I knew. Thanks for the link. If this continues, Amerika is going to hell in a hand basket as my dear mother would have said. We do need to unite against this take over by the Bros. Koch and their minions, Walker being the most visible at this moment.
It’s happening in every state. Here in blue CA the locals are up in arms about how much the cities pay each year for public employee pensions. The astroturf baggers have created a bunch of “tax reform” groups to push the lies and misinformation.
Wall Street fraud reduced the pension funds but people are being told it’s because of greedy, highly paid teacher, firefighters and cops. We need to fight this BS
My mom used that expression too, but I always thought she was referring to one of her friends: “Helena Handbasket.”
Sorry to break this wonderful thread of Zen but I just published by first diary over at DailyKos. Could use the Mudpuppy tips if you are a member.
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/26/950119/-Why-Wall-Street-wants-to-end-public-pension-funds#comments
Here in Kali were are seeing a PR campaign against the public pension plans of the first order from Wall Street and the Kochopus.
Good diary, Fan. Thanks for writing it, and for letting us know.
Going there now. Back to ya on the other side. nem
Isn’t this part of the story that is not being reported today, yesterday, tomorrow. Pension funds were invested in “the market”. That ‘we’ learn later is their market is those phoney ‘instruments’. OK, someone was asleep at the wheel. If this had happened to me I would be so pissed off. (pardon the language). How I see this is the “Funds” lost, the G’ment refunded them, no one refunded the “Funds”.
this may have been said, but it wasn’t that she didn’t appreciate the views that convinced me palin was crazy!
I’m from Juneau – seeing this photo makes me a tad homesick. When the weather is ‘sunshine’ in southeast, there is no prettier place! I’m amazed at the growth of homes, across the way on the lake, that are there that were not in the 50’s and 60’s! Things don’t standstill, that is for sure!
So glad you are enjoying your visit down there!
Millie — you would not recognize much of Juneau now. Please “come home” for a visit and Juneau mudpups will take you on a personalized tour and share great conversation, beer and laughter!
AKM, thank you for that lovely peaceful photo. My father in law passed away early Friday morning, So my daughter and I are in Eugene, where it’s colder than some parts of Alaska. We’re waiting for the rest of the family to come down from Washington, but the roads are too icy for safe travel, especially when most of them are in their 70s/80s.
I’ve really needed one of your zen moment photos, and this one is perfect. Thank you.
{{{{{Pat and daughter}}}}}
{{{{{Pat}}}} extending sympathy to you and yours.
(((((Pat and Family)))))))) I’m so sorry for you and your daughter.
same goes for me Pat extending sympathy to you and yours.
{{{Pat & family}}}
Thoughts and prayers are with you, family and friends as you grieve and try to travel to gather in support. Be well….
My thoughts are with you and your daughter.
Take care, Pat.
Hope all goes well for you and your family at this difficult time – hugs also.
Very best wishes in such a trying time…
standing by your shoulder with all here
Take care, Pat. I’m thinking of you and your family. And sending ((hugs))
Someone’s passing is never easy for those left behind, but to have to cope with unsafe travel just intensifies the worry. May you and yours find peace. Be safe.
My deepest sympathy.
It is so hard to loose a parent no matter what the cause. Many thoughts to you and your family.
My deepest sympathies to you and yours. Take care.
My deepest sympathies to you and yours. Zen moments are golden. Please take care.
I’m so sorry for your family’s loss. I’m hoping they have safe travels, the iciness is so worrisome.
((((((Pat & family))))))
Thanks, everyone. At least the weather is better today as my husband’s two oldest sisters are traveling. All but one has to go back for doctor’s appointments and then come back down for the memorial service next Friday. My hubby has been at home and I’ll come back down with him.
My daughter, who is 5 months pregnant, is the one who drove us down. My youngest came with us and was able to say her good-byes and then had to go home on the train. So it’s been a long week.
Daughter is napping and I’m going to go through some photos. We are going back home tomorrow. It’ll be nice to have at least a few days at home.
You know when someone is 91 they aren’t going to live forever. But it’s always just so unexpected. At least he is at peace and his passing was as comfortable as the hospital could make him, which is what he wanted.
Thanks again for you prayers and hugs and caring. It means a lot to me.
Shabbat Shalom, all.
It’s a beautiful warm and sunny day in the forest.
The peaches and pears are blooming, honeybees are busy buzzing, bumblebees are bumbly-bumbling.
The hens are free-ranging, scratching and dust-bathing under the rooster’s watchful eye.
The goldfish are gulping skeeter larvae in the pond (Go, Goldfish!), and doves are stopping by for a drink.
Lots of birds doing their birdie-in-the-springtime-things…wrens, cardinals, bluejays, robins, mockingbirds, brown thrashers, finches…
and it’s Girl Scout cookie time!
You’ll find me lounging on the swing by the pond with a cool beverage and a good book, soaking up some vitamin D and lots of sweet shalom.
Wishing you all some fresh air, peace, and joy today
and passing the thin mints and shortbread cookies (already mailed all the samoas to Little Bird at college)
🙂
thatcrowwoman
lucky Crow. enjoy
Lucky Little Bird, too!
er – Why is it the snow . . . .
Oh, my, why is the snow we have doesn’t come anywhere near to the beauty of what I see in the stunning photographs of Alaska? Could be it just piles up on streets, driveways and cars and quickly turns to grimey slush. Oh, well, if only we had mountains here in Johnson County.
Don’t get me wrong, we have plenty of beauty here. Nature has given us endless sky and gently rolling hills, but my heart is in the mountains and the majestic evergreen scenery. Thank you for lifting my spirits!
ks Sunflower:
One of the many reasons I came back to Alaska is the breathtaking beauty of this place.
Adjectives and adverbs and really bastardized words have been used to describe Alaska. Similar bastardized words have been popularized to describe each new indescrible event in our lives, today, yesterday, tomorrow.
I, too, grew up on the Great Plains. For me the value was the land. For me the land was and still is the bedrock of me. Then I came to Alaska to learn a new and different reverence for the land, the people.
Today I drove out into the wind. I’m pretty sure that the blowing snow, sheer icy roads, windsurfing ravens, tables of ice moving up and down the Inlet, clearest blue sky is the joy in my life.
I have given you permission to use my likeness on cardboard and take me along-I hope by the hundreds. Thanks to all you guys that work to keep this blog a hopping.
https://mail.google.com/mail/?ui=2&ik=c69e022f23&view=att&th=12e6396af7dbd724&attid=0.7&disp=inline&zw
Every April, my heart yearns to be taken north to Juneau for the Alaska Folk Festival. It’s a 10 day festival, where anyone who signs up can get 15 minutes on stage. The variety of music is incredible, and the quality ranges from earnest, living-room strumming to world-class. (For some reason, Alaska breeds some of the best Irish, bluegrass, old-timey, and general folk musicians in the country.) The streets are clogged with large numbers of people carrying instrument cases, and impromptu jam sessions spring up all over town and often go all night. Best of all, the whole thing is FREE. The only people who get paid are the visiting guest musicians, who have to work hard (providing workshops and appearances in schools) for their modest honorarium. Everyone else – sound and stage crews, engineers, organizsers, and the board – all do it simply for the love of the event. It used to be that coming down to Juneau from Anchorage often brought me my first look at spring. (Planters in the downtown area always had early-blooming crocuses and daffodils), which I sorely needed after five months of winter. And it was always like a huge homecoming and family reunion, meeting up with old musical friends from all over Alaska and the Yukon, whom I handn’t seen in a year. It must be approaching the 35th annual mark now, and I wish it 35 more! Thank you, Juneau, for giving us all so much fun year afer year.
Come on back- Folk Fest is already on our minds here!
http://akfolkfest.org/
37th this year!
It’s also free because of the support we all give the organization in memberships and concerts to raise money through the year.
And there are some of us who think the crocus and daffs wouldn’t come up if all the great music wasn’t calling them out to celebrate Spring 🙂
Mag the Mick-is it possible that the Irish can see Russia from their place and that is the reason for Irish Bluegrass music? I hear the Irish have good eyes.
Sorry got posted in wrong spot. I’m an idiot.
I get the yearning, too. Used to love this event when we lived in Juneau once upon a time…always want to go back and visit during AFF week, but have only managed to make it occasionally since then.
Folk Fest might also be a great time for an Alaska mudstock! Okay Juneau Mudpuppies, shall we put out an all-call?
Musicians and listeners are always welcome at Folk Fest and although hotels are hard to come by, we may be able to open up a room or two for mudpuppies yearning to attend!
Yia Sou, Bear Woman!
Greetings! Former Tarponite!
Will send PM
From Anchorage it too much for me. I shall celebrate spring in Eastern Prince William Sound with the arrival of all the birds, new growth, King Salmon.
Juneau (all of SouthEast AK) is stunningly gorgeous. I was mesmerized when I saw these “Upside Down Flower Towers” and then Mr. Bowhay told me this story of Glacier Gardens:
“During the rehabilitation process, Mr. Bowhay was developing the lower landscaped gardens using a large piece of rented equipment to arrange the masses of soil, roots, plants, trees, and rock dragged down the mountain during the landslide. During the last few hours of equipment rental, the equipment was damaged while moving a large boulder. This boulder has become known as “Steve’s Rock” and is the centerpiece of one of the many waterfalls flowing through Glacier Gardens. Full of frustration about the large repair bill he was sure to see, he used the equipment to pick up a large tree stump and slammed the inverted stump into the ground trunk first. The tree stuck into the soft mud upside down and as the roots hung like the vines of a petunia basket, it only took moments before Steve had a vision of how to recycle the trees cleared from the development of the property: The Upside Down “Flower Towers.” Each “Flower Tower” is made by inverting a spruce or hemlock tree with the root ball pointing towards the sky. The stock of the trunk is buried 5-7 ft, fish netting lines the top of the root ball, and mosses are laid down over the netting to provide nutrients. Each year, Mr. Bowhay personally pants each “Flower Tower” with roughly 75 – 100 flowering plants for our guest’s enjoyment.”
http://www.glaciergardens.com/Tours.htm
If I could live here and care-take these gardens for the rest of my days: yummmmmm: http://www.juneau.org/parkrec/arboretum-images.php
http://wildernesspeaks.photoshelter.com/gallery/Alaskas-Inside-Passage/G0000RjkGpQWAmXk/
Southeast is one of the forgotten jewels of Alaska.
Uuummmmmmm, now that’s what I’m talking about. Thanks, Pi, I needed that. I just want to get in the Lund and go.
OT, also, after years of picking blueberries on my hands and knees on the tundra, I was delighted to find they grow well over my head in SE. Picking berries standing up ~ what a concept!
We have blueberries here, too, but not the wild ones. Sure do like not having to bend or crawl to pick them, but the aren’t as sweet as AK ones, or the kind we had in Maine when I was growing up. Hmmm, maybe I’ll go grab some out of the freezer and bake something up. What will it be? blueberry grunt, cobbler, pie, muffins, cake. . . . . ?
Cobbler it shall be. Have never had blueberry cobbler. My Mommie used to make the best peach cobbler I;ve ever eaten. We would smother it with ice cream or even a little milk. YUMMY!
I lived in Juneau a long time. Went to school at UAS. I loved those blueberries. I vote for a blueberry- rhubarb crisp. Warm, with a scoop of ice cream.
Come to think of it,rhubard-blueberry crisp sounds adventurous enough to moi,so it shall be the catch of the day. Fishingmama-you are very persuasive. Tigerwine-the masses have spoken.
when i look at these pictures my whole body quivers with longing.
my soul cries out at such beauty and it sings out in a great voice! “How Great Thou Art!”
thank you. thank you everyone for posting these photos.
Glorious! These pictures soothe my soul. Thanks for sharing.
In my observations over 20 yrs. Southeast is what get!s noticed. All the cruiseliners go thru there. One must be intrepid to get further north. Go north, young men, go north!
They do go North Pinwheel-
Southcentral gets most of the winter visitors and is the end or beginning ( and most of the employment and income associated with tourism ) of most trips here.
We are not in competition with each other across this state.
We have a huge beautiful state to share with all who visit.
• Approximately half (49 percent) of visitor industry employment occurred in the Southcentral region, and
slightly less than one-third (29 percent) in Southeast. About one in six (17 percent) visitor industry-related
jobs were in the Interior region.
http://commerce.alaska.gov/ded/dev/pub/Visitor_Industry_Impacts_3_30.pdf
see page 17 too
Beautiful gardens indeed. I visited there a few years ago and there was a heavy mist and an aroma in the air that made me think of what the forests must have been like when the dinosaurs roamed…very primeval.
I also loved the greenhouse with dozens of hanging pots of spectacular petunias of every shade of purple and pink – just gorgeous! They also had a giant double heart covered in red and white flowers (impatiens, perhaps?) that was perfect for romantic photographs of couples. Beautiful place to spend the afternoon!
Lovely photo…when its not all snowed-over frozen, is that vast mid-ground expanse a big open field or a big plunk of water? I’d love to explore… beth.
http://www.akphotograph.com/Alaska%20Blog/?p=770
is beautiful place…
How beautiful! Stunningly beautiful.
Too, too, beautiful!
I could do Juneau! I love the mountains and the water and could live with the cold if appropriately dressed. However, I also love the Pacific Northwest – and I see leftover snow out my window today. Rather unusual and much prettier a day or two ago.
But Juneau area looks gorgeous! The lake in both winter and summer is peaceful and stunning.
1smarcanerican:
Please come visit! Will be glad to show you our world!
I will attest to the great hospitality provided! Met these folks on a cruise in 2009!!!
WONDERFUL FOLKS!
The expanse is Auke Lake. The UAS campus sits on the lake and is very beautiful year round. It does rain a tremendous amount in Juneau as it should given that it sits in the largest temperate rain forest but I find it stunning in all kinds of weather. Juneau has been my muse. I bought a camera when I moved here and now have an amateur photography business. However, I find it hard to be as inspired in other places.
The glory of Juneau is an introduction to Alaska. Visit Prince William Sound, Resurection Bay, Kackemak Bay. Visit Lituya Bay, Yakatak, Cape St. Elias, Katalla.
I spent a week in Juneau last year for a conference. Toured the facility and was awestruck entering this room (left drooling over the labs!). I’d not thought about it much before-always been partial to the Aleutians and Kodak- but, yes, I could live in Juneau. People were great, found the pool and health food store, lots of great hiking… oh, and beer- drank lots of beer. I’m not surprised the ex-quitty didn’t want to be there, she’d be too exposed, would actually need to work and be accountable. Nowhere to hide her craziness.
Wow. I’ve never been in a conference room with such a gorgeous view. I hope you’re having a great time, AKM, and that it’s a bit of a break from the week you’ve had. Looking forward to your posts.
I almost expect to see a moose or two edging out of the trees. Good luck keeping the daydreams at bay.
We don’t have moose here.
You might see a deer, a wolf…
No moose.
Lots of bears come May
No moose
But if one is daydreaming one could see one…
We dream fish here.
🙂
Beautiful! I live in a valley at the foot of the Sierras. Spectacular every day! Right now I’m looking at the fresh snow-capped peaks as I lie here in bed. I’m on the desert side of the mountains, so we get unbelievable sunsets every night, but there isn’t much green. However, the starkness creates its own beauty. Places like these fill the soul.
Whoo boy, that would be a very, very bad place for me to attend a conference. I’d NEVER pay attention to any of the speakers if that was my view!
Enjoy the beauty and serenity of such a gorgeous place, AKM, and everyone else have a splendid weekend as well! 🙂
The conferences I usually have to attend at work are held in a room that looks out over the back of a factory and a very busy railroad track. The poor speakers have to stop every few minutes as the trains go past 100 yards away. Quite distracting as well…but not in a good way!
Thank goodness I have had the opportunities to visit in Arizona. My mother’s last surviving sibling lives in Tuscon. Aunt Mary celebrated her 91st B-day just the other day. My older sister, my only sister, wanted me to join her in AZ for the occasion. I said no thanx. AZ politics is like Utah politics. So is their economies. I will not spend my own money there. That is the only way I have right now to indicate my opposition to their behavior.
Just take care of yourself 1st, Pinwheel. Everything will fall into place after.
Sign me up for whatever conference, doesn’t matter.
I posted a couple of things on the last open thread but since everyone is moving over here, I’ll repost:
Could be trouble for Palin as her BFF is called out by more and more conservatives:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2011-02-25/conservatives-glenn-beck-backlash-doesnt-go-far-enough/?cid=hp:mainpromo9
Ironic political civility:
http://politico-junkie.blogspot.com/2011/02/uk-in-search-of-civility-in-us-politics.html
Thanks for posting, OMG. Here’s the link to the second story, which is from Time, so mudpuppies can read (and add to) the comments:
http://globalspin.blogs.time.com/2011/02/24/what-to-expect-when-sarah-palin-goes-to-india/#respond
I noted that it was Bush Sr. who was joining Clinton in AZ. Little Georgie simply won’t bother with things like civility, right? Figures. He was so adept at polarizing the nation and demeaning everyone around him with unflattering nicknames that civility must be an alien concept to him.
Re: Open thread and Palin, here’s a funny You Tube:
http://www.gotchamediablog.com/2011/02/funny-or-die-gina-gershon-as-sarah.html
Hope the link works, it’s Gina Gershon showing Sarah Palin, media addict, going through withdrawal when the “gotcha media” stops paying attention to her
So happy to see this beautiful image up on the site this morning. I checked earlier and am glad to hear what you are up to today. Enjoy the beauty of Juneau and have a great day!
It looks like you are there during good weather. During the other 360 days of the year, Juneau can be a bit depressing. But it sure beats Wasilla any day.
No sirree bob- Juneau is never depressing!
The drama at the intersect of land, water, and sky is of constant delight!
If you are a sun lover it might get tough here…
But this Juneauite loves our rain and wind and avalanches and all of it , all of the time!
Yes, a wonderful shot. Beautiful campus and great place to go to school. Got my BLA there, my kids graduated from UAS and now the grandkids are going! Thanks for the pic and hope you’re having a great time. I had a fabulous pizza dinner the other night!
Don’t forget the noon get together to support the Wisconsin union issue on the steps of the Capitol Building at 4th and Main. There are to be ongoing events in every single state! Won’t that be a powerful statement.
I leave Juneau for 10 days and feel like I miss everything. Protest for me too!! I will be there in spirit, I promise.
It was wonderful!
Capitol steps very full and folks very excited though it was pretty chilly ( think Taku precursor gusts and 5″ of fresh snow )
Will catch you up when you come home!
Thanks for being there! We couldn’t make it to a protest near us, but we send messages of support to WI and are gearing up in case our new Governor tries to pull the same here.
I was really hopng for something here in Anchorage, or maybe Barrow. If it happened here it was exclusive.
Remember why Juneau has to be the capitol of Alaska. Maybe it’s time to rethink those 100+ year old treaties. Or not. That is an historical battle no one seems to want to address.
Juneau is an interesting little town. I have family who live and work there. The State of Alaska has outgrown Juneau as a seat for Alaska’s government. It’s time to request a determination from the Alaska Attorney General and the US Attorney General, Secretary of State, the US Congress. The reason for Juneau as Alaska State Capital is not about the economics of the city. It’s about a deal made in the dim dark past of Alaska history.
Obviously you have forgotten or were unaware of the votes to move the capitol and when the cost of it was voted on, the people of Alaska said no.
As far as the economy of Juneau and Southeast — you take out the capital and Juneau will die as will the rest of Southeast.
How many times have you gone to your legislator’s office? if you haven’t, why would you if the capitol were in Anchorage or the Mat-Su?
As far as the rally went, the people of Juneau decided to show up. So did people in Anchorage. Guess you aren’t part of the people who care and who up for these things.
And in that deal Juneau got to remain the Capital, Fairbanks got the have the main campus of the University, and “Tent City” got to have the main sources of industry. What makes you think Anchorage should get to have everything now?! Just because it’s the largest city does not give it the right to destroy the survival of every other part of the state just because it wants to. FWIW, until WWII, Anchorage was hardly even a city.
In 2/3 of the states the Captial isn’t even the largest city. Do you actually think many people in Denver participate in state government just because the Capital is there?
What a wonderful view!
Who could get anything done if this was the view?
Well said! I live at the foot of a mountain (not as grand as these), and it’s sometimes hard to concentrate!
A friend just sent me this link, and I was so taken by it I thought I would share, and see if Mudpups could come up something like this about AK:
http://www.youtube.com/storytellermedia
tigerwine, I am such a Flash Mob fan, thanks for this one. I haven’t seen one yet that doesn’t put me in happy tears 🙂
Hi, BooDog – glad to hear I’m not the only one to be wiping away the tears!
Nope and passed it along to various places
Add me to that misty-eyed list!
Doesn’t matter what the song is or who’s singing it…they always make me tear up.
Me also, too 🙂 I always cry at these flash mob videos. they are so cool!
Wouldn’t it be cool if the flash mobs would be used in protest demonstrations world wide? Like Egypt, Tunisia, Wisconsin etc.
Can’t you just see that happening in the capitol building in Wisconsin? A few people start singing something patriotic, like ‘America the Beautiful’, and you end up with the whole building echoing with the song. Gives me goosebumps to think about it!
It would be wonderful to do this in the capitol building in Wisconsin! Then send it out viral and it would be such a powerful positive scene.
Leenie, you should send that idea to one of the leaders of unions, particularly the teachers union or a WI mudpup should because that would be powerful and a huge emotional boost to the protesters and their supporters.
“The Battle Hymn of the Republic” tells a tragic and rejoiceful story about our nation, our conviction and our belief in America.
Just sayin’ just singin’
Or Donna Summer’s – I Work Hard for my Money
Micheal Jackson – Beat It
I prefer the flash mobs who dance to the music.
I’d like you to consider ‘My Country, tis of thee’…..I really like this part:
My native country thee
land of the noble free
thy name I love
I love the rocks and rills
thy woods and temple hills
My heart with rapture thrills,
like that above.
(I was crushed to learn we ripped it off from the English!) I think the Peoples’ voices, singing the patriotic songs of our youth- lifted in song, in and around every Capitol building in our nation….would be inspiring…and SHAME gov. Walker – just by the sheer contrast.. the arrogance of Walker versus the humility of the People, in the Peoples’ House.
Any WI mudpups here who know who the people in charge are or how to get a message to them?
R E S P E C T — Aretha Franklin
Respect, Aretha Franklin:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o1Bg7yBxQo&feature=related
Beat It, Micheal Jackson, Stockholm flash mob:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVJVRywgmYM
Hope these work.
How very fun! Thanks for sharing.
Wow. Just wow. Thank you. I was needing this today.
Thanks tigerwine! I’ve sent that link to others I know who will appreciate it. Had my tissues close to hand. My husband enjoyed it was well!
“We are one, but we are many, and from all the lands on Earth we come…..”
That used to be about the US. It just breaks my heart to see the neo-xenophobia sweeping the US right now. And the obscene thing about it is that they are doing it in the name of patriotism. I want MY country back.
Site=sight
Or syte, got too luv tha einglicsh layngwage. Rilly fun tu espress you’reself createif-flea.
We travelled in station-wagon (remember those?) from Michigan to Texas. Talk about night and day! From four seasons to 1 and a half, soft green grass to this hard stabby stuff in Houston. The saving grace was Galveston weekends with the ocean and waves we rode till our skin pruned up.
America has got some great beauty… still. Let’s keep it that way.
Warn’t them there station wagons covered wit canvass and pulled by oxen or mules? I kinda remember that more wagoneers found out Injuns love mule meat better’n oxen and whut Injun love Injun steal. DISCLAIMER-for the purpose of this post I used the term “Injun”,not to be derogatory,just because I couldn’t figger out a way to incorporate Native American in a Texas drawl. If I offended anyone, you have my sincerest apologies.
Nope, it was one of dem horseless contraptions. Don’t rightly remember the ride too much as ma Pa would sometimes smoke with the windows rolled up and us young’ins were either coughing or passed out in the fog. Thanks Dad, for the fond memories. *cough*
40 acres and a mule!
That was well said and gracious, actually…
Yay Galveston!
Press : then ( then enter to get 🙁 . Happy? 🙂
Ndr…I remember that same feeling when we moved from Texas to Colorado.
I was almost frightened by the majesty of those mountains.
Now I cannot thrive without a mountain in site.
I grew up mostly in the midWest and I remember my first sight of the Rockies. Wow.
This is another WOW!
Me too I was about sixteen and could not believe their was snow in August , I was jumping with joy and throwing snow at my fellow travelers
AKM – So glad you have a chance to get away and enjoy that luscious beauty! Hope you get a chance for a meal and a good visit with the other Mudpuppies who live in the Juneau area.
All will come out well in the end and those who have doubted will move on to darker pastures than what is offered here on the ‘Flats. We only offer green pastures and happy thoughts – enough nasties going around elsewhere and in these waning days for some of us – we NEED the green and good!
HAPPY WEEKEND TO ALL.
and happy weekend to you too love.
((((GG2C))))
Big hug and a warm ‘hello’ to you GG2C. I have missed you. I pretty much divorced my computer for a long while. The news was making me crazy, and i had 2 books to write. But now I’m back. I’ll write to you when I have time later today (Sunday). (((((Great Granny 2C)))))