Welcome to another edition of Life at Casa Brillig. In recent episodes we've watched Brillig tackle laundry, decry the state of public schools, and consider her garden (which, sadly, is not yet planted). This week's episode is more drama than comedy, but I promise you a pootie pic or two at the end :-).
"Mom, my head is itchy."
I see some of you cringing. You know, don't you? Yup. Kid Brillig woke up last Friday morning with those words, and when I checked her head... there they were. Little sesame seed-shaped specks attached to her fine shoulder length strawberry blonde hair. Lots of them :-(. We'd been lucky and hadn't had to deal with this since she was just under three years old so we can't complain, but still... what a way to start the long weekend...
First up: call the school and afterschool to report a case of head lice. (I lie- first up was to curse the playmate who brought this plague upon our literal heads :-)) Next up: send Mr. Brillig to the store for supplies. He returned, took a look and spied a live beastie, flushed it, then headed off to work.
I used the special shampoo on KB, then we got settled under strong light in the dining room. I had the Special Comb, tweezers, wet paper towels and a trash bag nearby, Kid Brillig had a clear line of sight to the television and a supply of snacks. And there we sat for close to three hours, combing and disposing. When we finished, we headed upstairs to put everything that couldn't be washed into plastic bags for the next two or three weeks, started the first of many, many loads of laundry, and vacuumed the bejeezus out of anything we could vacuum.
Mr. Brillig took followup duty the next two days, and I'm pleased to report KB was let into school on Tuesday :-). Yes, it's safe to visit Casa Brillig, just don't ask for an extra pillow. We won't have those until June 14th :-).
"Oh shit, I think I killed the backyard."
That was Monday morning. In preparation for the Boston Regional Kossack Meetup/BBQ at our house this coming Saturday, Mr. Brillig decided to spray all the fruit plants with the soap solution we use to get rid of nasties. That was Sunday afternoon. When he woke up Monday and looked out the window... all the leaves on the grapes, blackberries, raspberries and the nectarine tree were wilted. And he realized that, quite possibly, the soap solution he thought was in the sprayer just might have been a broadleaf weed killer. He quickly ran out and hosed everything down, but the damage appears to have been done. Twelve years of grapevines, three years of waiting for the tree to be ready to allow fruit to set, and... well.
We're still excited about the Meetup, know that our progressive friends will understand that we did not napalm the fruit on purpose, and keep reminding ourselves that someday we will be able to tell the tale and joke about it.
Until then, however... this week leaves me in desperate need of a laugh or a smile. Hit me with your best shots, people... LOLCats, jokes, funny pics, or tales of things that have happened to you that you now can laugh over. I'll start us off with two pootie-pics that seemed oddly appropriate...
On to Top Comments!! What does the TC mailbox hold for us tonite? Let's see:
From Sharoney:
In Obama Opens Up a Can of WHOOOOP-ASS - DECKS McSame, ZappoDave discovers the secret of journimalism, NYTimes-style. (diarist's note: yes, the comment is from yesterday. It was submitted post-TC yesterday. Deal.)
From sardonyx:
In mcjoan's front-page diary Day 1855: The Damage Done, Mother Mags points out why McCain's version of the GI Bill exacerbates current problems, and is shameful to boot.
From me:
In Alfonso Nevarez:'s diary Is it true about Obama?, kovie asks the questions that make me snort iced tea out of my nose.
In JeffLieber's diary-rant It was ONLY Buchenwald...., Timroff expands on the phrase "It was only...".
Excellent comment from lipris on framing the marriage equality issue, in the fp story Californians support gay marriage. The ensuing dialog is great, too.
From YOURNAMEHERE:
You can have your very own blockquote, simply by sending your nominations for Top Comment to topcomments at gmail dot com. It's easy, fun, and best of all- the entire TC crew will love you!!
From cskendrick:
ATLSandlapper What a concept...
teacherken offers a history lesson
droogie6655321 is amazed about this science project and so am I
Timroff points out the absurdity of quibbling over quantities of absolute physical or moral disaster
On to those two Lists of Extreme Mojo-ness! These were compiled lovingly by Yours Truly using the mojo magic secret formula crafted by cskendrick and tweaked by sardonyx.
Top 30 (including ties) excluding Tip Jars, first comments and C&J:
1) Heh by Sharon Jumper — 252
2) From the Tribune story by Spud1 — 209
3) It's tough enough to share opinions within the by nicweb — 154
4) me too n/t by Alfonso Nevarez — 151
5) I rarely swear, but Christ on the cross! How many by Wee Mama — 140
6) Agreed by xofferson — 133
7) Mr. U BS talk by jfromga — 123
8) yes we are! by UTvoter — 119
9) great rant, JL by p gorden lippy — 115
10) Through shaking teeth and trembling fingers. by JeffLieber — 110
11) Because FL is like Zimbabwe. Didn't you get by second gen — 101
12) Video of Countdown segment by MAORCA — 95
13) Mr McCain, in light of the upcoming UBS scandal by Theghostofkarlafayetucker — 91
14) Next stop: by brittain33 — 90
15) Exacta fucking mente. by Pager — 87
16) I hear Obama is black? by gladkov — 86
17) Don't you dare downplay the rights of FL voters by Alfonso Nevarez — 81
18) Good Morning Slinkerwink. by notquitedelilah — 79
19) this is a good question by stillman — 79
20) It's the "two Americas" by Executive Odor — 76
21) So you're mad at Obama by smash artist — 75
22) Thanks! But mine didn't end up on the Rec. list by MsLibrarian — 74
23) "It's MINE!!!" by catnap1972 — 71
24) I would say to the hate filled caller. by Mr Stagger Lee — 71
25) How could it be a civil rights issue? by jim bow — 71
26) Okay. by Lava20 — 71
27) and he had two black babies! by soms — 67
28) This is consistent through the Clinton camp... by The Character Assassin — 66
29) Yes by The Termite — 65
30) This cannot be simply UBS by Dallasdoc — 65
31) Please Consider Writing Another One by mattman — 65
32) I've gotten creepy responses to my LTE's also---- by dotster — 65
33) It might win your vote... by droogie6655321 — 65
34) This is going to hit Bushcain VERY hard if by MAORCA — 65
35) You're quite wrong. by Soft Bulletin — 65
36) Nobody seems to want to talk about this much. by chrississippi — 65
Top 30 (including ties) with no exclusions:
1) tip jar by xofferson — 877
2) tip jar for the caffeine deprived by slinkerwink — 443
3) "ONLY." by JeffLieber — 429
4) Tips... or not. by second gen — 405
5) I'm fired up! by Acacia951 — 369
6) Tip Jar by Frank Costello — 356
7) Heh by Sharon Jumper — 252
8) It looks like... by Randall Sherman — 243
9) tips by hekebolos — 240
10) But, what is "truth," if you follow me. nt by iconoclastic cat — 236
11) great news by thereisnospoon — 221
12) Tips for Following the Rules by dansac — 216
13) From the Tribune story by Spud1 — 209
14) Tips for rights and responsibilities by Geenius at Wrok — 206
15) Tip Jar nt by arquebus — 164
16) It's tough enough to share opinions within the by nicweb — 154
17) me too n/t by Alfonso Nevarez — 152
18) Should be Question #1,2 and 3 for McCain today by Theghostofkarlafayetucker — 150
19) I rarely swear, but Christ on the cross! How many by Wee Mama — 140
20) Agreed by xofferson — 133
21) Mr. U BS talk by jfromga — 123
22) Thanks! n/t by Phoenix Woman — 119
23) yes we are! by UTvoter — 119
24) That is awesome by Samer — 117
25) great rant, JL by p gorden lippy — 115
26) Tip Jar n/t by Walt starr — 113
27) Are Rove's lips moving? by Bule Betawi — 111
28) Through shaking teeth and trembling fingers. by JeffLieber — 110
29) Because FL is like Zimbabwe. Didn't you get by second gen — 101
30) Video of Countdown segment by MAORCA — 95
