Cup of Coffee

November 21, 2017: Thunder Only Happens When It’s Rainin’

60 Comments

I’m as milquetoast in my dreams as I am in real life. What’s the point of experiencing crazy and fantastical situations if I’m still just going to “ummm, uhh, hmm” my way through them?

60 thoughts on “November 21, 2017: Thunder Only Happens When It’s Rainin’”

  1. So yesterday I bowled the best game of my life (so far). The other two games weren't much to shout about, but I had one game where I bowled a 219, my personal high. Four consecutive strikes at one point, and no open frames the entire game. Would've been nice to sustain it for the other games, of course, but still, a rare sporting achievement for me.

    2. Congrats! I have yet to cross the Mendoza line, but my next trip to Omerha includes free bowling at the IT department holiday get-together, so I'm going to see if the bionic hips offer any kind of improvement.

    3. Congrats, Padre. Not sure why, but I almost always bowl my best game first and then go downhill the rest of the series.

    1. When I turned 35 my mom* sent me a card that simply said, “Happy Birthday. You are now as old as Mozart.” She meant well, of course, but I couldn’t help but think, “Well, there it is...“ I hope there’s a good second act to this opera.

      * A violinist & orchestra teacher.

  5. You may have heard that the turkeys brought to the White House came from Alexandria, MN. What you probably don't know is that the farmer who brought them is a grade school classmate of mine.

  6. Here's a fun thought experiment:

    Imagine that there is a counter full of dirty dishes. You don't have a dishwasher, so you wash them all by hand, setting the cleaned dishes on mats and towels on the counter on the other side of the sink, leaving them to dry.

    Have you done the dishes?

        1. I agree with her, too, but I have to take into account factors beyond the merits of her argument.

      2. Sure, I can agree that "the dishes are not done" but that's a different question than "have you done the dishes?" I mean, surely you've done the bulk of the labor in washing them, right? Would we say that another person who comes by and puts them away has "done the dishes"? No, of course not.

        I've probably revealed my position here, huh?

        1. In our house, "doing the dishes" and "emptying the dishwasher/putting away the dishes" are distinct jobs.

    2. I know it's not the same but though I don't mind folding laundry, I'm loathe to put it away (in which case, it's definitely not done). It's all just gonna end up back here soon anyway!

      2. this is another arena in which our household maintained distinct job functions (Before Kids, anyway).

              1. Yes. That is the flaw in Rhu's approach. I do not claim dominion over all packing. I just complain about how she loads the dishwasher. Packing suitcases or the car for a trip is all her.

      2. Pepper, you must know my wife. Yes, table, counters and floor are part of doing dishes. I fear we may soon have to load the washing machine to qualify, which will then lead to "doing laundry is not done until they are folded and put away".

        1. Haha! I always do these things when I wash the dishes, so it only seems fair. That said, I don't actually consider putting the dishes away as part of the same task since they need time to dry.

      3. When I was a kid, doing the dishes meant clearing the table, putting away left overs, washing, drying and putting away the dishes, wiping the countertops and table, and sweeping the floor. Manys the night when I got home from doing my paper route, 4 miles of walking (through the snow!) after basketball practice, only to come home to a kitchen that was a complete mess and it was "my turn". And I hadn't eaten dinner yet. So, when I see floors upswept, dishes in a drying rack, counters not cleaned and I hear that the dishes are "done", a part of me dies inside.

        Oh, and we didn't have a dishwasher, it was all done by hand.

        1. I'm saying we allow them to dry in the dish drainer, and then we use them again. No need to put them away just to take them out again.

    5. According to my parents for several years, yes. I don't remember who put them away now. I only remember the forced child labor part. It must not have been me otherwise I would remember that part too.

    6. Here's a semi-related question: how does one use a dishwasher? I mean, not actually how do you push buttons to make it work, just how does a body utilize one for maximum effect? I've had a dishwasher maybe 3.5 out of the last 5 years, and probably actually used the thing only 4-5 times.

      1. My current philosophy is that most plates, bowls, cups, and silverware go in the dishwasher and we usually run it nightly. Sheet pans and plastic cutting boards as well. I hand-wash all the pots and pans and some of the stuff that's not as dishwasher-friendly. Pre-child there it was more of a judgement call when to run the dishwasher, but now we have a lot more dishes. I've done the hand-wash thing in the past, and it's not impossible, but I think the dishwasher does a better job than I do on most of the basic dishes.

        2. It also most likely uses way less water.

          The time in which the dishwasher fills up decreases greatly as kids get older, too. I swear sometimes they'll use one plate per chicken nugget, or something.

          Also, as an aside, I replaced ours a couple years ago, upgrading to a quiet one with a disposal. Worth every penny.

          1. Our boy when he was little tried to insist on a different fork for every item on his plate. The Mrs managed to squelch that without completely destroying his psyche.

          2. It also most likely uses way less water.

            Definitely. It rounds to zero here compared to how the wife washes dishes.

        3. I concur with this. In our house, we also turn off the heated drying and let them air dry. This way you never melt a plastic utensil that falls to the bottom during the wash cycle and you save energy. Sometimes it means a little towel drying, but for me it's worth it. My wife also likes to note (especially when the kids were little) that the dishwasher cleans and sanitizes.

          2. If run early enough in the evening, I like to open the dishwasher after it finishes, dump the pooled water, and put as many plastic things in the drying rack as possible. Then in the morning when I would unload, everything was completely dry.

    7. In our house, one boy (usually Junior) empties the dishwasher and the other loads it. Whichever parent doesn't make dinner then takes care of whatever pots and pans, etc., that can't go in the dishwasher. Once in a while, one of the boys will make dinner, and then a parent will do whatever dishwasher job that wasn't done.

    8. In our house, "doing the dishes" is equivalent to washing the dishes. Given the interval of time required for air-drying in the rack, putting away the dishes is a separate task. However, by mutual agreement "doing the laundry" involves washing, drying, and folding. This is because clothes wrinkle, while dishes do not. Ironing is a separate task.

      In other words, washing the dishes is sufficient to have accomplished "doing the dishes," while folding the laundry is necessary to have accomplished "doing the laundry."

  8. MLB brings down the hammer on the Braves. The former GM is banned for life and the assistant GM suspended for a year. 12 international free agents are free agents again. They can sign almost no one for the 2018-2019 season as they are limited to a $10,000 bonus; their pool for the following season season is reduced 50%. They forfeit their third-round pick for next year's Rule 4 draft.

    Personally, the MLBPA shouldn't have agreed to such draconian rules for international free agents in the first place.

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