Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Shelter in place is one thing. Shelter in pants is quite another.

Screw the Judean People’s Front. Splitters.

False Scribes! False Scribes!

My years-long effort to drive family and friends away has really paid off this year.

Just a few bad apples.

If you tweet it in all caps, that makes it true!

I thought we were promised Infrastructure Week.

Perhaps you mistook them for somebody who gives a damn – Nancy Pelosi

If senate republicans had any shame, they’d die of it.

We can agree to disagree, but i’m right.

Reality always lies in wait for … Democrats.

You are either for trump or for democracy. Pick one.

A sufficient plurality of insane, greedy people can tank any democratic system ever devised, apparently.

Nevertheless, she persisted.

I did not have this on my fuck 2020 bingo card.

Naturally gregarious and alpha

I can’t take this shit today. I just can’t.

Everybody saw this coming.

Peak wingnut was a lie.

Something seems odd about that, but i have been drinking.

A last alliance of elves and men. also pet photos.

It’s the corruption, stupid.

It’s always darkest before the other shoe drops.

When I decide to be condescending, you won’t have to dream up a fantasy about it.

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A moment of zen

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As we wait for everything to make itself clear tonight, a moment of zen. Jim Bales up at MIT runs the Edgerton Center where they play with light, photography and science. Jim invited me in for a tour last weekend when I was in town for my high school reunion and it was awesome.

Here is my favorite picture that he took:

We had placed a white balloon inside of an orange balloon. We inflated both and then I popped the balloons. The “pop” was the strobe light trigger for the camera and this is what happened. If you look closely at the bottom, you can see the needle most of the way into the white balloon but the balloon not breaking (yet).

One of the other things that he showed me and my dad was using light columns to identify density differentiation. This was an awesome picture that he took.

This was just awesome and I had to share this great experience with you all for a moment of zen.

Open Thread.

Reader Interactions

20Comments

  3. 3.

    Tom Levenson

    Jim’s great. He once shot my business card for me.

    And you were in town and even in my shop and didn’t reach out? Dude!

  4. 4.

    rikyrah

    This is a response to Yarrow:

    Yarrow says:
    November 6, 2018 at 11:57 am
    Guys, we have a Juicer who is in the hospital in Houston, TX who wants to vote. Keith P has been posting about his problems getting what he needs to vote. Let’s see if we can help him. Front pagers, can you contact him and see if we can find a way to help him. If we can find out his district we can maybe contact the campaign offices of his Rep or his Rep’s Dem challenger. I asked if he has friends or family who can run the paperwork back and forth but so far he hasn’t responded.

    He said he planned to vote straight ticket Dem. I HATE to leave votes on the table when every vote counts, especially in Texas this year. Let’s figure out how to help him!

    This is from the Harris County Elections Department:

    Special Circumstances

    You may submit an application for a late ballot because of sickness or disability after the last day of early voting and before 5:00pm on election day. In order to qualify the sickness or disability must originate on or after the 12th day before election day. (Secs. 102.001; 102.003).

    You may submit an application to vote due to a death in the immediate family that occurred on or after the 5th day before election day and will be absent from the county on election day. (Secs. 103.001; 103.003b).

    Voters are required to submit an application for these specific instances. Please contact the Elections Division at 713-755-3150 for questions.

    https://www.harrisvotes.com/VotingInfo?lang=en-US#VoteByMail

  6. 6.

    Mnemosyne

    Has anyone checked on lamh36? Because she may have fainted with happiness when she hears that Idris Elba was picked as this year’s People Magazine Sexiest Man Alive.

  8. 8.

    Sister Rail Gun of Warm Humanitarianism

    @Mnemosyne: She did. And then got up and shouted it from the rooftops.

  12. 12.

    Waynski

    So, I went over to the GOS and they had a pretty longish but good analysis of what Mueller as well as Trump may do post-election and the comments section was immediately hijacked by two knobs talking about the Lord of the Rings.

  13. 13.

    RedDirtGirl

    I’m having some cognitive dissonance trying to put a popping balloon and Zen together…

  17. 17.

    Jim Bales

    Dave,

    As I said in person, it is the least I can do in recognition of the immense value I have received from your ACA and health insurance blogging — it was a delight to meet you and your father!

    Best
    Jim

  18. 18.

    ruemara

    You should drop by my lab next time you want to play with light. Granted, we don’t do physics, we do lighting development & sustainability, but it’s still pretty fascinating.

  20. 20.

    Jim Bales

    @ruemara: ruemara — this sounds interesting — can you tell me more? Feel free to email me at work “bales” “at” “mit.edu”

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