On The Road – BigJimSlade – Hiking in the Alps, Chamonix and Grindelwald 2022
BigJimSlade
Grand Balcon du Nord. That’s the name of the shelf that runs below the peaks by Mt. Blanc. It faces northish, hence the name.
So, after being thrilled up at Aiguille du Midi, we took the gondola halfway down and started a hike. The plan was to go to where a cog train for visitors to the Mer de Glace glacier could bring us back into Chamonix, but we missed the last one by about 30 minutes (the last train was before 5pm, I think). We had to hike the rest of the way, adding about 4.4 miles and 2800 feet of descent. We were hoping for a gentler first day, lol, but it was fine. We went straight to the best hamburger joint in town Poco Loco Burger, and brought that back to our hotel.
On The Road – BigJimSlade – Hiking in the Alps, Chamonix and Grindelwald 2022Post + Comments (12)
Getting off the gondola, we had a fine view across the valley of where we would hike the next day. Embiggen
Postcards for Wisconsin Supreme Court & Music!
Saturday was for talking. The next 17 days are for action. And music!
The postcards don’t have to be fancy, or pretty. Thought they can be!
We just need to get the message out to as many people as possible.
If you want to write postcards, please send email to WaterGirl and let me know how many addresses you would like.
If you are uncertain of my email address, you will find instructions under Contact Us in the white menu bar up top.
Thank you!
Hope we have some folks supplying music tonight, too!
Open thread.
Postcards for Wisconsin Supreme Court & Music!Post + Comments (66)
Just 17 Days to Help Get a Liberal Judge on the Wisconsin Supreme Court
There are just 17 days left to help get a liberal judge on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. And we need your help to do it.
I shared a ton of information about this in Saturday’s post. In case you missed it:
Saturday was for talking. The next 17 days are for action.
Voces de la Frontera is supplying addresses to us so we can write postcards to help make sure a liberal judge gets on the ballot for the general election on April 4. They are:
- Active voters, not just on the rolls, but with a strong history of turning out to vote
- Partisanship score of 80-100% voting for Democrats
- African American
A bit of math in the hopes of inspiring you.
- If 100 people can write 100 postcards each, that’s 10,000 postcards.
- If 200 people can write 75 postcards each, 15,000 postcards.
- If every writer can find one person to join them in writing, we double our reach.
- If you have a postcard group or an Indivisible group other others, see if they can write.
With only 17 days before we can mail the last postcards, we are going for simple and expedient.
- We’ll have 3 sample postcards you can copy from.
- Maze Dancer will hand out the addresses, which are arriving today.
- If you have the time ,but not the money for postcards and stamps, let me know by email.
- If you are up for helping someone else out by providing stamps or postcards, let me know by email.
Four Candidates Enter, Only Two Candidates Make it On the Ballot
- 2 liberal justices
- 2 conservative justices
- Each voter gets to vote for one justice.
- We have to make sure that one liberal justice makes it on the ballot in April.
- Then we have to make sure that that liberal justice wins on April 4.
- If a liberal justice wins on April 4, the court will be split 4-3, with 4 liberals.
What’s on the line?
- The right to self-determination for women in Wisconsin
- The right to have your vote count
- Anything issue that makes it to the state Supreme Court
What can you do to help?
Let us know in the comments.
Questions? Ask them here.
We will have a postcard party & music thread tonight at 8 pm Eastern.
But of course postcards, can be written anytime!
Just 17 Days to Help Get a Liberal Judge on the Wisconsin Supreme CourtPost + Comments (36)
On The Road – BigJimSlade – Hiking in the Alps, Chamonix and Grindelwald 2022
BigJimSlade
Last summer my wife and I flew in/out of Geneva to go hiking in the alps :-) From the airport we caught a bus to Chamonix. On my trip to Europe in 1989, I made a side trip the Chamonix for a couple days and remember very little of it. It snowed big, fat, wet snowflakes. It was gray the whole time. Couldn’t see the mountains. I know I did a couple hour day hike, but I have no idea where exactly at this point. So it was going to be fun to go back!
Then we headed off to Switzerland for a few days in Grindelwald, hiking around, plus a side trip to Lauterbrunnen, before spending a night in Geneva before the flight back.
OK, let’s check out Chamonix, home of the fantastical, gondola-serviced Aiguille du Midi, and Mt. Blanc.
On The Road – BigJimSlade – Hiking in the Alps, Chamonix and Grindelwald 2022Post + Comments (33)
When we returned home, I checked my photos to see what I had of Chamonix and it turns out I had a picture of the hotel we stayed at on this trip – Le Croix Blanche! (tr: The White Cross) I made these 2 pictures into one with the picture from 1989 on the left, and from last summer on the right. Embiggen (for those not in the know, this is old internet slang for “click here to see this image bigger).
Open Thread: Another Day, Another Crime, Another Grand Jury
Grand Jury Convened by Alvin Bragg (NY)
Could this be the week that this comes true?
Gradually, and then suddenly, or all at once.
Please update your crime trackers:
Election interference (GA)
Fraud (NY)
Sexual Assault/Battery (NY)
Bribery (NY)
Election interference (DOJ)
Obstruction of Justice (DOJ)
Seditious conspiracy (DOJ)*𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘭𝘶𝘥𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘭 𝘤𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘴
— Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) January 30, 2023
This list doesn’t seem long enough, surely there is more!
Totally open thread.
Open Thread: Another Day, Another Crime, Another Grand JuryPost + Comments (114)
Fun Facts
He’s hired more lawyers because they’re getting disbarred every week, thanks to him.
He is also trailing in the polls by 12 points to a player to be named later.
— Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) January 30, 2023
He processes the world like a petulant child.
His understanding of historical figures is from TV shows and movies.
If we were only indicting his intellect, he’s end up in a juvenile detention center.
— Jack E. Smith ⚖️ (@7Veritas4) January 30, 2023
I was thinking about all the interesting things I learned on the podcast Jack yesterday, and I thought it might be fun to have a thread where we could all share interesting stuff we have learned in the past few days from reading, or videos, conversations, or podcasts.
I thought I might call it Fun Facts to Know and Tell, and then I wondered about the origin of that particular phrase, so I googled.
This is the first thing that Google told me:
- It is impossible for most people to lick their own elbow.
- A crocodile cannot stick its tongue out.
- A shrimp’s heart is in its head
- It is physically impossible for pigs to look up into the sky.
Not exactly what I had in mind!
I was very pleased to hear Andrew McCabe speak so candidly about Durham and Billy Barr, using the phrase “ginned up” multiple times, with the word “corrupt” peppered in that conversation, too. He also mentioned that he doesn’t believe that the Trump financial crime, as reported by the Italians, fits under Jack Smith’s remit as Special Counsel. They also wondered on the podcast, and I wonder, too, why the DOJ, who has likely known about that for quite some time has not fired Durham fore cause.