CritterKeeper

Trouble with that is there were an awful lot of people who couldn't evacuate, either because they couldn't afford so much as bus fare; or because they had disabilities or family with disabilities who couldn't afford special transport; or because they were told evacuation centers wouldn't allow them to bring their beloved pets and they couldn't bear to leave them to die, and again, either couldn't afford to get anywhere that would allow them to bring their pets, or couldn't get out fast enough with them (evacuation planning now takes pets into account for this very reason). Not only that, but the storm was only Category 3 by then, and isn't what did most of the damage and cost most of the lives -- it was the levees and other flood protections failing in over fifty places, and the water surging over many levees and then only moving out much more slowly because the barriers were then keeping the water in. The general public were not fully warned of that, they only expected the storm damage, and they'd been through other storms before, so there was no reason to expect it to be so much worse this time. By the time the predicted storm track shifted into a direct hit and they were told storm surges would overtop the levees, it was too late for many to change their plans and evacuate. It wasn't just low ground, 80% of the city was flooded for weeks before the waters receeded. It's easy to say in hindsight "Those people should have gotten out," but luckily Emergency Management experts have learned from many of the mistakes and omissions that were made. Plans now include transport for those who can't get out on their own, and accommodation for evacuees to bring their pets. Warnings include the worst case scenarios and are given earlier. Not perfect, by any means, but better.

Ooh, sounds like a good addition if you really plan on using your bike to run errands and shop and such!

And of course, we all know who Number One is....

There are non-toxic blues, like YInMn Blue -- we, or nature, would just have to develop a way to create the compound wihin the body. ;-)

Depending on what time frame you assume for EGS, there have been Safe Haven Laws in effect in Illinois for a number of years now, so the church doorstep is no longer necessary nor wise. A response to infanticides and cases of babies found abandoned (often already dead when found), these laws protect a mother from prosecution if she brings her infant, any time from just born to 30 days old, to any police station, fire station, or medical facility. If the mother changes her mind within 60 days, she can reclaim them; otherwise parental rights are terminated and the baby is free to be adopted. Thousands of babies' lives have been saved by these laws, which exist in every state in the country now. (One state ran into a bit of trouble when they failed to specify an age limit, and wound up with teenagers being brought in to be relinquished....)

The street I grew up on, a few blocks north, turned into a boulevard, with park-like islands between the northbound and southbound halves of the street. That section also had brick instead of pavement. The people who live there apparently are opposed to changing that.

Seems like every day off I have is either rainy or hot as blazes, so not much walking or biking lately. Maybe I'll go to the pool today.

Who is Number Six?

Any suggestions? I know a lot of people don't want a bunch of flowers that will be dead in a few days. Do you need books or audiobooks to entertain you? A comfy pillow or robe? A singing telegram? Or are flowers best? There's always your wish list, but I think that was food and a stepstool.

Tighten up? Is it the seat that's the problem, or the mechanism to hold the seat in place?

Yeah, my trip to ExpectoCon last weekend had the annoyance of heavy enouh rain to reduce visibility, starting while I was in a construction zone with narrower and fewer lanes. And no exits for far too long. What should have been a two hour trip was more like five, with a fair bit of stress. And then another bunch of storms came up just as I was ready to start the drive back. It's only to the level of annoying, rather than worse, because I made the smart decision to wait until the worst passed before heading out. The Woodman's had free WiFi and the gas station's convenience store was closed and very few were using the pumps, so I just stayed under the awning and watched Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. My main annoyance was that the driver's seat is stuck and can't lean back, so I couldn't get some sleep instead. But the movie was good, and by the time it was over, the bad weather was, too. (And the Woodman's is 24-hour so I even had a handy bathroom before setting out. ;-) I got home at almost 3am, with work every day the rest of the week, so I'm still short on sleep. No disaster, but definitely annoying.

Well, I knew there's a stereotype that lesbians have short "butch" haircuts, but I don't know what the stereotype is for bi women.

Sorry, I was assuming that there's still a bit of pedaling, steering, and/or leaning into curves. I did say "some" exercise, not "a lot of" exercise as I would have if you were pedaling everywhere. :-P

Hooray! May you have many happy bike rides! Get some exercise, get some fresh air and sunshine (make that vitamin D!), get out into the big wide world, what's not to like? ;-)

My Dad's hometown had an actual one-room schoolhouse that handled everything through high school. Well, I'm not sure if it usually did, but my dad kinda flew through the high school stuff. I think I remember him telling me that once he and his brother and sister graduated, they wound up having too few students to keep the school going.

That would be an even more negative quantity of fun. Sounds about right.

Spent last weekend at ExpectoCon, a "Wizards and Witches" convention for copyright/trademark reasons, set in an original School of Magic. Let's just say the attendees are not restricted from choosing to dress in House Robes and referring to certain Warner Brothers properties. There were even a few non-HP character costumes, like Harry Dresden or Granny Weatherwax. It was in the same hotel as the last seven TeslaCons, so it felt like going home in a way. I split a hotel room with a friend, always more fun than going alone, and I joined a trivia quiz team that I'd just met and we came in tied for second (I got a rather nice wand as a prize). We did an Escape Room Meets Live Action Role-Playing, and Saturday night's "Crystal Ball" included a dragon leading a conga line and an Ent using a branch for a limbo. Aside from very bad weather for both the drive there and the drive back, it was a blast! And my usual day off was Monday, so I stayed one extra night and got to pack at my leisure the next morning, and then visit the Madison zoo for a few hours before heading home. Oh yes, and now I just found a channel showing the first two episodes of Xena Warrior Princess, and I always like getting to see how a series started. :-)

Wish I could come help you with the bike, or take it to the shop for you on my bike rack. I don't suppose that the head office of the company is in the northwest Chicago suburbs, so I can at least yell at them for you?

Oh, I don't know, considering all the grey-eyed and light-haired natives reported on and spreading out from Croatoa, the island whose name was carved on a post in Roanoke when it was discovered deserted, I'd say it turned out pretty well for the colonists left behind! Any relation to Etienne of Navarre? A lot of places support killing off invasive species, because those newcomers often lead to the native species going extinct. When I volunteered in the Wildlife Ward in vet school, there were strict rules about what we were and weren't allowed to do with wildlife, especially migratory birds, but there wasn't a lot of legal protection for pigeons, starlings, and sparrows, because those were all invasive species. Think about how many of those we have now, and how many native birds that means they have displaced.

Saw a cartoon recently with a schoolhouse built on a steep slope, with the door labeled "Entrance" at the top, and the door labeled "Exit Only" at the bottom. The path leading to the school started out at a level halfway in between and then forked towards either door. Dad is pointing to it and asking son, "So, now do you believe I had to walk to school uphill both ways?"

Hmm, y'know, I think I'd go see that, just out of curiosity.

Hmm, I'm betting a major factor was finding a green that would complement rather than clash with Nanase's red.

He may be *an* old hack, but we have The Old Hack! The original, you might say! </FirstDoctor>

Officially not a fan of Diane's new haircut. That said, their faces do look different. The way they're standing in different positions makes it hard to see whether there's any real difference in body type. Sarah being smaller-chested and more curvey has long since gone by the wayside in general, although I guess there's still some difference between Sarah and Susan, and thus there should be between Sarah and Diane. I can kinda see what Dan intends, but he really didn't pick very good poses to try to introduce the contrast! :-)

I don't think Ashley is usually that well-endowed; I think she may have sabotaged herself the same way she did Mall-Elliot bigboobsbigboobsbigboobsbigboobs although not quite as successfully. ;-) Could be. There's no guarantee everyone who was at Grace's first birthday party would be at her second, this might be the whole group (including Tedd who enchanted them).