Not gonna lie, my bleary early-morning eye interpreted the patterning on the petals as a toothy, alien-looking mouth.

I expect my double-take might have reminded an outside observer of the moment in Arsenic and Old Lace where Cary Grant looks into the window seat.

I'd never heard of it, despite my love of the era's movies, but saw it a couple of years ago and thought how well it fits the current moment.

A guy in Winnipeg (IIRC) was in the news for that a few years ago. There's no specific bylaw against it, so the police ticketed him for having an unsecured load in his vehicle. :P

The guy's response was pretty muted, more or less a Canadian version of the stereotypical Brit "It's a fair cop."

I see you also made Russian teacakes (always read the alt text, Fred, always read the alt text).

Those are bottom right in my pic, they're one of my GF's favorites. The person she learned them from browns the butter, and I like that change, so that's how I make 'em.

I was run off my feet all month, this year, and only got mine boxed up for delivery/mail last night.

So I scaled back to just decorated sugar cookies, gingerbread cookies, Linzers, zimmtsternen, vanillekipfeln (sp?) and a few others. Rough math says 16 dozen or thereabouts (not all shown).

A few years ago, a Canadian network (I forget which one) elided Trump's cameo from the broadcast.

Predictably, he lost his shit. :P

Milton "A corporation's only task is to generate revenue for its shareholders" Friedman has a lot to answer for.

Wow. I honestly hadn't realized one was still alive, though quick math would have told me that my own grandmother (and her sister) had lived longer.

Still, what a life!

Seconded. Show of hands?

For me it's Raiders well above the rest. I'd put Crusade second, but grudgingly, because of all the fan service. I have Crystal Skull above Temple, because a) I'm one of the minority who enjoyed it, and b) Temple is just that bad.

Haven't gotten around to watching Dial of Destiny, yet.

As I noted last week, I just submitted my manuscript on Doar and the Civil Rights Division to my publisher.

I was floored the day a DJ said "Fun fact: Creedence never had a #1 single in the US."

After which he added "...I mean, pretty much everything they ever wrote went straight to #2, but still."