Jan 23rd 2013 08:22 am Thermostatic


Buy the new book, "Beaucoup Arlo & Janis!"Today's "Arlo & Janis!"
There are always a few heating and thermostat jokes around this time of year, and this one is from 2008. I noticed that Robin in Florida has mentioned the Great Python Hunt, where the populace has been turned loose on the invasive and non-indigenous python population in the southern part of the Sunshine State. I think I read that the number of giant snakes captured so far has been disappointing. Not long ago, Auburn University, my alma mater, was training labrador retrievers for the purpose of sniffing out the huge reptiles. Does that sound to you like the sort of plan that has “disaster” written all over it? It does to me, too.

Posted by jimmyjohnson / Vintage A&J

60 Responses to “Thermostatic”

  1. Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:25 am #

    The Auburn plan reminds me of the Squirrel in the house from Christmas Vacation. Disaster; yes, Hilarious; Absolutely.

  2. John in Virginia on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:27 am #

    JJ, the idea was that when the dogs screamed, the snakes were at hand. Sound like governmental thinking.

  3. Mindy on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:36 am #

    Re the Snake Hunt, Robin [Why does that sound as if it's leading into something by Python?], I’m sure I’ve had snake in gumbos and a few other Cajun dishes, but that was the origin of the Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell policy. I can picture a bunch of amateurs running around the ‘Glades, stomp stomp stomp and splash splash splash, going right by a python here and a python there so perfectly camouflaged, each hissing the word down the line, “The Idiots are coming! The Idiots are coming!” until finally the Militia, in the form of a 20+ footer, hums “Come a Little Bit Closer, Now, Baby” and wraps itself around an unsuspecting neck [Quck! See Marvin pitch another insurance commercial while what's-his-name thrashes around in the water being strangled by a reptilian creature ten times his size!] And then the splashing stops and the ripples subside on the water and Monty the Python sidles back into the underbrush to await the next unsuspecting amateur herpetologist…and now a word from our sponsor, yet another insurance company…fade to black.

  4. nickchick on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:46 am #

    Wonder whose side PETA would take? The labs or the pythons?

  5. Rickmeister on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:55 am #

    Better to use Labradors than Yorkies!

  6. Jim in TN on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:57 am #

    Snakes on a plain? LOL!

  7. Jean in Dahlonega Ga aka Trapper Jean on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:58 am #

    Ah yes, JJ has been peeking in our window again! Husband and I have definitely had that conversation before.

    Phil in Missoula, thanks for the good wishes! While I know the surgery is simple and I’ll be home by suppertime a part of me still has a small panic attack, so the nurse will give me the “happy shot” early on and I will be good. I’m really looking forward to no more knee pain. Oh, and I know how your wife feels about that cooking rut. That’s the joy of the Food Network and Cooking Channels–new ideas!

  8. Lost in A**2 on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:16 am #

    I don’t know much about dog breeds, but I can’t help but think that a pointer or setter breed would be a better choice than a retriever breed.

  9. Ginger on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:25 am #

    Why not genetically engineer a super large mongoose that hates pythons? Then it could go to work on the cottonmouths. And then on Florida politicians and assorted misc. crooks?

  10. Ginger on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:26 am #

    [I was basing that on Carl Hiaasen books, y'all! For all I know, Florida is like Lousy Anna and Virginia, the best politicians money can buy!]

  11. Steve from Royal Oak, MI on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:44 am #

    Whenever you write Pythons, I can’t help but think of Penguins…as in Monty Python.

  12. phil in Missoula, MT on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:47 am #

    For all you cooking fans from yesterday…how about this
    Warm Red Wine Poached Pear-Almond Frangipane Pie/ Whipped Cream/ Vanilla Ice Cream, Red Wine Reduction from Tarpy’s Roadhouse in Monterey California. My sister put a picture on my Facebook page. You can see it at http://www.facebook.com/#!/tarpysroadhousemonterey?group_id=0

  13. Whistling Rufus on 23 Jan 2013 at 10:46 am #

    At our house, the discussion is whether or not to put another log on the fire. I like it nice and warm, my wife likes it cooler. Needless to say, the temp is generally cooler in the house than I prefer.

  14. sandcastler on 23 Jan 2013 at 10:57 am #

    Phil, sounds great but, there are no cocktail franks. ;-)

  15. Hurd in Bay Minette on 23 Jan 2013 at 11:11 am #

    Well, we are talking about Auburn. Sorry Jimmy. You left yourself open for this.

  16. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 12:20 pm #

    Another reason Arlo hates cold weather…

    http://www.gocomics.com/arloandjanis/2009/12/23

    Also, who noticed in today’s retro cartoon that Arlo has a belly button but no pokies? Do the cartoon police not allow them to be shown on men, either?

  17. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 12:29 pm #

    I don’t have any point to make about this one…I just like to look at it.

    http://www.gocomics.com/arloandjanis/2007/01/02

  18. Ginger on 23 Jan 2013 at 12:40 pm #

    “Point?” You Freudian Slip is showing, Ghost Rider? (Sorry, I couldn’t resist!) I’ve seen many cartoons where the “pokies” were shown clearly. Mindy drew them…and got in mucho el biggo problemas because of them, shameless hussy that she are! :D John said it. Or words to that effect. ;)

  19. sandcastler on 23 Jan 2013 at 1:13 pm #

    Duch nosí lístok pod jeho kilt?

  20. Robin in FL on 23 Jan 2013 at 1:36 pm #

    If the genetically modified mongoose took after corrupt politicians in FL (oh wait, I’m being redundant).

    And yes Jimmy, the Auburn plan as well as the current FL plan both have the same “danger Will Robinson” noise coming from them.

    Last I heard the count was 18 pythons. But those were early days and I don’t know if anyone is keeping score for the pythons.

  21. emeritus Minnesota biologist on 23 Jan 2013 at 1:52 pm #

    That’s a lot of meat, unless they are small ones; hope it’s not all wasted. I suspect it’s fairly mild. Wife’s stepmother lives in or near Seminole, but I doubt she’s looking to try it. I should write her.

  22. Mindy from Indy on 23 Jan 2013 at 3:24 pm #

    My apartment is currently on 63 degrees. I occasionally get chilly, but that’s what paid-for blankets are for. Unfortunately, my boss is cold-blooded and we frequently go round about the thermostat.

    Idiots going snake hunting? That is either brilliant or stupid.

  23. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 3:37 pm #

    The Auburn idea sounds like something government funded. Auburn is the biggest vet school in Alabama and I think they would not do something that seemingly senseless on their own. Better thought to me would be to find out what odor is especially attractive to these critters and use it to bait traps.
    And why is everybody assuming the hunters are idiots? Do you make the same assumption about any other hunters? Granted, there are quite a few weekend woodsmen who are more dangerous to their fellows than to the wildlife, but you can’t fault them all for the few.
    I would think the best times to hunt them would be on the coldest days you could find, too. Less active, easier to find and dispose of.

  24. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 3:38 pm #

    The Them being the snakes, of course, not the other hunters! Sorry I left that out. It completely changed my intent.

  25. Mary in Ohio on 23 Jan 2013 at 3:51 pm #

    Part of the Python problem is that the big snakes are taking pets as well as native wildlife. Sounds like they should be training Yorkies instead of a dog as big as a lab. Or – and you all know I own cats and dogs (including a 13-inch beagle, who would be python-bite-sized but would be baying all the way down to at least give a good GPS hit ) cats. BECAUSE I know a couple who do reptile rescue and they had a VERY large snake named Slick. Occasionally Steve let Slick out into the yard and invariably their cat would come up and try to nose-boop the snake. Steve spent most of their outdoor time rescuing the cat. But on one occasion, Slick raised up and looked Steve right in the eye. Steve said he wondered what Slick was thinking.

  26. Robin in FL on 23 Jan 2013 at 3:59 pm #

    Mary

    Steve knew wthat Slick was thinking: A-1 sauce…

  27. sandcastler on 23 Jan 2013 at 4:32 pm #

    I am unclear why people are concerned about thermostat settings and blankets. I am enjoying a pleasant 74° and have a soft, warm cat on my lap; life is good. :-)

  28. emeritus Minnesota biologist on 23 Jan 2013 at 4:56 pm #

    Because some of us live where the day’s high has been 0 F or lower of late. The day’s low here has not gotten down to -40 this year [-40 and lower were more common decades ago]. However, we are told it might go that low tonight at International Falls.

    Mary: “. . . python-bite-sized but would be baying all the way down . . ..” Sorry; unless we have a most inept python, there’d be no baying, or maybe a brief yelp. Constrictors kill by grabbing their prey with their six rows of teeth and instantly wrapping and squeezing. You cannot bay when you cannot breath, and constrictors kill by suffocation.

  29. emeritus Minnesota biologist on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:01 pm #

    breathe.

  30. Mark in Boston on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:18 pm #

    I know an old lady who swallowed a python …

    I know an old lady who swallowed a genetically-engineered super large mongoose,
    She swallowed the genetically-engineered super large mongoose to catch the python …

    OK, now what?

  31. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:23 pm #

    Why do you think “point” was a “slip”, Ginger? :) Anyway, it was actually a Freudian bra.

    Mindy draws pokies on cartoons in the paper? Interesting hobby.

    I liked this one, too; just for a slightly different reason.

    http://www.gocomics.com/arloandjanis/2007/12/22

  32. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:26 pm #

    Sixty-three degrees, Lady Mindy? If Janis came to visit you, I’d bet there’d be pokies galore.

    Hey, wasn’t Pokies Galore one of the Bond girls?

  33. Mindy from Indy on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:40 pm #

    sandcastler – That was evil. (Throws virtual snowball at your monitor) :-)

    Mark in TTown – To quote the band Bananas At Large (from the song Turdy Point Buck) “Safety first. Treat every hunter as if he were loaded.” Seriously though, pythons are not “normal” game. I do not for a minute think all of the hunters are idiots. I think the likely-hood of “idiots” thinking a snake hunt would be a cake-walk, and therefore be less careful, would have to be relatively high.

  34. Mindy from Indy on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:50 pm #

    Yes Ghost, sixty-three. I refuse to indulge your second remark. As for the last, well, you are enthusiastically wrong. Close, but no cigar.

  35. John Read on 23 Jan 2013 at 5:57 pm #

    I’m trying to understand how a conversation that began with “heating and thermostat jokes” segued into Labradors hunting pythons! Ah, the mind of the cartoonist…

  36. sandcastler on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:01 pm #

    Mindy from Indy, you missed; I have no monitor, just a direct neural connection.

  37. Mindy from Indy on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:08 pm #

    You know sandcastler, one could perceive your response as a challenge. :-P

  38. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:27 pm #

    I have a comment, but I will reserve it.

    http://www.gocomics.com/luann/2013/01/20

  39. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:31 pm #

    The last article I saw on that hunt, last Friday I think it was, the count was at 21. After reading it, I tried out the link it had to the Florida Wildlife Control site. Interesting information. It told what species were specifically forbidden to be brought into the state as pets. It also had information about what species were now breeding and what counties they had been seen in. Maybe the pythons could do something about the monkey populations.

  40. Mindy on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:41 pm #

    Who knows, eMb? That python might be inclined to bay even if his “squeeze was bit” or not. John Read, I notice that you don’t seemed surprised about the seque into “pokies,” though. That indicates you’re familiar with everyone’s bratty little brother [ :D ] Ghost. We wouldn’t let him go braying…I mean baying… down in the clutches of a mean old Python, though. The Village wouldn’t be the same without him. Hi, sandcastler, how are you?

  41. Mindy from Indy on 23 Jan 2013 at 6:44 pm #

    I expected nothing less of you, Ghost; I think I know the thought process behind it. I realized it when I posted it.

  42. Ginger on 23 Jan 2013 at 7:19 pm #

    At the most, Ghost Rider, there’s be four. Is four galore?

  43. Ginger on 23 Jan 2013 at 7:20 pm #

    “There’d” be. I hate these left handed keyboards.

  44. TruckerRon on 23 Jan 2013 at 7:50 pm #

    sandcastler, did that phrase mean “Spirit ticket wears under his kilt?” That’s what the computer says “Duch nosí lístok pod jeho kilt?” means, anyway.

  45. Charlotte in NH on 23 Jan 2013 at 7:50 pm #

    Thank you to all for your kind comments on my broken hip repair (a year and a half ago, but I had questions; and I’m still hobbling around). And the suggestion for “uncured” frankfurters. I still think I’ll stay with regular unprocessed meat. This was all in yesterday’s discussion. All the food letters were fascinating!

  46. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:09 pm #

    Two is galore for me, Ginger. ;)

    Whose are the other two, he asked innocently.

  47. David from Austin on 23 Jan 2013 at 8:54 pm #

    Sorry for those of you that are suffering from the extreme cold. I transplanted 21 celery plants this afternoon. Lows this week are forecast in the 50s. High tomorrow may be 80…. I remember now why I wanted to move south after those years in Kansas and Chicago.

  48. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:55 pm #

    Maybe what does a ghost wear under his kilt?

  49. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 9:58 pm #

    David in Austin and Steve in Royal Oak, here is a good link for gardeners. I ran across it several years ago and have found it very helpful. It has plant information and pictures, links to online garden and plant supplies, and reader reviews of the online sellers.
    http://davesgarden.com/

  50. TruckerRon on 23 Jan 2013 at 10:09 pm #

    I just checked the local forecast — predicted low for tonight is 19F. That wouldn’t be too bad, in fact it would be a great improvement over the past 4 weeks, except it’s currently 13F out there. So, how much weight should I give to the forecasted highs (mid-30s) for the next few days?

    I’m starting to doubt that winter will ever end. Our last high over 32F was in December. Before Christmas.

  51. Mark in TTown on 23 Jan 2013 at 10:26 pm #

    Hey, check out this link for information on tomato growing systems. They are based on those large plastic totes you can buy anywhere. There are even plans for an indoor growing system! And the plans can be downloaded free.
    http://earthtainer.tomatofest.com/

  52. Ghost Rider 6 on 23 Jan 2013 at 10:41 pm #

    Yeah, yeah, yeah. A “ticket” may be a “slip (of paper)”. Ha…ha…ha.

    Nemo me impune lacessit.

  53. TruckerRon on 23 Jan 2013 at 11:35 pm #

    Just found a story about chickens available for adoption (lest they be killed for lack of feed since the bankruptcy judge allocated funds to paying creditors and NOT for their feed) in the Denver area:

    http://denver.cbslocal.com/video/8207377-help-arrives-to-save-thousands-of-chickens-from-death/

    These chickens have been part of an organic farm, not raised in cages.

  54. Jerry in Fl on 24 Jan 2013 at 2:15 am #

    Sorrry, but scanning down earlier I saw someone commenting on a friend who was diagnosed with Parkinsons. Like my car keys and eyeglasses I can’t find it right now, but anyone who has been told by a gp or local neurologist that they have parkinsons should see a movement disorder specialist. Don’t be afraid after you read everything you can find on the internet and you will, but you know now the answer for several little problems that you may have experienced over the years. There are medications and dbs surgery that wil benefit you and do not hesitate to explain to your friends and family why you don’t get up on the roof and clean the rain gutters. I won’t go into the very long list of symptoms unless requested. BTW, I am back to more frequent commenting because the Big Business Deal is as dead as road kill. We met everything that the owner of the business wanted and everytime we did he went even higher until it clearly wasn’t going to happen. My little antique business is also dying a slow death and I’m about to shut that down. We will continue renovating houses to rent. If that ceases to be really profitable as home prices go back up, we’ll build and sell homes. I didn’t see much to recommend in 50 Shades and I’m now reading a book on crop circles.

  55. Ginger on 24 Jan 2013 at 4:53 am #

    The other two are you, Ghost Rider.

  56. Robb on 24 Jan 2013 at 5:35 am #

    Snakes are supposed to be very good to eat. I keep looking at the store for Snake and Bake………..

  57. Mindy on 24 Jan 2013 at 5:36 am #

    Correct me if I’m wrong, which happens on very rare occasions, but I do believe it was Ghost [of course] who commented about Arlo’s bellybutton being shown but not his “pokies” and how that wasn’t “fair” or something to that effect. Feel free to correct me, Ghost. I know you well enough to allow you that privilege. Anyway, if fairness is to be an issue, Jimmy would have to show Janis’ “pokies” as well and I do suspect that she is simply not going to allow that to happen. “Fair” is something the whiners always want to play, after all. :D But I did notice that Ghostie got a near-pokie with the link to a bra. Do you have certain panels categorically filed, Ghost? You know, you really are like that younger brother I never had! Or the neighbor’s evil son who was always peeking so much that I actually had to pull the curtains and blinds once or twice a week just to get some privacy.

  58. Mindy on 24 Jan 2013 at 5:39 am #

    Wait! “Near-Pokie” was NOT intended in the way Ghost is going to proclaim! Honest! It was an oversight on my part, totally innocent, and not at all intended to stir Ghost’s prurient interests! I’d never stoop so low as to tease him like that. It’s just too easy! Not unlike using a tactical nuke to kill a stink bug.

  59. John in Virginia on 24 Jan 2013 at 5:43 am #

    Mindy is already blushing. And now I see why! Bad Mindy! Bad!

    Robb, the problem with Snake ‘n’ Bake would be that you’d have to provide your own snakes. All they’d do would be sell you the flour and bread crumb mixture to roll them in (at about 20X the actual cost of the stuff) and rolling a snake can be a major problem.

    Oh, Mindy, my love, Ghost is going to have sooooooooooo much fun with your foo pah! It’s open season, Ghost. Make her squirm!

  60. JDS on 24 Jan 2013 at 7:24 am #

    My chocolate Lab, Zipper the wonder dog, is totally fearless. Probably a good thing we don’t have pythons in Wisconsin.