Yesterday I saluted 15 year old Jessie Gugig, who, with a single quote in the New York Times, struck a blow for all lovers of absurdist humor and hydrangeas. I used her clever observation about the nature of undercover espionage in suburban neighborhoods to launch a bad limerick, and I thought that would be the end of it. But no.
Late in the conversation last evening, a provocative post appeared in the comments section:
Hi, this is Jessie Gugig. Yeah, I don’t know if you were expecting to hear from me at all, but here I am. Wow, just, wow. You just summed up exactly what happened to us on Monday night after the media circus came through. I said it as a joke to a small group of paper reporters, not thinking it would go anywhere big, since I said a bunch of other things along the same lines which it feels corny to try and write out again. Later, my mother got a call from our local newspaper asking who had spelled my name wrong; the local news, or the New York Times? Cue incredulous disbelief from my mother when the local reporter directs her to the internet. Now, I had no idea this was going on when it happened, but my mother went to the Times right away and gets my name corrected by virtue of being the mother of a minor. While this is going on, I get my own call from a friend; did I know that the Times misspelled my name? No, I did not. After that, we called the news desk at 9:30 and went through about 5 layers of people including the security desk in order to talk to the foreign news editor to get my name corrected (which they did done immediately, to their credit), and then to insert “jokingly,” which at first they really didn’t want to do. They said that this was the “money quote,” that it was the quote that was going to be reprinted all over the globe. And now it is, so I guess they were right in the end, as I seem to have been translated in several languages as of this morning. I wound up pleading with the foreign news editor, explaining that people who did not know me would simply think that I was incredibly stupid or just more of suburbia, here to look ridiculous for the cameras. The editor told us that the quote was going to be like a litmus test for intelligence; I responded that when it’s a litmus test that 90% of everyone in the planet is certainly going to fail and if only a 10% margin of readers are going to understand the quote’s meaning, then they’re doing it wrong. After the no small amount of brouhaha and near-tears on my part, the foreign editor very kindly agreed to humor me, even though he said he had to go up 2 editors higher to make that change. They called back just before 11:30 pm and said it was changed. This is the point where I started crying for real. Sure enough, when it went to print, it was the way I wanted. Thank you again to the New York Times for being so kind to me. And many thank you to you for this nice post and all the limericks. I hope you don’t mind; I’m an aspiring writer, so I made my own:
Glasnost? What Glasnost? The teenager said,
Russians from her house, saw their flower bed
Then the guys-in-ties came
Neighbors were mostly inane
And the girl is now hiding her head.
True to their generous nature, some Trail Baboon readers responded with compliments and bouquets for 15 year old Jessie. That open and welcoming spirit is one of the things I love most about this community.
However, others felt the writing betrayed a hidden identity. Steve observed that the word “Glasnost” is an unlikely choice to begin a limerick, especially one written by a teenager, even a brilliant teenager like Jessie. Deception is suspected. Imagine that.
Someone commenting on the spy story may be using an alias!
I took a look “behind the scenes” and did not recognize the e-mail address from whence the comment came. So I don’t know if Jessie (or her impersonator) will step forward today. But I ask you to examine the above quote and vote for one of the possible author identities. If we can never learn the truth, at least we should be able to agree on an attractive lie. If you vote “other”, please name your choice in the comments.
Trail Baboon 
Morning Booners!
Actually it was the word “brouhaha” that got me suspicious. As the mother of a current 15-year old, I can imagine the word “Glasnost” from a really really well-read teenager, not “brouhaha”. I’m sure if I tried to define this word for my 15-year old, she would just laugh and laugh. So, sorry…. somebody is busted.
(& “litmus test” as well. Does anybody actually still use the litmus test?)
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I think the term “litmus test” is now exclusively used by presidents discussing their Supreme Court nominees, and always preceded by the words “there’s no”. I think young people probably think of a litmus test as some sort of mythical creature that hangs out with unicorns.
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all science kids do
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Nope, that’s my cousin. I’ve heard her use big words since she was 6.
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i voted “other” and suspected Donna but did not see words like “nympho” or “damn” in there, so now i am confused.
sort it out, Babooners. i gotta go milk.
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I was willing to give a perceptive teenager like Jessie, who can actually identify a hydrangea and use the word in conversation Glastnost and even litmus-test, but you are right Sherillee, what self-respecting teenager uses brouhaha. I also am suspicious due to the conspicuous absence of the word “like”, or for that matter, any other sort of questionable usages and constructions.
I think the key here is “conspicuous absence”-who has been absent from this little journey into the absurd? Is that logical? Oh sure, perhaps a trip up North where there is no internet access might be an explanation, but I think something more sinister is going on.
Nice of you to delurk, Connie and remind us there are also silent participants in this little joy ride. Feel free to cross over to the banter side any time.
Joanne, thanks, now I know what is for dinner tonight. Steve, a PSU is on the menu for this weekend, as I am the lone consumer of same at our table. Who will be the next Midnight Gourmet?
Happy Canada Day, MN-TX!
Got to go start the second shift!
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thats right it is canada day. you gotta love those canucks. they make certain we don’t get a weekend without them. but they still get boxing day and we dont.
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I liked Dominion Day better, its old name; seemed more Canadian than Canada Day. Canada Day is sort of pushy, not a Canadian behavior. I prefer their early date for Thanksgiving. My two claims to national TV attention: 1) I was interviewed in a campground in Thunder Bay (Wish that were still Fort-Port) about American-Canadian relations. It ended up on national CBC TV, but I never saw it. 2) in 1964 I was interviweed for the Today Show and was in Time.
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Thanks, Clyde, I did not know about Dominion Day.
We had french toast with maple syrup (the real stuff, but from MN, not Canada) and raspberries to mark the day. (I highly recommend maple and raspberry to any of you with the good fortune to have raspberries-has an intensity and “wildness” that we love).
Tonight, groan it you must, we have the Red Green marathon planned.
Should maybe find a fine bit of Canadian lager to go with that. Suggestions???
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labatts blue, molson golden and canadian club are my suggestions. labatts and molson are makers of many other fine beers but i don’t know how many of them make it to the us. if you ever run into a sweet cream ale give it a try.
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Thanks catherine!
We are at Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario now. Somehow missed the U.S. Customs office for our vehicle titles stamping, so we’re hoping they don’t make us drive back over the bridge: the traffic going to Michigan is insane.
No comments on Canadian lager, yet anyway. Molson is pretty bad.
Not sure how long more I’m going to have AT&T out here, so I’ll take this opportunity to say — Be good you all! Have a great 4th of July, and I’ll see you on the flipside.
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We now have a new word, “delurk”, in our vocabulary. 🙂
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Well, I voted for “Jesse Ventura” in Dale’s poll. Partly I was thinking like so many contestants on “Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me” that the most absurd option is the fun way to go.
But I’ll defend the Ventura Thesis with two arguments. First, there is in “Jessie’s” article above a total absence of organization (thoughts are not broken down by paragraph and are barely organized into sentences). The writer obviously cannot prioritize and organize larger thoughts. Reading “Jessie” above is like drinking from a fire hose, and that is partly how I remember our former guv.
The second Jesse-like quality of the “Jessie” statement is extreme self-absorption. It used to drive me crazy that we had a governor so narcissistic that he could have been locked up for it, but that fact was NEVER mentioned in the press. Jesse only seemed to change topics when he made statements on various themes. Actually, his only topic was Jesse Ventura, and he then would elaborate by talking about how a coach was making more than Jesse Ventura, or how the press was abusing Jesse Ventura, or how Jesse Ventura had the only rational structure for government. Jesse was a rip-roarin’ narcissist, and that same cast of mind can be seen in today’s opening statement by “Jessie.”
Read last night’s stuff, Baboonites, for the thrilling notice from Clyde. And have a heckuva day.
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Oh, oh… I can’t believe it. Just last night I was listening to a CD of Wait, Wait, Don’t Tell while I was in my studio. Laughing out loud. What a small world we have here!
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Rise and Shine Babooners:
Another mystery on the Trail, huh? Where is Goatlock and Lupine when you need them? I read the Trail last night before bed to see what happened during the evening and discovered Jessie’s note, including her sophisticated limerick. Frankly, I was immediately suspicious that either Dale or Steve or Clyde were the authors of this missive. Or all of the above working together.
Clues:
1. A 15 year old’s sentence should have read as follows: I texted 2 reporters….
2. Sentence structure was very mature, like retired English teacher mature.
3. Use of words such as Glasnost — What 15 y.o. will know that one? Inane?
4. There is a certain retired English teacher on the Trail with big news to celebrate yesterday. What would be better for such a suspect than to transform himself to a 15 y.o. girl to celebrate? Perhaps a miniskirt and flip flops as well!
Meanwhile, I’m late with my reply this morning because I found a beautiful crop of ripe raspberries in the patch. They belong on my oatmeal for breakfast.
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congrats on the raspberries. my favorite summer perk
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I always thought my young cousin was more mature than most adults I knew even when she was 8 (getting into political arguments at Thanksgiving). That was, indeed, she who commented.
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This is sort of like proving anything about UFO’s: Twasn’t me.
I assure you all that the way I celebrated last night was to take a night off form cooking and go out to eat. There was no time for me to construct that. I was and am suspicious, as per my reference to mature writing in my response.
When I was a teacher I would on occassion have a student who would write in ways that seemed so unlike almost all other students. I had a student who used to write like an encyclopedia, not a good skill. Had more than one student, but not many more than one, who would use some old-fashioned expressions. Had lots of students who were quite sophisticated in their knowledge which almost always went with more mature writing style. Again like UFO’s, one would think a forgery would sound all the ways people indicate.
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be thankful there are 15 years olds that can write maturely and the whole world is not like me a 50 something that writes immaturely.
it sounds like the opposite of the last meal given to a death row inmate on their way to the last walk. what did you have for the first meal of the rest of your cancer free life?
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Good Morning to Whoever You Are,
Well, I voted for Putin because I don’t think it was one of those Jesses and I do think other might be right, but why not Putin? It’s really a long shot that Putin would be the writer, but maybe he enjoys commenting on blogs and this was a good opportunity for him to do so. Actually, I think it was Steve and he is still trying to fool us by voting for Ventura.
I think Steve also commented using the name Mr. T. Am I right, Steve, or was it some one else?
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If I blogged under the name of Mr. T to confuse you, why would I come clean now? And if I pretended to come clean, why would you believe me (a proven liar) now? I always tell the truth except when it is too much trouble or doesn’t suit my needs. You can take that to the bank.
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everything i say is a lie is one of my favorite brain twisters
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Okay, Steve. I just thought you were being clever, not lying. If it wasn’t you, who was it? I’m fairly sure it wasn’t a Jesse or Putin.
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I believe it was either the 15 year old in question or Vladimir Putin. I think we all need to remember that Jessie G is from the East Coast, and may speak differently than the teens we know and love. Moreover, her parents were astute and persisted in getting the New York times to make those changes in the story. I think such parents could very well have a child who writes like that.
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I think we have created an urban legend here, folks!
My gut feeling is the mystery writer is a struggling politician who’s not doing well in the polls. After generating sufficient buzz in the blogosphere, he/she will come forward to a torrent of press coverage, interviews on Larry King, 24-hour coverage by Fox News, and be swept to victory in November on the premise that someone so clever as to fool Trail Babooners on the first try is certainly someone we need running the government. Loomis Beachley, anyone? 😉
Chris in Owatonna
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The fatal flaw in your theory is that Larry King just announced his retirement from his show. Darn. No more deep and challenging interviews anymore. Maybe Charlie Rose will take his place!
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Larry King, Jacque, is dying in the ratings. If CNN wants to try something bold to bring up viewer numbers, the obvious candidate is Chris Mathews. That’s a switch from “Mr. Softballs” to “Mr. Hardballs.” Hmmm, I’m in trouble with my metaphors again.
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congrats to clyde, best news possible.
i think the blogee from left field is as good as it gets here. its like when dale introduced bobby mcferrins dont worry be happy and then it became a smash hit. it happens that sometimes ourlittle world is speaking for the masses. they just don’t know it. i like the vote for ventura because it reminds me even dingleberries can make you smile. he can do that now that he is out of the governors mansion (i wonder where his son is partying now) i
i liked connies emergence from the shadows yesterday. and mr t is welcome anytime. fun way to start the day has developed into a fun way to continue the day
joanne. cant wait to get back home to try the southwestern salad. i like that grain you started off the suggestions with (i dont dare go back and look or i will loose the typing i have done so far) it is a great discovery of the last year or so. i will report back in.
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quinoa. good stuff like a cross between brown rice and pine nuts sort of. very nice. i am still learning to use it in different ways.
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The OBVIOUS candidate is the sweet little boy with the cowlick and the freckles, and I do not mean the Beav. The only thing that makes me wonder about Dale doing it is that the limerick does not quite scan. Could Dale bring himself to do that? Is he devious enough to make it an 1/4 bubble off likle that? And he has been silent lately, hopefully shoooting golf with TK, enjoying life, job-hunting . . .
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Mr. Clyde, I believe you are trying to deflect attention by pointing to someone besides yourself!
Another entrapment question: How often do you beat your wife/children/dog/cat/rugs?
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He was seen out in public with his own wife.
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I see recipes are entering the Trail on a regular basis now. I had to go back to catch the SW salad recipe from last night. We already have a reader blog spawned from this webiste. Perhaps a cooking blog is next!
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I lost track of thnks for three weeks there. Could someone give me the link to the reading group? Anna has not been on lately.
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http://blevinsbookclub.wordpress.com/
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Sorry – laptop at home has been sketchy, and have been training a new person at work, so very little time during daylight hours to catch up…
Will try, sometime this weekend, to herd the cats on the book club site to name a book, time, and location for first meeting(s).
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Greetings! It’s hard to say who’s responsible — although I do lean toward Jessie G herself. She says that she is an aspiring writer and is obviously precocious. My guess is she’s using this opportunity to nab her 15 minutes of fame and make a name for herself in the blogosphere — maybe fishing for a book deal or something. Rather like the gal in “Julie & Julia.”
I, too, noticed her near perfect spelling, grammar and punctuation. Maybe she’s one of the few teens who don’t text (like my 15-yr old ’cause I can’t afford a phone for him). Jessie may have had some help from an adult (editor) to finesse the details, use interesting verbiage, googled her name and found good blogs to make her statement. That’s my take on it anyway.
Glad you liked the recipe. I have a couple other quinoa recipes. My favorite is a quinoa tabouli w/pomegranates. I can live on that during the fall when pomegranates are in season.
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Joanne — I’ll look forward to that one. My taboulis are quite conventional, but nonetheless wonderful. If we limit ourselves to a single recipe a day–but each one has to be superb–this could be the start of a beautiful relationship.
Catherine and I have been corresponding about ways of strengthening this blog. It is doin’ great now, but we have to plan for the future. We’ll eventually need fresh blood (geez, another vampire metaphor) new members sometime. I don’t know how you go about making a blog popular. I think Dale has started something here with wonderful potential.
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im in there for the recipe blog
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I keep meaning to ask you re: vampires. You said you don’t care for them much in books, so I am wondering where you stand on Zombies (assuming you have your shoes on, of course).
Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, while embarassing to be seen reading in public, is pretty darn funny.
The pomegranite tabouleh sounds pretty great. I’m a bit intimidated by the “superb” designation—-
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Great thoughts. This blog deserves to take over the internet blog world–it is so much fun. I’d love to be in on keeping it vibrant, but I know little about the subject. But that has never stopped me before!
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Catherine – I loved Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. I love the original P&P too, but the zombies add spice 😉 I’m currently reading the prequel, Dawn of the Dreadfuls, haha. It’s pretty good so far.
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pomegranite go onsale at costco for 1 buck a piece. i will let you know and see if i can scoop some up for you
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Awesome! I love pomegranates — plus, they’re extra special because they’re only available a couple months out of the year. An ancient, authentic food they have not been able hybridize for year round production, I guess. Remember the myth of Ceres and Persephone?
If you’d like the Quinoa Tabouli w/Pomegranate recipe let me know — I can send via email, too. jmjensen@izoom.net I refer to it as Christmas Salad because of its beautiful red and green ingredients and it’s easier than trying to explain quinoa and tabouli to folks who don’t know.
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Oops! My error — it’s the Roman myth of Ceres and her daughter Prosperina with the pomegranates in Hades.
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I am lame this morning — it’s Proserpina.
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or Demeter and Persephone, if you go the Greek route.
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I’m with tim re: vampires, and zombies, too. The thrills of real life are all I can deal with. Vampires and zombies just are not believable to me. Hobbits, however…..
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Jacque, if you saw me in the morning before coffee, you would find zombies believable, I roam the house searching for a brain…. my own.
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Steve–just read your hiking story. I read lots of travel books, prefer hiking and biking tales. This is worthy of any of them and better than many. I never camped the SHT but I know the area you describe.
Jacque mentions trap questions above. Steve’s hiking story reminds me of one I can only tell in part; why that is true, I will not explain. An ex-student of mine, one of my favorite (and a student, now that I think about it, who wrote in a style very mature for his age) called me when he was about 30. Why he was making this call I cannot explain. But the call started with “As you probably realized when I was in high school, I am gay.” Then he explained why he was calling, which put me in a situation of appearing to be judging him negatively, but I had to address the issue he was raising. Then suddenly he had to end the conversation. We had addressed the issue he had raised. He thought the conversation was done, but I never got to explain my reaction to his being gay, that I was not judging him and that I never stood in front of a group of students and decided who was gay or straight. I have never heard from him again. Made me realize how much I prize my relationship with those few special students, of which he was one.
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i am so accepting of people for who they are i had a roommate in my first guy house who was gay. he had not come out yet but in hindsight it should have been obvious. i remember one particular house meeting where there was a heated discussion about who didn’t clean the ring around the bathtub and david was excused immediately because he would have been too embarrassed for us to see his hair in the tub. i also had a favorite teacher who was gay and i was oblivious to it. the traits that were endearing were the gay traits. i always wonder who would you rather have living in the neighborhood a gay person or a redneck. i know my answer.
clyde the opportunity to form bonds with some of the special teachers as we went through the process is one of the things i remember most fondly. the realization that they are just people living a regular life while they are teaching was eye opening to a teen. the discussions and relationship developed outside of school were very special.
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The author?
Holden Caulfield. It’ s obvious.
My evidence?
1. Prose style. Note the use of words like “corny” and expressions like “bunch of other things.” If you consult Holden’s reminiscences on a certain period in his life, you’ll find him to make use of surprisingly similar language.
2. The veracity issue. Consider young Holden’s observations, some years ago:
“I’m the most terrific liar you ever saw in your life. It’s awful. If I’m on my way to the store to buy a magazine, even, and somebody asks me where I’m going, I’m liable to say I’m going to the opera. It’s terrible.”
Put the prose style next to Holden’s admitted propensity to lie and, well, what can I say?
I rest my case.
I would also observe that Holden and Bubby seem to be maturing at a similar rate.
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I had not considered Bubby. He must be another “Lurker” on the blog…..
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Hi, back again. The email address is my mom’s so that’s probably why it looks so funky. As for the rest; you guys are doubting that I’m who I say I am? I didn’t think that I would lose credibility by talking the way I normally do. Yikes. Guess I’m going to try and answer some questions then.
Renee: I believe it was either the 15 year old in question or Vladimir Putin.
You are a wonderful person. I think I just fell out of my chair laughing, actually. I really am 15, I swear. And female and American. I really love these theories.
Renee: I think we all need to remember that Jessie G is from the East Coast, and may speak differently than the teens we know and love. Moreover, her parents were astute and persisted in getting the New York times to make those changes in the story. I think such parents could very well have a child who writes like that.
It’s not an East Coast thing, as far as I know. My parents are probably one of the biggest reasons why I’m snarky. That, and I watch a lot of Colbert and Stewart.
Chitrader: I think we have created an urban legend here, folks! My gut feeling is the mystery writer is a struggling politician who’s not doing well in the polls. After generating sufficient buzz in the blogosphere, he/she will come forward to a torrent of press coverage, interviews on Larry King, 24-hour coverage by Fox News, and be swept to victory in November on the premise that someone so clever as to fool Trail Babooners on the first try is certainly someone we need running the government.
Wow, these theories are starting to get truly spectacular. You know, someone online suggested that I should write some crappy and highly successful spy novel now. So far, it seems to be writing itself. Besides, didn’t Larry King retire?
Jacque: Another mystery on the Trail, huh? Where is Goatlock and Lupine when you need them? I read the Trail last night before bed to see what happened during the evening and discovered Jessie’s note, including her sophisticated limerick. Frankly, I was immediately suspicious that either Dale or Steve or Clyde were the authors of this missive. Or all of the above working together.
Clues:
1. A 15 year old’s sentence should have read as follows: I texted 2 reporters….
2. Sentence structure was very mature, like retired English teacher mature.
3. Use of words such as Glasnost — What 15 y.o. will know that one? Inane?
4. There is a certain retired English teacher on the Trail with big news to celebrate yesterday. What would be better for such a suspect than to transform himself to a 15 y.o. girl to celebrate? Perhaps a miniskirt and flip flops as well!
1: I don’t text often, and when I do, I make a point of using proper grammar and spelling just to annoy people. It’s fun!
2: There are retired English teachers//English majors in the family.
3: I read a lot?
4: Agh, miniskirts. No, just- no. Flip flops I don’t mind though.
Steve: But I’ll defend the Ventura Thesis with two arguments. First, there is in “Jessie’s” article above a total absence of organization (thoughts are not broken down by paragraph and are barely organized into sentences). The writer obviously cannot prioritize and organize larger thoughts. Reading “Jessie” above is like drinking from a fire hose, and that is partly how I remember our former guv.
The second Jesse-like quality of the “Jessie” statement is extreme self-absorption. It used to drive me crazy that we had a governor so narcissistic that he could have been locked up for it, but that fact was NEVER mentioned in the press. Jesse only seemed to change topics when he made statements on various themes. Actually, his only topic was Jesse Ventura, and he then would elaborate by talking about how a coach was making more than Jesse Ventura, or how the press was abusing Jesse Ventura, or how Jesse Ventura had the only rational structure for government. Jesse was a rip-roarin’ narcissist, and that same cast of mind can be seen in today’s opening statement by “Jessie.”
Um… I don’t know who Jesse Ventura is. I know who Ace Ventura is. I love that movie.
Did I answer all the theories? I hope so. I’m going to go to lunch with my mom now, so I guess I’ll check back later tonight. I’d also like to say thanks to everyone here on the Trail Baboon for the limericks, for your humor and your good natures. You all sound like nice people, and you’re fun to read and respond to. I’ve got a question of my own though; why the name “Trail Baboon”? It sounds like there’s an interesting story behind that name.
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To explain Trail Baboon is such a long tale, invested with joy and love and life, then lose and sadness, then joy and community, the anger, rejection, frustration–all over about 30 years. Hmm. you doubted the background of this group is hard to explain. Mostly it is a long story.
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Let me quickly add, hopefully without a typo, we are a group always looking for new bloggers.
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Jessie, the “official” version of “why Trail Baboon” can be found in Dale’s very first post of this blog.
Jesse Ventura is easy to google, but hard to explain.
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hes even harder to understand when you find him on the google search. how do explain that minnesota voted for him as governor? how do you explain… jessie just tune in and it will all come in time. you are welcome to join us for the summer and see. by the way what is so special about her hydrangeas?
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Your delightful lack of awareness of Jesse Ventura has made many of this blog community very happy. To understand the name Trail Baboon you have to know the recent history of staffing changes at Minnesota Public Radio, particularly as it concerns the service called Radio Heartland. By the way, what kind of music do you like to listen to? We can introduce you to some that will astound and mystify.
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Now I will work on amnesia about Tim Pawlenty.
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i am hoping for a time soon when we will not remember that name.
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Hello Jessie: I was the first theorist of the a.m. Guess I wuz just way 2 rong!
So sorry for misunderestimating you!
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Hi Jessie — You are too young to know our former governor, Jesse Ventura (but then, you are too young to have heard about glasnost, which is even older). Some of us in Minnesota were proud of having been flaky enough to vote in a former professional wrestler given to wearing feather boas. You wouldn’t believe how boring our other governors have been!
Then Jesse wrote an autobiography in which he boasted that when he visited a famous Nevada brothel he made such a favorable impression on the girls that they didn’t charge him. That brought a little tear to my eye. Damn, but that was a boast that I think could not have been made by the governor of any other state. We Minnesotans aren’t nearly as plodding and predictable as that guy Keillor is always saying.
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Hey Jessie… never take anything personally that you hear here on TB! If you ever get a chance to read through some of the past blogs, you’ll see that we have a high incidence ratio of leg-pulling in our little community. And, of course, I don’t think it occurred to any of us that you’d find our little hydrangea spin-off, much less answer us!. So it was WAY easy for us to believe that one of our lurkers was trying to pull the wool over our eyes.
Hope you can hang out with us on the blog. I don’t know any other teenager willing to use the word “brouhaha”!
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Jessie (and, hi, Aunt Susan),
I just wanted to say how proud I am to be related to such a (wise) smart-Alec like you. I heard your quote on Wait Wait Don’t Tell Me this morning. They dissent really do it justice, but I’m proud nonetheless.
I love and miss you, give your family hugs for me from Japan!
Everyone else,
I may become a reader of this blog; I have enjoyed many of the quirky quips I’ve read so far!
Melissa
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Ah, iPhone spell fixes. Didn’t, not “dissent”.
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Good morning you lovely and funny new friends. Please check the last post on yesterday’s blog. I put it there about a half hour ago to verify that you had, indeed, heard from the REAL Jessie Gugig. I’m Jessie’s grandmother and yes, she really did write to you, and only you. Although ~~~ the Jesse Ventura theory is a hoot and if I didn’t know better, I would be inclined to vote for him as the impostor poster.
Susan
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Well Susan, as the mother of an 11-year-old who refers to us as “you bunch of nutters” but always has to know what the blog is about each day, I guess I can suspend my disbelief.
2 questions for you: 1) what nationality is Gugig? just a personal interest of mine
2) don’t the hydrangeas have to be of the PeeGee variety to get the pink or blue color?
fyi, even in the heart of urban St Paul, we do have some pretty great neighborhood hardware stores, long may they thrive.
If you read enough back posts of this blog, you will perhaps understand why some of us were so quick to suspect one of ourselves.
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thanks for the input susan. welcome. tell jessie to enjoy her 15 minutes. and you two are welcome to join the blog anytime. do you raise hydrangeas too?
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Welcome aboard, Jessie and Monat! I’m so delighted to have been wrong!
(And please do note that I didn’t suspect you weren’t 15; I just suspected you weren’t YOU. (When I was seven, my favorite word was “unkempt.” I got teased a lot.))
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P.S. If you two want to know more about the wonderful and talented Baboon Trail Boss, Dale Connelly, I believe this link might still be live: http://minnesota.publicradio.org/collections/special/columns/trial_balloon/.
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Ok my money had been on Donna, but that post from Jessie’s Monat has me changing my vote. Welcome! This is probably the most literate, kind and interesting blog out there. And Dale leads the way.
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Welcome Jessie and Susan (Jessie’s Monat)!! Trail Baboon is a play on Trial Balloon, which is the blog that was. We started there, listening to Radio Heartland on Minnesota Public Radio, and commenting on the Trial Balloon blog. Whatever Dale came up with, we discussed, and enjoyed the accompanying music. After some heartbreaking changes, Dale moved us all to this new home, renaming us the Trail Baboons, with Dale, Blevins and Rhonda leading the way. As you can read, we’re a diverse crowd, scattered all over, enjoying the company. I hope you’ll share in the fun 🙂
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tell tham about your dog alanna
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alanna, you need a new icon. the swasticka you got is distracting. put a picture up
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Better?
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much. what a nice improvement. thanks for the smile!
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A hearty welcome to Jessie, Susan and other family members! We hope you come often and contribute as it moves you. While we are a kind, caring, witty and diverse group, you will receive no special treatment.
You, too, shall suffer the slings and arrows of my lame limericks, wilted wit and clever attempts at fine writing. But the other excellent folks on this blog will more than make up for it. You should find the answers to most of your questions in the links provided above or in their responses. We have an interesting history, for sure. Enjoy your stay!
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I have meetings all day (I mean straight from 9 – 4; I had to bail out of one a few minutes ago so I could grab some yogurt – and caffeine – to get through the afternoon) and yet here I am, completely riveted to following the blog in my 15 minute break. I read Dale’s entry early this am b/c I had to see what he would do with Jessie’s wonderful post and then I had to check back to see if she responded. Not only did she, and very well, she brought Susan too!
This blog is addictive! Gotta go now.
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i’m not sold yet. i think its dale dreaming up new identities for his blogworld. cmon susan and jessie, anyone could tell us they were you, tell us something only you would know (then again how would we know only you would know?) cmon give it a shot
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Jessie’s Monat… any relation to Susan Monat who raises alpacas in MA?
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I think she said Monat is an endearment instead of saying grandmother, not an actual name.
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Now if Jessie’s Grandma raced alpacas I would have thought Dale responsible for the whole story 🙂 However, I bet it really is the REAL Jessie. This was probably one of the places where her name showed up that she could actually comment on the post, so it makes sense that she found us.
Jessie: As it is we could use another governor with the name Jessie. What are you doing in ten years?
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I had to add Catherine’s line to my blog of quotes: “Jesse Ventura is easy to google, but hard to explain.” But that is all-purpose line for any number of things.
“______________ is easy to google, but hard to explain.”
life, faith, herpes, the opposite sex, fundamentalism, apostrophes, blackberries, reality TV, Vannah White, etc.
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Very nice, Clyde. I’d like to have those as needlepoints to put up on the wall: “Herpes, easy to Google but hard to understand.”
But what about Vanna White do you not understand? Surely, there is much less there than meets the eye.”
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Er, that’s the point, I thought.
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All you babooners are just toooooooooooooooooo much! Thanks for today’s entertainment.
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I’m still ‘cautiously optimistic’!
….but I haven’t figured out what I need to consider it ‘proven’ so…. where does that leave me?
What was the question again?
Hi Jessie, Hi Jessie’s Monat. Welcome–
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Oy…I miss seeing all of this and reading before I get too far into the day. Fun to read at night, but somehow just not the same. Next week should be better. I hope. Besides, now I have recipes to keep up with, along with everything else. What are you going to throw out next – math problems I need to finish before I can go on to the next comment?…
Happy almost weekend all.
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what is the square root of 2?
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Boy, am I sorry I tuned in so late today. Interesting turn of events.
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BTW (that’s “by the way,” for you non-texters) I voted for Jessie G., but since I voted after-hours, my vote probably didn’t count. Still a little bitter about Rhonda. (Insert smiley face here.)
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Это Владимир Путин письменной форме, и до сих пор я только скрываться – и очень нравился этот блог, – но я должен отрицать какую-либо связь на этот пост империалистами капиталистических Джесси Guggig. Или это Джесси Вентура?
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Greetings, Mr. Putin. May I call you Vlad? Glad you found us and enjoy the blog. You can deny all you want, but we know your game. This is English, so you can use Google Translate like the rest of us. Two can play at this — the game is afoot!
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To spare everyone the steps involved, Joanne is right.
Google translate does a fine job. Here’s what it does with Vlad’s post:
It’s Vladimir Putin in writing, and so far I have just hiding – and really liked this blog – but I have to deny any link to this post imperialist capitalist Jesse Guggig. Or is Jesse Ventura?
Clearly this is authentic.
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Welcome, Mr. Putin. If you have been following our little get together (and it seems that being observant is important to you), you will know that this is the time of day when a superb recipe appears in the blog.
As a head of state, I’m sure you have had access to a fine chef-could you pass along the Kremlin’s recipe for vareniki?
Спасибо
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i was hoping for borscht. can you look at my recipe and offer improvements. its good but id like it be authentic also. is it possible to make a good vegetarian borscht?
Borscht Recipe
INGREDIENTS
8 cups beef broth*
1 pound slice of meaty bone-in beef shank
1 large onion, peeled, quartered
4 large beets, peeled, chopped
4 carrots, peeled, chopped
1 large russet potato, peeled, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 cups thinly sliced cabbage
3/4 cup chopped fresh dill
3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 cup sour cream
Salt and pepper to taste
*Use gluten-free broth if you are cooking gluten-free
METHOD
1 Bring 4 cups of the beef broth, the beef shank, and onion to boil in large pot. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until meat is tender, about 1 hour 30 minutes.
2 Transfer meat to work surface; trim fat, sinew and bone and discard. Chop meat; cover and chill. Cool broth slightly. Chill in pot until cold, at least 4 hours and up to 1 day.
3 Spoon fat from top of chilled broth and discard. Add remaining 4 cups broth, beets, carrots, and potato; bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer until vegetables are tender, about 30 minutes.
4 Stir in meat, cabbage and 1/2 cup dill; cook until cabbage is tender, about 15 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Stir in vinegar.
Ladle soup into bowls. Top with sour cream and remaining 1/4 cup dill.
Serves 6.
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I’m sorry, Vlad, but I missed part of your message. You did misspell Jessie’s name. I prefer to see that as a sign that standards are slipping in the KGB. Hard to get good help these days, isn’t it?
There is so much I want to share with you, but I’ll stick to the two most important topics. Please send us more Anna Chapman spies and we’ll do our best to teach them to shop at malls. They’ll do your economy so much good when they get home. And I want to encourage you to pose for more photos without your shirt. Your rock, man!
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