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Master Fic List
Doctor Who
Single Chapter Stories
Third Doctor
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Fourth Doctor
Cooking with Gallifreyans (LJ)
Ninth Doctor
( Read more... )
Tenth Doctor
( Read more... )
Eleventh Doctor
( Read more... )
Twelfth Doctor
( Read more... )
Thirteenth Doctor
( Read more... )
Sarah Jane Adventures
A Light in the Dark (LJ)
Carbon, Earth and Stardust (LJ)
Torchwood
Triptych (LJ)
Going Out With the Tide (LJ)
Multi-Chapter Stories
Walk Out With Me to the Unknown Region
Sapphire and Steel
( Read more... )
Arcane: League of Legends
( Read more... )
Marvel Cinematic Universe
( Read more... )
The Goblin Emperor
( Read more... )
Vorkosiverse
( Read more... )
Miscellaneous
( Read more... )
Meta
( Read more... )
External Links: Ao3; Teaspoon
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Sticky: Dept. of Organization
Saturday, 29 August 2015 04:57 pmMulti- Chapter Stories
Most links to my multi-chapter stories will be to their Dreamwidth posts; links to stories prior to 2012 may go both to LJ and DW. Each multi-chapter Whoniverse story is also available at my Teaspoon and AO3 accounts.
Doctor Who
Walk Out With Me to the Unknown Region
Hearts and Moons Recall the Truth
( Read more... )
Sea Bound Hearts
( Read more... )
Redeeming the Tree
( Read more... )
Paying A Debt
( Read more... )
Bubble Tea
( Read more... )
Most links to my multi-chapter stories will be to their Dreamwidth posts; links to stories prior to 2012 may go both to LJ and DW. Each multi-chapter Whoniverse story is also available at my Teaspoon and AO3 accounts.
Doctor Who
Walk Out With Me to the Unknown Region
Hearts and Moons Recall the Truth
( Read more... )
Sea Bound Hearts
( Read more... )
Redeeming the Tree
( Read more... )
Paying A Debt
( Read more... )
Bubble Tea
( Read more... )
Sticky: Dept. of Fandom Snowflake
Thursday, 2 January 2020 06:34 pm
Welcome - Let Me Talk About Myself!
This year I decided I'd take part in
![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
snowflake_challenge , in part because I want to keep active in fandom, tell people how much I value them and, (probably more than) occasionally, talk about who I am and why I do what I do. The first challenge asked me to introduce myself to people. So here goes, but I've put it under a cut because it goes on and on and on.
( Read more... )
Dept. of Social Interaction
Saturday, 24 May 2025 10:27 pmEntertaining: the Art of Maintaining Spoons
We had a young friend over for supper tonight. He's a reporter I've known for a few years. He's very good at what he does, although I sometimes wonder if he fully realizes it. He is an immigrant, whose family came to the U.S. when he was fairly young, and he's worked through some challenges, and done so very well, in my opinion. He recently became an American citizen.
I put together some slow-cooker beef bourguignon (well, it started that way, but I added a lot more than just red wine, plus vegetables that don't normally go into that dish), and an orange cake, put the place generally to rights, with Bob's help. I'd hoped to dust the living room, but Bob got the carpet vacuumed, and that made the place presentable.
For a wonder, everything was ready when our friend got here. It's been some time (as in, a few years) since we've had him over. We truly are hermits; we have friends who we haven't interacted with for horribly long periods of time ... anyhow, last week I ran into him at a social event for people who work for one of the local online news outlets I do stringer work for. He was feeling fairly down for various reasons, and asked if I could give him a hug. Well, that did it for me; I had to have him over for supper.
We had a really enjoyable time with him, for a couple of hours, and then I had to bring the evening to a close. The physical reason was because my back was starting to suggest that I should find some heat or ice as soon as possible. The mental and emotional reason was that I abruptly lost every one of my remaining spoons and I needed to be alone with Bob, STAT.
It happens to me, and to Bob. We still enjoy entertaining people, albeit not nearly as much as we used to, when we had a larger place, but it's always been tiring, and these days it's even more so. Entertaining people means you have to put your own best foot forward; you have to be on, in order to make sure your guests have a good time, to make sure you're listening to them, to make sure you're not talking too much at their expense, and so much more. And yes, you work hard to present yourself as an excellent host.
It is fucking exhausting. It's fun, but only for a given amount of time. Once that last spoon is gone? It's time to beat a determined retreat.
And that's what I'm about to do. Painkillers and heating pads, ho!
We had a young friend over for supper tonight. He's a reporter I've known for a few years. He's very good at what he does, although I sometimes wonder if he fully realizes it. He is an immigrant, whose family came to the U.S. when he was fairly young, and he's worked through some challenges, and done so very well, in my opinion. He recently became an American citizen.
I put together some slow-cooker beef bourguignon (well, it started that way, but I added a lot more than just red wine, plus vegetables that don't normally go into that dish), and an orange cake, put the place generally to rights, with Bob's help. I'd hoped to dust the living room, but Bob got the carpet vacuumed, and that made the place presentable.
For a wonder, everything was ready when our friend got here. It's been some time (as in, a few years) since we've had him over. We truly are hermits; we have friends who we haven't interacted with for horribly long periods of time ... anyhow, last week I ran into him at a social event for people who work for one of the local online news outlets I do stringer work for. He was feeling fairly down for various reasons, and asked if I could give him a hug. Well, that did it for me; I had to have him over for supper.
We had a really enjoyable time with him, for a couple of hours, and then I had to bring the evening to a close. The physical reason was because my back was starting to suggest that I should find some heat or ice as soon as possible. The mental and emotional reason was that I abruptly lost every one of my remaining spoons and I needed to be alone with Bob, STAT.
It happens to me, and to Bob. We still enjoy entertaining people, albeit not nearly as much as we used to, when we had a larger place, but it's always been tiring, and these days it's even more so. Entertaining people means you have to put your own best foot forward; you have to be on, in order to make sure your guests have a good time, to make sure you're listening to them, to make sure you're not talking too much at their expense, and so much more. And yes, you work hard to present yourself as an excellent host.
It is fucking exhausting. It's fun, but only for a given amount of time. Once that last spoon is gone? It's time to beat a determined retreat.
And that's what I'm about to do. Painkillers and heating pads, ho!
Dept, of Friday afternoon
Friday, 23 May 2025 01:03 pmBread Dread
I didn't get my first try at whole wheat bread done. I got the yeast mix too hot. It didn't rise at all. Ended up throwing out a lovely smelling brown brick. Still, it's a learning process. I may try again tomorrow.
I also have to make beef stew tomorrow; we're having a friend over. Wish me luck.
Oh, and I've watched episodes 2 and 3 of Dr. Who. I imagine I'll have some thoughts soon.
I didn't get my first try at whole wheat bread done. I got the yeast mix too hot. It didn't rise at all. Ended up throwing out a lovely smelling brown brick. Still, it's a learning process. I may try again tomorrow.
I also have to make beef stew tomorrow; we're having a friend over. Wish me luck.
Oh, and I've watched episodes 2 and 3 of Dr. Who. I imagine I'll have some thoughts soon.
Dept. of Not-White Noise
Wednesday, 21 May 2025 05:04 pmOverly Loud Music in Ear Buds: Threat or Menace?*
It's been a minute since I last posted. Not, like, a real long minute, but a metaphorical minute nonetheless. For the last few days, it's been dank and grey here in Chicago, and the stress levels at Casa kaffy_rbob continue to be somewhere between Defcon 3 and 2, for all the reasons previously recited at tedious length.
When that happens, or continues happening, my go-to stress reliever, the one that effectively cuts my ability to get things done, but possibly saves a sliver of my sanity, is to put my ear buds in, and blast SKZ or Ateez at skull-rattlingly unhealthy levels right into my brain. It's a good thing that's actually a very bad thing, but I don't really care. If my hearing wasn't damaged by standing on a stage between very loud amplifiers, then my rock and roll card needs to be revoked.
But my stress level is now closer to Defcon 3, which is a bit of a relief. We finally realized that the idea of trying to balance Bob's permanent residence application at the same time as getting the house ready to sell and finding someplace to live in N. S., and getting decent movers who understand getting things across the border was stupid.
We're going to tell the movers who keep bothering us (admittedly because we contacted them first) and our very patient real estate agent that everything will be put on hold until the application is completed, in, and Bob gets accepted for permanent residence. I'd originally fought the idea, thinking that we could actually handle everything at once. I'm very glad that Bob convinced me otherwise.
So perhaps I won't have to turn my ear buds up to 11 for the next couple of days.
* and if you get that reference, congratulations - you've joined the "older than dirt, and still hipper than the room" club.
It's been a minute since I last posted. Not, like, a real long minute, but a metaphorical minute nonetheless. For the last few days, it's been dank and grey here in Chicago, and the stress levels at Casa kaffy_rbob continue to be somewhere between Defcon 3 and 2, for all the reasons previously recited at tedious length.
When that happens, or continues happening, my go-to stress reliever, the one that effectively cuts my ability to get things done, but possibly saves a sliver of my sanity, is to put my ear buds in, and blast SKZ or Ateez at skull-rattlingly unhealthy levels right into my brain. It's a good thing that's actually a very bad thing, but I don't really care. If my hearing wasn't damaged by standing on a stage between very loud amplifiers, then my rock and roll card needs to be revoked.
But my stress level is now closer to Defcon 3, which is a bit of a relief. We finally realized that the idea of trying to balance Bob's permanent residence application at the same time as getting the house ready to sell and finding someplace to live in N. S., and getting decent movers who understand getting things across the border was stupid.
We're going to tell the movers who keep bothering us (admittedly because we contacted them first) and our very patient real estate agent that everything will be put on hold until the application is completed, in, and Bob gets accepted for permanent residence. I'd originally fought the idea, thinking that we could actually handle everything at once. I'm very glad that Bob convinced me otherwise.
So perhaps I won't have to turn my ear buds up to 11 for the next couple of days.
* and if you get that reference, congratulations - you've joined the "older than dirt, and still hipper than the room" club.
Dept. of Obsession
Wednesday, 7 May 2025 07:47 pmBecause of Course I Am. Obsessed. WHAT??!?
I've been listening to the four latest music videos from Stray Kids. The eight of them paired up (just like in school! When you had to pick someone to do the project with!) and gifted us Stays with four amazing pieces of music and video.
While I'm not going to go on at embarrassing length about all four, I do have to say that the fourth one, "Cinema," performed by two of the sweetest-voiced members, Seungmin and Lee Know, caught me completely by surprise at how deep it burrowed into my ears and my heart.
Just as its title suggests, the video is very cinematic. It tells a story, one that science fiction lover me immediately grabbed, stuffed into my brain and started writing back story for. As a one-time chick singer in a monumentally unsuccessful band, and as someone who's not averse to post-apocalyptic monographs and/or navel gazing, this story - open to interpretation, of course, as all good visual art is - this hit me where I live. The end hasn't failed to raise the hair on the back of my neck. Nor has it failed to thicken my throat with tears.
I promise I'll go back to less ridiculously niche maunderings. But I hope you enjoy the music, and the potentially intended story.
(They were actually extremely cold when they filmed this. It's not makeup.)
I've been listening to the four latest music videos from Stray Kids. The eight of them paired up (just like in school! When you had to pick someone to do the project with!) and gifted us Stays with four amazing pieces of music and video.
While I'm not going to go on at embarrassing length about all four, I do have to say that the fourth one, "Cinema," performed by two of the sweetest-voiced members, Seungmin and Lee Know, caught me completely by surprise at how deep it burrowed into my ears and my heart.
Just as its title suggests, the video is very cinematic. It tells a story, one that science fiction lover me immediately grabbed, stuffed into my brain and started writing back story for. As a one-time chick singer in a monumentally unsuccessful band, and as someone who's not averse to post-apocalyptic monographs and/or navel gazing, this story - open to interpretation, of course, as all good visual art is - this hit me where I live. The end hasn't failed to raise the hair on the back of my neck. Nor has it failed to thicken my throat with tears.
I promise I'll go back to less ridiculously niche maunderings. But I hope you enjoy the music, and the potentially intended story.
(They were actually extremely cold when they filmed this. It's not makeup.)
Dept. of Health
Tuesday, 6 May 2025 08:04 pmGhibli Cleanses the Spiritual Palate
I suggested to Bob that we might get rid of some of our stress by turning to something that never fails to do us good; watch a Ghibli movie. Now all I have to do is decide which one to watch.
In the "Get a couple of things done each day" department, I vacuumed the bedroom, made a choclate-peanut butter cake and some sweet and sour red cabbage, and continued to enjoy a potato scallop dish with cheese that I made a day or so ago. (June Allyson must be smiling somewhere. Probably with Senator Hruska. I'd say "Look It Up, Children," but my Google-fu can't find the National Lampoon piece that, well, lampooned the two of them. NatLamp was generally as cruel as a bunch of snide, rich kids who were certain they were the smartest kids in the the room could be. But I digress. A lot. Never mind).
Back to Ghibli. We're going with "When Marnie was There."
I suggested to Bob that we might get rid of some of our stress by turning to something that never fails to do us good; watch a Ghibli movie. Now all I have to do is decide which one to watch.
In the "Get a couple of things done each day" department, I vacuumed the bedroom, made a choclate-peanut butter cake and some sweet and sour red cabbage, and continued to enjoy a potato scallop dish with cheese that I made a day or so ago. (June Allyson must be smiling somewhere. Probably with Senator Hruska. I'd say "Look It Up, Children," but my Google-fu can't find the National Lampoon piece that, well, lampooned the two of them. NatLamp was generally as cruel as a bunch of snide, rich kids who were certain they were the smartest kids in the the room could be. But I digress. A lot. Never mind).
Back to Ghibli. We're going with "When Marnie was There."
Dept of Saturday
Saturday, 3 May 2025 09:31 pmI Got Things Done!
This is mostly to remind myself that doing things in small chunks, with lots of breaks to do nothing, or read, or watch videos, or listen to music, works just as well as writing four or five paragraphs at a time does.
I got the bathroom cleaned, something it desperately needed. I still need to scrub the floor and tackle the shower walls, but it doesn't repulse me now, the way it did while I was consumed with writing deadlines and just a tad of back pain.
I cleaned the kitchen and took care of the catbox and some recyclables. These are quotidian tasks but I often leave them undone for a few days at a time. Not good. Today's work was good.
I emptied the vacuum yesterday, and it's ready for action (living room, hall and office) tomorrow.
I found a very nice recipe for lime and garlic chicken that didn't use any tomato stuff. I followed the recipe exactly, and it came out right. Imagine that, says the woman who usually fiddles and shortcuts recipes, which works about 60 percent of the time and doesn't the rest of the time. We had chicken and mashed potatoes with butter and parmesan cheese, and green beans with butter. The mashed potatoes were done for Bob, because I've been providing him with a lot of dishes that I like (heavy into legumes, quasi-Asian and Indian) lately, and I know he sometimes longs for at-least-kinda-American dishes. It's been stressful for him lately, and this was a supper I was happy to cheer him up with.
I just had an inordinately hot shower, I'm listening an inordinately long SKZ playlist, and I declare today a general win.
Oh, I forgot to say that I redyed my hair on ... hmmm ... Monday? It's wonderful. I've been coming to grips with the fact that my hair is thinning, but when it's freshly blue, it looks a lot better. And modern hair dyes are a lot gentler than the dyes that kept my hair red for decades, so I'm relatively sure the dye isn't why the hair is thinning. I think it's genes; I'd hoped to luck into my father's thick hair, and not be beset with Mum's fine hair that was very thin by the end of her life. I've apparently landed right in the middle. And that's something I can live with. Not completely happily, but I can live with it.
And tomorrow, I'm going to tackle some fiction writing that I've been ignoring for too long.
This is mostly to remind myself that doing things in small chunks, with lots of breaks to do nothing, or read, or watch videos, or listen to music, works just as well as writing four or five paragraphs at a time does.
I got the bathroom cleaned, something it desperately needed. I still need to scrub the floor and tackle the shower walls, but it doesn't repulse me now, the way it did while I was consumed with writing deadlines and just a tad of back pain.
I cleaned the kitchen and took care of the catbox and some recyclables. These are quotidian tasks but I often leave them undone for a few days at a time. Not good. Today's work was good.
I emptied the vacuum yesterday, and it's ready for action (living room, hall and office) tomorrow.
I found a very nice recipe for lime and garlic chicken that didn't use any tomato stuff. I followed the recipe exactly, and it came out right. Imagine that, says the woman who usually fiddles and shortcuts recipes, which works about 60 percent of the time and doesn't the rest of the time. We had chicken and mashed potatoes with butter and parmesan cheese, and green beans with butter. The mashed potatoes were done for Bob, because I've been providing him with a lot of dishes that I like (heavy into legumes, quasi-Asian and Indian) lately, and I know he sometimes longs for at-least-kinda-American dishes. It's been stressful for him lately, and this was a supper I was happy to cheer him up with.
I just had an inordinately hot shower, I'm listening an inordinately long SKZ playlist, and I declare today a general win.
Oh, I forgot to say that I redyed my hair on ... hmmm ... Monday? It's wonderful. I've been coming to grips with the fact that my hair is thinning, but when it's freshly blue, it looks a lot better. And modern hair dyes are a lot gentler than the dyes that kept my hair red for decades, so I'm relatively sure the dye isn't why the hair is thinning. I think it's genes; I'd hoped to luck into my father's thick hair, and not be beset with Mum's fine hair that was very thin by the end of her life. I've apparently landed right in the middle. And that's something I can live with. Not completely happily, but I can live with it.
And tomorrow, I'm going to tackle some fiction writing that I've been ignoring for too long.
Dept. of Canada
Monday, 28 April 2025 06:08 pmElection Night
I'm just dropping in to say that I'm spending the evening locked in to CBC's live coverage of Canada's election. Probably switching from coffee to soju around 8 p.m., Chicago time, as I wait to see if the Liberal Party wins 172 seats to have a majority government.
Just a reminder, although I'm sure that most of my f'list is aware of this, that Canada runs on a parliamentary system. We don't directly vote the top of the ticket, in this case the person who becomes Prime Minister. The government comprises the majority of ridings (which are like American districts), in a majority government, or becomes a minority government with a plurality of ridings.
Although, if I were living in Canada, I'd probably vote for the New Democratic Party generally, I'd be voting Liberal tonight. We - Canadians and Canada - can't afford Pierre Polievre or his Conservative Party. Carney has experience with That Man (and even Poilievre doesn't want to be connected to the latter. This morning, he told 45/47 to butt out of Canada's election) and he's at least 1,000 percent more intelligent than 45/47, and even though he's definitely a centrist corporatist, that's a tad different than it is in the U.S.
So, yes, I'll be watching. And crossing my fingers. Elbows the fuck up, Canada!
I'm just dropping in to say that I'm spending the evening locked in to CBC's live coverage of Canada's election. Probably switching from coffee to soju around 8 p.m., Chicago time, as I wait to see if the Liberal Party wins 172 seats to have a majority government.
Just a reminder, although I'm sure that most of my f'list is aware of this, that Canada runs on a parliamentary system. We don't directly vote the top of the ticket, in this case the person who becomes Prime Minister. The government comprises the majority of ridings (which are like American districts), in a majority government, or becomes a minority government with a plurality of ridings.
Although, if I were living in Canada, I'd probably vote for the New Democratic Party generally, I'd be voting Liberal tonight. We - Canadians and Canada - can't afford Pierre Polievre or his Conservative Party. Carney has experience with That Man (and even Poilievre doesn't want to be connected to the latter. This morning, he told 45/47 to butt out of Canada's election) and he's at least 1,000 percent more intelligent than 45/47, and even though he's definitely a centrist corporatist, that's a tad different than it is in the U.S.
So, yes, I'll be watching. And crossing my fingers. Elbows the fuck up, Canada!
Dept. of New KPop Obsession
Saturday, 19 April 2025 07:55 pmBecause of Course There's Another Group to Love
They're Ateez, from a relatively small KPop entertainment company, KQ. They have eight members, all of whose names I now know, and who I can now identify (and amongst who I have my biases). They don't have quite as much creative control as Stray Kids, but because they're with a small company, they do have more control than many other groups. They've been around only slightly less time than SKZ, and members of the two groups are friends (they all competed in Legendary Wars, which isn't a thing I need to bother y'all with.)
I love their music, and I love their music videos. They have so much fun, and have, apparently, such fun in making sure their MVs are ridiculous ... and they sing and dance just ... well, I'm not going to fangirl too much. Instead, I'm going to bother you with at least three MVs. "Bouncy," and "Work," which came out in 2023 and 2024 respectively, and "Ice on My Teeth," also out in 2024. They have a metric ton of lore, but I'm not going to bother y'all with that, either.
Just enjoy the crazy, and the dancing, and the acting, and the music, and the knowing humor of it all.
And then there's "Work"
And finally, "Ice on My Teeth"
They're Ateez, from a relatively small KPop entertainment company, KQ. They have eight members, all of whose names I now know, and who I can now identify (and amongst who I have my biases). They don't have quite as much creative control as Stray Kids, but because they're with a small company, they do have more control than many other groups. They've been around only slightly less time than SKZ, and members of the two groups are friends (they all competed in Legendary Wars, which isn't a thing I need to bother y'all with.)
I love their music, and I love their music videos. They have so much fun, and have, apparently, such fun in making sure their MVs are ridiculous ... and they sing and dance just ... well, I'm not going to fangirl too much. Instead, I'm going to bother you with at least three MVs. "Bouncy," and "Work," which came out in 2023 and 2024 respectively, and "Ice on My Teeth," also out in 2024. They have a metric ton of lore, but I'm not going to bother y'all with that, either.
Just enjoy the crazy, and the dancing, and the acting, and the music, and the knowing humor of it all.
And then there's "Work"
And finally, "Ice on My Teeth"
Dept. of Dangerous Music
Saturday, 12 April 2025 07:08 pmYour Occasional Reminder ...
That we're living where Huey, Benito, Uncle Joe (not the good one), Idi, That Man, and others have slithered and prowled.
(The original music video is equally good, but this ... *chef's kiss* Also? The 80s and 90s didn't all suck.)
That we're living where Huey, Benito, Uncle Joe (not the good one), Idi, That Man, and others have slithered and prowled.
(The original music video is equally good, but this ... *chef's kiss* Also? The 80s and 90s didn't all suck.)
Dept. of briefly surfacing
Monday, 31 March 2025 09:20 pmMr. Booker Goes to Washington
There are a bunch of small irritations in my life currently - still no laptop, for instance. There are things so bad in this country - people, companies, law firms, newspapers, FFS, obeying in advance - that we're working on getting the hell out of Dodge.. Things are so bad around the world that ... I'm not even going to complete that sentence.
But sometimes ... sometimes ... something good happens. Right now, Democratic Senator Cory Booker is holding out on the Senate floor. He is doing a filibuster the old-fashioned way. He hopes to go through the night and into tomorrow. He's doing it, he says, to disrupt business as usual, because "our country is in crisis." I can't do a proper link, but it's on C-Span.
Go watch it. Here's a really long link to C-Span's website. https://www.c-span.org/clip/us-senate/sen-cory-booker-d-nj-starts-speaking-in-senate-for-as-long-as-i-am-physically-able/5158775. I don't know if you'll be able to watch it, but go hunt it down on news sites.
In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Jimmy Stewart's Smith filibustered for the purposes of good. It was just a movie. Cory Booker isn't in a movie.
God bless him.
There are a bunch of small irritations in my life currently - still no laptop, for instance. There are things so bad in this country - people, companies, law firms, newspapers, FFS, obeying in advance - that we're working on getting the hell out of Dodge.. Things are so bad around the world that ... I'm not even going to complete that sentence.
But sometimes ... sometimes ... something good happens. Right now, Democratic Senator Cory Booker is holding out on the Senate floor. He is doing a filibuster the old-fashioned way. He hopes to go through the night and into tomorrow. He's doing it, he says, to disrupt business as usual, because "our country is in crisis." I can't do a proper link, but it's on C-Span.
Go watch it. Here's a really long link to C-Span's website. https://www.c-span.org/clip/us-senate/sen-cory-booker-d-nj-starts-speaking-in-senate-for-as-long-as-i-am-physically-able/5158775. I don't know if you'll be able to watch it, but go hunt it down on news sites.
In Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Jimmy Stewart's Smith filibustered for the purposes of good. It was just a movie. Cory Booker isn't in a movie.
God bless him.
Dept. of One Step at a Time
Tuesday, 18 March 2025 07:54 pmTuesday Positivity
I told Bob this afternoon that rather than dwell on things I'd hoped to do but hadn't managed to, I'd focus on the things I did manage to tackle, no matter how small. He approved.
1. I managed to take pictures of our three page application for membership in a co-op that runs a (very) affordable set of apartments in my old home town. I know it because my Nana was one of the first people to live there back in the late 1970s. My brother sent me the application, and I finally completed it, and both Bob and I signed it. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that it doesn't allow pets, so we'll no doubt turn down an invitation if we ever get one. Mac breezily assured me that "no one pays attention to that," which illogical comment I failed to take issue with. Who knows? Maybe he's right. I emailed the co-op with the three page attachments, but I also left a message on their answering machine, asking if they'd prefer a snail mail version. I can do that if they prefer.
2. I got into email contact with a woman I'm going to do a profile on for the rich suburban private school I've done work for before. I'll wait to hear back from her, and I look forward to doing the interview and writing the story, because their assignments are always both interesting and remunerative. I told Bob that if I can get it done in time, it would pay for about 2/3rds of our IRS bill.
3. I cleaned the bathroom sink drain with baking soda and boiling water, something that needs to be done from time to time. It's always fun to see the stuff boil up and knock disgusting black goop off the pipe.
4. I took down the outer shower curtain and put it through the washer, something I've wanted to do for a few days.
5. I contacted Canada Pension, to find out how I can complete and send in a Canadian tax return; turns out I actually have to contact Canada Revenue, but the nice young man (aren't they all young?) gave me a couple of numbers to call over there. I'm going to put that on the back burner, since I don't need to send a return in before April 30. I have to tackle immigration stuff first, and that's my big job tomorrow; Bob's going to help me.
6. And finally, I have manfully resisted being irritated about hearing from the computer repair place yesterday; getting the keyboard replaced will cost more than $300, although our downpayment when we left it in their hands cuts that by $75. They won't get the new keyboard for "between 7 and 10 days" ... so here I am with my jury-rigged system until then.
*continues to manfully resist being irritated, since it won't help*
I hope everyone's Tuesday went well. I did enjoy watching the splashdown of the SpaceX capsule that brought the two stranded astronauts home, and that in and of itself was something that made me smile today.
I told Bob this afternoon that rather than dwell on things I'd hoped to do but hadn't managed to, I'd focus on the things I did manage to tackle, no matter how small. He approved.
1. I managed to take pictures of our three page application for membership in a co-op that runs a (very) affordable set of apartments in my old home town. I know it because my Nana was one of the first people to live there back in the late 1970s. My brother sent me the application, and I finally completed it, and both Bob and I signed it. I think I mentioned in an earlier post that it doesn't allow pets, so we'll no doubt turn down an invitation if we ever get one. Mac breezily assured me that "no one pays attention to that," which illogical comment I failed to take issue with. Who knows? Maybe he's right. I emailed the co-op with the three page attachments, but I also left a message on their answering machine, asking if they'd prefer a snail mail version. I can do that if they prefer.
2. I got into email contact with a woman I'm going to do a profile on for the rich suburban private school I've done work for before. I'll wait to hear back from her, and I look forward to doing the interview and writing the story, because their assignments are always both interesting and remunerative. I told Bob that if I can get it done in time, it would pay for about 2/3rds of our IRS bill.
3. I cleaned the bathroom sink drain with baking soda and boiling water, something that needs to be done from time to time. It's always fun to see the stuff boil up and knock disgusting black goop off the pipe.
4. I took down the outer shower curtain and put it through the washer, something I've wanted to do for a few days.
5. I contacted Canada Pension, to find out how I can complete and send in a Canadian tax return; turns out I actually have to contact Canada Revenue, but the nice young man (aren't they all young?) gave me a couple of numbers to call over there. I'm going to put that on the back burner, since I don't need to send a return in before April 30. I have to tackle immigration stuff first, and that's my big job tomorrow; Bob's going to help me.
6. And finally, I have manfully resisted being irritated about hearing from the computer repair place yesterday; getting the keyboard replaced will cost more than $300, although our downpayment when we left it in their hands cuts that by $75. They won't get the new keyboard for "between 7 and 10 days" ... so here I am with my jury-rigged system until then.
*continues to manfully resist being irritated, since it won't help*
I hope everyone's Tuesday went well. I did enjoy watching the splashdown of the SpaceX capsule that brought the two stranded astronauts home, and that in and of itself was something that made me smile today.
Dept. of Big Damn Silver Linings
Sunday, 16 March 2025 07:57 pm Pleasant Rediscoveries
It's been a typical spring day in Chicago; I woke up to snow that fell most of the morning and part of the afternoon. By the end of the day, it was all gone. It reminded me of the first time I went to a Cubs game - opening day at Wrigley Field. The announcer had to say "Will people refrain from throwing snowballs on the field." Ah, memories.
But the two things that I wanted to say are as follows:
1) I'm really enjoying reading real books, and not paying much or any attention to online life, even though I can post things if I want. I've been binging on Martha Wells' Raksura series. I'm about a decade or so behind everyone else, but I'm catching up. Going to check the fourth book in the series at the library. Boy, can she ever create worlds!
2) I've been playing some long-ignored CDs; at first I just played a couple of Kitaro CDs, then one of my favorite Springsteen albums; "The Rising", which he recorded in the wake of 9-11. At the time, it was savaged by critics. They were wrong. And for the last couple of hours, I've been playing a two-disc collection of Harry Nilssen. The first disc was his early work, when he still had an angelic voice. Right now, I'm listening to the second disc, which was during and after he wrecked his voice during the recording of his "Pussycats" album, recorded with John Lennon. And the loss of his angel's voice does nothing to hide the beauty of what he writes (or what he covered; "Many Rivers to Cross" is on right now. )
And I'm moved to ask why the fuck his singing and his amazing writing genius isn't better respected and loved out there. Damn, he was amazing.
Right now, I'm going to sign off, because I think we're going to watch anime. But we've got time for a couple more songs.
It's been a typical spring day in Chicago; I woke up to snow that fell most of the morning and part of the afternoon. By the end of the day, it was all gone. It reminded me of the first time I went to a Cubs game - opening day at Wrigley Field. The announcer had to say "Will people refrain from throwing snowballs on the field." Ah, memories.
But the two things that I wanted to say are as follows:
1) I'm really enjoying reading real books, and not paying much or any attention to online life, even though I can post things if I want. I've been binging on Martha Wells' Raksura series. I'm about a decade or so behind everyone else, but I'm catching up. Going to check the fourth book in the series at the library. Boy, can she ever create worlds!
2) I've been playing some long-ignored CDs; at first I just played a couple of Kitaro CDs, then one of my favorite Springsteen albums; "The Rising", which he recorded in the wake of 9-11. At the time, it was savaged by critics. They were wrong. And for the last couple of hours, I've been playing a two-disc collection of Harry Nilssen. The first disc was his early work, when he still had an angelic voice. Right now, I'm listening to the second disc, which was during and after he wrecked his voice during the recording of his "Pussycats" album, recorded with John Lennon. And the loss of his angel's voice does nothing to hide the beauty of what he writes (or what he covered; "Many Rivers to Cross" is on right now. )
And I'm moved to ask why the fuck his singing and his amazing writing genius isn't better respected and loved out there. Damn, he was amazing.
Right now, I'm going to sign off, because I think we're going to watch anime. But we've got time for a couple more songs.
Dept. of True North Strong and Free
Sunday, 9 March 2025 05:28 pmLiberal Party Leadership Convention
Mark Carney won. He's a bit corporatist, a bit centrist - but then again, he's Canadian, which means here in the U.S. he'd be a leftist. And he's ready to fight. I'm so proud of my country, and I'm not even a Liberal voter. (I'd be an NDP voter if I was back home.)
Mark Carney won. He's a bit corporatist, a bit centrist - but then again, he's Canadian, which means here in the U.S. he'd be a leftist. And he's ready to fight. I'm so proud of my country, and I'm not even a Liberal voter. (I'd be an NDP voter if I was back home.)
Elbows Up!!
Dept. of Hog Butcher to the World
Friday, 7 March 2025 03:00 pmHappy Birthday Chicago!
I don't know why I'm unable to post things in the beginning of the day, and why my posts always end up at the end of the day. That's not good when you want to celebrate something on a particular day. And this one is even more delayed; Tuesday, March 4, 2025, was Chicago's 188th birthday.
( Read more... )
And here's a good epilogue to my maunderings: Chicago, by Carl Sandburg
I don't know why I'm unable to post things in the beginning of the day, and why my posts always end up at the end of the day. That's not good when you want to celebrate something on a particular day. And this one is even more delayed; Tuesday, March 4, 2025, was Chicago's 188th birthday.
( Read more... )
And here's a good epilogue to my maunderings: Chicago, by Carl Sandburg
Dept. of Books
Monday, 24 February 2025 09:44 pmJust a Reminder That Amazon Sucks ...
... and my public service announcement that you can do something about it, if you'd like to actually own the e-books you bought from Amazon for your Kindle.
But you need to do it before midnight on the 25th. As of the 26th, Amazon won't let you download your bought-and-paid-for books to your own hard drive.
Yes, this sucks, even though Amazon assures you you'll be able to move your books from one Kindle to another yada-yada. .
So: 1) Go to your Amazon account 2) In the drop-down menu, click on "Content Library," 3) Then click on "Books" and you should get a list of the books you have on your Kindle. 4) Next to each book, you'll see a bunch of things you can do - click on "more actions" and then click on "download and transfer via USB" (It is a little confusing, but trust me, it will download to your hard drive. Then, if you have an e-book organizer like calibre, you can ensure that Amazon won't own the books you paid for. You can also strip your books of DRM, which will allow you to move them to other readers, like Kobo.
Here are a few links you can check out on the decision, and on how you can download, especially the one about bulk downloading, which would work for those of you with lots of books. Also, some alternative places to buy books of all kinds, including e-books.
BIG NOTE, WITH THANKS FROM![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
carbonel : The "download to Kindle" feature is only available for people who own an actual Kindle, not for people who just use the Kindle app.
https://www.theverge.com/news/612898/amazon-removing-kindle-book-download-transfer-usb
https://www.zdnet.com/article/download-your-kindle-books-right-now-amazon-is-killing-this-option-in-a-few-days/
https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/alternatives-to-amazon-for-books
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayAQyZH3u4c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9QRpV4iVvY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04kz9lgW7Kg
Ebooks, Kindle and the Erosion of Ownership (Thanks tomuccamukk )
... and my public service announcement that you can do something about it, if you'd like to actually own the e-books you bought from Amazon for your Kindle.
But you need to do it before midnight on the 25th. As of the 26th, Amazon won't let you download your bought-and-paid-for books to your own hard drive.
Yes, this sucks, even though Amazon assures you you'll be able to move your books from one Kindle to another yada-yada. .
So: 1) Go to your Amazon account 2) In the drop-down menu, click on "Content Library," 3) Then click on "Books" and you should get a list of the books you have on your Kindle. 4) Next to each book, you'll see a bunch of things you can do - click on "more actions" and then click on "download and transfer via USB" (It is a little confusing, but trust me, it will download to your hard drive. Then, if you have an e-book organizer like calibre, you can ensure that Amazon won't own the books you paid for. You can also strip your books of DRM, which will allow you to move them to other readers, like Kobo.
Here are a few links you can check out on the decision, and on how you can download, especially the one about bulk downloading, which would work for those of you with lots of books. Also, some alternative places to buy books of all kinds, including e-books.
BIG NOTE, WITH THANKS FROM
carbonel : The "download to Kindle" feature is only available for people who own an actual Kindle, not for people who just use the Kindle app.https://www.theverge.com/news/612898/amazon-removing-kindle-book-download-transfer-usb
https://www.zdnet.com/article/download-your-kindle-books-right-now-amazon-is-killing-this-option-in-a-few-days/
https://www.goodgoodgood.co/articles/alternatives-to-amazon-for-books
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ayAQyZH3u4c
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9QRpV4iVvY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=04kz9lgW7Kg
Ebooks, Kindle and the Erosion of Ownership (Thanks to
muccamukk )
Dept. of Canadian Positivity ...
Saturday, 15 February 2025 08:11 pm... Plus Non-Canadian Positivity
First - Happy Flag Day, Canada! I'm old enough to remember the arguments and debates about which potential Canadian flag should win. I was about 10, but for some reason I recall hearing older kids (sixth graders? Junior high kids? Possibly; the memory is kind of fuzzy) talking about it. I remember liking one that had three maple leaves and blue side columns; I think I thought having just two colors was boring. These days, however, I'm glad we went with the flag we now have.
Mind you, Canadians never seemed to have the flag worship that Americans have. At least not until now. (Fifty-first state? Not bloody likely. Suck it, Donny.) That may have something to do with the Canadian psyche. But it's a good flag.
And today, I'm particularly proud of it.
As for other things I've felt positive about today, I put another chapter of "Gleaning Musutachi" up over atoriginalkaffy_r , after a long period of inactivity. I've got a second chapter ready to go tomorrow.
I listened to some non-Stray Kids/general Kpop music today. (I know ... alert the press!) Some Keola Beamer, because I'm a sucker for his beautiful Hawaiian slack key guitar. Here, have some!
And ending the day on a completely different - and exhilarating - Patti Smith in 1979. Damn. What a beautiful woman. What a beautifully brutal performer
First - Happy Flag Day, Canada! I'm old enough to remember the arguments and debates about which potential Canadian flag should win. I was about 10, but for some reason I recall hearing older kids (sixth graders? Junior high kids? Possibly; the memory is kind of fuzzy) talking about it. I remember liking one that had three maple leaves and blue side columns; I think I thought having just two colors was boring. These days, however, I'm glad we went with the flag we now have.
Mind you, Canadians never seemed to have the flag worship that Americans have. At least not until now. (Fifty-first state? Not bloody likely. Suck it, Donny.) That may have something to do with the Canadian psyche. But it's a good flag.
And today, I'm particularly proud of it.
As for other things I've felt positive about today, I put another chapter of "Gleaning Musutachi" up over at
originalkaffy_r , after a long period of inactivity. I've got a second chapter ready to go tomorrow. I listened to some non-Stray Kids/general Kpop music today. (I know ... alert the press!) Some Keola Beamer, because I'm a sucker for his beautiful Hawaiian slack key guitar. Here, have some!
And ending the day on a completely different - and exhilarating - Patti Smith in 1979. Damn. What a beautiful woman. What a beautifully brutal performer
Dept. of Everything's Fine. Just Fine.
Wednesday, 12 February 2025 06:13 pmRemind Me Again About the Land of the Free.
I mean, I knew it was coming as soon as the Senate approved Hegseth's nomination. Still, one always - foolishly - hopes.
Tulsi Gabbard is now Director of National Intelligence. I hope we can extract Zelenskyy from Ukraine before Gabbard sends Putin information on where to fiind him.
I'm not even going to contemplate Bear Cub McBrainworm's pending ascension to Health and Human Services.
I spent part of the day at a local journalism training session, came home and shoveled sidewalks. Bob's asleep. One thing I will contemplate is whether to start on applesauce, prep for an apple pie instead, or focus on a celery soup.
I have to get up to the post office tomorrow to get some postcard stamps, and then I have to write 100 postcards for potential voters in Wisconsin (state supreme court election, among others.) Not that I think it will matter.
I mean, I knew it was coming as soon as the Senate approved Hegseth's nomination. Still, one always - foolishly - hopes.
Tulsi Gabbard is now Director of National Intelligence. I hope we can extract Zelenskyy from Ukraine before Gabbard sends Putin information on where to fiind him.
I'm not even going to contemplate Bear Cub McBrainworm's pending ascension to Health and Human Services.
I spent part of the day at a local journalism training session, came home and shoveled sidewalks. Bob's asleep. One thing I will contemplate is whether to start on applesauce, prep for an apple pie instead, or focus on a celery soup.
I have to get up to the post office tomorrow to get some postcard stamps, and then I have to write 100 postcards for potential voters in Wisconsin (state supreme court election, among others.) Not that I think it will matter.
Dept. of Weekend's End
Sunday, 9 February 2025 08:23 pmPositivity Exercises
I was looking for positivity a day or so ago, and found it in a couple of livestreams and YouTube videos; certainly nothing productive. I needed some escapist activity because we got some unhappy financial news - nothing fatal, but something that has to be handled slowly just at a time when I need to work quickly. That was why Friday turned into a "Chocolate and Ice Cream Because Reasons" day.
Saturday was a tad better, although poor Bob was dealing with pain that he couldn't get rid of. He's no longer able to take any nsaids, and won't take any type of opioids, no matter how mild; too many bad memories from a few years ago. As of Monday, he'll be able to do something about that, but I still feel bad for him.
In terms of other evidence of positivity, I got something cooked or baked every day this week, from June Allyson-Velveeta mac and cheese (upgraded the next day with sauteed onion, peppers, mushrooms and bacon; the JA-V version was a necessary comfort feed, but as much of a faunch as I've recently had for Velveeta, it doesn't hold up well without such an upgrade) to potato soup and pan-seared chicken, and bread pudding. What's that, you say? Not very healthy? Yeah, and? The nice thing is that our freezer is now full of things I can pull out, defrost, and serve up for supper.
I almost forgot; we had the bathroom designer come in to take a look at our bathroom. The cost of a full renovation was way, way beyond our means, but the designer didn't look at us askance when we told her that. She suggested a strategy that we are going to try.
I finished reading "The City in the Middle of the Night" by Charlie Jane Anders; excellent reading, with difficult to like characters, almost all of whom I, as a reader, became fond of. And the world building is pretty breathtaking, as are the different human societies on a tide-locked planet. So, too, is the depiction of a non-human intelligent species. I liked it better than Anders' "All the Birds in the Sky" which I liked and was very, very good.
I've put a hold at the library on Han Kang's "We Do Not Part," a novel that includes a retelling of a 1948 Korean atrocity. I'd never heard about the Jeju Uprising massacre, and it's horrendous, but Han won the 2024 Nobel Prize for literature in part because of this book. My recent interest in many things Korean doesn't always involve Kpop.
I was looking for positivity a day or so ago, and found it in a couple of livestreams and YouTube videos; certainly nothing productive. I needed some escapist activity because we got some unhappy financial news - nothing fatal, but something that has to be handled slowly just at a time when I need to work quickly. That was why Friday turned into a "Chocolate and Ice Cream Because Reasons" day.
Saturday was a tad better, although poor Bob was dealing with pain that he couldn't get rid of. He's no longer able to take any nsaids, and won't take any type of opioids, no matter how mild; too many bad memories from a few years ago. As of Monday, he'll be able to do something about that, but I still feel bad for him.
In terms of other evidence of positivity, I got something cooked or baked every day this week, from June Allyson-Velveeta mac and cheese (upgraded the next day with sauteed onion, peppers, mushrooms and bacon; the JA-V version was a necessary comfort feed, but as much of a faunch as I've recently had for Velveeta, it doesn't hold up well without such an upgrade) to potato soup and pan-seared chicken, and bread pudding. What's that, you say? Not very healthy? Yeah, and? The nice thing is that our freezer is now full of things I can pull out, defrost, and serve up for supper.
I almost forgot; we had the bathroom designer come in to take a look at our bathroom. The cost of a full renovation was way, way beyond our means, but the designer didn't look at us askance when we told her that. She suggested a strategy that we are going to try.
I finished reading "The City in the Middle of the Night" by Charlie Jane Anders; excellent reading, with difficult to like characters, almost all of whom I, as a reader, became fond of. And the world building is pretty breathtaking, as are the different human societies on a tide-locked planet. So, too, is the depiction of a non-human intelligent species. I liked it better than Anders' "All the Birds in the Sky" which I liked and was very, very good.
I've put a hold at the library on Han Kang's "We Do Not Part," a novel that includes a retelling of a 1948 Korean atrocity. I'd never heard about the Jeju Uprising massacre, and it's horrendous, but Han won the 2024 Nobel Prize for literature in part because of this book. My recent interest in many things Korean doesn't always involve Kpop.
Dept. of Small Steps
Monday, 3 February 2025 10:18 pmFurther Progress
I was finally able to touch base with the realtor that my building neighbor introduced; we're looking at setting up a walk through of the condo sometime next week. I also set up a Friday appointment with a bathroom designer who will give us a free estimate of what it might cost to upgrade our bathroom.
Go, me!
I was finally able to touch base with the realtor that my building neighbor introduced; we're looking at setting up a walk through of the condo sometime next week. I also set up a Friday appointment with a bathroom designer who will give us a free estimate of what it might cost to upgrade our bathroom.
Go, me!
Dept. of Tiny Steps
Sunday, 2 February 2025 09:59 pmI Can Make Progress, Sometimes.
I've been depressed since November, as I've mentioned more than once. How depressed? I found myself unable to open the Christmas and holiday cards Bob and I received. At first, it was because we weren't sending out cards and I felt as if I couldn't open and enjoy cards when I hadn't sent cards for others to enjoy. Days passed, then weeks, where the pile of unopened cards became something I couldn't bear to look at.
Yeah, depression, making weird inaction a daily thing.
But today I opened them all. And to everyone on my f'list who was lovely enough to send me, Bob, or the both of us, cards, thank you! I'm sorry I wasn't able to send you cards, but I hope to change that in the next holiday season.
I'm choosing to believe that opening the cards was a step in the right mental direction.
I've been depressed since November, as I've mentioned more than once. How depressed? I found myself unable to open the Christmas and holiday cards Bob and I received. At first, it was because we weren't sending out cards and I felt as if I couldn't open and enjoy cards when I hadn't sent cards for others to enjoy. Days passed, then weeks, where the pile of unopened cards became something I couldn't bear to look at.
Yeah, depression, making weird inaction a daily thing.
But today I opened them all. And to everyone on my f'list who was lovely enough to send me, Bob, or the both of us, cards, thank you! I'm sorry I wasn't able to send you cards, but I hope to change that in the next holiday season.
I'm choosing to believe that opening the cards was a step in the right mental direction.
Dept. of Fight and Flight
Monday, 20 January 2025 09:14 amMartin Luther King Jr. Day
I went looking for an image of Dr. King to share today, one that might comfort me, and allow me to remember a true, tough, complicated, radical American hero.
The image I chose was of the King memorial in downtown Washington, D.C.
Look at him. He isn't calm. He isn't accomodating. He isn't kumbayah in the least.
He is angry. He's holding back that anger, employing all the patience he can. He's angry at us. He's angry at me.
He has every right to be angry. And he will not be moved.
This is the man who worked tirelessly for civil and human rights, despite being cursed at, being shot at, being jailed, having his home bombed, having his country call him an outside agitator because he would not stay silent about American racism, American violence.
This is the man who angered those in power when he pivoted from civil rights as he sought to bring working class whites and blacks together for economic justice; when he spoke out against the Vietnam war; when he turned from having a dream to knowing how that dream might end.
He could be gentle, but that wasn't all he was. If it had been all he was, he would have been smothered and quickly dismissed. He knew what he risked by being stubborn, by being persistent, by staying angry at the wrongs of this country. He knew what he risked by being focused on working to eradicate those wrongs. Like John Lewis, he understood the need for getting into good trouble.
Not unlike Malcolm X, really.
That's why so many people still hate him. Those who don't hate him, and even those who idolize a sanitized version of him, are made uncomfortable by him and by the truths he preached.
Remember this man - the angry, determined, stubborn, righteous man. And let's all promise to do better.
I went looking for an image of Dr. King to share today, one that might comfort me, and allow me to remember a true, tough, complicated, radical American hero.
The image I chose was of the King memorial in downtown Washington, D.C.
Look at him. He isn't calm. He isn't accomodating. He isn't kumbayah in the least.
He is angry. He's holding back that anger, employing all the patience he can. He's angry at us. He's angry at me.
He has every right to be angry. And he will not be moved.
This is the man who worked tirelessly for civil and human rights, despite being cursed at, being shot at, being jailed, having his home bombed, having his country call him an outside agitator because he would not stay silent about American racism, American violence.
This is the man who angered those in power when he pivoted from civil rights as he sought to bring working class whites and blacks together for economic justice; when he spoke out against the Vietnam war; when he turned from having a dream to knowing how that dream might end.
He could be gentle, but that wasn't all he was. If it had been all he was, he would have been smothered and quickly dismissed. He knew what he risked by being stubborn, by being persistent, by staying angry at the wrongs of this country. He knew what he risked by being focused on working to eradicate those wrongs. Like John Lewis, he understood the need for getting into good trouble.
Not unlike Malcolm X, really.
That's why so many people still hate him. Those who don't hate him, and even those who idolize a sanitized version of him, are made uncomfortable by him and by the truths he preached.
Remember this man - the angry, determined, stubborn, righteous man. And let's all promise to do better.
Dept. of cold air, cold mind
Wednesday, 15 January 2025 04:50 pmTemperature: 17F, Feels Like 2F
But Weather Underground promises that we'll be up to the balmy 20s tomorrow - what's that you say? Well, sure, we'll have wind chills in the single digits. But the 20s! I'm going to focus on that.
I don't have a lot to talk about right now, and I need to respond to comments in my last post, but I did want to note that Biden's final good deed (at least until he - I hope - gives blanket pardons to the folks That Man plans to go after in the first 5 minutes after he takes the oath of office) was finally helping negotiate a large-scale cease fire in Gaza. He should have done it months and months ago, but I hope he's outmaneuvered Bibi this one time.
Biden ... one of the better presidents we've had in recent decades, and one of the better presidents who occasionally fucked up big-time (Merrick Garland, I'm looking at you.) I'll miss him, though. I'm a former centrist who can still understand why people make the mistake of being centrist today, and Joe's one of them.
I'm thinking of deactivating my Xitter account on the 20th. I sure as hell won't be watching That Man slime his way into The Oval Office.
wrt to the move, I'm going to fill out an application for Tideways, the senior living co-op that my Nana lived in before her death, since my brother sent it to me. When he did so, he mentioned that Mum had an application in, and was given several opportunities to get a unit there, "but she chose another path." I know why: Tideways forbids pets, and Mum had her beloved Toy and Liam that she would never have given away. It's a shame, but we're like Mum; we're not abandoning Carter.
One of my condo building neighbors is going to try to get me in touch with a friend of his, who described the friend as "a brilliant realtor." Once I've gotten a couple of larger home improvements done, I hope I get this gentleman and perhaps one or two other real estate agents to do a walk-through of our place, to give us a range of potential sale prices.
Still listening to SKZ, and I've begun to listen to at least one more male K-Pop group, Ateez. They're good, even if they don't have quite the creative control the Kids have. I also need to go back and relisten to Black Pink, and start listening to New Jeans on the distaff side.
And that's all for now.
But Weather Underground promises that we'll be up to the balmy 20s tomorrow - what's that you say? Well, sure, we'll have wind chills in the single digits. But the 20s! I'm going to focus on that.
I don't have a lot to talk about right now, and I need to respond to comments in my last post, but I did want to note that Biden's final good deed (at least until he - I hope - gives blanket pardons to the folks That Man plans to go after in the first 5 minutes after he takes the oath of office) was finally helping negotiate a large-scale cease fire in Gaza. He should have done it months and months ago, but I hope he's outmaneuvered Bibi this one time.
Biden ... one of the better presidents we've had in recent decades, and one of the better presidents who occasionally fucked up big-time (Merrick Garland, I'm looking at you.) I'll miss him, though. I'm a former centrist who can still understand why people make the mistake of being centrist today, and Joe's one of them.
I'm thinking of deactivating my Xitter account on the 20th. I sure as hell won't be watching That Man slime his way into The Oval Office.
wrt to the move, I'm going to fill out an application for Tideways, the senior living co-op that my Nana lived in before her death, since my brother sent it to me. When he did so, he mentioned that Mum had an application in, and was given several opportunities to get a unit there, "but she chose another path." I know why: Tideways forbids pets, and Mum had her beloved Toy and Liam that she would never have given away. It's a shame, but we're like Mum; we're not abandoning Carter.
One of my condo building neighbors is going to try to get me in touch with a friend of his, who described the friend as "a brilliant realtor." Once I've gotten a couple of larger home improvements done, I hope I get this gentleman and perhaps one or two other real estate agents to do a walk-through of our place, to give us a range of potential sale prices.
Still listening to SKZ, and I've begun to listen to at least one more male K-Pop group, Ateez. They're good, even if they don't have quite the creative control the Kids have. I also need to go back and relisten to Black Pink, and start listening to New Jeans on the distaff side.
And that's all for now.
Dept. of Creation
Monday, 13 January 2025 09:14 amHow Does a Poem Happen?
Back in the 1990s, oh, so long ago, I wrote a fair amount of poetry for myself; not many pieces and most of them short, but they did come into being. Since that time, I haven't written much poetry, if any.
If I had to guess why, I'd say it's because I was putting my creative* efforts into my growing fic output - certainly that was the case after 2006 brought me the revised Doctor Who. But that's only one reason. I think I also lost the urge to write poetry. I can't really parse why and it probably doesn't matter, even if the analytical portion of my brain continues to gnaw at that like a dog does a bone.
The urge hasn't died completely, though, and recently it appears to have awakened from its slumber. In the most recent itration of winter weather here in Chicago, I found myself looking at the melting and freezing snow on the ground outside my windows. It's a common thought for me, one that invites meditation on the nature of micro topographies.
There's nothing in my head that tries to link that topography to the human condition, or to my condition, and perhaps that's why my thoughts haven't previously come together to create poetry. Then again, there's one thing I've learned - finally, and you'd think it would have dawned on me far earlier - is that poetry is about what one writes about and not necessarily about the human condition. (Really, I should have connected the dots far, far earlier, given my appreciation of poetry I've read and appreciated or loved.)
Now that it's dawned on me that this imagery is enough in and of itself to work with, I find myself wondering about how other folks handle their poetry creation process. What do you do, how do you think about what you write about, and how do you integrate imagery of any kind into your work?
* A brief detour into grouchy grammarian country. When the hell did the world start nouning the adjective "creative" when the perfectly good noun "creator" is standing there? Yes, yes, the OED says the adjective got nouned in the early 1900s. All that tells me is that there were language ignoramuses back then as well. And yes, this is a hill I will die on.
*walks away, grumbling about her missing carpet slippers.*
Back in the 1990s, oh, so long ago, I wrote a fair amount of poetry for myself; not many pieces and most of them short, but they did come into being. Since that time, I haven't written much poetry, if any.
If I had to guess why, I'd say it's because I was putting my creative* efforts into my growing fic output - certainly that was the case after 2006 brought me the revised Doctor Who. But that's only one reason. I think I also lost the urge to write poetry. I can't really parse why and it probably doesn't matter, even if the analytical portion of my brain continues to gnaw at that like a dog does a bone.
The urge hasn't died completely, though, and recently it appears to have awakened from its slumber. In the most recent itration of winter weather here in Chicago, I found myself looking at the melting and freezing snow on the ground outside my windows. It's a common thought for me, one that invites meditation on the nature of micro topographies.
There's nothing in my head that tries to link that topography to the human condition, or to my condition, and perhaps that's why my thoughts haven't previously come together to create poetry. Then again, there's one thing I've learned - finally, and you'd think it would have dawned on me far earlier - is that poetry is about what one writes about and not necessarily about the human condition. (Really, I should have connected the dots far, far earlier, given my appreciation of poetry I've read and appreciated or loved.)
Now that it's dawned on me that this imagery is enough in and of itself to work with, I find myself wondering about how other folks handle their poetry creation process. What do you do, how do you think about what you write about, and how do you integrate imagery of any kind into your work?
* A brief detour into grouchy grammarian country. When the hell did the world start nouning the adjective "creative" when the perfectly good noun "creator" is standing there? Yes, yes, the OED says the adjective got nouned in the early 1900s. All that tells me is that there were language ignoramuses back then as well. And yes, this is a hill I will die on.
*walks away, grumbling about her missing carpet slippers.*
Dept. of Sunday Snow
Sunday, 12 January 2025 09:10 amA Couple of Things Make a List
1) It's snowing outside and, after I've had my first cup of coffee, dried my hair (just got out of the shower), and completed this post - whatever it may turn out to be - I have to gird my loins and wield my shovel at the snowflake horde. There are currently only two or three unit owners who undertake the job and I unwisely volunteered to be one of them. Ah well; it's a tad easier than wrestling with the lawn mower.
EDIT, as of Sunday evening; I went out and shoveled our courtyard and part of the sidewalk on one side of the building. I couldn't do as much as I wanted to, and later in the day the temperature rose just enough to melt the remaining ice and snow from the areas I'd tackled. But it doesn't erase the necessity of shoveling. And another unit owner came out and did some shoveling as well. I was reminded that we have one of our quarterly unit owners' meetings tomorrow night. Not something I'm looking forward to, but again, something that needs to be done. Sigh. I guess I'd better read the minutes from the last meeting. Sigh, again.
( Read more... )
1) It's snowing outside and, after I've had my first cup of coffee, dried my hair (just got out of the shower), and completed this post - whatever it may turn out to be - I have to gird my loins and wield my shovel at the snowflake horde. There are currently only two or three unit owners who undertake the job and I unwisely volunteered to be one of them. Ah well; it's a tad easier than wrestling with the lawn mower.
EDIT, as of Sunday evening; I went out and shoveled our courtyard and part of the sidewalk on one side of the building. I couldn't do as much as I wanted to, and later in the day the temperature rose just enough to melt the remaining ice and snow from the areas I'd tackled. But it doesn't erase the necessity of shoveling. And another unit owner came out and did some shoveling as well. I was reminded that we have one of our quarterly unit owners' meetings tomorrow night. Not something I'm looking forward to, but again, something that needs to be done. Sigh. I guess I'd better read the minutes from the last meeting. Sigh, again.
( Read more... )
