(no subject)
Oct. 14th, 2025 05:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
greghousesgfThe Spinal Tap sequel was funny, now I'm going out for drinks and dinner with some friends in about an hour.
greghousesgf
Saints, Sinners, Lovers and Fools at the ROM
Oct. 14th, 2025 06:25 pmflemmingsNuit blanche last night, very annoyingly. Got off close to 4, woke up at 9 something, finally got up at 11. Supposed to be warm today so I bit tye heavy-eyed achy-limbed bullet and called a cab to go to the ROM. Bloor past Spadina is a parking lot for reasons known only to itself. One of which might be the extremely wide bike lanes on that stretch. I'm all for bicycle lanes but can't quite see why the ones by Mink Mile need to be two metres/ 6'6, especially as the ones farther west are much narrower, where all the restaurants, ergo all the bike couriers, go. Whatever, the ROM is redoing the Chin Lee Excrescence so one can again, and happily, enter by the Romanesque entry round the corner, into the familiar rotunda from my childhood.
Must say the AGO is much more wheelchair friendly than the ROM, even though both were built when the concept of catering to disability didn't exist. Maybe the AGO's renovation is more recent than the ROM's, or rather the late 80s renovation that preceded the Excrescence. Because if you want to go to the third floor where the Flemish painting exhibit is, there's only one elevator you can take, tucked away around a corner, because all the others involve stairs when you arrive there. And then one goes down these very narrow corridors-- I mean, not wide enough for two people to pass each other-- between the new interior walls and the old outer stone walls to get you to where you're going. My friend the architect's daughter said All architects are assholes (like surgeons, apparently) and while I wouldn't go quite that far, I'll opine that the ROM has certainly hired asshole architects.
However. Did indeed see the Flemish paintings in all their glowing colour and 16th/ 17th century extravagance. I prefer early Flemish myself, but the best we could do here was a school of Bosch copy of details from the right hand Hell panel in the Garden of Earthly Delights, and a rather pleasant Nativity by Hans Memling. Note also Michaelina Wautier, from the mid-1600s, a natural and pleasant contrast to some of her overdone contemporaries. Though the rooms of the exhibit were still pretty small and I had to ge careful where I went with my walker: and when a tour group came through, wait for them to pass.
Then did a revisit of the Chinese collection on the ground floor, any number of Buddhist statues and the stone camels from the tomb area. I think we may have climbed on them as children, which people did in those days, and fortunately do not do now.
Having gone nowhere yesterday, I was determined to walk back the four anna half subway stops to get my steps in, and did, barely. The sole of my right foot has been panging me for several weeks now: physio thinks it's bunions, I think it's plantar fascitis, who knows. But I limped along gamely and when I passed Wiener's went i, with no great hopes, to ask if they had ever got the tree lopper in that was on back order since June. And they did! And it was cheaper than at 'we do not deliver' Canadian Tire, and it fit in the basket of my walker, sort of ie it scraped the branches of any tree I passed, so I brought it home in triumph, go me. Of course it also weighs a ton and I hope I can lift it when it's extended, or even when it's not, but that's one itch scratched.
Must say the AGO is much more wheelchair friendly than the ROM, even though both were built when the concept of catering to disability didn't exist. Maybe the AGO's renovation is more recent than the ROM's, or rather the late 80s renovation that preceded the Excrescence. Because if you want to go to the third floor where the Flemish painting exhibit is, there's only one elevator you can take, tucked away around a corner, because all the others involve stairs when you arrive there. And then one goes down these very narrow corridors-- I mean, not wide enough for two people to pass each other-- between the new interior walls and the old outer stone walls to get you to where you're going. My friend the architect's daughter said All architects are assholes (like surgeons, apparently) and while I wouldn't go quite that far, I'll opine that the ROM has certainly hired asshole architects.
However. Did indeed see the Flemish paintings in all their glowing colour and 16th/ 17th century extravagance. I prefer early Flemish myself, but the best we could do here was a school of Bosch copy of details from the right hand Hell panel in the Garden of Earthly Delights, and a rather pleasant Nativity by Hans Memling. Note also Michaelina Wautier, from the mid-1600s, a natural and pleasant contrast to some of her overdone contemporaries. Though the rooms of the exhibit were still pretty small and I had to ge careful where I went with my walker: and when a tour group came through, wait for them to pass.
Then did a revisit of the Chinese collection on the ground floor, any number of Buddhist statues and the stone camels from the tomb area. I think we may have climbed on them as children, which people did in those days, and fortunately do not do now.
Having gone nowhere yesterday, I was determined to walk back the four anna half subway stops to get my steps in, and did, barely. The sole of my right foot has been panging me for several weeks now: physio thinks it's bunions, I think it's plantar fascitis, who knows. But I limped along gamely and when I passed Wiener's went i, with no great hopes, to ask if they had ever got the tree lopper in that was on back order since June. And they did! And it was cheaper than at 'we do not deliver' Canadian Tire, and it fit in the basket of my walker, sort of ie it scraped the branches of any tree I passed, so I brought it home in triumph, go me. Of course it also weighs a ton and I hope I can lift it when it's extended, or even when it's not, but that's one itch scratched.
some good things make a post
Oct. 14th, 2025 11:25 pmkaberett- did eventually get myself out to the plot (after aborting the first attempt and going back to bed when I realised I'd made it almost to the main road without my bike helmet). successfully acquired More Saffron.
- cooked a lot of beetroot, most of which I grew, for dinner -- one of the books I acquired from Oxfam just for interest, The Modern Vegetarian, has a "textures of beetroot": keftedes, tzatziki, a bulgur pilaf and a salad using the greens. I had a mix of colours, and the ombre gold-to-pink were very pretty in the salad. (and picking over the leaves very, very carefully yielded a tiny snail! who is now in the viv.)
- I am continuing very slowly on the mend from the probably-a-cold from nearly a month ago: today I didn't get any active minutes walking up and down inside the house to hit step goal.
- the post brought Fancy Chocolate. even some of it is Fancy Chocolate in my preferred flavour of same!
- I have somehow achieved having my accounts almost agree with reality about how much cash is in my wallet! and I think I've found the remains of at least one Missing Receipt in the back pocket of a set of trousers, which does at least provide an explanation. it is very satisfying when I actually manage this.
[Challenge #464: Eulogy] Original Fiction: 'Stubbed'
Oct. 14th, 2025 03:18 pmbut_can_i_be_trusted posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
100wordsBooks: Lysenko's Ghost [books]
Oct. 14th, 2025 04:52 pmrebeccmeisterI have finally finished reading Lysenko's Ghost: Epigenetics and Russia, by Loren Graham, and it made for some really interesting reading. It gets into a lot of delicate topics in Biology. I first learned about Trofim Lysenko when reading The Dialectical Biologist, by the Richards Levins and Lewontin, back in 2009; there's a whole chapter in TDB about Lysenkoism.
Now, do I remember much of anything about specifics from that chapter from The Dialectical Biologist? Not really. I think what I got was just that at the time the book was written, simply uttering the name "Lysenko" was enough to get a person excommunicated from conversations with other (Western) biologists. So naturally, I was curious to learn a bit more about the dude, most especially because of this more recent book's subtitle referring to epigenetics. My understanding of Lysenkoism was fairly limited to thinking that the guy was simply an ill-informed proponent of Lamarckism, which did open the question as to whether he was ultimately kind of right, based on far more recent understanding of epigenetic inheritance, supported by evidence.
Anyway.
The author of Lysenko's Ghost, Loren Graham, was fairly uniquely positioned to comment on Lysenko, because of Graham's connections with Russian scientific groups and the amount of work he put into studying the history of the biological sciences (and Lysenko) in Russia. He even met the guy once, and recounts that meeting in the book. Reading more about Graham's work, I can now better understand some topics he only briefly outlined in Lysenko's Ghost but that caught my attention. Specifically, early in the book Graham talks about how several different and competing social movements came up with supposedly biology-based eugenics arguments in favor of their specific, pet social movement.
What I gathered from that part of the book is that different social movements were all grappling in different ways with the question of, "What do we do for the sake of the betterment of humanity?"
Obviously a loaded question.
One that people still like to ask or refer to, in various ways.
Heading into the question, Graham notes that the whole notion of "the inheritance of acquired characteristics" (i.e. NOT Mendelian genetics) is an idea that has been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years. One of the most obvious places where the idea has had a toehold is in agriculture, and it goes something like this: take exquisitely good care of your cows, and they will produce well for you, and so will their offspring, and so on.
Graham notes that this idea of the inheritance of acquired characteristics has often come to be presented as originating from Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, but that this perspective is a distortion of Lamarck's overall scientific contributions (noted even in the Wikipedia entry about Lamarck!).
Returning to thinking about human beings, one can see that if one applies a similar logic, if people are cared for better, that should lead to an overall betterment of humanity.
Now contrast this for a bit with ideas arising from Mendelian (genetic) forms of inheritance, noting that these ideas were still fairly new at the start of the twentieth century. Classist individuals in the midst of the era of eugenics might put forth the argument that the reason class differences exist is because of some form or another of genetic superiority. (remembering that at the time, people knew so very little about the specific genetic bases (or lack thereof) of human traits).
Even here, Graham says that simply presenting two alternative perspectives on trait inheritance and social movements about the betterment of humanity is overly simplistic compared to the overall conversations happening at that time. My main point is that for me, it was informative to see just how rapidly biological understandings came to be used to promote specific social agendas, in multiple different ways. (Essentially, Graham's presentation was more nuanced than how ideas related to eugenics often get caricatured now; but I suppose it's his job as a historian to point this all out).
Anyway, to return to the main point of Lysenko's Ghost, Graham definitively puts to rest any notion one might have that Lysenko was correct in his reasoning, clarifying that the ideas Lysenko articulated about trait inheritance were only vaguely described and sloppily tested, across the hundreds of papers he published (many of which were in the journal he edited, so you have a sense as to how peer review might have worked there; Graham is well-positioned to make these statements because he did actually sit down and carefully read through these tons of papers).
Regardless of how a person might feel about peasantry and the bourgeoisie, there remains *some* foundational and international agreement about the use of evidence to support ideas in science. Further, Lysenko consistently downplayed and denied the importance of molecular genetics studies, so he's just not a great figure to hold up as a prophet for epigenetic inheritance, with its molecular bases, unless one is really just using the dude's name to promote some form of weird and misplaced nostalgia for the Soviet communist era.
Which apparently, some people will still try to do.
As a biologist, I have concerns about political systems and governments that seek to strongly impose their will on scientific pursuits. But I can't deny that it happens. So it's useful to learn more about how things have played out in the past, across different cultures.
Should you read the book? I can't really tell. It might be enough to just read the Wikipedia articles linked above. But am I glad I read the book? Very much so. Have I adequately processed why? I'm not sure yet.
Will what I have learned influence how I teach students about the Central Dogma in Biology? Yes; I'll present a more nuanced view about the concept of the inheritance of acquired characteristics, instead of perpetuating my own previous caricature of Lamarck.
Now, do I remember much of anything about specifics from that chapter from The Dialectical Biologist? Not really. I think what I got was just that at the time the book was written, simply uttering the name "Lysenko" was enough to get a person excommunicated from conversations with other (Western) biologists. So naturally, I was curious to learn a bit more about the dude, most especially because of this more recent book's subtitle referring to epigenetics. My understanding of Lysenkoism was fairly limited to thinking that the guy was simply an ill-informed proponent of Lamarckism, which did open the question as to whether he was ultimately kind of right, based on far more recent understanding of epigenetic inheritance, supported by evidence.
Anyway.
The author of Lysenko's Ghost, Loren Graham, was fairly uniquely positioned to comment on Lysenko, because of Graham's connections with Russian scientific groups and the amount of work he put into studying the history of the biological sciences (and Lysenko) in Russia. He even met the guy once, and recounts that meeting in the book. Reading more about Graham's work, I can now better understand some topics he only briefly outlined in Lysenko's Ghost but that caught my attention. Specifically, early in the book Graham talks about how several different and competing social movements came up with supposedly biology-based eugenics arguments in favor of their specific, pet social movement.
What I gathered from that part of the book is that different social movements were all grappling in different ways with the question of, "What do we do for the sake of the betterment of humanity?"
Obviously a loaded question.
One that people still like to ask or refer to, in various ways.
Heading into the question, Graham notes that the whole notion of "the inheritance of acquired characteristics" (i.e. NOT Mendelian genetics) is an idea that has been around for hundreds, if not thousands of years. One of the most obvious places where the idea has had a toehold is in agriculture, and it goes something like this: take exquisitely good care of your cows, and they will produce well for you, and so will their offspring, and so on.
Graham notes that this idea of the inheritance of acquired characteristics has often come to be presented as originating from Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, but that this perspective is a distortion of Lamarck's overall scientific contributions (noted even in the Wikipedia entry about Lamarck!).
Returning to thinking about human beings, one can see that if one applies a similar logic, if people are cared for better, that should lead to an overall betterment of humanity.
Now contrast this for a bit with ideas arising from Mendelian (genetic) forms of inheritance, noting that these ideas were still fairly new at the start of the twentieth century. Classist individuals in the midst of the era of eugenics might put forth the argument that the reason class differences exist is because of some form or another of genetic superiority. (remembering that at the time, people knew so very little about the specific genetic bases (or lack thereof) of human traits).
Even here, Graham says that simply presenting two alternative perspectives on trait inheritance and social movements about the betterment of humanity is overly simplistic compared to the overall conversations happening at that time. My main point is that for me, it was informative to see just how rapidly biological understandings came to be used to promote specific social agendas, in multiple different ways. (Essentially, Graham's presentation was more nuanced than how ideas related to eugenics often get caricatured now; but I suppose it's his job as a historian to point this all out).
Anyway, to return to the main point of Lysenko's Ghost, Graham definitively puts to rest any notion one might have that Lysenko was correct in his reasoning, clarifying that the ideas Lysenko articulated about trait inheritance were only vaguely described and sloppily tested, across the hundreds of papers he published (many of which were in the journal he edited, so you have a sense as to how peer review might have worked there; Graham is well-positioned to make these statements because he did actually sit down and carefully read through these tons of papers).
Regardless of how a person might feel about peasantry and the bourgeoisie, there remains *some* foundational and international agreement about the use of evidence to support ideas in science. Further, Lysenko consistently downplayed and denied the importance of molecular genetics studies, so he's just not a great figure to hold up as a prophet for epigenetic inheritance, with its molecular bases, unless one is really just using the dude's name to promote some form of weird and misplaced nostalgia for the Soviet communist era.
Which apparently, some people will still try to do.
As a biologist, I have concerns about political systems and governments that seek to strongly impose their will on scientific pursuits. But I can't deny that it happens. So it's useful to learn more about how things have played out in the past, across different cultures.
Should you read the book? I can't really tell. It might be enough to just read the Wikipedia articles linked above. But am I glad I read the book? Very much so. Have I adequately processed why? I'm not sure yet.
Will what I have learned influence how I teach students about the Central Dogma in Biology? Yes; I'll present a more nuanced view about the concept of the inheritance of acquired characteristics, instead of perpetuating my own previous caricature of Lamarck.
Tuesday word: Libra
Oct. 14th, 2025 02:46 pmsimplyn2deep posting in 1word1dayTuesday, Oct. 14, 2025
Libra (noun)
libra [lahy-bruh, lee-]
noun, plural librae
1. the ancient Roman pound (containing 5053 grains or 327.4 grams).
Origin: 1350–1400; Middle English < Latin lībra
+-+-+-
Libra [lee-bruh, lahy-]
noun, genitive Librae
2. Astronomy., the Balance, a zodiacal constellation between Virgo and Serpens.
3. Astrology.
a. the seventh sign of the zodiac: the cardinal air sign.
b. Also Libran. a person born under this sign, usually between September 23rd and October 22nd.
Origin: 1350–1400; Middle English < Latin lībra literally, pair of scales, libra
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
Libra is the name of a constellation that is interpreted as representing a pair of scales. It is also known as the Scales or the Balance. A constellation is a group of stars that appear near each other in the sky, especially a group that has been given a name. Libra is considered one of the 12 zodiacal constellations—constellations that appear within a particular portion of the sky called the zodiac. In astronomy, the zodiac is the band of sky along which the paths of the sun, the moon, and the planets appear to move. Despite its basis in astronomy, the word zodiac is mainly associated with and most often used in the context of astrology, the nonscientific practice in which the positions of heavenly bodies at certain times are thought to influence or be correlated with human behavior and events. In astrology, zodiac refers to a diagram (often a circular one) representing the zodiac belt and showing the symbols associated with each of the 12 constellations or sections, which are called the signs of the zodiac. Libra is one of these signs. It is situated between Virgo and Scorpio and is considered the seventh sign of the zodiac. The other signs of the zodiac are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. The position of the sun in a particular portion of the zodiac at the moment of a person’s birth is thought to correlate with their personality. This is what people are referring to when they talk about their zodiac sign (or star sign or often just sign). People whose sign is Libra are those born between September 23 and October 22. The word Libra can be used as a noun to refer to someone who is born during this time, as in I was born in late October, so I’m a Libra. The word Libran can be used to mean the same thing. It can also be used as an adjective form of Libra. Example: Oh, your birthday is in October? Are you a Libra?
Example Sentences
Cyber security researchers at CrowdStrike formed the name "Scattered Spider" because of the group's sporadic nature, but other cyber companies have given the cluster nicknames including Octo Tempest and Muddled Libra.
Read more on BBC
“We know that their tentacles are all over, and many have significant aspirations in banking, lending and payments,” Chopra told Drop Site News, specifically mentioning Google, Apple and Facebook, which attempted to launch its own cryptocurrency, Libra, several years ago.
Read more on Los Angeles Times
The cryptocoin $Libra quickly rose in value before nosediving, causing severe losses for the majority of people who had invested in it.
Read more on BBC
President Milei spoke about the $Libra incident in an interview with Argentine TV channel Todo Noticias on Monday, after a weekend during which he had stayed unusually quiet on social media.
Read more on BBC
He insisted that his post on X, which contained a link to a site selling $Libra, did not constitute an endorsement.
Read more on BBC
Libra (noun)
libra [lahy-bruh, lee-]
noun, plural librae
1. the ancient Roman pound (containing 5053 grains or 327.4 grams).
Origin: 1350–1400; Middle English < Latin lībra
+-+-+-
Libra [lee-bruh, lahy-]
noun, genitive Librae
2. Astronomy., the Balance, a zodiacal constellation between Virgo and Serpens.
3. Astrology.
a. the seventh sign of the zodiac: the cardinal air sign.
b. Also Libran. a person born under this sign, usually between September 23rd and October 22nd.
Origin: 1350–1400; Middle English < Latin lībra literally, pair of scales, libra
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
Libra is the name of a constellation that is interpreted as representing a pair of scales. It is also known as the Scales or the Balance. A constellation is a group of stars that appear near each other in the sky, especially a group that has been given a name. Libra is considered one of the 12 zodiacal constellations—constellations that appear within a particular portion of the sky called the zodiac. In astronomy, the zodiac is the band of sky along which the paths of the sun, the moon, and the planets appear to move. Despite its basis in astronomy, the word zodiac is mainly associated with and most often used in the context of astrology, the nonscientific practice in which the positions of heavenly bodies at certain times are thought to influence or be correlated with human behavior and events. In astrology, zodiac refers to a diagram (often a circular one) representing the zodiac belt and showing the symbols associated with each of the 12 constellations or sections, which are called the signs of the zodiac. Libra is one of these signs. It is situated between Virgo and Scorpio and is considered the seventh sign of the zodiac. The other signs of the zodiac are Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. The position of the sun in a particular portion of the zodiac at the moment of a person’s birth is thought to correlate with their personality. This is what people are referring to when they talk about their zodiac sign (or star sign or often just sign). People whose sign is Libra are those born between September 23 and October 22. The word Libra can be used as a noun to refer to someone who is born during this time, as in I was born in late October, so I’m a Libra. The word Libran can be used to mean the same thing. It can also be used as an adjective form of Libra. Example: Oh, your birthday is in October? Are you a Libra?
Example Sentences
Cyber security researchers at CrowdStrike formed the name "Scattered Spider" because of the group's sporadic nature, but other cyber companies have given the cluster nicknames including Octo Tempest and Muddled Libra.
Read more on BBC
“We know that their tentacles are all over, and many have significant aspirations in banking, lending and payments,” Chopra told Drop Site News, specifically mentioning Google, Apple and Facebook, which attempted to launch its own cryptocurrency, Libra, several years ago.
Read more on Los Angeles Times
The cryptocoin $Libra quickly rose in value before nosediving, causing severe losses for the majority of people who had invested in it.
Read more on BBC
President Milei spoke about the $Libra incident in an interview with Argentine TV channel Todo Noticias on Monday, after a weekend during which he had stayed unusually quiet on social media.
Read more on BBC
He insisted that his post on X, which contained a link to a site selling $Libra, did not constitute an endorsement.
Read more on BBC
They come in threes
Oct. 14th, 2025 05:41 pmbrickhousewenchThey say deaths come in threes.
My friend Larry died over the weekend. I'll be driving down south to attend his funeral early next week.
One friend lost her grandfather over the weekend.
Another friend just found out that his mother died.
My friend Larry died over the weekend. I'll be driving down south to attend his funeral early next week.
One friend lost her grandfather over the weekend.
Another friend just found out that his mother died.
Long stories vs. a series
Oct. 14th, 2025 03:31 pmmxcatmoonA poll, just for my own curiosity. Feel free to expand in the comments.
Looks like my current Miami Vice fic is going to be a series (taking place post-canon).
( Read more... )
Poll #33728 Do you write fic series?
Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 5
Do you write story series?
View Answers
Yes, I love them!
0 (0.0%)
Sometimes, it depends
4 (80.0%)
No, I don't like them
0 (0.0%)
I'm a reader, and I like them
1 (20.0%)
I'm a reader, and I don't like them
0 (0.0%)
No opinion, just want to feel included
0 (0.0%)
( Read more... )
ain’t it fun
Oct. 14th, 2025 07:30 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
wwdn_feedGrace Helbig is returning to YouTube. She made a video about it, and said something that resonated with me: we start out doing something because it is fun, and we keep doing it because we enjoy how fun it is. If we’re lucky, the thing we are doing for fun also helps us earn a living.
And then, when we aren’t paying attention, the thing that was fun is now work, and we are stressed as fuck about views and likes and reshares and oh my god this isn’t fun at all. Now, we are burned out.
Go watch Grace talk about this, if what I just told you seems interesting to you; she says a lot of insightful things that are worth hearing. I’m inspired, and want to make videos just like she does, if I can figure out some linux video editing software tools. But even if I can’t do video, I just want to get back to what it felt like when it was only fun, and I didn’t let all the other stuff get in the way.
I mention this because I only write in my blog for fun, and when I make it more important than just having fun, I really get in my own way. Yeah, I announce the cool things that I get to do, the cons I’m attending, I share my work and my podcast, and things that are work-adjacent, but if it isn’t fun to sit here and write about something, I just don’t do it. I won’t even go into how frustrating it is when I feel like I have to force it.
And I forget, every single time, how much I enjoy posting in my blog, how much I enjoy interacting with anyone who reads it in comments, how good it feels to make the human connections that, ironically, don’t seem to happen on social media, on account of all the bots and trolls and endless efforts to disrupt our peace.
So, hi. I’m glad you’re here. I hope we can interact in the comments and feel a sense of shared humanity and community.
If you’d like to get these posts in your email, you can sign up here:
And now, a few things that have been on my mind, but not enough to fill up their own posts. I’m putting it behind a jump, because this got kind of long.
Since we are thinking about community …
LAist did a story about friendly local game shops. They talked to Donna Ricci, my friend who owns Geeky Teas & Games in Burbank, which happens to be both my favorite and my local game shop, and Jeff Eyeser, from Revenge Of in Eagle Rock (or maybe it’s Glassell Park, or Atwater Village. I’m unsure how the neighborhood boundaries work over there, but I’m sure someone will correct me). They both talked about not just building community, but nurturing and protecting it.
“We honor everyone who walks through our doors — except mean people,” Ricci said. “They can f**k off.”
I love this energy. Everyone should have this energy. Imagine how great it would be if every business (if every human) adopted this policy.
If you follow me on Bluesky, you know that something happened to me yesterday or maybe overnight while I was asleep, that seems to have flipped a switch inside of me that I have wanted to flip for literal decades: Some part of my brain insisted that I listen to the original cast recording of Cabaret. This is really weird. All I know about Cabaret is that Joel Gray and Liza Minelli are in it, and it’s painfully relevant to current events. That’s it. I have heard the “Welcome to the Cabaret” song a few times, but nothing else from the show.
I’ve never seen Cabaret, but from the moment I woke up, my brain DEMANDED that I listen to the original cast recording. I don’t even like musicals; I’ve lamented that I don’t have the gene, but holy shit this is so wonderful and I think maybe I got a mutation somehow and I get musicals?— Wil Wheaton (@wilwheaton.net) October 13, 2025 at 11:34 AM
You need this context to understand why this is a Thing for me: my whole life, I’ve wanted to like musical theater. So many of my friends have done musicals, are doing musicals, love to sing songs from musicals. And I just don’t get it. It’s like I don’t have the gene, or something? Everyone I knew growing up loved Grease. I just can’t stand it. Same with Phantom of the Opera and Cats. Oh my god do I hate Cats.
There were notable exceptions: Chicago, Les Miserables, Moulin Rouge. Rocky Horror Picture Show (which I didn’t even think of as a musical until yesterday, having categorized it as a cultural touchstone that is so much more than the sum of its parts) and Hamilton, of course.
But the classics? The ones that my elders adore? They’ve always left me cold. South Pacific and Oklahoma make my teeth itch.
Until yesterday. Yesterday morning, I listened to Cabaret three times in a row. Then I listened to The Music Man (oh my god Robert Preston where have you been all my life?), then I had to turn it off and listen to Joy Division so I could work without being distracted.
I don’t know if it’s a phase, but something is different in me today than it has been for my whole life. I still don’t like the musicals I don’t like, but I’m extremely open to discovering everything I’ve missed. I got tons of recommendations in my Bluesky mentions yesterday, but I’d love to hear yours, if you have any.
Let’s stay with music for a moment. I am late to the party, having only recently discovered The Warning, but better late than never. Three sisters from Monterrey, Mexico, who fell in love with music when they were kids, playing Guitar Hero and Rock Band. They formed a band that rocks so fucking hard, they will melt your face off. Listening to their albums put some of their contemporaries into my suggestions, and I am loving all the Mexican metal, largely driven by women, that is currently rocking my world. Start with Keep Me Fed, and you’ll know before the end of the first song if they are your jam. What are you listening to right now? Any new punk, metal, or hard rock you care to share?
I found this in my unpublished drafts folder with a note that says “this is overwrought and you should delete it” … but I didn’t. I feel VERY vulnerable sharing it, because it’s not my usual style, but this is now the third or fourth time I’ve thought about posting it, so clearly part of me feels it’s worth sharing.
This was drafted about five years ago:
Felt sad.
Felt scared.
Walked my dogs.
Went for a run.
Felt despair.
Had dinner with my family.
Held off a panic attack.
Took a walk with my wife.
Felt cynical.
Watched a movie.
Got through a day.
Cleaned my kitchen.
Did some work.
Felt hopeless.
Did some more work.
Had some meetings.
Felt angry.
Felt depressed.
Felt angry again.
Tried to sleep.
Did not sleep.
Finally slept.
Cleaned my office.
Felt numb.
Read a book.
Read some comics.
Felt okay.
Played some video games.
Got knocked down.
Got the fuck back up again.
To be able to create and share your creations without fear must be really wonderful. I have recently noticed that I’m not struggling with that the way I once did. Or, at least, not as intensely.
For almost ten years — Jesus Christ that’s a long time — I struggled like hell to understand why I never booked auditions. I asked trusted friends who I have worked with to please tell me what was wrong with me. Surely they must know, and surely they would be honest with me about why I stink, how they are able to wash the stink off when I work for them. Why does everyone tell me that I’m not just a good actor, but one of the better ones, and still I never book auditions? If I get feedback at all (and before I hung it up, I hadn’t gotten feedback for so long I don’t remember when the last time casting made the effort) it’s always positive. “You were great, but blah blah was cast.”
As the adult version of a child who was constantly told he had to earn his father’s attention and affection, but never told how to do that (ps – no child should have to earn love and attention), every audition was triggering. That’s why I quit. As much as I love being in a cast, as much as I love how good it feels to nail a performance, the industry has been loud and clear: Hollywood is not interested in me, hasn’t been for a long time, and if I keep chasing, that’s on me. I thought, “It’s weird that I can do this thing, and do it well, when I’m on the set, but never in auditions. What’s that all about?” Well, it turns out to have a lot of parts, but the bottom line is that actors who book jobs roll into the room with this confidence and commitment to the character that silently and instantly communicates to the room “Listen, you can cast me or not, but this is the best take on the character you’re going to see.” Because I was forced into acting by my mother, and then kept in it through her manipulation and exploitation of my desperate need to feel accepted in my home and family, I rolled in there with an underlying desperation: “please choose me so I have a chance at being loved by my parents. This is everything to me and I will do whatever it takes to make you happy.” I mean, it doesn’t matter how solid the performance is, how technically brilliant I am, whatever you want to call it, when there is a desperation that I’m not even aware of, underneath it all.
I’m genuinely and sincerely envious of actors who love the art, who come alive when they are performing, who don’t care if casting likes them or not, who get to feel in their souls what it means to be part of the community of performing artists. I have been close to that, I have felt it on occasion, but until this year, I didn’t realize that there was so much trauma and pain in between all of it, and me. I have wondered if I could try to do … something, probably theater, to find out if all of my trauma recovery work, which has been so intensely helpful in so many ways, has created space for me to love it the way I wish I could.
Earlier this year, I was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by AMDA. I didn’t say anything about it in public because I felt a little embarrassed. I’m only 53, so lifetime anything feels premature, but also … like … how can you give an acting and performance award to someone who can’t book an audition? Who, when you really get down to it, was just lucky to be in a few really, really good and memorable pieces of art? Sure, sure, I showed up and did the work, but it wasn’t just me. It was everyone involved in production. Nobody gets anything done on their own; everyone needs help to do any of this, and singling out one of us always feels weird.
I wanted to decline the award, but a couple of people who are close to me encouraged me to accept it, if only because it would give me an opportunity to speak to some kids about making great art.
I can’t find a local copy of the remarks I wrote for the event, so here’s a video of the entire talk (if you have time and interest, and a love of the arts, you may get something out of it). If you want to skip to my prepared remarks, they start right around 51 minutes.
Before I go, I need to clarify that the title of this post comes from The Dead Boys, not Paramore, and not Guns and Roses. Okay, I think that’s all for today. I’m glad you’re here. Take care of yourselves, and take care of each other.
Living with the olds
Oct. 14th, 2025 12:49 pmsusandennisOn my way to the pool this morning, I passed an EMT gurney in the hallway outside an assisted living patient. I don't think she actually took them up on their offer, though. She was still there and the gurney was not, when I came home.
When someone dies, they put their name in a frame with their birth dates and death dates and set it out with a vase of a red rose. This week's departed was born in 1921. I'll bet she was beyond ready.
Bonny just came in here to report on her latest encounter with JimAcrossTheHall. He's checking out fast. Bonny says he has a mountain of Cheetos and in his apartment and is no longer getting his meals which he was doing until a week or so ago. I just ran into him in the hallway, which I do every day, and he really can no longer carry on a conversation. He does get his walks in. He said they were coming today to tell him what's new. I hope that means that someone is behind the scenes making arrangements for his care.
And he's one month younger than I am.
The aqua fit class was not worth the wet. It was taught by the same guy who teaches aqua Stretch and I think one of his problems is that he's never been in the water. He comes up with these exercises that make perfect sense in the air and are impossible in the water. He had music, which was great, but his exercises were not even close to being in time with the music's beat. I finally just got over to the edge of the pool and did my own thing, making sure my knee was not tweaked and I was getting in some cardio. I do not need to go back to that class again. Ever. I think the knee will be fine by Thursday's volleyball game, but to be honest, if the game was tomorrow, I think I'd pass. I want this sucker healed!
I am impressed at the difference both Voltaren and the lidocaine patches make. Dr. Gemini says the Voltaren alone was probably best in my case since it goes after both the pain and the inflation. But both are really good at chasing the pain. I need to order up some more patches for next time.
I have a half a dozen tops that are really winter only and about the same amount that are only for summer. Today I swapped them. I have a rod in the storage area and that's where the off season stuff goes to live. The storage area is getting close to our of hand. I'm hoping it will hold off until January when my brother comes and I can con him into helping me get it shaped up.
The house cleaners should be here in 30. If she's a no show this week, steps will have to be taken cause this place is in real need after skipping a week.
When someone dies, they put their name in a frame with their birth dates and death dates and set it out with a vase of a red rose. This week's departed was born in 1921. I'll bet she was beyond ready.
Bonny just came in here to report on her latest encounter with JimAcrossTheHall. He's checking out fast. Bonny says he has a mountain of Cheetos and in his apartment and is no longer getting his meals which he was doing until a week or so ago. I just ran into him in the hallway, which I do every day, and he really can no longer carry on a conversation. He does get his walks in. He said they were coming today to tell him what's new. I hope that means that someone is behind the scenes making arrangements for his care.
And he's one month younger than I am.
The aqua fit class was not worth the wet. It was taught by the same guy who teaches aqua Stretch and I think one of his problems is that he's never been in the water. He comes up with these exercises that make perfect sense in the air and are impossible in the water. He had music, which was great, but his exercises were not even close to being in time with the music's beat. I finally just got over to the edge of the pool and did my own thing, making sure my knee was not tweaked and I was getting in some cardio. I do not need to go back to that class again. Ever. I think the knee will be fine by Thursday's volleyball game, but to be honest, if the game was tomorrow, I think I'd pass. I want this sucker healed!
I am impressed at the difference both Voltaren and the lidocaine patches make. Dr. Gemini says the Voltaren alone was probably best in my case since it goes after both the pain and the inflation. But both are really good at chasing the pain. I need to order up some more patches for next time.
I have a half a dozen tops that are really winter only and about the same amount that are only for summer. Today I swapped them. I have a rod in the storage area and that's where the off season stuff goes to live. The storage area is getting close to our of hand. I'm hoping it will hold off until January when my brother comes and I can con him into helping me get it shaped up.
The house cleaners should be here in 30. If she's a no show this week, steps will have to be taken cause this place is in real need after skipping a week.
Scholarly
Oct. 14th, 2025 08:46 pmcosmolinguistDo I want to do a masters in disability studies or do I just want an institutional login and a reading list.
I think this a lot, but I was inspired to think it today because I had a fun conversation with a friendly acquaintance who is also disabled and has a much more academic background than me and it was just so nice to have a conversation about disability that's not 101-level all the time because it was with another disabled person. We talked about lived experience vs. adjacent experience (like having a disabled immediate family member), the social model of transness, diagnosis overshadowing... It was so good for me.
I work for one of the big disability charities which is on the toddler side of that "talking about gender with cis people" meme that I also think applies to any area of marginalization (I am honored to sometimes get to quietly observe the conversations black and brown people have among themselves about race and racism). Of course my household and my friend circle is full of crips and queers but I spend so much time at work and most of the rest of it thinking about work lately that I forget how good it is to have a break from that 101-level stuff.
Check-In Post - Oct 14th 2025
Oct. 14th, 2025 07:40 pmbadly_knitted posting in get_knittedHello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.
Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?
There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.
This Week's Question (courtesy of
cora): What was your last project that got put into "time out" and why?If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.
I now declare this Check-In OPEN!
Birdfeeding
Oct. 14th, 2025 01:24 pmysabetwordsmithToday is mostly sunny and warm.
I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches. I heard a squirrel chattering but didn't see it.
I put out water for the birds.
EDIT 10/14/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.
As it is now dark, I am done for the night.
I fed the birds. I've seen a few sparrows and house finches. I heard a squirrel chattering but didn't see it.
I put out water for the birds.
EDIT 10/14/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.
As it is now dark, I am done for the night.
Cloudwords
Oct. 14th, 2025 01:55 pmnineweavingI have a sweet hope of getting all three Cloudish books into print and pixels and audio. Somewhere must want them.
Having prepared three manuscripts for submission, I 've amused myself with making wordclouds. Aside from proper names and stop words, the commonest words in Moonwise are elemental, Anglo-Saxon:
light
dark
leaves
thought
stone
wood
cold
child
moon
turned
saw
still
wind
hand
face
cloud
earth
looked
witch
stones
stars
with green, air, fire, water coming just a shade behind.
Looking at the figures, I see I used light and dark, cloud and earth, stones and stars exactly equally. There's even a triplet: air, fire, water. I think the strangeness of the book, the spell of it, lies partly in this concentration, this unconscious balance. The lexicon is like a tarot deck: a very narrow set of symbols, but each card is iconic.
Nine
What I Did in September and early October
Oct. 14th, 2025 01:22 pmfauxkloreBirthday:Moving on to what I did in September and so far in October. First of all was my birthday. I’m now 67.
A Few Things I Did in September: I took two trips which will get their own blog posts. Alas, my needlework group conflicted with one of those trips and with Yom Kippur, so I only made it to one meeting. I saw the movie Guns and Moses (which I already wrote about in my quarterly update on books, movies, and goals) at Tyson’s Corner and browsed an Indian clothing store while I was there.
Dinner With Friends: I went to dinner with friends from Flyertalk at the end of the month. Note to self: the pizza at Fireworks in Clarendon is better than their other menu offerings. The fish sandwich was okay, but fish sandwiches should really come with cole slaw, not potato chips.
High Holidays: I went to High Holiday on-line services at Fabrengen, mostly to save the hassle of dealing with things in the city. I generally try to find some interesting take away every year, particularly for Yom Kippur. This year, my takeaway was this quote from Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel at the August 1969 Liturgical Conference in Milwaukee, which was in a footnote in the machzor (prayer book):
Damn Yankees: I did a bunch of theatre going on one of my trips, but still saw two musicals when I was home. The first of those was Damn Yankees at Arena Stage. I’d talked my friend, Cindy, who was entirely unfamiliar with it, into coming along. While I’d seen the movie version and listened to the original cast recording a gazillion times, I hadn’t seen a live performance of it before. Anyone who knows me at all knows how I feel about a certain pinstriped baseball team (who I was very happy to see lose to Toronto after beating up on my Bosox, but I digress), so it’s no surprise that I love this show. This version was updated, to the early 2000’s and the Source of All Evil in the Universe was playing against Baltimore, not Washington, presumably to make it feasible for the two teams to face each other in the World Series. Anyway, the score has some iconic songs - especially Heart and Whatever Lola Wants, but I think the real highlights of this production were Near to You and A Man Doesn’t Know, both of which I found very moving. I can’t ignore the choreography which was excellent, though I still think the song Who’s Got the Pain? is useless filler. All of the performers were excellent, and I want to particularly note the singing of Quentin Earl Darrington, who plays the aging Joe Boyd, and the dancing of Ana Villafañe as Lola. I should also mention that they had the Orioles mascot come out and lead everyone in Take Me Out to the Ball Game after intermission. But the Orioles don’t actually do that. For some ungodly reason, they sing Thank G-d I’m a Country Boy instead, which is just wrong. Anyway, the show runs through November 9th and you should go see it if you possibly can.
By the way, we had dinner after the show at 54 Noodles Bar, a new Vietnames restaurant near the Waterfront metro station. The spring rolls and pho were both very good and the service was efficient enough. I’m likely to eat there again in the future.
The Turn of the Screw: The other musical I saw locally was The Turn of the Screw at Creative Cauldron, which has moved to a new location, still in Falls Church. I read the novella it’s based on long ago and remembered it being creepy, but unsatisfying, with the key issue being that there is no resolution as to whether there are actual ghosts or the governess is losing her mind (with the children possibly manipulating her). This version added another twist, as it implies that the boy may have been sexually molested by the valet. (I should note that Cindy did not interpret things that way at all.) I was also unimpressed with the acoustics of the new space. On the plus side, the uncle (whose song I’d Rather Not Know was the best of the evening) was played by local favorite Bobby Smith and it is good to see him back on stage after several months recuperating from a terrible car accident.
October So Far: My book club met this past Wednesday night and talked about The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams. I loved this book, as did most of the other people in the book club, though one person couldn’t get through it. I posed a question that I thought would make for good discussion, namely what books you would put on a list that you think everyone should read. Unfortunately, nobody else took the bait. (For what it’s worth, my top choice would be Alice in Wonderland, which is the best book ever written about pretty much everything.)
Story Swap: The monthly Voices in the Glen story swap was held over zoom tonight. I ran through a story I am planning on telling next weekend at the Washington Folk Festival. The highlight of the evening (in my opinion) was Margaret’s recitation of Christina Rosetti’s Goblin Market.
Shameless Self Promotion: The Washington Folk Festival is next Sunday, October 19th at Glen Echo Park. I’ll be on the Storytelling stage from 3:30 to 4 in the afternoon. My blurb is “Spare Change - Join Miriam Nadel for tales of transformation and metamorphosis from around the world and across time.” There’s also plenty of music and dance. It’s always a good time.
Celebrity Death Watch: BeBe Shopp won the 1948 Miss America pageant. Joan Bennett Kennedy was the first wife of senator Ted Kennedy. Mike Greenwell played left field for the Red Sox from 1985-1996. Tommy Price was the drummer for Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. John Lodge performed with The Moody Blues and wrote the song I’m Just a Singer in a Rock ad Roll Band. Diane Keaton was an actress whose film roles included Annie Hall. Tony Fitzpatrick was a collage artist. Sandy Alomar Sr. played second base, primarily for the California Angels. He also had two sons who were successful baseball players - Sandy Alomar Jr. and Roberto Alomar. D’Angelo was a neo-soul singer-songwriter.
Mel Taub created the Puns and Anagrams puzzle in The New York Times. This is not quite as complex as a typical cryptic crossword is. But, as a person who loves puns (and, as far as I am concerned, the more atrocious the better), they were always fun to solve.
Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt was the chaplain for the basketball team at Loyola University in Chicago. She was the subject of numerous newspaper articles about being a superfan and even became the subject of a bobblehead. She was on my ghoul pool list and earned me 24 points, which includes the 12 point uniqueness bonus. I was, frankly, surprised that nobody else had her on their list, since she was 106 years old.
A Few Things I Did in September: I took two trips which will get their own blog posts. Alas, my needlework group conflicted with one of those trips and with Yom Kippur, so I only made it to one meeting. I saw the movie Guns and Moses (which I already wrote about in my quarterly update on books, movies, and goals) at Tyson’s Corner and browsed an Indian clothing store while I was there.
Dinner With Friends: I went to dinner with friends from Flyertalk at the end of the month. Note to self: the pizza at Fireworks in Clarendon is better than their other menu offerings. The fish sandwich was okay, but fish sandwiches should really come with cole slaw, not potato chips.
High Holidays: I went to High Holiday on-line services at Fabrengen, mostly to save the hassle of dealing with things in the city. I generally try to find some interesting take away every year, particularly for Yom Kippur. This year, my takeaway was this quote from Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel at the August 1969 Liturgical Conference in Milwaukee, which was in a footnote in the machzor (prayer book):
Prayer is meaningless unless it is subversive, unless it seeks to overthrow and to ruin the pyramids of callousness, hatred, opportunism, falsehoods. The liturgical movement must become a revolutionary movement seeking to overthrow the forces that continue to destroy the promise, the hope, the vision.”
Damn Yankees: I did a bunch of theatre going on one of my trips, but still saw two musicals when I was home. The first of those was Damn Yankees at Arena Stage. I’d talked my friend, Cindy, who was entirely unfamiliar with it, into coming along. While I’d seen the movie version and listened to the original cast recording a gazillion times, I hadn’t seen a live performance of it before. Anyone who knows me at all knows how I feel about a certain pinstriped baseball team (who I was very happy to see lose to Toronto after beating up on my Bosox, but I digress), so it’s no surprise that I love this show. This version was updated, to the early 2000’s and the Source of All Evil in the Universe was playing against Baltimore, not Washington, presumably to make it feasible for the two teams to face each other in the World Series. Anyway, the score has some iconic songs - especially Heart and Whatever Lola Wants, but I think the real highlights of this production were Near to You and A Man Doesn’t Know, both of which I found very moving. I can’t ignore the choreography which was excellent, though I still think the song Who’s Got the Pain? is useless filler. All of the performers were excellent, and I want to particularly note the singing of Quentin Earl Darrington, who plays the aging Joe Boyd, and the dancing of Ana Villafañe as Lola. I should also mention that they had the Orioles mascot come out and lead everyone in Take Me Out to the Ball Game after intermission. But the Orioles don’t actually do that. For some ungodly reason, they sing Thank G-d I’m a Country Boy instead, which is just wrong. Anyway, the show runs through November 9th and you should go see it if you possibly can.
By the way, we had dinner after the show at 54 Noodles Bar, a new Vietnames restaurant near the Waterfront metro station. The spring rolls and pho were both very good and the service was efficient enough. I’m likely to eat there again in the future.
The Turn of the Screw: The other musical I saw locally was The Turn of the Screw at Creative Cauldron, which has moved to a new location, still in Falls Church. I read the novella it’s based on long ago and remembered it being creepy, but unsatisfying, with the key issue being that there is no resolution as to whether there are actual ghosts or the governess is losing her mind (with the children possibly manipulating her). This version added another twist, as it implies that the boy may have been sexually molested by the valet. (I should note that Cindy did not interpret things that way at all.) I was also unimpressed with the acoustics of the new space. On the plus side, the uncle (whose song I’d Rather Not Know was the best of the evening) was played by local favorite Bobby Smith and it is good to see him back on stage after several months recuperating from a terrible car accident.
October So Far: My book club met this past Wednesday night and talked about The Reading List by Sara Nisha Adams. I loved this book, as did most of the other people in the book club, though one person couldn’t get through it. I posed a question that I thought would make for good discussion, namely what books you would put on a list that you think everyone should read. Unfortunately, nobody else took the bait. (For what it’s worth, my top choice would be Alice in Wonderland, which is the best book ever written about pretty much everything.)
Story Swap: The monthly Voices in the Glen story swap was held over zoom tonight. I ran through a story I am planning on telling next weekend at the Washington Folk Festival. The highlight of the evening (in my opinion) was Margaret’s recitation of Christina Rosetti’s Goblin Market.
Shameless Self Promotion: The Washington Folk Festival is next Sunday, October 19th at Glen Echo Park. I’ll be on the Storytelling stage from 3:30 to 4 in the afternoon. My blurb is “Spare Change - Join Miriam Nadel for tales of transformation and metamorphosis from around the world and across time.” There’s also plenty of music and dance. It’s always a good time.
Celebrity Death Watch: BeBe Shopp won the 1948 Miss America pageant. Joan Bennett Kennedy was the first wife of senator Ted Kennedy. Mike Greenwell played left field for the Red Sox from 1985-1996. Tommy Price was the drummer for Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. John Lodge performed with The Moody Blues and wrote the song I’m Just a Singer in a Rock ad Roll Band. Diane Keaton was an actress whose film roles included Annie Hall. Tony Fitzpatrick was a collage artist. Sandy Alomar Sr. played second base, primarily for the California Angels. He also had two sons who were successful baseball players - Sandy Alomar Jr. and Roberto Alomar. D’Angelo was a neo-soul singer-songwriter.
Mel Taub created the Puns and Anagrams puzzle in The New York Times. This is not quite as complex as a typical cryptic crossword is. But, as a person who loves puns (and, as far as I am concerned, the more atrocious the better), they were always fun to solve.
Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt was the chaplain for the basketball team at Loyola University in Chicago. She was the subject of numerous newspaper articles about being a superfan and even became the subject of a bobblehead. She was on my ghoul pool list and earned me 24 points, which includes the 12 point uniqueness bonus. I was, frankly, surprised that nobody else had her on their list, since she was 106 years old.
(no subject)
Oct. 14th, 2025 09:55 amtotchipandaOG Scream was FANTASTIC, it hits a little different on a big screen, and the audience was super responsive. There was lots of yelling and laughter and it was a pretty full house. We had so much fun.
Friday I got home and the power was out. Turns out that the guys doing the alley work hit a pole not terribly far from where I am in the complex. My collection of candles finally came in handy! For all the good it did, which wasn't a ton... One candle burned brightly, the other two struggled, and they were all scented which played havoc on my sinuses.
Woke up at 12:45 ish and the power was back on, plus my phone had died. When I woke up again around 7-something, my friends were no longer leaving town as Nicole was very ill, so I didn't need to come puppy sit. I spent the day in bed not feeling ultra great, watching drag race and The Summer I Turned Pretty, and I got some news* that made me very emotional and NO ONE WAS AROUND TO COMMISERATE. Set off the fire alarm making cheese toast, and otherwise just rotted.
( * )
Sunday was more of the same, blasting through the show and finishing up my knitting project. Later, just as I was about to get up and make dinner, friends texted that hey, if you want dinner, come by around 7ish... So M and I paused our show (since I'd caught up to her) and headed out for some yummy food and puppy cuddles.
Yesterday was Thanksgiving day so I was home. I started a new knitting project (very slowly), and took a nap. I waited until M was home to finish our show and got to bed VERY late, but it was worth it. It was really good for a show that started out like a cheesy teen romance! (I mean, its still a cheesy teen romance, but I was so invested by the end of it that the emotional payout was, for me, really good.)
My apartment is being invaded by box elder bugs. I don't know from WHERE. I have found 3 or 4 at this point, although they may have been the same two. I know they are harmless and do literally nothing, they are finding a warm place to hide out for winter, but yesterday as I was rolling around in bed in the morning I felt something on my back, reached back and was surprised to find a significant lump in my shirt and sure enough, the little fucker violated the house rules by crawling directly on me. They will be eliminated with extreme prejudice from now on. Calcifer pulled one out of the window on Sunday but watching her interact with the one I found last night, I'm not convinced either cat did anything about it. They are good with spiders and centipedes, but other insects tend to be thoroughly inspected and tortured a bit. So, two confirmed bodies.
Friday I got home and the power was out. Turns out that the guys doing the alley work hit a pole not terribly far from where I am in the complex. My collection of candles finally came in handy! For all the good it did, which wasn't a ton... One candle burned brightly, the other two struggled, and they were all scented which played havoc on my sinuses.
Woke up at 12:45 ish and the power was back on, plus my phone had died. When I woke up again around 7-something, my friends were no longer leaving town as Nicole was very ill, so I didn't need to come puppy sit. I spent the day in bed not feeling ultra great, watching drag race and The Summer I Turned Pretty, and I got some news* that made me very emotional and NO ONE WAS AROUND TO COMMISERATE. Set off the fire alarm making cheese toast, and otherwise just rotted.
( * )
Sunday was more of the same, blasting through the show and finishing up my knitting project. Later, just as I was about to get up and make dinner, friends texted that hey, if you want dinner, come by around 7ish... So M and I paused our show (since I'd caught up to her) and headed out for some yummy food and puppy cuddles.
Yesterday was Thanksgiving day so I was home. I started a new knitting project (very slowly), and took a nap. I waited until M was home to finish our show and got to bed VERY late, but it was worth it. It was really good for a show that started out like a cheesy teen romance! (I mean, its still a cheesy teen romance, but I was so invested by the end of it that the emotional payout was, for me, really good.)
My apartment is being invaded by box elder bugs. I don't know from WHERE. I have found 3 or 4 at this point, although they may have been the same two. I know they are harmless and do literally nothing, they are finding a warm place to hide out for winter, but yesterday as I was rolling around in bed in the morning I felt something on my back, reached back and was surprised to find a significant lump in my shirt and sure enough, the little fucker violated the house rules by crawling directly on me. They will be eliminated with extreme prejudice from now on. Calcifer pulled one out of the window on Sunday but watching her interact with the one I found last night, I'm not convinced either cat did anything about it. They are good with spiders and centipedes, but other insects tend to be thoroughly inspected and tortured a bit. So, two confirmed bodies.
Better Better Better except
Oct. 14th, 2025 07:38 amsusandennisWhen I went to bed, I was 50-50 on whether or not I'd go to the aqua fit class today. The knee I sprained is my right knee and it was still kind of iffy plus, I fell yesterday because I was walking too fast down the hallway and I bruised the shit out of my right leg just under the knee. I had a hard time finding a comfortable position to sleep in so I figured, I'd just baby them both today. BUT this morning, they are both very very very much better. I think I'll go to the class.
I was walking too fast because of fried chicken. They had fried chicken on the dinner menu - the one you can order for take out - for the first time ever. I thought it would be a great after game dinner. The earliest you can do pick up is 3. The game started at 2. Who knows when it would end. So I figured it would be better to get the pickup at 3 which I did but wanted to get back to the game fast. So I fell.
It was not a tragic fall. One of the house keepers saw me fall from way down the hall and man, did she coming running. I tried to stop her by telling her I was fine but she was there in a heartbeat. Interesting to know that if it is a tragic fall, I won't die alone. (Although, I've never thought dying alone was such a horrible thing.)
The Mariners won the game quite handily. That's two out of the seven so far. The next game is Wednesday in Seattle. There are a whole lot of fair weather Mariner fans but the ones that amuse me the most are the local TV anchors. For most of the years, they barely cover the Mariners on TV news. Seahawks, yes. If a Seahawks football player farts, they have a 5 part special covering it. Mariners? Wait, isn't that a baseball team?
But, now, they are all over it. They know nothing about baseball and have very few of the facts correct - in one news report I heard that Friday night's game was 18 innings, 15 innings and 14 innings - one single report. And pronouncing players names is a challenge they just cannot conquer. But, they are soooooo excited.
Meanwhile the Brewers/Dodgers game also turned out to be must see TV but I didn't must see it. Reading about it was fun, though.
After aqua fit, the day turns back to normal, I hope. There's a meeting at 3 that I show up for but am going to weasel out of if at all possible.
I found yet another Gmail enhancement. There is a new folder called Purchases that goes back, for me and includes, for me, stuff I bought in 2018. How very handy. I used to try and filter shopping emails but I gave up on that a few years ago and here it is all done for me! Also my Pixel Watch (3) got a nice new update yesterday.
Time to suit up!
I was walking too fast because of fried chicken. They had fried chicken on the dinner menu - the one you can order for take out - for the first time ever. I thought it would be a great after game dinner. The earliest you can do pick up is 3. The game started at 2. Who knows when it would end. So I figured it would be better to get the pickup at 3 which I did but wanted to get back to the game fast. So I fell.
It was not a tragic fall. One of the house keepers saw me fall from way down the hall and man, did she coming running. I tried to stop her by telling her I was fine but she was there in a heartbeat. Interesting to know that if it is a tragic fall, I won't die alone. (Although, I've never thought dying alone was such a horrible thing.)
The Mariners won the game quite handily. That's two out of the seven so far. The next game is Wednesday in Seattle. There are a whole lot of fair weather Mariner fans but the ones that amuse me the most are the local TV anchors. For most of the years, they barely cover the Mariners on TV news. Seahawks, yes. If a Seahawks football player farts, they have a 5 part special covering it. Mariners? Wait, isn't that a baseball team?
But, now, they are all over it. They know nothing about baseball and have very few of the facts correct - in one news report I heard that Friday night's game was 18 innings, 15 innings and 14 innings - one single report. And pronouncing players names is a challenge they just cannot conquer. But, they are soooooo excited.
Meanwhile the Brewers/Dodgers game also turned out to be must see TV but I didn't must see it. Reading about it was fun, though.
After aqua fit, the day turns back to normal, I hope. There's a meeting at 3 that I show up for but am going to weasel out of if at all possible.
I found yet another Gmail enhancement. There is a new folder called Purchases that goes back, for me and includes, for me, stuff I bought in 2018. How very handy. I used to try and filter shopping emails but I gave up on that a few years ago and here it is all done for me! Also my Pixel Watch (3) got a nice new update yesterday.
Time to suit up!
Prompt: #464 - Eulogy
Oct. 14th, 2025 10:36 amsweettartheart posting in 100wordsThis week's prompt is eulogy.
Your response should be exactly 100 words long. You do not have to include the prompt in your response -- it is meant as inspiration only.
Please use the tag "prompt: #464 - eulogy" with your response.
Please put your drabble under a cut tag if it contains potential triggers, mature or explicit content, or spoilers for media released in the last month.
If you would like a template for the header information you may use this:
Subject: Original - Title (or) Fandom - Title
Post:
Title:
Original (or) Fandom:
Rating:
Notes:
If you are a member of AO3 there is a 100 Words Collection!
Your response should be exactly 100 words long. You do not have to include the prompt in your response -- it is meant as inspiration only.
Please use the tag "prompt: #464 - eulogy" with your response.
Please put your drabble under a cut tag if it contains potential triggers, mature or explicit content, or spoilers for media released in the last month.
If you would like a template for the header information you may use this:
Subject: Original - Title (or) Fandom - Title
Post:
Title:
Original (or) Fandom:
Rating:
Notes:
If you are a member of AO3 there is a 100 Words Collection!