Reading

Entry tags:

enjoy

lovely

I can now report a lovely day!

ordenchaz and I drove to a family reunion south of Mille Lacs Lake (yes, 'thousand lakes lake'). This is the same location that's been used for the past 10 to 15 years, a farm with a large barn used for gatherings - kitchen upstairs, plenty of space upstairs and down.

The weather was darn near perfect: up 70s, with a nice breeze.

We were able to talk to some of our favorite folks, and also to talk some genealogy with a cousin whose interest in it has grown over the past few years.

We also talked to each other quite a bit LOL as we watched the bean bag toss tournament.

As we drove home we saw what looked like fog along with the road: smoke from Canadian wildfires. Air quality in Minneapolis is officially Unhealthy today. Not at the reunion!

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Well, I'm (probably?) hired pending the results of this background check

and completion of orientation. They really are taking anybody with a pulse, as judged by the extremely detailed list of instructions for appropriate behavior during orientation. I'd be more insulted, but that's good for me, I really need a job. If they had higher standards they would hire somebody with formal work experience, or at least an associate's degree.

(Don't think I've stopped applying other places, mind you, but I'm really not in a position to be picky, either.)

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The Grimoire Grammar School Parent Teacher Association

Well... if you're interested in reading a book about how living in an over-privileged Connecticut town is terrible and nobody should ever do it (especially if that's going to intersect badly with their terrible childhood) then this is a book you'll like. I preferred Dreadful - the realism : magic ratio in this book leaned a little too realistic, also, I just do not believe that the only school choices are a. fancy schools for wealthy overachievers that have massively high standards and high stakes testing b. xenophobic schools with very low standards and c. homeschooling. Even if there are no public school options there still have to be artsy fartsy schools for wealthy people who know that their kids cannot do the pressure cooker thing starting in kindy.

Entry tags:

just rl

experiment

Today I did an experiment.

I had nothing scheduled today, and put only two things on my mental list (beyond the usual).

One was to double-check the route to a family reunion, and the other was to shower and wash my hair.

I did both.

The experiment was to see if I became aimless, bored, and unhappy.

Luckily, I didn't. Not really. I finished clearing out 'a bag', scrubbed the tub (a bit), and remembered my password for checking voicemail (success!). I went to SJs for coffee and didn't buy something to eat; :-) It was hot and humid out, so I did a stairs walk.

The only regret - when it comes to timing - is that I'm about two thirds of the way through a mystery and I don't what to push myself and stay up late reading it.

Oh dear, it's been nearly a week since I wrote in my (regular) journal. Off to do that now.

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Trying to read Dogs of War

Adrian Tchaikovsky is amazingly hit-or-miss for me, but this looks like it's coming up "hit". The sapient arthropods are a swarm of bees. If there are any spiders, I haven't met them yet!

Entry tags:

just rl

"busy"

I've apparently been "busy" today. I went to

ordenchaz's place this morning, then came home for lunch. I was picked up for book group at 1:30, and got back home at 4:45. I drove to pick up meal right away.

Picked up a library book.
Did extra (evening) Duolingo
Listened to the last (as of now) Kencyr book (Hodgell) via Kindle-speak

Stuff.

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I could be having a summer of adventure. Instead, I am turning off my brain...

Well, I am still having some adventures, and still going some places.

But I also started playing Civilization II. A game that is 30 years old, and that I have been playing for almost all of that time, and which is one of the exemplars of the "just one more turn" game, where you start playing and it is 3 AM but you just have to see what happens next. Except for that in my case, I am showing a little restraint. No 3 AM eternal here! Just two hours between doing things. And letting my brain turn off. Which is maybe what I need right now.

Entry tags:

dreams

my dream history

I just spent some time clicking through the 'dreams' tag here.

Of course I always knew it, but I was struck again by how my subconscious mind uses 'travel disasters' or just 'travel annoyances' as metaphors for things that are bothering me. Over and over!

Bur I must say I'm pleased at how many times my dreams include funny lines - or, rather, that's what make the dreams memorable. :-)

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Points for honesty in this job description....

"Why work here?"

"Weekly pay!"

Yup, that's why I would like to apply for any and all jobs!

(On a side note, A has been sending me a lot of job links today. I'm a bit inundated, but I somehow don't think that "Great, please don't send them to me, just fill them out with my resume for me" is going to go over very well.)

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Got a callback

Asked where I lived, was concerned that the answer is "Staten Island". FFS, it's not Siberia!

I need to start telling people I'm moving in with a friend in Tribeca. Just straight up lie.

Current Mood: contemplative
Current Music: HUNTR/X - How It's Done

Entry tags:

fandom

Crossovers.

Sometimes I wished fandom fucked with crossovers more like it used to. *

Maybe I'm not looking in the right places since I know it stills happens, it's just that I remember when fandom crossovers were a massive thing especially during my early days in fandom. Yeah, fanfic fusion AUs exist, but it's not the same. There would be fanworks of various kinds where alternate universes featuring different fictional worlds would visit each other, either already existed in or created a kind of wormhole or portal to go into each other's world. It didn't need to make sense, it just needed to be like "how would these characters from this story interact with these others from this other story?" and that's that. But I rarely see those kinds of fanworks anymore, at least not in the way that it used to thrive in fandom spaces. I only see aspects of it now among the cdrama fandom. Of course, this is mere speculation on my part, I kinda theorize that the rise and fall of SuperWhoLock sort of got people to shy away from doing crossovers in such a way, because it was viewed as "cringe" since it was everywhere and dominated a lot of the fandomsphere especially on Tumblr. Which would be a shame if that were true. There is something amazing and uniquely fannish about crossovers, whether it be fanfiction, fanart, fanvids, or classic image manips, it's always been interesting to see the kinds of creativity fandom can come up with. You might not always know the fandoms in question, but it's nice to see people having fun.

(* I'm including myself in this as well, since I had once created some crossover fanworks in the past but have also unfortunately fallen off that wagon and need to get back on.)

Entry tags:

saveafox

tribute

Watch on YouTube

I've applied to a bunch of NYC government jobs today

Just went through the website and applied to everything I meet the minimum qualifications for, for what good it may do.

They could, in theory, save my information from one application to the next. They don't do that. They could also not require me to answer "where did you hear about this?" every time - but the joke's on them. "I went to your website and clicked on every job where I meet the minimum qualifications" is not an option, so I've just been lying and saying "hiring event" because that's the first choice. They will get no useful data from me, no thank you!

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I'm feeling slightly judgmental on the Texas flooding and I don't know if my judgment is merited

( Cut for being perhaps a bit insensitive or factually wrong )

Also, two links where you can donate.

The absolute worst thing about the state of the world

is the constant whiplash between panic and popcorn.

Right now I'm hovering over "popcorn" - new political parties? With added drama and infighting? LOL, okay, let's see how that works out for you!

(Look, I need a break from panic now and again, and I will take my fun where it appears.)

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Entry tags:

youtube

fan vid of sorts

Watch on YouTube

Go for a ride on the catbus!

Ignore that comment that says it's just a drone :-)

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Entry tags:

apartment

bags. and bags.

Immediate project: dealing with paper bags in my kitchen, by the file cabinet and bookcase. There's what I could call the 'Covid' bag. (I have no storage space to seriously stockpile items, but I have a grocery bag that fits the bill.) Then there's a bag for cardboard and brown paper recycling. There are other small bags that I simply need to get rid of.

I'm preparing another visit to Goodwill, so there are now two big bags full of books, and small bags with other items.

Seriously dull entry: but I'll feel better once I can see fewer bags and more floor space in the kitchen. Sheesh....

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Oh, I like this word!

Eirenicon: A proposal to resolve disputes and reconcile differences in order to advance peace, strengthen or establish unity, or foster solidarity.

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Entry tags:

just rl

balance

I lightened up today by watching the video of the Silm Film project's casting day. Casting episodes are always fun! This is a pie-in-the-sky 30+ year Silmarillion tv series (including framing scenes of LOTR-area characters)

The funniest this is that Timothée Chalamet was cast as Estel (young Aragorn) for the framing scenes. He was cast when he was 21! (Yes, this project has been discussed - and scripts written - for at least ten years.)

For pure excitement you can't beat pulling the boxes out from under one of my beds, dusting them, and putting them back. Most of these were boxes of photographs. (Vacation photos? Probably.)

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When I made my previous post I hadn’t heard about the flooding

Holy fuck that’s awful :(