doing the humpty-hump all the way to the end zone
Nov. 9th, 2025 06:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
musesfoolMy sister texted me yesterday to let me know she's sick so I shouldn't go over there today, so I did not. So today, instead of making pie, I made Chinese pork buns (pic). I made the pork yesterday and used the leftovers today - I used boneless country ribs because they are fairly cheap and I don't like dealing with bones. I can't seem to get a good boneless pork shoulder these days - last time I ordered a bone-in one, it was supposedly 3 lbs, but it was 2 lbs of bone and 1 of meat, which is not the best ratio for the money - so I go with the boneless country ribs instead (the ones from Costco are especially good).
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I shouldn't have been so enthusiastic the other day about how much better I've been sleeping, because of course, on Friday night, I had a terrible night's sleep, tossing and turning and just unable to stay asleep after several hours of trying to fall asleep. Last night was much better. *hands* Sometimes, it just be like that.
While I was lying awake, I was thinking about Dungeon Crawler Carl, as I have been wont to do lately, and trying to figure out his relationship with Bea, because I find it kind of baffling. ( spoilers through book 7 )
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I shouldn't have been so enthusiastic the other day about how much better I've been sleeping, because of course, on Friday night, I had a terrible night's sleep, tossing and turning and just unable to stay asleep after several hours of trying to fall asleep. Last night was much better. *hands* Sometimes, it just be like that.
While I was lying awake, I was thinking about Dungeon Crawler Carl, as I have been wont to do lately, and trying to figure out his relationship with Bea, because I find it kind of baffling. ( spoilers through book 7 )
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(no subject)
Nov. 9th, 2025 10:10 pmthawreckaI am 34 episodes in to Blood River! I think the writing gets a big wobbly starting in episode 30, but I'm still having a good time, and I'll be able to finish it this week, and it did pick up a bit in episode 34. I hear good things about the ending. I'm enjoying my silly sad-eyed assassins story.
I also had to pause during episode 23 of Whispers of Fate last night to go to sleep, because I was so tired. I have my quibbles with this show, but once it started feeling like particularly magical xianxia instead of a lukewarm rehash of Mysterious Lotus Casebook it really picked up for me. The action scenes are so good! Tang Lici dancing to save that array, and that one music/string puppets scene live in my head rent-free. A Shei and Tang Lici still have negative chemistry, which does drag things down, but overall I'm enjoying it.
Also, today is my birthday! (For another two hours.) I went out to lunch with friends and exhausted myself at a market, and I'm looking forward to a sleep in tomorrow.
I also had to pause during episode 23 of Whispers of Fate last night to go to sleep, because I was so tired. I have my quibbles with this show, but once it started feeling like particularly magical xianxia instead of a lukewarm rehash of Mysterious Lotus Casebook it really picked up for me. The action scenes are so good! Tang Lici dancing to save that array, and that one music/string puppets scene live in my head rent-free. A Shei and Tang Lici still have negative chemistry, which does drag things down, but overall I'm enjoying it.
Also, today is my birthday! (For another two hours.) I went out to lunch with friends and exhausted myself at a market, and I'm looking forward to a sleep in tomorrow.
Orsinian Tales by Ursula K. Le Guin (1976)
Nov. 8th, 2025 06:29 pmpauraqueThis is a collection of short stories set in the fictional Central European country Orsinia. Most of the stories are new for the book, though a couple were published previously, and the invention of the country itself was one of Le Guin's first creative writing projects. It's basically an alt-history Czechia or Hungary, borrowing from real wars and political events; stories set in the Cold War era show Orsinia as a satellite state of the Soviet Union. Aside from the alternate history, the stories have no speculative elements.
I hadn't read this before because it didn't sound like it was up my alley. But it was next up in my chronological read of Le Guin's books, so I gave it a chance, and guess what? It wasn't up my alley!
I freely admit that a big part of the issue is that I'm the wrong audience for what she was trying to do here. A number of the stories are the sort of litfic where the entire plot is family/relationship drama and everyone is miserable, which is a genre that I find deadly dull even if Ursula Le Guin writes it. But I also don't think the prose is up to her usual standard. It's more reminiscent of her early work, and some of it openly is early work! But even the stories dated 1976 read like revisions of something pulled from the previous decade's drawer.
What surprised me the most is how generic I found the worldbuilding to be. It comes off like she wanted to write about Central Europe but didn't have the depth of knowledge to write about any specific country, so instead we have this Ruritanian stand-in that does not have any real weight to it or any distinctive qualities or culture. The stories I enjoyed the most were the ones set prior to the 20th century, which at least took me to an interesting time if not to an especially compelling place.
So yeah, this wasn't for me. Oh well, at least it was short.
I hadn't read this before because it didn't sound like it was up my alley. But it was next up in my chronological read of Le Guin's books, so I gave it a chance, and guess what? It wasn't up my alley!
I freely admit that a big part of the issue is that I'm the wrong audience for what she was trying to do here. A number of the stories are the sort of litfic where the entire plot is family/relationship drama and everyone is miserable, which is a genre that I find deadly dull even if Ursula Le Guin writes it. But I also don't think the prose is up to her usual standard. It's more reminiscent of her early work, and some of it openly is early work! But even the stories dated 1976 read like revisions of something pulled from the previous decade's drawer.
What surprised me the most is how generic I found the worldbuilding to be. It comes off like she wanted to write about Central Europe but didn't have the depth of knowledge to write about any specific country, so instead we have this Ruritanian stand-in that does not have any real weight to it or any distinctive qualities or culture. The stories I enjoyed the most were the ones set prior to the 20th century, which at least took me to an interesting time if not to an especially compelling place.
So yeah, this wasn't for me. Oh well, at least it was short.
if the Mississippi should wash me away
Nov. 7th, 2025 02:26 pmmusesfoolImagine my excitement at reading this interview with Bob Mould this morning: How Bob Mould rediscovered the great, lost live Husker Du record not because of Hüsker Dü, whom I liked but didn't love, but because he mentions that Sugar reunited. I LOVED SUGAR!!! If I Can't Change Your Mind is 3 minutes of PURE POP PERFECTION and one of my top 5 songs of ALL TIME. Back in the 90s, I saw Bob live solo at least twice (once pressed right up to the stage beneath him and his guitar at...Irving Plaza? I think?), and saw Sugar in concert at least once (maybe twice?). Copper Blue is full of great songs, as is Bob's first solo album, Workbook. (Black Sheets of Rain was also good but less accessible, imo.)
If Sugar actually tours, I might leave the house to see them!
I have other, less fun, work news, but I should probably save it for a locked post sometime later. Sigh.
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If Sugar actually tours, I might leave the house to see them!
I have other, less fun, work news, but I should probably save it for a locked post sometime later. Sigh.
*
Wicked: One Wonderful Night (TV Celebration)
Nov. 6th, 2025 07:16 pmnondenomifan posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
fandomcalendarNBC (USA) and Peacock streaming will have a full-movie-cast program called Wicked: One Wonderful Night tonight from 8:00pm - 10:00pm ET. It will also be available for streaming beginning tomorrow at 8:00pm on Peacock.
If you don't get NBC where you are and haven't invested in Peacock, you can get a 7-day free trial of Peacock and shut it off as soon as you've seen the special.
If you don't get NBC where you are and haven't invested in Peacock, you can get a 7-day free trial of Peacock and shut it off as soon as you've seen the special.
unwillingness to claim us
Nov. 6th, 2025 03:05 pmmusesfoolAlas, despite me getting up early this morning, the cleaning ladies did not come! They did say last time that my regular appointment might need to be moved going forward, but then I got the confirmation email for today and figured maybe that wasn't happening. But they did not show up so I emailed the company and they were very apologetic, and now they are coming on Saturday at 9 am.
on Sunday, I'm going to my sister's to make the apple pies for Thanksgiving, since my brother-in-law, who does all the holiday cooking wants to simplify* what needs doing on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, which has traditionally been the day we make pie.
*"Simplify" should be in quotes, because for Christmas, at least, we keep telling him we're good with an apps and dessert style menu (personally, I keep advocating for pajama!Christmas) to no avail. He gets about 90% of the way there and then is like, but what if someone wants ziti? or ham? so idk. He also won't cut back on the antipasto, which is what everyone ends up filling up on, so then no one wants the big meal that follows.
On Thanksgiving, I personally would prefer a roast chicken to turkey, but truly, as long as my brother brings the stuffing and there's pie, I don't really care about anything else. The fancy cranberry relish is nice, and I won't say no to a dollop of mashed potatoes, but overall, I really do only want the stuffing.
Anyway! I took Monday off since we are off Tuesday for Veterans Day, so my plan is to make char siu again on Saturday and then finally try to make pork buns on Monday. We'll see how that goes.
*
on Sunday, I'm going to my sister's to make the apple pies for Thanksgiving, since my brother-in-law, who does all the holiday cooking wants to simplify* what needs doing on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, which has traditionally been the day we make pie.
*"Simplify" should be in quotes, because for Christmas, at least, we keep telling him we're good with an apps and dessert style menu (personally, I keep advocating for pajama!Christmas) to no avail. He gets about 90% of the way there and then is like, but what if someone wants ziti? or ham? so idk. He also won't cut back on the antipasto, which is what everyone ends up filling up on, so then no one wants the big meal that follows.
On Thanksgiving, I personally would prefer a roast chicken to turkey, but truly, as long as my brother brings the stuffing and there's pie, I don't really care about anything else. The fancy cranberry relish is nice, and I won't say no to a dollop of mashed potatoes, but overall, I really do only want the stuffing.
Anyway! I took Monday off since we are off Tuesday for Veterans Day, so my plan is to make char siu again on Saturday and then finally try to make pork buns on Monday. We'll see how that goes.
*
fic title alphabet meme
Nov. 6th, 2025 12:27 pmpauraqueVia octahedrite and everyone else.
Rules: How many letters of the alphabet have you used for [starting] a fic title? One fic per line, ‘A’ and 'The’ do not count for 'a’ and ’t’. Post your score out of 26 at the end, along with your total fic count.
Most of the letters I could fill had more than one option, so I went for a combination of variety of fandoms and personal favorite fics and fic titles.
A: Acted Over (Julius Caesar, Brutus/Cassius)
B: The Bridge-Keeper's Riddle (The Venture Bros, Dr. Girlfriend/Henchman 21/The Monarch)
C: Correcting an Oversight (Star Trek: Discovery, Jett Reno/Sylvia Tilly)
D: Down Where It's Wetter (The Little Mermaid, Ariel)
E: The Emperor's Favorite (Star Trek: Discovery, Michael/Mirror Philippa)
F: For a Thousand Summers (I Will Wait For You) (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Guinan/Picard)
G: Geese Resting (Always Coming Home, poem)
H: Her Person's Person (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Data/Geordi + Spot)
I: It's Just a Leap to the Left (Quantum Leap/Rocky Horror, Sam Beckett/Frank N. Furter)
J:
K:
L: Lamp for the Dead (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Ro Laren & Sito Jaxa)
M: A Memory of Warmth (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Light Hope/Mara)
N: No One Can Make It Alone (Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, Kipo/Wolf)
O: The Origin of Love (Star Trek: Picard, Seven & Hugh)
P: Patch Notes (World of Warcraft, Thrall & Vol'jin)
Q: A Quiet Evening In (101 Dalmatians, Anita/Roger)
R: Remembrance (World of Warcraft, Koltira/Thassarian)
S: Soft and Supple When Alive (Hainish Cycle, Pao/Sutty)
T: To Heaven (Dogsbody, Kathleen & Sol)
U: Uncertain Provenance (The Little Mermaid, Ariel/Eric)
V: Void Sale (The X-Files, Marita/Krycek)
W: With Stars in Their Hair (A Little Princess, Becky/Sara)
X:
Y: The Year of the Two-Legged Table (The Guest, Choi Yoon/Kang Kil-Young/Yoon Hwa-Pyung)
Z:
Bonus: 2 months 2 days 12 hours 22 minutes till… (Quantum Leap 2022, Hannah/Ben/Addison)
22/26 if you don't count the bonus point I awarded myself for a title that begins with a number instead of a letter! I have 262 works on AO3.kitarella_imagines suggested that a fun extra challenge could be to fill in the letters that we're missing. It's been a minute since I wrote any fic, but I could give it a try, so...
Fic prompt request: Please suggest a word or phrase starting with J, K, X, or Z!
octahedrite and everyone else.Rules: How many letters of the alphabet have you used for [starting] a fic title? One fic per line, ‘A’ and 'The’ do not count for 'a’ and ’t’. Post your score out of 26 at the end, along with your total fic count.
Most of the letters I could fill had more than one option, so I went for a combination of variety of fandoms and personal favorite fics and fic titles.
A: Acted Over (Julius Caesar, Brutus/Cassius)
B: The Bridge-Keeper's Riddle (The Venture Bros, Dr. Girlfriend/Henchman 21/The Monarch)
C: Correcting an Oversight (Star Trek: Discovery, Jett Reno/Sylvia Tilly)
D: Down Where It's Wetter (The Little Mermaid, Ariel)
E: The Emperor's Favorite (Star Trek: Discovery, Michael/Mirror Philippa)
F: For a Thousand Summers (I Will Wait For You) (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Guinan/Picard)
G: Geese Resting (Always Coming Home, poem)
H: Her Person's Person (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Data/Geordi + Spot)
I: It's Just a Leap to the Left (Quantum Leap/Rocky Horror, Sam Beckett/Frank N. Furter)
J:
K:
L: Lamp for the Dead (Star Trek: The Next Generation, Ro Laren & Sito Jaxa)
M: A Memory of Warmth (She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Light Hope/Mara)
N: No One Can Make It Alone (Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, Kipo/Wolf)
O: The Origin of Love (Star Trek: Picard, Seven & Hugh)
P: Patch Notes (World of Warcraft, Thrall & Vol'jin)
Q: A Quiet Evening In (101 Dalmatians, Anita/Roger)
R: Remembrance (World of Warcraft, Koltira/Thassarian)
S: Soft and Supple When Alive (Hainish Cycle, Pao/Sutty)
T: To Heaven (Dogsbody, Kathleen & Sol)
U: Uncertain Provenance (The Little Mermaid, Ariel/Eric)
V: Void Sale (The X-Files, Marita/Krycek)
W: With Stars in Their Hair (A Little Princess, Becky/Sara)
X:
Y: The Year of the Two-Legged Table (The Guest, Choi Yoon/Kang Kil-Young/Yoon Hwa-Pyung)
Z:
Bonus: 2 months 2 days 12 hours 22 minutes till… (Quantum Leap 2022, Hannah/Ben/Addison)
22/26 if you don't count the bonus point I awarded myself for a title that begins with a number instead of a letter! I have 262 works on AO3.
kitarella_imagines suggested that a fun extra challenge could be to fill in the letters that we're missing. It's been a minute since I wrote any fic, but I could give it a try, so...Fic prompt request: Please suggest a word or phrase starting with J, K, X, or Z!
wednesday reads and things
Nov. 5th, 2025 05:52 pmisisWhat I've recently finished reading:
Europe at Dawn by Dave Hutchinson, and thus finishes the Fractured Europe Sequence. I enjoyed it a lot, though sometimes it made me feel as though I just wasn't smart enough for it; there are a lot of chapters which begin so completely in medias res that you just have to soldier on until you hit the background/flashback that explains what is going on. Although the last book ties up some of the loose ends, they are only loosely tied, so to speak, and it feels very open-ended. (To be fair, there was no overarching action plot here, just generally tying up ends and solving mysteries. Also I didn't realize for far too long that some of the POV chapters were actually in the past relative to present action (or rather, took place at the same time that some of the events in other books took place; time has passed.)
What I've recently finished listening to:
The Strange Case of Starship Iris wrapped up its final season a few weeks ago. I liked it overall, though I definitely preferred the political action/adventure parts more than the personal relationships parts, other than the general bonding of the crew as a unit. I also found it rather on the nose with respect to Current Political Events, but hey, it's not Jessica Best's fault that she wrote an SF podcast about freedom-fighting rebels up against a juggernaut of an iron-fisted government just when, you know. waves hand around helplessly
What I've recently finished playing:
Dragon Age: The Veilguard! I enjoyed playing but I was ready for it to be over. I (female Qunari mage) romanced Harding, but the romance content is -->.<-- (Though admittedly there was some nice emotional content relative to the romance near the end.) On the one hand, the fact that most of the decisions about what to do and say don't seem to have much effect on things made it feel less fraught and scary, like - I often look up spoilers for major decisions because I don't replay games and so I want to make sure I don't end up with some horrible ending. On the other hand, it probably contributed to me feeling less involved with the game on an emotional level.
I didn't like that the choice of race and faction didn't have a whole lot to do with anything. I mean, I had extra Shadow Dragons dialogue, but mostly I didn't know anything extra about Minrathous. And I was Qunari - but an adopted war orphan with zero connection to anything remotely Qun, so I felt really dumb talking to Taash (and especially Shathann) about Qunari customs.
I did really love the graphics, and all the very interesting landscapes, the different cities and landscapes (the Ossuary!!!) and especially the Crossroads. The companion banter is super fun and I sort of wanted to set them all up with each other! I especially loved Taash and Lucanis talking about capes, hee. I did everybody's quests, of course, and got everyone to Hero status, and all my factions to three stars.
I did the Regrets of the Dread Wolf questline and met Mythal, and...I really tried to give good answers, but every time I failed, to the point where I figured there was no way of avoiding the fight. So I ended up having to fight her and hoo boy that was tough. And then! I looked at an "endings" walkthrough and it said I had to have resolved the quest peacefully to get the best ending, so I resigned myself to having screwed up, but haha it turns out they recommended that only because that is such a tough fight, yay, I got the best ending.
(I did not look up spoilers for the rest of the endgame, but fortunately I managed to not get my sweetheart killed.)
Anyway, it was fun, but when I finished I didn't want to jump into another epic right away, so I started playing Monument Valley, which several of you had recommended to me - and that was delightful! It's like, what if M. C. Escher had designed a puzzle game? I finished the first game and am now doing the "appendices". I also have the second game, so that's probably next.
B is playing Horizon Forbidden West, and I can't resist looking over his shoulder every once in a while. The Horizon games are still my favorites! (He's still in early days, not yet to the Embassy, just doing stuff in Chainscrape.)
Europe at Dawn by Dave Hutchinson, and thus finishes the Fractured Europe Sequence. I enjoyed it a lot, though sometimes it made me feel as though I just wasn't smart enough for it; there are a lot of chapters which begin so completely in medias res that you just have to soldier on until you hit the background/flashback that explains what is going on. Although the last book ties up some of the loose ends, they are only loosely tied, so to speak, and it feels very open-ended. (To be fair, there was no overarching action plot here, just generally tying up ends and solving mysteries. Also I didn't realize for far too long that some of the POV chapters were actually in the past relative to present action (or rather, took place at the same time that some of the events in other books took place; time has passed.)
What I've recently finished listening to:
The Strange Case of Starship Iris wrapped up its final season a few weeks ago. I liked it overall, though I definitely preferred the political action/adventure parts more than the personal relationships parts, other than the general bonding of the crew as a unit. I also found it rather on the nose with respect to Current Political Events, but hey, it's not Jessica Best's fault that she wrote an SF podcast about freedom-fighting rebels up against a juggernaut of an iron-fisted government just when, you know. waves hand around helplessly
What I've recently finished playing:
Dragon Age: The Veilguard! I enjoyed playing but I was ready for it to be over. I (female Qunari mage) romanced Harding, but the romance content is -->.<-- (Though admittedly there was some nice emotional content relative to the romance near the end.) On the one hand, the fact that most of the decisions about what to do and say don't seem to have much effect on things made it feel less fraught and scary, like - I often look up spoilers for major decisions because I don't replay games and so I want to make sure I don't end up with some horrible ending. On the other hand, it probably contributed to me feeling less involved with the game on an emotional level.
I didn't like that the choice of race and faction didn't have a whole lot to do with anything. I mean, I had extra Shadow Dragons dialogue, but mostly I didn't know anything extra about Minrathous. And I was Qunari - but an adopted war orphan with zero connection to anything remotely Qun, so I felt really dumb talking to Taash (and especially Shathann) about Qunari customs.
I did really love the graphics, and all the very interesting landscapes, the different cities and landscapes (the Ossuary!!!) and especially the Crossroads. The companion banter is super fun and I sort of wanted to set them all up with each other! I especially loved Taash and Lucanis talking about capes, hee. I did everybody's quests, of course, and got everyone to Hero status, and all my factions to three stars.
I did the Regrets of the Dread Wolf questline and met Mythal, and...I really tried to give good answers, but every time I failed, to the point where I figured there was no way of avoiding the fight. So I ended up having to fight her and hoo boy that was tough. And then! I looked at an "endings" walkthrough and it said I had to have resolved the quest peacefully to get the best ending, so I resigned myself to having screwed up, but haha it turns out they recommended that only because that is such a tough fight, yay, I got the best ending.
(I did not look up spoilers for the rest of the endgame, but fortunately I managed to not get my sweetheart killed.)
Anyway, it was fun, but when I finished I didn't want to jump into another epic right away, so I started playing Monument Valley, which several of you had recommended to me - and that was delightful! It's like, what if M. C. Escher had designed a puzzle game? I finished the first game and am now doing the "appendices". I also have the second game, so that's probably next.
B is playing Horizon Forbidden West, and I can't resist looking over his shoulder every once in a while. The Horizon games are still my favorites! (He's still in early days, not yet to the Embassy, just doing stuff in Chainscrape.)
and he backhands it down ice
Nov. 4th, 2025 07:35 pmmusesfoolA few years ago - I feel like it was sometime in mid-2020 - I bought a pillow that was 1. supposed to be "cooling" and 2. supposed to be good for side-sleepers, and reader, I hated it. Also it fucked up my neck a couple of times, but it was not cheap, so I kept using it. Until earlier this year, when I began trying to make my whole sleep experience better. I couldn't find the pillows I'd had prior to purchasing the crimes against my neck pillow, which I'd liked but had worn out, so I ended up getting something similar, on sale from Quince, so I was able to get 2. Which would not have been my first stop, but they were highly rated, down-alternative pillows available in 3 different firmnesses (I went with medium). It turned out to be a good purchase, because I like them so much better than the old side-sleeper pillow, which I now use between my knees.
I also finally ended up buying not a big fluffy white comforter as I was looking for earlier this year, but a white "cooling blanket" from Rest. It was a NYT Wirecutter recommendation, and it was on sale, which made me feel slightly better about spending money on it. And I do like it. I like it enough that I bought a second one in navy blue to switch out while the white one is being washed. The one thing I dislike though, is that to get the full "cooling" effect (I put it in quotes, but the material is some kind of tencel thingy that cools off very quickly, so even when I feel too hot, I can kick it off and pull it back on after a few minutes and it is cool again), is that you can't use it with a top sheet. And I know some people never use a top sheet, but I was not one of those people until I bought this blanket. But the whole point is to have this fancy cool material against your skin. *hands*
It is lighter than a comforter and probably won't work if you need weight on you to sleep, but along with the pillows, and the percale sheets I've been using since the days of frequent hot flashes and night sweats (which have thankfully become much rarer these days), I've found my sleep has definitely improved. It also helps to keep the bedroom as cool as possible. Tbh, being hot is the #1 reason I can't sleep, and even now, after all these improvements, I do still sometimes have a bad night of sleep for whatever reasons, but I feel like it's a lot less often than it used to be.
In other news, I was off today for Election Day, but since I voted by mail, I didn't have to go anywhere. I ended up taking care of some chores around the apartment that needed doing since the cleaning ladies will be coming on Thursday. And now I'm watching the Rangers lose to Carolina. Sigh.
*
I also finally ended up buying not a big fluffy white comforter as I was looking for earlier this year, but a white "cooling blanket" from Rest. It was a NYT Wirecutter recommendation, and it was on sale, which made me feel slightly better about spending money on it. And I do like it. I like it enough that I bought a second one in navy blue to switch out while the white one is being washed. The one thing I dislike though, is that to get the full "cooling" effect (I put it in quotes, but the material is some kind of tencel thingy that cools off very quickly, so even when I feel too hot, I can kick it off and pull it back on after a few minutes and it is cool again), is that you can't use it with a top sheet. And I know some people never use a top sheet, but I was not one of those people until I bought this blanket. But the whole point is to have this fancy cool material against your skin. *hands*
It is lighter than a comforter and probably won't work if you need weight on you to sleep, but along with the pillows, and the percale sheets I've been using since the days of frequent hot flashes and night sweats (which have thankfully become much rarer these days), I've found my sleep has definitely improved. It also helps to keep the bedroom as cool as possible. Tbh, being hot is the #1 reason I can't sleep, and even now, after all these improvements, I do still sometimes have a bad night of sleep for whatever reasons, but I feel like it's a lot less often than it used to be.
In other news, I was off today for Election Day, but since I voted by mail, I didn't have to go anywhere. I ended up taking care of some chores around the apartment that needed doing since the cleaning ladies will be coming on Thursday. And now I'm watching the Rangers lose to Carolina. Sigh.
*
A Thousand Beginnings and Endings, ed. Ellen Oh & Elsie Chapman (2018) [part 2]
Nov. 4th, 2025 10:50 ampauraqueThis is part two of my book club notes on A Thousand Beginnings and Endings. Part one is here.
"The Counting of Vermillion Beads" by Aliette de Bodard
( In a historical fantasy setting, sisters are indentured to work for the imperial census. )
"The Land of the Morning Calm" by E.C. Myers
( A girl discovers that her dead mother's spirit still haunts the online game she played in life. )
"The Smile" by Aisha Saeed
( A courtesan wants for nothing, but realizes it's meaningless without her freedom. )
"Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers" by Preeti Chhibber
( Teens at a Navrātri dance pull a prank that gets a little out of hand. )
"The Counting of Vermillion Beads" by Aliette de Bodard
( In a historical fantasy setting, sisters are indentured to work for the imperial census. )
"The Land of the Morning Calm" by E.C. Myers
( A girl discovers that her dead mother's spirit still haunts the online game she played in life. )
"The Smile" by Aisha Saeed
( A courtesan wants for nothing, but realizes it's meaningless without her freedom. )
"Girls Who Twirl and Other Dangers" by Preeti Chhibber
( Teens at a Navrātri dance pull a prank that gets a little out of hand. )
Fancake Theme for November: Mystery & Suspense
Nov. 3rd, 2025 07:15 amrunpunkrun posting in fandomcalendar
fancake is a thematic recommendation community where all members are welcome to post recs, and fanworks of all shapes and sizes are accepted. Check out the community guidelines for the full set of rules. This theme runs for the entire month. If you have any questions, just ask!
now he's going to try to make something happen
Nov. 2nd, 2025 06:45 pmmusesfoolSome Sunday sundries...
- Baby Miss L was sick for Halloween, but I did get a lovely picture of her from the previous weekend where she, her mother, and my sister were all dressed as witches. <333
- I made another pot of garlic and bread soup this evening and it's so good and my apartment smells like garlic and olive oil (in a good way).
- However, for the first time ever, cutting scallions made my eyes tear up like cutting onions - I guess the white part is really oniony.
- Yesterday, I also made the dough for those Levain-style chocolate chip cookies and I had one this morning and they're so good. I will be baking one off each morning for breakfast this week.
- Call me crazy, but every time I see that commercial with Paul Skenes (and Questlove and Francisco Lindor), I think it's Josh Allen at first. They look alike!
- Amazon is actually listing book 8 of Dungeon Crawler Carl (Parade of Horribles) but only on audible or in hardcover. Why is there no kindle listing??? The release date is either May 26, 2026 or June 2, 2026 - I have seen both.
- Despite my difficulties with audiobooks etc. I did try the first DCC audiobook, but the narrator sounds like he's an out of shape 40-year-old, not a jacked 27-year-old, so it didn't work for me on that level as well as the various other levels, though Donut's voice was fantastic.
- Still no word that I can find on a date for Alecto the Ninth.
- I was pulling for you, Toronto! Sorry about that. *hands* Was a great series, though, even with that ending.
- and now no more baseball until March. *sadhair*
- At least the Rangers have won a couple of games? Though I don't have a lot of optimism for their season. And I really dislike Chris Drury and his way of being a GM, and unfortunately it doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. Sigh.
*
- Baby Miss L was sick for Halloween, but I did get a lovely picture of her from the previous weekend where she, her mother, and my sister were all dressed as witches. <333
- I made another pot of garlic and bread soup this evening and it's so good and my apartment smells like garlic and olive oil (in a good way).
- However, for the first time ever, cutting scallions made my eyes tear up like cutting onions - I guess the white part is really oniony.
- Yesterday, I also made the dough for those Levain-style chocolate chip cookies and I had one this morning and they're so good. I will be baking one off each morning for breakfast this week.
- Call me crazy, but every time I see that commercial with Paul Skenes (and Questlove and Francisco Lindor), I think it's Josh Allen at first. They look alike!
- Amazon is actually listing book 8 of Dungeon Crawler Carl (Parade of Horribles) but only on audible or in hardcover. Why is there no kindle listing??? The release date is either May 26, 2026 or June 2, 2026 - I have seen both.
- Despite my difficulties with audiobooks etc. I did try the first DCC audiobook, but the narrator sounds like he's an out of shape 40-year-old, not a jacked 27-year-old, so it didn't work for me on that level as well as the various other levels, though Donut's voice was fantastic.
- Still no word that I can find on a date for Alecto the Ninth.
- I was pulling for you, Toronto! Sorry about that. *hands* Was a great series, though, even with that ending.
- and now no more baseball until March. *sadhair*
- At least the Rangers have won a couple of games? Though I don't have a lot of optimism for their season. And I really dislike Chris Drury and his way of being a GM, and unfortunately it doesn't look like it's going to change any time soon. Sigh.
*
So. November. (Holidays etc. | Cake? | Cat interpersonal dynamics)
Nov. 2nd, 2025 02:23 pmumadoshiSo here it is: the rest of autumn spread out before us, post-Hallowe'en and pre-Christmas with (in Canada) mainly the gray blur of November in between.
(It's really just as well we have our harvest celebration in October, but as always, I do envy the placement of it between Hallowe'en and Christmas in the US just in terms of not having the stretch between seasonal holidays. [I say, as if US Thanksgiving isn't horribly fraught in so many ways.] I don't know why I have such strong feelings about this. I had them before I stumbled into wanting seasonal decor at home for more than just Christmas and started feeling all adrift in that sense at this time of year.)
(This probably isn't why some people have non-holiday decor that can be swapped in and out, thus having more options, but it's a nice side effect, I imagine. *contemplates* Please feel free to tell me about your non-Hallowe'en decor! Full-on harvest stuff is not terribly seasonal here, but surely there are other options?)
Anyway. It's noticeably cooler here now, and still bright outside rather than all gray-skewed like my mental picture of the season, but the month is young.
If there are things you love about November, please share?
Last time we ordered groceries, I got a bag of Granny Smith apples with intentions of baking, and that...uh, that hasn't happened yet. Hopefully today after I get some work done, assuming nothing horrible has happened to them. (I worry about overestimating the durability of things like apples. And cabbage. We also have a cabbage. >.> It's been around longer.)
As for what to bake...well, I have my eyes on two Smitten Kitchen cakes and two RecipeTin Eats cakes (all new to us), and there's also an a cake we made last year, or just doing baked apples or crisp. We'll see.
In cat news, the other night Sinha was being a tremendous pest to Jinksy (as is typical), and unexpectedly, Jinksy remembered (???) how to scruff him! He scruffed Sinha a couple of times a couple years ago, and it's pretty much the only thing that's ever actually made Sinha back the fuck off, but then that was it. Maybe he won't go another year or more without remembering about it again. (It's such a complicated feeling for us, because Sinha makes the most pathetic keening noises and gets really upset about it [and the other night it took an hour or so of him racing around the house grumbling to himself before he settled down, which was awkward since we were trying to sleep], so it's a bit heartbreaking, but we are absolutely in favor of Jinksy standing up for himself and saying, "NO. You will STOP.")
(It's really just as well we have our harvest celebration in October, but as always, I do envy the placement of it between Hallowe'en and Christmas in the US just in terms of not having the stretch between seasonal holidays. [I say, as if US Thanksgiving isn't horribly fraught in so many ways.] I don't know why I have such strong feelings about this. I had them before I stumbled into wanting seasonal decor at home for more than just Christmas and started feeling all adrift in that sense at this time of year.)
(This probably isn't why some people have non-holiday decor that can be swapped in and out, thus having more options, but it's a nice side effect, I imagine. *contemplates* Please feel free to tell me about your non-Hallowe'en decor! Full-on harvest stuff is not terribly seasonal here, but surely there are other options?)
Anyway. It's noticeably cooler here now, and still bright outside rather than all gray-skewed like my mental picture of the season, but the month is young.
If there are things you love about November, please share?
Last time we ordered groceries, I got a bag of Granny Smith apples with intentions of baking, and that...uh, that hasn't happened yet. Hopefully today after I get some work done, assuming nothing horrible has happened to them. (I worry about overestimating the durability of things like apples. And cabbage. We also have a cabbage. >.> It's been around longer.)
As for what to bake...well, I have my eyes on two Smitten Kitchen cakes and two RecipeTin Eats cakes (all new to us), and there's also an a cake we made last year, or just doing baked apples or crisp. We'll see.
In cat news, the other night Sinha was being a tremendous pest to Jinksy (as is typical), and unexpectedly, Jinksy remembered (???) how to scruff him! He scruffed Sinha a couple of times a couple years ago, and it's pretty much the only thing that's ever actually made Sinha back the fuck off, but then that was it. Maybe he won't go another year or more without remembering about it again. (It's such a complicated feeling for us, because Sinha makes the most pathetic keening noises and gets really upset about it [and the other night it took an hour or so of him racing around the house grumbling to himself before he settled down, which was awkward since we were trying to sleep], so it's a bit heartbreaking, but we are absolutely in favor of Jinksy standing up for himself and saying, "NO. You will STOP.")
Reading (back)log
Nov. 2nd, 2025 01:06 pmumadoshiI wound up reading fourteen novels/novellas in October! Here's what I've read since my last reading check-in.
KJ Charles' The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal (historical M/M) is a neat setup, where the narrator has been partnered for years with a paranormal investigator and has written famous accounts of the cases they faced, and is now much more privately writing about their personal history and the cases that instigated and shaped their romantic partnership (with, of course, many references to cases he's already written about for the public eye).
Dweller on the Threshold is my second read by Skyla Dawn Cameron, in which a woman inherits a probably-haunted house early in the covid pandemic. It's creepy and well-done and much weirder than it initially seemed likely to be (although to nowhere near the degree of weirdness that her The Taiga Ridge Murders, which I read late last year, turned out to be).
Dreadful Company (Vivian Shaw) was a quick, fun read. It's the second Dr. Greta Helsing novel, and it left me in the odd-feeling (but not uncommon for me, really) position of having enjoyed it without feeling any particular need to seek out the following books.
What Stalks the Deep is the third of T. Kingfisher's Sworn Soldier novellas, which due to the increasingly-horrifying prices of ebooks (in particular novellas, IMO) I borrowed from the library. OT1H, that's deeply annoying, because I generally really like Ursula Vernon's writing and would like to simply buy everything, if only to support her (and yes, I do know library borrows do contribute to that as well); OTOH, I avoided spending something like $20 on a NOVELLA and was (briefly) spared the need to decide what to read next, because when this became available at the library, it became my obvious next read once I'd finished Dreadful Company. Also, I enjoyed it; I wouldn't recommend reading it without at least reading the first book in this set, and if you've read and liked the previous ones, you'll presumably like this one too.
(Before my many-years-ago-now decision to spend a year [ha!] reading mainly/only from books I'd purchased but never read--which has pretty much been ongoing ever since, because I keep buying books--I almost never had to think about what to read next, because I had several hundred holds on hard copies at the library, and basically would just put something on hold and immediately suspend the hold for a year or two [whatever the maximum was], and then frequently scroll through the list and re-suspend books if I caught them in the window between them being automatically unsuspended and actually heading my way. Whatever books I didn't catch in that window arrived for borrowing at the library, so I'd pick them up and read them, whatever they were.)
Alsoscruloose and I finished Fugitive Telemetry, although it took us long enough that I had to check it out from the library a second time (which I'd rather avoid, given my understanding of how ridiculous the ebook/audiobook situation is for libraries >.<). When we circle back to listen to the first novel, we'll definitely have to be ready to actively focus on finding time for it.
Current reading/watching: I'm a few chapters into Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil (V.E. Schwab), and on the non-fiction front, a little ways into Anne Lamott's Almost Everything: Notes on Hope.
Meanwhile,scruloose and I are two episodes into season 2 of Silo.
KJ Charles' The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal (historical M/M) is a neat setup, where the narrator has been partnered for years with a paranormal investigator and has written famous accounts of the cases they faced, and is now much more privately writing about their personal history and the cases that instigated and shaped their romantic partnership (with, of course, many references to cases he's already written about for the public eye).
Dweller on the Threshold is my second read by Skyla Dawn Cameron, in which a woman inherits a probably-haunted house early in the covid pandemic. It's creepy and well-done and much weirder than it initially seemed likely to be (although to nowhere near the degree of weirdness that her The Taiga Ridge Murders, which I read late last year, turned out to be).
Dreadful Company (Vivian Shaw) was a quick, fun read. It's the second Dr. Greta Helsing novel, and it left me in the odd-feeling (but not uncommon for me, really) position of having enjoyed it without feeling any particular need to seek out the following books.
What Stalks the Deep is the third of T. Kingfisher's Sworn Soldier novellas, which due to the increasingly-horrifying prices of ebooks (in particular novellas, IMO) I borrowed from the library. OT1H, that's deeply annoying, because I generally really like Ursula Vernon's writing and would like to simply buy everything, if only to support her (and yes, I do know library borrows do contribute to that as well); OTOH, I avoided spending something like $20 on a NOVELLA and was (briefly) spared the need to decide what to read next, because when this became available at the library, it became my obvious next read once I'd finished Dreadful Company. Also, I enjoyed it; I wouldn't recommend reading it without at least reading the first book in this set, and if you've read and liked the previous ones, you'll presumably like this one too.
(Before my many-years-ago-now decision to spend a year [ha!] reading mainly/only from books I'd purchased but never read--which has pretty much been ongoing ever since, because I keep buying books--I almost never had to think about what to read next, because I had several hundred holds on hard copies at the library, and basically would just put something on hold and immediately suspend the hold for a year or two [whatever the maximum was], and then frequently scroll through the list and re-suspend books if I caught them in the window between them being automatically unsuspended and actually heading my way. Whatever books I didn't catch in that window arrived for borrowing at the library, so I'd pick them up and read them, whatever they were.)
Also
scruloose and I finished Fugitive Telemetry, although it took us long enough that I had to check it out from the library a second time (which I'd rather avoid, given my understanding of how ridiculous the ebook/audiobook situation is for libraries >.<). When we circle back to listen to the first novel, we'll definitely have to be ready to actively focus on finding time for it.Current reading/watching: I'm a few chapters into Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil (V.E. Schwab), and on the non-fiction front, a little ways into Anne Lamott's Almost Everything: Notes on Hope.
Meanwhile,
scruloose and I are two episodes into season 2 of Silo.(no subject)
Nov. 2nd, 2025 06:30 pmthawreckaReading:
DNF - The Ten Loves of Mr Nishino by Hiromi Kawakami - I've really liked most of this author's work that I've read (Strange Weather in Tokyo is beautiful, for example), but this turns out to be a boring mosaic novel about a sexual predator from the pov of the women he messes around. The back cover copy describes him as a [curious and complicated man whose great capacity for love may well be the course of his downfall] and like... that makes him sound interesting, and he's not. I assumed it meant tragic ill-advised love affairs and not, you know, straight up rapist. Not remotely what I'm in the mood for.
Watching:
Blood River:
Also, I love that she calls his umbrella (that Changhe made for him) his treasure.
And how close Su Muyu and Su Changhe sit together at dinner! Ridiculously so!
I also watched 10 episodes of Whispers of Fate. I thought the first few episodes were pretty rough, tbh, but I stuck it out until Xiao Shunyao showed up in episode 4. The overall show started to improve from that point. May just be on my TV, but the first bunch of episodes looked really cheap, and I do feel the sound stage-y ness of it all with the non-moving backgrounds. Also the beginning felt like a lukewarm rehash of many things, including but not limited to Mysterious Lotus Casebook and every past fantasy character Luo Yunxi has ever played. But I feel like it's gone sufficiently xianxia nonsense now that I'm drawn in and the visual flourishes seem to get more interesting as it goes on. And also, so much it's that guy! Like, it's that guy from Love Game in Eastern Fantasy! And Bai Shu is in this, too! & etc. etc.
Still don't love the older man-younger woman vibe they seem to be pushing, but that's just because that's my squick, and it's not like it takes up too much screen time. I also feel like a bunch of the actors are giving the most mediocre performances of their career (Riley Wang, you're usually better than this!), for which I blame the director, but I've seen worse, so...
I'm fully caught up on Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! and This Monster Wants to Eat Me as well. I would say the latter is kind of slow in a way that stretches my disbelief, but I am overall enjoying it, and the freak 4 freak nature of the main pairing of the former is A+.
DNF - The Ten Loves of Mr Nishino by Hiromi Kawakami - I've really liked most of this author's work that I've read (Strange Weather in Tokyo is beautiful, for example), but this turns out to be a boring mosaic novel about a sexual predator from the pov of the women he messes around. The back cover copy describes him as a [curious and complicated man whose great capacity for love may well be the course of his downfall] and like... that makes him sound interesting, and he's not. I assumed it meant tragic ill-advised love affairs and not, you know, straight up rapist. Not remotely what I'm in the mood for.
Watching:
Blood River:
Episode 22
Sword deities! Just hanging out, as they like to do. I like Bai Hehaui's red dress. I like her friendship with Su Muyu and absolutely do not ship them in the slightest.Also, I love that she calls his umbrella (that Changhe made for him) his treasure.
Episode 24
They're like, look at this censors! This show is definitely sufficiently heterosexual! And meanwhile I do not believe Su Muyu has the slightest interest in seeing a naked woman. Also LOL they made a big fuss about how unclothed she would be during the procedure and she was still mostly clothed.And how close Su Muyu and Su Changhe sit together at dinner! Ridiculously so!
Episode 26
is so cool! Baby Tang Lian! Mu Qingyang fanboying over Lei Yunhe! SMY and SCH and Mu Yumo looking so damn cool as they make plans together!I also watched 10 episodes of Whispers of Fate. I thought the first few episodes were pretty rough, tbh, but I stuck it out until Xiao Shunyao showed up in episode 4. The overall show started to improve from that point. May just be on my TV, but the first bunch of episodes looked really cheap, and I do feel the sound stage-y ness of it all with the non-moving backgrounds. Also the beginning felt like a lukewarm rehash of many things, including but not limited to Mysterious Lotus Casebook and every past fantasy character Luo Yunxi has ever played. But I feel like it's gone sufficiently xianxia nonsense now that I'm drawn in and the visual flourishes seem to get more interesting as it goes on. And also, so much it's that guy! Like, it's that guy from Love Game in Eastern Fantasy! And Bai Shu is in this, too! & etc. etc.
Still don't love the older man-younger woman vibe they seem to be pushing, but that's just because that's my squick, and it's not like it takes up too much screen time. I also feel like a bunch of the actors are giving the most mediocre performances of their career (Riley Wang, you're usually better than this!), for which I blame the director, but I've seen worse, so...
I'm fully caught up on Pass the Monster Meat, Milady! and This Monster Wants to Eat Me as well. I would say the latter is kind of slow in a way that stretches my disbelief, but I am overall enjoying it, and the freak 4 freak nature of the main pairing of the former is A+.
