Month: December 2020

Rain rain rain

Kind of a gross day yesterday. Jeff and I got takeout breakfast and watched WW84, which was an enjoyable piece of fluff with lots of narrative holes, tropes and clichés.

I think it’s possible I wrote something new; no lyrics yet.

5135 words on ‘The Best Roommate in the World” and a couple of hundred words on a background interview with one of the city managers after the transition.

Tried following up with the doctor about the EEG, office was closed, I’ll try again today. Also wished the cultural competence reader a happy new year.

Three letters in the mail yesterday

Mary, Tish, Alexander.

Today: More brown bread rolls (Jeff said he kept smelling them but they were GONE TO TOM AND PEGGY’S TO BE ET), more letters, more practicing.

Did you know that the US is the only UN member that voted against the notion of Food being a human right? There were abstentions. But the US voted against it. Think about American Exceptionalism in that light.

 

No Alex

Jeff and Allegra circa 1963

Not so much as a peep out of Planet Bachelor. This paragraph deleted, and there was much rejoicing. I’ve written him a letter, now I have to figure out what I did with the last stamps. Can you believe it? I bought 48 stamps a month ago and they are all gone.

I practiced for an hour this morning, including working up a mandolin accompaniment for “I Guess I Never Felt This Way,” which the kids helped me write while we were living in Montreal. Jesus, such a long time ago now. I wouldn’t trade my troubles then for now, that’s for damned sure.

Visibility outside has crashed from 3 k to less than 200 metres. A FOGGY MORN IN BURNABY.

Time to figure out what the MIT is for today… the Most Important Thing. I’m thinking letters… I have so MANY to ANSWER. Yup.

I’m not happy with my major project for next year, but honestly, if I just record one tiny little thing per day, that will still technically work, and it’s not supposed to be fun, it’s assembling my entire life’s work in one year, so yeah, it’s work. Not everyone gets the chance to do something like that, and most women throughout history couldn’t even read.

The other daily post, that is really really going to be a grind, but 2021 is going to be the year of ‘real content or die tryin’. I’ve posted all the Throwback Thursday pictures for all of November and December 2021 so progress, yay.

Just as an aside, a suicide bomber blew up a substantial chunk of Nashville on Christmas day, but the fucking media is spavining itself coming up with ANY CONSTRUCTION BUT ‘ SUICIDE BOMBER ‘ because that’s reserved for BROWN PEOPLE.

The racism of this society is heinous bullshit.

 

Kinda hoping to see the grandson today

I don’t know if I will, but I hope to.

Part III Lord of the Rings today, unless Jeff bails. A rewatch every two years is too soon.

I want to make flower buns. I did make flower buns. I want to eat flower buns. They are baking. I didn’t set the timer, I’ll yoink ’em out in 15-20

Time for a huge mug of tea while I contemplate what to say to all my letter writers when not too much is happening. I stayed up all night and slept late and I haven’t eaten anything but bread dough and I still haven’t had the tea and it’s hours later.

Note to Jessie, to be conveyed through mOm:

It may surprise you to learn that in the view of this member of your chosen family, you are still formed for usefulness despite your trials. You are a living image of quiet perseverance; I find your continued assertion of your will and mind quite motivating.

lord of the rings rewatch

Apart from eat too much and watch Lord of the Rings (Fellowship) yesterday…. not much. OH…. I made veggie pizza for Jeff but apparently I made it wrong. I didn’t actually make it any different than I do Called Paul but it was too early in the morning.

Mike came by (we talked outside in the back yard for a while) and dropped off an oculus headset AND BABY YODA MASKS I am so happy.

ALSO we got a DELIVERY yesterday. I DIDN’T KNOW that couriers were working Christmas.

 

a short list

Unca Barry’s first letter came. I haven’t finished it as I intend to savour it but I was snorting with laughter by the second para.

Paul showed up and I drove us to Deer Lake Park where we did our normal circuit at a very good rate of knots, since there was no place to sit down, har har, because there was ice and snow on everything. Nearly wiped out on the walkway surface FARTHEST from where an extraction by ambulance could happen, as I’m grimly muttering I AM NOT FALLING DOWN AND BREAKING MY SHOULDER AGAIN.

My psychological feathers are back in place now that I’ve heard from mOm about the latest HOTM update I sent her. It’s a piece of fluff but that’s what we need these days, and I do love those characters.

Today: More posting for 2021, more writing, run dishwasher, practice, go for a walk, find the other dryer ball, Expanse 5:4, flower rolls. Amazing, I crossed that off the list already and it isn’t even noon…

 

later A THOUSAND BLESSINGS ON THE HEAD OF CINDY who BROUGHT BAKING and IT IS GOOD

 

 

posted the first week for 2021

It’s really weird to be doing it, but I’m trying to just forget about my blog unless I have something to say, and I’m tired of how whiny it’s gotten, and I feel guilty when I forget to post and my mother goes back to check three times…. this way I know there will be fresh content every day, plus this big project thingee. SO LOOKING FORWARD TO RECORDING AGAIN. I’ll be doing stuff at home too.

Made flower rolls yesterday; tea’s fresh brewed and the last three kebabs are in the oven since I decided I want meat for breakfast.  Started a load of laundry. Only slept six hours, may nap later. No letters, I’m taking a solstice break.

Paul delivered the Oodies to Planet Bachelor, thank you Paul.

Happy Solstice for those who celebrate, Blessed Yule!

The great Conjunction of Saturn and Jupiter will continue invisible; MST country is about to get smacked with a weather system that will keep things ugly for a day or two but in the meantime it’s overcast…. we may get snow but I’m betting not. Just in case I should wander out to the garage and get the salt.

Not one but two people put Martin Shkreli, Backpfeifengesicht EXTRAORDINAIRE in my twitter feed this morning. Of course I commented….

New West yesterday

Went into New West on the bus to pick up ice cream and summat for dinner and to return Mexican Gothic, which was so damned good I understood why I waited three months for it at the library, but also why I had to return it as fast as possible for the next person. On the way home I saw Peggy because she AND TOM drove over and dropped off cookies and Jeff and I ate them all in one go (almond sugar cookies). Sooooo the Christmas I AM EATING THINGS I SHOULDN’T TABLEAU continues.

So Tom is home. He sounds quite vigorous, but he doesn’t get to drive for another month and a half or so.

The big fuzzy hoodies I ordered arrived. I hope people like them and if they don’t they can give them back to me.

Finished the Right Stuff TV show. It’s a little too kitchen sinky to get the full upvote, but I enjoyed it. A second season has been optioned but not ordered.

I hope everyone has a lovely day. I don’t have much planned beyond a walk to the mailbox and add to the 3300 words I wrote on The Best Roommate in the World.

Good morning

Got an absolutely lovely letter and A DESTIEL prezzie of two little badges of Dean saying BITCH and Castiel saying ASS-BUTT from Jan M yesterday, and the Oodies arrived (I went spare and ordered immediate fam something identical for Christmas (a giant fuzzy hoodie covered in cutesy cartoon characters with an enormous pocket)) so I’ll be able to hand them out in time. Jeff got one covered in otters – I got the avocado toast. I’ve washed one and they stay really soft if you put them on fluff dry.

The badges immediately went on the Nyan-Cat hat, which Keith bought for me and has gotten more compliments than any other item of clothing I’ve ever worn, which now bears badges for trans rights, asexual rights, anarcho-feminism, anarcho-syndicalism and DESTIEL. lol

So Christmas wise a great day.

I made cinnamon sticks, wrote a letter to Tammy which I haven’t mailed, watched some TV and had a very low energy day, including no practicing (mostly because I didn’t do it first thing in the morning and next thing I know it’s FEETSBALL of which there is so very much right now thanks to the COVID screwing with schedules.) I did however wash and change my sheets and the duvet cover, and so slept very well last night. Lying in bed with my heart pounding because I forgot to call Tom AGAIN and it was now too late was how my day finished.

Today I’m going into New West to pick up some baking stuff and drop off Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, which finally came in to the library and which I must now return immediately so the next person who has it on hold can get it, because it would be rude to keep it until the middle of JANUARY. I read it all at one go in the bathtub yesterday. It was unpredictable without being unfair to the reader, reversed some horror tropes in lovely, finicky, hard-to-accomplish ways, centred brown bodies and minds, and had some really really cool things to say about colonialism and horror. And the monster is so monstrous. Just horrific and smelly, exactly as a monster should be. Plus a resolution totally made for me.  Yup. Noemí is a great heroine and given that the book is a NYT bestseller I have to assume that this sucker’s going to be made into a movie or miniseries, and I can hardly wait. Silvia is the co-author of the book about writing SF/F I recently bought AND she lives in Vancouver AND she’s a Dunnetteer, although she didn’t attend the ‘spit’ she told a friend she might go to, which I attended, so I didn’t get a chance to meet her. She sounds fascinating and a total boss.

We’re rewatching the Librarians. Blasted through the first 3 episodes of Season 5 of the Expanse – totally back on form after a very unpleasant and badly arranged season 4 AND THEY SHOULD NEVER HAVE LET NAOMI MAKE PLANETFALL THAT WAS STUPID and not in the books. But it’s great again. And now I have to WAIT again because they only released the first three episodes.

Elementary continues to be our TV palate cleanser. It is the show against which other shows must be compared, much to their detriment. Only POI, Burn Notice first 5 seasons, Fringe and ER come close.

I’m 3000 words into ‘the Best Roommate in the World’. Some addition, some very necessary infill. Don’t worry mOm when I’m up to 4K words I’ll send you the update.

okay COMING UP ON 4 AM when the wifi goes down for three hours so I can write and practice and do laundry etcetera so I gotta go. Everybody look busy! It’s Christmas bustle time!!