Reusable fabric bags for the win! After spending 16 hours last year wrapping presents only to have them open and in the trash in less than one I decided I was done. I instead spent more than forty hours making reusable fabric bags and now have a tradition to keep with my kids for years.
My favourite noise in the whole world is hearing my littlest nephew say his breathy "wow" in my ear while I hold him and he sees something he loves (like the vacuum cleaner, a car, or Christmas lights).
It was his first word after "Mum" and "Dad". It sums him up pretty well.
Big day. Hustle time.
I get to invent my next job and persuade the people who would hire me that they need that function.
Plus, I get to interview an interesting man.
And I have time for a great museum inbetween.
To top it off: sunshine bike ride.
Fischfrikadellen, was soll man bei dem Wetter denn sonst machen
Rediscovered the teachings of classical Stoicism.
on :akkofistup: :BigBlobhajHug:
1. New hot water bottles arrived! They have cute little sweaters to keep them extra warm. Now me and the kids each have our own again.
2. An unexpected new delight: Michelle Sagara's Shards of Glass. Magic school/dark academia, and no need to have read anything else set in that world first. Loving it!
3. Fiiiinally got my market list out, and replied to a few long-overdue emails. .
1. If the day's not going well, you can take a nap and when you wake up it's a whole new awesome day. And by you I mean me.
2. When the gives me potatoes and cabbage, I have to make borscht (see pic) or my ancestors would disown me. Oh noes. And the chive cheddar buttermilk biscuits turned out AMAZING, too.
3. New clothes for the fam arrived (thanks, Old Navy's Black Friday sale...) and they all fit properly!
Like quite a few folks, my mastodon 1st anniversary was a few weeks ago some reflections from the ride so far...
Joined just prior to John Mastodon founding & naming the platform after himself, and have learned a lot from the always gracious JM
Appreciate how artists sharing their work plus community/mutual aid are welcome here (there are, of course, some turdslaws about it, h/t , so we should all keep encouraging both)
Today, we picked out a Christmas tree, had gluhwein (wei!), shared a slice of Stollen, worked out. I finished knitting a hat I started 2-3 years ago. We checked on our folks. We watched some football. We admire the snow.
Currently working, courier driving and picking up pathology samples.
Just went to a reproductive and IVF clinic to pick up specimens.
There was a tradie down the road playing Led Zeppelin full blast. Walking out of the IVF Clinic and hearing "I'm Gonna Give You Every Inch of my Love!!!" Seemed weirdly appropriate.
1. I climbed on the roof and put up Christmas lights! In Minnesota, getting this done before Thanksgiving is a victory, because soon ice and snow will make roof-climbing ... inadvisable.
2. SFWA weekly Zoom writing dates. Camaraderie + writing productivity = what's not to like
3. My kids' Sunday School assignment was making protest signs and doing a peace march along a busy street, and that warmed my Mennonite heart. Very proud of them.
1. I fixed broken wiring on my desk's fairy lights (I NEED their light and hygge now!). It took 20 minutes and was very fiddly and I really thought I was going to fail, but I did it!
2. I scheduled a plumber to fix a leak in the basement slop sink.
3. I tackled editing the written-incredibly-out-of-order, missing bits, important beginning of my WiP's final act. Gotta get it straightened out before errors iterate.
1. Election Day tacos at Cocina Latina! Years ago, we were promised a taco truck on every corner if Hillary won. We keep that dream alive with tacos every election day.
2. I rewrote the Amazon description of my post-apocalyptic steampunk western, A Circus of Brass and Bone. I am SO MUCH happier with it. Reader quotes FTW.
3. 4theWords' special NaNoWriMo event is awesome. I'm more productive, even though I'm not NaNoing!
1. Helped a friend dig her yard up, with my 12yo son, and my bad knee is not even angrier than usual at me today!
2. Actual blue sky in November.
3. My ridiculous cats continue to be ridiculously amusing. Yes, Creamsicle was trying to sleep *literally* upside-down.
So, yesterday was my one year anniversary of being here on Mastodon. I have to say, I have not regretted being here, or leaving the "bird site," for even a nanosecond. Here's to more greatness with more great people, for years to come!!
1. I got my car back!! It's been 1 1/2 weeks, thanks to trouble getting a part for the old rustbucket. Highlights included an epic bus/walk to get my kid's school computer to him yesterday morning.
2. The unparalleled commentaries of noted giallo horror historian Tim Lucas (If you like horror and you haven't heard a Lucas commentary, treat yo' self!)
3. IKEA. Tins of Christmas ginger cookies are out! And their veggie dogs are sooooo goooood.
Evening run. Its dark early, but we have a nice place to run near home that is well lit and always busy even in the evening.
I found out that a Korean book I read last year and loved had been recorded as audiobook, so I listened to it that while running. Even though I already know the stories, I dont mind listening to them again.
Received my agenda for 2024. Now to wait two whole months before I can use it
Fabulous things for a Fabulous Planet.
1. The feel of wrapping my electric lap blanket around my back and feeling that radiant warmth seeping in.
2. Made a new hoisin chicken stir-fry recipe using CSA veg. including mibuna greens and jicama (great sub for water chestnut), plus okra (fried) and ALL MY PICKY EATERS LIKED IT. Miraculous.
3. Wrapped up listening to all the Author Ad Challenge Q&A and bonus videos before they disappeared. Learned some stuff.
1. Friday! I didn't have to browbeat the kids into doing their homework that evening--I have the whole weekend for that.
2. I wore my winter coat to the kid's bus stop. So when I also accidentally locked myself out of the house ... I didn't freeze. It was only mildly inconvenient to wait for Phil's rescue with his keys.
3. Publication! A Halloween-themed quarterly anthology, including my "You Are in the Heart of the Corn Maze."
Wore my favourite oversized hoodie.
Bought a new Nebula notebook because Im reaching the end of the current one. Ill start the new one just for November, its perfect!
Ginkgo trees are turning yellow. It was really a beautiful sight this afternoon.
1. I went to the school's parent-teacher group and helped plan future things in the face of despair. Adulting! Also, I got to be Idea Person, one of the roles that I'm good at in organizations.
2. Misty autumn days. The best.
3. I am very grateful that my little robot vacuum goes and cleans up spilled cat litter so I don't have to!
What was the best good thing from your day
Oct 24
1) Dancing. I am still loving learning to dance. Today was the start of a tango.
2) I've decided which blanket I want to make next
3) Tiny Dog burrowing into my dressing gown for a snooze. Yes, I was still wearing it.
1. Finally dropped my car off to have a broken headlight replaced (case broke last winter, though the light still functioned).
2. Vigorous discussion with spouse over lunch date. Good Internet vs. Bad Internet, differences from Doctorow's Enshittification Hypothesis. (How) can we fix it
3. Stayed up till midnight to wrap up an Amazon Ads for Authors series of videos, and learned some new tricks.
1. We went to a jack o'lantern extravaganza that was SO worth it. Excellent for the season. I have so many photos, you can't imagine.
2. Getting kiddo to finish her homework just in time.
3. Sambusas and Somali tea in a little cafe while waiting for my kiddos to finish Sunday school. They were playing a loud livestream of an imam reciting in Arabic, so not sure I'd recommend it as a get-work-done cafe, but the food and tea was really good.
1. The kids earned extra screen time from all the outdoors time leaf-peeping at the Landscape Arboretum on Friday, so we had a nice relaxed Saturday.
2. IT Lash Blowout mascara. I found a mascara that I don't even feel when it's on!
3. Halloween party! Alas, I didn't get a photo, so you'll have to take my word for it that my Morticia Addams costume turned out well.
today - buying a new to me sofa, lemon drizzle cookies from Lidl, soup, catch up (via text) with a friend, a huge mug of tea thats sitting next to me now.
We will ignore the bad things, they are pretty much my usual.
Soon going to be time to crawl into a cosy bed with a good book and wait for the arrival of The next few days will be spent at home and hoping family and friends that live in the red warning area are okay.
1. Watched the first episode of the new season of Loki with spouse, and it is AMAZINGLY CHAOTIC. ::chef's kiss::
2. Free carton of La Croix from my co-op, thanks to their "owners" freebie coupons. In my middle age, I have started actually drinking this stuff. Weirdness. But I love freebies!
3. Installing freebie curbside storage shelving under my kid's lofted bed, where it fits perfectly.
1. Took a very short bike trip to get my daughter to her free tennis activity. Not as recovered from Covid as I thought I was. It wiped me out I slept until almost 11am today. But getting her--and me--on our bikes is still good.
2. Coffee shop writing and a Pumpkin Spice Lawsuit (their version of a PSL, with actual pumpkin).
3. Scouted murals for a future photo walk.
1. Watching Moonlighting (old TV mystery show with Bruce Willis and Cybill Shepherd, now on Hulu) with the kids while folding laundry before bed. I'd never seen it before. Pretty fun show! The kids liked it too: I'm now forbidden from watching it on my own.
2. Bought a new phone to replace my broken one. Not the model I wanted (too expensive), but it'll do. Pixel 6 Pro, refurb.
3. Halloween decorating with electric votives + a dozen tiny jack o'lanterns.
1. Our new Roomba did a great job on the carpet in the cat porch.
2. I got an extra 300ish words written in the evening, over my word goal, thanks to 4theWords.
3. Figured out who is going to end up a corpse-puppet, and why it will wrench the hearts of my readers.
1) I am out of quarantine for Covid and feeling improved if not all better, though I'm still masking around my family for 2 more days.
2) This cup lid, which I got with a matching mug at our favorite Asian grocery store and then discovered it fits all my large coffee mugs! Magic.
3) My electric lap blanket. Best thing ever for writers working in cold attic garrets.
A little day brightener! This started with a wild brush line that might be a distant horizon or a dragon (depending on your mood or perspective).
gouache in 5x8" journal
Wins for today -
A short walk.
Tofu fajitas (my first proper meal in days, living on toast or sandwiches a lot lately).
A chat with a neighbour.
Cuddles from my neighbours dog.
A little bit of cross stitch done.
Lots of laughs with the child.
Thats lots of good things to feel positive about. Been trying to avoid things that bring me down.
Time for pjs, then a cup of tea (and probably toast - I'm not being THAT good).
It rained last night and yesterday afternoon and I came home to the most beautiful and huge chanterelle underneath my rosemary bush. And then this morning I got to watch the first flight of a fledgling blue jay.
I hope this gives you a warm feeling.
Tube (AKA valve) amplification gives that embrace of deep bass, warm mid-range and non-fatiguing treble that makes music shine.
If you ever get the chance check out the Seashore Trolley Museum not far from there in Maine. Pretty cool wooden New Zealand Trolley there from 1903 too
A burst of deep magenta ink to brighten your day!
I make a lot of small format collages, usually on 3x5' index cards. These move forward in an impromptu way, one decision leading to the next (not planned in advance) -- just keep going until it's interesting!