Relevant, interests
Apr. 23rd, 2025 02:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rydra_wong"You Wouldn't Steal A Gender" and "I Would Definitely Steal A Gender" badges, in exactly the font you'd expect.
rydra_wongDaily Happiness
Apr. 22nd, 2025 10:22 pmtorachan1. I had another work from home day. I'm about halfway caught up with my email and fully caught up with teams. Tomorrow I've got a couple meetings, so I've got to go in to the office, but I might work from home again on Thursday to finally catch up on everything.
2. When Carla was out today she stopped at Uncle Tetsu's, a Japanese cheesecake chain. They have a sakura cheesecake right now and we had some after dinner tonight and it was sooooooo good. I normally prefer New York style cheesecake to the Japanese fluffier style, but this was really good consistency and the sakura flavor was amazing.
3. I finished playing The Plucky Squire. Overall it's a pretty fun game, but it is not just a straight action adventure game. There are a bunch of (frankly not that fun) mini games for the boss fights and stuff where you have to play other styles of games and that is not what I signed up for. Like for one character's boss battles you play a Mike Tyson style boxing game, for another it's a rhythm game, and for the third it's a Puzzle Bobble type. Then there are some stealth sequences where you have to sneak past enemies who can kill you instantly if they sense you, and if they sense you there is no way to run to escape, even if you're close to a place you could get away. You're just instantly dead. And the final battle is a space shooter type. The good thing is that if you die in a boss battle you can sometimes restart partway through, not all the way at the beginning, and the stealth sequences have multiple checkpoints and you'll respawn there rather than back at the beginning. But I would still have preferred not to have that "variety" in my action adventure game. Still is a fun game, though. But if you suck at those types of games it might ruin it for you.
4. I finished editing all my Disney Japan pics, so hopefully I can get the last day's posts written up later this week.
5. Jasper is just so handsome.
2. When Carla was out today she stopped at Uncle Tetsu's, a Japanese cheesecake chain. They have a sakura cheesecake right now and we had some after dinner tonight and it was sooooooo good. I normally prefer New York style cheesecake to the Japanese fluffier style, but this was really good consistency and the sakura flavor was amazing.
3. I finished playing The Plucky Squire. Overall it's a pretty fun game, but it is not just a straight action adventure game. There are a bunch of (frankly not that fun) mini games for the boss fights and stuff where you have to play other styles of games and that is not what I signed up for. Like for one character's boss battles you play a Mike Tyson style boxing game, for another it's a rhythm game, and for the third it's a Puzzle Bobble type. Then there are some stealth sequences where you have to sneak past enemies who can kill you instantly if they sense you, and if they sense you there is no way to run to escape, even if you're close to a place you could get away. You're just instantly dead. And the final battle is a space shooter type. The good thing is that if you die in a boss battle you can sometimes restart partway through, not all the way at the beginning, and the stealth sequences have multiple checkpoints and you'll respawn there rather than back at the beginning. But I would still have preferred not to have that "variety" in my action adventure game. Still is a fun game, though. But if you suck at those types of games it might ruin it for you.
4. I finished editing all my Disney Japan pics, so hopefully I can get the last day's posts written up later this week.
5. Jasper is just so handsome.
2025 Disneyland Trip #23 (4/5/25) Tokyo DisneySea (Part 2)
Apr. 22nd, 2025 10:08 pmtorachanWhen I last left off, we had just checked out the big gift shop at the Fantasy Springs hotel and were exploring the land while waiting for our return time for the Peter Pan ride.
( More DisneySea adventures! )
( More DisneySea adventures! )
If anyone could use a morale boost
Apr. 22nd, 2025 05:17 pmrydra_wonghttps://www.lgbtqnation.com/2025/04/protests-erupt-across-the-uk-after-supreme-court-ruled-against-trans-rights/
Many many pictures.
Also, more protests yet to come, apparently, with ones scheduled for Oxford and Cambridge.
Many many pictures.
Also, more protests yet to come, apparently, with ones scheduled for Oxford and Cambridge.
Daily Happiness
Apr. 21st, 2025 08:52 pmtorachan1. I worked from home today, getting a fair amount of catching up done. Unfortunately I forgot that I also had to double check all my stores' budgets for next month today so that did take some time away from the email and teams catch-up, but I should be able to focus more on that tomorrow. (Probably will mostly work from home tomorrow, too.)
2. We bought a sweater for Alexander for his birthday and even though his birthday is not until next week, gave it to him yesterday so he could try it on and see if it fit, and it was a little big so we said we'd be happy to go exchange it. I was just thinking to exchange it whenever we next go, but there was availability today and Carla felt like going to Disneyland, so while I had to stay home and focus on my email backlog, she went and exchanged the sweater and had a nice morning at DCA. She managed to find all the rest of the hidden easter eggs there (eventually with some help from an online guide) and took pictures, but I'm just going to include those with our next trip post rather than make a separate one. They had Lightning McQueen and Mater ones which are super cute, though.
3. We bought a stereo for the garage and it arrived today. As all modern stereos do these days, it also has bluetooth capability to connect to your phone, but she mainly wanted it for playing actual CDs. Her current CD rack is overflowing, so we need to get another and then move the CDs out to the garage so she can have them out there with the stereo. Nice thing is, unless you're standing right by the door or window, even with it turned up pretty loud you really can't hear much from outside. Amazing what insulation can do!
4. I love the look on Ollie's face here, but he was even cuter before I turned on the light and came in. It wasn't dark but was dim enough that he was really well camouflaged in the box!
2. We bought a sweater for Alexander for his birthday and even though his birthday is not until next week, gave it to him yesterday so he could try it on and see if it fit, and it was a little big so we said we'd be happy to go exchange it. I was just thinking to exchange it whenever we next go, but there was availability today and Carla felt like going to Disneyland, so while I had to stay home and focus on my email backlog, she went and exchanged the sweater and had a nice morning at DCA. She managed to find all the rest of the hidden easter eggs there (eventually with some help from an online guide) and took pictures, but I'm just going to include those with our next trip post rather than make a separate one. They had Lightning McQueen and Mater ones which are super cute, though.
3. We bought a stereo for the garage and it arrived today. As all modern stereos do these days, it also has bluetooth capability to connect to your phone, but she mainly wanted it for playing actual CDs. Her current CD rack is overflowing, so we need to get another and then move the CDs out to the garage so she can have them out there with the stereo. Nice thing is, unless you're standing right by the door or window, even with it turned up pretty loud you really can't hear much from outside. Amazing what insulation can do!
4. I love the look on Ollie's face here, but he was even cuter before I turned on the light and came in. It wasn't dark but was dim enough that he was really well camouflaged in the box!
Poetry month: For the New House by Ursula K. Le Guin
Apr. 21st, 2025 02:38 pmresonantFor the New House by Ursula K. Le Guin
May this house be full of kitchen smells
and shadows and toys and nests of mice
and roars of rage and waterfalls of tears
and deep sexual silences and sounds
of mysterious origin never explained
and troves and keepsakes and a lot of junk
and a flowing like a warm wind only slower
blowing the leaves of trees and books and the fish-years
of a child’s life silvery flickering
quick, quick, in the slow incessant gust
that billows out the curtains for a moment
all those years from now, ago.
May the sills and doorframes
be in blessing blest at every passing.
May the roof but not the rooms know rain.
May the windows know clearly
the branch and flower of the apple tree.
And may you be in this house
as the music is in the instrument.
May this house be full of kitchen smells
and shadows and toys and nests of mice
and roars of rage and waterfalls of tears
and deep sexual silences and sounds
of mysterious origin never explained
and troves and keepsakes and a lot of junk
and a flowing like a warm wind only slower
blowing the leaves of trees and books and the fish-years
of a child’s life silvery flickering
quick, quick, in the slow incessant gust
that billows out the curtains for a moment
all those years from now, ago.
May the sills and doorframes
be in blessing blest at every passing.
May the roof but not the rooms know rain.
May the windows know clearly
the branch and flower of the apple tree.
And may you be in this house
as the music is in the instrument.
UK people: disability benefit cuts
Apr. 21st, 2025 09:48 amrydra_wongRebellion is growing among Labour MPs, so if you have a Labour MP, now is a VERY good and important time to write to them to protest the proposed PIP and other cuts:
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/apr/20/the-whole-policy-is-wrong-rebellion-among-labour-mps-grows-over-5bn-benefits-cut
(If you have a non-Labour MP, hassle them too and see if they can be persuaded to do something vaguely useful.)
https://www.theguardian.com/society/2025/apr/20/the-whole-policy-is-wrong-rebellion-among-labour-mps-grows-over-5bn-benefits-cut
(If you have a non-Labour MP, hassle them too and see if they can be persuaded to do something vaguely useful.)
Daily Happiness
Apr. 20th, 2025 09:00 pmtorachan1. Back to work tomorrow. I am not enthused about that, but I did really enjoy my time off and I felt like being off for three weeks allowed me to actually disconnect more from work than I usually do if I'm just off a couple days or even a week. I did glance at my email and messages every day, but only responded less than ten times and even when I looked at the phone screen to see the messages, I only did so once or twice a day, rather than multiple times throughout the day. Tomorrow will be the start of a huge catch-up (thousands of messages to get through) and I think I will just work from home tomorrow unless something else comes up, so at least it will be a slow easing back into things. And since it's the last week of the month, there are less meetings, which means for time for catching up.
2. We had a lovely time at DCA this morning. I've heard that easter can be a pretty busy day but while it was getting a little busier by the time we left, it was super light in the first few hours and the weather was great.
3. I love getting shots of the cats looking out the window.
2. We had a lovely time at DCA this morning. I've heard that easter can be a pretty busy day but while it was getting a little busier by the time we left, it was super light in the first few hours and the weather was great.
3. I love getting shots of the cats looking out the window.
2025 Disneyland Trip #28 (4/20/25)
Apr. 20th, 2025 06:39 pmtorachanLast day of the Food and Wine Festival so last chance to ride Soarin' Over California before it goes back to Soarin' Over the World.
( Read more... )
( Read more... )
Weekly Reading
Apr. 20th, 2025 06:12 pmtorachanCurrently Reading
The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill
26%. The MC is a cleaner who goes in and deep-cleans the houses where people have lain dead and undiscovered for a long time. She stumbles upon a mystery when two of her recent jobs have had the same dried flower at the scene. Pretty interesting so far.
Architectural Follies in America
16%. This is a short, picture-filled book about various odd buildings in the US. Randomly found it in a neighborhood Little Library. It's interesting.
A Drop of Corruption
23%. This has definitely picked up now and I'm a lot more interested in what's going on. Just haven't been making much progress because I've been off work and the majority of my audiobook time is in the car. Also a note on the audiobook, and I had this problem with the otherwise excellent audiobook versions of The Locked Tomb series, but there are pronunciation changes from the first book! I'm guessing that after the first book's audiobook came out, the narrator got feedback from the author and then made changes for the following books, but it's really jarring and I wish that if the author really wanted names/words said a certain way (or in the case of The Locked Tomb, certain accents used) then they would make note of that first, rather than changing mid-series. (And if it's just the narrator making changes rather than author feedback, I wish they wouldn't make those changes, either. Pick a pronunciation and stick to it!)
Hidden Figures
44%.
Recently Finished
Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery
Sequel to Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Virtue. This felt like maybe there was supposed to be more books in the series and it all got wrapped up quickly in the end? It was all right, but I wasn't super into either book.
The Boney Hand
Sequel to Charlie & Frog. Another mystery in the town. This was cute. Seems like the author maybe wanted it to be a series but there haven't been any more books after this.
The Amelia Six
Middle grade book about a group of girls who win an overnight stay at Amelia Earhart's childhood home, but while they're there, her goggles go missing and they have to solve the mystery. It was just all right.
Murderburg
Apparently originally a web comic, this graphic novel is about a small island town inhabited mostly by criminals. The actual name is Muderburg, but everyone calls it Murderburg. The main characters are not even thinly veiled Morticia and Gomez, though the children are not Wednesday and Pugsly. It was fine. Somewhat funny in places but mostly just there.
Break Out
Heavy-handed graphic novel about a world where mysterious and possibly alien cubes appear in the sky and start randomly kidnapping people. But it only happens to teens, so when the governments of the world have done all they can and can't find a way to stop it, they just say well, it's just a few people here and there, we'll just have to live with it. Then the kids save the day. Obviously paralelling school shootings, but it felt like the message was more important than the story itself, because the plot is just one of those types where so many coincidences happen just right that it feels unbelievable.
Do Da Dancin'!: Venice Competition vol. 1-2
I'm not enjoying this quite as much as the original series, but it's good enough that I'll finish it.
Umimachi Diary vol. 8-9
Overall this series was just okay. I originally read the first three volumes on a limited time free promotion and liked them a lot, but when I finally got around to reading the rest of the series now I just found it kind of dragged. Not bad, but just okay.
The Undiscovered Deaths of Grace McGill
26%. The MC is a cleaner who goes in and deep-cleans the houses where people have lain dead and undiscovered for a long time. She stumbles upon a mystery when two of her recent jobs have had the same dried flower at the scene. Pretty interesting so far.
Architectural Follies in America
16%. This is a short, picture-filled book about various odd buildings in the US. Randomly found it in a neighborhood Little Library. It's interesting.
A Drop of Corruption
23%. This has definitely picked up now and I'm a lot more interested in what's going on. Just haven't been making much progress because I've been off work and the majority of my audiobook time is in the car. Also a note on the audiobook, and I had this problem with the otherwise excellent audiobook versions of The Locked Tomb series, but there are pronunciation changes from the first book! I'm guessing that after the first book's audiobook came out, the narrator got feedback from the author and then made changes for the following books, but it's really jarring and I wish that if the author really wanted names/words said a certain way (or in the case of The Locked Tomb, certain accents used) then they would make note of that first, rather than changing mid-series. (And if it's just the narrator making changes rather than author feedback, I wish they wouldn't make those changes, either. Pick a pronunciation and stick to it!)
Hidden Figures
44%.
Recently Finished
Winterborne Home for Mayhem and Mystery
Sequel to Winterborne Home for Vengeance and Virtue. This felt like maybe there was supposed to be more books in the series and it all got wrapped up quickly in the end? It was all right, but I wasn't super into either book.
The Boney Hand
Sequel to Charlie & Frog. Another mystery in the town. This was cute. Seems like the author maybe wanted it to be a series but there haven't been any more books after this.
The Amelia Six
Middle grade book about a group of girls who win an overnight stay at Amelia Earhart's childhood home, but while they're there, her goggles go missing and they have to solve the mystery. It was just all right.
Murderburg
Apparently originally a web comic, this graphic novel is about a small island town inhabited mostly by criminals. The actual name is Muderburg, but everyone calls it Murderburg. The main characters are not even thinly veiled Morticia and Gomez, though the children are not Wednesday and Pugsly. It was fine. Somewhat funny in places but mostly just there.
Break Out
Heavy-handed graphic novel about a world where mysterious and possibly alien cubes appear in the sky and start randomly kidnapping people. But it only happens to teens, so when the governments of the world have done all they can and can't find a way to stop it, they just say well, it's just a few people here and there, we'll just have to live with it. Then the kids save the day. Obviously paralelling school shootings, but it felt like the message was more important than the story itself, because the plot is just one of those types where so many coincidences happen just right that it feels unbelievable.
Do Da Dancin'!: Venice Competition vol. 1-2
I'm not enjoying this quite as much as the original series, but it's good enough that I'll finish it.
Umimachi Diary vol. 8-9
Overall this series was just okay. I originally read the first three volumes on a limited time free promotion and liked them a lot, but when I finally got around to reading the rest of the series now I just found it kind of dragged. Not bad, but just okay.
reading
Apr. 21st, 2025 12:49 amcimoreneI finished reading The Abbot (Scott) and The Roots of the Mountains (Morris), but I haven't been able to take time to compose posts about them because I saved a ton of quotations and I really wanted to finish the sweater I've been knitting. I finished weaving in the ends today, so tomorrow I can block it.
Also the remaining Emily Wilson translations I've got are Roman plays by Seneca, not Greek tragedies, and I'm not liking them as much. Also the book is a pdf which is always a pain. I've got another William Morris reread and another Walter Scott novel set in the middle ages to read queued up, but I'm taking a break to reread the original Villeneuve Beauty and the Beast, which I've been meaning to get around to for a while, because it has hilariously elaborate fairy lore backstory but I couldn't remember the specifics.
Also the remaining Emily Wilson translations I've got are Roman plays by Seneca, not Greek tragedies, and I'm not liking them as much. Also the book is a pdf which is always a pain. I've got another William Morris reread and another Walter Scott novel set in the middle ages to read queued up, but I'm taking a break to reread the original Villeneuve Beauty and the Beast, which I've been meaning to get around to for a while, because it has hilariously elaborate fairy lore backstory but I couldn't remember the specifics.
Daily Happiness
Apr. 19th, 2025 10:07 pmtorachan1. We went to the farmers market this morning. I wish it was on Sundays instead of Saturdays because we usually go to Disneyland on Saturday morning, but this week we're going tomorrow instead, so we could go to the farmers market today. Sadly the Filipino tamales guy was not there this week, but we did get some of the delicious chocolate dipped macaroons we've gotten the last few times we went.
2. For dinner we ordered pizza from a fancy local place we have been meaning to try for years and never get around to. Sadly the one pizza I was most interested in from their menu was not available (butternut squash), but we got a zucchini one and a meat lovers one and both were very tasty. Definitely would order from there in the future, though it's not an every day place, that's for sure.
3. Usually I make a chocolate sheet cake for Carla's birthday but because we were out of town, I totally forgot about it, until randomly a channel Carla follows on youtube had a video about it, so I decided to make it today. I don't bake very much anymore and this cake is a lot of work, but it's soooooo good. After I'd already started mixing ingredients, Carla mentioned making a half-batch, but it was too late by then, but for next time I definitely will. We hardly use our large oven anymore and it's become a cupboard instead, so it has to be made in two small sheet pans to fit in the Breville, and that made it a little more annoying, plus we just don't need that much cake. I can give a good chunk to Alexander to take home with him tomorrow, at least.
4. Chloe and Molly were twinning on the bed.
2. For dinner we ordered pizza from a fancy local place we have been meaning to try for years and never get around to. Sadly the one pizza I was most interested in from their menu was not available (butternut squash), but we got a zucchini one and a meat lovers one and both were very tasty. Definitely would order from there in the future, though it's not an every day place, that's for sure.
3. Usually I make a chocolate sheet cake for Carla's birthday but because we were out of town, I totally forgot about it, until randomly a channel Carla follows on youtube had a video about it, so I decided to make it today. I don't bake very much anymore and this cake is a lot of work, but it's soooooo good. After I'd already started mixing ingredients, Carla mentioned making a half-batch, but it was too late by then, but for next time I definitely will. We hardly use our large oven anymore and it's become a cupboard instead, so it has to be made in two small sheet pans to fit in the Breville, and that made it a little more annoying, plus we just don't need that much cake. I can give a good chunk to Alexander to take home with him tomorrow, at least.
4. Chloe and Molly were twinning on the bed.
2025 Disneyland Trip #23 (4/5/25) Tokyo DisneySea (Part 1)
Apr. 19th, 2025 08:54 pmtorachanUp until just recently (April 1st, as it happens), the rides in Fantasy Springs were virtual queue only, so you really had to get there early to lock in the return times, but as of this month, they now have regular standby lines in addition to the paid premier access for three of the four rides (the Tinkerbell ride is standby-only). Still, I wanted to make sure we were in the park right when it opened to get those premier access passes, especially for Frozen, since that is the most popular ride.
So I went over to the park around seven and got in line, and Carla planned to meet up with me before nine. ( That was definitely the right plan! )
So I went over to the park around seven and got in line, and Carla planned to meet up with me before nine. ( That was definitely the right plan! )
Happy Saturday
Apr. 19th, 2025 04:20 pmcofax7Hey folks!
Still alive, still employed! Booyah.
Not loving the job right now: it's never boring, but I had never intended to be a manager of people, and it's really quite stressful. Plus, you know, ::waves vaguely:: the omnishambles of everything is not helping.
But I did take the Tornado out for a 7-mile hike this morning, and she behaved quite well, and we just did some agility practice, and she got six weave poles in a row! Five times! So great. (If you have never seen dog agility, it looks like this, although that's one of the top dogs in the UK, and the Tornado is just beginning her agility journey.)
I call her the Tornado because she is Very. High. Energy. (And tends to knock things over.) I fear she will be one of the dogs barking all the way through the agility course.
Anyway, I'm planning some vacation time this summer, although it feels a little weird to be planning an international trip at this time. I plan to do some judicious app-deletion before coming back through Customs, because that's the world we live in right now.
Currently very excited about both Andor and Murderbot! I've already gotten a tiny bit spoiled for Andor, so I think I will have to lock down my browsing for the next few days. I understand the next Star Wars animated show (after Underworld) is also going to be about Darth Maul, and I'm kind of dubious, but maybe they can do something interesting with it. Myself, I would rather have learned more about Omega's adventures in the Rebellion.
I'm halfway through this month's book for book club, but it's heavy going: Therese Raquin, by Zola. I have liked Zola: he's very grounded, very vivid. Not at all romantic. But these characters are really very unlikeable. I may end up skimming a lot to finish by Tuesday.
***
I feel like I'm running out of plotty time-travel fixit fics in which determined heroes (and heroines) go back in time and prevent the errors of their forebearers. I suspect I have not found the right tags on AO3...
In other news, I am listening to Mind the Tags, a charming podcast about fandom, specifically fic-writing fandom. And although the hosts are quite nice, they're so young, and I found myself talking back to them as they fumbled their way through a discussion of the early days of alt.tv.x-files.creative. They tried to talk about show-specific archives and auto-archiving and never even mentioned Ephemeral and Gossamer! There are plenty of us fandom Olds still around!
(Although, how cool is it that Gossamer is still up? WTF.)
Still, it's a very friendly and upbeat podcast full of enthusiasm for fandom and fannish institutions, so I encourage y'all to give it a try if that's the sort of thing you enjoy. I found them because one of the hosts got interviewed by Anne Helen Peterson on her Culture Study podcast, which is also great.
In other other news, I lined up a group of local pals to go see our local minor league baseball team next month! So that will be fun! I like minor-league baseball because it's cheap and low-stakes and you can sit outside and drink beer and eat corn dogs and it doesn't really matter except you're there with a crowd and it's just fun. And all the seats are good.
Still alive, still employed! Booyah.
Not loving the job right now: it's never boring, but I had never intended to be a manager of people, and it's really quite stressful. Plus, you know, ::waves vaguely:: the omnishambles of everything is not helping.
But I did take the Tornado out for a 7-mile hike this morning, and she behaved quite well, and we just did some agility practice, and she got six weave poles in a row! Five times! So great. (If you have never seen dog agility, it looks like this, although that's one of the top dogs in the UK, and the Tornado is just beginning her agility journey.)
I call her the Tornado because she is Very. High. Energy. (And tends to knock things over.) I fear she will be one of the dogs barking all the way through the agility course.
Anyway, I'm planning some vacation time this summer, although it feels a little weird to be planning an international trip at this time. I plan to do some judicious app-deletion before coming back through Customs, because that's the world we live in right now.
Currently very excited about both Andor and Murderbot! I've already gotten a tiny bit spoiled for Andor, so I think I will have to lock down my browsing for the next few days. I understand the next Star Wars animated show (after Underworld) is also going to be about Darth Maul, and I'm kind of dubious, but maybe they can do something interesting with it. Myself, I would rather have learned more about Omega's adventures in the Rebellion.
I'm halfway through this month's book for book club, but it's heavy going: Therese Raquin, by Zola. I have liked Zola: he's very grounded, very vivid. Not at all romantic. But these characters are really very unlikeable. I may end up skimming a lot to finish by Tuesday.
***
I feel like I'm running out of plotty time-travel fixit fics in which determined heroes (and heroines) go back in time and prevent the errors of their forebearers. I suspect I have not found the right tags on AO3...
In other news, I am listening to Mind the Tags, a charming podcast about fandom, specifically fic-writing fandom. And although the hosts are quite nice, they're so young, and I found myself talking back to them as they fumbled their way through a discussion of the early days of alt.tv.x-files.creative. They tried to talk about show-specific archives and auto-archiving and never even mentioned Ephemeral and Gossamer! There are plenty of us fandom Olds still around!
(Although, how cool is it that Gossamer is still up? WTF.)
Still, it's a very friendly and upbeat podcast full of enthusiasm for fandom and fannish institutions, so I encourage y'all to give it a try if that's the sort of thing you enjoy. I found them because one of the hosts got interviewed by Anne Helen Peterson on her Culture Study podcast, which is also great.
In other other news, I lined up a group of local pals to go see our local minor league baseball team next month! So that will be fun! I like minor-league baseball because it's cheap and low-stakes and you can sit outside and drink beer and eat corn dogs and it doesn't really matter except you're there with a crowd and it's just fun. And all the seats are good.
Lamb-petting Easter open house at the sheep farm
Apr. 19th, 2025 04:13 pmcimoreneWe went to Stentorp and petted the lambs!
Here's all the pictures on my pet photo blog
I got a sweater's worth of very soft brown finnwool too.
This is my favorite. I can't get over the expression of this lamb while Wax was petting it 😂. I want this reaction to everything:
Here's all the pictures on my pet photo blog
I got a sweater's worth of very soft brown finnwool too.
This is my favorite. I can't get over the expression of this lamb while Wax was petting it 😂. I want this reaction to everything:
Daily Happiness
Apr. 18th, 2025 11:00 pmtorachan1. Nintendo announced that preorders for the Switch 2 will start on 4/24 and the price will stay the same. Hopefully it won't be too difficult to get one.
2. I had ordered some jeans from Target the other day but have to return them because they don't fit (they discontinued the style of jeans I have been wearing these past few years so now I have to try to find an equivalent), so we were planning to go to Target to return them today, and then last night we watched a video about the new pickle menu items at Popeye's, and there is no Popeye's conveniently nearby but there are two near Targets on the other side of town. So we decided to go to one of those Targets and then get lunch at Popeye's. Sadly they seem to be already out of the fried pickle chips, but Carla did get their pickle brined wings and a pickle lemonade. I just got regular chicken tenders, but they were really delicious. I wish we had a Popeye's or even KFC nearby but the only fast food chicken near us is Chick-fil-A. :( Anyway! Returned the pants, stocked up on cat food, and had a nice lunch. Oh, and Popeye's also right now has strawberries and cream biscuits, which are very tasty.
3. Chloe was being so tolerant of Jasper being near her, and Jasper was being a good boy and not pestering.
2. I had ordered some jeans from Target the other day but have to return them because they don't fit (they discontinued the style of jeans I have been wearing these past few years so now I have to try to find an equivalent), so we were planning to go to Target to return them today, and then last night we watched a video about the new pickle menu items at Popeye's, and there is no Popeye's conveniently nearby but there are two near Targets on the other side of town. So we decided to go to one of those Targets and then get lunch at Popeye's. Sadly they seem to be already out of the fried pickle chips, but Carla did get their pickle brined wings and a pickle lemonade. I just got regular chicken tenders, but they were really delicious. I wish we had a Popeye's or even KFC nearby but the only fast food chicken near us is Chick-fil-A. :( Anyway! Returned the pants, stocked up on cat food, and had a nice lunch. Oh, and Popeye's also right now has strawberries and cream biscuits, which are very tasty.
3. Chloe was being so tolerant of Jasper being near her, and Jasper was being a good boy and not pestering.
My dad is home!
Apr. 18th, 2025 03:56 pmcimoreneFrom the hospital, that is. He got home yesterday and I spent all day expecting (in vain) my mom or sister to remember to explain the medical mysteries and the outcomes (my sister explained them today). It seems things were caused by medication errors. He missed a heart medication the day of his surgery and was on too many blood thinners, which have been adjusted now. He is still too weak to use his phone though, so I haven't heard from him in a while. Usually he is quite active in our family chat. But this is probably because he didn't get the medication he takes for tremors while he was in the hospital.
I was happily expecting to go pet the spring lambs at Stentorp today, and also buy more local untreated wool at their Easter open house. Then last night I had cramps that were the most painful I have felt in years and years. It didn't hurt as much as when I broke my elbow, but that was almost ten years ago. I do most months have cramps bad enough to curtail how much I move around in spite of taking painkillers, but usually less than a whole day's worth of them, and nothing that I have ever needed stronger painkillers for than ibuprofen. In fact in the last few years they've gotten much less severe and I have mostly been fine with 1000 mg of paracetamol (acetaminophen). I guess I've used ibuprofen instead maybe... three times in the last year, and then usually only 400 mg. Last night I took 1000 mg of paracetamol and 600 mg of ibuprofen and I was crouching over the side of the bed pressing a microwaved wheat hotpack to my belly with one hand and wolfing down buttered toast with the other (my stomach is sensitive and I never take ibuprofen without food), and then I lay there with a hot pack under my lower back and another on my lower abdomen for like... an hour, probably?
I was mentally clinging to this promised treat of petting lambs and getting wool last night, and I got up a little early today. But apparently Wax's new episode of 911 came out early this morning and she spent four hours or something trying and failing to get a copy of it and then she was so mad about bad writing and the continued absence (second week in a row) of her blorbo from the screen that she was unable to... leave her computer chair... or think about anything else... until it was too late to go today. They still have an open house tomorrow, though. We'll have to go tomorrow.
(This bad writing on 911 isn't related to the previously-mentioned fact that apparently her ship is going canon. Since last update, a press release for next season promised to continue the "will-they-won't-they" between the characters, so this seems like confirmation, but also confirmation that they won't before the end of the season. The bad writing is a pretty widespread issue, since it's a network tv primetime soap opera, and continuity, plausibility, and character development are spotty. This week's offensively bad writing is related to a ridiculously implausible medical emergency and melodramatic brush with death [two things that happen frequently], the apparent departure of one of their biggest stars and the first time a main character has departed the show. Either someone died, or it's another fakeout: he did already fake die a year ago, according to Wax, so it's repetitive either way. Seems like maybe the actor is actually leaving now? The character death, besides being silly, implausible, and repetitive of past notes, is not good writing for the character, according to Wax, who is also giving angry jaded snorts at text posts looking forward to characters dealing with "deep grief" because the show is notoriously bad at remembering to show characters grieving or, in general, experiencing psychological consequences after traumatic experiences.)
I was happily expecting to go pet the spring lambs at Stentorp today, and also buy more local untreated wool at their Easter open house. Then last night I had cramps that were the most painful I have felt in years and years. It didn't hurt as much as when I broke my elbow, but that was almost ten years ago. I do most months have cramps bad enough to curtail how much I move around in spite of taking painkillers, but usually less than a whole day's worth of them, and nothing that I have ever needed stronger painkillers for than ibuprofen. In fact in the last few years they've gotten much less severe and I have mostly been fine with 1000 mg of paracetamol (acetaminophen). I guess I've used ibuprofen instead maybe... three times in the last year, and then usually only 400 mg. Last night I took 1000 mg of paracetamol and 600 mg of ibuprofen and I was crouching over the side of the bed pressing a microwaved wheat hotpack to my belly with one hand and wolfing down buttered toast with the other (my stomach is sensitive and I never take ibuprofen without food), and then I lay there with a hot pack under my lower back and another on my lower abdomen for like... an hour, probably?
I was mentally clinging to this promised treat of petting lambs and getting wool last night, and I got up a little early today. But apparently Wax's new episode of 911 came out early this morning and she spent four hours or something trying and failing to get a copy of it and then she was so mad about bad writing and the continued absence (second week in a row) of her blorbo from the screen that she was unable to... leave her computer chair... or think about anything else... until it was too late to go today. They still have an open house tomorrow, though. We'll have to go tomorrow.
(This bad writing on 911 isn't related to the previously-mentioned fact that apparently her ship is going canon. Since last update, a press release for next season promised to continue the "will-they-won't-they" between the characters, so this seems like confirmation, but also confirmation that they won't before the end of the season. The bad writing is a pretty widespread issue, since it's a network tv primetime soap opera, and continuity, plausibility, and character development are spotty. This week's offensively bad writing is related to a ridiculously implausible medical emergency and melodramatic brush with death [two things that happen frequently], the apparent departure of one of their biggest stars and the first time a main character has departed the show. Either someone died, or it's another fakeout: he did already fake die a year ago, according to Wax, so it's repetitive either way. Seems like maybe the actor is actually leaving now? The character death, besides being silly, implausible, and repetitive of past notes, is not good writing for the character, according to Wax, who is also giving angry jaded snorts at text posts looking forward to characters dealing with "deep grief" because the show is notoriously bad at remembering to show characters grieving or, in general, experiencing psychological consequences after traumatic experiences.)
Daily Happiness
Apr. 17th, 2025 10:49 pmtorachan1. We took a longer walk today and went down to Bay Cities Deli to get sandwiches for dinner. It gets super busy at lunch and dinner time, so we went down there mid afternoon, which was definitely the right choice. It wasn't too crowded inside, and we got our sandwiches to bring home for dinner later, and a snack and something to drink while we sat and rested before the walk home. Plenty of tables available outside at that time of day, too.
2. Jasper says, you may kiss the paw.
2. Jasper says, you may kiss the paw.
2025 Disneyland Trip #22 (4/4/25) Tokyo Disneyland
Apr. 17th, 2025 02:37 pmtorachanOn Friday we went in to Tokyo in the morning and then decided to go to Disneyland for dinner and spend a few hours there in the evening to enjoy it on a non-rainy day. Tickets are reduced price for evening visits, and the price varies per day, but I think these were about 5000 yen each (~$35) and we could enter from 5pm.
( The electrical parade! )
( The electrical parade! )
Sending love and support to all my trans friends (and acquaintances) in the UK right now
Apr. 17th, 2025 01:36 pmrydra_wongFuck TERF Island, and fuck Rowling gloating over how she bought this. Solidarity forever.
ETA: if anyone wants to rage-donate, off the top of my head here are some ideas:
https://transsafety.network/
https://transkidsdeservebetter.org/
https://transaid.cymru/
https://genderedintelligence.co.uk/
https://www.gofundme.com/f/london-trans-pride-2025
https://www.stonewall.org.uk/
https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/
https://lgbtiqoutside.org/
ETA: if anyone wants to rage-donate, off the top of my head here are some ideas:
https://transsafety.network/
https://transkidsdeservebetter.org/
https://transaid.cymru/
https://genderedintelligence.co.uk/
https://www.gofundme.com/f/london-trans-pride-2025
https://www.stonewall.org.uk/
https://mermaidsuk.org.uk/
https://lgbtiqoutside.org/
Daily Happiness
Apr. 16th, 2025 09:23 pmtorachan1. Disneyland Pride Nite tickets went on sale this morning! We are going on Wednesday 6/18.
2. We had a nice lunch at DCA today. Nice overcast weather and not too crowded.
3. Gotta love Gemma's judgy face.
2. We had a nice lunch at DCA today. Nice overcast weather and not too crowded.
3. Gotta love Gemma's judgy face.