siduri1959 | Reading

Francos King "Frozen Music" (Arena Arrow)

A fairly simple little novella looking at India before and after independence. Rupert, recently divorced, is travelling around with his elderly father Philip and the latter's new wife, Kirsti, who is Rupert's age. They want to visit the grave of Philip's mother, who died during an earlier family trip to India in the 1930s, when Rupert was still a child. And of course it all leads to a lot of readjusting of perspectives and revising of memories.

It's really more an expanded short story than a compressed novel, and King uses the extra space to sketch in minor characters like the group's Indian driver, Rajiv, and the hotel manager Mr Solomon, whose father had worked for Rupert's uncle. Slight, but very nicely done.

scripsi

One more post before vacation.

Challenge #7

The Ferris Wheel

Journaling: Life in fandom goes through ups and downs. Reminisce about the "wild ride" of your time in fandom or in other online communities.

The net wasn’t around when I was a teenager, but if it had, I’m sure I would have written fanfiction. Because even if I didn’t write them down, I did long and elaborate stories about The Lord of the Rings in my head. First merely adding a female companion to the fellowship, but after I read Silmarillion I made up more independent characters and adventures. I’m sorry I never did write them down, but I still have some of the synopsis for them.

I ventured online for the first time in early 1999. My son was a newborn, and one sleepless night I did a search for Dorothy L. Sayers and found a mailgroup that had just decided on a read.through of all her books. It was my first online community, and we had so much fun. Now, 26 years later, I´m still in contact with some of them. At some point we decided to write a round robin to create Harriet Vane’s fictitious detective novel Death 'Twixt Wind and Water, as it has a fair amount of clues to reconstruct. It was great fun, and the first time I wrote fiction in English. This mailgroup also introduced the concept of fanfiction to me, as some members also wrote Harry Potter fic.

For a couple of years I read fanfiction now and then, but never considered writing it. That changed when I happened to see a promo shot of Jason Isaacs as Captain Hook in Peter Pan in 2003. Peter Pan was one of my childhood favourites, and this picture triggered me into writing. For about 2 years I wrote feverishly, and wrote some really dark fanfic. And wrote myself into dealing with some trauma from my teens. To cut a rather long process very short, writing fanfic helped me heal in a way I had not foreseen, and was instrumental in shedding a depression I had lived in for years.

I didn’t write much between 2005-2013, even if I did write from time to time. I divorced, and juggling work and being a single mother gave me little time and energy for it. Even when life settled down I had got out of the habit to write, but in 2013 there was a sudden death in my family. It was a terrible and traumatic experience, and it triggered me into another feverish writing spell. I had just re-watched Doctor Who, from the First Doctor and onwards, and I started writing Whofic.

Once again I found writing very therapeutic, but after the first rush of writing I realised something I never consciously realised before. I love writing. It’s good for my well=being, regardless if I write a blogpost or a fic. Up until early 2022 I wrote steadily, exploring a number of fandoms and ships. Then I had a creative freeze when the war in Ukraine happened. I couldn’t do anything creative at all for a long time, and only got back to writing on a regular basis earlier this year. It feels good to be back!

As of now I have 123 fics on AO3 in 26 fandoms. 94 of those one-shots. I mostly write het, with a preference for strong and competent female characters and morally ambiguous male ones. I just checked, the ratio looks like this, F/M (80 fics), Gen (33), F/F (7), M/M (5), Multi (5). All my fics are in a historical and/or fantastical fandom. As a history nerd I spend a lot of time researching history when I write.

My fanfics can be found here.

ecosophia

Welcome back to Frugal Friday! This is a weekly forum post to encourage people to share tips on saving money, especially but not only by doing stuff yourself. A new post will be going up every Friday, and will remain active until the next one goes up. Contributions will be moderated, of course, and I have some simple rules to offer, which may change further as we proceed.

Rule #1:  this is a place for polite, friendly conversations about how to save money in difficult times. It's not a place to post news, views, rants, or emotional outbursts about the reasons why the times are difficult and saving money is necessary. Nor is it a place to use a money saving tip to smuggle in news, views, etc. I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.

Rule #2:  this is not a place for you to sell goods or services, period. Here again, I have a delete button and I'm not afraid to use it.

Rule #3:  please give your tip a heading that explains briefly what it's about.  Homemade Chicken Soup, Garden Containers, Cheap Attic Insulation, and Vinegar Cleans Windows are good examples of headings. That way people can find the things that are relevant for them. If you don't put a heading on your tip it will be deleted.

Rule #4: don't post anything that would amount to advocating criminal activity. Any such suggestions will not be put through.

Rule #5: don't post LLM ("AI") generated content, and don't bring up the subject unless you're running a homemade LLM program on your own homebuilt, steam-powered server farm.

With that said, have at it!

Current Mood: busy
Current Music: Yes, "Roundabout"

scripsi

As I'm going on my 4-week vacation tomorrow I know I won’t post much during that time. So here’s July’s books for most of the month, and the rest will be included for August. My goal this month was to actually finish some of the thirteen books I have started, but not finished. This is how it went.

The Empty Grave by Jonathan Stroud. The last of the Lockwood & Co series. I found it enjoyable, and the series ended with a satisfying conclusion. The reality of Marissa Fitts was more horrifying than I thought. But I also feel the ending opened for a sequel, with various things Lucy indicated that she had done since the grand finale, and also because we never found out Skull’s identity and why he was such a powerful ghost. But as this book was published in 2017, it doesn’t seem very likely it will come.

Det ockulta sekelskiftet (The Occult Turn of the Century) by Per Faxneld. How occultism influenced a number of Swedish artists in the late 19/early 20th century. Super interesting, and not something I knew anything about. Which is surprising as I’ve studied art history and consider myself pretty well-read on. But I think the idea that esoterism was influential to some of our more well-known artists has been seen as something embarrassing.

Of course I couldn’t abstain from not starting any new books, so I also read Stone and Sky by Ben Aaronovitch, the latest Rivers of London novel. I found it enjoyable, but not remarkable. Though I always like the inclusion of Abigail and the talking foxes.

Never Flinch by Stephen King. A return to Holly Gibney and her PI agency Finders Keepers. This time we have not one murderous person, but two. One that wants to kill a popular feminist, another who kills as revenge for a man who has been murdered in prison before it’s revealed he was wrongfully imprisoned. I like Holly as a character, but I kept putting this book down and then forgetting about it, so it’s safe to say it didn’t grab me.

And that’s it, so far for July.

lycomingst

The new cat tower is being used. There is contention and Snow is a bit of a bully. He chases Festis every time she tries to use it. Last night there was an argument and they both fell off as they tried to commit murder on each other.

I moved the older tower in alongside the new one. It’s rather rickety but it provides a view of the back yard where everything is happening. I’m hoping the cats can peacefully coexist if each has a seat at the window.

I play a computer game called “June’s Journey” and about a week ago I started getting a message that there was a ‘security threat’ and it wouldn’t open. Inquieres told me that I wasn’t the only one. It was a new update they did and their website said that they didn’t support Chrome. Well, you have for the last 6/7 years. I don’t know anything about IT but cutting your customer base seems that you’re going in the wrong direction. I miss my game. Once in a survey I did for them I asked if they got their servers at a garage sale. Things have always been chancy with them.

I finished “Agents of Shield”. Whedon is a jerk but he and his family (blood and artistic) turn out good series. I’m going to miss the gang. Coulson is immortal, as it should be.

There is going to be a brief interlude before starting my next set of dvds as I want to rewatch Ghosts (UK) for writing purposes.

I’m getting bored of summer. And there’s still August to get through.

ravena_kade

Trying the work from at home thing again. Im afraid if I don't I could loose the privilege. Happy it is not humid. I don't have decent a/c where my computer set up is so while it is 85 it is still comfortable for me. The boss is on vacation so today I am taking an easy day.

I spent lunch on the deck and then walked the garden...it's not that big, but I like to dead head the Day Lilies
as a way to relax. .

Next week is Lobster week. The big 6-0. Im looking forward to it. My 40s were fun. I met a lot of new people and did fun things. My 50s saw loss, grief, and stress. I am looking forward to closing the 50s door.

profiterole_reads

Fantastic Four was a lot of fun. It's not an origin story, despite the title.

I'm not big on this team, but I appreciated that there was a very strong focus on the fact that they're scientists, not just superheroes.

There are 2 mid/post-credits scenes.

numb3r_5ev3n

This post is mostly in response to this video.

When Post Modernism and the remnants of the the Enlightenment declared the cultural myths of our collective past anathema or meaningless, those of good faith abandoned it all, and left it lying on the battlefield; obsessed with clinging only to what was verifiably true or verifiably real in "real reality."

"We've left myth and superstition behind," they congratulated each other, with relieved smiles that were also maybe a touch too smug and self-satisfied.

But they left myth and meaning on the battlefield for Gmork to seize. For Fascists to pick up and use. And the Nothing grows stronger.

We should have learned this lesson 80 years ago, but we ignored it. We let it slip through our fingers. And now it's begging us to listen, to pay attention, and to understand.

Now, the reactionary creeps imagine themselves to be the defenders and gatekeepers of myth, and they've exploited the mythic image of the Solar King in order to seize control of the world. But *myth* is all the reactionary creeps have. People of good faith at least have Verifiable Truth, which is something that the reactionary creeps will never have. So they fight for myth and symbolism as if it's the only thing worth fighting for - because it represents the totality of their reality and experience.

But now, women and girls, and young people of color, or people with their gender in transition, are finally seeing themselves represented in our modern myths as protagonists, as more than secondary characters, or villains, or cautionary tales, or comic relief, or prizes to be won. And the reactionary creeps wail and shriek in weepy, snotty, indignant outrage that they're being robbed, because myth is literally all they have.

They could just shrug, and return to their own gallery of pleasing, ego-soothing Heroic/Solar-Phallic myth-images; because despite their wails, they are still represented in a pandering majority. But they can't let anyone else be seen or heard or represented, because myth is literally all they have.

The winning move is not to leave myth behind. For people of good faith need to take it back, to reclaim it. Because when we take it from reactionary creeps, they won't have anything left but the hollow reality of their own empty souls, their own barren constructs; voids containing nothing but cheap, cracked mirrors designed to reflect their own warped self-images back at them. Only then will they *have* to face reality for what it actually is.

numb3r_5ev3n

Purveyor of wicked tunes, you were the cool stepfather of all teenage rebels when I was growing up. And everyone who remained a teenage rebel in their hearts. RIP, sweet Prince Of Darkness, and thank you for the music.

jazzy_dave

Book 37 - Carl Hiaasen "Hoot" (Macmillan)

Dare I say it? This book was a 'hoot'! This is a fun read with wonderfully developed characters that still offer ruminations for deeper thought. Three middle school youth band together to protect a species of endangered owls from corporate expansion and their neglectful attitude toward the environment in their rush to expand. It offers food for thought about resistance to corruption, care and protection for the environment and encouragement for those who think they might not be able to take a stand. The book is well written and reads fairly quickly as Hiassen combines intimate knowledge of the Florida landscape with wit and insight. A wonderful and worthwhile read!

ecosophia

We are now approaching the end of the fourth year of these open posts. When I first posted a tentative hypothesis on the course of the Covid phenomenon, I had no idea that discussion on the subject would still be necessary all these years later, much less that it would turn into so lively, complex, and troubling a conversation. Still, here we are. Crude death rates and other measures of collapsing public health are anomalously high in many countries, but nobody in authority wants to talk about the inadequately tested experimental Covid injections that are the most likely cause; ~~public health authorities~~ government shills for the pharmaceutical industry are still trying to push through laws that will allow them to force vaccinations on anyone they want; public trust in science is collapsing; and the story continues to unfold.

So it's time for another open post. The rules have been slightly expanded due to a recent discussion here:

1. If you plan on parroting the party line of the medical industry and its paid shills, please go away. This is a place for people to talk openly, honestly, and freely about their concerns that the party line in question is dangerously flawed and that actions being pushed by the medical industry and its government enablers are causing injury and death on a massive scale. It is not a place for you to dismiss those concerns. Anyone who wants to hear the official story and the arguments in favor of it can find those on hundreds of thousands of websites.

2. If you plan on insisting that the current situation is the result of a deliberate plot by some villainous group of people or other, please go away. There are tens of thousands of websites currently rehashing various conspiracy theories about the Covid-19 outbreak and the vaccines. This is not one of them. What we're exploring is the likelihood that what's going on is the product of the same arrogance, incompetence, and corruption that the medical industry and its wholly owned politicians have displayed so abundantly in recent decades. That possibility deserves a space of its own for discussion, and that's what we're doing here.

3. If you plan on using rent-a-troll derailing or disruption tactics, please go away. I'm quite familiar with the standard tactics used by troll farms to disrupt online forums, and am ready, willing, and able -- and in fact quite eager -- to ban people permanently for engaging in them here. Oh, and I also lurk on other Covid-19 vaccine skeptic blogs, so I'm likely to notice when the same posts are showing up on more than one venue.

4. If you plan on making off topic comments, please go away. This is an open post for discussion of the Covid epidemic, the vaccines, drugs, policies, and other measures that supposedly treat it, and other topics directly relevant to those things. It is not a place for general discussion of unrelated topics. Nor is it a place to ask for medical advice; giving such advice, unless you're a licensed health care provider, legally counts as practicing medicine without a license and is a crime in the US. Don't even go there.

5. If you don't believe in treating people with common courtesy, please go away. I have, and enforce, a strict courtesy policy on my blogs and online forums, and this is no exception. The sort of schoolyard bullying that takes place on so many other internet forums will get you deleted and banned here. Also, please don't drag in current quarrels about sex, race, religions, etc. No, I don't care if you disagree with that: my journal, my rules.

6. Please don't just post bare links without explanation. A sentence or two telling readers what's on the other side of the link is a reasonable courtesy, and if you don't include it, your attempted post will be deleted.

7. Please don't post LLM ("AI") generated content. This is a place for human beings to talk to other human beings, not for the regurgitation of machine-generated text. Also, please don't discuss large language models (the technology popularly and inaccurately called "artificial intelligence" these days) except as they bear directly on the Covid phenomenon. Here again, my finger is hovering over the delete button.

Please also note that nothing posted here should be construed as medical advice, which neither I nor the commentariat (excepting those who are licensed medical providers) are qualified to give. Please take your medical questions to the licensed professional provider of your choice.

With that said, the floor is open for discussion.

Current Mood: nerdy
Current Music: Michael Jones, "Aspen Summer"

scripsi

Fanfic game from kitarella_imagines

If you’ve written fics for more than one year on AO3, go to your statistics page. Click on the different years at the top to see the categories of statistics for each year.

1. Which year did you write the most words? Do you know why? e.g. you had more time; you were caught up in an exciting new fandom or pairing; you got a rush of ideas etc.

The year with the highest word count is 2015 with 137 352 words. But that is because when I signed up to AO3 in the very late 2014, I uploaded most of the fics I had written from 2003 onwards. Even if I had a writing spurt in 2015, I'm quite sure it wouldn’t be the year with the highest word count if I just checked the new fics. So the year where I can be absolutely sure is my most productive one, would be 2021 with 94497 words. I had watched The Queen’s Gambit over Christmas, and fell for Beth Harmon/Vasily Borgov. At the time there was a very active Discord for that pairing, which was very inspirational, and I wrote 6 fics for that fandom, one of them being the longest and most ambitious things I have ever written. I also started fanfics for The Mummy and All About Eve.

2. Which year did you write the least words? Why was this? e.g. lack of time, too busy, no inspiration etc.

2023 with zero words. The war in Ukraine completely killed my inspiration. So from March 2022 to March 2024 I didn’t write anything at all. I’m writing again now, but I have only worked on fics I started in 2022, I still haven’t got any ideas for new fics. The year with the least wordcount when I have actually written anything is 2024 with 2948 words.

3. Which years did you get most hits, kudos, bookmarks and fic subscriptions? Do you know why? (e.g. popular fandoms, lots of words written.) Are there years where you have the same amount of bookmarks and subscriptions?

Again 2015 racks them up, but it’s 2021 that I can be sure of. It has the most of everything. I think it’s because, completely by accident, I managed to fall for a fandom that was hot right then, The Queen’s Gambit, and I have found that The Mummy fanfic seems to have a perpetual fandom, as those fics always are among my most popular. And to my surprise my all About Eve fanfic has got a lot more attention than I ever thought, considering the pairing is so unusual I’m the only one who has written it on AO3.

4. Which years did you get least hits, kudos, bookmarks and fic subscriptions? Do you know why? (e.g. niche fandoms, not many fics written.) Do you have any other conclusions?

Apart from the nothing year of 2023, it's 2024, when I only updated with a chapter on a WIP. If I take a year when I participated actively, then it’s 2019, when I wrote 6 fanfics in as many fandoms. But 4 of those were one-shots, and only 2 in fandoms that are on the bigger side. Most of my fandoms are small, and usually I enjoy pairings that aren't the popular ones.

jazzy_dave

Graham Swift "Last Orders" (Picador)

This is Swift's Booker Prize-winning novel from 1996, and for me it is a re-read. Some have noted similarities between it and Faulkner's As I Lay Dying, but that does not detract from its quality which has been evident in Swift's writing since his earlier success with Waterland (a novel that was short-listed for the Booker). While I found it a bit slow at first, it eventually evolved into a captivating tale of English working-class families in the four decades following WW II. When Jack Dodds dies suddenly of cancer after years of running a butcher shop in London, he leaves a strange request--namely, that his ashes be scattered off Margate pier into the sea. None could be better be suited to fulfill this wish than his three oldest drinking buddies--insurance man Ray, vegetable seller Lenny, and undertaker Vic, all of whom, like Jack himself, fought also as soldiers or sailors in the long-ago world war.

The narrative start is developed with an economy that presents (through the characters' own voices, one after another) the story's humanity and depth with a minimum of melodrama. The group is uncomfortable at first as evidenced by weak and self- conscious jocular remarks when they meet at their local pub in the company of the urn holding Jack's ashes; but once the group gets on the road, in an expensive car driven by Jack's adoptive son, Vince, the story starts gradually to move forward, cohere, and deepen. The reader gradually learns why it is that no wife comes along, why three marriages out of three broke apart, and why Vince always hated his stepfather Jack and still does--or so he thinks. As you might expect there are stories shared with topics like tales of innocent youth, suffering wives, early loves, lost daughters, secret affairs, and old antagonisms. There is even a fistfight over the dead on an English hilltop, and a strewing of Jack's ashes into roiling sea waves that will draw up feelings perhaps unexpectedly strong. Graham Swift is able to avoid artificiality by listening closely to these lives and presenting realistic voices that share stories of humanity with the proverbial ring of truth. If you have seen the film version, then you will know these characters, but if you have not, I totally recommend this novel forst.

jazzy_dave

Grayson Perry "Playing to the Gallery" (Penguin Books)

A genuine attempt at an accessible work on understanding contemporary art for the average person, by one of Britain's more accessible and popular contemporary artists. I like Grayson Perry and his work, and I have a lot of time for anything he wants to say on this (and several other) subjects. I find myself nodding along to a lot of what he writes here, and he does raise some thought provoking points.

However, somehow it doesn't add up to more than the sum of its parts. There is no great overarching vision here, just a series of interesting points well made, so it ends up lacking a little coherence overall. Also, he is still very much an insider to the art world, so sometimes what he says seems to lack a little insight into what those who are truly on the outside might feel (lots of talk about making money out of the art world, and thinking about what curators value in a work etc; quite minority interests, even for other artists that don't exist in that rarefied strata) But, worth a look, not least for his humorous sketches that litter the book, and manage to capture some aspects of contemporary culture pretty neatly.

scripsi

No energy at all for doing the creativity prompts right now.

Challenge #4

Fun House

Journaling: What is making you smile these days? Create a top 10 list of anything you want to talk about.

Getting a message from Stepdaughter with pictures of my granddaughter.
Face-timing with my nephew and niece.
My cat.
Taking a walk by the lake where I live.
Going to the summer house.
Finishing a sewing project.
Trying a new recipe and really liking it, so it gets added to the dinner rotation.
Thinking about it, cooking in general makes me smile.
Finishing cleaning the house. I loathe the actual cleaning, but love the finished result.
Listening to music I love.

Challenge #5

Journaling prompt: Be a carnival barker for your favorite movie, book, or show (or any other of your choice - game, comic, anything else)! Write a post that showcases the best your chosen title has to offer and entices passersby to check it out.

I will do a little rerun here, and point you to this post, where I talk about two of my all time favorites, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë and Gaudy Night by Dorothy L. Sayers.

Challenge #6

Journaling prompt: What games do you play, if any? Are you a solo-gamer or do you view games as a social activity?

I don’t play computer games, apart from solitaire. I’ve tried, and promptly get mind-numbingly bored. I do enjoy board games on occasion, though.

profiterole_reads

Monsoon Queen by Jo Carthage was awesome! Noor, a Somali slave hiding her magic, escapes her master and joins the Yemeni resistance against the British Empire.

This book has amazing worldbuilding based on East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. It starts in Tajoura (which is now located in Djibouti), then goes to Yemen, in 1812 (Gregorian calendar) / 1227 (Islamic calendar).

I found this novel a little too short (40k+), but there will thankfully be 4 of them. The characters are interesting, and there's one I'm feral about.

There's major f/f and m/m.

ecosophia

It's a little past midnight, and so it's time to launch a new Magic Monday. Ask me anything about occultism, and with certain exceptions noted below, any question received by midnight Monday Eastern time will get an answer. Please note: Any question or comment received after that point will not get an answer, and in fact will not be put through. If you're in a hurry, or suspect you may be the 341,928th person to ask a question, please check out the very rough version 1.3 of The Magic Monday FAQ here.

Also: I will not be putting through or answering any more questions about practicing magic around children. I've answered those in simple declarative sentences in the FAQ. If you read the FAQ and don't think your question has been answered, read it again. If that doesn't help, consider remedial reading classes; yes, it really is as simple and straightforward as the FAQ says. And further: I've decided that questions about getting goodies from spirits are also permanently off topic here. The point of occultism is to develop your own capacities, not to try to bully or wheedle other beings into doing things for you. I've discussed this in a post on my blog.

(The image? I've finished the sequence of my published books; while I decide what I want to do next, I have some memes to share.)

Buy Me A Coffee

Ko-Fi

I've had several people ask about tipping me for answers here, and though I certainly don't require that I won't turn it down. You can use either of the links above to access my online tip jar; Buymeacoffee is good for small tips, Ko-Fi is better for larger ones. (I used to use PayPal but they developed an allergy to free speech, so I've developed an allergy to them.) If you're interested in political and economic astrology, or simply prefer to use a subscription service to support your favorite authors, you can find my Patreon page here and my SubscribeStar page here.

I've also had quite a few people over the years ask me where they should buy my books, and here's the answer. Bookshop.org is an alternative online bookstore that supports local bookstores and authors, which a certain gargantuan corporation doesn't, and I have a shop there, which you can check out here. Please consider patronizing it if you'd like to purchase any of my books online.

And don't forget to look up your Pangalactic New Age Soul Signature at CosmicOom.com.

~~With that said, have at it!~~

***This Magic Monday is now closed, and no further comments will be put through. See you next week!***

Current Mood: melancholy
Current Music: Will Ackerman, "Hawk Circles"

ravena_kade

Friday morning I had to call the boss about questions for the division of banks audit and I found out that I had been posting an item wrong every month. She said it was in the notes. I said it was not and remember at one point we both agreed that the notes sucked? In that call I also found out that she has not started the Call report quarterly audit like she said she would on Monday and that she is starting her vacation a week later...and overlapping mine. Sigh. I was so mad after the call. The girls asked me if I was okay. I said that I had to go out and get something to eat so I have something in my mouth so I dont go off on a rant. I took a walk to the bagel shop and bought bagels and cream cheese for team.

Saturday I went to Revere beach all the transportation I take had severe delays. Sigh. The tide was wrong for sea shell collecting but I do have a treasure from the day. As I walked a little girl ran up to me...her name was Emma and it was her birthday. She was 4. So cute and a talker. I saw an older woman approaching and I asked Emma if her grandmother brought her to the beach today. The older woman caught up to us. Emma said yes. I said my Grammy would bring me to the beach and we would collect seashells. My grammy collected white ones. I said have a nice day with your Grammy and ai started walking. She ran up to me again and said that she was having birthday party today. How nice. She had outrun her grandmother again. She said they were going to have mani pedis. How nice She wanted pink toenails. I smiled and showed her that my toenail were orange. I started walking when grandma caught up. A few minutes later she ran up to me again and invited me to her party. So cute. Grandma was just steps behind. Grandma said that it seems Emma wants to be with me. I said it's the red hair and orange toenails. I said to Emma that she should stay close to her Grandmother because she knows when the party is. It would be said if you were so far ahead of her that you missed going to your party. Emma agreed with me and said that she needed to stay with Grammy so Grammy could drive her home to the party. Exactly. Grammy said thank you to me. I smiled.

The rest of the weekend was chores. There are so many that I just dont seem to get everything done. The outside chores are just too much for one person. I have no help and the pay cut make sit so I can't get paid help. Bah.

Good news is that cancer cousin's white blood cells look normal. Her blood cancer really doesn't go into remission and she will need chemo for the rest of her life, but right now her numbers are superb. She was able to drive last week as she is no longer required to have the neck brace and she goes back to work this week (she can't retire yet because her medicals bills are sky high).

The bad news is that stroke cousin fell last night and the police and fire departments came to pick her up. This triggered her anxiety and she was sick to her stomach 4 times... each time her sister had to shower her and change the bed as she refused to have a basin or bag at the ready incase she got sick again. Tomorrow the Cancer cousin is going to have a talk with the therapists stating that stroke cousin is not progressing at all. What can they do as the family can no longer care for her if she isn't going to even try to get out of bed. It took 4 Firemen to get her on her feet.

lycomingst

This week's questions were suggested by bindyree.

1. Name five favorite movies.
Laura (Casablanca is, of course,a given), The Avengers, The Bourne Legacy, Paddington 2, The next one I see that surprises me.

2. Name four areas of interest you became interested in after you were done with your formal education.
Travel, history, crocheting, cats

3. Name three things you would change about this world.
Everybody gets fed, everybody goes to school, everybody gets to vote.

4. Name two of your favorite childhood toys.
I was just about books and reading.

5. Name one person you could be handcuffed to for a full day.
I don’t think that would be feasible since I have to go to the bathroom so much.

I noticed the other day that the kitty litter I buy went up three dollars.

ecosophia

I'm delighted to announce that the Order of Spiritual Alchemy, one of the traditions preserved and passed onto me by John Gilbert, has now issued the Octagon Society lessons in book format. Here's the announcement from the Council of Guardians:

"The Council of Guardians for the Order of Spiritual Alchemy is delighted to announce the release of The Octagon Society Lessons in the form of a physical book.

For those who prefer to work with something in hand, the classic lessons have been reproduced with a new introduction by the President of the Council of Guardians, William Hunter Duncan. The book is spiral-bound so it will lie flat while journaling, and modestly priced to cover the expense of printing. The OSA takes no profit from its sale.

Special thanks to Wendy, who posts here as TemporaryReality, for her hard work in carefully preparing the written material and cover art for production. We couldn't have done it without her!

The book is available on Lulu: https://www.lulu.com/shop/octagon-society/order-of-spiritual-alchemy/paperback/product-45yw2dz.html

As always, the lessons can be found in free digital format on the OSA's website: https://octagonsociety.org/ ."

For those who haven't been following along, the Octagon Society lessons are a set of journaling exercises meant to help you unpack all your unfinished business, deal with it, and get a life. Yes, it's as challenging as this makes it sound, but if you want to deal with the burdens of the past and go on to have a life worth living, I know of no better way to do it. Please join me in congratulating the Council of Guardians and longtime poster TemporaryReality for making this resource available in a new and useful form.

Current Mood: delighted
Current Music: Jethro Tull, "Cup of Wonder"

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siduri1959

December 2002

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Walk between the worlds...mm

Reading

Book 38 - Francos King "Frozen Music"

Sunshine Revival Challenge #7

Frugal Friday

What I have been reading, (almost) July edition

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Fantastic Four

Myth And Meaning.

RIP Ozzy Osbourne.

Book 37 - Carl Hiaasen "Hoot"

Open (More or Less) Post on Covid 205

Fanfic meme

Book 36 - Graham Swift "Last Orders"

Book 35 - Grayson Perry "Playing to the Gallery"

Sunshine Revival Challenge #4. #5 and #6

Monsoon Queen by Jo Carthage

Magic Monday

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Octagon Society material in book format!

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December 2002

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