I love looking out the window at the snowfall
Dec. 16th, 2025 07:48 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
conuly( Read more... )
Done Since 2025-12-07 with bonus s4s
Dec. 14th, 2025 11:58 ammdlbear Not a great week. Started out well, with cat cuddles and walks Sunday and
Monday mornings. Then came my GP appointment.
Of course, I was supposed to be fasting, so that was a bust. And I picked
up my re-filled prescriptions (the pharmacy is across the street), but
there was one missing. So I went in again for labs on Thursday, and they
couldn't find a vein. WTF? They advised me to try at the hospital. Labs
at HagaZiekenhuis require an appointment, but fortunately I already
had an appointment, following up on my anemia. So that was
Friday. Skipped breakfast, went in, handed them both lab forms,
one stick and done. And their website works, so I got to see the
results ahead of the appointment next week.
Oh yeah, I also had a psych appointment Thursday afternoon, to discuss
antidepressants, which actually went well. I really don't have any idea
how to make use of therapy, but I like talking about myself, my problems,
and my family. Follow-up in two weeks.
CW: medical, whingeing.
Since April or therabouts,
my "GP" is a clinic with a handful of doctors and a bunch of assistants.
It took me a while (months) to finally figure this out. Anyway, Carmen --
the assistant I saw on Monday -- couldn't find my lab results from 20
November. Fortunately I'd asked for a printout at my previous
appointment, so I scanned that and sent it by email. I got my BP meds
changed somewhat. Then labs on Wednesday.
Then yesterday I tried attending Festival of the Living Rooms, the quarterly online filk con that started almost by accident during Covid. But instead of using the Zoom app, which just works, they insisted on going through the web app embedded on their shiny new website. Calling it beta quality is being generous. FotLR may have jumped the shark this time.
Naturally I didn't get much done otherwise, although I did go back and look at the scratch tracks I'd recorded for my next album, Amethyst Rose. Um... They were recorded between 2004 and 2010! WTF? I'll have to see whether anything can be rescued from that debacle.
Enough griping. Links! How about Grooming a Giant Rescue Maine Coon Cat? And Monday's APOD, Flying Over the Earth at Night, a time-lapse from the ISS. Particularly noteworthy for the footage of the Aurora Australis starting at 1:20
If you have lots of free time, take a look at WikiFlix. CONTENT WARNING: very deep rabbit hole full of old movies.
And finally, because of the season and because it's incredibly cool, here's The Ukrainian Origin of “Carol of the Bells” | The Story of Shchedryk (Щедрик). Turns out the tune was taken from an old New Year's Day chant, from back when New Years Day was celebrated on Beltane. Better, here's the Original Ukrainian Version, sung first in a pretty littleral English translation (with Ukranian subtitles!), then in Ukranian. And best of all, here's a Remix by the B&B project for bandura and button accordion.
December 14, 2025: Munchkin Mischief On The Dice Tower
Dec. 14th, 2025 06:49 am![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png){kind=small}
daily_illuminator_feed
– Michelle Richardson
Warehouse 23 News: The City Never Sleeps Because Of All The Action
There are a million stories in the city, and they're all exciting! GURPS Action 9: The City shows how you can add GURPS City Stats to your GURPS Action campaigns. It also features six sample cities to use with your own action-packed adventures. Download it today from Warehouse 23!
Safety
Dec. 13th, 2025 11:08 pmysabetwordsmithThey then factored in other variables that can affect life expectancy, including physical inactivity, employment status, and educational level. The association between insufficient sleep and lower life expectancy still held. Only smoking had a stronger link.
Good, adequate sleep is a survival need. Modern society often sabotages it.
However, this study suggests that banking sleep on weekends can mitigate the effects of lost sleep during the week. I used to do that in school, and people said it didn't work, but it certainly helped my energy level. It may be a trick that some but not all bodies can do.
Today's Cooking
Dec. 13th, 2025 11:03 pmysabetwordsmithSkiing Lesson (part 1 of 1, complete)
Dec. 13th, 2025 05:58 pmdialecticdreamerBy Dialecticdreamer/Sarah Williams
Part 1 of 1, complete
Word count (story only): 1375
:: Farrah is visiting friends in Colorado when they interrupt their original plans to give her a birthday surprise. General fiction, written for the December of 2025 prompt call, from a suggestion made by
callibr8. My deepest thanks to her! ::Farrah walked as quickly as her snow pants allowed, and reached the front desk at the hotel before the clerk could page her a third time. “Call for Miss Anders? I’m here,” Farrah declared, crossing her arms. “You do realize that it’s before eight in the morning?”
“Yes, Miss Anders.” The clerk shrugged almost imperceptibly. “We tried calling your room, and when there was no answer, switched to making a general announcement. You had a call, but they asked that you be told to be ready to depart at a quarter of nine. I’m doing my best to make sure that you’re ready.”
( Read more... )
So, over at /r/Englishlearning there is a weekly "What is this thing" post
Dec. 14th, 2025 01:33 pmconulyYes, Virginia, there is a pork burger. This is why I have a picture of pork burger patties on my phone, so I can post it every time somebody says that those don't exist, or that they "really" mean a breakfast sandwich or a pulled pork sandwich or a ham sandwich or a BLT.
I always want to ask these people who, I guess, don't get out much why they're so sure that anything they haven't personally heard of before must not exist. It's a big old world, but apparently, not so much for them.
(I suppose I can be forgiven for being a bit snippy this time around, I mean, given everything.)
( Read more... )
Science
Dec. 13th, 2025 02:00 pmysabetwordsmithHumans may carry ancient neural traces that let us recognize the voices of our primate cousins.
Humans don’t just recognize each other’s voices—our brains also light up for the calls of chimpanzees, hinting at ancient communication roots shared with our closest primate relatives. Researchers found a specialized region in the auditory cortex that reacts distinctly to chimp vocalizations, but not to those of bonobos or macaques, revealing an unexpected mix of evolutionary and acoustic influences.
Birdfeeding
Dec. 13th, 2025 01:51 pmysabetwordsmithI fed the birds. I've seen a large mixed flock of sparrows and house finches, at least one female and four male cardinals, a mourning dove, and a tiny wren clinging to the bathroom window as it probed the edges for hibernating insects.
I put out water for the birds.
EDIT 12/13/25 -- I did a bit of work around the patio.
EDIT 12/13/25 -- I did more work around the patio.
EDIT 12/13/25 -- I did more work around the patio.
As it is getting dark, I am done for the night.
Whole new level of fucked
Dec. 13th, 2025 04:09 amfayanoraAnd don't you start,
kengr.Except now I do actually remember more. Other things in the dream after the false awakening: couldn't find my phone, there was a guy who was made of wood, only he had one leg and the other leg was a prosthetic, except the guy who was made of wood started out as a guy played by Sylvester Stallone who needed a super macho song to fight to. Oh, and I sucked Will Smith's cock.
Well, my pay didn't come in
Dec. 13th, 2025 02:36 amconulyI'll call again in the morning, I don't care if it is a weekend, but....
*headdesk*
I don't know what I'll do for groceries if this isn't resolved by Monday, but I'll wait until Monday to worry about it.
December 13, 2025: Hop Aboard The Last Train To Bremen
Dec. 13th, 2025 06:55 amdaily_illuminator_feed
Sure, making that deal seemed like a good idea at the time . . . 13 years ago, to be exact. Your band became wealthy and famous. It was everything you ever dreamed of. But you're starting to realize it was a terribly poor decision, now that the Devil has come to collect his due. You board a boxcar without even knowing where it's headed. Will you face the most fearsome villain of all and live to tell the tale? Only one of you can survive. Will it be you?
Last Train to Bremen, a storytelling RPG utilizing the bluffing mechanisms of Liar's Dice, is available for download.
– Michelle Richardson
Warehouse 23 News: Why Is The Darkness Blinking?
They're trapped between the realm of the living and the dead . . . and they're not too pleased about it. The Book of Unlife adds 44 unliving monsters to your The Fantasy Trip campaigns, along with a complete adventure setting. Live like there's too many tomorrows thanks to Warehouse 23!
Economics
Dec. 13th, 2025 12:15 amysabetwordsmithLos Angeles didn’t mismanage its way into crisis. It built its way here.
I disagree. If a city does not track all of its liabilities, such as the maintenance costs of roads and utilities, that is mismanagement. You can't run a budget when you don't know where your money is going. That ought to be obvious.
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Philosophical Questions: Humans
Dec. 13th, 2025 12:06 amysabetwordsmithIs the human tendency to create groups an overall positive or a negative trait in terms of general human flourishing?
Necessary. Insofar as we know, Homo like most primates is a troop animal, evolved to live in groups rather than alone. Individuals may choose to live alone, but it is much more difficult. Of course, humans can choose to create groups that are themselves positive or negative in structure and behavior, but that's a personal choice.